Khalidah Sutter

Art by Techsketch, commissioned and owned by Eos

**Khalidah Astaria Sutter** is a psychologist and a self-published author who is part of the Council Recovery Corps.

## Biography

Khalidah was born August 15th, 2165 to Mabel Sutter and 2nd Lieutenant Marcus Sutter of the Alliance Military. Mabel had been planetside on Benning when she had gone into labor. Help did not arrive quickly enough and Mabel died soon after giving birth to Khali due to unknown complications. Marcus retrieved the infant and returned to Arcturus Station, grieving for the loss of his wife. A few months after the birth of Khali, Marcus’ mother, a war widow named Inessa Sutter, moved in with them to help care for the child and stay close to her son.

Growing upon Arcturus Station was quiet and safe for Khali. Marcus ensured all time off was spent with her, participating in child activities such as arts and crafts, all of which were displayed in his cabin when he was deployed. Little trinkets that she had made were gazed upon and he never made her feel like what she was doing was less important than his work. During periods where he was deployed, they communicated as often as they could and his long periods of deployment had little effect on her.

The main female presence in her life was her grandmother Inessa Sutter. While Marcus was deployed, Inessa was responsible for Khalidah’s upbringing, arranging playdates with children her age to develop healthy social skills and basic manners. As Khalidah grew out of her toddler years, Marcus decided that she would fare better living on Earth rather than the station. In the early months of 2170, Khalidah and her grandmother Inessa became permanent residents in Vancouver, British Columbia, UNAS.

Khali started elementary school that same year. Marcus would visit Earth as much as he could, and if he was unable to come home, he would send Khali pictures of where he was deployed. During those periods when Marcus was unavailable, Inessa took Khali on road trips to Vancouver Island and the Rocky Mountains. Summers were spent with Marcus or close to where he was stationed. She was quickly exposed to military life, and there was no shortage of political discussions at the dinner table.

At the tender age of 8, Khali was enrolled in several extracurricular activities. Marcus was insistent that she learned basic self-defense techniques to protect herself. This was where she met her best friend Heidi Roazen, and the two bonded quickly. Khali also attended various sports programs such as soccer and basketball, which Heidi was also in, but none of the activities stuck. Instead, Inessa encouraged Khali to attend arts and crafts programs at the local library. Inessa wrote to Marcus updates about what interests Khali currently held, including the desire for physical books, to help with gift ideas. The library was where Khali met Naiya Fields, and the two became quick friends.

When Khali started high school in 2177, Marcus decided that Khali needed to learn how to fire a weapon. As a member of the Primeex Gun Club, Marcus registered her in the junior program. Khali was taught the basics of how to shoot a weapon, clean it, and check the safety as well as proper gun range etiquette. It was hammered into her head that firing a weapon was only for defensive purposes, and holding the weapon influenced a disinterest for a military career.

In that same year, Marcus had become romantically involved with Sabine Blease, a weapons trainer at the gun range. The two had similar interests and hit it off quickly. It changed the dynamic in the household, and Khali struggled with her feelings of resentment and anger towards Sabine. Unrelated to the new relationship, Marcus was in the process of retiring from the Alliance military to spend more time with Khali. With Marcus returning home, Inessa decided to retire to Sicamous, British Columbia, and continued to contact the family weekly to keep in touch.

During the transition period, Khalidah was encouraged to attend therapy sessions in an attempt to help her work through the serious life changes that were affecting her mental state. The months attending the counseling sessions had quite an impact on her, allowing her to integrate proper coping techniques in her day to day life and properly express the feelings she was experiencing.

Naiya, Heidi, and Khali were inseparable. Each encouraged the other to attempt different extracurricular activities such as debate and chess, inciting friendly competition between them through their academics. They pushed each other to be better, tutoring each other in subjects they lacked in. Outside of school, the trio explored different restaurants and interests in music, having little interest in getting to know their other classmates.

Having her father at home was a welcome change and it allowed Khali and Marcus to bond more closely. Marcus became more involved in Khali’s school life, attending school plays, and celebrating any academic achievements she was rewarded. Khali used it as an opportunity to get to know Sabine, who attended most events with Marcus, and become more accepting of their relationship.

Khalidah graduated high school in 2183 with her two closest friends, Heidi and Naiya, at the top of their class. Though Naiya and Khali were accepted to the University of British Columbia, Heidi had instead decided to enlist but the trio still kept in contact as often as Heidi’s schedule would allow. Khali attended Marcus’s and Sabine’s wedding that same summer.

For her first year, Khali was undecided about what to major in and eventually settled on an Honours Bachelor of Psychology. She lived in student housing with Naiya and made frequent visits to her father and stepmother. Khali gained her PAL in both restricted and non-restricted weapons to continue her firearm training to keep her skills sharp and be ready in the unlikely event she would need to protect herself. It was also an excuse for Marcus and Khali to meet monthly and have time together that was just them.

Khali graduated university in 2187 and immediately moved in with Marcus and Sabine, who had moved to Merrit, BC a year earlier. It was not a decision in which Khali had much choice as Marcus was adamant about keeping her close, with the threat of the Reapers in the forefront of everyone’s mind. Inessa refused to leave her home and continued to reside in Sicamous during the war. In such a small community, Khali had a hard time finding work in her field and eventually found a part-time placement at Starlife Counseling.

No contact came from Heidi during the war and few messages were sent from Naiya, each of them dealing with the threat of the war. Khali messaged them constantly, and when the nights got rough, she wrote stories for them. When she was not at work, she was writing chapter after chapter for her friends in an attempt to bring them some joy. Eventually, what started as a hobby turned into a desire to complete novel after novel — a distraction from the war, and eventually a hobby Khali fell in love with.

In March of 2188, after the defeat of the reapers, Khali was offered a full-time position at Starlife Counselling, which she accepted. During that year, Khali self-published several novels under her pen name and spent weekends visiting her grandmother, who helped Khali find her current apartment within Merrit. At about the same time, Khali received news that Heidi had survived the war and was retiring from service to return to Vancouver where she moved in with Naiya.

In October of 2190, Khali found herself feeling useless and at war with herself. The galaxy was not settled, and Khali felt a sense of duty to contribute to the recovery of those affected by the reapers. Marcus unknowingly gave her what she was looking for: He talked of the Council Recovery Corps and its mission to provide relief and aid to those affected by the war. Intrigued, Khali applied to the CRC, hoping that she may be able to do more with her life before settling down in a mundane job.

## Personality

Khali is a very friendly person that exudes a bubbly, confident aura. There is always a smile planted on her face and can be seen giggling or laughing at one thing or another. She has a very empathic nature, reading into the subtext of conversations and body language. There is difficulty understanding body language and subtle cues when it comes to non-humans. Khalidah feels quite strongly and wears her heart on her sleeve so you wouldn’t have any problem knowing what is on her mind.

During tense and high-pressure situations, she appears calm and collected but you can tell she is nervous by the bouncing of her leg or her tendency for her eyes to look everywhere. It makes her cautious, allowing her to make decisions without fear of compromising her safety, even if that meant things got a little unconventional. There is a large amount of respect given to her peers and superiors and she is always courteous when speaking. However, among her peers, she tends to be more relaxed.

When it comes to close friendships, she is always the friend that gives. With relationships, it's a bit more complicated. When things start looking serious Khali may start to self-sabotage by picking fights over little occurrences not in her favor, becoming annoyed and aggressive, and will spend less and less time with that person. There can be a miscommunication with her own needs as she puts others before herself and has a hard time voicing her concerns.

### Exceptional Skills

* *Love of the pen* - Khalidah is a self-published author under the pen name K.S Wells. She is known more for her cheesy romance novels such as Men of Gold, a story of a merc turning his life around to win the hand of the woman he loves, and Chasing the Sea, her first love story of an Asari who is called to an island by the spirit of her first greatest love only to find her next greatest love. There have been a couple of publishing offer’s that she is entertaining.

* *Hoards books like Dragons* - Khalidah is a book nerd. She loves to collect physical books in all genres ranging from high fantasy to sci-fi and even bibliography. Most of her collection is from Earth or other human colonies. However, she intends to expand her works from other cultures, attempting to convince her father to get them printed as a physical copy.

## Physical Description

Khalidah stands average height for a human woman with an hourglass figure. Her dark brown hair is mostly straight, with a few natural waves near the ends as it hangs loose. Normally her hair is kept in a bun or braids to pull away from her face. Upon closer look, her grey eyes are set prominently on a round face with thick eyelashes. There are freckles crossing over the bridge of her nose and underneath her eyes which are highly noticeable in the summer months.

Khalida is a lover of leggings and they are her normal attire along with loose-fitting v-neck t-shirts or tank tops. There is normally a sweater nearby as well since she always feels cold. Some part of her is always moving, like a nervous tick. Bouncing the leg, tapping her fingers or feet, or she can even be seen playing the edges of her clothes.

When she smiles, you can see a dimple on her right cheek and it is one of her best features. There is a tendency to lean and put weight on her right leg when she stands still. When she walks there is a purpose to her gait. While talking Khalidah tends to use her hands a lot in various gestures and emphasizes her words. Most of the time she is unaware that she does it. If she is listening, there is little self-control to keep her arms at her side, and will either put them on her hips or cross them over her chest.