NameJonathan Fortunato, AKA Johnny Fortune, AKA F
Age 22
Birth Place London, England; United Kingdom
Appearance Tall, lean, and all rebellion. Fortunato is considerably handsome in a "bad boy" way, with firm and sharp features, a slender but taut build, and golden-brown skin. Fitting with his punk rock "chic", he dresses in an almost meticulously messy fashion, with dark clothes contrasted by the occasional splash of bright colour. Always in a pair of scuffed boots, frayed jeans and old shirts, "Johnny Fortune" is an embodiment of punk disinterest.
When he is sufficiently "charged up" with psionic and emotional energy, the veins throughout Fortunato's body become enlarged and increase in vascularity, giving him a "wormy" appearance, and his eyes take on a bright orange glow that slowly increases in intensity.
Drawn CardAce
Card Manifestation The best way to describe Fortunato's Ace is "emotional vampirism". By inducing and maintaining strong emotional states in those around him, such as rage, lust, euphoria, or ecstasy, Fortunato can "feed" on the psychic energies given off by the individuals feeling them. However, this takes some small level of focus, and only "positive" or energetic emotions can feed him. Depressive or low-energy states cannot be fed on, and in fact, can starve the Ace.
Fortunato, once significantly "charged up" with this emotional energy, can accomplish many psionic feats. These include the ability to read the psychic "residue" of an object or environment with concentration, skim the surface thoughts of individuals and broadcast his own (though this skill is incredibly uncomfortable for John), telekinetically manipulate relatively large objects with effort, and emit focused waves of "force", although most of these abilities quickly drain his reserves and are generally only used as a last resort.
This energy also gives Fortunato vitality and stamina, allowing him to avoid rest for extended periods of time, as long as the energy isn't expended in any of the above methods.
Character History As befitting the chaotic lifestyle of a wannabe rockstar, Fortunato was an unforeseen consequence of wild love between Felix Fortunato, a Black-British London native, and Layla Kinds, a free-spirited American college student studying abroad. The result of alcohol, drug use, and uninhibited youthful vigour, Layla's pregnancy came as a shock to the couple, but after what seemed like days of arguing and discussion, the two of them decided to keep the baby. While the life of a college student was difficult for Layla and equally so for Felix, a musician and occasional street hustler, the two managed to hold their hectic lives together, for the baby. After 3 years (including a deferral for her pregnancy), once Layla had attained her post-grad, Felix had agreed to fly back to America with his partner and their son, Jonathan, in part due to Felix lacking any real anchor at home.
Upon returning to the States, Layla used her degree in Communications and found work as an editor at a local publishing agency in her hometown of Seattle, and Felix found work in construction, and the two eventually got married due to a sense of necessity.
Johnny began developing an interest in music at an early age, and as he grew to adolescence, became more and more involved in the heavy music scene of Seattle. This not only acted as a way for him to better express his artistic thoughts but also to help him cope with the growing tension at home as the cracks that were apparent at the beginning of his parents' marriage began to grow clearer.
By the time he was 16, the two had divorced, forcing a thin veneer of cordiality for their son, going so far as to share custody. However, this superficial peace hid venomous attacks between the two, with John caught in the middle, and he began to act out as a result. He became an underachiever, with his grades and attendance in high school dropping, and threw himself further and further into music, focusing on grunge and punk as an outlet for his rebellious anger. He drank, began taking drugs, and hung out with other "burnouts", all to the chagrin of his parents who were convinced it was either a phase or the fault of the other.
This went on until his first year of community college, as the snarky young man found a group of like-minded musical peers. Combined with his disinterest in general education, Jonathan quickly dropped out of studies and became a founding member of the punk rock group Prana Piranha, even going so far as to take the stage name "Johnny Fortune" as the band's lead guitarist. This led to him quickly moving out from home and in with his bandmates.
For some time, the group took on shows in dive bars and dark basements in Seattle before attempting to branch out, working shows in D.C., Boston, and Philadelphia, all funded by odd jobs and bottom-level retail work. Eventually, the group moved to New York in early 2016, shacking up in a cramped Harlem apartment in a rundown building, happily playing at dingy events for an equally rowdy and raucous audience. It was during one such performance that the Wild Card virus was released over the skies of NYC, and while the effects weren't as immediate in the outlying neighbourhoods of the Bowery, Harlem nevertheless fell victim.
The event was broken up by riot police who were attempting to stem the tide of chaos slowly spreading throughout the borough, using force to keep people in line and in their homes in a futile effort to quarantine the virus. Eventually, after a violent altercation between the showgoers and the officers in attendance, the band and those not arrested in the riot were forced to escape and hideout. It was during the coming days, laying low in their apartment, that Jonathan fell gravely ill, locked away in his room.
While the world fell to pieces outside and martial law descended, Fortunato underwent extraordinary changes. He began noticing he could feel, or "taste", the emotions of those around him, specifically powerful emotions such as anger or joy. As he "fed" more and more on this psychic energy, John learned he could utilise this energy for a variety of effects, discovering he could move objects and hear thoughts.
Eventually, as his strength recovered and he practised his abilities in secret amongst his band, the military lockdown was lifted, and America tried to move on from the disaster. Amidst the political and social upheaval, Prana Piranha thrived as flocks of youths, frustrated at the state of things, were drawn to the loud and anti-establishment sounds of the band, with underground concerts becoming famous due to the telekinetic acts performed by "Johnny Fortune" being misconstrued as complex special effects. John also used these events to secretly feed on the mass euphoria brought about by the music and environment.
In short time, the band moved into the outskirts of the newly-christened Jokertown due to both the lowered rent and the symbolic act of rebellion that came with it, throwing a middle finger towards the government and followers of its rhetoric. Currently, John and Prana Piranha work gigs in and around the former Bowery, for Jokers and Nats alike, occasionally working gigs at The Funhouse. However, John keeps his status as an Ace secret to almost everyone other than the band, and has been staying low otherwise.
Jokertown RoleMusician/Tenant
Member
Shu
Bork Lazer
Skai