Midnight is the eighth and final campaign level of Halo 4. Completing the mission on any difficulty awards the player the Midnight achievement. Killing three Promethean Crawlers with the Gravity Hammer in one hit in the level unlocks the Chief, Smash! achievement.[1]
Transcript
{Cutscene}
Fade in on the Ivanoff's hangar, where a F-41 Broadsword is being moved by an overhead conveyor belt, stopping once it reaches the open doorway. A floor panel opens up underneath, revealing a gravity lift that floats a missile carrying a HAVOK nuke up to the fighter. Once it reaches its underside, the fighter's clamps lock around it. The conveyor belt releases the Broadsword, letting float on its own. The fighter slowly turns, activates its thrusters, and blasts forward into space. Fade in black.
Fade in on the Mantle's Approach. A few moments after it passes the camera, Master Chief's Broadsword speeds by in pursuit. Cut to inside the Broadsword's cockpit.
- Cortana: "Approaching the Didact's ship in two hundred kilometers! Once we get onboard, we'll find the bridge."
A slipspace portal opens in front of the Mantle's Approach.
- John: "He's on the move again."
- Cortana: "The fighter's shields aren't rated for slipspace!"
- John: "No. But the Didact's are."
John pushes the throttle. The fighter boosts forward and approaches the Didact's ship. As it nestles on the top, the shields of the Mantle's Approach activate, and the enormous ship and Broadsword pass into slipspace together.
One Last Shot
{Gameplay}
The Broadsword flies forward through an enormous chasm in the Forerunner ship. Streaks of stars can be seen in the sky from their slipspace travel.
- Cortana: (mildly cracking from rampancy) "Broadsword's hull integrity is stable. We'll be safe as long as we stay below the Didact's shields."
- John: "Where's the Composer?"
- Cortana: "Close. I should be able to guide us to it."
- Didact (COM): "You have not been Composed. Such inoculation should not have been possible."
- Cortana: "Looking onto his transmission... he's at the Composer. We can take them both out at once."
The Broadsword encounters its first obstacles: large moving walls, and Forerunner anti-air turrets. The Broadsword fires at them and at an orange beacon to unlock a gate.
There is a loud crackle and the streaked sky above returns to normal. Earth can be seen overhead
- Cortana: "Cherenkov radiation fluctuating! We're coming out of slipspace!"
- Fleetcom Watch (COM): "At current velocity, hostile will achieve Earth orbit in approximately 4 minutes."
- Infinity Comm (COM): "Roger. Battle Group Dakota, close on the Forerunner vessel."
- Cortana: "Infinity must have warned them!"
- John: "Sierra 117 to UNSC Infinity. Captain Del Rio, do you read?"
- Thomas Lasky (COM): "Chief, it-it's Lasky. Is that you?"
- John: "Affirmative, Sir. Where's the Captain?"
- Lasky (COM): "FleetCom didn't take too kindly to his abandoning you on Requiem. I'm afraid I'll have to do."
- John: "The Didact's got the Composer. We're in a Broadsword carrying a HAVOK-grade payload, on approach to deliver it."
- Lasky (COM): "Let's see if we can grease the wheels for you. All ships! Prepare to engage!"
The Broadsword manevers through a tight tunnel filled with spires. Walls inside shift to block its path. Outside, the Broadsword must unlock further gates and clear anti-air defenses.
- Lasky (COM): "Chief, the Battle Group's moving forward to engage, but at the rate the Didact's ship is advancing, he'll reach the wire in T-minus two minutes."
- John: "Commander, direct all your ships to the Composer."
- Lasky (COM): "Copy that, Chief."
The next tunnel is larger, but has more anti-air turrets. The Broadsword clears these and moves on.
- Fleetcom Watch (COM): "Orbital Defense Command, this is FleetCom. Hostile inbound. Proceed to Condition Red."
- Orbital Defense (COM): "This is Earth Orbital Defense! MAC defense ineffective against enemy vessel. It's still approaching."
The Broadsword flies through a series of laser gates, which move up and down and are lethal to touch.
- Lasky (COM): "Infinity to FleetCom! Battle Group has reached Didact's ship."
- Fleetcom Watch (COM) Captain Lasky, you are clear to engage.
The Broadsword clears a chain of gates, then reaches a tunnel whose interior grows smaller and smaller. After flying through it, it arrives at the Mantle's Approach's main weapon.
From the Cradle...
The new area is round and surrounded by larger anti-air cannons. A tunnel at the center leads down to the interior of the ship, but begins to close off.
- Cortana: "There it is... No, wait!"
- John: "Infinity, the Didact just closed off our entrance to the Composer."
- Lasky (COM): "We could try punching a hole in that hull plating, but Infinity won't be able to get a clear shot with all that flak."
- John: "We'll take care of the guns."
The Broadsword destroys a beacon at the center of the arena, which shuts off the lasers forming hazards on the floor. It then destroys the energy inside one of the cannons.
- Lasky (COM): "Whatever you're doing's working! Clear up the approach and Infinity could drop in to punch a hole for you."
The Broadsword shuts down the second gun.
- Cortana: "Two cannons neutralized. Two to go!"
The Broadsword takes out the third cannon.
- Cortana: "Only one gun left."
- Lasky (COM): "Copy, Cortana. Weapons, prepare firing solution! We promised to get the Chief inside that ship, and I am not about to let that man down!"
The Broadsword destroys the final cannon.
{Cutscene}
John and Cortana's Broadsword zooms out of the firing area.
- John: "That's the last one. Infinity, you're clear."
Cut to the Infinity, positioning itself to face the Didact's ship.
- Lasky (COM): "Roger that, Chief. You might want to back up a little. Main battery, fire!"
The Infinity fires twin fore weapons, which strike the front of the Mantle's Approach and create a neat hole leading to the interior. Chief's Broadsword flies back to enter the ship.
- John: "Clean hit. We're proceeding to insertion."
- Lasky (COM): "Acknowledged. We'll be on station if you need us. Make sure you give the Didact our regards. Infinity out."
The fighter curves around and dives inside the still-burning hole. Inside it's dark and a tight fit. A wall tries to close to block the Chief's way.
- Cortana: "Chief, look out!
The Broadsword spins out of the wall's way. More walls start closing in to stop their fighter. Cut to the Broadsword's cockpit. John can see the tunnel growing tighter and tighter.
- Cortana: "I don't think this is going to end well!"
Cut to black as the fighter crashes. Fade in and pan back to it, as John jumps out.
- Cortana: "Now what do we do?"
John turns around and carefully removes the warhead from the missile. He then locks onto the back of his armor and grabs his battle rifle.
- John: "Plan B."
As John walks away, cut to black.
...To The Grave
{Gameplay}
John heads down a tunnel; moments later his HUD tints purple and begins to flicker with static. Cortana's image appears on a side screen.
- Cortana: (voice squeaking and distorted) "Chief, I know I'm supposed to know what to do, but...
- John: "We'll have to deploy the warhead manually. How and where?"
- Cortana: "I always know what to do. I always know what to do! ...Just give me a second."
- John: "Keep scanning for the Composer. We'll figure it out along the way."
John's HUD turns back to normal. He then engages several enemies. Promethean Knights are encountered in the next room.
- Didact: "Where reason does not stop you, perhaps force can at least delay you."
More Knights are fought in a room with two doors.
- Cortana: "I recommend entering the doorway to your left."
John jumps down a shaft, his descent slowed by a gravity lift.
- Cortana: "I won't leave you! I promise! (in the background simultaneously) I will always take care of you."
John lands and Cortana's face returns to his HUD.
- Cortana: "Still good for something, I guess. I detected an energy signature up ahead. I think it's a transit system like on Requiem. Find a way to access it."
John goes down the hallway to find a room with a large chasm. The platform at the end has an activation port. John's visor flickers purple again.
- Cortana: "I'll try to route us to the Composer. Put me in the system."
John plugs her into the system. Cortana briefly appears then fades to a glowing sphere, sometimes flashing red.
- Didact: "Is this the secret you've kept from me? This... evolved ancilla?"
- Cortana: "Didact knows I'm in the system. Hurry! Go!"
John passes through the opened portal to another room.
Trivia
Unusually, FLEETCOM is written as "Fleetcom" in subtitles when they're speaking but as "FleetCom" when being spoken to.