Caitlee "Cai" Ito
She/her
In the 2220s, Cai grew up in the outskirts of Houston with her parents, Alexis (human) and Kiran (humlux from the plannet Eden). After Cai endured a series of bullying incidents, her grandparents—Dix and Aru—thought it best to give her space to integrate more with human society.
Cai spent her teenage years in the 2230s living with her great-aunt Tera in New York City. There, Cai coated her skin to present as a human while keeping her alien parentage secret. During that time, she got to know Analisa, Cai’s best friend and eventual girlfriend.
In "When Truth Cowers," Cai applied for game shows with Analisa and Analisa's twin brother, Lian. When the three of them were cast on the game show Truth or Dare, they befriended two players—Daraja and Eric—during the game. They also allied with the older Sevyn, who joined the game to keep Cai safe on Tera's behalf. Although the round of Truth or Dare began as dramatically as usual, the players soon found themselves being killed one by one. As it was technically legal and the producers found a live murder mystery compelling, the players were forced to stay in the game until the end.
This section includes major spoilers about "When Truth Cowers." Please read the book first, unless you want the ending spoiled.
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Appearance
Cai was a lab-grown human/humlux hyrbid. Although she mostly looked human, her anatomy was somewhat different due to her humlux alien side. Her skin was naturally green due to her chlorophyllic blood. Her chest and back had barky skin that could produce the humlux warble—verbal communication done with bark. At the beginning of "When Truth Cowers," Cai used a skin-modifying pod to change her green skin to beige. As for her human heritage, she was East Asian Amalrican. Her mother was Japanese Amalrican.
At the beginning of "When Truth Cowers," Cai was eighteen years old. She was 5'9" and fairly thin, although with a wider back than average. She had straight, dark brown hair that she sometimes kept in a ponytail. She had a dark red carnation tattoo on her right shoulder, matching the one on Analisa's left shoulder. She had a gold leaf stud promise earring in her left ear that matched Analisa's. She tended to wear dark clothing matching the fashion of the time, but she would wear neon yellow and light yellow as accent colors.
Personality, Behavior, Et Cetera
Cai was reserved around people she didn't know. She was attentive to the wants and needs of people she cared about. For example, even though she didn't eat much human food, she learned how to cook for other people.
Her favorite color was yellow. She tuned out the world most of the time with headphones. Her music choices tended to be classic tunes like the Broadway style music Heka produced. Her scholarly interest was strongest in history. She had a bunch of plant plushies on a bean bag in the corner of her room; she called it her comfort corner, as that was where she went to calm herself. She tried to make puns and generally be lighthearted. By the end of "When Truth Cowers," her humor was more cynical.
She didn't like needles due to the memory of a bully forcing her to eat a cactus as a kid.
She had dyslexia, but she didn't know the name of it. Her contact lenses and headphones helped her avoid having difficulty reading. She was lesbian and asexual.
Due to her humlux side, Cai received energy primarily from sunlight and water. Since she had a digestive track, she could eat human food, although she preferred only eating animal products because she sympathized with the plants.
Relationships
As of the beginning of "When Truth Cowers," Cai had a somewhat difficult and distanced relationship with her parents, Alexis and Kiran. During her teenage years, she enjoyed living with her great-aunt Tera. She often called her human grandparents—Grampa Dix and Gram Aru.
Analisa was Cai's best friend and girlfriend. During "When Truth Cowers," Cai became friends with Analisa's twin brother, Lian. She also became friends with Daraja and Eric. Sevyn became a mentor figure like her great-aunt Tera.
Since she was young, Cai idolized Comedy and Tragedy, the hosts and referees for the game show Truth or Dare.
Trivia
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Cai's birthday was August 24, 2223
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I wrote a humlux/human hybrid character in another story before writing Cai, so her experiences foil the character from the other story
