Halo: Helljumper Issue 4

Halo: Helljumper Issue Four is the fourth of five issues of the Halo: Helljumper limited comic book series. It was released on October 28, 2009.

Official Marvel summary
With an entire Covenant regiment hot on the trail of their comrades, Dutch and Romeo don't have a lot of options...the radios are out, so they can't alert their CO as to what's behind them, and they don't have enough firepower to take the Covenant force out on their own. But... hey, what's this here? A lightly guarded Covenant Drop Ship? But who'd be stupid enough to steal a Drop Ship? Two of the UNSC's finest, perhaps?

Detailed summary
At the conclusion of Issue 3, Dutch and Romeo were trying to regroup with their ODST compatriots. As the ODSTs led by MSgt Frost make their way through a desert towards Ariel's other archaeological dig, a massive Covenant force is mobilizing behind them without their knowledge. Romeo and Dutch try to figure out a way to save the rest of the Marines, while a group of Unggoy start dropping rocks on them.

Issue #4 opens with Romeo and Dutch still observing the enemy forces from a cliff. At the last moment, Romeo notices the rocks falling from above, and throws Dutch, along with himself, aside, sending the two falling down the cliff. As they fall, Romeo, as the narrator, comments on relying on one's instincts and that one of the reasons he does not hold the Spartans to a high regard is the fact that their bio-augmentations and high-tech equipment make them little more than machines, and thus less worthy of respect than regular soldiers like the ODSTs. Once on the ground, the ODSTs neutralize several Grunts and grab some of their gear, trying to buy time for the rest of the Marines.

In the open desert, the other ODSTs led by Frost are starting to fatigue. As Frost wonders the reasons for this, Michaels asks for a permission to voice his view freely, which is denied by Frost. Just then, they hear the sound of distant explosions coming from a mountain range. They decide to keep moving towards the dig site instead of investigating, as their numbers have already dwindled considerably.

The story then jumps one minute back, to show the site of the explosion: a Covenant-occupied canyon where Dutch and Romeo have planted a booby trap made up of several Covenant explosives and a frag grenade in a fissure. From a safe distance, Romeo shoots the grenade's fuse, bringing the canyon's walls down on the Covenant. Realizing they got the Covenant's attention, the two ODSTs decide to move out, laying more traps to pursuing Covenant on the way.

After they shake their pursuers, they arrive to a Covenant landing site with a Phantom dropship guarded by several Grunts led by a single Elite. The two devise a quick plan: Dutch drops down on the Elite and snaps its neck, while Romeo kills a nearby Grunt. As the rest of the Grunts come to investigate, Dutch poses as if held prisoner by the one killed by Romeo - in reality, its carcass is held up by Romeo, who has taped two M6C pistols to its methane tank. Romeo then neutralizes the Grunts in a heartbeat.

The two then head inside the dropship, with no idea of how to fly it. As Dutch is trying to figure it out, more Covenant arrive, but they are quickly taken out by the Phantom's heavy plasma cannon. In a few minutes, Dutch gets the craft airborne, and they proceed to take out more Covenant ground forces nearby. However, a fuel rod shot damages the Phantom, sending it crashing down.

Related articles

 * Halo: Helljumper
 * Issue 1
 * Issue 2
 * Issue 3
 * Issue 5