H2:The Oracle

This article is about the campaign level. For the Forerunner monitor, see 343 Guilty Spark.

Prev:	The Arbiter
Next:	Delta Halo
The Oracle
Game:	Halo 2 (Anniversary)
File name (?):	04b_floodlab
Player:	Arbiter
Date:	October 20, 2552
Location:	Gas Mine inside Threshold's atmosphere
Objective(s):	Pursue and kill the Heretic Leader
Par Time:	00:25:00 (Master Chief Collection)
Par Score:	16,000 (Master Chief Collection)
	Halopedia has a walkthrough guide for this level; see H2:The Oracle/Walkthrough.

“

Kill the Heretic Leader. The Prophets' will be done.

”

The Oracle is the seventh campaign level of Halo 2, where the player plays as Thel 'Vadamee. Starting directly after Thel 'Vadamee lands the Banshee he was flying in the previous level, the opening cutscene has Rtas 'Vadumee comment on smelling a familiar stench. There are again Special Operations Sangheili and Unggoy as allies and sometimes, an Unggoy Ultra is deployed to assist the player.

This is the first level in Halo 2 in which the player encounters the Flood and some of their new abilities, most notably the ability of pod infectors to revive fallen combat forms.

The player goes down an elevator and up to the top of the gas mine to cut three cables. They then must backtrack to the hangar of the previous structure, complete with another Banshee-flying section, where the Arbiter engages in combat with the Heretic Leader to prevent him from escaping Threshold in a Kai-pattern Seraph. In the cutscene directly before the fight, it is shown that 343 Guilty Spark had survived the destruction of Installation 04 and was responsible for the "heresy" through his teachings.

Transcript

{Cutscene} {Anniversary Cutscene}

Thel 'Vadamee and Rtas 'Vadumee enter the facility.

A door slides open. Two Special Operations Sangheili cover the entrance with Okarda'phaa-pattern plasma rifles while Special Operations Unggoy file in. The Sangheili cautiously advance, followed by Rtas 'Vadumee and Thel 'Vadamee (who is armed with whatever weapon he had at the end of the previous level). Rtas 'Vadumee pauses and sniffs the air.

• Thel 'Vadamee: "What is it?"

• Rtas 'Vadumee: "That stench...I've smelled it before."

Juggernaut

The assault team proceeds through a small room, where a large tank containing some small, floating, fleshy lifeforms can be seen. The team approaches a doorway, and through the transparent floor of the next room below, they can see the shadows of Heretics and strange creatures battling. Eventually, all of the Heretics are killed. The victorious creatures have familiar screams...

• Special Operations Sangheili 1: "By the Rings. What is that?"

• Special Operations Unggoy 1 or 2: (whimpers)

• Special Operations Sangheili 1: "Quiet."

The creatures all leave through another doorway.

• Special Operations Sangheili 1: "It's moved on. Quickly, before it returns, let's find the Heretic Leader and finish him off."

The team moves into a laboratory, strewn with deformed corpses.

• Special Operations Sangheili 2: "What happened here?"

• Special Operations Unggoy 1: "Me have bad feeling about this."

• Special Operations Unggoy 2: "You always have bad feeling! You had bad feeling about morning food nipple!"

• Special Operations Sangheili 2: "Close your jaws, or I shall bind them shut!"

A floating orb enters the room, and the image of the Heretic Leader appears in the air.

• Special Operations Unggoy 1: "See! Heretic!"

The Unggoy fires on the image, which quickly becomes apparent as a hologram and nothing more.

• Rtas 'Vadumee: "Hold your fire. Hold your fire!"

• Sesa 'Refumee (hologram): (Noticing 'Vadamee) "I wondered who the Prophets would send to silence me. An Arbiter... I'm flattered."

• Rtas 'Vadumee: "He's using a holodrone. He must be close. (to 'Refumee) Come out, so we may kill you."

• Sesa 'Refumee (hologram): (laughs) "Get in line."

The Heretic Leader vanishes. Moments later, tiny bulbous creatures start to appear.

• Special Operations Sangheili 1: "Leader!"

• Rtas 'Vadumee: "Stand firm! The Flood is upon us!"

The team battles the oncoming Pod infectors. Unless the combat form corpses are destroyed, the Flood begin reanimating them.

• Special Operations Sangheili 2: "Heretic fools! What have they done?"

The Flood assault subsides, and a doorway opens out of the labs.

• Rtas 'Vadumee: "Go, Arbiter! I'll follow when our reinforcements arrive."

The Arbiter and the Special Operations team exit the lab, and step out onto a massive elevator platform. Flood and Sentinels are battling each other all around.

• Special Operations Sangheili 1 or 2: (whispers) "This place... it is filled with the parasite. Not even Heretics would have come here had they known this!"

'Vadamee and the survivors ride the elevator down to the lower levels of the labs, fighting multiple waves of Flood and Sentinels along the way. They finally reach the bottom and enter a hallway strewn with corpses.

• Special Operations Sangheili 1 or 2: "We should have brought weapons to burn these bodies. Every one is a (potential) vessel for the Flood."

The team advances into another lab where outnumbered Heretics attempt to use plasma turrets to hold back the Flood tide, which include bloated Flood incubators.

• Special Operations Sangheili 1 or 2: "Heretics! Above!"

The team is attacked by multiple waves of Flood and Heretics. Finally, a door opens and a group of Heretics enter the chamber. The Arbiter and any surviving Special Operations troops eliminate the Heretics and escape the chamber through the door.

• Phantom Pilot (COM): "Leader, the storm is about to hit! We cannot maintain our position!"

• Rtas 'Vadumee (COM): "Bring the Phantoms closer to the mine. We're not leaving until the leader of these Heretics is dead."

Vadamee manages to press outside to the exterior of the station. He sees Flood battling more Heretics, and a friendly Phantom swoops in to provide reinforcements and covering fire.

If all four allies (2 Unggoy and 2 Sangheili) from the beginning of the mission survive with the player up until this point, the next line will not be said in gameplay, and no reinforcements will be dropped off:

• Rtas 'Vadumee (COM): "Arbiter, the Flood have spread throughout the station! We don't have enough troops to manage such a large infestation. Find the leader of these Heretics, kill him now!"

'Vadamee and his troops advance into the heart of the installation, fighting past Heretics and Sentinels along the way. Inside the facility, they see the Heretic Leader fleeing.

• Special Operations Unggoy 1: "Heretic boss! You see, you see?"

Sesa 'Refumee takes cover behind a shielded door before 'Vadamee can catch him.

{Cutscene} {Anniversary Cutscene}

• Sesa 'Refumee: "This will save me from the storm, but you will be consumed."

'Vadamee pounds angrily on the shield door, but cannot break through as the doors seal. The Special Operations Commander and his troops arrive.

• Rtas 'Vadumee: "Arbiter, where is he? (sees the sealed doors after 'Vadamee nods toward it) Stinking Floodbait boxed himself in tight. We'll never break through this!"

'Vadamee notices a hologram of the station, and watches it thoughtfully.

• Thel 'Vadamee: "Then we shall force him out."

• Rtas 'Vadumee: "How?"

• Thel 'Vadamee: "The cable. I'm going to cut it. (turns to Rtas 'Vadumee) Get everyone back to the ships!"

In the Anniversary version, 'Vadumee can briefly be seen nodding at his troops to do it.

{Gameplay}

• Rtas 'Vadumee: "Warriors, return to the landing zone! The Arbiter is going to continue upward, cut this station loose, and scare the Heretic from his hole!"

• Special Operations Sangheili 1: "May our Lords guide your hand."

• Special Operations Sangheili 2: "We shall not forget your sacrifice."

If the player has an energy sword already:

• Rtas 'Vadumee: "Keep your blade handy. I doubt the cable can withstand its bite."

If the player does not have an energy sword:

• Rta