Jon grabbed the rock and held it up in his hand.
"I wish that the Halo universe and everything about it was real!" Jon suddenly felt like he had to sneeze and he closed his eyes as the stone flashed brightly.
When Jon next opened his eyes, he looked around at his house. It didn't look any different than it did before, except for the big futuristic looking flat screen that was hanging on the wall in the place where the old TV used to be. Apparently he had been watching the news, because there was a man on the screen dressed in a suit, talking about the worlds economy crisis and the way the war was going. Jon continued to focus his attention on the News, when he heard someone come slowly down the stairs and he turned around. It was his sister 14 year old sister Zoe who is Goth.
Only she wasn't wearing any of her Goth clothes. She was wearing a black sleeveless-T that seemed a bit baggy, a pair of tan cargo pants, that also seemed a bit baggy and on her feet Zoe wore a pair of white ankle socks. Her hair was still black, only now it seemed to be more natural, and it was in a ponytail that reached her upper back. Instead of her pale white skin, it was a normal tan. Jon then moved his gaze to Zoe's face and was shocked at the emotions that she now showed on her face.
She had no makeup on what so ever. Her eyes were red rimmed and she had dark circles under them. A few tears escaped from her eyes and slid down her cheeks. It was her eyes that caught his attention the most. Her blue eyes weren't filled with her usual, 'I-hate-the -whole-world' anger, but were filled with sadness and fear. He continued to watch his sister reached the foot of the stairs and stopped, turning her eyes to him.
"Jon..." she said shakily as her tears began to flow faster.
Jon could only stare at his younger sister in shock, What happened to the rebellious dark girl, that I know?
"Zoe..." he responded in a quiet voice as he quickly rose to his feet.
Zoe breathed in a shaky breath and lunged from the stairs into Jon's arms, finally letting her tears fall freely. Jon instinctively wrapped his arms around his sobbing sister and guided her to the couch. He sat down and pulled Zoe onto his lap, allowing her to leave her head buried in his chest. Jon began to rub Zoe's back in soothing circles as he murmured soothing words to calm her down.
"Shh, Zoe it's alright. I'm here, what's wrong?"
Zoe said something into his chest that he could barely hear. He asked her to repeat that.
"I-I was in bed, a-and you were down here watching the News! A-a-and suddenly, I...I couldn't hear the TV anymore. I jumped out of bed and ran downstairs..." Zoe paused as she wiped her eyes and sniffed, "I-I saw that the TV was off a-and you were no where to be seen! I s-started to look for you...w-when the front door exploded and smoke filled the room! I-I ducked down and slowly looked up...a-and standing in the opening was...w-was a...a Brute!
"H-he growled at me and lifted something that he held in one hand...I-it w-was y-y-YOU!" Zoe cried as she threw herself into her older brother's comforting embrace.
Jon began comforting his sister again as he stared at nothing in particular, It worked! It actually worked! Jon suddenly realized something, Wait...why is it just me and Zoe? Why isn't she a Goth? Where is mom? Where's Mikey?
Like she could read his mind, Zoe began speaking again.
"I can't lose you, Jon! I-I can't lose anyone else. F-first it was mom on Titan Minor, then Mikey to that infection on the ship back to Earth..." she looked up at Jon with red eyes, "I just can't lose you too, Jon! We're all that's left of our family...I-I don't know what I would do if you died!"
"It's okay Zoe, it was just a dream. The Covenant haven't found Earth yet, so don't worry, alright? I'm your older brother and I probably told you this before, but I will take care of you and I would never abandon you either! I pro-!"
Jon was interrupted by the News castor on the TV. The Man's face was pale, his eyes were wide with fear and he was trembling. On the bottom of the screen a red bar blazed across with the words: WARNING, WARNING, ALL CIVILIANS MUST EVACUATE THEIR HOMES IMMEDIATELY! THIS IS NOT A DRILL! REPEAT, THIS IS NOT A DRILL!
Jon felt Zoe suddenly stiffen in his arms as growing fear flowed through him. It was silent for a few minutes and then...they heard it.
A low humming noise could be heard and it was steadily getting louder as it got closer and closer. Then the screams began. People could be heard screaming as they ran from their homes and cars screeching down the road. Jon wrapped his arm's tighter around his sister when the sounds of plasma weapons could be heard.
"They're here...they're here..." whimpered Zoe as she began to shake.
Suddenly loud rumbling was heard as what sounded like jeeps came roaring into the neighborhood, over the cries of the fleeing people. There was a crash from outside and Jon couldn't take it anymore, he had to see what was going on. He quickly placed Zoe on the couch and Ran for the front door.
"Jon? Jon! No!" cried Zoe as she leapt to her feet and ran after him.
Jon turned and pulled her to him. Zoe latched onto his shirt with fingers in a vice grip, not wanting him to go outside.
"No! Jon, please! Don't leave me!" sobbed Zoe as she pulled herself closer to her older brother.
Jon opened his mouth to say something, when there was a loud noise that sounded like something had been lobbed into the air. Both siblings froze and stared at each other when their world was filled with blinding blue light, heat and horrible pain which then faded to black and they knew no more...
"Sir! Over here! I've got two civilians over here!"
There was the sound of machine guns firing, an explosion, and then running footsteps.
"They are just young ones!" a deep female voice said.
A roar filled the air, plasma weapons now mixed with the sound of machine guns. A scream of pain was cut off.
"Medic! We need a medic over here!"
The sound of someone crying and then the feeling of someone brushing the hair from his face. More running could be heard coming closer.
"This is what your kind has been fighting for all this time; your future...and my kind helped to take it away," said the woman again, at least it sounded like a woman.
"Miss A'una, you couldn't have known..." said a deep gravely voice, with a southern drawl.
"I know," said 'A'una' in a low voice, "But, the guilt is still there..."
"Medic's here sergeant Evans!" two pairs of footsteps came closer, the sounds of battle now moving farther away.
"What seems to be the pro-shit!" knees hit the ground beside his head and two fingers were pressed against his throat, "Thank heavens, they are still alive! How, I don't know. They aren't even that badly burnt!"
"What's it look like corporal?"
"Well, sir, it looks like a stray shot from a Wraith hit the back of the house, the explosion, instead of blowing up the whole house, caused part of the second story to collapse around them, shielding them from the brunt of the plasma," said a man.
"Hey, kid's starting to wake up!" called the medic from over Jon.
Footsteps approached Jon, while the woman, A'una, continued to run her big fingers through his hair. Jon let out a small groan and opened his eyes slightly.
"Take it easy son, you and your sister have had a heck of a day," said Sergeant Evans' deep drawl.
Jon groaned again and blinked his eyes as a blurry image of two people stood over him, he assumed one of them was A'una.
"What is your name young one?" asked A'una as she brush three fingers through his bangs...wait a minute, three?
Jon opened his mouth to speak, but all that came out was a harsh cough. Someone placed a canteen to his mouth and he drank a big gulp of cool, soothing water.
"My...my name is...Jon," he said in a scratchy voice, " Jon-cough-Jon Madison."
Here Jon paused and took a deep breath.
"Please...is Zoe...alright? Is my...sister alright?"
It was A'una who answered him, "Yes, Jon. Your sister is alive."
Jon squinted and tried his hardest to focus on A'una, but all he could see was a blue and black blur. He didn't know what it was about this woman, but something about her just felt...safe and motherly. He slowly reached a hand up and felt it encased by a bigger, four fingered hand, that gave a gentle squeeze of comfort. Jon gave her what he hoped was a smile and closed his eyes.
"So...tired..." Jon murmured.
The other hand began to stroke his hair again.
"Sleep, young one. You are safe with us," she said as she continued her motions, making on fall asleep in an instant.
Sergeant Daniel Evans, brushed a hand over his mustache as his blue eyes glanced from the now slumbering boy and girl, to the female Elite, that was dressed in the blue armor of a Minor.
A'una, feeling his gaze, turned a golden eye toward the human sergeant.
"What, is it Sergeant?" she asked with a question in her eyes.
The man smiled, shook his head and stood up.
"Nothing, Miss A'una, nothing at all," he chuckled as he turned and walked away, shouting orders to his men to begin pulling out and searching for other survivors.
A'una smiled at his back as she turned back to the two human teens that she now had under her care. As she had told the boy, Jon, they were safe and she would make sure of that. She then reached into pouch that she had strapped around her waist and pulled out a very familiar stone.
"I will ask them about this artifact once they have awoken," she said to herself and she put the stone away.
