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Description

Franchise: Halo

Affiliation: Themselves

Motto: “It’s a dirty job but someone’s gotta do it.”

Type: Mercenary Contractors, Vigilante Gang

Nicknames/Alternate Names: Stonefinders (Original name under Xoraxis Jnudan), Defibrillators of Infinity (Official name on Galactic Companies House), Starknights, Raniks and his Rangers, Guardians of the Wait-a-Minute That Name’s Taken, Idiots, Heroes-For-Hire, Flint Clan, Raiders, A Pirate Gang Without all the Glory, Space Trucking Yokels

Vehicles/Mounts: The Zenith- A Highly Modified and Customised Qabel Shipyards LNO-Class Cutter Starship given to Chris Flint when he was part of the Raiders, a group of Space Pirates that he used to be a member of. The ship, in keeping with Raider tradition of naming ships after lovers and/or requited and unrequited recipients of romantic affections, is named after his childhood sweetheart- Amelia Zenith. The Zenith is a raggedy, smelly, filthy ship, which makes sense considering it's owned and operated by Chris Flint, and has parts from at least seven different black markets. It has numerous unpaid fines, the subscription to the entertainment system on board expired and is yet to be renewed, its slipspace drive is overclocked to dangerous levels and desperately requires maintenance (or more accurately, replacement) and there's probably a class-two biohazard worming its way through the plumbing. It's a wonder how the thing hasn't fallen apart yet, and even more that it's still a capable dogfighter. Apparently, it’s owner refuses to give up on her. It also features a Vyrant Telecom Advanced Multi-Medium Music Player that can play vinyl records, cassettes, discs, data chips and wirelessly-synced music too. The Zenith's weapons are standard issue- for the Raiders space pirates, meaning it sports numerous illegal and cleverly concealed modified weapons, as well as scan-resistant compartments for them to fold into and for illegal contraband to be stored alongside, plus additional and improved weapons systems made by Ranger Vrisk Raniks. Chris' quarters aboard the ship are so unclean that he kept a separate room for when he invited a lady friend over- which has now been taken by Xoraxis Jnudan. Furthermore, other rooms have been fitted into the ship and taken by members of the Defenders of Infinity- with Zorrjha Khamiarah taking what used to be hidden cargo bay for illegal contraband, Haxus the Devastator taking a previously unused laundry room, Ranger Raniks living inside of what used to be (and still is) an on-board maintenance room, and Voox Koli Tamme inhabiting any of the ship’s stasis pods that are not in use, or alternatively bunking with Raniks. The entire vehicle is decorated with posters and merchandise from all of Chris' favourite pieces of media, and on his fridge is a picture of a Hakkorian Olken/Trads 7-44 Sports Mobile, a car he describes as 'gorgeous' and hopes to, but probably never will be able to afford. Finally, Flint has sounds programmed into parts of the ship that make it sound like a Reclaimer Human muscle car, especially when its thrusters are suddenly activated, though these sounds overlap with the sound the thrusters make on their own, leading to a confusing and irritating noise whenever he's in town- and for the rest of the team.

Base of Operations/HQ: The Zenith

Industry: Troubleshooting, Bounty Hunting, Mercenary Contracting, Parapolice, Package Delivery, Import/Export, Private Security, Private Investigation, Monster Hunting/Beast Wrangling

Founder: Xoraxis Jnudan (As the Stonefinders), Chris Flint/Solar-Saint (As Defenders of Infinity)

Owner: Chris Flint/Solar-Saint

De Facto Leader: Chris Flint/Solar-Saint

Technology Tier (Primary): Tier 1

Area Served: Milky Way Galaxy

Founded: 2564

No. of Employees: 6

Monetary Value: 735 Galactic Novarrs (Optimistic estimate)

Status: Active

Overview: The Defenders of Infinity are a band of former galactic outlaws, who have teamed together to protect the Galaxy from great threats...and make a little moula on the side. Named after an early 26th Century Human NeoGlam Rock band which Chris Flint, its leader, is a fan of, the Defenders were originally assembled as a mercenary crew by the former Zignauli Annexer Xoraxis Jnudan the Retaliator and the crimelord known as The Scofflaw, for the purpose of finding the Dread Stones and using their power to destroy the Obsidian Warlord Taniox. During this quest, the team’s clashing motives led them to almost imploding, especially as Jnudan almost got the entire team killed in his pursuit of the Dread Stone of Power- only for it to fall into the hands of Tenebrae Puritan Lo-Khan Genvell.

The Defenders of Infinity were then idealised by Solar-Saint as a proactive team to protect the cosmos in light of the Puritans of Tenebra attempting to use the Dread Stone of Power to destroy New Hakkor- a crisis that had forced the team to improvise a resistance to defend the planet. Styling themselves after and adopting some of the traditions of the Raiders Space Pirates of which Solar-Saint is a former member, the Defenders of Infinity usually flip between being sanctioned bounty hunters, a group of outlaw mercenaries and a crew of vigilantes. By expecting no one else would do their heroic work, they claim their goal is to protect the galaxy and right wrongs throughout it.

The team is currently (and incorrectly, thanks to a typo by its leader) registered as "The Defibrillators of Infinity”- legally incorporated troubleshooters under Hakkorian bounty permit 20182-12, although their record has yet to include anything relating to medicine. Although they are officially involved in the troubleshooting industry- one full of supposed “heroes for hire” who perform all manner of problem-solving tasks for various employers, they appear to be primarily mercenaries, accepting low-paying, bottom-of-the-barrel contracts with little requirements in the way of skill in spite of their impressive membership and notoriety. In fact, their reputation for taking such astonishingly underwhelming jobs has led users of numerous bounty hunting and mercenary contracting boards to use "DoI" as a euphemism for poor contracts.

Example: "Damn, that job’s a real DoI."

Resources and Capital: In spite of their fame for organising the defence of Hakkor from the Puritans of Tenebra and saving countless lives, the Defenders of Infinity are a business of remarkably low value and tend to get a lot of low-paying and undesirable work. Apparently, they waited too late to officially register and continue to build their reputation before the fifteen minutes of fame they got ran out and they found themselves stuck with the shit. According to Vrisk Raniks, the Defenders blew a whole lot of the Novarrs they were paid for their heroic actions on Hakkor on simply setting up their business and jumping through thousands of legal hoops, leaving the team itself practically broke.

The most valuable possession the Defenders have is probably their ship- The Zenith, which doubles as their headquarters and living space. Ever since the Defenders of Infinity were formed, The Zenith has served as their primary mode of transportation as well as their headquarters and living space- to varying degrees of appreciation by members of the team. As a small business barely trying to get itself off the ground, the Defenders don’t exactly have much choice when it comes to living arrangements, and the nature of their work requires them to be pretty much constantly on the move, necessitating this arrangement. Chris Flint claims that one day, the Defenders will have a whole fleet of ships and a big building on Backwater or Claudaxia to operate out of- and that they’ll all have their own places both on and off a starship. But for now, the Defenders have to settle for Flint’s old reliable.

Chris Flint has apparently also stressed the importance of distributing Defenders of Infinity business cards wherever they go and to whomever they interact with, although some of the team has been liberal in this duty. The business cards, which were printed in bulk before Flint noticed his ‘Defibrillators of Infinity’ typo, have been delivered to every major spaceport in the galaxy. While many arrived through various types of postal systems, there were several incidents of dimensional rift dead-drops as well. One star system- Choppa 3, has permanently banned the Defenders of Infinity from entering their space since the unannounced delivery of cards to their cities led them to believe they were under attack and they went into lockdown for two whole days.

Members:

Chris Flint/Solar-Saint (Guy in the blue trenchcoat)- Arrogant, rash, headstrong and believes his own press, call him Solar Saint or The Legendary Outlaw, or the Saint of Stars if you're feeling especially formal; he's got a good heart, but you might need to tread carefully to find it. Chris Flint’s larger-than-life, cocksure personality hides an earnest desire to favourably compare with famed examples of leadership and heroism. Solar Saint is also privately insecure that he cannot measure up with those to whom these qualities come more naturally, which often publicly manifests in a rebellious disdain for any authority not his own. Leadership is something Flint feels he's been destined for, although he's not always certain how to properly wear that hat. He tends to make snap judgments based on ego and relies on others to soften the consequences of his numerous and costly mistakes. However, his unfailing ability to inspire loyalty is his greatest asset and many of his peers see a special "something" in Solar Saint that is undeniable. Under his captaincy of the Defenders of Infinity, a group of misfits, misanthropes, and also-rans eventually bonded as a family, which is perhaps the greatest testament to the noble and well-meaning core of Chris' being. Chris Flint is a massive superfan of all the popular culture his mother introduced him to. Just as much as he is obsessed with the culture he was raised on, he is also obsessed with being known as the greatest pilot and outlaw in the galaxy, but looking at his competition, its not like he's going to get that wish fulfilled anytime soon. He is also naturally upbeat and sarcastic and is known for looking on the bright side. It seems that the pop culture he continues to reference has had a clear influence on his own personality. Perhaps the greatest example of Flint's attachment to the culture he was raised on is his Vyrant TrackDeck- a musical device his mother gifted him. In relation to the extreme tier-2 and 1 societies he interacts with, this primitive relic has held up remarkably well considering all its been through- confiscations, explosions, the Milky Way-Andromeda War, and extreme overuse. As many across the galaxy have noticed, the use of this low-tech device appears to also have a considerable positive impact on his combat prowess, though there is no scientific justification. Chris Flint doesn’t seem to have heard of acting his age, and his emotional development seems stunted at best. This is likely because his childhood was cut short at the age of 9, but not because he was abducted by ONI to become a Spartan no, because he was abducted by the Raiders Space Pirates to become a member of their crew. This loss of time that should’ve been spent being a kid and living as a carefree young soul manifests in very childish, immature behaviour as an adult, which makes up the brunt of Chris Flint’s outward personality. He rarely owes up to his mistakes, and his promiscuity has led him into near-death experiences with numerous women. Chris also loves "cool" and "awesome" things, and tries to comes across as such; however, he is oftentimes clumsy and his piloting skills, according to his teammates, leave a lot to be desired. Despite his troubled past, Flint remains a mostly positive person, such as assuming the better of people’s words and generally looking on the bright side of things, though doesn't mean he is unaffected. Being a conman and outlaw, he is well aware of the complexities of life, and secretly harbours extreme fear at every moment, believing he is ‘making it up’ as he goes through life. (Even though Flint has a clear predilection toward crime, currently, the Hakkorian Office of Legal Affairs acknowledges his bravery in testifying against the other members of the Raiders, and although he immediately reoffended after being pardoned, the Office speculates that Chris can still be rehabilitated with a failure margin of 29.82%.)

Zorrjha Khamiarah (The blue woman with a big sword)- Zorrjha Khamiarah is a disgraced Xoviss warrior who is loyal, if not devoted, to her Queen, Chissai Mirral, following her commands without question or hesitation. Most in the Xoviss Ascendancy would consider this a positive trait, however some individuals who have come to know her over the course of many years have criticised her as a willing slave to Queen Chissai, never able to truly be free of her influence. Even now, having exiled herself from all Xoviss society, Zorrjha continuous to espouse the ideals and beliefs of her Queen, and makes it known to all that she was once one of her most trusted guardians. It is clear to many that Zorrjha will continue to behave this way, no matter how much pain it brings her. As such, Khamiarah is very apologetic for the mistakes she makes, even when they are not her fault, and is willing to beg on her hands and knees for forgiveness. She immortalises Queen Chissai Mirral so much that she cannot begin to comprehend the possibility of her having flaws, and it is very likely that she would immediately turn against anyone, even her closest friends, if the Queen willed it. This obsession with her monarch makes Zorrjha very hard to budge on issues regarding the Xoviss Ascendancy and its failings, believing that she herself serves an infallibly correct path. She has made it her goal to return to Xoviss society again someday with something of great value to present to her Queen, but she may find that even then, she will not be accepted by her people. Despite her unwavering devotion to the Ascendancy, Zorrjha is willing to divulge some of the Xoviss' deepest secrets to those she places faith and trust in, if she believes it is genuinely for the greater good, and though she almost worships the Xoviss Queen, Khamiarah herself is a fundamentally, and at times, brutally honest person, so she struggles with the Queen's more uncomfortable moral choices, and at times she has found herself forced to compromise her principles, and this can leave her withdrawn and depressed. Because of her background as a warrior who has faced many failures and setbacks, Zorrjha can be stoic, distant, and merciless to friend and foe alike, particularly if she believes someone lacks honour and integrity, two things she values highly, even when both seem impossible, and thinks of those who don't as almost worthless to her. Although this idealism sometimes exasperates her more cynical allies, it is also her greatest strength- her faith in those who do good has turned enemies to allies and struck fear into the hearts of those who prey upon the insecurities of others. However, it can be very difficult for someone who is not always on the path of good to earn Zorrjha's respect, and she certainly doesn't make a habit of clearly showing how she feels about someone unless it is supreme admiration or supreme disdain. Khamiarah heavily enjoys doing field work, not so much being assigned to menial or ceremonial duties. She is also among the first to take personal offence when the safety and security of the Xoviss Ascendancy is at stake. In some cases, she pursues vendettas against her people with reckless, rage-filled fervour, and accosts herself for the tiniest of mistakes when something goes wrong. This is most apparent in her seemingly never-ending hunt for The Deafening Talon- a group of Sangheili terrorists who believe the Xoviss species' natural ability to use neural physics/magic without actually learning it makes them abominations on the universe. Whilst normally she is usually quick-witted, decisive, self-sure and always looking for a challenge, when the Talon is involved, this has its downsides: while she's brave and determined with a never-give-up attitude, The Deafening Talon's presence on a battlefield makes her cocky to the point of arrogant, if not selfish and shortsighted. This hunt has been the bane of her career and many lives under her command more times than she cares to count, and her hatred for the Talon's leader, Nerosa 'Val, is immeasurable. Truly, she would pursue Nerosa to the ends of the universe if it meant just being able to get a single crack at him, but her friends and allies are sceptical of why she wants to kill him so much. After so many decades of being dedicated to this goal, it is hard to say anymore if she wants him dead because she thinks it will bring her peace for those she lost to them in the past, or because it is now simply about getting even. Only time will tell. You know you want to simp for her. (The Hakkorian Office of Legal Affairs has taken into account that the generation of Zorrjha’s criminal record was done under inaccurate pretences- namely, an unofficial and false testimony by the Xoviss Prince Parrus Mirral. Furthermore, the Lord of Diplomancers and Lord of Prosecutors have agreed to drop all charges on Zorrjha’s record in the wake of her contribution to the defence of New Hakkor. ADDENDUM: The Eclipse Corps has placed a priority zero (P0) flag on Zorrjha’s file regarding an investigation into her original intentions as a member of Xoraxis Jnudan’s Stonefinders and the possibility that she may offend after mixing with criminal elements. Further monitoring is required.)

Supremacon Xoraxis the Retaliator (The dude in the flying chair)- Supremacon Xoraxis Jnudan the Retaliator is a Zignauli ruled by his sense of honour. When he first fought for the Great Winnower Taniox’s goal of balancing the universe, he believed he was in the pursuit of endless glory. But when he realised that his people had become monsters and demons to many of the other races in the Galaxy because of it, he rebelled against Taniox and later went on to found what would become the Defenders of Infinity. It would be an uneasy alliance, fraught with turns of loyalty and turns of Shakespearean persuasion. But it also led to strong friendships and even the salvation of the Galaxy. As befits a warrior of his stature, Xoraxis is skilled in all forms of combat. He wields a spear as his preferred tool in battle, but, ever pragmatic in matters of violence, he has been known to use ranged weapons, such as his matter phase shifting tech or a simple handheld gun. He has threatened to use any and all of these on Ranger Vrisk Raniks, with whom he has an intense rivalry. Deep down, he may respect the rodent, but he'll die before he'll admit to it. Pursuing the liberation of his people from what he believes is the tyranny of the interplanetary warlord Taniox, Supremacon Xoraxis the Retaliator is the Leader of the Zignauli Retaliationary Party, a group of Zignauli rebels who believe that Taniox is further anathematising their species’ perception in the Galaxy by turning their society into one dedicated to ‘balancing’ the universe through conquest. Xoraxis, believing his kind was set down a dark path by the Forerunners who patterned their Promethean soldiers after the Zignauli and thus made them appear as warmongers, spent years building up his rebel faction for a coup and takeover of The Obsidian Dominion, though he was unwilling to work with the Hakkorian Empire or any other outside sources, both fearing them and viewing them with disdain thanks to what he believed was ill treatment by other outsiders before. For years, Xoraxis lived with the singular goal of restoring his people’s independence from outsiders, and built his rebellion with the goal of removing Taniox from power, but when the day finally came, Xoraxis was defeated in battle with Taniox and his rebellion was crushed by the Dreadful Order, horrifying him. Xoraxis was not killed however, and was merely exiled from the Dominion. Alone and vengeful, Xoraxis believed it was time to adopt Taniox’s methods, and began his own search for the Dread Stones, hoping to use them to kill Taniox and enrich and strengthen his people whilst saving all from his populicidal crusade. Unfortunately, Xoraxis now finds that in adopting the methods of the one he hates so much, he has become very cruel and some believe he would be a megalomaniac if he had anyone to truly command. Jnudan hopes to build a team to help him search the universe for the Dread Stones, and it seems he has even let ideas of ruling the universe taint his mind. Whilst he's not quite on a quest to do so, he can't help but think of what a wonderful universe it would be if his rules were imposed on all, and it may not be long before that becomes the be-all and end-all. Suspicions among the remaining survivors of the ZRP say that Xoraxis is up to something, and that in his all-consuming quest, he may forget why he originally set about it. It probably doesn't help that he never told anyone in the ZRP of his intention to search for the Dread Stones. His ideas and hopes for a 'united front' against Taniox may be what he spouts publicly, but look behind the scenes and you'll find a man so sure of himself that he's willing to gamble on the power of dark magic artefacts to achieve his goals, and the company he keeps would also point to something more sinister afoot. In the end, Xoraxis can only hope he does not become what he sought to destroy. (Despite his war crimes, the Lord of Prosecutors begrudgingly notes that without the support Xoraxis Jnudan has raised for the ZRP, recent successes by CREON to help organise Zignauli resistance against the Obsidian Dominion may not have been possible. As such, under advice from Eclipse Corpsman Janoh Solazhal, amnesty has been granted.)

Haxus the Devastator (The muscle-bound Jiralhanae with knives)- Angry, vengeance-craving, heartbroken and totally uninterested in your politics, Haxus the Devastator is one guy you should probably rethink pissing off. For years, he has existed for but one single purpose- killing Lo-Khan Genvell the Judge and Taniox, the Great Winnower. The artificial bio-augmented body he inhabits, which grants him far more power than he would as a normal Jiralhanae, by no means helps soothe that rage inside of him. In fact, the Devastator has described his experience with this genetically engineered body as having been born and immediately swallowing one-thousand years worth of anger down in his first breath. This is not necessarily untrue- he has the experiences, skills and rage of several Jiralhanae wronged by Taniox imprinted in his mind via genesong, and as such, he is a bubbling cauldron of fury. For a time, this anger was so intense that it spilled over to almost every other living thing in his way, as he pursued vengeance for the lives of his brain donors. However, after the personality of Ettarg Haxus- the last Jiralhanae who donated his mind and body to the creation of the Devastator, was brought to the forefront of the Devastator’s psyche by a mystic, the Devastator has adopted his identity as his own, and allowed Haxus’ imprinted personality to effectively ‘pilot’ his body. This has since led him to consider many of his actions regarding his murderous rampage shameful and misguided, and believes his imprisonment- despite how brutal the Korrect is- to have been a well-deserved punishment. Now, the Devastator, ‘piloted’ by Haxus, is someone who is far more surgical in deciding who deserves the business end of his rage, and he expresses a stoic and sincere behaviour to most others, so long as they do not earn his ire. But don’t let that politeness fool you- when spurred into combat, Haxus is an instrument of unending destruction- he alone has the ability to devastate entire armies of some of the most dangerous opponents in the galaxy, and is more than powerful enough to go toe to toe with the likes of Taniox and others in the galaxy who are considered just short of gods. The Devastator's unrelenting hate towards those associated with the ruination of his donors’ lives drive him in his quest, and when faced with the opportunity to kill his enemies right in the moment, there is little one can do to convince him to calm down. He prefers to confront problems head-on and charge into danger, believing it honorable to die in battle (a stance rooted in the Jiralhanae values imprinted on him). Though his warrior mentality may cause him to appear brooding and serious, Haxus sometimes expresses an immature and childish excitement for battle and adventure- possibly due to being a tankbred clone with an accelerated aging process. On more occasions than one, he has been caught laughing jovially when fighting, as well as mocking his opponents and apparently viewing the act of riding into battle completely naked as a powerful show of fearlessness and dominance- which may be why he doesn’t wear a shirt. Haxus places importance on strength and size, making sport of Ranger Vrisk Raniks’ small stature from time to time. He also demonstrates a great love for Jiralhanae culture and his late family, often relating current events to the original Haxus’ former life in the Covenant and on Ohvat, and firmly adheres to the religious beliefs of his people. Perhaps as a side-effect of his extensively rewritten mind and physiology, The Devastator’s understanding of the universe is extremely literal, and he finds it difficult to grasp metaphors and sarcasm, and takes exaggerated claims as if they were completely true. However, he has slowly been attempting to overcome this limitation, reading books about colloquial language in his free time. He also has an unusually good memory- able to recall exact quotes, equations, and codes mentioned in passing accurately, even if he doesn’t understand them, although he sometimes mixes up memories of personal events due to his geas having imprinted several other minds on his own. Despite his brutish appearance, serious demeanour, and seemingly unquenchable murderous rage, there belies an infallible sense of honour and calm mind capable of strategy and refined eloquence within him- under normal circumstances, he prefers a rather formal and well-spoken style of speech; and is capable of vocabulary few would expect someone like him to know when calm. His wrathfulness, as well as his calm demeanour, hide his sadness and grief over his donors’ families. Feelings and thoughts that most would be driven to tears by, Haxus lives every moment of his life and remains outwardly unfazed, only showing some somberness. Despite his usual grumpiness, Haxus can be highly profound, imparting unexpected wisdom, and melancholically yearning for the simplicity of life on Ohvat. Haxus sorely misses the family he once cherised, as well as the certainty about life that he possessed prior to their deaths- a trait he shares with his other imprinted personalities. Certain that his failure to avenge the deaths of all these people has condemned them and himself to the Infernal Below, Haxus is unable to move forward on his own. In a previous chapter, some might have called the original Ettarg Haxus- a Jiralhanae armourer and weapons master overcautious, while others might have called him a huge pain in the posterior, but Haxus knew that he controlled a vast armoury that could have been incredibly dangerous in the wrong hands. Thus, he saw it as his duty to protect it with his impenetrable filing system and his incessant demands for request forms - in triplicate. Even years later- long after his life in the Covenant came to an end, some of his meticulous and careful traits surface through The Devastator. Should the need to use his powerful arsenal ever arise, Haxus is a stickler when it comes to how all this weaponry should be used. He demands that every single unit of ammunition be monitored, dislikes it whenever a shot, blast, or discharge goes to waste, and is quite slow when it comes to ranged combat. As a result of this, however, he's one of the greatest melee combatants in the galaxy, and he's also an extremely skilled and precise marksman, and is capable of fighting the fight longer due to his very conservative ammo consumption. He really likes bubbles. (Despite his crimes, the Hakkorian Office of Legal Affairs recognises Haxus the Devastator’s self-surrender to the Eclipse Corps, which has since established good faith. As such, it was agreed that Haxus’ 1,000-year sentence for mass murder and various other charges in solitary confinement aboard the Korrect be reviewed. His premature release from the supermax by Xoraxis Jnudan’s team, later known as the Defenders of Infinity, tarnished an otherwise promising record, although his contribution to the defense of New Hakkor along with his fellow Defenders has been noted by the Lord of Prosecutors. Should Haxus seriously re-offend whilst employed in the Defenders of Infinity, the Lord of Prosecutors has recommended capital punishment.)

"Ranger" Vrisk Raniks (The short king)- Nobody would do well to cross Ranger Raniks. The rebellious, foul-mouthed professional asshole Vrisk Raniks is however a...hang on, it says here in our script that he's a...good guy? How the? What the? Um, alright, well uh, okay then. The rebellious, foul-mouthed professional asshole Vrisk Raniks is a good guy, but he explodes violently against any being that dares to offend or insult him, whether they meant it or not. Raniks is a selfish, money-driven greedy space outlaw whose only reason for helping everyday people, if he is presented the opportunity, is if he can line his own pockets with money, and he's fully prepared to betray them once he reaches his goal. An expert technician, Ranger Raniks tinkers with and often makes his own armaments and gadgets, relying on his own genius ingenuity to create a quick kitbashed tool of killery, which he never fails to make use of when he needs to. Vrisk’s genius also extends into other realms, he is a skilled tactician and a master of conceiving intricate, almost perfect plans in just a few hours, as evidenced from the 37 prisons he's escaped from, never spending anymore than 60 hours inside of one. Due to the inhumane experiments done to him, Vrisk became bitterly, even bitingly sarcastic and cynical, as well as generally misanthropic. He is also easily enraged and extremely aggressive, which, in turn, makes him exceedingly trigger-happy, with an innate desire for violence and possessing a cruel and morbid sense of humour. It is not out of character for Vrisk to laugh maniacally as he mows down crowds of goodie-two shoes Hakkorians and any lawman he comes across. To think of it, Ranker Vrisk Raniks hasn't the slightest regard for civillians either, if there's a family in the way, it’s not that he’ll specifically try and get them killed, but he's probably still going to shoot in their direction. And that sinister grin on his face will leave you wondering how on Erde-Tyrene he's a good guy. Liable to impatience and frustration, he often sees explosives as the solution to his problems. He absolutely loves to gloat and lord things over people, rarely, if ever, admitting his own mistakes, much less apologising, even if his actions get his teammates into trouble. With the sole exception of Voox Koli Tamme, he cares little for others' feelings, especially when he feels slighted. He is also unrepentant in his criminal behavior, disregarding rules whenever he can, and having little respect for other people. When he enters a shootout, the only difference between the ferocious Ranger Vrisk Raniks and a Banicron revolutionary is the fact there is no faction symbol visible on him beneath the thick, steaming spray of his enemies' vital fluids, mostly because there's no faction symbol visible on him at all. Vrisk specialises in quick and decisive violence. He enters combat with a fervour few soldiers in any army could match, and he's never taken a prisoner, not unless he was going to sell that prisoner to someone for...well, what do you think...MONEY!!! An underhanded, conniving sinner, Ranger Vrisk hasn't got the heart to miss out on a big earning for the sake of helping people, for goodness sake, he doesn't care. You have a newborn child? Waa waaa waaa ‘cause he don’t care. You need that last penny just so you can pay your bills for the weekend and that's it? Ka ching ka ching he's not gonna rethink taking your bling. He will happily open fire on you if you've got something he wants. Sometimes he might be sympathetic, and he'll try and remove that prosthetic leg of yours without killing you, only to relish in the humour he finds in watching you hobble around on one leg, because come'on, how is that not funny?! According to the Ranger, the law is more like a list of suggestions rather than rules meant to be followed. Vrisk’s distorted view of the logical and ethical boundaries of the law has led him to believe if he wants a possession more than the current possessor of such an item, it is acceptable for him to steal it. As part of his blatant disregard for the law, Raniks attached the 'Ranger' title to his name as a mockery of the Knalan Rangers, who failed to apprehend him during his first bank heist. Vrisk Raniks’ sense of self preservation and self-interest is unlike that of any other, he has often times used his short size, master speed and agility to his advantage and has escaped numerous shootouts that didn't have to involve him. Despite this and a tendency to panic and just quickly cut and run when things hit the fan, he prides himself on his professionalism and isn't happy when his partner Voox Koli Tamme is behaving like a childish buffoon. However, there is something more complex to and tender to him. Sure, if he were to play Red Dead Redemption 2 his honour level would be so low that they'd have to update the story mode to accommodate for an even lower level than can be shown, but deep down, the Ranger is incredibly lonely and carries overwhelming pain over the experimentation that was performed on him before he was a mercenary. Shaped by the traumatic experiences he lived through at the Improvement Dungeon at the hands of Exet scientists, Raniks is very distrustful of scientists as well as being deathly afraid of confined spaces. Regarding his self-esteem, for all that Vrisk calls himself a genius or makes boasts, he is particularly touchy about being considered "worthless", or a "perfectionist" (a trait he associates with The Remaker- the de facto leader of The Exet Union). Fixing things, almost obsessively so, is a coping mechanism to the stressful memories caused by The Remaker, and helps Vrisk feel calm and in control whenever he gets overwhelmed. Accounting for the loss of agency he suffered at the hands of The Exet Union, he refuses to ever let anyone control him again; probably related to this is his authority problem, ever an underlying issue with the leadership of Chris Flint and formerly Xoraxis Jnudan. The only person in his life he can confide his true self and feelings to is his good partner in crime Voox Koli Tamme. Yet, while Raniks seems at first glance to "hate everybody" he is capable of showing concern for the well-being of others- largely thanks to his partnership with the compassionate Voox Koli Tamme, who has slowly molded the Xokrot into something of more stable, functioning member of society and has often been the only thing keeping Vrisk from going just that little bit further- and assuring him and if he does, he will be there to stop him. (Given Vrisk Raniks’ history of violence, the Eclipse Corps recommends all attending officers exercise extreme caution when engaging. A sweep for hidden guns, knives, explosives, and traps is also advisable. Despite his show of heroism during the attack on Hakkor by the Puritans of Tenebra, the Lord of Prosecutors remains unconvinced that Vrisk Raniks can be fully rehabilitated. Should he reoffend, the Office of Legal Affairs recommends that Vrisk Raniks be incarcerated in the Korrect indefinitely.)

Voox Koli Tamme (The tall yellow and orange creature)- Sweet, level-headed and sefless, Voox Koli Tamme is a good-natured, loyal and gentle Lekgolo who displays a warmth and kindness like no other. Although he has a predilection towards peace, Voox is comfortable with violence when needed and anger when sufficiently warranted. Even if he does get mad, Voox is remarkably forgiving of other's faults, and it is unlikely of him to remain in a bad mood for long- being a conciliatory type. However, he can also be merciless and savagely brutal towards his enemies, especially if they threaten his friends. Since no one can accurately understand what he is saying (with the exception of Vrisk Raniks), he is often unable to intervene in disputes. On that note, while he often follows Raniks’ lead, Voox often finds himself at odds with his volatility and often tries to make the Xokrot reconsider his stance, generally with little success. Koli Tamme is an optimist and honest to a fault, not being good at bluffing, as well noted by Raniks- who has been frustrated many a time by Voox’s almost pathological inability to lie. Because of his language barrier with the rest of the Defenders of Infinity, his thoughts and opinions are usually filtered by Ranger Raniks, and Voox usually finds himself mostly interacting with him as he’s the only one who can seriously understand him. He finds other team members’ attempts at conversation with him amusing, but is grateful for the attempt and is supportive towards them trying at the very least. Although sometimes easily distracted and simple-minded, Voox is, in truth, considered a genius among the Lekgolo, is literally royalty and is capable of feats most beings, even among his own kind, can only dream of. Despite this, he’s pretty modest about it- in fact, he’s so modest about it you could know him for upwards of a thousand years and you’d probably never guess he received the finest education from the Wormcasters of Te and possesses the genetic knowledge from worms of royalty, engineers, scientists and more, and has a tremendous grasp of biorobotic engineering. Voox is also very meticulous, and seems to harbour a guilt complex regarding the deaths of the crew of the Heart of Codado Leuria- the first members of another civilisation he ever interacted with, and his subsequent servitude to the cosmic entity Voox knows as the Rotting One as a Herald named the Grey Golem, along with the death of his original bond brother, the continued existential torment of the bond brother he technically spawned, his failure to find the Stellar Seed and bring it back to Te, and the fact that he believes he has effectively disgraced himself in front of his deities- the Worm Gods. Come to think of it, Voox is almost entirely motivated by guilt, and seeing as how even the most absent-minded and seemingly natural of his actions have led to such great consequences, Voox has developed into a very tentative, protective person who is really really careful to avoid harming others, as he understands all too well the power he possesses- whether it’s his physical strength or how whatever he does just happens to have powerful ramifications no matter what. As a coping mechanism to the stress that comes with this, Koli Tamme likes to water plants and pet creatures- even dangerous ones, and can get easily swept up in playing with toys. Alar-Tirzier, a time-displaced warrior and leader of the Knights of Maethrillian seems to think Voox Koli Tamme is quite possibly the wisest living being in the entire galaxy, and believes he has a “much larger part” to play in the events of the universe going forward. (Despite his association with Ranger Vrisk Raniks, the Hakkorian Office of Legal Affairs feels that Voox Koli Tamme can be rehabilitated with a failure margin of 0.3728%. As such, the Office has determined Voox Koli Tamme to be a potential candidate for the Eclipse Corps.)

T.O.O.L.K.I.T (Not pictured)- A Hakkorian Servitor, T.O.O.L.K.I.T is Chris Flint's personal assistant that carries out any form of digital assistance he requires of him. T.O.O.L.K.I.T is able to phase in and out of the physical dimension and is stored in a technological pocket dimension linked to Flint's ship and armour. He manages control over Flint's ship- the Zenith and performs his job efficiently. T.O.O.L.K.I.T is usually joyous, enthusiastic, and excitable no matter how dire situations may be. His energetic personality however is sometimes seen as annoying and irritating to any team member he interacts with, even the normally stoic Haxus. His original role as a psychological support A.I is ironic in the way that he may actually cause more insanity than curtailing it, although at his core, he cares deeply for the Defenders of Infinity and considers their well-being his absolute top priority. Despite being less-than-sane, he seems to often disagree with Solar-Saint’s impulsive and reckless decisions, though he has rushed to his defence on numerous occasions- seeing Flint’s honourable side and knowing him better than most people. He is very loyal to the Defenders of Infinity, and views it as an honour to be among them. T.O.O.L.K.I.T was originally Chris Flint’s ‘psychological support A.I’ when he was arrested and in Hakkorian custody prior to the trial of Sondo-7 and the Raiders, whom Flint testified against in court. Initially known only as 'Assistant', Flint renamed him T.O.O.L.K.I.T in similar fashion to the name of a talking car from an old Reclaimer Human TV show he consumed in his childhood whilst imprisoned, and befriended the A.I, which was assigned to him to both monitor his psyche and keep him company for his long period of incarceration, as the Hakkorian courts held up the actual trial in favour of catching all the Raiders and convicting them all in the same trial. After being pardoned for testifying against the pirates, Flint stole T.O.O.L.K.I.T and had him taken to an engineer to reprogram him, redesign him and give him his own personal flair- housing him inside of a small, spherical drone with a plasma ball-like effect surrounding it, apparently because, according to Flint, he “always wanted a plasma ball” when he was growing up. T.O.O.L.K.I.T was also able to embrace a personality of his own- unfortunately, it became rampant, and it’s personality, originally programmed to be a cool and collected companion, developed into one of high-energy with unhinged, borderline sociopathic tendencies and a proneness to form unhealthy attachments. As such, one could say that if his friends in the Defenders were ever taken from him, T.O.O.L.K.I.T would completely lose it and would become a great danger to himself and anything around him.

(Well well well, would you look at that? The Defenders of Infinity ARE COMPLETE AT LAST!!! Now this is a serious milestone- the Defenders of Infinity have been a project 4 years in the making, technically 5 since I conceptualised the idea of the team in 2018. It's been years of slowly creating and posting the biographies of all its members (save for poor old T.O.O.L.K.I.T) but now I can confidently say I've completed it! Since I love the Defenders so much I wanted to get everyone's biographies up before I ever posted the full team together since not only would I require the drawings of each member side by side, it would also mean that anyone can use this as a nexus point to jump into the stories of any of the Defenders. I will say however that because it's been so long, some of these are out of date- Ranger Raniks' for example, is the most outdated as his backstory still refers to him as "Rakton"- a crappy name in hindsight, and has a bunch of other nonsense I now have gripes with. For example, The Reworker. I believe it still says in there that he's a Forerunner. Yeah, I'm getting rid of that. Now The Reworker is going to be a mysterious scientist who's been adopting the traits of pretty much everything he encounters- taking so many different traits from so many different species and rewriting himself with so much DNA that it would be impossible to figure out what he was originally. Furthermore, I've established him as ruler of the Exet Union, a faction of aliens who also have so many borrowed traits and support his goal of using 'genetic art' to solve all the universe's problems and achieve utopia. Even more so, he's not the Reworker at all anymore- instead, he's now The Remaker. I thought "Reworker" sounded lame, but "Remaker" had a different ring to it. You know the term "it's time to meet your Maker"?- that "Maker" being God? Well, I figured that the Remaker would've named himself that because he believes that God, if there is one, made mistakes in his design of the universe, and has stepped in to "correct" them, playing God himself, only in his mind- he's better. Anyway, just wanted to clear all that up. Also, Haxus' backstory- whilst it's still all fine for the most part you might be able to tell from the rewrite of his personality here that I've tried to place more emphasis on the fact that he's more an amalgam of different past identities rather than just one guy with the rage of a bunch of others- The Devastator only adopts Haxus' name and lets his genetically-imprinted personality take the reins, but he's not necessarily him. He's more a supersoldier clone with his memories. Other than those two though, everyone else is pretty up to date, the only thing I would maybe change about the others is I'd potentially alter some of the language I used for Xoraxis' backstory and maybe remove the romance subplot, but other than that, he, Solar-Saint, Zorrjha Khamiarah and Voox are in the exact state I want them in. For now that is.)

(Now, for the good part- songs I would associate with the Defenders of Infinity. I'm gonna be honest, just about any song on any Guardians of the Galaxy movie (and game) album would pair just perfectly with them, and you can bet your ass I was blasting that shit whilst thinking about the Defenders, but I'd particularly like to draw your attention to We Care a Lot by Faith No More, Hangin' Tough by New Kids on the Block, The Boys Are Back in Town by Thin Lizzy, In the Air Tonight by Phil Collins, Kickstart My Heart by Mötley Crüe, Rock Rock Til You Drop by Def Leppard, Saturday Night’s Alright For Fighting by Elton John and Moonage Daydream by David Bowie- all songs I believe especially embody the Defenders of Infinity and are the sort of things they'd listen to whilst blasting bad guys and/or cruising the galaxy- especially We Care a Lot, as I like the line “Well it’s a dirty job but someone’s gotta do it” so much that I decided to make it the motto of the Defenders- since it very accurately describes their willingness to do…just about whatever it is people wanna hire them for. Of course, since music is so important to Chris Flint and by extension the Defenders, that doesn't nearly cover it, so one day I might assemble just what Chris Flint's playlist on his Vyrant TrackDeck would look like, only issue is I can't will any fictional songs I mentioned into existence since he's also into music from, you know, the century he's from, and named the Defenders after his favourite band. But for now, I think this will do just nicely. Anyway, now that the Defenders are up, I have one more thing I want to post before my summer holiday ends- and that's a revision of the Gambler. Not putting too much pressure on it, but I'm really gonna try and crank that out soon. And will all that said there's nothing else left to say except, as always, stay safe, stay cool, and stay Nebulous! Goodbye!)

Description

Franchise: Halo

Affiliation: Themselves

Motto: “It’s a dirty job but someone’s gotta do it.”

Type: Mercenary Contractors, Vigilante Gang

Nicknames/Alternate Names: Stonefinders (Original name under Xoraxis Jnudan), Defibrillators of Infinity (Official name on Galactic Companies House), Starknights, Raniks and his Rangers, Guardians of the Wait-a-Minute That Name’s Taken, Idiots, Heroes-For-Hire, Flint Clan, Raiders, A Pirate Gang Without all the Glory, Space Trucking Yokels

Vehicles/Mounts: The Zenith- A Highly Modified and Customised Qabel Shipyards LNO-Class Cutter Starship given to Chris Flint when he was part of the Raiders, a group of Space Pirates that he used to be a member of. The ship, in keeping with Raider tradition of naming ships after lovers and/or requited and unrequited recipients of romantic affections, is named after his childhood sweetheart- Amelia Zenith. The Zenith is a raggedy, smelly, filthy ship, which makes sense considering it's owned and operated by Chris Flint, and has parts from at least seven different black markets. It has numerous unpaid fines, the subscription to the entertainment system on board expired and is yet to be renewed, its slipspace drive is overclocked to dangerous levels and desperately requires maintenance (or more accurately, replacement) and there's probably a class-two biohazard worming its way through the plumbing. It's a wonder how the thing hasn't fallen apart yet, and even more that it's still a capable dogfighter. Apparently, it’s owner refuses to give up on her. It also features a Vyrant Telecom Advanced Multi-Medium Music Player that can play vinyl records, cassettes, discs, data chips and wirelessly-synced music too. The Zenith's weapons are standard issue- for the Raiders space pirates, meaning it sports numerous illegal and cleverly concealed modified weapons, as well as scan-resistant compartments for them to fold into and for illegal contraband to be stored alongside, plus additional and improved weapons systems made by Ranger Vrisk Raniks. Chris' quarters aboard the ship are so unclean that he kept a separate room for when he invited a lady friend over- which has now been taken by Xoraxis Jnudan. Furthermore, other rooms have been fitted into the ship and taken by members of the Defenders of Infinity- with Zorrjha Khamiarah taking what used to be hidden cargo bay for illegal contraband, Haxus the Devastator taking a previously unused laundry room, Ranger Raniks living inside of what used to be (and still is) an on-board maintenance room, and Voox Koli Tamme inhabiting any of the ship’s stasis pods that are not in use, or alternatively bunking with Raniks. The entire vehicle is decorated with posters and merchandise from all of Chris' favourite pieces of media, and on his fridge is a picture of a Hakkorian Olken/Trads 7-44 Sports Mobile, a car he describes as 'gorgeous' and hopes to, but probably never will be able to afford. Finally, Flint has sounds programmed into parts of the ship that make it sound like a Reclaimer Human muscle car, especially when its thrusters are suddenly activated, though these sounds overlap with the sound the thrusters make on their own, leading to a confusing and irritating noise whenever he's in town- and for the rest of the team.

Base of Operations/HQ: The Zenith

Industry: Troubleshooting, Bounty Hunting, Mercenary Contracting, Parapolice, Package Delivery, Import/Export, Private Security, Private Investigation, Monster Hunting/Beast Wrangling

Founder: Xoraxis Jnudan (As the Stonefinders), Chris Flint/Solar-Saint (As Defenders of Infinity)

Owner: Chris Flint/Solar-Saint

De Facto Leader: Chris Flint/Solar-Saint

Technology Tier (Primary): Tier 1

Area Served: Milky Way Galaxy

Founded: 2564

No. of Employees: 6

Monetary Value: 735 Galactic Novarrs (Optimistic estimate)

Status: Active

Overview: The Defenders of Infinity are a band of former galactic outlaws, who have teamed together to protect the Galaxy from great threats...and make a little moula on the side. Named after an early 26th Century Human NeoGlam Rock band which Chris Flint, its leader, is a fan of, the Defenders were originally assembled as a mercenary crew by the former Zignauli Annexer Xoraxis Jnudan the Retaliator and the crimelord known as The Scofflaw, for the purpose of finding the Dread Stones and using their power to destroy the Obsidian Warlord Taniox. During this quest, the team’s clashing motives led them to almost imploding, especially as Jnudan almost got the entire team killed in his pursuit of the Dread Stone of Power- only for it to fall into the hands of Tenebrae Puritan Lo-Khan Genvell.

The Defenders of Infinity were then idealised by Solar-Saint as a proactive team to protect the cosmos in light of the Puritans of Tenebra attempting to use the Dread Stone of Power to destroy New Hakkor- a crisis that had forced the team to improvise a resistance to defend the planet. Styling themselves after and adopting some of the traditions of the Raiders Space Pirates of which Solar-Saint is a former member, the Defenders of Infinity usually flip between being sanctioned bounty hunters, a group of outlaw mercenaries and a crew of vigilantes. By expecting no one else would do their heroic work, they claim their goal is to protect the galaxy and right wrongs throughout it.

The team is currently (and incorrectly, thanks to a typo by its leader) registered as "The Defibrillators of Infinity”- legally incorporated troubleshooters under Hakkorian bounty permit 20182-12, although their record has yet to include anything relating to medicine. Although they are officially involved in the troubleshooting industry- one full of supposed “heroes for hire” who perform all manner of problem-solving tasks for various employers, they appear to be primarily mercenaries, accepting low-paying, bottom-of-the-barrel contracts with little requirements in the way of skill in spite of their impressive membership and notoriety. In fact, their reputation for taking such astonishingly underwhelming jobs has led users of numerous bounty hunting and mercenary contracting boards to use "DoI" as a euphemism for poor contracts.

Example: "Damn, that job’s a real DoI."

Resources and Capital: In spite of their fame for organising the defence of Hakkor from the Puritans of Tenebra and saving countless lives, the Defenders of Infinity are a business of remarkably low value and tend to get a lot of low-paying and undesirable work. Apparently, they waited too late to officially register and continue to build their reputation before the fifteen minutes of fame they got ran out and they found themselves stuck with the shit. According to Vrisk Raniks, the Defenders blew a whole lot of the Novarrs they were paid for their heroic actions on Hakkor on simply setting up their business and jumping through thousands of legal hoops, leaving the team itself practically broke.

The most valuable possession the Defenders have is probably their ship- The Zenith, which doubles as their headquarters and living space. Ever since the Defenders of Infinity were formed, The Zenith has served as their primary mode of transportation as well as their headquarters and living space- to varying degrees of appreciation by members of the team. As a small business barely trying to get itself off the ground, the Defenders don’t exactly have much choice when it comes to living arrangements, and the nature of their work requires them to be pretty much constantly on the move, necessitating this arrangement. Chris Flint claims that one day, the Defenders will have a whole fleet of ships and a big building on Backwater or Claudaxia to operate out of- and that they’ll all have their own places both on and off a starship. But for now, the Defenders have to settle for Flint’s old reliable.

Chris Flint has apparently also stressed the importance of distributing Defenders of Infinity business cards wherever they go and to whomever they interact with, although some of the team has been liberal in this duty. The business cards, which were printed in bulk before Flint noticed his ‘Defibrillators of Infinity’ typo, have been delivered to every major spaceport in the galaxy. While many arrived through various types of postal systems, there were several incidents of dimensional rift dead-drops as well. One star system- Choppa 3, has permanently banned the Defenders of Infinity from entering their space since the unannounced delivery of cards to their cities led them to believe they were under attack and they went into lockdown for two whole days.

Members:

Chris Flint/Solar-Saint (Guy in the blue trenchcoat)- Arrogant, rash, headstrong and believes his own press, call him Solar Saint or The Legendary Outlaw, or the Saint of Stars if you're feeling especially formal; he's got a good heart, but you might need to tread carefully to find it. Chris Flint’s larger-than-life, cocksure personality hides an earnest desire to favourably compare with famed examples of leadership and heroism. Solar Saint is also privately insecure that he cannot measure up with those to whom these qualities come more naturally, which often publicly manifests in a rebellious disdain for any authority not his own. Leadership is something Flint feels he's been destined for, although he's not always certain how to properly wear that hat. He tends to make snap judgments based on ego and relies on others to soften the consequences of his numerous and costly mistakes. However, his unfailing ability to inspire loyalty is his greatest asset and many of his peers see a special "something" in Solar Saint that is undeniable. Under his captaincy of the Defenders of Infinity, a group of misfits, misanthropes, and also-rans eventually bonded as a family, which is perhaps the greatest testament to the noble and well-meaning core of Chris' being. Chris Flint is a massive superfan of all the popular culture his mother introduced him to. Just as much as he is obsessed with the culture he was raised on, he is also obsessed with being known as the greatest pilot and outlaw in the galaxy, but looking at his competition, its not like he's going to get that wish fulfilled anytime soon. He is also naturally upbeat and sarcastic and is known for looking on the bright side. It seems that the pop culture he continues to reference has had a clear influence on his own personality. Perhaps the greatest example of Flint's attachment to the culture he was raised on is his Vyrant TrackDeck- a musical device his mother gifted him. In relation to the extreme tier-2 and 1 societies he interacts with, this primitive relic has held up remarkably well considering all its been through- confiscations, explosions, the Milky Way-Andromeda War, and extreme overuse. As many across the galaxy have noticed, the use of this low-tech device appears to also have a considerable positive impact on his combat prowess, though there is no scientific justification. Chris Flint doesn’t seem to have heard of acting his age, and his emotional development seems stunted at best. This is likely because his childhood was cut short at the age of 9, but not because he was abducted by ONI to become a Spartan no, because he was abducted by the Raiders Space Pirates to become a member of their crew. This loss of time that should’ve been spent being a kid and living as a carefree young soul manifests in very childish, immature behaviour as an adult, which makes up the brunt of Chris Flint’s outward personality. He rarely owes up to his mistakes, and his promiscuity has led him into near-death experiences with numerous women. Chris also loves "cool" and "awesome" things, and tries to comes across as such; however, he is oftentimes clumsy and his piloting skills, according to his teammates, leave a lot to be desired. Despite his troubled past, Flint remains a mostly positive person, such as assuming the better of people’s words and generally looking on the bright side of things, though doesn't mean he is unaffected. Being a conman and outlaw, he is well aware of the complexities of life, and secretly harbours extreme fear at every moment, believing he is ‘making it up’ as he goes through life. (Even though Flint has a clear predilection toward crime, currently, the Hakkorian Office of Legal Affairs acknowledges his bravery in testifying against the other members of the Raiders, and although he immediately reoffended after being pardoned, the Office speculates that Chris can still be rehabilitated with a failure margin of 29.82%.)

Zorrjha Khamiarah (The blue woman with a big sword)- Zorrjha Khamiarah is a disgraced Xoviss warrior who is loyal, if not devoted, to her Queen, Chissai Mirral, following her commands without question or hesitation. Most in the Xoviss Ascendancy would consider this a positive trait, however some individuals who have come to know her over the course of many years have criticised her as a willing slave to Queen Chissai, never able to truly be free of her influence. Even now, having exiled herself from all Xoviss society, Zorrjha continuous to espouse the ideals and beliefs of her Queen, and makes it known to all that she was once one of her most trusted guardians. It is clear to many that Zorrjha will continue to behave this way, no matter how much pain it brings her. As such, Khamiarah is very apologetic for the mistakes she makes, even when they are not her fault, and is willing to beg on her hands and knees for forgiveness. She immortalises Queen Chissai Mirral so much that she cannot begin to comprehend the possibility of her having flaws, and it is very likely that she would immediately turn against anyone, even her closest friends, if the Queen willed it. This obsession with her monarch makes Zorrjha very hard to budge on issues regarding the Xoviss Ascendancy and its failings, believing that she herself serves an infallibly correct path. She has made it her goal to return to Xoviss society again someday with something of great value to present to her Queen, but she may find that even then, she will not be accepted by her people. Despite her unwavering devotion to the Ascendancy, Zorrjha is willing to divulge some of the Xoviss' deepest secrets to those she places faith and trust in, if she believes it is genuinely for the greater good, and though she almost worships the Xoviss Queen, Khamiarah herself is a fundamentally, and at times, brutally honest person, so she struggles with the Queen's more uncomfortable moral choices, and at times she has found herself forced to compromise her principles, and this can leave her withdrawn and depressed. Because of her background as a warrior who has faced many failures and setbacks, Zorrjha can be stoic, distant, and merciless to friend and foe alike, particularly if she believes someone lacks honour and integrity, two things she values highly, even when both seem impossible, and thinks of those who don't as almost worthless to her. Although this idealism sometimes exasperates her more cynical allies, it is also her greatest strength- her faith in those who do good has turned enemies to allies and struck fear into the hearts of those who prey upon the insecurities of others. However, it can be very difficult for someone who is not always on the path of good to earn Zorrjha's respect, and she certainly doesn't make a habit of clearly showing how she feels about someone unless it is supreme admiration or supreme disdain. Khamiarah heavily enjoys doing field work, not so much being assigned to menial or ceremonial duties. She is also among the first to take personal offence when the safety and security of the Xoviss Ascendancy is at stake. In some cases, she pursues vendettas against her people with reckless, rage-filled fervour, and accosts herself for the tiniest of mistakes when something goes wrong. This is most apparent in her seemingly never-ending hunt for The Deafening Talon- a group of Sangheili terrorists who believe the Xoviss species' natural ability to use neural physics/magic without actually learning it makes them abominations on the universe. Whilst normally she is usually quick-witted, decisive, self-sure and always looking for a challenge, when the Talon is involved, this has its downsides: while she's brave and determined with a never-give-up attitude, The Deafening Talon's presence on a battlefield makes her cocky to the point of arrogant, if not selfish and shortsighted. This hunt has been the bane of her career and many lives under her command more times than she cares to count, and her hatred for the Talon's leader, Nerosa 'Val, is immeasurable. Truly, she would pursue Nerosa to the ends of the universe if it meant just being able to get a single crack at him, but her friends and allies are sceptical of why she wants to kill him so much. After so many decades of being dedicated to this goal, it is hard to say anymore if she wants him dead because she thinks it will bring her peace for those she lost to them in the past, or because it is now simply about getting even. Only time will tell. You know you want to simp for her. (The Hakkorian Office of Legal Affairs has taken into account that the generation of Zorrjha’s criminal record was done under inaccurate pretences- namely, an unofficial and false testimony by the Xoviss Prince Parrus Mirral. Furthermore, the Lord of Diplomancers and Lord of Prosecutors have agreed to drop all charges on Zorrjha’s record in the wake of her contribution to the defence of New Hakkor. ADDENDUM: The Eclipse Corps has placed a priority zero (P0) flag on Zorrjha’s file regarding an investigation into her original intentions as a member of Xoraxis Jnudan’s Stonefinders and the possibility that she may offend after mixing with criminal elements. Further monitoring is required.)

Supremacon Xoraxis the Retaliator (The dude in the flying chair)- Supremacon Xoraxis Jnudan the Retaliator is a Zignauli ruled by his sense of honour. When he first fought for the Great Winnower Taniox’s goal of balancing the universe, he believed he was in the pursuit of endless glory. But when he realised that his people had become monsters and demons to many of the other races in the Galaxy because of it, he rebelled against Taniox and later went on to found what would become the Defenders of Infinity. It would be an uneasy alliance, fraught with turns of loyalty and turns of Shakespearean persuasion. But it also led to strong friendships and even the salvation of the Galaxy. As befits a warrior of his stature, Xoraxis is skilled in all forms of combat. He wields a spear as his preferred tool in battle, but, ever pragmatic in matters of violence, he has been known to use ranged weapons, such as his matter phase shifting tech or a simple handheld gun. He has threatened to use any and all of these on Ranger Vrisk Raniks, with whom he has an intense rivalry. Deep down, he may respect the rodent, but he'll die before he'll admit to it. Pursuing the liberation of his people from what he believes is the tyranny of the interplanetary warlord Taniox, Supremacon Xoraxis the Retaliator is the Leader of the Zignauli Retaliationary Party, a group of Zignauli rebels who believe that Taniox is further anathematising their species’ perception in the Galaxy by turning their society into one dedicated to ‘balancing’ the universe through conquest. Xoraxis, believing his kind was set down a dark path by the Forerunners who patterned their Promethean soldiers after the Zignauli and thus made them appear as warmongers, spent years building up his rebel faction for a coup and takeover of The Obsidian Dominion, though he was unwilling to work with the Hakkorian Empire or any other outside sources, both fearing them and viewing them with disdain thanks to what he believed was ill treatment by other outsiders before. For years, Xoraxis lived with the singular goal of restoring his people’s independence from outsiders, and built his rebellion with the goal of removing Taniox from power, but when the day finally came, Xoraxis was defeated in battle with Taniox and his rebellion was crushed by the Dreadful Order, horrifying him. Xoraxis was not killed however, and was merely exiled from the Dominion. Alone and vengeful, Xoraxis believed it was time to adopt Taniox’s methods, and began his own search for the Dread Stones, hoping to use them to kill Taniox and enrich and strengthen his people whilst saving all from his populicidal crusade. Unfortunately, Xoraxis now finds that in adopting the methods of the one he hates so much, he has become very cruel and some believe he would be a megalomaniac if he had anyone to truly command. Jnudan hopes to build a team to help him search the universe for the Dread Stones, and it seems he has even let ideas of ruling the universe taint his mind. Whilst he's not quite on a quest to do so, he can't help but think of what a wonderful universe it would be if his rules were imposed on all, and it may not be long before that becomes the be-all and end-all. Suspicions among the remaining survivors of the ZRP say that Xoraxis is up to something, and that in his all-consuming quest, he may forget why he originally set about it. It probably doesn't help that he never told anyone in the ZRP of his intention to search for the Dread Stones. His ideas and hopes for a 'united front' against Taniox may be what he spouts publicly, but look behind the scenes and you'll find a man so sure of himself that he's willing to gamble on the power of dark magic artefacts to achieve his goals, and the company he keeps would also point to something more sinister afoot. In the end, Xoraxis can only hope he does not become what he sought to destroy. (Despite his war crimes, the Lord of Prosecutors begrudgingly notes that without the support Xoraxis Jnudan has raised for the ZRP, recent successes by CREON to help organise Zignauli resistance against the Obsidian Dominion may not have been possible. As such, under advice from Eclipse Corpsman Janoh Solazhal, amnesty has been granted.)

Haxus the Devastator (The muscle-bound Jiralhanae with knives)- Angry, vengeance-craving, heartbroken and totally uninterested in your politics, Haxus the Devastator is one guy you should probably rethink pissing off. For years, he has existed for but one single purpose- killing Lo-Khan Genvell the Judge and Taniox, the Great Winnower. The artificial bio-augmented body he inhabits, which grants him far more power than he would as a normal Jiralhanae, by no means helps soothe that rage inside of him. In fact, the Devastator has described his experience with this genetically engineered body as having been born and immediately swallowing one-thousand years worth of anger down in his first breath. This is not necessarily untrue- he has the experiences, skills and rage of several Jiralhanae wronged by Taniox imprinted in his mind via genesong, and as such, he is a bubbling cauldron of fury. For a time, this anger was so intense that it spilled over to almost every other living thing in his way, as he pursued vengeance for the lives of his brain donors. However, after the personality of Ettarg Haxus- the last Jiralhanae who donated his mind and body to the creation of the Devastator, was brought to the forefront of the Devastator’s psyche by a mystic, the Devastator has adopted his identity as his own, and allowed Haxus’ imprinted personality to effectively ‘pilot’ his body. This has since led him to consider many of his actions regarding his murderous rampage shameful and misguided, and believes his imprisonment- despite how brutal the Korrect is- to have been a well-deserved punishment. Now, the Devastator, ‘piloted’ by Haxus, is someone who is far more surgical in deciding who deserves the business end of his rage, and he expresses a stoic and sincere behaviour to most others, so long as they do not earn his ire. But don’t let that politeness fool you- when spurred into combat, Haxus is an instrument of unending destruction- he alone has the ability to devastate entire armies of some of the most dangerous opponents in the galaxy, and is more than powerful enough to go toe to toe with the likes of Taniox and others in the galaxy who are considered just short of gods. The Devastator's unrelenting hate towards those associated with the ruination of his donors’ lives drive him in his quest, and when faced with the opportunity to kill his enemies right in the moment, there is little one can do to convince him to calm down. He prefers to confront problems head-on and charge into danger, believing it honorable to die in battle (a stance rooted in the Jiralhanae values imprinted on him). Though his warrior mentality may cause him to appear brooding and serious, Haxus sometimes expresses an immature and childish excitement for battle and adventure- possibly due to being a tankbred clone with an accelerated aging process. On more occasions than one, he has been caught laughing jovially when fighting, as well as mocking his opponents and apparently viewing the act of riding into battle completely naked as a powerful show of fearlessness and dominance- which may be why he doesn’t wear a shirt. Haxus places importance on strength and size, making sport of Ranger Vrisk Raniks’ small stature from time to time. He also demonstrates a great love for Jiralhanae culture and his late family, often relating current events to the original Haxus’ former life in the Covenant and on Ohvat, and firmly adheres to the religious beliefs of his people. Perhaps as a side-effect of his extensively rewritten mind and physiology, The Devastator’s understanding of the universe is extremely literal, and he finds it difficult to grasp metaphors and sarcasm, and takes exaggerated claims as if they were completely true. However, he has slowly been attempting to overcome this limitation, reading books about colloquial language in his free time. He also has an unusually good memory- able to recall exact quotes, equations, and codes mentioned in passing accurately, even if he doesn’t understand them, although he sometimes mixes up memories of personal events due to his geas having imprinted several other minds on his own. Despite his brutish appearance, serious demeanour, and seemingly unquenchable murderous rage, there belies an infallible sense of honour and calm mind capable of strategy and refined eloquence within him- under normal circumstances, he prefers a rather formal and well-spoken style of speech; and is capable of vocabulary few would expect someone like him to know when calm. His wrathfulness, as well as his calm demeanour, hide his sadness and grief over his donors’ families. Feelings and thoughts that most would be driven to tears by, Haxus lives every moment of his life and remains outwardly unfazed, only showing some somberness. Despite his usual grumpiness, Haxus can be highly profound, imparting unexpected wisdom, and melancholically yearning for the simplicity of life on Ohvat. Haxus sorely misses the family he once cherised, as well as the certainty about life that he possessed prior to their deaths- a trait he shares with his other imprinted personalities. Certain that his failure to avenge the deaths of all these people has condemned them and himself to the Infernal Below, Haxus is unable to move forward on his own. In a previous chapter, some might have called the original Ettarg Haxus- a Jiralhanae armourer and weapons master overcautious, while others might have called him a huge pain in the posterior, but Haxus knew that he controlled a vast armoury that could have been incredibly dangerous in the wrong hands. Thus, he saw it as his duty to protect it with his impenetrable filing system and his incessant demands for request forms - in triplicate. Even years later- long after his life in the Covenant came to an end, some of his meticulous and careful traits surface through The Devastator. Should the need to use his powerful arsenal ever arise, Haxus is a stickler when it comes to how all this weaponry should be used. He demands that every single unit of ammunition be monitored, dislikes it whenever a shot, blast, or discharge goes to waste, and is quite slow when it comes to ranged combat. As a result of this, however, he's one of the greatest melee combatants in the galaxy, and he's also an extremely skilled and precise marksman, and is capable of fighting the fight longer due to his very conservative ammo consumption. He really likes bubbles. (Despite his crimes, the Hakkorian Office of Legal Affairs recognises Haxus the Devastator’s self-surrender to the Eclipse Corps, which has since established good faith. As such, it was agreed that Haxus’ 1,000-year sentence for mass murder and various other charges in solitary confinement aboard the Korrect be reviewed. His premature release from the supermax by Xoraxis Jnudan’s team, later known as the Defenders of Infinity, tarnished an otherwise promising record, although his contribution to the defense of New Hakkor along with his fellow Defenders has been noted by the Lord of Prosecutors. Should Haxus seriously re-offend whilst employed in the Defenders of Infinity, the Lord of Prosecutors has recommended capital punishment.)

"Ranger" Vrisk Raniks (The short king)- Nobody would do well to cross Ranger Raniks. The rebellious, foul-mouthed professional asshole Vrisk Raniks is however a...hang on, it says here in our script that he's a...good guy? How the? What the? Um, alright, well uh, okay then. The rebellious, foul-mouthed professional asshole Vrisk Raniks is a good guy, but he explodes violently against any being that dares to offend or insult him, whether they meant it or not. Raniks is a selfish, money-driven greedy space outlaw whose only reason for helping everyday people, if he is presented the opportunity, is if he can line his own pockets with money, and he's fully prepared to betray them once he reaches his goal. An expert technician, Ranger Raniks tinkers with and often makes his own armaments and gadgets, relying on his own genius ingenuity to create a quick kitbashed tool of killery, which he never fails to make use of when he needs to. Vrisk’s genius also extends into other realms, he is a skilled tactician and a master of conceiving intricate, almost perfect plans in just a few hours, as evidenced from the 37 prisons he's escaped from, never spending anymore than 60 hours inside of one. Due to the inhumane experiments done to him, Vrisk became bitterly, even bitingly sarcastic and cynical, as well as generally misanthropic. He is also easily enraged and extremely aggressive, which, in turn, makes him exceedingly trigger-happy, with an innate desire for violence and possessing a cruel and morbid sense of humour. It is not out of character for Vrisk to laugh maniacally as he mows down crowds of goodie-two shoes Hakkorians and any lawman he comes across. To think of it, Ranker Vrisk Raniks hasn't the slightest regard for civillians either, if there's a family in the way, it’s not that he’ll specifically try and get them killed, but he's probably still going to shoot in their direction. And that sinister grin on his face will leave you wondering how on Erde-Tyrene he's a good guy. Liable to impatience and frustration, he often sees explosives as the solution to his problems. He absolutely loves to gloat and lord things over people, rarely, if ever, admitting his own mistakes, much less apologising, even if his actions get his teammates into trouble. With the sole exception of Voox Koli Tamme, he cares little for others' feelings, especially when he feels slighted. He is also unrepentant in his criminal behavior, disregarding rules whenever he can, and having little respect for other people. When he enters a shootout, the only difference between the ferocious Ranger Vrisk Raniks and a Banicron revolutionary is the fact there is no faction symbol visible on him beneath the thick, steaming spray of his enemies' vital fluids, mostly because there's no faction symbol visible on him at all. Vrisk specialises in quick and decisive violence. He enters combat with a fervour few soldiers in any army could match, and he's never taken a prisoner, not unless he was going to sell that prisoner to someone for...well, what do you think...MONEY!!! An underhanded, conniving sinner, Ranger Vrisk hasn't got the heart to miss out on a big earning for the sake of helping people, for goodness sake, he doesn't care. You have a newborn child? Waa waaa waaa ‘cause he don’t care. You need that last penny just so you can pay your bills for the weekend and that's it? Ka ching ka ching he's not gonna rethink taking your bling. He will happily open fire on you if you've got something he wants. Sometimes he might be sympathetic, and he'll try and remove that prosthetic leg of yours without killing you, only to relish in the humour he finds in watching you hobble around on one leg, because come'on, how is that not funny?! According to the Ranger, the law is more like a list of suggestions rather than rules meant to be followed. Vrisk’s distorted view of the logical and ethical boundaries of the law has led him to believe if he wants a possession more than the current possessor of such an item, it is acceptable for him to steal it. As part of his blatant disregard for the law, Raniks attached the 'Ranger' title to his name as a mockery of the Knalan Rangers, who failed to apprehend him during his first bank heist. Vrisk Raniks’ sense of self preservation and self-interest is unlike that of any other, he has often times used his short size, master speed and agility to his advantage and has escaped numerous shootouts that didn't have to involve him. Despite this and a tendency to panic and just quickly cut and run when things hit the fan, he prides himself on his professionalism and isn't happy when his partner Voox Koli Tamme is behaving like a childish buffoon. However, there is something more complex to and tender to him. Sure, if he were to play Red Dead Redemption 2 his honour level would be so low that they'd have to update the story mode to accommodate for an even lower level than can be shown, but deep down, the Ranger is incredibly lonely and carries overwhelming pain over the experimentation that was performed on him before he was a mercenary. Shaped by the traumatic experiences he lived through at the Improvement Dungeon at the hands of Exet scientists, Raniks is very distrustful of scientists as well as being deathly afraid of confined spaces. Regarding his self-esteem, for all that Vrisk calls himself a genius or makes boasts, he is particularly touchy about being considered "worthless", or a "perfectionist" (a trait he associates with The Remaker- the de facto leader of The Exet Union). Fixing things, almost obsessively so, is a coping mechanism to the stressful memories caused by The Remaker, and helps Vrisk feel calm and in control whenever he gets overwhelmed. Accounting for the loss of agency he suffered at the hands of The Exet Union, he refuses to ever let anyone control him again; probably related to this is his authority problem, ever an underlying issue with the leadership of Chris Flint and formerly Xoraxis Jnudan. The only person in his life he can confide his true self and feelings to is his good partner in crime Voox Koli Tamme. Yet, while Raniks seems at first glance to "hate everybody" he is capable of showing concern for the well-being of others- largely thanks to his partnership with the compassionate Voox Koli Tamme, who has slowly molded the Xokrot into something of more stable, functioning member of society and has often been the only thing keeping Vrisk from going just that little bit further- and assuring him and if he does, he will be there to stop him. (Given Vrisk Raniks’ history of violence, the Eclipse Corps recommends all attending officers exercise extreme caution when engaging. A sweep for hidden guns, knives, explosives, and traps is also advisable. Despite his show of heroism during the attack on Hakkor by the Puritans of Tenebra, the Lord of Prosecutors remains unconvinced that Vrisk Raniks can be fully rehabilitated. Should he reoffend, the Office of Legal Affairs recommends that Vrisk Raniks be incarcerated in the Korrect indefinitely.)

Voox Koli Tamme (The tall yellow and orange creature)- Sweet, level-headed and sefless, Voox Koli Tamme is a good-natured, loyal and gentle Lekgolo who displays a warmth and kindness like no other. Although he has a predilection towards peace, Voox is comfortable with violence when needed and anger when sufficiently warranted. Even if he does get mad, Voox is remarkably forgiving of other's faults, and it is unlikely of him to remain in a bad mood for long- being a conciliatory type. However, he can also be merciless and savagely brutal towards his enemies, especially if they threaten his friends. Since no one can accurately understand what he is saying (with the exception of Vrisk Raniks), he is often unable to intervene in disputes. On that note, while he often follows Raniks’ lead, Voox often finds himself at odds with his volatility and often tries to make the Xokrot reconsider his stance, generally with little success. Koli Tamme is an optimist and honest to a fault, not being good at bluffing, as well noted by Raniks- who has been frustrated many a time by Voox’s almost pathological inability to lie. Because of his language barrier with the rest of the Defenders of Infinity, his thoughts and opinions are usually filtered by Ranger Raniks, and Voox usually finds himself mostly interacting with him as he’s the only one who can seriously understand him. He finds other team members’ attempts at conversation with him amusing, but is grateful for the attempt and is supportive towards them trying at the very least. Although sometimes easily distracted and simple-minded, Voox is, in truth, considered a genius among the Lekgolo, is literally royalty and is capable of feats most beings, even among his own kind, can only dream of. Despite this, he’s pretty modest about it- in fact, he’s so modest about it you could know him for upwards of a thousand years and you’d probably never guess he received the finest education from the Wormcasters of Te and possesses the genetic knowledge from worms of royalty, engineers, scientists and more, and has a tremendous grasp of biorobotic engineering. Voox is also very meticulous, and seems to harbour a guilt complex regarding the deaths of the crew of the Heart of Codado Leuria- the first members of another civilisation he ever interacted with, and his subsequent servitude to the cosmic entity Voox knows as the Rotting One as a Herald named the Grey Golem, along with the death of his original bond brother, the continued existential torment of the bond brother he technically spawned, his failure to find the Stellar Seed and bring it back to Te, and the fact that he believes he has effectively disgraced himself in front of his deities- the Worm Gods. Come to think of it, Voox is almost entirely motivated by guilt, and seeing as how even the most absent-minded and seemingly natural of his actions have led to such great consequences, Voox has developed into a very tentative, protective person who is really really careful to avoid harming others, as he understands all too well the power he possesses- whether it’s his physical strength or how whatever he does just happens to have powerful ramifications no matter what. As a coping mechanism to the stress that comes with this, Koli Tamme likes to water plants and pet creatures- even dangerous ones, and can get easily swept up in playing with toys. Alar-Tirzier, a time-displaced warrior and leader of the Knights of Maethrillian seems to think Voox Koli Tamme is quite possibly the wisest living being in the entire galaxy, and believes he has a “much larger part” to play in the events of the universe going forward. (Despite his association with Ranger Vrisk Raniks, the Hakkorian Office of Legal Affairs feels that Voox Koli Tamme can be rehabilitated with a failure margin of 0.3728%. As such, the Office has determined Voox Koli Tamme to be a potential candidate for the Eclipse Corps.)

T.O.O.L.K.I.T (Not pictured)- A Hakkorian Servitor, T.O.O.L.K.I.T is Chris Flint's personal assistant that carries out any form of digital assistance he requires of him. T.O.O.L.K.I.T is able to phase in and out of the physical dimension and is stored in a technological pocket dimension linked to Flint's ship and armour. He manages control over Flint's ship- the Zenith and performs his job efficiently. T.O.O.L.K.I.T is usually joyous, enthusiastic, and excitable no matter how dire situations may be. His energetic personality however is sometimes seen as annoying and irritating to any team member he interacts with, even the normally stoic Haxus. His original role as a psychological support A.I is ironic in the way that he may actually cause more insanity than curtailing it, although at his core, he cares deeply for the Defenders of Infinity and considers their well-being his absolute top priority. Despite being less-than-sane, he seems to often disagree with Solar-Saint’s impulsive and reckless decisions, though he has rushed to his defence on numerous occasions- seeing Flint’s honourable side and knowing him better than most people. He is very loyal to the Defenders of Infinity, and views it as an honour to be among them. T.O.O.L.K.I.T was originally Chris Flint’s ‘psychological support A.I’ when he was arrested and in Hakkorian custody prior to the trial of Sondo-7 and the Raiders, whom Flint testified against in court. Initially known only as 'Assistant', Flint renamed him T.O.O.L.K.I.T in similar fashion to the name of a talking car from an old Reclaimer Human TV show he consumed in his childhood whilst imprisoned, and befriended the A.I, which was assigned to him to both monitor his psyche and keep him company for his long period of incarceration, as the Hakkorian courts held up the actual trial in favour of catching all the Raiders and convicting them all in the same trial. After being pardoned for testifying against the pirates, Flint stole T.O.O.L.K.I.T and had him taken to an engineer to reprogram him, redesign him and give him his own personal flair- housing him inside of a small, spherical drone with a plasma ball-like effect surrounding it, apparently because, according to Flint, he “always wanted a plasma ball” when he was growing up. T.O.O.L.K.I.T was also able to embrace a personality of his own- unfortunately, it became rampant, and it’s personality, originally programmed to be a cool and collected companion, developed into one of high-energy with unhinged, borderline sociopathic tendencies and a proneness to form unhealthy attachments. As such, one could say that if his friends in the Defenders were ever taken from him, T.O.O.L.K.I.T would completely lose it and would become a great danger to himself and anything around him.

(Well well well, would you look at that? The Defenders of Infinity ARE COMPLETE AT LAST!!! Now this is a serious milestone- the Defenders of Infinity have been a project 4 years in the making, technically 5 since I conceptualised the idea of the team in 2018. It's been years of slowly creating and posting the biographies of all its members (save for poor old T.O.O.L.K.I.T) but now I can confidently say I've completed it! Since I love the Defenders so much I wanted to get everyone's biographies up before I ever posted the full team together since not only would I require the drawings of each member side by side, it would also mean that anyone can use this as a nexus point to jump into the stories of any of the Defenders. I will say however that because it's been so long, some of these are out of date- Ranger Raniks' for example, is the most outdated as his backstory still refers to him as "Rakton"- a crappy name in hindsight, and has a bunch of other nonsense I now have gripes with. For example, The Reworker. I believe it still says in there that he's a Forerunner. Yeah, I'm getting rid of that. Now The Reworker is going to be a mysterious scientist who's been adopting the traits of pretty much everything he encounters- taking so many different traits from so many different species and rewriting himself with so much DNA that it would be impossible to figure out what he was originally. Furthermore, I've established him as ruler of the Exet Union, a faction of aliens who also have so many borrowed traits and support his goal of using 'genetic art' to solve all the universe's problems and achieve utopia. Even more so, he's not the Reworker at all anymore- instead, he's now The Remaker. I thought "Reworker" sounded lame, but "Remaker" had a different ring to it. You know the term "it's time to meet your Maker"?- that "Maker" being God? Well, I figured that the Remaker would've named himself that because he believes that God, if there is one, made mistakes in his design of the universe, and has stepped in to "correct" them, playing God himself, only in his mind- he's better. Anyway, just wanted to clear all that up. Also, Haxus' backstory- whilst it's still all fine for the most part you might be able to tell from the rewrite of his personality here that I've tried to place more emphasis on the fact that he's more an amalgam of different past identities rather than just one guy with the rage of a bunch of others- The Devastator only adopts Haxus' name and lets his genetically-imprinted personality take the reins, but he's not necessarily him. He's more a supersoldier clone with his memories. Other than those two though, everyone else is pretty up to date, the only thing I would maybe change about the others is I'd potentially alter some of the language I used for Xoraxis' backstory and maybe remove the romance subplot, but other than that, he, Solar-Saint, Zorrjha Khamiarah and Voox are in the exact state I want them in. For now that is.)

(Now, for the good part- songs I would associate with the Defenders of Infinity. I'm gonna be honest, just about any song on any Guardians of the Galaxy movie (and game) album would pair just perfectly with them, and you can bet your ass I was blasting that shit whilst thinking about the Defenders, but I'd particularly like to draw your attention to We Care a Lot by Faith No More, Hangin' Tough by New Kids on the Block, The Boys Are Back in Town by Thin Lizzy, In the Air Tonight by Phil Collins, Kickstart My Heart by Mötley Crüe, Rock Rock Til You Drop by Def Leppard, Saturday Night’s Alright For Fighting by Elton John and Moonage Daydream by David Bowie- all songs I believe especially embody the Defenders of Infinity and are the sort of things they'd listen to whilst blasting bad guys and/or cruising the galaxy- especially We Care a Lot, as I like the line “Well it’s a dirty job but someone’s gotta do it” so much that I decided to make it the motto of the Defenders- since it very accurately describes their willingness to do…just about whatever it is people wanna hire them for. Of course, since music is so important to Chris Flint and by extension the Defenders, that doesn't nearly cover it, so one day I might assemble just what Chris Flint's playlist on his Vyrant TrackDeck would look like, only issue is I can't will any fictional songs I mentioned into existence since he's also into music from, you know, the century he's from, and named the Defenders after his favourite band. But for now, I think this will do just nicely. Anyway, now that the Defenders are up, I have one more thing I want to post before my summer holiday ends- and that's a revision of the Gambler. Not putting too much pressure on it, but I'm really gonna try and crank that out soon. And will all that said there's nothing else left to say except, as always, stay safe, stay cool, and stay Nebulous! Goodbye!)