Halo - Series Fan Fiction ❯ Halo: Michael Douglas ❯ I Had It All ( Chapter 1 )

 

Halo: Michael Douglas

Chapter 1: I Had It All

 

Location: Old Mombassa, East African Protectorate

10/18/2552 12:47 pm

 

My name is Michael Douglas and I had it all. I had more money than God, owned my own company; I had a great family, two wonderful children and a beautiful wife. I used to hunt for sport. I've hunted on most Human-held worlds. My trophy room was filled with the heads and hides of dozens of species. That's all gone now. The Covenant took it from me. My company, Star Corporation United, was based on Aroqua Prime, my home world. My life was there, everyone I ever knew, loved, and cared for lived on that planet. Now it's just one big ball of glass. Those bastards took it from me. I was on my way here, to Earth, for business when it happened. I spent all my money on trying to keep the business alive, but with all the CEO's dead, there was nothing I could do.

I now live on the street, living day by day, deca-cred by deca-cred. Oh, how the mighty have fallen. I'm still trying to adjust to this lifestyle, not eating three meals a day, being looked down upon by those who I used to employ. People giving me money as a reason to verify their own existence. I live in the slums of Mombassa, the part that no one would ever go to if they had a say in it. The buildings are old, probably from the late 23rd century, falling apart. There's a certain sense of camaraderie among us, I know everyone here but I have four friends: Matt Preston, James Keith, Ian Carter, and Thomas Madison. We all live close to each other and work together. That means making ourselves look like absolute idiots so people will give us money.

It's amazing what war can do to people. It can make people from Earth and Sigma; the respective people have always hated each other; brothers again. The streets are still crowded here on Earth, but everyone is military of some sort. Everyone but us, that is. My friend Matt was in the military. A long time ago, back when the Covenant hadn't even bothered with us. When people still fought each other over things like territories. He was on a ship, the Gettysburg. He was discharged for beating the hell out of the Captain. He says he did it because the Captain was having them slaughter women and children, but the report said Matt was drunk off his ass. I entertained myself memories while I sat and waited for this annoying rain to end. We don't work in the rain because we might get sick and then we'd be pretty much screwed.

People bustled by under the cover of their umbrellas. Yep, we still have those, I guess that, like the weapons they use in the military, they saw that it still worked as it was supposed to and kept it around. It really amazes me sometimes how we can travel from galaxy to galaxy in a matter of hours, or days, and yet we still use projectile weapons, umbrellas, and tires on our vehicles. I mean, come on! We invented a cure for cancer, Goddamn real fucking cancer, and yet it didn't occur to anyone that we might try to invent some sort of energy-based weapon! Like I said, amazing.

It didn't stop raining until sometime around 10:00 pm. We were all asleep by then, got to save up energy. My last day on Earth, or to put it better: my last day alive was spent waiting for the rain to end.