Some time in early January, I started playing a video game called Signalis.
It's like if Silent Hill, anime, Star Wars, and cosmic horror had a baby... and it's gay.
It takes place in a retrofuturistic world where humans, or as they're caleed in this game, Gestalts, and biomechanical clones of humans called Replikas coexist. The earth has colonized another solar system, and is being fought over by two powers, the Eusian Empire and the Eusian Nation. It's like Star Wars, but if the rebels were evil and the Galactic Empire were the good guys. The Nation is authoritarian dystopia for those who live under its rule.
I just had to draw all the different types of Replikas that are shown in the game. They all have all of their own unique personalities and wants and needs.
For the first page, there's the Aras, Euels, Kolibris, and Elsters.
The first one with the boat-shaped hat is the ARAR, or Ara, or Mccaw. She's a worker of the construction and repair industry, such as making industrial goods and construction working. Strong and heavy, she also knows how to construct tunnels within walls and floors, which she likes to do so she can have secret places to hide out in. Ara doesn't talk much, and she prefers to not express her emotions. She silently harshly judges those who are rude and unkind and will quietly gossip about it to her other Ara sisters. She loves taking care of plants, especially colorful flowers and trees.
The second one with the little hat is the EULR, or Eule, or Owl. She is a multipurpose worker, and does domestic tasks, like cooking, cleaning, and simple medical or office work. Elegant and lightweight, she gets along well with her other Eule sisters and most of the other types of Replikas due to how highly social she is. She is patient, and can even read the emotions on the expressionless faces of Aras. Eule has the tendency to gather in large groups of her other Eule sisters to sing and dance. She loves music, whether it's listening to music on a tape recorder, or playing an instrument. She needs to have at least one mirror in her room, because she checks up on her appearance often. She loves to keep up a tidy appearance, and regularly talk to people. Euels usually gather in groups of 10 and give each other nicknames.
The third one with the diamonds on her forehead is the KLBR, Kolibri, or Hummingbird. She and her other Kolibri sisters aid a type of Replika called the Falke. They do this by amplifying her bioresonance signals, and can produce their own. Because of her bioresonance powers, she can directly influence the minds of both Replikas and Gestalts alike, can probe people's minds, and can talk to her Kolibri sisters mentally. However, because of her bioresonance, Kolibri can be just as easily influenced by others. She can create emotional feedback loops, imitating and broadcasting her feelings to anyone near her. She is trained to not engage in this kind of behavior, as she exchanges memories and emotions with her other Kolibri sisters, and once a majority of a group of Kolibris start to go off the deep end, they will drag the rest of the group down with them. She loves to keep a library with plenty of books to read.
The fourth one with the white armor is the LSTR, or Elster, or Magpie. She is a combat engineer, working for orbital service as either a sapper or a scout. Tough, stoic, and a loner, she usually wears heavy, bullet proof white and blue armor, and has technical knowledge and combat capabilities.
On page 2 are the Mynahs, Stars, and Storches.
The first one, and the largest, is MNHR, or Mynah, or Myna. She's the biggest and strongest out of all the Replikas because she has the most armor, and high-power armor at that. She works in the most dangerous tasks such as mining, handling dangerous cargo and heavy machinery, and working in hazardous environments such as radioactive areas, crushing pressure, and places with zero gravity. She is calm and collected no matter what. Mynah is submissive and motherly, so she gets along well with most of the other types of Replikas. She loves stuffed animals, though it's not a good idea to give her stuffed cats, or else it will trigger memories of the Gestalt she was cloned from.
The second one with the black armor is STAR, or Star, or Starling. She is a security technician. With her heavy armor and long swift stride, she has a cool detached personality, and can analyze situations objectively and use force when applied. She is trained in close combat and riot control, and works best in a small squad led by an officer Star with a ballistic shield. Star is laid back, but she and her other Star sisters have an internal hierarchy. If a respected Star isn't promoted to officer, or a low-ranking Star is promoted, it will cause tension between her Star sisters. She and her sisters may also sometimes make rules in their group, and will be physically punished for breaking. Officers love to have military weapons to keep.
The third one with the lighter armor is STCR, or Storch, or Stork. She is a controller unit of security technicians. She keeps a bird's eye view on everything going on in the facility so she'll know when to direct and coordinate the security technicians. She's tough and no-nonsense, even brutal and cruel, maintaining order. Storch has a short temper, and if she isn't trained to be patient, or at least paired with an older Star to keep her in check, she will become volatile, prone to cruelty and violence. She likes showers or taking baths, and loves reading books about history or mythology.
And on page 3, there's the Alders, Falkes, and a bonus doodle of the two main characters.
The first one, and only male is Adler. He works as an administrator. Each facility has just one Adler, so he alone can manage all the administrative tasks for an entire facility. He's the counterpart and assistant for the Falke, so he can take care of all the paperwork and calculations. Adler works best alone, and doesn't get along with his other Adler brothers. However, he'll become dependent with his Falke partner on an emotional level. One with bioresonance powers can control him fairly easily. He easily gets bored, and often needs new possessions to stay happy.
The second one with the halo is Falke. She works as the commander and leader of the Replikas. A superweapon, she is the security chief and a figure of authority never to be questioned. She has bioresonance powers that let her control weak-minded people, read their emotions and intentions mentally, and even pick up objects with her mind from a short distance. She looks similar to the leaders of the Eusian Nation, that being the Great Revolutionary and her daughter.
And finally, a bonus drawing of the main character that we play as, an Elster Replika, and her partner, a Gestalt named Ariane.
One of the jobs Elsters have is working as technicians on the spaceships of the Penrose Program. It's where cheap spaceships are launched into space so they can find and colonize planets for the Eusian Nation. There are only two people on the ship; a gestalt who pilots the ship, and an Elster replika who is the ship's technician. One ship, the Penrose-512, had the gestalt pilot, Ariane Yeong, and the ship technician, LSTR-512. Elsters are chosen for this line of work because of how reliable and how well they can adapt to being isolated for so long. They are stoic, reserved, and have basic needs. And this particular Elster is no exception to this. Ariane was told to leave the Elster alone and interact with her as little as possible, and when she did interact, to not talk about the war. She was also told not to show the Elster photographs, especially of soldiers during the war, or else it would trigger memories of the gestalt she was cloned from; to let her listen to music, watch movies, or try to befriend her.
However, Ariane became friends with Elster. They would watch whatever movies they had, most of them being either war films or propaganda dramas, and would dance to music together. Elster doesn't like war movies, and they would watch a certain movie many times. Ariane not only befriended Elster... she fell in love with her. And Elster loved her in return.
But one day, Elster wakes up to find their ship having crash landed on one of the planets in the solar system they came from, the snowy planet of Leng... and Ariane missing. She finds herself in the mining facility of S-23 Sierpinski, which is plagued by a mysterious illness. But as she explores deeper into the facility and the mines, she learns that this is not a normal disease, and that there's something supernatural at play.
