Chapter 98

"Hey, Sergeant get over here" Yelled Axel as a Marine Sergeant ran over to where he was at as explosions and gunfire whizzed past him.

"Tell your men to take that flag and place it in the center of the base, this is the last enemy stronghold on the planet, once we win here, we claim victory"

"Sir, yes sir!" The sergeant saluted and turned to his men. "You heard the Admiral, on my mark, we charge!"

A few minutes later when everybody was ready and in position the Sergeant ordered them to charge forward. "Charge!" he yelled, as his men rushed towards the enemy while one of them was carrying the flag of the UHE in his hand.

The defending covenant forces who were already being surrounded and attacked by thousands of soldiers couldn't stop Axel and his battalions of marines from pushing through to the center of the base.

A rain of plasma bolts fell upon them from the enemy lines as they charged, but the marines advanced, fiercely determined and united under the banner of their cause. The air was filled with the intensity of battle, deafening explosions alongside the sound of their energy weapons exchanging fire with the covenant's plasma weaponry.

6 Titans were assisting with the UNSC assault on the final base alongside a myriad of other military vehicles which was causing havoc and countering the covenant vehicles.

As the soldier carrying the flag approached the center, he stumbled as plasma shots rained down on him. But just before he hit the ground, another marine came to his aid, lifting him up and shouldering the weight of his fallen brother with determination etched on his face as he continued towards their goal.

Amidst the chaos and carnage, Axel watched from a distance as the two marines continued. Despite the incoming plasma fire, the two marines did not give up and kept on moving towards their goal. It was a testament to their resolve, to their undying spirit of comradeship and valor.

With every blast that came their way, they held together, shouldering each other's burdens and pressing on towards the center of the base. As they reached the center, the second marine heaved his fallen comrade onto his shoulder, gripping the flag tight in his free hand and raised it high in the air in a defiant claim of victory.

A brief silence fell upon the battlefield as the last few covenant troops were dealt with, leaving a battlefield full of debris and dead covenant.

Gradually a wave of relief, pride, and cheers echoed across the battlefield as the UNSC forces celebrated their victory over the covenant.

"Victory!" From somewhere amidst the debris and destruction, a cheer rose. It rippled through the UNSC forces, uniting them in a triumphant roar that drowned out even the most recent echoes of explosions.

Axel couldn't help but smile as he watched the flag of UHE fluttering proudly against the smoky backdrop of the devastated covenant base. His men were exhausted, battered, bruised, but victorious. They had done it. They had reclaimed their planet.

The soldier who held up the flag was now surrounded by an impromptu gathering of marines, clapping him on his back and raising their own voices in cheer.

In that moment, Axel felt a strange sense of peace amidst the chaos. This was it. The day they had fought towards for months, risking everything for this one triumph.

However, Axel would not forget the ones they lost to gain this victory. Every soldier who gave his life to fight the Covenant would be remembered in a massive hall of heroes that he planned to build once the war was over.

Axel saluted his fallen soldiers in silence, sending a silent vow that their memories will be honored, their sacrifices never forgotten. As he neared the center of the base to join his victorious soldiers, he noticed that the cheer had subsided, and everyone grew quiet as they saw him approach. He took a deep breath to steady himself, knowing that his words would have to carry both their victory and their loss.

"We've won," he said simply, his voice carrying across the silence. "But it came at a great cost. Many of our brothers and sisters fell today. They gave their lives so we could stand here victorious."

The soldiers listened in silence, their heads bowed in respect and grief for their fallen comrades.

"In memory of these brave men and women," Axel continued, "we will build a hall of heroes when this war is over. A place where we can honor them properly."

"Remember them," Axel continued, his voice low but powerful. "Honor their sacrifice. They are not mere casualties of war, they are heroes, brave men and women who fought valiantly to the end."

"But tonight," he said, holstering his weapon again, "we also celebrate. Because those men did not die in vain. They died for this." He gestured towards the flag. "For the future of humanity."

Cheers broke out amongst the soldiers again, their voices louder than before as they raised their weapons in celebration.

With the successful liberation of Actium from the Covenant, the UNSC was able to free up 300 million troops that had been fighting on the planet for months.

However, the war was far from over, the Covenant was still out there and as long as their empire continued to exist, the conflict between the humans and the races within the Covenant empire would continue for as long as Axel allowed it to.

Actium was the final planet that the Covenant had a massive presence on, and it was also the covenant's last plan to turn the tide of the war. But now that plan has failed and with it has caused some friction within the Covenant empire.

As the war on Actium was now over, a two-day long planet wide celebration was planned to happen. Supplies, other morale boosting activities, and sport equipment were brought to the planet in the tens of thousands to provide everybody with a little R&R for a short time as they still had a job to do.

The same thing happened to all planets that were successfully liberated. The troops were given two days of R&R before they returned to their duties.

While the celebration on Actium was going on, Axel had taken the teleporter back to Earth, where the security council had convened to discuss the next step in their plan.

"First let me congratulate you sir on your victory" said the new Chief of Naval Operations Fleet Admiral Alex Alexellis. Seated next to him was the new Commander in Chief of ONI Admiral Sable.

"It was a long battle, but I'm glad that it is now over so that the men and women who fought for months on the planet can now rest. But let's not get too caught up in talking about the past." Stated Axel.

"It's time for the next step in our plan to come into effect" said Axel as he turned to Admiral Alexellis. "How long are we on this plan Admiral?"

Admiral Alexellis pressed brought up the data and all the estimated projects that were currently under way, and at the top of all of it was the time limit of 6 months. "We will have the necessary ships, equipment, men, and women to invade covenant space after 6 months from today have passed. All we need to do is prevent any major incursions from happening so that the plan can remain on time." Reported Admiral Alexellis.

"Good" responded Axel as he looked at Sable next. "How goes the research on the captured covenant ships?"

"Recently, we've had a breakthrough with the captured ships and have discovered the locations of numerous potential systems under Covenant control. With your approval we can send scouts to these locations to confirm that they are indeed under covenant control" Explained Admiral Sable.

"Approved, let's gather as much information as we can before we invade covenant space." Axel explained. "What about the rest of you, how is everything progressing with each branch?" asked Axel.

One by one, the leaders of each branch of the UNSC military reported their progress. They all noted an uptick in morale following the victory at Actium, and recruitment numbers surged. Supply lines were reestablished with recently liberated worlds.

General Black of the Marine corps was the first to speak, "The influx of new recruits is promising, especially after Actium. Combat training programs have been accelerated without any compromise on quality or safety."

General Graham from the Army chimed in next, "Our resources allocation is great right now, but I suggest we find another location to build another Star Lifter, not saying the current one isn't sufficient but at the rate were going were going to need the additional resources to assist with the rebuilding efforts that will take place after the war especially if we plan to add the covenant planets to our control" suggested General Graham.

Axel turned to Sable "I'll leave it to you Admiral to find us another location to build the star lifter" Sable nodded as the last report from General Stone came in.

"Our pilots are pushing harder than ever. Training simulations are being run around the clock which ensures that their abilities are always at peak efficiency and the number of pilots we have been getting lately has also increased thanks to the propaganda that we have initiated."

Axel nodded hearing the last report. The military and civilian side of the government continue to operate at 100% capacity despite the war, allowing him to focus on leading the war effort from the frontlines. The meeting carried on as new ideas and plans were established for the invasion into covenant space and for what would happen after they dismantled the covenant empire.

To start they would release evidence via AI targeted towards the high-ranking covenant officials to spread the knowledge of how the humans were the chosen ones to inherit the mantle. The plan was to split the covenant into various factions and then reap the benefits of splintered covenant empire to finally end the war.

Meanwhile within High Charity, the Hierarchs or more specifically the Prophet of Truth and Regret was beginning their own plan of replacing the Sangheili with the easier to control and manipulate Jiralhanae. In the process the two Prophets planned to massacre the entire Sangheili species to get rid of them as they proved themselves countless times to be incompetent and not worthy of their political positions.

The two Prophets' plans were already being put into motion and it wouldn't be long until all hell broke loose within the Covenant.