Halo (2022) s01e04 Episode Script

Previously on Halo.
I want to go back to Madrigal.
Vinsher's taking over.
I have to join the resistance.
I promised John I'd keep you safe.
I don't see any reason to break that promise.
This isn't necessary.
I don't need a babysitter.
This is an upgrade.
She's gonna make you even better.
Hello, Master Chief.
I'm Cortana.
So it answers to my command? I see it as more of a partnership.
I want you to lead a team in analyzing this artifact.
Determine what it is, what it does, and if in fact it's part of some kind of weapon.
I could kill you for trying to steal my favorite ship.
- My family is rich.
- How rich? Deuterium rich.
All you have to do is get me to them and you get paid.
- I don't feel anything.
- The hormonal pellet in your spine suppresses emotional responses.
It's part of what makes you a Spartan.
Lose the pellet and it's like opening your eyes for the first time after living in the dark.
They're memories of my family.
- Another one? - See how they go together? There are two artifacts.
I saw it as a child on Eridanus II.
I'm going.
And if returning to Eridanus brings back other memories, the truth could bring us all down.
That is what Cortana is for.
Left! Left! Left, right, left! Stay in formation! Do not fall behind! There is no pain in service! Only pride! Left! Left! Left, right, left! Eyes forward! Come on, move your feet! Left! Left! Left! - Who are you? - Spartans! - I can't hear you! - Spartans! Louder! Spartans! Who are you? Spartans! - Louder! - Spartans! - I can't hear you! - Spartans! Senior Chief Mendez tells me you tried to run away again.
John, what is the issue? I want to go home.
This is your home.
It wasn't always.
I see.
And what do you know about that? Jai told me.
He said we were all forced to come here.
Do you feel like you were forced? I can't remember.
You were asked to join us.
And do you know why? Because you are special, and you have a mission.
Of all the young Spartans, I believe that you have the skills and the natural ability to be their leader.
In fact I'm counting on it.
You're going to save all of us.
How's he doing? Definitely un-Spartan-like.
It's odd that a weapon could cause this kind of behavior.
I'm not convinced it is a weapon.
Take the Madrigal object.
Clearly it's capable of emitting enormous amounts of energy.
But to John's touch, it seems to act with a kind of agency or purpose, either responding to John's needs, or anticipating what the situation requires, which must mean that So there is an intelligence behind it.
Yes.
And if that's connected to a greater intelligence somewhere, then I want to meet it.
Why John? Why did it choose him? What makes him so special? I've been asking myself that same question since I met him.
I've gone over his original blood samples from before Master Chief, we're 17 minutes out of Eridanus II.
Where will we start our search for the second artifact? Chief? Looks different.
What, exactly? Slipspace.
Actually, the human eye is not capable of perceiving slipspace.
What you think you are seeing is in fact a ten-dimensional mobius navigation equation with evolving exit and mass-shadowed space time You're ruining it.
Your blood pressure, heart rate, and electrodermal activity are all elevated.
So what? My data suggests you are experiencing anxiety.
Is this what anxious feels like? Technically.
I'm going home.
Any sign of Vinsher's ships? You know there are radar sentries all over the place.
I know how to avoid detection.
Trust me.
"Trust me," says the pirate.
Don't knock pirating.
Speaking of which, you know you're not just paying for the security, right? Meter started running at breakfast.
I'll pay extra if you stop talking.
Please.
Somebody needs some more sleep.
I can't sleep.
Bad memories.
When I first escaped the Spartan program, I had no memory of anything.
My mind was wiped completely.
That sounds amazing.
Actually, it was awful.
Without it, I was lost.
Did the memories ever come back? Bit by bit.
It was a year before I remembered that my father died.
Another year before I remembered that I was the one who killed him.
Oh.
Memory's what lets you know who you are and reminds you what's important to you.
Kai.
- What are you doing? - Nothing.
Have you seen Master Chief? He's with Halsey.
On a mission.
You okay? Fine.
Yeah.
I'll see you later.
Only six Reach for Life installations survived their pilot stages.
This was one of them.
Fertile forests built into an otherwise hostile planet.
This colony was led by your parents.
They were heroes just like their son.
That's my house.
There was a clear line of sight from where my father dug the hole to the balcony.
Where my mother was.
Let's have this be the end of all this nonsense, John.
Bury it, son.
She was No, I don't want to do it! Mom! Around here.
Let's start digging.
You couldn't get us any closer? You may be paying the bills, but we're gonna do this my way.
I made a promise to John to keep you safe, and I plan to honor it.
So, keep your head down and your mouth shut.
Ah, Jong Sook.
How is business? Governor Vinsher.
- Ladies.
- Governor Vinsher.
Heavy lies the head.
Get in line! Behind me.
This is a real, official bona fide UNSC helmet, okay? - Look, look, look, huh? - No, too much.
See? Come on.
You have to buy it now, sahib.
I'll give it to you half price.
Okay, just go.
You're wasting Wait.
Attu.
Kwan? You're alive? Where are the others? Who leads the militia now? I can't talk to you - Attu - Not so fast.
People are looking for you.
We shouldn't be here.
Please, if anyone sees us together I'm here to help.
I just need to find my dad's generals.
Where are they? I, um Come to the memorial tonight, for your father.
- Stay safe.
- Attu Attu, wait, Attu.
Attu, wait.
Please! Attu! Hey, kid.
Hope you know what you're doing.
Wow.
Okay.
Hello, Spartans.
Thank you for coming.
Dr.
Keyes, you have orders for us? Yes.
Uh, I won't keep you long.
I just wanted to do some biometric tests That's the object Master Chief and I saw in the cave on Madrigal.
Is that what this is all about? Partially.
I need to see how the object reacts to you in order to determine what, if anything, makes John so special.
He's the Master Chief.
Yes, he is.
I'll go first, ma'am.
Great.
Riz 0-2-8, I'll be directing you from behind the safety glass.
You guys want to go outside? You all right there, Kai 1-2-5? Yes, ma'am.
One hundred percent.
Okay.
Let's get to it.
Helmet off, please.
Found something.
The artifact? Drawings.
Mine.
I don't recognize this one.
They're all identical.
John, is there anything here that can tell us where the larger object is, or what it does? John, do you hear me? I asked you what you're drawing.
I think we should head back to the ship, and we can analyze the drawings there.
John? John? This is all my father gets? After all he did for his people, the whole city should have turned out.
Uh-huh.
That's Agatha.
She's one of my dad's generals.
Agatha.
Oh, Kwan! Oh, Kwan! I thought we'd lost you too.
It's dangerous here.
If Vinsher finds you I know.
Tell me, what's the plan? The plan? Raphael wasn't at the outpost when we were attacked.
Is he leading the resistance? What about the others? Kwan, Raphael is dead.
Vinsher made an example of him.
Along with Arwan, Sook, Kim, Divali My God.
The attack on the outpost changed everything, Kwan.
Everything.
The people are frightened.
All they want now is protection from the Covenant.
And Vinsher's offering that? Yes.
And he has the UNSC's support.
- He has the Marines - But we can't just give up.
We need to fight! I'm sorry, Kwan.
Vinsher allowed us to collect our dead from the outpost, but the revolution is over.
Okay, all right, well, thank you very much for your help.
Let's go.
No, no, no, wait.
Agatha, you were my dad's most loyal friend.
If anyone was going to take over the rebel forces, it was you.
And yet you're the only one Vinsher didn't kill.
How much is Vinsher paying you to sell out the rebellion? You need to go.
- You're putting us all at risk - You're a traitor! All of you! My dad fought and died so you could all be free.
And now you stand and pray, and you claim to honor him, but you're all cowards! Security forces! Let's go.
Okay, Vannak, place your right hand on the artifact.
Slowly, please.
All right.
Now your left.
Same as Riz.
Kai 1-2-5, you're up next.
You're going to need to remove your helmet.
Can't risk frying the electronics.
You just know Halsey'll send me the bill.
Okay.
Is there anything wrong, ma'am? Your hair.
Did you do that to yourself? Yes.
Great.
You don't care for us, do you, Doctor? Gives you that idea? Just a hunch.
I didn't know Spartans had hunches.
Hunches win battles.
From the age of 6, I've studied military strategy, from Sun Tzu to Preston Cole.
Riz speaks the languages and dialects of every colonized planet.
Vannak's battlefield discoveries on the physics of plasma swords helped the Marines develop stronger shielded vests.
You see us as machines.
But if you really want to understand how we work, you're gonna have to dig a little deeper.
Wait! Any other tests, ma'am? Cortana? Can you show me what the house used to look like? If I have enough visual data, I can interpolate and recreate a realistic facsimile of the environment inside your heads-up display.
Do it.
Just a word of warning.
There's no telling what kind of frightening and jumbled images might emerge from your past.
Remember, not everything you recall is reflective of real events.
I understand.
Okay.
I'm assembling the visual data now.
No.
That table was over there.
Dad's plant lab.
Mom hung my drawings over here.
My bedroom's this way.
I remember.
And what about in this room? Cortana - I'm not seeing it.
- I'm sorry, John.
I'm afraid there's too much destruction.
I don't have enough data on that space to make an accurate representation.
Perhaps if we go back to the drawings, John.
Hang on.
Come on, Ellie.
Careful, Johnny! Mom.
John, come here.
Check this out.
We're creating new life, John.
Wow.
And if the plants can live here, then guess what? We can live here too.
You smell like soap.
And you smell like mud, goofball.
Where were you playing today, anyway? I don't know.
- Just running around with Ellie.
- Yeah? Well, then I guess it's worth getting a little dirty for.
Come on, let's get cleaned up for dinner.
Over here.
Over here.
What are you drawing? Don't go too far, John.
Be careful.
Come on, Ellie.
John, do you hear me? I asked you what you're drawing.
Can I see it? - Are you controlling this? - I've stopped projecting.
Whatever he's seeing isn't coming from me.
No, this one! Heads.
Correct again? That's ten in a row.
- Shall we try again? - Yeah.
Eagle up.
Well, aren't you the lucky one? Do you know what I think? Actually, I think I'm the lucky one.
Can I see you again? Sure.
- Can it be our secret? - Yes.
John, are you all right? That concludes testing on the three Spartans and the artifact.
Spartan 1-1-7 appears to possess a unique quality not shared by the other Spartans.
Further testing, perhaps on the level of DNA, will be needed in order to determine - Oh, Riz, check this out.
- Whoa, whoa, Kai.
It's my favorite Covenant weapon.
- Can you put that down, please? - It's all right.
See these holes on the top plate? That's where the needle rounds are primed.
You pull the trigger, somehow they just know how to target living tissue.
As close as you get to "fire and forget," ma'am.
Soon as the needles hit the target, they super-combine and bam, all you see is a big pink mist of blood and evaporating body fluids.
- Massive damage.
- I know what a Needler is, Kai.
Well, the Covenant have another word for it.
What is it again? - Qkhep'os.
- Oh, yeah, that's it.
Qkhep'os.
Qkhep'os.
Correct.
How How do you know that? That's what they say when we turn it on them.
Though I guess it could just mean, "Shit, please don't kill me.
" Also correct.
Have you ever heard a grunt beg for his life? Pathetic.
Kind of funny, actually.
Oh, the Covenant have the best tech.
No question.
That Phantom we flew back from Madrigal, that was unreal.
Can you say that again? The Covenant word for Needler.
Qkhep'os.
Qkhep'os.
Of course.
You Spartans have spent more time with the Covenant than anyone.
Ma'am? What other Sangheili words do you know? What the? Shit.
Shit.
Shit.
Shit.
What the hell are you doing? I'm getting my ship and going home.
There's too many of them.
Nah, there's just enough.
You leave now, you don't get paid.
We had a deal.
The deal was that I help you find the resistance.
We did that.
They just got their asses kicked by Vinsher, - thanks to you.
- No, no, no.
There are people in Madrigal still loyal to my dad, I know it! If we can get to them, I can convince them to stand up Kwan no one's gonna step up.
You need to face reality.
There are no more heroes.
My aunt.
We need to see my aunt.
She's the one who controls the family money.
I know where to find her.
Has she got enough to buy back my ship? Hmm? You leave now, you go home with nothing.
What kind of pirate are you? You're late.
My sister was late to watch the kids.
With what I pay you, you should invest in proper childcare.
Hello, Franco.
You need me, Vinsher? Not me, my dear.
The UNSC and the people of Madrigal.
Peace of our fair planet is under threat by the arrival of a troublemaker.
An instigator.
A rabble-rouser.
I need her removed before she rouses the rabble.
Who? Kwan Ha.
She's just a girl.
Well, some girls grow up to be trouble.
She brought someone along for protection.
Soren.
The pirate? He's nothing you can't handle.
There's already a bounty on her, yes? There's too much rebel blood running through this planet.
The last thing I need is another Ha martyr.
This must be done quietly and discreetly.
This requires a professional.
You want me to handle it.
What the hell are you? No! Enough! - Kwan.
- Aunt Soojin.
I heard rumors.
Let me look at you.
Auntie, we need your help.
Kwan, you should not have returned.
Come with me quickly.
You mustn't be seen.
I've worked very hard for this.
I've paid my dues.
Played all the angles.
It's my time.
Fix this for me, Franco.
I need to clean my ledger.
In here.
Stop.
Are you sure you want to go through all that embarrassment again? It's okay, Soren.
I'm safe with Aunt Soojin.
You get the money.
I'm gonna go see a man about a ship.
Six new alien intonations.
Dozens of phonemes, logograms.
I can't believe we didn't do this years ago.
Well, due respect, ma'am, this is the first you've spoken a word to us.
Well, my mother never let me near you.
I always used to wonder why she preferred you over me.
I probably thought it was 'cause you were more fun.
That must have been difficult for you.
Uh, anyway, um I'm not getting a sense that fun was a part of your training.
- Oh, we had fun.
- Oh, yeah? At one point we were each given pets.
I had a puppy.
Cody.
- Riz, you had a cat.
- Eloise.
You're kidding.
Vannak, you had a pig.
- Ivan.
- Ivan.
Ivan the Terrible.
See, we were studying the strategies of the wolf pack.
And Dr.
Halsey would make teams.
The hunted and the hunters.
Sounds like a blast.
Two days in the woods, tracking, eating whatever you could find, and stalking and killing your prey.
Whichever side failed lost their pets.
What, she took them away from you? No.
She had us eliminate them.
Come on.
Every failure carries consequences.
I was on the winning side nine times before I lost.
I failed on my third mission.
I never lost.
So you got to keep Ivan.
Dr.
Halsey eliminated it.
Spartans must be bonded to one another, and nothing else.
I warned you triggering memories from your past would destabilize you.
I'm now concerned that that you're having visions even when you're not in the presence of the artifact.
We need to get you home so we can study the drawings I saw you.
I was a boy.
And you were with me.
- Of course I was with you - No.
Not at the orphanage.
Here.
In my house.
My parents were still alive.
Why were you here? It's natural.
Memories get muddled, particularly where trauma's involved.
You were so young when we met, and so overwhelmed with grief.
I took care of you.
I have been with you ever since, and I am still here for you now.
- Well? - Bad news, friend.
What do you mean, bad news? I mean, how much could they possibly want for my ship? Money isn't the problem.
Your ship's scrapped.
Guts ripped out, wings already on their way to Sedra.
Those filthy animals.
If you're looking for the fastest way off Madrigal, transport ships take off every night for New Carthage at 11:00 Local Mean Solar Time.
Where do these ships take off from? Granada, 200 miles due south.
- Two hundred miles? - Through the desert.
For the, uh, right price I can take you there.
Hmm.
That's a nice lid.
Real stylish.
I'll take the bike too.
Dad started with only 50 fighters.
We can find at least that many, and with the family's money There is nothing left, Kwan.
Your father spent everything we had on the revolution.
And when the money ran out, so did the people.
They're scared and they're desperate, but we can beat Vinsher.
The people just need to be reminded of what they were fighting for.
Come.
My men will get you out of town safely and you will stay far away I can't let him down.
He died to save me.
I have to pick up where he left off.
No! I will not allow it.
I can fight just as he did.
Your father fought for a lie! What are you talking about? I never wanted to ruin your father's image in your heart.
Tell me.
Years ago, before the war, your father visited a group in the desert.
Mystics.
When he returned, everything was different.
He was different.
What did they tell him? He never said.
But he returned convinced it was his responsibility to free Madrigal.
He told me it was the only way for the Ha family's true purpose to be revealed.
What true purpose? Our real reason for being on Madrigal, and the reason we fight, according to the desert people.
And he believed them.
Your father believed what he wanted to believe.
Where can I find these mystics? Kwan, no.
What was that? Kwan, go! Hello, Kwan.
What are you doing here? Cleaning up your father's mess.
As usual.
Where's your friend? Aunt Soojin! No! Hey! Aunt Soojin.
Shit! Never should have left the Rubble.
Cost me my ship too.
Come on.
We're about to have Vinsher's entire army on our ass.
Come on.
Let's go.
Stay down! Go! Go! Go! Behind you.
Go! Dr.
Halsey.
Cortana's analysis of Master Chief's brain scans from earlier today.
Hmm.
I mean, you were right.
He's reopened neural clusters in his amygdala.
Yeah, emotions mixed with memory.
Yeah.
And it's impossible to determine what's hidden in any given neural cluster, so there's no way of knowing exactly what he remembered.
I remember.
The second object is here on Eridanus.
And I know where it is.
Stop it right there.
Yeah, what What do you have for that? At first I had "foundation," but that other syllable changes it, doesn't it? Yeah.
Oq Oq'ogakha.
It's, uh, "keystone," maybe? Could that be the artifact? Do you have access to the HUD data from the cave? Yeah, um, hold on.
You haven't been completely honest with me.
What What do you mean? My hair.
It's awful.
- No.
- I just don't know what came over me.
A small act of rebellion, maybe, against Halsey.
Well, against a lot of things, maybe.
Retrieving now.
- Wow.
- What? This word, from the Sangheili broadcast.
Ch'anggagomo.
I have "sacred ring.
" Look.
Sacred ring.
"Halo.
" Do you think that's what the Covenant are talking about? Uh I know that you report directly to Halsey, but can we just keep this between us? At least for now, until I figure out what all this Yeah, no problem.
It's our secret.
You know, the way I see it, we're sort of like sisters.
I gotta say, Petty Officer there's something very odd about you.
Ma'am? Dr.
Halsey designed everything to her specifications.
When her creations behave in unexpected ways, she gets uncomfortable.
Well, what does it mean to behave in unexpected ways? Like a human I suppose.
To Dr.
Halsey, human beings are messy, irrational, chaotic.
They make decisions based on emotion, passion.
Halsey is different.
She sees the world as a set of data to be optimized, regardless of the short-term pain or sacrifice.
Next to this level of dedication, the rest of us ultimately fall short.
And when people let her down, Dr.
Halsey has a way of cutting them out of her life.
But Halsey never stops.
She just keeps pushing forward, determined to bend us towards her vision of the future.
She's convinced there's something out there just beyond our reach.
An answer to our eternal questions.
Who are we? Where are we heading? What is our true potential? She's dedicated her life's work to finding those answers.
And she'll never give up no matter the cost.
Kai, your act of rebellion could just be a glitch.
But if I know Dr.
Halsey she doesn't tolerate glitches.