Skai

Santa Celia: Coast to Coast

@DocRock Welcome to the Guild! Please don’t feel nervous about joining the Discord. It’s mostly shitposting. RP discussion happens every now and then as well.

Can’t wait to see what character you create!

Sanctuary

Anyone want to make a Sanctuary spinoff?

Santa Celia: Coast to Coast

Eli

---

The bright afternoon sun shone high in the sky. Santa Celia's lunch rush was well under way as the bustle of the city filled the streets. Eli would have been walking down the same street she walked along now had she started her day with work instead of a vampire hunt. Any other day, Eli would have turned left at the next street and headed towards the park to enjoy the sunny day. Instead Eli continued forwards towards her apartment. She desperately wanted to take the long route home so she could think, but she could feel that her body and mind needed rest after her 12+ hour crusade.

Despite her exhaustion, Eli walked at a casual pace. The people around her seemed to blend into the background as she kept her eyes on the ground in front of her. Her right hand was inside of her jacket's pocket, gently grasping the lace mask. Touching it anchored her to reality; her mind was consumed with thoughts. She was going over everything that had happened last night, taking mental notes about certain details that hadn't struck her interest in the moment.

She barely noticed that she had arrived home until she found herself stepping into the alley next to the building. She glanced around to ensure that she was alone before she climbed up the fire escape to the third floor. Once there, she slowly raised her apartment's window and stepped into her kitchen. Eli promptly shut and locked the window before heading into a small hallway which simply held the front door. From there she turned right into the only other room.

She now stepped into her bedroom, which also served as a living area. She headed towards the closet, peeling off every layer of black clothing on her body. The mask she set down on her dresser. After lazily pulling on a t-shirt and sweats, Eli crawled into her bed and grabbed her phone from the nightstand.

There were only two notifications displayed on her screen. The first, an email from her boss. The second, a text from her mother. She huffed and set the phone back down. Either message was too much for her to handle at the moment. She would take care of everything later, after a decent moment of rest. With a sigh Eli pulled her comforter up over her head. She was fast asleep the second her eyes closed.

---

Hours later, Eli was roused from her sleep by her grumbling stomach. She groaned lightly and sat up in her bed, rubbing her tired eyes and pushing her hair back from her face. A quick glance at the clock on the wall told her it was evening and she realized that she hadn't eaten since yesterday. She shuffled her way into the kitchen and as she pulled open her fridge she also realized that she'd forgotten to get groceries as well. She'd have to go out for a bite.

Before leaving the comfort of her apartment, Eli took a hot shower to wash off the lingering smell of sweat and scorched vampire. She soon stood in front of her bathroom mirror in just a towel, looking over the scars on her shoulders from her tussle with the vampire. They'd heal soon. Aside from the cuts, Eli only sported a bruise here and there along her body- normal damage compared to the vampire's affliction.

Without putting too much effort into her outfit, Eli pulled on a pair of jeans and a long-sleeve shirt. She pulled her wet hair up into a ponytail and put on mascara and concealer to hide her tired eyes. She took a minute or so to put away the black clothes she'd left on the ground. She removed the note Kyle gave her from the pant's pocket and tucked it into the pocket of the jeans she wore now, which also reminded her to grab her phone from the night stand. On her way out of the door she grabbed a denim jacket, her keys, and her wallet.

A warm breeze greeted her as she stepped out of the complex and carried her down the street. She walked for a while, enjoying the city sights. The city seemed calm, which gave Eli a surreal feeling after this morning's events. Tonight there would no doubt be more vampires looking for a meal, but Eli wasn't sure if she could handle another night out. She'd have to get to work early tomorrow to apologize, and she planned on bringing coffee or donuts as a gift for her mentor's worries. She still wasn't sure what excuse she would use for missing work. Today had been the first time she'd ever missed. Perhaps she could forge a doctor's note and simply apologize for forgetting to call out.

Thinking of this reminded Eli that she hadn't contacted Kyle Foster yet. She pulled the note from her pocket, reading over the ten digits before she put them into her phone. She sent him a message.

"Hello, Foster. Its Eli. Give me a call whenever you need help."

After the message sent Eli checked the message from her mother. She rolled her eyes as she read it. Her stepfather would be joining them for lunch tomorrow. Something about "he wants to spend time with you" and "he's not as bad as you think he is", which honestly made Eli want to barf. In the years she'd known Hank, she had unofficially diagnosed him as narcissistic, a pathological liar, and that he had a smidge of a god complex. Basically, Hank was a total douche and she was surprised that he could even fool her mother into loving him.

Eli tucked her phone back into her pocket and shook her head. She could already tell she was going to have a fantastic day tomorrow. With that thought, Eli looked up to see a bar down the street and decided that she was going to have a drink or two with her dinner. She hadn't been to this bar yet, and the name intrigued her. Her stomach growled, as if it was saying that it didn't care where she went. So, without making her stomach wait another second, Eli stepped through the doors of the Tír na nÓg.

Santa Celia: Coast to Coast

Vertigo and Kyle Foster

_{Written with @SepticGentleman}

---

The brutish vampire charged forth towards Kyle, who reacted by ducking past the creature as it lunged forward. As the two reoriented to face each other once again, Kyle made the split second decision to jump down the hole in the floor that the vampire had made with his entrance. Not standing to lose sight of his prey, the vampire snarled loudly, spraying a bit of blood-mixed saliva out of his fetid hole of a mouth, before jumping upwards and stamping his feet hard on the wooden floor, which proceeded to break beneath him. He’d dropped to the next floor down, in pursuit of his prey.

Above them, Eli was just now regaining her composure. The monster vampire had horrified Eli into a state of frozen shock. The fact that normal vampires existed had been enough for Eli to grasp already, but the fact that things like this thing lived in the city was a bit harder to comprehend. Nonetheless, the danger that both herself and this masked man were now in filled Eli with an intense need to neutralize the threat. This monster couldn’t be set free into the city. It shouldn’t even exist!

Now awakened from her stupor, Eli dashed towards the stairs to join the man on the floor below. The dimly lit hallway hid the awaiting ambush, and just as Eli enhanced her perception of light the vampire attacked. Eli had only taken her first step into the dark stairway when out of the blue the vampire barreled into her. Sharp, claw-like nails dug into Eli’s shoulders, and the two were sent backwards into the hallway. Eli’s back took most of the impact, and Eli felt her breath leave her body for the second time.

“Ssstupid human,” the woman hissed down at her prey as she straddled Eli. She dug her claws further into Eli’s shoulders and grinned when she felt them break through Eli’s clothing and into warm skin. Eli wriggled beneath her, finding it difficult to reduce her own perception of the pain. She clenched her teeth together and glared up at her attacker, sucking air back into her lungs with a grimace. ”I thought you left the party,” she grunted as she strained to move out from under the vampire.

“I brought someone to finish your friend off. I’m going to join him right after I feast on you.” The vampire ran her tongue over her razor-sharp fangs. She released Eli’s left shoulder and raised a bloody nail to her mouth. Eli huffed, her eyebrows furrowing in anger as the concentrated on the woman’s perception. When she finally tasted the blood, it would be as tasteless as water.

The vampire’s face contorted in disgust, looking down at Eli. “What the fuck?” She leant down until she was inches away from Eli’s throat and inhaled deeply through her mouth. Eli’s body was tense beneath her, but she kept her head together.

”You will never smell or taste blood again. What you enjoy the most in your wretched life has been taken away forever.” She said cooly. The vampire didn’t know that it was a lie and as her fury turned her eyes a scarlet hue Eli took advantage of her momentary lapse of control. She bucked the vampire off of her, sending the enraged female tumbling forwards and into the floor below.

The vampire landed with a thud on her back. Momentarily dazed, her view of the floor above cleared just in time to see Eli jump through the hole. She let out a murderous snarl just before the rail sunk straight into the vampire’s mouth. The sharp fangs snapped and fell into the back of the vampire’s throat, and the impact of the rail landing against her windpipe had been enough to shatter the already broken bones in her neck.

Now paralyzed, the vampire’s body twitched between Eli’s feet. She stepped away from the vamp and pushed a few stray hairs away from her face. For a moment Eli felt relief, until the weight of her actions dawned on her. She’s going to starve. She thought, regretfully releasing her abilities affect on the vampire.

And just as the brief moment of reprise began, it ended with the two downstairs bringing their fight back up to its previous elevation. Kyle, looking worse for wear, suddenly shot upwards through one of the holes in the floor, catching the edge and scrambling upwards. The moment he was free, the brute vampire followed in, looking like just as much damage had been done to him. Bullet wounds riddled his arms, as if he had been using them as a shield, and they seemed somewhat limp from all the silver stinging him from the inside. Kyle, now upright, moved away from the vampire towards Eli, and raised his gun towards the creature. As the vampire stood upright, Kyle began shooting once more. The vampire charged forward, holding his arms up to cover his head as the bullets tore through his upper body.

The brute was coming at Kyle full force, relying on pure instincts to guide him to his next meal. Suddenly a louder noise pierced his pointy ears, and it intensified until it was the only sound the monster could hear. Enraged, the monster barreled straight over Kyle. Claw marks were left inches away from the Tourist’s torso and head. The monster grabbed at the walls beside him, lurching him forwards towards the human creating the sound.

Eli immediately stopped hitting the wall with her fist, glad that her trick had worked. She stepped backwards into a room with a larger curtain than the one she awoke in. She grabbed the curtain and tore it down. The sunlight was enough to blind Eli momentarily. She turned in time for the monster reached the room, and warped his vision into seeing nothing but darkness. He burst through the doorway, leaving a large chunk missing from the frame, and dove straight into the sunlight.

Eli backed away, shielding her eyes as the monster instantly burst into flame. The monster collapsed to the ground, emitting a shriek loud enough to hurt Eli’s eardrums. It angrily started towards Eli, writhing as it drug its burning body across the floor. As it attempted to pick itself up to make one final attempt on her life, its movement - and its screams - were both halted by a barrage of bullets embedded in the creature’s back, and several in its head, rattling around in its skull and tearing its brain apart.

It went limp, falling forward. With a loud thud, all that was left of the brute was an actively burning corpse, though the flames began to wane rather quickly once the creature’s un-life came to a conclusive end. Eli’s attention was drawn away from the slain creature to the man who had slain it. Kyle lowered his gun, staring down at the vampire, no expression escaping through his mask and goggles.

With a moment to relax, Eli took a deep breath. She immediately gagged to herself and covered her mouth and nose with her hand. “Ugh,” she muttered before looking over at the masked man. “Thanks.” She moved towards him, stepping around the enormous pile of burnt flesh.

“Still one more, above us,” Kyle replied, with only a nod before he spoke. “Need info out of him. C’mon.” He turned, rather confident that he and Eli were on the same proverbial page. As he went down the hallway, he didn’t give so much as a pause as he aimed his pistol down at the paralyzed female vampire, putting one bullet in her head and killing her for good. He made his way towards the greatly damaged staircase, with Eli in tow.

Santa Celia: Coast to Coast

Vertigo

---

^{In the Middle of the Night}

Flashing red and blue lights illuminated a shattered windowpane that belonged to a small convenience store. Outside a flustered worker made large gestures between the broken window and the two dazed men currently being read their Miranda rights.

"-but just as I'm about to hand over the cash this chick bursts in! She's got on a lace mask that covered the top half of her face. I thought I was about to be double-robbed. The ugly one," he said as he gestured towards the blonde man ducking his head as he was shoved into a cruiser, "turned the gun towards her and just as he's about to pull the trigger the chick snaps her fingers." He snapped his finger as a demonstration, accidentally startling the officer.

"These guys flip out asking what happened to the lights and acting like they couldn't see. Ugly misses the girl and shoots the window. He starts whipping the gun around but the girl is right there whipping out a baton and whacks it out of his hand before he could shoot again. I dive for the phone while they're distracted and as I'm giving my address I hear this loud crashing sound." He gestured with both hands towards the scattered pieces of glass on the sidewalk.

"When I stand up, I see that the window is completely broken, those assholes are laying outside the store, and the chick is still standing. I think she pushed them out of the window!"

The officer skeptically looked at the broken glass. His brows furrowed before he turned to the clerk. "So, you're saying that a masked woman blinded the robbers, unarmed them, and threw them out of the window?"

The man nodded enthusiastically. "Uh-huh. She was a little below 6 feet and was wearing all black." He watched the police officer take note of this. "The lace was black too."

---

Eli slowed to a stop as the flashing lights no longer lit the sky behind her. She was drunk with exhaustion, and was about to consider an Uber home when she noticed two steps up ahead. She gratefully sat down, resting her back against the door behind her. Loud club music drifted through it, and muted voices could be heard between the loud thumps of the stereos.

Five minutes, Eli. After five minutes you'll walk yourself straight home to your bed. She thought to herself. Her eyes slowly shut, deciding to just listen to the music as she rested. She'd just been about to fall asleep when footsteps could be heard approaching the door alongside the voice of a man and a woman. Eli shoved herself to her feet, stumbling every other step as she moved to hide behind a dumpster.

Moments later, she heard the door open. The woman was laughing, obviously a little too intoxicated. The man's voice sounded clear and sober as he murmured something into her ear. Soon after, the two could be heard kissing. Eli rolled her eyes, pivoting on her foot as she prepared to quietly make her way out of the alley.

"You're gonna like hangin' with us," the man said as the woman stopped to catch her breath. "You're gonna help us find more pretty girls just like you."

Eli stopped moving just as she reached the other side of the dumpster, peeking around the dumpster to check if the two lovers were distracted. The man was leaning in to kiss her neck, his hands gripping her albeit rather tightly. Just as Eli was about to make her getaway, the man emitted a loud hiss. As Eli turned her head back to the two, the woman screamed, her pain echoing in the alley.

Adrenaline instantly flooded her system as the scream rattled Eli's bones. She'd never heard someone scream like that before, and it seemed as if all of the color was draining from the woman's face. She was dying, and Eli couldn't allow that to happen.

"Let her go!" She shouted to the man as she walked straight towards him. She reached for her baton, but froze as the man turned his head. The whites of his eyes were an intense crimson, and he released another hiss through bloody fangs. "Oh look, I've found your first meal," he purred to the pale woman in his hands before he let her slump to the ground. Before Eli could make the first move, the man lunged towards her.

It happened quickly. Eli first removed the man's perception of light completely, and he hissed as his hands grasped at nothing but air. He inhaled deeply and grinned, turning to face the exact position Eli had shifted to. "You're a tricky catch. I bet you'd do well workin' for us. I'll let my partner decide once we get you girls home." He lunged again, and this time as Eli ducked to the side he turned as well. In instant she felt his vice-like grip on her arms, and the air was forced from her lungs as he pinned her against the wall.

Her focus on him instantly vanished and the man regained his sight. Eli looked right into the eyes of the vampire, the realization dawning on her. Without a warning, the limit of her abilities reached it's peak. Her body slackened, and she muttered one word as her vision faded to black.

"Vampire"

---

^{One Recharge Later}

Eli's eyes slowly opened to a dimly lit room. She was laying on a couch facing the cushions, and it smelt of iron and death. Behind her she could hear someone writhing in agony. A man's voice sounded nearby. "I don't know, man. She's definitely got the looks, and if she can do what you say she can she'd double the amount of girls we'd get." The man seemed to be thinking hard. "I just knows she's gonna be a bitch to train."

As the vampires continued to argue, probably about what to do with her, Eli remained in her "sleeping" position while her eyes scanned what she could see through the lace in such a dark room. She turned her eyes to see a thick, black curtain covering what she assumed was a window. Well... I guess I'll have to hope that sunlight does burn a vampire's skin. She thought just in time to hear the men reach a conclusion. "Whatever, man. Do what you want. If she starts causin' problems, we'll just get rid of her." The other man spoke and she recognized his voice. It was the one from the alley. "Don't you worry about that, X. She won't be the first bitch I've broken." She could hear him stepping towards her. "Anyways, it looks like the one from the club isn't going to make it."

Eli clenched her jaw. She was not about to find out what these vampires were doing with women firsthand. When it sounded like the vampire was in front of the couch, she shot up and grabbed the curtain with both hands. She tugged with all of her might, ripping the curtain from it's place. Sunlight poured into the room, and Eli realized that she had missed work this morning. She was at least thankful that it was daylight, and she turned to see the vampire's skin begin to boil. He let out an enraged cry. "Uuugghh! You fuckin' bitch!"

Satisfied that her theory was right, she looked to see the other vampire calling for backup. She saw another window across the room and ran for it. She had to step to the side to avoid the inflamed arms reaching her way. With a small jump she was able to grab the curtain's rail and she used her weight to rip it off of it's mount. The room was filled with more sunlight, and the unscathed vampire stepped back to avoid the light. "Alright, cunt, you know there's only one way out of here now, and that's going to happen as soon as my buddies get up here. Step out of the light and I'll even let it happen quickly. We're under protection of the 6th Street Blood Cult, and if you make it out of here alive they will find you."

Eli frowned and ripped the curtain off of the rail, brandishing the latter like a weapon. "That girl is dying because of you two, and I'm feeling a lot stronger than I was when I met your blistering friend here. Let's see how you and your buddies do and we'll go from there." She quipped, her eyes glinting in the sunlight from beneath the lace. She seemed confident on the outside, but inside she wondered if she really could take on a group of vampires. She remained in the light, gathering any courage and energy she could as she waited for his first move.

Santa Celia: Coast to Coast

Santa Celia: Coast to Coast

Vertigo

---

^Midnight

The streets of Santa Celia always seemed different at night. During the day everyone had a place to be, a friend to chat with, or an important phone call to make as they passed through the streets. All of the healthy, everyday folks filled the city with a chaotic hum. At night, they all retired; they preferred to stay indoors, where it was safe and comfortable. Those who took to the streets under the moonlight were the odd ones: the outcasts, the night owls, the ones who roamed the streets endlessly in search of booze, drugs, or pleasure. Most of the crime in Santa Celia took place in the silence of the night. The day was for the citizens, but the night was owned by the criminals.

The word silent is a term used loosely in Santa Celia. While nights in Santa Celia are considered silent compared to the cacophony of the day, the quiet never lasts longer than five minutes at best. Intermittent sounds fill the night with eerie tones. A car speeds through the streets, its tires screeching as it makes a sharp turn. In the distance, the shouts of a drunk man echo against the walls of an alley. In another direction, an infants cry is heard through an open window. Another way, a gunshot fills the air and soon sirens wail through the streets.

Eli stepped soundlessly through the shadows, her feet barely making a sound against the concrete as she listened to these sounds. Her bright eyes peered through the lace mask, slowly taking in her surroundings. Which direction would she take tonight? Would she venture far away from her side of the city, or stay in the area she knew as well as the back of her hand? She couldn't decide, so she continued to stroll through the night, listening and waiting for a chance to take action. She found herself heading downtown, where she was familiar with the stretch of bars and clubs mixed into the lavish restaurants and shopping centers of Santa Celia. There was always trouble where there was booze.

It didn't take long before Eli could hear a distant cry of help, followed by a muffled scream. Eli's head snapped to look in its direction before her body turned and dashed towards it. As the distance between herself and the scene shortened, she could could hear two gruff voices speaking alongside the terrified whimpers of a distressed woman. She neared the corner of a wall and pressed her back against it before slowly peeking around the corner into the alley. Two men roughly in their late-twenties had a woman no older than 24 pressed against a dumpster. A scraggly, small man covered the woman's mouth with one hand, and in the other hand he held a gun at her stomach. A tall, ghostly man was rummaging through her purse and pocketing any cash, credit cards, or other items he deemed valuable. He finished quickly and tossed the purse aside, then turned to look at his partner. "Get 'er jewelry. This bitch came out of The Parlour. She must'a paid at least a hundred bucks to get in. Nobody's gonna walk inta that kind of club wearing fake diamonds."

The shorter one grinned, bearing his yellow teeth to the woman. "Alright, lil lady. Take off your jewelry, hand it over to my buddy here, and you'll get out of this okay. Any funny business and you'll regret it. Capiche?" The woman, overwhelmed by her fear, simply wailed into the man's hand. The man growled and moved to press the gun against her head. "Now!" Eli felt her entire body tense with rage as the woman became nothing more than a sobbing mess. Without another second to waste, she stepped into the alley and pulled the baton from her waist. It snapped open, and Eli hit it against a metal pipe close by. As the men were startled by the noise, Eli focused her mind on theirs and altered their perception of the sound to be loud enough to overwhelm their eardrums.

The taller man collapsed to his knees, covering his ears and groaning. “What the fuck!?” He wailed. His partner cried out, removing his hand from the woman's mouth to cover his ear. He turned to see Eli standing five feet before them, poised next to another pipe in case she needed to replicate the sound. “Who the fuck are you?” He shouted as he released the woman and covered his other ear with the gun. The woman sunk to her knees and stared at the men as if they had gone crazy. To her, the noise had barely been enough to cause an echo in the alley.

Eli glared at the men before her and gripped the baton tighter. “Give the woman back her belongings or you’re going to find out the hard way,” she hissed. As an incentive, Eli banged the baton against the pipe once more, raising the volume of the sound loud enough for them to think they felt pain. The men wailed together, each clutching at their ears tighter than before.

“Fuck. You.” The man with the gun growled through his teeth. The second man seemed to agree with his partner. “Shoot her, Russ! She ain’t human!” Just as Russ began to aim his gun towards the masked woman, Eli raised her hand and snapped her fingers. Within seconds, the men’s perception of depth drastically malfunctioned. The ground beneath them fluctuated like a wave in the ocean, and the walls in the alley seemed to sway like trees in the wind. Their heads were suddenly overcome with dizziness and nausea. Both men groaned, and the shorter one joined his partner on the ground. The gun fell from Russ's hand\ and clattered against the concrete. Eli swiftly stepped forwards to kick it aside. "Uugghh, I'm gonna be sick," Russ moaned aloud. "What the fuck is goin' on?" His partner didn't respond; instead, he turned and proceeded to empty his stomach onto the ground.

Eli grimaced at the sight. She quickly turned her attention elsewhere, to the woman who still sat in shocked silence. "Are you alright? Don't worry, they'll be like this long enough for the police to arrive." As the woman seemed to collect herself, Eli grabbed her purse from the ground and helped the woman to her feet. She pulled the woman's phone from her purse, dialed 911 for her, and gave it to her. "You know what to do. Take care of yourself, okay?" She said with a soft smile. She could only imagine what was going on inside of the woman's head right now.

The woman opened her mouth, as if to say something or ask Eli a question, but Eli was already walking away. An emergency operator answered the phone, and the woman raised the phone to her ear. "Y-yes, I've.. I've been mugged.... No, they're still here. Someone stopped them..."

Eli turned the corner of the alley and stopped. She had to stay close to the men in order to keep the illusion going. She saw a fire escape above her and climbed up onto the second story. From there, she listened to the woman give the operator her location and soon sirens blazed through the city. Eli stayed until the police arrived, ensuring that the men were still feeling the effects of their punishment. As soon as the first officer stepped out of his car, Eli disappeared into the night. She was beginning to feel the toll of her abilities weigh her body down, but she pressed on. Eli would not rest until she was overwhelmed with exhaustion. So she continued to stick to the shadows of the streets, ready for the next cry of help to pierce through the not-so-silent night.

Santa Celia: Coast to Coast

Almost done with a post. Should be up tomorrow night.

Santa Celia: Coast to Coast

Post up by the end of this week! Would have posted sooner but I was home for a bit.

Santa Celia: Coast to Coast

VERTIGO

Additional Images _______________________________________________ Eli Collins _______________________________________________ 02/19/96 | 22 | _______________________________________________ Single | ♀ | Heterosexual _______________________________________________ Psych Student at the Santa Celia University | Interns as Psychologist's Assistant _______________________________________________ Physical Profile ___________________________________ [+] //Basics: • Height | 5'-8" • Weight | 126 lbs • Build | Slender • Hair Colour | Brunette • Eye Colour | Blue Green Miscellaneous Items ___________________________________ [+] //Notes: • Life as an Assistant | As an assistant, Eli works from 9 to 12 each day, taking calls, making appointments, and keeping Dr. Matt's office tidy. Sometimes she is allowed to sit in on special appointments to keep notes for the doctor. Dr. Matt's practice is one of the finest in Santa Celia and occasionally they interview criminals. //Paraphernalia: • 21" Collapsible Baton | Eli straps a holstered baton to her hip. She uses it as both a form of protection and pain inducer.

Appearance Details ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔ Standing at 5'8", Eli's slender frame is highlighted by her long legs. Her skin is a warm ivory tone and soft sunspots dot her shoulders, arms, and legs. Her medium-length, tousled hair is a chocolate brown with subtle highlights due to her time in the sun. She is normally seen with a blank face yet her bright, bluish-green eyes observe everything. When she genuinely smiles, two dimples appear in her cheeks and thin lines form around her eyes. She doesn't put a lot of effort into her makeup, simply wearing concealer to hide the bags under her eyes, mascara, and a thin, smokey eyeliner to enhance her eyes. Eli's sense of style is marked by quirky, chic ensembles ranging between comfy casual and trendy new looks. One day she'll wear a t-shirt or sweater with skinny jeans and converse; the next day she'll be in stylish pants and an intricate top. It all depends on what she has planned for the day and what side of the bed she wakes up on. She sticks to neutral colours, occasionally wearing one color that pops. The only jewelry she prefers are minimalist earrings and necklaces. Small tattoos dot her arms: a moon and line on her left arm, and an art piece on her right forearm. As Vertigo, Eli dons an all black ensemble that is tight to her frame so she can be fast and nimble. Her hair is straightened and loose around her shoulders. To hide her identity, she wears various lace masks that obscure her upper face and long sleeves to hide her tattoos. Personality ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔ According to the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, Eli identifies as an ISFP (Introverted, sensing, feeling, perceiving). As Eli grew up she learned to appreciate being independent. While she enjoys the company of others, her happiest moments are spent by herself. During the day she enjoys walking about the city and taking in the sights. She especially loves discovering new coffee shops and restaurants with great food. In fact, she knows the best places to go for any type of craving. She even knows the best bars in her area. In fact, on the nights she doesn't don the lace mask she can be found at one of those bars or out having late night snacks. When someone first meets Eli, they notice that she is at first quiet, unassuming, and hard to get to know. However, once the initial wall is removed Eli is warm, friendly, and eager to experience as much as possible with their new friend by their side. She tends to avoid the spotlight, preferring to sit peacefully on the sidelines until she has something to say. She carefully observes the actions of those around her and compares their perceptions to her own, always trying to understand the world around her. She is normally the type to compromise, and avoids conflict as much as possible. This said, Eli still has the fierceness of a protector. She will stand up for anyone that needs it, and it is wise to stay out of her way when she gets this way. If her friends ever need her, she will always step in with quiet, unassuming assistance. She is certainly the type to put other's needs before her own. This sometimes causes trouble in her personal life, and she can easily feel overwhelmed when she puts her own needs aside for too long. Occasionally this can cause periods where Eli is unreachable as she takes some time to herself, but she understands that in order to help others she must help herself first. As soon as she is recharged, she's ready to start right back where she left off.

_{Character Synopsis
^{▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔}}

Eli was born in the Árido Valley to a single, twenty-something mother who had no clue who her father was. The two lived in a small house thirty minutes from Santa Celia and a short drive to the Tlaloc Falls. During the week Eli lived a lonely existence while her mother worked long hours. When school let out she'd spend time with her neighbourhood friends until they had to go home for dinner, and then let herself into the house to eat a bowl of cereal until her mom came home. She was happiest on the weekend, when her mother took her on hikes around the waterfall and road trips into the city. They had a strong bond and were inseparable until Eli reached the age of ten. Soon after school ended, her mother found a man that could potentially take all of their money-worries away. She began to spend more time with this man, and Eli could tell that this would become a permanent problem.

It was during this time that Eli's abilities began to appear. She began to have small outbursts at school, her pent up frustration erupting into small fights with bullies. The first time she ever used her power was on a boy named Dillon Bolt, a bulky bully and borderline sociopath. As he towered over a younger child at recess, Eli confronted him with a fierce blow to the cheek. Normally a hit from a small girl wouldn't phase anyone, but as Dillon Bolt fell to the ground screaming bloody murder Eli knew something had changed. As she sat in the principle's office, she couldn't help but remember that she had wished she could hit him hard enough to knock him off his feet.

These disruptions lasted until seventh grade. There would always be a bully, and Eli would stand up for their victims every chance she could. Unfortunately these acts of heroism did nothing to convince her mother that she hadn't done anything wrong. It only drove a larger wedge between them. In no time at all, her mother announced that she was going to marry the man that had ruined Eli's happiness. They'd be moving into his home in Santa Celia in the next week. No matter how much her mother tried to convince her that this would be a good change, Eli would always resent her step-father.

Over the next few years Eli would start a new school, be named Eli Collins after her step-father, and remain an outcast in the inner city school. She didn't mind being lonely now. It gave her time to figure out what was going on with her mind, discovering new tricks she could play on other's minds. It was in AP psychology that she learned the meaning of sensation and perception and finally figured out exactly what she could do with this power. In that moment, she decided to pursue a career in psychology.

After graduating from high school Eli announced that she would be going to the local community college. She also wished to live on her own. She was prepared to support herself, but her mother had been saving for her college since she was born. It was even enough to cover half a years worth of rent. Eli soon found her own place, right in the heart of the city, and began to attend school. She found a job at a small boutique to earn spending money. Throughout this time she began using her ability less and less, almost forgetting about it's existence. Contact with her mother was made through weekly lunch visits, and their relationship began to grow once more.

In 2017, Eli was walking home after closing the shop to find two men surrounding a woman in an alley. She had just been about to call the police when the ringleader reminded her of Dillon Bolt. She hung up her phone and walked straight into the fray. After a quick bout of threats from the men, Eli managed to take them both down by simply tapping them on the forehead. She'd successfully saved her first citizen. The thrill of saving this one life filled her heart with the same feeling she had experienced at school those many years ago. She quit her job and found an internship during the day as a psychologist's assistant. She began to take long nightly walks just to run into trouble. Her ability slowly grew each time she helped someone and soon she could easily produce auditory, visual, and physical illusions. Just recently Eli began to don a lace mask and black clothes, intentionally going out at night to fulfill her role as protector of the weak: Vertigo.

_{Abilities & Skills
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_//Ability:

Sensation/Perception Manipulation | With every second, our brains are receiving stimuli for sensations such as sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch. Those sensations are then sent to the brain, where the mind processes these sensations and determines how they will be perceived. Every sensation must pass a threshold limit in order for the mind to notice it. Eli's ability allows her to access these sensations and manipulate the threshold limit for those stimuli by either raising or lowering it. She could lower the threshold of someone with a paper cut to feel immense pain, or increase the threshold of someone's photo-receptors to blind them.

While this method is effective, there are limits to the amount a threshold can be manipulated. This is where Eli's ability affects the perception of this stimuli as well. In theory, the mind tends to group the senses together so that it is easier to process. This allows the mind to interpret similarity, proximity, and continuity, of the size, shape, brightness, and distance of an object. This can affect balance, depth perception, and the awareness of the victim's surroundings. In terms of pain and the sensation of touch, the brain receives the stimuli from the nerves in varying amounts. The effect of these sensations can be altered by the mind's perception of them. For example, if heat was applied to a person's arm the mind could translate that heat as pain if it thinks the arm is burning, or the mind can perceive it as a warm welcome on a winter day. Likewise, touch can be perceived as pain or pleasure as well. It all depends on the mind's interpretation of these stimuli. By manipulating the perception of another's senses, Eli is able to create auditory and optical illusions as well as illusions of pain.

Limitation(s) | Manipulating so many processes of the mind requires a high level of focus and energy, therefore a complete auditory and visual illusion is reserved for dire situations. Even so, there are moments where subtle errors in the illusion can be noticed by keen eyes. Eli's ability only affects someone within a range of twenty feet, growing inch by inch as Eli learns to control her ability. While each illusion may be enough to fool the mind, they are still only illusions and cannot physically affect anything.

Weakness(es) | The level of focus and energy required to produce and maintain an illusion determines the level of exhaustion Eli will experience afterwards. Producing total auditory, visual, and physical illusions causes heavy strain mentally and physically that could last for an entire day. Eli is also only human and lacks in the physical department of vigilantism.

_//Skills:

Self-Defense | Eli began to take self-defense classes half a year ago, learning easy ways to dodge attacks and stun opponents. In these classes she was trained to use a baton. She applies these skills in the rare moments she needs to fight.

_{Supporting Cast
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Haley Collins: Mother, appears once a week.

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