Name: William Davis

Age: 18

Origin: Born on Londinium, William is known as a prodigy. He breezed through his classes in high school, graduating at 14 years old. However, the lack of challenges brought its lot of problems. Bored, William found refuge in social conventions commonly known as parties where he experienced the rush associated with various drugs. It didn't take him long to get arrested for Drug Abuse and Illegal Possession. His father managed to settle for a heavy fine and one year of community services. Obviously, he now had a criminal record.

This was a setback in his goal to become a doctor. He decided to get rid of the problem. Six months later, he cracked into the Federal database and erased all records of his criminal activities. At fifteen, he got accepted into one of the best medical school of the Core and graduated at 18, the youngest graduate of the Londinium Medical Academy.

Sadly, such a promising career was quickly compromised when he was caught for civil disorder while celebrating his graduation. Words got out that he was supposed to have a criminal records already. Charges were brought forth for Cortex Fraud and Abuse and his father quickly informed him he could face up to 10 years in federal prison.

Knowing he had no chance to face trial, he fled Londinium and got into contact with an old friend of his. A pilot on a ship name Manifest Destiny. He needed a place to stay low for a while and after an interview with the ship's captain, got assigned as the ship's doctor.

Hobbies: William is an intellectual. He has no place for physical activity in his life if one excludes dancing at parties. As such, his hobbies goes from playing video games and spreading his influence into the Cortex to perfecting his knowledge in medecine and discovering new things. Boredom is his worst enemy and could lead to a resurgence of drugs usage.

Personality: Outgoing, he loves going out of his to talk with everyone and maybe have some fun at their expenses. He strives under challenges; he might spend days and night up until he's solve a problem.

Training: Certified surgeon and self-taught hacker.

Skills: Purely intellectual, he can learn new things faster than anyone else and uses this skill to push his knowledge to the limits. He surf on the Cortex learning new things regularly or simply perfecting his trade, be it medecine or hacking.

 

Okay, so it seems to me that a lot of you are too afraid to get stuck in here, so I'm going to break the ice a bit for you by addressing each of you with a question about other members of the crew. Remember this is collaborative, so if you've got anything to pitch in to another person's answer, feel free. And if you don't like anything anyone establishes, or it doesn't mesh with how you see your character, shout out.

Also, I've split you into two groups, those that I would consider 'Crew' and those that I would consider part of the agency. Only for the sake of convenience and fluff, I expect you'll all interact pretty freely and work together for the same objectives, but it draws a line between those employed by Captain Sinh and those employed by the suitably shadowy corporation known as 'Goldmund-Teller'.


Crew List:

Long Sinh - Captain - Lamora - Hard-nosed captain with a heart of gold
William Davis - Surgeon - Basilisk - Genius surgeon on the run from the law
Nicholas King - Pilot - Typhon - Disabled pilot with a passion for self-improvement
Samuel Bose - Mechanic - Cteatus - Technological prodigy with a chequered past


Goldmund-Teller Operatives:

Jolene "Jo" Ang - Detective - Aekiel - Stubborn ex-detective, jaded by the Unification War
Gareth Clark - Agent - Aviary - Quiet war veteran with a sarcastic streak.
Morris "Momo" Phan - Mercenary - Riley - Dry-witted Browncoat with a penchant for guns.
Chang Stevens - Administrator - Shouldabeenadog - Chatty socialite with a love of people and drink.


Questions

For your reply, you really don't need any more than two sentences. Just enough to be going on with. We can always give more colour to them as we play, this is just for the purposes of having a bonded group with some interesting dynamics at work.

Typhon: You and Captain Sinh have been tight ever since recruited you from another ship's crew. But what about you impressed her so much and how did she persuade you to leave the ship you were already flying?

Lamora: Nicholas introduced you to an old friend, a surgeon fresh out of medschool who wanted to join your crew. It just so happened you'd caught a warrant the same day for someone of his description for Cortex Fraud violations. What convinced you to take this fugitive onto your ship?

Cteatus: You find the Goldmund-Teller operative 'Chang' mighty irritating, what with his middle-class accent, good looks, schooling and all. But what about him has been irritating you most, recently? And what actions have you taken to get the better of him?

Shouldabeenadog: You were recruited into the group by Jo after she'd been contracted to your case. But what was the problem you needed solving? And why did it inspire you to join her?

Basilisk: From the moment Jolene Ang laid eyes on you, you knew she'd recognised you and understood precisely what you're running from. How exactly did you manage to convince her not to hand you over to the authorities?

Aekiel: After leaving the force you were recruited by Goldmund-Teller, a company that contracts out cases— security details, detective work, you name it— to private firms. On your very first mission you were assigned command of two browncoats (Momo & Gareth), the very people you'd fought against in the Unification war. Nonetheless you struck up a mutual partnership that has lasted ever since. How did you overcome your obvious differences?

Riley: You and Gareth served together in the Browncoats. Were you of equal rank? When was the moment that you realised that the two of you could completely depend on each other, even after the war was over?

Aviary: For some reason or another, you always find yourself defending Chang from words or violence. What was it that prompted you to take this alliance-flag wavin', paper pushin' pretty boy under your wing?

 

I guess the thing that irritates me the most about Chang is that I don't actually know what he does. It just seems like he's gabbing away on the cortex. Why is in space? What the hell does he do that isn't just wasting oxygen?

OOC: This seems like a reasonable concern right? An administrator in space? You might have benefit to Goldmund-Teller, but the ship's grease-monkey likely wouldn't have knowledge of all the complex inner-workings, so from the outside it doesn't seem like you're doing anything.

 

It was a very rocky start, once we realised who had supported whom in the Unification War, but I'm one stubborn bitch and I didn't back down an inch. I knew I wouldn't get any respect if I caved in on my beliefs and to hell with anyone who would. The Alliance may be filled with suǒ xì gǒu niáng yǎng de but the system as a whole works.

Once we got out in the field though, I was impressed by their professionalism. They knew how to shut out their personal feelings to get the job done, which is what you need in a detective. A few close calls later and a rough camaraderie had formed. As anyone who fought in the War would know; the chaos of battle forges bonds stronger than anything else.

I like to think those boys have a bit of respect for me now, just like I have for them.

 

I've been kind of anxious about this, but I suppose the best way to overcome it is to just jump in and get it over with. So here goes:

When Jolene took this fella in, I was skeptical. The regular crew notwithstanding, our group’s a lot more… rough around the edges. Look at Chang, then look at us; it’s pretty clear he’s a fish out of water, dressed as he is, with that baby face and motor-mouth. But Jo’s got a good head on her shoulders, and I've come to trust her.

Plus, you know, hearing that we wouldn’t have to file our own paperwork anymore definitely helped.

Problem is, a lot of folk out here in the places we tend to visit aren’t as accepting of his type as we are. Now, Chang gets some jokes at his expense, some snickers behind his back. That ain't nothing, I don't care about that. Threats are another matter. Scum see him and find him disagreeable, so they think they can use him as an outlet for their problems, or they look at him and smell blood in the water, sensing he don’t got the skill to handle himself. Chang may be a smooth talker, but smooth talking don’t assuage those ones much -- however, fists or .45 ACP rounds have, in my experience, been effective deterrents.

As for why I bother to step in on his behalf, considering his support for the Alliance and other numerous disparities between us... way I see it, it’s simple. For one, I consider the war dead and buried, and while I may disagree with the way the Alliance does things sometimes, I disagreed plenty with the Independents too and I don’t go looking for trouble. Not anymore, at least. And for another, and more importantly, he’s a man, and he deserves the same basic courtesy as anyone else; the same right to go through life unmolested. I make it my business to see justice upheld whenever I can, and I believe that’s all I’ve done.

---

OOC: If you're wondering about the accent or tone, I envision it as being much like the usual western sort of accent Firefly has going on, though maybe not as thick as it can sometimes be there, and balanced with a decent vocabulary. I tried to write out all the dropped Gs, but I found it annoying, so I went with making it more implied.

As for the actual content, well, I tried to come up with something based on what I could gather about Shouldabeenadog's character. Hope it works.

EDIT: Read it through again and decided it could do with some trimming.

 

I've been racking my head trying to come up with something good and I hope this will do.

I'd like to think my charms and my good looks got me out of this, but I'm quite sure Jo would disagree with me. We had a rough start, introductions were short before she asked me why she shouldn't kick my ass out of the ship and bring me straight to the nearest authorities.

I admitted I'd done mistakes in my youth and I'd keep doing mistakes in my adult life. But judging those mistakes should be done taking into consideration the age I had when I comitted them. Community service would've been fine with me. Federal prison for the next decade because I happen to get caught after reaching adulthood? Not so much.

"Let me atone for my mistakes by helping people and putting my skills to good use instead of rotting in a cell and wasting ressources." I told her.

I remember the way she looked at me, as if assessing wether I meant them or not. In the end, I assume she did because there was never a mention of turning me in again.

 

OOC: Honestly, I was thinking that flying the Manifest Destiny for Captain Sinh would be my first piloting job (nobody else would take a cripple on as a pilot). That was kinda part of my undying loyalty and stalwart friendship with her (although it would develop to a lesser degree regardless, I'm sure). If you'd prefer it be that I was recruited by from another ship, that's okay, but that'll definitely change our dynamic (/especially/ earlier in the backstory). I'm going to write this up the way that I originally envisioned it, and if you want I'll edit it to the way you have it written.

IC: "How did the Captain and I get started? Hell, that's a simple story to tell, albeit probably hard for you to really understand. Maybe if I tell you a little background, it'll help out here.

You see, I was a boy, or damn near one, and I had just left Londinium: half in protest to the Unification War, and half because I could see my future there, and it looked like a slow death. Regardless of the reason, I was there on Border, looking for work. You might think I wasn't looking for long, champion among pilots that I am (winks at the listener), but the rest of those bastards didn't see it that way. Why, I could tell you stories for days about the rejections somebody like me would hear... That wasn't the story you asked for, though. Sorry about that, I'll drift if you let me! Anyways, point was that I was about at the end of my rope when word spread of a new captain looking for a pilot on a new boat spread to all of us who couldn't seem to land a job. At least, that's all we thought got word. Turned out the Destiny was a beaut', and she didn't just draw in pilots without jobs for auditions; I recognized more than a few that worked steady on another ship there too. That was almost enough to turn me back; I had went through this song and dance before, and I didn't care for the ending. Still, this old Chinese girl seemed to be turning everybody back, and strangely that gave me hope. I waited, and I finally got my turn. Before I knew it, I was the pilot of the finest ship in the 'Verse.

What happened in there? Well, it'd be hard to say what made her pick me. I've never asked, and the Captain isn't really the volunteering type. If I had to guess, I'd say it was a combination of things. Say what you will about the Alliance, they know how to train a pilot. Maybe it was the smarts and the engineering prowess I brought to the table. Hell, maybe it was the honesty of telling her straight up that I had no experience, and no prior jobs on a ship at all combined with the confidence to say that after she saw me operate she wouldn't care that sold me. I don't know. What I know is why I took the job. I know, I know, you're thinking after the scenario I described I'd have taken anything, but you're wrong. I've got my pride, and I've got my honor. Some would say that a man can't eat pride or honor, but I'd say without them he's not a man at all, but a fucking animal. I don't know about you, but I'd take being a hungry man to a full animal any day.

I'm drifting again, though. You boys should have thought that through before you liquored me up! Point is, Sinh didn't mention my chair at any point until she told me I had the job and was headed out the door. Her exact words? "Cripple, you scratch my ship and I'll make you double-cripple!" Not exactly a battle cry for some people, but it was beautiful from where I was sitting. Yeah, Sinh treated me like a human, even when nobody else seemed to want to... that's good enough for me."

OOC: Sorry, that got long on me, but I felt like the whole backstory was worthwhile. That was supposed to be roughly in character: I intend for his internal voice (or voice when speaking to the intellectuals or civilized people on the crew) to be much more refined, but he makes an equity to fit in with language and speaking patterns with the locals.

 

Chang had a problem, a big one that needed people who weren't afraid to get their hands dirty. His contacts pointed him to Jo's corporation, where he explained the blackmail and extortion he was under by a two-bit idiot of a information broker. He had come across documents for...socially unacceptable things that Chang had co-signed as part of his job during the war, and was bleeding Chang for everything he had.
After making sure the broker wouldn't be doing that kind of work anymore, Chang had impressed Jo enough with his speed and efficiency at tearing apart the broker's information filing systems. There was a long probationary period, but it seemed that detectives really like having someone else file their paperwork, especially for some of the more detail oriented clients. And that one time he created the invitation and paperwork for a swanky soiree that lured the recluse to a trapped house sealed the deal.
Now if only he could convince the crew that the terrific bang that his desk makes when kicked is not a good way to demand his attention...

When asked why he would want to sign on for an eclectic group like this one, Chang has a simple answer, "The pay is good. The boss is smart. And I get to meet lots of new people. Plus, Jo and Captain Sinh are people who are going somewhere, and I want to see where."

 

IC: Does good work. Knows his stuff. I was First Sergeant to Captain John C Clarke of the 57th Overlanders Parajump squad stationed on Hera, for what it's worth. Rank don't mean nothing anymore. Browncoats though, they tend to blend together. Solidarity. (There's a long pause as he methodically cleans his rifle.) Plus he's funny too.

OOC: I'm not sure where Gareth was stationed so I'm planning it to be more we were on the same side but never knew each other.

 

We haven't heard much of Lamora, but should we start working on our ship's sheet? We threw some idea earlier but we haven't decide anything yet it seems.

I think we can all agree to the 'Cruising the Verse distinction.

Did we agree on the ship model? I know we talked a prison transformed to transport ship.

 

In the same vein as this, my character hooks:

Born on Sihnon
Middle class accountant family
School was just a stepping stone on the way to becoming a cop
The War made everyone a bit prickly, Jo included
Likes to feel appreciated
Enjoys a good argument
Doing a job right more important than money
Giving up on your ideals is just another way of quitting
And I ain't no quitter

 

What convince me? Too many doctors too uptight, too concerned with regulation. I do not need ship's doctor running off to authorities every time something nudge their heightened sensibilities. Doctor a fugitive? Good. Less likely to screw me if he screw himself as well doing so.

Besides, he not only one with spots on their record.

 

You still haven't answered my question in the other thread, Lamora.

What the hell happened to your name/avatar?

 

Jon happened.

Apparently it's a crime on this forum to be on Team Hyuuga despite all the Sharingay and Rimmingan bullshit that's been going on in the Naruto manga.

I won't apologize for supporting the best ninja clan in Konoha. I won't.

 

I could go for the prison ship if you guys are set on it, but I'd really like a distinction or signature asset like Built for Speed or Nuclear Fuel Injectors (something like that, anyways) if we do. That prison ship is only one step faster than the Space Bazaar. Do it for the pilot! :awesome

 

Started doing the Ship's sheet. You guys are welcome to modify it. I put the Hades Prison Class + Cruisin' The Verse + Built for Speed. We're still missing 1 distinction. Also added Fine Living Quarters D8 asset and Laser Cannon D8.

So yeah, if you wanna change something go ahead, just thought I'd get started. I tried to pick things which we had agreed on as best as possible or compromised.

 

The only quibble I'd raise with that would be the fine living quarters asset, and if nobody else shares that concern then I'm completely fine with them too. I'll probably list some alternatives to it that I like, but that's a more than acceptable ship for me.

 

Also, I think ships only get two distinctions.

Technically I guess its 3 distinctions, but the ship's class counts as a distinction.

 

Oh my bad! I misread! I'll correct it then.

 

Oh, I didn't see what he said about missing one distinction. Yeah, only two distinctions aside from class. If we can agree on Built for Speed and Cruisin' the 'Verse, then that really only leaves signature assets. Taking a quick look at the PDF, I'd suggest the assets be a weapon, like the Laser Cannons or Hidden Weapons, and something technological (hacking or comm equipment for those so inclined) or shuttles. It feels like Mighty Fine Quarters is basically covered by Cruisin' the 'Verse. It's obviously up to you guys, though, I got my main request.