Post-Covenant War conflicts: Difference between revisions

{{Status|Canon}}

Following the [[Battle of the Citadel|end]] of the [[Human-Covenant War]] in [[2552#December|2552]], a number of smaller conflicts and tensions arose: this cold time period was referred to as the '''post-Covenant War era''',{{Ref/Novel|Ren|Section=back cover|Quote=Find. Claim. Profit. In a post-Covenant War galaxy littered with scrap, it's the salvager's motto...}} or the '''post-war era''' for short.{{Ref/Novel|Id=SmokeAndShadow|SaS|Section=back cover|Quote=In a post-war galaxy littered with scrap...}}

Humanity found itself facing renewed internecine struggle as well. While the [[Insurrection]] had ceased as a major conflict at the start of the Covenant War in [[2525]], some surviving [[Human colonies|colonies]] still harbored former [[Insurrectionist]]s as well as individuals sympathetic to the cause of colonial secession.{{Ref/Comic|Id=init3|HInit|Detail=[[Halo: Initiation Issue 3|Issue 3]]}} Some colonies, including [[Venezia]], cut off all ties with the UEG under the pretense that Earth had abandoned them during the war.{{Ref/Novel|Gla|Page=70}} Some rebel groups managed to obtain large amounts of Covenant and UNSC weapons and equipment circulating on the [[black market]].{{Ref/Novel|Gla|Page=448}}

{{Clear}}

[[File:HE Spartans Ealen IV.png|225px|thumb|Spartan-IV security detail escorting the delegates.]]

{{Main|Battle of Ealen IV}}

===Ongoing battles===

===Assault on Vadam===

{{Main|Siege at Kolaar}}

===Other engagements===

===Sedra and Alpha Shard===

{{Main|Terrorist attack on Sedra City|Mission to Alpha Shard}}

On [[2556|February 7, 2556]], an [[Locke's team|ONI team]] led by [[Jameson Locke|Lt. Commander Jameson Locke]] was dispatched to the distant [[human colonies|human colony]] [[Sedra]] to investigate [[terrorism|terrorist]] activity. The investigation led them to the [[Sedra City|capital city]] where a [[Sangheili]] [[terrorist]], managed to unleash a powerful [[bioweapon]] that randomly broke down human DNA. A subsequent investigation revealed that the substance used to create the bioweapon originated from a [[Alpha Shard|surviving fragment]] of [[Installation 04]], propelled through slipspace into orbit around a red giant star. With no support from UNSC, as it would have been a violation of peace treaty, the Locke's team were forced to cooperate with the [[Sedran Colonial Guard]] on a mission to capture the smugglers who mined the element and destroy the deposits with a [[HAVOK tactical nuclear weapon]]. However, what was to be a swift operation quickly turned into a desperate battle for survival after the group was attacked by [[Lekgolo]] swarms that resided on the Halo fragment. The mission ended with the destruction of the bioweapon's deposits, but at the expense of the lives of almost all the joint team, including the former SPARTAN-II [[Randall-037]], with Lt. Commander Locke and Private [[Talitha Macer]] being the only survivors.{{Ref/Film|Id=hnf|HN}}

==Spartan Ops==

{{Main|Spartan Operations}}

Following the Covenant War, a rising number of Spartan-IVs were also deployed to quell [[Covenant remnants|Covenant]] and [[Insurrectionist]] threats on [[human colonies]] and exotic worlds, as part of what is collectively referred to as the Spartan Ops program.<ref>[https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/games/halo-spartan-strike/windows '''Halo Waypoint''': ''Halo: Spartan Strike''] ("''...the historic first missions of the Spartan Ops program...''")</ref> These missions consisted in suppressing revolts, civil unrest and uprisings; assassinating insurrectionist leaders; exploring uncharted space and worlds; halting criminal activities; providing security to UNSC bases, ONI classified sites, colonies and civilian populations; and escorting scientific expeditions. Such Spartan deployments have been sent to [[Cascade]], [[Talitsa]], [[Terceira]], [[Thales]], [[Trevelyan]], [[Installation 03]], [[Gaenir Beta]], [[Charion VI]], and [[New Caracas]]. Several MJOLNIR [GEN2] armors have been field-tested in such operations.{{Ref/Book|H4EVG|Detail=Armors}} [[SPARTAN-III program|Spartan-III]] and Spartan-IV personnel have also been employed as part of the post-war [[Headhunters]] during classified missions.<ref>[https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/news/canon-fodder-have-s-moa '''Halo Waypoint''': ''Canon Fodder: Have S'moa'']</ref> In [[2556]] Spartan-IV [[Fireteam Apollo]] was deployed to the exclusion zone around the debris of [[Installation 04]] near [[Threshold]] in violation of the [[Treaty of 2552]] as part of a salvage [[Operation: SHELL GAME|operation]].<ref name="loot3">'''[[Halo Legendary Crate]]''', ''[[Halo Legendary Crate/Data Drops|Data Drop #3]]''</ref>

{{quote|Time was your ally, but now it has abandoned you... The Forerunners have returned.|The [[Ur-Didact|Didact]]{{Ref/Level|Id=h4for|H4|[[Forerunner (level)|Forerunner]]}}}}

===Requiem===

{{Main|Battle of Requiem}}

By [[2554]], [[Jul 'Mdama]] had already gathered formidable numbers of [[Jul 'Mdama's Covenant|followers]] and a powerful fleet which discovered Requiem, but were unable to enter the thoroughly sealed shield world. In orbit above the planet, however, was the wreckage of the {{UNSCShip|Forward Unto Dawn}}, carrying the legendary [[John-117|Master Chief, SPARTAN John-117]], and his [[Rampancy|deteriorating]] [[smart AI|AI]] companion [[Cortana]], drifting in space since the end of the Covenant War in 2552. Upon discovering the derelict vessel in [[2557#July|July 2557]], 'Mdama's Covenant forces attacked the ''Dawn'' in hopes of deterring any potential efforts by the humans to access the shield world. During the ensuing skirmish, Requiem's automated systems pulled both the ''Dawn'' and Jul 'Mdama's Covenant force surrounding it through the world's outer shell and down to the planet's surface.{{Ref/Level|Id=h4dawn|H4|Dawn}}

Due to the loss of contact with the science team on Gamma Halo, Fleet Admiral [[Terrence Hood]] sent [[Blue Team]], consisting of [[Frederic-104]], John-117, [[Kelly-087]], and [[Linda-058]], to investigate.{{Ref/Reuse|HE8}} Upon their arrival at Installation 03, Blue Team found the corpses of the scientists as well as Team Black. They soon discovered the [[Composer's Abyss]] and a portal leading to the [[Composer's Forge]], an installation housing six new Composers.{{Ref/Reuse|HE8}} There they encountered the Didact and his new batch of Promethean constructs. During the ensuing firefight, Static Carillon transported Installation 03 above the Composer's Forge per the Didact's request. The Didact acquired one of the Composers in the Forge and departed for Gamma Halo with the plan to use the ring to wipe out humanity. However, the monitor decided to help the Spartans defeat the Didact due to his abhorrence of the Promethean machines.{{Ref/Reuse|HE9}}

Static Carillon teleported John-117 out of the control center just in time and bade farewell to the Spartans before taking Gamma Halo to an undisclosed location. Blue Team returned to Earth, where the Master Chief was debriefed by Fleet Admiral Hood. While Lord Hood believed the Didact was dead, the Master Chief cautioned that it was best to consider him "contained". Afterward, John and Blue Team departed to carry out missions on their own in spite of Lord Hood's suggestion that the Master Chief should stand down.{{Ref/Reuse|HE10}}

===Return to Requiem===

As part of their plan to reunite the halves of the Janus Key, Halsey and 'Mdama created a decoy Forerunner artifact that was seemingly compatible with the Key. The artifact was placed in a Forerunner structure on the uncharted planet [[Aktis IV]] along with a fake signal to draw ''Infinity'' to investigate. 'Mdama placed his troops on standby, ready to ambush the UNSC forces once they brought their half of the Janus Key to the planet. The crew of ''Infinity'' acted just as Halsey and 'Mdama had predicted, sending their half to the surface for analysis; however, [[Sali 'Nyon]], a rebel among 'Mdama's ranks, shot the Pelican carrying the artifact down before 'Mdama had given the signal to attack and took the Key for himself. With the ambush botched, 'Mdama's concealed forces revealed themselves and attacked both ''Infinity'' and the Spartans at the Forerunner site, while Jul departed to the planet to personally eliminate the rebels and reacquire the Janus Key.{{Ref/Comic|Id=HE14|HE|Detail=''[[Halo: Escalation Issue 14|Issue 14]]''}}

===Battle of the Absolute Record===

With the help of trusted Sangheili contacts and the crew of a former [[Covenant destroyer]], ONI managed to track the San'Shyuum's [[Sharquoi hive|hive of Sharquoi]] to a remote planet and launched [[Operation: POLECAT]] to investigate. At least a hundred [[ODST]]s entered the hive where only a handful were discovered and a single Sharquoi was accidentally released while ONI was trying to access the site's terminal data. The single Sharquoi killed fifty ODSTs all by itself before it was finally killed. Not wanting to risk the release of anymore of the creatures, the hive was destroyed from orbit with [[nuclear weapon]]s and the former Covenant destroyer [[glassing|glassed]] it for good measure.

ONI eventually located another hive beneath [[Suraka]] on the planet [[Carrow]] before the planet was reoccupied by both the humans who had once lived there and Sangheili from the [[Operation: SUNSPEAR|destroyed]] [[Sangheili colonies|colony world]] of [[Glyke]]. However, their scans of the hive showed that it had the capacity to hold hundreds of thousands of Sharquoi, although the San'Shyuum appeared to have never found it. ONI was unable to prevent the planet from being resettled without risking major political upheaval in response and hoped that Suraka could act as a buffer to discovery. They also set up [[Gila Station]] on Carrow to monitor the situation and became aware from moles embedded amongst the ex-Covenant that the [[Jiralhanae Chieftain]] [[Hekabe]] claimed to have located the Sharquoi control device during the [[Battle of Installation 00]]. As a result, ONI formed various contingency plans.{{Ref/Novel|Id=E185|Env|Page=185-191}} Their main contingency plan was to release [[Spartan-II]] [[Gray Team]] who had been retrieved by the Sangheili leader [[Rojka 'Kasaan]] from the ruins of [[Glyke]]. However, the politically awkward nature of the situation kept the UNSC from keeping a fleet nearby in case danger arose from either Hekabe or the Sharquoi.{{Ref/Novel|Env|Page=167-171}}

Meanwhile, Melody Azikiwe had to complete her own secret assignment - locate and free the Spartan-II [[Gray Team]], who according to ONI data, had been held captive on Rojka 'Kasaan's flagship ''[[Unwavering Discipline]]'', since the end of war. As Thars attacked Rojka's people, Melody managed to get to the Spartans' [[cryo-chamber]]s and wake them. Gray Team made it through numerous Sangheili, who were fighting each other, and escaped the ''Discipline'' with an injured Melody before the cruiser crash-landed on the surface of Carrow. On the ground, Melody revealed to the Spartans her ONI ties, and persuaded them to go to a local secret ONI base, [[Gila Station]]. On their way there, the team was chased by Rojka's surviving people, who in turn were being chased by Thars. When Gray Team and Melody reached the facility, they discovered that Brutes had already unearthed the Forerunner installation and were about to reach their goal. Melody convinced the Spartans to help the Surrakans and kill Hekabe before he unleashed the Sharquoi. Gray Team commandeered a Warthog and headed to Suraka before the station was attacked by Thars's people. The base was destroyed, but Melody was rescued by Rojka, who heard her speaking about Sharquoi, and decided to aid the humans in order to protect his home in Rak.

After a few days, Gray Team and Melody returned to the [[UNSC frigate]] {{UNSCShip|Welcome to the Snipehunt}}, where the Spartans were offered a choice of reintegration with the UNSC as part of a specialized interspecies strike team under the Office of Naval Intelligence to continue operating deep in the [[Joint Occupation Zone]]. The Spartans reluctantly agreed to work for ONI, asking for a prowler of their own and a list of Covenant weaponry. They were also granted a formal pardon from [[Thel 'Vadam]] for [[Operation: SUNSPEAR|destroying]] [[Glyke]] as part of the deal. After scanning Carrow, the ''Welcome to the Snipehunt'' was able to determine that all of the Sharquoi appeared to have been killed in the nuclear explosion, but the UNSC planned to keep an eye on the desert in case any Sharquoi escaped before the blast.{{Ref/Novel|Env}}

===Return to the Milky Way===

After recovering the crystal shards, Atriox [[Forerunner entanglement dish|somehow]] managed to make contact with [[Escharum]] in the Milky Way galaxy. Atriox ordered Escharum to the Banished and their allied forces to [[Reach]] and search for and activate the [[Menachite portal complex]]. Once the slipsspace portal was opened, Atriox would use the crystal shards to connect it to the Ark, allowing him to return to the Milky Way and lead a massive Banished force back to take the Ark once and for all. By following [[Blue Team]] during [[Operation: WOLFE|their own mission]], the [[Keepers of the One Freedom]] led by [[Castor]] were able to locate the portal complex and activate it with the help of one their human members acting as a [[Reclaimer]]. With a connection established, Atriox was able to fly through the portal in a [[Eklon'Dal Workshop Lich|Lich]] where he revealed that he no longer intended to lead reinforcements to the Ark but to depart with the Banished to attend to a "greater purpose" of some kind while leaving the thousands of troops already on the Ark behind to hold it.{{Ref/Reuse|SoR}}

Following Atriox's arrival on Reach, Castor's small detachment of Keepers hijacked his Lich in order to fly it back through the [[slipspace portal]] to the Ark. Still fanatically believing in the [[Covenant religion]], the Keepers' intention was to use the Ark to fire the [[Halo Array]] and finally begin the Great Journey. Anticipating that his forces on the Ark would stop the Keepers, Atriox let them go and was extracted by Escharum's [[intrusion corvette]] instead. The Lich successfully flew through the portal before it closed, but Castor remained unaware that some of his human servants were actually the [[Ferret]]s, deep-cover ONI operatives who had successfully been infiltrating the Keepers for more than two years. During a brief encounter with [[Fred-104]] on Reach, [[Ferret]] leader [[Veta Lopis]] secretly passed him a message to relay to ONI warning them of Atriox's impending return and the Keepers' plot.{{Ref/Reuse|SoR}}

Combated by both the Banished and the UNSC, the allied Keeper and Covenant forces managed to reach [[Epsilon Clarion]], the only facility on the Ark capable of firing the Halo Array that was both active and accessible. During [[Battle of Epsilon Clarion|the resulting battle]], the small detachment of Keepers was wiped out, leaving Castor and [[Sangheili]] [[Blademaster]] [[Inslaan 'Gadogai]] as the only survivors. On the orders of Lopis, the ''Spirit of Fire'' [[orbital bombardment|bombarded]] the facility with [[EMP]] [[MAC]] rounds, destroying both Epsilon Clarion and Intrepid Eye who had made herself vulnerable by consolidating herself in Epsilon Clarion's systems rather than remaining spread out as she had been previously. The loss of Epsilon Clarion destroyed the Ark's ability to fire the Halo Array until a new Clarion facility is constructed. The Banished also suffered heavy casualties to [[Clan of the Long Shields]]. However, [[Mark-G313]] was killed by [[Prelate]] [[Dhas Bhasvod]] and Castor and 'Gadogai set out to seek revenge against all of their enemies.{{Ref/Novel|Id=DW|DW}}

During this time, Blue Team succeeded in getting into the ruins of CASTLE Base and retrieving three cryobins and a lockbox for Halsey from where they were hidden in her secret cryovault. Both the UNSC and the Banished fled the planet as a [[Guardian]], drawn by the activation of the slipspace portal, arrived to investigate.{{Ref/Reuse|SoR}} Using the contents of the cryobins, her remaining [[flash cloning|cloned]] brains from the creation of Cortana, Halsey was able to create [[the Weapon]], an exact copy of Cortana who could perfectly imitate the rouge AI to a Forerunner installation's systems and lock her down for deletion.{{Ref/Game|Id=AudioLogRF04|HI|Audio log (Halo Infinite)#Recovered Files 2|UNSC Audio log|Detail=Recovered Files #04 - The Weapon}}{{Ref/Reuse|Hi}}

===Conflict on Zeta Halo===

On [[2560#May|May 28, 2560]], the Master Chief was recovered from where he is floating in space by [[Fernando Esparza]] on ''[[Echo 216]]''. The two were quickly attacked by the [[Banished dreadnought]] ''[[Ghost of Gbraakon]]'', but the Master Chief was able to destroy the enemy vessel from the inside by overloading its engines.{{Ref/Level|Hi|Warship Gbraakon}} Heading to the ring's surface, the Master Chief recovered [[the Weapon]] from where she had been waiting in the Foundation's systems for six months.{{Ref/Level|Hi|[[Foundation (Halo Infinite)|Foundation]]}}

Making their way to the partially-rebuilt [[Silent Auditorium (location)|Silent Auditorium]], the Master Chief and the Weapon confronted and killed the Harbinger, but not before she sent a transmission to an unknown recipient. Escaping, the two link up with Esparza to continued their fight against the remaining Banished forces on the ring. Unbeknownst to the group, Atriox had survived Cortana's attempt on his life, and he unlocked a door elsewhere on Halo leading to [[cylix]]es containing more of the Endless.{{Ref/Level|Hi|Silent Auditorium}}

*''[[Halo 5: Guardians]]''

**''[[Halo 5: Guardians Limited Edition dossiers|Limited Edition dossiers]]''

*''[[Halo: Shadow of Intent]]''

*''[[Know Your Enemy]]''

**''[[Hunting Party]]''

**''[[Knight Takes Bishop]]''

*''[[Halo Wars 2]]''

*''[[Halo: Envoy]]''

*''[[Halo Infinite]]''

*''[[Halo: The Rubicon Protocol]]''

{{Col-end}}