Mercs

Pirates, marauders, bounty hunters; though some mercenaries operate discretely from within other factions, the majority of Mercs wear their profession on their sleeve. Mercs hunt bounties, trade in illicit substances and stollen property. They may take prisoners, typically for ransom or hostages.
They do observe rules within their culture; but ultimately any rule is taken with grains of salt. They are certainly not afraid of breaking other peoples rules, being known to use illegal weapons tech like plasma munitions and attack drones. There was a time when synth mercs operated as sleeves (synths disguised as human), however this is perhaps the only taboo among mercs, as the psychological burden of this subterfuge often eventually destroys the synth in question. The greatest source of merc income, bounties, are also illegal on the net and rely on a system of personal communication between clients, handlers, and hunters. Though Mercs are often disorganized, their networks are predominantly found on Mars and Jupiter, as well as the orbit stations floating between them.

"Huntin' may be dirty work, but it's a dirty system and they pay us good-good to clean it up."

-- Anonymous Merc

Some of the most famous merc names are known across the system, others are shared amongst mercs cover names to signifiy their intentions. The most famous ever merc was Nabrok, though his existence has never been tangibly confirmed. Nabrok was a pirate who raided the asteroid belt between the 23rd and 26th century. Some say Nabrok was destroyed by the EMC cruiser hope which was found derelict around the same time. When he dissappeared, a number of mercs took up arms in the belt, filling the niche left in Nabroks absense.
Nong Doryu is touted as the most famous bounty hunter; collecting on the assassination of Alex, the well protected leader of Mercury Faction. However in truth Alex's bounty was never collected, and some believe Doryu carried out his attack for personal reasons, rather than financial. Migz is currently the most powerful Merc. Her unification of 6 companies has brought much unrest in the central system. Despite Migz 8 figure bounty, none of her company have attempted to claim it.

Some mercs cut their teeth like sharks; you see them when they scream, firing rockets on the back of whatever metabeast they're riding. Other mercs can be adorable; pigtails and fluffy dresses- but they'll kill you just as quickly- quicker if you don't know to look out for them.

-- Orbital Station Security Guard