Alex Parker
Despite the stigma of his connection to one of the most powerful men in the Balance, Theodore Parker, Alex has managed to work his way up to the prestigious position of being Force Team Alpha's leader. His straightforward tactics and simple manner endear him to his superiors, although his closest friends know he's capable of thinking outside the box as well as anyone else. His idol is John Argyris, who was the star of a high-budget propaganda action movie produced by the Free Nations.
Age: 20
Height: 6'2"
Origin: Balance (Cala Arcology, English Quarter)
Likes: Action movies, sunglasses, diving in slow-motion
Rachel Grey
Rachel was romantically involved with Alex at the Force Academy on and off for most of the time were there, but after a year apart on different assignments she showed up at Force HQ completely changed. Although she is still the same person, she takes great care to remain detached and antisocial, choosing to focus instead on getting the job done with maximum efficiency. She is an extremely good sharpshooter and knowledgeable about the history of the Balance.
Age: 19
Height: 5'8"
Origin: Balance (Kiev Arcology)
Likes: History books, solitude, conspiracy theories
Jay Argyris
Dedicated, understanding, well-spoken and disciplined; Jay would normally have shot straight to the highest ranks of the Force but is hindered by one thing - his father runs it. Although Jay has been on several frontline Force teams, his superiors have always been hesitant to send him on missions with them for fear of invoking the General's wrath should anything go wrong. His current assignment is under Alex's command as part of Force Alpha, but like Rachel he's worried that the team has been recreated by the General for the sole purpose of testing the capabilities of the hybrid soldier, Fourteen.
The Argyris family are descended from alien visitors to Earth and make extensive use of alien body modification technology to give them a mental and physical edge. Wide-spread public paranoia about alien technology means they keep this fact a secret.
Age: 29
Height: 6'0"
Origin: Beijing, Free Nations
Likes: Things running smoothly, swords, ladies
John Argyris
General John Argyris was one of the original heroes of the Force, and was even the subject of a high-budget biographical action movie in which he played himself. His fame has aided his political career within the Free Nations, and he now leads the Defence Council, a post which gives him complete control of the workings of the Force special forces teams.
Like his son, John Argyris makes use of alien bodymodifications. He has been known to meditate for hours on end, a practice which he believes lets him talk to the souls of his ancestors. He has also been blessed with extreme longevity, and looks much younger than his actual age.
Age: Nobody asks
Height: 5'11"
Origin: Beijing, Free Nations
Likes: Jazz, cigars, dark rooms
Fourteen
Although her hair and eyes are bright red, the most striking thing about Fourteen is the cheerful and rather naive personality that clashes violently with her purpose as a highly advanced weapon. She was recovered from the crash site of a Balance starship's escape pod with a blank memory. Jay Argyris was given the task of training her and discovered the hard way that she had an innate ability to use nearly anything as a weapon.
Fourteen was recently expelled from the body she was resident in when it rejected her. Her main programming is preserved on a small memory core.
Height: 5'6"
Origin: Found in a squishy red pod in a lake, in a buried city from before the Balance
Likes: Things that are funny, people who are nice
Lysandra Nichols
Journalism student who was killed nine years ago and resurrected as part of the Balance's hybrid soldier research. She was turned into the supersoldier known as Fourteen who joined Force Alpha briefly and was supposed to be John Argyris' secret weapon. Instead, Fourteen's fluffy personality attracted Alex's awkward advances and her programming was mysteriously wiped by the strange voice in her head as an attempt to protect her from him.
She later found out from the voice in her head that she was part-alien like Jay, although by chance she'd only inherited small amounts of the dominant alien genes, allowing her to pass as human in the eyes of the Balance. The voices tell her that her mother gave her blood memory, a trait many half-aliens have, so she'd remember her alien father, who was killed by the Balance.
Age: 18 (dead)
Height: 5'5"
Origin: (Cala Arcology, Middle Tier)
Likes: Martyrs, socialism
Jessica Kane
Lysandra's younger half-sister. Her father was also an alien. She was very intelligent and became aware of the difference between her and normal humans. She used her intelligence to crack into Balance security networks for fun. She supported the Balance, saying that its fascistic methods supported its methods. She disapproved of her sister's flirtings with the resistance in the Arcology.
Assumed dead by Lysandra after she was kidnapped from their flat in the events that lead up to Lysandra's death. She showed up on a Balance computer system Fourteen accessed nine years later, however, so it is possible that she is still alive somewhere in the Balance.
Age: 8 (would be 17 in the present)
Origin: Balance (Cala Arcology, Middle Tier)
Marre
Mysterious luminescent person who saved Jay and Rachel from certain death at the hands of the Balance. Wears a scarf and finger gloves. John Argyris believes it to be Bella, an old friend who inspired him to create the Force, and Rachel's mother. Theodore Parker thinks Marre is an immortal or an angel.
Knew someone called Jonas who was a captive of the Balance until he committed suicide in a bizarre way to send Marre a message.
Tony Hernandez and Aire Peregrine
Lysandra's boyfriend and best friend respectively before her death. As far as Lysandra knows, both are dead.
America Sade
Sadie (she was actually American and got pretty sick of her first name) was Force Alpha's medic for the Lanzhou mission. She was assigned to the mission mainly because of her part-alien genes, which John and Jay felt the team needed more of. She was unfortunately killed in the Balance ambush on the return trip, before the rest of the team got to know her very well.
Age: 23
Height: 5'9"
Origin: New York Arcology
Likes: Helping people, feeling useful, spaghetti bolognese