Inspiration: Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

Abilities/ Skills:

Advanced Intelligence - Ward's father came from a scientific background and the young man has a natural affinity for knowledge in general. His modified genetics, thanks to his father's altered genes, also aid in his ability to process, analyze and memorize information. Because of this, his is multilingual, an expert chemist and fluent in most forms of technology. The nearly constant activity in his mind often gets in the way of his sleep. On any given day, Ward typically only rests for a couple of hours before getting back to work.

Highly Durable - While Ward can't flip a car over with his bare hands, his body is unnaturally fortified. While he can be broken, it would take a lot of concentrated effort. For example, if you were to hit him with a car, he would likely pick himself back up and dust himself off before going on with his business, but if you were to shove a grenade down his throat, he would most certainly be done for. Bullets will tear through his skin, but they wouldn't necessarily be able to make it through his bones unless they were high caliber armor piercing rounds.

Combat Proficiency - Ward's physical strength is comparable to any other human, however he has trained himself in various forms of armed and unarmed combat and is proficient with a variety of weapons, which aids greatly in the day to day operation of his criminal empire.

Telepathy - Ward's supernatural mind is so advanced that he soon discovered he could enter others' minds as well. While the ability to rapaciously read a person's mind is incredibly difficult, especially depending on the person, his ability to communicate with others through a mental connection is easily done. On weaker minded individuals (Read: mostly Trash NPCs), he can even induce behavior akin to hypnosis. While the limits of this ability are not currently known, he mostly uses it as a supernatural walkie talkie to direct his cronies or terrify his enemies.

History:

Dr. Henry Jekyll gave birth to Mr. Edward Hyde through chemical induction, creating a monster composed of his own evil. Mr. Hyde was conniving, harbored murderous intent and had a power of will that eventually overtook Jekyll's psyche. Soon Dr. Henry Jekyll ceased to exist, being consumed by his own creation. Eventually, there was only Hyde.

The potion that gave Hyde life also gave him power. His body and mind were forever altered, fortified and corrupted. As Edward Hyde made his way in the world, he satisfied whatever urge happened to pique his interest, including those of a carnal nature. That is where our story starts for our Ward, the one and only son of Mr. Edward Hyde.

Ward grew up a bastard to a whore. Nothing about him fit the mold of "normal". One need only be within a few paces of him to feel his eerie presence. Quiet and calculating, fearless and also horrifying, Ward is certainly his father's son but perhaps an improvement upon the original. Whereas his father was known to be a man of monstrous strength, Ward's greatest power does not live in the fibers of his muscles. Instead, his horrifying abilities come from his mind.

Growing up in poverty, Ward quickly learned meaning of survival on the streets. While his mother turned tricks, he busied himself with organizing scores, small time burglaries and pickpocketing with a gang of like-minded youths. His prowess for strategy and action was obvious to all and as the years went by, his small gang of street rats turned into a criminal empire with him at the head of the table.

Ward's abilities manifested when he was in his teenage years and were invaluable to cementing his status as top dog among his degenerate ilk. He would terrorize his foes, entering their minds and relentlessly haunting them, pushing them to the brink of madness until they surrendered to his will or forfeited their life.

Everyone in his hometown grew to know his name, but none would dare speak it. He was the living Boogeyman who ruled the city with an iron fist. He had one demand: Fall in line or bleed. Even his own mother grew to fear him. She lived alone in a luxurious home that Ward bought for her, filled with hired help that would see to her needs, but calling it a 'life' was a stretch of the word. She was an animal in an expensive cage from which she would never be allowed to escape. In Ward's mind, he was keeping her safe. To her, she was a prisoner.

Ward's supernatural infamy and penchant for bloodshed eventually caught the attention of the Lord of Darkness, who presented Ward with a lucrative offer. Join him and open up up his assets for Dracula's use and in return he would give Ward access to more power than he could ever hope to gain on his own. While Ward wasn't sure if he truly needed what the vampire was offering, his curiosity was formidable enough that he gave in and agreed to combine resources before formally taking a seat on the Council of the Night.

Goals:

Ward's goal is to conquer. He wants life to bend to his will and he will stop at nothing to accrue the power he needs to make that happen.

Theme Song: Killing Strangers

Notes: The original Mr. Edward Hyde (Senior) is said to still exist in the world, though Ward has no interest in seeking him out. In his mind, if his father wants nothing to do with him then, in return, he wants nothing to do with his father.

Name: Count Orlok, and many other names throughout history

Inspiration: Nosferatu

Appearance: Orlok is very tall and thin man, resembling a rat more than a man. His faded yellow skin is pulled back like that of a very old man, as he is centuries old. His face is quite off putting, with deep dark eyes, pointed ears, rodent like teeth, many stray grey hairs on his otherwise bald head and very thick eyebrows. Also notable is his hands, which have fingers a good deal longer than most other men ending in talon like fingernails, easily able to slice through flesh. Through the use of magic Orlok is able to shift his features to better blend in among humans, taking many different forms.

Abilities/ Skills: As a Vampire, Orlok has access to the usual abilities. These include greater strength, stamina, and speed than that of humans. He also has minor hypnotic abilities, allowing him to feed on people easier. By drinking the blood of humans Orlok can increase his lifespan, becoming effectively immortal. Regular feeding also allows him to heal rapidly. Orlok loses these abilities while in sunlight. Touching holy objects or silver causes Orlok’s skin to burn and is very painful. He must also sleep in the unhallowed soil of his grave or lose his powers gradually until he does so.

Orlok has also studied the mystical arts, focusing on hexes, illusions and necromancy. While not a master like Dracula, Orlok is still quite skilled with magic. The power he uses the most is illusions, which he uses to blend in with humanity, transforming his monstrous face into an average one. This is very much needed to feed in modern day. Orlok uses hexes to curse those he despises, bringing them a bad fate. While he officially only curses monster hunters, it is rumoured that he also uses them on other monsters he doesn’t like, even members of the Council of Night. Lastly, necromancy allows Orlok to return from his many deaths, not remaining dead for very long. He is also able to raise the recently dead as ghouls in service to him. This ability is currently weak, as he can only raise a few at a time and they decay quickly, returning to death after a few days.

History: Born long ago in the lands that would become Transylvania, Orlok was the son of a shepherd. For most of his life he too was a shepherd, migrating across the Carpathian Mountains. For a while Orlok was content, at least until met the daughter of another shepherd. He longed for her greatly, watching her from afar. However, she was in love with another man, a man Orlok greatly envied. Eventually, they got married, enraging Orlok. That night after the wedding, Orlok sneaked up to the sleeping couple, and slit their throats. The next day the bodies were discovered, baffling the shepherds. Orlok thought that he got away with the crime, that was until his own brother stated he saw Orlok sneak into their tent. In a fury over this betrayal, Orlok stabbed his brother, before fleeing into the mountains. A mob of shepherds chased him for several hours, until they cornered him above a cliff. Orlok shouted that they were all damned to hell like he was, before being pushed off the cliff by the mob.

Orlok would awaken lying in a pool of blood several hundred feet down from the cliff. Wondering how he was still alive, Orlok was then visited by the demon Belial. The demon stated that Orlok had damned his soul, but also offered him power, Orlok agreeing immediately. Belial then unleashed his demonic power, transforming Orlok in a Vampire. Orlok immediately regretted it once he saw what had happened to his face. Belial only laughed at him before disappearing. That night Orlok returned to the shepherd’s camp, killing all who were there. Following this Orlok retreated into the mountains, where he would remain for several centuries, feeding on wayward travellers.

This would be Orlok’s life until the Ottoman Empire invaded. A young Count named Dracula would fight them off. Orlok took note of this, deciding to watch the life of this man. Orlok was quite surprised when Dracula too became a Vampire, approaching him immediately. The two would become allies, Orlok even taking the title of Count to mock him. Dracula gifted Orlok a home and began teaching him magic. Orlok’s studies would be interrupted when Dracula disappeared for the first time. Orlok would spend several years waiting for Dracula at his estate.

Eventually Orlok would become bored and left for the town of Wisborg in Germany. He would spread a new infection of the plague across his journey, making the town quarantine itself. This would end when Orlok was killed by drinking the blood of a pure heart while in sunlight. Orlok would become a burnt corpse, buried in the forest outside the town. He would remain in the ground until his resting place was discovered by Dracula. Using necromancy, Dracula revived Orlok, who promptly fed on many people in Wisborg.

Dracula would take him back to his castle to recuperate, during which time he would resume his magical studies. After finishing his basic training, Orlok decided to travel the world. Using illusion magic, Orlok blended in everywhere, feeding and learning as he went. It was through these travels that he would meet other creatures like werewolves, ghosts, and mutants. After a hundred years, Orlok was called back to Transylvania to meet with Dracula. It was there that he proposed the Council of Night, offering Orlok a seat on the council.

Together they controlled the world through the shadows, as more and more members joined the council. Orlok would once again travel the world, this time on council business. It was after returning from one such trip that he discovered that Dracula was missing. Orlok isn’t too worried as Dracula has disappeared on him before.

Goals: Orlok just wants to exist. He is driven by an overwhelming need to feed, wanting to control the humans like cattle, so that he may remain immortal. Joining the council was a means to ensure this.

Notes: Theme Song

Name: Gael Valentine. Also known as the Antichrist, the Beast, the Abomination of Desolation, etcetera, etcetera. Take your pick, he’s tickled by all of them.

Inspiration: The Village of the Damned, The Omen, all the movies with creepy little spawns of darkness.

Appearance: Gael is a young child, around five or so, with curly blond hair and wide, chocolate brown eyes. He’s small for his age, and there’s nothing about him that openly suggests what kind of a creature he truly is; in fact, with his sweet face and shy smile, he looks downright cherubic, if not uncannily...doll-like, sometimes. His teeth are just a little too sharp, however. And that smile of his can look disturbingly hungry at times. And his eyes- well, it’s probably nothing. When using his powers, the disguise slips further, those same eyes of his glowing like a pair of embers.

Prolonged use of his powers can have...interesting effects.

He dresses much more neatly than any normal little boy, however, preferring suits, coats, and, oddly enough, ribbons. He does so adore ribbons and bows. He also likes to pick jackets and such that are just a mite too large for him, to make him seem even smaller than he actually is. The effect altogether only amplifies the doll-ness to him, to say the least.

Abilities/ Skills:
Cunning: Gael’s strongest strength by far is his intelligence. He’s clever and fiercely manipulative, reading into those around him to try and figure out what drives them and makes them tick. Of course, he’s also well-aware of his innocent appearance, and uses it to his advantage. One of his favorite tricks is to play at being a scared child, and either lure victims in, or convince them to do something for him. Gael is quite proud of his acting abilities for that reason.

Psychic: Gael is capable of various feats, but none to any major extent. He can levitate small objects and himself and create small fires, but he can’t do anything particularly impressive. His strongest ability is his ability to read people, and influence them. Much like his father, Gael has an innate sense for what a person’s base desires might be, and he can give them a little “nudge” to do certain things. However, he can’t make anyone do what they wouldn’t have already done to begin with, and he can’t force people to do anything. Free will is something he can’t tamper with, after all. Additionally, if someone knows what he can do or is up to, they can pick up on that little nudge.

Aura: The darkness in people’s hearts just seems to come out more than usual when he’s around. Sinners might find themselves a little drawn to him.

Hard to Kill: It’s lucky for Gael that he’s a real pain to kill. Though he’s about as physically strong and capable as a regular little boy, it takes more than a bullet or a particularly rough smack on the head to put him out of commission. Holy objects, and the faith behind them, can expose his true form and make life considerably less pleasant for him.

History: Compared to the other beings on the Council of the Night, Gael is a recent addition.

Namely, because he wasn’t born all that long ago.

His mother, Anita, was a human woman- more of a girl, really. She was an aspiring actress, dreaming about the day where she would become famous, where she could go back home and spit in the faces of all the people who said she couldn’t, that she would never amount to anything. Of course, it was a lot easier said than done to become a star. There was always someone better, after all. Someone with a thinner waist or poutier lips, someone who could say the lines with just enough purr (no, that was too much, too much, I’m sorry). She was alone and unrecognized, and when Anita was tottering on the brink of despair, Gael’s father approached her.

If she did this one little favor for him, he whispered to her, she would become a star. No- there would be nobody who wouldn’t know her face. She would be a legend.

Desperate, Anita accepted, and went on to become the mother of the antichrist.

Her career boomed afterwards. She got her first gigs. She starred in a few advertisements, then a few shows, and, in the blink of an eye, her first movies. She even found herself a husband, one who smiled at her whenever he saw her, who hugged her and thought nothing less of her for being a single mother.

Gael was only a year old when tragedy struck. After receiving a hysterical phone call from the Valentine residence, police reported to find a massacre. Several friends of the Valentines were found dead, alongside Anita’s husband. They found Anita themselves locked up in the bathroom, clutching her child to her chest and babbling incomprehensibly. With some coaxing, Anita managed to explain that her husband and gone mad at a house party, and was responsible for the murders.

They believed her, of course. The murders had been so horrible, so ghastly, that they dominated the headlines. Every gory little detail. The blood. The limbs. The bite marks. So horrid. It was so traumatic, in fact, Anita lost her mind.

Poor Anita. Poor, poor baby. The Valentines became a household name, spoken about with equal parts sympathy and apathy. Anita, at least, had achieved her dream of becoming famous.

As for the child...the sad little creature’s name was changed, but it seemed that misfortune seemed to follow him wherever he went. Neighborhoods withered or turned against each other. Adults became paranoid or violent- either towards the poor little boy they took in, or anyone they might’ve already carried resentment towards.

It didn’t take long for Gael to become something not unlike a cuckoo. People would naturally seek to help the poor little boy, and for the most part, would come to regret it. In what little time that he has been alive, he has wandered quite far, sowing chaos and, in many cases, leaving his fair share of bodies behind (only rarely by his hand). He managed to snag the attention of a certain vampire, and when approached with the offer to join the Council, Gael accepted.

Gael is well aware that his status as a newcomer, as well as his tender age, puts him at a severe disadvantage. Nobody wants to listen to a child, after all, let alone be on equal footing with one. But charisma runs in the family, and he’s of the belief that this little power struggle that’s come about is the perfect time to bend a few ears his way.

Goals: Though Gael’s status as the Antichrist arguably puts a heavy destiny on his shoulders, he has little interest in apocalypses or world domination or what-have-you at the moment. At the end of the day, Gael is still a child, and what he strives for the most is entertainment (on top of his own survival, of course). Joining the council seemed like a delightful way of going about that.

Notes: He doesn’t have the resources or networks that many other Council members have backing them. A young boy can’t exactly run a business or own his own bank account, after all. This means that, until he’s older, he’s unfortunately dependent on others to do things for him.

Gael is also still a little baby antichrist. His powers are still woefully nowhere near the levels he would like them to be.

While he can’t remember too much about Anita, he still thinks fondly of her.