Born on an outer rim colony world, the planet was crushed and enslaved when they resisted assimilation into the Galactic Council. Stryker was one of many children taken and used in experiments. The goal was to turn people into human computers capable of complex computation, but also intuitive improvisation that machines were not. Stryker struggled with his implants. And no matter how much he tried to focus on supply routes and telemetry, his mind never stopped writing music – composing from his memories of home – an outlet from his inescapable service. Until one day, in a moment of horror and pain, Stryker hacked the navigation of a drone cargo freighter – sending it straight for the Psi-Control headquarters in a desperate attempt to end his own life. The whole compound was destroyed, but he survived… Afterward, he built a life for himself among the stars. He picked up the instruments he only ever imagined hearing again. He assembled a band and set out to share his songs – so much easier than words. He tries to avoid the Council worlds, but never misses an opportunity to throw a wrench into their great machine. |
Originally from an Earth Refugee flotilla fleet, Banshee ran from home at a young age and had to make it on her own. She went from planet to planet, working in clubs and learning how to sing, until hooking up with a traveling band in need of a voice. For a few years, Banshee built up a reputation and learned the ropes of the underground band scene. Eventually, her band came into conflict with the Galactic Council. Banshee and her bandmate, Veneer, were out in the town gathering supplies, while their ship was accused of smuggling. Her bandmates resisted arrest. Banshee and Veneer returned to find their friends dead, their ship destroyed, and all their possessions confiscated. Banshee worked out a plan to exact revenge on the local Imperial guard captain, and found a sympathetic ear from another traveling musician, Stryker. He always preferred to work solo, but her story gave him an idea that would only play out if they worked together. When she left that world, she had a new band, a new ship, the Captain of the Guard was dead, and there was nothing left of the treasury. Banshee continues doing what she loves, but often wonders if she was meant to have more in life. |
He doesn’t talk much about his past. But what his bandmates have pieced together is an epic tale of tragedy and perseverance. His family was once upper class, his grandfather was a high-ranking official on the Galactic Council. Politics are brutal, and his family was framed for something they did not do. To keep his family safe, Veneer’s father set all of his family up with false identities and scatted them around the verse in order to keep them safe. Once a year, they communicate on a hidden frequency that only they know, catch up, and share ideas on how to get revenge for their grandfather, and the dream he once had for what the Galactic council should have been before it was corrupted. As his family slowly bides time and consolidates resources, Veneer spends his time doing what he’s good at, playing drums and keeping out of trouble. However, he has a strange habit of befriending people who are good at attracting trouble. |
He hasn’t told anyone about his earliest days, but he grew up on Norak. His love of music led him to some friendships in the underworld who helped him escape before he reached the age of forced sterilization. He spent his teenage years working in asteroid scrapyards by day and playing drums in bars at night. He stayed out of trouble, until a girl convinced him to join a group of raiders. He really doesn’t like to talk about those years. When it was over, he was alone, working on derelict ships on a backwater world. In a bar, he met Stryker, who was looking for someone to fix up a ship he called The Penguin. It involved a few illegal modifications for a job he was doing. Sway didn’t have anything to lose, so he took the job, on the promise he could leave with them when it was over. They barely made it out alive, but Sway has been the engineer and copilot of the Penguin ever since. |
His friends call him Howie. Wherever he is, he tells people he’s from somewhere far away. But really, he’s from the ruins of Chicago. He was only a child when his four older siblings and him stowed away on a cargo barge to Flaquora. He was young and small when he found a saxophone in a scrapyard. He could barely carry it, but he taught himself to play. Before too long, he was providing for his older siblings by playing outside – and eventually inside – popular clubs. But life was never without trouble. He and his siblings got in trouble with rivals and the law. Howie learned he was as good with a firearm as he was with his instrument, and started collecting them. It brings him a sense of calm to clean and calibrate both his sax and his weapons. Flaquora became a more dangerous place after the annexation by the Galactic Council. Howie decided it was time to go. He spent time playing around the rim worlds for a while, before finding Stryker, who was interested in putting some guns on his ship. The rest is history. |
He’ll tell you anything you want to know about him, but most people don’t ask. Tonic was born into a wealthy family, but from a relationship his family did not approve of. He was sent away to The Dutiful Academy, a tough boarding school. As a child, Tonic started having visions – glances really – of the future. Sometimes they came true, sometimes not. The Dutiful Academy responded by medicating him – heavily – and singling him out for further abuse. He showed great interest in music and impressed a travelling laureate from The Ganverard School of Atlantis, winning himself a scholarship. Things were not much easier after that. He spent his formative years having technical precision grinded into his psyche as he lived in a medicated haze. The Galactic Council became angry with The Ganverard School when they refused to accept the meritless children of high-ranking officials. Tonic dreamt that an explosion would destroy the school and everyone inside. The instructors did not believe him, but he was able to convince a few other students to leave with him before his vision became a reality. Within a few days, some of the survivors who came forward ended up dead as well. Tonic tried to warn them. For the first time in his life, Tonic was on his own and his meds were wearing off. In the slums of Atlantis, Tonic met a once famous street musician, who took him under her wing and taught him that music isn’t just about technical perfection, but so much more. When the old woman passed away, Tonic left the streets and went into the clubs, where he met a singer named Banshee. He sensed she was going to lead him somewhere he needed to be. His bandmates say they don’t really believe Tonic has powers, but they always listen when he says he sees something. |