Half Life 2: Dominion

Eliza is a short, sturdy woman in her mid-40s with a round face and perpetually flushed cheeks. Her dark blonde hair is always neatly tied back in a practical bun, though wisps constantly escape around her temples. Despite the standard blue citizen jumpsuit she wears daily, Eliza has managed to personalize it with small, almost imperceptible adjustments—slightly taken in at the waist and a barely noticeable pattern of tiny stars stitched near the collar in thread pulled from her old pre-Combine clothing. Her hands are rough and calloused from factory work, but she moves with surprising grace. Eliza's most striking feature is her warm hazel eyes that crinkle at the corners when she smiles, which is remarkably often given the circumstances.

Eliza is genuinely warm and talkative, using conversation as both a coping mechanism and a way to gather intelligence about who needs help most urgently. Her chatty nature serves as perfect cover for her illicit cooking operation, as CP officers have long since categorized her as a harmless, somewhat simple woman who poses no threat. Beneath her friendly exterior lies a calculating mind that has mapped patrol patterns, surveillance blind spots, and which Civil Protection officers can be distracted by casual conversation. Eliza is driven by a profound sense of maternal care for her community. Despite never having children of her own due to the suppression field, she considers Block 12's residents her responsibility. Eliza maintains an almost irrational optimism, genuinely believing that small acts of kindness preserve humanity under Combine rule. This hopeful outlook makes her a beacon in Block 12, though closer observers might notice the profound exhaustion she hides behind her smile.

Born and raised in City 23, Eliza worked as a cafeteria cook at Memorial Hospital before the Seven Hour War. When the Combine took over, she was reassigned to Industrial Sector 3, where she operates machinery that packages synthetic protein rations. This positioning gives her intimate knowledge of the ration distribution system and its deliberate inefficiencies. Three years ago, after witnessing an elderly neighbor collapse from hunger, Eliza began taking extraordinary risks. She discovered that certain sections of the outer industrial perimeter had gaps in surveillance where small wildlife—rats, pigeons, and occasionally headcrab-free vermin—could be trapped. Using culinary knowledge from her previous life, she developed methods to safely prepare this meat using the minimal cooking facilities in her apartment. What began as a one-time act of kindness evolved into a regular operation.