
Captain Vollmer

These are interesting times we exist in indeed! Finally, after hundreds of cycles after a near extinction event that, to this day, has left our civilization with a galactic sized mystery and source of insecurity as a species, we are now in a place to begin asking questions. A think tank has been created and freelancers evaluated for field research.
Yet for every step forward, for every new clue uncovered, we meet resistance, even hostility. To that end, we must draw others to the cause, making allies and friends. And, if scientific protocol is to be observed, these persons of interest must be meticulously cataloged! Today it is my distinct pleasure to start the process off with the honorable Captain Vollmer.
Captain Vollmer
Home Station: Tau Station
Affiliation: Consortium
Role: Security
Captain Vollmer is a native of Tau Station, born and bred there. He received his training in security directly from the Consortium military service and very quickly became a career officer. He earned a number of commendations during his early days, leading raids and helping establish a more secure station for its residents.
It has been reported that the Captain is both staunchly law abiding, as well as enforcing. At the same time, we have found him to be a helpful personality who seems to go out of his way to help citizens when they come to him with unusual requests or interesting problems. Recently, for example, he was instrumental in stamping out a rather ingenious hacking scheme, reportedly with the help of an outsourced professional.
I would conclude this report by stating that Captain Vollmer, in this analyst’s most humble opinion, will be invaluable for our own purposes. His expertise in all matters of security and investigation, as well as his willingness to go above and beyond, especially should his own curiosity be titillated, can be harnessed as a real boon to our own investigations.

Cur8

Humanity is finally moving on from the bare struggle for survival, into an era where hope can once more resurface. However, there is still much work to be done, and so we look to individuals who may prove to be key players in improving our future! Last time we focused on the righteous Captain Vollmer, a person of convictions and actions, and now we’re happy to present another candidate – the likeable android Cur8.
Androids, gynoids, and xynoids have the potential to be staunch allies in our quest for answers. There is much we don’t know about them, despite Benevolent Dynamics’ best efforts, but that doesn’t mean we should ignore our mechanical brethren! In addition to being unable to cause us harm thanks to the rules that govern them, if we pique their curiosity we may be able to secure their assistance.
Cur8
Home Station: Orwell Stronghold
Affiliation: Independent
Role: Work Allocation for Benevolent Dynamics
Orwell Stronghold is a station of scientific discovery, but it also requires the work of more pedestrian individuals to keep things running – no matter how advanced their cleaning robots and ration dispensers are, someone needs to clean spillages! Cur8 works to ensure everyone in Orwell is ideally matched to their job, and happy with the work they’ve been assigned, a task that seems unusual for an android.
As an individual, Cur8 has a calming presence, with refined speech patterns and comforting gestures, although these are somewhat undermined by the repetitiveness of his physical motions. His work within Benevolent Dynamics has encouraged other androids, gynoids and xynoids to seek more official positions, including his partner Qui9, now a Humanoid Support Worker. In dealing with such personal issues such as job satisfaction, Cur8 has proven that androids can work with people’s feelings - even if they sometimes require outside help.
As someone with an intimate knowledge of Orwell and Benevolent Dynamics, Cur8 would be an important asset to us. He seems devoted to his organisation and unwilling to go outside of the confines of the rules, so caution is advised. Perhaps framing requests as a collaboration to improve quality of life, both biological and mechanical, will make them more appealing.
Jelena Starkiss
During the darkest of times, while a candle may provide light that is both pure and illuminating, a blaster bolt often shines brighter and cuts right to the heart of the matter. Where law protects, guides, and nurtures, oftentimes a dollop of chaos can expedite matters and inspire greatness of solution! Both sentiments can be attributed to Captain Jelena Starkiss.
The QED, being an independent think-tank of Benevolent Dynamics, technically operates outside the official jurisdiction of Consortium or Gaulish law. That said, our own protocols dictate that we do our best to maintain proper relations with both governments and work together towards a more illuminated future for humanity.
We have often made use of such law-abiding and, indeed, law keeping individuals as Captain Vollmer in our investigations into the Catastrophe. Captain Vollmer’s sense of law, order, and honor have proved invaluable on several occasions.
Captain Jelena Starkiss, to use one of her names, is not such an individual. She provides an alliance of a different, and often rather two-way, nature. Miss Starkiss is a highly skilled individual and, to her credit, knows exactly how much said skill is worth, and, indeed, often quotes this in a price of credits or bonds!
A number of our field agents have reported coming across Miss Starkiss in any number of locations all across the galaxy, operating under a number of aliases. It is, of course, impossible to hack the CORETECHS in any such way as to alter one’s designation, so we must assume some measure of human error in these reports.
Furthermore, such confluences often result in misadventures that ultimately provide something of value for all parties involved, or rather, those parties lucky enough to be allied with Miss Starkiss at the time. Other parties tend to be the providers of said value rather than its beneficiaries.
The good captain has been associated with the Auld Lang Syne, a group of freebooters who are attributed with the spreading of wealth and much needed technology during the Emberfest holidays. Jelena has been associated with at least one or two such activities that were, in retrospect, less than legitimate in nature.
In conclusion, it is with no small amount of awe and equal measure of trepidation that this reviewer authorizes Captain Jelena Starkiss as a Person of Interest.
Shinji Kinsaka
The research facilities in Cape Verde have recently come to my attention, thanks to their ground-breaking work on biological weapons. While investigating the Consortium’s top potential recruits, a name kept rising to the top: Shinji Kinsaka.
Cape Verde’s work on biological weapons has myriad other applications, as any full understanding of biological processes would, and is an avenue we have under-explored. This seems like even more of a faux pas when one considers Cape Verde’s own Catastrophe was biological in nature, and arguably the most deadly. A researcher such as Shinji may hold the answers we seek.
Shinji Kinsaka
Home Station: Cape Verde Stronghold
Affiliation: Consortium
Role: [REDACTED] Researcher
Shinji’s work is extremely important, but he remains relatively unknown for two reasons. The first and most obvious reason is that his work, as with most research in Cape Verde, is highly classified. While the Nouveau Limoges Accords allow Gaule inspections of the facilities from time to time, there are plenty of things the Consortium keeps hidden that even we cannot access.
The other reason is that his work is highly interdisciplinary. Though this information is hard to verify, I have heard his name associated with multiple branches of research. These include: the bacterial pathogen responsible for Cape Verde’s Catastrophe, cell-machine interfaces, nanomachines, and the rewiring of neurons via nanite injections (such as those used in University courses). With his hand in so many endeavors, providing assistance to so many disparate teams, it’s hard to quantify his specific influence – although his insights and diligence are praised by all of his colleagues.
His personality and motivations are equally unclear, other than being taciturn beyond his years. He takes his work and the responsibility it entails very seriously, but there is more to him than just his work. In this day and age, anyone who uses clones but keeps major visible injuries has clearly thought about what modern medicine means to them. Outside of certain Freebooter stations like House of Congo, the potential downsides of physical regeneration are not frequently discussed. This thoughtfulness might be something we can use to appeal to Shinji, if we decide to move forward with our plan.
Fellie Norbush
As we grow our list of potential allies, it’s important to look for those whose talents are set to grow beyond their station! Fellie Norbush may currently be a Field Technician, but her robotics work makes it clear she’s going places. We would be remiss not to help nurture that talent – and turn it towards our cause.
Like Cur8, Fellie works for Benevolent Dynamics, a melting pot of inquisitive minds, biological and mechanical alike. It’s an ideal place to find the allies we need, but we must tread carefully. They are clever enough to pose a threat, should they wish to investigate us, so we must give them no reason to suspect our activities.
Fellie Norbush
Home Station: Tau Station
Affiliation: Independent
Role: Field Technician for Benevolent Dynamics
Fellie currently focuses on manual CORETECHS calibrations, post-gestation programs and the like, helping struggling users with a smile on her face. I believe she has remained a field technician for this long due to her combination of technical know-how and approachable nature – likely she is suited to helping users in a way other Benevolent Dynamics employees are not. This makes it hard for her to leave her front-facing job, keeping her stuck in a position that doesn’t nurture her technical talents.
It is also possible that Fellie is too enthusiastic in her beliefs that robots have rights, which could make some of her higher-ups uncomfortable about promoting her. While I know that as a group we have mixed thoughts on the matter, someone with her point of view would be a valuable ally, and potentially a great liaison with any androids, gynoids or xynoids we recruit. If we aim to understand technology back up to – or perhaps even surpassing – pre-Catastrophe levels, we need to truly understand the nature of their simulated sentience.
If Fellie does have hidden ambitions, as I suspect she does, then offering her a way to put her talents to use may help recruit her to our side. Her sunny disposition does not mean she would shy away from doing some truly ground-breaking work, even if she chooses to retain her position as a field technician.