Karen Traviss - Halo: Glasslands

For my mother, who never found out how it ended

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

My grateful thanks go to Frank OConnor, franchise development director for Halo, and Kevin Grace, franchise manager for Halo, of 343 Industries, for being cool and always available for spitballing; Jim Gilmer, for unstinting moral support; Sam Burns, for telling me way back that writing AIs would be right up my street; Mary Fil Pletsch, Canadas ambassador to Sanghelios; Jerry Holkins and Mike Krahulik of Penny Arcade, for being good mates to me in trying times; and the Rooster Teeth team, for giving me the most fun Ive ever had without being arrested or popping a vertebra. Blarg!

Karen Traviss

343 Industries would like to thank Alicia Brattin, Scott DellOsso, Nick Dimitrov, David Figatner, James Frenkel, Stacy Hague-Hill, Josh Kerwin, Bryan Koski, Matt McCloskey, Paul Patinios, Whitney Ross, Bonnie Ross-Ziegler, Matt Skelton, Phil Spencer, Karen Traviss, and Carla Woo.

None of this would have been possible without the amazing efforts of the Microsoft staffers, including: Ben Cammarano, Christine Finch, Kevin Grace, Tyler Jeffers, Tiffany OBrien, Frank OConnor, Jeremy Patenaude, Corrinne Robinson, Eddie Smith, and Kiki Wolfkill.

CONTENTS

PROLOGUE

NOVEMBER 2552, LOCATION UNDEFINED. LAST VERIFIED REALSPACE LOCATION: THE CORE OF THE PLANET ONYX.

Its a beautiful sunny day. The oak branches are swaying gently in the breeze and the airs scented with unseen blossom.

And were trapped.

Did you ever run and hide as a kid? Ever slam the closet door behind you, giggling because you were sure youd never be found, and then realize youd locked yourself in? Did you panic or breathe a sigh of relief? I suppose it all depends on what you were hiding from.

Were hiding from the end of the world.

For all we know, its already happened. If theres anyone left out there, they dont even know were here. We may be the last sentient life left in the galaxyme, Chief Mendez, and a detachment of Spartans. Correction: three of my SpartansFred, Kelly, and Lindaand five others who are something else entirely, five I didnt even know existed until this week, and if theres one thing I cant stand, its not knowing.

Youll explain yourself to me, Chief. Ive got all the time in the world now. Ive got more time than I know what to do with.

Mendez takes something out of his pants pocket and gazes wistfully at it like a pilgrim with a holy relic before putting it back.

You can read Forerunner, Dr. Halsey, he says, impassive. Were still ignoring the elephant looming over us at the moment, neither of us saying whats really on our minds. He has his secrets, and I have mine. Do you know the symbol for pantry ? That would be handy right about now.

Hes staring up at a sun that cant possibly be there, set in an artificial sky that runs from summer blue at one horizon to starless midnight at the other. Were not on Onyx any longernot in this dimension, anyway.

Chief, this is the most advanced doomsday bunker ever built. Im not sure who Im trying to reassure, him or me. A civilization sufficiently advanced to build a bomb shelter the size of Earths orbit wouldnt forget to address the food supply. Would they?

Its a permanently lovely day inside this Dyson sphere, and beyond its walls is actually, I dont know any longer. It was Onyx. Now its somewhere in slipspace. Every time I think I have the measure of the Forerunners technology, something else pops up and confounds me. They must have shared our sense of beauty or bequeathed us theirs, because they made this environment idyllically rural; trees, grass, rivers, almost landscaped perfection.

Mendez pats his pocket as if checking something is still in there. Better hope they evolved beyond the usual procurement charlie-foxtrot, too, then. Or well have to live off the land.

Weve got unlimited water, Chief. Thats something.

Mendez has known me a damned long time. Over the years hes perfected that hoary old CPOs carefully blank expression that looks almost like deference. Almost. Its actually disgust. I know that now. I can see it.

But youre in no position to lecture me on ethics, are you, Chief? I know what youve done. The proofs right in front of me here. Im looking at them.

Mendez walks away in the direction of the two recon teams waiting under the oak trees. The Spartansmy protgs and Ackersons little project, these Spartan-IIIslook impatient to get on with something useful. They dont handle idleness well. We made warfare the sole focus of their lives.

Now we dont know if theres still a war outside to fight, or even a galaxy left to fight it in.

But thats fine by me. My Spartans are safe here. Thats all that matters. Safe if the Halo Array fires, anyway. I dont know if this is the haven it appears. Perhaps its already got tenants. Well find out the Navy way, Mendez says.

Okay, Spartans, the camps secured, so lets shake out and see whats in the neighborhood. Mendez unslings his rifle and looks at Fred. Conserve rations until we know if theres anything on the menu here. Right, sir?

Right, Chief. Radio check, people. Fred, Spartan-104, has been made a lieutenant at the ripe old age of forty-one. Priorities, in this ordersecure the area, locate a food supply, and find a way to revive Team Katana and the others.

How many Spartan-IIIs did Ackerson create? Five are already in suspension here, with three other men we cant identify, but we have no idea yet how to open their Forerunner slipspace pods. Theyll have an interesting story to tell when we do.

Fred gestures to take in the terrain. Treat this as an acquaint. Spartan-Twos familiarize themselves with Spartan-Threes so that when we get out of here, were ready to fight effectively. Kelly, Dr. Halsey, Tom, Oliviayoure with Chief Mendez. Linda, Lucy, Mark, Ashwith me. Move out.

Just as Fred turns to walk away, I catch his eye. He was never much good at burying his feelings, but he cant hide them from me anyway. I know all my Spartans better than their mothers ever did. He shuts his eyes tightly as if hes blocking out an unbearable world, just a fraction of a second, and then its gone. Weve buried our dead here. Two of those Spartan-IIIs, just into their teens, just children and Kurt never made it into the sphere.

I thought you were dead already, Kurt. Now Ive lost you twice.

Fred pats Lucy on the shoulder. You okay, Spartan?

She gives him a distracted nod. Shes a disturbing little scrap of a thing, too traumatized to speak. Mendez trained these kids. He knew. He knew what Ackerson was doing with my research. He was part of this all along.

And I wont forget that, Chief.

Kelly slows and drops back to walk beside me. Im not twenty-one anymore and I certainly dont have the stride of a two-meter Spartan, or even these new ones. My God, theyre too small. How can they be Spartans?

Youve fallen on your feet again, Dr. Halsey, Kelly says. Some rabbit hole. Did you know it was here?

I should stop trying to look as if I know everything, shouldnt I?

You think were going to lose this war. I know were not.

I extrapolate from known facts. But I dont mind being wrong sometimes.

How far would I go to save my Spartans? This far. I lured them to Onyx, the safest location I could think of, because I knew theyd never abandon their posts any other way. I lied to them to save them.

And theyre all that stands between me and damnation. Ive done terrible thingsmonstrous things, criminal thingsthat were necessary, but I did it to them. Kidnapped them as children. Experimented on them. Altered them terribly. Killed half of them. Made them into soldiers with no life outside the UNSC.