The Engineers
Huragok (Latin Facticius indoles, meaning "Man-made character"), known to Humans as Engineers, are a race of biological supercomputers that was created by the Forerunners. They are the only known non-combatant race of the Covenant, though some are rigged to explode like suicide bombers.
While it is generally held that only the San 'Shyuum are high enough in the Covenant Hierarchy to handle and manage Forerunner research and technology, in reality it is the Huragok who must excavate, unlock, and transport Forerunner artifacts (a fact only known to higher ranked officers and leaders within the Covenant, due to its sensitive nature), though the San 'Shyuum insist that any admission of that fact is heresy. These remarkably helpful and docile aliens are exceedingly patient, rarely communicate with other species, and are almost single-mindedly devoted to their work.
Huragok are the scientific and engineering backbone of the Covenant and its economy. They float via bladders that contain a mixture of gas lighter than air, and their four tentacles are able to split into many fine cilia, with which they are able to manipulate machinery on a near-microscopic level. Engineers are capable of quickly learning the functionality of new technology. On one occasion, an Engineer was observed by John-117 dismantling a vehicle's engine, assembling it into various other working configurations, and then returning it to its original state, all in a matter of seconds.
Huragok have little interest in taking sides in conflict; they appear to draw no real distinction between friend and foe, preferring to spend their time inspecting or repairing technology, although they will utter a high-pitched keening sound whenever a Forerunner artifact is under any sort of threat. They are apathetic to any sort of combat, and tend to just float along with a single goal: to fix things. In one encounter, a Huragok repaired John-117's damaged shield generator and then floated away; the rather unlucky Huragok was later shot by Lieutenant Haverson to prevent it from possibly giving the specifications of the Spartan's improved shield technology to the Covenant.If shot at in a firefight, Huragok make no attempt to defend themselves, but rather curl up in fright and float to a safe distance.
Their concentration has been described as "a trance-like reverie" by the few who have witnessed it.They usually communicate only with San 'Shyuum, a fact that may contribute to the balance of power between Sangheili and San 'Shyuum, and will usually ignore anything that is neither a San 'Shyuum, a Forerunner artifact, nor a machine. A notable exception is the Huragok Lighter Than Some, who communicated with the Unggoy Deacon Dadab via Huragok sign language.
The abilities of the Huragok are not limited to their skills to fix things; they are also able to absorb data from a computer or an A.I., and combine it with their own biological "data". One such incident occurred when one Huragok combined its knowledge with the dumb AI of New Mombasa, the Superintendent. During a mission to recover a living Huragok, Captain Veronica Dare described the species as "biological supercomputers".
The Huragok were created by the Forerunners prior to the first activation of the Halo Array. Being mechanical structures rather than organic life forms, they survived the activation and were later found by the Prophets in various M-Series facilities.