The Edge of Darkness (Science Fiction) [NC Freeform]

[GloomCookie]

THE EDGE OF DARKNESS

Jump Drive... we thought it would be a solution we could exploit.  The High Council said the Coalition could escape the Solar system, get away from the brutal dictators on Earth, and keep peace and democracy safe.  Turns out it was just the beginning of our problems.  Sure we colonized several worlds and kept the Earth neatly bottled up, but with humans clamoring to escape, it wasn't hard for the spies to get in.  And we were just colonies, we didn't have the same industrial base as Earth.  We were fighting with everything we could scrape together, and even that wasn't enough at times.

We put all our hopes in Project Magellan, hoping that if we kept exploring further, farther, that maybe somewhere we'd find something that we could use.  A world suited for humans, alien life, anything we could get our hands on that would give us an edge over Earth.  But we were so pressed for ships we could only scrape up three, and we had to send them in different directions to maximize our chances.  I feel horrible thinking about what those crews had to face, plunging deep into the darkness to try and find something that could save us.  Yet if I had to, I'd do it all again.

Admiral Horatio Lee
Commander, Project Magellan



The Edge of Darkness focuses on the crew of the CWS Harbinger, a 20 year old cruiser that's seen numerous actions against Earth warships.  She and her sisterships Guardian and Archangel were chosen to explore beyond the mapped jump points and try to find anything of value to the Coalition of Human Worlds.  Each ship was refitted to make them better suited for long range exploration, with fully functional hospitals, marine detachment, research laboratory, advanced sensors and more advanced recreational facilities.  But the ships are still warships, and are built to defend themselves against anything they might come across.

The Coalition of Human Worlds was founded in 2615 when Mars and Europa succeeded from Earth, which had become a large police state to contain the 20 billion people living there.  Titan followed shortly after, though the Moon, due to its proximity with Earth, was forced to remain allied with Earth.  The advent of jump drive in 2679 let colonists flee to several worlds beyond the reach of Earth warships.  Yet even so, the colonies were barely beyond being able to sustain themselves, let alone the military force needed to stop Earth.  Most Coalition vessels have skeleton crews, and debris from battles often gets recycled to build new ones.  Earth continues to build vessels, and the Coalition continues to try and keep pace.



Primary Career:

Command: Flight, Weapons, Communications
Engineering: Propulsion, Structural, Electrical, Research
Marine: Fire Team, Artillery, Fighter Ops
Medical: Primary Care, Surgical, Psychiatry
Supply: Manufacturing, Armory, Recreation

Certifications: (Max of 2, one required from your branch)

Command:
Shuttle Pilot (Class 2 or Class 3): Class 2 shuttles are for hauling cargo and gunships.  Class 3 shuttles carry passengers and EMTs.

Fighter Pilot: Certification allows the pilot with a Class 2 shuttle certification to fly the Phalanx fighter/bomber.

Engineering:
Jump Drive: Certifies an engineer to maintain the complicated jump drives aboard the Harbinger.

EVA Tech: Certificate allowing EVA missions to repair damage on the ship's exterior.

Marine:
Squad Support (Sniper or SAW): Armed with a long-range sniper rifle or a Squad Automatic Weapon, the Squad Support certificate shows that person is qualified with their weapon of choice.

Orbital Drop: Placed into a tube and launched, the marine falls from orbit down into the atmosphere of a planet for immediate support or for lightning raids.

Medical:
Xenobiology: Certification in Xenobiology allows examination and study of non-terrestrial life, from simple microbes to sentient beings.

Combat Medicine: Aboard an emergency shuttle, the combat medic stabilizes those hurt in combat before sending them for further treatment.

Supply:
Survey: Exploration and survival techniques are the focus of this certification, enabling its holder to explore areas on foot that the ship itself can't go.

Sexual Stimulation: Only those certified can have sexual relations with other officers on the ship.  This ensures that the officer holding it not only understands the risks of relationships, but also that they have taken precautions (such as temporary sterilization) to ensure children are not conceived aboard.



Character Sheet

You are allowed up to 3 characters, preferably with different fields.

Code Select Expand

[size=12pt][b]Name:[/b]
[b]Age:[/b]
[b]Gender:[/b]
[b]PoB:[/b] (Mars/Europa/Titan/Alpha Centuri/Sirius)
[b]Marital Status:[/b]
[b]Specialization:[/b] (Engineering/Flight/Marine/Medical/Munitions/Quartermaster/Recreation/Research)
[b]Brief Bio:[/b][/size]

[aya]

Going to leave my interest in this thread, but won't be able to post a sheet until I get home tomorrow.

Love the story you have set up! By the way, my field is very likely to be medical.

[KeyOfTwilight]

Interested indeed, I'll have to look more at it in the morning.

[Xanatos]

Damn Linna! Another awesome sounding idea. I will most definitely get in on this.

What is the tech level? Do they have energy weapons or is this still a projectile based tech line? Do they have holograms? Teleportation? Shields? Is medical technology super advanced? Etc.

[GloomCookie]

Damn Linna! Another awesome sounding idea. I will most definitely get in on this.

What is the tech level? Do they have energy weapons or is this still a projectile based tech line? Do they have holograms? Teleportation? Shields? Is medical technology super advanced? Etc.

Both governments, Earth and the Coalition, have pros and cons.  Life on Earth is much easier in terms of housing, though large tenement buildings dot the landscape as 23 billion people try to cram into cities.  Birth control is mandatory, and many crimes carry death sentences.  Travel is severely restricted, and food is rationed.  While robotics and technology could make production faster, the sheer number of people means labor is cheap, and so menial tasks are done entirely by humans.  The police have the authority to enter someone's home at any time and search for anything deemed to be contraband, and often violators are simply shot rather than taken to trial.

The Coalition enjoys much more freedom, but being colonies, they are much more pressed for resources.  Industry is heaviest on Mars due to the large amounts of iron naturally present, and most of it is done by robotics.  Machines produce more machines that then produce goods, with humans there to oversee things.  Europa uses the vast underwater oceans for hydroponics, feeding most of the Coalition, while Titan is home to the Coalition High Command, primarily due to the dense atmosphere making it easier to construct habitats there.  Alpha Centuri and Sirius both are still primarily focused on building their infrastructures, both colonies only a few decades old.  There is also an upstart mining operation within the asteroid belts between Mars and Jupiter.

Space battles are fought largely between ships with mass drivers, firing slugs of depleted uranium around a dense iron core.  These shells only weigh one kilo, but are fired at extremely high velocities for maximum energy delivery.  Shields are non-existent, relying on heavy armor and thick bulkheads to localize damage.  Transit between ships is accomplished by shuttles flying back and forth, and the Coalition has recently begun experimenting with fighters to counteract the focus on high-tonnage vessels coming from Earth.  Fighting with Marines is limited, but has happened, carrying assault rifles not too dissimilar from what's carried today, only with better anti-ballistic protection.

Medical technology is more advanced than today, focused on non-invasive techniques such as hand-held MRI, allowing doctors to examine inside the body of a patient without the need for biopsies.  Most surgeries are laproscopic, and advances in adult human stem cells and culture growth allow replacement organs and limbs to be constructed quickly.  Almost all blood save super rare types is manufactured, and most STDs such as AIDs, herpes, etc. have been rooted out of the Coalition, though cases do appear every so often.  Due to the embargo on Earth and the necessity of war-time production, alcohol is severely restricted, and smoking is entirely banned.

The most advanced technology that the Coalition enjoys over that of Earth is their use of Quantum Sea technology.  Tapping into the almost limitless potential found at the smallest quantum level, ships can travel forever without needing to refuel.  Earth vessels still use anti-matter, dumping small pellets of anti-matter into vast stores of water to produce superheated plasma to drive their engines.  While Coalition ships are more maneuverable, Earth ships do enjoy a small advantage in terms of acceleration.  And due to the minefields around the Solar system's only jump node, Earth is unable to test their jump drives to expand.

[Vandren]

Sounds interesting.

(English prof moments, though: I think you meant to write that "Mars and Europa seceded from Earth" rather than "succeeded"; and there's a bit of a smirk at Europa's "underwater oceans")

[Scribbles]

Not sure if we need a pic but here's one just in case: http://i782.photobucket.com/albums/yy103/TrashyMe/354bb0d2.jpg

Hope this is okay as it's more like a summarized bio. I rushed it out as soon as I saw this RP.  :-)

Name: Kayla Sol
Age: 24
Gender: Female
PoB: Mars
Marital Status: Married, Jacob Sol
Specialization:
Marine - Fire Team
Certification - Orbital Drop
Certification - Combat Medicine
Certification - Sexual Stimulation
Brief Bio:
Kayla Sol was born on the red planet to Steven and Mary Hanson, two industrial workers. Here, amongst the stone, steel and iron, she played, learned, grew and survived. The danger of having such a close proximity to earth a reminder harshly given as constant sabotage, terror tactics and outright attacks riddled the seasons. Some might say that it was a character building experience and Kayla was certainly resourceful and paranoid enough to escape with her life more than once but even the hardened Hanson family had to say enough was enough. And so, once Kay hit her late teens, they left for the outer colonies.

After settling and making new friends Kayla soon came of age and immediately, much to her families distress, signed on as a recruit for the marines. While not exactly the mule or tank of the academy she made an excellent shot, especially with small arms, and excelled at hand-to-hand. It was during her stint in the Academy that she met commander Sol, an officer whose official position was that of a combatant while really being little more than a public relations officer. Hailed as a hero by those who didn't know him on a personal level, Jacob Sol held a less than reputable status within the actual armed forces he'd been assigned over, with any genuine respect falling to his more battle-hardened colleagues.

Kayla couldn't have known at the time however and, when they started dating, all she could see were the stars and medals. He also had many other qualities as he was both charming and intelligent, but even those couldn't keep Kayla from cringing as she one day realized the only reason he'd married her was to portray a picture of humility to the troops and citizens. The young marine even found herself being dragged into his eternal drive for an inflated self-image as she succumbed to his pressuring for assistance in a few recruitment ads. Toss in more than a few heated quarrels and the embarrassment was the last straw for the publicity-shy marine, seeing her scantily clad self plastered all over an ambitious ad campaign. With little more than a hurriedly scribbled note, she informed her husband of her assignment to the CWS Harbinger before packing and set out to do what she always wanted, join the marines...

[KeyOfTwilight]

I'm thinking I'll have one flight/navigation character, one flight/shuttle pilot, and one marine under judiciary, thinking of something on the lines of a commisar gaunt esque character like from the Gaunt's Ghosts books.  All three will be girls, sisters, though age and personality will of course vary.

[GloomCookie]

Sounds interesting.

(English prof moments, though: I think you meant to write that "Mars and Europa seceded from Earth" rather than "succeeded"; and there's a bit of a smirk at Europa's "underwater oceans")

Well technically the ocean is underwater, since the surface is nothing but ice.  I WILL NOT BE DENIED!

[Vandren]

Well technically the ocean is underwater, since the surface is nothing but ice.  I WILL NOT BE DENIED!

:)

[KeyOfTwilight]

Name: Annette Stringler
Age: 23
Gender: Female
PoB: Titan
Marital Status: Single
Specialization: Command - Flight.  Certified in Class 2 Shuttle, Sexual Stimulation and Fighters.
Appearance: http://img535.imageshack.us/img535/8046/sample998e157d403934263.jpg
Brief Bio: Born on Titan, Annette is the eldest of the Stringler siblings.  She is the only one who truly remembers much of her parents, and thus is still scarred by the loss of them, although 18 years have passed.  Annette is a fairly calm and composed person, the right personality for piloting shuttles and fighters, though she does have her ditzy and silly moments at times.  Her style of dress is quite odd, forgoing pants or skirts completely, something which has caused no end of trouble in the past.  Regardless, she is a valued crewmember and takes her job seriously.

Name: Jessibelle Stringler
Age: 21
Gender: Female
PoB: Titan
Marital Status: Single
Specialization: Command - Weapons.  Certified in Class 2 Shuttle, Sexual Stimulation,  and Orbital drop.
Appearance: http://img808.imageshack.us/img808/6581/samplef7b2e2fc8b1132813.jpg
Brief Bio: Jessibelle remember very little of her parents, only recollecting images of her father in uniform.  Those memories eventually caused Jessi to enroll in the marines, something that she was able to do at an early age thanks to her father's legacy.  Her studious nature and serious attitude towards all things got her good grades, and eventually a promotion to a judiciary representative on board the ship.  Tomboy in nature, Jessi wraps her chest and keeps her hair cut short to take away any distraction it might cause for fellow marines or other shipmates.  She carries two swords modeled after 15th century Earth katana, stating that the discharge of firearms onboard the ship could be hazardous.  She does not, however, have qualms about using a gun when it comes to it, knowing that bringing blades to a gunfight is unwise.  Jessi has been known to display moments of softness and girliness at times, occurrences which she tries to cover up quite fast.  Her clothing is rather subdued, typical marines colors, though in a very eastern style.  Her hair is white.

Name: Madeline Stringler
Age: 18
Gender: Female
PoB: CWS Harbinger
Marital Status: Single
Specialization: Engineering - Research.  Certified in Warp Drive, Xenobiology, and Sexual Stimulation.
Appearance: http://img33.imageshack.us/img33/7329/sample05968d10564fb7fe1.jpg
Brief Bio: 

[GloomCookie]

Scribbles, I love your character.  Very original, very good.  You're approved.

KeyOfTwilight, yours needs a bit of tweaking.  No one in their right mind is going to allow three little girls to grow up on a warship, especially since the Harbinger is a cruiser made for front-line action.  I'd prefer they be raised in an orphanage, probably on Titan due to its heavier population density.  Madeline, as a flight officer, will serve on the bridge, and I can see Annette serving as a shuttle pilot.  However, when not piloting the shuttles, Annette will be assaigned wherever she is needed, even if its deep in the environmental mixing tanks cleaning them out.  Jessibelle will probably spend most of her time as a Marine, if she isn't sent to join Munitions.  Remember, the Coalition is short on just about everything, so sometimes you'll be put somewhere you might not want to be, for the greater good.  If a courts marshal were called, she would serve as legal defense, and if the Marines are sent anywhere, she'll be handed a gun and told to go with.

This goes for everyone.  Even if you pick a specialization, you will still be given tasks as if you were a regular officer.  So don't complain if you chose something and still have to do other things.

[KeyOfTwilight]

The idea with growing up on a warship is more based off the idea of how the newest star trek movie played out with kirk's birth.  You had said it's also exploratory, so it wouldn't be all combat, right?  If they are travelling to new areas, there has to be some civilian presence, right?  I mean, R&D isnt exactly military work, unless they're working on military sciences.  Just a thought.  I just wanted to play with the idea that the characters had spent almost no time on solid ground.

[GloomCookie]

The idea with growing up on a warship is more based off the idea of how the newest star trek movie played out with kirk's birth.  You had said it's also exploratory, so it wouldn't be all combat, right?  If they are travelling to new areas, there has to be some civilian presence, right?  I mean, R&D isnt exactly military work, unless they're working on military sciences.  Just a thought.  I just wanted to play with the idea that the characters had spent almost no time on solid ground.

The Harbinger was refitted for her new role as an explorer, but before she was a warship through and through.  It's up there in the details hun.  There are a few space stations, but most of them are cramped and filled with machinery for some purpose, such as growing food and manufacturing materials.  I'm not doing all this to shut you down, but I try and play it realistically enough that we don't break the magical suspension of disbelief.

[ChaoticSky]

Scribbles, I love your character.  Very original, very good.  You're approved.

KeyOfTwilight, yours needs a bit of tweaking.  No one in their right mind is going to allow three little girls to grow up on a warship, especially since the Harbinger is a cruiser made for front-line action.  I'd prefer they be raised in an orphanage, probably on Titan due to its heavier population density.  Madeline, as a flight officer, will serve on the bridge, and I can see Annette serving as a shuttle pilot.  However, when not piloting the shuttles, Annette will be assaigned wherever she is needed, even if its deep in the environmental mixing tanks cleaning them out.  Jessibelle will probably spend most of her time as a Marine, if she isn't sent to join Munitions.  Remember, the Coalition is short on just about everything, so sometimes you'll be put somewhere you might not want to be, for the greater good.  If a courts marshal were called, she would serve as legal defense, and if the Marines are sent anywhere, she'll be handed a gun and told to go with.

This goes for everyone.  Even if you pick a specialization, you will still be given tasks as if you were a regular officer.  So don't complain if you chose something and still have to do other things.

i am interested. and i have a query.

would it be possible to have two specializations, if one is.... less time-demanding? for example, with Key's shuttle pilot, we wont be using shuttles that often (or so i think :P ) so the rest of the time it seems like it would be better spent if they had secondary spec, rather than being given 'odd jobs'

[KeyOfTwilight]

Ah, ok, I misread, I thought it was exploratory for 20 years.  My bad.  In that case I'll go with the orphanage on Titan, still orphans of parents who worked on the Harbinger.  I'm gonna switch Maddi to R&D though, I like the idea that she's a childish genius more than being a nav pilot.

[GloomCookie]

New rules are up regarding careers.  You pick a primary career and then a specialization within that field, then you may pick up to 2 certifications.

Example: Engineering - Structural

Certification: EVA Tech and Class 2 Shuttle pilot

[Xanatos]

Interesting, interesting. I have a question about the Sexual Stimulation certification. I understand the gist of it, except; does only one person need to have it for two people to have a relationship or do both people involved in said relationship need to have the certification?

Well for now, my idea is a male (since there is already a ton of females), who is a certified "sex" officer. Not sure what else to give him which compliments said skill.

[PeacethatPowerbrings]

Name: Alice Mercuriya
Age: 28
Gender: Female
PoB: Europa
Marital Status: Single
Specialization: Supply - Recreation
Certifications: Sexual Stimulation, Xenobiology, and Survey
Appearance
Brief Bio: Born and educated on Europa, Alice was born into an influential scientific family, one containing several distinguished research scientist, probably the most notable of which were her parents. Although extremely intelligent, Alice was not particularly engaged by scientific pursuits, and didn't like the prospect of moving into a corporate position with the family R&D corporation. Instead she went into the military, excelling at her position as a Recreation Ofiicer, and was eventually assigned to the Harbinger. Her reason for being chosen for the job includes the fact that she can be considered a staffing redundency, because before her decision against continuing in sciences she already had a degree in biology, with a focus on bio-engineering, and xenobiology.

[Scribbles]

Edited my bio to reflect changes.

[KeyOfTwilight]

Just edited my Bio.  Need to work on Maddi's bio though, rewrite her past.

[Brandon]

Sounds interesting, i think I would like to jump in it. However, I have to ask how much NC stuff will be going on in the game. If its just between characters then its no problem, I can avoid such scenes. If theres planned and needed alien rape or things like that for the story then I probably wont be getting involved as it screws up the story and goes against my limits

[Xanatos]

Here is my guy Linna, hope he satisfies. The sheet is a bit sparse, (you remember my one for Evermore -chuckles-), though I got the feeling you wanted sparse for this one, I think anyways >.> .

Edit: I can't resist the urge to make another character... lol. Will put up a second person at some point.

Name: Damascus Jegari
Age: 25
Gender: Male
PoB: Titan
Marital Status: Single (seeks a relationship, but isn't the best at approaching others)
Specialization: (Supply) Survey [specialization], Sexual Stimulation, Class 3 Shuttle Pilot, and Communications
Orientation: Heterosexual

Brief Bio: Born on Titan, Damascus always had the desire to explore, one which was unfortunately suppressed when he was younger thanks to the colonies uninhabitable atmosphere outside of the bio-dome; thus it prompted him when he was old enough, to join up with the Coalition. He eagerly wanted to see the many things space and other worlds had to offer him. He quickly made his way into the scouting and surveying corps of the navy, quickly showing his natural skill at scouting. As part of his training he learned to fly personnel shuttles; to him it was an obvious need. If one was to explore, they had damn well better be able to fly or at least drive.

Nothing of importance was left behind on Titan, he and his parents were a bit estranged by the time he joined up with the Coalition. To say he disliked his parents was untrue but he realized there was little love between him and them and thus felt no sense of loss leaving them on Titan. There was little for him anyways, and his intense desire to explore drove him onwards. Not looking back, he kept his gaze outwards upon the stars and couldn't wait to see what he could find.

At this same time he as he was learning to harness his natural exploration skills, Damascus also was noticed for his knack at dealing with women; he was by no means a suave man who got all the woman latched onto his arms, able to choose any he wanted. No, he proved good at holding a relationship together because he cared to try; he listened, he was confident and stuck to his guns but was willing to back down when compromise was needed. Damascus was exactly what was wanted in a stimulation expert, a caring person willing to coexist with another.

Damascus finds fighting necessary but would prefer not to engage in any himself, though he does have a fascination for weaponry. He is one of those men who can fight if it comes to it, though would rather let the men and women who make it their life, to defend and kill, do the fighting.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Name: Gemini Arrin
Age: 24
Gender: Female
PoB: Europa
Marital Status: Single
Specialization: (Command; Flight), Fighter Pilot [specialization], Class 3 Shuttle, Jump Drive, Sexual Stimulation
Orientation: Bi-sexual

Brief Bio: Gemini was born on the ice and water moon of Europa, finding it rather boring, unless flying over it. Her passion quickly grew to become a love of flying from a young age, having been greatly influenced by her uncle; her uncle had been a pilot in the Coalition, and taught her the basics of piloting. She was quite close to her uncle, having lost her father when she was young; her uncle Marko quickly became her new father figure and he gladly accepted the position, finding himself quite fond of his niece.

Her mother was always away at work, so Gemini spent all her time learning from Marko. She and her mom got along well but because she rarely saw her mom, their relationship was not nearly as strong as her relationship with her uncle.

On her twentieth birthday she signed up for the Coalition, much to the mixed reaction of her uncle and mother. He was proud she was following in his footsteps but also worried, although, he knew he taught her well so he knew she would do well despite his concern. She would go on to become a skilled and experienced pilot, quickly getting used to the new fighters and loving them. She would also learn she had a knack for engineering, a skill which appeared out of no where. Gemini tends to maintain her own fighter, if she has time, and is often called on to help work on the Harbingers Jump Drive; she does not know the science behind it, only able to really just put it back together if it breaks.

During her shuttle training she met a man named Damascus, and the two became quick friends. It was also because of him she decided to get her Sexual Stimulation certification; although the two never became romantic as she wasn't interested in him.

Gemini is bi-sexual but a budding one. She has always been more comfortable around men, but has come to find herself being fascinated by the female figure; she still doesn't fully admit to herself that she finds women attractive. She might unintentionally flirt with a woman and not realize what she is doing.

Gemini and Damascus: The two have a good friendship going and both feel safe around one another; they can share things with each other they wouldn't even share with other friends. Damascus at one time wanted to date Gemini but she firmly rebuffed him, not interested in him in a romantic sense. He was disappointed but didn't let it ruin their friendship. The two can be playful with each other at times, but its plain to see that its not a sexual or romantic playfulness, only a friendly type.

[GloomCookie]

Sounds interesting, i think I would like to jump in it. However, I have to ask how much NC stuff will be going on in the game. If its just between characters then its no problem, I can avoid such scenes. If theres planned and needed alien rape or things like that for the story then I probably wont be getting involved as it screws up the story and goes against my limits

I go with NC because occasionally I'll need to alter the environment around you, and fix minor mistakes.  For the most part, everything will be consensual, and everyone abides by everyone else's limits.

Oh, and I'm sure everyone's going to enjoy this, but you may now choose to have the Sexual Stimulation Certificate and it won't count towards your limit of 2 certificates.  Appologies for the changes, but I'm trying to make things easier on everyone.  Everyone seems eager to have Sexual Stimulation in mind, so anyone can get it.

[Xanatos]

Well you can't blame us! =P In my own defense, I didn't realize everyone else had chosen it until after I made my first character...