Damn you and your spoilers. You were probably that same person who drove by the bookstore with the megaphone screaming "DUMBLEDORE DIES" some years back.
But on that note, we will start finalizing some CS acceptances soon, so everyone interested better start reading the ones that are up and scream for dear life bring up any concerns now because if you wait until your fellow players are nice and cushy in the Character Tab sofa to ask for more popcorn and soda and less cushions, I'm going to give you this look "(o.o )" and then sit on you.
Standing a short height of 5 feet, she looks younger than her real age. Her golden hair reaches down to her waist and is always worn in a messy do. She sometimes puts it up in a high ponytail but even when she puts effort into it, her hair still ends up looking messy. She has strange golden colored eyes that can sometimes be expressive and at times emotionless and blank. She prefers wearing loose casual clothing.
Lily has a Bipolar Disorder. Her mood swings erratically from depression to mania, sometimes spanning days but other times minutes. During her manic episodes, she can be extremely irritated and jumpy. She has a tendency to talk fast, jump from one idea to the other and is very easily distracted. She can sometimes go for days without sleep and can act impulsively in this mood. During her depressed episodes, she is completely listless and can have extended periods of feeling worried and empty. She has trouble concentrating, remembering and making decisions during these episodes and prefers being alone most times. Often times she can be seen snoozing in inappropriate places.
She hates doctor visits particularly during assessment days. She resents being told that there is something wrong with her.
While she thinks her power gives her some sort of worth for the community, she is annoyed by its nature. She often tries to puzzle out why a healing ability was given to her when she can't even focus most times.
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Lilianna Brandt (Lily for short) was the name given to her by USARILN East's staff when they found her a week ago near the facility. She was found unconscious with a severe traumatic head injury. The medical staff feared that she would not survive but she proved them wrong when she woke up from only three days of coma. However, when she woke up, she had no idea who she is and where she is from. She exhibited strange healing capabilities as well as an erratic mood disorder. During her manic episodes, she is able to remember bits and pieces of her past but her memory is often too fragmented to make sense of. But whichever mood she's in, there are things that remain constant. The memory of the visions. And the stigma.
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πΌ π πΌ π½ π β πΈ β πΌ π πΌ Lily can "heal" anything instantly in a 30m range. Those she means to "heal" don't need to be in her line of sight--she can "detect" the injured. The "healing" is perfect--for a period of time. Any damage she heals, she gains and she feels. So, in its truest essence, she doesn't really heal a person. She merely transfer the injury to another, in this case, herself. Sometimes, unable to bear the pain, she eventually returns the damage to the original person especially when she is in her depressive mood. She tends to bear the pain and helps people better when she is in her manic mood. Her visual telegraph is a black string that wraps around her wrist and connects to the wrist(s) of her target. Since the black string is not truly physical, it goes through objects. It is visible to everyone.
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The road branches in two. The left veers into a clear path. The trees are green and full of life, the birds are chirping happily as golden rays of sun peek through the leaves of the trees. The life all around Lily coalesce into a golden ball that slowly floats down. As soon as it settles down on her hands, it bursts out and fills everything with a gentle glow. She is transported to a peaceful place, a perfect utopia without debilitating diseases and without pain. Death comes as a welcome friend after a long fulfilling life.
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The path to the right is hazy and cloaked with a thick mist. The floor was littered with brambles and thorns. Owl hoots and moans of pain can be heard echoing through the trees. But while the path seemed to hold horrifying secrets, it promised power beyond imagination. As Lily stepped onto the path, she is accosted by a million voices whispering harshly. Her foggy mind clears up and she sees herself atop the highest mountain. Everlasting life. Immortality. As she looks down, she sees that she is standing atop a mountain of corpses and skeletons.
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Aberration
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Fragments of her old memory - she finds herself more and more frustrated as she tries to grasp what they mean and angry that she can never piece them together to make any sense. Decisions - she finds herself confused when she tries to figure out the reasons she had for choosing the right fork in the road (prior to losing her memory).
I just removed the separate section you had for the visual telegraph. Doesn't need its own section, just needs to be mentioned in the magic section overall.
Code is included for quick copypasta into the character tab.
A weird mix of professional and casual, Lawrence carries the look of someone who should care more about his appearance than he actually does. While he carries an air of being professional upon first meeting him, this illusion is quickly shattered upon closer inspection. His hair is messy almost to the point of not being tolerable, and his clothing, while suitably "proper" is usually in a state of disarray, whether it be a flipped collar or uneven wrist cuffs. Beneath which glimpses of tattoos can be occasionally seen.
Besides this, he's fairly average in most respects. A bit on the short side for height, and in no way a chiseled example of athleticism. Almost always on his person, tucked under an arm or in a pocket, is a book entitled "Meditations". This, however, is not always the only book he carries with him. The library is like his personal home, and he often likes to bring pieces of it with him when he's out and about. It's a habit forged from constant interruptions of his studying over the past year.
Lawrence carries an aura of serenity about him, almost to the extent that it could be considered apathy. This is no accident. Upon learning the effect his power has upon others, he took it upon himself to embrace an almost fanatical devotion to the philosophy of Stoicism. This isn't to say he's an emotionless shell, but rather he uses reason and logic to ward off what negative thoughts that he can. In a nutshell, he tries to take "A stoic is immune to misfortune" as seriously as possible. Particularly considering the volatile Abberations he finds himself interacting with every day.
As far as positive emotions go, he has no problem expressing them, although his methods can sometimes leave something to be desired. Behind the serenity lies pool of wit and venom that he unleashes upon those he feels comfortable with. Friends are showered with insults while strangers are showered with advice, perhaps an outlet for keeping his calm facade. It's all in good fun though, and he takes the occasional singed eyebrow from a moody Abberation in stride.
Ultimately though, what drives him day to day is a desire to be helpful. Good and bad mean little to him compared to helpful and helpless. His powers have yet to manifest in a way that's useful to the Institution as a whole (Much to his relief), so in the meantime he does what he can for his peers. As such, he rarely leaves the school grounds, instead preferring to set up and read in the corner of the library until a student bothers him.An almost inevitable occurrence these days.
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Lawrence was... what one might call a volunteer at the institution. That is to say the dreams he experienced, and their implications, shook him to the core. Enough so that he practically threw himself at the chance to join USARILN East. This would probably surprise most of his current acquaintances, considering his almost unhealthy indifference to misfortune. Needless to say, he usually keeps that particular detail to himself. Regardless, it was one year ago that he first stepped foot in the Institution, and since then his life has been relatively normal, all things considered. Especially compared to many in his same position.
His initials fears could be called an absurd overreaction when compared to how underwhelming his power is. That isn't to say he has found himself entirely useless though. Abberations in particular began to seek him out when word of his power started to spread. Sometimes all they needed was a "fix", a quick chat when he was in a good mood to ease their minds during a struggle with their stigma. Still, this was not always a... good idea. Before he had learned to control his power, and his emotions, there was more than one occasion when he was caught in a bad mood. Sometimes adding a little fire to an Abberation who's having a bad day ends in violence. Sometimes meaning usually.
In the months since gaining a measure of control over his ability he has seen a steady rise in his "popularity". In truth, most people just use him, but he has long since resigned himself to that fate. On most days he sets up shop in the library during his free time, with a sarcastic plaque that reads "Dr. Ellison" facing outwards from his little reading nook. Arbiters, as a whole, tend to leave him alone. Unlike Abberations they couldn't get much practical use out of his ability, and having your mind potentially manipulated is something most people would rather avoid. As such, he's made a lot of acquaintances over the past year, but next to no friends. Whether this bothers him or not is anybody's guess.
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Mental Influence: Lawrence has an "aura" about him that has a subtle, yet noticeable affect on the minds around him. Others will find themselves drawn towards his mental state, relaxing if he is relaxed, becoming anxious if he is afraid. While this used to be constant, he has managed to exert a certain amount of control over it in the past year. He can flick it on or off at will, and only reasonably for 3 people at a time. While "active" this aura becomes visible, and engulfs both him and the recipient in a faint white light.
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"Thank you..." The woman sobbed, finally finding the peace she had sought for so long. He lived a quiet existence, secluded in the wilderness, but that did not seem to stop folks from hunting him down. Bookshelves seemed to stretch endlessly in all directions, and behind the woman lay an equally endless line of others waiting to find their peace. He did not mind though. The work was... rewarding. A quick glance out the window confirmed it: All the friends he had made thoughout his lifetime were there. Some had been seekers much like the woman in front of him, others never needed his power to begin with.
With a wave of his hand he motioned the woman to join the group outside, and turned to greet the next man in line. His body was bathed in flames and hatred was plastered across his aging face. In moments though, the flames were extinguished by tears, and he knelt before Lawrence sobbing.
"Thank you..."
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Shadows dance across the walls, illuminated by flickering torchlight. In the center of the room sits a single chair, a throne, occupied by none other than Lawrence. Who else, after all, would be a fitting candidate to lord over this domain? This institution? The decor was no accident, the archaic designs were such because he desired them to be. As if to toast those men and women who held ultimate power in a day long past.
In front of him knelt a man who looked to be much older, much more prestigious at first glance. In a different world, it would be fitting that their positions were reversed. They both knew, however, the absurdity of that situation in present times. No, in present times this was the only arrangement that made sense. Still, in spite of the totality of his servitude, the kneeling man argued:
"But Sir surely you can forgive his insult just once. He is both a child and a fool, we don't need to-"
A wave of Lawrence's hand silenced the man. Almost as if enjoying the challenge to his authority, his eyes sparkled with delight and a hint of amusement spread across his lips. Still, those that knew him were aware that a smile was never a good reaction. Lawrence was... creative when it came to his talents, and it was this creativity that he delighted in.
"How is your wife doing?"
The kneeling man's outburst was completely ignored, but rather grow angry his face drained of all color.
"P-please, I-"
"Healthy? As healthy as that fool is anyway. See, we're running a little low on money these days, and I just can't imagine that we can fit feeding the both of them in this week's budget. So, you can either slip a knife through his ribs or slip a blade through hers. It's your choice."
With painful emphasis on that final word, the walls of the room fell away, revealing an endless multitude of featureless people, stretching past the horizon. As one they reached out him, their voices rising in a beautiful chant.
"Our choice."
"Our choice."
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Arbiter
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xxx
I have none yet! Yada yada not important enough, yada yada plot device.
I'm not sure if you all are planning to run characters while GMing, but do you want to reserve spots @January@banjoanjo in the character tab to keep it neat and tidy with GMs at the top?
Don't worry, bud, it's not gonna be a problem. The Character Directory post our lovely Baklava is working on will be all the organisation we need. Plus neatness has never been my strong point...
EDIT: We should probs wait for Jan's opinion though, lol
I will not be running a character right now, so feel free to post.
Additionally, Baklava will be compiling a post that links to other characters and will certainly list the GMs at the top should they create any characters, right, Baklava? 8D
She's gonna come in here and say "No," then list the GMs at the bottom just to spite me.
But thanks for the reminder as I will be reserving a post beneath the characters for notable NPCs we'll encounter throughout the story so I don't have to pester Baklava all day to update that every time I throw an important Joe Buttface into the mix.
I actually intended it to be as painless as possible by having all the code ready in the spoiler for you to just copy and paste over--without the outside spoiler of course.
But the best laid plans of mice and men and all that, haha.
Here is your code so you don't have to go hunting around to find the post.
Not accepted, yet.
1. Change your CS header colors to match what color you'll be using in-game for your dialogue. 2. Your entire magic section is bolded and red and that somewhat perturbs me. (o.o ) 3. Please change the Youtube embeds to links.
Once you're done with that, I'll have another look.
Emma has the nigh constant image of a prim and proper young lady. Her look is well composed, she is typically smartly dressed, putting great care into her appearance, and it shows. On the surface she holds an air of jovial composure, a small smile can be found on her face in most situations, and it's quick to grow into a larger one. Those who are around her often will notice her occasionally nervous disposition. She has a tendency to fidget, often finding her leg bumping up and down of its own volition or playing with her hair absentmindedly.
Despite how she may feel she is good at faking happiness. At worst she has been unable to speak for fear of no longer being able to hold in her emotions, but more often she can maintain her smile even when under the duress that she often is. Not even her closest friends see through this guise. Sure, she's had some weird moments, but how could the possibly assume there's anything more to them than a brief discomfort? It's not hard for others to assume it's merely her stigma acting up, and she would never confide the truth of herself to anyone else, or so she thinks.
When in her lonesome the smile that can often be found on her face melts away into overwhelming apathy. Her stigma sets in without distraction and she often lets it get to her. When she thinks no one else is looking her mouth draws into a drooping line and sadness can be seen within her eyes.
A girl sits in the front of the class. A smile graces her face- it is a shy smile, seeming as if it wants to hide itself, and yet it is a beautiful smile all the same. She is surrounded by what can only be described as an entourage: A gaggle of friends, girls gossiping among themselves, joking, laughing, centered around the girl's desk- she is Emma Halwell. Beyond her friends she can feel the gaze of her male classmates- some stare at her, enthralled, and some secretly treasure her as nervous boys that can't talk to girls tend to do. She makes eye contact with one of them for but the briefest moment, but quickly looks away- a blush appears on her face as she nervously stokes her hair. Her friends look at the place where she had looked and turn back, giggling, whispering, insisting. She tells them to stop, but they do not and she does not protest further. She is not angry even though she thinks she should be. They're trying to push her onto the boy- she would mad but has long since stopped caring enough to argue. The bell rings and they all go quiet for a moment, and just then the thoughts that plague her return.
Emma, to the outside worlds, appears the very image of a popular high school girl- she is personable, well liked, and positively cheery. Her peers would say she has a knack for making others feel comfortable in situations they are otherwise uncomfortable in. She's bubbly and sweet, quick to joke and even quicker to laugh. She has a strong moral compass and a good head, staying well clear of trouble but always willing to help her friends out of their own. She can appear shy, and at some times is, but has learned how to overcome it- even though her tendencies may betray her she has learned at the very least how to talk like she is comfortable. Despite many stereotyping her as a bit of an airhead, as people do when it comes to the popular girl, she is surprisingly intelligent, well able to handle and even excel with USARILN's advanced curriculum. This is all to say that you'd be hard pressed to find someone with something bad to say about Emma. All of this makes the fact that she is an Aberration all the more strange. Some have asked her why, as she appears to be the very image of an Arbiter. "Of course I would have liked to be an Arbiter, but I guess that just wasn't the way things shook out. I can't really claim to know Dreamcather's will, eh?" She'll say with a shrug and a mournful smile. But that isn't really much of an answer, is it? Everyone knows that it's a Mage's own doing if they become Aberration. But people are usually polite enough to take that answer, either that or they simply do not want to pry further, or perhaps are just too beguiled by Emma's charms to challenge her. After all, it's rude to assume, is it not? No one can truly claim to know her dream, right? Maybe she was meant to become an Arbiter but merely took a wrong step on the road of life- we've all made bad decisions, haven't we? Perhaps it was just an unfortunate accident.
They'd be wrong if they thought that. The truth, the real truth that Emma would rather people didn't know, is that she is a bad person. She's gotten good at hiding how she feels about herself- in fact, she always has been, but there are thoughts that always flit around in the back of her mind that since become a mage have been amplified further by her stigma. She knows who she really is. she doesn't want to, but she does and her Stigma makes it all the worse. She knows that no matter how many friends she has, no matter how many people accept her, she'll never be able to accept herself. She has always felt worthless and lonely in spite of everything in her life telling her otherwise. "How pathetic is that? I can be surrounded by all these people that like me and still feel this way. Isn't that just sad? I'm so useless- I can have everything and still be so unbearably melodramatic. Why can't I just be happy? She hates herself most of all because she hates herself. The mere act of self hatred is the ultimate sin in her eyes, because she knows that she should be happy. She should be normal, she has every right to be, but she is not.
And that is what makes Emma so different from most Aberrations; she did not follow her path out of greed for riches or lust for power. She merely wished for happiness.
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βππ€π π½πππ: πΌπππ βπππ¨πππ I'd like to keep everyone posted on our new USARILN students. I've gone ahead and sent staff the relevant files, at least what I could, but I wanted to flag this one for you guys. Emma Halwell. Information is scarce to be frank (She's a new student after all, so we don't have much besides what was relevant to the capture mission) but from what I'm seeing we should keep on eye on her. She's a possible psych risk, so let's keep on top of this one- if there is a problem we need to take care of it.
Note: 'Mantam' has been identified as Emma. 'rabadash06' is one Vesper Halwell, Emma's sister. She moved out of town a while ago, so we don't have a lot on her. [5:15 PM] Mantam: Hey [5:17 PM] rabadash06: whaddup sista [5:17 PM] Mantam: About that thing I talked to you about on the phone... y'know how I told you I've been feeling weird? [5:17 PM] rabadash06: ofc [5:18 PM] Mantam: I think there's something going on. You remember all those news stories we always saw about subnaturals? [5:18 PM] rabadash06: ... where are you going with this? [5:18 PM] Mantam: I think it's really happening to me. [5:18 PM] rabadash06: dont kid around about something like that [5:18 PM] rabadash06: seriously [5:20 PM] Mantam: I'm not, I really mean it. I've been able to do this... thing... where I make these things... listen, I don't really know how to describe it but it's really happening. And there are these thoughts and I can't get them out of my head and they won't go away... and also that mark they have. You know how they say they have that streak or the X on them? I've got it. The X. I've been trying to hide it but someone will notice eventually... but it's really doing soemthing to my head... I think I'm going to do something bad if it keeps happening... I keep having these impulses that tell me i need to hurt myself, and i can't make them stop. [5:20 PM] rabadash06: okay just chill out i know this has gotta be scary. don't do anything drastic, please. can you just... call me? as soon as you can. we'll figure something out. [5:21 PM] Mantam: Okay I'm going to wait until mom and dad leave so they don't hear. Hey... do you think they'd send me away? To one of those research camps? [5:21 PM] rabadash06: no way, don't even think about that. just hold one until we're on the phone, okay? [5:24 PM] Mantam: Yeah, okay.
Chronologically this phone call takes place about a week after the previous file, meaning this IS NOT the phone call referred to at the end of the message log. We've been unable to pull that one, I'll work on it, but we did manage to get the vocal log for this call from phone records- I went ahead and transcribed it to make it a little more readable for you guys. 'E' is Emma and 'V' is Vesper, if that wasn't obvious.
V: Hello? [Several seconds pause. We can hear the Subject crying.] V: Em? You there? Hello? E: Ves? Ves? [Unintelligible] V: Em, slow down, okay? What's going on? I just got a call from mom and she was hysterical. E: I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, I didn't listen to you... [Subject is clearly distressed- her words are coming out as sobs.] V: What happened...? listen it isn't your fault, okay? Are you okay? Are you hurt? E: No, no, no, mom and dad... they stopped me but... I tried to do it... I did what they told me, the thoughts in my head, I thought maybe they would go away... but... but... V: It's okay, it's okay... just... don't do anything else, okay? I don't want you to get hurt... I know it's hard, I know, but you've gotta keep going, okay? E: Ves, I just want it to stop... no matter what... I really can't take it anymore. V: No, no, Em, you can't, okay? There are so many people that care about you. I love you so much, please, don't do anything crazy. Listen, I'm going to take the first flight back east that I can, okay? E: Okay, okay... V: And you're going to wait for me to get there, right? E: I... V: You have to, okay? E: Ves, there's something else... mom and dad know, they know about my powers and about everything. V: It's not important. You know they'll still love you no matter what, right? We're going to get through this, okay? There's no way that we're going to send you away. We'll keep this secret okay? It'll be hard, but we can figure it out.
I'm going to go ahead and cut this off here. You can listen to the unabridged version for yourself if you want, but this is what's really relevant. Subject is a potential suicide risk, to put it bluntly. Keep a close eye on her. Oh, and for those that read about the retrieval mission... well, you know that it was her parents that reported her to us. Emma doesn't know this and must continue not to know. I'm sure you're all aware that it could send her over the edge- she could be a powerful weapon, but we must manage her carefully.
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Emma channels her emotions to create creatures formed by pure thought. She can only rely upon her positive emotions to create Tulpas, but through the lens of her mind they become twisted and bastardized. These creatures appears to be made of darkness manifest, beings of solid shadow that look to be constantly churning and swirling upon themselves.
Love: Pulls people and objects towards itself by sheer force of mind. Love's ability only works in a limited radius of 10m. Happiness: Self-destructs itself, creating a small explosion; it takes time to reform itself following self-destruction and will be out of combat for five minutes. Devotion: Turns the ground into a thick and sticky sludge, greatly impairing movement. Like Love, Devotion has a 10m range. Determination: Determination is much stronger than its peers- it can hit very hard, but is slow to follow commands and has low mobility. Charity: Can siphon energy from one target. Charity's effects are almost unnoticeable before it's too late- the effect is too weak to be perceptible, but in a fight it well definitely tire out an opponent faster that they would normally.
Emma must command her Tulpas verbally, and is unable to when they are out of earshot. Bereft of command they'll continue with the last order given to the best of their ability, but they are not very intelligent. At the moment she can only summon two Tulpas at any given time.
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"I can feel... sunlight... it's so warm... it's so pleasant, like it's washing over me, making me clean, burning away my pain... but..." She looked around. She was alone. She knew now: All of her friends had left, had fled her. Had they discovered what a terrible person she was, and decided to leave? Had the finally wised up? She was truly alone. But not alone, in fact, she thought she was but now she could feel a presence. She could feel a gaze upon her where there was none. But it was not a friend. She knew now that it was what drove her friends away. It had hurt them, killed them, butchered them, and left her alone. There was an emptiness inside her, but at the same time a sense of higher purpose. She felt power swelling inside her, a power so great and vast that it destroyed the presence and herself. The dream ended.
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She looked to her left, then her right. She was surrounded by friends. She felt fulfilled. She felt... happy? She wasn't really sure. It had been a long time since she really felt happy. She paused, contemplating. She was sure now, this must be what true happiness is. A man approached her... so handsome, so strong, he gave her the most reassuring smile. He sat down next to her and wrapped his arms around her. He smelt good. He leaned close and whispered in her ear, "Tell me, was it worth it?" She glanced back. "I... don't know..." He shook his head. Hatred filled his eyes. "After everything you don't know? You disgust me." He was gone. But she was still happy, at least. She was still alive. She felt like the emptiness inside her was full, finally, after all this time.
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Aberration
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Voices dance in Emma's head. At first it was voices, but now it is her own voice, wicked and twisted. You're worthless. What's the point of living? You're not happy. You make everyone around you less happy. You're a burden. You're pathetic. Your friends hate you. You hate you. Why do you keep going? It plays in repeat. All day. Every self deprecating thought, every jab at herself, and it never ends.
Em's picture in your sheet in the CHAR tab doesn't seem to be showing. Could you replace the (i.imgur.com/FaCtAeD.png) url in the CHAR tab sheet with the working (https:/ /i.imgur.com/FaCtAeD.png) url in your original sheet or another working url?
Sorry for the inconvenience. When I was typing this notice out, the https:// part of the second url seemed to disappear when I checked it in Preview. Had to put a space between the slashes in the second url for it to even show. I'm not tech-savvy enough so I'm not sure what's up with that but hopefully it doesn't give you too much trouble -_-
Anyhoodle, please sort it out whenever you can. Thanks.
EDIT: Hosted it in a new place for you. (puu.sh/sfDDN/bfe90f5992.jpg) If the imgur links don't work, try this one.
The EDIT Strikes Back: Just realised that Em's name image isn't showing up either. (puu.sh/sfEwq/29a2fe80f8.png) Here's the new url if you need it.
Return of the EDIT: Jan has pointed out that your Magic section is missing the indent that your other sections have. Please save us from our pickiness. Please.