Once the stabilization of the Guardian Custode was complete, Axel had begun the process of establishing a neural link with it, allowing Logos to guide him through the process. It was a strange sensation, feeling his thoughts meld with those of an ancient Forerunner machine, but he pushed through the discomfort and forged the connection. He felt a surge of energy, but also something new, something like a consciousness, but not quite. It was as if he were stepping into a whole new realm.
As Axel immersed himself in the neural link, he witnessed the vast capabilities and knowledge that the Guardian Custode held. It was a sensation so overpowering that without his enhancements, it could easily have left him unconscious. However, he held strong and started to imprint his will onto the machine.
From the outside, one might have thought Axel was merely staring at the device, lost in thought. But inside his mind, he was shaping commands and guiding the machine by mere thought. He imagined the Guardian Custode bolstering their defenses, supporting their fleets and aiding in their battles against the Covenant.
Once he was confident that his directives had been imprinted successfully, Axel withdrew himself from the neural link. As he opened his eyes, he could see Catherine and Logos watching him carefully.
"Is everything okay?" Catherine asked.
"I think so," Axel replied, sounding as though he had just woken from a deep sleep. "I've given it its initial directives."
At that moment, they watched as the entire room began to subtly vibrate. The glow from the Guardian Custode intensified, and the intricate patterns of light shined brighter. They were not merely patterns now but seemed to be a form of communication or a code, dictating the processes initiated by Axel's command.
"Remarkable," murmured Logos, his glowing form flickering in response to the powerful energy from the Custode.
Suddenly, a low rumble echoed throughout the facility as if responding to the programming set by Axel. The ancient structure seemed to be awakening for the first time in eons. Lights began to illuminate the room, originating from the walls revealing more Forerunner glyphs that started to glow with a soft blue hue.
A holographic display activated in front of Axel, showing an intricate network of star systems. A faint line of light traced its way across the display, marking a path from their current location outwards into unknown territories.
"The Custode is aligning itself with our star map," Catherine observed, her fingers tracing the holographic lines as they moved. "It's integrating with our systems."
Overwhelmed by what was happening around them, Axel could not help but marvel at the technology that they had awakened. The Guardian Custode would bring about new technology that they could research and improve the defenses of the colonies.
Slowly, he turned to Catherine and said, "The more we discover about the forerunners, the more shocked we become about just how advanced they were."
"Indeed," Catherine agreed, her eyes still fixed on the holographic display. "It's like a key to a whole new world."
Logos floated over to join them; his gaze drawn to the same holographic display. "In truth, the Forerunners were architects of awe-inspiring marvels. Their mastery of slipspace technology, their manipulation of biological life, their feats of engineering... they achieved wonders beyond the reach of most civilizations. The Guardian Custode is but a small fraction of their power."
"And we will learn all of these technologies and secrets as inheritors of the mantle" Stated Axel. Catherine nodded and leaned on his shoulder excited for what the future held. Her knowledge of Forerunner technology had been transcended thanks to the discovery of the Halo Installations, Shield Worlds, and the Ark.
Moments later the Guardian Custode had finished integrating with the systems and had become fully active. Its massive frame rose into the sky casting a staggering shadow over the entire area.
From his connection with the Guardian Custode, Axel learned that the Guardians had the authority to plant assembler vats on the worlds they monitored, which would eventually grow and expand to staging areas and factories for the lesser Sentinels and weapon-ships that served them.
Weapon-ships were small autonomous combat craft used by the Forerunners as scouts, escorts, or shields. In battle they are deployed en masse and are similar to the UNSC VTOL gunships.
As the Guardian Custode rose into the sky to carry out its command directive, Axel made sure to add the Guardian Custode as a friendly entity and inform all UNSC Fleet Admirals of this new asset to cause any trouble as it starts deploying to the outer colonies.
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4 Months later June 27th 2546
The UNSC was now ready for a full-scale invasion into Covenant space. However, within the borders of the once mighty Covenant Empire, the Hierarchs plans had gone into play. The High Prophet of Truth had arranged a meeting between high ranking Sangheili leaders alongside himself and the High Prophet of Mercy.
During the meeting, the Jiralhanae under the orders of the High Prophet of Truth had stormed the meeting killing all the Sangheili leaders, Honor guards, and the High Prophet of Mercy who was the oldest of the High Prophets. After the massacre was over, Truth blamed the Sangheili for killing Mercy and called for their entire race to be exterminated and used this chance to replace the Sangheili with the Jiralhanae.
However, the Sangheili refused to accept this and had rallied their own fleets and followers to resist this extermination. At the same time Omni and Cortana had released the information into the Covenant systems that revealed how humanity are the inheritors chosen by the Forerunners and how the High Prophets were the ones who manipulated the other species into believing that they were heretics.
Specifically, it showcased video footage of Axel and other humans interacting with the Forerunner technology, something that the Covenant could not do. When referencing Axel, the video also mentioned the word 'Reclaimer' as guilty spark and other Forerunner AI recognized Axel as the power behind humanity's rise as inheritors.
With the release of this information, a schism in the once unified Covenant was formed. Species after species chose their side, with some staying faithful to the High Prophets, while others aligned themselves with the Sangheili, believing in the truth that humanity was indeed the inheritors of the Forerunners.
War waged between the Covenant separatists and the forces loyal to the Covenant. This combined with the impending invasion by the UHE would be the end of the Covenant Empire and be the first step towards the birth of a new Empire that would combine all the races into one Empire.