"We have two companies of Marines running rampant all over the northern half of this island, and three Army regiments pinned down in the southwestern corner, doing nothing. What the hell is going on? "
- Gen. John W. Vessey Jr., United States Army, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
during the assault on Grenada, 1983
"The Marine Corps has just been called by the New York Times, 'The elite of this country.' I think it is the elite of the world."
- Admiral William Halsey, U.S. Navy
Operation: Changing the Guard
On April 1st, 2549 The Planet of Yavus was invaded by the Covenant.
The UNSC Army garrison responded as best they could but they were being overwhelmed by the onslaught.
UNSC High Command was preparing to send a response but they could not spare any UNSC Ground Forces.
Then the UNSC Marine Corps commandant, General Hogan came up with the idea of "borrowing" Marines from one of the nations of Earth.
The obvious choice was the United States Marines.
When the UNSC asked for volunteers: 3,720,958 United States Marines answered the call to arms.
They reach the planet of Yavus on August 15th, 2532 and when they landed, they brought Hell.
Charging with Warthogs, Mattis Main Battle Tanks in front and F-53 Condors flying, the USMC made an impression on their UNSC comrades and the Covenant.
Later, the commander of the garrison Colonel Robert Oates asked after the initial battle: "What the hell? Why did high command sent in three divisions of UNSC Marines?"
The response of then Colonel Mathew Taylor, who became a legend in the United States Marines, was: "We're not those Goddamn copycats. We are United States Marines of the United States of America. We're the true Devil Dogs compared to those second-rate imposters."
The Siege of Yavus lasted fifteen days.
The Planet was successfully evacuated with minimum causalities on the U.S. Marines and heavy causalities for the garrison and Covenant forces.
It went down as one of the greatest victories for the UNSC.