- anton1792
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- Noble Legendary Member
"Find where the liar hides, so that I may place my boot between his gums!" - Rtas 'Vadum
tl;dr at bottom.
So yeah, Rtas 'Vadum (a.k.a Half-Jaw), the white-armor clad Sangheili Special Operations Commander that tagged along with the Arbiter in Halo 2 and subsequently appeared as the Shipmaster of the Shadow of Intent in Halo 3. Yeah so what about him? Well, if you have the coup script, you will see that I am a pretty big fan of his character, and I often get questioned as to why. Many people think that he is just a generic side-kick character, an NPC really, with not much personality or character. So that is the reason for this thread: To explain why I think he is so awesome. (And because I am bored and procrastinating from studying for a crappy pharmaceuticals exam coming up.)
Now for most people, it seems, he (Along with most other Sangheili characters) are liked primarily for their ability to fight, kill and blow things up, and whilst that is okay it is not the sole reason for my appreciation (Although that is part of it :P). Rather, it lies in the way he seems to, I think, contrast with the rest of Sangheili society. I think he is quite open minded, a trait quite uncommon among Sangheili; innovative, respectful, indomitable and rather indiscriminately conscientious of the lives under his command. These are all things that are quite against the grain in the Sangheili mind set.
Firstly, look at the Sangheili's belief in the idea of ones blood being a manifestation of ones honor. To lose blood, in Sangheili society, is to lose honor and so it is considered shameful to be wounded. That was mostly brought up in our faces by the The Cole Protocol where Jora, one of Thels's zealots, was shot in the leg during an engagement with some Jackals. Jora believed it so shameful that he committed assisted suicide. Thel himself shared this view having been wounded in a training exercise earlier in his life but had subsequently kept the incident a secret due to having been tended to by a doctor, who are considered vermin as they cause another Sangheili to bleed dishonorably. Thon in Bloodlines also showed fanaticism about this when shot by a sentinel. So it is pretty clear I think that this is not just a point of view thing.
So when, in the Halo Graphic Novel story Last Voyage of the Infinite Succor, Rtas faces down his Flood infected sub-commander Bero 'Kusovai he ends up pretty bloodied and battered, having the left side of his face nearly destroyed (reason for the Half-jaw thing) and his left arm almost amputated. Despite this and the near fanatical belief that blood = honor and that injury is shameful, he never committed suicide, and in fact retained his high command of Spec-Ops commander. This may in fact be down to his more open minded nature in allowing him to view things more objectively than most other Sangheili.
He uses a point defense gauntlet in that story as well. Apparently the use of these is considered shameful, as seen in Ghosts of Onyx, yet Rtas used one against the Flood. Whether this, along with the previous point, is in fact demonstrating Rtas' disregard for honor in general I am quite unsure, but I would imagine that it is rather down to his objective nature and professionalism. The Flood was a severe threat, and he did whatever necessary to quell that threat without letting perhaps petty beliefs get in the way.
His little verbal standoff with Lord Hood aboard the Shadow of Intent. Some people tended to think that he was just being a dick for the sake of acting that way towards a Human, but I think that is quote mining. The topic was how a single Flood spore could destroy a species. His proposition of glassing the Earth was not born out of hatred for Humanity but rather concern of the Flood threat. Ultimately though, he spared the Earth after being convinced by the Arbiter. One would think though that his aversion of the Flood would override that decision, and considering that the Elites really did not need Humanities aid at that point (Or could not use it, Humanity had only a handful of ships left) he was possibly accepting the truth of Humanity from Thel, showing some understanding of Humanitys wrongly accused situation and spared Earth on those grounds, doing the right thing.
This change in attitude towards Humanity and his respect is shown in the way he speaks to Master Chief. He becomes the only Sangheili, with the exception of the Arbiter, in the series so far to name him Spartan rather than Demon. (The Ark) Quite a leap for an Elite considering the venom that Spartans are treated with most of the time. These all contribute towards the idea that he is far more open minded and can thus accept things that he never thought possible and that he can distance himself from petty beliefs and misunderstandings. Certain Sangheili, such as the Shipmaster from The Return, appear incapable of doing this.
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His apparent indomitable nature can clearly be seen again in the Halo Graphic Novel. When told to see to the Minister of Etiology's needs exclusively, Rtas refused, choosing to deal with the much more serious Flood threat. After wielding his authority to get Rtas to submit, Rtas promptly dealt with the Minister - throwing him from his chair and threatening his life. Another instance is in Halo 2 where he confronts the Prophet of Truth about the changing of the guard. He was not afraid to speak his mind to the Heirarchs and would not be subdued so easily. Others like Thel felt largely intimidated being in the presence of a Heirarch (Cole Protocol). Rtas however, for the lack of a better phrase, does not appear to bend over backwards for these people.
As for his consideration for others under his command. Again in the Halo Graphic Novel, when confronting the Flood, he orders his Grunt soldiers behind the Sangheili in order to keep them from harm. It is not often that Sangheili show consideration for others outside of their race, much less for grunts. When dealing with the Minister again, he expresses his feelings for others well being when telling the Minister that he has lost many men to the Flood. On top of this, in The Flood, it is stated that Special Operations commandos are known for their complete lack of care for their own lives and others, being described as (If I remember rightly) along the lines of being insanely fanatical. When this is looked at it can be seen why Rtas is particularly unique.
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Then there is his badass aspects on the battlefield. He faced down The Flood on the Infinite Succor, then again on the Gas Mine, and then again in the Quarantine Zone (Particularly when he faced them alone after leaving the Arbiter at the Gondolas) and survived all the encounters. On the final mission in Halo 2, he leaves the Arbiter to take back a Brute controlled Cruiser. How exactly he did this is unknown but he would have had to have faced down many Brutes in order to do so. He appears to be quite innovative and quick thinking, utilizing a plasma cannon overload in the heat of the moment to kill a pursuing Flood horde in HGN and in defeating the 3:1 odds above the Ark. Finally, he is described as an unparalleled swordsman in the Encyclopedia, which obviously comes from his defeating of Bero Kusovai, who was described as the best duelist. Whether that meant the best Sangheili alive at the time or just the best in Rtas' team cannot be said though, but it is clear I think that Rtas is possibly one of the best commanders and warriors there is.
Another thing as well is the fact that you can see his fears, or at least apprehension. He is not a cliche "kickass and chew bubble gum" at all times character. At the final moments of the last cutscene in Halo 3, where he speaks to the Arbiter, you see him express his fears for his Home and his people. I feel it adds a lot more depth to him and helps avoid the cliche.
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So that is what I think. Mind you, none of this is fact, just my opinions and interpretation and it may turn out to be utterly wrong in future. So what do others think about/expect to happen with Rtas in possible future media?
(For those looking for the tl;dr: There is not one. I just wasted 10 seconds of your lazy life. LOL)