[hider=Boiling Blood, Burning Soul]
[b]Name:[/b] Zephel Collins
 
[b]Appearance:[/b]
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[b]Age:[/b]
17 

[b]Bio:[/b]
Zephel doesn't remember his parents, growing up instead with memories of a cozy little orphanage in the countryside. During his youth, he was extremely timid, often shying away from the other children. The only exception to this was his older brother, Notul. Friendly, brave and outgoing, Notul was the polar opposite of his brother in almost every way, and with a number of years on the boy that always seemed to change each time he was asked, he regularly attempted to help Zephel get over his shyness, both through kind words and teaching him how to fight. Zeph never won of course, but his brother would always tell him that if he kept trying, he'd be at least as good, if not better, than him. Of course, he'd always say he was nothing special anyway straight after. No matter what Zephel would do or say, Notul never gave up on him, simply smiling that same, confident grin all the while. The only thing that ever made that smile falter was when Zephel asked what happened to their parents. When this happened, the reaction was always the same.

"They died in a fire."

And with that the conversation would be over.

Of course, Zephel all but worshiped his brother as a hero, a sentiment which was shared by many of the other younger orphans. It was only his refusal to elaborate on the tale of their parents death which caused anything approaching scrutiny. Still, it was relatively minor compared to his adoration, so he was content to accept that the lack of explanation wasn't really a concern. It wasn't until he was thirteen years old that he would discover the truth.

Notul had taken him and a few of the other children to a nearby forest, where he hoped to scrounge together a few mushrooms or something similar to give to the orphanage's matron for their dinner that night. This had been a regular occurrence in the past, so they were sure that it was safe. So imagine their surprise when Notul grabbed a pair of children and leapt away, a blast of some form of magic obliterating the ground where he and the two had been standing. In a panic, Zeph looked into the trees, and vaguely thought he might have seen a pair of silhouettes for just a single second before they disappeared again. More spells followed, joined by a hail of gunshots. Despite the danger, Notul quickly jumped to their defense, and although he had always claimed to be a relatively weak fighter, proceeded to keep up with the pair, expertly dodging or blocking the vast majority of their attacks with his sword, while occasionally coming close enough to make a few attacks of his own. However, even with this show of skill, it was clear that he was beginning to slip up. More and more attacks started getting through, and the wounds started stacking up.

Meanwhile, Zephel felt something... strange... He could identify one of the combination of emotions currently fighting for dominance as fear for his brother, certainly, but there was something else, something equally unpleasant. All he could think was that he wanted his brother to safe, and for the people he was fighting to just... just disappear... Before he even fully understood the feeling drifting through his mind, he pictured the bandits being engulfed by flames. That didn't happen. The tree he had been pressed against was another story. From there, it spread quickly through the canopy, and although they weren't burnt alive, it did force their attackers to leave the safety of the trees.

Right into the path of the now heavily bleeding Notul. 

Without hesitation, he drove his sword through the gunman's chest, before quickly withdrawing it and leaping towards the mage. However, they were able to redirect some of the flames that now engulfed the surrounding area towards him, briefly stunning him and giving them the chance to escape. For a moment, Zephel thought he was still going to chase after them, but after a mere moment of staring in the direction they'd fled, he turned back to him and the children and hobbled over, shooting them that same old grin. Zephel tried to offer his support, but Notul said it was fine. All they needed to worry about was finding their way out of the forest, his injuries could wait until after that.

Thankfully, they hadn't made it that far into the forest before the attack, and it was only a few minutes before they saw the surrounding plains beyond the treeline. However, mere moments away from safety, Zephel felt himself get pushed to the ground followed by a loud crash, and rolled over to see his already heavily injured brother pinned beneath a large burning branch. He went to try and help him escape, but was stopped by his brothers shouting. He could only stand there, sobbing as Notul told him not to let this break him, and to use his powers to become a man he could be proud of. And then he was being dragged out of the forest again by the other children, and it took him a moment to register that he was actually [i]fighting[/i] against it. Notul was going to die, and he couldn't let that happen. But at the same time, he was desperately doing whatever he could to keep the fire that had risen with his anger from reemerging, and therefore his efforts were barely strong enough to give his companions trouble.

From that day onward, Zephel swore he would never let something like that happen again. It didn't take a genius to connect the circumstances between Notul's death and that of his parents, so he would do whatever it took to learn to control his fire magic. Not only that, but he would use it to help others, just as his brother did. He would become to the whole world what his brother had been to him. A man who Notul and his parents could look down on from the afterlife with pride. A man who would [i]never[/i] back down or fall back when others needed him.

Zephel would become a hero.
 
[b]Mundane Skills:[/b]
Martial arts, mobility, not giving up, gardening, sewing, sneaking in some sleep when he shouldn't be

[b]Magic:[/b]
[b]Enhancement:[/b]
Zephel can use enhancement to reinforce his own body. This allows him to increase the durability of his body immensely, as well as enhance his already impressive strength and speed. Use of this magic is absolutely necessary to the way he fights, otherwise he would likely have been left crippled long ago.

[b]FIRE[/b]
For Zephel, fire is his go to when it comes to (please god forgive me) firepower. Unfortunately, as it gets further from his body, it becomes significantly harder to control, which has led to many accidents in the past. For this reason, he mainly keeps his flames close to his body, using it in conjunction with enhancement magic to become a monster in close quarters combat. He also uses it to great effect in enhancing his mobility, using small bursts and jets of flame to greatly increase his running speed and propel him off the ground. One day he hopes for this to translate into proper flight, but for now he's content with his jump jets.

[hider=Hopeful midseason powerups]
Familiar summoning, and promptly melding said familiars with himself temporarily.
[i]STRONGER FIRE MAGIC.[/i]
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[b]Personality:[/b]
Zephel's flames are fueled by boiling blood, a burning soul, and a promise he will never allow to be broken, all of which demand that as long as he believes the task at hand is the right thing to do, he must put his absolute all into it. No matter the task, regardless of how simple or difficult it may be, he will keep pushing forwards. To take a step back is to give up, and to give up is to subject another to whatever he failed at. As someone who wants to become a hero who can protect the weak, he can never let that happen. After all, if he lets himself back down from something small, who's to say he won't get pushed back when it's most important? He is also extremely confident, if only because he needs to convince himself that he can do whatever he needs to to succeed.

Of course, that's not to say he doesn't have his own private moments of introspection, silent and alone so no one can see how he waivers, or how the pressure he places upon himself to succeed truly weighs upon him. In public, he will always grin and bear it, no matter how afraid he may be, but he fears he may never [i]truly[/i] banish the remnants of the easily frightened boy he once was.

Even if he can’t though, he won’t let it stop him from being there whenever he’s needed. If you ever need someone to talk to, he'll find a nice spot to sit and listen to whatever you have to say. If your or anyone else's lives are in danger, he won't let himself surrender even if it means risking his own. And if you ever think you aren't worth it, ever think you'd rather just let yourself die than drag everyone else down with you, he'll be there to tell you just how much of an idiot you're being. 


[b]Faction (Marduk, Ishtar, or Cassandra Club when it's founded):[/b]
Ishtar, later Cassandra Club

[b]Are you a Descendant of the Illuminated Poet?:[/b]
Nah

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