Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn/Transcripts/Part 2

Opens to the debris of UNSC Forward Unto Dawn in space.

Cortana: "We have been floating aimlessly in space for 1,651 days, 6 hours, and 19 minutes."

A blue light emerges from a pedestal in the center of the room.

Cortana: "That does it! Over four years onboard this ship with nothing to do."

Cuts to the entire cryo bay.

Cortana: "No task to complete. For over four years, all I have done is think."

The scene fast forwards. Cortana's voice is muffled as her voice fast forwards as well. Cut to a computer screen which is slowly covered by ice. Cut to another computer screen:

LAST CONTACT WITH UNSC:
1 YEARS, 5 MONTHS, 17 DAYS

The numbers increase as the screen is slowly covered by ice. Cut to the entire cryo bay, where snow is shown to be slowly piling up on the rows of cryo chambers.

Cortana: "For over four years, all I have done is think."

A heart beating is heard. The blue light on the pedestal flickers red for a second. Cut to black.

Cortana: "What are you dreaming in there?"

HALO 4

FORWARD UNTO DAWN

PART II

Opens to Thomas Lasky on his bed. An alarm has gone off in Hastati Squad's dormitory. Lasky blinks several times before being wide awake. Cut to the cadets running out of their rooms to a computer terminal at the end of the hallway. Lasky joins the group.

Walter Vickers: "Come on, JJ! The Robot's gonna be pissed!"

Cut to Chen operating the terminal screen. Michael Sullivan is imitating the alarm sound.

Junjie Chen: "Shut up, Sully!"

Vickers pushes Chen away from the terminal and enters a password. The door behind them opens.

Walter Vickers: "I got it!"

The cadets scramble for the door. Sullivan turns to Chen.

Michael Sullivan: "Your shirt's on backwards, asshole."

Cut to the cadets running into their locker room. April Orenski is walking through it.

April Orenski: "Go! Go, go, go! Get there quick! Keep moving! Are you tippy-toeing?"

The cadets open their lockers and get into their combat uniforms.

April Orenski: "Wake up, Hastati! Move it! Faster! Wake up!"

Cut to Lasky as he looks behind him: General Black stands at attention.

Thomas Lasky: "A little early for General Black, don't you think?"

Cut to Orenski standing in front of Dimah Tchakova.

April Orenski: "Why are you stopping? Are you waiting for your fancy mommy to come and finish it for you? That looked like slow-motion to me. Wake up, Hastati! Don't like being up at 04:00? Tomorrow it'll be 03:00."

Chyler Silva: "Weapons, check!"

Walter Vickers: "Weapons, check!"

(others): "Weapons, check!"

April Orenski: "Orlin, lights."

The emergency lighting and the alarms turn off. Normal lighting is restored.

General Black steps forward. He stops in front of JJ, who has yet to put on his helmet.

Black: "Cadet. Cadet!"

JJ stops fumbling with his helmet and looks up, embarrassed.

Black: "You're already dead, son."

April Orenski: "Orlin, Cadet Silva's time?"

Orlin: "51.07 seconds, Cadet April Orenski."

Gen. Black continues his inspection and stops in front of Vickers.

Black: "Not good enough today, Cadet Vickers." (jabs Vickers in the chest) "I believe Cadet Silva's time was just shy of the academy record, held by Cadmon Lasky."

Black walks over to Thomas Lasky.

Black: "Now that was a real soldier. A soldier who did not give up."

Black continues pacing in front of the cadets.

Black: "Tomorrow, you will engage in the last major exercise of this term. Hastati Squad's future at this academy will depend on its performance."

Cut to a view of the academy's space tether and satellite dish. Cut to JJ Chen in his dorm room, recording a message on his data terminal.

Junjie Chen: (Mandarin)"爸爸，你好。收到你的留言了，謝謝。今天在一個實戰演練，我收到最高分。" (Subtitled in English) "Hello Father. Thank you for your message. I received top marks today during a combat exercise."

Cut to Sully watching scrambled ONI video of a battle. Covenant symbols flash briefly on the screen.

Michael Sullivan: "Score."

Dimah comes look at the screen over Sullivan's shoulder.

Dimah Tchakova: "Where did you get this?"

Michael Sullivan: "Dimah."

Dimah Tchakova: "You could get in a lot of trouble."

Michael Sullivan: "You can't tell your mom about this, okay?"

Dimah Tchakova: "I won't say anything."

As the battle on the terminal continues, strange flashes of green light appear.

Cut to campus grounds.

Orlin: "Advisory: Select communication systems will be down for system maintenance at 04:00."

Cut to mess hall. April Orenski watches as Lasky and Vickers sit down at their table.

April Orenski: "Cadet Vickers."

Walter Vickers: "Yes, sir!"

April Orenski: "You realize you and Lasky are the reason I had to run the tour yesterday with you noobs. And why we all had to get up at 04:00."

Walter Vickers: "Yes, sir!"

April Orenski: "So, as you can imagine, I'm pretty hungry. And I do love this academy's quiche."

She smirks to her fellow class commanders.

Male cadet (off-screen): "Nice, April..."

Walter Vickers: "Sir..."

April Orenski: "So hand them over. Both of you."

Lasky and Vickers walk their trays over to Orenski and place them in front of her.

April Orenski: "With such a renowned pedigree, I sure expected you to be a better soldier, Lasky."

Thomas Lasky: "Sir."

April Orenski: "You're dismissed."

Lasky turns and walks away, followed by Vickers.

Walter Vickers: "Must be tough on your mom, knowing her real son's never coming home."

Lasky stops and time momentarily slows down. Suddenly, he spins around and elbow Vickers in the face, followed by a left punch.

Male cadet (in background): "Oh, Lasky and Vickers..."

Vickers blocks and counters the third blow. Other cadets stand to watch the fight. Vickers hits Lasky repeatedly with a lunch tray. Lasky kicks him in the back of the knee. Vickers punches Lasky twice in the face then knocks him down. Lasky grabs his leg and pulls him down. The crowd watches as Lasky gains the upper hand. Camera shifts to slow motion as Lasky rains down blows.

Dimah Tchakova: "Officer on deck!"

Various cadets stand at attention and try to look innocent. Colonel K.L. Mehaffey looks down at the brawlers with disdain. Lasky slowly gets to his feet. Janitor Beamish looks on in shock. Silva stares at Lasky, uncertainty on her face.

Mehaffey: (to Lasky) "Outside."

Col. Mehaffey leaves, followed by Lasky; Vickers gets up and wipes blood from his nose.

Cuts to outside.

Mehaffey: "What the hell is wrong with you?!"

Mehaffey stops to face Lasky.

Mehaffey: "Answer me!"

Thomas Lasky: "Nothing, sir."

Mehaffey looks him over.

Mehaffey: "Well, maybe there's hope for you yet."

Thomas Lasky: (confused) "Sir?"

Mehaffey: "There's a soldier inside of you, Thomas. I can see it. Everyone can see it. You- need- to see it. I know your brother did."

Lasky nods thoughtfully.

Thomas Lasky: "Yes, sir."

Mehaffey: "Now go get yourself cleaned up before class."

Thomas Lasky: "Axios!"

Lasky salutes; Mehaffey leaves.

Cut to Lasky, who finishes cleaning himself up, in front of a mirror in his room. He walks up to the data terminal and opens a video message from his brother.

Cadmon Lasky (video recording): "Hey, bro. Hello from Arcadia. The jungles of Arcadia. So what can I tell ya?"

Other ODSTs interrupt in the background.

Jack (video recording) (off-screen): "Tell him how you got your new nickname!"

Cadmon Lasky (video recording): "What? No."

Jack (video recording): "I'll tell him."

Cadmon Lasky (video recording): "Jack, come on, I got it, I swear. I'll tell him. I'll tell him. Alright, you're especially gonna love this. So we make a drop in the rain forest, a couple weeks ago. We see this river, me and the boys, we decide to take a dip. Ridge warns us all not to not drink the water."

Ridge (video recording): "Yeah, I did."

ODSTs laugh in the background.

Cadmon Lasky (video recording): "Of course, the first thing I do is to get a mouthful. I almost ruin my body suit, couple times. So now they call me, uh, 'Volcano'."

Cadmon and the other ODSTs in the recording laugh and repeat Cadmon's nickname. Lasky sorrowfully fidgets with an empty shell casing, wipes his eyes and gets up.

Cut to an overhead view of the Corbulo Academy campus.

Mehaffey (voiceover): "The pincer movement..."

Cut to a lecture room, where the cadets are gathered around a holographic table, either standing at the table or sitting in the amphitheater around it. Col. Mehaffey is walking around the table as she lectures to the cadets.

Mehaffey: "The strategy used in Earth's Second Punic War against the Roman Republic at the Battle of Cannae. Orlin, begin."

Orlin: "Lesson beginning."

A geographical map of the battlefield at Cannae with blue and red markers is projected on the table. The cadets around the table follow in fascination.

Mehaffey: "Red represents the Romans' troops, blue, Hannibal's. Hannibal placed his spear-men and slingers at the front. Behind him, his swordsmen flanked by cavalry. When the Romans attacked, Hannibal's swordsmen retreated. To the Romans that seemed to be due to their force but in reality Hannibal had ordered the retreat. As the Romans continued to drive the swordsmen back, Hannibal's cavalry galloped in from behind. Once the attacking pincers connected, the Romans were completely surrounded."

Michael Sullivan: "This is an actual strategy?"

Dimah Tchakova: "It does seem a little basic."

Mehaffey: "The Romans outnumbered Hannibal's troops by over 10,000 strong. And yet, they were defeated. Why?"

The cadets stare blankly.

Mehaffey: "Hubris. Never underestimate your opponents. Never underestimate what they'll sacrifice for victory. Questions?"

Junjie Chen: "Yeah... How do we apply this?"

Michael Sullivan: "Yeah, we don't have horses."

A few cadets snicker lightly.

Mehaffey: "True, we don't. But what do we have instead?"

Chyler Silva: "ODSTs."

Mehaffey: "Exactly. They drop behind enemy lines. Attack from the rear. Neutralize."

Thomas Lasky (in background): "Or die trying."

The others turn to Lasky, who is sitting at the amphitheater. Mehaffey looks at Lasky and walks over to him.

Mehaffey: "It's a question as old as war itself; If someone is trying to kill you... are you not to rise against him... and kill him first?"

Mehaffey leaves.

Cut to Lasky and Silva walking on the academy grounds.

Thomas Lasky: "You were hanging on her every word."

Chyler Silva: "Why wouldn't I?"

Thomas Lasky: "I just hear the drum beat of endless war and that doesn't make me an 'Innie lover'."

Silva turns to Lasky.

Thomas Lasky: (sighs) "Tell me how wrong I am."

Chyler Silva: "Look. You want people to change? You want this war to end?"

Thomas Lasky: "Yeah, of course."

Chyler Silva: "Then you're gonna need people to follow you."

Silva turns around and leaves.

Cut to an exterior shot of the Corbulo Academy campus; then to a hallway where the members of Hastati Squad stand in formation. April Orenski stands in front of the squad and steps forward to address the cadets.

April Orenski: "Tomorrow, Hastati Squad will try not to embarrass itself... yet again. You are a unit. Your lives are in each others' hands. This morning's victor, Cadet Silva, knows this because her parents gave the ultimate sacrifice and died on the battlefield. Let success in tomorrow's exercise be not just for our honor but for those who have fallen so you can be here."

Cut to Lasky sitting thoughtfully on a concrete wall. Cut to him walking in the academy grounds; a number of Marines stand guard nearby. Gen. Black's Warthog appears from around a corner. Lasky salutes as the Warthog passes.

Orlin (PA): "All cadets, please be advised: New mandatory curfew tonight at 21:00."

Warthog radio: "(Indistinct)...bearing two-one...(indistinct)... south-east gate. Recon reading: Threat level red."

Cut to Lasky inspecting the poem, "Forward Unto Dawn", inscribed over his bed. Lasky knocks on the wall and hears Silva knock back.

Cut to a view of Corbulo Academy at dawn.

Orlin (PA): "Final combat exercise of this term: Hastati versus Zuma."

A montage of the cadets doing their morning preparations; Silva getting up, Tchakova making her bed, Vickers cutting his hair with a hair clipper, Chen polishing his boots. Sullivan watches more classified footage. Lasky assembles his makeshift chessboard and straightens his uniform in front of a mirror.

Doctor Hughes administers an injection to Lasky. The blisters on his chest are still present.

Orlin: "Cadets, prepare for cryo injections."

The cadets snap to attention. General Black oversees the squad as Orenski briefs them.

April Orenski: "Attention! Today's mission is to capture the flag. I expect a better outcome than last time."

Thomas Lasky: "Permission to speak, sir."

April Orenski: "Speak."

Thomas Lasky: "I'd like to take point, sir."

Silva smiles. Orenski hesitates for a moment and glances at Gen. Black. The general gives her a slight nod.

April Orenski: "Okay, Lasky. Let's see if you've still got it in you. But for your sake, you better hope that you can pull some magic out of your ass or you'll be running tour for the rest of the year."

Thomas Lasky: "Understood, sir."

Cut to the cryo pods opening. The cadets get out, put on their armor and prepare their weapons.

Thomas Lasky: "Hastati Squad: One minute to RV point. On my mark: 3... 2... 1... Mark!"

Cut to an overhead shot of the forest, then to Hastati Squad advancing forward.

Dimah Tchakova (?): "Come on, pick it up."

Michael Sullivan: "Moving."

Walter Vickers: "Cover!"

Dimah Tchakova: "Moving!"

Chyler Silva: "Moving!"

Dimah Tchakova: "RV point in sight!"

Walter Vickers: "No sign of Zuma."

Chyler Silva: "Let's go! Move. Move!"

Thomas Lasky: "Keep moving!"

Walter Vickers: "Zuma's out here, watch your back!"

Dimah Tchakova: "Moving."

Thomas Lasky (?): "Moving!"

Walter Vickers: "At RV point!"

Junjie Chen (?): "I'm here."

Michael Sullivan (?): "Arriving."

Hastati Squad make it to the RV point. They sweep the surrounding area with their weapons. View of the motion tracker on Lasky's HUD.

Thomas Lasky: "Equal numbers. Deadlocked terrain."

Chyler Silva: "What's your plan?"

Thomas Lasky: "We're waiting."

Cut to the cadets waiting next to their flag, visibly bored. Insects buzz by.

Walter Vickers: (sighs)

Sully plays with a twig. JJ yawns. Silva looks impatient. Dimah checks her nails.

Walter Vickers: "Why are we just sitting here? If we have equal numbers we should just fight it out."

Thomas Lasky: (coughs) "Yeah, just be patient."

Walter Vickers: "Wheezing freak."

Lasky coughs again.

An alarm bleeps on Lasky's helmet. His HUD shows enemy contacts on the edge of his motion tracker.

Thomas Lasky: "Okay, they're moving."

Hastati squad gets up.

Thomas Lasky: "Take off your helmets."

Walter Vickers: "What?"

The others start to object as well.

Michael Sullivan: "That's pretty wild card, Lasky."

Female Cadet: "That's dumb, Lasky."

Walter Vickers: "We'll be flying blind."

Thomas Lasky: "Trust me."

Lasky removes his helmet. Cut to three Zuma Squad cadets moving toward Hastati's apparent position.

Zuma Squad Leader (radio): "Eyes up, eyes up. All right, flank 'em."

Zuma Squad continues to advance.

Zuma Squad Leader (radio): "That's them. They're all together."

First-person view of Zuma Squad member Moulder's HUD as the three three Zuma cadets - Moulder, Newton and Verrelli - move in toward Hastati's IFF contacts.

Newton: "Found 'em!"

The three Zuma cadets approach Hastati's position with rifles at the ready, only to discover Hastati Squad's discarded helmets lying on the ground.

Verrelli: "Huh?"

Tchakova, Sullivan and Vickers suddenly rise from the nearby bushes and swiftly neutralize Moulder, Newton and Verrelli. Lasky watches from behind cover. Another group of Zuma Squad cadets rush forward and are gunned down by Silva and other Hastati Squad members.

Thomas Lasky: "Now!"

Zuma Squad #2: "It's a trap! It's an ambush!"

Thomas Lasky: "Chyler, cover!"

Lasky and Silva move out toward Zuma's flag, with Silva providing covering fire. She takes out the two Zuma cadets guarding the flag. She and Lasky push on toward the objective, with Silva taking out a couple more Zuma Squad members off screen. As Lasky approaches the flag, he starts to breathe heavily. Everything around him goes into slow motion. His vision begins to fade and he loses consciousness, collapsing meters away from the flag.

Michael Sullivan (off screen): "Lasky?"