˃OVERVIEW: ⛬ - Vincent Abrams, more commonly known as "Caliban", has racked up a reputation for being a ruthless mercenary with goals that go beyond merely building up a fortune out of high-risk missions for anyone who has the credit to afford his services. This individual was neither born or taught into this profession, but rather forced to by events way out of his control.
If anything, Vincent was mediocre at best in almost everything he did, but was a great con artist and a master in what he often called "applied science". After his first attempt at being a big shot merc' failed miserably deep in the Omicrons, Vince's attention shifted to posing as a scientist for clout and a chance at fooling someone dumb enough to trust him with "funding". A trick which eventually worked, but only years after nearly getting himself killed for the first time following rumors of a young cryptology hobbyist who wanted to recruit civilians into investigating intermittent S.O.S signals.
Having barely escaped from the jaws of death and with a haul of incredibly valuable minerals known as 'Dyson Ore', this skyrocketed Vincent's fame as a promising Xenobiologist. Merely claiming to be one was barely enough to convince the audience however. As such he was forced into actually studying the field. With empty pockets and a Dagger for an apartment, Vincent gained what knowledge he could by sneaking into University classrooms as a student, appropriating books from libraries and gossiping with teachers who did suspect him for anything else than what he claimed he was.
Eventually, an opportunity presented itself through an acquired friend in Liberty. Deep in Kepler's Storm was a technocrat scientist who made Vincent an offer he almost could not refuse: enough money to live like a king in exchange for the minerals he gathered in his first adventure. Perhaps out of sheer excitement he picked a choice he'd come to regret in the future. Refusing the credits, this technocrat - a so called Sapphire Raven - wished to offer support in whatever "research" Vincent had going on and in turn explore what truly lied within Kepler. Later on this choice would backfire for the young man who was way too deep into a plot that outclassed what accumulated from Cambridge.
⛬ - Days turned into weeks and weeks into months. Kepler became a progressively more dangerous system as Vincent and Raven's adventures caused more and more unidentified aliens to seep through spatial cracks such as 'The Prophet Anomaly'. At some point even Order Agents had become aware of the outbreak, thus landing Vincent in a precarious position where The Order, Xenos and Technocrats wanted something from him: information. The end-result of a crumbling truce between three parties was the eventual assassination of the young scientist who stood in the middle of it all. A con artist with barely any experience for the profession he chose and no combat piloting skills has met his end at the hands of both Xeno and Order pilots who accused Vincent of being an incubi-infested Thrall.
Vincent fell from the skies and into the nearest mudpit. Betrayed by Damien Moretti who chose to believe The Order's claims instead of his pleas for proofs, the young man who used to be the Commander's faithful pupil and newest honorary member to the Xeno movement's cause had his very first Valkyrie blown to smithereens in front of the very Station he owned. Only through sheer luck has he survived as a technocrat recon Cruiser passed by at the time.
⛬ - Technocrats. Boogeymen of the independent worlds and vicious enemies of both The Order and The Core. To Vincent, an ally that saved his life in a time of need either out of altruism or for the simple fact that it was necessary for him to be kept alive at all costs. The price, however, was a gradual loss of memory following unmeasured physical and psychological trauma. Humans evolve through hardships and Vincent was no different on that regard. He did, however, take this notion to the extreme with the indirect help of an ancient Nomad's interference which clashed with a self-defense mechanism triggered deep within the young man's psyche. That is how "Ego" - and much later known as "Caliban" was born.
A secondary personality has formed from the original's hopes, dreams, and beliefs. It was like tearing all the pages off a book and pasting new ones. The past scattered in the wind leaving only the new to create a brand new story. One of unmeasured angst, fear and fury. Vincent wished to be strong, powerful - to be truly built for the life of a mercenary. This is what Caliban was based off of. Now contaminated by cybernetical implants and a past he could not recognize as his own truly, he could barely recognize those he would once have called "friends".
Perhaps out of guilt or lack of patience, Raven re-introduced this personality without knowing the full extent of these changes to the Kepler situation. And unlike Vincent who had grown accustomed to the common sight of aliens and otherworldly spatial tears and dangers, Caliban was objectively terrified by the feeling that he belonged there, but could not explain how or why. Relations with the technocrats went downhill since as Raven kept on forcing a narrative that no longer worked with whoever held the reins in Vincent's mind. At some point, Raven's obsessions and refusals to let go have led herself, Caliban and Hemlocke into a heavily irradiated system - Alberta - through the Prophet Anomaly.
Refusing to cooperate with those who brought him in Alberta in the first place, Caliban sought his own way out. It was neither wise or wrong to do so, and given the circumstances one could not deny that every one of them was in danger of encountering the reviled alien menace known as "Sentinels" - beings vastly different to Nomad anatomy and way of thinking yet similar in origin.
Conflict sprouted almost immediately as Caliban discovered the site of a derelict Alien Gate rebuilding itself. Fully believing that said Gate was the only way out, Caliban held his ground for as long as possible against both Raven and Hemlocke. The clock was ticking as radiation ate away at their ships and with each taken hit only accelerated the countdown. Raven was the first who opened fire, forcing Caliban on the defensive until the tides turned and he switched to pure offensive, thus taking down the technocrat and and nearly ending the Rogue Warboss at the same time. Unfortunately for the mercenary his hull finally caved from the radiation. Hemlocke was the only one left standing with a fiery tail sprouting from his Sabre's reactor and collapsed wings.
⛬ - Hunted by Order Agents, on the run from technocrat forces, barred from Liberty by Xenos and without a reliable ship. Caliban's days were essentially numbered - a fact only amplified by the impending doom spelled by Alberta's deathly radiation. His body began to decay and the only relief there was at the time was heavy anti-radiation medication and gradual replacement of affected body parts with cybernetic enhancements. Resentment towards all three parties only grew as time passed. What the technocrats did to him was in many ways the same as what The Order did - only much slower and excruciating.
Time went on as Caliban carried on with his wrathful crusade against every one individual who had wronged him. He was only one man - broken in every aspect - against powers way out of his league. Yet what he lacked in firepower, he made up with cunning and patience. One deal led to another and the gone-feral mercenary had secured himself access to advanced technologies with the help of various factions who viewed his enemies as theirs also. As such, his second Valkyrie became nothing less than a symbol of bad omens. It became a statement to himself as a survivalist and to others as a cautionary tale: The unknown burns harder the more you play around with it.
And above all of these "bad people", as he viewed them, were the Nomads. The culprints of everything that went from good to bad, to horrible. Anyone who as much seemed sympathetic towards them became obvious targets. A certain sense of urgency and paranoia never allowed Caliban to think twice about the context. It was always a "now or never" situation. A predicament which led to countless tortures done against technocrat operatives, Nomad infiltrators and Order agents. Perhaps some were innocents - never truly aware of what reason did Caliban have to do all this. He didn't care though. Caring implied wasted time. Time he didn't have.
⛬ - In his later years all that rage and angst would dull as the sickness he endured became a medium for his penance. With hardly any humanity left to spare, and no real intention to push for ever shifting goals that largely depended on his state of being, Caliban allegedly "retired" behind mountains of credits he had accumulated over time. Nowadays he enjoys the fruits of his labor as a laid-back job fixer and teacher to newcomers on Barrier Gate.
To this day, Caliban still has to face the choices of his past deeds. From working with House Agencies to both harassing and collaborating with current and former enemies, he plays a dangerous game of which the only end goal is self gain.
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