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| | ==Summary== |
| {{Era|FS}}
| | The crystal is a fist-sized [[Forerunner]] artifact when originally seen by [[Dr. Catherine Halsey|Dr. Halsey]] and the [[Spartan| SPARTANS]] in the [[CASTLE Base|underground facility]] on [[Reach]]. It was floating upright and the area around it was distorted by gravity. The crystal reacted with a burst of neutronic radiation at Halsey's touch. When exposed to a Covenant gravity beam the crystal nullified it, reshaping itself in the process. |
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| The '''Forerunner Crystal''', referred to by the [[Covenant]] as the '''Fragment of Divinity''', the '''Shard of the Gods''',<ref>'''[[Halo: First Strike]]''', page 193</ref> or the '''Holy Light''',<ref>'''Halo: First Strike''', page 201</ref> was a [[Forerunner]] artifact that was discovered in the underground [[Menachite Forerunner Complex]] on [[Reach]] by Dr. [[Catherine Elizabeth Halsey]] and the surviving [[SPARTAN-II Program|Spartan]] members of [[Red Team]] in [[2552]].<ref name="pedestal">'''Halo: First Strike''', pages 145-146</ref> The artifact is of incredible potential, capable of warping space,<ref name="bubble">'''Halo: First Strike''', pages 214-215</ref> energy,<ref name="bubble"/> gravity,<ref>'''Halo: First Strike''', page 211</ref> and even time and [[Slipspace]].<ref>'''Halo: First Strike''', page 248</ref> It is hardly understood by the [[United Nations Space Command|UNSC]] forces who found it, but is a prize that the Covenant were extremely eager to obtain.
| | When the [[Ascendant Justice]] jumped into Slipspace the crystal again rearranged itself, emitting radiation during the entire jump, and caused gravitational distortions. The location of the ship at the end of this jump was somewhere near the Eridanus system, a distance that from Reach should have taken several days instead of a few minutes. Comparing timestamps from several missions Dr. Halsey discovered a 3 week average difference. Her conclusion was that the crystal bent both space and time so that it could be removed from Reach by Cortana and the Chief. Halsey later gave the crystal to [[Corporal Locklear]], who covered it with C-7 explosive and blew it up to avoid another Slipspace radiation spike. |
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| ==Bubble Effect==
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| When it enters Slipspace, the Crystal begins emitting radiation that causes a ship to move hundreds of times faster than it would during normal Slipspace travel. The realm that it opens is not ''normal'' Slipspace, which is a non-visible lack of space, but rather an anomalous bubble region of blue mist.<ref>'''Halo: First Strike''', pages 211-212</ref> Also in contrast to "normal" Slipspace is the allowance of weapons fire - not possible within regular Slipspace. Energy weapons will be horribly misdirected and will pop in and out of existence seemingly randomly, causing them to be just as dangerous to the firer as it is to the target.<ref name="bubble"/> However, the extreme strength of the radiation makes it impractical for the UNSC to carry the crystal through Slipspace for a prolonged period of time; it would kill the crew in under seventy-two hours, even if shielded.<ref>'''Halo: First Strike''', page 237</ref>
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| ==Description==
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| The Forerunner artifact is a fist-sized crystal with a thousand facets that is tapered at both ends and glows with a blue light. When originally seen by Dr. Halsey and the SPARTANs in the underground facility, it was floating upright and the area around it was distorted by gravity. The crystal reacted with a burst of neutron radiation at Halsey's touch.<ref name="pedestal"/><ref>'''Halo: First Strike''', page 189</ref> When exposed to a Covenant gravity beam, the crystal nullified it, reshaping itself in the process. Its new form was created as the top half split along its facets and opened like a flower blossom. The petals undulated, and the crystal's glow changed from sapphire to a cool green.<ref>'''Halo: First Strike''', page 204</ref> When [[Ascendant Justice]] jumped into slipspace it rearranged itself into a starburst of edges and refracted light, emitting radiation even after it was stored in the [[Pelican]]'s reactor compartment.
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| ==Appearance==
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| When the ''[[Ascendant Justice]]'' jumped into [[Slipspace]], the crystal again rearranged itself, emitting radiation during the entire jump, and caused gravitational distortions. The location of the ship at the end of this jump was somewhere near the [[Eridanus System]], a distance that, from [[Reach]], should have taken several days to traverse instead of a few minutes. By comparing timestamps from several missions [[Catherine Elizabeth Halsey|Dr. Halsey]] discovered a three-week average time difference. Her conclusion was that the Crystal bent both space and time. Halsey later gave the crystal to [[Locklear|Corporal Locklear]], who covered it with [[C-7 Foaming Explosive]] and destroyed it to avoid another Slipspace radiation spike, killing himself in the process.<ref>'''Halo: First Strike''', page 284</ref>
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| Three shards of the crystal were recovered by the [[Covenant Empire|Covenant]], which were presented to the [[Prophet of Truth]] by [[Tartarus]] in an orb-shaped container. Truth then ordered the [[Jiralhanae|Brute]] to reward the pilots that had recovered the shards, then kill them.<ref>'''Halo: First Strike''', pages 339-340</ref> The [[United Nations Space Command|UNSC]] also possesses pieces of the crystal.<ref>'''Halo: First Strike''', page 287</ref> It is unknown what has happened to the shards that were possessed by the two factions, although the three Covenant-recovered shards were likely lost when [[High Charity]] fell to the [[Flood]] invasion, or were kept aboard the [[Dreadnought]] with Truth.
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| The rift that was projected when [[Ascendant Justice|the ship]] went into slipspace may be similar to the [[Portal]] found at [[Earth]]. It is probable that the [[Forerunner]]s used this crystal, or others like it, to travel throughout the galaxy and past its edge almost instantaneously.
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| ==Trivia==
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| *At the end of the novel [[Halo: First Strike]], [[Prophet of Truth|Truth]] is given three chips from the crystal. He then says it "may yet be enough for our purposes". The exact implication is open to speculation; he may simply have hoped to harness its effects as a weapon.
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| *The amount of radiation it produces in Slipspace is too great to be contained. In ''[[Halo: First Strike]]'', the Master Chief puts it inside a Pelican's reactor, but the radiation leaked didn't noticeably diminish.
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| *The crystal occasionally releases a large number of neutrinos, an unknown type of them, possibly a 4th generation or higher lepton.
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| ==Sources==
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| <references/>
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| {{Forerunner2}}
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| [[Category:Forerunner Artifacts]] | |
Summary
The crystal is a fist-sized Forerunner artifact when originally seen by Dr. Halsey and the SPARTANS in the underground facility on Reach. It was floating upright and the area around it was distorted by gravity. The crystal reacted with a burst of neutronic radiation at Halsey's touch. When exposed to a Covenant gravity beam the crystal nullified it, reshaping itself in the process.
When the Ascendant Justice jumped into Slipspace the crystal again rearranged itself, emitting radiation during the entire jump, and caused gravitational distortions. The location of the ship at the end of this jump was somewhere near the Eridanus system, a distance that from Reach should have taken several days instead of a few minutes. Comparing timestamps from several missions Dr. Halsey discovered a 3 week average difference. Her conclusion was that the crystal bent both space and time so that it could be removed from Reach by Cortana and the Chief. Halsey later gave the crystal to Corporal Locklear, who covered it with C-7 explosive and blew it up to avoid another Slipspace radiation spike.
