Character Name: Alphonse Pointdexter Leguene
Alternate
Identities: Diogenes
Player Name: NPC
|
| |
| Cost |
Disadvantage |
| 0 |
Normal Characteristic Maxima |
| 5 |
Age: 40+ |
| 5 |
Distinctive Features: Tailored genome
(Not Concealable; Noticed and Recognizable; Detectable Only By Technology
Or Major Effort) |
| 20 |
Hunted: the OFFICE 8- (Mo Pow, NCI,
Harshly Punish) |
| 10 |
Psychological Limitation: Secretive
(Common, Moderate)
Notes: Treat as
"Strong" or "Total" depending on nature of secrets. |
| 15 |
Psychological Limitation: Loyal to
spouse (Common, Strong) |
| 10 |
Reputation: Difficult to work with, 8-
(Extreme) |
| 5 |
Rivalry: Professional (Other hackers;
Rival is As Powerful; Seek to Outdo, Embarrass, or Humiliate Rival; Rival
Aware of Rivalry) |
| 15 |
Social Limitation: Secret ID: Diogenes
(Occasionally, Severe) |
| 5 |
Social Limitation: Prejudice vs.
Alternates (Occasionally, Minor) |
| 10 |
Vulnerability: 2 x Effect Mental
powers v. machines (Uncommon) |
| 100 |
Total Disadvantages Cost |
| Hair Color: |
Light brown |
| Eye Color: |
Blue |
| Height: |
1.72 m |
| Weight: |
70.00 kg |
| Description: |
| Leguene isn't much to look at. He
might be considered good-looking, but he's a bit short and on the scrawny
side; one might even say under-developed. He is, however, well-groomed and
very well-dressed, having acquired rather expensive taste in clothes.
Unlike most inhabitants of Mandalla Free Station, he never has learned to
use a vac suit, so he keeps a compact rescue ball handy at all times,
which seems to mark him as a perpetual visitor. Aside from that, he
carries an off-the shelf augmented reality interface, as a decoy, so
people won't immediately suspect he has an implant. |
Alphonse Pointdexter Leguene is
just your typical Mensae alternate from old Terra, Marseilles to be exact.
But there's no such thing as a "typical" Mensae, and Alphonse's enhanced
intellect, for whatever reason, led him to the inescapable conclusion that
anarchy should be the ideal state of affairs in the galaxy. Having made up
his mind about that, and seeing governments of an Orwellian bent
throughout Sol system and the core UN colonies, young Alphonse set about
doing what he could to change things for the better. (To his way of
thinking.) He enjoyed writing, and he had seen a quote that said "It is
the duty of every author to write the most dangerous book possible." So he
decided to start by updating the venerable 'Anarchists' Cookbook' for the
24th century. But he'd have to do it anonymously, of
course.
Throughout Terran space, every colony is connected by a
network of entangled quantum computers which enable instant communications
between them. However, these are extremely rare and expensive, so each
colony typically has only a single such device, and access to it is
strictly controlled. Use of this so-called 'Q-net' is limited to official
message traffic only, mostly government, diplomatic, military, and some
high-level academic information. There are, however, back-channels set up
for various unofficial users: secret organizations, black projects,
corrupt officials, emergency hotlines, and other, more obscure purposes.
Private individuals (aka hackers) who tap into one of these unofficial
channels are difficult to detect, if they're very careful, and don't do
anything stupid, like intercepting and decrypting official traffic. (Even
if they are detected, prosecution is difficult without exposing the
existence of the unofficial back-channel, so they're often tolerated, as
long as they behave.) This hacked network of quantum-entangled
communications forms an unofficial "shadow" of the Q-net, known across
Terran Space as the 'Tangled Web.
Alphonse had little difficulty
securing access to the 'Tangled Web, and under the nom-de-plume "Diogenes"
used it to publish the first book in his subversive vitual trilogy,
"Anarchy For Dummies", which became the third-most-downloaded title in the
year of its release. On Terra , large men with badges and tasers were
looking for him, but Diogenes became very popular on the 'Tangled Web, and
established contacts on Luna, where he continued writing and released his
second title, "Revolution For Dummies". The following year, insurgents in
several of the UN core colonies found his book extremely useful. Somehow,
word had gotten out that he'd left Terra, and now the OFFICE itself had
taken an interest in shutting him up. It was time to leave the core
altogether. Jack of All Tirades personally offered "Diogenes" asylum at
Groombridge 34, so he took the offer, and decided to hit UNISTAR where it
hurts. He completed the trilogy en route, and on arrival at Mandalla Free
Station, passed his final manuscript to the Jack for publication to the
'Tangled Web. "Treason For Dummies" wasn't nearly as popular as its
predecessors, but following its release, the OFFICE put Diogenes at the
top of their Most Wanted list. The following year, various UNISTAR
departments suffered numerous security breaches, ranging from minor to
nearly catastrophic. Many of the suspects possessed copies of "Treason".
Some got away clean, using methods detailed in "Treason", while others
commited suicide, painlessly, in ways recommended by the book. Diogenes
disappeared, never to be heard from on the 'Tangled Web again. The large
reward posted by the OFFICE remains unclaimed. Alphonse's career as an
author of subversive literature is over.
Having annoyed every
government in the galaxy (been there, done that!), Alphonse turned his
attention to the 'Tangled Web. He felt it could be used as much more than
a communications system, and started thinking BIGGER. What could he do
with a galaxy-wide distributed network of entagled quantum computers? Any
damn thing he wanted, as long as nobody knew! He's spent the last several
years creating a "simulation space" on the 'Tangled Web, capable of
running economic forecasts, projecting socio-political trends, and even
predicting the outcome of military campaigns. Control run to "predict"
past events always come out right, so Alphonse knows he's onto something.
But something is very wrong. Predictions of future events yield answers
before the simulation is complete--often before all the conditions are
set! And some of them have turned out to be accurate. Alphonse has
stumbled into some kind of causality violation here, and it scares the
hell out of him. He ran one last simulation after the Terracide, then
destroyed the entired project after his results came in. Nobody knows what
kind of simulation he was running, and he isn't talking. Not even his wife
can get anything out of him.
Alphonse's wife is none other than
Athena Security, CEO of Athena Security. They seem like an odd match, at
first, but they have similar politics and, as he explains it "I needed a
bodyguard, she needed a hacker who could keep his mouth shut." Athena
doesn't know the half of it--Alphonse never has told her about Diogenes.
|
| Alphonse is something of a
mystery, wrapped in an enigma, trapped in the body of a computer nerd.
While he used to be the most infamous anarchist in Terran space (in the
guise of Diogenes), the demise of every oppressive government on Terra has
brought him no joy. And if being married to a Virgo makes him happy, he
isn't letting on about that either. Actually, nobody really seems to know
just what makes him tick. One thing is certain, however. Aside from the
typical Mensae "too-damn-smart-and-he-knows-it" attitude, Alphonse is very
good at his job, which is IT consultant (hacking) for Athena Security.
He's extremely loyal to her, and takes his work for the company and its
clients very seriously. |
| Yes, dear, I know you told me to
stay in the office, but I much prefer to be onsite for this job. What
could possibly go wrong when we're together? By the way, your interface is
logging trace all over their a/r net. Here, let me fix that.... |
| Alphonse can't fight is way out
of a wet paper bag, even if Athena helps and rips it half-way first. At
her insistence, he's learned some basic self defense, and he can fire a
rocket pistol without shooting his foot off, but that's about it. Given
access to any form of computer, especially an augmented reality network,
he's extremely dangerous. His a/r interface implant has been modified
extensively, almost up to military specificiations, and is now far more
capable than any "off the shelf" model. This much additional headware has
left him much more vulnerable to "brain hacking" than other Mensae types,
however. |
The characters will most likely
encounter Alphonse through his wife--he doesn't get out much. Or, they
might contact him via the 'Tangled Web, if one of them has such a contact.
Unlike most of the other NPC's presented here, Leguene doesn't spend much
time at the Blind Spot, because he prefers to stay on the grid at all
times. If he is at the Blind Spot, then it's at Athena's request, as
always. In any event, if the PC's need a hacker, Alphonse is probably the
best one they could hope to find, if they can afford to hire
him.
Or maybe the PC's are hired to find out what Alphonse's last
project was all about, before he pulled the plug on it. All they have to
do is find him and "invite" him to a laboratory where the contents of his
implants can be downloaded and scanned properly. Alternately, someone
might actually discover the true identity of Diogenes, and hire the PC's
to bring him in. This wouldn't be easy, considering how well-protected he
is! |