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16
HALO: FIRST STRIKE
"One here, too," Red-Fifteen reported. "Neutralized."
There had to be more. Fred knew the Covenant never traveled
in small numbers.
Worse, if the Covenant were deploying troops in any signifi-
cant numbers, that meant the holding action in orbit had turned
ugly . .. so it was only a matter of time before this mission went
from bad to worse.
He was so intent on listening to his team's field checks, he al-
most ran into a pair of Jackals. He instinctively melted into the
shadow of a tree and froze.
The Jackals hadn't seen him. The birdlike aliens sniffed at the
air, however, and then moved forward more cautiously, closing
on Fred's concealed position. They waved plasma pistols before
them and clicked on their energy shields. The small, oblong pro-
tective fields rippled and solidified with a muted hum.
Fred keyed his COM channel to Red-Two, twice. Her blue ac-
knowledgment light immediately winked in response to his call
for backup.
The Jackals suddenly turned to their right and sniffed rapidly.
A fist-sized rock whizzed in from the aliens' left. It slammed
into the lead Jackal's occipital crest with a wet crack. The creature
squawked and dropped to the ground in a pool of purple-black
blood.
Fred darted ahead and in three quick steps closed with the re-
maining Jackal. He sidestepped around the plane of the energy
shield and grabbed the creature's wrist. The Jackal squawked in
fear and surprise.
He yanked the Jackal's gun arm, hard, and then twisted. The
Jackal struggled as its own weapon was forced into the mottled,
rough skin of its neck.
Fred squeezed, and he could feel the alien's bones shatter. The
plasma pistol discharged in a bright, emerald flash. The Jackal
flopped over on its back, minus its head.
Fred picked up the fallen weapons as Kelly emerged from the
trees. He tossed her one of the plasma pistols, and she plucked it
out of the air.
"Thanks. I'd still prefer my rifle to this alien piece of junk,"
she groused.