Cousin: i also watched forward unto dawn and i thot it was amazing the cadet skool was such a good idea

Me: I love Forward Unto Dawn so much. It does a good job of bringing the Halo universe into the real world. Dude the first time the bodies started falling from the space tether I got crazy chills. It was damn eerie.

Cousin: Haha it was i didn't realize how much story plot they'd put into it and was lasky ever a part of the game?

Me: Yeah he's one of the main characters in Halo 4.

Cousin: really?

Me: What because you think I'm lying to you? :P Haha, yeah. He becomes the captain of the Infinity.

Cousin: Thats really cool does it mension his past and is he a spartan?

Me: He has two quick moments with the Chief. One where he says "never thought I'd see you again" and another at the end of the game where he mentions the academy. He doesn't become a Spartan, but he is one of the lat non-corrupt characters in a quickly decaying UNSC (the humans are actually slowly becoming the bad guys in the new saga, it's really interesting). He's a great character.

Cousin: That's so cool! And how old are the spartans there was a question in the end of the movie and i just had 2 know

Me: 15. Only a little younger than Lasky.

Cousin: younger than lasky? Omg!

Me: Yep. The augmentations make their bodies appear older and more muscular. And the armor of course makes them much taller. But the point is basically far too young for what they've already been put through. And it's only the beginning of the war. Those that survive go for another 30 years at least. The current Halo storyline takes place 32 years after Forward Unto Dawn

Cousin: Wow how old is master cheif in forward unto dawn is it ever said?

Me: 15. They were all abducted at roughly the same age. 6, ust like the Spartans of Greece.

Cousin: Omg thats so crazy! and how does his voice sound like that and do they make the abduction of the little kids look good or horrifying cuz that sound pretty grim

Me: They replace the kids with flash clones, who die from medical reasons. The families mourn their losses then move on thinking their kids are dead. So far only one parents has ever suspected their kid was abducted, but I don't know what happens with that yet as it's a currently ongoing plotline. But the father ends up leading a rebellion against the UNSC becaue of it, even after the war ends. Chief's voice is like that partially from the augmentations and partially from his natural voice, at least in my head. It's never been explicitly stated officially.

Cousin: Wow is that what the whole insurrectionist thing is about? and do they make the UNSC look bad when the talk about abducting the children?

Me: Yeah. There's kind of two insurrections. One before the war with the Covenant and one after. Before the war, the human colonies further away from Earth wanted to rule themselves, and that's essentially what the war was about. After the war the Spartan program was revealed (at least Master Chief's class of Spartan IIs), refueling a lot of hate that those colonies still had for the Earth government. It was a catalyst for the same anger. If you're at all interested in this stuff you should read The Fall of Reach. It explains all the backstory. It's a super quick and easy read, but there's a lot in it. I could loan you a copy.

Cousin: I'd be really into reading it and yeah thats a very intricate story i didnt realize it was like that

Me: There's lots of cool stuff going on in the Halo universe that you only get mentions of in the games but that get explored really deeply in the novels. It's a great scifi series. One of the best contemporary ones out there, exploring lots of cool ideas. Way better than a lot of the current scifi films. I'll bring a copy out for you next time I visit.

Apologies, because I may have unintentionally corrected some of his spelling as I was typing this. :P We went on to talk about some other games, but I just got back from visiting him tonight and dropping off the book. :P