Double

Justice League: Futures End

Hero Archetype: Original
Name: Patrick Shay
Alias: Revenant
Age: 26
Team: Free Agent
Powers: On his own, Shay is just a human, no different than any other. The demon sharing his body on the other hand, does have power. Any powers Shay appears to have or use is done so only because the demon, Alastor, consents it. If Alastor doesn't feel like being helpful or wants to "teach" Shay a lesson, then none of his powers will work. On the contrary, should complete control be surrendered to him, then Alastor is able to wield the full extent of his powers through Shay. Also noteworthy, is that should Shay be killed, then Alastor dies with him, so it's usually in the demon's best interest to keep Shay alive even if he doesn't always agree with his host's decisions.

Alastor, an Assassin Demon, possesses a chameleon power that allows him to bend light around him and blend into his environments like an actual chameleon. He can also completely stop his breathing and even heartbeats to maintain total silence, though this can only be done for moments at a time. Alastor possesses a level of strength that is average for his kind, that is to say he could lift a car or punch a hole through a brick wall. He can tap into a healing factor to rapidly recover from grisly wounds. As he has lived for quite a long time, Alastor has had several decades, perhaps even centuries, to learn and master a wide variety of human weaponry and fighting skills. Powers beyond these all stem from the use of Alastor's rather unique sword, affectionately called the Soul Reaver.

Equipment: Alastor's sword, the Soul Reaver, is a powerful weapon forged in the flames in Hell. Weapons forged in Hellfire are generally sharper than any human-made blade, and are nigh unbreakable except by weapons forged in Heaven. Though in the case of Heavenly weapons, it's more likely that the swords would shatter each other, as their powers tend to cancel one another out. What makes the Soul Reaver special, however, is that it's been infused with the silver from a succubus' soul-stealing ring. As such, the blade will actually devour the souls of those it kills and their power, to a certain extent, is added to the wielder. Alastor has already used the blade to thwart assassination attempts and with it can attack with deadly fire-elemental strikes normally used by fire demons known as Efreet. Below are more specific examples of the blade's powers:

• Wings of the Damned: A pair of wings, made completely of fire that sprout from the back. They give the power of flight, and can also be wrapped around the body to form a fiery, protective shield against some attacks.
• Hell Razor: This powerful gout of flame is sent through the tip of the sword, where it then races along the ground at blazing speed, appearing like a razor wave along its path, which is how it earned its name. The flames can also be kept on the blade and augment future slashes and thrusts with fiery power.
• Blood of the Accursed: Non-lethal wounds inflicted by the Soul Reaver could be considered cursed in some ways. For one thing, recovery from them is often abnormally slow and, depending on the situation, using a healing power to speed it along will actually have the opposite effect and slow it even further, perhaps even worsening the injuries as a result.

Weaknesses: The the combination of Alastor and the Soul Reaver seems insurmountable, but that couldn't be further from the truth. His strength, while considerable from a human perspective, is still on the lower end of the overall power scale when compared to the likes of Superman, Captain Marvel, and the like. His healing factor, though advantageous, does not prevent injury and any wound suffered will still be every bit as painful as it would naturally be until healed, and even then there could still be lingering soreness in the case of particularly serious injuries. It's no secret that the Soul Reaver is the source of the majority of Alastor's power, so separating the sword from its master is a prime method of rendering him weaker than he otherwise would be. While he isn't completely vulnerable to divine power, Alastor still has an aversion to it and his healing factor tends to be a bit slower when healing wounds caused by such. As for Shay, he is completely human, so if one were to find a way to completely exorcise Alastor from his body he would be left powerless and more or less useless.

Personality: Shay was once a perfectly normal human being. He looked out for number one, but would still help his fellow man if able to, like any decent human being would do. Ever since meeting Alastor, though, Shay has become much more cynical and embittered. That's not to say he doesn't help when needed, because he will still save a life given the opportunity. He's just become a bit more jaded about it. In his defense, though, being possessed by a demon and ending up on Hell's radar is a fairly understandable justification for his personality change.

And then there's Alastor. Being a demon, Alastor is obviously no saint. On the contrary, he can be quite the cold-hearted bastard. He'd sooner let someone be murdered or die in a fire than risk drawing attention to himself, and often berates Shay's heroics as a "waste of time". Though if one were to force his hand, they'd best be prepared, Alastor's fury knows no mercy, or restraint for that matter. If angered enough he will burn a whole city block to the ground just to kill whoever pissed him off. "There's no kill like overkill", indeed.

Appearance: Shay is of average height, around 5' 10''. He weighs 175 pounds and possesses a slightly-above average build. He has somewhat sharp facial features, though they're difficult to see due to the short, but somewhat scruffy facial hair on his face. His hair is short, usually combed forward with a slight part and is a sandy, reddish brown color. His clothes consist primarily of a leather jacket, blue jeans, black cowboy boots, and biker gloves. Not particularly imaginative, but Shay doesn't really bother with the whole costume thing as of yet. Under his clothes, Shay's back, arms, and shoulders are covered in black markings that almost appear to be burned in like some kind of demonic branding.

Brief Bio: Alastor served hell as an Assassin for many long centuries. In Hell, every demon, every soul, everything, has its place. Every so often there may be an occasional attempt at rebellion, but they've always been put down, sometimes by Alastor himself. That all changed one fateful day when Alastor's target happened to be a Succubus. Upon killing her, he discovered a silvery ring on her finger and realized that these rings were how Succubi could devour souls and gain power. The seed of greed was planted, and Alastor pocketed the ring for himself. He secretly melted the ring down and fused it with his sword. Ever since, Alastor's sword began devouring the souls of its victims to add to its power, and thus Alastor named it the Soul Reaver. Alastor went rogue after that, using the Soul Reaver to slay his fellow demons and make himself stronger. He proved a difficult target, as his prior experience as an Assassin allowed him to predict his enemies' tactics and with each failed assassination attempt he only became stronger.

This went on until Alastor learned that his actions had actually gotten the attention of Neron, a powerful upper level demon often regarded as a King of Hell. No match for Neron, even with his new levels of power, Alastor fled from Hell and went into hiding on Earth, taking the Soul Reaver with him. However, he knew that demons could not physically exist on Earth for extended periods of time, which was why they often had to possess humans. Even then, this was almost always temporary since humans had a tendency to resist possession. But Alastor was nothing if not smart. If he could convince a human to take him willingly, then he could stay in hiding on Earth indefinitely.

Patrick Shay was born in Boston to Irish immigrants. "The first Shay to be born in America," his parents would always say about him. Shay had a pretty good childhood, all things considered. His father Robert owned a local pub and for a time Shay worked there as a cook and bartender. He was content with himself, ready and willing to inherit the bar when the time came. But these stories rarely end happily. Shay was driving home one night when a drunk driver smashed into his car. The other driver was either dead or passed out drunk, and Shay lay halfway out of his car mortally wounded. Shay fought to stay conscious and was paid off when he heard a voice, "I can save you... if you let me in."

Shay, unsure of what those words meant or what it was he was actually agreeing to, said yes out of desperation. He blacked out soon after, and woke up several hours later in the hospital with his parents both sitting at his bedside. Shay later learned that, against all odds, he managed to forcibly free himself from his car and dial 911. But Shay only remembered losing consciousness, and that's when a familiar voice spoke up in his mind, "That's because you did lose consciousness. Saving yourself and miraculously surviving what should have been fatal wounds? That was my doing." It was only now that Alastor fully explained things to Shay. The demon saved his life and promised to continue doing so if needed should Shay simply allow him to remain inside.

"Do I have a choice?" thought Shay, the demon hearing those thoughts.

"Of course. Though I should warn you, having me in you could put you on the radar of some rather powerful and dangerous enemies. If they decide it's worthwhile to target you to get at me then you'll most certainly want to have me around to fend them off."

That all happened about two years ago. Shay sort of became a drifter since then. Roaming from town to town, keeping to himself but helping people in trouble occasionally, much to Alastor's chagrin. Shay and Alastor have had to fight an occasional demon from time to time, and once they do it prompts Shay to get on the move again. Neither Shay nor his newfound demonic companion have any desire to be caught by Neron's lackeys, or worse, Neron himself.

Titans of Gotham [Spots Available!]

So... the interest check didn't do anything for us. Still just the five of us @Sigil, @Double, @Weird Tales, @rocketrobie2. Since 75% of you are also among the cast in Futures End, what's the call on this one? Double, if you could go Advanced I'd tell you to submit a CS for Futures End. So far it's been going well and Sigil's character will be coming in shortly.

~KL~

@The Kid Lantern

I could, but that cast of characters looks well-rounded as is. I don't think there's anything in particular I could add by joining.

Kingdom Hearts: The Keyblade War.

Bump?

Villain in a Half Shell (TMNT)

It was cold. It was cold, dark, and it was raining. In way it was poetic. Almost like a bookend, as if it were some kind of scripted tragedy. But no, there was nothing scripted or fake about this night, it was very real. Four dark figures stood atop the Empire State Building, weapons in hand. A staff, a pair of nunchucks, sai, and even swords. Three figures with green skin, hard shells, and multicolored bandanna stared down the fourth, who appeared to wear armor, a cape, and even a masked helmet on his head. Lightning flashed as the three turtles circled their armored opponent, ready to strike but holding themselves back. Having had enough, the red-bandanna'd turtle lunged with an enraged growl. His attack, though strong and seemingly unstoppable, parried harmlessly off of his target's blades and he was thrown to the side. This set off the other two, who attacked simultaneously from flanking sides, but even that didn't seem to be enough and they were thrown to the ground along with their brother.

Down but not out, all three turtles got back to their feet, and attacked their enemy together. This time they fared much better, the sai-wielding turtle managing a non-lethal stab into his enemy's side. The masked swordsman staggered for a moment, but when the other two turtles went in for a finishing blow, his adrenaline reached its peak and he not only stopped their attack, but ran one of his blades through each of them before dropping them from the roof to the streets below.

With an inhuman scream, the remaining turtle leaped at his opponent in a feral rage, stabbing and cutting with his sai as much as he possibly could. The armored ninja managed to throw the angry turtle off of him, but not before his helmet was knocked off and his face suffering a rather serious cut from the forehead down across his mouth. He staggered to his feet, spat some blood onto the ground, and watched his enemy do the same.

"I told you..." grunted the turtle, his Brooklyn accent coming through slightly, "...that I'd make you look me in face before this was over! You were supposed to be the leader! The best of us! You-" before the turtle could go on, his opponent lunged forth and with expert speed and precision, thrust one of his blades in the turtle's ribs before kicking him over the edge of the roof.

Alone now, the armored ninja let the rain wash the blood from his blades before sheathing them. He silently bent down to pick up his helmet, taking a moment to notice his reflection on it before putting it back. His reflection... which bore the face of a turtle, one that once wore a tattered blue bandanna. Just before putting the helmet back on, he was approached by a small horde of black-clad ninja, one of them a woman who came closer as the others knelt down, "A well-fought victory... Master Shredder."

---

So basically, as you can tell from the above introduction, things haven't exactly gone well for the heroes on the half-shell. Some time after defeating the Shredder, the Foot Clan returned and, though without its master, proved to still be a threat to the city. The four turtles fought them, of course, but it became increasingly clear to Leonardo that the fighting would have no end. And so, desperate to put a stop their violent feud, Leonardo did the unthinkable. He took control of the Foot himself, allowing the mantle of Shredder to fall on his shoulders. His original intention was to use his authority as the new Shredder to put an end to the Foot Clan's criminal ways and use them as a force for good. Unfortunately this mission, like many of its kind through out history, became distorted over time. Some years after taking over the clan, the Shredder (Leo) declared New York to be under his "protection". By this time he had retrained the Foot Ninja into a much more competent and formidable fighting force than it ever had been, and so there were none who could stop their take over.

Up until this point, Leonardo's brothers had refrained from attacking him under strict orders from Master Splinter. Splinter believed that somewhere in his heart, the old Leo was still there. But Leo's takeover of New York was too much for the old rat's heart, the devastation actually sending him into a fatal cardiac arrest. Their mentor gone, the turtles had nothing restraining them any longer. They challenged Leonardo, leading to the introduction scene above.

New York is at an all-time low point. The Foot Clan seems to rule the city with a sort of martial law. Gang's have become more numerous than ever. Former vigilante Casey Jones tried to bring the former gangs together to oppose the Foot. However, old rivalries kept getting in the way, and the former leaders didn't like the idea of taking orders from Jones. There was a mutiny, and Jones was beaten nearly to death, saved only by intervention from the Foot Clan of all people, who put Jones in a hospital under their protection and control, no doubt Leo wished to save Jones for old time's sake if nothing else.

So that is where the city stands. The Foot all but rule New York, with Leonardo taking on the role of Shredder. Casey Jones hospitalized in a coma he may not be able to awaken from, and the other turtles considered dead, though Leo was only able to confirm the deaths of Mikey and Don, so Raph could still very well be alive out there, though if he is he's chosen to stay in hiding.

All that being said, anyone interested in trying to save New York from the Shredder's tyranny?

Titans of Gotham [Spots Available!]

I'm guessing their arch-nemesis would be Freddy Fazbear?

Titans of Gotham [Spots Available!]

And apparently our best strategy is to sick all of the training robots on them. We certainly seem to be a rather clever bunch with our tactics, I'll give us that. xD

Kingdom Hearts: The Keyblade War.

@Akayaofthemoon@Apollosarcher

By the way, how'd I do in recreating the Dive Into The Heart sequence? It's not exactly like it was in the original game, though the changes I made were simply to remove the video-gamey elements from it (ie choosing/discarding a weapon to determine abilities and answering questions to determine exp growth) and, hopefully, give it a more cinematic feel.

Kingdom Hearts: The Keyblade War.

Posted, even if about 75% of it is pure flashback fluff. Still, expect more of these flashbacks/dreams during downtime when the party is resting. I figured it would be a good way to really flesh out Cyrus' backstory.

Oh and, just for fun, try to picture the Keyblade Master from the flashback being voiced by Liam Neeson, because that's who I imagine his voice actor would be.

Kingdom Hearts: The Keyblade War.

The black orb still in his possession, Cyrus headed downstairs after Arthal announced that they would be getting some rest before searching for the first piece of darkness. That was fine by him, he could probably use a good nap anyway. So, when he found the living quarters, Cyrus picked a door and claimed the room it belonged to for his own, even locking the door behind him. It was strange, being in a place where locking the door would actually prove worthwhile, since no one could use Keyblades in this place and he presumed that that extended to their lock-opening powers as well.

After gently placing the orb on a nearby bedside table, Cyrus laid down in the modestly designed bed and closed his eyes. He must have been more tired than he thought, because it took all of a few moments for him to drift into sleep. Though asleep, he would soon find himself getting anything but rest when he started to dream.

---

He found himself at the center of an endless black void. The only apparent object in existence was a circular platform, decorated with a stain-glass mural depicting vague imagery, all symbolic but of what Cyrus couldn't say for sure. He knew the place, though, he'd been here before. It was once described to Cyrus as the innermost sanctum of one's Heart, and he suspected this place was meant to represent his own Heart. But something seemed... off. The stain-glass mural always depicted the story of two boys growing up together, only to turn their Keyblades against one another. This time it was different, instead just a series of vague images with no apparent rhyme or reason to them. That was when it hit him, why this place seemed off, not quite what it should be. Cyrus looked down at his hands, and then around at himself. He was a boy once more, 14 years old again, the age at which he first summoned his Keyblade. A soft, but unknown voice echoed in the darkness.

Now step forward... Can you do it?

As if on autopilot, Cyrus stepped forwards until he was standing directly in the center of the platform. Around him, small puddles of darkness formed and then changed themselves into the familiar shapes of Shadows, the most basic form of Heartless. The voice echoed again.

There will be times that you have to fight...

That was when a Keyblade materialized itself in Cyrus' hand, though it was not the one he came to master, nor was it Ren's Keyblade which he would acquire later in his life. This one was... basic, simplistic in design but still very much effective as a weapon. Cyrus readied the blade and with what little skill his fourteen-year-old body possessed, he dispatched the small group of Heartless around him. Again he found himself on a sort of autopilot, walking toward the opposite edge of the platform as the voice echoed.

The closer you come to the light, the greater your shadow becomes...

Glancing behind him, Cyrus noted that his shadow had indeed become much taller-looking. He blinked when his shadow suddenly began to rise from the ground, forming a body of its own until it became a massive Heartless staring down at him with an expressionless face that still somehow conveyed absolute ferocity. The voice echoed again as Cyrus ran at the beast in full charge.

But don't be afraid...

It slammed its hand on the ground, but Cyrus managed to avoid it and used the opening to run up the Heartless' arm and strike it directly in the head with a slash from his Keyblade. The giant Heartless reeled back, the weapon was clearly painful for it to interact with. It then raised a hand, sending dark energy directly above it and causing it to shower back down over the area. Cyrus had to move himself a considerable distance away to avoid the raining darkness. But when it subsided he made another lunging move, this targeting the creature's unused hand. It snapped its hand in pain, then tried the first tactic of slamming his other hand onto the ground again. As before, Cyrus managed to sidestep it and then ran up the arm, but this time he made a good leap past the Heartless' head, hooking the tip of the Keyblade onto its neck, causing his momentum to swing him around until he was clinging to the back of its neck. Cyrus took the opening to give the creature a few good whacks with the Keyblade, before swinging himself back out in front of the creature's face to give it one more vertical slash down the forehead to finish it off. He landed at the creature's feet, watching reel and topple over. He blinked in surprise, realizing it was falling right on him. Cyrus tried to move but it was too late. The Heartless melted into the darkness, turning the floor into a pool of darkness that began swallowing up Cyrus. The Keyblade he'd wielded had long since vanished, and now he was thrashing to get himself out of the sinking darkness as he heard the voice echo one last time.

So don't be afraid...

...and don't forget...

...you hold the mightiest weapon of all...

His eyes blinked open and Cyrus was awake, "What a dream..." he said, then stopped briefly when he noticed his voice sounded wrong. He then realized why. He was still in his younger body, and he wasn't even at the temple. No, he was in his old bedroom from his home at Radiant Garden. He hadn't been here in years. Getting out of the bed, Cyrus looked out the window and gazed at the town. It was exactly as he remembered it all those years ago. And if he remembered correctly then... Cyrus hurriedly threw on some clothes and ran out the door. Outside the sky was darkening, and the creature's from his prior dream were beginning to swarm all over the streets.

Once outside, Cyrus halted and found himself surrounded by a pack of Shadows. He closed his eyes briefly, the voice from his dream speaking to his heart. Keyblade, it said. ...Keyblade, it repeated. At that moment one of the Shadows leaped at Cyrus. He moved to try to punch it, but instead a weapon materialized in a flash and the the creature was gone. In his hand was a Keyblade, this time it was the one he recognized as his own. The other Heartless attacked but Cyrus fended them off and then was on the move again.

Cyrus had fought his way to Town Square before remembering what he was about to walk into. Puddles of darkness converged and a massive Heartless just like the one from his dream appeared. It glared menacingly with its evil, yellow eyes. It attacked, and this time far more fiercely than in the dream. In fact, Cyrus couldn't actually keep up with it, it was attacking with different tactics, even using a new power Cyrus hadn't seen in the dream, where it launched spheres of dark energy from the hole in its chest. The young Cyrus dodged and deflected as best as he could, but one of them hit their mark and sent him sprawling on the ground. Cyrus had to roll to the side to avoid its hand slamming down, but unlike the dream it formed a pool of darkness around the spot and several Shadows began emerging from it. There was no way the young and inexperienced Cyrus could keep this up, and for a moment he was certain that this was the end.

That was when he appeared. The giant Heartless tried to throw a massive ball of dark energy at Cyrus, but a metallic object came spinning through the air from somewhere behind the boy, intercepting the attack and dispelling it. At that moment, a hooded man in a white cloak stepped forward past him. In a flash of light, the spinning object appeared in his hand. It was a Keyblade, though different in design from the one Cyrus held, there was no mistaking its key-shape. The Heartless moved to attack, but in a single gesture the man raised his free hand and vanished. When next he appeared he was a few feet forward from his starting position and turned toward Cyrus, but with the snap of his fingers, the Heartless suddenly reeled and staggered several times over and then exploded into pixels of Darkness. Cyrus didn't actually see it, but what he witnessed was the man using a very advanced technique, one that involved casting a powerful stop spell and then using the frozen time to inflict numerous strikes on the surrounding enemies. To Cyrus, though, it looked like an instantaneous attack, and he later learned this was because the initial Stop spell caught him as well as the Heartless.

"Well now..." said the man to Cyrus, walking toward him with blade still in hand, "...and who might you be?" he pointed his blade at Cyrus as if threatening him.

"What?" asked Cyrus, his tone shaky, "I thought... I thought you were saving me? What's with the threats all of a sudden?" he held out his blade nervously, prepared to defend himself but against this man any attacks or defenses would have proven to be a pitiful effort. Cyrus was outclassed, and very much so.

"Hmm..." responded the man thoughtfully, and suddenly his blade was gone, "...a fresh Wielder, are you? Your utter confusion gives you away. Oh, and... you may want to learn a stronger stance, as you are now even a blind fool could disarm you."

With the man's weapon gone, Cyrus relaxed, though only a small bit, "What's with all this? What were those things? Who are you?"

The man turned and, with a warm laugh began to walk away, "If you really want to know, then come with me and find out for yourself. Otherwise you should return home, not every Wielder is as kind to their peers as I am."

Cyrus stood for a moment in sheer confusion. Who was this man? He clearly knew more about all of this than he himself, and his skill and power were frightening, but also awe-inspiring. Making his decision, Cyrus ran after the man he would come to call Master, and followed his lead.

Titans of Gotham [Spots Available!]

Neith, out of commission... and now Ves was taken by owl freaks so they could do God-knows-what to her. It made Archer's blood boil thinking about it, especially since both of those losses were on his watch, he'd been present at both missions and failed to save either of his teammates. And, as if looming over both of those losses, there was Deadshot and Multiplex and what they did to Robin. Sitting outside one of the training rings, Archer silently shuddered, his blood seemingly coming to boil. The lockdown that Batman ordered didn't help matters, since now the team was stuck at the Gym and unable to do anything at all. Archer was adamant about searching for Ves, but dared not challenge Batman's authority.

But how many more losses would this team have to suffer before they finally got their act together? Or rather, before Archer got his act together? Well, he didn't have much longer to think about it. Grant left on a food run, and not a few minutes after he was gone did alarms start blaring and warning the Titans that intruders were approaching the Gym from the skies. It could only be the Owls, only they could attack from the skies in such numbers. Worse still, they had Ves leading their charge. Great, so now they'd have to fight an Amazon on top of everything else. Needless to say, their chances did not look good.

Hearing 'Sqatcho suggest they suit up, Archer was all too eager to get on his feet, "Don't have to tell me twice!" he exclaimed and ran for his gear. It took him all of a couple seconds to suit up, and Zero found himself standing at the front door leading outside, almost eagerly awaiting whatever crook or villain would foolishly come inside and provoke his attack. In fact, he encased both his fists with ice in anticipation. Luckily, he learned from internet searching that rapidly cooled water can form a denser ice called amorphous ice, so Zero started focusing his training on trying to form weapons out of the stuff to see if they were any more or less effective, these ice-fists would make for a serviceable test run.

"Bring. It. On!"