2535

In the course of four short years, Cole's forces are hammered, despite his excellent leadership and tactical brilliance. It is simply a matter of being outgunned; Covenant kill ratios tend to top three to one in ship-to-ship combat. By 2535, virtually all of the Outer Colony worlds have been destroyed by the Covenant. The Cole Protocol is established by military order: all human vessels must ensure that Covenant forces do not find Earth. Human ships must-when forced to withdraw-not move on to an Earth bound vector, even if that means jumping without proper navigational calculations. If blind jumps are not possible, the ship's captain must order self-destruction if capture is imminent. In addition, it is also imperative that the powerful ship A.I. data cores not fall into Covenant hands, so part of this protocol involves either the removal or destruction of the ship's A.I. in extreme situations.

Jericho VII in the Lambda Serpentis system falls. Master Chief, on board the UNSC Destroyer Resolute under Captain de Blanc, is allowed to view as the Covenant fleet glasses the planet.
 * 12/2/2535