Become the Beast - for the Dragon & Rabbit Heart (Raise It Up) - for Cara
basics
appearance
notable features
The most notable feature about Cara in human form is the patchwork collection of scales that cover her skin, especially the left half of her face. Her right eye is reptilian, with an overblown iris and slit pupil. In addition, she has claws instead of finger nails, although she keeps them filed down.
As a dragon, it is notable that he colors can change color.
hair
Blond
eyes
Hazel
height
5'7
weight
125lbs
tattoos/piercings
WIP
appearance
psyche
personality
Cara is an ambitious person, fueled by passionate emotion. Her career as an influencer started as a way to share her art with a larger audience, but developed into a platform that she used to help out her local community. Cara is a very curious person, who is open to learning and enjoys being surrounded by people she can bounce ideas with. Her favored pastimes include playing video games, reviewing terrible horror movies and outdoor sports such as rock climbing. Cara is experimental with her artwork and driven to push herself to new creative limits with every project. Her personal fears include being trapped in tight spaces, ghosts, and not finding a way to cure her condition.
Probable Alignment: Neutral/Chaotic Good
positives
Cara is an intelligent and resourceful woman, who was schooled in the fine arts and created her own internet persona. She is well-read, fluent in several languages, and knowledgeable about history, politics and geography. Cara graduated from college with an arts degree, as well as an online education in business. Her focus in art has been on increasing social awareness and fundraising money to donate to various charities and organizations. In addition, Cara is a very active individual. She's physically fit and used to rock climbing, hiking, and spending long hours working with heavy pieces of metal. As a result, she has great stamina and is very agile.
Likes:
- The color green
- Warm clothing (comfy sweaters, beanies, etc)
- The outdoors
- Swimming, hiking, rock climbing, mountain biking
- Horror and thriller movies/series/books
- the smell of heated metal
- thunderstorms
- Crime documentaries
- Surprises
- Travelling
- reptiles
- birds
negatives
Cara defines herself by her open-mindedness and creativity. She's excellent at picking up hands on skills and working with tools; a very active person who thrives when she has a mission. Without a goal to work towards, Cara struggles to relax. She needs to feel productive in order to be in her best state of mind, but she also needs to improve her ability to work well as a team. As a solo artist she's still learning how to collaborate on joint projects and to avoid micromanaging her partners. She has a tendency to burn out as a result of pushing herself too far. In addition, while Cara is physically fit, she's not been trained for activities like physical combat. Similarly, her mental discipline is strong, but not prepared to see people shot or significantly injured. So despite the fact that she's got powers, she's really just an ordinary person. As far as she knows, she has a mystery illness, not superpowers.
Dislikes:
- Itchy fabrics
- big cities
- romance books
- online schooling
- is scared of horses
- is scared of being physically trapped
- Spooky places
headcanons
- Drives like a madwoman
- Favorite video game is borderlands 2
- Favorite author is Martha Wells
- Will take any excuse to climb a tree or tall object (there's no better place to be than 20 feet in the air with your feet dangling in the breeze)
- Animals don't like her (but the feeling is not mutual)
- Found a stray kitten, but it bonded to her dad
psyche
backstory
Powers
The scales that have been plaguing Cara throughout her life are the attempted manifestation of her power Dragon Physiology.
Cara is impervious to heat, resistant to the cold, and can assume the form of a great beast. Her body temperature is unnaturally high, and with practice she might someday be able to focus the heat in order to cause burns through touch. As a human, she can both create and manipulate fire, but it's not as intense as the fire she breaths as a dragon. In addition, Cara can summon partial draconic traits as needed, such as scales durable enough to deflect a sharp blade if it doesn't hit at the right angle.
While in dragon form, Cara can breath fire hot enough to melt rock. Her scales are also tougher and extremely resistant to being punctured. Communicating as a dragon is difficult, but not impossible. With practice, Cara can learn to 'push' her thoughts outwards as a sort of short range telepathy. In addition, as a dragon she possesses the strange ability to understand the language of animals—though it appears that only a select few are willing to actually talk to her.
In both forms, being exposed to external sources of fire (not of her own making) will help to regenerate her wounds. However, while Cara is resistant to cold temperatures when in good health, the opposite becomes true when injured. Cold temperatures will slow the healing process.
Limitations: Cara’s reluctance to embrace her new-found nature makes it difficult to control her power, and she finds herself struggling to return to human form. As a dragon, she is still learning her limitations and requires much practice to master her new form.In addition, she cannot transform when restricted by restraints, because doing so would cut into her own flesh and possibly amputate her limbs. It's possible for Cara to increase the potency of her power by indulging the wishes of her inner dragon, but doing so will require a sacrifice of her own humanity. Also, as a result of her draconic nature, most animals will immediately sound the alarm at her presence. Specific weak points include her wings and eyes.
history
Cara was born and raised in British Columbia, Canada. Her parents were extremely wealthy as the result of developing some highly successful environmental technologies. She travelled frequently during her youth, and attended private schools geared towards focusing her artistic talents.
In 2015, Cara became a popular social media influencer under the alias Ember Hart. However, she was forced to remove herself from the public eye due to a chronic health condition. Since retreating, Cara has been living in the privacy of her parent’s vacation home. She’s spent the last year working on new projects; trying to keep distracted while her parents make more and more promises that they will find a cure.
In early childhood, Cara developed a skin condition similar to Ichthyosis vulgaris. Her parents experimented with various treatment methods, which were able to keep the symptoms under control. However, at the start of puberty it suddenly became clear that whatever was going on, it wasn’t something that doctors had ever dealt with before.
In 2012 Cara was admitted to the hospital after intense itching caused her to scratch away the skin on her arms and lower legs. An examination by the dermatologist revealed the emergence of scales-like protrusions. Several attempts at surgery were made, but each time the scales grew back.
In 2019 the condition rapidly worsened. Cara was admitted for facial reconstruction, but the attempt failed, prompting her to retreat from the public eye.
Cara’s medical records suggest that her condition may be of interest to the Damascus Institute. In 2020 she received an invitation from A, which she accepted gratefully.
In 2014, Cara Blythe started a podcast channel. It focused on reviewing sci-fi, horror, and mystery media. The channel received moderate feedback, but was ultimately abandoned 8 months later.
January 3rd of 2015, she started the Youtube channel @HeartsofSteel under the alias of Ember Hart. The channel followed her artistic journey as she delved into interpretive sculpture, which would eventually develop to focus on her scrap metal creations. The platform has hosted several fundraisers for charity, most of which involved livestream auctions for the sculptures created in the videos. The channel received significant positive feedback and was among the top 100 most popular art channels of 2017 and 2018.
Ember Hart’s sculptures were also featured in several art galleries, as a result of winning school competitions and the attention she gained from social media.
In 2019 Ember Hart seemingly disappeared from all of her online platforms. Very little information was ever released to the public; only that she was unable to continue with her work due to the return of a chronic medical condition. Her videos remain public and the remaining sculptures on exhibit in art galleries have not been reclaimed.
backstory
gallery
gallery
Cara
♡design by neon reverie, coded by uxie♡
Name: Cara Blythe
Age: 22
Pronouns: She/Her/They
Sexuality: Panromantic
Nationality: Canadian
Notable Features:The most notable feature about Cara is the patchwork collection of scales that cover her skin, especially the left half of her face. Her right eye is reptilian, with an overblown iris and slit pupil. In addition, she has claws instead of finger nails, although she keeps them filed down.
hair: Blond
eyes: hazel
height: 5'7
Weight: 125lbs
Tattoos/piercings: wip
personality
Cara is an ambitious person, fueled by passionate emotion. Her career as an influencer started as a way to share her art with a larger audience, but developed into a platform that she used to help out her local community. Cara is a very curious person, who is open to learning and enjoys being surrounded by people she can bounce ideas with. Her favored pastimes include playing video games, reviewing terrible horror movies and outdoor sports such as rock climbing. Cara is experimental with her artwork and driven to push herself to new creative limits with every project. Her personal fears include being trapped in tight spaces, ghosts, and not finding a way to cure her condition.
Probable Alignment: Neutral/Chaotic Good
positives
Cara is an intelligent and resourceful woman, who was schooled in the fine arts and created her own internet persona. She is well-read, fluent in several languages, and knowledgeable about history, politics and geography. Cara graduated from college with an arts degree, as well as an online education in business. Her focus in art has been on increasing social awareness and fundraising money to donate to various charities and organizations. In addition, Cara is a very active individual. She's physically fit and used to rock climbing, hiking, and spending long hours working with heavy pieces of metal. As a result, she has great stamina and is very agile.
Likes:
- The color green
- Warm clothing (comfy sweaters, beanies, etc)
- The outdoors
- Swimming, hiking, rock climbing, mountainbiking
- Horror and thriller movies/series/books
- the smell of heated metal
- thunderstorms
- Crime documentaries
- Surprises
- Travelling
negatives
Cara defines herself by her open-mindedness and creativity. She's excellent at picking up hands on skills and working with tools; a very active person who thrives when she has a mission. Without a goal to work towards, Cara struggles to relax. She needs to feel productive in order to be in her best state of mind, but she also needs to improve her ability to work well as a team. As a solo artist she's still learning how to collaborate on joint projects and to avoid micromanaging her partners. She has a tendency to burn out as a result of pushing herself too far. In addition, while Cara is physically fit, she's not been trained for activities like physical combat. Similarly, her mental discipline is strong, but not prepared to see people shot or significantly injured. So despite the fact that she's got powers, she's really just an ordinary person. As far as she knows, she has a mystery illness, not superpowers.
Dislikes:
- Itchy fabrics
- big cities
- romance books
- online schooling
- is scared of horses
Headcannons
- Drives like a madwoman
- Favorite video game is borderlands 2
- Favorite author is Martha Wells
- Will take any excuse to climb a tree or tall object (there's no better place to be than 20 feet in the air with your feet dangling in the breeze)
- Animals don't like her (but the feeling is not mutual)
- Found a stray kitten, but it bonded to her dad
Powers
The scales that have been plaguing Cara throughout her life are the attempted manifestation of her power Dragon Physiology.
Cara is impervious to heat, resistant to the cold, and can assume the form of a great beast. Her body temperature is unnaturally high, and with practice she might someday be able to focus the heat in order to cause burns through touch. As a human, she can both create and manipulate fire, but it's not as intense as the fire she breaths as a dragon. In addition, Cara can summon partial draconic traits as needed, such as scales durable enough to deflect a sharp blade if it doesn't hit at the right angle.
While in dragon form, Cara can breath fire hot enough to melt rock. Her scales are also tougher and extremely resistant to being punctured. Communicating as a dragon is difficult, but not impossible. With practice, Cara can learn to 'push' her thoughts outwards as a sort of short range telepathy. In addition, as a dragon she possesses the strange ability to understand the language of animals—though it appears that only a select few are willing to actually talk to her.
In both forms, being exposed to external sources of fire (not of her own making) will help to regenerate her wounds. However, while Cara is resistant to cold temperatures when in good health, the opposite becomes true when injured. Cold temperatures will slow the healing process.
Limitations: Cara’s reluctance to embrace her new-found nature makes it difficult to control her power, and she finds herself struggling to return to human form. As a dragon, she is still learning her limitations and requires much practice to master her new form. In addition, she cannot transform when restricted by restraints, because doing so would cut into her own flesh and possibly amputate her limbs. It's possible for Cara to increase the potency of her power by indulging the wishes of her inner dragon, but doing so will require a sacrifice of her own humanity. Also, as a result of her draconic nature, most animals will immediately sound the alarm at her presence. Specific weak points include her wings and eyes.
HISTORY
Cara was born and raised in British Columbia, Canada. Her parents were extremely wealthy as the result of developing some highly successful environmental technologies. She travelled frequently during her youth, and attended private schools geared towards focusing her artistic talents.
In 2015, Cara became a popular social media influencer under the alias Ember Hart. However, she was forced to remove herself from the public eye due to a chronic health condition. Since retreating, Cara has been living in the privacy of her parent’s vacation home. She’s spent the last year working on new projects; trying to keep distracted while her parents make more and more promises that they will find a cure.
In early childhood, Cara developed a skin condition similar to Ichthyosis vulgaris. Her parents experimented with various treatment methods, which were able to keep the symptoms under control. However, at the start of puberty it suddenly became clear that whatever was going on, it wasn’t something that doctors had ever dealt with before.
In 2012 Cara was admitted to the hospital after intense itching caused her to scratch away the skin on her arms and lower legs. An examination by the dermatologist revealed the emergence of scales-like protrusions. Several attempts at surgery were made, but each time the scales grew back.
In 2019 the condition rapidly worsened. Cara was admitted for facial reconstruction, but the attempt failed, prompting her to retreat from the public eye.
Cara’s medical records suggest that her condition may be of interest to the Damascus Institute. In 2020 she received an invitation from A, which she accepted gratefully.
In 2014, Cara Blythe started a podcast channel. It focused on reviewing sci-fi, horror, and mystery media. The channel received moderate feedback, but was ultimately abandoned 8 months later.
January 3rd of 2015, she started the Youtube channel @HeartsofSteel under the alias of Ember Hart. The channel followed her artistic journey as she delved into interpretive sculpture, which would eventually develop to focus on her scrap metal creations. The platform has hosted several fundraisers for charity, most of which involved livestream auctions for the sculptures created in the videos. The channel received significant positive feedback and was among the top 100 most popular art channels of 2017 and 2018.
Ember Hart’s sculptures were also featured in several art galleries, as a result of winning school competitions and the attention she gained from social media.
In 2019 Ember Hart seemingly disappeared from all of her online platforms. Very little information was ever released to the public; only that she was unable to continue with her work due to the return of a chronic medical condition. Her videos remain public and the remaining sculptures on exhibit in art galleries have not been reclaimed.
positive traits— loyal, though it's hard to earn, once you gain their trust, you're stuck with them until you give them a good reason to leave (or leave them first); confident, despite their background and constantly being treated as dirt, Dominique knows what they're good at and to use it to their advantage; calm, though it may seem otherwise, Dominique is a fairly calm person and slow to anger- even in intense situations.
neutral traits— stubborn, they rarely back down in arguments or any sort of dispute, standing their ground in what they believe in- this works for and against their favor; mischievous, Dominique will be the first to suggest sneaking out or filling the entire school with sticky notes if they- andor a group they're apart of- are bored; suspicious, they're not fast to trust, constantly questioning someone's true intentions and if they're really an ally.
negative traits— distant, due to their history, they're hesitant to get close to anyone; self-destructive, Dominique is used to being treated like a freak, so much so that when no one else does it, they fall into the habit of doing it themselves; impulsive, they often do things without thinking, launching into doing the first thing that comes to mind- very shoot first, ask questions later kind of person.
habits— when bored, they tend to thrum their fingers against whatever surface is available; they pace when anxious and impatient.
「 HISTORY 」
born and raised in Paris, Dominique Thomas was always a strange child. the universe must've had it out for them- being blind wasn't enough, they also had strange powers (though somewhat easy to hide) and didn't fit into society's gender-norms. they were raised by a single mother and never knew their father. they loved their mother more than anything- Bijou was supportive, encouraging, and always tried to help them control their abilities.
she died when they were fourteen, and they've never been the same. they changed during their time in foster care- became untrusting and cold. at eighteen, once they were out of foster care, they struck out on their own. they moved about, never staying in one place long, picking up jobs here and there and just trying to get by. Dominique didn't really have a direction in life, but they were fine with that.
that is, until a mysterious letter showed up, promising a better life.
「 EXTRA 」
likes— comic books, animals.
dislikes— assholes, fast food, loud noises.
fears— getting close to people; spiders; the dark (ironically).
power— echolocation and enhanced hearing. Dominique is able to 'see' their surroundings using the noise around them. their echolocation is not limited to just clicks and their hearing is intensified for this purpose. loud noises are always unpleasant, but most of the time they can block it out. once, they were able to find their way though an apartment building using the steady buzz of air conditioning to 'see.' they've developed this power to be able to tell when one is lying- using their increased hearing to find irregularities in heartbeats, as well as tone and/or rhythm when speaking. they often use their enhanced hearing to get an advantage in activities- lockpicking, eavesdropping, anything required for stealth in general. they're currently working on using their echolocation to manipulate sound waves. (specifically, being able to talk to people without anyone else hearing the conversation.)
skills— problem-solving, they're good at puzzles and coming up with solutions to complex and simple situations alike (challenge them to a game of chess sometime); organisation, it's almost comical how organized everything around them is- their room, their thought process, any project they start (ask them to organize your closet and they will do it).
Natalie has an athletic build, specially maintained for speed and flexibility. She has various scars on her arms and legs, looking like they're caused by scraps. Scars from a dog bite on her right calf. Generally dresses in snappy, yet practical outfits. No piercings or permanent tattoos, looking to avoid anything identifiable. She does, however, love the use of henna for temporary tattoos. With a more stable arrangement, she will indulge with many intricate designs.
Personality Profile:
Natalie tends to be a bit playful with other people. The world is too dark to take entirely seriously, and sometimes a little humor can cover up what people are actually thinking. Growing up in a world of intrigue, deals, and alliances of convenience, she tends to apply those rules to all interactions, seeing people as assets rather than potential friends. While charming and polite, there are elements of normal life that she doesn't quite get. She prefers to stay active and keep her edge, not wanting to be caught flat footed. Despite her energy, she can be quite patient when need be, though has a hard time letting things go. Due to her travel, she is fluent in English, French, Spanish, Dutch, and learning Japanese.
Likes:
Henna tattoos, working out, card and other magic tricks, mint tea, dark chocolate, electronic music, and mobile gaming.
Dislikes:
Waste, sloppy work, sodas, being coerced, capri pants, modern art, people violating her personal space, and dogs.
Abilities:
Temporal Doppelganger;
Can pull a copy of herself from the potential alternate timelines. The copy is a hazy specter that can be rather fragile. A blow can disrupt it, though can try to block to absorb a blow. The doppelganger is autonomous, though shares a mental link with Natalie, allowing perfect coordination. A doppelganger must be within a mile of Natalie and lasts for an hour once summoned.
As she grows in skill, Natalie will be able to summon more Doppelgangers, and have them last longer.
History:
The daughter of a world famous (in certain circles) duo of thieves, Natalie grew up moving around a lot, with many different last names. She grew up in the "trade" and was taught all the tricks, taking more after her father than her more technologically focused mother. While mostly freelance, Natalie's parents had ties with various organizations and figures that they would do favors for in exchange for protection. While a mostly civilized arrangement, it could get a little dicey at times. One such times had a close family friend betraying them and trying to use Natalie as leverage. The situation was resolved, but not after her father was shot in the leg, reducing his mobility.
With her father's injury forcing a bit of an early retirement, Natalie tried to fill his shoes. While talented, her little experience led to some early blunders, causing the family to take refuge in New Orleans for a year. She kept trying to expand her skills, but had to keep it secret from her parents and associates. During one of her late night excursions, her climbing rig failed, causing her to start a 12 story fall. As she flailed to grab onto anything on the wall she had been trying to scale, her hand was caught by someone. She looked up to see a ghostly copy of her leaning out a window and holding on to her hand. The doppelganger and Natalie worked together to pull her into the building before it disappeared. Natalie managed to get home with no further mishaps, the piece of jewelry she had been after not even an after thought as she considered her new found gift. She worked hard and began learning how to conjure the doppelganger and commune with it. She got glimpses of other versions of her life as she connected with her doppelganger. She wasn't really sure what it meant, though occasionally found something comforting in what could have been/what could be.
With her new found power, she was able to move her parents back to London and able to get back to work. Things were pretty good for about a year, but a French crime lord known as Le Comte wanted her talents and powers at his disposal, breaking many rules in the underworld to pressure Natalie's cooperation, including several assassination attempts against her parents. With much of their old contacts either bought or unable to help, salvation came for Natalie in the form of of an unknown party stepping in to offer her family protection at a price. With the letter bearing the signature of A in her possession, Natalie travels to Southern California to see what is expected of her at this Damascus Institute.
His left ear is usually pierced, but tattoos can change on a regular basis, depending on his mood and current alias.
appearance
psyche
personality
People have a habit of underestimating Hadrian, which he doesn't mind. As long as he's getting paid, people can assume whatever they want. Still, Hadrian a very adaptable and clever person. He spends a lot of time reading biology books and puts a lot of time into developing his other identities and practicing for when he has a role to play. Whenever he's supposed to impersonate someone, he learns as much as he can about their behaviors, background, and profession to avoid suspicion. Hadrian is very good at reading people, something that comes from being observant and working in an environment where everyone is out to cover their own skin. At the same time, he avoids flaunting his own achievements and doesn't go out of his way to gain attention unless it would somehow benefit him.
Hadrian will do pretty much anything if the pay is good. From his perspective, saying no just means someone else gets paid for it later anyways. Over the years, he's worked for both individuals and a few criminal organizations that didn't mind outsourcing. His versatile skill set made getting work easy, but as much as he respected his clients and their business operations, his inability to commit to any one group led to some tension between himself and his employers. It wasn't uncommon for him to do a few 'impossible' jobs, receive an offer for permanent employment, then have to 'skip' town when the rejection didn't land well.
positives
For someone who's constantly switching between identities, it would surprise you how much Hadrian values honesty. It's a dog eat dog world and he'd rather call it straight than pretend that civilized society is somehow different than the animal kingdom. A big part of his attraction to the criminal underground in the first place, comes from the fact the that the people in it don't try to justify their bad habits. Having grown up being shuffled between homes and having his brain picked over by everyone with a Ph.D. in a ten mile radius, it's most often been the ones who claimed to have good intentions that hurt Hadrian the most.
Hadrian's open with the fact that he's not a very good person, and he provides his clients with solid work done to the best of his ability. That said, he's not particularly malicious, and his enjoyment for what he does stems from the challenge rather than any pain it causes. Not all the jobs he takes are criminal in nature, either. A significant portion of his time is spent rehabilitating animals and volunteering at various shelters. Hadrian does good when and where he can, though he won't claim that it balances the scales. His main priority is keeping himself fed and entertained, but more often then he's willing to admit does he consider it equally important to cover the very small circle of people (and animals) he values as friends.
negatives
headcanons
- Will take any job if the reward is right
- Super impulsive about spending money and making life decisions, but also ridiculously patient about things like stakeouts
- Lot of respect for organized crime, and probably the people he most enjoyed working for
- Spends most of his money on takeout food
- Also gives a lot of his money away, for various reasons
- Volunteers at an wildlife rehab center and veterinary clinic in his spare time
- Still goes to see his main childhood therapist
- Has been featured in a few psychology books and studies on the development of the adolescent mind
- Appeared on a couple of talk shows soon after he was rescued from the jungle
- Spirit animal is totally an ermine
psyche
backstory
Powers
Biological Manipulation
Universal Language: Hadrian’s powers allow him to coexist as a part of the natural world, or to bend it to his will. He can understand and communicate with all living things, though the level of communication depends on the complexity of the organism. For example, he can have a basic conversation with something like a bird or a dog, but an insect might only be able to respond with images.
Shapeshifting: Hadrian can alter his body on a molecular level, altering his form at will. Currently he can transform parts of his body, or completely assume the shape of another person or animal, and with practice he might be able to combine multiple traits. When Hadrian shifts, it resets his injuries. However, bullets, broken glass, or any inorganic material that remains inside his body must first be removed or it will become trapped. This can continue to cause internal damage such as bleeding, or quickly cause infections which can lead to life threatening sepsis.
Limitations: Energy consumption, physical restraints, body dysphoria, sedatives
Hadrian Auris was born in Toronto and raised in the city for the first seven years of his life. At the age of eight, he and his parents were involved in a plane crash that occurred overseas. He was lucky enough to wash to shore, but would not return to civilization for another eight months; at which point he would become something of a celebrity while the novelty lasted.
As the sole survivor of the plane crash, Hadrian was eventually placed into foster care. He was tossed between several homes and was also frequently sent for counselling and therapy. Whenever asked to describe his experiences living in the jungle, his accounts of having made friends with the local animals were dismissed as fanciful, imaginative coping methods for trauma.
Over the years, this trend would continue. Psychologists prescribed several diagnoses: PTSD, ADHD, social anxiety disorder, and detachment from reality. Hadrian developed a reputation for being a troublemaker among fosters; every visit to the doctor’s office, or a trip to court and the list of problems got bigger.
As he grew disillusioned with the idea of civilized society, Hadrian began to delve more into the underworld. As a teen he’d gotten his start by selling his own prescription meds, which earned him a few friends and no shortage of people with job offers on the table. At the age of sixteen Hadrian started to dream big. He used his ability to communicate with animals in order to gather information and find his way in and out of all sorts of buildings.
Hadrian made a lot of contacts. He never really cared about the showmanship or the posturing, but he did appreciate the honesty. He moved between groups and between jobs, doing whatever work offered the best payout at the time. Hadrian enjoyed the challenge of an elaborate theft, but he also did intimidation work, security, smuggling, and a growing number of assassinations. When the letter from A arrived, it was curiosity and the possibility of a new and exciting job offer that got him interested.
Personality
The easiest way to describe Iridescence is as conflicted, contradictory. Her name and her appearance to start.
Having grown up as the runt, black sheep and ugly duckling it was absolutely devastating to become a literal leper just as she had been coming into her own. Radioactive blood wasn't the glow up she had in mind. Her once somewhat bashful personality soured into a caustic cynicism and high functioning depression.
She lost interest in most things that once brought her enjoyment and finds solace almost exclusively in music.
At times you can tell she's starved for positive attention and normal human interaction, things she's been denied for almost a decade, treated like a hazard and a lab rat.
At most other times you get the wall, the defense designed to shelter her from that. In these moments she's charismatically venomous, not aggressively sardonic or antisocial but not amiable by any means.
Her persona of dark humorist, antagonist and pessimist understandably make her bad company if your ideal mood is sunshine and peace of mind.
Her stunted sense of personhood deeply affected any formation of pride or confidence, leading to be mostly self-effacing when it comes to matters of self.
Those who don't have the time to try to understand her will likely lose interest fast. It takes a special sort to vibe with her personality and an even more special sort to force their way in.
Years of dealing with fake smiles and forced cordiality from researchers only wanting to cut or jab her has made Iridescence slow to trust and uninterested in pleasantries. It also made her consequently obsessive when real connections are made.
Her expressions of true affection are often very subtle as she still has many reservations about being used and/or cast aside.
Her experience with men is absolutely non-existent and as a result is more easily flustered than most, though she does her best to hide it. Sometimes, even getting irritated for being made feel vulnerable.
Despite this, the best approach with her in most cases is to take command of the situation and not let her control the conversation. For whatever reason she interprets this as strength and giving a damn, and yielding as weakness and not caring.
A odd one to be sure.
Likes:
Aggressive people
Metal, EDM and Indie music (and their variants)
Good smells
Singing
Watching clockwork
Sleep
The lack of color black
Dislikes:
Being jump-scared
Push overs
People downplaying her situation
Country Music
Being injured or sick
The Outdoors
Bright lights and white rooms(past traumas)
Power overview: Like some people and unlike others, Dessa's "powers" didn't reveal themselves immediately. It wasn't until the end of middle school that her abilities took full form.
Initially manifesting as a particularly virulent illness, her respiratory and circulatory systems were violently altered and modified to function wildly different than normal.
Her blood and other fluids became malignantly toxic, moderately radioactive and exhibited an intensely hallucinogenic effect.
This effect affects the afflicted in such a way that they become convinced they need to seek out the source of their affliction, that they need more, as if addicted to the lethal exposure.
This property pervaded her muscles, internal organs and bones. It even affected the air she breathed out, it too becoming acutely toxic.
The need for a reverse functioning respirator and medication to suppress normal bodily secretions, like sweat or oils, kept her from being able to develop any kind of athleticism.
The change in her physiology also significantly affected her digestive system and metabolism. Attempts at finding foods that mesh well with her body's composition have proven mostly unfruitful. As far as anyone can tell, most animal products are rejected by her body and pass through or are regurgitated. Plant matter takes very long to digest and metabolize causing discomfort and sluggishness, and does not pair well with her paranormally slow metabolism.
The only successful way to achieve healthy nourishment is via nutrient cocktail taken by mouth no less than 9 times a day and a slew of supplementary pills.
Power abilities:
Exposure to Iridescence's breath, blood, sweat or any other fluid, solid or gas created by her body cause anywhere from mild respiratory and eye irritation and lightheadedness to sepsis, respiratory inflammation, ocular toxicity and severe hallucinations.
The more intense effects occur with direct mucous membrane or open wound exposure while the more mild occur with proximal exposure as the effects of greatly diminish in open air.
Research trials of the strength and nature of the hallucinations show that high potency exposures led all 5 trial patients to aggressively seek her out, one resulting in injury to her.
It seems that in addition to having no control over the effects her flesh has on others, Dessa also has no control over the attraction those already affected experience and runs the risk of potentially being held captive or even killed by those enthralled. That is, until they expire from the damage to their bodies.
Background:
Dessa had an uneventful childhood up until the day of her change. One delineated by reservation and introversion. A social butterfly she was not.
That was never got to change as her pubertal metamorphosis was eclipsed by her internal transmogrification.
Within one week of being hospitalized there was an exposure event, nearly causing two hospital staffers their health.
Immediately after the incident things begin to get fuzzy.
Her memory jumps right into the tests, samplings and white rooms.
The men in respirators politely defiling her with blade and swab, syringe and forceps.
It didn't take long for there to be no inch of her left un-scrutinized, no place un-probed.
The faces (or lack their of given their reasonable use of gasmasks) changed often, it seemed another sort was always "sitting in" for the last.
Most had an American accent, while others had anything between German and Chinese accents, English being the weapon of choice when they lashed her with depersonalizing speech; "Subject 2A", "Case 9, Patient 00", etc.
The dehumanization and lack of privacy did her mental health no favors, Dessa is still very uncomfortable in mostly white and brightly lit rooms.
Be this as it may, it can't be said that the researchers did her any deliberate harm, as they didn't interrogate her or torture her, not directly.
It can be said however, that they took advantage of her and, given other circumstances, the emotional and mental neglect of a 13 year old for 9 years would be criminal.
The loss of her youth, her connection to the outside world and her sense of self is entirely on their heads.
Recently, a fire erupted on the installation she was being held at for study, allowing her to escape. Iridescence hadn't gotten very far before the Institute approached her, offering her asylum and protection from recapture.
Initially she was skeptical, figuring it would just be a transfer from one cage to another.
They claimed they were aware of her situation and that it wouldn't be anything of that sort.
The terms of her escape didn't leave her many viable options and something about the way everything had been presented to her, it came across more as an instruction than an offer.
Dessa accepted, being transported on site of the Damascus Institute. Knowing no more than what her former keepers told her and essentially having the world experience of a young girl in many respects, it's safe to say re-adjusting won't be the easiest thing in the world.
Personal Details: Case 1201A Full Name - Orpheus Solitum Arcleves.
Preferred Name - Orpheus.
Nicknames - None.
Age - 24.
Gender - Male.
Preferred Pronouns - He/Him.
Nationality - English.
Height - 6 ft. 2 in.
Hair Color - Dark Brown.
Eyes - Chocolate Brown.
Scars - A serrated-scar on his left forearm, over which two gaunt trees have been tattooed.
Character Reference:
“For the most part, Mr. Arcleves is not the easiest person to engage with. The reasons are not well known. I have found him largely palatable, but Mr. Arcleves has an extremely rigid grasp on his emotions and his rationality. He often leaves without warning, and very few people are afforded 'common decency'; Mr. Arcleves simply does not know how to behave in typical social circles. I hypothesise that Mr. Arcleves resents the loss of his childhood years and the expectations placed upon him at a young age. Given sufficient time, Mr. Arcleves may be able to adjust to normal life.
Beneath the stricture of his countenance, Mr. Arcleves can be a rather compassionate young man. However, very few people are privy to this. Perhaps, with some assistance, Mr. Arcleves may one day be in a position to once-again practice as a member of the Royal College of Medical Affairs. I am told the unfortunate circumstances of his exclusion from the Royal College should not affect his acceptance to the Damascus Institute, and I shall discuss it no further. For more information on the loss of his membership, please refer to the Degrasi File (RCMA-D3D), if required.
Some of the staff at the Royal College inform me that Mr. Arcleves enjoys taking physical activity in the early morning, such as running. I have no doubt that this is a manifestation of his desire to run away from his current self-imposed situation. I have also known Mr. Arcleves to enjoy artistic pursuits, including painting. Hot chocolate is an exceptionally good ice-breaker -- it may serve you well to remember this.”
Reason for Evaluation: Innate Ability to Control Physiological Processes and Promote Accelerated Healing.
"When I first met Mr. Arcleves, I was surprised to find that he paid particular attention to my secretary. While his father and I spoke about his apparent capabilities, he climbed down from his chair and went to stand beside her. Thereafter, I observed a rather peculiar interaction between them. She had been diagnosed several months prior to Mr. Arcleves' arrival with a rare form of autoimmune hepatitis, and had developed a melancholy. They exchange a few pleasantries. My secretary evidently had no mind to speak with the child. However, I saw him reach out to shake my secretary's hand.
He held her hand for a long time. My secretary later informed me that Mr. Arcleves had noted that she was in pain. Quite remarkable for someone so young. Please remember that Mr. Arcleves was less than six years of age at the time. Several days later, during a routine hospital visit, my secretary was informed that her hepatitis had disappeared. No signs of fibrosis or hepatopathology were evident. She never relapsed.
Since then, I have had the privilege of learning more about Mr. Arcleves' extraordinary capabilities. He can promote rapid healing via contact, accelerating physiological process by many, many orders of magnitude. Basics wounds disappear under his watchful eye; larger wounds take longer, but nevertheless are noted to fade with time. With each passing year, his capabilities grow.
There are a couple of limitations. Most notably Mr. Arcleves himself. Excluding his personality, Mr. Arcleves' capability extends only to others. Although I have never documented a single sickness, malaise or affliction in Mr. Arcleves, minor cuts and bruises experienced in his childhood were consistently observed to heal at a normal rate. Critical wounds, such as loss of limbs or damaged nerves and internal organs, cannot be healed by Mr. Arcleves at present, but critical wounds can be closed. The energy expenditure required correlates with the criticality of the injury, and Mr. Arcleves has often been left exhausted by his efforts.
Note well. Mr. Arcleves cannot transcend the most primitive of biological laws: patients must be alive to receive the benefits of Mr. Arcleves' capabilities. He cannot steal from death.
It should also be noted that although Mr. Arcleves is a potential wonder of the medical age, his gifts are not without their drawbacks. On several occasions, patients who received his support were initially shown to thrive. However, not long after, these patients were diagnosed with acute malignancies. Rapid-onset carcinomas are not unknown to us, but I cannot exclude with certainty that Mr. Arcleves was not involved. Cancer is an unregulated, accelerated form of a normal process. It is possible that without the correct training, any attempt by Mr. Arcleves to reach beyond his current limits may do more harm than good in the long-term. Please refer to the Degrasi File (RCMA-D3AD) for more information, that extends beyond this report."
Individual History:
“Mr. Arcleves is an only child. He was born, several weeks prematurely, in St Bartholomew's Hospital, London. Due to unforeseen complications during parturition, Mrs. Arcleves (née Simmons; RCMA-16S2) did not survive long after giving birth. Although emotionally and financially poorer than before, Mr. Arcleves Snr. (RCMA-6022) raised Mr. Arcleves relatively well, until his extraordinary abilities began to manifest at the age of four years.
The Royal College of Medcial Affairs took an extraordinary interest in Mr. Arcleves. I believe that Mr. Arcleves could b one of the most gifted medical practitioners in living history, complimented by his growing abilities.
However, he appears to be hell-bent of ruining his prospects.
He was sponsored and educated by leading clinicians at the Royal College, including myself. The Royal College deemed that his previous way of existing day-to-day was inappropriate; Mr. Arcleves Snr. was duly recompensed for his service. The Royal College would also like to stress the significant time and resources invested in Mr. Arcleves’ advancement, despite Mr. Arcleves’ current indignation.
Mr. Arcleves was elected the youngest member of the Royal College of Medical Affairs, at the age of twelve years. For many years afterwards, he supported physicians at several Institutes in London, whilst continuing his studies at the Royal College. Please see the Saint Bartholomew (RCMA-STB1099), the Royal Infirmary (RCMA-RI76A2), and the Royal College Hospital (RCMA-RCH5666) Files for more information.
Extracurricular activities were organised for Mr. Arcleves by the Royal College. All activities were designed to encourage his betterment. For reasons unknowns, Mr. Arcleves began to deviate from the organised schedule in recent years. In light of the Degrasi File, it is the view of the Royal College that this was a mistake (RCMA-D3AD).
Mr. Arcleves remains a fond interest of the Royal College, irrespective of his current status. The Royal College wishes Mr. Arcleves well at the Damascus Institute, and hopes that, when he returns, he may be in a better position to support the Royal College once again.
DEscription: a young medium sized woman with auburn curly hair , defined cheekbones and a medium complexion. Chocolate brown slanted eyes and a plump figure.
1.Hana Hatake
-nationality: Asian/Black
2. She/they
-age: 22
Height - 4’11
Hair Color - Auburn
Eyes - Chocolate brown
Noticeable features - defined cheekbones
3.Personality/
Positive traits:
positive
a sweetheart: Very emotionally intuitive and sensitiv. whilst not the smartest, she makes up for that by being kind to most anyone she cares for or interacts with. Very much a believer in “see something, say something “
respectful : Drinks her respect everyone so long as they’re not being hurtful juice thrice daily. Consent is non-negotiatabl. will ask before even holding your hand. Lord help you if she finds someone violating the consent rules.
Cheerful: very much an optimist and tries to look on the bright side of everything. This does not mean she is a door mat. If she’s unc with something she will tell you and expect you to respect that.
Neutral
Protective: sometimes overbearingly so. Very much a puch now ask questions later kinda girl .would definitely be there even for moral support.
Loyal: Also unfalteringly so. Won’t question the orders of the people she cares about too hard and would gladly throw herself in front of a bus for them . Very much “ I ain’t talking to no cops and I aint tellin on my bro’s “
Himbo: a whole himbo...isn’t not that she’s..stupid stupid...she’s just not the brightes. it takes her a second to catch on or catch up to speed, but her grades are at least decent because of all the hard work she puts in.
Determined/hardworking: does not shy away from hard work and believes the good things in life are those you work for. Something isn’t working out? Gotta try harder then.
Negative
Guilt: Can and will take all the blame onto her shoulder: whole not a sad or moody person In genera, she does take on a lot of burdens.
Temper temper: has a short temper for certain thing. Can and will explode into a full force rage complete with tantrums if those hot buttons are pressed. Although she does fly into a rage quickly, she’s also quick to forgive and forget and will feel guilty that she flew off the handle so suddenly.
Generosity: wants to be helpful, but overextended themselves quite often to the point of frustration and a rage fit.
But I’m weak! What’s wrong with that?: can and will give into temptation for her passions. It’s always, just one more set, just one more game, just one more cake.
Glutton: She’s like a never ending chasm; hungry for both affection and food. Can eat for daaays and then goes to burn it off with exercise; rinse and repeat. A glutton not for just food, but love as well. Wants lots of affection, especially if she’s feeling down or distressed.
History: Hana had an overall easy going life. Just her, dad and her two siblings. Her mom had passed giving birth to her younger sister Lilly, and ever since Hana has taken it upon herself to be the protector and the back bone of the family. She cleans the house, she ticks to kids in, she fails at cooking dinner, she irons the clothes etc. A complete one woman army. As her siblings got older she gained more free time and, with many encouraging words from teachers and her siblings. Participated in multiple school activities. She was the captain of the football team in High school, won several medals for track, cross country, swim, moi tai, cheer and theatre; Overall she was a peppy, and bright young girl. Although she always made time for her siblings. Being the oldest, she often felt like it’s her responsibility to take care of her younger siblings; especially with how busy her dad is. Of course, make no mistake her father loves them, he’s just often swamped with work or going on business trip after business trip. This of course has never stopped him from being there to cheer Hana on at every single one of her games or give goodnight kisses wether virtually or anything well into the early morning when he finally got home. Life was good. For a while that is, but what’s that saying? Nothing gold can stay, right? There are many interpretations of this. But for Hana, it meant her perfect life would always be strife with tragedy. In her final year of Highschool, Hana was...happy. Content and thinking life couldn’t be better. Sure she missed her mom but she could barely remember her. Life was perfect, she was getting a full ride scholarship for her selected college, her friends were both supportive and Fun and her dad was getting just a bit more time off work. It was like a perfect China doll house all set up sitting pretty and so very...fragile. And like all pretty and perfect things it seems...they eventually, shatter. And so it was, when she was 18, just before she was set to graduate, her sister was killed in a school shooting. Shot by a young sophomore targeting the cafeteria where a group of boys on the soccer team sat. Lilly was just...in the way. And Hana was just not...fast enough. Later during the funeral held for 16 year old Lilly Hatake, Hana shut down. She had survived the shooting with minor scraps and wounds, having tackled the attacker shortly after sister was shot. She spent majority of her time locked in her sisters room crying and eating her feelings as the guilt of not being fast enough to tackle the shooter before she shot her sister consumed her. Roughly a year and half after the incident, she finally managed to drag herself from her despair. Primarily when her younger brother finally snapped and ran away from home; fed up with having an absent father and a practically comatose sister. After bringing him back home, Hana has been going to therapy regularly to deal With her PTSD and survivors guilt and has Been recovering and since learned to put a genuine smile on her face since the shooting.
Powers: Solar Powered: She has the ability to energize and imbue with ATP anything that she touches or glows on. This also works as a healing factor. She herself feels strongest when in the sun and during the day alongside giving energy and healing, she can burn just as bright as the sun. Literally. She glows brighter and burns hotter and hotter until she’s a literal sun. At low glow, she can heal and energize and and brighter rates she burns