Halo Shock Force
The Marines stood in two crowded rows in the dim light in the interior of the Scythe Boarding Vehicle. Most of them were veterans of the Marine Shock Force. They sat calmly awaiting the bump that would signal their attaching to the side of the Covenant ship. The new ones however would easily recognizable as they were starting to get jittery. This was what they had trained for, to take it to the Covenant in their own turf, space. The Navy was having very little success taking down the Covenant's vastly superior ships. So to cover their losses they had created a force dedicated to boarding Covenant ships and taking them down from the inside.
A slight shudder went through the ship as the EMP device on the front of the long boxlike ship took out a hole in the Covenant shields, a hole just big enough to fit a the small ship. The veterans gripped their the handle on the roof tighter, anticipating the inevitable boarding. A few more seconds and the ship shuddered as it struck the ship and the four clamps latched onto the ship. The pilot pressed the detonator and the shaped charges on the nose blew the hull out of the way, opening a hole up into the ship.
The Marines readied themselves as the ramp dropped. The first two hit the deck and rolled to the sides covering their flanks. They opened fire on the nearby Covenant. The second pair hit the deck and dove forward into the prone covering their front. The third pair didn't come out untouched as the surprised Covenant began to fight back. Three needles stuck in the Marine on the left's throat while the one on the right only caught one in his left bicep. Another needle found its way back and struck a Marine a few rows back in the hip. The rest of the Marines dropped out of the boarding vehicle, taking out all the Covenant in the way. Roughly 9 minutes after impact they had the hallway secured. This was why they were created, because no matter what the Covenant did in space, the Marines won every single ground engagement. They were not without casualties though. The man that had taken a needle to the throat was almost beheaded, while his partner was leaning against the wall holding his pistol, his left arm hung useless. Two other marines were injured, one in the leg and one in the chest. One Marine was dead, his faceplate melted and sticking to what was left of his face.
The man wounded in the chest would not be able to make it. The other Marines leaned him against the wall, handed him a pistol and a grenade, and left him. This was the Shock Forces, there was no time to help those too far gone. They were different from the seemingly immortal Spartans. They were expected to die. If you could not do it yourself you would be left behind. This man was to far gone, but he would not die in vain. This ship would fall. This was Echo Team, and they never failed.
