My Character’s Past

My host character is a fourteen year old boy. Unfortunately, he is chronically online, and he has been for a really long time. Ever since he got his first laptop at the age of five, and his first phone at the age of seven, his unrestricted access to the internet has ruined his perception on society. His childhood is fine in regards to the way his parents treat him. They’re not abusive, or overprotective, they just kind of let him be. 

He’s much too grown for his age in all the wrong ways. After encountering 4Chan at the ripe age of 12, you can imagine how much damage that might do to a child’s brain. He has become indescribably malicious, a child full of hatred and disgust for all things his age. All the decisions he made of encountering evil strangers on the internet has entirely warped his poor little mind, and now he is cursed with the memories of many, many things that he should not have seen at his age. Of course, he has become extremely desensitized.

This is the power of the internet. More specifically, the power of unrestricted access to the internet. Now, he spends most of his days reading passages of random books to odd strangers he finds on 8Chan online in exchange for fractions of bitcoin (which, mind you, is still a lot). He realizes the sheer amount of power that he has been given, how valuable his young age is to warped individuals online, and how he can use them to his benefit. 

And his parents will never know. 

My hosts have given me so many names through the centuries that I am unable to remember them all. The only one that has stuck was given to me by an Italian fellow by the name Leonardo. He stared at me for a long, long time before finally naming me Piccola Pietra. I do not know what I am or where I came from, only that I have been around for at least as long as the humans. One minute I was nothing, then I was something. My first memory of self-awareness didn’t come for what seemed like an eternity later, but perhaps it is just to difficult to remember the beginning. Though I do not eat, I do still require a source of energy like humans do. The biggest difference being that humans are my current source of energy. I do not feed on them, but on their ideas. Unlike them I do not have arms or legs to move, and no mouth to speak, but many would trade everything for what I possess, an abundance of time. Their entire lives pass by in what seems like a short moment to me. There seems to be a mutually beneficial effect when I stay in close proximity to their kind. They find inspiration and creativity from me, and in turn I may feed on that energy that they do not seem to perceive. As time flows, movement is out of my control. I pass from person to person across the ages. All I can do is hope that my next host is more creative than the last, but I realize not everyone can do as Leonardo during his time. I just hope to avoid dark times where I’m low on energy. This was especially the case while I was with a man named Gary Dahl. In the time we spent together, the best idea he could devise was to release a toy as a pet in my likeness. Although it gained short term popularity, it had the unfortunate quality of also looking like a plain rock. He couldn’t even come up with a clever name for it. My hopes have been high in the few years since. My time with the next host, Mr. Lennon, was very beneficial but was unfortunately cut short. I wound up in the hands of a uniquely talented young man by the name of Michael Jackson for a time after that. I have been enjoying my time with him, but I have recently discovered that he plans to send me somewhere as a gift. I am unsure if I am a gift to another or if I am being sent as a gift, but the outcome seems promising. It seems that the man I am to be given to plans to bring me with him on his mission to a place even I have not been, space. We will be setting off on a device referred to as the Challenger, for it’s tenth flight. Perhaps in leaving this planet, I will be able to find others like myself.

The prompt for my science/historical fiction short story was to tell the backstory and history of a “host” character that I have created and follow for ds106. Although I do not have a host character to base this on, the prompt was thought provoking enough that I still wanted to complete it, but with a character that has “hosts” instead. You may say he is just a rock, but that would simply mean you do not understand his ways. To connect with the theme of 80’s pop culture, I decided to briefly explain Piccola Pietra’s backstory and ways of influencing the world without it knowing, with more focus on his “recent” times that take place in the early to mid 80’s.

Your Character’s Past

If you’ve been a part of DS106 for at least a few weeks, you’ve probably already thought of and created a host character that you will be following around for the remainder of the semester. There are already a lot of assignments that deal with your character, but for this assignment, you need to explain how your character grew up, and what made them the way they are today. Did they have a happy or sad childhood? What decisions in life led them up to the point they are at now? Just give us some more detailed background on your character, and make it be worth at least 3 stars.

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TOP SECRET INFORMATION — DO NOT RELEASE

Jasmine Fujioka was born in May of 1971 to Inoue and Takashi Fujioka, both farmers who sold their produce and meats at weekly markets. Jasmine grew up an only child in a small, isolated, and tight-knit agricultural community. Her town in [REDACTED], as of the date of her birth, had a national census of around 100 residents, making it one of the smallest areas in the district.

As an only child, Jasmine took on much of the responsibilities of the farm as soon as she was able. Her childhood was rough, but not entirely coarse. It’s reported that Jasmine’s relationship with her mother was strained, but her relationship with her father was stronger than average. Takashi notably often took his daughter hunting with him, teaching her how to handle firearms at a very young age, and nurturing her early talents in shooting. The cause of the strain between Jasmine and her mother is unknown as of the date of this documentation, but it is rumored it may be because of [REDACTED].

Jasmine’s childhood was full of death. A talented shot, Jasmine took on the responsibility of putting down cattle, among other farm-animals that were to be slaughtered for food. By her own report, Jasmine showed little hesitation in the dispatching of life. Desensitized by her father, the young girl only further bolstered her skills with firearms, practicing in the woods and on the animals she was to end. She practiced humane ways of killing, swift shots that would reduce suffering. Around the small town, she became known as someone to be relied on for difficult decisions regarding a family pet, or a rabid animal. However, Jasmine, by her own report, “wasn’t precisely popular” with kids her age due to her unfortunate role.

Takashi Fujioka instilled in his daughter principles of responsibility. From a young age, Jasmine’s father would tell her stories of justice and crime, of her uncle (Satou Fujioka), who had left the farm after their parents passing to become a cop. Takashi taught Jasmine that if no responsibility was being taken in a situation, she would have to do something. If a task wasn’t being done, she would need to do it. If someone was being picked on, she would have to stand up for them. Jasmine took these principles to heart, and with her naturally valiant personality, she became a tough and hardened girl with no qualms in getting herself into trouble. Often times, in her small school, she would get into fights with older bullies, and be taken to the principals office to be reprimanded. She would put herself into dangers for the sake of others, because she knew that if she didn’t–who would?

By Jasmine’s own report, “in healthy doses, that type of talk is fine. It’s only when you begin to OD do you realize you’re crashing.”

During [REDACTED], a serial arsonist began to terrorize the small farm town–burning the yields and homes of innocents while they slept in their beds. The Fujioka’s were one of the first homes hit by the attacks. Jasmine was 16 years old at the time. She and her mother escaped their burning home, but Jasmine’s father was injured and badly burned during the incident. As of [REDACTED], he was still on disability, (before passing away in [REDCATED]). This incident, by Jasmine’s own admittance, seemed to be a catalyst for her behavior that followed the burning. With her father bedridden, and her family’s livelihood up in flames, Jasmine realized in the ashes of her home that — by her own admission — this criminal wasn’t going to stop on their own. She began to “epistilize” her fathers words; her fathers teachings. She followed them, in her own words, “like a holy mission from the Gods.”

In a two year spree, Jasmine [REDACTED]. She began with the arsonist that had torched her farm and many others, [REDACTED]. Following that incident, crime and hooliganism across town fell dramatically due to her actions. Jasmine policed the streets, [REDACTED] anyone that [REDACTED]. The district police force for the town was noticeably hands-off, and with their laziness, Jasmine continued to operate under their languid radars, continuing to [REDACTED] until one fateful night in which she took her skills too far, and her morals beyond the edge of reason.

Following her arrest and discovery by the agency, Jasmine was processed and held on the behalf of the Specialized Defenses of New Earth (SDONE) on the behest of Agent [REDACTED] and their contacts in the Holloway City Police Department. Jasmine began working for the SDONE following a plea-deal with the authorities, and since that time, she has been shaped into a model agent.

Much information in this document has been redacted out of request by and respect for Jasmine Fujioka herself. A more detailed transcript of her history may emerge from the SDONE records at a later time, following the creation of this file. No information in this file or others is to be leaked to the public at any time.

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BEHIND THE SCENES

I chose this particular assignment from the assignment bank because I will waste no time developing and talking about a new character. Character creation is one of my favorite things in the world, and I very much enjoy the opportunity to develop stories, plots, characters and more through writing. Not only could I tie this prompt to the secret agent theme of this semester, but I could use it to further develop this new character of mine, and shape her for future projects.

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MAKING OF THE ASSIGNMENT

— Brainstormed briefly on how to format the assignment, and looked back on previous notes regarding Wisteria’s/Jasmine’s backstory.

— Wrote down the information, writing directly into the textbox of WordPress for this assignment.

That’s really all there was to it! It was a fun, easy assignment that I wouldn’t have qualms with doing again. Thank you for the opportunity!

As you all know from my introduction post about Nora, she is a teenager in high school. What you all don’t know is how she became the Nora she is today…

Nora was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana in 2002 to parents Kim and Keith Bendenova. She was the littlest thing you’ve ever seen at 7 lbs. and 2 oz. with her blonde hair and blue eyes. Her parents, still married at the time, couldn’t have been happier. A few years down the road, Nora started Kindergarten. Her parents were blind to it, but her teacher, Ms. DD, noticed something oddly different about Nora. Despite being the smallest and shortest kid in her class, she was much stronger and faster than all the other kids in her school. Ms. DD held on to her discoveries about Nora and continued to observe her peculiar ways. At the end of the year, Ms. DD decided she would teach 1st grade so she could have Nora in class again. As she suspected, her peculiar ways grew more peculiar. However, what also started growing more was how much Nora showed her emotions. She cried a little more than last year at sad things and would bounce off the walls when she got excited.

Ms. DD followed Nora and her class all the way through 5th grade, where at the end they had to part ways. Ms. DD had a hunch as to why she believed Nora had all these super-power like qualities, but she again kept it to herself. She also wasn’t sure which parent to talk to about it because Kim and Keith decided to split up while Nora was in 4th grade (and yes, the emotions were in full gear then). Both parents seem much happier now. They make and effort to get along in front of Nora, which in turn makes her happier.

The middle school years are where Nora really begins to notice her super powers…she was bullied a few times because of her size. A couple girls were also very jealous of her, but she couldn’t figure out why. One day, she was walking in the hall way at school when on of the known bullies bumps into her on purpose and knocks her down. This infuriated Nora, so she got up and shoved the girl all the way to the other end of the 30 foot hallway. The bully never messed with Nora again. However, Nora couldn’t believe what she had just done or how she did it. She went home to her mom’s house and told her about it. She didn’t really believe her, but went along with the story. She called to tell her dad, who now lives in Georgia, and he was extremely alarmed. He flew back down to BR and they took her to her doctor…and then another…and then another…and got the same result every time: “There is nothing wrong with your daughter, she is just extremely strong for her age,”. So they went home and tried to make the best out of an extremely confusing situation.

High school was much different until this current year. She became more aware of what her “powers” are and how she can use them. She started doing heavy lifting and making quick errands for the elderly. She could help victims in a car crash by flying them to the nearest hospital. She did so much for the city of BR that they called her their friendly city super hero. She didn’t change anything about her life. She still goes to high school, she still cheers, still strives for straight A’s. It’s easy to see how other girls would be jealous of her.

She is enjoying her life now. Her father moved back to BR, so he could be closer to her. She loves being a super hero, but more importantly, she loves being able to take care of the place she calls “home”.

My character’s name is Marcus Hodges, and has a history for not following directions and creating his own rules at almost any cost. He was always the smartest one in every school he attended, so he became bored with the standard way things took place. He had a knack for creating drama in some way, shape, or form. He believed heavily in the art of deception or persuasion. He would often act certain ways to get people to do things for him. He used his witty personality and charm to get what he wanted in life. He didn’t care who became hurt in the process of getting what he wanted because he felt that people didn’t care about his well-being.

Growing up he was what most would call a “mama’s boy”. His mother was his pride and joy, she also seemed to be the only person that showed him the love and attention that he craved deep down. At the age of 9, his mother disappeared without a trace. She left him with his step-father, who was just as confused as the son was regarding her absence. Every Sunday morning for 7 months they would go looking for his mother until his step-father eventually gave up. Marcus never wanted to give up until he had an answer, but the hope he once had began to turn into malice towards everyone. Marcus became the selfish, deceiptful individual that he is today. Marcus is now 23 years old and owns his own business in film and advertisement. He’s been recognized as the type of boss that sells dreams to his clients and goes back on his word depending on how it benefits himself.

This is who he is before “The End” comes.