[Authors notes - I developed this to answer some loose ends that will be affiliated with the Spartan IV program. I will probably add to it if any other questions arise.]

Property of Doctor Catherine Halsey.

Augmentations: The augmentations with humans had the... usual results. Roughly 75 percent of the humans that were part of the Spartan IV program have been too mutated by the augmentation process to continue with the Spartans, or simply died. The other 25 percent now have increased muscle strength, speed, endurance, and reflexes. However, the results with introducing the ponies to the augmentation process have been interesting, to say the least. The most notable side effect is the appearance of "cutie marks", a mark that appears on the flank of a pony when they discover their special talents. Cutie marks appeared on all of the ponies that haven't yet earned it. Other side effects that have shown up include increased horn length, increased wingspans and stronger magic in unicorns. Apart from that, the usual side effects of increased muscle strength, speed, endurance, and reflexes. Something else to note is that the success rate in the ponies higher than with humans. Roughly 45 percent of the ponies are still able to participate in the Spartan IV program. I have my team studying up on why this is.

Light Weight Carbine: The people at Armalite MG have really outdone themselves this time. When they heard about my plans for the new Spartan program, they quickly developed a variant of their M392 Designated Marksman Rifle, called the M392A1 Light Weight Carbine, or the LWC for short. Instead of just having only a single shot setting, the LWC also has a 3 round burst and a full auto setting. Also, instead of having an ACOG sight, the LWC has a holographic sight, even though this can be replaced by an ACOG sight or a red dot sight. Armalite MG has also developed an underbarrel 40mm grenade launcher to go with the LWC, which I plan to have attached to every two out of five LWC's. The LWC is also chambered with a 6.8mm caseless round, and has a 50 round and 100 round magazine. Ultimately, in my opinion, it puts many other firearms to shame. Of course, I'm sure my Spartans will go off using other firearms as well.

MJOLNIR Mark VII Power Suit Armor: After much deliberation, ONI decided to choose the new MJOLNIR Mark VII Power Suit Armor to use with the Spartan IV's, instead of the SPI Mark II Armor. The Mark VII comes with multiple variants, one for humans, and one for each type of pony. The Mark VII has made major improvements over the Mark VI, with a more efficient energy shield, cooling system, and a built in cloaking device, which is more effective than the SPI's cloaking device. It is also much easier to remove, and now has night vision and thermal vision as well as the usual helmet mounted flashlights. As for the variants, the human and earth pony variants put an emphasis on raw power, increasing strength of the wearer by 300 percent. With the Pegasus variant, it is built so it is more aerodynamic, with built in thruster packs to increase the speed of the wearer by ten fold. Finally, with the unicorn variant, it strengthens the unicorns magic roughly 150 percent. Though, what probably won ONI over is the fact the Mark VII costs half the price of the Mark V and the Mark VI. Greedy bastards.

Security: Due to the highly classified nature of the facility, and the possibility that the candidates may attempt to escape, I have employed a few platoons from the Armies 4th Special Forces Division, as well as a platoon of O.D.S.T.'s. I don't doubt these men can handle anything that tries to attack this facility, but I do have my doubts about them being able to handle my Spartans. Once they are properly trained, one Spartan will be worth at least two squads of troopers. I honestly hope I don't have to see the aftermath of an escape attempt.

Loadouts: It's been a good four years since I actually wrote in this thing. After years of training, the training of the Spartans is almost complete. In that time, they have each honed on specific skills and taking a liking to certain weapons, creating their own loadouts. Below is a few examples of such loudouts:

Spartan-132(Scootaloo):

Primary firearm - A M392A1 Light Weight Carbine, with a M301 40mm grenade launcher and a red dot sight attached.
Secondary firearm - A M6D Pistol.

Spartan-053(Sweetie Belle):

Primary firearm - Two M7 SMG's.
Secondary firearm - A M45E Tactical Shotgun.

Spartan-083(Applebloom):

Primary firearm - A M90A Close Assault Weapon System.
Secondary firearm - A M392A1 Light Weight Carbine, with a holographic sight and a grip attached.

Spartan-231(Surprise):

Primary firearm - A BR55HR SR Battle Rifle, with a holographic sight and a suppressor attached.
Secondary firearm - A M6C SOCOM.

Spartan-332(Firefly):

Primary firearm - A SRS99C-S2 AM Sniper Rifle.
Secondary firearm - A M392A1 Light Weight Carbine, with a holographic sight attached.

Spartan-893(Pipsqueak):

Primary firearm - A MA5C Assault Rifle, with a red dot sight and a bayonet attached.
Secondary firearm - A M6D Pistol.

Spartan-923(R.D.):

Primary firearm - A M7 SMG, with a suppressor and holographic sight attached.
Secondary firearm - A M6C SOCOM.

Spartan-438(Ajk):

Primary firearm - A M45E Tactical Shotgun.
Secondary firearm - A M7 SMG.

Spartan-741(Z):

Primary firearm - A M392A1 Light Weight Carbine, with an ACOG sight and a M301 40mm grenade launcher attached.
Secondary firearm - A M6G Magnum.

Spartan-139(Josh):

Primary firearm - A BR55HR SR Battle Rifle, with a grip attached.
Secondary firearm - A M6G Magnum.

Spartan-781(William):

Primary firearm - A M392A1 Light Weight Carbine, with a holographic sight attached.
Secondary firearm - A M90A Close Assault Weapon System.

Spartan-635(David):

Primary firearm - A SRS99C-S2 AM Sniper Rifle.
Secondary firearm - A MA5C Assault Rifle, with a holographic sight and suppressor attached.

Spartan-113(Blake):

Primary firearm - A M247H Machine Gun.
Secondary firearm - Two M7 SMG's.