//Bibliography\\
Name: John Preston
Occupation: Grammaton Cleric
Rank: First Class
Age: Somewhere around 30
Gender: Male
Species: Human
Sexuality: Asexual--theoretically heterosexual, but he currently has no feelings towards sex either way
Appearance: Preston is a handsome, young adult with smooth nearly flawless skin. He has dark brown hair (nearly black with gel/water) that is immaculately slicked back at all times. His eyes are a dark, but warm brown that brightens when his mood changes and sometimes appears to have green around the edges in the right lighting. His facial features are very stoic and pretty uninviting just by a simple glance. His body is well maintained and muscular due to the intense training exercises he practices for his Clerical duties. He is a very tall, almost lanky person who stands at just over six feet tall. He almost always wears his regulation black Clerical uniform that is very nondescript and practical, and yet very authoritative looking; otherwise he wears simple black or dark colored plain clothes.
Personality: John Preston is the epitome of Librian society. He feels no emotions, follows rules and regulations to an exact tee, and is respectful and obedient to his superiors at all times. He is a well trained Grammaton Cleric--the highest ranking--and acts accordingly. His movements and reactions are precise and exact and leave no room for counter, and not much else can be said for a man without emotions or feelings. However, off the Prozium of his world and able to feel emotions Preston becomes a naturally curious person. His emotions range all over the spectrum and he will try almost anything once just because it is new and different. He will try to hide his emotions as best he can though, because quite frankly he doesn’t understand them. But he is easily overwhelmed and a lot of the time they show on his face without him realizing it and/or despite his best efforts. With or without the emotion-inhibiting drug he is a very honorable, righteous, and prideful sort of person.
Abilities/Strengths: As a First Class Grammaton Cleric, Preston is the highest ranking Cleric in Libria and is therefore well trained and fully capable. The most notable quality of a Cleric is their training in the firearm-based martial art form of Gun Kata. This fighting technique reaches near mystical proportions in the eyes of anyone who knows about it and especially anyone who has ever had the honor of seeing it--without being on the receiving end of death itself. The two basic tenets of Gun Kata are: shooting the enemy as efficiently as possible, and avoiding return fire. As simplistic as it sounds, the Clerics train hard from birth to implement the techniques known only to their kind. The general principle is this though: a gun battle is a statically measured fight in which a Cleric can use certain preset forms to both provide the best angle of attack while simultaneously avoiding being hit in return. In other words, Gun Kata is the art of shooting where an enemy should be while not being where the enemy should shoot. These forms are especially effective at close range, greatly reducing the need to take time to aim, and allows the fighter to defeat foes with pre-emptive fire before the targets can pose a real threat. This is not to say that the Cleric cannot aim perfectly from a distance--he is taught all forms of firearms practices.
The Grammaton Cleric’s preferred weapon of choice is a specially made set of double pistols that can be concealed within the wrist area of the sleeves of their jackets. These pistols allow the Cleric to fight with a semi-automatic setting or a full-on automatic setting. These weapons are also equipped with a set of spikes that jut out of the butt of the grip on command that allow the user to fight with the guns as a melee weapon. Clerics can also fight proficiently with any other firearm made by man, as well as many are proficient with bladed weapons such as swords. Specifically the katana is the preferred sword of a Cleric. This may be due to the fact that many Clerics are also proficient in the martial art form of Kendo. For unarmed combat (because you never know when you’re going to run out of bullets or need to knock a gun out of someone else’s hand) many Clerics also study Judo. Preston, being of First Class rank, is highly skilled in all these techniques.
John Preston is also an intuit. In the simplest of terms an intuit is a person who can predict what another person is thinking, feeling, and/or about to do. Some people (superstitiously) believe it to be a form of mind-reading, either telepathy or empathy or both. Others (more realistically) recognize it as a type of mindset that either naturally or by intense training read the signs around them and on other people so well that they can easily predict another person’s actions and thoughts and emotions. In his Clerical training Preston honed these natural skills to a perfection, and he has never missed on picking up the signs of a sense-offender in his entire career.
Other than that, Preston has the equivalent skills of any well to-do detective. Along with the investigative skills comes the knowledge of working with computers, and while not an absolute genius, he is from the future and has had his fair share of cases involving various devices, and has at least a well-rounded proficiency. Preston also has an uncanny way of finding hidden rooms, trapdoors, and other such “hidey hole” type areas. Perhaps a part of his intuit abilities to read people, this almost sixth sense way of finding such things never fails him.
Weaknesses: Preston feels no emotions. Not happiness, not sadness, not worry, not amusement, not anger, not love. Friendship is a vestigial word for a feeling he doesn’t actually understand the full extent of, and people whom he would call such are actually more like acquaintances. Making new acquaintances is not very easy for him either, especially since being a Cleric alienates him further from the crowd. Being stoic and imposing may seem great for interrogations but it does not help in anything other than being totally unfeeling towards anything and everything. Conversely, those that are close to Preston (such as family members or career partners) can manage to get by his intuit skills for a longer time period than anyone else. Almost as if he ignores the signs in an unconscious effort to protect them from the government’s pre-assigned fate for those that break the law.
And if Preston isn’t taking his emotion-inhibitor then suddenly he is a man easily overwhelmed by the many feelings that are normal for most people. His emotions can be easily manipulated by others and he can actually be caught off guard when he is caught up too much in a particularly strong emotion. On the other hand, if forced into the ultimate rage Preston poses a real threat as he will convert back to his completely unemotional state to enter into a fight to the death.
He also has a distinct weakness for small, fluffy animals, especially cute and helpless puppies. No, he doesn’t fear them--he likes them, falls for them quite easily.
Notable Possessions: Preston comes to Econtra wearing his black Clerical uniforms, including the hidden straps around his wrists to hold his guns and one clip of ammo for each (which has a spring for easy reload). The twin pistols rest in their concealed holders, real bullets swapped for rubber, but other wise intact. The matte black pistols are specifically made for Clerics; they have two settings (semi-automatic and fully automatic), a set of spikes that extend from the butt on command for melee combat, and longer barrels and styled barrel weights for improved precision consistent with their unique technique. Otherwise they appear and function almost entirely as the Beretta 92FS handgun. It can be noted they each bare the stylized “T” symbol of the Tetragrammton engraved upon the barrel weight.
Besides that, Preston’s various pockets hold within them four extra clips of ammo (two being the unique weighted clip that allows the Cleric to throw the clips into a pre-set place for easy reloading--the weights cause the clips to stand up-right on their own accord), a Prozium injector, and a container with enough Prozium capsules to last him a full week. On his left wrist is strapped a double-faced watch made specifically for Clerics that is set to tell him exactly when to take his Prozium. At some point in time it is likely Preston will requisite a black Clerical Kendo uniform and practice bokken for training purposes, as well as possibly a dulled katana and/or various other guns for practice to keep up his plethora of fighting skills.
History: John Preston was born shortly after the city-state of Libria was created, not long after the third World War had decimated nearly everything on the planet. Mankind was on the brink of extinction and its ash-risen leaders determined the only solution was one solution: eradicate that which caused pain and war--emotions. So they did; they created Libria, with its emotion inhibiting drug Prozium, and made a peaceful, totally uniform world out of the ashes of yesteryear. But like all forms of government it had its enemies. So were born the Grammaton Clerics.
Preston was raised from birth to be a Cleric. He went to a monastery during the day for advanced learning and training in all Clerical duties, especially leaning towards his natural intuit abilities and physical prowess even at a young age. He grew up like any other child in Libria, and has never in his life felt the true meaning of any strong emotion. He became a full-blown Cleric as soon as he reached the final age restriction and quickly rose in the ranks thereafter. He married while still very young to a pretty young woman named Viviana and they had two offspring together, Robbie the elder son and Lisa the younger daughter. At some point during her time married to Preston, Viviana stopped taking her daily doses and secretly became a sense-offender. Preston did not notice until a police unit came in force to take her away for law-breaking (he at first attempted to protect his family, whether from instinct or something more) and was told the truth about her. He was startled by the news and, later, because he did not recognize the signs as he always does. He continued on without consequence to perform his Clerical duties. He was even there when she was incinerated for her crimes and did not feel a thing as she burned.
It was four years later that Preston was confronted with another, similar case in front of him. After a raid in the Nethers outside the city limits, Preston realized that his partner was secretly a sense-offender. By this point in time he had almost completely forgotten about his wife except as the bearer of his children and was still as dutiful a Cleric as always, and he did not make any connection between the two events. That he had not noticed the signs earlier did not quite register. After a brief investigation Preston followed his partner, Cleric Partridge, into the Nethers late into the evening and confronted him. Preston insisted on taking Partridge back in for processing but was forced by Partridge himself to shoot and kill his former partner on the scene. He did not feel anything.
Already assigned a new partner, by the end of the day Preston made a weary way home. He fell asleep that night with Partridge’s final words ringing in his ears, and dreamt of the day his wife was taken. He awoke the next morning and began to get ready for the day when he was taken from his home and suddenly appeared in Econtra.
Occupation: Grammaton Cleric
Rank: First Class
Age: Somewhere around 30
Gender: Male
Species: Human
Sexuality: Asexual--theoretically heterosexual, but he currently has no feelings towards sex either way
Appearance: Preston is a handsome, young adult with smooth nearly flawless skin. He has dark brown hair (nearly black with gel/water) that is immaculately slicked back at all times. His eyes are a dark, but warm brown that brightens when his mood changes and sometimes appears to have green around the edges in the right lighting. His facial features are very stoic and pretty uninviting just by a simple glance. His body is well maintained and muscular due to the intense training exercises he practices for his Clerical duties. He is a very tall, almost lanky person who stands at just over six feet tall. He almost always wears his regulation black Clerical uniform that is very nondescript and practical, and yet very authoritative looking; otherwise he wears simple black or dark colored plain clothes.
Personality: John Preston is the epitome of Librian society. He feels no emotions, follows rules and regulations to an exact tee, and is respectful and obedient to his superiors at all times. He is a well trained Grammaton Cleric--the highest ranking--and acts accordingly. His movements and reactions are precise and exact and leave no room for counter, and not much else can be said for a man without emotions or feelings. However, off the Prozium of his world and able to feel emotions Preston becomes a naturally curious person. His emotions range all over the spectrum and he will try almost anything once just because it is new and different. He will try to hide his emotions as best he can though, because quite frankly he doesn’t understand them. But he is easily overwhelmed and a lot of the time they show on his face without him realizing it and/or despite his best efforts. With or without the emotion-inhibiting drug he is a very honorable, righteous, and prideful sort of person.
Abilities/Strengths: As a First Class Grammaton Cleric, Preston is the highest ranking Cleric in Libria and is therefore well trained and fully capable. The most notable quality of a Cleric is their training in the firearm-based martial art form of Gun Kata. This fighting technique reaches near mystical proportions in the eyes of anyone who knows about it and especially anyone who has ever had the honor of seeing it--without being on the receiving end of death itself. The two basic tenets of Gun Kata are: shooting the enemy as efficiently as possible, and avoiding return fire. As simplistic as it sounds, the Clerics train hard from birth to implement the techniques known only to their kind. The general principle is this though: a gun battle is a statically measured fight in which a Cleric can use certain preset forms to both provide the best angle of attack while simultaneously avoiding being hit in return. In other words, Gun Kata is the art of shooting where an enemy should be while not being where the enemy should shoot. These forms are especially effective at close range, greatly reducing the need to take time to aim, and allows the fighter to defeat foes with pre-emptive fire before the targets can pose a real threat. This is not to say that the Cleric cannot aim perfectly from a distance--he is taught all forms of firearms practices.
The Grammaton Cleric’s preferred weapon of choice is a specially made set of double pistols that can be concealed within the wrist area of the sleeves of their jackets. These pistols allow the Cleric to fight with a semi-automatic setting or a full-on automatic setting. These weapons are also equipped with a set of spikes that jut out of the butt of the grip on command that allow the user to fight with the guns as a melee weapon. Clerics can also fight proficiently with any other firearm made by man, as well as many are proficient with bladed weapons such as swords. Specifically the katana is the preferred sword of a Cleric. This may be due to the fact that many Clerics are also proficient in the martial art form of Kendo. For unarmed combat (because you never know when you’re going to run out of bullets or need to knock a gun out of someone else’s hand) many Clerics also study Judo. Preston, being of First Class rank, is highly skilled in all these techniques.
John Preston is also an intuit. In the simplest of terms an intuit is a person who can predict what another person is thinking, feeling, and/or about to do. Some people (superstitiously) believe it to be a form of mind-reading, either telepathy or empathy or both. Others (more realistically) recognize it as a type of mindset that either naturally or by intense training read the signs around them and on other people so well that they can easily predict another person’s actions and thoughts and emotions. In his Clerical training Preston honed these natural skills to a perfection, and he has never missed on picking up the signs of a sense-offender in his entire career.
Other than that, Preston has the equivalent skills of any well to-do detective. Along with the investigative skills comes the knowledge of working with computers, and while not an absolute genius, he is from the future and has had his fair share of cases involving various devices, and has at least a well-rounded proficiency. Preston also has an uncanny way of finding hidden rooms, trapdoors, and other such “hidey hole” type areas. Perhaps a part of his intuit abilities to read people, this almost sixth sense way of finding such things never fails him.
Weaknesses: Preston feels no emotions. Not happiness, not sadness, not worry, not amusement, not anger, not love. Friendship is a vestigial word for a feeling he doesn’t actually understand the full extent of, and people whom he would call such are actually more like acquaintances. Making new acquaintances is not very easy for him either, especially since being a Cleric alienates him further from the crowd. Being stoic and imposing may seem great for interrogations but it does not help in anything other than being totally unfeeling towards anything and everything. Conversely, those that are close to Preston (such as family members or career partners) can manage to get by his intuit skills for a longer time period than anyone else. Almost as if he ignores the signs in an unconscious effort to protect them from the government’s pre-assigned fate for those that break the law.
And if Preston isn’t taking his emotion-inhibitor then suddenly he is a man easily overwhelmed by the many feelings that are normal for most people. His emotions can be easily manipulated by others and he can actually be caught off guard when he is caught up too much in a particularly strong emotion. On the other hand, if forced into the ultimate rage Preston poses a real threat as he will convert back to his completely unemotional state to enter into a fight to the death.
He also has a distinct weakness for small, fluffy animals, especially cute and helpless puppies. No, he doesn’t fear them--he likes them, falls for them quite easily.
Notable Possessions: Preston comes to Econtra wearing his black Clerical uniforms, including the hidden straps around his wrists to hold his guns and one clip of ammo for each (which has a spring for easy reload). The twin pistols rest in their concealed holders, real bullets swapped for rubber, but other wise intact. The matte black pistols are specifically made for Clerics; they have two settings (semi-automatic and fully automatic), a set of spikes that extend from the butt on command for melee combat, and longer barrels and styled barrel weights for improved precision consistent with their unique technique. Otherwise they appear and function almost entirely as the Beretta 92FS handgun. It can be noted they each bare the stylized “T” symbol of the Tetragrammton engraved upon the barrel weight.
Besides that, Preston’s various pockets hold within them four extra clips of ammo (two being the unique weighted clip that allows the Cleric to throw the clips into a pre-set place for easy reloading--the weights cause the clips to stand up-right on their own accord), a Prozium injector, and a container with enough Prozium capsules to last him a full week. On his left wrist is strapped a double-faced watch made specifically for Clerics that is set to tell him exactly when to take his Prozium. At some point in time it is likely Preston will requisite a black Clerical Kendo uniform and practice bokken for training purposes, as well as possibly a dulled katana and/or various other guns for practice to keep up his plethora of fighting skills.
History: John Preston was born shortly after the city-state of Libria was created, not long after the third World War had decimated nearly everything on the planet. Mankind was on the brink of extinction and its ash-risen leaders determined the only solution was one solution: eradicate that which caused pain and war--emotions. So they did; they created Libria, with its emotion inhibiting drug Prozium, and made a peaceful, totally uniform world out of the ashes of yesteryear. But like all forms of government it had its enemies. So were born the Grammaton Clerics.
Preston was raised from birth to be a Cleric. He went to a monastery during the day for advanced learning and training in all Clerical duties, especially leaning towards his natural intuit abilities and physical prowess even at a young age. He grew up like any other child in Libria, and has never in his life felt the true meaning of any strong emotion. He became a full-blown Cleric as soon as he reached the final age restriction and quickly rose in the ranks thereafter. He married while still very young to a pretty young woman named Viviana and they had two offspring together, Robbie the elder son and Lisa the younger daughter. At some point during her time married to Preston, Viviana stopped taking her daily doses and secretly became a sense-offender. Preston did not notice until a police unit came in force to take her away for law-breaking (he at first attempted to protect his family, whether from instinct or something more) and was told the truth about her. He was startled by the news and, later, because he did not recognize the signs as he always does. He continued on without consequence to perform his Clerical duties. He was even there when she was incinerated for her crimes and did not feel a thing as she burned.
It was four years later that Preston was confronted with another, similar case in front of him. After a raid in the Nethers outside the city limits, Preston realized that his partner was secretly a sense-offender. By this point in time he had almost completely forgotten about his wife except as the bearer of his children and was still as dutiful a Cleric as always, and he did not make any connection between the two events. That he had not noticed the signs earlier did not quite register. After a brief investigation Preston followed his partner, Cleric Partridge, into the Nethers late into the evening and confronted him. Preston insisted on taking Partridge back in for processing but was forced by Partridge himself to shoot and kill his former partner on the scene. He did not feel anything.
Already assigned a new partner, by the end of the day Preston made a weary way home. He fell asleep that night with Partridge’s final words ringing in his ears, and dreamt of the day his wife was taken. He awoke the next morning and began to get ready for the day when he was taken from his home and suddenly appeared in Econtra.