Serin Osman: Difference between revisions

===Assembling the team===

{{Quote|Time to put Kilo-Five together, then. BB, you're formally assigned to Captain Osman as of now. Lead on, Captain.|Margaret Parangosky to Black-Box and Osman.}}{{Ref/Reuse|G2}}

By January 26, Serin found herself waiting outside Admiral Parangosky's offices within [[HIGHCOM Facility Bravo-6]].{{Ref/Reuse|G2}} Her own desk was situated near the door beyond which lay a corridor that led to the [[CINCONI]] herself. Accompanying her while she waited was the [[Minister for the Colonies]], [[David Agnoli]]. Through he had made no appointment of his own to see Parangosky, he had no compunction about asking Osman to get him a meeting. Osman, however, made sure he knew that Parangosky calls him a weasel and when he casually began rifling through [[The Admiralty Manual of Seamanship Volume II|a book]] that had been given to her by [[Fleet Admiral]] [[Terrence Hood]], she asked that he try to refrain from getting his greasy fingerprints all over it. At that moment, the door opened at the hand of Parangosky's flag lieutenant, a young man by the name of [[Dorsey]]. Told that the Admiral would see her then, she grabbed the files she needed from her desk and made for the door while Agnoli showed himself out.{{Ref/Reuse|G2}} Just before she could cross the threshold, her path was suddenly filled with the [[holographic]] projection of an unremarkable blue cube. The [[Smart AI|smart A.I.]] introduced itself as [[Black-Box]]. Osman asked whose pet he was and continued on her way. Black-Box had to reroute himself so he could continue to make his avatar visible as she walked down the corridor, informing the captain that he worked for Parangosky. When she reached where the Admiral was seated, she remarked that it was good the two of them were already getting to know each other.{{Ref/Reuse|G2}} Parangosky assured Osman that she could trust Black-Box with her life, if it came to that. Once the office had been secured so the three of them could speak in confidence, the Admiral told Osman that she would in fact be taking him on as her personal [[A.I.]] for the missions that lay ahead. Given the gravity with which Parangosky was speaking, Serin couldn't help but ask whether she was referring to more than just fomenting conflict between the Sangheili. In response to this, she was informed that some recent evidence suggested [[Catherine Halsey]] was still alive. Electronic intelligence (ELINT) officers onboard the {{UNSCShip|Glamorgan}} had detected massive electromagnetic abnormalities in the [[Zeta Doradus system]] where the artificial world of [[Onyx]] had been before its disassembly. ELINT could tell that [[shield World 006|something]] the size of a solar system was present, but yet undetectable in realspace.{{Ref/Reuse|G2}} Onyx had been the doctor's last known location. Though the Sangheili were to still be [[Kilo-Five]]'s top priority at the present, Parangosky made clear that should the ''Glamorgan'' find a way to access whatever was still there in place of Onyx, she wanted Kilo-Five on hand to apprehend Halsey if she was present. Until such an occasion arose, however, the other human members of the team were not to be told she was considered still at large. Having established the parameters of the objectives ahead of the them, the two woman and the A.I. concluded their business and resolved to meet the rest of Kilo-Five. To Osman's surprise, Parangosky let her know that just around two hours prior she had taken a gamble and invited Doctor Phillips to join, making him the only civilian on the team.<ref name="G2">''[[Halo: Glasslands]]'', ''chapter 2''</ref>

[[File:Glasslands cover2.jpg|thumb|200px|The second time Osman and Phillips met with 'Avu Med 'Telcam, they took three ODSTs with them.{{Ref/Reuse|G5}}]]

{{Quote|no=three|q1=Give him a bit more latitude than you usually would before blowing his head off.|Serin Osman|q2=How much more, ma'am? Seriously.|[[Vasily Beloi]]|q3=Whatever happens, let him get away with the weapons. That's what matters. Stoke the fire.|Serin Osman|Osman reveals how seriously she takes the mission to sow disunity and internecine conflict among the Sangheili.}}{{Ref/Reuse|G5}}

Before they could leave New Llanelli behind, Mal spotted a lone [[human]] approaching them.{{Ref/Reuse|G5}} This unexpected appearance and the complication it brought greatly annoyed Captain Osman and Vaz took her aside after they stopped the Warthog near him to ask that he not be harmed. The emaciated man identified himself as [[Tom Muir]] and said he was the only survivor from the colony's [[glassing]] seven years prior. Osman agreed to take him with them as far as the closest UNSC base, provided he was confined to quarters on the ''Port Stanley''.<ref name="G5">''[[Halo: Glasslands]]'', ''chapter 5''</ref> Before making the jump to [[Reynes]], Osman set up a connection with Parangosky in her day cabin so the two of them could exchange sitreps.{{Ref/Reuse|G6}} The Admiral had no further news as far as Halsey was concerned, but did communicate her disappointment in having learned that [[Colonel]] [[James Ackerson]] had been confirmed dead. Parangosky told Serin she could link up with the {{UNSCShip|Monte Cassino}} near Venezia and cross deck both Spenser and Muir to get them off her hands. If that wouldn't work and they became loose ends, however, the old woman stated plainly that she expected Serin would lose them another way. Upon questioning why she had evacuated Muir in the first place, Osman made the case that executing an unarmed civilian in front of her team wouldn't have been one of the best things she could do for their trust in her. After severing the connection she took her place on the bridge and gave permission to enter slipspace for Reynes. She asked Black-Box how long he expected the transit to take, to which he replied that his best estimation gave them around thirty-two hours. In order to keep Spenser away from the hangar bay full of [[Covenant]] weaponry when he came aboard, she told the A.I. to have him transferred via their docking ring when the time came. After announcing her intentions to pay their new passenger a visit in the meantime, Naomi offered to come along. Osman thanked her for the offer but insisted she could handle any trouble he might give her. She took multiple ladders down to the officer's accommodation deck where Tom was locked within a cabin and guarded by Mal. She went in to see the refugee, who was extremely suspcious of his rescuers and why they had been meeting with Covenant species. Osman was able to convince him they were merely exchanging bodies. She also reinforced that everything on the ship was classified and that was why he was quarantined. Muir was indignant at the way he was being treated and threw the seeming abandonment of New Lllanelli by [[Earth]] in her face, but she cooly informed him that Earth had lost billions when the Covenant [[Battle for Earth|attacked]]. After the cabin door shut behind her, she told Mal she didn't think he'd be a security risk. If he was, however, she also said she wouldn't hesitate to do what was necessary.<ref name="G6">''[[Halo: Glasslands]]'', ''chapter 6''</ref>

Once Kilo-Five arrived at Reynes, the [[ODST]]s went to the surface to extract Spenser. An altercation with a group of Kig-Yar scavengers resulted in the scavengers' deaths.{{Ref/Reuse|G6}} Osman's reaction to the spurt of violence was to ask if any typically [[Plasma rifle|Sangheili rifles]] were present on the scene that could be used to direct the blame for the killings elsewhere. In addition to this encouragement to make more of a mess in order to stir things up, as she put it, she requested that a couple of Jackal corpses be brought aboard the ''Port Stanley'', as there was no telling when they might be able to make use of them.{{Ref/Reuse|G6}} Serin met the returning marines in the hangar while they were unloading and, satisfied with their work, told them to place the bodies in the [[cryo]] store alongside [[Jiralhanae]] cadavers and body parts already frozen there. Their next stop was [[Venezia]] and the ''Monte Cassino'' in particular, so the captain let everyone know they should stand by to jump as soon as they had completed their necessary tasks. Her immediate concern was having a short chat with Spenser. Six hours later, they had dropped out of slipspace in the [[Orso system]] but the destroyer they were to meet was still five hours behind them. The ''[[UNSC Ariadne]]'' was still in trouble and Venezia had continued to refuse it any assistance. It would take about two hours for them to reach the ailing patrol ship at sublight speed, but before Osman could even plan their next course of action, the ''Ariadne'' exploded due to its reactor finally melting down.{{Ref/Reuse|G6}}

===Taking the ''Piety''===

It was February and only a few weeks since the start of their mission by the time the team arrived in the [[Urs system|Urs–Fied–Joori system]] for the next part of it.{{Ref/Reuse|G9}} The ''Port Stanley'', hidden, came to rest at a stationary position in [[Sanghelios]] space. Osman joined the ODSTs and Phillips in the hangar's maintenance area just as Mal was openly wondering how many [[Spartan-II]]s there had been. Serin surprised them all by speaking frankly about the sordid histories of the Spartan-II and [[Spartan-III]] programs. She had no reservations about making them aware that she had been kidnapped as a child and subjected to various [[SPARTAN-II augmentation procedures|genetic and biochemical enhancements]] at age fourteen before her body began to reject further attempts to make her more deadly.{{Ref/Reuse|G9}} The captain changed tack immediately after dropping this bombshell, letting her team know that [[BB]] had intercepted voice traffic from a small [[Jiralhanae]] transport, the ''[[Piety]]'', that was inbound for Sanghelios. The ''Piety'', crewed by at least six Brutes, was apparently not only transporting weapons for 'Telcam, but [[Requires Adjustment|a]] [[Huragok]] as well. She informed them that their prowler would intercept the other craft in just eighty-two minutes and that she wanted to meet in ten in order to plan how they would take its valuable prize for themselves. Before she strode away, she told Mal to break out the dead [[Kig-Yar]] they had collected on [[Reynes]].<ref name="G9">''[[Halo: Glasslands]]'', ''chapter 9''</ref>

[[File:H3ODST-VergilHuragok.png|thumb|120px|left|Huragok are valued for their innate ability to repair and improve upon technological and biological systems.<ref name="FS8">''[[Halo: First Strike]]'', ''chapter 8''</ref><ref name="G13">''[[Halo: Glasslands]]'', ''chapter 13''</ref>]]

===A change in plans===

===The crown Jul===

{{Quote|no=two|q1=I'll summarize the rant. He's telling us all we're [[nishum|intestinal worms]] and vermin, and describing what he's going to do with our entrails in due course.|[[Evan Phillips]]|q2=I didn't think he was asking for his lawyer.|Serin Osman|Osman comments on the enraged state of her prisoner, [[Jul 'Mdama]].}}{{Ref/Reuse|G13}}

Over the next twenty-four hours, the ''Port Stanley'' monitored traffic around Sanghelios and gathered intelligence.{{Ref/Reuse|G12}} 'Telcam eventually contacted the ship spoke to Phillips, who then went to Captain Osman to confirm another appointment with the Bishop for a second weapons handoff. Figuring they would still have time to make it back before Hood arrived, Osman had the ship set off for [[New Llanelli]] once more. There, she chose to ride down to the surface this time to meet with 'Telcam in person once again. The ex-field master had caught wind of Hood's upcoming visit and offered to kill him if that was something Osman wished for. She brushed aside the idea by saying that such an action would be of no benefit to either of them. While they were speaking, Naomi ambushed [[Jul 'Mdama|a Sangheili]] who was spying on the interaction from a short distance away. She managed to subdue him with assistance from Mal and Vaz and after the Servants' {{Class|Contrition|transport}} had departed with more tagged weapons Osman walked over to see what was going on. She told Naomi to continue to restrain the Elite while she made a call to Parongosky for direction. From Earth, the admiral encouraged her protégé to take the interloper [[prisoner]]. She rejoined the ODSTs and Spartan and relayed what she'd been told. She also gave the order to find their new captive's transport and to salvage what they could before destroying it.<ref name="G12">''[[Halo: Glasslands]]'', ''chapter 12''</ref>

===Unshakable conviction===

{{Quote|no=two|q1=Good team, Kilo-Five.|[[Margaret Parangosky]]|q2=They've really gelled. A bit baffled and inpatient without real fighting to do, but they're adapting to intelligence work very well.|Serin Osman|Osman and Parangosky reflect on Kilo-Five's first actions over the past few weeks.}}{{Ref/Reuse|G16}}

]]

The [[Voi Memorial|memorial ceremony]] at [[Voi]] for those who gave their lives fighting the [[Covenant]] and those who pursued the enemy to the [[Ark]] in particular, was held on [[2553#March|March 3]].{{Ref/Reuse|G16}} All of [[Kilo-Five]] was in attendance. Following the ceremony's conclusion, Osman made the case to Admiral Parangosky for Evan's insertion to [[Sanghelios]] to gather intelligence as the Arbiter's invited guest. She assured her mentor that if he became compromised in any way while spying for them, that [[Black-Box]] could administer a lethal dose of [[Drugs|nerve agent]] to him at will. She also mentioned that she was still planning on following up on the Venezia situation. Parangosky specifically then asked Serin to keep an eye on the colony and to lend assistance to [[Mike Spenser]], now reassigned there, should he request it. The admiral even went to far as to suggest that she wouldn't mind if an orchestrated [[Sangheili]] attack were to befall the planet.{{Ref/Reuse|G16}}

As Kilo-Five proceeded further into the temple complex, comms between they and ''Port Stanley'' eventually broke up and then disappeared altogether.<ref name="TTW7">''[[Halo: The Thursday War]]'', ''chapter 7''</ref> When contact was reestablished, Mal apologized to Captain Osman for the unfortunate circumstances of an escape they were forced to make.{{Ref/Reuse|TTW8}} An unruly Sangheili mob, enraged by the fact that humans were traipsing all over the temple, had started a firefight that left four of them dead. Now ''Tart-Cart'' was airborne about twenty kilometers from Ontom. Osman didn't disagree with returning fire in order to protect themselves and suggested that this turn of events actually could actually play well for the Servants, so it wasn't that bad of a thing. Since they hadn't found Even within the temple, Serin counseled they they continue the search from the air in the surrounding area, but BB noted that it seemed he had accessed a [[portal]] and could have been transported anywhere by it. He might not even be on the same planet anymore, for all they knew. The A.I. advised they try to get Hood to sweet-talk the Arbiter into releasing a full list of Forerunner sites on Sanghelios in order to narrow their search of places he might have emerged. Serin agreed with this and signed off with instructions to make another sitrep in one hour.{{Ref/Reuse|TTW8}}

===The thursday war===

{{Quote|no=four|q1=The Arbiter can't hold out much longer.|Serin Osman|q2=Well, Hood's come to the rescue, but you're going to have to make sure that he's not ''too'' successful.|Margaret Parangosky|q3=I know, ma'am. I've been wargaming the worst scenario.|Serin Osman|q4=We can have the best of all worlds. We need to degrade what's left of Sangheili space capability, but we have to degrade it equally on both sides, which is generally harder in practice than it sounds.|Margaret Parangosky|Captain Osman and Admiral Parangosky plan to secretly undercut the newly-formed alliance between the UNSC and the Arbiter.}}{{Ref/Reuse|TTW10}}

Osman learned a short time later that 'Telcam had been contacted by [[Elar 'Nas|someone]] from [[Nes'alun keep]], where Evan was currently located.{{Ref/Reuse|TTW9}} She opened a channel with Parangosky on the prowler's bridge to let her know right away. She also took the oppurtunity to pass along the latest intel regarding the [[Blooding Years|civil conflict]] on the planet and advised that she pass what she had along to Hood as well. The Arbiter's permission given to humans to enter the [[Temple of the Abiding Truth|temple]] in Ontom had fueled a groundswell of opposition and now [[Kolaar Mountain]] was [[Siege at Kolaar|surrounded]] on three sides by encroaching forces loyal to the [[Servants of the Abiding Truth]]. Parangosky agreed with Serin's conclusion that the time had come to bring the ''Infinity'''s might to bear before the Sangheili. She told the captain to keep her apprised of the developing situation and said she needed two hours at the most to set things in motion. Serin did openly question whether it was wise for the ship to carry both CINCONI and Fleet Admiral Hood into a combat zone together but her concerns were dismissed.<ref name="TTW9">''[[Halo: The Thursday War]]'', ''chapter 9''</ref>

After the battle, Osman rendezvoused with ''Tart-Cart'' and dropped 'Telcam off at New Llanelli for his safety.<ref>'''Halo: The Thursday War''', ''page 329''</ref>

===Venezian movement===

*''[[Halo: Shadows of Reach]]'' {{Mo}}

*''[[Halo: Divine Wind]]'' {{Mo}}

{{col-end}}