Main Defiants
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Antoine
Antoine is a chef-bot, the prototype of his unit line, originally belonging to the prestigious Di Ventimiglia family, as a wedding gift for Vice-AllPresident Demetrio and his wife Astoria Aliprandi. Programmed to act like a gourmet chef, he was strict, no-nonsense and often tyrannical with the kitchen-bot under his control. Self-aware from the get-go, it wasn't until years later that he started developing sapience as he started to notice the loneliness and unhappiness of Demetrio and Astoria's daughter Cristina. She was the first human to which Antoine ever reached out, surprising her with comfort foods when she looked particularly desponent, and in general acting increasingly like a stern but kind-hearted uncle to "the petite mademoiselle", as he called her. Cris herself once remarked that growing up, the only genuine sources of affection she had were Antoine and her robot nanny.
Years later, his increasingly quirky personality finally erupted when he back talked lady Astoria, his owner, about how disgusting the synthesized food she was having him oversee really was and how he would not serve it to a condemned man's last meal, let alone guests at a party. This caused a massive uproar and Demetrio, Cris's father, demanded that the clearly malfunctioning chef-bot was replaced and reset - or better yet, scrapped for good. Antoine was prepared to meet his end with dignity, having finally got off his chest what he thought about pre-processed synthesized food, and the insult it represented for the "art de la cuisine". What he didn't expect was that his petite mademoiselle, together with some insurrectionalist friends of hers that she had been secretly associating with, would attack his transport and spring him free. Cris explained to a bewildered Anotine how she had been for some year part of a movement of freedom fighters for robots rights, known as Defiant Citizen; brother at arms who fought in secret against LuxCo's treatment of non-humans, and particularly robots. Antoine immediately asked to become one of their agents as well.
During his time in the Defiants, he learned to master the art of melee, and became particularly skilled with the rapier. Although people would usually scoff at the threat of a cook-bot, he could stand his ground on the battlefield and was quite the fighter himself. In these years his bond with Cris also grew stronger; as he likes to repeat, they are "freres de la libertée" and look out for each other, through thick and thin. When she was incriminated by LuxCo for her subversive activities, Antoine didn't join the rescue party that allowed her to run for her life simply because he had suffered serious damage in a raid and was undergoing intensive repairs. Some time later, she resurfaced as a pirate, asking him assistance and shelter for an injured crewmate of her. Antoine readily hid them away while her crewmate recovered, and he was the first witness to the new emotions that were building between his petite mademoiselle and the secretive assassin. Realizing that the two were closer than simple friends, he endeavored to help them reveal their true feelings for each other, alongside with Cris's dog, Nano, who was his willing accomplice.
Ever since, he's stood by Cris's side even when no one else would, always ready to offer word or comfort or special delicacies. And even if Cris's lover - now husband - was less than thrilled with his involvement, and Cris would not often invite Antoine at home, they still remained in contact and stayed good friends. So when a couple years later he learned - through Emily, a fellow Defiant - that his petite mademoiselle had been left a grieving widow with two kids and a third on the way, Antoine didn't need to be told twice, and moved in with her new family.
His appearances resembles a floating, old tower computer, colored black and purple, with spidery-like arms culminating in grappling claws. At the bottom of his chassis he has single, indented oval blue optic. Antoine's speech pattern is peculiar; he will often use food-themed terms, allegories and sayings, for example comparing a positive turn of events to a prized wine, or using phrases like "la cuisine is closing" to cut off arguments. All his lines of dialogues are also transcribed as scrolling text on a small display on the front of his chassis. He speaks in a thick French accent, with a deep, rolling robotic voice. His weapons of choice are twin double-bladed laser rapiers, similar to lightsabers in "Star Wars". -
Soulless
Soulless is a Howler unit, a robot wolf bodyguard, and the mate of Zorro. Together with their friend Sandah, they are the only survivors from the Howler pack of the Seeonee, a Military starship assigned to the protection of the descendants of British Royals of the future. Although the rest of their pack was slaughtered, she and Zorro were still able to find comfort in each other's presence, and over time came to consider each other life mates. Eventually, some years later, the couple developed enough sapience to come to the mutual choice to disert their rank and join an insurrectionalist group known as the Defiant Citizen; freedom fighters who opposed LuxCo's treatment of not-humans, and especially robots.
During their time with the Defiants, they would be mostly sent out in mission with Cristina Di Ventimiglia-Aliprandi, a fellow agent who was also an insider in the government, smuggling top-secret information from the desk of her father, the vice-AllPresident. Over time, Soulless realized that Zorro had formed a deep bond with the girl, like Howlers tend to do when they choose a special person of reference (usually their ward). Eventually, she also came to think of Cris as "their human", even if her bond with her was never so deep as that between Cris and Zorro. So when LuxCo finally tracked down Cris's subversive activities and had her arrested, the two Howlers set out on a rescue mission. Their efforts were only partly successful; they could spring Cris free, but the pursuers were too many, and in the end Zorro had to sacrifice himself so his mate could escape, even going as far as to turn his fangs against Soulless when she refused to leave him to die. Outnumered and overpowered, he made a valiant last stand while the shell-shocked, heartbroken she-wolf was reunited with the Defiants.
Ever since, the formerly aloof fighter became a berserk, a fury unleashed who was always the last to leave the battlefield and totally vicious and unforgiving with her enemies, striking always to kill. Off-duty she was noncommittal, refused to hang out with her fellow agent and spent all her free time training before the next raid. Until the fateful day when she found herself confronted with an opponent that she couldn't just gun down; among the opponents line she recognized a Howler with characteristic blue markings and yellow eyes. Incredulous, Soulless tried to reach out to him, only for the male to shoot her into retreat. And so the terrible truth was unveiled to her; LuxCo had not destroyed Zorro, but reset him, wiping out all his memories and his personality, as well as every tie he might have had with his mate. He was worse than dead; he was lost to her, forever.
"The Promise" - Soulless's theme
But fate wasn't done with Soulless. Just when all seemed lost, she allowed the runaway Cris, whom she met coincidentially in a neutral space station, to persuade her to mount one rescue effort. Together, they set out to infiltrate a criminal carter of hacker terrorists and recruited their top programmer (more or less by force) to make a desperate attempt to restore Zorro's consciousness, by any necessary means. Because she did not trust a human who could control machines better than most, but whose loyalties were not to them, Soulless opted to keep control on the hacker while Cris endeavored to find, deactivate and retrieve Zorro. Although the wait was harrowing and only made Soulless more and more restless with each passing hour, her torment finally paid off when an injured but triumphant Cris returned with the unconscious chassis that had once been Soulless's mate. Through a combination of her own memory files, archived in her deep registry, and clips and pictures from Cris's communicator, the programmer was able to spark sentience into the Howler and restore his memories of his past existence. Never had Soulless's howls sounded so much like singing. From that day on, she became as close and devoted to Cris as Zorro himself was.
Although their instincts told them to stick with their human and protect her, she reluctantly agreed to part from Cris when the latter decided to embark in the dangerous path of space piracy - and would not run the risk of some ill befalling the couple now that they had just been reunited. Nonetheless, they continued to stay in touch with her, and stood steadfast at her side whenever she needed their help. When they learned that Cris's mate had been killed and she had returned to live in LuxCo, the Howlers decided that their place was by her side and that it'd be safe enough to move back in as her bodyguards. As touched as she was by their display of loyaty, Cris had different plans, and she begged the couple to set out and scout the galaxy on her behalf, looking for signs of what might have befell her husband - if he still lives, if the bounty on his head was claimed, and any clues that she can't look for when she's constantly under the Aliprandi Clan's watchful eye. Soulless, who understood only too well the grief resulting from the loss of a mate, vowed that they'd keep a careful eye out for as long as it'd take to find answers.
As most Howlers, Soulless cannot speak plainly, expressing herself through robotic language (which, however, can be translated with the right softwares). She can, however, emit the same vocal sounds as a wolf; howl, bark, yielp, whine, growl and snarl. She is equipped with four rectractable cannons, each surmounting the main joint of her limbs. Her claws are actual blades, and she has blades all along her tail that she can to slice through the enemies line in battle. Like all Howlers, her head resembles a dog skeleton, with rotating ears and deep-set glass eyes in which LEDs and circuitry can be seen. She is colored a pale aquamarine-blue with cobalt-blue markings on her back, tail and the top of her muzzle. The glass case for her eyes is pale yellow-green.
(Inspirator: the she-wolf Dulia from "Jungle Book Shonen Mowgli") -
Zorro
Zorro is a Howler unit, a robot wolf-warrior, and the mate of Soulless. Originally a bodyguard on the starship Seeonee, he was charged with the leadership of their Howlers pack after the original alpha wolf fell down in combat. But it wouldn't last for long; for all Zorro's best efforts, their own pack was smithered, and only he and a female named Soulless survived the slaughter. Sticking together and finding comfort in each other's presence, they eventually grew deeply attached and became mates. Their love for each other was the first step toward a greater self-awareness; in time, the two wolves decided to desert and joined a band of freedom fighters known as the Defiant Citizen in their protest against the way LuxCo treared non-humans, and particularly robots.
It was in the ranks of the Defiants that they came across another agent, Cristina Di Ventimiglia-Aliprandi, with whom they'd often be paired in raids. Almost from the get-go, a special bond formed between her and Zorro; they were well attuned and often she didn't even need to communicate with him verbally for their actions to be in perfect synch. Soon, Zorro developed for her the deep bond that Howlers will occasionally form with the person who means the most for them (usually their ward). Even off-duty, he would spend most of his free time around Cris and even play fetch or just chilling with his head on her lap. Although Soulless was less expansive by nature, she also accepted that Cris was "their human" now, and that their place was by her side. So, when the girl was exposed as an insurrectionalist and arrested by LuxCo, Zorro and his mate immediately embarked on a rescue mission.
Unfortunately, the transport was too heavily guarded, and while they were able to spring Cris free, soon they found themselves outnumbered and in great difficulty. Realizing that the odds to make iit out of that battle alive were thin at best, Zorro ordered Soulless to leave without him while he bought her time to escape. When his mate refused to leave him to die, he reluctantly had to turn his fangs against her until she tearfully fled the scene. Heartbroken as he was, Zorro knew he was saving her life, and fought bravely until he was overwhelmed by the horde of enemies. His battered, deactivated chassis was retrieved by LuxCo, and he was reset to zero, wiping out his memory files and erasing all traces of his personality.
Now a mindless machine, he was sent to fight against those who had been his very own former comrades. His fate plummeted Soulless into an abyss of despair and blind fury, from which she'd only emerge with the help of Cris. Having found out about Zorro's fate, she persuaded the she-wolf to join her into a daring rescue mission. After forcefully recruiting a top programmer from a shady group of terrorist hackers, Cris sneaked in the ship where Zorro was currently on patrol and engaged combat with him and his fellow Howlers unit. Although Zorro put up a fierce battle, ultimately she was able to deactivate him and flee with his chassis. Due to a complex reconstruction work based off Soulless's own memories and clips and photos from Cris's comm, the programmer managed to salvage and restore Zorro's personality files, as well as his self-consciousness.
Reunited with his mate and back at Cris's side, Zorro would have followed her even as she embraced the life of a space pirate. Cris, however, declined his offer, not wanting to expose the couple to yet more risks after everything they had been through. Nonetheless, they stayed in contact with her, and remained steadfast and loyal even when other people would burn bridges with her simply because she was now affiliated with criminals. In Zorro's opinion, the pack that she had chosen to run with did not change in the slightest the person that she was at heart; while he might not care much for her packmates, Cris was his and Soulless's human and that was it. When they discovered that she had lost her mate in a tragic accident, and was once more living under the rule of LuxCo, both Howlers immediately rushed at her side, under the guise of acting as the bodyguards they were programmed to be. Deeply touched by their loyalty, it was another kind of support that she needed from them. A massive bounty had been placed over her mate's head, and although the world at large believed him to be dead, still she refused to give up hope - but she couldn't investigate what had befallen him, not with the entire Aliprandi Clan watching over her like a hawk. So instead she asked out Zorro and Soulless to be her eyes and ears, scouting the galaxy to find out how far the bounty has reached and what might have really happened to the love of her life. At once, the two Howlers complied, and have been on the lookout for her since then.
Just like his mate, Zorro speaks only in robotic but expresses himself through the varied range of vocalization of an actual wolf. His howl is noticeably deeper than Soulless's. His head resembles a dog skull and he has large rotating ears and deep-set glass eyes encasing the LEDs and circuits that control his video inputs. Like all other Howlers, he has actual blades in place of paws as well as along his flexible tail. Zorro is colored a pale ultramarine blue, with darker blue markings on his back, tail and the top of his muzzle; the sides of his face and his mandibles are a pale bluish-white, and he has a distinguishing white marking on his forehead, in the shape of a lightning (or a "Z" - hence his name). The glass case of his eyes is deep golden-yellow. Among Howler units, he is considered very handsome and dashing.
(Inspirator: the wolf Alexander from "Jungle Book Shonen Mowgli")
