Upstart Startups - Signup Thread

[RJS]

Upstart Startups
MIND YOUR BUSINESS!​

Overview World Characters Glossary

• A BRIEF HISTORY

  ---

  The year is 2305. Having failed to effectively tackle climate change, the Earth is now a much less hospitable place to live, with much of it covered in urban sprawl. The air is filled with smog and tastes bitter, and the increasing acidity of the rain has eroded away many features that people of the past took for granted.
  
  As in the past, science offered the solutions - this time, with no other feasible alternative, governments leapt at the technology available. Air scrubbers for urban areas, advanced hydroponics to provide the food required, atmospheric aerosols to neutralise acidic gases in the atmosphere. Though the planet would remain unpleasant, it would at least be habitable.
  
  However, the major corporations refused to sell to governments, selling instead to individuals. Public trust in the ability of governments around the world to protect their people plummeted while the profit margins of the major corporations rose, and it wasn't long before these megacorps were buying huge swathes of land and patrolling them with their own security forces. The governments of the world, where they still exist, have been thoroughly divested of any meaningful power, lacking the funding, forces and influence to be able to push through their agenda. Humanity is now governed by corporate law, and the megacorps are free of legal constraints on monopolies.
  
  This freedom of operation has raised the pace of research and development, and technological development has accelerated to the point where neural ports, bionic augmentations and subcutaneous circuitry are common place. Along with these have come new possibilities, as well as new social issues - digital narcotics are rampant, and more insidious is the number of people who hook themselves up to VR experiences of alternate lives and just...stay there.
  
  Though the relaxation of monopoly rules accelerated technological development, it also gave the megacorps freedom to raise their prices, and so raise their bottom line. The raising of prices made many commodities that were essential to a reasonable life on this new earth unaffordable for many of those on lesser incomes, and so a whole network of small companies sprang up, seeking to undercut prices and sell to a market that currently cannot afford to buy. These startups are fiercely resisted by the megacorps, using both corporation law and private security forces in order to put these upstarts out of business. Precious few survive, but whenever one falls, another takes its place shortly after. Needless to say, the journey to success is littered with pitfalls, swinging axes and fierce opponents. But where there's a market, there's an opportunity!
  
  
• THE WORLD TODAY

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  As mentioned before, governments have collapsed and corporations now serve something akin to what the old governments did, with some notable differences. Firstly, no taxes. People who live on company-owned land are those who tend to work for that company, so the services such as infrastructure, security etc. are funded by the profits generated. This includes an education set to a curriculum unanimously agreed by all corporations and largely comprehensive. The rule of law in areas under company control is usually fairly heavy, as if you cannot guarantee the safety of your workers they will likely move to a competitor. However, CorpSec cannot cross onto another company's property without that company's permission, as per agreements made long ago, and so if a criminal escapes across company borders it can be an incredibly complex negotiation - especially if said criminal has information that would be useful to their new company.
  
  At the edges of company controlled zones, the patrols are less frequent, and the housing is of lower quality. However, ambient crime is still lower than in the so-called 'grey zones', leading no small number of 'Upstarts' to choose to locate themselves here, usually in the territory of a company that they pose no threat to. This can often be useful, but precarious, as deals between megacorps could see them all arrested and shut down where the day before they were overlooked... or even supported by their 'host'.
  
  Some areas are too remote or too low in population to be worth the cost of acquisition. These 'grey zones' are completely lawless, and petty crime, drugs and all other manners of behaviour occur here, due to the lack of CorpSec patrols. These are also where many Runner teams make their home, travelling around on their clandestine business. Sometimes these teams band together to provide some measure of law and stability for their host zones, though often they consider the expense too high. If not the runners, then any stability, if it can be called that, usually stems from the presence of organised criminal groups - elements of the triads and mafia are still prevalent, amongst others.
• SO WHERE DO I FIT IN THIS WORLD?

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  Our characters will be the staff of one of these 'Upstarts', trying to thrash out a market niche for our goods whilst avoiding the attempts to shut us down made by fellow Upstarts and the Megacorps alike. I'm envisaging this as a Firefly-esque situation where everyone, either through past experience or particular skill can bring some unique things to our startup, but at the same time their being there might cause issues.
• GLOSSARY OF USEFUL TERMS

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  CorpSec:
  Common abbreviation of "Corporate Security". Used to describe the law enforcement, security guards, and any other personnel whose role is to enforce company rules and policy.
  
  Runner:
  The Runners are individuals or groups that take work from many different sources, be it crime bosses, individual clients or even one of the megacorps. The jobs they run range from the legal to the abhorrent, depending solely on the morality of the team. Assassination, smuggling, corporate espionage/sabotage, but also rescue missions and retrieval of stolen goods are just a few examples.
  
  Upstart:
  A common term used to describe one of the many small companies that has sprung up to profit from undercutting the high prices that the megacorps can charge.

The Megacorps Atlesia Novo Synergistics Jianhui Engineering Vindas Corp

• The Megacorps

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  These tabs describe the existing megacorps in the world today. They may stand in your way as you build your startup corporation, so be wary and know your competition!
• Atlesia

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  Atlesia's sphere of influence covers architecture, mining and infrastructure. Atlesia maintains a large ground force at all of its sites, to dissuade people from illegally acquiring resources. Any 'alternative sites' are usually swiftly put out of operation by said security forces. In doing so, they effectively stifle any competition, as no startup will ever have the finances to defend their site on their own. However, they are somewhat indiscriminate in who they sell to, meaning that other startups can acquire materials. This does occasionally lead to some bandits launching raids with surprisingly advanced equipment, though every other corporation will deny any knowledge of this.
• Novo Synergistics

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  Novo is the major food producer on the planet, being responsible for countless giant aggregated hydroponic farms as well as the cheap, nutritious and foul-tasting nutrient slurry known only as 'slop' to those who can't afford anything better. Novo is noted for its apparently non-confrontational approach to competitors, though it is worth noticing that any that do start up seem to meet with accidents or mass crime sprees.
• Jianhui Engineering

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  Jianhui manufacture and distribute advanced computer equipment including servers, software and implantable datajacks. Whilst all the corporations will have their own private in house computer networks to run R+D and more clandestine transactions and operations, all the public operations are run on Jianhui kit, giving them immense power over the information networks available. Jianhui tend to deal with their opponents 'in house' as it were, launching crippling cyberattacks to shut down any company that tries to infringe on their turf. However their real world defences are less imposing than those of the other megacorps.
• Vindas Corp

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  You want to breathe? You go to Vindas Corp, who sell a wide array of personal and domestic air filters, pollution scrubbers and other devices that prevent you choking on the noxious fumes that fill the air, or the particulate matter that fills the air from clogging up your lungs over the years. Vindas is notoriously defensive of the patents they hold and tend to pursue any perceived infringement vigorously in the courts. Their professional security forces are highly defensive, however, and tend not to be proactive, save where they have a 'legal' warrant from a judge.

Character Catalog Division: Security Division: Development Division: Marketing

• Approved Characters

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  GM Characters:
  • @RJS: Elton Nash
  • @The_J: Cato McTavish
  • @Eru: Jackson Spicer
• Security

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  • Head: Elton Nash @RJS
  Rei Ayamane @RedArmyShogun
• Development

  ---

  • Head: Cato McTavish @The_J
• Marketing

  ---

  • Head: Jackson Spicer @Eru

yellow To sign up for "Upstart Startups", please fill out the entirety of the "Employee Application Form" below and post it into this thread (your formatting may differ, but please keep in mind mobile users and an overall simplistic feel, for readability purposes). The GM ("game master") or a co-GM will contact you to approve or discuss your form.

[warning=#ff5050]The GM for this roleplay is @RJS.
His co-GMs are @The_J and @Eru.
Please heed all communications by these members![/warning]
[question=cyan]If you have any questions about the requirements for this roleplay, please feel free to ask away! A GM will attend to your question when they are available.[/question]

EMPLOYEE APPLICATION FORM

---

BIOLOGICAL

• Surname:
• First Name(s):
• Age:
• Ethnicity:
• Gender:

PROFESSIONAL

• Position Applied For:
(The available options here, or divisions, are "Marketing", "Security", and "Development", each of which will be overseen by a GM or co-GM character.)

• Self-Photo
(Images should be in a professional style, showing head and shoulders.)

BIOGRAPHICAL

• Personality: (at least one paragraph)

• Backstory: (at least two paragraphs)

• List 3 of your strengths below:
(1)
(2)
(3)

• List 3 of your weaknesses below:
(1)
(2)
(3)

Interested? Join our Discord!

Coded by @Eru

 

[RJS]

EMPLOYEE APPLICATION FORM

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BIOLOGICAL

• Surname: Nash

• First Name(s):Elton

• Age: 43

• Ethnicity: White

• Gender: Male

PROFESSIONAL

• Position Applied For:

Head of Security


• Self-Photo

BIOGRAPHICAL

• Personality: (at least one paragraph)

Elton has been called many things over the course of his life, but 'hard-assed son of a bitch' is the one he's most proud of. He holds his professional work to a very high standard, and is uncompromising in challenging those under him to meet that standard. When dealing with his subordinates, Elton has something of the drill sergeant about him. More than a few of his former CorpSec recruits found themselves with harsh extra tasks because, to quote, they "dun fucked it up." At times prickly, at most times blunt and gruff, it's extremely difficult to earn his respect, but earning it means something. Elton can be quite old-fashioned - the only cybernetics he has are for medical reasons, and he shows deep distaste for people he considers to be 'slackers'. As someone who pulled himself from a Grey Zone slum up to Head of Security at a major Jianghui compound, he has little time for people who make excuses about their situation.



• Backstory: (at least two paragraphs)

Elton was born and raised in Grey Zone 0502, a slum built up around the old city of Beaumont in Texas. It was a tough childhood, mostly spent scavenging around the outskirts of the Jianghui complex in what was Houston nearby while trying to avoid getting in the way of the organised Triad gangs who had settled in the Grey Zone about the same time as Jianghui moved in. The Triads made a lot of money selling narcotics to nearby workers, and cracked down harshly on any local residents who opposed their presence, burning property and delivering public beatings in the street. Elton grew up around this backdrop and became very accomplished at moving around while avoiding the attention of Triad thugs. However, seeing no future within the grey zones, he launched an ambitious bid to land a job at the nearby Jianghui compound.


And so, at the age of 21, Elton was intercepted by Jianghui security on his way out of their secured server room, having hired a small runner team to help him get in. When they searched the room, all they found was an application letter placed on one of the desks. When this was reported to the Head of Security, he burst out laughing hysterically, before offering the young Elton a job, on probationary circumstances. Elton spent 5 years working at that site, working his way up to head of security, before being transferred to a major compound situated in Long Island, New York. He spent another 15 years operating as head of security, and it was during this time that he lost his right arm when dealing with an unusually heavily armed runner team that had brought a grenade launcher. Fitted with a top of the line cybernetic prosthetic, his efficiency increased even further. Runner teams who ran into him and gave up walked away intact and unharmed. Those who tried to push through disappeared. His influence was not only through personal presence either - his compound was awarded 'Most Effective Security Force' for the 5 years preceding his 'retirement', earning it a visit from Jianghui Shan, the CEO.


However, merely two years ago there was an incident where a Runner team made it into the compound and downloaded secure data. A failure in the alarm system meant the on duty security were not alerted as to the intrusion, though they were held accountable for the incident. Nash, incensed by the treatment of his staff, claimed full responsibility for the security breach, saving their jobs whilst forfeiting his own. He then disappeared before Jianghui could reclaim its 'company property' - his right arm, still highly advanced technology.


Oddly enough, the well-drilled Jianghui CorpSec at Nash's old facility took an unusually long time to reach his corporate residence to apprehend him, allowing Nash to slip away with all that he owned. His next act was to, along with his partners, set up an Upstart dealing in cybernetics.


• List 3 of your strengths below:

(1)Nash has a long history of exposure to criminals, runners, and corpsec forces, and can usually anticipate what's coming and how. He's seen most everything, and stopped pretty much all of it.

(2)Nash also still has plenty of owed favours in the corpsec world. Though he is officially wanted by Jianghui, it is highly unlikely any of his old team will go to much effort to catch him. Besides, officially only counts in the public eye, and behind the scenes Nash still catches a lot of the gossip, giving him a direct line to what's going on with the various corps.

(3)Feared. Nash made his name in the CorpSec world not just for his success, but for the manner in which it was obtained. Not only did anyone who failed to obey his polite request to leave the premises disappear, to this date nobody on the outside of Jianghui knows how it happened. His reputation, plus the mystery surrounding his actual skills, have lead to him being feared, and also respected to a certain degree, amongst runner and criminal groups.


• List 3 of your weaknesses below:

(1)Nash is already well above average age for an active member of CorpSec. As a result, he cannot be as hands on as he is used to, forcing him to delegate much of the legwork.

(2)As someone who is officially wanted for theft of corporate property, Nash is likely to attract more attention than maybe would be wanted. Jianghui management would like to see him brought in, and various runner teams as well as other corporations can see the value in being the ones to catch him. Some may be less discriminate about collateral damage than others.

(3)Nash is somewhat of a Luddite. Having seen technological measures fail before, he is unlikely to consider them, and may be prejudiced against an improved security measure simply because it is technological and can't be trusted.


Theme song:

 

[Eru]

EMPLOYEE APPLICATION FORM: Jackson Spicer

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BIOLOGICAL

• Surname: Spicer
• First Name(s): Jackson
• Age: 29
• Ethnicity: Caucasian
• Gender: Male

PROFESSIONAL

• Position Applied For: Head of Marketing
• Self-Photo

BIOGRAPHICAL

• Personality:
Bold and brash, but not quite in the trash. Jackson is keen on telling anyone who will listen about the latest advances that the development team is coming up with, and before you know it, you might have bought yourself a third eye. He's just that charismatic, and for good reason, as he'd likely never have survived this long without it.
Jackson keeps his marketing minions feeling reassured and energetic, to get 'em out there and sell while the getting is good.

• Backstory:
Jackson grew up in a hidden family, one who strove to keep themselves surviving and under the radar of their hunters. The Spicer family had, in years past, been one of the northeast's greater producers of potato plants. At least, until they tangled with the wrong side of the law. Forced to flee their farms before the crack of dawn one fateful morning, they escaped in horror as their farms were razed at their backs. Even as he grew up two generations down the line, Jackson's family kept their location hidden as possible, for the sons of the gangs were well-known to never put down a grudge. Nobody ever was able to discover the cause of the initial argument, all those years ago. The current Spicer family heads chalked it up to a bar fight over a nice pair of legs, and the idiocy that comes with the spirits.
For a time, all seemed well, and the Spicers were able to maintain a low but steady quality of life by selling components under the table, along with their declared product, frozen meatballs and other refrigerated, meat-like byproducts. However, this semblance of peace could only last so long. One day, the raid of infamy blasted down their doors, and scattered the family to the winds. Jackson ran, not stopping until he felt he'd put enough distance between himself and those who scorned his family's name. He took what he knew and applied himself to another sort of business, one that has led him in wandering ways to his current employment at an Upstart of spurious renown. If asked how he managed it, he'd just shrug and begin to sell you on the newest cybernetic components.

• List 3 of your strengths below:
Confidence. Confidence in his abilities and in his team, though this doesn't necessarily translate to blind trust, of course.
Integrity. What with his history, Jackson has sworn to himself not to oversell their products, to prevent public backlash if something runs foul.
Tinkerer. Jackson will graft parts together to see what works and what doesn't, sometimes modifying his personal equipment to a higher degree of usefulness than it was off the factory lines.

• List 3 of your weaknesses below:
Recklessly impulsive. Requires the other members of the board to keep him in check from what would otherwise be poor investments and plans.
Paranoid. Sets up countless measures to protect himself from others, even those he should be able to trust.
Allergic to potatoes. He's ate so many of them in his younger days at the family business that he developed an allergy, and can no longer eat foods made with potato products. Hydroponics provides other means of sustenance, at least.
Mixed public approval. As long as Jackson stays away from those who tangled with his family in that past life, he's sure to be relatively safe.

Anthem

 

[The_J]

EMPLOYEE APPLICATION FORM

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BIOLOGICAL

• Surname: Mactavish

• First Name(s): Cato

• Age: 25

• Ethnicity: White

• Gender: Male

PROFESSIONAL

• Position Applied For:

Head of Development


• Self-Photo

BIOGRAPHICAL

• Personality:

The first thing people notice about Cato is how scruffy he is. He doesn't much care for neatness, and it shows. His clothing tends to be more scuffed and dirty than most, and his office (workshop, really) is a challenge to find anything in - though he'll swear he knows where everything is. He has a strong irreverent streak behind this, often trying to do things his way or nothing at all.
He will admit when he's wrong, however. He knows he's young and less experienced, and if it's not his field he won't mind taking orders, to an extent.
When it comes to others, he doesn't bother with simple pleasantries much such as please or thank you. This makes him come off as rude, but he's actually quite kind to others, especially to subordinates. Sometimes he might try to needle anyone who gets on his nerves, especially if it's because they're uptight.


• Backstory: (at least two paragraphs)

Cato was born into a large family in a Jianhui-controlled zone. His parents were constantly tired from providing for their kids, so his siblings did most of the raising of their younger brothers and sisters, himself included.
When he started to show an interest in engineering at a young age, his school put him on a fast-track scholarship program, even letting him intern at a few Jianhui firms. He absolutely hated his time there and decided that working as part of a corporation was not for him.
When he was old enough, he decided to check out the grey zones for good work. There, he found his current place of work, though he started at a lower position in the product development department. His boss saw potential in him, however, and groomed him for promotion. When he left the company, he highly recommended that Cato be the one to take his place, and take his place Cato did. This was a recent happening, so Cato is still finding his feet in his new position at the moment.


• List 3 of your strengths below:

(1) Cato is a gifted mind when it comes to almost everything in engineering. A lot of the maths and physical concepts come easily to him, and he learns fast.

(2) If Cato says something will be done, it will be done, whether he needs to pull three all-nighters in a row or not. He's dedicated to what he does and fiercely loyal to any connections he makes.

(3) For those under him, Cato has a lot of empathy. He's ok with giving second chances, and works hard in helping them to improve.


• List 3 of your weaknesses below:

(1) Not having much in the way of basic manners, and being unapologetic about his untidy way of life, Cato can ruffle some feathers. It's usually unintentional.

(2) Cato is unusually young for his position. He's still learning about the world and the people in it, so he's more liable to mistakes socially and business-wise than others in his position might be.

(3) keeping himself busy with work or personal tinkerings, Cato tends to struggle with keeping track of his health, relationships with others, calendar dates, and other time-sensitive things outside of his line of work.

[/QUOTE]

 

[Silent_Shame]

EMPLOYEE APPLICATION FORM: Eden, G.

---

BIOLOGICAL

• Surname: Eden {Clements}
• First Name: Genevieve {Annette}
• Age: 31
• Ethnicity: Caucasian
• Gender: Female

PROFESSIONAL

• Position Applied For: Security Officer

• Self-Photo

BIOGRAPHICAL

• Personality
A childhood spent restrained and limited has resulted in the formation of a woman who's always in the need of something new and exciting to do; a person who wants to experience all the things that her parents would've reviled. This urge of hers to do as much as possible has made her quite the thrill-seeker and opportunist, unwilling to allow rules or morals to get in her way. Having done just about every activity one can think of, legal and illegal, Genevieve has proven herself to be someone who can be trusted to do something without much need for guidance, often having a faint idea when it comes to just about any topic or job. That and getting help for something is far less fun than doing it yourself and seeing what your work results in. Whilst this ability to jump into anything makes it easy for her to accept idea's and activities, it also makes her lacking in foresight even though she should know better by now. She fails to register the ramifications of her actions on others and is somewhat fickle when it comes to friendship, with people often needing to prove themselves interesting or light of heart to get on with her, with those who fail to meet such expectations being left in the dust or forgotten about like a last century trend.

Outside of her thrill-seeking, amorality and opportunistic desires, Genevieve is a person who is hard to get along with if one prefers professionalism and a level of seriousness at all times. She likes saying what comes to mind, offensive or not to the listener and is particularly fond doing whats fun rather than doing whats right or needed. However, those with greater tolerance to a personality such as hers could come to appreciate her calm demeanour and lack of desire to be swaddled. In addition to this, she makes a good friend to those afraid of judgement from their peers, as she certainly doesn't mind much when it comes to anything and is capable of giving a fairly balanced view on any issues they may be facing.

Despite this fairly relaxed and typically nonjudgmental demeanour of hers, Genevieve is a nightmare to deal with when pushed to her limit or when one of the few boundaries she has is crossed. Although she may not hold grudges, her fury and capability to be stubborn in the moment is more than enough to make up for this. This attitude of hers when tested is one that has cost her in the past and is bound to cost her again in the future unless someone can rein her in.

• Backstory
Originally known as Annette Clements, she was the only child of a pair of Vindas Corporation higher up's who had the grandest of expectations of their little girl, with plans for her to hopefully reach a position similar to theirs or even greater. These plans, however, slowly unravelled over the years as she made her dissatisfaction of having her entire life already planned out very well known. She was fond of purposely not working in school, making life as difficult for the teachers as possible all the while outright refusing to do homework or any noteworthy extra-curricular activities which her parents pushed her to do in hopes of making her a more attractive employee in the future. Instead of striking friendships with the children of other influential figures, Annette became friends with the few criminal hooligans who inhabited the outer-edges of the company controlled zone and rather than making good impressions with the notable people she met, Annette went out of her way to embarrass both herself and her parents who's respectability amongst their colleagues slowly dwindled as a result of their inability to control their troublesome daughter. Life was difficulty and beyond humiliating for her parents for years before they firmly put their foot down after she participated in some illegal and questionable activities with the friends she had at the outer edges of the zone, activities which drew the eyes of many. Bribery and the use of favours ensured that the Clements didn't have a daughter behind bars, but the restrictions imposed on her were near equal to that placed upon the imprisoned. A hefty amount of blackmail as well ensured that Annette didn't disobey; not as much as she originally did anyways.

Now practically rendered a prisoner forced to obey the wishes of her parents, Annette begrudgingly accepted the work position offered to her by the Vindas Corporation when she came of age, being sure to not cause any ripples or waves that would draw the attention of others or the ire of her parents. However, despite her predicament, she was anything but accepting of this. Unwilling to live as a puppet made to fulfil the desires and dreams of her parents, she slowly saved up as much money as possible and took what she could from her parents when they would allow her. It was a long few years as she collected what she could and worked as hard as possible to get the most amount of money she could from her job so that the plan she had in mind could be carried out the best it could be. A kidnapping and theft. Specifically, the kidnapping of herself by a professional group of Runners known for their ability to get any job done so long as the pay was good and the retrieval of some files that could be used against Annette in the event that she tried to pull something.

The plan went off without a hitch. Had she hired any other group of Runners with lesser capabilities, they might've not gotten past Vindas Corporation's security but the group she got did. A successful retrieval of the files her parents had that could prove to be troublesome to her made Annette a very happy woman who was ready to enjoy the freedom she'd get at long last. However, she wasn't free from her shackles just yet, as one couldn't hope to stay gone for long if they were being searched for by many and looked the exact same as they did before the kidnapping. Using the last remains of her money, Annette got some high-end cosmetic surgery to change her appearance to a startling degree and managed to get someone to create a fake identity for her; Annette Clements, well known trouble maker and missing woman became Genevieve Eden, an unexceptional little nobody born, raised and living in one of the many crime ridden 'grey zones'.

Whilst her experience as a Private Secretary in Vindas Corporation would've made her an exceptional clerk for an Upstart, she didn't get a new life just so she could do the same old thing as before. Willing to try doing something new in her life, Genevieve ended up joining a minor criminal gang as nothing more than a flunky at first. Anyone else would've found it worse than slave labour, but she rather enjoyed the difference. She wasn't stuck in a cramped little office sitting in front of a computer for hours on end on her own filling out forms, doing paperwork and answering calls. This dedication and odd enjoyment of what she was doing led to her climbing the ranks, with the gang slowly taking her in under it's wing fully. It was during this time with the criminal group that Genevieve found herself doing increasingly questionable things for them, something which didn't actually bother her as much as it should've. She enjoyed the freedom of her new life and capability to do just about anything within the group. So long as she wasn't contained, she was happy doing whatever was needed.

As time went on, however, she found herself beginning to stagnate. There was only so much a small criminal gang could do in an under-populated, small area. The novelty slowly wore off and as it did, so did her enjoyment of it. When the opportunity to escape presented itself, she took it and went off into the night in search of doing something new and interesting. What she found was a group of Runners. A new experience, a new adventure and something which had less of a chance of stagnating but instead had a chance at becoming something even greater than it already was. Genevieve was the token newbie at first, the one who had no idea what they were doing, but her dedication and ability to work well in the worst of situations led to her doing well enough that they kept her on. It was a good few years as things ramped up, more things to do and more money to spend on things she could enjoy, with her always sticking with the team even when things got bad or disagreements broke out, mainly over the jobs that they would and should do. However, she found herself being the one leaving the group after she made her opinion known to a Mega-corp client of theirs, an opinion which was rude enough to convince them to hire someone else instead. The loss of such a potential profit was devastating enough for the team to drop her despite her experience, with word of mouth spreading the knowledge and making it difficult for her to get a job as a Runner for other groups. She thought about doing it on her own for a bit, but decided against the idea. Perhaps she could use this lack of a job to try finding something new to do, something fun and different.

It was this desire to try something new that lead to her joining an Upstart as a Security Officer.

• Strengths
(1) Independence - Genevieve is someone who can work well reliably on her own so long as it isn't something time-sensitive. She doesn't mind too much when it comes to being on her own or having to teach herself something whilst others spend their time doing better or important things. Alongside this, one can trust her to be fairly impartial when it comes to decisions, or at the very least, the vast majority of them so long as it isn't tied to the mega-corps.
(2) Experience - She's spent her latest few years as a criminal and eventually Runner, with her past before this being spent as the Private Secretary of a Vindas Corporation official. Safe to say, she's a very experienced woman who knows how to do a lot of things and is aware of many others. Genevieve is not prone to surprise, having seen and dealt with it all at least once.
(3) Insouciant - Genevieve is not a woman prone to excess worry or doubt in most scenario's. She can keep her cool, managing to stay fairly upbeat and calm even in the most trying of times. This allows her to think properly when it comes to making decisions in the very heat of the moment, moments where others would stumble, stutter and pause when it's most inconvenient to others or themselves.

• Weaknesses
(1) Restraint - Genevieve lacks restraint in any form, be it carnal pleasures, keeping her opinions to herself or simply putting a filter on. She's a free spirit who likes to be heard, who likes to do what she wants and say what she thinks. This makes her come across as abrasive, insensitive and lacking in foresight, often causing scenes that she could have avoided if she had simply kept her mouth shut or not done what she did.
(2) Amoral - She is a woman who is willing to try just about anything to see if it's fun or to get some cash. Whilst this makes it easy to get her to do something, this trait of her's tends to disturb the more heavily principled and can also result in her trying to push others to do things that they themselves wouldn't normally do in the name of mere enjoyment.
(3) Resentful - Genevieve has a hatred for the mega-corps and those associated with them as a result of her past. This makes her fairly incapable of doing just about anything for them, working with them in a major or long-term capacity or simply associating with those who are associates of a mega-corp. If she's forced to do any of these things, she'll most definitely dig her heels in and make life as difficult as possible for all involved.

 

[RedArmyShogun]

EMPLOYEE APPLICATION FORM

---

BIOLOGICAL

• Surname: Ayamane
• First Name: Rei
• Age: 27
• Ethnicity: Japanese
• Gender: Female

PROFESSIONAL

• Position Applied For:

Security

• Self-Photo

BIOGRAPHICAL

• Personality: While mostly calm, Rei seems to be constantly observing the situations around her with a distrustful gaze. Somewhat self conscious of her appearance, her ballistic plate mask is meant for more than just scaring people. While Japanese, her basic appearance seems to be from some form of Albinism rather than cybernetic modification of her eyes. A person that fights to survive, she rarely hesitates minus in some social interactions, her eyes supplying subtle hints to what she may be thinking or feeling at a give time. Normally loyal to within the confines of her agreement, Rei can be rather harsh and cold, but has been known to show small acts of kindness.

Patient and ever watchful, Rei doesn't much seem to care for hotheaded plans, or operations that lack as much. With a mostly pessimistic outlook on her life, it is not known what Rei is looking for. While Japanese ethnically, she is largely ignorant of her heritage in this new world. Because of her often slow and methodically cold way of doing things, coupled with unexpected confrontational manner of being, it can cause some to question if Rei is a human, or simply a monster made by man. Holding simmering grudges to act out on them when the time is right, she endures much behind the mask, though the occasional psychotic outburst hints at this.

Has a deep simmering hatred for Atlesia and can be very vague when answering questions about herself. Her hobbies seem to include physical fitness, weapons maintenance and drinking alcohol.

• Background:

Much of Rei's upbringing is a mystery to herself, though some key facts are retained in her memory. Growing up in a less affluent portion of a District whose name she can't recall, her parents were simple people moving up in the world. Daughter to a Housewife and an Engineer working for Atlesia's lucrative mining sector. By no means well off, Rei cannot remember having any complaints that weren't part of anyone else raised in such a location, until one day at least.

During a risky dig for Uranium Ore around eighteen years ago, the drill was pushed past capacity with devastating results. Rather than backing off, her Father believed the drill could punch through the remaining 60 feet of rock and iron in one go. Backing up the shaft throwing it, the incident resulted in numerous causalities. Given the uproar over the incident, the daughter was taken as collateral and the father demoted to the position of a simple miner.

At the time the Atleasia corporation operated a subsidiary in one of the numerous Grey Zones. The stated mission was to improve the human workforce via means of artificial cybernetics. Lead by a Doctor Robert H. Cordial, Rei was chosen as a test subject for the program, under the assurances of Doctor Cordial nothing "too" unethical would be carried out and it would boost productivity ten fold. Over the next few years Rei among others would be subject to test after test, surgery after surgery. Drugged as she were for these experimentations, a great many early memories became lost. Having lied to the leadership, Cordial's work was anything but unethical.

Exoskeletons being deemed too expensive and Power Armor the realm of fiction given power requirements, he decided to take a page out of natures playbook. Physical alteration, if man could do but so much as he had two hands, then he would give them more. With other experiments on other subjects and barely any oversight in the name of profits this would continue for years.
Ultimately for Doctor Cordial and Rei however, his experiments would result in the same outcome. Failure.

With an amount of deaths even Atlesia could not hide, physical and psychological problems developing in those that had survived, the Doctor knew he would soon be at the end of his rope. While he had succeeded in making use of the human neural network to "improve" upon humans, Atlesia's primary interests were not in cybernetics.

Having bit by bit learning of the Truth, the executives of Atlesia at the time knew the truth of this matter would cause a public uproar. Hiring local raiders, FAV's, flamethrowers and small arms were provided, with a hefty sum of Currency. With their orders being fairly simple the Raiders laid siege to the compound, removed from society and local patrols mysteriously absent. Releasing Rei with most of the other test subjects, the Doctor stayed in his control center, using remote interfaces to guide the girl, he was surprised at how adept she was to combat, though largely immobile. Clearly the project was aiming towards the wrong focus. The double pair of arms she was given was most useful in handling the weaponry that had just happened to be laying around in the hall. Though not combat trained, the volume of fire made the Raiders work harder than promised initially.

Though ultimately "kissed" by a flamethrower to her left side and left for dead, she had by sheet force of will survived the following hours. Being found by a traveling Caravan of traders named Sergei's Armaments. Lead by a rather large man of identical name. Piecing together what information she could, her conclusion was Atlesia had caused all of this. While unwilling to care for the teenaged girl, Sergei did supply her with a few firearms and body armor made in what was once the Soviet Union and Russia in a seemingly long forgotten past. Rather than laying low as he suggested however she attacked the local Atlesia headquarters.

While she did not get far, having minimal training, she was more effective than the local commander of the Security Corps had wagered. Ultimately deciding to Capture rather than kill, the attempt to hide the dirty little secret had failed. Though Atlesia was able to spin this to it's advantage.

Declaring the girl as an emotional mess and victim of Doctor Cordial, a rogue madman and former employee of Atlesia. Truth and lies were mixed, till the girl vanished from the front page and the citizens thoughts, a footnote.

Seeing her value as a PR tool, Rei was given medical care with the help of Vindas Corp and even offered a job. She ended up rebuffing all help and even attempts to contact her family. Taking a sum of cash and her weapons she would eventually be released. The Company consented, wagering her to be of little consequence, Doctor Cordial was the one responsible solely, a man who by all accounts was dead with his lab in a random fire and she was technically an Adult now.

During the following years Rei was unable to find a place for herself in the Secured zones, being little more than a lab subject with fragmented memories and limited dealings with Society, she took to the Grey Zones. Utilizing the Equipment given to her by Sergei, with rifle (or two) in hand, she would over the years become a top grade sniper and useful sentry.

With the nickname "spider" or "monster" by the less kind. Unable to find a place for herself however, such employment was never long lived. Always in need of new filters for her breathing and possible repairs and maintenance to her cloak hidden "gifts" Rei against her better judgment decides to try and gain employment with a new company.

• List 3 of your strengths below:
(1) Spatial awareness: Given modifications to her nervous system Rei is capable of processing events around her and has a natural ability to see depth from numerous angles at once, making her a natural observer or spotter.

(2) Willpower: Typically Rei will keep going well past a reasonable point than most others, struggling till the very end, even if the situation is hopeless. Or perhaps because of it.

(3) Sniper: A skilled sniper that is known in some circles, the young woman can also perform in the assault role, but is far more adept at sniping, coupled in with her other abilities and general mindset. She's met all sorts of people over the years, mostly from behind an iron sight or scope.

• List 3 of your weaknesses below:

(1) Respiratory Ailments: Given the various surgeries and an obvious run in with a flamethrower, she is rather immobile as a fighter, while capable of laying down a withering barrage of firepower, such as with two rifles and two handguns, she is relatively immobile, which is part of the reasoning behind her wearing so much armor, which also does not help. Her ballistic armored mask also contains air filters to help combat this, as a result she's not too fast footed and plans routes carefully, rather than charging. While her workouts leave her winded, it's often for her health to do so, rarely seen without the mask, minus in sealed environments or "clean" districts. Because of this one of her main reasons for working is to keep her air filtration systems in prime condition.

(2) Social Ignorance: Given her upbringing, or lack of one, Rei can be very uncomfortable with anything outside of work, unsure of how to deal with them, she's at her most honest when heavily drinking, which as a result she tries to only do in private. Unsure of how to deal with others it can often end up menacingly from herself, awkward, or a little sweet. A person you would not want at an official function without more than a few courses of behavioral management.

(3) Pariah: With her personality and looks, Rei is not much trusted by society at large. Terrible burns mark the left side of her face and much of the body, her complexion and red eyes also stand out. Then you have the four mechanical arms which are bio-organically integrated into her nervous system, assorted scars, and fused fingers on some of those spare arms makes her feared from the start. Though there have been others who will take a chance on her, she has not yet stayed with any group or employer for too long. Either way if not for her being known in some circles, she finds it very difficult to do more than casual visit more "civilized" locations for long.

 

[Joan]

BIOLOGICAL

• Surname: Keens
• First Name: Linda (Lin)
• Age: 26
• Ethnicity: Caucasian
• Gender: Female

PROFESSIONAL

• Position Applied For: Marketing

• Self-Photo

no-lightbox

BIOGRAPHICAL

• Personality: Lin is bright-eyed and has a perpetual sly smile on her face. She is mischievous and has a tendency to pull pranks, crack jokes, and jokingly insult others. Despite this, she knows how to keep it reined in just enough to avoid aggravating people while still bringing out their fun side, making her a skilled communicator and negotiator.
Around the people she knows well, she has little to no filter on what she says and does, trusting that they know not to take her seriously. While this means she jokes around casually with topics that others may find offensive, it also means that she drops some fairly insightful and occasionally disturbing thoughts on occasion, revealing a thoughtfulness that most people don't realize is there. However, despite her outgoing nature, she only really holds a few people close, so not many people get to see her this way. Most of them only know her by her lighthearted outer nature and the surprisingly effective way she applies it to marketing.
She maintains a fairly professional demeanor around most, although she is still lighthearted and teasing, if much more restrained. She takes note of anything and everything and uses it to her advantage, often subtly manipulating people to get them to do what she wants. Her friendly nature contributes to this, making her seem a bit more trustworthy. She tends to just use this to gather as much information as she can because she very much believes that knowledge is power, especially since it gives her more power over others. However, in her current job, she's applying it to selling products.

• Backstory: Lin grew up on the edge of a Jianhui-controlled zone. Her household was small and poor, with only her parents and no siblings. She often had to fend for herself, as her parents were often overworked and exhausted, and she quickly learned how to navigate people, using her words and her knowledge to get what she wanted.
After making it through school, she began to seek work, initially applying for a low-level position at the local Jianhui complex. She spent a couple years there, although she didn't really seem to move up the ranks much in that period. During that time, she focused on blending into the background and learning what she could. She doesn't talk about why she left very often, although when pressed, she says that she learned all she could.
After she left, she drifted for a bit before finding work at an Upstart.

• List 3 of your strengths below:
Deceptively smart. She is much smarter than she's often believed to be, and she uses it to her full advantage, be it in marketing campaigns, getting somebody to do what she wants, or helping a friend.
Perceptive. She picks up on details easily and remembers them. She's also good at seeing how the details fit together, and often realizes things before others do.
Loyal to a few. She is fiercely loyal to the people she trusts. This is currently only a few people, but it does have the chance to grow over time.

• List 3 of your weaknesses below:
Manipulative. She tends to manipulate people she doesn't trust, which makes up the vast majority of people. While this is helpful in some ways, it also means that it damages potential relationships for the future and makes her untrustworthy.
Distrustful. She has a hard time trusting others if they haven't already earned her trust.
Nosy. She tends to poke her nose into all the places she shouldn't, especially if she wants to know something. She takes obstacles as a challenge, and while this does help her get information she wants, it also means she doesn't know when to stop. It's gotten her in trouble before, and it will get her in trouble again.