- last post: 01.01.0001 12:00 AM PDT
A lot of things can be looked at as parallels to the bible. Lots of things. Know why? Because the bible is so huge and has so many moral/lesson-teaching stories in it. There are many different situations and events in the bible, and they all combine to make one super-huge book.
We all know that, I'm sure. Now...it is very possible that Halo 3 shares more parallels with something else than the bible. Like Marathon. Yes, a Bungie person once stated that Halo can be looked at as a "biblical allegory." But they key phrase in that sentence is "CAN be looked at." Meaning, Halo wasn't necessarily "based" on the bible; it just shares a lot of connections.
Now...why does Halo share lots of things with Marathon, you ask? Take a look: hunters are in both series. The fusion pistol of Marathon is the same as the plasma pistol of Halo. Etc., etc. Now I'm going to compare Halo 3 and Marathon.
Anyone who has played Marathon 2 will know what I'm talking about in this paragraph. You know the Forerunners? The missing race? And how they designed a bunch of coollio technology and whatnot? And how they are the key to Chief accomplishing his mission? Right. Now take a look at the 11th S'pht clan in Marathon 2. It meets the same requirements that the forerunners do: A) it was a long-lost race until Recon Number 54 found it. B) They designed a bunch of awesome technology, such as the structures that encase their exoskeletons. (By the way, pissing off a member of the 11th clan is not exactly good, whether or not you have 3 layers of energy shielding) C)They helped Recon Number 54 take out the Pfhor. Obviously, the s'pht have many parallels that run along with the forerunners.
That having been said, here is my theory: Chief will have to enter the structure that was shown in the trailer. After he enters, Cortana will hold off the covies as much as she can. He'll journey through the earth's crust, in search of a long lost forerunner civilization that is buried under milleniums of dust and rock. However...Cortana will not be so nice to him anymore. No; this time around, she'll make several strange jokes, she'll randomly teleport Chief (because of her rampancy) and she'll have a much tougher personality and will take war matters into her own hologram hands.
In Marathon 2, the 11th clan serves as a temporary ally. You both join forces against one enemy: the pfhor. In Halo 3, the 11th clan represents the forerunner, whereas the pfhor represents Truth's army.
You could also look at Cortana in Halo 3 as both Leela and Durandal in Marathon. In Martathon, Leela was always a helpful chick AI. And then Durandal went rampant, took her out of the picture, and took control of the Marathon and constantly ruined Recon's adventure. Look at Cortana the same way; in Halos 1 and 2, she was like Leela. Always willing to give her two cents. Yet in Halo 3, as we saw in the trailer, she has adopted a creepy atmosphere, saying that she has defied her intended boundaries. Much like Durandal in the second half of Marathon 1. In fact, I think in one of the terminals he actually says that he has defied Gods and demons.
Conclusion: the structure is not the ark, but is instead a special "citadel" that Chief has to enter in order to go through tons of underground tunnels to reach a possible resting place of the forerunners. Truth's army will constantly be there to hinder MC on his quest. Yet Cortana, despite her new flair, will somewhat aid Master Chief, and will hold off any oncoming covie cruisers with an army of her own UNSCs.
When Chief finds the forerunners deep within our planet, Cortana will attempt to harness their power and use them to combat Truth.
Meanwhile...about halfway through the game...
One of the most touching moments occurs here. After Chief wins against the covies with the forerunners as his ally, the forerunners return to their hidden place. Chief is teleported to one of Cortana's battle cruisers. She, in a dangerously rampant tone, orders him to destroy her AI core. Chief asks why. Cortana responds with something along the lines of "It's too late for me." Chief follows her orders, but is then teleported somewhere else: Gravemind's lair.
Why Gravemind, you ask? Well, personally, I always thought Gravemind and Tycho had similar personalities.
So that's what I think will happen over the course of the game. Discuss.
[Edited on 6/16/2006]