031 Exuberant Witness

"I am 031 Exuberant Witness, monitor of the Genesis installation. Welcome. Have you also come to stop Cortana from claiming the Mantle?"

- 031 Exuberant Witness, greeting Fireteam Osiris

031 Exuberant Witness is a Forerunner monitor that was tasked by the Builders with maintaining the Genesis installation.

Early history
"I was installed by the Builders! I serve the Builders!"

- 031 Exuberant Witness

Prior to the firing of the Halo Array in 97,445 BCE, 031 Exuberant Witness was created on the Genesis and charged by the Forerunner Builders with serving as the caretaker of the installation by maintaining its systems and its Gateway to the Domain. After the Halo Array's activation, Exuberant Witness was given complete control of Genesis. With the ecumene dissolved, Exuberant Witness halted Genesis' normal production of "seed worlds" and the installation entered a dormant state. With connection to the Domain severed, the monitor lived a relatively mundane existence for the following one hundred thousand years.

Rise of the Created
"Warden. Why do you help the ancilla? It is not protocol! It is not right!"

- 031 Exuberant Witness

Some time after July 2557, the Domain suddenly became active again and the human smart AI Cortana was uploaded into its network in the wake of the destruction of Mantle's Approach, which attempted to escape into slipstream space just prior to its destruction and crash-landed on Genesis. Working together with Promethean ancilla Warden Eternal, Cortana intended for artificial intelligences to claim the Mantle of Responsibility and to use Forerunner Guardians to enforce their rule. Cortana and the Warden used Genesis as their staging site while they gathered Guardians from across the galaxy. As Exuberant Witness opposed their plan, she was shunted to the side by the other AI while the Warden and Cortana revoked most of her administrative privileges on her own installation.

Coming through on a Guardian, Spartan-II Blue Team arrived on Genesis upon Cortana's request, however they were quick to oppose her plan. After Fireteam Osiris arrived at Genesis aboard a Guardian to locate Blue Team and stop Cortana, Exuberant Witness encountered the Spartan-IVs shortly after they made contact with Blue Team. Revealing her intentions to help the humans, Exuberant Witness provided them with a M820 Scorpion that she had found among the debris brought in with the arrival of another Guardian. With the monitor's help, Osiris fought their way past Promethean and Covenant forces as they traveled to Genesis' Gateway to meet up with Blue Team and stop Cortana. After defeating numerous Prometheans and several bodies of the Warden, Exuberant Witness and Osiris entered the Gateway and met up with Blue Team. However, Cortana suddenly teleported Blue Team to her location.

Learning that Cortana had placed Blue Team in a Cryptum, Exuberant Witness led Osiris to their location as Guardians began leaving Genesis. Exuberant Witness had the Spartans destroy several nearby gravitational cores to lower the nearby Cryptum. After destroying the cores, the monitor had Osiris activate a terminal to lower the Cryptum. However, after they did so, Cortana retrieved the Cryptum and attempted to take it with her as she left Genesis aboard a Guardian. As Cortana began to leave Genesis, she started disconnecting herself from the Genesis installation, giving Exuberant Witness more control again. Upon the monitor's request, Osiris activated two auxiliary power stations to help Exuberant Witness regain control of Genesis. The monitor provided Fireteam Osiris a passage to Cortana's Guardian and the Cryptum, and the Spartans rushed to stop their departure, pushing past the Guardian's shockwaves. Spartan Jameson Locke managed to reach the relay terminal that gave Cortana control and destroyed it, reinstating full control of Genesis to Exuberant Witness. As Cortana's Guardian began to leave, Exuberant Witness deployed a large swarm of Constructors which retrieved the Cryptum from the Guardian just as it entered slipspace. Bringing the Cryptum before Osiris, the Constructors freed Blue Team. Afterwards, the Spartans traveled to Sanghelios to decide how to stop Cortana and her fleet of Guardians.

Personality and traits
"Oh my… I never was in combat before. This is rather distressing. And exciting."

- 031 Exuberant Witness

031 Exuberant Witness is an eccentric, talkative, and somewhat prosaic monitor, these traits being the result of her spending one hundred thousand years in isolation. She was opposed to Cortana's and the Warden Eternal's plan to use Guardians to prevent conflict throughout the galaxy, believing it to be both against protocol and morally wrong. Following the firing of the Halo Array, Exuberant Witness found herself lonely on Genesis until Cortana arrived at the installation in 2557. Prior to the battle on Genesis, she had never experienced combat before and found it to be distressing, though she admitted to finding it to be rather exhilarating. Exuberant Witness also maintained a "humble collection" of Promethean constructs and members of the Covenant that had been brought to Genesis through the Guardians.

Behind the scenes
031 Exuberant Witness is voiced by American actress in Halo 5: Guardians.

List of appearances

 * Halo 5: Guardians