Editing Veta Lopis

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{{Outofdate|[[Halo: Retribution]]}}

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|birth=Between [[2520]] and [[2521]]<ref name="VetaAge">'''[[Halo: Divine Wind]]''', ''page 45'' (Google Play edition) (''"At thirty-eight, Veta might have been old enough to have a twenty-year-old child..."'')</ref><ref name="Ethirties">[https://mobile.twitter.com/TDenningauthor/status/880220933235122181 '''Twitter''': ''Troy Denning status update #880220933235122181'']</ref>

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|rank=[[Special inspector]] {{C|formerly}}<br>[[Lieutenant]]{{Ref/Novel|Id=HDWE|HDW|Detail=Epilogue}}

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'''Lieutenant Veta Lopis''' is an [[Office of Naval Intelligence]] agent who formerly served as a [[special inspector]] of the [[Gao Ministry of Protection|Ministry of Protection]] on planet [[Gao]].<ref name="hll">'''[[Halo: Last Light]]'''</ref><ref name="Azure Noir">[https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/community/blog-posts/canon-fodder-azure-noir '''Halo Waypoint''': ''Canon Fodder - Azure Noir'']</ref> Following [[Operation: JOVIAN WHISTLE]] in [[2553#July|July 2553]], she defected from the Ministry of Protection to the [[United Nations Space Command]], having become a fugitive on her homeworld, now leading an ONI [[Ferret|Ferret Team]] comprising [[Ash-G099]], [[Olivia-G291]] and [[Mark-G313]]. Lopis was given the sarcastic nickname '''"Mom"''' by the trio due to her protectiveness toward them.{{Ref/Reuse|ant}}

Veta Lopis was born on [[Gao]] at some point between [[2520]] and [[2521]].{{Ref/Reuse|VetaAge}}{{Ref/Reuse|Ethirties}} When she was seventeen years old, she was kidnapped and endured abuse in a small stone cellar for three weeks. She eventually escaped by breaking out and killing her captor with a rock, only to learn that her father had died of grief while she was gone.<ref>'''Halo: Last Light''', ''page 123'' (Google Play edition)</ref> This traumatic experience instilled in her the desire to see injustice of any kind met with strict retribution and so she enrolled at the [[Avelos Academy]] to study criminal investigation and become a homicide investigator.<ref>''[[Halo: Retribution]]'', ''Chapter 23''</ref> Since the age of 20,<ref>'''Halo: Last Light''', ''page 284'' (Google Play edition)</ref> Lopis took down multiple hardened killers, and had become Gao's top homicide investigator by her early 30s.{{Ref/Reuse|ant}}

Veta's mother died around [[2551]].<ref>'''Halo: Last Light''', ''page 365'' (Google Play edition)</ref> Her closest surviving family included two aunts and six cousins, all of whom lived on Gao, as of [[2553]].<ref>'''Halo: Last Light''', ''page 373-375'' (Google Play edition)</ref>

Lopis could not carry out her investigation entirely unhindered, with [[Major]] [[Ira Halal]] of the [[UNSC Judge Advocate General's Corps]] intent on ensuring she did not incriminate the UNSC unfairly and [[Lieutenant]] [[Frederic-104]] of [[Spartan]] [[Blue Team]] reluctant to reveal classified information, despite the battalion's [[commanding officer]], [[Commander]] [[Murtag Nelson]], ordering the Spartan to cooperate with her. Due to the brutal nature of the killings—which would have required enormous brute strength—as well as Fred's secretive behavior and Lopis' ingrained dislike and distrust of the Spartans, she initially believed the murderer to be one of the supersoldiers.{{Ref/Reuse|hll}}

While the 717th prepared to evacuate, Arlo Casille, who had recently been elected [[President of Gao]], sent [[Gao Republic]]'s military to forcefully remove the UNSC from the planet. Lopis, Fred, Ash, Olivia and Roams Alone escaped pursuing Gao [[Wyvern]]s and [[Gao battle-jumpers|battle-jumpers]] through the jungle in a Warthog to regroup with the rest of Blue Team, having retrieved Wendell's [[data crystal chip]]—now covertly housing Intrepid Eye—and a [[HAVOK tactical nuclear weapon]]. Lopis having now concluded that the murderer was in fact Intrepid Eye in light of the events in the support module, she attempted to explain to the Spartans that they could no longer trust Wendell; this was too late, however, as Intrepid Eye took control of Fred's armor through Wendell's data chip and attempted to kill Lopis. However, she was able to detonate the explosive she had placed in the armor earlier, powering down the armor.{{Ref/Reuse|hll}}

Blue Team eventually regrouped and headed toward the [[Well of Echoes]] in Warthogs, with the goal of destroying the Forerunner base below with the HAVOK. On the way, Lopis received a call from Casille, who attempted to convince her to reveal her position to the Wyverns, ostensibly believing the inspector was the Spartans' hostage. However, Lopis realized Casille knew she had sided with the UNSC and was merely attempting to eliminate her. As such, she deceived Casille into believing that she and Blue Team were traveling to the nearby [[Singing Grottos]], causing most of the Wyverns to change course. The group arrived at the Well of Echoes where they boarded the [[Owl]] insertion craft ''[[UNSC Silent Claw|Silent Claw]]''. On board, Lopis was greeted by [[Serin Osman|Rear Admiral Serin Osman]], who offered her opportunity to place Intrepid Eye's data chip on the HAVOK nuke before it was deployed to make Intrepid Eye face justice for her crimes, but Lopis realized that ONI would never allow the ancilla to be destroyed and as such denied Osman's offer. Mark dropped the HAVOK into the Well of Echoes, destroying the Forerunner base as the Owl headed to rendezvous with [[Tuwa|Admiral Tuwa]]'s [[battle group]].{{Ref/Reuse|hll}}

In the following months, Lopis, Ash, Olivia, and Mark underwent an extensive ONI training regimen, with Veta's training including twice-weekly close-assault drills to prepare her for intense combat. During this time, they visited multiple [[Human colonies|colonies]], rarely staying in one place for long; at one point they were stationed on [[Jastolo]].<ref name="ant">'''Halo: Fractures''', "A Necessary Truth"</ref> They primarily operated out of the ONI reservation known as the [[Mill]].{{Ref/Twitter|TDenningauthor|895332266074820608|Troy Denning|Y=2020|M=10|D=29}}<ref>''[[Halo: Fractures]]'', ''[[A Necessary Truth]]''</ref>

[[File:HDW VetaLopis.png|thumb|right|During their infiltration of the Humans of the Joyous Journey, Veta Lopis adopted the distinctive hairstyles adorned by the cult.]]

{{Expand-section}}

In [[2559#October|October 2559]], during [[Operation: WOLFE]], Lopis unexpectedly appears to [[Fred-104]], surprising him as the [[Ferret]]s have been [[missing in action]] for more than two years and presumed dead. In reality, they have been working undercover amongst the [[Keepers of the One Freedom]] and help them to locate the [[Menachite portal complex]] on [[Reach]]. Lopis hands Fred a message capsule and orders to him to leave immediately, firing her M7 so close above his head that Fred isn't sure if she missed on purpose or not. Calling Fred a Demon and yelling at him to begone at the top of her lungs, Lopis fires another salvo at Fred's feet. Though confused, Fred runs off, deciding that whatever Lopis is doing, he isn't helping her by sticking around and asking a bunch of dumb questions. After the Ferrets help open a [[slipspace portal]] to [[Installation 00|the Ark]] as [[Reclaimer]]s, they provide [[Castor]] with cover from [[Atriox]] and join him in traveling to the Ark on a [[Banished Lich]], ostensibly to start the Great Journey.{{Ref/Novel|Id=Chapter 21|HSoR|Chapter=21}}

Upon returning to the {{UNSCShip|Infinity}}, Fred gives the message to Captain [[Veronica Dare]] and reports that the Ferrets are following the Keepers of the One Freedom through the slipspace portal over Reach to the Ark, Atriox's return is expected and the Keepers intend to initiate the Great Journey. Dare admits that its incredible that the Ferrets are still out there and Fred questions if she really didn't know. Dare states that even when ONI was whole, she wasn't read into every operation and Ferret operations were highly compartmentalized. Dare promises to pass along anything that she hears about the team and allows Fred to keep the top third of the message which is implied to be personal in nature, [[John-117]] noting how close Lopis and Fred had become before her disappearance.{{Ref/Novel|Id=Epilogue|HSoR|Chapter=Epilogue}} Lopis' personal message to Fred was intended to help him sort out her disappearance and why she hadn't been able to warn him beforehand.{{Ref/Novel|Id=DWEpilogue|DW|Chapter=Epilogue}}

{{Main|Second Ark Conflict}}

Lopis is hardened, cynical and dedicated to her work. An exceedingly competent criminal investigator, she is highly observant and intelligent; in the beginning stages of her investigation of the [[Montero Cave System]] murders she managed to trick [[Frederic-104]] into indirectly divulging classified information several times. As a result of the abuse she suffered as a teenager, Lopis developed a rigid and inflexible sense of justice; her personal code dictated that she invariably terminate her suspects once their guilt had been proven, rather than bring them to trial. During her investigation into the murders on Gao, she relentlessly prioritized the apprehension of the killer even when full-blown violence had erupted between the UNSC, the [[Keepers of the One Freedom]], and the [[Insurrectionist]]-sympathetic [[Gao Ministry of Protection]]. She even attempted to interrogate [[Intrepid Eye]] while the [[ancilla]] was attempting to suffocate her in the [[Portable Spartan Support Module]].

The traumatic experience in her youth also left Veta with, among others, a fear of the smell of tobacco and men touching her hair, as well as a phobia of tight spaces.<ref>'''Halo: Last Light''', ''page 19''</ref> Despite these anxiety-inducing fears, Lopis refused to let them hinder her work and often insisted on clambering through the tight spaces herself, though her hesitance was noticeable to the Spartans.<ref>'''Halo: Last Light''', ''page 21''</ref> She also remained unable trust anyone enough to engage in physical intimacy after the incident, considering her friend and colleague [[Cirilo]] the "closest thing she had to a lover" but never returning his frequent advances.<ref>'''Halo: Last Light''', ''page 93'' (Google Play edition)</ref>

Like most Gao natives, Veta Lopis had been brought up to despise and distrust the [[United Nations Space Command]] and particularly the [[Spartan]]s from an early age.<ref>'''Halo: Last Light''', Chapter 1</ref> Over the course of [[Operation: JOVIAN WHISTLE]], she worked closely with the Spartans and despite her initial contempt for them, she grew to trust and respect the supersoldiers, being particularly endeared to the trio of [[Gamma Company]] Spartan-IIIs. When the nature of the Spartan-IIIs was revealed to her, she was appalled that a government could utilize children in such a manner and even proclaimed that she intended to take the teenage Spartans into protective custody. The Gammas quickly nicknamed Lopis "Mom" due to her perceived overprotective tendencies; although this often annoyed her, she did grow to become a maternal figure of sorts to the trio and believed she could treat them more humanely than ONI. Despite their initial friction, she also formed an unexpected rapport with Fred-104 and was genuinely upset when she thought him to have been killed. After Lopis reappears two years after being considered [[missing in action]] and presumed dead along with her team, it's stated that she and Fred had grown "kind of close" during their missions together and Fred had taken her disappearance and presumed death hard, suggesting that a deeper personal relationship had developed between the two. Part of Lopis' message is indicated to be personal in nature and addressed to Fred as Captain [[Veronica Dare]] cuts off the top third of the message, gives it to Fred and states that it's nothing that ONI needs to know about.{{Ref/Reuse|Id=Epilogue}} During the funeral for Mark, Lopis had trouble maintaining her composure while delivering his eulogy, stating that she considered him her son.{{Ref/Novel|DW|Chapter=Epilogue}}

Lopis is quite small in stature. Fred-104 considered her exceptionally attractive and noted that she looked more like a fashion model than an experienced criminal investigator.<ref>'''Halo: Last Light''', ''page 34'' (Google Play edition)</ref> After Operation: JOVIAN WHISTLE, Veta had shaved her hair on the side of her head for Operation: RETRIBUTION.<ref>''Halo: Retribution'', cover art</ref> While working undercover in the [[Keepers of the One Freedom]], Lopis and the Ferrets keep the sides of their heads shaved and a narrow braid of hair going down their backs.<ref>''[[Halo: Shadows of Reach]]''</ref>