Mona DeSilva

[Mona DeSilva]

_{i n t r o d u c i n g . . .}

Mona Lynne DeSilva ///

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Full Name~ Mona Lynne DeSilva
Gender~ Female
Age~ 20
Birthdate~ January 5th (Capricorn)
Location~ St. Louis, Missouri
Faction~ Taft & Harkinson Law Firm
Celebrity Claim~ Sarah Desage
Play anyone else?~

Tiffany Baumer

---

_{m i n d . . .}

what's in my head?

/// SPECIAL ABILITY

SPOILER: Click to show

Mona possesses a powerful cognitive ability that operates through the eyes. Her eyes are enhanced so that she can enter a trance-like state in which her pupils dialate, and her irises take on a vivid, inhuman cyan hue. When in this state, Mona 'connects' to information, whether written or on a screen, and is able to seek related information throughout the collective psyche of the human race. In short, she is a human search engine.

Passwords, clearance codes, credit card numbers, addresses, phone numbers, medical records... all sorts of information can be accessed through these means.

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/// ABILITY LIMITS

SPOILER: Click to show

In the beginning, 'jumps' came as brief flashes. If Mona were to use the ability intentionally, she had little control over which direction she took, and often overexerted herself, resulting in serious headaches and dizziness. More to the present day, though, Mona has grown more used to her ability, and she can use it at will. She has a strong control over it, and can 'jump' for twenty to thirty minutes at a time before she begins to develop a headache from the strain on her mind from all of the information flowing in.

Although she has access to a great deal of information, she must choose specifically what to keep. She can only keep track of so much information at a time, just like any normal person, so naturally, it's easy to become overwhelmed if she isn't very specific and focused.

The use of her ability requires a great deal of intense concentration at all times. When 'jumping' Mona must remain still. She temporarily loses her ordinary vision and becomes blinded to her immediate surroundings, thus the trance-like state, but her other senses remain active and sharp. This means she can communicate with someone who is near her while 'jumping', but she will be seriously disadvantaged if attacked in this state. Jumping leaves Mona quite vulnerable.

Jumps are characterized by dialated pupils and bright, cyan irises in the eyes, and Mona needs to initiate a jump by holding her hand to or near a piece of information that becomes her 'doorway'. There is a proper way to end the trance, and if it's broken abruptly, either by herself or someone else, she'll be left seriously disoriented and may suffer headaches and vertigo.

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/// PERSONALITY



The first impression of Mona is typically one that puts people off. It doesn't take most people long to see that she is cool, stoic, detached... often coming off as cold and emotionless. In fact, she's quite cunning, even calculating, and makes the optimal use of every pawn on her board. She's terribly difficult to startle or intimidate, always alert and aware, and rooted deeply with an unshakable resolve.

There really aren't many people left in the world for Mona to love, and those few that remain, she keeps at a distance for their own safety. She doesn't form attachments to new people, or open up to them very easily at all. She keeps her emotions bottled up deep inside, operating on careful calculation and logic. Many don't realize it, but she is driven by her own ideas, which may explain in part why she is so detached. It also makes sense of the fact that there are times she acts on her own, in secrecy, without her benefactors' knowledge, sometimes even against the interests of the firm itself.

Mona is also a very intelligent, eloquent and well-composed individual. Quick thinker, smooth talker... it's not hard to guess that Vickie sees potential in her. In her present position as Vickie's intern, taking on secreterial and clerical duties, she is served well by her steely disposition, which seems to mutually compliment Vickie's shark-like persona. To many would-be clients, Mona acts as a watchdog, turning away those who would waste Vickie's time, and even taking trips to meet with some of her clients on her behalf.

At the core, though, Mona is actually a very passionate person. It's truly difficult for one to guess where her true ideologies lie, but it's clear enough that she'd risk her life and die for them. She has distanced herself from the people she grew up around, and so those who know her in the present day aren't in on the clues that lie in her past. Suffice to say, her trust isn't cheap. She detests the idea of having to rely upon someone other than herself, and pridefully maintains total independence of self. There are times this bleeds through for others to see. When offered help, she typically refuses it, and even seems put off by the thought. She also hates to be indebted to others, considering it to be a failure.
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Likes~

• Seafood, especially shellfish such as oysters
  
• Medical / autopsy shows (non-fictional)
  
• White wines, especially the sparkling kind
  
• Non-fictional reading
  
• Cultural diversity
  
• Beautiful photography (from cherry-red sunsets to big city skylines)
  

Dislikes~

• Slobs, unclean people, unclean places
  
• Pointy high heels
  
• Rural places; 'country' folk
  
• Animals, and the odors they produce
  
• Popcorn (despises the kernels getting stuck in her teeth)
  
• Gaudy jewelry
  

Strengths~

• Ambitious nature gives her a lot of determination and resolve
  
• Very fit; excellent health; keeps good posture
  
• Very difficult to intimidate
  
• Persuasive actress; excellent poker face
  
• Extremely organized; punctual, and has a gift for timing
  
• Good at reading people and pushing the right buttons
  

Weaknesses~

• Has a great deal of difficulty in relying on others
  
• Does very little to ever treat herself
  
• Ambitious nature keeps her from 'quitting while she's ahead'
  
• Also has trouble resisting curiosity
  
• Difficult to dissuade or convince; very stubborn
  
• A real 'girly' girl; grossed out by things like bugs and mud
  

Skills~

• Clerical skills
  
• Able to represent others well
  
• Excellent keyboarding skills
  
• Trained in the use of handguns and tazers
  
• Able to write music
  
• Can hold her own on the piano or other keyboard instruments
  
• Adept use of the internet in general
  
• Able to effectively mimic a number of accents
  
• Especially capable of effective forgery
  

Hobbies~

• Her very own form of [ability-aided] 'research'
  
• Plays her electronic sudoku game to kill time
  
• Writes and plays her own music on the piano (occasionally)
  

Habits~

• Always keeps pens on-hand, and clicks them while waiting
  
• "Flosses" with business cards after eating
  
• Starts every morning with a sugar-free energy drink
  
• Carries a (short range) tazer for self-defense
  

Flaws~

• Potentially lethal allergy to strawberries (Keeps epee pen in purse)
  
• Allergy to pet dander causes congestion, runny nose, itchy & watery eyes...
  
• Suffers from athsma, keeps an inhaler
  
• Has sensitive teeth and gums
  

---

_{b o d y . . .}

caught in your sights . . .

Age~ 20
Celebrity Claim~ Sarah Desage
Sexual Preference~ Undecided
Ethnicity~ Portuguese-Brazilian
Hair~ Black
Eyes~ Brown

/// APPEARANCE



With long, slightly wavy black hair and deep brown eyes, Mona certainly resembles her mother, only set apart by her milky complexion which is certainly a few shades lighter. Her features are elegant, swanlike, even particularly exotic, which tends to draw attention from most anyone rather quickly. Paired with her cold demeanor, this can cause her to quickly seem either threatening, intriguing, or both.

Mona tends to favor neutral colors, such as white, black, or shades of gray, especially when at work. After all, she associates bright color with fun, and that's something she doesn't have a lot of spare time for in her life these days, regrettably. Women's suits with tight, knee-length skirts often work for her, but she'll just as easily put on slacks. She tends to avoid tall heels, but will wear the short, wide ones; the ones that are easier to walk in. Her hair is typically up for work, and she does at least indulge in doing something nice with it from time to time. Although she will use some hair accessories, she keeps to elegant styles that compliment her clean, crisp overall appearance. She will also wear nice earrings when going out or working, as well.

When on her own time, she can be caught in considerably more casual attire. This might sometimes include some of the firm's own tee-shirts, jackets, or caps that they occasionally pass out in the offices as gestures for the hard working which double as means of advertisement. Not to say that Mona is still living and breathing work when she's off, and on those rare nights when she has time to spare between work and her own pursuits, she'll dress up with a bit more color and take the time to enjoy herself.

Her swan-like features extend also to her movements. She keeps an upright posture and even her most subtle or mundane motions keep to a certain trained, even mechanical grace. It's as if she believes that there is a proper way to do even the simplest things, such as walking, or drinking from a glass. Occasionally, though, she'll become flustered, and the kid in her will come crawling out as she throws her head back to sigh and roll her eyes, or she may bow her arms at someone when confronting them.

---

_{s p i r i t . . .}

this is where i come from . . .

Faction~ Taft & Harkinson Law Firm
Birthplace~ St. Louis, MO
Mother~ Daniela DeSilva; Deceased?; Hyper-active Mental Process
Father~ Ronald DeSilva; Deceased?; Cancer Inducing Touch
Siblings~ Warren DeSilva; 22; Hypnotic Suggestion / Intuitive Profiling
Spouse~ n/a
Children~ n/a
Other Family~ n/a

/// HISTORY

SPOILER: Click to show

While still engaged for their wedding, Ronald and Daniela stepped up their wedding plans when they realized that Daniela was pregnant with their first child. It was with a round belly that Daniela was wed to Ronald, and the couple soon greeted their first born into the world, a boy they named Warren. He wasn't a very loud child, even in infancy, and while noting his remarkable mental development, Daniela was soon pregnant with a second baby. Born a larger baby than Warren, Daniela wondered if she'd be fussier, more demanding.

When Mona was born, the couple agreed that they were done. Ronald wanted to be able to focus on his career so as to provide for the family, and Daniela had her own career interests to pursue as well. Early childhood passed quickly for the brother and sister, who unlike most siblings, experienced bare minimum bickering and fighting. In fact, they were quite close and got along very well. As Mona came up through elementary and middle schools, it was Warren she turned to for help on her school work, although eventually, she began to realize that he was wrong more often than she was.

When Mona was 11, and Warren was 13, they both learned that their mother, Daniela, was dying of cancer. The doctors were rather baffled as cancer seemed to erupt through her body at an alarming speed, and she wasn't expected for much longer. Ronald grew distant from everyone in the family as Daniela eventually suffered so badly that she was sent to a treatment center in another state.

Once she was gone, the household was blanketed with an eerie gray silence. It was haunting, and forced the siblings to become even closer, relying upon each other for support. They continued to work hard in school, driven by each other, as well as the need to make it on their own; the discomfort of the home saw to that. Eventually, Ronald informed them both that Daniela had died at the treatment center. Oddly, there was no funeral ceremony, but the grief-stricken teenagers didn't press the issue. Warren had grown very distrusting of Ronald, and seemed protective of Mona, especially around him, constantly reminding Mona that they needed to do well in school and college so that they could get away from him. There was no one in the world Mona trusted at the time more than her brother, so she listened to him.

That was when Mona's ability began to manifest. She began to 'see' flashes of information through whatever data she was faced with, and although her grades took a resulting dip early on, she quickly made up for it, and began to ace her high school courses. In truth, she had begun to realize what she was capable of, and was using her ability to exploit considerable shortcuts.

After skipping two grades and then still holding her own where placed, it became clear to Warren that Mona had a really good chance of being accepted whevever she'd want to be. He decided to graduate High School, but wait for Mona to be accepted into college before worrying about furthering his own education, a protective measure. After graduation, it didn't take long for Mona to be accepted at the law school she had chosen, and so she set out to become a lawyer. Internally, she had settled on the conclusion that she had been given an extraordinary gift, and in order to know how best to use it, she needed an excellent vantage point within the society around her.

She did indulge to party with some of the friends she made in college, but never got close to many of them as she remained very focused on school. She would delegate the weekends for fun, then play catch-up with the use of her gift. Her marks remained excellent, of course, but things truly changed the day she gave a particularly dicey oral presentation on criminal law, venturing to express some of her own personal opinions as well. Afterwards, she was approached by a man by the name of Loren Harkinson, who provided her with a business card for a well-established local law firm. She politely pocketed the card, but thought little of it for a while.

With Mona now in college, she kept in touch with Warren through telephone, often exchanging text messages or emails as well. Warren made a move for Atlanta, GA, where he would pursue his own career interests, but was cut short when he was informed that his tuition hadn't been provided.

Mona immediately decided that she would use her ability to get to the bottom of it all. She soon realized that all funds had been removed from their father's account, but more surprisingly, she accessed a private database through the internet using her ability to obtain the proper codes, and learned that their father was dead. It had been considered a suicide, but when Mona contacted the authorities and wished to hold a funeral ceremony, it seemed his body had been 'misplaced'. On that note, she changed her mind and focused her energy toward moving on. She quickly contacted Warren, hoping to convince him to do the same, but learned that his phone service had been discontinued. Efforts to use her ability to find him proved fruitless, but she soon recieved mail straight to her dorm room in the form of a manila envelope. Contained inside were photographs she found highly disturbing, and only that much more so when she realized that some of them depicted her mother. On the bottom corner of each photograph, in fine print, was the word AuraFiz, followed by various numeric codes and the words "Restricted Access!"

She quickly remembered the business card she had been given by Loren Harkinson, and contacted the firm, setting up a meeting. Afraid, and unsure of what to do, Mona needed answers more than anything, and hoped that these people could help her to find them. She was soon contacted by a woman named Vickie Taft who agreed to meet with her over lunch and look at the photographs. It was over this meeting that Vickie proposed to Mona that they would exchange their assistance in finding those answers for her intern application.

No assistance seemed to be readily provided, but much was expected of Mona. Despite this, the position offered allowed Mona a great deal of... access. She soon learned that AuraFiz were in fact, clients to the firm, and quietly resolved to herself that she would have no one to rely upon but herself. She maintains a loyal, if robotic exterior as Vickie's personal assistant, a role that often leaves her feeling like a guard dog, but internally, she operates on her own motives...

_{c r e d e n t i a l s . . .}

what do you bring to the party ?

/// PLAYER INFORMATION

Name or Alias~ Moonflax
CBox Name~ Moonflax, Switchfire
Contact Info~

AllGearsAndTeeth (AIM)
Moonflax (YIM)
[e-mail] (MSN)
[e-mail] (Email)

Age~ 25
Years of RP Experience~ 15-18
How Did You Find Us?

I win @ internets. I win them all.

/// SAMPLE RP

Mona had approached the day like any other.

She had gotten up at the same time as she did every day, gotten dressed, and had even done her hair in a neat loop braid in the back. As usual, she finished her energy drink before making it in. It was an appropiate day to appreciate that it was specifically not an AuraFiz product. For good reason, the company put chills down her spine.

It was appropriate, because today was in fact, a special day. Taft was meeting with a representative of AuraFiz. Vickie hadn't done much to make good on her promise to help Mona find answers about her mother, and so she had decided to take things into her own hands.

Que a neat little program right out of Sweden, that would allow her to listen to the conversation through the microphone on Vickie's computer, provided it was on. Mona made her way into the office and quickly took her seat, depositing the competitor brand energy drink can into her own personal waste basket before pulling up her own computer and logging in with a quick rattle of keystrokes.

Glancing back over her shoulder, they were already in Taft's office, chatting about who-knows-what, but with only a murmur to go on, she wouldn't gather much. No, Mona had other plans.

With a half-smirk, she bit her bottom lip and logged into the program. "Go Sweden..." she mused as it quickly booted up and began to access the office network. It only took her a moment before she began to hear their voices coming through on her headset, loud and clear.

It was a young man's voice speaking in mid-sentence that she heard when she tapped in.

"... which is the reason for the expansion. The additional revenue will allow us to step up research and production. That's exactly why we need these... allegations to disappear."

"Hold on a moment..." came Vickie's voice before a heavy sigh.

"What? What's the problem. I mean, you understand where we're coming from, right? We don't have time."

"I said be quiet..." Vickie hissed in a near whisper, and she began to take a deep breath. As she exhaled, there came a sharp static through the headset, which became a terrible screech. At the end of it, Mona opened her eyes, stunned by the sound, and she had tossed the headset onto the desk by pure reflex. Mona closed her eyes for a few seconds, took a deep breath, and realized that she was unusually nervous, now.

Something seemed odd about all that. It sounded as if Vickie new the moment Mona had tuned in... with a heavy gulp, she quickly pulled up the program and closed it out entirely. As an added measure, she decided to log off of her computer entirely, so as to feign having not signed on at all. After all, she'd just gotten in.

Several moments later, the door opened, and a young man in a gray suit made his way out, grumbling at himself and sparing only the most passive of glances toward Mona. He seemed very preoccupied.

Vickie soon followed, leaning to the frame of the doorway and looking to Mona with a broad grin highlighting the older woman's face. "Morning, Mona."

Did you read the rules: Sure did, listed right beneath your credit card numbers. Wanna see my new plasma screen TV?