Halo: The Fall of Reach (2015) - full transcript

Animated series adapted from the original book, Halo: The Fall of Reach. It's an explanation and backstory of the shaping and creation of Spartan 117, The Master Chief.

That never sounded like an owl, Fred.

Kelly.

We've got 2 hours to get back to base
before ONI starts spilling over time.

Where's the Chief? Where's Linda?

Quick shore leave, Chief.

We're lucky Command let us come at all.

This is it?

Most of it's gone,
but yeah, it's the place.

Then let's do this.

Private journal entry.

Encrypt Halsey 424-3.



Delete if tampered.

A long time ago, I committed myself
to a path, a direction.

There were many branches in that path,
but ultimately they all flowered, I think.

John was the first seed.

I couldn't personally screen
every candidate.

The outer colonies were simply
too scattered, too distant.

But I had to set an example
for the other extraction teams.

So the first candidate...

The first candidate,
I dealt with personally

But the outer colonies were still
very dangerous places in those days,

albeit for radically different reasons.

And so the Office of Naval Intelligence
assigned me a chaperone,

perhaps for my safety,

perhaps for theirs.



Time to wake up, Lieutenant Keyes.

We are preparing to exit slipspace
near the Eridanus System.

Dr. Halsey?

Already awake and on the bridge, sir.

Eh, of course she is.

Dr. Halsey.

Are these shuttles
all so damned claustrophobic?

There is barely room for one person
in here, let alone two.

- Doctor...
- Toran...

Awaiting your orders, Dr. Halsey.

Start a pre-burn warm-up cycle
for the fusion engines.

Understood, Doctor.
Exiting slipspace in 6 seconds.

Good. And some music.

Rachmaninoff's Concerto No. 3, I think.

Now, Lieutenant,
you needed my attention?

I was going to say
I should act as pilot.

If I wished to be chauffeured, you would
already be in this chair, Lieutenant.

If you wish to make yourself useful,
take the comms

and make sure our arrival is discreet.

What are we doing here?
This area is dangerous.

It's been an Insurrectionist
stronghold for years.

Meaning?

Meaning the Insurrection isn't some
ragtag group of colonial rowdies.

Toran, list rebel acts of violence
in this sector in last 5 days.

72 hours ago,

Insurrectionists destroy emergency
food caravan.

18 hours ago, rebellion raids
merchant vessel, murders entire...

I am painfully aware
of the rebellion, Lieutenant.

Something needs to be done.
ONI agrees with me.

That is why we are here.

ONI?

But if the Office
of Naval Intelligence...

This is a recon mission?

How terribly perceptive of you.

But what could you possibly need
to recon out here?

I'm dressed like a fool.

You're dressed like a father

trying to get his daughter
into a decent school.

I don't have a daughter.

And I don't have a pony. Pay attention.

We are here to observe a boy,

the first of many evaluations
in the weeks to come.

I'm supposed to be protecting
shipping lanes, not babysitting.

This child could be more useful
to the UNSC

than a fleet of destroyers,
a thousand lieutenants

or even me.

In the end,
one child could be the difference

between peace and an unwinnable war.

Ah.

There's our young man.

Journal entry. Same encryption scheme.

Who's next?

John was the first, and he was the best.

Come on, he can't stop us all!

Even as a child,
I could see how special he was.

Sense his unformed potential.

I simply needed to carve away
everything else to get to it.

To shape it.

Form him into everything
I knew he would eventually become.

Him?

- He can't be more than...
- 6.

John, like all of our candidates,
is 6 years old.

And like the others,
he has all the genetic markers.

There's something else
that makes him of interest.

Of interest to whom, precisely?

Here, record our interaction.

I'll talk to him,

find out if his character
is as exceptional as his DNA.

Hello, what's your name?

It's John.

And what game were you playing, John?

- War?
- King of the hill.

Mom says I'm too rough
with the other kids.

You like games? So do I.

I have another game
if you're interested.

This is a coin.

Win the game and you keep the coin.

You see the two sides?

Yes. A man and a bird.

Which side will land up?

Bird.

Very good. Again.

Man.

- Again.
- Man.

Bird.

Bird.

5 out of 5, John. That's unusual.

You said I could keep it if I won.

Yes. You can keep it, John.

Yes!

I cursed myself for using his name.

I couldn't afford the luxury
of fondness.

No telling if subject 117
would even survive what lay ahead.

Tell me you recorded that.

It all fell into place
so quickly after John.

It wasn't long
before I had my final candidates.

These are the 75, Deja.

Confidential journal entry.

Red encryption using my private key.

As I said before,
I don't regret any of this.

I've thought it all the way through.

I am certain it will be worthwhile.

Right at that moment,
across several star systems,

children were being acquired
and shipped,

like freight to the planet Reach.

We were replacing the children
with flash clones.

Imperfect simulacra
but nigh impossible to detect.

If I could have used the clones,
of course I would have,

but the damn things broke down
faster than we could grow them.

We needed real children.

Whole children.

It was a regrettable
but necessary deception.

I needed those subjects.

ORION-II would not have succeeded
built on a foundation of compromise.

ONI would have its soldiers,

and I would have my solution.

May God have mercy on us all.

Doctor, they are here. They are ready.

Send them in.

And, Deja, on second thought,
don't save this file.

What happened? How did I get here?

I don't know.

Take a seat. All of you.

Per naval code 45812,

you are hereby conscripted
into UNSC's special project

code-named ORION-II,

also known as SPARTAN II.

Your parents are gone.

The planet Reach is your new home.

Your fellow trainees
are your new family.

Each of you has been hand-selected
and called to serve.

Your bodies are already faster
and stronger than other children,

and we are going
to make them even better.

Chief Petty Officer Mendez,

escort the children to the mess hall,
feed them, get them to bed.

Trainees, fall out!

John.

Johnny, you need to wake up.

Mom?

Wake up!

Wake up, trainee!

I said up! Do you know which way up is?

Last one up gets it, Jorge!

My name's pronounced "George."

Don't you back talk me, Jorge!

- What's happening?
- I don't know. Just go, go!

Come on. Everyone's headed this way.

- I'm Sam, by the way.
- I'm Kelly.

It'll be okay, Kelly.

Trainees, I am Chief Mendez.

I am your commanding officer.

Every day, dawn till dusk,
you will do exactly what I say,

when I say, how I say.

- Am I clear, trainees?
- Sir, yes, sir.

Naturally, they didn't all make it.

We expected drop-outs.

There were accidents,
incidents, bad luck.

Better that we separated
the chaff from the wheat immediately.

Come in. Class is about to begin.

We trained their minds
as well as their bodies.

War strategy, theoretical tactics,
Sun Tzu,

nothing in the sprawling history
of conflict was overlooked.

We taught them about Thermopylae,
about the unbeatable Spartans.

Xerxes wanted to steal Greece
from the Spartans.

His forces numbered in the thousands.

Why didn't Xerxes just sail around them?

Xerxes wanted to send a message, John.

He failed
and just 300 Spartans saved Greece.

Yes!

That is all for today.

But tomorrow I will tell you
about wolves.

Today's mission is ring the bell.

When every member of your team
has rung the bell, cross this line.

Question, trainee?

- What do we win, sir?
- You win dinner, 117.

- Last team to finish goes without dinner.
- Oh, no!

Make ready. Go!

I knew John was
a natural leader, even if he didn't.

John, a little help?

First.

A leader must inspire passion,
and 117 certainly did that.

Hey, thanks for nothing.

Good work, trainees.

Everybody eats,

except 117 and his team.

But I was first.

You were first,
but your team came in last.

And you don't win unless your team wins.

Get out of here.

- Kelly!
- No. Kelly's right, Sam.

He could've helped us today,
instead he left us in the dirt.

I'm sorry, guys.

I stole them a few nights ago.

They're stale but better than nothing.

- It's not turkey.
- I know.

It won't happen again. Promise.

And that was it.

Logic, consequences,
spark of leadership.

All things I saw in him from the start.

You are each being handed
a portion of a map of the area below.

The mission is simple.

You will be individually deployed

and use your piece of the puzzle
to navigate to the extraction point.

Last trainee to make it to extraction
will be left behind.

And it is a very long walk back.

- 117, you're first.
- Yes, sir.

- Sam, the river.
- I got it.

Pass the word, quietly.

117, front and center.

Good luck, 117.

You sound nothing like an owl, Sam.

- Ah, I've been practicing.
- It sounded exactly like an owl.

I was just drawing you out of cover.

Look what I found.

Blueberries? Nice!

I hope these are blueberries.

Better than the food in the mess.

Your lips are blue.

So are yours.

In the end, the wilderness mission

wasn't a test of strength or survival

but of friendship, camaraderie, loyalty.

What are you doing?

I'm putting our mark on this place,
so we can remember it.

Now and forever.

- We should meet up with the others.
- Then what?

Someone is still gonna get left behind.

Then I find a way to get everyone home.

One of those map fragments was bogus.
But I'm sure this is the extraction point.

Almost a day's hike from here.

Then we better get moving.

Hold.

You guys with me. Fall out.

And keep quiet.

I heard something.

And what I find fascinating is that

even though you think
you've prepared for every eventuality...

They're armed
but they aren't in uniform.

And they don't look like soldiers.
Insurrectionists, maybe?

...every contingency...

So what now?

...every permutation...

Wolves.

When Deja taught us about the wolves,
how they hunt...

What does that...

The wolves.

...children still manage
to surprise you.

Wolves, children, are fierce hunters.

But while any wolf
can hunt and kill a rabbit,

one wolf against larger prey

can face a grisly end.

- What the...
- I need help! My friend is hurt!

- Go bring that girl back.
- Yes, sir.

But when wolves hunt in a pack...

- Where's the girl?
- I think I broke my leg.

Oh, I got your broken leg
right here, kid.

...they take down larger prey with ease.

What the hell, Vince?

One little girl
too much for you to handle?

Ah, Doctor.

Trainee 117 was just explaining
why he attacked and injured UNSC soldiers.

And why he stole the property
they were left to guard.

Ma'am, the craft was UNSC,

but the men in the force were hostile
and were not in regulation uniform.

- You flew home?
- Not exactly.

I rigged the autopilot
to return to base, ma'am.

And you brought them all home?

According to orders, last trainee
to the ship was supposed to walk.

Instead, we stuck together,
like the Spartans at Thermopylae.

In the real ending of the story, 117,

the Spartans are betrayed
and slaughtered.

It is their sacrifice
that actually saves and unites Greece.

But we had more choices.

The men you hit with rocks didn't.

No, sir, they did not.

So, Doctor, what do we do with this one?

Well, Mendez,
I suggest a promotion to Squad Leader.

Thank you, sir.

What is the highest rank I can attain?

As a non-commissioned officer, 117,

the highest rank you can attain
is Master Chief Petty Officer.

Then I will.

Perhaps you will at that,

but your next mission won't be so easy.

And there will be casualties.

What is that mission, sir?

Your mission, John,

is to survive.

Samuel-034, Blue Team mission report.

I don't remember the operation,

but when we awoke,
we were something new.

Unbreakable materials
grafted to our bones, gene therapy.

Muscle density increased,
enhanced skeletal and muscular growth.

Of course,

we had no clue
what we had to live through first.

Replay the message, Deja.

Message from Admiral Ysionris Jeromi.

Chief Medical Officer,
research station Hopeful.

Catherine, I wish I had better news.

Further analysis
has yielded zero alternatives

to mitigate the risks in your proposed
hypothetical experimentation.

But I understand
the theoretical framework, Catherine,

and admire the imagination.

But I hope it is
in fact a hypothetical study

Details are in the attached files.

But your proposed treatments
could result in any of the following,

cell necrosis, stroke,
cardiovascular failure

and even Fletcher syndrome.

You proposed the use of lab animals,
simian proxies, in your tests.

I must be blunt.

I cannot imagine any more than half
of the subjects surviving this process.

I would hate to see
the poor creatures destroyed

in some Section III project, Dr. Halsey.

Well, I've said my piece.

Best of luck to you, Catherine.

Doctor, augmentation was always
a vital but statistically dangerous stage.

How many?

ONI was promised soldiers,

and you were the only mind
that could accomplish it.

How many dead, Deja?

27 deceased.

36% of the candidates.

Children.

36% of the children.

The subjects are just
one-half of the equation, Doctor.

Both MJOLNIR and the cognitive impression
modeling are critical.

You're correct.

- Doctor?
- This is our only option.

Every day the Insurrection invents
new acts of terror

to pull humanity farther into the muck.

Our civilization is balanced
on a razor's edge,

and the insurgents threaten
to bring it down around our ears.

If even one candidate survives
and balance is restored,

history will absolve me
for the greater good.

Duty.

Honor.

Self-sacrifice.

We were 14 when we lost almost half
of our comrades to augmentation failures.

Death does not diminish
these qualities in a soldier.

We shall remember our dead.

Honors, attention!

Kids I grew up with,
never said goodbye to.

We commit the bodies of our fallen
to space.

I still remember their names.

The deaths affected
each of us differently

Fire teams came and went,
but core loyalties and friendships endure.

Even beyond death.

Of course, it didn't sit well with John.

Where are you taking my men?

Let 'em go, Squad Leader.

They can't fight anymore.

They don't belong here.

What happens to them?

The Navy takes care of its own.

Their minds are still sharp.

And our war effort can always
use soldiers for less physical duties.

John never left anyone behind.

Not if he could help it.

Was there something else, son?

Sir, I'm Squad Leader.
Members of my unit died.

What should I have done
to keep that from happening?

117.

John.

What your class went through,

that any of you survived at all
is a testament to your strength.

Walk with me.

A leader must be ready to send the men
under his command to their deaths.

Your duty is to the mission.

I'm sorry, sir, but I fail to see
how that applies to this situation.

The lesson is sacrifice.

It is acceptable to spend lives
when necessary, Squad Leader.

What is not acceptable
is to waste said lives.

Which was this, sir? Spent or wasted?

Get some rest, Squad Leader.

- What did Mendez say?
- Not much.

Let me guess.

Something about duty and sucking it up.

That sounds nothing like him.

Like your owl.

It sounds exactly like him.

Me and Kels are going
to the shooting range later. You in?

No. I'm going to hit the gym.

John was still processing our losses.

Emotionally and physically

For weeks after augmentation,
every bone in our bodies ached.

Our eyes throbbed and bled.

We got headaches.

Fell down.

Clumsy in our new skins.

Dr. Halsey told us our brains
would have to relearn

how to work with our new bodies.

Learn how to use new strength and speed.

But it wasn't easy.

And it was frustrating.

The thing about John is that

he really only knew 3 ways
to react to people.

If you were his superior officer,
he obeyed you.

If you were in his squad,
he would die for you.

But if you were a threat?

Then God help you.

Heart rate steady. Pulse level.

He's barely breaking a sweat.

What is he doing?

What we built him to do. He's winning.

I'm gonna stop this now.

How is his adrenaline level, I wonder.

Attention!

At ease.

Your workout is over for today.

Sir, those men.

Was this a test?

You engaged and neutralized a threat,
Squad Leader.

They started it.

I was defending myself.

But still they were fellow soldiers.

People die.

Sacrifice is a necessary consequence
of war.

But, sir, they were wasted, not spent.

Because of me.

Your priorities are to follow orders,

and to preserve your life
and the lives of your team.

Is that clear, Squad Leader?

Yes, sir.

We heard what happened.

Everyone on the ship did.

It was an accident.

That didn't make it any easier for John.

Apologies, Doctor,

but I have been attempting to decode
a transmission from the Planet Harvest.

- And?
- It's fragmented and incomplete.

And it stopped repeating.

Show me what you have.

Gods.

Deja, give me a feed from Harvest.

- Scanning spectrum.
- Anything.

A comm station, a news feed,
a grain elevator, damn it.

Not found.

It may be interference or a problem
with the slipspace beacon relays.

Harvest is on a 12-hour signal delay.

Get Mendez, but keep scanning Harvest.

I'm accelerating the schedule.
I want a test in a combat mission.

Ma'am, that's needlessly aggressive.

I disagree.

Brass wants Spartans deployed,
and so do I.

There's a mission ONI has been saving
for the right team.

Colonel Robert Watts
earned his rank in the UNSC,

but in 2512 he went turncoat.

And now leads the Insurrectionist forces
in the Eridanus system.

Watts has spent 12 years leading raids
against UNSC targets,

killing civilians and military alike.

We have Intel that Watts
is planning to attack

medical satellites
in the outer colonies.

Recently, one of Watts' men
cut a deal with ONI.

We have known for some time
that Watts' forces

were launching
from the Eridanus asteroid belt.

But there are millions of rocks
scattered over billions of kilometers.

Our informant did not know
the exact location.

However, he did know that
the freighter Laden is a supply vessel.

Mendez.

Laden is set to leave dock in
6 hours for routine engine recertification.

And yet, she's been loaded with
enough food and water

to supply a small city.

Spartans, you will be dropped
at the Eridanus II space docks.

You'll be dressed the same
as members of the Laden crew.

Once in the base, you will infiltrate
the installation and take Watts alive.

If you can.

They would've detected a UNSC ship.
They wouldn't detect us.

Be prepared for anything.

Finally, Squad Leader,

you are hereby promoted
to Petty Officer third class.

Everything went off without a hitch.

Before long, we were safe
in the micro gravity well.

I can never get shut-eye
before a mission.

What are you doing?

Scanning freight and shipping documents.

Read it to me. That'll put me to sleep.

10 hours out, Blue Team.
We'll rotate sleep cycles.

- Find anything, Kelly?
- Everything.

Laden doesn't have a ship board AI
and their security is a joke.

Course setting.

We've got a loose trajectory
into the belt, but no final destination.

Meaning insurgents
don't even trust their own people.

Keep digging, and wake me in 4.
I'll take over watch.

Where did everyone go?

John?

Where were you when we needed you?

I'm up. What've you got?

I picked up where Kelly left off

and I found something odd
in the ship's manifest.

Hidden in the standard rations,

there's a single crate of cigars,
steaks and chocolates.

Luxury items.

That crate is going to Watts.

Precisely what I was thinking.

Follow me. Stay quiet. Blend in.

Kelly, get a bearing on that crate.

On the monorail, headed towards
the tallest building in town.

Only the best for Colonel Watts.

NAV marker at 443 meters and holding.

Top floor, helmets on. Move out.

Fresh batch, Colonel.

It was going well. We felt good.

We got cocky.

Well, I did.

Sam, look out!

John!

John, can you hear me?

It should've been me.

Secure the area.

The biofoam will keep your guts
where they belong till we get home.

It's going to hurt.

That was stupid, John.

Queen doesn't sacrifice everything
to collect a pawn.

All the pieces go back in the same
box when the game is done.

- You hit?
- Nope. I'm lucky.

Some idiot caught my bullet for me.

Do not make me
laugh right now.

You won't take me alive.

My men will come for you.

Empty the crate. Sam, load the cargo.

Cargo? Unhand me, boy.

I don't know who or what you are,
but I know two things, son.

One, none of you are gettin' out alive.

And two, I am absolutely not
getting in that damned box.

We believed we had dealt
the Insurrection a mortal blow.

Maybe we did.

But everything was about to change.

Who's that?

Uniform says Keyes.

Maybe he's here to interrogate Watts?

Nice work, 117.

- John, isn't it?
- Yes, sir.

Have we met?

A long time ago. You wouldn't remember.

You were just a kid
fighting in the dust.

Now you're a warrior.
And just in the nick of time.

- Sir?
- You'll know soon enough.

Dismissed.

Amphitheater, Spartans. On the double.

What do you think it is?
Insurrection revenge strike?

It's something else. Something big.

At ease, Spartans.

I am Vice Admiral Stanforth.

This is Harvest.
Population of 3 million.

A peaceful and productive farming world.

On February 3rd, at 1423 hours,

the Harvest orbital platform made
long range radar contact with this object.

After that,
all contact with Harvest was lost.

Command assembled a battle group.

What they found
was all that was left of Harvest.

3 million lives lost.

The colony burnt to ash.
Power like humanity has never seen.

Then they encountered this.

A starship of unknown design.

It destroyed the Vostok and the Arabia
in under a minute,

using highly advanced weapons
and impenetrable shielding.

The Heracles escaped into slipspace
with substantial damage

and brought this Intel back.

They will not negotiate,
they will not communicate.

They cannot be reasoned
or bartered with.

We had just fought the Insurrectionists,

stopped a plot to murder millions.

Only to realize that this could be
the very end of humankind. Period.

Humanity will fight back.

We've already seen that we cannot do it
with the blunt instrument of a fleet.

We need the surgical precision
of a scalpel.

The SPARTAN program is that scalpel.

We received a message before the attack
in UEG base English.

Play the message, Beowulf.

Humans, your destruction
is the will of the gods.

And we are their instrument.

Kelly-087 of Blue Team. Mission debrief.

We were on the Commonwealth,
en route to Chi Ceti IV.

When we weren't in cryo,
we were all crammed into the bunk room,

there was always more prep,
more planning.

Damn it!

- You're still dropping your shoulder.
- I know.

Let's go again.

Does Project MJOLNIR
mean anything to anyone?

Gotta be some kind of weapon.

Brass isn't very imaginative
with codenames.

Spartan 117, report to the bridge.

Yes, ma'am.

Sam, get everyone ready. On the double.

You heard the Petty Officer.

Dog the distractions
and into uniforms, Spartans.

As we scrambled to get ready,

John was dragged into a pissing contest
between Dr. Halsey and the captain.

Ma'am. Captain Wallace.

There it is again.

Doctor, that puts
our ghost at 80 million clicks.

Even if it were a ship,
and I don't concur that it is,

it would take an hour
to get within weapons range.

Besides, it's disappeared again.

Captain, it is my recommendation
that we go to battle stations.

We have plenty of time.

Unless there's something
you're not telling us.

This is not widely known, Captain,

but the alien ships
at Harvest disappeared,

then reappeared, much closer.

- An intrasystem jump?
- We believe so, Spartan.

Not possible.

I can tell you that slipstream space

simply cannot be navigated
that accurately.

You mean we cannot navigate it
with that kind of accuracy.

We'll take the dropship.

I will see these Spartans make it
to Project MJOLNIR.

All hands to battle stations.
This is not a drill.

Reactors to 90%.
Come about to course 125.

All hands, brace for impact.

We were being hunted down like dogs.

Our only chance was whatever
was down in that testing facility.

They call themselves the Covenant.

Energy shields. That's amazing.

Bring the ship around. And arm the MAC.

Unlike the missiles, the MAC round
101 is an unguided projectile,

so the firing solution has to be
perfectly aligned to hit.

Ready another MAC round.

MAC system destroyed, Captain.

The Commonwealth carries
nuclear missiles, correct?

Detonation at this range
will destroy us as well.

Excuse me, sir.

The alien tactics have been
unnecessarily vicious.

They didn't have to take
that second MAC round.

In my opinion, sir, they would
engage anything that challenged them.

They're sending a message.

Longsword Squadron Delta,
get those ships into the black, boys.

Buy us some time.

Roger that, sir. On our way.

Arm the nuclear warhead.

Proximity detonator at 100 meters.

Fire.

3, 2...

Power us back up. Slowly.

Sensors coming back on.

All Longsword interceptors vaporized.

Covenant ship intact, sir.

No.

It is moving off, though, sir.
Most likely to make repairs.

I have my orders.

To get you and yours
to Chi Ceti IV at all costs.

As we execute a flyby orbit,

your dropship will take you
and your crew planet-side.

If the Covenant return,
we will lure them away.

Damascus Materials Testing
Facility to incoming Pelican. Identify.

This is Dr. Catherine Halsey,
Damascus clearance 197371-Alpha.

Doctor, you're cleared
for landing. Pad 4.

This is Project MJOLNIR.

MJOLNIR wasn't just weapons tech.

It was Halsey's endgame.
Her force multiplier.

We were only half of the plan.
The armor was the other.

The armor's shell is a multilayer alloy
of remarkable strength.

An onboard computer
connects with your neural interface

to continually track
tactical information.

And the inner structure is composed
of a new reactive metal liquid crystal

that is amorphous, yet fractally scales
and amplifies force.

Ma'am, so you're saying
this exoskeleton enhances

both the wearer's strength and speed?

Yes, 104, by a multiple of 5.

- Sign me up.
- And the drawbacks, ma'am?

This system is so reactive
that our previous tests

with unaugmented volunteers
ended in failure.

The amplified movements broke their bones,
tore their muscles.

Their own agony-induced spasms
killed them.

But you are not normal humans.

Your enhanced musculature and skeletons

should be enough to allow you
to harness the armor's power.

- Now, I'll need a...
- I'll do it. I'll be first.

I thought you might.

Of course, John volunteered.

He was always the first to explore
the unknown for the rest of us.

Move very slowly, deliberately.

The armor cannot be powered down,
the response cannot be scaled back.

It's shifting.

Each suit has a gel-filled
layer to regulate temperature and fit.

- John, ready for your first step?
- Yes, ma'am.

We couldn't watch,
but we couldn't turn away.

If felt like the entire fate of humanity
lay in one step.

Come on, man, you got this.

It's lighter than I expected.

Easy now.

Well? How does it feel?

Like I was made to wear it, ma'am.

John was right. He was made to wear it.

We all were.

Spartans, this is what we've
trained our entire lives to do.

If we lose here, we lose everything.

- Let's send our own message.
- Sir, yes, sir!

Commonwealth to Dr. Halsey.

I'm here, Captain.

The Covenant ship is moving.

They'll be on us inside 10 minutes.

I'm sorry, Doctor.
It looks as if you're on your own.

Dr. Halsey, let us take a shot.
We're the best possible option.

Your only option.

Blue Team is ready, and you know it.

John was right.

And Halsey either did know it,
or at least knew better than to argue.

Godspeed, John.

I'm just saying, you could have
volunteered Red Team instead.

You want me to pull over?
Let you out right here?

As Chief Mendez would say,
"It's a long walk home."

Look, you know I trust you and everything,

but how are we supposed to take on
a Covenant ship in a Pelican?

Drown them in our blood?

I was thinking, the Commonwealth's
Pelicans are carrying nukes.

Nukes won't even scratch 'em.

No. Not from outside their ship.

That's right.

We can't beat them
with brute force, remember?

Scalpels, surgical precision.

We're small enough,
they won't see us coming.

I hope.

Gear up.

Ship's on autopilot.
Course can be tracked via our HUD.

You heard this plan?
And we're still doing it?

I think it's a great plan.
I seriously love this plan!

I'm on board. I love this plan.

I love it, too.

All right, here we go.

John? If we miss...

We won't.

The turrets!

The shields have to at least
IRIS for them to fire.

If we time this right,
we're behind their shields.

We time it wrong, we're smoke.

Sam, Kelly, with me.

Fred, Linda, take the other side.

We'll rendezvous
somewhere in the middle.

On my mark.

Mark! Go! Go! Go!

I'm not going to make it!

Everyone makes it.

I need Intel.

I've got Cherenkov radiation
readings from all over the ship.

Could be anything.

Agreed, but the largest reading
is coming from the center.

Likely the ship's reactor.

Sam, you take point.
Kelly, in the middle, guiding the way.

I'll bring up the rear.

The pressure doors were immense.

The ceilings were 3 meters high,
the air thick and oily

Different symbols, different languages.

ONI had theorized the Covenant
was more than just one race.

This helped confirm it.

They aren't bulletproof. Good to know.

Collect samples. Tissue, armor, weapons.

ONI will want it.

Think we should've tried communicating?

They understood us just fine.

Come on.
We don't know what else is on the way.

Clear.

John!

My heart stopped
when Sam took the shot in the chest.

I'm okay. Just burns like nothing else.

You'll be fine.
But biofoam won't seal this.

That was stupid, Sam.

- You did the same thing for me.
- That was different.

They can't afford to lose you, John.

This is the source
of the radiation spike.

I have no idea what it is.

Doesn't matter, as long as it explodes.

I'll arm the warhead, you two...

Contacts!

- They've got shields.
- Only in the front.

I'll seal the door.
John, finish arming that warhead.

I remember thinking
that no matter how dark the future,

we could face it as a team.

Warhead countdown set. Let's move!

Or so I thought.

You guys should get moving.

You guys? You're not coming?

Kelly...

No! We don't leave anyone behind.

My suit is breached.

I step into that vacuum
and I'm dead anyway.

No. No! We don't leave anyone behind!

He's not staying to die, Kelly.
He's staying to fight.

Go. Our new friends aren't gonna wait
for us to argue.

I know Spartans don't cry,
but for once, I was glad for the helmet.

Sam was our first loss
since augmentation.

We thought training,

augmentation, armor made us untouchable,
invulnerable, immortal.

Blue Team.

We were wrong.

We were children.

This was the only thing
John was ever afraid of.

Losing one of us.

And we knew
we weren't finishing this fight,

we were just getting started.

I was 14 then.

All I can think about was that day.

Sam carved our mark into the world,

right here in the wilderness,
before it was all burned.

For Sam.

Sam fell first, and yet he showed us
that the Covenant could be killed.

Sam proved we could win this war.

Every battle won is built
on the foundation of that sacrifice.

If we survive this,
it's because Sam showed us the way.

Chief?

Sam was my friend. He was my brother.

He was our brother.

Last time we were here,
I asked Sam to trust me to take us home,

to follow me.

Will you trust me now?

Will you follow me?