Grono 'Yendam

''“I will never ally with humanity. It’s too late for that now, not after the War. The only human I’ll trust, is a dead one. I thought that exterminating them was the will of the gods, but it was blasphemy! San'shyuum lies! I’ll kill humans any day, because they are still weak! The true path was with Jul 'Mdama! As one of his Warriors, I was good. But I am now a mercenary, a pirate! My career as a leader was ill-fated- my army destroyed! It was better to be a follower, or a bounty hunter! That’s all I am these days….”''

-Grono 'Yendam reflecting on his mistakes.

Grono 'Yendam is a Sangheili from the poor 'Yendam clan that joined the Covenant Military. He never rose above Ultra, and joined a secret Cult called the Followers of the Forgotten, quelling a Heretic rebellion. After the Great Schism, he became a pirate captain, stealing Forerunner artifacts, until his ship’s demise at the hands of Spartans. He then joined Jul 'Mdama’s Storm Covenant, and became one of Jul’s “Pet Reapers.” After the fall of Jul 'Mdama, he joined a mercenary gang, which he is still in, doing missions for pay, and fleeing from the Created’s army. He is considered a tier three target by ONI, due to slaughtering innocent citizens even after the Human-Covenant War, theft of secret resources, and the assassin jobs he does for pay. Whereabouts differ on his location.

Early Life
Grono 'Yendam was born during the Ninth Age of Reclamation (2526 in human terms,) in the poverty-struck city-state of 'Yendam, on the small Sangheili colony, Quendor. Unlike most male Sangheili, he was raised by his paternal uncle, Akorn 'Yendamee, and was also visited from time to time by his biological father, Sovol 'Yendamee. The reason for this was, with no teachers around, Sovol and Akorn were forced to raise Grono alone, after his mother died of illness. With both father and uncle being in the military, Grono developed a strong sense of duty, and was a decent pupil in basic military protocols, interested in close-range traditional weapons like the energy sword.

''“Aristocrat? No-more like a sniveling brat.”''

-Grono 'Yendam after a tussle with Nak 'Yendam.

Around the age of nine, the young Sangheili encountered the aristocratic nephew of the Kaidon, a ten year old named Nak, while walking to the market to buy food for him, his father, and his uncle. Nak teased Grono about his poor living conditions, and that his father and uncle were only Ultras, while Nak’s uncle was a Shipmaster, before realizing that Grono was ignoring all this, and buying food. At this point, Nak became enraged, and told Grono to listen to his “superiors,” before striking Grono’s mandibles. Surprised, but angry, Grono grabbed Nak and shoved him to the ground, repeatedly stomping on him multiple times, until Nak begged Grono to stop. Grono obliged and insulted Nak’s behavior, before carrying his food basket home, amazing the Sangheili shopkeeper and several bystanders.

Covenant Military Service
''“I shall fight for the Covenant! I shall fight for Honor! I shall fight for Glory and the preservation of our kind!”''

-Grono 'Yendam pledging himself to Covenant service.

Around the age of twenty, Grono joined the Covenant military like his father and uncle, earning himself the “-ee” suffix. Becoming a Minor, he joined a lance of Sangheili recruits like him, that was part of the Gez'dar Assault Legion in the small but potent Fleet of Raging Dominance, formed of six CRS-Class Light Cruisers, four SDV-Class Heavy Corvettes, a pair of CPV-Class Destroyers, and a CCS-Class Battlecruiser that was the herald for the fleet’s flagship, a DDS-Class Assault Carrier dubbed Fortitude’s Wisdom. Unlike most fleets, Raging Dominance was commanded by the new Minister of Fortitude, who was well known for replacing the old Minister who became the Prophet of Truth, one of the Covenant’s Hierarchs. Fortitude oversaw military operations against the humans during the Human-Covenant War, from his flagship, Fortitude’s Wisdom, with the Fleetmaster, Oru 'Vanuxee, by his side. Grono was placed with the rest of his legion on the Destroyer, Gauntlet of the Ancients.

During training, Grono was constantly mocked by his more experienced teammate, Vor 'Moramee, for coming from a poor clan, but developed a small friendship with his other lance member, Gyev 'Ruvstee. The three Minors did continuous training exercises on the glassed human planet Harvest, which was now used as a training ground for the Dominance’s Legions. Their most grueling exercise was when the trio and another lance of five Sangheili Minors and seven Unggoy, were sent to the ravaged human city of Utgard. Once there, the two lances’ objectives were to reach the top of a crumbling skyscraper by any means necessary, where a Spirit would pick them up. When Gyev questioned this, Grono answered by saying that the fleet’s next destination would be a human planet with perilous mountain ranges, from what Covenant scouts said. They climbed up several stories before the floors gave away and collapsed. The Sangheili from the other lance used five of the Unggoy as stepping stools to get up to the next floor, before leaving the Unggoy to hang there. Gyev expressed his thoughts about treating the Unggoy as even less than mere cannon fodder, but Grono told him that they were ordered to use any means necessary to complete the mission, and that the Unggoy were lucky that the Sangheili didn’t stomp on their hands to make them fall to their deaths. At the top, the eight Sangheili found out that their Spirit would be delayed, so the five from the second lance decided to spend their time kicking the Unggoy and threatening them. Gyev got tired of the horseplay, and told the Sangheili to leave the Unggoy alone because Unggoy had strength in numbers, before flat out calling the Sangheili Minors as mature as hatchlings.

The Sangheili then ganged up on Gyev and broke his mandible. The leader of the bunch then told the others to throw Gyev off the skyscraper, before the Spirit came. Grono asked Vor for assistance in helping Gyev, and Vor agreed only because he cared for Sangheili, not Unggoy. But before anything could happen, the Spirit came, and a Sangheili Major stepped out, and denounced the five Sangheili of having any honor, before leaving them to walk back to the outpost, while Grono, Gyev, Vor, and the Unggoy got on the Spirit with him.

Battle of Carchar
''“You will never be one of us. Your clan has no voice in this empire. You will never be a true member of the Covenant, because you are nothing!”''

-Vor 'Moramee telling Grono 'Yendamee that poor clans have no place in the Covenant Military.

In 2547, the Fleet of Raging Dominance arrived at one of the only remaining outer colonies, known as Carchar. The human forces there only had two ships, which were easily destroyed, at the cost of a Corvette. Dominance soon found out that the humans’ ground forces were hiding in the mountain ranges that Grono 'Yendamee and the others had trained for. The Minister of Fortitude then ordered the Gez'dar Assault Legion to attack the mountains and end the humans. Grono’s lance was ordered to scout out the mountains, but having no leader, were assigned a Sangheili Major to command them. That Major turned out to be Nak 'Yendamee, who had joined the Covenant military too. Infuriated, Grono trashed his living cell in a fit of rage.

A Spirit dropped off the lance on a small mountain and the Sangheili scouted the range for several hours, before encountering a human lance. Nak used his plasma rifle to shoot down two of the humans, while Gyev cowered in fear, because they were outnumbered. Vor attempted to fight, but was knocked out by a shot to the eye. Grono used his plasma pistol to kill the human leader with an overcharged shot, before throwing a plasma grenade at the rest of the lance, killing them. The lance then returned to the Gauntlet of the Ancients, where they informed the Gez'dar Assault Legion’s Fieldmaster, Zholos 'Fenossee, about the human’s hiding place, but because of Vor’s injury, they were forced to stay on the ship while Zholos led the legion into battle. The battle was coming to a close after three days, when a human strike force arrived. Three human ships came out of slipspace and engaged the fleet, cutting off support to Zholos. One was destroyed, and one evacuated some of the humans below, but the last infiltrated Fortitude’s Wisdom, before breaking off and being destroyed. A few hours later, Shipmaster Sorv 'Tunostee informed the Gauntlet’s crew that two reports had come in. The first, was that Zholos had launched a successful campaign on Carchar’s surface, and the other, was that the last human ship had deployed a pair of demons on the Wisdom, and they had killed multiple Covenant soldiers. For another hour, the crew waited. Finally, Sorv exclaimed to them, that one of the demons was killed by Fortitude’s three Honor Guards, who were killed by the other demon, which was finally slain by Fleetmaster Oru 'Vanuxee in a last-ditch attempt to protect the Prophet.

Back in their living cells, Vor brought up the 'Yendam clan’s poverty again, and told Grono he had no place in the military, but was interrupted by Nak 'Yendamee, who discovered Vor’s insults, and threatened Vor for insulting Grono’s clan, which was also his clan, which would count as Vor insulting a superior officer. That shut Vor up, and he never spoke of 'Yendam again.

Excavation at New Harmony
''“Forerunners? Oracles? Please, tell me more.”''

-Grono 'Yendamee

The fleet prepared to go to the Covenant capital High Charity, where the Minister had a meeting with the Hierarchs. During the travel, some slipspace problems occurred, and the fleet was pulled back into normal space. They found the abandoned human planet, New Harmony, which was held by the humans, but was abandoned a decade ago. Fortitude’s Wisdom detected an artifact on the planet of religious reverence, by using it’s Luminary. Gyev and Vor expressed excitement, while Grono and Nak questioned what an artifact would do with religion. Astounded, Gyev told them that the Covenant worshiped an ancient race known as the Forerunners, who left artifacts behind for the Covenant to find, with the most revered being the Halos, which would initiate the Great Journey, propelling the Covenant to godhood. Humanity was an affront to the gods, that had to be exterminated. Nak told Grono because Quendor was a small colony, it was never introduced to religion. Grono asked Gyev to tell him more about this when they returned, which Gyev agreed to. Due to their success on Carchar, the Gez'dar was sent to investigate the artifact. This time however, Grono’s lance would be acting as guards for the Fieldmaster. On the way down via gravity lift, a human stealth ship appeared and attacked the Gauntlet of the Ancients, causing the lift to malfunction, sending several hundred Covenant soldiers to their deaths. The lance survived because Zholos went down first to lead the extraction. The stealth ship escaped to slipspace, and the search continued. The legion found an underground cavern, where a small group of humans were examining the artifact. Zholos pronounced this heresy, and ordered the legion to attack. The humans were quickly slaughtered, but it was a trap and a legion of human soldiers cornered the Gez'dar, and a battle began. Several humans went for Zholos, and Grono quickly countered. Gyev grabbed one of them, but was shot in the face. Vor used his plasma pistol to wound another human, and was about to finish it, when a stray grenade from the battle found its way to him and exploded, killing him. Nak broke the wounded human’s neck, and mowed down two more with his rifle, before using Vor’s corpse as a body shield. Grono picked up Gyev’s plasma pistol, and dual-wielding them, used charged shots to kill two humans, and wounded another, before bashing in a fourth’s skull. The two remaining soldiers attacked Zholos, but were outmatched when Zholos used one as a body shield for bullets, before impaling the other with his energy sword.

The battle quickly ended with the Covenant as the victor, although the legion had lost half of it’s troops. The artifact was discovered to be an Oracle, one of the ancient intelligences left behind by Forerunners. The Oracle was handed over to Fortitude, and the Covenant forces picked up their dead. During the cremating, Grono told Nak he could not find Gyev’s body. Nak said of course not, because Gyev had survived, but had lost blood and bones, and was no longer fit for military service. Grono had one last meeting with Gyev and expressed sorrow about not being able to learn of the Forerunners. Gyev laughed, and told Grono that on High Charity there were many religious classes. Gyev told Grono, that he was never good enough for the Covenant’s Military, and that it was a blessing that he was injured. The last time Grono thought he would ever see his friend had passed. The next day Gyev returned to Sanghelios.

Life on High Charity
Grono 'Yendamee: ''“This is the Holy City? Why, it’s so….so….”''

    Nak 'Yendamee: “BIG.”

-Arrival on High Charity.

When they arrived at High Charity, Grono and Nak were awed. The fleet landed in the spires of the City, and they disembarked. The fleet’s crew then went to a middle-class Military Tenement building. The Unggoy and Kig-Yar dwelled at the bottom, with the Sangheili in the middle, while Fortitude and his two replacement Honor Guards had the top to themselves. After a few days, the Minister summoned Grono and Nak to his quarters. Once there, they found Fieldmaster Zholos standing next to the Minister of Fortitude, who told the trio that Zholos’ kill count was high, and he was on the verge of becoming a Field Marshal. Zholos thanked the Minister, who then told Nak and Grono, because of their kill counts, and bravery defending the Fieldmaster, they would be promoted. Nak was bestowed the rank of Ultra, while Grono received Major. The next day, Zholos told the pair that Nak would be in charge of a Large battle lance of Kig-Yar and Unggoy, with Grono as his second-in-command. Grono asked Zholos what happened to the Oracle, and Zholos said the Minister gave it to the Hierarchs for examination. Over the next few months, Grono started going to Covenant Religious classes, and he and Nak forgave each other and became good friends, through all the battles they had been through together.

At one point in his years on High Charity, Grono was in a Food Area, when a trio of Sangheili Minors attacked him. They told him that the table he was sitting at belonged to them- troops from the Fleet of Particular Justice. Grono retaliated, and grabbed one by the mandibles and pulled them towards him, before uppercutting them. The other two grabbed him, slammed him against a wall, and prepared for the finishing blow, when Grono told them they would get punished for striking a superior. The lead Sangheili laughed at this, and said he didn’t care, when a Sangheili General came over and asked the Minors what they were doing to Grono. The leader stuttered, and Grono answered, saying they were acting immature and called them sniveling brats. To everyone’s surprise, the General broke down in tears of joy. When asked why he was crying by Grono, he revealed to Grono that he was Sovol 'Yendamee. Sovol instantly recognized Grono when he called them sniveling brats, like he had called Nak all those years ago.

Grono asked Sovol later that day what the whereabouts of Akorn were. Sovol told him Akorn had joined the Special Ops Sangheili of Particular Justice, while he was a General in the Fie'Vair Defense Legion. A month later, Grono 'Yendamee wished his father and uncle farewell, before the Fleet of Particular Justice left to battle the humans.

When Grono and Nak were walking through the streets in mid-2548, they saw a large procession. When they got close enough, a Sangheili Ranger told them that it was for the Mistress of Harvest, a San'shyuum in charge of the Covenant Empire’s food supply. During the procession, they saw the barge carrying the Mistress go by, and strangely saw a female Sangheili with her. The Ranger said that was her adviser, Munasa 'Wattinr, the daughter of the famed Imperial Admiral, Xytan 'Jar Wattinree. Several days later, at a meal with Nak, they spotted Munasa again. At a public speech by the Hierarchs one day, they saw her again standing near the Mistress. Nak was beginning to wonder why they always saw her, when Munasa walked up to them. She asked them why they were always in the same place as her, and the Grono laughed at this, telling her that’s what Nak thought. Then, Nak sarcastically said maybe it was destiny, and laughed again. Munasa laughed with them, and the trio listened to the speech. Afterwards, she asked them if they wanted to come over for dinner with her and the Mistress, and Grono and Nak agreed.

After a few months of meeting up in places, Grono and Nak befriended Munasa 'Wattinr. They then frequently met for the rest of their time on High Charity. In 2549, still young, and curious, Grono learned through a Kig-Yar smuggler about the criminal underworld of High Charity. Located in the alleys of the lower-class neighborhoods, there were many things, such as secret religious groups, black markets, and shady gangs. The Kig-Yar recommended Grono bring a weapon, in case he was attacked. Armed with his plasma rifle, and two plasma grenades, Grono started to explore the alleyways more and more.

The Followers of the Forgotten
“I pledge my blade to a fallen cause,

   Fraught with foes and dangerous claws.

    I pledge my heart to a righteous group,

    Where I’ll become a gracious troop.

    I pledge my soul to the Followers of the Forgotten Oath.”

-Grono 'Yendamee chanting the Followers’ initiation ritual.

Soon, after his introduction to the criminal underworld, Grono arrogantly joined a secret religious group called the “Followers of the Forgotten,” which was devoted to the Forerunners, but denounced the Great Journey, believing that if the Covenant ascended to godhood, the Forerunners would have no followers, and with no followers wouldn’t be considered gods. Instead, they believed the gods’ relics could make the Covenant more powerful, but puny mortals should never be on the same level as the Forerunners.

Grono rose through the ranks of the Followers quickly, because of his new devotion for religion, and eventually became one of the “Anti-Ascetics”. These were devoted Followers with the same task as normal Ascetics, except in the Followers organization. In 2550, Grono was tasked by the organization’s current leader, Qav 'Bagozee, a Sangheili High Councilor, to take care of a political rival that was the leader of a rival cult. Qav offered Grono a place in the Follower’s inner circle, and a chance to be promoted in the military, saying it would be like a mercenary’s job, high-risk, but well-rewarding. Zealous for promotion, and eager to please, Grono accepted, and was given a particle beam rifle to make the kill-shot.

Later that day, Grono camped out on the rooftop of a building near the Sangheili’s quarters, where they were passing a pair of Sangheili mercenaries. Grono, being experienced with only close to mid-range weapons, messed up the shot, killing one of the mercenaries instead. The other one sounded an alarm, before Grono contacted Qav, telling him that he messed up the shot. Qav ordered Grono to try killing the Councilor at any means possible.

Grono then infiltrated the quarters, finding a group of Kig-Yar mercenaries that were in the middle of a meal. Grono slaughtered them all with his plasma rifle, before moving on to the top of the building, where he found the Councilor. A trio of Sangheili mercenaries attacked Grono, but he easily killed the first with his almost-depleted plasma rifle, before throwing one of his grenades at the other two, who died in the explosion. Grono attempted to fight the Councilor, but was subdued due their superior skill. When the Councilor asked if he had any last wishes before killing him, Grono took advantage of the distraction, firing the beam rifle into the Sangheili’s chest killing him.

The assassination caused great dissent in the Council as rumors went around that a mere Major had killed the Councilor. Grono was elevated to the Followers inner circle, but because of the messed up shot, and to keep Grono safe from execution, Qav did not have Grono promoted. Grono continued his Anti-Ascetic missions eliminating rival cult leaders, and elevating the Followers’ status. At the end of 2550, Grono received a mission from Qav to execute a Sangheili Oracle Master by the name of Kolasa 'Zam. Rumors had it, Kolasa 'Zam was using the Oracle from New Harmony to build a war machine that would end the war with a swift victory, and propel the Covenant on the Great Journey.

Grono disguised himself as a High Councilor using Qav’s armor with his blessing. Because of this Grono slipped in, and found a laboratory where Kolasa 'Zam was. Grono expected to find a proud Covenant soldier, but instead found a crippled Sangheili alone in the lab. Nonetheless, Grono prepared for the kill, when Kolasa turned around to get a tool. Surprised, Kolasa put his hands up, and Grono interrogated him about the war machine. Kolasa said the war machine had nothing to do with the Path at all, but was just a new warfare vehicle to speed up the war. Grono informed Qav about it through a datapad, and Qav told him to go, before security came.

Grono left Kolasa to his work and returned to the Followers, where he gave back Qav’s armor. Qav gave Grono the title of Anti-Ascetic Commander, and gave Grono one last mission before Grono’s dated departure. In his new position, Grono would lead a group of thirty Anti-Ascetics to take out a gathering of Covenant Heretics, that opposed all parts of Covenant religion. Qav told Grono that he secretly established the gathering, and would publicly oppose it on the High Council, and send in the Anti-Ascetics, or “mercenaries” as Qav would call them, to eliminate the Heretics, boosting Qav’s political status on the Council. Grono originally questioned this being about politics instead of religion, but graciously obeyed when told he would be a public hero, and most definitely promoted to Ultra finally.

The Anti-Ascetics entered one of the spires in High Charity, where the gathering was. Grono brought along a beam rifle with the usual plasma rifle, reasoning that with so many Heretics, even a miss will kill. After the troops were in position, Grono ordered the attack. The Ascetics threw grenades, killing sixty Heretics, before charging. During the battle, Grono struck down several Heretics, with his beam rifle, while the Ascetics slaughtered more. Several Heretic Unggoy however, whipped out grenades and sacrificed themselves, killing multiple Anti-Ascetics. Grono jumped from his perch and went onto the battlegrounds, firing his plasma rifle, killing multiple Heretic Kig-Yar, and strangling a Sangheili. Then, Grono was cut down by a Sangheili Heretic wearing Zealot armor, proclaiming to be the Heretics’ leader. Grono called in reinforcements, but several Anti-Ascetics were killed by the remaining Heretics. The Heretic Zealot grabbed Grono, and ignited an energy sword, but some Ascetics came to the rescue, and fired at the Zealot, wounding him, before Grono joined their fire, eventually killing the Zealot. After the survivors were mopped up, with only eight Anti-Ascetics left, Grono took the Zealot’s helmet, and gave it to Qav, who in turn provided it to the Hierarchs, making him a political spectacle. Grono was then summoned to the Hierarchs’ Sanctum, where they personally promoted him to Ultra for killing the Heretics.

In late 2551, the Fleet of Raging Dominance prepared to go to the human colony of Sigma Octanus IV. Grono and Nak gave farewell to Munasa, and boarded the Fortitude’s Wisdom, which they were reassigned to, and joined up with the rest of the fleet. They then left for the long slipspace journey along with another larger fleet, to Sigma Octanus IV.

Battle of Sigma Octanus IV
''“You are clearly not experienced with command. Because of your rash actions, we lost a whole Legion! You are lucky you weren’t executed, so instead you shall be demoted, and never rise up from Major.”''

-Grono Yendamee’s sentence after failing in battle on Sigma Octanus IV.

When the Covenant arrived at Sigma Octanus IV, they realized that they had a wrong trajectory, and only the Fortitude’s Wisdom and three ships from the other fleet made it. They encountered a lone human destroyer guarding the whole planet, and thought it would be an easy kill. The destroyer charged towards an RPV-Class Destroyer while launching a nuclear warhead in the wrong direction. The two nearby Covenant frigates proceeded to launch a salvo of plasma, but the human ship managed to evade. Having missed their target, the plasma came about and continued to track and home in on the human warship.

Somehow the ship managed to merely "graze" the Destroyer's shields rather than smash directly into the ship properly, resulting in the destruction of a large portion of the human ship’s armor. However, the tracking plasma was unable to correct for the sudden maneuver of their target, and in consequence, impacted on the Destroyer instead. A heavy salvo of missiles from the human ship sent the RPV-Class Destroyer to its destruction.

With the momentum built up during the first phase, the human destroyer performed a slingshot maneuver around the planet. Once safely away, the nuclear warhead deployed earlier, was detonated, completely draining the shields on the two Frigates. Having completed its orbit, the destroyer resumed its attack and destroyed the two Frigates.

While this was happening, Wisdom deployed multiple Legions to the surface of the planet. Once there, Grono and Nak’s new Fieldmaster ordered them to march to the human city of Côte d’Azur, where a Forerunner map that was rumored to lead to the Rings was. Grono was secretly disappointed by this, being a disbeliever of the Path. When they completed their trek, the Legion found the city in ruin, and occupied the museum. They were attacked by human soldiers, but quickly dealt with the nuisance. Later, scouts reported the humans calling in reinforcements, and a large human fleet appeared, prompting Fortitude’s Wisdom to flee. Around the same time, the two Covenant fleets arrived.

The humans deployed a dropship that carried a whole lance of Demons into the city, where they split up. Knowing that the Demons would want to destroy the map, and the Covenant, Grono convinced the Fieldmaster to put Grono’s lance on scouting duty. When he told Nak, who he now shared command of their lance with, Nak was disappointed at the prospect of not fighting the Demons.

During their scouting, the lance encountered some Demons who tussled with them, taking out several Unggoy and Kig-Yar, while also knocking out Nak, before retreating. Grono debated what to do with the lance, when an order from the Fieldmaster came, telling Grono to come back to the museum to fight Demons. But after witnessing Nak get beaten in combat by a Demon, and not wanting the map to remain, Grono refused and moved his lance away from the city. After an hour, a human dropship escaped the city, and a Spirit found Grono’s lance and picked them up, bringing them to the Gauntlet of the Ancients. A bomb then exploded, destroying the whole city, killing off Grono’s Legion, and destroying the map. After, the remains of Raging Dominance, the Gauntlet, four  Light Cruisers, a pair of Corvettes, and the CCS-Class Battlecruiser escaped to slipspace after tagging the human destroyer from the beginning of the battle with a tracker.

Afterwards, reunited with their flagship, Grono was confronted by Oru 'Vanuxee, who on orders from the Minister, stripped Grono of his rank in front of the whole crew for retreating as Côte d'Azur was destroyed. Calling him a coward, Oru demoted Grono to Major, and assigned him to lead a penal lance back on the Gauntlet of the Ancients, also stating that Grono had let a holy relic get destroyed, much less a whole Legion. Nak tried consoling Grono, but was ignored. Grono, in shame, left to command his new unit, while Nak was left on Fortitude’s Wisdom.

Fall of Reach
Grono 'Yendamee: “Fire, Kig-Yar, fire!”

Wez: ''“Ha! And let you take the cache? No!”''

Grono 'Yendamee: ''“I swear, I will disembowel you and take your head once I am done with this unit! Your scavenging love for artifacts must be the reason you were sent here, hmm?”''

-Wez disobeying Grono 'Yendamee’s orders.

Thanks to the tracking device placed on the human ship, the Covenant easily found the human fortress-world, Reach. Grono’s lance, comprised of two Unggoy, Dipdip and Robtob, and a Kig-Yar named Wez, was sent to the city of New Alexandria, where they found a human lance defending a cache of powerful weapons. After killing them, Wez expressed his desire to sell them on the black market, and became possessive of them, revealing his insanity, and the reason he was expelled to the penal lance. More humans came to secure the cache, but Wez was unwilling to shoot, in case he damaged the cache. Because of this, Robtob was killed by the humans, and Grono threatened Wez for wanting human weapons, but Wez ignored him. Grono believed his unit to be a failure, before Dipdip went into a blood fueled rage to avenge Robtob, using his fuel rod gun to wipe out most of the humans, before chucking it at a human, knocking the daylights out of them. Amazed, Grono had second thoughts and assisted Dipdip in taking out the last human. After it was over, Grono, like he promised, severed Wez’s head off. Dipdip happily agreed to not rat out Grono on killing his subordinate, because Wez was the reason of Robtob’s death. After they returned to the Gauntlet, Grono swore to never trust Kig-Yar vermin again. He also was told by Dipdip that Robtob was sent into the unit for being a cowardly soldier, while Dipdip on the other hand, was assigned because of his surprising bloodlust, killing a Kig-Yar over sleeping arrangements.

Grono was then sent with Dipdip to assist a Sangheili Ultra in commanding a small unit elsewhere on Reach. The unit was part of a Legion-web commanded by a Field Marshal that sniped a Demon in New Alexandria. The objective was to hold out long enough for a CCS-Class Battlecruiser to destroy a human ship. However, the lance retreated when a pair of demons arrived, with one taking control of a heavy weapon, taking out multiple Phantoms. Eventually, the Field Marshal and a lance of Sangheili Zealots made it there, and killed the Demon. However, the other Demon used unusual tactics to defeat the lance, eventually slaying the Field Marshal, and using the weapon to destroy the Battlecruiser, enabling the human ship to escape.

In the ruins, Grono and Dipdip watched as their Ultra and several other Sangheili tried to take out the Demon. The Sangheili Ultra was shot down by the Demon, who revealed their face, and killed many more before being silenced by a Zealot. Arriving back on their ship, Grono learned that the human ship had escaped, but was pursued by the Fleet of Particular Justice- the fleet of Grono’s father and uncle. The Fleet of Raging Dominance stayed with the other fleets, to glass the planet, and turn it into a potential military outpost.

A month later, the fleets received a transmission from Supreme Commander Thel 'Vadamee, that they had found a Halo. The Covenant rejoiced at this, while Grono secretly started to doubt himself. It also said the human ship was detonated by a Demon, known as John-117, to destroy Halo, stopping the outbreak of a parasite called the Flood. The Fleets were then called back to High Charity, where Thel’s trial would be. Grono laughed to himself, believing that the Followers of the Forgotten were still a true cause.

Installation 05
Grono 'Yendamee: “How do you like death, dishonorable one?”

Qav 'Bagozee: ''“Dishonorable?!? I beg you to let me go! Anyways, you lost a whole Legion!”''

Grono 'Yendamee: “You disgust me.”

-Grono 'Yendamee killing Qav 'Bagozee.

On High Charity, Grono met back up with Qav, who as a Councilor, was at Thel’s trial, where they found out the Halos might not actually in initiate the Great Journey. At the time for Thel to get the Mark of Shame, Grono was present along with a mob of Unggoy, Kig-Yar and Mgalekgolo. Word soon spread around that the Prophet of Regret had found another Halo. In the Council, some Sangheili thought this to be a human trick, but Qav and the San 'Shyuum voted to investigate.

High Charity arrived at Installation 05 along with the Covenant fleets. As they arrived, they discovered John-117 had assassinated the Prophet of Regret, causing discord in the Covenant Empire. Qav voted on glassing the area to kill the Demon, and it was carried out. Qav also told Grono on his uncle Akorn’s behalf, that during the battle of the first Halo, the detonation had killed Sovol. Heartbroken, Grono asked Qav about Akorn, and was answered that Akorn had survived due to being in Special Operations Commander Rtas 'Vadumee’s legion, which escaped with Thel 'Vadamee. Grono ignored the rest about Thel becoming an Arbiter, and went into depression.

During the beginning of his depression, Grono decided to kill himself with his plasma rifle, to retain his honor and not bear the non-Sangheili-like way he spent his life, skulking in his dormitory. Before he could do it, Qav found him, and gave Grono a mission to kill the Arbiter, with Qav believing the Arbiter deserved to die, and showing the Council that Qav’s “Mercenary” was a force to be reckoned with. Grono once again said this was politics, and not religion. Qav, astounded, threatened Grono with death, if he didn’t do it. Grono finally cracked, and started probing Qav, who finally revealed that he joined the Followers of the Forgotten for political power, not religion. Grono took his plasma rifle, and prepared to fire, but Qav convinced him to drop it, saying that killing him would drop Grono’s already low status.

When the Changing of the Guard happened, the Sangheili were outraged. This only depressed Grono even more, making his hatred for humanity complete. Grono also learned that Akorn was assassinated, with most believing it to be the Jiralhanae. But Grono had other thoughts….

Shortly after the assassination, Grono visited Qav. Grono accused Qav of assassinating Akorn, at which Qav summoned an Anti-Ascetic. Qav said that he ordered the Ascetic to kill Akorn to remind Grono of his oath. Grono spat at Qav’s feet, saying that Qav was a disgrace, prompting the Ascetic to strike. Grono barely dodged the attack, cursing Qav and drawing his rifle. Grono fired, killing the Ascetic with a few well placed shots to the head. Qav merely mused, but gasped when Grono held down the trigger, using the rifle’s energy until it was all used up on the corpse. Grono shrugged, dropped the rifle, and claimed the Anti-Ascetic’s energy sword, telling Qav that the corpse was an example of what the Councilor was.

Qav growled, and pulled out his own blade, charging towards Grono. They dueled, with Qav edging forward due to Grono’s lack of experience with an energy sword, but the tide changed, when Grono lunged with his free hand towards Qav, getting badly scarred, but grabbing Qav’s throat. Thrown off, Qav whimpered as Grono marched towards the window. Grono reminded Qav that they were on the 17th floor, before shattering the window with his energy sword. Qav begged Grono not to kill him, but Grono went on, determined. Grono held Qav up and said the High Councilor disgusted him, before impaling Qav and shoving him out the window.

Grono covered up the murder, with a story that the Anti-Ascetic attacked Qav, killing him. Grono then found the Ascetic and killed them. After he returned to the Gauntlet of the Ancients, Grono sent Dipdip to the Fortitude’s Wisdom to ask the Minister of Fortitude for more troops in his lance. Little did he know that something big was about to happen.

Great Schism
''“Sorv 'Tunostee is dead. I am your new Shipmaster. Come with me, or die.”''

-Grono 'Yendam taking control of the Gauntlet of the Ancients. When the Arbiter found the Index, the Hierarchs ordered the extermination of the Sangheili. All across the ring, fleets were turning against each other. Raging Dominance was not left out. A Jiralhanae fleet attacked, destroying all the small ships. A pack of Jiralhanae lead by Chieftain Gorvanus then infiltrated the Gauntlet, and attacked the bridge killing Shipmaster Sorv 'Tunostee. Gorvanus escaped and infiltrated the flagship, abducting the Minister and retreating. When they were on the Wisdom, Fleetmaster Oru 'Vanuxee, in an act of cowardice, escaped in one of the launched lifeboats with several crew members. Nak 'Yendamee and Dipdip were supposedly killed.

On Grono’s ship, a Sangheili General immediately claimed command, saying that Fieldmaster Zholos ‘Fenossee had no space experience. Hatching a plan for control, Grono approached the General, and whipped out a plasma pistol, killing the general, and claiming control of the ''Gauntlet of the Ancients''. Grono then had all Sangheili on board strip their “-ee” suffix, and forced the crew to convert to the Followers of the Forgotten faith, using Sorv 'Tunostee’s personal energy sword, Varmint’s Nail, to execute any that did not convert. Zholos willingly obeyed, and became Grono’s right hand man.

Escaping the slaughter, Shipmaster Grono 'Yendam did a slipspace jump, and the crew of the Gauntlet of the Ancients was thought to be lost with all hands.

Shipmaster of the Gauntlet of the Ancients
''“Prepare to die! You will perish under my blade as Shipmaster Sorv 'Tunostee perished under your hammer!”''

-Grono 'Yendam killing Gorvanus.

A few months after the end of the Human-Covenant War in 2553, the Gauntlet of the Ancients returned at Sanghelios, and struck an outpost, killing all and taking supplies. It then went to slipspace. Grono Yendam had turned to a pirate, stealing supplies and killing humans and Swords of Sanghelios alike. They mainly took supplies, but also used a Luminary to find Forerunner artifacts, and use them at Grono’s command. Grono also hired Sangheili mercenaries to build safe havens for his crew.

Grono also did attacks on the Jiralhanae homeworld, Doisac, in revenge for what they had done, and to find Gorvanus. In 2554, an SDV-Class Heavy Corvette attacked a Swords of Sanghelios research facility on Quendor, killing a thousand researchers. Before the Corvette could escape, however, the Gauntlet of the Ancients appeared, and immobilized the ship. Grono, Zholos, and a team of Sangheili Commanders boarded the ship and slaughtered the crew, and stormed the bridge. After wounding the ship’s commander, Gorvanus, Grono speculated that the situation was similar to when Gorvanus killed Sorv, and said it would be a fitting death for Gorvanus, before decapitating him with Varmint’s Nail.

Deciding to visit his homeworld again, Grono went to the surface, and visited 'Yendam Keep, where he visited the Kaidon, Nak’s uncle. The Kaidon asked of Nak’s whereabouts, and Grono answered that he thought Nak was dead. The Kaidon sighed, and thanked Grono, believing that the Swords had saved them. Grono then spat at the Kaidon’s feet and said the Swords were blasphemy, saying he was a righteous Shipmaster, and left.

As he was leaving, Grono was approached by a crippled Sangheili. He introduced himself as a senior scientist, Kolasa 'Zam, who Grono was sent to assassinate four years prior. Kolasa explained that he was still trying to create a war machine, but was stopped when he joined the Swords. Kolasa asked Grono if he could join his crew, so he could create his machine. Grono agreed, but only if he got to command the machine. Kolasa happily obliged.

After introducing Kolasa to Zholos, Grono quickly made Kolasa the scientist of the Gauntlet of the Ancients. By 2555, the ''Gauntlet of the Ancients'' was known as a pirate ship for killing Humans and Sangheili alike. They stole a multitude of Forerunner artifacts, mainly weapon and slipspace upgrades. Kolasa eventually finished his machine, a large mech he dubbed an Orc.

While refueling at the independent Colony of Venezia, Grono was approached by a trio of Sangheili. Asking what they wanted, Grono learned that they were Sangheili diplomats from Sanghelios. The one in the middle, a female, asked Grono if he remembered her. Grono was confused at first, but then recognized her as his old friend, Munasa 'Wattinr.

After docking the Gauntlet, Grono spent several days catching up with Munasa over current events, learning that her father Xytan 'Jar Wattinree had died during the Great Schism. They then kept in contact while Grono commanded the Gauntlet of the Ancients. While leaving orbit, Kolasa gave Grono the coordinates to a powerful Forerunner artifact on the backwater world of Drawn.

Cleanser
“You will bear witness to me, the great Shipmaster Grono 'Yendam, as I end this creature’s pitiful lifespan!”

-Grono 'Yendam executing Captain Andrew Barnett.

Upon arrival at Drawn in 2556, Grono watched as a human ship laid waste to an excavation factory run by one of Grono’s hired mercenaries, a Zealot from Jul 'Mdama’s Storm Covenant. Shortly after, Grono launched a wave of Banshees towards the ship, destroying it’s defenses, before the Gauntlet destroyed it with a plasma lance. A lance of Covenant went to find survivors, while a Demon lance called Fireteam Atom boarded the Gauntlet in a dropship. When Fireteam Atom made it to the bridge, Grono had left, and sent a squad of Sangheili Warriors to fight them. The Warriors were killed, and Atom got back to the dropship. However, an Unggoy damaged it with a fuel rod gun, causing it to crash.

Grono sent one of Kolasa’s three Orc prototypes to salvage the wreckage, while his lance came back and reported capturing two humans, while a trio of Demons escaped. After having the lance’s Sangheili Commander shoot one human, Grono brought the other, the ship’s commanding officer, Captain Andrew Barnett into a prison cell, to await execution. Meanwhile, Kolasa had lead a Legion to the dig site with Zholos, and unearthed a Forerunner artifact with an Oracle inside, designated 589 Curious Puzzle, claiming it was trapped inside the device, which it called the Cleanser. The Cleanser was a smaller alternative to the Halo array to wipe out life in the galaxy, but Forerunners figured it would take too long to use. The Cleanser needed scans of a species DNA, approximately ten specimens, to wipe out all of that species in a light-year’s range. The Forerunners had planned to use it on the Flood, but discovered that it did not work and scrapped it. After learning this, Grono realized that the Halos truly weren’t revered, and were more of doomsday weapons. Thinking the Followers’ salvation was at hand, Grono boldly asked the Oracle if the Forerunners were gods. It answered no.

Realizing that all the Covenant faith was a lie, like the Swords of Sanghelios said, Grono resolved to use the Cleanser to wipe out humanity, and never told any of his crew members. Scanning the dead human’s DNA cells, Grono went to Captain Barnett’s prison cell with a pair of Kig-Yar, which Grono barely tolerated, and executed the Captain with Varmint’s Nail, before scanning his DNA. The Orc returned, and went to the Gauntlet’s cargo bay, where Fireteam Atom burst out and slaughtered a lance. Kolasa had a pair of Sangheili pilot his other Orcs to stop Atom, but one was destroyed by Atom’s Orc, which still had a Demon within. The two Orcs fought, with Atom’s Orc brutally damaged, and the Sangheili Orc gaining the upper hand, when the Demon’s Orc grabbed a plasma battery and shoved it towards the other Orc, causing an explosion that engulfed both mechs.

As Grono thought things couldn’t get any worse, all across the ship, Sangheili started massacring soldiers, with Grono eventually locking himself in the bridge with a lance and Zholos. A security video later showed that Kolasa killed a Demon with his Guard Drones, before the rest of Fireteam Atom eliminated him. Questioning how the mutiny could have happened, Grono was fired on, and sustained minor injuries. Grono stared in disbelief, when he saw Zholos standing there, holding a smoking plasma rifle. Zholos laughed, and stated that Grono’s little “Cult” was nothing, also citing that Grono was an undeserving lowlife that climbed his way to power. Zholos said Grono had terrible combat experience, only participating in several battles with Humanity.

Grono took out Varmint’s Nail, and stated that in the Followers, he had killed many enemies, to which Zholos whipped out his own energy sword, challenging Grono to a duel. Grono accepted, and went for Zholos. The lance just watched as they fought, with Grono skimming Zholos several times. Grono sensed victory was near, but suddenly Zholos pulled out another energy sword. Surprised, Grono started to falter, and knowing there was only one thing left, Grono lunged with his hand for Zholos. Screaming with pain as Zholos severed his hand, Grono roared in agony, while Zholos dropped his energy swords in surprise. Regaining his stature, Grono shoved Zholos to the ground, planting his foot on the Fieldmaster’s chest. Grono said this was exactly how he killed High Councilor Qav 'Bagozee, and said that he always liked the Covenant’s Arbiter concept. Wanting to kill Zholos, but still finding a use for him, Grono gave the Fieldmaster an energy sword and a datapad to record, and ordered him to kill the Demons, stating that if he came back in fear, Grono would execute him. Zholos grumbled and left to kill Fireteam Atom.

After tending to his wound, mourning his lost honor, and quelling the rebellion by sending a transmission across the Gauntlet of the Ancients, Grono looked at a screen that was linked to Zholos’ datapad. Grono saw the trio of Demons that escaped his lance at the human ship’s wreckage. Zholos killed two of them swiftly, and impaled the last one in the stomach. Grono, still concerned about Fireteam Atom, sent the Gez'Dar Assault Legion after them. From consistent contacts, Grono heard that there was only Demon left on the ship, and sent Zholos after it, while his forces delivered eight dead bodies that they had found in the wreckage. Scanning them, Grono prepared to kill the last Demon and unleash the Cleanser, when 589 Curious Puzzle locked down the Cleanser, refusing to harm the “Reclaimers.” Frustrated, Grono ignored Puzzle, wanting the Demon dead anyway.

Zholos finally encountered the Demon in the Reactor, where they fought. During the fight, the Demon said he was going to detonate the Reactor to destroy the ship. Fearing death, Grono edged towards a lifeboat. Throughout the battling, the Demon exclaimed he had a personal vendetta against Grono, unaware that Grono was listening. he introduced himself as Spartan IV Benjamin Nishurd, saying that Grono had killed his father on Carchar, and helped the Covenant take over, killing his mother, while he, at only seventeen, had barely escaped.

Zholos finally won, and asked the Demon if they had any last words. Ben said that he had a grenade, which he threw into the Reactor. Knowing he was doomed, Grono launched his lifeboat, just as the Gauntlet of the Ancients exploded. Believing he was stranded, Grono prepared for the worst.

Service in the Storm Covenant
Grono 'Yendam: “I will gladly fight in your name, Supreme Commander.”

Jul 'Mdama: ''“Really? If you do, because of your prior experience, I could offer you a position as one of my best Warriors. But what of the humans I work with?”''

Grono 'Yendam: ''“I can tolerate them, but only for so long. Your friend Gek 'Lhar was easily coaxed into working with human smugglers. I, however, might need some adjustment.”''

Grono 'Yendam requesting acceptance into Jul 'Mdama’s Storm Covenant.

After a day, a Brigantine ship came out of slipspace. Intercepting Grono’s pod, he was brought aboard. There, he met the Shipmaster, a battle-scarred Zealot, who introduced himself as Gek 'Lhar, the right hand man of Jul 'Mdama, the Supreme Commander of the Storm Covenant. Gek said that he had been monitoring Grono’s movements ever since he hired the Zealot on Drawn. Gek said he was impressed by Grono’s skill, raiding bases for artifacts. Gek explained that he wanted to offer Grono a position in the Storm Covenant, with a high rank involved, hinting that the Storm Covenant hated the Swords of Sanghelios too. Grono accepted, and Gek set course for an uncharted planet, Requiem, where Grono would meet up with Jul.

Once there, Grono beheld a large fleet of ships, amazed. They set course for a CAS-Class Assault Carrier, Song of Retribution, Jul’s prized flagship. Once there, several Zealots greeted them, praising Grono for his acts to the Swords. They walked through corridors, until a pair of humans passed. Outraged, Grono took out Varmint’s Nail, and lunged. He was stopped by Gek however, who said they were smugglers working for him. Frustrated at the fact of humans working with the Storm Covenant, Grono put his blade away, and proceeded to the bridge. There, he met the famed Jul 'Mdama.

Jul acknowledged Grono’s actions and gave him an offer in the Storm Covenant. Jul reminded Grono that the Storm Covenant was mainly enemies with the Swords of Sanghelios and scouted for Forerunner artifacts, which was why Jul barely tolerated humans. Grono replied that he could maybe tolerate the humans, but only for so long. Jul then incorporated Grono into the Storm Covenant, giving Grono the rank of Warrior.

Grono didn’t see much action, mainly accompanying Jul to meetings with his Zealots. Grono disliked being cooped up in a dormitory, and asked Jul for a mission. Jul agreed that it was time for Grono to fight, and gave him surgery to replace his severed hand with cybernetics. Grono was not ashamed, but amazed at this, before Jul said that they were preparing to attack a base occupied by the Swords. Grono boarded a frigate bound for the moon of Suban. Once there, Grono commanded a lance of Storm Sangheili into the facility, killing the Sangheili there, and capturing the officer. Grono thought something was suspicious, when he examined the officer. Waiting until the Storm soldiers went to investigate the facility, Grono interrogated the officer. He unhappily gave Grono the information, telling that they were trying to improve the Needler. Grono asked why anyone would be pathetic enough to join the Swords, and the officer answered that they saved him from his ship, Fortitude’s Wisdom. Grono, shocked, asked the officer if they knew a Sangheili named Nak 'Yendam. The Sangheili was appalled and replied that he was Nak.

Grono revealed his identity, and Nak told him that humanity was not so bad, and that it was time to change. Grono refused to accept this, and let Nak escape to a nearby village, losing his friend to his temper. Leaving the base with the Needler blueprints, Grono returned to Jul 'Mdama’s fleet. Upon return, Jul praised Grono’s skill, and sent him on many more missions over several months. Grono liked these missions, capturing artifacts, and killing Swords and humans. Grono had another temper flare in late 2556, when Jul gave him a mission with a certain partner.

Infiltration of ONI
''“So, you hate Demons, eh? Well, you’ve got your Angel right here.”''

-Killer Chief after beating Grono 'Yendam in a duel.

On one of his multiple missions, Grono was given a partner to do the mission by Jul 'Mdama. The mission was to infiltrate an ONI facility on Earth. The partner was supposedly a hacker, but when Grono met him, he lost it. Grono tried killing the human, and they fought ruthlessly, Grono thrusting his blade, but the human dodging every time. Eventually, Grono tired out, and dropped his sword. The human told Grono his alias, “Killer Chief” and offered Grono his blade, which Grono took. Grono told Killer he fought like a Demon, and Killer replied that humans called “Demons” Spartans. Killer also told Grono that he was a Spartan-turned-mercenary, had killed several before, and that he smugly thought of himself as an opposite to Master Chief. Grono asked how a human such as him could kill a Demon, and Killer said that he was born with a disorder called Muscle Hypertrophy Syndrome, that made him much stronger than normal, along with his added Spartan augmentations. Grono and Killer were transported to Earth in a smuggler ship, and made it to the facility’s entrance. True to his agenda, Killer easily hacked into the system, and soon had the door opened. Once inside, they set course for Office B7, where plans to upgrade Spartan armor significantly were there. Killing two ONI guards, the pair found the office, and Killer uploaded the plans to his datapad, before deleting the file on the computer. While preparing to leave, a squad of ONI operatives and a Spartan IV appeared. The Spartan ordered them to kill Grono, while he took care of Killer. Grono laughed and stated that four humans were nothing, and that he had been a Shipmaster, that killed a Demon team, Fireteam Atom.

The Spartan then growled and stated to Grono that he was Benjamin, the leader of the Spartan team. Astounded, Grono believed he was dead. Ben said that he somehow survived in a stasis field, and was rescued by the UNSC, and rehabilitated. Before anything else could happen, Killer attacked. Grono sliced one human in two with Varmint’s Nail, and impaled two more operatives with one lunge. Grono then grabbed the last ONI soldier, and broke her neck with his bare hands. Killer was having a fistfight with Ben, when Grono tried stabbing the Spartan. Ben dodged, and stabbed Grono in the gut with a combat knife. Pained, Grono stepped out of the fight, before Killer bested Ben in combat. Defeated, Ben retreated, while Killer got out meds to apply to Grono’s wounds.

Leaving while they could, Grono and Killer traveled back to Jul 'Mdama, where he could analyze the data, and learn the Spartan IV weaknesses. Killer prepared to leave, stating that he had another contractor waiting for him. Grono surprisingly admitted that Killer was a good partner, and the only human he could probably trust, because of Killer Chief’s beliefs. Killer said that it was just his job, and told Grono if he wanted to, he would make a great mercenary. Killer left the next day.

Requiem Campaign
Grono 'Yendam: ''“So is it true? Is the Didact real?”''

Jul 'Mdama: ''“Indeed. I am now Didact’s Hand. He will help us fight humanity.”''

Grono 'Yendam: ''“Praise the Forerunners. They actually are going to help us.”''

Jul 'Mdama: “What do you mean?”

Grono 'Yendam: ''“My faith was broken long ago. I joined this for revenge on humanity. Not religion.”''

Jul 'Mdama: ''“I never have told anyone this, and I hope you can keep it a secret. I created this for the same reason. The Didact shall help us though.”''

Grono 'Yendam: ''“That makes two of us. Your secret is safe with me, Supreme Commander.”''

-Jul 'Mdama revealing his motives of the Storm Covenant to Grono 'Yendam.

Grono had started to gain a reputation as one of Jul’s many “Pet Reapers” which were high ranking underlings that did missions sent directly from Jul himself. They also were known to execute Jul’s main enemies, and disloyal soldiers, getting the term Reaper. In June, 2557, Grono’s scout ship detected a human signal. Sending a warning to Jul, Grono prepared a boarding party, that boarded the ship.

Grono was present on Jul’s flagship, Song of Retribution, when the human ship launched a missile at the boarding ship, destroying it. At that moment, Requiem opened, and the whole fleet was sucked down into it. After Gek 'Lhar sent out a scout force, the Storm Covenant began to explore the planet. Grono led a lance and eventually found a Cartographer. He was able to escape on a Phantom, when a Demon appeared and took control. Later, Jul gave Grono and the Covenant surprising news. The Demon was Master Chief, who had taken refuge on the ship, not dying after all.

Excited to gain Artifacts inside the planet, Jul personally came down with Grono and some Zealots. Jul was hoping to awaken a Forerunner warrior known as the Didact rumored to be there. They encountered Forerunner constructs that Jul said were Prometheans, the loyal soldiers of the Didact. After gaining entrance to the structure where the Didact’s Cryptum was, they were quickly surrounded by Promethean Knights. Summoning reinforcements, they fought the Prometheans with un-matchable vigor, and Grono had slain three by the time Master Chief arrived.

Making his way through the crossfire of Covenant and Prometheans. Chief took hold of the Cryptum’s controls, before unwittingly unleashing the Didact. Upon his arrival, Jul called out the Didact’s name, and the Covenant bowed down before him. Grono was astonished, knowing now, that there were still Forerunners alive. The Prometheans stopped fighting too, and beheld the Forerunner, turning from sky blue, to scarlet red. The Didact single handedly took out Master Chief, and flew out in his Cryptum, while Grono and Jul evacuated on a Phantom. After escaping, Jul went to offer his services to the Didact.

While in charge of a scouting base, Grono intercepted a distress signal from another human ship outside Requiem. Thinking it was backup for the first, Grono prepared to call a strike force, but alerted Jul when discovering it was a human supercarrier. Jul returned, and Grono told him that their fleet was no match for the supercarrier. Jul said not to worry because the Didact would help them disable the ship, making Jul “Didact’s Hand”. During the invasion of the carrier, Grono was leading a scout mission to an array of Forerunner towers. He was informed by Gek 'Lhar that they would help the Didact. After securing the position, Grono was put in charge of a Legion there. Staying to guard the towers, Grono missed the events of Master Chief destroying the gravity well, allowing the ship to escape.

Thinking the battle was over, Grono started to relax, but was unfortunate when Master Chief, alone, entered the structures while the Didact was preparing his weapon. Although his tower was not infiltrated, soon after it and several other buildings gravitated towards the Cryptum. Narrowly escaping in a Lich, Grono feared the Cryptum would be destroyed and he would take the blame. Luckily, the towers went back to their normal position before the Cryptum plunged into the ground.

Suddenly, a leviathan Command Ship burst out. Realizing that this was the Didact’s flagship, Grono knew that the supercarrier would be no match for it, if they fought. Wanting to follow the Didact, Grono was ordered by Jul 'Mdama to stay behind on Requiem with Gek 'Lhar, while the other Liches followed. Begrudgingly, Grono obeyed and watched as the Didact left.

After remaining on Requiem for a while, Jul’s fleet returned. Hoping for tales of salvation, Grono, Gek, and several Zealots were summoned to Jul’s new headquarters. Jul said that while the Didact was defeated and his ship destroyed, Jul was now in control of the Prometheans. Telling them to get ready for an assault he planned to wage in a few months, Jul had them leave. However, the humans returned with their Supercarrier, now known with dread as Infinity, and rammed a warship, completely destroying it before deploying a small fleet of ships to fight the Covenant.

Grono was sent to a desert outpost where a Legion was. Early during the ground campaign, Jul had Grono go to a mercenary ship commanded by the Sangheili terrorist, Parg 'Vol. After escorting Vol down, Grono went back to his post, which was shortly thereafter attacked by Fireteam Castle. After using a Wraith tank to bombard the Demons, Grono’s Legion killed them, with Grono slaying their leader himself using Varmint’s Nail. Grono also discovered that Gek was killed by Demons. Soon, the campaign for Requiem ended with Jul setting the planet to collide with its sun. Grono escaped with him, and they prepared to recuperate their losses while Jul conversed with the human traitor Dr. Halsey, the creator of the Demons. Grono did not pay much attention to Halsey’s schemes, as she was under the personal protection of Jul, and had retrieved half of a Forerunner artifact called the Janus Key. Halsey discovered that it would lead them to a map of artifacts called the Absolute Record.

End of the Storm Covenant
“''You are alive? And I thought the great Fleetmaster Oru 'Vanuxee had died in battle. No. You are a mercenary, and at that I see my old friend Dipdip has joined your gang. Very well. This is a changing galaxy. There are many unusual things out there.”''

-Grono 'Yendam finding out Oru 'Vanuxee’s fate.

For his service, Jul gave Grono a permanent Legion to command. Known as the Zog'Fee Imperial Legion, some of Jul’s most elite, they would go to Jul’s base of operations, Hesduros. Coming out of slipspace, Grono lead the Legion to the planet’s surface, where they met Kaidon Panom. Grono requested reinforcements for the Storm Covenant due to the battle of Requiem. Knowing that Jul must have sent him, Panom transported three RCS-Class Armored Cruisers into slipspace towards Jul’s location. Gracious, Grono thanked the Kaidon and followed the ships.

On returning, Grono was thanked by Jul, who told him that with the Didact’s death, some of the Covenant’s followers were becoming disillusioned. Saying that Grono had done well, Jul offered him a promotion to Zealot if he could weed out the traitors. Grono eagerly agreed. His first target was a Sangheili Ranger that was preparing to defect to the Swords of Sanghelios with the rest his lance. Grono spied on them for many days, and finally, satisfied that they were traitors, crept into their barracks. Slaying all the Unggoy and Kig-Yar, Grono found three Sangheili Rangers. Cutting down two of them with a storm rifle, Grono told the last one that defection was futile, before beheading him. Jul thanked Grono who had lived up to the Pet Reaper name. Grono was then boosted up among the Zealots, as one of the only ones not native to Hesduros. Becoming a well known confidant among Jul’s inner circle, Grono appeased Jul with traitors to execute. The zenith of his career was when Grono overheard a group of Zealots planning to overthrow Jul. Their planned new leader was a Sangheili named Sali 'Nyon. Grono reported back to Jul, who planned to capture the other half of the Janus Key from the humans. During an assault on the ship Infinity, 'Nyon shot down a dropship and took the half, beginning an open rebellion.

During the battle, a Sangheili Minor defected from 'Nyon’s forces and contacted Grono, who reluctantly set up a rendezvous point where the Minor presented him the Janus Key half. In return, Grono let the Sangheili live before presenting the holy artifact to Jul, who had used Song of Retribution to quell the rebellion. The fleet escaped with from the Infinity as 'Nyon was imprisoned in the brig.

Soon after, Dr. Halsey pinpointed the location of the Absolute Record. The Covenant traveled there, but soon encountered the Infinity yet again. Taking command of the Song of Retribution as Jul, Halsey, and some Zealots went down to the surface. As the Storm Covenant fought Demon forces, the Sangheili Ayit 'Sevi freed 'Nyon from captivity and took over a CAS-Class Assault Carrier called Breath of Annihilation. Grono had the Song fire it’s armament, damaging the Annihilation, but pulled back to rescue Jul and Halsey, enabling 'Nyon’s new ship to escape.

Despite his failure, Grono was congratulated by Jul, who was jubilant at Grono’s ability to still command a ship. Two months later, while Jul was on Kamchatka with Halsey, Grono took command of a Kraken battle station. Using it to fight off the Prometheans which were rebelling, Grono destroyed many Prometheans, when he learned of Jul’s death at the hands of Demons. Morose, Grono ordered a tactical retreat back to Jul’s fleet. Regrouping with the remaining commanders of the Storm Covenant, Grono learned that most had defected, while some even created their own factions.

Taking the few ships remaining, Grono led the fleet to the space station Argent Moon, which had been boarded by Master Chief and several Demons. Planning to kill the Demons, the station suddenly exploded destroying several ships. Grono repudiated the thought of the Covenant being done for, and missed the opportunity to destroy a Prowler that escaped the destruction. Learning that their only strong hold left was Sunaion, Grono heard chatter of defectors in the Song of Retribution’s hangar. Arriving there, Grono whipped out Varmint’s Nail, as the defectors’ leader said they were just mercenaries, not true believers. Grono asked why they were there, and the leader said they were hired by a contractor to steal equipment. The leader said that the others were part of his gang, and introduced himself as a high-bid mercenary, Oru 'Vanuxee.

Grono was flabbergasted as Oru introduced his crew. The Kig-Yar was a veteran pirate called Vike Vok, who Grono expressed his distaste at, for being a scavenger. Oru’s second-in-command was a Sangheili named Boro 'Vasaan. His three Unggoy were an unusually smart one named Roopum, and Grono’s old subordinate, Dipdip. The last was your average Unggoy, Hugpy. Truculent, Grono prepared to fight Oru, stating that he was a disgrace, when Oru offered Grono a mercenary position, as the Storm Covenant was on the verge of collapsing. A few minutes later a Zealot arrived to find Grono escaping with the gang in Oru’s modified Spirit, equipped with a slipspace drive.

Mercenary Career
“I am 'Skivich, founder of a criminal empire, friend to all Sangheili.”

-Grono 'Yendam meeting Sangheili crime lord 'Skivich.

On the trip through slipspace Oru decided to tell Grono about his decision. Oru had fled with Dipdip and Boro as the Jiralhanae took over. Oru had some “Difficulties” with Dipdip after abandoning him at their crash site but was rescued when Dipdip hijacked a Spirit, saving them. Soon after, Oru was captured by the minions of 'Skivich, the founder of a newly formed criminal empire. The only way out of being slaughtered for 'Skivich’s delight was to join his group as a mercenary. Oru then set down the foundations for his gang with Boro and Dipip, recruiting Roopum and Hugpy in the process. Grono asked about the Kig-Yar scum Vike, and Oru said he defected from his old gang. Grono asked where they were headed, and Oru answered Venezia, the planet of mercenaries, crime, and terror.

Coming out of slipspace, the Spirit traveled to a remote spot on the planet with a single mega-city in it. They landed in the city center where a bulky, weaponized fortress was. Grono followed Oru’s gang to the entrance where they met 'Skivich, who introduced himself as the dictator of the small Sangheili criminal empire, the Flame. The crime lord had Oru’s gang leave so he could talk to Grono in private. 'Skivich gave Grono an offer to work for him as a mercenary, and 'Skivich would supply him with the necessary equipment. Grono asked about other contractors, and 'Skivich said Grono could do other missions too, as long as they didn’t interfere with his plans. Grono took up 'Skivich’s offer and abandoned his Zealot armor to forget his past in the dead Storm Covenant, and donned a set of Warrior armor.

Shortly before Grono’s first mission, the alliance known as the Created attacked, devastating multiple planets. 'Skivich said that with the governments out of the picture, Mercenaries and bounty hunters had a bigger career range. Grono then started taking up missions from 'Skivich and other criminal groups, making a large sum of money and working with Oru’s gang from time to time. On one mission, Grono, along with two humans, was tasked with capturing an artifact held in a Created outpost on the planet Madrigal. While meeting with his assigned partners, Grono recognized one of them as his old friend Killer Chief. They greeted each other, and Killer said that Grono finally took his advice. They were briefed on the mission, having a reward of several million credits, with the outpost only having Prometheans. Arriving at Madrigal via a smuggler ship, they touched down on the surface and trekked to the outpost. Once there, they found a squad of Promethean Soldiers guarding the building. The second human was brazen, and charged at the Prometheans, guns blazing. She only took out two with her weapon before the Captain swiftly ended her. Killer and Grono went unto the breach, and Killer stabbed two more Soldiers while Grono took down the Captain with his Concussion Rifle.

They discovered the prize to be a Forerunner Ancilla, who identified itself as 589 Curious Puzzle, the Monitor that denied Grono from using the Cleanser on Humanity. Grono and Puzzle remembered each other, and their hatred. The pair prepared to haul Puzzle away, but were sidetracked when a contingent of Promethean Knights appeared and drove Killer Chief out of the complex, before locking Grono and Puzzle in. Two Knights teleported into the room, and Puzzle told Grono they would have to work together to get out. Grono reluctantly agreed, and held off the Knights while Puzzle tried opening the doors.

Eventually Puzzle cracked the code, and they emerged to find all the Prometheans dead, with Killer wielding a rocket launcher. They boarded the smuggler ship, and escaped right as Puzzle detected a large object arrive in the system. On the way back, Grono asked Killer what he had been up to while they were separated. Killer answered that he had infiltrated ONI again to wipe his contractor’s name off the most wanted list, and found out Grono was a tier-three target. Killer also found out in another file that Prometheans were actually ancient humans, and ever since, hated killing them. Grono snorted, still having a callous attitude towards them.

Upon receiving their payment, Killer and Grono parted ways yet again, but a few months later the hiring group called Grono back and gave him Curious Puzzle, stating that they had all the information they wanted, plus Puzzle was starting to annoy them. Puzzle said that with his functions comprised as the Humans’ creations wreaked havoc, the only logical explanation was that the Reclaimers were to fault, as they created the danger. Puzzle offered his services to Grono, apologizing about the incident on Gauntlet of the Ancients. Grono accepted, and Puzzle became his personal assistant, also becoming a valuable asset on missions, with his ability to hack into systems. Grono is still a mercenary today, working for various crime empires, but the Flame the most, alongside Curious Puzzle, Oru 'Vanuxee’s gang, and Killer Chief, while secretly being tracked by Benjamin Nishurd and the Spartan Headhunter Bethany-A302.

Personality
As a child, Grono was very introverted after his mother died, only speaking to his uncle and father. One day when he was shopping for food, he ran into Nak 'Yendam, who pushed him to his breaking point, causing Grono to lash out at Nak and insult him. In the Covenant Military, he made his first friend with fellow Sangheili Gyev 'Ruvstee, but because of his quiet nature let himself be shunned by Vor 'Moramee. Grono’s first push into his current aggressive nature was when he trashed his living cell in a fit of rage after learning that Nak would be leading his lance.

As he served in the Covenant, Grono grew more callous towards humans because they had killed multiple lance-mates. He thought of all humans as beasts that deserved to die, and did his best to make that happen. When Grono was introduced to religion, he was very interested, and joined a religious group called the Followers of the Forgotten, becoming a devout follower even after he found out the leader, Qav 'Bagozee’s real intent. Grono was also more tactical and less honorable than other Sangheili, such as the time when he retreated from a city on Sigma Octanus IV, saving himself, but at a cost of shame.

Like most Sangheili, Grono harbored an ancient hatred for the Jiralhanae, which was fueled during the Great Schism. Because of this hatred, he went to great lengths to hunt down and execute Chieftain Gorvanus, who killed Grono’s former Shipmaster Sorv 'Tunostee. Grono also disliked Kig-Yar, after his subordinate Wez let an Unggoy die to keep some contraband safe. Grono judged this to be the personalities of all Kig-Yar, and barely tolerated the Kig-Yar on the Gauntlet of the Ancients when he was Shipmaster. Although he mimicked some of their pirate ways, Grono refused to acknowledge that, and showed distaste for fellow mercenary Vike Vok.

After his ship was destroyed, Grono gave up religion until the Storm Covenant awakened the Didact, ramping up Grono’s religious demeanor once again. Grono still hated humans until he met Killer Chief, and after working with him realized that not all humans were enemies, and that some could make good allies. After the Storm Covenant fell Grono became a mercenary, giving up religion to focus on money and avoiding the Created.

“Alright, who wants to get in line to die first?”

-Grono 'Yendam executing hostages on an employer’s orders.

As a mercenary, Grono focused only on using money for equipment to help with missions, instead of a luxurious lifestyle like most popular mercenaries. He willingly worked with any partners assigned to him, but only cooperated for the money. Grono grew very remorseless, and that made it easier for him to kill targets. This gave some of his cohorts surprise, especially human ones. Grono was also a bit of a thrill seeker, taking dangerous missions with associates that would likely betray him to get all the payment. This only happened twice, but Grono hunted them down with a deadly vigor, taking their lives. The only missions Grono did not prefer were ones involving the Created, because of their immense power. Grono would only accept the less dangerous ones involving them.

Equipment
Throughout his life Grono used a variety of equipment. As part of the Covenant Empire, he used whatever weapons were assigned to him. As a Minor, he used a plasma pistol, before switching to a plasma rifle as he progressed to Major, and Ultra. As the Anti-Ascetic commander of the Followers of the Forgotten, Grono used many weapons depending on the situation, but used an energy sword to duel with the Followers’ leader Qav 'Bagozee before murdering him.

As the Shipmaster of the Gauntlet of the Ancients, Grono had control over a vast repository of ground and air vehicles alike. He wielded the personal energy sword Varmint’s Nail, passed down from each Shipmaster, and used it to execute his foes. With the help of Kolasa 'Zam, Grono also had a trio of war mechs called Orcs. Grono used this armada to further his pirating ends until Spartan IV Benjamin Nishurd destroyed it all.

In the Storm Covenant, because of his high rank, Grono also used almost whatever he pleased, but prominently used Varmint’s Nail during assaults on enemies. With the fall of the Storm Covenant and death of Jul 'Mdama, Grono turned mercenary. In this career, he wields an assortment of weapons he buys with payment money, human and Covenant alike, Although his favorites are the concussion rifle and Varmint’s Nail. His personal assistant is 589 Curious Puzzle, who is sort of an asset to Grono, with some considering Puzzle an advanced personal A.I.

Covenant Empire
-Sangheili Minor (2546-2547)

-Sangheili Major (2547-2551) (Second time [2552])

-Sangheili Ultra (2551-2552)

Pirate Captain
-Shipmaster (2552-2553)

Storm Covenant

-Warrior (2556-2558)

-Zealot (2558)

Mercenary Career
-Mercenary (2558-2559)