“Were it so easy...”
— Thel to John-117
Thel 'Vadam (formerly Thel 'Vadamee), often simply referred to as the Arbiter, is the deuteragonist of both Halo 2 and Halo 3, and is a supporting character in Halo 5: Guardians. He is the most prominent Sangheili shown throughout those games.
Early life
Thel was born Thel 'Vadam to the Vadam family, rulers of the powerful State of Vadam on Sanghelios. As a young Sangheili, Thel was trained in the ways of the warrior by his relative Lak 'Vadamee. He joined the Covenant military, earning him the right to use the "-ee" suffix, which is added to a Sangheilian name upon joining the military. Thel fought alongside the Covenant when they attacked Madrigal in 2528.Soon, Thel gained the rank of Shipmaster and earned the title of Kaidon within his keep.
After being promoted to Shipmaster, Thel suffered an injury in the training ring due to a mistake. His family hushed up the incident, as well as the resultant visit by a doctor, due to Sangheili culture equating the loss of blood and medical operation by a doctor with a loss of honor. During his convalescence, Thel made an old-fashioned doarmir-fur Shipmaster's cloak, wearing it always to remind him that he could make grave mistakes if he let his guard down.
Life as an Elite Zealot soldier
“It is a poor soldier who insists on seeing things not as they are, but as he wants them to be. One day reality hits, and his illusions fail him, and he dies stupidly. What honor is there in that?”— Thel 'Vadamee
Thel's life as Kaidon was important for the Vadam family, as he was tasked with continuing the reign of the powerful State of Vadam. Early in his rule, he was attacked by three Sangheili assassins wielding Energy Swords. He managed to kill all three without even being scratched, but bluffed that he left one alive in order to determine who ordered the attack. He then killed one of the Vadam elders, Koida, for ordering the failed assassination, and ordered all of his line to leave the keep by sunrise or they would otherwise face execution.
Thel was sent to Charybdis IX with command over Retribution's Thunder to participate in the Battle of Charybdis IX, whilst being overseen by the High Prophet of Regret. He and several other Sangheili boarded the UNSC Do You Feel Lucky? and attempted to get to the vessel's navigation database, but it had been purged before they were even aboard. He left and witnessed the destruction of the ship before being called to the Infinite Sacrifice, where he met Regret in person. He was told of the humans wielding modified Covenant weapons, and that this was most likely the Kig-Yar's doing. He was then sent to the 23 Librae system to track down the source of the weapon traders, along with the Kig-Yar vessel, A Psalm Every Day.
As he arrived at 23 Librae, his ship came under attack, first by Jiralhanae and Kig-Yar forces at The Rubble, then boarded by A Psalm Every Day's forces. He ordered the destruction of The Retribution's Thunder, which killed all the boarding Kig-Yar. Thel, however, survived and was captured by Kig-Yar forces, along with most of the bridge crew. He and the bridge crew managed to escape and hijack a Kig-Yar shuttle, taking them to another Kig-Yar vessel. They went to the surface of Metisette and captured the leader of the Kig-Yar, Reth.
After managing to escape Reth's clandestine Unggoy army, Thel returned to the Kig-Yar vessel, where they locked up Reth. Interrogating him, the Sangheili were surprised by Reth's insistence that he was allying with the humans with the blessing of the High Prophet of Truth, who sought to use the humans as a means to find their homeworld. He eventually escaped when a nervous Grunt still loyal to him, switched off the energy barrier, and fled into an escape pod. Thel then turned his eyes to The Rubble, as a large skirmish between UNSC forces and Kig-Yar forces was taking place on the Infinite Spoils. He and his crew then boarded the Infinite Spoils and came face to face with Jai-006 before fighting with him. The SPARTAN tackled Thel, disarmed him of his Energy Sword, and proceeded to draw a combat knife. The two warriors eyed each other for a brief moment before the SPARTAN, realizing that the marine he came to rescue was already dead, left the ship with the other UNSC forces. Thel and his crew, shocked by what they had witnessed, stayed and commandeered the Infinite Spoils.
Thel managed to destroy most of The Rubble's Mass drivers, but then was helpless when The Redoubt was destroyed and the Exodus Project left the system. He decided the best thing to do was to wait for the High San'Shyuum of Truth and Regret to arrive and report to them with his comrade, Zhar. Upon reporting the failure of the mission, Zhar attempted to slaughter the San'Shyuum — believing them to be ordering his execution — but Thel activated his own Energy Sword and killed his former friend. This act prompted Truth to spare his life and give him command over a ship in the Fleet of Particular Justice, a newly assembled fleet for the Covenant Navy.
Life as Supreme Commander
“Soon the Great Journey will begin, but when it does, the weight of your heresy will stay your feet, and you shall be left behind.”— The Prophet of Truth to Thel 'Vadamee at his hearing.
At some point between 2535 and 2552, Thel's exceptional leadership and combat prowess earned him the rank of the Fleet of Particular Justice's Supreme Commander. During his time as a Supreme Commander, Thel was responsible for over 1 billion human casualties, the loss of at least 7 human worlds, the destruction of over 123 human vessels during fleet action and the deaths of over 23,000 UNSC personnel.
Near the end of his time serving as Supreme Commander, he led the victorious Covenant forces at the Fall of Reach. As the battle ended, Thel ordered all ships within his command to follow the fleeing UNSC Pillar of Autumn. Following the Autumn's course led them to Installation 04. Commanding the Seeker of Truth, he had his ships begin evacuation of the ring upon the release of the Flood, but the parasite managed to capture a ship and infect a Minor Prophet, the Minister of Etiology. The sudden widespread evacuation led to confusion as ships became infested, and he was unable to prevent the destruction of the ring and was forced to abandon it. The abandonment saved his life, but also resulted in the capture of the newly arrived flagship, the Ascendant Justice, by John-117, and he was called before the High Council to answer for these failures.
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