Aboard the Covenant Carrier, Silence of Steel, Rachel Wolford was lying in her cell. She was slightly bruised and parts of her clothing were torn from being wrangled by Brutes. 

Rachel laid in the corner hugging her knees to her chest as she struggled to maintain her sanity. The doors of the prison then open and Rachel see two heavily armored Brutes drag another human in, tossing him into another cell. 

"I don't understand why Atriox needs these humans." One of the Brutes say. 

"Because of the Great Journey!" The other Brute retorts. "The Ark was destroyed hundreds of years ago, we're regrouping with the fleet to send one human to each Halo." 

"Regardless, I will enjoy feasting on their flesh. My belly aches." The Brutes then leave as Rachel sits up. 

She sees the human they threw in the cell, having jet black hair and looked like he was around 17 or 18 years old. He groaned standing to his feet and Rachel could see the scars on his back and the blood that leaked down his back. 

"Are you alright?" Rachel asks. 

The boy turned and Rachel saw his blue ocean eyes. "Yeah, takes more then some whip marks to  break me." 

Rachel smiles. "So I see. What's your name?" 

The boy hisses as he sits against his cell wall. "Josh. Josh Torchwick. Who're you?" 

"I'm Rachel....how did you get here?" 

Josh sighs. "Some guy with a gun and a couple women in these big suits with masks took me out of my Vault and handed me off to these freaks. What're the Covenant even doing here?" 

Rachel was shocked. "Repeat that to me again." 

"I said 'what are-" 

"NO!" Rachel cuts him off. "I mean about the man and the women. Did the women have on radiation suits?" 

Josh stares at her. "How in God's name do you know that?" 

"Because I was kidnapped the exact same way. The guy knocked me out with a gun and then I woke up on this ship." 

Josh sighs again. "This is just perfect. What do they want us for?" 

Rachel shakes her head. "I don't know. I just hope my husband comes for me." 

"Same with my big brother Wade." Josh agrees. "He always looked out for me, was the best brother a guy could ask for. When my parents passed, he stepped up and found a job to take care of us. He was busy a lot but he always managed to find the time to have fun with me. Then the explosions..." 

Rachel gives a sad smile. "Your brother sounds like a good man." 

"He is...he really is." Josh says. 

"My husband, Rex sounds like that. Managed to find the time to be with me despite the work and the explosions. He even sometimes snuck out of work just to come back and kiss me." Rachel says in remembrance. 

Suddenly they both hear feminine screaming and widen their eyes. 

"What the heck was that?!" Rachel cries. 

"No clue." Josh says before the Brutes come back again and walk to Rachel's cell carrying another woman. They open the force field and drop the woman next to Rachel. 

The Brutes both laugh before they bring the field back up and leave the prison. Rachel sneers at them before checking on the woman next to her. "Are you alright?" 

The woman stirred but still was unconscious. Rachel noticed that the woman was around her age and had lightish orange hair and had a scar across her cheek that was bleeding. Her torn button up was mixed with her blood from the torture she'd endured. 

The woman's eyes flutter open and she sees Rachel. "What is this? Where the hell am I?" 

Rachel rubs her back. "Are you okay?" 

"Fine. I'm-LEO!" The woman shoots to her feet and starts pounding on the field that was keeping her and Rachel imprisoned. "WHAT DID YOU MONSTERS DO TO MY BROTHER?!" 

Rachel grabs her shoulders. "Calm down. Whoever you're looking for isn't here." 

The woman looks at Rachel for a moment before punching the field once more and sitting down. 

"Is she okay?" Josh says from across the room. 

Rachel shrugs before looking at her. "Who are you?" 

The woman gives Rachel a glare. "Lina Church." 

"Well, I'm Rachel and that's Josh. Why were you yelling about your brother?" 

Lina wipes some of the blood off her cheek. "My younger brother Leo. Me and him were together right as the explosion on Earth took place. I wake up and the next thing know I'm being beaten and battered by those big hairy apes." 

"Geez, why do they want us?" Josh breathes. "It's crazy!" 

"Josh, please." Rachel says calmly before kneeling and rubbing Lina's shoulders. "Lina, right? I don't have any idea why the three of us are here. But, I do know that we need to stick together, and we need to find a way out of here. Are families may be looking for us, but we don't know how long that'll be...but we have to try." 

Lina looks at her. "And just how do you propose we do that?" 

"Again, I don't know." Rachel says. 

"So, you're just gonna wing it then?" Lina shrugs her hand off. "We're on ship in space, guarded by hundreds if not thousands of aliens. And you're just gonna try and fight your way out?" 

"It's better than sitting around and listening to you moping." Josh retorts. 

Lina narrows her eyes at Josh before turning back to Rachel. "You're crazy, lady." 

"Maybe I am crazy." Rachel admits. "But I don't intend to stick around for whatever sick plan they need us for." 

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Atriox was on the bridge, overlooking space. Suddenly a beeping is heard on the console behind him and he taps a button. A hologram of another Brute appears, having been heavily injured and gripping his bleeding arm. "General Atriox, we failed to secure the control room. The Sentinels have pushed us back. I have lost most of my forces." 

Atriox roars and dents the ground next to him with his hammer. "Incompetent fool! I give you one simple task and you cannot even complete that?! You do not deserve to follow the path of the Great Journey. It is my sworn duty to uphold and fulfill what the Hierarchs and my predecessor Tartarus could not! Fire the Halos and let all see their glorious light and purity whip through the galaxy! Return to my ship at once! I will deal with you when you arrive." 

The Brute bows to him before his hologram disappears. Atriox places his hammer on his back before looking back at the stars. "Wherever you are Wolford. I will kill you with my own hands and make you watch as everything you love and care for die right in front of you."