A coming-of-age story in the twenty-sixth century set 31 years before the events of Halo 4, Forward Unto Dawn follows Thomas Lasky, a cadet at a military training academy who is unsure of his future within the military but feels pressured to follow in the footsteps of his mother and brother. The academy is attacked by the Covenant, a religious alliance of aliens. Lasky and his surviving squad mates are rescued by the Master Chief and must escape the planet.