Species: Human, with additional non-human genetic material (indeterminate origin)
Age: 25
Posting: Tactical officer on the Excelsior Advance, on long-term assignment to frontier territories, Orion sector Command.
Charity “Char” Jones’s past is mostly a blur, even to her. She remembers being a child of traveling parents, but doesn’t recall why they were traveling. Her early days ended in pain, however. Pirates captured their ship, plundered the vessel, shot her parents, and then took Char to sell into slavery.
She grew up being bought and sold by one master after another. Her final owner had her trained in gladiatorial combat, and then threw her into one fight for her life after another. She rose through the ranks and was nearing the top when a team of Rangers crashed her fight to raid the whole illegal operation. Seeing her chance to be free, Char attacked the guards herself, a dozen other gladiators at her back.
They freed the ship, and the slaves, but all the important targets escaped. The team’s Marshal was impressed by young Char, and offered her a spot at the academy.
It wasn’t until this time that her genetic background received serious scrutiny. She’d always known she wasn't entirely human. Her ears are pointed and her eyes are naturally purple, but she never knew why. Whatever the answer, it’s not clear where extra genetic cocktail comes from. Much of her unusual DNA is common amongst beings born in high gravity, but none match closely enough to solve the mystery.
During training, Char excelled in all physical disciplines. She displayed incredible endurance, often turning in sprint times during long-distance runs. While not as spectacular in her classwork, Char showed a natural aptitude for tactics and weapon systems. She prefers the personal touch, forgoing the tactical controls for a pair of holographic display glasses and haptic gloves.
Char is a deadly personal combatant, either with small arms or hand-to-hand. But, perhaps because of her upbringing, she is loath to use deadly force, even when the situation demands it.
That fact brought her to the attention of Lena Vargas, who was putting together a crew for extended duty on the frontier. The personnel office had trouble placing a gunner who didn’t want to shoot the bad guys. But after a single interview, Lena snapped her up. She said she wanted her gunner to always look for another solution before pulling the trigger.
Char’s all smiles and jokes most of the time, but heaven help you if you’re a threat to her or her crew. You’ll probably have many years of drinking your meals through a straw to reflect on the error of your ways.