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“Here we are at the bridge, gentlemen. The captain is waiting for you inside.”
He speaks as if we could not figure that out for ourselves. Rtas huffed in his head. Regardless, he did the respectful thing and bowed his head to their human escort. He then turned his head to speak quietly in Sangheili to the only other who accompanied him to this meeting.
“Arbiter? Was this arrangement truly wise?” Their human escort eyed them, but he did not voice any complaints. Rtas shared in any feelings of suspicion, so he could not entirely blame the man. “Even if they do not seek to harm our people, surely they could not pass the opportunity we’ve given them now.”
Thel responded as they stepped inside, with the faintest sign of smugness on his face. “Worry not, Rtas. Despite what is said of me, I will not be going easy on them.”
Rtas did not want to doubt his Arbiter in the slightest, but Thel had not been there when they'd first contacted Captain Steve Capricorn: middle-aged human male of the lighter skin variety, once dark hair already beginning to whiten. A man who very clearly held a distaste towards the Sangheili - and did not care to hide it.
Not long ago did whispers of a small human craft roaming Sangheili space begin to spread from shipmaster to shipmaster. When the rumor was brought to the attention of the Arbiter, he asked Rtas to look into it. It did not take long after for Shadow of Intent to spot the prowler. Decently sized, Rtas knew not to be fooled. Typically these sneaky human vessels could mask themselves from both physical view and scans. Something must have been going on for them to appear in the open like that.
At best, it was simply from complications. At worst, a hidden plot. Nonetheless, Rtas had followed standard procedure and opened communications with the trespassers.
“Unknown human vessel. This is Shadow of Intent. Identify yourself and your purpose here or be destroyed.”
Funny how people respond so quickly with the threat of death thrown in.
“This is ONI Old Afton of Prowler Corps.”
However, the answer to what they were doing was one Rtas had to fight for; and even then, it was simple and vague. “On patrol.” In Sangheili space? They could’ve been hopelessly lost, yet when asked, they neither confirmed nor denied. So either there was something they were hiding, or they simply didn’t want to hurt their own pride.
The one who first answered hadn’t been the captain. It was just a communications officer. Despite Rtas’ concerns over the prowler, he did have to admit he couldn’t fault this one man. He really was doing the best he could with his orders... as Rtas could easily tell with how the officer started to phrase “his” responses.
“Why are you in our territory?”
Half of a sigh preceded the actual reply. “‘Does it look like we answer to you’...is the response from the captain.”
“Such blatant trespassing could be seen as an invasion, human.”
“You certainly didn’t have a problem with that years ago.” An entirely new and older voice came through this time. “My officer has been cooperating and answering your questions, Shipmaster, in spite of our policy of confidentiality. Are you going to continue to waste time for the both of us, or can everyone get back to their jobs now?”
Grinding the two mandibles he had left, Rtas contained his growl as he said, “This is my job, Captain. A suspicious craft is traversing through my people’s territory and refuses to be clear on its intent. If you cannot even attempt to explain that , then I will have no choice but to consider you a threat and engage.”
Captain Capricorn wasn’t as considerate in hiding his temper. “Engage?! If that’s how you’d treat an ally, why’d we even call off the war?!”
If it weren’t for the split second towards the end where one of the captain’s crew could be heard trying to protest that response, Rtas might’ve forgotten himself and really caused a scene. Instead, he gripped his seat and tried to give this situation some more thought. It was becoming more and more likely that the prowler was here for something the Sangheili wouldn’t like. No one could really fault the shipmaster if he decided to just end the exchange here with plasma fire. But the captain’s words had gotten into his head.
Regardless of what he meant by it, he has a point. If we can’t learn to coexist, we’ll be doomed to continue warring. And I wouldn’t want the guilt of causing the inciting incident in that case.
So as much as this particular human infuriated him, Rtas opted for diplomacy for a bit longer. Unfortunately, said fury was not just going to go away just like that. That’s when he contacted the Arbiter to take over the talks; but rather than do so remotely, Thel arrived for a physical meeting on Old Afton. Which - despite feeling like walking into a trap - was still better than being the one to talk with them himself, as Rtas had more small exchanges with the captain and he just couldn’t take it anymore. No matter how things went now, he fully intended on making this the last time he’d ever have to speak to the man - possibly humans in general. Especially as the last exchange ended with him cutting off the captain's "fuck you!"
But with both suspicious behavior from the craft and a short-tempered captain leading it, he’d have preferred spending this final meeting at his chair on Shadow of Intent with plasma cannons ready to fire if needed - he just had to let Thel talk him into being "a bodyguard" rather than let an actual bodyguard accompany instead. At least he still had an energy sword and plasma rifle at his hips, so if he went down, he could take that fucking captain with him.
“All I can say is this, Arbiter,” Rtas responded right before they went inside. “He will not go easy on you, either.”
Even though he braced for a potential outburst the moment they entered, Rtas still found himself caught off guard - because it wasn't the captain who started things off on the wrong foot.
"Fuck you, Captain Capricorn!"
Heads snapped towards the Arbiter - Rtas, with his eyes bulging, included. But that could not compare to the veins popping from underneath Captain Capricon's skin.
"Excuse me?!"
"What are you doing?!" Rtas hissed at the same time, quieter and in Sangheili.
"Might as well, if things will reach this point anyway," he responded, then stood straight up imposingly. "Is this not how you see fit to communicate with us? I am only giving you the same courtesy, intruder."
For a species with shorter legs, Capricorn closed the distance with as many strides as a Sangheili would need. "I refuse to be treated in such a manner on my bridge!"
"If you cannot tell us why you came here, this will officially be my bridge," Thel growled back.
Rtas could not help taking a step back, knowing fully well he was placing himself into a submissive position against the two warring leaders. Like hell he would involve himself in whatever contest the Arbiter had started! Not only was this all entirely uncalled for, but he couldn't grasp how this was even happening. He knew Thel 'Vadam to be a usually wise and collected individual - so he better have had a damn good reason for pulling this, especially while physically on an "enemy" ship, with him along for the ride!
This is how the second war begins. I thought getting him involved would stop one! Should I contact our ship and inform them to be on the ready?! There's no possible way they can extract us if this turns into a battle! He has to know that, surely?!
"This tactic of yours is ridiculous," the captain continued, somehow completely voicing Rtas' thoughts - the first time since they met that they were both in sync, albeit only slightly. "And you're making a fool of yourself."
"Is it? Because the way I see it-" Thel was waving his arms around in emphasis. "This ship is in Sangheili space now. It answers to the Sangheili when no collaborative drills are in effect. It answers to me. And I reserve the right to demote any unreasonable shipmasters under my authority."
"I am a captain under the authority of the Office of Naval Intelligence!"
"And ONI has only as much power here as I allow." Then, he reached back to place a hand on Rtas' shoulder. "So if you will show proper respect while in our space, on our ship-"
"When did this become 'ours'?!" Rtas reeled back from his grasp, increasing the distance farther.
"Based on the logs of your and the former Captain Capricorn's exchanges, you seem a better fit for-"
"I came here for peace talks! Do not drag me into this!"
At that, Capricorn snapped his fingers back at one of his crew. "This hardly seems peaceful, does it, Jeeves? Prepare to fire!"
Bristling, Rtas questioned why an order to aim first was skipped - then wondered if Capricorn had been prepared to fire upon their ship all along. Fortunately, "Jeeves" was already frozen even before the Arbiter launched a counter-command.
"Do not! This conversation is far from concluded, and I will have no interruptions - or unnecessary conflict."
Then you truly had me fooled with this act.
"'Unnecessary'?! Lemme tell you about 'unnecessary', split-lip-"
"Yes, you have demonstrated perfectly, by calling me such." Hardly paying the human - whose face was all red with rage - any mind, Thel turned his head to Rtas again. "You truly do not wish to take on this ship? You are here only to speak peacefully with these humans?"
"Yes!" Rtas nearly screamed.
"Then say so - tell them you are not involved with any shouting matches."
Facing not just Capricorn, but the entirety of Old Afton's crew present, Rtas rested a hand on his chest. "On my honor, I am only here to see that my people's sovereignty is respected and no plots are being carried out at our backs. None of my men wish for this to escalate."
Although the Arbiter is technically not one of my men... But that felt unwise to add.
"And - your name was 'Jeeves', was it?" Thel pointed out the same man Capricorn did a moment ago. "I have faith in our UNSC allies, but you are not UNSC. Can I trust that those on this ship hold the same goal - to protect our respective peoples?"
"Yes, sir," Jeeves nodded, shaking a little. That went into a full tremble as Capricorn glared, but he still managed to get out, "We're not here to stir trouble, as shady as this all looks. I hope you can understand we have our reasons not to tell the full story."
"And I hope you can understand we have our reasons to seek it out regardless." After that, he looked between the two men - still blatantly ignoring Capricorn - before his shoulders relaxed. "See? There can still be nice, respectful discussions between us - we are not enemies."
You have the gall, after starting off with- And then Rtas froze. This... This was entrapment! This was a scheme to put the responsibility of talking back onto me, even though I explicitly requested he take care of this! What point is he trying to make with this?!
Obviously, it was a silent message that Rtas should not give up on the humans' ability to cooperate - as well as his ability to communicate with them. Which Rtas had to begrudgingly accept - besides the fact that the little scheme had gotten its intended results, it was also true that the Arbiter could not be everywhere at once, so he needed trustworthy men like Rtas to accomplish "sudden diplomacy" on his behalf. However, his methods of getting to this point still baffled the mind. Now just what was his plan to take care of the riled up Capricorn?
Thel only gave a nod for Rtas to continue, so he could only assume that achieving that... had to be done by him somehow.
"This is the final chance we will give you," Rtas said. "If you have legitimate business in our territory, then state what it is and we will merely stand by as escorts."
"And again, you know the terms if you do not," Thel added.
Sighing, Rtas could not believe he was still going on with this. But he chose to have faith that there was something else this would achieve, so he reluctantly did not argue this time. "Yes. The terms..."
Then, everything that this captain had put him through flashed through his brain - and Rtas decided that if this farce was going to continue, he would allow himself to enjoy it. "Might as well", as Thel put it earlier.
"You know what? He is right about that. If you do not cooperate, this will be our bridge, and we will get our answers ourselves."
A finger ended up jabbed into Rtas' lower chest armor, as with a blink of an eye Capricorn went from being in front of Thel to right up against him. "One more word of taking my ship, and I'll-"
"Hey you sack of shit!" a voice from the crew interrupted him. It came from a man who seemed to be the youngest of the whole crew. "Respect the captains!"
The others previously watched him in subtle terror, but as his challenge against Capricorn came out, one by one they all nodded.
"It'd be easier if 'ya read the files," another crewmate said, this time a woman with a burlier frame than even some of the men.
"Would work better as evidence, too!" another girl called out, breaking out a smile as she did.
"Are you all committing treason at a time like this?!" Capricorn turned his wrath at them, but by the looks on their faces they were used to it - and done tolerating it.
"If you and the higher ups wanna get shot by the Elites, then by all means, do it without dragging the rest of us in it!" the same young man that started the mutiny answered. "I'm going home, dammit!"
Of course - somehow, the Arbiter had clocked that the crew were just as tired of their captain and ONI's shenanigans as the Sangheili were, and that they'd be willing to "switch sides" when presented the opportunity. Looking back, it was as clear as the first interaction Rtas had with the Old Afton, with the communications officer. Perhaps some of these people still didn't hold any love for the Sangheili - as evident that they took part in this operation in the first place - but it also seemed that either Captain Capricorn treated his crew too poorly, or it finally dawned on them with Rtas and Thel's brief speech that poking the Sangheili rather than letting grievances go was the worse path to tread.
At least... Rtas hoped that this was all Thel's ingenious deduction skills in action, and not dumb luck everything worked out.
Realizing he had no back-up left on the bridge, Capricorn's eyes darted for a moment before they settled back on the Arbiter with purpose. "Yeah... well I'm not sure Admiral Lord Hood will be happy when this eventually gets to him."
He raised his voice, slowly facing everyone as he continued, "And it will. You can't hide what happened here today from the people who will ensure the admirals know! Even if you restrain or kill me, they'll still find out!"
"Pretty sure our chances are still good there," Jeeves said.
Thel spoke up again, utter confidence emitting from him better than Capricorn's attempt. "Yes - I am also sure Admiral Lord Hood would love to hear how ONI's prowlers have been invading the territory of allies he's worked hard to maintain. And Admiral Osman would be happy to have that long, productive talk with him, wouldn't she?"
At last, Capricorn's eyes widened as the fearlessness drained. Rtas, at the same time, had the final piece of the puzzle - no matter how this interaction went, even if they never found Old Afton's purpose here, it would have all turned out in their favor. Because once Lord Hood learned of this incident, he would have done the work to confront Capricorn and ONI for them. It was only formality they make the attempt before "tattling", even though they had every right to complain to Lord Hood that humanity wasn't being consistent with their promises. And from what Rtas knew of ONI, those on the higher rungs' preferred method of dodging responsibility was to pin it on convenient scapegoats - such as belligerent captains that didn't seem popular to keep around anyway.
Once satisfied that this had settled in both his comrade’s and opponent's minds, Thel continued in a calm yet uncharacteristically... "sweet" tone. "However, I am sure the admirals are busy with other matters, I would hate to distract them with things that can... easily be resolved. I have no reason to report lost prowlers that forfeit any suspicious files and leave on their own accord. Perhaps the admirals still deserve to hear, but those cases... they can be so forgettable."
"Yes... Yes, I'm willing to keep their loads light," Capricorn said, nodding back. "But to the extreme of forfeiting-?"
Finally, the other humans stepped in physically. One already had the relevant files prepared, seemingly having gathered them preemptively at some point in the conversation. The rest used force to separate Capricorn from the Sangheili, although not by returning him to the captain's post. That spot was now taken up by Jeeves, who gave the duo a polite salute. There was no need to question what Old Afton's fate would be from here.
Thel returned the salute with a respectable tilt of the head, before giving a warning to the new captain. "And should you be spotted here again... know that we will be back. After all, this is our bridge now."
It was delivered with a mix of seriousness and humor, with some of the humans laughing over the demanding shouts of Capricorn - shouts that started to fade as he was escorted elsewhere, while the Sangheili made their exit.
As soon as they were on board their transport, Rtas waved away any possible eavesdroppers as he hissed lowly, "Could you please give me fair warning before you try something like that?! What were you even thinking, you were lucky we weren't killed!"
"I apologize, friend," Thel said, in a tone that didn't seem properly apologetic. "I wanted to make a few points... and I do have to admit, I'd been feeling the temptation to just... let some things out. That idiot seemed the perfect target."
"That idiot had a crew willing to mutiny, that was the only reason this worked out!"
"So we are in agreement that this worked out well in the end?"
Barely keeping back the growl, Rtas got one thing out before he retreated to a spot where witnesses would keep him accountable for any actions done towards the Arbiter:
"I will be taking care of incidents with humans without your 'help' from now on, and I better not hear any complaints on how it goes!"
Thus, Thel was satisfied that human mind games could prove useful to him.