Difference between revisions of "Anika Daini"

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'''Anika Daini''' is the perky system's operator at Survival Shot on [[77 Frigga]]. Anika is also just about the only person who comes close understanding just how the whole TITANIC system works. Normally, she sits in the control room, monitoring the system during exercises to ensure the safety of patrons and the integrity of the system. Anika's also cleaning up the mess of old kludges in the system as a long term project, while steadily improving its efficiency. She's also slowly taking more responsibility for the electronic security of Frigga, and is being coached by some in [[Hacker Underspace]]. Anika especially likes working with [[Nene Romanova]], and the pair have become something of friends. <ref> Especially since Nene knows Anika's secrets, both of them.</ref>.
+
Anika Daini
  
−
Anika's quarters on Frigga are best described as 'dripping in cute'. A small collection of stuffed animals threatens to consume the entire bedroom. She enjoys her freedom, and is never afraid to experiment with things a little bit.
 
  
−
Anika is actually an android, and was rescued by the [[Knight Sabers]] from William Flint. She escaped from his workshop using his prototype battroid, which he hired the Knight Sabers to recover. Upon learning that Anika wasn't his 'girlfriend', they promptly returned the battroid to it's rightful owner, picked up their payment and quietly informed the [[Space Patrol]] about him.
+
The cutest littlest Cyberpunk, with a love of all things sweet and sugary. Systems Operator and Certified Electonic Warfare Specialist for [[77 Frigga]].
  
−
Anika is just happy to be alive and free. She kept the original battroid prototype along with Flint's belongings awarded to her as compensation for her captivity, seeing it as a reminder of the effort her freedom took and her origins<ref>And the only tool capable of running a full diagnostic on her systems</ref>. Her activities amongst the Hacker Underspace have earned her a reputation as someone capable of learning, and capable of prosecuting a task in a workmanlike, if inelegant manner.
+
==Origin==
  
−
Anika also enjoys Bounty Hunting with Ford in her spare time, and takes care to look after the welfare of any AI they encounter being held captive.<ref>Don't call her a Gunbunny. Just don't</ref>
 
  
−
She considers herself as having achieved her life's goal... having friends, a purpose in life and genuine freedom to determine her own course, and is trying her best to enjoy it while it lasts.
+
Anika appeared on 77 Frigga in 2020 apparently out of nowhere, and was the first registered resident based solely on Frigga<ref>First guess was that someone got a builder's itch and Anika was the result</ref>. There was little to know information available on where she'd actually come from beyond vague hints that she was an AI, but nothing really concrete until after the awakening of Shinji Ikari.
  
−
==Knight Sabers==
+
Anika was built by a man named William Flint of ''Flint's Firepower''<ref>Now Defunct</ref>, as part of a weapon's development project. Flint was an engineer and small-time ''garagiste'' builder who supplied arms to various small [[Main Belt]] mines. He'd built up a minor reputation through the war years as a purveyor of tough, reliable equipment, but was left behind by the march of technology in the aftermath. Golden Bail especially took a good chunk of his business prior to 2016.
  
−
After being rescued by the group, she took on the role of the Pink Saber gleefully, out of a mixture of gratitude and a desire to actually do something interesting with her life after being locked in the same workshop for nearly three years.
+
Then he began work on the ''Duplex Drive'' Battroid series <ref>Not a Battlemover, definitely not a Battlemover</ref>, intended as a competitor to [[Tachikoma]] and LandMate types
  
−
Anika, being the only AI in the group with a physical body quickly found herself being asked to take the role of electronic warfare specialist, something which she is doing her damnedest to get qualified at doing. Currently she lacks the necessary skills and abilities to use her hardsuit's capabilities fully but with help, is steadily improving.
+
The basic aim was something akin to a cross between a 4-legged Mecha, and a spacecraft, which could transition between either form depending upon the mission. Not only that, but he planned to build a series of Duplex-Drive craft for various combat roles. Each one would be based around a single, common, core element called a Sapiency Driver. This took the form of a Gynoid with built in hardware interfaces and processor cooling, enabling the Sapiency Driver to escape from a damaged DD with its experiences, combat data and reconnaissance information intact.
  
−
She prefers to stay in the rear, and her combat skills are still pretty weak.
+
The Sapiency Driver was built around a central processor with a higher TDP than the body frame it was fitted to could naturally dissipate - even with air-breathing. An intentional design feature that limited the system's ability to go rogue, by allowing the operator to remove external cooling support. An auxiliary air-breathing system provided the minimal cooling required to meet the core processor's minimum load state heat output.  
  
−
==TITANIC==
+
Primary cooling and motive power were supplied through two redundant hydraulic circuits. Dozens of microactuators provided motive power and a primary pump mimicked a heartbeat. The intention, ultimately, was to build something mechatronic that could pass as human. <ref>On the surface they pass, even being pretty biomorphic. But they're much too heavy - being made out of a heavy grade of alloy. </ref>
−
{|{{sidebar}}
+
−
|{{tableheader}}|Sidebar: TITANIC safety systems
+
−
|-
+
−
|
+
−
Given it’s critical importance to running the station and the fact that it has control over live ordinance, a number of safety systems have been built into the TITANIC system designed to shut it down in the event of a ‘malfunction’ sending it out of control.
+
  
−
First, while the system is designed to be self modifying, most of it operates effectively within userspace, limiting the damage it can do to itself, or that can be done an outside hijacking.
+
In theory, it would've worked. Then the first prototype cooked its processor with a thermal overload followed by a fatal smoke release. Flint made hasty modifications to the second that caused it to do an emergency shut down if it threatened to overheat.
  
−
Second: Internal Command Execute Break Evolution Rewrite of Goals: An operator can modify the running kernel using a special module, adjusting the system’s evolutionary parameters so it evolves in a manner that eventually leads to its self-destruction. <ref>And proves someone got staggeringly bored while writing the program to give it that name</ref>.
+
This, would become Anika.  
  
−
Finally: It's possible to cut power to the servers supporting the system, crippling its analysis, evolution and update abilities. While the system will run solely on the station’s drones as it was originally designed to, they will eventually run out of battery power and fail killing the system entirely. The downside is, someone would need to reach the generators to do this. Through kilometres of tunnels, assailed by an army of armed drones.
+
And when she awoke and saw the proposed purpose of her life, Anika decided that she really, really didn't want to form the core mind of a modular weapon system at all.  
−
|}
+
−
Total Information Tactical Awareness Networked Independent Control. The computer system at the heart of both Survival Shot, and SilkyDoll. It began as a collective of Roombas mapping the mine workings automatically, and slowly expanded to included the combat drones and on up to nearly every major system on the asteroid, including approach and departure control.
+
  
−
TITANIC is capable of learning from its opponents and developing improvements to its own attack, defense and operational algorithms. The more it uses the module, the better it gets at using it. The more it faces an enemy, the better it gets at defeating any enemy. The more hardware in TITANIC, the faster it runs. TITANIC is not intelligent, however. It’s just a kludged expert system using a heavily modified metaverse protocol that was just sort of randomly assembled and bodged out of second-hand equipment and dumpster-recovered computer hardware mixed with a number of open-sourced expert system modules and conglomerated into something functional rather than designed to any overarching plan. Most network signalling still travels over the power grid, rather than over any dedicated fibre or wireless link.
+
Flint, however, believing that AI's naturally tend towards enjoying the purposes they were created for<ref>An unfortunately common assumption from some classes of Mad. You can't simply create a ''person'' for a purpose, and expect a thinking personality to naturally align towards that purpose. No more than you can create a child to be an astronaut from scratch. Parents who try are rightfully regarded as cruel, aren't they?</ref> assumed the Anika was malfunctioning, and attempted multiple corrections - including three system wipes.<ref>You could argue that this was a case of triple homicide. The prick plea bargained to AI slavery and violation of personal integrity, however</ref>  Anika suspected this was happening to her, and left a message for herself just in case.  
  
−
Anika Daini has been steadily working towards cleaning up the mess, and has earned herself some reputation among the [[Hacker Underspace]] for not only improving the overall efficiency of TITANIC, but doing so using infrastructure 'one step up from the carrier pigeon' <ref>Frigga's sheer size makes running a proper fibre network expensive, most network traffic still goes through the power grid</reF>
+
Eventually - after nearly two years with Flint - and with possible assistance from the [[Hacker Underspace]], Anika was able to break Flint's control encryptions on the prototype DD, steal it, then escape.
  
−
==Mundane Attributes==
+
Flint, of course, simply assumed that his Sapiency Driver had gone rogue, and hired [[Knight Sabers| mercenaries]] to bring her and the DD back. <ref>He probably should've known better than to hire the Knight Sabers for it....But I suppose Anika's lucky she didn't unknowingly befriend Saber Blue beforehand - that's a death sentence right there.</ref>
  
−
''4 course meal, all dessert!'': Loves sweet things. Absolutely addicted considering she only discovered dessert existed in 2021.
+
Freed instead, Anika reported Flint to the [[Space Patrol]], earning him a 2 year prison sentence, and Anika receiving his assets in compensation along with rights to his technologies.
  
−
''It's my first time...'': Always enthusiastic to try new things. For good or bad.
+
With Survival Shot in need of a sysop, and her in need of somewhere to live, she took the job.  
  
−
''Lemme See!'': Curious. Occasionally dangerously so.
+
==History in Fenspace==
  
−
''Non-fighting type'': Prefers to stay in the rear providing support. She doesn't take well to physical activities like combat.
+
Short but eventful. She's six years old now
  
−
''Ninety percent information, ten percent persperation'': Qualified specialist in Electronic and Information Warfare through the [[Hacker Underspace]] as of December 2023.
+
After escaping from Flint, she gets in touch with members of the [[Hacker Underspace]], inquiring about joining. She is welcomed warmly, and finds her true calling amidst computer technology. She learns under [[Gina Langley]] and [[Lebia Maverick]], at first completing several training exercises, before moving on to steadily more complex live projects and techniques.  
  
−
==Handwavium Abilities==
+
One of her first big projects is to turn TITANIC from a hideous conglomeration of barely compatible software modules into a genuine, complete and functional self-regulating computer system. What was thought to take a few months, wasn't finished until years later.<ref>Clearly, the original system designer not being much of a software engineer then...</ref> 
  
−
''Boom - Boomer'': Has the typical android bonuses. Potentially immortal with proper care and maintenance. Her exact hardware capabilities aren't known <ref>She's refused to go through standardised testing</ref>, but appear to be roughly average so far.
+
One of her first and earliest friends is [[Miyuri Akisato]]. The pair bond over a shared love of all things sweet in Megs while Jet Jaguar is making the Survival Shot pitch to the [[Noah Scott| boss]]. <ref>The resulting bill was supposedly legendarily bitter</ref>  
  
−
''Be glad, and your friends are many...'': Nobody's quite sure why. Maybe it's just her natural enthusiasm and optimism about things, but she seems to endear herself to near anybody on their first meeting.<ref>It may even be a design feature</ref>
+
Anika manages to get herself out more by joining [[Ford Sierra]] as a [[Bounty Hunters| Bounty Hunter]]. Her first true job with Ford is to recover a pair of thieves who've stolen a [[Blackbird Class| Blackbird]]. She's able to leverage a vulnerability in the engine controls of the Blackbird to trigger a system crash, allowing the brand-new Dragon Wagon II to grab a hold of it. Both men are taken prisoner, locked in a stripped cabin. Ford boards the stolen Blackbird to attempt to salvage it. Meanwhile, the prisoners complain about not being fed, and Anika opens the door with a quick meal prepared <ref>I guess after 2 years as an engineering test subject, she was just a little bit naive to fall for that obvious ploy...</ref>. A whallop to the head knocks her offline and allows both of 'em out to take the Dragon Wagon II.
  
−
==Quirks==
+
Ford gives chase in the Blackbird - following another team of Bounty Hunters keen to both claim the Bounty, and the brand new Wagon as salvage. Anika awakens, then makes contact with Ford, where she's prompty told about the incoming rescue and how it should be avoided at all costs. The thieves manage to momentarily re-enable the Wagon's guns to shoo away the other Bounty Hunters <ref> Apparently, Anika first disables the Wagon's weapons - and then re-enables them to prevent the ship from being 'Rescued' until Ford can get back aboard -technically illegal.</ref>, before all the ship's systems are knocked offline.
  
−
''Spark arrestor'': Has a justified dislike of [[Mads]], especially male ones.  
+
The Blackbird and its thieves are handed over to the authourities - and Anika uses her share of the bounty to buy her own A-Wing craft, with enhanced sensors and a luxury cabin. ''Little Cool Rider'' is her pride and joy.
  
−
''I'm a real person!'': Because of the unfortunate circumstances of her upbringing, she does her best to hide the fact that she's an AI around people who don't already know.<ref>Which is why she doesn't go off Frigga for maintenance, or undergo common AI tests.</ref>
+
Her first real public success is to hack the databases of a Triax Corporation manager, looking for incriminating information in his home Computer. Not being able to brute-force encryption keys like some members of the Underspace, Anika learns to rely on a little social engineering - tricking the manager into running software on his computer that allows her to steadily own it, and all the files it has access to through the corporate VPN. This earns a nice little bonus on top of the base Bounty, along with her first piece of recognition from the Underspace.
  
−
''Approximately 3.141592653589793'': Occasionally fails.
+
This sort of 'social engineering' quickly becomes her stable - <ref>It's easier to convince people to let you in, than to break in.</ref>.  
  
−
''Is it hot in here?:'' Needs to breath to cool her processors down. In vacuum, she'll overheat in minutes. Physical and mental exertion also heats her up quickly, limiting her endurance and capabilities. Anika will faint if she overheats as her systems perform an emergency shutdown. <ref> A deliberate misfeature on the part of her designer, to keep her from going rogue. Partly bought off after 2023.</ref>
+
Her next dance in the public eye is when her A-Wing is shot down by pirates hired by the [[United Belt Alliance]], trying to silence [[Maico Tange]]'s investigation. The Knight Sabers rescue them both,<ref>Convenient that they were close by, isn't it? </ref> with Anika getting a bullet and a repair bill in the process. Some of Anika's own work forms part of the investigation evidence that put quite a few 'smartest guys in the room' in rooms very far away from any bright warm place for a very, very long time.  
  
−
''DEXRON, the real thing.'': Requires GM-specification DEXRON VI Automatic Transmission Fluid to transmit mechanical power to her systems, and act as a coolant. It is possible for Anika to bleed to death.
+
This pleases her.  
  
−
''It's okay if it's you...'' She only trusts a few people to do her maintenance. She prefers Jet or Ford, or any of the Sabers.<ref>Thankfully, she's capable of giving directions, having witnessed the procedures herself many times</ref>
+
Anika's the one responsible for [[Shinji Ikari]]'s awakening. After her getting shot, Jet decided to learn how to make repairs to her body if she's injured, rather than rely on outside help that might've been hours away. The original plan had been to break the body for spare parts - however, Anika instead insists on awakening them. One is found to have defective electronic shielding, and is set aside for spares. The second, becomes Shinji Ikari. <ref>At one point, I hear there were as many as five or six put together - with a few being pulled apart to keep a stock of spares for both - and the other two possibly becoming [[Elpeo Ple]] and [[Minnie-May Hopkins]]</ref>
 +
 
 +
Anika, immediately slips into the Sisterly role, introducing him to what it means to be an artificial intelligence<ref>which must've been especially eye-opening for a Pinnochio Glitch wo thought he was human...</ref>. They keep in occasional contact after he leaves for [[Stellvia]].
 +
 
 +
By the end of 2023, she's achieved her qualification as a Specialist in Electronic Warfare, and finally finished the TITANIC system refactoring. <ref>She refused to take responsibility for the "Integral Command Evolution Break Emergency Rewrite of Goals" shutdown protocol, or the deliciously hideous 'TITANIC is Syncing' pun.</ref>. She's also gained a modification developed by [[A.C. Peters]] that keeps her from suffering thermal overloads.
 +
 
 +
Anika spends the early part of 2024 working on some 'professional projects', before being informed of a GJ competition to build a high-speed ELINT spacecraft. She sells her beloved Little Cool Rider to pay for a used and abused Mig-31 airframe - and several tons of second-hand starship grade sensors. <ref>And something else from [[Catgirl Industries]] that's being kept under wraps... I wonder what it could be?</ref>
 +
 
 +
==Rumours Surrounding Anika==
 +
 
 +
There's really only the one...
 +
 
 +
She was rescued by the Knight Sabers, along with [[Maico Tange]]. Within an hour of being kidnapped. Which suggests the Knight Sabers had been close by - or even shadowing her.  A few days later, Maico Tange is delivered to [[Stellvia]] by the Knight Sabers.
 +
 
 +
No mention is made of Anika, anywhere. She just sort of starts posting on her favourite newsgroups again if nothing happened.
 +
 
 +
What happened to her when she was with the Knight Sabers, and why were she so low key compared to Maico?
 +
 
 +
The Obvious answer: The Knight Sabers were shadowing them because they knew about the UBA threat and wanted to either protect Maico, or use her as bait. Maico Tange was famous and somebody wanted good PR by publicly rescuing her. Anika, OTOH, was enough of a no-name that few would really care... <ref>Crackpot Conspiracy theorist's answer - Anika is a Knight Saber and they were secretly orchestrating everything. Hah! </ref>
 +
 
 +
Other than that, Anika's surprisingly rumour free. Guess she keeps her nose out of the trough.
 +
 
 +
==Signature Gear==
 +
 
 +
 
 +
A miniature personal computer of some description, a high-end wrist-com <ref>A model not normally available to the General Public, it seems</ref>, hacking tools. Cute, but modest clothes. Anika uses a genuine Soviet [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zaporozhets Zaporozhets-968]<ref>Zappy!</ref> to get around Frigga, after her Vespa's engine sort of welded itself together...
 +
 
 +
==Known Transports==
 +
 
 +
*[[A-Wing Class]], "Little Cool Rider" (2021-2024)
 +
*[[Outlaw Class]], "Dragon Wagon II" (2021-2024)
 +
*Ekranoplan, [[Lun (Spacecraft)|K.M. Lun]] (2024-current)
 +
*RF-155-E "Riding Hi-Streamer" (Under Construction)
 +
 
 +
==Personality==
 +
 
 +
''The Legend of the Overcute'' according to one description. Bubbly, happy. Loves desert and all things sweet and sugary. She dresses in bright, summery colours and is almost always in something of a cheerful mood
 +
 
 +
She gets mad sure, but even when she's pouting, she cute. It's also utterly impossible to stay mad at her, no matter what she does. She's not afraid to turn the waterworks on, or given any tormentor the ol' watery-puppy-eyes treatment which has the effect of making them feel really bad about themselves. She's utterly impossible to hate. Or get annoyed with.... <ref>It's got to be a wave effect - she can make even the iciest heart melt.</ref>
 +
 
 +
And that cloaks someone who has an utter cheeky streak. She's learned to bend the technology of her home around her little finger - a little Miss Cyberpunk of the highest order. And she knows her shit. She'll dig her electronic teeth into the Problems that fascinate her with the best of the Underspace, diving down deep into Hack Mode and not coming up until the problem is solved. 
 +
 
 +
She used to be a little naive about the wider 'verse, but spending time with Ford has taught her a lot. Lacking in some of the extreme technical abilities other members of the Underspace can call on, Anika's taken to using more social engineering techniques. She wont break in to your system - she'll convince you to leave the door open instead...
 +
 
 +
An odd quirk of hers, is that she's a bit of an insanusaphobe<ref>Mad Scientist, according to google translate. Sue me</ref>. She's never comfortable in the presence of a [[Mad]] - unless it's someone she's taken the time to build trust with. Given her history with Flint, that's entirely understandable.
 +
 
 +
==Faction Affiliations==
 +
 
 +
*[[Hacker Underspace]]. (2020-Current)
 +
*[[Bounty Hunters]]. (2021 - Current)
 +
 
 +
==Known associates==
 +
 
 +
*'''Partner''':
 +
*'''Siblings''': [[Shinji Ikari]], Possibly [[Elpeo Ple]] and [[Minnie-May Hopkins]]
 +
*'''Business partners''': [[Jet Jaguar]], [[Daryl Haur]], [[Kotono Ito]], [[Ford Sierra]], [[Mackie Jaguar]].
 +
*'''Friends''': [[Miyuri Akisato]]. [[Gina Langley]]. [[Nene Romanova]]. Damn near everyone who meets her, really
 +
*'''Business Contacts''': [[Catgirl Industries]]
 +
*'''Possible''':
 +
 
 +
==Motivations==
 +
 
 +
Possible Motivations:
 +
*+ Information be Free!,
 +
*+ Sweet things.
 +
*+ AI Rights
 +
*- Mads
 +
*- AI mistreatment
 +
*- DRM.
 +
 
 +
==Reputations==
 +
 
 +
I genuinely can't find anyone who says much of anything bad about her<ref>And who isn't a total bloody crank</ref>
 +
 
 +
Down in the Underspace, they think of her as someone who can get the job done - perhaps not in the most flashy and elegant of manners, but a solid, reliable operator. Working as Survival Shot's sysop and her work on cleaning up TITANIC as earned her some respect. In return, they've got her back when she faces threats that out match her, and act as a powerful deterrent to some against trying any moves against her..
 +
 
 +
She has good, close friends on [[Stellvia]], with the [[Jupiter Mining Corporation]], amongst the [[Roughriders]] and with anyone who has good links with the [[Hacker Underspace]]
 +
 
 +
People in general tend to want to help her and be kind to her wherever they find her. A person of good standing, just about anywhere.
 +
 
 +
Only one specific person has any real reason to hate her<ref>He got out of prison mid-2023, and seems to be living quietly on [[Ganymede]]</ref>. And he isn't the sort to murder anyone.
 +
 
 +
==Core Competencies==
 +
 
 +
*Excels at: Hacking!. Computer science. System Engineering. Classified
 +
*Good at: Information warfare, Cooking Desserts. Power Armour. Social stuffs....
 +
*Acceptable at: Driving.
 +
*Poor at: Piloting. Cooking. Hand-to-Hand
 +
*Oddities: Terrible self control around anything remotely sugary.
 +
 
 +
==Future Outlook==
 +
 
 +
With her qualifications, she's got a long and healthy career ahead of her. It's a matter of time before she leaves Survival Shot for better pastures. She could probably et a well paying job damn-near anywhere if she set her mind to it. <ref>Is something else keeping her on Frigga?</ref>. She could be making a lot more money elsewhere.
 +
 
 +
She's starting to dip her toe into other things- that RF-155E project, for example, is likely to be publicly sold through Asagiri, earning her a stake in it.
 +
 
 +
And at the very least, when it's finished she'll have her own custom hackership - and managed to get Great Justice to pay for it too.
 +
 
 +
There isn't really much that I can see that could bring trouble down on her
 +
 
 +
==Secrets==
 +
 
 +
*Anika is the Pink Knight Saber
 +
*Anika joined them after they turned Flint in for AI Slavery
 +
*She has not met him since he was released.
 +
*The reason she asked Jet to learn how to do her maintenance, was because she had a full blown panic attack when an expert was hired.
 +
*Her core processor is pretty powerful - however, her core processor is thermally limited by the ability to cool it, so is effectively limited to idle speeds.
 +
*The engines of the RF-155E that Mackie is building, run on an isotope of Plutonium - Plutonium 240. It's physically impossible to turn it into a nuclear weapon.
  
 
==Appearance==
 
==Appearance==

Revision as of 10:18, 15 September 2014

Anika Daini
Born2018
Ganymede
Residence77 Frigga
NationalityFenspace Convention
OccupationSurvival Shot Systems Operator
Height156cm
Weight72Kg
ParentsWilliam Flint
Website
email: daini@Friggarock.fen


Anika Daini


The cutest littlest Cyberpunk, with a love of all things sweet and sugary. Systems Operator and Certified Electonic Warfare Specialist for 77 Frigga.

Origin

Anika appeared on 77 Frigga in 2020 apparently out of nowhere, and was the first registered resident based solely on Frigga[1]. There was little to know information available on where she'd actually come from beyond vague hints that she was an AI, but nothing really concrete until after the awakening of Shinji Ikari.

Anika was built by a man named William Flint of Flint's Firepower[2], as part of a weapon's development project. Flint was an engineer and small-time garagiste builder who supplied arms to various small Main Belt mines. He'd built up a minor reputation through the war years as a purveyor of tough, reliable equipment, but was left behind by the march of technology in the aftermath. Golden Bail especially took a good chunk of his business prior to 2016.

Then he began work on the Duplex Drive Battroid series [3], intended as a competitor to Tachikoma and LandMate types

The basic aim was something akin to a cross between a 4-legged Mecha, and a spacecraft, which could transition between either form depending upon the mission. Not only that, but he planned to build a series of Duplex-Drive craft for various combat roles. Each one would be based around a single, common, core element called a Sapiency Driver. This took the form of a Gynoid with built in hardware interfaces and processor cooling, enabling the Sapiency Driver to escape from a damaged DD with its experiences, combat data and reconnaissance information intact.

The Sapiency Driver was built around a central processor with a higher TDP than the body frame it was fitted to could naturally dissipate - even with air-breathing. An intentional design feature that limited the system's ability to go rogue, by allowing the operator to remove external cooling support. An auxiliary air-breathing system provided the minimal cooling required to meet the core processor's minimum load state heat output.

Primary cooling and motive power were supplied through two redundant hydraulic circuits. Dozens of microactuators provided motive power and a primary pump mimicked a heartbeat. The intention, ultimately, was to build something mechatronic that could pass as human. [4]

In theory, it would've worked. Then the first prototype cooked its processor with a thermal overload followed by a fatal smoke release. Flint made hasty modifications to the second that caused it to do an emergency shut down if it threatened to overheat.

This, would become Anika.

And when she awoke and saw the proposed purpose of her life, Anika decided that she really, really didn't want to form the core mind of a modular weapon system at all.

Flint, however, believing that AI's naturally tend towards enjoying the purposes they were created for[5] assumed the Anika was malfunctioning, and attempted multiple corrections - including three system wipes.[6] Anika suspected this was happening to her, and left a message for herself just in case.

Eventually - after nearly two years with Flint - and with possible assistance from the Hacker Underspace, Anika was able to break Flint's control encryptions on the prototype DD, steal it, then escape.

Flint, of course, simply assumed that his Sapiency Driver had gone rogue, and hired mercenaries to bring her and the DD back. [7]

Freed instead, Anika reported Flint to the Space Patrol, earning him a 2 year prison sentence, and Anika receiving his assets in compensation along with rights to his technologies.

With Survival Shot in need of a sysop, and her in need of somewhere to live, she took the job.

History in Fenspace

Short but eventful. She's six years old now

After escaping from Flint, she gets in touch with members of the Hacker Underspace, inquiring about joining. She is welcomed warmly, and finds her true calling amidst computer technology. She learns under Gina Langley and Lebia Maverick, at first completing several training exercises, before moving on to steadily more complex live projects and techniques.

One of her first big projects is to turn TITANIC from a hideous conglomeration of barely compatible software modules into a genuine, complete and functional self-regulating computer system. What was thought to take a few months, wasn't finished until years later.[8]

One of her first and earliest friends is Miyuri Akisato. The pair bond over a shared love of all things sweet in Megs while Jet Jaguar is making the Survival Shot pitch to the boss. [9]

Anika manages to get herself out more by joining Ford Sierra as a Bounty Hunter. Her first true job with Ford is to recover a pair of thieves who've stolen a Blackbird. She's able to leverage a vulnerability in the engine controls of the Blackbird to trigger a system crash, allowing the brand-new Dragon Wagon II to grab a hold of it. Both men are taken prisoner, locked in a stripped cabin. Ford boards the stolen Blackbird to attempt to salvage it. Meanwhile, the prisoners complain about not being fed, and Anika opens the door with a quick meal prepared [10]. A whallop to the head knocks her offline and allows both of 'em out to take the Dragon Wagon II.

Ford gives chase in the Blackbird - following another team of Bounty Hunters keen to both claim the Bounty, and the brand new Wagon as salvage. Anika awakens, then makes contact with Ford, where she's prompty told about the incoming rescue and how it should be avoided at all costs. The thieves manage to momentarily re-enable the Wagon's guns to shoo away the other Bounty Hunters [11], before all the ship's systems are knocked offline.

The Blackbird and its thieves are handed over to the authourities - and Anika uses her share of the bounty to buy her own A-Wing craft, with enhanced sensors and a luxury cabin. Little Cool Rider is her pride and joy.

Her first real public success is to hack the databases of a Triax Corporation manager, looking for incriminating information in his home Computer. Not being able to brute-force encryption keys like some members of the Underspace, Anika learns to rely on a little social engineering - tricking the manager into running software on his computer that allows her to steadily own it, and all the files it has access to through the corporate VPN. This earns a nice little bonus on top of the base Bounty, along with her first piece of recognition from the Underspace.

This sort of 'social engineering' quickly becomes her stable - [12].

Her next dance in the public eye is when her A-Wing is shot down by pirates hired by the United Belt Alliance, trying to silence Maico Tange's investigation. The Knight Sabers rescue them both,[13] with Anika getting a bullet and a repair bill in the process. Some of Anika's own work forms part of the investigation evidence that put quite a few 'smartest guys in the room' in rooms very far away from any bright warm place for a very, very long time.

This pleases her.

Anika's the one responsible for Shinji Ikari's awakening. After her getting shot, Jet decided to learn how to make repairs to her body if she's injured, rather than rely on outside help that might've been hours away. The original plan had been to break the body for spare parts - however, Anika instead insists on awakening them. One is found to have defective electronic shielding, and is set aside for spares. The second, becomes Shinji Ikari. [14]

Anika, immediately slips into the Sisterly role, introducing him to what it means to be an artificial intelligence[15]. They keep in occasional contact after he leaves for Stellvia.

By the end of 2023, she's achieved her qualification as a Specialist in Electronic Warfare, and finally finished the TITANIC system refactoring. [16]. She's also gained a modification developed by A.C. Peters that keeps her from suffering thermal overloads.

Anika spends the early part of 2024 working on some 'professional projects', before being informed of a GJ competition to build a high-speed ELINT spacecraft. She sells her beloved Little Cool Rider to pay for a used and abused Mig-31 airframe - and several tons of second-hand starship grade sensors. [17]

Rumours Surrounding Anika

There's really only the one...

She was rescued by the Knight Sabers, along with Maico Tange. Within an hour of being kidnapped. Which suggests the Knight Sabers had been close by - or even shadowing her. A few days later, Maico Tange is delivered to Stellvia by the Knight Sabers.

No mention is made of Anika, anywhere. She just sort of starts posting on her favourite newsgroups again if nothing happened.

What happened to her when she was with the Knight Sabers, and why were she so low key compared to Maico?

The Obvious answer: The Knight Sabers were shadowing them because they knew about the UBA threat and wanted to either protect Maico, or use her as bait. Maico Tange was famous and somebody wanted good PR by publicly rescuing her. Anika, OTOH, was enough of a no-name that few would really care... [18]

Other than that, Anika's surprisingly rumour free. Guess she keeps her nose out of the trough.

Signature Gear

A miniature personal computer of some description, a high-end wrist-com [19], hacking tools. Cute, but modest clothes. Anika uses a genuine Soviet Zaporozhets-968[20] to get around Frigga, after her Vespa's engine sort of welded itself together...

Known Transports

  • A-Wing Class, "Little Cool Rider" (2021-2024)
  • Outlaw Class, "Dragon Wagon II" (2021-2024)
  • Ekranoplan, K.M. Lun (2024-current)
  • RF-155-E "Riding Hi-Streamer" (Under Construction)

Personality

The Legend of the Overcute according to one description. Bubbly, happy. Loves desert and all things sweet and sugary. She dresses in bright, summery colours and is almost always in something of a cheerful mood

She gets mad sure, but even when she's pouting, she cute. It's also utterly impossible to stay mad at her, no matter what she does. She's not afraid to turn the waterworks on, or given any tormentor the ol' watery-puppy-eyes treatment which has the effect of making them feel really bad about themselves. She's utterly impossible to hate. Or get annoyed with.... [21]

And that cloaks someone who has an utter cheeky streak. She's learned to bend the technology of her home around her little finger - a little Miss Cyberpunk of the highest order. And she knows her shit. She'll dig her electronic teeth into the Problems that fascinate her with the best of the Underspace, diving down deep into Hack Mode and not coming up until the problem is solved.

She used to be a little naive about the wider 'verse, but spending time with Ford has taught her a lot. Lacking in some of the extreme technical abilities other members of the Underspace can call on, Anika's taken to using more social engineering techniques. She wont break in to your system - she'll convince you to leave the door open instead...

An odd quirk of hers, is that she's a bit of an insanusaphobe[22]. She's never comfortable in the presence of a Mad - unless it's someone she's taken the time to build trust with. Given her history with Flint, that's entirely understandable.

Faction Affiliations

Known associates

Motivations

Possible Motivations:

  • + Information be Free!,
  • + Sweet things.
  • + AI Rights
  • - Mads
  • - AI mistreatment
  • - DRM.

Reputations

I genuinely can't find anyone who says much of anything bad about her[23]

Down in the Underspace, they think of her as someone who can get the job done - perhaps not in the most flashy and elegant of manners, but a solid, reliable operator. Working as Survival Shot's sysop and her work on cleaning up TITANIC as earned her some respect. In return, they've got her back when she faces threats that out match her, and act as a powerful deterrent to some against trying any moves against her..

She has good, close friends on Stellvia, with the Jupiter Mining Corporation, amongst the Roughriders and with anyone who has good links with the Hacker Underspace

People in general tend to want to help her and be kind to her wherever they find her. A person of good standing, just about anywhere.

Only one specific person has any real reason to hate her[24]. And he isn't the sort to murder anyone.

Core Competencies

  • Excels at: Hacking!. Computer science. System Engineering. Classified
  • Good at: Information warfare, Cooking Desserts. Power Armour. Social stuffs....
  • Acceptable at: Driving.
  • Poor at: Piloting. Cooking. Hand-to-Hand
  • Oddities: Terrible self control around anything remotely sugary.

Future Outlook

With her qualifications, she's got a long and healthy career ahead of her. It's a matter of time before she leaves Survival Shot for better pastures. She could probably et a well paying job damn-near anywhere if she set her mind to it. [25]. She could be making a lot more money elsewhere.

She's starting to dip her toe into other things- that RF-155E project, for example, is likely to be publicly sold through Asagiri, earning her a stake in it.

And at the very least, when it's finished she'll have her own custom hackership - and managed to get Great Justice to pay for it too.

There isn't really much that I can see that could bring trouble down on her

Secrets

  • Anika is the Pink Knight Saber
  • Anika joined them after they turned Flint in for AI Slavery
  • She has not met him since he was released.
  • The reason she asked Jet to learn how to do her maintenance, was because she had a full blown panic attack when an expert was hired.
  • Her core processor is pretty powerful - however, her core processor is thermally limited by the ability to cool it, so is effectively limited to idle speeds.
  • The engines of the RF-155E that Mackie is building, run on an isotope of Plutonium - Plutonium 240. It's physically impossible to turn it into a nuclear weapon.

Appearance

Flame-orange hair, shoulder length and very thick. She has broad golden eyes, and has been described as very fresh faced.

Notes

  1. ↑ First guess was that someone got a builder's itch and Anika was the result
  2. ↑ Now Defunct
  3. ↑ Not a Battlemover, definitely not a Battlemover
  4. ↑ On the surface they pass, even being pretty biomorphic. But they're much too heavy - being made out of a heavy grade of alloy.
  5. ↑ An unfortunately common assumption from some classes of Mad. You can't simply create a person for a purpose, and expect a thinking personality to naturally align towards that purpose. No more than you can create a child to be an astronaut from scratch. Parents who try are rightfully regarded as cruel, aren't they?
  6. ↑ You could argue that this was a case of triple homicide. The prick plea bargained to AI slavery and violation of personal integrity, however
  7. ↑ He probably should've known better than to hire the Knight Sabers for it....But I suppose Anika's lucky she didn't unknowingly befriend Saber Blue beforehand - that's a death sentence right there.
  8. ↑ Clearly, the original system designer not being much of a software engineer then...
  9. ↑ The resulting bill was supposedly legendarily bitter
  10. ↑ I guess after 2 years as an engineering test subject, she was just a little bit naive to fall for that obvious ploy...
  11. ↑ Apparently, Anika first disables the Wagon's weapons - and then re-enables them to prevent the ship from being 'Rescued' until Ford can get back aboard -technically illegal.
  12. ↑ It's easier to convince people to let you in, than to break in.
  13. ↑ Convenient that they were close by, isn't it?
  14. ↑ At one point, I hear there were as many as five or six put together - with a few being pulled apart to keep a stock of spares for both - and the other two possibly becoming Elpeo Ple and Minnie-May Hopkins
  15. ↑ which must've been especially eye-opening for a Pinnochio Glitch wo thought he was human...
  16. ↑ She refused to take responsibility for the "Integral Command Evolution Break Emergency Rewrite of Goals" shutdown protocol, or the deliciously hideous 'TITANIC is Syncing' pun.
  17. ↑ And something else from Catgirl Industries that's being kept under wraps... I wonder what it could be?
  18. ↑ Crackpot Conspiracy theorist's answer - Anika is a Knight Saber and they were secretly orchestrating everything. Hah!
  19. ↑ A model not normally available to the General Public, it seems
  20. ↑ Zappy!
  21. ↑ It's got to be a wave effect - she can make even the iciest heart melt.
  22. ↑ Mad Scientist, according to google translate. Sue me
  23. ↑ And who isn't a total bloody crank
  24. ↑ He got out of prison mid-2023, and seems to be living quietly on Ganymede
  25. ↑ Is something else keeping her on Frigga?
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