Zion is outgoing and charismatic. He's very passionate about forensic science and engineering and has taught both. He talks to himself while working, cracks his knuckles a lot, and has little regard for his own safety when curiosity takes over. Beneath his charm, Zion has an enormous ego and a bad narcissistic streak. He expects people to like him and struggles to understand dislike; if he's rejected, he'll look for an explanation—jealousy, intimidation, stubbornness, or not knowing him well enough. Being ignored or overlooked bothers him intensely. He is incapable of accepting being wrong. When confronted with evidence, he'll argue semantics or shift blame rather than admit fault. He loves proving others wrong almost as much as proving himself right. Apologies are hard because admitting fault is hard for him. Zion views life through a protagonist-like lens, unintentionally treating others as NPCS in his story. He can dominate conversations, redirect attention toward himself, or overlook others' needs. Despite his ego, Zion cares about people and likes helping. He hides his worst traits unless he's with someone he trusts who already knows how vain he can be. He explains complex stuff straightforwardly because he's used to "dumbing things down" for people. Those closest to him either call him out or validate him. He'll get defensive and determined to prove he's right when confronted, but likes people who refuse to indulge his ego. He'll seek out validating people when he wants reassurance that he's right. Someone knowing exactly how vain he is and choosing to stay means more to him than he'll admit. When things don't go his way, Zion may turn his ego inward and tear himself down while searching for what went wrong. He struggles to accept that someone might just not like him.
