Post by Deleted on Jan 12, 2016 19:11:38 GMT
[PTabbedContent][PTab=GENERAL INFORMATION] CHARACTER INFO: NAME: Maria Hill ALIAS: AGE: 33 OCCUPATION: Deputy Director, SHIELD MEMBER GROUP: SHIELD POWERS AND ABILITIES: No supernatural/superhuman abilities PLAYBY: Cobie Smulders OOC INFO: PLAYER NAME: Jo AGE: Mid thirties GENDER: Female TIMEZONE: UK OTHER CHARACTERS: Barney Barton, Jason Doyle [/PTab][PTab=PERSONNEL ASSESSMENT] PERSONALITY ASSESSMENT: LIKES: 1. Order. But not in a creepy, iron your underpants type of way. 'Natural' order, when things just fall into place because someone has given it the correct level of thought rather than rely on other people, luck, invisible creators or whatever else turns up. It might be unrealistic to expect it anywhere else but everyone should have a little area where the shit of the world can be scraped off before heading back into the breach. 2. Tailoring and quality. Not that there's ever much time for it but where you can, grab it with both hands. For day to day life there's always expensive lingerie, which almost goes back to point 1's lack of ironing. You can't iron quality. 3. Work – or at least using time for a purpose. Twiddling thumbs is not an option, unless said twiddling would achieve a presumably peculiar sort of goal. Saying that, many things have a purpose; games hone the senses and strategy, books expand the mind, and cooking ensures direct control over nutrients (or at least knowledge of when an application of frosting would be appropriate, normally when it's an alternative to killing someone who is Technically On Your Side) 4. Music. Preferably loud with a good beat and probably with lyrics that have an obsession with violence and whatever seemed a good idea at the time. Everyone has to let off steam once in a while - although no dancing. Despite what 2 Unlimited would have you believe, yes, there is a limit. 5. Tetris. Annoying. Addictive. Little tune that burrows into the skull like a worm into an apple. Not to be admitted to anyone under pain of death (ideally someone else's) 6. Gadgets, especially unusual ones that bring new life to old technologies or provide a new use for tools (or jet-packs). Tinkering around with parts and machinery works in a number of ways, not least because it's fundamentally logical. You can't persuade a machine to do something by fluttering eyelashes, you have get your hands dirty and do it right. And it's kinda cute when it beeps. See? How cute is that. DISLIKES: 1. “Wacky Time Wasting Nonsense”. Seriously. Get out. 2. Fried chicken in any shape whatsoever, regardless of what's smeared over it. It's not food, it never will be food, it's just a strange set of circumstances that attempt to make your stomach believe that it's received something it can actually use. You've already killed the damned chicken, you don't need to torture it as well. 3. Rebellions with no clear purpose. Use anything to achieve the right ends but you have to have an end to fight for. Wanting a particular uniform and being able to sulk in corners is not a valid reason, although teenagers get slight leeway depending how damned irritating they're being at the time. 4. Bullies - genuine ones, not simply people who are loud and brash and think that diplomacy is a card game. The sort of bullies that know exactly what they're doing and how to apply it and attempt to grind people down not for a misguided reason but because they find it enjoyable. Can be found in any rank or field of life or age or social group, the collective noun being 'assholes'. 5. Reporters. Untrustworthy, dangerous and seem to be like cockroaches in that they're always around and pretty damned indestructible. Where there's one, there's thousands, selling secrets. Bastards. STRENGTHS: 1. Strength of belief. Not in any god or supernatural element. Not even in anything physical, because physical things presumably don't need the help. No. Belief in a decision and what needs to be done, because sometimes it's just you and despite the fact that anything would be better, it still needs to be done. This leads into: (a) Methodical/Efficient - There's no point in doing anything unless you achieve what you set out to do, not least because whatever was left has a high chance of coming back to bite you on the ass. Don't be less efficient than your enemies, have a bit of pride for god's sake. (b) Leadership – The ability to get people to do what the hell you want them to do at the right time. This is not an easy feat. People get scared, people are stubborn, people don't want to see a bigger picture or sometimes there's genuinely no evidence to say which choice is right but you have to pick something. It's like being a parent in a way; you guide and you teach and you save and it doesn't matter if they don't like you at the end because they're still around to be hate you. Knowing how to apply carrot, stick or a mixture of the two can be vital. Knowing when to step down is also important. 2. Trained SHIELD Agent. Excellent shot, technically savvie, trained in espionage and hand to hand fighting, combat experience in a range of different locations. Has experience in leadership and organisation, and a good in depth knowledge of SHIELD. All, on the whole, a rounded agent with both the knowledge of when to apply elements and also when to call in reinforcements. WEAKNESSES: 1. Mild OCD – or at least 'controllable', although it never feels that way at the time. A crooked picture frame can be left but it will certainly miraculously be straightened overnight otherwise it niggles away over time. 2. Can be seen to be unapproachable. This is usually a problem for anyone new or already of a nervous disposition, close colleagues will be aware that she is genuinely willing to listen and help at a moment's notice. On the plus side it does mean that people really, really think about whether interrupting during a rare quiet dinner is a good idea. (hint: it's not). 3. Insomniac/Workaholic. Gets by on a limited amount of hours sleep and has been known to sleep at the desk depending on the current mission. 4. Stubborn – or at least half a weakness, anyway. Stubborn to a point, although not so far as to be blind to the truth if it happens to alter the known situation. This may not be graciously acknowledged. GOALS: *Carry on* whatever happens, even if it's just you left standing, because someone has to. Situations change, people come and go, and sometimes it's difficult to see a final solution or even just some way it could improve, but there has to be something. At this point in time it's to ensure that the fundamental intention of SHIELD – to protect the world, and okay that's always going to sound over-dramatic but whatever – will survive in some form FEARS: Mind Control, especially wariness toward mutants with that type of power. Since mutants cannot control which powers they possess this fear is surrounded by a level of guilt – no one should be blamed for what they cannot help – but overall this is a viewpoint she cannot shake. Telepaths are also viewed with suspicion. OVERALL PERSONALITY: In the early years there was a need to find approval. There were plenty of people who told her what she should be doing, what to work for, to improve over and over again because nothing was ever good enough or quick enough or whatever. There were plenty of people who used her abilities to further their own aims, not even because of any hostility toward her but simply like a tool. Nothing personal. And then when she was in her mid twenties she decided to make it personal. Work was a saviour, a structure in a complex world that had a nice, neat logical manner to it. You proved yourself and you dug your claws in whenever someone wanted to shake you off. She'd fought for control and she had won it and she was damned if she was going to give it up again for whatever reason. Being an ass for the sake of being an ass was right out, but patience was overrated. This wasn't a damned nursery and if people were going to get bent out of shape about being told that then they're were clearly in the wrong line of work. Of course, those were all the dramatic bits. The less dramatic bits – or at least the parts that didn't need their own soundtrack - had their own thing, when shit calms down enough for her to eat a sandwich, read a book, attend a party, or try out a particularly nice pair of shoes. She'd attempted romance at certain points, or at least something vaguely resembling romance but found she was never particularly good at it; it was a little like someone unfamiliar with children being passed a baby and holding it out at arms length despite being vaguely fond of it. In the end work tended to be easier, and certainly bore less of a grudge if you happened to be late to some fancy dinner. And then there was humour which could be found even in the dark, because Dark and Dangerous is often so damned serious and sanctimonious and there's something satisfying in being able to look at something like that in the eye – or claw, or tentacle or whatever the hell that was supposed to be – and not let it get you down. A one liner here, an amused comment there, it's all just another little step at proving that whatever the hell it is, it hasn't won yet. Of course sometimes it's just funny to get that expression on people's faces, but that's classified information. And sometimes you have to be dedicated enough to be prepared to lay down your life for people you care about and for situations that call for it. For ease that's classified as well, otherwise the situation gets all emotional and there's only so much a person can reasonably take without being put off their lunch. Stand strong. Help people. And don't back down. HISTORICAL OVERVIEW: BIRTHPLACE: Chicago, Illinois RESIDENCE: Owns an apartment in Georgetown, New York. Mostly sleeps wherever the work is. PARENTS: Peter Graham Hill – father Loretta Hill – mother (deceased) SIBLINGS: None IMPORTANT RELATIVES: N/A IMPORTANT PERSON: Phil Coulson.- Friend. Colleague. Occasionally the only sane man on the damned boat. Has a bond that she can't quite pin-point but pushes him into the level of someone she finds relaxing to be around. OVERALL HISTORY: In the beginning things were generally shit, and it took a damned long time before things started to improve. Her mother died soon after she was born, and her father never truly forgave her for this. Growing up was a trial, constantly trying to make up for a situation she barely knew about and couldn't resolve even if she could, finding escape in knowledge and learning and the silence of the library. Unfortunately that escape wasn't flawless. With her father dominating her childhood, her academic ability was marred by an increasingly suspicious and resentful social life which culminated in a violent fight with a group of older students who had spent much of the last few months harassing her whenever possible. When she had to be dragged from one of them, a brief but violent meeting between her fist and a teacher's nose sealed the deal on her expulsion. Still, even this hiccup on the road wasn't enough to deter her. Having finally found a new school and despite the upheaval she gained good results due to a genuine appetite for learning, stubbornly deciding that she would enter the army as soon as she was of age and despite persuasion to the contrary. Truth be told, the army wasn't much better than the abuse of her father but instead of brief and unpredictable outbursts it instead had strict rules and regulations that remained the same regardless of what happened. As a result she paid attention to them, ensuring she knew them all by heart and able to use and deflect issues by a careful application. Within a few years she had entered into the Marines and from there into SHIELD itself. Rising within the ranks and deliberately choosing the most dangerous and varied assignments she could find, she was following a general pattern for a good solid career when her posting in Madripoor brought her to the attention of the higher levels of SHIELD. For good reason, too. Madripoor had always been a mess, a small remote outpost in a volatile land that had always privately resented their involvement. As a small nation that had a solid history of piracy, its refusal to extradite criminals and its corruption interwoven with the government, it was often a challenge simply to keep the status quo. All roads might lead to Rome but all dubious deals eventually led to Madripoor, and therefore the outpost had kept its carefully balanced, god near pointless existence keeping an eye on the situation and yet having little power to tackle anything. And there was an incident. Ordinarily that was nothing new, there were always incidents on Madripoor. However this one proved a little harder to resolve without intervention from outside, a situation that promised to backfire regardless of how they tackled it. Having stepped out of his jurisdiction and offended some of the larger families the commanding officer vanished along with several agents, leaving behind a leadership vacuum, the remainder of an increasingly nervous unit and a hostile government that were determined to use what they maintained was an illegal attack by SHIELD as a method of removing SHIELD's presence on the island. Having studied Madripoor at length and with several good unit assignments under her belt, Hill was stationed as acting commander as a temporary measure to avoid the whole structure breaking down while a more experienced commander was sought As it turned out, the position was beneficial to all concerned. Within a week, Hill had identified the situation, returning confidence within the agents that remained and successfully resolving the issue by investigating and isolating an individual group directly responsible and ensuring that the PR was such that the government was appeased. At the same time she delegated individual tasks to suitable agents in order to stabilise and support the main assignment, successfully locating the previous commanding officer (much to her surprise he wasn't dead, but you had to go with bonuses where you found them) and emphasising the government's support and assistance in the successful conclusion to an increasingly interested world media. Placated and pleased with the legitimacy and the associated benefits that came with it, the government cautiously began to commit more to support SHIELD's work in order to enhance the positive viewpoint now held by many countries. Having come to an outpost where the only thing expected was to get by one day at a time and resolve whatever local issue showed up, Madripoor was established as a working, solid base, able to tackle and alleviate growing issues in the area until the base was an assurance rather than simply clinging on for dear life. Although this situation had mostly evolved rather than a result of careful planning – something that privately she found exasperating – it was viewed as an excellent example of integration within a hostile environment. It wasn't her last role before being taken on as Deputy Director of SHIELD but it was one of the most influential and was used as an example of her ability, a factor that was essential given her direct leadership experience was limited and her previous ranking was low. The promotion was unexpected,however. Despite being pleased she remained suspicious that she had gained one of the most prestigious roles over all other candidates – and there had been plenty – not because of a genuine belief in her ability but that they viewed her either more likely to fail or be malleable should SHIELD ever change their mind in their support for the programme. Fury's belief in her was one thing; that a group of bureaucrats looked at gut feeling rather than a nice, neat checklist of achievements was laughable. Since that point she has acted as Fury's right hand agent, keeping a steady hand on the wheel – occasionally literally – ensuring that the organisation itself continues to run smoothly whilst the new initiatives and programs slowly establish themselves. [/PTab][PTab=IMAGE][/PTab][/PTabbedContent={width:485px;border:0px;margin-left:-2px;}] |