Character Design: The Repurposed

**Character Design:** Fergus Coyne / 1602677

## **At Gyeongiu’s Core**

Hye Batrae was a regular high-school student before the Re-Enchantment. A lovable, 17-year-old, long-haired kid who had a big passion for history. He didn’t appear on the Governments radar until he participated in a routine blood test. The government made these mandatory for school children under the guise that they were checking their health and looking out for any early signs of disease, however in reality, these were to test if any children had the genetic markers for potentially becoming A Gifted.

After the standard test, Hye was assessed as possibly the most powerful Gifted that had ever been logged before, possessing a Category : 7 power level when the highest ever found prior was only Category : 4. From then on, Hye had every step he took monitored, he didn’t go anywhere without a team of people following him, just in-case this power was to be unleased.

Once the Re-Enchantment spread throughout the world, Hye felt it before anyone else in his city did. A deep burning grew inside him, a raging ball of chaotic energy that expanded over his body. Then in the blink of an eye, the five city blocks that surrounded him were instantly disintegrated, enveloped in this energy, burnt to a crisp then turned to ash. This was a ‘small’ mishap compared to his power level. Hye was the only person to survive this, even the government agents following him were exterminated. He lay unconscious in a crater in the middle of the city, a crater that he himself created. After a few minutes he regained consciousness for a few seconds before being sedated by police reinforcements

Hye remained sedated for months as The Government locked him in a hole then forgot about his existence since they were dealing with the whole Re-Enchantment. Then months later, they hit a power surge. The whole city blacked out for days, power stations had been destroyed and there was no feasible way to get them back up and running. The Government had already crossed the line into experimentation before they realised the solution to their energy crisis was in their basement.

A new power station was constructed almost immediately, however, this was no ordinary energy station this was one without a core, one without a source of energy, until Hye was brought in. Hye was strapped inside this machine, with stimulants placed on his forehead then, he was sealed inside. Thanks to the experimentation they had carried out on other subjects at the schools, the scientists had a good idea on what they were doing but never before with something this scale.

Hye was awoken in a daze. The electrodes placed on Hye’s head were activated, stimulating different parts of his brain, causing different emotions to get him to activate his abilities once again. After several tests, it was found that the best method was to induce fear in Hye’s mind. More tests were run before Hye was plunged into eternal fear which caused him to explode with chaotic energy which the surrounding machines sapped of all its power. The energy he let off was absorbed and repurposed to fit the needs of The Government. Gyeongiu regained its electricity and was in a blackout no more. Hye still remains imprisoned and in a cycle of constant fear within this power-plant-prison where he provides clean energy for the entire city, which has allowed Gyeongiu to grow and thrive in this wasteland apocalypse

## **The Drones**

It is mainly thought that at the schools the imprisoned Gifted are only used for training so they would perform better and more efficient labour for the Government. This is not the case, there is a small margin of the imprisoned who are taken to the laboratory to be horribly experiment on. Torn apart and put together by deranged scientist who only want to learn how the gifted ‘tick’.

There are a number of laboratories based around Gyeongiu, each research a specific yet important aspect of The Gifted’s Abilities. The Underground only knows the names of a few laboratories; Control, Enhance, Re-Use, Replicate and Cancel. The labs have been up and running for a while producing all sorts of contraband. Each laboratory’s main export is a form of inhalant each with its own affects mainly to be used for Government use, however shipments are regularly targeted by The Underground. The most popular is one called Revoke, this temporally shut’s the abilities of any Gifted, mainly used by the police to gain the upper hand in a fight or to control a prisoner without a Nullifying Collar.

However, recently production has slowed down of the inhalants as something new is being created; The Drone. Even with all the security, laws and enforcement breathing down the necks of the Gifted, there are still a couple of them that refuse to work, refuse to comply. These people are then shipped off to the Control laboratory, where they undergo horrendous experiments. After the torturous work they are fitted with this collar called “The Oversight”. The collar then digs itself into the Gifted’s brain stem and roots itself there, unable to be removed without killing the wearer. The experimental form of technology takes hold of the victim, taking control from them and making them a passenger in their own body. They are then able to be controlled remotely by The Government and used for whatever purpose they desire

When A Gifted is fitted with an Oversight Collar, their brain takes a backseat in control. And without the brain to run the body like it has done for years, the body begins to change; The Wearers heartbeat begins to slow, blood stops getting to their skin regularly and it begins to turn a pale grey, light from the implants in the collar shine a bright toxic yellow through the eyes and mouth of the victim making it distinctly clear that this person isn’t themselves anymore. The longer the wearer has the collar on for, the longer their brain degrade, wasting away. Even if The Underground are able to successfully remove an Oversight Collar, there is a high chance they will end up brain dead.

These abominations are named Drones, and are used often in hordes for full frontal assaults on Underground territories and bases. The Drones are extremely powerful as they still possess the abilities they had before the collar was implanted and also no longer feel pain, meaning the only way to stop them is to kill them or inflicting a debilitating wound on them, which The Underground are not a fan of. However, The Drones are limited in skill by their pilot or the AI controlling them.

### **Drone Advancement**

Reports have been intercepted that there currently is a new project in development between all the laboratories, The Agma-Drone (Agma “악마” translates to Demon) A Drone that has been spliced and combined with the enhanced powers of 3 different Gifted, that is able to self-heal and emit a pulse that temporarily shuts down the abilities of all Gifted in the vicinity. This is the super-power that will change the tide of battle for futures to come.