FC Delacroix: http://danbooru.donmai.us/posts/1096...8dorohedoro%29
FC Olga: http://danbooru.donmai.us/posts/1580...mi_%28hetza%29
Appearance: A man that looks barely 20. Black. Has fuzzy often unkempt hair, and brown eyes, though there are people that swear having seen them flare up in a sickly yellow. Is usually seen wearing either an old suit that seems to be coming apart at the seams with leather dress shoes or a simple vest over a long sleeved shirt with loafers. Never wears shorts or shirts with short sleeves to cover up a few unsightly livor mortis-like stains. Usually smells like a mixture of moth balls, hard booze and fireworks. Is usually seen smiling widely.
Personality: He is usually described as “being a little off, but nice”. He is very open and loves to talk, though his prying nature and strange, morbid sense of humor seems to often cause discomfort. Uncharacteristically for most vampires he enjoys being dramatic and loud at every occasion and has been known to become very flirtatious (to both genders) if the signs have been given, though his interpretation of said signs is quite wide, often adding to his lack of social graces. However he is quite well-spoken and curses rarely.
His worldview is very fatalist. While a long time ago he might have felt guilty about killing he has since then accepted it as a part of his life, and has even been able to see a lot of positives in it, being an optimist at heart. As a believer in an afterlife he thinks that any good people he might have killed will enjoy a good existence in there in any case, and any bad people had it coming.
As such he fears death as he himself is by no means a good person, but he regardless enjoys combat, as he sees any bout he survives as reaffirmation that he still has a place in this world.
Hobby-wise he enjoys drinking, sewing and novels, as he only had the opportunity to become literate way late in his life.
Backstory:Born in 1823 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, the man who would later be known as Mister Delacroix was born to two poor plantation workers. Although several factors, like a rather long passage of time, alcohol and involvement with the kind of people or spirits any rational and logically thinking individual would rather avoid, make recalling details hazy, a few impressions remained with him. The days were hot, long, and full of misery. As a young boy the only thing he could ever recall enjoying were tales of a better life after the current one, and the amazing culinary wonders his mother could conjure out of what little they could afford. However, one particular incident would not be washed away so easily by the various mind-addling factors that contributed to his current state. He was 16, maybe 17, possibly 18, definitely not 19 or 15 though, that much was clear, when a white man and a kreyole speaking-lackey approached him, asking for a strong and willing escort accompanying him and his associates to a small village inland. The pay was extraordinarily high for the time served, something that the poor young man should have taken as a warning sign. If not this, at least the man's strange robes, or his unclear and isolated destination. But the boy was not exactly blessed with perceptiveness of earthly matters, and so decided to follow along.
As the trip proceeded the man seemed more and more willing to share information. He was a Frenchman, a priest of some sort. Apparently he had heard rumors about unnatural happenings in a remote little village, and seemed quite concerned.
Again, the boy would probably not have followed further if he had noticed that the man who was so worried did not seem worried in the slightest, no matter what the translator said. In fact he seemed more tired than anything. Like this was a routine job.
And he had the strangest look of pity whenever he looked at his hirelings.
They were maybe half a mile from their destination when something truly, truly horrifying would happen to his entire investigating, or better, adventuring party. For some reason the boy had a strange premonition, as if somebody wanted to tell him..
something. Only mintues later the Frenchman seemed to sense it himself, but it was too late.
Only dug in in the most shallow way possible corpses rose from the ground, grabbing the mostly unsuspecting wanderers by whatever they could hold on to and dragging them to their ravenous mouths. The Frenchman put up quite the fight, handling mysterious red-handled swords to fend off at least four of them by himself, but having no eyes on his back a fifth would escape him and take a healthy chunk out of his shoulder, prematurely ending the trip.
The boy, for some reason, was spared in the attack. But it was neither a miracle nor mercy that ensured his survival, but rather greed. Greed by the one in command of these living dead.
It was not like he had a choice anyway. First struggling and resisting but later just accepting, he was swiftly transported to the man who commanded them.
He had heard of the likes of him. Bokor. Magi who strike bargains with loa for powers and hexes. The magus informed him that he had great potential, and that he would be sacrificed to appease his guardian. He spoke those words with unnaturally sharp teeth and insanity in his eyes, and yet there was something more there. Not just the ramblings of a maniac who sold who knows what to an entity that should not be taken lightly. It was fear. Something had to exist that drove even the likes of him, someone who was no longer rooted in sane, normal behavior, a man who had to fear nothing, to express terror of a lifetime. He would have a few days to find out, as the sacrifice would take place during a full moon.
It only took one night to meet what scared the magus.
At first the boy wasn't sure what exactly it was, maybe a hallucination from a lack of food and water, his mind finally turning on him in the isolation or a trick by the bokor to ensure he would not resist whatever hell he would put him through. It was a voice, and yet not. A feeling that something wanted to communicate. Something simple.
He gives you me, or you give me him.
Every night brought another message. The deal was sweetened every time. He would take care of him for a long while he said. He would give him the knowledge the Bokor possessed. He would give him a taste of his power.
And last but not least the voice seemed to suggest that he could promise that he would never die from starvation, thirst or sickness. In fact he would outlive everybody else he knew.
It was one night before the sacrifice would happen. The boy accepted the deal.
What happened next he could not remember, and yet it was not taken away by anything. It simply never existed. The boy never did offer up the Bokor. Whoever that voice was, it had taken matters in its own hands. Taken control of the boy.
The sight of the dead magus at his feet was etched into his memory. He still remembered his first taste of the blood of another man. It was different, strange, but so sweet that he would not stop. It took him mere seconds to drink his fill. Only after quenching his thirst he would take note of the fangs in his mouth.
The feeling of accidentially biting himself was the last thing he remembered. That and the voices final message.
He had made a bargain. And they would meet again.
All he knew from this on were fragments, even moreso than before. Unclear, smeared pictures of walking the earth like an animal. Consuming corpses, scaring whoever was unlucky enough to lay an eye on him, and later eating them.
No Hougan came to lay him to rest. As if something was protecting him.
It took a long time for him to regain something that could be called a conscience. The time was 1980, and the world had changed. He had to adapt. Slowly. Steadily. And what he wanted more than anything was a change of air.
He knew how to call the one that made him this way. For five dead men the loa would allow him to cross the ocean.
The first kill was still hard. It felt as if he finally took responsibility for what he did. That he enjoyed the power, the taste of flesh, and maybe even talking to his strange companion. To wield the power of a Bokor was simply awe-inspiring. He was no longer the poor plantation worker's son. He was a rumor, a legend people spoke about only in whispers.
It was not enough to sustain him however.
His goal was something else. The United States. To flee the influence of the Church and the Hougan and to start a new life, surviving, and maybe even enjoying doing what he does best.
Through a proxy, an American Freelancer that found a rather gruesome end at his hands, he would soon be able to sustain himself by hunting magi for the association. On one of his later jobs he found his long-term business partner. (More about her in the Phantasmal Familiar section)
It was a good life. In the city of Miami people could disappear without too many questions being asked, the associations influence did not extend too far in here and there were even other countrymen of his.
However, it would not last forever. Two letters were sent to the dead man that Delacroix simply could not ignore.
He wasn't sure if the letters were meant to the dead freelancer or him, but a bit of a vacation could not hurt either way.
Stats:
STR D
AGI D
END A
PRA A
ABI B
Perks:
Blood Lust: 0 AP
Mystic Eyes of the Confidant: 15 AP
A small gift from the Loa that took possesssion of Delacroix, a set of mystic eyes that put him in a favorable position in all interaction, granting him a sliver of Kalfu's talent. Alters people's perception of the user. Though they won't be able to pin down the reason they will feel a strong bond, like a good, year-long friend towards Delacroix. The effect is cumulative and becomes more effective the more often it is used on the same target. While a first use might only be able to extract information frequent usage will slowly allow deterioration of will to the point where orders can be given and will be followed as if they were true and honest wishes of the target. Due to its insidious nature it is hard to fight, but its combat use is limited. Its effectiveness is increased on sufficiently poisoned targets (they have to be delirious).
Thaumaturgy Special Trait: Ribbons of Night, 20 AP
All of Delacroix's magecraft bases itself around the manipulation of the strange concoction that allows a bokor to create his zombies which now runs through his veins. While it takes form as a physical poison it is a spiritual weapon, designed to create undead slaves via inducing a departure of the soul, the catatonic state. Every time Delacroix uses an applicable spell a tether forms from his fingertip to the target. A person touching this tether in any way will be poisoned, and any touch will alarm Delacroix as the tethers are connected to his fingers. At first the poison only causes numbness, sweating and unusual cold of an affected area but a lack of resistance or more contact will quickly turn the cumulative effects worse. Intense pain, slight hallucinations, paralysis, delirium and finally a state of suspended animation are the consequences of exposure. Due to this effect being used in the creation of his Ghouls, exposure to their blood also inflicts this poison effect.
Solar Weakness 15 AP
Vampiric Abilities:
Phantasmal Familiar: Bloody Olga, 29 AP
STR: E (D in Vigor Mortis)
AGI: A
END: C
ABI: -
PRA: -
Not quite a zombie, not quite alive either, the story of Delacroix's closest assistant is a bit of a strange one.
The girl was not born with any spiritual aptitude. Her family was a completely normal one, no magi, no ESPers, no blood of the gods in her veins or demonic heritage. Just a normal girl in a Polish immigrant family, with two bigger brothers, living in Chicago. Her life was relatively uneventful except for a few instances of almost dropping out of high-school due to various violent outbursts. After finishing this she had set her eyes on armed service, but to her disappointment infantry was out of the question in the US.
After serving a rather boring time in the Army's civil affairs program which ended abruptly after another disciplinary incident she was hired by a private security firm and deployed in the Iraq war. Due to a PR disaster for said firm its contract was swiftly revoked and Olga had to return home once again. What she had left from her pay as the company rebranded itself was quickly invested in booze, cigars and assault lawsuits.
With only one thing she really enjoyed she quickly got hired by a small security company that did not mind having people of questionable backgrounds. On her first day she would even meet the company CEO.
The only problem was said CEO was a sealing designated magus who scouted combat-capable thralls to defend himself in case of an enforcer's attack. Quickly she was put under mental control and made to work for him.
It was there where she would meet her current partner, 5 years before he would decide to follow the letter's invitation.
Literally swarming the place with ghouls Delacroix broke through the small, trained army of the magus and eventually managed to push him back to his innermost sanctum, where he was alone with just Olga to back him up.
After having swiftly dealt with him, Delacroix was prepared to make the quite shaken and now unarmed Olga his ghoul servant.
But sometimes the loa's plans do not align with those of humans.
It was spontaneous. Usually the loa had to be called upon to do anything, but it seems that one of them had taken quite a liking to the foul-mouthed, aggressive, violent and promiscuous woman, and would save her from her fate as a mindless servant.
The loa of death, Baron Samedi, had taken hold of Delacroix.
When he came back, he only remembered laying on the ground, dazed and confused, and the woman he believed dead giving him a hand to get back up.
She was his familiar, yes. But she was no mindless zombie. Her soul was her own, sent back by the loa, or so he perceived it at least. A unique existence, dead and yet in full control of her actions.
She did not feel pain anymore. Her strength and speed amplified by her supernatural state of existence and a parting gift by the Baron.
Her blood was not full of the toxins Delacroix used on his familiars usually. It was cleaned through a divine blessing, ensuring she would never be taken as his zombie.
It was the beginning of a partnership by necessity. But Olga had always her handwork. There was always something twisted about her that seemed to enjoy death, and now she finally had the confirmation that death loved her back.
Olga is usually stored in a big suitcase Delacroix carries around, cut into pieces, and instantly assembles her body on command.
Phantasmal Familiar Abiliy: Come to Papa
The blessing of the Baron is, theoretically, the worst nightmare of Delacroix. Her blood will, on contact with his poison, instantly cause catastropic, fast-acting rot, the size of which depends on the amount of poison in their opponent. With high concentration this the rot needs less than a second to eat off all the flesh off a body, leaving only skeletal remains. It carries a concept of “rest”, thus purging all the poison from the body when it hits, curing the target of whatever effects they might suffer from (in exchange for the rot).
This causes the poison to take on an aerosol form in which it may be inhaled and thus poison surrounding victims. This fact is often exploited in battle, as Olga can just shoot one of Delacroix's ghouls and thus cause a cloud of poisonous gas that causes strong poison effects (refer to the Sorcery Trait for the exact effects).
She mostly uses this technique by cutting her fingers on her shotgun's bayonet and trickling her blood over a shell she loads manually. However contact with the blood is enough.
Flock of Familiars: 15 AP
Curse of Restoration: D, 20 AP
Spells:
Clinging Darkness: D, 4 AP
Creates a small shard that shoots out from Delacroix's fingertips with the power of a handgun bullet, connected to them via a tether. Depending on the END of the target it will either shoot through or stick to the target, however it can also be simply used on walls to create a tether. Causes light damage and poison if it hits. Penetrating the target will cause additional poisoning.
Glimpse the Unthinkable: C, 6 AP
Injects a concentrated amount of the poison directly into his eyes, causing them to transform into their true form, the eyes of Kalfu. The first side effect of this transformation is that Delacroix now sees the world like a Loa would. Physical, lifeless objects become hard to make out but anything with a soul, be it Servant or Master, can be seen for long distances and even through walls. When Delacroix uses the eyes this effect disappears, however the way this use works is changed. Rather than imbuing trust and instilling a false sense of security, the eyes now show a different side to Kalfu's negotiation tactics. Fear. Depending on the affliction with poison and how often the eyes have been used on the target the target will find itself unable to move or use a random ability in an act of sheer panic against whatever they see, be it their own Servant or even themselves. In ideal conditions (multiple Mystic Eye usage, strong poison affliction) this might even completely erase the targets will, turning it into a lifeless husk and thus easy prey.
Last Gasp: C, 6 AP
Shoots a tether at a target and animates it as snake-looking Baka (no not the japanese one, the haitian one). Any number of other currently active tethers may be animated the same way (Vigor Mortis tethers will make the effect of the spell end instantly if animated this way.)
Seeks out an opponent and ensnares him, causing poison and making them unable to move if they fail a STR check. For every additional animated tether additional poison is inflicted, making this a potent finishing move with a high enough number of tethers. However, since the animation is taxing on the tethers they disappear after 2 turns.
Moonlight Bargain: B, 8 AP
A non-combat spell that requires the body of a recently deceased to work. Offers Kalfu two parts of the person's existence and allows the manipulation of the remaining one.
If one gives Kalfu the body and the mind, one receives the soul, which has to be caught in a bottle. It can be fed at any time to the Servant for prana restoration or used differently (see house upgrade section)
If one gives Kalfu the soul and the body one receives the mind, which too has to be caught in a bottle. Drinking the contents of the bottle will allow full access to the knowledge of the target before it died.
If one gives Kalfu the soul and the mind the body can be manipulated, allowing its parts to be grafted onto another being. This allows Delacroix to repair his familiars or even improve his ghouls by adding extra limbs and creating abominations.
Vigor Mortis: B, 8 AP
Shoots a tether from his fingertips into the spinal column of a target and imbues a concept of “permanence”. An offshoot of the zombie creation technique this essentially anchors the soul of the target to its body and instilling a directive onto the tethers implanted in its body to preserve the bodily condition the image of the soul suggests. This grisly technique will, as long as this tether persists, react to any damage done to the body of the target. Damage done will cause a spontaneous formation of hundreds of tethers, imitating the former state of the body by layering themselves over wounds or in the worst kind of injuries replacing entire limbs and organs until the spell duration ends. While it only allows a temporary healing and thus might only delay death where a regular healing spell would prevent it outright, the tethers react amazingly quick and can keep even a decapitated target functional until the end of the spell duration. Further, a Ghoul affected by this spell will have his rotting musculature and deadened nerves revitalized and thus perform much better. After the duration the tethers dissolve, instantly reopening wounds and making limbs disappear again.
House:
Old Town: Old Butcher's Shop, 4 AP
Not a very popular hangout this run-down butcher's shop was a hard sell due to the Traditionalists taking care to not suffer ritual uncleanliness. It has a small storefront area that has been shut to nosy outsider's looks with a bit of cardboard, making it hard to believe anybody lives in there. For a short-term arrangement for a foreigner it was probably the best he could hope for.
6 spaces.
Upgrade: Kalfu's Altar, A-Rank, 10 AP
Allows the usage of souls of the departed for various uses. A new soul takes up one upgrade space in the house.
The altar's function must be maintained with an offering of gunpowder-infused rum each day, otherwise the souls are taken from the house and move on to the afterlife.
For every soul anchored to the house the rank of the altar rises by one. Without a soul bound to it its rank is considered – and thus unusable, with one soul it's E, two D, three C, etc.
The souls can provide one of three functions:
-They can be sapped for their energy, increasing prana recovery rate.
-They can be used to haunt the area, making normal people avoid the house entirely and requiring a mental resistance check before entering is possible
-They can attack any incoming spiritual invaders. They can not attack corporeal beings.
Switching the respective function of the altar requires an additional offering of rum.
The Servant may also choose to consume any haunting souls to instantly recover a bit of prana.
Extraordinary souls might provide additional boni.
Originally Posted by RoydGolden
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