dappered | (no subject)

[ Cortana doesn't sleep. Ever. Which is maybe why she had spent a good majority of her time watching John sleep instead, from her chip on the table next to him. She didn't need sleep, ever, got along just fine without it, and she had never been really sure if that was one of the quirks or the downsides of being inhuman.

At least she doesn't miss much.

Still, this isn't something that should have happened. Whatever it is, whatever it was, Cortana doesn't understand how she could be in one place one second, staring out the hangar of the Forward Unto Dawn, and then -- here, the next. There's no lapse of what she would call consciousness, no falter in her program, she's just there, and then she's not, and for once, Cortana doesn't understand at all.

The sun is stretched high above her, high above the chip from which she's currently standing on, fingers outstretched as if waiting for something. It takes her a moment to look down, to look around, and then finally, to figure out where it is she's at.

Her commands are a little shaky, her various programs slightly off-balance from whatever apparent instantenous journey she had just made, but it doesn't take her long to determine she's not far at all from Valhalla.

Which is. Great. Just what she needed. ]

Chief? . . . John?

[ And, of course, she's met with silence. ]

Scanning and analyzing area --

Retreating back into chip. [ And with that, the holograph disappears back into the data chip, hiding her under the grassy green field. ] Unidentifiable lifeforms. Total, 7, possibly more. Analyzing further. Human. Non-human. Non-human. Human. Human. Human. Human. Closest human lifeform, approximately three-fourths of a mile away.

Damnit.

[ But she had no choice, either way. ]

Releasing distress beacon. Chief, if you can hear me, standby.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

...

You can't be serious. You--

[ No. Just. This is a trick. ]

Why would he agree to help us? Why would a person like him risk it?

Because all he's ever done is risk everything for the sake of everyone else. Please. I -- he can help you. If what you're saying is true, then he'll want to help.

[ NOT BELIEVING YOU and maybe not watching his mouth like he should ]

Really. He'd help an escaped convict, a rampant AI, and a mass murderer.

Are you listening to yourself? What you are, what they are, it's all irrelevant compared to the seriousness of the actions that UNSC has taken, especially where all Artifical Intelligence units are concerned.

If this isn't taken care of now, then I can't say how far it'll go, or what'll happen if this man, the Meta, isn't found. I don't even know how deep this particular brand of corruption runs; all I can say is that I'd rather not ignore it now when I could have done something to prevent anything like this from happening ever again later.

But I can only do so much without Chief.

[ And. She's right, she's very right, and this is perhaps more her problem than it is his, but Wash has gotten so used to not depending on anything, on assuming everyone had an agenda and he was the only one in the entire goddamned galaxy that he could count on.

So he calms himself down. ]

The Director is in jail, but-- you're right, there's too many loose ends to simply hope that no one else will take up what he left behind. A lot of the remaining Freelancers and their AIs aren't accounted for.

[ quieter. ]

If you think that Master Chief would help us, then I'm in no position to refuse. But let me make one thing clear.

I'll be the one to put down Agent Maine.

If that's what you want.

I finish what I start.

[ Well, this hadn't been exactly the conversation he'd expected to have. Church is going to throw a fucking fit. ]

[ tiredly, ]

Whatever you need to get in touch with him is yours. If you're lying about all this, well.

I guess it's no different than what was going to happen anyway. They'll be the ones to get away.

Getting in contact with Chief is going to be a little difficult, but I think I can manage it. He's up there, and we're down here.

Still, I'm nothing if not determined, and he's probably slept long enough, anyway. I'll see what I can do.

[ sob and it's almost nice to have someone else finally capable of making decisions, the way he wishes Church would step up and act like a soldier, even when he knows it's not fair to expect anything out of Church. So Wash does it instead for him. And will keep doing it.

But honestly, he's tired. He's tired of being the only one to watch their backs and worry about out-thinking the entire UNSC while Church gets away with complaining about everything, while Church doesn't even want his help, and while Epsilon and Church both do things they can't help that are someday going to get Wash killed.

If Cortana were fucking with them, she wouldn't find much resistance because Wash is just too goddamned tired to be as paranoid as he should. ]

...I should be thanking you.

Probably. I'll settle for a nice homemade "thank you" card later, though. I'm sure I can find a place to fit it somewhere in my, ah, glittery cave . . .

[ oh my god ]

...he's. Yeah. I tell myself it's the trauma, but he's also just a jackass.

I'm sure he'll adjust. Eventually.

[ Knowing Church? ]

I wouldn't hold my breath for that.

I'll have to break the news to him that we're inviting the Master Chief here. You'll probably hear the screaming.

That bad, huh?

It isn't entirely his fault.

[ debating something here ]

Is there something else -- ?

...Church has managed to re-acquire some of the fragment AIs, but they're not completely integrated with him. Some of them still fight with him for control, including one that's responsible for several massacres, including the one that happened here not too long ago. The fragment that embodies his hatred.

Essentially, if he or Epsilon attempts to kill me at any given point, just try not to interfere. It won't be unexpected.

-- Well, I can't make any promises.

Just keep it in mind.

They're my responsibility.

You're also human. They're not.

But I'll remember it.

[ :/ ]

Are you alright to stay in that disk? I'm afraid it wouldn't be wise to offer you my armor or theirs, but I'm sure we could find you something with mobility if you preferred.

I'm an adaptable woman, Washington. The disk is fine. I'm most accustomed to Chief's armor, anyway.

Of course.

[ AN HOUR OF SILENCE. And then, abruptly, ]

--will he really help us?

[ okay that sounded even more pathetic out loud than it did in his head. ]