![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
>PLAYER
NAME/HANDLE: kosy
PERSONAL JOURNAL:![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
daiquiri
ARE YOU OVER 16? Yes.
CONTACT: plurk @ bearpuns | aim @ watercrests | email @ singancy@gmail.com
OTHER CHARACTERS: none, but also applying for another character this round.
>CHARACTER
CHARACTER NAME: Elliot Nightray
SERIES: Pandora Hearts
[ manga page ] [ character page ]
CANON POINT: Pre-Isla Yura Arc; I would say after the events of "Unbirthday".
APPEARANCE: look at dat noble figure yeah!
PERSONALITY: Elliot makes good first impressions. In fact, you might even say Elliot makes the best first impressions... if the best first impression involved yelling and flipping chairs while pointing out obvious (yet deep) characters flaws of the opposing party.
Yeah.
So, it's pretty obvious that maybe Elliot doesn't make the best first impressions. In fact, you might even say that Elliot doesn't even make a good first impression. But he makes a strong one, and that's pretty much the word to describe Elliot: strong.
"Despicable people grovelling at our feet...hiding their malicious gossip behind a façade of false meekness."
THE main thing to note about Elliot are his personal values, and his position in society. In Pandora Hearts, there are four central Dukedoms, namely Nightray, Vessalius, Rainsworth and Barma. To focus on Elliot in particular means observing the relationship of two main houses of those four and their representation in the world: mainly, the Nightray and the Vessalius. You might compare these two to "night" and "day", alluded to by the name of the first family in particular. In general, the Vessalius family is heralded as heroes, while the Nightrays are branded as traitors.
As a member of the Nightray house, Elliot himself has been subject to both criticisms and false praises. Instead of developing a similar behaviour in order to survive, Elliot grew to reject such traits and instead became... very, very straightforward. It's the defining point of his character, considering the obscurity of many characters and plot points in the series--where the majority of the cast is drenched in insecurities, lies and the aversion of eyes, Elliot is steadfast, honest, and facing only straight ahead. This is both admirable and a flaw; while Elliot has the strength to say what he means when he means it, he also has a tendency to disregard gentleness and natural transition, instead dumping all of his thoughts out at once. As Leo, his servant, states... "you have a tendency to force your opinions onto others...", which is in fact very true. Elliot, at his core, is a very active character. He's not the type to stand by passively as things rotate around him, and this is ultimately the root of most of his behaviour. This means he also won't stand by as people around him do things he doesn't agree with, even if such things are none of his business. In the end, what Elliot really values is honesty. What Elliot really respects is willpower. It's why he could outstretch a hand to Leo, who had been abrasive and insulting. Leo did not bother with pleasantries, and in the end that's what earns Elliot's favour best. False images and appearances mean absolutely nothing to him.
"Who knows. We just have to think of that when things reach to the point of no return. But, no matter what I choose, I will never let you die!"
OF course, Elliot's rashness and brusqueness aren't even a scratch on the details of his character. As a person, Elliot might even be considered noble. Actually, scratch that. Elliot is very, very noble. While the canon-point I'm taking him from isn't relevant to his most extreme case of nobility (re: his sacrificial death for the Good of Everyone Else), he has very consistent showcases of valor and strength. He defended Oz--the main character of the series--with his life despite just meeting him, even when the offenders were well-known mass murderers. Leo mentions that Elliot is very kind, and Elliot subsequently responds with embarrassment or... annoyance. It is a valid point, however--Elliot is indeed very kind, and gentle, even if he is sometimes tactless and almost brutally honest. His softer side is shown with his family, who he is almost quiet with, sometimes. He will not hesitate to try and comfort those he loves in any way he can, and he is someone who really values the bonds he has, which leads us onto his next trait.
Another one of the things that becomes apparent about Elliot from his first appearance is his hate for self-sacrifice and burdening the people he loves. While Oz shares this trait with him, it's admittedly in a very different way; Oz handles his problems on his own because he feels he's not worth the shared burden, and shoving things onto other is something that he cannot do. Elliot, on the other hand, handles his problems on his own because he knows he's capable, and in the end handling them is ultimately his own responsibility. The last thing he wants to do is hurt people with his existence--when he finds out he's failed to notice the turmoil his sister, Vanessa, had been going through, he's very quick to meekly try and comfort her, and reassure her. Elliot is very much a pillar of strength, and that's what he wants to be. Elliot will freely try to right his wrongs instead of running from them, though whether he admits these openly is another thing entirely (if he messes up enough, he will apologize). Elliot is confrontation where the earlier Oz is avoidance, and that's what pisses him off most, though this "confrontation" ultimately causes him to commit the self-sacrifice he so hates.
All in all, Elliot's outside behaviour is summed up pretty well in a panel that displays him yelling, a "NO SENSE OF SHAME" plastered onto the background. Elliot... doesn't really have a sense of shame, mostly because he acts in a way that he feels isn't shameful. In fact, he acts the way he is because it is completely opposite of what he feels is shameful. Everything Elliot does is done with 100% earnest--when it comes to life, he does nothing half-heartedly. As far as his motivations are concerned, there's nothing really missing. He won't do things he feels isn't right--and if he does, by chance, he'll often back out from them quite quickly, showcased by his actions above regarding his sister.
ANOTHER NOTE is that Elliot has massive amounts of pride, as a result of his lineage. This is a bit of a double-edged sword--while it does provide a motivation for his honest behaviour and unwavering attitude, it does mean that he is quick to anger when it comes to his family and also quick to judge, especially with matters involving the Vessalius family. It's funny, actually, that as a noble Elliot yearns for honesty and a transparent atmosphere free of formalities, but at the same time displays his "I'M A NOBLE DAMNIT!!!!" card to Leo when they both first meet, though ultimately this is how Elliot likes it best. He just hates being looked down on, but he's also not the type to be pompous. He's the one who views his relationships on equal footing.
ELLIOT has an incredibly short temper; he's notorious for being quick to throw chairs and flip tables, and while he does have the ability to Chill The Fuck Out™, it's also very easy to throw him on the other side of the scale again. It doesn't really matter who you are but how you behave and what you do. As a whole, he's very, very stubborn--it can either be incredibly easy to obnoxiously difficult to change his mindset, depending on whether the root of his thoughts are ignorance or thoughts he believes with complete certainty.
AS STEADFAST as he is, Elliot is not all about security and stability. In fact, as a whole, Elliot is a bit of a contradiction in that he's unexpectedly fragile but still incredibly strong. He will show moments of weakness towards things he is unsure about--if he cannot figure things out he will be in a state of relative unease, and generally finds that he doesn't notice things... however, at the same time, Elliot lives with the gift to be able to conquer most problems that come his way, even with some difficulty. Elliot doesn't exactly showcase his problems to the rest of the world, instead fighting them head-on with his own strength. He seems to be very quick to confront other people's problems with certainty, but when he comes to his own he quietly faces them until it's time to encounter them. This is shown through his dealings with both his servant, Leo, and his own personal nightmares.
When it comes to the uncertainty of Elliot's character, it's important once again to recount his situation. Elliot has discrepancies in his memory from being killed and then revived with a supernatural power (mainly outlined in "abilities"), and his true memories often come back to him in dreams that end with massive headaches and crippling pain. These make him anxious, and for the most part he's not sure how to deal with them. His dealings with Leo is much the same way--he expresses careful avoidance with Elliot on this situation, mainly because he knows about his death and rebirth... and he was ultimately the cause for the distortions in Elliot's life. It bothers Elliot to not know things about things that are close to him--and he expresses this uncertainty through annoyance, and then desperation that quickly escalates into a fight (this is after Unbirthday, my decided canon-point, but the build-up is still there). It's important to note this uncertainty mainly because it illustrates some of the flaws of Elliot's character--he's straightforward and can face his problems, but when he's not sure how exactly to face them he can get frustrated, irrational, and lost.
In conclusion, Elliot is kind of a straightforward idiot who looks forward with both eyes open. He sometimes misses things and sometimes messes up, but he earnestly tries to correct his mistakes and live as strongly as he can, with his own two feet.
ABILITIES: Elliot on his own isn't an extremely impressive person, abilities-wise--he's fairly competent with swordplay and can handle his own in a fight, though not for very long if the enemy is too strong. The full extent of Elliot's abilities are hidden below the surface, to the point that even he's not conscious of them. They're centered around his "chain", which is pretty much an entity much like a Persona (a summoned creature with powers).
Elliot's personal chain is "Humpty Dumpty", which has a variety of abilities. They mostly center around Elliot's own health, since... again, he isn't aware of the fact he's contracted to his chain. First and foremost, Humpty Dumpty is the thing that is keeping Elliot alive. It's capable of sealing all of the contractor's negative memories, in order to protect the stability of their mind (specifically, it is sealing off the memories of I) Elliot's death, II) the fact he murdered his brothers, III) some specific memories with his servant, Leo). It's also capable of splitting itself into multiple bodies and attacking... with it's tongue. Elliot is unconscious during these moments, however, so he is never aware of Humpty Dumpty's moments of attack.
The proof of Elliot's contract is an incuse on his chest, which is pretty much just a fancy clock-looking thing that moves depending on how often he uses his power. When the hands of the incuse reach the "12" mark, the contractor is dragged into the Abyss... which is pretty much a dark other dimension. Elliot himself cannot see his incuse, but it is visible to other people when Humpty Dumpty's power is active.
POSSESSIONS: Elliot has a large instrument case which holds his sword (not present inside). And his clothes. Besides that, he doesn't have anything else.
>PERSONA
MAJOR ARCANA:
SHADOW: Due to Elliot's self-aware nature and confident lifestyle, Elliot's shadow focuses on the darker, more unknown aspects of his character. His dungeon is centered around the Nightray mansion. There is nothing peculiar about the outside--in fact, you might say it looks a little bit brighter than it usually does, though there are small holes in the scenery here and there. Upon entry into the dungeon, characters will find that the atmosphere matches the one of the outside, with the same sense of foreboding through the tense silence of the foyer. All the curtains are open, and the only light that streams into the inside is through the windows. There are three directions to go after the large foyer: there are stairs (which end suddenly; there is nothing but blackness and a dark pit at the end of them), a locked door, and a hallway straight ahead.
Going through the dungeon, characters might notice that the foreboding sense of doom in the atmosphere is suddenly slightly less subtle and more obvious. Deeper in there are echoes of piano music--at first there is a very notable melody, but it later shifts into incoherent tones and cut-ups of an unrecognizable song. At it's deepest levels, the mansion's walls melt away and there is only a hallway in the middle of blackness, lit up by... candles. The edges of these later hallways will occasionally crumble, so watch your step! At the end of the final hallway is a large door, which is home to a room that is half on fire (a manifestation of his nightmares) and half showered in light, which ultimately makes the dark of the other side darker. The Shadow is present there, and it focuses mainly on the aspects of Elliot that he's unsure of. He will pick apart the fact that although Elliot can see many things about others, he's completely blind when it comes to things about himself. Is Leo the one acting strange? Isn't it you who's acting strange? The nightmares, the fire, the death... What does it mean? In the end... Elliot is ultimately afraid of finding out what's at the end of everything. It would be easier to run and pretend nothing is going on, or to put on a pretense of false bravado. For Elliot, the ability to stand on his own two feet is what he values most... but in his current state, is he not running away?
He had announced to Oz that he would stare into everything with his own two eyes, but in the end his eyes will see absolutely nothing.
The boss manifests itself as a symbol of duality--there are two pianos, one stacked upside-down on top of the other. Two piano players sit at each instrument: one is headless and faces the keys (the one on the piano on the floor), wearing Elliot's school uniform--the other dons a blindfold and a raven's head, with it's back to the upside-down piano, clothed in Elliot's noble clothes. Its arms are distorted and placed like the player is facing forward. Despite its position, it can still play... both upside-down and back turned.
PERSONA: BRAN THE BLESSED (Blessed Raven): Bran (meaning "raven") is a giant of Celtic myth and is known predominantly as a king rather than a God, though he is sometimes cited as one associated with music and writing. Bran's appearance is of a headless man on a horse, holding a raven's head in one hand and a sword in the other.
Bran will focus on physical skills and damage-dealing, along with weak buffs / healing, to link with his magic cauldron that raises the dead and to symbolize Elliot's supportive side. It has a low magic stat and a modest strength stat. Though it has a high vitality stat, it has a weakness to Mudo skills, but a strength to Physical and Hama skills.
A basic moveset for the first couple of levels might go somewhere along the lines of this:
PERSONA ACQUISITION: Elliot is a character that would benefit from a Shadow encounter, so I'd like for his Persona to be acquired through the TV.
>SAMPLES
(For panfandom apps, one of these must be set in the world of Caligo.)
FIRST PERSON ACTION, JOURNAL, OR PHONE SAMPLE: @ Meat Dimension
THIRD PERSON SAMPLE: The day after he faces his Shadow, Elliot is forced into sleep. The dreams come as they always do--fire, people dying, screaming.
... Yet it's not the same. It's not the same. It's not the same place it always is, a room of only fire, only death, only screams. He's not passive, watching things fall around him, unaware--the room is half-cloaked in sunlight, half-cloaked in fear, and he's standing in the middle, in the light, staring at the presence of the man holding a raven's head and a Nightray's sword.
Persona, he thinks.
There is no apprehension, as there usually is--usually he wishes these nightmares away, anticipates waking up, but here there is calmness. He knows, however, that to stay here longer than he could was something he could no longer afford to do. Purpose is something that he had. Blindness is what he was avoiding. Sight is what he had promised, what he knew he lacked, what he could no longer fear. He had accepted the fearful part of himself--he had understood that the strength he held was accompanied by uncertainties, and that it was entirely possible to brandish a sword and fear being cut.
Bran. It feels familiar, nostalgic. The one in front of him was also the him with the golden eyes, the one who saw right through him seeing through everything but himself. It was funny, in hindsight, how blind he was--how easily he rejected the things around him that were obviously true, but difficult to accept.
But that was in the past.
This time, he would truly look with his own eyes, into the darkness that seemed to allude him. When he looks up at Bran, the eyes of the Raven in his hands are not scary as they had once been, but simply the eyes of a companion--himself, even.
When he wakes up, it's not with a headache and a feeling of dread. Those same eyes are in the back of his mind, and he can see their stare when he closes his eyelids.
It's comforting.
The day after he faces his Shadow, Elliot promises himself to wake up with this feeling more often than not.
PERSONAL JOURNAL:
daiquiriARE YOU OVER 16? Yes.
CONTACT: plurk @ bearpuns | aim @ watercrests | email @ singancy@gmail.com
OTHER CHARACTERS: none, but also applying for another character this round.
>CHARACTER
SERIES: Pandora Hearts
[ manga page ] [ character page ]
CANON POINT: Pre-Isla Yura Arc; I would say after the events of "Unbirthday".
APPEARANCE: look at dat noble figure yeah!
PERSONALITY: Elliot makes good first impressions. In fact, you might even say Elliot makes the best first impressions... if the best first impression involved yelling and flipping chairs while pointing out obvious (yet deep) characters flaws of the opposing party.
Yeah.
So, it's pretty obvious that maybe Elliot doesn't make the best first impressions. In fact, you might even say that Elliot doesn't even make a good first impression. But he makes a strong one, and that's pretty much the word to describe Elliot: strong.
THE main thing to note about Elliot are his personal values, and his position in society. In Pandora Hearts, there are four central Dukedoms, namely Nightray, Vessalius, Rainsworth and Barma. To focus on Elliot in particular means observing the relationship of two main houses of those four and their representation in the world: mainly, the Nightray and the Vessalius. You might compare these two to "night" and "day", alluded to by the name of the first family in particular. In general, the Vessalius family is heralded as heroes, while the Nightrays are branded as traitors.
As a member of the Nightray house, Elliot himself has been subject to both criticisms and false praises. Instead of developing a similar behaviour in order to survive, Elliot grew to reject such traits and instead became... very, very straightforward. It's the defining point of his character, considering the obscurity of many characters and plot points in the series--where the majority of the cast is drenched in insecurities, lies and the aversion of eyes, Elliot is steadfast, honest, and facing only straight ahead. This is both admirable and a flaw; while Elliot has the strength to say what he means when he means it, he also has a tendency to disregard gentleness and natural transition, instead dumping all of his thoughts out at once. As Leo, his servant, states... "you have a tendency to force your opinions onto others...", which is in fact very true. Elliot, at his core, is a very active character. He's not the type to stand by passively as things rotate around him, and this is ultimately the root of most of his behaviour. This means he also won't stand by as people around him do things he doesn't agree with, even if such things are none of his business. In the end, what Elliot really values is honesty. What Elliot really respects is willpower. It's why he could outstretch a hand to Leo, who had been abrasive and insulting. Leo did not bother with pleasantries, and in the end that's what earns Elliot's favour best. False images and appearances mean absolutely nothing to him.
OF course, Elliot's rashness and brusqueness aren't even a scratch on the details of his character. As a person, Elliot might even be considered noble. Actually, scratch that. Elliot is very, very noble. While the canon-point I'm taking him from isn't relevant to his most extreme case of nobility (re: his sacrificial death for the Good of Everyone Else), he has very consistent showcases of valor and strength. He defended Oz--the main character of the series--with his life despite just meeting him, even when the offenders were well-known mass murderers. Leo mentions that Elliot is very kind, and Elliot subsequently responds with embarrassment or... annoyance. It is a valid point, however--Elliot is indeed very kind, and gentle, even if he is sometimes tactless and almost brutally honest. His softer side is shown with his family, who he is almost quiet with, sometimes. He will not hesitate to try and comfort those he loves in any way he can, and he is someone who really values the bonds he has, which leads us onto his next trait.
Another one of the things that becomes apparent about Elliot from his first appearance is his hate for self-sacrifice and burdening the people he loves. While Oz shares this trait with him, it's admittedly in a very different way; Oz handles his problems on his own because he feels he's not worth the shared burden, and shoving things onto other is something that he cannot do. Elliot, on the other hand, handles his problems on his own because he knows he's capable, and in the end handling them is ultimately his own responsibility. The last thing he wants to do is hurt people with his existence--when he finds out he's failed to notice the turmoil his sister, Vanessa, had been going through, he's very quick to meekly try and comfort her, and reassure her. Elliot is very much a pillar of strength, and that's what he wants to be. Elliot will freely try to right his wrongs instead of running from them, though whether he admits these openly is another thing entirely (if he messes up enough, he will apologize). Elliot is confrontation where the earlier Oz is avoidance, and that's what pisses him off most, though this "confrontation" ultimately causes him to commit the self-sacrifice he so hates.
All in all, Elliot's outside behaviour is summed up pretty well in a panel that displays him yelling, a "NO SENSE OF SHAME" plastered onto the background. Elliot... doesn't really have a sense of shame, mostly because he acts in a way that he feels isn't shameful. In fact, he acts the way he is because it is completely opposite of what he feels is shameful. Everything Elliot does is done with 100% earnest--when it comes to life, he does nothing half-heartedly. As far as his motivations are concerned, there's nothing really missing. He won't do things he feels isn't right--and if he does, by chance, he'll often back out from them quite quickly, showcased by his actions above regarding his sister.
ANOTHER NOTE is that Elliot has massive amounts of pride, as a result of his lineage. This is a bit of a double-edged sword--while it does provide a motivation for his honest behaviour and unwavering attitude, it does mean that he is quick to anger when it comes to his family and also quick to judge, especially with matters involving the Vessalius family. It's funny, actually, that as a noble Elliot yearns for honesty and a transparent atmosphere free of formalities, but at the same time displays his "I'M A NOBLE DAMNIT!!!!" card to Leo when they both first meet, though ultimately this is how Elliot likes it best. He just hates being looked down on, but he's also not the type to be pompous. He's the one who views his relationships on equal footing.
ELLIOT has an incredibly short temper; he's notorious for being quick to throw chairs and flip tables, and while he does have the ability to Chill The Fuck Out™, it's also very easy to throw him on the other side of the scale again. It doesn't really matter who you are but how you behave and what you do. As a whole, he's very, very stubborn--it can either be incredibly easy to obnoxiously difficult to change his mindset, depending on whether the root of his thoughts are ignorance or thoughts he believes with complete certainty.
AS STEADFAST as he is, Elliot is not all about security and stability. In fact, as a whole, Elliot is a bit of a contradiction in that he's unexpectedly fragile but still incredibly strong. He will show moments of weakness towards things he is unsure about--if he cannot figure things out he will be in a state of relative unease, and generally finds that he doesn't notice things... however, at the same time, Elliot lives with the gift to be able to conquer most problems that come his way, even with some difficulty. Elliot doesn't exactly showcase his problems to the rest of the world, instead fighting them head-on with his own strength. He seems to be very quick to confront other people's problems with certainty, but when he comes to his own he quietly faces them until it's time to encounter them. This is shown through his dealings with both his servant, Leo, and his own personal nightmares.
When it comes to the uncertainty of Elliot's character, it's important once again to recount his situation. Elliot has discrepancies in his memory from being killed and then revived with a supernatural power (mainly outlined in "abilities"), and his true memories often come back to him in dreams that end with massive headaches and crippling pain. These make him anxious, and for the most part he's not sure how to deal with them. His dealings with Leo is much the same way--he expresses careful avoidance with Elliot on this situation, mainly because he knows about his death and rebirth... and he was ultimately the cause for the distortions in Elliot's life. It bothers Elliot to not know things about things that are close to him--and he expresses this uncertainty through annoyance, and then desperation that quickly escalates into a fight (this is after Unbirthday, my decided canon-point, but the build-up is still there). It's important to note this uncertainty mainly because it illustrates some of the flaws of Elliot's character--he's straightforward and can face his problems, but when he's not sure how exactly to face them he can get frustrated, irrational, and lost.
In conclusion, Elliot is kind of a straightforward idiot who looks forward with both eyes open. He sometimes misses things and sometimes messes up, but he earnestly tries to correct his mistakes and live as strongly as he can, with his own two feet.
ABILITIES: Elliot on his own isn't an extremely impressive person, abilities-wise--he's fairly competent with swordplay and can handle his own in a fight, though not for very long if the enemy is too strong. The full extent of Elliot's abilities are hidden below the surface, to the point that even he's not conscious of them. They're centered around his "chain", which is pretty much an entity much like a Persona (a summoned creature with powers).
Elliot's personal chain is "Humpty Dumpty", which has a variety of abilities. They mostly center around Elliot's own health, since... again, he isn't aware of the fact he's contracted to his chain. First and foremost, Humpty Dumpty is the thing that is keeping Elliot alive. It's capable of sealing all of the contractor's negative memories, in order to protect the stability of their mind (specifically, it is sealing off the memories of I) Elliot's death, II) the fact he murdered his brothers, III) some specific memories with his servant, Leo). It's also capable of splitting itself into multiple bodies and attacking... with it's tongue. Elliot is unconscious during these moments, however, so he is never aware of Humpty Dumpty's moments of attack.
The proof of Elliot's contract is an incuse on his chest, which is pretty much just a fancy clock-looking thing that moves depending on how often he uses his power. When the hands of the incuse reach the "12" mark, the contractor is dragged into the Abyss... which is pretty much a dark other dimension. Elliot himself cannot see his incuse, but it is visible to other people when Humpty Dumpty's power is active.
POSSESSIONS: Elliot has a large instrument case which holds his sword (not present inside). And his clothes. Besides that, he doesn't have anything else.
>PERSONA
STRENGTHA symbol of inner-strength, fortitude, compassion... It is a card with a balance of both beauty and animalistic traits. Elliot is strong, but in will-power more so than actual physical prowess.
HANGED MANHanged Man--the symbol of "self-sacrifice for the sake of enlightenment". While Elliot himself has not reached that point of his life yet, he is the noble type that will not run away from the truth. His wisdom is hidden, much like this card's.
THE CHARIOTCard of pride, bravery, egocentric behaviours... Elliot can let this get to his head, but ultimately he is merely a strong character. There is an additional keyword with this card--"anxiety"--that manifests in his dealings with Leo, and his own emotions on his flashing nightmares.
SHADOW: Due to Elliot's self-aware nature and confident lifestyle, Elliot's shadow focuses on the darker, more unknown aspects of his character. His dungeon is centered around the Nightray mansion. There is nothing peculiar about the outside--in fact, you might say it looks a little bit brighter than it usually does, though there are small holes in the scenery here and there. Upon entry into the dungeon, characters will find that the atmosphere matches the one of the outside, with the same sense of foreboding through the tense silence of the foyer. All the curtains are open, and the only light that streams into the inside is through the windows. There are three directions to go after the large foyer: there are stairs (which end suddenly; there is nothing but blackness and a dark pit at the end of them), a locked door, and a hallway straight ahead.
Going through the dungeon, characters might notice that the foreboding sense of doom in the atmosphere is suddenly slightly less subtle and more obvious. Deeper in there are echoes of piano music--at first there is a very notable melody, but it later shifts into incoherent tones and cut-ups of an unrecognizable song. At it's deepest levels, the mansion's walls melt away and there is only a hallway in the middle of blackness, lit up by... candles. The edges of these later hallways will occasionally crumble, so watch your step! At the end of the final hallway is a large door, which is home to a room that is half on fire (a manifestation of his nightmares) and half showered in light, which ultimately makes the dark of the other side darker. The Shadow is present there, and it focuses mainly on the aspects of Elliot that he's unsure of. He will pick apart the fact that although Elliot can see many things about others, he's completely blind when it comes to things about himself. Is Leo the one acting strange? Isn't it you who's acting strange? The nightmares, the fire, the death... What does it mean? In the end... Elliot is ultimately afraid of finding out what's at the end of everything. It would be easier to run and pretend nothing is going on, or to put on a pretense of false bravado. For Elliot, the ability to stand on his own two feet is what he values most... but in his current state, is he not running away?
He had announced to Oz that he would stare into everything with his own two eyes, but in the end his eyes will see absolutely nothing.
The boss manifests itself as a symbol of duality--there are two pianos, one stacked upside-down on top of the other. Two piano players sit at each instrument: one is headless and faces the keys (the one on the piano on the floor), wearing Elliot's school uniform--the other dons a blindfold and a raven's head, with it's back to the upside-down piano, clothed in Elliot's noble clothes. Its arms are distorted and placed like the player is facing forward. Despite its position, it can still play... both upside-down and back turned.
PERSONA: BRAN THE BLESSED (Blessed Raven): Bran (meaning "raven") is a giant of Celtic myth and is known predominantly as a king rather than a God, though he is sometimes cited as one associated with music and writing. Bran's appearance is of a headless man on a horse, holding a raven's head in one hand and a sword in the other.
Bran will focus on physical skills and damage-dealing, along with weak buffs / healing, to link with his magic cauldron that raises the dead and to symbolize Elliot's supportive side. It has a low magic stat and a modest strength stat. Though it has a high vitality stat, it has a weakness to Mudo skills, but a strength to Physical and Hama skills.
A basic moveset for the first couple of levels might go somewhere along the lines of this:
- CLEAVE -> FATAL END -> BRAVE BLADE
- SWIFT STRIKE -> HEAT WAVE -> DEATHBOUND
- TARUKAJA
- COUNTER -> COUNTERSTRIKE -> HIGH COUNTER
- RESIST MUTE -> NULL MUTE
- DIA (later Diarama and Diarahan
PERSONA ACQUISITION: Elliot is a character that would benefit from a Shadow encounter, so I'd like for his Persona to be acquired through the TV.
>SAMPLES
(For panfandom apps, one of these must be set in the world of Caligo.)
THIRD PERSON SAMPLE: The day after he faces his Shadow, Elliot is forced into sleep. The dreams come as they always do--fire, people dying, screaming.
... Yet it's not the same. It's not the same. It's not the same place it always is, a room of only fire, only death, only screams. He's not passive, watching things fall around him, unaware--the room is half-cloaked in sunlight, half-cloaked in fear, and he's standing in the middle, in the light, staring at the presence of the man holding a raven's head and a Nightray's sword.
Persona, he thinks.
There is no apprehension, as there usually is--usually he wishes these nightmares away, anticipates waking up, but here there is calmness. He knows, however, that to stay here longer than he could was something he could no longer afford to do. Purpose is something that he had. Blindness is what he was avoiding. Sight is what he had promised, what he knew he lacked, what he could no longer fear. He had accepted the fearful part of himself--he had understood that the strength he held was accompanied by uncertainties, and that it was entirely possible to brandish a sword and fear being cut.
Bran. It feels familiar, nostalgic. The one in front of him was also the him with the golden eyes, the one who saw right through him seeing through everything but himself. It was funny, in hindsight, how blind he was--how easily he rejected the things around him that were obviously true, but difficult to accept.
But that was in the past.
This time, he would truly look with his own eyes, into the darkness that seemed to allude him. When he looks up at Bran, the eyes of the Raven in his hands are not scary as they had once been, but simply the eyes of a companion--himself, even.
When he wakes up, it's not with a headache and a feeling of dread. Those same eyes are in the back of his mind, and he can see their stare when he closes his eyelids.
It's comforting.
The day after he faces his Shadow, Elliot promises himself to wake up with this feeling more often than not.
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