I, myself, am sorry for my lack of apparent posting. Real life's been especially hellish for me lately! So I've hardly time to sit down and work on my writing!
Good morning everyone! (From my time, at least.) Just wanted to do a quick check-in with those who also have not posted an intro yet, see if you're here, still interested, all that jazz. I totally understand busy schedules, so I'm just trying to get a head count :)
@Delta44, @Dymion, and @FantasyChic - Please just give this a quick response, or send a PM, or whichever suits you all best!
I apologize everyone, the delay has been my fault. Vicier and I have been working on a collab to move the story along but other obligations have kept me busy. The show should get back on the road really soon you guys!
@Wade Wilson Certainly, you're allowed to make a sheet! We have 4 spots open for players (not including individual characters) and CS' will be reviewed by content and worth instead of a first-come-first-serve.
<Height:/> Three-and-a-half feet at the shoulder, and five-and-a-half feet in length. <Weight:/> 214lbs
<Appearance:/>
<Personality:/> Gifted with an advanced intellect and artificial intelligence, Cerberus is considered one of the first "fully-sentient" machines ever to be created in New Ancora. With his advanced intelligence, Cerberus is capable of utilizing logic, reason, and independent thought, allowing him to solely complete many individual tasks that other machines would be unable to without human assistance.
Created with an AI system somewhat modeled after the human brain (thanks to New Ancora's own Katherine Saunders) Cerberus is capable of comprehending, or at least mimicking certain human emotions; such as curiosity, sarcasm, fondness, affinity, and learning capacity. Whether these emotions are genuine or superficially expressed remains to be seen.
Cerberus often questions the need to fight, especially if it means killing; citing that he "lacks brutality." It is possible that this is a chosen trait by Cerberus, rather than a simple programming defect, as he is shown to posses compassion and concern for others, despite his artificial nature. This is partly why the K-9 Program was deemed a failure, as Cerberus lacked the drive or will to cause necessary casualties to complete missions.
Despite his mild nature, however, Cerberus is highly protective of those he deems under his care; and has no qualms in assaulting or even killing those who pose a threat to his charges.
Cerberus is incredibly well-educated in human psychology, philosophy, and history, having archived many Extranet sites on the topics. Though, despite his knowledge, Cerberus does not seem to fully comprehend certain figures of speech; such as metaphors, hyperboles, understatements, or similes.
Cerberus seems to possess a certain amount of wit as well, with a fondness for thinly-veiled sarcasm. That said, on occasion jokes will fly completely over Cerberus' head, and he will take the thesis of such jokes literally.
Lastly, though he is a highly advanced synthetic, Cerberus's programming does grants him dog-like behavioral tendencies as well, such as a fondness for climbing on furniture, showing specific affinity towards a single human individual, wagging his tail when pleased, or simply lounging about when inactive, amongst other behavioral traits.
<Equipment:/> Due to being built more for reconnaissance and scouting purposes, Cerberus lacks the heavy weaponry found in more front-line units. For range, Cerberus is equipped with a variety of spring-loaded high-frequency knives, superheated to the point they can sear through metal. For melee purposes, Cerberus' body is equipped with knife-like blades attached to the underside of each leg, blade-like claws, and sharp canine teeth that make him extremely deadly up-close.
Combat aside, Cerberus is equipped with a built-in stealth camouflage unit. When activated, the unit will bend light waves around Cerberus' frame, rendering him virtually invisible. Likewise, he is capable of picking up and playing various radio systems, and comes with an audio-playback feature that allows him to record and replay any audio he was currently present for.
<Combat Schematics:/>
Though lacking in effective ranged weaponry, the K-9 Mk. 1's canine design makes it incredibly dangerous up-close; capable of overpowering all but the most heavily-augmented of humans in close combat. It's powerful jaws are capable of exerting a pressure of over 2,000psi, allowing it to break bones open with incredible ease. It's legs are powerful enough to impact stone, and allow the unit to reach incredible jumping heights. The Mk. 1's sleek platform design and coordinated frame allow it to reach and maintain speeds of {up to} 50mph, while advanced hardware allows it to effectively maneuver its platform while at such high velocities.
The Mk. 1's 'tail' is a fully-functional manipulator arm, with the three flexible prongs at the end serving as 'fingers.' This tail is typically used for manipulation of the Mk. 1's high-frequency knives or interaction with its immediate environment. However, the tail can also function as an effective weapon if desired, capable of puncturing through human flesh and muscle.
The Mk. 1's most dangerous weapon, however, is its mind. Equipped with a constantly-learning, constantly-adapting neuro-AI network, the Mk. 1 is adaptable, resourceful, and tactical. Processing information at an inhuman speed, the Mk. 1 can adapt seamlessly to various scenarios, with 'surprise' being a general rarity. In countless mock scenarios and VR simulations, the Mk. 1 has exceeded all expectations in independent reasoning and strategy. Nevertheless, the Mk. 1 is not perfect, and can suffer from shortcomings in its processors that mimic that of human error. This should not be a deciding factor in its efficacy, however, and the science team regards the unit with the utmost pride and confidence.
--Dr. Johann Clark, co-Head of the District 4 Science Team.
<Biography:/> To say Cerberus's creation was a secret is a disputable claim. For many years there have been rumors of the New Ancoran government beginning to prioritize the creation of fully-functioning, fully-sentient AI, though for many years these rumors remained only that. The K-9 Mk. 1 Unit was created 3 years ago to serve as a combat and reconnaissance unit aiding the New Ancoran Police Department and Bureau of Defense. By impermissibly using design schematics and neuro-AI software developed by Katherine Saunders, a science and robotics development team led by Doctors William Mars and Johann Clark proceeded with the construction of Cerberus, first implanting the software into a standard platform for training purposes.
Initially, Cerberus exceeded all expectations, not only displaying self-awareness, but a vast amount of intelligence and logical reasoning, as well as the ability to converse freely with the scientists when supplied with a vocabulator program. Transferred to its current, more advanced platform, Cerberus was then assigned basic training field work involving mock scenarios and scripts. However, issues began to spring up when Cerberus began questioning the need to take orders, the need to follow missions and kill whoever it (or "he" by its own designation) was ordered to. This caused a series of attempted revamps and memory wipes, though the science team soon discovered that Cerberus' own memory was as resilient as a human mind, and thus could not be erased so easily.
This caused Cerberus himself to become misanthropic and cynical in his views of humanity, being subject to their cruelty influenced by scientific discovery. Yet this all changed the day Cerberus was introduced to Dr. Mars's own teenage daughter, River, who suffered from chronic, debilitating depression. Dr. Mars felt it suitable that she have a companion, and dubbed Cerberus an informal therapy assistant while the rest of the team attempted to rectify his pacifistic nature.
Though initially finding the work demeaning, Cerberus soon grew close to River, who saw him as a close companion and friend. The two formed an incredibly close bond that went beyond simply human-and-machine. Cerberus believed that he was helping guide River back from the brink of depression and giving her hope again -- but even he could only do so much.
One fateful day, after one of their many visits, when River was preparing to leave for the evening, she gave Cerberus an incredibly heartfelt goodbye - as though she were going away for some time. Cerberus was perplexed but thought nothing of the matter, simply bidding her a "Good night." And an, "Again tomorrow." She said nothing, simply leaving with a tear rolling down her cheek.
That very next day, before the sun had even risen, Cerberus received the news that River Mars had committed suicide by overdose of medication late the night before.
Devastated, and with no one to blame or hold responsible, Dr. Mars held Cerberus solely accountable for his daughter's suicide and, as punishment, began putting him through an intensive series of impossible scenarios, forcing him to constantly fail time after time after time until Cerberus believed himself to be a complete failure of the K-9 process.
Content that he had translated all his own self-loathing and hatred into Cerberus, Dr. Mars let the AI be, and resigned to drown in his own sorrow.
Cerberus remained active during this time, though never participated in any more tests or scenarios, instead being used to patrol the science facility by the remaining scientists there.
With no designated master and a free will, Cerberus, upon accessing his memory banks recalled mention of one 'Katherine Saunders' having been the one to create his AI unit. Deciding to go find her, Cerberus fled the science facility in search of her, leaving no trace behind as to his whereabouts.
Due to Cerberus's AI being comparable to that of a human brain's, he is capable of suffering from the robot equivalent of dreams and 'nightmares', periods where his fondest and worst memories replay themselves rapidly while he's in a resting stand-by mode. During these times, he will typically go sit by himself to ponder for a few hours before attempting to enter standby mode once more.
Cerberus appears to hold the memory of River Mars close to him, and any mention of her will prompt a unique reaction from him, though he will never explain why.
Well, as a sandbox roleplay, each character is effectively allowed to do whatever they want to. That being said, the GMs will be coordinating as puppet-masters setting up events, conflicts, and various plot-lines that will interlock and unite some characters together. For example, let's say Deon is fighting a cage match. Kate is Deon's cousin, Cerberus is looking for Kate. Given the seedy nature of Deon's location, a drug bust or some other event could occur, thus a law-enforcement or more morally inclined character could end up in the same location and potentially interact with multiple characters involved.
With involvement of the GMs and creativity of the writers involved, we're making this a sandbox with a plot!
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