Heractus

Heractus is the current Chieftan of the Jiralhanae following the first Human-Covenant war and is currently a member of the Sovereign Covenant Empire formed by the Prophet of Decadence. He is a deep believer in the Religion of the Sovereign Covenant Empire, as well as the Great Journey. He also is among the most savage of the Brutes, ruling with a deep iron fist and an intense cling to the Traditions of the species.

Birth
The Birth of Heractus occurred in March of 2501, nearly two decades prior to the first Human-Covenant war. He was raised by strict parents of a well known tribe to follow all traditions of the Brutes, along with being a strong follower of the Great Journey. He joined the Covenant Empire at the young age of 18 in 2519, six years prior to the Human-Covenant War's start.

Early Years with the Covenant
As a member of the Covenant, Heractus was a deep follower of the Prophet of Truth and the Prophet of Mercy, often buying into their words more than those of the Prophet of Regret. He also loathed the Sangheli with a passion, being one of many Brutes claiming they would be better protection for the Prophets. However, this was not the only thing he did for the Covenant. He made sure to use his strength to eliminate many groups of Heretics (seperate of the ones the Arbiter slayed), and also managed to secure many different strongholds for the Covenant. During the war, he continued to gain respect within the ranks of the Covenant. He managed to locate and destroy many lone UNSC operatives and operations, along with destroying two Frigates when he was put in charge of a cruiser (the previous shipmaster was killed on accident by a ODST infiltrater). Despite this, he was not put into active battle until the end of the War.

The Great Schism
Once the Prophet of Regret was killed on Installation 05 by John-117, Heractus sided with Truth and Mercy when the Brutes began replacing the Elites. Eventually, the Master Chief arrived at High Charity right as the Covenant Civil War began. Heractus was not present on High Charity, but instead was on an Assault Carrier, participating the fighting outside. Eventually, the ship followed the Dreadnought to Earth, escorting it.

End of the War
When the Dreadnought arrived on Earth, the Assault Carrier once more participated in the large fighting that occurred at the assault. It stayed close to Truth, however, and did not seperate far from the Prophet's ship. It even followed the Dreadnought into the portal to Installation 00 when the excavation was finished.

Once the Ark was reached, Heractus remained once more in the fighting above rather than being deployed onto the Ark. It was on the ship that he killed any Sangheli that entered the hangar, making sure that the ship was not taken by Separtist forces. He was later given command of the ship following the death of a higher ranked Brute on the ship by a Zealot Elite that managed to get passed the blockade. Following this, Heractus commanded the ship into destroying three Battlecruisers of the Separtists before Truth was killed. With Truth's death, Heractus decided it would be smarter to leave to regroup rather than stay, in-order to regain numbers and grow stronger and come back to the enemy later. However, not all Brutes agreed with him.

The Brute Schism
After the war with the Humans and the Separtists, Heractus' idea of regrouping and gaining strength via numbers was seen by some Brutes as the wrong way to handle it, even (and perhaps why) when the New Covenant Empire was formed and the Brutes were a part of it. This brought on an event known as "The Brute Schism", in which some Brutes wanted to attack instantly while others agreed with Heractus and the other Alpha Tribe leaders. Eventually, these Separtist Brutes were exiled from Doisac and eventually were the attackers in the Battle of Tài Sum. Despite the battle, the Brute Separtist do still exist, though have not made any further attacks or plans at this time. Also, this lead to a different Problem on Doisac; the battle for the next Chieftan of the Brutes. It was during this that many Brutes fought and some killed eachother over who would be next leader, eventually deciding that it would be achievements in battle to decide who would lead their species. It was shortly after this that the Sovereign Covenant Empire was formed from the New Covenant Empire by the Prophet of Decadence, who Heractus now blindly follows.

Becoming the Chieftan
Following the Battle of Sagawitchewan which lead to the death of war chieftan and Fleet master Zharakus, Heractus' achievements were looked over by a Prophet within the Sovereign Empire, and he was appointed the new Chieftan of the Jiralhanae. He is highly respected and feared amongst his species, and has made sure that Tradition is not changed. He is currently spending most of his time making sure his species stays strong, as now another war has started. Despite being the highest ranking Brute around, he is still wearing Regular Chieftan armour.

Trivia

 * He is a Deep follower of the Prophet of Truth even in death, as he wants the Arbiter captured alive so he can kill the Sangheli himself. He states that it would be "for what he did to the Hierarch". No doubt speaking of Truth, the Prophet that the Arbiter killed on Installation 00.
 * His armour is of two ranks below his current Rank, though this could be because the main Chieftan of the Brutes does not have the original Armour anymore after the Battle of Installation 05, so they have to use what-ever armour they can.
 * Had Zharakus not have died, then Heractus would not be the Chieftan of the Jiralhanae.