[@Mae] [@Melo] Omg thanks for all the compliments. I made the changes mentioned in the CS and clarified a bit. I want to keep Cicero's history like it is mostly because I have no intention of him ever regaining it - and if, later on, I decide that he does, I want to potentially have it involve other characters :) Monkey See, Monkey Do: He can only copy the action the person did, not the entire skill set. It is because he is copying what they are doing and the way their body has memorized that action. Sharing is Caring: Mephisto cannot see memories if they are forgotten, but he can see memories if they are locked away or suppressed. Selective Amnesia: Yes, he can only do one memory. Take Roots: Usually, if he uses this skill, it would be paired with selective amnesia. But it could also be used as a source of confusion or doubt. However, this does not necessarily mean the only use for it is replace a memory with another. For instance, Mephisto could implant a memory of the person previously meeting him which would not conflict with anything since it is not contradicted in their memory. Sob Story: That’s what I had in mind, for the most part. A Shaggy Dog Story: Mm, this is a good take on it that I kind of had but it wasn’t as fully fleshed as this. :D Here's the edited sheet! [hider=Cicero / Mephisto / God of Tales, Traditions, and Memory][center] [img]http://i.imgur.com/hyUPO7N.png[/img] [color=EB8C00]⍚ Cicero[/color] ⥥ [color=BC4B4B]Twenty-seven[/color] ⥥ [color=EB8C00] Male [/color]⥥ [color=BC4B4B] Pansexual ⍚ [/color] [h3]"The fact of storytelling hints at a fundamental human unease, hints at human imperfection. Where there is perfection there is no story to tell."[/h3][/center] [center] [h1][color=EB8C00][b]𝔐[/b]y [b]𝔐[/b]ortal [b]ℭ[/b][i]𝔬𝔦𝔩[/i][/color][/h1] [/center] [ ⍚ ] [b][color=EB8C00][b]A[/b][/color][sub][color=BC4B4B] P P E A R A N C E[/color][/sub][/b] [color=black][b]—————————————————————————————[/b][/color] [indent][color=cccccc]Cicero is a handsome man – something he won’t let anybody forget anytime soon – though he is handsome in the most conventional way. In his appearance, there is nothing inherently unique about him. He’s tan with taut muscles, but is more so lean than muscular – his arms the most muscular part of him. Cicero is remarkably tall, standing at 6’3”, and has a bigger-than-life presence that makes him seem even taller than he is. Just like his long body, Cicero has a long slender neck with a very prominent Adam’s apple that bobs when he delves into a story. He has high cheekbones and a sharp jawbone that makes him look slightly less average than he is. His nose is slightly large with a straight bridge and rounded tip and his eyes are round and big. Cicero does not sleep much, which is evident with the purple bags under his eyes. Cicero’s lips are relatively thin and his mouth is not too wide or narrow – the only thing out of place is the scar running down the left corner from the claw of a startled dog. Cicero keeps his brown hair long, letting it just barely miss his shoulders. When it comes to his typical clothing, Cicero tends to wear layers. Over a long, thin shirt, he would have a tunic, and over the tunic a robe. He tends to dress in browns and reds and is overly fond of needless decor such as sashes and such. His clothing is usually frayed and worse for wear since he is traveling all the time. He has made a makeshift bag out of a strip of cloth that rests on his hip and is wrapped around his shoulder. He also likes to keep a walking stick for hiking purposes, which he has carved intricate designs on. Cicero's javelins are in a holster strapped to his back. Cicero’s curse mark is a small turquoise line that encircles his middle finger on his left hand. As the mark progresses, it spreads from one arm and branches down his torso and up his chest, gradually rolling to his middle finger on the right hand. [/color][/indent] [ ⍚ ] [b][color=EB8C00][b]P[/b][/color][sub][color=BC4B4B] E R S O N A L I T Y[/color][/sub][/b] [color=black][b]—————————————————————————————[/b][/color] [indent][color=cccccc]Despite Cicero’s severe appearance, his personality is more light and humorous. Cicero is the type of man who despises serious topics and would much rather dwell on easier subjects. It is not because Cicero does not like talking about things that are hard to swallow; rather, Cicero cannot find it himself to [i]care[/i] about those topics. He follows a simple philosophy that emphasizes the meaninglessness of trying to prevent disasters and horrors. Cicero is of the opinion that whatever happens happens and there’s no way a simple mortal can stop it – only the gods have such control over fate. Because of this, Cicero would much rather laugh and make others laugh in return. Cicero spends much of his time focused on entertaining others through stories and dramatics in order to distract from the hardships everyone faces. However, his dramatic personality does not end with his storytelling. As a general rule, if Cicero tells you something, then he has exaggerated it way out of proportion – or it might not be the truth, just a silly little lie he has told for kicks. He always makes light of the mood and, if there is a serious atmosphere, will ignore it in favor of driving his jokes home. And does he love his jokes. Almost every word out of his mouth is a joke and if it’s not, then its sarcasm at his conversational partner’s expense. Cicero especially enjoys satirical jokes. With his playful and carefree attitude, Cicero tends to attract children in herds. At any given time, there will be a little anklebiter by him and Cicero works quite well with them. He is by no means a role model, though, and often encourages the little tykes to get into trouble; he might even employ them to play a little prank on someone. When no one is looking, though, Cicero displays a thoughtful side. If he has no one to engage with, his mind tends to delve into philosophy and it can take a couple of tries to bring him from his thoughts. He likes to ponder the meaning of humanity and reasons for existence. His philosophy has made him quite the cynic; he only believes in the worst of humanity. So, instead of focusing on morals, Cicero prefers hedonism and doing what he likes, living in the beautiful grey on the moral compass. [/color][/indent] [ ⍚ ] [b][color=EB8C00][b]B[/b][/color][sub][color=BC4B4B] I O G R A P H Y[/color][/sub][/b] [color=black][b]—————————————————————————————[/b][/color] [indent][color=cccccc]Cicero does not remember his life before he was ten. The first memory he has is of him waking up in an icy cold river, hungry and freezing, with blood dripping from his head. Cicero has many theories of what happened, but the one he tends to stick with is that he hit his head. But, if one were to ask him, Cicero would spin an elaborate tale of how he lost his memory. In order to survive in the wild, Cicero taught himself how to build a shelter and he got by with berries and fish. He was often lonely in the wild, so Cicero would tell stories to keep himself occupied and would talk to the animals around him. Eventually, after living two years on his own, he stumbled upon the Ursidae clan and they took him in. The Ursidae raised him until he was sixteen; he was genial enough and most enjoyed his company. Though, they often got angry at him for meddling with their children, but at the end of the day it was all in good fun. At night, they would implore Cicero to tell a story and Cicero would spin tales with complex characters and use shadow puppets on tanned skin with firelight. The children particularly liked his story about a brave warrior named Cicero that battled shadow monsters and that was how Cicero earned his name. When he was sixteen, Cicero made the decision to leave the Ursidae clan to travel to the other clans and tell them his stories. Cicero did like the attention, and he flits quite often between the major clans and is well-known by many. [/color] [color=EB8C00][b]Memories Retained:[/b][/color] [list][*][*][*][/list][/indent] [center][img]http://i.imgur.com/ULqWAjv.gif[/img][/center] [center] [h1][color=EB8C00]𝔐y ℑmmortal 𝔖[i]𝔬𝔲𝔩[/i][/color][/h1] [img]http://i.imgur.com/BQkoL4R.png[/img] [color=EB8C00]⍚ Mephisto[/color] ⥥ [color=BC4B4B]The God of Tales, Traditions, and Memory[/color] ⥥ [color=EB8C00] Male [/color]⥥ [color=BC4B4B] Demiromantic-demisexual ⍚ [/color] [indent][color=#EB8C00][quote=The Manifesto of Mephisto; Oral Poem][sup]A legend is lionized lies from ludicrous lives Twining twenties with twittering and twit Drawing distress when drama delightfully dives A story is much better when Mephisto tells it Birth a boy with bravery and backbone Nourish the newborn by needs and nipple Scrub shortcomings so shine is shown Humor his heart in home and hipple Tell tales of terror to teach the tyke Cut courage from child with care and coddle Then parade the poltroon with pernach and pike Thick thong from threadbare swith deathly throttle A story is much better when Mephisto tells it Molding a mousey murine into a mongrel The warrior wrangles with weapons and wit Erasing the earl executed by ensemble A story is much better when Mephisto tells it[/sup] [/quote][/color][/indent][/center] [ ⍚ ] [b][color=EB8C00][b]G[/b][/color][sub][color=BC4B4B]O D L Y A P P E A R A N C E[/color][/sub][/b] [color=black][b]—————————————————————————————[/b][/color] [indent][color=cccccc][color=cccccc]Behold, Mephisto, God of Tales, Traditions, and Memory. He appears as a solemn god; his face is angular and sharp with his thick lips often pressed into an impassive line. Mephisto’s facial features are more exaggerated and dramatic than subtle and soft. His eyes are almost too large for his face and dark circles outline them underneath. One of his eyes is the color of murky sea water and the other is a smoldering brown. Situated underneath his large eyes, his nose tip is defined and the bridge is a slope. The skin on his face seem stretched taut against his defined cheekbones, though it is not unattractive but rather regal and aristocratic. Almost everything about him seems dignified and princely - even his soothing baritone sounds like that of a king. The only exception to this is the messy mop of black hair on his head, unruly and untamed. Mephisto is one of the attractive gods – though definitely not one of the most attractive. His appeal is not as ethereal or stunning as his fellow gods and goddesses. Mephisto is not quite as outlandish as some of the other gods, either – he could almost pass as a mere mortal. The only thing that prevents him from blending in with the others is his tall, lanky height of seven feet – his hair often brushes the leaves of trees in his full height. His neck also appears to be longer than a mortal’s, almost unnaturally so, and it is often tightly wrapped with metal strips. Mephisto’s skin is a dark tan and firelight tends to mesmerizingly reflect on him, pronouncing the delicate muscles and dips of his body. Turquoise blue markings decorate his entire body in rings and lines, a simple design that stems from his middle fingers on both hands, his big toes on his feet, and his bottom lip. The lines then branch until his body is covered with blue under his clothes.[/color][/color][/indent] [ ⍚ ] [b][color=EB8C00][b]K[/b][/color][sub][color=BC4B4B] N O W N F O R[/color][/sub][/b] [color=black][b]—————————————————————————————[/b][/color] [indent][color=cccccc]⌘ Legends, fairytales, myths, and history. ⌘ Owls, elephants, and monkeys. ⌘ Hearths, campfires, shadow puppets. ⌘ Starry nights, summer nights, and times around the fire. ⌘ Walnuts, burning wood, and talking. ⌘ Dramatic and humorous. ⌘ Poetic and philosophical. ⌘ Carefree and apathetic. ⌘ Deceitful and creative.[/color][/indent] [ ⍚ ] [b][color=EB8C00][b]F[/b][/color][sub][color=BC4B4B] O R M A T I V E M O M E N T S I N H I S T O R Y[/color][/sub][/b] [color=black][b]—————————————————————————————[/b][/color] [indent][color=cccccc][hider=Empty Walnuts Speak]There was a lost woman in the woods. She did not know where to turn or how to get back to her darling children. Part of her wanted to give up, to lie onto the soft dirt and die in peace. However, the picture of her beautiful children in her mind’s eye kept her moving forward. As the days became months, the woman struggled to remember them – their soft eyes, smiling faces, playful personalities. Time flowed and she became weaker. At last, she tripped and hit her head on a walnut. A walnut, of all things! As she laid there, with a slight scrape on the middle of her forehead, the woman tried to think of her children’s names. She couldn’t remember them for a long, long moment. She kept thinking of them, trying to pull the names from the tip of her tongue, and it was only when night came that she remembered. Filled with a new determination, the woman picked up the walnut and continued her search for home. That time forth, when it came time to rest, the woman would build a campfire and talk to the walnut. Every night, she forced herself to remember every detail of her children and recounted it to the walnut. Two years passed and the walnut’s ridges became smooth from being handled so much. At a moment of frustration one night, the lost woman threw the walnut into the campfire. In the morning, when the woman woke up, a small boy was asleep in the ashes. She named the boy Mephisto and raised him on her search for her children. During the night, she told him stories to keep herself occupied. She taught him how to make shadow puppets dance against a cave wall and the best storytelling abilities. They spent the rest of her life like this, telling stories and remembering. Until, one day, she couldn’t get up. Mephisto stayed by her bed side, telling her stories and tales. Mephisto told stories for a year, so enraptured in the tales he was spinning, that it was only when thunder clashed that he knew he was telling myths to a corpse. Mephisto stood up and walked away.[/hider] [hider=Walnut, Faia, and Treeki: The Immortal Companions of Mephisto]There is nothing crueler than taking the memory from the god of memory. Mephisto resisted the dark gods with all the power in his body – he fought with them tooth and nail so he could retain his memory and the stories he had to tell. As he battled with them, his hatred began to grow towards them. When he could not defeat the dark gods, he attempted to run from them and disappear from their sights so he could escape such a cruel fate. He found residence behind a waterfall, where he rested during the afternoon. However, at night, Mephisto travelled and found three animals: an owl, an elephant, and a monkey. He took the three animals to the lake in which he resided and named them Walnut, Faia, and Treeki. Mephisto blessed the three with the most powerful memories of the animal kingdoms and every night, Mephisto told his tales to them over a campfire. Mephisto knew the dark gods would find him eventually – he scattered Walnut, Faia, and Treeki before that time could come. When they did come for him, Mephisto fought with them until he was powerless – however, he knew, that even if they took his memories from him, he would find them again. Walnut, Faia, and Treeki went on to have children and their children had children until all monkeys, owls, and elephants had immense memories. Now, the three wise sentient animals wait behind the waterfall in a stasis, waiting for their master Mephisto to come for them so they can tell him the stories he has forgotten. [/hider][/color][/indent] [center] [img]http://i.imgur.com/DMz7J6d.gif[/img] [h1][color=EB8C00]𝔐y 𝔊ifts 𝔚[i]𝔦𝔱𝔥𝔦𝔫[/i][/color][/h1] [/center] [ ⍚ ] [b][color=EB8C00][b]S[/b][/color][sub][color=BC4B4B] K I L L S E T[/color][/sub][/b] [color=black][b]—————————————————————————————[/b][/color] [list][*][color=EB8C00]Acting:[/color] From dramatics in stories, Cicero has become quite good at acting and making it believable. [*][color=BC4B4B]Perfect Memory:[/color] Cicero has perfect memory and can remember most details in a given moment - of course he does have his bouts of forgetfulness like everyone else.[*][color=EB8C00]Woodwork:[/color] Cicero is good with his hands and his able to carve from wood and make creations from the wood. This can range from furniture to lucky totems to carry. However, Cicero mostly uses it to make puppets for storytime.[/list] [list][*][color=BC4B4B]Shelter Building:[/color] Cicero is adept at gauging his surroundings and building a satisfactory shelter in order to shield himself from the elements. [*][color=EB8C00]Javelins:[/color] Javelins are his preferred weapon and Cicero can throw it with impeccable accuracy. He can also use them in close-range, though he is considerably more clumsy when it comes to close combat. [*][color=BC4B4B]Subtle Strength:[/color] Despite his lankiness, Cicero has a subtle strength in his body which he uses to throw his javelin and he can further use his strength for close quarters.[/list] [ ⍚ ] [b][color=EB8C00][b]A[/b][/color][sub][color=BC4B4B] B I L I T I E S[/color][/sub][/b] [color=black][b]—————————————————————————————[/b][/color] [color=EB8C00][b]Life Force[/b][/color]: [color=cccccc]0/0[/color] [color=EB8C00][b]Ability 1: Remember Me[/b][/color] [color=cccccc][i]"To be forgotten is to be nothing. I refuse to be nothing, to be lost in a sea of destroyed memories. I will leave something to be remembered."[/i][/color] [indent] [color=BC4B4B]⌘ Monkey See, Monkey Do: [/color]When Mephisto sees someone performing a skill they have, he is able to copy their muscle memory and perform the same task. However, he cannot alter what he has learned and cannot copy something that is specific to that person such as a power. Mephisto can only copy that single action and not the entire skillset. [color=BC4B4B]⌘ Owl in an Ivy Bush: [/color]Mephisto is able to leave an afterimage of a memory, working almost like an illusion, to act as a decoy or distract the enemy. It tends to confound his enemies and give him time to close in. However, the afterimage cannot do something that Mephisto has not done before in the enemy's memory and cannot interact with the real world. [color=BC4B4B]⌘ An Elephant Never Forgets: [/color]Mephisto is able to store his memories in an object so he can retrieve the memories at a later time. If his memory is wiped, Mephisto may retain his memories by collecting them from such an object.[/indent] [color=EB8C00][b]Ability 2: If Memory Serves...[/b][/color] [color=cccccc][i]"Memories are like clay, to be dried and kneaded and sold. I am the artist."[/i][/color] [indent] [color=BC4B4B]⌘ Sharing Is Caring:[/color] Mephisto is able to absorb the memories of others and receive the knowledge they have through them. He cannot gain knowledge from forgotten memories, but he can take knowledge from suppressed memories. [color=BC4B4B]⌘ Selective Amnesia:[/color] Mephisto is able to erase the memories of another person; he can parse through and choose a single memory to lock away. The memory can be unlocked by Mephisto later on. [color=BC4B4B]⌘ Take Roots:[/color] Mephisto is able to create memories and implant them into someone's mind. This can be used to manipulate or trick someone. This is usually paired with selective amnesia to prevent contradictory memories - but sometimes he leaves contradicting memories in place in order to create doubt and confusion in the other.[/indent] [color=EB8C00]Ability 3: Bedtime Story[/color] [color=cccccc][i]"The biggest power lies in the ability to create a story with one's own mind. You are only as strong as your imagination."[/i][/color] [indent] [color=BC4B4B]⌘ Sob Story:[/color] Mephisto is able to persuade people to do what he wants through speak. However, it is only persuasion and can be resisted by people with strong will. Since the action taken is also somewhat dependent on the character's personality (e.g. two people persuaded of something might act differently on that information) It's effectiveness would probably be on a case by case basis in terms of: less effective for a large group of people then one or two people. As well as determined by action-specific. [color=BC4B4B]⌘ A Shaggy Dog Story:[/color] Mephisto is able to bring stories alive. By telling a story, he can manifest characters in real life and make them do what he wants. By telling a story, he can manifest characters in real life and make them do what he wants. How many characters he summons depends also on the types of beings he summons. For example, he could summon one young dragon, or a small collection of faeries, or a horde of newborn babies. Furthermore, the personality of these creatures and the accuracy of their depiction is dependent wholly on how well written the story itself is. A story written without great care of character will summon creatures of similar robustness. In this way, it is very difficult for a summon brought to life this way to be 100% accurate to it's cast. If a God is summoned, they do so without any of their Moderate-Strong powers, their Weak powers are in some cases lessened, and the accuracy of their personality will usually not hold up under complex scrutiny. This is due to the complex magical nature of accurately protraying gods themselves. However this summoning may be useful to temporarily confuse people, for example. [color=BC4B4B]⌘ Fish Story:[/color] The ultimate illusion. Mephisto is able to trap someone in an unending illusion that will eventually result in starvation, dehydration, or exhaustion. There is no escape from it except with the cold fingers of death.[/indent] [ ⍚ ] [b][color=EB8C00][b]I[/b][/color][sub][color=BC4B4B] N V E N T O R Y[/color][/sub][/b] [color=black][b]—————————————————————————————[/b][/color] [indent][i][color=cccccc]⌘ Two javelins. ⌘ Thick fur coat. ⌘ Red dyed leather clothes. ⌘ Flint. ⌘ Rope. ⌘ Three handmade puppets.[/color][/i][/indent] [ ⍚ ] [b][color=EB8C00][b]O[/b][/color][sub][color=BC4B4B] T H E R[/color][/sub][/b] [color=black][b]—————————————————————————————[/b][/color] [i][color=cccccc][indent]Orange: [color=EB8C00]#EB8C00[/color] Red: [color=BC4B4B]#BC4B4B[/color][/indent][/color][/i] [ ⍚ ] [b][color=EB8C00][b]R[/b][/color][sub][color=BC4B4B] E L A T I O N S H I P S[/color][/sub][/b] [color=black][b]—————————————————————————————[/b][/color] [center][b][color=cccccc]Will you participate in the Relationship Assignment?: REQUIRED[/color][/b] [color=cccccc][i]This section will be replaced with a Relation Sheet.[/i][/color][/center][/hider]