The Mass Effect franchise has always made efforts to show life in the Milky Way from every imaginable angle. Fans were presented with a clear view of the Turian sense of honor and duty with the original trilogy's Garrus Vakarian, but they were also given a glimpse at how Turian ambition grew powerful enough to corrupt Spectre Saren Arterius.
From another curious perspective, Mass Effect: Andromeda introduces Vetra Nyx, who grew up with parents whose relationship was heavily dictated by their constant battle between ambition and corruption. Vetra's mother was a military presence who cared for little else but ascending through the ranks, but her father's shady dealings cast a shadow that instigated constant arguments between the couple.
Vetra was young when her father finally took her and her 1 year-old sister, Sidera, away from Palaven. He settled with his daughters in the Minos Wasteland, but two years later he disappeared. Left to look after her baby sister, Vetra waited a long time for their father to return, and when he didn't, she considered for a brief moment returning to their mother. On the other hand, she was smart enough to know that whatever forced her father to flee Palaven in the first place likely meant she and Sid wouldn't be welcomed back with open arms.
With no one else to take care of them, Vetra had no choice but to find work so she could see to Sid's needs. She took on numerous odd jobs, volunteering herself to do the dangerous things no one else would do. As she moved through the workforce, she became something of a jack-of-all trades, and once she learned how to handle a weapon she moved to more profitable and unsavory work.
She worked as a smuggler and a mercenary, taking on whatever she could to provide for her sister and herself, but it was a difficult and trying life that offered little to no promise for a real future. After she double-crossed the Batarians, Vetra knew if she had any hope of staying alive, she needed to go somewhere no one would ever look for her and start over. Working as a provisioner for Nakmor Kesh, Vetra eventually earns a recommendation for herself and her sister, and the two of them become full-fledged members of the Andromeda Initiative.
At last, a place she can start over and maybe become someone who doesn't always have to look over her shoulder in fear. After arriving in Andromeda, Vetra is torn between the Initiative and those who cause the uprising. The uprising attempts to convince her to come along, but she refuses the offer because she is starting over and joining them feels like it will turn into the same thing she left behind in the Milky. She maintains relationships with many of her contacts, however, which comes in handy when she convinces Pathfinder Ryder to let her join their team on the Tempest.
As the Pathfinder gets to know Vetra in Mass Effect: Andromeda, it's obvious how much she loves her younger sister. She would do anything to keep Sid safe, and as she begins to reflect on the things she's done to provide for Sid, she realizes she has engaged in the kinds of things their father had done, that inevitably forced him to flee Palaven. During one conversation, she confesses to Ryder that she doesn't want to be in a situation where she can't come home again.
Vetra's loyalty mission in Andromeda heavily involves her sister, who wants so desperately to be as amazing as Vetra. Sid gets into major trouble, and Vetra asks the Pathfinder for help in getting to the bottom of a group of kidnapped settlers that Sid informed them about. While working through the mission, they discover together that Sid is out there pretending to be Vetra, and that she stole her sister's identity in an effort to rescue a bunch of indentured servants.
After Sid is safe and Vetra is absolutely frustrated by her little sister's recklessness, the Pathfinder earns her loyalty. This opens the door for either Scott or Sara Ryder to initiate romance with her, which presents a vulnerable side to the turian. She deeply wants to feel like part of a family who will always welcome her home. Before the final mission, she expresses to a romanced Ryder that when all is said and done, she wants to build a home together.
For a lot of fans, having a female Turian on the crew in Mass Effect: Andromeda is an exciting opportunity to not only see things from a whole new Turian perspective, but in a brand new galaxy where the rules can be changed if one wants. To compare Vetra to Garrus is shortsighted, as the two Turian companions couldn't be more different. One thing they do have in common, however, is a fierce loyalty to the player character that could very well become the stuff of legends as the Mass Effect franchise continues to expand.
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