Futuristic Psi-Division

[UnhappyUnion]

CHARACTER SHEET

Spoiler: Kaya Jax

Name: Kaya Jax

Age: 32

Appearance: Kaya, despite being in her early thirties, has a streak of youth to her face. Her age shows with her hair that has a snow-white coloration to it from extensive use of her psychic abilities. She has a strong figure, leaning a bit on the side of being a bit buxom, and stands at a respectable 5'10. Typically, she wears a leather jacket along with a beanie that covers up her white hair. Though, if a perceptive person sees it, she simply says that it's hair dye.

Habits: She is not the most healthy person in the world. Kaya smokes quite often and is always trying to bum cash off others for more cigarettes. She has a habit of eating junk food and quite a lot of it. All that said, she has streaks of good behaviors beneath all that - Kaya makes up for her bad habits by lifting weights which keeps most of the pounds off her and keeps her in decent health. One of her guilty pleasures is frequenting arcades, but she normally does this on her own time because she would not want to look geeky which contrasts with her thuggish disposition.

Skills: Kaya knows the criminal underworld quite well. She is a capable combatant and can handle herself in a firefight. Getting into places she should not be is her specialty and she is capable of extracting data from terminals if need be.

Abilities:

Major power (shape of fear) Kaya can alter the perceptions of others who are actively looking upon her to see some unfathomable horrifying shape. It will send a weak willed person running, but someone determined to fight back might be able to stand their ground. However, focusing on her to aim a weapon is a difficult task when this ability is active.

Minor power (suggestion) If Kaya can engage someone in an extended conversation, her psychic ability to plant suggestions in others head is unmatched. It requires focus and attention, but she can make more open to feeling certain ways, or believing certain things for a period of time.


Background:

Kaya bounced in and out of her families home throughout her teenage years before breaking away entirely to pursue a criminal life. Her family was rather well-to-do by Rim City standards, but there was something within her that suffocated her with expectation, so she decided to rebel becoming part of the lowest of the low. She moved highly-illegal drugs, found that she had a knack for it, and soon upgraded to firearms which saw her working indirectly with Wolfclaw without her knowing it. At the time, Wolfclaw as sifting through all the people they could get their hands on checking for psychic aptitude - they struck gold with Kaya and began to train her. Wolfclaw's methods were imperfect, straining her more than anything, causing her hair to turn white. She never developed a wide range of psychic ability despite being a psychic for eleven years by the time of her capture.

After being arrested by Metro, she was considered for the Psi-Division on the grounds of a please bargain. She is being monitored closely, but is enjoying her restricted freedom.

Kaya Jax had exited the dingy headquarters of the Psi-Division that was within a multi-storied brick building from some era long gone. It was chosen as to not stand out, but Kaya was pissed at how it stood out in another way. It always had a strange smell of mold, mildew, or something of that nature - the surrounding buildings all were at-least from the present era. The thought of the place just made her frustrated, but that was the least of her worries. Her world had changed ever since she was picked up by Metro, coerced into making the choice between a life sentence, or joining the Psi-Division to earn her way to freedom. Naturally, life-sentence might not have been so bad if she was planning an escape, but something told Kaya that her life sentence would likely be scientists running test after test on her, using her as as their next dissection to better 'understand' psychics. Of-course, she knew plenty of colorful types from her time in Wolfclaw - she knew that many scientists just got off on cutting people and things open.

She pulled her beanie down a bit that covered her snow-white hair, reached into the pocket of her leather jacket, produced a cigarette and lit up, smoking it as she wondered down the sidewalk. She was heading to the nearby Stacy's Diner to meet with her partner as they always do following training. The two of them had a habit of binge eating after bouts of training, but not as their own choice. The department mandated that people who are paired up as psychics spend a certain amount of time together each weak in non-training activities. It was a chore being around her uptight, younger partner, so she might as-well get those hours in eating pie, pancakes, or whatever will refuel the energy burned from training psychic abilities.

Kaya swung open the door to the diner, always ignoring the no-smoking sign, which the one or two poor people servicing the place never had the heart to tell her to put the cigarette out. There was just something... off about Kaya? It was something that brought fear to others ever without sound reason. In-truth, her psychic ability that allowed to take the shape of fear always was active against the very weak-willed, and the average denizen in the lowest dregs of Rim City was beaten down lacking the will to do much other than shuffle by day to day.

"Hey hot stuff~!" she called out as she plopped down in the tacky-blue booth, scooting a bit about to get comfortable. The waitress Lucy, a buxom red head, who seemed to be Kaya's favorite judging by her crass remarks came over with a plastered smile on her face, but a bit of nervousness always present, "The usual please. My partner will be here soon, so get something too," Kaya said, inhaling sharply, exhaling the cigarette smoke right in Lucy's direction.

Lucy coughed a bit as the smoke got in her face, "Chocolate milk too?"

"You know it," Kaya remarked, waving the other off, "C'mon I'm starvin..."

"On it," Lucy stated trying to keep up her sweet appearance, but she really disliked Kaya.

Kaya sat about, fiddling with her wrist-nav, pressing the button to constantly ping her partner as a means to annoy her into getting her ass to the diner quicker.

 

[Syntra]

Sybil's life wasn't officially over, though it might as well have been.

Why did I have to get paired up with her, out of all people? A good question. A good question that she did not have an answer for, aside from Clara's muttered: 'compatibility tests don't lie, friend-o.'

No. No, that they did not. Sybil kind of wished that they did, though.

Because, if they did lie, she would have been able to lie to herself as well. She could say that this entire fiasco was some sort of mistake; a mistake that was bound to be cleared up sooner rather than later, and something she would laugh about with her actual partner later. 'Can you believe they really thought I belonged with that criminal? Pfft!' the Dream!Sybil snorted.

Sadly, the Dream!Sybil... wasn't who she was. The real Sybil was walking down the street, her hands shoved in her pockets, and contemplating the benefits of getting a lobotomy for her upcoming birthday. Okay, so the pros first: I wouldn't have to deal with Kaya's shit. Or rather, she would have, but she wouldn't care, which was the next best thing. Still, it was tempting enough! The cons, though. The cons would be pretty epic as well, such as... Hm.

Was it bad she couldn't think of a con? Like, not a single one?

Probably.

The red flag was so damn bright it all but burned her retinas, except it did so in vain because it wasn't like Sybil could fucking do anything about it. You didn't refuse Metro's orders! Not unless you wanted to keep your a) rank, b) life, both of which she felt rather attached to.

And now, instead of enjoying her limited free time, Sybil was about to go to the stupid--

Ping! Ping! Ping!

Dammit, you lowlife, leave me alone for a motherfucking second! But no, of course that Kaya couldn't do that. That would have been reasonable, and her new partner appeared to be downright allergic to literally any strain of that. How else explain... well, pretty much everything that she did? Lord, give me the strength not to murder her. Please.

(Of course, Sybil wouldn't actually do that. Murder was a crime, and unlike certain someone, she knew better than to commit it. Still, it was... nice to dream, sometimes. To imagine the knife buried in her chest, and her burning the evidence.)

With a sigh, Sybil opened the door. She was wearing her usual civil 'uniform,' which was comprised of a simple white shirt and black jeans. No, she wasn't much of a trendsetter, but yes, it did flatter her build; although, to be fair, tall and slim looked good in just about anything. Her long, dark brown hair was tied in the usual ponytail, and, yes, she was also wearing her usual scowl.

Her 'god-no-please-not-her' scowl, but it wasn't like Sybil was eager to admit Kaya made her mood that sour. That would likely made her feel important, which was the last thing she needed.

"You think you could maybe learn to read one of these days?" Sybil snapped, instead of a greeting, "This area is non-smoking. Non, as in no. I'd say it in plainer English but I think I've run out of simple words."

With that, she sat down next to her partner, "I would also like to remind you the wrist navigation is not a toy. I do understand why you would miss me," she didn't, actually, "But next time you touch it without good reason will be the last time you have hands." Empty threats, and they both knew that. Still, what else was she supposed to do? Just take Kaya's nonsense? Yeah, not bloody likely!

"Hey, Lucy," she smiled at the poor waitress, "The usual for me as well."

"Right on it, Miss Nerwyn!"

Thank god Sybil actually was starving, which made this... slightly more bearable. Now, if only she could also ignore the pain in the ass that called herself her partner!

Against her better judgment, she glanced at Kaya, "So, any banks you robbed today? Or whatever it is that you guys do for fun."

 

[UnhappyUnion]

Kaya was calm and cool in the face of Sybil. After-all, she has stared down terrorists, gangsters, and survived at-least a half-dozen Liquidator attacks. Did she like her? No, at-least she did not think she did. Perhaps sometimes? Maybe? There was a certain level of fun in being around someone who hated her guts, but they had to work together due to some unseen compatibility that their psychic make-up apparently had.

"Oh, well here's the thing," she said, gladly burning out the cigarette on the tabletop, only to light another, "I've never robbed a bank. You see.." she took a long drag, "Paper money is never held in large enough batches to make a profit. Ya' listen to your lessons little cop?" Kaya said with a coy smirk upon her lips as the cigarette dangled loosely, "I was a gun-runner and drug-mover, so if I was doing -anything- it would be one of those two..."

She corrected her with a little bit of sass, a little bit of trying to start up conversation, but a whole lot of just trying to see that their time together was being achieved as mandated, "But if you really must know where I've been, besides training with you.." she leaned a bit forward, "Arcade," Kaya rolled off the single word before relaxing back.

Lucy swung by, drifting in and out with a mountain of pancakes for Kaya, who began to gorge herself on it, "Ay' ay' hot stuff!" she called out with her mouthful, reaching into her leather jacket, shoving a bit of cash into the cleavage of the waitress, "Now whipped cream, you forgot the fuckin' whipped cream," the thuggish woman remarked with a bit of play in her voice, gaze turning back to Sybil as Lucy let out a huff to stomp on off - it was not typical that a woman would act like this to her, but it seems that Kaya was not just any sort of normal woman.

"Well, while we are together, why not try a bit of..." then her voice dipped lower, as to not be heard, but it's not like anyone would care, "... telepathy? Just a bit of practice?"

 

[Syntra]

Unlike Kaya, Sybil had ordered coffee. It was proper black coffee for proper, well-adjusted adults, and she did feel very proper when Lucy brought it, indeed! Especially compared to her dumpster fire of a companion. Not that that was a great accomplishment, mind you; not at all, given that your average kindergartener likely would have looked like peak maturity next to Kaya. But, yeah! Small pleasures. Without those, Sybil would have given up on existence long ago. Maybe she should still do that, though…? Since this was not getting better. Not unless the entire psychics project somehow got scrapped, and something told her that she wasn’t about to get this lucky. “Criminal activity is criminal activity,” she informed Kaya dryly. “I can’t believe it needs to be said, but I do not actually care what brand of it you committed before you got… chosen.”

Stupid aptitude. Stupid experiments!

And of course, of fucking course, that it was her who had to get stuck with the criminal. Everyone else had gotten fine, acceptable partners! Some had even ended up with their best friends! But no, not her, because nothing ever went right in her life.

The Fenris debacle had clearly been just the beginning. The first chapter in the tragedy called ‘Sybil Nerwyn.’

Sybil gave a long-suffering sigh and took a sip of her coffee. It was hot, rich, and way too bitter, and fuck, why hadn’t she requested sugar?!

Sometimes, the price of maturity was way too high.

“Are you trying to be this unpleasant on purpose or is that just how you are naturally?” she asked Kaya, not really expecting anything close to an honest answer. Of course, getting an answer out of her also wasn’t the point; Sybil just wasn’t the kind of woman to insult people with a slew of ‘fuck’s and ‘go fuck yourself’s. That was just… rude. Yeah, rude. “And leave the poor woman alone, she’s not getting paid nearly enough for this bullshit.”

Lucy did not comment on that, because of course that she didn’t, but Sybil could practically sense the gratitude emanating from her corner of the room. Actually, she could more than just sense it; when her order arrived, there was some Nutella on the side that she did not remember ordering. “Thanks,” she gave the waitress a bright smile.

But, as for practicing?

That was… hard to argue with. Annoying, sure, but also necessary, in the same way that brushing your teeth was necessary.

Except that unclean teeth didn’t fucking kill you. Not in the same way your telepathy going haywire during an important mission could!

“Fine,” Sybil rolled her eyes, “Why not. Alright, tell me what I’m thinking.”

And then, because there was no need to keep those thoughts nice: Don’t murder the criminal, don’t murder the criminal, don’t murder the criminal!

 

[UnhappyUnion]

Kaya retorted, returning back the remark concerning poor Lucy's pay, "Oh? Not enough? I slipped a twenty and I think a few fives between her tits... I think she's getting paid -just- enough," she said with a shrug. Lucy did in-fact lather on the whipped cream, towering nice and high for Kaya just as she enjoyed it. Although, she angled herself at an angle to not have anymore deposits made. The snow-haired criminal glanced up towards Lucy offering a smile, minding her words and manners, Lucy returned the look and smiled back. It was an irregular moment that suggested maybe, just maybe, the two of them could be friends.

Although, that notion was sent down the drain as Lucy turned to leave. Kaya glanced over, whistling, an obvious and blatant example of catcalling. The diner was by no means crowded at this hour, but the few other grubby men tucked on the opposite end of the bar, covered in soot still from one of the nearby strip mines being torn away at in the lower districts of Rim city, conducted themselves like saints compared to Kaya's antics.

Her gaze turned to meet Sybil, "Try me... don't have white hair for nothin'..." she referenced, hair a result of severe psychic strain. Her focus honed in on her partner, an unseen current of energy and presence behind the veil of flesh - this initial tapping in came easy, like a key sliding into a greased lock. Their compatibility was not a lie and an undeniable fact. Kaya did not for a second loath or think twice about it - but what she did hate was the feedback she got when their minds merged.

Other than the remarks she heard of Don't murder... don't murder... blatantly directed at her, perhaps even emphasized as a dig against her, a lot of noise was shared between them, a bubble of energy. It was all very overwhelming.

Kaya tried to engage the other in a bit over telepathic conversation, passing a remark from her to Sybil. The way telepathy worked was never straight forward, thoughts and messages were not spoken in a voice, rather they were just added thoughts planted in your own head. It was a tricky art, one that required a lot of self-awareness, and understanding of what is your own thoughts and what thoughts are planted as to transmit a thought and message.

This very idea of planting thoughts is why Kaya decided to fight fire with fire, shooting back a lewd and unwelcome thought: "Lucy's tits are looking bigger than last time. Don't you think?"

Her eyes looked upon the other with that smug look. Kaya had little to no fear of Sybil - Kaya was older, survived toils and trials, and even well... had to defend herself in a few situations. Sybil's murderous thoughts were never taken seriously, only met with crude jokes and disregard.

 

[Syntra]

"Among civilized people," Sybil began, despite being painfully aware of the futility of it all, "This is called harassment. Can't you control yourself for five seconds?"

And there it was again! The weird… what, sensation? Not quite, because it wasn’t physical per se, but since there were no better words to describe it, Sybil figured it would have to do. If she really had to compare it to something, then maybe an alarm? A weird, soundless alarm that nonetheless went fucking crazy in her head, as if to protest the intrusion.

It didn’t feel right. It never once had.
Then again, most of her abilities didn’t exactly feel right.

They were hers, sure; not like they could be anyone else’s. The experiments had only uncovered what had already been there. ‘You know, Miss Nerwyn,’ Dr. Allen had told her, in between the measuring sessions, ‘Rarely have I seen numbers this high. One day, you really might be capable of something great. Lucky, aren’t you?’ And yeah, technically, she was! The new job did come with perks, the most important of them being a nice, fat paycheck. Gone were the miserable times when she had had to decide between a) paying her rent, or b) eating three times per day, but… well, there was always a but, wasn’t it?

In this case, it was that pesky feeling. The feeling of things not being quite okay, as if she was wearing shoes a little too small for her actual size.

Maybe it was because she was trying to squeeze her mind into a Kaya-sized opening? And, really, that couldn’t have been any bigger than a peanut. Sybil didn’t claim to be a major intellectual herself, but at least she fucking thought of things other than random women!

(Which, by the way, didn’t bother her. Not at all.)

Just need to get used to it, she tried to convince herself, It will be fine.

As if on cue, reality itself proceeded to teach her that it would not, in fact, be fine.

Lucy’s… what?

Embarrassingly enough, Sybil’s face turned bright red. That she wasn’t drinking her coffee at the moment was a small blessing, even if Kaya did deserve to have it spat out right into her face. “Fucking hell,” she stood up, trying (and failing) to look menacing, “If you’re so frustrated, why don’t you find a girlfriend already?” Yep, Sybil was definitely losing this round, “Not that I’m shocked that you can’t!”

A low blow, but what was more fitting for a lowlife?

No, Sybil was not familiar with the concept of ‘sinking to someone’s level.’ To her, it was… context-based behavior! Yep!

The criminal’s attitude wasn’t infectious at all.

 

[UnhappyUnion]

Kaya just rolled her eyes, letting out a low-little chuckle as she reached down to her jacket-pocket, "Well, if you paid a little more attention to me, you'd know I already have three girls..." she produced her steel-studded wallet affixed to her pocket by a chain to prevent the pesky pickpocket. Her digits confidently reached inside, slipping out a few polaroid pictures, and she slid them over. Three photos, all three of Kaya with a different girl. One was a blue haired one, thin face, thin lips, and a mischievous smile - this one seemed to be a bit older in nature, considering Kaya herself seemed to be thinner in the picture, as if she had a nasty drug habit at the time, which Sybil was vaguely aware of. Another detail was Kaya's hair appeared to have brown in it rather than being entirely snow-white at this point.

The second photo depicted Kaya and another, this time in a photo booth, embracing one another and lips nearly touching. Her partner in this picture had dirty blonde hair, thick rimmed glasses, tanned skin, and was rather curvy, bordering on plump. This photo had a little note scrawled on it: "Whatever you do - do with all your might. I love you Kaya."

This one too, seemed old, as evident by Kaya's look. It seems Kaya went through a chubby phase herself. This photo had an odd quality to it, seeming to have both looking relaxed, gentle and... normal? Kaya certainly did not appear like a thug in it despite her hair being the full snow-white and she had the same scar.

Third and finally, the last photo was of her and... Lucy!? This one looked recent too, with Lucy proudly holding the camera up, Kaya having a bit of a smirk as she sported the same leather jacket that she always wore in recent days.

Kaya tapped a bit on the Lucy photo, "Yep, we've been flirting around a bit when she gets over acting like she doesn't know me," she reclined back, tilting her head over towards Lucy who was blushing beat-red behind the counter, trying to pretend like she was occupied with scrubbing exactly one plate.

"And before ya' remark... Yep, all three know about one another and I still am seeing all three," a chuckle escaped her lips, proud of her charm and unconventional relationships, "Lots of Kaya to go around - now..." she firmed up her tone, directing a finger at the other, "Dr. Allen said you need to put on at-least ten pounds, extra calories, extra energy for the body to burn, don't want to start sporting white hair like me and bleeding out of your nose every-so-often, hm?" at this point her tone sounded authoritative, almost like someone who knew what they were doing, wise beyond her years.

"Ay'! Hot stuff!" she called out, signature line rolling over towards Lucy who was listening, "Add a nice big slab of cherry pie for my lovely companion here..."