Things are so much easier in Black and White

You know how this works.  Anon is on, etc, etc. 

The only addition is: please be gentle.

Player Information
Your Nickname: Red
OOC Journal: redfirelight
Under 18? No
Email/IM: thisismyomnitool @ AIM, rfirelight@gmail.com
Characters Played at Singularity: None

Character Information
Name: Garrus Vakarian
Name of Canon: Mass Effect
Canon/AU/Other Game CR: Canon
Reference:  Garrus @ Mass Effect Wiki
Canon Point: Mass Effect 2: Just after the destruction of the human Reaper, as the platforms begin to collapse, before the Normandy crew escapes the Collector base.

Setting:
A long time ago in a galaxy -- no, not really either of those things.  It's more one of those "in the not-so-distant future" things.  In our very own galaxy, to be precise, if one counts our galaxy as being the Milky Way Galaxy.  Humanity decided to go out and explore Mars -- once there, they discovered a lot of strange alien technology.  It was dropped there by a race of extinct aliens known as the protheans.  But aside from that, no one really knew, or knows, anything about them.  Instead of doing horrible things to them, as one would expect, considering the terrible horror movies set in space these days, this technology basically catapulted humanity out into the stars, where they met some crazy-looking aliens, and some pretty damn horrific things.

Like the asari, who are a race of "monogendered" boobs aliens in control of the galaxy's major political systems.  They're considered to be very wise, and beautiful, because who wouldn't love a blue alien lady with tentacles on her head?  Anyway, they help lead the galaxy with the help of the other 'Council Races' from the seat of galactic power, a massive space station known as the Citadel.  The Council Races include the turians, the bird-dinosaur-alien military strong arm of Citadel Space, the salarians, space-salamanders on speed and addicted to science, and, as of 2183, humans (who don't get a qualifying explanation since everyone knows what a human is).  There are other races, outside the the council -- the krogan, the hanar, the drell, quarians, volus, elcor, vorcha, and the rachni.  Oh, and the batarians, but no one really likes them.  Not even other batarians.  Ew.

But what people do like are turians.  Aside from being the armed right hand of the allied Council and the protected races, turians are looked to for protection, and security in general.  They were the ones to implement the security-slash-police-force known as "C-Sec", or "Citadel Security", in order to keep the peace on the giant space station of the Citadel.  Even though it was turian-founded, C-Sec eventually employed officers of almost every species in Citadel Space, though more than half of the officers are turian.  This is likely due to an aspect of turian culture that strongly emphasizes civil service.  Every member of their society enters into compulsory military training, or another sort of service role (such as C-Sec) when they turn fifteen.  Typically, this period lasts until they hit thirty, but most turians tend to stick to their role.  There's also a good deal of emphasis placed on honesty, and duty.  If a turian fails in his assignment, it's not automatically his/her fault -- a heavy portion of the blame can be, and frequently is, placed on those who assigned the role.  Clearly, they didn't realize the turian wasn't ready for such an assignment, and should have known better.

In what's considered "civilized space", you have the Citadel, as previously stated.  It's not perfect by any means, but it's got at least some semblance of order and laws.  Way out in the Terminus Systems, on the edges of "civilized (Citadel) space", you have the space station, Omega.  Built out of an old, mined-out asteroid, it's a veritable hive of scum and villainy, to borrow a phrase.  There are no laws -- except for one -- and it's a haven for all types of criminals, dealers, and general Bad Types.  Mercenary gangs, in particular the Blue Suns, Eclipse and Blood Pack, generally have the run of the place, and all of them are under the jurisdiction of the station's Scary Purple Asari Overlord -- otherwise known as Aria T'Loak.  No one does anything that might cross her, and she doesn't particularly care what anyone does, so long as they abide by that rule.

Everything in the galaxy is based off of mass effect technology,  which is basically fancy super-kinetic energy, generally powered by element zero (or eezo) that can do everything from launch a space ship between solar systems, generate shield barriers for armor, fire weapons, and fry and egg.  Okay, not that last one, but it's a diverse, useful sort of technology on both the large and small scale.  The giant structures floating out in space called "Mass Relays" make use of this technology, and are what enable space ships to get themselves shot to various corners of the galaxy, through the relay network.  One connects to another one, and so on and so forth until you get to wherever it is you wanted to trundle off to.  With all this fancy technology, it makes for a pretty peaceful sort of galaxy -- aside from the various wars and whatnot that seem to crop up on a regular basis.  

Well, at least it would be, except for the Reapers keep showing up every fifty-thousand years or so to wipe out all organic, sentient life.  Ah yes, the "Reapers".  They're very bad news.  And no one really seems to believe they exist, despite a lot of evidence to the contrary.  They're coming back, which bodes ill for the entire galaxy, unless someone like Shepard and company steps up to do something about it.  Unbeknownst to most of the galaxy, save for the Merry Band Of Heroes, the Reapers employ an insectoid-like race known as the Collectors, to do their bidding, to prepare their way into the galaxy.  The Collectors are something of a galactic myth, appearing now and then to collect -- har har har -- various individuals of varying races, such as seven left-handed quarians, or a pair of batarian twins.  What happens afterward, no one knows.  However, the Collectors have started emerging from the shadows like a swarm of gun-toting bugs, abducting entire human colonies in the process.  This?  This is Not Good.

Personality:
Garrus has been described as a hothead with an itchy trigger finger. He chafes under restriction, preferring to do things his own way, rather than "by the book". He has a strong sense of right and wrong, however, and most of his "outside the book" efforts go towards bringing the criminals to justice any way he can. He highly respects individuals whose efforts are geared in this same vein. When he is unable to do this, it eats at him, and is not lightly shaken off--failure does not agree with Garrus—if anything, it only gets worse the longer he is unable to do anything about the situation.  His confidence took a blow on Omega, and has not yet recovered.  He doubts his ability to lead, and just generally doubts himself.

Overall, he is a highly dedicated, loyal man, who would take action over sitting around talking in a crisis, and he highly respects those individuals who follow a similar sort of mindset. If you have his respect, and therefore, his loyalty, he will follow you to the ends of the earth. He cares for his crew, whether they are on equal footing, or have a superior-subordinate relationship, very deeply, as evidenced by his reaction to the deaths of his group on Omega, and his interactions with Shepard.

He idolized Shepard, in the beginning, and while that didn't change over the years, some of it seemed to rub off. He became more comfortable in the Commander's company, going so far as to joke with her, and tease her. Still, it seems he always will hold Shepard in highest regard. There is little wrong Shepard can do that Garrus can't justify—even when it appeared the Commander was working with Cerberus, one of the enemies they'd faced before, he trusted Shepard immediately, deciding there was a good, logical explanation for this sudden turn of events.

His mission goals are of the utmost importance in his mind, above all else, even the needs of others--save for those in his squad. Duty is important to him, and he is easily frustrated when he can't do what he has deemed to be his. His turian upbringing dictates that he places the good of the many over his personal goals, which could likely have been a contributing factor in his sudden relocation to Omega—combined with his need to follow in Shepard's footsteps.

Omega, it seems, changed him. His idealistic nature was jaded, and instead of seeing ways to improve situations, instead of seeing the good, he tends to focus on the negative. On the Citadel, where he once only mildly remarked on the low crime rate, he later stated it was no better than Omega, crawling with corruption. He sees things in, as he says, “black and white”. Either someone is innocent, or they're a criminal. “Gray is... difficult,” he tells Shepard at one point, indicating that when the facts point in different directions, he starts to lose sight of what it is that needs to be done.

Garrus' personal life—namely his ability to interact with someone he's attracted to—is disastrous. He makes an abrupt switch from the jaded, world-weary sort of rogue-cop he's become, and turns into the galaxy's most painfully awkward teenager going for his first date. Overall, he acts far more relaxed in the company of his crewmates, his friends, than he did previously, or around others.

He can be racist--or speciest, depending on which term you prefer--toward species not considered "Council Races". This includes krogans, quarians, and batarians. His opinion of humans seems to be neutral, edging toward respect, mostly due to his interactions with Shepard and the crew. He takes a broad view of a certain race, but is, as evidenced by his conversations with Wrex and Tali in the first game, willing to change his views on an individual basis.

Abilities, Weaknesses, and Power Limitation Suggestions:
Garrus is a turian, a tall, bipedal, bird-like species, who is a capable hand with most firearms, most specifically sniper and assault rifles. Outside of that, he is decent enough with electronics, being able to do some hacking. He's better at making repairs on said electronics, and even automotives when the need arises. He's had police training, due to his former occupation, and was, by most accounts, a very good investigator. At one point, he states he was considered one of the best in hand-to-hand combat during his military service, and is renowned for his sniping ability.

Garrus' turian biology gives him a small amount of resistance to radiation, as well as sharp, elongated talons on each hand and foot. However, due to his genetic make-up, he could very well experience a deadly allergic reaction, should he ingest any material that is not based on the same genetic material as the turians themselves--that is, anything not produced on their homeworld.

In general, turians "exhibit the characteristics of predators rather than those of prey species. Their forward-facing alert eyes give the impression that they possess outstanding eyesight and their teeth and jaws mimic the structures possessed by apex predators such as crocodiles or ancient, carnivorous dinosaurs. Needless to say, their talons on both their feet and hands seem capable of ripping flesh. Their slender bodies also seem to suggest that they are also capable of moving at high speeds" (As quoted from the Mass Effect wikipedia entry on turians.)

Because of his life on the Citadel, a galactic hub, it's reasonable to assume Garrus is multi-lingual. He at least speaks his native language, as well as the major human dialect (English, for the purposes of this game). It's stated in Mass Effect canon, that the asari language is predominant on the Citadel, so, therefore, it's likely he can speak it conversationally as well.
Inventory:

• Omni-tool; containing 1 application of medi-gel. for his face
• His broken, scarred, and damaged armor from ME2 (visible in his appearance photos).
• Visor
• Four spare thermal clips
• M-97 Viper Sniper Rifle
  
  • "Rapid-fire military sniper rifle. Incredibly accurate and deadly at long range, these weapons are popular amongst infiltrators and assassins. Very effective against armor, somewhat effective against shields and biotic barriers. Rosenkov Materials developed this deadly weapon in response to the rising prevalence of kinetic barriers. While kinetic barriers still offer some protection from this weapon, its sheer power and rapid rate of fire make it capable of quickly killing almost any target, regardless of its defenses. Great suppressive rifle. Its strength lies in its semi-automatic firing ability and large ammo capacity, which makes it less of a liability if you were to miss a shot." -- As stated in the Mass Effect Wiki page on sniper rifles. Its maximum ammunition capacity is 48 rounds.
    
• M-15 Vindicator Assault Rifle
  
  • "A three-round-burst battle rifle manufactured by Elanus Risk Control Services. It is very accurate and highly effective against armor, shields, and biotic barriers. The M-15 has superior accuracy and stopping power but has a lower thermal clip capacity of 24 rounds, and a total spare round capacity of 96. It's burst automatic fire is also less effective at close quarters." -- Mass Effect Wiki on the M-15

Appearance:
+ Garrus' face with some horrible scars.
+ Yeah this is a turian except he's missing clothes.
+ And then he had armor on.


Age: 28 (somewhere between there and 30 -- canon never actually states.  This is an estimation.)


Samples
Log Sample:
There would be time to process later. Time to work through what in the hell they'd just witnessed, what they'd just averted. But now, there was only time to move. With the place coming down around their collective ears, with that damned Reaper crashing into the pit, they needed to get to stable ground, and fast. The ground was slipping, sliding away into the pit to join the Reaper, and he couldn't keep his balance. He was falling, tipping with the platform into the abyss, and not even the hardened edges of his suit could find a grip.

Great, the one part of his mind not focused on survival chided. You survive Saren, pissing off every mercenary in Citadel Space and the Terminus Systems, how many Collector assaults, and now you're getting taken down by gravity. This is just your luck.

He looked up, trying one last time to stay on the damned platform, only to see her. Shepard. He should have known. Apparently forgetting her own safety, his commander was scrambling toward him in a mad attempt to grab hold of him--to haul him back up out of trouble yet again. How many times did this make? Did it even really matter?

New strength filled tired muscles, and he caught her grip. Just for a moment, before vertigo tore at them, pulling them apart. Then, he was off and tumbling again, falling through space toward who knew where. To join the Reaper, probably. So damned unfair...

Hand around his wrist, holding him suspended in empty air. He didn't need to look up. Not even death could take Shepard down--why would she allow it to take her team, take someone she cared for? The barest hint of a smirk flicked across his scarred face as he grasped her hand again, and pulled himself back up, back onto the relative safety of the wildly tipping platform. Explosions rained down around them, and gravity threatened to overtake the team again--no time to sit. No time to so much as thank her before the platform tilted again, throwing them violently in the opposite direction.

He rolled, his vision reduced to a bizarre blur of steel parts and fire. He could hear Shepard shouting, could hear the bend and warp of metal all around. The world wobbled crazily, robbing him of all sense of direction. Everything tilted...

And he opened his eyes to...

"This... is new..."

Network Sample:
[There's a few muffled curses, both in English, and some unknown language. A brief period of silence follows, accompanied by a metallic click. When the voice finally speaks again, there's a strange, echoing quality to it. This is not a human voice.]

Shepard! Come in! Shepard!

Joker, Normandy, do you read? I don't--I don't know what happened. Something went wrong when that--when that thing went down--Something with the blast, maybe.

I can't get a fix on your locations--I don't even know where I am. Did the other teams make it out?

Damn it! Someone respond! Can anyone read me?