Urticaria

The Battle for Neo Seattle - Battle of the Posters VII

Urticaria

Character Data
Name: Chaser Type 02 (BioArmor Line) #06
Alias: Urticaria (Urti for short)
Age: 19
Sex: None
Race: Cyborg
Occupation: Instigator, Hunter
From: Apath Lab #022 (South America)
Affiliation: None, though some loyalty remains to Apath
ISH-O-Vision™ Color: Sienna

Physical Stats
Height: 5' 02"
Weight: 295 lbs
Hair: None
Eyes: Dark green and beady. It has fourteen in total, seven on each side of its head. They glow in dim light.
Appearance: A bipedal lizard with a large head and a small set of forelimbs. The majority of Urticaria's face is taken up by its large mouth, which is lined with sharp fangs. Its legs are much bigger and thicker than its arms, though both sport claws at the end that are webbed between the toes/fingers. Its tail is finned along the top and bottom, and two rows of metallic spikes grow along its back, as well as a few spikes growing from the top of its legs.
Clothing: None
[Picture 1] - [Picture 2]

Other Info
Personality: Deceitful and cruel, traits that most likely resulted from its beastlike AI being given a human intellect. Urticaria enjoys seeing others squirm, and will often use its skills to work its way into potential conflicts in order to escalate suspicion and violence for purposes of its own amusement. Urticaria's animalistic nature offers it a sixth sense that alerts it to danger, and it will have no qualms regarding fleeing from a fight if it is the smart thing to do. It has no code of honor or any other noble feelings, so it won't hesitate to strike at an enemy who is injured or unaware of Urticaria's presence. Despite complications involving its past, Urticaria still feels partial loyalty to Apath, its creator company, and will often target enemies of the corporation as its victims.
Favorite Song: Anything that involves screams
Favorite Color(s): Red
Miscellaneous: A small device located a short distance below Urticaria's brain enables it to 'project' human speech, since its natural vocal cords cannot simulate the language. Strangely enough, the designer of the mechanism made it so that the voice sounds like that of a small child, adding further ambiguity to an individual's interpretation of Urticaria's gender. It only uses the device to speak, using its natural voice (roaring, snarling, gurgling, etc) when fighting and/or hunting.

Character Abilities
Weapon Preference: Teeth
Handed: Neither
Skills: Urticaria's senses are much higher than that of the average human, and even a notch above that of BioSuits, especially in regards to scent and hearing. A chameleon-like camouflage reflex enables Urticaria to match the color of its surroundings (minus the metal spikes). In a dark and intricately laid out area it can go completely unnoticed if it remains still. Its sixth sense also helps it decide whether or not to stay in one area or move on, depending on how dangerous it considers the presence to be. One of the greatest skills of Urticaria, however, is its ability to 'hack and possess' lesser-minded biomechanical entities, the MPBSs being a prime example, and it is this ability that has allowed Urticaria to influence the troubles of others.
Armament: With armor breaking claws and fangs that can shear steel, Urticaria itself is a very effective weapon. Aside from these, there are also poison glands inside its mouth that allow it to eject a mist that can quickly weaken an opponent and turn water toxic for a short period of time. These glands are limited, however, so Urticaria will only resort to using them when in a pinch.
Protection: Urticaria's scaly hide offers great protection against energy and nonphysical attacks, making most standard issue firearms and melee weapons ineffective against it. It is, however, more vulnerable to physical weapons, such as metallic bullets and blades. This weakness is made even worse if Urticaria is exposed to fire, the flames themselves causing little damage but causing the scales to dry out and become brittle, thus more susceptible to physical blows. It can recover quickly from damage like BioSuits, though the rate is noticeably slower than that of the BioSuits.
Style: Capable of fast movement and powerful leaps, Urticaria will attempt to chase (or lure) its enemy into a dark area with little means of escape. Once it's time to attack, Urticaria will start snapping and clawing at its enemies while trying to stay at their sides or behind them. If it can't get into a good position, Urticaria will try to stun its opponent by slamming them with a part of its body such as the head or tail. If Urticaria realizes it is losing, it will attempt escape by spraying out a small miasma then running away. If this fails and it is cornered, Urticaria may become frenzied and its own type of Virus System* will activate.

Urticaria has no means of fighting from a distance, making it unable to counterattack against firearms and other projectile weaponry when used from far away. Its two-legged movement also makes it unable to perform sharp turns without slowing down first. Having been designed to perform exceptionally in jungle and swamp terrain, Urticaria is an agile swimmer and becomes a much more fearsome opponent once in the water, especially since its poison glands can temporarily turn water toxic. Overall, Urticaria's greatest trait may be itself alone, seeing as how modern warriors are used to fighting other humans, not monsters.

*Urticaria's Virus System: Unlike the virus systems of recent BioSuits, the system made for the Chaser Types is involuntary and will only activate when Urticaria's mental and physical states become very unstable. Upon activation, Urticaria will become 25% bigger (from 5' 02" in height to around 6' 06"), its neck and tail will elongate, the claws on its feet will become longer and sharper, the middle claws on its arms will change into scythe-like blades, its poison glands will grow more potent and produce poison more quickly, 'dragon' wings will sprout from its back and its defenses will reverse (strong vs physical attacks, weak vs nonphysical attacks). Along with improved stamina and recovery, Urticaria will attack wildly with both its claws and poison breath with no fear towards its own safety, only running when the system begins to wear down (it only lasts for a few minutes). Upon deactivation Urticaria will be rendered unconscious until it can recover from the physical stress inflicted by the system, a slow process since recovery is decreased in speed once the viral outbreak wears off. It is strong against cyborgs (especially BioSuits, since BioArmors are Anti BioSuit weapons in origin) and average beings such as humans but not nearly as good against mechanical foes.

Background
Three years into the BioSuit War a conflict had risen in South America near a jungle base where important research was being held. The Foreign Biosuits had adopted a new tactic that employed the twists and unpredictable paths of the dense tropical forest, a strategy that was starting to work well against the Apath MPBSs. Pressed for time, a nearby lab was ordered to produce a countermeasure against this tactic, using a previously abandoned military weapon as a template for a new Apath warrior.

Ten Chaser Type BioArmors were produced by the lab and sent into the jungle, an orbiting satellite sending down signals that the creatures could interpret and use to 'upgrade' themselves through the use of the complex programming and the mutagenic properties of their own anatomies. Almost mindless, the Chaser Types carried out orders like commands given to a machine and proved to be highly effective in an area where even BioSuits had adapted to use the setting well.

It was only a month later that a distress signal was received, a sneak attack having occurred and the research data at risk of being stolen. Not wanting to take the chance of a failed counterattack, Apath ordered that the satellite used to transmit updates to the Chaser Types be sent out of orbit and guided to the base. The resulting explosion destroyed the base, all the personnel and weaponry inside, the enemy BioSuits, and the research data... or so it was recorded.

Unbeknownst to Apath and their enemies, part of the satellite's computer remained functional after the crash, a glitch causing it to transmit its last update to the only remaining BioArmor, an update that included improved recovery, an AI advance, and an experimental Virus System designed for the BioArmor series. Crawling from the wreckage, Urticaria, as was the codename of all Chaser Types, headed back towards Apath, an improved mind giving it a sentience that its dead siblings never had the chance to receive.

Urticaria now wanders the sewers by day, the dark alleys of NeoSeattle by night. It continues to send anonymous reports to Apath, though an unexplained fear within it keeps it from returning to the main building.

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