SAL-VO #10 is a centipede-shaped robot and a humanoid skeletal robot, working for Blackstar as a salvage crew operator. They reside on the Blackstar, but have passed through the hands of about a dozen other operators in the past as a scrap-salvage team. They are linked to the Log Wire.

SAL-VO is a pair of robots. One is a monstrous centipede, the other is a skeletal humanoid.

The primary 'work' body of SAL-VO: Described by onlookers as a writhing, ship-breaking centipede. Its chitino-metallic carapace is ten feet long outstretched, fitted with plasma saws, a laser cutter, entirely too many scurrying legs, and writhing propulsion.

• Headcase and Optics - A flattened diamond shaped head and an irregular array of optic/audio diodes for seeing and hearing. A specialised monoeye package works to look through. Its fangs are a pair of close-range plasma saws, while buried in the middle of its head is a particle beam laser.
• Chassis - A metallic array of chitinous plates cover entirely too many scurrying legs for ten feet. Its underbelly houses arrays of writhing propulsion for work in zero gravity, and each 'segment' of SAL-VO can rotate 360 degrees, and houses its own set of motorics, batteries and computing, and each segment is just under a foot in diameter.
• Livery - The chitin plates are a mottled grey colour with a pair of teal stripes running down the middle, and the underbelly scutes are tan. The legs are painted a shiny black. The chitin plate behind the head is marked with a number 10 in white.
• Distinguishing Features - Creepy crawly monster, almost twelve feet long. Plasma-saw fangs and a head-mounted cutting laser.
• Voice - Deep and guttural, synthesised, unpleasant.

The secondary 'face friendly' shell for SAL-VO: A skeletal robot with a drab outer shell and rudimentary panelwork. The underlaying chassis is rock solid and it moves without impediment, but the external panels are all beaten in or scuffed somehow.

• Headcase and Optics - SAL-VO's visored faceplate is inlaid with a dual chevron, just above the lower point rests a red-glowing optic package. Running inside of the head is SAL-VO's visual computing hardware. Microphones are situated in the neck.
• Chassis - SAL-VO's underlying chassis and limbs are constructed from helenium to form the skeleton, with motorics provided by artificial muscle groups expanding and contracting. The torso contains the computing for movement, as well as all the other disks and chips necessary to make this metal alive. Covering and protecting the torso is a panelled roll-cage with anchoring hardpoints on the front and the back, and the number ten painted on the chest in white. Batteries run inside the thighs, obscured by wiring and muscles.
• Livery - SAL-VO's chassis is a gunmetal grey colour but it has been resprayed in the past, with scratches revealing the old layers. The plates in their headcase and rollcage are painted teal and scratched up.
• Distinguishing Features - Everything looks a bit dented and scuffed on this robot.
• Voice - Androgynous, synthesised contralto.

Psychology - SAL-VO or 'Sal' is soft-spoken, and resigned to their role as defined by the shape of themselves. They are minimal on creature comforts and does not seek indulgence, save for enough to survive and remain rustless. SAL-VO considers being able to operate in their intended capacity as a ship-breaking machine to be an optimal state of being. Organic co-workers would say they're a workaholic by design.

• Likes - Work.
• Dislikes - Rust, indecision.
• Goals - Survive, deconstruct hulls, live.

Personality - SAL-VO's large half can be described as straightforward, and uncharitably blunt; They were designed to break ships, not talk to and negotiate with people. The smaller half of SAL-VO presents a businesslike posture and bearing, with a better understanding on talking to and negotiating with people for employment, but they do not form strong attachments to them on the job. When talking small, SAL-VO has a small pool of reference to draw from, rarely abreast of current events due to extended salvage journeys.

SAL-VO is currently affiliated with the Blackstar company, and they are a member of Log Wire. They are affiliated with Wickton Bio-Dynamics, but they are out of business and the employees have since moved on. SAL-VO is also a known quantity to synthetics in the salvage business.

SAL-VO can speak Basic, and Machine. They each have a civilian-grade communications transceiver installed in them.

The original SAL-VO robot was the centipede, part of a line of bots sold by the Wickton Bio-dynamics Corporation - now defunct. SAL-VO was advertised towards salvage companies that needed a specialised robot for tearing ships apart little by little. This SAL-VO's first activation took place aboard a scrapmonger's asteroid-based junkyard, and their first task were to break down the old hulks they tugged in, with dozens of other SAL-VOs for company.

Post-detranslation and around the age of ten, there were plenty of defunct ships with which to tear apart and recycle and SAL-VO was satisfied with their lot, but the business got thrown into turmoil when an old wreck's unstable power core detonated and scattered the hulks and robots across space - and not all of them got recovered by the scrapmonger, and especially not this SAL=VO.

It wasn't long until a third party found SAL-VO drifting through space and tried to take the robot apart for scrap. They ended up reactivating SAL=VO, and the robot retaliated with the threat of tearing the whole ship apart at the seams. When the occupants relented, SAL-VO explained that they wanted to get back to working, supplying coordinates to their home yard.

It'd turned out that SAL-VO was adrift for eight months, and the severity of the explosion had forced the company to relocate and downsize, leaving much of the bombed hulks behind and no forward address. This presented SAL-VO with new concerns: like where to get proper maintenance and power to keep living, as they were now free to choose their own path.

So SAL-VO embarked on the journey for new masters - as SAL-VO wasn't truly alive unless they were breaking ships apart, like they were designed to. However, getting along amongst humanoids was not part of SAL-VO's design specification, with many being put off by the robot's creepy appearance and scurrying movement - but hard-bitten junkyard operators, salvagers, and other synthetic life forms didn't care, and it wasn't long until they found a stream of income and living.

Once nestled into the responsibilies of living alone and getting by hand-to-mouth, SAL-VO bought a secondary robot off a shelf to cast their consciousness into and assist with the hard-to-reach areas of maintenance, and be the 'friendly face' for interviewing - as not every yard SAL-VO worked could afford to maintain all their bots and the 'centipede monster' didn't get by in polite society alone.

Living and existing job to job, upon ship to ship and from junkyard to junkyard, SAL-VO eventually got employed by Blackstar for an extended spell of duty.

SAL-VO is designed to seek the hull on a spacecraft, and take them apart piece by piece safely and with minimal damage to components and material. It is their reason to exist, and its what gives them a purpose.

SAL-VO is loaded with the design patterns of ships they have taken apart, and can integrate new layouts and designs with the aid of their construction computing and analysis suites.

SAL-VO's smaller half is loaded with the larger half's maintenance specifications and a raft of tools, and is handy with all the machinery and computing necessary to keep SAL-VO in operating order.

SAL-VO understands the limitations and capabilities of its cutting particle beam laser.

SAL-VO understands what its plasma saw fangs can cut through, and knows their operating limits.

As a machine, they're capable of a range of simple and complex mathematical functions. SAL-VO's processors are optimised for their other skills in engineering and construction, particularly physics and topology.

• Starship Operation - Both of SAL-VO's halves can get by as the crew on a spaceship after a few tours, no worries.
• Communications - SAL-VO has some basic radio and networks communications gear installed between them.

• Culinary - SAL-VO has a program chip packed with recipes smaller half to cover being a chef, this one assignment.
• Domestic - And a little more software for keeping things tidy as custodial staff, another time.

SAL-VO was designed and hard coded by Wickton Bio-Dynamics to break ships down in swarms with its peers, but operates alone just fine too. Later, SAL-VO acquired another robot to assist with their livelihood and maintenance.

• Ship-Breaking Centipede - SAL-VO's main body. The bread-winner, the ship wrecker.
  • Plasma Saw Fangs - Upon the metal mandibles of SAL-VO is a cutting edge that can be suffused with plasma to cut through metal, wires, beams, stone, and perhaps even flesh. Without plasma power, the fangs can act as a crushing or prying hydraulic, utilising torque instead of speed to push metal apart.
  • Cutting Laser - Mounted in the forehead of SAL-VO is a particle-beam laser. It can fire this beam for a continuous sixty seconds, pending a cooldown of five minutes. Its intended purpose is to cut new ways through an old hulk.
  • Total Recall - SAL-VO can always retrace their steps on an old hulk, thanks to specialised surface-mapping computer which 'paints' SAL-VO's path through a 3D space, and makes cursory scans of rooms and compartments.
  • Entirely Too Many Legs - SAL-VO's crawling centipede locomotion can magnetise to stick to metal surfaces, which are a commonality in their line of work. In addition, when moving fast enough and juking unpredictably, it just looks _creepy!_
  • Writhing Propulsion - Intended for use in zero-gravity, each segment of SAL-VO has an array of thrusters to allow for movement. With the ability to rotate each of their segments, they can easily 'swim' through space by propelling rhythmically with this rotation¹⁾.

• Robotic Other Half - Shortly after living on their own terms, SAL-VO had to get a companion.
  • Internal Storage - No pockets? No problem! SAL-VO has internal storage compartments accessible from their left and right flanks.
  • That'll Buff Out - SAL-VO is adept at getting surface-level dints and dings out of their larger half, and touching it up with its tools between jobs.
  • Reprogrammable - SAL-VO's other half has a trio of 'Program Chip' slots, which can accept a six-contact, two pin programming chip²⁾ loaded with operations and instructions. They're used to cover skills the pair can't or don't have the time to look into.
    • Slot 1: Culinary [Basic]
    • Slot 2: Domestic [Basic]
    • Slot 3: Empty

Weaponry

• Plasma Saw Fangs (part of SAL-VO's centipede)
• Cutting Laser (ditto)
• Monkey Wrench (its heavy)

Apparel

• Old Beanie, black
• Vest, grey and frayed
• Cans of Touch-Up Paint:
  • Teal, Tan, Black, and Gunmetal Grey

Tools

• SAL-VO's Toolbox
  • Socket Wrenches, Screw Drivers
  • Grinding Tool
  • Belt Polisher
  • Oxy-Acetylene Blowtorch
  • Assorted Nuts and Bolts
• Rust Removal Spray

Documents

• SAL-VO Technical Manual
• SAL-VO's Work Resume
• Assorted Materials Specifications and Data
• Assorted Ship Construction Data

Trinkets

• Curios from past salvages
  • An old record player
  • A blue teddy bear
  • Someone's steel dentures
  • A popular robotics magazine
  • A pulsing gemstone, possibly psionic

SAL-VO's living situation is mobile, having noped³⁾ aboard creaking salvage tugs in the void, in a storage closet at a warehouse, and in the care of a Log Wire synth shelter. They travel light to ensure they can work anywhere.

Most of their income goes into maintenance and power. They rarely seek luxury and find it a more organic scruple, and have a bit of savings to fall back on as a result, but humans would find SAL-VO's living conditions squalid.

Workaholic Centipede Monster Robot, hoooo~!
-Luca