Asylum

by **Thorgron** April 26th 2016, 1:14 am

Asylum
What are you so afraid of?

Basic Biography

Real Name: Samuel Crane
Hero/Villain Name: Asylum
Alignment: CG/LE (wants and tries his hardest to be good, ends up doing evil)
Age: 18
Gender: Male
Race: Human?
Hair: Black
Eyes: Bright Blue
Height: 5'7"
Weight: 137 lbs
Blood type: O-

The Looks

Asylum:

The Legacy

Personality:
Dark and broody. Yea he's an angsty, standoffish, punk. The sky is falling, the world is bleak and he's down with the muck and the mire that drowns the world. Or at least that's the facade. Now, facade is probably the wrong word, the gloom and doom is basically the first line of defense to an otherwise well meaning if not troubled youth.

One layer down, Sam is a good person and wants to do the right things. He'll put himself in harms way and risk everything if it means saving another. You see he wants to be the good guy, the hero. But despite his best efforts, life did not deal him in to that game. Instead he got a mind crazier than a bag of cats and a compulsion resting somewhere between OCD and Antisocial Personality Disorder for sadism and murder.

That's right, Asylum's got a sadistic streak running right through the center of his soul. And while he tries to suppress the urges, its only ever a matter of time before he goes to his dark place and does something that will later cause him crushing guilt.

That's the other part to Sam, guilt. He's got a kind heart and a mind that wants nothing more then to harm the world around him. The two sides are constantly at war with one another with sadism eventually always winning out. And that lays a constant cloud of doubt and depression over his head, beating the light in him further and further down. Because how could a person he claims to be good do something as horrible as killing in cold blood?
History:
What's that phrase that gets thrown around a lot around here? A villain is only a hero who's story you haven't heard yet? Something to that effect. Anyway, Sam's life seems to uncomfortably straddle that line in his life. Actually he may very well be the opposite, a hero who's just a villain because you haven't heard his story.

Now, I could sit here and tell you that something twisted poor little Sam into a monster. That some tragedy befell him and warped his mind to sadism. Maybe he was abused, and sought comfort and protection in violence. Or maybe it was negligence and he lashed out in the only way he could to gain attention. While very plausible none of that would be true and would simply be an excuse for what Sam is. No, Sam was born "broken", chemically off-kilter from his first breath. But nature is never the only culprit, the world does its work to make sure those not so favorable genetic defects rear their ugly heads.

Sam was always intelligent, not top of his class, not a genius, just smart. This was especially true when it came to social cues. He had a knack for reading people so he knew instantly what was normal and what wasn't acceptable. So when he first noticed the sadistic tendencies in himself, he knew that something was wrong. And here's where the story gets sad. Sam knew something was wrong in him and refused to seek help, in fact he did the opposite. Hiding his darkness seemed to be the only option to him. After all, he knew, maybe not actually, but that doubting voice in the back of his head told him that if anyone ever found out what he was and what he was capable of they'd reject him. Maybe worse, they'd institutionalize him, lock him in a cage and pump him so full of drugs that he'd forget who he was. He'd spend years drooling over himself being spoonfed asylum slop til he rotted out from the inside. The thought of that alone was enough to force the young boy to act like all was well.

They say the ones you have to watch out for are the ones that seem the most normal. Sam fit this to a "T". By age ten he had killed more than his fair share of small animals. He was careful, methodical even about the ordeals making sure to never leave the body or evidence of the death. At first it was wild animals, squirrels and the like that others wouldn't miss or notice. But eventually that didn't satisfy him anymore.

He killed his first domestic cat at 11 taking the creature as it roamed the yard of his neighbor's house. It was around this time that Sam truly began to feel the weight of his actions. In his eyes he was a monster, hopelessly sick and broken without any way to fix himself. Killing was the only thing that cut the edge off of the depression and anxiety that wracked his brain. Obviously this became a sick cycle of killing to relive the guilt only to have it come back harder and demand another kill. At its peak, Sam was a shell of an otherwise hopeful kid. On the outside he was happy and normal, but inside he was a torent of anger, frustration and guilt all directed at himself. It was at this time that he discovered just what he could do, his powers that is.

All at once the guilt in him built to a suffocating level. His eyes met with those of one of his fellow classmates and suddenly he wasn't in school anymore. Instead, he was a black ocean, surrounding his flailing classmate. Instinctively he knew what to do and he began to crash against the ragdoll of a human being, every so often pushing the boy above the crashing waves to keep him conscious. It was almost frightening how good it felt for him to torment another human. Then just as quickly as it had started, he was back in his classroom, looking down on his classmate visibly shaking on the floor.

The official report said that the classmate had undergone a spontaneous mental breakdown. But Sam knew that wasn't the case, whatever had happened was caused by their eye contact and he had been in full control of it. Just like so many things in his life, it equally scared and excited him. He now had an outlet to torture without killing. It was a breath of fresh air, at least for a bit. Soon the guilt would creep back in on him, this time for institutionalizing an innocent person.

To reconcile, he decided to visit the poor boy. By this time he was about 16 and had some freedom at home, so leaving on a weekend was no issue. Inside the institution, Sam got a startling reminder of what his fate would be if anyone ever discovered the beast that lay inside him. The people in this place were equally sedated and manic when off their drugs. He could not have thought of a more perfect depiction of hell.

Finally finding his classmate, the sight was all the more unnerving. This was a boy who he knew to be sane, locked away for a mental episode. When Sam approached him, the boy had only one word to say to him, "Asylum". Beyond that he refused to speak, refused to even look him in the eyes. It crushed Sam. One person had gained a glimpse into his mind and the horror had been so much that it destroyed an innocent life.

No one of institution's staff are sure what happened after Sam's confrontation with the boy. Memories were wiped, psychotic episodes spread like a virus in the area and any record of the boy or Sam were completely lost from the place. What is certain however is that Sam never returned home after that day. When he awoke the next day, he was wrapped in a strait jacket that he did not remember putting on that he seemed to be able to move like an extension of his body.

That was two years ago. Sam has since moved from city to city, a ghost of torment upon the wicked, nothing but a shadow spoke of in hushed tones through the criminal undergrounds of the places he visits. And while his abilities have granted him an outlet to hold back his killing urges, they have not altogether subsided. The occasional criminal disappears along with the homeless or any other member of society that is easily lost or forgotten. And with every kill Sam moves farther and farther from the heroic ideal that he hopes to one day achieve.

The Powers and Weaknesses

(All characters can be as powerful as they want, as long as they are balanced with proper weaknesses.)
Powers

Frightful Gaze:
A hurricane of sadism, guilt and pain have brought out the absolute worst of the human psyche in Sam. His ability is akin to a highly specified combination of empathy and telepathy. When his eyes meet those of another sentient creature, their minds meld together, engulfing the victim's mind in the darkness of Sam's mind. Once melded, Sam brings out the darkest fears in the individual being targeted (permission based). The target will believe wholly in their situation at first and will experience every sensation in their mind as though it were 100% real. Sam's mind exists in this terrifying dream as well as the master of the nightmare. He can manipulate it to his every whim and pull from memories of the individual (permission based) to further sink them into the horror. Against more mentally resilient targets (when not given permission to access fears or memories) Sam locks the target in the darkness of his mind and manipulates their mental scenario to whatever he see's fit. In either scenario, the target experiences the vivid dream as though it were reality, regardless of the obscurity of their situation.

In the world outside of the dream-like state Sam creates, the victim becomes totally paralyzed, just like a person in REM sleep. Once first eye contact is made and the meld is initiated, eye contact does not need to be maintained, in fact, most victims end up closing their eyes after "going under". Sam however remains in full control of his body so long as his control of the dreamstate is maintained. He can also end the victim's mental torture at any time, releasing them from their mental state to awake as though from a nightmare. Victim's memories from their experiences with Sam's ability range from fuzzy-dreamlike rememberings to full on belief that their experience happened to them in the real world.

Prehensile Suit:
Sam's strait jacket is covered in many many loose straps, initially meant to restrain their captive. The twenty or so straps now serve a different purpose, responding to Sam's every thought as though they were his own arms and legs. The suit also seems to have taken on a stretchy elasticity, allowing the straps to extends multiple upon multiple times further than their original lengths. This elasticity also makes them resistant to ripping, tearing or otherwise deforming under excessive force. And while not "super strong" the straps are capable of lifting far more than Sam would be able to and are capable of holding on to "super strong" individuals.

Weakness(es)

Turning the Table:
While Sam may seem to be the one in full control of the situation with his mental ability this is not necessarily the case. At the onset he assumes the role of the controller true, but the victim can rise above the situation. If they somehow realize their situation in Sam's mind, they can flip the script and manipulate the dream, similar to a state of lucid dreaming. In this situation Sam is nearly helpless as he recedes into his own head and his won fears envelop him. This will usually force him to end the melding of minds if he is still capable of doing so and force him to become nearly useless in the real world as he crumbles under his own fears.

Wake Up Call:
Any kind of minor damage in the real world will make the victim of Sam's Frightful Gaze awake instantly and in full control of themselves. "Minor damage" is obviously different for everyone, a moderate scratch from something sharp or the like would be enough to wake the normal person, for someone super durable however, it would take quite a bit more force. (Please don't godmod/metagame this weakness and have a bee sting your character or something similar as soon as they get caught within Sam's ability.)

What Scars:
Sam can cause no physical damage whatsoever with his Frightful Gaze. While in his mind, the victim may experience all sorts of disfiguring injuries and horrible pains, they are utterly unaffected in their flesh and blood body. They may experience phantom pains and the like after awakening but contrary to The Matrix, dying in the mind will not kill you in the real world.

Human:
Sam is physically a human, susceptible to all manner of poisons, knives, bullets and the like.

Secrets:
Sam is a murderer trying to be a hero. Not a hero who kills because its necessary, someone who kills because they need to/enjoy it. This is a tightly kept secret of his and one that would be devastating to him if it were ever discovered. If the information of said killings got into the right hands, it would not be hard to blackmail Asylum into doing one's bidding.

Eye Contact:
Sam does not have control over the activation of his abilities currently. Anyone he looks in the eyes enters his Frightful Gaze ability whether he means it to happen or not. Because of this, he avoids all direct eye contact with others, creating a sense of isolation in himself and distrust in those around him who he would most like to connect with.

RP Mechanics

RP Mechanic(s):

Items/Minions

Physical Priority
(You are to put these physical attributes in order from 1 to 4. 1 is the highest priority, 4 is the lowest.)
Agility 2
Endurance 3
Reaction 1
Strength 4

by **Thorgron** May 3rd 2016, 12:05 am

Finished and ready for review!

by **Aurelius** May 3rd 2016, 2:29 pm

Approved. Nice app.

by **Shael Atterrius** February 17th 2017, 1:22 am

retired

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