Escharum: Difference between revisions

When the Master Chief [[Battle of the House of Reckoning|arrived]] at the [[House of Reckoning (location)|House of Reckoning]], Escharum sent him a holographic transmission, taunting the Master Chief over the number of humans that had entered and died in his arena. Once the Master Chief entered the arena, Escharum encouraged him to scavenge weapons which he called a remnant of the dead soldiers' sacrifice and a testament to the Banished's strength. Escharum began sending in waves of Banished troops to attack the Master Chief, but they all fell and he was able to continue on. Escharum appeared in another transmission, stating that [[Cortana]] and the [[Created]] had destroyed [[Doisac|his world]], but she was unable to kill the fire that burned in the heart of the Banished, the loss of Doisac having only made them stronger and asked if the Master Chief could say the same. The Weapon wondered why Escharum was telling the Master Chief all of this, who explained that death changed people, forcing them to look at themselves and make a choice. Escharum chose to fight, the same as the Master Chief would have done. On the next level, Escharum contacted the Master Chief again, recalling the [[Siege of Palghanar]] where a settlement had held out against Escharum's forces for nineteen days before falling. Escharum claimed that while they fought well and to the end, they were doomed from the start. The Master Chief entered the next arena where Escharum again taunted him before sending more Banished forces after the Spartan, this time including a [[Mgalekgolo|Hunter]] pair, but once again, they all fell to the Spartan. As the Master Chief carried on, Escharum contacted him again via hologram and mused about the symbolism of Halo's looping structure. On the third level, Escharum taunted him about how quickly and easily the Banished had defeated the ''Infinity'' and sent 'Rdomnai after him. However, the Master Chief managed to kill the Blademaster as well and Escharum told him that 'Rdomnai had wanted to kill Esparza, but Escharum had promised him a sweeter kill or a warrior's death instead. In a final hologram transmission, Escharum warned the Master Chief that no matter the outcome of their final battle, the Banished still controlled Halo, having come ready for war with a thousand legions occupying it. Escharum promised that the Silent Auditorium would give up its secrets and that the Master Chief's interference would just be a fleeting irritation.{{Ref/Reuse|House of Reckoning}}

Finally reaching Esparza, the Master Chief and the Weapon set to work on releasing him from Escharum's torture device. Escharum reminded the Master Chief that he had promised not to kill Esparza and revealed to the Weapon and Esparza that this had never been a trap, but rather a test of mettle and that their battle would end there. Escharum dropped down in full armor and announced that their story would become a legend told by those who survived them. Armed with a [[Scrap Cannon]] as well as ''[[Diminisher of Hope]]'', Escharum attacked the Master Chief, eventually surrounding himself with an energy shield that was connected to the machine holding Esparza, causing any damage that was inflicted upon Escharum to be transferred to Esparza. Directed by the Weapon, the Master Chief destroyed the relays powering Escharum's shield in between bouts of fighting with the old War Chief. Once his shield was permanently disabled, Escharum switched from his cannon to his [[gravity axe]], but the Master Chief finally emerged victorious, bringing Escharum down with his weapons fire and mortally wounding him.{{Ref/Reuse|House of Reckoning}}