Second Ark Conflict: Difference between revisions

|next= [[Battle for Zeta Halo]]

|conflict=[[Post-Covenant War conflicts]]{{Ref/Level|Id=The Signal|HW2|The Signal}}

|place=*[[Installation 00]]{{Ref/Reuse|The Signal}}

*[[Installation 09]]{{Ref/Level|Id=The Halo|HW2|The Halo}}

*[[UNSC]] gains a significant foothold on the Ark.{{Ref/Reuse|Beyond}}

**[[Atriox]]'s right hand, [[Decimus]], is killed.{{Ref/Level|Id=Lights Out|HW2|Lights Out}}

*The [[Flood]] are released onto the Ark but contained quickly by the [[Banished]] and then scoured from the rubble of High Charity.{{Ref/Level|Id=Fighting|HW2|Fighting Retreat}}{{Ref/Reuse|Manifestation}}{{Ref/Novel|Id=Sacrifice|SoR|Detail= Adjunct - [[Sacrifice]]}}

**Discovery in the rubble of High Charity allows [[Atriox]] to flee from the Ark by portal and return to the Milky Way galaxy.{{Ref/Novel|Id=SoR|SoR}}

*Destruction of [[Intrepid Eye]], [[Epsilon Clarion]] and the Ark's ability to fire the Halo Array, and destruction of [[Castor]]'s detachment of the [[Keepers of the One Freedom]].{{Ref/Novel|Id=DW|DW}}

|side1=*{{Icon|UNSC HCW}} [[United Nations Space Command|UNSC]]{{Ref/Reuse|The Signal}}

|side3=*{{Icon|Forerunner}} [[Sentinel|Forerunner constructs]]{{Ref/Level|Id=Ascension|HW2|Ascension (Halo Wars 2 level)|Ascension}}

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*[[Keepers of the One Freedom]]{{Ref/Reuse|SoR}}

|side4=*[[Flood]]{{Ref/Reuse|Fighting}}

|commanders1=*[[Captain|CAPT]] [[James Cutter]]{{Ref/Reuse|The Signal}}

*[[Commander|CDR]] [[Barre]]{{Ref/Novel|Id=HDW11|DW|Chapter=11}}

*[[Commander|CDR]] [[Jerome-092]]{{Ref/Reuse|The Signal}}

*[[Artificial intelligence|Logistics AI]] [[Isabel]]

|commanders2=*[[Warmaster]] [[Atriox]] {{C|Pre-[[Operation: WOLFE|October 12]]}}{{Ref/Reuse|The Signal}}

*[[War Chief]] [[Decimus]]†{{Ref/Reuse|A New Enemy}}

*"[[Colony]]"{{Ref/Reuse|Gatecrashers}}

*[[Jiralhanae Warlord|Warlord]] [[Pavium]]{{Ref/Reuse|WCGW}}

***[[HRUNTING/YGGDRASIL Mark IX Mantis|Mantis]]es{{Ref/Reuse|Gatecrashers}}

***[[M400 Kodiak|Kodiak]]s{{Ref/Reuse|A New Enemy}}

***[[M9 Wolverine|Wolverine]]s{{Ref/Reuse|The Cartographer}}

***[[XRP12 Gremlin|Gremlin]]s{{Ref/Reuse|HDW2}}

*****[[9th Shock Troops Battalion]]{{Ref/Reuse|PLMV}}

******[[Boomerang Company]]{{Ref/Reuse|PLMV}}

**''[[Enduring Conviction]]''{{Ref/Reuse|PLL}}

*1+ other starship capable of [[glassing]]{{Ref/Reuse|Watch}}

*[[Seraph]]s

*[[Eklon'Dal Workshop Spirit|Spirit]]s{{Ref/Reuse|The Halo}}

*[[Klavbrig Workshop Shroud]]s{{Ref/Reuse|Under the Dark}}

*[[Gydrozka Workshop Blisterback]]s{{Ref/Reuse|One Three Zero}}

*[[Barukaza Workshop Scarab|Scarab]]s{{Ref/Reuse|From the Deep}}

*[[Barukaza Workshop Locust|Locust]]s{{Ref/Reuse|From the Deep}}

*[[Eklon'Dal Workshop Wraith|Wraith]]s{{Ref/Reuse|The Signal}}

*[[Eklon'Dal Workshop Marauder]]s{{Ref/Reuse|One Three Zero}}

*[[Reaver]]s{{Ref/Reuse|Lights Out}}

*[[Barug'qel Workshop Chopper|Chopper]]s{{Ref/Reuse|A New Enemy}}

*[[Zaagokelu Workshop Ghost|Ghost]]s{{Ref/Reuse|The Signal}}

*[[Klavrig Workshop Skitterer]]s{{Ref/Reuse|Gatecrashers}}

*Ground forces

*Millions of Aggressor Sentinels{{Ref/Reuse|Under the Dark}}

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**2 Phantoms

**3 Seraphs

{{Quote|[[Captain Cutter|Captain]], your [[UNSC Spirit of Fire|troops]] fight with a tenacity that almost matches my [[Jiralhanae]] [[Atriox's Chosen|brothers]]. I'm impressed. You and I are survivors, and I respect that, so I offer you a boon. Take your troops, take your ship, leave now, and I will not hunt you down.|Atriox offering Captain Cutter and his crew a chance to leave peacefully in the ongoing battle.{{Ref/Reuse|The Halo}}}}

A new threat emerged on the Ark when Banished salvage teams breached the ruins of ''[[High Charity]]'' and inadvertently [[Outbreak on Installation 00|unleashed]] the [[Flood]] on the Ark once more. The Banished and the Ark's defenses managed to stop the outbreak and contain the Flood once again before it could spread too far.

{{Main|Outbreak on the UNSC Spirit of Fire}}

{{Quote|Captain, wake up... Something has happened.|Serina's message for Captain Cutter.{{Ref/Reuse|The Signal}}}}

[[File:Flood infector Spirit of Fire.jpg|250px|thumb|left|A surviving Pod infector starts an outbreak on the ''Spirit of Fire''.]]

With recon [[UNSC Armed Forces|forces]] having been sent in ahead, Red Team was dropped off in a [[Warthog]] on the Ark's south spire.{{Ref/Reuse|A New Enemy}} Arriving at a hastily-created barrier, one of the soldiers of [[Recon One]] informed them that they had set charges and so [[Alice-130]] fired on it with the Warthog's [[M46 Vulcan|machine gun]], detonating the charges and destroying the barrier. After destroying another barrier, Red Team eventually encountered a recon team who had been attacked. Pressing on, the [[Spartan]]s arrived at a [[portal]] that had been discovered by the recon soldiers. While the [[UNSC Marine Corps|Marines]] stayed behind to guard the portal, Red Team ventured through and were teleported nearby. After passing a couple more portals, the Spartans found themselves at the [[Henry Lamb research outpost]].{{Ref/Reuse|The Signal}} {{clear|left}}

===Encounter with Atriox===

{{Quote|no=three|Isabel|Douglas-042|Isabel|q1=Oh no.|q2=What was that?|q3=It's him.|Isabel after realizing Atriox had found them{{Ref/Reuse|The Signal}}}}

{{Quote|no=two|Jerome-092|Isabel|q1=I'm guessing that's Decimus.|q2=He looks bigger than the last time I saw him.|Jerome-092 and Isabel during the former's encounter with Decimus{{Ref/Reuse|A New Enemy}}}}

After conferring with Isabel on the best option for attacking the Banished chain of command, the AI told Cutter of Lieutenant [[Decimus]], the overseer of a ship graveyard salvage operation near the Henry Lamb research outpost.{{Ref/Reuse|A New Enemy}}

After the Marines established the base, Isabel alerted them and Captain Cutter of a large energy build-up directly above. Despite being hit by the [[energy projector]] of the ''[[Enduring Conviction]]'', the Banished's {{Class|CAS|assault carrier}}, the base sustained only non-critical damage, allowing Strike One to continue north in the direction of the rest of Decimus' salvage operation.{{Ref/Reuse|A New Enemy}}

===Battle of Installation 09===

After reuniting with Jerome on the Halo, Red Team led Marine forces to [[Alpha Base (Installation 09)|Alpha Base]] and defeated the Banished forces there. However, the Banished had already set up a shield sealing off the ring's Control Room, where Anders was to disable the firing systems and plant the comms beacon. Suddenly, a [[Retriever]] sentinel appeared, wreaking havoc on the UNSC forces before the Marines could send it into retreat. Realizing the sentinel could be used to their advantage, Anders told Red Team that if they could secure three Control Towers, she would be able to take control of the Retriever. Making their way to the towers, the Marines defeated the surrounding Banished forces and secured them, allowing Anders to take control of the massive sentinel. Using the machine's main weapon, Anders destroyed the [[shield generator]] in one blast, allowing her to access the Control Room. As the professor descended, the Spartans and Marines stayed behind to defend the structure.{{Ref/Reuse|The Halo}}

While Anders worked on accessing the ring's firing systems, the Marines set up turret emplacements and defended against incoming Banished forces. With support from the ''Spirit of Fire'' and Marine reinforcements, the UNSC held back heavy Banished reinforcements long enough for Anders to access the weapons systems and plant the distress beacon. However, Anders reminded Cutter that the Banished still needed to be removed from the ring but that she found a way to speed that up. Telling Cutter to clear UNSC forces from the immediate area, Anders proceeded to manipulate the Halo's [[gravity anchor]]s, creating an energy shield around the remaining Banished forces before ejecting the land they were standing on into space.{{Ref/Level|Id=Last Stand|HW2|Last Stand (Halo Wars 2 level)|Last Stand}}

The ''Spirit of Fire'' crew's attempt to deploy the new Halo to the Soell system was unsuccessful. The ring was forcibly pulled out of slipspace on its way by a [[Guardian]], which Anders encountered upon returning to the surface.{{Ref/Reuse|Last Stand}} {{clear|left}}

===Operation: SPEARBREAKER===

{{Main|Operation: SPEARBREAKER}}

===Yapyap's rebellion===

===Awakening a nightmare===

{{Quote|I told you not to go inside. For good reason!|Atriox to Voridus{{Ref/Reuse|Manifestation}}}}

===Raiding the Keyship===

{{Main|Raid on Anodyne Spirit}}

===Reconnecting with Reach===

===Attempting to Start the Great Journey===

{{Main|Battle for Translocation portal Epsilon|Battle of Epsilon Clarion}}

The combined Keepers/Covenant alliance set out to one of the installation's [[Cartographer#Installation 00|Cartographers]] in order to find a new facility to fire the Halo Array from, the [[Installation 00 Citadel|original Citadel]] having been destroyed in the midst of the upheaval caused by the Ark's repairs. [[Veta Lopis]] left behind a message capsule in an attempt to alert ''[[Romeo-008]]'', a reconnaissance Pelican that was observing the battle from nearby, to the threat. However, the message was instead found by [[Pavium]] and [[Voridus]] who rallied the [[Clan of the Long Shields]] to stop Castor. At the Cartographer, Lopis' Reclaimer status was used to get the location of the [[Epsilon Clarion]] facility, the only one of the Ark's [[Clarion]] facilities that was either accessible or operable, from the facility's monitor. During this time, Intrepid Eye was able to confirm Lopis' identity as an ONI spy. This reveal lead to Castor, [[blademaster]] [[Inslaan 'Gadogai]] and Bhasvod using the [[Ferret]]s and a captured Banished data pad to draw their two enemies into a trap where they would fight each other, thus buying time for the allied forces to complete their mission.  

Before the Keepers and Covenant could leave the Cartographer, the Banished launched a brief attack on their landed ships, causing the [[Aggressor Sentinel]]s to join the battle as well. Ultimately, Bhasvod's command Phantom was crippled and had to be abandoned along with the Covenant's Ghosts and half of their air support - while the Banished suffered no losses. Recognizing that their cover had been blown, the Ferrets got ''Romeo-008'' to extract them. U, the trap worked and [[Vulture]]s from the ''Spirit of Fire'' destroyed nine of the ten Seraphs belonging to the Clan of the Long Shields. A short time later, the Banished forces suffered [[Ambush in the Maze Rift|an ambush]] by the Covenant's three Seraphs in the [[Maze Rift]], but the remaining Banished Seraph was able to take them out and stop the ambush.{{Citation needed}}

Recognizing the continuing threat if Intrepid Eye was not destroyed and allowed to attempt to fire the Array with or without a Reclaimer, the Ferrets came up with a plan to allow the ancilla to download herself into Epsilon Clarion's systems which would leave her in one place and thus vulnerable to destruction. To facilitate this plan, Lopis allowed herself to be captured while the other Ferrets set up a signal repeater and followed her in an effort to rescue their leader, although [[Mark-G313]], severely wounded and unable to keep up, remained behind to hold off an attacking Sentinel. Spotting their passage across the light bridge, Pavium, Voridus and their few remaining forces attempted to ambush the surviving Keepers and the Covenant, but the Ferrets alerted them with gunfire as the ambush would ruin their own plan. The fight left Pavium and Voridus as the only survivors on the Banished side, Krelis mortally wounded and only Castor, Bhasvod, 'Gadogai and Arcas left of the Keepers and Covenant forces.{{Citation needed}}

After entering Epsilon Clarion, Intrepid Eye prepared to transfer herself into the facility's systems, but Lopis declared a [[logic plague]] emergency in order to buy more time. This caused [[Epsilon Clarion ancilla|the facility's ancilla]] to immediately cut off contact with the rest of the Ark's systems and block Intrepid Eye's entry. As a result, Intrepid Eye was forced to manifest an [[avatar]] of herself and argue with the ancilla about allowing them to activate the Array. In the process, Castor learned the truth about Halos purpose as a last resort weapon against the [[Flood]] rather than a means of Transcendence by triggering the Great Journey. Intrepid Eye eventually managed to trick the ancilla into granting her access and once she was in, Lopis signalled the ''Spirit of Fire'' to begin an [[orbital bombardment]] with [[EMP]] [[MAC]] rounds. Although Intrepid Eye raised the facility's shields, the EMPs were enough to damage the power systems and they would inevitably bring down the shield, allowing the MAC rounds to destroy Epsilon Clarion. In addition, any EMP powerful enough to take down the shield would also be powerful enough to wipe out Intrepid Eye's code and destroy the ancilla. Effectively trapped, Intrepid Eye managed to force Epsilon Clarion's ancilla to open the control room and attempted to have Castor use Lopis to trigger Halo's activation, intending to escape by piggybacking on the activation signal. However, Castor's faith had been shattered by what he had witnessed, and he turned against both the ancilla and Bhasvod as [[Ash-G099]] and [[Olivia-G291]] stormed Epsilon Clarion in order to rescue Lopis. A skirmish ensued that left Ash and Olivia severely wounded, Arcas dead and Bhasvod thrown into a pit. With Epsilon Clarion on the verge of destruction and no longer intending to go through with their plan to fire the Halo Array, 'Gadogai convinced Castor to flee with the Ferrets doing the same. The ''Spirit of Fire's'' bombardment destroyed both Epsilon Clarion and Intrepid Eye, taking with it the Ark's ability to fire the Array until a new Clarion facility could be constructed.{{Citation needed}}

Ten days later, the ''Spirit of Fire'' held a funeral for Mark and [[John Cassidy]], the co-pilot of ''Romeo-008'' who had also lost his life in the fighting. Unable to return home, Lopis and the surviving Ferrets decided to accept Cutter's offer to join the crew of the ''Spirit of Fire'' and help them in their continuing fight against the Banished.{{Ref/Reuse|DW}}

===March 28, 2559===

*{{UNSCShip|Spirit of Fire}} arrives at Installation 00. All surviving crew is awakened and begin investigating Installation 00 following a distress signal from [[Isabel]].

===Unknown date (March 28-March 30)===

===March 30, 2559===

===Unknown date (March 30-April 2)===

===Unknown date (Between June 6 to July)===

*The Banished conducts a raid at the [[Raid on Anodyne Spirit|Covenant Loyalist's bastion]], and successfully takes the Forerunner Crystal.

|-

|[[Major]]

|Unknown

|-

File:HW2-Banished-02.jpg|Atriox stands before his army in the aftermath of the battle on the Halo.

File:HW2-Odsts-1.jpg|Sunray 1-1 in combat.

File:HW2_Spearbreaker_Loadscreen.jpg|UNSC forces fighting Sentinels.

File:HW2-What Could Go Wrong.jpg|Voridus' Volatile Scarab heads for High Charity.

File:HW2-Squish.gif|Atriox crushes an infection form.

File:HW2-Cleanup.png|Aggressor Sentinels begin to contain the Flood once again.

</gallery>

*''[[Halo: Divine Wind]]''

*''[[Halo Infinite]]'' {{Mo}}

==Sources==