Boat crew

Boat crew
Spartans Kovan, Stone, and Horvath operating on Zeta Halo.
Active:	December 2559 - Active as of May 2560
Affiliation:	United Nations Space Command
Role:	Guerrilla warfare
Size:	3 (as of May 18, 2560)
Engagements:	Battle for Zeta Halo Battle of the Mortal Reverie Battle of the beacon tower
Commanders:	Spartan Nina Kovan

Boat crew is an ad hoc United Nations Space Command unit formed during the Battle for Zeta Halo. It is primarily composed of survivors from its namesake lifeboat Papa Tango Delta Zero Nine and an unidentified RLT-85 shuttlepod, both of which were originally attached to UNSC Infinity in 2559. The team was typically co-led by two members of Spartan Fireteam Shadow: Bonita Stone and Nina Kovan.

Known members

Current composition (May 18, 2560)

• Spartan Nina Kovan
• Retail services specialist Erik Bender
• Safety specialist Robin Dimik

Former members

• Spartan Bonita Stone (KIA 26/04/2560)
• Spartan Tomas Horvath (03/05/2560 - 14/05/2560)
• First Lieutenant TJ Murphy (KIA 14/05/2560)
• Combat medic Lucas Browning (Captured 02/02/2560)
• Communications specialist Ensign Isaiah Cameron (KIA 14/05/2560)
• Mortuary specialist Gavin Jo (KIA 02/02/2560)

Operational history

Formation

Erik Bender: "You know, we might not be like those guys over there, but... we all have skills."

Gavin Jo: "What do you mean?"

Erik Bender: "Well, take Dimik for example. She knows everything about preventing fire, explosives, plasma burns... which means she knows how to start them too. Browning here can stitch us all back together. I'm handy with this beautiful thing. And you, Jo, I'm guessing you know a thousand ways a person can die... in my book that makes you pretty lethal if you need to be."

— Erik Bender to the rest of the boat crew.

The boat crew was informally formed at some point within the first week of the Battle for Zeta Halo, circa December 18, 2559, when survivors from TJ Murphy's lifeboat—after being rescued by Spartan Bonita Stone—rendezvoused with another group of survivors from an RLT-85 shuttlepod, which was led by Spartan Nina Kovan. Gavin Jo and Erik Bender from Kovan's group, both being support staff, naturally gravitated towards Murphy's group, which was also entirely made up of noncombatants: Lucas Browning, Isaiah Cameron, and Robin Dimik.

On the evening of December 18, while Kovan scouted ahead, the group was resting in the middle of a forest when they were ambushed by two Jiralhanae and eight Kig-Yar. Marines from the RLT-85 shuttlepod—Mosley, Deleke, Thompson, Kim, and Foutty—were killed in the skirmish that followed; only members of the boat crew survived, along with the two Spartans. Led by Stone and Kovan, they travelled to the UNSC stronghold at the wreckage of the UNSC Mortal Reverie; they arrived on December 19. In the stronghold, members of the crew was split up and assigned to different stations. Bender worked as a barber and a mechanic, while Browning and Jo were assigned to the med bay within the ship's wreckage. Dimik was assigned to the weapons and ordinance stockpiles. Cameron was assigned to the command center in the bridge as a comms specialist. Murphy was put in charge of providing military training to supply staff and non-military personnel, including members of the boat crew.

The boat crew participated in the defense of the Reverie when the Banished launched an assault on the wreckage on January 31, 2560; they were stationed at the secondary barricade. On February 2, as the UNSC defenses fell to the Banished assault, Browning and Jo were attacked by a Sangheili Enforcer. While Jo was impaled by the Sangheili's energy sword, Browning was saved by Spartan Kovan. Bender and Browning tried to tend to Jo's injury, but Jo begged them to leave as more Banished troops approached. Bender and Browning reluctantly left Jo lying on the ground, then fled along with other UNSC survivors. The boat crew—minus Browning, who drew Banished away from the group and was captured—hid in a cave from the Banished; they waited until Kovan returned with supplies, then set off on the morning of February 5.

Rubicon Protocol

Nina Kovan: "Asset denial. It means we do whatever's necessary to keep Zeta Halo out of Escharum's hands. The Rubicon Protocol means we don't need permission, don't have to wait around for orders. We've been given free reign, permission to act, to do what's needed, wherever and whenever we can."

TJ Murphy: "So we don't just survive - we make life a living hell for the Banished. If that means armed conflict, or poisoning their water supply, or blowing their munitions supply, we do it every and any chance we get."

— Kovan and Murphy discussing what the protocol means for them on Installation 07.

Over the next month, the boat crew travelled across the region with Kovan; with the enactment of the Rubicon Protocol, the group was resolved to deter the Banished's efforts. They were among the many unofficial UNSC units like the Gravediggers and Hatetriox operating in the fragmented region of the ring. Led by Kovan, the boat crew carried out numerous guerilla operations against the Banished. On April 18, they reunited with Spartan Stone. The group noticed the increased air traffic towards the Reverie—now a Banished outpost named after the Chieftain who led the assault on the wreckage—and decided to investigate. Arriving at the area on 22 April, while Kovan and Stone investigated the newly-constructed outpost, the rest of the boat crew made a supply run to scavenge from a ledge that caught some of the supplies the Banished had thrown into the chasm below the outpost. They linked up with only Kovan at the camp.

On April 23, when Spartan Stone was scouting out the Banished outpost, she recognized Browning from afar, then returned to Kovan to share her findings. That evening, Kovan snuck into Outpost Tremonius and into the Phantom that held Browning. He couldn't be rescued, however, as the Harbinger and the Banished had put a pair of shackles on Browning's wrists, with a node on the Phantom's hull that would detect the sensors and detonate explosives within the shackles if Browning leaves the Phantom. Browning informed Kovan of the Harbinger, and opted to stay under captivity. Kovan gave him several recording transmitters, instructing Browning to learn whatever he could about the Harbinger or the Banished, and left a tracking beacon to Browning's neck. The Spartan made a promise to find Browning, then left before a pair of Jiralhanae patrol approached.

Stone created a distraction to allow Kovan to escape, but was unable to regroup with Kovan, because the Banished was tracking her closely; instead, she decided to investigate the Banished excavation. Inside, she discovered the Banished was using a human prisoner to extract a data node from the ring's Conspectus network. Stone's attempt to steal the data node led to her death at the hands of Jega 'Rdomnai. As Stone's last act, she removed the corrupted data node, which was retrieved by Gorian and 'Rdomnai—unaware of Stone's sabotage—and taken to Escharum. Hiding a data chip that contained a copy of the data on her body, Stone died pleased that she had succeeded in throwing a wrench into Escharum's grand scheme.

Learning of the Conspectus network data

Tomas Horvath: "Once we get to the Conservatory, the goal is twofold then. Free Despondent Pyre and send a message to the UNSC with the ring's coordinates."

Nina Kovan: "No, the goal is threefold. Eliminate Gorian and Jega 'Rdomnai."

TJ Murphy: "All right then. Those are solid goals. With Veridity’s help, we’ll be able to finish what Stone started."

— The boat crew sets their goals after learning of the Conspectus network data.

On April 27, Murphy confronted Kovan—questioning why Stone had not rejoined the group at the camp and why Kovan refused to divulge why—and it was revealed that Stone had entered the Forerunner subterranean structure underneath the outpost. More importantly, Browning was alive, and the Spartans kept that a secret, knowing the rest of the boat crew would want to launch a rescue. At Murphy's decision, the boat crew followed Kovan back to Outpost Tremonius to track down Stone. They snuck into the outpost and took the Banished elevator into the Forerunner subterranean structure underneath. There, they discovered Stone's lifeless body and recovered a data chip Stone had hidden away from her killer. with the Banished taking the elevator down, the boat crew was forced to escape by venturing deeper into the facility. Hours later, while they were resting, the boat crew was approached by submonitor 091 Adjutant Veridity, who revealed Stone's data chip contained data the Banished had stolen from the ring's Conspectus network, including the ring's galactic coordinates. The boat crew realized they could transmit the data to the UNSC to summon reinforcements, but doing so required the Installation's monitor 117649 Despondent Pyre's support to decrypt the data. Under Veridity's guidance, the boat crew set out to the monitor's facility, the Conservatory, to free Pyre from Cortana's lockdown.

On May 3, while en route to the Conservatory, the boat crew linked up with Spartan Tomas Horvath, who was separated from UNSC forces since the ring fractured nearly six months ago. That evening, they caught up with Horvath on the status on the larger UNSC resistance in the fragmented region of the ring. They decided to use one of ring's beacon towers as a supraluminal communications array to broadcast the ring's location to UNSC space and summon reinforcements. In order to access the beacon tower, however, they still needed to release Despondent Pyre.

On May 9, the team arrived at the Conservatory's main chamber, Pyre's Cradle. Pyre, along with a number of submonitors, were sequestered by Cortana within an energy barrier. As a human and thus, a Reclaimer, Horvath was able to deactivate the barrier and awaken the monitors. Although Pyre was initially uninterested in offering any assistance, upon hearing news of the Harbinger being released, the monitor granted access to the beacon towers. She also gave the humans a data key that they must insert into the central plinth of a beacon tower in order to transmit the ring's location and data to human-occupied space. However, Pyre ordered Veridity to remain with her to counter the Harbinger, leaving the boat crew to travel to the beacon tower without Veridity’s presence.

Battle of the beacon tower

Main article: Battle of the beacon tower

Isaiah Cameron: "Why the hell is it we're always outnumbered?"

Erik Bender: "C'mon, now, if we were evenly matched, it just wouldn’t be fair."

— Cameron and Bender as the crew saw that the beacon tower was heavily guarded by the Banished.

On May 14, the team translocated to the vicinity of a beacon tower near the Conservatory. Horvath cleared the beacon's approach, then provided overwatch for Cameron and Dimik, who placed explosives at a wooded ravine leading to the beacon tower. Meanwhile, Bender and Murphy followed Kovan into the beacon to transmit the ring's data; while Kovan protected the control plinth and interfaced with its panel, Bender and Murphy defended the chamber entrance from Sangheili Enforcers that were guarding the beacon. After Bender ran out of ammo, his chestplate was hit by a plasma round, forcing him to discard the armor before the plasma burnt through to his skin. While Bender was occupied, it left an opening for a Sangheili to fire at the plinth, but Murphy jumped in and blocked the bolts with his body. Kovan then killed the Sangheili while Bender slid to Murphy's aid, only to watch the lieutenant passed with a smile on his face. At the same time, the beacon tower fired its supraluminal message to UNSC space. Dimik and Cameron detonated the explosives, and the two raced towards the beacon tower. As Kovan and Bender exited the beacon, Bender tossed an energy sword hilt, which he took from a dead Sangheili Enforcer, to Horvath.

Having caught attention of UNSC activity at the beacon tower, Jega 'Rdomnai led a massive number of Banished reinforcements from their nearby excavation site into the Conservatory to the beacon tower. Before he could reach the beacon, Cameron was run down and killed by a Banished Terror Wraith. After Bender managed to kill the Wraith's pilot, Kovan hurried to Cameron—knowing he had passed—and dragged his lifeless body by the collar behind cover at the beacon.

In the ensuing battle, Horvath was isolated from the rest of the team as he fought Gorian. Dimik snuck closer to left a spike grenade for Horvath. Horvath returned the favor by using his pulse carbine to kill two Kig-Yar approaching Dimik. Horvath then used the spike grenade to disable Gorian's energy shields, then delivered the killing blow with an energy sword given to him earlier by Bender. However, the Spartan was teleported away because his duel with Gorian left him on a translocation pad, which was then destroyed by a Thrasher missile after its activation.

At around the same time, Dimik took a plasma round in the shoulder from Banished forces while she scrambled to rejoin Bender and Kovan. As the Banished surrounded the trio, they were rescued by Veridity, who flew in and fired her focus beam at the Banished, then teleported the survivors to another location before disappearing. The three spent the next four days treating their wounds and repairing equipment. As they rested and contemplated their wins and losses at the beacon tower, they agreed their next step would be rescuing Browning from the Tower.

Meanwhile, Horvath was teleported to a partially collapsed mountain facility somewhere far away from the beacon. He collapsed from his injuries and spent the next day comatose—half from exhaustion—before coming to again. Horvath's armor and Spartan augmentations kept him from dying of exposure during this time. Alone again, he explored the area and found the wreckage of one of the Infinity's shuttles and, although there were no survivors, he recovered a week's worth of water, rations and weapons. On May 25, Horvath issued a final transmission, announcing that he planned to move away from Banished territory to search for survivors. He also made an open plea to the Master Chief that they need him now more than ever.

List of appearances

• Halo: The Rubicon Protocol (First appearance)