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Character Information
May. 8th, 2015 12:50 amPersonality
Nothing is as inconstant or as curious as a cat, except perhaps one Christian Fischer. Drawn from an early age toward the magical and uncanny, Christian's drive to find out only grew with his age. With very few concrete roots to keep him attached to places or people, he can often be aloof, drifting both physically and in priorities as situations change. By nature, he is also given to go with the flow. A laid back and somewhat lazy person, Christian would rather talk his way out of a bad situation than fight. His friendly and overall pleasant demeanor help facilitate this, and he often manages to resolve disputes simply by being patient and approachable enough to earn someone's trust.
On the other hand, like most spirits, he has a dishonest streak. An acceptable lie is often easier to digest than a hard truth, and Christian, having lived as a human chasing after spirits for much of his life, leans into that belief. He can avoid conflicts completely just by misleading a party with a convenient answer, choosing to uphold the peace rather than press the truth forward into unwilling or difficult hands, his own included. He is also selfish. A creature that likes his comforts and security, he makes decisions that serve his own needs and goals, and this can lead to misfortune for others, even if he is ultimately trying to save their lives. His main weakness is his hesitance to connect to the world. He fears rejection and judgment from the human world, and he can come off as aloof or overly playful when he tries to cover that insecurity with humor or games.
While he can be indulgent and reluctant with volunteering his involvement, Christian's best trait is open-mindedness. He is willing to see both sides of conflicts and work to negotiate between them. Overall, he does have empathy for others and prefers to have everyone come out happy. Beneath his outer show of flippant jokes and playful misdirection, he's also loyal and stubborn. He will spend literal decades working to help them those he cares about and, when necessary, will trick and lie his way to insuring their safety. Occasionally Christian will fight, but he is known to heavily rely on what is around him, and he will retreat rather than go down with any ship, figurative or otherwise. Self-preservation does not, however, manage to keep him from living the nosy life of a magic-hunter, following the strange and mysterious even if it ends up threatening him and those around him.
Abilities
Half-spirit - Spiritually transient, Christian is not quite human and not quite spirit. He is technically still human in a physical sense, living by corporeal rules and unable to move through objects like a magical creature, but he has a strong spiritual presence that gives him the ability to sense and use magical energy. Like magical creatures, he tends to be invisible or less noticeable to the average skeptic. Humans often ignore or forget him after brief encounters, and it's not uncommon for conversations about him to be misremembered or unclear. This is an innate effect that he has no control over and it depends more on the acceptance of the human than anything he can do to actively mask his presence. Being half-spirit means he can also use energy as a way of stretching his own. He still needs to eat like humans do, but like spirits he can get some life supporting energy from spiritual energy.
Magic
Spiritual sight - Christian can see the effects of magic that many people are not sensitive to. Some less sensitive people can pick up the results of magic use only when it is strong enough to affect the physical world (moving smoke, causing unnaturally rapid growth or decay, or other subtle changes), but as a magic user Christian can see the actual energy being drawn in and channeled for magic.
Energy Channeling - Related to qigong, reiki, and other more New Age methods, the ability to draw power from the Subtle Realm and manipulate it for certain tasks is actually a technique for magic that only adepts can use. Christian can use his own body to cast spells, but because of the fine control and concentration this requires, his ability is actually very limited. Christian has tattoos on one arm to assist him with drawing in and focusing his energy, helping him achieve this technique. His ability is mainly focused on channeling energy into an object for one specific effect (temporary light, a string of words repeated on loop, an aura of fear, a small enchanted fire, etc). He can also pull on the energy of others, but again his control is not that great. He might be able to draw magic toward himself or give people a nudge, and with cooperation from the other party can link auras for temporary empathic effects, but the other party must be willing. Those with greater control can always overpower his efforts.
Dowsing - Exactly what it sounds like. Christian has a natural ability to find things that people are looking for. This can be physical objects, such as a missing dog or an important letter, or something more intangible like finding out Tabitha's secret wish or the name of the person Mr. Smith loved most. He doesn't have telepathy, but rather, he is naturally pulled toward things of importance. It may take a while for these things to appear, but Christian will be pulled toward them over time in subtle ways. For physical objects, he might be drawn to the location one is hidden or keep running into the same person while searching for a particular item in their possession. He may naturally be drawn to the person who knows the secret answer to a question he is searching for or conversation might naturally gravitate toward a name he wishes to learn.
This can also work against him, drawing him toward dangers or unpleasantness. He might eventually find the answer to a great riddle, but he probably needs it because his power brought him to a monster threatening his life if he couldn't answer it.
Seeker's Coin - The "heart's desire" coin; a gift from the faieries. This magical object looks to the average human like a plain silver coin with no stamp, roughly the diameter of an American half dollar but twice as thick. When Christian focuses energy into the coin, he can use it to channel his dowsing ability toward a specific goal to enhance his reach. The coin displays a compass on its face for the user with an arrow that points directly toward the item or person the user thinks about. In order to work, the user has to be able to picture their goal in their mind. If they don't have a clear picture, the coin will simply point toward the nearest place, person, or object that gives off strong spiritual powers.
Physical magic - Also known as practical magic or witchcraft. This is the type of magic most commonly used by humans to affect the physical plane. It requires finding items that are naturally receptive to the Subtle Realm and using them to create spells. This often resembles recipes or craft projects, because weaving magic into physical objects in key to achieving results. Christian's skill with this is primarily limited to small barriers, traps, and charms. Because of the physical components, these kinds of spells are sturdier, but trickier to put together properly.
Demon - Christian is also possessed by a fear-inducing spirit that lives in his shadows. An intangible creature, the spirit can move through shadows freely and change shape to meld with them, growing and shrinking as it needs to. It cannot affect physical objects, but it is able to use its armored body to deflect magical energy and the venom from its bite causes reactions of fear in living creatures. A common pest, the "bed bug" is often the cause of nightmares and most are easily driven away. Christian's bug, because of regular feedings, is stronger than most of its kind. In its true form, it appears to be a devilish looking centipede.
Nothing is as inconstant or as curious as a cat, except perhaps one Christian Fischer. Drawn from an early age toward the magical and uncanny, Christian's drive to find out only grew with his age. With very few concrete roots to keep him attached to places or people, he can often be aloof, drifting both physically and in priorities as situations change. By nature, he is also given to go with the flow. A laid back and somewhat lazy person, Christian would rather talk his way out of a bad situation than fight. His friendly and overall pleasant demeanor help facilitate this, and he often manages to resolve disputes simply by being patient and approachable enough to earn someone's trust.
On the other hand, like most spirits, he has a dishonest streak. An acceptable lie is often easier to digest than a hard truth, and Christian, having lived as a human chasing after spirits for much of his life, leans into that belief. He can avoid conflicts completely just by misleading a party with a convenient answer, choosing to uphold the peace rather than press the truth forward into unwilling or difficult hands, his own included. He is also selfish. A creature that likes his comforts and security, he makes decisions that serve his own needs and goals, and this can lead to misfortune for others, even if he is ultimately trying to save their lives. His main weakness is his hesitance to connect to the world. He fears rejection and judgment from the human world, and he can come off as aloof or overly playful when he tries to cover that insecurity with humor or games.
While he can be indulgent and reluctant with volunteering his involvement, Christian's best trait is open-mindedness. He is willing to see both sides of conflicts and work to negotiate between them. Overall, he does have empathy for others and prefers to have everyone come out happy. Beneath his outer show of flippant jokes and playful misdirection, he's also loyal and stubborn. He will spend literal decades working to help them those he cares about and, when necessary, will trick and lie his way to insuring their safety. Occasionally Christian will fight, but he is known to heavily rely on what is around him, and he will retreat rather than go down with any ship, figurative or otherwise. Self-preservation does not, however, manage to keep him from living the nosy life of a magic-hunter, following the strange and mysterious even if it ends up threatening him and those around him.
Abilities
Half-spirit - Spiritually transient, Christian is not quite human and not quite spirit. He is technically still human in a physical sense, living by corporeal rules and unable to move through objects like a magical creature, but he has a strong spiritual presence that gives him the ability to sense and use magical energy. Like magical creatures, he tends to be invisible or less noticeable to the average skeptic. Humans often ignore or forget him after brief encounters, and it's not uncommon for conversations about him to be misremembered or unclear. This is an innate effect that he has no control over and it depends more on the acceptance of the human than anything he can do to actively mask his presence. Being half-spirit means he can also use energy as a way of stretching his own. He still needs to eat like humans do, but like spirits he can get some life supporting energy from spiritual energy.
Magic
Spiritual sight - Christian can see the effects of magic that many people are not sensitive to. Some less sensitive people can pick up the results of magic use only when it is strong enough to affect the physical world (moving smoke, causing unnaturally rapid growth or decay, or other subtle changes), but as a magic user Christian can see the actual energy being drawn in and channeled for magic.
Energy Channeling - Related to qigong, reiki, and other more New Age methods, the ability to draw power from the Subtle Realm and manipulate it for certain tasks is actually a technique for magic that only adepts can use. Christian can use his own body to cast spells, but because of the fine control and concentration this requires, his ability is actually very limited. Christian has tattoos on one arm to assist him with drawing in and focusing his energy, helping him achieve this technique. His ability is mainly focused on channeling energy into an object for one specific effect (temporary light, a string of words repeated on loop, an aura of fear, a small enchanted fire, etc). He can also pull on the energy of others, but again his control is not that great. He might be able to draw magic toward himself or give people a nudge, and with cooperation from the other party can link auras for temporary empathic effects, but the other party must be willing. Those with greater control can always overpower his efforts.
Dowsing - Exactly what it sounds like. Christian has a natural ability to find things that people are looking for. This can be physical objects, such as a missing dog or an important letter, or something more intangible like finding out Tabitha's secret wish or the name of the person Mr. Smith loved most. He doesn't have telepathy, but rather, he is naturally pulled toward things of importance. It may take a while for these things to appear, but Christian will be pulled toward them over time in subtle ways. For physical objects, he might be drawn to the location one is hidden or keep running into the same person while searching for a particular item in their possession. He may naturally be drawn to the person who knows the secret answer to a question he is searching for or conversation might naturally gravitate toward a name he wishes to learn.
This can also work against him, drawing him toward dangers or unpleasantness. He might eventually find the answer to a great riddle, but he probably needs it because his power brought him to a monster threatening his life if he couldn't answer it.
Seeker's Coin - The "heart's desire" coin; a gift from the faieries. This magical object looks to the average human like a plain silver coin with no stamp, roughly the diameter of an American half dollar but twice as thick. When Christian focuses energy into the coin, he can use it to channel his dowsing ability toward a specific goal to enhance his reach. The coin displays a compass on its face for the user with an arrow that points directly toward the item or person the user thinks about. In order to work, the user has to be able to picture their goal in their mind. If they don't have a clear picture, the coin will simply point toward the nearest place, person, or object that gives off strong spiritual powers.
Physical magic - Also known as practical magic or witchcraft. This is the type of magic most commonly used by humans to affect the physical plane. It requires finding items that are naturally receptive to the Subtle Realm and using them to create spells. This often resembles recipes or craft projects, because weaving magic into physical objects in key to achieving results. Christian's skill with this is primarily limited to small barriers, traps, and charms. Because of the physical components, these kinds of spells are sturdier, but trickier to put together properly.
Demon - Christian is also possessed by a fear-inducing spirit that lives in his shadows. An intangible creature, the spirit can move through shadows freely and change shape to meld with them, growing and shrinking as it needs to. It cannot affect physical objects, but it is able to use its armored body to deflect magical energy and the venom from its bite causes reactions of fear in living creatures. A common pest, the "bed bug" is often the cause of nightmares and most are easily driven away. Christian's bug, because of regular feedings, is stronger than most of its kind. In its true form, it appears to be a devilish looking centipede.
