Tag: SciFi

#18 Dr. Astrid Lotus

| November 18, 2010 | 0 Comments

Oh, my.  Did I let my Famke Jaansen girl-crush seep into my character design?  Cut me some slack, guys.  It’s not like I’m without purpose here.

Dr. Astrid Lotus, unlike Dr. Artimedes, is a psychiatrist/counselor on Valhalla Station who doesn’t suck at her job. On the contrary, she’s quite good at what she does. Dr. Lotus is a kind, compassionate woman who takes the time to help her patients work through their issues, no matter how long it takes, no matter how many hard questions need to be asked, no matter how much information needs to be shared. She is much less likely to go doling out prescriptions just to get you out of her office so she can go on her next coffee break. No, Dr. Lotus wants to know all you have to share.

That she’s so good at her job makes her an even bigger puzzle to the people around her than Dr. Artimedes. What makes this woman so devoted to her job? It isn’t the money, that’s for sure. And the clientele is especially difficult. So why does she do what she does so well? Most people on Valhalla think it’s because she simply has that much passion for her work.

Or at least that’s what they hope.

Day# 13 a Sqorthk: plant stage.

| November 17, 2010 | 3 Comments
#13 a Sqorthk, by Jande Rowe

#13 a Sqorthk, by Jande Rowe

Adnirovjyni Sqorthk, Vegetable Phase: a vine-like animal that spends part of its life-cycle as a plant, used as a food source for the dominant sentient bear-like species known simply as (#12) Adnirovjyna.

During the vegetative stage, each vine becomes translucent and produces pebbled protrubances that can grow to be quite large. In the early stages these can be broken off and used as vegetables either cooked or raw, which contain starches, cellulose, vitamins and minerals conducive to the good nature and health of the indigenous sentient race of Adnirovjyn. It is a favourite item to be combined with other Adnirovjyni flora to produce a delicious frothy alcoholic beverage well loved by the native peoples which they call Frooshk.

Once the protuberances grow beyond a certain size they lose their translucence and by their own weight droop toward the ground. Here they remain inert for a period of weeks developing a hard knobbly shell –a cocoon of sorts you might say, which protects them from predators to a certain extent, though some have been known to find ingenious ways of cracking them open. It is within this shell that the plant-Sqorthk undergoes the unique transformation from plant to animal.

Next up #14 a Sqorthk in animal phase.

Enjoy!

#17 Dr. Mina Artimedes

| November 17, 2010 | 1 Comment

I’m going to preface Dr. Artimedes’ design by saying that the most useless character in the main cast of Star Trek TNG was Counselor Troi.  For the majority of episodes, she would just sit there in the beginning, the bad guy would spout some garble over the bridge screen and she would respond with “I sense uncertainty.”  And that was pretty much her function.  She would just go around and “sense” uncertainty, or deception or fear (stuff most aliens feel when dealing with one another ANYWAY) and report as such to the Captain.  Why couldn’t Enterprise not afford a REAL TELEPATH in their ranks, which would’ve been far more useful than just sensing people’s feelings?  Even Wesley Crusher, God damn his miserable being to the anus of Borg space, got more shit done more than Troi.

But I digress.

For Valkyrie Squadron, I wanted to design a counselor who was also useless, but in a more dangerous way.  Now, your question would be “why would Valhalla station, for all its power and might, hire a useless counselor?” but the answer is simple:  They have to settle for what they can get.  For an engineer or scientist, Valhalla is a badge of honor and to work there can be a huge boost to one’s career.  Not so with psychiatrists.  In this future, very few psychiatrists want to give up their cushy lives wherever they are to counsel a bunch of folks gone murderously space mad or with PTSD.  So, whenever Valhalla station does find someone willing to take the gig, they are eternally grateful.

And Dr. Artimedes knows this.

How DOES that make you feel?

Dr. Artimedes is not someone you go to if you want any actual counseling done in your life.  Her MO is to listen for key words in conversation, like “sad” or “anxious,” and prescribe medications accordingly.  That’s it.  She’s basically a drug dealer with a couch.  It’s not entirely clear why Artimedes takes such a simplistic approach to her treatment.  Is she lazy?  Is she a total cynic about her profession?  Is she secretly trying to drug up all of Valhalla to take it over?  Nobody knows for sure, but very few people question her methods.  After all, she’s a pretty good source to score some Xanax, so why screw up a good thing?

Why, indeed.

#16 Medical Officer Ana Bastion

| November 16, 2010 | 0 Comments


Ana Bastion is the highest ranking medical officer working the swing shift in sick bay. A 30 year veteran of the medical field, she’s seen it all, but she doesn’t come off as jaded (much). Instead, she has a warm sense of humor that helps her patients along in their healing.

For those of you wondering, yes, this character is very heavily inspired by my mom. She’s earned her stripes, trust me.

Day# 12 – Thaddeursus

| November 16, 2010 | 1 Comment
#12 Thaddeursus, for Wheeler'e Orbits by Jande Rowe

#12 Thaddeursus, for Wheeler'e Orbits by Jande Rowe

Ah, Thaddeursus! Do bears walk in the woods? He doesn’t know because he really isn’t a bear, you see. He’s an Adnirovjyna from one of the Inner Galaxies, known on Terra One as Cassiopeia, but by the indigenous sentients, as Adnirovjyn. One would normally expect to see fulsome Greek goddesses and other females cavorting on the planet Adnirovjyn in the constellation of Cassiopeia, but no. Perversely, peaceful squat furry bear-like humanoids evolved there instead.

Peaceful being the key description of these beings, they will do almost anything to keep things tranquil, and therefore are high strung and nervous most of the time, worrying about whether their actions or the actions of others are going to disturb anyone’s peace.

Thaddeursus, who prefers to be called Thadd, in case it upsets anyone to have to pronounce his full name, is typical of his species with one exception: he was the unfortunate victim of an accident that changed not only his own life and lifestyle, but those of many of his acquaintances in the small village of Cleoptas Woods, as well. This of course does nothing to reduce the agitation he normally feels. In fact it somewhat increases it. But the whole thing is so inherently fascinating that he can’t help himself.

Of course, since all Adnirovjyna have to restrain their overweening curiosity in order to maintain a civilized society, he grew up knowing that it is very wrong to spy on others even if they have very little fur, are tall and thin and strangely coloured. After all, they have two arms, two legs, walk upright and use tools and language (if mostly unintelligible), as well as drink frothy amber liquids and eat highly spiced foods like any normal sentient being. One of them is almost the same shape as an Adnirovjyna, though the other’s shape resembles the more vine-like Sqorthk (a food animal that spends part of its life cycle as a vegetable, during which it is harvested by the Adnirovjyna, who are predominantly vegetarian, but, you know, accidents happen!)

Adnirovjyna tend to be modest, retiring people to whom privacy is paramount, which also increases the tensions caused by their native curiosity. So when Thadd suddenly became somewhat famous by being the first to contact an alien race (though truth be told, they had contacted him by landing their rustbucket of a ship-shuttle in his dreak-pond!) he was since embarrased constantly by the recurrence of the breaking of the twin taboos of notoriety and overzealous curiosity. It was enough to give him  a slight twitch.

But to his shame, his own curiosity was in full roar. These beings did the strangest things, drawing the eyes and ears of all to them, almost as if they relished the attention. But they did have interesting items to trade and that was what had given Thadd all this uncomfortable fame. Oh well, he thought, I guess I shall simply have to grin and bear it until they leave again and things can go back to normal.

But, will they? One whirlwind visit from Wheeler and Ikey could change a whole stable sentient species forever, doncha think?

#8 Rebecca Hannes, PhD

| November 16, 2010 | 0 Comments
Rebecca Hannes, PhD, a tenured professor of Molecular Biology and Genetics at the University of Portsburg Academy of Science and Technology (known as uPAST) is known for her research into the effects of different types of astral and solar radiations on the cellular and molecular structures. Mrs. Hannes and her husband, Dr. Henric Hannes, PhD, run the Solar Lab and plan to have the first working prototype of their energy converter ready to debut within the year.  Hopes are high that a fully functional machine can be in place before the decade is out which could potentially provide an endless amount of free energy to the entire United States.  It’s Rebecca’s job to ensure that the energy and radiation collected by the conversion machine will now do any harm to anyone.

About a year ago the Hannes adopted a young, adventurous boy named Billy Franks who had been orphaned during the Portsburg blizzard of 1984. Rebecca and Billy have become very close with and, while she allows him plenty of room to explore and learn…she’s highly projective of the boy.

#15 Katrina Killian

| November 15, 2010 | 3 Comments


Not every technical professional at Valhalla station is a third party intellectual mercenary. Some are employed directly by the station, such as roboticist Katrina Killian. Katrina not only specializes in understanding the function and intelligence of the droids, but also their psychology. In a small way, she finds herself identifying with her subjects, appreciating their design and unique ability to humans, but this is not something she’d easily speak of. Being the wife of the station’s second-in-commandLt. Cmdr. Killian, the only opinion she’s allowed to have of droids is that the only good one is a dead one.

And somehow, she’s not totally okay with that.

#14 “Professor Hipster”

| November 14, 2010 | 0 Comments

Okay, well that's not his REAL name
“Professor Hipster” aka Preston is an failure analysis engineer working at Valhalla station, who works alongside Trey Zantha for third party defense firm, Aperture Tiburon. The nickname was coined by Zantha not so much to make fun of him (okay, he’s making fun of him a little), but more to point out the obvious. “Professor Hipster” is a hipster. And an engineer. In space. And much like chocolate-covered bacon he’s something that shouldn’t exist, but yet he does.

Preston himself is a nice, cheerful fellow. He’s very knowledgeable and always willing to help his fellow hipster man. He enjoys drinking horribly cheap beer and eating very questionable recipes (like chocolate-covered bacon) for irony’s sake. The man must have an iron constitution because for all his carousing, he never calls in sick. The only real reason anyone might take issue with him is his bizarre hipster fashion sense. And the chin beard.

Seriously, I dare you to go through a business meeting and NOT stare at that thing. It’s haunting.

Don’t stare at the chin beard.

Donald Vice

| November 13, 2010 | 0 Comments

Donald is one third of the Time Freaks; criminals who escaped from a maximum security prison using a makeshift time machine constructed from an old bathtub.

Faith Sorrel Canlin

| November 13, 2010 | 0 Comments

Although initially a member of the fifteenth battalion and later War Queen of Golgotha during the War of Independence (6854 – 7016), Sorrel Canlin (in Golgothan culture, first names are given in honour of the head of the child’s ruling house and is the name used in ceremonies and other events of cultural significance) has become a respected member of the Solar Republic’s ruling class.

When the Camue invaded in 9472, she was tasked with defeating the invading aliens and granted imperial status for the duration of this task. She served with Sir Thomas Godfrey Arundale during the initial stages of the Camue War and although they do not get along, they have a mutual respect for each other’s abilities.

#13 Trey Zantha

| November 13, 2010 | 0 Comments


Behind every screaming meathead, there is an exasperated family member wondering how the hell they’re related to him.

Trey Zantha is Lt. Leon Zantha’s younger brother and a signals analysis engineer on Valhalla Station. In stark contrast to Leon, Trey is the skinny intellectual of the family, having a master’s in signals intelligence under his belt.

He’s the sort of guy who, at first glance, appears to have his life together. He’s smart, well-educated, knows how to dress himself, and has a good paying job. He’s the guy your mom points at when she spots you loafing on the couch and says “Why can’t you be more like him?” However, beneath the surface he’s actually quite an unlucky bastard, hence his position day 13.

His job is a depressing step downward from his previous experiences. His former employer used to have him writing signals intelligence algorithms for CIA technology, but due to gross mismanagement, the company shut its doors and left Trey broke and desperate. Now he’s reduced to looking at graphs and going “look, there’s a spike!” and noting as such. Furthermore, he’s got chronic health problems that seem to be getting worse and a personal relationship he’s trying to keep secret or else he’ll get fried by both his job AND his brother.

In spite of all that, there are people who care. Even if he is a hard luck case beneath the surface, he’s still got family.
Broooooos
Awwww.

#11 Special Lt. Avi Ben-Aron

| November 11, 2010 | 2 Comments


To anyone familiar with my previous work, it was only a matter of time before a guy like this showed up. Avi is a special ops guy on loan to Odin Squadron 4. Originally trained with the Israeli Anti-Droid Tactical Forces, Avi has a great deal of experience and tenacity behind him. He is currently assigned to Odin 4 to share his training and experience with the rest of his team and so far he has proven to be a great asset.

Just don’t ask him if he knows any jokes. The answer is no.

As a side note, his armor is designed to be stealth armor. The red lights on his armor are meant to confuse the droids, as red light panels are common on their own apparatus.

Appropriately, the most badass member of Odin Squadron 4 gets published on Veteran’s Day. I didn’t plan it that way, but it’s pretty apropos. Happy Veteran’s Day!

#10 Lt. Theron Jones

| November 10, 2010 | 3 Comments


The pilot for Odin Squadron 4, Theron is a solid pilot with a solid flight record. In stark contrast to the Valkyrie’s Lt. Gomez, Theron is not an outright daredevil. He relishes the thrill of flying, but he also likes staying alive after doing so. He’s often serves as the voice of reason when his teammates want to go off and kill something without a plan or just cry in the corner.

Poor Theron. He’s surrounded by lunatics.

#9 Ensign “BooBoo” Chavez

| November 9, 2010 | 0 Comments

And now for the male fighters of Valkyrie. Oddly, we start with the least manliest of the Odin Squadron 4, the male answer to the female Valkyries: Booboo Chavez.

Like Adia, Booboo is the resident science officer of his team, though he’s more of a signals engineer than an academic researcher. He is given his silly nickname for his rather melodramatic antics. He usually gets into flagrant fights with his father, a high-ranking officer at another space station, and nine times out of ten, he’s the guy on the team who’d throw up his hands in a combat situation and shout “We’re gonna die!” Yeah, he’s that guy.

He really wouldn’t even be in any Odin squadron if it wasn’t for his father, <a href=”http://www.30characters.com/2010/11/20/20-admiral-slade-chavez/”>Admiral Chavez</a>, the leader of the entire Space Forces.  Booboo doesn’t get along with his father, who would love nothing more than to transform him into a military badass and make him follow in his footsteps.  Booboo would rather be ANYWHERE but a battlefield, but he can’t seem to escape the stranglehold influence of his father.  He was paired with his fellow Odin squad team members to man him up, but he’s pretty resistant to the idea if only to spite his old man.

Day# 09 Flodd and Flara for Wheeler’s Orbits

| November 8, 2010 | 3 Comments
#09 Flodd & Flara for Wheeler's Orbits by Jande Rowe

#09 Flodd & Flara for Wheeler's Orbits by Jande Rowe

When Wheeler’s Orbits made landfall on Faranurus IV with a cargo hold full of Denebrian, they thought it was unusual that there was no bustling spaceport; not even a sign of any kind of technology at all.  Ikey thought they should check the computer and the starmaps to see if they were in the right place, but as usual Wheeler just opened the airlock and  went out to see what was happening.
“They probably just have really good camouflage, Ikey. You worry too much!” and he was gone. Ikey donned space-suit, set the computer to figure out what went wrong, and doggedly followed Wheeler. This was definitely NOT dry, arid Faranurus IV! This place was a swamp. Of course it might have changed in the last year, but he doubted it very much.

The first thing he saw that moved was moving away from him. It looked like a giant lopped off banana with arms, but no legs. It kind of floated along a few inches above the ground when it wasn’t reaching up with its long yellow arms to swing itself from the low hanging branches from tree to tree.  It was a colourful world, and in spite of himself, Ikey felt himself relaxing. That of course put him even more on guard. He’d seen some weird things in space, but never before a piece of fruit with arms. Then it turned around and started back toward him. It had eyes! and the arms had hands with opposable thumbs! He wondered if it had sharp pointy teeth and decided for the better part of valour.

Through the portal of the airlock he could see them gathering, apparently curious about this huge thing that had landed in their forest. They even more reminded him of bananas since they were in a multitude of shades from bright green to  deep yellow, and some even had the brown and black spots you find on the very ripe ones. He shook his head. Leave it to Wheeler to run off on his own on a strange world.

He left his suit on and went in to the computer. The data screen showed the deviation in course due to an input error of one digit.  He knew who to blame for that, too. He sighed. Well, they weren’t too far off course. If he could grab Wheeler they could be on Faranurus IV within a week.

He looked back at the airlock window, and was startled to see yellow-green faces, shaped a little like earth monkeys, jostling to peer in at him.
=========

” Come Flara, come with papa to see what the skies have brought this time.” He gazed fondly at his third daughter, so green and yet wasn’t that a tinge of the yellow of maturity creeping into her skin. It made him sad that soon she would be fully mature and golden and leaving him for her chosen mate. But he would enjoy her companionship while he could, at least until his next change and he could bear more fruit himself, though then he would be a her self.

Things had often dropped from the sky that didn’t seem to belong here. Most often they fell near the  great lake, and then, before his people could satisfy their natural curiosity, they flew away like Singbirds, often straight up into the sky until they were specks that could be seen no more. That was always a disappointment to Flodd. Maybe this time, there would be a chance to touch and taste the thing that fell from the sky.

Flara skipped along in front of him, skimming the ground, still a bit wobbly with that skill, and reaching up for hand holds on the Twanda trees, not to mention gorging herself on their  clusters of fruit. He was an indulgent parent though, and prefered to let all his offspring learn through their own experience, though there was something quicker and more delightful with this one, so that he tended to be more protective of her.

He could see through the trees that others of his kind were gathering, streaming in the direction of the new fallen thing. This made Flodd happy. He loved gatherings, and he loved exploring, and he loved bringing his curiosity to bear on new things. Especially when the sun was warming his Frolldots and he had energy to burn.

Suddenly, he cried out in alarm, “Stop!” and  pulled Flara to him and behind him. A strange animal had burst out of the undergrowth, splashing muddy sand all around him. It was tall and thin and was strangely coloured. It had twice the appendages than normal and actually put two of them on the ground and in the water of the swamp. That appeared to be its mode of locomotion, although it was a lurching one. Flodd had never seen its like. Is this what had fallen? It seemed too small and at the same time too big. It stopped now, swaying and seemed to be speaking to him, but the sounds were very low pitched and growling, akin to the sound of a Froctali in a fallen tree.
====

“Where the heck am I and what the heck are you?” Wheeler said to the yellow being standing stock still and staring at him bemused. “I’m lost.”

#8 Lt. Cmdr. Finn Killian

| November 8, 2010 | 6 Comments


Okay, so technically the character Finn Killian is actually an homage to the character Alec Killian from Titanium Rain, but he’s also an homage to my good pal Josh Finney who is famous for screaming and ranting quite a lot about anything and everything.

What can I say? I cast my stories according to personality.

Lt. Commander Killian is the right-hand man to Commander Mona Duri. He takes great pleasure in dressing down lower-ranking recruits, particularly if they say something stupid. In fact, the only subordinate who seems to be able to get away with murder under him is Ensign Anders (this might be due to a somewhat misguided crush, though this hasn’t been confirmed). Killian definitely has no problems calling people out on their failings, but this goes for superiors as well. He really, really, really sucks at playing nice for political purposes. Needless to say, his military career isn’t going to go very far.

I’m so going to enjoy drawing this man shouting.

Day# 08 the POISON PENN

| November 8, 2010 | 0 Comments
#08 the Poison Penn by Jande Rowe

#08 the Poison Penn by Jande Rowe

My first ever Super-hero-type Villain. :`)

Jhorn’l Ag’Penn hails from a religious colony of Grythf’ah‘s (Worshippers of Agh) on a nondescript planet circling a small red giant in the sparser areas near the Rim of the Galaxy.

Like most religious fanatics, the beliefs of the Grythf’ah brook no quarter with any other religious practices. Sure in their divine arrogance, they send out their most devout acolytes to bring word to the heathens (that’s the rest of us).

Jhorn’l is no slouch when it comes to converting the unenlightened. At some point he became convinced that he was doing Agh’s work; he was Agh’s Right Hand in this world to help others to the next. And of course what better way than to first test them, then when, er… if they fail, show them the error of their ways with a little  fear of Agh, and a little Holy Poison to help them on their way into the Light of Agh’s Truth.

When did that happen? Oh, perhaps around the time Jhorn’l found a derelict ship full of humanity’s bones, and many useful artifacts, including some Golden Age comics from DC and Marvel. Of course he couldn’t read them, but being the vain and contemptuous being he was, he delighted in the idea of Spandex to match his particularly bright and beautiful green skin.

‘Twas then that he hit upon his Master Plan to weed out the Unworthy, and deliver the Holy Message of his Holyness, Agh! At this point he underwent Grimstolaet, changing himself from the inside out and donning his new Spandex, took upon himself the Holy Name of Poison Penn, the Right Hand of Agh.

All over the Galactic Rim he sped enticing the weak to evil, putting the fear of Agh into all those who succumbed with poison pen letters, then blackmailing them in the name of the Holy Church of Agh, (in order to defray costs), and finally when they refuse to repent, descending on them in a poisonous cloud and stabbing them to death with his poison-tipped spear-pen, while chanting the one thousand four hundred and fifty-three names of Agh.

Of course sooner or later he would run into our Dysfunctional Duo, Wheeler and Ikey. And so its possible that even Prima will have her hands full  trying to rescue Wheeler and Co in order to bring them to Justice, while the Poison Penn is trying his best to bring them to Agh.

Enjoy!

Jhorn’l Ag’Penn hails from a religious colony of Grythf’ah’s (Worshippers of Agh)

on a nondescript planet circling a small red giant in the sparser areas near the Rim

of the Galaxy.

Like most religious fanatics, the beliefs of the Grythf’ah brook no quarter with any

other religious practices. Sure in their divine arrogance, they send out their most

devout acolytes to bring word to the heathens (that’s the rest of us).

Jhorn’l is no slouch when it comes to converting the unenlightened. At some

point he became convinced that he was doing Agh’s work; he was Agh’s Right

Hand in this world to help others to the next. And of course what better way than

to first test them, then when, er… if they fail, show them the error of their ways with

a little  fear of Agh, and a little Holy Poison to help them on their way into the Light

of Agh’s Truth.

When did that happen? Oh, perhaps around the time Jhorn’l found a derelict ship

full of humanity’s bones, and many useful artifacts, including some Golden Age

comics from DC and Marvel. Of course he couldn’t read them, but being the vain

and contemptuous being he was, he delighted in the idea of Spandex to match his

particularly bright and beautiful green skin.

‘Twas then that he hit upon his Master Plan to weed out the Unworthy, and deliver

the Holy Message of his Holyness, Agh! At this point he underwent Grimstolaet,

changing himself from the inside out and donning his new Spandex, took upon

himself the Holy Name of Poison Penn, the Right Hand of Agh.

All over the Galactic Rim he sped enticing the weak to evil, putting the fear of Agh

into all those who succumbed with poison pen letters, then blackmailing them in

the name of the Holy Church of Agh, (in order to defray costs), and finally when

they refuse to repent, descending on them in a poisonous cloud and stabbing

them to death with his poison-tipped spear-pen, while chanting the one thousand

four hundred and fifty-three names of Agh.

Of course sooner or later he would run into our Dysfunctional Duo, Wheeler and

Ikey. And so its possible that even Prima will have her hands full  trying to rescue

Wheeler and Co in order to bring them to Justice, while the Poison Penn is trying

his best to bring them to Agh.

#6 – L.U.N.A.R. Computer

| November 7, 2010 | 0 Comments

The original Solar lab computers, much like most other computers in the world in the early 80s, were nothing more than room sized calculators.  Using the standard Vector Processing (that is a central CPU that delegated processing tasks to multiple processors then later organizing the resulting data) the computers built for Dr. Hannes were running at a basic (for it’s time) processing speed of of 1.1 GigaFLOPS (or 1.1 billion calculations per second). When the U.S. Government was brought in to fund and secure Dr. Hannes’ work, a team of scientists and engineers was also brought in to assist in the research.  Within this group was a team led by Irish computer engineer Jonathan O’Colvin, PhD.  O’Colvin began right away rebuilding the entire computer system.  Six months later, the LUNAR Computer was complete.

The LUNAR Computer is a self aware, highly adaptive Multi-Quantum processor SuperComputer capable of speeds theoretically up to 1.5 zettaFLOPS (that is 1.5 octillion calculations per second).  That speed is stated as theoretical because the only way to provide enough power to operate the computer at full will be when the solar energy converter is actually activated. Operated on the Portsburg power grid, LUNAR can only function at approximately 50% of its full capacity.  The computer has a single core which resides at the center of the SOLAR Lab and is networked to most of the compatible computers in the Solar Lab building as well as the entire uPAST campus via a small wireless chip that is attached to each CPU.

O’Colvin has programmed the one of a kind system with an adaptive form of artificial intelligence.  Upon it’s initial boot the system was nothing more than a very large, very fast computer. As time has progressed, LUNAR has become self aware and is learning more and more each day.

When fully functional LUNAR will also operate and maintain the connection between all three SECT (Solar Ejection Collection and Transmission) satellites that are in a geosynchronous orbit above the SOLAR Lab.

#7 Commander Mona Duri

| November 7, 2010 | 2 Comments

To say Commander Duri is a woman not to be trifled with is an understatement. Commander Duri is a fierce woman who takes very little guff from anyone. Serving as the space station site lead, Commander Duri is the one in charge of overseeing military operations. While she never wavers in her heavy-handedness, there are some rumblings around the station that her loyalty may be a different story.

Sir Thomas Godfrey Arundale, Admiral of the Fleet

| November 6, 2010 | 0 Comments

In the 85th century, Sir Thomas Godfrey Arundale is Admiral of the Fleet in the Solar Republic. When trouble comes knocking on the door of this conglomerate of disparate states of humanity, he’s the cyborg who answers – and you’d better be ready for a swift kick up the proverbial backside. He doesn’t suffer fools gladly.

#6 Eve Schuzengel

| November 6, 2010 | 2 Comments


Eve is a sweet girl who finds herself caught in the droid conflict. A simple contractor for the forsaken colony, Addison-Prestwick, Eve begins our story being held hostage by the droids. When Eve finally makes her way to the arms of safety, she finds that there were greater implications to her robotic hostage crisis than just dehydration.

#6 Ciara

| November 6, 2010 | 0 Comments

Next is Ciara, the Chief of An Forse Cosanta on the Cuchulain. Basically the military liason.
Again, costume is in flux.
What do you think?

#5 Jonathan O’Colvin , PhD

| November 5, 2010 | 0 Comments

A brilliant scientist in the field of computer engineering, Jon O’Colvin comes to the uPAST and the Solar Lab by way his home country of Ireland.  When the United States Government inked the deal with uPAST to help fund and protect Dr. Hennric’s solar energy conversion research, Jon was one of the first new scientists to be brought in.  Dr. Hennric already had one of the most advanced super computers in existence. However, within a six months, O’Colvin and his team had rebuilt the entire system and integrated the new self aware L.U.N.A.R. [Localized University Networked Autonomous Research] computer system into the entire uPAST computer network (which itself was and is technology far advanced beyond any other computer system in the world).  With this new powerful computer system the research has advanced forward at a light speed pace (excuse the pun).  O’Colvin now maintains the  L.U.N.A.R. Computer as well as writes and applies daily upgrades and improvments to ensure that when the energy conversion system comes online the computers will be able to handle all the data that it is sure to encounter.

Jon O’Colvin himself is a quiet man who tends to keep to himself as much as possible.  He works long hours every day, typically never less than 12 hours, and never overlooks even the smallest detail. He is liked by everyone in the lab even though he rarely socializes with anyone, with the exception of the L.U.N.A.R. computer who he has an obvious strong connection with.

#5 Lt. Junior Class Jocelyn Gomez

| November 5, 2010 | 4 Comments


Jocelyn is the pilot of Valkyrie Squadron 4. The youngest member of the team, she has the potential to be a great aviatrix, but is still working out her youthful unrest. An adrenaline junkie and a thrill seeker, she comes off as impulsive and impatient, but responds to orders well and takes her job seriously. It is her dream one day to be top gun of the United Space Forces fleet.

#5 Mac Roth

| November 5, 2010 | 0 Comments

Ok, here is the first of my preliminary designs for the comic I am developing.

This is Captain Mac Roth, the puppet leader of the Connacht Fleet.
The uniform is still undergoing some changes.
The basis of the clothing is ancient celtic/irish modernized for space.
Please give construstive criticism on the costumes. I am eager to hear from you!

#4 Fin Halloway

| November 4, 2010 | 0 Comments

In 1968, at the age of 18 years and 1 day old, Finlay Halloway, known to everyone as Fin, enlisted in the United States Marines.  The son and grandson of Marines and veterans of war there was nothing that could stop Fin from following in those footsteps.  In no time he was through basic and tromping through the jungles of Vietnam fighting for his country.  Just five years later, then a decorated NCO, he was out of Vietnam and into a top secret special forces team known only by the code name Taipan. By 1980 he had been promoted to a Warrant Officer and was in charge of his entire company.

While on a top secret assignment with a detachment to Beirut in October of 1983, Fin was caught in the heart of a massive explosion. The official story was that it was a dual car bombing, which killed nearly 500. The truth is that the explosion was directly related to a Taipan mission and more than 2000 people, including civilians and service members, were killed including many of the men under Fin’s command.  Fully physically recovered, though still dealing with the emotional fall out of that tragic even, after over a year of recuperation and rehabilitation, Fin was reassigned within Taipan.

The US Government took interest early in the research of Dr. Henric Hannes, PhD.  It was apparent early that his solar energy conversion technology, far beyond simple solar panels installed on a roof, had the potential to change the world.  In order to ensure that Dr. Hannes’ research did not end up in the hands of an enemy nation of regime a security detail from special forces Taipan team was assigned.  That force is headed by Fin Halloway.  It is his duty to protect the uPAST campus as well as all the technology and the science team.

Before the incident in Beirut, Fin was a fun loving, energetic man who was dedicated to his friends, his job and his country.  Since his recovery he is no less dedicated to his job and country, however, he has become a much more serious and intense individual.

(side note: I’m still in the planning phase of Solar: Maximum and have, as of yet, not decided if the comic will appear in black and white or full color.  IF I decide to go full color…I think this is the style that I’ll be going with. Or…at least something similar)  (thoughts??)

#4 Ensign Casey Anders

| November 4, 2010 | 2 Comments

Casey, as she’s known to her closest friends, is the brawn of the team.  She’s more of a “shoot first, ask questions later (if ever)” kind of girl, much to the chagrin of the resident science officer and to the slight annoyance of others.  Personality-wise, Casey plays as hard as she works, drinking, dancing into the wee hours, and even getting into the occasional fist fight. However, in any fight, there’s no one better to have on your side.

#3 Officer Adia Ukpo

| November 3, 2010 | 3 Comments

Adia is the science officer of Valkyrie squadron 4.  She has a much more academic background than the rest of the girls, currently performing research for her PhD in robotic engineering.  Her work on the Valkyrie squadron supplements her research.  Easily the most analytical of the group, Adia can be counted on for her knowledge and strategy, but to some she can come off as a bit cold.  At best, she is the resident voice of reason.  At worst, she’s a proverbial Vulcan.

#2 Billy Frakes

| November 2, 2010 | 2 Comments

Billy’s parents were killed during Portsburg’s great blizzard of 1984 when Billy was just 6 years old. With no other family, he was placed in an orphanage. A couple years later during a school field trip to the Solar Lab at the University of Portsburg Academy of Science and Technology, young Billy became separated from his class and wandered into a closed robotics lab.  For nearly an hour the uPAST security searched the campus for the boy. Eventually, Fin Halloway, head of security at the Solar Lab, found Billy.  The young boy had completely disassembled three housekeeping robots because he said he wanted to know how they worked.  Impressed by Billy’s intelligence and curiosity Rebecca and Henric quickly fell in love with the boy and adopted him. Now, one year later, Billy is happier then ever living with the Hannes family.  When not studying or taking apart and reassembling various machines around the lab he acts as Dr. Hannes’ lab assistant.

#2 Alien Finger

| November 2, 2010 | 5 Comments

I am thinking that this alien is thinking.
You are thinking that this alien may be thinking about you.
I am thinking that you are thinking the same thing.
This alien is thinking “he who smelt it, dealt it.”

#1 Gerard (Jerry) Lynch

| November 1, 2010 | 0 Comments

World:
In the not-very-distant future, the human race is on the run from an extra-planar invasion force. About ten years ago, the demons broke through from their own universe to our own. Technically, they’re not ‘demons’, but they bear enough superficial similarities that a majority of the remaining humans simply call them that. They are, technically a single race. Or, rather, were a single race. They diverged evolutionarily to fulfill specific niches on their impossibly harsh home-world, forming a number of castes that have learned to work together to further their current goal of subjecting the human race. The demons are ridiculously evolved. The harsh environment of their home-world and the constant infighting of the castes has pushed the demons into an evolutionary arms race with one another, creating the incredibly powerful monsters that now rampage. The demons, however, have a weakness. Ultraviolet light is extremely damaging to them. Unfortunately, their skins are strong enough to withstand the light for short time, or long periods of low exposure. A high-powered UV lamp will burn them almost immediately, but the damage will be skin-deep without exposing them for upwards of thirty seconds for the smallest, ranging up to three minutes for some of the bigger ones. The solution to this is that once the skin is pierced, the UV radiation can be applied to the more sensitive flesh, reducing the demons’ affected tissues to their carbon base. The resistance continues to fight the demons, though the demons have, so far, been successful and taking out resistance groups that grow large enough to pose a threat.

Species:
Modded human. Before the demonic invasion, humankind had grown bored. One of the most popular trends was gene-modding, a practice that involved altering one’s genetic structure to make yourself better or more interesting in some way. Most are superficial things, altering the color of one’s hair or eyes, though some go more in-depth. Gerard got three main modifications. One was a external mod that gave him his signature pink hair. Another was more in depth, altering his bone structures to start building carbon deposits, reinforcing themselves. The third involved getting a tiny processor wired into his brain, then co-opting the nerves that ran to his fingernails and replacing the nails altogether with highly conductive silver plates. This allowed him to jam his fingernails into any USB port to interface directly with the computer. Using this allowed him to forgo using keyboards and communicate his thoughts directly to the computer.

Appearance:
Gerard is an extremely toned not-quite-muscular man, about 26 years old. His pink hair is trimmed into a military buzz cut and his face is lean. He has gray eyes, a common side effect of the gene-modding, and his fingernails are metallic silver. His nose is slightly crooked, an incorrect heal from before the invasion. He used to have a number of facial peircings, though they’ve healed over since he stopped wearing them.

Equipment:
Gerard’s prize piece of gear is Behrtgar, his Trident-class cavalry vehicle. It resembles a motorcycle to a degree,  mostly in it’s narrowness and low profile shape. It has eight wheels, two next to each other on each of four struts that can raise or lower the vehicle‘s body or spread out to resist rollovers. A skilled rider can use the struts to jump his vehicle over short obstacles, or to ‘pounce‘ into combat. based on the situation . The wheels are heavily reinforced and puncture-resistant, allowing the trident cavalry vehicle to drive over virtually any surface without worrying about punctures. A lucky blow for a demon could still take out a tire, however, which is why there are two on each strut. The entire top of the vehicle is a streamlined, armored shell that protects the driver, who lays on his stomach, his body about level with the top of the wheels. It folds up to allow the rider to enter and exit the vehicle. The main weapon of the trident-class cavalry vehicle is it’s signature trident, a trio of penetrator lances that retract into the undercarriage when not in use. When deployed, the lances jut forward past the wheels a good four feet. Each lance is an eight-foot spear of reinforced steel with a hardened tip. The first foot of the lance is marked by four separate inch-wide bands of clear reinforced glass. When the tip is fully embedded in a target, a UV flash bulb goes off at the base of the lance, delivering massive amounts of UV radiation deep into the demon’s vulnerable flesh. A direct hit with the trident is a sure kill on most demons, though some of the largest demons commonly seen will survive it. On titan-class demons or larger, two or three tridents working in tandem are usually enough to bring them down. The Trident is also equipped with ten high-powered UV lamps. Four forward mounted, two mounted sideways, two vertical and two rear-facing. The Trident is also equipped with twin grappling spike launchers which are each capable of hauling the trident and rider vertically without support. Gerard’s is modified with a interface port that allows him to control the vehicle’s features as though they were an extension of his own body.

The second piece of equipment he most treasures is his Longshot rifle, a high-powered long-range rifle equipped with a scope and laser sight. The Longshot fires illuminator rounds, which function much like the penetrator lances, although significantly weaker. The transparent round penetrates the demon’s UV-resistant hide and emits a UV flash that deals massive internal damage to the demons. The rifle allows Gerard to take care of long-range targets and flying foes, while the trident’s lances deliver devastating melee damage to large, heavily armored foes.

Some other pieces of gear include a heavy pistol that fires illuminator rounds. It also has a mounted full-spectrum flashlight. The pistol is mostly used for close-range combat, taking out smaller, faster demons than he can hit with his lances. He also carries with him a first-aid kit, some UV flash-bang grenades, and some personal body armor, including a steel-plated motorcycle helmet, a keeled tempered steel breastplate over a ceramic-and-kevlar scale vest.

Personality:
Gerard was something of a wild child before the invasion. Very anti-authority and out to do his own thing. Since the invasion, the resistance has taken care of him. He still retains a highly independent outlook on how to do things, but he has developed a healthy respect for the rules and those in charge. Mostly, he simply realizes that if he was trying to take on the demons alone, he’d be long-dead, but there’s a respect in there buried under his backtalk and bravado. He knows he’s not a leader, he’s just a very effective follower.

Backstory:

Gerard was born to an upper-middle class family in the suburbs of Chicago. At a young age, he was much like the other kids. However, the teenage years came early two him, and thirteen-year-old Gerard quickly became ‘Jerry’. He started listening to louder and more violent music, screaming at his parents and defying authority in every method available to a thirteen-year-old suburbanite. He got Gene-modded on his fifteenth birthday, gaining both his signature pink locks and the extremely useful silver nails and microprocessor. By the time of the invasion, he was starting his own rock band.

The invasion was incredibly fast. It was on the news on Monday and by Friday only the major cities were safe anymore. The daytime was okay, because the sunlight burned the demons, but once night fell, you could hear the firefights in the streets. Jerry was in a shelter after the initial air-raids of the demon armies made the suburbs unlivable.

He and his buddies were, of course, not pleased by the demons’ invasion and, despite the warnings of the military and national guard telling them to stay inside at night, Jerry joined into a small mob of angry citizens, eager to bust open some demon skulls. They didn’t know yet just how powerful the demons could be if you weren’t prepared. When they encountered a Fiend-class demon, the mob attacked with pipes, knives, and molotovs. The demon seemed to take no notice of their attacks as he tore through the ranks of them like a lawnmower. Dozens died within seconds of engaging the demon. Jerry himself caught a almost-mortal wound in the process. The military managed to take out the demon before it could finish the job, thankfully, and Jerry managed to get treatment.

Once he was better, the invasion had pretty much wiped out the formal military presence. He joined the resistance quickly, eager to prove himself against the demons. Over the next ten years, he rose through the ranks of the resistance, earning himself the status required to have all the custom equipment he wanted.

Desires:
Gerard’s desires are pretty simple on the surface. He wants to see the demons removed from the planet and see Chicago back to it’s former self. However, deeper down, Gerard secretly enjoys this life. He’s respected, he makes a difference, and deep down, killing demons satisfies some urge deep inside, a warrior’s drive.

Fears:
Gerard has been serving the resistance for a long time and has seen a great many demons. But he’s heard tales that the demons he sees  are just the tip of the iceberg. Tales that tell of massive subterranean demon cities. Tales of what lies on the other side of the demon’s portal, demons too large to even fit through. Tales of strange devices being created by the demons, devices made to blot out the sun, or turn the earth into a caricature of their home-world.

Secret:

Gerard’s secret is that, sometimes, he realizes how much he likes the war and, in the deepest portions of his subconscious, wants it to keep going. If the war ends, he goes back to being a crazy punk with no future. All he knows how to do is fight.