W'Nan-Sie

Summary

The infamous former soldier of the GSA, W'Nan-Sie (W-NAHN-SIE, shortened to "Nas") was a terrible outlaw and hunter from Karrots, once known for being a servant of numerous forces that opposed Sop in the earliest days of Hoppist history, and was not caught until late in the Hop Civil War. He was re-imprisoned later and sentenced to fate by black hole.

Known best for hunting and capturing other hops, selling them into slavery or as trade for information, he was a skilled fighter and highly intelligent. Considered a criminal even by The Council Courts, he served them even after Sop dismantled the supreme courthouse, hunting Sop and often tormenting his allies and later his family. After the formation of the GSAA, he became a soldier, who defected before he was caught and fled to work for The Infinite Empire during The Endless War for The Eternal Throne. Going missing for countless eons, it was believed he was ultimately betrayed by the forces he defected to. However, during the Hop Civil War, he appeared again, attacking Hop's home and the Temples of Sop across space, joining Gop's Paw and later, the New Sop Order.

He has been subjected to terminal punishment by the order of Hop. If he is found at any point, under any circumstance, all beings are to alert the Grand Sop Army via the Hoppist Network immediately. This will be followed by a generous reward of one's choice, including a sincere thank you from Hop and his family.

Weaponry & Equipment

Armament

After the fall of The Council Courts, W'Nan-Sie had improved his arsenal to a high degree, carrying a set of one-handed pistols that sat on his legs for quick-draw purposes. Each pistol fired energy bolts on unseen destructive power, each with enough impact to pierce brand new frigates and carriers with their shields on, essentially strong than heavy primary cannons on warships. These weapons are a violation of Hoppist and K'Ursan Federation regulations and laws, as the need for high power items that small is reserved for licensed contractors using them for tool purposes. Weaponizing the technology, he became formidable compared to typical divisions he fought.

The central issue with weapons such as his pistols was that most hops, even high-ranking Knights with great powerful bodies could not handle the weight and recoil of the weapons. The discipline and strength to do so is quite unheard of, excluding tales of figures like Sop, Buddy and the Lightning Rangers.

Skills, Traits and Flaws

Sie is an exceptional marksman, even able to predict where one would be ahead of when he fires. He can shoot incredible distances and withstand the enormous recoil of his weapons. His agile form allows him to avoid combat and being directly hit by speeds of average soldiers, and on few occasions he has outclassed Knights of Sop in firefights. He is capable of flying standard vessels meant for space travel, but not ground travel, with the exception of simple farming equipment.

Often speaking quickly, he has a typical accent of a hop native to Karrots' D'lushia hemispheres. His word choice is simple and informal, and when under the service of The Council Courts at a younger age he was quite obedient. After Sop's rise to power, Sie was unable to sit still for long and often paced when not busy. In any free time he could afford, he often practiced with his weapons, shooting scrapyards or formations in the landscapes, like rocky pillars, trees or objects placed on a ridge/hill.

Unlike many hops at a young age, he could not be bothered to learn how to burrow and dig himself, using only his body. Instead he relied upon tools or others to do so for him. Video evidence of him shows he prefers to outright destroy the obstacles in his way instead of being skilled at labor. It has been shown his math and critical thinking skills are only average, unable to ballpark anything in his mind, needing to write it down or record it. He only know how to write in Universal Script and speaks only Hopspeak. These weaknesses are often exploited at his disadvantage when he is alone or without his gadgets.

Hat & Bandolier

Alongside this he often wore a low brim hat, which had a HUD component stolen from a GSA pilot's helmet. It is highly resistant to damage and covers and weighs down his body, making his head lean forward and slightly downward, covering his face. His bandolier contains credits, numerous outlawed and prohibited or restricted devices used to break and enter vehicles and buildings, as well as sabotage machines and structures. He is old and highly familiar with tricks of most trades and often rotates his tools per assignment, meaning he is unpredictable and always considered a threat.

Aliases

Hop recovered his original hat after a brief fight before he escaped, which his current hat is modeled after. Inspection discovered that contains a diary with three different authors. It was his father's and grandfather's before him, and that they were a long line of lesser known hops from Karrots, often serving others and fleeing custody, changing identity and repeating the cycle. Former names W'Nan-Sie has used are:

• Cahbi-Llem (CAHB-II LEM)
• Eeg Aly-Sen (EEG AHL-LEE-SEN)
• Kerevup (KER-REH-VUHP) (a southern slur from Karrots meaning "outlaw" or "vow-breaker" depending on context)
• Old Wild Whiskers (translated from Old Hopspeak, likely used when trying to be anonymous but garner a reputation for employers/partners)

History

Origin

During early history on Karrots, Sop was a known outspoken figure against The Council Courts. Their militias and laws and implementation of a currency on Karrots was seen as a defacement of Gop's will of the hop people. However, despite being morally correct, others cared for the benefits of the way of life the oppressive courts enforced. W'Nan-Sie was a debt collector for the Courts, enforcing their rule. After Sop destroyed the Courts, Nas became aware he was out of work and support from the system that benefited him.

Beside himself, he transitioned to a life of a normal hop, farming carrots on the surface of the world, often engaging with others, trying to collect the currency that was no longer valid on his world in exchange. One day, while being inspected, his money was confiscated and destroyed in accordance to the new Hoppist rules.

Unable to contain his frustration, he became increasingly unable to function on Karrots. During an episode of his, Nas attacked a GSA patrol and declared his hatred for Sop's change of their planet, taking the chance to make himself known to rest of the world. Sop was still unaware of him, knowing he had numerous detractors. With his announcement being ignored, the GSA still filed an offense on him, asking him to rehabilitate himself and apologize. Instead of earning redemption through service, Nas chose to flee during the First Great Hop Expansion, landing on K'Ursa to pursue a lifestyle that suited his skills more, becoming a bounty hunter once more. Under The Alliance Treaty, he would be banned from the world of K'Ursa, however his seemingly heroic mindset earned him a visa and license to travel freely in both spaces, due to birthright and his new career.

The Endless War for The Eternal Throne

As the war began, the need to recruit for soldiers on Karrots grew. Several forms of talent were needed to improve and overcome the threat of the new race encroaching on allied territory. As the allies of Sop, the K'Ursans went and paused their bounty and criminal record system, asking prisoners and felons to serve in the military in order to regain a second chance at freedom. As this killed the business for Nas, he spiraled into madness again, growing angry at Sop's actions for once more destroying his way of life. In order to enact revenge, he decided to change his identity and falsely enlist in the GSA during the war.

By siding with The Infinite Empire, giving information to the enemy in order to see their forces fall, he hoped it would accumulate in seeing Sop defeated in battle. Defecting to the Imperials, they took note of his fighting and thinking prowess compared to most other soldiers and enlisted him as a hunter of other fluffy people. Posing as an ally, pretending to be a victim or lying about his situation were common tactics to draw forces toward him, and swiftly he would defeat them, or invite his new employers to capture his victims in exchange for pay.

Gradually causing numerous divisions to go missing in similar ways, Sop caught on. Aware that betrayal was causing a repeat loss in GSA forces, new tactics were employed to prevent more damage. Despite this, Nas would often outright engage divisions on patrol in firefights, proving to be a lethal gunslinger compared to typical infantry. Eventually he was identified and tracked by intelligence efforts of the GSA and the K'Ursan Federation, his actions often proved to be solely dangerous for the well-being of the allies in the war, even if only affecting a fraction of the total forces. Sop personally gave the order to his son Hop to locate this traitor between the first and second battles of The Infinite Graveyard of Giants.

Nearly caught several times, he went into hiding once more, deep undercover and spending his earnings on travelling allied space until the Hop Civil War.

Hop Civil War

Appearing in a battle against the Grand Sop Army, W'Nan was seen in a shootout with Knights of Sop from Hop's own The 57th division, alongside the faction Gop's Paw. Employed by them to fend off the powerful armored Knights, he managed to allow them to escape a combat encounter that occured in space in the outer rim of the Hoalmims Galactic Cluster. A number of flagships were fired upon by W'Nan from the catwalk on the bridge of the stolen vessel.

As GP attempted to flee into the inner galaxies, hoping to be lost and gather their own strength, Hop arrived to assist his personal division. A brief leap across the space between his personal ship and theirs was so fast, that W'Nan did not even register Hop was in front of him as the ship they stood on began to split due to the impact of Hop landing. Startled, he opened fire on Hop, being casually deflected and suddenly having his face slammed into the surface of the bridge, exposing it to the vacuum of space. Quickly being tossed away, Hop held onto his hat and walked inside the bridge, demanding their surrender and allegiance to Hoppism once more, being forgiven for their crimes if they helped defeat the NSO. Most of GP's leadership was not present, and the crew and commanding officer attempted to fight a last stand against Hop.

Shortly following the conflict, W'Nan-Sie had floated in space toward the GSA ship, being led by Arritz the Hero. On the ship, Sie snuck inside and dressed as a recruit in the barracks, and pretending to desert the ship, he stole an escape pod in the chaos of the battle's clean-up phase. As this was happening, Hop returned the hat to his ship as a trophy. Later recognized as Sie's attire, Hop suddenly felt urgent, enough to assign Arritz to return to the area of the battle before the cleaning had ended and scour the area for the outlaw. Digging up records in the Hoppist Network, a public bounty for W'Nan and all his aliases was shared across all factions allied with the Grand Sop Army. This led to Arritz and Hop making the mistake of giving their enemies awareness of a valuable ally.

W'Nan-Sie was eventually picked up by the New Sop Order, after they razed the outer rim of the Hoalmims cluster, enlisting his skills and firepower to take out high-value targets, resources and allies of Hop and his military. Sie fought numerous battles against the divisions of the Grand Sop Army, often being deployed to sabotage vehicles and structures before a battle commenced, a tactic used by The Eternal Empire in the prior war. He earned the equivalent of a fortune in the short span of time, and began to grow confident he could eventually challenge Hop and recover his family hat, as well as prove the Hop Dynasty's way of life was harmful to being like himself, despite the options to live peacefully in the universe around him.

With public bounties being widespread, the NSO considered him a critical asset and attempted to coax him into joining their leadership, ensuring they would have a powerful ally in their ranks, but he declined and swore to work for himself, loyal only to what he could earn. In truth, Sie was simply growing eager with battle-lust, and used his skills as an excuse to hunt others for his own pleasure. With the war nearing its end as most of the NSO fled to Tuiqo, Sie was blacklisted and left behind, falsely sent on a job that didn't exist.

In his haste to find new work and more fortune, he flew into a neutral resource world inhabited by K'Ursan allies. By the day's end on the planet, Sie massacred an entire town, laying waste to their livelihood, gaining attention. Once spotted by a K'Ursan force to secure and rebuild the area, evidence travelled to Hoppist forces and a plan was set in place to pair up some of the most capable members of both forces, putting a stop to a menace that only cause more pain during a more important war.

Capture

Upon entering an exoplanet with a singular planetoid, he thought to lay low as long as he could and planet-hop until finding someone to work for, possibly in fear of retaliation for his actions. Arritz and "Fhrank" were capable tracking him, as multiple purchases lead a transaction trail toward his last known locations. He was last seen trading in raw materials for batteries and supplies to power his weapons and gear under a known alias.

His personal ship was found exiting a junkyard, piloted by someone he sold it to. The pilot claimed he only bought it from the outlaw because it was a good deal, insisting the outlaw's urgency to be rid of it was the main motivation, as the duo were able to identify it at the aforementioned retailers. The information led them to the last known ferry that travelled between an empty exoplanet and numerous dwarf stars deep in space. The ferry driver had been paid for 2 orbit rotations, one for drop-off and one for pick-up. As uncommon as the practice was (given the cost of long-term flight so far from developed worlds) he accepted it due his business drying up during the war. Frhank took the lead on tracking him, paying the ferry for an additional trip to his exoplanet in question. The driver claiming that Sie had not been on his ship when he arrived. Sie was never seen leaving and must have rushed off the exit ramp before the he made it down from the cockpit. Arritz, knowing this meant he could have departed at any point in the voyage, arranged for the duo to split up, Arritz would scour each place he suspected Sie would be, while Frhank would stay with the ferry and visit the final stop in his route.

With their plan formulated, Arritz first stopped on the first exoplanet in the route, travelling the barren world for signs of the outlaw. Frhank, aboard the ferry, would remain in contact with him at all times as they made their way to the final destination near the dwarf star cluster. While scanning for additional signals in the nearby area, a trend appeared, where a simple ping from a GSA pilot's HUD grew stronger each time a satellite above the planet passed overhead. This was likely due to W'Nan-Sie being unfamiliar with the standard features of the stolen HUD's passive ping feature for locating lost pilots. Likely used by the NSO to keep track of Sie before abandoning him.

As soon as this was noticed by Arritz, he sent for Frank to return to him at once, and they would arrive on the planetoid together, having the ferry driver sit above orbit so Sie could not steal the ship. Despite his strength to wield his weapons, he lacked the raw power to utilize it in a way to perform exceptional feats, such as jumping into orbit with a single leap. Fhrank and Arritz began a drone sweep of the area, and met up to create a push toward his hideout location on the planetoid.

Drones surrounded the area and pushed toward Sie's last known location based on the HUD pings from his hat. Fearfully running from the drones, he made a stand upon a mountain range's summit, shooting drones as he fled. Being afraid of having his entire camp scouted out and being cornered, his plan to sit atop the peak was to ensure he had options to flee to. The lack of ships in the atmosphere meant his expectations of a fleet to capture him created the failure of his own plan, allowing for a ground-only push where he could not flee easily.

Walking up the terrain, Arritz formulated a plan to capture Sie by locking down the surrounding area with a field of energy using the drones. Fhrank and he would push at two angles into the edge of the summit in order to prevent him from easily running into the crevices of the ground. Eventually their plan went into action and they had visual confirmation of the outlaw. As Fhrank spoke the Federation arrest clause, he was fired upon aggressively several times. Arritz sprinted up the hill at the opposite side, swiftly catching Sie off-guard. Taking his opportunity, he swung at Sie but his right pistol was used to block the attack at the final moment, and Fhrank was freed up to push on his side. Arritz and Sie dueled, exchanging hits and being shot at at a brisk speed, until Arritz was nearly pushed off the steep edge of the summit by the impact of the gunfire, only barely able to slap away the energy bolts.

With few options, Sie chose to flee Fhrank and overwhelm him with gunfire, even shooting the terrain to create gaps, shifting the cliff and causing it to begin to slide. With instant speed this was avoided, Fhrank knocked both weapons from his hands, however Sie's paws were coated with a powerful magnet that flung his weapons back into his hands. Kicking Fhrank back a single step allowed his weapons to fly across the air, shoot with simple wireless gesture, and regain his foothold on the cliff that began to slide off the peak. The Knight Arritz knew he would be overwhelmed again even if he assisted Fhrank's direct push. Digging from the side of the peak, across the mountain and just under the cliff, he held it in place, struggling to support the weight. Fhrank again disarmed Sie and stomped him into the ground. As Arritz noticed the cliff was winning the struggle, he threw his sword into the soil and used it as a projectile that pierced Sie's hat, leaving him nearly defenseless. Fhrank assumed a hold that prevented him from moving, but Arritz gave out and the cliff quickly tumbled down the mountainside.

After the collection of rock had begun to slide down, Arritz poked his head out the hole and saw Fhrank and Sie were no longer there. He reached out on comms but Fhrank did not respond. He began a 2-way ping that rang loudly across the mountains, unable to be located due to the echo. Making his was to the new surface of the summit, he scanned the area, finding one of the pistols on the ground, and his sword's hilt, sticking the hat a short distance over. On the floor of the mountainside, Fhrank wrestled Sie, who grew more and more loose as they went on. As his comm on his arm went off, Sie slapped it and pulled on his captor's earpiece, forcing him to release him momentarily to place it back on. Using this, Sie kicked Fhrank and withdrew an explosive that could damage the surface of the moon. Screaming, they both attempted to pin each other and grab their equipment.

Moments later Arritz shot the hand of Sie, and the Knight leaped over them and apprehended his planetkin. Fhrank shifted to signal the driver to come to the planetoid to retrieve them, as each limb was firmly held by the duo. Once boarding the ship, all of Sie's gear was handed to the driver. Given they would all have no form of immediate escape, the driver complied and was given double of what Sie offered him. Under intense watch, being cuffed and caged, as well as constantly supervised by Arritz, Fhrank and the driver alerted Hop that he was in their capture and ready to be deposited. Taking an image of the outlaw in confinement, Fhrank declared his duty done as he shattered Sie's hat, snapped his gun in half and sent the explosive out the airlock of the vessel. His personal ship arrived to pick him up and return him to K'Ursan space.

Hop had pulled the vessel into his frigate, boarding it with several Knights. Relieving Arritz of his station, he gave him a benefit of his service on the spot, and sent him to guard his sister. Sie cussed at Hop, verbally berating the prince of his people behind what seemed like an impenetrable barrier. Unhappy with his delusions, Hop escorted all other parties out of the cargo area of the driver's vessel, and sat with him alone. The discussion they had is not recorded. Hop claims he read Sie his last rites and personally took the driver's ship to the nearest black hole, ejecting Sie into it.

Sie's broken gear was confiscated by the GSA and is now being kept by Hop in his personal display. The second pistol was later gathered by Arritz in his personal time, as he was never asked to disclose the status of it, he returned it to his leader, who promptly asked him to keep it for himself and decide whatever he wanted to use it for was up to him. Due to the intense recoil and skill needed to withstand it, Arritz had it welded shut and locked it in his barracks, displaying it as a trophy for his fellow Knights to be reminded that they can overcome even the fiercest of enemies.