Jackal/Story

Spoilers!*"Your greatest villain Drake shall warn you, SPOILERS AHEAD!"*The following article or section contain **spoilers!** Viewer discretion is advised.

Overview**Story**VoicelinesGallery

## Behind the Scenes

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Gang Eun-ae

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Lindsay Sheppard

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Aya Suzaki

## Description

A member of Exotic, Missilis' penal squad of Outer Rim convicts. As a precautionary measure, Jackal is outfitted with a bomb collar that will kill her if she steps out of line.

### Nikke Backstory

A Nikke subordinate of the Exotic squad. Crow's loyal lackey. Fully prepared to do Crow's bidding at any given moment.

## Personality

Forgoing any sort of overthinking to go with the flow, Jackal has very few wants in life; eat good food, fire off a lot of rockets, and maybe see the Ark go up in flames. Some may call her simpleminded, but compared to the duplicity of her leader Crow or her fellow Exotic Viper, Jackal is...not safer, but easier to placate. Honestly, if her general rowdy yet simple behavior is anything to go by, she gives the impression of a hyperactive, instinct-prone dog.

## Story

### Main Story

#### Chapter 16

Jackal and Exotic are deployed at Syuen's behest to assist the protagonist and Counters in tracking down the Pilgrims to acquire more Vapaus. The map from Unlimited points to the "mage's zone", a place where Alva particle concentration averages at 100%. Since that means no communications with the Ark are possible, Jackal is excited by the idea of going on a rampage without repercussions, only for Crow to douse her enthusiasm. Later, while the squads fight Raptures, Jackal is all too happy to fire rocket after rocket and make it rain fire and metal.

Some time later, Jackal accidentally breaks some ice and falls in the frigid water. She expresses gratitude to the protagonist for giving her a jacket to warm up, but Crow reminds her that some commanders try to play nice to control Nikkes.

Later, Exotic sabotages the Pilgrim traces and eventually betrays Counters, attacking the protagonist and leaving him for dead. At an Outer Rim bar, Jackal hoots over their success and the impending chaos that will consume the Ark, but is chased out by Crow when she insists the protagonist must be dead.

### Event Story

#### D-Outsiders

When terrorists attack and disable the Ark's Dome of Eternity, Jackal and Exotic are deployed with the protagonist to hunt down the culprits.

### Character Story

#### Episode 1 - Give Me Shelter

Having finished his work and getting a free afternoon, the protagonist goes for a stroll and finds Miranda with her ear to the ground in front of the police station, initially mistaking him for Jackal. Apparently the Exotic Nikke had fled the police station earlier, so Miranda was keeping an ear out to see if she'd come back. Since the protagonist is here, she decides to request his assistance and brings him inside the station.

Inside the station, Poli notices the duo entering and decides to see what's going on. The protagonist asks for a sitrep, leading Poli to explain the police have received complaints of holes being blasted in the walls of buildings, the only trace left by the culprit being bite marks. The protagonist wonders what Jackal has to do with this.

Turns out that A.C.P.U. and Exotic have some bad blood between them, and Jackal's particular calling card is to leave bomb fragments and bite marks whenever she goes on a rampage. Poli initially grabbed Jackal and locked her up, but as Miranda points out, Jackal ended up gnawing her way through the prison bars and made a break for it. Between the repairs costs for the cell and the complaints only getting more frequent, Poli's just about ready to throw her hands in the air. The protagonist volunteers his assistance in finding Jackal, on the condition that handling of the Exotic member is left to him. Poli is confident the protagonist isn't Jackal's accomplice, and since the jails can't hold her, agrees to the condition. Outside the station, the protagonist briefly ponders where Jackal would be, concluding she'd go for a bite to eat after causing some damage.

He goes to the restaurant, and sure enough, Jackal is at a table, scarfing down food amidst a scene of disarrayed décor. He approaches the feasting Nikke, who offers him some food before he requests her company. She's initially reluctant, but with a promise of tasty treats she's completely onboard...just as soon as she makes a quick stop first.

That "quick stop" happens to be an alleyway where Crow is waiting. Crow questions why the protagonist is here, to which Jackal explains that he promised her treats if she went to his place, but then she remembered she was supposed to meet up with Crow, so she decided to kill two birds with one stone by bringing the protagonist to the meeting and then following him afterwards. Crow immediately suspects the protagonist is up to something and demands he spill the beans. He explains Jackal needs to learn to behave and be patient if she's going to coexist with the other inhabitants of the Outpost, a thought that makes Crow scoff at him for being overly nosy again. He fires back that Jackal constantly going in and out of A.C.P.U. custody isn't exactly an ideal situation, something Crow begrudgingly admits. Crow gives the protagonist an ultimatum; he has one week to try and educate Jackal, after which when Crow comes to pick her up, the protagonist has to offer his wrist to Jackal. Fun fact, Jackal has a thing for gnawing at people's wrists, so this week is also his only chance to make sure Jackal won't literally tear strips out of him. With one final snark about the odds of success, Crow dismisses the two. The protagonist takes Jackal back to the Outpost, already feeling a phantom discomfort on his wrist...

#### Episode 2 - Jackal, Sit!

In the protagonist's room, Jackal is smashing fixtures and furniture left and right. Nothing is safe, not the couch, the desk, Rapi's chair, or the shower door. Neon wonders if the protagonist is redecorating while Anis berates him for bringing a loose cannon like Jackal here. He explains his goal of educating her to behave, and the awkward silence of Counters is only broken by the sounds of Jackal breaking more things.

The protagonist considers using treats to help her learn to keep still, to which Neon brings out a Splendamin bar. She dangles it in Jackal's direction, promising to give it if she keeps still, but Jackal retorts that she could just steal it. Neon can't really formulate a counterargument, leading Anis to step in and try. She tries to get Jackal to play a game and then best her to get her to stay quiet. Unfortunately, Jackal's idea of a game sounds a bit...macabre, and she's not interested in learning any other games. Anis loses her temper, and as she too throws in the towel, everyone looks to Rapi as their last hope.

The leader of Counters calmly and carefully explains to Jackal that she *could* go on a rampage and eat whatever she finds, but if she behaves, then the protagonist will give her *more* treats, *and* she won't have to waste time and effort to steal them. Jackal tries to weasel her way out by saying she can rummage for more food, except there isn't any since she already ransacked the whole room. She finally blows her lid over everyone telling her to wait and accuses the protagonist of lying to her about the treats, to which he brings out 3 Splendamin bars from his pocket and promises to hand them over if she sits and does nothing else, even promising tastier things if she keeps up the good behavior. Jackal begrudgingly agrees and sits on the remains of the couch as the protagonist gives her the Splendamin and pats her on the head. It's the latter action that takes Jackal by surprise, and while she protests that she isn't a dog, she finds the headpats surprisingly agreeable. Neon and Anis mutter to one another about how dog-like Jackal is while Rapi goes to see Mighty Tools for a quote on fixing the room.

#### Episode 3 - Jackal, Let's Go for a Walk!

A few days later, Jackal is making a mess of the protagonist's room again. Counters briefly wonders if they dreamed of the Exotic Nikke behaving before the protagonist tells Jackal to sit. She complies for as long as it takes for her to get her treats, then immediately goes back on a rampage. Deciding to take a different track, the protagonist tells Jackal to follow him outside as Counters watches on.

Outside, Jackal is eagerly prodding the protagonist on what they're going to do. When he answers that they're going for a stroll, she's initially confused, then finds the idea boring after he explains it. But before she can go on another rampage, the protagonist gets her to sit, then follow a few more commands, which are rewarded with more Splendamin bars and pets. Promising to give more treats and pets for good behavior, the protagonist takes Jackal's hand as they go, an act she finds surprising but pleasant. He then promises that he'll treat her to something even tastier than Splendamin if she keeps a hold of his hand for the whole walk. Jackal ponders if this means he'll stop rewarding her if she lets go, but he denies this and the idea of ever giving up on her, a declaration that tickles her pink.

The two walk hand-in-hand when Jackal's expression takes a turn for the worse and her grip tightens. Just up ahead is Poli walking their way, and Jackal doesn't want to get anywhere near an A.C.P.U. officer for risk of arrest. The protagonist assures her that they're not doing anything wrong by just going for a stroll, and the police won't bother her. A sentiment Poli is quick to echo, though she'd still like to talk bout the previous instances of property damage. Jackal herself is in a giggling fit, intrigued by the idea of meeting the A.C.P.U. and *not* needing to evade arrest. While Jackal's reason for not letting go of the protagonist's hand to make a break for it is...inscrutable to Poli, she bids the two goodbye as she walks away. Jackal's grip lightens up now that there's no police around, but now she's feeling hungry. The protagonist decides to give that "something delicious" he promised, and has Jackal follow him.

#### Episode 4 - Jackal, Wait!

The place they're going to is a restaurant. Jackal is excited at the prospect of ordering whatever she wants, but the protagonist's request for her to wait patiently douses her enthusiasm a little. Despite not liking the idea, she's willing to try if the alternative is leaving without so much as a morsel eaten.

The two sit at a corner table, and despite a bumpy start from Jackal, they manage to order two of the menu's dishes with the biggest portion sizes. As they sit and wait, Jackal marvels at how different this is from her previous experiences. Sure, she's visited this restaurant, but every time, even though she was just stepping in for a bite, all the customers would scream and run while the staff yell at her to leave. Now, she's being given water, her order is heard and accepted, none of the other customers really care that she's there, and A.C.P.U. hasn't charged in sirens wailing. Despite the protagonist words, Jackal finds it odd that this is the result of waiting, when normally just waiting around never got her any food. This peaks the protagonist's curiosity, leading Jackal to explain herself.

Jackal used to be an impoverished child with no money to her name. So she went about doing odd jobs in exchange for food. Intel gathering, item retrieval, even murder. All of it was on the table so long as it put food on the table. Looking back on it, Jackal considers those jobs adventurous, and found them a better alternative to going hungry. Her story over, Jackal whines about how the ambient smell of food is getting to her when their orders aren't ready yet. Just as she's about lose her cool, their food finally comes out, or at least their appetizers.

Jackal scarfs them down, then wonders where the rest of the food is. She finds the idea of waiting for more food to be frustrating, but the protagonist reminds her if she doesn't wait, then it's back to scrounging scraps while keeping her head on a swivel for A.C.P.U., an idea she finds disagreeable, but she also doesn't want to go hungry like before. The protagonist promises to never let Jackal go hungry, a promise that instantly promotes him to her second favorite person after Crow. She agrees to wait, but only because she trusts the protagonist and most definitely *not* because she likes his petting. The protagonist can only think to himself about Jackal's invisible tail wagging back and forth as the two of them luxuriate in a calm, yet filling dinner.

Outside the restaurant, Jackal cheers over her full belly. The protagonist notes that she's still holding his hand, an action she insists on doing so she won't run away, and even if the risk wasn't there, she'd still want to hold it. The two go back to the protagonist's room holding hands the whole way

#### Episode 5 - There Are No Bad Jackals in This World

A few days later, Counters is once again wondering if they're dreaming, seeing Jackal in the protagonist's room, but not a single piece of furniture is damaged. Even the protagonist himself is surprised that Jackal is just sitting and waiting, though she does demand pets from him. The squad can't believe Jackal could actually be tamed, especially in one week. They bid Jackal goodbye, but it seems as though the protagonist is the only one she's willing to behave for.

The protagonist goes with Jackal to the alley where they're supposed to meet Crow, but the Exotic leader has yet to show up. He could tell something was bothering Jackal which she denies but admits she isn't happy that the two would have to part ways once Crow arrives. She demands the commander join them but he reminds her Crow wouldn't allow that which she reluctantly accepts. The woman in question arrives not long later and after the two Exotic members briefly greet each other, Jackal is eager to show her squad mate the results of her training. At the commander's orders, Jackal performs a trick, though Crow notes that this just proves he turned Jackal into a dog and doesn't show her manners have improved. He then pulls out a Splendamin bar and Jackal successfully waits for his orders before eating it, even with Crow trying to convince her to do so. Jackal realizes that more food would come if she waits and if she steals it, she would need to run to avoid capture and to run again after she escapes capture. The protagonist rewards her with the bar and some pats on the head both for her patience and her answer.

Crow was pleasantly surprised with the protagonist's work and while Jackal thinks this should allow him to join them, he signals to Crow that she should be the one to tell her that won't be possible. He also tells her he has things left to do at the Ark which she doesn't understand. The commander asks Jackal to wait for him to come back to her similar to the food he gives her and she agrees on the conditions he comes back often and pets her a lot when he does. Before the two Exotic members leave, Crow asks him to uphold his end of the bargain by offering up his wrist. He reluctantly extends it out and Crow allows Jackal to do with it as she pleases, whether that means biting it, eating it, or anything else. She rushes towards her prize with him dreading what she intends to do. To his surprise, Jackal licked his hand while rubbing her hands against his. She was a bit confused why he was closing his eyes because she had no intention of biting his hands off since he needed them to pet her so she wanted the protagonist to take good care of them until they see each other again.

After receiving a few more pets, Crow and Jackal leave with the latter waving goodbye until the two were completely out of view along with her similarly invisible wagging tail.

## References

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