Author's Notes: Sorry it took so long, there were some complications regarding certain legal processes of my home country coupled with more than a few (non-life-threatening) medical appointments along with midterms. That, and what I thought would be a six-thousand-word chapter turned into twelve. This is an entirely time-line themed chapter, and it's the last one of that type in this Part (so far, at least). Now, you're gonna read, in part, the usual in the sense of a developing Human-exCovenant alliance into a fully fleshed-out intergalactic government with technological and evolutionary advances here and there, but I did make sure to keep it unique as far as Halo-ME fanfic timelines go. There were decisions I had to think a lot about before I came to doing them, some of which you may like, but I will be explaining them, and I will not be backing away from this. Now, as usual, the real important ANs are at the end of this chapter, so in the meantime, enjoy!

PART 3- THE TITANS OF ORION

Rise of the Federation

July 1st, 2552: On the tenth anniversary and commemoration of the 'Day of the Alliance', ten years after the end of the Great War, the Executors have officially released the information of the existence of the Flood. After analyzing the galactic, interspecies relationships and having measured the tension enough for it to die down, the Union ultimately decided that it was time for the Federation to know. Police and military were stationed pragmatically in the metropoles with highest concentrations of populace as a countermeasure against possible riots or stampedes. While the news was met with very mixed reception, some dismissing it as madness whereas others, who'd seen or heard of the super-organism from leaks within the military, displayed much frustration at the Union's lies.

Upon further explanation, in which the incidents of the Guardians and the Didact were referenced, the Executors explained the necessary silence for the Federation to rebuild and grow firmly together as well as advance in the relations between each kind. Additionally, they made mention to the law of 'Military Readiness', which the first generation had been receiving, and reasoned that the proposition of the universal law had been made in great part because of the parasite. While it appeased the general masses that the younger generation was, by standard, being trained for the worst-case scenario, the Union still received great criticism for the secrecy having come from such a horrible war. The Executors ended the message with the promise to reveal some more confidential information by the end of the month to keep them relatively peaceful.

July 27th, 2552: The Union, as promised, released the most basic knowledge regarding the existence of the Halos and the Ark, and their history as the weapons to defeat the Flood. The masses were even more chaotic upon the second revelation, and while it was ultimately more short-lived, the intense marches and riots led to several hundreds to thousands killed in the riots, civilian and police. Intense enforcement from the military brought the public to heel, and upon that, were able to hear the Executors reexplain the existence and purpose of the Halos. This time, forced to remain in their homes, they were able to hear that they were being studied as they orbited the Ark, which remained outside of the galactic radius, far enough away so if any or all of them were activated, no organic being would be disintegrated by its ray. That brought far greater peace to the masses, even more so when the Union outlawed their use as super-weapons unless the matter at hand regarded the extinction of the species under the Federation.

July 31st, 2552: With a large amount of culminated efforts to rebuild the few strongholds and colonies that the Federation had not lost during the Great War, the Union officially announces that the first batch of ships to lead the efforts of the Joint Colonization were built. The broadcast moved and promoted the expansion of the Federation as a firm group of species as opposed to individual races with specific gains for each. Beyond that, the Union directed a large sum of funds into the project, as well as offered any and all educated professionals good salaries in exchange of being part of it and building life in the new colonies. After much analysis, with special attention paid to the glassings, the Executors came to the decision that terraforming previously settled UNSC and Covenant planets would be too costly for the time being, and ultimately finding new worlds would be more cost-efficient while satisfying the growing population. Ultimately, the Union made the final instructions on how to apply for the mission and made High Charity the official center for the rallying point of the people and the ships.

December 11th, 2552: A thousand ships left High Charity, off to colonize previously explored colonies and satellites that would need only small changes in order to terraform them into hospitable worlds. Amongst them, the biggest of the human-created ships were to disembark, as twenty, five-and-a-half kilometer-long Infinity-classsupercarriers were prototyped and commissioned for the mission, built in the decade post-war for that specific purpose. Half would be used as carriers for the civilian volunteers and half would be used for protection of said colossal vessels in order for them to establish themselves without risk of any unknown or unwarranted attack or unpredictable event. With these in order, the other species have also procured grand ships for the event, even a few Sangheili Supercarriers in use as mass transport or to hold the tools and devices necessary to terraform the new worlds. The whole Federation waits for the results of the first peaceful joint operation.

March 3rd, 2553: The first worlds have been established, an extraordinary step forwards for the Federation. The Separatist Alliance had been made as an unstable coalition as a form to survive the war against the fanatical Covenant, resulting in much death, destruction and grievance for the UNSC and the Covenant Separatists. While by the end of it, the standing between the different species was much stronger, enough to form trust, the only events that had strengthened their bonds had been the death of their enemies. The Federation of Sovereign Empires, the reiteration of the Alliance, was forged to perfect said relations through the ultimate positions of power given to Human, Sangheili, San'Shyuum and Jiralhanae Executors, forming the Union. While it took the whole of a decade just for the most immediate, necessary repairs necessary for the broken and crippled planets, the ability to grow and prosper in spite of that to the extent of making a home on new worlds altogether marked the history of all kinds. The Union proclaimed the day to be a galactic holiday, 'Day of the New World'.

October 19th, 2553: With the settlements having better established infrastructures, marketing on the part of the Union made sure to make light of these facts and promoted emigration to the colonies. They have, in part, facilitated the tax payment for many of the grandest companies each kind has to incentivize them into making offices and centers in these colonies. The mixture of the two, as well as the psychological factor of many people wanting to be away from the worlds they lived on, which served as constant reminders of the Great War, helped populate the new planets more quickly. The Federation has been successful at rebuilding and now it is expanding for the first time.

On the outskirts of the galaxy, bases on the Halos and the Ark have been fully established with the help of the Monitors in charge. Doctor Catherine Elizabeth Halsey, with the confirmation of the Director of the Office of Naval Intelligence, Doctor Leonard Church, is to be the head of the research department on the Forerunner celestial fortresses. In this way, more could be learned of the mass structures as well as any and all files on the Flood and the best ways to counteract it should the parasite return. Beyond that, additional teams have been assigned to Inquiry, under the mind of Doctor Ellen Anders, as well as Genesis, for which Doctor Gavin Archer and his brother David Archer are responsible for.

November 23rd, 2558: The Federation calls for solidarity and solemnity in light of the death of the Minor Prophet of Malevolence, Jurd Xren. Years of sickness in his old age had devastated his body, to such an extent that he remained on life support for the previous year. Several attempts at cloning organs to replace those faulty in his body failed, as did the attempts for volunteers to donate them to him, his condition only worsening with each attempt to save his life. Finally, with the authority of an Executor and a family member, the High Prophet of Faith Qnii Oubdt ordered he be euthanized. The machines were shut down and a final dose of painkillers were placed into his body so that he could pass in peace. In light of his death, Executor Faith, backed by the rest of the Union, spoke out about a personal mission for her people on their millennia-long exodus. With no war to fear from, Operation: Malevolence is commissioned to find a suitable homeworld for the San'Shyuum in honor of the fallen Prophet, who never got to see a home for his own species.

October 19th, 2573: Twenty years of intense building and planet development has made the first joint colonization missions a great success. Between the conglomeration of species inhabiting each one, while all sporting cities were specific infrastructures and architectural styles are used have made them into lush metropolis-level colonies. The main capitals were built and organized so they could host any of the races that made up the Federation's population, holding unique mixtures that's marked each of these super-cities one of a kind. Such was the success that a second wave of joint colonization mission proposed by the Union was received with great response through general enthusiasm and readiness from the population.

This is, in part, additionally attributed at the newer, post-war generations that, while raised by veterans, were not born with PTSD or had a form of paranoia around what lies beyond the Federation's territory boundaries. As a result, a multitude of companies and services have dedicated funds to businesses regarding the coming 'mass-expansion' of their people, all promoted by the Executors. While the former does so to improve their economic standings and further their businesses, leading to more employment, the four heading the Federation regard the necessity to settle on more worlds as a way to recover galactic area lost and rebuild the strength they had had before the Great War.

February 25th, 2577: After little over eighteen years of searching, the Federation discovered a planet with enough similarity in terms of gravitational strength, atmospheric composition and natural flora along with temperature to be considered a suitable new homeworld for the San'Shyuum. The entire kind celebrated within the confines of High Charity upon hearing this, all the while preparing for the mass-migration to the recently discovered planet. Once more, the dozen million San'Shyuum transferred once more to the Unyielding Hierophant, which had been decommissioned after the Great War to repair, remodel and renew with more modernized technologies and weaponry. Within six months, it is estimated that the world will be ready with all the structures necessary to host them and for the species to continue thriving and contributing to the Federation. With a whole third of High Charity's fleet redirected to New Janjur Qom to protect the planet and the Unyielding Hierophant, the dwarf cyber-planet was set to land on Inquiry to be temporarily 'decommissioned'.

While it had been just barely repaired enough to be functional almost thirty-five years prior so that a capital and a leadership could be established firmly for the Federation, it remained static and unchanging three and a half decades later. The Executors came to the decision that it should be rebuilt at the very least on the superficial levels or those pertaining to civilian living quarters and working places, as well as improvement of updated defensive and offensive technologies so it would not be infiltrated as the Spartans, the Chieftains, the Arbiter and the Specops Commander had managed before. Inquiry is to be utilized with the unified help of the Monitors to deconstruct and reconstruct the colossal capital station. All the best Human, San'Shyuum, Sangheili, Jiralhanae, Unggoy, Lekgolo, Kig-Yar, Yanme'e and Rachni architects and engineers to restructure the collective metropolis. Until further notice, advanced joint colony Rhotero will serve as the center of the Federation.

January 9th, 2578: The Spartan Branch of the military, repurposed for the hands-on research of Forerunner locations, artifacts and other important unknowns regarding the extinct race of aliens, found an empty, almost devoid Fortress World within it. The Monitor 013 - Precarious Cognizance of the artificial planet Emblem greeted the Super Soldiers, leading them to the only remaining working machinery left in the planet. There, an all-purpose ship was presented to them, to which the Monitor exclusively made the Spartans the only organic beings to merit entry and control of said ship, due to the Forerunner genome possessed by the Supreme Commander and the Supreme Lieutenant. Within the ship, they were able to pass said genome along to the rest of those in the second and third generations of the Program, marking them all 'True Reclaimers' according to AI. The derelict flagship was able to come to life, the last of Solution's power kept to maintaining it 'alive'.

Upon discussion and a final decision from the leaders of the Branch, Commander-117 and Lieutenant-312 agreed on making it the Spartans' new headquarters, giving them an edge over most, if not all of the Federation's technology in order to counteract potentially highly advanced enemies. The hundred-and-fifty-kilometer long Colony-Class Forerunner ship, originally intentioned to round up the remaining Forerunners during the final years of their war against the Flood to flee the galaxy, has thus become the center of the specialized branch of the military. Sporting both the capacity of terraforming a planet as well as warring against a fleet, the discovered vessel is considered to be the spear and shield of the Federation. While detailed numbers are not disclosed, it has been worrisome to plenty the contingent of Prometheans loyal exclusively to the Spartans on the ship, though part has been quelled by the Executors' direct support of the Supreme Duo. The flagship has since been named Castle Reach, in honor of the training base of the Spartans and the planet they grew up in.

October 19th, 2583: The thirtieth anniversary of expansion since the first missions of joint colonization was a cause of more celebration and one final announcement from the Union. The Federation, having rebuilt from the economic, social and political ruin that they had been left in after the Great War has finally been able to reach true stability and growth in all three of those fields. While not in a 'Golden Age', the Executors recognized the grand advancements that had been made since the start of the intergalactic government. The successful terraformation of the new colonies and building upon them well enough to the point one could serve as an impromptu capital while High Charity is being rebuilt and 'updated' has served to give them an undeniably firm standing as a united Federation. It is upon that reflection that the Executors announced the readiness of the original Operation: Re-Joint Colonization.

Upon questioning, the Union revealed that they had had the economic readiness to engage in the reparation of the worlds they lost by '71. When asked why the choice to wait twelve years to announce the start of the second terraformation of the worlds lost, the Executors explained that while they had the economic means, they found the Federation not sociologically ready. Through various psychologists of each kind making studies of the individual races and all came to the unanimous conclusion that with the fast advancements, there were just as many who would isolate themselves in their original colonies as those who would be eager to get into the new. To avoid the sentiment of mild secessionism reminiscent of the original Great Schism, they allowed the new worlds to prosper long enough to become better known names so they could be associated with familiarity and comfort, which is why they chose to make Rhotero their temporary capital. Amongst the first colonies chosen to be terraformed and 'repaired' are: Reach, Eridanus II, Molae Sarus, Vzaar, Uchamanikae, Bundagal, and a few dozen more.

August 11th, 2585: A galactic-level strike leaves the Federation in shock and horror. Midday during an average workday, a rapid outbreak of viruses throughout several cities, ships and super-structures. While many of the suspects died because of the failure in the machinery that was affected by the cyber-attack, the rest committed collective suicide to avoid capture. The IRV, or Induced Rampancy Virus, plagued shipboard Artificial Intelligences as it did to those purposed to govern civilian cities, maintain civilian cities, patrol military bases, manage megastructures of hospitals and companies, and assist in research bases. The product of this sudden attack had been hundreds of thousands, perhaps a few million deaths, between the system collapses in the megastructures, the chaos ensuing in the cities and military bases, and worst of all, the explosion of the ships with the rampant AI.

As for the direct casualties, between two and three hundred AI died from the malfunction of the systems they were set in or their own self-destruction as a byproduct of the aggressive IRV. More damages accountable include funds hacked and stolen, weapons stolen en masse, and general fear struck into the civilian population. The Executors have made a call-to-arms, using all their searching power to identify the group associated with the attacks as well as the leader behind the presumably terrorist organization. The day of tragedies ended with several commercial channels cybernetically attacked and controlled on an intergalactic scale with a single terror-inducing message left on a black screen. 'With a new year, a new dawn, and the true suffering and retribution is yet to come.'. The Federation is left on a state of alert, to send military personnel to all homeworlds and colonies under the domain of the Union.

December 29th, 2585: The strength of the terrorists, while infinitely smaller than the side of the original Covenant the Separatists fought against, took the fleet defending New Janjur Qom by surprise, even with the military preparations and reinforcements. One NOVA bomb was used in a successful suicide plight to destroy the defending fleet, which allowed the invading fleet to orbit the young planet with little to no resistance. The few surviving ODPs accounted for a thousand-ship fleet of mainly Covenant-styled warships of varying types and sizes before being destroyed themselves. Rather than board or glass the planet, the second NOVA bomb was sent down to the planet and detonated. New Janjur Qom was burned and destroyed, and the majority of all San'Shyuum kind were murdered.

Upon the intergalactic intermission they showed, a Sangheili identified as Merg Vol declared himself the leader of the Neo-Covenant, a warrior 'sent by the Gods' to bring order back to the galaxy and activate the Halos in the name of the Forerunners. He taunted the Federation for its weakness and scorned it for its traitorous allegiance to the race of 'False Prophets', who turned their backs on the Gods. Much to public shock, he revealed his right-hand man and technological strategist to be high-ranking, ONI ex-Operative Jack Harper, who went by the alias of 'Illusive Man' during his time in the intelligence organization. Merg offered his view of brotherhood to Humans, considered children of the Forerunners, united in the attempt of recreating the kingdom of their creators.

He invited the malcontents and those angered with the Federation to rise against their heresy and be true to 'those who impregnated their worlds with the seeds of life', without making the mistake of turning on their own, such as those previously considered as 'Demons'. With war declared against the Federation, the Executors made secretive surveillance on public talk, and only an estimated point-oh-oh-oh-seven percent spoke of the Neo-Covenant without enmity, and only a tenth of that showed genuine support. The Federation thus declared an 'unquestionable death penalty' for the Neo-Covenant, stating that the war would not end until the San'Shyuum were avenged and every last supporter of the fanatics was left dead or worse.

February 10th, 2586: The Spartans of Castle Reach destroy multiple hidden bases in 'wild worlds', or planets that have undergone no sort of terraformation and are considered inhospitable by most means. Leading fleets of Federation ships to every world, capturing fanatics, and performing interrogations on the prisoners through any and all means, the Neo-Covenant staggers within months of their surfacing. Even their dominion of Forerunner technologies and locations, provided by Harper, falters against the wrath of the Federation. While the thousand ships they have are, at the very least, Assault Carrier-class, and are retrofitted with pieces of Forerunner tech here and there, the Neo-Covenant is severely outclassed.

Analysis on the attacks on the San'Shyuum made it clear that a series of situations had come to pass in order for the planetary bombardment to play out. Between High Charity's temporary decommission, the unrest of Covenant stragglers post-war that went into hiding, the silent insurgence of Merg as a new leader, and most importantly, the intelligence on Harper's end as well as the acquisition of the NOVA Bombs through the subversive attack against the AIs made for an impactful, if not tactless introduction. Strategically speaking, the loss of the San'Shyuum was an entirely moral blow likely meant to knock down hopes within the Federation and possibly plant fear, but the initial 'lucky strikes' they made were short-lived, as with a clear enemy, HIGHCOM became restless and merciless in hunting them down. This led to the conclusion that most, if not almost all the members of the Neo-Covenant are of a brainwashed youth that did not live long enough to see firsthand the perseverance and ruthlessness of the Executors, believing they'd bow to terror in an attempt to appease the population.

June 21st, 2586: In light of the horrors and the difficulty of rooting out the bulk of the now-hidden Neo-Covenant, the Executors confirmed the fourth iteration of the Spartan Program, though this time to military adult volunteers. While other species' cases are being studied carefully to check the possibility of an augmentation program for their own soldiers, the idea of an adult-based super-soldier company served as a morale boost both for the military and the civilian populations. After almost half a century of overcoming the superficial prejudices of the original Spartans and no longer seeing them as 'freaks' or 'killing machines', the popular light in which they are seen serve as a beacon no longer for Humanity alone, but the Federation whole. While Supreme Commander-117 and Supreme Lieutenant-312 agreed to lightly watch over the program when not dealing with the terrorists, the military is the one picking the candidates instead of ONI. This is due to Director Leonard Church's vigorously work to clean ONI's stained reputation in the hands of departed Director Margaret Orlenda Parangosky and her possible yet unconfirmed protégé, Jack Harper. The first company of IVs is planned to be trained and abled for war by August.

November 28th, 2586: An extensive fight between the Spartan-IVs of the Infinity-class vessel Thanatos and the Neo-Covenant aboard what was considered to be terrorist group's second greatest stronghold bore terrible results that left many troubled. While tenacity, creativity and the use of advanced technology was expected from those under Vol and Harper, no one expected the mediocrity of the new generation of super-soldiers. For the first time since the creation of any of the Programs, Spartans have died. Amongst fifteen hundred of the new generation retrofitted with Mjolnir Mark-VII Power Armors, almost two and a half hundred died and twice as many were greatly wounded in order for the mission to be successful, the base to be infiltrated and the information to be extracted. While to most soldiers, a mission at the heart of an enemy's strength would prove to be nothing short of suicidal, the impeccable effectiveness of the second and third generation of Spartans proved them to be the average operation for warriors of their caliber.

The victory, although twice as many Neo-Covies fell, was considered extremely pyrrhic in that regard. Those who more silently wondered about the Neo-Covenant's capacity to stand against the might of the Federation have begun to be more vocal in their support of the fanatical group. While the index of general support for the terrorists went from point oh-oh-oh-seven to point-oh-oh-oh-eight, now a full thirty to forty percent of that group has pledged support and manpower to the religious fascists. Even the elite of the extremists fighting against the Federation have given themselves the titles of 'Spartansbanes'. Under closed doors, the UNSC made a call to all those of the IV generation to return to HIGHCOM HQ, where they were promptly demoted for the colossal failure of the mission and assigned dates for procedures to counteract the augmentations. The Spartan IV Program has been declared a failure, for which many of those in the military have taken to calling them the 'False Super-Soldiers' or 'Decoy Spartans'. While a select few soldiers were recognized for their valor and skill during the mission, the vast majority extremely lowered the bar for the expectation of the Spartans, which was quoted to be 'a new low for the UNSC'.

March 11th, 2587: While the war against the Neo-Covenant was one of attrition and chance encounters here and there, the Neo-Covenant having an almost neutral net-loss of soldiers for every citizen or military personnel that turns from the Federation to them, the 'True Spartans' have been tracking their locations, patterns and possible planetary or satellite bases. Thus, eventually they found the 'core' of the Neo-Covenant to be an old fifty-kilometer-long, Fortress-Class Forerunner vessel reportedly named Holy Resurrection, allowing the fanatics to remain on the move. After tracking them down, traveling to their location and 'backing them against a wall', the Spartans reached the Neo-Covenant main fleet. Crippled, with no escapees and forced to crash into the closest planet within the system, one barely just hospital but with somewhat extreme conditions.

The Neo-Covenant was taken by surprise and greatly defeated by the augmented Spartans with their Castle Reach along with its subset mini-fleet of seventy-five Forerunner, two-kilometer-long Dreadnaught-class warships, all of which were 'held' within the Colony-class supercarrier. With the ships shut down and crash-landed upon the newly denominated 'Abaddon' world, called so for the crashed fanatics, the scathing heat and the predominance of red sand for its surface, was immediately placed under 'Slip-space Lock' through Castle Reach and its sub-fleet. While the Neo-Covenant managed to turn Holy Resurrection into a base and utilize a Hardlight shield to protect their fallen fleet and fortify the lands they hold, their days are sparsely numbered. With the success of the Spartans, much of the Federation's morale has been recuperated, though it led to further discrediting of the IV Program and its candidates. Having the planet on lockdown and with no chance of the Covies escaping, the Spartans guarded the planet and sent a message to the Union of their current situation. They await their response.

May 16th, 2587: The Neo-Covenant has been exterminated. With their impromptu 'base' on Abaddon captured and repurposed for the Federation, now having its own Forerunner ship, all of the terrorists of the organization were captured and sent immediately to High Charity. In one of the most controversial acts in not just the Federation's history, but most species' histories, the terrorists' punishment, suffering and executions were broadcasted on a galactic scale. Some of the tortures used upon the members of the Neo-Covenant included mutilation, burning, boiling, rape, flaying, and several more that left many of the intergalactic community appalled. The videos of the atrocious acts caused some of the larges marches against the amount of brutality shown to the 'enemies of the Federation', forming several protests across the world to change that and to remove the current Executors from office that permitted such actions.

These protests, led and carried out by the generations that came after the Great War in turn produced a surprising amount of counter-protests as large, if not more so, by the older generations. From these opposing views, extremists from both sides caused violence that led to general chaos that was only subdued when the police and local security received direct aid from the military. After the storm settled and the people were back in their homes, the Federation sent one more broadcast of a series of executions but with no tortures. These were some of those protesting from both sides, those who had killed others opposing their views in a fit of rage. After showing the intimidating footage, the Executors gave out a simple message that resonated through every home in the Orion Arm of the galaxy.

'We will carry out justice with or without mercy when it is required, regardless of the wishes of the many. We have done what needed to be done before, and will continue to do so as long as it keeps the Federation safe. If you regard those of the Neo-Covenant in merciful regards, those who committed the single most terrible atrocity ever done by killing off an entire species, then you may join them in their resting places. Victory is not earned without sacrifice, and there is no such justice that can be done to such an atrocity such as the death of the San'Shyuum, except perhaps ensuring that such an event never happens again. Today was proof that we will not hesitate to do just that.'

June 17th, 2587: After much talk and many arrangements, the select few thousand San'Shyuum on Rhotero that did not die from the attacks on New Janjur Qom and did not subsequently commit suicide due to the depressing fate of their race, those remaining have agreed to enter extraordinarily long-term cryo-sleep. These San'Shyuum, the very old or the very young, agreed amongst each other to do just that if the Union would order those amongst the Ark to retrieve the Lifeships, retrieve the specimens from Genesis, and fix and terraform New Janjur Qom so that it could be inhabited and repopulated by their kind some day. This way, they would sleep beneath the surface of their planet, and by the time their people were advanced enough to discover and wake them. As such, they would be ready to receive the knowledge of the previous San'Shyuum civilizations and be able to be reintegrated into the Federation.

In memory of the San'Shyuum, the Federation had a ten-meter-tall golden statue of one of their kind in a carried throne with an aggressive expression and a spiked crown, representing the High Prophets of the Great War and those under them. The statue depicts the silver species under it, those previously of the Covenant, rising to overthrow it, with additional help from a Human figure a Forerunner Monitor helping rock the throne. This statue was temporarily placed just before the main civilian center of Rhotero's capital. In the perfect middle of said center, a twenty-meter-tall platinum statue of another San'Shyuum on a throne was crafted, though this one with very peaceful features and a simple yet elegant crown on it. This statue shows the silver species under it carrying it with will and pride, this time the Human also under it as well and the Monitor hovering besides the head of the statue. Such a statue was made to better remember the San'Shyuum through Faith, Malevolence, and all those who followed them into the Alliance and then into the Federation. The day was marked as a memorial holiday in their honor.

July 23rd, 2587: With the sensible commemoration to the San'Shyuum made, most of the masses were calmed from their previous craze induced by the absolute annihilation of the Neo-Covenant. Having waited for the mourning to decrease as time passed and for the shock to die down, the now 'ex-Spartans' came out with a public announcement. Having stated blunt remorse for the loss of the San'Shyuum and, in spite of their crucial success against the Neo-Covenant, failing to protect New Janjur Qom, they announced their 'departure' from the Federation. This came along with the announcement that they would renounce the title of 'Spartans', as they were the best of Humanity, a species they were no longer fully a part of.

Taking the title of 'Reclaimers' instead, they vouched to be a semi-independent fragment of the Federation military, still backing and heading Super-Soldier Programs should they rise again. However, considering the lack of funding for another initiative of that kind, their current priority lies in protecting every kind under the galactic community with no preference or inclination towards one or another race. To this, the Federation was surprised to hear the public announcements from Human HIGHCOM and Executor Anderson that they supported this move, and that such transparency is an act that should be followed by all military organisms for each kind. While it was more informal before, the Federation announced the official creation of joint military commands for the galactic community as opposed to the alliance of each species' forces.

September 5th, 2590: A galaxy-changing discovery was made on Genesis, one that has bred multiple reactions, good and bad. As each species is now, their lifespans are very much in their prime with the current medicine and overall better life expectancy without a war to worry about. Varying between a tenth, a half, a century and a half, and multiple centuries, each species is currently at their 'peak'. The discovery made by the Archer brothers was one of the extension of the lifetimes of each species, in some cases only twofold, in others possibly by the thousands. After plenty of checking, the only species capable to live possibly up to ten thousand or more years was Humanity. While many of the first critics claimed that the scientific brothers were being biased by their own race, more evidence revealed that Ancient Humans had been capable to live for around a hundred thousand years on average, which helped make the extreme increase in years of life more plausible for Humans.

Two votes were made after that. One concerning whether the collective of species should receive the extensions in the first place or not, and the other by how much each should have their respective spans increased. While this brought general dissent at first, the Union made the decision that the maximum lifespan of each race was banned from being implemented, as ideally, they would transition into their new lifespans. However, the vote would be made not just on how much each would increase, as many single species would go to the 'all or nothing' extremes, but rather what the general collective lifespan should be for the Federation. The first voting will commence a month post-broadcast. The second voting will be carried out by a series of the best geneticists and biologists from the Federation as to which should be the best middle ground, which is to be approved or denied by the Executors.

October 5th, 2590: With an ending majority of seventy-nine percent, the vote was passed for the species' life extension. While a few protests were organized against this, they managed to maintain it entirely peaceful. This, in great part, was due to the warning issued prior to announcing the results of the previous violent riots that broke out shortly after the destruction of the Neo-Covenant. In light of this, several of Genesis' functions were made active, making the previously dormant planet far more active in its biological functions. It is during this period that many different subjects regarding the matter of the management of lives in the Federation would be handled.

For one, in the least discriminatory way, the Union stated that an extension of life for the Unggoy would require a mild sterilization for the species. Given their intense reproduction rates to compensate for their forty-year lifespans, the genetic probability for twins, triplets and quadruplets would have to be minimized to avoid problems of overpopulation. Similarly with the Lekgolo, each conglomeration of the intelligent snakes would have to be studied, as there are some that die definitively and others with the capacity of laying eggs at the end of their lives. Such would be the cases of Clnylekgolo or Sbaolekgolo whereas the Mgalekgolo and Neurnlekgolo expire without regeneration, although in general the average Lekgolo lives for around ten years. For these reasons, more investigations are being made regarding the circumstances of each race and their plausible compatibility to their new periods of life.

December 31st, 2590: Finishing the year, Genesis emitted eight waves to a galactic level, each one emitted every ten minutes in the hour and a half before midnight, as a way to celebrate the end of the year. First was for the Humans, in homage to the two decorated and celebrated brothers that allowed this event to happen. The Human lifespan, originally one hundred and fifty years, was made four times longer. The Unggoy had their own years extended fifteen times over to reach that same mark. The Sangheili and the Jiralhanae, being the longest-lived species, received the treatment but only for twice and one and a half times their original spans respectively. The Kig-Yar were given a boost by a factor of eight, closer to six hundred years of life than seven, the way that the Sangheili are at seven hundred years and the Jiralhanae at seven and a half centuries.

The Lekgolo born into 'bodies' like the Mgalekgolo and Neurnlekgolo have had their snakes' lives extended sixtyfold while the hivemind conglomerations had theirs improved by ten. Finally, the Yanme'e and Rachni having equivalent lives of sixty to seventy years had theirs multiplied by ten, not unlike the Lekgolo that form mass colonies. Mass celebrations were held, as those of most elder ages and states were restored to far more youthful versions of themselves. Reports made showed even a good portion of those previously against the widespread genetic augmentations celebrating the occasion. While not immunity, the ward against time and death itself was a subconscious fear relieved for many through the abrupt development in the Federation's collective evolution.

February 25th, 2592: High Charity has been reinstated after fifteen years of being updated, improved and built again to the like of the architectural types of all species. The main formation and infrastructure, however, was unanimously agreed to be in the style of the San'Shyuum, with their technologic and elegance primarily characterizing it. As opposed to its original form, this High Charity was made larger to hold more room for the rest of the newer species, those previously considered slaves but now equals, so all would have quarters befitting of free men and women. The radius of the upper half was increased from one hundred, seventy-four kilometers to two hundred, twenty-one kilometers, while additionally having day and night cycles to accommodate the internal clock of the organic inhabitants. The downward half was incremented from two-hundred, fifty-two kilometers to three-hundred, eighty-seven kilometers.

Moreover, eighty-percent of the plasma defenses and weaponry were perfected and integrated with or replaced by Humanity's perfected ballistic technology. The remaining twenty-percent has been retrofitted with Forerunner systems and power supplies with a few armaments and shields for additional measure. While the return of the Federation's true capital was a relief to many, the second coming of High Charity was almost completely overshadowed by the Executors' announcement. After the fall of the Prophets, including Faith herself, the Union was left shorthanded and in need of more to fill the vacancy the noble race had left behind. In light of this, they announced the inauguration of 'The Great Race'.

To the shock of many, if not the whole Federation, the Executors had been contemplating in the five years since the end of the War on the Neo-Covenant, from their legacy to their current standing. Thus, they decided to make a strictly friendly competition between the species that did not 'yet' have a seat in the Union as Executors. The requirement to earn this would be to make a strong enough contribution to the Federation to be considered 'game-changing', though without setting unrealistic or unachievable standards. This, along with self-sustainability that could prove that they'd be well just fine on their own would grant the next seats inside of High Charity. To add fuel to the fire, the Reclaimers made their support of this known, saying that the species with a place within the Union would get the chance to have their people inscribe themselves into Super Soldier Programs under their training.

March 2nd, 2594: While most species have focused on more militarization of their kinds, or at least more within the limits the Federation poses, the Unggoy inverted a great amount of their funds into scientists they sent to Genesis. This in turn led to the relatively small advancement, or large depending on the viewpoint, of changing their bodies from methane-dependent to oxygen-dependent. While such a genetic change is much smaller and much costlier than the lifetime extension, such a change would ultimately prove to be an 'economic salvation' for the species. Considering how most 'green' planets are based on oxygen and the overwhelming majority of species that survive on said gas, the lack of necessary investments for 'methane farms' for them to breathe would prove to be much better in the long run.

The only complication this was met with was Balaho itself, since the planet's atmosphere and wildlife were vastly dependent on this gas. For this, the Unggoy petitioned for a loan from the Federation, promising that their remaining funds were to be used for a much more important investment. The loan was granted, and a careful 're-terraformation' of Balaho was done, all the while ships sent from Genesis 'saved' each species of flora and fauna while adapting them to the new components in the air. Genesis's wave was sent shortly after, marking the end of methane-tank use in the species. The Unggoy are now an oxygen-based species, though they are now in an economic disbalance as well as the Federation's debt.

May 30th, 2595: Only a year after the collective change in the Unggoy occurred before they suddenly made a second announcement. The Unggoy, having negotiated with and paid the Rachni for locations of mines and reserves of Element Zero, opening a notably lesser branch of technology within the Federation. As such, the loans they asked for the Federation were much greater regardless of the debts they were already in. The man leading the Unggoy through this period of time was Balaho's Hegemon, Tok Marok, presented his plans within the confidence of the Union's council, through which an approval for the process was given. After further conversations, more movement of materials pertaining to or containing 'E-Zero', and the crucial utilization of the fallen Chieftain Lieutenant Amadeus's research, the Unggoy funded for a final galactic wave from Genesis. Having the use of the planet, the E-Zero was 'disintegrated' within the Forerunner planet, emitting it with hints of the dark matter in its surge. Having coded the systems so that the Unggoy were the only ones affected, the species achieved the mass-convergence into becoming Biotics, opening a large amount of options for the previously physically outmatched kind. The Unggoy, between the funds used for the E-Zero reserves and the second utilization of Genesis in a short amount of time, are now heavily in debt to the Federation.

March 3rd, 2596: The Federation, in spite of its collective species working hard and on mostly solid economic professions, plummets into the Acute Depression. This event, in great part caused by the Unggoy's loans and their inability to pay for them in due time, caused much chaos. Smaller companies shutting down, people losing jobs and a general halt to the progress the Federation had been making since the end of the War on the Neo-Covenant caused many to gain hostile sentiments towards the smallest of the races. It even led to radicals created and actively became a part of the "Enough with the Grunts" movement, which involved singling out, hunting and lynching Unggoy, which were promptly persecuted and punished in court, varying in sentences from life in prison to the death penalty. While the extremism was only from the direct minority, there was a far more widespread sentiment of anger and resentment towards the people that led them to such a fragile state in the first place.

This led to mass protests and petitions to kick the Unggoy out of the Federation, many arguing that they were 'harming the rest' and that 'they'd be just fine on their own'. In response to this, the Executors sent several military marches to the centers of discontent, and while no harm was done to anyone in that time, the silent threat was made clear to the people. Seventeen percent of the Federation, not including the Unggoy, are in favor for their departure, though since the military display, they have been far more silent in their discontent. The Executors sent out a brief message when the storm grew milder. 'The veterans by our side today and those who laid down their lives in the Great War did not fight for our freedom and our union so a short rough patch and part of a resentful youth would erase all the effort done.' The social wedge between the older and younger generations grows more.

December 31st, 2599: On the eve of the new year, the Executors made the official announcement of the Unggoy's success and their personal welcoming into the Union. While the first year after the 'E-Zero' augmentations were made caused a steep economic downfall and a general socioeconomic chaos, the 'Acute Depression' ended by the third year. After a voluntary mass-conscription of the Unggoy into the military and the five-year pledge of working at minimum wage in their jobs to make up for the great loans taken, the Federation rocketed to an economic boom. Having a much wider range for work, as their new Biotic abilities enabled them to pursue physically straining jobs they would have not been qualified for prior, they were able to fill in many of the gaps made when their reproduction rates were reduced. As such, the Federation as a whole benefitted from their personal improvement, as it allowed a far greater integration of the species and offered a great deal to give for them.

Ultimately, the safe application of consistent Biotic troops and the new possibilities on the battlefield born from such an addition is what gave them the edge over the other competing kinds. They were celebrated in their improvement, an especially emblematic moment for the Unggoy, having been at the rock-bottom of the Covenant less than a century prior. After some words between the now Executor Tok Marok and the Reclaimers of Castle Reach, the remnants of the Forerunners and the Ancient Humans agreed to take and train candidates for their Super Soldier Program. As of yet, the Humans will have a new generation of Spartans, these ones to be considered first-generation again since the elder generations no longer consider themselves Humans anymore, which should strive to be as strong as the original Spartans were.

The Sangheili will have the El'Dians, an ancient warrior clan that long preceded the Arbiters, which influenced the idea of an Arbiter their teachings, and served as the foundation of honor for the whole species. The Jiralhanae will have the Warlords, the strongest single soldiers the Jiralhanae can have, answering only to the highest-ranking Chieftains and tasked with only the most difficult tasks. Finally, the Unggoy will have the Kalogeri, the ancient cult of monks that deeply worshiped Porot, who would serve to protect the people and depose dictators and tyrants should they come into power. Until further notice, the volunteers will be training intensely under the Reclaimers, and results of intense augmentations for each species remain to be seen, with the exception of the Humans.

December 31st, 2605: Six years into the twenty-seventh century and since the integration of the Unggoy into the Union has given time for the Lekgolo to enter the ranks themselves. The Unggoy have made general but great contributions in terms of manpower with a great addition to the ranks as well as in positions of office like those of more manual and industrial nature. The Lekgolo, however, contributed greatly through the invention of the 'Type-55 Ultra-Heavy Siege Towers', also referred to as Krakens. These machines have a colossal size, considerably enough to be considered as 'the missing link' between space vessels and intra-atmospheric vehicles and aircrafts. With an open platform pad capable of hosting up to three Phantoms or Pelicans and plenty of space in between for troops to walk through near to its top, the radius of the 'upper main body' is around seventy-five meters, which decreases to twenty-five meters at its bottom end. The height of the body would be two hundred meters, but added with three two-hundred-meter-long 'legs', it reaches a total height of three hundred and fifty meters.

These Krakens are especially demanded for due to the nature of their core, those being the closest Federation-crafted Forerunner reactors. With the proper funding and material, the Lekgolo made several attempts at recreating a power supply of that nature, and upon succeeding, allowed for such titanic structures to be properly powered without overheating or lacking energy. Moreover, the versatility in the variants made for plenty of uses, including the Military Kraken, the Mine Kraken, the Civilian Transport Kraken, and the Explorational Kraken. Each one sports different strengths, the ML-K having three additional 'Scarab Beams' and weaponry, the MN-K having smaller beams to excavate plausible Forerunner installations and artifacts, the CV-K sporting thicker walls and more room for people and the EX-K having the capacity to withstand the atmospheres and conditions of 'wild worlds'.

But while the Krakens made for great general contributions as mobile bases of multiple functions, that alone was not enough to grant the Lekgolo a place in the Union. A 'failed' project had been made two years prior, one where, in theory, would yield ten linked Neurnlekgolo the way the Mgalekgolo pairs are united. Since the Mgalekgolo holds five hundred and twelve snakes to its body and the Neurnlekgolo holds a thousand and twenty-four, ten thousand two hundred and forty eggs were placed in an incubation machine together. While ideally, these would become ten neutrally linked Raiders, the plausibility of twenty Hunters mentally interconnected was also a desired result. Neither of these happened, as when the Lekgolo hatched, they remained together and hardly even grew, which many believed to be a failure considering how they had likely just created a Clnylekgolo or a Sbaolekgolo.

This is when the most exceptional case of a Lekgolo formation occurred, something none of those in charge of the testing had predicted. All the snakes barely grew since they hatched, but when they clung together, they developed the consciousness type that the Mgalekgolo and Neurnlekgolo boast of. At approximately twenty percent of the length of the average Lekgolo within a Hunter, these stopped growing entirely and came together. As a result, the new form gained a malleable 'height' of twenty-four feet, twice of that of a Hunter. Upon testing its fighting capabilities, they were revealed to be minimal and next to useless, since while a Neurnlekgolo's snakes are smaller than the average but still sturdy, the new kind's were too fragile and delicate. Instead, they tested its thinking capabilities, which were revealed to be powerful enough to be considered that of 'an organic AI's'.

The new Lekgolo type and the only one of its kind, now denominated Kaisrlekgolo, proceeded to explain in perfect detail the memories of the twenty Mgalekgolo it had 'birthed from', as well as their ancestry up to three generations back for each. Having no 'ancestor' better than another nor a bond brother, the Kaisrlekgolo became the only one to give itself its own name as well as have only one. Xeroxunaxomadilukotu, nicknamed 'Xero' for short, crafted the name from the first letter of each of the Hunters that gave their eggs so it would live. Being the closest thing to a 'conscious' Clnylekgolo, Xero was found to be capable of 'extreme empathy' through linking its mind to that of any being and observing the memories, even those of other species. This allowed it to develop an aptitude for political fields as well as military strategy, though likely due to the nature of its fragile worms, it much prefers peace over war.

Under the leadership of Xero, the Lekgolo were able for the first time in their history to hold a unanimous leader for their kind, enabling better communication with the other members of the Federation as well as a more centralized form of government rather than the previous regional ones. This made it much easier for them to pick a viable candidate to be the Lekgolo Executor, the position which was effectively granted to it after much consideration from the Union. Now welcomed to the Union, Xero has spoken publicly on the idea of Super Soldiers for the Lekgolo and that while they were to be a peaceful kind, they would not deny the prospect of powerful protectors for their own. While a true denomination for the kind of species a Super Soldier would form depends greatly on the kind of formation of the snakes, the Lekgolo have voted on calling the best of their kind as 'Conquerors'.

December 31st, 2609: As time goes on, the species of the Federation earn the positions to power more and more quickly, since the 'Kig-Yar' have earned a spot in the Union only four years after the Lekgolo gained theirs. While their contributions to their own are subtler than the changes the Unggoy did to their kind, the 'Kig-Yar' did make a breakthrough in revolutionary weaponry for space warfare. Having taken to studying E-Zero and its potential uses, the avian race did plenty of testing to see what the most efficient use of the material could be. Beyond the creation of Biotics, which only came completely naturally to the Unggoy, the other possibilities came to be shorthanded compared to the ballistic, fusion and plasma weaponry the Federation had.

Shielding systems were not nearly as powerful as those manufactured in the Federation, weaponizing it provided for faster bullets but with much less power, and the use of E-Zero to power ships was essentially a complete waste of materials considering the size and power restraints a core would require. While the Unggoy found it use in more civilian and less noteworthy common ways, the 'Kig-Yar's' ultimate discovery was what led the kind to boast of an immense economic boost for their own and a spot in the Union. While most E-Zero technologies developed used the unique element as the base for them, the Kig-Yar experimented with using it as a supplementary material. The light-weight function of this material has, in part, allowed for faster-than-light-travel without the use of slip-space in the case of urgent scenarios.

More importantly, the direct implementation of E-Zero directly into spaceship systems as opposed to the power, as well as added to the weaponry. This, in turn, has allowed for extraordinarily fast processing that allows for much faster combat. While this alone would be useful, it would not be an extraordinary improvement compared to the contributions the others have made. But, when added to the processing capabilities of an average-to-good Federation AI within the E-Zero systems, the AI would be able to, in theory, process the situation at a rate faster than the speed of light. Adding that to the E-Zero weaponry systems has created the form of light-speed combat. While the ballistics and ammunition used might not be faster than light themselves, the spaceships can travel at that speed and still manage high-precision combat.

With the funds earned from this revolutionary discovery, the 'Kig-Yar', much like the Unggoy, inverted a good sum of that for the use of a Genesis Wave. Unlike their once historical rivals, they would not be in debt thanks to the massive revenue earned from the LS-Combat, sparing the race from possible conflicts with other kinds. The change, though not as drastic as the 'Biotic-Enhancement' of the other, would imply great physical change for the better. It is because of this that the species will no longer be referred to as 'Kig-Yar', but rather as the variant race of their kind, the T'vaoans. While not too great a change, the average Kig-Yar has increased in height, strength, talon-length, and mental agility if not with some bit more apathetic tendencies in favor of their cousin species' attributes.

Queen Nar'ar-Ky'alt, the now T'vaoan leader of the species, earned the place of Executor in the Federation Union. Under her strict yet fair leadership, it was her propositions to the other leaders that had them attentive at their contributions, as well as organizing and heading the projects for the contributions themselves. This caused a fair amount of controversy which had risen years prior, as while she had become the absolute highest political figure in the species, she remains wedded to Emperor Kal'qat-Myr'ros, the highest ranking military figure of the T'vaoans.

While this matter had been investigated years prior to ensure neither used their position to influence or better the other's illegally, it resurfaced upon her coming to be the T'vaoan Executor. The others in the Union, after thorough investigations, allowed her to gain the position, but should matters regarding her husband, she would not be allowed to intervene. With the minor complication resolved, Executor Ky'alt announced that their Super Soldier branch would be named the Tsaa-Ganum, after another exceptionally strong cousin species that had been wiped out several centuries prior to when they joined the Covenant in a genocidal civil war.

December 31st, 2615: The Yanme'e come in fourth place under King Tribadk Ptoltohrq, achieving the seventh place in the current Union, eighth if the extinct San'Shyuum are counted. With the Unggoy providing Biotic manpower, the Lekgolo providing the strongest super-vehicle/ship hybrid, and the T'vaoans providing faster spaceship maneuverability and weaponry functions, the field for improvement was relatively restrained for the Yanme'e. While it was an option to improve upon any of the newly explored advances made by the others, an unoriginal form of contributing to the Federation might have been seen as the Union freely giving the species a seat amongst the Executors without earning it. Thus, no one expected when they developed most, if not all forms of infrastructure, vehicular and spatial structures for interspecies compatibility.

Using Forerunner principles the way some buildings or armor sets building around what they are encompassing in a puzzle-like form, the Yanme'e utilized E-Zero to create similar, if not less advanced, forms of said creations. Thanks to this, the creation of Mass-Use-Interspecies-Vehicles, or MUIVs, were made available and produced en masse for the public. Ranging from ground vehicles to aircrafts and spaceships, measures of anti-gravity are used for the seats so weight can be disregarded while the E-Zero is used to vary the size and the spread of the plates that form it depending of the species using it. While it was somewhat harder to change infrastructures greatly in base of that, the parameters previously used as 'the average' for any and all species when building the constructions could now be used more easily with the Forerunner-influenced Yanme'e architectural techniques.

While a notably simpler and less audacious advancement, the immediate daily use and utility of this advancement undoubtedly earned them a rank amongst the Executors. King Tribadk Ptoltohrq, now Executor, had been the mind behind said creation, as he had been a political and semi-military leader, he also used the knowledge inherited from some of his progenitors to use. While not the defining genius that found the way to do it, he was the one to come up with the initial idea and organize the research regarding said subject. The Yanme'e have announced that their Super Soldier will be called the Legionnaires, them being the ones to take the forefront of their armies with strength and intelligence.

December 31st, 2625: Ten more years pass since the last species gained an Executor before the Rachni are finally able to earn a place in the Union. Having come as close to extinction as having only one remaining 'Queen' to survive the entirety of the species, they have since been able to regrow once again. While they had had similar reproduction rates to the Unggoy, the Rachni were not semi-sterilized until the beginning of the twenty-seventh century to have a population sizable enough to compare to the other species'. Only then did they receive a Genesis Wave themselves so they could have a more stable and controlled growth rate. Since then, they have taken to being a more proactive and integrated member of the Federation now that intense reproduction is no longer a concern. As of now, several dozen 'Queens' have since been birthed from the sole surviving Rachni and unanimous leader, 'Queen' Manaoanam'Eunal.

Short-lived confusion was born from by which name to refer to for the hermaphrodite 'Queen', since the shortened version of her name, 'Oanam, is also her 'Queen' children's last name, the way 'Eunal was her own 'mother's' shortened first name. Ultimately, the name chosen for the Executor, the way her children will also be referred to, will be Oanam'Eunal, that way the clear distinction between her and the other 'Queens' by hers having her name in first place rather than in second. More debate was born from the apparent lack of technological advancement of any kind or any substantial addition of manpower in the civilian or military aspects above what was expected of them and still they earned a place.

There were discussions and mild protests regarding the subject, more than a few frustrated for the effort their species put into earning the rank of Executors. This, however, was dismissed by the Union itself, sending a general message of acceptance of the Rachni into their ranks, with later explicit confirmation being made by each of the Executors as a way to ensure no doubt is left on the illegibility of the newest and final race into the head of the Federation. When asked what had been the, as of yet, hardly known input made for the whole of the interspecies alliance, the Executors answered that it was 'classified information'. While this was met in part with surprise and in part with outrage, especially when the nature of the Halos and the Flood had been revealed, the Union answered that questions would be answered in due time.

Until then, the Great Race has ended, marking the age when every species managed to earn unanimous respect and power from all others. With the Rachni naming their own Super Soldiers the Sovereigns, being theoretically the only subspecies of their kind with complete mental independence from the 'Queen' that bore them in the way that all others share a form of biologic quantum entanglement. Along with that, they would also likely be more powerful than the average of their kind, possibly reaching the strength of a 'Queen' and Biotic capabilities of a Brood Warrior without the reproduction.

Beyond that, a few more statements were made in regards to this new area the Federation had transitioned into. With the entirety of the races integrated into the Union, they have reached a total of an even number of Executors, meaning that if an exact tie could be made during a crucial vote. To remedy that situation, the Union will have the AIs become the tiebreaker, with one such ''Qualm" being the AI at the head of it all. Additionally, the 'Council of Monitors', the Forerunner AI which have joined the Federation in their plights, will provide advice when the matter might require it. Having all heads integrated, the Union is officially the absolute political head of all the species in the Federation in times of peace. There have been talks of making a form of an interspecies High Command to lead the Federation as well should times of war come again.

June 9th, 2628: Two and a half years into the completed Federation, and secessionists movements that had begun to emerge decades prior are now better organized and popularized. While the Separatist Alliance sprouted from the Great Schism against the Covenant, the new movement denominated 'Restored Integrity' was characterized by its sizeable yet predominantly peaceful nature. This new wave, composed by an overall ten percent of the Federation of most species, are known for three particular subdivisions regarding different takes on the idea of separation. Firstly comes the 'Conserved Identity' movement, being thirty percent of the members of the RI, focusing on the philosophical aspect of what makes each kind unique with the intent of maintaining them instead of letting globalization consume them.

Secondly comes the 'Protected Legacy' movement, focusing more on the job opportunities and positions per species, making for a sixty percent of the RI. Finally comes the 'Empowered Dominance' movement, the extremist aggressive movements focusing on racial superiority, marking only a five percent. The remaining five percent consider themselves part of the general 'Restored Integrity' movement, but their motives do not fit any of the three main subdivision's goals. Ultimately, the collective of all those supporting species independence from the Federation were large enough to come to a vote. Currently the results have been read, and were majorly overruled by eighty-two percent. However, the rise of such organizations has given voice to people with those ideals, and upon being heard, a final popularity poll was estimated to be around fifteen percent. Those excessively discontent with the results were reminded by the Union of the result of the protests that occurred after the end of the Neo-Covenant.

January 1st, 2630: In spite of the few rough bumps in the past century, the Union has declared that they've reached an Age of Light, considered the most evolutionary and technologically accelerated growth all species have had in the past few millennia. While the 'Restored Integrity' movement has remained at a stagnant fifteen percent average per race population, the rest of the populations regard each other as strong alliance and have a general 'friendly rivalry' attitude whenever they're not actively united in a common objective. It is for this reason, as well as the similar maturing rates per species, that a vote passed on the idea of plausible all-inclusive schools to be made. Much psychological research had been put into the subject by the Union, and the institutions would require an entirely new and modified set of rules, but the Executors ultimately deemed it possible.

The vote passed, and while approval rate was the lowest when it comes to recent pro-integration matters, it still passed with a fifty-three to a forty-seven percent. Given the close results gained from the election, the Executors announced that the installations would not be too many at the moment, and that admission to the new types of schools would be strictly voluntary. As an added measure to ensure better promotion, these schools will have higher funds regarding projects as well as better wages for the faculty working there. A thousand schools in total have been authorized to be built and purposed for the interspecies education project, all of which will be distributed amongst the most populated joint colonies. Depending on the results obtained in the next few years, they will be shut down or more will be built.

The subjects to be taught in these academies would be enough to reach the point of the necessity of twenty-five years to earn a degree. The length of time required to gain a bachelor's title in this school is enough to double for a very basic college degree, as well as the initial parts of military training. Amongst the new subjects being taught in the interspecies schools would be the individual histories and cultures of the students along with those of the others, extensive studies of the main sciences, and more military training than the average school are the reasons that the schools' degrees will have as much values. This would be especially ideal to those who would want children with any sort of advantage in the political realm, since the positions for governmental positions in joint colonies imply the knowledge of multicultural relations.

November 12th, 2633: After decades of colonizing several worlds and re-terraforming previous ones, one of the newer ones, Malurok, was discovered to have a frozen 'Unknown Derelict Satellite' just outside the range of its rings. When this happened, the Union sent personal ships to the site, which was followed shortly after with strict orders of immediate evacuation of the terraforming ships and the civilian fleet. Before any analysis could be made on the UDS, all evidence was erased for those who discovered it, and while the ships were sent away before they could witness it, it is believe that the Union unfroze and tested the object. An update was made shortly after notifying the people of the Union's decision to move the UDS out of the system's reach before planting a NOVA Bomb in it to destroy it entirely. News reached the rest of the Federation, leaving it in unease, which was mildly alleviated when they announced it was not Forerunner in origin nor had anything to do with the Halos or the Flood. Public tension still remains.

July 7th, 2640: In perhaps one of the most terrible events in the Federation's history, if not entirely unique, a discovery on the worst side-effects of the prolonged lifespans was made. A sudden outbreak of cases regarding different types of severe mental diseases struck the populations in all their varieties, regardless of the species they afflicted. While it has affected less than a hundred thousand in the Federation, all were found to have one thing in common. Those diagnosed with the illnesses were of the older generation prior to the Genesis Waves, those closest to dying when the waves miraculously saved them. Studies on the matter revealed that the longer people go surviving past the length of their original lifespans, the more likely they are to have a mental disease.

Moreover, the cures once used for treating such illnesses, in the Humans' cases those like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, now have a certain level of pathological immunity to the original, perfected treatments. This means there is now a necessity for intense medical research, since some of the 'newer' ones being tested on the 'patients zeroes' are rapidly gaining resistance to the counteractive effects. The only relief to this discovery is the fact that the newer generations, those born after lifespans were expanded, would not be susceptible to these diseases. Early studies theorize that retirement homes and mental institutions might have a large uprise in the coming centuries, if not decades.

June 20th, 2642: In the latest colony found and terraformed named Paradis, another UDS was found by chance and luck, though some don't believe in the coincidence of finding another one nine years after the last one was found and destroyed. This time, however, evacuation was not deemed necessary, though the Union has posted a few extra military ships in case of anything unexpected from the object. Only a few million are inhabiting the planet since the colony has barely just been established, and with this UDS being thawed out by the military, the Federation awaits a more direct response from the Union. With the Executors promising that all would be revealed in due time as they did with the Halos and the Flood, the Federation awaits in anxiety. With these events going on, a full century has passed since the end of the Great War, and while it would be a day to celebrate for many, more simply feel the tension of the recent events coming to happen. As of right now, the current Federation population numbers in just over two hundred billion, if the individual Lekgolo are not counted.

Author's Notes: Now I know what some (if not a lot) of you may be thinking right now. The Union is unforgivingly ruthless more times than it is necessary (which I called Union so I can refer to the Executors as a group the way the Council does for the Councilors without mixing them up). This is intentional, and this is not to make them out to be some sort of heroic saviors or superior intergalactic master-race. A lot of authors on this site have been focused on how much and how often and how bad the Council fucks up (which to be fair, is very consistent in the games), and additionally make sure the UNSC/Separatists are in a perfectly good light and are incapable of making mistakes. I don't believe in that. The way I wrote out the Executors to be is what I consider to be the most logical way of how any group of survivors of a war were extinction was the threat to be: cold, ruthless and excessive. These are effective traits, but that does not make them good.

Even more than that, I wanted to establish that for every decision made, for evey huge movement or important event that happened through a decision, there would always be dissent. Maybe sometimes it's peaceful, maybe sometimes it's violent, but there will always be the expression that contradicts the main one. The closest they came to absolute compliance was shortly after The Great War ended because everyone was still completely paranoid and didn't want to take any chances. Times passed, generations were born and opinions changed.

The discovery on Genesis for changing genetics (specifically the lifespans bit) was made so that characters shown in the previous Part make it (relatively) youthful to this Part. The ones regarding the Unggoy was because, if anything, they're essentially the butt of the weak alien type jokes, and I wanted to use their potential more than that, which is why I wrote down Amadeus's studies regarding Eezo with each species and had the little guys be the most compatible. As for the San'Shyuum, I know someone will get frustrated about and I understand that. Problem is, they're hard as a species to incorporate into the fic, and the way it is now is the most fluid way I can write the fic without stumbling over the only race that is fragile to the average gravitational pull. But besides these bits within the chapter, there's two points that have been made more than once in the reviews which I feel the great need to address now.

One is 'Shanxi', or rather, the first contact scenario. Now, ironically, I thought from the very start of the fic years ago that the intro would be entirely different from how others have done it solely due to the fact that I hated the name 'Shanxi'. To this day, I still don't like the name. Funny enough, taking that scenario completely out of the equation was what inspired the idea I have for the next two chapters, which as far as I know, no one else has done so far on this site. In fact, I feel almost betrayed that some of you guys would think I'd resort to unoriginal copy-pasting of what others have written after so many years of fleshing out my own unique plotline.

And the other is the Union-Council relation. I want this to be clear here and now so that no one gets any hopes up or turn-offs later on: this will NOT be a curb-stomp fic. Yes, the Federation does have superior firepower in almost all regards, but the Council (+ Terminus) have a hell of a lot more territory and a much bigger population (numbered in the trillions). For perspective, remember that in canon, Humanity, outnumbered and outclassed in tech, manpower and firepower, still gave the Covenant a hell of a fight, even though they would have lost if it wasn't for the last-hour Great Schism. So no, this will not be a curb-stomp fic. Now, as for the Council itself... well, in the canon, they were unfortunately stupid (in terms of avoiding obvious threats and overall shortsightedness), and in this fic, they'll have their moments like that as well. However, there is a solution to this general bad-decision-making they're generally responsible for, and possibly one of my favorite parts about this story. You'll understand soon enough.

Well, now that aaall of that is out of the way, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, even if it was a timeline chapter. Get ready for the next one, because you will not see what's coming. Any and all commentary/review left is appreciated, so if you wouldn't mind, I'd greatly appreciate it.

The Almighty Afroduck,

All Hail