Basic InformationName: James Milliner.
Nickname/Alias/Etc: Jim.
Gender: Male.
Age: 34.
Height: 6'2"
Weight: 207 lbs.
Home District: Las Palmas Strip.
Appearance
Hair Color:Black.
Eye Color:Blue.
Ethnicity:Caucasian, with English, Scottish and German ancestry.
Physical Appearance:Tall, robust and fit, James is an athletic and physically powerful man, although his muscles aren't nearly as visibly defined as those of a bodybuilder or professional athlete. He has a straight, stout posture and a walk brimming with confidence. His face is masculine, the symmetrical lines, defined eyebrows and instense blue eyes appearing attractive to most. Tattoo removal is a lengthy and costly process, especially if you have as much ink as James, and accordingly most of his upper torso and arms are covered in tattoos, clearly showing James former allegiance to the Children of the Iron Cross to whoever sees him shirtless. His hands and face have, however, had their tattoos removed already.
Attire: Generally wears expensive, albeit not luxury, brands of clothing in the form of one-colored shirts and jeans.
PersonalityInnate & Outward Personality:James is a confident, self-assured man. He enjoys attention and/or respect, though he doesn't go out of his way to receive it. Calm yet fierce, James' general demeanor fits that of a seasoned criminal, although he tends to be more well-spoken. Unless talking to superiors and similar men of authority whom James respects, he tents to be blunt and direct in his speech, preferring not to beat around the bush.
As for metahumans, James has no opinion. His life has been filled with opinions about peoples heritage, but it has been of the ethnical sort rather than metahumanity. While certain powers may for natural reasons be spooky, appealing, exciting or strange, James has nothing for nor against metahumans in general.
Very much a doer, James tackles problems head-on and rarely hesitates. He is confident in his own abilities and reasoning, rarely relying on others input and opinions - a lesson hard learned in his past. Speaking of his past, severing his ties with the Children was difficult not just in practice but mentally as well. Seeing old friends turned enemy over ideology has turned James a colder and distrusting man, with little regard for others religious and ideological beliefs, nor more base emotions. Furthermore, he despises people who blindly follow others. James' own ideology nowadays is money and influence. He's ambitious and feel, perhaps subconscously, that he has something to prove against the Children of the Iron Cross, a gang where many members would still be happy to see James dead.
Hobbies/Interests:His main interest is his career, and the advancing of it. He gets a kick out of dangerous situations, and as such might perform more crimes than need be. Daytime he can usually be found boxing at a gym owned by Howard Winter. Other than that, James enjoys partying as long as it involves plenty of alcohol and drugs, and like so many others he has a penchant for fast cars and loose women.
Skills/Talents: Due to his fearless attitude as well as his size, training and experience, James is a more than capable fighter. Very handy in a street fight, though by no means a martial expert. A great talent at driving, with fast reactions and quick decision-making - skills obviously usable outside of the driver's seat as well. Thanks to his interest (and resulting experience) in burglary and robberies, he has an extensive knowledge of security systems and a keen sense of tactical planning.
Prized Possession:None. James is a very materialistic man, but there's no item in particular that holds a higher value to James than others.
Quote(s): Optional
History/Bio:Born in the Iron District, James was raised by his mother (father unknown) Mary Milliner, a low-life street hooker. Mary had no interest in being a mother, but was convinced to have the kid by her pimp, as a pregnant hooker was sure to earn more money from the men with the right fetish. Nontheless, Mary didn't turn out to be a very good mother. While not abusive, she was far too much of a junkie to take proper care of her son. At age nine, James was taken into custody by social services following complaints from neighbors, and apart froma a couple of visits during the next years, he never saw his mother again. Authorities dumped James in one of the city's RTC:s, where he proved too unruly and head-strong to be placed in a foster family.
As the years went on, James found friends among the older children of the RTC, and he slowly radicalized. When he was fifteen, his friends were already part of the Children of the Iron Cross, and James soon ran away from the group home to follow in their path. In order to receive membership in the gang, James decided to visit the home of Bryan Martinez, one of the staff at the RTC, and proceeded to beat the man senseless while representatives from the Children watched. From that day on, James was a part of the brotherhood.
Starting out with petty crime, James and his friends soon realized they all got a thrill out of burglaries in specific, and together they began performing burglaries, home invasions and robberies at a regular basis. They were soon caught, and up until his early twenties, James went back and forth from prison, earning a reputation among the Children in the process. While too bold and careless to not get caught, James and his best friend, Simon Vickers, proved talented thieves and were subsequently taken under the arm of Richard "Trip" Donner, a senior member of the Children. Trip was a particularly gifted man when it came to stealing stuff, and he took the two youngsters on his crew. James and Simon learned the virtue of patience, and while they committed considerably less crimes, they were larger in scale and - perhaps more importantly - they didn't get caught. As the pair got properly installed in the crew, James took on the role as a getaway driver as well as co-planner of the heists along with the much impressed Trip.
Things stayed like this for a long time - nearly a decade. Meanwhile, James became less and less convinced of his ideologies, slowly coming to realize that it was the sense of belonging that he appreciated from his time in the Children, not the senseless hate. It wasn't that which turned things sour, however, but rather James' and Simon's ambition. Unhappy with still receiving a lesser cut of the jobs than Trip, the two confronted Trip with the other two members of the crew present, an argument that soon turned physical and ended with Simon shooting Trip square in the face after the latter had pulled his gun on James. Opting to face the consequences rather than flee, the duo faced down the local leadership of the Children. Surprisingly, the other members of Trip's crew defended the two - acknowledging that Trip had been the one to pull a gun. Later the guys would explain to James that they had had similar thoughts as well, and that while Trip's death was "tragic" it was probably the best for the brotherhood.
Regardless, the Children does not condone members killing one another, and accordingly James and Simon was demoted to common street thugs, tasked with dealing drugs, protecting assets and the usual race-to-race violence. This was the last drop for James, who began planning his way out of the brotherhood. He shared his thoughts with Simon, and the latter reluctantly agreed to help James out of the gang. Together they comitted a string of burglaries and robberies, saving up a considerable amount of cash and valuables. Once James deemed they had enough, he met with the leadership and explained his situation - expressing his desire to leave the organization, offering a sizable amount of money he claimed he'd saved up over the years as a parting gift. The Children agreed to let James leave, claiming that the money had nothing to do with it and that James had contributed more to the organization than most of its members ever would. Moreover, James still enjoyed a big reputation amongst the brotherhood, and because of that he was allowed to leave on the condition that he would never do anything to harm the organization, in which case he would be a marked man regardless of his past.
This happened five years ago. Following his leave, James and the Children grew more and more resentful of one another. James found work under Alex Jeffries, one of Howard Winter's men. Winter was one of the big shots of the Las Palmas Strip, owning a number of businesses - mainly in the form of clubs and restaurants. James initially worked as a bouncer on the clubs, while moonlighting as a thief. It didn't take him long to make an impresson on Jeffries, and he soon found himself to be Jeffries' right hand man. For the past six months, James has been appointed caretaker of Fabric, one of the larger clubs in the Strip, with Jeffries making moves to see both himself and James elevated to higher positions.
At some point, somehow, the Children learned or figured out that Simon Vickers had helped James leave the organization. They weren't quite as forgiving towards Vickers, and three months ago they arranged to have him killed. Simon proved more than his assailants could handle, however, and he managed to escape. He sought help from his only contact on the outside, and James could hardly refuse his old friend. Lately, Vickers has been hiding in one of Alex Jeffries apartments, the latter a reluctant partner in keeping Vickers out of the Children's hands. The gang is already suspicious of James, and something is bound to happen sooner or later. In these rather desperate times, James and Simon will sooner or later need to think of a way to deal with their former associates attention.
RelationshipsSimon Vickers, 35. Best friend. The two have a complicated friendship, where Simon's very existence may well depend on James. Their hostility towards the Children strengthens their bond, yet Simon is still the radical racist he's always been, filled with hate that James despise and know all too well.
Alexander Jeffries, 37. Friend and superior. Runs an increasing amount of Winter's daily operations, and aspires to do more.
Howard Winter, 53. Boss. A shrewd criminal-turned-businessman who still has his hands in plenty of nasty jars filled with less than legal opportunities.
Family: Mary Milliner, 65. Mother, whereabouts unknown. Possibly deceased.
Sonya Milliner, 61. Aunt, whereabouts unknown. Possibly deceased.
Dynamics: | | | "" |
AbilitiesNone.
Other: I may or may not write a CS for on of the Relationships as well at some point. Undecided yet, though they'll probably remain (prominent) NPC's. At least for now.
