Tam Zainall

[Weirdlet]

Name: Tam Zainall
Age: 21
Gender: Technically of a hermaphroditic species, she identifies and presents as female.
Species: Drifter, of a tall, blue variety. Her particular ‘line’ are capable of asexual reproduction but rarely choose to because of its tendency to produce sickly children; in the crush of other species, many choose to be taken for male or female, but some don’t bother.

Strengths: Possessed of a physically powerful build, Tam is knowledgeable in the ways of effective street brawling without being a devoted martial artist. She’s fast for someone of her size, and her extra eyes do allow her to be more aware of her surroundings. Relies more on her eyes than her hearing- some have speculated that this is why the music in her garage is always up and always thunderous, both to let her get the full experience through vibration, and to prevent anyone sneaking up from having an advantage on her.

Her gills do permit her to swim without having to surface often, but her species has been land-bound so long that it is inefficient and uncomfortable, and levels of oxygenation are insufficient for sustained activity. Salt water irritates them.

Tam’s skills are mostly in the realm of mechanical repair- she has training with a blaster and its upkeep, but her major interest these days is various types of vehicles, cars and motorcycles. She is highly skilled at keeping them up and running on a shoestring, improving them when she’s got access to resources, and when she’s really got the time and space, likes to hammer together new things from old junk.

Linguistically, she’s flexible, speaking a range of Paradise dialects and pidgins that allows her to communicate with a majority of folks from her old home, as well as as much of their ‘lingua franca’ of Karthian as can be known without being psychic, and has learned American Sign Language as well as the mashup of signs used in her first home. Earth languages aren’t as much her specialty, but she gets by well enough with English and ASL.
Weaknesses: Not deaf but a little hard of hearing, Tam depends more on her sight than her ears, reading lips and observing how things are done rather than listening to instructions. She has a pair of earrings that can function as hearing aids, but they can be easily broken or torn from her ears. She is combat-proficient, but not untouchable nor invulnerable by any stretch of the imagination, being physically on-par with humans of her size and build.

Appearance: 6’10” while barefoot, Tam is tall and well-muscled on a decidedly hourglassed humanoid frame. Her skin is indigo blue and hairless, leaving only a short ‘fin’ decorating the top of her skull, and her four eyes are a gold verging on orange. Her front teeth are exposed in what looks like a skull’s grin, while her lips exist from her eyeteeth back, allowing speech and expression. Her face is noseless, and gills along her neck behind her ears serve as her breathing apparatus.

Frequently dressed in denim, boots, and a leather jacket, she seems to love the biker look, while the difficulty of finding clothing in her size dictates that the patch-jobs and fraying on her jeans are wholly unironic. She does like to pretty up once in a while, but those occasions are rare enough that people who know her tend to be startled when they happen.
Behavior: Tam is, for the most part, a charming, easy-going good ol’ girl, right up to the point where you piss her off. She keeps smiling, but then she gets cold- and if the hint is not taken, then she can get heatedly angry. But generally she keeps to a good-natured front, and for most people, the front is the reality.

Being raised for the first years of her life in Paradise, Tam is adaptable to many situations. She’s a lot calmer than people expect Drifters to be, judging them by the example set in the sixties when the first generation of paranoid, angry survivors jumped ship. Living on Earth has smoothed a lot of the Ferengi- and Klingon-like corners that are associated with Drifters- but she still maintains an edge behind the mask for polite company. Her workshop and her apartment are protected with her own special security system, because paranoia may not be something you can dress up and take out on the town, but it sure makes a good companion at home.

Loyalty is important to her. If you’ve managed to work your way into the group that she considers ‘family’, you’re a friend for life and can count on protection and help as you need it. Break that trust, do harm to her or her folk, and the best you can hope for again is a frigidly polite greeting and murder in the eyes.



Goals: Tam’s intent is to find a steady job up here in the big city of Hope, where she’s more likely to be able to fit in and be less of ‘the outsider’ trying to get a local job in a small town. There’s racers here, and junkyards that aren’t full of radiation, and she’s pretty sure she can hammer together a living that’s even legal, and help pass on more money back home to help care for her fragile younger brother.

History: Born on Paradise, Tam is technically a first-generation immigrant, having been moved out to Earth at the age of nine. Her parent wished to get out of the mercenary life and find a safer place to allow his fledgling family to live, following a hostile takeover of the gang he’d been affiliated with. Refugee status bought them time, and the birth of her younger brother Faine allowed them to stay permanently.

Children have duties early in life, and Tam’s education was first in how to defend her family’s home against intrusion from outside, and later by choice in the fields of mechanical repair to small machines and vehicles. Once in the educational system on Earth she mimicked her fellow students as best she could, soaking in everything she could read while still managing to rack up a bit of a disciplinary record by means of not always hearing what the teacher was saying (and sometimes pretending deafness when the teacher was annoying). Shop class was her clear favorite, with math and science serving to bolster her advances there and history and theater backing up for entertainment purposes.

Out of highschool, there wasn’t much opportunity for schooling or advancement in the small town her family had ended up in. Her dad was content to stay out in the middle of nowhere, unbothered by old friends or enemies and living with his mate and younger child. Her aunt’s successful, if less than legal, career path as a brothel mistress did not appeal in any way. The local kids came to her with car troubles they couldn’t let their parents know about or illegal mods they wanted, but that was a pretty limited pool to draw from. So eventually, she saved up and made her way to Hope.