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{{Status|Canon}}
{{Conjectural title|1}}
{{disambig header|the Forerunner complex|other articles of the same name|Menachite}}
{{Megastructure infobox
|image=[[File:HR-HighNoon-Map.jpg|300px]]
|description=
|location=[[Menachite Mountain]], [[Highland Mountains]], [[Eposz]], [[Reach]]
|type=[[Slipspace portal]] generator
|function=Generation of a [[portal]] to [[Installation 00]]
|caretaker=
|constructed= 
|destroyed-title=Status
|destroyed=Inactive as of [[2559|October 12, 2559]]
|diameter=Unknown, but very large{{Ref/Novel|HSoR|Chapter=Epilogue}} 
}}
{{Quote|We did not discover the full extent of those ruins and likely never will.|Dr. [[Catherine Halsey]]{{Ref/Novel|GoO|Chapter=30}}}}
The '''Menachite portal complex''' is a massive [[slipspace portal]] generator built by the [[Forerunner]]s and formerly located under [[Menachite Mountain]], in the [[Highland Mountains]] of [[Reach]]. The structure is similar to the [[Excession]] located under [[Africa]] on [[Earth]], and is capable of generating portals that link Reach to [[Installation 00|the Ark]] located outside of the [[Milky Way]]. For most of its history the portal remained buried underground, before its discovery by the [[Office of Naval Intelligence]] in the 2530s. For the next twenty years it remained classified under [[ONI Section Three|Section Three]] study until it was eventually made the target of a [[Covenant]] excavation operation during the [[Fall of Reach]].{{Ref/Novel|Id=FS12|HFS|Chapter=12}} Although partially uncovered by the Covenant, the true extent and purpose of the structure remained unclear until [[2559]], when the [[Banished]] finished its excavation and activated the portal, linking their galactic forces with [[Atriox]] on the Ark.

The Covenant forces at Reach referred the structure as a "temple" during their initial excavation operations and remained seemingly unaware of its true significance.{{Ref/Novel|HFS|Chapter=21}} However its true nature was known to the Covenant's leadership, who referred to it as the '''Portal Under the Mountain'''. This name was adopted by the Banished.{{Ref/Novel|Id=SoR21|HSoR|Chapter=21}} The complex housed a [[Menachite Forerunner crystal|unique slipspace crystal]].

==Overview==
[[File:PortalGeneratorPanorama.jpg|thumb|300px|A view of the portal generator and beam emitters.]]
The Menachite portal was originally constructed by the Forerunners as a subterranean complex underneath [[Menachite Mountain]]. As such, it remained hidden for millennia between [[Great Purification|the end]] of the [[Forerunner-Flood war]] and the [[Project OUTBOUND|settlement]] of Reach by [[human]]ity in the 24th century. When fully exposed, following the [[glassing]] of the mountain atop the complex, the facility slightly resembles the [[Excession]] on [[Earth]]. The structure is circular with a large ornate projector in the centre for projecting the slipspace portal itself. Eleven [[Beacon tower]] stations on the complex's perimeter, each at the foot of an individual mountain, project beams into the middle to assist in powering the portal via unknown mechanisms.

===Facility under CASTLE Base===
The portal facility was made known to the [[Office of Naval Intelligence]] around the time of the 2530s. Earlier in Reach's colonisation Menachite was designated as an extinct volcano with numerous lava tubes surrounding it, before eventually becoming the site of one of the world's many [[Titanium]] mining operations. The abandoned mineshafts were later used as equipment storage locations before being co-opted by ONI Section Three and designated as top secret, as part of the [[KING UNDER THE MOUNTAIN]] research project. ONI's [[CASTLE Base]] facility was built inside and around Menachite Mountain and its tunnel network, though ONI was apparently never able to gain entry inside. However, they were able to fully map the base itself and the tunnel complexes surrounding it.{{Ref/Novel|Id=FS13|HFS|Chapter=13}}

In early-mid September of 2552, Doctor [[Catherine Halsey]] and several [[SPARTAN-II program|SPARTAN-IIs]] gained access into the complex, after Halsey had broken into Colonel [[James Ackerson]]'s files on KING UNDER THE MOUNTAIN. The group descended an elevator shaft in CASTLE Base's Section Sigma and then through an air vent into the old mineshafts underneath the base,{{Ref/Novel|Id=FS14|HFS|Chapter=14}} where they ultimately spent eight days traversing the tunnels before stumbling upon the Forerunner facility. The granite rock lining the tunnels was covered in [[Forerunner symbols]] which guided the group, though little was revealed until [[Frederic-104]] accidentally cut his hand by brushing it over some of the carved symbols. At this point the glyphs began to glow similarly to heated metal, spreading outward and culminating in a single white triangular glyph that, once pressed, caused the wall to fall away and reveal a larger corridor behind it, around {{Convert|20|m|ft}} in height, leading inward at a straight line that gently sloped deeper into the ground. Golden light shined from the ceiling.{{Ref/Novel|Id=FS15|HFS|Chapter=15}} The floor of the corridor was paved with asymmetric blue tiles patterned in a way comparable to waves lapping on a shore. The smooth walls were inlaid with centered {{Convert|4|m|ft}} tall gold glyphs made of similar shapes of triangles, squares, bars, and circles. When the glyphs began to softly glow, Fred-104 felt himself attracted to them, but resisted his impulse to approach them on an intuition that they were dangerous. His radiation counter briefly pulsed, supporting his hesitation.{{Ref/Reuse|FS15}}

Further down the corridor, the ceiling stopped shining golden light and faded to total black. Pinpoint lights emerged imitating stars, which twinkled realistically. In addition, silver-gray orbs that represented moons pockmarked with craters spun in wide orbits across the ceiling. Along the walls, tall green bamboo-like stalks appeared. Doctor Halsey determined that these apparitions were semisolid holograms with no visible emitters;{{Ref/Reuse|FS15}} in actuality, [[hard light]] decor present in most Forerunner constructs.

Throughout the length of the corridor, the holography underwent three transformations to depict different scenes, each sharing the golden glyphs along the walls. After the initial scene, it changed to depict an arid moonscape with deep craters and sterile light. It then transformed into a volcanic world with active streams of lava flowing along the walls. The realism of this scene was enhanced with realistic distortion of the air, which wavered as it would in the presence of extreme heat.{{Ref/Reuse|FS15}}

===Crystal chamber===
The main chamber accessed by Halsey and the Spartans was a large structure designed to house a [[Menachite Forerunner crystal|Forerunner crystal]]

==Design==
===Portal structure===
The Menachite complex was constructed and buried under Menachite Mountain, located amidst the [[Highland Mountains]] in the [[Viery Territory]], Reach.  In ancient times, the Forerunners used the [[Menachite Forerunner crystal]] to power it,{{Ref/Novel|Id=Sacrifice|HSoR|Section=Adjunct|Detail=[[Sacrifice]]}} but the crystal's removal did not prevent the portal's use. However, unlike the Portal at Voi, this portal would only remain active for as long as the local charge lasted. Once it dissipated, the portal would close once again.


====Main chamber====
The corridor empties onto a landing overlooking an approximately circular room with a diameter of three kilometers, the center of which contains a flickering pedestal that holds the Forerunner crystal. The landing is on one of twelve tiered levels that have no railings and encircle the room. The floor, approximately one hundred meters beneath the landing, is made of innumerable blue tiles that appear to shift around into patterns SPARTAN-104 describes as "frustratingly familiar". Unlike the floor in the corridor, these tiles form squares, circles, bars, and triangles.{{Ref/Reuse|FS15}} The ceiling is a dome with a holographic golden sun, a dozen moons,<ref>'''Halo: First Strike''', ''page 185''</ref> blue sky, and cottony clouds that morph into geometric shapes such as spheres, pyramids, bars, and cubes.{{Ref/Reuse|FS15}}

When Dr. Halsey and her Spartans approached the pedestal, they experienced spatial disorientation in which their path was distorted. Despite their attempts to reach the center as a close group, they found themselves heading off in separate directions. Fred-104 described feeling a sense of vertigo as if he was walking on the ceiling instead of the floor. A test of rolling a ball bearing on the ground showed the floor initially sloped toward the center, but shifted around as the ball bearing rolled until it came to a total stop. [[Kelly-087]] was able to intuitively determine the true direction toward the pedestal, ostensibly the opposite direction. The pedestal in the center is made of the same gold material as the symbols in the corridor. Above it floated a [[Forerunner crystal]], which spun and pulsed a bright glow of sapphire-blue light.{{Ref/Reuse|FS15}}

Although assumed by Dr. Halsey to be an effect of the crystal artifact,<ref>'''Halo: First Strike''', ''pages 204, 214'' (2003)</ref> the spatial distortion effects near the center of the main chamber may have been generated by a [[baffler]], a Forerunner device used to create geometric distortions to hide an artifact or a location, or a [[dazzler]], a Forerunner device employing a camouflage technique that causes visual and auditory delusion.

==History==
===Construction and discovery===
The Menachite portal complex was created in prehistory by the Forerunners to allow for transportation to the extragalactic [[Installation 00]]. After humans colonized Reach, they tunneled into the mountain for purposes of mining its rich [[titanium]] content. The [[Office of Naval Intelligence]] took over the mountain after the mine was built and installed [[CASTLE Base]] into the tunnels originally created for the mine. Colonel [[James Ackerson]] of ONI knew of the existence of the Menachite Forerunner Complex, and made uncovering its secrets a [[KING UNDER THE MOUNTAIN|secret project]]. He was, however, unable to learn of its entrance. The entrance was later discovered by [[Frederic-104]] by accident and his group gained entry into the complex.

===Fall of Reach===
When the [[Covenant]] invaded Reach, they began digging into the mountain in search of the crystal. Dr. Catherine Halsey, along with SPARTANs [[Vinh-030|030]], [[Isaac-039|039]], [[William-043|043]], [[Kelly-087|087]], and 104, fled the endangered CASTLE Base and into the remaining mine tunnels. There they discovered the outer part of the complex and managed to gain entrance. Just after they took the Forerunner crystal, Covenant forces successfully blasted their way into the complex, and Covenant infantry killed Isaac and Vinh, although the others managed to retreat into a deep tunnel. After some time, [[John-117]] along with a small human force assaulted the main chamber with a captured [[Spirit]] dropship. They managed to rescue the remaining SPARTANs and Dr. Halsey, and then outran thousands of Covenant soldiers trying to capture the crystal.

Following the [[Fall of Reach]] in [[2552]], the [[Covenant]] [[Hierarchs]] had tasked [[Tartarus]] with discovering the "Portal under the Mountain," as they called it. After the destruction of the [[Menachite Forerunner crystal|Holy Light]]—a [[slipspace flake]] taken by [[Spartan-II]] [[Blue Team]] from the Forerunner structure beneath Menachite Mountain—during the [[Massacre at Eridanus Secundus|battle]] at [[Eridanus Secundus]], Tartarus sent eight squadrons to comb the area for any remains. Three shards of the slipspace flake were found and presented to the [[Prophet of Truth]] on [[High Charity]]. When Truth left High Charity, he brought the shards aboard the [[Anodyne Spirit|Forerunner Dreadnought]]. Since the [[Excession|portal]] on [[Earth]] was found first, the need to search Reach for a portal that would take Truth to the Ark was eliminated.{{Ref/Novel|Id=SOR3|HSoR|Chapter=3}} 

===Post-War===
{{Main|Operation: WOLFE}}
By around [[2558#October|October 2558]], ONI was rumoured to be planning to send teams of [[Spartan]]s to the site of CASTLE Base's ruins and, presumably, the Menachite portal for unknown reasons.{{Ref/Book|OSFM|Page=94}} These plans were likely scuppered at the outbreak of the [[Created uprising]], though would echo a similar UNSC operation conducted a year later.

In [[2559]], War Chief [[Escharum]] received a message from [[Atriox]], still embroiled in a [[Second Ark Conflict|conflict]] on the Ark, informing him of the existence of the Portal under the Mountain as well as his plan to return to the [[Milky Way|galaxy]]. Atriox ordered Escharum to find the portal and activate it in preparation of his arrival. Escharum, in turn, sent the [[Keepers of the One Freedom]], the [[Legion of the Corpse-Moon]], and the [[Clan of the Ravaged Tusks|Ravaged Tusks]]—all [[Covenant remnants|factions]] that had recently joined the Banished—to search for the portal and report back to him when they had found it.{{Ref/Reuse|SOR3}} 

[[File:SlipspacePortal intro.jpg|thumb|300px|The Portal under the Mountain.]]
By following Blue Team to [[CASTLE Base]], [[Castor]], a [[Dokab]] of the Keepers, discovered the location of the portal, as the human military facility sought by the Spartans had been built atop the Forerunner facility. Escharum joined the Keepers in the activation of the portal. Using the three shards of [[Menachite Forerunner crystal]] which had been [[Raid on Anodyne Spirit|recovered]] from the keyship on the Ark, Atriox passed through the portal and returned to the galaxy. Castor and his Keepers then defected from the Banished, taking Atriox's [[Eklon'Dal Workshop Lich]] through the portal to the Ark, where they intended to light the [[Halo Array|rings]] and begin the [[Covenant religion|Great Journey]].{{Ref/Novel|HSoR|Chapter=21}} Soon after they passed through the portal, it collapsed inward on itself.{{Ref/Novel|HSoR|Chapter=Epilogue}}

==Trivia==
*The Menachite complex serves as the basis for the non-canon ''[[Halo Interactive Strategy Game]]'' level, ''[[The Hidden Artifact of Reach]]''. During the level, the Covenant - lead by the [[Prophet of Candor]] - attack a Forerunner complex to retrieve a crystal from under CASTLE Base. 
*[[High Noon]], the remake of [[Hang 'Em High]] for the [[Anniversary Map Pack]], is set within the portal facility, as confirmed in a post by [[Jeff Easterling]].{{Ref/Site|Id=Reddit|URL=https://www.reddit.com/r/halo/comments/jentx3/shadows_of_reach_spoiler_discussion/g9qe2l1/?context=1000|Site=Reddit|Page=Halo Shadows of Reach Spoiler Discussion Thread|Quote=Been waiting to see who might catch this. ;)|Quotee=Jeff Easterling|D=22|M=08|Y=2021}}{{Ref/Site|URL=https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/news/point-taken|Site=Halo Waypoint|Page=Canon Fodder - Point Taken|Quote=That’s right, the location of the map High Noon is none other than the recently-revealed portal complex on Reach|D=03|M=12|Y=2020}}

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:Highnoon 01.jpg|A view of the portal facility.
File:Highnoon 06.jpg|Another angle of the facility.
</gallery>

==List of appearances==
*''[[Halo: First Strike]]'' {{1st}}
*''[[Halo: Ghosts of Onyx]]'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Halo: Reach]]''
**''[[Anniversary Map Pack]]''
*''[[Halo: Shadows of Reach]]''
**''[[Sacrifice]]'' {{Im}}
*''[[Halo: Divine Wind]]'' {{Mo}}

==Sources==
{{Ref/Sources}}