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Early Halo 2 script

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The early cinematic script.

The "Behind the Scenes: The Making of Halo 2" feature included with the Limited Collector's Edition of Halo 2, Joseph Staten flips rapidly through an early Halo 2 script.

All that can be transcribed is here. The undecipherable material has been denoted by question marks, and speculative material is colored red.

Note that "Dervish" was an early word for "Arbiter".

The Script[edit]

First Page[edit]

Image of Halo 2’s early cinematic script and a transcription of its readable content.
The first page.
(x01_1) EXT. SPACE - NEAR RUINS OF ALPHA HALO
A white title fades onto the black screen.
On and on shall old war go,
Without respite my blood will flow
O’er your eyes ‘til they cannot see
The impossibility of victory.
--Excerpt from the Writ of Union
Unknown Covenant Author
The title fades away, leaving a BLACK SCREEN. Beat.
FADE IN on the massive Covenant Holy City, "High
Charity", hanging on orbit above the gas-giant,
"Threshold".
As the camera ZOOMS slowly forward, distant voices emit
from inside the High Charity’s Council-Chamber.
ELITE COMMANDER (V.O.)
There was only one.
PROPHET OF TRUTH (V.O.)
One? Are you sure?
ELITE COMMANDER (V.O.)
Yes.
Beat.
ELITE COMMANDER (V.O.)
The Demon.
FADE IN
C205_20 INT. HIGH CHARITY – COUNCIL CHAMBER – CONT.
From the back, DOLLY PAST a row of seated PROPHET
COUNCILORS and toward the center of the Council Chamber. The
PROPHET COUNCILORS comment amongst themselves.
PROPHET COUNCILORS
(excited murmuring)

"He-re-tic" Page[edit]

The "He-re-tic" page.
GRUNT CACKLES
??? * He-re-tic *

??? too ??? hairy paw ??? the crowd ???.


"Elevator" Page[edit]

The "elevator" page.

??? - COMMAND DECK - CONT.

??? closed elevator door. The elevator comes to ??? audible ??? off-camera. ??? just as the CHIEF's elbow ??? The elevator door opens with a ??? MIRANDA exits the elevator, followed by MASTER CHIEF, JOHNSON ??? frozen in a painful wince.

??? on the Command Deck. Station ??? tasks with quick determination. They have a ??? win.

MIRANDA, MASTER CHIEF, and JOHNSON ??? center of the Command Deck where LORD HOOD ???


"Holotank" Page[edit]

Image of Halo 2’s early cinematic script and a transcription of its readable content.
The "holotank" page.

CORTANA
The Covenant data I retrieved was
hardly decisive. How can ONI be so
certain?
?????????????????? away from the holo-tank on MIRANDA. She
??????????????? and JOHNSON can get a better idea. LORD
HOOD ????????
LORD HOOD
Station, bring up this
morning’s tac-record, timestamp
delta-four-eleven.
CLOSE ON the HOLO-TANK. Earth is in the center of the
tank. The COVENANT fleet is packed tightly together a
good distance away from Earth. The human fleet is
portrayed in a loose line between Earth and the Covenant
fleet.



"Whole Career" Page[edit]

Image of Halo 2’s early cinematic script and a transcription of its readable content.
The "whole career" page.
LORD HOOD
Are you ready, Commander?
MIRANDA then salutes and squares her shoulders. This is the
moment she has been waiting for her whole career.
MIRANDA
Sir! Yes sir!
LORD HOOD smiles at MIRANDA. She’s just like her father.
He turns toward the MASTER CHIEF.
LORD HOOD
Master Chief, you will lead the
assault on the Covenant vessel.
ZOOM on the MASTER CHIEF and JOHNSON.
LORD HOOD (O. C.)
Sergeant Johnson and the In
Amber Clad’s company of ODSTs
will provide support.

"Jump-To-It" Page[edit]

Image of Halo 2’s early cinematic script and a transcription of its readable content.
The "jump-to-it" page
????????????????????????????????????????? and is built to
??????????????????????????????? withstand a high-impact
???????????????????????????????????? line both sides of the
???????????????????????
???????????????????????????????. He stands by his HEV’s hatch
????????????????????????????? to jump-to-it.
JOHNSON
Hurry to your cans, sardines!
The elite soldiers hustle past JOHNSON, grab hold of their
individual HEV re-entry bars, and swing into position.
JOHNSON (O. C.)
I wanna hear those bindings pop!
(x03_11) INT. IN AMBER CLAD – HEV – CONT.



"HEV" Page[edit]

???11) INT. IN AMBER CLAD – HEV – CONT.


"Shark" Page[edit]

The "shark" page.

??? EARTH – CONT.

??? "up" toward the camera. ??? ?-t's aft, rotates 180 degrees and, thrashing like a shark’s in bright water, ???? away from the camera.

??-ound, "beneath" the IN AMBER CLAD. The FLEET has visibly split to deal with the two-man attack.

???_17 INT. IN AMBER CLAD – HEV – CONT.


"No Wars" Page[edit]

Image of Halo 2’s early cinematic script and a transcription of its readable content.
The "no wars" page.
???????????????????????????????????????????????? A hairy paw
???????????????????????????????????????? loudly against the
???????????????????????????
BRUTE JAILER
????????? call you out.
?????????????????? COMMANDER. He does not move.
ELITE COMMANDER
But would you call me out
???????????????? COMMANDER. He opens his eyes.
ELITE COMMANDER (CONT’D)
...if there were no wars?

"Moments of Crisis" Page[edit]

Image of Halo 2’s early cinematic script and a transcription of its readable content.
The "moments of crisis" page
PROPHET OF TRUTH (O.C.)
????????????????????? the
???????????????????, the
????????????????? all those
???????????????ure, a Dervish.
???????????
??????????? PROPHET OF MERCY
PROPHET OF MERCY
There will always be moments of
crisis when honor matters less
than swift resolution.
???????? the PROPHET OF TRUTH.
PROPHET OF TRUTH

"Working Grunt" Page[edit]

The "working grunt" page.

??? of ??? fighter is ??? for the best. The ???

???? Grunts at the second site. ????? the time they have found, but ????

???? ELITE at the third site. He takes a ??? the wars as the Grunt works.


"Wounded Elite" Page[edit]

The "wounded Elite" page.
WOUNDED ELITE
??? to you… Commander.

???? DERVISH. He smiles, and squeezes the ??? soldier.

???? background, the SPEC-OPS OFFICER is engaged in a ???? discussion with a life-size holographic image of the PROPHET OF TRUTH and the PROPHET OF MERCY.


"Garland" Page[edit]

Image of Halo 2’s early cinematic script and a transcription of its readable content.
The "garland" page.
??????????????????????????????? and motions to the group of
BRUTES.
TARTARUS
??????????????r of the Hierarchs.
Come, we are leaving this system.
The DERVISH stares, dumbfounded, as TARTARUS exits the
remains of the control room. The two BRUTE GUARDS lift the
container with them, and heft it away from the
?????????
CLOSE ON the DERVISH. Slowly, he raises his head to
??????? that he has caught the MONITOR’S garland.
WIDE ANGLE. SLOW ZOOM toward the gruesome ???? ??? ???
??????? perimeter fills the right side of the frame.