Mausoleum of the Arbiter

"Here rests the vanguard of the Great Journey. Every Arbiter, from first to last. Each one created and consumed in times of extraordinary crisis."

- Prophet of Truth

The Mausoleum of the Arbiter is a massive room within High Charity which houses the remains of the previous Arbiters.

A large suspended sarcophagus holds the special Arbiter armor until it is needed again.

The Mausoleum of the Arbiter also contains the (recoverable) remains of every Elite that has ever been designated the Arbiter. A total of 192 caskets are present spreading far up into the ceiling. Arbiters are only appointed in times of dire need, such as the Taming of the Hunters and the Grunt Rebellion.

Appearances
The Mausoleum of the Arbiter first appears in the cutscene before The Arbiter. The future Arbiter is taken there by Tartarus and two Brutes. Truth and Mercy order Tartarus to leave the future Arbiter and leave. They converse with him about the Heretic Leader and the past Arbiters and give him the armor of the Arbiter there.

It is next seen some time later, near the end of Gravemind, where the Master Chief must engage in a large-scale battle in order to go further into High Charity and find the platform with the Phantoms that are to be used to transport Truth, Mercy, Tartarus, Miranda Keyes and Sergeant Johnson to their respective locations.

It is in here that Breaking Benjamin ' s "Blow Me Away" is played, during the fight. It sounds like an instrumental but is actually the real song. If you listen closely, you will notice that the music volume has been increased.

In Game Combat
During the first hours of the Covenant Civil War, the Seperatists were forced to give much ground, due to the Loyalists superior numbers and strength. Finally, the Elites made one last stand; fittingly, in the Mausoleum of their Arbiter.

In the rooms leading to the Mausoleum, the Seperatists sent Hunters, SpecOps Elites and Grunts to defend the Mausoleum, while the Loyalists sent Brutes and Jackals and Drones to the assault. On the Bridge leading to the Mausoleum itself, a squad of Elites, led by a Major, fought against a squad of Brutes, a Jackal Sniper, and Drones, using turrets against them. Later, the Seperatists sent a unit of SpecOps troopers, a single Fuel Rod Cannon wielding Gunner Grunt, and a pair of Hunters to reinforce this squad.

Unexpectedly, a third group emerged in this battle: The Master Chief, "inside man", valiantly led a fire team of rescued Marines against both of these other forces, slaying all of them in the heated combat.

The biggest, and last, battle, then took place. From the right side, the Covenant Seperatists. From the left, the Covenant loyalists. This Seperatist force consisted of the mighty Ultra Elites, armed with Fuel Rod Cannons, Carbines, and Energy Sword. From the Seperatists, Brutes and Drones assaulted back. From the Bridge, came the Master Chief and his Fire Team.

The Brutes were easily killed, taking fire from not only the Humans and the Elites, but from the four Hunters that came to reinforce the already superior Ultras. These Hunters were killed next, attacked by the fresh Brute unit and the Fuel Rod Cannon one of the Humans was using.

These Brutes killed many of the Ultras, but succumbed to both the final Ultra and the Human Forces. This Ultra, in turn, was able to kill two Humans and wound a third before the Chief killed him by slashing him with an Energy Sword.

As the remaining Human forces prepared to leave, they were assailed by the last Seperatists: one of the last Elite Councillors still living armed himself with an Energy Sword and led two Stealth Elites to combat any enemy still alive. This was, unfortunately, the Humans.

The Councillor and his troops were able to slay all of the Humans, apart from the Master Chief, who was able to corner the Stealth Elites and center them for a kill with dual Plasma Rifles, then engaged in sword to sword comabat with the Councillor- a fight in which he won.

In the end, the only being still alive after this gargantuan melee was Spartan 117. His Fire Team's death was a hard blow, as he felt it was his responsibilty. He bears a heavy weight on his mind.

Related Links

 * High Charity
 * Arbiter