Han Jae-Moon: Raised by wealthy corporate heirs and showered with lavish developmental resources since the womb, Han was quickly picked up in the aptitude tests universally administered to the children of new Corea at every stage of schooling. Identified for not only high intelligence but exceptional levels of internal physical discipline and emotional awareness, upon reaching adulthood his compulsory military service was a fast track into officer training in the United Corean People's Navy. Quickly bypassing the usual progression thanks to excellence in long-distance swimming, diving, and CQC, Han was admitted into a special HUMINT unit secretly administered by the Ministry of Intelligence and Security Service.
As culmination of this enhanced regimen, Special Ensign Han was deployed to the world's live-fire training ground of North America. Tasked with securing Corean trade interests during the '50s Southern California Hydro Wars, his team of trainees monitored intelligence from the ground, operating in shifts to guard U.C. vessels in the Port of New Los Angeles. During the tour, the port was attacked by a gang of former Californian National Guard defectors who sailed off with a freighter carrying foodstuffs. Thinking quickly, Han concocted a plan to draw the water gang back on shore. He personally approached the ex-military pirates, posing as a local gangster. Speaking American English with a perfect K-Town accent, Han offered to trade the cargo for a source of freshwater he claimed to have lifted from the NLA City Guard. Convinced, the defectors agreed to a rendezvous in the drought-stricken San Fernando Valley for the handoff. The UCPN ensigns ambushed them there in return, supported by native auxiliaries made up of his contacts in the local kkangpae. Han later partook in the retaking of the ship itself, a frogman assault against the remaining skeleton crew.
For this display of leadership, Han was inducted into Chungsu soon after. At the state organization's subaquatic training academy, his skills in language and social performance were honed, and he even received acting lessons from a retired K-drama legend employed by M.I.S.S. as an advisor. A true virtuoso, Han held mastery in the internal arts, excelling in the program's iso-meditation drills. In a record feat, he spent nearly an entire week on the sea floor away from the the base hooked up to a nutrient bag without experiencing debilitating Ganzfeld shock. The ability impressed his classmates and instructors, but profoundly disturbed the base Psych Specialist. While he called for an inquiry, that dissenter was unfortunately lost during the 2054 Jeju Earthquake. Thanks to the quick reactions of Han Jae-Moon the academy evacuated safely, but an unexpected structural failure seemingly caused a chain reaction that destroyed the Psych office, resulting in the base's sole casualty in the entire disaster.
Han soon attained the rank of Analyst-Strategist, given advanced assignments in policy crafting and scenario creation. His thesis revolved around the East Asian situation- noting that the Crimson "humanitarian occupation" of disaster-stricken Japan was not going well, and the potential for repercussions to directly impact Great China, he created a comprehensive strategy for Corea to benefit. This was implemented in Chungsu's most sophisticated forecast machines, in between foreign language lessons and sessions on the sea floor. As it turned out, academy instructors were so enthralled by his proposals that they forwarded the plan to military and politically officials and it was actually carried out. The "forecasts" were real-world events unfolding, and Han responded to them under the guise of an elaborate simulation.
Operation Chibad-i did significantly weaken Chinese presence abroad. But even as the occupation withdrew under heavy fire from insurgents wielding M.I.S.S. weapons delivered by neo-yakuza go-betweens, the Shin Tatenokai movement that took power in the name of the re-deified emperor was scarcely less aggressive towards Corea. And the secrecy of the operations was not ironclad despite Han's best theoretical dictates. When evidence of the country's involvement in the bloody Sino-Japanese Insurgency was publicized, the Crimson regime angrily expelled the U.N. mission from Manchuria, shouting curses at the Corean peacekeepers leading it and threatening sanctions against this former vassal that dared to play suzerain.
Despite the fiasco, Han simply moved up, literally. Upon graduation from the academy with honors, he was promoted topside to a public-facing role managing internal state-corporate relations in the national interests of space, sea, and psi. With his corporate aristocratic pedigree, Han did well in this role, becoming the country's main liaison to the Unity project. He successfully negotiated for the inclusion of Dai Seung Heavy Industries as the premier mining and construction field contractor for the mission. When the crew selection finally began, Han was easily nominated to head United Corea's delegation within the crew- and as Chungsu's man on Chiron.
Han was appointed Development Policy Officer with a rank of Moderator on Unity. His role in the early voyage was both visible and unremarkable, navigating the private-public partnerships that undergirded the project and managing how his country's assets contributed to the overall effort. Despite this bureaucratic tertiary role, Han somehow found his way into the bridge whenever possible, becoming known to the command staff, most of whom found him courteous if strangely... off. Executive Officer Sheng-Ji Yang was one who had the opportunity to interact with Han off-duty. At the sparring ring of the exercise facilities, the two exchanged a polite judo match- a neutral martial art that was outside the expertise of both- and while Yang won handily as he did against the ensigns, he did detect that Han had held back on his true capabilities. Han, for his efforts, was able to probe Yang's style, scouting for weaknesses- but could find none at first glance. Both made a mental note to seek out the other after arrival.
Notes: Based on his track record on Earth, I imagine Han Jae-Moon to be part Bond, part Thrawn, and part Paul Bremer. He's a genius and all, but when he screws up, as with the plot to subvert the Chinese occupation of Japan, it leads to some really bad blowback. It also shows that he's a bit too used to dealing with people as abstractions. Also, he's part Achilles from the Ender's Shadow series, as he's ruthless enough to get rid of threats to his power in the most efficient way possible. I just wanted to follow through with his threat from the Official Teaser.
I didn't mean that he actually caused an earthquake that killed the doctor, more like he took advantage of the situation to get rid of a threat during a time of crisis.
His civilian rank on the ship is Moderator as a joke on Barre being an Administrator. Given that "President" just means someone who presides over something, maybe similar semantic drift could one day elevate the meaning of mod as well.
