Choros
From Halopedia, the Halo wiki
| Choros | |
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Presumed killed by overwhelming Covenant loyalist forces aboard the Anodyne Spirit[1] |
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Gender: |
Male |
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Hair color: |
Dark[1] |
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Choros was a young Jiralhanae captain formerly in service of the Covenant military, specifically the High Prophet of Truth. He was the nephew of Tartarus, the famous final Chieftain of the Jiralhanae before the Great Schism. After the Human-Covenant War's end, he would be recruited into the Banished, a mercenary faction led by Atriox. Here he would serve Chieftain Minas as the captain of his guard.[1]
Biography[edit]
Servant of the Prophets[edit]
While part of the Covenant military, Choros had the opportunity to serve alongside his uncle, Tartarus, directly under the Prophet of Truth. During this time, he visited the Anodyne Spirit many times, escorting various San'Shyuum scribes and clerics through the vessel's interior as they recorded its details for future study. Toward the end of the war, he witnessed his uncle unite the Jiralhanae against the Sangheili, taking control of the military. However, when Tartarus was killed by the current Arbiter, Choros began to doubt the promises of the Hierarchs, ultimately refusing to follow Truth to the Ark.[1]
Joining the Banished[edit]
After abandoning the Covenant, Choros travelled to Warial, one of the moons of the Jiralhanae homeworld Doisac. There he found work repairing warships in the brimstone-dockyards of Ividar Rux. He was found by Chieftain Minas, a fellow Jiralhanae that had joined the Banished after being sent to hunt down Atriox during the war. Choros shared with Minas his rather unique experiences within the Covenant, including his visits to the holy Forerunner Dreadnought. Over the years, the two would forge a strong bond as they fought together. Choros and Minas were among those selected by Atriox to join him on his journey to the Ark in 2558.[1]
Following the death of Tartarus and most of his children, Choros convinced his cousin Severan -- Tartarus' last remaining child -- to join the Banished. While Severan didn't know all of the reasons why, he was confident that Choros sought to protect him and Tartarus' bloodline which was best done by staying close to the growing numbers of Banished. Choros believed that whatever differences Atriox had with Tartarus, the warmaster would ultimately see the strategic benefit of welcoming Severan (and the wider Vanguard of Zaladon which he led) into the fold.[2]
As the Banished continued to battle the crew of the UNSC Spirit of Fire for control of the installation, Atriox decided that he must return to the galaxy to deal with an unknown situation in June or July 2559. To do so, he would need a Forerunner slipspace flake to open a portal to a facility rumored to be hidden on Reach, a human colony that had been glassed by the Covenant nearly seven years earlier.[3] Thankfully, the Anodyne Spirit had been found abandoned by the Prophet of Truth in an uncontested region of the Ark. Like all Forerunner starships, its slipspace drive was powered by one of these crystals. And so, Atriox assembled a strike force to infiltrate the Keyship and retrieve the crystal. Minas was assigned to lead the expedition and brought Choros as his intimate knowledge of the vessel would likely prove useful. For the three days leading up to the mission, Choros poured over schematics of the Keyship found within the Ark's manifest logs to refresh his memory.[1]
Return to the Keyship[edit]
- Main article: Raid on Anodyne Spirit
Three Phantoms approached the Keyship, which stood amidst the spires of a Forerunner city atop a massive basalt column rising out of the sea. Choros rode in Minas' Phantom with his third of the strike force while Blademaster Okro 'Vagaduun and Captain Zeretus rode in the other two with their own teams. Choros accompanied the Phantom's pilot—Bomarus—in the cockpit as the dropship made its final approach to the vessel's central crux. At Minas' order, his captain notified the pilots of the other two Phantoms to be careful as the Keyship might still be dangerous, despite appearing to be dead. Upon landing, Choros led his ten experienced Jiralhanae warriors, along with some reliable Kig-Yar and Unggoy, to the nearest acces point. Once Minas caught up, he had the Kig-Yar named Itka get to work opening the sealed doorway.[1]
Despite running into both old and new securities, the Kig-Yar had the access port open in no time, revealing a shadowy interior. Choros and Minas personally led their team into the darkness first, finding themselves in a long, empty corridor that went on for over a kilometer. With the other two teams following, they trudged on through the darkness and Zeretus came to the conclusion that the ship had indeed been abandoned. However, 'Vagaduun warned that they should not become too comfortable as the anicent vessel likely still held many secrets, many of them sure to be dangerous. Minas noted that while there may not be any living being aboard, the Forerunners were the masters of autonomous machines. Using his intimate knowledge of the Keyship, Choros led them deeper into the vessel in search of the Adytum, the containment device in which the slipspace crystals were held. After trudging through the darkness for a while, the group came to a wall with several doorways. Choros chose the fourth doorway from the left. They then followed a dimly-lit corridor into an expansive chamber with vaulting walkways that met at a lift at the center of the room. Hundreds of transport cylinders sat waiting to be used to launch personnel up toward the bow of the enormous vessel. Choros directed the others along the closest walkway and Minas chose a cylinder that could accommodate all three strike teams. Using a special code from records recently found in the debris field of the wrecked High Charity, Itka easily activated the lift and the strike force soared upward.[1]
The lift stopped suddenly, disorienting many of the passengers. Choros informed them that the sensation would pass in time and that they should prepare for what lay ahead. Then, the lift's door opened to reveal a vast arcade filled with overgrown flora. Various catwalks arched through the air above, connecting delicate platforms and once-opulent common spaces. Flocks of exotic birds could be seen flitting among the dense foliage that climbed up to the chamber's distant ceilings. Minas led the strike force off of the lift as Choros began to explain the purpose of the chamber to 'Vagaduun.[1]
Just then, Choros was knocked to the floor by a plasma blast, his armor taking the brunt of the damage. Everyone else dove for the nearest cover and Minas dragged the stunned Choros behind a nearby stone barrier while under fire by plasma bolts and carbine rounds. Rousing Choros, Minas ordered him to follow his lead and dashed for the jungle of foliage ahead of them. As they moved, Choros noticed a trio of silhouettes firing down on them from a rafter above and raised his Flaktura Workshop Skewer to return fire. Minas did the same with his Erudo'ma'keth-pattern pulse carbine, forcing their attackers to seek cover. He could hear Zeretus yelling "Impossible!" in the distance, followed by the crash of his gravity hammer and the alarmingly Jiralhanae-like cry of his victim. Choros fi