2401 Penitent Tangent

"Greetings! I am 2401 Penitent Tangent. I am the monitor of Installation 05."

- 2401 Penitent Tangent greeting the Master Chief and the Arbiter.

2401 Penitent Tangent is the Monitor of Installation 05. Although only shown briefly during the encounter with the Gravemind deep in the bowels of Halo, 2401 Penitent Tangent is nearly identical to its brother monitor, 343 Guilty Spark, with the exceptions that its voice is deeper than Guilty Spark's and its "eye" glows red instead of blue, possibly indicating a state of combat mode or rampancy. Also the holes on the side of 2401 Penitent Tangent are rectangular instead of round. He behaves much like 343 Guilty Spark does in his non-rampant state, and still shows regard for protocol. According to a Forerunner artificial intelligence, Tangent neglected repairs of his Installation's Flood Containment Facility, resulting in several break-outs by the xenoform and possibly the catastrophic outbreak that resulted in the organism's possession of the area around Installation 05's Library. There is a high chance that this Monitor was captured (by the Gravemind) while in combat as it is in still in "combat mode" and glows dimly with its outer casing appearing to be damaged.

He is not encountered again after Master Chief meets him beneath the Library of Installation 05 (when he was captured is still uncertain), and he is not seen when Gravemind occupies High Charity. His fate following the Battle of Installation 05 is uncertain.

Cold Storage Transmission
REPORT: CONTAINMENT FAILURE

LF.Xx.3273 research and containment facility; [delta site] has experienced catastrophic specimen containment failure. All apertures into facility will be locked until further notice. Atmosphere evacuation and [reduction of ambient temperature] protocols have already been enacted. Request maintenance and security detail [at earliest opportunity]. [8 minutes] elapsed since initial containment failure.

REPORT: CONTAINMENT FAILURE

Waiting for maintenance and security detail. [32 minutes, 9 seconds] elapsed since request.

REPORT: CONTAINMENT FAILURE

Still waiting for maintenance and security detail. [24 hours] elapsed since request.

REPORT: SECURITY BREACH

LF.Xx.3273 research and containment facility; [delta site] has experienced a security breach via emergency [slip stream space] transportation conduits. Emergency [slip stream space] transportation conduits have been placed in recursive mode to contain unauthorized hostile life forms. Request emergency security detail. Still waiting for primary maintenance and security detail. [2512332 hours, 14 minutes, 6 seconds] elapsed since initial request.

REPORT: DERELICTION OF DUTY

2401 [PENITENT TANGENT] has been lax in the areas of maintenance and security.

LOG: QUERIED ADJACENT FACILITIES LF.Xx.3273 research and containment facility [alpha, beta, gamma, epsilon, zeta, and kappa sites] have all replied [systems normal] within expected constraints. This would tend to signify that the containment failure was purely mechanical in nature; perhaps a manufacturing flaw. As no [outside agent] has accessed [delta site] in the past [874068942 hours, 4 minutes, 46 seconds]—[allowing for a 61360 hour, 54, minute, 2 second margin of error]—sabotage would seem unlikely.

LOG: REQUEST UNANSWERED LF.Xx.3273 research and containment facility; [delta site] is currently being held at [.01 atm] / [184K]. Local maintenance and security hubs have failed to reply within expected constraints. [Bumping maintenance and security request up] to [quadrant oversight].

LOG: REQUEST UNANSWERED LF.Xx.3273 research and containment facility; [delta site] is currently being held at [1 atm] / [278K] as atmospheric seals were showing signs of stress. [Quadrant oversight] has failed to reply within expected constraints. [Bumping maintenance and security request all the way up] to 2401 [PENITENT TANGENT].

LOG: UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS TO FACILITIES LF.Xx.3273 research and containment facility; [delta site] emergency [slip stream space] transportation conduits have been accessed by unauthorized parties.

LOG: FILED COMPLAINT TO INSTALLATION 00 2401 [PENITENT TANGENT], monitor of Installation 05, has been lax in the areas of maintenance and security. Requests for aid in said areas have gone unanswered by both 2401 and [subservient] systems well beyond expected constraints.

Dialogue
(At the beginning the level Gravemind, 2401 Penitent Tangent has a brief conversation.)

{Gravemind raises two tentacles, one wrapped around a red Monitor, the other merged with a half-Flood Prophet of Regret}

Monitor: "Greetings! I am 2401 Penitent Tangent. I am the Monitor of Installation 05."

Prophet of Regret: {Regret's voice is hoarse and he seems to have difficulty speaking} "And I am the Prophet of Regret, Councilor most high, Hierarch of the Covenant!"

{2401 Penitent Tangent sees the Master Chief.}

2401 Penitent Tangent: "A Reclaimer? Here? At last! We have much to do. This facility must be activated if we are to control this outbreak."

Prophet of Regret: "Stay where you are! Nothing can be done until my sermon is complete!"

2401 Penitent Tangent: "Not true. This installation has a successful utilization record of 1.2 trillion simulated and one actual. It is ready to fire on demand."

Prophet of Regret: (To the Arbiter) "Of all the objects our Lords left behind, there are none so worthless as these Oracles! They know nothing of the Great Journey!"

2401 Penitent Tangent: "And you know nothing about containment! You have demonstrated a complete disregard to even the most basic protocols!"

Gravemind: "This one's containment ... " {gives a disgusted huff} "And this one's 'Great Journey' are the same." {He lowers his tentacles, Regret shrieks in fear} "Your Prophets have promised you freedom from a doomed existence, but you will find no salvation on this ring. Those who built this place knew what they wrought. Do not mistake their intent, or all will perish as they did before ... "

Appearances

 * Halo 2
 * Gravemind
 * Backwash

Trivia

 * Penitent Tangent seems to be in a combat state while in the midst of the Gravemind (signaled by the red glow). The Gravemind may have only manipulated it just as 032 Mendicant Bias had been by the original Gravemind, because he still had intentions to activate Installation 05.
 * Some interesting facts are that 2401 Penitent Tangent's number, is 343 Guilty Spark's number, multiplied by 7, Bungie's famed favorite number, 2401 is 7^4, or seven to the fourth power, and 2+4+0+1=7.
 * He is only seen briefly in Halo 2.
 * Note that he is left-sided in his only appearance.
 * It is still debatable on whether 2401 Penitent Tangent is still alive or not. Theories by fans proved it to be not dead. He might still be with the gravemind. But ultimate cause of his disappearance is still unknown.