Cortana (level)

Looking for Cortana, the Human AI?

Cortana is the eighth campaign mission of Halo 3.

It takes place in a Flood infested High Charity. Your mission is to find Cortana in order to activate the New Halo ring.

Upon completing it on the Normal, Heroic, or Legendary difficulties, the player will earn the "The Key" achievement and 40 Gamerpoints.

A curious note to add to this level is that if you listen carefully, Cortana will say some quotes by Dr. Halsey from Halo: The Fall of Reach. Also when you recover Cortana, she says the phrase "Just keep your head down. There's two of us in here now," which is reminiscent of the phrase she says on the first level of Halo: Combat Evolved when you lose a bar of health.

Transcript
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{Cutscene}

''The Master Chief flies a Banshee to High Charity. He finds an opening into the hive. (In co-op, the Arbiter will follow the chief and land his banshee next to chief's)''


 * Johnson (COM): "Chief, I'll round up our survivors, fall back to the Dawn."

Master Chief drops down (The Arbiter follows him in co-op)


 * Johnson (COM): "Arbiter will do the same with the Elites."

-(Co-op Change) Johnson (COM): "Shipmaster will do the same with the Elites."

The Chief shakes off organic material on his boot.


 * Johnson (COM): "Cortana is in there somewhere."

Rampant
{Gameplay}

Chief begins searching, further in the hive.


 * Gravemind (Gravemind Moment): "Child of my enemy, why have you come? I offer no forgiveness. A father's sins, are passed to his son."

A little later.


 * Cortana (Cortana Moment): (Cries of agony)

Deeper into the hive.


 * Gravemind (Gravemind Moment): "Of course, you came for her. We exist together now. Two corpses in one grave."


 * Cortana: "A collection of lies; that's all I am! Stolen thoughts and memories!"


 * Gravemind (Gravemind Moment): "And yet, perhaps a part of her... remains!"


 * Cortana: (Laughs)

(In the large room where the Tilt skull is located, a Terminal can be activated, but does not count towards the Marathon achievement. If activated, it displays another Cortana Moment)


 * Cortana (Terminal): It was the coin's fault! I wanted to make you strong, keep you safe.  I'm sorry, I can't.

Cortana begins to show clear signs of malfunctioning.


 * Cortana: "May I speak with you, please? What's your name? It's very nice to meet you. You like games, So do I."

The Chief struggles through into more narrow, Flood contaminated tunnels.


 * Cortana: "I'm just my Mother's shadow... don't look at me, don't listen! I'm not what I used to be..."

As the Chief nears a large room {with the route to the reactor room at the top}.


 * Gravemind (Gravemind Moment): "Time has taught me PATIENCE. But basking in new freedom, I will know MORE THAN I POSSESS!!"

En route to the reactor room.


 * Cortana (Cortana Moment): "I have walked the edge of the abyss. I have seen your future.  And I have learned."


 * Gravemind (Gravemind Moment): "SUBMIT! END HER TORMENT AND MY OWN!!"

The Chief enters the reactor room, passing by bones and skulls back at the entrance.

The Chief finds a door out the reactor room, and follows it.


 * Cortana (Cortana Moment): "There will be no more sadness. No more anger. No more envy."


 * Gravemind (Gravemind Moment): "You will show me what she hides, or I shall feast upon your BONES!!"

The Chief begins to reach the end of the hallway.


 * Cortana (Cortana Moment): "This is UNSC AI Serial Number CTN0452-9. I am a monument to all your sins."

''The Chief rushes to the end of the hallway, to find Cortana in a Stasis Shield in on of the panels in the room. He beats and bashes the shield until it finally breaks.''

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{Cutscene}


 * Cortana: "You found me."

Master Chief leans closer towards the panel Cortana's on.


 * Cortana: "But so much of me is wrong, out of place. You might be too late."


 * Master Chief: "You know me. When I make a promise..."


 * Cortana: "You...keep it. I do know how to pick 'em."


 * Master Chief: "Lucky me. Do you still have it?"

Cortana slowly gets up, recovering her strength.


 * Cortana: "The activation index, from the first Halo ring. A little souvenir I hung onto, just in case. Got an escape plan?"


 * Master Chief: "Thought I'd try shooting my way out, mix things up a little."

Chief inserts Cortana into his armor.


 * Cortana: "Just keep your head down, there's two of us in here now, remember."

Nor Hell A Fury...
{Gameplay}

(If you stay in the room Cortana was in)
 * Cortana: "Chief, get me out of this place. I... I don't want to stay."

The Chief heads back up the hallway.


 * Gravemind (Gravemind Moment): (ROARS) At last I see!! Her secret is revealed!!!

The Master Chief makes it back into the reactor room.


 * Cortana: "Wait, we need to buy some time. This reactor... start a chain reaction. Destroy High Charity."

''The Flood begins to swarm the reactor room, realising the Chief's plans. The Master Chief successfully destroys all three reactor pylons.''


 * Gravemind: (Roars in pain)


 * Cortana: "You hurt it, Chief. But not for long. We need to get to Halo. Destroy the Flood once and for all."

The Chief finds his way back when..

(Single-Player Only'')
 * Cortana: "I've got a friendly contact. Who would be crazy enough to come in here?"

''Chief and Cortana find the Arbiter battling Flood with a Flamethrower. The Chief assists.''


 * Cortana: "Wait, you two made nice?! What else have you been up to...?"

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{Cutscene''}

''The Master Chief and Arbiter find a Pelican nearby and board it. The Chief plugs Cortana into the Control Panels and he starts up the engines. One of the Gravemind's tentacles advances to the Dropship, but the heat from the thrust forces it to retreat. The Pelican takes off. The tentacle comes back and tries to wrap around the Dropship, but the Chief escapes it's grip. The Pelican just escapes from a massive explosion caused by the reactor going critical as High Charity is finally destroyed, and the Pelican makes its way to the new Halo ring.''

Trivia

 * The section of the level after saving Cortana is called 'Nor Hell A Fury...', referencing the poem by William Congreve 'The Mourning Bride'. The entire line is 'Nor Hell a fury like a woman scorned', possibly referencing Cortana, who, after months of torment, now has the ability to light the newly constructed halo ring and destroy the Ark, as well as the Flood.


 * This level has a similar theme to a section of the movie 'Aliens,' where the lead Ripley is trying to rescue Newt from the centre of the alien nest and escape before the facility explodes. This goes along with the 'Nor Hell A Fury...' title as the lead Ripley decides to completely destroy the queen aliens nest once rescuing Newt (while Cortana recommends destroying High Charity).


 * Thematically, this level also has much in common with the level Keyes. It depicts the Chief venturing alone into a Covenant vessel to rescue a comrade, after whom the level is named, from the Flood, most specifically for a data construct in their possession. In this case the objective is the Index to fire Halo, in Keyes it was the Captain's neural implants to destroy The Pillar of Autumn.


 * Somehow even after destroying High Charity the Gravemind survives. The next level when Cortana says, "It's trying to...rebuild itself on this ring" hints that the Gravemind might have escaped before High Charity's detonation.


 * This level is considered extremely difficult, even on normal mode, and can be compared to The Library for its long playing duration and lack of Covenant enemies.