Arthur Henderson
Born to an affluent British businessman, of whose description Arthur is not party to, and a Brooklyn born woman who worked as a 'Call Girl', this young man's early life could hardly be described as either supportive or loving. While aware of his father's identity, Arthur has never met the man nor received any gift directly from him beyond the money paid for his silence on the matter of his parentage. On the other hand, his mother rather dangerously retired from her career and evaded the clutches of her controlling pimp, hoping that a move to Maine and its associated troubles would fend off all but the most determined of pursuits.
Still, it would be a mistake to assume that Arthur lived a hard early life as the offspring of an out of work prostitute. His mother, and after her passing he in turn, was and still is paid a handsome sum, or a pension as his distant father refers to it as, for upkeep. While not absurdly comfortable, there was no notion of a return visit by his father, Arthur has never been left wanting or fighting for scraps. After his mother's passing the payments reduced in value drastically but still assured him a decent income even without supplementary work. Which is just as well as Arthur has much to occupy his time without including the trials of employment, due to his being a mystic.
Having few memories of his childhood as a whole, Arthur has but a vague remembrance of venturing in the Void as a toddler. Momentarily free from his mother's grasp, he found himself within the Void and beyond that his memories are increasingly blurred. He mostly recalls that time within his dreams and each time the events change, the encounters he has and the experience distorted to the point he has dismissed all such recollections and looks to his more recent ventures which he can remember with much more clarity.
However, study of the Void has consumed the vast majority of his adolescent life to date. His mother passed without much fanfare, few close connections formed in their new home to protect against pursuit from her former employer, leaving him free to chase whichever desire took his fancy. She had carefully been squirreling away funds for his future life, presumably for a university path of one kind or another, but instead Arthur purchased their home and ensured he would have sufficient income through careful investment, alongside the continued cross-Atlantic payments from his father, to instead spend his time studying the Void and its intrusions upon the real world.
Much of this learning has been invested in the study of music, the link between sound and the Void being a well documented one amongst certain circles. While he is no natural virtuoso, Arthur has learned to employ various musical instruments in his ventures as well more basic forms of sound in an emergency, such as whistling. His preferred instrument is of bells, seven varying in size and strapped into a bandoleer for no reason other than his childhood adoration of the author Garth Nix and his peculiar take on Necromancy involving seven bells; even his intellectual mind could not resist the flavors of early life's influence.
Somewhere along the way, in his studies, this young man decided that The Division was well intentioned in its attempts to limited the impact of the Void upon normal life but misguided in its mistrust in all things Void-related. Arthur has a strong belief in Mystics and their importance in resolving the issues the Void poses, rather than being merely a symptom of it. Often he will employ vaccination as a metaphorical example although it is not one that stands up to much scrutiny. Fond of his daily life as it stands, simple with an intellectual pursuit of something that consistent defies standard academic study (the Void itself), Arthur would rather than any forthcoming calamity be avoided so that he can pursue his interest with little interference and as such will ally with the Division where he can, although without revealing himself where possible.
I D E O L O G Y
Born into the several dysfunctional 'family' that he was, Arthur's upbringing involved little to no religious thought, education or influence. While he was aware of religion in and of itself, it was through his study of the Void that he learned most of the major faiths; specifically in relation to the Void. As such he holds no faith himself, choosing not to tackle such a complex topic when he has the juicy and as yet largely unexplored subject of the Void to map out. Still, if pressed he may identify as Agnostic, unswayed by the arguments of the particularly evangelical sects but also disinterested in the harsh tones of the hardline atheists. With the existence of something like the Void, this young man finds it hard to completely disregard any idea of deities, religion or belief but equally finds the institutionalised regimes of doctrinal faith to be far too restrictive for his own taste.
As a person he is independent almost to the point of being self-involved. So absorbed is he in his pursuit of knowledge, not only of the Void but of wisdom and information in general, that he lacks key communication and social skills and moves independently to most life. When he comes across others, particularly in relation to the Void, he may treat them as a symptom of the events occurring rather than a person. That is not to say that he is unemotional and does not recognise the importance of human life but it certainly gives him an air of near-complete detachment. Despite this, he is someone who naturally inclines to kindness and compassion especially to those in need, more so when those are younger than himself.
When it comes to the Void as a general concept and whether is good or evil, Arthur has no hard or fast beliefs and his views are open to influence from others although more so when he is observing rather than when his being preached to.
A P P E A R A N C E
Arthur stands at a mere five foot, nine inches tall. At the age of twenty one he is fully grown and his height is perhaps the only source of inferiority he ever feels, often standing in the shadow of those his own age although particularly men. He has an athlete's frame although not one that is well support by muscle, being somewhat of an armchair academic. Still, he exercises regularly and is in good shape leaving him at a little over 180 pounds with no excess fat on his lean frame. He has relatively broad shoulders, having grown into them in his adolescence, and a broad face. His eyes are a bright blue although often appear darker when seen through the lenses of his glasses while his hair is a dark blond, cut short and combed sideways with no gel products used. From time to time he may even sport a short and carefully trimmed beard although that largely depends on the time of year. He has no particularly distinctive features and finds it easy to slip into a crowd.
Year round he tends to wear suit trousers, a short-sleeved but still formal shirt with a v-neck jumper. During the cooler months of spring and Autumn he will often wear a matching suit jacket and in the coldest depths of winter, or when he intends to interact with the Void, he will wear a charcoal greatcoat. Whenever wearing a jacket he will also wear a grey or black fedora, his sole accessory.
W A R F A R E
WIP
T R I V I A
- Twenty two years old
- Despite living in the US his entire life has a strangely British accent
- Acts far older than he is and his eyes give the impression that he views the world through 'older eyes'
- Holds several online or distance-learning degrees varying from History to specific sciences
- Loves fantasy novels, especially those aimed at the 'Young Adult' audience.
