Editing Dhas Bhasvod's Covenant

{{Status|Canon}}
{{Callsign}}
{{Organization infobox
|name=Dhas Bhasvod's Covenant
|image=
|type=[[Covenant remnants]]{{Ref/Reuse|Sacrifice}}
|founder=[[High Prophet of Truth]]{{Ref/Reuse|Sacrifice}}
|leaders=[[Prelate]] [[Dhas Bhasvod]]{{Ref/Novel|Id=DW|DW}}
|affiliation=*[[Covenant]] {{c|Formerly}}{{Ref/Reuse|Sacrifice}}
*[[San'Shyuum flotilla]]
|partof=
|branches=
|headquarters=''[[Anodyne Spirit]]''
|formed=[[2552]]{{Ref/Reuse|Sacrifice}}
|reorganized=
|dissolved=
|notable=
}}
'''Dhas Bhasvod's Covenant loyalists'''{{Ref/Note|This name is applied here to help differentiate from actual Covenant-era soldiers from prior to the empire's fall}} are a faction of [[Jiralhanae]] and [[Kig-Yar]] soldiers led by the [[Prelate]] [[Dhas Bhasvod]], that had been assigned as part of the crew of the [[keyship]] ''[[Anodyne Spirit]]'' during the final weeks of [[2552]].{{Ref/Novel|Id=FactionName1|DW|Chapter=4}} Following the [[Covenant]]'s fall during the [[Battle of Installation 00]], these soldiers remained inside the Keyship to defend it from intruders and remained vigilant in their duties and [[Covenant religion|beliefs]] long after the death of the [[High Prophet of Truth]].{{Ref/Novel|Id=Sacrifice|HSoR|Section=Adjunct|Detail=[[Sacrifice]]}} They managed to survive the firing of [[Installation 08]] by hiding inside the keyship, allowing them to survive on the Ark for several years after the battle's conclusion.{{Ref/Reuse|DW7}} 

While initially dormant, they were reactivated amid the ongoing [[Second Ark Conflict|war on the Ark]] in mid-[[2559]], resulting in them joining the wider war as a third major force to rival the [[Banished]] and {{UNSCShip|Spirit of Fire}}. As such, they seek to continue the mission of the Covenant, although in secret Bhasvod's goal is to restore the [[San'Shyuum]] to power in the galaxy once again.{{Ref/Reuse|DW17}}

==History==
===Battle of the Ark===
[[File:HDW DhasBhavod.png|thumb|Dhas Bhasvod, the [[San'Shyuum]] leader of the loyalist forces.]]
During the final months of the [[Human-Covenant War]], the Prophet of Truth commandeered the ''Anodyne Spirit'' to escape the [[Fall of High Charity]] and head to [[Installation 00]] to begin the process of firing the [[Halo Array]]. When his keyship landed in the [[Mahsko]] region, Truth and his entourage departed for the installation's [[Citadel]], while a charge of Jiralhanae and Kig-Yar soldiers led by [[Prelate]] [[Dhas Bhasvod]] were left with the keyship to fend off potential attackers.{{Ref/Reuse|Sacrifice}} During the battle, the crew guarding the keyship deployed half of their forces to try to draw the humans and Sangheili away from the Prophet of Truth.{{Ref/Novel|Id=DW7|DW|Chapter=7}}

At the battle's conclusion, the Covenant was formally defeated and Installation 08 fired, severely damaging the Ark in the process and killing those of the keyship's crew who had exited in an attempt to draw the enemy away from their leader, yet the keyship managed to protect the rest of the surviving crew inside from the ring's pulse.{{Ref/Reuse|Sacrifice}}{{Ref/Reuse|DW7}} Stranded on the Ark well outside the [[Milky Way]], the soldiers were able to survive for the ensuing [[Post-Covenant War conflicts|seven years]] thanks to the keyship's ample supply reserves, seemingly in hiding from the later exploration and [[Operation: FAR STORM|settlement]] of the Ark by [[UNSC]] [[Henry Lamb Research Outpost|researchers]].{{Ref/Reuse|Sacrifice}} The automated [[Sentinel]] defences of the Ark assisted in keeping the Keyship safe from external threats.{{Ref/Book|Id=Enc22p385|Enc22|Page=385}}

===A long wait===
For a hundred cycles the loyalists waited, believing that the firing of the Halo meant that the Prophet of Truth had succeeded and they would thus be called to Transcendence at any moment. Eventually, their elation gave way to despair as they realized that Truth had failed and in the process, damaged the Ark seemingly beyond repair. Many began to fear that they would perish on a dead world far removed from their home stars and for nothing but the vanity of a dead Hierarch. Unwilling to let that stand, [[Prelate]] [[Dhas Bhasvod]] culled over the course of twenty cycles as many heretics as he had culled for Truth over the [[Heresy of the Chosen]].{{Ref/Reuse|DW7}}

Eventually, as their despair seemed ready to destroy them, a scout discovered that the Ark was being repaired and that ''[[Anodyne Spirit]]'' was simply so far removed from where the repairs had begun that they had not realized that it was happening.{{Ref/Reuse|DW7}}

===Second Ark Conflict===
{{Main|Second Ark Conflict}}
When the Banished-UNSC war on the Ark began in early [[2559]], the Covenant did not join the war - Bhasvod reasoning that they had already waited for many years, and so there was no reason to needlessly join the war when they could simply lie in wait and let both sides weaken one another. This way, Bhasvod hoped to ensure that when the Covenant ''did'' emerge, they would be far too strong for either side to meaningfully contest.{{Ref/Reuse|DW7}} However, this was interrupted in summer 2559 when a force of [[Banished]] soldiers led by [[Jiralhanae Chieftain|Chieftain]] [[Minas]] were [[Raid on Anodyne Spirit|deployed]] to the keyship to retrieve several shards of the [[Menachite Forerunner crystal]], intended to be used to re-connect the Banished forces with their allies in the Milky Way.{{Ref/Reuse|Sacrifice}}

While exploring the ship, the Banished troops were ambushed by the surviving Covenant forces aboard the keyship - who no one had expected to still be alive. Despite using their old Covenant-era equipment, the Covenant troops were able to put up heavy resistance against the Banished troops and arranged several successful ambushes. Later on, they deployed six [[Kez'katu-pattern Phantom|Phantom dropships]] to support their attack, proving to outnumber the Banished raiding party considerably. Nonetheless, the Banished force's [[Flaktura Workshop Skewer]]s proved capable anti-air weapons in the battle, and the force was ultimately able to escape with the shards retrieved - though at considerably cost to their own numbers. The loyalist forces remained inside the keyship a potential threat to future operations in the region.{{Ref/Reuse|Sacrifice}} 

In the ensuing weeks, the Covenant began broader operations on the Ark with the goal of taking back the slipspace crystal from the Banished, culminating in a [[Battle for Translocation portal Epsilon|massive three-way battle]] on [[2559#October|October 12]] after the Banished used the crystals to activate [[Translocation Portal Epsilon]].{{Ref/Novel|Id=DW2|HDW|Chapter=2}} During the battle, the Covenant were the first to arrive at the crash site of the [[Eklon'Dal Workshop Lich|Lich]] ''[[Pegoras]]'' and find the [[Keepers of the One Freedom]]. Although initially suspicious, Bhasvod agreed to work with the Keepers to mutual benefit, with the end goal of seeking to fire the [[Halo Array]] and begin the Great Journey. Aided by the Forerunner [[archeon-class ancilla]] [[Intrepid Eye]], the Keepers and the loyalists nearly succeeded in their mission, but they were [[Battle of Epsilon Clarion|ultimately foiled]] by the Banished and the UNSC. In the process, [[Castor]] learned the truth about the Halos and broke off his alliance with the loyalists as the {{UNSCShip|Spirit of Fire}} launched an [[orbital bombardment]] that destroyed [[Epsilon Clarion]] and Intrepid Eye. The battle completely wiped out Castor's detachment of the Keepers aside from Castor himself and [[Blademaster]] [[Inslaan 'Gadogai]], while the only survivor of the loyalist forces that took part in the engagement was Bhasvod.{{Ref/Reuse|DW}} However, the damage that Bhasvod took prevented him from recovering the crystal shards that the Banished had stolen from the loyalists and thus kept him from opening a portal to [[Cloister]] to warn [[Jom G'e'qth]] that their plan had failed.{{Ref/Novel|Id=DW17|DW|Chapter=17}}

Following their defeat, Bhasvod and his forces retreated back to their base at ''Anodyne Spirit''.{{Ref/Book|Enc22|Page=247}} Since then, they have begun to rally their forces with the intention of making another attempt to retake the slipspace crystal shard that was stolen from them, and thus reach Cloister - though are awaiting a suitable opportunity to do so.{{Ref/Book|Enc22|Page=249}}

==Military assets==
[[File:HTMCC H3 CitadelBroots.jpg|250px|thumb|Remnants of the Brute forces brought to the Ark and loyal to the Prophet of Truth make up the majority of the loyalist forces.]]
Given their status as soldiers picked for their loyalty to the Prophet of Truth during the [[Great Schism]], the loyalist troops consist primarily of Jiralhanae and their Kig-Yar subordinates. They remain outfitted with Covenant-era arms and weaponry including {{Pattern|Vostu|carbine}}s and at least six [[Phantom]]s.{{Ref/Reuse|Sacrifice}} They also have a number of [[Ghost]]s, [[Wraith]]s, [[Banshee]]s, and some [[Seraph]] starfighters.{{Ref/Reuse|DW2}} For defensive purposes, the loyalist remnant continue to make use of {{Pattern|Rizsheda|Shade}} turrets abandoned by the Covenant during the original conflict on the Ark.{{Ref/Book|Enc22|Page=302-303}}

Although their numbers constitute multiple [[legion]]s,{{Ref/Reuse|Enc22p385}} their exact numbers are unknown. Truth's forces mobilized everything they had to defend the [[Installation 00 Citadel|Citadel]] during their [[Battle of the Citadel|last stand]] in the [[Human-Covenant War|war]],{{ref/Level|Halo 3|Level=The Covenant|Quote=Brutes are mobilizing everything they've got.}} rendering Bhasvod's remnants a very small sliver of Truth's former fleet. Notably, while working with the [[Keepers of the One Freedom]], the loyalists resorted to tricking the UNSC into eliminating most of their Banished pursuers rather than using their own forces to do so, suggesting they are outnumbered by the Banished and the UNSC forces on the Ark. In addition, they used a trap to outmaneuver and attempt to destroy the Banished force following them, but this ultimately failed. The Covenant-Keeper alliance's attempt to fire the Halo Array cost the faction the Ghosts that they brought with them, at least two Phantoms, three Seraphs and several Banshees as well as a number of ground troops.{{Ref/Reuse|DW}}

===Known personnel===
;San'Shyuum
*[[Dhas Bhasvod]] - Prelate commander of the loyalists.

;Jiralhanae
*[[Arcas]]
*[[Ferko]]
*[[Idomenius]]

==List of appearances==
*''[[Halo: Shadows of Reach]]''
**''[[Sacrifice]]'' {{1st}}
*''[[Halo: Divine Wind]]''

==Notes==
{{Ref/Notes}}

==Sources==
{{Ref/Sources}}

{{Organizations}}
[[Category:Covenant remnants]]