Caroline M. Hawes
Senior officer in the Company's Intelligence Directorate

History:
1: After her childhood education, a process which took over thirty years, she worked in an office
2: With little prospect of ever leaving entry-level, she signed on for a mercenary tour with the Company
3: The Company's brushfire wars in the colonies were better than anything home had to offer
4: Still, looking back, she regrets many of the things she did—a hired thug defending the Company's bottom line
5: She views herself as a monster, and feels that it would be impossible to settle down and live a normal, settled life which she didn't deserve in any case.
6: More to the point, if she, a basically decent person in her youth, was capable of the things she was most everyone else must be too.

Occupation:
1: A member of one of Company's Intelligence Directorate, she has risen as high as someone without the right birth possibly can.
2: She is a member of the [world name]'s uppermost reaches of the middle class, but would not be accepted by the upper classes.
3: Nor would she want to, as an ex-mercenary, and a professional she does not care for the settled life—massive amounts of money and big household are of no interest her.
4: Nevertheless, as an officer (albeit not with the regular army) she does have to deal with the lower spectrum of the upper class at formal events and the like—and is often dragged along by others.
5: While she hates the mixing and mingling of her role, two centuries is more than enough for her to hold her own
6: While she is at home, she is an administrator, but because of the delay in traveling between Home and the Colonies, she still does work off-world, often for more than a decade at a time.

Personality:
1: Her sense of humor is dry as a bleached skull in the dessert.
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Appearance:
1: She prefers severe and crisp clothing; solid colors and clean lines—better dead than frilly.
2: She wears her long brown hair in an aristocratic style with every hair in it's proper place.
3: One of her most prized possession is a [WORLD] windsilk scarf—worth a staggeringly large amount of money—within is concealed a tiny fullerine-cord garrote.
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Relationships:
1: As a person who will—quite literally—vanish from the face of the planet for years at a time she does not make lasting connections very well.
2: She tells herself that short-term relationships and casual conversation is easier when she has to pack up and leave.
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4: Whet few strong bonds she has are strong indeed to survive her lifestyle.
5: She has a handful of close companions from her days as a soldier that she still keeps in touch with as well as a handful of other friends.
6: She also has allowed herself the luxury of a dog—which at her rank in the company, she would be permitted to carry with her in the freezer berth if she traveled off-world

Goals
1: She wants to get out of some of her Society obligations—it's summer, the season of parties and high society gatherings.
Unfortunately, it is required of her—it's hard enough to deal with the politics of her job without being absent, and someone is always dragging her along—like Markey. Doubly hard after her promotion, a reward for good advice that ended the [COLONY] civil war. At this rate, she might even start becoming respectable.
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3: In her heart of hearts—though she would never admit it—she wants to make peace with her past.
It's hard to accomplish a goal one isn't aware of, and she refuses to settle down

Lloyd "Old Harry" Markey
Adviser and personal assistant to Alexander T. West

History:
1:He used to be a company mercenary along with Hawes, but has since moved on to more respectable (and profitable) careers
2: He has an eye towards social advancement and wants to marry above his station and retire with a title
3: To that end, Markey has moved to work in politics—he is an aide, adviser, and bodyguard to one of the younger (relatively) sons of one of the Great Families.
4: While Markey has risen high, he comes from a humble background—something he says little about.
5: He was born in the lowest parts of society, to parents who were domestic servants who are since dead—they could not afford the full range of life extension treatments.
6: He enlisted with the Company to get off-world with no intention to return, but his keen mind and silver tongue got him further than he could possibly expect.

Occupation:
1: Currently, Markey assists in the running of the younger West's household, handling business matters and financial issues.
2: He is also West's chief of security, a job which he takes to with uncharacteristic seriousness.
3: West has many enemies, and in a society where the elite refuses to die of old age, assassination is an appealing alternative.
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Personality:
1: Markey exudes a rakish charm that even those jaded by their years find hard to exist.
2: He is clever and likable in spite of his devilish scheming which he makes no effort to hide.
3: This is how he got his nickname, "Old Harry" after the devil.
4: Behind his glowing orange display contacts and constant grin, he hides a more serious side.
5: While he truly does want to move up in the world, Markey does care about his friends, and to some extent is trying to escape his checkered past.
6: This has left him slightly insecure about his new-found high place in the world.

Appearance:
1: Markey lives on the cutting edge of fashion, favoring dark clothes and slick hair.
2: Between that and his display contacts which give his eyes a glowing orange cast, he looks the part of his nickname.
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Relationships:
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Goals:
1: Markey is currently chasing after A. R. Bray, a well-born thrill seeker who loves his tales of adventure.
However, she has family that greatly disapprove of Markey.
2: He is trying his best to secure a number of extremely profitable business deals for his employer, and is quite busy after a fashion.
3: Markey wants to move up in the world by hook or by crook.
However, the world is not cooperative, his lowly upbringing and mercenary past puts him at a major disadvantage

Eliphas J. Hammon:
A slippery foreign ambassador with a hidden agenda

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Family:
1: He has traveled to [PLACE] with his family—a wife and one child (of about 30—just done with secondary schooling given massively extended lifespans)
2: His more questionable involvement leads him to worry for the safety of his family were something to go wrong, or worse if he was found out.
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Appearance:
1: He keeps his grey hair a medium length and wears a well trimmed beard.
2: While human lifespans are truly impressive, they are not unlimited and he is getting on in years.
3: He can no longer hide all the wrinkles, but rather than old, he looks distinguished.
4: In addition, Hammon has a handful of other adult children who have remained on the home-world or traveled to the colonies
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Politics:
1: A patriot of the highest order, he is old enough to remember tail end of the last great war.
2: He was fighting in a remote corner of space and the orders to stand down came years after most of the fighting had stopped, but that was centuries ago.
3: He is suspicious of the aristocratic and authoritarian [DEMONYM] way of life.
4: However, distance has enabled him to idealize his own society—he is not exposed to it's realities for the most part.
5: Rather than the hierarchical society of [DEMONYM] his home is unfree but in a different way.
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Goals:
1: Hammon is trying to discover whether Lord West is useful ally or not.
2: Hammon is trying to get his next report out on the next [DEMONYM] ship which has just arrived without looking too eager to do so.
3: Hammon seeks to break the Company's virtual monopoly on trade with many of the colonies so that his own traders can cut out the middleman.
This would be no mean feat, the Company is an ancient institution, more than 1000 years old, that exists with the full backing of the state of [NAME]

Dear Caroline,

I am delighted to hear from R. that you have returned to [PLACE] from your trip to [PLACE] and hope that the colonial business turned out as well as it ever does—twenty years is such a terribly long time to wait on good news, and from what I hear, the news is mostly good. I remember our time in [COLONIAL CITY] in 874 fondly, and still miss the [COLONY] weather. Certainly, we had no civil war on our hands back then. Here in the [SUMMER CAPITOL] it's been raining buckets for the past week and the pretty little Society creatures are all hiding indoors because their garden parties are ruined on account of the weather. For myself it's no been no better; I have been working out a business deal on behalf of Mr. West and have been in some meeting or other on that account for the past several weeks. I think I know how you feel every every day and I cannot say that I am jealous. Alas, I'm just not cut out for real work.

I hope that the Company allows you a little freedom for your good service as it has been far too long since we have last spoken in person. If you can manage it on such short notice I would be glad to see you on the 9th . Hopefully the weather will improve by then, but I know that the rain will not bother you. I've been invited to party by way of Mr. West, and he has said that I am welcome to bring guests—if I can come to the thing then you surely can. Feel free to bring a someone of your own if you like. Also, I really must introduce you to Anna; I don't think the two of you have met yet. I am sure that she would love to hear some of your stories from the good old days. I know how you feel about high society, but I promise you'll enjoy it, or at the very least you'll enjoy the food. A break from your work will do you some good.

Believe me,
Your sincere friend,
L. Markey

Bullet-sized raindrops, slammed against the the terminal's glass windows. Lloyd Markey, smiled when he saw his friend, dressed in a severe grey raincoat. She held her still-wet umbrella like a solider, as if she was ready to snap to attention, umbrella held to her shoulder like a rifle.

"It's been far too long! I'm glad you managed to find the time."

"It really couldn't be avoided. Joking of course. It's been ages. Not since last Empire Day I think. I wish I had a better excuse, but work has been an absolute nightmare. But I won't have an excuse anymore. I've been promoted and transferred to the Company's headquarters in the capitol—you're the first person I've told after my house staff. I've become a war hero in war I didn't even fight. God help me, I just wrote the report, I don't deserve this."

*laughter* "I've never heard someone complain like you about a promotion. You might take a liking to polite society. Speaking from experience it grows on you. By the way, if you need a place to live while you settle in, you're welcome to stay longer."

"I wouldn't wish myself on you."

"I can't let you stay in a hotel; it would be dreadful of me. Truly, you're welcome to stay. I live in a house built for an older man. There are three spare bedrooms; you won't be a bother at all."

"Oh, all right, if there's no talking you out of it, but I'll do my best to be out of your hair as soon as I can."

"Don't be like that. Please take as long as you need. Finding a place to live isn't something you should rush."

"I've already made some inquiries. How has your business for Alexander gone?"

"It's gone well enough, but it's dreadfully hard work and I'm naturally lazy. I'm afraid I don't fully understand how banking works, but I seem to get on well enough. Please don't tell Mr. West that."

"Never. And what of this Anna you mentioned?"

"Oh, she's a lovely thing. She's sitting over there."

"Ah. She looks young. Oh, and a chaperone too, here I thought you'd gone and got yousrself engaged. Damm fool that you are."

"How do you do that? I can barely tell the difference between fifty and three hundred without at least talking to someone first. Yes, she's young. I am too. Too young to settle down like that just yet but old enough to start thinking about it. You should too."

"It's my job to see these things, and I'm bloody good at my job. That's why I'm doomed to a life of garden parties and ball gowns. Maybe I'll meet my match at a ball like you—may I have this dance?"

"You're too cruel. Soon you'll get used to being respectable. Let me introduce the two of you."

Bullet-sized raindrops, slammed against the the terminal's glass windows. Lloyd Markey, smiled when he saw his friend, dressed in a severe grey raincoat. She held her still-wet umbrella like a solider on parade, as if she was ready to snap to attention, umbrella held to her shoulder like a rifle.

"It's been far too long! I'm glad you managed to find the time," said Markey, his glowing orange eyes shining as he embraced the woman in a crisp grey coat. But for the feminine cut it could have come from a man's wardrobe. Caroline tensed for the slightest moment like a cat trying to wriggle out of someone's hands at the unexpected gesture affection before relaxing.

"It really couldn't be avoided. Joking of course. It's been ages. Not since last Empire Day I think. I wish I had a better excuse, but work has been a nightmare. But I won't have an excuse anymore. I've been promoted and transferred to the Company's headquarters in the capitol—you're the first person I've told after my house staff. I've become a war hero in war I didn't even fight. God help me, I just wrote the report, I don't deserve this." She slumped slightly.

Markey laughed silently, his sides shaking. "I've never heard someone complain like you about a promotion. You might take a liking to polite society. Speaking from experience it grows on you. By the way, if you need a place to live while you settle in, you're welcome to stay longer."

"I wouldn't wish myself on you."

"I can't let you stay in a hotel; it would be dreadful of me. Truly, you're welcome to stay. I live in a house built for an older man. There are three spare bedrooms; you won't be a bother at all."

"Oh, all right, if there's no talking you out of it, but I'll do my best to be out of your hair as soon as I can," she said, holding her hands up in defeat.

"Don't be like that. Please take as long as you need. Finding a place to live isn't something you should rush."

"I've already made some inquiries. The Company cares for it's own." Changing the subject, she asked: "How has your business for Alexander been going?"

"It's gone well enough, but it's dreadfully hard work and I'm naturally lazy. I'm afraid I don't fully understand how banking works, but I seem to get on well enough. Please don't tell Mr. West that," Markey gave his trademark devil-may-care grin, his orange-colored eyes shining.

"Never. And what of this Anna you mentioned?"

"Oh, she's a lovely thing. She's sitting over there," said Markey, shifting into a slightly more formal posture as he remembered that he was being watched.

"Ah. She looks young. Oh, and a chaperone too, here I thought you'd gone and got yourself engaged. Damn fool that you are," said Caroline. Following his body language but not cooperating, she punched his shoulder much to hard to be flirtatious and laughed—a thin, dry thing like dead leaves.

"How do you do that?" said Markey, massaging his shoulder, "I can barely tell the difference between fifty and three hundred without at least talking to someone first. Yes, she's young. I am too. Too young to settle down like that just yet but old enough to start thinking about it. You should be too."

"It's my job to see these things, and I'm bloody good at my job. That's why I'm doomed to a life of garden parties and ball gowns." She made a disgusted face "Maybe I'll meet my match at a ball like you." In a bitingly accurate imitation of Markey's voice and manner: "May I have this dance?" she said, offering her arm to an invisible partner.

"You're too cruel. Soon you'll get used to being respectable. Let me introduce the two of you," said Markey, leading the way to the pair of women seated on a bench. "Caroline, this is Anna Bray" Caroline's face stayed politely neutral at the mention of such a prominent surname, without so much as a twitch, but it was a testament to two hundred years of practice. "And this is Mrs. Jane Wayatt," he said, nodding to Anna's companion. "Anna, Mrs. Wayatt, this is Caroline."

Anna stood, offering her hand "It's a pleasure to meet you. Lloyd has told me so much about you." To Caroline's expert eye, the younger woman seemed on edge; hands tense and a slightly forced smile. Was she jealous?

"Really?" asked Caroline, far too practiced to bristle back "Good things I hope?"

"Nothing but good things. I wish I could have been there myself. It sounds like such an adventure!"

Adventure? I very much doubt you'd feel that way if you were there at the time. "The Colonies are overrated anyway. Don't be too disappointed."

"Shall we be going?" asked Markey, taking Anna's hand.

Taking advantage of a moment of inattention on the part of Anna and her chaperone, Caroline mouthed a silent "You did what?!" to Markey, who only smiled by way of reply.