Alexander Cross is a player character played by SUBLIMEinal.

Height: 6'5” Mass: 240

Build and Skin Color: Big, tough-looking older man with a rather rugged build.

Facial Features and Eye Color: Pale skin with a rough complexion. Thick, mostly silver goatee. Stern, very light green eyes.

Hair Color and Style: Originally dark brown, now mostly silver. Cut in a buzzcut.

Distinguishing Features: Almost always has a cigar. Both eyes are cybernetic, although very well concealed.

Personality: Cross is a career soldier, and he certainly acts like it. He's often strict, by-the-book, and tough. Except when he's alone, which is when he finds it perfectly acceptable to “cut loose”, as it were. This is his way of describing behavioral episodes bordering on neurotic. Although perfectly presentable to his superiors and subordinates, he is very deeply frustrated by a number of very small, petty things that most anyone would brush off. Luckily, he is able to keep this unnoticeable to most, except for the occasional odd move to fix something that's driving him insane. Or the occasional eye twitch or unusual spoken mixup.

Cross also suffers from an irrational fear of fluoridated or otherwise chemically altered water. He believes they corrupt his body, and as such will not touch any water but his own specially purified flask. Oddly enough, he has no such compunctions about drugs or alcoholic beverages.

Alex is also liable to fly into a rage in the event either of his families is brought up in conversation, and will refuse to talk about them.

Likes: Cigars, feeling smart, cleanliness, strong Nepleslian whiskey, weapons Dislikes: Fluoridated water, disobedient subordinates, leaking faucets, anything closer than an inch from the edge of a table, any munitions stockpile with an inventory that adds up to an odd number, a shirt that's not quite tucked in right, unclean hands etc. Goals: Promotion, retiring somewhere with very, very clean white walls.

Alexander was born Phoenix Sunrise Cross in YE -10 to Anastasia Bumblebee and Leopard Velvet Cross on a Rok'Veru commune. Although his parents began educating him in their rather peculiar hippie ways from birth, it quickly came to an end when the marriage deteriorated amongst drug use and fighting (primarily over just how much of the commune's sexual freedom should be taken advantage of). Alex was kept with his mother, although that also ended when several agents of the government at the time decided that such a place was probably none too good for a developing child.

Following being taken from the Rok'Veru commune, Alexander, then still only a child, was taken to an orphanage, where he was adopted by a middle-class couple with very upper class tastes. They were fully bankrupt within a year of adopting him, at which point the father took to petty theft and being a birthday clown for local children, often both at the same time. The mother took to substance abuse and unconsciousness. As the general anomie of the situation certainly was noticed by Alex, he did his best to ignore it, although it's during this point that he developed some of his more curious behavioral quirks. However, he was able to make it through, graduating from a nearby military academy at age 22, and getting his name changed from its rather hilarious form to the current Alexander.

Following his graduation, Alex entered the military with a commission to 1st Lieutenant. He served honorably in this position for many years, although did take a leave of absence from the years YE 25 through 28, when he was called back into service in the fledgling Nepleslian Star Army. During the military restructuring that took place with the government change to the DIoN, Alexander, although also an accomplished footsoldier, decided to stay on with the Navy, gaining a command position in the 2nd Assault Fleet over a certain squadron in the Battlegroup Ball and Chain…

Alexander can understand and give out tactical commands and work with his troop to follow those commands efficiently. He knows the importance of teamwork on the battlefield, has been intensively trained in discipline and morale, and is able to recognize the command structure even while under extreme pressure (combat, etc). Cross is able to recognize ambush points. He knows basic math in order to calculate distances, etc, and can use a tactical map. Cross is also knowledgeable in orchestrating and executing naval operations.

Cross received intensive hand-to-hand combat training (primarily focused on disabling and/or killing opponents) and has followed up that knowledge with a rigorous training program. Weapons he is trained in include pistols of all types, knives, grenades (and other forms of explosive weaponry) and rifles of all kinds. He is in excellent physical shape and has considerable endurance. Alex is also able to pilot land-based power armors, but must rely on the suit’s A.I. to do anything advanced.

Alexander is familiar with basic radio operation and procedures and can make transmissions to and receive transmissions from other characters through headsets, ships, ground vehicles, power armor, and shuttles in both combat and non-combat conditions. He is fluent in Nepleslian. He can speak and write it correctly and efficiently and can write reports, fill forms, issue orders under fire, etc. Cross is skilled in field communications and is proficient in all rudimentary forms of communication (hand signals, flashing lights, etc).

Cross is well-versed in the operation of most SMoDIN warships of Destroyer and gunship designations, and is an able manual pilot, although he does require the AI's assistance for more advanced maneuvers, especially in gravity wells. He has a lot of trouble when it comes to controlling capital ships, however, and requires a good crew and a good AI to be effective.

Alex knows how to survive in hostile environments. He can build shelters, hunt and forage for food, build a fire, etc. He can camouflage himself and is familiar with guerrilla warfare tactics, but he was able to do it much better when he was a more frequent groundpounder.

Cross has picked up a couple tricks throughout his military career when it comes to maintenance, especially of Nepleslia's distinctive technology. While he certainly is no replacement for a repair crew, he's adept at making “good enough” repairs and patch-up jobs for not-so-destroyed pieces of equipment, such as ship systems and Powered Armor.

Cross is a major neatfreak, and although he would die long before showing another military man, he is extremely good at making a mess disappear.

• SMoDIN Navy Standard Issue
• Soap. Lots of soap.
• Sterilized Hip Flask
• Water purifier
• Hand-held vacuum cleaner