Just a few days ago, Lokea had accepted a job offer that came in the form of a mechanical bird that landed on her balcony. While sketchy, the job being offered was quite easy for someone with skills like hers. It paid out a lot of credits upon completion, and it came with a sign-on bonus too. She knew it, her boss knew it and her best friend knew it. But the money she was currently making wouldn’t clear her debts out fast enough, and she couldn’t wait for the day in which she could finally afford things for herself. So she took on the job.
The job was simple. Infiltrate the facility on Ebos, find the terminal with the least amount of personnel nearby, plant the worm, get the data and get out. And that is exactly what Lokea did. She and a dozen other halfwits who signed on infiltrated the building together, and all the asari had to do was just activate her tactical cloak and walk quietly. Her entirety shimmered in the light before she almost completely disappeared, leaving behind only some traces of light refraction in the air. She quietly walked up to a terminal, activated her omni-tool and slipped the virus in. However, the clone’s confidence immediately vanished the moment the terminal booted up. The splash screen’s logo is something she’s seen before, one that belonged to a rather vile splinter faction that hampered the Alliance’s efforts to bring the galaxy together against the reapers.
Cerberus.
Despite that, Lokea still managed to get the data and slip out undetected. She was on her way back to the rally point when all of the sudden, an alarm blared. Someone, she didn’t know who, tripped something and now the whole base was on combat alert. At this point, Lokea was far enough away from anyone or anything to be pinned for this, but that soon became the least of her concerns when the klaxon was accompanied by gunfire and explosions. She hurried over to the rally point, and by then her tactical cloak had deactivated. Kaiser, Lance and several of her other teammates were there, gathering up and taking defensive positions. She was just about to talk to them before a large explosion separated her from them. Her armor and its kinetic barriers shielded her from the shrapnel, but the blast still knocked her on her ass. In the hail of gunfire that came after, the asari only got a glimpse of the Atlas mech that was bearing down on her and her teammates. Not even taking the time to see if there was any infantry supporting it, Lokea let her instincts take over and bolted down the hall.
It didn’t take long for Lokea to get lost within the vast Cerberus facility. While the room she infiltrated earlier wasn’t that far from the shuttle docks, she doesn’t really know where she ended up in the grand scheme of things. She just ran to where the gunfire and explosions weren’t at, and try to figure things out from there. Her sprint slowed to a jog, and eventually she stopped to catch her breath. The moment she looked back up, two Cerberus assault troopers came down the hall and stopped in front of her. An announcement came up on the intercom, and the three of them listened.
”Please evacuate to the nearest emergency exit. The building is set to detonate in ten minutes.”
Lokea groaned and rolled her eyes. ”Easy credits my ass.” She muttered to herself, her voice a little muffled from her mask. Her green eyes fell to the two assault troopers. “So, would you two be kind enough to show me to the shuttle bay?”
The two assault troopers raised their firearms in response.
Lokea sighed. “Alright then, forget I asked.” She quickly raised a biotic aegis with her left arm, and the two troopers opened fire. The automatic gunfire produced a lot of dimples in the near invisible biotic shield, the asari calmly and slowly walking towards them as they shot at her. The aegis stood firm as she approached them, and before long, both of their Hornet SMGs overheated.
In a blink of an eye, Lokea’s biotic shield morphed into a powerful force surrounding her left fist, which was then sent towards the lead trooper. A biotic left hook made contact with his head, followed by a right hook with Lokea’s electrified omni-blade. The first blow was already fatal to the trooper, the second one making contact before his limp body crumbled to the ground. Before the second trooper could bring his weapon to bear on Lokea, she rushed him, and delivered a powerful biotic tornado kick straight to his head. The trooper was knocked straight to the side as if he were a ragdoll, and with a CRUNCH! his body crumpled up against the wall and fell down in a heap.
Lokea checked her surroundings one more time. As she did, she drew her Carnifex pistol, hoping to be ready for any other encounter that came to her. One of the nearby signs down the hall pointed towards the shuttle bay. Following the signs, she activated her radio and spoke to the rest of her team. Assuming any of them were left alive, that is. ”Venom Rose to anyone alive on this frequency. The objective has been secured but the whole operation has been compromised. In nine minutes this facility will be wiped off the map, so I suggest that the rest of you get your asses moving. I’m heading to the shuttle bay, and I’ll see if I can get us a ride out of here. Venom Rose out.”
-
Someone got to the data before him. Glad they weren’t entirely incompetent in the matter, however, it was unfortunate it had come to this. If it had simply been these Cerberus dogs he would have trusted things to the mercs, but now the Citadel was involved. He didn’t trust them enough to keep the data. In some ways, those aligned with the five-armed space station can be just as savage and ruthless as this three headed dog. They’ll likely wipe out the mercs, or cut a deal with them if they were feeling nice.
The data was likely more secure with him. Once he learned of what Cerberus was working on, he’d be the one best equipped to get in, and destroy it.
By the way things sounded, it was a complete mess. The mercenary team was locked in an intense fight with Cerberus mechs and security personnel, and the fighting raged on around him while he searched the facility. It didn’t phase him, he simply passed through all of it, invisible and unnoticed. The most capable of the crew-
-an explosion off somewhere. Hm. This was getting dangerous and cockiness wasn’t going to return the data to him right now.
The Surveyor returned, checking his datapad. So a ship flying Citadel colors arrived and Cerberus was tearing their base apart before it could explode. It seems as if their little clone friend had found the data. Best for him to go pay her a visit.
-
“You made short work of them.” Proxy declared through a digitally distorted voice.
Lokea twisted around to the source of the voice, aiming her gun at him. Seeing that he didn’t look like any of the Cerberus personnel she saw here at this base, her finger inched away from the trigger. He also didn’t look like any of the mercs she worked with either. She looked him up and down, keeping her gun trained on him. ”Who are you?” The asari calmly asked, her left hand joining her right to stabilize her aim.
“You know who I am.” He responded.
It took a few seconds, but Lokea made the connection. She knew the voice that gave her this job. This ‘easy’ job. Her eyes widened, and she lowered her gun immediately. “You!? Wha…” She looked around for a moment before her eyes returned to Proxy. “What in the name of all things holy are you doing here?”
“The situation is a bit more complicated now. Citadel-aligned forces have arrived, and I’d like to assure that what is mine gets to me.” He stated as he extended his hand. “I’d like to point out that I haven’t drawn out my weapon. My gesture is in good faith. I’ll still forward the payment to you and your surviving teammates.”
In regards to the situation getting complicated, Lokea simply glared at him. Brilliant observation, genius. She thought to herself as he spoke. Once he held out his hand, Lokea’s glare remained. “Nowhere in the job description did you say that we’d be facing off against a Cerberus remnant.” Lokea said, tightening her grip on her pistol. There was a moment of silence that was then interrupted by a distant explosion. Lokea turned to the source, before she turned back to Proxy. “You’ll get the data once you hand me the credits you promised. But for now I think we have more important things to worry about.”
Proxy turned his attention to yet another explosion. Did security not have a modicum of understanding to blow up your base after you get out of dodge, not before? Yes, he tripped the alarm, but he didn’t think their helmets restricted their brain cells to the point where they’d have mechs tearing through steel like paper.
If Proxy was honest with himself, he didn’t care whether the mercs, Cerberus or those with the Citadel got out of here alive. It wouldn’t matter to him if they all died, that was the point after all. What was more beneficial to him at this moment? Her trust, so he could get the data without her cutting a deal with those Citadel cronies, or forcefully taking the data from her and running?
“Very well.” He stated. “Before you go to the shuttle bay, there is something that you should know. A vessel flying Citadel colors is currently landing there, and it’s likely that your surviving teammates will participate in the bloodbath that will happen there. If you care about their lives, you should direct them elsewhere.” The man looked down a hall adjacent to them. “I landed somewhere less conspicuous. Follow me.”
Lokea listened to him, and bounced his words around in her head. Every bone in her body, as well as the voices of her friends, were telling her not to trust him. But considering the current situation the both of them were in, sticking with him was probably her best bet. She was sure that even if she surrendered to the Citadel-aligned forces, she would get nothing for her efforts other than a short stay at one of their ‘premium’ jail cells. She sighed, nodded and spoke into the radio once again.
“Venom Rose to ALCON, Citadel-aligned vehicles have arrived at the shuttle bay, and are likely arriving in force. I’d suggest exfiltrating through the same way we got in, and get the fuck out through there. Venom Rose out.” While reusing their infiltration route wasn’t the quickest, it might just be the safest. Lokea holstered her pistol, switching it out for her Avenger assault rifle, which she pulled from her back and shouldered once it was ready. She sighed and looked straight to Proxy. “Alright boss. Lead the way.”
Proxy nodded to the asari, and the two began their exfiltration.
There was a reason why Scarlet kept all of her travel stuff in her tactical bag of holding, and why she kept it close to her at all times. The bag always remained strapped to her clothing, and when she slept she kept it underneath her pillow. Not only did it contain her weapons, armor and other tactical gear, it also contained her clothes, documents and travel goods. Passports, weapon licenses, toothpaste, sanitizer, bug spray, Game Boy, and just about everything else she needed to go wherever she needed to go. All of her stuff was carried in that one bag, for the very simple reason that she would have to be on the move at any given moment. War zones shifted, and so did her duties. One minute, Scarlet could be chilling out at a hotel room enjoying a nice evening with the TV tuned to Skinemax. The very next, she would have to be in full gear, mission-ready and on high alert. Scarlet got herself one of the good bags too, one that was resistant to most types of damage and had a warranty rune that would transfer its contents to another bag if this one was destroyed. Scarlet did spent a lot of money on it, but the investment has paid itself off in many instances.
The moment Amanda said that they were Oscar Mike was the latest of them.
The trip to Belarus was thankfully quite short. Being with the OMR had its perks. Scarlet mainly passed the time by reading books and playing on her Game Boy, listening to her mix tapes on her own while she entertained herself. She would've enjoyed some quiet conversation with Amanda, Michael or Faye, but for the most part nothing of substance was said and the homunculus mostly kept to herself. Every now and then she would think about how short her time would be with this group, and how she should enjoy their company while she could. Even if she did join the OMR, once the investigation was over, they'd all have to go their separate ways. Such was the life of a contractor.
The plane landed, and Scarlet walked with the others through the airport. She was able to understand what everyone was saying thanks to the translation device she wore, but she still couldn't read most of the signs. Regardless, she stayed close to the group while they made their way to their car. As per usual, Scarlet was in 'work mode' as she moved through the airport, keeping an eye out for threats and other suspicious activity. She did notice a few sketchy individuals, the kind with dark clothes that stared at the group and talked on mobile phones. But they didn't stare for long. It was likely that their group just stood out to some people here.
In regards to the 'agents' that took them to their car, Scarlet didn't pay them much mind. The black sedan parked ahead of them was very similar to the official OMR vehicles she rode in before, and she figured that the OMR's fleet of black sedans was just slightly different in this part of Europe. It wasn't that long ago that the Soviet Union just crumbled to dust, after all. Scarlet thanked the polite 'agents' as she got in the car, taking up the right side of the backseat and relaxing with the others. Scarlet continued to look for any signs of trouble. A few minutes into the journey, two other black sedans approached them. The moment she saw them, Scarlet got a little nervous. The windows to all three vehicles rolled down, and Scarlet managed to get a good view of the Kalashnikov that was aimed straight at them.
"Get down!" Scarlet shouted, pulling herself and whoever was next to her down below the windows.
All Scarlet could hear was gunfire, screeching tires and the driver shouting in pain as the vehicle swerved about. She felt the impact of the crash when the left vehicle was shunted, and heard the impact of Amanda's fists against the driver's face. Amanda ordered Scarlet to get her weapon out, to which Scarlet obeyed and immediately went to work. She put her hand into the bag's void, and in an instant, she pulled out her custom Glock 21. She peered over the window to get a good view of the shooter from her side, and once she saw them, she brought her handgun up and began firing. BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! While the screeching of the tires was loud, her .45 was louder. She continued firing at the vehicle to their right, hoping to either nail the driver or the shooter. The vehicle kept chugging along, but it seems that she managed to either hit or suppress the shooter. Either way, the shooter stopped firing at them.
Amanda shouted something to Faye, and in the chaos, Scarlet barely comprehended it. She turned to see what was going on, and only got a flash of the struggle before the car disappeared. Scarlet yelped once she made contact with the ground, the momentum dragging her down the sidewalk and forcing her into a painful tumble. "Ow, fuck!" Scarlet groaned once her body came to rest. After a few seconds, Scarlet groaned in pain and attempted to stand up. The homunculus sustained a few scrapes and bruises in the process of phasing out of a moving vehicle, but thanks to the jeans she wore, the damage to her legs was minimized. She let go of her pistol earlier when she fell, but thankfully it landed a few feet away from her. Michael and Faye weren't far behind it.
It took a few moments, but Scarlet managed to stand up. As she walked over to retrieve her gun, she looked to both of her partners. Michael was on his feet too, but Faye was flat on the ground. Scarlet's heart raced, and so did her mind. "Oh no..." Before she could say anything else, she heard a loud crash behind her, and immediately turned around to aim her gun at the source. In the distance, a black sedan smashed itself hard against a building. Standing next to the wreck was Amanda, and upon seeing her, Scarlet lowered her gun. Amanda then made her way towards the group, and Scarlet immediately stood aside so the android could tend to Faye. Scarlet's look of intense focus only gave a slight hint to her worry.
Amanda took quick control of the situation, and once Amanda ordered Scarlet to provide overwatch, Scarlet nodded somberly to her. "Aye aye." Scarlet took a moment to put her armor on, donning the tactical vest she wore to the biker hideout, as well as the kneepads. She then changed out her pistol for her AUG assault rifle. After checking to see that the magazine was full, Scarlet performed her usual 'HK slap' to chamber a round and brought her rifle to shoulder. She walked to the position that would give the others the most protection she could offer, interposing herself in between the OMR and the road. She crouched, taking a knee to give herself a better defensive firing position, as well as a moment to rest. As she surveyed the area, Scarlet thought about what happened, and what led up to these events. Who the hell were these people? This whole setup didn't fit the profile of the biker gang they encountered in Germany. How did the enemy know where they were headed, and prepare this well ahead of time? The only people who would know about their sudden move to Minsk would be the OMR, and those with decent security clearance at that. Someone on the inside must've leaked this. Scarlet thought to herself. She looked over her shoulder towards Amanda for a moment, but considering that there were more pressing matters at hand, she decided to save that thought for another time.
Scarlet's gaze shifted to Michael. He looked as bad as she felt at the moment, but at least he was standing. Still, it wouldn't hurt to check in on him. "Hey Mikey, you alright?" Scarlet asked quietly. She got in another good look of their surroundings as Amanda tended to Faye. Scarlet glanced over her shoulder to Faye, worry creeping into her focused expression.
Appearance | Lokea bears an uncanny resemblance to the asari commando Shiala, green skin and all. She maintains a fit physicality, her feminine curves noticeable and prominent, but not hindering. Surrounding her green eyes are a warm orange and red fade, as well as a variety of darker markings that surround her eyes. In combat missions, she wears a worn set of Ajax Armor, as well as a black breather mask with a painted skull on it. Outside of combat missions, she sticks with a simple grey hoodie and black slacks.
Personality | Like her clone sisters, she didn't really have much of a personality when she first emerged. Well, she did have hundreds of personalities, but they all came in the form of thoughts and memories planted into her from the Thorian that created her. It took a lot of time and experiences for her to figure out which of the memories and personalities she should rely on, and over time she found the ones she liked and came into her own being. As time went on, she became more of an expressive individual who enjoys the company of friendly creatures. From her planted memories and experiences at Zhu's Hope, she uses them in her attempts to be a kinder and friendlier person. She once struggled with the idea of being a clone, but thanks to her close friends, she was able to find security and grace within herself. Her expressive attitude compels her to create beauty, often in the form of drawings and paintings. Thanks to having the implanted memories of one asari and many humans, she's adopted expressions and body languages of both. As for the many values that have been planted, she stuck with the ones that she's liked the best (being kind, standing up for the weak, etc). On the other hand, she is a rather hedonistic individual who lives for the present. Thanks to the Reaper War, she doesn't really plan too far ahead. Despite being secure in herself, the Reaper War made her feel small again, and the loss of many of her friends gives her quite a bit of survivor's guilt. Regardless, she maintains a wanderlust that compels her to go see the stars for herself. (Will edit and develop through play)
Backstory | Long story short, Lokea Zhu is an Asari Clone born from the Thorian who made a name for herself in Illium. She spent some time on Feros helping out its residents, finding out who she was and who she wanted to be. She travelled the stars for a short period of time, eventually ending up on Korlus and working with a friendly krogan named Urdnot Stax. Their work on Korlus earned them residence on Illium, where they worked for an eccentric volus who went by Eppo Cal. When the Reapers arrived, she joined the Nos Astra Freedom Battalion, saved the lives of many with her abilities, and served with distinction. After the war ended, Lokea continued to serve with the NAFB for a bit, and after it disbanded, she was rehired by Eppo Cal and continued to work for him. It was only recently that she was poached for a rather high-paying job on Ebos.
Born from the genetic stock of the Asari Commando Shiala in 2183, Lokea was created under strange circumstances by the Thorian, an ancient sentient plant found on the planet of Feros. While the Thorian exerted its influence and control of the populace of the nearby colony of Zhu's Hope, it created strange green-skinned clones of Shiala in order to speak for it and defend it. While quite a few were deployed when Commander Shepard arrived in search of the conduit, some were stored in sacks as a quick response measure. Some were deployed in order to quickly stop Shepard as the Thorian resisted Shepard's attempts to dispose of it. However, Shepard's squad was able to quickly dispatch the clones, the creepers and the nodes that held the Thorian in the building. The Thorian was killed, Shiala and the Zhu's Hope colonists were freed, and Shepard was able to use the conduit as planned, getting closer to Saren.
However, not all of the sacs were destroyed, and not all of the clones were killed. Hours after the incident, Lokea surfaced from one of these sacs, free from the grasp of the Thorian. While she had a mixture of memories given to her by the Thorian when she was created, these memories were all scrambled, all from different minds and different bodies. She struggled to figure out who she was, what her name was, and who to speak for. As she walked amongst the corpses of the creepers and clones that had fallen in the battle earlier, two more clones like her emerged as well. They met and got acquainted, and knowing that they were all in the same boat, they worked together to get out of the ruins they were in. Once they got hungry, they worked together to hunt some varren that wandered around the ruins. The three clones wandered the ruins for three days, all while trying to figure out who they were and what they should do next. It wasn't long before they stumbled into some of the colonists at Zhu's Hope. The colonists immediately tended to their needs and sent them back to their colony, where all three of them met Shiala.
Shiala proved herself to be more than helpful to both the colony and the clones. As they were fed and sheltered at the colony, Shiala explained to them who they were and why their minds were so clouded with memories and thoughts from others. After some impromptu counseling from Shiala and Lizbeth Baynham, the three eventually picked their names. The two other clones came to be named Kielo and Numeka, taking on the last name of 'Zhu' from Lizbeth's suggestion. Lokea followed suit with her last name, chosing her first name from the word 'Hope' from an ancient asari language, her name roughly translating to that of The Hope of Zhu. All three of them were known in the colony as the Zhu Sisters. Over the period of a year, the sisters ingratiated themselves into the colony and functioned quite well. While Kielo and Numeka assisted Shiala in her efforts in rebuilding and healing the colony, Lokea carved a path of her own, often going out on hunts and scouting missions with Davin Reynolds. In that time, the biotics of Shiala and the Zhu Sisters degraded thanks to the effects of the Thorian, and the four of them had to adapt to that. As Lokea's planted memories gave her visions of different places, her wanderlust grew, especially after hearing about Shepard's galactic exploits from the news.
In 2184, Lokea made the difficult decision to move away from Zhu's Hope to go see the galaxy for herself. While she had grown very close to many of the members of the colony, she felt that she would find her true calling elsewhere, as there wasn't much left for her to do at the colony. Ledra gave Lokea a free ride to Eden Prime during one of his supply runs, and from then, she wandered across the Milky Way.
In her several months of travels, Lokea's been to Eden Prime, the Citadel, Bekenstein and Korlus, doing odd jobs and light mercenary work to put food on the table and pay for other expenses. Her planted memories gave her quite a unique advantage in most job markets, as she had the combined skills of most of the affected colonists from Zhu's Hope. In Eden Prime, she mostly did contract work in the construction of homes and small buildings to pay for her ticket to the Citadel, all while visiting the sites of where the first shots of the Eden Prime War took place. She quickly made her way to the Citadel, where she spent a month doing maintenance and security work. She got into a few light scuffles with petty criminals, but she was able to end them quickly without causing serious harm. It slowly became clear to her that she couldn't afford to live on the Citadel, so she kept moving. She spent a week at Bekenstein sightseeing before saddling up for Korlus.
The moment Lokea made landfall on Korlus, she knew already that she hated it. A hot, noxious scrapyard world almost uninhabitable, the asari spent most of her time there in a rather dilapidated climate-controlled motel room. Thanks to the rather cheap rates of almost everything here, Lokea was actually able to turn a profit this time around from the odd jobs she did here. When she wasn't doing security work, she was also performing maintenance and deliveries for a few tidy sums. After about two weeks, Lokea got her first taste of blood when she killed six batarian gangsters and wounded four more when they attempted to murder her and one of her clients. Despite the rather terrifying incident, Lokea's implanted combat experience helped her during the fight and after it. At that point, she knew that in order to stay safe, she would have to use a codename. It took her some time, but she came up with one that had a nice ring to it. Since that incident, she was known as Venom Rose, and has gone by that codename since. Over time, Lokea got more jobs and earned some notoriety from some of the local gangs under that new name. On a particular anti-gang job, she was hired by a friendly krogan named Urdnot Stax, whom she later befriended and nicknamed 'Fat Stax'. She did a few jobs with him, and thanks to how crazy effective they were as a team, both of them agreed to a partnership. The neighborhood they lived in noticeably improved with their presence, and inspired some of the residents to stand up to some of the gangs that ravaged it.
After a month of doing anti-gang and bodyguard jobs, work died down a bit, as their neighborhood became arguably one of the safest on the planet. More people came to the neighboorhood, and the cost of living started to climb there. Both Lokea and Stax knew that the positive direction the neighborhood was meant that they would have to move somewhere else to keep making money, and while they considered their options, a new job came in. A wealthy volus merchant named Eppo Cal contacted them, and told them that his brother Niftu Cal had been kidnapped and held for ransom by a group of slavers, who also kidnapped a number of Eppo's staff. Eppo tracked the slavers down to a large building in Korlus, and he is paying good money for the recovery of both his brother Niftu and his staff. They took the job, and were soon greeted by a small group of mercenaries from Illium. The team worked on a proper plan and executed it the next morning. While Lokea and some lighter members of the team came in from the roof by rappelling down along the wall, Stax and the heavier team members stormed the building from the ground floor. Lokea's team quickly found Niftu, and shot the slavers through the windows before bursting through. Stax's team located the missing staff, who were in the process of being auctioned off, and promptly rescued them after gunning down all hostiles in the room. The rest of the building was cleared out within minutes, and all hostages were safely rescued.
It wasn't long before Eppo recieved the good news on Illium. Due to their resounding success, he paid all involved what they were owed, along with a bonus. As a further token of gratitude, he offered Lokea and Stax a ride to Illium, as well as a free two-week stay at one of his resorts in Nos Astra. Lokea saw a means of leaving the planet, and Stax saw a business opportunity, and both immediately accepted.
It was clear to both Stax and Lokea that their free resort stay was to sweeten an upcoming deal Eppo had for them, so when it came, they kept their heads clear about it. Eppo offered both Stax and Lokea jobs as high ranking members of CalCorp's security team, and after some calm negotiation, both Stax and Lokea agreed to it and signed on. The next day, they got acquainted with the rest of Eppo's team, a good portion of them being the same mercenaries that participated in the Korlus rescue mission. Eppo made sure to give both Stax and Lokea new weapons, and both continued to use their new toys well into the present. Since mid 2184, Stax and Lokea worked as CalCorp security agents. Most of the work itself was rather boring, but it did pay well and the duo took every chance they got to live like monarchs, even if it was for a few days out of the month. While Lokea and Stax performed rather dull duties throughout their new career, the few oddball assignments they did get broke up the monotony. Some missions they performed involved hostage rescue, others involved a little bit of corporate espionage, and sometimes Eppo just liked going to dangerous places and forced both Lokea and Stax to tag along.
Both Stax and Lokea knew that Eppo was a biotic since they signed on with him, but they never knew the full extent of his powers until the beginning of 2185. During a "business trip" to Omega, Eppo and his security team were ambushed by some Blood Pack mercenaries, but the volus didn't fret in the slightest. The three krogan and five vorcha that came for them couldn't stand back up for hours after Eppo thrashed them with his biotic powers, and the duo couldn't help themselves but be incredibly impressed by Eppo's biotic ability. Lokea herself was only slightly jealous of his ability to perform a biotic charge, but she managed to keep these feelings to herself. They later found out that those Blood Pack mercenaries were sent by one of Eppo's rivals, and while Stax suggested reprisal, Eppo declined on the basis of principle.
Both Stax and Lokea continued working for Eppo, taking on assignments and completing them with ease. Their effectiveness earned them a little bit of notoriety, where the duo started getting job offers from other businessfolk with promises of higher payouts. The duo considered them, but a little research often revealed the would-be poachers to be rather shady and untrustworthy individuals at best. It took some time for the duo to start trusting Eppo, but they've grown to be rather fond of the eccentric volus. While the rest of CalCorp's security team were at first cautious about the duo, they've also bonded well with Lokea and Stax. On days off, the whole security team threw parties at Eppo's Nos Astra resort (where he lets them live free of charge), parties that soon became the source of many of Lokea's positive memories.
When Lokea didn't feel like partying, she dabbled a bit in her artistic side, often painting and drawing digital art with the help of her omni-tool. Her artistic skills left much to be desired, but using implanted skills from some of the colonists, she got a small head start on some of the basics. At the time, her art hasn't really impressed anyone, but Stax and Eppo liked seeing this side to her.
The year of 2186 was one that was burned into the memory of the rest of the galaxy. The Reaper Invasion began with little warning, and the devastation was staggering. Thanks to the quick actions from most of the companies on Illium, the planetary fleet managed to keep most of Reapers from landing on the planet's surface by targeting the troop transports. For a while, the planetary fleet remained engaged with the Reaper capital ships, buying those on the surface enough time to evacuate to safer locations. However, while most of the Reaper's transport ships were destroyed by Illium's flotilla, a few made it through and landed on Nos Astra. The chaos of the evacuation and the battle in space made it rather difficult to really coordinate a ground defense, and Illium's authority had their hands full managing the situation.
At the first signs of the Reaper invasion, Eppo immediately liquidated all of his assets and went to work on purchasing weapons, armor and survival gear. He rallied all of his staff and immediately assigned them different jobs. All of his non-combat personnel were to build and maintain public shelters while his security teams were to form a militia. Eppo's quick actions garnered attention from other groups, and within a week, a tight alliance of various assembled militias became chartered as the Nos Astra Freedom Battalion. Consisting of mercenaries, law enforcement personnel and combat veterans, the Nos Astra Freedom Battalion became a well-regulated paramilitary force in its own right, and immediately began operations throughout the capital of Illium. Thanks to their experience, both Stax and Lokea were signed on as sergeants, and had their armor colored to match the battalion's uniform.
During the Reaper War, Lokea served with distinction. Her defensive biotics and her new cloaking ability allowed her to save the lives of countless civilians and combatants alike, often pulling them away from the line of fire to allow them to be evacuated to safer places. Most of the operations she participated in was in the evacuation of citizens, often attempting to bring them away from combat zones so the rest of Illium's forces could better fight the invading Reapers. The asari clone had a few close calls herself, having nearly been torn apart by the Banshees that the Reapers deployed on Illium's surface. Slowly but surely, Lokea and the rest of the NAFB were able to build up a proper resistance and keep the Reapers off the planet for the most part. Lokea's guerilla tactics proved to be quite effective, with Stax acting as the vanguard and Eppo providing shield support and aggressive biotic attacks. The three of them, along with most of the former security team they worked with, were able to cut through enemy resistance like hot knife through butter, allowing other elements of the NAFB to quickly complete their objectives. Reaper ground troops were only able to come in small numbers, and the NAFB made quick work of them anytime they landed in the city. Thanks to the NAFB, civilian losses were very limited, and the Reapers still had a hard time getting their troops onto the surface.
Despite the low casualty rate the NAFB suffered, the battalion still suffered losses that were almost crippling. Despite the Reaper's heavy disadvantage on the ground, their troops still didn't need to be fed, supplied or rested. Their relentless attacks wore down the NAFB and its allies, with some finding it difficult to keep fighting day in and day out. Some of the almost impervious Reaper capital ships made it onto the planets surface and laid waste to many of the settlements, and while civilian losses were still low thanks to the NAFB's efforts, many combatants lost their lives thanks to the capital ship's attacks. Lokea watched as many of her friends burned away in the death beams the Reapers fired, nearly avoiding the ship's gaze by sticking to the buildings. The NAFB had to maneuver around the capital ships to continue their operations, though they were able to neutralize at least two Reaper destroyers with what little heavy weapons they could get their hands on. And because of their actions, they continued to be a nuisance to the Reapers who tried to take Nos Astra.
As the months went on, normal life became a distant memory. Lokea could barely keep herself motivated anymore as the fight continued. Nos Astra was almost in ruins, and the life the city had once had was long gone. The only people that remained here at this point where just the soldiers who were doing their best to keep the Reapers away from the planet. Despite the presence of the capital ships and destroyers, the NAFB still did a good job at keeping the ground troops away. The only thing left on Lokea's mind was war. It felt like that was all her life at this point, and she felt a bit empty for it. The company of Eppo and Stax did keep her in moderate spirits, but when she was all alone, all she could do was draw and paint the pain away.
And then the Reapers fell. A massive wave of red static energy washed over the planet, and encased in red lightning, the Reapers ceased to function and all of them fell. The wave blown all Reaper ground forces to ashes. After the Reaper ships fell to the ground, there was an almost deafening silence. A cease of explosions, death beams and gunfire. A cease of blood-chilling screams, hostile or friendly. After three minutes of complete silence, a human member of the NAFB raised his rifle in victory and shouted at the top of his lungs. Lokea, Stax, Eppo and the rest of the NAFB followed suit in the celebration of galactic victory. They won.
And they were free.
After the Reapers were defeated, everyone had time to finally grieve. Many of Lokea's friends died during the war, but thankfully, many of those closest to her survived. Almost all of Zhu's Hope made it through the war unscathed, and both Stax and Eppo survived the war with her. Those that maintained the shelters went to the surface to help rebuild the city, and Lokea assisted in the NAFB's post-war peacekeeping efforts. Despite the grief and emptiness the whole galaxy felt after the war was over, there was still some celebration and partying happening. Eppo's element of the NAFB returned to his (now ruined) resort to party like old times, and despite the festivities, everyone knew in their hearts that nothing will be the same again.
Lokea did her best to apply her non-combat skills to the rebuilding efforts anytime she wasn't on peacekeeping duty. For the next year, she and the rest of Nos Astra's survivors helped rebuild the city, as well as some of its culture. A lot of things changed since then. As the economy slowly recovered, a greater emphasis was placed on the preservation of life, and the planet saw lots of reform. As Illium was rebuilding, Lokea and the NAFB continued in their peacekeeping duties, often fighting gangs and slavers that forgot the main lesson that the Reaper Invasion taught the galaxy. The NAFB's combined experience made them a feared fighting force, and it didn't take long for most of the local criminal elements to back off. Off-world criminal elements got the message too, but two years too late. Lokea herself was involved in many of the anti-gang and anti-slaver operations that the NAFB completed, many of them completed with the help of Stax. Eppo, however, had long since quit the NAFB and went to work on rebuilding his financial empire. While it would take years, Eppo promised all of his former staff that he would rehire them once he regained his wealth and assets, and that they were free to come visit him anytime they were on leave. Lokea, Stax and most of Eppo's surviving staff obliged him any chance they got.
As time went on, the NAFB's activities died down. By 2190, Illium had rebuilt most of its law enforcement and military, and the government made the rather controversial decision to disband the Nos Astra Freedom Battalion. Officially, they said that such a paramilitary organization was no longer necessary since most societal functions were now restored, but a popular conspiracy says that Illium's corporate elite pressured the government into disbanding the NAFB, as the group often hurt the profits of companies that relied on less ethical means. However, most members of the NAFB were reintegrated into Illium's military and law enforcement, and the rest were rehired by the companies they used to work for. Lokea and Stax found their way back to Eppo, who rehired them and a few other members of his security staff.
The next year was rather quiet. Since Eppo wasn't the tycoon he used to be, he had to hire all of his staff at a lower wage as he couldn't afford to pay them their old rate. He still housed them for free at his hotel, though it wasn't as good as his old resort was. Work was slow and dull, and while they still managed to salvage some good days, things still didn't feel the same. Lokea, like a good portion of the galaxy, had to battle with a lot of demons that the Reaper War gave her. She coped with it by painting and drawing, and Eppo offered to buy her art to fill up the space in his properties. Lokea agreed, and she created more pieces and tried new ways to breathe life into the places Eppo ran. Eppo ran friendly competitions with all of his staff to see who would make the best hotel room, and the results of the competitions brought more people to his hotels. Eppo slowly regained his wealth, and he slowly regained his old staff and his old resort. He slowly raised their wages to their old rates as he could afford them, and soon enough, CalCorp was back in business, and things were kind of like old times again. Joy came back to the parties Eppo's staff threw, and Lokea found the warmth of new and familiar friends. It took years, but now Lokea felt like she was living again.
Life was good in late 2191. Almost all of Nos Astra had been rebuilt, and its economy was starting to boom again. Things were almost like they were before the war, with some downsides and some improvements. Every month, Eppo's staff would party in the memory of the friends they lost in the war, as that's what the dead would've wanted. Lokea and Stax went on their fun little adventures again, and Lokea herself continued to paint for Eppo. One day, while Lokea was hanging out with Eppo and Stax, a mechanical crow came to them at their resort room to offer Lokea a job. At the time, all three of them found it a little suspicious, but Lokea considered the idea. Depsite the mystery behind the job, it seemed like a lot of easy credits for a short excursion into Argus Rho. Lokea was originally going to turn the job down, but with the money being offered and its sign-on bonus, she couldn't pass it up, especially when half of that money can clear the remaining debts that she's been struggling to pay off. Both Eppo Cal and Urdnot Stax warned her about the job and the dangers of working with people who have a lot to hide. Lokea reassured them that she was well aware of those dangers, and while she could handle herself, if things start getting really fishy, she'll bail out and get to back Nos Astra as fast as possible. If it made them feel any better, she would remain in frequent contact with them during her travels. So, after lots of hugs and goodbyes, Lokea took a few flights over to meet up with Proxy's group.
What seemed like an easy job soon turned into something far bigger...
Powers/Skills | Lokea herself is a rather skilled individual, who's capabilities can be best summed up as a healthy mix of Asari Commando and Alliance Marine. Thanks to the memories that were planted in her since creation, Lokea has access to a wide variety of skills acquired from Shiala and many of the colonists of Zhu's Hope. Despite her natural biotic potential, her thorian-based biology forces an instability in most of her biotic projection, limiting her mostly to using her biotics in a defensive kinetic capacity. Despite that, her planted memories and years of combat experience have allowed her to excel in the use of firearms and martial arts, among many other things.
Aegis Barrier - While it was Lokea's first and most basic biotic abilities, it is also the only stable one she could maintain control over. It acts in the same way kinetic shields would, but with only light focus, it can greatly reduce the effects of any incoming kinetic attacks. This barrier can be broken with enough force, or sustained force. However, Lokea has the ability to focus a lot of that protection into the form of a near-unbreakable aegis shield, not unlike that of the Backlash skill. The aegis barrier can withstand more damage than the standard one, as most of the energy is focused in a specific direction. Biotic Focus - If Lokea focused her biotics into herself, she could greatly increase her physical strength and speed, as well as greatly reduce the damage of melee attacks. The physical kinetic strength granted to her from this ability would allow her to stand up to even krogans. Tactical Cloak - Ever since Lokea joined the NAFB, she used concealment and cover to her advantage to surprise and ambush enemies. It wasn't long before she took it to the next step by the use of a tactical cloak. Using the energy from her shields, the cloak manipulates light in a way in which Lokea herself would nearly be invisible. She'd still have to be very quiet to completely evade detection, though. Overload - A function Lokea adopted onto her Omni-Tool to compliment her arc grenades, which was to deliver an electric shock with an adjustable level of power. It is often used in a similar fashion to a stun baton or a taser, augmenting her omni-weapons and biotic punches with electricity. Other times, Lokea deploys it as a small flash of lightning that could fry shields and electronics. Lokea's been using this function on her omni-tool since she started working security, and it has served her quite well.
Equipment | Most of Lokea's equipment came from both her security work under Eppo, as well as her service in the Nos Astra Freedom Battalion. She used to privately own her own equipment, but she sold all of it once Eppo issued her some new toys. She does her best to maintain all of her gear herself, but every now and then she might purchase a few new parts and upgrades.
M-8 Avenger Assault Rifle - This tough, reliable firearm has been a design success, and thanks to its cheap and reliable nature, it was fielded to militaries and militia groups the galaxy over during the Reaper War. Issued to Lokea when she joined the Nos Astra Freedom Battalion, she used this weapon well, and upgraded it to her liking, installing a power condenser and rate of fire selector to give it comparable performance to that of a Mattock in single fire mode. Accurate and deadly in single fire mode and devastating in full auto, this weapon has only failed unskilled users. M-6 Carnifex Handgun - Issued to her when she started working for Eppo Cal, this powerful handgun served with distinction as Lokea's sidearm. With some slight modifications, this weapon found the perfect balance between fire rate, power, range and heat capacity. She has also kitted it out with a green laser sight, which she can activate with a switch. Since Illium, this gun has always been at Lokea's side. Omni-forge - While the standard configuration of such weapon is usually an omni-blade, Lokea often uses the omni-knuckles configuration to augment her biotic punches as well. Sometimes, she uses both in conjuction with her Overload modifier, adding an electrical shock. Disruptor Ammo - When activated, Lokea's weapon is empowered by an electric field that causes additional damage to shields. The ammo also deals increased damage to synthetic enemies and adds a chance to temporarily disable them. In addition, the ammo has a chance to overheat enemy weapons thereby disabling them. Arc Grenade - Depending on what setting she uses, Lokea could either uses these grenades as a way to non-lethally stun targets, or absolutely fry and destroy everything within a large radius via electric shock. Ajax-class Kinetic Barrier - Thanks to the Ajax-class armor that Lokea's wearing, her kinetic barriers can withstand quite a bit of a beating, and can regenerate in a reasonable amount of time. However, like all kinetic barriers, while they can absorb damage from most ranged weapons and explosions, they do not protect from melee strikes. While the kinetic barrier is small enough to be worn on normal clothing, without the armor conduits the shield loses some of its capacity. Combined with the Ajax armor's shield conduits and ceramic plating, the shield provides a decent amount of defense. Thermal Clips - Lokea's thermal clips are only used in emergencies. In extended periods of fire, when Lokea is often using single-shot fire modes, she doesn't use thermal clips, and instead waits for the weapons to cool. However, in the event when the weapon is needed in that moment, she uses the thermal clip to change out the heat sinks and keep firing. Rangefinder - This rangefinder is a smart scope that allows Lokea to see very far distances, and she has employed it when acting as a spotter for the Nos Astra Freedom Battalion sniper groups. Omni-Tool Modules
Medigel/Healing Module - This omni-tool module allows her to perform basic first aid easily on any wounded victims. While it doesn't cure them, it can buy wounded victims enough time to get proper help. Uses this module primarily in her combat lifesaving duties. 'Swiss Army Knife' Module - Using the omni-gel converter that comes with the omni-tool, it can forge small tools that can be used for any basic need. Knives, screwdrivers, powersaws, corkscrews, nails... there's nothing the Omni-tool can't do! Almost. Digital Art Module - Lokea often likes to paint and draw with this digital interface, her Omni-tool projecting a canvas on any flat surface for her to use. In the absence of one, one is created on the omni-tool interface itself.
Affiliations | Lokea still maintains frequent contact with most of those on this list, as she has them to thank for her growth and development, as well as her survival. She has made more friends than listed below, but these are the more prominent figures in her life.
Nos Astra Freedom Battalion - A tight alliance of militias that formed in the capital of Illium during the Reaper War. Was crazy effective at guerilla tactics and anti-gang operations until they were forcibly shut down by the reformist Illium government. Lokea was once a proud member, came in as a Sergeant and left as a Staff Sergeant once the whole group got demobilized.
Eppo Cal - Alive. A wealthy and eccentric business tycoon, and a powerful biotic volus. Was a bit of a 'crazy cool uncle' for Lokea, if she had the closest human description for him. Was her boss before, during and after their tour in the NAFB, but he treated her and her friends quite well and the two became close friends. Urdnot Stax - Alive. Nicknamed "Fat Stax", this friendly krogan is the closest friend Lokea ever had. The two of them kicked ass together before, during and after the Reaper War, and hope to do so long after Lokea's tour in the Intervention. To Lokea, he's more akin to a big brother than just a business partner, despite starting as such on Korlus. The two of them often joke that their adventures would both make for a good buddy-merc vid series.
Zhu's Hope - A colony from Feros that experienced some of the opening shots of the Eden Prime War in 2183. Lokea came from here, or rather the Thorian that lived here, and spent the first year of her life on this little colony.
Shiala - Alive. An asari commando that provided the basis for the clones the Thorian created. She was there to help Lokea get her mind back on track, and work through her problems. Kielo Zhu - Alive. One of the other clones that emerged with her. Lokea owes her survival to her, as they were able to get through the first three days together. Ended up being one of the colony's doctors. Numeka Zhu - Deceased. Another clone that emerged with her, who also helped Lokea out in the first three days. She helped out with the colony's defense, but perished in the Reaper War. Davin Reynolds - Alive. Hunting partner and drinking buddy, Lokea and Davin were decent friends who hunted animals together on Feros. With Davin's help, Lokea was able to keep her skills sharp.
(Verse 1) Feels like I've been drifting Away from home Another night of wishin' I had control My thoughts drown me like a river Oh-oh-oh Always stuck in the middle
(Pre-Chorus) Wish I wasn't falling slowly Never thought it'd be so lonely Walls are closing in Don't wanna be another sad story
(Chorus) When it's all over I want you to know It was all worth it, oh Promise I won't be, I won't be another sad story
(Drop) I won't be another sad story Oh, I will never be Oh, I won't be another sad story
(Verse 2) I don't wanna watch myself fall apart 'Cause I've seen all of the pieces of myself I didn't know I had My thoughts drown me like a river Woah-oh-oh Always stuck in the middle
(Pre-Chorus) Wish I wasn't falling slowly Never thought it'd be so lonely Walls are closing in Don't wanna be another sad story
(Chorus) When it's all over I want you to know It was all worth it, oh Promise I won't be, I won't be another sad story
(Drop) I won't be another sad story Oh, I will never be Don't wanna be another sad story
When it's all over I want you to know It was all worth it, oh Promise I won't be, I won't be another sad story
Picture Gallery | Just Lokea's character art. All are hidden below here to make the character sheet neater and easier to read.
This character sheet format was poached from someone eons ago, while Lokea herself was an older character concept that I had for another Mass Effect RP 3 years back. However, she's a bit different this time around. I would consider this the best CS I ever wrote in my 6 year tenure on this site. Despite that, I wrote most of this while being super tired and braindead thanks to my job, so if there's any questions or suggestions for improvement, please don't hesitate to let me know. Thank you!
Changelog _______________________________________________ 12/12/2021 - Created character sheet. 12/16/2021 - Added name pronunciation. 12/17/2021 - Added some character art that I created with the help of Source Filmmaker and Photoshop to better illustrate what Lokea and her gear looks like. Changed sidearm to Carnifex to better match aesthetic. Updated apparel descriptions to suit new images. Added some references to Eppo Cal's company, CalCorp. 2/14/2022 A - Revised character sheet for new RP. Fixed broken image links, and changed the backstory a bit (mostly the last paragraph) to reflect new RP. Gave her the codename 'Venom Rose', as well as the Overload power. 2/14/2022 B - Changed a few details in Lokea's backstory to better reflect Proxy's hiring process. 2/26/2022 - Forgot to credit the original artist for drawing Shiala's original portrait, added it.
@TheRedWatcher, I present to you... Venom Rose. If you're already familiar with the character sheet, I'd suggest reading the changelog. :)
"I don't want to be another sad story."
_______________________________________________ Lokea Zhu [Low-key-uh Zoo] Codename // Venom Rose _______________________________________________ Asari Clone| Private Mercenary | Combat Lifesaver _______________________________________________ Ex-Staff Sergeant of the Nos Astra Freedom Battalion
Name | Lokea Zhu
Codename | "Venom Rose"
Race | Asari
Age | 8 years old (born 2183)
Gender | Feminine
Sexuality | Bisexual (Female Leaning)
Height | 5'9" (175 cm)
Weight | 175 lbs (79.5 kg)
Eye Color | Green
Occupation | Mercenary, Combat Lifesaver
Appearance | Lokea bears an uncanny resemblance to the asari commando Shiala, green skin and all. She maintains a fit physicality, her feminine curves noticeable and prominent, but not hindering. Surrounding her green eyes are a warm orange and red fade, as well as a variety of darker markings that surround her eyes. In combat missions, she wears a worn set of Ajax Armor, as well as a black breather mask with a painted skull on it. Outside of combat missions, she sticks with a simple grey hoodie and black slacks.
Personality | Like her clone sisters, she didn't really have much of a personality when she first emerged. Well, she did have hundreds of personalities, but they all came in the form of thoughts and memories planted into her from the Thorian that created her. It took a lot of time and experiences for her to figure out which of the memories and personalities she should rely on, and over time she found the ones she liked and came into her own being. As time went on, she became more of an expressive individual who enjoys the company of friendly creatures. From her planted memories and experiences at Zhu's Hope, she uses them in her attempts to be a kinder and friendlier person. She once struggled with the idea of being a clone, but thanks to her close friends, she was able to find security and grace within herself. Her expressive attitude compels her to create beauty, often in the form of drawings and paintings. Thanks to having the implanted memories of one asari and many humans, she's adopted expressions and body languages of both. As for the many values that have been planted, she stuck with the ones that she's liked the best (being kind, standing up for the weak, etc). On the other hand, she is a rather hedonistic individual who lives for the present. Thanks to the Reaper War, she doesn't really plan too far ahead. Despite being secure in herself, the Reaper War made her feel small again, and the loss of many of her friends gives her quite a bit of survivor's guilt. Regardless, she maintains a wanderlust that compels her to go see the stars for herself. (Will edit and develop through play)
Backstory | Long story short, Lokea Zhu is an Asari Clone born from the Thorian who made a name for herself in Illium. She spent some time on Feros helping out its residents, finding out who she was and who she wanted to be. She travelled the stars for a short period of time, eventually ending up on Korlus and working with a friendly krogan named Urdnot Stax. Their work on Korlus earned them residence on Illium, where they worked for an eccentric volus who went by Eppo Cal. When the Reapers arrived, she joined the Nos Astra Freedom Battalion, saved the lives of many with her abilities, and served with distinction. After the war ended, Lokea continued to serve with the NAFB for a bit, and after it disbanded, she was rehired by Eppo Cal and continued to work for him. It was only recently that she was poached for a rather high-paying job on Ebos.
Born from the genetic stock of the Asari Commando Shiala in 2183, Lokea was created under strange circumstances by the Thorian, an ancient sentient plant found on the planet of Feros. While the Thorian exerted its influence and control of the populace of the nearby colony of Zhu's Hope, it created strange green-skinned clones of Shiala in order to speak for it and defend it. While quite a few were deployed when Commander Shepard arrived in search of the conduit, some were stored in sacks as a quick response measure. Some were deployed in order to quickly stop Shepard as the Thorian resisted Shepard's attempts to dispose of it. However, Shepard's squad was able to quickly dispatch the clones, the creepers and the nodes that held the Thorian in the building. The Thorian was killed, Shiala and the Zhu's Hope colonists were freed, and Shepard was able to use the conduit as planned, getting closer to Saren.
However, not all of the sacs were destroyed, and not all of the clones were killed. Hours after the incident, Lokea surfaced from one of these sacs, free from the grasp of the Thorian. While she had a mixture of memories given to her by the Thorian when she was created, these memories were all scrambled, all from different minds and different bodies. She struggled to figure out who she was, what her name was, and who to speak for. As she walked amongst the corpses of the creepers and clones that had fallen in the battle earlier, two more clones like her emerged as well. They met and got acquainted, and knowing that they were all in the same boat, they worked together to get out of the ruins they were in. Once they got hungry, they worked together to hunt some varren that wandered around the ruins. The three clones wandered the ruins for three days, all while trying to figure out who they were and what they should do next. It wasn't long before they stumbled into some of the colonists at Zhu's Hope. The colonists immediately tended to their needs and sent them back to their colony, where all three of them met Shiala.
Shiala proved herself to be more than helpful to both the colony and the clones. As they were fed and sheltered at the colony, Shiala explained to them who they were and why their minds were so clouded with memories and thoughts from others. After some impromptu counseling from Shiala and Lizbeth Baynham, the three eventually picked their names. The two other clones came to be named Kielo and Numeka, taking on the last name of 'Zhu' from Lizbeth's suggestion. Lokea followed suit with her last name, chosing her first name from the word 'Hope' from an ancient asari language, her name roughly translating to that of The Hope of Zhu. All three of them were known in the colony as the Zhu Sisters. Over the period of a year, the sisters ingratiated themselves into the colony and functioned quite well. While Kielo and Numeka assisted Shiala in her efforts in rebuilding and healing the colony, Lokea carved a path of her own, often going out on hunts and scouting missions with Davin Reynolds. In that time, the biotics of Shiala and the Zhu Sisters degraded thanks to the effects of the Thorian, and the four of them had to adapt to that. As Lokea's planted memories gave her visions of different places, her wanderlust grew, especially after hearing about Shepard's galactic exploits from the news.
In 2184, Lokea made the difficult decision to move away from Zhu's Hope to go see the galaxy for herself. While she had grown very close to many of the members of the colony, she felt that she would find her true calling elsewhere, as there wasn't much left for her to do at the colony. Ledra gave Lokea a free ride to Eden Prime during one of his supply runs, and from then, she wandered across the Milky Way.
In her several months of travels, Lokea's been to Eden Prime, the Citadel, Bekenstein and Korlus, doing odd jobs and light mercenary work to put food on the table and pay for other expenses. Her planted memories gave her quite a unique advantage in most job markets, as she had the combined skills of most of the affected colonists from Zhu's Hope. In Eden Prime, she mostly did contract work in the construction of homes and small buildings to pay for her ticket to the Citadel, all while visiting the sites of where the first shots of the Eden Prime War took place. She quickly made her way to the Citadel, where she spent a month doing maintenance and security work. She got into a few light scuffles with petty criminals, but she was able to end them quickly without causing serious harm. It slowly became clear to her that she couldn't afford to live on the Citadel, so she kept moving. She spent a week at Bekenstein sightseeing before saddling up for Korlus.
The moment Lokea made landfall on Korlus, she knew already that she hated it. A hot, noxious scrapyard world almost uninhabitable, the asari spent most of her time there in a rather dilapidated climate-controlled motel room. Thanks to the rather cheap rates of almost everything here, Lokea was actually able to turn a profit this time around from the odd jobs she did here. When she wasn't doing security work, she was also performing maintenance and deliveries for a few tidy sums. After about two weeks, Lokea got her first taste of blood when she killed six batarian gangsters and wounded four more when they attempted to murder her and one of her clients. Despite the rather terrifying incident, Lokea's implanted combat experience helped her during the fight and after it. At that point, she knew that in order to stay safe, she would have to use a codename. It took her some time, but she came up with one that had a nice ring to it. Since that incident, she was known as Venom Rose, and has gone by that codename since. Over time, Lokea got more jobs and earned some notoriety from some of the local gangs under that new name. On a particular anti-gang job, she was hired by a friendly krogan named Urdnot Stax, whom she later befriended and nicknamed 'Fat Stax'. She did a few jobs with him, and thanks to how crazy effective they were as a team, both of them agreed to a partnership. The neighborhood they lived in noticeably improved with their presence, and inspired some of the residents to stand up to some of the gangs that ravaged it.
After a month of doing anti-gang and bodyguard jobs, work died down a bit, as their neighborhood became arguably one of the safest on the planet. More people came to the neighboorhood, and the cost of living started to climb there. Both Lokea and Stax knew that the positive direction the neighborhood was meant that they would have to move somewhere else to keep making money, and while they considered their options, a new job came in. A wealthy volus merchant named Eppo Cal contacted them, and told them that his brother Niftu Cal had been kidnapped and held for ransom by a group of slavers, who also kidnapped a number of Eppo's staff. Eppo tracked the slavers down to a large building in Korlus, and he is paying good money for the recovery of both his brother Niftu and his staff. They took the job, and were soon greeted by a small group of mercenaries from Illium. The team worked on a proper plan and executed it the next morning. While Lokea and some lighter members of the team came in from the roof by rappelling down along the wall, Stax and the heavier team members stormed the building from the ground floor. Lokea's team quickly found Niftu, and shot the slavers through the windows before bursting through. Stax's team located the missing staff, who were in the process of being auctioned off, and promptly rescued them after gunning down all hostiles in the room. The rest of the building was cleared out within minutes, and all hostages were safely rescued.
It wasn't long before Eppo recieved the good news on Illium. Due to their resounding success, he paid all involved what they were owed, along with a bonus. As a further token of gratitude, he offered Lokea and Stax a ride to Illium, as well as a free two-week stay at one of his resorts in Nos Astra. Lokea saw a means of leaving the planet, and Stax saw a business opportunity, and both immediately accepted.
It was clear to both Stax and Lokea that their free resort stay was to sweeten an upcoming deal Eppo had for them, so when it came, they kept their heads clear about it. Eppo offered both Stax and Lokea jobs as high ranking members of CalCorp's security team, and after some calm negotiation, both Stax and Lokea agreed to it and signed on. The next day, they got acquainted with the rest of Eppo's team, a good portion of them being the same mercenaries that participated in the Korlus rescue mission. Eppo made sure to give both Stax and Lokea new weapons, and both continued to use their new toys well into the present. Since mid 2184, Stax and Lokea worked as CalCorp security agents. Most of the work itself was rather boring, but it did pay well and the duo took every chance they got to live like monarchs, even if it was for a few days out of the month. While Lokea and Stax performed rather dull duties throughout their new career, the few oddball assignments they did get broke up the monotony. Some missions they performed involved hostage rescue, others involved a little bit of corporate espionage, and sometimes Eppo just liked going to dangerous places and forced both Lokea and Stax to tag along.
Both Stax and Lokea knew that Eppo was a biotic since they signed on with him, but they never knew the full extent of his powers until the beginning of 2185. During a "business trip" to Omega, Eppo and his security team were ambushed by some Blood Pack mercenaries, but the volus didn't fret in the slightest. The three krogan and five vorcha that came for them couldn't stand back up for hours after Eppo thrashed them with his biotic powers, and the duo couldn't help themselves but be incredibly impressed by Eppo's biotic ability. Lokea herself was only slightly jealous of his ability to perform a biotic charge, but she managed to keep these feelings to herself. They later found out that those Blood Pack mercenaries were sent by one of Eppo's rivals, and while Stax suggested reprisal, Eppo declined on the basis of principle.
Both Stax and Lokea continued working for Eppo, taking on assignments and completing them with ease. Their effectiveness earned them a little bit of notoriety, where the duo started getting job offers from other businessfolk with promises of higher payouts. The duo considered them, but a little research often revealed the would-be poachers to be rather shady and untrustworthy individuals at best. It took some time for the duo to start trusting Eppo, but they've grown to be rather fond of the eccentric volus. While the rest of CalCorp's security team were at first cautious about the duo, they've also bonded well with Lokea and Stax. On days off, the whole security team threw parties at Eppo's Nos Astra resort (where he lets them live free of charge), parties that soon became the source of many of Lokea's positive memories.
When Lokea didn't feel like partying, she dabbled a bit in her artistic side, often painting and drawing digital art with the help of her omni-tool. Her artistic skills left much to be desired, but using implanted skills from some of the colonists, she got a small head start on some of the basics. At the time, her art hasn't really impressed anyone, but Stax and Eppo liked seeing this side to her.
The year of 2186 was one that was burned into the memory of the rest of the galaxy. The Reaper Invasion began with little warning, and the devastation was staggering. Thanks to the quick actions from most of the companies on Illium, the planetary fleet managed to keep most of Reapers from landing on the planet's surface by targeting the troop transports. For a while, the planetary fleet remained engaged with the Reaper capital ships, buying those on the surface enough time to evacuate to safer locations. However, while most of the Reaper's transport ships were destroyed by Illium's flotilla, a few made it through and landed on Nos Astra. The chaos of the evacuation and the battle in space made it rather difficult to really coordinate a ground defense, and Illium's authority had their hands full managing the situation.
At the first signs of the Reaper invasion, Eppo immediately liquidated all of his assets and went to work on purchasing weapons, armor and survival gear. He rallied all of his staff and immediately assigned them different jobs. All of his non-combat personnel were to build and maintain public shelters while his security teams were to form a militia. Eppo's quick actions garnered attention from other groups, and within a week, a tight alliance of various assembled militias became chartered as the Nos Astra Freedom Battalion. Consisting of mercenaries, law enforcement personnel and combat veterans, the Nos Astra Freedom Battalion became a well-regulated paramilitary force in its own right, and immediately began operations throughout the capital of Illium. Thanks to their experience, both Stax and Lokea were signed on as sergeants, and had their armor colored to match the battalion's uniform.
During the Reaper War, Lokea served with distinction. Her defensive biotics and her new cloaking ability allowed her to save the lives of countless civilians and combatants alike, often pulling them away from the line of fire to allow them to be evacuated to safer places. Most of the operations she participated in was in the evacuation of citizens, often attempting to bring them away from combat zones so the rest of Illium's forces could better fight the invading Reapers. The asari clone had a few close calls herself, having nearly been torn apart by the Banshees that the Reapers deployed on Illium's surface. Slowly but surely, Lokea and the rest of the NAFB were able to build up a proper resistance and keep the Reapers off the planet for the most part. Lokea's guerilla tactics proved to be quite effective, with Stax acting as the vanguard and Eppo providing shield support and aggressive biotic attacks. The three of them, along with most of the former security team they worked with, were able to cut through enemy resistance like hot knife through butter, allowing other elements of the NAFB to quickly complete their objectives. Reaper ground troops were only able to come in small numbers, and the NAFB made quick work of them anytime they landed in the city. Thanks to the NAFB, civilian losses were very limited, and the Reapers still had a hard time getting their troops onto the surface.
Despite the low casualty rate the NAFB suffered, the battalion still suffered losses that were almost crippling. Despite the Reaper's heavy disadvantage on the ground, their troops still didn't need to be fed, supplied or rested. Their relentless attacks wore down the NAFB and its allies, with some finding it difficult to keep fighting day in and day out. Some of the almost impervious Reaper capital ships made it onto the planets surface and laid waste to many of the settlements, and while civilian losses were still low thanks to the NAFB's efforts, many combatants lost their lives thanks to the capital ship's attacks. Lokea watched as many of her friends burned away in the death beams the Reapers fired, nearly avoiding the ship's gaze by sticking to the buildings. The NAFB had to maneuver around the capital ships to continue their operations, though they were able to neutralize at least two Reaper destroyers with what little heavy weapons they could get their hands on. And because of their actions, they continued to be a nuisance to the Reapers who tried to take Nos Astra.
As the months went on, normal life became a distant memory. Lokea could barely keep herself motivated anymore as the fight continued. Nos Astra was almost in ruins, and the life the city had once had was long gone. The only people that remained here at this point where just the soldiers who were doing their best to keep the Reapers away from the planet. Despite the presence of the capital ships and destroyers, the NAFB still did a good job at keeping the ground troops away. The only thing left on Lokea's mind was war. It felt like that was all her life at this point, and she felt a bit empty for it. The company of Eppo and Stax did keep her in moderate spirits, but when she was all alone, all she could do was draw and paint the pain away.
And then the Reapers fell. A massive wave of red static energy washed over the planet, and encased in red lightning, the Reapers ceased to function and all of them fell. The wave blown all Reaper ground forces to ashes. After the Reaper ships fell to the ground, there was an almost deafening silence. A cease of explosions, death beams and gunfire. A cease of blood-chilling screams, hostile or friendly. After three minutes of complete silence, a human member of the NAFB raised his rifle in victory and shouted at the top of his lungs. Lokea, Stax, Eppo and the rest of the NAFB followed suit in the celebration of galactic victory. They won.
And they were free.
After the Reapers were defeated, everyone had time to finally grieve. Many of Lokea's friends died during the war, but thankfully, many of those closest to her survived. Almost all of Zhu's Hope made it through the war unscathed, and both Stax and Eppo survived the war with her. Those that maintained the shelters went to the surface to help rebuild the city, and Lokea assisted in the NAFB's post-war peacekeeping efforts. Despite the grief and emptiness the whole galaxy felt after the war was over, there was still some celebration and partying happening. Eppo's element of the NAFB returned to his (now ruined) resort to party like old times, and despite the festivities, everyone knew in their hearts that nothing will be the same again.
Lokea did her best to apply her non-combat skills to the rebuilding efforts anytime she wasn't on peacekeeping duty. For the next year, she and the rest of Nos Astra's survivors helped rebuild the city, as well as some of its culture. A lot of things changed since then. As the economy slowly recovered, a greater emphasis was placed on the preservation of life, and the planet saw lots of reform. As Illium was rebuilding, Lokea and the NAFB continued in their peacekeeping duties, often fighting gangs and slavers that forgot the main lesson that the Reaper Invasion taught the galaxy. The NAFB's combined experience made them a feared fighting force, and it didn't take long for most of the local criminal elements to back off. Off-world criminal elements got the message too, but two years too late. Lokea herself was involved in many of the anti-gang and anti-slaver operations that the NAFB completed, many of them completed with the help of Stax. Eppo, however, had long since quit the NAFB and went to work on rebuilding his financial empire. While it would take years, Eppo promised all of his former staff that he would rehire them once he regained his wealth and assets, and that they were free to come visit him anytime they were on leave. Lokea, Stax and most of Eppo's surviving staff obliged him any chance they got.
As time went on, the NAFB's activities died down. By 2190, Illium had rebuilt most of its law enforcement and military, and the government made the rather controversial decision to disband the Nos Astra Freedom Battalion. Officially, they said that such a paramilitary organization was no longer necessary since most societal functions were now restored, but a popular conspiracy says that Illium's corporate elite pressured the government into disbanding the NAFB, as the group often hurt the profits of companies that relied on less ethical means. However, most members of the NAFB were reintegrated into Illium's military and law enforcement, and the rest were rehired by the companies they used to work for. Lokea and Stax found their way back to Eppo, who rehired them and a few other members of his security staff.
The next year was rather quiet. Since Eppo wasn't the tycoon he used to be, he had to hire all of his staff at a lower wage as he couldn't afford to pay them their old rate. He still housed them for free at his hotel, though it wasn't as good as his old resort was. Work was slow and dull, and while they still managed to salvage some good days, things still didn't feel the same. Lokea, like a good portion of the galaxy, had to battle with a lot of demons that the Reaper War gave her. She coped with it by painting and drawing, and Eppo offered to buy her art to fill up the space in his properties. Lokea agreed, and she created more pieces and tried new ways to breathe life into the places Eppo ran. Eppo ran friendly competitions with all of his staff to see who would make the best hotel room, and the results of the competitions brought more people to his hotels. Eppo slowly regained his wealth, and he slowly regained his old staff and his old resort. He slowly raised their wages to their old rates as he could afford them, and soon enough, CalCorp was back in business, and things were kind of like old times again. Joy came back to the parties Eppo's staff threw, and Lokea found the warmth of new and familiar friends. It took years, but now Lokea felt like she was living again.
Life was good in late 2191. Almost all of Nos Astra had been rebuilt, and its economy was starting to boom again. Things were almost like they were before the war, with some downsides and some improvements. Every month, Eppo's staff would party in the memory of the friends they lost in the war, as that's what the dead would've wanted. Lokea and Stax went on their fun little adventures again, and Lokea herself continued to paint for Eppo. One day, Lokea got a letter in her virtual inbox, one from a somewhat shifty individual. A brief investigation as to how this message got to her quickly led to Lokea's old job posting that she made before she got hired by Eppo, but that aside, neither Lokea or any of her friends could find anything on this "Proxy" guy. Depsite the mystery behind the job, it seemed like a lot of easy credits for a short excursion into Argus Rho. Lokea was originally going to turn the job down, but with the money being offered and its sign-on bonus, she couldn't pass it up, especially when half of that money can clear the remaining debts that she's been struggling to pay off. Both Eppo Cal and Urdnot Stax warned her about the job and the dangers of working with people who have a lot to hide. Lokea reassured them that she was well aware of those dangers, and while she could handle herself, if things start getting really fishy, she'll bail out and get to back Nos Astra as fast as possible. If it made them feel any better, she would remain in frequent contact with them during her travels. So, after lots of hugs and goodbyes, Lokea took a few flights over to meet up with Proxy's group.
What seemed like an easy job soon turned into something far bigger...
Powers/Skills | Lokea herself is a rather skilled individual, who's capabilities can be best summed up as a healthy mix of Asari Commando and Alliance Marine. Thanks to the memories that were planted in her since creation, Lokea has access to a wide variety of skills acquired from Shiala and many of the colonists of Zhu's Hope. Despite her natural biotic potential, her thorian-based biology forces an instability in most of her biotic projection, limiting her mostly to using her biotics in a defensive kinetic capacity. Despite that, her planted memories and years of combat experience have allowed her to excel in the use of firearms and martial arts, among many other things.
Aegis Barrier - While it was Lokea's first and most basic biotic abilities, it is also the only stable one she could maintain control over. It acts in the same way kinetic shields would, but with only light focus, it can greatly reduce the effects of any incoming kinetic attacks. This barrier can be broken with enough force, or sustained force. However, Lokea has the ability to focus a lot of that protection into the form of a near-unbreakable aegis shield, not unlike that of the Backlash skill. The aegis barrier can withstand more damage than the standard one, as most of the energy is focused in a specific direction. Biotic Focus - If Lokea focused her biotics into herself, she could greatly increase her physical strength and speed, as well as greatly reduce the damage of melee attacks. The physical kinetic strength granted to her from this ability would allow her to stand up to even krogans. Tactical Cloak - Ever since Lokea joined the NAFB, she used concealment and cover to her advantage to surprise and ambush enemies. It wasn't long before she took it to the next step by the use of a tactical cloak. Using the energy from her shields, the cloak manipulates light in a way in which Lokea herself would nearly be invisible. She'd still have to be very quiet to completely evade detection, though. Overload - A function Lokea adopted onto her Omni-Tool to compliment her arc grenades, which was to deliver an electric shock with an adjustable level of power. It is often used in a similar fashion to a stun baton or a taser, augmenting her omni-weapons and biotic punches with electricity. Other times, Lokea deploys it as a small flash of lightning that could fry shields and electronics. Lokea's been using this function on her omni-tool since she started working security, and it has served her quite well.
Equipment | Most of Lokea's equipment came from both her security work under Eppo, as well as her service in the Nos Astra Freedom Battalion. She used to privately own her own equipment, but she sold all of it once Eppo issued her some new toys. She does her best to maintain all of her gear herself, but every now and then she might purchase a few new parts and upgrades.
M-8 Avenger Assault Rifle - This tough, reliable firearm has been a design success, and thanks to its cheap and reliable nature, it was fielded to militaries and militia groups the galaxy over during the Reaper War. Issued to Lokea when she joined the Nos Astra Freedom Battalion, she used this weapon well, and upgraded it to her liking, installing a power condenser and rate of fire selector to give it comparable performance to that of a Mattock in single fire mode. Accurate and deadly in single fire mode and devastating in full auto, this weapon has only failed unskilled users. M-6 Carnifex Handgun - Issued to her when she started working for Eppo Cal, this powerful handgun served with distinction as Lokea's sidearm. With some slight modifications, this weapon found the perfect balance between fire rate, power, range and heat capacity. She has also kitted it out with a green laser sight, which she can activate with a switch. Since Illium, this gun has always been at Lokea's side. Omni-forge - While the standard configuration of such weapon is usually an omni-blade, Lokea often uses the omni-knuckles configuration to augment her biotic punches as well. Sometimes, she uses both in conjuction with her Overload modifier, adding an electrical shock. Disruptor Ammo - When activated, Lokea's weapon is empowered by an electric field that causes additional damage to shields. The ammo also deals increased damage to synthetic enemies and adds a chance to temporarily disable them. In addition, the ammo has a chance to overheat enemy weapons thereby disabling them. Arc Grenade - Depending on what setting she uses, Lokea could either uses these grenades as a way to non-lethally stun targets, or absolutely fry and destroy everything within a large radius via electric shock. Ajax-class Kinetic Barrier - Thanks to the Ajax-class armor that Lokea's wearing, her kinetic barriers can withstand quite a bit of a beating, and can regenerate in a reasonable amount of time. However, like all kinetic barriers, while they can absorb damage from most ranged weapons and explosions, they do not protect from melee strikes. While the kinetic barrier is small enough to be worn on normal clothing, without the armor conduits the shield loses some of its capacity. Combined with the Ajax armor's shield conduits and ceramic plating, the shield provides a decent amount of defense. Thermal Clips - Lokea's thermal clips are only used in emergencies. In extended periods of fire, when Lokea is often using single-shot fire modes, she doesn't use thermal clips, and instead waits for the weapons to cool. However, in the event when the weapon is needed in that moment, she uses the thermal clip to change out the heat sinks and keep firing. Rangefinder - This rangefinder is a smart scope that allows Lokea to see very far distances, and she has employed it when acting as a spotter for the Nos Astra Freedom Battalion sniper groups. Omni-Tool Modules
Medigel/Healing Module - This omni-tool module allows her to perform basic first aid easily on any wounded victims. While it doesn't cure them, it can buy wounded victims enough time to get proper help. Uses this module primarily in her combat lifesaving duties. 'Swiss Army Knife' Module - Using the omni-gel converter that comes with the omni-tool, it can forge small tools that can be used for any basic need. Knives, screwdrivers, powersaws, corkscrews, nails... there's nothing the Omni-tool can't do! Almost. Digital Art Module - Lokea often likes to paint and draw with this digital interface, her Omni-tool projecting a canvas on any flat surface for her to use. In the absence of one, one is created on the omni-tool interface itself.
Affiliations | Lokea still maintains frequent contact with most of those on this list, as she has them to thank for her growth and development, as well as her survival. She has made more friends than listed below, but these are the more prominent figures in her life.
Nos Astra Freedom Battalion - A tight alliance of militias that formed in the capital of Illium during the Reaper War. Was crazy effective at guerilla tactics and anti-gang operations until they were forcibly shut down by the reformist Illium government. Lokea was once a proud member, came in as a Sergeant and left as a Staff Sergeant once the whole group got demobilized.
Eppo Cal - Alive. A wealthy and eccentric business tycoon, and a powerful biotic volus. Was a bit of a 'crazy cool uncle' for Lokea, if she had the closest human description for him. Was her boss before, during and after their tour in the NAFB, but he treated her and her friends quite well and the two became close friends. Urdnot Stax - Alive. Nicknamed "Fat Stax", this friendly krogan is the closest friend Lokea ever had. The two of them kicked ass together before, during and after the Reaper War, and hope to do so long after Lokea's tour in the Intervention. To Lokea, he's more akin to a big brother than just a business partner, despite starting as such on Korlus. The two of them often joke that their adventures would both make for a good buddy-merc vid series.
Zhu's Hope - A colony from Feros that experienced some of the opening shots of the Eden Prime War in 2183. Lokea came from here, or rather the Thorian that lived here, and spent the first year of her life on this little colony.
Shiala - Alive. An asari commando that provided the basis for the clones the Thorian created. She was there to help Lokea get her mind back on track, and work through her problems. Kielo Zhu - Alive. One of the other clones that emerged with her. Lokea owes her survival to her, as they were able to get through the first three days together. Ended up being one of the colony's doctors. Numeka Zhu - Deceased. Another clone that emerged with her, who also helped Lokea out in the first three days. She helped out with the colony's defense, but perished in the Reaper War. Davin Reynolds - Alive. Hunting partner and drinking buddy, Lokea and Davin were decent friends who hunted animals together on Feros. With Davin's help, Lokea was able to keep her skills sharp.
(Verse 1) Feels like I've been drifting Away from home Another night of wishin' I had control My thoughts drown me like a river Oh-oh-oh Always stuck in the middle
(Pre-Chorus) Wish I wasn't falling slowly Never thought it'd be so lonely Walls are closing in Don't wanna be another sad story
(Chorus) When it's all over I want you to know It was all worth it, oh Promise I won't be, I won't be another sad story
(Drop) I won't be another sad story Oh, I will never be Oh, I won't be another sad story
(Verse 2) I don't wanna watch myself fall apart 'Cause I've seen all of the pieces of myself I didn't know I had My thoughts drown me like a river Woah-oh-oh Always stuck in the middle
(Pre-Chorus) Wish I wasn't falling slowly Never thought it'd be so lonely Walls are closing in Don't wanna be another sad story
(Chorus) When it's all over I want you to know It was all worth it, oh Promise I won't be, I won't be another sad story
(Drop) I won't be another sad story Oh, I will never be Don't wanna be another sad story
When it's all over I want you to know It was all worth it, oh Promise I won't be, I won't be another sad story
Picture Gallery | Just Lokea's character art. All are hidden below here to make the character sheet neater and easier to read.
This character sheet format was poached from someone eons ago, while Lokea herself was an older character concept that I had for another Mass Effect RP 3 years back. However, she's a bit different this time around. I would consider this the best CS I ever wrote in my 6 year tenure on this site. Despite that, I wrote most of this while being super tired and braindead thanks to my job, so if there's any questions or suggestions for improvement, please don't hesitate to let me know. Thank you!
Changelog _______________________________________________ 12/12/2021 - Created character sheet. 12/16/2021 - Added name pronunciation. 12/17/2021 - Added some character art that I created with the help of Source Filmmaker and Photoshop to better illustrate what Lokea and her gear looks like. Changed sidearm to Carnifex to better match aesthetic. Updated apparel descriptions to suit new images. Added some references to Eppo Cal's company, CalCorp. 2/14/2022 - Revised character sheet for new RP. Fixed broken image links, and changed the backstory a bit (mostly the last paragraph) to reflect new RP. Gave her the codename 'Venom Rose', as well as the Overload power.
Needless to say, the group's time spent at the restaurant felt quite short. Or it actually was, Scarlet couldn't tell. Just about everything that was in front of the homunculus was ravenously devoured, almost erased from reality within minutes. She spent some time with the other agents making minor jokes and quips, commenting every now and then when she had some of her own experiences to offer. But for the most part, she didn't say much. Despite what happened today, she still felt a little out of place among the 'actual' agents. This wasn't new to her, she often found herself embedded with more established groups wherever she went. While it was nice to befriend and hang with these people, she's never there for long. She knew that. They knew that.
So once the night was actually over, and everyone went home, Scarlet did what she usually did. She spent her night at a cheap hotel, alone, with nothing but her Nokia and a boxy CRT television to keep her company. She lied in bed, stuffing her face with pretzels and candy while she watched whatever softcore stuff that Skinemax had on that night. She did this for at least a few hours until she felt the realm of dreams call her name. She turned off the TV, cleaned up whatever messes she made, took a shower and went straight to bed. She fell asleep minutes later.
- - -
Ever since she started doing contracts for more organized groups, Scarlet made a point to keep a special pouch in her holding bag just for keeping receipts. She did just that with just about every purchase she made while on the job, even when she knew that not all of them would be reimbursed. Even if none of it was, she'd still be making a tidy profit. Regardless, Scarlet was typically careful with how she spent her money, as a little honesty and integrity goes a long way. Organizations will recognize that you aren't taking advantage of them, and that you did your job as they asked. Next thing you know, half of the many jobs you get are from referrals alone.
Scarlet placed the receipt she got from her taxi ride into her receipt pouch, along with the receipts for the hotels she's been staying at, the meals and snacks she's been purchasing, as well as that Honda that she rented. She thanked the driver and made her way to OMR's Frankfurt HQ, marking her third visit. The last two times she was here, she almost got lost. She was able to reunite with the rest of the group within minutes, entering their office and forming up with the others.
Just as soon as she arrived, she noticed the stacks of paper that filled the surfaces in the office, enough to create a city with lots of paper skyscrapers. She then turned to Amanda and an agent that Scarlet may have seen once or twice. Scarlet gave the demon a quiet and awkward wave hello while she stood there, waiting quietly. Soon Morgana arrived, followed by Michael and his posse, who quietly walked in through the door. Scarlet turned to Morgana as she asked if there was anyone better qualified to handle all of this paperwork. Scarlet thought that too, and even wondered if most of it can be processed by a computer. She also noticed how groggy Michael and his companions looked. However, there seemed to be someone missing from the group.
"Where's Faye?" Scarlet asked quietly.
As if on cue, Faye's voice came through the ether in the form of an apology. "Oh, uh-" Scarlet turned her head to the source of the voice. Just then, Faye blinked right into the room, almost colliding into Scarlet herself, who quickly stepped out of the way with a quiet yelp of her own. The wobbly stack of papers proved to be a rather formidable obstacle to the agent as she tripped over it and comically fell into the path of its collapse. Scarlet only had enough time to wince once it made impact with Faye and the ground. Faye didn't seem too happy about that. The mercenary thought about asking if the agent was okay, but she didn't seem any worse for wear.
Once everyone was present, Amanda spoke. The demon was introduced to the group as Madeleine. It seems as if their current group will be split into two teams, with Amanda taking a task force over to Minsk and Madeleine supervising the investigation here in this office. Thankfully, Amanda offered the group a choice in the matter, if in an amusing way.
A few moments of silence passed. Morgana eventually relented, volunteering to stay in Frankfurt to take one for the team. Scarlet smiled a little bit in relief and appreciation. As she will reveal in a few moments, Scarlet might lack the many job requirements to handle a task like that. Michael echoed her thoughts with his answer, citing that he didn't really have the skill set necessary to deal with what was here.
"I'm with Mike on that." Scarlet added, gesturing to him. "My contract says that I'm only here to shoot guns, defuse bombs, act tough and save lives." Scarlet pointed to the mountains of paperwork behind her. "I don't think I have the college education or agency training needed to make that go away." She could list many other reasons why she'd go to Minsk, like the fact that her contract is still legally binding and she'd still have to fulfill her duties of armed security and crisis response, or the fact that she'd need Amanda's written approval to stay here with Madeleine and that's even more paperwork to handle. Regardless, the choice was obvious, and her answer was clear.
"So uh, yeah. Minsk will be my final answer. I hope y'all don't mind."
Once Avi introduced himself, Scarlet replied with a friendly smile. "Nice meeting you." Soon the conversation moved on, and she asked everyone where they were from. Scarlet retained her smile after revealing a little bit about herself to her newly acquainted comrades. Shortly after she introduced herself as an escapee from the purgatory-like realm that some people like to call Cleveland, Avi's turn came up. The homunculus listened as the half-elf revealed where he was from, as well as his police background. Turns out he was a mountie before he joined the OMR to work as an undercover agent. Scarlet nodded, a little impressed herself. "I suppose it won't be long before Pierce Brosnan puts your life story to the big screen, huh?" Scarlet asked with a soft smirk, before waving her hand. "Sorry, dumb joke."
As the conversation progressed, Scarlet caught bits and pieces of what the others were saying, particularly when Faye was answering Avi's question. Eventually, Scarlet turned to Morgana once she spoke, and listened. So Morgana makes up the second brit of their current team, sharing that title with Faye. Scarlet then realized that she and Amanda were the only Americans at the table, Avi and Michael being from Canada themselves. Morgana revealed that she was more of a researcher than a field agent, and that her talents covered a vast number of magical sciences. Scarlet shrugged. "From what I heard, you really helped us out alot. You helped Faye out when Scary Thing screwed with the uhm... magical things, and you managed to seal Scary Thing's power, giving Amanda the chance to bring the target into custody." Scarlet smiled just a little. "I'd say that's pretty damn good work for someone without any field training."
It wasn't long before the food arrived. Scarlet, who's honestly starving right about now, thanked the waitstaff and immediately went to down on her Hamburg Steak. Once she actually had a decent bite of it, her eyes lit up almost like a Christmas tree, and she continued eating it. Once Amanda commented on the agent's eagerness of devouring the food, Scarlet looked up. Every now and then, Scarlet would forget that Amanda was a robot. Right, she can't eat with us. Scarlet thought, almost feeling bad about it. For a moment, Scarlet started giving Amanda some actual thought, thinking about the nature of her being a sentient robot. A synthetic being, just like Scarlet herself. Well, at least one part of her was natural, and even then it wasn't entirely all there. For a moment, Scarlet's eyes met with Amanda's, before she returned to her food. Does she know? Will she? Scarlet's pace slowed as she mulled over her thoughts.
Scarlet's thoughts were cut off once Faye spoke to her. She looked to Faye, blinking, before it clicked in her head what was going on. "Oh, right! Thank you." Scarlet smiled, gently taking the bit of blockwurst that Faye handed her. Scarlet had a bite, and after liking what she was tasting, she went to town on that too. "You're right, it is great. Thanks again!" Scarlet said in between bites. She listened to Amanda and Faye's interaction in regards to how the food tastes, Scarlet nodding every now and then to corroborate what Faye was talking about. Not like Scarlet would be the best to describe food anyway, other than food tasty, me likey. Once Faye encouraged Amanda to get the augmentation, Scarlet finished her bite and looked to Amanda. "Well, I personally wouldn't blame you if you still didn't want to get it, I'm sure a whole new form of data to process would be overwhelming." Scarlet took another bite and finished it, using her fork to make a few gestures. "But if it's something you really want, I don't see a reason not to go for it."
As everyone spoke and ate their meals, Morgana brought up a rather interesting question. Come to think of it, this is a rather diverse group, especially for an organization like the OMR. Scarlet's experiences often had her in groups where people had similar skillsets, where these skills are multiplied in the form of squads and teams. This team seemed more like a joint task force with a bit of a ragtag feel to it. A task force that left a lot of questions lingering in Scarlet's head, some that Amanda will hopefully answer.
It took Amanda a second, but she eventually produced an answer. Scarlet leaned in closer to listen, and couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. Out of all things, a computer program chose them? Scarlet is somewhat familiar with computers herself, having tinkered with machines that ran Windows 3.0 some time ago. All things considered, they were mostly just consumer electronics that did their jobs well. With the way that Amanda described the Agent Potential Calculator, Scarlet could only guess that it used something far more advanced than what she's used to. Maybe the OMR got Windows 95 before everyone else did. Lucky bastards. Regardless, it seems as if the calculator made no mistake in assembling this team. Once Amanda finished her explanation, Scarlet nodded softly, giving it a little more thought. Did the Agent Potential Calculator factor me into their equations? I just got back from deployment yesterday and signed on today. Was I really just in the neighborhood? Scarlet wondered. What exactly do they know about me?
Scarlet's mind jumpstarted once more once Faye spoke up, asking if even she had potential as a somewhat untrained OMR agent. Now that Faye spoke up about it, Scarlet figured that she would use this as an opportunity to do so as well. "Come to think of it, I'm kind of wondering if I actually ended up in the erm... 'APC' myself, or even how it got data on me. As far as I know, I'm not an OMR agent." Scarlet said, taking a sip from her glass of water. "Not that I mind being a wrench in the works." Scarlet gave a light smirk before speaking again. "Still though... I couldn't help but think about it. You guys aren't planning on recruiting me... are you?" Her tone was much more curious than accusatory. "I wouldn't mind if you were, I'd kinda be flattered, but... uh... yeah."
After the homunculus asked the elf if there were any hamburgers in a German Restaurant, Scarlet couldn't help but feel out of place. She did the best she could to hide her embarrassment for asking such a silly question and outing herself as the 'most American' of the group. She didn't hide it as well as she thought she did, however. Scarlet's attention was caught by Amanda, who interjected with something rather helpful. The mercenary couldn't help but wince a little once her commanding officer told her that this place didn't serve burgers. Before Scarlet could ask for a better recommendation, Amanda gave hers in the form of Hamburg Steak. The way Amanda described it made it sound quite fancy, at least in comparison to what Scarlet normally ate. It does sound quite tasty, and even if she couldn't get a side of fries, the dish itself should make up for it. Scarlet smiled a little at the suggestion (as well as Faye's reaction), and nodded. "I'll go for that then, thank you." Scarlet briefly turned to Faye with a bit of a smirk. "I might just take you up on that offer. I barely heard what... blockwurst was, but if it's anything like bratwurst then I'm down."
Before long, a good portion of the table figured out what they wanted to eat, and some awkward silence came. Before Scarlet closed her eyes, she managed to catch a glimpse of what Michael's friends were doing, and was amused for a brief moment. She remained quiet, though her silence was only filled with the nervous thoughts her brain produced unprompted. She took a deep breath and sighed in an attempt to remain calm. When things got quieter, she looked up to the others and spoke up. "So uh... where are you guys from?"
If Scarlet was going to be honest with herself, she didn't expect Amanda to be the first to answer. In most situations, she's used to the commanding officer being the last to answer. Scarlet was quick to pick up that this group wasn't an ordinary team. So Amanda's 'born' in Utah, but currently lives in Arlington. Definitely a career agent, that's for sure. Enjoys the work and the travel. Scarlet couldn't help but smile a little at Amanda's explanation. "That's nice. Most people don't get to say that they enjoy their jobs, but it seems as if you already found your calling."
Faye gave her answer not long after Amanda finished, and the moment Faye said London Scarlet's eyes lit up. So that's where your accent came from! Scarlet thought to herself, amused that she didn't make the connection until Faye spelled it out for her. Faye spent most of her time around fairies in the woods, and is a new recruit to the OMR. Scarlet's American ass didn't know where Knightsbridge was at, but living close to the woods sounded nice. Hell, living near any natural terrain sounded nice. Scarlet turned to Faye, giving her a soft reassuring smile. "Hey, if it's any consolation, I'm sure you know a hell of a lot more about the OMR than I do. Most of what I know about the OMR is shit I just found out today." Scarlet chortled.
Michael came next with his answer, and Scarlet turned to him to listen. It seems as if shamans were still in vogue for indigenous North Americans, with enough to form an entire confederacy that spans the whole continent. Scarlet didn't know much about the indigenous peoples of North America, nor about their sizeable contribution to the fight against the abomination, possibly for reasons that Michael explained. Scarlet looked to the gods once Michael mentioned them, and smirked a little. She turned back to Michael, who explained that someone like his cousin Tyler could've been with them instead. Scarlet returns his smile. "Ehh... I dunno." Scarlet shrugged playfully. "It's not like you gave me the courage to fight Scary Thing or whatever." She gave him a playful nudge before leaning back. "Uhm... if nothing suits your fancy, you could get what I'm getting. It's a Hamburg Steak. I think Amanda said it was a beef patty or something like that glazed in sauce. Comes with some vegetables or some shit. It might not be your thing, but uh... yeah." Scarlet shrugged, giving Michael a look that said I'm just as lost as you are.
Every now and then, Scarlet checked the areas surrounding them for any potential threats. She saw a few agency types by the bar, as well as a few who carry themselves in a way that Scarlet was almost too familiar with. There was a moment of silence, and it took that moment for Scarlet to return to the conversation. "Oh, uh... my turn? Okay." Scarlet cleared her throat. "So, I was born in a small town in Alabama, but I moved to Ohio with my parents when I was one. Cleveland, to be exact. Lived there ever since. I didn't really uhm... have an interesting life or anything. Spent most of it playing games and watching movies, really. Only started doing mercenary work 2 years ago." Scarlet intentionally left out the part where she died and became a homunculus. No one here needed to know that. Yet, at least. It's not like she would remember much of her past life anyway, a lot of that was a blur to her. "My contracts took me to places like Australia, some parts of Africa and the Middle East, and a few places in the Pacific. Just yesterday I completed my protection contract in Bosnia, and happened to be in the neighborhood when the OMR called me up. I signed a contract and now I'm here with you guys on the duties of armed security and crisis response. Most of what I did was quite boring, but I've been on a few interesting assignments." Scarlet smiled a little. "And so far, I can safely file this away as one of the more interesting assignments."
Once Scarlet stepped up to Michael's side, she complimented his rather formal attire and made a joking question about going to a dinner party. She nodded in agreement to Faye's statement regarding Michael looking like a completely different person. The homunculus raised an eyebrow once Michael whistled at her, stepping a little closer so she could hear him. She listened as Michael spoke to her, and being a woman who just can't take a compliment, she blinks and looks away sheepishly for a moment. "Well, uhm... you can thank the folks at the infirmary for that, made my arm good as new." She said with a soft smile as she brandished her right arm, displaying its lack of damage. "But uh, yeah. Thank you." Scarlet nodded in a slightly awkward manner, but her soft smile hinted appreciation. Faye pointed out Michael's companions, and Scarlet turned to look in the direction in which they'd be. She smirked a little at their outfits, it seems as if Michael couldn't help but form a well-dressed entourage of his own. Once Michael started filling her in on what's going on, she listened and gave it some thought. It seems as if folks are trying to figure out where to spend their night out at Frankfurt, and given that most of them are foreigners, they don't exactly know where to start. Not like Scarlet would know where to look, most of her time spent outside of the United States was either in a hotel or a warzone. She wasn't exactly the most 'touristy' of travelers.
Scarlet's gaze shifted up to the taller man beside her once he asked for her opinion. She couldn't help but smile a bit at the Red nickname given to her. She's been called that a few times before by other folks she's worked with, and she never minded when they did. It was always a little endearing. Once Michael finished telling her what he felt like eating that night, Scarlet shrugged. "Well, uh... I don't quite know, to be honest with you. I never really been to any erm... 'real restaurants' outside of the States. Normally I just go to whatever place that serves burgers, chicken or pizza. I can only last on 'premium quality' MREs and candy for so long." Scarlet rolled her eyes as she airquoted 'premium quality'. "But uh... if you're asking me for what I'm in the mood for, well..." Scarlet was about to say that she could go for some chinese takeout, but no one really needed to know that she was an apartment dweller from Cleveland just yet. "... I don't know, really." She lied. "I guess I'll stick with whatever sounds the tastiest, wherever we decide to go."
Scarlet then turned to Faye, who had a free moment to be spoken to. Scarlet then checked in on Faye, Michael joining with her. She listened to the both of them, hearing out Michael's story. The homunculus imagined every detail, including the bits regarding people bursting into flame, as well as the eyes. Just the very thought of it brought the fear she's suppressing back up into her heart, the otherworldly fear that she felt when fighting Scary Thing. She blinked and tried her best to hide it, barely just maintaining her composure by taking a deep breath and a long quiet exhale. However, the sight of Michael's friends did give her a light chuckle, grounding her a little with a bit of distraction. Michael's resolution did give her a bit of a smile, and she turned to him once he apologized for 'adopting' them in a sense. Scarlet shrugged. "No worries, I appreciate the sentiment. All I ask is that you forgive me if I end up being a terrible little sister, I kind of grew up as an only child." The homunculus replied, and before she could say anything else, she felt herself suddenly get pulled towards Michael. A split second later had her realize that it was indeed Michael himself, and that she was being hugged. And as much as she'd hate to admit it, Scarlet's lonely touch-starved ass liked it. Slowly but surely, the warm feeling of the group embrace dissolved the eldritch fear in her heart until it was nothing more than a small anxiety.
Scarlet chuckled sheepishly as Faye thanked them. "Hey, it's nothing. I'm just glad you pulled through." Scarlet remained in the group hug for a moment, joining in with Faye as she spoke to them. Once Scarlet was released from the group embrace, Scarlet's smile remained. She hadn't been hugged in a long time, and shit that felt good. Scarlet heard Faye out, learning of her rather unique blood form which makes certain magical energies react with her in adverse ways. That would explain why her bag of holding was acting weird, the otherworldly energy must've interfered with its function. The topic then changed to going out to eat, and it seems as if Amanda already found a place for them. Scarlet nodded. "Suits me. Right behind ya."
It turns out that the restaurant was just a short walk away from the office. The restaurant was quite interesting, having a very old western European look to it that made it look like it was transported straight out of the fantasy (a.k.a. historical fiction) movies that Scarlet saw. It was a little surreal, but at the same time, quite interesting. The homunculus soon found out that she wasn't alone in thinking that, as Faye voiced Scarlet's thoughts almost word for word. Scarlet didn't speak a lick of German, and she was too lazy to put on her enchanted translation device, so she remained huddled in the middle, simply going where the others went. It wasn't long before they ended up at a booth table with a nice view. Scarlet took a seat (next to Faye and Mike if she could help it), and listened to Amanda. "Thank you." Scarlet said to Amanda with a smile and a nod. As the others discussed what they wanted to eat, Scarlet grabbed the menu and looked it over.
God, what the fuck, I can't understand any of this shit. Scarlet looked for the closest English cognate she could find. Her enchanted translation device was something she wore in her ear, which allowed her to tactically communicate with allies when she was on her deployments. When it came to text, however, she often had to ask allies to read them out loud so she could hear the live translation. The asking allies part, well, she might have to do here.
Scarlet looked around to see who would be the most qualified to help her find a familiar dish that she'd be comfortable with trying, and ended up overhearing the exchange Faye had with another agent. Scarlet tilted her head slightly, before recognizing him as the elf who returned fire at some of the bikers earlier with his service pistol. She simply nodded to herself and remained quiet for a moment. A part of her wanted to ask him whether or not they served burgers here, but at the same time she didn't want to out herself as 'too American' in a place like this. Scarlet bit her lower lip, sitting in awkward silence for a moment or two as she figured out what the hell to do.
Scarlet took a deep breath and sighed. Fuck it, here goes nothing. Scarlet looked to Xaviron, and cleared her throat. "Uh... I'm sorry, I never caught your name, but uhm... I'm Scarlet Rubashka, uh... callsign Venom Bean. I'm a freelance contractor brought on to help you guys out." She looked away for a moment, and looked back to the elf. "So uhm... I'm sorry if this is a stupid question, but do you know if they uh... serve any burgers here? I can't read German."
The homunculus sighed and leaned back. She closed her eyes for a moment, and turned to both Faye and Michael. Rather than sit in awkward silence, she decided to break the ice while everyone was figuring out what they wanted to eat. "So uh... where are you guys from?" Scarlet asked.
The trip back to OMR HQ was uneventful, thankfully. Scarlet mostly just sat in silence and watched the trees pass as the team headed back to Frankfurt. She managed to salvage the things she left in her rental. Silver lining, though, she doesn't have to drive for a bit. She did appreciate Amanda's comments on her combat ability, and once Amanda mentioned them, Scarlet herself couldn't help but smile and give her the same answer she gave Mike earlier. You can thank the scary monster for standing still for me. Her right arm and hand were wrapped around in cloth, as she got her arm checked out by the medics that were on site. Her dead skin and blisters, while not reversed, were mostly shed off by the healing spell applied to her arm. The cloth was mostly there to absorb any fluids that remained. For the most part, Scarlet remained quiet during the trip, mostly thinking to herself. Her mind constantly played back the fight she was just in, and the fear that she felt. The two loud bangs from her fifty, and the abomination. The scary thing.
Scarlet was able to snap out of it once they arrived at HQ. She quickly excused herself to the infirmary, where she took off her bandages and had some more restoration and cleaning applied to her arm. At this point, her arm and her hand were good as new, and she didn't feel gross or in pain anymore. While she was getting checked out and healed where necessary, she answered any and all questions her clients had. She answered them in the clearest and most succinct way she could muster, giving them a play-by-play of what happened there. They did confirm Amanda's assertion that the rental car would be taken care of, and reiterated their point that all of her expenses will be paid for in the duration of her contract. Speaking of...
"Do you guys have any plans to give Amanda's team some qualified staff?" Scarlet asked the senior agent opposite of her. She finished cleaning up her arm, removing what was left of the dead skin and blisters on it. "I don't know about you but I'm getting a bad feeling from all of this."
"I wouldn't be concerned about it if I were you. You and the rest of the team handled that situation quite admirably." The senior agent replied, the elf speaking with a somewhat heavy German accent. He was the same agent who called her on the phone and negotiated her contract, as he was one of the liasons at Frankfurt. "Besides, you did more than back up what was on your resume."
"I don't recall writing fighting eldritch monsters anywhere in my resume." Scarlet almost snapped. "Were you even there when it happened? That thing..." Scarlet stopped herself midsentence. She let out a heavy sigh. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snap at you like that. I'm... I just... never mind."
"Hey, it's fine, no worries." The agent said, leaning back in his chair. "It seems to me that you're still processing what happened. Many of us, myself included, were veterans of the Shattering. We know a thing or two about fighting abominations." He said with a smile. "It's completely natural to still feel scared, even long after it was over. You might even have plenty of nightmares." Seeing the look in Scarlet's eyes, he put up his hands reassuringly. "But, since you were just fighting a small infantry target as opposed to a world-devouring entity, the effects should be quite minimal. You'll feel better in a few days, I'm sure."
Scarlet nodded. There was some confidence to the senior agent's words, but still experiencing the unnatural fear in her heart compelled her to second guess him and herself. I shouldn't be feeling this. I shouldn't be scared. I survived much worse. I was brave. I should be brave. What's going on? Scarlet sighed, and smiled weakly. "I retract my previous statement then." She stretched a little. "Anything else?"
"No, that'll be all, Miss Rubashka." The agent replied as he finished his notes. "You did say that Amanda planned on taking her group out in the town, yeah?"
Scarlet blinked. "Yeah, what of it?"
"Maybe you should go with them. Socialize a bit, see the sights. At least immerse yourself in the feeling of safety in numbers." The agent replied. "Should help you get over it a bit quicker. I doubt that sitting in your hotel room watching TV all night will do you any good."
Scarlet looked away for a moment, and looked back into the agent's eyes. He does have a point, and it seems as if he read her like a book. Comes with being a senior OMR agent it seems. Scarlet took a deep breath and let out almost all of the air in her lungs. "I suppose. Yeah." She stood up. "Thanks for hearing me out. I'll talk to you soon." Scarlet smiled weakly as she shook the agents' hand. She turned to the healer on the other side of the room. "Thanks for patching me up."
Scarlet had long since gotten herself cleaned up. Just wearing a black pair of cargo pants and a light grey t-shirt, she applied some minor illusion makeup to make herself look a little prettier. Her curly hair remained in a tight ponytail, and her tactical bag of holding remained at her side, where she could easily draw any of her weapons at a moment's notice. Hopefully she wouldn't run into too much trouble today.
Scarlet walked downstairs to where the other agents are gathered, and smiled a little at the sight of the friendlier individuals she met earlier today. While she hasn't gotten herself acquainted with the rest of the agents, she did recognize Faye, Mike and Amanda. She quietly ingratiated herself into the group, and looked around. She blinked once she saw Micheal.
"Woah, looking good." Scarlet said with an impressed chuckle. "Making me feel a little underdressed here. Are you sure we aren't going to a dinner party or something?" Scarlet asked jokingly, before stretching a little. "So uh... what did I miss?"
Scarlet then turned to Faye, giving her a smile and a nod. Once Faye had a moment to be spoken to, Scarlet addressed her quietly. "You feeling okay? I heard about what happened."
Punished GN
M-8 Avenger Assault Rifle
M-6 Carnifex Handgun
