APPLICATION } Systemwide

[hellbrokeloose]

UNPLUGGED

OOC

Name: Rockefeller
Age: I’m a thousand years old
Contact details: thehoodedfigures
Characters already in Systemwide: N/A

BASIC PROFILE

Name: Simon Metzger
Age: 51
Canon: Original
Appearance: Metzger is built like a distinguished little goat, sure-footed and neatly shorn. Casual self-assurance is wrought naturally through the slope of his shoulders into spine, pace and presence imbued with crisp military efficiency. His greying hair is coarse and kempt, keen eyes an unremarkable hazel and whiskers sanded silver at the block of his jaw. There is a devil's edge to his smile, quick to show as it is to fade around an acute awareness of himself and his stature.

PB: Christoph Waltz

Extraction point: Metzger was 34 years old when he was extracted, 5 years into his political career and a little over a year into his second term as a senator for his home province. He was beginning to settle away from terrorist tendencies into more responsible political activism. See timeline in setting info below for details on what occurred up to and around that point.

OVERVIEW

Personality: At age 51, 17 years after his extraction, Simon is fiercely loyal to the human cause, tenacious, and (sometimes problematically) hands on, preferring to see tasks through to completion personally.

Politics - He’s a natural politician, adept as an actor and a manipulator for all that his reputation for getting things done by any means necessary precedes him. His relationship with the Council and other captains is complicated accordingly, but he’s savvy enough to keep any conflict with the Council close to his chest, to be sorted out behind closed doors. He’s typically more vocal about his disagreements with other captains, particularly with regard to colluding with programs.

But! He has always ceded to the Council’s wisdom in the end, and has established himself as an effective, efficient and reliable captain when it comes to the completion of objectives and extractions, regardless of whether or not he’s a fan of the mission at hand.

Nidhoggr - To his crew members, who see a great deal more of him than most, he is as lax about their personal lives as he is relentless about ensuring that their work is taken care of on time and to his exacting standards. While he will rarely interfere with or attempt to control what they get up to (or who they get with) on their own time, he doesn’t tolerate laziness, slovenliness or carelessness in the line of duty. He doesn’t like mistakes. His hovercraft is very clean; his missions are run very tightly. Those who can’t hack it are transferred or cut.

For those who do commit themselves to his ship and follow his orders and risk their lives for Zion, he’s protective and tends to get more closely attached than he’ll readily confess. Enough so to have taken the rap for lapses in their judgment on more than one occasion, sparing them from the Council’s (and potentially the public’s) wrath.

Just not his own.

This is similarly true of his business dealings, although with less job security: if the risk to his reputation is too great, he’s more apt to cut people loose than not, provided they haven’t proven they’re worth the trouble. Although members of his crew won’t be forced to participate directly in dealings of this nature, he will typically not recruit anyone he thinks may sabotage or report on any illicit activities they become aware of, up to and including negotiating with pirates and the occasional violent act. Pragmatists are preferred.

Reputation - As for Metzger himself, his day-to-day revolves around his ship and his work -- and in wider, more extreme scope, the elimination of the machines as a threat to mankind. He lives like a soldier and has little to no personal life to speak of, beyond the management of his black market business. For some years he was still privately, deeply involved with Hans Wagner, but his crew has always known better than to talk about that. Much.

He has a tar black sense of humor and a violent temper and has made people disappear, on rare occasion. Most (without sufficient clout) know better than to attract his attention for the wrong reasons. Those that do typically live to ensure that message continues to be clear. He’s in it to maintain power and pull; any profit he turns goes into that same end.

He’s also vain and irritable and overly concerned with appearances and susceptible to manipulation himself, particularly where it concerns blind, stupid love.

His hatred for the machines is fanatical and stems all the way back to his early teens, when his step-father was put out of work by a factory drone. Soon after, other jobs began to be replaced, and the government began to entertain the idea of fighting wars with artificially intelligent robotic soldiers. He saw what they were capable of in times of war. Waking up into the reality of The Matrix, with humans living in ignorance and oppression under the thumb of artificial intelligence was a hard shock to his system. He is a firm disbeliever in the idea of any program being capable of true emotion or philosophy, and suffers no angst over the idea of torturing and killing machines as needed to ensure the free survival of mankind.

Unfortunately his utilitarianism in this vein has some unfortunate implications on exactly how far he’s willing to go and what he’s willing to sacrifice to end their reign.

Previously - Prior to his extraction, he was still struggling somewhat with a lack of direction, and with PTSD. He was also just starting to become comfortable with luxury: tailored clothing, fine liquor, an enhanced sense of self-importance and a flexible schedule. Life in Zion has hardened him away from the temptation of fancy bullshit and lurched him more or less back into military mode, not strictly to his benefit.

As highly as he thinks of himself as a soldier, psychologically he’s probably better suited to setting behind an expensive desk and making decisions about what other people should do. As he’s gotten older, he’s started to recognize that to a degree -- he still dreams about the jungle 20 years later, knowing that he was never really there. Being a politician would have been better for him and made for an easier, more fulfilling life. But he doesn’t necessarily like easy, and fighting against artificial intelligence has been his chosen battle from the beginning.


Matrix: The world Metzger hales from is functionally, politically not too different from our own, albeit from a more technologically advanced point in human development. Space travel and extraterrestrial colonization are a long-established part of society, with ongoing flashpoints of conflict between colonized planets over liberty and the ownership of land and resources, and less commonly, philosophy and religion. English is the primary language among the larger colonies, but smaller provinces and less populous planets are commonly comprised of cultures that speak whatever they damn well please. Artificial intelligence is increasingly commonplace in manufacturing and home care. At the time of Metzger’s extraction, it’s few short years away from being deployed on the front lines in the form of autonomous combat drones (with disastrous results).

Metzger was native to a small, sparsely populated manufacturing province within the second largest power in this universe, a heavily militarized and production-based planet with more ocean than land to live on. His mother was ex-Navy. His father left shortly after he was born in pursuit of his career. When his step-father lost his job to an artificially intelligent drone 15 years later, becoming involved in local protests was a natural outgrowth of Metzger’s natural proclivity for shit-stirring.

From college, through 8 years of military service, up into a nebulous transition within the last couple of years of his second senate term, Metzger was openly, fiercely opposed to colonial unification and the development and implementation of complex AI to civil and military ends. His modus operandi has transitioned into something less radical for political purposes, but even into his earliest days in congress he was known to associate with organizations and persons with suspected ties to domestic terrorism. Unknown to the public, in his youth and throughout his career as a Marine, he was an active participant in violent demonstrations, illicit trade and sabotage operations helmed by Hans Wagner -- his significant other and the cofounder of the extremeist group HAMS (Humans Against the Mechanization of Society). Wagner was the inspiration for his enlistment and the money behind his political career.


Simon was eventually destined for appointment into the office of Minister of Defense for the term that would ultimately end in the rise of the machines and all out war with Artificial Intelligence.


Timeline:

2185 - Born
2203 - Accepted to university in colonial capitol
2204 - Cofounds extremist group HAMS and its domestic terrorist offshoot, HARD, with Hans Wagner
2205 - Arrested under suspicion of arson in laboratory fire, charges dropped
2206 - Graduates university, enlists as a marine to provide ongoing intel and training to Wagner and members of HARD
2209 - Deployed to contend with an offworld conflict that would later fester into a full on insurgency
2210 - Returns to base, convinced to re-enlist by Wagner
2211 - Deployed for the second time
2212 - First Artificially Intelligent robotic soldiers tested on the frontlines
2214 - Injured by an IED, suffers secondary shrapnel infection after he and his men are left to rot by robotic support, honorably discharged at the rank of Staff Sergeant
2214 - Returns to full-time terrorism, goes through a rough depressive patch, has a few close calls, convinced by Wagner to run for office on his dime
2214 - Successfully defeats ancient incumbent for a senate seat from his home province despite being considered xenophobic and a radical by many
2216 - Ceases attendance of HAMS meetings and rallies after photos surface and become a subject of some debate on news radio, continues to call for harsh regulation on AI research and development
2218 - Re-elected, joins Committee on Armed Services and several related subcommittees, Artifically Intelligent robotic soldiers formally, widely rolled out into operation despite his best efforts

2219 - Extraction

2222 to 2234 - Increasingly moderate voting record, easy re-election, vocal and active on several committees and subcommittees, chairs Subcommittee on Emerging Colonial Threats and Capabilities from 2228-2234
2234 - Controversially appointed Minister of Defense by newly elected President
2236 - Artificially Intelligent robotic soldiers launch a sudden, unified assault on all mankind, resulting in massive casualties, the death of the President and the collapse of civilian society. Vice President assumes control, humans attempt to stage some defense from military bases surviving the initial attack. Metzger is the only other surviving member of the presidential cabinet. Hans also survives, because of course.

Real World: Metzger was extracted at the age of 34, along with his partner in crime Hans Wagner. The pair of them wasted little time in getting their hands dirty in the Defense Grid after waking up to find their worst fears realized in the Real. They joined separate crews as operatives and occupied separate niches in real world combat (Hans’ engineering and weapons-dealing experience made him better suited to organization, where Metzger’s preferences entailed more in the way of blowing up lots of robots). They continued to see each other on the downlow despite the stigma associated with fraternization borne of the Matrix, with a few (relatively harmless) rumors circulating to that effect.

Wagner all but immediately entangled himself in the black market, greasing wheels and accumulating power behind the scenes while Metzger took a more straightforward approach to politics and promotion. He transferred to the Nidhoggr, a smallish vessel whose youngest operatives were in dire need of discipline, and served as an operative for two years and the first mate five before his captain, Miranda Weston, was killed by agents following a routine contact with the Oracle.

Her death hit Metzger hard -- even harder for the fact that there was a formal inquiry as to the cause of the incident, which the Council believed to have occurred under suspicious circumstances. Although neither Simon or Miranda was the sort to demonstrate much affection in public, despite their firm difference in philosophies with regard to the worth of maintaining positive relations with entities like the Oracle, it was understood that they had grown close in recent years.

Wagner had been telling him to bump her off from the beginning, of course.

The cause, ultimately, was found to be a line accidentally left open in the pocket of a new recruit. Metzger claimed responsibility as the boy’s commanding officer and took as much of the fall as he could manage, but it wasn’t enough to save his career as an operative. After a great deal of deliberation, the Council elected to ground the operative indefinitely and to leave the Nidhoggr in Simon’s command.

Simon was quiet for some years following the incident, guilt-stricken without quite knowing why, but being Captain placed him in a better position to facilitate Hans’ black market movement of product between settlements. To a lesser degree, Hans’ connections became his connections, and Hans was promoted into the first mate position on his hovercraft, the Sigil, after his predecessor sought an early retirement. The Nidhoggr saw a good amount of turnover in the years immediately after Weston’s death, with the only one of Weston’s original operatives remaining promoted into the position of first mate and fresh meat cycled through the lower ranks. Bill Cage was acquired during this time. Cage managed to stick out Metzger’s iron authority in no small part owing to his own experience in the military, his instinct for knowing when to lie low, and a compatible appreciation for efficiency in business and in the elimination of hostiles.

The Sigil Incident: Two years into Cage’s career as an operative and six years into Metzger’s reign as captain, a distress signal from the Sigil reached the Nidhoggr while both ships were on patrol. Metzger ordered an immediate search and rescue response.

Upon arrival, the crew of the Nidhoggr observed that the Sigil appeared to have made an emergency landing after being fired upon by a pirate ship, which also lay nearby, apparently defeated. Scrambled radio contact with the downed Sigil confirmed that at least some crew members must have survived.

Against the advisement of his first mate, Metzger ordered a landing.

Upon touchdown, several things happened at once.

Firstly, an operative new to the Nidhoggr shot the first mate and was immediately shot by Metzger in return. Secondly, the pirate hovercraft re-animated, went airborne, and trained its guns on the Nidhoggr. Thirdly, the squid proximity alert sounded. The plan, according to Hans (now unscrambled), was simple: they would simulate the destruction of all three ships at the hands (tentacles) of sentinels with a detonation of heavy explosives and return to Irkalla to assume control of operations there and presumably live happily ever after fighting the machines on their own terms, out from beneath the Council’s thumb. It’s hard to say if Simon was tempted.

But he kept Hans talking long enough for Cage to arm the EMP.

The Sigil was quick enough to shut down her systems after the Nidhoggr to avoid some of the damage from the pulse that followed. The pirate ship wasn’t nearly so lucky.

Then there were the sentinels. In no position to recharge quickly enough for a second blast to matter, Simon ordered emergency power up and takeoff. Warning shots were exchanged, followed by live fire; four sentinels split off into pairs and attacked, two for each ship. Chaos ensued, both hulls were breached. The Sigil went down and the Nidhoggr took flight, engaging the sentinels in its belly man to man.

They made it back to Zion in one piece, but the Council wanted answers. Simon had some explaining to do.

He told the truth.

In the end, the incident was classified and covered up to avoid giving anyone else any bright ideas. Metzger promoted Cage to first mate. The Nidhoggr has only just been allowed to resume running missions after extensive repairs. The Sigil’s fate is unknown.

ABILITIES AND SKILLS

Anomalies: N/A

Skillset:

Close Combat: Simon is slippery and sure-footed and quick in close quarters, imbued both with old man strength and jackrabbit reflexes. He’s undergone extensive training as a Marine in addition to various combat trainings programmed directly into his brain over the years, and is brutally efficient with a knife. What he lacks in size and muscle he makes up for in sheer terrier viciousness.

Firearms: He’s comfortable with firearms and particularly enjoys assault rifles, but has some experience with sniping and sidearm engagement at closer quarters.

Demolitions: Prior to extraction, Metzger was actively involved in military and terrorist operations. He designed and constructed improvised explosive devices and has maintained that knowledge in the real using available materials to keep his (and his enemies’) nerves sharp.

Interrogation: Another offshoot of his former life that he’s had time to develop in the context of the Real in the 17 years since. He’s trained in both aggressive and non-confrontational interview techniques. He has a way of finding his way to the answers he wants from the people he wants to hear them from.

Intelligence: He was essentially a terrorist spy in the military for some years and went into politics directly afterwards with a clean slate (and conscience). He retains information well, blends easily, can lie answer complicated questions off the cuff and doesn’t sweat under pressure.

Politics: In part a natural talent for acting and persuasion, and in part prep and experience from his time spent as a Senator -- and co-leader of a terrorist movement. He assumes responsibility as a matter of course, has experience navigating legal, logical and philosophical loopholes in debate and can be charismatic, for all that he doesn’t make the effort as often these days.

Hovercrafts: Simon has been serving off of hovercrafts for 17 years, now. He’s a capable pilot and navigator with a solid working knowledge of available weapons systems and tech. He’s far from ideal as a repairman but has been exposed to numerous situations in which he’s had to make things work one way or another.

Upload Capabilities:

Anomalous Skills: 0
Martial Arts: 3
Projectile Weaponry: 2
Technical Skills: 1
Wild Card: 4

SAMPLES

Linked headers provide additional context.

With a captive audience:

[ Peter leans back and Simon straightens, irritation worked out into a restless roll and flex of his shoulders while he considers whether or not their prisoner is deserving of further clarification. He’s not a large man -- no taller than 5’7” -- cropped further by the wide stance he’s wont to keep on slippery metal.

It’s the livewire tension that crackles down through the bones in his hands that makes him dangerous, hot in his eyes and in the way the wires in his neck bite down taut behind the undershoot of his jaw. Not his shiny, Metzger-sized boots, and certainly not the way the black cabling of his sleeves bags a little long around his knuckles.

He could stand to shave; he’s not as precise as Bill behind him.

He’s been here longer. ]

Imagine our surprise, [ he builds on Cage’s hint, left hand touched to his own breast -- our surprise, ] upon responding to a distress beacon and being fired on by an unfamiliar pirate vessel. We don’t know their names, [ he glances to Bill for confirmation, ] we’ve never seen their faces, but they are punching holes in our ship with Zion-issue ordinance.

[ He allows that to settle for a moment, short of any direct accusation. ]

I didn’t sell it to them. [ He opens the hand on his chest out -- half of a shrug. ] I’ve never even seen them. Bill, did you sell it to them?


Celebration:

Metzger makes a sound thats all consonants (“nnnnfhh”), denial of disassociation gruff in his throat on his way to swilling down a stiffer shot. No, of course. Look at him, he must’ve been unplugged for 70 years. “Just a party pooper,” he says, apologetic on his own behalf.

“Recently divorced.”

He shows her his cup.

“I take it Antioch is too enlightened for dancing.”

It's abruptly very difficult to tell whether or not he's serious.