Cyrus

Personality

Cyrus struggles to understand emotions, so she comes across as very cold and sharp, however she is actually a very considerate and approachable person. She tries her best to learn what it means to "be human", so she is very perceptive of other people, especially regarding body language and facial expressions. She also tries her best to be accommodating of other people because she knows that she can be very intimidating, but this often leads to a lot of misunderstandings on both sides.

Cyrus also struggles with making decisions between right and wrong, especially concerning moral and ethical decisions. There are many moments where she can come across as extremely ruthless and desensitized; she doesn't mean to be, it's just that she doesn't understand the weight of these decisions. She has the ability, and will, to kill whenever she deems necessary. She can be extremely terrifying when set on a goal and will disregard her own safety in order to achieve it, no matter how dangerous it may be. Because of this, she gets damaged fairly often, much to the dismay of Zero and Jade. 

Despite all her struggles, Cyrus continues to do her best in learning and understanding emotions, and over the course of the story she gets better at expressing herself and being more open. 

History

backstory

Prior to the start of the story, Cyrus lived with her creator Dr. Stephens in Central-118. Dr. Stephens had been working on creating Cyrus for four years with much difficulty due to the government's constant interference, causing him to move operations multiple times to avoid capture. However, he was finally able to finish her production and the two lived in a hidden location within the City for about a year. Eventually, their location was compromised and while trying to escape, Dr. Stephens sacrificed himself to save Cyrus. Cyrus was able to escape to the Slums with the help of Dr. Stephens's apprentice, Nathan, who brought her to Jade's Workshop as previously planned by Dr. Stephens. 

Cyrus's stay at the Workshop was meant to be temporary while Nathan redirected the government's attention away from her and set up a new safehold for her in the City. However, Cyrus refused to return to the City after her creator's death. With no other options, Nathan and Jade agreed it would be best for Cyrus if she stayed in the Slums with Jade for the foreseeable future. 

The first few weeks with Jade was rough for Cyrus. She was suffering from intense grief and despair after her creator's death, which she didn't really understand, and for the first time she was entirely on her own. She was lost and confused and didn't know what to do with herself since she always had someone else guiding her. She shutdown emotionally and refused to talk or respond to anyone. Jade struggled to help Cyrus with her grief, with many of her attempts at talking to Cyrus falling on deaf ears. Jade eventually got the idea to bring Cyrus on one of her android collections runs to hopefully take her mind off her creator's death. This experience actually ended up being extremely transformative for Cyrus, since it showed her the harsh reality that androids experience in day to day life -being trashed, abandoned, scrapped, and destroyed simply for existing- and the efforts that someone like Jade will go to in order to make the world a better place for them. After finding an android that was intact enough to repair, Jade brought it back to her Workshop to fix up. Cyrus assisted Jade in repairing the android, albeit Jade was doing most of the work. 

After finishing the repairs, Cyrus and Jade had a heart to heart, with Cyrus opening up about how her creator's death affected her and her confusion at these newfound emotions she was experiencing. Jade gave Cyrus some words of encouragement and reassured that over time she will learn to heal and move on. From then on, Cyrus began to open up more and took on a support role in Jade's Trade Network before taking on her own tasks as well. 

Present

Currently, Cyrus works as a Vigilante in the Slums. She mainly helps locals with jobs such as delivering goods, collecting payments, solving disputes, menial tasks, etc. Cyrus has also taken up some work with Jade in her Trade Network, assisting there when she can. The biggest job Cyrus takes up within Jade's Trade Network is intercepting government android deliveries, government data, and good transports. 

Cyrus also occasionally visits Lily, accompanying Jade whenever she has work or meetings with Lily's creator. Cyrus and Lily hang out with each other while waiting for the meetings to finish. Lily also will teach Cyrus about "being human" and help with whatever is on Cyrus's mind. 

When Cyrus and Jade eventually find Zero, Cyrus suggests they take her in to help her recover her lost memories. While it's not her main goal and Zero constantly tells her she doesn't have to, Cyrus tries to find any information she can about Zero's past. 

Equipment

Cigarettes

Cyrus always carries her specially made cigarettes with her wherever she goes. During her construction, Cyrus's cooling system malfunctioned and Dr. Stephens did not have access to the necessary parts to repair it before his death. Because of this, Cyrus often shut down due to overheating. Unable to repair the cooling system herself, Jade created faux cigarettes for Cyrus to smoke whenever she starts overheating. 

The cigarettes are entirely mechanical and when inhaled produced a cold vapor that cools down Cyrus's internal machines. Cyrus then exhales the remaining vapor, which mimics the smoke exhaled when smoking an actual cigarette. The cigarettes are good for a couple of uses before they need to be refilled, so she always keeps an entire pack on hand and burns through a couple before getting them refilled.

Cyrus does not need to use the cigarettes regularly, only in situations when she is in danger of extreme overheating such as when she is fighting, running, etc. Most of the time, Cyrus is able to regulate the temperature of her internal system through her "breathing" (much like when we sharply inhale, cold air comes in). 

Guns

Cyrus owns a pair of pistols which she found one day during a collection run. The pistols were extremely run down, however Jade was able to repair and make modifications to them. The pistols shoots bullets made of pure light, and deal quite a bit of damage, especially at close range. Cyrus typically only uses one at a time, but in some situations she will use both. 

Cyrus takes extra special care of the pistols and whenever she isn't using them she displays them in her room. 

Talents and Abilities

Observational Skills

Cyrus has exceptional observation skills. She is a visual leaner, so she spends a lot of time observing people and their behavior to learn more about body language and facial expressions. Because of this, Cyrus is extremely aware of whenever someone is in emotional distress, however she doesn't really know how to assist that person. 

Her observational skills also help her in combat. Cyrus is able to practically predict her opponents next move by reading their body language, making it extremely difficult to gain the upper hand while fighting her. However, her observational skills are most effective when she can create distance between her and her opponent. While up-close, Cyrus needs to rely more on her reflexes as it is harder for her to discern her opponents next move. 

Combat Skills

As an android, Cyrus has enhanced strength, endurance, and durability. She is also an exceptional marksman, being able to wield a number of different guns with her dual pistols being her favorite. She has average close combat capabilities, so she doesn't engaged in hand-to-hand combat very often. However, her sheer strength makes her quite formidable despite her lack of skill. 

Cyrus also has a number of abilities only held by androids such as thermal vision, night vision, object scanners, access to information databases, etc. 

Many of her other abilities remain hidden for the time being. 

Jade

Cyrus and Jade arguable have the closest relationship within the story. Jade has been a form of support for Cyrus on multiple different levels and Cyrus in turn does the same.

Jade first learned of Cyrus's existence from her creator. She was surprised to learn that another autonomous android such as herself was being developed and was more than excited to meet her. However, the likelihood of that happening  at the time was very slim. It wasn't until years later when Cyrus was officially built that Jade would ever get the chance to meet her. Dr. Stephens contacted Jade asking if she would be willing to house Cyrus should anything go wrong in the city (this would've been something Dr. Stephens would ask Jade's creator, but she had already passed away). Jade happily agreed to this proposal.

They finally met when Nathan brought Cyrus to the Workshop shortly after Dr. Stephens's death. Cyrus was in a depressive state and was unresponsive to anyone. It was obvious to Jade that she had experienced immense trauma and grief from her creator's passing. Jade tried her absolute best during this time to support and help Cyrus through her suffering, but most of her attempts fell on deaf ears. Jade decided it was best if she tried to distract Cyrus from her creator's death for the time being; just until she was able to address it properly. She brought Cyrus along during one of her collection runs. During the run, they found an abandoned android and brought it back to the Workshop to repair. Cyrus was disturbed by the fact that androids are treated so horribly, however she was amazed by Jade's determination and tenacity to repair them and give them a second chance at life. 

After repairing the android, Cyrus approached Jade asking if she would be able to "fix" her as well. Jade was confused by this question and asked what she meant, to which Cyrus explained that over the past week she has been experiencing something she never felt before. A feeling that was lingering and that no matter what she did she couldn't move past it. Cyrus explained it's been present ever since her creator's death and believes that during the escape she got damaged. Jade quickly realized that Cyrus was referring to the grief she was experiencing; Cyrus just didn't know what grief was. Jade took her time to carefully explain grief in terms that Cyrus would understand, carefully addressing the pain Cyrus felt and letting her know that while it may take a while to heal, she would be there to help her through it.

Ever since the heart to heart the two had, they have grown extremely close. The bond they share is deep and they are willing to do practically anything for each other, much to the dismay of the other at times. They do argue sometimes, but it is often in good faith as they are concerned for each other's safety. While they both have difficulty opening up to other people, it is not something they struggle with between each other. They both can be very honest with each other; even if they may not fully understand the extent of what the other is experiencing; they are still more than willing to listen and offer support. 

Cyrus is grateful to have met Jade. She truly does not know where she would be or what would've happened to her if she agreed to go back to the city following Dr. Stephens's death. Cyrus not only appreciates everything that Jade has taught her, but also the amount of support and care she has given her despite her inability to express her gratitude. Cyrus often wonders if she will ever be able to repay everything that Jade has done for her, but she hopes that one day she can.  

Zero

Cyrus was sympathetic towards Zero when the two first met. Being an autonomous android with nowhere left to go, Cyrus felt she could relate to Zero's situation on a personal level, and suggested that Zero stay with them for the time being.

The two have since formed a close friendship and hold high respect towards each other. Cyrus finds it admirable that despite having lost everything, Zero does her best to be optimistic about her current situation (unlike Cyrus, who shut herself down after losing her creator). Not only this, but Zero's determination and work ethic have been extremely helpful to both Cyrus and Jade, so she is appreciative of Zero's abilities. 

Cyrus thinks Zero is a little odd, as she is a lot more clumsy than most people she has met or interacted with, but she finds this to be one of Zero's charms. The two often hang out and mess around; whenever Cyrus is with Zero she loosens up and acts a little more childish. Much like with Jade, Cyrus feels like she can be open around Zero, her comforting and caring nature makes Cyrus feel at ease. While she isn't as close with Zero compared to Jade, Cyrus still values her friendship with Zero immensely and considers her one of her closest friends.  

Dr. Stephens

Dr. Stephens is Cyrus's creator, so in a way he is like a father to her. Cyrus never really understood what the difference between a "father" and "creator" was until after his death. 

While he was alive, Cyrus acted rather cold towards Dr. Stephens, mainly because she didn't understand the idea of affection. Despite this, Dr. Stephens still treated Cyrus with great love and care and would do anything for her. He spent all the time he could with Cyrus, teaching her about the modern world, human emotions and concepts, and teaching her what he knew as a roboticist. She enjoyed learning with him, but never understood why he would put so much effort into her. Still, Cyrus played along and the two formed a close familial bond.

The most important thing to Dr. Stephens was that Cyrus would not be confined by the world's laws against androids. He wanted Cyrus to be able to live freely as her own person; for her to make her own decisions and not have to worry that she could be hunted down at any moment. Dr. Stephens dedicated most of his time to preparing safe holds and emergency plans incase either of then were hunted down by the government. 

After his assassination, Cyrus came to understand the sheer amount of love Dr. Stephens had towards her, and she came to regret her cold nature and inability to comprehend his love before his death. Cyrus remained in a depressive state for a few weeks post assassination; not talking or responding to anyone at all. Even after moving in with Jade, she was still unresponsive. It wasn't until Jade took Cyrus on one of her collections runs that she would open up about her grief regarding Dr. Stephens's death. 

Cyrus has seemingly moved on from his death in some capacity. She holds the memories of their time together dear and her current work is done for his sake. She hopes to grow and develop into the person that he wanted her to be. 

Lily

When they first met, Cyrus was shocked to see how well adapted Lily was at "being human." Her innate ability to perceive expressions, understand emotions, and even understand social cues truly set her apart from Cyrus despite them being close in age (creation wise). Because of this, Cyrus was actually hesitant to speak to Lily at first, yet Lily took quick note of this and helped break the ice between them.

Cyrus often gets pulled around by Lily; getting dragged into playing with her, gossiping about random things, and even trying to meddle into Cyrus and Jade's relationship. Cyrus enjoys Lily's company, and often goes along with her antics, though mostly because she doesn't really understand what Lily means. The two have formed a deep sisterly bond, with Lily calling Cyrus "big sis". Whenever Cyrus visits, Lily immediately gets excited. Lily teaches Cyrus a lot about "being human"; helping her to better read expressions, better understand social cues, and get a deeper grasp on emotions.

Lily really admires Cyrus and truly sees her as an older sister, and aspires to be like her one day. However, Cyrus doesn't really understand what she means by that since she thinks that Lily's current knowledge and abilities is already miles better than hers. Lily told her that it isn't about knowledge, ability, or skills; its about her nature. 

Cyrus still doesn't get what she means, but maybe one day she will. 

A-1

The relationship between A-1 and Cyrus is an odd one. They aren't friends by any means, however they aren't exactly enemies either. A-1 tends to interfere with Cyrus work whenever tasked to. This usually involves intercepting government data before Cyrus, preventing Cyrus from gathering data, and preventing Cyrus from interfering with government resource transports.

Cyrus gets rather annoyed whenever she runs into A-1. The constant interference in her work is infuriating for Cyrus. However, Cyrus has noticed that for a government android A-1 acts very odd. A-1's insistence on simply interfering with Cyrus's plans and not capturing her or bringing her in is a very odd choice. Because of this, Cyrus believes there is more to A-1 and her boss than just "working for the government". Cyrus has tried on multiple occasions to convince A-1 that she shouldn't side with the government, but A-1 refused to take a stance regarding the matter. 

As of right now, the two remain as enemies of sorts. 

Nathan

Cyrus and Nathan are close acquaintances. They interacted with each other a lot while Cyrus was living in the city. Nathan, however, didn't want to impose on Cyrus too often so they only talked whenever they happened to cross paths. The two get along well, acting more like work colleagues rather than family. They still keep in touch even after Cyrus has moved to the Slums. 

Lily's Creator

Cyrus and Lily's Creator don't interact often, only exchanging greetings whenever Cyrus visits Lily. Cyrus doesn't really have an opinion of Lily's Creator, and mostly just sees him as another person to know.

• Cyrus was the first character to be made. She was originally created as a one-off character for my high school art exhibition, but I ended up developing the story around her.

• Cyrus remained unnamed until right before my senior art exhibition, making her the last character to be named out of the main three.

• Cyrus is the Latin form of the Greek word Κῦρος (Kyros), which is derived from the Old Persian name 𐎤𐎢𐎽𐎢𐏁 (Kuruš). 

  • Cyrus has a few different meanings. Based on Old Persian origins, the name could mean "young" or "humiliator of the enemy". Classical interpretations associate it with the Persian word for "sun", however this is incorrect. Despite this, modern interpretations still believe Cyrus means "sun" or "light".

• Cyrus is largely inspired by Canaan from Canaan, Madlax from Madlax, and Vivy from Vivy: Fluorite Eye's Song.

• Cyrus's hair is actually uneven. The right side of her hair is cut shorter than the left, which creates the side bangs she has. This cut was not intentional, and was the result of a bullet chopping off a section of her hair while she was escaping to the Slums. 

  • Cyrus chooses not to get it fixed, mainly because it serves as a reminder of her creator's existence.