Crew Officer Ress

Character Information

Gender		Agendered/Non-Binary
Species		Mostly human
Age		29
Quarters Assignment (assigned by Command)		Crew Quarters, Deck 4
Roommate Assignment (assigned by Command)		Rallid

Physical Appearance

Height		5'7"
Weight		136lbs
Hair Color		Black
Eye Color		Right eye dark brown; left eye cybernetic with a softly glowing purple iris
Physical Description		Ress is androgynous and mostly Human-looking, with pale skin, sharp features and a wiry build. They are not especially tall or broad, but they move like someone who keeps track of everyone in a room. Their face is narrow, with defined cheekbones, a strong jaw and a mouth that often looks like they are either amused or not impressed. Their hair is black, shaved close on the left side and longer on the right, falling to about jaw length with a rough fringe. Their ears are only slightly pointed, enough to make people wonder about their background without giving any clear answer. Their left eye has been replaced with a cybernetic implant, with dark metal around the socket and a softly glowing purple iris. They do not hide it, but they do not invite questions about it either. Ress usually dresses in layers of black and deep purple: a long leather coat, dark shirt, waistcoat, heavy trousers and sturdy boots. They mark their hands and forearms with henna, changing the patterns depending on their mood. They keep practical tools on them and may carry a sidearm when needed, but knives are what they prefer.

Personality & Traits

General Overview		Ress is warm, playful and easy to talk to, partly because that is who they are and partly because it is useful. They are good at making people comfortable, especially behind the bar, and have a quick humour that makes them seem more open than they really are. They can be charming, teasing and good company, with a casual confidence around danger that can make people forget what they are capable of. There is always a line they do not let people cross, though. They never speak about their past, and they are very good at moving a conversation away from anything they do not want to answer. They are transactional by habit, but not without compassion. Ress understands favours, debts and payment better than unconditional trust, and they are usually honest about that. If they like someone, they can be unexpectedly kind, though they tend to show it in practical ways: a warning, a contact, a drink put down before it is asked for, or information they could have sold but chose not to. They make friends, but they never fully forget that friends can become leverage, liabilities or, in an emergency, something to throw at the problem while they escape. Ress has a high pain threshold because they have needed one, but they rarely make a big thing out of being tough. They are also rarely idle, almost always doing something with their hands: peeling an orange, mixing a cocktail, cleaning a glass, flicking a knife, changing the henna on their hands or checking some small piece of equipment. It helps them think, and gives other people something harmless to watch while Ress watches everything else.
Strengths & Weaknesses		Strengths + Social camouflage: Ress can make themself seem harmless, useful, charming or forgettable depending on what the room needs. + Improvisation under pressure: they are quick with whatever is in reach, whether that is a knife, a bottle, a lie, a joke or a way out. + Information instinct: Ress knows what is worth hearing, what is worth selling, and what is better kept quiet until it becomes useful. Weaknesses - Escape-first thinking: when things go bad, Ress may prioritise getting out over staying loyal, even if they care about the people involved. - Selective honesty: they are so used to trimming the truth that people may struggle to know when they are being sincere. - Poor boundaries around risk: Ress can push too far for a good piece of information, especially if they think they can talk, charm or cut their way back out.
Ambitions		To never be caught.
Hobbies & Interests		Mixology: Ress genuinely enjoys making drinks, not just because bartending is useful. They like flavour, balance, presentation and the small bit of theatre that comes with putting the right drink in front of someone. Henna: they mark their hands and forearms with henna depending on mood, habit or intention. Some patterns mean something, others are just because they were bored and had steady hands. Knives: Ress keeps their blades clean, sharp and close. They practise small knife movements almost without thinking, especially when they need something to do with their hands. Card games and bar bets: Ress likes games where people reveal themselves by how they bluff, lose, cheat or celebrate. Sometimes the interesting part is not winning, but watching what someone risks. Zero-G spacewalks: Ress likes being outside the hull when they can. They enjoy the quiet, the movement, and the feeling of being untethered but still in control.

Personal History

Ress does not know the name they were born with, or if it was ever properly recorded. Their early records are incomplete, damaged or deliberately false, and their genetic background is listed only as mostly Human. They were trafficked while still young and spent several years being moved through private hands outside normal Federation protection. As a teenager, their left eye was removed and replaced with a cybernetic implant designed to record, store and transfer information. It was not done for them. Ress was being used as a living courier, a way of moving sensitive data without relying on devices that could be searched, stolen or traced. They eventually escaped by using the implant against the people who had put it there. Over time, Ress recorded access codes, routes, names, guard habits and transaction details, hiding what they could until they had enough to get out. Their escape was not clean or heroic, and they do not talk about it unless there is a practical reason. After that, they survived by doing whatever work kept them fed and moving. Bartending was one of the first jobs that stuck. It gave them shelter, cash, a reason to listen, and a place where people talked more than they meant to. From there, Ress began trading information in small ways. At first it was simple things: who was hiring, which captain paid on time, what port officials could be bribed, which cargoes were not worth the risk. Over the years, they built a reputation for accuracy, discretion and knowing when not to ask questions directly. They worked their way up from passing on useful rumours to handling more serious information, including routes, debts, black-market movements, missing people, forged identities and secrets that could ruin someone if sold to the right buyer. Ress is now a reputable information broker, at least in the kind of places where information is worth more than official approval. They are not cheap, and they are not careless. They trade in secrets, favours and leverage, but they are selective about the work they take and the people they deal with. That has cost them money over the years, but it has also helped them build a kind of trust in places where trust is usually a bad joke. They prefer shipboard life because ships keep moving. Stations and colonies make them feel too easy to find, too easy to corner, and too easy to map. A ship gives them changing routes, changing faces and the comfort of knowing that nothing stays fixed for long. Ress joined the Dutchman as a bartender, but the work suits more than one purpose. It gives them a legitimate place aboard, a wage, and access to the kind of conversations people have when they think the person pouring drinks is just part of the furniture.