AoE fluff

Elijah Brown, or, as he generally prefers, 'Angel', is a product of the same environment that produced the revolution itself. Born penniless, destitute, and without the slightest trace of an opportunity for traditional success, the only difference between Brown and most of the megacity's orphan children is that a gun was not pushed into his hands; he actively sought it ought. Sometime in his early teens, Brown killed a member of a rival gang in his district, securing himself a position in another. A criminal aggression caused Brown to steadily grow his reputation as a skilled murderer, acquiring the ironic nickname of 'Angel' somewhere down the line, his well-timed hits gaining enough notoriety that by sixteen, he was offered a serious contract from a genuine syndicate as one of the Empire's youngest contract killers. Through this means he managed to get off-world, blowing an Imperial trader's brains out from miles off and getting enough money to live comfortably for the rest of his life off it.

Angel made an effort at doing just that, buying an apartment on a decent world and attempting to settle into a life of forgetful parties and rest. He quickly found that he couldn't; after two years, the decadence and unfounded, arrogant pretension of the rich district he lived in's youth sickened him, though he knew he had no right to judge. Lurching in revolt more at this than anything he'd done before, and knowing that he'd kill the next man who jokingly grandstanded over him, Brown took what money he had left and left, buying a Corvette and a mercenary crew that understood his intent well enough.

Brown became noteworthy to the public at large soon after; doing a mixture of mercenary work on the ground and in space, he quickly moved from assassination contracts to outright raiding, making use of skilled boarding teams and brutal short-range weapons to devastate defenses and successfully raid even notably larger ships, acquiring a massive amount of wealth in a short period of time. He became an infamous criminal figure for a span of roughly three years, acquiring a fleet and assets that launched comparisons to the pirate lords of ancient Earth, bold enough to launch (overwhelmingly successful) raids on proper Imperial stations and, one or twice, military convoys. Dealing with a growing insurrection, the Empire became increasingly less able to stop these attacks as Angel grew his own overt strength. Only through the Emperor's diligence did this period come to a close - tracking one of his safehouse's exact locations, a full squad of Imperial Marines carefully waited outside as Brown disembarked, seizing and imprisoning him at the ripe old age of twenty-two. The act shattered Angel's 'mock empire', as despite being shockingly well-administrated, the entire organization foolishly rested on the autonomy and guidance of Brown himself. Funnily, this proved mostly helpful to the Empire, as the remaining groups largely turned on the now more profitable rebellion.

Brown spent two full years in a maximum security prison on death row, going through lengthy trial proceedings while the Empire crumbled in on itself. His death-date was delayed twice; debate raged in the temporary capital's governance on the issue of the traitor. Still, Brown expected death to be the final sentence, thinking the Empire unwilling to bend to convenience. Yet on the last day of his life, a Governor came to his cell, flanked by two armed guards, with a pardon in his hands - provided that Angel accept a rank in the Imperial Navy and fight to the best of his capacity against the rebellion.

For the first time in two years, Brown managed to smile. The Empire may spit on his name as a criminal and a traitor; but signing the pardon to command the Imperial Hawk, a close-range harassment-focused destroyer, it seemed clear that it was efficiency needed at the frontlines, not loyalty or ethics. And efficiency - that, Angel could give.