Cooper was born to a nomad family, and as such was labelled from birth as being just another member of the pack. This is fine when one is young, and belonging to something bigger than yourself is a comfort, but when adolescence hits, it gets harder and harder to stay where you’re told. So Cooper filled his bike with gas, and put the tent city behind him once they got within a few clicks of the City. Wearing blue jeans and white tee, carrying nothing but a few bucks, a pack of smokes and a long rifle with less than a full clip, he decided to make his own way.
The City is full of such stories. Young men and women who get chewed up and spat out by the unforgiving populace and society of the grand metropolis. They fall to organised crime, or poorly organised law enforcement, taken in by charlatans, or promised the world by agents, if they’d just tow the line and do what they were told. And take their top off for this picture. Cooper could have been just another one of those kids. He was good looking and came across as naive, and within the first couple of days was propositioned by more than his fair share of hucksters. He made it through though by being just that little bit sharper than anyone expected. By the end of his first week, he had never needed to sleep rough, with beds always being available to him, as long as he didn’t mind sharing his affections for the night.
This was a deal he was happy to make, and Cooper was more than willing to share his sexuality with those who found beautiful, male, female, or both at the same time. He got job offers and even the chance to be a man of leisure for a rich corp sleaze, but nothing was quite what he had in mind. He’d heard the stories of famous members of the pack who had broken free and made a name for themselves as edge-runners. He wanted that. he wanted stories to get back to his brothers and sister, his cousins and uncles, letting them know that he’d made it. Until then, he was happy to coast.
He made friends quickly with his easy going manner and good looks, and always managed to just about keep a lid on his more hedonistic impulses. Not always though, and when he heard people discussing tattoos one night, he decided to get involved. the conversation was deeper than he first thought though, and led down avenues of elective limb removal and scarification for fashion purposes. He was a little high that night, so when he woke up naked between a set of identical Hispanic male and female twins with a sore face, he was a little bit worried about what to expect. A quick look in the mirror confirmed that he now had harlequin markings carved into his face. He couldn’t help but smile, realising what he had done.
In the years since that night, Cooper did indeed go on to lead a crew of his own. With Corps, hackers, solos and even some guy who always claimed to be a ninja running with him at one time or another. Some went on to great things – the Corp advanced to a lofty position indeed, and came in very useful when Cooper’s options were limited and an orbital strike from a kill-sat was his only way out of a scrape – and others would one day betray him and stand against him – the Netrunner took the crew for everything they were worth and vanished – while some stayed at his side until death or retirement. It’s in this part of his life that he is now found.
Most runners don’t make it past forty, but Cooper is now pushing fifty, and is still smiling. In his career he has gone off world, stood on a stage in front of thousands, and had governments calling on his aid. And if you had asked him all those decades ago who he was, he would never have called himself a Nomad. These days though, with fingers in so many pies, dozens of crews working on dozens of jobs in his name, he has grown to detest being thought of as a fixer, and would love to just power up his old hog and put the dust between himself and the City.
Too many people rely on him though, and too many enemies would strike quickly if me moved beyond the protection of his friends. Maybe one day, he’s be a Nomad again. Until then, he is totally not a Fixer, even if he is one of the best.
Using Cooper in your Game.
- You don’t need to play him as the elder version of himself. As a youngster Cooper was useful as hell, with a quick wit and deadly skill as a sniper, he makes a great addition to any crew.
- As an old man though he could easily be a first contact no any job, or a foil to those who take jobs working for criminal organisations.
- And of course, he is always looking for a way out. If your crew can offer it, or even if Cooper thinks you can, they might find themselves embroiled in all manner of craziness.
shortymonster
Hello there, learned reader. My name is not shortymonster, but since we will soon become firm friends, feel free to call me Shorty. I am a well versed and well traveled gentleman gamer, with no particular favourites in regard to system or setting, playing or GMing. You can also find me at my personal RPG blog.