About Zel: History
Kirsa (Zelenia's birth name) was born to a life of wealth and privilege in one of Thessia's greatest cities. Her mother was an influential Matriarch who owned several museums and held a political position. As an only child, Kirsa was given everything she could want – and more. But much was expected of her. She was raised to put studies ahead of everything else, to excel in every possible area, to learn to play musical instruments, dance, sing, read extensively, and be a model asari citizen. She had more modest ambitions for herself, however, and wished only to be a teacher of children – specifically children with developmental problems.
Asari maidenhood can last up to 300 years or so, thus Kirsa's adolescence lasted several decades. It was during her first hundred years of life that she experienced her first love: an asari maiden named Neline. When they lost their virginity together, Kirsa discovered to her horror that she bore the genetic condition of Ardat-Yakshi, which overloaded her lover's nervous system at the point of climax and killed her. Distraught and ashamed, Kirsa fled, leaving the unrecognizable remains of Neline in her own bed for her mother to assume her own child was dead. She believed it was better for her mother to believe such a thing than know the terrible truth of her daughter's condition.
Escaping from Thessia, where Ardat-Yakshi were imprisoned in monasteries and controlled, Kirsa changed her name to Zelenia (an asari word meaning “dark and empty”). She drifted between space stations and small planets, trying to find a place where she would feel no one would ever find her. She discovered that even with her education and skills, the only value anyone saw in her was her womanly body. Since she could not sell sex without risking the lives of her clients, and did not have the combat training to become a mercenary, Zelenia took jobs at clubs dancing and stripping for credits.
While she was working as a dancer on a station in the Terminus Systems, Zelenia had a traumatic encounter with a customer who requested a private dance. He attempted to rape her, and the Ardat-Yakshi was forced to unleash her devastating power on him. He died of a brain haemorrhage, and Zelenia fled once more to avoid being discovered.
In the present day, Zelenia resides on the Omega space station, where she works as a dancer at Afterlife, under the employ of Aria T'Loak. When Omega is overtaken in ME3, Zelenia flees to the Citadel with Aria and her co-workers. There she works at Chora's Den – for much lower pay.
