K O P R I S C A N ' S O B A R
⟁ 40 ⟁ Male ⟁ Batarian ⟁ Vanguard "The most important thing in life is family."A P P E A R A N C E
Kopris Can'sobar looks like he always expects a fight. His scarred face is in what appears to be a permanent scowl and glare, twisting the gnarled mass of scar tissue around his missing top right eye (the eyeball itself replaced with a simple black marble) even more than it would be normally. His surprisingly powerful (for his age) frame always slightly tensed, wide shoulders slightly hunched, as if ready to react in a second. Over a decade in the Batarian Special Intervention Unit and in the Terminus systems have taught him to expect the worst out of every situation and every person he meets. That way, he won't ever be caught off guard.
The only times Kopris to not have a scowl and a glare, and seems to relax, is when he's asleep, when he's baking, or when he's otherwise reminiscing about his family. His face and body relax, showing a gentler side that Kopris hasn't been in touch with for many years. The face of a man who would rather heal than hurt, who wants to help people. Of course, as soon as he notices someone is watching, or he wakes up, the same scowl and tenseness returns.
If you were to ever see Kopris without his clothes, you would see a body marked by a lifetime of war. A multitude of scars are across his body. Bullet holes, cuts, stabs, bites, claw marks, there is a startling amount of variety in the types of damage he has received. All telling a story of who he fought and how they fared. Kopris, while not entirely certain of where every single one came from, can usually tell you where he was when he got the majority of them and who he got them from. On his right forearm, there is a tattoo of a Batarian skull with a knife stabbed through the top. A banner floats from the hilt of the knife reading, in the Batarian language: "We will reclaim what was stolen." A memento from his SIU days, and perhaps the closest he ever got with his fellow SIU members.
On his left forearm is another phrase, also in the Batarian language, reading: "For my family, I will sacrifice." A reminder of what he was fighting for. Something he could look at when he was knee deep in blood and shit and needed something to fortify his resolve. To give him strength. Now it's only a painful reminder of what he has lost, but also a connection to who he was that he desperately clings too.
He's normally in dark clothing with an eye for function rather than comfort. Combat boots, fatigues, and a t-shirt. A habit he picked up from his time in the Hegemony's military as a surgeon and medic, when there was never any time to clean of bloodstains and he had to be ready to move in a moments notice. Looking closely one can see that there are small stains on all of his clothing. Fluids from operations long pasts, cigar ash being accidentally ground into the fabric, cleaning fluid from when he cleans the Medbay, etc etc. While far from the point of smelling or being actually unhygienic, it's clear that Kopris doesn't care about his own cleanliness nearly as much as does care about his equipment's cleanliness.
B A C K G R O U N D
Born to Ja'Kho and Ekranya Can'sobar, the importance of sacrifice for, and loyalty to, family was impressed upon Kopris from a young age. His family was near the very bottom of Batarian society, only barely above that of slaves. They managed to eek a living out, ignored at best and scorned by those with higher standing at worse. It wasn't a good life, by any means, but they were happy with each other. They were saving what little money they could to begin slowly buying their way up the ladder of society, to a better life.
When Ekranya became pregnant with Kopris, Ja'Kho didn't want this life for his son. He couldn't wait any longer for their slow plan to work, otherwise Kopris would live far too much of his life in the filth they had lived all of theirs. So, he joined the Hegemony's military to support and save his family from the bottom. A completion of military service in the Hegemony guaranteed a rise in social status for them. Not a large one, granted, but a comfortable one. One that was leagues better than scraping for food and supplies at the bottom of one of Kar'shan's magnificent cities, scuttling along like insects that were beneath the notice of those above. Ja'Kho was a man who was willing to sacrifice for his family, and sacrifice he did. He never told his wife nor Kopris about what he did during his tour of duty, but the scars on his body, his sometimes empty stare, and his missing right hand told stories enough all by themselves.
Ekranya, for her part, continued to work. The money Ja'Kho was making while in the military was enough to keep the hovel they had currently as a home from being taken away, but not much else. Even though she was pregnant she worked with Eezo in the factories of Kar'Shan, refining it for the warships of the empire. There were many accidents in the factory, as her caste and others like her were considered expendable. Production was all that mattered, not safety. As a result, eezo dust would be frequently released into the air and inhaled by Ekranya. She recited prayers from the Pillars to give her and Kopris the strength to resist any harmful mutagens, and continued on. Her husband was sacrificing for them in the military, and she needed to sacrifice for them in the factories. She continued to work even after giving birth to Kopris, paying what little she could afford to have a trusted friend watch him while she worked. Born in 2138, these were the conditions of Kopris' first two years of life. He doesn't remember himself, but his mother would often tell him stories of how seeing his bright smile would give her the strength to go on, even after a horrible day at the factory.
In 2140, one eezo accident too many left Ekranya blind in her right eyes, and unable to work. Things looked dark. Ja'Kho's money keeping their hovel meant little if they couldn't afford any food to eat. Fortunately, Ja'Kho would be discharged the week after and they would be given a safe home. An actual home, above the filth of the ground and scrapping of their caste below them. Where she would be safe, and they could raise their child away from the filth he had known all his short life. It wasn't as high in status as they would have liked, they were unable to afford personal slaves of their own and had to rent out other's from time to time for example, but it was much better than where they had been.
From an early age it was clear that Kopris was an intelligent and gentle child. Always curious and asking questions, he would pick up information quickly, much to the delight of his parents. He would find injured insects or animals and ask his parents how best to help the creatures, tearing up when told that there was nothing that could be done. His parents always pushed him to go into something great, something that would help himself and others. To use his gifts to the fullest of their potential. Especially his father. The one time that he expressed interest in following in his father's footsteps, and joining the Hegemony's military, his father curtly shut it down. "No son. The military isn't what you believe it to be. It's only an option for those with no choices left before them. You have hundreds of choices before you. Your mother and I have seen to that." Kopris merely nodded, and let it go. His father had spoken, and that was good enough for him.
Kopris idolized his father as the epitome of the Pillars of Strength. The man had fought for his family, sacrificed for his family, and continued to endure for his family. He suffered snide remarks from his supposed equals about buying his way to his current status, thinly veiled insults of cowardice to survive in the military to get this far, all so that Ekranya and Kopris could continue to have a good life. To Kopris, Ja'Kho was the greatest hero to ever live.
To pay back his parents for all that they had sacrifice for him, all they endured for him, Kopris threw himself into his studies. He would live up to the potential they saw in him and he would ensure that his family got the life they deserved, one way or another. He wanted to help people, to heal them. To never have to accept 'there is nothing to be done' as an answer again. So he threw himself into the medical studies and practice, determined to become the best doctor he could be.
At the age of nineteen, after several hard years of study and practice, he became a surgeon. The pride in his parents' eyes that day, as he was officially recognized as a doctor and a surgeon would stay with him forever. He met a woman during his first year as a surgeon, a nurse by the name of Dalea. She was a strong willed, fiery woman, and Kopris fell head over heels for her at almost first sight.
His initial attempts at wooing her were...bad, to put it politely. Having put all of his efforts and time into studying, Kopris had never actually given the opposite sex a thought, much less a look. His romantic overtures ranged from awkwardly cute (such as when he tried to read her terribly written poetry) to so laughably bad they were cringe inducing (such as when he tried to compare her beauty to the natural beauty of an intestinal system). When he discovered that Dalea harbored a sweet tooth, however, that's when Kopris turned the charm on, and the oven. He spent countless hours over his family's oven, trying to perfect the deserts that Dalea favored, and leaving her little candied gifts and sweets with notes that were actually somewhat romantic (he had thankfully moved past trying to compare her to organs or organ systems).
Unbeknownst to Kopris, he was slowly winning Dalea over. It wasn't through his direct attempts. Those were endearing, but obviously not his forte. What won her over was how much he cared about his job and what he was doing. He treated every patient with the same amount of respect and care, giving reassurances to those afraid, jokes to those who needed laughter, and professionalism to those who only wanted to be in and out.
His best aspects stood out not when he was reciting badly written poetry, but when he was making a little girl giggle through her tears as he gently inspected her broken arm, when he was listening intently to an old man's rambling stories as he inspected the results from the latest test, or when he was reassuring a panicked visitor that everything that could be done for their loved one would be done for their loved one. He went to great lengths to ensure his patient's care and comfort, and cared for each one deeply. That, coupled with how devoted he was to family, finally won her over and she agreed to let him take her out to dinner.
They would marry in the next year, and soon had a child on the way. When Dalea was pregnant Kopris became an extreme mother hen. As Dalea left her job to prepare for the birth and their child (Kopris making more than enough to support them both) he waited on her hand and foot as much as he could, ensuring she never wanted for anything nor needed to do anything. It drove her up the wall . "I'm not made of glass you know!" Was a phrase consistently thrown at him, when his hovering would grow too much. He'd always win her over with another baked desert or a pocket sweet, cooling her temper.
On the night of their child's birth, Kopris found himself overcome with nerves and the pressure for the first time in a long time. He paced worriedly outside of the room, waiting for news, prayers falling from his lips. He was never in his life more relieved than when the door opened and he heard the healthy cries of a baby and his wife's voice tiredly calling him into to see their son. He was named Dal'ran, and Kopris had never felt a more instantaneous love and desire to protect than when he looked into the four eyes of his infant son.
With his wealth gained from being a surgeon, Kopris was able to purchase a rise in the social hierarchy for not only himself,his wife, and his child, but his parents as well. They could finally live the life of comfort and peace they had always deserved with a new home and obedient slaves to see after their every desire.
His wife loved him, their child was coming along healthily, he had finally repaid his parents for all that they had sacrificed for him, and his family's safety was secure. Life was good for Kopris, and he was happy. The reports of a minor war between the Turians and a new race known as 'humans' were only mildly interesting at best. They were no threat too the Batarian Hegemony, and of no interest to Kopris or his family. He merely continued to focus on caring for his wife and child, and dealing with the medical problems that came at him on a day to day basis.
Three years later, the humans began aggressively colonizing the Skyllian Verge. The Hegemony called it an invasion, a theft of Batarian interests that they as a people had worked so tirelessly for. The Council not only refused to protect Batarian interests, but threw them out of the Citadel when they protested. The humans were the favored, and the Batarians could rot.
Such was the story that Kopris, his family, and the rest of the civilians of the Hegemony were told, at any rate. And they accepted it as the complete truth. After all, why would their government lie to them? Anti-human propaganda began pouring out, stirring hatred, as the Hegemony's economy tanked with the sudden lack of trade from the Citadel races. The Element Zero rich colony of Camala couldn't support the entirety of the Hegemony by itself, no matter how wealthy of a colony it was. As resources became scarce, strict rations were implemented and often brutally enforced. As the lower ranks of the social hierarchy began to starve,
Even Kopris and his family began to feel the strain, as less and less people could afford to see a surgeon, more content to simply endure their pain than spend money that could be used for food on a doctor. Those that could were few and far in between, and rarely needed Korpis' talents. His hospital had to let Kopris go, unable to justify the cost of paying him as their own costs soared and their income plummeted. The same thing was happening in hospitals across the city, and none of the others could afford to take him on.
Not a man to let his family suffer without doing anything, Kopris scrounged whatever jobs he could whenever he could. Cleaning, trash collecting, butchering, whatever was available Kopris took it without complaint. It was barely enough to scrape by, but it worked. Prayers from the Pillars were constantly upon his lips as he waited for the economy to recover. The Hegemony promised it would. It had too. He had no other options if it didn't.
The tensions in the cities shattered after 6 months of true starvation by the lower castes, igniting into food riots and bloodshed. The security forces of Kopris' city were quickly overwhelmed, and the enraged mob only grew as rebelling slaves and other wronged and starving groups joined it. The violence was heading straight for Kopris and his family, and they were desperately trying to get to safety. Kopris and his wife and child went ahead, only reluctantly leaving Ja'Kho and Ekranya with assurances that they would follow right behind, and that they shouldn't be worried about. Kopris managed to get Dalea and Dal'ran behind the high walls and armed guards of the security force's headquarters, and hurried back for his parents. They were supposed to have been right behind them, grabbing only their most precious items. He removed anything that would have indicated that he wasn't apart of the mob, and hurried to his home, praying that the worst hadn't happened.
His prayers were ignored.
Kopris found his mother and father murdered in the home he had bought them, their precious items scattered across the floor, the house ransacked. They hadn't been able to leave before the mob broke its way in. A numbness flooded him as he woodenly examined the bodies, both fruitlessly checking to see if they were somehow still alive, and making sure that their eyes hadn't been defiled so their souls could exit their bodies.
Kopris found a cold solace in the fact that they appeared to have died quickly, and not tortured by a mob that they used to be a part of. He didn't remember making his way back to Dalea and Dal'ran. He only knew that one moment he was walking through the streets, the next he was in Dalea's arms, sobbing uncontrollably.
It took a full month for order to be restored to the city, and by then Kopris' back was against the wall. He , Dal'ran, and Dalea had no home left to return to, there was next to no paying work left in the city even with all of the violence that had occurred, and he needed to make sure his family was safe besides. They could only stay so long in the headquarters of the security forces, and he was loathe to leave them with no place safe place to stay. Just as despair was beginning to set in, his father's words came back to him.
"The military isn't what you believe it to be. It's only an option for those with no choices before them."
Kopris had no choices left, and he needed to protect what family he had left. The military would protect his family, in return for his service. Dalea was against the idea. "You're not a killer, Kopris! You're a healer. The military, all it does is turn people into killers! It'll destroy you!" She argued, half-pleadingly. Kopris stood firm. His family needed him to sacrifice, and that is exactly what he would do. No matter what was required, he would sacrifice to protect them.
With Kopris being unswayed, and having no better alternatives to suggest, Dalea reluctantly agreed. That same day, Kopris signed up to be assigned a military position, and his family was assigned protected military housing. Within hours, Kopris was designated to basic training, then training for the Special Intervention Unit. His tour of duty would be indefinite, until the Hegemony could restore order to their space. He kissed Dalea and Dal'ran goodbye, and boarded the shuttle to the training camp. Fear coursed through him as the ship left the planet. There had been stories about the SIU, and none of them good. Soon, if he survived, he was going to be the cause of those stories. Kopris looked at the picture of Dalea and Dal'ran in his hand, and felt his resolve return. He would protect them. No matter the cost.
Basic training proved little trouble for Kopris. He soaked up the necessary information like a sponge, and was able to take the necessary physical fitness in stride. It was discovered that he was an average biotic (a lucky mutagen from when his mother had worked while pregnant with him). He didn't have any biotic power to write home about, but it was enough to get him a biotic implant and begin training more dedicated to him controlling his newfound powers. While certainly not a breeze for him, this also posed no significant challenge and he made his way quickly through that training as well. Neither basic training nor his biotic training did anything to prepare him for what was to come, however, as he was shipped off to specialized training in the SIU.
The first month of SIU training nearly destroyed him. A lifelong healer and gentle soul, Kopris found the brutal training and encouragement of merciless, often cruel, violence against your enemies nearly unbearable both physically and emotionally. In the sparring sessions, where the goal was to beat down your opponent (often into a bloody mess) he would hesitate, not wanting to hurt or cripple his opponent, and end up beaten to the ground himself. In the live fire training he would flinch and freeze up at the sound of gunfire whistling around and above him, and the explosions booming near him. Fear ripping through him at the thought of what could happen to him if he made but one mistake. Each day left him physically exhausted, and emotionally ruined. This was made worse by the fact that they were cut off from all contact outside of the training camp. He couldn't hear his wife's reassuring voice, or his son's joy bringing laughter. The only thing that kept him from crying every night was the ruthless mockery of his supposed squad mates. Kopris was isolated and alone.
By the end of the first month Kopris was certain he was doomed. It was final testing day, the day that they proved themselves worthy of continuing on, of becoming SIU members. Those that failed would be sent home. Kopris was certain he was going to fail, when he woke up that morning. He was the worst of the unit, and everyone knew it. He was too gentle, too weak, too kind hearted for what the SIU was. He didn't have what was necessary to serve the Hegemony.
As he stepped into the sparring ring for what he believed was the last time, Kopris was resigned. He would be rejected and thrown out, and return to Dalea a failure. And then...Kopris paused as he thought of the future after his failure. And then what? Sit there and watch as his wife and child starved on the streets? The Hegemony was still in an economical depression. There were no hospitals that would, or could, take him. If he was lucky, Dalea and Dal'ran would die quickly and painlessly in their sleep, though it was more likely they would die slowly and painfully on the streets, staring at Kopris. Staring at the man who had failed to protect the only important thing in his life.
But that was only if he failed here. As he stared across the sparring ring at his sneering opponent, Kopris felt something harden and snap inside of him. This man was an obstacle. A danger to his family. If he beat Kopris here, Dalea and Dal'ran would suffer and die. Kopris wouldn't let that happen. He couldn't let that happen. He would sacrifice anything and everything for his family, even if that meant sacrificing who he was.
When the fight began, Kopris no longer hesitated. He no longer felt any pity or remorse for what he had to do. His opponent had made the mistake of getting in between Kopris and his family's safety, and now he would pay for it. Kopris ducked under a swing by the other man, and slammed his fist into his opponent's ribs, breaking one. As the man sucked in breath to yell in pain, stepping backwards, Kopris kicked into the straightened knee, snapping it backwards. As the man fell to the ground, Kopris leapt on him and delivered two punches to the side of the skull, knocking him out. It was brutal, and efficient, with no emotion to it. Kopris did not hate his opponent. He was merely an obstacle that needed to be removed. He had shoved the part of him that was appalled and horrified at what he had done and was going to do deep down inside of himself and smothered it with ruthless logic and cold drive. And so, with an emotionless, ruthless, determination Kopris threw himself into the SIU training, rising to the top of his unit and specializing as the unit's combat medic. He wasn't going to fail his family. He couldn't.
Kopris would graduate and be almost immediately sent into Hegemony space to restore order to the chaos that the Batarian's removal from the Council had brought. He was allowed one live video chat with his family, both relieved to see each other alive and well after so long a period of silence, and then he was shipped off. In those years, serving as the Hegemony's fist, Kopris and his brothers in the SIU would put down slave rebellions, crush caste uprisings, torture and eliminate outspoken enemies of the Hegemony, prevent spies from escaping to Council space, and do countless other monstrous things to ensure the safety and security of the Hegemony.
Kopris executed all of his orders with the same exact emotionless efficiency he had shown that day in SIU training. There was nothing personal in any of these events. They were simply threats to his family's safety, and he could not allow them to endanger his family. Despite this front Kopris displayed, and how hard he tried to distance himself emotionally from what he was doing, each atrocity chipped away at who he was before joining the SIU, leaving less and less of Kopris himself, and more and more of the perfect, unquestioning soldier of the Hegemony. Even as he felt more and more of himself slipping away, Kopris pressed on. If that was what was required to guarantee his family's safety, it would be done.
He could see that it was worrying Dalea in the brief video chats they were allowed in between missions. Her eyes would be staring at him more and more worriedly each time, not being reassured when he tried to tell her that he was fine, that everything would be okay at the end of his tour of duty. She didn't believe him, but nodded anyway. Kopris could feel the distance growing between them, with each useless reassurance he gave.
Dal'ran seemed to be growing a foot taller every time Kopris saw him over the video, and he seemed to be recognizing his father less each time. It had been years since they had seen each other in person, and that gnawed away at Kopris. Doubting thoughts would begin to slip into his mind, past his attempts to keep them repressed. What was he doing here? Why was he hurting these people who were only desperate for shelter and food? What good was he doing, aside from having his son grow up with an absent father and his wife grow ever more distant from him? These thoughts would be repelled, however, each time Dalea reassured him that they were still safe in military housing, and that they were receiving half of his pay monthly. He was protecting his family, and providing for them. No matter how much it hurt, he had to keep moving forward.
During his missions throughout Batarian space, there were rumors that the Hegemony was preparing a retaliatory strike against the Systems Alliance for its theft of what was rightfully Batarian planets. Rumors that their unit was helping control the chaos caused by the invasion of the Verge, while the Hegemony was directing most of its resources to a quiet military build up to retaliate against the humans. Kopris paid no mind to these rumors, focusing only on the tasks given to him. If the Hegemony asked him to, he would wage war against the Alliance. For now, his focus was returning order to Batarian space.
The rumors were confirmed when his unit received orders that they were being transferred to the Batarian External Forces, to begin striking back against the Systems Alliance. They were told they would begin the Batarian reclamation of the Verge. Their destination was a farming colony, ordered by their commanders to be made an example of what happens when you steal Batarian territory; Mindoir.
In 2170, Kopris and his unit helped spearhead the attack on the unsuspecting farming colony. It was a nightmare given life. Civilians were massacred without any regard or care. Women and children. Old and young. The surrendering and the defiant. Their orders were to exterminate the majority of the colony, and enslave the rest. As he carried out the attack on Mindoir with the same emotionless efficiency he had enacted during his entire career in the SIU, Kopris could feel the last part of himself left cracking and breaking under the strain. Treacherous, weak, thoughts began to worm their way back into his mind.
What was he doing? He was a doctor, a healer, not a murderer. These people had done nothing to him, or the Hegemony, and only wanted to live their lives. They weren't even trying to fight back anymore, simply struggling to stay alive, mourning the dead, or simply fleeing. If he stopped now, maybe he could save some. Maybe he could help them survive and then-. The flood of thoughts came crashing to a halt. And then what? He would be designated a traitor, and even if he survived the retribution of his own unit (not to mention the entirety of the Batarian forces on the colony) his family would suffer as a result. The Hegemony did not tolerate traitors, nor their families, and would doubtlessly make an example of them. By saving these people, he'd be dooming his own family. He had no choice. Kopris raised his assault rifle, and gunned down another fleeing colonist.
With the attack complete and the colony destroyed, they turned to their secondary objective of enslaving the survivors. This was where Kopris' background as a surgeon came to be the most use for the unit. He was designated as the one attaching the cranial implants. For what seemed like days he was attaching the implants, over and over again as the colonists begged and pleaded and screamed. The last part of the man he was finally snapped and died, leaving Kopris with no regrets. No hesitation.
When reports came in of Alliance ships coming to rescue the planet, Kopris was pulled from attaching the implants to where the front lines were expected to be. Their defenses were dug tightly in and ready, but every capable medic was still required to be on hand. The Alliance military wasn't something that could just be easily ignored, no matter how much they were hated by all of his comrades. As the marines landed and his comrades jeered and howled, Kopris couldn't bring himself to do more than view them as yet another threat to his family, an obstacle that had to be removed, no matter what. He didn't hate the humans, despite the endless propaganda produced by the Hegemony. They were merely in his way.
Kopris doesn't clearly remember the counter-attack. It's a blur of bullets, artillery fire, biotics being thrown about, and the screams of the wounded and dying. He doesn't know how many he pulled from the frontline, patched up, stabilized and had withdrawn to the medical tents, or simply shot to end their suffering. Their faces all blurred together into an endless litany of pain, all crying out for Kopris to save them.
At some point he was pulled from the front line himself to operate on the wounded in the medical tents. The last thing he remembers of that day is being exhausted, covered in blood, and barely standing as he was pulled around by the shoulder and told that they were being extracted. The Alliance couldn't break through their defenses, and they had enslaved all surviving colonists they could. It was time to leave before reinforcements arrived. Kopris nodded slowly and dumbly, and stumbled his way back to the transport ship. The last he saw of Mindoir was flames rising as his comrades set fire to the colony.
Rather than being pulled back into Batarian space, as Kopris expected, they were ordered to stay in the contested territory of the Verge, and begin laying the ground work for a larger assault while preventing the Alliance from retaliating. They were to pretend to be a band of roving slavers and pirates. They would not contact anyone from inside the Hegemony, and if they were caught they would not be recognized by the Hegemony as members of the Batarian External Forces. The Hegemony would decry them as terrorists and pirates, and leave them to their fate. They would receive their orders through a secure channel once a month, during which they would also give their reports. Their orders having been given, the feed cut off. Kopris was secretly glad he wouldn't be able to contact Dalea and Dal'ran for an indeterminable amount of time. He didn't know if he could hide what he had done from them.
For the next six years Kopris worked with his unit to weaken the Alliance's position in the Skyllian Verge and strengthen the Hegemony's. They attacked colonies, assassinated alliance officials in the Verge and helped allies of the Hegemony. They helped eliminate rivals of Elanos Haliat, who promised to organize an attack on Alliance territory in the Skyllian Verge if the Hegemony cemented his control over the pirates of the Terminus systems. Soon, with the aid of Kopris's unit and other Batarian External Forces units, Haliat was one of the most powerful pirate kings in the Terminus Systems.
During those six years Kopris became fully aware of just how the Hegemony had lied to its people about the events of the Alliance's colonization and the Council's reactions. They had brought their economic depression upon themselves, out of foolish pride and anger. Kopris wasn't completely surprised. He had helped silence influential criticizers of the government for years in Hegemony space. It wasn't a stretch to say they also spun their own mistakes and failures as the rest of the galaxy against them.
After years of more bloodshed, political maneuvering, and planning the Hegemony and their allies were ready to strike the Alliance again. Kopris and his unit received orders to meet up with Haliat's fleet and prepare for an assault on Elysium, the oldest human colony and a symbol of human achievement in the Verge. They were going to destroy it, and show to the humans that nothing they built on land they stole from the Hegemony would last.
As the attack began, and Kopris and his unit landed on the surface of Elysium to attempt to breach the colony, Kopris knew it was doomed to fail. This wasn't Mindoir, where the colonists had almost no military training and perhaps two guns between them. Elysium was filled with Alliance marines, both active duty and retired, and was closer to Alliance patrol routes. Kopris and his comrades tried desperately to push through the defense of the colony, as the ships of their allies were torn apart in the skies above them. It was another bloodbath, but not only for the humans this time.
Despite the losses they were inflicting upon the colonists, Kopris' unit was being chewed apart by the defenders, and the Batarians weren't making any headway towards their goal. A retreat was soon called, and Kopris ran forward to grab one of his downed squad mates. He wasn't close with any one of them, but he wasn't about to callously leave them to die, either.
As he leaned down and got his shoulder under the arm of the wounded man, a bullet from one of the defenders slammed through his top right eye and out of his head. Fortunately, the angle was wrong for a killing shot and the bullet merely ripped through his top right eye socket. The pain was excruciating, but he couldn't let it get the best of him. Someone's life depended on it. Kopris screamed, blood pouring down the side of his face, but clung to his wounded comrade and hauled him back to where the rest of their unit was waiting. The adrenaline faded as they made their way back towards the shuttle, seeking quick extract before all friendly ships above them were destroyed, and Kopris passed out.
He woke up in a panic (not knowing where he was or what had happened) on the medical center of one of the few Batarian controlled ships that had escaped the disaster of Elysium, a bandage over his right eye. The doctor calmed him down and told him where he was, and then informed him that he would live, but they were unable to save his eye. Instead he would be given a new one. One worthy of his sacrifice. For now, he needed to rest and recover. Kopris agreed, and settled down to rest and recover. It would take several months before his eye was healed enough that he could return to active duty. Several long, boring, months of waiting around and trying to find something to occupy himself with. To prevent his mind from thinking of all that he had done in the last decade or so of his life. All the harm he had caused, and the lives he had ended or ruined.
It was with relief and almost genuine joy that he returned to his unit. A pearl white marble was in his top right socket, a scripture of the Pillars of Strength written on it. It indicated that he had lost his eye while sacrificing for the Batarian people, and that his soul would not be hindered when it left his body after his death.
Despite the failure of Elysium, his unit's orders remained the same. Weaken the Alliance hold on the Verge, strengthen the Hegemony's. Things were different though, more difficult. The pirates and roving bands of the Terminus Systems were spooked by the destruction of so many ships that had attacked Elysium, and refused to meet with them or hear out their proposals. Alliance officials, now alerted to the very real Batarian threat, were under tighter guard than ever. The next few months were difficult for Kopris and his unit as they struggled to make headway with their orders while avoiding capture or execution by the increased Alliance patrols.
Everything fell apart for Kopris in 2177, a year after the failed assault on Elysium. They appeared for their monthly report and orders and, at first, nothing seemed unusual. The reports and orders were given as normal, quickly and curtly. Time was of the essence, otherwise they risked the Alliance catching the transmission and zeroing in on their position. Still, time seemed to slow and freeze for Kopris as the officer in the hologram looked at him. "Kopris. We regret to inform you that your wife and child were killed during a riot that escalated into a full blown slave rebellion. May the Pillars give you the strength to continue your duty in this difficult time." The transmission cut with a click.
Kopris could feel his world dropping out from beneath him as a cold numbness took over. Dalea and Dal'ran, dead. Killed by rioters who were forced into their desperation by the very government that he was serving as a butcher for. They very government he had given over a decade of his life too, in the express agreement that it would keep his family safe. A government that had taken every part of him and destroyed it, promising to protect Dalea and Dal'ran in return. Kopris was only distantly aware of voices talking to him as he turned and woodenly walked to his quarters. He sat down on his bed and pulled out the picture of his wife and son with a shaky hand. It was the last picture they had taken as a family, before he left for basic training.
Suddenly Kopris was sobbing. A torrent of grief, horror, guilt, and shame tore through him. He had hurt so many people, destroyed so many lives, and for what? Just to fail to protect the most important thing in his life while busy fighting for a cause he didn't even believe in, half way across the galaxy? That couldn't be true. It was a mistake. The galaxy couldn't be that cruel, to allow him to sacrifice so much for his family, only to have them taken away from him after he had given all that he could give to keep them safe. Kopris cried for what seemed like days, curled up in his bed.
When his tears had dried, all that was left was fury and disgust. They wanted him to keep doing his duty? He had already failed at his duty. His only duty in life was to protect his family, and they were dead. He owed them nothing now. He wouldn't serve as their butcher any longer. But he had to wait. There was no where to run, not yet at least. Any attempts at desertion now would only result in them gunning him down, and he wouldn't let them have that satisfaction. No, he would wait. And when the opportunity arose, he would run. Damn them, and damn their war.
His opportunity came only a week later, as they landed on Antirumgon to begin talks with an up and coming pirate captain. They split up into groups of two, walking through the latest temporary town to be put up, and searched for their contact. As soon as he and his partner were out of sight from the rest of the group and relatively isolated, Kopris struck. His enforcer gauntlet crushed the neck and the base of the skull of his partner like a tin can, and the other Batarian dropped without a sound. Moving quickly, Kopris hid the body and got onto the next pirate ship that would take him, leaving behind his old squad and the life he had known for more than a decade.
Instead of feeling relief, satisfaction, or happiness at his escape, Kopris only felt more angry. More enraged. He had escaped, but there was nothing to escape too. There was nowhere for him to go but the Terminus Systems. The Hegemony and its actions had seen to that.
Kopris scarcely remembers the year that followed, it was a blur of constantly being drunk, high, or both. A ball of rage working his way through the Terminus System and doing anything to attempt to drown out the pain that he still felt for his failures. He vaguely remembers cheering at the news of Torfan being eradicated, but not much else. Clarity returned only after an indeterminable amount of time, with Kopris sitting in a disgusting apartment in Omega, staring at the picture of his family with an M-3 Predator in his hand. He was contemplating joining his family and ending the charade. There was nothing for him to live for in the galaxy anymore. No cause for him to fight, no one for him to care about or protect. On the other side, however? His wife and child waited. Peace and rest awaited. Perhaps even forgiveness, if he was lucky.
Despite all the reasons too pull the trigger, Kopris couldn't. He wanted to live, despite all that he had done. Despite the ruin his life had become. Despite the fact that he had nothing left to truly fight for. He wanted to live and keep going, even if it seemed that there was nothing left. After what seemed like an eternity, he put the Predator to the side and sighed, leaning back and staring up at the ceiling. "She would kill me if I only returned to her because I killed myself." He sighed again, and stood up. He was going to need money if he was going to live, so he might as well get started.
Dalea would also kill him if he returned to her after dying from something stupid, like starvation.
S K I L L S
First and foremost, Kopris is an extremely skilled surgeon and battlefield medic. He has spent most of his life studying or practicing the art of medicine and saving lives, and has snatched more people from death's door than he cares to remember. He has a wide variety of experience with aliens and faces no more problems patching up humans, turians, krogan, salarians, or asari than he does fellow batarians. The more unusual aliens, such as volus or elcor, he is less competent in, but has studied enough to at least prevent them from dying under his care. His time in the Hegemony's SIU gave him experience in operating on the battlefield, and he's as comfortable patching someone up under a hail of bullets as he is in the medbay. His bedside manner leaves much to be desired, certainly, but there is no one better at keeping you alive.
On the opposite side of the coin of putting someone back together is tearing them apart. Kopris is a ruthlessly efficient interrogator, knowing just how to hurt you for maximum pain and minimal risk of death. And in the off chance he does go to far and you start slipping away, he can bring you back from death's door. Anyone in the hands of Kopris will soon either tell him what the company needs to know, or break.
Those that survive the SIU training become brutally efficient soldiers, and Kopris is no exception. He's a skilled marksman with his rifle and SMG, and a powerful melee combatant. His biotic powers only serve to make him even more potent soldier, trained to his fullest potential by the Hegemony. While his biotic powers are fairly average his control over what powers he does have is strong and he knows how to use them to the fullest of their abilities.
After more than a decade in the Special Interventions Unit and in the Batarian External Forces, waging a war that the Hegemony never could have won, Kopris is skilled in asymmetrical warfare. Assassinations, sabotage, ambushes, hit and run tactics, intimidation tactics, Kopris has participated in and is skilled in all types necessary to fight against a stronger foe.
Kopris is a very talented baker, specifically desserts, though this is a skill he doesn't brag about or make publicly known. A skill hard earned from months of trying to woo the woman who would become his wife over and years of practicing to appease her sweet tooth and the sweet tooth of their son, Kopris can craft some surprisingly delicious desserts. Always up for a challenge, he knows at least one recipe from other races as well and can bake them confidently. He doesn't know for certain how good those are, as he obviously has had no third party taste testers of things like human brownies, but he thinks they taste good enough. He often waits til everyone on the ship is asleep or otherwise occupied and sneaks into the kitchen to bake, singing a soft song under his breath as he does so. It reminds him of a time before the Hegemony withdrew from the Citadel, when everything was good and he was happy.
E Q U I P M E N T
M-15 Vindicator (Incendiary Rounds, Assault Rifle Stability Damper) - A weapon he picked off of a dead Blue Suns mercenary, the M-15 strikes the perfect balance between power and accuracy for Kopris. With it he is capable of engaging enemies at range with lethal precision, allowing him to decide when and if he wants to engage them in closer combat and not being forced to rush in like so many other Vanguards he sees.
Blood Pack Punisher (SMG Ultralight Materials, Chemical Rounds) - Picked off of a dead Vorcha, the Punisher is Kopris' go too weapon when he does decide to engage in close quarters. It's designed be wielded in one hand, allowing him to use his other hand for his biotics in combat or to pull a wounded teammate away, and packs enough punch to bring enemies down or keep them away.
Heavy Skirmisher Armor- The only thing Kopris kept from his military issued gear, this armor has gotten him through more battles and operations than he can remember. Rugged and dependable, it is perhaps the only thing that Batarian State Arms has made that isn't overprice garbage. Kopris goes to great lengths to keep it in tip top shape and effectiveness.
Two Omni-tools with Enforcer Gauntlets- When enemies are within melee range, these are Kopris' best friends. encasing his fists in spiked omni-gauntlets, Kopris uses these to their fullest ability whenever the opportunity presents itself. They are effective intimidation tools, as most people tend to hesitate when they see two spike gauntlets waiting to crash into their face. Outside of combat, Kopris uses his omni-tool to surf the extranet or as tools in a pinch.
White marble- Kopris' first eye replacement, symbolizing that his honorable sacrifice would not doom his soul, this pure white marble has the scripture of the Pillars of Strength written on it. Anyone who knows Batarian culture and the Pillars of Strength will recognize it and its significance. Kopris keeps it around mostly out of the feeling that it would be blasphemous to throw it away, and it can be often seen sitting on one of his shelves.
Operating Gear- Tired of never having all of tools he would need when moving from mercenary job to mercenary job, if he had any tools at all, Kopris finally saved up enough credits to buy all the surgery and general medical gear he felt he would need to properly do his job, and stores them in a decently sized brief case that is in the Medbay. Opening said brief case reveals a confusing array of gleaming steel equipment, but Kopris knows where everything is and its purpose. He takes even better care of this equipment than he does his armor.
Collection of Omni-Monster cards- A guilty pleasure of Kopris', he keeps his prized collection of Omni-Monster cards in a binder, with each card having its own sealed liner to further protect it. He finds the monsters designs and the strategy in building teams of them to battle incredibly interesting and almost addictive. It is perhaps the only good thing to come from Kopris leaving the Hegemony system, and he greatly enjoys collecting them.
Box of Cigars and matches: Kopris usually has at least once box of cigars on his person with a box of matches for whenever he needs a smoke. He reluctantly shares if anyone asks.
Personal collection of Liquor: While no longer a raging alcoholic, Kopris still enjoys a drink to relax after long days of fighting or operating. His personal box contains several bottles of Batarian Ale, a bottle of Batarian Shard Wine, a bottle of Asari Honey Mead, a bottle of Akantha, and a bottle of Ryncol. Kopris has never actually drank the Ryncol. He keeps it on hand for if he runs out of medical antiseptics and there's an emergency.
"It'll clean anything it touches. Inside and out."
Picture of Dal'ran and Dalea: The last picture Kopris took with his family. It depicts is wife, him, and their four year old son right before Kopris' departure for basic training. One of Kopris' most prized possessions, it goes with him everywhere.
Sirta Foundation Medical Scanner, built into his helmet- With no proper equipment to actually do scans to see if his patients have any broken bones, lacerated organs, or where any bullets may have stopped inside of them, Kopris needed something that could functionally double as several different types of complex medical equipment. Enter Sirta Foundation, medical technology extraordinaire. With their scanner, Kopris is able to figure out what is wrong and what needs to be done as fast as possible. It cost him a pretty penny, but the lives it has saved are well worth the credits spent.
A B I L I T I E S
-Lash
-Biotic Focus
-Backlash
-Ballistic Blades
PSYCH PROFILET R A I T S
Positive: Focused, Intelligent, Loyal.
Negative: Pessimistic, Bitter, Surly.
V I C E S
Brawling: Kopris actively seeks out fights when on downtime between missions. He's not stupid or aggressive enough to pick fights with teammates or on the job, but when the ship is docked and they're not looking for a job, if he's not in the Medbay he's out on the streets, looking for a fight. If a port has a fighting scene, be it legal or otherwise, Kopris will find it. It's something he picked up after deserting his unit, a way to vent his fury. Soon it became a habit, a way of punishing. Punishing who, he's no longer certain. It could be himself for failing his family. It could be whomever is in front of him for happening to be apart of the galaxy that ruined everything.
Smoking: Kopris picked up a smoking addiction while serving in the SIU. He's almost constantly found with a cigar in his mouth. It helped calm his nerves, in the beginning, and now its simply another habit that keeps him going. Logically, as a medical professional (for he certainly isn't a doctor anymore), he knows that at best the habit is slowly weakening his body to the point where it might cost him his life in a battle. He just can't seem to bring himself to care about that.
Sweet tooth: A weakness he picked up from his late wife and child, Kopris lacks the self-control to resist the allure of desserts, candies, or anything sweet. He always has a pocket full of sweet candies he can snack on, and a sure way to get him to do what you want (within reason) is to offer him a dessert or candy in return. When out and about, he always returns with more sweets to stash away in either his pocket or his quarters.
Omni-Monsters: A collectible card game with fantastical creatures based off of practically anything in the universe that has hooked Kopris completely. He loves the designs of almost every single creature, and is intrigued by the strategy behind building teams that cover each other's weaknesses and build upon each other's strengths. The fact that you can scan your cards with your omni-tool and battle other players from around the universe is only a bonus. Whenever he sees a store selling the Omni-Monster card packs, he always buys at least two to increase his collection.
H A U N T
Kopris can almost always be found in the Achilles' Medbay, prepping for the next time it might be needed, taking stock of supplies, drinking, cleaning his equipment (both in the medbay and for combat), patching himself up from brawling, or simply relaxing and surfing the extranet on his omni-tool.
The Medbay itself is dishearteningly small. If anyone was looking for the reassuring gleam of high-tech surgery equipment and a large room for whenever they need it, they were disappointed. There's a table for operations, cabinets and dressers along the walls for medical supplies and equipment, and not much else. Upon first seeing it, Kopris only gave a disdainful snort. "Good thing I brought my own supplies." Kopris keeps the entire area clean and gleaming, ready for whenever someone gets wounded.
D R I V E
Once a man driven by the needs of his family, Kopris is now driven by both spite and the knowledge that his wife and child would almost certainly hate him even more if he gave up and died just to be with them. He's survived too much to just lay down and die now, and he's sure that if he does he'll be giving some cosmic being, some unknown enemy, or some human who would find his corpse the satisfaction of his death and he refuses to give anyone that. So Kopris slogs on, clinging to life purely because his death would make someone happy and certain that he needs to do better with what life he has left, to make his family proud in the afterlife.
