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{{Title|Early life of John-117}}
{{Title|Early life of John-117}}
{{Status|Canon}}
{{Status|Canon}}
{{Summarize}}
{{Battle infobox
{{Battle infobox
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|prev=
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==Biography==
==Biography==
===Early childhood===
===Early childhood===
[[File:JohnBeach.png|thumb|300px|Eridanus II, once famous for its beautiful landscapes, was catastrophically [[glassed]] by the [[Covenant]] in [[2530]].{{Ref/Reuse|HTTS11}}<ref name="HWF22">''[[Halo Warfleet]]'', ''page 22''</ref>]]
[[File:JohnBeach.png|thumb|right|300px|Eridanus II, once famous for its beautiful landscapes, was catastrophically [[glassed]] by the [[Covenant]] in [[2530]].{{Ref/Reuse|HTTS11}}<ref name="HWF22">''[[Halo Warfleet]]'', ''page 22''</ref>]]
{{Quote|Well, he was a little younger than me, but, let me tell you, that boy did not look like a kindergartner. He was a big kid. My friend, Katrina, and I used to meet him in this vacant lot in the neighborhood. The three of us would build these obstacle courses out of random junk and then race. Ya' know, just kid stuff. On warm nights, sometimes our parents would let us go out to the green space and lie in the grass. And we'd just lie there, stare up at the stars.|Ellie Bloom recalls her childhood with John to journalist [[Benjamin Giraud]] in [[2558]].}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTTS11}}
{{Quote|Well, he was a little younger than me, but, let me tell you, that boy did not look like a kindergartner. He was a big kid. My friend, Katrina, and I used to meet him in this vacant lot in the neighborhood. The three of us would build these obstacle courses out of random junk and then race. Ya' know, just kid stuff. On warm nights, sometimes our parents would let us go out to the green space and lie in the grass. And we'd just lie there, stare up at the stars.|Ellie Bloom recalls her childhood with John to journalist [[Benjamin Giraud]] in [[2558]].}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTTS11}}
John was born on [[2511#March|March 7, 2511]] on the [[Outer Colony]] of [[Eridanus II]].<ref name="WaypointMasterChief">[https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/universe/characters/master-chief-john-117 '''Halo Waypoint''' - ''Master Chief'']</ref> He was raised by his [[John-117's mother|mother]] and father and by the age of six he attended school at [[Elysium City]]'s [[Elysium City Primary Education Facility Number 119|Primary Education Facility 119]].<ref name="HTFOR2">''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'', ''Chapter 2''</ref> Decades after he last saw her, John could still remember his mother as being very kind and smelling of soap.<ref name="HTF1">''[[Halo: The Flood]]'', ''Chapter 1''</ref> She sometimes took him down to the beach where he would play in the sand.<ref name="Scanned">''[[Scanned]]''</ref> John's closest childhood friends were three girls: [[Katrina]], [[Parisa]], and [[Ellie Bloom]].{{Ref/Reuse|HTTS11}}{{Ref/Reuse|HEPH}} John, Ellie, and Katrina would often compete against one another in obstacle courses they built out of random bits of junk in a vacant lot in their neighborhood.{{Ref/Reuse|HTTS11}} He and Ellie, who lived just a few houses down on the same street as his family, would be permitted by their parents to go out to a green space on warm nights to lie in the grass and stargaze.<ref name="HTTS11">''[[Hunt the Truth]]'', ''[[Hunt the Truth Season 1|Season 1]] Episode 01''</ref> On one of these nights as they lay next to one another John asked Ellie if she ever wondered about aliens and when she in turn asked if he thought they'd ever meet them, he said that he hoped so.<ref name="SN">''[[Starry Night]]''</ref> At school, John was known for being competitive and for being particularly good at winning games of king of the hill that took place on a grassy hill at the end of Primary Education Facility 119's playground. He considered chess to be boring and too easy. By the time Dr. [[Catherine Halsey]] met John, he reportedly was not allowed to play [[gravball]] anymore due to his always winning.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR2}} When John wasn't playing various games, [[Wikipedia:Bowling|bowling]] among them, he spent the rest of his free time watching vids.<ref name="HTFOR5">''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'', ''Chapter 5''</ref>{{Ref/Reuse|HTFORTAS}} In [[2517#April|April of 2517]] John had his picture taken and it was the resulting image which the [[Office of Naval Intelligence]] later provided to Catherine Halsey.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR2}} On [[2517#August|August 3, 2517]], John and Parisa were playing with one another at [[Lake Gusev]]. Parisa walked too far out into the lake and might have drowned but John saved her life. Afterward, he promised to marry her and always keep her safe.<ref name="HEPH">''[[Halo: Evolutions]]'', ''[[Palace Hotel]]''</ref> Parisa's father took a photograph of the two friends as they laughed hysterically at John's father's antics. Parisa would keep the photo with her long after she thought John had died.{{Ref/Reuse|HEPH}} Over the next two weeks following the incident at the lake, John went on to score forty-five victories in king of the hill at school, leaving his opponents with a dozen broken bones, be they arms, clavicles, or fingers, and himself with a chipped tooth.<ref name="HJ91517">''[[Dr. Halsey's personal journal]]'', ''September 15, 2517''</ref>
John was born on [[2511#March|March 7, 2511]] on the [[Outer Colony]] of [[Eridanus II]].<ref name="WaypointMasterChief">[https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/universe/characters/master-chief-john-117 '''Halo Waypoint''' - ''Master Chief'']</ref> He was raised by his [[John-117's mother|mother]] and father and by the age of six he attended school at [[Elysium City]]'s [[Elysium City Primary Education Facility Number 119|Primary Education Facility 119]].<ref name="HTFOR2">''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'', ''Chapter 2''</ref> Decades after he last saw her, John could still remember his mother as being very kind and smelling of soap.<ref name="HTF1">''[[Halo: The Flood]]'', ''Chapter 1''</ref> She sometimes took him down to the beach where he would play in the sand.<ref name="Scanned">''[[Scanned]]''</ref> John's closest childhood friends were three girls: [[Katrina]], [[Parisa]], and [[Ellie Bloom]].{{Ref/Reuse|HTTS11}}{{Ref/Reuse|HEPH}} John, Ellie, and Katrina would often compete against one another in obstacle courses they built out of random bits of junk in a vacant lot in their neighborhood.{{Ref/Reuse|HTTS11}} He and Ellie, who lived just a few houses down on the same street as his family, would be permitted by their parents to go out to a green space on warm nights to lie in the grass and stargaze.<ref name="HTTS11">''[[Hunt the Truth]]'', ''[[Hunt the Truth Season 1|Season 1]] Episode 01''</ref> On one of these nights as they lay next to one another John asked Ellie if she ever wondered about aliens and when she in turn asked if he thought they'd ever meet them, he said that he hoped so.<ref name="SN">''[[Starry Night]]''</ref> At school, John was known for being competitive and for being particularly good at winning games of king of the hill that took place on a grassy hill at the end of Primary Education Facility 119's playground. He considered chess to be boring and too easy. By the time Dr. [[Catherine Halsey]] met John, he reportedly was not allowed to play [[gravball]] anymore due to his always winning.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR2}} When John wasn't playing various games, [[Wikipedia:Bowling|bowling]] among them, he spent the rest of his free time watching vids.<ref name="HTFOR5">''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'', ''Chapter 5''</ref>{{Ref/Reuse|HTFORTAS}} In [[2517#April|April of 2517]] John had his picture taken and it was the resulting image which the [[Office of Naval Intelligence]] later provided to Catherine Halsey.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR2}} On [[2517#August|August 3, 2517]], John and Parisa were playing with one another at [[Lake Gusev]]. Parisa walked too far out into the lake and might have drowned but John saved her life. Afterward, he promised to marry her and always keep her safe.<ref name="HEPH">''[[Halo: Evolutions]]'', ''[[Palace Hotel]]''</ref> Parisa's father took a photograph of the two friends as they laughed hysterically at John's father's antics. Parisa would keep the photo with her long after she thought John had died.{{Ref/Reuse|HEPH}} Over the next two weeks following the incident at the lake, John went on to score forty-five victories in king of the hill at school, leaving his opponents with a dozen broken bones, be they arms, clavicles, or fingers, and himself with a chipped tooth.<ref name="HJ91517">''[[Dr. Halsey's personal journal]]'', ''September 15, 2517''</ref>
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{{Main|SPARTAN-II training}}
{{Main|SPARTAN-II training}}
{{Quote|no=two|q1=But I won. I was first.|John-117|q2=Yes, ''you'' were first. But your team came in last. Remember this: ''you'' don’t win unless your team wins. One person winning at the expense of the group means that you lose.|Franklin Mendez|Chief Mendez teaches John and the other trainees a very important lesson.}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR4}}
{{Quote|no=two|q1=But I won. I was first.|John-117|q2=Yes, ''you'' were first. But your team came in last. Remember this: ''you'' don’t win unless your team wins. One person winning at the expense of the group means that you lose.|Franklin Mendez|Chief Mendez teaches John and the other trainees a very important lesson.}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR4}}
[[File:JumpingJacks.png|thumb|300px|The first day of training caused John to throw up, which led to a trainer descending on him to ensure he continued the exercises.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR4}}]]
[[File:JumpingJacks.png|right|300px|thumb|The first day of training caused John to throw up, which led to a trainer descending on him to ensure he continued the exercises.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR4}}]]
Whilst dreaming about his mother John was shouted awake the next morning at 0530 hours by Chief Mendez and prodded with a [[humbler stun device]] when he did not pull himself off his cot right away.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFORTAS}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR4}}<ref name="HFORBC">''[[Halo: Fall of Reach]]'', ''[[Halo: Fall of Reach - Boot Camp|Boot Camp]]''</ref> The same scene played out across the barracks with other children and drill instructors. Chief Mendez addressed them all, saying they were to shower at the barracks aft and then return to their cots to dress. At the prodding of Mendez's humbler, John stripped down and joined the other children on a conveyor to be washed in lukewarm soapy water and then rinsed in an icy cold spray. A trunk at the foot of his cot held underwear, thick socks, combat boots, and a matching set of gray sweats with "JOHN-117" stenciled on the chest. Once everyone was clothed, Mendez marched them outside and had them form five rows of fifteen children each. From there, they were ordered through a series of calisthenics which included one-hundred each of jumping jacks, sit-ups, deep squats, knee bends, and leg lifts. After the leg lifts the kids were finally given a respite in the form of water. John had just enough time to flop down on the grass and then roll to his knees briefly before Mendez was ordering them to join him on a run. They jogged through the military compound, past more barracks, along a river, and over a bridge, finally coming to a stop in the courtyard of a naval officers' academy. There John and the others met [[Déjà]], a [[Dumb AI|so-called "dumb" A.I.]] who had been given the job of continuing the trainees' formal education. Within the building, John and the others were served crackers and milk and treated to a history lesson concerning the [[Wikipedia:Battle of Thermopylae|Battle of Thermopylae]]. John, still hungry after finishing his crackers, swiped those that belonged to [[Kelly-087|a girl]] next to him when she wasn't watching. After the lesson the trainees were told they were heading for the playground, but this turned into a two-mile run to a forest of twenty-meter-tall wooden poles, rope cargo nets and bridges, knotted climbing ropes, pulleys, and baskets. Mendez had them form three lines and declared that each row of three would be a team. John found himself in the third team, paired up with a boy to his right named [[Samuel-034]] and a girl to his left, [[Kelly-087]]. John could tell that Kelly was not happy about the arrangement. Chief Mendez explained that they would be playing a game called "[[Ring the Bell]]" in which the objective was for every member of each team to ring a brass bell that hung from a slide pole next to the tallest wooden pole and then make it back to the start. John asked what they would win for finishing first, to which Mendez responded that they would win dinner. The last team to make it back, conversely, would go hungry that evening. As soon as the Chief shouted permission, John took off as fast as he could, scrambling up a cargo net and across a platform. He made it to a basket attached to a pulley, but rather than trying to lift his own weight that way, he opted to ascend directly up a nearby hanging rope. John easily outpaced all the other children and made it back to the starting point first, having rung the bell three times. Elated as he had been to be the winner, Sam and Kelly came back last, as they had gotten stuck in a line that had formed around the end of the course. Mendez congratulated everyone but singled out the members of Team Three, including John, as the ones who would be skipping dinner. He made it clear to John that although he had been first, his team had been last, and thus he had lost. John was greatly upset by this all the way back to the barracks, where he received a liter of water and was soon fast asleep.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR4}}  
Whilst dreaming about his mother John was shouted awake the next morning at 0530 hours by Chief Mendez and prodded with a [[humbler stun device]] when he did not pull himself off his cot right away.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFORTAS}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR4}}<ref name="HFORBC">''[[Halo: Fall of Reach]]'', ''[[Halo: Fall of Reach - Boot Camp|Boot Camp]]''</ref> The same scene played out across the barracks with other children and drill instructors. Chief Mendez addressed them all, saying they were to shower at the barracks aft and then return to their cots to dress. At the prodding of Mendez's humbler, John stripped down and joined the other children on a conveyor to be washed in lukewarm soapy water and then rinsed in an icy cold spray. A trunk at the foot of his cot held underwear, thick socks, combat boots, and a matching set of gray sweats with "JOHN-117" stenciled on the chest. Once everyone was clothed, Mendez marched them outside and had them form five rows of fifteen children each. From there, they were ordered through a series of calisthenics which included one-hundred each of jumping jacks, sit-ups, deep squats, knee bends, and leg lifts. After the leg lifts the kids were finally given a respite in the form of water. John had just enough time to flop down on the grass and then roll to his knees briefly before Mendez was ordering them to join him on a run. They jogged through the military compound, past more barracks, along a river, and over a bridge, finally coming to a stop in the courtyard of a naval officers' academy. There John and the others met [[Déjà]], a [[Dumb AI|so-called "dumb" A.I.]] who had been given the job of continuing the trainees' formal education. Within the building, John and the others were served crackers and milk and treated to a history lesson concerning the [[Wikipedia:Battle of Thermopylae|Battle of Thermopylae]]. John, still hungry after finishing his crackers, swiped those that belonged to [[Kelly-087|a girl]] next to him when she wasn't watching. After the lesson the trainees were told they were heading for the playground, but this turned into a two-mile run to a forest of twenty-meter-tall wooden poles, rope cargo nets and bridges, knotted climbing ropes, pulleys, and baskets. Mendez had them form three lines and declared that each row of three would be a team. John found himself in the third team, paired up with a boy to his right named [[Samuel-034]] and a girl to his left, [[Kelly-087]]. John could tell that Kelly was not happy about the arrangement. Chief Mendez explained that they would be playing a game called "[[Ring the Bell]]" in which the objective was for every member of each team to ring a brass bell that hung from a slide pole next to the tallest wooden pole and then make it back to the start. John asked what they would win for finishing first, to which Mendez responded that they would win dinner. The last team to make it back, conversely, would go hungry that evening. As soon as the Chief shouted permission, John took off as fast as he could, scrambling up a cargo net and across a platform. He made it to a basket attached to a pulley, but rather than trying to lift his own weight that way, he opted to ascend directly up a nearby hanging rope. John easily outpaced all the other children and made it back to the starting point first, having rung the bell three times. Elated as he had been to be the winner, Sam and Kelly came back last, as they had gotten stuck in a line that had formed around the end of the course. Mendez congratulated everyone but singled out the members of Team Three, including John, as the ones who would be skipping dinner. He made it clear to John that although he had been first, his team had been last, and thus he had lost. John was greatly upset by this all the way back to the barracks, where he received a liter of water and was soon fast asleep.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR4}}  
[[File:JohnFredYoung.png|thumb|left|300px|The footage of wolves taking down a moose was played many times in the early days of training in order to emphasize the importance of teamwork.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR5}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR4}}]]
[[File:JohnFredYoung.png|thumb|left|300px|The footage of wolves taking down a moose was played many times in the early days of training in order to emphasize the importance of teamwork.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR5}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR4}}]]
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===Taking the initiative===
===Taking the initiative===
{{Quote|no=three|q1=No one’s being left behind. We’re going to figure a way to get ''all'' of us out.|John-117|q2=How? Mendez said—|Kelly-087|q3=I know what he said. But there’s got to be a way—I just haven’t thought of one yet. Even if it has to be me that stays behind—I’ll make sure everyone gets back to the base.|John-117|John demonstrates his commitment to his fellow trainees.}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR5}}
{{Quote|no=three|q1=No one’s being left behind. We’re going to figure a way to get ''all'' of us out.|John-117|q2=How? Mendez said—|Kelly-087|q3=I know what he said. But there’s got to be a way—I just haven’t thought of one yet. Even if it has to be me that stays behind—I’ll make sure everyone gets back to the base.|John-117|John demonstrates his commitment to his fellow trainees.}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR5}}
[[File:John2519.png|thumb|300px|By the age of eight, John's previous life on Eridanus II had already begun to seem like a distant dream. He had become convinced that his new life as a soldier was what he really wanted.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR5}}]]
[[File:John2519.png|thumb|300px|right|By the age of eight, John's previous life on Eridanus II had already begun to seem like a distant dream. He had become convinced that his new life as a soldier was what he really wanted.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR5}}]]
John learned more during the first few years of training on Reach than he almost certainly would have ever learned at Primary Education Facility 119 on Eridanus II.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR5}} Déjà taught he and the others [[Wikipedia:Algebra|algebra]], [[Wikipedia:Trigonometry|trigonometry]], and the history of numerous battles and the rulers they happened at the direction of.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR5}} Human history classes included a module devoted to [[Earth]] in which John first saw images of [[Wikipedia:Whale|whale]]s.<ref name="HSS27">''[[Halo: Silent Storm]]'', ''Chapter 27''</ref> Through simulations the trainees learned to pilot various crafts, including the predecessors and variants of the [[GA-TL1 Longsword]].<ref name="HEP9">''[[Halo: Evolutions]]'', ''[[Pariah]]'', ''Chapter 9''</ref> These simulations even included what to do in the event of a crash landing.{{Ref/Reuse|HEP9}} By mid-[[2519]], John could string a trip line, fire a rifle, and treat a chest wound.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR5}} Much of the Spartans' early training took place at [[Military Reservation 01478-B]], known as "Painland" to the soldiers made to endure exercises there.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR27}} As a result of the demanding challenges Chief Mendez put the children through, John spent plenty of time in Painland's emergency first-aid station.<ref name="HTFOR27">''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'', ''Chapter 27''</ref> [[Fenyot Basin]] was a favorite training spot for John and his comrades; there they played month-long games of sniper elimination and stealth tag within its [[Wikipedia:Hoodoo (geology)|hoodoo]] maze.<ref name="HSOR1">''[[Halo: Shadows of Reach]]'', ''Chapter 1''</ref> Training often involved obstacle courses and mock patrols.<ref name="HEP2">''[[Halo: Evolutions]]'', ''[[Pariah]]'', ''Chapter 2''</ref> Mendez tricked, trapped, and tortured the children to the point where they hated, but then eventually, admired him.<ref name="HGOO6">''[[Halo: Ghosts of Onyx]]'', ''Chapter 6''</ref> John and the others regularly made covert treks to [[Camp Hathcock]] in the [[Highland Mountains]] to pilfer food and supplies.<ref name="HTFOR24">''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'', ''Chapter 24''</ref> John often teased [[Serin-019]] for her habit of taking the leftovers of every other kid she could.<ref name="HMD15">''[[Halo: Mortal Dictata]]'', ''Chapter 15''</ref> Training in the Highland Mountains was split between Painland, facilities within [[CASTLE Base]], and [[Highlands|another location]].<ref name="HFS19">''[[Halo: First Strike]]'', ''Chapter 19''</ref><ref name="HRH">''[[Halo: Reach]]'', ''[[Highlands]]''</ref> At these locations, John and the others began to be tested against a company of [[Orbital Drop Shock Trooper|orbital drop shock trooper]]s in jungle maneuvers.{{Ref/Reuse|HSS7}} Amazingly, the children, who averaged around eight years old, often won.<ref name="HSS7">''[[Halo: Silent Storm]]'', ''Chapter 7''</ref> By the time John and the rest had all reached that age they had already earned every combat rating.<ref name="HSS4">''[[Halo: Silent Storm]]'', ''Chapter 4''</ref> All were subjected to [[Wikipedia:Endocrine system|endocrine]] therapy and medical interventions to make them stronger, more resistant to injury, and in possession of quicker reaction times while they were still prepubescent.<ref name="HG14">''[[Halo: Glasslands]]'', ''Chapter 14''</ref> Combat psychology training also supplemented the trainees' education.<ref name="HO1">''[[Halo: Oblivion]]'', ''Chapter 1''</ref> At some point during their training, John and the others accompanied Mendez to the colony of [[Emerald Cove]], where they were given a mission that involved spending time underwater.{{Ref/Reuse|HFS24}} Mendez sabotaged half the air tanks provided to the trainees, and in response they ended up stealing his. Afterwards, they all ditched the Chief for a whole week while they camped on an island with nothing to do but light bonfires, eat [[Wikipedia:Clam|clam]]s and [[Wikipedia:Calamari|calamari]], and surf.<ref name="HFS24">''[[Halo: First Strike]], ''Chapter 24''</ref> At some other point a training mission found John, Kelly, Sam, [[Fred-104]], and [[Linda-058]] descending [[Black Iron Gorge]].{{Ref/Reuse|HSOR9}} The five of them rode through the gorge atop rafts of lashed logs and only ''nearly'' got through the worst of the rapids in one piece thanks to Sam's natural skills as a riverman.<ref name="HSOR9">''[[Halo: Shadows of Reach]]'', ''Chapter 9''</ref>
John learned more during the first few years of training on Reach than he almost certainly would have ever learned at Primary Education Facility 119 on Eridanus II.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR5}} Déjà taught he and the others [[Wikipedia:Algebra|algebra]], [[Wikipedia:Trigonometry|trigonometry]], and the history of numerous battles and the rulers they happened at the direction of.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR5}} Human history classes included a module devoted to [[Earth]] in which John first saw images of [[Wikipedia:Whale|whale]]s.<ref name="HSS27">''[[Halo: Silent Storm]]'', ''Chapter 27''</ref> Through simulations the trainees learned to pilot various crafts, including the predecessors and variants of the [[GA-TL1 Longsword]].<ref name="HEP9">''[[Halo: Evolutions]]'', ''[[Pariah]]'', ''Chapter 9''</ref> These simulations even included what to do in the event of a crash landing.{{Ref/Reuse|HEP9}} By mid-[[2519]], John could string a trip line, fire a rifle, and treat a chest wound.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR5}} Much of the Spartans' early training took place at [[Military Reservation 01478-B]], known as "Painland" to the soldiers made to endure exercises there.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR27}} As a result of the demanding challenges Chief Mendez put the children through, John spent plenty of time in Painland's emergency first-aid station.<ref name="HTFOR27">''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'', ''Chapter 27''</ref> [[Fenyot Basin]] was a favorite training spot for John and his comrades; there they played month-long games of sniper elimination and stealth tag within its [[Wikipedia:Hoodoo (geology)|hoodoo]] maze.<ref name="HSOR1">''[[Halo: Shadows of Reach]]'', ''Chapter 1''</ref> Training often involved obstacle courses and mock patrols.<ref name="HEP2">''[[Halo: Evolutions]]'', ''[[Pariah]]'', ''Chapter 2''</ref> Mendez tricked, trapped, and tortured the children to the point where they hated, but then eventually, admired him.<ref name="HGOO6">''[[Halo: Ghosts of Onyx]]'', ''Chapter 6''</ref> John and the others regularly made covert treks to [[Camp Hathcock]] in the [[Highland Mountains]] to pilfer food and supplies.<ref name="HTFOR24">''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'', ''Chapter 24''</ref> John often teased [[Serin-019]] for her habit of taking the leftovers of every other kid she could.<ref name="HMD15">''[[Halo: Mortal Dictata]]'', ''Chapter 15''</ref> Training in the Highland Mountains was split between Painland, facilities within [[CASTLE Base]], and [[Highlands|another location]].<ref name="HFS19">''[[Halo: First Strike]]'', ''Chapter 19''</ref><ref name="HRH">''[[Halo: Reach]]'', ''[[Highlands]]''</ref> At these locations, John and the others began to be tested against a company of [[Orbital Drop Shock Trooper|orbital drop shock trooper]]s in jungle maneuvers.{{Ref/Reuse|HSS7}} Amazingly, the children, who averaged around eight years old, often won.<ref name="HSS7">''[[Halo: Silent Storm]]'', ''Chapter 7''</ref> By the time John and the rest had all reached that age they had already earned every combat rating.<ref name="HSS4">''[[Halo: Silent Storm]]'', ''Chapter 4''</ref> All were subjected to [[Wikipedia:Endocrine system|endocrine]] therapy and medical interventions to make them stronger, more resistant to injury, and in possession of quicker reaction times while they were still prepubescent.<ref name="HG14">''[[Halo: Glasslands]]'', ''Chapter 14''</ref> Combat psychology training also supplemented the trainees' education.<ref name="HO1">''[[Halo: Oblivion]]'', ''Chapter 1''</ref> At some point during their training, John and the others accompanied Mendez to the colony of [[Emerald Cove]], where they were given a mission that involved spending time underwater.{{Ref/Reuse|HFS24}} Mendez sabotaged half the air tanks provided to the trainees, and in response they ended up stealing his. Afterwards, they all ditched the Chief for a whole week while they camped on an island with nothing to do but light bonfires, eat [[Wikipedia:Clam|clam]]s and [[Wikipedia:Calamari|calamari]], and surf.<ref name="HFS24">''[[Halo: First Strike]], ''Chapter 24''</ref> At some other point a training mission found John, Kelly, Sam, [[Fred-104]], and [[Linda-058]] descending [[Black Iron Gorge]].{{Ref/Reuse|HSOR9}} The five of them rode through the gorge atop rafts of lashed logs and only ''nearly'' got through the worst of the rapids in one piece thanks to Sam's natural skills as a riverman.<ref name="HSOR9">''[[Halo: Shadows of Reach]]'', ''Chapter 9''</ref>


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{{Main|Project ASTER}}
{{Main|Project ASTER}}
{{Quote|no=two|q1=I know this is one of the Chief’s exercises. But I don’t know what the twist is. Can you tell me, Doctor. Halsey? Just this time? How do I win?|John-117|q2=I’ll tell you how to win, John. You have to survive.|Catherine Halsey|Halsey acquiesces and puts the ordeal ahead of John in terms he understands.}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR6}}
{{Quote|no=two|q1=I know this is one of the Chief’s exercises. But I don’t know what the twist is. Can you tell me, Doctor. Halsey? Just this time? How do I win?|John-117|q2=I’ll tell you how to win, John. You have to survive.|Catherine Halsey|Halsey acquiesces and puts the ordeal ahead of John in terms he understands.}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR6}}
[[File:Prologue - Spartan augmentation 02.jpg|thumb|350px|John underwent extensive surgical procedures to augment his physical abilities three days after his fourteenth birthday.{{Ref/Reuse|WaypointMasterChief}}{{Ref/Reuse|DHPJA1}}]]
[[File:Prologue - Spartan augmentation 02.jpg|thumb|right|350px|John underwent extensive surgical procedures to augment his physical abilities three days after his fourteenth birthday.{{Ref/Reuse|WaypointMasterChief}}{{Ref/Reuse|DHPJA1}}]]
On [[2524#August|August 22, 2524]], the Spartan-II candidates were rerouted during a training exercise  to the opposite side of [[Reach]] from which they normally trained.{{Ref/Reuse|DHPJA22}} This was done at the behest of interested parties in ONI who wished to observe them firsthand.<ref name="DHPJA22">''[[Dr. Halsey's personal journal]]'', ''August 22, 2524''</ref> At some point after the trainees had began to physically mature, an incident in which one of them, [[Margaret-053]], was blinded during a beating meted out by four other teens, caused Chief Mendez to replace everyone's mess hall time with a period of fasting until [[Red Team|the perpetrators]] were identified.<ref name="HBL4">''[[Halo: Blood Line]]'', ''[[Halo: Blood Line Issue 4|Issue #4]]''</ref> It was not uncommon at this time for two trainees to [[martial arts|spar]] one another with [[pugil stick]]s while trying to balance on floating logs while the rest watched.<ref name="HBL3">''[[Halo: Blood Line]]'', ''[[Halo: Blood Line Issue 3|Issue #3]]''</ref> Doctor Halsey had the opportunity to have a lengthy chat with John on [[2524#February|February 23, 2525]] and was surprised to learn that he could tell they were about to enter a new, more severe phase of training.<ref name="DHPJF23">''[[Dr. Halsey's personal journal]]'', ''February 23, 2525''</ref> She had not yet divulged the details of the upcoming augmentations each teenager would be undergoing. John could sense that she was worried about something, however, and told her that he and his team were ready for anything.{{Ref/Reuse|DHPJF23}}
On [[2524#August|August 22, 2524]], the Spartan-II candidates were rerouted during a training exercise  to the opposite side of [[Reach]] from which they normally trained.{{Ref/Reuse|DHPJA22}} This was done at the behest of interested parties in ONI who wished to observe them firsthand.<ref name="DHPJA22">''[[Dr. Halsey's personal journal]]'', ''August 22, 2524''</ref> At some point after the trainees had began to physically mature, an incident in which one of them, [[Margaret-053]], was blinded during a beating meted out by four other teens, caused Chief Mendez to replace everyone's mess hall time with a period of fasting until [[Red Team|the perpetrators]] were identified.<ref name="HBL4">''[[Halo: Blood Line]]'', ''[[Halo: Blood Line Issue 4|Issue #4]]''</ref> It was not uncommon at this time for two trainees to [[martial arts|spar]] one another with [[pugil stick]]s while trying to balance on floating logs while the rest watched.<ref name="HBL3">''[[Halo: Blood Line]]'', ''[[Halo: Blood Line Issue 3|Issue #3]]''</ref> Doctor Halsey had the opportunity to have a lengthy chat with John on [[2524#February|February 23, 2525]] and was surprised to learn that he could tell they were about to enter a new, more severe phase of training.<ref name="DHPJF23">''[[Dr. Halsey's personal journal]]'', ''February 23, 2525''</ref> She had not yet divulged the details of the upcoming augmentations each teenager would be undergoing. John could sense that she was worried about something, however, and told her that he and his team were ready for anything.{{Ref/Reuse|DHPJF23}}


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[[File:JohnMendez.png|300px|left|thumb|Chief Mendez taught John that his duty to the UNSC superseded his duty to his crew or even himself.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR6}}]]
[[File:JohnMendez.png|300px|left|thumb|Chief Mendez taught John that his duty to the UNSC superseded his duty to his crew or even himself.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR6}}]]
When the procedures had been completed, only thirty-three of the teenagers had ostensibly been augmented successfully.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR6}} As far as John was made aware, twelve others had been injured during the operations so severely that they would be unfit to be Spartans and the remaining thirty had died.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR6}} The truth, conversely, was that those pronounced dead were in fact cryogenically preserved in the hopes that they could be revived later, and some of those that were crippled would go on to be rehabilitated and join the ranks of [[Spartan-II]]s in the future.<ref name="DHPJM10">''[[Dr. Halsey's personal journal]]'', ''January 7, 2535''</ref><ref name="HW2PLA130">''[[Halo Wars 2]]'', [[Phoenix Logs|phoenix logs]], [[Phoenix Logs#Alice-130|Alice-130]]</ref> But at midnight at the start of [[2525#March|March 30]], John had been made to believe that forty-two of his people had become casualties.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR6}} The thirty-three to have officially come through the procedures unharmed and the twelve to have been grievously injured both gathered together at that point within the missile launch bays of the {{UNSCShip|Atlas}}, an {{Class|Epoch|heavy carrier}} heading for the [[Lambda Serpentis system]].{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR6}}<ref name="CF100">[https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/news/sweet-centennial '''Halo Waypoint''' - ''Canon Fodder #100: Sweet Centennial'']</ref> Adorned in black dress uniforms, they bid farewell to what they thought were twenty-nine of their lost brothers and sisters as stainless steel canisters were ejected into space. John and the others saluted in unison. When orderlies began to wheel away the dozen who could not move on their own, John stopped them to ask where they were taking his men. At this, Mendez requested a moment with John and advised that he let them go, assuring him that the Navy would continue to care for them and offer them opportunities to serve as they were able. John relented and then asked what the orders Mendez had for he and the others. The Chief commanded two full days of bed rest to be followed by microgravity physical therapy aboard the ''Atlas'' until they had all fully recovered. The surgeries had been performed twenty days ago but John was still dealing with regular headaches, pain and bleeding in his eyes, aching bones, and general clumsiness as he adapted to his new physical form. Mendez also informed John that in the days ahead [[Déjà]] planned to run the teens through some dropship pilot simulations and to cover some more organic chemistry and complex algebra, as long as they were up to the challenge. Before they separated, John asked what he must have done wrong as Squad Leader to lose so many of his soldiers. Mendez walked with him to a view screen where they could observe the canisters as they vanished into the void and told him that a leader must be willing to send those under his command to their deaths. He made sure John understood that there was difference between ''spending'' lives and ''wasting'' them, however. John openly wondered whether the majority of the trainees' lives had just been spent or wasted and got no answer from Mendez.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR6}} Sam joined him once Mendez had gone and guessed at what the Chief had said to him, surmising that it had amounted to telling John to accept his duty and "suck it up".{{Ref/Reuse|HTFORTAS}} John angrily rebuffed Sam's suggestion, saying that it sounded nothing like Mendez, and when Sam invited him to go to the shooting range later, he instead went off on his own to hit the gym.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFORTAS}}
When the procedures had been completed, only thirty-three of the teenagers had ostensibly been augmented successfully.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR6}} As far as John was made aware, twelve others had been injured during the operations so severely that they would be unfit to be Spartans and the remaining thirty had died.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR6}} The truth, conversely, was that those pronounced dead were in fact cryogenically preserved in the hopes that they could be revived later, and some of those that were crippled would go on to be rehabilitated and join the ranks of [[Spartan-II]]s in the future.<ref name="DHPJM10">''[[Dr. Halsey's personal journal]]'', ''January 7, 2535''</ref><ref name="HW2PLA130">''[[Halo Wars 2]]'', [[Phoenix Logs|phoenix logs]], [[Phoenix Logs#Alice-130|Alice-130]]</ref> But at midnight at the start of [[2525#March|March 30]], John had been made to believe that forty-two of his people had become casualties.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR6}} The thirty-three to have officially come through the procedures unharmed and the twelve to have been grievously injured both gathered together at that point within the missile launch bays of the {{UNSCShip|Atlas}}, an {{Class|Epoch|heavy carrier}} heading for the [[Lambda Serpentis system]].{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR6}}<ref name="CF100">[https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/news/sweet-centennial '''Halo Waypoint''' - ''Canon Fodder #100: Sweet Centennial'']</ref> Adorned in black dress uniforms, they bid farewell to what they thought were twenty-nine of their lost brothers and sisters as stainless steel canisters were ejected into space. John and the others saluted in unison. When orderlies began to wheel away the dozen who could not move on their own, John stopped them to ask where they were taking his men. At this, Mendez requested a moment with John and advised that he let them go, assuring him that the Navy would continue to care for them and offer them opportunities to serve as they were able. John relented and then asked what the orders Mendez had for he and the others. The Chief commanded two full days of bed rest to be followed by microgravity physical therapy aboard the ''Atlas'' until they had all fully recovered. The surgeries had been performed twenty days ago but John was still dealing with regular headaches, pain and bleeding in his eyes, aching bones, and general clumsiness as he adapted to his new physical form. Mendez also informed John that in the days ahead [[Déjà]] planned to run the teens through some dropship pilot simulations and to cover some more organic chemistry and complex algebra, as long as they were up to the challenge. Before they separated, John asked what he must have done wrong as Squad Leader to lose so many of his soldiers. Mendez walked with him to a view screen where they could observe the canisters as they vanished into the void and told him that a leader must be willing to send those under his command to their deaths. He made sure John understood that there was difference between ''spending'' lives and ''wasting'' them, however. John openly wondered whether the majority of the trainees' lives had just been spent or wasted and got no answer from Mendez.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR6}} Sam joined him once Mendez had gone and guessed at what the Chief had said to him, surmising that it had amounted to telling John to accept his duty and "suck it up".{{Ref/Reuse|HTFORTAS}} John angrily rebuffed Sam's suggestion, saying that it sounded nothing like Mendez, and when Sam invited him to go to the shooting range later, he instead went off on his own to hit the gym.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFORTAS}}
[[File:JohnvODST.png|thumb|350px|The ODST who attacked John with an iron bar never walked again, having suffered a major spinal cord injury.{{Ref/Reuse|HTTS13}}]]
[[File:JohnvODST.png|right|thumb|350px|The ODST who attacked John with an iron bar never walked again, having suffered a major spinal cord injury.{{Ref/Reuse|HTTS13}}]]
For the next three weeks, John and the others were put through a routine of stretching, isometric exercises, and [[Martial arts|light sparring]].{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR7}} They were also under orders to consume five high-protein meals per day, each followed by mineral and vitamin injections in the ship's medical bay. The ''Atlas'' was patrolling the Lambda Serpentis system by April 22 and it was on this date that John first meant to resume weightlifting. He visited the carrier's gym at 0430 hours to find it empty. John initially began with arm curls and then moved on to the leg machine, but in both cases discovered that the weights felt far lighter than they should have. In order to correct for this, he had to use all the machines on the side of the rotating conical space that [[artificial gravity|simulated]] two times Earth-normal gravity. When he moved on to use a speed bag, he found that it seemed to move far slower than it should from his perspective. In order to ensure it was indeed he that had changed and not various parts of the gym that were off, John took a pin from the locking collar on a bench press and dropped it where there should be one standard gee of acceleration toward the floor. Four [[ODST|orbital drop shock trooper]]s entered the gym after John's experiment and before long one whom had lay down to use the bench press had all the weights slide off one side of the bar. John apologized, since he had been the one to remove the pin, and was met in return with hostility from the men. Two on either side of him grabbed his arms and another moved to put him in a headlock from behind. John responded by breaking one of the ODST's nose and slipping away just as their sergeant called for everyone to stand down. The sergeant suggested that if they wanted to fight, they should do it inside a nearby boxing ring, so John climbed up and slipped through the ropes immediately. [[Langston|The largest ODST]] joined him there.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR7}} By this point a number of other troopers had entered the gym as well and were watching.{{Ref/Reuse|HTTS13}} John began by striking the man twice in the face and then breaking some of his floating ribs with a hook.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR7}} He brought his heel down on the man's knee and after three more punches he was dead. Aghast at the shocking display, the three others who had come in with him all rushed the ring at once, one wielding an iron bar as a weapon. John wrenched the bar from its owner, breaking his wrist and shattering his spine in the process, and used a single kick to crush the genitals and break the pelvis of another.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR7}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTTS13}} The last man was sent flying over the top of the ropes when John swung the bar at his chest, stopping his heart.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR7}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTTS13}} All had been taken out in less than five seconds.<ref name="HTTS13">''[[Hunt the Truth]]'', ''[[Hunt the Truth Season 1|Season 1]] Episode 03''</ref> John heard the voice of Chief Mendez calling for him to cease. The Chief directed the bewildered sergeant to report to Ops for debriefing and then told John his workout was over for the day.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR7}} Unbeknownst to John, the sergeant, or the ODSTs, the confrontation had been engineered by ONI as a test of his augmentations.<ref name="HTF5">''[[Halo: The Flood]]'', ''Chapter 5''</ref> John let the Chief know that he had been confused as to whether he should treat the ODSTs as teammates or targets, but Mendez assured him that he had been right to neutralize what had been threats to his person. John had followed the chain of command and protected himself, and Mendez reiterated that these were to always be chief among his priorities. John retired to shower and rinse the blood from his body, not giving the two dead and two injured men a further thought.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR7}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTF5}}
For the next three weeks, John and the others were put through a routine of stretching, isometric exercises, and [[Martial arts|light sparring]].{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR7}} They were also under orders to consume five high-protein meals per day, each followed by mineral and vitamin injections in the ship's medical bay. The ''Atlas'' was patrolling the Lambda Serpentis system by April 22 and it was on this date that John first meant to resume weightlifting. He visited the carrier's gym at 0430 hours to find it empty. John initially began with arm curls and then moved on to the leg machine, but in both cases discovered that the weights felt far lighter than they should have. In order to correct for this, he had to use all the machines on the side of the rotating conical space that [[artificial gravity|simulated]] two times Earth-normal gravity. When he moved on to use a speed bag, he found that it seemed to move far slower than it should from his perspective. In order to ensure it was indeed he that had changed and not various parts of the gym that were off, John took a pin from the locking collar on a bench press and dropped it where there should be one standard gee of acceleration toward the floor. Four [[ODST|orbital drop shock trooper]]s entered the gym after John's experiment and before long one whom had lay down to use the bench press had all the weights slide off one side of the bar. John apologized, since he had been the one to remove the pin, and was met in return with hostility from the men. Two on either side of him grabbed his arms and another moved to put him in a headlock from behind. John responded by breaking one of the ODST's nose and slipping away just as their sergeant called for everyone to stand down. The sergeant suggested that if they wanted to fight, they should do it inside a nearby boxing ring, so John climbed up and slipped through the ropes immediately. [[Langston|The largest ODST]] joined him there.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR7}} By this point a number of other troopers had entered the gym as well and were watching.{{Ref/Reuse|HTTS13}} John began by striking the man twice in the face and then breaking some of his floating ribs with a hook.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR7}} He brought his heel down on the man's knee and after three more punches he was dead. Aghast at the shocking display, the three others who had come in with him all rushed the ring at once, one wielding an iron bar as a weapon. John wrenched the bar from its owner, breaking his wrist and shattering his spine in the process, and used a single kick to crush the genitals and break the pelvis of another.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR7}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTTS13}} The last man was sent flying over the top of the ropes when John swung the bar at his chest, stopping his heart.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR7}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTTS13}} All had been taken out in less than five seconds.<ref name="HTTS13">''[[Hunt the Truth]]'', ''[[Hunt the Truth Season 1|Season 1]] Episode 03''</ref> John heard the voice of Chief Mendez calling for him to cease. The Chief directed the bewildered sergeant to report to Ops for debriefing and then told John his workout was over for the day.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR7}} Unbeknownst to John, the sergeant, or the ODSTs, the confrontation had been engineered by ONI as a test of his augmentations.<ref name="HTF5">''[[Halo: The Flood]]'', ''Chapter 5''</ref> John let the Chief know that he had been confused as to whether he should treat the ODSTs as teammates or targets, but Mendez assured him that he had been right to neutralize what had been threats to his person. John had followed the chain of command and protected himself, and Mendez reiterated that these were to always be chief among his priorities. John retired to shower and rinse the blood from his body, not giving the two dead and two injured men a further thought.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR7}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTF5}}


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{{Quote|Good morning, Spartans. I have good news for you. The word has come down. Command has decided to test your unique abilities. You have a new mission: an insurgent base in the Eridanus system.|Doctor Halsey briefs her Spartans on their first combat mission.}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR9}}
{{Quote|Good morning, Spartans. I have good news for you. The word has come down. Command has decided to test your unique abilities. You have a new mission: an insurgent base in the Eridanus system.|Doctor Halsey briefs her Spartans on their first combat mission.}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR9}}
[[File:HTFoR AS - JohnDisguise.png|left|thumb|300px|John handpicked the team that accompanied him to Eridanus Secundus, but ONI had prepared disguises for each of the thirty-three Spartans.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR9}}]]
[[File:HTFoR AS - JohnDisguise.png|left|thumb|300px|John handpicked the team that accompanied him to Eridanus Secundus, but ONI had prepared disguises for each of the thirty-three Spartans.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR9}}]]
At 0400 hours on [[2525#September|September 12, 2525]] the teens were mustered and ordered aboard the {{UNSCShip|Pioneer}}, a {{Class|Halberd|light destroyer}} bound for the [[Eridanus system]].{{Ref/Reuse|HTFORTAS}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR8}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR9}} They gathered within the ''Pioneer'''s briefing room while in transit at 0600 hours and by 0605 were greeted by the entrance of Halsey and Mendez. Halsey informed them that word had come down from [[Fleet Command]] permitting the first real mission for the Spartans. A team would be tasked with infiltrating [[Eridanus Secundus|an insurgent base]] in the Eridanus [[asteroid belt]] thought to be harboring [[United Rebel Front]] leader [[Robert Watts]]. In order to find the asteroid the rebels had been using, they would need to stow away aboard the ''[[Laden]]'', a {{Class|Parabola|freighter}} that would be departing dock over [[Eridanus II]] in just six hours. The ship was slated for routine recertification of its engines, but its current manifest and its captain betrayed it as almost assuredly being set to deliver supplies to the hidden insurgent base. For this mission, codenamed [[Operation: TALON]], John was promoted to Petty Officer Third Class and given his pick of whom to bring with him to complete it. He chose Sam, Linda, Kelly, and Fred and told the rest that they would have the harder job of having to stay behind. Over [[black body suit|form-fitting body armor]], each member of the mission donned grease-stained blue coveralls that matched what the crew of the ''Laden'' wore. John told the other four to stock up on their own preferred gear and weaponry at the destroyer's weapons locker on the condition that save for Linda's [[SRS99C-S2 AM sniper rifle|SRS99C-AM]], everyone use weapons that fired [[.390]]-caliber [[ammunition]] so they could share their collective supply. John took an [[MA2B assault rifle]], a [[combat knife]], and five ammo clips. In addition, he would carry a panic button—a tiny single-shot emergency beacon that could mark the location of the base for the UNSC or alert the ''Pioneer'' via [[UNSC Athens|a prowler]] on standby that they needed rescuing.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR9}}
At 0400 hours on [[2525#September|September 12, 2525]] the teens were mustered and ordered aboard the {{UNSCShip|Pioneer}}, a {{Class|Halberd|destroyer}} bound for the [[Eridanus system]].{{Ref/Reuse|HTFORTAS}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR8}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR9}} They gathered within the ''Pioneer'''s briefing room while in transit at 0600 hours and by 0605 were greeted by the entrance of Halsey and Mendez. Halsey informed them that word had come down from [[Fleet Command]] permitting the first real mission for the Spartans. A team would be tasked with infiltrating [[Eridanus Secundus|an insurgent base]] in the Eridanus [[asteroid belt]] thought to be harboring [[United Rebel Front]] leader [[Robert Watts]]. In order to find the asteroid the rebels had been using, they would need to stow away aboard the ''[[Laden]]'', a {{Class|Parabola|freighter}} that would be departing dock over [[Eridanus II]] in just six hours. The ship was slated for routine recertification of its engines, but its current manifest and its captain betrayed it as almost assuredly being set to deliver supplies to the hidden insurgent base. For this mission, codenamed [[Operation: TALON]], John was promoted to Petty Officer Third Class and given his pick of whom to bring with him to complete it. He chose Sam, Linda, Kelly, and Fred and told the rest that they would have the harder job of having to stay behind. Over [[black body suit|form-fitting body armor]], each member of the mission donned grease-stained blue coveralls that matched what the crew of the ''Laden'' wore. John told the other four to stock up on their own preferred gear and weaponry at the destroyer's weapons locker on the condition that save for Linda's [[SRS99C-S2 AM sniper rifle|SRS99C-AM]], everyone use weapons that fired [[.390]]-caliber [[ammunition]] so they could share their collective supply. John took an [[MA2B assault rifle]], a [[combat knife]], and five ammo clips. In addition, he would carry a panic button—a tiny single-shot emergency beacon that could mark the location of the base for the UNSC or alert the ''Pioneer'' via [[UNSC Athens|a prowler]] on standby that they needed rescuing.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR9}}


After disembarking at the space dock above Eridanus II at 0300 hours, the Spartans slipped past the lone guard in the freighter's cargo bay and took up residence in its deserted central rotating section.{{Ref/Reuse|HFORBC}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR10}} It made for a perfect hiding spot, as the large volume of water that [[artificial gravity|ringed its inner surface]] masked their thermal signatures and blocked any motion sensors which might have detected the five of them otherwise.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR10}} Through the ship had originally been scheduled to leave on the twelfth of September, it was not until shorty after 1210 hours on [[2525#September|September 14]] that it finally departed from dock.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR10}}<ref name="HTFOR19">''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'', ''Chapter 19''</ref> John checked in with the {{UNSCShip|Athens}}, the prowler on standby, shortly before it left via a secure burst transmission. He let the prowler know that they were in position and would send another update at 0400 hours the next day. John and the others rigged support nets among the upper girders in the center of the spinning tank. Kelly was able to determine that their ETA was in around ten hours, so John gave instructions to sleep in shifts. Kelly additionally was able to pull up the ''Laden'''s cargo manifest, which exhibited several luxury items almost certainly meant for Watts or his officers. John decided to tag the items in question so they could track them once they docked with the [[Eridanus Secundus|asteroid hideout]]. Fred expressed some doubts about the mission but John reassured him by reminding him that every task they'd been assigned in training had been accomplished successfully. John lay down to sleep, telling Kelly to wake him in four hours.<ref name="HTFOR10">''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'', ''Chapter 10''</ref> While he slept, John dreamed that he was alone in a desert environment when suddenly Kelly appeared before him, her face covered in blood.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFORTAS}} When she spoke, he was then faced with the real Kelly, who was waking him up to let him know they had begun to decelerate and would evidently be arriving sooner than initially expected.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFORTAS}}{{Ref/Reuse|HFORBC}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR10}} John commanded all lights to be shut off before he popped a hatch above them to take a peek with a fiber optic probe. Seeing that the space above was clear, they all entered it and rappelled ten meters to clear the tank. Once they were free from the spinning section, they changed into their disguises and made sure all weapons and other pieces of equipment were stowed in duffel bags. The arrival of simulated gravity once they reached the cargo bay signaled that the ''Laden'' had docked to a spinning body larger than itself. Kelly led them to the crate of luxury goods and John, Linda, and Sam stood guard while she and Fred planted a tracking device inside it. John came very close to shooting a dockworker that almost noticed them, but the man moved on and John kept his finger from pulling the trigger of his MA2B. After confirming he could track the crate through his helmet's [[HUD]], John stowed it and led the others onto the base. The Spartans casually made their way to the dock's public showers to discuss their next moves. John decided the showers would serve as their fallback position and that a Pelican they'd noticed on the dock would be their chosen means of escape. Slipping on his helmet showed that the crate was on the move, so John had Blue Team move further into the city in pursuit. After pinpointing it one more time in an alley which they ducked into, he could see it was now being carried on a robotic tram. Following it at a discrete distance led them to a twelve-story building, where John and the others saw three men unload it and carry it inside.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR10}}
After disembarking at the space dock above Eridanus II at 0300 hours, the Spartans slipped past the lone guard in the freighter's cargo bay and took up residence in its deserted central rotating section.{{Ref/Reuse|HFORBC}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR10}} It made for a perfect hiding spot, as the large volume of water that [[artificial gravity|ringed its inner surface]] masked their thermal signatures and blocked any motion sensors which might have detected the five of them otherwise.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR10}} Through the ship had originally been scheduled to leave on the twelfth of September, it was not until shorty after 1210 hours on [[2525#September|September 14]] that it finally departed from dock.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR10}}<ref name="HTFOR19">''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'', ''Chapter 19''</ref> John checked in with the {{UNSCShip|Athens}}, the prowler on standby, shortly before it left via a secure burst transmission. He let the prowler know that they were in position and would send another update at 0400 hours the next day. John and the others rigged support nets among the upper girders in the center of the spinning tank. Kelly was able to determine that their ETA was in around ten hours, so John gave instructions to sleep in shifts. Kelly additionally was able to pull up the ''Laden'''s cargo manifest, which exhibited several luxury items almost certainly meant for Watts or his officers. John decided to tag the items in question so they could track them once they docked with the [[Eridanus Secundus|asteroid hideout]]. Fred expressed some doubts about the mission but John reassured him by reminding him that every task they'd been assigned in training had been accomplished successfully. John lay down to sleep, telling Kelly to wake him in four hours.<ref name="HTFOR10">''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'', ''Chapter 10''</ref> While he slept, John dreamed that he was alone in a desert environment when suddenly Kelly appeared before him, her face covered in blood.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFORTAS}} When she spoke, he was then faced with the real Kelly, who was waking him up to let him know they had begun to decelerate and would evidently be arriving sooner than initially expected.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFORTAS}}{{Ref/Reuse|HFORBC}}{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR10}} John commanded all lights to be shut off before he popped a hatch above them to take a peek with a fiber optic probe. Seeing that the space above was clear, they all entered it and rappelled ten meters to clear the tank. Once they were free from the spinning section, they changed into their disguises and made sure all weapons and other pieces of equipment were stowed in duffel bags. The arrival of simulated gravity once they reached the cargo bay signaled that the ''Laden'' had docked to a spinning body larger than itself. Kelly led them to the crate of luxury goods and John, Linda, and Sam stood guard while she and Fred planted a tracking device inside it. John came very close to shooting a dockworker that almost noticed them, but the man moved on and John kept his finger from pulling the trigger of his MA2B. After confirming he could track the crate through his helmet's [[HUD]], John stowed it and led the others onto the base. The Spartans casually made their way to the dock's public showers to discuss their next moves. John decided the showers would serve as their fallback position and that a Pelican they'd noticed on the dock would be their chosen means of escape. Slipping on his helmet showed that the crate was on the move, so John had Blue Team move further into the city in pursuit. After pinpointing it one more time in an alley which they ducked into, he could see it was now being carried on a robotic tram. Following it at a discrete distance led them to a twelve-story building, where John and the others saw three men unload it and carry it inside.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR10}}
[[File:HTFoR AS - JohnBBSHelmet.png|thumb|350px|The suits used during Operation: TALON had been worn by the Spartans previously.<ref name="HTFOR9">''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'', ''Chapter 9''</ref> They could deflect small-caliber rounds and were equipped with refrigeration/heating units, encryption and communications gear, and thermal and motion detectors.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR9}}]]
[[File:HTFoR AS - JohnBBSHelmet.png|right|350px|thumb|The suits used during Operation: TALON had been worn by the Spartans previously.<ref name="HTFOR9">''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'', ''Chapter 9''</ref> They could deflect small-caliber rounds and were equipped with refrigeration/heating units, encryption and communications gear, and thermal and motion detectors.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR9}}]]
Two guards flanked the outer doors to the building.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR10}} John gave Kelly the go-ahead to approach them. She surprised one man by grabbing his rifle and twisting, yanking him inside the building in the process. John got the drop on the second guard and snapped his neck from behind. Both corpses were hid out of view as everyone shrugged out of their coveralls and put on their helmets. On the other side of another set of doors, John and Linda took down five individuals, with John specifically killing two uniformed guards near an elevator. He then directed his team to take the stairs all the way to the top floor, where the tracker showed the crate of items had been taken to. After nine double flights of stairs, John determined that they would need a better entrance once they reached the final floor due to the distribution of the thermal signatures detected on it. He had his team cross an empty hall on the ninth floor to the elevator and then proceed to climb up the cable extending the length of the shaft. At the top, he counted down from three before yanking the doors open with Sam. Within, five armed guards were taken by surprise and killed quickly by Linda, Kelly, and Fred. John could see that the navigation marker they had followed was behind a door in the room they were. Without only the slightest hesitation, he kicked it in and came face-to-face with three more guards and behind them, [[Colonel]] Robert Watts. John couldn't risk hitting their target, so he was forced to dive to cover instead of opening fire. In the process three rounds from the URF guards found their mark, with one penetrating his suit and pinging off his ribs. Undeterred, John rolled to his feet and fired a three-shot burst into one of the men's forehead from his new position off to the left. The other Spartans were able to similarly do away with the other two, leaving only Watts. From behind a wet bar, John signaled Sam and Fred to fire over Watts' head so that he ducked. John vaulted over the bar at this and jumped on top of the [[Insurrectionist|rebel]] leader, wrenching his pistol away and breaking one of his index fingers and one of his thumbs in doing so. John then chocked the colonel into near-unconsciousness so Kelly could easily administer a dose of [[polypseudomorphine]] to sedate him. She followed this by injecting [[biofoam]] into John's wound so that he would be stable for a few more hours and helping him up from where he had collapsed after taking down Watts. John directed his Spartans to seal Watts inside the crate from the ''Laden'' as he secured a rope to an outer balcony and used it to rappel down into an alley. The others followed suit with the crate in tow once he signaled the coast was clear.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR10}}
Two guards flanked the outer doors to the building.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR10}} John gave Kelly the go-ahead to approach them. She surprised one man by grabbing his rifle and twisting, yanking him inside the building in the process. John got the drop on the second guard and snapped his neck from behind. Both corpses were hid out of view as everyone shrugged out of their coveralls and put on their helmets. On the other side of another set of doors, John and Linda took down five individuals, with John specifically killing two uniformed guards near an elevator. He then directed his team to take the stairs all the way to the top floor, where the tracker showed the crate of items had been taken to. After nine double flights of stairs, John determined that they would need a better entrance once they reached the final floor due to the distribution of the thermal signatures detected on it. He had his team cross an empty hall on the ninth floor to the elevator and then proceed to climb up the cable extending the length of the shaft. At the top, he counted down from three before yanking the doors open with Sam. Within, five armed guards were taken by surprise and killed quickly by Linda, Kelly, and Fred. John could see that the navigation marker they had followed was behind a door in the room they were. Without only the slightest hesitation, he kicked it in and came face-to-face with three more guards and behind them, [[Colonel]] Robert Watts. John couldn't risk hitting their target, so he was forced to dive to cover instead of opening fire. In the process three rounds from the URF guards found their mark, with one penetrating his suit and pinging off his ribs. Undeterred, John rolled to his feet and fired a three-shot burst into one of the men's forehead from his new position off to the left. The other Spartans were able to similarly do away with the other two, leaving only Watts. From behind a wet bar, John signaled Sam and Fred to fire over Watts' head so that he ducked. John vaulted over the bar at this and jumped on top of the [[Insurrectionist|rebel]] leader, wrenching his pistol away and breaking one of his index fingers and one of his thumbs in doing so. John then chocked the colonel into near-unconsciousness so Kelly could easily administer a dose of [[polypseudomorphine]] to sedate him. She followed this by injecting [[biofoam]] into John's wound so that he would be stable for a few more hours and helping him up from where he had collapsed after taking down Watts. John directed his Spartans to seal Watts inside the crate from the ''Laden'' as he secured a rope to an outer balcony and used it to rappel down into an alley. The others followed suit with the crate in tow once he signaled the coast was clear.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR10}}


Line 94: Line 93:
The ''Pioneer'' did not return to [[Reach]] until [[2525#November|November 2 of 2525]].{{Ref/Reuse|HTFORTAS}} John rode a Pelican to the military complex on the surface with the other members of Blue Team and was met by Chief Mendez, who told them they were to assemble in the amphitheater with haste.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFORTAS}} There, at 0600 hours all thirty-three Spartans gathered, in their dress uniforms, to hear from [[Vice Admiral]] [[Michael Stanforth]].{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR11}} John sat in the third row. All the Spartans rose and stood at attention when Mendez entered and remained standing until Stanforth gave them permission to be seated. The Admiral informed the teenagers that the [[Outer Colony]] of [[Harvest]] had been [[First Battle of Harvest|annihilated]] some time ago by what appeared to be alien attackers. The adversary responsible called itself "the Covenant" and had broadcast a message announcing that the destruction of [[humanity]] was the will of its [[Forerunner|god]]s. John stood to ask whether the language had been translated after the message was played for them but was told that it had been originally broadcast by the aliens in [[English]]. Stanforth told them that the UNSC had been ordered to full alert and that the largest fleet action in human history was being mobilized in response. And because of the UNSC-wide mobilization, the Spartans' training was to be accelerated to its final phase: [[Mjolnir|Project MJOLNIR]]. The briefing on the new threat and the UNSC's reaction to it concluded, Stanforth then let them all know that Mendez would be leaving them to begin the training of a second class of Spartans.[[File:H4L Awakening 3.jpg|320px|thumb|left|John was told to remain absolutely still as the armor was put on for the first time.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR13}} The slightest movement had the potential to injure the technicians assisting him.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR13}}]] John called for everyone to stand and salute the Chief a final time. Mendez made his way over to John once everyone began to disperse so they could talk briefly alone. He asked him to recall what options existed when facing a stronger opponent and John answered that one could attack their weakest point swiftly and forcefully before they had a chance to retaliate or one could choose to retreat. The Chief reminded him that a third option existed: surrender. He warned John that surrender might eventually seem like the most reasonable choice for many, but that for people like them, it was never an option. Before he left for the final time, Mendez returned the [[quarter]] that had been taken from John the day he had arrived as a child. John thanked him. Mendez told John it had been an honor to serve with him and instead of saluting, simply shook his hand before saying goodbye.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR11}}
The ''Pioneer'' did not return to [[Reach]] until [[2525#November|November 2 of 2525]].{{Ref/Reuse|HTFORTAS}} John rode a Pelican to the military complex on the surface with the other members of Blue Team and was met by Chief Mendez, who told them they were to assemble in the amphitheater with haste.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFORTAS}} There, at 0600 hours all thirty-three Spartans gathered, in their dress uniforms, to hear from [[Vice Admiral]] [[Michael Stanforth]].{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR11}} John sat in the third row. All the Spartans rose and stood at attention when Mendez entered and remained standing until Stanforth gave them permission to be seated. The Admiral informed the teenagers that the [[Outer Colony]] of [[Harvest]] had been [[First Battle of Harvest|annihilated]] some time ago by what appeared to be alien attackers. The adversary responsible called itself "the Covenant" and had broadcast a message announcing that the destruction of [[humanity]] was the will of its [[Forerunner|god]]s. John stood to ask whether the language had been translated after the message was played for them but was told that it had been originally broadcast by the aliens in [[English]]. Stanforth told them that the UNSC had been ordered to full alert and that the largest fleet action in human history was being mobilized in response. And because of the UNSC-wide mobilization, the Spartans' training was to be accelerated to its final phase: [[Mjolnir|Project MJOLNIR]]. The briefing on the new threat and the UNSC's reaction to it concluded, Stanforth then let them all know that Mendez would be leaving them to begin the training of a second class of Spartans.[[File:H4L Awakening 3.jpg|320px|thumb|left|John was told to remain absolutely still as the armor was put on for the first time.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR13}} The slightest movement had the potential to injure the technicians assisting him.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR13}}]] John called for everyone to stand and salute the Chief a final time. Mendez made his way over to John once everyone began to disperse so they could talk briefly alone. He asked him to recall what options existed when facing a stronger opponent and John answered that one could attack their weakest point swiftly and forcefully before they had a chance to retaliate or one could choose to retreat. The Chief reminded him that a third option existed: surrender. He warned John that surrender might eventually seem like the most reasonable choice for many, but that for people like them, it was never an option. Before he left for the final time, Mendez returned the [[quarter]] that had been taken from John the day he had arrived as a child. John thanked him. Mendez told John it had been an honor to serve with him and instead of saluting, simply shook his hand before saying goodbye.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR11}}


By [[2525#November|November 6]], all the Spartans had departed [[Reach]] aboard the {{Class|Paris|heavy frigate}} {{UNSCShip|Commonwealth}}.<ref name="HTFOR12">''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'', ''Chapter 12''</ref> The next three weeks were spent handling a variety of minor missions under the guidance of Doctor Halsey on their way out to [[Chi Ceti IV]] on the edge of [[UNSC]]-controlled space. All of the Spartans worked together to put down multiple insurrectionist factions on [[Jericho VII]] and also to remove a [[black market]] bazaar near the [[Roosevelt military base]].{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR12}}<ref name="HBB17">''[[Halo: Battle Born]]'', ''Chapter 17''</ref><ref name="Dispatch">[https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/news/discovery-dispatch-february-21-2019 '''Halo Waypoint''' - ''Discovery Dispatch'']</ref> During the final of these deployments in which Blue Team worked together as a singular unit, John sustained severe injuries to his shoulders and his right flank.<ref name="HCD1">''[[Halo: Collateral Damage]]'', ''[[Halo: Collateral Damage Issue 1|Issue #1]]''</ref> It was at 1750 hours on [[2525#November|November 27]] that the ''Commonwealth'' finally emerged in real space in the [[Chi Ceti system]].{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR12}} During the last leg of the journey through slipspace, John had used the ship's education database to look up the word ''[[Wikipedia:Mjolnir|Mjolnir]]'' and determined the project must concern some sort of weapon. Immediately after their arrival in the system Halsey summoned John to the bridge. Before he left the bunkroom where the thirty-two other Spartans were, he told Sam to get everyone ready in case they were needed soon. John took an elevator, saluting [[Captain]] [[Wallace]] and nodding to Halsey once he arrived. The doctor called his attention to a screen displaying deconvoluted radar signals, including one that may have been a ship eighty million kilometers away. In the event that the anomalous ghost on the radar signal signified a [[Covenant]] vessel, Captain Wallace ordered all hands to battle stations. Halsey let John know that they needed to take the frigate's dropship to the surface of Chi Ceti IV to get to Project MJOLNIR at the [[Damascus Materials Testing Facility]] in [[Vhalkem]]. John accordingly relayed this information to Sam and told him to have everyone mustered in Bay Alpha with a Pelican ready for drop in just fifteen minutes. With barely any warning, [[Unrelenting|an alien ship]] suddenly emerged from slipspace just three thousand kilometers of the ''Commonwealth'''s prow. John could only watch as the frigate was forced into battle against a [[Zanar-pattern light cruiser|sleek craft]] a third its size but with much better defenses. John finally spoke up after they had sustained a significant amount of damage and suggested that Captain Wallace direct [[GA-TL1 Longsword]]s to distract the enemy to but them time to offload the Spartans and Halsey at Chi Ceti IV. Wallace agreed to sacrifice [[Longsword Squadron Delta]] to fulfill their mission as they neared the planet and asked that those going to the surface try to rendezvous in orbit by no later than 1900 hours.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR12}}
By [[2525#November|November 6]], all the Spartans had departed [[Reach]] aboard the {{Class|Paris|heavy frigate}} {{UNSCShip|Commonwealth}}.<ref name="HTFOR12">''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'', ''Chapter 12''</ref> The next three weeks were spent handling a variety of minor missions under the guidance of Doctor Halsey on their way out to [[Chi Ceti IV]] on the edge of [[UNSC]]-controlled space. All of the Spartans worked together to put down multiple insurrectionist factions on [[Jericho VII]] and also to remove a [[black market]] bazaar near the [[Roosevelt military base]].{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR12}}<ref name="HBB17">''[[Halo: Battle Born]]'', ''Chapter 17''</ref><ref name="Dispatch">[https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/news/discovery-dispatch-february-21-2019 '''Halo Waypoint''' - ''Discovery Dispatch'']</ref> During the final of these deployments in which Blue Team worked together as a singular unit, John sustained severe injuries to his shoulders and his right flank.<ref name="HCD1">''[[Halo: Collateral Damage]]'', ''[[Halo: Collateral Damage Issue 1|Issue #1]]''</ref> It was at 1750 hours on [[2525#November|November 27]] that the ''Commonwealth'' finally emerged in real space in the [[Chi Ceti system]].{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR12}} During the last leg of the journey through slipspace, John had used the ship's education database to look up the word ''[[Wikipedia:Mjolnir|Mjolnir]]'' and determined the project must concern some sort of weapon. Immediately after their arrival in the system Halsey summoned John to the bridge. Before he left the bunkroom where the thirty-two other Spartans were, he told Sam to get everyone ready in case they were needed soon. John took an elevator, saluting [[Captain]] [[Wallace]] and nodding to Halsey once he arrived. The doctor called his attention to a screen displaying deconvoluted radar signals, including one that may have been a ship eighty million kilometers away. In the event that the anomalous ghost on the radar signal signified a [[Covenant]] vessel, Captain Wallace ordered all hands to battle stations. Halsey let John know that they needed to take the frigate's dropship to the surface of Chi Ceti IV to get to Project MJOLNIR at the [[Damascus Materials Testing Facility]] in [[Vhalkem]]. John accordingly relayed this information to Sam and told him to have everyone mustered in Bay Alpha with a Pelican ready for drop in just fifteen minutes. With barely any warning, [[Unrelenting|an alien ship]] suddenly emerged from slipspace just three thousand kilometers of the ''Commonwealth'''s prow. John could only watch as the frigate was forced into battle against a [[CRS-class light cruiser|sleek craft]] a third its size but with much better defenses. John finally spoke up after they had sustained a significant amount of damage and suggested that Captain Wallace direct [[GA-TL1 Longsword]]s to distract the enemy to but them time to offload the Spartans and Halsey at Chi Ceti IV. Wallace agreed to sacrifice [[Longsword Squadron Delta]] to fulfill their mission as they neared the planet and asked that those going to the surface try to rendezvous in orbit by no later than 1900 hours.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR12}}
[[File:FOR AS Mjolnir.png|thumb|300px|The first time John saluted in MJOLNIR he bruised his wrist doing so.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR13}}]]
[[File:FOR AS Mjolnir.png|thumb|right|300px|The first time John saluted in MJOLNIR he bruised his wrist doing so.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR13}}]]
After landing, it took around fifteen minutes for a freight elevator to carry Halsey and the Spartans down into the depths of [[Chi Ceti IV]], finally depositing them in an underground hangar at around 1845 hours.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR13}} There, the doctor introduced them to Project MJOLNIR, an initiative to outfit each of them with the most advanced armor ever created by humans in the modern era. Halsey walked the teenagers through the various ways [[MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/Mark IV|Mjolnir armor]] would improve their abilities in combat but also made sure they each understood the risk they would be taking by agreeing to use it. Tests with unaugmented volunteers given the armor had ended catastrophically and computer modeling for the Spartans had been insufficient, meaning that whether their enhancements would actually allow them to use the armor was still an unknown. Despite the risk, each one of them volunteered at once to be the first to try Mjolnir, but Halsey ultimately decided on John being the one to demonstrate it first. Once a team of technicians had taken fifteen minutes to fit the various pieces in place Halsey asked him to slowly raise one of his arms to chest level, which he managed very carefully.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR13}}<ref name="HTFOR14">''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'', ''Chapter 14''</ref> She then coached John through the basics of walking and gradually built up the speed and complexity of his motions.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR13}} After fifteen minutes, John could walk, run, and jump almost without thinking about the difference the powered armor made to his movements. Doctor Halsey directed him to try running through a nearby obstacle course with the armor while the remainder of the Spartans were fitted with theirs. On the course John leaped over a three meter high wall, shattered concrete targets with punches, sunk knives up to their hafts when thrown into target dummies, and even felt confident enough to let bullets deflect off his armor. To his own amazement, he even dodged one or two of the rounds when he tried. The others ran through the course as well, but John could see that there was a lack of coordination to their movements. He expressed his worry regarding this to Halsey, who reassured him they would all get used to the suits soon enough. She let him know that each of them had even been given subliminal training to prepare them during their last trip through slipspace in cryostasis. The Spartans spent thirty minutes drilling in their new armor before Captain Wallace contacted them to say that the they had made contact with the Covenant ship again. Though its slipspace capability was evidently still damaged from the previous engagement, it was moving toward them through normal space. Wallace offered to try to draw the enemy away to buy them more time, but Halsey decided the time had come to fight instead.<ref name="HTFOR13">''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'', ''Chapter 13''</ref>
After landing, it took around fifteen minutes for a freight elevator to carry Halsey and the Spartans down into the depths of [[Chi Ceti IV]], finally depositing them in an underground hangar at around 1845 hours.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR13}} There, the doctor introduced them to Project MJOLNIR, an initiative to outfit each of them with the most advanced armor ever created by humans in the modern era. Halsey walked the teenagers through the various ways [[MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/Mark IV|Mjolnir armor]] would improve their abilities in combat but also made sure they each understood the risk they would be taking by agreeing to use it. Tests with unaugmented volunteers given the armor had ended catastrophically and computer modeling for the Spartans had been insufficient, meaning that whether their enhancements would actually allow them to use the armor was still an unknown. Despite the risk, each one of them volunteered at once to be the first to try Mjolnir, but Halsey ultimately decided on John being the one to demonstrate it first. Once a team of technicians had taken fifteen minutes to fit the various pieces in place Halsey asked him to slowly raise one of his arms to chest level, which he managed very carefully.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR13}}<ref name="HTFOR14">''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'', ''Chapter 14''</ref> She then coached John through the basics of walking and gradually built up the speed and complexity of his motions.{{Ref/Reuse|HTFOR13}} After fifteen minutes, John could walk, run, and jump almost without thinking about the difference the powered armor made to his movements. Doctor Halsey directed him to try running through a nearby obstacle course with the armor while the remainder of the Spartans were fitted with theirs. On the course John leaped over a three meter high wall, shattered concrete targets with punches, sunk knives up to their hafts when thrown into target dummies, and even felt confident enough to let bullets deflect off his armor. To his own amazement, he even dodged one or two of the rounds when he tried. The others ran through the course as well, but John could see that there was a lack of coordination to their movements. He expressed his worry regarding this to Halsey, who reassured him they would all get used to the suits soon enough. She let him know that each of them had even been given subliminal training to prepare them during their last trip through slipspace in cryostasis. The Spartans spent thirty minutes drilling in their new armor before Captain Wallace contacted them to say that the they had made contact with the Covenant ship again. Though its slipspace capability was evidently still damaged from the previous engagement, it was moving toward them through normal space. Wallace offered to try to draw the enemy away to buy them more time, but Halsey decided the time had come to fight instead.<ref name="HTFOR13">''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'', ''Chapter 13''</ref>


==Gallery==
==Gallery==
<gallery>
<GALLERY>
File:H4L - John 117 E2 c.jpg
File:H4L - John 117 E2 c.jpg
File:HTFOR AS - Young Blue Team.jpg
File:HTFOR AS - Young Blue Team.jpg
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File:Boot Camp Issue 3.jpg
File:Boot Camp Issue 3.jpg
File:HFoR AS 495lbs john bench press.png
File:HFoR AS 495lbs john bench press.png
File:HHj John.png
File:Helljumper 1 Preview 14.jpg
File:HTFoR AS - Blue 02.jpg
File:HTFoR AS - Blue 02.jpg
File:BlueTeam.jpg
File:BlueTeam.jpg
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File:HTFoR AS - Blue Team returns.jpg
File:HTFoR AS - Blue Team returns.jpg
File:H4L Awakening 2.jpg
File:H4L Awakening 2.jpg
</gallery>
</GALLERY>


==List of appearances==
==List of appearances==

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