| Maria-062 | |
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c. 2511 |
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Female |
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Hair color: |
Black |
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Eye color: |
Brown |
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S-062 | |
- "Once he gets a hold of this armor, I think we'll all start sleeping a little better at night."
- — Maria-062
Petty Officer, Second Class Maria-062 is a SPARTAN-II supersoldier. She claimed that, at some point during the Human-Covenant War, she had retired with the intent of starting a family. She served in the reserves as of October 2552.[2]
BiographyEdit
Conscription and trainingEdit
- Main articles: SPARTAN-II program, SPARTAN-II training
Maria was identified and marked by Dr. Catherine Halsey for her physical and intellectual talents and was abducted and conscripted into the SPARTAN-II Program in 2517 at around the age of six. She was then taken to the planet Reach, and trained by the AI Déjà and Chief Petty Officer Franklin Mendez, along with the rest of the Spartan candidates. For the next eight years, she and her fellow Spartans endured harsh physical and mental training programs, team exercises, and more. In March 2525, she and the other candidates underwent a series of augmentations to improve their abilities. Presumably, Maria was among those who survived without becoming crippled by the procedures.[3]
RetirementEdit
At some point prior to October 2552, Maria had allegedly retired to Earth before marrying and having least one child. Maria is something of an anomaly as a SPARTAN-II that has managed to lead a normal human life.[1]
Special Warfare CenterEdit
Hours before the Covenant's invasion of Earth on October 20, 2552, Maria tested the new Mark VI Mjolnir armor in Songnam, Korea. She engaged the ODSTs of the 340th ODST Combat Training Unit's Echo and Kilo teams in a mock battle near the Special Warfare Center at the UNSC Operational Test and Evaluation Center.[4]
After the exercise, the armor was approved for battle and was delivered to the orbital defense platform Cairo Station. There, it was issued to Master Chief Petty Officer John-117,[5] who would use it to great effect as late as 2557.[6] Maria declined a request to return to active duty by the Captain in charge of the test, stating that she did not regret her decision to retire.[2]
Ambiguous mentionsEdit
Maria may have been mentioned in two of the Halo novels, though it cannot be clearly determined if she is the Spartan in question.
In Halo: The Fall of Reach, during Dr. Halsey's briefing to the Spartans assembled for Operation: RED FLAG, she mentions that among those not present is one Spartan who had (within the last decade) been too critically wounded to continue active duty.[7] It is possible that this wounded Spartan was Maria, whose absence allowed her to avoid the Fall of Reach, and that she had healed adequately by October 2552 to test the Mark VI MJOLNIR armor. See here for further analysis.
In Halo: Mortal Dictata, Serin Osman mentions that only one Spartan has ever retired and that they had the excuse of having failed the augmentation procedures.[8] Since Maria is said to have retired, Osman could be referring to her. However, Osman indicates that the other Spartan had likewise failed the augmentation process. While Osman received no physical benefits from the procedures, Maria is capable of using the Mjolnir powered armor, a system dangerous enough to kill an unaugmented user; it is possible that Maria was among the crippled Spartans who were later rehabilitated. If Osman were referring to another Spartan, the most likely candidate is Ralph-103. Ralph was discharged due to a combination of psychological problems[9] and the rejection of certain physical enhancements;[10] unlike the other washouts, he was allowed to return to civilian life.[9]
GalleryEdit
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Browse more images in this article's gallery page. |
Maria-062 making a sub-orbital jump while testing John-117's Mark VI Mjolnir armor.
Maria in free-fall burn.
Maria-062 prepares to throw a mock grenade.
Flames flicker about Maria's shields.
A concept art piece of Maria from the Graphic Novel drawn by Doug Alexander.
List of confirmed appearancesEdit
- Halo Graphic Novel
- Armor Testing (First appearance)
SourcesEdit
- ^ a b Halo Encyclopedia (2011 edition), page 112
- ^ a b Halo Graphic Novel - Armor Testing
- ^ Halo: The Fall of Reach
- ^ Joyride, ODST (Halo Graphic Novel Limited Edition Exclusive)
- ^ Halo 2, campaign level The Armory
- ^ Halo 4, campaign level Epilogue
- ^ Halo: The Fall of Reach, page 240
- ^ Halo: Mortal Dictata, page 367
- ^ a b Halo: The Fall of Reach 2010 edition bonus content
- ^ Halo.Bungie.org: Re: Spoiler-free thoughts on the new episodes
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