Celestine

Dystopian literature of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries often predicted that people would become pawns of either a massive, bloated government hobbled by party politics and heartless bureaucracies, or massive, bloated corporations willing to disregard any ethical consideration in pursuit of wealth accumulation. Classics such as 1984 or Brave New World spring to mind, a faceless future where the downtrodden masses are deprived of freedom, individuality, creative expression, and spontaneity. And worse, we the people are relentlessly conditioned to like the system and to defend it. Of course, such writings seldom consist entirely of depressing notes: life attempts to grow out of the rigid containers imposed upon it, and individual triumphs struggle to manifest amidst the joyless, mechanized existence of the collective norm, as evinced in the heady romances of Winston and Julia or the poetic idealism of The Savage.

What if the authors were right?

Humanity adapts, as humanity ever has and ever will. Our ancestors learned to plant seeds, domesticate animals, and build magnificent cities of stone and brick after forsaking the nomadic life. Hunting and gathering gave way to agriculture, barter economies adopted the use of money, and man learned the use of accumulating capital. The hunter became the wage worker, the gatherer the landlord, and tribal councils grew into republics and oligarchies. The information age revolutionized man's access to pure data, but man forfeited his liberty lest he drown in the oceans of his newfound knowledge and appointed custodians for himself. Power, as ever, gave rise to greater concentration of power in the hands of ever fewer keepers.

The year is now 2133. The earth yielded its resources with ever more grudging effort, thanks to the infamous law of diminishing marginal returns, and yet the rapid expanse of technology sparked by the Industrial Revolution still shows no sign of slowing. Social upheaval has become accepted as a part of life due to the rapid pace of improvement. The population of the Earth, now some 13 billion, has seen the rise of massive cities dwarfing all the megalopolises of the twenty-first century. Global warming, a severe problem which occupied some of the greatest minds of the previous century, has in part been brought under control due to very fruitful advances in the theory of nonlinear dynamics and chaos. Yet the problem is only managed, not solved, and man-made climate change remains a persistent problem along with the troubling specter of pollution.

Not surprisingly, the vast majority of the population was granted only a small slice of the pie of wealth. The zaibatsus of the twentieth century and the mega-corporations of the twenty-first gave rise to truly global businesses wielding power that surpassed even the great banking families of the high medieval ages or the robber barons era of the Gilded Age. Money bought influence, influence bought formal powers, and formal powers expanded to that ultimate source of all authority: violence. Corporations began to hire armed mercenaries, train standard armies, tax citizens, and provide services once considered the exclusive domain of the state. National citizenship gradually gave way to corporate loyalty for importance to daily life and companies spent prodigious sums catering to the lives of their employees. The company became the source for shelter, food, basic education, security, utility services, and even judicial activities. Nationalism and patriotic fervor, perhaps naturally, faded in favor of corporate fidelity and companies set themselves to attract the best and brightest minds from other entities while retaining their own through binding legal contracts ... or other, less legal and more subversive means.

Incentives are only one half of the corporate package, however. As Machiavelli once observed, so long as one is not hated, then it is ideal to be both loved and feared. Massive companies swallowed up dozens of smaller firms through hostile corporate takeovers, strongarm tactics, illegal acquisitions and outright declaration of war. Whistleblowers and employees who sold secrets sometimes mysteriously vanished or met with suspiciously inauspicious accidents. Companies trained not only secretaries, workers, and accountants, but also soldiers, spies, and hackers. The stakes rose much higher for the members of the corporation; success in company politics or internal warfare often meant promotion, recognition, and elevation of living standard. Yet the higher the climb, the more tenuous the hold, and the further and harsher one's fall.

Life on the outside of the company isn't much better. While the living standard is high for favored employees, and even the lowest of wage workers can live reasonably well, much of the population is excluded altogether. Some of them work for small companies, or can find no employment at all, and instead must subsist on the charity of the megacorps or the social services of a largely impotent government. For these people, much of life's luxuries are inaccessible - it's difficult enough finding enough to eat, or clothes to wear, or a place to sleep at night. Drug use is rampant upon the so-called lower classes, with violent crime not uncommon, and law enforcement likes to turn a blind eye when it doesn't suit the company's interests. For the poor of society, the elite of the companies alternately attempt to keep them pacified with just enough bread and circuses, and ignore them otherwise. The vicious cycle of minimum wage slavery, poverty, and substance abuse is exacerbated by mass entertainment and propaganda efforts meant to keep the people complacent with their station in life.

In the lower parts of the cities and the slums, it isn't unusual to find twenty to thirty people sharing a single run-down apartment. Society often devolves to tribalism, with children growing up learning how to hack computers, steal electricity, and siphon water in place of a formal education. Popular entertainment is plentiful, subsidized and funded by the wealthy corporations. Seedy taverns, brothels, arms dealers, illegal drug pushers, and casinos abound, often swallowed by the competition in the fierce urban jungle. Enough food trickles down to keep the masses from actually starving, but work is scarce, temporary, and fiercely competitive; the unskilled workers have no union rights, and there is precious little demand for the massive supply of excess labor. Upward social mobility is all but impossible.

The polished, upper classes often reside by themselves in armed and gated communities, or in posh skyscrapers built almost literally over the heads of the masses. Here resources are in plentiful supply, education is provided by the companies, and the rich often lead comparatively decadent lifestyles. The new patricians of this dystopian society fancy themselves intellectually and morally superior to the masses, but prosperity is fickle - the company official worth tens of millions one day could find himself tossed literally down the sewer the next day after a hostile company takeover. As often happens, the upper crust of society tries to pretend - not always successfully - that the lower classes do not exist in their slice of paradise. Conformity of behavior and uniformity of thought are enforced to varying degrees of strictness.

In a society so polarized and stratified, corporations deal in a three-front war traditionally assumed by governments: the political world of attracting citizens, the economic world of market trade, and the shadowy world of corporate espionage and trade wars. Prodigious sums are spent on advertisement and public works while jostling for an unseen advantage. More than ever, information is power, and the company that leaves itself exposed to counter-intelligence is never safe. Knowledge of an enemy's intent and capabilities is paramount to the strategy of any would-be player on the world stage of commerce and politics, now blended together into an indivisible whole. The immortal wisdom of Sun Tzu, that he who knows himself and knows his opponent is never at risk, finds deadly practice on our future Earth.

This is where Celestine comes in.

NeoVenetia Systems Wetware Bodysuit
A skintight, single piece, form-fitting bodysuit which leaves none of Celestine's figure to the imagination. This garment is the foundation of all of Celestine's equipment, as it provides a high degree of equipment attachment versatility. High density fibers provide protection against ballistic impacts while reinforced plastic threads render the suit resistant to fire and acid. NeoVenetia's logo appears on the bodysuit when exposed to ultraviolet light or when viewed through thermal goggles, enabling identification of friendly forces. Various additional pieces of equipment can also be attached to grooves or hooks on her suit. Not surprisingly, the suit has to be carefully dry-cleaned.
- Chameleon Variant: The glittering Chameleon version of the bodysuit uses optical micromirrors integrated into the fabric to render the user almost invisible to the naked eye.
- Spec-Ops Variant: The midnight-black Spec-Ops version of the bodysuit uses ceramic fabric to mask the user's heat signature, useful for night and stealth missions.
- Aquatic Variant: The sleek, hydrodynamic Aquatic version of the bodysuit is tailor-made for underwater missions, suitable for extended swimming with minimal energy expenditure and integration with sonar suites.

High-Impact Combat Boots
Built for sturdiness, speed, and protection, the standard footwear for a female UN-B.I.R.T.H. agent comes complete with EMF induction generator to help the operative walk on magnetic surfaces and overcome the effects of electromagnetic traps. Mounted in a formidable combat heel with a stem some 2.5 inches in height, rocket propulsion thrusters in the heels also permit quick fuel burns to augment an agent's jumping ability. Negative waveform emitters strategically positioned in the boot calculate inverted sound waves to muffle footsteps, helping an agent remain stealthy.
- Freefall Landing Upgrade: The Freefall upgrade adds shock dissipating springs and fires retro-rocket bursts to soften the landing of a long fall.
- Tumbler Stabilization Upgrade: Complex gyroscopes and computerized motors help an agent maintain her balance in unstable environments.

Spatial Reduction Utility Belt and Accessories
The UN-B.I.R.T.H. agent's special utility belt comes with containers utilizing the latest in negative energy technology to expand their holding capacity. By containing most of the object's mass and volume in transposed Hilbert space, the utility belt is capable of holding a far larger and heavier object than its size would suggest. Standard accessories include general purpose stealth duct tape, high tension cables, grappling hooks, emergency stimulant injections, field bandages, portable transmission devices, computer storage media, flares, batteries, a combat knife, and a multitool.
- Extra Pouch Upgrade: Extra pouches can be added to the utility belt at minimal weight. They do, however, require a small amount of power to remain Hilbert active.

Seraph Wing Thrusters
The odd attachment on Celestine's back serves as a mobility-enhancing suit device. Capable of emitting quick bursts of thrust and generating instant use arm-attached gliding fabrics, the Seraph Wing array permits its user to glide for short durations and sprint much more quickly than humanly possible. This enables the user to perform high speed ballistic attacks using her body for kinetic impact, or to seek alternative routes of entry and extraction. They can also be detached and held in hand as makeshift melee weapons, generating a sharp incision field along the striking edge when so employed.
- Helix Missile Upgrade: Sometimes, there's no substitute for superior firepower. The Helix upgrade mounts a number of micromissiles on the wings which can be fired for explosive impact.

Variable Ammunition Omnigun
NeoVenetia standardized its armaments in the years leading up to the creation of the UN-B.I.R.T.H. program. The Omnigun uses instant manufacturing technology to quickly reassemble itself for the user's utility, able to switch form and function dynamically in response to rapidly changing battlefield conditions. Capable of continuous, burst, or single fire, the Omnigun uses rail propulsion and is configured to only accept NeoVenetian ammunition and will self-destruct if handled by a non-authorized user. It can also accept grapple hooks, drill bits, and even more exotic ammunition.
- Long Barrel Upgrade: By adding extra volume and weight, the agent can add a long barrel to the Omnigun, or reconfigure the weapon as an assault weapon or sniper rifle.
- Orca Deepsea Upgrade: Underwater, the Omnigun can be reconfigured to mechanically launch harpoons when rail operation is not possible.
- Knuckleduster Upgrade: The Omnigun can also be reconfigured to wrap around the user's hand to serve as a powered punching glove, allowing the user to smash through heavy obstacles. Dual-wielders are armed with a second glove or a single, massive, twin-powered gauntlet.

UN-B.I.R.T.H. Core Containment Module
A special human bio-augment that serves as the hallmark of NeoVenetia's female special forces, the Core Containment module turns the operative's womb into a living prison for her targets. Targeted using either the Omnigun or the ocular augment, the operative's vulva emit an invisible phase-locked pulse which acquires a target's quantum signature and then creates a matching entangled pair. The entangled pair is then partially shifted into non-d'Alembertian space, causing the designated target to do likewise, and the quantum exclusion force then pulls the target through the operative's vulva and into the uterus. The module is armed with an array of addons to help pacify or neutralize a target, whether biological or mechanical.
- Extra Storage Upgrade (WARNING: safety hazard): Safety features usually prevent the module from acquiring another target when one is already present, in order to prevent nonlinear interactions from cascading out of quantum correctional control. With each Extra Storage Upgrade, the user gains the ability to securely store one additional unit. In the event of catastrophic module failure, Phantelle Industries will not be held liable for damages.
- Quantum Teleportation Upgrade: Aliva Industrial's Personal Quantum Teleporter adapted for your uterus. Now you can quickly receive upgrades and supplies, teleported directly into your uterus, on the field! (Standard disclaimer: Not compatible with living organisms.)

Hi-Sec Ocular Implant Module
A series of microcomputers, nanomachines, and neural interfaces integrated into the eye, the Hi-Sec Ocular Implant offers state of the art visual augmentations to the field agent. The agent can designate up to five targets for computerized tracking and switch to infra-red or x-ray augmented vision, as well as employing a fully programmable HUD to assist the Omnigun with aim. Communications with a centralized hub is also possible, allowing agents to share visual data seamlessly between multiple operatives. Target locking features interact with the Core Containment module to help subdue persons of company interest.
- GPS Upgrade: Add some GPS navigation aids to your basic navigational suite, extending your street coverage functionality.
- Flare Shield Upgrade: Probright Technology's patented Lenshield device negates the effects of sudden increases in brightness, maintaining the user's vision against flares of light.
- Bejeweled 23: Ever wanted to play a classic version of Bejeweled on the job? Now you can! Comes with boss key to quickly pause and minimize your game.

Echobat Auditory Module
By integrating amplifiers, microcomputers, and pass filters into the auditory canals, the Echobat Auditory module offers a wide range of upgrades to the user's hearing ability. Agents are seamlessly connected to a network where they can communicate with each other, permitting UN-B.I.R.T.H. field operatives to receive real-time mission updates and returning auditory data simultaneously. Frequency transformers also allow agents to attune their hearing for higher or lower pitches of sound, enabling an agent to identify critical data that would otherwise be overlooked.
- Shockwave Shield Upgrade: The installation of reverse wave sound emitters allows the module to cancel loud, disruptive noises. Protect your ears from flash-bang noises, or study in silence at the party!
- Suicide Hotlink Upgrade: For the times when you feel abandoned or depressed, help is just a call away with the 24/7 Suicide Hotlink. Thoughts of suicide, sadness, and company disloyalty are important, real problems. You are not alone.
- Dolphin Sonar Upgrade: This powerful upgrade uses sound to project a 3D map on the user's Hi-Sec Ocular Module, allowing the user to "see" underwater or in total darkness.
- Resonance Cascade Upgrade: This upgrade helps the user measure the resonant frequency of a uniform material, permitting the user to shake an object or barrier apart when the proper frequency is programmed into a vibrational bullet.

Central Biofuel Module
The Central Biofuel Module provides the necessary power to operate the other augmentations installed into the user. By converting biological energy released by chemical lysis into electrical current, the Biofuel module is capable of providing for the power consumption of the user's activities. Installation of the Biofuel module also enables the user to extend the efficiency of natural food, as well as rendering the user resistant to mild electrical shocks.
- Kill Switch Upgrade: To extend control over highly-trained agents with the potential of going rogue, all UN-B.I.R.T.H. operatives are installed with kill switches capable of shutting down their energy processes upon receipt of an authorized command. Contrary to popular belief, this measure is rarely used to its fullest, and even then only as a final resort. Officers are trained to first shut down modules and then, if the situation escalates, to restrict the agent's energy output; only The Man possesses the authority to give the signal to kill an agent.
- Biocell Battery Upgrade: Each Biocell battery attached to the operative's bodysuit is capable of storing excess biofuel, acting as an emergency energy reserve for the agent.