Sleeper Agent

"Sleeper Agent" and "Fallback Agent" are terms used to describe certain undercover employees of Parasol. These employees are usually completely unaware that they are on Parasol's side to any extent, and may in rare cases believe they're on the side of one of Parasol's enemies, including (but not limited to) Ballpoint Technologies. They "sleep", hence the origin of the term, until "woken up" by Parasol to do their bidding, where a higher-ranking Parasol agent controls them through electropathic means. When Parasol has finished with them for the time being, they are put back to "sleep", at which point they return to their former lives with no knowledge or memory of anything that occurred while they were under Parasol's control.
==Conversion to agent status==
Chosen candidates are injected with a generic memory-destructive serum immediately prior to being captured and taken to Parsol. The reasoning behind this is to prevent said candidates from remembering that they ever left their place of work or residence, and to prevent them from growing suspicious.
After the candidates arrive at Parasol, they are taken quickly to one of Parasol's Mental Reconditioning Labs, where the operation begins. No surgeons are required during the procedure. The procedure itself consists of inserting a biologically-powered chip beneath the scalp of the user, and some minor mental reconditioning to coax the patient's brain into more readily accepting outside input. It is not considered standard, but skills are often planted into the patient's memory in order to help increase their effectiveness. These skills include many related to combat, stealth, and survival, among others.
===Complications with the elven species===
The neurological structure of elves is significantly different than that of dwarves and humans, to the point that successful, long-term mental reconditioning is practically unheard of among them. It is theorized that elves have a weaker, more fluid mental form, which prevents the treatment from taking root, in a manner of speaking. The only known successfully reconditioned elves are Vanya and Salaia Carena.
==The sleeper biochip==
A Sleeper Agent's biochip is a ribbon-like processor/transmitter inserted just under the agent's scalp, hugging the skull. It is easily inserted with a special "gun", and is biologically charged, drawing power from the agent's bloodstream. When the agent dies, the chip itself will also naturally "die" and cease to transmit return signals, which can be used to gauge when the agent's death has occurred, although this is merely a beneficial side effect. Its primary purpose is to serve as a relay between the Parasol "handler", who remotely controls the sleeper in their "awakened" state. It relays signals directly to the mentally reconditioned brain of the sleeper, which, rather than directly controlling their muscles, implants a desire in their mind to accomplish a specific task. The sleeper is aware that he or she is being controlled during their awakened period, but due to the mental conditioning is completely fine with it, believing themselves to be a full employee of Parasol.
==Limitations of sleeper agents==
There are certain tasks that a sleeper agent is unable to accomplish. These include knowingly ending their own life, attempting to kill or harm a loved one, attempting to do something he or she is physically or mentally incapable of doing, and attempting to fight a phobia. More research is needed in this area, as there are potentially other things that produce the same effect. When the handler requests the sleeper to do one of the above things, it often irreparably damages the biochip to the point that it no longer functions, thus allowing the agent to return to their normal, unawakened state to continue their normal life. The agent is never any the wiser about what has just occurred.
In addition to the above, allowing the sleeper to know, in their "sleeping" state, that they are a sleeper agent enables them to overcome their handler's instructions while "awakened". This does not guarantee that the sleeper will try, nor does it guarantee that if he or she tries, that he or she will succeed. Rather, it simply makes it possible, and their success depends largely on motivation and willpower.
Category:Groups
Category:Parasol