The Pillar of Autumn (Halo: Reach level): Difference between revisions

'''The Pillar of Autumn''' is the tenth campaign level of ''[[Halo: Reach]]''. The level takes place on [[2552#August|August 30, 2552]], near the [[Aszod ship breaking yards|ship-breaking yards]] at [[Aszod]].

The Pelican carrying the remaining members of [[Noble Team]] is critically damaged and [[Carter-A259]] is badly wounded. Carter orders [[SPARTAN-B312]] and [[Emile-A239]] to complete the courier mission without him, while he lures the Covenant away from the pair by using the Pelican as a decoy. Emile-A239 and SPARTAN-B312 execute a low-altitude jump from the Pelican outside of the dockyard and are forced to fight their way to the facility. After battling through several Covenant outposts, the two SPARTAN-IIIs are forced to continue their journey through a cave system to circumvent a large group of Covenant forces. Upon reaching the other side, however, they are confronted by a Scarab. Realizing that the Scarab's presence prevents Emile and Noble Six from moving on, Carter rams it with the Pelican, knocking it off a cliff and sacrificing himself in the process. The two SPARTAN-IIIs continue their journey and eventually reach the Aszod ship breaking facility.

The two SPARTAN-IIIs are then hailed by [[Captain (Navy)|Captain]] [[Jacob Keyes]], whose cruiser, the ''[[Pillar of Autumn]]'', is moored at the facility, and are ordered to clear a landing zone for the Captain, who will use a Pelican to retrieve [[The Package (data storage unit)|the Package]] himself. Emile mans the facility's [[Mass Driver]] to provide covering fire against incoming Covenant Phantoms, while Noble Six and surviving Marines engage the Covenant on the ground. Once cleared, Keyes' Pelican arrives and Captain Keyes retrieves the Package from Noble Six. As the package is handed over, a CCS-class Battlecruiser is revealed to be moving in on the ''Pillar of Autumn''. Keyes orders Emile to fire on the advancing Battlecruiser, however, before Emile can oblige a Phantom attacks the landing zone, destroying one Pelican and deploying a group of Sangheili warriors onto the Mass Driver. Emile successfully kills one of the Sangheili with his shotgun before a second sneaks up behind him and impales him with an energy sword. Still alive, Emile draws out his [[Combat knife|kukri]] and stabs the Sangheili in the neck.

Keyes returns to the landing platform and offers Noble Six transportation to safety. The SPARTAN-III refuses and offers to defend the Captain as he heads towards his ship. Using the Mass Driver, Six defends the site and stalls the Covenant Cruiser just as it is about to glass the area. After successfully halting the cruiser's attack, Noble Six looks on as the ''Pillar of Autumn'' takes off and heads towards space to escape Reach.