Raith Varix

From An Evolution in RP :: Database

Personal	Physical	Family
Age: 29 Birthplace: Talus Species: Human Marital Status: Single	Height: 1.83m Weight: 80.74kg Hair: Short and Brown Eyes: Hazel Build: Athletic/Toned	Father: Vaaz Varix Mother: Ashira Minz Brother(s): Kash Varix Sister(s): None Other: None

Personality

By nature an introverted man, Raith is frequently mistaken by those who do not know him well to be a very shy or cold person. He prefers to keep the company of himself and his close friends, and more often than not can be found reading or exercising alone. Once he does deign to socialize, however, he is found to be personable and charming, not at all the timid or frigid creature he sometimes appears. Intelligent and self-assured, Varix possesses a sharp wit that varies between being caustic and humorous. He tends towards being good-natured, though oddly enough, a smile is rarely on his face. This and his frequently intense demeanor cause people to often take him for a generally bitter person, having been caught up in the painful memories of his past. They are just as often proven wrong; Raith is a man of action, living for the moment with no attachment to events long passed.

A typical serious expression causes others to view him as a hostile and bitter man.

Of course, that does not mean the good Captain does not fear. Just like any other human, the man has his own personal fears and weaknesses. A serious aversion to harming innocent or guilty children plagues him on any mission. Though he may be a hardened soldier that has killed his fair share of enemies, the mere thought of drilling a blaster bolt through the chest of a child fills Var with sadness. Unfortunately, do to the nature of his job, he is often placed into situations where children are in the line of fire. This conflicts with his usual, "shoot first, ask questions later" nature when it comes to a combat situation and sadly, even after years of experience, Raith has not solved this fear. He prays religiously before each mission that such an occurrence will not present itself to him.

If one was asked to list Var's strengths, tenacity and ingenuity would top the list again and again. Constantly seeing opportunities where others see potential failure, Raith has that special ability to rally the troops and complete his objective. Very goal oriented, the prize is never far from his eyes and potentially volatile situations are only seen as setbacks to completing the mission. Others say he inspires the uninspired and gives hope to the hopeless. His personality is an interesting one and is certainly conducive to his occupation as an Imperial Commando.

Possessions

Living on a Special Operations Trooper's pay leaves little extra funds to pursue one's own dreams and wishes. Raith has precious little in the way of material goods and that's fine by him. As long as he maintains his collection of model walkers, tanks, etc. he's content with what he has. The collection started out as a single model freighter which his father gave to him on his 5th birthday. Since then, Var has expanded his collection to encompass a wide range of vehicles and he never gets tired of tinkering with them, repainting them and building more complex pieces.

Aside from this, he possesses the regular clothing one would expect and a few personal photos here and there.

Large collection of military models
Personal photos

NPC

Enigmatic and demanding, little is known of Oso.

Xen Oso

Name: Xen Oso
Rank: Colonel
Troop Type: Commanding Officer
Age: 41
Race: Human
Homeworld: Corellia
Gender: Male
Height: 5'10"
Weight: 167lbs
Hair: Black
Eyes: Light Green

The man known as Xen Oso runs the Storm Commandos with an iron fist. Ever aware of their enemies, both within the Empire and outside of it, the Colonel tends to play things close to the chest and give people the run around. His superiors tend to become annoyed by his often sharp and blunt behavior but they cannot deny the man's usefulness and work ethic. Always working to improve himself and the Storm Commandos, Xen is a man of strong will and spirit.

Being such a recluse means he has little time for friends and social activities. However, he does consider General Voru a trusted comrade and values the man's experience. Similar to the organization he runs, the man is rarely seen and more often than not, remains hidden while issuing his orders and directives.

A longtime friend of Raith, the two men trust the other implicitly.

Crix Ono

Name:Crix Ono
Rank: 1st Lieutenant
Troop Type: Storm Commando
Age: 29
Race: Human
Homeworld: Talus
Gender: Male
Height: 6'
Weight: 181lbs
Hair: Brown
Eyes: Light Green/Grey

Having known Raith since high school, the two of them are complete, polar opposites when it comes to personality. While Varix is foreboding at times and has a sarcastic streak, Ono is almost always smiling and cracking jokes left and right. Serving as his friend's uplifting spirit since meeting him, Crix has always believed in Raith and his ability to get them out of nearly any situation in one piece. Likewise, the Captain depends on his XO to provide him with no bullshit answers and a valuable second opinion.

Surprisingly, much of Crix's history is a mystery. Splitting with Raith during their college years, the two were reunited through the Storm Commando program and when questioned as to his whereabouts during college, Ono is quick to avoid the subject. As of now, Var has decided to let the subject go but he knows it's only a matter of time before the truth will come out.

Character Biography

1 In The Beginning...
2 Birth and Infancy
3 Childhood to Adolescence
4 Joining The Ranks
5 Burning Out
6 Into the Belly of the Sarlaac...

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In The Beginning...

Raith's homeworld of Talus.

The planet of Talus is a temperate, pleasant planet that calls the Corellian Sector home. A member of the Five Brothers, it’s known for its exquisite delicacies and interesting sights, such as the Boiling Sea. With an interesting history that involves the Architects and Centerpoint station, it certainly was not a dull ball hurtling through space. Boasting a stable economy, a population of approximately 3.2 million and neutrality in a time when actions spoke louder than words caused it to be a highly sought after location to settle down.

Vaaz Varix and Ashira Minz were newlyweds that had just tied the knot on Corellia three months prior and they were itching to set out on their own, finally free from the shackles that parents seemed to enjoy placing on their children. When confronted with the familiar money argument, the two lovebirds expressed great confidence in financial independence. Vaaz was currently employed as a propulsions engineer for a small, local engineering firm. Their clients were mostly speeder companies with the occasional civilian starship line. Work was steady and stable but unfortunately, the paychecks weren’t as hefty as Varix had hoped for when he’d started. However, plenty of opportunities awaited him at Talus. Their vibrant and growing economy revolved around starship manufacturing and research. As for Ashira, she held down a job as a veterinarian at their local animal shelter. Her love of helping others and her extreme tenderness were traits that lent themselves well to her occupation. In her case, it wasn’t as difficult to find work and she didn’t lose any sleep over securing a job on Talus; anything dealing with the medical field was usually always in moderate to high demand on any planet in any system.

After many unhappy days and sleepless nights, their parents finally gave them their blessing in moving off planet so soon. Though they left many fond memories and friends behind, the two were ecstatic to finally have a life of their own, able to make their own mistakes and opportunities. Their parents even threw a large send off party for them the weekend before they departed for Talus. The next day, the young couple found themselves grinning ear to ear as they were pushed back into their seats, watching the ground rapidly disappear as their interstellar transport departed the spaceport. The year was 29 BtP.

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Birth and Infancy

Eight months and some odd twenty days later, they created their first opportunity, or as they’d feel in some instances, their worst mistake. Their first son, Raith Varix, had entered the galaxy and with his first motion, a random appendage nearly wedged itself into his father’s right eye. It was a humorous and tender moment that was captured forever by the video being filmed and an aptly timed photo. Years in the future, it would be one of Raith’s most treasured possessions.

Amazing that a cute baby can become a trained assassin.

Not surprisingly, the first few months of his life were less then illustrious. He spent the majority of it crying, the rest sleeping and he often ate and spit up as well. His parents loved him dearly but one cannot deny the frustration when sleep was constantly interrupted by the baby monitor. As time went on, young Varix eventually grew out of the utterly helpless phase and started to fend for himself, as well as expressing the inquisitive mind that nearly all newborns are endowed with. On the whole, he was still rather shy, allowing only his mother to hold him and always running to her first whenever something startled or injured him. He treated his father with love as well; it just was not as physically palpable as Vaaz would have liked. Over time, this small seed of discontent so early on would develop into its own tree of discord. But, for now, all was well and Raith was spoiled as much as his parent’s income would allow.

While their priority was certainly the care of their first son, Mr. and Mrs. Varix had by no means thrown away their ambitions to succeed financially. Vaaz had managed to secure a job at a growing global engineering firm that lent their expertise in propulsion technology and research to galaxy spanning corporations such as the Corellian Engineering Corporation (CEC). Extremely well known for their modular freighters and lucrative civilian contracts, Raith’s father hoped to eventually join their engineering ranks or perhaps attain a position with a company that had even more prestige. He was a patient man and knew good things came to those that waited, especially in situations such as this. Hard work would pay off in the end and in the meantime, he still had his family to care of, which in itself was a full time job. On the flipside, his wife, while working as a veterinarian in the city zoo, was beginning to have thoughts of becoming a house wife. She’d already taken time off to stay with Raith in his early years but had gone back to work especially since her parents had immigrated from Corellia as well. They would cover for her while she was at work but lately, their financial situation had stabilized well enough to the point where a single income would allow them to live comfortably. That’s all they ever wanted. While others might have visions of grandeur, fame and fortune, the Varix’s were practical. Enough money to live comfortably, a happy family life and a healthy lifestyle were all they needed. After talking it over with her husband, a decision was made. Three weeks later and Ashira was now a stay home mom.

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Childhood to Adolescence

Coming up on nearly five years of age, Raith was beginning to worry his mother and father. Quiet, extremely shy and always reading, he didn’t seem to have any friends. In addition, he had taken quite a liking to a simple model freighter his father had bought him. He would spend countless hours inspecting its highly realistic detailing and memorizing its construction. This hobby would grow and continue to the present day. But for now, his behavior was quite odd for someone of his age and it didn’t help matters when they discovered that Ashira was pregnant once again. His parents were torn between preparing for a new baby boy and ascertaining what was wrong with Raith. In the crazy months that followed, Vaaz arrived later and later every night while Ashira went back to work to supplement her husband’s income. With another child on the way, they sold their current apartment and with the help of their parents, put a down payment down on a starter home. Though, even with everything going on, Raith was never ignored. Love and care were poured in his direction from family members and friends of the family. An intelligent and kind-hearted child, he slipped under the radar, never complaining of his father’s late nights or the time his mother spent at work. On the flipside, the two felt their young son was already drawing distant from them and it scared them. Nevertheless, feelings of dismay and worry were swept away with their second son, Kash Varix, finally emerged.

Luckily for everyone involved, it seemed as if Kash was the answer to Raith’s shyness. He immediately took a very protective stand to his younger brother and guarded him as well as any five year old could. Surprisingly, with the birth of their second son complete, life did not return to normal. Ashira returned home but her husband continued to plug away at work, working overtime most weeks and going on several business trips a month. By now, Vaaz had climbed the ranks to the top of his company and had been actively sending out resumes to several reputable companies, one of which was CEC. It worked to his favor since they already worked with his current company, had dealt with him in the past and saw the quality of work he could achieve. The extra time he’d been spending at work had been an effort to increase his chances of receiving favorable letters of recommendation from his superior and others in the company. Of course, none of this mattered to Raith or Kash. They were merely upset their father was not home most nights and that little seed of discontent grew larger.

Equipped with a pleasant smile and confident attitude, Raith was sought after by his female peers.

As the two boys grew and matured over the years, two very distinct personalities emerged. Kash was bold, loud, acted too quickly and more often than not, landed himself in a heap of trouble. Raith was not as outgoing, yet he made up for it by having a beautiful smile, a strong, quiet confidence and he thought things through before execution. They complimented each other perfectly yet Raith had one distinctive advantage, he was willing to learn and adapt. Eventually, over the years as they went through primary, then secondary school, the older brother had learned how to make others feel at ease around him yet maintain an air of authority. Absorbing the strong traits displayed by his younger sibling, a well rounded individual was beginning to get fleshed out from a shy, quiet boy that did not possess many friends. Unlike his father, who was beginning to let his work consume him, Raith was not the ambitious type, only wishing to be happy and help those around him. It was around this time of self-discovery, sometime in his early teens that he encountered Crix Ono, the son of a minor city official.

Crix was to Raith as a bantha to a Tusken Raider. Roughly the same age, save for a few months, the two depended on each other for nearly everything one is exposed to as a young adolescent. Grades, parental pressure to succeed, hormones, discovering the magical world of the opposite sex and a myriad of other issues bonded the two. They each knew they could depend on the other with nearly whatever they were experiencing. During this time, Raith drifted a bit apart from his parents, not unusual for someone of his age. His father finally succeeded and had secured a propulsion engineering job with CEC and their mother had begun to volunteer around the community in animal shelters, hospitals, libraries, etc. His life was certainly a normal one growing up. Perhaps that is why he craved for some sort of action, some sort of calling. A self proclaimed adrenaline junkie by now, at the age of eighteen, Raith was still the strong, silent type but that didn’t mean he didn’t know how to have fun. Crix was partly to blame for that since his personality strongly mirrored that of Kash’s which is perhaps why the two of them were such a match. Ono was always dragging Raith to meet women, enjoy a night out on the town or encouraging him to attempt some sort of new, dangerous sport. With his friend’s helpful encouragement in addition to his natural magnetism and charisma, Raith befriended most he encountered and could always seem to inspire those that had lost hope, whether it is from a broken relationship or failing grades.

As the time drew near for applying to a higher institution of learning, Raith was still undecided as to where to go and what to do with his life. On one hand, he was getting an earful of the standard speech from his parents. Not surprisingly, they were strongly suggesting he simply attend one of the many respected and cheaper colleges while remaining on Talus. Not only were they not too keen on having him go off planet for his studies, they wished to save as much money as possible, considering the fact that they had another son to put through college. Another factor that influenced their decision was the fact that Raith was completely clueless as to his future. Though earning above average marks throughout his high school career while participating in several sports, clubs and community service, Raith’s biggest obstacle to success was his lack of drive and this is what concerned his parents the most. Unless it was a challenge or activity he sincerely enjoyed, their son merely gave it a half-hearted effort and gave up easily when he ran into any sort of challenge. This was certainly not an attitude any college student should possess. The odd thing was, Raith himself knew he had to overcome this problem of his, yet, he did nothing about the issue. Often times, he would fail at a task or objective that seemed simple for most others but he would just lose interest and sabotage himself unintentionally. It was a vicious cycle that had begun since the beginning of high school and it would be years down the road before his attitude finally changed. In the meantime, the Varix's had agreed on a course of action.

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Joining The Ranks

While applying to colleges with a lackadaisical attitude, Raith had finally opened one of the many holomails the Republic had been bombarding his personal computer with. Apparently, they were always in the need for new, wholesome young men and women ready to serve and defend their galaxy against any possible threat. In the past, the young adult had merely deleted them before even giving them a second glance but this time, he stopped and stared for a few minutes before a proposition formed in his mind. The difficult part was to swing it by his parents but like any successful teenager knows, you learn little tricks here and there for getting what you want out of your parents. By strongly pushing the angle that military academies are state funded, Raith won the approval of his father who as of late, had been consumed with their monetary responsibilities as he realized he had two sons to send through college. While his father wasn't thrilled, he didn't say no and like the stereotypical tough father, eased his own mind by preaching the fact that a military academy would toughen Raith up and get him motivated to succeed down the road. His mother, on the other hand, took a bit more convincing. While she agreed with the bit about giving their son motivation and a purpose in life, she was rightfully worried about the potential that he could be wounded or even die. Still, after weeks of being pushed and badgered by Raith, Ashira agreed. She would never forgive herself if her son ended up being killed in battle but for now, she made peace with her decision.

Unlike most that join the ranks of the Imperial military, Raith retained his individuality.

Elated that his parents had acquiesced to his more or less half assed plan for a future, Raith confronted Crix regarding the matter. Unfortunately, his elation deflated as quickly as it had come. Crix scoffed at the idea and made it clear he was disappointed in his friend. In his mind, the military academy was not the way to a successful future. He looked down on those that attended it, stating that they were only good at combat and aside from the fact that they offered protection, they were more often then not, used by the government for their own benefits and purposes. For him, soldiers were almost a second tier citizen that were not intelligent enough to pursue a worthwhile career. Needless to say, Raith was not pleased and their falling out ensued. Years later, both would look back on the event and mentally smack themselves for being such fools. However, for now, Ono applied and was accepted into an extremely prestigious college located on Corellia known for its excellent biology program, which was of course, Crix's intended major. As for Raith, he applied to nearly a dozen academies, including the elite triumvirate of military academies, Carida, Corulag and Raithal. To his dismay, both Carida and Raithal denied him entrance, leaving Corulag as his best choice. As the summer drew to a close and his first semester was about to begin, Raith left his home of Talus, traveling a great distance to Corulag, not all that enthusiastic to begin, but it was better then nothing.

The first year of his tenure at Corulag was rough, to say the least. Not responding well to their discipline, harshness and general hostility, it killed much of Raith's humorous and friendly nature. In its place, a mature, focused and most importantly, driven man began to blossom, ever so slowly. With each passing week, month, quarter and semester Varix slowly began to seriously consider the possibility of continuing with a graduate program and earn his living as an officer in the Republic Military. In all honesty, he had finally found a purpose as he was continuously pushed by his professors and trainers. In the beginning, he complied with all their demands and plodded along at the academy merely because he felt no need to be punished and reprimanded. Yet, as time wore on, he realized there was a purpose behind their maddening rules, restrictions and concepts that were drilled into him. Loyalty, obedience, discipline, driving forward with a purpose, pursuing your goal until you obtained it, these were all lessons that impacted heavily on Raith's personality and outlook on life. By the end of his less then outstanding first year, in terms of having a plan for his life, Raith had done a complete one eighty. He now knew what his goal was and what he had to do to obtain it. Not only did he plan on achieving success as an undergrad, the graduate program was a must for he planned to apply for the Republic Commando program, a rigorous and extremely exclusive unit that represented the brightest and toughest of the Republic troopers. To bear the title of Republic Commando was a lofty goal but it was not impossible to achieve.

With the advent of his second year, Raith began to crunch down on his studies. For once in his life, he was actively trying to achieve an objective, a goal. For him, it was a new experience and surprisingly refreshing, not to mention rewarding. Over the course of his second year, he managed to scrape himself off the bottom of his class, put his affairs in order and bump himself up so he was not one of the dead last trainees. Knowing that the Commando program only accepted the cream of the crop, Raith could not afford to slip up or let his grades fall, even slightly. He didn't make many friends at this time of his life, lest they distract him from his studies. While others took their meager free time and had their fair share of rest and recreation, Varix took every opportunity he could to further his relations with his professors, often spending entire evenings with them discussing whichever particular subject they specialized in. Studying non-stop, his roommates were worried Raith would burn himself out but he ignored their warnings and continued to plug away. For once in his life, he wanted to be more then just that kind, charming and intelligent guy. While that sort of reputation was great for high school, it could not survive for long in an ever evolving word that relied on your ability to adapt and push yourself.

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Burning Out

Between his second and third year, Raith slowly lost contact with his family. His anger towards his father for apparently leaving their family in favor of his job had not diminished over time and his mother's pestering and worrisome attitude could not pierce his new, cold personality. Instead, it annoyed him to no end and eventually, he stopped returning their calls and holomails all together. To him, it was a waste of time and energy to worry about such trivial details when he had to achieve his objective. As his last undergrad semester came around, Raith was twenty two and while he wasn't anywhere close to the top of his class, he was above the average. For him, it was already a personal victory. He showed himself that he could in fact, have the drive to accomplish a long term goal and do quite well in it. If he hadn't done so terribly his first year at Corulag, his class standing at graduation would have been much different, he was sure of it. In any case, Raith graduated from the Corulag Academy with the starting rank of Lieutenant and went on to attempt the entrance exams for Carida, Corulag and Raithal. While he entered the Corulag program with relative ease, he barely scraped by at Raithal and once again, he was denied entry into Carida, only adding fuel to the fire. Deciding to stay at Corulag and remain loyal, Raith forged ahead into the graduate program, more determined then ever to at least break into the Commandos.

Ignoring the warnings of his peers and professors, Lt. Varix dived further into his academics and physical training. By training hard and studying harder, Raith managed to hold his own against physically superior foes in the ring and intellectually superior foes in the classroom. While he wasn't the fastest, nor the smartest, it was his quiet confidence that shown through. It was obvious he worked three times as hard as anyone else to achieve the same results. Of course, this wasn't to say he didn't have natural talent but he was never top tier in anything. All in all, he was a solid player in any area.

In the end, Raith pushed himself too hard.

However, in the end, the worry that his roommates, professors and trainers had expressed came to blossom. As he graduated somewhere near the top of his class, Raith burned himself out. When the demanding course for Commando hopefuls rolled around, he promptly flunked out on the fourth day. Mentally and physically exhausted from the past four or so years, he could not hope to compete with people that were simply better then he. They managed to out shoot him, out think him and out fight him. Varix stood no chance against graduates from Raithal and Carida. His objective lost, Raith, at the age of twenty six went into a time of seclusion and apathy. While he hadn't come close to making it into the Republic Commandos, he was still a Lieutenant in the army and had his duties. The state hadn't funded his education only to see him turn around and throw it all away because he'd failed at something that had been his goal. Assigned to a platoon, Raith spent the next year of his life floating around the galaxy with the army. Doing everything from garrison duty to front line patrols, he garnered a decent amount of combat experience but by no means was it anything extraordinary. By chance, the Lt. and his platoon were sent to the Academy of Carida for a quarter of training to remain in top combat effectiveness.

After arriving at his long awaited destination, Raith was shocked. It wasn't like anything he'd dreamed of. The grandeur and elite atmosphere were present but in reality, he preferred his home academy of Corulag. The realization hit him that he didn't have to consider himself a failure for not being accepted into Carida or for flunking out of the Commando program. He should be proud of his background and there were always chances in the future. There he stood, standing on the cliffside parade ground of Carida and what did it mean? It meant nothing. His previous attitude was correct if a bit faulty. Hard work and tenacity would take you far in life, everything just had to be in moderation. As the next year rolled around, he decided that he would once again apply for the Republic Commando unit. Reverting to study and work habits picked up during his academy days, Raith stunned his immediate superiors. This wasn't the average joe Lieutenant that they'd come to know over the last year. It was as if new life had been injected into Varix. Whipping his platoon into shape, the young officer moved his unit from the middle of the road to the near head of their battalion in terms of unit performance. Realizing that Raith had that natural magnetism and quiet confidence that seemed to gain the trust of others, his superiors promoted him to Captain at the end of year. It was partly because they felt he had deserved it and it was also their way of saying good luck for his special operations exam.

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Into the Belly of the Sarlaac...

By a twist of fate, the great purge occurred just as Raith was in the midst of his exams on Carida. He was there first hand as the entire army was renamed the Imperial Army and their armor became the faceless mask of terror the rest of the galaxy would call Stormtroopers. The Republic Commandos were disbanded and a new unit rose in their place, the Storm Commandos. Due to the fact that it was a new unit, they needed men to fill their ranks and Raith was right there waiting. Jumping on board the program, he survived their ruthless exams and was inducted into the program after nearly two months of the course. For the rest of the year, he was thoroughly indoctrinated in the new principles and beliefs of the new Empire. The same information was drilled into him as the days turned into weeks and weeks into months. Raith didn't particularly care which direction the government turned. To him, politics had always been dry, bland and tasteless. He preferred immediate action and living for the moment, traits well suited to the life of a commando. Truth be told, he was just glad he'd finally completed the first ever objective in his life that he set out for himself. Personally, it was a milestone and an indication of what was to come. His specialized training finally complete, Raith was entrusted with a platoon of Imperial Storm Commandos whose members included, interestingly enough, his old friend, Crix Ono.

As their platoon deployed to active combat, Raith had many unanswered questions. Whatever happened to his family? Were they still on Talus? Would his dad and him ever reconcile? What about his younger brother, Kash? And where did Crix come from? Oddly enough, when questioned as to his whereabouts and actions over the past ten years, his old friend would merely dodge them and change the subject. Letting that matter drop for the moment, Captain Varix looked forward to his first combat mission.