Mercedes

Mercedes Holt, a diligent hyena humanoid who wields the skills of blacksmithery & mechanics from the humble District 3. Being raised in this small & cold district had been quiet & humble. Everyone had known each other from the snowy plains to the frigid mountains. Since Mercedes is an only child, she had no worry of siblings but the constant worrying from her parents. Mercedes has merely been known to only be a shifter for her DOOMS but that doesn't stop her from showing her might & strength. Mercedes' father, Ford used to tell the tales of the Alphas who guarded the districts back in his younger days. From the largest hounds to the smallest of humanoids, they had been blessed with the role as Alpha. Since District 3 had been so small, only a handful of shifters guarded this district as raider had step foot on the snowy territory; nor even found it. At a young age, Mercedes had stayed with her grandparents as her parents went on a trip across outer districts until one day her parents disappeared. It had been unknown what had happened to them nor did Mercedes know but all she knew her parents weren't coming back. Since then, Mercedes had lived with her grandparents & was raised by her grandmother ever since...

Roughly at the age of 18, Mercedes had recruited to an organization called LEGION. Mercedes had gotten a glimpse of some of the new recruits and got a glance with another hyena shifter. It had turned out to Finn Reese with her eldest brother Owen. From the first moment they saw each other, they immediately clicked & as time passed they became inseperatable. Months after being recruited, Mercedes had taken role as a weapon smith as Finn took role as a mechanic. Finn had trained within an elite class & outranked a soldier. Mercedes had congratulated her girlfriend & was soon to be reborn as #005, the mechanic. Mercedes herself had proved her strength in the arena, a fighting ring between LEGION members within acts of challenging & sparing. She had soon be renamed as #003, the blacksmith. These tags were often used as code names for soldiers in uncharted territory if their signal is being listened to by enemies, to keep their real names secret during missions & are rarely used to identify soldiers when gone missing. Months later, Owen & his brigade had been called in for reinforcements at District 8, often called "The Battlefield", this district was known for being a deserted wasteland that was used for combat and even nuclear-like weapon testing ages ago before the "death stranding" had taken a hold of the world. Finn had pleaded to let her go with her brother but the general sadly denied her request. It was too dangerous. Too risky. With heavy hearts, both Mercedes & the general comforted the young shifter as Owen was being sent for departure. The day Owen departured to "The Battlefield" was the last day of peace within Legion as an eerie feeling crept in the shadows. Something wasn't right. Roughly some days after Owen's departure, Mercedes' grandparents Ruth & Charlie holt came to visit. Mercedes has been joyous to see her parents again after being recruited for some months. Ruth especially was happy to meet Finn. For the shortest of time, it had help keep Finn's mind off the worry of the departure. Both parents had reassured to take it day by day. Finn had kept her head up high as she wanted for her brother along with Mercedes' help & support. But this was only the calm before the storm. Weeks after Owen left, disaster had unleashed upon the home front. One of the trooper brigades had just returned from patrol from the desert side after running in with some scavengers. Finn was about to do her usual tinkering on the jeeps with Mercedes until she picked up a weird scent, a gassy odorless scent that had left a burning sensation in her nose. She wasn't the only one. Everyone had been put on nerve till a hissing noise echoed in the air. A red trail of dust had led back to one jeep that had been listed as under maintenance, a spark danced along the trail until it reached the back bummer of the truck. Realization had struck everyone until a bright white light suddenly flashed with the sound of explosions in the distance. The blast had been so immense that it knocked both Mercedes & Finn unconscious. Almost 3 days later, Mercedes had awoken in a medical bed within LEGION's medical wing. She had noticed her prosthetic arm & leg under the bed white sheets. The doctors had told her that she had lost part of her leg within the blast & her part of her leg due to the risk of infection. Immediately after, Mercedes had requested to see Finn. Mercedes had walked within the room with the help of a fellow nurse. Her heart felt heavy as she entered the room. The sight of Owen by his sister's side as she was strapped to IV's with the sight of her lost leg. Finn had also lost partial sight in her right eye from the flash of the explosion and a majority of her left leg from the top of her knee down. Mercedes on the other hand had the worser end of the stick. She had lost both a majority of her right arm from the the elbow down & everything from under her knee down of her left leg. But this didn't stop this pair. They kept on going.

By the age of 19, the news of Finn's parents had passed away peacefully from old age, they had knew their time had come & to never fear to lose them as they would be waiting on the other side. Mercedes had been lucky to meet them before their passing. Both parents had even considered Mercedes to be one of the family. Within the next weeks to come, Owen had fallen ill & wasn't able to keep up with his brigade's training. A medic had diagnosed Owen with "Mortem Marcam" or "Death's Mark", an illness that weakens the body over a range of time, commonly seen in soldiers who return from "The Black Shore" in the vast edges of the Western Estate or "The Battlefield" in District 8. The causes have been declared unknown it is seen that the illness starts after the body receives excessive amounts of stress within a range of time. The medic had declared Owen could stay at Legion but he would have to resign his spot as a trooper due to the illness. He had resigned his spot & had stayed by Finn's side for his last moments. Mercedes had kept Owen company while she worked. The two had grown closer & closer. It wasn't until Finn had turned 21, Owen had fought of the illness but grew weaker shortly after. He had knew his passing was getting closer by the day. Soon, he had called it checkmate & peacefully passed away within his home district. Finn had returned to Legion alone. Every member had been struck with shock to only see Finn holding her brother's dog tags in her hand. Mercedes had fell worried about the humanoid. The sight of tears from her broke Mercedes' heart. Finn had resigned from Legion after Owen's demise. Saying one last goodbye to her brother, Finn had buried his dog tags with him as a symbol of gratitude & honor of his legacy. With one thing after the other, a familar face set foot on the Earth once more. One of Finn's childhood friends, Sarah Korja had returned back to the gang. Finn had rushed with tears to the demons aid upon her arrival. It had been explained that Sarah had went MIA after her sister's passing. From day one of meeting, both Mercedes & Sarah had became close. Mercedes soon felt like she had known everyone for years. She felt home. "From a mechanic to a weapon smith. The Skeleton Crew rules the wasteland desert, a pack one shall never mess with or face the weapon smith's blade"