Orion Strasse

"Knife work is your work. Scalpel work is mine. Get it? Good. I give you the tools to remove the loyalist, and you give me a share in the reward."

- Strasse

Orion Strasse is the chief scientist, Techmarine and Apothacary of the Brethren of Spite. A medical and engineering genius, Strasse has been with the Brethren of Spite since it's corruption, and has continued in his work with the utmost professionalism. Strasse has vastly improved his knowledge over the years, having dissected and experimented on hundreds of thousands of subjects. Orion continues his quest to perfect his knowledge of the body and the machine, striving to create more mechanical and biological monstrosities to unleash on his and the Brethren of Spites enemies.

History
A Surgeon among pirates

"I never went to some "Mars forge" to be schooled by a deluded priest. I dug my hands elbow deep into corpses, tore apart machines and rebuilt them, and looked to learn from those that might teach me something of worth. And guess what, it worked!"

- Strasse

Strasse was but a young Apothecary when the Brethren of Spite was formed, but was one of only a few who survived the civil war. Eager to learn, Strasse proved a gifted physician early on, aiding those Brethren of Spite who fell in battle against the loyalists they raided, repairing their wounds to the best of his knowledge. But for all Strasses ability, he could only do so much. The Apothecary sought more knowledge, not only for his allies benefit, but for his own.

Strasses first great achievement, and the one that would help to secure his place among the Brethren of Spites new hierarchy would be his assistance in the "repair" of the Brethren of Spites degenerating gene-seed. A long and terrible process, the Brethren would be forced to do many terrible things. By the end of it, Orion was all that was left, the few others had ether died by their own hand, using their bodies as a source of experimentation or dying due to their gene-seeds nature. Commended for his work and assistance in saving the chapter, Strasse was named head of research and developments by Cain.

What might have started out as a yearning to become a great healer and assets to his allies, became a yearning for power and forbidden knowledge. As the raids and wars against the Imperium went on, the corpses pilled up. Orion was presented with a massive stock of fodder for his experiments. Orion was quick to learn, and he found he had a talent, but his apparent skill was not limited to the organic. Soon Orion was drawn to the machine, and was presented with an excellent opportunity. The Covenant of Sin.

Found adrift in the void by the Brethren of Spite in their many voyages, Strasse and his small coven of tech priests and marines would study the ancient vessel, and began to repair it. Strasse, had never trained as a tech marine, he displayed a talent with the machine. He appealed to Cain that if they where to repair the ancient vessel, he would need more men, resources and other experts. While intelligent and clearly able, Strasse knew he was no magos or tech-priest. His skill was undeveloped, and asked that he might seek out the individuals to help him repair the Brethren of Spites new home. Cain agreed, and so Orion set out to find those that might teach him and repair the ark.

Orion did find those who would teach him. Deep in an asteroid belt, Strasse discovered the Ark Mechanicus's former owners, or what remained of them. The few ghastly figures that Orion found told the aspiring scientist of their folly. Renegades, they'd turned forbidden weapons and technology on their loyalist kin and slaughtered them, but had lost much of their number, while their traitorous acts had summoned things from the ether. They fled with what they had and hid themselves in this place, desperate to return but fearful for their lives. Strasse offered the security of the Brethren of Spite, but only if the tech priests taught him everything they knew. Desperate to return to to their vessel and with no other choice, the tech priests agreed to teach Strasse. By the end of his long schooling, Strasse had become much liker his tutors, physically twisted and indistinguishable, but ultimately he was a fitting edition to the rest of the Brethren who themselves had been twisted by the powers of the warp in Orion's absence. Strasse and the newly arrived tech-priests set to work on repairing the Covenant, the twisted Apothecary was thanked by Cain for his loyalty in bringing such an asset into the fold.

Once the Ark's repairs were complete, and the vessel was ready to set sail, Strasse was free to move onto other projects. Continuing to learn from his new heretek allies, Orion began to creature or alter the Brethren of Spites war machines and equipment to better suit their new stratagem and strategies. Although minor at first, Orion continued to experiment. Free of any constraints, the scientist was able to practice upon unsuspecting worlds. On some, Strasse's creations were let loose. Some failed, falling apart or breaking down before reaching the front lines, others proved dangerous to their allies while others succeeded beyond expectation. It was not just the mechanical horrors that Strasse chose to unleash. Early attempts at creating weaponized viruses and pathogens ether left little alive in their wake, or simply failed to produce fatal effects. No matter the outcome, Strasse was free to reap the same benefits as his allies. Corpses, wrecked vehicles, and whatever drew his interest was gathered up by Orion's cult of followers or slave servants.

Powers and abilities
"My research will never stop. To try and conclude my research would be delusional. I'll work till I drop, though I'm working on a project that might make my own capitulation somewhat impossible."

- Strasse

Strasse possesses expert medical knowledge of a large number of species, most coming from the fresh cadavers often produced by the raids and attacks conducted by the Brethren of Spite. This massive knowledge gives Orion a vast understanding of how to create weaponry suited for specific races, such as hyper effective bio-weapons or simple enhancements to bolt weapon ammunition. Strasse's knowledge has led to the creation of biological weapons like Strasses favourite pet project. Super soldiers known as GriefKommando, Space marines further modified, enhanced and lobotomized, ultimately creating monstrous berserker creatures which will almost certainly die because of their own flawed biology rather than their enemies pitiful fire. Viruses that turn the blood into a jelly like mess or hyperactive super cancers can be found lined up in canisters along the walls of Strasses massive laboratory, alongside other blood borne horrors and parasites. Orion works tirelessly to create even more destructive bio-weapons, awaiting patiently for the day he can doom the galaxy by breaking a single capsule.

But as well as medical and biological knowledge, Strasse is also a genius is the arts of engineering and the machine. Orion was tutored by a number of veteran tech marines and renegade tech priests, leaving the Brethren of Spite for several years to learn the ways of the Dark Mechanicus. Intrigued by the concepts of these twisted tech cultists, Orion was all but happy to learn their ways and put his knowledge to use. Alongside the flesh horrors Strasse has crafted, he has also created a number of vile mechanical beings as well. Daemon Engines, advanced star fighters and all manner of armoured vehicles are spat out by Strasses acolytes on a regular basis. With his knowledge, the Brethren of Spite have flourished technologically.

Strasse was at one point a Space marine, and still has all his training. In battle he remains a dangerous opponent, at close range Orion can scissor apart a foe with long scalpel claws or fire streams of searing acid at his opponents, while he also has a back pack mounted "mortar" which allows him to fire canisters of neuro-toxin or other deadly gases at his foes. Orion's cybernetics also give him increased strength, piston and hydraulic driven limbs giving him the super strength of a Space marine. As well as this, Strasse has no sense of pain. Agony, as are a number of other feelings, are entirely alien to Orion, who will shrug off fatal wounds as if they were nothing. Despite this, Strasse has little want or concern to actually engage in battle unless he must, generally when he wishes to test a new weapon. Most of the time, Orion will watch from a distance as his vile creations do the heavy lifting for him.

Orion is also an accomplished tank commander, known for often riding atop his specially modified Predator tank into battle when not accompanied by his Super Soldiers or other projects. Enjoying riding alongside his squadron of hand picked Predator commanders, Strasse can be found leading armoured assaults striking at the weakest points of the enemies line, or reinforcing his allies own. Experienced in armoured warfare, Orion has been fighting as part of the Brethren of Spite's armoured squadrons for some time, and has accumulated quite the tally in terms of vehicle kills.

Appearance
"Looks are hard to keep up in my line of work. Especially when your you're own test subject."

- Strasse

Years of tampering and tinkering with his own body have left Strasse barely recognizable. With most of his form rebuilt and reconstructed over a dozen times, Strasse strives to, like his other creations, perfect his cybernetic form. Still clad in what remains of his artificer power armour, Strasse stands at an impressive 7 foot. Orion has replaced his hands with far superior mechanical replacements, long skeletal tools far more suited for pin point and careful operations on his patients and repairing his mechanical creations. Orion's armour is, like his Brethren of Spite allies, scavenged and fashioned from a number of sources. It's believed very little of Strasse's actual body remains other than his brain and sections of his skull, the rest slowly but surely discarded over the years, replaced by superior cybernetics. Strasse's use of his own body as a test subject has helped to accelerate this process notably.

Personality
"Morality is a natural inhibitor. Do you know what inhibitors also inhibit? Genius."

- Strasse

Orion, despite his obsession with create weapons of mass destruction and murder, is not a sadist. Strasse simply has no concept of morals, and cares little for those who do. Concerned only with the advancement of his knowledge and lacking in any moral scruples, Strasse has done many terrible things in order to further enhance his understanding. Apart from this, Orion is a fairly polite, even hospitable individual. Deploring rudeness or bad manners, Strasse values his allies company greatly, and is good friends with the Brethren of Spites chief sorcerer Xaphon, as well as the personal doctor (and assistant) to both Cain and Drow Thel. However, Strasse's intelligence is undermined by his own ego, the scientist possessing a colossal disdain for most of his comrades and allies bar a seldom few who Orion has judged "acceptable".

Creations
"These are nothing but pet projects compared to what I have planned next."

- Orion

The GriefKommando
Orion Strasses first forays into genetic and cybernetic engineering upon captured Space marines produced unstable and psychotic brutes which Strasse would refer to as "GriefKommando". Continuing his testing and experiments, Strasse was able to eventually, after a number of failures, "stabilize" the GriefKommando enough that they could be used in battle. Effectively a Space marine further enhanced with exceptionally strong steroids and cybernetics, GriefKommando make excellent shock troops and line breakers. While simplistic and erratic, GriefKommando follow Strasses (and any others the Scientist bids) to the letter due to a mix of excellent genetic coding and lobotomy programs. Orion generally in battle can be found surrounded by his GriefKommando retinue, rarely found without them or some other form of protection.

The 'Marauder' Tank killer
As a mobile force, the Brethren of Spite's ability to make use of heavy weapons and armour is limited. The Marauder is Orion's answer to this. A light weight but well armed battle tank, the Marauder mounts a power 220mm main gun, able to pierce and destroy most Imperial battle tanks from a distance while retaining it's speed and mobility. Ultimately the major weakness of the Marauder is it's weak armour, espically with it's high explosive ammunition making it a colossal hazard if hit to it's allies.

Schmitt Jet-fighter
Schmitt Jet-fighters are super sonic fighter craft, swift and nimble, Schmitt fighters are excellent interceptors and hunters. In battle, these super sonic aircraft can avoid flak and other anti-air weapons with their stealth systems and speed, allowing them to strike with near invulnerability. Engineered over the course of several hundred years, Orion's prized project has become a great asset to the Brethren of Spite. Rare in number while also hard to pilot and control, the Schmitt fighter is thankfully for the Brethren's enemies an uncommon sight, though with recent technological advancements, Strasse hopes to increase their production ten fold. [[File:Horten_Ho_229_V7_-LIMITED_to_500px-.jpg|thumb|218px|Schmitt fighter

]]

Relations
"Hmm, lets see. I'm surrounded by a mass of idiots. Greedy fools, angry twats, the Eldar with the eternal period, and an Alpha level psyker who trips on his own cape. I'd have to say, I'm lucky to find any friends among this conclave of morons, drunkards, thugs and rapists."

- Orion

Cain
Orion Strasse and Cain are close friends, and have been since the Brethren of Spite formed from the Brotherhood of Man. Strasse has long been Cain's favoured scientific advisor, his skill recognised early by the Pirate Lord when Strasse headed the repair of the Ark Mechanicus Covenant of Sin. Orion would gain much favour from Cain from this alone, which only increased as Strasse furthered the Brethren of Spite with his numerous technological wonders and developments. Even when Strasse left the Brethren of Spite for a few years to study and improve his ability did Cain and Strasse keep in close contact, Cain seeing Orion as an excellent adviser in most situations.

Drow Thel
As with many others in the Brethren, Orion and Drow have a strained relationship. Orion acted as Drow's doctor during her long months of torture, keeping the weakened Eldar alive despite her grievous wounds. Drow's ire would grow deeper when Strasse revealed his knowledge of her species physiology came from the mass dissections of the Banshee's kin who had been taken prisoner. After Drow joined the Brethren of Spite, Orion would continue to act as her personal doctor, recreating Drow's lost right arm with a cybernetic replacement. Drow herself has little patience or love for Orion, his closeness to the Daemon Prince Cain far too close for Drow to place even an ounce of trust in the scientist.

Xaphon
While disdained and almost universally hated by the rest of the Brethren of Spite, Orion has a great like for Xaphon, chief sorcerer of the Brethren of Spite. Although a bumbling fool, Xaphon and Orion both hold many of the same interests, while Strasse enjoys the company of those who do not constantly thirst for bloodshed.

K'Hesh
A former Genoforger Magister, K'Hesh is now a vaunted ally, partner and friend of Orion Strasse along with leading member of the Brethren of Spites science division for almost as long as Orion himself. Both perfectionists, Orion and K'Hesh are good friends, working together on a variety of projects.

About
"Perhaps their is some hope for these bumbling Gene-Breeds after all."

- K'Hesh

By
"I don't enjoy or delight in pain, I simply find my work to be enjoyable. Not some thrill or love of my subjects agony, but the perfection of my creations into true weapons of the gods. To see an army felled by a genetic master piece, destroying them from the inside out, or to watch as their weapons fail as a daemon borne in an electric current runs rampant through their equipment. It is glorious."

- Strasse

"Insane? If I was insane I'd be licking windows and hitting rocks together, ammused by the simple sparks they produce. I'm a bloody genius. A master of science, what are you? Some deluded priest, who worships machines because his mind is so addled by stupidity he cannot grasp the basic mechanics of even the simplest construct. The irony in one of your kind judging my mental state is gargantuan."

- Strasse to a Tech Priest

"I'm a mortician, surgeon, doctor, nurse and engineer all in one."

- Strasse

"Do you know how the Tech Priests of Mars fix their problems? They light incense and pray. Do you know how I fix my problems? I pick them apart, piece by piece, I find the fault, and repair it, and then I perfect it. If that fails, I throw it into a storage room or a pile, a monument to failure. When I see it's broken shape, I am reminded of my imperfection, and it makes me strive to do more, to do better."

- Strasse