Ages of Reclamation: Difference between revisions

The '''Ages of Reclamation''' is an era of [[Covenant]] history in which the true search for the [[Halos]] began. Curiously enough, the Covenant use of the term "Reclamation" in describing their search for the [[Halos]], possibly hinting that the Covenant see themselves as affiliated with the [[Forerunners]] and worthy of "reclaiming" the Forerunner rings. The Ninth Age of Reclamation is the time in which the [[Human-Covenant War]] happens. The Ninth age began when the [[Minister of Fortitude]] became the [[Prophet of Truth]] and declared war on the [[Human]] race.<ref>''[[Halo: Contact Harvest]]'', page 379</ref>

In 2530, the Covenant Empire attacked and glassed [[Eridanus II]], homeworld of the Master Chief. The [[Battle of Harvest]] then took place in 2531, the first major space engagement between the [[UNSC]] and the Covenant. The Covenant was outnumbered and the UNSC stood victorious, barely. In 2535, the Covenant destroyed [[Jericho VII]] in the [[Battle of Jericho VII]], and by that year, the Covenant were winning decisive victories against the UNSC, crushing its [[Outer Colonies]]. By 2536, Covenant militants swarmed into [[UNSC]] [[Inner Colonies]]. For several years, human lives were spent in huge numbers winning ground operations, only to be wasted after the Covenant won the battle in space, glassing the Inner Colonies one after another.  

Then, in 2537, [[Spartan-III]]s were trained and deployed in the battles of [[New Harmony]], [[New Constantinople]], and the [[Siege of the Atlas Moons]]. In [[Operation: PROMETHEUS]], Spartan-III Alpha Company was slaughtered by Covenant forces. Noted however, they managed to succeed in their goal of destroying the reactors on the moon. In 2544, the minor [[Battle of Miridem]] took place. In 2545, [[Operation: TORPEDO]] resulted in the massacre of Spartan-III Beta Company at [[Pegasi Delta]]. In 2552, the [[Battle of Sigma Octanus IV]] lead to a major UNSC victory, but at the cost of the Covenant learning the location of [[Reach]] and [[Installation 04]]. During the [[Battle of Reach]], the largest naval battle between the UNSC and the Covenant, Covenant forces won a decisive victory, destroying 152 UNSC ships and 20 Super MAC gun platforms. This was a major blow to the UNSC, who lost their last great stronghold, with the exception of [[Earth]]. A single UNSC ship, the ''[[UNSC Pillar of Autumn]]'' escaped to Installation 04. After four days of hard fighting in the [[Battle of Installation 04]], the Covenant discovered the [[Flood]] organism and [[Forerunner]] constructs, which hampered their efforts to control the Installation. The melee ended with the destruction of [[Installation 04]], an event that left only a handful of survivors.  

The Commander of the Fleet tasked with defending Installation 04 was put on trial, marked as a Heretic to quell discontent within the [[High Council]]. Later, he became [[the Arbiter]], embarking on missions to quell a [[Heretic]] insurgency, and to retrieve the [[Index]] and  [[Oracle|343 Guilty Spark]]. Then, in [[Operation: FIRST STRIKE]], Six SPARTAN-II super soldiers were able to rout and destroy all but a dozen or so of a fleet of 500 Covenant starships in orbit around ''[[Unyielding Hierophant]]'' through the sacrifice of [[Admiral Whitcomb]] and [[Lieutenant Haverson]] on board ''[[Ascendant Justice]]''. The survivors on board the ''[[UNSC Gettysburg]]'' surveyed the damage and jumped to Earth, scoring a major UNSC victory. The [[First Battle of Earth]] then occurred. Though a relatively small and lopsided battle (15 Covenant ships fighting 75 UNSC vessels and 300 MAC platforms) this event is significant in that the Covenant discovered the location of Earth.