[b][u]Character[/b][/u] Marcus Richard Huxley, Jr. [b][u]Alias[/b][/u] The Mage [b][u]Alignment[/b][/u] Good [b][u]Identity[/b][/u] Secret [b][u]Personality[/b][/u] Marcus Huxley is inspired in part by characters that follow the "awkward nerd" trope and as such is a mess: he's awkward, extremely nervous, easily excitable, a little bit naive, and leaps without thinking. Adding that in, Marcus wants to do the mystical stuff and doesn't see it as a huge weight on his shoulders as he never has had a character to tout responsibility over him. Marcus is a good kid at heart with more power than he realizes he should be comprehending. [b][u]Uniform/Costume[/b][/u] [url=http://photos.posh24.com/p/1734007/z/andrew_garfield/andrew_garfield_pink_shirt_bla.jpg]Citizen[/url] [url=http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/pictures/2009/3/17/1237278765548/A-teenage-boy-wearing-a-h-002.jpg]"Hero"[/url] [b][u]Origin[/b][/u] Marcus Huxley grew up in Brooksdale, one of Lost Haven's many suburban midtowns in the metropolitan area. Growing up in the sprawling suburban area had a definite effect on him and he was teased or ignored by his peers depending on their gender. Marcus has been called a geek and loser for the majority of his life and his interest in urban mysteries has always sort of alienated him from others. When high school was over Marcus immediately set his sights on college, quickly quitting his steady job at the local movie theater to set his sights on the big city. With his grades set, Marcus found himself accepted into Bristol College and found a second dilemma in his freshmen year: he needed a steady job. After several weeks of looking he came across an antiques shop not too far from the college he went to and decided that it would be a good place to start looking; though Marcus’ gut feeling of wanting to check out the store had been apparent before due to his taste in urban mysteries and the knacks people always seem to forget about. This is where he began to work for an old welsh man who eventually revealed to him that he had been chosen—chosen as his apprentice. Marcus panicked but ultimately after witnessing the old man’s vigor and power realized he had either gone crazy or all of the tales and legends had been true after all of this time. Confiding in Merlin he ecstatically obeys this apprenticeship and honestly he felt like he could really use the money from working at the store as well. So the birth of Merlin’s Apprentice became so and over the next year he studied without application, until he found himself becoming inspired by crime-fighters like Ultraman and Monsoon. The debut of “The Mage” was as tacky as a name as it was; Michelle Kinney of the Lost Haven Informant had begun to report on the appearances of the superhero. In this time however, everything seemed to go downhill as his own nameless nemesis watched from the shadows as Marcus' relationship with Roxie begins to grow... [b][u]Character Type[/b][/u] Mystic [b][u]Power Level[/b][/u] City Level - though he'll be doing Street Level stuff for the majority of the beginning. [b][u]Powers[/b][/u] Marcus Huxley by all accounts should be a normal kid studying the geopolitics of sixteenth century Europe, but unfortunately he’s been gifted with knowledge of the arcane stream. Unbeknownst to Marcus he is one of several people in the world with a connection to the stream, a natural connection and it is important for him to take on the responsibilities of the realm of magic. Marcus can create arcane bolts and fields, levitate, absorb and redirect other energy, and even teleport. All of which takes massive focus and strain so he's not going to be nightcrawler or anything. Marcus is by all standings a pretty low level mage and street level hero that could become a lot more given happenstance of his life and how it is changing. His power is varied and scattered over hundreds of applications of the arcane stream and he doesn’t quite understand it. [hider=Attributes]| Strength Level - Variable due to Magic Speed/Reaction Timing Level - Variable due to Magic Endurance at MAXIMUM Effort - Normal Human - 2HR Agility - Normal Human Intelligence - Average Fighting Skill - Untrained Resources - Minimal[/hider] [b][u]Weaknesses[/b][/u] As a mystic with a small degree of training Marcus isn't exactly Merlin-- he cannot bend magic very well and thus most of his physical defenses is very human. With that said the majority of Marcus' weaknesses comes through his personality: his nervousness, awkwardness, and pure anxiety from a situation bring a lot of mental misses and with magic that's a big no-no. [b][u]Supporting Cast[/b][/u] [url=http://thehobbitfilms.files.wordpress.com/2011/02/ian-mckellen.jpg]Merlin[/url] – the wizard of time and space himself; he’s the mentor of the character and the lead on to everything Marcus Huxley will be. [url=http://www.wallsave.com/wallpapers/1366x768/women-in-leather-jacket/137172/women-in-leather-jacket-ellen-page-black-wide-free-137172.jpg]Roxanne “Roxie” Llywelyn[/url] – Right now Roxie is Marcus Huxley’s friend and potential love interest, but there’s a lot more to Roxie than Marcus realizes. [url=http://comicsworthreading.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/IAmNumberFour_Dianna.jpg]Michelle Kinney[/url] – A tenacious and adamant reporter for the local newspaper who intends to get ahead of her male peers as a reporter who gets the truth. [url=http://www.theplace2.ru/archive/jamie_bell/img/jamie_bell_002.jpg]David Richards[/url] – Marcus’ best friend and his roommate. [b][u]Sample[/b][/u] Merlin’s library is not a place in England, a tangible ruin, or something you can see from space. It’s a quiet, hidden place and what it is in reality astounds me. Merlin’s tower is a pocket dimension in a broom closet. Boy does that sound weird. I “work” at this old middle-of-the-road antiques shop but really it’s more like I’m paid to learn magic… and keep the place clean. Alright so maybe I do have a job here and I’m not seemingly paid to be the world’s next great magical force of good and it’s a big responsibility to have… but I’m sort of excited for it. I was raised Christian, though I imagine if my parents knew what I was doing… they’d think I was questioning god’s power or meddling in the affairs of Satan—but magic isn’t theological—there’s a stream between dimensions and worlds and golly it’s the stuff of fantasy but it’s not fantasy, it’s so very real and so very amazing. I’m standing on the shore of the Atlantic Ocean right now and I’m looking out as our famous superhero fights what seems to be some variety of sea-monster. I haven’t really understood who they’re fighting, I just know they’re fighting to keep us safe—they’ve said it a few times from the interviews I’ve actually caught. ‘It’s my responsibility to help others. I was born with this gift and I need to use it in this way, it’s a public service.’ Those words may be somewhat inspiring to me, but I feel like I’ve always wanted to do something great and even if I’ve had my head buried in the books and myths; I wanted to do something. It’s why I want to become a person who educates and forms young minds. With “the Mage” alias being tossed around I can do that in my day job and in my night job—well assuming I get through college with all of this magic stuff going on. It’s nifty, but exhausting and everything Merlin decides he’s going to lug a fireball at me I get nervous and anxious and it’s like high school all over again. Daisy Wilson didn’t want to date me and this fireball is going to kill me. Those are my thoughts when that happens—they’re the same. “This is really cool. I’m meant to be a hero—a role model. I think.” I say aloud as I smile. Watch out, because these next few years… there’s a wizard coming.