Cortana

Krystal couldn't quite put it into words, but she felt ill at ease around this new figure. His intentions seemed good, and if he was the best soldier that their new allies had, then she expected that he would be good at heart too...but she couldn't read his mind. She didn't know what this soldier of legend was capable of, she didn't know what he was thinking, nor anything about the man behind the mask, and she didn't like this new feeling.

The vixen tried not to stare at him as she followed Fox down the corridors of the base, twists and turns as common as trees in a forest. She knew that eventually, she was going to get lost in a base of this size. She tried not to think too hard about, as she would probably get a map or something of that sort sooner or later.

As the group turned down a corridor entitled "SPECWAR GROUP 3", they saw each of their names on a door. Falco split off, then Wolf and his apparent girlfriend, then Leon, Panther, Slippy, Peppy, and finally only Krystal, John, and Fox were remaining. The Spartan unsealed his helmet, an audible hiss in the silent hall. The golden visor that had been hiding the Spartan's face was now out of the way, revealing him.

John had brown hair, looking extremely dark over his pale white skin. The paleness was a consequence of being in his armor for the majority of his life as a Spartan. Fox and Krystal were able to see pronounced freckles over the pale skin as well, but the most alarming thing about him was the liveliness in his eyes. They were brown, but held the shine of a blue eyed teenager. John was 55, but nobody could tell if they didn't know him well enough He moved with the preciseness of an ice skater, every movement was delicate and easy, despite the half ton of armor encasing him.

The Master Chief held his helmet under his arm and nodded to the two foxes, turning towards a door with the words "JOHN-117 MCPO OF THE NAVY. UNSC" written on it in big bulky black letters. As the door slid open and permitted John inside, his form disappeared as it just as quickly and seamlessly closed behind him. Fox and Krystal looked at each other, each of them looking into each others eyes as if they were talking to each other through telepathy, and as far as anybody could tell, they may very well have been doing that.

As John heard the footsteps of the two walking away, their feet clanging against the metal hallway fading over time. John finally let his mental barrier down and looked on his desk. He saw a small chip, only a few inches in diameter. He picked up the small chip and turned it over in his hands carefully. The once bright blue sheen that was housed inside it was gone, and left only gray circuit boards for him to stare at. Cortana. She had descended into rampancy over the time they had been lost aboard the rear half of forward unto dawn after the Ark had torn itself apart.

The UNSC's top scientists and bio engineers had said they were going to try something, but said the process they were thinking about would either completely destroy her or it would fail and the new her would be horribly disfigured, just as well as the Spartans that had washed out after the augmentations all those years ago.

Cortana had been a fifth generation 'smart' AI, which had set her life to 7 years before she descended into a state called 'rampancy', a form of AI insanity. John hadn't been able to do anything to help her as they had been lost all those years. When the UNSC had formed the idea to try and take her coding and any programming she had to try and make a new human body from it, John had hesitated. He was told the risks and it brought back a flood of memories from the Spartan program, how some had died, how some were permanently crippled. His friends, people he had grown up with, were either in states of uncontrollable shaking al the way to their bones being too disfigured, taking even their human semblance and leaving them to float in neutral buoyancy gel tanks, supported by respirators.

He pushed the image away from his mind and went back to thinking about Cortana. They doctors had been working in cold labs to put together everything they would need, and the procedure would be ready in only a few days time. John couldn't get his mind off of it, and he knew it would stress him out, so he tried not to think about it.

The super soldier sighed and stood, easing his helmet back onto his head and sealing it. He started to put the chip back on the dresser, but stopped. Instead, he slipped it into the slot at the base of his skull, the familiar feeling of it being there, but the icy cold sensation of water pouring into his mind wasn't there as it always was when Cortana had been in it. The feeling did nothing to ease the war hero's pain.

John couldn't stop thinking about it as he pushed his way back out the door, accidently bumping into a human female. "Excuse me, I'm so...-" John had begun to apologize to the woman, but stopped as he got a good look at her. The woman's hair was gray, well on it's way to becoming white like the labcoat he had seen her in when he was growing up. The corners of her eyes and mouth were pronounced in wrinkles, due to being quite old. John could recognize her anywhere. "Dr Halsey" John said, trying to hide his happiness at seeing her, trying to remain the emotionless figure he had always been for years.

"John, you're not fooling me" the doctor said, a smile creeping across her face. "I can tell your emotions just from the way your posture is, and you know that all too well...plus, my readings indicate an increase in heart rate." She sid with an increase in her smiles size. She tapped the corner of her glasses and medical charts popped up on them. John visibly flinched. Could she always do that? He didn't know, but he was indeed happy to see her.

John removed his helmet yet again, his face rock hard and emotionless. However, after she put her hands on her hips, John smiled softly and hugged Halsey, the woman that had been a sort of 'mother to him for many years. The small doctor wrapped her arms around the Spartan. It had been years since she had last seen him. "John? I think I may have something you want to see." The Chief tilted his head, wondering what she meant.

Halsey's fatigue began to show now, and it was apparent she had been working almost nonstop on something recently. "Come with me". Catherine turned on her heel and strode down the hall, John following after her like a puppy that had gotten lost and then found it's owner. She started leading him further into the base, and it seemed like it was taking forever to get there. After a while, she stopped and turned to him. "John...Do you miss Cortana?" He nodded, reaching up and pulling the chip she had once been housed in out of the slot in his neck.

The doctor gauged his reaction in that he continued to keep the chip in his neck, even without her there. She studied it for a moment then opened the door in front of her, motioning for him to stay for a moment. Inside he could hear faint voices, having trouble even with his highly advanced hearing augmentations. After a few minutes, Dr Halsey returned, smiling softly. "Go inside..." she said, patting him on the back and literally trying to push him in.

As the door opened and he entered, he saw a bed, literally hundreds of monitors and readouts, and one person laying on the bed. He turned back to Halsey, but the door had closed. John was puzzled as to what was happening. The bed was the only thing in the room besides the monitors and equipment, so he moved towards it.

On the bed was a woman with dark hair and peach colored skin. It was all he could tell, as her eyes were closed and she didn't say anything. John looked back at the door that had sealed behind him, as if Dr Halsey would come explain, but she didn't, leaving John to go closer to the bed.

As he neared it, the woman's eyes opened, revealing a piercing blue gaze. She tilted her head to the Spartan. "hedblo juh". The woman struggled to form a greeting, and John was able to recognize his name in the statement. "Hello?" He moved ever closer and stood beside the bed. "Cuhtna." She said, her hands moving clumsily towards him. "Is something wrong?" He asked, taking the hand that was reaching for him, the shaking ceasing as his hand encased hers. "Cuhtna, Cuhtna!" She repeated. "are you trying to tell me your name?" He asked. The woman shook her head, expending a great amount of effort. "Cuh...tana...Cortuna...Cortana!" She said, sounding out her words.

John stiffened, his heart rising as he realized who it was. Cortana had been given a new body, and now she was learning to speak with this new body. "Juhn...Jon...John!" She said his name clearly, smiling at her new abilities. The Master Chief could only smile at her. "Yes, how are you feeling Cortana?" She smiled wider, squeezing his hand. "g...good" Her response got a smile to crack the rocky features of the soldier's face. Cortana reached up with her free hand and rubbed it against his face, gasping as she felt the sensation of touch with the hand.

John could only laugh at her alarmed reaction. "Ironic, isn't it? That the most advanced AI in human history, and also the only AI to be stuck with the worst parasite in the galaxy for months, but she gets alarmed at the feeling of a face and stumbles with talking" He joked with her, eliciting a sort of haughty response from the woman.

The Spartan smiled at her, Cortana was still amused with the feelings she was getting. She couldn't exactly smell much other than the disinfectant, and apparently, she didn't like it, as her nose occasionally wrinkled up. Cortana yawned and her hand slowly pulled from John's. He wanted to hold on to it, but he decided not to, so she could sleep.

He watched her for a few moments as she fell into a deep sleep, and turned and walked out of the room, returning to his own. He thought to himself as he made his way back. Hmm...I thought Cortana wasn't going to be ready for another few days...but she's already getting used to it? He didn't have much time to think, and was quickly standing in front of his door, thumbing the open command on the pad.

As the Chief began disengaging his armor, he continued to think on Cortana. She looked almost the exact same as her holographic form, but now she was flesh and blood, just like him. He dwelled a bit more on the subject as he eventually eased into a shallow slumber.

Fox knocked on the door to Krystal's room. It had been three weeks since they had arrived on the planet, and the two had grown closer in the time. However, tonight would be the first date that wouldn't end horribly...or at least, the vulpine hoped it wouldn't. Krystal opened the door a few moments later, already changed from her flight suit to a much more comfortable white T-shirt with the Star Fox symbol and a pair of jeans. Fox smiled as he looked at the attire, which was almost an opposite to his black shirt with the Cornerian Military insignia on it, and a pair of black jeans to go with it.

Krystal smiled at him as well, narrowing her eyes and scrutinizing his attire. "I thought we were going dressy casual, not dressy formal" She joked, eliciting a small laugh from the vulpine. "We are, I dress to impress however" Krystal raised an eyebrow. "Oh really now?"

Fox smirked "Indeed, is the lady ready for a night out on the town...er...base?" Krystal smiled softly at his correction. "Yes, the lady is ready for her date, the one with the carriage and the muscles." She continued to joke with the vulpine. "You mean the guy I passed on the way here? Nah, he sent me instead." He smirked at her yet again, Krystal's heart fluttering a bit as she grew used to the sight of his trademark cocky smirk. "Then I guess you'll have to do, Fox." She winked at him as he held his arm out, allowing her to take it as he lead her to the base cafeteria.

The two came upon a fork in the corridors, forcing Fox to try and remember the direction he needed to go as he heard something clanging against the metal flooring of the hall. The 7'2 Spartan slowly making his way down the corridor with a woman shakily gripping his arm, struggling to make her way along. She started to fall, but John caught her.

As the pair neared the two foxes, John noticed the Colonel and newly promoted Major. "Sir! Ma'am!" He slowly brought his right arm to a salute, making sure he didn't throw the woman off balance. Fox and Krystal saluted, letting the Spartan drop his arm and return to helping the woman down the corridor. "Master Chief?" Fox asked. "Do you need any help?" John smiled at the Colonel. "No, I was making my way to the mess hall, but thank you." The woman gave a shaky smile to the two, still giving John's arm a death grip.

"Is something wrong?" Krystal asked the woman. She shook her head, still smiling. John took this time to introduce her. "Colonel Mccloud, Major...Ma'am, what should I call you? I never learned your last name." Krystal waved her hand in a lazy manner. "Please, just call me Krystal." John nodded, returning to what he had been saying. "This is Cortana, she was the AI that joined me through the last few years of the Great War and the years we were lost afterward. She was given a human body, as smart AI's eventually gain too much knowledge and go insane due to it. They made her new body from scratch, transplanting her onto it. She's still learning to walk, talk, and do pretty much everything a normal human or Lylatian does at an early stage in life...that is, if Humans and Lyltians are the same.

Fox and Krystal nodded and smiled at the pair. "We were going there too, mind if we join you?"

John shook his head. "I don't mind at all." The two grinned and joined the Chief and Cortana, beginning their journey to the mess hall for what had been established as "Date Night"