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"It's better this way, Isaac. You'll never recover from what the Marker's done to you."
—Kendra after killing Elizabeth Cross.[1]

Kendra Daniels was an EarthGov agent working undercover as a CEC computer specialist aboard the USG Kellion as part of its emergency maintenance team. Finding herself stranded on the USG Ishimura after the Necromorph outbreak, Kendra guided Isaac Clarke through the ship while secretly trying to fulfill her own objective of securing Marker 3A for the government.[2][3]

Biography[]

Kendra's background before the events on Aegis VII is mostly unknown aside from that she became an EarthGov agent sometime before going undercover, and that she had seemingly done contract work for the CEC.[4] No information of Kendra's life prior to her service on the Kellion was given upon Security Chief Zach Hammond's request.[5]

Kendra was inserted into the Kellion team prior to its mission to the Ishimura upon persistent recommendations by an individual named "Darlton" in the CEC; in reality, her mission was to secure Marker 3A and deliver it to EarthGov, with the USM Valor being dispatched to assist her and contain the outbreak.[2][3]

The Second Aegis VII Incident[]

"Just a repair mission, they said. Not this. Not seeing my dead brother on the fucking cameras. All this death... Imagine what the Marker could do in the wrong hands."
—Kendra to Isaac Clarke.[6]
DSR Isaac Chen Kendra

Kendra, Isaac and Chen on the Ishimura.

Kendra was the computer specialist on board the Kellion during its mission to the USG Ishimura. After the Kellion crew was attacked by the Necromorphs and the Kellion was destroyed, Kendra traveled with Hammond to the Bridge until they were attacked by the reanimated Aiden Chen. Narrowly escaping and hiding inside the Computer Core, Kendra began to unearth the records regarding the Marker and what happened on the Aegis VII Colony. During her research, she made the assertion to Isaac and Hammond that the Ishimura had picked up the Marker despite its effects on Aegis VII because that was what it was sent to do in the first place rather than just some off-record mining, noting that the planet itself was sealed off by the government.

During Isaac's trek into Hydroponics, Kendra was notably distressed at seeing her little brother, Kieran, on the security cameras thanks to the Marker's influence.[7] She claimed that it should not have been possible to see him, as Kieran had died. She explained her belief that it was the Marker causing the hallucinations and tried to further entice Isaac to be on her side against the CEC and Hammond because they were unable to contact him. The Marker's signal would continue to plague Kendra for the rest of their time onboard the ship, with her eventually stating that the Marker itself was what was causing communication problems.[8]

Retrieving the Marker[]

"I've seen how the Marker fucks with your head. It must be contained."
—Kendra about her mission to deliver the Marker to EarthGov.
DSR Kendra Reveal Log

Kendra reveals to Isaac that Marker 3A was a government experiment.

Though she did not trust Dr. Terrence Kyne's plan to return the Marker to the planet as she knew he was under the artifact's influence, Kendra asked the doctor to come pick her up after she left the Computer Core, travelling with him onboard the Executive Shuttle to the Hangar Bay. There, she fatally shot Kyne, taking the shuttle for herself and explaining to Isaac her true nature as an agent of EarthGov and the origin of the Red Marker. She also told Isaac that she killed Kyne because she could not trust him near the Marker, and admitted that she did not believe that the old reports on the original Aegis VII experiments were real until being onboard the Ishimura and seeing the horrors of the Marker firsthand.

Kendra declared her belief that EarthGov being in possession of the Marker was the best course of action, citing her personal experiences of how the artifact manipulated people's minds and how it would never do so again. Upon saying goodbye to Isaac, she expressed her belief that he would find his own way off the ship due to his expertise.

DSR Isaac and Kendra Truth

Kendra confronts Isaac about his manipulation by the Marker and his knowledge of Nicole's death.

However, after Isaac recalled the shuttle to the Ishimura, Kendra was forced to flee on an escape pod and crash land on Aegis VII. Once the Marker was returned to its pedestal by Isaac, Kendra took what the engineer thought was Nicole Brennan hostage while claiming Isaac could not tell how delusional he was. Overriding his RIG to force him to watch the entirety of Nicole's message and reveal her death, Isaac was shocked to see that Kendra was actually holding Elizabeth Cross. Kendra explained that the Marker had influenced the both of them in order to return it to its pedestal and merge with their minds, making Isaac see Nicole and Cross see Jacob Temple.

Kendra also confronted Isaac about his repressed knowledge of Nicole's true fate, pointing out how his manipulation by the Marker was partially his own fault for keeping himself in denial and being unable to handle the fact that Nicole was dead.[9][10] She then demanded that Cross give up the loader remote to remove the Marker, but Cross refused to cooperate, still distraught over the realization that Jacob was dead. Upon being threatened at gunpoint, Cross urged Kendra to shoot her, declaring that she had "nothing left to lose". Kendra then fatally shot Cross and left with the Marker, telling Isaac that it was better this way, as the two would never recover from the self-replicating blueprints that the Marker had just implanted in their brains.

DSR Kendra Death

Kendra's last moments.

As Kendra prepared to load the Marker onto the shuttle, she was approached by Isaac and proceeded to hold him at bay with her gun, warning him one last time that she would shoot him if he came any closer. As debris began to fall from the Ishimura's tectonic load dropping towards the planet, a large rock struck the ground near Isaac and caused him to collapse for a brief moment, giving Kendra her chance to escape on the shuttle. However, before she could board it, the Hive Mind began to emerge and one of its tentacles knocked Kendra off the loading platform. Isaac tried to help, telling her to grab his hand, but Kendra was too weak to do so before the tentacle crushed and smeared her into the ground.[1]

Personality and Traits[]

"You did this to yourself. Nicole has been dead this whole time. You just couldn't handle it, could you? Because if she's gone... At least now it'll be in safe hands. The Marker won't turn anyone else into its puppet."
—Kendra to Isaac.
DSR Kendra Aegis VII

Close-up of Kendra on Aegis VII.

Being an undercover EarthGov agent, Kendra was a skilled liar and manipulator as no one suspected her of working for the government until her betrayal. Though she had done contract work for the CEC in the past, she harbored a deep disdain for its corporate culture and preferred to operate on her own terms.[4] She openly showed her disdain for the CEC when she told Isaac that they could not let "some corporate asshole" take the Marker.[6] As a computer specialist, Kendra was able to manipulate and utilize the various systems of the Ishimura to great effect using her knowledge, uncovering information and records with little effort. While barricaded in the Ishimura's computer core, she attempted to gain more information on Warren Eckhardt, the CEC Executive Director and high-ranking Unitologist who was responsible for replacing much of the ship's crew with members of the Church, but she was quickly denied access.[11]

Kendra believed what she was doing concerning the Marker's containment by EarthGov was the right thing, seeing firsthand what the Marker was capable of when in the wrong hands and believing that the government was best equipped to control it. While she killed Kyne and Cross and left Isaac for dead on Aegis VII, Kendra believed that her actions were necessary to protect humanity from the Marker's manipulation, knowing that the three of them had their minds touched by the artifact and that not only would they never recover from it but also that their survival and escape would represent a credible threat.

DSR Confused Kendra

Kendra attempts to make sense of the Ishimura's systems.

Kendra was, understandably, terrified of the Necromorphs and appeared to be frightened of the Marker's powers when she saw visions of her deceased brother.[12] This was partially due to the fact she did not believe in the EarthGov reports about the Marker and the Necromorph infestation until she experienced it first hand on the Ishimura, being somewhat unprepared for the brutal reality of her mission and having assumed that she would have assistance from the Marines of the USM Valor.

Despite being frightened of the Marker's powers, Kendra appeared to be resistant to its influence, unlike Isaac, and it was not able to affect or control her mind beyond causing fleeting visions of her dead brother. This is further confirmed by the Marker-influenced Isaac stating that Kendra did not "understand the Marker" like he did.[13]

DSR Kendra Last Warning

Kendra gives her last warning to Isaac at gunpoint.

Unlike her original counterpart, in the remake, Kendra was genuinely friendly towards the crew of the Kellion. While she would attempt to convince Isaac that Hammond was untrustworthy and already knew about the Marker, she seemingly still cared about Hammond to some extent, as she sounded horrified when he died. With regards to Isaac, Kendra was quite friendly towards him and sympathetic to his plight regarding Nicole. She openly developed a healthy amount of respect, trust, and care towards Isaac, beginning with Isaac saving the Kellion's crash landing and later when he was forced to brave the Necromorph infestation and complete mission after mission. When she abandoned Isaac on the Ishimura, she told him the truth about her mission and the Marker, later bidding the engineer farewell but firmly believing that he would find another way off the ship. On Aegis VII, Kendra was forced to reveal Nicole's suicide recording to Isaac, not out of malice, but to break the Marker's manipulative hold on him and to prove her point about its dangerous powers, believing it was for his own good to finally see the truth about Nicole.[9][10] Despite having no qualms killing the Marker-infected Kyne and Cross, she hesitated to pull the trigger on Isaac when he intercepted her loading the Marker onto the shuttle, and in her final moments, she begged him to save her from the Hive Mind.

Trivia[]

  • Brigitte Kali Canales provides the voice and likeness of Kendra in the 2023 remake.[14] In the original game, she was portrayed by Tonantzin Carmelo.
  • In the original game, it was believed that Kendra was aware of Nicole's death as early as Chapter 3 as her sanctuary of the Computer Core held recordings of all the crew members that she would have access to, including Nicole's goodbye. This is further emphasized in the remake after Isaac says he found Nicole and worked with her to get the SOS beacon on the Mining Deck. Kendra's tone and her claim she lost Isaac's RIG signal like Hammond's due to the latter's proximity to the Marker suggests she is aware that something is not right and she remains blunt whenever Nicole is mentioned, merely going along with Isaac's request to communicate with her to keep him on her side.

Gallery[]

Sources[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 Dead Space (2023)
  2. 2.0 2.1 Dead Space (2023) - Kendra: What my department sent me here to do. Even if the Valor couldn't help me out like I wanted.
  3. 3.0 3.1 Log:Orders
  4. 4.0 4.1 The World and History of Dead Space
  5. Log:Background Request
  6. 6.0 6.1 Log:Corporate Assholes
  7. Log:Ghosts on the Monitor
  8. Log:The Marker is Active
  9. 9.0 9.1 Dead Space (2023) - Kendra: Nicole has been dead this whole time. And you knew, didn't you?
  10. 10.0 10.1 Dead Space (2023) - Kendra: You just couldn't handle it, could you? Because if she's gone...
  11. Log:Unexpected Visitors
  12. Log:He's Here
  13. Dialogue Differences in Dead Space (2023)
  14. List of actors from the official Dead Space Twitter account

"I have the Marker, and this entire system can go to hell. For what it's worth, you did a great job, Isaac. See you around... Or maybe not."
—Kendra to Isaac Clarke.[1]

Kendra Daniels was an EarthGov agent working undercover as a CEC computer specialist aboard the USG Kellion as part of its emergency maintenance team. Finding herself stranded on the USG Ishimura after the Necromorph outbreak, Kendra guided Isaac Clarke through the ship while secretly trying to fulfill her own objective of securing Marker 3A for the government.

Biography[]

Kendra’s background before the events on Aegis VII is mostly unknown aside from that she became an EarthGov agent sometime before going undercover. No information of Kendra's life prior to her service on the Kellion was given upon Security Chief Zach Hammond's request.[2]

Kendra was inserted into the Kellion team upon persistent recommendations by a higher-up in the Concordance Extraction Corporation; in reality, her mission was to acquire Marker 3A and bring it to the government, with the USM Valor being dispatched to assist her.[3]

The Second Aegis VII Incident[]

Shortly after the crash landing of the USG Kellion, Kendra and the crew made their way into the USG Ishimura's Flight Lounge where they were attacked by multiple Necromorphs. After Cpl. Chen and Cpl. Johnston were killed, the crew were split up, with Kendra going with Hammond while Isaac made his own route to relative safety. She and Hammond contacted Isaac from the Bridge as he moved through the ship, guiding him through various locations until they were attacked by a Leaper.

After finding refuge in the Ishimura's Computer Core, Kendra successfully barricaded herself inside and kept in contact with Isaac and Hammond through their RIG links. She used her computer skills to assist them with their tasks around the ship, overriding the doors and lockdowns as well as uncovering the mystery behind the vessel's infestation. After discovering the existence of the Marker, Kendra frequently expressed her distrust toward Hammond, suspecting that he knew more about the artifact than he let on. The Marker's influence later began to affect Kendra, causing her to hallucinate her brother waving at her from a security monitor, which she said was "not possible".

After Isaac recovered the Marker from the Ishimura's Cargo Bay, Kendra left her position in the Computer Core to meet up with Isaac and Terrence Kyne on board the executive shuttle in order to return the artifact to the surface of Aegis VII. However, as soon as Isaac approached, Kendra shot and killed Kyne with a Divet pistol in order to secure the shuttle and the Marker for herself. While on the shuttle, Kendra revealed herself to be a covert EarthGov agent who had been specially selected to recover the Marker. She explained that this Marker was a man-made replica of the true Marker discovered on Earth and the Aegis VII had once been a testing ground for experiments with it. After the CEC had sent the Ishimura to Aegis VII to do some illegal mining and inadvertently woken up those experiments, she was sent to retrieve the artifact, with the USM Valor acting as her backup. Kendra bid Isaac farewell after stranding him, but Isaac was able to recall the shuttle back to the Ishimura with the help of Nicole Brennan. Swearing this wasn't over, Kendra boarded an escape pod and crash landed somewhere near the colony.

Stranded, but not defeated, Kendra hid in wait as Isaac made his way through the necromorph infested colony to return the Marker to its pedestal. Doing so created a powerful pulse that knocked out the Ishimura's gravity tethers, causing it to drop its payload down toward the planet that it was excavated from. As Isaac hurried into a decontamination room on the way to his escape, Kendra made her move, trapping him within the facility as she retook the Marker. As revenge for acting against her, Kendra revealed the truth to Isaac: Nicole had killed herself before the Kellion arrived and a hallucination from the Marker had been guiding Isaac the whole time, making him "just as insane" as Dr. Kyne and Captain Mathius. After giving her farewells, Kendra hurried back to the landing pad, intending to strand Isaac on the doomed planet while she escaped with the Marker in tow.

As Kendra was preparing to load the Marker into the shuttle and make her escape, she was apprehended by Isaac. Before he could reach her, the Hive Mind rose up from the mining crater and smacked her away from the shuttle with a tentacle, gravely injuring her. As Kendra tried to get up, one of the massive tentacles smashed down onto her, crushing her body and slamming her against a nearby wall.

Personality and Traits[]

As a computer specialist, Kendra was able to manipulate and utilize the various systems of the Ishimura to great effect using her knowledge, uncovering information and records with little effort. Being an undercover agent, she was a skilled liar and manipulator as no one suspected her of working for EarthGov until her betrayal.

Kendra was short tempered and quarrelsome, butting heads with Hammond multiple times anywhere between what the best course of action was to trivial tasks such as rerouting power. She would frequently accuse of Hammond of being untrustworthy and already knowing about the Marker, which only worsened their already tense relationship. However, she knew enough not to completely push Hammond away as she continued to closely monitor his status, likely out of pragmatism on keeping their chances of survival as high as possible.

With regards to Isaac, Kendra saw him as a very useful asset; both for their survival and to complete her secret mission. As such, she paid very close attention to monitor Isaac's status and progression. It is hinted that she developed a healthy amount of respect for Isaac throughout their ordeal on the Ishimura, but was willing to cut him loose when he had outlived his usefulness, especially since Isaac had sided with Dr. Kyne on returning the Marker back to Aegis VII. Towards the final chapters of the game, Kendra demonstrated a rather arrogant, sadistic, and spiteful attitude towards Isaac, first demonstrated when she openly revealed her mission and smugly bid farewell to him after abandoning him on the Ishimura. Later, on Aegis VII, she revealed Nicole's suicide recording to mock and emotionally hurt Isaac when he continued to complicate her mission.

Trivia[]

  • Tonantzin Carmelo provides the voice and likeness of Kendra in the original Dead Space. In the 2023 remake, she is voiced by and modeled after Brigitte Kali Canales.[4]
  • Kendra was named one of the 'Hottest Video Game Babes of 2008' by Maxim Magazine.
  • In the original game, it is believed that Kendra was aware of Nicole's death as early as Chapter 3 as her sanctuary of the Computer Core held recordings of all the crew members that she would have access to, including Nicole's goodbye. This is further emphasized in the remake after Isaac says he found Nicole and worked with her to get the SOS beacon on the Mining Deck. Kendra's tone and her claim she lost Isaac's RIG signal like Hammond's due to the latter's proximity to the Marker suggests she is aware that something is not right and she remains blunt whenever Nicole is mentioned, merely going along with Isaac's request to communicate with her to keep him on her side.
  • In the original game, Kendra wears her RIG underneath her jacket, with the meter later seen on the Aegis VII colony after she loses said jacket. In the remake, Kendra's RIG is not visible.
  • In the original game, it is implied Kendra was the one blocking Hammond's RIG signal rendering communication impossible, although this is never proven. The remake changes the cause of the signal blocking to be because of the Marker instead.
  • In the original game, Kendra's body-parts seem to disappear after the Hive Mind fully emerges. However, if the player looks under the tentacle covering where she fell, Kendra's foot and arm can still be seen, neither of which can be retrieved with Kinesis.
  • Kendra shares a similar role to Daina Le Guin in Dead Space 2. Both Kendra and Daina initially start off as allies to Isaac, only to betray him at a pivotal moment. Both work for established organizations that have plans concerning the Marker, albeit different plans and organizations. Both are skilled computer technicians, as demonstrated by Kendra's role on the Kellion repair team and Daina's tracking and technical assistance for Isaac's journey to the top of the Church.

Gallery[]

Sources[]

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