#swamppossum (aka stumpy)

[fionnaskyborn]

1,2, and 7 for a halo character of your choosing?

I'd like to thank you for giving me the freedom to choose from anyone in Halo, because that means I get to talk about my most niche choice when it comes to favorite characters, and that is Gage Yevgenny from the Dirt short story.

1: My first impression of them

Reading about Gage made me sad from the get-go because, hey, that's what happens when you first learn of someone's existence while they're drawing their last breaths. I found it painful and a bit funny that he decided to tell his entire life story to Rook in the middle of a crisis (and heartwarming, because Rook sat through all of it without cutting him off once, but this is about Gage), so I was eager to hear out what he had to say. I found the dirt talk to be quite relatable to a certain extent, which contributed to me liking him! So, TL;DR: I was sad because he was dying, and understanding of his reasons to leave Harvest.

2: When I think I truly started to like them (or dislike them, if you've sent me a character I don't like)

I re-read Dirt to answer this question properly, but if we're being honest here, I think I started liking him right off the bat, as soon as he was introduced. If I had to make a guess, I'd say this passage sealed the deal for me:

“I’ve been doing this so long, rook, that somewhere along the line I forgot what it was all about,” the Marine on the ground hissed into the reflective visor. “But what I want you to remember about me is that it has been a long journey between where I started and where I’m sitting now. I would apologize for the things I’ve done, but sorry’s passed me by, rook. You don’t see the things I’ve seen and come out sorry. But sometimes, if you’re not a complete monster, you come out realizing what’s important.”

7: A quote of them that you remember

There are two that I remember from the very end of the story with fondness so great I can't choose one over the other, so I hope two is alright!

“Years ago, I told my father it was ‘just dirt.’ But it’s not dirt. It’s where we live. It our dirt, dammit. And more importantly, it’s about who’s standing on that dirt. Those children. Your family. Your friends.”

"Promise me something, rook?” (“Anything.”) “You’ll fight the Covenant all the way. Even if they land on Earth. You’ll fight them even if you have to throw rocks at them."

The second quote isn't as, well, full of feeling for humanity as the first (both quotes are about caring for humanity, yes, but the sentiments are not the same), but there is so much resolve in that last line, and when you realize that it strengthened Rookie's resolve to fight against the Covenant - not to kill an enemy, but to protect a friend - it hits even harder.