[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/9VXmX1k.png[/img][/center]
[color=#000000][b]Location[/b][/color]
Headquarters.

[color=#000000][b]Interactions[/b][/color]
[@dreamingflowers]
[hr]

Was it truly a victory? Casper has prolonged the inevitable, a truth he couldn’t escape. Insurmountable power gazed across the veil, eyes of impossible black maintaining constant watch. The temptations would continue, the calling never ending. There were moments in that war where Casper nearly abandoned his quest, where he stood at the brink of devastation. An eternal struggle couldn’t possibly produce the same outcome throughout the ages. It was a mathematical impossibility, and Nekron needed a single victory for his plans to be realized. 

Claws dug into his flesh as Casper’s razor teeth clenched. A poetic scene, contemplating the spread of death, absolute and final, where lamentations of life stagnating a mere layer of glass away echoed within the boy’s mind. He was fighting a losing battle, and the sight before him attested to this fact, be it in a day or a thousand years. The lad was no fool, he knew fully well why Nekron expressed such patience, for what was time to beings such as them? Knew people the stakes at hand, Casper would have been hunted by the very heroes he worked for, and the lad would not stop their advance. [i][color=FFE4C4]'She taught me the Phantom Dance for a reason,'[/color][/i] came a thought, Casper’s eyes traveling skyward as he gazed onto the ceiling. 

The Spirit Realm had afforded him much, some things coming into light following his absence. He was still young, still inexperienced in the grand scheme of an infinite cosmos. Those much wiser than he foretold a future Casper never considered, or more accurately; did not want to confront. 

As long as the Wraith existed, he would be a threat; by no fault of his own. Whether he walked in the footsteps of his mother or the twisted legacy of his father, every single step brought him closer to Nekron. As his powers grew, so too did the risk of unlocking a cage; Nekron’s Land of the Unliving.

Daphne reminded him of this, her motionless stasis speaking louder than any words the boy had ever expressed for himself. One single victory in the Spirit World meant nothing. A thousand victories would mean nothing, because in the end, a single loss meant everything. It was not a conflict he could continue, for how could he struggle against an entity whose greatest means of success was the Wraith himself? [i][color=FFE4C4]'She knew I would come to this conclusion, whether it was today or a hundred years from now.'[/color][/i] A mentor had taken him under her wing during that war, a woman whose expertise and wisdom was the reason behind Casper’s eventual, if short-lived success. 

“You’ve been quiet for a while,” Coal spoke, a beak gently moving to peck against Casper’s temple. 

[color=#FFE4C4]”It’s funny,”[/color] the Wraith spoke, [color=#FFE4C4]”how I was terrified of my powers in the wrong hands, when I was given the solution so long ago.”[/color] Until now, it had not been a solution. It had not been a thought. 

“Take that step and there’s no way back, kiddo’,” the crow mused, “it’s a one and only. You do what you’re thinking, and that’s it.” 

[color=#FFE4C4]”Do you have any better ideas?”[/color] Casper offered in turn, [color=#FFE4C4]”I was created for an explicit purpose, and one war won’t change that.”[/color]

Shaking his head, Coal continued, “nah,” he began, “it won’t, and I don’t,” the spirit confirmed. “You’d be giving up a lot. Granted, you’ll get shit in return, but even with what Mirran taught you, it’ll be a change.” 

A change, something spirling through Casper’s mind. What else but a change was needed for stagnancy to shatter? A change was exactly what was required, a breaking of the wheel. Even if Duke Murdock Blackwood failed once, what he had set in motion would continue until that spinning destiny was unrailed. 

Torn from his thoughts, Casper shifted a blindfolded gaze towards a newcomer. He had not seen this soul before. Not from any venue, nook, or cranny that he could recall. ‘Who the fuck are you?’ indeed. A moment of silence lingered, the Wraith’s focus remaining fixed on someone whose words denoted him a relative. Daphne’s brother. How he must have suffered, witnessing a dear sister embraced by a prison of her own making. Any parent, any brother would curse those at her side, those affording her orders and missions presented. How could they not, for they had all failed her. 

Rising to his feet, Casper’s spectral eyes fell shut beneath that blindfold. [color=#FFE4C4]”I am sorry..,”[/color] he uttered, slow, deliberate steps bringing him past the young man. The boy scarcely knew how to introduce himself. Who was he? It was difficult to say, for until this very moment, Casper had been puppeteered by others. Until this moment, his every step had been calculated, and his sense of self trickled away as if a fading wind. [color=#FFE4C4]”..I’ll leave you to your sister..,”[/color] he finished, a quiet statement to summarize the turmoil within. 

[hr]

It would appear that Casper required those five hours, after all. Perhaps the fates smiled upon him, for this decision, one to sever everything he had known, would take time to execute. It was a process he understood, one coursing through him without the need of an explanation or instruction. It made sense now, more so than ever before. Words Mirran had shared with him; ‘Walk your own path, and you will see the sins left by those before you washed away’. The woman was known for speaking in riddles, and now the answer to her most cryptic rambling had finally revealed itself.

Sitting upon the floor in his room, darkness filled every corner of the boy’s shaded abode. A spell was in progress; the last he would ever cast. A spell to fundamentally change him, one to concentrate every fraction of magic into his very being, fusing with it to create something new. It was a process of stripping Casper of something he had held dear; his spellcraft. Rather, it would be woven into him, into his very essence. 

It was a spell to render the boy unable to further utilize his magic, but rather, allowed for a different approach entirely. Most notably, he would from this moment on be entirely unable to unlock Nekron’s cage, whether he was bestowed a Black Lantern ring or not. [i]Internalizing[/i] his powers, the Wraith called it. Casting aside the fragility of a wizard and replacing it with a knight’s vigilance. 

Indeed, it was a process, one he thanked five free hours for. Magic wrapped itself around his ghostly essence, embracing it as he was strengthened by each advance, destructive forces abandoning their position to take new form. Change, it was the enemy of prophecy, the enemy of fate. If Casper aimed to step forward and sever shackles eternally present, he would need to destroy all that was before, by allowing it to blossom into something new. How ironic, blossoms in death, and yet, the only way forward. 

It was upon this path that claws no longer beckoned spells to their side, but rather, wrapped themselves around the shaft of a weapon. Hex, a product of his father, had evolved. Hex finally took it upon himself to step out of the darkness and into position as Spectre, Casper’s own legacy. 

[hr]


Note - [i]To finally cut himself free from a predestined future where he can create his own, Casper has risen anew. His powers have changed, and are available on his character sheet and this post.[/i]

[hider=Knight of Souls]
[b][color=000000]Power[/color][/b]
[hider=Ghost Knight]
[img]https://i.imgur.com/s8x1PJC.png[/img][color=000000][i]Spectral Regalia[/i][/color]
🌑 At his behest, Casper can summon forth his ghostly weapon, as much a part of his own being as the boy’s essence itself. 

🌑 Casper’s scythe, while supernaturally sharp, is yet to develop any notable features. However, being a supernatural weapon, it does treat otherwise immortal foes, and ethereal beings as entirely mortal and tangible. With time, his Regalia will grow stronger and develop different passive effects. It has proven to deal devastating damage to planar beings, such as Demons and Angels. 

[img]https://i.imgur.com/95SPeo8.png[/img][color=000000][i]Deathly Prowess[/i][/color]
🌑 Despite his otherwise scrawny appearance, Casper’s physical aptitude is on a supernatural level, allowing for impressive feats of strength and prowess fitting such an otherworldly presence.

[img]https://i.imgur.com/qz0ANQm.png[/img][color=000000][i]Death Knight[/i][/color]
🌑 Casper can utilize his ghostly powers to heal himself, which is a commonly used ability, especially considering how he cannot heal naturally, or by any other means. Healing himself in this manner will weave limbs back into place, and fully restore him.
[/hider]
[b][color=000000]Limitations and Weaknesses[/color][/b]
[hider=Weaknesses]
[i][color=ed1c24]Restoration[/color][/i]
❌ Healing forces Casper into a meditative trance, where he is unaware of the outside world, as if in a deep slumber. Due to this, Casper cannot reconstruct his body while in a battle, and can only do so in a safe location.

[color=ed1c24][i]Loyalty[/i][/color]
❌ Casper is physically unable to use anything other than his Regalia as a weapon, as it will sear his hand like a burning ember. This severely limits his range and options.

[color=ed1c24][i]Eternity[/i][/color]
❌ Due to his undead nature, Casper cannot age, which brings with it a host of issues.
❌ Casper cannot actively alter his body, but is reliant on the passing of time for his undead prowess to grow. This includes building muscle, gaining weight, or changing his appearance in any way. 

[color=ed1c24][i]Sacrament[/i][/color]
❌ Casper can be imprisoned by sigils designed to trap undead beings.
❌ The same principle can keep him from entering an area, entirely.
❌ These sigils effectively create an invisible force field that he cannot pass through.
❌ He is also highly vulnerable to divine, celestial magic.

[color=ed1c24][i]Growth[/i][/color]
❌ Though clearly supernatural, Casper's prowess is still in its infant stages. He can resist small arms fire, but anything beyond that will pierce his skin.
❌ Though he is a Wraith, Casper lacks abilities otherwise associated with similar creatures, due to his age. He cannot fly or use any largely flamboyant power. Neither can he possess others (while already inside a body), or teleport, which is a common ability associated with ghosts. Casper can also only possess corpses, not living people.

[color=ed1c24][i]Divinity[/i][/color]
❌ Casper despises the sun. He shares this weakness with Vampires, where sunlight will indeed destroy him, rendering him nothing but a breeze of dark energy, fading in the morning light. To counteract this, Casper wears a ring protecting him from its unforgiving rays. Equally so, he wears a blindfold, or mask, to guard his sight from the sun, being incredibly sensitive and severely blinded by its rays.
[/hider]
[b][color=000000]Biology[/color][/b]
[hider=What's Inside]
[color=000000][i]Eyes of the Ghost[/i][/color]
🌑 Casper is, in a way, blind. His eyes allow the boy to see that of which is hidden, beneath the surface, and otherwise invisible. He sees people not as physical entities, but rather, as spirits. They were an outline, a vague silhouette containing the brightness of their souls, their life energy. Casper’s spectral gaze allows him to witness the world without obfuscation, while simultaneously blind to the most shallow.

🌑 Where the world is built up as shapes for Casper, he cannot make out details. He cannot see text, moving images on a television, or clothes worn. The world is a grayscale landscape lacking texture, but finds itself brimming with color in life. It is how he tells people apart; by their souls.

🌑 “I can see everything, I can see nothing.” Finally, Casper lacks physical eyes. Rather, within two large black eye sockets one can see two brightly glowing white orbs.

[color=000000][i]Phantasm[/i][/color]
🌑 At his core, Casper is a ghost. He lacks a body, and cannot interact with the physical world unless he inhabits a body, which severely mutates upon his presence. The boy’s skin turns an ashen gray, his eyes much like his inner organs erased and replaced by ghostly essence, Casper’s body is a shell, a skeleton draped in skin and kept autonomous by the spectral energies he is composed of. A ghost inside a puppet, as Casper would say.

🌑 There is one particular inner organ that he does possess; a brain. He claims that this is what allows him to passively maintain his body without actively needing to keep it functional with his ghostly essence. Casper’s brain also allows him to feel pain, pleasure, and physical sensations, including a sense of taste.

🌑 Though he can eat, any organic matter entering his stomach will be erased by the necrotic forces composing his being, as if a furnace beneath that shell he wears. Equally so, being Undead, Casper does not breathe, and thus cannot utilize a sense of smell. Neither does he sleep, but has been known to enter a meditative trance when needed, which to him is similar.

🌑 Upon possessing a corpse, Casper is anchored to the physical plane until he either leaves the body or it is destroyed. If he intends to maintain his ability to interact with the world, he will need another body. 

🌑 Cutting into his resilient skin, one will notice a spectral glow within, rather than blood, indicating that he does not possess any. Going further will reveal his lack of organs, a bright ethereal essence brimming. This attests to the boy’s weightless nature.

🌑 Due to his biology being what it is, Casper largely lacks a natural scent. He doesn’t produce pheromones, and has no biological functions that would produce any form of odor. Rather, those with a strong nose would note that he smells like the clothes on his back. Animals are rather confused around him and tend to mistake him for a statue.

🌑 In true undead fashion, Casper cannot register the elements. Whether it’s cold or warm, he cannot tell, and the boy himself appears to maintain a constant, lukewarm temperature. He doesn’t produce body heat, but nor is he chilling to the touch.
[/hider]
[b][color=000000]Fighting Style[/color][/b]
[hider=Movements and Motions]
[color=000000][i]Phantasmal Dance[/i][/color]
🌑 Like a ghostly wind, Casper moves as if a dance. Be it barehanded or with fingers gripping his scythe, the boy executes fluid, sweeping attacks, each melding into the next as his body leans towards an agile approach. An exotic display, it is clear that Casper's combat style finds itself hailing from another world. One of spirits and phantasms.

🌑 Where a certain level of weightlessness can be severely detrimental, Casper uses it to his advantage, flowing across the battlefield in true, spectral fashion, each movement followed by a dangerous, bladed swipe or deceivingly strong unarmed strike.
[/hider]
[b][color=000000]Death Scythe[/color][/b]
[hider=Onyx][img]https://i.imgur.com/2TK6rgt.png[/img]
[img]https://i.imgur.com/pS46tn5.png[/img]
[/hider]
[/hider]