Sarah Martal

Sarah is best knows as community counselor in New Argos on the planet Talmar. She's the kind of person who immediately puts you at ease to be around. Prior to the planet's uplifting, she used her work as courtesan to spy for the Yellow Jackets militia.

Appearance

Sarah is part of a minority of native Talmarians with pale skin and light hair. She always puts special care into her appearance, whether through her clothes, hair, or makeup. Her daily attire often combines traditional Talmarian styles, seen as outdated by much of the sector, with more modern accessories.

History

3189-3208: Talmarian Orphan

The exact circumstances that brought Sarah to the overcrowded and underfunded New Argos Orphanage are unknown, and she remembers nothing prior to being there. By the age of 8, she knew she didn't want to stay there, and fled to survive on the streets on her own.

Another orphan by the name of Jareth Quinn found her. Ten years her senior, he housed kids like her in a dilapidated old house he'd claimed. As the group grew, Sarah and another orphan named Rufio became responsible for taking care of the younger kids while Jareth worked to fund the group.
When Jareth joined the Night Knights in 3208, the pair had to find new ways to support the cadre of orphans under their care. At 18 with no schooling or work history, Sarah picked up the job Jareth left: sex work.

3208-3209: Yellow Jacket

Highly empathetic and observant, many of Sarah's clients hired her for her company and listening ear as much as her other skills. As tensions with the Unchained Armada mercenary group grew, Sarah began spying on certain clients and passing relevant information along to the Yellow Jackets. She did this at the behest of her friend and leader of the New Argos cell, Jui Dawson.

When Jui left New Argos to investigate The Hive, Sarah went with her, hoping to use her communicating skills to eek out some secrets from Hive leaders. However, these leaders saw through the ruse, and Sarah took drastic measures to escape the secluded mountain hideout. She would likely not have survived, had she not been found by another Yellow Jacket concerned with what went went on at the Hive.

A non-combatant, the best Sarah could do to help was pass on the information she'd learned to Jareth and other Night Knights. She returned to Rufio and helped keep the orphans safe through the end of the Legion Incursion.

3209-3217: Political Assistant

After the incursion, she helped Jui become elected governor of New Argos, and afterward was hired as Governor Dawson's administrative assistant. It was at this time that Sarah chose the last name Martal (Talmar with the syllables swapped) to have more official identification.

Despite having little formal training, Sarah's people skills and close friendship with Jui made her excellent at the role. She excelled at deescalating irate visitors to city hall and left numerous personality notes to help Jui deal with difficult members of the community.
To make up for her lack of schooling, Sarah spent many long nights pouring over books on Talmarian and Protectorate law, becoming proficient in both by the time she left the position.

Key responsibilities:

Screened callers seeking audience

Maintained Jui's schedule

Facilitated town halls

Helped plan community events

Represented Jui when she couldn't be present

Aided refugees seeking work and housing

3217-Present: Community Counselor

When Jui left political office, Sarah declined the offer to continue her role for the next governor. Having spent nearly a decade in the role, she wanted a change to something less stressful. She turned to Jareth and Rufio, who now had key roles with the New Argos Community Center. Through them, she got a job as community counselor, continuing her work aiding refugees as well as the city's remaining orphans. She continues working at the community center today.

Sarah eventually came to realize she's asexual, not broken.

Timeline

3189	Sarah is born
3198	Moved in with the Orphans of Talmar
3208	Worked with the Yellow Jackets
3209	Became assistant to the governor
3217	Became counselor

Information

Occupation

Counselor, New Argos Community Center

Current Location

New Argos

Year of Birth

3189 39 Years old

Aligned Organizations

Yellow Jackets (former)

As Seen In...

Sarah's Escape
How Isaac Met Sarah

Author Commentary

Space Ace

I suspect my players never realized Sarah is asexual - it largely wasn't relevant - but it made me happy to include.

Spotlight Effect

Sarah is a terrible public speaker. She can't empathize or read a crowd the way she can an individual.

Relationships

Though few people have complaints about Sarah, she has few close friends. Her work as counselor can make certain relationships difficult, since she would prefer to either be their counselor their friend, and never both. This doesn't seem to bother her, however, as her new favorite hobby of reading takes most of her time anyways. She remains close with Jui Dawson, as well as her adopted kids, and considers Jareth and Rufio to be like brothers. Rufio even chose to use the same last name as Sarah when getting his identification cards.