Forty-Two

Forty-Two is the current team lead of Phantom Epsilon. While he was a former citizen of Britain — having been born in Scotland — he had to move and change his residency to Olympia when his parents were killed during an MI6 on-duty incident, in which his aunt had taken him out of the country in hopes of saving his life. While the whereabouts of his older sister — Skyler — are unknown, sources say that she is currently still in the United Kingdom. Though the MI6 tried putting Forty-Two and his sister in a protective program for the children of deceased MI6 agents, that did not work out. Instead, his aunt — who was working at PHASe at the time — took him to the City of Olympia,  where he then signed up to become a Trainee.

Appearance
For Forty-Two’s physical appearance, his wavy dark brown locks can be seen from quite a distance away. His dark eyes, however — while not often seen — can be felt from just as far — frequently burning into the souls of others as he attempts to calculate and comprehend them. Forty-Two also has tattoos tattered across his torso and arms — just like his scars — one of which is a tattoo with the words “η ηρεμία πριν την καταιγίδα” on his right forearm (meaning: the calm before the storm). For his Casual attire, he often wears a dark shirt and joggers — often times paired with a hoodie and trainers. Whereas for his mission outfit, he prefers all black semi-tight tactical gear and light combat boots that he can confidently and comfortably fight in — as well as store any extra gear needed in any of the pockets on the uniform — this is usually paired with hard-knuckle fingerless tactical gloves and sometimes a tactical jacket with a hood depending on the type of mission and the weather conditions. He also has special glasses called “ARO” that act as a portable computer that can show maps, pinpoint locations, analyse opponents and other data that he might need. Overall, the concept behind the outfit is functionality and minimalism that would help enhance a physical fighter’s abilities while being easy to put on and comfortable to wear — while also having the options to store and add on whatever might be needed for the mission.

While in Night Form, his augmentations change colour depending on the intensity of his power — the darker the colour, the more intense his power — whereas his eyes will become a kaleidoscope of such colours. The design of his augmentations are lines struck across his face and neck like lightning scars — or tree roots.

Personality
As one of the taller Operatives at PHASe, Forty-Two often times can seem very dominant and intimidating. His stern and cold expression do not help matters since he is known for disliking the company of others and would rather be alone with his own thoughts. While his team — Phantom Epsilon — and one or two individuals outside of said team are an exception to this, he does not often make more. However, do not confuse his aversion of people with closed-mindedness. In fact, he is very open-minded and often views life with a broader lens than most. Regardless, his attitude and demeanour can often give others a false impression of who he truly is, as such, he will often hide behind a façade as he socialises with others — even though the mere thought of such a veneer makes him groan.

Notwithstanding, he is known by the higher-ups as one of PHASe’s biggest problems due to his rebellious nature. While he often keeps his temper in check, there have been times when he has lost it in front of the staff — cursing them and calling them tyrants. While the exact reasons why are unknown to most, if asked, he will merely say that it is because PHASe goes against many of his beliefs and morals. As such, if there is something that he does not agree with, someone will hear about it.

Because Forty-Two is an INTJ, he does not always fit the standard Psion mould. In fact, his love and crave for knowledge associates him with Architects or Oracles. Regardless, he is proud to be a Psion. As such, while he was a Trainee, a desire to become the best Psion — and one-day Operative — that he could be arose. As a Trainee, he spent much of his time in the training and simulation rooms, as well as the library — seeing what edge he could gain on his enemies or fellow Trainees. However, his "disconnect from others" meant that he did not make many friends. And while he had individuals that he worked with, he never developed a relationship with any of them. Regardless, this did not matter to him, and instead, he became a lone wolf. However, once he became the Leader of Phantom Epsilon, his solitary tendencies changed — thanks to some of the best teammates that he could have asked for.

Backstory
Forty-Two was born towards the beginning of 2049 — just as the last of “the cold months” had begun. Having been born and raised in Scotland — just as his sister had been four years prior — he remembered the scenic landscapes that he would pass as he ran down Leith Walk from Edinburgh — the Scottish Capital — to Leith — a buzzing port district known to house hip creatives and longtime locals such as his grandparents. From his birth to the age of five, he was raised by his grandparents — only seeing his parents on holidays or days, they had off from work. Oblivious to the “work” that his parents did, he and his sister lived a happy life. That was until he had hit the age of five. While he does not remember the particulars, he recalled one day leaving to go school with his Nǎinai (grandmother) — leaving his sister and Yéyé (grandfather) at home — and returning with his sister gone. Forty-Two was a curious child and asked his grandfather where his sister had gone but received no answers in return.

For the next year, the contact that he had had with his parents had been shut down due to a government lockdown that was happening in London at that time. As such, he was forced to focus on his studies — or at least until his sixth birthday. Just as his grandparents had given him a pound note or two, there was a knock at the door. Thinking it was his parents, he eagerly ran to the door with his grandfather — he, however, was not greeted by his parents and instead two men dressed in all black.

As several years passed, his new home was made in Vauxhall, London — within the safety of the Secret Intelligence Service (SIS or MI6) headquarters building. Indeed, he was no longer oblivious to the work that his parents did and now knew where his sister had gone oh so many years ago. As a part of Project Tempest — along with his sister and two other children — he continued his primary education during the day (just as he would have if he had stayed in Scotland). However, during the early mornings and late nights — just before school began and once it had ended — he was tasked with being an MI6 Trainee. While not much is known about the contents of Project Tempest, all that is known is that the project dealt with the biological children of Project Storm test subjects — a project that consisted of biologically and chemically modified humans in hopes of creating a weapon if the need for such a thing arose.

He lived a life of routine, order, and structure — having had his childhood, name, and life stripped from him at such an early age. As such, he was referred to as Test Subject (TS) #00XY. Within Project Tempest, test subjects were studied, tested, and developed in five various areas — behaviour, temperament, characteristics, abilities, and gifts — as such Forty-Two and his sister showed great promise, potential, and amazing results in all five. In fact, for being so young, his results were quite impressive — due to him having been so advanced for his age. The MI6 noticed this and moved him up the ranks so that he would begin to work with his sister (TS #00XX) — in which the skill levels of the siblings started to speedily increase over the years.

And then the year of 2058 rolled around. Forty-Two was merely nine years old when his parents — Lev Brontë and Jin Yan Brontë-Li — were killed during an MI6 on-duty incident. The events that had happened on that day were a blur, all that he knew was that there was an explosion in the facility and his sister was dragging him out of there. The next thing he knew, he was on an aeroplane overlooking the city with his Gūgū (aunt) sitting next to him looking slightly upset and frantic — his sister nowhere to be seen.

While the MI6 wanted to care for the children and put them in a protective program for children who had lost their parents in the line of duty, Forty-Two’s aunt refused and took him to the City of Olympia. His aunt had made arrangements for his sister to join them, but along the way, there was some trouble, and her location was misplaced. To this day her whereabouts are unknown, though sources say that she is still in the United Kingdom.

Once they had reached his aunt’s home in North America, she sat him down and tried to explain what had happened, however, he could not make any sense of it. Not knowing what exactly he agreed to, he was taken to the PHASe building and signed up to become a Trainee — a suggestion from her so she could monitor him more frequently than not since she worked there. Being accepting into the Trainee program was easy for Forty-Two, especially with his MI6 background. In fact, many of the staff were curious about the so-called Project Tempest — one of his aunt’s fellow Architects as well as some other staff members. Due to this newfound popularity, his past experience, and his work ethic, he was able to network and build a solid reputation for himself.

That was until he was thirteen. By this point in time, it was apparent who exactly Forty-Two was. Indeed, he was quite a rebel — a rebel with a cause. For example, if PHASe had a particular concept or idea that went against his personal morals and beliefs, people would quickly find out about it. This gained him a lot of attention — for disagreeing, arguing, and having a temper with the higher-ups at PHASe. Whether it was good attention or bad, he did not care because it had no effect on his actions or opinions. However, as time went on, there was one individual that seemed to have taken a particular interest in him. While she was not an Operative and instead worked as staff, she would often try to talk to him and get him alone following the orders of-

[This file contains high-security information and is prohibited due to its classified status.]

Due to the events that had occurred the previous year, Forty-Two’s will to live began to diminish. Having dealt with the hopeless and challenging path that led to a raging sea of depression and anxiety — that would take him years to recover from — he began to have an identity crisis. In fact, the system at PHASe did not help with such matters and instead, he would often go to his aunt and ask her profound questions that he had in an attempt to get some enlightenment. At the age of fourteen, Forty-Two merely became a number — a part of the system. He was tired and could not keep his head up. Many of his mentors and those a part of the staff that knew him well, asked his aunt what had happened to the fiery-spirited pupil that they had had throughout the years. Having noticed his change in attitude, Greer Brontë decided it best for Forty-Two to disconnect from everything and everyone in order to truly find himself. As such, when he was not training or attending required classes, he would spend his days in the library. While he had done this in his spare time after attending classes, that switched dramatically. Instead, he went to classes in his spare time and would stay in the library for days if not weeks on end — soaking as much information as possible. Having learned languages from his father and aunt, he kept up his studies in those languages as well as added more to the mix. Not to mention his curiosity for anything and everything. Many of his classmates and training mates would call him a walking encyclopedia due to all the knowledge he had accumulated within such a short period of time. This, however, did not help with his identity, and he began to distance himself from everyone, including his aunt. He started to find human interaction a waste of time and hated the company of others. That was until he discovered many concepts and truths about friendship and growth some years later — thanks to Operative Fifty-Five.

In 20XX, once he had turned ???, PHASe began to prepare Forty-Two for the Phantom Epsilon Team Leader position. Having been a solo Operative for ??? years, the sudden change was not welcomed at all. Regardless, PHASe pushed him into the position — hoping that such a change would improve his rebellious attitude. However, their one mistake was that they had him lead a team full of rebels. A mistake that they would never make again. And while they considered to break up the team, their mission results were too good to ignore.

Brontë, Lev†
Forty-Two’s relationship with his father, though briefer than what it should have been, is cherished. His father told him many Celtic and Chinese tales growing up and would help his love of knowledge grow. As such, he comes alive and remembers his father through his love of learning and finds peace within the storm — a concept his father trained him and his sister to master at a young age — regardless of the type of storm he faced.

Brontë-Li, Jin Yan†
Forty-Two’s relationship with his mother, though briefer than what it should have been, is cherished. His mother told him the importance of connections — whether they were family, friends, or co-workers — and in a way, gave balance to the concepts that his father had taught him. Having come from a different Chinese background, she would tell him all the family stories and fables she knew (i.e., the importance of Yin and Yang and KuaFu) as well as Taoism concepts and teachings.

Brontë, Skyler*
Forty-Two’s relationship with his sister was much like many siblings’ relationship with each other. Some days were great, and others could have been much better. Regardless, the two were close whenever they were together. And while they had spent much time away from each other — especially after the year of 2058 — Forty-Two hold their relationship and bond very dear to heart — comparing it to quantum entanglement in which the two “never really left each other, to begin with, where two particles remain linked together regardless of the distance that separates them.” However, at the end of 2077, she does come back into to his life — saving him from a negative side-effect of Project Tempest.

Brontë, Greer
Forty-Two’s relationship with his aunt was a lifesaver since she became a mother-figure to him while he was still quite young. As such, his aunt continued to teach him the concepts that his parents had taught him, picking up where they had left off. And even though there have been many regrets shared between the two, they have grown together and have had a newfound appreciation for the way things are — continually striving to make their next day better than the day before.

Twenty
Forty-Two’s relationship with Twenty is one that is an extraordinary one to him. While entirely unexpected and unplanned, it is likely to have been fate that brought the two together. When describing his thoughts and feelings for her, he said, “She is like the sea, wild and free. I know that I could never fully explore her expanse and will most certainly become lost in her waves forever, and yet with a torn sail and a smile, I will set sail anyways… to me, she is my secret place - where my light begins. Until her, there was no forever... life is merely an endless ring of motion. as such, love is merely an endless ring of devotion.”

Forty-Nine
Forty-Two’s relationship with his teammate Forty-Nine is an interesting one. Having met in 2065 when Forty-Nine joined PHASe’s Trainee program — before Forty-Nine’s transition — and recognising their similarities in mindset and characteristics, the two became solid friends. As time passed the two shared hardships and various missions as teammates within Phantom Epsilon.

Fifty-Five
Forty-Two’s relationship with his best friend Fifty-Five has been quite a rollercoaster over the years. Having been sworn foes since the day they met, the two went through many tragic and ridiculous experiences that, in the end, tied them very tightly together. As they look back at their pasts, they can appreciate and be thankful for the present, as well as look forward to the future.

Trivia

 * The MI6 contacted him once he was eighteen and requested that he become an agent for them, but by that time, he had already joined PHASe.
 * He and his aunt got matching tattoos for his 21st birthday located on their right forearms which say “η ηρεμία πριν την καταιγίδα” (meaning: the calm before the storm).
 * His family pride is displayed through his stormy augmentations — derived from his father’s surname (Brontë) which comes from the word “βροντή” meaning thunder.
 * He can be extremely blunt, and at times with no regards to people’s feelings.
 * He is fluent in six languages (Korean, Japanese, English, Spanish, Chinese, Scottish Gaelic) with proficient knowledge in four (Latin, Greek, French, and Russian).
 * He often jokes about watching the world burn while eating ramen or fish and chips.
 * He often visits his aunt whenever he has the time to.
 * He has a dog — Xiǎo Xiǎo (小小) — that his aunt takes care of since he is too busy to.