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8 mos ago
Current Some of y'all are either too old to act the way you act, or too young to be taken seriously. Hard to tell some days.
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C H A R A C T E R C O N C E P T P R O P O S A L
C O U N T V E R T I G O


W E R N E R V E R T I G O M A L E 3 3 V L A T A V A
C H A R A C T E R C O N C E P T:


"You beurocrats are too idiotic to understand diplomatic immunity, but smart enough to know who can get the job done."

How does one describe the rightful ruler of a nation that has been, so to speak, spiritually eradicated by an unhinged genocidal ghost? Well, according to the United States and the International Criminal Court... you would call him a war criminal who has violated the civil rights and liberties of countless individuals in a power grab to claim the former Republic of Vlatava. Werner Vertigo was once a young and eccentric tinkerer looking to reclaim his rightful property with the aid of his vertigo effect. One run in with the Green Arrow and Black Canary, and the rich playboy developed a taste for the dramatic.

Warner Vertigo became a master thief and criminal, before finding himself in a strange position doing subcontracting work for US military intelligence. There came a time when political strife in Vlatava caught the interest of the United States and "Count Vertigo" himself. Vertigo had people to save, and he saved many through the diligent extermination of any who opposed his perfectly reasonable direct lineage to the Vlatavan monarchy. The suits in US intelligence were pleased to bankroll and sponsor yet another violent coup if it weakened a hostile state. When all was said and done, Vlatava was left in ruins and Werner Vertigo took a victory lap trip to the Carribean. The Spectre was appaled by the events in Vlatava, and destroyed the entire country. It didn't take long, then, for the International Community to uncover the horrors of the Vlatavan Civil War and pin those atrocities in a single man. Werner was pissed to find the very government that helped support his efforts were now locking him up in Belle Reeve to try and keep his political affiliations under wraps. He has been given some minor plastic surgery and a new inmate name: "Cecil Zytle." They aren't fooling anyone, though... as there is only one Count Vertigo.

A B I L I T I E S:



Vertigo Effect: Due to significant modification of cochlear implants in his ears, Vertigo developed a way to use subsonic sound waves to disrupt technology and people in Vertigo's vicinity at will. He can choose what targets to effect and can determine the severity of the vertigo symptoms. As it relates to technology, attempts to target or detect Vertigo directly can be mildly disrupted to prevent a clear read on the Count.

A Duelist, through and through: Vertigo was trained from a young age in martial arts and in fencing as noble pursuits of athleticism. When he grew into a master thief and CIA asset, these skills were refined even further. Werner has a strong distate for guns or any other "uncivilized" weaponry, instead choosing to rely on his body or his fists.

Technologically Gifted: Werner, if he received the proper education and had the desire to do so, would have been a marvelous engineer. Instead, Werner has chosen to dedicate himself to the arts of creating impressive technological wonders. Being a thief and criminal, Werner learned to get his way around security and communication systems as well. Even nobility needs to learn how to roll up their sleeves and design equip.ent to do their job for them.

Magnetic / Levitating Boots: Werner's most useful invention besides his modified implants are his boots, which possess the key features of being Magnetic enough to allow him to walk along metal walls and ceilings... as well as emit a powerful subsonic frequency that can allow him to float and levitate. The batteries for this thing do require him to wear a cape to remain looking stylish while using the boots.

C H A R A C T E R M O T I V A T I O N S & G O A L S:

Count Vertigo's primary desire is to be set free at some point so he can eventually try to rebuild his family home in Vlatava. He is incredibly prideful, and sees his parent's flight from Vlatava to avoid political extermination to be a grave sin that he had to absolve. While he's not one to show it, he does feel severe guilt for what he had a hand in. He was a pawn of the rebel forces who got saddled with the responsibility for the aftermath, and Werner now has a desire to make up for what happened. At the end of the day, he wants to either die doing something heroic to clear his name in his own mind, or to eventually be able to retire into obscurity at his family estate.

Vertigo is a great fit to fill a support and utility role on the team when it comes to what he's capable of doing. As for his story, I definitely want to focus on a character arc and growth for Werner as he learns to process what he's been through and learning to let go of his pride in true service of others.

C H A R A C T E R N O T E S:



This iteration of Werner Vertigo leans into and draws from different timeliness and iterations of Werner to create a clearer version of him that incorporates some aspects of his various incarnations. This version of Vertigo is incredibly narcissistic and is only just learning to serve a larger purpose. I've drawn from his time in Checkmate and the canon destruction of Vlatava to reconcile Werner better in the world at large in this RP, and decided to focus more on Werner being in some way technologically gifted in a way the comics gloss over..

The majority of Werner's possessions, including his various personal vehicles, have been repossessed and sold off to fund charities supporting displaced Vlatavans. This version of Count Vertigo has a strong antagonistic relationship with the "Arrow Family" at large due to his criminal activities in Star City. There is a strong possibility Werner could have a preexisting working relationship with figures like Waller as a former government asset.

R E L A T I O N S H I P S:



Grifter: It's concerning to say that we have something in common. Both killers on crusades to do what is right, and hoping to retire from this life one day. Has very little honor in his work, though. I suppose that difference is comforting.

Onomatopoeia: He seems to be a lunatic in the fun yet concerning way: A trained and skilled killer, and his sound effects are somewhat amusing. If I could hold a conversation with the bastard, I imagine we could have crafted a scheme to kill the emerald archer. Would have saved me a lot of trouble. I wonder if he thinks only in sounds.
Back from the dead to give you...



Tags: @Feyblue


Kenichi stared up at the sky, his eyes following the clouds that lazily grazed the blue above. His leg was stiff, his left arm radiated with pain as he clutched it with his right hand, and his rear stung from his impact. As Kenichi stared at the sky, he couldn't help but feel like a damn child. He closed his eyes as he groaned for a moment, doing his best to lift his chest up into more of a sitting position. The pain and disorientation helped distract him from his thoughts for now. He didn't want to dwell too long on his mistakes. Wouldn't help him get back up.

He turned his torso to face the top of the stairs, and his eyes fell upon a familiar figure. His eyes met that icy blue gaze, and he saw the shift from surprise to concern. Kenichi turned his head away, his eyes searching for the cane resting next to him on the steps. He was doing a poor job to hide his cheeks, which had grown more red and hot from the embarrassment of being found sprawled on the ground. His eyes fell on his crutch, which had fallen just behind the edge of what he knew he could reach. His mind was fluttered with words and thoughts as he tried to figure out a way to either pass off his fall as no big deal, or to try and explain the strange cat he saw, or to even to just greet the closest thing this village had to a shrine maiden. And yet, Kenichi was unable to offer up anything as Oyuki's words rang out.

Kenichi watched her quickly pick up his cane and offer out her hand. He gave a bow of his head as he reached up to grasp her hand with his left and twisting his left leg over his right, using his right hand and left leg to try and do the majority of the work in lifting himself up. The last thing he wanted to do was pull Oyuki down with him. He felt himself stand somewhat stable, his right foot finally resting in the ground to aid in that without his cane. The doctor's apprentice couldn't help but feel his right hand reach up and rub the back of his neck as he gave a somewhat defeated look for a moment. "I... No, no, I'm ok. My head is fine."

Kenichi reached out for his cane as he gave a small smile to the shrine maiden. His blue eyes met hers for a moment, before shifting just to the right of her. He needed to try and focus on using his words, and that was hard for him to do if he was focusing on her face and reactions. "Thank you, Lady Oyuki. I was caught off-guard by a... a cat, I think." His brow furrowed at that, and the awkward smile faded for a moment as he tried to piece together what exactly it was he had encountered. The way it had moved disturbed him, and is what threw him off most. He let his eyes wander back to Oyuki, and just shook his head a little, taking a deep breath as he tried to maintain eye contact. He gestured with his free hand off towards the faded red gate leading towards the shrine. "My apologies for the inconvenience of my fall. I hope I am not disturbing any of your duties here, but do you mind if I rest here for a spell?"


Tags: @Feyblue


As the screeching echoed throughout the valley, Kenichi perked up from his state of half-sleep. He was sitting with his back up against the wall of his room, next to his workbench. His eyes rose to the window, squinting as the rays of light from the early morning sun pierced his gaze. He raised a hand to wipe the sleep from his eyes as he regained his wits. He shifted his left leg from it's position folded under himself, and a familiar sensation returned: stiff, searing pain. His right leg was extended out straight in front of him: a poor choice, as Kenichi could feel his knee was locked in place. Running purely on routine, the doctor's apprentice reached up towards the table, his hand sliding awkwardly along the wood until he felt a a metal box. His fingers slipped between the metal and wood to lift the box, and lowered it down into his lap. He flipped open the latch with his other hand and slowly opened the lid. The box was filled with a dozen vials of an orange liquid resting in wooden holders. Kenichi reached in and quickly plucked one of the vials, removing the cork from the end as he could feel the pain intensifying the more he shifted around. He knocked back his medicine, and grunted as he managed to stomach the bitter taste. He hadn't quite figured out a way to fix the taste. Tumeric was far too overpowering.

After a few moments, Kenichi reached up and used the desk to slowly rise to his feet. He grunted as he bent his right knee slightly to do so, the pain manageable but still rather agonizing. But the apprentice had work to do. He reached out and grabbed his crutch, using it propel him around the desk and towards his satchel. He used one hand to sit it upright and rifle inside, checking to make sure he had a spare vial of his pain reliever tucked into a sewn in pocket. Resting in a pocket beside it was a vial with a translucent liquid tinged with a golden hue. He nodded as he was satisfied with his bag's contents, and quickly closed the flap of his bag. Kenichi walked stiffly towards a chair in the corner of his room that he used to lay out his days clothes, and quickly got to work changing.

He greeted his family for breakfast, but he wasn't particularly hungry. He wasn't much for eating at the start of the day, especially in the past couple years. The bitter taste of spice lingered in the back of his throat, and the last thing he wanted was a full stomach if he felt nauseous in an hour. He had a cup of tea with honey and ginger to help soothe his stomach, before fetching his crutch once more and heading for the front door. His mother walked over to him, licking her palm and trying to fix Kenichi's hair as she spoke. "You mixed another batch of cold tincture. Is that for Sengo or Takamori? Are they sick?"

Kenichi lifted his left hand up to push away the feeble attempt at fixing his hair, shaking his head and speaking softly. "Ummm... No, no they are in good health. I think. No, I'm just... Ummm..." He closed his eyes for a moment and let out a slow exhale, centering himself as he constructed his words visually in his imagination. "I am going to deliver this to Tsurugamine. It should last for some time, and I had the spare materials."

Hanako carefully observed her son's stoic face, before giving a slow nod. "Be careful on the stairs. And be sure to thank her for her work." She leaned in to give her son a kiss on the forehead before he spun around, shoveling a handful of roasted soybeans near the door into his satchel as he disembarked from his home.

The cold air hit Kenichi's face and nearly sucked out his breath in an instant. He grit his teeth and did his best to bare the cold as it went down his windpipe like pins and needles. He shivered slightly as he reached up with his left hand to pull his jacket collar closer to cover his face. He walked forward, letting his crutch help to support his right leg whenever he had to place his weight on it. Kenichi's left hand reached into his satchel, pulling out a handful of roasted soybeans and scattering them in accordance with tradition. After all, it was best to keep the things lurking in the shadows distracted and satisfied.

Kenichi was so focused on watching his steps as he wandered his way through town that he hadn't even realized that he was standing at the bottom of a rather steep set of stairs cut into the hillside on the edge of the village. He turned his gaze over his shoulder in an acknowledgement of his journey to get there, before his eyes were drawn back upwards to the abandoned shrine. Though... Abandoned was hardly accurate. Kenichi gripped his cane firm as he lifted his left leg up onto the first step, slowly beginning the climb to the top. With each step he would bring his left foot up and use it to help propel his right foot up to meet it.

It was slow and arduous. His right leg ached, his nerves and muscles tensing up the more he climbed. Despite the cold, sweat trickled down from Kenichi's brow and stung his eyes. Each step became an increasingly difficult hurdle, forcing Kenichi to take longer pauses between the steps. Of course, it wasn't just the pain and stiffness causing hesitation. He could swear he was seeing things moving in the corners of his eyes. The creatures and Yokai of the land, perhaps. Or a trick of the mind. Regardless, Kenichi found himself about two thirds of the way up the steps and unable to go any further. His breathing had quickened its pace, an ever shifting cloud of moisture coming from his lips as his eyes were turned towards the shrine. He hung his head for a moment to conserve energy, his eyes falling on the satchel at his side.

He could do this another day.

The doctor's apprentice took a moment to turn himself around slowly, watching his footsteps as he did so, before turning his gaze towards the descent proper. Resting a few steps below Kenichi was a black short hair cat, sitting where Kenichi had walked through perhaps only a minute before. He stared at the cat in confusion, wondering how he hadn't noticed it before. Perhaps it had been following him closely, or he had been too focused on his own walking that he hadn't noticed a cat on the side of the path. Regardless, as soon as Kenichi and the cat locked eyes, it began standing up on it's hind legs, keeping it's eyes locked firmly on Kenichi as it spoke in a high-pitched squawking.

"Nya."

Kenichi jumped back in fright, his right heel catching the lip of the step behind him and causing him to grow unsteady. He tried to use his crutch to help catch his balance, but it was a lost cause. The young man fell back on his ass, subconsciously pushing his left elbow out to help catch himself. Unfortunately, his elbow met the corner of another step, and he let go of his cane to clutch at his funny bone. "Aaahhh... Ouch. That... That's unpleasant."While Kenichi couldn't keep his volume down, he did his best to keep from swearing in pain and frustration. And so it was the doctor's apprentice found himself curled up on the steps leading to the shrine, with the mysterious bakeneko nowhere to be seen.
As promised, I bring you my injured physician's assistant. Now I sleep.


Welp, here I go researching and planning again.
Nikolai "Demo" Markov



Ashford Institute for the Gifted

Interactions: @Almalthia

Mentions:







Nik lowered his hand from the button on his wireless earbuds, his head nodding in time with the opening guitar riff. He flashed a small smile as he looked at the course in front of him in the danger room. Basic simulation. Piece of cake.... and right up his alley. He simply had to get from one virtual rooftop to another through a busy market of sorts. Meant to emphasize control, and a fine tuning of his powers. Something Tabitha, the prof running the simulation today, very much supported. Within a moment, Nik shot forward. He sprinted at full speed to the edge of the roof, using the last few steps to turn his entire body backwards. He lifted up a hand, and a small orb of red energy formed in his palm. He jumped off backwards while thrusting his palm downwards. With an almost imperceptible twitching of his fingers, the concussive bomb detonated and launched the teenager somewhat clumsily towards the nearest building.

Nik ducked his shoulder and rolled like a tumbleweed across the rooftop for a couple feet, grunting as he did so. Once he had stopped, he quickly got up to his feet and looked ahead. Just two more rooftops to go. But... of course... Pierce had provided an update before his disappearance. One Tabitha had yet to notice until it was too late, and one Nik wasn't expecting. Bursting out onto the roof through a doorway on his left was a non-descript robot with a large club. Nik's eyes locked on the robot before he looked back at the gap between him and the other roof. It was easily doable. The mutant broke out into a sprint, but was surprised to see the robot from his peripheral catching up. Nik followed the same maneuver on the previous rooftop, spinning slightly and throwing the bomb of energy at the spot he was jumping from. Perhaps out of adrenaline or fear... Nik knew as soon as he left the energy leave his fingertips that this explosion was going to be too much. The explosion was fiery, and not just concussive. It tore through the imaginary robot as it launched Nik backwards a bit. His already singed tank top had it's fringes reduced slightly more as Demo himself fell right onto his back on the next rooftop.

Nikolai Markov grunted in pain. He had gone a lot farther than intended... landing near the far edge of the next rooftop. He could see, as his head dangled over the edge, that he just had to make this last jump. He stumbled to his feet, and saw three more robots burst out onto this rooftop. Easy enough. Nik readied his right hand, energy coursing along his fingertips as he prepared to fire. He let loose a rather large bomb, hurling it towards the center of the cluster of robots. Unfortunately for him... they moved erratically. The two flanking hostiles ran wide, with the middle robot running straight into the bomb and getting shred to pieces by the following explosion. The shockwave caused Nik to stumble back a step as he saw the two robots moving in quickly to attack. They were mere feet away. He barely had time to throw a quick, small bomb in the direction of the enemy flanking his right, detonating it upon impact and tearing it to pieces. This too caused Nik to loose balance slightly, leaving him at the mercy of the last hostile. He watched in shock as electricity began coursing through the robot's club-like weapon. His body seized with electricity, the shock darkening his vision somewhat. The club remained pressed against Nik's left shoulder, causing his muscles to spasm slightly as he let out a slight gurgling sound. The experience was uncomfortable... but wasn't nearly enough to incapacitate. And it didn't hurt necessarily... whatever the Danger Room was doing, it seemed to be restricting his movements more than causing him pain. But even with the restriction, Nikolai clenched his fist and did the only thing he could think to do.

He punched it.

A concussive blast of force knocked the robot's pieces apart once the first made contact with simulated metal. It was hard for Nik to see exactly what it was coming from his fist as he fired it out, but he could have sworn that for a moment he saw the same energy from his rapidly developing bomb generation wrap around his knuckles. Nik nodded with shock at that, just as the simulation itself finally phased out and a certain feline-like professor burst out of the control room to check on him. He was making progress...




...But will it ever be enough.

Nikolai tussled and dried his hair as he sat on a bench in the locker room of the gym in his boxers, staring blankly at the floor in front of him. The past week had been... transformative, for a lack of a better word. Everything seemed to be changing around him. He let himself get caught up in his own thoughts as he began putting on his jeans. There are so many new people here. I have a girlfriend now. My powers were developing significantly since the fight at... gosh, what was the name of that bar? Doesn't matter. My roommate has been acting weirder than usual lately. I have so many damn essays due this week. I could have Una help me figure out what to...

His thoughts seemed to drift into nothingness as his mind circled back to a single word. A name. He noticed the smile that had formed on his lips at just the thought. He shook his head, internally groaning at himself. Ugh, I'm such a dork around her. I feel like I'm going all soft and weak like Na...

The thought made Nik's entire body freeze for a moment. He felt this pit form in the center of his stomach as he could feel the negative thoughts beginning to swarm around his head. They were joined by the realization of all the sudden changes going on around campus, creating a deafening cacophony of anxious thoughts. Nik quickly tossed a shirt on over his head before slamming his locker closed and nearly yanking his phone out of his pocket. He quickly tapped away on his phone, planning to shoot off a quick text to the name at the top of his app.

>Hey Una, can we lie on the lawn for a bit. I'm feeling overwhelmed an|<

Nik stopped typing, reading back through his message again. His mind wandered back to the conversations he had with Una as of late. The night they kissed... and, well, the second night they kissed. And as his mind played through the memories, Nikolai Markov sighed and deleted that text. She had enough to worry about as is. With that in mind, he shot off a different text to her.

>Just got out of DR, no plans 2nite. U?<

GM Post



As the students were crowded in the lobby, the beast finally made its charge. Daniela's attacks helped keep it at bay and slow it down, but the beast launched towards the doors just as they were closed. It snarled and made a high pitch whining sound, like a machine out of tune. With the door closed, the room became a bit darker with a lot of its natural light source closed up. The glowing exit sign at the end of one of the hallways became much clearer in the increased darkness. That all being said, other than the lashing of the mechanical beast outside of the front door, another sound became rather clear as the students were discussing their plans. The sound of hard thumping or stomping could be heard above them, each knock separated by a couple seconds of tense silence in the building. Whatever the thumping was, it was seeming to move, rather slow, towards the direction of the glowing red exit sign.

GM Post



The electricity blasted against the mechanical wolf's head as it was sent tumbling backwards once again. Electricity seemed to surge through ever fiber of its being, causing it to stutter and slow. At the same time, it's eyes returned to their original red... and even brighter than before. It's face was beyond charred, with half the metal practically melting and drooping down its face before it hardened once again. Regardless of the state of the metal housing, the red eyes seemed to glow with malicious intent in the direction of Daniela. And despite being injured severely, it was ready to keep fighting.

The front doors did not, in fact, have a lock. At least, not until Ronnie began her process of getting the doors ready to chain up and lock. The wolf was outside of the building as the students had entered inside, and it looked ready to charge. Jasper's fight with the Danger Room would be, to an extent, taxing. Despite the majority of her efforts, the Danger Room seemed just as adaptable and quick to Jasper's probes as she was. The sudden shift in tactics and attack, however, seemed to proverbially throw it off guard. As she reached out into the simulation with her powers, she was able to track rough radio signals. The signals were scattered. The first signal came from the direction of the beast outside the building. It was fairly weak, as was another similar signal from the second floor. The strongest signal came from the third floor, and given Jasper's familiarity with traditional electronic signals... she would be certain this is the transmitter controlling the mechanical beast.

Just as Jasper got a good read on the signals, the Danger Room seemed to shift and do its best to kick her out. For a moment, all the lights and holographic projections seemed to flicker. A quick system reset was enough to hide the signals from Jasper once again. At the same moment, the mechanical beast began making its charge towards the front doors. More specifically... it was running towards Daniela.
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