Riz-028

Riz-028 was a Spartan-II who fought on behalf of the United Nations Space Command Navy during the decades-long war between the Covenant and humanity. Stolen away as a young child in 2517, she was put through a rigourous training regimen on the planet Reach before being subjected to a series of invasive augmentation procedures in 2525. Years later, as the Covenant War neared its conclusion, she at one point was part of a Spartan team alongside John-117, Kai-125, and Vannak-134.

Childhood conscription
Riz was the twenty-eighth of one-hundred and fifty children of similar age that was selected based on specific genetic markers for inclusion in Project: SPARTAN-II. On September 23 Riz and the seventy-four other children ultimately chosen for the program were led into an amphitheater through four sets of double doors, each accompanied by a naval drill instructor. There, at around 2300 hours, far below the ground within a FLEETCOM military complex, Halsey informed them that per Naval Code 45812, they were thereby conscripted into SPARTAN-II. She explained that they had been called upon to serve and that they would be the protectors of Earth and all its colonies. Halsey told them that from this moment on, the complex on Reach would be their home and their fellow trainees would be their family. And though the training that lay ahead of them would be difficult, she expressed her full confidence in their ability to overcome it. With that said, she told them to rest and that they would begin the next day. Chief Petty Officer Franklin Mendez had the children escorted to their barracks, fed, and put to bed. Riz and the other children were awoken by drill instructors at 0530 hours the next morning. Chief Mendez addressed them all, saying they were to shower at the barracks aft and then return to their cots to dress. Riz stripped down and joined the other children on a conveyor to be washed in lukewarm soapy water and then rinsed in an icy cold spray. A trunk at the foot of her cot held underwear, thick socks, combat boots, and a matching set of gray sweats with "RIZ-028" stenciled on the chest. Once everyone was clothed, Mendez marched them outside and had them form five rows of fifteen children each. From there, they were ordered through a series of calisthenics which included one-hundred each of jumping jacks, sit-ups, deep squats, knee bends, and leg lifts. After the leg lifts the kids were finally given a respite in the form of water. Next, Mendez ordered them to join him on a run. They jogged through the military compound, past more barracks, along a river, and over a bridge, finally coming to a stop in the courtyard of a naval officers' academy. There Riz and the others met Déjà, a so-called "dumb" A.I. who had been given the job of continuing the trainees' formal education. Within the building, Riz and the others were served crackers and milk and treated to a history lesson concerning the Battle of Thermopylae. After the lesson the trainees were told they were heading for the playground, but this turned into a two-mile run to a forest of twenty-meter-tall wooden poles, rope cargo nets and bridges, knotted climbing ropes, pulleys, and baskets. Mendez had them form three lines and declared that each row of three would be a team. Chief Mendez explained that they would be playing a game called "Ring the Bell" in which the objective was for every member of each team to ring a brass bell that hung from a slide pole next to the tallest wooden pole and then make it back to the start. The last team to make it back would go hungry that evening. This punishment ultimately fell on Team Three, of which Riz was not a part. The second day of training began just like the first. The trainees spent the morning doing calisthenics and in the afternoon reported to Déjà to learn. This day, she taught them about the hunting strategies of wolves and emphasized the importance of the pack over the individual in accomplishing a challenge, such as taking down a moose. When it came time for the "playground" again, Mendez declared that they were to keep the same teams they had the prior day. The teams had a brief moment to strategize, as the course had been made more complicated as compared to before. Three days later, on September 28, all the trainees were given haircuts. On May 24, 2518, the children were forced at 0920 hours to run through a course while being shot at with paint pellet guns. Each trainee that was hit was made to do an exorbitant amount of push-ups.

Training
As time passed Déjà taught Riz and the others algebra, trigonometry, and the history of numerous battles and the rulers they happened at the direction of. Human history classes included a module devoted to Earth in which they were shown images of whales. Through simulations the trainees learned to pilot various crafts, including the predecessors and variants of the GA-TL1 Longsword. These simulations even included what to do in the event of a crash landing. By mid-2519, Riz had been taught how to string a trip line, fire a rifle, and treat a chest wound. Much of the Spartans' early training took place at Military Reservation 01478-B, known as "Painland" to the soldiers made to endure exercises there. Training often involved obstacle courses and mock patrols. Mendez tricked, trapped, and tortured the children to the point where they hated, but then eventually, admired him. Riz and the others regularly made covert treks to Camp Hathcock in the Highland Mountains to pilfer food and supplies. Training in the Highland Mountains was split between Painland, facilities within CASTLE Base, and another location. At these locations, Riz and the others began to be tested against a company of orbital drop shock troopers in jungle maneuvers. Amazingly, the children, who averaged around eight years old, often won. By the time Riz and the rest had all reached that age they had already earned every combat rating. At some point during their training, Riz and the others accompanied Mendez to the colony of Emerald Cove, where they were given a mission that involved spending time underwater. Mendez sabotaged half the air tanks provided to the trainees, and in response they ended up stealing his. Afterwards, they all ditched the Chief for a whole week while they camped on an island with nothing to do but light bonfires, eat clams and calamari, and surf. On July 12, 2519, all seventy-five children were transported, via D96-TCE Albatross, to a military wilderness training preserve in the Highland Mountains. While en route at 0630 hours, Chief Mendez explained that each trainee would be dropped off alone in different locations throughout the preserve with only a piece of various maps provided to them. Their goal was simply to reconvene at a designated extraction point, but the last one to arrive would be forced to walk back to base. Mendez announced that John-117 would be dropped off first, but before he was he sighted a lake and the river which fed it out the Albatross' windows and pointed it out to Sam-034, who understood John's plan and passed it along to the rest. Shortly after 0801 hours, all the trainees had met back up with one another in one place. Kelly-087 pieced together the maps from everyone's pieces. It turned out that the extraction point was a full day's hike from where they were. At noon the children stopped to stretch and eat berries they had gathered along their journey. It was near sundown when they finally came upon their destination in a meadow where another Albatross dropship sat. This one was guarded by six men without any uniforms. John was certain that the men wouldn't just let them board peaceably, so he devised a plan wherein someone who play the role of a "rabbit", luring the men into a trap but being quick enough not to get caught themselves. It fell to Kelly and Sam to convince the guards that Sam had broken his leg. When their guard was down, that was when the rest would strike. As soon as one man, unprovoked, was about to use a humbler stun device on Sam, John launched a rock at his head. The projectile missed but it signaled Riz and the rest to suddenly pelt the man with stones from their hiding places. This basic strategy was repeated, but the second time the remaining five men were set upon at once by the trainees, who assaulted them with rocks, fists, and boots. Once all seventy-five children were aboard the Albatross, Déjà lifted them off the ground and returned them home.

In the third year of training in 2520, Riz and the others began physics courses, which included the study of classical mechanics. On September 20 of that year, the candidates experienced their first casualty in the form of a handler who was accidentally killed by Carris-137. Memorial services were held and all of the trainees attended. Following the loss, Halsey had Déjà emphasize that throughout the history of military training lethal force had often been employed and that deaths were an inherent risk. In 2521 Riz and the other children began to learn counterinterrogation techniques, in particular that of of seizing the initiative. At some point during their training, the Spartans went through a fleet tactics course wherein they were taught a particular planetary assault doctrine. As the years of training proceeded, the children were routinely matched up as teams against one another. By 2523 the trainees had begun to be matched up in exercises against Tango Company, a unit of UNSC marines. On August 22, 2524, the Spartan-II candidates were rerouted during a training exercise to the opposite side of Reach from which they normally trained. This was done at the behest of interested parties in ONI who wished to observe them firsthand. At some point after the trainees had began to physically mature, an incident in which one of them, Margaret-053, was blinded during a beating meted out by four other teens, caused Chief Mendez to replace everyone's mess hall time with a period of fasting until the perpetrators were identified. It was not uncommon at this time for two trainees to spar one another with pugil sticks while trying to balance on floating logs while the rest watched.

ASTER
On March 9 of 2525 Riz and the other Spartan-II candidates were transported to Medical Facility Endurance in orbit over Reach in order to undergo the series of invasive procedures designed to physically, chemically, and genetically augment their bodies. They had their heads shaved, intravenous lines inserted to deliver a sedative, and incision vectors lasered onto their bodies. Other medications administered beginning on this date included dopamine for hemodynamic support and a tacrolimus/mycophenolate mofetil combination for immunosuppression. The various augmentations, under the purview of Project: ASTER, were carried out the following day, though some preliminary work had begun by 1552 hours on the ninth. With the assistance of surgeons, biotechnicians, and automated robotic machinery, the surgical procedures the recruits endured included occipital capillary reversals, the carbide ceramic ossification of their bones, the insertion of catalytic platinum thyroid implants, injections to enhance muscle strength and endurance, and the fibrification of their neural dendrites to make them superconductive. They also were treated with gene therapy and underwent transgenic hybridization.

Personality and traits
Riz-028 was focused, professional, and deadly.

Production notes
Riz will appear in Halo: The Television Series. She will be portrayed by Natasha Culzac.

Gallery
 File:Culzactraining.PNG|Natasha Culzac trains for her role as Riz-028. File:ShowtimeCast.jpg|The television series' main cast (minus Bokeem Woodbine) poses for a photo before beginning production. 

List of appearances

 * Halo: The Television Series