“
Íkaros? Right, of course you’d assume that. Take me to my ‘dad’ then, Master. I’d love to see the old fuck again. Put my sword through his gut.
No idea who I am huh? Alright then, pay attention.”
Daedalus, enraged and envious,
sought to slay the youth
But Pallas, goddess of ingenious men,
saving the pupil changed him to a bird,
and in the middle of the air he flew
on feathered wings; and so his active mind—
and vigor of his genius were absorbed
into his wings and feet; although the name
of Perdix was retained. |
Personality, Lore, Wish
Avenger’s true name is Pérdix, the nephew of Daedalus. A young scholar who was sent by his mother to study under the famed Athenian inventor. It’s said that his ingenuity was unmatched even by his teacher and that he was set to carry on the genius of Daedalus’ work to the next generation.
Daedalus, on the other hand, was a man incapable of thinking ahead, despite his intellect. People asked that he built, and so he did. He enjoyed the fame and fortune this lifestyle brought him, never having to worry about anything farther away than a week. To such a man, the promise of a continued legacy by the prodigy under his wing didn’t bring joy or relief, only bitterness.
Daedalus, who was too comfortable in his current life and too proud of his own achievements to ever accept a rival, decided to take his nephew to the top of the Areopagus and do away with this thorn at his side. He tricked the young man into walking closer to the edge and pushed him off to his death.
Such a heinous crime did not go unpunished, Daedalus’ shortsightedness finally caught up to him, for he had not planned appropriately on how he’d hide the corpse, and was quickly apprehended, judged and forever banished from Athens.
This marked a permanent change in his life. His shortsightedness would cost him much more in the years to come.
As for Pérdix, some tell that death was not the end of his story. It’s said that Athena took pity on him and turned his soul into a bird: the first perdix. The bird who builds its nests on the ground and is afraid of heights.
Daedalus, on the other hand, eventually found himself in the good graces of King Minos. He had not learned his lesson, and simply continued to fulfill any requests that came to him. The king’s wife wants help to mate with a bull? Done. The king needs a massive labyrinth to house the aberration the woman birthed and feed it Athenian youths? Simple work. Ariadne needs help betraying her own father, his current benefactor? No problem.
When such crimes were discovered, Minos imprisoned him and his son Íkaros in the labyrinth. The two sought to escape, but… There’s no need to tell the rest, it’s a story known by all.
Except, perhaps, for its
epilogue.
After finding the body of Íkaros washed up on the shores of an island, Daedalus decided to bury him. He exhausted himself both physically and emotionally attempting to dig, with his own hands, a hole deep enough to bury the body of his young son.
All the while, a bird of a singular species he had never seen before watched him. The bird didn’t move even after the Daedalus finished and sat besides the grave of his child to cry and mourn. It just watched in silence, eyes burning red.
Avenger is a tragic Servant. A young man who was robbed of his life before he could truly develop into a genius that would leave a permanent mark in human history, now summoned as a stagnant existence that can only be due to his association with the uncle he hates so, too twisted by revenge to even think about challenging his current status quo.
That said, when not in the presence of Daedalus or someone who has wronged another in a similar way, he’s an agreeable young man who’s willing to help anyone in need. It’s not as if he’s altruistic or fashions himself a hero, rather, he just values others more than himself. Specially living humans. “No one should have their future taken away” and “Hard work should be rewarded” are the basis from which he interacts with most people.
“
Just give me the fucking thing, I’ll fix it. You’re going to spend the whole day on this if no one helps you, aren’t you? Heh, cute. I’ll get it done in 10 minutes. Go spend your time on something you can actually do.”
Such words are just his honest thoughts but, since his aggressive personality persists even during such “wholesome” moments, he doesn’t come off as altruistic or helpful. Rather, people assume he’s a condescending perfectionist who feels the need to take matters onto his own hands whenever he notices anyone making a slight mistake.
Such an assumption couldn’t be further from the truth. Pérdix could never be condescending — on purpose — because he has no pride or self-worth to speak of. The young man has given up on his passions and his own future, instead deciding to wallow in his own misery and seek senseless revenge.
Class Skills
Avenger B.
A class skill representing the state of an Avenger as one that gathers people's hatreds and grudges onto oneself. As ones whose purpose is fueled by such negative emotions, the rate of mana generation increases when receiving damage.
You should let it go,
Focus on yourself,
You have a second chance now. Such misguided kindness only pushes him further down the path of revenge
.
Oblivion Correction A.
People are creatures that forget many things, but an Avenger never forgets. As one who attacks beyond other’s memory, their critical effects are strengthened.
The image of the coward smiling and sweating as he was pushed off the temple is seared into his mind forever.
Unchanging, like the relentless red stare of the perdix in myth
.
Self-Rephenishment (Mana) E.
A skill that replenishes a minuscule amount of magical energy every turn. One's magical energy endlessly surges until their revenge is accomplished.
Despite revenge occupying his mind and speech constantly, he’s quick to give up and become depressed once faced with obstacles. To put it simply, he’s not putting his heart into it. This is just the “Plan B” he has settled on after “Plan A” was taken from him, he’s only obsessed with it because he’s unable to believe a “Plan C” exists, should he abandon this path
.
Personal Skills
Natural Born Genius EX.
A skill that represents one who has unparalleled natural knowledge. Allows the use of most skills, excluding those inherent to the body (such as Divinity) or ones unique to particular heroes, at proficiency of A or B rank.
Despite having his trajectory cut short, he was still born a genius and worked on this talent tirelessly while he could. However, due to his single-minded focus on revenge taking his attention away from such matters, he rarely makes good use of this skill
.
Obsolete Star-Seeker E.
A unique skill granted to heroes that failed to become turning points in human history. All simple voyages and challenges which are considered “likely to be overcome” turn into “events that are nearly impossible”.
The saw, the compass and the scissors. His creations stood the test of time and became staples used even in the current era. Nevertheless, his name is but a footnote on Daedalus legend. He could have achieved much more and truly revolutionized human history, but the chance for that is long gone.
Pérdix is a
misguided underdog. Standing against impossible odds in order to achieve a meaningless end
.
Mystic Eyes of Vertiginous Pressure A.
A skill representing one’s possession of Mystic Eyes, mechanisms through which magecraft is executed automatically through vision.
When his soul was turned into a bird by Athena, his vigor became wings and his genius became his feet. This should account for all that Pérdix was, but upon meeting this Servant, it’s obvious that his boiling rage against Daedalus was born the moment he noticed what had happened. Seeing how
desperately he claws to such feelings; one must wonder what they became.
The Mystic Eyes of Vertiginous Pressure were born out of Pérdix’s hate and fear. It imposes onto others the feeling of
vertigo.
It is usually a dizziness or ill-feeling caused by looking down from high altitudes, but it can also be caused by stress and emotional trauma. Avenger’s eyes weight down on his victim’s mind, attacking their emotional state to cause a paralyzing discomfort.
Perdix utilizes this power freely. Despite wielding a saw-sword, he was not a fighter in life, and needs to make constant use of this power to disorient his opponent during battle. Though that also means he has no chance against mentally strong fighters.
“
Not a problem,” is his comment on the matter. “
The one I need to kill isn’t going to put up much of a fight anyway.”
Noble Phantasm(s)
Σερνόμενο Σκοτεινό Περντίζ
Shed Your Hazel Wings, Scarlet Soul
.
Type: Anti-Self
Rank: EX
“I’ll never stop! Never relent! I won’t need a second chance because I’m never letting go of this one, you hear me!? This wound is nothing to me, the Sernómeno Skoteinó Perntíz!”
Crawling Black Bird. Originally, this was supposed to be the reason a minor figure such as himself would be able to manifest as a Servant at all, a superpowered version of Affection of the Goddess that could be activated by its true name for a single-use blessing. An ability that’d allow him to preserve his Spirit Core in the form of a perdix, keeping him in this world and maybe even giving him a chance of returning to a regular body, should he meet someone with the necessary expertise.
However, having turned his back to his true intellectual passions for the sake of a meaningless obsession, he lost the favor of the goddess. Now this can hardly be called a Noble Phantasm, it’s just a sudden desperation that arises when Pérdix realizes he’s close to losing everything he’s clinging to, once again.
Upon death, his Spiritual Core will morph into a monstrous being of avian features. Unable to fly and barely able to move at all, this horrid creature will drag itself along the ground in blind rage, searching for any target to attack both physically and mentally.
The creature slowly decays, spewing out black oil as it moves and eventually revealing a broken bronze skeleton encased in its emaciated flesh. As it moves, these pieces of machinery are left behind, useless.
Once, a boy was sent to his uncle to study the mechanical arts. He had aspirations and hopes. Plans for a bright future in which he followed the footsteps of the renowned relative.
They were not realized.
Such a small tale. How can this person even manifest as a Heroic Spirit now that he lost even the favor of the goddess who pitied him in his final moments?
Ο Δαίδαλος Φταίει
Your Failures, Never Forgotten
.
Type: Conceptual Enhancement
Rank: B+
“You think this is a burden? I welcome this role. Let me follow on his footsteps once more! This time I will carry on his work, show to all who he really was! O Daídalos Ftaíei!”
Daídalos’ Fault. The truth of Avenger Pérdix. The undying memory of Daedalus’ failure as a person.
This is not truly Heroic Spirit Pérdix, but the Phantom of Pérdix, borrowed to embody the aspect of Daedalus he represents best: his flaws.
An Alter-Ego that immortalizes Daedalus’ shame, someone who would never be able to manifest in another class, were it not for his relentless anger.
This Noble Phantasm is the crystallization Pérdix as the carrier of a genius’ wrongs. Using his own legend as a catalyst, Pérdix manifests representations of all of Daedalus’ failures onto himself.
The carelessness to abandon unfinished projects. The unwillingness to plan ahead. The heartlessness necessary to kill one’s own kin. The willingness to serve a tyrant for his own benefit. The immorality of aiding in the conception of a monstrosity. The evil of participating in the murder of innocents. The callousness with which he’d betray his own benefactor…
It all comes together as a massive suit of automated armor in the form of the Minotaur. It encases Perdix, granting him low ranks in Independent Action and Mental Pollution. Many of Avenger’s abilities are enhanced in this form, since he is further emphasizing his own defining concept of “the wrongs of Daedalus”. He is able to maintain self-control despite the Mental Pollution, but it’s still dangerous to activate it for long periods of time.
Using the armor is an extremely comfortable and addicting experience. It fills the wearer with a deep sense of self-worth and pride, while also draining their mental capabilities in a very specific way: it deteriorates one’s own ability to think abstract or concrete thoughts about the future, forcing them to take spur of the moment decisions repeatedly, something that more often than not will prove to be detrimental in the long run. Inevitably leading one to their own demise.
A very direct Noble Phantasm that over-emphasizes its point to the limit.
Daedalus was a multifaceted man. He carried many failures, but also lived in comfort and success for most of life. It is bizarre to see such a specific facet of a man be materialized in this way.
Unless, of course, if there’s intention behind such a manifestation. Having lost the favors of the goddess who saved him in life, one has to wonder whose favor he has gained in death?
Perhaps there’s purposeful intention behind this bizarre Saint Graph, someone willing to leave Daedalus’ forgotten mistakes to a poor boy drunk on his own tragedy.
Relationships
Charlot: “What good will come of you dying? Huh?! I don’t care what your Noble Phantasm is or how well you can swing your glowstick, don’t you dare go rushing into danger like that again!”
Da Vinci: “I’m not leaving the command room, you are! Me and Jingle are already taking care of things, so fuck off. Do you think I want some sleeping little kid to drive us into a wall? How about you go to bed before you embarrass yourself even more?!”
Mr. Glass: “…and then he pushed me off! I'll never forget the look on his face, he wasn't even sure of what he was doing. Just cowardly getting rid of something that challenged the little perfect world he lived in. Did I tell you about how he did it just after finishing an acrolith for the areopagus he threw me from? I bet he got the idea right at that moment, zero planning. He had barely finished the head on Ja— Glass? Hey, I'm not finished. Where are you going? Glass?”
Jack the Ripper: “And I was complaining about my future being taken? Shit, I’m pathetic.”
Asterios: Pérdix has avoided him ever since being summoned. It’s not as if he hates the Minotaur or feels guilt over what Daedalus did, it’s just… hard to look at him. It’s hard seeing someone enjoy their second chance after giving up on your own.
Íkaros: “I’m acting like his big brother? Heh, you don’t get it, Master. We were both victims of Daedalus' shortsightedness. ‘You scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours,’ you know? It’s just a duty, nothings else.”
“He doesn’t see things this way? I’m the only one doing the scratching? And here I thought I had an observant Master, I guess you’re just really dense instead, you should work on that.”
?????????? ?????: “Stay away from us. Don’t talk to me or Íkaros. Don’t even look in our direction. Do you get it? You better, unless you want one of those faces sawed off.”