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Elise and Samantha reach the top of a hill overlooking the former city of Aurora. Once the capital of this colony, Covenant glassing had reduced it to a graveyard of concrete and molten steel, a gallery of reminders of what this world once was. Chorus was a world of artists, where any tortured poet or aspiring singer or visionary painter could find their place. It was a factory of disturbances to the comfortable and comforts to the disturbed-of which there were now a great many, thanks to the more than two and a half years of genocidal war with the Covenant.
The only things which cared less for Chorus's opulence than the aliens was their glassing beams. In the span of just eight days, once they had determined that there was nothing to be gained from further ground operations, Covenant warships had swept over the planet. The UNSC's objective changed from defending the planet-an impossibility when your opponent is destroying you from orbit with ships you can't effectively counter-to evacuating from it.
In the course of the fighting, even before the glassing began, the 1st Armored Cavalry Regiment had sustained losses that quickly became irreplaceable. By the time the unit evacuated, it was more comparable to a roughly third-strength battalion.
Well, by the time most of the unit evacuated.
Sam (as her friends called her) and Elise were among two dozen or so troopers who were defending the starport 1ACR was evacuating from, to board the evacuation vessel as soon as everyone else was aboard. But, the pilot panicked and took off too soon, leaving the troopers behind and his craft exposed, his escort not in position. Banshees were heard shooting it down soon after. Quickly, it became apparent to Elise and Sam that they were going to die here if they stayed.
So, they didn't.
Elise insisted to Sam that they leave. While she ultimately did so, it was only with reluctance. They heard their comrades fall as they did so.
Enrico Gutierrez, a chronic cheater at poker, was cut down by a torrent of plasma fire.
Henry Walker, a wizard in the kitchen, was claimed by an Elite with a sword.
Jessica Abel, a comedian who could make light of the darkest of days, was caught in the blast of a grenade.
The wind seemed to pick up their screams and carry them along wherever the pair went, especially that night, when they sought a reprieve in sleep. No rest for the wicked, it would seem.
The next morning, they'd woken up and decided to come here together, where they could survey what had become of Chorus. The ground had been rendered into a dark, glass-like substance. To an outside observer, this area could've had grass, shrubs, snow, sand-anything, really, but it wouldn't matter. All that was left now was vast expanses of grasslands. Above, dark, thick-looking clouds loomed, thanks to all of the ash that had been kicked up into the atmosphere.
Was this world dying, or had it died already?
"Hey," Sam asked her companion, "you know what today is?"
"Enlighten me," Elise replied.
"February 14, back on Earth. Valentine's Day."
Elise laughs. Of all the things to think about while looking over the carcass of a planet, a day of love is seldom one of them.
"Oh dear, how could I have forgotten?"
Sam chuckles in reply before pressing on with what she intends to say.
"Wanna be my Valentine?"
Elise tries to keep her composure, in spite of a welling feeling of anxiety.
"You joking?"
Sam takes a breath. She'll need to drum up more confidence for what comes next.
"Never been more serious since taking the oath. I've honestly had feelings for you for... longer than I'd care to admit, actually."
Elise isn't sure whether she wants to make out with Sam until she suffocates or beat her until her knuckles bleed. It's cathartic, finally knowing she reciprocates her feelings, but God, why did she have to wait until now? She steps closer to Sam, tears almost threatening to well up.
"Me too."
The two smile at each other. It's the first time either one has felt genuinely happy in a long, long time.
"Is it too early to say 'I love you?'"
"I think at this point, we're past any point of 'too early.' Now, there's just 'too late.'"
"Then I love you."
"I love you, too."
This world's time is ending, and theirs will end with it. Both realize this.
But, as their lips touch and they wrap their arms around their lover and passion and affection built up over so long spills forth, neither one feels so worried about that.