Dr. Viho Ciquala

Viho Ciquala Character Sheet
Ciquala Vehicles
Venture Industries Employees
Venture Industries HQ

Early Years

Ever feel like destiny dealt you half the cards that you were supposed to get? Viho Ciquala never felt that way. He must have been born with his father’s self confidence (to the surprise of everyone).

Chua Ciquala was a proud man. A true warrior in the Iroquois tradition. He was the high school quarterback in his younger days. He married the homecoming queen. He worked in the silver mines; dangerous as any job, but he was unafraid. Nothing could crack his hardened shell. His first son, Hastiin, was the tallest, strongest boy in the 7th grade and was sure to be a football star in high school. Maybe a linebacker judging by his girth. Chua’s daughter was the most beautiful girl in the elementary school, the local beauty queen. So it was with much anticipation that the people of the Onondaga Iroquois reservation in upstate New York received Viho the third child of Chua Ciquala on a November day in 1965.

They say that Chua never used to drink (and when they said it they always looked at Viho, and then away). By the time Viho was 5 years old, his father was the town drunkard. Maybe something snapped in Chua, the town hero. Who knows what causes a proud man to fall from grace.

Viho had a handsome face, and took after his father in that regard. However, Viho never grew up. That is to say that his final stature was all of two and a half feet tall. For this he was the ridicule of the town. Being of quick wit, the local boys called him Short Stuff, or Stumpy because his left hand was absent as part of his congenital birth defect. Viho’s brother and sister were constantly getting into fights defending him. They say that a blind man has more acute hearing. Perhaps that is why the physically stunted Viho possessed a giant intellect. By the age of seven he was fluent in 4 languages and had learned everything there was to learn from the Onondaga library and school system.

The next year he began to attend classes at Cornell University; his mother drove him 40 miles each way for classes every day. Over the next four years he earned bachelors degrees in botany, physics, mathmatics and genetic. His thirst for knowledge led him to doctoral degrees in Physics (Stanford), Engineering (Cal Tech), Chemistry (MIT) and Robotics (MIT). His Robotic thesis centered on the invention of an antigravity hoverchair that appeared to defy all the laws of the natural universe.

Viho always came home for the holidays, and on one such occasion in 1980 his father, drunk as usual, was waxing on about how brave you had to be to work in the mines. Viho loved his father, despite the drinking, and didn’t want to see anything bad happen to him. So he studied the plans for the mines and realized that without detailed knowledge of the mineral and geologic properties of the surrounding earth, safety would always be a question. Within two months he devised a probe that uses ultrasonic imaging to determine the mineral density of the earth. This allowed the miners to reinforce areas where the structural integrity of the surrounding earth was the weakest. This achievement earned the respect of the entire Onondaga reservation. The increased safety must have made his father feel better, because not long after he stopped drinking.

With careful licensing and money management, Viho brought in a decent income. The income from the Ultrasonnogram, in part, allowed him to found Venture Industies.

Venture Industries

Venture Industries, founded in 1986, is the place to go for ultimate in custom cutting edge engineering. The brilliant inventor Viho Ciquala founded and is the brains behind the operation. It’s a small company employing 3 engineers, 5 construction experts and various support staff, including two secretaries a marketing/PR agent and purchasing officer who keeps the place stocked with various gadgets and tools. New commissions help to quench Viho’s insatiable drive to create new and amazing devices. The income also gives him the leisure to pursue other academic interests.

The company was founded partially using funds from the Ultrasonnogram, but these were insufficient to outfit the construction floor with state of the art construction equipment and laboratory apparati that Viho would need to pursue his vision. Fortunately, Viho ran into an old schoolmate from his undergraduate days at Cornell. Viho recalled Emir abu-Kaliq as a formidable competitor in classes which they shared, and there were many, although 93.4 percent of the time, Viho came out as the number one student. Kaliq was the son of Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, the Crown Prince of Qatar, and was fourth in line for the throne. Hearing about Viho's new venture, Kaliq stated that he was always looking for new promising investments, and provided 49% of the funds for Venture Industries.

In the early years of Venture Industries, adaptation of the Ultrasonnogram to other applications was highly lucrative. Most interesting from an intellectual standpoint was its utility in archaeology and fossil excavation. Viho’s found an interest in ancient times that surprised him, as he was more accustomed to looking into the future. This curiosity for human history also sparked an interest in the history of the planet itself. A story which many say can be read thru the sputtering and breathing of the Earths very core.

Thus, when approached by a world renowned vulcanologist Dr. Patrick Robertson to design exploratory equipment to determine the composition of molten lava in Mauna Loa, he jumped at the chance. The resulting self contained environmental resistance pod (SCERP) surpassed Dr. Robertson’s request a thousand fold. Viho created a manned vehicle capable of withstanding extreme temperatures found near volcanic activity; it was even capable of resisting submersion in molten lava for brief periods of time. The breakthroughs Robertson made by utilizing the containment suit sent shock waves through the scientific field. Viho quickly realized that SCERP technology applied not only to extreme heat, but could also be easily adapted to resist the pressure and cold of deep sea exploration. Later, he also adapted SCERP to resist the vacuum of space. Equipped with multiple analytical sensor arrays and designed to maneuver over any terrain, SCERP is truly a versatile mobile scientific lab. Licensing the technology also made Viho even richer, but that is beside the point.

Currently, Venture Industries is working on a prototype jet engine in collaboration with Boeing to increase fuel economy and decrease the need for routine maintenance. This involves a complete redisign of the basic engine using novel custom alloys and a revolutionary fuel combustion system. The project has been ongoing for 9 months and is the major income source currently. 70% of Venture Industries effort is devoted to the jet project.

Another smaller project is to create a small electronic robotic toy pet that interacts with children. These artificial pets will resemble either cats, dogs, or fantasy creatures and are projected as the next step in the evolution of the Tamagotchi. This project is funded by Bandai and is 15% of Venture Industries effort. Developmental Psychologist Dr. Glen Chandow of Harvard University is collaborating on the project.

Viho's personal side project is to modify electromotor neural responsive robotics to forms that will be economical for marketing as prosthetic functional limbs. Viho's prior cybernetic work is far too expensive for mass production and requires custom adaptation for each individual. Viho projects that this is a high risk endeavor that will take years to come to fruition. This project is not funded by outside sources.

Exemplars specific backgrounds that were removed: Exempars Viho

Little man, Big suit

Pick on someone your own size...

Kaliq was a decent partner. He frequently brought projects from military contacts to Venture Industries. Although Viho was in general disinclined to weapons system design, the money was good, and he could not really say no to Kaliq, who still owned just under half the company. However, in 1999, Kaliq went too far. He demanded that Viho supply the design plans for HULK III, the robotic construction unit, for sale to the highest bidder. And through some contacts, Viho had heard that the bidder was likely to be Saddam Hussein. Given the political atmosphere, and continuing isolation of Iraq, Viho thought this was a very poor idea.

Hulk III was a revolutionary machine, with unparalleled lifting power combined with computer assisted dexterity. It was fit for opperation by both normal sized humans as well as by Viho through adaptors in his hoverchair. It was fortunate that Kaliq did not know about Viho's newest project, the much more compact Metalloid-Armored Robotic ION-powered suit (MARION). And also fortunate that it was only suitable for piloting by Viho because of his small size.

Viho refused to hand the plans over, and Kaliq begrudgingly admitted that it was too risky even for the immense profits at stake. Then two weeks later there was a break in at Venture Industries, obviously an inside job because the perpetrators knew exactly what they were looking for and the alarms were disabled before their arrival. HULK was gone.

However, the unique ION power source utilized by the HULK gave off a specific type of ultralow fequency when in use due to poor buffering capacities in the ealry model. This allowed Viho to track the unit once it was activated. It was 2 agonizing weeks before they picked up the signal in the Indian Ocean, just 100 miles from the Qatar coastline. Viho knew that once Kaliq got the HULK to his homeland that it would be difficult or impossible to recover, and immediately loaded MARION aboard his Learjet. Half a day later, Viho, piloting MARION, jumped out of the jet and boarded the small freighter. An epic battle between Viho in MARION and Kaliq piloting HULK ensued. MARION was taking a beating from the more powerful HULK, but with time, Viho learned to use his greater maneuverability to greater advantage. Both machines took severe damage. Eventually, Viho was clever enough to manuever Kaliq onto a less stable portion of the deck and blast the footing out from under 6,400 kg HULK. HULK dropped like a stone into the ocean, carrying Kaliq with it to the bottom.

Viho escaped in a life boat with MARION, which was damaged beyond repair, and was picked up by his people shortly thereafter.

The crew of the freighter told the story of a man in armor who flew and was unbelievably powerful....

This could become a habit....

There was no proof that Kaliq had engineered the theft of the HULK and because he was never declared legally dead, indeed, it seemed that someone was using his identity and assets in Qatar. Viho attempted to have Kaliq's shares in Venture permanently forfeited but was always blocked by legal maneuvers funded overseas. Eventually, by using a writ of absence, he forced Kaliq's heirs (as Viho considered whomever was pulling the strings in Qatar) to either produce Kaliq or allow Viho to buy his shares of the company. It was costly to buy out Kaliq's shares, but worth the peace of mind knowing that his company would be his own.

Marion had initially been constructed as a nimble factory floor construction unit to complement the slower but more powerful Hulk. Viho set about rebuilding both. As he did so, visions of his battle with Kaliq continued to wander through his mind and little modifications that maybe years before would seem irrelevant somehow sounded like a good idea. Booster rockets designed to "jump" around the factory floor became full on rockets implanted in the feet. An inertial dampner that was designed to protect the pilot from minor spills was increased in power. Additional visual sensors were added. And overall, more strength and speed. This was all just for Marion. "You never know when this will come in handy," Viho kept telling himself. And it was just plain fun to invent new add ons.

Two years after the theft of the Hulk III, there was an armed robbery in downtown Manhattan. These were not typical thugs in masks; they were well equipt with military style training. The heist seemed well planned with all internal security bypassed, but the robbers failed to anticipate a security guard willing to give his life to run from the building and alert the police. The man died on his way out, and the building was surrounded within minutes by New York's finest. Unfortunately for the police, they were outgunned and a hostage situation developed.

Kanuna Polianana watched this develop on the news and was alarmed when he realized that he recognized the bank. "Isn't that where Joline's fiance Mark works?" he thought aloud. Kanuna ran up to the third floor of Venture Industries, "Joline, doesn't Mark work at Manhattan International Bank on 16th St??!!"

"Yes, what's the matter!" she instantly recognized that something was wrong by the demeanor of the normally clam Hawaiian.

The TV told the story, and worse, Mark was at work and was not answering his cell. Joline was on the verge of a nervous breakdown, but Kanuna knew what to do.

"Viho, Joline's fiance needs you"

Half an hour later, a reluctant midget in a metal suit flew over Manhattan. RPGs, automatic weapon fire, explosions, metal men flying through bank walls and all this while New York watched it live on TV. By the end of the hour the villians were unconscious or surrendered, and none of the hostages were injured. The media speculated wildly about where that metal suit came from and what the initials stenciled on it's shoulder stood for "M.A.R.Ion". Only a handful of loyal employees at Venture Industries knew the truth of how a small man filled some very big shoes that day.

Some of Viho’s best inventions:

Ultrasonnogram: for mineral densities deep scans 1975. Adapted for fine scans in archaeology in 1977 and adapted to other uses from 1975-1985.

Hoverchair To compensate for his physical impairments, Dr. Ciquala typically uses a Hoverchair, which enables rapid movement. It also has a satellite link to a supercomputer and a powerpoint projector. Hoverchair v1 built in 1992 and minor improvements addes since then.

Hulk mark III To facilitate heavy lifting around the lab, he created a robo-suit, which is 8 feet tall. His hoverchair docks into the chest of Hulk and his head is visible from the top. A retractable helmet will protect his head when working on a construction site. It is equipped with servomotors, which drive boosted locomotion and which permit rapid extension of the arms or legs to reach nearby supplies and tools. Hulk mk I created in 1975 was primitive in comparison to the current Hulk mk III which was completed in 1994.

Hulk mark IV An upgraded version of the Hulk is currently in progress, featuring increased servomotor power and novel alloy shell.

SCERP Dr. Ciquala’s expertise is often called upon in the scientific investigation of various earthly phenomena. Analysis of the minerologic content of volcanos, exploration of deep sea vents, observation of the giant squid in its natural habitat. He was the first “disabled” person to fly in the space shuttle to perform physics experiments in zero gravity. For such pursuits, he has created an environmental exploration suit "Scuba". Scuba can tolerate both the extreme pressure of the deep sea and the extreme vacuum of space. It is equipped with jet propulsion for underwater and airborne travel. Constructed to resist thermal extremes, SCUBA can explore lava vents as well as arctic caves. It is equipped with four manipulator arms and is capable of on the spot minerologic, radiologic and microscopic analysis. SCERP v1 was built in 1979 for investigation of lava flows. v2 for deep sea investigation was built in 1983 and v3 including modifications allowing use in space and flight in 1990.

Automated DNA Sequencer Designed with the hope of identifying genetic changes in New Men, the DNA sequencer enabled the human genome project, but failed to identify a genetic component for the New Men's special abilities.

Inspiration

Inspired by the characters Dr. Jonas Venture Jr. from the Cartoon Network show "The Venture Brothers" [[1]] and the Amazing Screw On Head [[2]].

Themes

Despite the inspiration for the character, his thematic elements are not found in either Jonas Venture Jr. or the Amazing Screw on Head.

Themes:
1) Overcoming odds. Conquering physical, economic and social limitations by the use of force of will and intellect to succeed in life.
2) Living with adversity. Despite having conquered the demons in his life and succeeded, he is nevertheless an outcast due to his extreme dwarfism.
3) American Dream. Having come from an native american reservation and with his physical disabilities he has risen to the top. This is the american dream, pulling one self up by the boot straps.
4) Pride. The correlate to the american dream. Anyone can pull themselves up by the bootstraps. Threfore, anyone who has not done so has some fault in their motivation.

Nemesis:
Emir abu-Kaliq

Venture Industries Employees

• Dr. Henry Siskawitz
  

Physicist (age 55)
Dr. Siskowitz had a successful career in academics at the University of Washington, a young fully tenured professor in Physics. At 30 years old, he realized that he hated writing grants and supervising graduate students. He wanted to get back to something more real, so when Dr. Ciquala mentioned his new startup, Venture Industries, Siskowitz was immediately drawn and asked Ciquala if there might be a place for a physicist with a lot of practical knowledge. Indeed, there was. He has been with Venture Industries since its inception in 1976.

• Dr. Allison Andrews
  

Metallurgist (age 31)
Allison entered graduate school in chemistry with an interest in blendings. In the kitchen she was famous amongst her friends for her creative concoctions. In the lab, she became famous amongst her colleagues for blending chromium, aluminum, iron III and palladium to create a new incredibly strong alloy. She was courted by Dow and Dupont, but the offer from a small company caught her attention because of the intellectual giants who headed it: none other than Viho Ciquala and Henry Siskawitz. The company of such genius was impossible to pass up. Of course the pay was not as good as in big industry, but she was more interested in the freedom of intellectual exploration that Venture Industries promised. After a few successful inventions, the pay turned out to be phenomenal. Joined Venture Industries 1989. Hobbies: riding her horse.

• Bob Seebo
  

PR and Advertising (age 41)
Got his MBA from Harvard. Undergraduate also at Harvard BA in Political Science and minor in Classics. Has been with Venture Industries since 1980.

• Les Jackson
  

Mechanic (age 55)
Motorcycle riding, handlebar mustache, the whole nine yards. Enlisted in the army in 1964 with unfortunate timing, as US troops were sent to Vietnam only a year later. Les served in the motor pool, first as a helicopter pilot, but later retrained as a mechanic after demonstrating significant innate talent performing in combat repairs. Disillusioned after the war, Les took to a life on the road. He joined the Hells Angels, traveling in those circles for several years. In that time, he garnered a reputation for doing stunning custom jobs on Harley Davisons motorcycles, which drew the attention of one Viho Ciquala. Started working for Venture Industries in 1982.

• Kanuna Polianana
  

Mechanic (age 45)
Kanuna Polianana has enjoyed a variety of professions. Currently he works for Viho, excercising his mechanical prowess. He was born on the Big Island in Hawaii. In his youth he eyed the heavyweight boxing champions belt, but found that he wasn't that much of a monster after all. Back on the island, he worked part time as a SCUBA guide and part time as a paramedic, tending mostly tourists with sun burns but also near drownings and more severe accidents. As he grew tired of these pursuits he went to the San Francisco Cullinary Academy and spent several years as a chef in a high class seafood restraunt overlooking the golden gate. Since childhood, however, he's loved to fix things and spent his adolescence repeatedly retooling a 67 mustang. He always took these skills for granted, fixing the SCUBA boat or repairing some equipment in their ambulance. Finally he decided to make his next career arise from his early talents, and started a shop doing custom work for antique cars. Apparently he became somewhat famous, because one day in 1985 a short dude in a leather jacket offered him a job that he couldn't refuse. 10 years later, it seems like he's finally found something he can stick with.

• Aimee Zie
  

Programmer (age 25)
Immigrated from China when 10 years old. Joined Venture Industries in 1994. Has a past history in some shady hacking community but has left all that behind.

• May Weathers
  

Engineer (age 55)
A woman engineer? What are you looking at, I’ll kick your ass! Joined Venture industries in 1978

• Joline Kelly
  

Secretary (age 26)
Joline and her fiance Mark love to travel, but the income of a struggling artist and a budding novelist don't really allow for jet setting. She met Kanuna three years ago, he was piloting the cesna while she learned to sky dive. Kanuna spoke gushingly of his employer who was looking for a new secretary, and who apparently travelled frequently around the world (he was actually a mechanic, and only flew the cesna on the weekends for fun). Viho was looking for a secretary/accountant/jet pilot all in one, and Joline was a well recommended administrative assistant, and her quick intellect impressed Viho so much that he hired her and sent her to school to learn accounting and how to fly a Lear Jet. Now her travels with Mark are on the job as she pilots Viho's Lear jet when he goes to conferences. Hired in 1992.

Venture Industries HQ