Renegade Rodian
- Intent: To flesh out one of the Helix Syndicate’s higher-profile mercenaries.
- Image Credit: Hidden Cache by christopherburdett
- Role: A mercenary commonly employed by the Helix Syndicate.
- Links: N/A
- Age: 48
- Force Sensitivity: Non-Force User
- Species: Mon Calamari
- Appearance: A Mon Calamari of Chretien’s age should not be out here shooting people for a living, but here he is. Chretien looks especially worn down for his age and has some notable facial scars. He’s on the short side for a Mon Cal, but nonetheless seems rather fit for his age. You generally have to be in this line of work.
- Name: Chretien
- Loyalties: Helix Syndicate
- Wealth: Comfortable for a mercenary
- Skills: The farther Chretien is from the actual fighting, the better he does. He’s a marksman through and through, preferring to pick off his enemies from a distance with a long range weapon rather than up close and personal. He’s handy enough with that old sidearm of his to hold his own in a firefight… But he’ll usually prefer to run away from close-range confrontation. Other than that, Chretien is a skilled starship pilot and smuggler. He has an expert knowledge of the hyperlanes surrounding his home planet of Dac and some neighboring sectors. If you need someone shot from very far away or something smuggled past a blockade, Chretien is your guy.
- Personality: Of all the mercenaries on the Syndicate’s payroll, Chretien is by far the most neutral. He demonstrates a very relaxed attitude under most circumstances and seems generally agreeable to just about anything. This belies a more bloodthirsty nature. If asked, Chretien will generally advocate for the course of action that results in the highest bodycount - specifically if he is the one racking up the kills. The rest of the Syndicate’s mercenaries and employees seem to get along well with him, although more than a few privately find his “kill ‘em all, let the Force sort ‘em out” attitude disturbing... Or counterproductive.
- Combat Function: Sniper. Chretien hits them from far away and hits them hard. He’s no good in a fist fight and just passable with his sidearm. While he is an expert marksman, when enemies get too close he’s more likely to flee.
- Weapons of Choice: HXWS-03 Disruptor, CZ-838 Sniper Rifle, CZ-839 Sonic Carbine, DC-15s Sidearm Blaster
The first Sith Empire formed in the wake of the Gulag Plague eventually came to control the planet of Dac. Given the planet’s previous stint under the rule of the One Sith, one might understand that there were many Mon Calamari who opposed this arrangement. Chretien was an up and coming starfighter pilot who got swept up into the underground resistance movement. As one might expect, the resistance needed supplies, and direct importing past the Imperial blockade was out of the question. Chretien decided to offer up his skills as a smuggler. So did around a dozen others.
Of the other resistance smugglers, Chretien was the only one who lives to this day. Chretien proved himself a natural and astute pilot. There was a lot to like about space. First it could be cold and quiet. Nice and relaxing. Then another minute you were weaving around like a maniac so those turbolaser bolts didn’t fry you, your ship, and the thirty tons of ammunition you were carrying for the folks under the sea.
Good times.
Slowly and surely, the cost of resistance began to take its toll. Chretien’s superiors frequently found themselves with personnel issues. Eager to distinguish himself, Chretien signed on with a sniper division. Chretien had talent, not skill, but as the years of Imperial occupation dragged on, he managed to acquire the latter. This was around the time his colleagues started to complain to him about his actions. “I’m pretty sure that radar technician was just hiding”, “Are you absolutely sure you didn’t mean to hit that Stormtrooper who was trying to surrender?”, and finally, “I don’t care how ‘shootable’ his face looked, that was just a customs officer and you shot him while he was running away.”
For the life of him, Chretien did not understand what the issue was. These were people aligned with the enemy. Did they think the Sith would show any mercy to their support staff - their doctors and quartermasters? Of course not. If this resistance was going to make a lasting impact, they had to cause damage. The Sith wouldn't care if ten Stormtroopers died in a firefight. But if they kept massacring their minions to the last, then maybe they could draw a Sith out and send a real message when Chretien put a bolt between his eyes.
Well, he could dream. But they weren't having any of it anyway.
Despite his effectiveness at what he did, Chretien was not allowed to stay. He had become the embodiment of what the kind of whimsical cruelty they were fighting against. After a failed attempt to arrest him, Chretien fled the planet for greener pastures. When he eventually heard that the resistance was crushed, he did not seem overly moved. Just another phase. Better to go with the flow than get hung up on the past.
Between his two talents, Chretien found a lot of work. Not necessarily good or well-paying work, but enough to get by. He smuggled when he couldn’t find any bounty hunting contracts and he hunted bounties when he couldn’t find anyone in need of a smuggler. After Chretien successfully fulfilled a daring assassination contract against a planet’s governor and his entire family (it’s a long story, but it did involve a birthday party and timed explosives), Chretien managed to attract the attention of the Helix Syndicate. They offered him a substantial amount of money to become one of their retainers. Not having anything better to do, Chretien accepted, and has been in service of the organization ever since.
Just another phase.
