Poll: Stripper With a System Summons! (Patreon)

Alright folks, as I mentioned with yesterday's release of Stripper With a System, it is yet again time to select another Summons for Rylia! In this particular case, the summons they need is an Archeologist/Explorer who can (WARNING SPOILER) investigate ancient alien civilizations from previous harvests/cycles, off the Relay Network. (End Spoiler Warning)

A number of suggestions were made (thanks everyone!), though I ultimately only used 1.5 of those. A few others made my initial list, but were cut when I made the final short list, for various reasons. Nico Robin, for example, was cut as a possibility mostly because she's already getting plenty of screen time in Halfway Broken ;-). No point in doubling up on characters when there are plenty of other options. Others didn't make the final list simply because I compared their popularity to the other people on the list and didn't think they had a prayer of success due to how known/unknown they were. I even cut one option simply because the character is from DC comics, and we already have two characters from there...

So, let's look at the final list of five options!

1) Dr. Lara Croft(Tomb Raider)

This is one of the variants of Lara Croft who has both a full PhD in Archeology and plenty of experience in the field facing the weird and unusual! Based mostly on an older, more experienced iteration of the 2013 reboot Lara, this version of Lara has faced first Yamati, then the dangerous Trinity organization. Having made a deal with the Omniversal Market to undo a curse, she's used to world-ending or world-rewriting threats, and might well be in her personal version of heaven with the chance to explore numerous dead alien civilizations!

Romance Chances: Lara is a possible addition to the pairing. Though, given she'll be away from Rylia and Co as much as she is nearby, it may take a while for that to happen, if she's included.

2) Dr. Samantha Carter(StarGate)

A variant of Samantha Carter who was cloned from the original, and would have died...had the Omniversal Marketplace not made her an offer. Not an archeologist, but an experienced explorer used to deciphering alien technologies. May or may not come with a Daniel Jackson clone accompanying her. I haven't decided yet on that point.

Romance Chances: Zero. Not only does she honestly come off as pretty thoroughly hetrosexual, but I'm fairly sure she and Rylia would kill each other if they got involved in more than a professional capacity.

3) Dr. Susan Storm (Marvel)

Surprise! I looked up what Susan Storm's actual degrees were...and the answer? A Doctorate in Archaeology, as well as a high understanding of Linguistics, History, and Cultural Studies. She is also considered 'well versed' in fields like biology, genetics, and diplomacy.

This version of Susan Storm never married, or even dated Reed Richards, who got himself exploded in a lab accident involving Victor von Doom, two bottles of tequila, a wheel of cheese, and a drunken competition over who could make the better Death Ray. Instead, she was exposed to Cosmic Rays in an alternative manner, with her powers slowly destabilizing until she made a deal with the Omniversal Marketplace. With her powers now stable, she's the the second member of the team with 'superpowers' (if you exclude Rylia's biotics).

Romance Chances: High. Due to the sheer variety of skills she has to offer, such as diplomacy and additional expertise in areas like biology and genetics, she'll work with Rylia, Kara and Momo more often. She'll still lead field expeditions, but will be around more often for Rylia's brand of enthusiastic flirtation to have an effect! Doubly so when Rylia keeps suggesting kinky uses for her powers and Susan can't help but be curious if they'd work...

4) Dr. Jean-Luc-Picard(Star Trek)

Another surprise! When I started looking up possible Star Trek archaeologists, guess who popped up? Canon Jean-Luc-Picard had a serious interest in archaeology at Starfleet academy, and was urged by one of his professors to peruse it. He decided against it and went on to be the Picard we all know, and at least some of us love.

This is not canon Picard. Instead, this variant took that professor's advice and followed up on his interest in archaeology, gaining a full doctorate in the subject. He still ended up commanding ships in the end, but did so in the capacity of/as the head of a team of dedicated archaeologists. A team who followed in the wake of the horrific messes Enterprise always left behind them, properly cataloging the mess and the history of the many things 'those psychos who keep running into ancient doomsday weapons' left for them to deal with.

Romance Chances: N/A with Rylia. I don't have any interest in pairing her with men. May or may not end up in some manner of relationship with other characters, such as Dr. Dalsir, Rylia's mother, or even Benezia.

5) Dr. River Song (Doctor Who)

Ah, alas poor River, your fate was horrible, just like almost everyone that gets involved with the Doctor! Oh, but what's this? You always did have a clever backup plan/escape route, didn't you? A deal with the Omniversal Marketplace allows River a second chance at life, even if it separates her from the Doctor for good. I'm calling her a variant mostly because I haven't seen Doctor Who in a long time, nor an I up to take past the...11th doctor, I think? So I might not get everything right, thus variant ;-)!

Romance Chances: Low. While not truly against it, River just lost her life-long love, the Doctor, all-to-recently. If anything happens between her and any other character, it will be years down the line after she's had time to move on. Which is still possible, given there are 14 years before the events of ME:1.

Alright, gentle beings all! That is the final short list of options, so get your votes in! This poll will end...when it needs to. Which depends a lot on which story wins the August Story Poll. So make sure you get your votes in on that poll, too ;-)!