Stax

> You just need one person out there. Just one to come home to.
>
> - Stax

**Stax,** is a commanding officer in the Mirage Mercenary Group. Known infamously as the Pariah among those that live in the Singe, he made his name over decades served during the Burning war.

Despite his past, he is also seen as Zona's father figure. Having saved her from death during one of his early scouting missions on the edges of the Stilts.

Stax was created by QTori/qt0ri

## History

### Origin

Not much is known before his service in the Burning war. He is said to have come from a small village beyond the sands and had been forced into conscription during one of the early outbreaks of the war at the edges of the Singe. He was notable for his service as he very little self regard for his own personal safety. Taking extreme risks for big payoffs during the conflict, he rose the ranks very quickly. This however also came with a cost, many lives were lost during his two decade service under his command. This can also be seen with his many missing limbs now replaced with prosthetic augments. After the war, he formed the Mirage Mercenary Group to provide a platform for war veterans to continue providing their bodies to causes, but now instead of a planetwide war, it is in servitude of would-be oppies and traders looking for protection. Among those that frequent the Singe, he is usually greeted with mixed opinions. Usually not favorable hence he seeks his opportunities in the Stilts instead.

### The Delivery

Stax knew about the job that Zona had undertaken, however he did not oversee it. Only after the explosion did he sought to investigate into the matter and seek out Zona after she had gone dark. In the aftermath, he had been approached by several anonymous figures threatening him to drop the investigation lest they reveal to his clients his past unsavory deeds during the Burning War.

## Personality

> The biggest shield starts with your biggest smile.
>
> - Stax

Stax is famous in the stilts for his large stature, towering over most people he commanded. Due to his imposing and threatening presence, many make him out to be a very scary person to be around when in fact it is quite the opposite. Among those serving under him, he has been found to be very understanding of the plights of others. He would often take only small payments from smaller trader groups that are struggling to get by, however others see this as him being very gullible to a trader's haggling skills.

However, those under his command that used to serve with him during the Burning War noticed the sudden change in demeanor following the formation of the mercenary group, many still fear him if they ever speak a word about his past they would reawaken the Pariah.

## Powers and abilities

* **Superhuman Durability:** Due to his prosthetics and augmentations from the Burning War, Stax is known to be almost completely bullet proof in all the important places. On many occasions he has been shown to survive direct explosion blasts and brave direct flames for small durations.

* **Weapons Knowledge**: Experience from his military past has given him knowledge of a wide range of fire arms and technology. He has also shown to be proficient in the repair of old war mechanical contraptions.

* **Master Tactician**: Stax is a highly skilled tactician, having had multiple commanding roles in his past profession as a commander. The Mirage Mercenary Group has shown to be highly effective under his command in a wide range of scenarios and their notoriety has grown from his ability to bring his units back home with a high survivability rate contrary to his past records during the Burning War.

## Relationships

### Zona

Zona and Stax share an adoptive father and daughter relationship. Having taken her in as a child, he mentored her and helped her control her abilities at a very early age. He has been described by Zona to have given her "tough-love" which was very influential in how she formed relationships with others growing up. Prior to meeting Zona, he was a more stern and pragmatic man among his peers as a result of his distancing from personal relations during the war. Zona was the first step in his life to a more meaningful relationship with another one so close to him.

### Yonu

Yonu has made several attempts to steal one of his prosthetics during Stax's in-town jobs.

Stax is now missing a ring finger on his left hand.