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"The lesson will be taught in due time, Aloy. Until then, we wait." This article contains heavy spoilers. Read ahead with caution.
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Dr. Charles Ronson was a member of Project Zero Dawn, serving as the Alpha in charge of the ARTEMIS subordinate function.
History[]
Background[]
Charles Ronson attained a PhD, likely in the field of ecology, and performed postdoctoral research in Johannesburg, South Africa.[2]
Project Zero Dawn[]
ARTEMIS's logo in Horizon Forbidden West.
Upon the discovery of the glitch that was causing the Faro Plague to begin, Ronson was recruited as part of Project Zero Dawn. He was one of the nine individuals selected by Elisabet Sobeck to serve as Alphas, the second-highest rank within the project. Ronson oversaw the development of the ARTEMIS subordinate function, which was responsible for preserving genetic samples of Earth's animal life, and later reintroducing those animals to Earth during GAIA's terraforming.
During the development of ARTEMIS, Ronson and his team mapped out a succession of "pioneer organisms" to make up the rebuilt biosphere of Earth, progressing from microorganisms to larger fauna. Less adaptable organisms would be kept in storage, with their reintroduction being overseen by the future generations of humans produced by ELEUTHIA; Ronson was hopeful that the humans of the future would be responsible conservationists thanks to APOLLO's education. Ronson helped build ARTEMIS' reserves of animal samples by negotiating with various "frozen zoos" to obtain cryogenically preserved samples of extinct species, as well as by dispatching retrieval teams to locations with particularly exotic wildlife. Despite a number of setbacks during sample collection, Ronson remained staunchly confident that life on Earth could be saved.[3]
While working on ARTEMIS, Ronson developed a romantic relationship with Tom Paech, a biochemist assigned to the ARTEMIS team.[4] The two were both ardent believers in the beauty of nature; Ronson's passionate disposition was in fact one of the main reasons Paech believed ARTEMIS could succeed.[5]
As a result of Paech's distaste for life indoors, he opted out of Elysium in favor of medical euthanasia—Ronson consequently promised Paech that he would be with him during his last moments of life.[4] However, as the Faro Plague overran humanity's remaining strongholds, Elisabet Sobeck informed Ronson and the rest of the Alphas that they were to be evacuated to the GAIA Prime facility, where they would spend the rest of their lives perfecting their respective subordinate functions.[6] Due to the swarm's unexpectedly rapid advance, Ronson was forced to choose between preserving several samples of Paradisaea zygotes or attending Tom Paech's euthanasia as he had promised. Under stress, Ronson chose to save the zygotes; unfortunately, he failed, and Paech died alone as a result of Ronson's decision. This failure caused Ronson great anguish, much of which he expressed as resentment for himself and the other Alphas.[4]
Life in GAIA Prime[]
Ronson watches Elisabet say goodbye.
Ronson's memorial to Sobeck.
When one of GAIA Prime's access port seals malfunctioned, risking the facility's exposure to the Faro Plague, Ronson was among those who spoke to Elisabet Sobeck after she sacrificed herself to keep the facility safe. This event affected Ronson the most out of the Alphas, due to his reverent admiration for Dr. Sobeck; in the wake of her death, he constructed a holographic sculpture in her memory, comprised of countless roses laid beneath a portrait of Sobeck herself, as well as a recording of Sobeck's final farewell to the Alpha team.[7] Ronson also recorded an audio eulogy for Sobeck, in the hopes that these records would impress the importance of Sobeck's legacy on future generations.[2]
Ronson (left) and Travis Tate are asphyxiated.
While the Alphas grieved Sobeck, Margo Shĕn confided in Ronson that she had been receiving unsolicited messages from Ted Faro, demanding updates on various components of Project Zero Dawn. Ronson assured Shĕn that Faro merely needed to be kept happy, as Sobeck had done before her death, and promised to have a word with Faro on Shĕn's behalf.[8] Some time later, Ronson and the other Alphas were contacted as a group by Faro. They were shocked to learn that Faro had not only locked them out of all the systems, but had erased all copies of the APOLLO archive in an attempt to give the next generation of humanity a "clean slate". Ronson, enraged, began to berate Faro, but was shortly cut off as Faro remotely sealed the room and vented its atmosphere, killing Ronson along with the other Alphas.[9]
Legacy[]
Ronson's work on ARTEMIS was crucial to the revitalization of Earth, allowing for the creation of a stable and lush biosphere that was able to support human life. Sadly, the destruction of APOLLO meant that future humans were unable to complete Ronson's work and reintroduce more exotic species to the world—the ecosystem of the future was left with only the "pioneer organisms".
However, many animal species not among Ronson's list of pioneer organisms[3] are present during Horizon Zero Dawn and onwards. Whether Ronson's list is incomplete, wasn't the final list, or whether ARTEMIS released the additional animal species during its independence is unknown.