Franklin Mendez
From Halopedia, the Halo wiki
| Franklin Mendez | |
|---|---|
| |
| Biographical information | |
|
Homeworld: |
|
|
Born: |
|
| Personal details | |
|
Species: |
|
|
Gender: |
Male |
|
Height: |
188 centimetres (6 ft 2 in)[1] |
|
Weight: |
93 kilograms (205 lb)[1] |
|
Hair color: |
|
|
Eye color: |
Brown |
| Political and military information | |
|
Affiliation: |
|
|
Rank: |
Senior Chief Petty Officer[1] (retired) |
|
22926-11908-FM[1] | |
- "Nothing can kill the Chief."
- — A young John-117 refers to Mendez
Senior Chief Petty Officer Franklin Mendez (service number 22926-11908-FM)[1] is a retired UNSC Navy non-commissioned officer who was involved in the training of every supersoldier of both the SPARTAN-II and SPARTAN-III programs. His career is extensive and he has earned numerous medals and commendations fighting in the Insurrection and the Human-Covenant War.
Biography[edit]
Early life and military career[edit]
Franklin Mendez was born on the human colony of Sigma Octanus IV on March 21, 2492. At the age of sixteen, he enlisted in the United Nations Space Command with the approval of his parents and he left for Reach to begin his training. In 2514, he transferred to Naval Special Weapons, where he participated in some of the most challenging engagements of the Insurrection occurring within the Eridanus system—though the specifics of his activities during these operations remain highly classified. Upon being promoted to Chief Petty Officer, Mendez became heavily involved in the NAVSPECWAR training cadre, where his skills became quickly recognized by the UNSC Navy's Office of Naval Intelligence.[1] By 2517, then-CPO Mendez was regarded as the Navy's best hand-to-hand combat and physical training drill instructor, in addition to having substantial combat experience.[4]
SPARTAN-II training[edit]
Due to his skills, he was recruited to lead the training of the SPARTAN-II supersoldiers in 2516.[1] He was the Spartan-IIs' training leader during their first years on Reach from 2517 until 2525. He trained them in the aspects of combat as hard as any Marine when they were only at the age of six.[5] His military training was punctuated with in-class strategy sessions with AI Déjà.[6]
At the beginning of their training, CPO Mendez and his training instructors used electric batons to discipline trainees.[7] However, his trainers would occasionally use rifles with tranquilizer rounds to incapacitate the trainees (those who would eventually make up Gray Team) who attempted to escape. Eventually the Spartans, John-117 in particular, came to revere Mendez as a solid, unmovable force in their lives.[8] They had great respect for him, perhaps even to the extent of seeing him as a father figure, much as they regarded Dr. Catherine Halsey as a mother figure.
After the Spartan-IIs' training was completed, Mendez was reassigned to train the next class of Spartans.[9] John-117 never saw him again, though Mendez returned the quarter that Dr. Halsey had given John during their first meeting. He recalled that John broke a few of the trainers' fingers when they tried to take the coin from him.[10]
SPARTAN-III training[edit]
As the next class of the SPARTAN-II program was delayed by Dr. Halsey due to issues with viable candidates, ONI eventually diverted her funding to other projects and Mendez requested reassignment to active duty. Over the next six years, he fought the Covenant on five worlds, won two more Purple Hearts, and was promoted to Senior Chief Petty Officer. Mendez was then recruited by Colonel James Ackerson to assist Lieutenant Commander Kurt Ambrose, formerly Spartan Kurt-051, in administrating the SPARTAN-III program. He trained three SPARTAN-III companies at Camp Currahee on Onyx from 2531 until 2552. He was originally skeptical of the job, comparing the behavior of the trainees to that of the schoolchildren in the novel Lord of The Flies.[2]
Onyx Conflict[edit]
- Main article: Onyx Conflict
While training the final batches of Gamma Company on October 31, 2552, Mendez and the other UNSC forces on Onyx came under attack by Forerunner Sentinels.[11] He, along with SPARTAN-III Team Saber, Tom-B292, Lucy-B091, and Ambrose were virtually alone on the planet, and were forced to hide from Sentinels for several days. Eventually, Spartan-II Kelly-087 and Dr. Halsey arrived, followed shortly by Spartan-II Blue Team: Frederic-104, William-043, and Linda-058. Mendez assisted them in fighting their way to the core of Onyx, where he eventually evacuated to Shield World 006, held in a slipspace bubble in Onyx's core, along with the other survivors. Onyx, actually an artificial planetary shell covering the shield world, was then disintegrated by the Sentinels.[12]
