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"Yes," Cortana replied. She shrugged. "I'm sorry, Lieutenant."
"At least the Covenant can't get to it anymore," Admiral Whit-comb said. He flicked the plastic bag with his thick finger. "Or if they do, they're only going to find a bunch of busted fragments."
"I just wish I knew why Locklear did it," Haverson said.
Everyone was quiet. John and the other Spartans shifted un?easily in their heavy MJOLNIR armor.
Sergeant Johnson cleared his throat. "The boy was a little on edge. After all he'd been through, you'd expect that. But he was an ODST—tough as nails and twice as sharp and used to getting pounded. He wouldn't crack. He had a reason."
"Doctor Halsey," Haverson remarked and narrowed his eyes. "She had to have set this up."
John started to defend Dr. Halsey, but he stopped himself from arguing with an officer. Yes, her actions were inexplicable: She had exfiltrated Kelly, left them when they needed her the most, and given Locklear the alien artifact. John still wanted to trust her, though. Perhaps whatever she was up to was for the greater good.
"Let's not start this," the Admiral said. "I don't want anyone's perceptions colored by us discussing the 'whys' and 'what ifs' of this situation. Save it for the debriefing they're going to give us when we get back." He cast a sideways glance at the bar and un?consciously smacked his lips. "From here to Earth it should be smooth sailing, and we can finally relax."
"Permission to speak, Admiral," the Chief said.
"Granted. Speak your mind."
"I don't wish to contradict you, sir, but perhaps it shouldn't be smooth sailing. And maybe we shouldn't relax."
Admiral Whitcomb leaned forward. "I have a feeling I'm not going to like this. .. but explain yourself, Chief."
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The Master Chief outlined his mission plan, how he and his team would take a Covenant dropship and insert into the ren?dezvous location for the invading Covenant fleet. They would then infiltrate their command-and-control center, the Unyielding Hierophant, and destroy it; that would hopefully cripple the Covenant force ... or at least slow them down. Maybe even enough to buy Earth time to reinforce their defenses.
The Admiral stared at the Chief without blinking and flatly replied, "Mission request denied."
"Acknowledged, sir." He remained standing, at stiff attention.
Whitcomb frowned, as the other Spartans also snapped to at?tention and remained stone-still. He sighed.
"I understand your motivations, Chief. I do. But I will not risk transporting your team to the Covenant rendezvous point," the Admiral explained. "If we lose this ship, Earth never gets its warning."
"Sir," the Master Chief replied, "we will transition from Slip-space to normal space alone. Once the dropship clears the gravi?tational influence of the Gettysburg and the Ascendant Justice, the Slipspace field will deteriorate and we will enter normal space. You need never even stop. And only a minor course cor?rection puts the Gettysburg on the correct trajectory."