Neo Aurora; a sprawling megacity standing as a shining beacon of hope amongst a desolate wasteland following the death of the Sun over 100 years ago. All citizens of Neo Aurora live comfortably and happily beneath a startless sky, except for those that don't.
Post by Zaphreal Stormtide on Sept 24, 2023 9:44:01 GMT
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ZAPHREAL STORMTIDE
[attr="class","nodenstop2"]+A THOUSAND KILLS SHUTS DOWN THE BUSINESS
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PRONOUNS he/him
AGE 26
DOB 04/04
SEXUALITY asexual
OCCUPATION photographer
AURA enlightened - unda
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NEODYSTOPIA
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[attr="class","nodensright1"]SUBJECT; AURA
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Aura Attribute[break][break]
Unda[break][break]
Though Zaphreal has only just gained the ability to amplify his Aura, the circumstances he was under at the time gave him somewhat more of an advancement than others. Despite this, use of his Aura places a much greater burden on his body than it usually would as his body is not yet trained to withstand the burden. [break] [break] As and Unda Attribute, Zaphreal can manipulate water. He has more control over already existing bodies of water at this point and prefers that method of manipulation if he can help it. While he is able to create his own water sources from the condensation in the air, he cannot produce a large volume of it and struggles to control it properly. Doing so also wears on his body and mind if used for two long. [break] Because Zaphreal is not yet confident in combat, he avoids using his Aura offensively as much as possible, putting a bulk of his focus into defence. He can erect makeshift shields of water to absorb impact, though this is ineffective against projectiles such as bullets. He can also constrict an opponents movement by creating tentacle-like appendages, or use them as a makeshift whip.
[attr="class","nodensright1"]SUBJECT HISTORY
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For as long as he can remember, Zaphreal has always lived in Neo Aurora's outer district. He has never known himself to have parents, and was raised in an orphanage for most of his life. He never really cared to ask the orphanage's caretakers if he had parents and chances were that they didn't even know themselves. [break] During his youth, Zaphreal was far from being a passive child. Though well behaved for the most part, he was known for his incredibly short temper and fighty personality. If another child were to antagonise him, he would always be the one to throw a punch rather than try and talk it out. Because of how often he got into fights, he didn't have any friends and the other children tended to avoid him when they could. He didn't mind this as he was always most content with his own company. [break] Due to the living conditions of the outer district, Zaphreal - like all of the other children in the orphanage - was never adopted. When he reached the age of 18 and prepared to set out on his own, one of the caretakers of the orphanage gifted him a camera. It had been cobbled together with various pieces of scrap, and it was honestly a miracle that it was even holding together. He had been found sneaking out past curfew many times as a child to sit atop the roof of the orphanage - or any high place he could get to - to stare at the city's skyline. They told him that they believed that he could make use of his ability to find beauty in such a miserable place to live, and perhaps even make it out of the outer districts. He had made a remark about Adstrum shooting him dead at the district gate before letting him through, to which that had laughed at dryly.[break][break]
After leaving the orphanage, Zaphreal was homeless for quite some time. He managed to find some odd jobs here and there, but they barely paid enough for him to be able to feed himself, let alone get a roof over his head. [break] One day he had been wandering the streets after a job when someone had chanced him down, shouting his name. They had been a photographer for the Somnus Observer - the city's newspaper based in the inner district - but they had been robbed of their camera earlier. They didn't dare return to the Observer's office empty handed, and had tried to buy Zaphreal's camera off him at first. When he denied every money offer, they asked if he would rather take the photos himself and he would be paid for those instead. Zaphreal, of course, agreed. When the job was complete, the photographer tried to take his camera so that the photos could be developed in the inner district. He explained that the printing quality in the outer district simply wouldn't cut it for the Observer. Again, Zaphreal refused. If they wanted the photos from his camera developed in the inner district, then he would simply have to go with them to have it done. The photographer wasn't enthusiastic at firs, but after a lot of refusal and weighing the pros and cons, they relented. After some time, he and the other person headed to the transfer gate. [break] As Zaphreal had predicted years earlier, the Adstrum soldiers posted at the district gate didn't want to let a "outer district rat" into the inner district, but were forced to comply when given the paperwork supplied by the Somnus Observer. [break] Entering the inner district was like stepping into another world. While many would me in awe of such a place, Zaphreal was only angered. The people of the inner district lived peaceful lives, never needing or wanting for anything. Meanwhile those in the outer district had to face the threat of death every day. He had muttered a comment under his breath, to which the photographer just laughed and said that he and their boss would get along well. [break] After the photos had been developed and handed off, Zaphreal was paid for his work and he was escorted back to the inner district. It would be a few days before he would be contacted again. [break] He did eventually meet the photographer again, who formally introduced themselves as Rafko Knez. They cut right to the chase, explaining that their employer, Rhea, was impressed with the photos that he had produced and wanted to formally hire him as a photographer for the Somnus Observer. Before Zaphreal could accept or reject the offer, Rafko said that Rhea wanted to see him right away, and that making her wait for too long would result in one hell of a lecture. He reluctantly agreed, and was brought back to the inner district. [break] Upon actually meeting Rhea, she explained that Rafko had mentioned that Zaphreal was dissatisfied with the state of the outer district. He agreed, and Rhea went on to say that the inner district was no better, and they they were just better at hiding it. She and her reporters had seen much of the corruption within Neo Aurora. Of course, they couldn't just publish all of the elites filth in the news. Adstrum would have them tortured in the restricted zone in a heartbeat for that. When Zaphreal questioned further what this had to do with him, she went on to explain that they needed to gather information. More hard evidence of what was really going on. If enough of the population was riled up into action, then maybe they could force the Synod to look. [break] She offered Zaphreal a job as a photographer for the Somnus Observer if he could dedicate his time between regular duties and also gathering evidence of the corruption within Neo Aurora. He agreed, of course. [break][break] The job paid quite well by outer district standards. It was enough to keep him fed and even rent a small apartment in Lunae Lumen. For a time, he dedicated his time and energy to this. [break][break]
One day during his regular photography activities of being in places that he wasn't supposed to be, Zaphreal had found himself in the abandoned construction site where Nivalis street was due to be extended many decades ago. The place had supposedly been abandoned due to a "haunting", but no one really believed it. After entering the construction site, his memories of that time period were blank. He had woken up in his apartment afterwards, his whole body aching and his chest deeply bruised. The landlord and cafe owner said that he had come back late and wouldn't respond to him when called after, so he had assumed that he had been drunk so he had brushed it off. Zaphreal tried not to pay any mind to it, but as days went by, a foreboding feeling never seemed to go away. [break] During one of his regular meetings with Rhea, he mentioned what had happened. How he had gone into the construction zone and his memories had suddenly disappeared. And the odd pressure that he felt over his whole body. Rhea just stared at him for some time, and before Zaphreal could brush it off as nothing important, she shushed him and presented him with a small file. Rhea had many of these. Photographs and reports of the corruption within Neo Aurora. Some were thick and bursting at the seams, and some had only a few blurry images. This one was one of the thinner ones. A few photographs and some documents. Rhea explained the phenomena of Auras - a natural energy signature that all living beings possessed - and the Enlightened - those who had amplified the intensity of their Auras and were able to harness their elemental powers. She explained that what Zaphreal had experienced was likely an Aura amplification, though the memory loss seemed to be a unique situation. She told him that he should never tell anyone of this, as those who had made their newfound abilities known had mysteriously disappeared and pronounced dead. The Observer had been forbidden from reporting on such deaths, which Rhea had always found suspicious. [break] Zaphreal returned home that day and went on as normal, though he couldn't quite ever shake the building anxiety in his stomach.[break][break]
[attr="class","nodensbot"]FACECLAIM Shogo Yamato, PARADOX LIVE