Gene Starwind

Bio: When Gene was 14 years of age, his father's ship was attacked and his father killed. His father was able to get Gene into an escape pod before the ship was completely damaged and Gene eventually landed on the planet Sentinel III where he stayed for the next six years. The attack left Gene an orphan (no mention was ever made of his mother), a fear of space, and - presumeably - the scars that mark his body.

At 20 years of age, Gene is pretty carefree. He runs a struggling business with his 11 year old partner, Jim Hawking. Jim seems to be the only one who cares that they are drowning in debt. One day a customer arrives who turns out to be "Hot Ice" Hilda, an infamous Outlaw who unintenionally introduces Gene to Melfina and a ship Gene later names the Outlaw Star in Hilda's honor. Unkown to Gene and Jim, Kei Pirates are chasing after Hilda. When the pirates corner them, they flee to space, forcing Gene to face his fear of space head on. After Hilda dies trying to help the others escape Gene, Jim, and Melfina return to Sentinel III only to be chased out again by the same pirates.

This time, Gene is determined to find out why the Kei Pirates are after his ship, what exactly the Galactic Leyline is, and what Melfina has to do with all of it. Along the way, he also runs into a familiar ship that leads him to investigate what hand the MacDougall Brothers may have had in his father's death.

Gene and the other characters may come across as rather flat, only picking up at the comedic moments. But after about the middle of the season, the characters grow after they learn that working together helps everybody get what they want. The characters also grow personally when they learn selfish pursuits, aren't always the most important ones. ^^