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2551 ←2552 →2553

The Covenant's final stand during thelast battle of the war.

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Previous:2550 •2551

Next:2553 •2554

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Century
26th century

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Years in the 2550s
2550 •2551 •2552 •2553 •2554
2555 •2556 •2557 •2558 •2559

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For a complete list, see ourtimeline category.

2552 was a year in the 2550s in the 26th century. It was the ultimate year of theHuman-Covenant War, during which thehumans of theUnited Nations Space Command nearly saw utter defeat and extinction, though the tide turned, and with significant help from theSangheili, they managed to win the war. TheCovenant were at the peak of their power and reach in 2552, withmajor assaults on the humanInner Colonies and an invasion followed by aprolonged engagement on their homeplanet,Earth.^[1][2][3] During thebattle atInstallation 04, the galaxy found its first large outbreak of theFlood threat in over a hundred thousand years.^[4][5] Over one month later, an even larger outbreak occurred atInstallation 05.^[6]

The war finally drew to a close atInstallation 00, known more commonly as the Ark, with the humans and Sangheili attempting to kill the HighProphet of Truth, before he could activate the remaining Halo installations.^[7][8] The alliance was successful in their mission against the Covenant and ended the 27 year long war.

Events[edit]

Before June[edit]

• TheBattle of Beta Eridani takes place when theFleet of Valiant Prudence invades the system. The UNSC is defeated andRho 'Barutamee takes control of several Forerunner artifacts that lead him toanother system.

January[edit]

January 8

• A team ofODST's (IncludingKojo Agu andTaylor H. Miles) descend ontoAriel (a small science colony) in response to a distress call on the planet inOperation: FIRESIDE.^[9]

February[edit]

February

• Insurrectionists onHarmony disable the planet's primarycommunications relay and steal two drydockedfreighters.^[10]

March[edit]

March 9

• An entry is recorded in a UNSC Archive regarding a UNSC Excavation site headed byBXR Mining Corporation being bombarded by the Covenant. The miners managing to get the ore being mined to the surface before the mine totally collapsed.^[11]

April[edit]

April 22

• Battle of Fumirole:Noble Team memberThom-A293 destroys aKet-pattern battlecruiser but kills himself in the process, andCatherine-B320 loses her arm. She subsequently receives arobotic prosthetic.

Unknown Date

• TheUNSCIroquois finishes construction.^[12]

May[edit]

May 10

• SPARTAN-B312 takes part in acounter-insurgency operation onMamore. The Spartan's skills as aSabre pilot are exhibited during the op, promptingColonelUrban Holland to have him transferred to Noble Team.

May 14 through May 19

• UNSC forces in theEarth Defense Coordination Zone are placed at maximum readiness levels and all warships withmagnetic accelerator cannons are self-deployed or towed to rally points.Cairo Station is established as flag headquarters.^[13]

May 15

• Kalmiya informs Dr. Halsey about several documents she watched in Vice AdmiralMichael Stanforth's Beta-5 server which ranges from service order transfers of existing Spartan-IIs to highly classified non-Spartan-II detachments.^[14]

May 24

• Smart AIGabriela is activated.^[15]

July[edit]

Unknown date

• TheBattle of New Jerusalem takes place sometime this month or thenext.^[16] The26th Marine Expeditionary Force is nearly wiped out, leavingPrivate First ClassJonathan Doherty as one of the few survivors.^[17]

After July 5

• Gabriel Thorne single-handedly saves his entire platoon in the Battle of Criterion.

July 17

• The Slipspace monitoring probes fromRemote Scanning StationArchimedes at the edge of theSigma Octanus system encounter theCovenant ships sent to attackSigma Octanus IV.
• TheUNSCIroquois is tasked with patrolling the Sigma Octanus star system.
• TheBattle of Sigma Octanus IV begins.

July 18

• The UNSC win a victory during the battle at Sigma Octanus IV.CommanderJacob Keyes, of theUNSCIroquois, plays a critical role in this success when he devises theKeyes Loop maneuver. Keyes is subsequently promoted toCaptain byVice AdmiralMichael Stanforth. Unknown to the UNSC, the Covenant place atracker on the hull of theIroquois. The importance ofReach to the UNSC is revealed to the Covenant when theIroquois returns to that world.
• Vice Admiral Stanforth messages the director of the Office of Naval Intelligence,Admiral Margaret Parangosky, with information on the battle at Sigma Octanus IV, as well as the ongoing progress ofOperation: BRAVADO.^[18]

July 23

• The Covenant deploy theFleet of Valiant Prudence to sever Reach's out-system communications and search for Forerunner artifacts. This is the first stage of the Covenant'sinvasion of the planet.
• Noble Team finds and stops a pair of Insurrectionist SCI combatants attempting to hijack a supply transport.^[10]
• Fireteam3 Charlie, along with other special warfare fireteams under command of Colonel Holland, are sent to investigate the areas aroundLonghorn Valley andVisegrád after contact with thecomms relay in Visegrád is lost.

July 24

• Two months after the death of Thom-A293, SPARTAN-B312 joins Noble Team as Noble Six.
• Noble Team is sent by Colonel Holland on a mission to investigate the downed Visegrád Relay.^[10]
• Noble Team discovers the Covenant's presence on Reach for the first time at Visegrád Relay. Planetary directiveWINTER CONTINGENCY is declared.

July 26

• SWORD Base, an ONI research facility on Reach, comes under attack by anCeudar-pattern heavy corvette. TheUNSC Army with the help of Noble Team successfully repel the attack and the corvette is destroyed by orbital support.

August[edit]

Unknown date

• After discovering Reach, the Covenant move on to glass the other planets in the system, includingTribute, resulting in the prolongedBattle of Tribute.
• During the Battle of Tribute,SPARTAN-IITeam Black is sent toVerge to destroy a CovenantBeacon supplyinghelium-3 to the ships laying siege on Tribute. The team successfully destroys the beacon.^[19]
• After the mission on Verge,Vice AdmiralAlexander Reaves assigns Fireteam Black toOperation: BLOWBACK, a covert mission in Covenant-occupied space.Their ship, as well as aCovenant carrier, crash-land on anunknown moon, igniting theBattle of Line Installation 1-4.
• Margaret-053 is captured byForerunnerGatherers. Team Black and the Covenant forces on the moon enter into a reluctant alliance to rescue the Spartan.
• Fireteam Black encounters the Forerunner monitor686 Ebullient Prism en route to rescuing Margaret-053. The monitor briefly causes rifts between the team to prevent them from rescuing their comrade. Margaret, however, escapes anyway, aided byReff 'Talamee, and the rest of Team Black stop fighting amongst themselves.
• Team Black manages to enter the control room of Line Installation 1–4, eventually destroying 686 Ebullient Prism with the installation's main gun; they also succeed in destroying the entire Covenant fleet.
• Beta Gabriel is captured by a pack ofJiralhanae under the command ofChieftainParabum. A majority of the sparse human population is either taken prisoner or killed, including ONI agentConnor Brien, who had been sent on a mission to study the Brutes. A recon force ofODSTs are sent in to neutralize the Brutes, and are successful in doing so.
• TheBattle of New Jerusalem takes place sometime this month or theprevious.^[16] The26th Marine Expeditionary Force is nearly wiped out, leavingthe Rookie as one of the few survivors.^[17]
• TheRaid on Mount Haven takes place.^[20] TheUNSCChares deploys ODSTs in a snatch-and-grab mission to secure the transport of a Forerunner artifact, but after a chain of events involving a group of rogue ODSTs attempting to stealgold from a bank vault,a wounded ODST manages to halt their operations with aShiva nuclear warhead.^[21] Eventually, the surviving civilians and UNSC forces fall back to Earth, having been informed Reach was just attacked.^[16]

August 1

• 0250 Hours: Vice Admiral Michael Stanforth and half ofBattle Group Leviathan return to Epsilon Eridani system. In a message send to Parangosky, Stanforth expresses his concerns about sacrificing Reach for the sake of Operation: RED FLAG.^[22]

August 3

• Dr. Halsey decides to split Cortana in two halves, with her IEP translation routines analyzing the Forerunner structure under SWORD Base and the other half continuing with John and Blue Team in preparation for Operation: RED FLAG.^[23]

August 5

• Cortana's split is a success.^[23]

Early August (sometime from the 6th to the 12th)

• TheUNSCApocalypso crashes in lunar orbit, aslipspace anomaly knocking out communications within the Solar System forseven seconds.

August 11

• SPARTAN-B312 and Jun-A266 engage in a recon mission on Covenant forces in the colloquially named "Dark Zone", a Covenant-occupied region in the Viery Territory. The two Spartans discover a Covenant invasion force and a landing zone. Kat-B320 receives the visual and tells them to retreat so they will be prepared for the next day.^[24]

August 12

• Battle Group Leviathan and theIroquois arrives at Reach for emergency refit and repairs.^[23] While the battle group was being repaired, Stanforth and Keyes arrived atCamp Hathcock in theHighland Mountains on Reach for debriefing. Shortly after, they returned to their respective vessels within the battle group.^[25]
• Around this time, Stanforth engages a small group from theFleet of Valiant Prudence dispatched to retrieve aForerunner artifact from ONI'sTeller Station in the Epsilon EridaniOort cloud; though he sends reinforcements to successfully cover the station's evacuation, he loses irreplaceable personnel and ships in the process.^[26][27]
• Halsey reviews the upgrades to the new MJOLNIR Mark V.^[23]
• John-117 andCorporal Harland are debriefed byONI atCamp Hathcock, Reach, on the events onCôte d'Azur during the Battle of Sigma Octanus IV.
• Battle at Szurdok Ridge: UNSC forces assault an amassing Covenant invasion force in theViery Territory on Reach, managing to destroy twoAA plasma cannons and aCovenant spire. However, the cloakedsupercarrierLong Night of Solace reveals itself and destroys the frigateUNSCGrafton, which had been providing air support.^[28]

August 13

• 60% of theEpsilon Eridani Fleet is recalled to Reach, destined to arrive within the next 48 hours.^[29]

August 14

• Operation: UPPER CUT andOperation: LEFT JAB are initiated, as Noble Team retakes theSabre Program Launch/Research Range atFarkas Lake and joins the battle in orbit, eventually capturing the Covenant corvetteArdent Prayer and using it to deliver theUNSCSavannah'sShaw-Fujikawa Translight Engine, used as a makeshift bomb, to theLong Night of Solace . TheSolaceis destroyed at the cost ofJorge-052, who sacrifices himself to detonate the drive manually. Moments after the carrier's destruction, a large Covenant fleet sent by theMinistry of Resolution enters in-system.^[29]
• Following the destruction of theSolace,Kantar 'Utaralee, now actingfleetmaster of theFleet of Valiant Prudence, leads what little ships he has left in a last-ditch effort to recover Teller Station'sartifact, now residing in a UNSCspace station orbiting themoon ofTurul.^[30]

August 17

• Smart AIBlack-Box is created froma human brain donor to be the personal AI companion for Admiral Margaret Parangosky and activated onMars.^[31][32]

August 18

• TheSiege of New Alexandria begins as the Covenant lay siege to thecity ofNew Alexandria.

August 23

• Noble Six arrives in New Alexandria and helps evacuate civilians from the city. He also manages to severely damage one of the corvettes laying siege to the city by use of an AA missile battery. Noble Six eventually meets up with the rest of Noble Team, and the Covenant begin glassing the city. As Noble Team is on their way to a fallout shelter under theOlympic Tower, Kat-B320 is killed by sniper fire.^[33]

August 24

• Dr. Halsey examines the rock recovered by Blue Team during Operation: OCEAN BREAKER on Sigma Octanus IV.^[23]

August 25

• Dr. Halsey andCortana choose theUNSCPillar of Autumn, with Jacob Keyes as its commander, for a secret mission Halsey is planning.

August 26

• The remainder of Noble Team is evacuated from the destroyed New Alexandria via a Pelican.^[33]

August 27

• All available SPARTAN-IIs gather at theFLEETCOM Military Complex on Reach, where they learn of theirnext mission: to acquire a Covenant vessel, navigate to the Covenant home world, and return with captured Covenantleadership.

August 29

• John-117 receives aneural interface upgrade, the second generation ofMJOLNIR Mark V armor, and is introduced to Cortana.
• Noble Team is ordered to destroy Sword Base in a torch-and-burn op. During the operation, Noble Team makes their way inside Sword Base where they encounter Dr. Halsey, who asks them to protect her lab. Noble Team is then given direct orders to escort a fragment of Cortana holding crucial data from theBabd Catha Forerunner complex to thePillar of Autumn. Halsey is then escorted back to CASTLE base byJun-A266.

August 30

Reach falls to the Covenant.

• Cortana has ONIColonelJames Ackerson illicitly transferred to the front. This is her revenge for his attempts to eliminate both her and John-117.
• First LieutenantJake Chapman, along with most ofCharlie Company is killed during the Fall of Reach.
• The Covenant, despite sustaining heavy losses, wins a crushing victory at the Fall of Reach. Many of the remaining SPARTAN-IIs are killed.
• The survivingSPARTAN-IIs on Reach are separated into two groups. One recoversVice Admiral Whitcomb and goes into hiding atCamp Independence. The others are admitted intoCASTLE Base by Dr. Halsey and receive parts of theMJOLNIR Mark V upgrade and new weapons.
• Dr. Halsey learns ofColonel Ackerson'smysterious plans that seem to involve "her"Spartans.
• The three surviving members ofNoble Team arrive at Asźod;Carter-A259's Pelican becomes too badly damaged to continue carrying them all, so Noble Six andEmile-A239 deploy to the ground.
• Battle of Asźod: The Covenant forces throughoutAsźod attempt to stop Noble Six and Emile from reaching thePillar of Autumn, going so far as to deployScarabs against them. Carter sacrifices himself when he steers his damaged Pelican into a Scarab, destroying it. Emile and Six proceed to push towards theship breaking yards and rendezvous with the scant UNSC forces still attempting to defend the facility. After clearing most of the facility, Six, Emile, and several Trooper squads meet up with Captain Jacob Keyes, successfully delivering the fragment of Cortana. However, Emile is killed by aSangheili Zealot.
• SPARTAN-B312 destroys aKet-pattern battlecruiser with amass driver to allow thePillar of Autumn to escape Reach. The Spartan is killed by Sangheili soon after. TheAutumn jumps away from the system, with Cortana using Forerunner navigation data from theSigma Octanus IV artifact as well as the Babd Catha Forerunner complex.

September[edit]

Unknown date

• The planetCoral is reported glassed by the Covenant.

September 4

• Lieutenant Wagner returns to Earth and reports on the evident destruction of Reach to theUNSC Security Council (Colonel James Ackerson,Fleet AdmiralTerrence Hood, andMajor GeneralNicolas Strauss) atHIGHCOM Facility Bravo-6 in Sydney,Australia. Hood determines that the location of Earth is compromised and decides that allONI theatres of operation must be relocated. The Security Council also begins planning for the final defense of Earth.
• ONI launches an investigation of aSecNet conversation betweenSergeantsJoseph M. Poteet (Username: TRIGTECH) andAlasdair R. Schicker (Username: GLancer) to discover whether they might have accidentally leaked the location of Reach to the Covenant.^[34]

September 5

• UNSC fleet actions in theReach Defense Coordination Zone conclude.^[13]
• All remainingnaval forces are consolidated into a single command grouping: theUNSC Home Fleet.
• Fleet AdmiralJoseph Harper of theFifth Fleet is appointed senior flag officer of the Home Fleet and given primary administrative and tasking authority over all assets in theSol system under emergency directives authorized byUNSC High Command and approved by theUEG Security Council.^[13]

September 14

• A new set oforbital defense platforms over Earth are scheduled to come online.^[35]

September 18

• Around 2200 hours ship time: Captain Keyes and other key crew wake up on theUNSCPillar of Autumn, and check the status of the ship.^[36]

September 19

• Captain Keyes and crew make it to the bridge of thePillar of Autumn and ask Cortana to shut down all systems before returning to normal space. ThePillar of Autumn then leaves slipspace, and glides aroundBasis intoThreshold's orbit, at which point Cortana detects a radio echo in the shadow of Threshold.
• 0103 hours ship time: ThePillar of Autumn cryo team prepare to wake John-117 under orders from Captain Keyes. Meanwhile, the CovenantFleet of Particular Justice prepare to attack thePillar of Autumn.^[37]
• TheBattle of Installation 04 begins.
• 0120 hours ship time: Keyes learns of the Covenant presence in the system and decides to wake the whole crew out of cryo.^[38]
• 0127 hours ship time: The Fleet of Particular Justice finally strike thePillar of Autumn. John-117 is also woken from cryo sleep around this time and tasked with preventing Cortana's capture by the Covenant. John-117 and Cortana escape thePillar of Autumn aboard aBumblebee escape pod, which later crashes on the ring.^[39]
• The Pillar of Autumn is forced to crash land on the ring. A significant portion of its crew survives to continue the fight on the ground.
• Captain Keyes and the others in his escape pod are captured by the Covenant. Only Keyes escapes summary execution, and is taken to theKet-patternTruth and Reconciliation for interrogation.
• A large group of ODSTs and survivors, under the command ofMajorAntonio Silva, (who assumed command ofAutumn 's surviving crew after Captain Keyes' capture by the Covenant) establishAlpha Base, which serves as the main tactical firebase for the survivors and as a staging point for any future Covenant attacks.

John-117 leading Marines on Installation 04.

• John-117 leads aMarine force to board theTruth and Reconciliation. They recover Keyes and escape aboard aCovenant dropship.

September 20

• Keyes orders John-117 to find the "Silent Cartographer", a map room that will reveal the location of theControl Room. Keyes leaves to lead an assault on a Covenant weapons cache.
• Having found the map room and the pertinent information, Cortana directs aPelican to take them to the area where the ring's Control Room is. Upon reaching the Control Room, Cortana transfers to the Control Room's computer and directs John-117 to stop Keyes from accessing the 'weapons cache', in reality aForerunnerFlood containment facility.
• Before transporting the Chief to the supposed weapons cache,Carol Rawley records a mission report detailing their underground insertion near the Control Room. This report is entered into the UNSC Archives.^[40]
• John-117, without Cortana, enters the supposed weapons cache but is unable to locate Keyes. Instead, he discoversthe Flood and is forced to retreat. He links up with marines and takes command of the surviving members of Keyes' team and together they fight their way to the extraction point. However, the Spartan is conscripted by343 Guilty Spark andteleported away before he can be evacuated with the surviving members.
• Major Silva and the others under his command abandon Alpha Base after discovering a large Flood infestation beneath the base. They then learn that theTruth and Reconciliation has been abandoned and lead a strike force to capture the ship.
• The Flood succeed in capturing the Covenant dropshipBrilliant Gift, and use it to crash-land on board the Covenant shipInfinite Succor, in orbit above Installation 04, with the intent to spread itself to the rest of the Fleet of Particular Justice. This is avoided whenSpecial Operations CommanderRtas 'Vadumee sets theInfinite Succor on a crash-course vector for the system's star,Soell. Rtas 'Vadumee is the only survivor.
• TheSPARTAN-IV program enters development under the oversight of AdmiralMargaret Parangosky,CINCONI. The project's existence is kept secret from both Dr. Catherine Halsey and Colonel James Ackerson, the respective creators of the SPARTAN-II and SPARTAN-III programs.^[41]

September 21

• The Monitor takes John-117 to the ring'sLibrary to retrieve theActivation Index, a device needed to activate the ring's primary weapon. Having retrieved the Index, the Monitor teleports the Spartan back to the Control Room where an irate Cortana confiscates the Index and prevents the ring from firing. John-117 and Cortana flee a now-hostile 343 Guilty Spark andSentinels.
• To forestall the ring from being activated manually, John-117 disables the ring's threephase pulse generators. This is to buy time to destroy the ring by activating the auto-destruct on thePillar of Autumn. Only Keyes'command neural interface can activate the ship's self-destruct, and John-117 embarks once more to rescue the captain.
• The failed attempt to activate Alpha Halo results in the firstOnyx Sentinels appearing.^[42]

September 22

• Cortana teleports John-117 to the now Flood-overrunTruth and Reconciliation where Jacob Keyes is being held. Alas, the pair arrives too late to save Keyes, who has been merged into aproto-Gravemind. John-117 retrieves the neural interface by punching in the former-captain's head. Cortana downloads the necessary codes, and the duo returns to thePillar of Autumn on a capturedBanshee.
• Major Silva's forces arrive at theTruth and Reconciliation and take over the ship through a combined surprise assault on the vessel's hangar bay and gravity lift. They also manage to capture the cruiser's prophet, theProphet of Stewardship. After capturing the cruiser, Major Silva intends to fly the ship back to Earth in order to be recognized as the hero of the Battle of Installation 04; this acts a both a huge violation of the Cole Protocol and risks spreading the Flood. First LieutenantMelissa McKay realizes this, so, in a snap-decision, she severs the primary optical fiber cable that linked controls from the bridge to engineering with a fragmentation grenade, thereby causing the cruiser to lose control and crash onto the surface of Halo.
• 343 Guilty Spark overrides the auto-destruct sequence, forcing John-117 to manually destabilize the ship's still-functioning fusion cores. John-117 and Cortana then escape the resulting explosion and the fragmentation of the ring aboard a Longsword.
• Staff Sergeant Johnson,Lieutenant Haverson,Warrant Officer Polaski, andCorporal Locklear also escape the destruction of the ring aboard a Pelican.
• In the course of the ring's destruction,a fragment of Installation 04 enters slipspace. This fragment later re-enters normal space in the vicinity of a red giant star.^[43]
• The Battle of Installation 04 ends. John-117 and Cortana rendezvous with Johnson's group in Installation 04's debris field. They also recover a set ofcryo chambers, one which containsLinda-058.
• Skirmish over Threshold: As theLongsword and Pelican are not jump capable, the UNSC survivors assault and capture the Covenant flagshipAscendant Justice. They then set course for Reach.
• Jersey Morelli confronts his mother about having an affair.

September 23

• The month's temporal anomaly is seemingly rectified by this date.
• After the destruction of Installation 04,Installation 00 commences theconstruction of the replacement for Installation 04.

September 26

• ONI agentJameson Locke compiles a target profile report concerning Supreme Commander Thel 'Vadamee, detailing 'Vadamee's personal history from the start of the Human-Covenant War to the glassing of Reach.^[44]

September 27

• Covenant glassing operations onReach ends.^[45]

September's anomaly[edit]

After the recovery of a Forerunner device on Reach, the members of an organized resistance comprised of Spartans from Reach and survivors of the Battle of Installation 04 are in some sort of time anomaly, causing them not to be in the "correct timeline".^[46] What is known is that the events take place with the possession of the device after September 7.

John-117 and Marine survivors fighting on theAscendant Justice.

September 7

• The time/date record anomaly of Sept 23, 2552 most likely rejoins the correct timeline.
• Dr. Halsey and members of Red Team discover anenigmatic shard in aForerunner installation below CASTLE Base. They are besieged by Covenant forces who seek to possess the shard.
• Dr. Halsey initiatesOperation: WHITE GLOVE, destroying CASTLE Base, thus preventing the Covenant forces above from capturing any UNSC or Forerunner technology. Halsey and members ofRed Team are protected from the resulting detonation when they hide in the caves beneath the base.
• The remaining Spartans,Admiral Whitcomb, Dr. Halsey,Sgt. Johnson,Lieutenant Haverson, Warrant Officer Polaski, and Corporal Locklear jump to Slipspace on board the Covenant/UNSC hybrid shipUNSCGettysburg-Ascendant Justice, and discover that the shard seems to have the ability to bend both space and time.

September 12

• TheGettysburg/Ascendant Justice arrives for refit and provisioning in the Eridanus system.
• Vice Admiral Whitcomb secures a meeting with rebel leader GovernorJacob Jiles, attempting to reason with him that the Covenant would most likely arrive to claim the Forerunner crystal. When several Covenant warships emerge from slipspace, Jiles agrees to help the UNSC forces.
• Dr. Halsey sedatesKelly-087, and absconds with her on Governor Jiles' personal ship, theChiroptera-classBeatrice. Before she goes, she gives the Forerunner crystal to Corporal Locklear, with implicit instructions to destroy it.
• A large Covenant fleet enters the Eridanus system, forcing the hand of Admiral Whitcomb; he pulls out and retreats, as does theGettysburg/Ascendant Justice, leaving the rebels to their doom.
• Governor Jiles is killed and theEridanus rebels are destroyed during theMassacre at Eridanus Secundus. Eridanus Secundus itself is destroyed by the Covenant.

September 13

• UNSC forces aboard theGettysburg/Ascendant Justice win a crucial victory at theBattle of theUnyielding Hierophant.SPARTAN-093, Lieutenant Haverson of ONI and Vice Admiral Whitcomb are killed. The survivors, now aboard the singularUNSCGettysburg and with a captured Covenant slipspace drive, depart for Earth to warn of the impending Covenant invasion.

October[edit]

Unknown date

• An edict from the Office of the High Prophet of Truth orders that in the virtue of the Jiralhanae, all Sangheili posted with theFleet of Profound Solitude, theFleet of Tranquil Composure, and theFleet of Inner Knowledge to be completely replaced by Jiralhanae. Each removed Sangheili to be assigned other duties. In celebration, all imprisoned or criminal Jiralhanae were released, rehabilitated, and pardoned.^[47]
• ODSTSarah Palmer, the future commander of theSPARTAN-IVs onUNSCInfinity, rescuesAdmiralKovalic and a vital AI from a planet under Covenant attack. Wounded in action, Palmer is sent toLockhart medical facility to recover.^[48]

October 8

• After escaping from the Battle of Tribute, the freighterFloral Express discoversInstallation 03.^[49]
• AdmiralJ. Garcia forwards Log 01–0089 toUNSC High Command, which contains the preliminary reports of action during theDefense of Reach.^[13]

October 9

• DoctorO. Cheng forwards Log 01–0921, an intelligence report incorporating recent naval losses during theFall of Reach, to theUNSC Security Council.^[13]

October 10

• TheUNSC Navy'sThird Fleet, and specificallyBattle Group Rhino loses theUNSCTotem Lake in theBattle of October 10.^[13]

October 13

• OnArgyre Planitia,Mars, gravitic and radiation anomalies are detected by UNSC scouting teams. After on-site search and assessment, cloaked remote sensors are discovered, and WIDEAWAKE cryptonym is triggered, but an stand-down order is issued by Fleet Admiral Joseph Harper after consulting with CINCONI Parangosky.^[13]

October 17

• CaptainW. Murray reports an after-action report of theBattle of October 10 in the form of 83 files later termed Log 01–0991.^[13]

October 19

• AboardCairo Station, Sergeant Johnson is interrogated by Dr.Veronica Clayton of ONI in regards to the events surroundingOperation: First Strike.^[50]
• Cortana details the Battle of Installation 04 to ONI.^[49]
• During a routine seismic scan,Vergil, a subroutine ofNew Mombasa'sSuperintendent AI, discovers aseismic anomaly underneath the city. The report is accessed byDr. Daniel Endesha, a scientist responsible for the management of the AI.^[51]
• Staff SergeantMalcolm Geffen forwards Log 01–1101, an intelligence report about the anomalies registered on Mars.^[13]

October 20

The Battle of Earth at Mombasa.

• John-117 is outfitted with theMJOLNIR Mk. VI aboardCairo Station.
• 1248 hours:Io Station detects a possible Covenant sighting in theSol system and contacts theUNSC Home Fleet. Cortana, on board theCairo, receives the message and briefs Lord Hood.^[13][52]
• OnHigh Charity,Thel 'Vadamee, the disgracedSupreme Commander of theFleet of Particular Justice, is deemed a heretic by the CovenantHigh Council and is sentenced to death for his failure to safeguardInstallation 04 one month prior.
• John-117 and Staff Sergeant (now promoted to Sergeant Major) Johnson are awarded theColonial Cross at a ceremony aboard Cairo Station. Captain Keyes is awarded posthumously and the decoration is entrusted to his daughter,Miranda Keyes.
• Instead of being executed, 'Vadamee is given the title ofArbiter by the High Prophets of Truth and Mercy, and sent toThreshold with Rtas 'Vadumee andTartarus ona mission to eliminate a band ofheretics led bySesa 'Refumee. Following 'Refumee's death, the group recovers343 Guilty Spark.
• TheHigh Prophet of Regret'sfleet eventually arrives at Earth, not expecting any human presence. The vastly outnumbered Covenant force attacks the UNSC Home Fleet without seeking support from other Covenant forces, precipitating the Battle for Earth.
• 1412 hours: Lord Hood and Fleet AdmiralHarper coordinate Earth's orbital defense during the opening stages.
• 1421 hours:Malta Station andAthens Station are destroyed, clearing the way for the first attack wave.
• 1450 hours: John-117 foils a Covenant attempt to destroy theCairo and instead uses the bomb to sabotage theDay of Jubilation, one of Regret's only two assault carriers.
• 1459 hours: Having successfully made it planetside, Regret's remaining carrier and flagship,Solemn Penance, initiates aground assault on New Mombasa.
• John-117 is recovered by theUNSCIn Amber Clad and deploys to Mombasa in an attempt to capture the Prophet.
• Thecivilian populace begins to evacuate; Dr. Endesha's daughterSadie and formerNMPD copMike Branleynavigate the war-torn streets of New Mombasa with the help of Vergil in order to reach her father in theNew Mombasa Data Center. However, the corrupt police commissioner,Kinsler, in an act of vengeance against Sadie for refusing his previous sexual advances, has his men kill her father withargon gas by tripping the data center's fire suppression system.
• During the fighting, the Covenant damage the Superintendent's data systems; alone Huragok survives and starts to repair the AI, saving Vergil by starting to absorb it into its own system. Kinsler, intending to take Sadie a prisoner as he leaves the city, is killed by Vergil after the subroutine allows a mob to tear him apart. Despite Sadie's pleas to stay and find him, Vergil sends her off on atrain with Mike towardsNairobi, saving her life.
• 1512 hours: Designated a Tier One Asset, the UNSC identifies the Huragok as being at risk of being killed or captured by the Covenant.
• 1557 hours: Elsewhere in the city, ODST squadAlpha-Five participates inan unsuccessful mission to retrieve a Forerunner device called theConduit from Covenant hands.
• 1602 hours: As part ofa mission to take down theSolemn Penance from orbit,a squad of ODSTs led by ONI CaptainVeronica Dare andGunnery Sergeant Edward Buck, consisting of Corporal Taylor "Dutch" Miles, Lance Corporal Kojo "Romeo" Agu,PFC Michael "Mickey" Crespo, and Lance Corporal Jonathan Doherty, drop into New Mombasa from theUNSCSay My Name.
• 1603 hours: With Regret afraid of being overrun, theSolemn Penance initiates an in-atmosphere Slipspace jump to escape the city; while theIn Amber Clad manages to pursue the carrier through the rift, the resulting explosion severely damages New Mombasa's infrastructure as well as scatters Alpha-Nine'sdrop pods across the city.
• Having tailed Regret to Earth, aJiralhanae-led Covenantoccupation force is inserted into New Mombasa immediately after Regret's retreat as a part of the Prophet of Truth's plan to eventuallyreplace the Sangheili with the Jiralhanae as the Covenant's primary warrior race. For the rest of the day, UNSC and Covenant forces battle for control of the city.
• 1606 hours: Gunnery Sergeant Buck lands atTayari Plaza and assists Marine forces in combating the Covenant. Though he fails to link up with Captain Dare, he regroups with Lance Corporal Agu.
• 1636 hours: Corporal Miles assists anunidentified colonel in securing Regret's old landing zone within theUplift Nature Reserve.
• 1649 hours: Due to structural damage caused by the Slipspace explosion, theMombasa Tether implodes and collapses, killing the colonel and scattering Marine forces into disarray. Miles manages to escape the reserve shortly after. By this point, the Covenant occupies 38% of the city.
• 1736 hours: PFC Crespo leads aScorpion charge to assist Marines in clearing outKizingo Boulevard and reaching theirrally point, where he reunites with Miles.
• 1806 hours: Crespo and Miles aid theNew Mombasa Police Department in preventing the Covenant from accessing important data housed in ONI's Alpha Site.
• 1852 hours: The troopers are forced to fall back and extract viapolice Pelican while Buck contacts Miles and Crespo to request a pick-up at thepolice headquarters. Crespo then detonates the Alpha Site to deny it to the Covenant. The resulting explosion inadvertently awakens a largeDrone hive in the tunnels below the base. By this point, the Covenant occupies 51% of the city.
• 1936 hours: En route to the police HQ, Miles and Crespo's Pelican is shot down; Buck and Agu rescue them after a holding action that wounds Agu in the process.
• 2106 hours: Buck and his squad regroup; realizing the trains out of the city are flooded, they capture aPhantom atKikowani Station in an effort to escape.
• 2141 hours: Remaining Covenant cruisers coalesce over New Mombasa.
• 2206 hours: Jonathan Doherty wakes up from the drop and starts to search the streets of New Mombasa for his squadmates.
• 2215 hours: Cruisers begin excavation of the crater left behind by the Slipspace explosion, which Buck witnesses from Kikowani.
• 2227 hours: By this point, the Covenant occupies 78% of the city.
• Having fled the area, Buck forces his squad to turn around after realizes where Dare went.
• 2319 hours: Dare, having holed up in the city's data center, sights and reports the Tier One Asset Huragok in the tunnels.
• 2324 hours: By this point, the Covenant occupies 94% of the city.
• Doherty receives Dare's distress call and fights his way through the data center to link up with her; together, they capture the Huragok, which by this point has fully absorbed the Superintendent (and Vergil) into itself.
• 2359 hours: Buck arrives to help secure the Huragok, now identified as Vergil.
• The Battle of Mombasa ends with a Covenant victory.

October 21

• Buck, Dare, and Doherty defend the Huragok as they fight their way to the surface.
• At dawn, the team witnesses continual Covenant reinforcements arriving at Earth to aid in excavation efforts. They flee down the city'sWaterfront Highway and reconnect with the rest of Alpha-Nine at the entrance to the Uplift Nature Reserve. The squad manages to hold out and eventually escapes New Mombasa as the city, along with its surroundings, areglassed by the excavation fleet.

October 21 through November 17

• Following the Battle of Mombasa, Alpha-Nine and Quick to Adjust are kept in anONI orbital facility.^[53]

October 20 through November 2

• The Spartan-II Blue Team is deployed to defend Earth during the two weeks that follow the initial Covenant invasion. They participate in numerous combat missions on and around Earth, includingBattle of Ross Island in theAntarctica and an underwater operation in theYucatan Peninsula.

Late October

• The majority of theSPARTAN-IIIs ofGamma Company are deployed into the battlefields of the Human-Covenant War, with only the top-ranked fireteamsSaber,Katana, andGladius remaining onOnyx to compete for top honors.^[54]

October 25

• The Office of Naval Intelligence sends an exploration-and-neutralization team toGamma Halo.^[49]
• Skirmish onMona Lisa: TheUNSCRed Horse is sent to Installation 04's debris field in the Soell system to scout the area for survivors. They detect theprison shipMona Lisa and deploy Marines into the ship. Soon after, it is revealed that the ship is infested by the Flood and was used by the Office of Naval Intelligence as a laboratory to test the parasite on prisoners. The infestation is contained as theRed Horse unleashes aShiva-class nuclear missile on theMona Lisa, destroying it.^[55][56]

October 31

• TheOnyx Conflict begins.
• The standby signal rouses theSentinels ofOnyx, who destroy the UNSC base on the world.
• Team Gladius of theSPARTAN-IIIGamma Company is totally wiped out by the Sentinels.Team Katana is forced intoZone 67, andTeam Saber loses contact withCamp Currahee.
• Kurt-051,SCPO Franklin Mendez and Petty OfficersTom-B292 andLucy-B091 begin to form a resistance against the Sentinels.
• TheUNSCAgincourt (frigate), in high orbit above Onyx, is destroyed by Sentinels.
• Chief Mendez declares emergency codeBloody Arrow over the UNSCE-BAND.

November[edit]

The end of 2552 saw the bloodiest period of the Great War and the beginning of the end. The Prophet of Truth was killed in the later months along with a sizable Covenant armada, leaving the Covenant forces crippled and leaderless as well as the full destruction of theGravemind and its Flood forces.

November 2

• TheBattle of Installation 05 begins.
• The UNSCIn Amber Clad arrives atDelta Halo, following the High Prophet of Regret's assault carrier. John-117, aided by ODSTs andmarines, pursue the High Prophet to a Forerunner temple and assassinate him. However, orbital bombardment from the escorting fleets of the newly arrivedHigh Charity destroys the temple. John-117 is thrown into a lake and captured by the Gravemind.
• TheChanging of the Guard within the Covenant occurs.

November 3

Jiralhanae and Sangheili ships fighting over High Charity.

• TheGreat Schism begins.
• TheProphet of Conviction is killed byone of his shipmasters after learning that Conviction ordered the killings of the Sangheilicouncilors within theFleet of Righteous Vigilance.
• The Arbiter is sent to Delta Halo to retrieve that installation'sIndex. The Arbiter is successful, but is then betrayed byTartarus, who casts the Arbiter into the depths of the ringworld. The Arbiter is subsequently captured by Gravemind.
• Gravemind sends John-117 and the Arbiter to secure the Index and prevent the installation from being activated. John-117 is teleported to High Charity while the Arbiter is teleported close to the Control Room. Both are aided by the chaos of the Covenant civil war.
• The Flood controlledIn Amber Clad jumps inside High Charity and commences its infection. TheProphet of Mercy becomes infected by the Flood.
• John-117 is unable to prevent the Index from leaving High Charity with Tartarus. Instead, on the advice of Cortana, the Spartan stows away aboard theForerunner Dreadnought that is carrying theHigh Prophet of Truth to Earth. Cortana remains behind to ensure the destruction of Installation 05, should that become necessary.
• Cortana sends a slipspace message to Earth informing them that John-117 is en route.
• The Arbiter reaches Installation 05's Control Room but is unable to prevent Tartarus from activating the ring. With the help of humans and theSangheili, the Arbiter kills Tartarus. This allows Commander Keyes to physically remove the Index fromthe Core, temporarily interrupting the firing sequence. Due to the interruption, Installation 05 automatically sends a signal to all other Forerunner installations in the galaxy, activating and placing them in standby mode.
• TheUNSCDusk arrives at Delta Halo and witnesses the final stages of the Battle of Installation 05. She retreats to Earth via an anomalousslipspace wake caused by the Forerunner ship.
• Dr. Halsey andKelly-087 arrive at Onyx and are trapped along with the rest of the human survivors. Halsey sends a distress signal piggybacked on Cortana's October 28 signal.
• TheBattle of Havana is fought.William-043, Linda-058, andFrederic-104 manage to stall the Covenant's forces inHavana,Cuba by destroying theCentennial Orbital Elevator. They receive new orders from Dr. Halsey to redeploy from Earth to Onyx, capture the Covenant destroyerBloodied Spirit, and depart for Onyx.
• Voro 'Mantakree is promoted toFleet Master byImperial AdmiralXytan 'Jar Wattinree, and is given the mission to intercept the Spartans heading for Onyx and to retrieve the Forerunner technologies said to be there.
• Danforth Whitcomb'sNOVA bomb detonates on board the Covenant supercarrierSublime Transcendence, in orbit above the Sangheili outpost worldJoyous Exultation, destroying every ship in the vicinity, and also scorching a quarter of Joyous Exultation and completely vaporizing the nearby moonMalhiem.
• TheDusk arrives at Earth after mere hours. Upon arrival, she is reassigned toBattle Group Omicron. The group jump to Onyx via theBloodied Spirit' slipspace wake.
• Blue Team arrives at Onyx aboard the capturedBloodied Spirit, and links up with Kurt-051, Kelly-087, Dr. Halsey, Chief Mendez, and the SPARTAN-III's. They proceed to push forward into Zone 67, retreating further underground when a newly arrivedCovenant fleet begins landing troops.
• AdmiralPatterson'sbattle group arrives at Onyx to retrieve the survivors, but is unsuccessful due to the Covenant presence. The UNSC battlegroup is destroyed, with the exception of theDusk, which avoids destruction by remaining stealthed.
• After an emergency mission redirect by the ONI AIEndless Summer, Kurt-051 and his forces proceed to destroy theSentinel factory in Onyx's polar region and retrieve Team Katana, enclosed withinslipspace field pods.
• Onyx is found to be an artificial structure built by the Forerunners to house ashield world. The human survivors hold off pursuing Covenant troops long enough to flee to the safety of the shield world.
• Kurt promotesFrederic-104 toLieutenant, Junior Grade.
• Kurt-051 dies after detonating 2 FENRIS warheads inside Onyx'score room antechamber.
• The Onyx Conflict ends. Sentinels annihilate the remaining Covenant forces as Onyx's artificial landmass disintegrates.
• Chol Von, aT'vaoanshipmistress, renamed hermissionary shipJoyous Discovery asParagon at some point of the Great Schism.^[57] During the Schism, she captured aPhantom, killing twoSangheili in the process.^[58]

November 4

• In an effort to contain the Flood outbreak,Thel 'Vadam's Covenant faction begins glassing Installation 05's surface and proceed to destroy any ships leaving the ring.^[59][60]
• Cortana is deposited intoHigh Charity's distributed network.^[61]

November 7

• ACatalog unit, having been dormant for 100,000 years after the firing of the Halo Array, resumes its duties after receiving and denying a control authorization supposedly sent by theLibrarian.^[62]

November 8

• The Prophet of Truth arrives in theSol system aboard the Forerunner Dreadnought, and proceeds on course towards Earth at near-relativistic speeds.^[63] However, due to John-117's presence aboard the vessel the ship's crew becomes preoccupied with finding and eliminating the Spartan.^[59]

November 8 through November 15^[13]

• Sergeant Major Johnson andCommander Keyes arrive back at Earth from Installation 05.

November 8 through November 17

• TheBattle of Mare Erythraeum takes place onMars. Following the battle, Colonel James Ackerson, commander of the UNSC forces on Mare Erythraeum, is taken hostage and interrogated by the Jiralhanae CommanderLepidus on board the Covenant cruiserTriumphant Declaration, who tells them of a Forerunner device linked to theHalo Array known as theKey of Osanalan, and that it can be found inCleveland,Ohio. In reality, the Key of Osanalan is made up as a ploy by James Ackerson to prevent Cleveland from being glassed as part of the battle on Earth in a bid to save the life of his brother,Ruwan, who lives there.
• Battle of Cleveland: Covenant forces, looking for the Key of Osanalan, invade the city of Cleveland. After Ruwan learns the reason the Covenant are invading, he devises a plan withSergeant Twyker.

November 10

• TheURNA Southwest Campaign begins as Covenant forces start to excavate and occupy built-up positions centered aroundFree-fire Area OZONE inArizona,URNA.^[13]

November 15

• 1649 hours: Sergeant Major Johnson gets clearance fromLord Hood to questionVergil aboutthe artifact the High Prophet of Truth is digging up near Voi.^[13] Captain Dare participates in the interrogation.
• 1725 hours: AIBarca generates the interrogation into areport for Lord Hood.^[13]

November 17^[63]

John-117 and the Forerunner Dreadnought entering Earth's atmosphere.

• Believing the Spartan to be dead, the Prophet of Truth orders the crew of the Forerunner Dreadnought to jump further in-system and enter Earth's atmosphere.^[59]
• The Dreadnought arrives at Earth, and John-117 makes contact with Lord Hood aboard theCairo.^[64] Shortly after, the Spartan is ordered to find a way off the ship to avoid being caught in the impending destruction of a nearby Covenant cruiser,Harbinger of Piety.^[65]
• Injected with anorganic tracking material, Ruwan, claiming to the Covenant that he himself is the Key, is taken aboard the cruiserHarbinger of Piety, where theMinister of Inquisition vows to spare Earth in exchange for Ruwan's knowledge.Nassau Station then uses itsMagnetic Accelerator Cannon to obliterate thePiety and everyone on board.^{[65][Note 1]}
• John-117 proceeds to eject from the ship, using a hatch as a heat shield upon re-entry. Meanwhile,Battle of Sector Six takes place atSector Six. There, numerous Marines of the2nd ODST Battalion track John-117's descent. John-117 eventually lands in theTanzanian jungle nearMount Kilimanjaro, going unconscious for hours.
• The Prophet of Truth's Dreadnought lands in the middle ofthe Portal nearVoi,Kenya. During the last few weeks, Truth's fleet have almost entirely uncovered the Portal and occupied the entire region surrounding it.
• After the Key of Osanalan is revealed to be a ruse, Lepidus executes Ackerson aboardTriumphant Declaration.
• UNSC forcesrecover John-117 from a jungle nearMount Kilimanjaro. In the underground facility ofCrow's Nest, a plan is formulated to launch an aerial strike on Covenant anti-air defenses in the town ofVoi in order to prevent the Prophet of Truth from activating the Forerunner artifact. After repelling aCovenant assault on Crow's Nest and destroying the base in the process, a UNSC strike force led by John-117retakes the Covenant-heldTsavo Highway.
• Battle of Voi: John-117 and a Marine strike force enter Voi and gradually push back the city's Covenant occupiers, destroying the Covenant anti-air defenses in the city. Anaerial strike force consisting of theUNSCForward Unto Dawn and at least six other frigates^[66] as well as numerous Longsword fighters assaults the Forerunner Dreadnought resting over the Portal artifact, but are unsuccessful in damaging the ship. Truth activates the portal and retreats through it toInstallation 00 along with his forces. At the same moment, aFlood-controlled ship slips in, crashing in Voi.
• Covenant battlenet cohesion breaks down after Truth's departure, allowing UNSC forces in the southwest URNA to begin a major counteroffensive as part of their ongoing campaign.^[13]

The Ark portal on Earth activates.

• UNSC forces make their way toward the crashed ship in order to overload its reactors and contain the Flood outbreak, just as the SangheiliFleet of Retribution arrives and drops in reinforcements. After recovering a message byCortana from the Flood ship, John-117 and the remaining human and Sangheili forces retreat from Voi, as the Fleet of Retribution glasses the city and its surroundings in order to contain the Flood.
• UNSC and Sangheili leaders gather aboard the Sangheili assault carrierShadow of Intent to hear Cortana's message, which reveals there is a way to stop the Flood on the other side of the Portal. Despite Lord Hood's argument to stay and defend Earth from an encroaching now-Flood-infested High Charity, Commander Keyes, along with the Master Chief and the Sangheili, enter the Portal with the Fleet of Retribution and theDawn, leaving Hood behind to coordinate Earth's remaining defenses.

November 18

• 1545 hours: High Charity arrives at Mars and makes a slipspace jump to the lesser Ark.^[67]
• TheUNSCCrassus is spotted byJiralhanae hunting parties and boarded. However, after capturing the flight deck, the Jiralhanae andUnggoy attackers have difficulty pushing into the vessel's cramped interior. The resulting stalemate convinces the Jiralhanae to withdraw, settling on destroying thesupercarrier's flight tower as they depart.^[68]

November 19

• 0630 hours: At Free-fire Area OZONE in Arizona, UNSC flagwordLUX is declared and aUEG emergency evacuation broadcast is initiated.
• 0700 hours: The UNSC uses nuclear weapons against multiple shielded Covenant positions.^[13]

December[edit]

A battle rages above Installation 00.

December 3

• AdmiralJoseph Harper initiatesOperation: MARSH FLASH in Arizona, eliminating clusters of high-ranking Jiralhanae leadership attempting to activate an artifact at Free-fire Area OZONE, effectively bringing a close to theURNA Southwest Campaign.^[13]

December 11^[69][70]

• TheBattle of Installation 00: The joint Sangheili-human force arrives at Installation 00 and immediately engages Truth's forces while theUNSCForward Unto Dawn deploys ground forces to locate Truth. Despite being outnumbered three to one in space, the separatist fleet makes short work of the Covenant space forces. After locating Truth via the Cartographer, the separatist-UNSC alliance launches an assault on the Ark'sCitadel where Truth intends to activate the Halo Array. At the same time the former Covenant city ship High Charity arrives from slipspace and crashes on the Ark. Debris spread from the city-ship helps spread a new Flood infestation on the Ark. The Sangheili and UNSC finish off the last stand of the Covenant's resistance, consisting of two Scarabs and many other ground forces, ina large battle before the Citadel.

The death of Truth and the Covenant's end.

• Miranda Keyes is killed when she attempts to rescue Johnson from Truth inside of the Citadel. With Truth moments away from activating the Halo array, John-117 and the Arbiter temporarily ally themselves with the Flood and storm the Citadel. They shut down the Halo array, and the Arbiter executes Truth, finally ending the Human-Covenant War.
• The Human-Covenant War ends.
• The Flood immediately turn against John-117 and 'Vadam, but the pair escape. Soon after, it is discovered that the Ark's foundry has createda replacement for the destroyed Installation 04. Realizing that the ring could be used to fire a tactical pulse which would eliminate the Flood infestation, John-117 decides to light it. In order to do so, he enters the ruins of High Charity and recovers Cortana, who still possesses the Activation Index from the original Installation 04. High Charity is destroyed in the process.
• With the Index secure, John-117, Cortana, the Arbiter, and Sergeant Major Johnson travel to the replacement Installation 04, while the rest of the UNSC and Sangheili forces return to Earth on theShadow of Intent. In the control room, Johnson is killed as 343 Guilty Spark attempts to prevent him from activating the ring prematurely, as doing so would destroy the ring. John-117 destroys the monitor and begins the firing sequence for the Halo ring. John-117 and the Arbiter then escape the control room by taking Johnson's Warthog to the UNSC FrigateForward Unto Dawn, which is holding position nearby.
• Due to the unstable, incomplete nature of the ring as it fires, the slipspace portal collapses as theDawn enters it, causing it to be sheared in two. The Halo ring explodes causing heavy damage to the Ark, rending both defunct. Cortana and John-117 are in the hangar area at the time of the Frigate's separation, and are thus left in the aft section of the ship, which falls out of Slipstream space at an unknown location, eventually drifting towards a Forerunnershield world,Requiem.

December 14

• 000 Tragic Solitude orders his sentinels to begin the construction of acontainment shield around the remains of High Charity for quarantine.^[71]

December 15

• John-117 has an augmentation maintenance scheduled for this date.^[72]

December 23

• ArbiterThel 'Vadam returns to Earth using the forward half of theDawn, crashing into the Indian Ocean.^[70]

December 30

• TheShadow of Intent is repaired and refitted at a mobile shipyard.^[73]

December 31

• Codename: SURGEON filed a report toCodename: USUAL SUSPECTS entitled "Historical/Psychological Analysis of Cole, Preston J." The report was filed fromUNSCPoint of No Return in synchronous orbit on the far side ofLuna.^[74]

Unknown date

• Unaware of the Human-Covenant War's conclusion not long earlier, the Spartan-II Gray Team destroy theSangheili colony ofGlyke with aNOVA bomb according toOperation: SUNSPEAR's Condition Endgame.^[75]

Battles[edit]

Human-Covenant War

• Battle of Beta Eridani
• Operation: FIRESIDE
• Battle of Fumirole
• Massacre of Troy
• Battle of Sigma Octanus IV
• Fall of Reach (Engagements)
• Battle of Tribute
• Raid on Verge
• Battle of Beta Gabriel
• Battle of Line Installation 1-4
• Battle of New Jerusalem
• Raid on Mount Haven
• Battle of Installation 04 (Engagements)
• Massacre at Eridanus Secundus
• Operation: FIRST STRIKE
• Battle of Earth (Engagements)
• Battle of Installation 05 (Engagements)
• Onyx Conflict
• Battle of Mare Erythraeum
• Scramble onboard Forerunner Dreadnought
• Battle of Installation 00 (Engagements)
• Operation: SUNSPEAR

The Great Schism

• Fall of High Charity

Other/Unknown

• Battle of October 10
• Battle of the Gas Mine

Trivia[edit]

• All fiveHalo games developed byBungie take place in the latter half of this year.
• The numerical value of the year is one of Bungie's many references to the numberseven. Specifically, adding the numerals results in 14, which has twice the value of 7. Adding the two halves of the year separately (2+5 and 5+2) results in a pair of sevens.

Notes[edit]

Sources[edit]

• 26th century

• Articles needing references
• Pages using page number in novel citations