Warning: The following article contains spoilers for Halo episode 6, “Solace”
Halo continues to spin the threads of its ambitious plot with every outing, though if you’re not a fan of the changes made to Master Chief in the live-action series, it might not be such a good idea to jump back into the series with this week’s episode because this is going to see Petty Officer John-117 as emotionally unstable as he’s ever been.
Spoilers to follow.
After suffering defeat at the hands of the Covenant and losing the second half of the mysterious artifact, “Solace” begins with the remaining UNSC troopers and Spartans making their way back to Reach. On the way to humanity’s secret headquarters, Cortana warns Master Chief that his vitals are in a critical condition, but the legendary Petty Officer ignores her. He instead focuses on their new prisoner, Makee, whom the Covenant dropped on Eridanus II in the final moments of episode 5, “Reckoning.”
On Reach, Master Chief is pushed over the edge and traps Halsey inside a room about to be contaminated with radiation. Halsey and Cortana both implore him to stop, with John finally relenting at the last moment and saving the good doctor. Chief smugly remarks that he wanted to see how much control Cortana had over him.
Master Chief’s body hangs on for dear life as his organs continue to fail throughout the episode. He talks to Makee, who tells him that contact with the artifact is killing him. She also tells Chief that he should stop resisting the visions as it’s the only way of gaining control over the artifact as opposed to it having control over the two of them.
The UNSC committee, meanwhile, wants answers from Keyes and Halsey, forcing their superior to use Halsey as a scapegoat and promoting Miranda to the head of the Spartan project. Master Chief talks to Halsey again, with her explaining that all she did was to ensure humanity’s survival.
It’s also further reaffirmed that Halsey took dozens of children under the age of six to experiment on, resulting in the Spartan program. As for their families, she cloned the children and replaced them in their homes, but with a failsafe ensuring their death two weeks after the swap. After the scandal is out in the air, the UNSC removes Halsey from the project and traps Cortana behind a black box.
In the final minutes, Master Chief decides to touch the artifact again, hell-bent on finding where the Covenant has taken its second half. Upon coming into contact with it, however, John and Makee both begin to experience a seizure.
John struggles to get his mind under control, but upon doing so opens his eye to a plain full of different vegetation. Makee is also there, and together, they take in the view of the show’s first Halo Array as the franchise’s iconic theme plays in the background.
Halo will continue next week on Thursday.