Full Name: Grendel.

Nicknames/Aliases: Wendle Dendle.

Age: Rather old. He appears 34 in his human form.

Gender: Male.

Powers:

- He is inhumanly strong, capable of crushing steel in his grip and throwing around things several times heavier than his full weight.

- Can possess powerful claws at the ends of his fingers which can rend both armor and flesh alike.

- His skin is capable of repelling most forms of human weaponry. This is due to his skin's ability to resist nearly all forms of piercing and slashing damage as it does not tear for nearly any weapon.

- Grendel's blood is a potent acid, capable of melting down steel in seconds. As a result he's also immune to all but the most potent acids.

- While most of his senses are fairly keen his sense of hearing outshines his other senses to a vast degree. It's so precise he could pick up the pitter-patter of a mouse's paws from nearly half a mile away.

- He possesses the ability to regenerate, even in states most would consider thoroughly dead. While his regeneration is quick compared to a human it's not terrifyingly fast. What it is however is persistent. He will continue to regenerate from the largest remaining section of his form. In addition he cannot fall sick nor suffer the effects of either poison and venom. The only means of halting his regeneration is either through fire or some forms of magic. If damaged by fire the wounds inflicted by it will heal at a rate which is normal for a living creature his size and only in a way that it would be healed from by normal human beings.

Description:

Human Form - He's large even in his more human form. Standing at six feet and six inches tall he weighs an easy four hundred pounds, all muscle. His physique is rather ropy, not ripped like many would expect someone of his size and weight to be with all that muscle. He's got a rather gangly build with his long legs and arms, all ending in proportionately large hands and feet as well. His hands are somewhat thick but with long enough fingers to off-set it's meatiness. He tends to stand hunched forward, making him seem smaller but only by so much. After all, a guy his size has trouble coming off as anything but large.

His hair is a scraggly mop of greyish-black, all rather tangled and wiry from lack of maintenance. He's got something of a strong jaw and a near perpetual scowl on his rather ugly face. The curved and pointed nose along with his prominent brow don't help his brutish image much either. His skin is pale like an oyster and rather clammy to boot.

He tends to dress in earthy tones, favoring clothing that helps de-emphasize his presence. His common apparel is a pair of brown workman's overalls along with an off-white shirt and dark green tie. To top it off he wears a somewhat outdated brown street cap and a pair of worn out brown boots which even despite being the largest size he could find were still a bit small on his feet.

Grendel Form - In this state he's far more monstrous than before. He's twice as tall and between two to three thousand pounds. His head alone is so heavy it would need four fully grown warriors to carry it. His skin dulls into a darker shade of grey, becoming even tougher and more leathery. His already sharp teeth grow twice as long, his jaw elongating to fit them. His hands develop long semi-curved claws at the ends of his fingers, each one with long scaly looking skin running all the way up to the knuckles. At the very least in this form his mop of hair doesn't really change.

Personality:

To sum him up briefly he is a misery-ridden psychopath with a great deal of frustration. As he is blighted with enormous torment whenever he perceives any form or expression of joy he has come to hate nearly all forms of company, especially those of humans. While he's grown more cautious over the years due to his loss at the hands of Beowulf he's quite accustomed to killing people who bring him such suffering. For him Ragnarok cannot come fast enough as all he has to look forward to is stewing in his own anger and misery.

Despite how he might seem due to his crippling madness he is not an unthinking brute. As he's always been more than physically powerful enough to crush nearly any obstacle he's never had much need to focus on building his physique. He spends a lot of time thinking deeply, most of the time about how best to hurt people. Though he often lives in squalor he appreciates dark and morbid decor. He fancies music most of all, though only the depressing and moody kind. Anything with a fair degree of pep just makes him angrier.

Though he hates people through and through he takes no pleasure in other people's suffering. To him he sees a little of himself in those who are miserable. To the folk who are in the throes of despair he can be quite reasonable. He hates the fact he suffers so greatly in the presence of all forms of joy, going so far as to hate himself for being born this way. Even still he'd rather go on living, even if it means suffering and hurting more people in this endless cycle of violence brought about by his wild anger.


Skills:

- Having been fighting for a good part of his life he's learned a fair bit from experience. His style of combat is quite wild but far from random. He can come on like a wild animal but most of his actual attacks are quite deliberate, able to pick his targets while keeping aware of the fight as a whole. With his absurdly keen hearing he can hear where most of his foes are, picking up subtle audio cues with ease.

- He can navigate fairly decently in the dark thanks to his keen hearing. Using sounds he can generally gauge the dimensions around him, developing a rough sense of the space available around him.

- Given his time spent in the wilderness Grendel can subsist in the woods about as easily as most other animals can.

Aside from this he's got a rather basic understanding of common knowledge for modern humans. He's dimly aware of things like computers and guns. He knows enough to start a vehicle as well but his knowledge of the rules of the road are pretty sparse.

Weaknesses:

- While his skin is extremely difficult to penetrate he might be tough but he's not unbreakable. Strong as he is a powerful enough concussive force will crush him. Those with greater than human strength are able to break him as it was demonstrated back when Beowulf tore his arm off with his magnificent might alone.

- As his ears are superior to the average human's his sense of hearing is also that much more sensitive. Particularly loud noises can easily deafen him for a time. His regeneration will eventually restore his ability to hear but that can take some time.

- Fire. He holds no defense against man's ancient tool. His skin does not prevent him from burning and wounds suffered as a result of fire heal as a regular human would. Fire is one of the few ways to kill him for good.

- The sound of laughter. Any sound of joy or merriment causes him mental anguish and agony but none more than the sound of laughter. The very sound causes so much distress for him to hear that he can quickly lose all reason often resulting in a massacre. The killings resulting from his suffering are legendary. This does however make it difficult for him to blend in and remain hidden in plain sight. As it is he avoids the public as it is lest he lose his cool and spoil his efforts to evade detection.


Brief History:

Legend tells the story of the great monster Grendel and his terrible misdeeds. He was always a miserable beast but when his keen ears picked up the sounds of laughter and joy come from the meadhall atop the hill he bore the suffering no longer. Like a stinging wasp he saw no reason why he shouldn't go up and end their lives at once. After all they were no kin of his. Their deaths meant nothing to him but the end to yet another pain.

So he went and ended their lives. So many dead yet just a pleasant night's sleep for him. It wasn't until the hero of legend Beowulf came and had the audacity to stay at the meadhall. He'd brook no repeat of last time so he went down but instead of an easy victory Grendel was met with a crippling defeat. Beowulf had torn his arm right off so he fled back through the swamps where he took rest.

The legend claims that he died then, the hero Beowulf returning with his very head. Such is a lie. They killed his mother and beheaded her, taking her head back and claiming to have found his body in her lair as well. During this time Grendel had been hiding out in the woods, recuperating from his missing arm. Soon enough his arm grew back much but in returning to his home he discovered only the dead body of his own mother awaiting him.

He mourned for a great length of time. The cavern had been pilfered so little remained for him save for a lust for revenge. It was to his disappointment however that when he went to go and try to slay the great hero Beowulf he instead found an empty throne, it's king having died whilst killing his little brother too. His whole family slain and he was left with naught but despair and disappointment as their murderer was now dead, moving on to Valhalla whilst he remained on earth where he could not reach him.

Grendel slew the people who remained at the castle in his rage. When it was over there was no sound other than the waves which lapped at the nearby cliffs and his own breath. He felt no victory in slaying the former comrades and friends of the man who slew his family, only bitterness. When he was done he set his back to the castle and left, returning to the woods where he continued to live.

Much time passed since then. As humanity grew they pushed the wilderness back further and further until they happened upon his dwelling. He killed those who disturbed him but when he finally strolled a little further out from his lair he made a chilling discovery. In the many years he secluded himself humanity had grown into a vast force, constructing massive cities where thousands, possibly millions all lived.

They kept coming of course. More humans showed and they brought bigger weapons and even magic. Most of it was ineffectual against the mighty brute but the greater weapons and some of the magic were starting to get through to him. He knew he couldn't keep fighting off anyone who came when the humans started showing up in force. He was about to reluctantly move further from civilization when someone strange approached him. They were definitely not human and they had an offer for him. He was to come work for their company and in return they'd help him disappear so the humans would finally stop hounding him day and night.

Current day and he isn't any less miserable than he was for the while. At the very least there are fewer humans firing off loud guns nearby him. Not none but a fair degree less currently.

Full Name: Dennis Zachary Eden

Nicknames/Aliases: N/A

Age: 22

Gender: Male

Rune/Location:
Berkano, on the nape of his neck.

Rune Powers:
Nature Speak – By touching a plant with his bare skin, he will instantly be connected to the ‘wood wide web’, if the plant he touches has enough mushroom mycelia in symbiosis. Using this will make him ‘aware’ of everything in his surrounding area, with more limited communication the further the mycelium spreads. However, it has limited capability – it overrides all of his own mind’s functions, meaning that it can be difficult to pull away. He also cannot use his other power during this time.
Phytokinesis – Be it rain or shine, dark or light, Dennis can manipulate nearby vegetation, trees, flowers, and even moss. For the most part, it’s his ability to accelerate a plant’s growth that comes in use. He is also able to command them to grow to enormous proportions (…to an extent) and develop vines, tangling roots, and barbed thorns. He can even persuade them to quickly regenerate, as long as the ‘wound’ has not been burned. Not all scars can heal…

Description: Tending to wear things bought cheap or found in charity shops, Dennis is often considered ‘simple’ in what he wears – consisting of a small range of jumpers, jeans and shirts. It’s more out of necessity than desire… okay, it’s completely necessity. But, he doesn’t mind. It’s for Tom, after all.

Personality: Dennis is a tough nut to crack. It isn’t that he’s antisocial or he doesn’t believe in people… he’s just rather closed off person. It comes mostly from his situation as his brother’s only bodily able relative, and their financial difficulties from the same situation.
He’s also been alone for a very long time, and had to grow up far too fast. Caring for an ailing parent and a younger brother tends to do that to you. So he isn’t going to bloom without a little coaxing.
His determination, strong desire to protect, and his reason for joining the Blessed all stem from Tom. And so does his perseverance, strength, and ruthlessness.

Skills:
Photosynthescout – Due to his ability to connect to the plants’ network, as long as these things are in the circuit, he can ‘see’ the surrounding area. It can also be used to identify his, or other people’s blind spots. Though, the aforementioned difficulty of disconnecting means that there will be delays in his relaying this information.
Hold Fast Your Determination – As long as he knows he needs to help, and he’s not totally incapacitated, he’ll keep on fighting. While it might be overall harmful to his own body, it may just be the tipping point needed to win.
Adaptable – He might not always appear to be, but he’s a quick learner. He’s had to learn a lot of things over the years, and adding another few things to his arsenal isn’t going to be a problem. So prepping him for combat, isn’t going to be much of a shock.
Cheap Chef – Since he’s spent the last five years caring for his younger brother and mother pretty much by himself, he’s learned to get a little inventive with limited ingredients – and it turns out he can be quite good at it. He prefers to prepare meat and bread and pasta, mostly, since fruit and vegetables started screaming at him when he tries to eat them.
Athletic – While he hasn’t gone out of his way to do running or weights and the like for a while, he’s certainly no couch potato. He won’t fall behind too far.

Weaknesses:
Arid Areas – if there is little or no life nearby, not even the smallest seedlings, it begins to take a toll on Dennis himself. Quickened exhaustion, increased paranoia and shortened temper – separate him from the plants and he’s useless.
Tethered – Dennis’ dedication relies solely on Tom’s well-being. If Tom – or somebody he believes to be Tom – appears to be in danger, he’s not going to think or hesitate. He’s going to help his little brother, no matter what he has to do.
Unexperienced – While he’s good at training, and perhaps even good at controlling his powers, he has put neither to practice.

Brief History: Dennis Eden, born from Chris and Lily Eden, was relatively happy for most of his childhood. It was the three of them, and then four, Tommy being born when Dennis was nine. They lived in a nice house, with a nice garden, in one of the smaller towns. He went to school there, too. But for him, it was too small a world. He always wanted to see what was beyond that great big wall, and explore, and protect the people he cared for… but that wasn’t going to happen.
It was unexpected. There was an attack in their home area – Dennis and his brother and mother were all out shopping, but their father… he’d been at the neighbours, helping them fix their sink or something. And… well, the officer didn’t go into details. Just that several parts of town had been… destroyed. So, their mother took them from the town, and to the city.
They moved into a small apartment in the city. The rent was cheap, but Lily could only afford it by working multiple jobs. Dennis learned quite quickly that he had to keep quiet about their home situation. So he kept away from others. Didn’t try to make friends. Didn’t interact with them. And he definitely didn’t talk to the adults. But Tommy did. It took warnings from both his brother and mother to convince him not to talk about their difficulties.
And then… his mother got sick. Dennis was seventeen at the time. At first, doctors didn’t believe him, but her condition would worsen by the day. It took a while before anyone figured out that her condition was an Auto Immune Disease – her own body was attacking her. Eventually, Dennis quit school in favour of working in labour or odd errands to keep them afloat, to pay for bills and medicine, and to make sure Tommy got along in school. It was barely just enough to get them by. And then… the Rune etched itself into his neck.
Dennis didn’t know the nature of this rune. He wouldn’t know just what it could do for a while. But he did know about the Blessed, and what they were trying to do. If this was what he thought it was, then he’d cut them a deal. Proper treatment for his mother, and a much better education for Tommy. That’s all he’ll ask of them.

Other: Dennis has dated both men and women, though he’s never quite put a label on himself.