Phocon Xal
Phocon Xal is a skitarius Protector of Explorator Talin Sherax.[1a]
History
At some point in Xal's past during the Thalosian Purge, he witnessed a remarkable sunburst of ochre and red at dawn-break.[1g]
Phocon Xal was assigned as Protector of Explorator Sherax 52 Martian years before their expedition into the space hulk Misery's Daughter. His function has since been to protect Sherax and by extension the collegues in her company.[1b] The role of lifeward affords the him access to Sherax's Noospheric communion shared between herself and her close colleagues, even if she takes no part in the dialogue held. [1b]
During Explorator Sherax's ill-fated expedition to Ikaneos-A, Xal would duel the Warp Spider known as Idranvel of the Shrouded Blade in defence of the explorator.[1c] His third arm and transsonic halberd would both be cut in two, resulting in Xal's defeat and Idranvel's escape moments later.[1d] Immediately afterward, Xal would make use of a nearby radium carbine to continue his ward of Sherax during the Aeldari ambush.[1e] Seven days later the survivors of the ambush would find a crashed Imperial Fists Gladius-class frigate, the Obdurate.[1f] Xal would scavenge an Astartes chainsword from one of their corpses that had been occupying the crashed vessel for at least 3 centuries. The chainsword was a crude weapon he was intimately familiar with.[1g]
Equipment
Protector Xal is equipped with a transonic halberd and arc pistol.[1b] A mechanized third arm attached at his waist wields the arc pistol in its claw, while using his primary arms to wield his halberd simultaneously.
Phocon Xal has no memory of using his organic eyes. He instead has an ocular scanner - a red-tinted visor - that can interrogate the visible and infrared wavelengths of the electromagnetic spectrum hundreds of times a second.[1b]
He also has the ability to emit ultrasonic pulses that test environments, such as the metal of a ship's deck, for possible micro-vibrations caused by creatures lurking in ambush. This also includes the ability of echolocation.[1b]
The Protector is augmented beyond the concerns of void exposure.[1b]
