 | "Crows and Magpies, Jackdaws, Rooks. One-eyed men are always crooks. Twenty Fish on Twenty hooks; learning from the burning books." They called it "The Second Night of the Raven," and it changed my life. This nursery rhyme was written by Peccavii sympathizers to discredit Democratic loyalists. It is easy to see through. The first line is just a list of other names for a Raven. The one-eyed man is either a reference to the all-seeing eye of Pharaoh or Takahashi himself, who lost an eye that night. The twenty fish are the Zeroan senators targeted by the Black Star Armada, the twenty hooks are Pharaoh's Twenty Principles of Arbitration. The last line though... I was there. I sat in the Historical Archives of the school library when they set it on fire. She called it a Symbol. Literally the only thing that saved me was the fact that I couldn't move. As the Institute Library burned around me, the roof caved in. A broken skylight fell where I was. Only survivor in the library. That also makes me the only witness to their deaths. That woman called it a symbol. They were my friends. She shot them in the knees or in the back. She didn't kill them. She wanted them to suffer. A symbol, she said. Dying in a fire. She didn't shoot me. Trophy killed four of her men. Empty Death. Before that day, I didn't even know he could survive outside his tank. We were both prisoners, or I thought we were. Trophy was planted by the Church to watch over me. I never knew. My parents they gave a lot of money to the Church, but I never knew they had a bodyguard sharing my dorm room; pretending to be an Abomination so he could keep an eye on me. She didn't have to shoot me. My legs haven't worked since I was three years old. Terrorist attack. Black Star Armada. Bomb hidden in my parents' limo. My parents gave a lot of money to the Church. She ripped the antigrav manifold out with one hand. They wanted me to die in a fire. From hoverchair to coffin in one simple step. My roommate was a secret assassin. My school was taken over by terrorists. I watched six people die in a fire. I lived because the same people blew up my parents' Limo fourteen years earlier. Josef and Claudia, they survived too. They're still fighting. I'm still hiding. She said "run and hide" because she knew I couldn't. Josef and Claudia are too public. They make themselves into targets. I know what they're doing. I'll use the bait too. I'm going to find that woman and make a symbol out of her. | Personality: Haven't left my chair since that night. Haven't left this ship in nearly ten years. All I ever wanted to do was make maps. Empty Life. Then someone tried to kill me. "Run and Hide," she told me. Mocking. I survived because her friends put a bomb in my family's car. Three years old. My parents give a lot of money to the Church. Less than they think. IOU. Family money. Justification. They're still watching Josef and the others. They don't know I'm watching too. I watch the watchers. Guardian Angel. |
 | | Strength: | Weak BELOW normal human strength -
can bench press 50 pounds (maybe). | Agility: | Weak BELOW normal human agility.
Slow and uncoordinated. | | Body: | Weak BELOW normal human endurance.
Goes down easy and stays there. | Mind: | Superior Highly educated and ingenious.
A smart cookie. |
 | Ten Years |
- Power: Vehicle
- Level:Supreme
- Kit Power Link: Empathy
- Reinforced Defenses Defense blocks Armor Piercing attacks.
I haven't been on a planet in almost a decade. The Darius runs cycles in deep orbit, trawling the galactic trade lanes, data dumping at random intervals. Ghost ship. Nondescript. Isaac used to say mediocrity is the best kind of camouflage. A node hub like the thousands of node hubs LeVent Interstellar has circulating the galaxy. Nothing special. The best pancake stacking algorithm in the universe won't get them an inch closer to finding me. A lonely existence, but necessary. Someone wanted me to die in a fire. From the ship, I monitor everything. Deep Orbit. My muscles have atrophied to the point where I would die in a planetary atmosphere. My heart couldn't handle it. I watch the watchers. I protect my friends. A woman tried to kill me once. I think she succeeded. I plan on taking a long time to die.
 | Justification |
- Power: Weapons Creation
- Level:Superior
- Kit Power Link: Empathy
- Area Effect This attack causes damage in a large area.
- Ranged and Melee Attack! Attack is equally effective at range and up close.
- Multi Attack Attack can hit multiple times during one strike.
They followed Isaac. He tried to disappear. They threw him out a window. I shot the other guys in the stairwell. A man crouched outside Bianca's window, waiting for her to come home. I blew up her apartment ten minutes before she got there. They don't attack the ship. They don't know about me. Ghost Ship. Two months ago I found one of the thugs from the Library. He didn't know, couldn't have known. Haven't left the ship in ten years. He died in a fire. Fiance too. Terrible way to go. Mickey showed up on the cortex as a cold corpse. Nabi was a turncoat traitor. Knife in the back. Gas leak. Justification. There is a woman following Josef right now. She'll say she wants his autograph. The ink in her pen is a histamine based poison. I'm in the back seat of her car right now. I'm going to strangle her. Revenge. Not me, but you know what I mean. Haven't left the ship in ten years. Guardian Angel.
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| Guardian Angel |
IntelliCab uses LeVent Security protocols to protect their AI network. I live in a LeVent node hub. Nondescript. Ghost Ship. Marjus is dead. I plan on taking a long time to die. Bianca took a cab to the hotel. My cab. They're all my cab. I'm an Excellent driver. Can't leave the ship. Heart couldn't handle planetary gravity. I'm everywhere and nowhere. I blew up Bianca's apartment ten minutes before she got home. She was in my cab. Detour to save your life. I let her listen to Josef and Claudia's music. It makes her happy. Bianca used to scare me. Now I think she understands me. Empty life. Empty death. What happens after revenge? Bang.
 | Empty Life |
Lots of people use LeVent Security protocols. I'm still lonely. The chair is part of the ship now. Deep Orbit. Watched them corner Isaac. They threw him out a window. Isaac was never very bright. Nobody should be thrown out a window. I heard their conversation. Isaac thinks its Sven. We're both lucky he's wrong. Poor Sven. I knew the layout of the building. I know them all. Haven't been in a building in ten years. The two men died on the third floor in a stairwell. Isaac survived. Guardian Angel Marjus. Good man, good son, good nephew. I miss Uncle Darius. Aunt Mary Alice. I wanted to have adventures. I got one, it didn't turn out so well. Someone tried to kill me. Now I live in space. Ten years. Heart can't handle the gravity. Mubwin was spotted. Oh no you don't. I saw her first. I wish I could see her. Atrophy. Damnit.
There are seemingly arbitrary data triggers in even the smallest files. To maintain security all erased files must not only be erased, they must be overwritten. That is why LeVent Security nodes run data dumps in deep space every six months. Dad found a way to map data dumps onto the gravity drive. He thinks he's the only one with a backup. Family business. Family money. My parents are good people. Good at making money. There are scholarships in my name at every university for six systems. Rest in Peace. Not yet. Long time to die. First I will find that woman. She will die in a fire. Nobody ever figures out the stolen data dumps. How could they? The information was destroyed in the encoding process. You have to have specially encrypted firmware to even view a gravity drive map. Professor Cale would've said the wisest strategy would be to aggressively exploit the flaw until the demand function collapses, forcing the system to reset. Bad idea. Mustn't draw attention. I am Nondescript. Trevor Cale was a nice man. Government job now. Lower salary than the Institute. Left after Raven. Always thought he was Taka's stooge. Maybe not.
 | Nondescript |
I don't leave fingerprints. I don't have accomplices. Don't even have friends anymore. Ghost ship. Alone. Go ahead. Follow the cab. Run a DNA analysis on the hair you found. Subpoena Nabi's phone records. The cab is not special. They're all my cab. The hair belongs to a rat I knew in school. I never spoke to Nabi. He was in debt to a lot of people. Form a list of suspects. Who blew up Bianca's apartment? Where did the donation come from to keep Piper's clinic open? I knew Mickey was gonna take the fall before he did it. I knew Claudia was gonna delay the release of the compilation album by two weeks. I'm already dead. Died in a fire. Died before that too. Three years old. Twice Dead. Trophy died. My roommate was a secret assassin. Best Friend. Killed four people. I watched him die in a fire. I lived, because I had already died. I miss my boat.
 | Ghost Ship |
- Power: Smoke Screen
- Level:Supreme
- Seeker This attack hunts and follows its target.
- Ranged and Melee Attack! Attack is equally effective at range and up close.
"False History leads to False Faith." Pharaoh's Sixth Dictum; The Twenty Principles of Arbitration. A Necessary Evil. No Fingerprints. There is a digital trail, for those skilled enough to follow it. It doesn't lead anywhere. The pieces don't add up without the story, and nobody knows the story. Empty Life. Family Money. Died in a Fire. Empty Death. Ten Years. Ghost Ship. Nondescript. Atrophy. Guardian Angel. Justification. Revenge. Bang.
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