Battle of Asźod

The Battle of Aszod was an engagement of the Human-Covenant War fought on the planet Reach between the 29th and 30th of August, 2552.

Background
As the UNSC lost control of their military operation, the Covenant Fleet of Particular Justice began to glass the planet. With the ship-breaking yards of Aszod being among the few places left unmolested by Covenant plasma bombardment, remaining UNSC land and air forces in the region pulled back to this sector.

Also involving the shipyards, the cruiser touched down in the shipyards for the transaction of an important package from Noble Team.

Regroup
As the UNSC forces began to retreat, their land and air defenses moved off to Aszod to regroup. Near the Pillar of Autumn's landing site, countless M808B Main Battle Tanks and M12 Light Reconnaissance Vehicles assaulted two Type-47 Ultra Heavy Assault Platforms, making their way to the Autumn. While encircling the scarabs, the UNSC forces had to avoid mortar fire from Type-25 Assault Gun Carriages that were also moving into Aszod from other parts of Reach, well aware of the regrouping. The sky was not free from battle either, as a number of UH-144 Falcons engaged Type-26 Ground Support Aircraft.

Noble Team's arrival
Awaiting the team's arrival with the package, Captain Jacob Keyes of the Pillar of Autumn sent out a number of marines to other parts of the ship-braking facility to allow NOBLE safe passage.

Meanwhile, Noble team was being engaged by two T-26 GSAs and its pilot, Commander Carter-A259, was seriously injured by their plasma fire. Dropping off Emile-A239 and SPARTAN-B312 near a highway, he tried to shake the two banshees loose.

Fighting their way to two M274 Ultra-Light All-Terrain Vehicles, Emile and B312 raced to the ship-braking yards as fast as the ATVs could travel. Numerous T47 UHAPs were deployed nearby, however. Using height to their advantage, they drove underneath the gargantuan automatons, finally returning to the highway, which they were cut off from due to a collapsed bridge. Eventually, the two could go no further, as another T47 above a tunnel aimed its deadly cannon at them. Sacrificing himself for the mission, Carter crashed his pelican into the T47, destroying it and himself in the process.

Abandoning their ATVs at the cave, Emile and B312 were attacked by a hive of Yanme'e, who were hunting down troopers who had wandered through the caves seeking safety. Escaping the caves, the two SPARTANs finally reached the complex, though this was not the yard which housed the Autumn. Assisting a platoon of marines around the decommissioned, the UNSC force began to pull back to the Autumn with the package.

Finally reaching the rendezvous point for the transfer, the group were forced to eliminate Covenant reinforcements before the Dropship 77-Troop Carriers could be deployed from the cruiser. With Emile taking control of a re-purposed Onager mass driver, countless Type-52 Troop Carriers and T-26 GSAs were destroyed. The slow charge of the cannon however, meant that more T-52s could arrive and deploy more troops. Eventually ridding the area of T-52s, Captain Keyes personally took a transport to the rendezvous point. Collecting the package, the D77s were attacked by more T-26 GSAs, with one being destroyed. Emile-A239 was then killed by two Sangheili warriors, taking them with him. Rather than evacuate with Keyes, B312 decided to sacrifice his only ticket off of Reach and commandeer the mass driver and ensure the Autumn's safe passage into space, which was threatened by a newly-arrived CCS-class Battlecruiser. Slowly approaching the shipyards and charging its ventral energy projector, it became clear that it was seeking the destruction of the Autumn. Turning the cannon on the battlecruiser, B312 fired a round straight into the ship's unshielded glassing port, damaging its propulsion system. Crashing into the desert that was the ship graveyard, the Covenant cruiser was no longer a threat. The Autumn then took off into space - its captain thanking B312 for his sacrifice.

Aftermath
After the Autumn's successful escape, SPARTAN-B312 was the left as the last remaining human survivor in the area, which was now occupied by Covenant air and ground forces. The Spartan managed to hold off the Covenant forces for some time, but was ultimately overwhelmed by Sangheili warriors and slain by a Sangheili Zealot. The Autumn, one of the few ships to survive the Fall of Reach, would arrive at Installation 04 three weeks later, pursued by a portion of the Fleet of Particular Justice, igniting the Battle of Installation 04.

List of appearances

 * Halo: Reach
 * The Pillar of Autumn