Jerome the Rat

Jerome the Rat is a powered armored soldier who has only just barely entered the G.U.N. Second Army Division from the academy. In a manner similar to many other G.U.N. powered troopers, Jerome serves in a role less commonly seen in the second division, that of a melee specialist. 
==Appearance==
As with many G.U.N. powered troopers, Jerome possesses a certain level of physical bulk and wiry muscle to help keep his body in combat trim even when out of his armor. With deep blue fur kept short and trim everywhere except his long, furless tail, Jerome also has fairly dark blue-grey eyes to go with his overall look. 
===Attire===
Despite growing up with fine clothing with the perks of the upper class, Jerome typically wears a simple silver-grey shirt, black pants and simple white sneakers for his day-to-day clothing, preferring not to wear anything too bulky or cumbersome if the call to suit up comes in. The one piece of ornamentation that he does wear is a small silver locket around his neck, which he does everything in his power to protect. 
===Armor===
To the surprise of many other rookies, most of whom wear Chromatic-series or other generic suits of G.U.N. produced armor, Jerome was assigned a specialized Chieftain-type Battle Armor as his exoskeleton. This suit is typically painted in either arctic camouflage or a flat silver-grey scheme, both the standards of his division. 
==History==
===Youth===
Jerome was born into the upper class in Soleanna; the only child of a fairly profitable merchant family. From the start of school, he was inseparable from another young noble; a young otter girl who grew to have a small army of suitors as they got older. However, Jerome was the one she kept by her side, a protector and guardian who pushed himself to make sure he was strong enough to keep her safe when they were older. His parents were always impressed at his dedication to his swordsmanship and his rapid growth, though the good-natured teasing about his "girlfriend" was always there. 
===To G.U.N.===
The good times ended shortly after Jerome turned 16. While returning from a family trip; the otter girl and her entire family were abducted by members of The Trolls, the reason never explained. When Jerome heard, he was filled with a cold rage and left Soleanna, his raw desire for vengeance keeping his skill with a blade sharp as he headed for the one place he could think of that would let him seek revenge: the G.U.N. academy. While his status as a Soleannan citizen attracted some attention, many of the recruiters and trainers were impressed by the boy's skill and fervor with the blade; enough to earn him a spot in a training cadre. 
==Abilities==
Even before his training by G.U.N, Jerome was fairly skilled with a blade, with that ambidextrous talent serving as his entry ticket to the academy. Jerome is fully capable of fighting with a sword leading with either hand, not a trick many wielders ever seem to master. Many swords wielders in G.U.N. have commented on Jerome's capabilities as a swordsman, though none are entirely willing to label the rat as a prodigy, he still has a number of flaws. 
Even without a blade, Jerome is a fairly competent fighter in hand-to-hand combat, incorporating his tail into the standardized military martial art he was trained in. The addition of the external musculature of his powered armor has been a boost to that, making him hit harder and move faster than he normally would, though the extra bulk does restrict his flexibility to a certain degree, not enough to hamper his swordsmanship or hand-to-hand combat much. 
Jerome is also noted to have some competency with the manipulation of poisons and toxic substances, with his toxikinesis serving as a backup for some of his close-quarters attacks. His only notable technique with these powers, however, is the ability to create a thick mist of opaque poisonous gas, both for camouflage and to disable his opponents. Jerome himself is, of course, practically immune to most poisons, primarily through his elemental training. 
As a member of the G.U.N. Second Army Division, Jerome has a preference for the old ways when it comes to combat, with a taste for ballistic firearms and more reliable technology. This philosophy is shared by the vast majority of the division, and Jerome is qualified to shoot most common ballistic weapons in the G.U.N arsenal. However, despite his training and his combat armor, Jerome has maintained a purely melee focus, with his commanding officers never providing him with a rifle or other ranged weapon. 
As mentioned earlier, Jerome wears a Chieftain-type Battle Armor suit as part of his combat gear. The Chieftain is one of G.U.N's locally produced advanced combat suits and is mounted with a number of unique features, most notably being a computer-controlled Artificial Chaos Emerald shard that imbues all of the armor with a mild anti-psionic shield. While it does not stop the momentum of items thrown telekinetically, it means that Jerome is practically immune to telepathic attacks and is a very slippery target to grasp with telekinesis himself. This suit has been modified to have two small protruding vents around the helmet, through which Jerome is capable of venting his toxic Smogscreens. Similarly, Jerome has also had the suit modified to have a punch-dagger built into the right arm to assist with his close-quarters fighting, allowing him to wield his sword in his left hand and use the retractable Chaos-enhanced stabbing blade on the right arm as a spare striking weapon. 
This suit comes with a number of weaknesses, though; Soul-aligned powers can cause the crystal to self-destruct; magnetic powers can tear the suit apart, and of course fire threatens every powered trooper that lacks additional thermal shields or elemental protection. These weaknesses are compounded by the fact that his own elemental might is worthless against powered armored troops with atmospheric filters or robots, though his close-quarters focus reduces that risk. 
===Poison Techniques===
*Smogscreen
===Elementless Techniques===
*Cut Down
*Slicing Blade
*Tackle
==Personality==
Jerome is normally quite softly spoken and well-mannered while he interacts with others, though on occasions there is a note of brewing fury just beneath the surface. Despite his normally quiet nature, there are moments where he seems childish; playing basic word games and associations and playfully teasing, while other times he seems to get overprotective with his female compatriots, much to the displeasure of a number of them. 
Jerome has never wavered in his dedication to find out the truth about his friend; even as he questions quite what the nature of his feelings for her is. The only thing more driving for the young man is his hatred for those that took her away, the Trolls. Despite knowing they do not simply die, he frequently pushes his limits in skirmishes against Trollish forces. 
==Relationships==
===Friends/Allies===
===Rivals===
===Enemies===
==Trivia==
==Theme(s)==
==See also==
Category:Males
Category:Mobians
Category:Rats
Category:Rodents
Category:Powered Troopers
Category:G.U.N. Powered Troopers
Category:Toxikinetics
Category:Weapon Users:Swords
Category:G.U.N. Second Army Division Members
Category:Murids
Category:Myomorphs
Category:Mammals
Category:Characters