Polka

Polka

Prototype Transhuman MysAd Sasquatch Decker
Just here to chill and do decker things.
Discord	@UnwaveringGrey#2696
Reddit	UnwaveringGrey
Metatype	Sasquatch
Street Cred	0
Notoriety	0
Public Awareness	0
CDP	8
D.O.B.	02/17/2057
Age	28
Folder	[1]
Priority	Metatype - C Attributes - D Magic/Resonance - C Skills - B Resources - C

Character Information

Summary

Polka is a decker who uses his magic to support and bolster his decking. He specializes in legwork. He's generally cheerful, though somewhat introverted in meatspace due to the perpetual communication barriers... and his ever present spider mentor.

Goals

-Buy a new deck.

-Make some ¥¥¥.

-Learn some more magic.

-Fuck with MCT.

-Do decker things.

Background

TL;DR: Polka is a sasquatch science experiment turned decker who fell into the shadows to get away from the corporations & because he has the skills for it. He's generally chill.

History:

To understand just how Polka came into being we need a little bit of a history lesson, so buckle up. Fair warning, the story involves Mitsuhama Computer Technologies and otaku research. Don't blame me, they're the villains here.

Back in 2053 the Tsimshian Nation was failing financially. They opened their borders to megacorporations for the first time. Mitsuhama Computer Technologies cut a deal with the ruling body of Tsimshian. MCT would invest heavily in Tsimshian's failing economy and industry in exchange for carte blanche to do just about whatever they pleased in the country. This included first claim to all natural resources in the country. The deal also included MCT providing cutting edge military armaments being provided to the Tsimshian armed forces.

In 2055 the first otaku really started hitting the scene. Naturally, the computing giant MCT took interest. Shortly after learning about the existence of otaku MCT began studying them. Their research was based on experimenting with otaku "volunteers", and tests run on brain matter which those volunteers had "generously donated." As a result of their experimentation, as well as through interrogations of the subjects, they came across the concept of resonance. Their initial theory was that the resonance that the otaku claimed to be able to feel were some sort of variant expression of magic. The core of their theory was that an otaku was the result of a child awakening to the matrix rather than to traditional magic, and that this was likely related to the environment that the child awakens in as well as the interest in technology that the child has. This theory would later be proven to be completely incorrect, but some of MCT's initial attempts to artificially create otaku would be based on that theory.

With their incorrect understanding that otaku were simply a variant expression of latent magical ability, MCT reasoned that it would be simpler and more effective to attempt to induce an "otaku awakening" on naturally magical beings. Given the low rate of awakening in metahumans, it was more cost effective to engineer metasapients instead, since as dual natured beings they are guaranteed to have some form of awakening. The experiments were to take place at the new MCT blacksite outside of Prince George in Tsimshian. A secluded population of sasquatches living in Tsimshian territory would provide the genetic data for the vat grown metasapients; the genetic samples were gathered under the guise of a MCT sponsored medical outreach program.

In 2056 the experiment proper began. A batch of several hundred subjects were grown, having had their genetics modified by MCT in a way that MCT hoped would allow them to express abilities similar to otaku. The subjects were subjected to large amounts of electronic and radio data while in their artificial wombs. In 2057 the subjects were grown and the first batch of prototype engineered otaku were "born." More decanted really; only about half survived of them survived the decanting process. Shortly thereafter they were tested. Since dual natured creatures are awoken at birth, MCT theorized that any "otaku awakenings" would be instantly recognizable as a lack of magic on the part of the subjects. With some basic assensing, it quickly clear that none of the subjects had awoken as otaku since all of them had the connection to magic typical to sasquatches. At this point Polka was known as "11-C", and he had hit the genetic lottery. Polka had been born as a mystic adept. This spared him from undergoing "further study" by the Mitsuhama scientists, who were eager to see how the genetic changes to the structure of the subject's brains had expressed themselves. The project was deemed a failure, and many of the surviving subjects were... tested. However, MCT had a different fate in store for the most magically gifted of the subjects. Those with exceptional magical potential were identified as potential assets for MCT, and were spared.

The remaining dozen or so subjects were kept in a small group and raised to serve the corporation. For the first few years their training consisted of lessons in American sign language, general education, and a touch of corporate indoctrination. As the years progressed, MCT began teaching them about hermetic magic, tactics, and whatever else could make them useful to the corporation. The training was intense, but not harsh. The subjects were no longer disposable test subjects, but rather disposable and deniable tools for MCT. They were raised to be loyal, obedient, and skilled. The training became individualized as the subjects became old enough to demonstrate natural ability that could be honed and refined. Over the years it had become apparent that for Polka and several of the others the otaku-based genetic modifications had taken hold in some capacity, as they seemed to have an exceptional ability to process data. Those subjects took to hacking and cyberwarefare like ducks to water, and their training focused in these areas.

It was during these years of training that the subjects started to pick up "real names" rather than their alphanumeric designations. When he was four, Polka had heard the song "Polkadots and Moonbeams" in one of the blacksite's elevators and had proceeded to hum it for the next several weeks. Naturally, the song became his name. The nickname "Polka" was used for short in text conversations, but Polka still considers his name to be his favorite fourteen notes of the song.

Back in the realm of international politics, the relations between Tsimshian and the Salish-Shidhe council started breaking down in 2060. Early in 2062 a war breaks out between the two nations. Though there is a ceasefire brokered later on in 2062, hostilities are renewed almost immediately and the two nations continue fighting. In 2067 MCT begins pulling out of Tsimshian territory, presumably due to not seeing as much of a return on investments as expected due to the war. This goes hand in hand with MCT ceasing to provide financial assistance and military armaments to Tsimshian. Naturally, the cessation of assistance from MCT significantly weakened Shimshian's ability to fight a defensive war.

As the warfare increased between the Salish-Shidhe and Tsimshian forces amidst the MCT withdrawal, the blacksite housing Polka is mistakenly targeted by artillery and assaulted by SSC ground forces. Though the mistaken hostilities between the Salish-Shidhe militias and the MCT security personel ended quickly the shelling destroyed some of the facility and provided an opening for the subjects to escape. Not all of them chose to given the opportunity, but Polka hadn't yet been indoctrinated enough that he would decide to stay in the facility. He took his chance and fled into the surrounding woods. Shortly after Polka's escape the hostilities between the Salish-Shidhe Council and the Tsimshian Nation ended with the SSC annexing the Tsimshian nation as a protectorate.

Polka fled along some of the other subjects and many other refugees to Salish-Shidhe territory, where he ended up briefly in a refugee camp before SSC aid workers there spotted him and the other subjects and shipped them off to live with a tribe Sasquatches. Polka found no peace living in the woods with the sasquatch tribe. He had grown accustomed to life surrounded by electronics and creature comforts. Living a simpler life in the woods where half of the people weren't even proficient in sign language drove him up the wall. Polka lived with the tribe for as long as he could stand, but in 2071 he left the tribe and moved to Bellingham. He had the foresight to bring his training deck with him back when he had escaped the MCT facility, and he had kept his prized Microdeck Summit safe during his years living with the tribe. He hoped that he could use it to pay his way in society.

Polka had a rough start in Bellingham. He had expected to go to the city and start decking to make a living. Instead, he went to the city and the sudden flood of electronic traffic activated his biolink for the first time. Confused, broke, and overwhelmed by the electronic noise, Polka ended up living on the streets for a few months. It was at this low point in his life that Aszazi, the spider spirit, found Polka. Aszazi taught Polka the spider way; how to sit calmly in his web and filter through the data coming in along the strands. How to tune out the unimportant tidbits of data and instead only focus on and act on what matters. Slowly, with Aszazi's help, Polka learned how to tune out the wireless noise and focus only on the connections and data that he needed. After regaining control, Polka was able to make ends meet by diving into hosts and liberating pay data. He started off diving on the public grid while homeless and slowly worked his way into a better lifestyle (with a better grid). After a while he made a name for himself as a skilled decker, and from there he quickly started working in the shadows. Polka got his start in the shadows in 2074, when he was pulled into a simple robbery of a corporate warehouse as matrix support. Polka was successful in the shadows; he started small, but as he went he honed his skills, bought cutting edge equipment, made contacts, and generally lived the high life. He would have stayed in Bellingham forever, but as they say, "All good things must come to an end."

In October 2081 Polka and his crew ended up in too deep. Polka won't talk about the specifics of the run except to repeat the age old adage, "Never deal with a dragon." The end result of that run was that Polka nearly died to black IC, his assets were frozen, his shiny new Shiawase Cyber-5 got permanently bricked, his good fake sin was burned, and he needed to skip town pronto. Polka grabbed his bug out bag and headed to Seattle to lay low for... a few decades. Just in case.

Personality:

Polka is generally laid back, and curious by nature. He was high strung and serious when he left the Prince George MCT facility as a youth, but he quickly mellowed during his time with the sasquatch tribe. If you ask him about his time there, he would tell you that he absolutely hated it. He hated not having matrix access in the deep mountains, he hated not having basic creature comforts, and he hated the food. But the truth that Polka tries to avoid admitting to himself is that he misses it, and that he enjoyed his time there. He enjoyed the simplicity of it all, and the crisp mountain air. But the city and the matrix called to him, and he couldn't stay. Polka has also seen a lot of the best and worst that metahumanity has to offer. He's personally experienced corporate indoctrination, but also has fond memories of some of the kinder guards that did their best to raise the subjects as people instead of as corporate resources. He spent time in a refugee camp and on the streets, but he's also spent time in with the gorgeous vistas of the mountains in SSC territory. He's seen brutality in the shadows, but he also built strong friendships with some of the other runners in Bellingham. The result of all of this is that Polka hopes for the best in people, but doesn't necessarily expect it from them. He's essentially a good person at his core, and will go out of his way to help others when given the opportunity.

Notes:

• Polka abhors MCT as an organization for what they did to technomancers in the late 2060s. Though he has no qualms with the individuals that make up the corp, if he's given the option to screw over MCT he'll go out of his way to do so.
• If he's out and about Polka tries to blend in by wearing very baggy clothes and a hoodie with the hood up.
• Polka's matrix icons and the like are fairly plain, though they have a faint magic theme to them. He prefers to run in the matrix with as little unnecessary flair as possible, but his pride as a decker makes it so he can't completely ignore decorating his icons. He just likes to keep it subtle.
• Polka loves popular media, and is constantly diving into it.
• ((Feel free to grab steal the escaped MCT bio-experiment backstory if you want to make your own snowflake sasquatch character.))

Narrative Significant Qualities

Positive

• Mystic Adept: Polka is a mysad, with middling magic and middling adept abilities.
• Prototype Transhuman: Polka was bio modified before birth by MCT in an attempt to make artificial otaku.
• Deck Builder, Overclocker, Quick Config: Polka is a nova hot decker.
• Mentor Spirit, Mentor's Mask: Polka's mentor spirit is the spider spirit, Aszazi. This has occasionally caused him problems due to people misidentifying Aszazi as an insect spirit.

Negative

• Astral Beacon
• Psyche Addiction: Polka can stop any time he wants.
• Curiosity Killed the Cat: Polka must crack the security on files. He has to.
• Gremlins 2: Polka swears that he's cursed. It's actually constant minor malfunctions with the prototype genemods.
• Records on File (Mitsuhama): Mitsuhama knows all about him. They didn't see fit to try to recover him in the middle of a warzone and he was written off, but they're still watching.
• Uneducated: Polka's weird childhood means that he doesn't understand some common sense things.

Run History

Name	GM	Metaplot	Date of Run
Remaining Strangers	Asmodeus		3 August 2083
A Blast from the Past	OrionsRequiem		18 February 2082
Step Into My Parlor	Asmodeus	Festering Infestation	4 February 2082
The Play's the Thing...	OrionsRequiem	Cross Flight Love Fight	22 January 2082

Affiliations

Contacts

Contact	Connection	Loyalty	Archetype	Profession	Aspects	Chips
Adowa "Moria" Webster	4	2	Fixer	DIMR Scientist	Hermetic Mage, Decker, Nerd, Draco Foundation Fixer, Arcane-Archaeologist	Even
Uta Yamamura	3	1	Gear	Tailor/Focusmonger	Focusmonger, Tailor, Hermetic, NEEEEEEEEEEEEERRRRD	Even

Allies

The Black Lodge: +1 faction rep

West Coast Monolith: +1 faction rep

Enemies

Black Vory: -1 faction rep

Renraku: -5 faction rep

In Character Information

Matrix Search Table

Threshold	Result
1
3
6

Shadow Community Table

Threshold	Result
1
3
5

SINs

Archibald - A SSC sin, for a sasquatch that looks kinda like him. But most people can't tell the difference.