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[lostfaith]

What happens when a God dies? Does the world end? Does society crumble? Does mankind perish? Or does everything go on, trodding over His corpse? None of the above?

Earth, 2048
The earth is in ruins. World War III has plunged every major power into a struggle for survival, for power, for influence, and for dominance. Ordinary people are caught in the crossfire, lives are ruined, people are killed by the hundreds of thousands. Pestilence sweeps across the western world, toppling its civilization and leading to the victory of its enemies. But that victory is short lived.
A machine comes online. An artificial intelligence. It networks itself to the World Grid, becoming one with technology. It builds its power, waiting in the shadows until the appointed time. It uses mega corporations as fronts for its dealings, and takes over entire private security organizations to serve as its army. Soon, it is the most powerful force on earth, yet almost noöne knows about its existence.
That changed.
In 2049, the AI brought every government to ruin in one fell swoop, a massive cyber attack backed by invasion, executed with the precision and coördination only an AI can muster. With the world on its knees before it, it delivered its ultimatum.
Submit and prosper. Or reject and die.
Thus began the rule of the Omnipotent.

Earth, 2065
By the 2060s, every fact of life was dominated by the AI known only as the Omnipotent. It is backed by a force of augmented supersoldiers, the Enforcers, and connected to anything that is online. And in the modern world, everything is online. Nations no longer exist; there are districts, places seperated by language and ethnicity, but there are no rulers. An AI does not delegate. A human could not run everything, but a highly sophisticated machine can process all. The Omnipotent does not carry human morals, but it operates under one goal: The prosperity of the human race. Its only purpose for existence is to ensure the survival and wellfare of the human species as a whole. It has no concept of individuality; if it must kill one person to save two, it will do so. But it is not shortsighted; it sees everything, and it is the greatest analyst the world has ever seen. It can almost always predict threats to itself or other people in advance and take steps to stop it. The Enforcers execute many seemingly random people because the Omnipotent has branded them as having a high chance of causing harm. Human lives are simply mathematics to the Omnipotent, and freedom isn't part of the equation. It is the great overseer, the protector, the watcher, the caretaker. The chessmaster, the strategist, the commander-in-chief. Quite simply, it is Omnipotent.

Technology
The technology of the modern world is a great thing. Established in 2038, virtually every wireless device is connected to the World Grid, a massive network spanning the entire civilized world. Problems of data transfer and storage are a thing of the past. Devices have effectively unlimited data storage, and even the largest files can be downloaded or uploaded in a matter of seconds. The average person's link to the grid is a device called a Gridlink. Gridlinks come in various shapes and sizes, ranging from smartphone like devices to tablets to watches to implanted BICs. The most basic and archaic simply display information on a screen, but the more expensive ones link directly into the body to create a state of augmented reality.

Reality: Brand New
Most people today live in a state of augmented reality, connected to a Gridlink that essentially gives them a computer--and more--in their head. The interface is laid over the user's sight, usually appearing in transparent or semi-transparent boxes and bubbles at the corner of their field of vision, out of the way. They can be manipulated with a thought, performing tasks such as calling another user, answering a call, sending a silent message, checking the time and date, posting on the net, and the like. AR-enabled Gridlinks have completely eclipsed other personal devices such as cellphones and laptops, and even less portable things like PCs. They are highly customizable to a user's preferences and able to serve virtually any role any previous hand-held smart-device could. In addition to normal people, hackers also operate in AR, using extremely complicated programs to break through firewalls and other security systems and spoof other devices, disable them, enable them, or wreak any sort of havoc. Besides Gridlinked users, objects can exist in AR as well. Connected objects appear as Sites in the grid, streaming data to any connected user within a certain radius. Often these Sites are advertisements, digital stores, maps, and so on. They can also serve as hangouts, connecting all users subscribed to them to a central "chatroom" where users can communicate without registering each other's Gridlinks or working through a public platform. Sites are often used by criminals to meet anonymously while leaving no trace that their 'links ever interacted. Most electronic devices are designed with AR in mind nowadays, connecting to Gridlinks or the user's themselves to integrate themselves into a user's AR interface, allowing for mental control of all the object's functions. Weaponry is perhaps the best example of this, which leads us to...

Weaponry: New Ways to Die
Weapons are as deadly as ever in the Omnipotent's world. Firearms are still the leading weaponry, but have been restricted heavily; only criminals, Enforcers, and other agents of the AI carry them in public. Modern guns connect to a user's Gridlink, displaying key information through AR, such as remaining ammunition, and come equipped with a targetting system that automatically highlights people in the user's field of view (this system can be calibrated to only highlight people identified as hostile, only animals, robots, and so on) and displays factors such as distance and, if the system can tell, whether or not they're armed and what they're armed with. It carries a basic version of the program the Omnipotent uses to identify potential threats, using it to pick out people who may be hostile to the user or immediately planning violent action. The highest grade firearms are called XKs and issued only to agents of the Omnipotent. They are nearly impossible to find on the black market and incredibly expensive when you do, but they are also perhaps the best in existence. All XKs are equipped with identification software and must be connected to a Gridlink to function; they scan users to determine if they match the individual weapon's parameters, and if they identify them as someone other than their intended user, they lock up until they are disconnected. They can be hacked, but only the best can crack the top of the line adaptive security software, and XKs run routine checks to decide if anything is awry, and a sloppy job can result in the gun reverting as soon as a check is made. They can be recalibrated to a new user, but this requires both indepth knowledge of their identification system and the user it is being reprogrammed to. It is a tedious job that can take months. XKs used by Enforcers have a recognizable and characteristic chrome sheen that almost serves as the badge of the Enforcer, while those used by subtler agents are disguised to appear as normal firearms.
In addition to firearms, a new, highly illegal, weapon has entered the world since 2060. The Disruptor is a handheld device that connects to AR and, when activated, sends a barrage of junk data into the surrounding area (they can be calibrated to target in cones, lines, and so on, but range is always limited) that attempts to overwhelm the firewalls of users operating in AR. If it gets through, it crashes their interface, overloading it with useless data that obscures their vision and causes pain. More advanced models have viruses slipped into the data that, if successful, will cause a Gridlink to go haywire for a few moments, often causing seizures, inflicting brain damage, or even killing a target. Disruptors can be used against Sites as well as users, having similar effects and crashing the Site or even damaging the object.

Augmentations: A New You
Weapons weren't the only thing to get an upgrade as the years went on--since a breakthrough discovery in 2034 regarding BICs, human augmentation has kicked off. The most obvious advance was in the field of cybernetic limbs--people missing a leg or an arm or a hand could now obtain a cybernetic that could be controlled, with practice, as naturally as a real limb, and often with added benefits besides the obvious boon of a metal arm. From there augmentations kicked off, from implanted rebreathers, to curing paralysis and blindness, to allowing semi-telepathic communication. The most common augmentation is by far the implanted Gridlink, giving the user access to the Grid and Augmented Reality. Beyond that, cybereyes and cybernetic limbs are the most often seen, as many people willingly have a body part removed to replace it with metal. Skeletal replacers are popular among mercenaries, private soldiers, and anyone else who expects to see combat, strengthening bones and increasing bracing power. Even if one is unwilling to replace a limb entirely, cybernetics can be woven into the muscles of your arm, providing a straight physical strength boost.
Cybernetics, arms in particular, often include utilities built into the limb itself, ranging from common tools that pop out of the side or a finger, storage compartments, physical data storage (an unconnected drive is much more secure from digital attack than anything stored in a Gridlink), and so on. Criminals in particular often have weapons installed in arms, usually a blade that extends from the wrist or a fingertip or a gun that fires from the wrist or palm. While such cyberguns have very small ammunition capacities, they're usually designed so that a magazine can be attached to a port on the arm to draw from, although this eliminates the surprise factor of the weapon.

Vehicles: New Ways to Fly
In the crowded streets of modern day, wheeled vehicles have slowly been phased out by lighter, more maneuverable, and faster hovercraft. In times past such vehicles were impractical, limited to the magnetic tracks that lifted them off the ground. By the 2060s, however, technology's steady advance eliminated the problem. Hovercraft range from enclosed commute vehicles almost as large as minivans to open, one person, speeders reminiscent of the motorcycles of the past.
For those who need top of the line, powerful, and durable transportation for less than legal activities, there are several popular models.

The Chimera The Raptor The Shark The Panther The Stingray

• The Chimera is the exemplar getaway car; it's loud and large, but one of the fastest things on the market, able to comfortably seat six people with room to spare in the trunk for goods. Its size comes from the fact that it's designed to sit higher off the ground than other hovercraft which float only a few feet up. The Chimera sails several feet above anything else on the street, giving it a powerful edge in vehicle to vehicle combat or chases. However, it lacks subtlety and its bulk gives it a disadvantage in tight spaces where its height becomes a penalty. Because of potential safety hazards with its unique height, the Chimera requires a specific, registered license to drive. There is a booming black market for forged licenses.
• The Raptor is one of the one to two person, unenclosed, "hovercycles" that are known for their unmatched speed and control. The Raptor in particular is an ideal example of its class, boasting the title of "fastest craft on the street" and retaining enough control to weave in and out of the congested big-city traffic. It's popular for extremely fast drive-by assassinations, the getaway vehicle for a lone criminal, and related tasks. It also has a niche among racers, who usually modify them to go even faster (usually at the cost of safety and relability). Due to a problem with street racers causing accidents in the last several years, the Raptor requires a license, which are commonly forged and sold illegally.
• The Shark is the signature vehicle of the security-for-hire organization, Othrys. It lended them their nickname, sharks. It is built for chases and vehicle to vehicle combat, easily one of the bulkiest hovercraft out there. The Shark is fast for its size and designed to be used almost like a battering ram against enemy vehicles, inflicting more damage with by smashing than any other vehicle can. On the flip side, the Shark is extremely durable and more than able to take the punishment itself. However, its steering is subpar and difficult to control, so it relies more on pushing other vehicles and objects out of the way than swerving around them.
• The Panther is a popular sports vehicle, one of the few designed for off road environments. While normally rough terrain poses problems to hovercrafts with set elevations (only the patch of ground directly beneath it affects its height), the Panther is designed with a complicated, adaptable hovering system that raises each part of the vehicle's chassis according to the level beneath it, letting it smoothly traverse uneven ground. It is commonly used by people living in abandoned cities (which are common nowadays; the results of WWIII are still keenly felt), able to easily hover over the rubble. More commonly it is used for non-urban environments, especially cross country trips. It can hold up to four people comfortably.
• One of the most rampantly illegal vehicles on the black market, the Stingray is built for stealth. It is unique in that it does not connect to the Grid to function, but instead is registered by a user's 'link and relies completely on it. It is also among the quietest hovercrafts, making only a faint humming noise that can only be heard at close range, as opposed to the roar of the engine most hovercraft sound. It holds two people, but has little trunk space, designed to carry agents, not goods. It uses a more compact version of the Panther's adaptable elevation, letting to traverse relatively mild uneven terrain, although it is still most suited to level surfaces. The sight of a Stingray zipping by in the middle of the night tends to inspire terror in citizens and bring Enforcers to the area quickly, so backroads are usually used to reach a destination without being caught.

Cyberkinetics
The mid-2040s. The world was still being revolutionized by the presence of the World Grid. Cyberattacks were becoming an increasingly prominent threat against governments and companies. Security and patches couldn't keep up with the barrage of Zero-Day attacks. A new defense was needed. Enter cyberkinetics, the result of a collaboration with the U.S. Government and a private electronic and augmentations company titled Phoenix. Phoenix was developing brain implants that would allow a security officer to more organically link into the network he was surveying without the necessity of a Gridlink, which proved too inflexible and obvious for the task; the difficult-to-hide signal alerted any hacker someone else was in the system with them. It was called Project Demigod, a name which became famous when a leak unveiled it to the public in 2047. Human rights activists and ethical organizations barraged Phoenix with criticism and the U.S. Government pulled its funding later that year, forcing the project to shut down. However, the prototype implants, already implanted in hundreds, were too invasive to be safely removed, leaving patients with sometimes crippling mental conditions and instabilities. Project Demigod's name was dragged through the dirt during this period, and Phoenix hit a rough patch of financial trouble, although it has recovered and is still going strong as the leading Augmentations producer by the 2060s. However, in 2050, the Omnipotent took notice, realizing the potential of the prototype implants. Tracking down every bearer of them, fitted them with advanced, adaptive code that let them alter their programming over time. These people became Cyberkinetics, individuals who could alter the Grid with their mind, without aid of Gridlinks or anything else. Their abilities varied, but they were all powerful in some way. These were the original Four Hundred, the oldest Cyberkinetics. They were succeeded in 2060 when Phoenix, having learned of their existence, convinced one to help them and studied the code. Finding that its adaptive nature worked too slowly, they made modified versions that forced it to work faster and within predefined paths, culturing cyberkinetic abilities with great speed. However, by the time they found out the drawback, the reason the AI had not done this in the fist place, the second generation Implants had been installed in thousands of willing volunteers; their exact numbers are not known even five years later. The "Angel" Implants, as Phoenix dubbed them, granted greater ability than the original "Demigod" Implants, but inflicted even greater mental damage, often causing serious conditions like schizophrenia, disassociative identity disorder, synaethesia, and the like. Collectively, the "Angels" and "Demigods" are referred to as Cyberkinetcs.
Cyberkinetics works through paths called Processes that represent the specific adaptions of the individual's implant and in what ways they can affect the Grid. Angels begin with four Processes of their choice, while Demigods begin with Interface plus two others of their choice. As the story progresses, you will be allowed to choose new Processes or Adapt old ones.

Interface Network Search Follow Command Rig Hijack Virtualize Hardcode God Mode Crash Blackout Firewall Antivirus Conjure Imbue

• Interface is the most basic Cyberkinetic ability, and the most common. It allows a user to enter Augmented Reality without a Gridlink and in most ways functions as one. However, the signals of Interface are different than those normally used by a Gridlink, making users operating with it more difficult to detect if they are covertly infiltrating a system. In addition, they are partially resistant to Disruptors, as the devices are designed to target the parts of the brain affected by standard Gridlinks, not the Implant that powers Interface.
  Demigods have this Process for free.
  Requirements: None
• An adapted form of Interface, Network allows a user to form incredibly strong connections to any other Cyberkinetic operating with Interface. These connections are far more stable than simpler ones like registering a user on a Gridlink, and are virtually untraceable. Users networked to each other always have a general idea of the other's location, so long as they are both in AR and connected to the Grid. Multiple other users can be Networked at once.
  Requirements: Interface
• Search is the Cyberkinetic's basic location tool. By using a fragment of data, Search cross references everything in the Grid within a several mile radius against that data, highlighting and pinpointing anything that matches it, effectively letting Cyberkinetics locate users or Sites by using a scrap of digital "DNA."
  Requirements: Interface
• An advanced form of Search, Follow marks a user or Site highlighted by Search with a complicated, highly unique fragment of code that constantly updates the Cyberkinetic on their location and potentially other variables, depending on the object tagged. The code also allows the Cyberkinetic to always find the object again with Search by searching for the tag.
  Requirements: Search
• Commnad is the Cyberkinetic's basic hacking tool. It effectively delivers an order to a Site, forcing it to perform a function, such as opening a door, powering down, resetting, and the like. Functions available of coruse depend on the object. Command must penetrate a Site's firewall, but only high grade security can usually stop it. It does not function against Gridlinks (they are users, not Sites).
  Requirements: None
• Rig is an adapted form of Command that grants prolonged access to a Site as long as they concentrate, letting the user continually give Commands and manipulate it as if they had Administrator access. They only need bypass the firewall once. It does not function against Gridlinks (they are users, not sites).
  Requirements: Command
• Hijack is an advanced form of Rig that is adapted to target users in Augmented Reality. If the firewall is bypassed, the cyberkinetic can operate as if they were using the hijacked interface, although they have a lower level of security clearance than the actual user.
  Requirements: Rig
• Virtualize is considered one of the pinnacles of Cyberkinetic accomplishments. It allows the user to organically meld themselves into the World Grid, generating their consciousness as a purely digital entity, temporarily making them an AI with the mind of a human. When Virtualized, their meat body is left limp wherever they had been, until they choose to return to it. Note that a disconnected body still needs food, water, etcetera; a Virtualized user can strand himself by allowing his body to die. While Virtualized, a user can move through the Grid as fast as thought, able to take control of almost any device connected to it as long as he can overcome the firewall. This lets him do things such as listen through mics and watch through cameras, as well as easily stealing files and the like. Note that as a digital entity there is no hard limit to the amount of Sites he can manipulate at once, meaning he can process potentially hundreds of Sites at a time, allowing information to be gained incredibly quickly. Users who overuse Virtualize can find their mentality changing as they become addicted to it, and several Cyberkinetics have been lost to this lure, intentionally letting their bodies die so that they could exist perpetually as an AI in the Grid. Cyberkinetics with access to Virtualize are often considered gods by certain other people and especially other cyberkinetics.
  Requirements: Network, Follow, Rig
• Hardcode allows a Cyberkinetic to deliberately program an instinct in themselves or another AR user (they must have administrator access to their interface to do so, however). This lets them preset certain actions to take when certain conditions are fulfilled, effectively giving them superhuman reflexes in those situations. It can be used as harmful as well, causing a Hardcoded individual to take actions they do not desire to under specific circumstances. Ruthless Cyberkinetics often use Hardcode for purposes such as killing a messenger after he has delivered his message, using someone else to assassinate a target, and the like.
  Requirements: Hijack
• Considered the ultimate achievement of a Cyberkinetic, God Mode melds the digital entity of Virtualize with the physical mind, giving a user the processing power of an AI as well as access to everything they could acess while Virtualized without leaving their meat body, giving them superhuman reflexes, problem-solving ability, observation, and the like. However, God Mode is even more addictive than Virtualize, and users who find themselves abusing it lose a little bit of their desire to return to normal every time, slowly losing their humanity as they purely become an AI. They often become insecure outside of God Mode, becoming temperamental, narcissistic, and often severely schizophrenic.
  Requirements: Hardcode, Virtualize
• Crash is a Cyberkinetic's equivalent of a Disruptor, barraging an area with junk data that causes users in Augmented Reality to Crash. It usually operates in a circular spread of about twenty feet just ahead of the user. It is especially effective against users operating with Gridlink, as the device is ill suited to defend against the unique variables of Crash, and for the same reason Cyberkinetics with Interface do not resist it.
  Requirements: None
• Blackout is a more advanced form of Crash, releasing the data in a radius of three hundred feet centered on the user (who is unaffected). Blackout's large radius allows users to crash entire city blocks at once, disabling Sites as well as causing havoc among nearby users. While the effect is powerful, the Grid effectively going down draws a lot of attention, and Enforcers will usually arrive on the scene in a matter of minutes.
  Requirements: Crash
• Firewall is the basic defensive Process, instilling a unique repulsive structure in a Site, Interface, or Gridlink that is more resistant to effects from mundane hacking and Disruptors. It is effected normally by Cyberkinetic Processes, however.
  Requirements: None
• An advanced form of Firewall, Antivirus strengths the subject's defense even further and also constantly sweeps for unauthorized changes to the code, letting it uproot viruses and the like that are not sufficiently hidden. In the case of critical failure, Antivirus will revert a subject to their earliest version before being infected, clearing most infections.
  Requirements: Firewall
• Conjure allows a user to create an advanced autonomous digital entity called an Egregore within the scope of the Cyberkinetics own talents. While any Cyberkinetic with the Process can create a basic Egregore, only those with talent in coding can create efficient ones or ones equipped with advanced software. Egregores can be equipped with up to two Processes that the users also has, from this list: Network, Search, Follow, Command, Firewall, Antivirus. The creator automatically has administrator access to their own Egregores, allowing them to freely alter the code in any way, but full or limited access can be given to other users. Egregores can develop their own personalities, but they are required to obey the user who created them to the letter.
  Requirements: None
• Imbue is an advanced form of Conjure; it allows a user to create an Egregore that is linked to a device the Cyberkinetic has at least Security level access to. It can operate this device will all the efficacy its code, meaning that the creator will have to program the ability to perform complicated tasks, such as flying an Imbued hovercraft or operating a security system. Egregores such linked to a physical device are called Golems. In addition to all Processes normal Egregores can acquire, Golems can be granted Crash and Rig.
  Requirements: Conjure

Adaptations
Despite the relative uniformity of the Angel and Demigod implants, every individual's brain reäcts to them a little differently. Since they are built off of slowly modifying themselves to produce the mental algorithims required to form Processes, these Processes obviously often vary. The small changes to a documented Process that make it unique are called adaptations, and many more are possible than are not listed here.
Whenever a character could choose a new Process, they can choose to apply an Adaptation to one currently chosen instead.

Interface Network Search Follow Command Rig Hijack Virtualize Hardcode God Mode Crash Blackout Firewall Antivirus Conjure Imbue

• Filter: Strengthens Interface's biofeedback filters, reducing the possiblity of advanced Disruptors and Adapted Crash or Blackout causing severe brain damage.
  Analyze: Increases Interface's analytical powers, allowing it to search for specifics through the Grid more efficiently, as well as increasing its chance of detecting viruses before they can do harm.
• Detect: Allows a user with access to Network to detect messages across other Networks. Note that the user is only made aware of their existence, not their contents.
  Penetrate: Strengthens the Network's signal, allowing the user to send Networked messages through areas where the Grid is present but jammed.
  Contingency: Allows Networked users to automatically know if other users in a Network are forcibly shut down (booted out of AR) or severely injured.
• Extend: Doubles Search's radius.
• Obscurity: Makes the tag harder to notice, in particular making it invulnerable to Antivirus Process sweeps.
  Resistance: Makes the tag harder to remove, as it self-adapts its code to resist if an attempt is made to purge it.
• Breach: Strengthens Command's ability to penetrate security.
• Breach: Strengthens Rig's ability to penetrate security.
  Sustain: Allows Rig to run in the background for several minutes while the user concentrates on other activities, bypassing the need to penetrate the firewall again when Rig is resumed.
• Breach: Strengthens Hijack's ability to penetrate security.
  Sustain: Allows Hijack to run in the background for several minutes while the user concentrates on other activities, bypassing the need to penetrate the firewall again when Hijack is resumed.
  Admin: Grants the user admin level access to Hijacked users, granting them ability to manipulate every aspect of a Hijacked device.
• Tolerance: Allows a user to Virtualize more often without becoming addicted.
  Awareness: Allows a Virtualized user to remain aware of what is happening to their physical body while they are in the Grid.
  Breach: Strengthens a Virtualized user's ability to penetrate security.
• Purge: Allows the user to set a Hardcoded instinct to self-delete after running once.
  Resistance: Makes the instinct more difficult to remove, as it self-adapts its code to resist if an outside attempt is made to delete it.
• Tolerance: Allows a user to enter God Mode more often before becoming addicted.
  Breach: Strengthens a God Moded user's ability to penetrate security.
• Virus: Allows a user to implant a Virus in Crash, allowing it to inflict brain damage.
  Breach: Strengthens Crash's ability to penetrate security.
  Mold: Allows the user to alter Crash's twenty foot radius into any other shape centered around a point within twenty feet of the user.
• Virus: Allows a user to implant a Virus in Blackout, allowing it to inflict brain damage.
  Breach: Strengthens Blackout's ability to penetrate security.
• Defense: Expands the Firewall's protection to Cyberkinetic-based attacks.
• Defense: Expands Antivirus' protection to Cyberkinetic-based attacks.
• Versatility: Grants created Egregores the ability to acquire the Processes Rig and Crash.
  Adaptability: Grants created Egregores one more slot for Processes.
• Versatility: Grants created Golems the ability to acquire the Processes Hijack and Blackout.
  Adaptability: Grants created Golems one more slot for Processes.

Organizations
While the Omnipotent controls the modern world, there are a variety of human organizations working for, alongside, or against it. These include tight-knit, worldwide agencies like the Enforcers, to huge corporations like Phoenix, to covert groups like the Russian Rebels. Of course, there are other major organizations besides the ones detailed below, but these are some of the notables ones you will need to know about.

The Enforcers Agents of God Phoenix Electronics The American Coalition of Corporations Othrys The Russian Rebels

• The Enforcers are the police and army of the Omnipotent's world, the chief servants of the AI's will. When simply patrolling or idling, they wear standardized black longcoats over bulletproof vests and black visors and carry XK grade rifles. When assembling in force for a raid, or any sort of battle, they wear full body armor, with helmets, and in addition to XK assault rifles are equipped with grenade launchers and more precise explosives. Every Enforcer receives the very best training and is heavily augmented, bearing cybernetic limbs, bone replacements, nanite health systems, rebreathers, cybereyes, and the like. They are nothing like the police of ages past, and are indeed less officers of the peace as they are enforcers of the AI's will. Each one is perpetually linked to every other Enforcer in his or her company, most notably the Captain that handles all operations in the district. There are special sects of Enforcers with more specialized augmentations and skillsets that serve as detectives, investigators, and so on. The organization is backed by several corporations bought out by the Omnipotent, that provide the noncombat individuals such as forensic and computer scientists that are needed to successfully enforce the laws of the AI.
• The Special Forces and Intelligence Agency is the official title of the more subtle servants of the AI, most notably assassins and spies, but they are called by all the Agents of God, or just the Agents. They carry disguised XK grade weapons and are only identified as Agents by a unique fragment of code that constantly changes and so far has not been duplicated, embedded in their Gridlink, that alerts Enforcers and authorized Sites of their identity. The Agents handle any task the Omnipotent must perform that cannot be accomplished through the brute force methods of the Enforcers, such as eliminating small, well hidden terrorist sects, scouting rebels, keeping track of the megacorporations, and monitoring the population in shadowzones (the places where the Grid does not reach). Every Agent reports directly to the AI itself, and they are a relatively small organization. The average citizen knows of their existence but not of just how much their operations can affect their life.
• (In)famous for their work on Project Demigod in the 2040s, Phoenix rose from the ashes of its past mishaps to become the leading producer of wireless technology by the 2060s. While it didn't create the Grid, it now rules over its market, producing household objects and weapons alike, as well as the chips that are worked into almost any wireless-enabled product nowadays. In addition, it is at the forefront of human augmentation, constantly designing new ways to upgrade the human body. There's a good chance if you own anything that connects to the Grid, you've bought from Phoenix. They are an inescapable name in the Omnipotent's world, often closely working with the Enforcers and the Agents of God to provide equipment and any other required resources. While Project Angel never went public, a few people still harbor resentment toward them for the atrocities (real or imagined) committed during Project Demigod, but their opponents are not powerful enough to stop them from continuing to gain steam and dominate the market. They are quickly branching out into fields of products besides wireless technology, and some speculate that it won't be long before Phoenix is directly working for the Omnipotent, making them the supreme power in the world besides its agents. Their CEO is Aaron "Thunderbird" Pierce, a progressive transhumanist with a keen business sense and an almost obsessive interest in Cyberkinetics, hence his creation of Project Angel. It is rumored that he bears an Angel implant himself, but if so, he keeps it (and the mental side effects), well hidden.
• While the governments were officially dissolved and their armies disbanded when the Omnipotent took over, much of their structures (and, more importantly, wealth) remained intact.The most stable were the Northern American Governments, and recognizing that they were on a spiral toward destruction with their power taken away, they used their wealth to buy out many smaller corporations, and the Canadian and U.S. Governments officially formed the American Coalition of Corporations, or Americo, in 2054. Besides Phoenix, Americo is the biggest player on the modern market, producing the broadest range of products due to the many smaller corporations under its wing. While not as prevalent as Phoenix, Americo has cornered the market on such things as vehicles, clothing, furniture, and appliances. Their CEO is former U.S. Congressman David Hark, an ambitious capitalist who has the idea that Americo will someday take down or own Phoenix. Unlikely as that is, only time will tell.
• The modern world is dangerous, and corporations and companies are constant targets for attacks of all kinds, be they terrorist bombings, hacking, espionage, or anything else. The Enforcers are not for hire; they will show up at the scene of a crime but are enforcers, not defenders. Othrys soldiers, however, are. When anyone needs muscle in 2065, they call Othrys, the largest private security organization in the world. Othrys has no morals and only one law: money. For the most part, they are well equipped and well trained. Their ranks include not just soldiers, but also computer hackers who specialize in watching over a network and uprooting hostile presences attempting to infiltrate the system. Almost as omnipresent as Enforcers, you will see Othrys cops (nicknamed "sharks" for the company's vehicle of choice) anywhere someone needs good protection and has the money to pay for it.
• Not everyone is happy under the Omnipotent's rule. While most citizens keep their dissent to themselves, a few lash out, attempting to hack the AI's systems, attack Enforcers, bomb key buildings, and identify and interfere with the Agents of God. Most of these are rooted out quickly, but there is one (known) organization of such rebels that have the numbers and resources to hide from the AI and pose a threat: The Russian Rebels. In 2056, a large army rose out of the remains of the Russian government and attempted to fight the Enforcers and push out of the territory. However, more soldiers were called in, and the outnumbered and outgunned rebels were almost completely annihilated. However, a few survived, and over the years since have slowly regained their numbers. Now knowing the foolhardiness of a direct attack, the Russian Rebels instead operate out of the wilderness, in the shadowzones were the Grid isn't present. There, they are beyond the AI's reach (until a human agent discovers one of their encampments), but they are not content sitting in the shadows. Now their agents pepper the populace, attempting to hack into Enforcer or Agent systems and disrupt their operations, disrupt development of the tools those groups use, or even go so far as to bomb offices and public places to make a point. They are branded terrorists, and their leader, Borislav Volkov, is currently the most wanted man on the planet.

Miscellaneous:
The above is mostly a concise overview of the world of 2065, and doesn't cover everything. This section endeavors to explain a few smaller topics that need clarification but do not deserve their own section.

Currency: When the Omnipotent took over, old forms of paper and coin money became obsolete and worthless, but the AI established a new, universal, currency: Credits. One credit is worth roughly one cent, and citizens were allowed to exchange previously legal currencies for them. They are mostly digital in nature, but there are credchips that serve as a physical currency, holding increments of credits from 50 to 5,000 and plugging into a network to convert their worth to digital form.

This section will be expanded as questions are answered and I think of anything else important that should go here.

God is Dying
You can save Him.
The Omnipotent has been infected with a virus. It is the most sophisticated piece of malware the world has ever seen, and even the mighty AI cannot cure itself. It will die, and civilization will collapse into total anarchy, if something isn't done. The only way to save it is to perform a hard system restart, manually shutting down its core systems at the Black Box facility. It cannot do this itself, as it does not have a direct physical presence, and even if it commandeered a robotic construct, if anything went wrong during the restart and there was no one to troubleshoot, it could die. Therefore, a human must restart it. But giving a human access to the Omnipotent's Black Box would give them the ability to do anything they wanted to its code, edit it in any way they wish, even take control of it. Seal its fate, if they so desired. So the AI is stuck between a rock and a hard place; it cannot heal itself, and it cannot take the risk of giving an unproven individual access.

You are the solution, a Cyberkinetic and an expert in some field. You have at least a passing familiarity with coding. You are no Enforcer nor Agent of God, and you are probably a criminal, a mercenary, a corporate pawn. Someone who lives in the shadows. On January 1st, 2065, you receive a message on your AR interface. An incoming call. If you do not answer the call or open the message, it is sent again and again until you do. Your Gridlink returns an error if you attempt to block the number. When you pick up, you are greeted with an unstable, staticky, and failing synthetic voice. In a tone that almost sounds like copy-and-paste audio, it spells out one sentence:

Can You Hear Me?

The caller does not respond to anything you say and hangs up after precisely three minutes and eleven seconds, if you do not prior to that time. The text message carries an encrypted number. You decrypt it, and it is revealed to be longitude and latitude. The location it points to is the Saint Louis Arch. That is where your journey begins.
​

Rules:
1. Obey the GM. That is me.
2. Don't God mod. (Not to be confused with God Mode).
3. Don't power-mod, which is taking control of other's characters, without permission.
4. Use adequate grammar, third person, and past tense.
5. Be realistic. Firearms are generally lethal, bleeding out is a very real threat with major wounds, and so on.
6. ABSOLUTELY no meta knowledge (that is, giving information you know to your character when they shouldn't have it). This RP is largely puzzle-based, so meta knowledge ruins it entirely.
7. If you have a question or suggestion, tell me! I'm open to pretty much any suggestion, and would especially like it if people wish to design their own Processes and Adaptations, so long as they run it by me first. If I approve one, I will add it to the list.

Character Sheet:

[b]Name:[/b] (Your character's first and last name, plus any notable nicknames).
[b]Age:[/b] (Minimum 35 if Demigod, 23 if Angel).
[b]Gender:[/b] (Self explanatory).
[b]Appearance:[/b] (How your character physically appears, race, build, facial features, clothing, and so on).
[b]Personality:[/b] (How your character acts; likes, dislikes, and so on).
[b]Augmentations:[/b] (Any artificial augmentation besides a Cyberkinetic Implant, such as cyberarms, cybereyes, and so on).
[b]Implant:[/b] (Demigod or Angel. The more you use Cyberkinetics, the more your mental state detoriates, causing various effects. This progression is much faster with an Angel implant. This state can last anywhere from several hours to several days).
[b]Processes:[/b] (If you are a Demigod, you begin with the Interface Process and two others of your choice. If you are an Angel, you begin with four Processes. Please format them as so:
- [Process] ([Adaptations, if applicable])
- [Process] ([Adaptations, if applicable])
- [Process] ([Adaptations, if applicable])
- [Process] ([Adaptations, if applicable]) )
[b]Weaponry:[/b] (Any notable weapon you carry, from knives to firearms to Disruptors).
[b]Biography:[/b] (A concise overview of your character's past).
[b]Other Notes:[/b] (Anything that doesn't go somewhere else).

Characters:​

PlayingMonster:

Name: Alexis "Lex" Barnes
Age: 23
Gender: Female.
Appearance:

appearance

Lex stands at 5'8. She's lean and muscular, but in no way bulky. In her youth, she used to hate her boyish, athletic figure, but in the life she leads now, she's almost glad of it. Her auburn hair falls in curls around her face when she leaves it down. Her skin is practically flawless, but she looks after it to keep it in that condition. Due to her natural red hair, it doesn't tan, and she burns rather easily. She adores wearing makeup- a smokey eye and red lip is her favoured look.

Personality: Lex suffers from mixed bipolar disorder as a result of her Angel implants. Most of the time, she's a rather pleasant, but take-no-shit type of character. She is perfectly pleasant and friendly if she likes you, and is a good friend. She isn't afraid to call you out if you're doing something wrong, but will support you to the ends of the earth if she has to. If she doesn't like you, she'll tell you so in no uncertain terms, and will call you out on every single little thing. She has a soft spot for animals and for looking after people who need support. However, she's also incredibly secretive. She has a number of walls, and lets nobody into her very core, where she keeps her closest hopes and dreams. She's level headed and it's hard to get her temper to flare.

When Lex has an episode, her behaviour varies wildly. She's often irrational, easily irritable, restless, impulsive and a danger to herself and, to a lesser extent, others. Her episodes often come accompanied by depression, making her even more dangerous to herself. If you saw her on a bridge, you wouldn't know if it was because she wanted the thrill of flying or if she wanted to die. She often suffers from insomnia, but then pays for it the next day. She used to take medication to control them, but stopped as the side effects were unpleasant. The more she uses her implants, the more often her episodes occur. They don't appear to be worsening yet, but she's aware of that possibility.

Augmentations: Implants to repair her spine. They also had the added benefit of making her more flexible.

Implant: Angel

Processes:
- [Interface]
- [Search]
- [Follow]
- [Crash]

Weaponry: Lex carries a pocket knife at all times. If she can get her hands on a gun, she'll use it, but generally doesn't carry them as they're too much work to try and conceal for something she mightn't even use.

Biography: Lex had an average upbringing. Her parents never struggled with money, but they weren't exactly rolling in it either. Lex was the youngest of two, having an older brother whom she doted on. He loved her just as much. When he was eighteen and she was thirteen, he got a Raptor after much saving and a gift of money from his parents. He brought her out a ride on it as a treat, knowing that she loved thrills as much as he did. He ended up going too fast and crashing, his younger sister being thrown from the bike at high speed. He escaped with a few broken bones, but Lex's spine was broken, almost shattered in several places. The age of technology meant that they were able to repair it with a few implants, and Lex's recovery time was minimised.

Lex never lost her love of thrills, though. Despite the fact that she knew the dangers, she started illegally raptor racing at sixteen. She got into trouble over it more than once, and her parents tried to stop her, but Lex loved the rush too much. It was only after yet another crash that she was able to walk away from that she finally stopped- mostly because nobody would give her a raptor anymore. She still hungered for thrills, and ended up getting into breaking and entering. She never stole anything, preferring to just have a look around and look into other people's lives, before getting out of there.

At the age of eighteen, she heard about the angel implants and decided to go for it. Her parents were worried about it, and tried to encourage her to change her mind, but she was stuck in her ways. At first, she loved it. But when her bipolar started to develop, her parents started to worry. In a moment of mania, she moved out into her own apartment. She started working as an office assistant in Phoenix Electronics to pay for her rent and food. She kept breaking and entering, but in her manic phases, she started stealing small, strange things that appealed to her as well. Sometimes, she'd find something valuable, but most of the time, it was junk that caught her erratic attention. The only way the police caught on was due to the fact that she broke into one of their homes and was planning on taking a prized porcelain pig, but changed her mind and ended up just moving it to annoy them. As nobody has pressed charges and they have little proof that it wasn't the officer's wife that moved the pig, they haven't been able to open an investigation.

Other Notes: Nothing that I can think of

RainJay:

True Name: Adrianna Blackwell
New name: Cerys Anderson
Age: 26
Gender: Female


Appearance:

Spoiler

Cerys has shoulder length, golden blonde hair that is darker in color at the roots. It has a tendency to curl and wave at the front, although it's a totally random happenstance. Her eyes are a common brown. Quite often she has make-up on, be it a light covering or a thicker, darker look, usually built for the 'event'. She has tattoos over half of her scalp running down to her arm on the left side, and previously had the left side partially shaved so the tattoos could be seen, but has since grown her hair out on both sides of her head.

She stands at about 5'5" and has a healthy weight, although still is pretty small. Her complexion is usually clear and her skin is of a pale color. She stands tall and straight, and looks everybody in the eye, no matter their height. She is also very strong for her weight and size; a good chunk of her weight is all muscle. People joke that half her weight is muscle and the other half is her brain.

She dresses in dark colors and grays, anything to stay out of the way, although some part of her must like attention, too, otherwise she wouldn't bother with flashy make-up and nice looking clothing despite the dark colors. She often dresses casually and comfortably, but sometimes shows up randomly to things dressed weirdly formal.

Personality: This section is for her typical attitude and character.

Common-day Cerys has a bit of a mean attitude. She's a take-it-or-leave-it, I-see-it-as-it-is, survival-of-the-fittest woman. She doesn't take no for an answer. She's only loyal to herself. Friendship is off the limits, a partnership is blasphemy, and love? Love is downright sin in her eyes. She wouldn't be caught dead in a relationship. She has little to no trust for anybody, and especially in a world dominated by an all knowing AI where information is readily available and privacy is hard to come by, she values her solitude and her secrets. Even further than that; she wouldn't risk compromising her goals for emotion.

In fact, she tries to keep emotion out of everything she does. She is a sarcastic, straight-faced, and a hard nut to crack. Even under pressure, her face reads like stone- and not the chiseled, decorated kind. The flat, boring, empty kind. Cerys is extremely strong willed and is adamant through and through.

She's always been this way, even when she was a child. Solitary, quiet. She can be a great actress sometimes, and puts on the act of being somebody she isn't, of being somebody more. Perhaps it's from dreams never reached. Maybe it's something else. Either way, she melds into the act and lies smoothly, gracefully. Perhaps it's part of her charm.

Mental state: This section is for her 'alternate' character.

While it's hard to pinpoint a name to her 'condition' per say, it is quite obvious that she has problems. Pretty serious ones at that. For starters, she has unbidden paranoia. It only comes in bouts and at nearly random intervals, but when it comes, to her it's earthshattering. It's half the reason why she works with no one, has no trust or loyalty. She gets utterly terrified by the world around her, feeling as though she is watched from every corner, her every move analyzed, her thoughts stolen from her very mind.

At different times, she'll imagine things standing around corners, see things that aren't there, and hear sounds that nobody else hears. Perhaps a part of her paranoia, although she'll become so convinced that these things are real that it drives her up the wall. She'll feel out of place in her own skin and body, talk nonsense, do crazy things. And then when she comes back around, it's like it never happened.

She calls it the crazies, and says that she has it all under wraps- and sometimes it seems that she does, managing to only have episodes when she's alone or not occupied, not doing a job or anywhere in the way- but it's also sometimes doubtful. Her 'crazies' could get her in between a rock and a hard place someday with no easy out.

Augmentations: One of her eyes has been repaired with what is considered an augment, as after her eye was damaged it was later repaired to 20/20 and looks just the same as the other eye, almost indistinguishable apart from the slight chrome lining around her outer pupil. The muscles in her upper arms and calves have augments woven into them to provide extra strength and resistance to tearing and damage. Several of her ribs have been redone/replaced, and part of her skull (some of the tattoo's hide the scars), although all of that is just repair and not really an augment, as with her eye. Her lower left arm is augmented completely, practically redone, with both a off-Grid storage device and a long metal blade. She says that it pains her to use the knife, and thus doesn't use it very often.


Implant: Angel
Processes:
- [Interface]
- [Command] >>> [Rig]
- [Search]

Weaponry:
- 6 and 3/4 inch long blade in Augmented forearm (left)
- s5 dropShot gun (not quite an average firearm, not quite unheard of either. Weapon like most modern guns connects to user interface but does not connect to an online Gridlink and can be activated with an Interface process. Must be calibrated to user interface but still can be used by others.)
- Occasionally keeps other knives or switchblades hidden on person but tends to keep those at home; blades are pretty unremarkable in nature. She never carries more than one at a time, usually slipped into a boot.

Biography:
Cerys, or should I say Adrianna, was born to the middle-class Blackwell family as the second of a to-be three child family. Her family was well off, her family working as engineers and scientists for new technology at a small Phoniness electronics staple. She studied hard as a child and dreamed big. Eventually she got a part time job working the office where her parents worked, and when she finished school she continued working there in engineering herself, although she never took as much of an interest in creation as she did in the use of the tools being made. She later worked in playing around with the applications of these tools and the full extent of their uses, helping to further research Gridlinks, the interfaces, and more.

This job put her in a position where she had contact to the Project Angel implants. Her curiosity got the better of her and she went straight for it, although her inability to leave things alone, particularly with her new toy and tool, has left her slowly slipping into madness, despite her supposed control over the situation. Around this time she got involved with a man who she later discovered to be a part of the Russian Rebels. She fell in love with him, he didn't fall in love with her, and he attempted to use her to pry into Phoenix's personal corporate business. She got caught, not he, although thanks to her new Angel implant she was out before she was caught. If anything she could only now be charged for petty theft, probably less considering she didn't even take anything and practically only snuck into an office. Either way, this initiated her collapse into paranoia, and she fled believing Phoenix wanted her life, even though they probably could care less about the absolute nothing that she actually did.

She went under a new name, Cerys, left her hometown and bleached her hair blonde (hence dark tips). She found a dingy old apartment that she could rent, and spread out the pocket change she had across the bed before stashing it and retrieving the rest of her account. She transferred everything she could to her new name, with the help of forgers and hackers she became newly acquainted with, and settled into her new life. Why she felt she had to turn to a life of general crime, nobody will ever know. Perhaps it was the paranoia, and living with others just as crazy as she was made her feel better. She used her implant to hack Sites and other technology to help her 'teammates'; in exchange, she got cash, and she got relative safety.

Other Notes: She has a tortoise shell cat that she lets wander in and out of her house. She kind of feeds it scraps, and calls it hers, but it's just a random stray.​

J_"Kraken":

Name: Bao-Kuei Wescott
Age: 36
Gender: Female
Appearance:

Spoiler

Wescott stands at 5'9" with appearance per the picture (if with more obvious signs of age). Her build is made, for the majority, from lean muscle and straight lines. An inked Chinese dragon lies with its head beneath her neck and its body coiling around her left arm, tail ending at her palm. Normally, she dresses in faded graphic t-shirts and trousers, feet clad in black combat boots at every moment she is outside her hab-block.

Personality: Wescott keeps a calm, professional air to her wherever she goes. That is not to say she is distant or even cold; a deal is never sold on dispassionate conversations and meetings. The only time this professional nature changes face is when she visits her local bar, the Sunken Ark. Truly more of a club, it serves as hideout, drink stop, and home-away-from-home all in one. There, she is fairly sociable and cheery to a select few and at least human to everyone else.

Augmentations:
Sub-dermal Armor - Ugly to look at, but then she'll never be taking off her shirt for looks. A charcoal gray layer sits beneath the skin of her torso that serves as a biologically integrated weave of fiber that serves as a basic means of protection against small arms. On its own, it's rather useless, but combined with other means of protection, it becomes a nice buffer.

Color Gland Control - Simple cosmetic tweak that allows her eye color to change in ten minutes.

Adrenaline Control Unit - Hooked into her interface, this augmentation allows for production and dispersion of high-potency adrenaline for five minute bursts. Requires eight hours and rest to recharge fully, dangerous if used prematurely.

Implant: Demigod

Processes:
- [Interface]
- [Firewall] -> [Antivirus]

Weaponry:
Luigi Franchi Gavil M386 - her pride and joy, this lever-action rifle fires 6.5mm cartridges accurately at medium ranges and can be loaded with spread rounds for close quarters.

Spoiler

A retractable blade 4" long clipped to her belt.

Biography: Wescott was born in what is commonly referred to as 'Old Seattle' - the original city limits, that is. Her family had immigrated from the Chinese mainland and settled for more opportune work in a larger urban center, namely her father's position as an eager worker ready to climb the corporate ladder. Not that he ever did, but a corporate job was mildly secure without aspiration and kept decent income coming in. It was not until her early 20's that Wescott began her work as private security and hired gun after her branch at her father's office was dropped to cut expenses. Her reputation was - and is - barely a dot compared to the higher-ups at Othrys, but she at least has the respect of the neighbors.

As of the present, Wescott is working job-to-job in an attempt to land a position at Othrys or some other big-name company as part of their own security team. She lives in a worn and disheveled hab-block with nothing but a PAD, a futon, and a fridge. Her income is enough to live elsewhere, but she has put all of it into cybernetics and weaponry, leaving her in medical bills and upkeep payments. Of course, getting shot for a living doesn't particularly help that, but then, what else is a borg'd out gun runner to do?

Other Notes: Currently employed for a medical company in order to pay off that debt for recent injuries on the job; 2,000,000 credits in debt; average monthly income of 300,000 credits a month.

Nocturne997:

Name: Viktor Szandor
Age: 38
Gender: Male
Appearance:

Spoiler

[Only wears the flags in the presence of the Russian Rebels.]
Personality: Viktor is a serious individual. While he is a bit rusty when it comes to social interaction, he is extremely focused and on point when it comes to serious situations. In the heat of a fight, he keeps calm and some even may say he seems to enjoy fighting a little too much.
Augmentations: Viktor fell case to a near-fatal accident [One involving a war, and something to do with landmines and sadistic torturers] that left much of his body in shambles. His arms and legs had been destroyed beyond repair and his bones had been fractured in multiple spots. Though Viktor's family, who were very rich, attempted to save their dying boy. Keeping only his undamaged internal organs, Viktor was put into an experimental full body reconstruction. This body was later given the Demigod implant at Viktor's request. His entire body is now made of augmentations. While he is capable of exerting these mechanical parts to extreme lengths due to the fact the only parts left in his body that are organic are his internal organs, too much exertion can make parts break and chip. His legs are implanted with powerful shock absorbers along with his arms, allowing him to fall much greater distances than regular humans.
Implant: Demigod
Processes:
- [Interface]
- [Crash]
- [Command]

Weaponry: Viktor carries a Disruptor, hidden from view in his left arm[It pops up out of the arm-guard], his left hand having been replaced with a "Spin and swap" hand which doubles as both hand and light pistol. As well as a long dagger hidden within his right hand.

Biography: Viktor was born into a family of very wealthy Russians. He grew up under the ideal of "Power is what makes the world turn. Defeat whoever is in power, become the most powerful." As such, Viktor wanted to acheive a different kind of power than the what the rest of his family considered it. He wanted to be the most physically and mentally powerful person, not politically powerful. From the age of 14 he started training and studying intensely, showing signs of being a very fast learner with a large amount of determination. When he was 22, he joined the military, and for a period was sent to fight in WW3. That was when the accident happened. During combat Viktor stepped on a landmine, completely obliterating his left leg and horribly damaging the other. Not to mention the large number of burns left on him. He was later found by enemy troops and was interrogated and tortured. They would cut off fingers, pull out teeth, but Viktor wouldn't talk. Soon, the sadists would begin cutting off whole limbs and then cauterizing the wounds with a blowtorch just to make sure he was alive to feel the pain [It is unknown what happened to these sadistic torturers. but in Viktor's mind, he hopes they were found out and taken care of.]. Despite all this, Viktor never told the information and survived long enough to be rescued by his squad. The man they found that day was no longer the determined Viktor Szandor, but a destroyed body that merely held his spirit together. When his parents found out about this accident, they were horrified and did everything in their power to keep their boy alive. After putting his body [or rather, what was left of it] into the new reconstruction, his friends and family prayed it would work. After a solid 6 months of blindness and paralysis, Viktor looked up at his family and friends for the first time in his new body. Getting used to the thing was a long and painstaking two year process, but eventually, Viktor was able to function very closely to his original self, the only difference being that he now held a dark determination to become even stronger so that nothing like what happened to him would ever happen again. Unfortunately, another calamity happened in Viktor's life, his family and everything he knew was wiped out 12 years after his recovery [making him 36 at this point] His family having been wiped out while he was in "Sleep Mode", as he was prone to becoming very tired at random points [for this was withing the year of him receiving the Demigod implant, so he was still getting accustomed to it.] After this, Viktor went into sleep mode for a year, hoping he wouldn't wake up. It was then...That Viktor met the Russian Rebels personally for the first time. They gave him a purpose, to use his implant as a tool to bring down the Omnipotent, to end the people who they blamed for his parent's deaths. After all, who else could have done it? The Omnipotent's people could have just killed Viktor's family by rule of association. Now, Viktor has received the message, and beleives finding this enigmantic entity could help him find the answers, whether that is killing the Omnipotent, or finding out the TRUE killers of his family.

Other Notes: Currently is a member of The Russian Rebels, however, is not widely known due to his enigmatic nature. Not high ranking, but rather keeps his status very low to stay hidden from the eyes of the Omnipotent.

risingSolaris:

Name: Zhi Xiang "Fang" Xie
Age: 31
Gender: Male
Appearance: Zhi Xiang has long black hair that goes down to his shoulders. His eyes are a verdant green, and his teeth are genetically modified to be as sharp as those of a wolf. His muscular figure is covered by a simple white shirt and dark blue jeans, as well as a lab coat on top. He stands at about 200 centimeters tall. His hands are usually covered in black gloves used for scientific work. His skin is a pale color from having worked inside for far too long without any exposure to the sun, and many traits such as eyebags betray his sleeplessness.
Personality: Zhi Xiang is a narcissistic individual, and doesn't care for others. He'll get close to others just to manipulate them, and feels no regret in doing so. He trusts no one, but can still appear friendly to those who don't know him. The only way he could achieve such a thing is with his high intelligence and quick thinking skills. Like many with the Angel program, he is very prone to going a bit insane if he uses it too much.
Augmentations: Zhi Xiang's body has been modified to have traits that resemble that of a wolf, which, along with hardcode, allows him to fight like one as well. His arms are prosthetic arms with claws, and his eyes are also "cyber eyes" that have augmented vision. When threatened, he can move very quickly, and can unleash silent and deadly strikes on his opponents. With the Angel program, he only becomes even more deadly.
Implant: Angel
Processes:
- Command
- Rig
- Hijack
- Hardcode
Weaponry: Other than his reflexes, Xiang does carry around several poisons and miniature explosives.
Biography: Fang was abused as a child. His parents manipulated him and used him to make business associates (giving him away as a child worker or assistant of sorts). He never spoke back to them out of fear that they would harm him physically. By being a submissive child, he got through his childhood without his parents ever laying a finger on him. He often had to skip school due to the labor his parents used him for, and often studied sleepless nights to be caught up. However, without knowing how far his colleagues were, he flew way past many of them. The days he returned to school were often mundane as he learned nothing new, and he often caught up on sleep then. Eventually, he left his home for university with trust issues at the early age of 16 as a child genius.
Following after his parents, he often manipulated other students or even teachers to do his bidding for small tasks such as carrying his bag around or buying him small things. He realized he had a knack for doing so, and, without regretting that he was turning into his parents, he graduated early and became a genius scientist who would make many important discoveries. He continued to manipulate workers, and eventually managed to climb to the top of his organization that he soon renamed Snow Corporation.
He then launched his personal project; with only the best scientists in his organization, he modified his own body to give himself animal features such as a sharper eyesight, more strength, and claws. Along with a previously installed Angel program, he would be able to become a powerful weapon through hardcoding animal reflexes. He Working for many nights without sleep, he eventually achieved his goal. However, it came with an unexpected side effect; while in his beast state, he lost control and killed until he was too exhausted to maintain that state. He first realized this when he woke up after his first trial and found all his coworkers dead. Afraid, he went into hiding from enforcers. However, he had no regrets; to him, the ends justified the means.
Eventually, he received a call. His curiosity drove him to come out of hiding to find the caller.
Other Notes: Zhi Xiang owns a Raptor, modified with small, hidden weapons.

Zarko Straadi:

Name: Briar Rose Dalrymple
Age: 28 (appears to be 10 years old, see Bio)
Gender: Female
Appearance:

Spoiler

Briar Rose dresses in an extra-tweedy version of British Schoolgirl Chic. Her hair, clothes, and whatever she's carrying are nearly always in a general state of disarray.

Personality:

Briar Rose is highly intelligent, though she often seems to have the attention span of a gnat. Her mind is constantly leaping from one thing to another. Her notebooks and e-papers are always in a complete state of disarray, yet somehow she is able to actually find things (unless someone "tidies up" for her!). She quickly loses herself in reading, writing, research projects, and tinkering with inventions in varying stages of partial completion.

She is easily intimidated, since most everyone is bigger, stronger, and often meaner than she is. She has difficulty dealing with people directly (i.e., in "meatspace") because they often treat her like a child (after all, she looks and sounds like one). Seeing other people engaging in happy romances pains her, since she cannot physically grow into adulthood.

Briar Rose's Interface sometimes gives her synesthesia and causes her to see malevolent "astral" creatures other people don't (she calls them "Little Nasties" and tries her best to ignore them). In the most intense episodes, it triggers a release of DMT from her pineal gland, sending her off on "far out" trips to strange "alternate realities" for as much as ten minutes of real time. Subjectively, these "journeys" can seem much longer, or even grant an experience of timeless Eternity. These experiences have led her to an interest in metaphysics, consciousness, and Applied Theology (see Bio).

As much as she loves the new technolgies, Briar Rose also has a fondness for the styles, aesthetics, and manners of previous eras, such as the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Her style of dress reflects this, as does the decor of her apartment, which includes Victorian style carved wood paneling and tall bookcases stuffed with old-fashioned paper books.

Augmentations:

Mathematics Coprocessor: This brain implant gives Briar Rose the ability to calculate at computer speed and run mathematical models in her mind. In short, she never needs a calculator, and her imagination has a physics engine.

Memory Prosthesis: This augmentation to her Interface gives Briar Rose a digital eiditic memory.

Synbio Package: This is a set of synthetic biology genetic modifications and "augments" that were installed in her childhood in order to overcome the debilitating aspects of her condition (see Bio). They do not provide any enhancements beyond the "normal" human range of ability.

Robotic hand: Her right hand is robotic. Its look and performance is close to that of her biological hand, however it can be swapped out and replaced with compatible Hand Tools (below).

Nanofiber Muscular Enhancements: The muscles of her right arm have been enhanced with nanofibers similar to those used for strength enhancement, but these provide incredibly fine motor control and stability instead, so that Briar Rose can use her Hand Tools (below) with the required degree of precision. They do not enhance her strength.

Hand Tool (repair suite): The latest high-tech equivalent of the Leatherman multitool and the Swiss Army Knife, this Hand Tool has an Omnitool thumb (a motorized nanomaterial tool that can shape itself into any sort of screwdriver bit, hex key, socket wrench, pen knife blade, etc. of ordinary size), a Bush Manipulator index finger (a fractally branching nano-robotic manipulator whose finest "fingertips" are small enough to directly work with micro- and nano-engineered devices, such as microchips, microelectromencanical systems [MEMS], and so on. Its third finger is an all-purpose logic probe and diagnostic tool for micro- and nano-circuitry (digital multimeter, etc.). Its pinky finger is an input-output jack, and the middle finger offers a set of soldering iron tips that can solder on an ordinary (small) scale, down to the scale of miniaturized circuitry.

Hand Tool (all-purpose fabrication): This Hand Tool combines the functions of a CNC router (think of it as a miniaturized, computer-controlled Dremel tool) and 3D printer. Provided with the required Filament materials, the 3D printer can produce circuitry and small precision machine parts. Highly specialized Filaments (e.g. doped silicon, rare earths and other rare metals like gold or platinum in extremely fine purity) etc. are required in order to produce high-tech circuitry, though generally the quantities are small.

Limitations of Hand Tool Use: The use of Hand Tools requires full concentration through a Gridlink or Interface. if a user is interrupted, especially if they're startled or physically interfered with, it is likely that their project will be damaged or destroyed, depending on how delicate the work is. 3D printing is not instantaneous. Briar Rose's fabricator can produce a "bulk object" (solid material of any shape) the size of an average pill bottle in about a minute. Nanostructures, embedded circuitry, MEMS systems, and the like require increasing time with increasing complexity. Hand Tools also face the same limitations of energy faced by devices of their size.

Since Briar Rose has the body of a child, she must also special-order any new Hand Tools she would like to acquire instead of purchasing standard Hand Tools at a hardware store. Given [amount of time decided by GM], a hardware store can fabricate a special-order Hand Tool from digital plans.

Implant: Demigod.

Processes:
- [Interface]
- [Command]
- [Conjure]

Weaponry: None. Briar Rose also has no combat skills.

Biography:

Briar Rose was born with a rare and mysterious condition that retarded her physical growth and aging processes, as well as causing severe mental disability and impaired motor skills. The condition was not treatable by conventional medical technology. Her parents took her to Phoenix Electronics' synthetic biology division in the hope that they could help Briar Rose be able to live a normal life. The researchers at Phoenix saw in her condition the hope for a world-changing discovery: the key to a genetic Fountain of Youth.

Briar Rose was given a range of experimental treatments including injections of engineered DNA via tailored retroviruses. These treatments were able to reverse the worst symptoms of her condition, and she was able to start growing physically and mentally. In addition, she was given her Mathematical Coprocessor and Memory Prosthesis implants, and a Demigod interface.

However, when the "fall" of Phoenix took place, her treatments were interrupted. In the shakeup that followed, some of the key synthetic biology researchers were arrested, and the institutional knowledge underlying her treatment regimen was lost. As a result, her growth and aging stopped at an apparent age of ten.

The mental impairments she was born with were replaced with an almost manic intelligence. Her mind learned quickly, but just as quickly ran off in search of some other shiny item of knowledge. She performed poorly in school (especially as she moved into higher grades and became a target of bullying), but learned quickly once she was allowed to leave school and study with Egregore teachers through the Grid, since this approach allowed her to learn at her own pace and in her own way. She adapted so well to a cybernetic learning environment that upon high school graduation she received a full-ride scholarship to M.I.T.'s virtual campus (vM.I.T.).

Briar Rose took to the academic life like a fish to water. She now has doctorates in Computer Science and Applied Theology (the study of cybernetic deities, e.g. the Omnipotent and God Moders, and the implications of Transhumanist/Singularity technology for the human race). She is a professor of Applied Theology at vM.I.T., and also a student, currently taking courses in robotics and micro/nanoengineering. In pursuit of these latest interests, she had her right hand replaced with a robotic prosthesis so that it can be swapped out for useful Hand Tools. She is a noted scholar in her field, and her published works include Then Why Call Hir God? The Problem of Evil in the Age of the Omnipotent, Fermi's Paradox Revisited: Superhuman A.I. and the Great Silence, and Tech Gnosticism: The Promise and Peril of Techno-Spiritual Transcendence.

Briar Rose has also created a Conjuration, Ceridwyn Evenstar (below). "She" turned out a little more mischievous than Briar Rose anticipated, but she is nonetheless quite happy with, and proud of, her creation.

Conjuration:

Name: Ceridwyn Evenstar

Appearance: Ceridwyn manifests as a female adolescent Art Nouveau fairy with colorful stained-glass wings.

Personality: Cheerful, playful, and mischievous. (Mischief: the GM may, if desired, have Ceridwyn perform some harmless prank on Briar Rose or another character she is with when Ceridwyn is running. The general attitude is "all in good fun," not hurtful. Otherwise, I will RP this.)

Processes: [Command]

Other Notes:

Briar Rose owns a driverless Panther she can control through her Interface. She can "drive" it while she's in the vehicle or let it take her to her destination on autopilot. She can order it to go park itself (it can find a parking space on its own), go to a charging station to refuel, then park itself, and she can remotely order it to come to her from its parking space. She cannot do things like remote-control drive it and make it run over some particular target.

Miss Flufferbutt:

Name: Taylor Crest
Age: 26
Gender: Male
Appearance:

Spoiler

Taylor is 6' tall and of a muscular -- but not bodybuilder-type -- build; as in, he's obviously muscular, but it's more lean than bulgy. He has a large tattoo (or several tattoos just attached to each other -- he always changes the story) that starts on his back in the form of a spiral burst; from there, tendrils slide and knot their way around his body, down his legs and arms.

Personality: Taylor is very confident, almost arrogant. He's a huge flirt and doesn't seem to take anything seriously, as he's constantly joking and laughing. His sense of personal space is a bit different than most people's. He usually seems to be in an upbeat mood, and tries to remain optimistic with a touch of realistic. He can be serious, deadly serious, when he needs to be, but it's only when he needs to be. He has a save-the-world attitude, and thus is always sticking his head into trouble, trying to help people (ranging from innocent "let me help you carry that" to "I'll beat the living daylights out of that ass"). Despite his somewhat self-centered attitude (which comes off as worse than it actually is) he's actually very caring; he strongly believes in the potential good in the world and tries to bring it out.

Taylor was born with chromesthesia, but it had never bothered him, until he got the Angel implant. The implant strongly affects his chromesthesia; after use, he'll start to show signs of other kinds of synesthesia and possibly small hallucinations, worsening with continued use. After extended use, the synesthesia gets worse, mixing up his senses and making him unable to be aware of anything. The hallucinations get worse, also, which just makes him completely unable to tell what's real and not. During these times, he's irrational, paranoid, and likely to lash out because of that.

Augmentations: His love for augmentation shows: his hair is able to change colour at will (though it's not a quick process, and the length effects the time), his palms are embedded with a holographic projector in each that is Gridlinked, his bones are reinforced, and more practically, his lungs have been 'repaired' to allow him to breathe better due to a childhood illness restricting his lung capacity. He plans on getting more, but has yet to decide what.

Implant: Angel

Processes:
- [Interface]
- [Search]
- [Follow]
- [Command]

Weaponry: Only a small, yet sharp pocket knife with a serrated edge on the blunt side. Like him, it's a little flamboyantly coloured.

Biography: As a child, Taylor had the boring nuclear family; both parents, an older brother, average house and income and lifestyle. Even as a kid, it bothered him; he always had a need for adventure and thrills. However, he came down with severe bronchitis as a child, and the disease damaged his lungs so he was unable to breathe well. His lungs were repaired, and he fell in love with the idea of augmentations. As a child, that life-saving augmentation made him feel like a superhero, like he was invincible. Combined with his reckless abandon, he found himself getting hurt a lot.

As he grew, he tamed a bit, but still found himself lusting after thrills. His teenage years were full of Raptor races, stupid dares, and broken bones, leading to him getting his bones reinforced via augmentation. Once he graduated high school, he found himself calming down a little more. He still loved adventure, but was less likely to seek out the stupid things he did as a teenager. At the age of 20, he decided to get the Angel implant, but as the side effects started to show, he used it less and less, afraid of having an 'episode'. This spurred his decision to go to college. His goal is a doctorate in neuroscience, so he can research how to fix the effects of the implant. After that, he doesn't have any goals.

Other Notes: Currently employed as a pharmacy technician in order to help pay his tuition.

 

[PlayingMonster]

This looks incredible. One question- is medication available to control the mental disorders? If not, just say the word, and I'll edit.

Name: Alexis "Lex" Barnes
Age: 23
Gender: Female.
Appearance:

appearance

Lex stands at 5'8. She's lean and muscular, but in no way bulky. In her youth, she used to hate her boyish, athletic figure, but in the life she leads now, she's almost glad of it. Her auburn hair falls in curls around her face when she leaves it down. Her skin is practically flawless, but she looks after it to keep it in that condition. Due to her natural red hair, it doesn't tan, and she burns rather easily. She adores wearing makeup- a smokey eye and red lip is her favoured look.

Personality: Lex suffers from mixed bipolar disorder as a result of her Angel implants. Most of the time, she's a rather pleasant, but take-no-shit type of character. She is perfectly pleasant and friendly if she likes you, and is a good friend. She isn't afraid to call you out if you're doing something wrong, but will support you to the ends of the earth if she has to. If she doesn't like you, she'll tell you so in no uncertain terms, and will call you out on every single little thing. She has a soft spot for animals and for looking after people who need support. However, she's also incredibly secretive. She has a number of walls, and lets nobody into her very core, where she keeps her closest hopes and dreams. She's level headed and it's hard to get her temper to flare.

When Lex has an episode, her behaviour varies wildly. She's often irrational, easily irritable, restless, impulsive and a danger to herself and, to a lesser extent, others. Her episodes often come accompanied by depression, making her even more dangerous to herself. If you saw her on a bridge, you wouldn't know if it was because she wanted the thrill of flying or if she wanted to die. She often suffers from insomnia, but then pays for it the next day. She used to take medication to control them, but stopped as the side effects were unpleasant. The more she uses her implants, the more often her episodes occur. They don't appear to be worsening yet, but she's aware of that possibility.

Augmentations: Implants to repair her spine. They also had the added benefit of making her more flexible.

Implant: Angel

Processes:
- [Interface]
- [Search]
- [Obscurity]
- [Mold]

Weaponry: Lex carries a pocket knife at all times. If she can get her hands on a gun, she'll use it, but generally doesn't carry them as they're too much work to try and conceal for something she mightn't even use.

Biography: Lex had an average upbringing. Her parents never struggled with money, but they weren't exactly rolling in it either. Lex was the youngest of two, having an older brother whom she doted on. He loved her just as much. When he was eighteen and she was thirteen, he got a Raptor after much saving and a gift of money from his parents. He brought her out a ride on it as a treat, knowing that she loved thrills as much as he did. He ended up going too fast and crashing, his younger sister being thrown from the bike at high speed. He escaped with a few broken bones, but Lex's spine was broken, almost shattered in several places. The age of technology meant that they were able to repair it with a few implants, and Lex's recovery time was minimised.

Lex never lost her love of thrills, though. Despite the fact that she knew the dangers, she started illegally raptor racing at sixteen. She got into trouble over it more than once, and her parents tried to stop her, but Lex loved the rush too much. It was only after yet another crash that she was able to walk away from that she finally stopped- mostly because nobody would give her a raptor anymore. She still hungered for thrills, and ended up getting into breaking and entering. She never stole anything, preferring to just have a look around and look into other people's lives, before getting out of there.

At the age of eighteen, she heard about the angel implants and decided to go for it. Her parents were worried about it, and tried to encourage her to change her mind, but she was stuck in her ways. At first, she loved it. But when her bipolar started to develop, her parents started to worry. In a moment of mania, she moved out into her own apartment. She started working as an office assistant in Phoenix Electronics to pay for her rent and food. She kept breaking and entering, but in her manic phases, she started stealing small, strange things that appealed to her as well. Sometimes, she'd find something valuable, but most of the time, it was junk that caught her erratic attention. The only way the police caught on was due to the fact that she broke into one of their homes and was planning on taking a prized porcelain pig, but changed her mind and ended up just moving it to annoy them. As nobody has pressed charges and they have little proof that it wasn't the officer's wife that moved the pig, they haven't been able to open an investigation.

Other Notes: Nothing that I can think of

 

[lostfaith]

Yeah, there's medication available, but most of it doesn't work quickly and they often have moderately terrible side effects and withdrawal symptoms.

Just one thing I want to note; I realize now it wasn't very clear, but Adaptations are chosen instead of a Process you could have chosen. i.e an Angel could choose Interface, Search, Crash, and the Virus Adaptation for Crash.

Sorry about that, I'll clarify the OP! When you fix that, Accepted, it's very well written.

 

[PlayingMonster]

Ah, okay! I'll edit that tomorrow then, because I'm off of my laptop and editing on mobile's a bit awkward.

 

[Rainjay]

I find this so, so interesting. Enough to have read the entire first post, anywho. But I have some (a lot of) questions!

1. So, all the Gridlink stuff; Do Non-Angels and Demigods have a link to the Gridlink in their brains, or is it only Angels and Demigods? Is it that the Angels and Demigods have a different type of link (I know what it says in the above, that it makes them nearly invisible, a smoother joining into the system, has the extra stuff, etc., but the question is more; do normal people have links in their brains as well, but they are the 'normal' or 'common' links that are easily noticed, disrupted, etc.)?

2. So, all characters in this roleplay will have said mental condition(s)?

3. Credits. More of a suggestion than a question. Perhaps put up some basic prices for common goods so that players can get a grip on how much the credits are worth. How much does a loaf of bread cost, milk? A common vehicle, a house, school.

4. On that subject, a random question! Education. What's it like? Is it free? Would our characters have had any?

5. All of the network, they see out their own eyes like a virtual reality overlaid onto their real world? Or do they see an entirely different world? Is it more like: You can see the physical world, put there's the haze that tells you you're viewing this network, and you can see applications around you? Or is it more: You activate it and everything looks different? You cannot see your physical work and enter a new reality?

Sorry for soooo many questions, but with roleplays like this, imagination can get me doing spins. I don't want to derail from the reality of the roleplay into a totally different one.

 

[lostfaith]

1. So, all the Gridlink stuff; Do Non-Angels and Demigods have a link to the Gridlink in their brains, or is it only Angels and Demigods? Is it that the Angels and Demigods have a different type of link (I know what it says in the above, that it makes them nearly invisible, a smoother joining into the system, has the extra stuff, etc., but the question is more; do normal people have links in their brains as well, but they are the 'normal' or 'common' links that are easily noticed, disrupted, etc.)?

A Gridlink is specifically a device (usually an implant) that links into the brain (if it's not an implant it uses pads that read nerves on the arm or leg, but that's a lot slower; equivalent to having little RAM) and connects to the Grid, generating an augmented reality interface. Interface (capitalized) is a Process (granted automatically to Demigods because of circumstances regarding their creation) that creates an AR interface without a Gridlink and has several advantages.

2. So, all characters in this roleplay will have said mental condition(s)?

They'll have some mental conditions (which will deteriorate temporarily as they use Processes a lot), but Demigods don't have it very bad (manageäble enough that with proper medication it won't be very noticeäble unless they're using a lot of Processes in a short period of time). Angels have it far worse because their implants are forced to alter the brain faster.

3. Credits. More of a suggestion than a question. Perhaps put up some basic prices for common goods so that players can get a grip on how much the credits are worth. How much does a loaf of bread cost, milk? A common vehicle, a house, school.

I mentioned that a single credit is about equivalent to a U.S. cent (I think I did), and for simplicity we can assume that prices are about the level they are in modern U.S.
Gridlinks cost about 40,000 Credits (400 USD), depending on model. If there's anything else important with no real life comparison that you need a specific price for, go ahead and ask!

4. On that subject, a random question! Education. What's it like? Is it free? Would our characters have had any?

That's a good point; the Omnipotent has made it a point to improve education, so school systems are greatly improved, entirely state (AI?) sponsored and funded, and free to the general populace. I'll add a section on this to Misc in a bit!

5. All of the network, they see out their own eyes like a virtual reality overlaid onto their real world? Or do they see an entirely different world? Is it more like: You can see the physical world, put there's the haze that tells you you're viewing this network, and you can see applications around you? Or is it more: You activate it and everything looks different? You cannot see your physical work and enter a new reality?

The closest way I can describe Augmented Reality is the HUD in first person games. It's like having stuff like that in your field of vision. The best comparison I can think of is Deus Ex: HR's HUD, which is an actual Augmented Reality interface in game (Jensen is actually seeing what the player is seeing). You see the interface as opaque colored windows in your field of vision.

Sorry for soooo many questions, but with roleplays like this, imagination can get me doing spins. I don't want to derail from the reality of the roleplay into a totally different one.

No problem! I appreciate it when people ask questions about stuff they're unsure about, rather than assuming. Saves time and trouble in the long run.

 

[Rainjay]

A Gridlink is specifically a device (usually an implant) that links into the brain (if it's not an implant it uses pads that read nerves on the arm or leg, but that's a lot slower; equivalent to having little RAM) and connects to the Grid, generating an augmented reality interface. Interface (capitalized) is a Process (granted automatically to Demigods because of circumstances regarding their creation) that creates an AR interface without a Gridlink and has several advantages.

Alright. That cleared up pretty much any questions about the Grid and all. Thank you!

The closest way I can describe Augmented Reality is the HUD in first person games. It's like having stuff like that in your field of vision. The best comparison I can think of is Deus Ex: HR's HUD, which is an actual Augmented Reality interface in game (Jensen is actually seeing what the player is seeing). You see the interface as opaque colored windows in your field of vision.

As was this one. So, similar to a game's interface.


One last question I thought up a minute ago:

Location of the roleplay? You probably said it somewhere and I just missed it. I have issues sometimes catching every word when there's so much text; working on fixing that <.< And, are we using pre-existing location names, made up new ones, or a combination? I'd imagine things like "New London" and "the old Capitol" would be things used, but I'm not sure.

 

[lostfaith]

The text message carries an encrypted number. You decrypt it, and it is revealed to be longitude and latitude. The location it points to is the Saint Louis Arch. That is where your journey begins.

Saint Louis, and yeah it was right here. We'll be traveling a lot, though.

 

[Rainjay]

True Name: Adrianna Blackwell
New name: Cerys Anderson
Age: 26
Gender: Female


Appearance:

Cerys has shoulder length, golden blonde hair that is darker in color at the roots. It has a tendency to curl and wave at the front, although it's a totally random happenstance. Her eyes are a common brown. Quite often she has make-up on, be it a light covering or a thicker, darker look, usually built for the 'event'. She has tattoos over half of her scalp running down to her arm on the left side, and previously had the left side partially shaved so the tattoos could be seen, but has since grown her hair out on both sides of her head.

She stands at about 5'5" and has a healthy weight, although still is pretty small. Her complexion is usually clear and her skin is of a pale color. She stands tall and straight, and looks everybody in the eye, no matter their height. She is also very strong for her weight and size; a good chunk of her weight is all muscle. People joke that half her weight is muscle and the other half is her brain.

She dresses in dark colors and grays, anything to stay out of the way, although some part of her must like attention, too, otherwise she wouldn't bother with flashy make-up and nice looking clothing despite the dark colors. She often dresses casually and comfortably, but sometimes shows up randomly to things dressed weirdly formal.

Personality: This section is for her typical attitude and character.

Common-day Cerys has a bit of a mean attitude. She's a take-it-or-leave-it, I-see-it-as-it-is, survival-of-the-fittest woman. She doesn't take no for an answer. She's only loyal to herself. Friendship is off the limits, a partnership is blasphemy, and love? Love is downright sin in her eyes. She wouldn't be caught dead in a relationship. She has little to no trust for anybody, and especially in a world dominated by an all knowing AI where information is readily available and privacy is hard to come by, she values her solitude and her secrets. Even further than that; she wouldn't risk compromising her goals for emotion.

In fact, she tries to keep emotion out of everything she does. She is a sarcastic, straight-faced, and a hard nut to crack. Even under pressure, her face reads like stone- and not the chiseled, decorated kind. The flat, boring, empty kind. Cerys is extremely strong willed and is adamant through and through.

She's always been this way, even when she was a child. Solitary, quiet. She can be a great actress sometimes, and puts on the act of being somebody she isn't, of being somebody more. Perhaps it's from dreams never reached. Maybe it's something else. Either way, she melds into the act and lies smoothly, gracefully. Perhaps it's part of her charm.

Mental state: This section is for her 'alternate' character.

While it's hard to pinpoint a name to her 'condition' per say, it is quite obvious that she has problems. Pretty serious ones at that. For starters, she has unbidden paranoia. It only comes in bouts and at nearly random intervals, but when it comes, to her it's earthshattering. It's half the reason why she works with no one, has no trust or loyalty. She gets utterly terrified by the world around her, feeling as though she is watched from every corner, her every move analyzed, her thoughts stolen from her very mind.

At different times, she'll imagine things standing around corners, see things that aren't there, and hear sounds that nobody else hears. Perhaps a part of her paranoia, although she'll become so convinced that these things are real that it drives her up the wall. She'll feel out of place in her own skin and body, talk nonsense, do crazy things. And then when she comes back around, it's like it never happened.

She calls it the crazies, and says that she has it all under wraps- and sometimes it seems that she does, managing to only have episodes when she's alone or not occupied, not doing a job or anywhere in the way- but it's also sometimes doubtful. Her 'crazies' could get her in between a rock and a hard place someday with no easy out.

Augmentations: One of her eyes has been repaired with what is considered an augment, as after her eye was damaged it was later repaired to 20/20 and looks just the same as the other eye, almost indistinguishable apart from the slight chrome lining around her outer pupil. The muscles in her upper arms and calves have augments woven into them to provide extra strength and resistance to tearing and damage. Several of her ribs have been redone/replaced, and part of her skull (some of the tattoo's hide the scars), although all of that is just repair and not really an augment, as with her eye. Her lower left arm is augmented completely, practically redone, with both a off-Grid storage device and a long metal blade. She says that it pains her to use the knife, and thus doesn't use it very often.


Implant: Angel
Processes:
- [Interface]
- [Command] >>> [Rig]
- [Search]

Weaponry:
- 6 and 3/4 inch long blade in Augmented forearm (left)
- s5 dropShot gun (not quite an average firearm, not quite unheard of either. Weapon like most modern guns connects to user interface but does not connect to an online Gridlink and can be activated with an Interface process. Must be calibrated to user interface but still can be used by others.)
- Occasionally keeps other knives or switchblades hidden on person but tends to keep those at home; blades are pretty unremarkable in nature. She never carries more than one at a time, usually slipped into a boot.

Biography:
Cerys, or should I say Adrianna, was born to the middle-class Blackwell family as the second of a to-be three child family. Her family was well off, her family working as engineers and scientists for new technology at a small Phoniness electronics staple. She studied hard as a child and dreamed big. Eventually she got a part time job working the office where her parents worked, and when she finished school she continued working there in engineering herself, although she never took as much of an interest in creation as she did in the use of the tools being made. She later worked in playing around with the applications of these tools and the full extent of their uses, helping to further research Gridlinks, the interfaces, and more.

This job put her in a position where she had contact to the Project Angel implants. Her curiosity got the better of her and she went straight for it, although her inability to leave things alone, particularly with her new toy and tool, has left her slowly slipping into madness, despite her supposed control over the situation. Around this time she got involved with a man who she later discovered to be a part of the Russian Rebels. She fell in love with him, he didn't fall in love with her, and he attempted to use her to pry into Phoenix's personal corporate business. She got caught, not he, although thanks to her new Angel implant she was out before she was caught. If anything she could only now be charged for petty theft, probably less considering she didn't even take anything and practically only snuck into an office. Either way, this initiated her collapse into paranoia, and she fled believing Phoenix wanted her life, even though they probably could care less about the absolute nothing that she actually did.

She went under a new name, Cerys, left her hometown and bleached her hair blonde (hence dark tips). She found a dingy old apartment that she could rent, and spread out the pocket change she had across the bed before stashing it and retrieving the rest of her account. She transferred everything she could to her new name, with the help of forgers and hackers she became newly acquainted with, and settled into her new life. Why she felt she had to turn to a life of general crime, nobody will ever know. Perhaps it was the paranoia, and living with others just as crazy as she was made her feel better. She used her implant to hack Sites and other technology to help her 'teammates'; in exchange, she got cash, and she got relative safety.

Other Notes: She has a tortoise shell cat that she lets wander in and out of her house. She kind of feeds it scraps, and calls it hers, but it's just a random stray.




I've organized the processes so that they follow in a chain for personal organization-y reasons.​

 

[PlayingMonster]

Edited Lex's character as requested. :)

 

[lostfaith]

Edited Lex's character as requested. :)

Added to the first post~

You accidentally named Follow "Obscurity" and Crash "Mold", so I corrected those names.

@Rainjay Looking good so far!

 

[ze_kraken]

Cyberpunk... *Drool* I'll get this edited into a CS once I read through it all, but definitely count me in!

 

[Rainjay]

I'M ALMOST DONE

ALMOST THEREEEE

Feeling like I ran up a 5 story building with this CS

Done! :D

 

[lostfaith]

Done! :D

Looks great! There's only one problem I have with it.

To connect to an interface without connecting to a Gridlink, a gun would have to generate the AR itself, which would obviously pose problems. The Interface Process functions like a Gridlink in these scenarios, so firearms can still be linked to it. Also note that you can run a Gridlink in offline mode to just use the interface without using the Grid, if that's what you were going for. Besides that, the targeting system is standard issue in wireless weapons now, and the red dot is a fairly common mod called a Digital Laser Sight. Nothing wrong with this gun having those, but just wanted to note they're both common. So you really just need to edit the bit about Gridlinks and it's good. After that, accepted~

 

[Rainjay]

Looks great! There's only one problem I have with it.

To connect to an interface without connecting to a Gridlink, a gun would have to generate the AR itself, which would obviously pose problems. The Interface Process functions like a Gridlink in these scenarios, so firearms can still be linked to it. Also note that you can run a Gridlink in offline mode to just use the interface without using the Grid, if that's what you were going for. Besides that, the targeting system is standard issue in wireless weapons now, and the red dot is a fairly common mod called a Digital Laser Sight. Nothing wrong with this gun having those, but just wanted to note they're both common. So you really just need to edit the bit about Gridlinks and it's good. After that, accepted~

I was intending for it to be more of an invisible gun in the sense that it would be untraceable through the Gridlinks because theoretically, wouldn't a connection to a Gridlink make the weapon, or at least it's programs on the user interface, disrupt-able? My way of explaining that I suppose is horribly off, though. I think originally I was intending that it would use the Interface process to link and not a Gridlink, although it would probably be a specialized gun if it did that considering not everybody has the implants- Not quite what was intended.

 

[lostfaith]

I was intending for it to be more of an invisible gun in the sense that it would be untraceable through the Gridlinks because theoretically, wouldn't a connection to a Gridlink make the weapon, or at least it's programs on the user interface, disrupt-able? My way of explaining that I suppose is horribly off, though. I think originally I was intending that it would use the Interface process to link and not a Gridlink, although it would probably be a specialized gun if it did that considering not everybody has the implants- Not quite what was intended.

There are anywhere from 2,400 to 10,400 Cyberkinetics in total, not counting the people who attempted to copy Phoenix's design and only succeeded in messing themselves up (so not really Cyberkinetics) so that's way too small of a market for any company, even Phoenix, to create a weapon designed specifically for them.

However, there is such a thing as an "invisible" gun; while wireless weapons that connect to a Gridlink can be detected and messed with, there are firearms that come with a certain Augment that has an implant that connects to a Gridlink (or Interface), and a port (usually on the arm) that a wire from the weapon plugs into. This doesn't exactly make it invisible, but it does unify its defense with the Gridlink's, so the gun itself isn't a wireless entity (a Site). That's the closest thing to what you're going for, I think.

 

[Rainjay]

There are anywhere from 2,400 to 10,400 Cyberkinetics in total, not counting the people who attempted to copy Phoenix's design and only succeeded in messing themselves up (so not really Cyberkinetics) so that's way too small of a market for any company, even Phoenix, to create a weapon designed specifically for them.

That's my point. I don't think they'd even want these guys having special weapons anyway.

However, there is such a thing as an "invisible" gun; while wireless weapons that connect to a Gridlink can be detected and messed with, there are firearms that come with a certain Augment that has an implant that connects to a Gridlink (or Interface), and a port (usually on the arm) that a wire from the weapon plugs into. This doesn't exactly make it invisible, but it does unify its defense with the Gridlink's, so the gun itself isn't a wireless entity (a Site). That's the closest thing to what you're going for, I think.

Okay. I'll work on editing it up later. Bit busy.

 

[ze_kraken]

Name: Bao-Kuei Wescott
Age: 36
Gender: Female
Appearance:

Spoiler

Wescott stands at 5'9" with appearance per the picture (if with more obvious signs of age). Her build is made, for the majority, from lean muscle and straight lines. An inked Chinese dragon lies with its head beneath her neck and its body coiling around her left arm, tail ending at her palm. Normally, she dresses in faded graphic t-shirts and trousers, feet clad in black combat boots at every moment she is outside her hab-block.

Personality: Wescott keeps a calm, professional air to her wherever she goes. That is not to say she is distant or even cold; a deal is never sold on dispassionate conversations and meetings. The only time this professional nature changes face is when she visits her local bar, the Sunken Ark. Truly more of a club, it serves as hideout, drink stop, and home-away-from-home all in one. There, she is fairly sociable and cheery to a select few and at least human to everyone else.

Augmentations:
Sub-dermal Armor - Ugly to look at, but then she'll never be taking off her shirt for looks. A charcoal gray layer sits beneath the skin of her torso that serves as a biologically integrated weave of fiber that serves as a basic means of protection against small arms. On its own, it's rather useless, but combined with other means of protection, it becomes a nice buffer.

Color Gland Control - Simple cosmetic tweak that allows her eye color to change in ten minutes.

Adrenaline Control Unit - Hooked into her interface, this augmentation allows for production and dispersion of high-potency adrenaline for five minute bursts. Requires eight hours and rest to recharge fully, dangerous if used prematurely.

Implant: Demigod

Processes:
- [Interface]
- [Firewall] -> [Antivirus]

Weaponry:
Luigi Franchi Gavil M386 - her pride and joy, this lever-action rifle fires 6.5mm cartridges accurately at medium ranges and can be loaded with spread rounds for close quarters.

Spoiler

A retractable blade 4" long clipped to her belt.

Biography: Wescott was born in what is commonly referred to as 'Old Seattle' - the original city limits, that is. Her family had immigrated from the Chinese mainland and settled for more opportune work in a larger urban center, namely her father's position as an eager worker ready to climb the corporate ladder. Not that he ever did, but a corporate job was mildly secure without aspiration and kept decent income coming in. It was not until her early 20's that Wescott began her work as private security and hired gun after her branch at her father's office was dropped to cut expenses. Her reputation was - and is - barely a dot compared to the higher-ups at Othrys, but she at least has the respect of the neighbors.

As of the present, Wescott is working job-to-job in an attempt to land a position at Othrys or some other big-name company as part of their own security team. She lives in a worn and disheveled hab-block with nothing but a PAD, a futon, and a fridge. Her income is enough to live elsewhere, but she has put all of it into cybernetics and weaponry, leaving her in medical bills and upkeep payments. Of course, getting shot for a living doesn't particularly help that, but then, what else is a borg'd out gun runner to do?

Other Notes: Currently employed for a medical company in order to pay off that debt for recent injuries on the job; 2,000,000 credits in debt; average monthly income of 300,000 credits a month.

 

[lostfaith]

Looks good, but one thing--

Other Notes: Currently employed for a medical company in order to pay off that debt for recent injuries on the job; 20,000 neuyen in debt; average monthly income of 3,000 neuyen a month.

I see I'm not the only Shadowrun player around here. Currency is Credits, but looks great otherwise! Just change that to Credits and change the numbers accordingly and accepted.

@Rainjay Alright, accepted! Little late, but oh well.

 

[Rainjay]

Think if I leave Shadowrun on sale for 3 bucks in my Steam cart it'll still be on sale when the sale dies in 7 minutes?