<strong>Alec "Hi-Ho" Silva</strong><br/><br/><strong>Age:</strong>29<br/><br/><strong>Gender:</strong>M<br/><br/><strong>Role:</strong>Pilot<br/><br/><div align="center">(http://i786.photobucket.com/albums/yy150/Soulthunder/Char7.jpg)</div><br/><strong>Appearance:</strong>Standing at 6'2" with an athletically muscular frame, Alec is a large and imposing figure to most and conceals his natural dexterity and sharpened reflexes. While he might look physically imposing, he has little to no experience with hand to hand brawling outside of a few tavern scrapes, so he tends to rely more heavily on the revolver tucked into his vest's holster when in need. A black Independence military tattoo with his flight wing emblem is worn proudly on his right bicep, proving that he is one of the few survivors of Reaper Squadron.<br/><br/>Alec's attire is altogether simple and functional wear, always kept clean and well pressed. His crisp demeanor having been drilled into him while in officer and pilot's training for the Independence navy, even his casual gear appears professional. Alec is often seen wearing a pilot's utility vest, handy for carrying tools and a sidearm as well providing some G resistance for the user. His boots are scuffed and dusty from his time spent on Whitefall, but overall Alec presents a confident and friendly attitude. One of his flaws though is that he appears to trust too easily. Thinking only the best of those around him, Alec can seem naive at times and is used to being told just who his enemies are.<br/><br/><strong>Personality: </strong>Having once fought for the Independence, Alec has long believed that the Alliance is not to be trusted. The recent incident on Miranda has confirmed this belief and encouraged him to seek out Malcolm Reynolds, the man he heard played a large part in helping this revelation come to light. He has also heard about Serenity's crew from a few informants from the ship's past and believes that his skills may be just what they need to stay afloat. The Independence may not be ready to stand up and challenge the Alliance again, but as long as there are people like Captain Reynolds' crew out there then Alec should be ready to stand up again.<br/><br/>A generally friendly person, Alec has run with military types and thugs before. Generally neat and ordered from his days as a pilot in the Independence navy, he always had more in common with the rank and file. Having grown up as a farmhand and helping to run a cattle ranch helped him realize that the quality of a man is not in his title or rank in society but rather is measured by his actions. Alec completes any task he has been assigned well and devotes his focus to what needs done, but has been known to stray if tempted by the fairer sex.<br/><br/>Alec believes that he can do good work with Serenity, but hopes that his criminal connections do not cause more trouble for it's crew than he is worth. He knows this crew has been through a lot together, and will do his very best to measure up.<br/><br/><strong>Background:</strong><em>After introducing himself to Captain Reynolds and sitting across from him in a smokey saloon somewhere on Whitefall.</em><br/><br/>Good to meet you Captain, I've heard a lot about you from Patience. Mostly bad things of course, but from what I hear the two of you don't exactly have what anyone might call a normal business relationship. Not a regular thing to be trading lead every time a deal comes your way, though as long as the deal gets done it's all the same.<br/><br/>So, I contacted you because I hear that you are in the market for a pilot. This is right by me as I happen to have just come available after my previous employer turned his nose up on a job, leaving me high and dry and my transport dead in the water. Only way I am getting out of here is to find work on a ship, so I think we can help one another out. So... you'll need to know more about me if I'm going to be working for you right? Well alright, I'll tell you about myself.<br/><br/>When just a young pup, I had the fire of Independence put into me by my pap. He was always preaching about how the Alliance made it's profit on the sweat of the working man that they provided nothing for. In the core worlds he would say, they give em medicine and build parks because people are paying attention there, but out here aint nothin' but folk too much trouble to help. A system of government that didn't give a whit about it's people couldn't expect to stay in power long, and that it was the responsibility of those same working folk to show them.<br/><br/>Soon afterward the Independence decided to make it's stand and my old man stood right there beside the recruiting station putting that same fire in people. And sure enough full of piss and vinegar I enlisted to fight against the Alliance when the word came that the Frontier was finally going to make a stand. My old man and I enlisted straight away, but when it came time for aptitude testing they told me I was best suited as a pilot and my old man was sent to the armored corps. Soon after I was shipped off to receive my training, and that was the last time I saw him. So...<br/><br/>Well, I served with the Independence fleet under Captain Potter of the Carrier Geofan and was placed in a Fighter wing; Reaper Flight. Saw some pretty hairy situations during my service, and it always seemed like fewer and fewer of us made it back. Serenity Valley was really what sealed it for us though, we were already at quarter strength when we went in there and o matter how hard we fought there was just too much stacked against us. We could hardly protect the fleet let alone the guys on the ground, so when the Alliance reinforcements arrived they just rolled right over us.<br/><br/>My wingman had already been shot down, so I was making a pass over the Valley alone trying to chase off a few bombers when my ship took some fire. Killed my gunner and punched some neat holes right through the hull. It broke me to watch that valley go up in flames, fire raining down on the boys that I was supposed to be protecting. "Lay down arms." Command had told them as the fleet turned tail to run. To be fair there was no way the few ships we had left could have possibly taken on the fleet the Alliance had brought in. The cards were down and we'd busted, the Alliance was grinding whatever we had left to dust. I'd like to think that maybe I turned my ship around to stay in the fight, but truth was that my ship wasn't in any shape to hold together and certainly wasn't going to clear Atmo. I was going down whether I liked it or not, may as well go down swinging. So I turned my crippled fighter around and made one last run at an Alliance Bomber, only to have the engine shot out from under me by anti-aircraft fire.<br/><br/>So, I went down and by the time I came to I was already in an Alliance P.O.W. camp hospital. They came to torture me for information when I'd healed up enough to speak, but the word of the Independence surrender came down before I got the worst of it. Since I've been doing whatever I could to get work. Worked for a Mr. Niska as a smuggler. Never did ask about what was being shipped because I had heard the stories of what happened to those who did. But as all things do, one of my jobs went south when an Alliance patrol happened along my ship smuggling illegal cargo. Only way I could make it out was to dump the cargo and break for Whitefall.<br/><br/>So yeah... been working with Patience's people since. The ship's scrap and as far as I know Niska is still out there looking for me. Joining a crew like yours might keep me on the move and put me back in the sky where I belong. So... you need a pilot right?