Halo: Still Midnight
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It has been suggested that this page be split into Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3 for the following reason: as per Battle for the Academy. Please see the talk page for more details. |
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Halo: Still Midnight is an ongoing entry in the Halo Waypoint Chronicle series of short stories, set to be released in three parts throughout 2026 to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Halo franchise.[2] It is being produced by Halo Studios in conjunction with the community podcast group JumperScape, who had previously recreated other stories from the series in an audio drama format in an unofficial series titled "Stories From Waypoint". They also contributed to the audiobook release of Halo: Waypoint Chronicles - Volume One, alongside guest hosting Canon Fodder Live at the Halo World Championship in 2025.[3] The team behind Stories From Waypoint team are working on the audio component of the story,[4] which is set to include other members of the Halo community.[5]
Still Midnight will follow a group of new characters aboard UNSC Infinity while the ship is en route to Installation 07, immediately before the events of Halo Infinite.[2]
Official summary[edit]
| “ | December 2559. A faction of rogue artificial intelligences known as the Created, led by the Archon Cortana, have enforced an imperial peace upon the peoples of the galaxy. Whole worlds are now subject to martial law under threat of annihilation.
Aboard the UNSC Infinity is humanity’s best hope to turn the tide as preparations have been made for an all-out assault on Cortana’s throne—Zeta Halo. With the UNSC flagship just hours away from exiting slipspace, the crew savors their final moments of peace...[6] |
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Plot summary[edit]
Part 1[edit]
On December 12, 2559, aboard the UNSC Infinity, Doctor Audra Galiniene met with Armor Technician Gustavo Torres, scolding him for being late because he had been polishing his hydraulic actuator, "Asuka" due to Gustavo having his name down to be part of Operation: BREAKER TRIP. Gustavo then asked why Audra didn't gone ahead and grabbed their table, Audra responded that she hated sitting alone and was concerned of other people sitting there, to which Gustavo told that no one else likely would after their shift rotation since they started hanging out before realizing that she hadn't checked if the others would join them. Audra admitted that she had been busy going through her notes of an "artifact", about to discuss the intricacies of slipspace translocation through alien technology when she interrupted Gustavo receiving a call from Sergeant Riley Anderson asking where the two were. He tells them that Ersu 'Kybol was likely on his way and told there to get there quick so he would avoid making small talk with him, who Riley was about call a "Split-jaw" before correcting himself, on what he believed would be their last day alive.
On their way, Audra asks Gustavo what Spartan Locke was like, giddily speculating of the prototype Watershed Division "toys" and wondering why he was deployed ahead of time. Gustavo simply told her that it was a suit-up job before telling her that he had told her more than he should about it. The two eventually meet Riley in the Universal Translator and begin ordering drinks. Gustavo initially planned to order Hiskal, but Riley wanted something fancy for what could be their last day while Audra wondered where Ersu was.
Elsewhere, Varo 'Ahtal asks Ersu why they are there. Ersu asks if Varo is asking a spiritual question, but Varo specifies that he is asking why they are on the Infinity working alongside humans. When Ersu inquires as to what he means, Varo brings up that Ersu once served as an Ossoona and asks if their alliance is folly. Ersu asks if Varo thinks so, to which Varo states that he believes they are in an alliance of convenience, first against the Covenant and now against Cortana and the Created, noting that Cortana was a human creation and that the Prophets at least possessed the wisdom to not create Smart AIs themselves. Ersu recommends Varo get some rest, but Varo tells him that he is tired because of what the humans had unleashed upon the galaxy and asks if he thinks of the crimes they had committed. Ersu tells him that he thinks often of their own crimes during their time in the Covenant, refusing to think for themselves, allowing generations of Sangheili to be used as warriors for the Prophets and subjugating numerous other species into the hegemony, bringing peace through subjugation. He asks if they were any different from Cortana before leaving to meet with Audra, Gustavo and Riley in the Universal Translator for a game of cards.
At the bar, Ersu orders three Hiskals and an Alt Burgundy from Marina Rebledo. After hearing of the two-drink limit due to pre-mission rules, Ersu points to the M90 shotgun mounted on the wall behind her and suggests it could be relocated for use during an engagement, but Marina tells him that it doesn't have any ammo in it to comply with regulations, something she is unsure if she remembers to do so. After telling him that she'll bring the drinks to their table, Ersu invites Marina to join them, to which she agrees. After introducing each other, Marina remarks they seem like an odd group and asks how they came to be friends.
Riley recounts an engagement during the Requiem Campaign while serving as a support group aboard G79H Pelican Romeo 41 in early 2558, where they received orders to take an artifact recovered by Fireteam Crimson back to the Infinity. During the return, they were pursued by Covenant craft led by a Bkowe'nei-pattern Vampire. Audra was able to take out the Vampire using the Pelican's M8C Grindell/Galilean Nonlinear Cannon, and finish off the other Is'belox-pattern Banshees and Ru'swum-pattern Phantoms with some help from the Infinity's F-41 Broadswords and the Swords of Sanghelios Elsedda-pattern Banshee Accord Wing, led by Ersu. The Pelican's pilot Caleb Ward offered Ersu an invite to the Universal Translator for a round of drinks to celebrate, which he agreed. Since then, the four had then had kept coming back to the bar. Marina then asked what happened to Caleb, to which the group falls silent before Ersu proposed they toast to him.
Upon arriving at Zeta Halo, the group prepares to deploy until the Infinity is suddenly violently hit. After finding their bearings, they look to see Banished dreadnoughts and prepare for boarders.
Part 2[edit]
Picking up where Part 1 left off, Doctor Audra Galiniene, Armor Technician Gustavo Torres, Sergeant Riley Anderson, Bartender Marina Rebledo and