Deon Govender

Deon Govender is the name or alias of a man interviewed by Benjamin Giraud during the latter's series of biographical interviews about John-117 in 2558.

Govender's name was on a list of interviewees provided to Giraud by the Office of Naval Intelligence. "Govender" claimed to have taught at Elysium City Primary Education Facility Number 119 during the future Master Chief's childhood. His first anecdote relayed the story of John's dominance in games of King of the Hill.

From here however, Govender's stories diverged into fiction. Govender told a story of a 12 year-old John showing up to a high school boxing league easily defeating the older boys. A year later, John and his parents were kidnapped by Insurrectionists. According to Govender, rising above this traumatic experience was instrumental in forging John into the man he would become.

While digging through old records scavenged from Elysium City, Giraud found an old census registry which listed John (actually his flash clone) deceased at the age of six in 2517.

Before publishing the first episode of Hunt the Truth, Giraud allowed Ellie Bloom, a former resident of Elysium City, to listen to a rough cut to the episode. Bloom challenged Govender's version of events, calling him a liar. According to Bloom, there was never a boxing club at any high school in Elysium City, because youth boxing had been banned planet-wide for decades.

These inconsistencies implicated Govender as an ONI plant intended to keep the journalist from learning the truth about John's history.

List of appearances

• Hunt the Truth (First appearance)