Kaidan Alenko

Kaidan Alenko is a human Sentinel and the first member of Commander Shepard's squad. He is a lieutenant aboard the Normandy and is first seen working on the bridge with Joker. He is also a biotic wired with the controversial L2 implants, which can cause severe damage to the brain of the user, though Kaidan is 'fortunate' enough to only have serious migraines.

Kaidan was born in 2151 into a family already familiar with space: his father served in the Alliance military. After his mother was downwind of a transport crash, Kaidan was exposed in utero to element zero and was lucky enough to beat the odds: instead of suffering terminal brain cancer, he gained biotic potential. At the time little was known about human biotics, but when the possibilities became better understood, a company called Conatix Industries was set up to track element zero exposures. Children who showed sufficient potential to be worth augmenting with implants were 'encouraged' to attend BAaT (Biotic Acclimation and Temperance Training) which was conducted at Gagarin Station and nicknamed 'Brain Camp' by its attendees. As Kaidan tells Shepard, "a bunch of guys in suits show up at your door after school, and next thing you know, you're out on Jump Zero."

Along with several other teenagers, including a beautiful, gentle girl named Rahna, Kaidan began his training at seventeen, but things went bad almost from the start. Conatix wanted to speed the work along and brought in an ex-military turian, Commander Vyrnnus, who was an expert in biotics but also a veteran of the First Contact War. Vyrnnus introduced himself by saying "I was at the helm of the dreadnought that killed your father", and Kaidan retorted that his father wasn't even in the war (he had retired to Vancouver). Vyrnnus took it personally and began pushing the teenagers very hard. Kaidan recalls: "You either came out a superman or a wreck. A lot of kids snapped. A few died."

Finally the inevitable happened and Vyrnnus went too far. Rahna, who had become close to Kaidan during their training, reached for a glass of water instead of moving it biotically. Vyrnnus punished Rahna by breaking her arm and Kaidan tried to defend her, only to receive a beating from Vyrnnus. When the turian pulled a knife, Kaidan lost it and hit him with a full biotic charge in the face, breaking Vyrnnus' neck. BAaT was shut down soon after that and the records were sealed to hide the Alliance's mistakes. Though Rahna was safe from Vyrnnus, she was afraid of Kaidan after what she had seen him do, and the two parted ways.

Kaidan dropped off the radar for a while to figure things out, but eventually came back to the Alliance - on his terms this time - because he wanted to serve. He enlisted in the Alliance Navy and worked his way up to lieutenant, gaining several special commendations in the process despite the health problems he suffered with his L2 implant, namely intense migraines that left him sensitive to bright lights and noise. Finally he was transferred to the Normandy under Captain Anderson where he later worked alongside Commander Shepard.

His experiences at BAaT and his long service make Kaidan politically savvy, but very conservative, cautious and self controlled. Before Eden Prime Kaidan was hesitant to use his abilities on living targets, but after seeing the devastation the geth are causing because of Saren, he changes his attitude. Though he is a biotic, Kaidan's loyalties are first and foremost to the Alliance and he has no sympathies for biotic terrorists. He doesn't bear any ill-will toward alien races after Vyrnnus, even turians: Vyrnnus made him see them as individuals and actually taught him how 'human' aliens are, "they're jerks and saints, just like us." If asked, Kaidan can give feedback on recent missions and discuss the commander's decisions. He urges Shepard not to cut corners as Vyrnnus did, and always leave a way out to ensure nobody gets hurt further down the line.

If Shepard is female, Kaidan is attracted to her from the beginning. He tries to save her from the Prothean Beacon on Eden Prime and, thinking he triggered it when he got too close, feels guilty that she was the one who suffered. He also slips up when he, Ashley Williams and Shepard are taking in the view on the Citadel; Ashley ponders why the Council has a problem with humans, Shepard jokes that according to the old vids, humans have "oceans, beautiful women, this emotion called love - everything they want", and Kaidan responds, without thinking: "Well, when you put it like that, there's no reason for them not to like you. -I mean, us! Humans! Uh, ma'am."

However, Kaidan's personal self control and adherence to regulations means he keeps his distance, until Shepard indicates her interest. Liara T'Soni's presence complicates things; Kaidan hears a lower-deck rumour of Liara's attraction to Shepard and is prepared to back away. Shepard can assure him that she has no interest in Liara and her relationship with Kaidan can develop, though he is concerned about messing things up amongst the crew or distracting Shepard from her work. Kaidan wants to wait until the mission is over and they can spend their shore leave together.

During the operation at Virmire, Shepard can choose to save Kaidan's life at the cost of losing Ashley. Kaidan is an experienced marine who knows that Ashley volunteered for the mission, but he's never lost a soldier under his command to hostile action. If Shepard says she could never leave him behind, Kaidan is grateful, but claims Ash died "because of us". Shepard replies the only one responsible here is Saren, and Kaidan eventually accepts her judgment. When asked how he is dealing with what happened, he simply responds: "Dealing, ma'am," and then asks how Shepard came to terms with the events that have shaped her. The advice helps him cope. Kaidan becomes determined to make the Council listen to their evidence about the Reapers: if all the Citadel races rally to stop the machines, it will be a fitting tribute to Ash.

After the Council and Ambassador Udina ground the Normandy, leaving Shepard frustrated and angry at their continued refusal to believe her, Kaidan offers her his comfort and support. He can even suggest they use the downtime to "figure out what we are" and they almost share a kiss before being interrupted by Joker. Once they are finally en route to Ilos, Kaidan goes to Shepard to talk about the mutiny and the upcoming battle, wanting her to know that he's enjoyed serving alongside her. After some prompting by Shepard, he finally lets go, joking that "breach of protocol is going to be pretty far down the list of charges at our court martial." From what he can see, everything else in the galaxy, even the Reapers, will come around again, but the two of them are what is important right now - "this is what will never happen again. Us." Kaidan confesses he can't stand the thought of losing Shepard; she makes him feel human, and they can spend the night together... as long as nothing changes, and their duty to the Normandy's crew still comes first.

If Kaidan goes with Shepard to Ilos, he is moved by the fate of the Protheans, knowing their sacrifice has given them all a fighting chance. During the assault on the Citadel he tells Shepard to save the Council, even though he knows it will cost many human lives.

Kaidan Alenko is voiced by Raphael Sbarge who also voiced Carth Onasi in Bioware's earlier game Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic.


 * Armour Proficiency: Light
 * Weapon Proficiency: Pistol
 * Biotics: Throw, Lift, Barrier, Stasis, Neural Shock
 * Tech: Overload, Sabotage, Shield Boost
 * Sentinel Skills: First Aid, Medicine, Electronics