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{{Book Info | {{Book Info | ||
|name= | |name= ''Halo: First Strike'' | ||
Justice, the two men (Master Chief and Sgt. Johnson) witness [[Polaski]] practicing how to drive a Covenant dropship. As they enter [[Reach]] in real space, they see what has happened to it after the Covenant glassed the planet. They move the flagship closer as they notice that, during the glassing of Reach the Covenant "missed" a spot. The small fleet - consisting of a dozen cruisers, two assault carriers, and three squadrons of [[seraph]]s - ask why a flagship is at Reach. While on the ship, the survivors hear a U.N.S.C. E-band transmission. The E-band transmission is 5 notes "''Oly Oly Oxen Free''". No one on the bridge recognizes it - except the Master Chief. The section then returns to the year July 14, 2523. The memory plays the time when the Spartans played [[capture the flag]] against [[Tango Company]]. | |image=First Strike.jpg | ||
|Author= [[Eric Nylund]] | |||
|Publisher= [[Del Rey Books]] | |||
|Date Released= December 2, 2003 | |||
|Length= 340 Pages | |||
|US Price=$7.98 | |||
|Can Price=$10.99 | |||
|UK Price=£6.99 | |||
|ISBN= 0345467817 | |||
|ISBN-13= 978-0345467812 | |||
|Amazon=[http://www.amazon.com/First-Strike-Halo-Eric-Nylund/dp/0345467817/ref=pd_bbs_sr_2/103-6869926-5685403?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1173099068&sr=1-2]|Availability= Paperback | |||
|Product Dimensions= 6.8 x 4.2 x 0.8 inches | |||
|Product Dimensions Metric=17.4 x 10.7 x 2.5 cm | |||
|Shipping Weight= 5.60 ounces | |||
|Shipping Mass= 1.00 Kg | |||
}} | |||
[[Eric Nylund]] returned to write the third novel, ''[[Halo: First Strike]]'', a sequel to ''[[Halo: Combat Evolved]]'' taking place before the events of ''[[Halo 2]]''. It was published in December 2003,<ref name=randomhouse>{{cite web | other books:halo:the flood.halo:the fall of reach.url=http://www.randomhouse.com/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9780345467812 | title=''Halo: First Strike'' by Eric Nylund | accessdate=September 2 | accessyear=2006 }}</ref> after being written in a period of sixteen weeks.<ref name=xbox.com3>{{cite web | last=Greene | first=Marty|url=http://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/h/halo2/spotlight2.htm | title=''First Strike'' Author Eric Nylund Q&A | accessdate=September 2 | accessyear=2006 }}</ref> | |||
==Brief Summary== | |||
{{Spoiler}} | |||
'''DATE:''' August 30, 2552-September 13, 2552 (Date Revised due to an Anomalous Slipspace Bubble) | |||
''Halo: First Strike'' clarifies a few plot questions that might have been raised by [[Halo: Combat Evolved|Halo]] fans, including exactly what happened to the SPARTAN's on [[Reach]] and also how [[Avery Junior Johnson]] survived the attack of the [[Flood]]. It is written by [[Eric Nylund]], who also wrote [[Halo: The Fall of Reach]], and is part of the official Halo canon. This has led to certain inconsistencies in [[Halo 2]]. | |||
==Detailed Summary== | |||
=== Section 0: Reach === | |||
The novel starts out before the [[Battle of Reach]], at the part in [[Halo: The Fall of Reach]] where [[Captain Keyes]] informed the [[Master Chief]] of the matter of the undeleted NAV database. [[Frederic-104]] is made the leader of Red Team and ordered to take the other [[SPARTAN-II|SPARTAN-IIs]] down to [[Reach]] to protect the generators powering the orbital [[MAC]] guns. | |||
[[Red Team]] took a [[Pelican]] down to the surface, but were forced to free fall to the ground after the pilot got hit by [[Seraph]] Fighters. The impact killed several of the Spartans and left many seriously injured. Most lost their guns, but improvised using rocks. The Spartans then grouped up with the remaining four [[UNSC Marine Corps|Marines]] in [[Charlie Company]]. The [[Marines]] summarized how the battle had gone, saying that they were the only ones who survived the entire battle. | |||
Vice [[Admiral Whitcomb]] contacted the Spartans and ordered an extraction for him and his staff claiming that he was the current officer in charge of the defense of Reach. Fred took [[Spartan-087]] (Kelly) and [[Spartan-029]] (Joshua) on a mission to destroy a large [[Covenant]] camp in a valley near the bunker Charlie Company once occupied. Taking three [[Banshee|Banshees]], they delivered a Fury Tactical-Nuke into a Covenant starship. Joshua's Banshee slipped under enemy fire described as a large needler round and he was killed. Fred and Kelly then completed the mission. | |||
Despite their efforts, however, the Covenant managed to overrun reactors on Reach. The Covenant Starships then initiated the [[glassing]] of Reach, even though they [[glassed]] only near the poles. However, Fred refused to sit around and die due to the [[Plasma]] Bombardment. Fred fired up his captured banshee, (from the previous operation involving the starship) as did Kelly, and together they flew away from the scene. | |||
===Section 1: Threshold=== | |||
The novel then moves to the debris field of [[Installation 04]], right after the events of [[Halo: Combat Evolved]]. Aboard the [[Longsword]] used to escape the destruction, [[Cortana]] and the Chief conversed, with the Chief insisting that Cortana repeat her scans of the debris for any signs of life. | |||
A battle group of seven [[Covenant]] starships entered the system, as did a [[Covenant]] flagship. [[Cortana]] found three cryopods that were jettisoned from the ''[[UNSC Pillar of Autumn|Pillar of Autumn]]'' prior to its crash on [[Alpha Halo]]. While she moved the Longsword towards the cryopods, she found a [[Pelican]] landed on a nearby asteroid. As the Chief retrieved the cryopods and returned to the [[Longsword]], the [[Pelican]] took off and attacked the lead Covenant starship, diverting attention away from the Longsword. The two small ships linked up, and several survivors jumped out of the Pelican, namely [[Sergeant Johnson]], ODST [[Corporal Locklear]], [[Polaski|Petty Officer Second Class Shelia Polaski]]<ref>[[Letter - Re:Polaski]]</ref>, and [[Lieutenant Haverson]]. The Master Chief had seen a video of [[Johnson]] getting infected, so he pointed a pistol at [[Johnson]]'s head, waiting for an explanation on how he could have survived. Apparently, Johnson has the disease called Boren's syndrome and the [[Flood]] could not force a match with his DNA and was not infected. | |||
Together the group managed to attack the flagship, called the ''[[Ascendant Justice]]'', where the Master Chief fought an Elite in god armor wielding a energy sword and won. After fighting their way to the bridge, they plugged Cortana into the vessel's computer. She effectively killed most of the combat crew by decompressing most of the decks of the vessel. The humans were effectively in control of the vessel. In the confusion between the other vessels, the ''Ascendant Justice'' entered [[Slipspace]], escaping Halo's remains. The group argued about where to go next, but ultimately, the Chief persuaded them all to return to Reach. First, because the [[Cole Protocol]] forbids them from taking a Covenant vessel to Earth directly. Second, because the Chief wanted to see what became of his fellow [[Spartans]]. | |||
Meanwhile, back at Earth, U.N.S.C. High Command Facility Bravo-6 in Sydney, the military learned of the destruction of Reach and concluded that they cannot try to retake the planet and must prepare for the final defense of Earth. All Spartans and vessels are assumed destroyed, though they do know that the ''Pillar of Autumn'' escaped destruction. | |||
===Section 2: Defense of Castle Base=== | |||
The novel then returns to Reach, where Kelly and Fred, after destroying the [[Covenant]] ship, crash-landed their Banshees into a pair of Hunters, confusing one and disabling the others gun. They then stole a pair of Wraith tanks, and blasted their way into the ONI base under the mountain. There, they met up with the surviving Spartans of Delta team, the injured and the four Marines, including Isaac (Spartan-039), Vinh (Spartan-030) and Will (Spartan-043). They met up with [[Doctor Halsey]], who treated their injuries, and sent them to retrieve some new weapons, which in Halo 2 appear as the [[BR55 Battle Rifle]] and the [[M6C Magnum Sidearm]]. | |||
At the lab, Dr. Halsey discovered Colonel Ackerson's plans, which were extensive lists on "''Her Spartans''", a star chart reference, and a third file labeled "''King Under the Mountain''". Before she could acess these, however, a UNSC AI appeared and attempted to stop her by threatening to kill one of the spartans. She destroyed it, but caused some concern with her personal AI. The Covenant then invaded the base, and the Spartans and Doctor Halsey escaped to the old Titanium mines beneath Castle Base, right before it's destruction, which destroyed their only exit. Having no other alternatives, the Spartans and Dr Halsey venture deep into the tunnels. | |||
In the tunnels, the Spartans received armor upgrades and Spartan Frederic-104 discovered several symbols which ultimately led to a huge tunnel that led into an even larger room. In the center of the room, there was a [[Forerunner crystal|crystal]]. The Spartans and Halsey found that if they walked straight towards it, it would bend the space around them and, if brought to [[Slipspace]], would allow them to travel further using the same amount of energy used in the same vessel. They retrieved the crystal, but the Covenant found them due to emission of radiation from the crystal. They landed forces inside the giant room using reversed gravity lifts, and [[Isaac-039]] and [[Vinh-030]] died while fighting the Covenant. | |||
===Section 3: Rescue=== | |||
Meanwhile, out in space, [[Master Chief]] and [[Cortana]], along with the last survivors of [[Installation 04]] and [[Sergeant Johnson]], find out that one of the cryotubes that Master Chief found is a SPARTAN-II.The others had contained marines, but these had died due to a cryotube malfunction. The Spartan happens to be [[Linda-058]]. While in the [[Pelican]] the Master Chief strips off some pieces from the pelican, to reinforce a [[DX-class Spirit Dropship|Covenant dropship]] they are going to use. As they walk into the hanger of the Ascendant Justice, the two men (Master Chief and Sgt. Johnson) witness [[Polaski]] practicing how to drive a Covenant dropship. As they enter [[Reach]] in real space, they see what has happened to it after the Covenant glassed the planet. They move the flagship closer as they notice that, during the glassing of Reach the Covenant "missed" a spot. The small fleet - consisting of a dozen cruisers, two assault carriers, and three squadrons of [[seraph]]s - ask why a flagship is at Reach. While on the ship, the survivors hear a U.N.S.C. E-band transmission. The E-band transmission is 5 notes "''Oly Oly Oxen Free''". No one on the bridge recognizes it - except the Master Chief. The section then returns to the year July 14, 2523. The memory plays the time when the Spartans played [[capture the flag]] against [[Tango Company]]. | |||
Back on ''Ascendant Justice'', the human crew debate whether they should go down to Reach in the reinforced Covenant dropship. Cortana looks around to see a spot which can be a extraction site to pick up the people going down to [[Reach]]. On the way down, cruisers start to surround them in their dropship. The humans find a canyon with some movement in it. Before landing Master Chief says the code for "''Oly Oly Oxen Free''" and says to land them in a safe spot where the survivors would find them. The Chief wanders out alone to see if there is a trap - if there is, he wants to trigger it. Haverson backs him up. At the bottom of the ramp Chief senses a single signal. The friend-or-foe tag wasn't working, so the signal isn't working. The Chief drew his pistol and turned to see it was a Spartan. The Spartan was Anton-044 (he had disabled his FoF tag so the Covenant wouldn't attack him). He led the Master Chief to the entrance of a cavern, where two Spartans, Grace-093 and Li-008, were operating chainguns that were bolted to the sides of two boulders. The Master Chief and Anton, followed by Grace, went into the cavern. Inside, Vice Admiral Danforth Whitcomb was standing at foldout card table, which was the headquarters for Camp Independence. | Back on ''Ascendant Justice'', the human crew debate whether they should go down to Reach in the reinforced Covenant dropship. Cortana looks around to see a spot which can be a extraction site to pick up the people going down to [[Reach]]. On the way down, cruisers start to surround them in their dropship. The humans find a canyon with some movement in it. Before landing Master Chief says the code for "''Oly Oly Oxen Free''" and says to land them in a safe spot where the survivors would find them. The Chief wanders out alone to see if there is a trap - if there is, he wants to trigger it. Haverson backs him up. At the bottom of the ramp Chief senses a single signal. The friend-or-foe tag wasn't working, so the signal isn't working. The Chief drew his pistol and turned to see it was a Spartan. The Spartan was Anton-044 (he had disabled his FoF tag so the Covenant wouldn't attack him). He led the Master Chief to the entrance of a cavern, where two Spartans, Grace-093 and Li-008, were operating chainguns that were bolted to the sides of two boulders. The Master Chief and Anton, followed by Grace, went into the cavern. Inside, Vice Admiral Danforth Whitcomb was standing at foldout card table, which was the headquarters for Camp Independence. | ||