บท 78: Chapter 77

After arriving in orbit above Earth, Catherine took a Pelican shuttle down to the surface. The Pelican touched down in Australia, where Miranda was attending school.

It was about the time that she would usually get out of school and Catherine was planning to pick her up from school. After arriving in front of the school Catherine waited a few minutes before all the kids started to leave the school.

Within the crowd, Miranda could be seen talking to a few of her friends as they all walked out of the entrance of the building. All around the area undercover agents were watching the area. Their job was to protect the daughter of the chairman of the UNSC while she attended school.

Every day the agents would be stationed around the area throughout the day as school went on. Once school was out Miranda would be picked up by her bodyguards and often transported back to where she was staying. Sometimes she would go to her friends' houses, or her friends would go to her house.

Today, however, Miranda was visibly surprised as her mother was waiting for her in front of the car. Her eyes widened at the sight, a mix of excitement and confusion displayed on her face.

"Mother!!" She yelled as she ran up and hugged Catherine. "What are you doing here?"

Catherine ruffled Miranda's hair affectionally. "I thought I'd surprise you," she replied with a soft smile appearing on her lips. "Do you have any plans with your friends after school today!"

Miranda shook her head, "No nothing. I was just going to go home and study"

"Well, change of plans," Catherine said with a mischievous look in her eye that hinted at an exciting diversion. "We are going on a small adventure."

Miranda's eyes lit up; her homework forgotten. Adventure always took precedence. Adventure was exciting, it was unpredictable, and when paired with her mom, it was nothing short of magical. "An adventure? Where to?" she asked, trying to guess.

"It's a surprise," Catherine replied. Nudging Miranda gently towards the car, she added, "Come on."

Once inside the car, the bodyguards had driven off as the two of them went on an adventure for the remainder of the day. Miranda had the time of her life as Catherine took her on an adventure and the two of them spent time together.

The next morning when the adventure was over, Miranda had to go back to school, but this time, she walked through the school gates with a spring in her step and a secret smile on her lips. All throughout the day, her mind kept wandering back to the fantastic world she had explored with her mother, the hidden coves they had discovered, the strange creatures they had encountered, and of course, the daring feats they had performed together.

Meanwhile, Catherine had returned to the UNSC Spirit of Fire and departed for the coordinates that she had gotten. Within the bridge of the Spirit of Fire, Catherine had just arrived on the bridge where captain James Cutter was waiting.

"Are we ready to go Dr. Halsey?" asked Captain Cutter.

Catherine responded, "Yes Captain, let's get to our destination".

Captain Cutter nodded "Serina plot a course to these coordinates"

Serina, the ship's AI, materialized on a nearby holopanel. "Understood, Captain," she responded. "Coordinates accepted. Course plotted and locked in."

Moments later the ship jumped to warp speed as the stars began to blur and stretch into trails of light as the Spirt of Fire jumped to war speed. As they were in War speed, Catherine had gone to her lab where Professor Anders was to go over some of the research.

The trip lasted 5 hours before they arrived at their location. Once the ship exited Warp Speed, what they had seen in front of them was something that they had never seen before. It was a giant mega structure built in the shape of a ring.

"Professor Anders..." Catherine began, her voice barely rising above a whisper.

"I see it, Dr. Halsey," Professor Anders responded, her voice carrying an undertone of disbelief. "But I can hardly believe it." The two of them stood there in silence observing the monumental structure. The ring seemed to be deserted with no signs of activity on its surface or any approaching vessels.

Captain Cutter's voice broke the silence. "Serina, get me all the data you can on that structure."

"Scanning now, Captain," Serina replied. After a few moments, she continued, "The structure appears to be made of materials unknown to our current database. Its size is approximately ten thousand kilometers in diameter. No life signs detected."

Catherine exchanged a glance with Professor Anders before turning back to Captain Cutter. "I suggest we send out a team for exploration," she proposed.

"Agreed Dr.Halsey. We'll send Red Team, and you will accompany them along with Professor Anders."

Quickly plans were laid down, equipment checked, and the team assembled at the hanger bay. In less than an hour after their arrival at the mysterious megastructure they named "Halo", Red Team along with Catherine and Professor Anders departed from the Spirit of Fire, making their way towards the giant ring with a sense of thrill and trepidation.

As they approached Halo, its colossal scale became apparent. It was a structure of unimaginable proportions; unlike anything they had witnessed in their lives. Well, the Star lifter was more massive, so they had witnessed something that was more massive than the Halo, but not anything of this size that was built to resemble a small ring-shaped world capable of containing life.

After reaching the surface of the Halo, the dropships had landed, and the team had started to create a makeshift base where they landed. The Pelicans initiated the release sequence and dropped the warthogs onto the ground.

Red Team immediately geared up and Catherine seated herself beside Professor Anders in the back seat of the Warthog. The exploration team then roved forward into the unknown territory.

A few kilometers inside, they encountered an unusual landscape. The ring didn't appear to be merely a technological construct. Instead, it was a combination of technology and nature; trees and meadows were interconnected with metal pathways and structures that resembled the Forerunner Shield world Trove.

They traveled past towering constructions and through lush groves before reaching a massive cliff overlooking a large portion of Halo's surface. They could see mountains, rivers, even a sea sprawling beneath them, all wrapped around itself in an endless loop.

"This is extraordinary," Professor Anders remarked, her gaze sweeping over the landscape in awe. Catherine nodded in agreement, feeling a surge of excitement.

"Indeed, it is," she acknowledged, her gaze lingering on the horizon where the ring disappeared into the distance. The sight was breathtaking, a testament to a technology so advanced it appeared as natural as the world they had left back home.

As their exploration continued, the team stumbled upon more examples of this remarkable fusion between nature and construction. They discovered clusters of peculiar, shaped structures nestled amidst forests filled with unknown flora and fauna. It was clear that this place was designed as more than just an enormous technological marvel, it housed an entire ecosystem within itself.

Over time, their mission became two separate missions which were investigating the technological aspects of Halo while cataloguing and studying the myriad alien species inhabiting it. However, despite all these discoveries, there remained no trace of any sentient beings who might have built such a wonder.