Editing Operation: RETRIBUTION

{{Status|Canon}}{{Status|Featured}}

|prev=[[A Necessary Truth#Plot synopsis|Ambush on Neos Atlantis]]<ref>''[[Halo: Fractures]]'', ''[[A Necessary Truth]]''</ref>

|next=[[Draco III rebellion]]<ref>[[Jessica Shea]] on Twitter [https://twitter.com/bsangel/status/683713456873148418?lang=en]</ref>

|image=[[File:Halo Retribution cover.png|350px]]{{Ref/Note|This image is a pictorial representation of the portion of the operation that took place on Meridian but does not indicate there was a moment in time during which Veta and Castor were not hostile to one another. Such an occasion never arose.}}

|date=[[2553#December|December 8–16, 2553]]{{Ref/Reuse|R2}}{{Ref/Novel|Id=R27|Ret|Chapter=27}}

|place=*[[Venezia]], [[Orso system]]{{Ref/Reuse|R1}}

*[[Taram]], [[Pydoryn]], [[Shaps system]]{{Ref/Reuse|R6}}

*[[Gao]], [[Cordoba system]]{{Ref/Reuse|R19}}

*[[Meridian]], [[Hestia V]], [[Hestia system]]{{Ref/Reuse|R22}}

|result=UNSC victory{{Ref/Reuse|R27}}

*[[Georgi Baklanov]] killed{{Ref/Reuse|R1}}

*[[Ross Nyeto]] captured{{Ref/Reuse|R1}}

*[[Salvation Base]] destroyed{{Ref/Reuse|R17}}

*[[Cryo-jar]]s with [[asteroidea]]-cultured organs destroyed{{Ref/Reuse|R27}}

|side1=[[File:UNSC insignia (post-war).png|25px]] [[United Nations Space Command]]{{Ref/Reuse|R1}}

[[File:LDTiny.png|25px]] [[Liang-Dortmund Corporation]]{{Ref/Reuse|R22}}

[[Ross Nyeto]]'s gunrunners{{Ref/Reuse|R1}}

[[Gao Republic]]{{Ref/Reuse|R17}}

|commanders1=*[[Rear Admiral|RADM]] [[Serin Osman]]{{Ref/Novel|Id=R2|Ret|Chapter=2}}

*[[Piers Ewen|CAPT Piers Ewen]]{{Ref/Reuse|R4}}

*[[Lieutenant|LTJG]] [[Frederic-104]]{{Ref/Reuse|R1}}

*Lieutenant [[Veta Lopis]]{{Ref/Reuse|R1}}

*[[Orsun]]†{{Ref/Reuse|R27}}{{Ref/Reuse|R13}}

*[[Sarch Rach|Chur'R'Sarch Rach]]†{{Ref/Reuse|R3}}

Ross Nyeto {{C|captured}}{{Ref/Reuse|R1}}

*[[Argie]]†{{Ref/Reuse|R17}}{{Ref/Reuse|R9}}

*[[Porter Sahir]]†{{Ref/Reuse|R21}}

Georgi and three others{{Ref/Reuse|R1}}

Georgi Baklanov and 3 of his people.{{Ref/Reuse|R1}}

|casual3=*Several Dark Moon Enterprises operatives{{Ref/Reuse|R15}}

*All members of [[Papa-10]] and Bartalan Craddog.{{Ref/Reuse|R27}}

*[[Oriel]]{{Ref/Reuse|R27}}

*2 Turacos {{C|One captured}}{{Ref/Reuse|R22}}{{Ref/Reuse|R17}}

|civilian1=*All human and [[Sangheili]] prisoners at Salvation Base{{Ref/Reuse|R17}}

{{Quote|'''Investigative abstract:''' refer to operational document #ONIS3-33456-SO Retribution for full report on assassination of UNSC Admiral Graselyn Tuwa, associated abduction and murder of her husband and two dependents, and subsequent utilization of security unit Papa-10 in failed effort to recover antibodies and erase evidentiary links to rogue science officer Lieutenant Bartalan Craddog.|From an internal ONI intelligence finding detailing the events that launched Operation: RETRIBUTION and its outcome.}}{{Ref/Reuse|R27}}

 

The Spartans' first objective was to discover the location of the base the missing Tuwas were likely being held at, and to do this, Lopis' team went undercover as [[pirate]]s on [[Venezia]].{{Ref/Reuse|R1}} A feigned shootout with [[Blue Team]] enabled them to sell their cover stories and as a result, they were granted admission aboard a [[Kig-Yar]] vessel bound for the [[moon]] [[Taram]].{{Ref/Reuse|R6}} The four managed to survive a betrayal by their hosts and also escaped from a Keeper boarding party that met them at their destination.{{Ref/Reuse|R7}} The bodies of the victims they were searching for were found eventually, where they had been planted by Dark Moon operatives still present on Taram.{{Ref/Reuse|R12}} Blue Team inserted from the ''Silent Joe'' and helped aid the Ferrets in escaping a firefight with the Keepers, who captured a few survivors from the Dark Moon squad.{{Ref/Reuse|R15}} Following forensic analysis of the corpses recovered, it became evident that someone had targeted the Tuwas based on a shared genetic mutation that had allowed them survive [[Barugi incident|a deadly outbreak]] of [[Asteroidea merozoite|protozoal disease]] years prior.{{Ref/Reuse|R17}} The ''Silent Joe'' next made haste for [[Gao]], where the Keepers had already struck the [[New Leaf Field Complex|research facility]] where the Tuwas had been taken to and killed.{{Ref/Reuse|R18}} A conversation with the [[President of the Gao Republic|president]] of the [[Gao Republic]], [[Arlo Casille]], revealed that Administrator [[Sloan]]  of [[Pinnacle Station]] on [[Meridian]] had approached him on behalf of Dark Moon in order to let the corporation use the lab.{{Ref/Reuse|R19}} The UNSC teams arrived at Pinnacle Station just behind the Keepers once more and pursued both a group of them and [[Papa-10|a rogue ONI team]] to the surface.{{Ref/Reuse|R22}}{{Ref/Reuse|R23}} In the end, [[cryo-jar]]s housing the Tuwas' organs were destroyed and everyone who might have been able to explain why they had been harvested were killed.{{Ref/Reuse|R26}} Intrepid Eye's plans to use anti-asteroidea merozoite antibodies to create a vaccine that she would selectively expose only those she thought worthy to bear the [[Mantle of Responsibility]] to were foiled.{{Ref/Reuse|R5}}

Despite losing the Tuwas and their organs, Intrepid Eye's role in the events that precipitated Operation: RETRIBUTION went undiscovered for a time and she was able to persist in directing the continuation of [[Project SLEEPING STAR]], which entailed research of asteroidea onboard the ONI station ''Argent Moon''.{{Ref/Reuse|R27}}{{Ref/Reuse|HRen13}}

 

 

On [[2553#December|December 1, 2553]] the UNSC passenger schooner ''[[UNSC Donoma|Donoma]]'' came under attack while en route to the [[human colony]] of [[Nephis]] in the [[Tisiphone system]]. Onboard the ship was [[Vice Admiral]] [[Graselyn Tuwa]], commander of the [[UNSC Navy]]'s [[Isbanola sector]] patrol fleet. She had been traveling with [[Kerbasi Tuwa|her husband]], [[Catalin Tuwa|her daughter]], and [[Yuso Tuwa|her son]] to attend the [[Threshold Ceremony]] of the daughter of [[Prudence Tuwa|her sister]], the [[Premier of Nephis|Nephis premier]]. The strike was carried out at the behest of [[Dark Moon Enterprises]], one of the security contractors controlled by Intrepid Eye. The ancilla's goal was to kidnap the survivors of the [[Barugi Incident]] so that the antibodies their bodies had made against [[asteroidea merozoite]] could be cultured and reproduced. Eventually, she intended to undertake a massive culling of the human species wherein only those deemed worthy would have been inoculated with a vaccine to the merozoites of asteroidea ahead of time.{{Ref/Reuse|R21}} Dark Moon used a combination of Jiralhanae, Kig-Yar, and humans to hit the ''Donoma'' in order to frame the Keepers.{{Ref/Reuse|R16}} Veta Lopis and her Ferret team were summoned to the schooner to investigate it by Rear Admiral [[Serin Osman]] and based on their findings, they concluded that the Keepers did indeed seem to be the responsible party. Operation: RETRIBUTION was henceforth set into motion with the objectives of both rescuing the captured Tuwas and getting justice for Admiral Graselyn Tuwa, who had been brutally murdered during the assault.{{Ref/Reuse|R2}}

{{Quote|no=two|q1=You're stalling.|Ross Nyeto|q2=The Spartans are coming for ''us'' and you think I'm stalling?|Veta Lopis|Veta rebuffs the Goliath's suspicion.}}{{Ref/Reuse|R1}}

On [[2553#December|December 12, 2553]], Phase One of the operation saw Veta's [[Ferret]] team and the legendary team of [[Spartan-II]]s, [[Blue Team]], deployed to [[New Tyne]], [[Venezia]].{{Ref/Reuse|R1}}{{Ref/Reuse|R4}} ONI sources within the city had reported that a Keeper gunrunning crew was in port looking for cargo.{{Ref/Novel|Id=R3|Ret|Chapter=3}} In order to trick these Keepers into approaching Veta's team, they would need to create a public scene that would pique their suspects' interests in them. For the past few days, the UNSC had been making a show of stopping and boarding [[S77 Crow|Crow]]s and specifically pretending to be on the lookout for one with [[Archer missile]]s or [[Magnetic Accelerator Cannon#Mini-MAC|Mini-MAC]]s. In addition, a story of the {{UNSCShip|Taulanti}} being hit and having ten [[HAVOK tactical nuclear weapon|HAVOK]] [[nuclear weapon]]s stolen was permitted to spread. These things were done so that the Ferrets could present themselves as the [[piracy|pirates]] who had raided the ''Taulanti''. In order to really sell the idea that the UNSC was desperate to recover the nukes and that they had indeed been the ones to take them, the plan was for it to appear as if Veta and the [[Spartan-III]]s just barely escaped when Blue Team arrived.{{Ref/Reuse|R1}}

To this end, Veta's [[Spartan]]s disguised themselves to look older than their actual ages and to look like street punks that fit the profile of those belonging to a pirate gang. They got a table at the [[Trattoria Georgi]], where they knew a gunrunner known as "the Goliath" would be that evening.{{Ref/Note|Though the time at which Veta approached Nyeto was only a little after 1430 hours [[Military Standard Time|MST]], it was evening in New Tyne at that time.}} Veta approached the Goliath, who was in fact [[Ross Nyeto]], the son of [[Ross Nyeto|a famous]] [[lieutenant commander]] that had defected from the [[UNSC Navy]] to take up the cause of the [[Insurrection]]. She revealed that she knew who he was to set him and his three men on edge and offered to pay for the transport of her crew aboard one of his {{class|Razor|prowler}}s, the ''[[Ghost Flag]]''.{{Ref/Note|[[Hector Nyeto]] and his theft of the Prowlers, including the ''Ghost Flag'', happened during [[Operation: SILENT STORM]] in [[2526]] as seen in ''[[Halo: Silent Storm]]''.}} Nyeto was resistant to her offer since he was not accustomed to transporting people as opposed to contraband and also had little interest in being paid in [[boson bead]]s, which she had produced whilst stating her case. The beads did, however, provoke [[Marco|one of Nyeto's men]] to place a beefy hand over Veta's when she tried to gather them up off the gunrunners' table. Veta did not hesitate to use a pain-compliance technique on the man that caused all eyes in the restaurant to focus on them and for some patrons to nervously exit. Her Spartans also drew their sidearms at this time. The situation was diffused by the owner of the establishment, [[Georgi Baklanov]], who assured his wary customers that the Goliath would be paying for everyone's tabs. Veta noticed [[Gyasi|two]] [[Ruuht]]ian [[Kig-Yar]] take their seats at a table closer to her than the one they had been at previously, and surmised from this that they could be affiliates of the Keepers and therefore the ones this whole show was for. Continuing her conversation with Nyeto, she casually let it be known to all within earshot that the reason her crew needed transportation was due to a problem with their [[S77 Crow]], which also had been modified to sport Archer missiles and a mini-MAC. The Goliath put the pieces together immediately and changed his tune, now making an offer of his own wherein he would take them to their destination in exchange for ten of the ''Taulanti's'' nukes.{{Ref/Reuse|R1}}

Feeling that the narrative about who she and her team were had been effectively communicated, she signaled Blue Team to move into position by working a certain phrase into her talk with Nyeto. They would be breaching the trattoria in four minutes and it did not take long before lookouts paid by Baklanov spotted [[M121 Jackrabbit]]s driven by [[Frederic-104]] and [[Kelly-087]] turning onto [[Via Notoli]]. The place cleared out due to fear of the encroaching Spartans and threats from its owner. Among those that hurriedly left were the two suspicious Kig-Yar. Now all the [[Ferret]]s had to worry about was making their escape convincing. A deal was struck between Veta and the Goliath, who came up with the idea to have his [[Jiralhanae]] bodyguard, [[Picus]], knock a hole in one of the exterior walls so that they wouldn't be flushed right through a doorway where an ONI [[sniper]] could be waiting for them. Things would have gone well enough had Baklanov interfered by making it clear that such an affront to his building would not be tolerated. He believed that he only needed to turn over these troublemakers to the Spartans to make them go away. He and his henchmen drew on Veta's team and though she convinced him he was in danger as well, it was too late. The delay made it so that her team was still present when Fred and Kelly crashed their Jackrabbits through the Georgi's front window and began a firefight. In the carefully-controlled engagement that resulted, [[Mark-G313]] was hit in the shoulder and everyone but Veta, Ross, and the [[Spartans]] were killed, including Georgi Baklanov, who was shot by Kelly as a target of opportunity as soon as she rolled away from her vehicle. Picus did manage to create an exit before being taken out by [[Linda-058]], who had been well aware that Veta and others weren't going to be coming out a door thanks to all the UNSC operatives being linked via an encrypted comm net. Nyeto glimpsed Linda briefly nodding at Veta before the Spartan-II knocked him out with a clean strike to the hinge of his jaw with her [[assault rifle]]. The Ferrets sprinted away from the wreckage of the restaurant, as Blue Team could only give them so much time before the need to make all this believable required that they pursue. Linda did fire a single shot at the fleeing "pirates" that tore into one of [[Olivia-G291]]'s thighs before giving her full attention to securing Nyeto for transport to an ONI interrogation facility. Capturing the Goliath had not been a primary objective of the operation, but it was a bonus. A shallow-draft airboat had been left floating on the water beneath a trapdoor in a building ahead of the running Ferrets. The plan was for them to use it to escape through the swamp that this part of New Tyne had been built on. Before they could reach it, however, a tri-wheeled minivan  driven by a Kig-Yar screeched to a halt in front of the Ferrets. The side door opened, and another Jackal told them to climb inside if they wanted to live.{{Ref/Novel|Id=R1|Ret|Chapter=1}}

{{Quote|no=three|q1=Lopis can handle this, ma'am.|Fred-104|q2=You sound pretty sure of that. Why?|Serin Osman|q3=Because she has a good team. The Kig-Yar will never have a chance to deploy that gas.|Fred-104|Fred and Osman during the discussion of whether or not to exfiltrate the Ferrets.}}{{Ref/Reuse|R4}}

Veta threw open the passenger's side door and climbed in whilst the Spartan-IIIs entered the back where two Kig-Yar were. The van then sped away toward the [[New Tyne Airfield]]. The driver revealed herself to be [[Sarch|Chur'R-Sarch]], commander of her own starship. As the minivan approached [[Ziggy's Hangar]] at the airfield, Sarch told Veta she wanted the same deal that had been given to the Goliath: phase pearls in exchange for transportation. The Kig-Yar steered the van to the back corner of the hangar past several craft before arriving at [[Stolen Faith|a]] [[Mudoat starsloop]], parking the vehicle in a parking bay within its cargo hold. Veta was still unsure whether these Kig-Yar were members or even associates of the Keepers of the One Freedom, but given that most Kig-Yar on Venezia had at least a casual relationship with the group, the chances were good. In order to keep up appearances, Veta urged that they hurry in leaving. She stated that she wished to be taken to [[Shamsa]] to meet the [[Banished]] there. Chur'R-Sarch bristled at this and said that by no means would she allow them to sell their HAVOKs to the Banished. To Veta, this reaction implied a sense of rivalry which all but confirmed to her that they were on the right track and this gang could lead them to the Keepers. Lopis adamantly maintained that they must be taken to Shamsa and threatened to find someone else who could accommodate her wishes. When it seemed to Sarch that the humans were about to walk right off the ship, she relented and said she could take them. It was obvious to Veta and Olivia, however, that Sarch had no such intentions and would probably double-cross them at the opportune moment. Even Veta's stipulation that she only pay half of what she would have to Nyeto for the ''Ghost Flag'' went unchallenged, which only made this conclusion more likely.{{Ref/Reuse|R3}}

Over two hours later, the Kig-Yar vessel still had yet to jump to [[slipspace]]. It had been necessary to retrieve the HAVOKs and bring them aboard after the deal was struck. Unknown to the Jackals, each of them was inoperable and one was in reality a disguised starship emergency locator beacon, or "slipbeacon". Once they arrived at a new destination, it would be able to transmit that location to the {{UNSCShip|Silent Joe}}, the {{Class|Sahara|heavy prowler}} that had brought them to Venezia and which Blue Team was aboard. Around an hour after first arriving at Ziggy's hangar, [[spy gnat]]s covertly placed by [[Ash-G099]] transmitted a conversation between Chur'R-Sarch and her crew in the form of a microburst of data to the ''Silent Joe''. Rear Admiral Osman, Blue Team, and the ship's captain and senior intelligence analyst were present to overhear the Kig-Yar planning to deliver their cargo straight to the Keepers and to murder their guests with [[ostanalus]] gas. Captain [[Piers Ewen]] believed they had no choice but to extract the Ferrets, which was seconded by [[Lieutenant]] [[Anki Hersh]]. Fred was confident in the team's abilities and believed they could handle themselves. Osman and the Spartan-IIs were the only ones that knew about the [[Project CHRYSANTHEMUM|unique augmentations]] Mark, Ash, and Olivia had undergone that marked them as members of the [[SPARTAN-III program]]'s [[SPARTAN-III Gamma Company|Gamma Company]]. The decision was made to withhold from interfering due to Fred's confidence and a sense of owing it to [[Admiral]] [[Graselyn Tuwa|Tuwa]] to take risks in order to see her family returned safely.{{Ref/Novel|Id=R4|Ret|Chapter=4}}

[[File:H2A M7S-SMG.png|250px|thumb|The Ferret team smuggled four [[M7S SMG|M7S submachine gun]]s onto the Kig-Yar ship within the deactivated HAVOK devices.{{Ref/Reuse|R6}}]]

The Kig-Yar's starsloop, ''[[Stolen Faith]]'', eventually departed Venezia for [[Pydoryn]] in the [[Shaps system]]. Having learned of the aliens' plan for them, the Ferrets devised a plan of their own. Before heading off to sleep, Mark secretly killed one crew member and switched out the ostanalus so that the dispersal of gas would be completely harmless. After it was released, the four humans played dead: Veta and Olivia in a sleeping compartment and Mark and Ash in the cargo hold, where they had been permitted to stay to guard the HAVOKs. All caught their would-be murderers by surprise. Veta and Olivia killed three Kig-Yar that came to check on them in their compartment and Mark and Ash did likewise to five more. Inside the casings of the inert nukes were four disassembled [[M7S SMG]]s and ammunition, which the Ferrets at this time put back together. With five Kig-Yar left aboard the ship to subdue, the females made for the flight deck where Chur'R-Sarch was sure to be while the boys went to put down any others. Veta and Olivia surprised one individual in the galley, who had no chance to defend himself whatsoever before three silenced rounds from Veta ended him. Sarch and a co-pilot were seated on the flight deck. The [[Chur'R]] was attempting to reason with Approach Control on the moon, [[Taram]], evidently the location of the Keepers' [[Salvation Base]]. The human on the other end of the communication channel was nervous about the Kig-Yar's stated intention to "deliver" nuclear devices to Castor. After being told they would have to wait for a vigilance squad to inspect their vessel, Sarch tossed her headset away in frustration and turned to find herself face-to-face with the human females. Olivia dropped the copilot as soon as she reached for something, presumably a weapon, but Sarch made excuses for why they had not traveled to Shamsa and denied ever trying to gas them. Her defenses fell away quickly, however, and once she was told they had been playing her all along, she said it was regretful the ostanalus did not work. She was shot and killed while diving for her copilot's controls.{{Ref/Novel|Id=R6|Ret|Chapter=6}}

{{Quote|This decision is not for me. Someone who knows your science will inspect your devices; then we will take you to the Redoubt of the Faithful and advise our dokab whether to believe your story.|A Keeper Jirahanae chieftain to Veta Lopis.}}{{Ref/Reuse|R7}}

Olivia righted the ship, which had pitched forward during Chur'R-Sarch's death throes. Veta confirmed with Mark and Ash that all Kig-Yar aboard had been eliminated just as the Chur'R's abandoned headset began making noise. Veta grabbed it and covered the microphone as best she could. A [[Seraph]] fighter and a [[Ogoro Workshop Tronto|Tronto]] boarding craft were headed their way. It became clear in that moment that hiding in the system until the ''Silent Joe'' arrived was not going to be an option. Mark and Ash both suggested that they take defensive measures and meet the approaching craft with force, but Veta shot that notion down, reminding them that they were supposed to be covert operatives. She was forced to admit to herself, however, that she simply was more concerned with their survival at that moment than with completing the mission. She declared to her team that they would be allowing the Tronto's boarders to enter, but she did tell Ash to gather the ostanalus he had stored in acetylene bottles and prepare it for quick dispersal through the starsloop's ventilation system in case things came to that. So that the ''Silent Joe'' would know which moon the Keepers were located on when it arrived in-system, Olivia loudly declared Taram to their target so the spy gnat attached to Sarch's corpse would broadcast it when the prowler arrived. Veta took her hand off of the mic and spoke to the voice on the other end, letting them know they were speaking to the ''Stolen Faith's'' new captain.{{Ref/Reuse|R6}}

To Veta's relief, the group of keepers in the Tronto came aboard using standard procedures and did not feel the need to use breaching charges. [[Creon|The first]] Jiralhanae that stepped out of the airlock was confronted by Veta alone, standing next to a pile of the starsloop's former masters. Naturally, seeing the corpses arrayed so caused him to train his [[Paegaas Workshop Spiker]] on her. The two were able to communicate through the Brute's use of a [[translation disk]], so Veta raised her hands and promised she could explain. She also revealed that she was holding a detonator in her hand. Pressing the button would have released the ostanulus gas throughout the ship, which the Jiralhanae naturally figured must be linked to the HAVOK devices Chur'R-Sarch had mentioned. Veta went along with this line of reasoning, telling him that getting everyone blown up probably wouldn't be of great service to the [[Covenant religion|True Path]]. He barked a command and three more Jiralhanae entered the ship to subsequently spread out and search for other humans, despite Veta's warnings against it. Each of the Spartans had taken a hidden position down one of three passageways that led away from the [[airlock]] and each soon had killed one of the Jiralhanae. The one in charge did not permit any further excursions down the hall, but did threaten Veta that she would not leave the system alive. At this, she countered with a threat of her own. She truthfully told him about the slipbeacon they carried with them, but instead of saying it had given their location to the ''Silent Joe'', she told him that they had been in touch with the Banished, who would certainly come there if they did not receive the ordnance that had been promised to them. The Jiralhanae was racked with uncertainty then and decided the appropriate course of action would be to bring the humans to the chief [[dokab]] on Taram, [[Castor]]. He could evaluate them and their devices and determine whether they spoke truthfully. Relieved that she had bought more time and a possibly greater chance at discovering what happened to the Tuwas, Veta handed over the detonator, but not before transferring the ability to release the gas to a remote hidden within Ash's lowest shirt button.{{Ref/Reuse|R7}}

[[File:Banished Logo.png|thumb|150px|Veta attempted to use the threat of a conflict with the Banished to keep her team alive and free.{{Ref/Reuse|R7}}]]

Having ostensibly disarmed herself, the rest of the boarding party entered, consisting of six humans and two Kig-Yar. The Keepers took control of the craft and piloted it toward the moon while the Ferrets were herded into the galley unarmed and under guard. [[Seruphi|A young woman]] entered to inform the [[chieftain]] after the secretly-inactive nukes had been secured and sat down to speak with the four "pirates". The woman let them know she had discovered one of the devices was in fact the slipbeacon Veta had mentioned. Lopis reiterated what she had told the chieftain concerning their agreement with the Banished to see those nukes safely to them. The human Keeper told them that avoiding a feud with the Banished was certainly something she wished for, but she considered allowing the murderous group to be given thermonuclear weapons to be just as bad. She casually floated the idea that Veta's crew might be able to redeem themselves by helping to doing significant damage to the Banished. When Veta asked if she was offering to let them go if they complied, the woman clarified that they would never be free to go. They knew too much. If they would share the arming codes for the weapons, they would be allowed to live. That is, of course, she reminded them, unless Castor decided they were ONI spies and ruled otherwise.{{Ref/Reuse|R7}} Veta shared the accurate codes and then, hooded and with their hands tied behind their backs, she and the Spartans were led down the boarding ramp to a spaceport within Salvation Base. Ash pretended to accidentally run into Olivia so that she could release the gas with the detonator in his shirt button. At the sound of canisters being blown within the ship, everyone sprang into action. Veta drove headfirst into the woman who had spoke with them. They both fell off the side of the ramp, with Veta landing on her shoulder. Veta headbutted her captor repeatedly in the temple until she was dead, while the three Spartans had little trouble breaking free of their restraints and dealing with the four other Keepers that had made it off the ship.{{Ref/Reuse|R8}}

{{Quote|no=four|q1=We're going to need more firepower--a lot more.|Mark-G313|q2=Slow Down. First, we need a plan.|Veta Lopis|q3=We don't have time to start planning. I saw we find the Tuwas, grab them, and get out before the Keepers have a chance to react. Our plans have a way of going sideways lately.|Mark-G313|q4=Maybe. But sideways is always better than backwards--or dead.|Veta Lopis|Mark and Veta argue over how to proceed on Taram.}}{{Ref/Reuse|R8}}

Olivia freed Veta from her restraints with a knife, and the team looked around for the first time to assess their situation. Luckily for them, the starsloop had been set down in a quiet area. The nearest hub of activity seemed to be paying no attention to where they were. The spaceport lay within a giant crater. From their vantage point, the team members could see [[Fleet of Glory|a fleet]] of ships being prepared to take off, which they reasoned must be due to the threat of the Banished being taken seriously. Mark and Olivia secured the bodies of the Keepers inside the ship by piling them on its boarding ramp and then closing it. While they did this, Veta policed the corpses' weapons and Ash kept watch. In addition to an assortment of small arms, chronometers, and a datapad, Veta also collected three comm headsets. Blue Team would not arrive for another five hours at the earliest, but simply hunkering down and waiting until then was not a viable option, since [[Castor]] would learn something had gone awry soon since he was expecting to receive prisoners. Locating the Tuwas was the first priority, and a nearby cliff face with artificial grottoes carved into it was determined to be a likely holding spot for them. Since they had been hostages themselves only a short time ago, it was reasonable to think that the starsloop would have been brought near a detention center. Veta gave a headset to Olivia and Ash, keeping the third for herself. With these they would be able to listen in on Keeper channels.{{Ref/Reuse|R8}}

[[File:Turaco.jpg|250px|thumb|The Turaco is an experimental reconnaissance craft that had only begun being tested a couple of months prior to Operation: RETRIBUTION.{{Ref/Reuse|R8}}]]

Each Spartan went a separate way, with Veta trailing Mark toward the presumed detention facility. He walked as if his hands were bound while she pointed a [[Type-52 Mauler]] at his back. Ash, on the other hand, purposefully made a cut on his forearm and made his way toward the direction of the Keeper fleet half a kilometer away, purposefully trailing blood to make it look as if they had gone that way should anyone come looking for them soon enough. Olivia rewrote the ''Stolen Faith's'' security routines so she could seal it shut, then set her sights on an ONI [[Reverse Engineering and Prototyping–Xenotechnology department|REAP-X]] [[Turaco]] located just seventy meters from where they had landed. The plan was for her to commandeer the reconnaissance craft and have it ready to fly by the time the Tuwas were rescued. Mark and Veta passed the ship on their way to the cliff grottoes, and noted that it appeared to have only arrived recently. Additionally, Mark picked up a trail that had been left by whoever it had carried. Wherever one trod, pale ripples of shadow were left in the [[hard light]] surface that made up the ground of the clearly Forerunner ruin the Keepers had taken for their base.{{Ref/Reuse|R8}} About a dozen paces from the entrance to the grotto Veta noticed that behind them, a lake of water had suddenly appeared so that the spacecraft were partially submerged beneath its waves. Before she could comment on the strange phenomenon to Mark, he disappeared within the mouth of the grotto and she found she could not communicate with him, even as Ash and Olivia responded to her hail. Unbeknownst to her, this was due to the fact that the installation had been designed by Forerunners to create a time differential between those within the [[Suluhu Contemplarium]]'s grottoes and those without. The lake was largely an illusion only visible to those standing in relative proximity to the detention center, though some real water was also summoned around the subjects' feet to be convincing.{{Ref/Reuse|R8}}{{Ref/Reuse|R11}}

 

 

 

[[File:H4-ONIProwlerShip-ScanRender.png|thumb|left|250px|{{Class|Sahara|heavy prowler}}s like the ''Silent Joe'' are stealth ships, equipped with systems that mask them from both visual and sensor detection.{{Ref/Reuse|R10}}<ref name="catherine">''[[Halo 4]]'', ''[[Spartan Ops]]'', [[S1/Catherine|''Catherine'']]</ref>{{Ref/Note|The [[prowler]] pictured here is the {{UNSCShip|Aladdin}}, not the ''Silent Joe''.}}]]

Shortly after reaching Pydoryn, [[Blue Team]] was ready to deploy to Taram in ''[[Silent Claw]]'', an [[D102 Owl]] [[dropship|insertion craft]].{{Ref/Reuse|R10}} Before it could leave, however, the team was recalled by Captain Ewen to the situation room. There, the Spartans were made aware of the big picture regarding the status of the operation. The Keepers' fleet had been visibly mobilized around Taram, indicating that the group was expecting trouble. In addition, recordings from the spy gnats within the ''Stolen Faith'' painted an unclear picture of what had happened after the Ferrets had been led off the ship. They indicated to those on the ''Silent Joe'' that the Keepers may have simply been preparing for the Banished assault they thought would be coming, but the sounds of gasping and wailing that followed the point at which the ship had landed were impossible to draw conclusions from. What had made the captain recall them just then, however, had been a microburst of data from just minutes ago. It confirmed that the Keepers had discovered the gnats, since they spoke of them and then presumably destroyed them. But more importantly, it confirmed [[Castor]] was present. Owing to his position as one of the Keepers' most important [[dokab]]s, Ewen was faced with a decision to make regarding the furtherance of the mission. There was nothing to suggest the Ferrets had accomplished their objectives or were even still alive, and if the ''Silent Joe'' pinged their TEAMCOM, it was likely that it would be giving away its position to every Keeper ship in the area. The best option left to them, Ewen thought, might have been to simply eliminate Salvation base with M947 [[Shiva-class nuclear missile]]s. All three Spartans of Blue team strongly opposed this idea, but Fred conceded that he understood the captain's perspective and signaled for Linda and Kelly to stand down. Preparations were made for a launch against the base, but the captain stopped just short of giving the final authorization. He made sure Fred understood that even if they could know any of their own were still alive down there, Blue Team wouldn't be deployed to the surface unless it furthered the goals of their mission. Once Fred stated that he was in agreement regarding that point, Ewen told [[Anki Hersh]] to signal the Ferret team. Olivia responded to their probe with a message wherein she informed them that she was alone within a captured Turaco and had been waiting for more than five hours to hear from the rest of her teammates. After the briefest mention of [[Argie]], whom she named an "uncooperative AI", the message cut out since Argie had terminated the connection in response. In what little she had been able to verbalize, however, she had given enough to hint through precisely-chosen language that [[Dark Moon Enterprises]] might have been involved in what was happening. It didn't take long for the Keepers to get a bead on the ''Silent Joe's'' location following the communication and relocating became necessary. The contact with Olivia convinced Captain Ewen that sending in Blue Team was now justified, since he wanted to know if Dark Moon truly was involved and why. Recovering the Turaco also was added as a new mission objective.{{Ref/Reuse|R10}}

Meanwhile, after taking just six steps from the grotto mouth, the mysterious waves had vanished from Ash's sight.{{Ref/Reuse|R11}} He also was suddenly faced with the large crowd of Keepers surrounding the ''Stolen Faith''. To his further surprise, when he activated his microphone once more to contact his team, this time he was greeted with an acknowledgement from Olivia. She confirmed she was aboard the Turaco and told him that he wasn't going to believe [[Dark Moon Enterprises|who]] it belonged to. Ash figured she could pick him up from where he was, but Olivia let him know that Veta and Mark were still unaccounted for. Ash decided he would try to find them and that Olivia could then pick them all up at once, but Olivia let him know that he might not have to do that on his own, since Blue Team's arrival was imminent. This confused Ash, since he was still under the impression that only minutes had passed since the they had all gone their separate ways. He was unable to see how Olivia thought she could just hold her position for around five hours when a large crowd of agitated Keepers was already relatively nearby. Olivia, likewise, was puzzled by what had taken Ash so long and when he stated that it had only been around fifteen minutes, the pieces of the puzzle fell into place for him and he asked for the time from 'Livi. His suspicions were confirmed and he relayed his conclusion to her: a time differential evidently existed between the contemplarium's grottoes and the rest of it. Since finding the Inspector and Mark could take hours from the perspective of those on the outside, Ash turned and rushed back to it with haste in order to find them as soon as possible.{{Ref/Reuse|R11}}

Within the Suluhu Contemplarium's detention center, hours had passed without Veta's or Mark's knowledge. Inside, they had only been present for minutes from their perspective. As the two of them retraced their steps up the stairs once more, they took notice this time of signs the Turaco's crew had preceded them.{{Ref/Reuse|R12}} Veta noticed mud tracked by boots that didn't seem to fit that found on Taram and so naturally collected a sample for later analysis. The sound of footfalls from the stairwell above them caused she and Mark to retreat down a hall on the second level, where they raced past six cells holding [[Sangheili]] and human prisoners. They managed to stay hidden as a team of four well-armed humans descended to the ground floor with a pair of half-empty rucksacks. Mark signaled for permission to engage them, but Veta adamantly refused. She believed that such an action could jeopardize their search for the Tuwas and also thought the squad might actually be UNSC. If they were hostile, then Olivia should have been able to handle herself if she had to. Resuming their search on the third level, they found more captives. All of these were human, and Veta could see by their dress that many had come from [[Gao]]. In one cell, three corpses were all that remained of [[Kerbasi Tuwa|Kerbasi]], [[Ctalin Tuwa|Catalin]], and [[Yuso Tuwa|Yuso]]. Moving past their shock and disappointment, the two got into the cell by disabling the generator pod powering the [[energy barrier]] that sealed it off. Veta could tell right away that the Tuwas had not been killed at this location. By her estimation, they had been dead for between twelve and thirty-six hours. Even more strangely, internal organs had been removed from all three cadavers. Realizing it had been a mistake not to stop the Turaco squad, she grabbed Kerbasi's lifeless form and told Mark to get the other two. Dragging the bodies in tow, they made for the exit.{{Ref/Reuse|R12}}

{{Quote|Sorry we're late.|Lieutenant, Junior Grade Frederic-104 to Inspector Veta Lopis.}}{{Ref/Reuse|R15}}

 

While Blue Team had been rocketing toward them, Ash had raced to find Veta and Mark within the grottoes affected by the time differential.{{Ref/Reuse|R15}} When he did find them dragging the bodies of the Tuwas near the point they had initially entered through, their chronometers told them it was still around 1524 hours, even though Olivia had told Ash it was 2035 hours only a short time ago. Ash took as little time as possible bringing his compatriots up to speed. They were shocked to hear that Blue Team could be there any minute, and when he mentioned Dark Moon Enterprises, the mysterious delivery squad finally made sense to Veta. She and the Spartans each grabbed hold of a Tuwa and began dragging them with haste away from the detention center. They emerged just as the ''Silent Claw'' careened into the ground in the distance, causing a fiery explosion which engulfed Ashveld. The sights and sounds of a battle became known to them as they left the tranquility of the contemplarium's illusions behind and rejoined reality. Blue Team was engaging the Keeper host that had piled around the ''Stolen Faith''. Before exiting the ''Claw'', Fred-104 had armed himself with a [[MA5D assault rifle]] and Kelly-087 had a [[MA5C]] with a [[M301 grenade launcher]] attachment, but Linda-058 held only a [[M6G magnum]], since she had been unable to reach for her [[BR55 battle rifle]] in the midst of the tumultuous tailspin. The four individuals from Dark Moon had not yet reached their Turaco, as they had been contending with fire from the Keepers prior to the arrival of Blue Team. One of them had been injured and was being dragged along by two others. Just as the single female in the group was felled by a shot to the head, Mark asked for permission to engage the remaining three. Veta shot down his request, stating that they needed to find out what they knew and why they were here. To this end, she had Mark and Ash take shots at the humans' limbs in order to pacify them and halt their approach. Curiously, the dorsal turret on the Turaco started shooting laser pulses in its own crew's direction at the behest of [[Argie]], who was fighting Olivia for control of the craft. Its output mirror had been damaged, so it didn't hit any of its targets before Mark put an end to it altogether. Realizing new combatants had joined, a mass of around thirty remaining Keepers (evenly divided between Jiralhanae, humans, and Kig-Yar) charged the Ferrets' position. This effort was short-lived thanks to the efficiency of the three [[Spartan-II]]s still in the fray, which allowed Mark and Ash the chance to sprint for the Dark Moon operatives.{{Ref/Reuse|R15}} Linda vanished into the ''Stolen Faith's'' hold to arm the HAVOK devices. Most of the surviving Keepers were fleeing, but [[Castor]], [[Orsun]], and two other Brutes took cover behind a pile of bodies near the Turaco. Kelly swiftly dispatched one of the cluster with a [[40mm grenade]] but the other three managed to lay down enough suppressive fire to cover their own escape. Mark and Ash, unarmored as they were had to fall back from where the Dark Moon agents were to avoid being killed by them. Another blast from Kelly's grenade launcher took out another Brute, but Orsun still was able to stomp on the head of one of Dark Moon's people and scoop up the remaining two. It was only as he and the dokab were retreating that Veta realized one of them was Castor, who she had shot almost six months prior [[Operation: JOVIAN WHISTLE|during the fighting]] on [[Gao]].{{Ref/Reuse|R15}}

Lopis lined up a shot on Castor, but was hesitant to take it out of fear that she would hit the two men from Dark Moon.{{Ref/Reuse|R15}} Fred saw this, and just as Castor was about to fire a barrage of [[Paegaas Workshop Spiker|superheated metallic spikes]] in her direction, he put a round through the dokab's weapon hand. By targeting the Brute's hand, there was no chance that he would hit the prisoners either. Veta fired at that moment but her shot went high thanks to Castor's sudden reaction to being hit with a [[7.62x51mm|7.62×51mm FMJ-AP]] round.<ref name="brief">''[[Halo 4 Limited Edition]]'' UNSC ''Infinity'' briefing packet</ref> Nothing further could then be done, as the two were swallowed by a crowd of around twenty-four fellow Keepers that surrounded them as they all fell back. Seeing on his [[TACMAP]] that reinforcements were inbound from all around the site's perimeter, Fred confirmed that Olivia would be able to fly the Turaco and ordered the Ferrets to board it. Linda had only replaced the tritium booster cylinders in six of the nine HAVOKs, but Fred decided that would have to be enough. He told her to set the nukes to blow in just five minutes' time, but hearing this, Veta shouted that there were still prisoners inside the detention center. Retrieving them could take and hour or even longer due to the temporal divergence. Five minutes certainly wouldn't be enough. Veta wanted to protest, but with Keeper forces massing on all sides, she had to accept that there was nothing they could do for the captives.{{Ref/Reuse|R15}} The thermonuclear detonation obliterated everything below the Turaco as it arced away from the moon to reconvene with the ''Silent Joe''. Six Keeper vessels, attempting to get clear of the blast, had [[Shiva-class nuclear missile|M947 Shiva nuclear missiles]] launched against them by the [[prowler]].{{Ref/Reuse|R17}}

===Truths revealed===

 

 

 

 

 

Veta and Olivia returned to the Turaco and before long Taj was piloting it through Meridian's atmosphere in hot pursuit of Papa-10 and the Keepers.{{Ref/Reuse|R23}} All Spartans and Veta were now fully armed and armored. Fred cautioned Veta against her direct participation in their mission's next stage but was rebuffed. The ''Silent Joe'' had been informed regarding the latest developments and to the teams' surprise, Captain Ewen broke comm silence to order them via microburst to provide combat support to the ONI survivors. The Turaco's atmospheric entry caused an ionization blackout which allowed Veta to speak freely without having to worry about anyone on the prowler listening, so she took the opportunity to express her suspicion concerning Papa-10. The others agreed that something was off, but Fred reminded them that Osman might be working an angle unknown to them and that their orders did not involve capturing fellow naval operatives. He ultimately decided that they would give whatever support they could to Papa-10, but that the cryo-jars would be taken from their possession until someone with more authority could decide what to do with them. Once the landing zone atop a mountain terrace was less than a kilometer below them, two personnel shuttles could be seen. One still had a number of workers from Pinnacle Station aboard, but there were no signs of hostilities. Taj had been expecting a hot drop, and the lack of any immediate danger made him nervous.{{Ref/Reuse|R23}} He took a sheltered approach around the mountain and dropped everyone off quickly. Footprints showed humans pursued by Jiralhanae into one of two [[Wikipedia:Adit|adits]] that ended at a cliff face where they were. Blue Team entered first, followed by the near-invisible Gammas in a five-second staggered formation. Just before Ash was to bring up the rear behind Olivia and in front of Veta, he noticed what appeared to be a map. It showed an extensive network of underground passageways they were once part of the [[Jenny Lynn Tantalite Mine]]. Veta got permission from Fred for she and Ash to use their hand-lamps to illuminate it. The details were transmitted to Veta's [[TACMAP]] and shared with everyone else via [[TEAMCOM]]. [[Damon]] analyzed it and concluded there were ninety-seven kilometers of mapped passageways within the mine.{{Ref/Reuse|R23}}

 

About a hundred paces into the adit the teams came upon a charging station stocked with vehicles used for mining.{{Ref/Reuse|R24}} A [[JOTUN]] [[Arilus]] and a [[Traxus]] [[powder wagon]] both bore tires that had been recently slashed, and someone had evidently taken [[laser drill]]s from the Arilus' [[Wikipedia:Drilling jumbo|drilling jumbo]]. The powder wagon's loading hatch had been jimmied, which indicated to Veta and the Spartans that [[Papa-10]] had been looking for explosives. Newly-made tire tracks from a missing vehicle also led away from an empty equipment bay deeper into the adit. The map of the mine Veta had acquired showed that there should be a explosives storage magazine about two-hundred meters further ahead of them. At that moment, however, she and the others were suddenly thrown off their feet by a powerful pressure wave. The blast knocked out Ash's [[HUD]], disabled Olivia's mic, and rendered the photoreactive panels on Mark's SPI armor incapable of camouflaging him. Fred, Kelly, and Linda confirmed in rapid succession that no hostile contacts were immediately present and Damon suggested that a [[Wikipedia:Gelignite|gelignite]] packet had been made into a makeshift grenade. And explosions within the confines of the mine's narrow passageways would naturally result in very focused pressure waves like the one that had just struck them all. Mark and Ash joined the [[Spartan-II]]s in pursuing the source of the blast while Veta and Olivia hung back somewhat to provide counter-ambush cover. Olivia occasionally made sure diverting passages were clear as they moved forward, beginning with an access tunnel leading to Adit 1 on their left and then continuing with multiple [[Wikipedia:Stoping|stopes]] that had been dug to a large cavern where the ore body had once been extracted by the mining operation. Veta eventually joined her in this endeavor, as the two took turns clearing the many stopes before continuing behind the others. At last, the teams came upon both survivors of Papa-10 and their Jiralhanae pursuers, who had cornered the humans at the site of a cave-in. Both sides appeared to be out of ammo, as the Brutes were chucking rocks at the humans who were defending themselves with laser drills. Blue Team moved to eliminate the Jiralhanae while Mark and Ash went to relieve and resupply the other ONI team.{{Ref/Reuse|R24}} The Jiralhanae realized what was happening as soon as the Spartans began to fire. Fred was struck in his helmet by a large boulder hurled at him by [[Castor]], who had been hidden within the darkness of a stope Fred had been trying to clear.{{Ref/Novel|Id=R25|Ret|Chapter=25}} The Papa-10 operatives took this opportunity to make a move of their own as well. The massive ten-ton [[Wikipedia:LHD (load, haul, dump machine)|load, haul, dump machine]] the three had hijacked lurched forward and ran right over the [[MJOLNIR]]-clad Spartan without a second thought given by its operators for him. Olivia managed to hit the [[dokab]] with a few shots as he jumped onto the back of the vehicle.{{Ref/Novel|Id=R26|Ret|Chapter=26}} Veta spied one of the two men in the LHD's loading bucket preparing a gelignite grenade, but still gave them the benefit of the doubt, as she could also see that Olivia was shooting at someone else. Lopis switched off her SPI armor's [[active camouflage]] and ran into the path of the oncoming LHD in the hopes that she could signal its driver to stop. When instead she accelerated and raised its loader bucket to shield herself from attack, Veta instantly knew that Papa-10 was not friendly. She could do nothing else to save herself from the LHD barreling down on her but to throw herself prone in the center of the adit. The LHD passed overtop of her harmlessly, but not before she grabbed a cross member on its underside with both hands to be yanked along for the ride.{{Ref/Novel|Id=R24|Ret|Chapter=24}}

 

 

Meanwhile, the LHD was being driven deeper into the mine. Its driver had taken two sharp left turns so that it now was within Adit 1.{{Ref/Reuse|R26}} As Veta clung to its belly, she tried to transmit an update to her squadmates, but the attempt was in vain, given the extensive amounts of rock between they and her. She had spied Castor's foot hanging off the back of the LHD, but after it disappeared she began to painstakingly climb backwards toward the vehicle's rear. Through letting her SPI-clad feet drag for a bit on the ground, Veta managed to flip over and hoist herself onto the back. She quickly climbed into the bed of an ore box to keep herself from flying off of the speeding machine. Within, she spied three cryo-jars and the wounded dokab, though he did not see her. His attention was on the other humans and it wasn't long before he had waited long enough to spring his attack. Despite his injuries, he crawled out of the box and into the loading bucket occupied by the two with laser drills. Veta rushed to pack [[C-12]] around the jars so that she could destroy them if necessary while Castor battled the others. The LHD hit a corner, which sent one of the operatives flying out of the bucket to be crushed under the LHD's tires. Castor appropriated the dead man's drill but could not dispatch the other with it before the driver tipped them both back into the ore box where Veta was. Castor got his kill anyways, slicing the man in half. Lopis remained as still as she could, but the mud on her armor made her presence obvious to the Jiralhanae in spite of her active camouflage. Realizing she couldn't hide, she chose to deactivate the camo and drew her mud-caked inoperable magnum on Castor in the hopes that he couldn't tell it wouldn't fire. As they fast approached the mine's exit, Veta motioned to Castor to jump out, having fully resolved at this point to destroy the jars and the organs within them. Castor did not take seem to kindly to her signal of a truce in light of their common enemy, but as he raised the drill a support beam caught him on the back of his head. As the LHD careened into open air and landed to race across the mine's tailings basin, its driver intentionally trying to shake off her uninvited passengers, Castor was tossed from the vehicle.{{Ref/Reuse|R26}} Veta soon followed by her own design, abandoning the machine for the safety of firm ground beneath her feet. The LHD slowed to a stop next to a Pinnacle Station utility skiff. [[Bartalan Craddog]] descended its ramp and pointed the LHD's driver to pay attention to Veta behind them. The driver snatched Craddog's assault rifle and aimed it at her, but Veta detonated the C-12 at that moment. The LHD, the two humans, the skiff, and the cryo jars were all torn asunder and engulfed in a fiery explosion.{{Ref/Reuse|R26}}

{{Quote|no=two|q1=You can't do that! You don't have authorization!|[[Rooker]]|q2=To do what? I was merely inspecting the routing instructions. This finding seems to have come to the wrong place.|Intrepid Eye|Intrepid Eye begins to outmaneuver Rooker after being caught by the other A.I.}}{{Ref/Reuse|R27}}

The Spartans eventually caught up to Veta and the burning wreckage she had created, the threat posed by the [[asteroidea]] apparently now gone.{{Ref/Reuse|R27}} Unbeknownst to any of them, she had also inadvertently destroyed [[Oriel]], a remote aspect of [[Intrepid Eye]] that had been directing [[Papa-10]]'s actions on Meridian through [[Lieutenant]] Craddog. Fred gave her a small amount of pushback regarding her decision to neutralize the Papa-10 operatives and two others from the utility skiff, in addition to destroying the cryo-jars, but she defended her actions by appealing to self-preservation. Fred relented without any further argument after hearing how she had almost been fired upon by the driver of the LHD. Kelly and Linda secured a landing zone for Taj, who flew the Turaco to pick them up in an expedient manner.{{Ref/Reuse|R27}}

 

 

When an internal investigation was done within [[ONI]], the evidence pointed to Craddog having acted alone to weaponize [[asteroidea]]. He was judged to have been a brilliant yet unstable individual who may have been seeking to initiate [[Project SLEEPING STAR]] under his own authority.{{Ref/Reuse|R27}} The only sufficient conclusion for his motivation was that he had sought to aggrandize himself through creating such a perilous weapon. Craddog's complete file was forwarded to [[ONI#Section Two|Section Two]] for further evaluation. Blue Team, Lopis' Ferret team, and the crew of the ''Silent Joe'' all recieved congratulations and notes of commendation for their part in exposing and stopping SLEEPING STAR. Veta herself was awarded a [[Military Star]] in recognition of her leadership in defeating an existential danger to humanity, but she was not made aware of the award due to her civilian status. Admiral Osman completed a directive on [[2554#January|January 19, 2554]] that officially abolished Project: SLEEPING STAR. [[Intrepid Eye]] deemed asteroidea to be too effective of a culling agent for her plans to plan to make humanity worth of the [[Mantle]], however. She secretly altered the directive so that instead of being outright ended, the project was made into a Top Secret Level Zero asset and placed on a black-ops list with an unlimited [[Wikipedia:Black budget|black budget]].[[File:KY-victim.png|thumb|250px|When Blue Team [[Operation: BIRD IN HAND|boarded]] ''Argent Moon'' in [[2558]], it came upon the infected corpses of [[Kig-Yar]] test subjects.{{Ref/Reuse|blue}}]] Instead of being terminated with prejudice, [[Ensign]]s [[Jess Wallace]] and [[Kris Gaston]] were also promoted through Intrepid Eye's manipulation to Lieutenant Commanders and were given authorization to seek out new donor specimens with asteroidea antibodies. In addition, they were given authorization to test the weaponized form of the organism on all "enemy species" of the [[UNSC]]. In the midst of making these changes, Intrepid Eye was accosted by [[Rooker]], ''[[Argent Moon]]'s'' shipboard A.I. He was no match for the [[archeon-class ancilla]], who easily used a control worm, a deception routine, a logic trap, and a memory leech to make him passively deliver the altered directive to Admiral [[Friedel]] without any recollection of ever catching her in the act.{{Ref/Reuse|R27}}

 

 

By the time of ''Argent Moon's'' destruction, Intrepid Eye's network had been discovered and destroyed by millions of dumb AI hunter-killer teams dispatched by ONI. Completely isolated aboard ''Argent Moon'', Intrepid Eye was unaware of the accident that her continuing bioweapons research had caused until Blue Team engaged the Covenant forces on the station. Intrepid Eye barely managed to escape by attaching herself to the ''Acrisius'' while ONI believed her to have been destroyed in the scuttling.{{Ref/Novel|DW|Chapter=5}}{{Ref/Novel|DW|Chapter=6}}

*'''1122 hours''': [[Veta Lopis]] and her team board the ''[[UNSC Donoma]]'' to investigate the attack on it.{{Ref/Reuse|R2}}

*'''1432 hours''': Veta approaches Ross Nyeto at the Trattoria Georgi.{{Ref/Reuse|R1}}

*'''1504 hours''': The Ferrets reach the New Tyne Airfield with Chur'R-Sarch and two other Kig-Yar.{{Ref/Reuse|R3}}

*'''1613 hours''': Spy gnats planted by Ash-G099 transmit a randomly-timed microburst of data containing a conversation between Chur'R-Sarch and her crew.{{Ref/Reuse|R4}}

*'''1714 hours''': Blue Team boards the ''Silent Joe'' after concluding its activity on Venezia.{{Ref/Reuse|R4}}

*'''0800 hours''': The ''Stolen Faith'' emerges from slipspace at Pydoryn around this time.{{Ref/Reuse|R8}}

*'''0804 hours''': Crew members of the ''Stolen Faith'' come to check on Veta and Olivia, believing they are dead.{{Ref/Reuse|R6}}

*'''0824 hours''': Keepers board the ''Stolen Faith'' via a Tronto.{{Ref/Novel|Id=R7|Ret|Chapter=7}}

*'''1445 hours''': The Ferrets are escorted off of the ''Stolen Faith'' at Salvation Base.{{Ref/Novel|Id=R8|Ret|Chapter=8}}

*'''1447 hours''': Having killed their captors, the Ferrets make plans for what to do next.{{Ref/Reuse|R8}}

*'''1454 hours''': The Ferret team splits up to accomplish different objectives.{{Ref/Reuse|R11}}

*'''1509 hours''': Ash-G099 kills a group of Keepers within the [[Suluhu Contemplarium]].{{Ref/Novel|Id=R11|Ret|Chapter=11}}

*'''1514 hours''': Veta and Mark discover captives held within the grottoes of the contemplarium.{{Ref/Novel|Id=R12|Ret|Chapter=12}}

*'''1524 hours''': Ash reconvenes with Veta and Mark, after having previously established contact with Olivia at 2035 hours outside of it, thanks to the time differential.{{Ref/Novel|Id=R15|Ret|Chapter=15}}

*'''2005 hours''': Olivia powers down the Dark Moon Enterprises team's Turaco for a system restore.{{Ref/Novel|Id=R9|Ret|Chapter=9}}

*'''2015 hours''': The earliest point at which the ''Silent Joe'' could have arrived at Pydoryn.{{Ref/Reuse|R8}}

*'''2020 hours''': A microburst of data from a spy gnat is transmitted to the ''Silent Joe'' with audio recordings of Keepers at the ''Stolen Faith''.{{Ref/Reuse|R10}}

*'''2027 hours''': Blue Team enters the situation room aboard the ''Silent Joe'' to convene with Captain Ewen.{{Ref/Novel|Id=R10|Ret|Chapter=10}}

*'''2029 hours''': [[Castor]] confirms that ONI had slipped a [[slipbeacon|tracking device]] onto Salvation Base.{{Ref/Reuse|R13}}

*'''2032 hours''': The ''Silent Claw'' rockets toward [[Taram]] with [[Blue Team]] aboard.{{Ref/Novel|Id=R14|Ret|Chapter=14}}

*'''2035 hours''': Ash establishes contact with Olivia after emerging from the Suluhu Contemplarium's detention center. From his perspective, only around fifteen minutes had passed since the team split up.{{Ref/Reuse|R11}}

*'''2117 hours''': The Ferret team and Blue Team are debriefed within a wardroom on the ''Silent Joe''.{{Ref/Novel|Id=R17|Ret|Chapter=17}}

*'''1403 hours''': Blue Team and Veta Lopis' Ferret team are dropped off at the [[New Leaf Extractions]] [[New Leaf Field Complex|Field Complex]] in [[Gao]]'s [[Yosavi Jungle|Yosavi]] [[Yosavi Diversity Reserve|Diversity Reserve]].{{Ref/Novel|Id=R18|Ret|Chapter=18}}

*'''0349 hours''': Veta and Olivia board the ''[[True Light]]'' to investigate recent violence between the Keepers, Papa-10, and the [[Pinnacle Station Security Force]].{{Ref/Novel|Id=R22|Ret|Chapter=22}}

*'''0354 hours''': [[Taj McAvoy]] flies the captured Turaco through Meridian's atmosphere to insert Blue Team and the Ferrets.{{Ref/Novel|Id=R23|Ret|Chapter=23}}

*'''0401 hours''': Blue Team and the Ferrets stop to investigate a charging station within the [[Jenny Lynn Tantalite Mine]].{{Ref/Reuse|R24}}

*'''0421 hours''': Fred-104 fends off a Jiralhanae attempting to kill him after being run over by an LHD.{{Ref/Reuse|R25}}

*'''0422 hours''': Veta realizes she is not the only stowaway on Papa-10's LHD.{{Ref/Reuse|R26}}

*'''0433 hours''': Veta detonates the [[C-12]] she packed around the cryo-jars, destroying them and killing both Bartalan Craddog and [[Bhu Zdenyk]].{{Ref/Reuse|R27}}

*'''0448 hours''': The Spartans are reunited with Veta outside the [[Jenny Lynn Tantalite Mine]].{{Ref/Reuse|R27}}

==Production notes==

[[File:Halo Retribution.jpg|thumb|150px|The cover art for ''[[Halo: Retribution]]'' was illustrated by artist [[Benjamin Carré]]<ref>[https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/news/know-scope Halo Waypoint: Know-Scope]</ref>]]

{{Quote|Halo: Retribution details maverick detective Veta Lopis' first assignment as a reluctant ONI agent, and it's a direct outgrowth of my first Halo novel, Halo: Last Light.|Troy Denning}}{{Ref/Reuse|interview}}

==List of appearances==

*''[[Halo: Retribution]]'' {{1st}}

*''[[Halo: Divine Wind]]'' {{Mo}}

{{Ref/Notes}}