MORGAN YU
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" QUOTE OF SOME SORT HERE. "
Prior to the removal of her neuromods, Morgan was known as an extremely driven person who was very hyper-focused on her work. Well educated and intelligent, she was constantly innovating new ideas both in and out of the lab. Even during her downtime, she was known to tinker around with robotics and gadgetry, keeping a large work table stocked with various electronic parts in both her executive’s office and her personal quarters, so that she always had equipment close at hand whenever new ideas struck. She was extremely close to her brother Alex, and the two supported each other growing up under their parents’ heavy expectations. Morgan was definitely known to be (and arguably still is) the impulsive risk-taker of the two siblings, always pushing the envelope and questioning limitations, needling Alex and encouraging him to take things a few steps further. Alex would say that he “used to think we couldn’t be trusted to play with fire without burning the whole house down” until Morgan stubbornly convinced him that some scientific progress was worth the inherent risks. Indeed, Morgan was very much an “ends justify the means” kind of scientist for most of her life, and seemed to be perfectly fine with harming living beings in the pursuit of her studies. Given this, she is very good at compartmentalizing and distancing herself from the victims of her experimentation. She would maintain a calm and professional demeanor while on duty, even while participating in the cruel methods of experimentation that TranStar endorsed by providing “volunteer” human test subjects. There are records of Morgan authorizing test sessions that were essentially execution by typhon, “feeding” volunteers to the aliens in order to collect data on their means of reproduction. As cruel as this sounds, Morgan truly believed that what she was doing was justified, as it was ultimately for the benefit of all mankind, and the deaths of a few condemned prisoners were worth it. At one point, in defense of her beliefs, she insisted that the people of the next generation would be stronger, smarter, and immortal, and that they could judge her if they wanted to, but they would know that they only exist as they do because of her efforts.
Outside of the lab, Morgan had a much more approachable and “chillaxed” demeanor, known for pulling the occasional prank and and breaking protocol by getting somewhat chummy with the rest of the Talos-I crew (much to the chagrin of her more uptight CEO brother). She has a very dry sense of humor, and even post mod removal this remains intact, with the research notes she takes down over the course of the game having a bit of a sardonic, sometimes self-deprecating touch. She has a kind of tired 30-something depressed tumblr shitposter vibe, doing things like describing her own elemental resistances in her research notes (the way she would for a scanned enemy) as being resistant to “good advice” and weak to “toxic family”. January, being a direct scan of Morgan’s personality, demonstrates this attitude as well through occasional sassy deadpan jokes.
Despite being the more approachable of the Yus, it is still difficult to truly get close to Morgan. January cites that Morgan is a naturally suspicious person, and despite her outwardly friendly demeanor she is difficult to truly get to know. She is somewhat reserved in how much she shares about herself, both out of necessity (due to the nature of her work) and out of habit from growing up under very strict and controlling parents. She’s good at keeping secrets, and also at distancing herself from others when she feels it necessary. She kept her relationship with Mikhaila Ilyushin under wraps and hid it from her brother, but was also quick to end the relationship when she was set to start testing the typhon neuromods, the reasoning being that it would be easier for both of them if they ended things with Morgan’s impending memory wipe looming. Morgan never told Mikhaila about the experiments due to their top-secret nature, so she let the other woman believe that things were over between them due to an entirely different reason, and simply did not bother correcting her.
By the time we step into Morgan’s shoes at the starting point of the game, her perspective on everything has shifted dramatically. She barely remembers who she is or what she’s done, save for what she knows from January’s briefings and from impressions she gets from the recordings and emails that she has collected from around Talos-I. The basic building blocks of her original personality are all still there, however, even in spite of the supposed personality drift. If anything, the “personality” traits that Alex claims have changed about her are more an adjustment of priorities and motivations. Where Morgan used to be excited about the idea of scientific progress by any means, her experiences in the sim lab and unexpected connection with the typhon have left her far more wary of the possible consequences of her work. Alex views this as her having turned into a “pessimist”, and further evidence of her drifting personality. January—who is basically the embodiment of past Morgan—views it as finally doing the right thing to keep Earth safe.
Morgan as she is now is a very conflicted person. She is filled with a lot of self-loathing and confusion upon the discovery of the things she apparently did in her past, including the human experimentation and dangerous testing on the typhon. She doesn’t view herself as a trustworthy or kind individual, although she will quickly put herself in harm’s way to defend others now. This may be in part because of her perception that other lives are worth more than her own, or self-sacrificing may be her way of atoning for past misdeeds.
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