7th March 2516, 6:42 PM, Earth.

"Make a wish! John!" A women called out to her son. "And do it quick, it looks like your father is going devour that cake like a monster any second... with the burning candles." She laughed.

"I am hurt. You see me as a monster?" A man replied with a false hurt tone.

"Ok, Ok... 3,2,1" The child named John said as he blew off the fires of the candle.

"What did you wish for John?" His father asked.

"I won't tell you! It won't come true!" John smiled, which turned into a slight frown. His parents knew what the frown meant.

"John. We know you wanted to spend your birthday back home with your friends, but what can we do. Daddy's job required him to come here. Only a few more days and you can see your friends again." His mother explained. John nodded, but his frown was still there.

"Listen to me, John" His father said softly. He then knelt down to be eye level with his son.

"I know you're too young to understand these things but I am going to tell you anyway. Everything will never go as planned. There will always be problems, and we must always adjust and face them." The man said with a smile.

"The universe works in mysterious ways, my son... Which is why I have only one request for you. Always face those problems with your chin up and head held high. Never back down and never run away from them. And there are will be moments when you are backed up against the wall... When you will feel that you cannot go on any longer." John listened intently, his forwn completely gone. "Do you know what you have to do then?"

"What?" The boy asked, clearly curious.

"I want you to ball up your hands, close your eyes, breath and give everything you have. Because in those situations, where defeat is just around the corner, One Final Effort is all it takes to bend fate to your favour. Will you do that, John?" His father asked.

"Yes!" John replied enthusiastically.

"That's what I like hear. Now cut the cake... I don't think I can wait any longer. After that we'll go to the park for stargazing. Apparently, there's some famous comet that'll pass by Earth tonight."

"OK!"

"You always know how to increase morale, don't you?" The woman commented.

"Well... I am the leader of my squad after all." The man said with a small smile.

"I have to make sure their morale is always high. Even when things look grim."

Soon after, the small family went to the nearby park, which was full of activity as other people also gathered to watch the famous comet.

The family found a quite place and laid down on the grass, looking at the stars above. Usually, this would not be possible due to light pollution, but the UEG decided that once every 76 years, the electricity of all non essential buildings will cut of for 76 minutes, so that people can witness the comet.

"Mom, Dad"

"Yes, John?" Both the parents replied.

"I had a dream last night. I was flying through space. I could see stars passing by me. Then I saw a planet. It was blue and green. I was floating for a while before I began falling towards it. I fell through the clouds and then I hit the ground. But I didn't feel any pain." John explained. (To get a visual input, watch the last part of M83's 'Wait' Music Video)

" Ahhh... the mind of a child is a beautiful place. Well John, dreams are usually influenced by what you see and hear. Your dreams must be influenced by those cartoons you've been watching." His mother said.

"But... It felt so real." John mumbled.

"Well, there are dreams that feel very... real" His father said with a grim smile. "But they're just dreams. It's always better to let them flow. There is nothing to worry about." The man said.

'I hope you never have to experience the nightmares of war, my son.'

John was about to say something but was stopped by some commotion. They looked up at the sky and saw the comet passing over head. John soon fell asleep after the comet had passed by.

2558, Sanghelios

On top of a high overlook stood a warrior clad in green armor. His memories before the super soldier program hazy and almost non-existent...with the exception of two. The night of his 5th birthday and the faithful day on the playground. Even though he forgot their faces, he still remembers his father's words. But right now, nothing helped. No matter how hard he balled up his hands, no matter how long he kept his eyes closed and no matter how many breaths he took. He couldn't muster one ounce of willpower or courage to even look at his fellow humans and Sangheili in the eye, let alone face this new enemy. This enemy who manipulated him and betrayed the trust that had been built on the face of imminent death and insanity. This new enemy who had ripped out his heart from his chest and drove an ice cold energy sword through it. This new enemy whose name was Cortana.

At first it was shock, followed by sadness and finally, hopelessness... which was now slowly leading towards anger. How could he let himself be trapped. How could he let his feelings get the better of him.

'Huh... feelings' He mused bitterly.

'Maybe being human isn't a really good thing... I guess I was the machine after all. I allowed myself to be controlled by a rampant AI... like a simple machine.' He thought painfully. He knew he could never allow his emotions to get the better of him again. The anger was growing, so he decided to pour all of it into a resolution. He will deal with this new enemy, even if it meant terminating Cortana himself... Even if it meant completely losing his emotions... his humanity. The warrior was so busy in his own world that he didn't notice the female warrior in white armor approaching him from behind. It was not until she called him that he was broken from his thoughts.

"Chief, the Infinity should be here in a few hours. You should get ready." She said.

The warrior in green didn't say anything. He simply turned around and began walking towards the camp. As he passed the female warrior, he stopped and began speaking with his back to her.

"Both of us should've listened to Del Rio that day." He said. After which he continued on his way. Immediately, the female warrior knew something was very wrong. The man's voice had a lot of edge to it. Something that was not present before. What worried her even more was that the man's voice lacked any form of emotion. It sounded lifeless... not human... machine-like.