Didn't realize the OOC was up. Throwing Luca here for now.

[hider=Luca][center]
[img]http://i.imgur.com/JHzT654.jpg?1[/img]

[i]Luca is a boy of slight stature, his growth stunted by illness inflicted by the Taint. Short for his age and with an almost gaunt build,
he is very human-like in appearance given the extent to which the Taint affects him, with soft, almost childlike features. His skin is the color of bone, and his eyes are deep red like uncut rubies. His mop of shaggy hair is so fair as to seem blue in some lights. Aside from his pale coloration, Luca's ears end in elfin points, and mouth is filled with sharp, predatory fangs in place of teeth. He owns only one set of clothes: a thick hooded garment to keep his frail form warm, short trousers that he outgrew years ago, and a pair of garden slippers in place of shoes.[/i][/center]

[b][color=FFFFF0]Name:[/color][/b] Luca

[b][color=FFFFF0]Age:[/color][/b] 14

[b][color=FFFFF0]Gender:[/color][/b] Male

[b][color=FFFFF0]Background:[/color][/b] The knowledge of how Luca came to the orphanage is known by no one other than Fritz, who refused to speak on the subject, even to Luca himself. All that is known is that Luca came to the orphanage as a small babe, and the secrets of his origins beyond that have now died with the old man. Luca grew up as a sickly child, the Taint inflicting him with a sickness of the blood, and would have quickly died on the streets if Fritz had not taken him in. Perhaps in spite of his frail body, Luca proved to be a startlingly intelligent boy as he grew up, learning to read before he could walk, and spending much time taking apart his few toys and reassembling them into clever configurations. Given his physical weakness and shy temperament, Luca was much a much-protected "little brother" among the children of the orphanage, even those younger than him, many of whom he taught to read or built fanciful toys for. While the children he was raised alongside understand Luca's moods and eccentricities, his stoic and sometimes disconcerting demeanor can come across as disturbing or alien to those unfamiliar with him. This is far from intentional, as Luca is merely a sheltered boy who is clumsy at best in social encounters.

[b][color=FFFFF0]Equipment:[/color][/b] Luca has a basic collection of pilfered tinker's tools, and a knapsack full of half-finished contraptions, as well as various bits and gubbins. Kept close to him is Luca's most valued possession: a metal flask filled with a curative medicinal elixir, from which small sips can quickly restore his strength when it flags. He has no reliable source of refilling his flask, and so only drinks from it when he direly needs his body to not fail him.

[b][color=FFFFF0]Level:[/color][/b] 1

[b][color=FFFFF0]Attribute:[/color][/b] Focus

[b][color=FFFFF0]Skills:[/color][/b] Luca is alarmingly intelligent for a boy his age, to an extent that can surprise and unnerve many adults. He is quick-witted and observant, and has a memory like a steel trap. While he is not the most eloquent when expressing his thoughts and ideas, the children he was raised alongside understand him well enough.

Something of an amateur engineer or inventor, Luca has a deft mind for things of a mechanical nature. With skillful fingers and a sharp eye, he disassemble or construct small tools or contraptions with startling speed. While most of his experience stems from scrapping together silly toys and complex contraptions for the entertainment of the other children in the orphanage. His skills in more complex forms of engineering are limited by his (lack of) education, but he is eager to learn all he can and further develop his talent, which he views as a fun and engaging hobby.

Much to the amazement of his peers, Luca is also rather talented at slight of hand. Books, tools, and parts do not come cheaply, and Luca is no stranger to picking a pocket or two to acquire a few coins to rub together. Given his frail body, running from an attempt at theft gone poorly was never an option, and so he was forced to get good quickly. Similarly, his nimble fingers and knowledge of mechanics are easily put to use in picking locks, an act Luca sees as nothing more than solving a puzzle.

[b][color=FFFFF0]Affinity:[/color][/b] [color=630460][b]Dark[/b][/color]

[b][color=FFFFF0]Gift:[/color][/b] At times, Luca hears whispers from an entity that he cannot otherwise sense. It tells him secrets about people or places around him, usually at times when that information is critical or pivotal. On rare occasions, the whispers reply to Luca's thoughts as though he were speaking them aloud, and has demonstrated a playful personality, and a mentor-like attitude toward Luca himself, but is otherwise quite cruel and openly malicious. Luca does not know the name of this entity or anything else about it, but its whispers have always rung true, and any questions about its identity (that it deigns to answer) are met with taunting promises that Luca will learn such things later.
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