It had been for Vael ‘Virisusai, quite a long, silent flight in the back of a Pelican dropship. He had spent the past week on Earth at a different one of the Humans’ military installations. He had been selected by the Swords of Sanghelios, with the direct approval of the Arbiter, for this “Aegis team”. He was to serve as the commander of the Swords of Sanghelios warriors underneath him, to represent the interests of the Swords of Sanghelios, and to serve as the commander of the team itself on any mission where the Sangheili were decided to have authority. It had been a simple decision on the part of the Swords, once they had agreed to form this team. However, he had the impression that there was some confusion among the Humans. Vael was not privy to the weeks of inter-departmental discussions and arguments as to who should have jurisdiction over the UNSC contributions to the team, after HIGHCOM approved the plan. Being something of a…unique team, UNSC Naval Command, the Office of Naval Intelligence, and Spartan Operations all had their arguments for taking command. Vael did not have any knowledge of these discussions, but he did know that he had only today been given a direct answer as to who would be his counterpart among the Humans.
Eventually, the hours of silence were interrupted by the voice of the pilot. “Approaching LZ, prepare to disembark.” The two Human soldiers serving as Vael’s escort looked briefly at one another, but remained ever stoic. The rear door opened just as the Pelican was touching down on a landing pad just in front of a large, roughly-conical building in the middle of a massive Human city: HIGHCOM Facility Bravo-6. The landing area was in a protected courtyard, surrounded by high walls and security gates. Even still, as Vael stepped out of the back of the Pelican, he could still get a good view of the skyline of the city. He had learned some of this place before coming here. The city was called Sydney: a place that had been devastated by the invasion of Truth’s fleet during the war. Very little of the city had escaped severe damage, or outright destruction, at the hands of the Jiralhanae. Yet, after just five years, most of the city had been rebuilt. As Vael stepped away from the Pelican, flanked on both sides by his two Human guards, his thoughts went briefly back to his own home on Sanghelios. The city around him now was entirely alien to the structures of his own people, or even the former Covenant. Its scale could perhaps be compared to his home, but in Vael’s eyes, its many skyscrapers were cold and utilitarian. On Sanghelios, their cities were built into mountains, valleys, and caverns, becoming just as much a part of the landscape as the stones themselves. In this place, there was hardly any landscape to be seen, just metal and glass. Still, if nothing else, he supposed he could respect the Humans’ resilience to be able to face such losses and recover in short order.
As they approached the entrance of the building, they were met by two, black-armored security guards that wordlessly took over escorting Vael into the building, while the other soldiers returned to the Pelican. His new guards escorted him into the building; although, they did not make it any farther than the atrium before one of his new guards had him stop and wait where they were following a short conversation with one of his superiors. As patient as he usually was, Vael was growing frustrated with the continued delays the Human bureaucracy tended to cause. For today, he knew that he was meant to be meeting with an agent from the organization known as ONI, Major Alice Robinson, as well as the Captain of the vessel to which they would be assigned for their first mission. He knew that all of the members of Aegis Team had been selected and were on Earth, though he was unsure if they had all yet arrived. They too would be meeting for the first time today. In any case, Vael could continue to remain patient with the Humans for a while longer. He could tell that his guards were anxious to get moving as well. The sight of a Sangheili warrior in the middle of a Human city did draw some attention, especially from civilians who had reason to visit the UNSC’s headquarters.
Vael might have been more irritated had he known the true reason for the delay. Approval had not been given to reveal the existence of the facility’s underground complex to the non-Human members of the team. Normally, there would be no issue using one of the secure meeting rooms in the skyscraper above-ground. However, someone had neglected to consider the fact that they would require a secure room specifically on the ground-level, owing to the fact that one member of the team weighed approximately 5,000 kilograms and could not make use of any space not accessible by cargo elevator.
Eventually, the hours of silence were interrupted by the voice of the pilot. “Approaching LZ, prepare to disembark.” The two Human soldiers serving as Vael’s escort looked briefly at one another, but remained ever stoic. The rear door opened just as the Pelican was touching down on a landing pad just in front of a large, roughly-conical building in the middle of a massive Human city: HIGHCOM Facility Bravo-6. The landing area was in a protected courtyard, surrounded by high walls and security gates. Even still, as Vael stepped out of the back of the Pelican, he could still get a good view of the skyline of the city. He had learned some of this place before coming here. The city was called Sydney: a place that had been devastated by the invasion of Truth’s fleet during the war. Very little of the city had escaped severe damage, or outright destruction, at the hands of the Jiralhanae. Yet, after just five years, most of the city had been rebuilt. As Vael stepped away from the Pelican, flanked on both sides by his two Human guards, his thoughts went briefly back to his own home on Sanghelios. The city around him now was entirely alien to the structures of his own people, or even the former Covenant. Its scale could perhaps be compared to his home, but in Vael’s eyes, its many skyscrapers were cold and utilitarian. On Sanghelios, their cities were built into mountains, valleys, and caverns, becoming just as much a part of the landscape as the stones themselves. In this place, there was hardly any landscape to be seen, just metal and glass. Still, if nothing else, he supposed he could respect the Humans’ resilience to be able to face such losses and recover in short order.
As they approached the entrance of the building, they were met by two, black-armored security guards that wordlessly took over escorting Vael into the building, while the other soldiers returned to the Pelican. His new guards escorted him into the building; although, they did not make it any farther than the atrium before one of his new guards had him stop and wait where they were following a short conversation with one of his superiors. As patient as he usually was, Vael was growing frustrated with the continued delays the Human bureaucracy tended to cause. For today, he knew that he was meant to be meeting with an agent from the organization known as ONI, Major Alice Robinson, as well as the Captain of the vessel to which they would be assigned for their first mission. He knew that all of the members of Aegis Team had been selected and were on Earth, though he was unsure if they had all yet arrived. They too would be meeting for the first time today. In any case, Vael could continue to remain patient with the Humans for a while longer. He could tell that his guards were anxious to get moving as well. The sight of a Sangheili warrior in the middle of a Human city did draw some attention, especially from civilians who had reason to visit the UNSC’s headquarters.
Vael might have been more irritated had he known the true reason for the delay. Approval had not been given to reveal the existence of the facility’s underground complex to the non-Human members of the team. Normally, there would be no issue using one of the secure meeting rooms in the skyscraper above-ground. However, someone had neglected to consider the fact that they would require a secure room specifically on the ground-level, owing to the fact that one member of the team weighed approximately 5,000 kilograms and could not make use of any space not accessible by cargo elevator.
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