Halo: Man and Machine - Chapter 1

	I open my eyes. I'm in a beautiful field in the hills. It feels like home. Is it Earth? I look to my left and see the beginnings of a dirt trail in a wooded area, and in front of me I see a white, old farmhouse with a windmill beside it. I feel a warm sensation on my hand, and look to my right. I see a girl. She has her right hand on mine, and she's looking right at me. I know she's beautiful; that she's perfection, but...I can't quite see her face. And I can't see face.
	I wake up to the familiar gray of my room. Yes, that is MY room. One of the perks of being a SPARTAN I guess. I think if it weren't for being freakishly tall though, they'd group me with the rest of the ground-pounders, I thought. My gray room belongs to the UNSC Vienna, a Marathon-class heavy cruiser. I turned my head to see the rest of my room. A blue light flickered on a pedestal across from my face.
	“Miss me yet?” The voice is calming, yet authoritative. Female. A small, blue body appears at the bottom of a metal pedestal. She's looking at me; smiling, with her head cocked to one side. Locks of light-colored hair fall upon a a t-shirt that's just a little bit too short, exposing her holographic flat midriff. Jeans and sneakers complete her look. Her face is; though I'd never admit to finding an AI attractive, attractive. I guess it would be what would happen if you crossed the “girl next door” look with that of a model. I rolled my eyes. “Ugh, what do I have to do now? I had looked forward to sleeping in today. No AIs telling me what to do was a part of that.” “Captain wants you on the bridge,” she replied. “He says it's important, and that you're to go straight to him...Sorry I had to be the bearer of bad news.” The smile fades from her face and she looked down at the ground, arms crossed. I got up and sat down on my bed, which was really just a large, ovular hole in the wall with a mattress and blanket. I dragged my hand on my face, hoping that it would take away some of the sleepiness. It didn't. “It's fine Jennifer. I was just kind of enjoying that dream, that's all”, as I made a warm smile to her. “Is that the same one as last night?”, she replied. “You seem to have it more and more frequently, Jake.” “Yes, it was...Well, it doesn't matter now. Tell the captain I'll be there in 30 minutes.” I smirk and raise an eyebrow. “Now off with you, I have to change. A guy has to have some semblance of privacy around women, even if they are AI constructs.” “See you on the bridge”, she replied cheerfully. The light contracted and vanished.
	It's a weird relationship I have with this one, I thought to myself. Sure, you were always close to Deja, but it was different. She was more of a teacher and mentor than a friend. Something different than the other SPARTANS though, was that she was never really my surrogate mother. Neither was Dr. Halsey. Unlike the others (or most of the others, they often were very selective with displays of their feelings) I still remembered my childhood. Before being put into the SPARTAN program. I felt a bit nostalgic as I put on my BDU pants, as my mind was in another place. For me, home was a small farm in Pennsylvania, but curiously not the one from my dream. My father died fighting the Innies on a combat deployment just after I was born. My mother was a sweet women, and I owe my most core principles to her. I remembered my full name as well. Jacob Edwin Doyle.
	Yes, it's a bit odd how close we've got, I thought as I finished zippering up my gray BDU top. Instead of being marked “Doyle”, as a normal Marine's would have, it was just labeled “S-114”. I thought it was especially how odd it's been considering how long I've been on the Vienna. Only a month and a week now, starting today. There have been nights we talk, just her and I. Usually before bed, with the lights out and alone in my room. We talk about anything really, the war, humanity, our dreams and aspirations, or just how the day went. I tied my black combat boots and walked out the door. It's just unexpected I guess, although I am a bit women hungry. I mean sure, I have normal friends, unlike most SPARTANs, but nobody to hold and call my own. Who would even want to be with me anyways? I'm 7 foot, freakishly tall. Nobody except women who would fetishize me would want me. What would happen if I even tried to have sex anyways? Would the physical force of me kill her? Thanks for ruining my chances with women, ONI. I guess being a super-soldier is worth it though, along with the reduced aging thing. I try to convince myself that every day. Usually it works, but some days, especially days like today, it doesn't work out so well.
	I walked by one of the Marine barracks and saw a familiar face. “Hey, Jake! How ya doin'?” a lanky, bald young Marine says to me. He's tall, but I still tower a full foot above him. Pulowski's his name. Good kid, just got out of basic. That being said, it doesn't take a physicist to understand why he looks up to me.
	“Doing fine, well all without waking up early on my off day. Skipper wants me up to the bridge for some important shit, don't know what. You know how it is; first to go, last to know,” I say jokingly.
	“Fuck man, that sucks. I have something to cheer you up though. A token of appreciation for converting my 5B to the 5C we just got in port last week. You know, they say they're even more reliable than the 5Bs.” He tosses me a Coke, an actual one in the can. A rare sight on spacefaring vessels, he knows I prefer the metallic taste of the can. I effortlessly catch the can and reply. “Thanks. Anytime you need help with something, just hit me up. So far from my range and sim time, I'm really liking the 5C. Shame about the 60 rounders though. I get why they got rid of them, but fuckin' REMFs always think they know what's best for us boots. Anyways, I gotta go or the Cap will have my augmented neck. See ya”. He waves and heads back into his barracks. I pass through an automatic door and go into an elevator. A few minutes later, and I'm at the con.