Editing Halo: New Blood

{{Status|RealWorld}}

|author=[[Matt Forbeck]]<ref name="announcement">[https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/news/canon-fodder-bam-said-the-lady '''Halo Waypoint''': ''Canon Fodder - Bam, said the lady'']</ref>

'''''Halo: New Blood''''' is a [[Halo novels|''Halo'' short novel]] written by [[Matt Forbeck]]. It was released digitally on [[2015|March 2, 2015]], with a paper version released on [[2016|March 15, 2016]].<ref>[http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1501128086 '''Amazon''': ''New Blood (Paperback)'']</ref> The print release of ''Halo: New Blood'' included an additional five-page coda, featuring a conversation between [[Veronica Dare]] and [[Edward Buck]] shortly before the events of ''[[Halo 5: Guardians]]''.<ref>[https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/news/canon-fodder-fury-s-road '''Halo Waypoint''': ''Canon Fodder - Fury's Road'']</ref> The book explores Edward Buck's actions after the end of the [[Human-Covenant War]].{{Ref/Reuse|announcement}}<ref>[http://www.forbeck.com/2015/01/22/wrote-halo-novel/ '''Forbeck.com''': ''I Wrote a Halo Novel'']</ref>

{{Article quote|While [[SPARTAN programs|Spartans]] get all the glory, no soldier―not even the legendary [[John-117|Master Chief]]―wins a war on his or her own. [[Edward Buck|Gunnery Sergeant Edward Buck]] and [[Alpha-Nine|his team]] of [[Orbital Drop Shock Troopers]] played a major role in saving the [[Earth]] from all-out [[Battle of Earth|invasion]] at the end of the [[Human-Covenant War|Covenant War]]―acts of bravery and ingenuity that did not go unnoticed by the [[United Nations Space Command]].

Buck recalls a previous hostage situation on his homeworld [[Draco III]] in [[2554]]. He reminisces about his childhood on the planet, fishing in the [[Gold Sea]], and joining the [[UNSC Marine Corps]] after the Covenant [[First Battle of Harvest|attacked]] [[Harvest]]. After the Covenant [[Battle of Draco III|invaded]] Draco III and massacred its residents, Buck joined the [[Orbital Drop Shock Troopers]]. After the Covenant War, Draco III was resettled and its capital city of [[New Albany]] was largely restored. However, the United Rebel Front attempted to take control of the planet and established a headquarters in New Albany's [[Draco III capitol building|capitol building]]. Following the orders of Dare, Buck and his ODST fireteam [[Alpha-Nine]] attempt to assassinate Captain [[Ingridson]], the URF leader on the planet. The squad storms the capitol building, but they are ambushed by URF soldiers and [[Jonathan Doherty]] is held hostage at gunpoint by Ingridson. As a stand-off ensues between them, Spartan [[Sarah Palmer]] contacts Buck and asks if he requires her assistance. Buck remembers his last encounter with Palmer, when she was a lance corporal and a fellow ODST. During the [[Battle of Sargasso]] in [[2546]], Alpha-Nine and Palmer's squad, [[Gamma-Six]], were both assigned to protect [[Lethbridge Industrial]] facilities at the town of [[Belisk]]. While ONI had Gamma-Six unknowingly serve as a distraction, Alpha-Nine—then composed of Buck, [[Gomez (ODST)|Gomez]], [[Svensdottir]], and [[Samrat]]—was tasked with retrieving a valuable ONI chip containing data and research located in Lethbridge's headquarters in the town. Captain Dare coordinates the mission, and Buck vocally voices his disapproval of the operation.

Buck then recalls [[Halo 3: ODST|the events]] that his squad was involved with during the [[Battle of New Mombasa|Battle]] of [[New Mombasa]] in [[2552]]. Alpha-Nine, now consisting of Buck, Romeo, Mickey, [[Taylor Miles|Taylor "Dutch" Miles]], and the Rookie, worked with Captain Dare and ultimately rescued Quick to Adjust. After the squad finally regrouped, they traveled to an [[ONI orbital facility]] over [[Earth]] to interrogate the Huragok. When Quick to Adjust began to give information on [[Portal at Voi|what]] the Covenant was looking for at [[Voi]], Alpha-Nine returned to the field. Dare and Buck develop their relationship, and the two begin to trust each other. Back in the capitol building of Draco III, Buck signals for Mickey and Dutch to sneak up to the floor where Ingridson and the rebels are holding the Rookie hostage, while he and Romeo distract her. Buck declines Palmer's help, as he believes the arrival of Spartans would lead to the Rookie's death. While Buck and Ingridson debate their respective views, Dutch and Mickey get themselves into position. On Buck's orders, Mickey and Dutch attack Ingridson and her rebels, while Buck asks for Palmer and her Spartans to eliminate the rebels approaching their position. When Mickey, hesitant to kill humans, orders Ingridson and the rebels to stand down, Ingridson desperately executes the Rookie, to the shock of the rest of the squad. Dutch kills one of the rebels and Ingridson with his shotgun, while the other insurgent surrenders. Mickey contemplates executing the rebel, but Buck orders him to stand down. Having wiped out the rebels throughout the city, Palmer and her Spartans rendezvous with the remainder of Alpha-Nine in the capitol building. The ODSTs have a funeral for the Rookie and bury him at sea on Draco III. During the funeral, Dutch announces his decision to retire from service with the UNSC military.

Buck leaves for his hometown of [[Karnak]] and starts drinking at [[Leeward's]]. He is met by Jun, who offers him, and the remainder of his squad, positions in the second class of the SPARTAN-IV program. After consulting with Dare about the offer on [[Desdoron V]], Buck accepts and travels to [[Mars]] for training. After receiving his [[SPARTAN-IV Augmentation Program|augmentations]], Dare informs Buck that a Spartan within Buck's class is affiliated with the URF. Buck continues training on a space station under the command of Captain [[Marisa O'Day]], who intends to break the Spartans of their old habits. After a training session, Buck witnesses the corpse of a [[Hideo Wakahisa|fellow Spartan]] being towed away by medics. Buck, Romeo, and Mickey are later consulted by Jun and [[Musa-096]] in their quarters; Jun had discovered a [[keepsake|medallion]] belonging to Mickey on the corpse of the dead Spartan. Mickey and his friends insist that he is not responsible for the murder, and Jun and Musa decide to review security footage to see if someone had stolen the medallion from Mickey's locker. Security footage soon proves that Spartan [[Rudolf Schein]] was responsible for the murder, and Jun, Musa, and O'Day confront him in the station's rec room. However, Schein attempts to blow up the station and only succeeds in breaking the rec room's viewport and unintentionally ejecting himself and Jun outside of the station. Meanwhile, Buck, Romeo, and Mickey rush to the site of the conflict, only to witness O'Day being caught in an explosion. The three Spartans attempt to take the wounded captain to safety, but she is killed when she impacts against a wall at a high speed. The Spartans take shelter in an empty room, while Jun manages to propel himself back to safety by kicking off of Schein's body; Schein dies in the vacuum of space. While Jun receives medical attention, Musa speaks with the Spartans about the incident and reminds them that it is necessary to defend the UEG against all threats, even humans.

*[[Musa-096]]

*[[Jonathan Doherty]]

******[[ORION Project]] {{Mo}}

*[[M7S SMG]]

*[[Gravity hammer (fiction)|gravity hammer]] {{Mo}}

*[[Paegaas Workshop Spiker]] {{Im}}

*{{Pattern|Pez'tk|fuel rod gun}}

*{{Pattern|Ket|battlecruiser}} {{Mo}}

*[[Single Occupant Exoatmospheric Insertion Vehicle]] {{Mo}}

*{{Pattern|Deutoros|Scarab}} {{Mo}}

*{{Pattern|Ru'swum|Phantom}} {{Mo}}

*[[MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor (GEN2)|MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor [GEN2]]]

File:HM BetrayalOnTalitsa.jpg|Mickey's betrayal was later featured as an illustration by Isaac Hannaford in ''[[Halo Mythos: A Guide to the Story of Halo]]''.