Machinator Epicus
Machinator Epicus is the pseudonym of Olympian engineer Marcus Flavius Leo, currently the chief technician at the Tiwaz Tauri Dyson Swarm. Having used a combination of guile, connections, and opportunity to be hired for his current job, Marcus maintains the (low) running efficiency of the swarm, producing barely enough energy to power a single city.
| Marcus Flavius Leo | |
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| Employee at Mjölnir Energy | |
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251 UC - present (2891 AD - present)
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| Posting | posting |
| Role |
"Chief Technician" (de jure) Con artist (de facto) |
| Personal info | |
| Born | 231 UC (2871 AD) |
| Political Party | Liberal Party |
| Father | Lucius Flavius Leo |
| Mother | Valeria Flavia |
Early life
Marcus Flavius Leo was born in 231 UC (2871 AD) to his parents Lucius Flavius Leo and Valeria Flavia; both were members of Olympia's old senatorial elite. Very social in his youth, Marcus took up the nickname Epicus early on in his childhood. He was one of the most popular students in the grammarium, though this did nothing to improve his grades, as he consistently received Deltas and Epsilons on his report card, with the occasional Gamma.
Using his youthful charm, Marcus was able to make significant profit by selling useless trinkets to his peers, convincing them that they're ancient historical relics or have special, mystical or technological properties.
Education
His parents were apathetic to Marcus's academic struggles; indeed, they can hardly be called struggles, since Marcus didn't care either. At age 15, he dropped out of the Grammarium, remaining in his parents' home for a year, before his father used political connections to send Marcus to Pharsalus World University in Calibor. There, Marcus studied sociology and psychology, eventually graduating in 251 UC (2891 AD).
Career
During the final months of his university education, Marcus noticed what was going on in the Tiwaz Tauri star system: the Mjölnir Energy corporation, having recently been contracted to manage the Dyson swarm, was looking for an engineer to repair and operate the swarm. Marcus asked for a favor from his father, requesting letters of recommendation from various political connections to help Marcus apply for the opening.
As he proceeded through the interview process, it became plainly obvious that Marcus has no knowledge or expertise in the field of void engineering, but no one was allowed to reject him due to political pressure from Lucius. Eventually, Marcus was hired and posted at Tiwaz Tauri. For a few months, Marcus was left to manage the secondary control station himself (since the Vestigium activated an ancient Prodroman security system in the primary control station when they evacuated), but eventually Mjölnir Energy posted another engineer to assist Marcus.
Igor Reznov is a member of the charity group Servants of God, and the assistant chief technician at Tiwaz Tauri. Aware of the purpose of the Dyson swarm, Reznov is intentionally keeping Marcus, as well as the Mechyrdian government, in the dark about the process of operating or improving the efficiency of the swarm. Reznov realizes how dangerous it was that Ilya Korochenko's Vestigium forces came so close to activating the Megiddo superweapon, and wants to prevent the Mechyrdian military from doing the same.
Personality
Marcus is full of himself; seeking only to preserve his income and reputation, he has no issues with taking a position that he's completely unqualified for. He earnestly believes that he can operate the Dyson swarm without any technical skills. While his seeming ability to manipulate people would make him dangerous, his complete lack of intelligence prevents him from actually being a threat to anyone. While Marcus believes that he's the most respected and indispensible person at Tiwaz Tauri, none of his subordinate engineers, Reznov especially, have any respect for him, nor does any of the Mechyrdian military presence posted at the swarm to prevent Diadochi raids or a Vestigium counterattack.
However, he is still a shrewd rhetorician, who has managed to convince the higher-ups at Mjölnir Energy that his presence is vital to the operations at Tiwaz Tauri, despite the fact that he has done nothing to repair any of the collection orbiters, deactivate the security systems in the primary control station, or circumvent the digital lockout in the computer mainframe. His ability to manipulate people is probably the only thing keeping him from being fired.
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