the Post-modern Girl

Origin:

Harolene Zachs, the Post-modern Girl, is a cyborg. A genius programmer in the employ of Wizardyne, she was subjected to cybernetics experiments by its leader, Argyle, for his own nefarious purposes. A malicious act that Harolene intends to repay someday!

Known Powers:

(none)

Cybernetics:

Unlike some of Argyle's other test subjects, Harolene's augmentation was hardly a voluntary affair. Nonetheless, she is now possessed of a variety of advanced prosthetic devices made from Amazing (50) m.s. materials, including the following equipment:

Cyber Arm: the first of Argyle's 'improvements' on Harolene involved his giving her a replacement right arm. In addition to providing all the abilities her previous arm did naturally, Harolene's artificial manipulator has these extra capabilities:

* Hydraulic Ram: Harolene's hand is mounted on a hydraulic ram that isn't readily apparent - until activated, that is. This allows her to 'punch' someone an additional foot away from her, inflicting her Strength (might) score +2 CS when doing so!

* Stunning Grip: on contact, Harolene can discharge a powerful electrical pulse from her hand. This pulse is of Incredible (40) intensity, and those it is used against must pass an Endurance (res) ACTION roll against its intensity or be Stunned for 1d10 turns.

Cyber Legs: the second of Argyle's improvements on Harolene saw him hacking off her left leg at the thigh, and grafting a robotic stand-in in its place. In addition to allowing her to walk still, this replacement limb has these bonus abilities:

* Super Leaping: fast-trigger hydraulics, combined with an anti-gravitational pulse generator, allow Harolene to leap with astounding ability. She may leap with Shift X (150) ability, giving her the ability to jump up 1 area, across 2 areas, or down 2.5 areas without injury.

* Weapon Holster: taking up most of the unused space in Harolene's artificial upper leg, this unit houses a special weapon of Argyle's design. This blaster is Harolene's only ranged attack, assuming she doesn't throw something at her foes, and is described below.

Override Circuitry: thanks to Seņor Barnett, this unit was burned out, and ultimately removed by the Jensen Congress. When it was active however, it allowed Argyle to directly manipulate her movements, though Harolene could still think and talk for herself during this control.

Implant Psychosis Statistic: Typical (6), formerly Typical (7) before her override circuitry was removed.

Limitations / Enhancements:

Implant Psychosis Statistic: as a cyborg, Harolene is subject to the problem of implant psychosis. Under duress, she must pass a Psyche (will) ACTION roll against her IPS, or will suffer from extreme mental instability for a time - usually until she next falls unconscious.

This instability can take almost any form, but most often acts to significantly amplify Harolene's inherent martyr complex. While affected, she has a tendency to remark upon, and retaliate for, any perceived wrongs she has suffered at the hands of anyone in her vicinity.

Equipment:

Blackberry ™ Smartphone: this highly advanced device is like unto a miniature handheld computer. It can hold several gigabytes of data as is needed, though about all of of that space is occupied by Harolene's electronic music favorites.

It has a Poor (4) communications range under ideal conditions (about five miles), which which it can tie into terrestrial cellular networks. And it usually has a variety of alarms set, by Mike 013, to remind Harolene of what she's supposed to be doing (instead of goofing off).

Blaster: kept in a holster within her artificial leg when not in use, this weapon is a powerful ranged combat implement for Harolene. It can fire a burst of charged particles at a foe that, when they hit, will inflict Remarkable (30) Force damage on impact.

Quirks:

Natural Talent / Computers: probably explaining her staggering ability with computers, Harolene has a natural knack for programming. She should make ACTION rolls called for when composing code (whether in assembly or some lesser language) at a further +1 CS.

Short Attention Span: Harolene has a hard time focusing on any one thing for a long period of time. Without specific reminders (as offered by her Blackberry ™, currently), Harolene suffers a -2 CS to Reason (mem) ACTIONs to remember anything she's supposed to be doing.

Talents:

Advanced Guns: after reverse engineering her blaster, members of the Jensen Congress have taught Harolene how to wield advanced, energy-casting weapons. Whenever wielding her blaster or other like devices, she may do so at her Agility (dex) score +1 CS.

Computers 3: something of a world-class programmer, Harolene practically thinks in assembly code when pondering high tech devices. She can make a Reason ACTION roll at +3 CS whenever she is writing, analyzing or reprogramming the computer code on a device.

Martial Arts type B: at the insistence of Mike 013, Harolene has received basic unarmed fighting training. This because she has a tendency to rely upon brute force too much. She can now make all unarmed Fighting ACTION rolls at her (off) score +1 CS.

Contacts:

Truth be told, Harolene has few friends outside of Agency 13 and certain members of the Jensen Congress. Even before she was brutalized by Argyle, Harolene had burned most of her bridges with her militant hatred of social media profiteers - and didn't make many friends in jail, either.

Costume:

Harolene has a thing for 1970s fashions - the disco look in particular. When attempting to be (somewhat) inconspicuous, she'll usually wear a pair of bell bottom blue jeans, a long-sleeved white women's dress shirt, red Converse ™ high top sneakers, and a black leather belt.

The rest of the time, she relishes the ability to intimidate (or fascinate) others with the implants that were forced upon her. Thus, she'll wear black neoprene bike shorts and a black neoprene tank top, coupled with black leather Army boots and her Pixel ™ on a chain around her neck.

Personality:

Harolene is a smart and inquisitive soul, and something of a genius computer programmer. Most of Wizardyne's technology has some of her code in it, after all! She also has a good memory, and is more than ready to nurse a grudge towards those who wrong her for a very, very long time.

Real Name: Harolene Zachs
Occupation: paranormal investigator, former test subject, former petty criminal
Legal Status: citizen of the United States with a minor criminal record
Marital Status: single
Alias(es), if any: none
Group Affiliation: Agency 13, former Wizardyne programmer and test subject

Height: 5' 4"
Hair: black
Eyes: brown
Weight: 150 lbs
Other Distinguishing Characteristics: Harolene Zachs has an obviously mechanical arm and legg. She can cover these up with concealing clothing, but usually that sort of thing isn't her style. That and she likes how her robotic bits intimidate others.

Story:

Harolene Zachs was a programming prodigy who found herself in a bit of legal trouble during college. Hating the hypocrisy exhibited by the owners and operators of social media sites, Harolene would hack into them and post their private details for all to see.

This ultimately got her drummed out of college and, after doing a bit of time for her perfidy, Harolene couldn't really get a respectable job. As such, she became a programmer for hire, making all manner of software - both good and evil - for whoever could pay her exorbitant fees.

Before she could find herself on the feds' computer crimes radar, however, Harolene was given an offer she couldn't refuse: legitimate employment! The up and coming Wizardyne corporation needed her extensive skills, and was seemingly unconcerned about past indiscretions.

The truth, however, was that Harolene was hired precisely because of her knack for snooping around in others' computers.

You see, Wizardyne is a firm founded by an employee of the cross-time corporation known as Ubiquidyne, ultimately as part of a byzantine plot hatched by its creator, Argyle, to dispose of his immediate corporate superior, one Mister Wiggins.

His overly complicated plan involved natives to this timeline discovering that Ubiquidyne was active on their world, and ultimately taking Wiggins to task for such - preferably in a lethal manner. This way, he could assume Wiggins' position without being implicated in the man's demise.

Sure enough, Harolene discovered that something weird was going on with Wizardyne by poking around deep in its servers, and Argyle made a show of trying to stop her from revealing what she'd learned to the world - right before subjecting her to cybernetic experimentation.

Though he entirely did so as a bad pun, telling Harolene her antics had cost her an arm and a leg.

Thanks to body control circuitry placed into her implants, Harolene was then forced to engage in a variety of combat tests alongside two of Argyle's other experimental cyborgs, a situation which continued until Wizardyne's actions drew the ire of the group known as Agency 13.

Sponsored by the Jensen Congress, another cross-time organization, Agency 13 was studying their world as it was found to be a nexus of sorts. Their world, earth 13 as they called it, reflected events in numerous other timelines - and could be used to predict events in still more.

The Congress tries to keep the timeline free of outside influence, such as that which Ubiquidyne regularly introduces. Thus, the Agency came looking into Wizardyne, and during the inevitable battle its operatives managed to liberate Harolene - and took her with them!

Argyle couldn't have arranged things better if he tried.

Free of Argyle's ability to remotely control her, Harolene ultimately joined Agency 13, who picked apart her cybernetic implants to determine where their technology came from. And despite his having used home-grown components, they traced his work back to Ubiquidyne.

Which put the Agency on a collision course with Wiggins, the man responsible for Argyle being stuck in this 'backward' timeline to begin with. Of course, Harolene is nursing one heck of a grudge towards Argyle, and has every intention of paying him back for mutilating her body.

Until she could find a means of getting back at the technomage, however, Harolene contented herself with working for Agency 13. The pay was decent enough, after all, and the job offered her many opportunities to vent her rage upon all manner of deserving villains!

Legal Hoopajoob:

I offer my Costumed Adventurer Simulation Engine work under the Creative Commons Attribution license. You may use this material as you see fit in your own, derivative texts or products, whether copying, distributing, or displaying it, as long as you credit me within said works.

If you would like more information about me for attribution, you can contact me via e mail (DashApostrophe@gmail.com).

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