unforum

[DigitalCowboy]

Some ideas of mine that cause me to lean toward Jan as SIII.

First, if Jan were part of the original Spartan project, then the Spartan-IIs would have begun with the abilities Jan is displaying before even undergoing any of the S-II upgrades. Which doesn't in my mind jive with the known information about the S-II children. They were chosen because they were exceptional, not because they were engineered. Jan is clearly something more than just an exceptional kid. Clue #1.

Clue #2: This one requires a little more spec. We know that Ackerson's SIII project didnt get the military funding he was hoping for. Instead his project got shelved. So if he continued working on the project, he would likely be operating outside his orders. If Jan is an S3 project child, her enhancements would have to stay hidden or else Ackerson's entire project might get the plug pulled. This may be the point of J^2 warning Jan that if they got exposed others would get hurt, people she doesn't even know exist. But he says she should have known on some unconscious level that this was true. [spec] She should have known that she wouldn't be the only kid like herself, with genetically enhanced attributes. Even if they never talked about it, it should have been obvious [/spec] So the danger of exposure is not only to them, but to all the others like her. The rest of the SIII subjects, wherever they are.

[GunsmithCat]

[DigitalCowboy]

[JackBurt0n]

J2 is more than likely NOT a spartan. He blends in too well. Also, I'm also along the lines that Jan is an S-III. Ackerson always calls the S-IIs freaks, and he hates Dr. Halsey because they have done so well. Ackerson more than likely made the S-IIIs to blend in well with other humans, and also he would have done it in secret as well.

I do think that J2 is an ONI spook, maybe a former ODST or something like that, but, it's damn near impossible that he's actually a SPARTAN-II himself. It just doesn't fit with the rest of the Halo universe.

-Jack

[Xanedon]

Not neccissarily. Judging by the fact that he is a "grey hole" I'm starting to think that Jan might be a rescued S-III test subject?

Would explain why many people would die if they found out about her. Who knows what kind of network would have to be in place to smuggle a kid out of one of those labs.

[GunsmithCat]

[Kyrin]

[walshicus]

I thought they were on Earth...

[chaotic_mind]

Why does Jan have to be genetically altered? In truth, a change to the genotype would only be detectable by looking at the DNA. I think SPARTAN-IIs, with no genetic alteration but physical augmentation, would easily be detecable through urine and blood samples, even without genetic changes. The SPARTANs have such odd physiology.

The test Jan ungoes may include DNA analysis, or just simple blood and urine tests. Still, there's nothing to suggest that she MUST be genetically altered. Only that she IS altered.

Luke P.

[chaotic_mind]

[Motoss]

Can you survive jumping off a three story building with no injuries? And she doesn't have any hidden technology on her either, because the first thing the cops would have done is searched her.


The SPARTAN-II's have ceramic grafted on to their bones. In a passage from The Fall of Reach, when Master Chief first puts on his MJOLNIR armor, his reactions are sped up so fast that when he salutes, he hurts his hand. If the ceramic wasn't there, his hand would have been pulverized. I see physical augmentation as the ONLY explanation for Jan's abilities.

[Reverend_Cobol]

I think it's import to note that most everythign Kyrin says is possible. The only superhuman thing Jan did is jump 3 stories. Everything else is well within the limits of a standard human with training and practice. I've seen stunment backflipping off of a balcony onto a lawn for practice. Falling 3 stories isn't even superhuman if you can land on a soft object or soft ground. I'm not saying it wouldn't hurt, but just that it can be done in the right circumstances. There's just not enough extra detail in the audio clip to decide one way or the other.

As for DNA modifications, police *probably* wouldn't begin a routine interrogation of a teenager by doing a DNA scan. It seems like a pretty big violation of privacy in the event you are innocent. Now if she was charged with something, then the standard array of testing would be applied and any genetic modifications easily recognized. This may be one reason J^2 is so upset about the mention of tests and burned down the station to destroy evidence. Not exactly a subtle means of achieving this goal, but hey, he was short on time.

[mrzarquon]

Re: rights

The MP's dropped off Jan at the police station to run the tests and do questioning, because the MP's didn't have access to the labs in the base (maybe because of the blackout). So standard civilian rights could not apply, remember its 500 years from now and we have no idea what the state of civil rights are in the world.

Also, I feel that Jan is a Spartan-III. Why? Ackerson creates an underground DNA project, with some high level military officials backing it, but just to hedge their bets in case the Spartan-II's fail. So they can't get any large amount of funding or training or secretive facilities that Hasley has access too. However, he can get a team of Black Ops troops to act as keepers for his projects, ie Jan. These are people who know that they're missions will be denied and if failed, no inquiry will be made about their disappearance. Which means J^2 can't call in any high level security hacker to fix the records at the police station, he has to do it himself.

At this point in the timeline either the project has failed, and they can't ethically terminate Jan, but they can't let her secret out in case they get incriminated, OR since Jan was born with her abilities she doesn't have to become a freak like the MC.

She is apparently quite the looker and there is also military use for having soldiers capable of doing COVERT ops with Spartan-II abilities, but without running around in a very noticeable suit of armor. (also the MC is like 8 feet tall or something).

I have a suspicion that if this plot does roll into Halo 2, Jan may be introduced in the game as a female character to play (there has been no mention of this anywhere in the Bungie work, but have you noticed how there has not been any new Singleplayer (ie game plot) movies since E3 of 2003). And we are getting a glimpse at her back story. It makes sense considering that the battle comes to earth, that the MC may not be the ONLY soldier that can stand a chance against the Covenant.

[Bobman]

[SecondSundodger]

So far to me it makes the most sense that Jan is a S-III. And it also seems that the reason Jan is living a fairly normal teenage life is either because

a). That is how Ackerson wants it done, so that his Spartans don't become "freaks" (as he considers Halsey's S-IIs)

b). The covert S-III project failed and now its participants must be returned to the real world and watched over by parental-like chaperones (J^2's duty for Jan)

c). Jan is one of many rescued S-III participants that are being covertly given a real life, and if it is discovered that she is genetically altered then her cover is blown, which possibly blows the cover for all of the rescued IIIs (which she does not know exist, because they were possibly rescued as infants or newborns); and if their cover is blown, there will be horrible repercussions.


Of these three hypotheses (none of which may be correct), I feel fairly confident to cross out "B". Inferring the military tendancies I would guess that if the Spartain-III project failed, the participants would just be killed and any other evidence terminated.

"A" seems plausible, that each participant is given to a foster parent for training from infancy and does not know of his/her brothers and sisters, just that s/he is being trained by his/her apparent father and lives an otherwise normal life (until a certain age, my guess being 18 - Jan is only 17, after all - at 18 may be when they are tapped for use, if need be).

Option "C" I like the best, personally. Not that it seems like the most likely solution, just that if it is the case, I find it the most entertaining or intriguing. I think it allows for many possibilities. Maybe the clone of John-117 that was delivered back to his parents in place of the original John discovered later in his life what happened to him, was angered by it, thought it wrong, and therefore made it his mission to prevent such things from happening again. Thus he discovers the S-III program and assists (or starts) a group that rescues the involuntary participants, with each rescuer adopting one "super child" and trying to give them the most normal life possible. If J^2 is John-117's clone and has adopted Jan, that would explain the speculation that he is the Master Chief (the explanation being that he's not the MC, but his clone, which is why J^2 sounds similar - sorta in the way that twins sound similar, but not exactly the same). As much as I like this theory though, I do accept that it seems odd that a normal human (which the clone of John-117 would be) could discover a top secret military program. But I imagine there are possible ways he could be made aware of it. I do, though, concede that it seems unlikely.

All this speculation is pretty sketchy, I know, but I think it holds up enough for some consideration. My biggest problem is I'm REALLY stretching for explanations for J^2. Maybe he's an extra S-II, maybe some other soldier that's just damn good at his job (but what's in his genes that would make it so that he, along with Jan, can't be caught without large repercussions? If he were Master Chief's clone, maybe the discovery of an identical DNA set to a soldier would mess things up and he'd be discovered, or maybe a DNA test would just reveal that he isn't James James, but John "were we ever given a last name"?).

Something that I haven't been able to find mentioned around here is that James James isn't necessarily Special Special Forces. That's merely what Officer Frank says he is. But remember, Durga tells us his identity is fictitious. So wouldn't that mean the background Frank believes to be J^2's is false? Meaning that if Frank thinks J^2 is SSF, that isn't necessarily true (though, not necessarily false, either).

I read through as much as I could in hopes of avoiding being too trouty. If I failed, and not even my own speculation is my own, well, oh well - it's my own time that I've wasted typing all this.