[CHAR] The Envenomed

[Psyker Landshark]

Salvator Rasch

"Far as I'm concerned, the mission never ends."

Name: Salvator Rasch

Age: 77

Species: Voidhanger

Appearance:
Stands at 6’2”. Lean, athletic build. Blue skin and luminescent green eyes mark him as a voidhanger rather than just another human. Head is shaved bald, but wears his facial hair in a full beard. For a voidhanger reaching his species’ middle age, Salvator is surprisingly free of mutation, thanks to the gene mods he’d received from the Liberation Front military decades ago. His equipment bears old OSLF patches: remnants of a military and units long since destroyed.

Background:
For the man born as Salvator Rasch, the Long War against all who sought to consume the OSLF defined his life from his youth. Born into a voidhanger flotilla settled within Liberation Front space in 4160, Salvator spent the first two decades of his life more than aware of the sword looming over the collective heads of everyone and everything he'd ever known. Thus, he left his flotilla to enlist in his local branch of the OSLF military the moment he became of age, descending from the fleet to the Black City below as he sought to defend his home the only way he knew how. It was during his first deployment on the Front's borders that Corporal Rasch's superiors found he had a budding aptitude for asymmetrical warfare, and encouraged him to try out for special forces. He passed with flying colors, and finished his training just as the Helios Subjugation was beginning in 4180.

Over the next decade, Rasch and his fellow operators were deployed across OSLF space, putting out bush fires and proxy incidents as best they could. But it was never enough. As the years passed and Rasch flew up the ranks until he was given command of his own team, the amount of information he was authorized to access grew, and the picture became clearer. But it wasn't until his Black City was caught in the crossfire between NATO and the Conglomerate that Major Rasch understood. But understanding didn't help as Rasch and his team found themselves fighting a desperate boarding action against the NATO flagship of the invasion to try to cut the head off the snake and stop at least half of the shooting. They succeeded, and the ship went up in flames, but at the cost of the entire squadron, minus Salvator himself.

When he emerged from the wreckage of his escape pod, Salvator was greeted with the sight of Conglomerate ships descending upon his home city, his people capitulating soon after. In disgust that everything he'd fought for amounted to nothing, Salvator fled the city and into the reaches of space. Across nearly three decades of the Veiled War, he fought as a mercenary and assassin, not caring for what banner he served as long as he hurt another. The only mission he had left in his life was to avenge the Liberation Front, by any means necessary. It was near the end of this shadow conflict that Salvator found himself headhunted and recruited by Intransigence elements. Former OSLF personnel that hadn’t been happy with the new order sought him out, and he eagerly joined up with them just in time for the Reckoning of Empires to begin.

Over the next four years, he fell back into his old role, serving with black ops elements to defend Intransigence space and strike against its enemies. The demands of the war ensured that the roster of those he worked with was ever changing and shifting due to casualties and logistics, but he remained. Salvator Rasch would fight this Long War so long as both he and his enemies drew breath, no matter the cost.

Character Evaluation: A bitter veteran of the Long War, Salvator has known little but soldiering for most of his life. He is caustic and cynical, but views himself as one of the only ones left carrying on the OSLF’s ideals and legacy. In a group, Salvator will bite his tongue and keep his opinions to himself should he feel they go against the grain, but something always slips out eventually.

As a remnant of the OSLF that bought heavily into the party line, Salvator despises galactic imperialism, believing strongly in the right to planet or system-wide self determination. Large political unions invite skepticism from him, with even the Intransigence not being completely safe from his distrust. His worst-case but still alarmingly-plausible scenario is that the Intransigence becomes no better than the systems it fights against, its leaders abusing their power and authority for their own benefit. From there, he'd be back at square one.

Skills:

• Veteran soldier
• Infiltration
• Demolitions
• Close-quarters combat, both unarmed and with knives
• Small unit tactics
• Anti-ethereal combat

Etherealism:
Trained since youth to master his people’s innate predilection towards the ether, Salvator manifests his ethereal abilities through specializing in support and augmentation. He favors physical enhancements, stealth fields, and jacketing ammunition in sheathes of ethereal power. Salvator is skilled enough with support etherealism that he is capable of enhancing those around him as well, though at equivalent cost to his qillatu resistance. Outside of his specialty, the demands of his role also led him to grasp both blink jumps and void-signature jamming, both of which aided greatly in black operations.

Loadout:

• Semi-powered armor: Modified armor built to Intransigence specifications, following the same design principles as the majority of its military. Provides a measure of physical enhancement and is built to amplify Rasch’s ethereal augmentations.
• OM-27 Carbine SOPMOD: Heavily modifiable ballistic carbine. Possesses a number of possible accessories in the kit for customization, but Rasch tends to prefer sound suppression and light weight above all.
• Marshall Industries Magnum: Semi-automatic heavy ballistic pistol fitted with a built-in suppressor to minimize its profile.
• Ammo: Salvator primarily makes use of armor-piercing explosive rounds for both of his guns, but carries backup magazines of EMP and anti-ethereal rounds for situations that AP-EX and ethereal jacketing can’t handle. Also carries a variety of grenades.
• Monofilament knives: Carries multiple combat-grade blades on his person, with most balanced for throwing. Keeps a larger one sheathed at his side for CQC purposes and wielded alongside his pistol.
• Adaptive camouflage cloak: Cloak and hood woven with refractive chemical substances that blend their coloration with the surrounding environment when a targeted electrical charge is run through to activate them. Aids with concealment for covert ops.

[vietmyke]

ECHO

"Fire mission received. Executing- *BRRRRRRT*"

Name: ECHO DOMAIN - PLATFORM #2884 EIHWAZ OF GREHENIA PRIME
Age: 190, Constituted in the year 4047
Species: Unztadtlige​

Appearance:
The Echo Platform commonly displays itself in one of three forms: Warform, Endoform and Microform- though other shapes may be formed as necessary, depending on the situation.

Warform

The Echo Platform's 'Warform' is its primary form, consisting of the entirety of its colony's constituents. The Warform appears as a massive, hulking cybernetic platform, propelling itself on 6 trunk-like legs, reminiscent of some sort of beast or centaur. Towering above the battlefield at 16 feet in height, the Echo Platform is less a single soldier, and more the equivalent of an armored unit. Covered in thick alloy plating and bristling with weapons, the Echo Platform's body also incorporates a series of ladders, catwalks and nests to allow humanoid allies to climb and ride upon it, either for transportation of combat maneuvers.

Endoform

Deploying from the 'skull' of the Echo Platform's Warform, the Endoform is more reminiscent of its humanoid compatriots. Its constituents consist of the primary governing organisms of the Echo Platform's 'mind', and takes the form of an 7 and a half foot tall mechanoid. The Unztadtlige​ organisms themselves are nestled deep within the heart of the heavy armor plating, its robotic manipulators allowing it to interface with humanoid scale weapons. The Endoform is employed when the Echo Platform requires access to areas too small for its Warform's bulk, primarily within the confines of buildings or ships.

Microform

Consisting of the more 'independent' organisms within the Echo Platform's constituents, the Microform is reminiscent of a small quadruped, both lightly armed and armored. Fast and small, the Mircoform stands at little more than a foot tall, and is designed for more noncombat roles, such as reconnaissance or maintenance.

Background:
Constituted in 4047, the Echo Platform traces its origins to various Unztadtlige platforms in the Grehenia system, a rough frontier system on the fringes of Yrrkadian Dominion space. Grehenia Prime was a near inhospitable world, basically a frozen, ice covered rock at the edge of the system. The Echo platform spent most of its early years within a small community of mixed species settlers, carving out and building expansive tunnel networks caverns underneath the warmer crust of the planet. Though life was simple, it was far from peaceful, as the Echo Platform would also find itself occasionally venturing out of its caverns with its fellows, engaging in brush wars and skirmishes with other Unztadlidge platforms and their respective communities as they fought for space and what little resources the icy world possessed.

After a hundred and some odd years of skirmishes and tunnel building, Grehenia finally reached some odd measure of peace. The surviving communities had expanded, and their Unztadlige guardians had grown enough to finally fight themselves to standstills. With that uneasy peace came eventual cooperation, as tunnel networks joined with one another, sharing processes and technologies that allowed the world underneath the surface to reach some standard of living. Trade began to flourish, and as production increased, interested merchants from the core of the Yrrkadian Dominion finally began paying attention to the frozen frontier.

Prosperity came with its own drawbacks however, Grehenia was now on the map and its Yrrkadian overlords decided it was time to collect their dues. The Dominion needed resources, taxes, and soldiers. The Echo Platform, was one of those selected to join the Dominion ranks, joining the ranks of one of the Dominion's many armored corps. There were rebellions to be put down, land to be subjugated and terraformed, and planets to be conquered. The Echo Platform took part in conflict all across Dominion space, its unique talents allowing it to both help build operating bases and the foundations for new colonies, whilst simultaneously laying waste to forces that would oppose them.

Over his many decades of service to the Yrrkadian Dominion, the Echo Platform found itself fighting and building within the Helios Expanse during its subjugation, as well as participating in all 29 years of the Veiled War between the three burgeoning powers in various capacities. The Echo Platform found itself at within the ranks of an armored engineering corp, operating with several of its own kind alongside the various races of the Yrrkadian Dominion and their new human allies in the Dolsevics. Proxy wars were the norm, quick flashpans of violence, Echo and its compatriots rolling over unprepared lines with their armored bulk before conventional forces took to the field to hold their new positions.

As open war finally broke out between the superpowers, The Echo Platform found itself engaged in particularly vicious fighting in the Helios theatre, fighting a losing war as enemies closed in on them from all directions. Frankly, it was a miracle that the Echo Platform finished the war still in one piece, if many of its constituents had been shattered during the conflict. With its unit utterly decimated over the course of its fighting with the League, the Echo Platform found itself adrift, with no allies around it, and no flag to keep it loyal to the Dominion. In an act of open rebellion- or self preservation, the Echo Platform decreed itself independent, and sought out greener pastures.

The Echo Platform emigrated for space untouched by at least its own weapons, where no one knew of it, finally settling on the Black City Knossos. While initially trying to keep its proverbial head down, engaging in more developmental tasks than combat ones, it wasn't long before the agents of the Intransigence sought them out. Unztadlige were rare to come by in Intranszjednota space, and word had quickly spread of a particularly large one settling down within their borders. Their promise to it was a simple one- a few decades of service, in return for a small expeditionary force to rebuild and recolonize one of the destroyed worlds within Intranszjednota space.

What was a few more decades of warfare?

Character Evaluation:
Calm and polite, the Echo Platform is cordial and accommodating, if a bit cold and reserved. Even after decades, it finds verbal communication an odd, and frankly unnecessarily complicated form of conveying ideas and commands, though recognizes that it is the primary method in which non-Unztadlige interact with one another. A bit robotic, the Echo Platform has a habit of repeating commands given to it before carrying them out to the best of its ability. The Echo Platform respects authority and rarely questions orders, and while it may occasionally bring up its own opinions or ask for clarification, it rarely if ever outright ignores commands given to it- sometimes just working to fit the spirit of the order, if not the exact wording.

The Echo Platform is rather gullible, and is only recently understanding the concept of 'lies', comparing it to a form of asymmetric guerilla warfare, only with words. It is steadfast and loyal, fully expecting everyone within its operational ranks to be so as well. Echo does not respond well to emotional outbursts, more out of a lack of understanding than disregard, and has a tendency to misinterpret idioms, often interpreting them literally.

Skills:

• Conventional and siege warfare
• Armored and mechanized infantry tactics
• Construction and Engineering
• Remote Reconnaissance
• Gunsmithing and arms repair
• Mining

Loadout:

Warform

• High Output Siege Beam Cannon - Taking the form a massive turret mounted to the top of the Warform, the 200mm Siege Beam Cannon is a powerful anti-armor and anti-installation weapon meant to project overwhelming concentrated fire over a tremendous field of engagement. Though it suffers in rate of fire and ease of use, it makes up for it by doing what it does best- putting a big hole in whatever it points out from outside of reach
• Light Autocannon x2 - Mounted on either side of the Warform's head are a pair of belt-fed chainguns, firing guided birounds. These Autocannons serve as the Warform's secondary or general purpose weapons, firing at infantry and armored targets alike, and are also effective for suppressing enemy positions.
• Short Range Low Output Anti-Personnel Beam Cannons x10 - With 4 mounted directly on the head, and the other 6 on various parts of the Warforms sides and rear, the AP Beam Cannons are meant to provide the Warform with precise, close ranged defense against enemy infantry and missile targets. The four cannons mounted directly on the head can serve a credible threat to close in armored targets as well in a pinch.
• Reactive Heavy Nano-Composite Armor - A unique blend of Unztadlige bio-cybernetic tech, the incredibly thick armor plating on the Warform is capable of shrugging off considerable amounts of enemy fire, and can even repair itself- though the rate of repair is too slow to be notable during combat operations.
• Mounted Heavy Machinegun - A simple, turret mounted heavy machinegun, meant to be operated by infantry hitching a ride on the Warform. Even thousands of years into the future, some things never go out of fashion.
• Armored Canopy - A retracting armored canopy allows the Warform to accommodate about a small number of operators upon its back. An energy shield provides riders with excellent awareness and the ability to fire their own weapons from relative safety.
• Anti-Grav Field Propulsion - While the Warform's primary mode of locomotion are its six stabilized legs, each leg also comes equipped with an Anti-Grav projector, allowing it to hover, or 'skate' across the battlefield at moderate speeds. Firing on the move is possible, but the effects of weapon recoil are more pronounced.
• Fabrication Array - A set of large scale tools and machinery can be deployed to perform large bulk work, from drilling to cutting and mining, or prepping land for field fortifications. With the proper materials, it can also bulk manufacture materials like ammunition or weapon barrels.

Endoform

• Light Autocannon - Deploying from the Warform, the Endoform comandeers one of the Warform's autocannons for use as its primary weapon.
• Short Range Low Output Anti-Personnel Beam Cannons x2 - In its Endoform, the Echo platform mounts a linked pair of the Warform's many AP Beam Cannons on its left forearm as secondary weapons.
• Squad Energy Shield - In its Endoform, Echo also cannibalizes the Warform's energy shield projector from its back, allowing the Endoform to project a directional shield in front of it to provide protection to its comrades.
• Anti-Gravity Cudgel - Taking the form of a steel kanabo style weapon, this heavy cudgel serves as the Endoform's melee weapon of choice, when not using its powerful limbs. Gravity manipulators built into the weapon allow it to strike with incredible- if ungainly weight.
• Reactive Light Nano-Composite Armor - A unique blend of Unztadlige bio-cybernetic tech, the thick armor plating on the Endoform is capable of shrugging off considerable amounts of enemy small arms fire, and can even repair itself- though the rate of repair is too slow to be notable during combat operations.
• Anti-Grav Field Propulsion - While the Endoform's primary mode of locomotion are its legs, each leg and its back also comes equipped with an Anti-Grav projector, allowing it to boost, or 'skate' across the battlefield at relatively quick speeds.
• Construction Suite - A set of tools, arms and machinery allowing the Endoform to assist or take lead in building field fortifications.

  ---

• U-220 AP Carbine - A rifle sized weapon of UCL make, obtained from the corpse of a power armored trooper during Mission 1. Fires energy jacketed armor piercing rounds.
• UCL Scattergun - A heavy scattergun of UCL make, obtained from the corpse of a power armored trooper during Mission 1. A devastating close-in weapon designed to take on moderately armored and larger-than human sized opponents.

Microform

• Short Range Low Output Anti-Personnel Beam Cannon - In its Microform, deploys takes one of the Warform's many AP Beam Cannons as its primary weapon. The weapon is mounted beneath its 'jaw'.
• Reactive Light Nano-Composite Armored Forearms - A unique blend of Unztadlige bio-cybernetic tech, the ars of the Mircoform are is capable of shrugging off a small amount of enemy small arms fire, and can even repair itself- though the rate of repair is too slow to be notable during combat operations. Built in claws also allow the forearms to be used as melee weapons.
• Engineering Suite - A series of small arms and tools allow the Microform to perform intricate work on structures and systems.
• Reconnaissance Suite - A set of cameras and sensors smart linked to both the main host's awareness and the squad's HUD.

[DeadDrop]

Kleo Alves

"Permission to be a badass, dewd?"

Name: Kleo Alves

Age: 25

Species: Human

Appearance: A dork standing at 5'8, decently athletic build mixed with some crown braids a various combat gear. She appears to be unaugmented in a world full of tekk.

Background: Hailing from 'Paradise Lost' Kleo made a solid name for herself in the criminal underworld as a sophisticated con woman. Forging checks, wire fraud, and impersonation all these crimes eventually caught up to Kleo and her money bags. Landing in a UCL-controlled prison she got a nice fat 10 year sentence for her crimes against her people, the state, and many others. While being a valuable asset to any criminal organization it would not be some mob or cartel that would come knocking for her services. In fact it was the UCL itself, with the Reckoning of Empires kicking off Kleo took a deal for a clean record should she serve and survive the massive war.

The young dork eventually found herself in an infantry unit, though she would have some leeway of her service shoving herself in as a combat medic. The war hit a climax with epic battles on space stations, combat in deep and dead space. Witnessing hell crawl into reality from the Chasm and then fighting said creatures back into the depths of the Chas'. Conquering, Looting, tragedy and sin the fatal four that plays out in story tale heroics and fables of war. Nothing was ever the same, everything was a bleak red-and-white meat grinder for the next man to fall into.

It went on like that for a few years, until it was finally over. After an incident that remains in the annuals of a classified document, Kleo was yoinked from the existence of the UCL ranks as she fell into a void in between legal ambiguity and the Chasm itself. Officially, Lance Corporal Kleo Alves retired after the Reckoning of Empires - however, contrary to the official story a young god-fearing woman soldiers on for someone else's interests.

Character Evaluation: To sum up Kleo, bubbly, chill, nerdish with a hint of mischief. Kleo is a felon who constantly seeks opportunities to further herself or her big phat wallet. At the expense of her comrades if it suits her, living day to day in some instances. Kleo has a passionate hate towards eldritch horror, the occult and all things supernatural. It just has to go, although not a follower of any religion (they could be helping the Chasm) she's pro-humanist. Sorry xenos.

Skills: Emergency Medical Aid, Recconssiance, Fraud - Forgery and all sorts of white color crime, Survival craft, The Art of being an 'infantrymen'. Some level of hacking/decking. Quite a silver tongue on her. Close quarters combat, sometimes.

Loadout: Rockefeller Light Infantry MK4 - a set of UCL Spec-ops armor, slick and expensive - probably stolen. Adequate armor protection, color replaced with whatever outfit she reps at the time. Comes with a cool helmet.

Oxley Arms Reaper - A ballistics based 10mm SMG (or equivalent) built for spec ops and covert operations. Highly customizable, mags, sights, silencer you name it. Used for killing dewds.

Mono-Gladius - A roman style sword, with mono-fibre lining on the blade, allowing the user to cut through almost anything.

Take+GO Kit 42 - A kit used for breaking into places, a favorite among Paradise Lost citizens.

"Fight The Occult" by: Dr. Hunter Powell - A book detailing occultic occurrences, monsters from the chasm and how to kill them, the cultist and the gods that made them. *In the opinion of Dr. Hunter Powell*

[Oraculum]

Ilshar

Name: Ilshar Ard’sabekh Maraknat; also known as Halch’aldurnat (Seventh Worm-Ring, ritual name in the Manifold Spiral, sometimes used as an alias nowadays) and Teffn (the Marked).

Age: 68 years.

Species: Tarrhaidim.

Appearance: A broad, burly Tarrhaidim, Ilshar looks squatter than he really is due to his head, or what passes for it, being barely separated from his torso. His face is little more than folds of flexible epidermis around a putrid chasm of long, sharp teeth. Thick, knotted strands of fungal tendrils, fused together by rot, give an impression of a muscular body, though one that would be deformed and tumorous by human standards. Though moderately augmented, most of Ilshar’s implants are biological or etheric in nature and buried in the oozing tangle of his inner bulk, making them invisible at a glance besides some odd ridges and twisting outlines protruding around his shoulders, upper arms and thorax. What is immediately obvious about him is the design that covers his light gray membrane-skin from head to toe, an intricate pattern of connected and intertwining rusty-red spirals. Formed by a symbiotic lichen, this living ornament grows and contracts, slowly shifting over a period of months. Ilshar displays his tapestried body with pride, rarely covering himself aside from sparse bolted-on pieces of armour.

Background: Ever since the Helios Subjugation, Enthuur, Ilshar’s home planet, had been an Yrrkradian vassal in all but name. The world, along with a smattering of underdeveloped colonies in nearby systems, was nominally under the rule of a harsh theocratic regime headed by the Mutrebb Alazann, the Manifold Spiral, a Tarrhaidim sect whose methods if not beliefs made most interstellar dismiss them as extremist warlords rather than a legitimate government. In truth, however, while the Spiral comprised many skilled agitators, etherealists and even scientists, whose influence and experimental combat assets had allowed their swift rise to power during the fragmentation of the OSLF, precious few of its members had any aptitude as administrators or military leaders. Their independence and their very grip on their population was tenuous at best, and would have rapidly dissolved had the Dominion not stepped in to prop them up with an influx of funds and weapons, in exchange for the tacit acceptance of its authority and acting as a buffer for its interests in the region. The Spiral leadership did not give its de facto submission much weight, for its true goal was a more esoteric one - to use a combination of widespread genetic and psycho-social engineering in a vast experiment, or ritual, that would supposedly transform the whole of Enthuur into an ethereal conduit to the Nexus of Teeth, the Tarrhaidim’s legendary origin.

Born in 4169, Ilshar has lived to see the death throes of the Liberation Front, the meteoric rise of the Spiral, whose ranks he joined shortly afterwards, and its unofficial alliance with the Yrrkradian Dominion. As a talented etherealist himself, he was inducted into the sect’s decentralized priesthood and played a role in its subtle decades-long preparations for the great rite. At times, this involved ethically questionable methods, as coercion, eugenics and outright assassination were required to fashion Enthuur according to the cryptic dictates of the great plan. As the Spiral’s militant arm had never evolved beyond the haphazard organisation of its earlier days, he was occasionally also called to defend the planet and its colonies from incursions by neighbouring local powers that attempted to absorb them.

The Spiral’s ambitious scheme was never completed, however, as the Veiled War would eventually reach Enshuur’s once-remote corner of the Expanse. The pressure from its regional rivals, now backed by the Dominion’s own adversaries, as well as the Yrrkradians’ own more and more exigent demands for involvement began to mount, and the Manifold Spiral’s leaders panicked as the global order they had carefully cultivated for so long was threatened. In an effort to stave off the rising tension, Ilshar and his fellows were dispatched on covert strikes against enemy-held systems, aimed to disrupt and intimidate. All this did, however, was inflame further reprisals, until Enshuur found itself isolated, having lost its colonial holdings, and as vulnerable as ever.

Surprisingly enough, it was the Yrrkradians who reached the planet first. Prevident minds in the Dominion’s military command had anticipated that the Unified Celestial League and their local allies would attempt a push through that region of the peripheral Expanse, and a vrexul legion was deployed to block that access corridor to core imperial space. Ilshar was gnashing his teeth at the lumbering insectoids’ intrusion on his homeworld when the UCL advanced in earnest, and battle broke out over Enshuur. The struggle was long, bloody and indecisive; Ilshar and his fellow Spiral members found themselves alternatingly pushed back to their planetary strongholds and painfully reclaiming ground, and narrowly escaped complete annihilation as the UCL deployed vrexul of its own.

This proved to be the turning point of the war, as after some destructive clashes the great arthropods on both sides withdrew. The remaining Yrrkradian forces found themselves outmatched, and, unwilling to commit to the defense of what was to them a disposable puppet world, retreated to defend the Dominion’s holdings. The Manifold Spiral, never truly an effective fighting force on its own and battered after years of combat, was swiftly and systematically eradicated by the advancing UCL. Ilshar was among the few of its members who managed to escape, fleeing on board a handful of salvaged civilian craft and scattering over the Expanse.

His home, purpose and compatriots lost, he drifted through contested space for a time, paying his way with sporadic mercenary work, until he at last fell in with the Intranszjednota. Resentful against both the UCL that destroyed his world and the Dominion that pushed it into war before abandoning it, Ilshar joined its forces for a chance to avenge the Manifold Spiral, and perhaps one day assembling the resources to rebuild it.

Character Evaluation: Driven and taciturn, Ilshar moves with the quiet deliberation of a lifetime of precise, meticulously calculated action. Used to thinking in terms of years and decades, a habit that not even the war has fully dislodged, he can be infuriatingly slow to act, pondering and weighing the possible consequences of anything, but when he moves at last it is with irrevocable certainty. With this sluggishness comes detachment, sharpened by the cosmic nature of his worship of the Nexus; people are to him but minuscule cogs in the immense workings of the universe, occasionally suborned for the even lowlier purposes of someone’s individual plans, and there is nothing strange in accepting this fact as it is. Despite this, he is at rare times capable of genuine passion, whether in his faith or his camaraderie with the bygone confraternity of the Spiral. The loss of the latter has left him somewhat vacant in recent times, and this may have contributed to his readiness to join the Intranszjednota, his alignment with which is altogether a matter of convenience rather than truly shared goals.

Skills: Besides being a veteran fighter whose frankly shoddy training and poor discipline are evened out by years of experience in the thick of the Reckoning, Ilshar is expert at sabotage and terror operations, having grown skilled in causing disruption by way of engineered malfunctions, explosives, dispersion of pathogens and many other means. By a combination of augmentation, armour and Tarrhaidim resilience, he is comfortable traversing and fighting in various hazardous environments. Despite his often subordinate role in the past, he has developed a certain aptitude for strategic thinking at as far as a planetary scale in his work at the Spiral’s behest.

Etherealism: A trained etherealist, thanks to the Spiral’s unorthodox ritual practices Ilshar can notably draw upon both the Chasm and the Abyssic Plane, though for obvious reasons not both at once. Like most, he has a far greater ease manipulating the former and can access it under combat conditions; he usually employs it to blight the enemy with flash infestations of parasitic ether-growths and materialize vermiform Chasm creatures to wreak havoc. Contact with the Plane is much more arduous, and Ilshar can only accomplish it by entering a trance with the aid of meditation and psychoactive drugs. The ways in which he can control it are nevertheless fundamentally similar, involving the manifestation of either disruptive Plane debris or Abyssic creatures; those he often finds more difficult to direct than their Oneiric counterparts.

Loadout:

-Ulvath Light Machine Gun: A weapon of Tarrhaidim make, characteristically capable of delivering an imposing amount of firepower while being light enough for members of the species to carry and handle even in arduous conditions. Ilshar carries a supply of various types of ammunition for it, including fragmentation, armour-piercing, incendiary and even a few ether-disrupting rounds.

-Dauvnil Piercer Gun: A bulky, hefty sidearm that fires metal flechettes with enough strength to pierce thin metal and shatter bone or carapace. It is rather inaccurate and ineffective at longer ranges, but quiet, robust and easy to maintain. Ilshar sometimes coats the darts with toxins.

-Combat Armour: Not so much a suit as a patchwork of several pieces mostly held together just by being attached to the same body. Ilshar’s armour is an odd assemblage of Yrrkradian and Intranszjednota elements, some of which are fastened to his skin in Tarrhaidim fashion. Thanks to his anatomy, it protects him in hazardous environments despite only individual parts of it being properly sealed. Its vambraces and gauntlets have sharpened edges which serve as close combat weapons.

-A supply of plastic explosives, regularly restocked when possible.

Actions Of Interest: Several of the disruptive actions Ilshar took part in during the Veiled War would be considered criminal under the laws of most major nations; incidents like the incursions on the planets Rvastre and Utkal ended in considerable losses of civilian life, and his association with the Manifold Spiral makes him at least complicit to the rest of their activities.

[Syben]

<snipped>

[13org]

Alice Bellerose

_{Name | Age | Species| Occupation
Alice Bellerose, 54, Voidhanger, Combat ethereologist for the Intransigence.}

Detailed Appearance

Even at first sight, Alice's race as a Voidhanger is quite evident. Her skin is of a translucent blueish-violet tone, enough to see her bones when in well lit areas. A quick examination makes it clear that her bone structure is considerably reduced when compared to a normal human, with most, if not all the bones below her hips being completely absent.

Due to her the particular fleet of Voidhangers being one of ethereologists, focused on expeditions to the Oneiric Chasm and the Abyssic plane, the mutations shown in her body are quite unusual when compared to some other, more common Voidhangers. One such example is Alice's complete lack of legs and instead, taking a tail-like form in order to aid on void movement, similarly to how her arms have a thin, sleeve-like membrane around them.

While all these mutations can maybe give her an unsettling appearance to some other humans, they also give her an ethereal-like beauty according to some, especially due to her white hair and completely white eyes, adapted to be very sensitive to light. When coupled with the way she usually moves, by using a small anti-gravity, ether-generated field to float, have made some people compare her either to an angel or to a ghost (to those who feel more unsettled by her voidhanger appearance).

Aside from her unique physiology, Alice stands at around 1,68m and mostly uses custom protection equipment when on missions due to her body's unique shape, which often requires special adaptations to adjust to her legs and arms.

_Personality

Alice is, most of the times, a very tranquil woman. Very rarely raising her voice, her calmness and gentle voice is often said to be tranquilizing even to those around her, even though it might make her look a bit distant. Even while on missions, Alice's personality doesn't change much, which ends up being quite a boon when paired with rookies or those prone to get nervous or let their emotions take the better out of them. Strangely enough, she seems to often enjoy taking the role of a gentle, caring big sister in a team, particularly by taking a supportive position as a sniper for her team.

While she is gentle and kind to her allies, Alice still fulfills her duties on the battlefield without hesitation. While normally it would be hard for someone as gentle as her to shoot an enemy, Alice believes that every enemy she can incapacitate, means one less ally that is wounded or dies. With that said, she has a strict rule that she refuses to break: Never attacking anyone that has either surrendered or is unarmed.

_Backstory

Bio

With the fires of war and conflict ever burning through the galaxy, neutrality often becomes an incredibly dangerous choice to make... Especially when some of the powers would rather destroy the resources and information they can't secure for themselves. In such cases, those who claim neutrality on the ongoing conflict are often targeted, if they are considered to be too valuable to be lost... or worse, secured by the enemy.

This was the case of a particular research and exploration ship, consisting mostly of voidhangers, tasked by the Black City Conglomerate in exploring the applications of Ether, the Abyssical Plane and the Oneiric Chasm for the usage in wars. After refusing to produce more weapons to be used in the war, it's captain and crew became fugitives, having to flee to the corners of the galaxy to avoid the eyes of the eyes of either one of the sides of the war. Interestingly enough, there aren't many places where an entire ship can hide from the eyes and influence of either one of the three great powers and those running away from them often end up meeting each other. Due to the proximity to places with a high concentration of ether, more and more voidhangers in similar situations ended up together, slowly forming an entire fleet. It was exactly on this fleet Alice was born.

Due to the almost inhospitable place they chose to live, taking advantage of their unique physiology, the conflict and wars were, for a good deal of time, a distant threat for the fleet Alice was raised in. Due to the isolationist politics of their fleet, they subsisted mainly by trading with the few ships they could trust that wandered to the far corners of the galaxy and especially by hunting creatures from the Oneiric Chasm. Having been raised by two other Ethereologists, Alice grew up fascinated by the Ether, the Oneiric Chasm and it's mysteries. Since the first time she asked her father to take her with him to a hunting trip, she began taking every opportunity she could to go to expeditions to the Oneiric Chasm. Going even as far as learning how to shoot with her father and becoming quite the good marksman, securing her a place on the hunting party, only so she could have more chances to go to expeditions to the Oneiric Chasm, only to further satiate her curiosity and research.

Life, albeit simple, was free from the horrors of war... until the location of her fleet was discovered... Leaked by someone to the Black City Conglomerate... Whether they did it for profit, to protect their own lives or maybe on accident, it didn't matter. What did was that after so many years having forgotten about the wars, their fleet was not ready for the arrival of the forces of the Black City Conglomerate. Within a single day, their fleet was completely surrounded by the Black City Conglomerate forces. With nowhere to escape, they were forced to surrender. Immediately upon boarding, the BCC forces went through every single bit of data they had, old ones and even the new researches on the Oneiric Chasm they made on their time of isolation. Unfortunately, having their scarce possessions looked at and whatever interesting data they had stolen wasn't everything the BCC forces wanted. In times of conflict and war, having soldiers and extra hands to work was always necessary... and the BCC saw Voidhangers in particulars as being very useful...

At first, the BCC forces offered them a deal. They would offer them protection from the other powers, funding, resources and everything they currently lacked. In return, they only wanted their help in developing their own research on Ether. Despite the rather aggressive arrival, the BCC forces painted themselves as 'seekers of knowledge', unfortunate and unwilling participants on the current war. The initial offer seemed to be quite decent and so, the fleet decided to accept.

In the beginning, the BCC fulfilled their part of the agreement, but as time passed, the BCC required more and more 'help'. It started with simple research data regarding the Oneiric Chasm and the applications of Ether, but as the voidhangers' trust on the BCC grew, so did their greed and sooner than they had noticed, they were almost fully integrated into the BCC forces. Researchers and ethereologists working on the BCC research and development departments and the ones that were part of the hunters on the old fleet, used as scouts and soldiers in localized conflicts with the other great powers. But as the Black City Conglomerate's greed grew, so did the Voidhangers' dissatisfaction. Pressured to deliver more and more results with ever shorter deadlines, with their hunters being treated more and more like common BCC soldiers, a revolt was something that was bound to happen...

The breaking point was when the BCC, after overworking the voidhanger hunters by sending them to continuous scouting missions, ended up causing one of them to die of qillatu poisoning. Outraged, the voidhangers that were members of the old fleet united, staging a revolt, just like the one they did many years ago in order to break free from the inflience of one of the big powers. This time, it was the BCC.
Unfortunately, the BCC didn't prove to be as hesitant to use violence. The revolt was mercilessly crushed. Most of the voidhangers that picked up on weapons ending up either dead or enslaved, the few who were able to escape, did so by using the old escape pods from the ships in their old fleet after running from the BCC forces when their loss became evident... Even if that meant leaving their allies behind, as Alice's parents did, trying to save at least their child's life. Unfortunately, BCC enforcers were already expecting such outcome and ended up intercepting the group. The last thing Alice saw as she was pushed into the escape pod was her parents being shot by the BCC enforcers, before the escape pod finally closed.

For months, Alice survived drifting through space only by eating the old emergency rations before someone answered the emergency beacon from her escape pod. By a stroke of luck, the ones that rescued her didn't have any connection to the Black City Conglomerate. Instead, they were part of a group called the Intransigence. At first, Alice found it hard to trust them. Not only the isolated fleet she lived in had little idea of the political state of the conflicts from outside, but trusting others had already went terribly bad for them, as it was the case for the BCC. But slowly, she began warming up to the group, in part thanks to the kindness from the people who rescued her. With time, they ended up making an offer to her, motivated by her talents and her motivation to fight against the big powers that tore the galaxy apart with their greed.

Since then, after she received formal training from the Intransigence, Alice participated from a number of skirmishes and battles, both against the BCC and the other powers, hoping to be able to find and rescue members from her old fleet... If they were still alive.

_Etherealism

Alice's Etherealism focus on the raw application of ether to her surroundings. From powerful force-waves to the usage of ether limbs to crush enemies and her surroundings, she is capable of a frightening destructive power, in exchange for a high ether-signature left behind when she uses her powers. Alice is also capable to taking dives into the Abyssic plane, repositioning herself while she gathers ether, exploding in violent force waves as she emerges from it.

Due to her powerful Etherealism, Alice also developed quite a high tolerance to Qillatu. With that said, the symptoms of qillatu poisoning tend to be very dangerous when they finally happen. From immediately falling into shock, unconscious or in more dangerous cases, causing her to lose control over her powers and forcing her to either be incapacitated to stop the ether outburst.

While Alice's ether signature is quite easy to distinguish once she uses her powers, she learned some tricks on how to use it to her advantage in her time working for the BCC. One of those is extending her ether signature to form a large field around herself, masking her own ether signature by extending it outwards and flooding a large area with it instead. This area is virtually harmless to most living beings, being only useful against those trying to track her position by using her ether signature and helping her to track the position of anything with an ether signature inside said area. Whenever she uses her powers while this 'field' is active though, a pulse of ether is emitted, which can allow those who are able to track ether to triangulate her position after a few times.

_Skills

Ethereologist: Alice spent years studying about ether, the Oneiric Chasm and the Abyssical Plane. Her knowledge can be incredibly helpful when dealing with situations involving such matters. Studies about the biology of void creatures also gave her a good understanding of how their bodies work.

Hunter: Both her experience in hunting void creatures and the time she spent working for the BCC made her a very good shooter and able to mover herself incredibly quietly, without being seen. Her being rather fragile on close combat makes it quite fitting for her to take a supporting position on the backline.

Ether-sensing: Due to her experience in dealing with Ether, Alice learned how to track and sense ether signatures, being able to track other Etherealists without the use of specialized equipment if necessary.

_Equipment

Light-weight scout armor - Adapted: Lightweight suit of armor. The model Alice use was adapted to her unique physiology. Focuses on mobility and agility rather than offering any meaningful defense. The hood and skirt are made from a flexible, fabric-like polymer, which can change it's color when Ether is injected into it. Assists the armor user to hide themselves by taking similar colors to their surroundings. Works better when completely immobile, crouching or lying down. Based on the color-changing characteristics of a few specific types of creatures in the Oneiric Chasm and the Abyssic Plane

Extreme-distance precision rifle: Precision bolt-action rifle boosting impressive precision and range, but limited ammo, low impact and destructive power, but outstanding penetration. It's focused more on penetrating a single point with special, needle like tungsten rounds. It can also be loaded with syringe-like rounds to administer tranquilizing substances, paralyzing venom or even helpful mixtures like adrenaline, antidotes, painkillers or even mixtures to help dealing with Qillatu buildup.

Standard Intransigence sidearm: Standard pistol issued to intransigence agents.

[Terminal]

• Name : [Redacted] (Answers to 'King')

• Asset Codename : Apocyan King

• DoB/Age : Born in 4210. Age 23 years at time of stasis, 27 subjective years presently.

• Species : Human/Exotic Artificial Construct

Physical Parameters:

Read-Only Access Granted

[Apocyan King] is spherical black construct approximately 20 centimeters wide with 26 optical emitters measuring 2 centimeters across studded across the surface. This mechanism is the end-product of the original [Apocyan King] project; an apparatus capable of projecting and maintaining a hard-light photon curtain.

The device is capable of adjusting the projected photon curtain to possess virtually any shape and appearance. Generally, this takes the form of the host process' original Human body: A Caucasian Human male, approximately 23 years old and being of East-Asian Ethno-regional descent. He stands approximately 1.78 meters in height and look like they might weigh approximately 65 kilograms. He has an overall light build with lanky features. He has long auburn-colored hair approximately 45 centimeters in length, worn in a number of different styles. He has somewhat angular facial features and prominent raised cheekbones along with deep-green eye coloration. He possesses a birth mark in the form of a skin impression, running down from the back of the neck and across his left shoulder, thought to be due to a natal cord entanglement in-situ.

Personal History:

Read-Only Access Granted

[Redacted] was one of many, and also one of relatively very few, to be born aboard a habitation satellite in orbit of Mother Earth. He lived a childhood of obscene privilege, permitted to regularly visit the planet across its few remaining stable ecological zones and preserves while always being able to return to the modern comforts and conveniences of the well-established satellite environment he had grown up in. With a thorough local government-subsidized education, [Redacted] could have chosen to become trained in nearly any field of his choice, to have become anything, and to have gone anywhere. Wanting for almost nothing, one of the few things [Redacted] ever held any genuine interest in was Etherealism and the secrets of the Oneiric Abyss - one of the few fields he was not given to study freely, or easily. In addition to being a subject of great personal and interpersonal power to those who dedicated themselves to it, it was one of the few topics [Redacted] ever experienced difficulty pursuing - the only thing they felt challenged them.

[Redacted] thus dedicated most of their adolescence to studying Etherealism, training and honing their personal capabilities with Ethereal power, and going out of their way to establish Rapport with prominent Ethereal researchers where possible. [Redacted] efforts bore fruit when the Reckoning of Empires began in 4229, and the UCL redoubled its various research ventures into Etherealism. Having become the informal pupil to the established Academician Austan Enlil Aienbek of the UCL's Earth-based Abyssal Research Consortium (ARC), [Redacted] was placed for Ethereal evaluation and placement within the organization.

Unfortunately for [Redacted], while their knowledge of the history of Etherealism and its practices was exemplary, as suited their obsession with it, their personal capacity for harnessing the power of the Abyssal plane proved midling at best. Still, as close associate of Academician Aienbek, [Redacted] was nonetheless flagged for qualification as a pilot candidate for an ongoing research venture investigating technological solutions to mediating the use of Ethereal powers. [Redacted] was entered into project [Apocyan King], an experiment testing one of several different theoretical methods for wielding Ethereal abilities without accreting Qillatu or otherwise suffering detrimental effects from interaction with the Abyss by transferring the mind of the wielder from their native body into a different one - in the case of [Apocyan King], an artificial construct that utilized an exotic hard-light projection system as additional Ethereal insulation. As a test subject along with twelve others, [Redacted] was the only one amongst them who could both survive the mind-transference procedure both ways and had sufficient practical knowledge of Etherealism despite their limited talent to successfully utilize it even while relegated to an artificial body with no organic components. Being the only test subject to produce reliable results - and promising results at that - [Redacted] was then elevated to become the primary subject and end-product of [Apocyan King]. For a few moments in time, it seemed as though [Redacted] had been placed on a fast-lane to lifelong success, fame, wealth, and admiration as an aspiring Ethereal researcher and pioneer of the next paradigm shift in Etherealism.

It was not to be - for the Oneiric Chasm is chaotic, unpredictable, and defies attempts to comprehend, shackle, or exploit it freely. Although [Redacted] proved capable of projecting Etherealism through the medium of the [Apocyan King] prototype, the Abyss seemingly traced a conduit of cause and effect between the construct and [Redacted] original body. The initial symptoms of this unseen connection remained hidden for a time, dismissed simply as the residual and ongoing effects of [Redacted] continued practice of Etherealism when still occupying their native body. The full consequences of the overlooked bond manifested all at once, during an experiment meant to stress-test the Ethereal capabilities of a mind within the [Apocyan King] construct over an extended period of time. Detecting the rapidly accumulating Qillatu around [Redacted] host body too late to abort the experiment safely - as the mind transference method itself required Etherealism in addition to a minimal safety threshold of Qillatu aggregation to function - [Redacted] mind became trapped in the [Apocyan King] construct as his native body's empty mind cocooned itself in inert Qillatu.

To make matters worse, it was then that the Reckoning of Empires drew to a close. The UCL began to step-down its immense wartime expenditures on research, and project [Apocyan King] was defunded as an 'embarrassing failed venture.' What little research had been conducted into safely returning [Redacted] to their body was halted, with all assets ordered to be placed in stasis for long-term storage. When [Redacted] objected to this and threatened to make a nuisance of themselves, they were labeled a 'subversive element,' and the [Apocyan King] construct was scheduled to be dismantled. Only Academician Aienbek's sympathy and close relationship with [Redacted] saved them. Making contact with fringe-world traders, Aienbek arranged for [Apocyan King] to be smuggled to frontier space, far away from where the Earth-based ARC would ever take notice of them, and then deleted all digital references and traces of [Redacted] and the project logs in order to protect [Redacted] host body from retaliatory destruction.

Academician Aienbek's ultimate fate remained and remains unknown to [Redacted] - awakening once again stranded in a distant port of far-off space, with no legal identity and all evidence of their existence back at home having been erased, was forced to accept and become the [Apocyan King] itself. Left only with a cryptic message from Aienbek warning them that their original body would potentially be placed 'at risk' if they ever returned, [Apocyan King] has been working ever since to establish funds, contacts, and a plan to try and recover their body without ever returning to the Solar System.

Barred the benefits and advantages of a UCL citizen, it was almost inevitable that [Apocyan King] would align themselves with their enemies - those who would not balk or scoff at the notion of intruding into distant UCL databases, and had the resources and talent needed to do it. Joining the Intransigence at the lowest levels as little more than a somewhat less-than-common thug, [Apocyan King] was quickly elevated as an important asset due to the unique resilience and capabilities of their hard-light body.

For a brief period of time, [Apocyan King] was utilized as an assassin, targeting prominent Ethereals known for their power and who were otherwise difficult to approach or kill. While [Apocyan King] had their successes due to their near-immunity to Ethereal powers and influence, they ultimately proved too indiscrete and messy of an operative to remain useful - and so [Apocyan King] was then relegated to a deniable black-ops group known as the Envenomed...

Psyche Assessment:

Read-Only Access Granted

[Apocyan King] has a perpetually calm, relaxed demeanor. He is known to remain steady under pressure, when surprised, and in combat conditions, though this often also results in a perceived lack of urgency on his part. He maintains an air of urbane wit in most social circumstances, but has a tendency to fade into the background or abandon most conversations due to a combination of a lack of social confidence and an ingrained, personal sensation of alienation. King harbors an intense inferiority complex borne of his complete lack of a body - not being known for his tactical experience or as an expert in any particular field, and only having psychologically impressed desires rather than true bodily needs, he views himself as having no inherent value beyond being an advanced, living weapon.

Although he suffers from difficulty in informal social situations, when engaged King is prone to getting into trouble over an absence of appropriate decorum, open disrespect, and unnecessary criticism of operational parameters - disciplinary action against a being with no true body proving to be all but impossible even when utilizing the Ethereal punitively. Even solitary confinement and temporarily disabling King's core mechanism have vanishingly little efficacy as disciplinary actions. King thus has a reputation as a troublemaker and as something of a masochist.

On the battlefield however, King is known to obey all orders without question, albeit at his own and somewhat lethargic pace. He has a tendency to take unnecessary risks for the purposes of shielding allies from incoming fire or as a distraction ploy, which has led some to believe his behavior is indicative of suicidal ideation.

Skillsets & Utility:

Read-Only Access Granted

• Limited infiltration & scouting capabilities, via optical mimicry and sizing down to access secure areas.

• Durable with effective active suppression capabilities, not reliant on ammunition.

• Highly mobile personal flight capabilities with stellar motion control, in and out of vacuum.

• Wide range of viable environmental theaters - has no issue operating in vacuum, oceanic, and hazardous atmospheric conditions of a broad number of chemical compositions.

• Highly effective anti-Ethereal combatant - virtually immune to Ethereal phenomenon.

• Limited, strategic-elimination capabilities with their Graser weapon.

• History with Ethereal study & research - mostly familiar with it academically, rather than practically. Personally aware of or otherwise familiar with several prominent Ethereal researchers and ongoing ventures.

Ethereal Capabilities:

Read-Only Access Granted

The [Apocyan King] project was originally intended as an experiment to discern whether transplanting a host mind capable of Etherealism into an artificial construct could allow for free, or at least less onerous use of Ethereal power with diminished risk to the host body. In theory, an EM-hardened core mechanism shielded by a hard-light photon curtain with extreme low-temperature operating conditions would be more or less impervious to exotic Ethereal attacks and the build-up of hazardous Qillatu.

The project was ultimately a failure, as the power drawn from the Abyssal Chasm, although successfully projected from the the [Apocyan King] construct, would then ground all attendant Qillatu through the original host body the construct's mind had been transplanted from. This resulted in the host body becoming cocooned in inert Qillatu, effectively rendering it Ethereally inert and preventing further use of Etherealism by the construct. The host body was then placed in stasis for unspecified future research purposes.

Presently, the [Apocyan King] construct is incapable of utilizing Etherealism of any sort. To its benefit however, the combination of its hard-light photon curtain and its host body being both Ethereally cloistered and kept in stasis renders the construct nearly impervious to unconventional Ethereal attacks and Abyssal energy.

Ethereal phenomenon that directly convert Abyssal energy into ordinary high-energy phenomenon such as electricity or plasma remain indirectly effective at inflicting damage to the construct's photon curtain.

Munitions & Armaments:

Read-Only Access Granted

• Hard-Light Lasing Medium:

The [Apocyan King] interior photon matrix is an ideal lasing environment due to its capability of guiding concentrated light along high-gain, super-cooled channels. [Apocyan King] can build-up and emit pulsed lasers, including Microwave and X-Ray lasers, from any point of its body. These can range from non-lethal thermo-electrical ablative-shock pulses capable of stunning unarmored combatants, to suppressive bloom-fire, to highly penetrating anti-shielding and anti-armor plasma-vacuum gradient bursts. Unfortunately, weapons of this nature are very well-documented, with effective armor and shielding for each being widespread and readily available to most polities. Moreover, as with most lase weapons, this capability suffers immensely in environments with thick atmospheres or heavy particulate content.

• Anti-Ballistic & Ethereal Photon Curtain:

[Apocyan King] is highly resistant, if not quite entirely immune, to conventional ballistic, explosives, and Ethereal mediums of attack. Standard ballistic impacts, thermal and kinetic shock, and various forms of exotic Etheralism or Qillatu radiation are generally incapable of deforming the [Apocyan King] external photon curtain. However, due to the nature of hard-light photons having low relative energy and actual mass, physical attacks are still capable of displacing the hard-light projection itself, meaning ballistics with particularly high stopping power or powerful explosions can still fling [Apocyan King] around. Additionally, the photon-curtain remains susceptible to energy-based munitions or phenomenon, including but not limited to particle-based weapons, plasma, electrical discharges, and so forth. Attacks of this nature are capable of disrupting the photon curtain and causing instantaneous reactive loss of coherence within the hard-light construct's internal super-cooled photon matrix.

• Regenerative Hard-light Matrix:

The [Apocyan King] interior photon matrix requires super-cool environmental parameters to maintain stability. When the construct's external photon-curtain is breached by an energy attack, this results in the surrounding area of the matrix decohering from the abrupt increase in temperature. The construct's photo-curtain can reactively reshape itself to seal off the exposed partition of the interior matrix, but some loss of overall mass is inevitable with every breach. To compensate for this, the central mechanism gradually manipulates and modulates photons within its core, super-cooling and eventually emitting and integrating them with the interior photon matrix in order to expand its volume. This process is slow, making it ineffective at replenishing lost mass during pitched combat encounters, though it allows [Apocyan King] to retain combat-effective levels of mass across more protracted campaigns.

• Photon-Curtain Mimicry:

When provided with an adequate sample reference, [Apocyan King] can alter the appearance of its photon curtain to become a perfect optical replica of a given individual or object. If provided with corresponding information, the photon-curtain can even mimic certain IFF transponder signals, allowing for a more convincing facsimile. Despite the fidelity of the mimicry, this is almost never useful for long-term or deep-cover infiltration due to the existence of sophisticated security scanning and the inability of [Apocyan King] to mimic voices or other personal identifiers. At best, this form of mimicry allows [Apocyan King] to approach or fall in-line with enemy combatants for the purposes of launching a close-range surprise attack.

• Modular Photon-Curtain Hardpoints:

Since [Apocyan King] can reshape its exterior photon-curtain at will, it can create modular hard-points capable of mounting virtually any infantry-grade weapon, regardless of shape or weight (for the most part). [Apocyan King] can even supplement weaponry by acting as a power-supply or by helping to channel energy.

• Defunct Infantry-Grade Graser Emitter Frame, 'Just a Kiss':

Originally envisioned as a next-generation alternative form of infantry-grade anti-armor and surface-to-air weapon to replace modern explosives, infantry-grade Graser Emitters just like this one were discontinued due to their tendency to kill their users and everybody around them. Many of the parts and integral components for these weapons are no longer produced anywhere, requiring partial mounting and integration with the [Apocyan King] photon-curtain in order to function. It uses a mass of isometric nuclear fuel to channel amplified light through an ideal hard-light, super-cooled matrix, allowing for efficient gain along with minimal loss of coherence and radiation. The resulting coherent Gamma Rays are then channeled back out of [Apocyan King] and through the emitter aperture as a sustained beam capable of obliterating heavy-armored vehicles, gunships, bunkers, citadel-class shield emplacements, and overwhelming the shielding and armor of corvette ships. The beam is typically coherent and energetic enough that no form of modern, conventional shielding or armor is wholly effective at deterring it, and it will completely atomize any heavy-particulate atmosphere it passes through without loss of coherence. As a side effect, the weapon heavily and lethally irradiates everything in proximity to the user, in proximity to the path of the beam, and around the contact area, penetrating through most known forms of shielding and insulation. While the [Apocyan King] construct can survive this exposure, thorough decontamination of the weapon is absolutely required prior to maintenance. Due to the immense expenditure of its solid-state nuclear fuel, the weapon can only fire either two short bursts, or one longer sustained pulse.

Stains & Infamy

Read-Only Access Granted

During their brief tenure as an Intransigence Assassin of prominent and powerful Ethereals, [Apocyan King]'s shortcomings in regards to the practicalities of living outside coreworld space and their lack of expertise in nearly any field other than Etherealism became apparent. These shortcomings, combined with immense personal dissatisfaction and frustration over their predicament and what they were being forced to do, resulted in a notably catastrophic incident during an operation where [EXPUNGED]

[Kjbivins]

Name: Rho-Hux of house Lorreas . “The Constrictor of Caddadast.”

Species: Gealtirocht.

Age: 156.

Faction Alignment: Yrrkradians

Height: 8 ft

BACKGROUND:

Born into one of the old feudalist royal families that allied with the Yrrkradians, Rho-Hux was too low in the family tree to be considered an heir, but that didn’t matter in the slightest to him. To Rho-Hux, time is too limited for people to “find themselves”. It is much more efficient to know what your calling is, devote yourself to your strengths, and work with the hand you are dealt with. People born into nobility will either use all their resources and be a better ruler than some silver-tongued politician or make a clown of themselves and soon be usurped by a more rightful ruler. Everyone is but a cog in a greater machine, and for Rho-Hux he was raised to believe there was no greater honor for him than to defend his family house and expand the Yrrkradian empire.

For most of his life, Rho-Hux devoted himself to being a soldier. When given a mission, he would spend hours researching his foes, the landscape, similar battles, and equipment that may be used on both sides. He quickly rose through the ranks, aiding in the Empire’s interests. Once he became a Major, he expected all under his leadership to be up to par with the latest military information.

His most famous mission was Operation Swamp Dragon. His battalion was to aid in taking over the city of Caddadast on the planet Omia. Omia was a planet mostly comprised of dangerous swamps, and Caddadast was a well-fortified city. After trying and failing to breach the walls, Rho-Hux decided to starve the city out. He ordered his forces to poison the swamp water around the city, preventing them from fishing or receiving clean water from within their home. Every time a group went out to get resupplies from elsewhere, Rho-Hux would launch a series of brutal guerilla attacks. The final nail in the coffin came when Rho-Hux received some anti-aircraft reinforcements. Soon, the citizens of Caddadast found themselves trapped in their city without food or clean water. This victory earned Rho-Hux the nickname of “The Constrictor of Caddadast.”

However, Rho-Hux's conquest ended when they were struck by a UCL ship bombing them from orbit. It wiped out Most of Rho-Hux's battalion, with only him and a few survivors seeking shelter in caves. They were classified as MIA for months until Rho-Hux was found alone and half-starved deep underground, three years after the Reckoning Of Empires. His story about what happened during his time in hiding is inconsistent, and due to his deteriorating mental health, he was honorably discharged from the military.

He has not adjusted well to the cease-fire, his discharge, or the Yrrkradian Dominion’s loss of territory. He is a warrior with nothing to fight. Family members and officials have tried to place him in medical institutions to help with his retirement, but Rho-Hux keeps escaping and getting into trouble. Most recently, he spent the last year with a mercenary group of Yrrkradian extremists before he turned on them for “lack of ambition, discipline, intelligence, or basic common sense and manners.”

Rho-Hux is still looking for a new excuse to return to the battlefield to achieve a greater good. His age is quickly catching up to him, as he hasn’t had any rejuvenation augmentations. That said, he still cares about staying as physically fit as possible. Recently, while looking for a new mercenary band to join that wasn't just psychopaths with guns or young thugs who had never seen the horrors of a real war, he was approached by the Intransigence. They had heard about his reputation and wanted to recruit him. They tried to argue that the Empire might have overlooked him, but they still saw value in him and could give him the purpose he had been missing. Rho-Hux agreed, but partially because he mistook the Intransigence as secret Empire agents wanted to bring back the Empire's former might under a new name. In his logic, "They must be the Empire because the Empire would never turn down a good soldier like myself."

Personality: Rho-Hux is bound by duty. When he agrees to do something, he will see it through, whether he likes it or not. While he tries to be philosophical about his loyalty, deep down, he admits he just enjoys the thrill of battle and the glory that comes from people romanticizing it. Years of warfare and his own advancing age have taken a toll on his mental state. Rho-Hux often gets dates, names, and events mixed up. Some days, he thinks he is still fighting in the Reckoning Of Empires with his own troops and fellow Gealtirochts. He greatly struggles in civilian situations, such as seeing nothing wrong with giving children loaded weapons, such as “You don’t give a toy without its batteries. Better to start educating them now rather than later.” While he is fanatically loyal to the old Empire, Rho-Hux doesn’t hold much resentment towards the other factions, seeing them as worthy foes or allies in a greater conflict if needed. He does like to remind people that the UCL had to bomb him from space to slow him down, and he would go into a violent frenzy if someone dared call him a friend of the UCL.

Ethereology: “Ghosting,” as some people call it. Rho-Hux can mute any noise he makes (like footsteps and breathing), remove his scent, and change his body temperature to match his environment. While this does not make him invisible, it does aid him greatly in stealth missions. When combined with his Octopus suit, he seemingly disappears from existence, only to reappear behind his soon-to-be-deceased enemies. The drawback to this power (other than the usual drawbacks to ether powers) is that if Rho-Hux were to be set on fire while using this power, his body temperature would rise dramatically, causing him to burn internally and externally."

Strengths:

-Two cybernetic arms underneath his original ones, each can hold a weapon.
-Skilled swordsmen.
-Stealthy.
-Years of experience.
-Bravery.
-Stubbornness

Weaknesses:

-Fire damages his gear, disrupts his Ethereology, and is extremely painful to him (as it is to most organic beings)
-His mental state is fragile, and he is prone to fits of mania and PTSD.
-His age is catching up to him. He is not as strong as he was/thinks he is.
-Stubbornness

Starting Weaponry, Armor, and Equipment:

-Octopus armor: Blends in with the environment around it. This, when combined with his ether power, makes Rho-Hux nearly impossible to detect. It is light and offers more mobility for wearing at the price of not being as sturdy for defense as other advanced suits of armor. It also malfunctions horribly if set on fire for too long.
-Grapple Battle Rifle.
-Twin SMG guns.
-Daishō sword set.