This episode picks up a short while after the attack on Eridanus. We see John-117 and the other Spartans tending to Kai after all her injuries during the Covenant Attack. John gets flashes from his childhood with Dr. Halsey as the Spartan Squad struggles to get Kai properly sedated so she can't injure herself further. Cortana is concerned for John, stating the contact with the larger artifact has adversely affected him. Miranda is over Makee with her recorder as mutters in the Covenant language, Sangheili. Everyone wants to figure out a new plan, and John wants to figure out how to recover the larger Keystone Artifact.

Let's talk about John-117, Master Chief. Things are decidedly at a head between John and Dr. Halsey. Dr Halsey gives up a lot of information this time. She explained how only children met the criteria that she had. Or at least had the best chance of surviving the training and all the modifications that a Spartan would need to go through. He knows what happened with the Flash Clone he was replaced with. He does make plans, and can execute them well. There was plenty done showing what he’s learned, like when he trapped Dr. Halsey in the lab just before triggering the decontamination protocol as a threat. He had to test Cortana and see what she could do. With that limit established, he had a better idea of what he had to worry about regarding her. 

There was one thing that kept coming with John. He is lucky. This is something that carries over, at least from the comics, and the games. Sometimes, that is what you will need to get something in life. Luck can carry the day better than any plan can. Never something to count on, but always something good to have in your corner. It’s the best thing after strength and wits to get out of a pinch.

Parangosky is finding herself in a more precarious position. The failure of 2 Spartans is something that will have the higher-ups calling for someone to take the fall. But throughout the episode, we see her actively use her own political clout to maneuver a few key details: Miranda Keyes takes over the Spartan program, and Halsey is sent to a new remote lab. The proverbial scapegoat is found and Parangosky gets more leverage over the Spartans and the Xenology research.

Kai-125 had a rough episode having to recover from the Covenant assault. She is definitely working on processing everything from that fight. The good news is she and John are developing something more of a connection. But the other thing is that she is now experiencing more isolation from the other 2 Spartans. They remain ever focused on their tasks, and much more taciturn than any person. Kai needs to reorient herself and figure out how to reintegrate with her unit with her more human state of being. She has some work to do there

Miranda has seen a big reveal for her parents. That they were both part the plan for the “recruitment” of the “volunteers” for the Spartan program. She understands that both of them were integral to this recruitment. This is something that can drive a wedge between her and her father. A vast gap already exist between her and her mother. No way to come back from that without Dr. Halsey making some vast changes.

Dr. Halsey has a lot happened to her. While she hasn’t said she used illegal cloning, it could have been off-screen. She is the scapegoat for everything that’s happened with the Spartans. She doesn’t stand for this fall from grace. More than that, she has already taken steps to ensure she has access to what her daughter has. That is the only thing that is something for getting “a good look” with that strange contact. She also has Cortana’s aid and the vast amount of knowledge that she has. Also, just knowing that the Silver Timeline can still follow the game timeline and Reach could fall. Until it happens, it isn’t a reality, merely a possibility.

Makee, this someone I do like. Her choosing to only speak with Master Chief, John, is a good starting point. This is also the episode where we FINALLY hear her name. It took a very long time. While she is giving information, for now, a lot of doubt is about her. Makee tells John about the cost of being able to interact with the Keystones. Those artifacts can, apparently, kill someone using them. She does get close to revealing herself, giving up more than she meant to. Talking about the Prophets and their advice does give away more than she might intend. She is definitely playing a strong hand. Almost no patience and that could work against her. Or just being over-eager to show her worth to Master Chief.

Can make plenty of storm metaphors here with what happened around the occurrence with the Keystone. More importantly, it led to the first reveal of the Halo itself. Seeing the picturesque landscape does offer a fairly sharp contrast from everything else we’ve seen. That is something different from everywhere else we’ve been for this series.

Solace it to take comfort or find consolation during a time of distress or sadness. Sometimes it is worth looking into the title, and after the last one with it playing in some, this one takes that up a notch. The fallout from the attack on the excavation is immediate and hard to miss. It serves well enough for the episode. Even in failure, Dr. Halsey finds a way inside with, likely, her daughter's retinal scan. As well as making the connection between Makee and John. That moment at the end of the episode goes plenty far. Plenty more is established, but we were finally just focused on the Master Chief and the artifacts. While the other UNSC storylines are important, the Artifacts are the big one. We’ll see where all this goes, and find out what can happen to Reach.