Dor 'Votam

"Decades of loyalty, all for nothing."--Dor 'Votam before his death at the hands of TibetusDor 'Votam (Oracle Code: S2-R2525-265) was the shipmaster of the Valorous Warrior. Born in a quiet village on Sanghelios, 'Votam was known for his strength and 
sense of loyalty, never once leaving a comrade behind in battle. He believed in the Covenant's purpose to its fullest extent, and he was repaid with death during the Great Schism. When his body was discovered, he was buried on the shorelines near his village.
== Biography ==
=== Early Life ===
Dor 'Votam was born in the Ninth Age of Reclamation (2525) in the small and quiet town of Tetam. This village was known for it's culture and ancient architecure, with some ruins of a colosseum still able to be seen when looking north from the village's observatory. His father had served in the Covenant military before being badly injured in combat, allowing him to raise Dor. He told him of how Tetam would fend off invaders who sought to harm a minor prophet, how they are arguably the most loyal village in all of Sanghelios. But how much of this is lies? How much is truth? Dor didn't know, nor did his father. It was common to pass down these stories.
Dor aspired to be just like his father, a noble warrior. He dreamt of standing above the bodies of heretics and whatever else threatened Tetam, watching as the village prospers. He begged his father to do much more training, especially in hand-to-hand combat. They would train and train for days on end with little sleep. This would benefit Dor, making him one of the stronger children in the village. But, like all good things, this came to an end.
A small brawl broke out in the village's marketplace between Dor and two other boys. Apparently, one boy slapped Dor in the back of the head and another one kicked him in the knee, knocking him down. They had saw how Dor was training with his father, as it was common to do this publicly in Tetam. Dor lunged at one, hitting him repeatedly in the face, knocking him out. The other boy grabbed a stick and whacked Dor with it, making him much more angry. He shoved him and left, leaving the boys to realize the fault of their actions.
The boys saw it as training, suffering no major injuries. They knew how strong Dor was, and they wanted to experience it first hand. When both of them told their fathers, they were enraged. They went to Dor's house to confront his father, who told him that they were just playing around. This was not a good enough answer, and one of them grabbed Dor's father by the neck and threw him at a wall. Shaken, he watched as he was pummeled in the face, leaving his mandibles broken.
When Dor saw this he rushed to get help, but it was too late. He was considered beyond saving as most of his brain was extremely damaged by the beating. He died two days later. Now having nobody to take care of him or train him, Dor left Tetam and ended up in the nearby village of Kahom. He was lucky enough to meet Orug 'Keravee, a veteran of the Covenant military. After telling 'Keravee of his situation, he agreed to help him.
He would train him and serve as his adoptive father when Dor lived in Kahom. He focused much more on melee combat, always telling Dor that he should be nimble and never stay still during combat. Over time, 'Keravee would record his observations. He noted that he had a lot of pent up anger against those who had killed his father and he was very determined to continue practicing for weeks. There were no doubts that he would be a good soldier on the battlefield.
When Dor was nearing his 18th birthday, 'Keravee gave him a custom-engraved needler. It had two Sangheili dueling on a shoreline, both unarmed. Art patterns run up and down the weapon, meeting at the grip. He gave it to Dor to show how much respect he had for him. The two would then travel to the shoreline near Tetam, it's beauty enhanced by the moonlight shining on the rocks. This was his final test.
Ready to fight, Dor watched as 'Keravee approached him fastly. He sidestepped, causing Orug to slip and fall on one of the rocks. He kicked him and attempted to put him into a chokehold. As strong as he was, he was unable to overpower the veteran, being quickly thrown off. This would last hours, the two exchanging blows. whenever they could. It ended with Dor being knocked off of the rock they were standing on.
When he got up, he watched as Orug nodded in approval. The two walked back to Kahom, Orug promising to allow Dor to come back here when he turned nineteen. This was the one thing he anticipated every single year. He was able to beat Orug that year, knocking him off of the rock in an hour. After this, he told Dor that he was ready to return to Tetam. Dor agreed, setting out to Tetam to hopefully find the men who killed his father.
They weren't there. Dor believed that they had died somehow, sighing of relief. He knew how strong they were, how they could kill him in moments like they did to his father. He saw two corpses chained two and covered in cut and bullet wounds. They were the men, and there they were. Dead. They were caught by the people, chained, and tortured. One of the corpses sprang to life. He roared and struggled in his chains.
Dor put his needler to the man's temple and pulled the trigger, tears coming from his eyes. Once again, he set out to Kahom. When he found 'Keravee, he told him what happened. He was the proudest he ever could've been. He patted Dor on the back and told him that he would be the perfect soldier. In Dor's mind, he put the man out of his misery, even if he shouldn't. He wanted revenge, and he got a sliver of it.
As soon as he turned twenty in 2545, he joined the Covenant military. He said his final goodbyes to 'Keramee, never seeing him again. He would never see his home again, either.
=== Service in the Covenant Military ===
==== Battle of Alden ====
Dor was put on the Valorous Warrior, the ship he would later command. He was one among thousands onboard waiting to land on the planet of Alden, which would be the home of one of the bloodiest battles. The first wave's dropship was shot down in minutes, so was the second's and third's. They were focusing on the ship, meaning certain death for everybody on board. He waited for his death, hoping that it would be quick.
Dor was lucky, being a part of the fifth wave. The Valorous Warrior, realizing that it would be easier to just bombard the position, advanced towards it. AA sites were found lining the road leading to the shipyard, about 4 or 5 on each side. They thought that they would be able to at least slow down the Covenant ships while they wait for reinforcements. They thought wrong, and the Valorous Warrior continued onwards to their target, the shipyard that held the unfinished UNSC Kenning. As soon as they reached the shipyard, the UNSC Gorbachev rose above the valley just north of it. A lengthy battle ensued, both ships being badly damaged in the end.
The shipmaster, Vron 'Moromee, ordered Dor and the others to board and attack the UNSC Gorbachev. If he hadn't the Gorbachev was bound to have done the same and destroy the Valorous Warrior. The humans were quickly dealt with, Dor putting them down with a single shot from his Type-51 Carbine. They made their way to the bridge and found the captain, Nicholas Morrison. After a quick Mexican standoff, 'Votamee lowered his weapon. As soon as Morrison went for his pistol, he killed him. This saved the Valorous Warrior and most likely the entire battle, allowing the Covenant to destroy the shipyard without further interruption. Frigates had attempted to avenge the Gorbachev, but were quickly dealt with.
This victory had it's costs, but it saved thousands of soldiers on other outer colonies. They couldn't handle the "strongest" of it's class, especially when they had lost four ships during combat to the UNSC Victoriam, a lone destroyer. When the Valorous Warrior left the scene, many of the ground forces were still on the planet. After the destruction of the shipyard they were heading towards the city of Holton, which was believed to have been used for manufacturing weapons. If the Valorous Warrior had stayed, they could've won. But it didn't. The UNSC had Holton under extreme lockdown, allowing nobody in or out. The ground forces were decimated by them, losing the battle. It was a pyrrhic victory for them, losing twice the amount the Covenant lost.
When shipmaster 'Moromee heard of this, he was devastated. Blaming himself, he considered taking his own life. Dor was able to convince him not to, and that he was doing the right thing by leaving. It was their orders, after all. The ship then returned to High Charity, awaiting another deployment.
==== The Rape of Breleki ====
Dor was one out of hundreds to have participated in the Rape of Breleki. The city rested in a crater on the backwater outer colony of Plymouth. When they originally arrived, they believed it to be deserted until they heard the noise of vehicles speeding by. When looking into it, they found a large and complex city that had a massive population. After realizing that it was barely guarded, they raided the city. It was hundreds of the city's police force versus twenty Sangheili. 
They learned the hard way that their pistols did not damage the invaders. Dor had an especially impressive kill count of 210 during the raid, mostly consisting of civilians. When they were done with the police, they turned their attention to the fleeing civilians. They rounded them up and executed them, killing each one with a swift decapitation by an energy sword. One man, Gordan Polonsky, attempted to save those who were being executed. He fired his assault rifle at the invaders, killing two and injuring five. Dor was able to drag away some of these wounded and then killed Polonsky with a shot from a beam rifle. 
The two entered the dropship they arrived in and flew away, docking in the Eternal Subjugation. When news spread of this, many were enraged. Thousands of men, women, and children dead at the hands of the Covenant. This incident became known as "The Rape of Breleki" because of the amount of civilians left dead. A memorial was erected in the ruined city, which has yet to be rebuilt. It remains as a time capsule, showing how violent the war was.
Dor was promoted to Major after this because of his heroism. The three he had saved were quickly recovering from their wounds. Shipmaster 'Moromee was very impressed.
==== Fall of Reach ====
Dor rarely saw combat on Reach. He only really saw the aftermath and the corpses of the thousands of human soldiers. He served as 'Moromee's righthand man throughout the battle, rising to the rank of Ultra after he was able to save multiple Unggoy from an assault at the cost of his right hand and foot. He watched as they killed humans in droves.
He had heard of the legendary "Noble Team" from another Sangheili, who said that they were the most intimidating foe they had ever faced. He prepared to fight them, but he never did. When Noble Six fell, he was relieved. They left Reach afterwards, the colony having been just another roadblock in the Covenant's path. Unfortunately, 'Moromee caught a disease. What disease this was is currently unknown, but it killed him in days. His last order was placing Dor in charge of the Valorous Warrior.
==== Shipmaster ====
Dor was a much more inexperienced shipmaster than 'Moromee. He was just a foot soldier placed into such an important role. He was able to maintain order in the ship, however. He was cautious of the arrival of a Jiralhanae named Tibetus. Two others joined him, telling Dor that it was ordered by the Prophet of Truth. He never saw much combat after this, only stopping to destroy one or two UNSC frigates. Everything seemed to be going well, until the Great Schism.
Days passed by without a revolt, leaving Dor unknowing of the approaching danger. When he had been told of this, he believed it to just be normal brutes going beserk, like they normally do. He was wrong, and he underestimated their loyalty. You thought Dor was loyal to his superiors? Tibetus was even more loyal. He had a shrine dedicated to the prophets and prayed to it every night.
After the raid on the UNSC Morte, they began to revolt. The Jiralhanae were killing the Sangheili in their sleep, moving towards the bridge. Tibetus found Dor looking at High Charity, knowing that he had been betrayed. He had heard the heavy steps and watched the footage of the act. He turned to face him, drawing his needler. Dor threw it across the room. He accepted death, he knew that it was inevitable
===== Death and Legacy =====
He was grabbed and his head was smashed into his console. Being held up by the others who had arrived with Tibetus, he was barely holding onto consciousness. Tibetus grabbed his gravity hammer and hit him with it. Now bleeding heavily, his last sight was Tibetus' hammer slamming down onto his chest. His corpse was mangled, his armor being twisted and useless.
They left the ship and his body behind, being found by a group of Sangheilis one year later. He was brought to Tetam after one was able to identify his body, who then buried him on the nearby shoreline. This is where he fought with Orug 'Keravee all those years ago. His needler was placed on top of his burial site as a sign of respect. He is regarded as a hero to the people of Tetam. It has been renamed in his honor, now being named Votam. A large statue was erected in the center of the town, a beautiful ray of sunshine illuminating it.
Though he is a hero on alien worlds, he is considered one of the worst humanity has encountered. Being such a close ally to Vron 'Moromee made him a priority target as well. He is also a very controversial figure, with many questioning whether or not he ever existed.
== Relations ==
=== Rtun 'Votam ===
Rtun 'Votam is the late father of Dor 'Votam. Only knowing him when he was young and barely remembering him in his later years, Dor still thinks of him fondly.
=== Orug 'Keravee ===
Dor was much closer to Orug 'Keravee than he was to his own father. This is because of the amount of time the two spent together and the respect the two shared for each other. He wielded his custom needler that was given to him by Orug as a give on his nineteenth birthday.
=== Vron 'Moromee ===
As like many Sangheili, he respected his commanding officer. Vron commanded Dor until his death, with his last action being promoting him to shipmaster. After his death he gave him a proper burial, placing him in an insertion pod and buried him in a collapsed section of the ship.
=== Tibetus ===
Dor was always skeptical of Tibetus. He was a random Jiralhanae who was placed aboard his ship without any previous mentions of this. As it turns out, he was right to be skeptical, as during the Great Schism they revolted against the Sangheili onboard including Dor. He gave him a long and excruciating death.
== Equipment ==
Dor used standard-issue equipment until he reached the rank of shipmaster. The standard blue and red armors of Minors and Majors never bothered him like some Sangheili. He always carried his custom needler in combination with another weapon. By far, his favorite combination with the needler was the beam rifle. He liked picking off humans from far away with this rifle, often stating how it was satisfying to see their heads explode.
When he became shipmaster, he donned the helmet of 'Moromee as respect. He also had engraved a skull into the back of his chestplate. Due to him never seeing frontline combat after this, he just used his needler. This armor was badly damaged after being executed, leaving it almost unidentifiable. The group who had found his body found the helmet in perfect shape. They put it back into the collapsed sector after finding out about 'Moramee's burial.
== Quotes ==
"There is no place left for your species."--Dor 'Votam to a dying Captain Morrison after boarding the UNSC Gorbachev"There is nothing honor than honor or loyalty. Not even yourself or others."--Dor 'Votam to a group of Sangheili before entering Breleki"I have seen the truth. There is no loyalty in this army, nor is their honor. Just savage betrayal and replacement."--Dor 'Votam to Tibetus after he ends the bridge"Decades of loyalty. All for nothing."--Dor 'Votam moments before his death at the hands of Tibetus
Category:Sangheili
Category:Males