Timaeus/People/Jana Brooks
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Character Summary
Jana is an undergraduate student at the University of Chicago, where she is double-majoring in thaumaturgy and aerospace engineering, with an eye to learning to apply the former to the latter. She is competent with the thaumaturgic use of all elements, and currently specializes in air. (She plans to add fire as a second specialty due to its potential uses in aerospace engineering.) She is the daughter of Mark Brooks, CEO of Brooks Aerospace Industries, a Houston, TX-based company which started in oil, but diversified into aerospace engineering during the petroleum industry crash of the 1980s. She has two brothers, one older and one younger than her. She led a life of privilege while growing up, but knows that now she is an adult, she must begin to earn her own way. Once Jana completes her education, she plans to go to work as a thaumaturgic engineer at Brooks Aerospace.
Jana is medium height with an athletic, but not bulky, build. She has brown-green hazel eyes and medium brown hair, which tends to become quite sun-bleached in the summer due to her boating hobby. She usually becomes quite tan in summer, also due to the said boating hobby, enough so that it takes a while for her complexion to fade in winter. Earthside, she dress like a rich yacht club brat, and manages to somehow exude this quality even when wearing space gear. She is very attractive in spite of seeming somewhat tomboyish.
Jana's Recent History
While studying at U of C, Jana was invited by a new thaumaturgy professor, Dr. Bigswell, to participate in an experiment to use thaumaturgy to mine asteroids. Using thaumaturgy for mining requires combining thaumaturgic elements, which is a crucial skill for a future engineer, so Jana was excited to be able to take advantage of such an opportunity. Of course, the project also included astronautical training and an opportunity to get into space, so Jana gained those skills as well. Jana, who was already a small aircraft pilot, learned, along with Rhydn, already an experienced spacecraft pilot, to fly a new Brooks space transport module, which Jana dubbed Endeavor. During the development of the Endeavor, the party discovered a dangerous plot by wealthy businessman Pete Metalkis to launch an ancient temple found under Chicago which appeared to have been built using thaumaturgic methods unknown in modern times. The temple turned out to be some sort of spacecraft, possibly based on alien technology, which used powerful and very unstable thaumic energy. If it had been fully activated as Metalkis planned, the result would have been disastrous for Chicago. Fortunately, the group managed to foil Metalkis's plans, and gained some very useful knowledge by studying the temple. Under the guidance of Dr. Bigswell, Rhydn and Jana were able to add improvements to the Endeavor based on the discoveries in the temple, including thauma-thrusters. Dr. Bigswell, with the assistance of Rhydn, also invented the thauma-welder, to which Jana then made improvements. The Endeavor, along with Brooks habitat and mining modules, was transported to Star Reach space station, while the group took commercial transport to the station to pick the modules up there. After some adventures at the space station, the group traveled to the asteroid belt in the Endeavor, towing the habitat and mining modules to commence the mining project. Jana and the group subsequently got caught up in an intra-solar-system space race to acquire various alien thaumaturgic artifacts. The group found themselves in danger from Brooks' corporate enemies during the space-race and realized the Endeavor needed armament of some kind. Dr. Bigswell suggested that the thauma-welder technology could also be used to build larger devices that could be mounted to Endeavor's hull and used as cannons. The group realized these could also be used as drive devices, and after the new thauma-cannons were built, Rhydn and Jana mounted them to the hull - on swivel-mounts, of course.
During the course of their adventures in space, the party wound up taking Endeavor through a thaumaturgic gate created by the artifacts acquired during the space-race into another part of the galaxy where they discovered an alien-built space station. They discovered a strange box full of some type of mineral oil that had crystals floating in it. The box called itself Ensor, and seemed to either be some type of synthetic life form or AI. They learned from Ensor that the space station was built by a race called the Al-Hague, but the Al-Hague "left" a long time ago. Jana began studying the alien technology she found aboard the Al-Hague station and learned to reverse-engineer some items.
Jana's Skills
Jana has excellent engineering skills in both thaumaturgy and aeronautics, and is also highly skilled in operating both atmospheric and ex-atmospheric craft. In addition, she has good computer operation skills, as well as electronic and mechanical repair skills. She is skilled in the use of firearms and self-defensive hand-to-hand combat. She also enjoys sailing and hang-gliding. Due to her background, she also has some business skills.
Jana's Gadgets
Jana has reverse-engineered some gadgets that she found on the Al-Hague space station. She has also made improvements to some terrestrial devices the party uses. First, she made improvements to the "thauma-welder" device developed by Professor Bigswell and Rhydn. It was hard to hold onto and hard to aim, so Jana added pistol grips and sights to make it easier to use. She also assisted Rhydn to make in-flight improvements to the Endeavor. The Al-Hague devices Jana has reverse-engineered are as follows:
- Multiscanner – A hand-held detection and analysis device. Allows detailed analysis up to 100 meters, less detailed up to 500 meters. Includes IR port and positional mapping. (Think tricorder.) Its functions are:
- Biological – Detection, analysis, and enumeration of life signs, DNA & other organic matter analysis
- Mineral – Detection, identification, and analysis of mineral content
- Energy – Detection, measurement, and analysis of all types of energy output
- Crystal – Detection and analysis of crystalline structures
- Photon emitter/accelerator (Phear - Photon Emitter/Accelerator/Repulsor) – a hand-held light-compression unit that emits photon waves. Its functions are:
- Repel objects (like a crowbar?)
- Drive objects together (like a hammer/screwdriver/welder)
- Bore through an object (like a small-scale torch/spreader/disintegrator)
- Send data long distances (very slow)
- Advanced thaumaturgical medkit
Basic settings:
- Scan for general life energy (able to calibrate it to human norm - not sure about others but most likely would know if they are in grave danger of expiring)
- Scan for rupture (internal bleeding)
- Scan for airway obstruction, embolism
- Scan for bone (seems to be able to indicate breaks)
- Setting for mending bone (also with a little tuning can close wounds)
- Setting for air (helpful if someone is incapable of breathing on their own)
- Setting for arterial/vascular pumping
Device also has five other settings that Jana hasn't been able to figure out yet.
Friends, Contacts, Allies, and Affiliations
Jana and Kate Severn are childhood friends. Kate's father, Lance Severn, has worked for Jana's father as long as Jana can remember, so Kate and Jana pretty much grew up together. Jana's boyfriend David, also a thaumaturgy student, has been traveling with the party as well. Jana's father, CEO of Brooks Aerospace, is available in emergencies, but he's a busy man, so it had better be good. Charlotte Qamal, wife of Brian Qamal, one of Brooks' corporate rivals, seems to be attempting to cultivate a friendship with Jana for some reason. Jana is suspicious, but some of Mrs. Qamal's overtures do not seem to fit with a corporate espionage agenda. Jana generally gets along well with other party members. In particular, she and Rhydn have been able to work well together due to overlapping skill sets.
She is a member of the University of Chicago sailing club, and has a good relationship with the current president, Darren. She is also a member of the university Mage's Guild and the Texana club, where she is somewhat of a celebrity, being a real-live Teaxan and all.
Jana's Stuff
Jana has a small airplane named Freebird, a small Hobie cat called Joyride (and a trailer for it), a hang-glider, and a Land Rover.
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