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Installation 04

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Installation 04 redirects here. For other uses, see Installation 04 (disambiguation).
Installation 04
H2A-AlphaHaloDiscovery.jpg
General overview

Location:

Soell system, in orbit around Threshold,[1] Orion Arm,[2] Milky Way

Gravitational anchor:

Threshold/Basis[1]

Operation overview

Type:

Halo Installation

Function:

  • Galactic sterilization[3]
  • Flood containment and research[3]

Attached AI(s):

Monitor 343 Guilty Spark

Date of construction:

97,445 BCE[3]

Date of destruction:

September 22, 2552

Structural information

Diameter:

10,000 kilometers (6,214 mi)[1]

Surface width:

318 kilometers (198 mi)[1]

Gravity:

0.992 G (approx)[1]

Surface temperature:

-23°C to 40°C (-9°F to 104°F) (controlled)[1]

Atmospheric composition:

1 (N2, O2)[1]

 

"Whoever controls Halo controls the fate of the universe."
Captain Jacob Keyes

Installation 04, also known as Alpha Halo, or simply Halo,[4] was one of seven ring-shaped superweapons that comprised the Forerunners' Halo Array. It was located in the Soell system in the Orion Arm and was the closest Halo ring to the human sphere.[2]

The Covenant reverentially described Installation 04 as either the First Holy Ring or the First Sacred Ring. After its destruction at the end of the Battle of Installation 04, the Ark started to construct a replacement for Installation 04. After the replacement was destroyed, the Ark constructed yet another replacement.

Overview[edit]

Installation 04.

The purpose of Installation 04, along with its brethren, was to preclude and thwart the parasite forms known as the Flood from consuming all sentient life in the galaxy by destroying all sentient life to prevent eventual consumption. In the event of a Flood outbreak, one of the seven installations could be triggered (in turn triggering the remaining Halos) to annihilate all sentient life within a radius of 25,000 light years. In the event of an unexpected shutdown, all remaining rings would go into a "standby state", in which they could be fired at once from the Ark if need be.

Installation 04, until its destruction by John-117, was controlled by the Forerunner artificial intelligence construct (Monitor), 343 Guilty Spark.

Astronomical Features[edit]

Installation 04 orbited the massive gas giant Threshold, and was suspended in the Lagrange point between Threshold and its largest natural satellite, Basis. The installation had a 24-degree axial tilt from Threshold's orbital plane. Due to this, any given point on the surface of the ring received sunlight from the star Soell for half of the time it was on the sunny side of Threshold, and none when was on the dark side. This created a somewhat unusual day-night cycle for the ring, in which it was dark three-fourths of the time and had no sunrise or sunset similar to those of a planet.[5]

With a diameter of 10,000 km and a surface width of 318 km, the ring has a surface area of 9,990,000 km2.

Environmental Features[edit]

The climate of Installation 04 was very similar to Earth's climate. The weather was, however, extremely unpredictable - rain and snowfall could occur at random, leading Cortana to wonder if the weather was intentionally irregular, or if it followed a pattern, such as snow being deliberately triggered at the control room to slow the Flood.[6][7] Rain was observed stopping as if at the flip of a switch.[8] There have been hurricanes over the oceans on the ring.[9] "Blood-warm" rain occurred during the UNSC occupation of Alpha Base.[10]

Locations[edit]

A view depicting one of Installation 04's many beam emitters in Halo: Combat Evolved.
The surface of Installation 04.

Ecology[edit]

The ring boasted many diverse biomes and ecosystems across its habitable inner surface, including mountain ranges, glaciers, deserts, jungles, temperate forests, lush swamps, arid highlands, and vast seas.[11] The area where Alpha Base was located was remarked as being comparable to the Cascade mountain range of Earth's Pacific Northwest.[12]

Flora[edit]

Multiple varieties of coniferous trees, broadleaf trees, ferns, clovers, low-growing bushes, xerophytic scrubs, and various grasses were a common sight in many of its biomes. Many species grew directly from cliff walls and elevated rock features. Aquatic plants could be found in some of its streams and rivers.[13] One tree species distributed across multiple biomes on the ring shared morphological similarities with Earth Araucaria trees, but with leaf architecture similar to fan palms; these were seen reaching massive size in the swamps around the Flood containment facility.[13][14][15][16]

The area near the beacon towers where Master Chief first made landfall had a striking similarity to the Pacific Northwest of Earth. The meadowed landscape featured many species of pine tree, including Douglas firs and some trees resembling upright juniper or cypress. Hanging vines with a helical growth pattern were observed on the cliffs, alongside other species of ivy.[13][17]

One plateau in an arid region on the ring showed extensive exposure of lateral root systems in its rock walls.[18]

The island housing the installation's Cartographer had trees with large buttressed aerial root structures similar to mangroves, suggesting the trees needed extra stability in soft soil. Plants very similar to bromeliads with epiphytic root mats could be found on the island. Large toadstools could be found on some trees around the island.[19]

Some of the ring's arctic regions featured very tall pine trees and small shrubs suited to the cold environment.[7][20]

Echo 419 flies John-117 into the swamps of Alpha Halo to retrieve Captain Keyes.
A swamp on Installation 04.

The swamps around the Flood containment facility had extensive organic mats and humus covering much of its surface,[21] sometimes growing around and subsuming structures which may have been decaying tree stumps, and hosted species of aquatic reeds, water lillies, fan palms, and multiple types of variegated tree ferns, one of which could be found at at least one other location.[22] The swamp showcased some of the installation's exotic megaflora, including giant trees with thick, "spider-like" roots,[21], the shape of which may have been formed after the tree grew on decaying matter, which subsequently eroded. Their high crowns formed a canopy at a height of 76.8 meters, preventing most sunlight from reaching the ground. The swamp was also home to large, bioluminescent fungi which grew up to a height of at least 40.5 meters. The same helical hanging vines near the beacon towers grew from the canopies and branches, along with the same species of bromeliad-like plants found on the Cartographer island. Stranglers could be seen encasing many of the trees, and uniquely large stromatolitic fungal growths with heights up to 4.4 meters and a diameter up to 8.9 meters were observed.[15][16]

One area of the ring also showed a similarity to Earth's Pacific Northwest, populated with pine and birch trees, ferns, and idyllic grassy reaches. It was home to numerous types of low-growing flowering plants reminiscent of lilly, phlox, and daisies.[23]

The area around the weather spires was also evocative of the Pacific Northwest, and had plants nearly identical to the California poppy.[24]

Cryptogam growth could be observed on many architectural, geological, and organic structures (like tree trunks), including various types of moss, fungi, and lichen, some of which grew aerially or in large fruticose masses.[22] Mycelial growth patterns could be seen with the naked eye in many patches of soil on the installation.

Fauna[edit]

On many regions of the ring, plentiful animal cries could be heard, some uncannily reminiscent of Earth natives such as songbirds, frogs,[16] peafowl,[13] and howler monkeys.[16] Insect noises similar to those produced by Earth crickets, cicadas, and flies could also be heard. Insect bite marks were observed on the leaves of various local flora.[25] Sea worms could be found in the waters around the Cartographer island.[14] The swamps around the Flood containment facility hosted species of moth-like insects, swamp birds,[21] and fireflies.[15] The area around the ring's weather spires was home to bluegill, seagulls, and had berry-producing plants that were likely evidence of reproduction through zoochory.[24] Another location was home to monarch butterflies and wildflowers, possibly indicating other pollinators.[23]

The ring's catalogued species included colonies of Thanolekgolo.[26]

A segment of the broken ring.

Destruction[edit]

After the ring's destruction, trees were observed floating on bits of detritus in its debris field.[27]

On the Alpha Shard, extreme conditions caused by unstable proximity to Thotael only allowed extremophiles to survive the searing hot sixteen-hour "days", alongside organisms capable of seeking proper shelter. The extremophiles included moss-like vegetation, ferns, grasses, and small plants, all with coloration suggesting a chlorophyllous process. Macer speculated the plant life surviving on the fragment possibly wasn't carbon-based, but Ramos responded that it "could be a million things".[28] Before the fragment's destruction, recon drones and survey teams had discovered no less than five unique examples of organisms capable of such extreme states of biological stasis that they challenged the conventional understanding of abiogenesis, the process by which inanimate matter becomes life, or vice-versa.[29] Swarms of Thanolekgolo survived the harsh conditions of the ring fragment and eventually posed a life-threatening obstacle for an ONI team searching for a unique bioweapon.[28]

History[edit]

Sentinels finalizing Installation 04's construction process.

Construction and early history[edit]

The Forerunners had Installation 04 constructed by the Foundry of Installation 00[30] approximately around the same time as the rest of the Halo Array, circa 97,445 BCE during the Forerunner-Flood war.[3][31] The array was designed by the Forerunner Builders to combat the parasitic Flood by eradicating them and all sentient life in the Milky Way. After the rings were built, Installation 04 and its fellow Halos were distributed from Installation 00 to positions across the galaxy through slipstream space portals.[3][32]

When the IsoDidact activated the Array at the Forerunner-Flood war's conclusion, ending the centuries-long conflict, Installation 04 was the first to fire,[33] followed shortly after by the other six Halo rings. Installation 04 lay dormant for a hundred thousand years, with 343 Guilty Spark and his Sentinels ready to keep the Flood confined in the Flood containment facilities and keeping the infrastructure of the Halo in perfect working order.

Intermediate period[edit]

After eons of uneventful existence on Installation 04, 343 Guilty Spark eventually found himself bored. For his own amusement, Spark began an experiment in which he evacuated entire sections of the Installation into space; according to Spark, these were experiments to measure the geologic effects of exposure to the vacuum of space and the eventual biological recovery of the evacuated sections, in order to gain insight into emergency response scenarios.[34]

Around 40,000 BCE, an unidentified alien vessel crash landed in Sector 1215. Sometime prior to the crash the ship started broadcasting a distress signal.[35][36] After attempting to translate it, 343 Guilty Spark blocked the signal, as no communication revealing the location of any of the Halos was allowed.[35] After no lifeforms exited for several days, Spark had a large sarcophagus constructed around the vessel.[36]

Between the activation of the Array and the arrival of the UNSC and the Covenant, a number of space-faring species stumbled across the installation. Although they reportedly explored the facility and recorded their findings, all of these species eventually left without breaking containment.[37]

Discovery and destruction[edit]

Main article: Battle of Installation 04

"Halo... It's finished."
"No, I think we're just getting started.
"
— Cortana and John-117 after the destruction of Installation 04.
A screenshot of UNSC Pillar of Autumn arriving at Installation 04 in the level The Pillar of Autumn.
The UNSC Pillar of Autumn arrives at Installation 04.

The Covenant discovered the location of Installation 04 after the Covenant Fleet of Particular Justice followed the UNSC Pillar of Autumn, which was fleeing from the Fall of Reach through slipspace. The Halos are deeply ingrained into the Covenant's religious dogma, but prior to this discovery they had never actually found one. Due to the Covenant's faster slipspace capabilities, they arrived before the Pillar of Autumn.

The Pillar of Autumn arrived around September 19, 2552 and was promptly shot down by the warding Covenant ships. Shortly thereafter, the Covenant ground forces on Installation 04 accidentally unleashed the Flood from captivity. Humans, Flood, and the Covenant fought massive battles against one another as the Forerunner constructs tried to control the outbreak by activating Halo. The ring's monitor, 343 Guilty Spark, tried to convince the Master Chief to activate Halo. Not knowing the truth of what it did, he attempted to light the ring but was stopped by his AI friend and companion Cortana who was in the Core. She informed the Master Chief of Halo's true purpose and stashed the Activation Index in her memory banks. The Monitor betrayed the two and tried to kill the Master Chief and retrieve Cortana, but the two escaped and started plotting against him.

The destruction of Halo.

In the conclusion of the battle, John-117 detonated the Pillar of Autumn's fusion reactors in order to destroy the ring. The explosion critically damaged the superstructure below it; the resulting shockwave and damage to the ring's systems destabilized the ring, shattering it into pieces.[38][Note 1]

Only a handful of humans and Covenant survived the battle. 343 Guilty Spark floated through space to a gas mining platform over Threshold, where he stumbled upon a Covenant expeditionary force. Inspired by his words, they began a heretical rebellion against the greater Covenant. Installation 04's destruction is seen as the first step in the chain of events that led to the Great Schism. The Heretics were quelled by Arbiter Thel 'Vadam who silenced their leader, but the seeds of a rebellion were planted. The Monitor was then captured by the loyal Covenant and later defected to the humans' side until he was destroyed on the replacement Alpha Halo by SPARTAN-117 with the help of Sergeant Johnson.

Installation 04 was the first Halo installation encountered by humanity, as well as first to be destroyed. Its attempted firing triggered the activation of a portal leading to Shield World 006 within Onyx,[39] and also caused the Ark to start constructing a replacement ring.

Debris field[edit]

The burning wreckage of Installation 04, surrounded by vessels of the Covenant armada in the aftermath of the battle.

Installation 04's destruction left behind a large field of debris, with a few large chunks of the ring remaining.[40] Some smaller pieces of Installation 04 have landed on Basis, while others have burned up in Threshold's atmosphere upon entry.[41] One damaged fragment notably made a slipspace jump as a safety measure, and ended up in a distant system.[42]

The Mona Lisa[edit]

Main article: Skirmish on Mona Lisa

Following the return of the survivors from the battle, the Office of Naval Intelligence learned of the Flood lifeform. Section III sought to establish a research laboratory in order to control the Flood parasite and possibly weaponize it against the Covenant. A science team headed by Major John Smith was authorized to take command of the prison vessel Mona Lisa. After bringing a group of Covenant prisoners aboard, they jumped to the wreckage of Alpha Halo in the Soell system. Some Flood specimens had survived the ringworld's destruction and were recovered to be experimented on both human and Covenant prisoners. However, the Flood soon broke quarantine and infected the ship. ONI later dispatched a prowler, the UNSC Red Horse, to assess the status of the Mona Lisa under the pretenses of investigating Halo's debris field. On October 25, 2552, the prowler was forced to destroy the overrun vessel with a Shiva-class nuclear missile.[27]

First replacement[edit]

Main article: Installation 08

Shortly after the destruction of the Halo, Installation 00 began to automatically construct a new Halo to replace Installation 04. This exact copy of the first Halo ring was nearing completion only a few months after the first ring was destroyed, but was also subsequently destroyed when it was fired before it was ready by John-117 and Cortana. 343 Guilty Spark attempted to prevent this, but was finally destroyed by the Master Chief with the help of Sergeant Johnson in the new ring's Control Room.[43]

Post-war[edit]

The UNSC's peace treaty with the Swords of Sanghelios forbids either party from landing on the remains of Installation 04.[44] There is a 500-light-second exclusion zone surrounding the former site of the ring. In 2556, Spartan-IV Fireteam Apollo was deployed to the exclusion zone in direct violation of the treaty; there they recovered some items of value, including a "black box" from the Covenant cruiser Undiminished Entelechy.[45]

At some point after the war, a Spartan-IV reconnaissance team was deployed to Basis. Wearing VECTOR-class Mjolnir armor, a variant designed for artifact retrieval, their mission was to assess the debris of Alpha Halo scattered on the moon's surface.[46]

Alpha Shard from Halo Mythos
Swarms of Thanolekgolo on the Alpha Shard.

Lost fragment[edit]

Main article: Alpha Shard

When the Pillar of Autumn's reactors went critical, Installation 04 attempted to activate a safety measure and make a slipspace jump. However, this self-preservation protocol was only partly successful, and only a small portion of the ring managed to enter slipspace before the Autumn's reactors overloaded and destroyed the ring. The surviving fragment of the Halo reentered normal space in the vicinity of a red giant star some distance away from the Orrichon system and was caught in the giant star's orbit.[42] This fragment was home to a unique element apparently created by the heat of the ring's explosion and not found elsewhere in the universe. The element was later refined and used in a bioweapon unleashed in a terrorist attack on Sedra City.[44] A joint classified mission was launched to Alpha Shard by an ONI team and members of the Sedran Colonial Guard. Though most of the team was killed during the mission, Colonel Randall Aiken sacrificed himself to destroy the deposits with a HAVOK tactical nuclear weapon.[47]

Second replacement[edit]

Main article: Installation 09

During the UNSC Spirit of Fire's battle with the Banished at the Ark in March 2559, Captain James Cutter, Professor Ellen Anders, and logistics AI Isabel formed a plan to deploy the second replacement for Alpha Halo, Installation 09, to the Soell system in an attempt to send a distress signal to human space.[48] On the way to the original site of Installation 04 however, a Forerunner Guardian construct controlled by Cortana's Created intercepted the ring.[49]

Non-canon and dubious canon appearances[edit]

Silver Timeline[edit]

Makee discovered the location of the Halo ring from her and John-117's visions, which proves to be Installation 04 in the center of the Soell system. By tracking Makee's ship, the UNSC was able to locate the ring as well.[50]

When John arrived in Condor 325, he found the Covenant First Fleet of Solemn Accord chasing Makee and Arbiter Var 'Gatanai towards the Halo ring while the SPARTAN-IIIs prepare to launch a possible suicide mission that would destroy both the UNSC and Covenant fleets as well as the star system and the Halo ring.[50]

Trivia[edit]

Detail of the outer surface of the ring in Anniversary.

Redesigns[edit]

While the design of the Halos has stayed largely consistent across all post-Halo: Combat Evolved media, Installation 04 underwent a significant visual overhaul in Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary. The entire superstructure of the ring has been redesigned. To wit, the surface features are completely different and much more pronounced, including additions such as rows of prominent prongs lining the ring's edges and large-scale patterns of bluish light. This redesign has not been carried over to post-Anniversary media: the prongs are absent from Installation 03 in Halo 4, and a visual allusion to the Halos in Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn follows the original design. However, the "prong" design does make a subtle appearance on the outer shells of the arcade machines for Halo: Fireteam Raven.

Installation 04 also underwent a number of visual changes in Halo 2: Anniversary, including the addition of blue lighting in the circular patterns on the ring's outer surface. Curiously, Installation 05 in the same game uses a distinct model, which bears different surface patterning more closely modeled after that in Bungie's games but is noticeably wider than either the Installation 04 model in Halo 2 Anniversary or the Halos in prior media. Furthermore, Blur Studio used Installation 05's model, rather than that of the original Installation 04, from Halo 2 Anniversary for Installation 09 in Halo Wars 2.[51][52]

Miscellaneous[edit]

  • Sergeant Johnson humorously describes Installation 04 as "God's own anti-son-of-a-bitch-machine" and a "giant hula-hoop".
    • The former is surprisingly accurate as to the ring's actual function, since the Forerunners were worshiped as gods by the Covenant, the Flood could quite accurately be referred to as a "son of a bitch", and the ring's purpose is to fight the Flood.
  • Except for Boarding Action and Chiron TL-34, all Halo: Combat Evolved multiplayer maps are set on Installation 04.
  • It is possible to see falling debris from Installation 04 on the Halo 2 multiplayer map Burial Mounds.

Gallery[edit]

Concept art[edit]

Regular gallery[edit]

List of appearances[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ The particulars of Installation 04's destruction differ throughout its various depictions. In Halo: Combat Evolved, Combat Evolved Anniversary and most terminal depictions, a portion of the ring next to the Autumn's explosion is sent flying to the other side where it bisects the ring, further splintering the superstructure. The most noticeable change is in the flashback portion of the level The Heretic in Halo 2: Anniversary, where the fragment is no longer propelled to the other side and the ring simply shatters, with the explosions spreading in both directions of the epicenter in a chain reaction. The blue lights on the outer surface are also seen going out in this version. The Halo 2: Anniversary terminals give two versions of the ring's destruction, the first (in Terminal 4) being identical to Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary's Terminal 11, which is closer to the original Halo: Combat Evolved mechanics, although the ring's shattering is more violent. The second version, shown in Terminal 12, is closer in line with the depiction in Halo 2: Anniversary version of the flashback in The Heretic and lacks the shard being blasted to the opposite side.

Sources[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Halo: The Essential Visual Guide, page 6
  2. ^ a b Halo: Warfleet, page 12
  3. ^ a b c d e Halo Waypoint: Halo Array
  4. ^ Halo: Combat Evolved, campaign level Truth and Reconciliation: "They call it, Halo."
  5. ^ Halo: Combat Evolved: Sybex Official Strategies & Secrets, page 64
  6. ^ Halo: The Flood, page 107
  7. ^ a b Halo: Combat Evolved, campaign level Assault on the Control Room
  8. ^ TF5
  9. ^ Halo: The Flood, page 14
  10. ^ Halo: The Flood, chapter 4
  11. ^ Halo: The Flood, chapter 1
  12. ^ Halo: The Flood, chapter 7
  13. ^ a b c d Halo: Combat Evolved, campaign level Halo
  14. ^ a b Halo: Combat Evolved, campaign level Silent Cartographer
  15. ^ a b c Halo: Combat Evolved, campaign level 343 Guilty Spark
  16. ^ a b c d Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, campaign level 343 Guilty Spark
  17. ^ Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, campaign level Halo
  18. ^ Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, campaign level Truth and Reconciliation
  19. ^ Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, campaign level The Silent Cartographer
  20. ^ Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, campaign level Assault on the Control Room
  21. ^ a b c Halo: The Flood, chapter 8
  22. ^ a b Halo: Combat Evolved, multiplayer map Blood Gulch
  23. ^ a b Halo: Reach, multiplayer map Ridgeline
  24. ^ a b Halo: Reach, multiplayer map Tempest
  25. ^ Halo: Combat Evolved, game file D20.map\gbxmodel\scenery\plants\plant_yellowbig\plant_yellowbig.gbxmodel
  26. ^ Halo: Nightfall
  27. ^ a b Halo: Evolutions – Motion Comics - The Mona Lisa
  28. ^ a b Halo: Nightfall
  29. ^ Halo: Nightfall - Second Stories, episode RECON-14
  30. ^ Halo: Primordium, page 371
  31. ^ Halo Waypoint: Canon Fodder - Array With Words
  32. ^ Halo Legends - Origins
  33. ^ Halo: Silentium, String 38
  34. ^ Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary: Terminal 4
  35. ^ a b Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary: Terminal 5
  36. ^ a b Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary: Terminal 6 "I have now endured 60,000 years without word from outside the Array."
  37. ^ Conversations from the Universe, 343 Guilty Spark's Log
  38. ^ Halo: Combat Evolved, campaign level The Maw
  39. ^ Halo: Ghosts of Onyx, page 175: "Halsey: That timing coincides with the activation of an alien weapon world - before John thankfully destroyed it. It is no coincidence that the Sentinels appeared then. It must be part of a larger Forerunner plan."
  40. ^ Halo 2, campaign level The Heretic
  41. ^ Halo 2, multiplayer map Burial Mounds
  42. ^ a b Halo Waypoint - Universe: Alpha Shard
  43. ^ Halo 3, campaign level Halo
  44. ^ a b Halo: Nightfall: Chapter 1
  45. ^ Halo Legendary Crate, Data Drop 3
  46. ^ Halo 5: Guardians: VECTOR-class Mjolnir armor description
  47. ^ Halo: Nightfall: Chapter 5
  48. ^ Halo Wars 2, campaign level Hold the Line
  49. ^ Halo Wars 2, campaign level Last Stand
  50. ^ a b Halo: The Television Series, episode Thermopylae
  51. ^ Halo 2 Anniversary, Delta Halo model
  52. ^ Halo Wars 2, Installation 09 model