PremiseSince the inception of mankind there have been countless threats to our survival as a species, threats we have faced head on and overcome time and time again. But hidden beneath the surface hides the deadliest threat of them all, an ancient enemy that plagues every living being across the globe, one which not even humanity has been able to overcome.
I speak, of course, of disease. A pervasive foe that all living creatures will inevitably contend with, yet one we will never be able to face head on. Or at least that’s what most people think.
Walking among us are beings known as Incubators, creatures that use the power of disease to strengthen themselves. Their supernatural abilities draw strength from those suffering their associated malady, as well as the fear and respect it draws in the public eye. They can even extend their own lives by taking the lives of others, as each person who dies to a disease will give over their remaining life to the associated Incubator.
Though powerful, Incubators are not beyond understanding or defeat. For the past twenty-five years, the ICAO has made it our mission to learn as much as we can about Incubators so that we may follow in the steps of our ancestors, and overcome the threat that Incubators pose.
The ICAOEstablished in 1997, the Incubator Containment and Analysis Organization is a secret branch of the US government that was created specifically to deal with the recently revealed Incubator threat. Officially operating under the Federal Bureau of Investigation as a small task force dedicated to combating bioterrorism, the ICAO protects humanity not only from the threat of Incubators, but the knowledge that such creatures even exist.
As the name suggests, the ICAO is dedicated to learning as much as possible about Incubators and stepping in where necessary to contain them. In some extreme cases even going so far as to terminate major threats.
Our primary goal is to discover and catalogue as many incubators as possible, logging their
threat class and potential. Currently our catalogue lists over 120 known Incubators, and we are always in the process of hunting down more.
Where possible, we make an effort to bring Incubators under our control, using their unique abilities to help give us a leg up that we might otherwise lack in more extreme confrontations. Many of our agents operate in pairs with a partner Incubator.
Tamed IncubatorsThe ICAO does not take a passive stance with Incubators, and actively seek to recruit them when we can. We call these tamed Incubators, and they are deeply important to our success. Without their supernatural powers, our agents would be at a clear disadvantage, but employing Incubators ourselves helps us even the playing field.
Tamed Incubators are recruited through various manners, but most commonly are tamed immediately after being brought in for cataloguing by a comm agent. It’s also not infrequent that Incubators that had to be contained choose to join us when presented with no other alternative. Incubators who are tamed from containment are fitted with a kill switch to prevent them from using it as an opportunity to escape.
With only a couple of exceptions, all tamed Incubators are partnered with a field agent that serves as their handler.
AgentsAlthough tamed Incubators usually serve as the main method of fighting dangerous targets, our field agents are the true backbone of the organization. Combat is a rarity, and the uniquely human skills an agent brings are key to achieving our core mission.
Agents operating under the ICAO are drawn from a variety of sources and have diverse skillsets. Most are simply classified under the broad terminology of “agent,” which encompasses a wide variety of individuals. While these are the vast majority of our agents, there are some more restrictive roles that certain agents specialize in.
Communication agents are the go to when making contact with an unstable Incubator. They show special skill in diplomacy and psychology, and are well equipped for handling all but the most hostile of Incubators nonviolently.
Discovery agents are tasked with following leads to new Incubators. While all agents may be called on to investigate suspected Incubators, discovery agents are those who find the suspects to investigate in the first place. Often operating on loose hunches and barebones leads, discovery agents have the perseverance to last through dozens of fruitless cases just to find one Incubator.
Terminator agents are those skilled enough at combat to make them a threat to even B ranked Incubators. They serve as our last line of defense against Incubators that prove impossible to contain, and as enforcers within our ranks who prevent tamed Incubators from going rogue. This combination of roles means that they are often partnered with the most dangerous tamed Incubators, who can assist them in fighting major dangers and who they can keep in line if the need arises.
Plot?This is the first section I get to break character in, so I’m gonna take a moment aside to say hello, I’m Lexi, I run RPs. This RP is gonna be a little unusual for me, and maybe for everyone else too. There’s not really gonna be an overarching plot, at least not at first. Instead, the characters will be given smaller, individualized plots to work through. While I’m sure I’ll find ways to intersect these plots, the primary focus for each pair of partners will be one on another and the case they’re working on.
Basically, think of this RP as being several smaller stories happening concurrently in the same universe, rather than one large story.
NotesWhile the RP itself will take place in a forum thread, I prefer to do most OOC discussion via Discord. I maintain a
server that acts as a general hub for all of my RPs. Ping @Lexi for the ICAO role.
This RP has a short prequel to set up the world. It’s not required reading, but it may prove useful for you if you’re interested in participating in ICAO.
Abducting the Plagued Scream.
Characters will need to be accepted in pairs as partners (you can post sheets solo and find a partner after, you just won’t be accepted until you have a partner). And since I’m sure everyone is gonna want to play an Incubator, you’re allowed to play one of each character type, you just can’t be your own partner.
While you are allowed to play as one of the three agent specializations, do be aware that to qualify your character would have to be almost entirely focused on fitting into that specialization and that it will severely restrict their usefulness in a broader sense.
SheetsIdentification Code: [These will be assigned to you and your partner when you’re accepted]
Associated Malady: [The malady that your Incubator draws power from]
Threat Classification: Tame
Maximum Potential Threat: [How powerful your Incubator’s supernatural abilities are. Note that the higher this is, the more restrictive the ICAO will be towards them]
Public Name: [The name your Incubator uses with the public]
Physical Description: [What your Incubator looks like. Incubators are usually treated as special consultants in the field, and as such are free to wear whatever they want so long as it’s not too eye-catching]
Personality Notes: [Notes on your Incubator’s personality, take special care to mention all of their minor flaws]
Abilities: [A list of the supernatural abilities your Incubator has. These can be as few or as numerous as you like, so long as you have at least one beyond their spread ability]
Spread - [All Incubators have a spread ability that allows them to inflict humans with their malady]
[Name] - [Description]
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Handler: [The ID of your character’s handler]
Identification Code: [These will be assigned to you and your partner when you’re accepted]
Name: [Your character’s full name]
Age: [Self-explanatory]
Sex: [^]
Physical Description: [A short description of your character’s physical appearance. All ICAO agents wear an FBI uniform in the field]
Personality Notes: [A description of what your character acts like]
Skills: [A list of skills your character has that are pertinent to their work in the field. They may have as many or as few of these as you like, so long as they have at least one]
[Name] - [Description]
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Partner: [The ID of your character’s Incubator partner]
Accepted CharactersGeneral NPCsC4, Commander MoroseA76, Agent ParkerA15, Agent FenneskNPC IncubatorsI1, the PlagueI7, CancerI23, RabiesI63, PCT