Lore

Early Childhood

Dmytro was born in a small town just of the border between the Northwest Territories and Alberta, though he doesn't remember which side he was born on anymore.

He was a normal kid for the most part, his family was poor, with himself and his parents sharing a small studio apartment with his grandparents and step siblings.

He was never ashamed about being poor- he hadn't learned what shame was yet- this led to him telling one of his friends about sharing a room with so many people, unfortunately for him a teacher had been listening, and reported his family to child services for neglect.

Despite having never neglected the boy, Dmytro was taken from his family and placed in a string of foster homes that ranged from horrible to almost okay.

Age 6 - 14

He spent almost 3 years being passed around through various foster homes. Many people claimed he had "behavioral issues" because he was very curious and often responded to people asking him to do things with asking "why?" and few people were willing to actually answer him. (Had anyone provided with an answer this would be a non issue, even if you lied to him. He would not question it and would simply get on with doing whatever he was asked.)

When he was 9 years old he was placed with a seemingly nice family, who adopted him officially when he was 14 years old. He never considered them his parents, but they were his family none the less.

At least; that's what he thought.

Shortly after the paperwork was finished Dmytro was moved from the house he had been staying in, into a medical facility under the guise of some greivous illness he had been unaware of. He didn't argue or fight, trusting his family to make the right choice for his health- since he apparently had missed something important.

What had actually happened, was that the people he was placed with were the outermost part of a research corporation, who abused the loose laws surrownding the foster system to aquire subjects for their research. As after a child had been officially adopted by their researchers, said researchers could sign off on the child being used in experiments.

Age 15 - 19

His initial time in the facility was unpleasant, but not immedietly horrible. They rarely allowed him to contact his family, and said "family" became distant following his admission to the program, claiming to have "stuff going on at home."

This did not last long, as he was soon taken in for increasingly invasive examinations. Over time he became more and more unwilling to cooperate, and was eventually moved from the hospital bed he had been given into a small room. It had smooth walls, smooth tiles, everything was weirdly smooth. Even his bedding- thin enough to see through, and would fall apart if you pulled too hard on it.

Shortly after his 16th birthday he was taken in for what would be his first of many surgeries, as the company indended on using his body to test new forms of body modifications in an attempt to build superior humans. In his case they intended on fusing humans with arctic hare traits in an effort to make scouts who were more adept at moving through dangerous terrain without the need for bulky winter clothing.

Over the following 4 years he would be subject to more than 20 surgeries, which included his human ears being removed and his nerves rewired to use hare ears that had been grafted onto his head using advanced methods developed in private by the company to aid with the hybridization project. He also had his feet and ankles modified to give him digi grade paws in hopes of capturing the natural snow shoes that particularly arctic hares have.

When he was 19 the surgeries were officially deemed complete, and he was moved from the tiny cell he had been placed into as a teenager into a shared room with other "successful" experiments, where they would be put on a rigourous training routine to prepare them to act as living demos of what the company is capable of producing.

Dmytro was quickly deemed unfit, as between his naturally small frame and the chronic pain caused by the modifications to his ankles putting heavy strain on his knees; he was unable to complete even the most mild routines.

The company did not want to waste the money they spent on him though, so he was moved from the athletics program, into the academic. He was given the oppurtunity to continue living in the facility as a student, as he was too "visibly modified" to release into the public without it reflecting poorly on the company. He was not told what the alternative was, but he agreed regardless.

Age 20 - 32

From then on he remained in the facility with a handful of other people who'd had their biology fucked with but could not endure the physical training. He does not remember much from this era of his life. Mostly studying; as he had not recieved any education after 10th grade (which is when he was moved from his former home into the research facility)

He ended up far surpassing the expectations of his teachers. Where his classmates were offered permanent jobs withing the facility as assistants and paper pushers, Dmytro was given the option to continue his education and join the facility as a researcher. He knew passively when they offered, that being a researcher there meant being someone who not only oversees- but actively continues to benefit the company that made him the way he is.

He agrees with a smile and a nod.

Over the next decade of his life the main portion of his education. Finishing his master of science in biochemistry, then moving on to pursue a PHD in toxicology. Which he graduated from officially shortly before his 30th birthday.

After completing his education Dmytro was quickly put to work as a reasearcher in the facility, tasked with testing various chemicals the company had been developing to aid in their various projects. Chemist took to the work well, and his fellow researchers came to respect him quickly.

That being said, respect was the only positive feeling anyone had towards him, beyond the other hybrids jealous of him being treated as human, many of his human coworkers found him insufferable. Either finding him unsettling, weird, or just kind of a know it all asshole. Despite that the company highly valued him and his research, and he moved quickly through the internal heirarchy- another reason many people hated him, jealosy aside- he was a dickhead about it.

Age 35 - present

Dmytro remained as a researcher for the company that raised him until he was 35 years old. And while he never gained any influence as an individual, as the generally negative view his coworkers had of him prevented him from ever being apointed to any kind of leadership position, he remained an important figure in the ongoing development of human/animal hybridization.

Until he was 35ish, out of seemingly nowhere he was removed from the project he had been contributing to, and was not given an answer when he attempted to find out why.

He would find out a week later, when he was given an odd uniform and told he was moving, the coat was off white with an orange insignia on each shoulder with a test tube embroidered onto it, along with a button down and a surprisingly nice vest. Also pants which would not work with his paws and buttons too small to be done up with his claws.

With the pants traded for a long skirt (which he never actually considered before- it made moving upright much easier,) he was shipped off to the badlands, where he met miss Pauling, and finally was given an answer on what the hell was happening.

Mann Co. had finally decided that 9 was a lame number and they needed a 10th class. Pauling had been tasked with finding someone with the appropriate qualifications and lack of ties to wider society. And the original chemist she had picked ended up dying before he could be properly integrated into the respawn system. His class name would be The Chemist, and he would be doing... Whatever he thinks would benefit the team most. Typically the classes have obvious roles, and the previous Chemist was a chemical weapons specialist, but she was on a tight deadline and needed to find someone.

6 and a half hours of unpleasantly hot driving later they arrived at the RED base. Pauling introduced him to 8/9 of the mercenaries (as sniper was off in his van, and did since he wasn't required to show up, he didn't.) Then he was passed off to Medic to be shown around the rest of the base, assuming (incorrectly,) that Chemist would be more likely to get along than Medic with anyone else. Another holdover from the previous Chemist.

Chemist took to working on the RED team like he took to everywhere else new, with boredom and irritation. He is not liked by his new coworkers anymore than he was his former ones, and spends the overwhelming majority of his time tucked away in his lab. He ended up deciding he'd contribute to the team by attempting to develop a poision that could be applied topically. Which worked well once he made it through the testing phase of his concoction. Which was sped up exponentially by Mann. Co. Providing him with any materials he could possibly need for his research.

Despite the unpleasant start, Chemist and Medic form a mutual respect quickly. As Chemist admires Medic's research and sees him as a true equal, and Medic is fascinated by Chemist- both his research and his unique anatomy. They become friends soon after, and are often involved in each other's projects.

Trivia

• He is fidgety, and gets bored easily.
• He is very enthusiastic about the histroy of music, and showing an interest in it will automatically make him more fond of you.
• He stirs his instant coffee exactly ten times, it's a weird routine he's formed. He doesn't even do it conciously.
• He paints with gloves on because he doesn't like how paint sticks to his fur.
• His room and are kept just above freezing, anyting warmer and he's sweating because of the fur.
• He hums when he works, it keeps him focused.
• His body is warm all the time, to the point where sitting next to him is enough to make most people uncomfortably hot.

Favorites

Strengths

Chemist is highly intelligent, and can pick up most non athletic skills quickly he's particularly knowlegeable a broad range of applied sciences.

He also has incredibly sharp hearing and quick reflexes, which allows him to react quickly to surprises.

Weaknesses

Chemist is extremely frail, and even small amounts of physical activity can put him out of commission for hours, and potentially days. As he has severe joint issues due to the modifications to his limbs and it does not take much to cause them to flare up.

While his reaction time may be good, he struggles to recouperate afterwards. Even slighly startling causes him to jump (sometimes literally) and living as he did for so long has left him particularly skittish.

Fears

Chemist is deeply afraid of anywhere he might be percieved, which includes large rooms, anywhere outside without the ability to keep his back to a wall, and social gatherings- even if the location wouldn't otherwise bother him.

Flaws

Chemist is selfish, asocial, and full of himself, which leads him to struggling in social situations where he is not in charge. He has taken to avoiding people who don't appreciate his skills unless he belives they can benefit him in some way.