Syben

n e w - a g e - 2 0 5 0 :: a cyberpunk dystopia

@Aeonumbra Meanwhile Andrejs is just like LOOK AT ME I'M CLASSY

@Lemons

If he can tolerate Chiue, they'll likely be friends. She likes fancy.

n e w - a g e - 2 0 5 0 :: a cyberpunk dystopia

Predicted conversation between Goonster and Chiue:

G: "I'm the best"

C: "Nu-uh, I'm the best."

G: "No.. I'm the best."

C: "NOI'MTHEBEST"

Deadland Wasteland: //START Recruitment.exe [OPEN - APPLY]

_{There is only silence, broken sporadically by the sound of Aeon cackling with a vaudevillian flair, and then he begins to monologue}

Originally, I was going to leave Refuge alone. I figured it was out of the way enough, and with the night curfew the residents would be quiet enough not to attract any ghouls (who would then call out to other ghouls in a sort of domino effec.

And then @Andreyich happened.

Remember in the IC when I said your character's actions will have real effects on this world?

_{Aeon laughs, claps, and exits right stage.}

:)

Deadland Wasteland: //START Recruitment.exe [OPEN - APPLY]

---

E L I

Monday, June 1^st, 2111

Unfortunately, Eli noted it was still dark outside as her creaked open the rear exit slowly. Unconsciously, he had been hoping to see the brilliant, muted rays of light streaming through the foliage clogged alleyway. He hadn't even realized that particular thought had lived within him until the disappointment hit him. He signaled for those immediately behind him to move out into the narrow space between the buildings. He was acting as the pointman, of course. This was a dangerous, and delicate situation. It was one that had everybody scared, including himself. He peered upwards into the afternoon night, thinking about the paradox that statement created. He was overwhelmed with the failure to come to any logical, reasonable conclusions. Even one of Washington's legendary storms, it shouldn't have been this dark. In fact, it had grown even darker.

Eli squinted towards the opening leading out towards the street. Shadows flickered across worn bricks and clusters of plants. Vines snaked their way down the sides of the buildings, but thankfully they remained stationary. Eli crouched against a thick cluster of ferns as he tried to see down the road before him. It was just too dark. He strained his ears instead, listening for the tell-tale signs of ghouls lurking around the bend. Nothing. That was strange, they had moved on rather quickly. Had that noise earlier really drawn all of them off, or had they migrated on their own, seeking easier prey? Either way, that was fortunate news for the group.

He turned to face the group and found himself face-to-face with Garsin and Geo, whom he had just met moments prior as he conversed with the other members of their little ragtag group. Fortunately, a few of these others seemed a little more capable than Eli had thought at first glance, but none of that would matter if they ran into a horde of ghouls. "Stay low, stay quiet," He said, following his own instructions as he dipped out into the street. He hugged the wall, moving slowly, ignoring the whispers of grass as he passed through their long, still stalks.

Eli skirted around a rather large root protruding forcefully from the wall, and soon found himself closer to the firelight and the dancing shadows. There were no other sounds, no growling or shuffling, not even the rustle of an occasional bush. He dared a glance around the corner. There was literally nothing but the gruesome scenery of mangled corpses. He wait, yet nothing stirred—Not even the bodies, at least, not yet. Some of them looked too damaged to resurrect as a ghoul anyways. Still, how much time had passed? How long did they have before those corpses woke up, hungry and pissed?

He was about to turn around, satisfied there was nobody else he could save when he caught the sight of a personnel truck buried halfway into a brick wall, shrouded by hanging vines, rubble, and tall fens waving slightly with the breeze. As if trying to subdue his glimmer of hope, he felt a cold, wet droplet splatter on his cheek. Confused, he looked around, before he noticed that it had begun to sprinkle. 'So that storm has finally decided to hit, eh?' he thought resolutely to himself.

"We got a mechanic?" He asked, turning back to the group of bodies behind him, most of which were cowering within the grass, trying to seem small and hide within their poor excuse for shelter.

"I am," A quiet voice spoke up. A woman shuffled to the forefront of the group.

"What's your name?" Eli asked, taking in the lithe woman with stormy, gray eyes.

"Abigail," She said through a noticeable, but light French accent, "Just call me Abi."

"Alright Abi, you think you can make sure that truck will get us home?" Eli asked, motioning behind him with thumb. She peeked around his shoulders, her face contorting as she studied the wreckage.

"Hard to tell from her, but my instincts say it doesn't look good."

"Well, it's that or we have a long hike back in this," He paused, "Darkness.."

"Right," She said, obviously thinking along the same lines. It was near suicide.

"Garsin, watch her back. Make sure nothing kills our only mechanic. Geo and.." Eli looked through his pool of candidates, "You there. Yes, you. Go up the rubble, quietly, keep and eye out. If you see something amiss don't yell, use a flashlight to signal us."

Eli stood, peering once more over his shoulder, "You two-" He said, pointing "-Watch the southern intersection. The rest of you stay near the truck, keep eyes on the windows and alleys. Lets try to get home in one piece, yea?" He finished with a soft, lighthearted chuckle.

For Eli however, he was going to make sure those bodies stayed dead.

---

R E F U G E

Sergeant Docker grimaced at the papers held before him in thick, calloused fingers. Smoked streamed through his teeth, currently clenched around the thick end of a cigar. He slapped the papers down, scattering some small objects on his desk, and moved his massive frame from the chair struggling to hold him, to the window. It's not that he was fat, but he was bulky. Years of serving in the military, combined with a mixture of Germanic and Icelandic heritage, would do that to a man. The paper he had been reading was a dossier on none other than Eli Shuppert, and frankly, Docker didn't know what the mayor saw in him. Yet, he shrugged. The mayor was entitled to her fancies, even if that meant letting some soldier start his own special operatives unit.

That worried him, somewhat. Though, Eli didn't look capable to enact a militaristic coup. On the other hand, Mayor Guzman didn't seem capable to resist a well organized mutiny within the structure of her own settlement. He grimaced, fingering the stubble along the edges of his jawline. Then there was that fellow, what was his name.. Theron? Jackson Theron. That's right. He was starting some sort of unionized movement, something about better pay for unskilled laborers. Docker shook his head slightly, people always wanted what others had. It was a wonder this place was holding together at all.

As he contemplated the rising problems of the town, a shadow cast itself over the immediate area he had been observing. He hadn't actually been looking at anything special, in fact it was just the parking lot in front of the command center, with few vehicles and even fewer bodies milling about. He let out another heavy sigh, turning back to the reports on his desk. He should be out there, reassuring the people and forming bonds with them that wouldn't break instead of staring at the reasons why the fishermen weren't hauling in as much as they used to. More pay this, more food that. This whole system of self-management was a farce, but Guzman insisted it made the people happy.

"If it made them so fucking happy why do I have a desk full of problems?" He grumbled. Arguably, some of them were small problems, like the petty theft census. People didn't want to work together, they wanted to work for themselves and take what others had. He knew first hand what happened when you let all of these little problems stack up. He had just sat down to starting cleaning up some of those problems when his door burst open. The cigar shot from his mouth, flipping end over end as it spiraled into a stack of papers.

"For fuck's sake man! Can't you knock?" Docker shouted, getting up to retrieve his cigar from where it had rolled onto the floor.

"Eh..S-sorry VP, It's just.." The boy stammered, he couldn't have been past twenty, "It's about the convoy. They established radio communication, but it was garbled.. full of white noise. I couldn't make out anything but the screams really, and then the transmissions stopped altogether."

"The screams, son?" Docker questioned in a more fatherly way. The kid seemed to respond better to that.

"Yes sir, they were under attack, we think by ghouls."

"Ghouls? Ghouls?" Docker questioned, his face scrunching in confusion, "How could there be ghouls out in the middle of the afternoon?"

The kid looked taken aback at that, he had to take a moment to recompose himself, "Uh.. Sir.. have you looked outside?"

Docker's eyebrow rose as he looked over at his window. It was dark, not like a cloud passing in front of the sun, but actually dark. "How the fuck?" He asked, before the gears and cogs began whirling in his mind.

"Fuck me. Kid," He began, striding forward and taking a quick moment to catch the boy's name. "Cadet Wilson, radio the other lawkeepers, even those off duty, I want the night curfew enacted now."

"Yes sir!" The cadet said with a reassured nod. That's what kids like him were good for, taking orders. He'd grow up to be a fine enforcer.

Docker left his office only to nearly run into Mayor Guzman's thin, rail-like figure.

"What's happening Docker?" She asked neutrally. No panic, always the proper delegate.

"Do I look like a fucking scientist to you? It's night, in the afternoon, I'm enacting the night curfew."

He moved to step around her but she slipped before him again, blocking his path. "What about the convoy?"

"I don't know, we haven't heard back yet," Docker said irritably, weaving himself around he with surprising grace. "Now if you'll excuse me," He said curtly.

Docker made his way outside. There were other people here, some of which were just standing there staring at the sky, shocked in stillness by disbelief. Docker clapped his hands together, starling them out of their trances. "Sullivan!"

"Yes sir?" Sully replied, jogging to close the small gap between himself and the VP.

"Up on the wall, make sure it's properly manned. I sense a shit-storm."

* * * A Few Hours Later * * *

"Just treat it like any other night," Docker told himself. He wasn't smart enough to contemplate what had happened, nor was he philosophical. He'd just spent the last few hours organizing his forces to contain the spread of panic and get everyone situation within their homes. Thankfully, things had been quiet so far. Since it wasn't technically night yet, Docker was considering allowing the public back out into the streets, as long as they maintained a relatively low level of noise. Refuge was far enough out of the way that they didn't necessarily have to whisper, but there was to be no loud work like forging, or god forbid, gunfire.

Docker found himself outside the command center, taking stock of the situation. He caught sight of Guzman making her way over to him, her strides purposeful and her sharp eyes were set on Docker. He sighed inwardly, would the woman ever stop nagging him? Before she could pin him down with more of her bureaucratic crap or questions, a guardsman called down from the tower"

"Truck coming!"

"Thank God," Guzman breathed.

Docker came over, scaled the ladder up the watchtower with ease, and peered out into the direction the soldier was pointing at. Sure enough there were a pair of headlights coming closer, approaching with enough speed to churn up the smaller plants that broke through the asphalt. Docker couldn't help noticed the light, feminine huffs coming up the ladder behind him. Didn't she have babies to kiss or something?

"There's only one," Guzman observed.

"There's a second one coming from the other end," The soldier noted.

"Why would they-" Guzman pondered, but Docker cut her off.

"Ghouls," he breathed.

"What?" Guzman asked, confused.

"Ghouls. Look, behind the trucks," He handed her a pair of binoculars, her eyes weren't attuned like his were to notice things like that. From this distance, it was minute, but noticeable. It had been days since ghouls had found their way to the wall, and even then that had just been a small, roaming pack. This.. this was..

"Radio the wall teams, and tell them to stop by the armory.. We're going to need bigger guns."

"What about the trucks?" The soldier asked Docker as the VP began his descent down the ladder.

"They've got a little bit of a lead but there's not enough time for the trucks. Open the gates just enough for them to squeeze through, no bigger than a person. Even if the ghouls catch up we can still get them closed."

"Yes sir," The soldier nodded.

Docker was barely halfway to the armory, connected to the Command Center, before bodies began streaming in. Soldiers in fatigues, lawkeepers in trench coats and vests and distinguished hats, and other volunteers. By the time the soldiers shouted out a warning that the gates were opening, bodies were flowing towards the wall laden with gear and ammo. There was a lot of wall to protect, they were undermanned and under-gunned. They didn't have enough resources, holding back a tide of ghouls like that would be a miracle. Every god forsaken ghoul in the city must be stampeding towards the gates. He was going to have some very unpleasant words with whoever was driving those fucking trucks when this was all over. If he was still alive.

"This is going to be one hell of a fight," He said with a grimace, flipping open his tin of cigars. I don't even like cigars, he thought as he trudged towards the wall.

---

I N T H E T R U C K W I T H F R E D

* * * A Few Hours Later * * *

The driver was panicking, his heart was thumping out of control, as if it were trying to rip its way from his chest. There was a guy sitting next to him, he didn't know who he was. The guy was one of those types with a strong chin, like a hero, but with a scar through it. He looked tough, like he knew his shit. That didn't help. The driver's hands were shaking so badly it was a wonder he could keep the truck on the rough, bumpy road. Plants whipped by, each one sending tremors through the terrified man. At times, the vines were so thick, or the fens and ferns were so tall he couldn't see through them. Still, he plowed onwards, uncaring of what was before him because he knew what was behind—The tide of ghouls.

And they were leading them straight home.

To his home.

They were all going to die.

He was going to die.

The better man in him knew he should just throw the wheel to the side, wreck the truck into something thick and large and hope that killed him. But, inside, everybody wanted to live, right? It wasn't just him, right? No.. no.. the walls would hold. They'd shoot back all the ghouls, he'd live, they'd all live.

...Right?

Hide Request

roleplayerguild.com/posts/4412852

Please and thank you.

Deadland Wasteland: //START Recruitment.exe [OPEN - APPLY]

@Tybalt Capulet Your character is denied. Thank you for your interest.

Deadland Wasteland: //START Recruitment.exe [OPEN - APPLY]

Post in the works, should be up by tomorrow at some point. I'll reveal a few tidbits in Refuge, since I assume Andreyich's character would be arriving back there by then. (I'll be jumping the time by a couple of hours.)

Syben's Swamp

<Snipped>

n e w - a g e - 2 0 5 0 :: a cyberpunk dystopia

@Didgeridont The most suitable thing I could come up with is she's filed under the Public Relations Department. (The faces that show up at fancy parties and press conferences as representatives of Biotechnica's interests.) Perhaps a media related position where she would be assumed to work behind the scenes, perhaps on public forums, online conferences, and is assumed to help with any negative backlash associated with whatever disasters we (the characters) get up to—A sort of Damage Control.

"PR: Information Control" sounds like a nice, fancy, and completely fabricated, yet believable, titled.

I feel like this would be a believable reason for her to knowledgable about the rather.. sensitive operations we're (the characters) likely to be a part of and give her a believable reason to attend any face-to-face mission briefings.

n e w - a g e - 2 0 5 0 :: a cyberpunk dystopia

Chiue Xu-Miao

Chiue Xu-Miao ♦ Twenty-Eight ♦ Decker

╟[ Handle.doc ] ┐

» Kid Kαndi

└ An online persona unassociated with Chiue.

╟[ Birth.doc ] ┐

» April 17, 2022

└ Qinhuangdao - China

└ A coastal prefecture along the Bohai Sea.

╟[ Gender.doc ] ┐

» Female

╟[ Description.rtd ] ┐
^{[ .NET Virtual Avatar ] [ Calling Card ]}
» Chiue Xu-Miao

A woman of obvious Asian descent, Chiue is a contemporary gal who enjoys the nightlife in the fast lane. Bright lights, bitchin' rides, and a bombastic style to match. She's often found mixing monochromatic clothing with bright, colorful accessories. When in the comfort of her own sanctum, there are no pretenses and she'll pretty much wear whatever, or very little at all. Her sense of flare seems to work well for her slim, elegant frame. She stands at about 5'6 and weighs approximately 145 pounds soaking wet. Her eyes are decidedly almond-shaped and bracket a large nose that matches some rather sizable ears. Her pert lips work wonders when she smiles, especially when coupled with her glittering, ocean-blue eyes. Appearance is everything, and Chiue predominantly keeps her hair dyed electric blue with bright, pink tips. One side of her head is shaved into two staggered layers—A style called hedging. The hedged layers of her hair serve a double purpose of being prominently fashionable, and to hide the 22mm neural ports embedded into her skull. She also has a 30mm chrome accented port centered on the back of her neck.

» Kid Kandi

Kid Kandi, commonly referred to as "K.K." or "Double K", is a figure shrouded in mystery and success. They've made a name for themselves through their online medium, an avatar by the same name. The cyber avatar is almost entirely candy pink, from the hair down to the mask and clothes. The only other real color on the avatar, other than the black that fills the ominous negative space, is a neon blue strand of the avatar's hair. Due to the overall appearance, the avatar is assumed to be female in nature, and thus the other users on the NET have theorized that the user behind the rendered figure is also a female. After all, that makes the most sense.

╟[ Occupation.doc ] ┐
» Decker Contractor

Kid Kandi does not advertise, and is not easily traced. However, if one has the proper resources then tracing Kid Kandi is not impossible, and this method is actually preferred by Double K. It ensures that only the clients who could actually afford Kid's services find their inbox. However, there is an alternative method, that's less difficult but doesn't guarantee results. Simply posting a communication request in the places Double K hangs out in the NET. Usually these can be found by asking around, and if the job is interesting, or pays well, Double K will contact them.

╟[ Skills.doc ] ┐
» The Edge of the Edge

Uncharacteristically of the stereotypical Decker, Chiue enjoys the finer qualities of meatspace, and she has a wide range of tastes. Most especially, she loves the things that set her heart pounding with adrenaline; A fancy party she has no place being at, thumping cyber-techno clubs, racing some punk on the street, and so forth. By proxy, Kid Kandi loves these things too. Big risks, high payouts and overcoming a difficult challenge. Most clients come to Double K downtrodden, either depressed that they won't see their desires come to fruition, or perhaps at the lovely price tag that comes with K's services. These are the kind of reckless pursuits that get Chiue's heart going. These monumental tasks where she could get caught, dumped, or ICE'd at any moment; Walls that seem impossible to get through; Squaring off with defense personnel on the other side of the code; Mega-corporations that would put a bullet in her without hesitation. Luckily, she's still alive. However, this kind of lifestyle is dangerous, and reckless, which is one of Chiue's major downfalls. She loves dangerous and reckless. To her, these feelings are old, sensual lovers that she just can't stay away from. Worse, she has a deep seated need to be recognized for her work, even if it is through a dissociated online medium. She, or rather Kid Kandi, has a calling card that's left behind on the victim's visual displays—A simple, animated dancing cat named Mao. In Chinese, Mao translates to "Cat" ... yea.

» Proper Asset Management

Firstly, Any self respecting decker knows how to build and upgrade their own decks. Using other people's decks is a good way to get yourself ICE'd in the permanent kind of way. That, or raided by the supercops. Chiue takes it a step further. She knows what kind of lifestyle she lives and if she's not careful it will be the kind she doesn't live long. Now, careful doesn't mean she won't stop slamming her way through code and leaving behind a huge mess. Careful means covering her ass on the way out and most importantly, not leaving a trail that will lead back to herself. She's painstakingly created cryptographic protocols, intruder detection and security systems, and interlaced her security systems with traps and decoys. Then of course, there's her pride and joy, "ACE"—Abstract Cryptography Engine. ACE runs encryption protocols that constantly change the elementary components of the engine in an arbitrary way. Things such as the symmetric-key, the block cipher algorithms, the length of the bit groups, and so on. Unfortunately, it was proven to her later that her protection was not unbreakable.

» Payout or Personal

Chiue's morals are a bit lacking in some departments, but are strong in others. For instance, she hates killing and won't ever take a job that requires her to murder someone on the net—Accidents don't count, especially those with extraneous circumstances. Additionally, she only takes two kinds of jobs; Those that interest her, or those with high payouts. Once a contract is set, she won't back-stab her employer and ruin her credibility, even if the opposition is offering up hefty sums of creds. Unfortunately, this also means that even if her target is some unfortunate soul with a sob story, she doesn't care. She sees the paycheck or the fulfillment of her personal motives.

» Eight Tiger What?

Mostly thanks to her strict upbringing, Chiue's not exactly an easy chump to hassle. While no means a master, she's reached efficient levels in modernized Baguazhang (Eight Trigram Palm) and Tai'Chi (Taiji Fist). Typically, these martial arts styles are focused on controlling not only your body, but also your opponent's. Meaning they are a combination of defensive and offensive . Since Chiue lacks any sort of strength enhancing cybernetics, she doesn't fall under the combatant category, any well-trained fighter will likely outclass her. Fortunately, Baguazhang and Tai'Chi rely mostly on balance, speed, and precision strikes. These skills have definitely come in handy against common street thugs and muggers. However, she finds it harder to concentrate the more bodies there are, especially those outside her vision.

╟[ Cybernetics.doc ] ┐
» Xian'Shang White Dragon Neural Interfacing System v2.9

While not the latest and greatest, the White Dragon system is a rather recent development from the Chinese based Xian'Shang Technology Conglomerate. The two most important features this provides for Chiue is reliable electric-surge dissipation, and high compatibility with her other cybernetics.

» Gon'Qui X-2 Retinal Overlays v0.53

A fancy name for what are essentially permanent optical lens, linked to her neuralware of course. What these do for her is allow her to jack-in to the net in real space, providing a heads-up display that overlays on top of the visual input routed through her neural ware. They don't do anything else, which is the main reason the X-2 Overlays aren't full optical replacements. If short-circuited Chiue will be subject to blurry vision, or at the very worst, temporary blindness.

» Gon'Qui X-2 Cybernetic Interfacing Arm v1.001x

Chiue's left arm is a lightweight cybernetic that connects at the shoulder. Though, this wasn't the result of a tragic accident, it was a choice... and one hell of a deal. See, the arm is meant to interface with the retinal overlays. The underbelly of the arm contains an array of link-plugs of varying size, to the point where they fit most standard ports. The arm also contains a Data-Spike plug, a last ditch attempt to brutalize your way into a system by jamming the spike into say, a mainframe or digital lock. The Data-Spike is dangerous to use and very illegal. Additionally, There is a 30mm port on the rear of her shoulder for charging purposes. Overall, the appendage is a polished chrome in color, with neon blue lights threading along its length in an aesthetic and exceptionally pleasing way.

» Bleu' Polycarbonate Nano Weave

A mesh that lies beneath the skin, the weave of nano-filaments and strategically placed sensors serve a single, simple purpose; To monitor the user's essential health components, and alert medical response teams if the user is critical and unresponsive. It's linked to her neuralware and overlays so that she can pull up diagnostic screens, or receive important alerts about her health and condition.

╟[ Background.rtd ] ┐
» The Early Years

Chiue was originally born into wealth as Tao Quiyan, the precious child to two loving parents with high expectations of her. Her father, Hao Quiyan, oversaw a small, yet prestigious company titled Quiyan Industries; Later this company would benefit from a merger and become rebranded as the Shuren'Qui Corporation. Her mother, Rin'Wei Zhihao, gave up her name to marry Hao and join her family to his. Chinese traditions had always run strong, and are still prominent in today's society. Rin'wei and her family were of a much lesser status, but Hao fell in love with her and eventually convinced her to marry him despite her waiting almost a period of two years. Rin always said she wanted to marry "For the right reasons", but it was enough for Hao.

Single-handedly, Rin raised Tao into a proper woman, or at least tried to. Tao never wanted for anything while learned discipline, respect, and how to curb her worldly desires. As a young child, Tao understood why she saw so little of her father, or why when she did see him he always appeared ragged and worn down. The years wore on him heavily, but he loved his family and worked hard to ensure that Tao had a proper future. She went to fine schools and was enrolled in a classes that taught modernized Baguazhang (Eight Trigram Palm) and Tai'Chi (Taiji Fist). Tao was schooled in proper etiquette, respect for one's elders, and all of the other requirements needed to function, and prosper, in the world's rapdily evolving society.

Unfortunately, Tao wasn't the child prodigy her parents had always hoped for. In fact, she was only beholden to an average intelligence. That wouldn't do for the would-be heir to Quiyan Industries. This meant extra classes, intensive courses, and a higher dedication on Tao's part to improving herself. Unfortunately, she was cursed to live a life as a rather standard, and normal person. Hao was not pleased. To be successful, in Hao's words, she needed to be shrewd, complex, and smarter than her rivals. Hao took it upon himself to orient her thinking into the business world, often coming up with his own problems and puzzles for her to solve. Ultimately, she was a disappointment, and they grew distant during her teenage years.

Tao fell into a spiral of discontentment. She wasn't a special snowflake, she wasn't unique, she was just the same kind of decaying organic matter as everybody else. Worse, she was bored. It seemed her life had been planned out since the day she was born. She wanted the kinds of things her family's money couldn't buy. Tao started to fall in with punks, druggies, and other low-life degenerates lurking at the bottom of the social ladder. To say her father was upset is a grand understatement, he was furious but Tao felt alive every time they got into a shouting match. It broke her mother's heart, seeing Tao spiral downwards this way, and soon they too grew distant. By the time she graduated from private school, Quinyan Industries had merged with Shuren Inc, and a prodigal pupil named Tilang Shuren was set to become the heir apparent of the Shuren'Qui Corporation. It was around this time that her father began ignoring her entirely and instead turned his attentions to Tilang.

Tao became increasingly upset at this treatment, unbeknownst to her at the time her attitude and lifestyle were only attempts at filling the void in her life. She went further down her road of darkness; Breaking and entering, theft, and multiple infractions while running the NET. Still, Hao never cut her off, but he continued to put all of his time into Tilang. Tao never understood that her father wasn't replacing her with Tilang, inside he was torn on what to do, and settled for nothing. He had hoped Tao would straighten herself out, or perhaps her mother would.

They fell out for good the night Hao had to bail her out of jail. Tao and her "crew" had played at being amatuer deckers and poked their noses into places they shouldn't. It was the fight of the century, starting from Tao's cell and ending at the front door as Tao left screaming over her mother's weeping with bags in hand. Underneath all of the rage, Tao was bubbling with excitement from what she'd just experienced. The thrill, the rush, the heart pounding adrenaline screaming through her as she had tried, and failed, to fight her way through the layers of encrypted code. There was something entrancing, something alluring about the NET and finding your way into places you shouldn't be. She was finally excited about her next step in life—Receiving a higher education.

» The Rise of Kid Kandi

Now, Tao strode headfirst into her newfound purpose, propelled by the excitement within her as she forged her own path into the world. Despite all that had transpired with her father, he still hadn't cut her off. That much was apparent when she used her family's money to pay her tuition into a prestigious university (one she had no business being at, but money solves many problems). She was sure there was no way her father was oblivious to the kind of money she was spending for her books, a vehicle, updated neuralware, the list goes on. Before her first month in the Zhao'long Technological Institute was over, Tao was gifted her own account from her father, which had money desposited into it every month. It was an act of kindness that made her cry as regret washed over her, but what was done was done. She had to move on with her life. One day she would return and show that she had made something of herself.

There was only one thing Tao was interested in: The NET. Predictably, her classes revolved around this primary goal. Cyber Technology, Programming, Code Infrastructure, and much more. She also continued her childhood education on the world's most dominant language, American English. Tao stayed until she had achieved a masters degree in Cyber Technology. But, during this time she simply wasn't content with attending classes. No, she needed live practice, demonstrations, expertise. How can you create a proper firewall without knowing how to break it first? How can you encode a systems defense algorithm without knowing how its vulnerable? Through legitimate means like proper study, right? Wrong.

Thus, Liumang_x (Rogue) was born—And quickly died, as Tao's first attempt at cracking a local business's defenses went awry. She was traced faster than she could have anticipated, and dumped from the NET. By the time she awoke, she was in the back of a cruiser. An angry phone call later, and she was back at the university on bail. With all the money her father threw out to make the problem disappear, Tao found herself once more seated into the path she had chosen. xX_Shouge'Zhe_Xx (Reaper), ~Mao_Renzhe_2020~ (Cat_Ninja), (\x_Shanguang_Huichen_x/) (Glitter_Dust), and various other aliases: All failures. Time and time again she was caught, and her father dealt with the backlash she was causing.

This cycle she was creating didn't last. Despite her skills growing at a rapid pace, she wasn't learning fast enough. By the time she had earned her masters in cyber technology, she was operating under yet another alias: -_`Master!Zhu`_- (Master-Master). It was to be the last problem her father ever dealt with. Confidence only soared within her as she tore her way through the NET, to the point where she was even able to made some decent money. The one thing she didn't worry about too much was covering her tracks, Daddy had been there to solve her problems after all. She was dissociated with the consequences of her actions. This time, she'd pissed off somebody important, someone with the resources to see their anger directed at Tao's father.

Hao lost everything because of his daughter. His shares in the company, his money, his assets, and his life. Not in the soberingly physical sense, but rather he was tore down so far that his status was beneath that of his Wife's family before he had married her. He left a broken, homeless man. To be so low that he had to move in with Ren's mother and father, he hated himself, and he hated that he had failed as a father. Tao was devastated. She fought her depression, and the desire to take her own worthless, meaningless life. Instead, she struggled to redeem herself and repay her father for what she had done to him. Starting with sending him almost all of her meager earnings.

She tried desperately to find a respectable job so that she could help her family more, but nobody would hire her and she couldn't blame them with the kind of record she had managed to acrue. It was amazing she wasn't locked away somewhere cold and dark already. This left her only one choice, one she had made so long ago. If she couldn't make money the right way, she'd do it the wrong way. This time, it had to be different. There was no more money to solve her problems, there was no more Daddy to lean on. In fact, she had convinced herself that it was now her family that was depending on her, and perhaps they were.

It was a couple years before Tao did anything of note on the NET. She stuck to smaller jobs as she shifted through tutorials, free courses, and data fortresses. All of which had been done in an attempt to teach herself the kinds of skills she'd need to make this plan she had work. Two years, that's how long she spent. Her equipment was a bit outdated but her mind was sharpened, her skills honed. She was ready.

She was not ready. Her first big job went up in flames, almost literal flames as she found herself faced with a firewall she couldn't crack. It actually took her months of learning, and a continuous stream of abandoned alises before she began to get really good. Fortunately, one of the first things she worked on was cleaning away her trails and protecting herself. Even then, she's quickly vacated more than a few living spaces, sometimes through a window. It wasn't until she'd be able to upgrade her equipment and get a few new, shinier things that her egotism really set in. Success after success after success. Suddenly, it dawned on her—She'd turned herself into the greatest shit to run the NET since the first lines of code had been fabricated. She was the most bitchin' boogeyman out there, a thing of corporate nightmare. A few more failures did nothing to offset this thought process.

She changed her name to Chiue Xu'Miao, moved to the states, and began working under the handle Kid Kandi. She saw great success and popularity for a little over a year and a half when Biotechnica contacted her, the real her. At first, she was absolutely flabbergasted. How could THEY find HER?! How did THEY get through ACE?! It was IMPOSSIBLE. And yet, she found herself seated before a panel of serious faces. Oh yes, it was clear they were not happy with her and what she'd done. She had sold off a few of their well-kept secrets and left quite a mess to be cleaned up in their code structures. So, these nameless, silhouetted beings gave her two choices; She goes away somewhere dark, and remains disconnected from the net for about the rest of her natural life; Or she plays nice, and goes onto their payroll. It was immediately apparent that Chiue wouldn't be running from this problem.

Still, Chiue was at home playing dangerous games. She had two conditions; Biotechnica takes care of her family so that they live comfortably; things like proper healthcare, a decent house, quality food on the table, the kinds of things needed to maintain a pleasant standard of living; and that they don't reveal that she is Kid Kandi. There were a few heated words, mostly of which how Chiue was in no position to be making demands, and her retorting with how she was the hottest shit on the NET or Biotechnica wouldn't be trying to get her on salary. The results of some serious deliberation are obvious, it was determined that Chiue's "Conditions" were, arguably, sensible and agreeable.

╟[ Other.doc ] ┐
» Pyschosis

Chiue, like many others, suffers from Psychosis. The most common of which she refers to as "White Noise", or "Glitches". Who likes to admit they're going a little loose in the head? At times white noise will fill her visual and audio feeds. Medical Professionals ascertain that this may be caused by a lapse in neural reception resulting in the failure to properly receive information, resulting in distorted static noise and visuals. This phenomena is jarring, painful, and sends Chiue into a state of near total mental debilitation. Furthermore, it's been suggested that at she may be suffering from egotism and at times, mild megalomania. These professionals predict that these symptoms will worsen without exercising some form of treatment.

♦BIOTECHNICA S.A. REGISTRANT PERSONALITY QUIZ♦

╟[ Favorite Food: ] ┐
» I Absolutely Love Pizza.

└ Extra cheese and salami! And don't forget the parmesan or pepper flakes!

» Oh! And Spicy Food!

└ Especially Thai or Sichuan! Don't fucking judge me.

» Aaaand.. Fast Food.

└ I may have a slight addiction to cheeseburgers.

---

╟[ Least Favorite Food: ] ┐
» Disgusting Stuff. Blech.

└ Like Cottage Cheese, or eyeballs, or bugs.. Huuegh.. I'm gonna be sick.

» Bland and Boring Things.

└ Instant noodles and frozen burritos just don't do it anymore.

---

╟[ Use Three Words To Describe Yourself: ] ┐
» Badass. Elegant. Posh.

└ But mostly badass.

---

╟[ Likes: ] ┐
» Thrills and spills baby!

└ Nothing like the pounding rush of adrenaline!

» Fancy Ladies and Pretty Boys.

└ Wink. Wink.

» Art and Shit

└ Do pretty colors count as art?

» Partying! Dancing! Singing!

└ You ever moonlight as an "Exoctic Dancer"?!.. no?.. oh..

» Signs.

└ Dollar Signs, to be exact.

» Breaking Laws.

└ C'mon, you know it's fun.

» Shiny Toys and Places

└ Fast Cars! Neon Clubs! Penthouse Suites! That's what I'm talking about!

» ME!

└ I'm kind of the best, ya'know?

---

╟[ Dislikes: ] ┐
» Being Controlled.

└ My whole childhood was like that man.. it's a real bummer.

» Cats, Actually.

└ See, my last name is Miao.. and that sounds like meow aaaand.. you don't care.

» People Who Don't Like Me.

└ Obviously.

» Mind Altering Medications and Drugs.

└ I'm done with drugs and I don't want no happy pills, alright?

» Getting Ripped Off.

└ Don't cheat me and we'll be cool.

» Killing.

└ I won't do it.

» Being Broke.

└ You can't do nothing in this world without creds.

» People Snoopin' Through My Shit.

└ Ahaha, right. Except for you guys, of course.

» This Quiz!

└ It's fucking lame fam.

---

╟[ Values: ] ┐
» My Family

└ I did them wrong, and I'll spend the rest of my life making it up to them.

» Money, Bread, Stacks.

└ I can hit a lick pretty quick.. but.. I'm on payroll now. Does that mean I can't do side jobs?

» Promises.

└ It's important to keep your word.

» Not Doing sHiTtY qUizES

└ -_-'

» Honesty.

└ Be straight with me, and you'll get the same in return.

---

╟[ Strengths: ] ┐
» Cyber Tech

└ I can code programs and stuff pretty well.

» Pretty Face

└ C'mon, I look pretty damn good right? I could do like.. public relations or something! Right!? ...Right!?!!

» Martials Arts

└ I could scissor-kick you in the back of the head old man.

» I'm Scrappy

└ I won't go down without a fight, in meatspace or on the NET.

» I'm The Best

└ When it comes to the NET.

» Cautious

└ I'm attentive to detail when it comes to covering my ass.. and by proxy, your asses.

---

╟[ Flaws: ] ┐
» There's MORE?!

└ I'm a little impatient, A bit of ADD, A tad Reckless, I like Danger, I spend lots of money, I'm not much of a fighter, I'm small, I'm an adrenaline junky, I'm a little crazy and I'm so done with this quiz.

---

╟[ Anything Else: ] ┐
» >:[