Title: “15 Minutes” (8/?)
Author: @ageless-aislynn
Characters/fandom: Master Chief John-117/Reader, Halo the series
Summary: You've got work to do. John worries. Things get a little more intense.
Series: How to date a Spartan (without even trying)
Rating: T (PG13)
Length: 1,945 (this chapter, 19,693 total so far)
Spoilers/warnings: Set in the Silver Timeline of Halo the series, not the games or novels. Though we began with the events of Halo 1x06, there will be no more show spoilers. We are still firmly seated in the AU Warthog, merrily driving out to places where there’s only a passing nod to canon. 😉
Disclaimer: Definitely not mine but I do enjoy borrowing them just for a bit! 😉
A/N: Text is both here in this post or available at AO3, however you like to read. Halo season 2 has finally arrived! However, this fic continues to zip along in the AU Party Warthog, so, while we began with season 1 way back when (and you'll see a few more things from s1 along the way 😉), we'll not be venturing into s2 territory at all. Unless s2 is going to take some verrrrry interesting twists, lol! Chapter 9 is still in progress by hand but I hope to have it ready soon. 🤞😣🤞The next chapter will also see us entering into some hurt/comfort for a bit but I tend to lean heavier on the comfort, in case you're worried. Or, you know, would be disappointed. 😉 If you read, I hope you enjoy! ⭐💖⭐
Taglist: @pinheadbanger @mysardencut @laurenstacy610 @sporadicbelievernightmare @ultrablackwidower @bxmxtx @jellotherelol
If you would like to be tagged in my John/Reader fics, just let me know! I also write John/Kai, John/Cortana and Kai/male Reader, so I’m glad to tag you for whatever you’d like. If you would like to be removed from the taglist, also feel free to let me know, no harm, no foul. 😉 💖
Halo fic masterlist ⭐
Chapter 1 - Chapter 2 - Chapter 3 - Chapter 4 - Chapter 5 - Chapter 6 - Chapter 7
The Troop Transport Warthog hit a particularly rough patch and you held on for all you were worth to keep from being ejected.
"Sarge," Private Taylor yelled. "Where are we?"
"That's need to know and none of you need to know, marine," Sarge shouted back from the passenger seat. "Just keep your head down, do your job, and you'll be home 15 minutes before your mama has breakfast on the table."
You couldn't particularly tell if it were dusk, dawn or high noon, the air was so heavy with the greasy remains of mortar rounds. In the distance, a nondescript cityscape occasionally flared with either continuing pockets of active combat or just the remnants of the devastation that had passed through.
Wherever you were, it felt like you were barreling at top speed through a graveyard of vehicles: Warthogs, Mongeese and even the odd Scorpion, some overturned, blackened and smoldering, others weirdly intact as if their drivers had merely stepped away for a moment.
This was a salvage and recovery mission, tasking your unit with marking vehicles as repairable, recyclable or a total loss to be abandoned.
The next hour or so, that had been your focus, moving from Warthogs and the occasional Mongoose, conducting a quick evaluation, then using your spray gun to mark a green circle on the hood to send back to Reach for repair, a white slash to send it to be stripped for usable parts or a red X to abandon, not worth salvaging.
You marked a Mongoose with a red X, though the gun sputtered and you had to give it a few whacks before it sprayed properly, then you moved on.
Next up was a Warthog that seemed in decent condition from the outside, short of the rear antenna twisted until it resembled a curly tail. But the electronics were fried and the entire undercarriage looked like it had plowed over a series of flaming spikes, all major parts gouged out and burned. There might have been a few nuts and bolts reclaimable but since you'd just recently been writing up requisition for needed parts, you judged that it was more effort than it was worth.
You made the call to abandon it but as you tried to spray the red X across the hood, nothing emerged, even after shaking the sprayer and giving it a few more hits with the heel of your palm. With a slightly frustrated noise -- who was checking to make sure that the sprayers were in working order before they were sent out? -- you headed to get a replacement. Along the way, you caught a private going in the opposite direction.
"Hey, see that 'hog there? Would you red X it for me? Thanks."
"Um, sure," the blond man said and headed where you gestured.
You were still looking for somebody who had a spare sprayer when Sarge drove up in the Troop Transport again.
"Wrap it up, it's about to get hot," he shouted.
You quickly joined the rush back to board the Pelican and scrambled into a seat just as it lifted off. A split-second after you'd clicked the restraint down, the Pelican rolled to one side, shuddering from an impact.
Alarms began blaring, mixed in with the pilot calling out coordinates, and you automatically tried to look forward, as if you'd somehow be able to spot what was shooting at you. All you could really see was the anxious faces of the other marines around you. You spared a couple of breaths to be glad that neither Maria or Jamie had been called in for this.
The Pelican took a second, more glancing blow and the resulting shudder rattled your teeth.
"Covvies?" somebody asked over the engine whine and the private across from you shrugged.
"Who else?" she said. "But that felt like surface-to-air to me. What about you?"
She met your eyes and it was your turn to shrug. "I'm not sure. Never been hit by any sort of missile before."
"Oh well, congratulations on your first missile salvo," she returned with a crooked grin.
The Pelican rolled once more, this time in an evasive maneuver, then thankfully smoothed out and made its escape without further incident.
Your unit was taken to the covert off-world depot known colloquially as The Pit, where everything that had been marked for repair or recycle would be delivered for further sorting. In the center of the large warehouse area was a compactor pit for all of the scrap to be sent into. Several cranes were already busy moving the smaller vehicles like Warthogs and Mongeese into berths to be stripped down while the still operational vehicles were lining up to be loaded onto heavy transport carriers to be returned to base.
You finished stripping your second Warthog for salvageable parts and signaled the nearest lift operator. The clawlike crane clamped onto the 'hog's shell, picking it up and carrying it towards the compactor while you moved on to a Mongoose with a crumpled left rear wheel.
Then, out of the corner of your eye, you spotted a Warthog with a particularly distinctive twisted rear antenna being dropped off into the line to be loaded up and returned to FLEETCOM.
Frowning, you wove your way through the other mechanics, avoiding the occasional flying part, and found a green circle sprayed onto the hood.
Shit, the private must've heard me wrong when I told him to red X it. It seemed like an odd mistake to make but things had been hectic.
You grabbed a sprayer and neutralized the green and sprayed over it with a red X, then went to the nearest crane operator.
"You see that 'hog with the X on it? Drop it in the line for the compactor, please."
"Got it," the woman said and you waited until she'd picked it up and deposited it appropriately before you returned to work.
You were elbows into a Gauss 'hog's engine bay when you heard your rank and name called. Looking up, your heart gave a little skip: John in full helmeted Mjolnir strode your way with thundering steps you could hear even over the rest of the cacophony.
"With me," he said tersely, passing by and disappearing through a doorway at the back of the warehouse.
You had to hustle to catch up and he had already stopped by the time you joined him in the otherwise empty hallway. He turned, removing his helmet with a slight pneumatic hiss.
"Are you okay?" you both said at the same time.
The angle of the hallway meant you were shielded from most of the work floor. He set his helmet down and very carefully took your hands in his gloved ones.
"Insurgents took the field," he said, looking you over from head to toe. "Did you see combat? Intel was unclear."
"No, we got out but the Pelican took a few shots. Somebody said it felt like surface-to-air but I didn't remember Covenant using anything like that. It was insurgents, then?"
He nodded distractedly, glancing away to mutter, "I'll be right there." Then he looked back to you. "I have to go. Your unit's being sent back to Reach but if they divert you into combat..."
He trailed off, clearly realizing there was no way to finish that sentence the way he wanted.
"Tell them, nah, I'd rather not, thanks?" Your mouth twitched and you squeezed his fingers.
He gave a resigned chuckle. "Yeah, try that, please."
"You're the one who'll be much more in the thick of it," you pointed out. "You be careful, okay?"
"Always try," he said, bringing your hands up to press a kiss to the back of both.
Kai leaned around the door, her visor glinting green. "Chief, sorry but we've got to go."
"Copy that." He released you with clear reluctance and picked up his helmet. "Stay safe. I'll see you soon."
He vanished through the doorway and you took a breath, exhaling slowly. John suddenly appeared right in front of you again, leaning down to cup your face in one hand.
You were just about to ask if something was wrong when he kissed you.
For a moment, for forever, the universe shrank to just the two of you, his mouth on yours, a little frantic at first, then slowing, steadying out.
You felt like you were hovering off the ground and then realized you were; he'd picked you up at some point, pressing you gently to his chest plate. Your hand dropped to the 117 etched near his heart and it was gritty with sand and dirt. You were both grimy and sooty but it didn't matter. It couldn't have been more perfect if you were in a flowing ballgown and him in a tux, slowly spinning together on a glittering palace floor.
He set you back onto your feet but you only parted a breath away from each other.
"I... I'll get better with practice," he mumbled.
You smiled at him, feeling wobbly, lightheaded and more grounded than you'd ever been before, all at the same time. "John, if you were any better at that, I'd have to show you how fast I can get a Spartan out of their Mjolnir with my bare hands."
He was near enough to see his pupils dilate and that was incredibly gratifying. "I'll hold you to that," he said, his voice dropping an entire octave, making your toes literally curl inside your boots.
Then he put his helmet back on and left. You took a moment to compose yourself, then exited as well. There was no sign of Silver Team. No doubt, the Pelican waiting for him had taken off the second he'd boarded.
Cutting through the busy deck, you looked for any vehicle marked with a white stripe, still waiting to be stripped. On an impulse, you diverted to the line being dropped one at a time into the compactor. There was no sign of the curly tailed Warthog.
It could've already been compacted, you were thinking when you saw it going by overhead, clutched in a crane claw and heading back towards the line to return to Reach.
You didn't stop to think, you sprinted for the crane's operator booth. "Hey, put that 'hog down!"
The operator looked at you and you realized in a burst that it was the blond man you'd originally told to mark it with the red X back on the battlefield, who'd apparently designated it instead to come back to The Pit.
No, to go back to FLEETCOM.
Recognition went across his face at the same moment and he bolted from the booth. The lift automatically stopped, the Warthog swaying over the crowded deck.
You knew. You just knew.
You ran as fast as you could and slammed the alarm on the wall. "Bomb!" you bellowed over the shrill klaxon. "Bomb! Clear out!"
Jumping into the operator booth and grabbing the controls, you quickly scanned the area as marines scattered everywhere. There was only one place you could think to go.
You swung the arm around, guiding the curly tailed 'hog firmly clasped in its grip towards the compactor pit. It felt like it was taking a year to get there but you couldn't release the controls or the safety would bring it once more to a stop. Once the Warthog was finally in position, you opened the grip.
What if I'm wrong? you thought as it began to fall. I'll feel like such a fool if--
There was a saying that if you were close enough to an explosion, you would never actually hear it.
It was true.
end note:
If you want to, you know, imagine that Sarge's full name is, sayyyyyy, Avery Johnson, well then, who am I to tell you that you're right or wrong? 😇
If you don't know the Troop Transport Warthogs, here's one in action from Halo: Reach. It's on the level "ONI: Sword Base" and is scripted to be destroyed but there's a way to save it and the marines in it and take it with you for a great deal of the rest of the level! I love saving the Troop 'hog, even if it always still looks like it's on fire. Nah, it's fiiiiiine, no worries! 😎👍😂😉
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underneath the cut is the roster for the now-defunct sonic obscurity opposition. it contains 120 characters, along with a maybe and a probably not list taken directly from my notes when sorting through submissions. it is my hope that anyone who would have been invested in this poll reads them, and perhaps finds some appreciation for them.
PARTICIPANTS:
Saffron Bee (Archie)
Society Max (Fleetway)
Shortfuse the Cybernick (Fleetway)
Blockhead Bill (Fleetway)
Speedy (Tails Adventure)
1999 (Fleetway)
Da Bears (AoStH)
Zonic the Zone Cop (Archie)
Prefect Charyb & Prefect Scylla (Chronicles)
Humpty (AoStH)
Ifyoucan (Underground)
Grimer (Fleetway)
D-Fekt (Boom)
Ari (SatAM)
Hawk (Sonic X)
Johnny (Rush Adventure)
Mello Bee (Archie)
Has Bean (Mean Bean Machine)
Princess Alucion (Sirène)
Eric the Echidna (StH in the Fourth Dimension)
Relic the Pika (Archie)
Captain Oe (Archie)
Demo Duck (Dark Mobius Bean) (Archie)
Melody Prower (Archie)
Teri-Lu (Archie)
Iago the Echidna (Archie)
Brock the Echidna (Archie)
Dr. Quack (Archie)
Bartleby MontClair (Underground)
Pseudo Sonic (Archie)
Amadeus Prower (Archie)
Gae-Na (Archie)
Komi-Ko (Archie)
X Robot (Archie Sonic X)
Meringue the Rabbit (IDW)
Cyrus (Underground)
VerticAL and HorizontAL (Archie)
Mari-Su (Archie)
Wynmacher (Archie)
Rosie Woodchuck (Archie)
Vermin the Rat (Fleetway)
Bog Beasty (Underground)
Chomps (Underground)
Farrell (Underground)
Penelope the Hedgehog (AoStH)
Lucas (AoStH)
Filch (Fleetway)
Harpio (Fleetway)
Leaf (Fleetway)
Mello (Fleetway)
Simpson the Cat (Fleetway)
Old Sonic Clone (Fleetway)
Tufftee (Fleetway)
Lightmare (Fleetway)
Knuckles the Echidna
Cat (SatAM)
Aerial & Athena (Archie)
E-100 Lambda (Archie)
Ichneumon the White Mouse (StH and the Silicon Warriors)
Gaz and Del (Fleetway)
Mom with a Gambling Addiction NPC (Adventure 1)
Lumina Flowlight (Shuffle)
Princess Bee (Archie)
Hershey St. John (Archie)
Echo the Shark (Archie)
Cinos the Anti-Sonic (StH and in Fourth Dimension)
Rob o' the Hedge (Archie)
Juanita the Chameleon (Archie)
Marta the Echidna (Archie)
Liza the Chameleon
Bivalve Clam (Archie)
Duck "Bill" Platypus (Archie)
Griff (SatAM)
Barney the Chameleon (Archie)
Katella (Aosth) - Special request to use this specific image: https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/sonic/images/c/c8/Katellaheart.png/revision/latest?cb=20160407210139
King Peter - (StH in Robotnik's Laboratory)
Colonel Percy Granite (Fleetway)
Hobidon (Sonic X)
Rhygenta (Archie)
Molly (Sonic X)
Ron (IDW)
Arctur the Dragonkin (StH and in Fourth Dimension)
Practice Robot (Fleetway)
Ash Mongoose (Archie)
Walt Wallaby (Archie)
Ebony (Fleetway)
Bimmy the Echidna (Archie)
The Narrator (LEGO Commercial)
Emperor Sleetus (Underground)
Luke Periwinkle (Underground)
Bellok (Underground)
Captain Squeegee (Underground)
Duke of Velcronia (Underground)
Mindy LaTour (Underground)
Lucinda (AoStH)
William Le Duck (AoStH)
Baby T (SatAM)
Dove (SatAM)
Nicholas O'Tyme (SatAM/Archie)
Heavy and Bomb (Knuckles' Chaotix)
Nerbs (Archie)
Lah the Ghost (Unleashed - Night of the Werehog)
Akhlut the Orca (Archie)
Karen (Stone's Ex Boss) (Sonic 2 Pre-quill)
Rava the Destroyer (Sonic 2 Pre-quill)
Nestor the Wise (Chronicles)
Radar the Echidna (Archie)
Kanewisher the Echidna (Archie)
Catweazle (Archie)
Snailbot (Sonic 2)
A.D.A.M. (Archie)
Alexis Acorn (Archie)
Megan Acorn (Archie)
Arthur Mongoose (Archie)
Avery the Bear (Archie)
Aypex (Archie)
Bagbar Beeblebrox (Archie)
Barney (Archie)
Bertha Kintobor (Archie)
Friday the Parrot (StH Adventure Gamebook 5: Theme Park Panic)
MAYBE:
Sonic the Human (Sega Hard Girls)
Thunder the Pasha (Archie) - It's not really a character is it?
The Freedom Team (Beta SatAM) - They're a whole team and also unreleased
Mecha Sonic Model No. 29 (Sonic the Fighters) - I think there was a popular youtube video about this character. Maybe Chaomix.
Galaxina (Sonic X) - May be obscure, haven't finished sonic x, but seems like she wouldn't be
Jimmy and Jilly (Fleetway) - two in one and also i'm very tired
Mr. Yuji Naka (ShtH05) - Not a character, only referenced in one voice line.
Evil Duck (SatAM) - Not real
Skull That Says "SEGA" (S3&K EU Ads) - Not really a character? We'll see.
Masado and Miwasco (Up on the Green Hill (Masado and Miwasco version)) - While they have done official work, I can't tell if this song is licensed.
Segata Sanshiro (Sonic R Ad) - Isn't a part of the world, just beats up some kids and holds up a SEGA Saturn
PROBABLY NOT:
Dave the Intern (Boom) - Popular
Tikal the Echidna (Adventure) - Extremely popular and prominent within the source material
Ian Jr. - Popular
Manic the Hedgehog (Underground) - Manic
Elias Acorn (Archie) - I haven't gotten that far in Archie but this guy is literally a king and Sally's brother
Orca - Iconic? Also an animal with no unique characteristics.
The Cow in the Triple Trouble Ad - An animal with no unique characteristics.
Dodon Pa (Team Sonic Racing) - Important Character in TSR
Santa Claus (AoStH) - That's Santa Claus
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