Rudolf Schein

Rudolf Schein was a human soldier that became a SPARTAN-IV and defected to the United Rebel Front after the Human-Covenant War. His attempt to kill the second class of the SPARTAN-IV program led to his death.

Biography

Early life and military career

Rudolf Schein was born on Persia IX, raised by his mother and father. In 2524, Schein's mother was inadvertently killed in a crossfire by UNSC soldiers during a rebellion on the planet. The young Schein held no apparent grudge towards the UNSC and joined the military when he was eighteen. During the Human-Covenant War, Schein had become a decorated veteran of many battles; he had extensive training in demolitions. When the Covenant War ended in 2552, Schein was soon tasked with quelling human rebellions. Schein grew disillusioned with the UNSC and Unified Earth Government and eventually became affiliated with the United Rebel Front, alongside his father who had detested the UEG ever since his wife's death.

Becoming a SPARTAN-IV

Schein's UNSC superiors gave him the highest recommendations and he was given an offer to join the newly established Spartan branch and the SPARTAN-IV program. Schein's induction into the program had been planned by the URF for several months, in hopes of having a Spartan of their own. Shortly after he accepted his offer, Office of Naval Intelligence spies among the Front intercepted a URF transmission that confirmed that a member of the new Spartan class was associated with the organization. After receiving his augmentations, Schein and several other Spartan trainees were transported to a space station orbiting a dwarf planet for further training. With Captain O'Day serving as their drill instructor, the Spartans were trained to break their bad habits that they had formed over their military careers. He often spoke with fellow trainee Michael Crespo about politics. Schein shared his views of the UNSC with Crespo; he often dropped dissolving pamphlets about the United Rebel Front into Crespo's locker for him to read.

During a combat training exercise in the station's War Games chamber, the Spartans were pitted against automated turrets in a jungle environment with tunnel systems below. Following the training session, Schein attempted to recruit trainee Hideo Wakahisa to his cause. Schein killed him when Wakahisa revealed he intended to report him instead. Stealing a medallion from Crespo's locker, Schein planted it on Wakahisa's body to frame Crespo for the murder and buy himself more time. Schein heavily mutilated Wakahisa's body and forcibly removed the electronic locators from his victim's jaw. Wakahisa was eventually located after he failed to return from the training session.

Death and legacy

Having access to the space station's armory, Schein slung a bandolier of grenades across his chest and had covertly installed several explosives throughout the station. Waiting in the recreational room, Schein's treason was eventually realized and he was confronted by Commander Musa-096, Jun-A266, and O'Day. Schein intended to blow up the station with the grenade he was holding unless his demands were met. Musa shut off the station's artificial gravity and Jun managed to knock Schein's grenade out of his hand. Although the grenade exploded and resulted in O'Day's death, the sudden loss of gravity caused the explosives' switches to falter and prevented all the explosives in the station from detonating. Schein and Jun were pulled out into the vacuum of space due to a breach in the rec room's viewports. Meanwhile, technical teams ejected all remaining explosives into space. Once clear of the air escaping the station, Jun kicked off Schein's chest and propelled himself back inside the station to safety. Schein, however, was kicked farther away from the station and died before he could be recovered.

After his death, Crespo attended Schein's funeral, likely hosted by the URF. At the funeral, Crespo met Schein's father and soon became a full-fledged member of the Front. Schein's father was heavily saddened by his death and led an ambush on Talitsa in 2555 to capture Spartans Edward Buck and Kojo Agu, with the aid of Crespo who defected during the Spartans' mission to the moon. However, the attempt failed and Schein's father was killed, while Crespo was arrested.

Personality and traits

Schein was very serious about politics. Although he was very loyal to the UNSC during the Human-Covenant War, he grew disillusioned with the organization and officially joined the United Rebel Front when he was tasked with quelling human rebellions after the Covenant War was over. He regarded the SPARTAN-IV program as a tool for the Office of Naval Intelligence to use to "cleanse the colonies" and eliminate any individual that did not show full loyalty to the Unified Earth Government. Edward Buck noted that Schein was "either the bravest or the dumbest man" he had ever met. During his Spartan-IV training, Schein argued with Captain O'Day that their training was unnecessary, as they were already Spartans. He was apparently aware that his comment would anger O'Day, as he was ready to defend himself from her if necessary. Kojo "Romeo" Agu believed that he was an idiot and had consistently beat Schein in poker, as the latter was unable to bluff properly.

Trivia

Given their surname, it is possible that he and his family are of Swiss or Germanic descent.

List of appearances

• Halo: New Blood (First appearance)