Zeretus

Zeretus, also known as the Scourgemaker to those under his command, was a Jiralhanae Battle Officer and one of the most senior members within the Banished. He was among the first to join Atriox in his rebellion against the Covenant. During the Second Ark Conflict, Atriox selected him for a mission led by Chieftain Minas to retrieve a slipspace flake from the Anodyne Spirit. Zeretus accompanied the warmaster when he used the crystal to return to the galaxy months later. Zeretus was part of Eta Pack in the Third Combat Element of the Lance of the Writhing Star. He was killed by John-117 during the Battle for Zeta Halo.

Warrior of the Banished
Zeretus was one of the first to join the Banished after Atriox rebelled against the Covenant. After joining the mercenary organization, Zeretus would be a critical component of Banished exploration efforts. He personally led numerous operations tasked with scouring Forerunner relic sites in search of highly important assets, destroying anything that stood in his way. During one notable operation on the ocean-moon Lagolim, Zeretus ordered the sinking of a large UEG research colony as they searched for an ancient Forerunner facility beneath the sea. This action killed all 1,244 scientists and analysts stationed there. Zeretus served Atriox faithfully for at least a decade, and was even among those chosen to accompany him to the Ark in late 2558.

In the midst of the Second Ark Conflict, Atriox charged Chieftain Minas with the recovery of a slipspace flake from the interior of the Forerunner Dreadnought, which had been abandoned by the High Prophet of Truth years earlier. The remaining shards of this crystal would be used to open a slipspace portal to the human colony of Reach. Zeretus led one of the three small strike teams that were sent on this mission, with the other two being led by Blademaster Okro 'Vagaduun and Minas himself. Each team rode in a separate Phantom dropship to where the keyship rested in a presently uncontested region of the Ark they had dubbed Mahsko. After they had breached the vessel, a Jiralhanae warrior named Choros guided them to their destination. Early in the mission, Zeretus declared that the ship did in fact appear abandoned. However, the teams would soon be ambushed by surviving Covenant loyalists that stayed behind to defend the keyship, even after nearly seven years had passed since their empire had fell.

Zeretus expressed his utter disbelief at this discovery, but still led his team to victory against their assailants. As Minas's team and then 'Vagaduun's ascended the final lift leading to their prize, he received word from the chieftain that he and his team should not follow them up and that they should instead cover their exit. The Covenant defenders had attacked them one last time, hoping to repel them from the holy vessel. When Minas and 'Vagaduun returned alone with the crystal shards, Zeretus and his remaining men quickly escorted them out of the ship and back to their Phantoms.

Return from Installation 00
With the crystal secured, Atriox sent word to Escharum—the appointed leader of all Banished forces still in the galaxy—that a portal facility on Reach must be found and activated so that he could return from the Ark. Primarily due to the efforts of the allied Dokab Castor and his Keepers of the One Freedom, the facility was found and activated. Atriox brought Zeretus along with him to Reach, and he was one of the officers that Inslaan 'Gadogai introduced to Castor as he stepped off the Eklon'Dal Workshop Lich that had carried them through the portal. Upon seeing the humans that the Keepers employed, he was overtly disgusted. Shortly after arriving on Reach, Zeretus escaped the planet along with the rest of the loyal Banished forces aboard Escharum's intrusion corvette.

Zeta Halo conflict
"That's the end of Zeretus the Scourgemaker. May his stupid nickname die with him."

- The Weapon, after John-117 eliminates Zeretus and his crew

In May 2560, Zeretus served within Eta Pack in the Third Combat Element of the Lance of the Writhing Star and was stationed on Installation 07, having been in command of Annex Ridge. The Weapon discovered his location and passed the information on to Spartan-II John-117. After tracking him down, the Spartan attacked and killed both Zeretus and the other Banished forces accompanying him.

Equipment
During the Banished's raid on the Anodyne Spirit, Zeretus was seen wielding a gravity hammer. When fighting humans, he was known to regularly take weapons from fallen enemies and use them against others of their kind, thinking it to be more shameful for a human to be killed by an ally's weapon. Fittingly, Zeretus wielded a unique UNSC M41 SPNKR referred to as the M41 Tracker during the Installation 07 conflict.

List of appearances

 * Halo: Shadows of Reach
 * Sacrifice
 * Halo Infinite