So, I was working on my characters biography whilst watching an episode of BBC's sherlock. Needless to say something sparked in my noggin and I got a little carried away, haha. Sorry for the wait.
Name: Henry MacDougal
Age: 38
Gender: Male
Role: The Researcher
Alignment: Neutral Good
Biography:
Born unto wealth, Henry grew up a young noble in Wiltshire, England. As a child, he spent days upon days indoors, locking himself in the families libraries as he lost himself in every book. To no surprise, Young Henry excelled academically and was well on his way to becoming a renowned scientist. That was the goal set for him by his parents. However, he was ahead of his time when it came to ideals, morals, and basic societal norms. He aspired to be a writer, and after one year he was forced to drop out of Oxford University because he had devoted his time in college to writing a book. Low of Solipsism by Henry MacDougal, it was published soon after he had dropped out and tackled a variety of societies issues from a philosophical angle while at the same time bashing racism and people or royalty who do nothing to help those in poverty.
In the modern era the book would've been widely regarded as thought provoking and may have even received an award or two, however much like MacDougal himself, it was ahead of it's time. Low of Solipsism grew infamous all across England. Both the book itself as well as Henry were ridiculed and bashed by critics all over. Young Henry, who lived at Oxford at the time, fled from the city with a significant amount of his parents money and decided to lay low. It was hard to tell if this was done out of humiliation, fear of ridicule, or a desire to better himself. Either way, the MacDougal name was brought shame. Ironically, he made a large sum of money due to Royalties he had procured from his infamous book. Although the feedback was horrible the book itself had achieved commercial success, if you could even call it successful.
At nineteen years, he began to look at his bleak future. No longer able to return to college without the support of his parents a large part of him wanted to redeem not only his reputation but that of his family, who by now had disowned him. On a whim the young lad decided to join the military in hopes of becoming some type of war hero. The idea was somewhat foolish but was the only solution a young Henry could think of at the time. Fighting on behalf of the British, he was thrusted straight into the Opium War of 1839. It was during this time he met the famous detective Sir George Lakeview, who at the time simply Private George.
Even though he aspired to be some type of war hero and bring glory back to his family name, the idea itself was far too naive for the young lad. He spent two years serving as a journalist and photographer for the British Army. After serving his last tour, the young private retired from the military early. With a handful of articles and photographs published to no avail, he decided to take advantage of his military benefits along with the money he had invested. Returning to college he was scheduled to spend seven years in school studying physics, engineering and medicine whilst at the same time indulging himself into a variety of different subjects all on his spare time, mostly psychology and botany. Just as his time as a child, Henry spent hours upon hours indoors, lost in books and studies.
Graduating from Cambridge at the age of twenty six in 1845, He had spent five years in school rather than seven and went straight to work as electric telegraph engineer and inventor, propelling him back into the public eye and ensuring his wealth and fame. Two years after graduating, Henry published a new book, Thermodynamics and Their Potential For Greatness. The book boded well with critics and was praised by a few renowned engineers as well. However, just as his past humiliation began to evaporate, William Thomson, another engineer and inventor, claimed that Henry had stolen a majority of his work and theories. Both of them had attended Cambridge and graduated in the same class, however William graduated at Second Wrangler and was even awarded a Smith's prize. His word overpowered Henry's, and once again his reputation was destroyed.
Shunned by his peers, Henry moved to London in hopes of putting his latest fiasco behind him and renewing himself. He changed his last name to Maddison and due to his wide array of credentials found work as a doctor at The London Hospital rather quickly. During his time working at the hospital he met Jane Fitzgerald who at the time was just a surgeon. Two months after being acquainted they soon married. Five years later Henry and Jane lived happily in London and had even raised a child. A four year old, healthy girl named Jodie Maddison.
During the winter season of 1852, disaster struck Henry and his family. A smallpox epidemic had plagued The London Hospital, both he and Jane were flooded with work treating an incredible amount of patients. About a month into the epidemic, Jane had acquired the smallpox disease unbeknownst to her and the rest of the family. Upon arriving home that day, she spread the disease to both Henry and Jodie, and within a week the three of them were quarantined in their own home. Henry, Jane and Jodie were all separated from eachother for a month. During the second week, he was on the verge of death, but as the month went on he soon recovered from a critical state. However, upon recovering from the epidemic, he was grimly told that both his wife and daughter had succumbed to the smallpox disease their second week into treatment and had died in their sleep.
Spiraling into a state of depression, Henry quit his job as a doctor as soon as he was well. He sold his house and instead purchased an apartment, where he lived in solitude. Over the next few years he spent a majority of his time indoors, where he would constantly publish a variety of books once again under the surname MacDougal. Whilst writing these books he began to dabble in morphine, cocaine, marijuana and occasionally opium. As soon as his publishings were available to the public people began to claim that Henry was going through a long term phase of post traumatic stress. His books were considered the writings of a madman. Soon after these claims hit the papers he decided from an analytical perspective that it would be wise to hire a therapist, even though Henry himself had spent a number years studying psychology.
He was diagnosed as clinically depressed and prescribed a variety of drugs to help tackle his mood, along with the illegal drugs he was already indulging himself in at the time. he spent the next four years of his life in a blur of depression, writings, drugs and post traumatic stress. He was well on the path to suicide until word had hit the papers that a kidnapped cousin of royalty had been found. Sir George Lakeview, knighted by the Queen for his heroic deeds. Even though it had been almost twenty years since the two had spoken, Henry recognized Sir George and made contact with the detective, hoping to possibly be of some assistance. In reality he was looking for purpose, looking for a reason to pull himself out of his home.
The two were reunited. Sir George brought him up to speed about the Game Master, and without hesitation, Henry asked to join his cause.
Personality:
At all times Henry appears restless and lethargic. His eyes always seem to have a tired expression. On occasion he'll often ignore those that speak to him, no matter how crucial the event may be. It's no surprise he suffers from depression. However if one manages to pick Henry up and out of his sluggish mindset they'd find out he can be somewhat of a talkative fellow, which is when his brilliancy tends to show. He's widely knowledgeable in a variety of different topics and studies and has developed an admiration for classics, music and especially literature of all kinds.
His behavior and mood is similar to that of a roller coaster. Some days he could be out and about, making himself busy with a number of errands or chores around his house cleaning his study or ironing his clothing. On other days, he could spend hours in bed. Lying awake, not wanting to move a muscle. He contemplates suicide on a regular basis, more so out of an analytical perspective rather than a depressed one. Often you can find Henry wasting away in his study, riddled with books and papers as well as clothing.
In regards to his behavior with people, Henry is completely straightforward. He's willing to accept all sorts of opinions and ideas but is quick to disprove why they could be wrong. As a result he may come off as rude or cold, but the reality is he's honest. Even so Henry doesn't mind participating in philosophical discussions every so often with no particular person. To many people's surprise he has a soft spot for children, where as instead of being straightforward and honest with people, Henry is much more tolerant and attentive to children's thoughts and perspectives.
