Shade Darby

Shade Darby is the main protagonist of the Monster trilogy.

Description
Shade is a seventeen-year-old white girl. She has "noticeable", shoulder-length auburn hair, and is 5'8. Her eyes are brown and she has a large scar on the right side of her face, behind her ear, that Cruz describes as looking like "something out of a Frankenstein movie". She is described as having a bone structure similar to models. She is a vicious, ruthless, cunning girl, but she is also kind and intelligent, causing Cruz and Malik to see her as "half girl and half shark". She is obsessed with the FAYZ.

Power and abilities
Shade morphs into a very tall creature that looks to be a cross between a girl, an insect and plastic, the color of rust. It has the ability of super speed - Brianna was said to seem to be standing still compared to it. So far, her maximum speed is 800 mph, faster than the speed of sound. Her morph is also very durable due to it having some sort of exoskeleton related to its insectoid features, which caused a crowbar to harmlessly bounce off its skin. She can also jump very far with its oddly shaped legs (the knees bend backwards), but cannot support herself on landing.

Presumably, this morph uses insect DNA that the rock found in the ground, as insects are (relative to size) known to be much faster than humans, and the morph has an insectoid appearance as well as the ability to leap great distances.

Appearances
Shade’s mother was working as a scientist on the PBA, better known as the FAYZ. Shade went along to stay with them while they were doing this. In the battle between Gaia and Nemesis, Shade was determined to watch it, and refused to answer her mother’s texts and calls as she did not want to not be allowed to see it. The FAYZ wall came down and Shade’s mother was killed by Gaia’s light beam, Shade blaming herself for her mother’s death. Shade herself almost died from an out-of-control kid wielding a machete, which cut her neck.
 * Before the ASOs

Shade is first seen talking to Malik Tenerife about her obsession, and witnesses two football players beat up Cruz. She takes a sick day and befriends Cruz, and recruits her to help her steal ASO-3 - a meteorite set to hit Earth with the virus that created the Gaiaphage, and only Shade knows where it will land. She retrieves it and consumes an ounce, and discovers she can morph, but can't control it. She tries to get Cruz to provoke her, but manages to morph when they are attacked by thugs. However, Malik sees. He tells Shade how powerful she is and that she can be a monster, a villain, or a hero.
 * Monster

When her crime is discovered, Shade, Cruz and Malik go on the run. She tries to defeat Knightmare to prove she is a hero. Later, she turns up for the final battle but cannot defeat the minions of Vincent Vu. When Malik is fatally injured trying to save her, she drives him to the hospital, and discovers she has got him killed. However, she realizes there is a way to save him, and gives him some of ASO-3.

Shade feels extremely guilty for dragging her friends into all the chaos, and especially for being the reason Malik can only survive in a morphed state, with the Dark Watchers always in his mind. Once Malik is in morph, they escape the hospital and hide in a "for sale" house in the Mojave Desert. Shade does a test of her speed, and discovers she can reach the speed of around 800 mph. Shade decides to break into the Ranch and film the inhumane experiments taking place inside. She posts the video and it goes viral. Shade then goes to Las Vegas to meet up with Dekka and Armo. Shade gives Dekka some of ASO-3 so Astrid can have a morph to protect herself against Drake. In the battle of Las Vegas, Shade uses her speed to extinguish the first flame, from a sparking windup toy that Dillon purposefully drops. However, her attempt is in vain as Tom Peaks spews lava everywhere. She manages to extinguish more of the flames, but not before many people get severely burnt. She rescues many burn victims from the flames.
 * Villain

Hero

When Shade and the Rockborn Gang hear about Bob Markovic, they go to his apartment to attack. The attack fails though, and Armo almost dies. Shade concludes that they have to make sacrifices to defeat Bob Markovic, even someone’s life if necessary. The rest of the Rockborn Gang disagree, and create the Brownstone Declaration, which Shade signs; along with all the other members.

They decide that they need to attack Vector again, so they go to a hall where he has a human army. While fighting, Shade encounters Mirror, who is actually Frank Poole, a general who fought at Las Vegas. Mirror seriously hurts Shade, and she retreats.

When Dekka decides to attack again, Shade finds out Vector is on a train to Washington D.C.. The rest of the Rockborn Gang fly there in a helicopter while Shade hides on the train. Dekka, Armo, Simone and Cruz jump onto the train to kill Vector but this fails. Shade realizes that the pilots are getting infected and kills them out of mercy. She then puts Malik in the pilot seat, but the helicopter crashes into a backyard. Shade, unharmed, gets an ambulance and a medic and puts everyone else in it.

Shade, Armo, Dekka and Francis pop onto the train. Shade immediately smashes into a door, then Dekka, Armo and Francis smash into her, completely crippling her. Francis pops them back onto the helicopter and Shade demorphs, saving herself.

Shade is transported to Site L, where Malik finds out the world is a simulation created by himself, with help from herself.. Shade votes on whether to end the universe or not, but her answer has not been confirmed by any canon sources.

Relationships
Malik and Shade developed a close friendship soon after Shade’s mother died. It eventually developed into something more than that, until Shade ended it because she still wanted her own secrets and privacy. Yet, they remained friends, although Malik still seems to like Shade in a romantic way. After Shade drags Malik into her mission of sorts and almost gets Malik killed, he becomes more distant from her, angry that it is thanks to her he has to remain in morph permanently.
 * Malik

Shade originally sees Cruz as somebody that she can use to get her hands on the ASO rock, as Malik is unwilling to help. However, as they are exposed to physical and emotional pain together, they develop a close friendship. Cruz is angry at Shade for making them all end up in a terrible situation, but continues stay with Shade nonetheless.
 * Cruz

Shade works with Dekka and Armo in battle, and becomes friends with the two. Shade trusts both of them, and they work well as a team in battle.
 * Dekka and Armo

Quotes
''“Mmmm, yes, that’s what everyone says about me. That I’m too darn nice.”''
 * Shade to Cruz:

“Mmmm, I don’t mean to disillusion you, Cruz, but there are a lot of idiots in the world.”
 * Shade infiltrating the Ranch:

“''People think that Rockborn are the big threat, and the government are the solution. We need them to decide the opposite, at least some of them. We need at least some people out there who don’t think we’re some new kind of cockroach that needs to be stamped out.”''

''“I’m Shade Darby. This horror show is run by the US government, by a group called Homeland Security Task Force 66. Do you see what they’re doing here? Do you see what they‘re doing supposedly in your name? So who are the bad guys? Us or them?”''

“Well, if we’re riding into battle we should ride comfortably.”

Shade to Dekka:

''“I’m not really impressed by my own decision making lately, you know? Especially when it comes to the rock.”''