Andromeda: To Boldly Go... (SciFi Char RP|OOC, Signup, Open)

[Dyelli Beybi]

IC | Discord

Co-OPed by Bingellia and Khasinkonia

Welcome to Andromeda: To Boldly Go, a character RP set in a future universe very much like our own. In this RP you will have the option of playing a human or one of several alien races who live in the Sol System and who form the officers of the Cruiser UNS Destiny II. Your mission is to explore unknown worlds and sectors that have fallen into chaos in the aftermath of an intergalactic war. There will be monsters! There will be hostile aliens! There might even be another intergalactic war! This is not Star Trek though; Earth isn't a harmonious utopia and the greatest challenge could be dealing with the different species on the crew...

There will be room for you to write a member of the military, a scientist, a medic, an engineer or any other reasonable role you might think would be on the ship. Everyone you app will be an Ensign, though we will promote someone to be the head of each department immediately prior to launching the RP!

This is not going to be a spaceship RP in the sense of big space battles, this is an RP about the people on the ship and will mostly be set on a variety of strange alien planets... although there is scope for missions on the ship.

This RP is part of the larger 'Andromedaverse' family, though there is no need to have read any of the other RPs to participate. It is set 150 years after the others. Similarly, if you are RPing in an Andromeda thread, some things in the Universe might seem a little different.

This RP is open to latecomers. The UNS Destiny II has a crew of 300, most of whom will be NPCs. If you enter a bit late we will assume you've been along for the ride the whole time, just haven't been part of the core story yet.

Finally, if you want to join and are looking for inspiration, feel free to join the Discord. This thread is a sequel to 'Voyages in Andromeda', the tremendously successful RP that we have been running for the last year. There is a strong, friendly, community that has built up around the Andromeda RPs and there are plenty of people who will be willing to help you create a character... or just have a chat!

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SETTING

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The year is 2176. The 'United Nations of Sol' are a minor power in the Milky Way with access, through a Wormhole, to the Andromeda Galaxy. Sol is wealthy, though there is growing resentment towards the large population of alien settlers who have made the system their home...


There and Back Again: The Vanishing of the Original Destiny and the Wormhole to the Andromeda Galaxy
In 2026, a multi-national mission to mars was launched from Earth on the spaceship, 'Destiny'. The voyage was expected to last 300 days, though on day 104, abruptly and without any prior warning, the ship disappeared. As far as the Governments of Earth were concerned, the Destiny and all her crew were lost. Eventually, it was decided it must have been some kind of mechanical failure, though no sign of the vessel was recovered.

Nine months later, and after many adventures along the way, the surviving crew members returned to Earth through the 'Wormhole' that nobody had known had existed piloting a highly advanced alien starship known as the 'Defiance'. They did not come alone though. The crew, it discovered had made friends and allies during their time in the other Galaxy. The crew had been supplemented by a number of aliens and they had ostensibly aligned themselves with an alien State known as the 'Gollar Confederacy' which in turn drew the attention of the Milky Way’s Hegemonic Power, the ‘Federation of Civilised Worlds’.


The War for Andromeda
The returnees from Andromeda also revealed that Andromeda was embroiled in a galaxy-wide war between the forces of a massive, imperialistic, military-controlled state, ‘Kiellar Command’ (colloquially known as ‘the KC’) and a predatory alien race known as the Ragons and the war was not going well for the KC.

After several months of debating, it was agreed by the Gollar Confederacy and Federation of Civilised Worlds to assist the KC, despite their ideological differences. This proved the turning point of the war and after many long months of struggle and hundreds of millions of dead, the Ragon Empire was forced to sue to peace and the KC established a heavily militarised buffer-state known as the ‘New Doona'tay Republic’ (the NDR) within striking distance of the ragon homeworld ruled by an unusual mix of renegade ragons and human-like aliens known as ‘dhasath’.

Throughout all of this, Earth remained neutral.


The Galaxies as they are now
Kiellar Command had hoped that the NDR would allow them to focus on quelling internal revolts without needing to keep a constant eye on the ragons. However, the losses from the war proved too much for the bloated empire to survive and over the next fifty years it collapsed under successive waves of dissent and revolution.

Earth was flooded with refugees from the other side of the wormhole, mostly kiellar, with a significant number of dhasath as well (who hoped that their similarity in appearance to humans would allow them to assimilate).

Trade routes still exist between the Confederacy and Federation, though they now require military escorts across the vast expanse of anarchic former KC territory. Earth’s position as the first/last port of call for traders going to and from the Milky Way has meant that it has become wealthy off the back of that trade. To help solidify this, the forces of the 'United Nations of Sol' have seized control of several systems near the wormhole, though there are no permanent Sol colonies in Andromeda, yet.


The United Nations of Sol
Over the last 150 years, earth has expanded to colonise much of the solar system. Mars was terraformed into a liveable planet, while extensive habitats have been established on the Moon, Europa, Ganymede, Callisto, Titan and Enceladus with a combined population of 10.5 billion.

While, initially, all colonies were administered from Earth, large-scale civil unrest on Mars led to the creation of the ‘Martian Federation’ in 2115 though most of Earth’s powers retain control of a port facility on the planet, much to the resentment of the Martian population. Following Mars gaining membership of the United Nations, the organisation was renamed 'the United Nations of Sol'.

While most countries retain their own military arms, due to the considerable expense of operating space warships, the 'Sol Armada' is a joint project under United Nations jurisdiction, though most officers have served in a state military first.

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The Destiny II
The Destiny II is a Frontier Class Deep Exploration Cruiser. It is a formidable warship though it is primarily designed to allow for exploration voyages of several years. It is around 300 metres in length with 14 decks at the rear, a central 'neck' section of 5 decks and a 'nose section' with 9 decks.

The Bridge: The Bridge is found on the top deck of the rear section of the ship.

Habitation: Habitation spans the rear and neck of the ship with officer berths closer to the bridge. Officers and civilians have their own rooms. The rear habitation section also contains several mess rooms, gymnasiums, bars, recreation rooms, a VR suite, a cinema and a swimming pool.

Science: Science labs are housed in the rear and nose of the ship. The ones at the nose are generally not used unless the crew are dealing with something dangerous that they need to isolate.

Engineering: Engineering sits in the bowels of the rear section. All essential ship systems are regulated from here.

Docking: The Destiny II carries a compliment of 12 fighters and 3 shuttles. The fighters are housed in a docking bay under the nose with rapid launch facilities while the shuttles are housed in a larger bay in the rear section.

Storage and hydroponics: Storage facilities lie under the living quarters in the rear and neck of the ship. The rear section also houses a hydroponics deck: as everyone gets fed up with preserved food after a while.

Uniforms: Crew wear a utilitarian blue uniform with a high-necked brown, leather collar and epaulettes. Gold insignia are attached to epaulettes.

Computer Systems: While there is an AI on the ship, AI, in the setting, has proved to not always do what it's told so there are certain things the AI does not have control of to ensure that the ship does not end up in a HAL 9000 situation. Specifically, the weapons systems, life support, door controls and HR files, confidential logs and the top secret cypher are housed on a discrete system. There are also overrides in engineering and the bridge to cut the AI's access to navigation systems. Finally, there is a big red button the captain has at his disposal which will cut all power to the server bank with the AI files on it, in the eventuality the AI is trying to kill the crew.

These are now the Ranks and Departments on the ship:
The Bridge - Darko: Captain (OF-5), Takeshi: Lieutenant (OF-2), Sofia and Chloe: Ensign (OF-1)
Marines - Violann: Major (OF-3), Aula: 1st Lieutenant (OF-1 senior), Inaotoann, Ru, Pierre and Vulca: 2nd Lieutenant (OF-1)
Engineering - Eulli: Lieutenant (OF-2) Stella, Luga and Gabriel: Ensign (OF-1)
Operations – Hamza: Lieutenant (OF-2), Kuilanth and Aoibheann: Ensign (OF-1)
Medical - Hyon: Sub Lieutenant (OF-1 senior), Tita: Ensign (OF-1)
Fighter Wing - Rommel: Flight Lieutenant (OF-2), Emily and Gabriel: Pilot Officer (OF-1)
Science - James: Chief Science Officer (Not a military rank), Finbar (No official title)
AI - Aquila (No official title)

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LORE

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Technology
As this is sci-fi, there are a number of pieces of technology that will be mentioned in the RP. Here is some info on them:

Skrim Drive: The Skrim Drive is the basic FTL drive used by all species in the both galaxies, allowing them to phase across to hyperspace where an object can travel faster than light. Opening a hyperspace window requires a lot of energy and several minutes to 'spin the drive up'. Skrim Drives are prone to overheating and longer hyperspace journeys will need to be made in hops. That, along with the speed limitation means that most journeys between stars will take days or weeks and movement between galaxies is believed to be impossible.

Most ships can detect a hyperspace window opening or closing a few minutes before the ship utilising their Skrim drive moves through it.

Translating alien languages: The United Nations of Sol use a 'translator-microcomputer-earpiece' when talking with aliens. Other cultures in the milky way usually use translator nanites injected at birth, though Sol does not due to the large proportion of people uncomfortable with injecting small robots into their brain. The earpiece works just as well, though you do need to remember to put it on.

Energy weapons (Blasters): Most weapons used in warfare are energy weapons. Units that are not connected to a generator (such as handheld weapons) will require a battery pack that usually allows for around 100 shots to be fired before needing to be swapped over. A person struck by an energy weapon can expect serious, deep burns with a high chance of death if the discharge travels through a major organ.

Shields: Large ships are always fitted with energy shields to prevent damage from space debris as well as weapons from other ships.

Body Armour: Body armour is in use by the marines, though it mostly minimises injury from handheld weapons rather than completely absorbing the energy from a shot.

Non-Human species of Sol

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Name
Singular: A Kiel
Plural: Some Kiellar
Adjective: A Kiellar Ship
Naming: Kiellar are usually referred to by their first name, but on official documents will be known as <Name> of <Father's name>. Click here for a generator that will spit out some thematic names.

Homeworld: Relenar
Population in Sol: 525 million (5% of the population)

Appearance:

Kiellar are a moderately tall race, with males averaging about and females about 5’8’’ and males about 6’2’’ with generally slim builds. Their skin tones are similar to those of humans, as are the colours of their (almond shaped) eyes. Kiellar hair is similar in shade to human hair, though it is noticeable finer and body hair is sparse.

While most organisms with a strong sense of smell will be able to easily differentiate a Kiel from similar species, to those creatures that rely smell.

NB: If you want to make a Kiellar character and want to use a picture, Shadowrun Elves make good models.

Biology: Kiellar have an average lifespan of about 200 years. While an individual Kiel will reproduce slowly (gestation period is one year), Kiellar remain fertile for most of their lives and that, coupled with their natural resistance to disease, means that the Kiellar population as a whole can multiply quite rapidly – it is not unusual for a Kiellar couple to produce over 20 offspring in a lifetime, with over a century between the youngest and the eldest.

Kiellar, additionally, have strong night vision.

History: Over 1000 years ago, the first Kiellar ships left their homeworld of Relenar to begin exploration of their solar system. Initially a group of waring Nation States, the Kiellar became eager terraformers, turning inhospitable moons into habitable planets before over the course of the next century.

Strife, however, quickly broke out between the colonies, with some seeking independence from their home nations, which in turn ignited a wave of brutal wars across Relenar. Out of the ashes of this rose the ‘All Kiellar Republic’ which sought to unite the waring Kiellar nations into one system-wide Republic. At first it seemed like a fantasy, however, the Republic continued to win until, by the time the Kiellar discovered hyperdrive technology 800 years ago, the whole system was united.

The discovery of alien life came as a shock to the Kiellar who, to that point, had assumed they were the only intelligent life-form in the universe. The Kiellar Republic began to trade with some of their interstellar neighbours, however, the Kiellar culture was expansionistic and, bit-by-bit, the Kiellar began to absorb their neighbours.

The first major setback occurred when the Kiellar encountered the Dhasath League who destroyed the Kiellar Fleet, forcing the Republic to pay war reparations. This, in turn, paved the way for the military to seize control of the Republic, claiming the defeat was the result of corrupt politicians. The Kiellar fleet was rebuilt and the Second Dhasath war was a minor (and very unexpected) Kiellar victory, with the League handing over several mining stations and border outposts, but retaining all their inhabited worlds.

Following on from the Second Dhasath War, and the subsequent destruction of the League at the hands of the emergent Ragon Empire, Kiellar Command rapidly became the dominant power in Andromeda, conquering and enslaving innumerable other races, though as they did, increasingly large proportions of their military were required to keep their subjects in line. The Ragon Empire exploited this weakness during the War for Andromeda and Kiellar Command would have collapsed were it not for the intervention of other powers to help defeat the Ragons.

The damage, however, had been done and, following on from the war, Kiellar Command disintegrated into a morass of waring states controlled by rebels or KC military cliques.

The Kiellar in Sol: The kiellar population are mostly refugees, and their descendants from the Andromeda galaxy. While initially welcomed, the massive influx of kiellar has forever changed the makeup of the Sol system. While they can be found in all walks of earth life they are disproportionately disadvantaged and tend to work in manual labour where they are often resented by the human population as ‘job thieves’ or ‘freeloaders’.

Kiellar, generally speaking, are socially liberal and tend to be found in socially liberal states, though the older generation are often suspicious of democracy. The main religion among the kiellar is their indigenous polytheism (though many practice different religions or none at all), though in Sol a number of human deities have been added to the pantheon and human names may be used interchangeably with the names of an earth deity. For instance, ‘Rhustus’ will also be referred to as ‘Ares’ or ‘Mars’. The religion has drawn a small number of human converts, particularly from amongst people interested in neo-paganism.

Name
Singular: A Dhasath
Plural: Some Dhasath
Adjective: A Dhasath Ship
Naming: Click here for a generator that will spit out some thematic names.

Homeworld: Doona'tay
Population in Sol: 189 million (1.8% of the population)

Appearance: Of the aliens of the Andromeda Galaxy, the Dhasath are the closest to humans, so close in fact that they might easily be mistaken for one another. The most common appearance for a Dhasath is like that of a human from the Eastern Mediterranean. Like humans, there were once a great range in phenotypes, though these are comparatively rare due to the 'Time of Loathing'.

Dhasath, however, do not smell like humans to any creature with a particularly acute sense of smell (they smell slightly sweet). They can also be told apart by a simple blood test for nitrogen compounds.

Biology: The Dhasath evolved on a desert planet and are supremely adapted to survival in a waterless environment with scorching days and freezing nights. They rarely sweat and tend not to feel the change in temperature as acutely as other species.

Dhasath are extremely rapid breeders, reaching maturity faster than most other species and producing more offspring. A dhasath pregnancy lasts for around six months and the average ‘litter’ is 2.5 children. A dhasath is fully grown by age 14. Unusually, dhasath can produce viable offspring with humans, though there can be serious medical complications for a dhasath mother of a hybrid and this is generally frowned upon by other dhasath. It is believed the dhasath might be descended from humans removed from earth several millennia ago, though nobody has been able to verify this.

As a byproduct of their adaption to harsh environments, dhasath tissue is flooded with nitrogen compounds which, if ingested by an individual of another species, gives a potent, and addictive, feeling of euphoria. A similar, though less intense experience can be gained from sweat or saliva, which any non-dhasath to have entered into a close physical relationship with one can attest to.

History: In the early days of Kiellar expansion, the ‘Dhasath League’ was the major competing power in the Andromeda Galaxy. The League, however, was ill equipped to deal with the ragons who, after their discovery of the Skrim Drive, swept the League fleet aside (somewhat aided by the fact that they had recently been defeated by the kiellar), capturing every dhasath planet within five years of first contact.

The Euphoria that results from ingesting dhasath tissue made the species a delicacy to the ragons, and within ten years, the species was all but exterminated in ragon space. A few refugees successfully fled into kiellar territory and the Neutral Zone, though the population remained in decline until the end of the War for Andromeda. At their low point, it was estimated their were no more than 45 million dhasath scattered across the galaxy. The dhasath refer to the period from the fall of the league to the end of the War for Andromeda as the 'Time of Loathing'.

In the aftermath of the war, large portions of the dhasath population migrated to the New Doona'tay Republic and the Sol system, both comparative safe havens, and the population has grown exponentially since then though in parts of the Andromeda galaxy, dhasath are still traded or killed for food or to be processed into illegal narcotics.

The Dhasath in Sol: At the time of the large kiellar migration to earth, a much smaller dhasath population of around 2 million individuals also made the trek from Andromeda. Initially a large proportion of the earth’s population was concerned that the dhasath might be infiltrators for alien powers, though over time this concern has morphed into a fear of the dhasath eventually displacing humans from their own systems; over the last 150 years the dhasath population has exploded on earth, driven almost exclusively by natural births, growing from around 2 million in 2040 to 12 million in 2070, 60 million in 2140, and now just over 189 million.

The dhasath tend to integrate well into human society while also retaining a fierce sense of pride in their history and identity. The vast majority of Sol-system dhasath practice a religion referred to as ‘Makerism’. While, to many outsiders, it might appear to be an Orthodox brand of Christianity it is, in fact, a syncratic religion that blends Christianity with the traditional dhasath monotheism. Along with the addition of a ‘Dhasath Testiment’, it is notable for its heavy emphasis on practitioners to ‘go forth and multiply’, adding to the concerns about the burgeoning dhasath population. Because of the overwhelming level of adherence to Makerism, the Sol-system dhasath are sometimes referred to as an ethno-religious group.

While dhasath can be found everywhere in the Sol system, they are, proportionally, most numerous on Mars. The dhasath were well represented amongst Martian revolutionaries and, as a consequence of this, the dhasath have obtained the highest level of acceptance on the red planet where they are often seen as patriots. This has done nothing to alleviate fears of a dhasath replacement elsewhere in the sol system.

Name
Singular: A Gorial
Plural: Some Gorialax
Adjective: A Gorialax Ship
Naming: This generator will give you some decent Gorialax names. To create a surname, just use another name from the list.

Homeworld: Zinkeria
Population in Sol: 46 million (0.4% of the population)

Appearance:

Of the Milky Way aliens, the gorialax are the species most able to pose as human (albeit someone with a bad sunburn/spray tan).

Gorialax are relatively small (average height of 5'6'' for a male or 5'2'' for a female), lightly-built humanoids with a reddish skin tone that varies between individuals from a relatively bright pinkish colour to a burnt orange. Hair colour is dark while eyes span the whole human spectrum.

NB: If you want to make a gorialax character it is a pretty straightforward to do a photo manipulation on a human photo. I am very happy to help, if you post up the image you want to use.


Biology: Unlike most humanoids, who evolved from a primate type creature, the gorialax are descended from an ornithapod type creature that filled much the same niche as a wildebeest does on the African savannah. As such they are generally regarded as herbivores, though they will also eat small invertibrates.

The creature the gorialax evolved from was prey for many large carnivores. Speed was the main mechanism of defense and that has carried over to the modern gorialax in several unusual characteristics. The first and most obvious is their running speed. A fit, unencumbered gorial can run at speeds of 30mph for extended periods of time.

The gestation period for gorialax young is 8.5 months (slightly less than a human) and they are born with a well developed lower body. It is regarded as highly unusual for a gorialax not to be walking within an hour of birth.

Gorial bones are lighter than human bones meaning that a gorial will usually weigh 20% less than a human of similar size and body shape. This also means they are physically weaker and tend to struggle carrying large loads. They are, however, extremely quick and nimble.

The gorialax remain herd creatures at heart and are fantastically loyal and completely unselfish, working together towards a common goal in a way that most other species are incapable of replicating. While it is unusual to see a gorial away from their community, they are generally highly regarded ship crew amongst other alien races and are known to become fanatically loyal to their crewmates, bonding to them in the same way they would to their natural herd.

The Te-Gorialax subspecies: The Te-Gorialax are a genetically modified subspecies of gorialax from the frozen world of Tegukin. For the most part, the te-gorialax are much like their parent species, and still are capable of interbreeding with other gorialax, but have a few significant differences:

• Te-gorialax blood is a solution of Ammonia and liquid water, which enables them to comfortably live in significantly colder temperatures than would otherwise be possible for gorialax, although hotter temperatures do pose a health concern.
• Body temperature and metabolism are noticeably lower than that of the normal gorialax.
• Lifespan is around 10% longer.
• Te-gorialax are shorter, stockier, and paler than their parent species.
• Te-gorialax have more stamina but are slower than their parent species.

History: The Gorialax Collective first began exploring the Milky Way 5 millennia ago and began to study and categorise the species they found, visiting Earth around 4,500 years ago and studying humanity.

Unagressive by nature, the gorialax were initially shocked to find not all other races were interested in peaceful exploration and they began to arm their ships, though gorialax weapons proved woefully inadequate in the first centuries of exploration. This changed with first contact with the berdikons, a race with a very similar collectivist outlook. The two races began to pool knowledge and share designs, developing increasingly better and more sophisticated warships.

The two races combined about 4,000 years ago to form the 'Federation of Civilised Worlds', the faction which would come to dominate the Milky Way. While there were initially competitors, the gorialax and berdikons defeated them all, one by one, emerging as the undisputed Hegemony in the milky way 3,000 years ago.

Federation society, led by the gorialax and berdikons has always been remarkably socially equitable. The gorialax see themselves as members of a collective, rather than as competing individuals (sometimes referred to as the 'herd mentality') and resources are shared evenly. This situation is not appealing to all species and despite the fact that non-gorialax/berdikons worlds are free to join, the gorialax still make up 42% of the Federation's total population (906 billion) with the berdikons accounting for a further 40% (863 billion), though there are a huge number of 'Federation Aligned' worlds which are not included in this number.

The gorialax religion, referred to by outsiders as 'Gorialism' is universally practiced amongst the gorialax. Gorialism is a monotheism, worshipping the benevolent God 'Marduk' who preserves the souls of all deceased gorialax. Those who have worked with the collective will be reunited with it in death to run together, for eternity, on Marduk's great plain. Those who have failed the collective in life are cast out in death to make their own way in the wilderness, eternally separated from the collective. Ancestors are venerated in the religion and are expected to welcome the souls of the newly deceased upon their journey to Marduk's plain.

The Gorialax in Sol: Unlike the other races in the Sol system, the gorialax have settled almost entirely in two spots. The first gorialax colony is Grand Valley Province, Mars (particularly its capital, Redfield). While nominally a part of the Martian Federation, Grand Valley Province is largely self-governing and seen by many earth intellectuals as either a Communist Utopia or hellhole depending upon the political leanings of the individual in question. While the city does not prohibit other species from settling, most find the gorialax herd mentality jarring and difficult to deal with. As a result, the population of non-gorialax in the Grand Valley Province is not particularly high. Grand Valley Province is the only substantial area in the sol system where non-humans form the majority of the population.

The second major area of gorialax settlement is on Titan where the te-gorialax subspecies have established a sizeable population in a Sino-American colony. Here the te-gorialax’s adaption to the cold has made them an invaluable part of the workforce as the te-gorialax are the only species able move about on the surface with a respirator and arctic weather gear, rather than requiring a full space suit (while dhasath are cold resistant as well, the temperatures on the surface of Titan are too low even for them).

Like the dhasath, the gorialax (including the te-gorialax) are often seen as an ethno-religious group; a product of the gorialax herd mentality.

Name
Singular: A Berdikon
Plural: Some Berdikons
Adjective: A Berdikon Ship
Naming: Berdikons have a forename, usually one to three middle names (which refer to famous or cherished ancestors of either gender) and a Tribal name.This generator will give you some decent berdikon-sounding forenames/middle names.
This will give you some Berdikon sounding Tribal names.

Homeworld: Greskia
Population in Sol: 166 million (1.6% of the population)

Appearance:

The Berdikons are a Milky Way species who superficially resemble humans in many ways, their green skin makes them quite obviously alien.

Berdikon are about human size, while their skin tones range from a bright green to a drab olive. Hair is naturally dark. Eyes can be anything in the human spectrum though green, brown and hazel are most common.

NB: If you want to make a berdikon character it is a pretty straightforward to do a photo manipulation on a human photo. I am very happy to help, if you post up the image you want to use.


Biology: The Berdikon home planet of Greskia is an unusually fertile planet with dense forests of fruit bearing trees that stretch from the equator to the artic tundra. The Berdikons are descended from an arboreal monotreme type creature (while mostly mamalian, Berdikons are oviparous) that once graced the canopies of the planet.

It is believed that the progenitor species practiced a rather unusual mating system that was a cross between 'polyandry' and 'resource defense polygyny' with males defending a resource area to attract females, but with only the dominant females in the group breeding. Younger and less dominant females formed 'creches' to look after the group offspring's. Around 90% of berdikon eggs hatch as females, though it is not understood whether this evolved as a consequence of their peculiar mating structure or if it was the other way around.

Due to the low number of males, polygyny is still practiced, though berdikon society tends to be dominated by older matriarchs.

Berdikon males will be physically and sexually mature at a similar age to humans, though the females, while physically fully grown at the same age as humans, do not begin to ovulate until about age 40 (in earth years) despite being completely adult in appearance. Pre-reproductive age adult females are often referred to as 'freemartins'. Ageing is significantly slowed for both sexes until around age 40 and berdikons live for an average of about 105 years.

Young berdikons have a retractable, backward facing, venemous spur that can be extended from beneath the carpal bones. While extremely painful, this venom is rarely ever lethal. At around age 40 (i.e. the age of sexual maturity for females) this spur will break off and while the poison gland in the upper arm remains active, berdikons lose the ability to deliver the venom (though it is possible to replace the spur with a synthetic one).

As a planet, Greskia is also unusually rich in cobalt and nearly all of the native species, the berdikons included, use 'coboglobin' to transport oxygen in the blood. This means that berdikon venous blood is amber, while arterial blood is clear. For the same reason berdikon muscle tissue is very pale, looking similar to that of a earth reptile when cut open. Berdikon 'milk', or indeed that of any other of the monotreme-type species of Greskia is a pale violet colour.

Berdikons living amongst other species will inevitably need to take heavy cobalt supplements, while other species will generally need to avoid food grown on Greskia due to the danger of cobalt toxicity.

History: The United Republic of Greskia first began exploring the Milky Way 5 millennia ago. While not an especially aggressive species, Greskia had seen a number of wars in the years leading up to unification, and the berdikons were not as unprepared as their soon-to-be allies in the Gorialax Collective, when they first encountered hostile species.

While not a herd species, the berdikons tend to be cooperative by nature, forming large collectivist tribes stratified by age and sex. Historically wars tended to only be fought when resources were unable to meet the demands of all tribes. In the post-scarcity world of the United Republic, there was little to compete for and Greskian society gradually developed a unified tribal identity. When they encountered the gorialax, the two highly cooperative species almost immediately began working together.

Together the berdikons and gorialax combined, about 4,000 years ago, to form the 'Federation of Civilised Worlds', the faction which would come to dominate the Milky Way. While there were initially competitors, the Federation proved to be, in it's early years, an unstoppable military-political juggernaut, emerging as, and remaining the undisputed Hegemony in the milky way 3,000 years ago.

Federation society, led by the gorialax and berdikons has always been remarkably socially equitable, although amongst the berdikons, the matriachs and males are generally better off than the freemartins. Conversely, freemartins tend to take on most of the dangerous or adventurous roles e.g. military. Because they make up such a small proportion of the population, males are strongly discouraged from any pursuit that would put them in physical danger.

The peculiarity of the two races has meant that the Federation isn't appealing to more individualistic species and the berdikons and gorialax together make up 82% of the Federation's total population of 1.8 trillion, though there are a huge number of 'Federation Aligned' worlds which are not included in this number.

The Berdikons in Sol: As the more adventurous and outgoing of the two core Federation species, the berdikons have tended to arrive on Sol as representatives of Federation trading companies (usually operating on behalf of a Berdikon tribe) and as such are disproportionately found amongst the earth’s elite. While many don’t stay on earth indefinitely, a sizeable proportion are now well settled and it is unusual for a private school (with the exception of male only ones) not to have one or more berdikons on the role.

The unusual reproduction system of the species has also meant that in most wealthier states, berdikon freemartins have become a major feature in the military officer corp. This has had a knock-on effect that has led to more human women in these states enrolling in the armed forces as well.

Due to their collectivist nature, the berdikons are also known on earth as major philanthropists and operate numerous charities aimed at improving the lives of low-income families and can often be found on the ballot for leftist parties.

While berdikons are generally not resented to the same degree as kiellar or dhasath, there remains a simmering undercurrent of dislike for the ‘alien overlords’ and a number of conspiracy theories exist around the berdikons secretly controlling the Sol system’s governments or plotting a Federation annexation of the system.

---

THE RULES

---

And because it seems important to include these, here are a few rules for how to behave on the NS forums, just in case you hadn't figured it out already:

• Decisions
  My word and the word of any and all Co-OPs is binding. If you don’t like a decision, you can, of course, ask for us to reconsider it. Once. If we made a decision you don’t like, complaining for pages and pages is not going to endear you to anyone. Not me, not the Co-OPs and not your fellow writers.
  On that note, I run my threads as anarcho-communist cooperatives. This is an unnecessarily complicated way of saying that my word DOES NOT overrule theirs. If there is an appeal and a dispute amongst the Co-OPs we will take a vote on the matter.
• Post Quality
  I don’t have a problem with short posts but please use proper spelling (I don’t care what regional variant), grammar etc.
  Ideally also try to include a 'hook' when you write a post, which is to say something that gives other people something to respond to. If your post is something along the lines of 'Bilbo Baggins stayed in his room and read a book while the world was ending', don't be surprised if nobody responds to you.
• Posting Commitment
  Nothing is worse than making an RP only for it to die. Please take a look to see if there is a place for you to post at least every 48 hours or so. If you find yourself unable to post, please let me know in the OOC thread for an extended period of time. If it looks like you've abandoned a character, particularly in the middle of a fight scene, I might decide to kill them off in a hilarious manner.
• Posting Speed
  On the flip side, blitz posting can also be infuriating. So, especially during the important scenes, I recommend giving your fellow players a reasonable time to make a reply. We all have real lives. That being said, if someone leaves everyone waiting for over 48 hours, feel free to carry on the scene without them.
• OOC thread Manners
  Nothing annoys me more than bad manners on an OOC thread (apart from that 'Look at my horse, my horse is amazing' song). Swearing, passive-aggressive sniping or any other rude behaviour are not welcome on the OOC. I will warn you once. If you can’t control yourself I will ask you to remove yourself from the thread.
• IC thread Manners
  Remember, we are writing a story together, not playing to win.
• Character Death
  Player death is possible in this RP, though will be quite rare and easily avoidable. Please don’t write that you have killed another character unless you have OOC permission from the character's owner to do it. Beat them into a pulp or take them prisoner, but don’t kill them. Having said that, if someone does something really stupid, I reserve the right to announce your character has got themselves killed. Likewise, if someone goes inactive in the middle of a fight scene without explanation and cannot be raised, I may decide to kill their character off.
• Godmodding
  If your character is unfairly refusing to take any damage I will write them taking damage for you. You're welcome!
• Keep it PG13
  Shouldn’t need to be telling you this really but keep the erotica and gorn off the thread. Hopefully you all know how to write forum-safe stuff. I will be extremely disappointed if the mods have to pay us a visit.
• Banning Players
  I really don’t want to be doing that but reserve the right to do so if you cannot follow the (hopefully, rather simple) rules above.

---

CHARACTER APP

---

This may be revised as we go on, but for now the only rules for characters are:

• No psychics.
• No personal equipment that is miles better than what the military has e.g. magical armour or super-guns.
• Keep your characters fit the setting. I might ask you to tweak bits if it isn't.
• Not compulsory, but it is highly encouraged for your character to start with a bit of a bad attitude towards one or more of the other races.
• No more dhasath-human hybrids.

Also please remember that for you to be a crew member you were hired to do something on the ship. The bar isn't incredibly high, but if you app a character who has no discernible skills and a drinking problem then I'm going to ask you to redo the app.

Please delete everything in parenthesis.

Code: Select all

[box]
[size=150][b]Character Description[/b][/size]
[list][b]Name:[/b]
[b]Species:[/b] (Human, kiel, dhasath, gorial or berdikon)
[b]Gender:[/b]
[b]Age:[/b]
[b]Appearance:[/b] [spoiler](Feel free to describe with text or put pictures in here.  If you are using a picture, personally, I find it easier to picture a character who is shown in photo/realistic drawing though I'm not going to get funny about anything else.  Unless it is your personal stick-man art.  I might draw the line at that.)[/spoiler]
[/list]

[hr][/hr][size=150][b]Strengths and Weaknesses[/b][/size]
[list]
[b]Skills[/b]: (Is there anything you are significantly better at than most other people?)
[b]Weaknesses[/b]: (Is there anything your character is really rubbish at?  Not essential you put anything in, but can be fun) 
[/list]

[hr][/hr][size=150][b]Background:[/b][/size]
[list][b]Nationality[/b]: (Pick a RL nationality or 'Martian')
[b]Department in the Ship[/b]: (Where are you working?)
[b]Backstory[/b]:(How did you come to be here?  Also, please note that, unless agreed otherwise, your character is an Ensign)
[b]Personal effects[/b]: (You get a uniform, armour and a weapon if you need it.  This is a place for personal bits and pieces that make your character more interesting)
 [/list][/box]

[Nachfolgia]

I might be interested in this.

[Sarderia]

After Beasts, I shall try my luck in this RP. I'll see if I can put down an app soon.

[Dyelli Beybi]

Excellent, glad to see some interest! Incidentally, I've drafted up a Beasts post that I will make once I'm back from buying dinner.

[Arengin Union]

Yours truly reporting

[Europa Undivided]

To boldly go make an app...

[Bingellia]

Character Description

Name: Violann “Violette” of Mihal
Species: Kiel
Gender: Female
Age: 45
Appearance:


Violann is 188 centimeters tall and 80 kilograms. Her tall, lean build which she is proud of is almost archetypal for Kiels in military service. She's rarely seen out of some kind of uniform, though she changes between wearing her hair down or pulled up in a simple pony-tail depending on how active she is expecting to be

---

Strengths and Weaknesses

Skills: Violann is a dedicated soldier, and brings with her the skills that 25 years of physical and mental training and experience that career provides.
Weaknesses: Her experience with anti-Kiel prejudice has left her with own prejudices. She privately believes humans are generally lazy and entitled unless they prove themselves to her, and she’s defensive of her own “Kiellarisms.”

---

Background:

Nationality: American, though hybridized with some traditional Kiellar Values
Department in the Ship: Security
Backstory: Violann’s story begins with her father, Mihal of Obe, a politically liberal (By the standards for the Command) Kiel disillusioned by the failures of a post-war Command who settled on Earth nearly a century ago. Her father known in Kiellar circles as a voice for peaceful coexistence without full assimilation with humanity, but is more widely known in Sol for his published accounts of the Defiance’s exploits.

Violann is an Earth-Born Kiel, and a native to Denver. Unlike some of the Kiellar Diaspora, she has been raised from the beginning submerged in human society. She went to human schools, grew-up primarily with other humans, and speaks English fluently, only using Kiellari in the presence of her father and other Kiels. Of course, she has also dealt with prejudice from the beginning as well. From deliberately choosing hairstyles to the ends of her ears to better fit in as a child to quietly burying the vitriol thrown at Kiels in her adulthood, she has coped in numerous ways.

However, she’s still a woman of two cultures despite taking Violette as a name. With no shortage of Kiels in her formative years she still holds on to some values. She still prays to the gods, she still sees sparring as a means of solving disputes, and she still views maintaining basic martial and physical prowess as a personal duty.

It was perhaps a lingering sense of Kiellar militarism that convinced her father to allow her to enroll in an JROTC program, but Mihal was furious when she enlisted. He had seen what modern combat had looked like and it had cost him an eye in the process, and he would not have that for her. Of course, there was little he could have done, she was 20 and had already signed the papers.

While the values, such as an inclination to defer to authority, the idealization of the citizen-soldier, and a drive to improve oneself, that being Kiellar had instilled in her proved to be very useful in the U.S. military, the fact that she was Kiellar was not of any help. While her human peers saw their careers continue at normal rates, she had hers delayed and neglected by bureaucracy. After ten years of comparatively little advancement, it seemed obvious to transfer to the U.N.S. as a marine once the chance arose to both see the wider galaxies and finally advance according to her own merits

Once there, her career seemed to finally accelerate, and she cycled through a handful of postings over the course of the next fifteen years. Perhaps it was an ironic act of fate given her parentage, but she would ultimately be given the option to transfer to the Destiny II. It was not a hard choice for her to continue her career and see things far away from the issues in Sol.

Personal effects: Violann keeps an e-reader, which also doubles as a journal, and few sets of civilian cloathing but generally keeps little in the way of miscellaneous personal effects besides a small amount of jewelry, a watch, and a small potted plant. However, her most obvious possession is the sword that she keeps mounted on the wall in her quarters. It’s a plain, traditional Kiellar saber and similar to a Shashka. However, It is only ceremonial, and Violann only uses it for private sword dancing.

[Khasinkonia]

Character Description

Name: Eulli Yitakyeop
Species: Te-Gorial
Gender: F
Age: 26
Appearance:

Eulli is on the heavier side of healthy for a Gorial, weighing in at about 45kg(99lbs) for her diminutive 152cm(5’). Although she’s perfectly happy with her chub and has little to complain as far as the distribution goes, she generally wears a size up and cuffs her pants and sleeves instead of tailoring sizes to fit her, as she enjoys the easy manoeuvrability that baggy clothes afford. Her hair is naturally black and wiry and wavy in texture, she strips it down and builds it back up to be a fluffy ginger colour. Her skin is pale enough that she can pass in some lighting as a rather sunburnt human, which she uses to her full advantage whenever possible.

---

Strengths and Weaknesses

Skills: Above all, Eulli is a prodigious roboticist with a clear passion for her work. Her hands and mind are never really inactive, as she’s always either tinkering, getting ready to tinker, or shoving a fistful of food in her mouth. Because of her activity, she’s trained herself to be ambidextrous and perhaps the closest thing to a true multitasker that one can really be. As a Te-Gorialax, she can work comfortably in rooms chilled down much lower than most of her comrades in Engineering can handle, which makes her excellent for working with tech that needs to be kept at subzero temperatures to prevent overheating. The converse of this, however, is that she can’t take higher temperatures for extended periods of time without passing out—an issue only exacerbated by her orthostatic hypotension. She’s physically quite strong for her size, especially when lifting with her legs, and is something of an amateur gymnast with how awkward some of her working positions can be.
Weaknesses: Eulli generally has two states: Hyperfocusing, and easily-distracted. While both can be assets sometimes, they can also interfere with her productivity when she finds them difficult to manage. As a Gorial, her friendliness can rub some the wrong way, as not everyone finds a tight hug to be as casual a form of greeting as it is for her.

---

Background:

Nationality: Titanian(Primary), Korean(Earth Loyalty), Federation(Heritage)
Department in the Ship: Engineering, Science
Backstory: Eulli is a fifth generation Titanian, hailing from some of the first Te-Gorialax to settle the frigid moon. Her clan, unlike most, was founded mostly by accident, as its founders, Massi and Ilanum, had intended to create an Earth-style “family” rather than a clan and live among humans on the new colony of Titan, but their herd mindsets ultimately resulted in only partial success. Although still small for a Gorialax clan of five generations, the Yitakyeop clan is still fairly large, and a row of several apartment complexes within the Sino-Korean majority Balhae settlement still holds almost exclusively Yitakyeops.

Although she had many brothers and sisters growing up, like them, she spent a significant time mingling with humans, and, as a result, generally rambles along in a mangled mixture of Gorial and Korean when interacting with her siblings and with others who have translator nanites, although she can speak in proper Gorial or Korean when prompted. Thanks to her extensive interactions with humans, she has a strong independent streak, much like her ancestors, but couples it with a uniquely Gorial friendliness. Because of her pale red skin, she can sometimes be mistaken for a short human or Dhasath—something which she happily encourages. In school, she was an excellent student, and, although Titanians are generally a more accepting people due to their position in space, a part of this was that there is a sensibility among many Titanian children that the Te-Gorialax of the Yitakeops “got” some aspects of human culture, and so she scarcely experienced overt speciesism beyond the casual bigotry that comes from lack of understanding of cultures.

Perhaps Eulli’s crowning achievement, however, was her participation in the legendary Class of ‘68 Science Olympiad Team of the Balhae Preparatory Academy. Some say the school managed to rig events, some say teachers helped, but others say the stars simply aligned to create a power squad of geeks. One of these super-geeks was Eulli, who participated in the unprecedented two-year reign of her team in 67’ and 68’, and helped mentor her successor for the robotics competitions. As of now, the Science Olympiad dynasty begun by the classes of 67’ and 68’ has yet to fall. And for Eulli, this proud beginning to her career as a stellar roboticist continued as she attended the International Titanian Academy of Sciences for her 4-year degree with many of her former teammates. With extensive collaboration with teachers and little sleep, Eulli blazed through her bachelor degree in three years.

As a continuing prodigy in her field, Eulli was invited to continue her studies at the Martian campus of the United Nations of Sol Intergalactic Military Academy, where she has been given the opportunity to participate in the Destiny II’s exploratory missions as a member of the engineering team, albeit with access to the ship’s robotics labs for the purposes of tinkering on a pre-scheduled basis. As a hyper-enthusiastic green, she’ll do the work of two crew members if allowed.

Personal effects: Outside of Eulli’s uniform, many of her personal effects are custom-made. Her crowning achievement is her cybernetic backpack, also known as her “Baby,” “Precious,” “Masterpiece,” and more, which she designed alongside a fellow Balhae prodigy as a collaborative thesis project for her second year at UNSIMA. Although it can be largely removed for repairs, it connects directly to her nervous system via an assortment of ports along her spine, and is strapped around her chest and shoulders externally and powered by blaster energy packs. In large part, it functions as auxiliary limbs for her. It can extend up to six spidery limbs which she can use to elevate herself, climb, and manipulate her surroundings with an excellent dexterity. Although her boots are fairly normal, her work gloves are special in that they too are connected to her nervous system via a small chip in each of her wrists, which enable her to feel rough approximations of heat “through” the gloves. In her right work glove is an embedded mini-welder, which, despite its limited battery life, is often an asset when working with unexpected circumstances. Finally, she has a computer headband which connects to chips in each of her eye sockets that allow her to browse the internet, write emails, play games, and more, just if she were using a computer with her hands. Although the technology itself has existed cybernetic eyes for many years, what is impressive about her headband-chip combination is that it was her and a fellow student who designed it together, with the interface being entirely her own.

[Europa Undivided]

Character Description

Name: Finbar Shanahan
Species: Human
Gender: a man
Age: 30
Appearance:

---

Strengths and Weaknesses

Skills:

• Genius Biochemist
• Multilingual (English, Irish Gaelic, and French)
• Fair Marksman
  
  Weaknesses:
• Afflicted with asthma
• Racist to the space elves
  
  

  ---

  Background:
  
  Nationality: Irish
  Department in the Ship: Science
  Backstory:
  
  Finbar Shanahan hails from the home world of mankind, Earth, specifically from Ireland. He was the younger of two brothers, with the older one being named Shaun Shanahan, who was no less than three years more advanced. Overall, Finbar did not have a very remarkable life; his parents were decent people, with his mother being a neurosurgeon while the father was the police captain for the local precinct. Finbar picked up his mother's passion for science and learning, and would be thoroughly known as an "absolute nerd". His father in turn taught him how to handle a pistol and a rifle, making him fairly proficient in using them, though not as good as any professionally trained soldier.
  
  Over his life, though, he would see the aliens that came from the heavens almost every day. There were these pointy eared ones that looked awfully a lot like the elves of old folklore. They were different from humans, and one thing was for sure: Finbar and his brother did not like them. The strange mannerisms of the aliens and everything else in between, coupled with being told exaggerated stories of the immigrants being unruly has made Finbar hold a special dislike for these pointy eared folks. The other aliens are fair game, though.
  
  Either way, he would continue on following his mother's footsteps in science, getting his PhD at the age of 27. Finbar then became a professor of biology and chemistry in Dublin City University until he decided to resign, looking for a more exciting and, let's say, riskier posting in a bid to satisfy his own wanderlust. He would eventually get the opportunity to work in the Science Department of the Destiny II, and gleefully, Finbar accepted.
  
  Personal effects:
  
  • A cross that he wears on his neck, signifying his allegiance to the Catholic Church.
  • A box of chocolate. Its free for all.
  • No less than 20 books written by classic authors all over Earth history.
  • A small bonsai tree.
  • A 2176 Edition Razer Gaming PC.
  • Whiskey bottles hidden under the bed.
  • A family picture.
    

[Grenartia]

I have some questions: What about Venus colonies? And what about Dhasath-human hybrids?

[Nachfolgia]

Character Description

Name: Stella MacKay
Species: Human
Gender: Female
Age: 32
Appearance:

---

Strengths and Weaknesses

Skills: Due to years of training in England and the U.N.S, Stella is exception with engines used in space craft of all sizes. Basically, if it has an engine and flies through space, she can fix it. She also specialized in maintaining Skrim Drives, the primary way to travelling distances in space.
Weaknesses: Her people skills are nearly non existent due to a life of finding comfort in mechanical devices rather than human beings. Despite being employed by the U.N.S, she has very little firearms training, only firing a weapon during initial training. So don't expect her to be effective vin a fire fight.

---

Background:

Nationality: Scotland
Department in the Ship: Engineering
Backstory:

For most of Stella MacKay's life, she called Glasgow home. Glasgow, being a port city, saw a steady influx of alien refugees looking for cheap work over a few decades. The local Glaswegians, especially her family, took a distain for the refugees. A couple of Stella's cousins lost their jobs at the docks to the Kiel coming into the city. Dozens of cases like this led to much distrust of the Kiel and in extreme cases, physical violence.

With her father being a Aerospace Engineer, Stella didn't have to worry about financial hardship brought on by cheap alien labor. Growing up, she had a profound interest in space travel and would often sneak into her father's room to read aerospace magazines and technical manuals. On more than one occasion, she'd get caught and instead of punishing her, her father would quiz her on what she read. This positive reinforcement only added to her passion and determination to follow in her father's footsteps.

Throughout school, Stella showed her drive to become an Aerospace Engineer, focusing her entire time to getting good grades and being the top of her class. Unfortunately, this gave her little time to socialize with other kids and she quickly became a shut in. Being popular didn't matter to her at all and her hard work paid off when she graduated high school at the top of her class.

Stella's grades and perfect GPA got her accepted into the college of her dreams, London Aerospace and Technology College, the same college her father went to. Things were going great until an accident occured while working on a mock Skrim Drive. A malfunction happened and her left arm got caught inside the machine. Luckily, the instructor was able to turn off the Skrim Drive before she was killed, but it cost her the arm.

It took months for her to recover, but she never lost her drive to succeed. With a new mechanical arm and new determination, Stella went on to earned high marks and graduated top of her class with a Master's Degree. Earning such a high degree, Stella immediately applied and got accepted by the U.N.S and was soon after placed on the Destiny II as the ship's chief engineer.

Personal effects:
- Framed picture of her and her father
- Her father's lucky wrench
- A journal
- Framed Master's Degree
- Picture of her graduating college

[Lessoni]

tamg

[Dyelli Beybi]

Character Description

Name: Stella MacKay
Species: Human
Gender: Female
Age: 32
Appearance:
(Image)

Character Description

Name: Finbar Shanahan
Species: Human
Gender: a man
Age: 30
Appearance:
(Image)

Character Description

Name: Eulli Yitakyeop
Species: Te-Gorial
Gender: F
Age: 26
Appearance:
(Image)
Eulli is on the heavier side of healthy for a Gorial, weighing in at about 45kg(99lbs) for her diminutive 152cm(5’). Although she’s perfectly happy with her chub and has little to complain as far as the distribution goes, she generally wears a size up and cuffs her pants and sleeves instead of tailoring sizes to fit her, as she enjoys the easy manoeuvrability that baggy clothes afford. Her hair is naturally black and wiry and wavy in texture, she strips it down and builds it back up to be a fluffy ginger colour. Her skin is pale enough that she can pass in some lighting as a rather sunburnt human, which she uses to her full advantage whenever possible.

Character Description
[list]Name: Viotann “Violette” of Mihal
Species: Kiel
Gender: Female
Age: 45
Appearance: [spoiler](Image)

These all look good to me!

[Kylantha]

[REDACTED]

[Demencia]

this isn't going to be as shitposty as it was in the discord, i swear

Character Description

Name: Aoibheann Mac Thréinfhir (commonly called just 'Mac' by foreigners because of the perceived complexity of her name)
Species: Human
Gender: Female
Age: 28
Appearance: Mac is 170cm tall

---

Strengths and Weaknesses

Skills:
• Explosives making
  
• Explosives disposal
• Control of a bomb-disposal robot nicknamed Nelson III
• Procurement and maintenance of equipment
Weaknesses:
• Very strong anti-imperial and anti-monarchy sentiment
• Short temper, prone to verbal (and occasionally physical) outbursts when annoyed

---

Background:

Nationality: Irish

Department in the Ship: Ordnance (specifically EOD)

Backstory: Aoibheann Mac Thréinfhir was born in Donegal, Ireland. Growing up in Ulster, a sense of patriotism was instilled in her from a very young age, a sense she carries to this very day. Her parents and twin sister shared similar sentiments, but none of them felt as strongly about the cause as Aoibheann. Her independent spirit meant she couldn't stand the idea of colonialism or monarchies, a position that put her in a somewhat awkward position geographically, as Ireland was politically neutral and wasn't in the habit of rushing to the aid of people living in non-republics (especially so when the people didn't want the liberation Aoibheann dreamed for them, like the people across the border not terribly far from where she grew up.)

This possibly misguided idealism drove her to join the Irish Defence Forces at 18, going into the Ordnance Corps to channel some of her more... fiery personality traits into physical form. She learned the ins and outs of explosives, everything from their creation and maintenance to their disposal, be it careful or violent. She served for 9 years in the Republic, with tasking varying from local bomb disposal to training other nations in ordnance management. In her tenth year of service, an opportunity arose to join a mission that went beyond the scope of any defense pact or the UNS, a chance to leave the system altogether as the head of ordnance on the Destiny II.

Aoibheann had never previously dreamed of going to space herself, though she had (very reluctantly) trained a few troops that were headed to the colonies, especially to Mars. She considered turning it down and staying on the ground, but she also thought that maybe this might be an opportunity to actually accomplish something. Previously her job was entirely defensive, there was never any serious crisis facing the island, but going forth and finding the worlds? Perhaps something could be done to make sure they don't end up suffering under the colonial thumb of Earth and instead get to start out as proper independent people without the need for a bloody revolution like the planet had seen endless times before.

Personal effects: Cigarette lighter with the IDF Ordnance Corps emblem on it, a few packs of cigarettes, a deck of cards with lewd imagery, a memento of previous disposal robot Nelson II, an unhealthy amount of various types of alcohol, some trinkets from home.

[Dyelli Beybi]

Character Description

Name: Darko Novak
Species: Human
Gender: Male
Age: 47
Appearance: Novak is, at 6'4'', a tall, imposing figure. He has striking blue eyes, dark hair and a somewhat palid complexion.

---

Strengths and Weaknesses

Skills: Good at games of chance (he's good at calculating the odds) and a surprisingly talented stage actor.
Weaknesses: Conversely he tends to overact if asked to take on a role or go undercover... which hopefully he won't need to since he's the captain of the ship. Something has gone catastrophically wrong if he does.

---

Background:

Nationality: Croatian
Department in the Ship: Captain
Backstory: Darko Novak is originally from the island of Korčula, just off the Dalmatian coast. The young Darko enjoyed an idyllic existence on the small island, far away from many of the problems that plagued earth in the mid 22nd century. As a child, after a visit to the supposed house where Marco Polo was born (on Korčula), Darko became fascinated by the stories of the merchant-explorer and by the time he was in his teens had decided he was going to enlist in the Sol Armada in the hopes that, one day, he would get to explore the stars. While there were no more blank spaces on the map of earth, the cosmos still lay mysterious and, in many places unexplored. From that day forward, he devoted his life to the goal of getting into the Sol Intergalactic Military Academy. Along the way, Darko had opportunities to select a different path; he discovered a talent for acting and was often the lead in school plays and had a strong aptitude for mathematics, though he chose not to pursue careers in either, instead maintaining his focus on the Academy.

Darko got his wish and graduated four years later, IN 2151, as Sol Armada Ensign.

Since then, Darko Novak has slowly climbed the ranks of the Armada. As a Lieutenant, in 2162, he made his first voyage outside of the solar system, as the crew of a gunboat escorting a Federation merchant convoy across former Kiellar territory. While what he saw of Andromeda was breathtaking, Lieutenant Novak longed for the opportunity to leave the well-trod path of the convoys to Gollar space and explore deeper into the dark reaches of the collapsed Kiellar Command. After all, human knowledge of what was in those vast reaches of space was mostly based off what the KC had told them and they hadn't been around since the 2070s. Those sections of the Andromeda Galaxt might as well have been unknown.

Novak married and his wife Marina, a girl he had known from childhood, has had two sons with him. The family remained on Korčula and by all reports the marriage is a happy one, even if (or perhaps because), like many Armada officers, Novak is often away for many months at a time.

In 2171, Novak was promoted to the Rank of Lieutenant Commander, in charge of the gunship UNS Lachesis. Less than a year into his command, the convoy he was escorting was ambushed by a squadron of five pirates just outside of Sol territory. Novak performed exceptionally well under pressure, crippling one pirate vessel and forcing the others to withdraw. The action drew the attention of his superiors and Novak was offered a promotion and command of a larger warship. Novak declined, asking instead to be put aboard one of the new Frontier Class Deep Exploration Cruisers: his dream had always been to be an explorer.

Novak had expected a quick transfer though, much to his delight, he was offered something better - command of his own Frontier Class vessel. All he needed to do was wait for the Destiny II to be launched.
Now, in 2176, Captain Novak's wait is finally over. While he will miss his family, the chance to explore new worlds is the fulfilment of a lifelong dream.

Personal effects: Framed photos of his wife and two sons for putting on his desk, another framed photo of Korčula, several bottles of Armagnac, a dozen cases of Dingač wine and, just because he's the Captain and he can, a 3 year old Tornjak named 'Winston' (after an old friend from the Lachesis).

---

---

Character Description

Name: Aula Cartia
Species: Dhasath
Gender: Female
Age: 26
Appearance: Aula is, in many respects, a fairly typical looking young dhasath female. She is 5'5'', about average height, has dark hair and eyes and a 'Mediterranean' complexion.

---

Strengths and Weaknesses

Skills: Is a well-trained Martian soldier with all the skills you might expect, including the ability to forage off the land. A surprisingly good cook... if you like particularly spicy food.
Weaknesses: Aside from some limited field medicine is not going to be able to help the ship crew out with much.

---

Background:

Nationality: Martian
Department in the Ship: Marine
Backstory: Aula is a dhasath, and immensely proud of that fact, though she has a human ancestor and is, in fact, 1.5% human. While not a secret, this is not something she generally mentions; from a medical perspective she is fully dhasath and does not exhibit any human or hybrid traits, not to mention the fact she has been brought up to think of herself as dhasath.

Aula comes from a typically large dhasath family, with two older siblings, three younger and two litter mates. Her grandfather, Teucer Cartia, was a well-known revolutionary agitator in the then American-Zone of Mars,there is even a statue of him in Arcadia South, and Martian patriotism runs in the family. Aula and one of her younger brothers both enlisted in the Martian Army; Aula graduated from officer training in 2072 and her brother two years later. During this time the Martians haven't been involved in any fighting with the Earthers, though they retain the military at a high state of readiness, in part because Mars doesn't trust the earth powers not to try to regain their lost territory on the red planet and, in part, just in case the opportunity presents itself to take over one of their ports.

While Aula is a supporter of the Martian cause, she was beginning to find sitting around on Mars, waiting for something to happen, a little boring. It was then that the opportunity for a posting on a Sol Armada vessel came up. Not only did the posting promise adventure, but it also promised her the opportunity to show the Earthers (who no doubt would make up the bulk of the crew) just what Mars, and the dhasath, are capable of. Aula volunteered without hesitation and was accepted.

While Aula is a little worried about the prospect of travelling with Earthers, many of whom she expects will have an issue with a Martian dhasath, she is also excited at the opportunity to do her bit for Sol. After all, it's the dhasath home as well now.

Personal effects:
• A crucifix on a chain she wears under her uniform
  
• A dhasath bible with pictures of her parents and siblings carefully tucked into the front cover
• Several colourful belted-tunics (the dhasath garment of choice) for any occasions she gets to not wear her uniform.
• A box of spices, including some particularly potent dried chillis.
• A red martian army beret.
  

[Sao Nova Europa]

Character Description

Name: Takeshi Shinaro
Species: Human
Gender: Male
Age: 48
Appearance:

---

Strengths and Weaknesses

Skills: Tactical genius, respected officer, experienced (having seen action in Yemen and former Kiellar Command territory)
Weaknesses: Resented by many for his strictness, seen as overly ambitious , racist towards non-Japanese (humans and aliens), limping slightly on left leg

---

Background:

Nationality: Japanese
Department in the Ship: Bridge (Tactical Operations Officer)
Backstory:
Takeshi Shinaor was born to a military family in Tokyo. His father was a General (and Chief of Staff for four years) while his mother was the daughter of another prominent General. He was a diligent student at school, especially when it came to mathematics and history. While at high school, he and a couple of friends joined a far-right activist group called ‘Defenders of the Emperor’s Dignity’, calling for an end to democracy and return to imperial rule. While after graduation he would become more discreet in his political leanings, he remains to this day a committed nationalist and monarchist.

Takeshi became a student at the National Defense Academy of Japan, proceeding to get a Master’s and then a Doctoral degree on Military and Strategic Studies. After graduation, he joined the Air Self-Defense Force and was promoted to Captain in four years and Colonel in six years. As Colonel, he served for six years in Yemen, in an UN-organized peacekeeping operation. During his time there, he directed surgical strikes against terrorist targets which were widely praised as highly efficient but also criticized for high civilian casualty rates. He was also criticized for close ties with Saudi high-ranking officials. Nevertheless, his success in eliminating terrorist outposts meant that he was highly decorated and criticisms against him were ignored. During his time in Yemen, Takeshi suffered a serious injury as he became a victim of a terrorist suicide bomber. He had to hospitalize and even to this day, his left leg is slightly limping.

After his time in Yemen, he was promoted to Major General. Only a few months later, he was asked to join Sol Armada as a Tactical Operations Officer. Takeshi accepted, despite his disdain for aliens. As officer of Sol Armada, he took part in action against pirates and warlords in operations escorting shipping through former Kiellar Command territory.

It’s been six years since he joined Sol Armada, and now he is a respected, high-ranking officer of UNS Destiny II. He has a reputation of being strict to the point of becoming overbearing, expecting absolute discipline and frequently yelling. At the same time though, his tactics against hostile vessels have made him an invaluable member of the crew.
Personal effects:

Officer’s Uniform
Medals of Service
1 Pistol and 1 Rifle
23 Books on military science and 15 Books on military history, in digital form.
Cuban cigars

[Lessoni]

Character Description

Name: James Allan
Species: Grey Langur (Human mind)
Gender: Male
Age: 38
Appearance:
Langur body


Previous human face

---

Strengths and Weaknesses

Skills:

4 degrees: James has a PhD in neuroscience, and master’s in biochemistry, physiology, and anatomy. In addition, he's an unusually fast learner, and has surface level knowledge of a wide variety of topics

Monkey athletics: He’s a man in a grey langur's body. That comes with all the physical abilities one would expect

Weaknesses:

Monkey: He’s a monkey. Maybe not mentally, but the amount of people who take him seriously at first glance is a short one indeed.

---

Background:

Nationality: American
Department in the Ship: Science
Backstory:
James Allan, of Topeka, Kansas, was a god damn genius. That’s what his parents touted, that’s what his doctors touted, and that’s what he touted, from the ripe old age of 8. Elementary was a breeze, middle school barely fazed him, and high school offered a welcome challenge, though that was only relative to his formative years. There wasn’t a single class he couldn’t ace (though he could count on one hand the number of days he didn’t spend studying), not a teacher who didn’t fawn over him, not a disparaging nickname he did not earn from his lanky appearance and fishbelly white skin. He didn’t bother with college courses in high school; he breezed through on AP classes and a perfect ACT, SAT, and a charming smile still bearing braces at 17.

He considered not getting laid once in high school a minor consequence when he received his Harvard acceptance letter. Perhaps the only issue was that he couldn’t pick a major. He knew it’d be in the sciences; he considered the average arts student a jackass with no regard for their future. He himself wanted to usher in the next age of computation. Hell if he knew how, but he wanted to be the one to do it.

Then his plane to Cambridge went down.

He lost everything below the knees, a stray suitcase snapping them like twigs. He survived, crashing close enough to Detroit for him to be airlifted, though he didn’t get entirely lucky. He was without legs, and he wasn’t willing to pay for new ones if it meant he wouldn’t be going to the one school he’d worked his life to get into. So he picked a new fixation. He wanted the power of gods. He wanted the power of life, in the palm of his hand. If not the power of life, then he’d settle for the power to walk.

He switched his studies from all things computery to all things biology. He picked up on it quick, especially his studies of the brain. To him, the brain was the most complex computer he’d everw roked with. It took him 16 years, but finally, he figured it out. How to translate the human mind to a few lines of code, or rather a few million. He put it all on a single computer chip of his own design, and with a few basic rewiring of a grey langur’s brain, a grey langur with a unique brain defect that made it suitable for this operation, he found new legs. But his studies had taught him one thing; that his research was useless for bringing himself back to his feet. He’d never walk again, not on his own life’s work, only have a cheap copy that mocked him in its very existence. So he ate a 12 gauge shotgun shell, and he left behind his creation, which was found in a cage in his lab, calling to be let out in a voice shockingly similar to its late owner’s.

It was tested extensively, and the grey langur was found to be every bit as intelligent as its late creator. More oddly, it claimed to be its late creator. Quickly the nature of Allan’s experiments was discovered, and quickly the nature of Allan’s experiments were hushed up, though the technology was saved. And then they shot the monkey into space, though on a very expensive ship known as “The Destiny II”.

Personal effects: A picture of his human self.

[Demencia]

so this is a thing that exists

Character Description

Name: Aoibheann Mac Thréinfhir (commonly called just 'Mac' by foreigners because of the perceived complexity of her name)
Species: Human
Gender: Female
Age: 28
Appearance: Mac is 170cm tall

---

Strengths and Weaknesses

Skills:
• Explosives making
  
• Explosives disposal
• Control of a bomb-disposal robot nicknamed Nelson III
• Procurement and maintenance of equipment
Weaknesses:
• Very strong anti-imperial and anti-monarchy sentiment
• Short temper, prone to verbal (and occasionally physical) outbursts when annoyed

---

Background:

Nationality: Irish

Department in the Ship: Ordnance (specifically EOD)

Backstory: Aoibheann Mac Thréinfhir was born in Donegal, Ireland. Growing up in Ulster, a sense of patriotism was instilled in her from a very young age, a sense she carries to this very day. Her parents and twin sister shared similar sentiments, but none of them felt as strongly about the cause as Aoibheann. Her independent spirit meant she couldn't stand the idea of colonialism or monarchies, a position that put her in a somewhat awkward position geographically, as Ireland was politically neutral and wasn't in the habit of rushing to the aid of people living in non-republics (especially so when the people didn't want the liberation Aoibheann dreamed for them, like the people across the border not terribly far from where she grew up.)

This possibly misguided idealism drove her to join the Irish Defence Forces at 18, going into the Ordnance Corps to channel some of her more... fiery personality traits into physical form. She learned the ins and outs of explosives, everything from their creation and maintenance to their disposal, be it careful or violent. She served for 9 years in the Republic, with tasking varying from local bomb disposal to training other nations in ordnance management. In her tenth year of service, an opportunity arose to join a mission that went beyond the scope of any defense pact or the UNS, a chance to leave the system altogether as the head of ordnance on the Destiny II.

Aoibheann had never previously dreamed of going to space herself, though she had (very reluctantly) trained a few troops that were headed to the colonies, especially to Mars. She considered turning it down and staying on the ground, but she also thought that maybe this might be an opportunity to actually accomplish something. Previously her job was entirely defensive, there was never any serious crisis facing the island, but going forth and finding the worlds? Perhaps something could be done to make sure they don't end up suffering under the colonial thumb of Earth and instead get to start out as proper independent people without the need for a bloody revolution like the planet had seen endless times before.

Personal effects: Cigarette lighter with the IDF Ordnance Corps emblem on it, a few packs of cigarettes, a deck of cards with lewd imagery, a memento of previous disposal robot Nelson II, an unhealthy amount of various types of alcohol, traditional blackwood shillelagh, some trinkets from home.

[Dyelli Beybi]

Character Description

Name: Kuilanth of Sariac
Species: Kiel
Gender: Male
Age: 46 yrs.
Appearance:
A slender and lean Kiel. 5'6" tall, weighing about 68.8 kilograms. His facial features could be described as soft or feminine, but is otherwise discernibly male. He has bright pink hair which is trimmed down the sides, leaving the top mostly untouched. His eyes are almost the same color as his hair, but with a bluish-green glint to them. Notably, his hands and feet are smaller than the average Kiel male's.

Character Description

Name: Takeshi Shinaro
Species: Human
Gender: Male
Age: 48
Appearance:
([url=https://i.postimg.cc/vB1kvQ3C/Nguyen-00.jpg]Image)[/url]

Character Description

Name: James Allan
Species: Grey Langur (Human mind)
Gender: Male
Age: 38
Appearance:
Langur body
(Image)

Previous human face
(Image)

Character Description

Name: Aoibheann Mac Thréinfhir (commonly called just 'Mac' by foreigners because of the perceived complexity of her name)
Species: Human
Gender: Female
Age: 28
Appearance: Mac is 170cm tall
(Image)

All accepted!

Just as a note for anyone else looking for something totally out-of-the-box... discuss it on Discord. If it's a great idea (like our simian friend here), we might well say yes, provided there are enough vanilla characters that it doesn't turn the ship into a circus.

[Sarderia]

Character Description

Name: Hamza Khaled Al-Sawf Sharaf
Species: Human, Arab-Levantine
Gender: Male
Age: 34
Appearance:
WIP

---

Strengths and Weaknesses

Skills: Hamza is a gifted technician and engineering master. However, he seldom used this skill nowadays as most of his work concerned the Operations depatment - day-to-day running of the ship, and making sure no system or room goes buzz. He is also a good manager, having led the Engineering and Operations department at Taremi Industries years ago. He is also proficient in computer languages and codes. Due to his military career, Hamza is also decent marksman and has a lean physique from the training. Additionally, he speaks fluent Arabic and English, and basic Kiel as well as Dhasath, due to experience of working with them.
Weaknesses: Hamza is largely un-sympathetic and borderline racist towards the Kiel and Dhasath, showing contempt towards them because of past personal issues (such as job competition and having been forced to work with them). Additionally, he has respiratory problems, having suffered an external trauma to his chest (from the incident at Titan). He is also short-tempered, making him somewhat prone to anger, which is particularly bad because it could potentially affect his lungs.

---

Background:

Nationality: Jordanian
Department in the Ship: Operations (Management, Comms, Services, Logistics)/Engineering (Information-Technology, Maintenance)
Personal effects:
• A tasbih necklace. (While Hamza is not particularly religious, he did carry his mother's prayer necklace because of the memory it holds. Sometimes, he would also recite Subhanallah, if he needed spiritual support)
  
• The framed Ph.D Eng.D certifiticate from UC Berkeley in his room.
• Ornate electronic journal designed in Egyptian Moorish style.
• A calligraphy of his name in Arabic, hung beside the certifiticate.
• Ulmus parvifolia bonsai above his study desk.
• A mechanized platinum glove, the only thing he brought from his past as an industrial manager. It is designed to connect with his nerve system through a series of microchips planted at his hand's part of the lymphatic system. When wearing, it could display holographic screens, connect to the ship's systems, unlock complicated mechanisms, and it could even play songs when idle (not weared).

--- C O N F I D E N T I A L ---

UNITED NATIONS OF SOL
Naval Officer Annual Interview Transcript

---

SHIP: UNS DESTINY II
NAME: Sharaf, Hamza Khaled al-Sawf
NATIONALITY: Jordanian
AGE: 34
DEPARTMENT: Operations
ID. NO: 6969XXX

-- Audio RUNNING --

Interviewer: "Alright, Mr. Sharaf, can we start the discussion?"

Sharaf: "Feel free to continue, ma'am."

Interviewer: "So, just to the point. Please introduce yourself, generally. Where you are from, what background you hail from, et cetera. The usual thing we'd need to know."

Sharaf: (sigh) "I know my security would be guaranteed here, right?" (sigh) "First of all. My name is Hamza Khaled al-Sawf Sharaf - formerly Taremi, from parents Khaled and Maryam Taremi, in New Alamein, Egypt. My father, he was a mining tycoon, widely known and respected in the international trading community. My grandfater was a Saudi, yes, the rulers of Saudi Arabia, and he happened to inherit most of the wealth my grandfather bulit from the mining operations back when Earth was still on the Kuiper Belt mining craze. Anyway. I was raised in the nicer neighborhoods of New Alamein, that seaside city. Still one of President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi's greatest works, bulit way back in 2020. When I was twelve, however, my father decided to further pursue the business closer to the site instead of managing the thing all the way back from Earth, so we moved to Europa."

Interviewer: "Explain your family relations... oh, and well, the time you spent there."

Sharaf: "I have three brothers, all older than me. I had a sister once, but she unfortunately passed from pneumonia when I was a child. Well, I don;t usually think too highly of them, though. They're all fucking psychopaths. We'll get to that point later." (sigh) "I do miss Egypt. I mean, all we can see from that station in Europa was just ice, ice, and more ice. Sometimes leviathans lurking in that underground ocean. There was a school... expatriates exclusively, I think. No locals whatsoever. Well, truth be told, I don't want to mess with Europans anyway, they're a hardy bunch of folk. Irishmen, Nigerians, Indonesians, you know, the lot. So, anyway, they made me attend that school. Mind you, I am in no way grudging. Once I love to study, and my grades were always excellent. I still remember Biology, Electrical, and General Physics as three of the classes I liked the most. Now that school had an acceleration program for nice students, and apparently I was a nice student, so I got to complete the school in only three years. Could you imagine that? I got out during my junior year."

Interviewer: "That's exceptional. Your father must be proud.'

Sharaf: "My father? My father saw me as a damn asset. Oh God, horrible. It's like I'm some damned robot or something." (sigh) "To be fair, I haven't realized that yet. I may had a big brain once, but I'm a damned naive dumbass. I swear, he looked genuinely happy when I graduated, and he immediately sent me packing to UC Berkeley. You know, that rich-people, smart-ass people college back in good old America. Well, damn, I thought, this life had been pretty darned easy. I went to the Engineering college. But you know all Taremis. In my second year he told me to fend off my economy for myself, and I scrambled to get a job then. Money was cut half, so I had to sell my car, and I became the only kid who walked all the way from dormitory to the campus, while rich bastards flew in their shiny glittering Teslas all around."

Interviewer: "Is there perchance, any memorable experience you remembered back then?"

Sharaf: "Ooh... yes. Damned memorable. You know, these pointy-fricking-ears, the Kiellars, they're everywhere. It's because of them I cannot even entered an internship. I wished that we from the start did never let these elves running free in our bloody homeland, illegal aliens. When people said, damned alien labors taking over my jobs, I feel them, because I've already experienced one. My first job was working at Alameda Nucleonics, one of California's largest energy supplier. I guess I had it luckier than people, because I went to the most prestigious school nearby, and I'm grateful for that. Still, I worked largely as a pusher for some months, and I had to share quarters with these pointy frickers. I finally entered the engineering section some two months later, operating the basic Helium-3 power plants. They said what I was doing was exceptionally fine, though, and they'd like to hire me as soon as I graduated, but my father already claimed that. A month after I graduated from Stanford, I was sent to Titan to register my working ID in the Taremi Industries plant near Kraken Mare. The Taremi Corporation owned the whole lake as part of a concession from the Titan colonial government, because my father inherited it from my royal Saudi grandfather."

Interviewer: "Elaborate, please. You said you was an engineer there."

Sharaf: "I was, briefly. I have a Engineering Degree Ph.D with a specialization in fluid physics. I was at first stationed as a manager at the Kraken Hydrogen Plant, which produced essentially all hydrogen for Titan's North Pole habitats. One of the perks of being the boss' son, honestly. Half a year later, I was transferred to the platinum mine in the Sotra Patera depression."

Interviewer: "Wait, how old are you at this time?"

Sharaf: "I was 24. Yes, it was one hell of a year, very fast, if you ask me. And, truth be told, it was one of the best moments in my life; aside from working alongside Kiels and Dhasaths. In 28, I was one of Sol's youngest Chief Operating Officers, at the head of the Operations department in the Taremi Industries. By then I was already a multi-millionaire in US Dollar numbers. I had three mansions, one a magnificent penthouse on New York City, one a decent seaside home in the desert-rainforests of Elysium Island, in Mars; and the last, my home sweet home, a metal hut in Titan. But it wasn't all jolly. I was the only Chief Officer who was paid substandard wage for my position, and I was constantly in scrutiny by my father. Although, I did manage to purchase a significant amount of the company's stock, so he would fortunately stop pestering me, as I was a stakeholder as well. But..."

Interviewer: "...I'm sorry, Mr. Sharaf. Continue, if you are able."

Sharaf: "...yes. It's just.. nothing." (sigh) "The jolly and merry period in my life ended when my father suddenly passed of a stroke. He did not show any signs or symptoms of dieases, I guess it was just stress and overwork. Anyway. My other three brothers - one of them a Commissioner for the company, another a stakeholder who has been running a capital firm in Wall Street, and another just a manager in the company facitlity in Enceladus. Now, they are all older than me, and they saw my position as a privileged and pampered kid handed out this free job from their father - as if they ever worked, the bastards. One of them dropped out of college. They saw me as an obstacle, because Khaled Taremi did not name a successor, and his last wish was lost - either deliberately or accidentally. So we started the feud for power. I told the company's workers and engineers in the Titan facility that someone, somewhere later was bound to come here, and that person would take my head as well as managers loyal to me as well. And it did happen. One of my classmates since in Berkeley, a manager just one rank below me, was shot - by an agent of my brother's, I myself being hit so hard in my chest I almost died. Fortunately I survived and the assassin was shot by security, so I sent someone to Enceladus. Although he failed to get my revenge, I know further retaliation is about to come. I abandoned the COO position and fled to New York City to find a safehouse. I know someone that was a close acquintance of my father's; he helped me sell all three of my mansions, all of my ships, and assets in general. Then I went to Jordan, the country of my mother, and bribed a friend of my uncle's to register me a new citizenship so that I could be safe from all this killing."

Interviewer: "That was harsh. I'm sorry for your loss."

Sharaf: "It already happened." (sigh) "Things went further spiralling down. My brother, the manager in Enceladus, was killed. I guess it was an assassin from another of my siblings. Fortunately, the bureaucratic process was brief, and I was able to get a Jordanian citizenship... using a new last name, taking after my mother's. To save what remained of my dwindling fortunes, I registered an anonymous account at a Zurich bank. From there, I kept a low profile until now; most people thought I'm already dead or missing, and surprisingly, my two remaining brothers didn't even bother to search for me because I have virtually no influence remaining on that damned corporation. I applied in the UNS military mainly for security, as I want a reassurance that one of my brothers, whoever won my father's assets, did not come back and try to kill me. Since I had a good degree and an even better work experience, I was immediately accepted in the Engineering department."

Interviewer: "How come you are now in Operations, however?"

Sharaf: "Well, it was mainly Navy bureaucracy. I served on an exploration vessel as a junior engineer, when it was running convoys into former Kiellar Confederacy territory. However, when I was promoted, there is no Engineering positions left, so naturally I chose the only open option, which includes a transfer into the Operations department. And that's how I ended on the brand new, shining, Destiny II. Mind you, I was a manager once, so Operations wouldn't be very hard a task for me in this ship."

Interviewer: (claps) "I think that's all; that's enough, Mr. Sharaf. Thank you for attending this annual crewmembers' interview. Reminder; this document is confidential, and only your Commanding Officer, as well as select superiors, could access a crew's confidential file such as this. Again, thank you for your cooperation."

Sharaf: (sigh) "Yeah, yeah, yeah. Fricking bloody welcome."

-- Audio STOP --

[Khasinkonia]

Character Description

Name: Hamza Al-Sawd Sharaf
Species: Human, Arab-Levantine
Gender: Male
Age:
Appearance:
(Feel free to describe with text or put pictures in here. If you are using a picture, personally, I find it easier to picture a character who is shown in photo/realistic drawing though I'm not going to get funny about anything else. Unless it is your personal stick-man art. I might draw the line at that.)

---

Strengths and Weaknesses

Skills: (Is there anything you are significantly better at than most other people?)
Weaknesses: (Is there anything your character is really rubbish at? Not essential you put anything in, but can be fun)

---

Background:

Nationality: (Pick a RL nationality or 'Martian')
Department in the Ship: Chief Operations Officer
Backstory:(How did you come to be here? Also, please note that, unless agreed otherwise, your character is an Ensign)
Personal effects: (You get a uniform, armour and a weapon if you need it. This is a place for personal bits and pieces that make your character more interesting)

Just claiming the position as it seems empty for now...

Just FYI, unless otherwise stated, head officers are to be determined in the IC.

[Sarderia]

Character Description

Name: Hamza Al-Sawd Sharaf
Species: Human, Arab-Levantine
Gender: Male
Age:
Appearance:
(Feel free to describe with text or put pictures in here. If you are using a picture, personally, I find it easier to picture a character who is shown in photo/realistic drawing though I'm not going to get funny about anything else. Unless it is your personal stick-man art. I might draw the line at that.)

---

Strengths and Weaknesses

Skills: (Is there anything you are significantly better at than most other people?)
Weaknesses: (Is there anything your character is really rubbish at? Not essential you put anything in, but can be fun)

---

Background:

Nationality: (Pick a RL nationality or 'Martian')
Department in the Ship: Chief Operations Officer
Backstory:(How did you come to be here? Also, please note that, unless agreed otherwise, your character is an Ensign)
Personal effects: (You get a uniform, armour and a weapon if you need it. This is a place for personal bits and pieces that make your character more interesting)

Just claiming the position as it seems empty for now...

Just FYI, unless otherwise stated, head officers are to be determined in the IC.

Ahh, I saw someone claiming the title of Chief Engineer, so I decided to take the position instead. If that is so, I would change his position into an Engineering crew instead.

[Bingellia]

Just FYI, unless otherwise stated, head officers are to be determined in the IC.

Ahh, I saw someone claiming the title of Chief Engineer, so I decided to take the position instead. If that is so, I would change his position into an Engineering crew instead.

Yes, heads of the departments and the overall chain of command within them will be determined closer to the IC's launch rather than on a first come first served basis. Some people (like Demenica with Ordinance) can probably get away with taking the head role of a department or sub-department because the position is more niche, but engineering is less so. How the characters slot in may help or worsen the situation, so it's bound to be interesting either way

[Khasinkonia]

Although interview-style is generally not preferred, I chose to use it for this character because it felt like the best way to go about it.

Character Description

Name: “Daotraou Inaotoann, or, in Japanese, Daotoraou Inawotowan. Inaotoann is my name.”
Species: “Kiel. My ears are...deformed. Clipped. Whatever you prefer.”
Gender: F
Age: 22
Appearance:

Her hair is dyed, although for some reason, as it fades, it becomes a brighter blue, and has a bit of a luminescence to it. Her grey eyes are similarly luminescent. Body-wise, she’s athletic, with a lower centre of gravity(bottom heavy), and naturally stands with an almost artificially broad, solid stance.

---

Strengths and Weaknesses

Skills: “I have two passions in my life: Martial arts and substance abuse. I can punch through a wooden board and I can blow the best damn smoke rings you’d ever seen. I can stomach an unhealthy amount of alcohol and be a person the next morning. What else am I good at? I guess I can sing. I’m good at dancing and acrobatics. I’m a good shot, both with guns and darts. I’m pretty fit for a smoker, don’t you think? That’s because it’s not really a health risk to me. It just isn’t; don’t even worry about it.”
Weaknesses: “I have a temper. She’s quiet these days, but she’s still there. I don’t like humans, but I also don’t like Kiellar or Dhasath or anyone really. I can get along with people, but I don’t like people because of their species. I am neither polite nor rude to people, because I mean absolutely nothing by what I say. It’s not slang and it’s not formal. I guess people might find my deadpan voice rather offputting, but a security guard isn’t supposed to be a beam of sunshine, right?”

---

Background:

Nationality: “I was born in Japan, but have only had Japanese citizenship since the age of 20. Jus sanguinis is not kind to aliens.”
Department in the Ship: “Security, though I swear I spend half of my time doing odd jobs wherever I’ve been stationed. This ship needs more hands than guns.”
Backstory: “I was born in Japan to a refugee family. We had settled in Teshikaga. My parents wanted to homeschool me, but the government was very clear that they desired aliens to integrate, so I suppose I did. I was never particularly encouraged to succeed in school or make friends or have fun; I was mostly left to my own devices except for my family’s weekend trips to national parks, usually the Akan-Mashu National Park. Rather than going to one of the camping sites, we would usually camp illegally in the woods on Nakajima island. My parents and some of my grandparents would show me how to light fires and would tell me about the lives they left behind. My grandparents are all traitors to the former Command, which is why they settled far from other refugees in a small town. That status as traitors is why we must keep our hair short.

On many occasions, we would also learn more applicable cultural details. We only spoke our native language in the woods, isolated from the rest of the world. Elsewhere, even my grandparents would speak half-hearted Japanese. Isolated, I got to hear songs from what was still our home, so my father said. My family also practices a martial art form known as Inao, for which I am named and have been trained in. Every jump, punch, and kick is a connection to another far-off world, so I’ve always performed them with vigour and pride, much unlike my normal self. I used a modified version of it once, but that got me severely reprimanded during our martial arts section of physical education in junior high.

I have never been a spectacular student, but I’ve always done enough work to be better than a bad student. I’ve always been perfectly content with being comfortably on the bell curve in class. I did well in physical education when I listened, but otherwise have never once had a final grade that deserved to be spoken about. For my secondary education, I thought, sure, I’ll join the military. Maybe I’ll die for something someone else cares about. I went to college for art, neglecting to factor in that you either have to be good, passionate, or both to succeed there. So I’m a simple soldier. Don’t mind me, I’ll smoke my cigarettes, smack a few fools in the back of the head, and help the kitchen staff when they request it. I can always put gloves over my cuffs. My parents had me when they were quite old, as they had suddenly back-tracked on the idea of leaving the world childless. My parents were reluctant to see me go, but I told them they could mail me their ashes, which they found funny. I would prefer to get letters, because the shipping costs of an urn are probably above my pay grade, so I hope postage would be covered by my inheritance.”
Personal effects: “I have my work clothes, armor, comfortable clothes, and energy weapon. I also have some jewelry that is special to me. I sleep with my gold cuffs on, so don’t ask me to take them off. I have diadems that belonged to my grandfather. No, you can’t see them. I have this little 8 liter portable fridge thingy I bought that I keep under my bed. I like my soda cold, but I don’t wanna get ice from the cafeteria. It’s the best purchase I’ve ever made. I also have a supply of hair dye. It’s all the same colour, and I will not share it.”