Aberrant: Infinite Earth - Character - Karen "Coyote" Dineh

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

Personal Information:

Identity: Karen Nascha Dineh

Names: Karrie, Coyote

Occupation: Engineer/Inventor for Department of Superhuman Affairs

Legal Status: American National by birth, Navajo National

Marital Status: Umarried

Known Relatives: Joseph Dineh (father), Tonya Dineh (mother), Michael Dineh (brother), Hana Dineh (sister), Ruth Dineh (sister), Simon Dineh (brother), dozens of aunts and cousins [father's sister, Ally Dineh and mother's brother Nathan]

Allegiance(s): Family, DSA

Physical Traits:

Weight: 134 lbs

Height: 5’6”

Apparent age: early 20's

Gender: Female

Ethnic Background: Native American

Eye Color: Brown

Hair Color: Black

Handedness: Left

DOB: 16MAY1990

Appearance: Coyote is best described as “cute”, a word which she has come to hate. Why do so many call her cute? Yeah, she’s not beautiful, and her hips are sometimes called 'birthing hips', and there’s that tendency to nerd out at the drop of the hat, but why do people have to call her cute!? Surely there’s a better word than cute! She can do sultry, but it does take a lot of work to put on all that makeup. And there’s sexy, but she can’t really wear lingerie – it doesn’t go with grease stains very well. So maybe there’s no great word – but she knows she’s not cute!

Powers, Skills, and Personality:

Known Powers: Being Really Effing Smart

Abilities/Special Skills: Coyote, in addition to being a killer at ME3 and being able to tell you the differences between the RX-77-3 and the RX-77-4, can build a car engine out of legos, or so her file claims. While these may be an exaggeration, there is no doubt that the girl is almost insanely smart and has a definite quantum-knack for building things. She’s not bad at doing it on the fly, either, as she’s demonstrated before.

Personality: Coyote is a massive extrovert. Worse, there are few thoughts that enter her head that don’t get said. She’s maniac and loud and generally quite likeable, for those who enjoy those kind of people. She is a classic ENTP personality. Some people do find her abrasive and annoying. To those she counts as friends, there’s no task too big or anything too much to ask. Part of this is seen in her finances; she makes quite a bit of money every year, but there are a lot of poor relatives on the reservation, and there’s always someone needing a new car or bail money. Coyote never begrudges them a ‘loan’, even knowing that it’s unlikely to be repaid.

Growing up in a large family means that she can share and she as an altruistic streak that surprises many. The darker side of this is a cruel condemnation for those who ‘cross the line’. This might not be so bad, but for Coyote, the line is only generally defined and can change. Her trickster nature makes her justice particularly harsh, and she doesn’t forgive or forget. She’s willing to wait for vengeance, nursing a grudge with dark patience.

Her relationship with the Navajo Nation is interesting; she’s taken the name of a Trickster god, but she’s female. There are some who believe she is Coyote, but most prefer to only pretend as a joke on the White Man. It seems like something Coyote would approve of. Coyote doesn’t see herself as Coyote, but rather as a source of hope for her people. If nothing, it’s a funny joke.

What she finds really funny is that she hasn’t disclosed her powers to DSA. She’ll get around to it – at some point.

Background:

Karrie was born to a large Navajo family. Her father worked as a mechanic, but like many on the Four Corners Reservation, he scrapped by. Her mother waited tables when she could, supplementing their income enough to feed their children. ‘Their children’ didn’t mean just their five, but any number of cousins and relatives who needed food as much as their children. No one in the extended Dineh family ever went hungry.

It was this ‘open door’ policy which led to Nevada’s Division of Child and Family Services to remove the Dineh children from the home. The social worker who made the call deemed that the environment was unhealthy to the children. Her brothers were kept together, but the girl each went to a different foster family. Karrie was placed with a very nice family who treated her well. Her foster brother Baxter became a close friend to her and he introduced her to something wonderful: anime. Anime became the gateway to other types of nerd-dom, and by the time the Dineh’s got their children back after seven months, Karrie was thoroughly hooked. This obsession would remain with her for life.

Her father attempted to offset this weird ‘white-man’ stuff. He assumed her interest in these ‘Gundams’ was because she was interested in engineering. He was close and she began to help him in the garage, working on cars with him.

Unfortunately, Karrie had learned another obsession with her foster family: high-fructose corn syrup. She’d had it before, but in moderation; after hanging out with Baxter, that moderation was gone. She’d gained twenty pounds, and would add to her weight until she was about fifty pounds overweight at sixteen. At a medicine man’s urging, she went on a spirit journey into the desert. And shit got weird.

Karrie was fasting, and at some point, she knows that she collapsed. Like many Native Americans, she was less tolerant of sugar than white people, and the sudden change resulted a drop in blood sugar. She passed out, only to wake up surrounded by coyotes. At first she was afraid; then she realized that she was coyote. Figuring it was part of the vision quest, she rose to her feet and made friends with them. Together, they went foraging for food and Karrie was sure that was going to be end of it. Only it wasn’t; it was the start of a very long week. During that time, she struggled to figure out what had happened to her, but the struggle to survive was all-consuming. Karrie found herself hungry all the time, and had to work nearly constantly to find food. Sometimes, she scrounged in human garbage; other times she ran down rabbits. Once, she realized that a group of people walking the desert were looking for her. She tried to approach, only to get shot at by one of the searchers.

After a week, she woke up in the coyote den, only to find them milling nervously outside. She followed, only to realize she was human again. The coyotes ran from her, leaving her behind. Unsure which way to go, she began to walk in a random direction and ran into the Old Man. He told her that the last week had been real; that she was one of the special people. At the moment that Karrie had been on her quest, the refugees had arrived. He advised her to hide her secret for a time, coming out only when she was ready. Then he told her how to get home. She walked away, only to look back and see he was gone.

Karrie walked home, where the entire community turned out to stare. She claimed not to remember what had happened in the desert, and most people assumed she didn’t want to talk about her quest, which was respected. There had been some unmistakable changes in her. She was deeply tanned after a week living ‘wild’ and had lost all of her excess weight. No one was quite sure what to make of her, but she was welcomed home.

That night, she couldn’t sleep so she went out to the garage and began to tinker on her father’s broken Jeep. By morning, she’d completely rebuilt the engine, improving its mileage and nailing down the oil leaks that had plagued the old vehicle. When her father came out, she had a long talk with him about what had happened. By noon, they had a plan.

Karrie was too young to join the Army, but she and her father went to talk to them anyway. The plan was simple: Karrie would present herself as a savant who wanted to serve her country as a consultant; Joseph would facilitate this, if the army was willing, by being the consultant on paper. The recruiter was doubtful, but he had been told to watch out for things like this, so he sent the request on up. Three days later, Karrie and Joseph were visited by a government official, and the next day, Karrie quit high school. Over the next two years, she got her GED while doing high level work for the military.

AT this time, DSA approached her. At first, Karrie turned them down, content to continue her work. When they came back the second time, it was her father who urged her to accept their job and make herself a career rather than creating a fake one for him. Though sad to leave her family, Karrie took their offer and moved to Washington DC to their research lab. While some of the new people became known as national heroes or stars, Karrie worked in relative obscurity. She’d taken to calling herself Coyote, just to mess with the white people. They were all picking ridiculous codenames – why shouldn’t she?

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

Attributes and Abilities

Strength 2, Dexterity 4 (Feral Grace), Stamina 4 (Energetic)

Brawl 2, Archery 2, Athletics 2, Drive 3, Demolitions 3, Firearms 3, Gunnery 2, Heavy Weapons 2, Melee 2, Pilot 3, Ride 3, Stealth 2, Endurance 3, Resistance 3

Perception 4 (Sharp Ears), Intelligence 5 (Creative), Wits 5 (Quick-tongued)

Artillery 2, Awareness 4, Computer 5, Demolitions 2, Engineering 5, Linguistics 1 [English, Navaho], Science 5, Advanced Tech 5, Nova Tech 5, Survival 2 Biz 3, Tactics 3

Appearance 3, Manipulation 5, Charisma 4 (Adorkable)

Disguise 2, Subterfuge 5, Animal Training 2, Carousing 1

Backgrounds

Attunement 4, Backing 3, Cipher 2, Contacts 2 [uS Army, Navaho Nation], Influence 3, Node 3, Resources 3

Traits

Quantum 5

Quantum Pool 50

Willpower 10

Taint 1

Mega-Stamina 1 (Tireless)

Mega-Perception 1 (Bloodhound, Hyperenhanced Hearing)

Mega-Intelligence 5 (Analyze Weakness, Discerning Mind, Inventive Genius, Mental Prodigy {Engineering})

Mega-Wits 1 (Unfazeable)

Mega Manipulation 4 (Persuader, Trickster)

Disrupt 3 – Level 2

Disorient 3 – Level 2

Shapeshift 4 – Level 2 [limited to mammals/birds only]

Innovations

The Flintlock!

Sticky-Aid

The Sexah Leatherness

The Sensing Gloves

Baseline

Attributes

Physical (secondary): Strength 2, Dexterity 3, Stamina 3

Mental (primary): Perception 3, Intelligence 4, Wits 3

Social (tertiary): Appearance 2, Manipulation 2, Charisma 2

Abilities

Physical: Brawl 2, Athletics 2, Firearms 2, Firearms 2, Gunnery 2, Heavy Weapons 2, Melee 2, Pilot 2, Endurance 3, Resistance 3

Mental: Computer 3, Engineering 3, Science 3

Backgrounds

Attunement 2, Node 3, Resources 2

Freebies

Quantum +1, Attunement +2, Backing +3, Influence +3

Nova build

In-theme: Disorient, Disrupt, Shapeshift, Mega-Intelligence, Mega-Manipulation

Willpower +7 [7]

Attributes [4] (Dexterity +1, Stamina +1, Perception +1, Intelligence +1, Wits +2, Appearance +1, Manipulation +3, Charisma +2)

Abilities [9] (Archery +2, Drive +3, Pilot +1, Ride +2, Stealth +2, Artillery +2, Awareness +4, Computer +2, Demolitions 2, Engineering +2, Linguistics +1, Science +2, Advanced Tech 5, Nova Tech 5, Survival +2, Biz +3, Tactics +3, Disguise +2, Subterfuge +5, Animal Training +2, Carousing 1)

Backgrounds [5] (Cipher +2, Contacts +2, Resources +1)

Mega-Intelligence 5 [10+2] (Analyze Weakness, Discerning Mind, Inventive Genius, Mental Prodigy {Engineering})

Mega-Perception 1 [3+3] (Bloodhound, Hyperenhanced Hearing)

Mega Manipulation 3 [6] (Persuader, Trickster)

Mega-Stamina 1 [3] (Tireless)

Disrupt 3 [3] – Level 2

Disorient 3 [3] – Level 2

Shapeshift 5 [5] – Level 2 [mammals/birds only]

Innovations

The Flintlock! - 4 NP

Sticky-Aid - 6 NP

The Sexah Leatherness - 8 NP

The Sensing Gloves - 10 NP

88 NP Spent

Experience points

In-theme: Disorient, Disrupt, Shapeshift, Mega-Intelligence, Mega-Manipulation

March xp: +25 / 25

Mega-Manipulation 4: -9 / 16

Mega-Wits 1: -6 / 10

Demolitions 3: -4 / 6

Firearms 3: -4 / 2

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

Coyote's Gadgets

The Flintlock!

Innovation

1 Level 2 Power, Quantum Bolt 3

Quantum 2, Quantum Pool 19

Die Pool: Dexterity + Quantum Rating 7d10

Damage: [4]+12d10L

Cost: 4 NP/15 xp

Research Time: 8 days

Construction Time: 4 days

The Flintlock!, which is Karrie’s name for it, is a beautiful looking replica Lewis and Clark Style Flintlock Pistol. The piece looks utilitarian, with few of the flourishs that other replica pieces have. This one looks like it’s been fired and carried. In truth, it has, though not in a way that many expect. The Flintlock has a wood stock and brass furniture, is 13.5 inches long and weighs 2 lbs.

The barrel has been filled with conductive filament and bits of metal. These gather energy and release it in an impressive fireball. The Flintlock! was Karrie’s first invention, and she’s quite proud of it.

Sticky-Aid

Innovation

1 Level 3 Power, Healing 3

Quantum 4, Quantum Pool 23

Die Pool: N/A

Damage: N/A

Cost: 6 NP/20 xp

Research Time: 12 days

Construction Time: 6 days

The 'Sticky-Aid' appears to be a red first-aid box that measures one foot by six inches, but that's just the outer covering. The real Sticky-Aid is the inside clothes, which are soaked in some sort of white substance. When one of the cloths is pulled out and placed on the wound, it begins to harden. As soon as the outer shell is fixed in place, which takes roughly a minute, it heals the subject for a maximum of 5 Lethal and 10 Bashing.

The Sticky-Aid is now a common gadget for many field agents and Karrie has several available for agents to use. They can be replenished by replacing the cloths inside and waiting approximately for twenty-four hours (for the Q-pool to replenish).

The Sexah Leatherness

Innovation

1 Level 2 Power, Armor 4

1 Level 2 Power, Force Field 4

Quantum 2, Quantum Pool 19

Die Pool: Stamina + Force Field

Damage: N/A

Soak: +12/+12, plus 4 + 8/1

Cost: 8 NP/21 xp

Research Time: 16 days

Construction Time: 8 days

The Sexah Leatherness is a knee-length leather trench coat designed by Karrie. The base component is a leather jacket (statted as per reinforced clothing in the book). Karrie first added the following under the coat's liner: Micro-Kevlar (very thin but strong Kevlar plates), Plasti-coating (a coating that resists being cut by a blade) and Impact Padding (a dense foam that is very good at absorbing blows). These items are always 'on' and provide constant protection. Next, she created a force-field matrix that is hidden under the liner and the first layer of protection. When she presses a button hidden in a cuff button, she can activate a force field for an additional level of protection.

The Sensing Gloves

Innovation

1 Mega-Perception

1 Enhancement: Analytic Touch

1 Enhancement: Body Awareness

1 Enhancement: Holographic Awareness

1 Enhancement: Electromagnetic Vision

Quantum 1, Quantum Pool 17

Die-pool: Perception + Awareness

Damage: N/A

Cost: 10 NP/15 xp

Research Time: 20 days

Construction Time: 10 days

The Measuring Glove fulfills Karrie’s desire to touch everything while allowing her to take measurements of it. The Gloves uplink to her laptop, dumping all of the data they collect into her measurement program. The gloves measure the exact measurements and chemical composition of the subject, down to their atomic levels. When used on a living creature, they can measure the exact status of that creature at that time. The palm of the gloves can also “see” into the ultraviolet and infrared spectrums and view them on the microscopic level at a factor of 10.