Hadriel app

[avephoenix]

PLAYER
Player name: Alexis
Contact: punnyinpink at plurk
Characters currently in-game: Emily

CHARACTER
Character Name: Faith Carr
Character Age: 27
Canon: OC (she is a canonmate of Kate Galloway)
Canon Point: after the defeat of the Agency and Julia Rosenberg (the end of the story, basically)
World Description: Here

History:

They say faith can move mountains. She was too young when her parents died to even think to ask if that was why they named her Faith, but regardless of their intentions, she would in fact grow up to be a mover and a shaker, the force needed to unify a group of talented individuals towards one goal and see it through.

A rare and powerful superhuman called a phoenix, Faith embodies the passion and drive that fire evokes in the popular imagination. Even though she lost her parents as a young child, her outlook on life remained positive. She was raised by her grandparents in Dundee, Scotland, where she learned to love the sound of waves crashing on the beach and the feeling of sunshine on her skin. Her grandparents ran a souvenir shop, where some people knew they could buy charms that could work apparent miracles, or maybe get their fortune told if Gran was in the mood. (Cheerful though Gran is, she didn't like to use her power frivolously.)

"Keep your power hidden" was a rule instilled in Faith from the beginning, as far as she can remember, and she held to it as best she could. Not because she believed she was really special (she actually saw herself as a normal superhuman), but because she liked the rhythm of normal human life and wanted to have it for herself. (Gramps told her stories about phoenixes, asked her what she thought of them, keeping to himself what he saw in her: the bright, tell-tale glow of a legendary superhuman. Faith, though, never thought about how amazing it must be to be so powerful. Instead, she would say, "They must feel so lonely, being treated like they're special like that! Nobody asks them how they are or what their favorite food is!") Above all else, Faith wanted happiness for herself and for the world.

If Gran ever peered into Faith's future and saw all that she would do, she never told her; Faith might not have achieved so much if she'd known, might have tried to create a different destiny ("We deserve to decide for ourselves what we want!"). Faith never asked and never will, preferring the knowledge that she chose to follow her heart.

Her life was largely unremarkable until she was abducted into a government organization called the Agency, which opened her eyes to a new world and ultimately resulted in the Agency's downfall. (They were clearly never told not to play with fire.)

First, she needed to be trained in the use of her general superhuman abilities and her phoenix powers. Her training period lasted about a year, first because she'd never formally trained before and needed to start from the basics, and then because she needed to learn control. She was certainly powerful enough to escape, but the story about using her rare abilities to protect people from Creatures was too good to pass up, so Faith put in the work to be at her best. If she couldn't live a quiet life because of her powers, then she could at least make sure everyone else had the chance.

From there, she was moved to, of all places, field work, with the team that kidnapped her in the first place. Throughout her training, she'd been in touch with them now and then, invited to the occasional night out by Alicia, who trained Faith in combat. Her first mission with them was to an underground city full of Creatures, which they survived because of her healing power and Carl's teleportation ability.

This was also when Faith began to ask questions -- quietly, once she realized her questions seemed taboo, and only amongst her teammates. "Has anyone ever talked with Creatures before?" "Did it look to you like they were just... I dunno, living, instead of plotting the death of humanity?" "Why are we doing this?"

That last one broke the trust she'd placed on the Agency, and on Rosenberg. At first, Faith had believed she had only wanted to train Faith for the common good; but once why opened her eyes, Faith realized the more likely scenario was that Rosenberg wanted her for a weapon.

Well, so be it. Faith would be a weapon -- on her own terms, for her own cause.

Her conviction, the dramatic, heartfelt speeches, the effervescent way she moved and fought and laughed, all wore down even the most skeptical of her teammates. She convinced them that they deserved better than to be Rosenberg's good little soldiers, that they were not to blame for the lives already lost to that tyrant's orders, that they, together, could break free and save themselves, their country, and maybe even the world.

She was right.

Unfortunately, as in any war, there were casualties. The one that hit closest to home was when Marc, her teammate and Kate's close friend (brother, almost;; they'd been inseparable) was killed by Agency fighters. Faith couldn't heal him (sometimes, often, she forgets why that is, and she thinks her mind is blocking it off so she doesn't feel guilty for letting him die, for making the choice not to save him -- if that's even what really happened). The blow took a lot out of the team, but Faith pushed through and reminded them they had to carry on. ("He won't've died in vain!")

She doesn't like to think about the final toll (there are no allies and enemies, in Faith's mind, only victims), about the destruction in Manchester, of the fires she caused, smoldering all around her once the deed was done. Alicia killed Rosenberg. Their mission was complete.

And Faith threw herself into rebuilding the city and relations between humans and superhumans, superhumans and Creatures. While the others went their separate ways across the globe (and she missed them, and she was afraid of having to be on her own, but she pulled herself together and carried on), she stayed in Manchester to continue her work, because she knew -- knows -- it isn't finished. People will listen to a phoenix, so she will do exactly the opposite of what Rosenberg wanted and use her powers for good.

Personality:

“Be a pineapple.”

Faith is great at first impressions. The phrase "lights up the room" applies to her in the most literal sense (superhumans who can see powers find she glows brightly) and the figurative one, her smile infectious and her joie de vivre clear on her face and how she moves. It's difficult to dislike Faith (thought there are doubtless people who do, and people who try to), and it's even more difficult to make her dislike someone, because she always sees the good in people. She is, in fact, an incarnation of just about every inspirational quote out there, positive without even trying.

Her literal glow is what got the attention of the Agency, but her figurative one is what endeared her to the team she was assigned to and most of the people she met during her training and employment -- and what, eventually, made them listen to her when she realized there was something wrong about the work they were being made to do. Faith is pretty dramatic on a normal basis, but when she wants to prove a point or sway a heart, she becomes charismatic, almost irresistible, her words so full of passion and conviction that it's hard to believe she could be wrong.

And while she doesn't regret what she did, she wonders sometimes if it could've been better, if she could've done something to prevent so many deaths. As the leader of what was in some respects a coup, she feels responsible for the lives lost for the cause, the ones who gave themselves so completely that now their families are missing a loved one. She fears coming face to face with their relatives, because if anyone were to tell her it's her fault a specific person died, she wouldn't be able to deny it. Worst of all is the death of her teammate, Marc, not just because she feels that maybe (maybe -- what a horrible word that becomes in times like this) she could've saved him, but because her inability (or choice not) to do so hurt Kate, another teammate, so deeply. In rare moments of downward spiral, she thinks of herself as a murderer, as someone no better than Julia Rosenberg, as the weapon she was being trained to be. (At her lowest, Faith rebels against her feelings and acts happier than ever. At her less than lowest, she might talk to someone about what's on her mind or seek to distract herself with just about anything that can make her or someone else smile.)

Some might argue that she shouldn't feel guilty at all, that it was her destiny to do such great and marvelous things, solely because she is a phoenix. Faith, however, could not feel more differently. Just because she's a phoenix doesn't mean she's free of fault, that she deserves better than anyone else, that she should be served and waited on and revered like a queen or a god. She knows that her powers are a double-edged sword, that one wrong choice could've led her down the path of tyranny and destruction for purely selfish reasons. In some ways, she feels she already was selfish, that she didn't try hard enough to convince more people to fight on her side. She isn't entirely sure all those deaths were even necessary. She always told the team that they should try not to kill anyone, but death was inevitable in what they were up to, and she told herself that as long as everyone tried their absolute best not to, then the deaths that resulted were unavoidable. (If she had been the one to face Rosenberg in the end, Faith isn't sure she could've killed her. For all the damage she can deal, Faith doesn't like violence and would rather have solved everything peacefully. She'd killed enough people, after all, on her missions to fight and neutralize Creatures. She didn't need more blood on her hands.)

Still, in spite of everything her life turned out to be, she manages to stay upbeat. She loves her friends, loves to have fun, loves to play harmless pranks (and is amused when pranks are played on her), loves to run and jump and swim and laugh. Faith embraces life with both arms and holds on like a child who's never known sadness. As a leader, she knows her strengths and weaknesses, as well as those of the people working with her, and is comfortable delegating tasks and seeking help when it's needed, as well as helping work out any problems that may arise. Her one goal in life, the guiding principle at her core, is to make people smile and keep herself smiling. Everyone is in this together, and the best outcome is the one where the most people possible are happy.

In a place where no one knows about her, Faith will relish the chance to find out what it feels like to be normal. Her goal of making people happy is pretty much always in force, so she will like Delight and Hope right off the bat. (Then again, she also liked Rosenberg at first, and that turned out awfully. When she remembers that, her trust in Hope and Delight will begin to deteriorate.) She will distrust (but not outright dislike) the others, because they grow strong from people's suffering, and because their influence may cause her to act and react in ways that go against what she wants for herself and the world.

Inventory: The clothes she's wearing, of course, plus her custom quarterstaff.

Abilities:

OVERALL. A phoenix is an extraordinarily rare type of superhuman in several ways: rare in that there is only a handful of them scattered across the globe, rare in that they are extremely powerful, rare in that they are spoken of almost as if they are gods. If Faith were like Rosenberg, she would use all of these things to her advantage and rule the United Kingdom better than any human ever has ("better," really, if she were like Rosenberg -- perish the thought), but instead, she uses her powers for good. In spite of this, a phoenix is not invincible -- just very hard to kill.

HEALING. Faith can take others' injuries onto herself. Her regeneration power means this is not as terrible an idea as it sounds. Because this requires two steps (healing others by absorbing their injuries, and healing herself by way of regeneration), it is easily the most draining of her powers. Furthermore, if she is overtaxed from using other abilities, healing becomes impossible, likely because her body shuts down her ability to do so in order to keep her alive. (This might be at least part of the cause of Marc's death, though Faith honestly doesn't remember much about that event.)

REGENERATION. She's as close to immortal as it gets. Her body is able to restore itself to full superhuman functionality. Recovery is not instant, and how long it takes for her to heal is directly related to how bad an injury is. The process is exhausting when it happens and is quickest when she sleeps. When she wakes, she is back to normal and full of energy.

FIRE. Faith can generate fire, from a small fireball in her hand to light the darkness, to a wall of fire to barricade out enemies. Wounds caused by her fire cannot be healed, even by her healing power. That is, the wound itself will heal, but a scar will remain, and it will hurt from time to time for the rest of the person's life. She can create many small bursts of fire for an extended period of time, or a few large bursts that will heavily drain her. She may be able to create one massive burst as well, but it's not something she's tried or keen to try.

ENHANCED SPEED, STRENGTH, AND AGILITY. Your standard superhuman abilities. She is above the average human in all of these and needs little sleep to function at peak. If she is conservative in battle with regard to her powers and these standard abilities of superhuman life, she can outlast all of her teammates as far as her ability to fight at peak is concerened. If, however, she overdoes it, she burns out (ha ha ha) very easily and is unable to heal teammates or regenerate while conscious (in all likelihood, she'll pass out at that stage, and regeneration will kick in, albeit slowly at first).

COMBAT. She is highly skilled with a quarterstaff. Her personal weapon is lighter than average, sacrificing strength for speed. She is also trained in unarmed combat. Her fighting style favors agility over raw power, which stems from her personal preference for minimal violence.

Flaws: While most people would say Faith is as good as a person gets, she's definitely not perfect. Her ambitions were good, and ultimately the team's victory had and will have positive effects on the world, but many people died in the process of executing the plan -- people on either side of the conflict, and civillians. This to say nothing of the Creatures she killed before she started truly questioning what it was Rosenberg really wanted. On a less actually bad scale, she loves stirring mischief amongst her friends, playing harmless but annoying tricks and jokes on them at nearly every chance. Furthermore, since she is someone who tends to react instinctively, she might create problems or get people hurt because of choices made in the heat (sorry) of the moment. She has, over time, trained herself to do more thinking before acting, but in a moment of sudden danger, it's likely she'll fall back on her old habits.

SAMPLES
Action Log Sample: TDM threads