Thom-A293

Thom-A293 was a Spartan mentioned in the 2010 video game Halo: Reach, and shown in the trailer "Deliver Hope". He was the sixth member of the original Noble Team, before dying and getting replaced by SPARTAN-B312. His call sign was Noble Six. The Noble Six that many Halo players know actually adopted his name from filling the shoes of Thom-A293. 
Due to his lack of portrayal in the franchise, not much is known about the life of Thom-A293, as he only appeared in "Deliver Hope". 
==Biography==
Thom-A293 was present on the Battle of Fumirole, where Noble Team's task was to destroy the Covenant battlecruiser called the Sanctity of Purification. The battlefield was hectic, and Lieutenant Commander Kat-B320 was carrying a nuke. She was incapacitated by an explosive plasma bolt launched by the Fuel Rod Cannon of a Banshee, a flying vehicle. Thom then accompanies Kat, who is lying on the ground, and takes her nuke and uses his jetpack to fly up to the Covenant battlecruiser. He tried to escape before the bomb went off, but he ultimately failed, costing him his life. 
===Aftermath===
His death deeply affected both Kat as well as Noble Team leader Carter-A259. The UNSC asserted that Thom died because he acted too brash by attacking the cruiser without waiting for backup. However, his death may have been his own decision, and nobody was able to accept this. Right before Noble Team prepared for the Battle of Reach, Noble Six's replacement SPARTAN-B312 replaced Thom. Carter immediately started to have trust issues with the new Noble Six, telling him he was "stepping into some shoes the rest of the squad would rather leave unfilled". However, this new Noble Six was widely regarded as one of the strongest Spartans in the UNSC, with his "superiors" using him as their own private grim reaper. 
Eventually, Six's advanced skillset proved worthy for Noble Team. They still weren't strong enough to win the Battle of Reach, because it was instead called the Fall of Reach due to their defeat that resulted in the destruction of the planet Reach. However, Six did not die in vain, as he delivered the AI Cortana to the Pillar of Autumn, in hopes that the data she carried would be the key to the UNSC defeating the Covenant after his death. Because the new Noble Six was the very reason all of the events in the Halo trilogy and the following games Halo 4, Halo 5, and Halo: Infinite, Thom's death may have actually been for the better. This does not mean his death was shameful, it means that Thom is one of the most important posthumous characters in the Halo franchise. 
==Equipment==
As a SPARTAN-III, he wore gray Mark V MJOLNIR Armor, and was seen wearing a jetpack. He commonly used mid-long range weapons such as the Battle Rifle or DMR. 
==Trivia==
*His name is similar to Tom-B292, who was another third-generation Spartan.
*Thom's armor is very similar to SPARTAN-B312's armor, the main character of Halo: Reach and his successor. In fact, it is very difficult to tell them apart.
*Thom was originally meant to be in Halo: Reach, but was ultimately cut. Another Spartan, Rosenda-A344, was also cut from the final product, but unlike Thom, nearly nothing about her is known besides her name. 
*Thom is the name of a custom loadout in Halo: Reach.
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