She Died in Eden (III)
Didact’s response:
The Mantle has not failed! I’ve already razed scores of worlds – sterilized systems, routed and [disintegrated] the parasite! We’re learning its tricks and strategies. We can halt this thing! And we can follow in Their footsteps! There are no unstoppable forces in this universe.
There are no immovable objects.
Everything gives if you push hard enough.
Interestingly, the line referring to following ‘in Their footsteps’ is the most fascinating. To any fans of Halo’s campaign, direct parallels between this statement and the mantra of the Covenant about the Forerunners themselves can be easily drawn. For the Forerunners, the Precursors were evidently those who are believed to have come before and the ones who presumably delivered the Mantle to them. Why and how the Precursors departed is never explained, but some evidence points toward the Flood.
When fans in the past have considered the relationship of the Forerunners to humanity, they’ve always believed that there was some very close bond, but perhaps that is not so unique. Obviously the Forerunners chose humanity for a purpose, but their relationship to the Precursors looks very much like the Covenant’s relationship to the Forerunners in the 26th century.
Why is that?
The Mantle and the Covenant are two belief systems which appear to be foiled by falsehoods and misunderstanding. Even though the Mantle evidently generated sloth and weakness while the Covenant’s system bred strength and violence, both had the same goal: to follow in the footsteps of their predecessors. If this is the case, then it makes one wonder if this wasn’t the first time the Flood had visited our galaxy.
Although Didact is certain that they can eventually defeat the Flood, mentioning a history of measurably successful campaigns he’s had against the parasite, it is apparent that his emboldened intent is based on pride. Referring to the galaxy and universe lightly, as though the Forerunners are all-powerful is an act of sheer hubris.
An act which Librarian’s petulant retort fires back in his face.
And what about us, Didact? We’ve been irresistible and immovable for too long. Maybe it’s our turn to give.
Another dispensation of time which is not determined passes until Didact responds with what he believes is a solution:
We have the answer. We’ve built Mendicant Bias. It’s a contender-class [AI] unlike anything we’ve ever achieved.
And we’ve observed a pattern it can exploit. The parasite has formed a Compound Mind. When it reaches a certain mass, the Mind is able to recoil its disparate parts to create a [tactical shield]. This is a simple matter of mass preservation. The thing has no compunction about sacrificing parts of the whole. But when the core of the Mind is threatened, it reacts violently and quickly.
This is the only time we see it retract or slow its growth.
If we are to defeat it, the trick will be coordinating our forays against the [sprawling infection] while Mendicant Bias assaults the Mind’s core. So far, we’ve been hesitant to use certain weapons because of the damage they cause surviving populations and environments.
That protocol has been abandoned.
Mendicant Bias will draw the Mind into battle outside the line, dealing with local biomass and other parts as best he can. The scale of the problem is vast, but the strategy is sound. It will require patience, materiel and an investment of energy unlike anything we have ever considered.
It’s a dangerous plan that carries more risk than the Array, but I believe it can work. Even if we simply force it to retreat–to retract–that will at least give us some respite. Some time to muster more resources…
Some time to rescue you.
And finally, he reveals his true purpose…
Time.
He needs time to rescue Librarian, time for her to return safely home. Certainly he would like to defeat the Flood, to purge it from within their spiraling bands of stars and planets, but most of all, he wants to bring her home safely before the Array is fired. The arguments about mass genocide and the Mantle were reasonable for him to make, but Didact knew what he wrought when the rings were commissioned, as the Gravemind states in Halo 3. He knew their activation and firing was inevitable – but what he didn’t want was for Librarian to be in the path of devastation.
So what does he do?
Mendicant Bias is a contender-class AI construct developed for the implicit purpose of contacting, communicating and then attacking the parasite’s center, a Compound Mind known to us as the Gravemind. It is their final hope against the immediate activation of the Array and its work should purchase more time for Didact’s situation.
By coordinating a large-scale attack and incorporating an amount of firepower they’ve never used before, they plan on assaulting both the parasite abroad and the Gravemind’s core as it attempts to grow. This act should destroy or at the very least, push back the Flood, giving the Forerunner military room to consider other options and giving him time to reach her.
Librarian sees through to his intent and is biting to the last:
Are you insane? Would you risk every life in the galaxy for this transparently futile plan? Have you learned nothing in these last [300 years[?]]? The thing will laugh at your efforts!
Do not let your concern for my welfare commit you to this suicidal scheme!
And herein lies the gamble: Mendicant was to lead a fleet of 1,000 heavily-armed core ships into the center of the infection and lull the Gravemind into a false sense of security. When commanded by the Forerunners, the construct would attack the Mind and the rest of the military would in turn assault the extended parasite. The universal effect is the only way for the Flood to be brought into submission outside of sounding the Array.
The problem, of course, is that even if Mendicant gains access to the Gravemind, what would happen if it was destroyed and its fleet was taken hostage, contaminated and then used to find the Ark?
To be certain, this would risk everything. Not only would those within range of the Array be impacted, but if the parasite found its way back to the Ark, it would claim all of the remaining Forerunners and every sentient which was indexed and saved through the Conservation Measure. All hope would be lost and all of the work and effort that Librarian had invested would be for not.
Here we also discover that the Forerunners have been engaged in combat with the Flood for approximately 300 years. While this is important, it is less revealing than the precise words she chose to use:
Have you learned nothing in these last 300 years?
Not much has been said about the Forerunner’s average lifespan, but this line seems to indicate that they lived for hundreds of years. According to the Bestiarum, humanity has a truncated lifespan comparative to other sentient species which means that they live a considerably shorter timeframe than the Forerunners would normally expect. It is possible that these ancient beings lived to be hundreds if not a thousand years old, as indicated here that Didact and Librarian both may have personally experienced all 300 years of the great war.
In the above statement she demands that he launch the Array. No longer is it a petition of a colleague, it is now a threat against her own sacrifice. She does not intend to perish in vain.
Something is wrong! It’s moving away! At night I can see it – flitting shadows – black against the stars. Thousands of ships! Not spiraling outward but heading for the line. This is the tipping, Didact. It’s no longer feeding.
It’s coming for you.
Other terminal text [T4-10] suggests that the above message was sent approximately 43 human years after Mendicant Bias was first dispatched from the Ark. If you’ve read the previous article, you know already what has happened. Mendicant has fallen to rampancy and is leading the Gravemind and nearly five million parasite-controlled ships back to the Ark.