Infinity (level)

Infinity is a level in the Halo 4 campaign. This level was first seen at E3 2012

Synopsis
The level starts off with a cutscene of John-117 observing the UNSC Infinity lose control and crash in the jungle. He proceeds to fight his way through Promethean forces to reach a Forerunner structure, where he reunites with Lasky and the Spartan-IV Sarah Palmer. Along with a few marines, the Chief clears out a landing zone for a Pelican to extract them. He discovers the Covenant Remnant have allied themselves with the Prometheans. The Chief and a detachment of Spartan-IVs land near the Infinity, where they use a Scorpion and a Warthog to fight through Covenant forces, reaching the Infinity. John-117 then utilizes a Mantis to clear out Covenant and Promethean soldiers to reach the weapon controls for the Infinity. After clearing off several waves of Covenant Phantom dropships, he activates the weapons for the Infinity, firing at the Didact's Ship and causing him to retreat.

Transcript
{Custscene}

Scene opens on a jungle and pans down to Chief. Phantoms and Banshees fly overhead of the Chief's position.
 * Cortana: "Stay low; recon sortie heading this way."

''Camera changes angle to show the Didact is scanning the crashed Infinity. Several Covenant ships also converge upon the crashsite.'' {Gameplay}
 * Cortana: "The ship looks intact."
 * John-117: "Something tells me that's only because the Didact wanted it that way."
 * Lasky: "This is Lasky to UNSC Infinity. We're up to our necks in bad guys down here. Does anyone read?"
 * John-117: "This is Sierra 117 of the . We're on station, ready to assist."
 * Lasky: "Negative copy, sounded like you said 'Forward Unto Dawn'? Come again-"
 * Cortana: "Signal's bouncing in and out; I can't clean it up."
 * John-117: "Light up their friend-or-foe tags; we're gonna need something to zero in on."

Four Banshees and three Phantoms fly toward Infinity Chief makes his way down through the fog-laden jungle. ''John finds a clearing with several Promethean Knights, but they teleport away before engaging. A squad of dead marines is left in their wake.'' John examines the IFF tag. John listens to the recording from the marine's recorder chip. ''The transmission falls silent after some gunfire. John-117 then continues to trudge through the jungle, but stumbles upon some Crawlers and Knights. The Chief eliminates any hostiles in his way before coming to a small ledge where a Knight has just stabbed a Marine with it's blade arm. The Marine detonates a grenade as he dies, killing the Knight.'' ''John examines the object in question. Upon activating it, Cortana chimes in.'' ''Nearly a dozen enemies are lit up on the Chief's HUD. John clears the area and proceeds.'' ''John makes his way forward and finds a dead marine with his IFF tag. John examines the IFF tag and a transmission from Lasky and company is played back.'' Transmission ends. John continues through the jungle, encountering resistance as he goes. ''After clearing a group of Crawlers and ascending some convenient tree limbs, John reaches a small Forerunner structure with a sealed door. The IFF tag is on the ground along with crates of UNSC equipment and weapons.'' John examines the IFF tag and a transmission from Lasky and company is played back. Transmission ends.
 * Cortana: "I'm seeing multiple IFF tags below the tree line. Painting the closest one on your HUD."
 * Andrew Del Rio : "Infinity to Commander Lasky. We've lost contact with your Pelicans! Report in!"
 * John-117: "They must not have received his distress call."
 * John-117: "Lasky?"
 * Cortana: "One of them's an officer. Check his IFF tag."
 * Cortana: "The tag I.D.s him as Jimenez, Paolo J."
 * John-117: "Then Lasky's still out there somewhere."
 * Marine (recording): "I mean c'mon Sarge. Who sends recon downrange in the middle of a firefight?"
 * Marine (recording): "What was that?"
 * Marine (recording): "Tangos on our six!"
 * Marine (recording): "Now they're be-AAAA!"
 * Cortana: "Hold up, what was that he dropped on the ground over there?"
 * Cortana: "This is what they've been using to see through the fog."
 * Cortana: "We've got another IFF on the far side of this thicket."
 * Lasky (recording): "We should get eyes out there looking for the others."
 * Palmer (recording): "Peters, you heard Commander Lasky."
 * CPO Peters (recording): "CFB, ma'am. Bulldogs! On me! We're going for a walk."
 * Cortana: "Lasky's been through here, recently by the timestamp."
 * Cortana: "I've got another IFF tag, but as far as I can tell we're moving into a choke point. This may end up as a dead end."
 * Cortana: "That's the friend-or-foe tag, but where's whoever it belongs to?"
 * Marine (recording): "XO. We got it!"
 * Palmer (recording): "MOVE! MOVE! MOVE!"
 * Marine (recording): "Light's green!"
 * Marine (recording): "C'mon. Crank it!"
 * Lasky (recording): "Palmer, get your folks inside!"
 * Palmer (recording): "Yes sir! FOURS! Go!"

Suddenly, several IFF signals appear on Chief's HUD; just on the other side of the door. {Cutscene}
 * Cortana: "Multiple I.D.s. Chief, they're friendlies!"

''The door to the small Forerunner structure opens and John-117 is revealed to the marines that barricaded themselves inside. Three Spartan-IVs emerge and survey the area. Lasky approaches John.'' Lasky extends a hand to the Chief, and they shake hands. Camera focuses upon an unmasked Commander Palmer giving orders to the Spartan-IVs. ''Palmer saunters over to the Chief with a look disbelief and amusement. She levels him up.'' ''A radio transmission cuts John and Palmer's encounter short. John, Lasky and Palmer divert their attention to the marine with the operable radio.'' The door closes and the trio, along with the rest of the Spartan-IVs gather around the radio. ''Del Rio signs off. Lasky is visibly dismayed by the situation and Del Rio's lack of support.'' Palmer approaches Lasky. ''Lasky silently agrees, but he quickly formulates a plan. Lasky approaches John-117.'' {Gameplay}
 * Lasky: "Afraid we're gonna have to give you an IOU on that welcome home party."
 * Lasky: "Tom Lasky, First Officer of the Infinity. Never though I'd see you again."
 * Palmer: "Seal 'er up."
 * Palmer: "I thought you'd be taller."
 * Del Rio: "…ground forces are ordered to return to Infinity immediately."
 * Marine: "Commander! Radio's hot!"
 * Del Rio: "…respond to Comm… on what frequency? What frequency, dammit!"
 * Lasky: "Infinity, this is Commander Lasky. Pelican recon teams are down. Repeat. All birds are down. We've got numerous causalities and require immediate assistance. Over."
 * Del Rio: "Finally… Did you get the coordinates to that gravity well."
 * Lasky: "Affirmative, sir. But we're gonna need a bus out of here."
 * Del Rio: "Make it happen!"
 * Cortana: "You were sent on a scouting run in the middle of an attack on the ship?"
 * Lasky: "The Captain thought Infinity could provide us cover and hold off the attack at the same time."
 * Palmer: "Sir, we'll never get the wounded back to the ship on foot."
 * Lasky: "I don't know if it's too soon to ask you for a favor but we're going to run out of breathing room here real quick. I don't suppose you're any good at clearing LZs?"
 * John-117: "On occasion. I'll send out an all-clear once the area's secured.

The Chief, and some marines emerge from the small Forerunner structure. ''Enemies are immediately upon John and the marines, but the group makes quick work of the hostiles. John passes a UNSC radio on the ground. Marines, gunfire and screaming can be heard through the transmission.'' John and the marines press forward. ''John finds the marines engaged with a large group of Promethean hostiles. Upon approaching many of the marines will comment in disbelief.'' Crawlers, Watchers and Knights now block the passage between the marines and the path to the LZ. ''John-117 and the marines clear the area and approach a sealed door. UNSC turrets and weapons are scattered along the hilltop.'' Chief removes Cortana and inserts her into the pedestal near the entrance. John-117 and the marines repel a wave or two of Prometheans. Eventually all the enemies are cleared. ''John retrieves Cortana from the interface. The door opens into a cave. As John pushes through, there is distortion in his HUD.'' ''John proceeds down the cave system. Suddenly, a Knight appears at the opening on the far end of the tunnel. The Knight appears to be ordering a small group of Unggoy.'' Chief enters the clearing and begins eliminating both Promethean and Covenant enemies. A Covenant Phantom sends in more troops and Knights teleport to the assault. John eventually clears the LZ. An emergency transmission from Infinity interrupts. As the Chief boards the Pelican, scene fades to black. ''Gameplay continues as the Pelican drops John-117 at the rally point. A large group of marines are pushing towards Infinity. John is spearheading the effort.'' ''The path to Infinity consists of large expanses under the jungle canopy. A Scorpion tank is available to make the final push.'' John-117 and fellow Spartans make their way to the hanger, encountering resistance from Wraiths, Ghosts and dug-in Covenant infantry. ''John navigates the vehicle onto a lift and enters the hanger bay. Covenant forces have overrun the area.'' ''Chief clears the remaining Covenant from the hanger. Captain Del Rio contacts the Chief via radio.'' John-117 exits the hanger and proceeds to activate and enter the Mantis. ''John activates the weapons systems and destroys the door to the maintainance causeway. Promethean and Covenant forces line the corridor, but John-117 pushes through.'' Several Promethean Knights and Unggoy equipped with Fuel Rod Cannons block the path between the Chief and the lift at the end of the causeway. John-117 terminates all hostiles and boards the lift. ''John exits the lift in the Mantis. A short hallway opens to the outer hull upon which the MAC cannons are currently inoperable. Three Covenant jamming devices along with Covenant defenses patrol the outer hull. In the distance, several Covenant CCS-class battlecruisers and the Didact's satellite survey the Infinity crashsite.'' Chief destroys the first jammer. The second jammer is destroyed. John manages to disable all three jammers and the AA guns begin to fire upon the Covenant. More Covenant forces are deployed by incoming Phantoms, and Banshess provide Covenant air support. John-117 secures the outer hull and the Infinity's defenses begins to repel the Covenant cruisers. John manually activates the MAC cannon firing sequence. The combined fire draws the Didact's satellite away from the Infinity. {Cutscene}
 * Cortana: "A topographical scan of the area shows a break in the foliage NORTH of here. Should be big enough to bring in a dropship for evac."
 * Marine: "Pull back! The ship is being overrun!"
 * Marine: "This ship's as big as a city. How's it being overrun?"
 * Lasky: "Chief, it's Lasky. We're getting reports of friendlies pinned down near your position. Can you assist?
 * Cortana: "Commander, this is Cortana. We're on our way."
 * Marine: "I though he was dead."
 * Marine: "Holy mother of…"
 * Marine: "Who's that?
 * Marine: "What. The. What?"
 * Cortana: "Turrets! Find some cover!"
 * Cortana: "The marines got trapped trying to get through these doors. Look for an interface."
 * Cortana: "These doors open into a cave system with space large enough for an LZ. Hold them off long enough for me to open the doors!"
 * John-117: "Cortana? How close are we?"
 * Cortana (rampant): "YOU DO YOUR JOB AND I'LL DO MINE, OK?"
 * Cortana: "Got it! Passageway's unlocked. Come and get me!""
 * Cortana: "I'm sorry about back there. That hatch's security was more difficult than I expected."
 * John-117: "It's alright."
 * Cortana (distorted): "It's not alright. Nothing about it is alright."
 * Cortana: "Knight! Wait, what's he doing?"
 * John-117: "Covenant?"
 * Cortana: "They're working with the Prometheans?"
 * Cortana: "I'm shocked how quickly the Didact has unified these Covenant!"
 * Cortana: "Knights!"
 * Cortana: "Cortana to Lasky. LZ is secured."
 * Lasky: "Roger that Cortana. I'll get you the coordinates for the-"
 * Del Rio: "Mayday, mayday. Code Red! Hostile elements attempting to gain entrance to the Infinity bridge."
 * Officer: "They're outside the hatch!"
 * Officer: "Doors breached! Doors breached!"
 * Del Rio: "All units return to Infinity immediately. That's an order!"
 * Lasky: "Chief, I'm redirecting the Spartan-IVs to rally point Alpha Sierra Foxtrot. Until we catch up, you have tactical command of the forward assault force! Rendezvous with those men and take back that ship!"
 * John-117: "Yes, sir."
 * Lasky: "Good luck Chief. Lasky out."
 * Pilot: "This is Pelican Five Nine Five. We have the Chief onboard and are outbound for rally point Alpha Sierra Foxtrot.
 * Cortana: "Weapons free, Chief! Let 'em have it!"
 * Cortana: "We're good to go Chief. Let's show these Spartans how it's done."
 * Spartan: "Ground teams be advised. John-117 is on the ground. Advancing."
 * Lasky: "117, Lasky. We're touching down just north of your position. Proceed to starboard hanger 2-19, and we'll link up with you there."
 * Cortana: "Commander, the hanger bay doors are sealed tight."
 * Lasky: "Roger, Cortana. We'll find a way inside and free up one of the mooring platforms. XO out."
 * Lasky: "Secure the bay and I'll release the lockdown into the ship."
 * System: "ALERT. HULL BREACH ON DECKS 13 SECTOR 5, DECK 25 SECTOR 12, DECK 131 SECTOR 7, DECK 270, DECK 895."
 * Del Rio: "John-117, this is Captain Del Rio. Lasky just radioed. Chief, you picked a helluva time to rejoin us."
 * John-117: "Sir, what's our status?"
 * Del Rio: "That satellite took down the ship's defenses and is extracting data from the ship's mainframes as we speak."
 * John-117: "Can we break the connection?"
 * Del Rio: "Main point of contact's on the ship's upper hull. The fastest route is through the maintenance causeway. There's a Mantis docked inside the door. Take it. You'll need the extra firepower."
 * System: "Warning: Operation of Mantis Armored Defense System prohibited without prior approval."
 * Cortana: "The hatch to the maintainance causeway is jammed. Let's do something about it."
 * System: "CONDITION RED. ALL PERSONNEL TO EMERGENCY STATIONS. CONDITION RED. ALL PERSONNEL TO EMERGENCY STATIONS.
 * Cortana: "The Captain said the Didact's linked from the outer deck. That's where we want to be."
 * System: "WARNING - UNSC INFINITY HAS DESCENDED BELOW MINIMUM SAFE ALTITUDE. INTERNAL ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE UNSTABLE."
 * System: "ATTENTION, MASS DEPLOYMENT BAY VESSELS. EMERGENCY MOORING PROCEDURE INITIATED. BAY DOORS WILL NOT RESPOND TO TRAFFIC CONTROL REQUESTS. RESPONSE CREWS ARE EN ROUTE. PLEASE AVOID MDB F-959 UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE."
 * Lasky: "Chief, it's Lasky Come in!"
 * John-117: "Go, Commander."
 * Lasky: "We've identified several Covenant jamming devices on the outer hull."
 * Cortana: "That might be how they're blocking the Infinity's defenses."
 * Lasky: "Exactly what we were thinking. Neutralize them so we can get our guns back online and show that satellite we're more than just a big paperweight."
 * Cortana: "We're on it, Commander. Cortana out."
 * Cortana: "I see the jammers. Three of them. Shoot them down."
 * Cortana: "First jammer disabled!"
 * Cortana: "That's two!"
 * Cortana: "That's it. Jammers nuetralized."
 * Del Rio: "Del Rio to John-117. The rate that thing's searching our systems just doubled! I think it knows what you're up to."
 * Cortana: "The Didact's not letting go without a fight. Hold them off! Just a few more minutes."
 * Cortana: "That's how it's done."
 * Del Rio: "Captain Del Rio to Sierra 117. The MAC network's reading operational but our EM relays are malfunctioning. You'll have to initiate the link manually."
 * Cortana: "That's it. MAC controls restored!"
 * Del Rio: "Forward MAC batteries, get that damn orb away from my ship. All cannons. Fire at will."
 * Cortana: "It's working. The Didact's retreating!"
 * Del Rio: "Del Rio to Infinity All Hands. We are Condition Yellow. Stand down. Section heads report in, begin damage assessment."

''Infinity is seen leaving Requiem's surface. Scene transitions to Captain Andrew Del Rio on the bridge with John-117, Cortana and Lasky.'' A hologram depicting a Promethean Knight is displayed on the holodeck. Lasky displays a holographic image of one of the remaining Halo rings and a base constructed in the asteroid field. A wealth of concentrically-aligned Forerunner glyphs are display holographically. Palmer cuts-in and hands a datapad to Del Rio. Del Rio is clearly off-put by the Chief's questioning tone. ''Del Rio walks away. Chief and Cortana simply stare at each other in silence, perhaps quietly condemning their current predicament. Scene fades to black.''
 * Del Rio: "What I want to know, people, is: Where the hell did those things come from?"
 * Cortana: "It's possible that they're native to Requiem... or whatever counts as native for a Forerunner AI.
 * Del Rio: "We've never seen this type of offensive reaction from any of the other installations."
 * John-117: "Other installations?"
 * Del Rio: "Mr. Lasky."
 * Lasky: "Infinity's mission has been to locate the remaining Halo rings, and establish permanent bases to study them for decommission. We've got locations up-and-running around Installations 5 and 3, but lately they've run into some setbacks."
 * Del Rio: "A science team got zapped excavating a Forerunner artifact. This sensor data is all that was left."
 * Cortana: "Interesting... These symbols are a derivation of the Forerunner glyph system.
 * Del Rio: "And our geeks managed to pull some coordinates. I'll give you three guesses where it led."
 * Palmer: "Sir, Gypsy Company is prepped and ready to roll, on your orders."
 * Del Rio: "Thank you, Palmer. Mr. Lasky, you take point. I want boots on the ground in sixty."
 * John-117: "Captain?"
 * Del Rio: "This is a first contact scenario, John-117. Priority is to free Infinity from Requiem's gravity well and file a threat assessment back at FLEETCOM."
 * Cortana: "You mean we're leaving?"
 * John-117: "Sir. Infinity drove the Didact back. He's vulnerable."
 * Del Rio: "He isn't the only one. You know I'd think you, of all people, would appreciate the benefit of living to fight another day."

Trivia

 * The Covenant Remnant and the Prometheans work together for the first time in the game on this level.
 * It is odd that the E3 2012 gameplay demo made this level seem like the first encounter with Prometheans despite the demo at the European Gaming Expo showing Chief fighting them in the previous level.
 * 343 may just have thought it was easier to introduce the Infinity and the Prometheans in the same level just for the demo.
 * If one were to stay and watch the Phantoms and Banshees in the beginning, they would see the group of seven stop in front of a hill.
 * This is the first Campaign level in which the Mantis is found.
 * This mission marks the first time John-117 has met another SPARTAN in five years and is the first in any Halo game
 * The SPARTAN-IVs in this level seem to respect John-117 more than normal Marines.
 * There are several buttons around the inside of the Infinity that upon activation, a voice will notify the reason why the player cannot enter. One of these responses includes "Access denied. Huragok population reserves accepts absolutely no personnal during category three emergency states and higher", implying that the UNSC has adopted Huragok into its ships for repair work and possibly even technology advancement.
 * At the beginning when you find the last of the IFF tags, if you use Promethean Vision you will see behind the sealed door 4 Spartan-IVs.