- "Who were you expecting? Santa Claus?"
- ―Vriess (from Template:A4)
| John Vriess | |
| [[Image:File:John Vriess.png|250px]] | |
| Biographical Infomation | |
| Physical Description | |
| Gender: | Male |
| Associations | |
| Affiliation: | Betty crew |
John Vriess[1] was an engineer aboard the smuggling ship the Betty. Vriess and the crew of the Betty were responsible for delivering several kidnapped civilians to United Systems Military scientists aboard the USM Auriga, and he subsequently became involved in the Xenomorph outbreak and infestation aboard the ship.
Vriess was paralyzed from the waist down, requiring a wheelchair for mobility. Despite this handicap, he was one of four survivors of the Auriga incident, along with Ripley 8, Johner and the Auton Annalee Call.
Biography[]
On Kawlang[]
Vriess was wounded by shrapnel on the planet Kawlang when the Betty crew was operating there as mercenaries; the injury paralyzed him from the waist down, forcing Christie to carry him out strapped to his back in what the two came to know as the "Kawlang maneuver".[2] Following his injury, Vriess was confined to a wheelchair, eventually constructing his own highly specialized motorized chair.
Aboard the Auriga[]
- "You wanna check the chair?"
- ―Vreiss to a USM soldier (from Template:A4)
After the Betty docked with the Auriga, Vriess went to the USM vessel's cargo hold to scavenge supplies and spare parts. He was alone there when the Cloned Xenomorphs escaped containment and began rampaging throughout the ship. Despite his disability, he managed to defend himself against the Xenomorphs with a shotgun hastily assembled from parts hidden on his wheelchair, before reuniting with the rest of his crew. When the survivors were forced to swim through a flooded galley to reach the Betty, Vriess had to abandon his wheelchair and be carried on Christie's back. Although Christie was killed by the Xenomorphs in a subsequent ambush, Vriess managed to survive.
The few remaining survivors eventually reached the Betty and escaped the Auriga before it impacted the Earth. With Vriess and Johner at the helm, the ship barely survived re-entry into the planet's atmosphere, despite a hull breach caused by the death of the Newborn on board the vessel. Vriess subsequently set the Betty down just outside of a devastated Paris, bringing the survivors home to Earth.[3]
Personality and Traits[]
- "Hey, Christie, do me a favour. When we hit the surface on the other side — no backstroke, OK?"
- ―Vriess (from Template:A4)
Unlike the majority of the Betty crew, who were all hardened pirates and killers, Vriess was a simple mechanic. However, prior to his crippling injuries, Vriess had been an expert mercenary, just like the rest of his crew.[2] While several of his comrades treated him with scorn following his paralysis, Christie still held Vriess in high regard, and the mechanic was also close to Call, the newest member of the team.
Equipment[]
Vriess' most notable piece of equipment was his custom-built motorized wheelchair, which included various points of articulation and recline to allow him to perform his primary duties as a mechanic aboard the Betty. However, the chair also contained parts that could be used to construct several home-made weapons, including a pump-action double-barrelled shotgun, a pump-action grenade launcher and a small Zipgun. As such, the wheelchair served as a means for the Betty crew to smuggle weapons through security checkpoints. During the outbreak on the Auriga, Vriess armed himself with his shotgun.
Appearances[]
- Template:A4/Template:A4N/Template:A4C
- Aliens: Original Sin
