HUMANS
By the 24th century, Humans have founded a modest interstellar empire. There are at least a few dozen, but more likely one or two hundred, colony worlds within human-explored space. Some of them, if not most, are relatively heavily populated, indications of a prosperous 2 centuries exploring our neck (or arm, if you like) of the galaxy.
Human technology is not that far advanced from what we have today; the basic technologies are mostly the same, just on a much larger scale, with the exception of FTL travel made possible by the Shaw-Fujikawa slipstream drives of Human starships. Weaponry is still projectile-based, and explosives still seem to involve chemical reactions rather than a release of contained plasma, as the Covenant explosives use. While Humans have recently come to possess artificial gravity, another product of reverse engineering Covenant ordinance (as demonstrated by the gravity on the Pillar of Autumn), they have yet to apply it to smaller planet-bound vehicles; the Warthog, for example, still uses wheels and does not hover.
AI is a different story. Mankind has long striven to artificially produce some semblance of consciousness, and their dedication has not been in vain. For in Humanity's limited extrateresterial experience, the likes of Cortana appear only to be matched, if at all, by the constructs of the ancient Forerunner themselves. Covenant AI, though inherently complicated and dangerous, prove to be little more than simple-minded curiosities to Cortana, as she so effortlessly dissects and examines her would be tormenter. Their make-up and origins possess riddles enough for the future.
The Covenant, however, "own nothing which they have not stolen", and have had a decisive advantage so far in their own technological revolutions: the raiding of abandoned Forerunner complexes, caches, and worlds. But, as Humanity's resistance plays out across the fields and scapes of the Milky Way, mankind not only adapts and incorporates, but creates and improves. The Mjolnir armour and shield technology, coupled with the yields of Humanity's fascination with sentient constructs has so far been the most succesful of their ingenuities.
The bulk of Humanity still does not know about the events which transpired after the Pillar of Autumn jumped away from the Reach system; the Master Chief and a handful of Human survivors wrenched from Installation 04's wreckage, are the only remaining witnesses of our race to the Flood and the Forerunner machines left on Halo. All they know is that their last hope, Reach and her military forces, is either completely lost or severely impeded (depending on the number of surviving Spartans), and that the Covenant still loom over Human space. Earth cannot last long; even with ONI's morale-boosting propaganda and hush tactics, every night they watch the sky, waiting for the hammer to fall.
MASTER CHIEF
The Master Chief is the sole Spartan to leave the Reach system aboard the Pillar of Autumn (with the exception of Linda-058 in cryo). For all he knows, he is the last Spartan alive. All of humanity depends on him, for the Covenant are still strong, and there are new enemies and variables to contend with that Earth knows nothing about-the Flood, the Forerunner, and their creations, such as 343 Guilty Spark.
He has lived most of his life in various military camps on Reach; stolen from his family at six, his name changed to "John-117," his entire upbringing has been centred around making him a mechanism of military efficiency, utilizing both force and tactics. He displays an odd sort of attitude for a creation of the military: he does not glorify his actions, he merely does what he has to do. He does not hate his enemy; he kills them because he knows it is his duty to kill them; to win. "It wasn't [the Chief's] job to make things suffer - he was just here to win battles. Whatever it took." (FoR, p.6)
He is an unconventional Hero, for though he is strong, fast, and brilliant he is the epitome of none, and is surpassed by other Spartans in each area. What John does possess above all is leadership and, to both Cortana's repeated salvation and bewilderment, probability defying luck.
CORTANA
Cortana is one of thousands of AIs which populate the computer networks of the Human worlds. She is, however, somewhat unique; she is a direct copy of a human being, Dr. Halsey, and lacks behavioral inhibitors of any kind. She is free to do as she pleases, unlike most other military AIs, such as the ONI AI Beowulf, which is strict, sullen, and by-the-book. Cortana, on the other hand, is strong-headed, noisy, and somewhat off-the-wall.
However, her freedom comes at a price. As a "smart" AI, she has an unextendable life-span of approximately 7 years, at which time they become too smart, suffering from exponential attenuation of function; they think so much they forget to breathe.
At her choosing, she and the Master Chief were specifically paired together for Mjolnir/Spartan II proving trials, in preperation for her placement aboard the Pillar of Autumn for its covert infiltration mission (which was cut short by the Covenant invasion of Reach).
Cortana possessed that most precious piece of information, the location of Earth. In the midst of the Pillar of Autumn's fiery descent to Halo, her safety could be assured in only one place- the suit of the Master Chief.
However, since her time in Halo 04's Control Center, Cortana has found herself laden with vast amounts of hastily compressed data, the contents of which would surely initiate consequences beyond anyone's wildest expectations. There simply has not been a chance or location to unload and analyze it, something that has frustrated her to no end. The additional burden of carrying this inaccessible information has considerably dampened her prowess and as well, as her abilities of concentration and multitasking, as she noticed on several occasions in contact with the Covenant AI aboard the Ascendant Justice.
In spite of this, her spare time has already allowed her to exceed the Covenant's knowledge of their own technology, refining them to create focused streams of plasma energy, a Slipspace system capable of jumps much closer to gravity wells, and enabling her to make copies of herself (further proof of the Covenant's lack of comprehension and ignorant reverence towards their stolen ordinance), allowing her to reek further havoc during fleet engagements.
As her temper shortens, and her absent-mindedness increases under the load of the Forerunner data, the urgency to find a place to dump and resort her cargo has been coupled with the strain. Let us hope that her former primary objectives of protecting Humanity cannot be willfully circumvented with the ease that she manipulates her own ethics protocols...
DR CATHERINE HALSEY
As the "mother" of Cortana, the SPARTAN II's, and project MJOLNIR, Dr. Halsey (civilian ID #10141-026-SRB4695) is quite possibly the author of Humanity's only true chance at halting the Covenant's campaign of genocide and pillage. Although a civilian, her work for ONI and dedication to the survival of a unified Human government and its people have earned her the highest security clearance available for non-military personnel, a restriction that has been stretched and broken innumerable times. A growing respect and budget have also ensued, much to the embarrassment and frustration of her rivals, namely Colonel Ackerson and his own mysterious special weapons program.
Her motivations have always been pure; to protect Humanity from forces both without and within. However, focusing on the necessity and positive yields of her operations, Dr. Halsey had reluctantly bought into ONI's concept of "acceptable losses", always for the greater good and preservation of the species. Her pride and and satisfaction have always been coupled with a deep remorse for those she has sacrificed along the way; a remorse she had told herself she should not entertain.
And so she has repented, and is now taking steps (known only to herself) to save not only the many, but the few. How her kidnapping of Kelly-087, with her anomalous DNA, and sudden departure in an ONI stealth prowler will accomplish this is yet to be seen.
CAPTAIN KEYES
Keyes was a member of the UNSC Navy for much of his life, slowly working his way through the ranks until finally becoming a Captain in the Battle of Sigma Octanus and going on to command the Pillar of Autumn.
At some point early in his military career, when he was still an Ensign, Keyes was nearly killed when a captain of his decided to try out his new method of FTL transfer and the experiment went horribly awry. Keyes learned during the trial of the captain to keep his mouth shut - something that Dr. Halsey, the Spartan II project, and no doubt, ONI, valued greatly. As such, Keyes was involved in the initial exfiltration of the then young Spartans to be, beginning with John-117, the one day Master Chief. With his experience, it was no surprise he was chosen to lead the Pillar of Autumn on its Spartan insertion operation.
When the PoA reached Halo, Keyes was in command of what was possibly the last group of human soldiers from Reach. If he failed, and Halo was lost to the whims of the Covenant, Reach would certainly not be the last planet to fall, and Earth's imminent discovery and siege would be hastened. When an already dismal situation went further awry, only his steadfast will and resolve prevented the location of Earth from falling into the hands of a foe more threatening than even the Covenant: the omni-parisitic, sentient xenoform known as The Flood. His interrogation and eventual death, though slow and horrific, was consistently fought with the courage and tactical skill his life and command had become known for.
UNSC FORCES
Their faces are varied; the Marines, Orbital Drop Shock Troopers (ODST Helljumpers), Foehammer; but their goal has always been the same. The UNSC military forces have suffered incredible losses at the hands of the Covenant's precise and lethal prowess. Fairing best on the ground, though hopelessly outnumbered and outgunned in orbit, the UNSC has nonetheless slowed the Covenant advance long enough to demonstrate again and again the superior ingenuity of Humanity at large. Artificial gravity, shield technology, MJOLNIR; with time, these staggering advancements could be improved upon exponentially, allowing the UNSC to potentially turn the tables.
Time, unfortunately, is not something Humanity has an excess of.
Fatigued and thinly spread, the remaining forces of the once colossal United Nations Space Command must regroup and prepare for the daunting task of defending the Earth itself from the Covenant's imminent onslaught. If the fall of Reach has demonstrated anything, however, it is that their chances of victory are small. At incredible price, their only hope may be to buy time for those that can more deftly assure it...
SPARTAN
The modern Spartan program (in contrast to its ancient Greek counterpart) was initiated in 2491, an element of the ORION project. Though not much is known about the first generation of warriors (their training, augmentation, goals, etc.), they were successful enough to garner the necessary consent for a second phase, aptly named SPARTAN II. Under Dr. Halsey, the Spartans would be developed in conjunction with the MJOLNIR armour project, the culmination of a powered exoskeleton technology that had been used for some time by the UNSC, and eventually, by frustrated cargo handlers everywhere. The initial goal of the SPARTAN/MJOLNIR project was to provide a surgical strike team capable of dealing with Human rebellions quickly and efficiently, averting the use of large scale military force, and preventing the tremendous loss of life and civil war that would have inevitably ensued.
A total of 75 children, approximately age six and selected for their specific genetic dispositions (that is, being as close to perfect as science could determine), were "recruited". They were replaced with congenitally defective flash-clones to cover the enlistment, and trained, primarily on and below the surface of Reach, by one Chief Petty Officer Mendez, arguably the best Drill Instructor in the Navy. Their family names, whatever they may have been, were stripped, purged from record, and forever replaced with a 3 digit designation. Their upbringing would be defined not only by gruelling physical routine, but by a comprehensive academic tutelage under Deja, a Class II AI created specifically for the SPARTAN II project.
In March of 2525, on the orbital ONI Medical Facility above Reach, the then 14 year old candidates underwent a series of drastic and inadvisable operations to dramatically enhance their skeletal, muscular, optical, and nervous systems (FoR p.56). Of the original 75, a reported 33 survived the processes; 30 were lost, and 12 irrevocably crippled (though still used by ONI in research and ops planning).
Both before and after their final union with the MJOLNIR armour, the SPARTAN II's, with their overwhelming physical abilities, improvisational skills, and keenness for adversity, handled their operations with a profound efficiency: as of August 27, 2552 they had suffered only 3 KIA's and 1 too wounded to continue active duty, giving them the best record of any UNSC unit. Of course, they were officially listed as MIA, part of ONI Section 2's successful propaganda campaign to boost morale; a program spearheaded by the SPARTAN II's and their glorious triumphs in battle, though strangely silent concerning Humanity's slow and imminent loss of the war against the Covenant.
Since their harrowing escape from Reach and the destruction of nearly 500 Covenant vessels consumed in the explosion of the 30km long Covenant Command Station, Unyielding Hierophant, the arduous task of defending Humanity from the ever gargantuan Covenant fleet, now wise to the Earth's location, has fallen into their "big, green, armoured hands." Let us hope their renewed numbers are up to the job.
SEARGENT JOHNSON
The Man. The Myth. The Legend.
Whatever the grizzly details of Sgt. Johnson's current reputation, he has certainly earned it. And, if you have anything to say, you had better be well out of boot range when you do.
Several things characterize Johnson's known career thus far: his bad-ass command style, addiction to Flip music (a descendant of old Earth "Metal"), and his apparent infection and subsequent death at the hands of the Flood, as recorded on the headset of the late Pvt. Jenkins.
Unable to harmonize with and thereby commandeer his nervous system, due to its erratic behaviour as a symptom of Boren's Syndrome (p.243, FS), the Flood simply passed him over. The only apparent trace of his pseudo-infection are bits of dead, non-infectious Flood DNA, from which some intact gene fragments have given him a kind of regenerative ability (though whether these leftovers are a result of the parasitic invasion or Johnson's eating the little bastard for the inconvenience is unknown ;)
Unlike many other members of the Human military, Johnson holds no grudges or prejudices against the "freakish" SPARTANS. He is motivated by an absolute hatred for the Covenant, and he'll need all the mop-up crew he can muster to follow in his wake.
ONI
Much like its acronym's literal namesake, the UNSC Office of Naval Intelligence manages to simultaneously elicit both blatant awe and suspicious fear, while existing in both the forefront and shadows of Humanity's military operation. Their presence is unmistakable, but their details and internal organization are largely unknown.
Section 3 and NavSpecWep are involved in all aspects of covert and black operations, intelligence gathering, special weapons research and development, mission planning, and consultation.
Section 2 of ONI is involved primarily in propaganda and data manipulation, both in the name of security and keeping the hopes of Humanity set high.
Nothing, so far, is known about the implied Section 1.
Their people are everywhere, as most recently demonstrated by Lieutenant Haverson, formerly aboard the Pillar of Autumn and rescued from the wreckage of Halo 04. Although compliant and dedicated, most operatives have a tendency to act above the law, often skirting their own protocols for the sake of speed, subtlety, and effectiveness. Thankfully, while they may tempt fate and hoard their secrets, Humanity's preservation is still a top priority...
COVENANT
Despite their position as the main enemy in Halo, we know relatively little about the Covenant. What we do know is that they are some sort of religious alliance between at least seven, though possibly more, species. These races include, but may or may not be limited to, Grunts, Jackals, Elites, Hunters, Brutes, the apathetic Engineers (seen by the Master Chief in The Fall of Reach), and the Prophets.
The Covenant have a relatively high level of technology, apparently accrued from excavated Forerunner installations; most of their weapons are plasma-based, which means that whatever power sources the Covenant weapons have, they must be incredibly powerful. Their starships are much faster than Human vessels, and are capable of pinpoint maneuvering while in FTL travel, as is made explicitly clear several times in The Fall of Reach, when Covenant ships materialize right in the middle of a Human battlegroup. Their technological feats seem coupled with what can only be described as a reverent ignorance; they seem unable, unwilling, and vehemently against attempts (by Covenant or Human agents) to attempt improvement upon any Forerunner relics they come to acquire. To do so would be blasphemy.
However, this alliance is far from secure. The Covenant ranks have been rife with unrest, and even assassinations within recent years. With the exception of the two founding races, the Elites and Prophets (and possibly the Brutes), all others have joined the Covenant through force and now exist as part of the Covenant caste system with strict rules guiding their upbringing and socialization to prevent any true unity among the conquered peoples.
Even still, their hatred for those filthy primates called Humans is both harsh and powerful. Although from where it springs, how it relates to the Covenant's "Great Journey", and more importantly, how Man may manage to survive them both has yet to be discovered.
Halo, according to Cortana and the Covenant databanks, holds some deep religious power over the Covenant. The ring is extremely important to them; so much so that they avoid firing upon the Autumn for risk of striking it. Upon the Human's arrival, the Covenant are already there (it is not known for how long they have been), following course and scouring the ring for technology they can adapt to their own purposes. The discovery of the Flood, while terrifying, is not unexpected to them; they have encountered them before it seems. They believe Halo 04 to be a weapon; why they believe this, and how they intended to use it as such, is unknown.
After the destruction of Halo, the Covenant juggernaut still looms large over Earth, and the task is likely to fall upon the Master Chief, Human survivors, and any remaining Spartans, to fight them back while simultaneously discovering the secrets of the other Halos and keeping the Covenant from using them, however they might do so, against Earth.
THE FLOOD
a species so eminently threatening that a powerful and ancient civilization constructed habitable rings ten thousand kilometres in diameter to contain and observe them. The Flood are as numerous as they are voracious; they neither surrender nor retreat. The Flood appear to be sentient and omni-parasitic, preying upon any host utilizing a certain minimum level of sentience and bio-mass, and can infiltrate "even advanced life forms".
There are four known types of Flood. There are the Ranger/Infection class, the Carrier/Incubator class, a Worker/Soldier class, and what can be, as of yet, described only as a Command form. (343 Guilty Spark also mentions "spores" during his own synopsis of the Flood life-cycle, which may be either another term for the Infection form, or an even more base type of the Flood.) To explain how the process begins would lead into a chicken-and-the-egg discussion, so we'll begin at the Rangers. The Rangers are small, tentacled creatures which have their own defined biological framework, which are not dependent upon a host. A Ranger will seek out any life of capable biomass to sustain itself, and proceed to attempt to use the creature as a host, by tapping into the spinal system, suppressing the host's consciousness, embedding itself in the thoracic cavity, and releasing spores which cause the host to mutate. From here, it is assumed that one of two changes will occur in the host.
The first is that the host will remain relatively physically unchanged, save for the Ranger attached to it. These would be the Worker/Soldier class, used for manual labor such as building, gathering, repairing, or defensive/offensive actions. So far, only marines and Covenant Elites have been seen to mutate into Workers/Soldiers.
The second host possibility is that of the Carrier, which presumably only affects creatures who are physically or mentally unsuitable to be Workers/Soldiers. The Carriers grow large epidermic sacs which contain several Ranger-class Flood. When a Carrier is in close proximity to any number of suitable hosts, it triggers some manner of biochemical reaction, causing the pus-filled sacs to explode and spread the Rangers in order to infect more hosts, and perpetuate the cycle of reproduction. When the Flood's inability to suitably care for the host body has caused sufficient degeneration, the Worker/Soldier class will also change into the Carrier form.
The Command form is seen only once and discussed even less, therefore the process of its creation remains uncertain. Found on the bridge of the Truth and Reconciliation, this large multi-appendaged amalgamation appears to be a combined symbioses including several, at least in this case, Human hosts. Other than extracting information, its capabilities and roles are unknown.
Though they have a relatively simple procedure for reproduction, as 343 Guilty Spark states, the "parasitic nature of the Flood belies their intelligence". What's interesting is that they're able to function the machinery and technology of their host to an amazing degree, and are able to fire weaponry and repair damaged electrical and mechanical machinery at a surprisingly nominal level. The Command form (as we learn through Keyes) has the ability to access host memory, strip it from them piece by piece, and utilize it to it's advantage; the lesser Flood also possess some semblance of this ability, though from what we have seen (Jenkins) it does not appear to have such a pronounced sense of self; it does not exert the same levels of mental force or operate nearly as methodically.
And although the Halo network is meant to ultimately starve and eradicate the Flood, their continued existence after a previous firing and eons of isolation shows ever more that though they may be contained and slowed, as a whole they are not so easily destroyed...
About Halo:
Halo is a sci-fi action game of epic battle, exploration, and discovery. Players wage a high-tech guerilla war, on foot, in vehicles, in the air and beneath the surface of an alien ring construct. working sometimes in concert with other AI characters, but more often alone, you must improvise to survive your fight against an overwhelming and heavily armed alien force.
The Story:
Hundreds of years from now, Earth's fledgling planetary empire has been drawn into a merciless war with a consortium of alien races known as the Covenant. Covenant technology is far beyond that of Earth, and the humans are losing. Whole planets are being destroyed. Billions have died. It's only a matter of time before the Covenant find Earth, and destroy it.
The most recent human planet to be discovered by the Covenant fleet is Reach, population 700 million. The Covenant annihilate it utterly. A single human corvette escapes the battle. In a desperate attempt to lead the Covenant away from Earth, the ship charts a course for a distant unexplored system.
In a move that baffles the Commander and her crew, the entire Covenant fleet gives chase.
When the humans arrive at their destination, they find an alien artifact of enormous size in orbit between a gas giant and its moon. They have found HALO, a ring ten thousand kilometers in diameter, with a breathable atmosphere. On its inner surface, HALO has oceans, continents, varied climatic zones. It's a habitat.
The Covenant destroy the human ship in a battle near HALO, but a portion of the human crew escapes to land in scattered groups on the surface of the ring. One of the marines, more skilled than the rest, starts a guerilla war against the Covenant, trying to stop them from learning the secrets of HALO.
This marine is you. The game begins.