I don't want anyone to feel pressured and rushed. I feel like we can take advantage of the holiday for writing. If other people could give us updates on their progress like Mancer did, we're definitely fine with making sure to factor you guys into that post timeline.
Bullet points for the personality and history section, going to expand them soon. Still have to write the human physical description.
I am working through the character sheet about now. Had quite a few things to settle throughout the day. I'm grappling with my idea for the talent. I had initially planned on making my character a clairvoyant but I fear that it might become too powerful in any potential battles to come. I'll spend a little more time working on the talents section to see if I can work out something better. Most of the other sections are already in place.
EDIT: I am done with Celest's character sheet. I probably need @Vowel Vagabond to endorse the "You, and" section though because the contents of that section pertains to Violet and Allard Park.
@MancerNecro I like it! Only thing I might adjust is the Yes, and: section. It's meant to be a direct tie to everyone, a reason why we would vouch for each other and say "This person won't rat us out to the mummy."
I'd volunteer Parry as someone who might've babysat your character in the past, was approached as a magical coach, or might have used some wards to turn her powers down a bit when she was younger. Or heck, maybe she has met the lovely Dryad at some point!
Heya! Stiches' friend, i'll slap my C.S. for review here, please let me know if you need me to remove/alter anything and i'll get on it =)
Name: Victor Harlow Age: 40 Gender: Male Breed/Species/Type/Lineage: Human
Physical Description:
Talents:
Banish Ghosts/Demons: With the use of a drawn banishment circle and an incantation, Victor can banish any ghost or demon to its home dimension - hell, heaven, the afterlife, you name it. However, the ghost/demon must remain in the banishment circle throughout the entirety of the spell, and the banishment circle must not be broken or damaged for the ritual to work.
Soul Contracting: A blood contract initiated by Victor using his harpy quill and eldritch jotter as reagents, binding one other person to its terms and obligating them to carry out the task written down. Every contract has loopholes, and the participant has to willingly sign it with an understanding of what they’re agreeing to in the first place.
Soul Dreg: Victor musters up the raw energy in his rotten decrepit soul to produce a foul magic that appears to be a purplish-black, viscous, gloopy liquid. He is able to manipulate this energy and cast in the same way you’d expect a simple arcane bolt or pure magic bolt to work, but it is slower, heavier and leaves traces of dark energy wherever it strikes.
Wards: Victor has a ward tome with very elaborate and detailed runic circles drawn onto each page. By flipping to the correct page, placing his hand onto the circle and saying an incantation, Victor, produces a translucent dome-like shield which can hold off a certain type of magic and any being which uses this type of magic. Wards can be broken and weakened, but Victor can reinforce the ward using a constant incantation which requires his focus. Only one type of magic is blocked by the ward, and the ritual circle must not be broken or damaged within the tome. Victor is able to cast wards for the following types of magic: Fire, Water, Earth, Wind, Unholy/Demonic, Necromantic, and Psionic (Mind-affecting).
History:
Born to a deadbeat father and loving mother, Victor managed to carry out a relatively simple and uneventful childhood. As the lack of excitement began drive Victor into running himself into trouble that worsened by the week, Victor found himself at the front door of an old gypsy’s house with his mother close behind him, apologising for breaking her window and offering to do her gardening for a couple of weeks. Whilst he was there, he found out that the old lady was an actual, real-life witch and became more fascinated than horrified.
Victor refused to continue his education after the final year of high school and started dedicating his time to fully dabbling in the occult under the guidance of the gypsy. Thankfully due to the lack of care from his father, Victor managed to easily convince his mother that he’d be better off taking a job at one of the local banks instead of wasting time with an education. As much as he’d have loved to begin carelessly living his life and dedicating it to the mystical, he owed her that much. He received an internship at a nearby accounting firm, moved out as soon as he had the chance, and began leading a life of partial financial labour and indulging with magical training.
No matter what Victor had going for him, his expertise had always been with deceit. With his knack for conning and inexplicable attraction to the magical, it was inevitable that Victor’s mystical career lead to him spending his time fooling and betraying deals with summoned and trapped demons.
At the end of the day, Victor was still a mere mortal. Eventually his carelessness, drunken stupors, and simply his ego got the better of him. After the summoning of a relatively unknown demon, Victor lost a bet over a simple game of cards against the demonic entity - one that would cost him 40 years of his life. In a panic, Victor rushed to the gypsy woman for help only to be redirected to the fairies that dwelled deep in the bayou near New Orleans. Upon arrival, Victor pleaded them to help make up for the lost time, and in his desperate state he accepted the first offer they made. For returning the lost 40 years, Victor would have to dedicate 18 of those years to raising a changeling child and begin integrating them into the human world.
With practically no other choice, Victor assumed to have been off the hook with this one. That was until he was introduced to the child. With no practical explanation at hand, and nothing to keep him bound to the city of his birth, Victor traded in his beloved Volvo P1800 for a shoddy campervan to hit the road for the following three years until the babe was of more stable age. Financially, his primitive accounting skills along with any private demonology or exorcism contract made do, and along with what he had saved up from his previous chapter, the two began driving eastwards across the country, stopping at the odd town or two but never staying longer than a month.
The two eventually arrived in New Camden, and after a month of Victor running minor demonic related errands for quick cash to hit the road, it dawned on him that there was a far larger presence of magical and mystic beings than anywhere him and Abigail had visited. Upon this realisation, Victor considered remaining here to raise Abigail as she was slowly coming to a more controllable age and would eventually have to start with her own introduction into the human educational system. Victor decided to remain for another month, which eventually turned into two, which eventually turned into a year. It was decided as Abigail began to settle into the surroundings and slowly made life less and less hard on him. Victor continued assisting both Magical’s and humans with accounting, whilst dabbling and taking on the odd private contract when his wallet ached.
Psychological Profile:
Victor is a foul-mouthed, disillusioned, cynic who leads a life of sorcery and danger. A man with an inexplicable attraction to the occult, he enjoys tampering with eldritch forces and conning anyone he can get his grubby little hands on. Most of the time, he mixes his hobbies together in his job and likes to think he’s living the good life because of it.
For Victor, law and virtue are less of a necessity - you could do anything you like if you could get away with it without being caught. He still operates under his own strict set of morals though, quick to be disapproving or to congratulate people for doing what he saw as ‘the right thing’.
Possessions:
Rumpus - A small, pot-bellied imp who got conned by Victor and bound into servitude through one of his soul contracts. As well as slave labour, Rumpus is Victor’s contact to the underworld, and through him Victor is able to extend his dealings into hell.
Eldritch Jotter and Harpy Quill: Victor won this in a game of Yahtzee against a demonic entity. When introduced to the blood of the current owner and the blood of a willing participant, the words written on the jotter become a soul-binding contract which both parties are obligated to uphold.
Ward Tome: A fairly thin leather bound book with several large and elaborate runic circles drawn onto each page. Victor needs to have this book and have the required drawing in good condition in order to cast wards.
Victor also carries a multitude of large permanent markers and sticks of chalk to draw out his banishment circles.
Yes, and:
TBD
Location of Note: Sir Walter’s (Dive Bar) Notable Person: Elizabeth Rodgers aka. “Betty” a troll in disguise. Caring in nature, Betty harbors any unwanted beings that seek a place to call home. She’s the current manager of the bar, purchased it from the previous owner who remains unknown. A fact everyone knows about this place: The bar works as a form of safe haven for primarily demons. Most of the staff comprise of unwanted and or shunned magical beings with illusions casted over themselves to appear human. They serve cheap drinks and even cheaper bar food.
The Fae are known for two things - their mischief and their omnipresence. Wherever there’s even a tiny gathering of trees of woodland, you can be certain that a pixie has made his home there, or there are sprites hidden in the undergrowth. Being naturally inclined towards enjoying life, pure-bred Faerie Folk are surprisingly adaptable and fertile in order to produce many offspring. And since they aren’t very picky, they’ll have sex with pretty much whatever takes their fancy and the resulting children are sterile and a bit of a burden. Most of them don’t inherit the faerie’s size-shifting abilities, meaning their homes are usually far too small for the babies. Faerie Folk aren’t partial to parental love and nurturing so they usually dump the deformed half-breeds onto anything that’ll look after them - or just toss them into the wilderness to die.
‘Changeling’ is more of a blanket term for halfbreeds with faerie blood in them that have been abandoned or given away at birth. Their size, appearance, abilities and behaviour vary between individuals. They are perhaps one of the few ‘races’ of supernaturals to be born with an innate understanding of all of their abilities, though it is not uncommon for Changelings to lose this knowledge as they grow older. Every Changeling that is given to surrogate parents has the ability to shift from their true form to the form of whichever race is raising them. This ability is subconscious and will only revert if the Changeling wills it or if the Changeling becomes aggressive.
Abigail is a Changeling with demonic heritage, and as a result she has inherited minor abilities from each parent.
Physical Description:
Abigail is a pale, gangly teenager with a thick flat curtain of blonde hair, thin eyebrows, and sharp blue eyes. She has a slightly turned-up nose and her lips are a little bit on the thin side, making her look like she’s constantly grimacing. She carries herself with an air of carefully staged nonchalance and wears unobtrusive and fairly ‘tame’ clothing compared to the outrageous teenage fashion in the 80s. She’s almost completely flat-chested, and there are little packs of muscle evening out her bony physique, especially on her arms and legs.
Changeling Form: The most striking changes to Abigail’s appearance are the horns, claws, eyes and teeth she possesses as a Changeling. Abigail’s physique remains pretty much identical to the human illusion but gaunter - her cheekbones are more prominent, her ribcage is visible and the joints are more pronounced. Her extremities are an intense mottled black colour due to the scales which spread partially up the forearms and calves, lightening into patchy greys and then fading into her sallow skin. Her fingers and toes are elongated and, though somewhat protected by the aforementioned scales, they seem brittle and easier to break than a human’s. Each finger and toe is adorned with thick black talons, the nails curl downwards and are shorter than the long, straight claws on Abigail’s hands.
Her facial features don’t change too much - she still has the pale blonde hair (though it has lost its well-conditioned sheen and seems to naturally tangle and become unkempt), the turned up nose and the slightly thin lips. It only seems to be alien and monstrous through the inhuman features; her eyes become a full glossy black, her dental structure is similar to a shark’s and two thick, dark and small horns protrude from the tangled mat of hair on her head.
If she’s in this form, she’s bound to get messy real fast. Couple the above description with the tattered remains of her clothes, caught in branches or on those brand new claws and horns (shoes are always a pain in the ass to replace, she almost always pierces holes in the soles) and smears of blood, mud and god-knows what from whatever antics she’s been up to and you have a pretty detailed mental image of Abigail the Changeling.
Talents:
Here’s the real kicker - as a Changeling, Abigail inherited minor faerie and demonic powers from her parents. Problem is, she’s almost completely forgotten how to use all of them. But magical capabilities aren’t too dissimilar from riding a bike; once you remember how, it becomes pretty easy. The Talents section will be split into ‘known’ and ‘unknown’ categories, just to clarify how much she’s got and what she’s yet to rediscover. There will also be a ‘passive’ ability section which is simply what Abigail doesn’t need to relearn because it’s part of who she is.
KNOWN: Summon Fireball: A simple yet gloriously destructive spell, Abigail is able to summon a fireball approximately the size of a marble in her hands. She can flick it like a marble - it won’t fly too far or too spectacularly, but you don’t need a particularly big flame to start a fire. With enough practice, the size and range of this spell will gradually increase into a fist-sized orb of flame which she will eventually be able to blast like a projectile.
Shove: Short range, low level telekinetic spell. Abigail can give objects a little push with her mind. More often than not she does this to fuck with people and break their stuff. As she practices, she’ll be able to control the direction and force of the shove and be able to push heavier objects about, but it’s not nearly as malleable as actual telekinesis.
UNKNOWN: These spells are more complex, they require a bit of brainpower and a fair bit of willpower too. Even as Abigail discovers and uses their weakest forms she’s going to find these to be taxing if she works on them too hard, and there’s a larger room for error.
Hallucination: Illusory Magic is probably Abigail’s forté...if she knew about it in the first place. A purebred trickster on both sides of the family can lead to some interesting illusions, but their powers combined to make Abigail capable of messing with people’s senses. The weakest ability is picking a sense - touch, taste, sight, smell or hearing - and changing the impulses sent to the brain for that sensory organ on one person for around a short period of time. The strongest ability is full-blown hallucinations designed by Abigail to be used on a group of people, lasting up to 10-15 minutes if she really pushes it.
Plant Manipulation: It’s no wonder Abigail forgot how to use this, it’s one of the most difficult powers to conceal. Abigail can manipulate pre-existing plants, but the effect she leaves on them is...weird. The stems and bark go a horrid ashen-grey and split, revealing rivulets of blood-red sap. The flowers (if they have any) turn black and dry, and thorns become barbed. In short, she can manipulate plants like a faerie but corrupts them like a demon. Luckily the corruption aspect isn’t contagious but it eats out the vegetation from the inside until it crumbles to dust an hour or so after Abigail stops using it. This power works like a standard plant manipulation ability, with the added weakness of it being a one-time use per plant and a delay as the corruption has to spread over the entirety of the plant before she can use it. Obviously she’ll start small and work her way up, from flowers and saplings to trees and vines. If she attempts to control a plant that is too large/complex for her to manage, her corruption will be ‘rejected’ and the plant will revert to normal.
PASSIVE: Shapeshift: Does what it says on the tin. It isn’t painful like a werewolf transformation because it’s part of a Changeling’s biology to be able to shift between their form and the form of their parents. Abigail learned her human form, and that’s the only one she can turn into. It’s also not a complete transition from one stage to another - it’s a gradual thing, and there’s no harm done if she’s a mismatch of changeling and human. Abigail’s control over this is...situational at best. She’s gotten a lot better with age, but get her sufficiently pissed off and her teeth might start to sharpen up and the claws might come out. She only goes full Changeling if she needs speed, agility and some sharp objects on hand to defend herself.
Changeling Abilities: Changelings like Abigail are built to scamper off into trees, weaving in and out of branches at superhuman speeds. The claws are incredibly tough to break, her grip is certainly stronger than an average man’s, and she’s able to move fast if she’s climbing, jumping and sprinting. She’s also got a nasty bite. These abilities are somewhat seen in Abigail’s human form, but the change is barely an advantage - she’s got a sturdy grip, can run a little faster, climbs things pretty easily...can probably still give a nasty bite, but most sane adults tend to avoid biting people.
History:
Abigail was given to Victor Strade as part of a bargain with her parents, who were more than happy to get rid of her since she was taking up space. The accountant/demonologist didn’t even have a home to put her in; he took her in out of desperation and didn’t actually consider the consequences. He sold his car and replaced it with a campervan to get out of New Orleans and find them somewhere to settle down.
the first few years of her life were spent in that campervan being towed halfway across the country using Victor’s truck. Those years were probably the most chaotic ones in both of their lives. Abigail wasn’t a particularly easy baby to look after; she didn’t cry too much but she had little to no control over her powers or her shapeshifting. Any temper tantrum would replace the little blonde with a screeching monster. She haphazardly flung fireballs like they were toys and nearly burnt down their caravan on multiple occasions. She used to create unexplainable phenomena which Victor didn’t quite figure out were hallucinations and penned it down to Abigail simply being a demonic piece of shit again. She chewed through the water pipes. She ate anything that moved. She climbed the walls and the ceiling and ripped things to shreds when she was frustrated.
Victor wasn’t much better - he didn’t know how to raise a kid, let alone a monster. Part of the deal involved not only managing to tame Abigail but also integrate her into human society. He freelanced as a private accountant and continued to trick any unlucky idiot that happened to cross paths with him, which managed to rack up enough money for the constant repair and maintenance work. During the initial year or so, he didn’t even recognise Abigail as his foster daughter and treated her more like a burden than a baby.
They never really stopped in any town or city for more than a month - just enough for Victor to work his magic (sometimes literally) and get enough cash to keep going. When they rolled up to new Camden around 15 years ago, Victor realised there were a lot more supernatural beings here than any of the places they visited before. Abigail wasn’t getting any younger - he’d have to settle down somewhere fast before she starts missing out on school. They waited a month to see how things went - then Victor spent another month because he was getting some good profit - and then another until they were there for a year. He’d finally managed to scrounge up enough for a really shitty house for them to live in.
Abigail was at her strongest during her younger years and as she grew up, Victor’s constant urges to repress her abilities finally started sinking in. She really wanted to go to school but couldn’t initially because she was unable to control her appearance, so Victor worked with her on her temperament until she was able to remain a human even when she got angry. With some level of self control, Abigail managed to get into the local school but she was still very much a little monster. Victor would receive notice that Abigail has once again bitten one of the other kids, or broke something, and he’d have to go in and pick her up early.
This was the general theme of Abigail’s first few years in school. Parent-teacher evenings were hellish and she struggled making friends because she was too busy either insulting or hitting the other children. Victor was overworked, underpaid and juggled his job and his duties as a father. They yelled at each other a lot but the two of them ultimately knew that they were both trying their hardest to get by and that was enough.
Abigail mellowed out a lot during her early teens. Actually, after the age of 8 she slowly started to forget how to cast her spells, most of which being innate with no incantation or hand movements required which made it all the harder to cast them when she’s hardly been using them. Even so, she still left a mark on her reputation which made it nigh impossible to make friends and most of the people she did actually get along with ended up leaving her eventually because she’d say something nasty. She was the weirdo loner in school and frankly she didn’t let it get to her that much - better no friends than annoying ones - but since Victor put a real emphasis on her fitting in when she was little, it kind of...stuck. And developed into an obsession. It was one of the few things Victor expected of her, he didn’t think she needed school, he knew she’d be able to find a job anyway, so it was one of the few ways to make him proud and she lived for those moments when he wasn’t annoyed or disappointed at her but actually impressed with how well she’s doing. Abigail’s been suspended multiple times and nearly expelled once. She was held back a year when she was 16 because she just couldn’t pass those exams and try to salvage her abysmal social life all on one go. She only used her spells at home and shapeshifted to make herself feel more comfortable at night, and largely kept to herself to focus on her studies. She’s dead-set on finishing her education, if only to prove to Victor that she can be around a large quantity of people 5 days a week and not cause any massive issues.
Psychological Profile:
Most, if not all of Abigail’s personality revolves around the fact that she is a monster trying her damnedest to behave like a human. When she’s alone or around supernaturals only, she doesn’t have to pretend; Abigail is emotionless and quiet. She observes and speaks very little, which doesn’t mean she always thinks carefully about what she’s going to say before she says it. She has a very loose grasp on empathy and doesn’t seem to care whether someone’s feelings get hurt. She is also very quick to anger and physically aggressive, and these traits only worsen if she’s walking around as a changeling instead of a person.
She changes completely when she’s around Victor. When she’s alone with him she opens up a lot more, becomes more conversational, acts more like you’d expect a teenage girl to act. She’s still quite reserved and sometimes she’ll just revert back to being that silent, staring, pissed off girl in the corner but overall it’s clear that she’s incredibly close to the man and also fiercely protective of him to the point of jealousy.
The problems arise when she’s trying to ‘act natural’. She’s obsessed with this idea of trying to fit in and if she relaxed a bit more, she’d probably be able to. But that constant fear of doing something stupid and blowing her cover only pushes her deeper into her quiet moments and, since she’s a bit of an asshole anyway when you start to talk with her, Abigail finds it even more distressing that she can’t make friends at school and doesn’t have any other actual humans besides Victor to copy. And let’s face it - Victor isn’t the ideal role model, and from him Abigail managed to finely hone her scathing wit and sharp tongue.
She stares and listens a lot because she’s busy trying to memorise what people actually do and replicate it herself. Because of this, Abigail’s known to have odd eating habits and does some menial tasks like reading a magazine with very deliberate care. Abigail’s tumultuous childhood made it difficult for her to trust her own capacity for self control and since she’s always juggling the stresses of schoolwork and the constant dread of discovery it’s no wonder she’s prone to lashing out at people when they provoke her.
Possessions:
Timothy, Tim-Tam, Timmy, Tim, Teeny Tiny - A frog familiar that lives with Abigail and Victor. When they were on the road, Abigail picked him up from a storm drain and refused to part with him. They don’t...really know what he does, but his presence is soothing for Abigail. When she was little, holding Timothy would help her remain calm and focused and repress her abilities. When she was really little, she didn’t understand Timothy’s worth and constantly tried to eat him. Luckily, Victor was always fast enough and conveniently close enough to prevent certain death of one of the few things capable of ‘controlling’ his weird monster foster child. Timothy doesn’t age and is certainly capable of intelligent thought but he’s small and fragile.
Yes, and:
TBD
Location of Note:
Sally’s Diner Notable Person: ‘Sally’, the head chef. A fact everyone knows about this place: A 24hr diner that serves the greasiest, sweetest, most calorific food you can possibly imagine. Famous for its monster-sized sundaes and the proprietor, who is probably a succubus and definitely a gold-digger.
@DinoNuts Initial reaction: Wait, did I just read about bayou Swamp Fae? Hell yeah!!!
Second reaction: Oh, I can see my guy/gal/it getting blazed outta his mind and agreeing to a contract, and carrying it out just cuz they'd THINK it's binding XD
@Stitches OOC reaction: really cool! I like the idea of the changeling forgetting more as she grows older instead of the other way round. Kinda nifty!
IC reaction: "She burned the playmate carpet, chewed the ear off of three teddy bears, made herself a perfect twin to the Sanders' Ifrit and was almost taken home by them instead.
"SHE'S SO PRECIOUS! I can't wait to see her tomorrow!"
@MancerNecro I like it! Only thing I might adjust is the Yes, and: section. It's meant to be a direct tie to everyone, a reason why we would vouch for each other and say "This person won't rat us out to the mummy."
I'd volunteer Parry as someone who might've babysat your character in the past, was approached as a magical coach, or might have used some wards to turn her powers down a bit when she was younger. Or heck, maybe she has met the lovely Dryad at some point!
Otherwise, I really like what I read there!
Ahhh okay. I will go around to rewriting that section in a little bit.
EDIT: I have changed that section. Hope everyone is okay with it. I tried to fit it within what might be reasonable of everyone's histories.
@MancerNecro Everything you wrote about Violet and Allard Park looks great to me.
I really liked the way you described how their friendship developed (Celest wandering in because of calming/nice energies and at first not knowing about the dryad).
Related, the "energy" of the park as something calming/nice is a great idea that I didn't really think about. It would provide a wonderful explanation for why mortals/supernaturals find the park increasingly pleasant to visit!
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Also, I really like the latest characters!
Although I'm terrified to see that we have both a eldritch tax collector and an arcane accountant!
All we need now is a lawyer... :3
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If anyone needs help establishing random connections, feel free to send me a PM, I'm friendly, promise!
Violet is a social creature and sees life as an adventure, so she's likely to wander into all manner of places.
@HeySeuss@Aleranicus Hello! Noticed y'all got that small group tag up there at the top of this RP, so I'm curious if you have filled all of your spaces or if there's room for a Utrax?
Looks like now you need an ogre repo-man or a magic con artist. I know last time I used a human hunter with very little connections and everyone hated him, heheh.
@HeySeuss@Aleranicus Hello! Noticed y'all got that small group tag up there at the top of this RP, so I'm curious if you have filled all of your spaces or if there's room for a Utrax?
It's a matter of when character sheets are in. We only have six right now.
Looks like now you need an ogre repo-man or a magic con artist. I know last time I used a human hunter with very little connections and everyone hated him, heheh.
Welcome back! And that sounds really good, actually. The hunter was always fun too.
Breed/Species/Type/Lineage: Unicorn "The last and lonely unicorn," she says solemnly.
Anyone familiar with the species knows that "last" of their kind business is a steaming pile of bullshit-- or unicorn shit. It's a blatant lie. Theirs is a species that has worked in the shadows as assassins, posed as human mages or wizards, posed as animals, acted as guides and "destiny" speakers, all for the sake of influencing history, both among mortals and the supernatural alike. Chances are, most have had encounters with Unicorns and simply do not know it. Who is telling the Unicorns to influence others or even outright assassinate people remains a scholastic mystery-- some have speculated they do it just for "fun". Among those same scholars it is generally agreed upon that they are a type of demon. Then again, it's entirely possible that a few of the scholars themselves are Unicorns that are, again, just making rumors for "fun". Whatever the truth is, Unicorns in their true form are every bit of the sparkly, rainbow, curly haired, flowery nonsense as popular art depicts them as.
Physical Description: Clean, unassuming, and quite fashionable, Stella values her face appearance highly. She is rather vain and very meticulous when it comes to how she looks. "I'm not boasting but, I'm probably one of the most beautiful people you've ever met," Stella says with a flip of her hair.
"If you believe in me hard enough, I just might show you the real me."
Talents:
Assassin Skills: Trained in the art of subterfuge, disguise, and "sharp objects that kill things", Stella's main skill set is focused more toward directly dispatching others and sticking to the shadows. "I give hugs that make people fall asleep-- they may or may not wake up. It's how I survive."
Unicorn Magic - The Silence: While Unicorns are naturally gifted to be rather easy to forget, Stella has specialized magic in this area. She can quiet her footsteps, create a bubble of silence up to an arm's length away from herself, and blend easily into the shadows. A passive effect of the magic is the fact she is very easy to forget and can blend into the background or a crowd-- one needs to explicitly direct all of their attention on her for a long period of time, in order to not lose sight of her... aka "believe in Stella". "That wasn't me..."
Unicorn Magic - Innocence: Perhaps one of the most prolific traits of a Unicorn. Their ability to appear innocent, lie so well it seems like the truth, and give the typical "puppy-dog eyed stare" to get themselves out of trouble, is a passive magical trait they're all born with. Only certain magic users and other Unicorns can see through this magical tactic though-- they rarely use it on one another as a courtesy. "Don't worry about it, friend. Be cool..."
All of these spells draw from Stella's reserves of "moonlight" and sap her strength the longer they're in use. While she hasn't encountered many instances where her magic failed-- there have been a few scares in the middle of channeling spells, where she was a bit too tired to fully manifest the effects.
History:
"Alright, this is one of those things I can't sum up well, but I'll do my best." Stella clears her throat then begins, "So there we were, grazing upon the fruit at the base of the Evertree, when all of a sudden, guess who steps out of a portal? Titans. Actual titans throwing lava and ice around, all sorts of messed up stuff. Nobody liked these guys, especially not the people who were horribly murdered by them, and then I found myself alone. Everyone else was dead. I spent years wandering around until, eventually, I found my way here. That's it. I'm on vacation."
The truth is, Stella was an instrumental part in several historic events throughout Europe and Asia as a whole. Along with her other Unicorn cohorts, she helped burn down the Library of Alexandria, provoke a war between a faction of minor Chinese deities-- resulting in their complete self destruction, provoke a Fire Elemental into destroying Pompeii, helped sink the city of Atlantis, and directly assassinated the leader of a Korean based Vampiric army, resulting in a victory for the human government of South Korea, and assisted in the subsequent coverup operations.
All of Stella's tactics involved more direct actions. Among Unicorns, she is part of the "Dirty Hooves" crew-- those called upon to assist and assassinate when typical influential practices fail. Now that she's in New Camden, it seems Stella is focused on laying low. Sure, people see her walking about, but it's mostly during the same hours of the day and always for brief periods of time. She has very few friends and none of them know her very well however, it's well known that all she does is go to the beach, play at the arcade, and eat ice cream-- specifically chocolate Ice Cream. Needless to say, the Ice Cream shop owners know her well enough to start making her a waffle cone with two scoops of chocolate, whenever they see her from the shop windows. Where she gets her money or how she affords anything is something of a mystery to others but, Stella owns a large fortune assembled over centuries, and she lives comfortably on the interest her accounts gain.
Psychological Profile:
Stella takes everything easy. Extremely patient and almost disturbingly serene, there will never be a time when she seems either surprised or flustered. Sure, there are things she doesn't expect that happen, but Stella tends to shrug and accept things as they are. That being said, Stella is unfortunately as carefree as they come. It's very difficult to get her to do anything she doesn't expressly volunteer to do. When she needs to be concerned about things, Stella certainly lacks the urgency or care that's probably required for the situation. This particular trait has actually crafted itself into a strange form of courage-- perhaps even fearlessness. Then again, maybe she's simply too lazy to feel much fear because, after all, that would require energy to give a shit. However, when she commits herself to a purpose or is called upon to work, Stella goes after her goal with the aggressiveness and professionalism she is trained to have-- the quicker and cleaner she gets the job done, the sooner she can eat ice cream and play arcade games, after all. "Ah, be cool, man. It doesn't mean much, does it? I like naps and Ice Cream, that's all there is to it. There ain't much more to know about me, I'd say."
Possessions:
An Obscene Variety Of Knives: Unicorn Weapons Smiths have perfected a "sharp and pointy" to injure of kill a multitude of species. All of her weapons range in length from pocket knife to short sword-- nothing longer. If it doesn't kill it, bring the weapon back for a full refund-- if you're alive, that is! "They're for my protection, of course."
"Super Suit": Stella likes to call her full black, very "ninja like", assassin's suit her "super suit". It's flame resistant, puncture resistant, and has plenty of pockets and places to latch knives and such. It also helps her keep "cloth silent" on top of her inherent magical abilities. "For some reason, saying 'where's my super suit' fills me with deep satisfaction..."
Yes, and:
"There are so many people in town that need makeovers. Maybe it's a cultural thing for me but, why would anyone not look their best at all times? Is it vain? No. Definitely not. It's simple courtesy to be easy on the eyes and that being said-- have you seen that weirdo in all black? Tax-person or whatever, right? Hideous. I mean, you can wear all black and make it work for you but they don't even make an attempt! It's fine. Whatever. Let people live their lives, right? Other than that I-- well I used to go to the park. I almost decided to relax in it-- that was until I saw the Dryad lurking there. Do they even have a name? I didn't ask because, well, I don't particularly like those kids of creatures-- long story." Stella shakes her head slowly, lets out a deep sigh, then continues speaking. "Then there's that baker which-- again-- I didn't ask their name. Names, smames, they're whoevers and whatever to me-- I just know the sweets are good and that's all I care about. If they wanted me to know them, well, they're out of luck. I don't need to know them, do I? It's better to keep a distance anyway, because you never know who might want to... you know... harvest my tears or blood. Seriously. As if I weren't already a walking target, the fact that I'm the last of my kind just makes me more valuable. Eh. I'm not sure if it's a compliment or not. I don't like to advertise what I am because of this fact, though. But, that being said, the majority of the Unicorn Hair circulating within the magic user community in New Camden is mine-- sold for obscenely high prices, of course. I have to eat too, you know? Otherwise, I like to stay on the beach because of this-- the sirens, merfolk, and selkies are better company anyway. And uh. There's a Kelpie by the lake I like to talk to sometimes-- she's sweet."
Location of Note: Lake Avonaco + Lake Avonaco Beach
Notable Person: Albert aka "Sasquatch"
A fact everyone knows about this place: While the lake isn't very large, it does act as something of a haven for those who crave water, but are a bit too busy to go to the sea every day. Albert maintains the only dock on the lake and sells fishing gear and bait out of a tiny shack next to it. He's also been known to clean up trash off of the small strip of sandy beach at the lake's edge. Albert also ensures that the lake doesn't become over fished-- even going so far as to give anyone a good scolding during the fish spawning season.
Location of Note: Versus Arcade -- Directly across the street from Black Cat Books
Notable Person: "Warren" the Half-Demon Half-Angel "Demigod" of War
A fact everyone knows about this place: While the owner couldn't exactly lead legions into battle well, not anymore, Warren most certainly takes these desires out in his arcade. Most of the games are competitive in nature and he has an especially large amount of fighting and sports based games. Regular tournaments happen in the arcade and rather expensive prizes are given to the victors. Most people report a rather subtle increase in their competitive desires while within the building.
