Draco III rebellion and death
"
It only takes one mistake, kid. You went a long time before you made it."
— Kojo "Romeo" Agu paying his respects at the Rookie's funeral
[20]
On
January 3, 2554,
[3] Alpha-Nine was deployed to
Draco III's capital city of
New Albany as part of the UNSC's response to
an uprising instigated by the
United Rebel Front. While the ODSTs were storming
Draco III's capitol building, they were caught in an ambush in the legislature chambers. Buck ordered the Rookie to flank the rebels while the rest of the team provided cover. However, he was captured and beaten by the rebels, whose leader,
Captain Ingridson, subsequently held him hostage on a shielded presidential balcony.
[21] At the conclusion of a prolonged standoff,
Michael Crespo charged the balcony and attempted to force Ingridson to stand down. This prompted the rebel captain to execute the Rookie with a pistol shot to the head.
[4]
The UNSC won the ensuing firefight, with the remaining Insurrectionists killed or captured; Captain Ingridson was shot by
Taylor Miles instantly after she killed the Rookie.
[4] The Rookie was buried at sea in one of Draco III's oceans. Taylor Miles was shaken by his death and decided to retire, while Crespo continued to harbor a deep-seated guilt over his failure to save him.
[22] His death would serve as one point of motivation for the remnants of
Alpha-Nine to become
Spartan-IVs. While talking to Buck,
Jun-A266 mentioned that had he lived, the Rookie would have been offered the opportunity to become a Spartan alongside the rest of his team.