Dead Cruiser

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-Faction name: The Imperishable Empire of Azar
-Faction Type: Empire
-Flag/Banner: The Eye of Azar sees all, knows all.


NATIONAL
-Capital: Irem, City of Pillars
-Government Type: Absolute Monarchy
-Currency: The common peoples of Azar barter and trade for goods and services, but the state currency is the Hedj, silver coins backed by the Pharaoh's banks of grain and water.
-Population: 4 million, roughly.
-Unique Trait #1: Resource Rich: The reach of Azar is great and powerful, as they lay claim to the few remaining fertile rivers and oasis that are left in Azoth. Fresh, clean water is a prized yet accessible commodity, and is used to irrigate the great grain fields that branch off of the waterways of Azar. Grain is plentiful (though heavily taxed), as are other natural crops such as papyrus, sugarcane, flax and various fruits and legumes. Rare metals, minerals and gems can be found in mines that burrow beneath Azar, and even an Ichor spring and Spice refinery are jealously guarded by the God-King. Even more secret and precious are the relics of archaeo-tech hoarded by the Pharaoh in his personal vaults.
-Unique Trait #2: (Created by me)
-Unique Flaw #1: Vast Bureaucracy: Azar is large, but as well it is ponderous and unwieldy. The Pharaoh exerts his power through a complex system of clerks, accountants and advisors, which dulls his influence at the population level. Corruption is common in government officials, who frequently siphon funds and resources for their own personal benefit.
-Unique Flaw #2: (Created by me)


GEOGRAPHICAL
-World-Realm Map:
-Major Cities: The founding cities of Azar are situated over deposits of archaeo-tech that were quickly conquered and fortified by the earliest dynasties of the empire. Metropoli such as Maakep, Mesenebu, Seshahebsu, Sumenet and Tefaabhi sit along the riverways of Azar and serve as centers of politics, culture and commerce for their surrounding regions.
-Major Castles: Most cities in Azar are formed with the intention of being bastions against invasion. Most house a contingent of royal soldiers aside from its standard city guard, and are dedicated to the protection of surrounding villages and farms.
-Buildings of Interest: The ancient cities of Azar are filled with awesome displays of the wealth and power of the empire, in the form of huge monuments and tombs dedicated to its deceased God-Kings. Many of these structures are in fact ruins of the Old Ones, which themselves have been "entombed" by the reverent Azarites.
-Geographic Features of Interest: Irem itself is positioned over the Stygian Delta, a fertile expanse of land where the mighty River Styx meets the Great Inland Sea. The many branching waterways that flow into the Styx are the lifeblood of Azar, which jealously guards and regulates their waters.

RACIAL
-Majority Race: Simple humans make up the vast majority of Azarites, known in their tongue as Remet ("weeping ones").
-Majority Race Appearance: An empire as vast as Azar contains numerous different ethnic groups and subcultures, and so its citizens vary in appearance by some degrees. Skin tones range from near-pitch to lighter, dusky hues, and hair types range from smooth and flowing gold, to thick, kinky earthshades. Azarites are not known for their particular size, beauty or other outstanding features, and based on physique alone are rarely distinguishable from other human populations of Azoth.
-Majority Race Characteristics: Azarites are not a particular remarkable people. While they fare in the desert better than some, they are generally a simple, hard-working folk, content to live and work with the tides of the rivers, under the watchful eye of their God-King.
-Minority Races: As mentioned before, Azar is vast and its peoples are many. Nearly any race of Azoth can be counted among the population of Azar (save for Ghul and Magekin, which are traditionally culled), though there are some that are unique to the empire.

The God-Kings of Azar are the sole members of a peculiar subspecies of human, known as the Shaniatu. These beings claim to the the direct descendants of the Old Ones, "creatures born of the stars, shaped from fire as mere humans are shaped from earth." They generally resemble humans in shape, though the average Shaniatu stands head-and-shoulders above a normal human. The most remarkable of their features is their uncanny, inhuman beauty, which is said to cause the uninitiated to weep with joy at the sight of them. They move with impossible grace, as though traversing angles unseen by human eyes, and have the strength and speed of ten men. They grow no hair naturally, and their skin tone can appear as darkest ebony or as shimmering gold depending on the light. While they can interbreed with normal humans, most Shaniatu prefer to breed with their own kind, which due to their dwindling numbers over many generations has resulted in endemic inbreeding and numerous genetic defects. Pureblood Shaniatu are uniquely skilled in activating and wielding archaeo-tech, though the mysteries of magic utterly elude them.

A rare creature scarcely seen outside of Azar is the Sphinx, a particularly strange chimeric beast. While they are divided into various subspecies such as ram-headed Criosphinxes and hawk-headed Hieracosphinxes, they generally have a feline body, and are occasionally imbued with great, luxurious wings. Rarely smarter than common predatory animals, Sphinxes occupy the expanses of unsettled desert between the rivers of Azar, though some come to live near or in villages, necropoli or abandoned cities. Most Azarites see them as holy animals and guardian beasts. However, the rarest of them all are the Androsphinxes, who wear the faces of men and share in their intelligence (if not surpassing it). Elusive creatures, these Sphinxes most often live as hermits, far away from humans and other intelligent creatures, and spend their days brooding on philosophy and memorizing the ancient oral traditions of their kind. They generally look unfavorably upon pilgrims and other visitors, and are as like to kill and eat them as to speak with them. However, if impressed with strength or wit these creatures can make for loyal allies, who offer indispensable wisdom.

NATIONAL DRAMATIS PERSONAE
-Head of State/Monarch: The ruling Pharaoh is Sethansebranekha XII (Sethan for short). Even among the God-Kings of Azar he is known for his burning ambition, and has lead several campaigns of imperial expansion over his reign, with varying levels of success. He is known to have little tolerance for beings that fall outside of his purview of what is "natural," and has instituted many ethnic purges in the territories he has conquered. His rule is iron and his wrath is terrible, and for this he is known within Azar and without as the Black Pharaoh.
-Ruling Dynasty: Sethansebranekha is the twelfth in his line, the fifth dynasty known as the Sahu.
-Constable Of The Army: The Pharaoh is the supreme military leader of Azar, and under his rule has expanded considerably to become a more dedicated conquering force rather than a mere defensive army.
-Religious Head: The Pharaoh's title of God-King is not merely for show, as the ruling emperor is the focal point of worship in Azar. He alone is seen as the rightful ruler of the world through divine inheritance, and when his passing comes, he shall join the Judges of Duat and serve as chancellor to later Pharaohs as they currently advise him.
-Persons of interest: The only person that can approach the power of the Pharaoh in Azar is his royal Vizier. The current Vizier to Sethansebranekha is an Androsphinx that goes by the name of Sharuum. It is said that she came into the Pharaoh's service in his first campaign, when he was merely fourteen years old. When she saw the Pharaoh's armies, she was humbled by his power, and demanded to meet him, whereupon she was tempered by his conviction. Since then she has served as advisor and assistant to the God-King, his right hand and his closest confidant. As the most powerful civilian in the kingdom, Sharuum shares in the burden of ruling the empire with Sethan, and is the director the Azar's many bureaucratic administrations. Though she bends to the will of the Pharaoh, it is a deadly mistake to assume that she is subservient to any human, as many careless attendants have been flayed and eaten by the imperious Vizier.

CULTURAL
-History: Azar is an ancient nation, perhaps two-thousand years old, and its history is long and storied. Settlers on the Stygian Delta gave rise to one of the greatest empires in all of Azoth, after centuries of strife and toil. The Old Ones played a heavy hand in the rise of Azar, as the tools they left behind as well as their self-proclaimed descendants left their mark on this empty and ruined world. Theirs is a lengthy history of power and conquest, marked with tragedy and betrayal. Azar has swelled and receded just as the Styx does, though in modern times it rushes over its metaphorical riversides.
-List of Historical Grievances: Azar has an ancient rivalry with Dratha, as each sees the other as their major competitor for domination over all of Azoth. That aside, Azar makes no allowances for mutants and barbarians in the world, and seeks to eliminate them wherever it can.
-Relations: As one of the most dominant powers in the world, Azar makes allowances for various smaller nations and organizations. More often than not they are swallowed up by the empire and assimilated into it, but some manage to maintain their autonomy despite being caught up in the empire's expanding borders.
-Cultural Notes: Azarite culture relies on a highly-stratified sociopolitical system. Though all citizens bear approximately the same rights, those higher in caste are afforded preference and prestige compared to those below them. At the very top is the Pharaoh, the God-King of all Azar. Below him are his noble relatives, all pureblood Shaniatu. Then follow the royal advisors; scribes, judges and councillors, of which the royal Vizier holds the greatest honor. Their equals are the high priests of Azar, who serve in the Great Temples of Irem. In a unique position below the Pharaoh's advisors and high priests are his royal guard, which are comprised of his Shaniatu brethren that are either impure of blood, disgraced by their bloodline, or otherwise unconcerned with the honor of nobility. Below them are the more common government officials; lesser scribes, accountants and bankers. They stand equal to more common priests who man the temples of smaller cities and settlements. Skilled workers, such as masons, alchemists and embalmers, follow after. Below them are common peasants and farmers, who make up the vast majority of the population. At the very bottom are slaves, mostly people indentured through debt, but also criminals and prisoners of war. While not much social mobility is afforded to them, citizens of Azar are afforded substantial rights, as even the lowliest peasant has the right to petition the Vizier with his grievances. Women are afforded equal status as men (on paper), with rights to marriage, property and divorce. Even slaves are protected under Azarite law, and can buy their freedom from their masters.

RELIGION, MAGIC and ARCHEO-TECH
-State Religion: The Imperial Cult of Azar
-Religious Information: A religion as old as Azar itself, the Imperial Cult venerates the Old Ones as the godlike forebears of Azar, and views the afterlife in which they reside as yet another empire ruled by the Azarites' ancestors. The Pharaoh is the living avatar of the Old Ones, and is an immortal god in his own right. Even after his mortal form dies, he will live on eternally as one of the Judges of Duat, joining his ancestors in passing judgement on mortal souls that pass on into the afterlife.
-Religion Demographics: As the dominion of the Pharaoh is absolute, there is no room in Azar for other religions or heterodoxies. Citizens are expected to either subscribe to the Cult, or keep silent about their beliefs. Blasphemy is a crime punishable by mutilation of the face.
-Holy Relics In Possession: Artifacts of the Old Ones, known as Sekhem, are the holiest of relics to the Imperial Cult, and by law are to be turned over to temples, whereupon they are brought to the Pharaoh's personal possession. Countless relics sit in the Pharaoh's vaults, but the Sekhem with only aesthetic uses as usually donated to temples to serve as artifacts of power and worship.
-Holy Sites Under Control: The founding cities of Azar are sites with great numbers of ruins of the Old Ones, most of which interred in sandstone, marble and gold, with temples built at their foundations. Irem is famous for its five holy pillars, which are among the largest One One remains in Azoth.
-Magical Information: Mages and sorcerers of Azar are systematically rooted out and culled by the Pharaoh's secret police, an order known as Sybaris. The Shaniatu greatly fear magic and those who wield it, as it is the one power that eludes their authority, and could be used to overthrow them. Agents of Sybaris wield strange and unusual Sekhem in order to fight against the reality-warping powers of mages that may have entrenched themselves in Azar.
-Archeo-Tech: In more ancient days, Azar wielded Sekhem which shook the very world, and changed the landscape to suit their needs. In modern times, these relics are all but lost, and the Pharaoh's hoards are limited to artifacts that are mere trinkets in comparison. He and his royal guard wield weapons and armor with tremendous eldritch power, and the God-King is often adorned with many amulets and other treasures. The Pharaoh's royal alchemists are often experimenting with the few relics that still work, sometimes requesting the assistance of the noble Shaniatu to activate the ancient biometrics.

MILITARY
-Total Military Size: Discounting mercenaries, city guards, the royal guard, and Sybaris, the army of Azar counts 40,000 trained, professional soldiers. As many as double that number of conscripts can be recruited from the peasantry in times of peril.
-Military Details: The army is mostly comprised of infantry, each armed with spear, shield and kopesh. Archers make up another large portion, some mounted. Cavalry carries great lances and curved longswords, and may be mounted on horse or chariot. Azar makes great use of beasts of war in their battles, bringing massive snakes and scorpions to bear, and less commonly armored War-Sphinxes. Rare, yet evenly distributed among the army are elite officers (sometimes Sybaris agents in disguise) that bring mighty and terrible Sekhem to bear in battle, often turning the tide of the most dire conflict.

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Q Kane

Profile : Student

Name:

Quentin "Q" Kane

Age:

17

Gender:

Male

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Basic Information

Appearance:

Q's human disguise varies in appearance depending on the onlooker, but is still generally consistent enough for him to have a general description. Generally, he stands a bit over six feet tall, and has a wiry, muscular build. His features are somewhat heavy and brutish, giving him a visage resembling a bulldog. His eye and hair color vary, but they are usually some bright, outlandish color somewhere in the spectrum between blue, purple or pink. His hair is worn in an undercut that is sometimes styled into a tall, spiky mohawk, and he typically dresses in degraded and distressed leathers and denims, usually black and adorned with badges and slogans typical of the punk subculture, as well as various rings, chains and wristbands. When in company more likely to see though his disguise and notice such features as glowing, yellow eyes or a fanged maw, he will accessorize with such items as ornamental goggles or gas masks.

Personality:

Characterized by his school teachers as a disaffected, unmotivated youth, Q is far more intelligent than he lets on, but he has no desire to participate in modern society as he understands it. While he has his moments of genuine laziness, Q is mostly possessed by ennui and an intense distrust of authoritarian figures. His greatest desire is to be unrestrained by laws and societal norms, and left to his own hedonistic ends. Despite his practiced apathy, the idea of injustice perpetrated against marginalized groups and peoples fills him with indignant rage, which can become violent if provoked.

Backstory:

Quentin Kane was born to a single mother in Nottingham, United Kingdom seventeen years ago. His "father" is unknown, but it is suspected that he was not conceived so much as his embryo was artificially implanted into his mother. Quentin, who more frequently goes by the nickname of "Q," is not human, but is an as-of-yet unknown species of extraterrestrial. His race appears to be powerfully psychic, and passively broadcasts a hypnotic "cover" that disguises him as a human. Despite appearing to be some form of pinkish grub in his baby photos, to this day Q's mother has no indication that her son is not human, and becomes distressed and belligerent when the idea is suggested to her (likely a side-effect of long-term hypnosis).

Between his passive psychic disguise and human DNA absorbed from his mother in utero, by the time Q was of schooling age, he was able to successfully pass for a human in all respects, even when examined medically. Even so, Q was acutely aware that he was not like those around him, likely due to his developing psychic abilities. He withdrew socially, becoming something of an outcast among his peers, which was exacerbated by the relative poverty he and his mother lived in, as well as the somewhat unusual appearance given by his disguise. Q grew into niche interests and social groups, including the punk subculture, which he seems to have a great affinity for.

As Q grew older and his body began to develop more into its true, inhuman form, his behavior continued to deteriorate. Social withdrawal became delinquency as he engaged in various petty crimes, and frequent violent altercations with his classmates. It was this continuing degenerative behavior that spurred ATLAS (whom had been observing him in secrecy for some time) into action, requesting that he attend Palladium Academy out of the interest of his safety as well as that of others. While he initially chafed at the idea of attending a strict, privatized school, his mother encouraged him to attend due to his lack of university prospects otherwise.

Other Skills:

Q has a number of niche talents and hobbies, such as playing the bass guitar, DIY tailoring, and extensive knowledge of cultural topics (video games, music and comics in particular) from the mid-80s to late 90s. That aside, he can be surprisingly charismatic when in the company of other "misfits and outcasts," and is adept at thinking on his feet in stressful situations.

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Power Set

Name:

Teenager From Mars

Abilities:

Q's superhuman abilities stem from his extraterrestrial physiology. While a combination of minor physiological malleability and a passive hypnotic aura quite successfully disguise him as a human, these disguises can be dispelled or seen though with certain abilities or equipment, and superhuman individuals can partially see though his disguise in quick glances. Q's "true form" is that of a six-limbed vaguely reptilian creature; a beast of slimy, purple flesh and an indigo, insectoid carapace covering his limbs and torso. His face is just human enough to be sinister, with a mouth filled with needle-like fangs, glowing yellow eyes, a lengthy prehensile tongue tipped by a secondary mouth/stinger, and a bulbous cranium, swollen with his psychically-potent brains. Q's many limbs are divided into his pair of heavy forelimbs, each tipped with three massive slicing claws, his slender and precise manipulators with more human-like five-fingered hands, and his primary legs, which end in raptor-like talons. His body is lithe and sinewy, with a row of pointed, threatening spines that run from the top of his skull, down his back, and to the end of his blade-tipped tail.

Whatever Q's race is, their biology is preternaturally powerful, and are seemingly adapted to be stealthy, stalking hunters. Easily strong enough to overpower an adult man, Q's claws and fangs are sharp enough to slice through sheet metal, and his carapace is hard enough to withstand light small-arms fire. His agility is what makes him far more frightening, as he can move faster than normal human eyes can track, and his reflexes are sharp enough to literally dodge bullets. Some of the more esoteric features of his biology include his ability to see in complete darkness, climb on walls and ceilings, the potent toxicity of his blood, and his powerful sedative venom that he can administer via his tongue-stinger.

More subtle are the psionic powers he can manifest. Aside from his passive hypnotic aura, Q can induce a hypnotic trance with prolonged eye contacts, a state that leaves one both heavily disoriented and vulnerable to suggestive manipulation. Q can communicate telepathically, but only one-way, as he can transmit his thoughts but cannot read minds in turn. With intense concentration and exertion of his alien grey-matter, he can fire off bursts of psychic energy that can induce intense migraines or mild edema. While he is incapable of "true" mind control, he can seize the minds of others in short bursts; just enough to force someone to flip a switch or fire a weapon. By concentration psychic pressure on a nearby space, Q can also induce localized telekinetic blasts with the equivalent explosive force of a fragmentation grenade. While he has yet to use such an ability out of a lack of a willing target, he can also infuse others with a small portion of his psionic vitality from beyond the stars. As a whole, however, his powers seem to have a diminished effect on superpowered individuals, likely due to interference from their own abilities or the sources of their unnatural power.

Weaknesses:

Despite his impressive size and the durability of his carapace, Q is not particularly physically durable compared to most other superhuman combatants. Defensively, his best options are to take his opponent by surprise, or dodge their attacks altogether. His endurance is also nothing to write home about, as he fights most efficiently in short bursts, when he can capitalize on the near-precognitive reflexes granted by his potent adrenal glands. This lack of endurance extends to his psychic abilities as well, as using his more advanced powers will rapidly leave him "burnt out" until he can rest and recover, making him mildly disoriented and unable to use any other advanced psionics.

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Other:

While ATLAS has a number of extraterrestrial races on record, there are none they currently know of that resembles Q. After (begrudgingly) consenting to DNA testing, Q was shown to have an incredibly complex genetic structure, with over 300 discrete chromosomes and a sextuple-helix DNA structure. Preliminary analysis has revealed not only expected human DNA markers, but also those from a number of other cataloged species. Tentative conclusions drawn from this data suggest some manner of genetic manipulation or engineering at work.

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Name: Hraf Raven-Eye, “Blackbird”

Age: 36

Gender: Male

Race: Nord

Appearance: Hraf can be seen in several ways as having the appearance of the typical Nord man; tall and stout in build, with a wide jaw and strong, broad features. His hair is very dark brown, nearly black, worn to shoulder-length, carefully combed and woven into thick braids. His beard, while thick and coarse, is kept short and neatly trimmed. Hraf’s most notable features are his dark, hollow eyes. Deeply-set with dark sockets, his brown eyes at times seem as dark as the sea on a moonless night. His gaze holds both worldly weariness and tenacity like a starving predator.

Taking pride in his appearance, Hraf makes efforts to keep himself well-groomed and smartly dressed. Fine furs, wools and leathers are his usual attire when not at sea, and he has a fondness for fancy brooches and necklaces. His attire at sea is more utilitarian, consisting of durable a black surcoat and boots, strongly-woven cotton clothes and a beaver-pelt cloak. Beneath his clothes, though, his body is covered by telltale marks from his escapades. Hraf's body is like a living scrapbook, with hands worn rough by ropes and oars, scars from skirmishes and bar fights, prison and maritime tattoos, and a pirate branding on his forearm (courtesy of the East Empire Trading Company).

Personality: For a hardy sailor and known privateer, Hraf is a surprisingly personable fellow. Charming and silver-tongued, most find Hraf to be a man both easy to like as well as trust. However, his affable persona can be quickly shut off and replaced with the cold, ruthless pragmatism that one would expect from a veteran smuggler and mercenary. Hraf is an opportunist at heart, always on the lookout for the next chance to advance himself or his goals. While he acknowledges its strength, Hraf does not care for social standing as much as he values cold, hard cash. The power money brings is of supreme value to him, and Hraf is no miser; he lives quite comfortably off of his pilfered fortunes, and hopes to eventually retire on his accumulated wealth. While he is not completely without empathy, Hraf is rather stone-hearted, and cares little for those that he misuses or kills in pursuit of riches. The most consideration one would earn would usually be either their usefulness to him in the future, or the potency of any enemies that he would make by abusing or killing someone. Not that he fears reprisals greatly, as Hraf is a cool and level-headed fellow, and is quite confident in his skills and experience to keep himself alive and prosperous.

History: The clan Raven-Eye is an old and well-respected merchant house in Skyrim, claiming that their roots extend to the Atmoran sailors who brought Ysgramor’s Companions to Tamriel. Hraf was born a distant scion to the house, the second son of a second son. Even so, he was raised comfortably among his siblings and cousins, schooled in the arts of sailing and mercantilism, and when he became of age, he was given his own ship to command. He rounded the ports of Tamriel, trading and selling common goods in every province of the Empire. However, he quickly learned that there were greater profits to be made in the business of goods made illegal by the Empire.

Be it slaves from Black Marsh or moon sugar from Elsweyr, Hraf managed to put a finger in nearly every pot of Tamriel’s seedy black market. However, competition in the smuggling business was fierce, and Hraf quickly learned that one either needed to get good fast, or be killed faster. His skills in battle and manipulation were forged on the razor’s edge of criminality, from repelling rival smugglers off the deck of his ship, to sweet-talking Imperial customs agents. Even so, Hraf was still a young sailor, and was not infallible. An Imperial galleon intercepted a shipment of Hist saplings, and engaged Hraf’s smaller trade ship in battle. Much of his crew was killed, his ship was destroyed, and Hraf himself was captured by the Imperial authorities. His family’s connections were able to ease his sentence to a mere seven years in the Imperial Prison, but with that he was disowned from house Raven-Eye, never again welcome in his ancestral halls.

Hraf’s imprisonment was not his first turn in the clink (nor would it be his last), and it was not the end of his career. Once released, he recovered a cask of gold that he had buried in the sands of Stros M’Kai, having planned for just such an emergency. With this, he commissioned a new ship from the shipwrights of Windhelm, dubbed “Blood Eagle,” and hired a reliable, yet suitable unsavory crew from the city’s slums. With a more battle-worthy ship and crew, Hraf took on more dangerous work that he was previously hesitant to engage in, including piracy, raids on coastal towns and mercenary work. With the onset of the Civil War in Skyrim, Hraf returned home as a privateer. Not that he truly chose a side; the Blood Eagle merely sacked whatever ships seemed most vulnerable, and he had acquired papers to prove that he was allied with either side as needed.

The calm following the defeat of the Stormcloak rebels and the return of Imperial law to Skyrim was disappointing to Hraf. Opportunity for his brand of work has died down in these peaceful times, and as such he has been forced further inland to put his particular set of skills to use.

Skills: First and foremost, Hraf is an inheritor of the long tradition of Nord sailors. Able to command a ship just as well as he can work as a deckhand on one, Hraf’s years at sea have made him just as comfortable in the open ocean as he is on land (perhaps even more so).  He knows the coastal waters of Tamriel like they were his hometown, and he is intimately familiar with the numerous byways and coves used by smugglers such as himself. Storms and icy waters mean little to a Nord sailor, and Hraf sails through such obstacles fearlessly.

As reliable a warrior as he is a captain, Hraf is an experienced swashbuckler, more than able to hold his own in a close-quarters battle. Short swords and scimitars are his forte, especially when fighting with a shield, but he is competent with axes or mauls as well. Fighting in a cramped space with little room to maneuver is second nature to Hraf, and in this way the corridor of crypt is much like the underdecks of a ship. In more open spaces, Hraf is a crack shot with a crossbow, his sharp “raven’s eyes” aiding his aim.

In more subtle matters, Hraf is a skilled haggler and negotiator, and is surprisingly knowledgeable in matters of trade and economics. Over the years, Hraf has established a network of contacts throughout the Empire, both reputable and otherwise, from which he frequently calls in favors and blackmail. While his charisma mostly lends itself to establishing deals, trades and other such short-term agreements, Hraf is never the less a dangerously smooth talker, and has a penchant for manipulation in certain circumstances. Some say that the “raven eyes” allow a man to see the desires of others, but Hraf attributes this talent to experience and practice. Once he knows what someone wants, bending them to his will is usually just a matter of time.

Equipment: Hraf’s most prized possession is his ship, the Blood Eagle. A Nord longboat, the Blood eagle has a sturdy, oak hull and mast (both reinforced with iron), twenty rowing benches, and a black sail emblazoned with the silhouette of a red eagle. Modified to fit Hraf’s specifications, the Blood Eagle’s bow and stern are fitted with steel beaks, designed to ram into and pierce the hulls of other ships. Below decks are many secret storage compartments for smuggled goods built into the hull. The deck is kept well-waxed, allowing spilled blood to be quickly and easily cleaned away.

In battle, Hraf prefers functionality far over form, and prefers his equipment to be easily replicable in the event it is dropped into the sea or broken. When preparing for combat, he equips armored plates to his boots and bracers, dons a simple steel helmet, and wears a mail shirt between his surcoat and fur cloak. He carries a sturdy shield, made mostly of steel for strength, but with a layer of wood to catch blades and axes. His weapons of choice are a simple, curved sword of castle-forged steel, and a long, straight knife of similar construction. When preparing for enemies afar, he wields a steel-spring crossbow and a quarrel of iron-tipped bolts.

Birthsign: The Serpent

Miscellaneous: Hraf keeps with him a trained raven, which he calls Muni. It usually perches on his wrist or shoulder, and Hraf feeds it small corns or scraps of meat. It has taken to imitating death-cries that it hears in Hraf’s presence, or calling out “Blood! Blood!” at random intervals. Hraf finds this behavior inexplicably amusing.

First Impressions: Given his line of work, Hraf has become a sharp judge of character, and has practiced the skill of cold reading. Based purely on first impressions, the Blackbird has made snap-decisions that have led him to fortune a handful of times, and saved his skin on innumerable other occasions.

The retired Legionnaire, Hector Sibassius, is not someone that Hraf thinks much of. While his skills would certainly be useful, the pirate instinctually distrusts those associated with the Empire. Hraf has spent too much of his life looking over his shoulder in anticipation of an Imperial galleon or an agent of the Pentius Oculatus to trust an Imperial soldier, even a retired one. Even so, Hraf is not outwardly hostile towards the man, and refrains from mentioning his days spent raiding Imperial frigates during the Civil War.

Balen Oril is an odd figure in Hraf’s eyes. He strikes the Blackbird as more of a wandering scholar than an adventurer or tomb raider, and he doubts that the Dark Elf would be of much use on their expedition. While scholarly pursuits have their place, that place is far away from the profits sought by Hraf, and so Balen earns little respect from the Nord on that point. If anything, he figures that Balen could serve as a shield or a pack mule in a pinch, but not much beyond that.

Angelique Something-Something… Merci, as she calls herself, is a familiar figure to Hraf. While he has personally never met the woman before, he recognizes her lifestyle, having seen it many times. The hedge witch is merely a peasant far from home, in over her head, but still scraping by. One resting on the shore of the underworld, but yet to tread its waters. In his early days, Hraf hired many people in similar situations to crew his ship after his more principled hands left him. These days he is more discriminating, valuing effectiveness over desperation. That said, Hraf figures that the Breton girl will be fairly easy to manipulate, should he need to. A little money goes a long way for some people.

Ashing is a familiar name to Hraf, as merchant families such as his own often knew others throughout Tamriel. While Hraf had not met the only daughter of the bereaved family before this expedition, he had met her father when the Blackbird was just a young lad. The man had died and Elayne had taken up the business while Hraf was doing time in the Imperial Prison, and as such had no dealings with her family’s company after Uthard’s death. Regarding Elayne herself, Hraf sees her as a simple sort of girl, smart enough to get herself in trouble, but not enough to get her back out of it.

The Dark Elven sellsword, Azriel Telvayn, is the sort of person that Hraf most prefers to deal with. The Blackbird puts great value on the mercenary’s one-track mind, lack of ambitions, marketable skills and manageable amount of intelligence. Hraf looks forward to working with him.

Meanwhile, the High Elven witch Aenyarin is precisely the type of person that Hraf most loathes to deal with. While the Blackbird himself was born much too late to fight in the Great War, in those times his father and uncle sold ships to the Empire and Imperial privateers alike, and suffered considerable losses when the Empire could not repay their bonds. As such, Hraf has a distinct distrust of High Elves, perhaps greater than his distrust of the Empire. Too smart to fool, and too haughty to charm, the Blackbird usually resorts to the last skill in his repertoire for High Elves: steel.  Hraf has decided to keep his eyes peeled for any convenient opportunities to rid their expedition of her.

Similar to the High Elf, Hraf does not care for the trickery of the Telvanni wizard Baladas Venym. Wizards are an unpredictable sort, and the Blackbird tries to keep his dealings with them to a minimum. Their motivations, Hraf finds, are usually strange, and their behavior stranger. Even so, the Dark Elf has enough of an ego that Hraf is still confident that he can be suitably manipulated, if need be.

Lastly, the Wood Elf Ungimros serves for Hraf as an example of why he doesn’t like or trust any sort of elf. Even the seemingly most reasonable and predictable of them, the Wood Elves of Valenwood, are inhuman degenerates without any sense of common decency. Not to say that Hraf prides himself on his own moral behavior; he merely laments that their deviation from the societal norms that he was raised to expect makes them all the more unpredictable and difficult to work with.

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Name: Ryuji Monshiro

Age: 14

Gender: Female

Appearance: "Fufufu! It's not hard to go far in the world; all you have to do is follow me!"

Personality: Monshiro is a refined young lady with a presence far larger than her diminutive physical stature. While polite and well-tempered, she can be quite boisterous, and has a habit of commanding attention from other people. Her impressive intellect and willpower are matched by her maturity and charm. Monshiro's charisma is easily her strongest characteristic; when she speaks, people don't just hear her, they listen. Whether it is her adorable appearance, her authoritative voice, or her eloquence in speaking or some combination thereof, most people have a very difficult time disliking Monshiro, or even just ignoring her. She has a touch of her family's signature arrogance, but is more down to earth than her siblings. Monshiro does have a few childish traits, such as her love of cute things and her sweet tooth, but these are only seen by those she holds in close confidence.

Brief History: One of the several powerful and wealthy families in Sengoku City, the Ryuji Corporation is a family-owned international conglomerate. The Ryuji Corporation's business is people, as they scout skilled workers and individuals with special talents, and then coordinate with other businesses to place these persons in positions where they are best utilized. This sort of agency, as well as holdings in several service industries, is where the Ryuji family draws its profits. Or so it seems on the surface. This much of the Ryuji Corporation is a front for its operations as a paramilitary organization; the majority of the organization serves to recruit elite mercenaries and soldiers of fortune, to then lease out their services to the highest bidder.

Monshiro is the youngest daughter of the Ryuji Corporations founder and CEO, Ryuji Mikado (called "Emperor Ryuji" by some). She has lived in Sengoku city for the last eight years, though she has received her education privately. For her freshman year in high school, Monshiro has enrolled in Sengoku High School. Given that her older sister, Ageha, graduated last year, and her older brother, Hideo, is studying abroad, she is the only Scion of the Ryuji family currently attending Sengoku. Though she practices martial arts to keep fit, Monshiro really has no talent for fighting, and her underdeveloped stature gives her quite a disadvantage in physical confrontations. Knowing how dangerous Sengoku High would be for her, Monshiro's father assigned the most powerful member of the Ryuji Corporations private "Butler Corps" (elite agents used to protect the Ryuji family and the corporation's most private assets) to protect her.

Since enrolling in Sengoku High School, Monshiro has made great waves. She is the idol of the freshman class, and was elected as their class representative with a landslide victory. Even so, she is not without those that would attempt to discredit or defeat her, and she has met such challenges with dignity, and has prevailed with honor. Monshiro considers her truest rival to be Hirayama Chinatsu, as she aspires to become student council president to prove herself to her father. To aid her cause, she has begun to rally her own private sect of the Ryuji Corporation, comprised of students, with the intention of ridding the city of its more unsightly elements.

Weapons: While it is scarcely a weapon, Monshiro carries an antique fan with her, using it mostly to point dramatically. When actual weapons are required, she relies on Herman Hellsing.

Abilities: Monshiro has inherited her father's powerful charisma, which makes her a powerful orator and a highly magnetic person. Monshiro is not merely a likable person, but she is also very influential, and has a decent talent for what one might call manipulation. She can easily understand what people want, and how to play their motivations so that she gets what she wants. Monshiro inspires loyalty and dedication in those that follow her, and respect in those that dislike her. Even animals seem to enjoy Monshiro's presence and obey her instinctually. She is also remarkably intelligent, and is very good at playing politics.

Side?: Sengoku High School

Club: Student Council, Freshman Class Representative

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Name: Herman Hellsing

Age: 38

Gender: Male

Appearance: "Hmmh. Is this what passes for combat among youth these days?"

Personality: Herman is as polite and professional as one would expect a butler to be, and as level-headed and confident as the professional soldier that he truly is. Even so, he has a distinct air of arrogance about him, as he is clearly very sure of his power, with just a touch of sadism. An elitist and perfectionist both, Herman privately considers most people to be well below him, and very few people meet the high standards he imposes to be worthy of his respect. As a soldier-for-hire, Herman's morals are loose at best, and he will follow whatever orders given to him, though he still holds to a code of honor as a warrior.

Brief History: Much of this man's past is a mystery, but it is known that he was born and raised in Holland, and was the leader of a mercenary team renowned for having never failed a single mission. While he was completing a black ops mission within Japan nine year ago, Herman Hellsing happened to meet Ryuji Mikado, whereupon he was won over by the man's ideals and conviction, and pledged his service to him. Herman was inducted into the Ryuji Corporation's Butler Corps of special agents and personal bodyguards, and was assigned the secretive rank of 0.

Herman has known Ryuji Monshiro since she first began living in Sengoku city, and the two have formed a genuine bond in that time. Monshiro looks to Herman as a parental figure in place of her mostly-absent father and distant mother, and Herman respects and cares for Monshiro both as the blood of the man to whom he owes his loyalty, as well as an admirable young lady in her own right. Herman has been assigned to Monshiro as her personal attendant, to keep her safe within the perilous Sengoku High School. While he cannot always been seen, the man is always present around Monshiro, and is always watching.

Weapons: Herman mostly relies on his legs for his attacks, but is trained in numerous different styles of armed martial arts, and is a crack shot with a variety of firearms.

Abilities: Herman is placed as Rank 0 among the Ryuji Corporation Butler Corps, and not merely to keep him separate from the command structure of the other combat butlers; his ability in battle is leagues greater than the Rank 1 butler. His body is honed to a razor edge of perfection, as is his mind, essentially making Herman a living weapon. His speed and strength are both terrifying to behold, and his ability to hide both his physical body and his spiritual presence is unparalleled. Master of numerous forms of martial arts and styles of warfare, Herman most prefers close combat, with kicks powerful enough to kill a common man ten times over. Herman has also delved into several ki-utilizing techniques to give himself range when armed and diversify his skills, and his tolerance for pain makes it seem as though he does not feel pain whatsoever.

That aside, Herman is a Damn Good Butler, and is well-trained in such skills as cooking, cleaning, wilderness survival, mending clothes, handiwork, firearm maintenance, crochet and etiquette.

Side?: Sengoku, technically.

Club: None, he is a grown man.

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Cherry Hunter

Name: "Cherry Hunter"

Age: 596

Gender: Female

Appearance: "Cherry," as she is now known, takes the form of a diminutive caucasian girl, perhaps only eight or nine years in apparent age. Flawless, white skin and flowing, golden hair give her an almost inhuman, uncanny beauty; as though she were a doll and not a living creature. Her golden eyes, wise far beyond her physical appearance, make it even clearer that she is far more than what she appears to be. Cherry dresses curiously, normally only wearing a tattered child's dress and slip, as well as a military surplus aviator's helmet.

Personality: To most, Cherry is a cold creature, utterly devoid of emotion and empathy. She barely speaks in public, instead solemnly going about her enigmatic duties as though she were a forsaken spirit. This is an act, however, to throw off her captors and those that she does not associate with. Her true nature is talkative, opinionated and incredibly haughty. She detests most that she comes in contact with, seeing them as creatures far beneath herself. She despises being looked down upon, and relishes dominance over others. However, opportunities for her in such matters are few and far between in recent years, but she takes whatever opportunities that she can get.

Abilities: As "the remains of a beautiful demon," Cherry is a shadow of her former self. Even so, she is still a substantially powerful vampire; on par with most mid-to-high-tiered mages. Her speed and strength are both shocking, as she can easily move faster than the human eye can track, and can overpower opponents many times her size. Her senses are supernaturally sharp, able to detect individual blood scents from miles away, and see in perfect darkness. Shadow magic is a specialty of hers, and she can use it to bind or attack foes with their own shadows, or to conceal, protect or transport herself by stepping "into" shadows.

Skills: Cherry has little in the way of practical skills, but has a great deal of knowledge regarding magical phenomena both from her centuries of life and from listening to the endless prattle of her master.

Equipment: Entrusted to Cherry is a demon-killing sword that belonged to one of her former servants. Its unique properties allow it to inflict great harm to any magical phenomena (including mages), but it cannot so much as touch any mundane person or object.

Brief Backstory: One of the oldest vampires still active in the world, the demoness that would later be known as "Cherry Hunter" has origins lost to time, and to her own dusty catacomb of memories. She has traveled across the world, seeking new experiences and diversions in an endless parade of hedonism. She was powerful beyond the compare of most vampires, and feared nothing from mortals or magicians. Having traveled so far and so wide, she has made many enemies from when her whims have turned dark and deadly. She was ambushed by an unholy alliance of vampire hunters, and though she was able to fend them off, she was badly wounded and greatly weakened from the fight.

A particular onmyouji, who had been observing her for some time, saw this as his opportunity to "bring her to balance." With strange magic, he removed the heart from the weakened vampire while still keeping her alive. This sudden disturbance to her mystic physiology robbed her of the vast majority of her power, almost inducing a crippling atrophy to her very soul. Her regenerative power, still reeling from her battle, adapted her body to the sudden disturbance by regressing her in age, forcing her into the body of a child.

The onmyouji, free to destroy her heart and kill her whenever he pleased, instead sealed the vampire as she reeled from her loss. Using the magical rites of binding shikigami, he forced her to be his familiar and servant, following him as he went about his magical studies and duties. Having been bound by her true name (forcing her to use the pseudonym he gave her, "Cherry Hunter") and with her heart kept as collateral, Cherry had no choice but to grudgingly oblige.

For a few years this has been her life, combatting monsters and evil mages and performing menial duties for this onmyouji. The pair has come to Rokuro to observe the White Night and ensure it proceeds smoothly, but Cherry has other plans. She secretly vies to participate, in hopes that the Origin of Magic will grant her the power needed to regain her freedom from her captor, and resumed the lifestyle she is accustomed to.

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Name: Rúnlauf, the Wise

Race: Rowan Ent

Position: Esteemed King of the Spring Court

Age: Rúnlauf has long since lost count of his years, but his rings were many before the first cities of Man rose up from the riverlands, more than twenty-thousand winters ago at least by half.

Personality: As his epithet may suggest, Rúnlauf is known amongst both the Seelie and Unseelie courts for his incredible patience, wisdom and experience. An ancient being beyond compare, Rúnlauf is ponderous and deliberate in all things, and does not so much as speak a single word that is not true to his heart and pure intention. Simple of heart and generous of spirit, the Eldest Ent cares for all living things in this world, and has the capacity to see beyond the trivialities that cloud the judgement of his younger subjects. While he is quick to dispense with his teachings and worldly experience, his aphorisms and lessons often have their meanings hidden or muddled by Rúnlauf's vast expanses of memories and knowledge, and their value is usually not readily apparent. Rúnlauf appears to be in a perpetual state of bemused tranquility, and few living fae can claim to have seen him upset. Such is his temperament that he sees meaning and purpose in all things, and almost nothing can come to truly disturb him.

Appearance: A massive being, particularly when compared to the normally diminutive fae, Rúnlauf wears his years proudly. His grey-brown bark is gnarled and knotted, particularly where it forms his face, shaping his knobby, wizened features. His legs and knees are marked by the axes of Dwarves, and heavy roots burrow into the ground beneath his seven-toed feet. Tremendous branches sprout from his back, head and shoulders, where they grow into a lush verdancy of leaves and ripe, red berries and flowers. Eyes as red as cardinal feathers sit deeply in his wooden face, their gaze piercing, but kind. A tremendous beard of moss and lichen runs from the cork of Rúnlauf's chin, and trails down to rest in his lap. Lesser, smaller creatures and fae makes homes in Rúnlauf's bark and branches; birds and small pixies flit about and nest above his head, and small rodents and dryads live in the thick trunks of his legs.

Background: Ancient even among the Ent, Rúnlauf's earliest memories are vague recollections of the world in its purest, most primal state. The Ent cared for the forests, and the forests sheltered the Ent. The fae came later, bringing reason, order, and civilization to the world. Of course, as those things emerged where there was none before, they too brought unreason, chaos and incivility. The Ent paid little mind, as they were still content to tend the forests as they always had. The elves took notice of the Tree Giants, and looked up to them as the eldest defenders of the natural world. The elves taught the Ent to speak, and gave them names, as they were so insistent on doing to everything they saw.

But as the Ent became closer to the fae, they became more deeply involved in their conflicts. The fae warred against each other ceaselessly, and the Ent were caught in the crossfire, trying to their last to defend their forests. Later came Men, who as well took axe to the grand forests, and many Ent fell to their blows as well. Rúnlauf, named by an elf that came and died before he took notice of him, came to be eldest among his people after the felling of Yggdrasil, the grand elder, by the barbarous northmen. With the mighty magic of the primal wilds, Rúnlauf drove the Men from his sacred forests, and rooted himself as the fiercest defender of the trees. Impressed by his determination in such harrowing times, the Spring Court convened about Rúnlauf, and so he was instated as their ruler.

Years and peace have mellowed the once-fierce Rúnlauf, and he now lives to protect and guide the fae court that follows him. Having borne many a seedling over his countless years, Rúnlauf has by far lost count of his natural children, and considers all of his Spring subjects to be his children, looking after them as a protective ancestor. Possibly the oldest being known to the fae, Rúnlauf is revered by both the Seelie and Unseelie courts for his prowess in the mystic arts, his legendary might in battle, and his nigh-inexhaustible wisdom. Even the fleeting rulers of the "superior" Summer Court have at times bent the knee to the Eldest Ent to seek his guidance in troubled times. Though his reputation is fearsome, Rúnlauf has gone to root (literally) in the most recent centuries, and has not so much as left his throne in the Spring Court in recent memory. The Spring Court is run mostly below his notice, his lesser regents and advisors handling the affairs of the Court in truth, as Rúnlauf looks after the Court overall and guides its growth, slowly and gradually.

Even so, Rúnlauf grows uneasy in recent years. As he spends the Unseelie months asleep on his throne, the winds of winter whisper secrets to his runed leaves, and he divines the future in his dreams. Dark times loom ahead; nightmares plague Rúnlauf, as the wind whispers of war unending among the fae courts.

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Levi

Name: Leviathan Nero

Alias/Nickname: Levi

Rank: Knight

Appearance: Levi is a tallish man with a strong build, sharp features and eccentric dress sense. He carries an air of aloofness and curiosity about him, though his dark, red eyes seem to always be glimmering with a multitude of unseen machinations.

Age: 29

Race: Aberrant/Human

Personality: Levi is to many the archetypal image of an eccentric genius. His thoughts are constantly flooded with plans and schematics, and human interaction seems to be a low priority to him. While he can garner up an air of professionalism when necessary, to most his demeanor is surly and foul-mouthed, distrusting of others and condescending toward their mental abilities. He treats women generally worse, as he also has a chauvinistic, lecherous streak. Regardless of his temperament, he has a strong, sort of old-fashioned sense of justice. There is evil in the world, and it must be either be punished or destroyed. Innocents must be protected, and good must prevail over all.

Biography/history: Levi was born as a scion of an ancient cabal of dark sorcerers, known as the Anticross. It was the mission of the Anticross to use ancient and otherworldly magics and technology to usurp the gods and become the new rulers of creation. As the second son of the order's mighty Grand Master, Levi was trained in the arts of the Magus as he grew up. He took exceedingly well to the skills of a war-artificer, trained to compliment his elder brother, Therion, who was concurrently being groomed to succeed their father as Grand Master.

However, as Levi grew up, he became disgusted by the organization that had raised and trained him. He saw the putrid evil of the Anticross for what it was, and hated them for their callous disregard for the suffering they wrought. Early in his manhood he defected from the order, turning to the Tower of Stars to alert them to the grave threat the Anticross presented. For years he went unheard, until the Anticross began their campaign to end the world with the use of an artificial god concocted from foul magic and the corpse of an Outsider. As the false god rose to life, the Master of Stars took notice, and himself sought out Levi for his assistance in combating the Anticross.

With Levi's knowledge of the order and skill as a Magus, the Tower of Stars quietly crushed the Anticross, killing their grand master and destroying their imitation god. The other masters of the order, including Therion, escaped however, and have been in hiding ever since. For his assistance, Levi was offered a position high in the ranks of the Tower of Stars, but declined, instead settling for a position as a lowly Knight, where his actions would be under far less scrutiny. Few in the Tower know of Levi's connection to the Anticross, and none besides himself know of his secret project to replicate their work. The Anticross' artificial god was a genius project, though ill-intentioned. Levi has been constructing in utmost secrecy a machine god of his own, with which he plans to banish evil from the world forever.

Reason for recruitment: On paper, he is signed on as a Magus, a rare breed of artisan that is soldier and scholar both. In truth, he is a member out of gratitude for his assistance in ending a threat to the world at large.

Strength of Will: Greater

Magic: While he has savant-like knowledge of magic theory and spell construction, Levi has little use for magic as most people use it. At the very most he utilizes alchemy at an extremely minuscule scale to assist in the writing of spell codes in the technology he creates.

God relations: As one might expect from someone who is trying to create their own god, Levi is not an especially pious individual, and spurns the attention of gods.

Tech: As an artificer of the highest skill, Levi is an expert in creating fusions of magic and technology. He accomplishes much of his work my integrating "spell code" at a molecular scale in the mechanics of his creations, essentially writing spells as programs into his technology. While he occasionally produces a convenience for the Tower's use, he hoards the majority of his advanced inventions to himself.

Levi's signature creation is GRIMOIRE, essentially a digital Spellbook. It utilizes Levi's "theoretical transportation" technology to keep a vast array of items and energy sources (sometimes including itself) in a sort of digital hammerspace, able to be summoned as needed. The COR LEONIS theoretical energy system that powers GRIMOIRE is also in this hammerspace, and is the fuel source for Levi's spells and technology. Other features of GRIMOIRE include mental transmission (basic telepathy) and assisted analysis of spell construction. GRIMOIRE is neurally linked to allow Levi access to its features without having to physically interface with it, even when it is in self-storage.

Levi's most prized creation is NECHRONICA, Necro for short. Necro is essentially an AI written in spell code, which is the operating system for GRIMOIRE. As a fully-realized AI, Necro has a willful and haughty personality, and is generally belligerent to everyone (often including Levi). Necro's digital avatar can be projected remotely as a holographic illusion, which can even be touched and interact with the world. Her avatar usually takes the form of a teenage girl with a white dress and long, silver hair, but it can change as she feels is necessary. Necro is an exceedingly skilled hacker, capable of learning and adapting her routines, and can improvise spell code on the fly to cast spells from the Cor Leonis on her own. Necro can also assist Levi in much the same way that a familiar would, helping to focus his spell construction and correct mistakes and bugs in his spell code.

Another of Levi's better-known inventions is the MAGUS STYLE system, closely linked to GRIMOIRE. Essentially a suit of magical armor, MAGUS STYLE bonds to Levi at a molecular level infusing his very skin with extremely efficient magical barriers. The armor enhances Levi's strength, speed and senses to superhuman levels, and grants him additional appendages formed from the armor's plasmic material. These can take the form of wings to grant Levi flight, additional arms in battle, or shields to protect him.

Apart from MAGUS STYLE, Levi's means of protecting himself is the ELDER SIGN shield system. Essentially a a magical barrier, the ELDER SIGN works as a sort of magical computer virus that disrupts and encrypts spell code that contacts it, essentially confusing and dismantling magical attacks that attempt to breach it. Its effectiveness stems from subverting the normal protocols enacted by magical barriers, and "trapping" specially-designed barrier-breaking spells.

Levi possesses a veritable arsenal of other weapons and spell programs. These include NITOCRIS, an illusion-generating program that can turn Levi invisible, duplicate his appearance, and a variety of other functions. ATLACH-NACHA is a strange program inspired by a particular spider-worshiping cult; it can be used to create sticky, flexible, extremely strong webbing material, command spiders or other arthropods, or summon a digital avatar of the spider-demon herself for battle. Levi's most often-used weapons are the spell cannons CTHUGHA and ITHAQUA; CTHUGHA fires explosive shots as hot as sunfire, whereas ITHAQUA fires analyzing rounds that home in on enemy weaknesses. The cannons can be twin-linked to form the devastating Spell Helix Cannon, or can e overcharged to summon digital demons of fire and ice, respectively. Similar are the twin nano-blades LLOIGOR and ZHAR, which take the form of stiletto swords, capable of changing shape and size, or even joining together to create a four-edged throwing weapon. Levi's final weapon is BARZAI, a superheated hyper-phase sword that can be thrown to form a flaming whirlwind of death, and always returns to Levi's hand.

Experimental technologies yet unfinished include the HUNTING HORROR, a spell-engine powered motorcycle, and an advanced form of powered armor and weapons systems, code-named METATON. Levi is as always working on his machine god, for now christened STRANGE AEON. Some of its features are complete, such as its twin spell engines TIMAEUS and CRITIAS, its SHANTAK flight system and its LEMURIA directed-energy weapons system. He is still in the process of upgrading the COR LEONIS to withstand the strain of powering such an immense magical construction.

Possessions/items/property: Levi has a pet shoggoth named Dunsany, which while a Shapeshifter, usually takes the form of a nonthreatening yellow blob with a single eyeball. Dunsany is immensely strong and nearly indestructible, but is generally docile. His gelatinous body makes for a favorite seat for Levi, who feeds him fresh penguin meat as a treat. Dunsany likes to repeat things he hears, much like a parrot, interspersed with cries of "Teki-li-li!"

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•Name: Vladimir "Vova" Kirillovitch Volkov

•Age: 18

•Appearance: Vova is a tall, well-built boy, with blue-grey eyes and dark hair. He usually dresses warmly in furs, hoodies, combat pants and boots.

•Personality: Quite a friendly fellow, Vova warms up to people quickly and is fond of physical contact; handshakes, hugs and slaps on the back can all be expected from him with regularity. Excitable and eccentric, he has many varied hobbies that he engages in with a great deal of vigor, and this passion carries into many other things as a general zest for life. He is sometimes surprising with his intelligence, as he can quickly find a deeper insight to things as those around him are pondering the surface details. He is very much a social animal, growing bored and lonely very quickly, and can be somewhat flighty in his moods, though he tries to stay positive and pleasant. Quite an optimist, he tries to see the best in things at all times, and grows quickly tired of complainers or pessimists.

•Clubs: A ghost member of nearly every club in the school, he attends whatever suits his fancy for that given day.

•Brief Backstory: Born and raised in North-Eastern Russia, Vova was the eldest son of a moderately wealthy family that made their fortune after the fall of the Soviet Union. While he had a fairly normal upbringing, he became fond of nightly walks through the cold forests around his home. It is on one such of these walks that Vova claims he formed his contract with Dracula. Always eager for new experiences, he quickly begged his parents to allow him to attend Covenant Academy. While the staff found some discrepancies between his story, the records presented by him, and the general history of his region of origin, he was accepted, and has since had quite a productive school life.

•Contract: Dracula

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•Name: Dracula

•Type: Vampire

•Personality: Dracula strikes most as an affable, gentlemanly fellow, almost pleasant in common conversation. He fancies the finer things; good food, classic literature, and tasteful company. However, this is mostly superficial dressing that serves to disguise what he truly is: a completely inhuman monster. Dracula cares nothing for human lives, seeing them as cattle at worst and helpful tools at best. While he sees his contractor (being his only means of entering our world) as an exception, he is not above manipulating Vova. He is remorseless and vicious, and at times his needless cruelty exposes his sadistic streak. At his very core, Dracula is the slave of his constant, insatiable, all-consuming thirst.

•Powers: Vova is granted strength, speed and resilience, that are beyond that which a normal human is capable of. He has a unique affinity for darkness, capable of flitting between shadows as easily as breathing. By temporarily taking the form of a mist, he can slip through knife-thin cracks or spaces, and he can turn himself invisible for a moderate amount of time.

•Fusion: When fused with Dracula, Vova's hair darkens to an inky black, his eyes turn blood red, his skin becomes white as chalk, and he gains great fangs and claws. His physical attributes are heightened to the point of being legendary, and he gains the ability to shapeshift into whatever animate or inanimate form that his mass will allow, including that of a cloud of mist. However, he loses his shapeshifting ability when exposed to sunlight, and he gains Dracula's maddening thirst for human blood.

•Summon: Dracula's true form is far from what one may expect. An almost unstoppable engine of destruction, Dracula is almost completely out of Vova's control when summoned. With scales like granite, he strikes with the strength and speed of a bullet train, ripping through all in his way with claws and fangs sharper than razors. The only thing truly limiting him is that he uses up his power extremely quickly, and his time spent in our world can only be extended if he consumes the flesh and blood of humans, and Luca invariably recalls him before he has a chance to do so. Sunlight has a dampening effect on his power, but it does not destroy him, as he is far above common vampires in terms of power.

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FENRIR

The Devil Wolf

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"Cut off a wolf's head, and it still has the power to bite."
-Hayao Miyazaki

Judas Priest - Leather Rebel

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| Full Name |
Vasile Gunnar Țepeș
Василе Гуннар Тепес

| Nickname |
Almost every living relative refers to him as "Abomination," but when he was young his mother called him "Vaska."

| Alias |
Fenrir

| Birth Date |
16 April, 1963

| Age |
62, appears no older than early thirties.

| Species |
Vampire Werewolf

| Gender |
Male

| Sexuality |
Heterosexual

| Alignment |
Chaotic Neutral

| In-Depth Appearance |
Vasile is a large, powerfully-built man, standing 6'4" tall and weighing 255 pounds. He possesses typically Nordic features, such as strawberry blond hair, steel-blue eyes and a pale complexion. His hair is generally worn as a rough shag that hangs to the top of his shoulders, and more often than not he sports a thick, rough-cut beard. His teeth are a raw, bestial yellow, each one sharper than a normal man's, and his four eye teeth are exaggerated into true fangs. In darkness, his eyes shine with a sinister ruby light, like the reflective gaze of a nocturnal beast. While he has no tattoos or piercings, a great number of scars mark his hands, body and face; in particular, a branding in the shape of a Sun Cross is burned into his right shoulder blade.

Vasile's taste in clothing is mostly utilitarian. He prefers anything that is cheap, durable and readily available. Denim and canvas jackets and jeans make up the majority of what he wears, along with any military surplus he can get his hands on. Hooded winter clothing, goggles and masks are valuable to him, as they allow him to cover his skin enough to survive daylight. Despite his preference for function over form, Vasile enjoys such items as quality sunglasses, boots and leather jackets. Any time he can acquire one of these items he cherishes them greatly, and mourns them when they are inevitably lost or destroyed.

| Abilities |
As both a vampire and a werewolf, Vasile possesses the powers of both races, which form an unholy synergy that propel him to strength unmatched by either. A member of the living dead, his skin is cool and unpleasantly dry to the touch, and he possesses no pulse nor body heat. Vasile has no need to eat, sleep or breathe, and he is unafflicted by age, disease, poison, cold, and many other mortal weaknesses. His physical strength, speed and durability are all superhuman, allowing him to twist steel with his bare hands, move faster than a human eye can track, or shrug off seemingly mortal wounds. His natural fortitude also protects his mind from a variety of psychic attacks or mind control. His regenerative ability is prodigious, as most flesh wounds heal within minutes, and even a debilitating injury will only keep him down for a few hours at most. His senses are supernaturally keen, his sense of smell being the most powerful among them. Vasile can move in complete silence if he chooses to, and he can see clearly even in complete darkness. He commands some power over the natural world, able to commune with, summon or spiritually possess beasts, and can inspire or quell primal rage in other animals, werewolves or vampires. He is capable of transforming his human shape, taking on such bestial characteristics as wicked talons or batlike wings. His claws and fangs are the weapons of a supernatural hunter, and as such inflict exaggerated damage against creatures that are magical or supernatural in nature. His bite carries both the curses of lycanthropy and vampirism, which when inflicted upon a person are incompatible and invariably result in the death of the infected. Any normal human bitten by him that survives is doomed to suffer a painful death as the two curses tear their body apart, unless they can quickly be cured or treated for the curses.

As a skinchanger, Vasile can completely change his form in a process that is utterly natural to his kind. He can assume the form of a normal wolf, stocky in build, with reddish-grey fur. He retains most of his human reasoning in this form, but his instincts tend to assume more control over his actions. More infamously, Vasile can take on the form of the "Devil Wolf," a horrifying monster that is somewhere between man and wolf. A creature of pure muscle and unrestrained fury, Vasile's physical prowess becomes ever more potent in this form, but he loses all sense of reason, giving in fully to the raging Beast within him. Any weak-willed humans that witness the Devil Wolf are overcome with a primal survival instinct that sends them into a state of blind panic and terror, with their minds usually blocking out the memory of the Devil Wolf when it subsides. The howl of the Devil Wolf can carry this psychological effect over a considerable distance, or when directed at a single person can inspire utterly immobilizing terror.

| Limitations |
As Vasile possesses the powers of both a vampire and a werewolf, he has also inherited all of their weaknesses. Sunlight is known to many as the natural enemy of vampires, and Vasile is no exception to this. On contact with his flesh, sunlight blackens and painfully sears his flesh, which melts away with prolonged exposure. While his regeneration is powerful enough for him to survive limited exposure, if he is ever utterly exposed, he will be trapped in a torturous cycle of burning and regenerating until the sun sets or his regeneration gives out. Only true sunlight is harmful to him, but artificial ultraviolet light can be used to temporarily blind him. Silver is an utterly toxic substance for Vasile, as looking at him inflicts him with a headache, and it leaves blisters on contact with his skin. Wounds inflicted by silver weapons, in addition to being debilitatingly painful, cannot be healed at the unnatural rate of his other wounds, and form toxic, festering wounds. Fire, another bane of vampires, has similar effects, and any flame that Vasile subconsciously considers to be too large or too close triggers intense pyrophobia in him. Hot or molten silver carries both of these effects, and there is little Vasile can do to defend against it. As a vampire, Vasile must drink blood to survive, and struggles with the overwhelming desire to feed that is natural to his kind. If he goes without drinking blood, his powers will fail, his strength with flag, and eventually he will fall into a deathlike torpor. Similarly, the full moon weakens his control over his transformations, and while exposed to it there is the chance of the slightest provocation causing him to slip into his Devil Wolf form.

However, more dangerous than any of Vasile's physical weaknesses are the psychological ones within him. Vasile fights a constant battle against the Beast, the primal, alien intelligence deep within him that drives his predatory instincts. While he has enough control over it to live comfortably day-to-day, emotional conditions such as stress and rage weaken his resistance to its control. Vasile is most susceptible to giving into the whims of the Beast when in battle, especially when he has been wounded, and even more so when he has been exposed to one of his supernatural banes. As the Beast takes over his body from his higher mind, Vasile becomes more violent and aggressive, less concerned with distinguishing friend and foe, becomes more likely to accidentally transform into a more bestial shape, and will eventually have no thought other than feeding and surviving. If the Beast fully assumes control, Vasile slips into an insane frenzy, reminiscent of an ultra-violent "fight or flight" reaction.

| Equipment |
Vasile travels lightly. He generally keeps on him a few changes of clothes, a bedroll, a hunting knife, a lighter and cigarettes, an assortment of falsified documents such as driver's licenses and passports, and a variety of other camping and survival equipment.

| Personality Traits |
-Honest
-Direct
-Individualistic
-Cunning
-Untactful
-Vengeful
-Cynical
-Tenacious

| Personality |
Despite the drama and intrigue that surrounds his existence, Vasile is a relatively simple person. He is direct and open in nearly all of his dealings, as he can think of no great benefit that deception would grant him. Unafraid to speak his mind, Vasile makes no great effort to be overly civil or polite. He will be warm toward his friends, cold and distrustful toward strangers, and hostile toward his enemies-- simplicity itself. While far from the most educated man, Vasile certainly possesses a great degree of cunning and resourcefulness, and it is a fatal mistake to assume that he is unintelligent for being a vagrant raised in the woods.

Vasile is no longer afraid of what he is, but he is still constantly aware of it. He knows that he is an impending danger to most around him, and takes efforts to minimize the risk he poses to others, such as living alone and constantly being on the move. This is not done out of some great sense of altruism, but just as a means of surviving by avoiding attention and unnecessary conflict. That is not to say that he does not sometime act irrationally out of his passionate desire for revenge against the house of Dracula.

| Quirks |
-Speaks several languages.
-Not good at reading, and struggles with basic arithmetic.
-Generally ignorant to most vampire and werewolf cliches.

| Hobbies |
-Attending heavy metal concerts.
-Hunting and eating interesting animals.
-Traveling to new places, squatting there, and being a drain on society.

| Likes |
-Clear, cloudless nights.
-Classic hair metal.
-Dark, bitter beer.
-Pork.
-Leather jackets.
-Italian cigarettes.

| Dislikes |
-Most modern technology.
-Crowds.
-Dense urban areas.
-People who wear too much perfume.
-Overcooked meat.
-Hungarians.

| Fears |
-Fire.
-Losing control in public.
-Being enslaved as his father was.

| Place Of Origin |
Vasile was born in Hoia Baciu, Romania. He currently lives as a vagrant, wandering across Europe.

| Family |
-Mother: Mina Țepeș. Vampire childer of Dracula, she currently resides within Castle Dracula, but is known to roam the greater area of Transylvania. Cut ties with Vasile after being forced to give him up.
-Father: Gunnar Voll. Werewolf slave of Mina Tepes, current status unknown. Likely dead.
-Grandfather: Vlad Țepeș. Dracula, the lord of all vampires. Resides within Castle Dracula. Considers Vasile to be an unspeakable shame to his house and his legacy, and wishes him dead.

| History |
Vampires are strange and fickle creatures, and becoming ever more so as they advance in age and status among their kind. Mina Țepeș, the noble daughter of Vlad Țepeș (better known as Dracula) and heir apparent to the lordship of all vampires, was far from an exception. Her immortal life was so rich with luxury and pleasure that she desired ever more obscure and debase experiences to keep her endless nights interesting. For this reason, Gunnar Voll piqued her interest. A "gift" bestowed to Mina by a lesser vampire vying for her favor, Voll was a werewolf slave that had been captured in the cold reaches of northern Norway. Entranced by Mina's supernatural charms and bound by heavy, silver chains, Voll was kept as a "pet hound" that was sometimes used to fight for the entertainment of Mina and her noble sire, or taken out on hunting expeditions. However, in this case Mina desired even more disturbing entertainment. Her increasing lust for debauchery drove Mina to share an unholy tryst with Voll, an act that brought a new, unprecedented horror into the world.

In violation of all sense and reason, Mina found her undead body growing pregnant after her disturbing affair. While it should have been impossible for the cursed flesh of a vampire to bear new life, she theorized that the unnatural vitality of the werewolf allowed her to bear a child. The pregnancy was kept a secret, and after nine months Mina birthed her unholy spawn. A disgusting thing somewhere between a human baby and a wolf cub, Mina's brood was born blind, hairless, and dead. It was not stillborn, however, and just minutes after birth latched on with needle-like fangs to suckle blood from Mina's cold breast. Further intrigued by the idea of motherhood, particularly over such an unspeakable aberration, Mina kept the creature and raised it in secrecy. She named the monster, her son, Vasile, "King," as it was surely the most monstrous thing to ever walk the earth.

Vasile grew alarmingly fast, and at two months of age was able to variably shift between the shapes of a human and a wolf. He ran around on two legs or four interchangeably, a rambunctious ball of fur and energy that caused havoc wherever he went, and consumed an alarming amount of blood and raw meat ("donated" by Mina's stable of human cattle). However, a child is a difficult thing to keep secret, particularly one that is vampire and werewolf at once. By the time Vasile was four years old, Lord Dracula had come to learn of his existence, and was disgusted beyond belief. He ordered for the abomination to be destroyed and never spoken of again, as it was an affront to even the unholiness of vampire kind. Acting more out of childish rebellion than motherly instinct, Mina protected the child from her father's wrath, and handed him off to a band of Romani gypsies, who took him in as one of their own. Before Dracula realized what had happened, Vasile was out of his grasp, and the abomination had been unleashed into the world.

For most of his youth Vasile traveled with the gypsy caravans, stealing to survive and hunting down his meals in the ancient forests of Europe. He wandered across the continent, experiencing many cultures (earning the scorn of most), and learning many tongues, as well as the skills needed for a nomadic lifestyle. It was in his turbulent youth that he came to understand what he was, slowly learning from his own strange abilities and unnatural compulsions, as well as the fear and scorn from both humans and other supernatural creatures he encountered. He eventually learned from a forest spirit of his true heritage, and that he was the bastard of House Dracula and the Fenrisúlfr, a tribe of werewolves in the frozen reaches of Scandinavia. Already outcast by the blood of his mother, he struck out on his own to find his father's kin, hoping to find acceptance among their pack.

The journey was long and arduous, but Vasile survived it by forming bonds and contracts with many faerie courts and witch covens throughout northern Europe. He eventually tracked down the Fenrisúlfr, who lived as wildmen in the glacial fjords. Recognizing him for the abomination that he was, the Fenrisúlfr cared nothing for the blood Vasile shared with them. With a surprise attack, they bound Vasile and prepared to sacrifice him as an offering to their archaic gods. The young Vasile then underwent his First Change, a momentous and ritualized occasion to any young Werewolf, grotesquely perverted by his circumstances. Vasile assumed the form of the Devil Wolf for the first time, and was easily able to overpower the Fenrisúlfr. Those that survived fled in fear, cursing Vasile as they ran away. Now truly alone in the world, Vasile spent months alone in the Norwegian wilderness, contemplating his place in the world. He thought of the ancient legend of Fenrir, the wolf for which his father's tribe took their name. Born a monster, he was bound by the gods out their fear for his strength, and he was hated eternally by man and god alike. Vasile identified with the story, for he too was born a damned soul by no fault of his own. He took up the name of Fenrir for himself, and from that point on lived for the approval of none but himself.

For decades, Vasile wandered Europe much as he had done as a youth, passing himself off as a common vagrant. He learned all he could about himself and the world around him. With focus and steely determination, he brought his animalistic side under control, vowing to not be the monster that everyone had assumed he was. He worked odd jobs, squatted in old castles and abandoned homes, or slept in the woods when there was no better option. Despite his best efforts to go unnoticed, rumors of the Abomination spread in his wake, and many wished him dead for a variety of reasons. Dracula sent assassins after him, werewolf packs sought to cleanse him from the world, and even common mortal hunters desired to slay the foulest of all monsters. Vasile avoided them where he could, and killed them without hesitation when that failed. Despite his efforts to leave his past behind, he still harbored a burning coal of anger in his heart toward House Dracula, who enslaved his father and was the reason for his damned existence. To help soothe his desire for revenge, he hunts down vampire covens with the help of his various underground contacts, and destabilizes Dracula's operations wherever he can find them. This has only increased the vampire lord's ire toward him, but he considers it to be worth it for the small measure of peace it brings him.

| Extra |
King, GMT-6, something something A-Game

_{Face Claim: Paul Levesque}

💀💀💀

Leviathan

L E V I A T H A N

---

^{A U G U S T L E O N A R D W I N F I E L D ◼ M A R C H 1 3, 1 9 6 8 ( 4 8 ) ◼ M A L E ◼ ? ? ?}

^{"Why did the old Persians hold the sea holy? Why did the Greeks give it a separate deity, and own brother of Jove? Surely all this is not without meaning."}

▼ A P P E A R A N C E:

---

^{"It seemed to be a sort of monster, or symbol representing a monster, of a form which only a diseased fancy could conceive."}

//STATS:

◼ HEIGHT | 5'10''

◼ WEIGHT | 155 lbs

◼ BUILD | Lanky, prominent bones, wiry

◼ HAIR COLOR | Near-black

◼ EYE COLOR | Storm grey

//DESCRIPTION:

August is, at a glance, a generally unassuming figure. Not particularly tall, dull in coloration, and lean in build. His posture is withdrawn and defensive, carrying his limbs close to him and standing with a modest slouch. He dresses conservatively, and seems to take pains to avoid touching people. His dress sense is notably casual for his social standing, with the eccentric exception of the patch worn over his right eye. However, his presence and demeanor is so sharply contrasting from his appearance that most are completely unprepared for it. Above all else, he exudes control; his words and decisions almost seem to sap the credence of others. The schemes and arguments of others, especially those sharing in his presence, seem futile or ill-conceived when compared to his commanding charisma. It is not powerlessness that most feel around him, but a realization of how powerless they have always been.

▼ B I O G R A P H Y:

---

^{"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the spirit of God was hovering over the waters."}

The name Winfield is known only to a privileged few, but among those few it carries immense weight and history. "Old money," so to speak, the family can trace its heritage past the colonization of the Americas, to the Norman conquest of England. In more recent history, they clan has spent the last few centuries in Massachusetts, quietly investing in the budding industrial and political interests of New England. Strangers to the celebrity of their contemporaries, Rockefeller and Morgan for instance, they have customarily kept themselves as far from the public eye as possible, valuing their privacy and security greatly. This is in no small part motivated by the family's turbulent history; plagued by "bad blood," scions of Winfield seem to be dealt great prosperity and ruinous madness in equal measure.

There has been no greater tragedy to befall the Winfield name in recent memory than Leonore Rosemary Winfield, heiress to the Winfield fortune in the early twentieth century. Ever plagued by flights of fancy and romantic delusions, she was known for spiriting away vast sums of money on vanities and frivolities. Her closest retainers and counselors did little to restrain her spending habits, as they took advantage of her mental absence to embezzle from her right under her nose. While her reputation was protected to keep their own interests from becoming compromised, most of Leonore's associates "jumped ship" after she began an affair with a disgraced German occultist and former SS officer, who manipulated her into devoting her resources to his own protection in the United States. Unsurprisingly, the relationship ended disastrously, as in the year of the infamous Dark Eclipse, the man eloped with what remained of the Winfield fortune, leaving Leonore alone, penniless, and pregnant with his bastard child.

The following year, August Leonard Winfield was born into abject poverty, with none to provide for him besides his half-mad mother. His early life in the slums of Springfield was miserable, but vital to his development. In his formative years he acquired the dagger-sharp cunning and utter ruthlessness that would both keep him fed and housed in his youth, and propel him into prosperity as a man. He had a wisdom beyond his years, and a perspective that found solutions that most others could barely fathom. From his school-aged years on he kept himself and his mother afloat by various unscrupulous means; from running three-card monte on his classmates, to balancing accounts for local bookies. Leonore had no degree and no skills, and August considered her little better than a burden, but her presence kept him out of state custody, and for that reason he continued to support her. The harder he worked, the more skills he learned, and the more contacts and favors he collected. By the time he was a young man, he had ingratiated himself with a handful of organized crime syndicates in the greater Boston metropolitan area, and had accumulated enough clout and funds to gain admission into Boston University. Casting off his now useless mother to rot in a mental institution, he attained top marks with a dual major in business and economics, and was (with some outside pressure) accepted into Harvard Business to complete his postgraduate degree.

Now August Winfield, D.B.A., he desired greatly to start anew in a distant locale, hoping to establish new contacts and make his way legitimately. He chose his place of relocation meticulously, favoring both economic potential and minimal possibility of being linked to his criminal associates. He eventually settled on Crescent City, California, and founded his own financial advisement and investing firm, Aquarius LLC. Capitalizing on the technological and economic "Hyperhuman Boom" of the early nineties, Aquarius became an economic lynchpin of the Orlaith district, laying the foundation for many corporations that are household names today. As was the Winfield custom, August made his fortune quietly and without fuss; the layperson would have no idea who he was or what he did, but he was a figure to which the wealthy and powerful were both reverent of and indebted to.

However, as the years wore on and Hyperhuman activity increased, the boom slowed, and what was once a prospering city began to slump into poverty and crime. Aquarius' bottom line felt the recession, and they were forced to take on more unscrupulous clientele. August found himself falling back on old habits, as the allure of easy money made outside the bound of the law was too tempting in these difficult times. As well, this regression of behavior was likely a subconscious reaction to an unforeseen stressor in August's life: his own supernatural awakening. Almost like a second puberty, August discovered gradual, yet unsettling changes to his body. His vitality far exceeded that of a normal man his age, and he soon concluded that he had stopped aging entirely. His physique eventually surpassed human limits, and eventually even more disturbing changes took place, which he took every precaution to conceal from anyone else. His mind seemed to expand with his body, and he found himself supernaturally aware of the emotions and consciousnesses of others. He cautiously nurtured this growing extrasensory perception, and as soon as he had a handle on it, turned it to his advantage. He psychically dominated his competitors, and hypnotically implanted suggestions to his associates that would profit him best. Subtlety was the cornerstone of his manipulation, as his preferred tactic was to have others believe that they were acting of their own accord. Even when his criminal puppets were taken under, there was nothing material ever left behind to link himself and their activities.

In recent years, August's supernaturality has begun to escape his control. His dreams are often wrought with confusing and troubling visions, and his waking hours are plagued with strange compulsions and turbulent moods. His thought patterns have become more erratic, and while he reaches generally logical conclusions, he has difficulty explaining his reasoning to others. He picked up the hobby of distance swimming from seemingly nowhere, and purchased a stretch of private beach to satiate this yearning in privacy. His attentions always seem drawn out to the horizon, and he feels a psychic pull from far out to sea. Only in the past few months has he begun to wake up to find that he has been sleepwalking, and scrawling strange symbols and figures on the walls and floors of his modest estate. His powers of supernatural suggestion seem to work of their own accord at times, enthralling those in close contact with him as though his very aura was enough to transfix them. In a desperate search for answers, he has funneled a considerable amount of his personal funds into research into archeology and the occult, and has tentatively made contact with the Black Lotus Society through a former associate of his mother's. His desire to stay largely anonymous and keep his troubles private has stifled the progress of his research, and his results thus far have done little to stifle his growing worry that the "bad blood" of Winfield has taken him as well.

▼ M O T I V A T I O N / O B J E C T I V E:

---

^{"I know always that I am an outsider; a stranger in this century and among those who are still men."}

August is driven by a desire to dominate and to control. His early life of poverty instilled in him a compulsion to stand above others so that he might never be at their mercy again. He sees the world as one where the strong devour the weak, and morality and justice only exist if they are backed up by the powerful. In some ways he considers himself alike to a god; lesser men pray to him, and he takes delight in their prostration. Even if they do not see him as their benefactor, or think themselves to be his superiors, it is enough to him that he is in true control of both their lives and his own.

However, with the recent development of August's supernaturality, he has begun to suffer an identity crisis of sorts. He no longer truly understands who or what he is, and what his place in the world is. So far he has sought to solve these insecurities rationally, through research and practice, but he fears something deeper at work, that is potentially outside of his admittedly meagre control.

▼ A B I L I T I E S / S K I L L S:

---

^{"Can you fill his hide with harpoons, or his head with fishing spears? If you lay a hand on him, you will remember the struggle, and never do it again! Any hope of subduing him is false; the mere sight of him is overpowering."}

//ABILITIES:

◼ Birthright | August isn't sure what he is, but he knows it isn't human. He has seemingly stopped aging at the physical equivalent of his mid-thirties, and he continues to grow more powerful physically. Despite his unimpressive appearance, August is freakishly strong, able to flip a mid-sized car onto its roof with only a moderate effort. His endurance is equally profound, as he has taken to swimming miles out to sea as a leisure activity. While his body is only as durable as a normal human's, his regenerative capacity is sufficient to quickly heal flesh wounds, and he has on one occasion managed to grow back an entire appendage. However, this regenerative factor carries severe side effects, which seem to manifest even without August becoming wounded, as his body continues to metamorphosize outside of his control.

◼ Sheol | Similar to his progressively inhuman physical characteristics, August's mind is developing into something he doesn't understand. While he can be loosely considered a psychic of some description, August suspects that something far different is at play. Currently, he has a certain amount of extrasensory perception, able to sense the emotions and presences of living minds, and to a limited extent influence them with the force of his will. He has greater control over sleeping individuals, and can implant hypnotic suggestions in their minds that can influence their personality and decisions. This influence has begun to outpace his control of it, as he has occasionally found that he has inadvertently hypnotized even waking persons with his idle thoughts. While August initially believed that his own strange dreams were premonitions, he has recently discovered that he is actually astrally projecting his consciousness in his sleep. He has almost no control over this ability so far, as his consciousness usually manifests in locations that he does not recognize.

//SKILLS:

◼ Doctor of Business Administration | August is highly educated in the fields of economics and business, and has extensive experience in these fields, as his self-made fortune can attest. His material resources are plentiful, and he has his own firm, Aquarius LLC, to fall back on.

◼ Con Artist | By cutting his teeth on petty crime and studying under more proficient cons, August is quite proficient in such skills as deception, redirection and slight of hand. While he is more than a little rusty at the practical application of these skills, they're still second-nature to him, and it takes a very skilled individual to get one by him.

◼ It's Who You Know | August is an exceptionally well-connected individual. Anyone who is anyone in Crescent City owes him either a significant favor or a substantial amount of money. While his direct contacts are numerous, his network is practically all-encompassing, as even if he doesn't have a contact in a particular area, it can be assured he knows a guy who knows a guy.

//LIMITATIONS:

◼ Metamorphosis | August's powers are the result of him changing. Into what, he has no idea, but the process has only just begun. His powers warp and progress faster than he can master them, and sometimes diverge into something else entirely. What's more, is that he is growingly increasingly unable to conceal his supernaturality from others. This includes both his literal physical appearance, as well as his outbursts of psychic influence potentially drawing unwelcome attention to himself.

//WEAKNESSES:

◼ Friends Back East | August is a man desperate to escape his past, and yet doomed to repeat it. His overwhelming need to dominate and control, growing stronger as his mind and body both mutate into inhumanity, have drawn him back into the world of criminality, which already blackens his past in New England. His history of being a two-bit thug and conman in Massachusetts, as well as the shame his mother brought onto his family name are sore subject for him, and have on previous occasions broken his cold and calculating demeanor.

▼ N O T E S:

---

//SUPPORTING CAST:

▼ ALLIES

◼ TBD | Test

▼ FRIENDS

◼ TBD | Test

▼ ENEMIES

◼ TBD | Test

//STOMPING GROUNDS

◼ TBD | Test

//PARAPHERNALIA

◼ TBD | Test