This idea just came to me when I was reading Dr. Halsey’s journal which was in the Heroic edition for Halo Reach. This entry takes place right after the Spartan IIs enter the augmentation phase. Halsey is talking about reviving the dead augmentation subjects in the future if technology allowed it (which is why she kept them in cryogenic storage for study), but said that ONI was likely to take advantage of the revived subjects and use them. This could be what the new Spartan in the cover art is: a revived Spartan. Perhaps ONI managed to find a way to revive the dead subjects, and redo the augmentation with more reliable results. This could explain why the new Spartan has an ONI symbol on his armor, and how he could possibly be another main character with the Chief. He could possibly be in envy of the Chief, being the war hero, lucky, and successful soldier that he is, while the ONI Spartan feels like an undead failure, perhaps thinking that it was his death was HIS fault, that perhaps he was too WEAK to survive the augmentation, and that he is now ONI’s slave after a long slumber while the Chief is free, for the most part. This could be the part of the story where two characters, both in a rough patch in their lives, must decide whether to side with each other with their common feelings, or hate each other for one having it easier than the other. This is just a wild idea, but let me know what you think!
Why revive a child that died during augmentation when they can just turn adults into Spartans?
> Why revive a child that died during augmentation when they can just turn adults into Spartans?
These dead children are now full property of ONI. It is thirty years in the future and they have nowhere else to go, so naturally ONI would see use in the children and use the children to their advantage, and make a new, ONI-serving Spartan program out of the leftovers of the old one.
> > Why revive a child that died during augmentation when they can just turn adults into Spartans?
>
> These dead children are now full property of ONI. It is thirty years in the future and they have nowhere else to go, so naturally ONI would see use in the children and use the children to their advantage, and make a new, ONI-serving Spartan program out of the leftovers of the old one.
I would have taken it another route. S-IVs have families, loved ones, grew up and would go missing by someone in most scenarios. S-IIs are already proclaimed dead, have better augmentations/training, and could easily be given new Gen 2 MJOLNIR. Who else would be better for ONI secret ops than S-IIs that have recorded “deaths” twice?
> > Why revive a child that died during augmentation when they can just turn adults into Spartans?
>
> These dead children are now full property of ONI. It is thirty years in the future and they have nowhere else to go, so naturally ONI would see use in the children and use the children to their advantage, and make a new, ONI-serving Spartan program out of the leftovers of the old one.
ONI has plenty of candidates they could pick from in-house without resorting to washouts. They probably have turned a few spook-squads into Spartans by now anyway.
Plus, you think Osman who hates everything Halsey did would revive one of Halsey’s kids just to fix their augmentations and send them out to kill Halsey?
> > > Why revive a child that died during augmentation when they can just turn adults into Spartans?
> >
> > These dead children are now full property of ONI. It is thirty years in the future and they have nowhere else to go, so naturally ONI would see use in the children and use the children to their advantage, and make a new, ONI-serving Spartan program out of the leftovers of the old one.
>
> ONI has plenty of candidates they could pick from in-house without resorting to washouts. They probably have turned a few spook-squads into Spartans by now anyway.
>
> Plus, you think Osman who hates everything Halsey did would revive one of Halsey’s kids just to fix their augmentations and send them out to kill Halsey?
Like DAU Terren said. They are already dead, and they could prove to be quite an asset to have. It’s the infamous “they think I’m dead, but I’m really alive!” trick. Though you may be right about Osman. I doubt she would be too happy about resurrecting dead children for intelligence purposes. Although, she may think of it as giving these poor dead children who Halsey killed a second shot at life, in the service of ONI. This is the story about Osman, isn’t it? She was a Spartan II washout, but Parangosky took her under her wing as a protégé. Perhaps Osman feels it is her duty to give the children a second shot under the service of ONI like she had. In a way, they are like Osman’s dead brothers and sisters who never got the chance to see what they could become. Perhaps they could have become executives high up in the UNSC like Osman. Perhaps Osman’s guilt about surviving and becoming a leader while her siblings died would be enough to resurrect them and give them a second chance.
> > > Why revive a child that died during augmentation when they can just turn adults into Spartans?
> >
> > These dead children are now full property of ONI. It is thirty years in the future and they have nowhere else to go, so naturally ONI would see use in the children and use the children to their advantage, and make a new, ONI-serving Spartan program out of the leftovers of the old one.
>
> ONI has plenty of candidates they could pick from in-house without resorting to washouts. They probably have turned a few spook-squads into Spartans by now anyway.
>
> Plus, you think Osman who hates everything Halsey did would revive one of Halsey’s kids just to fix their augmentations and send them out to kill Halsey?
Actually, it could be beneficial for ONI to send out Spartans who have a personal motivation to kill Halsey.
Sending out a IV would be more of “Kill an old woman that was crucial to the war? Okay…”
They could potentially be influenced more.
Instead, having a washout “This woman kidnapped me and crippled me, leaving me nothing.”
They would get the job done faster and more effectively, and wouldn’t be as easily swayed if Halsey tried to convince them otherwise.
Even with that, I am mostly against 343i’s recent habit of bringing Spartans back out of thin air. It was a big deal that there were only a few IIs left.
Given the views we’ve seen of her humanity, I highly doubt the new CINCONI would approve that. It’s more likely to be her in that suit herself. Especially given that BB would also know about the project.
As has been stated, it’ll either be a Spartan IV or we dunno which II it is.
~ Duck.
> > > > Why revive a child that died during augmentation when they can just turn adults into Spartans?
> > >
> > > These dead children are now full property of ONI. It is thirty years in the future and they have nowhere else to go, so naturally ONI would see use in the children and use the children to their advantage, and make a new, ONI-serving Spartan program out of the leftovers of the old one.
> >
> > ONI has plenty of candidates they could pick from in-house without resorting to washouts. They probably have turned a few spook-squads into Spartans by now anyway.
> >
> > Plus, you think Osman who hates everything Halsey did would revive one of Halsey’s kids just to fix their augmentations and send them out to kill Halsey?
>
> Actually, it could be beneficial for ONI to send out Spartans who have a personal motivation to kill Halsey.
>
> Sending out a IV would be more of “Kill an old woman that was crucial to the war? Okay…”
> They could potentially be influenced more.
>
> Instead, having a washout “This woman kidnapped me and crippled me, leaving me nothing.”
> They would get the job done faster and more effectively, and wouldn’t be as easily swayed if Halsey tried to convince them otherwise.
>
> Even with that, I am mostly against 343i’s recent habit of bringing Spartans back out of thin air. It was a big deal that there were only a few IIs left.
There are two ODST’s onboard that would gladly kill Halsey if they were allowed to do it.
~ Duck.
Halsey is in the center of a fanatic Covenant group, not in the open. ODSTs would have trouble even getting to her. You need a Spartan.
And there are tens of thousands of soldiers who would kill Halsey when ordered to. But a lot of them would question it too. A lot wouldn’t be able to.
You need certain qualities, and a failed Spartan II would have the best set.
This is an interesting theory, I must admit. We know that there are a bunch of Spartan-II washouts that didn’t make the final cut. Serin was one of them, and she’s now become the director of ONI. It’s not impossible for another one of the Spartan-IIs that failed the augmentations to have been healed and secretly put into service.
However, there is one question that I have about Halsey reviving these dead kids: how? I mean, they’re DEAD, how does someone bring them back to life? I mean, it’s in 2500s, they may have miraculous advances in science, but I don’t get how exactly Halsey, a cold woman of science, could possibly think that at some point in time in the future, they could revive dead kids? Just curious.
There is just something about a Spartan-II who is just jealous of Chief and full of self-loathing that turns me off.
> However, there is one question that I have about Halsey reviving these dead kids: how? I mean, they’re DEAD, how does someone bring them back to life? I mean, it’s in 2500s, they may have miraculous advances in science, but I don’t get how exactly Halsey, a cold woman of science, could possibly think that at some point in time in the future, they could revive dead kids? Just curious.
That’s like asking how Commander Shepard was brought back to life in Mass Effect 2. Think of that, and in a similar way.
> There is just something about a Spartan-II who is just jealous of Chief and full of self-loathing that turns me off.
You know, it’s probably a Spartan IV who has a higher combat skill and rating than the masterchief - who is going to end up looking like a pathetic old soldier who can’t fight anymore like Bungie made Johnson… which is just a freaking turnoff for the entire series.
> There is just something about a Spartan-II who is just jealous of Chief and full of self-loathing that turns me off.
I agree, It wouldn’t be very Halo-like. Self-pity is not exactly a feeling I think of when I think of a Spartan, or even a Supersoldier in general.
> > > > Why revive a child that died during augmentation when they can just turn adults into Spartans?
> > >
> > > These dead children are now full property of ONI. It is thirty years in the future and they have nowhere else to go, so naturally ONI would see use in the children and use the children to their advantage, and make a new, ONI-serving Spartan program out of the leftovers of the old one.
> >
> > ONI has plenty of candidates they could pick from in-house without resorting to washouts. They probably have turned a few spook-squads into Spartans by now anyway.
> >
> > Plus, you think Osman who hates everything Halsey did would revive one of Halsey’s kids just to fix their augmentations and send them out to kill Halsey?
>
> Actually, it could be beneficial for ONI to send out Spartans who have a personal motivation to kill Halsey.
>
> Sending out a IV would be more of “Kill an old woman that was crucial to the war? Okay…”
> They could potentially be influenced more.
>
> Instead, having a washout “This woman kidnapped me and crippled me, leaving me nothing.”
> They would get the job done faster and more effectively, and wouldn’t be as easily swayed if Halsey tried to convince them otherwise.
>
> Even with that, I am mostly against 343i’s recent habit of bringing Spartans back out of thin air. It was a big deal that there were only a few IIs left.
Easier with an S-IV that believes what you say and maybe has heard something from Halsey--Yoink!- ONI propaganda.
An S-II trained for years near Halsey, saw her probably everyday, was under her command for most of his life and was indoctrinated by her, he got on a hospital bed and then wakes up and some freaks tell him “go kill halsey”.
It would be traumatic and they would need to re-indoctrinate him, like they did with Osman, and I don’t think it’s so easy…
> An S-II trained for years near Halsey, saw her probably everyday, was under her command for most of his life and was indoctrinated by her, he got on a hospital bed and then wakes up and some freaks tell him “go kill halsey”.
> It would be traumatic and they would need to re-indoctrinate him, like they did with Osman, and I don’t think it’s so easy…
Nah, according to the Kilo-5 trilogy, it merely took a month or two to get an S-II who became a full-fledged Spartan to hate Halsey with constant talk about how worse than -Yoink!- she was.
> > An S-II trained for years near Halsey, saw her probably everyday, was under her command for most of his life and was indoctrinated by her, he got on a hospital bed and then wakes up and some freaks tell him “go kill halsey”.
> > It would be traumatic and they would need to re-indoctrinate him, like they did with Osman, and I don’t think it’s so easy…
>
> Nah, <mark>according to the Kilo-5 trilogy</mark>, it merely took a month or two to get an S-II who became a full-fledged Spartan to hate Halsey with constant talk about how worse than -Yoink!- she was.
According to the Kilo-5 trilogy… list of Traviss inconsistencies
She doesn’t write halo 5 right? Or at least she isn’t the main writer.
1-2 months is more than the 5 minutes that take an S-IV to accept a “rodeo”…
Interesting theory! I have long been waiting for more info on Spartan-II, Class-II. Perhaps this is the route they went with?
Interesting theory.