"My trade means knowing the right people and non-people, having the right connections, and making sure the precious goods find their way into the hands of my no-less-precious customers. My wisdom includes the knowledge of the enemies of Humankind, be they xenos or the lowest scum in the Imperium, as well as the latest knowledge about how much they charge for any particular curio at the Footfall market."
- —Jae Hedari, Cold Trader
Jae Hedari, member of the Kasballica Mission and prominent Cold Trader of Footfall, later an ally of House von Valancius' newest Rogue Trader.
Jae Hedari is a criminal member of the Kasballica organised crime syndicate that maintains the Kasballica Mission on the void station of Footfall in the Koronus Expanse of the Segmentum Obscurus who is heavily engaged in the xenophile Cold Trade. She later joined the retinue of the Rogue Trader of House von Valancius.
The light of the Emperor -- may His grace rest upon His abject servants -- is a most radiant light; yet the brighter it shines, the denser is the dark swarming of shadows at the edges of His vast empire. There, in that twilight, dwell the most pathetic dregs of Imperial society. Smugglers, thieves, murderers, they crawl about like so many insects; they huddle together one moment and tear at each other's throats the next -- for their eyes cannot see the truth, and their hearts are filled with only rancour and avarice. But even out of this riffraff, there have risen a bold and persistent few who are willing, for an immodest price, to venture forth and fetch treasures that the poor of heart would dare not touch. These scoundrels living outside the confines of Imperial law are known as "Cold Traders."
There are some who will happily let the foundations of whole worlds come crashing down for a chance to live on their own terms and not take orders from the soulless machine that is the Imperium. They have their own path to follow, a relentlessly upward path. They climb over the heads of their less nimble-fingered, less sweet-spoken rivals. They test their luck again and again. They make questionable alliances and sell away their souls, one shard or shred at a time, for the tiniest of opportunities. Eventually, after years, they may reach the gates of freedom. Or they may not -- if they have shied away from delving neck-deep into xenoheresy; if they have hesitated to put anything and everything at stake, from their silken underthings to their very lives. Once you've been branded a criminal and a lowlife, being less than the best of them is not an option.
Jae Hedari, a precious jewel of the void station of Footfall, a link in the glittering gold chain that is the Kasballica Mission among Cold Traders on that station, a woman of countless talents and myriad mysteries, is truly the cream of the scum of the Koronus Expanse. A seasoned dealmaker and adept mediator of commerce with the xenos enemies of Humanity, Jae has earned the great respect of many in the Footfall underworld and incurred the much, much greater hatred of her less successful rivals.
Jae will not pass up any opportunity to curb the evil tongues of her enemies and keep their long knives at bay. And a Rogue Trader's influence is her most coveted weapon -- for who would dare go against the business partner of one who holds a Warrant of Trade, the gracious one anointed by the Emperor, and sent Jae Hedari's way by providence itself? That is, of course, if the said Rogue Trader chooses to add a person of such controversial repute to their retinue.
At the Rogue Trader's side, Jae will set out toward the distant shimmering stars that hold innumerable riches and are home to multitudes of foes. Notwithstanding her extensive knowledge of all the various things falling under the concept of "xenoheresy," notwithstanding a honeyed eloquence that can pacify a raging Daemon, Jae is hardly the kind of partner whose honesty and integrity warrant any superlatives. Dark shadows from the past can be glimpsed in her eyes, and reflections upon her future are like glints of light dancing upon cold steel. In the end, it will be up to the Lord Captain of House von Valancius -- may the God-Emperor shield them from all adversity -- whether to entrust this lady with their business affairs, their money, and ultimately their life.
History[]
Clawing one's way up from nothing and into the lap of luxury is no easy or simple feat, neither is it something the faint of heart or weak of stomach could hope to achieve in ten lifetimes, let alone their own. Even more difficult is managing to hold onto this sliver of livelihood once you have claimed it. For those who covet what you have worked for will become legion, a manifold accumulation of jealousy and anger and bitter resentment. Thus was the life of Jae Hedari, a woman who sought to better her lot in the Imperial hierarchy through whatever methods she had at her disposal.
Of course, this is no simple matter of petty theft or minor crime.
The Cold Trade is a vast, sprawling means of black market commerce dabbled in by no small amount of petty crime lords. But the leader in this field is the sector-wide organised crime syndicate known as the Kasballica, a ruthless criminal organisation that is prolific in the seedy underbelly of the Calixis Sector and beyond. And it is a family Jae has long been a member of, if albeit a troubled one.
She made no small number of enemies out of her embittered rivals, individuals she has outperformed and outwitted in the cutthroat world of the Cold Trade. It has left her with something of a bloody target on her back. But it is no worse than the one she has lived with since the moment she accepted to be counted among the criminal scum of the Imperium.
However, things have only gotten harder as the delicate ecosystem of the void station of Footfall is thrown further out of balance. And only time will tell if she is able to adapt to the change and come out on top as she always has before.
The first step to adapting and keeping ahead of the competition always begins with securing an unassailable business partner, and there is no one more unassailable than a Rogue Trader. None other than the recently-installed Lord Captain of the von Valancius dynasty themself.
In a time when Jae's fortunes have turned against her and once begrudging allies have become sharks amid bloodied waters, the chance encounter with a Rogue Trader on Footfall is a boon unlike any other. But negotiations are a tricky thing. Even more so when, at the time, you have your present livelihood under direct attack by your competitors. Worse still when the few people you trusted to have your back in such an uncertain time have become staunch opposition. However, Jae has always found opportunity amid hardship. And the appearance of one of the God-Emperor's chosen few may well be the turning point for something even greater than she could have imagined.
However, Rogue Traders are always a wily and unpredictable lot -- some as liable to gun someone down in cold blood as gifting them a lifetime's worth of thrones and patronage.
But Jae is, as ever, fit to bursting with tricks and ways to have them see reason. And if the Lord Captain of the von Valancius dynasty might help her with a spot of recovering some of her ill-gotten gains, then there may be a future in which great, lucrative business might be done between them.
There are many perks that come with finding a niche to fill within one of the wider organisations that span the Imperium, connections and sway within greater spheres of influence being one of them. However, it takes a delicate touch and a strong arm in order to turn opportunities such as those into tangible results. Something that takes standard years of dedication to master. But often those who pursue such livelihoods find themselves at the business end of an autopistol when they try wading through too big a pond before they are ready to handle the sharks swimming within.
Jae Hedari might be one such individual.
Personality[]
Spread throughout the Imperium is a vast array of personages, identities, outlooks and so on -- every facet of Mankind can be found throughout the Emperor's million worlds. In this regard, those who have opened their hearts to anyone willing to put in the effort are in abundance. Whether they be man or woman, Jae will show no inhibition in regards to romantic prospects if someone puts in the effort.
For those Imperial citizens who have weathered the harsh day-to-day lives of the commonfolk, seen hardship through to its very end while the extremities of life beat away at you, there can be only a handful of beliefs that keep one going. The Master of Mankind, beloved by all, ensures spiritual purity, of course. But what might there be for someone looking to have physical safety in an otherwise volatile environment?
Jae Hedari has found an answer to this, focusing on the individual among the great cogs of Mankind and finding comfort in her fellow man rather than the wider institutions they are a part of. God-Emperor fearing always, of course, but with greater faith in and respect for the common man. Thus, as the Inquisition sees such things, Jae might be willing to countenance more Radical solutions to problems in which a greater good for all sometimes justifies the less-than-orthodox means used to achieve them.
Wargear[]
- Onslaught (Stimm) - Onslaught is a synthetic stimm that can dramatically increase its user's physical speed and mobility at the cost of a degradation in their perception and weapon accuracy.