First Strike - Spartan Dura

“Overpressurize your hydrostatics just before you hit."

 That would risk nitrogen embolisms for his Spartans, but they were coming in at terminal velocity, which for a fully loaded Spartan was—he quickly calculated—130 meters per second. They had to overpressurize the cushioning gel or their organs would be crushed against the impervious MJOLNIR armor when they hit.

 The acknowledgment lights winked again ... although Fred sensed a slight hesitation.

 Five hundred meters to go.

 He took one last look at his Spartans. They were scattered across the horizon like bits of confetti.
 He brought up his knees and changed his center of mass, try- ing to flatten his angle as he approached the treetops. It worked, but not as well or as quickly as he had hoped.

One hundred meters to go. His shield flickered as he brushed the tops of the tallest of the trees.
 He took a deep breath, exhaled as deeply as he could, grabbed his knees, and tucked into a ball. He overrode the hydrostatic sys- tem and overpressurized the gel surrounding his body. A thousand tiny knives stabbed him—pain unlike any he'd experienced since the SPARTAN-II program had surgically altered him.

 The MJOLNIR armor's shields flared as he broke through branches—then drained in one sudden burst as he impacted dead-center on a thick tree trunk. He smashed through it like an armored missile.

 He tumbled, and his body absorbed a series of rapid-fire im- pacts. It felt like taking a full clip of assault rifle fire at point-blank range. Seconds later Fred slammed to a bone-crunching halt.

 His suit malfunctioned. He could no longer see or hear any- thing. He stayed in that limbo state and struggled to stay con- scious and alert. Moments later, his display was filled with stars. He realized then that the suit wasn't malfunctioning... he was.

- Halo: First Strike, Chapter 2