Post by Roman Kline on Oct 15, 2022 16:46:54 GMT -5
First Name: Roman
Last Name: Kline
Age: 31
Height: 6'0"
Appearance:
(Obvious): Generally wears while casual suits, classy - not miami vice style, lol - with round toed white loafers. His suit coat is tailored perfectly to conceal the semi-automatic handgun he carries in a shoulder holster. He's muscular, but in a lean way, not like a body builder. No scars visible. His hair is always tousled, like he climbed out of bed and did nothing at all with it, but be assured he carefully arranges it that way. He keeps a little facial hair, though not enough to call a beard. Little more than scruff, but it makes him look good.
(Not Obvious): Wears a shoulder holster with a semi-automatic handgun in it, has another, a spare if you will, derringer style handgun in an ankle holster. There's a scar on his abdomen where his appendix was removed during emergency surgery when he was eleven. He carries an old, heirloom pocket watch in the inner breast pocket of his suit coat. He has a tendency to wear body armor when on more dangerous jobs, though he doesn't wear it on a day to day basis.
Persuasion: Neutral
Military Service: No
General Skills: Lockpicking, deadeye with a pistol or revolver, persuasive - getting out of jams is his specialty, and companion training.
Talents: companion training which includes: charm, self-control, remaining emotionally detached from clients, psychology, music, dance, languages, unarmed martial arts defense, piano, reading body language, ancient history, calligraphy, anatomy, psychotherapy, and fencing.
Flaws: Lack of belief in anything, flirty to the point of recklessness at times, allergic to kiwi, six toes on right foot, fears aliens despite there being no evidence aliens exist, sometimes appears apathetic and narcissistic, vain
Personality Traits: He likes women, and that's both a strength and a weakness. He's got a special thing for Ilana, though he's not sure he'd call it love. It's as close as he's ever been to it, though. Probably more of a strong fondness. He has no intention of settling down with anyone, but he flirts with everyone. He likes expensive things, and he can usually afford them due to both his talent for thievery and his job as a companion. He dislikes liars, which is kind of ironic since he's a thief. He doesn’t like cheats when it comes to people he's working for or with, and he doesn't like assholes for obvious reasons. He has a passion for gambling, just like his father did, though he doesn't do it often because he isn't very good at it, also like his father. He enjoys it though, so on occasion, he will gamble a bit. As a hobby, he collects model ships, both old water faring ships and spaceships.
History: Roman was born on February 14th, 2487 on Londinium, in the city of High Gate to incredibly wealthy parents. His mother came from money; she'd never worked a day in her life. His father built his own wealth with a fuel company called Biotech Fuel.
***
2493
His first clear memory is when he was about six. He was playing in the den with a new toy his mother had gotten for him on a trip to Rubicon. He heard his mother and father arguing in the hall. He got up and walked to the doorway and looked out. His father had his back to him and he was shouting at his mother. His mother was crying. "Stop it, Byron! I didn't do anything wrong!" She shouted at him. Then he backhanded her. The six year old Roman watched as his father continued to hit her, over and over. He was terrified his father was going to kill her so he ran out and grabbed his father's arm. "Daddy stop! You're hurting her!"
His father looked at him as though he had never seen him before. Then he looked at his wife's bleeding face and started to cry. He didn't bother reaching for her, because he knew what she would say. He just said, "I'm so sorry, Missy. I'm so sorry," over and over. Roman let go of his father then and went to his mother. He gingerly touched her face and said, "It's okay Mommy."
She smiled a little broken smile at him and said, "You never hurt a woman like that. Do you understand Romie?"
"Yes momma. I won't. Not ever," he said.
His brother, Tyson was only a year older than Roman himself, but Tyson was at school when that happened. That was the only time he ever saw his father hit his mother, and as far as he knew, he never hit her again.
***
2496
When Roman was nine, and his brother Tyson was ten, they were playing outside. He and Roman were tossing a ball around the yard when Roman threw it too high. It got stuck on the overhang of the porch roof. Tyson climbed the tree next to the house and shimmied along a branch close to the roof to get it. Tyson's hand closed around the ball, and his eyes lit up.
"Yes!" He cried out.
When he turned to shimmy back the way he had come, there was a horrible cracking sound and the branch broke. Tyson fell headfirst to the ground and landed on the concrete walkway that circled the house and wound through the garden. His head hit the concrete with a sickening sound and his neck snapped audibly. Roman was in shock at first, seeing his brother just die so suddenly. After the shock wore off, he was devastated. Tyson had been his best friend all his life.
***
2498
When he was eleven, he was eating dinner with his family at the table, and he suddenly fell out of his chair, screaming, clutching at his side. He had been feeling pretty terrible all day, with sharp but infrequent pains along with sore feet. He never thought to tell anyone because by the time he would have, it stopped and he forgot all about it. But there at the dinner table, he felt like he was dying. His parents took him to the hospital and he got into the OR just before his appendix burst. He got a nice little scar from that.
***
2499
His sister, Juliette, was quite a bit older than he was, so he doesn't remember a whole lot of her in his younger days. When he was twelve, she married a man named Norman Brockmore. The wedding was extravagant. Everyone who was anyone came. Once the wedding and reception were over, Roman never saw his sister again. She waves him once in a while, and keeps tabs on him, but he hasn't seen her in person since her wedding day.
Later in the same year, Roman left his home on Londinium to begin companion training on Sihnon. In addition to standard schooling, he began learning to live as a companion. They were not required to practice a specific religion or pray, but it was encouraged. In addition, their days began with lighting incense and inner contemplation. Leading a cloistered lifestyle was also encouraged.
His training began with psychology, self-control, music, dance, languages, and unarmed martial arts defense in addition to continuing his normal studies. The instrument of his choice was the piano.
***
2500
After a year training to be a companion, Roman was allowed to choose an elective course. Male companions weren't rare, but they weren't really common either, so he chose dueling. Dueling classes were not generally offered to female companions, however men being as they are, male companions were sometimes challenged to duel for a number of reasons that boiled down to pissing contests. Women were, however, taught to shoot a gun properly, and well, for their own protection. He was already taking fencing, so he chose pistol dueling.
***
2501
In 2501 he began learning to read body language, ancient history, calligraphy, and anatomy while continuing his other studies.
***
2502
When he was fifteen, his grandmother on his mother's side came to visit him. She told him that his had lost his company. He had gambled away everything. Missy's parents, agreed to help them move to Persephone. They had to sell the majority of what they owned and their house was much smaller, because they couldn't afford even the cheapest place on Londinium anymore. Missy's parents saw to it that Roman was cared for, and paid for his continued training as a companion as well as ensuring he had a small amount of spending money. They provided for Missy and Byron as well, but they didn't provide funds directly to either of his parents. They simply bought what was needed and had it delivered. Roman was given strict instructions that neither of his parents were to know about him receiving spending money from his grandparents, and he never breathed a word.
***
2503
At 16, psychotherapy was added to the list of courses he would be taking.
***
2504
At 17 his anatomy lessons included how to use the patch sedative worn in protection to avoid physically harming a wealthy client. The sedative is fast-acting and worn on a companion's finger. It can be administered at any time and is near instantaneous. The client will immediately experience dizziness and slurring of their words before falling unconscious. Upon waking, common side effects would be headache and thirst.
It was also at this age that he began to be allowed to leave the training center alone for outings. Roman had always been a charming boy, but his training as a companion had made him even more so.
You could say he fell in with the wrong crowd there, but he would argue that he fell into the perfect one. They were a little older, but not by more than a couple years. They taught him how to be a thief and over the years with them, he mastered the art.
He came into contact with them when on an outing not long after first being allowed out alone. Through his time with them, the leader of the group, a man named Tom Jackson, insisted Roman take what he knew of dueling, and apply it to more advanced weapons. Roman began training with pistols in many forms at a shooting range near where the group usually stayed. He already had extensive dueling training, which meant he had aiming and drawing on his side to start with.
***
2505
At 18 he completed his standard studies and received a certificate of completion. He then began learning the arts of pleasure along with continuing to practice with other companions from his year some of his more traditional studies.
With Tom's group, he worked on distance and moving targets over the course of the four years he spent with this group, whenever he wasn't on a job. By the time he left Tom's group, he was a dead shot with pistols and revolvers, along with his dueling pistola.. The gun he seemed to prefer was a Westchester 9mm semi-automatic. He trained a bit with larger weapons as well, rifles and shotguns. While he was a decent marksman with them, he wasn't quite the crack shot he was with a handgun.
Tom taught him lockpicking and safe cracking, both traditional locks and electronic locks. He got really good at it after a while.
He never stayed with Tom's group more than a few hours before heading back to the training center. He didn't want to tip anyone off that he was participating in nefarious activities and ruin his chances at becoming a full-fledged companion.
***
2507
At 20, he received his companion registration and decided to leave Sihnon to see the 'verse. He had honed his companion skills to perfection and he'd never intended to stay in one place. He only had to be sure he returned to the core at least once a year for his examination to continue his companion registration.
His skills had become honed to as close to perfection as they could get and he knew he had outgrown Tom's group. Plus, he wanted to see the verse, and these people weren't willing to leave Sihnon.
So, he took the money he had made with Tom's group, as well as some savings from his grandparents, with the promise of a hefty sum from them later, and took a job as the captain of a ship named Savannah. It was a Jo Lynn, it was full of thieves, and he gladly set out on it. By the time this happened, he had honed his shooting skills even further on his own, and he was near what you'd call a crack shot. His rules for his crew were simple: don't steal from or harm anyone on the crew, don't try to do a big job without letting anyone on the crew know about it, and whatever you're doing, don't get caught.
Over the years with Savannah, he took jobs in thievery and companion clients as it suited him. He always ensures he returns to the core for his yearly examination to remain registered.
***
2509
***
In January he had to hire a new mechanic because the old one had decided to retire. Her name was Ilana Logan. She had just turned nineteen and he was twenty two. She ended up working for him until 2517.
***
In August, he went to her with a special job. Only he didn't tell her it was exactly a job. She didn't know he was a thief. Sure, she knew his business dealings weren't always legit, but she didn't know any specifics. He had planned the heist of the Charlay Estate jewels and he needed a "wife" for the job. It took a bit of talking, and arguing, and sucking up, but he talked her into it. He talked her into going to the event, anyway. She had no idea what he had gotten her into.
They did the job and it went impeccably, or so he thought. They danced, they talked, they kissed, they…did other things you shouldn't talk about in polite company. In the morning, she punched him. Then they had to run for their lives when the owner of the Charlay Estate sent a couple assassins after them. She pretty well figured out what was going on after that. Getting chased through the streets by an assassin because your boss is a high end thief tends to tip someone off. Once they were safe on his ship, and it was preparing for take-off, she called him a bastard and threatened to assault him again. He'd also been a little overconfident, and Ilana had gotten hurt. He learned a lesson there. If he'd been more open with her about the job, she could have been prepared for the possibility that things would take a turn.
That job had been his first "impossible" job, but it most certainly wasn't his last.
***
2510
In March, they had stopped in Lilac for Ilana's family. Her uncle had died and she requested leave for the funeral. Of course he had obliged. He then took her mother and brother, along with the belongings they had, to Persephone. Apparently her Uncle Malcolm had a sizeable life insurance policy. Not enough to buy a mansion on Londinium or anything, but enough to buy them nice enough two bedroom in a smaller town on Persephone.
In April of 2510, he went to a place called Kit's Marsh, on Three Hills. It was a border planet, sure, but the mark, Steven Govreau, was a smart man. Not smart enough, but smart nonetheless. He was loaded, and he thought he could hide his treasures in a vault there and be safe.
He would have been fine if he hadn't been living so extravagantly. Paying out the arse for security setups, and having a mansion in the middle of a middle class town. Someone got wind of what was going down there and offered Roman 5,000 credits to make this man wish he had never came to Three Hills. Roman thought this sounded like a personal thing, but personal or not, he was getting paid well. He blew the vault, took everything inside, and vanished.
***
2511
The job was to go to Abyss, Whitefall, and steal a supposedly priceless artifact from Earth that was. It was supposedly the original steering wheel from an old racecar called "number 3". While Roman didn't truly know a whole lot about number 3, he knew there were plenty of people who enjoyed racing even now, and there was always someone who wanted earth that was artifacts. He told Ilana about the job, sort of. Not real specifics, just that they had been contracted to acquire an item for someone. Despite what had happened last time, she agreed to go with him, and they went. The whole crew tagged along for this one. Ilana, Roman, and Jake were the only one's actually going for the job, but the others needed to pick up supplies. After they landed the ship and took the mule into town, they found an unpleasant surprise. The town had been attacked by reavers and everyone was dead. Almost everyone. They forgot to kill one, or maybe they thought he was dead. Either way, the crew picked their way through the bodies that littered the street, stepping over some, walking around others. They made it through fine, until Ilana, at the back screamed. He remembered turning around and seeing her with her gun held by the barrel. She beat the survivor in the head with it, mainly because he was chewing on her leg, and when he let loose, everyone in the crew fired at him, including Ilana herself, and his head exploded all over her. He watched as Ilana took a step forward and dropped down to one knee. Roman went to her as she was cutting of a piece of her pant leg. He wrapped her leg up and helped her stand. He was going to gladly let her lean on him, but she shook him off and walked away. He could tell how hard she was fighting not to limp and he admired her in that moment. She was stronger than he was in that way. He swore after that though, that she was a walking advertisement for impending disaster.
***
In September, he took a job on Londonium, captial planet, for a job to acquire another Earth that was artifact. It was called a steering wheel. Supposedly came from some racecar called number three. He got a picture of it, knew what he was after, and he and Jake went for it. The job went smoothly, but the getaway was botched again, as it had been with Ilana, though it was a bit worse, no one died, but the security guy that shot at them hit Jake twice. One shot took of his ear, and the other one got him in the arm. Kate, the medic, did the best she could for him, but he lost most of the use in the arm, because of where it hit, and the fact that the were using explosive rounds. He was lucky the one that got his ear hadn't exploded until it hit the tree in front of him or he wouldn't have had to worry about that arm at all.
Late that year, he began hearing rumors of another high class thief. He'd heard through the grapevine it was a woman, and he thought at first that it was Ilana. She denied it when he asked her about it and he wasn't sure whether to believe her or not. After all, she'd gotten a lot of experience from Roman himself. He began inquiring into the matter through his contacts, the main one being a man named Tim Garner, trying to gain the identity of the mystery woman that he felt sure was his prodigy. For the next two years, he took jobs of the high paying nature, impossible type jobs.
***
2512
***
In April of 2512, Roman got an interesting job, and came to her. "I've got a job that I need your help with, Lani."
"Is this job going to require me to wear a dress?" She asked in a slightly mocking tone.
He laughed and said, "No, I don't require your……assets for this job. I need your mechanical expertise."
"Are you going to give me the details before I go in?"
"Of course, if I need you to do this job properly, you have to know what the job is," he said.
Basically, the job was to damage all five hover craft on the Windswept Estates property on St. Albans, steal some priceless artifact that Roman assured her he would take care of getting, and get out. They waited until dark, and made their way to the estates. She took care of the hover crafts by pouring oil in the fuel tank, and removing their power supply, while Roman went after the artifact. Roman caught her attention as she finished the last one and motioned for her to come to him. On her way to him, she noticed he had some sort of satchel over his shoulder. It was relatively small, but she didn't remember him having it when they came in. She was going to ask about it, but just as she reached his side, she heard a blaring alarm from the building behind them. She let out a string of curses just as Roman took her hand.
"Time to run, Lani," he said and took off, once again dragging her behind him.
Halfway to the ship, Ilana stepped in a hole and went down, her hand wrenched away from Roman's, reminding her of the first job she'd done with him. When she went down, she sprained her ankle horribly. She let out a string of curses for the second time that night, and Roman helped her to her feet. When she put weight on it, she hissed and nearly fell again. Roman put an arm around her waist and they made their way back to the ship, her leaning heavily on him to make up for her useless ankle.
They made it to the ship safely, aside from her ankle, and Roman passed her off to Kate and she fixed her up fairly well. She spent a good two weeks on crutches, and another week limping because the ankle was weak.
***
2513
***
At the end of 2513, his grandparents died. He attended their funeral, and they left him a tidy sum, along with their other grandchildren, and children. They left a portion to his mother as well, with the stipulation that she only gets it if she divorced his father. He never knew whether she did. He used a fair portion of his inheritance to buy Savannah from the owner. He kept the crew on as well.
They fell back into their routine of working together and "playing" together. Her first night back, they were in his quarters lying in bed after some strenuous activities, and he started going off about some "bitch that called herself Cheri." She had robbed him, he said. Ilana told him he was lying to her and he said, "I don't lie when I'm naked, Love." She laughed and told him that he was leaving things out then. He admitted that.
***
2515
***
In March he contracted another job. Ilana agreed to go with him to the drop point, even though she'd refused to go on the job. The drop went smooth, snarky comments exchanged on both sides, until one of the crew members of the other group explicitly told Ilana how much he'd like to rub certain body parts of his on and around her breasts. Ilana fired back telling him she was gonna shove the barrel of her gun up his arse. He apparently could, as people say, dish it, but he couldn't take it. He drew on her, but he was slow and sloppy. Ilana was fast and smooth as she drew her gun and put a bullet between his eyes. Pandemonium ensued even as the body was still falling.
They took cover and shots were exchanged. We lost Harlan, the cook, which was a shame. He was a good man, plus everyone else on the ship was a lousy cook. One of their men managed to sneak up on Roman's group, and Ilana was shot twice. One was just a graze on her shoulder, but the other was horrible. It was to the gut, and Roman thought she was going to die. Kate saved her, and she spent three months on his ship doing nothing but recovering. Then she left and he hasn't seen her since. Either way, his crew collected the money from the dead of the other crew.
***
2517
For the following two years, Roman did the same as he's always done: do high paying jobs. He doesn't take a job that he doesn't think he can succeed at, so his record is excellent. Given his life as a companion, he chooses his jobs carefully.
Ilana left this year, in May. She didn't tell anyone on the crew why she left, and he respected that decision. He didn't tell them either. She had decided that was her business. But between her and Roman, it was because they'd spent the last 8 years on the Savannah together, and she'd found out he was sleeping with other people. He had said it wasn't cheating, because they'd never so much as spoken of exclusivity, which only made her furious. He was right though, and that pissed her off even more.
"I have something to tell you," he said, hesitating.
"What else could you possibly have to say now?" She asked, blood boiling.
"I'm a registered companion, and I have been for a long time. That is why I've been with others, and why I never wanted to be in an exclusive relationship," he said.
She turned bright red in the face and said, "Roman, I wouldn't have an issue with that, if you hadn't waited eight fucking years to mention it."
She didn't wait for him to respond and stalked out of the room, fuming. He knew her reasoning was sound. He was angry at himself for never telling her. She wasn't the judgemental type. It most likely wouldn't have even affected their relationship in any noticeable way, but it would have prevented her from being hurt, and he regretted that. When she decided it was time to leave, she asked him to drop her on Beaumonde on his way through.
***
2518
Early in the year, his crew was attacked by reavers during a ground run on Athens. Roman and Micah, the pilot, were the only survivors. He decided he was done. He and Ilana took Micah to Sihnon for therapy, and Roman set out for a month to visit the families of the fallen, Ilana with him. On Three Hills, the end of their journey, he offered her Savannah and she accepted. He sold it to her for well below market value. He felt he owed it to her, but if asked, she would vehemently disagree with that assessment.
He turned the ship over to her with legal documentation, and she renamed it Eden. She dropped him on Sihnon where he returned to the companion training house.
He'd love to see Ilana again, in person and not through a comm system, but he's hesistant to ask her. Every time he's near her, she gets hurt, and he doesn't want her hurt. He leaves her alone, unless she waves him. He waves her sometimes too, and keeps an eye on her to make sure she's safe. She waves him from time to time, chats him up, but she's never asked to come back. He'd made her ruthless, and that made him a little sad, because she'd been so sweet, if angry, when he first met her.
After a while on Sihnon, he began to get that itch again. To get out in the black. He'd spent so much of the last 10 years on a ship, that he'd forgotten how it felt to be stuck in one place. He hailed her in June and asked for a spot on the ship. She told him she was on Osirus for a job for a few days, and if he could get there, he was welcome to the shuttle.
"I'm not going out of my way to come get you, and if you don't make it before we leave, you'll have to find me somewhere else," she said.
Last Name: Kline
Age: 31
Height: 6'0"
Appearance:
(Obvious): Generally wears while casual suits, classy - not miami vice style, lol - with round toed white loafers. His suit coat is tailored perfectly to conceal the semi-automatic handgun he carries in a shoulder holster. He's muscular, but in a lean way, not like a body builder. No scars visible. His hair is always tousled, like he climbed out of bed and did nothing at all with it, but be assured he carefully arranges it that way. He keeps a little facial hair, though not enough to call a beard. Little more than scruff, but it makes him look good.
(Not Obvious): Wears a shoulder holster with a semi-automatic handgun in it, has another, a spare if you will, derringer style handgun in an ankle holster. There's a scar on his abdomen where his appendix was removed during emergency surgery when he was eleven. He carries an old, heirloom pocket watch in the inner breast pocket of his suit coat. He has a tendency to wear body armor when on more dangerous jobs, though he doesn't wear it on a day to day basis.
Persuasion: Neutral
Military Service: No
General Skills: Lockpicking, deadeye with a pistol or revolver, persuasive - getting out of jams is his specialty, and companion training.
Talents: companion training which includes: charm, self-control, remaining emotionally detached from clients, psychology, music, dance, languages, unarmed martial arts defense, piano, reading body language, ancient history, calligraphy, anatomy, psychotherapy, and fencing.
Flaws: Lack of belief in anything, flirty to the point of recklessness at times, allergic to kiwi, six toes on right foot, fears aliens despite there being no evidence aliens exist, sometimes appears apathetic and narcissistic, vain
Personality Traits: He likes women, and that's both a strength and a weakness. He's got a special thing for Ilana, though he's not sure he'd call it love. It's as close as he's ever been to it, though. Probably more of a strong fondness. He has no intention of settling down with anyone, but he flirts with everyone. He likes expensive things, and he can usually afford them due to both his talent for thievery and his job as a companion. He dislikes liars, which is kind of ironic since he's a thief. He doesn’t like cheats when it comes to people he's working for or with, and he doesn't like assholes for obvious reasons. He has a passion for gambling, just like his father did, though he doesn't do it often because he isn't very good at it, also like his father. He enjoys it though, so on occasion, he will gamble a bit. As a hobby, he collects model ships, both old water faring ships and spaceships.
History: Roman was born on February 14th, 2487 on Londinium, in the city of High Gate to incredibly wealthy parents. His mother came from money; she'd never worked a day in her life. His father built his own wealth with a fuel company called Biotech Fuel.
***
2493
His first clear memory is when he was about six. He was playing in the den with a new toy his mother had gotten for him on a trip to Rubicon. He heard his mother and father arguing in the hall. He got up and walked to the doorway and looked out. His father had his back to him and he was shouting at his mother. His mother was crying. "Stop it, Byron! I didn't do anything wrong!" She shouted at him. Then he backhanded her. The six year old Roman watched as his father continued to hit her, over and over. He was terrified his father was going to kill her so he ran out and grabbed his father's arm. "Daddy stop! You're hurting her!"
His father looked at him as though he had never seen him before. Then he looked at his wife's bleeding face and started to cry. He didn't bother reaching for her, because he knew what she would say. He just said, "I'm so sorry, Missy. I'm so sorry," over and over. Roman let go of his father then and went to his mother. He gingerly touched her face and said, "It's okay Mommy."
She smiled a little broken smile at him and said, "You never hurt a woman like that. Do you understand Romie?"
"Yes momma. I won't. Not ever," he said.
His brother, Tyson was only a year older than Roman himself, but Tyson was at school when that happened. That was the only time he ever saw his father hit his mother, and as far as he knew, he never hit her again.
***
2496
When Roman was nine, and his brother Tyson was ten, they were playing outside. He and Roman were tossing a ball around the yard when Roman threw it too high. It got stuck on the overhang of the porch roof. Tyson climbed the tree next to the house and shimmied along a branch close to the roof to get it. Tyson's hand closed around the ball, and his eyes lit up.
"Yes!" He cried out.
When he turned to shimmy back the way he had come, there was a horrible cracking sound and the branch broke. Tyson fell headfirst to the ground and landed on the concrete walkway that circled the house and wound through the garden. His head hit the concrete with a sickening sound and his neck snapped audibly. Roman was in shock at first, seeing his brother just die so suddenly. After the shock wore off, he was devastated. Tyson had been his best friend all his life.
***
2498
When he was eleven, he was eating dinner with his family at the table, and he suddenly fell out of his chair, screaming, clutching at his side. He had been feeling pretty terrible all day, with sharp but infrequent pains along with sore feet. He never thought to tell anyone because by the time he would have, it stopped and he forgot all about it. But there at the dinner table, he felt like he was dying. His parents took him to the hospital and he got into the OR just before his appendix burst. He got a nice little scar from that.
***
2499
His sister, Juliette, was quite a bit older than he was, so he doesn't remember a whole lot of her in his younger days. When he was twelve, she married a man named Norman Brockmore. The wedding was extravagant. Everyone who was anyone came. Once the wedding and reception were over, Roman never saw his sister again. She waves him once in a while, and keeps tabs on him, but he hasn't seen her in person since her wedding day.
Later in the same year, Roman left his home on Londinium to begin companion training on Sihnon. In addition to standard schooling, he began learning to live as a companion. They were not required to practice a specific religion or pray, but it was encouraged. In addition, their days began with lighting incense and inner contemplation. Leading a cloistered lifestyle was also encouraged.
His training began with psychology, self-control, music, dance, languages, and unarmed martial arts defense in addition to continuing his normal studies. The instrument of his choice was the piano.
***
2500
After a year training to be a companion, Roman was allowed to choose an elective course. Male companions weren't rare, but they weren't really common either, so he chose dueling. Dueling classes were not generally offered to female companions, however men being as they are, male companions were sometimes challenged to duel for a number of reasons that boiled down to pissing contests. Women were, however, taught to shoot a gun properly, and well, for their own protection. He was already taking fencing, so he chose pistol dueling.
***
2501
In 2501 he began learning to read body language, ancient history, calligraphy, and anatomy while continuing his other studies.
***
2502
When he was fifteen, his grandmother on his mother's side came to visit him. She told him that his had lost his company. He had gambled away everything. Missy's parents, agreed to help them move to Persephone. They had to sell the majority of what they owned and their house was much smaller, because they couldn't afford even the cheapest place on Londinium anymore. Missy's parents saw to it that Roman was cared for, and paid for his continued training as a companion as well as ensuring he had a small amount of spending money. They provided for Missy and Byron as well, but they didn't provide funds directly to either of his parents. They simply bought what was needed and had it delivered. Roman was given strict instructions that neither of his parents were to know about him receiving spending money from his grandparents, and he never breathed a word.
***
2503
At 16, psychotherapy was added to the list of courses he would be taking.
***
2504
At 17 his anatomy lessons included how to use the patch sedative worn in protection to avoid physically harming a wealthy client. The sedative is fast-acting and worn on a companion's finger. It can be administered at any time and is near instantaneous. The client will immediately experience dizziness and slurring of their words before falling unconscious. Upon waking, common side effects would be headache and thirst.
It was also at this age that he began to be allowed to leave the training center alone for outings. Roman had always been a charming boy, but his training as a companion had made him even more so.
You could say he fell in with the wrong crowd there, but he would argue that he fell into the perfect one. They were a little older, but not by more than a couple years. They taught him how to be a thief and over the years with them, he mastered the art.
He came into contact with them when on an outing not long after first being allowed out alone. Through his time with them, the leader of the group, a man named Tom Jackson, insisted Roman take what he knew of dueling, and apply it to more advanced weapons. Roman began training with pistols in many forms at a shooting range near where the group usually stayed. He already had extensive dueling training, which meant he had aiming and drawing on his side to start with.
***
2505
At 18 he completed his standard studies and received a certificate of completion. He then began learning the arts of pleasure along with continuing to practice with other companions from his year some of his more traditional studies.
With Tom's group, he worked on distance and moving targets over the course of the four years he spent with this group, whenever he wasn't on a job. By the time he left Tom's group, he was a dead shot with pistols and revolvers, along with his dueling pistola.. The gun he seemed to prefer was a Westchester 9mm semi-automatic. He trained a bit with larger weapons as well, rifles and shotguns. While he was a decent marksman with them, he wasn't quite the crack shot he was with a handgun.
Tom taught him lockpicking and safe cracking, both traditional locks and electronic locks. He got really good at it after a while.
He never stayed with Tom's group more than a few hours before heading back to the training center. He didn't want to tip anyone off that he was participating in nefarious activities and ruin his chances at becoming a full-fledged companion.
***
2507
At 20, he received his companion registration and decided to leave Sihnon to see the 'verse. He had honed his companion skills to perfection and he'd never intended to stay in one place. He only had to be sure he returned to the core at least once a year for his examination to continue his companion registration.
His skills had become honed to as close to perfection as they could get and he knew he had outgrown Tom's group. Plus, he wanted to see the verse, and these people weren't willing to leave Sihnon.
So, he took the money he had made with Tom's group, as well as some savings from his grandparents, with the promise of a hefty sum from them later, and took a job as the captain of a ship named Savannah. It was a Jo Lynn, it was full of thieves, and he gladly set out on it. By the time this happened, he had honed his shooting skills even further on his own, and he was near what you'd call a crack shot. His rules for his crew were simple: don't steal from or harm anyone on the crew, don't try to do a big job without letting anyone on the crew know about it, and whatever you're doing, don't get caught.
Over the years with Savannah, he took jobs in thievery and companion clients as it suited him. He always ensures he returns to the core for his yearly examination to remain registered.
***
2509
***
In January he had to hire a new mechanic because the old one had decided to retire. Her name was Ilana Logan. She had just turned nineteen and he was twenty two. She ended up working for him until 2517.
***
In August, he went to her with a special job. Only he didn't tell her it was exactly a job. She didn't know he was a thief. Sure, she knew his business dealings weren't always legit, but she didn't know any specifics. He had planned the heist of the Charlay Estate jewels and he needed a "wife" for the job. It took a bit of talking, and arguing, and sucking up, but he talked her into it. He talked her into going to the event, anyway. She had no idea what he had gotten her into.
They did the job and it went impeccably, or so he thought. They danced, they talked, they kissed, they…did other things you shouldn't talk about in polite company. In the morning, she punched him. Then they had to run for their lives when the owner of the Charlay Estate sent a couple assassins after them. She pretty well figured out what was going on after that. Getting chased through the streets by an assassin because your boss is a high end thief tends to tip someone off. Once they were safe on his ship, and it was preparing for take-off, she called him a bastard and threatened to assault him again. He'd also been a little overconfident, and Ilana had gotten hurt. He learned a lesson there. If he'd been more open with her about the job, she could have been prepared for the possibility that things would take a turn.
That job had been his first "impossible" job, but it most certainly wasn't his last.
***
2510
In March, they had stopped in Lilac for Ilana's family. Her uncle had died and she requested leave for the funeral. Of course he had obliged. He then took her mother and brother, along with the belongings they had, to Persephone. Apparently her Uncle Malcolm had a sizeable life insurance policy. Not enough to buy a mansion on Londinium or anything, but enough to buy them nice enough two bedroom in a smaller town on Persephone.
In April of 2510, he went to a place called Kit's Marsh, on Three Hills. It was a border planet, sure, but the mark, Steven Govreau, was a smart man. Not smart enough, but smart nonetheless. He was loaded, and he thought he could hide his treasures in a vault there and be safe.
He would have been fine if he hadn't been living so extravagantly. Paying out the arse for security setups, and having a mansion in the middle of a middle class town. Someone got wind of what was going down there and offered Roman 5,000 credits to make this man wish he had never came to Three Hills. Roman thought this sounded like a personal thing, but personal or not, he was getting paid well. He blew the vault, took everything inside, and vanished.
***
2511
The job was to go to Abyss, Whitefall, and steal a supposedly priceless artifact from Earth that was. It was supposedly the original steering wheel from an old racecar called "number 3". While Roman didn't truly know a whole lot about number 3, he knew there were plenty of people who enjoyed racing even now, and there was always someone who wanted earth that was artifacts. He told Ilana about the job, sort of. Not real specifics, just that they had been contracted to acquire an item for someone. Despite what had happened last time, she agreed to go with him, and they went. The whole crew tagged along for this one. Ilana, Roman, and Jake were the only one's actually going for the job, but the others needed to pick up supplies. After they landed the ship and took the mule into town, they found an unpleasant surprise. The town had been attacked by reavers and everyone was dead. Almost everyone. They forgot to kill one, or maybe they thought he was dead. Either way, the crew picked their way through the bodies that littered the street, stepping over some, walking around others. They made it through fine, until Ilana, at the back screamed. He remembered turning around and seeing her with her gun held by the barrel. She beat the survivor in the head with it, mainly because he was chewing on her leg, and when he let loose, everyone in the crew fired at him, including Ilana herself, and his head exploded all over her. He watched as Ilana took a step forward and dropped down to one knee. Roman went to her as she was cutting of a piece of her pant leg. He wrapped her leg up and helped her stand. He was going to gladly let her lean on him, but she shook him off and walked away. He could tell how hard she was fighting not to limp and he admired her in that moment. She was stronger than he was in that way. He swore after that though, that she was a walking advertisement for impending disaster.
***
In September, he took a job on Londonium, captial planet, for a job to acquire another Earth that was artifact. It was called a steering wheel. Supposedly came from some racecar called number three. He got a picture of it, knew what he was after, and he and Jake went for it. The job went smoothly, but the getaway was botched again, as it had been with Ilana, though it was a bit worse, no one died, but the security guy that shot at them hit Jake twice. One shot took of his ear, and the other one got him in the arm. Kate, the medic, did the best she could for him, but he lost most of the use in the arm, because of where it hit, and the fact that the were using explosive rounds. He was lucky the one that got his ear hadn't exploded until it hit the tree in front of him or he wouldn't have had to worry about that arm at all.
Late that year, he began hearing rumors of another high class thief. He'd heard through the grapevine it was a woman, and he thought at first that it was Ilana. She denied it when he asked her about it and he wasn't sure whether to believe her or not. After all, she'd gotten a lot of experience from Roman himself. He began inquiring into the matter through his contacts, the main one being a man named Tim Garner, trying to gain the identity of the mystery woman that he felt sure was his prodigy. For the next two years, he took jobs of the high paying nature, impossible type jobs.
***
2512
***
In April of 2512, Roman got an interesting job, and came to her. "I've got a job that I need your help with, Lani."
"Is this job going to require me to wear a dress?" She asked in a slightly mocking tone.
He laughed and said, "No, I don't require your……assets for this job. I need your mechanical expertise."
"Are you going to give me the details before I go in?"
"Of course, if I need you to do this job properly, you have to know what the job is," he said.
Basically, the job was to damage all five hover craft on the Windswept Estates property on St. Albans, steal some priceless artifact that Roman assured her he would take care of getting, and get out. They waited until dark, and made their way to the estates. She took care of the hover crafts by pouring oil in the fuel tank, and removing their power supply, while Roman went after the artifact. Roman caught her attention as she finished the last one and motioned for her to come to him. On her way to him, she noticed he had some sort of satchel over his shoulder. It was relatively small, but she didn't remember him having it when they came in. She was going to ask about it, but just as she reached his side, she heard a blaring alarm from the building behind them. She let out a string of curses just as Roman took her hand.
"Time to run, Lani," he said and took off, once again dragging her behind him.
Halfway to the ship, Ilana stepped in a hole and went down, her hand wrenched away from Roman's, reminding her of the first job she'd done with him. When she went down, she sprained her ankle horribly. She let out a string of curses for the second time that night, and Roman helped her to her feet. When she put weight on it, she hissed and nearly fell again. Roman put an arm around her waist and they made their way back to the ship, her leaning heavily on him to make up for her useless ankle.
They made it to the ship safely, aside from her ankle, and Roman passed her off to Kate and she fixed her up fairly well. She spent a good two weeks on crutches, and another week limping because the ankle was weak.
***
2513
***
At the end of 2513, his grandparents died. He attended their funeral, and they left him a tidy sum, along with their other grandchildren, and children. They left a portion to his mother as well, with the stipulation that she only gets it if she divorced his father. He never knew whether she did. He used a fair portion of his inheritance to buy Savannah from the owner. He kept the crew on as well.
They fell back into their routine of working together and "playing" together. Her first night back, they were in his quarters lying in bed after some strenuous activities, and he started going off about some "bitch that called herself Cheri." She had robbed him, he said. Ilana told him he was lying to her and he said, "I don't lie when I'm naked, Love." She laughed and told him that he was leaving things out then. He admitted that.
***
2515
***
In March he contracted another job. Ilana agreed to go with him to the drop point, even though she'd refused to go on the job. The drop went smooth, snarky comments exchanged on both sides, until one of the crew members of the other group explicitly told Ilana how much he'd like to rub certain body parts of his on and around her breasts. Ilana fired back telling him she was gonna shove the barrel of her gun up his arse. He apparently could, as people say, dish it, but he couldn't take it. He drew on her, but he was slow and sloppy. Ilana was fast and smooth as she drew her gun and put a bullet between his eyes. Pandemonium ensued even as the body was still falling.
They took cover and shots were exchanged. We lost Harlan, the cook, which was a shame. He was a good man, plus everyone else on the ship was a lousy cook. One of their men managed to sneak up on Roman's group, and Ilana was shot twice. One was just a graze on her shoulder, but the other was horrible. It was to the gut, and Roman thought she was going to die. Kate saved her, and she spent three months on his ship doing nothing but recovering. Then she left and he hasn't seen her since. Either way, his crew collected the money from the dead of the other crew.
***
2517
For the following two years, Roman did the same as he's always done: do high paying jobs. He doesn't take a job that he doesn't think he can succeed at, so his record is excellent. Given his life as a companion, he chooses his jobs carefully.
Ilana left this year, in May. She didn't tell anyone on the crew why she left, and he respected that decision. He didn't tell them either. She had decided that was her business. But between her and Roman, it was because they'd spent the last 8 years on the Savannah together, and she'd found out he was sleeping with other people. He had said it wasn't cheating, because they'd never so much as spoken of exclusivity, which only made her furious. He was right though, and that pissed her off even more.
"I have something to tell you," he said, hesitating.
"What else could you possibly have to say now?" She asked, blood boiling.
"I'm a registered companion, and I have been for a long time. That is why I've been with others, and why I never wanted to be in an exclusive relationship," he said.
She turned bright red in the face and said, "Roman, I wouldn't have an issue with that, if you hadn't waited eight fucking years to mention it."
She didn't wait for him to respond and stalked out of the room, fuming. He knew her reasoning was sound. He was angry at himself for never telling her. She wasn't the judgemental type. It most likely wouldn't have even affected their relationship in any noticeable way, but it would have prevented her from being hurt, and he regretted that. When she decided it was time to leave, she asked him to drop her on Beaumonde on his way through.
***
2518
Early in the year, his crew was attacked by reavers during a ground run on Athens. Roman and Micah, the pilot, were the only survivors. He decided he was done. He and Ilana took Micah to Sihnon for therapy, and Roman set out for a month to visit the families of the fallen, Ilana with him. On Three Hills, the end of their journey, he offered her Savannah and she accepted. He sold it to her for well below market value. He felt he owed it to her, but if asked, she would vehemently disagree with that assessment.
He turned the ship over to her with legal documentation, and she renamed it Eden. She dropped him on Sihnon where he returned to the companion training house.
He'd love to see Ilana again, in person and not through a comm system, but he's hesistant to ask her. Every time he's near her, she gets hurt, and he doesn't want her hurt. He leaves her alone, unless she waves him. He waves her sometimes too, and keeps an eye on her to make sure she's safe. She waves him from time to time, chats him up, but she's never asked to come back. He'd made her ruthless, and that made him a little sad, because she'd been so sweet, if angry, when he first met her.
After a while on Sihnon, he began to get that itch again. To get out in the black. He'd spent so much of the last 10 years on a ship, that he'd forgotten how it felt to be stuck in one place. He hailed her in June and asked for a spot on the ship. She told him she was on Osirus for a job for a few days, and if he could get there, he was welcome to the shuttle.
"I'm not going out of my way to come get you, and if you don't make it before we leave, you'll have to find me somewhere else," she said.