Fall of Reach - Cortana Senses 2

“Wait,” Cortana said. “I’m picking up far infrared signals on your thermal sensors. An encrypted
sequence . . . decoding . . . yes, there. It’s an activation signal for a Lotus mine. They’ve mined the
field, Master Chief.”

The Master Chief froze. He’d used Lotus mines before and knew the damage they could inflict. The shaped charges ripped though the armor plate of a tank like it was no thicker than an orange peel.

This would slow him down considerably. Not crossing the obstacle course was no option. He had his orders. He wouldn’t cheat and go around.

He had to prove that he and Cortana were up for this test.

“Any ideas?” he asked.

“I thought you’d never ask,” Cortana replied. “Find the position of one mine, and I can estimate the rough position of the others based on the standard randomization procedure used by UNSC engineers.”

“Understood.”

- Halo: The Fall of Reach, Chapter 27