Post by The D.J. C.J. on Sept 19, 2015 13:32:37 GMT
VAMPIRES
BASIC INFORMATION
Name: Clement Thebault
Aliases: Sewer Rat, Scourge of Toulouse
Age: 98 (turned approx. late 20's)
Gender: Male
Faction: Le Fleau d'Orleans
Rank: Neonate
PERSONAL INFORMATION
Image:
Appearance: His body is scarred and looks pale and sickly, but when he is forced to go out in public he often wears thick or loose clothing over as much of his body as possible to hide this. He is also surprisingly thin beneath his thick clothing. Another noticeable thing is his hands - his fingers are thin and elongated, and his fingernails are not just yellowed but look sharp even from a distance.
His face in particular is horrendous to look at. His eyes are grey after the transformation, though can sometime flash red whilst he is fighting or feeding, and have a beady, piercing look to them. His teeth are yellow and wickedly jagged - they look less like fangs and more like someone hammered rail spikes into his jaws. His face is pale, without a hair on his head, and regularly there are open sores on his face. These can heal, but typically just break out again before too long. In order to try and hide the worst of it when in considerable company, he will wear an iron mask - it's arguable whether he does this out of a sense of misguided courtesy or if he thinks that it can make him look more intimidating. To a degree, both are somewhat true.
Personality:
Clement is cynical, but surprisingly pleasant and quick-witted when in a good (or at least neutral) temper. He regularly pokes cynical quips at both himself and everything around him, but in a kind of grim humour that can be almost as disarming as his scarred body. He typically treats people well, though his eccentric and grim nature can be disturbing to those who aren't used to it. While he prefers to be left to his solitude in the sewers (and most of society would prefer he stay there which suits him just fine), his background as a French noble/intellectual gives him surprising skill at conversation and diplomacy, and those that can get past his beastly appearance can find him to be quite a socialite - though he prefers to deal with fewer people at a time, something he doesn't get to do in society often due to the nature of vampire politics. He often laughs, though it sounds rather grating.
Clement would generally prefer to talk his way out of a situation (through bribing, threatening, charming, whatever works) rather than get into a fight - though those that know him generally know he won't keep promises made under duress unless in unique circumstances, and his sly ability to escape into the darkness of sewers like a rat wherever he goes makes it difficult to trace him to force him. Clement is not a particularly good brawler, and prefers a more subtle approach - his style of fighting involves disabling (and if possible) killing a potential opponent before they have a chance to know they're in a fight. He does not kill often if only because it leads a blood trail - he has, however, been known to torture people and even other vampires if necessary.
While he does his best not to show it, Clement is in constant pain due to his Embrace. It's something that he's gotten used to, for the most part, but even at his best he is still in constant discomfort, shown in his hobbling - one of the reasons he has developed a grim sense of humour. Only the blood of a female virgin will make the pain stop, and even then it is only temporary. The pain discourages him from strenuous activity, which gives him an appreciation for moving and acting slowly and carefully. However, he is still able to bear the pain long enough for bursts of strenuous activity typical of other vampires, if necessary.
He has been known at times, when in a good mood, to grant a 'wish' to those who let him feed upon them willingly (though this can end up being a potentially last wish, if fed unto death). This stems (or at least he believes it stems) from a more romantic nature from before his Embrace, one that despite his best efforts he hasn't completely been able to submerge, despite knowing that it's not entirely real. These are some of the few promises that he will attempt to keep to the best of his ability, though sometimes this can end up being granted in a back-handed fashion.
History:
For the most part, Clement is not certain of his history. From what little he can pull together, he is fairly sure he was born just before World War I in the city of Toulouse, but he doesn't remember exactly what year, though he remembers he was born before World War I started. He was born the only son to two nobles, and was very pampered throughout his childish life, which carried over to him as he grew older. Growing up in a sophisticated, social environment, he grew to be a charming and suave - if not somewhat arrogant - young man.
He was too young to take part in World War I, he remembers, though his parents would never have let him go off to fight, and even in the unlikely circumstance that they did, Clement never enjoyed violence. He was trained in fighting and using firearms, but it was never something he took particularly seriously, much to the chagrin of his family. He had a passion for the finer things in life - food, wine, good times and the high life. He enjoyed what comforts he could in the world, and though he wondered if there was more to life than this, he was usually too busy being distracted. And so in time, he grew into a young man - he vaguely remembers being one of the most charming and handsome men in Toulouse, but memory plays tricks on one.
The last thing he remembers of his human life for certain is a grand ball - not in Toulouse in particular, but one of the grand Sunday balls taking place...somewhere in Paris. He can't remember exactly where, except that it was a grand palace. He can't remember the music that was playing anymore, or what the palace looked like, how many people were there. There's only one thing in particular that he remembers at that particular ball - his sire. Looking at him, Clement remembers the intoxicating feeling of being utterly smitten, that he would have done anything that was demanded of him if it kept this man happy. In hindsight now, Clement is reasonably sure that somehow his sire had hypnotised him into following him, but even now it is one of the memories that he holds dear, as Clement had never felt any emotion as passionately as that time, and hasn't since his Embrace.
He can't remember how he ended up in another room, in another house, alone with the one whom would be his sire, just that his eyes and his heart and soul belonged to none but him. He remembers the sweet words, the careful brushing, and then...the feeling of fangs sinking into his neck, a beautiful, immensely wonderful pain that he had not felt anything like in his entire life. He was happy.
For about 30 seconds.
Shortly after that, the real pain started. His body started hurting - not in any way he could understand or describe. And even as seconds kept passing, the pain got gradually worse, and worse. In a couple of minutes he was screaming in agony. Even his sire seemed to be shocked by the outcome, and quickly managed to spirit him away from the area just before people started checking in on him. As the pain grew worse and worse, it swallowed Clement completely - his body began to warp as he screamed until he could scream no more, and then silently suffered as he felt like all of his blood had been set on fire from the inside. For his first month as a member of the Le Fleau d'Orleans clan, he literally could not function, curled up in a corner in pain. His sire took him into a secret safehouse, but even he seemed to have no idea what was going on - certainly, the transformation from their clan wasn't always pleasant but it had rarely been to this immense a degree.
It took a month from his Embrace before Clement could finally regain any sense of sentience - there was still immense pain, but perhaps his body had started to get used to the pain just a bit. Even then, he could barely move under his own power, and it took another few months before he was able to get physical control of his body back. But what was worse than this was his mind - under immense pain, his mind had all but broken. While he eventually regained the ability to talk reasonably properly (even if his accent had disappeared) he could remember almost nothing about his former human life. Though one look of his new face was enough to assure Clement that whatever had happened to his prior life, there would be no way he could have reclaimed it, as he remembered looking...well, not like this.
His sire was not particularly kind, but not unduly cruel either. He made it clear that Clement was lucky to not have been completely tossed aside as a failed experiment. They never did figure out why Clement was in such pain or how to cure it, so he instead taught Clement about vampires - what he was now, how he could deal with it, and how to survive the politics that he would inevitably fall into. Clement took this advice to heart (and sometimes to the face depending on if he'd angered his sire or not) - not so much out of any sense of gratitude but simply because his sire was the only one who could tell him how to survive. Clement couldn't survive through force of arms, and while subterfuge was impressive his agility was sorely lacking - he wouldn't get far. The only way he could possibly survive was by gaining information.
And for the next several decades, Clement did just that, turning up to countless meetings (disguised so as not to make a scene) and involving himself - behind the scenes - in countless amounts of both human and vampire historical events, getting as much information as he possibly could. He claims at one point to have assisted the French Resistance during World War II, but if he has there's little evidence of it remaining. Of course, it could all be just misinformation that Clement has spread - but if it was, he wasn't telling. Information was the only weapon he had - but in the world of vampires, it was a more surprisingly powerful weapon than many gave credit for. As for Clement, he learned that he needed to work within the system, because he needed the system to keep him safe as much as the system needed him to grow - though it never seemed to bother him too much when he pushed the limits.
The more he tried to appear in vampire politics at first, the less he was wanted - even among the Le Fleau, his appearance was considered too frightening and abominable, let alone the other clans, so he instead decided to just bide his time finding a place to call home - in the sewers where no-one would come and bother him. He managed to find somewhere deep down in the sewers of Las Vegas which gave him a reasonable enough place to call home, and he tidied it up with whatever comforts he could buy, steal or coerce out of people. Certainly it's no palace, but it looked surprisingly decent a home.
With little else left to do, Clement took some time to research into his own life - gathering what tattered remnants of his history he could. He'd had status once - and if he'd done it before, he could do it again, he was sure. He might not have the good looks he may have once had (he thinks, anyway), but down in the sewers, Clement had nothing else to do but to learn to bide his time and plan his own advancement. If he could not be a noble human, Clement Thebault would show the vampire world that he could be more than just some freak hiding from the world, and that he was no fool to be trifled with. So deep in his home in the sewers, Clement made plan after plan...
STATISTICS
Blood: D (30 units)
Strength: E
Endurance: E
Agility: E-
LOADOUT
Equipments:
Name: (n/a)
Rank:
Description:
Uniforms:
Name: Robes
Description: Expensive looking, but ordinary robes. They are used in the event of needing to appear in vampiric public for political reasons, and hide his scarred and twisted body 'for decency's sake', though they do not hinder the 'Monstrous Form' ability in any way.
Name: Iron Mask
Description: If forced to go out in public, he will wear this mask (unless unique circumstances prevent him from doing so). It can help disguise his vampiric scarring, though it will not stand up to close inspection. Even wearing this, Clement still gives off a sense of dread. The typical masks looks like this, but he has been known to collect and occasionally wear alternate masks depending on the situation/his mood.
CAPABILITIES
Weaknesses:
Name: Sunlight
Description: The typical weakness of vampires, exposure to the light of the sun is, even in small amounts an immensely painful burning - and if exposed fully to the sunlight he can be killed.
Name: Holy Energy
Description: A traditional weakness of vampires, holy and faith-based energy causes great pain and will often force Clement to retreat. It is unlikely to outright kill him however unless exposed to an immense holy/faith-based energy.
Name: Silver
Description: Silver is a traditional weakness of vampires and will burn just from touch alone. If implanted within Clement somehow (i.e. through a silver stake) the pain is immense and can be fatal.
Name: Fire
Description: A typical weakness of vampires, fire will cause immense damage if Clement is exposed to it's touch. The mere sight of fire, however, is of no immediate concern beyond a warning that there is fire in the area.
Name: Travelling over bodies of water
Description: A typical weakness of vampires, they cannot cross through bodies of water. Clement is fine with travelling over various bridges he has organised in the sewers, but cannot enter the sewer water directly.
Name: Monstrous Form
Description: Anyone whom sees Clement is almost immediately able to tell he is a vampire, unless he has taken effort to disguise himself (i.e. through thick robes and his Iron Mask). Even taking effort to disguise himself will only hide his true nature temporarily.
Name: Virgin Blood
Description: Both a weakness and strength, the blood of 'pure' female virgins is overly intoxicating, the only thing that can soothe the pain of his own volatile blood. Drinking blood from a female virgin gives him a + modifier to his Strength and Endurance for a few hours, but once he starts drinking it is almost impossible for him to stop and, unless actively attacked, will notice nothing else during this time. If he is drinking it from a victim's body, it takes an immense amount of willpower for him to stop short of sucking the victim dry - even then the victim will likely need emergency care within the space of an hour to not die.
Skills:
Name: Diplomacy
Description: The art of dealing with people in a sensitive and tactful way. To be able to discuss matters appropriate to a person naturally, and to solve problems with a quick wit and silver tongue.
Rank: E
Name: Stealth
Description: The capacity to be clandestine. To reach a goal or destination without anyone noticing. The skill to lower what presence the body may possess. A required skill for thieves, infiltrators, and assassins.
Rank: E
Name: Escape Artist (Sewer Rat)
Description: Clement has experience from living in some of the foulest places the city has to offer. In an urban environment, Clement has a high chance of being able to escape any battle. If he can find a sewer to crawl into, his knowledge of these systems leaves him almost impossible to trace without highly experienced trackers or powerful tracking magic/techniques.
Rank: E
Abilities:
Name: Chimeric Blood
Description: Blood so volatile that it is even thought that consuming it would have unspeakable and random consequences. While still enslaving those who drink such vampire blood, it creates monstrosities under the sire's control. Even then, they are capable of even molding them further as abominations through further blood ministration or even through scientific means.
Rank: E
Name: Self-Modification
Description: Le Fléau d'Orléans are rather adaptive vampires with their bodies. They are more able to absorb biological matter into their flesh and make it their own. Or even manipulate how their own bodies work. Such as growing claws by extending fingernails or even manipulate the structure of their bones.
Rank: E
Name: Whisper
Description: Hypnosis that induces subtle suggestions in the target. Requires the vampire to look into a victim's eyes in order for this to work. So as long as nothing is drastic, the target will follow whatever commands the vampire gives.
(E: A very small, even trivial "favor" can be forced on the average human victim. Spanning from opening a simple door or holding an object. The words spoken from the Whisperer's mouth would not be doubted, unless direct evidence presents itself.)
Rank: E
Name: Enhanced Senses
Description: Becoming a creature superior to any normal human, vampires also have equally better senses. Many can even hear things that normal humans would not be able to. While others may have a sense of smell that are on the level or better than a dog's.
Rank: E
Name: Frenzy
Description: The maddened state of a vampire, their natural fight or flight response. Frenzy can be induced when a factor of massive stress is presented to them. Under that newly presented factor, vampires would either try to eliminate/kill what caused it to frenzy or flee out of fear. Some of it maybe a cause of their anger, desperation, or many other forms of reasons. Many vampires who frenzy tend to become numb to pain. However, they are still capable of being damaged. Most vampires who frenzy tend to lack motor functions as they are in a berserk state.
Rank: E
Techniques/Spells:
Name: Monstrous Form
Incantation: None (Cost: 0 Units, permanently active)
Description: While the curse of his Embrace is a weakness (see above), it can also be used to his advantage - this form is often so terrifying to behold that non-vampiric or non-demonic races have a 30% chance to get a - modifier to a random non-magical stat for the duration of a fight. This 'technique' is always active and cannot be disabled.
Rank: E
Type: Anti-Unit (Oneself)
Name: Red Nails
Incantation: None (Cost: 5 Units)
Description: A self-modification spell. The user's finger (or fingers) extend at the speed of a bullet from a handgun, towards an opponent, whilst the fingernails become sharp as a knife. The fingers can curve more than usual to hit a dodging opponent. While it has a chance of striking a major organ, it is not particularly powerful, used more for a surprise attack.
If Clement uses an extra 5 units of blood, by smearing some on his nail/s before he strikes, he can inject a small amount of his volatile blood into an opponent's bloodstream, which can wreck their internal organs. This skill is more effective against enemies that utilize blood in their anatomy, but it still works against those that do not.
Rank: E+
Type: Anti-Unit
Name: Chimeric Flagellation
Incantation: "Le sang de chimère, écorcher la chair." ("Blood of the chimera, flay the flesh.") (Cost: 5 Units)
Description: A self-modification spell. When the user makes physical contact with the flesh of a biological creature, Clement's chimeric blood can slowly melt and re-absorb said biological matter into themselves. This has the effect of both slowly flaying the opponent to death, while also allowing Clement to absorb the biological matter into himself which can provide temporary healing of wounds - this will not, however, restore any blood. If the user wishes, they can choose a particular area of flesh to absorb rather than the whole thing.
This spell can be used offensively, but requires contact to be maintained with an enemy's flesh. Also, anything that covers the flesh, whether armour or even a shirt - will prevent this spell from working. The spell can break through magical defenses of an equal rank, but it will take repeated uses (typically at least 3 uses of the spell).
(E: The user requires approximately 15 minutes of constant contact in order to be able to absorb all flesh from a human body. This spell cannot break through magical defenses that are D rank or higher.)
Rank: E
Type: Anti-Unit