Franklin Mendez: Difference between revisions

===Early life and military career===

Franklin Mendez was born on the [[human]] [[Human colonies|colony]] of [[Sigma Octanus IV]] on [[2492|March 21, 2492]]. At the age of sixteen, he enlisted in the [[United Nations Space Command]] with the approval of his parents and he left for [[Reach]] to begin his training. In [[2514]], he transferred to [[Naval Special Weapons]], where he participated in some of the most challenging engagements of the [[Insurrection]] occurring within the [[Eridanus system]]—though the specifics of his activities during these [[operation]]s remain highly classified. Upon being promoted to Chief Petty Officer, Mendez became heavily involved in the NAVSPECWAR training cadre, where his skills became quickly recognized by the [[UNSC Navy]]'s [[Office of Naval Intelligence]].<ref name="universe"/> By [[2517]], then-CPO Mendez was regarded as the Navy's best hand-to-hand combat and physical training [[drill instructor]], in addition to having substantial combat experience.<ref>'''Halo: The Fall of Reach''', ''pages 28-29''</ref>

===SPARTAN-II training===

[[File:FoR TAS Mendez 2.jpg|thumb|200px|Mendez during the SPARTAN-II training.]]

After the Spartan-IIs' training was completed, Mendez was reassigned to train the next class of [[SPARTAN program|Spartans]].<ref>'''Halo: The Fall of Reach''', ''page 99''</ref> John-117 never saw him again, though Mendez returned the [[quarter]] that Dr. Halsey had given John during their first meeting. He recalled that John broke a few of the trainers' fingers when they tried to take the coin from him.<ref>'''Halo: The Fall of Reach''', ''page 101''</ref>

===SPARTAN-III training===

As the next class of the SPARTAN-II program was delayed by Dr. Halsey due to issues with viable candidates, ONI eventually diverted her funding to other projects and Mendez requested reassignment to active duty. Over the next six years, he fought the Covenant on five worlds, won two more [[Purple Heart]]s, and was promoted to [[Senior Chief Petty Officer]]. Mendez was then recruited by [[Colonel]] [[James Ackerson]] to assist [[Lieutenant Commander]] [[Kurt Ambrose]], formerly Spartan Kurt-051, in administrating the [[SPARTAN-III program]]. He trained three SPARTAN-III companies at [[Camp Currahee]] on [[Onyx]] from [[2531]] until [[2552]]. He was originally skeptical of the job, comparing the behavior of the trainees to that of the schoolchildren in the novel ''[[Wikipedia:Lord of the Flies|Lord of The Flies]]''.<ref name="Onyx69"/>

===Onyx Conflict===

{{Main|Onyx Conflict}}

While training the final batches of [[SPARTAN-III Gamma Company|Gamma Company]] on [[2552#October|October 31, 2552]], Mendez and the other UNSC forces on Onyx came under attack by [[Forerunner]] [[Onyx Sentinel|Sentinels]]. He, along with SPARTAN-III [[Team Saber]], [[Tom-B292]], [[Lucy-B091]], and Ambrose were virtually alone on the planet, and were forced to hide from Sentinels for several days. Eventually, Spartan-II [[Kelly-087]] and Dr. Halsey arrived, followed shortly by Spartan-II [[Blue Team]]: [[Fred-104]], [[Will-043]], and [[Linda-058]]. Mendez assisted them in fighting their way to the [[core room antechamber|core of Onyx]], where he eventually evacuated to [[Trevelyan|Shield World 006]], held in a [[slipspace bubble]] in Onyx's core, along with the other survivors. Onyx, actually an artificial planetary shell covering the shield world, was then disintegrated by the Sentinels.<ref>'''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''', ''page 365-366''</ref>

===Shield world and retirement===

[[File:HM-MendezHalsey.png|thumb|right|200px|Mendez and Halsey inside Shield World 006.]]

After Mendez and the other survivors had reconnoitered the sphere for some time and established a base camp in a [[Citadel (Trevelyan)|Forerunner city]], [[Lucy-B091]] discovered several [[Huragok]] which helped the human survivors contact the [[Office of Naval Intelligence]] ships outside the slipspace bubble and eventually bring the sphere into normal space.<ref>'''Halo: Glasslands''', ''page 382-389''</ref> Mendez and the others were then taken to a debriefing in [[HIGHCOM Facility Bravo-6]] aboard the {{UNSCShip|Port Stanley}}.<ref>'''Halo: Glasslands''', ''page 401-403''</ref> Mendez, along with the surviving Spartan-IIs, was present at the [[Voi Memorial]] unveiling ceremony on [[2553#March|March 3, 2553]].<ref>'''Halo: Glasslands''', ''page 414''</ref> Shortly after this, Mendez retired from UNSC service, a result of personal introspection of about his role in training child soldiers as well as pressure from the UNSC.<ref name="universe"/>

===Onyx United Research Project===

{{Quote|Well, when I think of all the things we had to do to win the war... Let's just say it's nice to have an opportunity to do some unalloyed good.|Mendez to [[Tom-B292]] and [[Lucy-B091]] on his new post.<ref name="lessons"/>}}

Mendez was ultimately not comfortable with his retirement and by early [[2554]], he had been appointed as head of security for the [[Onyx United Research Project]] within [[Shield World 006]], with the Sangheili [[Kasha 'Hilot]] as his second-in-command. While still nominally a civilian, Mendez had authority over the UNSC forces within the facility. Around April 2554, he welcomed [[Lucy-B091]] and [[Tom-B292]] to the shield world, the two [[Beta Company]] Spartans having been assigned under him as part of the project's security staff. Following an incident in which a UNSC soldier assaulted Kasha 'Hilot, Mendez dismissed the offender and his comrades, intending to talk with the facility's director [[Hugo Barton]] regarding the vetting standards for the facility's personnel.<ref name="lessons">'''[[Halo: Fractures]]''', "[[Lessons Learned]]"</ref>

===Interview with Benjamin Giraud===

In [[2558]], ONI had a man claimed to be Mendez provide an interview regarding the Master Chief for journalist [[Benjamin Giraud]] in ONI's [[Boston]] headquarters. Like the other sources ONI had provided for Giraud, "Mendez" adhered to the sanitized public version of the Spartan-IIs' background, centered on glorifying John's heroism and omitting any mention of his age or life before his [[SPARTAN-II training|training]]. When Giraud attempted to approach the topic from a more critical angle, his interviewee rather unambiguously advised him not to press the issue so as to avoid turning the conversation "decidedly unpleasant".<ref>'''[[Hunt the Truth]]''', ''Episode 5: OUT OF TIME''</ref><ref group="note">It is suspect that the man interviewed by Giraud was in fact the real Mendez, as opposed to an ONI stand-in. ''[[Lessons Learned]]'' and ''[[Halo: Legacy of Onyx]]'' establish that Mendez was consistently stationed at Onyx as part of his role as the facility's head of security during the emergence of the Guardians in 2558. Additionally, ''Legacy of Onyx'' shows Mendez remained troubled over his part in the Spartan programs, making it questionable he would so readily perpetuate ONI's narrative regarding the Spartan-IIs - or that ONI would summon him to Earth from his duties at Onyx only to have him provide a relatively brief interview in the first place.</ref>

==Personality and traits==