Post by Caroline Preece on Jul 6, 2009 23:14:30 GMT -5
i n t r o d u c i n g . . .
Caroline Delta Preece ///
[/size][/i]Full Name~ Caroline Delta Preece
Gender~ Female
Age~ Twenty-eight
Birthdate~ 19 September (Libra)
Location~ Miami, Florida
Faction~ The Collective
Celebrity Claim~ Cobie Smulders
Play anyone else?~ Lucas, Naomi, Brian, Laila
m i n d . . .
what's in my head?
/// SPECIAL ABILITY
To the layman, without much close examination, Caroline's ability of temporal arrest appears to let her slow the passage of time on many levels, even down to a complete stop. Immune to the clutches of stopped time thereafter, she can exist as normal while everything around her goes on in slow motion or stays totally still.
Going into specifics, this can actually happen because she willfully transports herself across other dimensions in varying degrees. Moving through stopped time would mean her total displacement into the fourth dimension, while slowed time would simply equate with walking the line between the third and fourth dimensions.
Until the rare chance when her ability makes great leaps in evolution, Caroline will have no idea she can acheive actual multidimensional movement, not limited to experiencing slowed or stopped time. Going a step higher, she would also have access to the fifth dimension, with full license to move above and beyond time and space. With this possibility under her belt, such things as time travel and teleportation are well within her power.
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/// ABILITY LIMITS
In relative terms, her ability can only be used to stop time for what feels like five minutes, and slow it down for twice that length before the power escapes her control and simply returns time to its normal pace on its own. She could attempt to prolong and sustain her movement independent of time, but it would only cause her remarkable strain and probably make her feel nauseated.
She can, of course, dismiss the power as she chooses, without the need to wait out its duration every time it comes into use. The power can be extended outside herself rather smoothly, especially toward anything on her person, but the effort would likewise be small if she took along any other living creatures. However, the overall limit seems to be about five people, with certain variables applying.
Learning the farthest extents of her power will only happen much later in the future, or perhaps when and if her power was augmented by supernatural means. In either case, she would face the same time limit in speeding up time as in slowing and stopping it.
Time travel has its own dangers, thanks to the risk of permanently changing the timeline, but this underlays the fact that she might never perfect this aspect of her power. If she were to travel backward or forward in time, it would take patience and an effort that, personally speaking, she would be unwilling to sacrifice due to all the frustration involved.
Teleportation, acheived by instantly moving herself through the spatial fabric, could happen once she visualizes a certain place in her mind, though she could always risk the varying and unpredictable possibilities that come with teleporting to an unfamiliar locale.
Time travel has its own dangers, thanks to the risk of permanently changing the timeline, but this underlays the fact that she might never perfect this aspect of her power. If she were to travel backward or forward in time, it would take patience and an effort that, personally speaking, she would be unwilling to sacrifice due to all the frustration involved.
Teleportation, acheived by instantly moving herself through the spatial fabric, could happen once she visualizes a certain place in her mind, though she could always risk the varying and unpredictable possibilities that come with teleporting to an unfamiliar locale.
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/// PERSONALITY
An apathetic and distant woman, Caroline seems not to give any care toward other people or their feelings. She may make public appearances and interactions simply to keep her plans afloat, but her overall attitude tends to make her antisocial tendencies very clear. To those she has already met and dealt with, her apparent boredom with everything said and done would be rather unsurprising, furthering the hostile air about her. She would much rather step into the background, letting others speak in her place, since making small talk for longer than necessary usually feels burdensome for Caroline.
This aloofness, which happens to build and strengthen a valuable emotional blockade, also helps her deal with people in exactly the way she desires. Untainted by much concern for her fellow humans, she can persuade and manipulate the right people, allowing her purposes to advance. Similarly, when people and organizations who earn her alliance aim for a certain goal, she devotes herself entirely in agreement, ready to follow orders. She disregards and basically ignores most everyone around her during a good percentage of the time, and hardly ever talks about herself, though these facts have from time to time been dissolved when a few drinks lower her self-imposed guard. Furthermore, she justifies outings with the other Collective members as mere 'business', though she invariably winds up enjoying herself. It seems much of her personality is a mere 'tough guy' act, formulated to distance herself emotionally.
The Caroline Preece who nobody meets, deep within her mind and heart, tells a different story. At times where she thinks too heavily about herself, then guilt, rage, and worry plague her conscience, even though she cannot always explain why. Since she feels she can neither trust someone nor be trusted herself, she also never confesses her inmost feelings to anyone. Almost solely for this reason, her attendance at many local venues takes first place on her list of priorities, letting her interests take her mind off herself. Loneliness was something she feared in the past, and although she has rather solemnly and bitterly learned to accept this fate, the damage has already been done. It would take miracles to revive this jaded woman's faith in humanity-- or at least someone who proved themselves completely genuine, selfless, and honest.
While she might have rather low regards for human life, committing violence and torture for her cause, she draws the line at murder, for ending a life is far too absolute a punishment. Since she dismisses the thought of an afterlife, Caroline believes death would be an end to their suffering and, therefore, wholly dissatisfying. However, the option is much more a preference than a requirement in her case, and taking a life, to her, is sometimes needed. If a person is overly bothersome, she feels that no amount of pain is too much for them. Armed with spite and the tendency to pick out the worst qualities about people, little would be needed for her to foster hatred for anyone. If anything, she struggles to believe anything good about people.
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Likes~
- Opera and classical music
- Martinis
- Lobster
- Cooked vegetables
- Vanilla ice cream
- Opulence
- Fireworks
- Revenge
- Psychological warfare
- Nag Champa incense
Dislikes~
- Clinginess
- Egotism
- Nitpickers
- Sex
- Wanton murder
- Reading
- Foot odor
- Citrus fruits (lemons, oranges, etc.)
- Sushi
- Fast food
Strengths~
- Level-headed
- Decisive
- Knows how to pick her battles
- Flexible with her options
- High pain tolerance
Weaknesses~
- Mistrustful
- Unapproachable
- Pessimistic
- Sadistic
- Vengeful
Skills~
- Running the theater smoothly
- Displaying the correct public image
- Pushing peoples' buttons
- Fencing
- Artistic pool (trick-shooting)
- Sleight of hand
Hobbies~
- Attending performances
- Fencing
- Pool
- Sunbathing
- Taking several-mile walks
Habits~
- Turns her face slightly to the right when listening (to compensate for her nearly deaf ear)
- Leaves high tips at restaurants (around twenty to thirty percent)
- Becomes visibly bored during conversations (taps foot, looks elsewhere, etc.)
- Massages her neck often, then flips her hair right afterward
Flaws~
- Major hearing loss in her left ear
- Bathophobia
- Allergic to penicillin
- Has two large scars (a two-inch one on the left underside of her jawline, and a four-inch diagonal one midway down her back on the right side)
b o d y . . .
caught in your sights . . .
Age~ Twenty-eight
Celebrity Claim~ Cobie Smulders
Sexual Preference~ Heterosexual
Ethnicity~ Welsh, Scottish, Flemish
Hair~ Dark brown
Eyes~ Bluish-gray
/// APPEARANCE
A tall and slim woman, her five feet and ten inches of height is sometimes enhanced by tall heels, boosting her above eye level for most men. This is topped off by dark brown hair with a naturally low wave, which ends not too far past her shoulders and can be seen pinned up elaborately or tied in a ponytail, or loose and flowing just as often. Her face, like her figure, is long and gaunt, showing off features including her fairly hollow cheeks and tall, pointed nose, as well as her sculpted chin, cheekbones and brow. Her lips bear the slightest plumpness, and her dusty blue-gray eyes are rather large.
In situations where jewelry and fanciful gowns are to be forgone, her trendy wardrobe bears expensive labels aplenty. Usually tailored to perfection, her clothes run the gamut of pastel colors, typically yellows, purples, and blues, with faint patterns thrown in for contrast. Such things as cowl-neck tunics, frilled blouses, and bolero jackets will frequently appear with capris, designer jeans, or slacks. Sunglasses are her common companion when, and on the beachfront, the same applies tjhe wispy sarongs she uses to cover her swimsuit. Far from trashy, her makeup and jewelry definitely reflect refined tastes.
s p i r i t . . .
this is where i come from . . .
Faction~ The Collective
Birthplace~ Boston, Massachusetts
Mother~ Elain Hughes; age fifty-five, special
Pruritic Touch
Father~ Clyde Preece; age fifty-two, special
Caustic Blood
Siblings~ Malcolm Preece; age twenty-nine, special
Dimensional Pocket Access / Spatial Restriction
Spouse~ N/A
Children~ N/A
Other Family~ Glenda (Hatch) Carter; deceased, special (grandmother)
Clairaudience / Superhuman Hearing
/// HISTORY
Born almost exactly nine months after her brother Malcolm, Caroline's lower-class family always struggled to make ends meet. Her mother Elain and father Clyde both sometimes had to run themselves ragged working several jobs at a time, even though large chunks of their money were soon frittered away on alcohol, cigarettes, and gambling. They still tried to be comfortable with what they had, and the children rarely faced parental abuse other than the occasional stress-related outburst. Caroline personally, while accustomed to her parents' habits, kept holding out the hope that her home life could change, being more like the idyllic and happy families that she thought were all around her. Unfortunately, things fell to pieces when Caroline was five years old and Clyde walked out on the family, filing for divorce soon after and giving no claim to custody of his offspring.
Feeling empty, Caroline stuck to Malcolm, who decided to be her 'guardian' of sorts in return. The two latchkey kids had to cover each others' backs while their mother, continuing old habits, exhausted herself at numerous jobs to keep the family (and her addictions) going. There was little time before her maternal grandmother, Glenda, reestablished connections between the whole family. The woman had remarried around the time Caroline's mother learned she was pregnant with Malcolm, and, bothered that Glenda would apparently forget her deceased husband in favor of the wealthy entrepeneur Desmond Carter, Elain distanced herself from her mother-- however, with one phone call, things were about to change. Elain staunchly refused such direct help that sending actual money would bring, but she begrudgingly allowed her mother to pay for Malcolm and Caroline's enrollment at a good, worthwhile private school.
Feeling assurance that her children would probably grow up to a better life, and contentment with the open communication that returned between herself and her mother, Elain's constant worriment began dissolving from her mind, and the money-wasting habits she drew upon for relief started to slow down. Keeping a roof above their heads was still problematic, but the fact that things felt just a smidge easier was good enough for her. Meanwhile, Caroline and Malcolm had to put up with the snobby rich kids who looked down on them their lack of money, although, leaning on each other for help, they learned to stand up for themselves. The hardest part arrived, not with mockery, but with jealousy, since Caroline especially found herself coveting the luxuries her classmates had. Feeling envy tug at her endlessly, it was no help that Malcolm and Elain often complained about their basic life as well.
In high school, Caroline found herself grouped with friends who not only claimed to understand her, but that they knew how to get her what she wanted, which could perhaps solve her usual disappointments. This meant that she would be dared to, first of all, shoplift, though more time spent with her friends meant that the petty crimes she committed would escalate. Having learned to evade trouble, few were the times Caroline was escorted home by the police, but her mother tried taking the initiative to correct the girl by bearing down on her. Springing back with a newfound sense of rebellion, she despised the restrictions her mother made that had never existed before. The only person to whom she would listen was Malcolm, but he was involved with rather questionable friends himself. Without any clue how to keep her teenaged children under control, Elain eventually gave up, hoping Caroline and Malcolm would, without her intervention or advice, learn from their own mistakes once they crashed.
However, it was the final straw for the entire family when Caroline was betrayed by her so-called friends, abandoned at the last minute when given a forged driver's license and sent to buy beer. Sent home again by the authorities, her mother greeted her coldly, and with a smug grin. Malcolm was speechless, and considered his eyes opened once she swore never to trust those backstabbers again. She spent the remainder of her junior year feeling depressed and lonely, but, when the family went to Miami that summer for Desmond's funeral, Glenda gave Caroline the chance to move down to Florida and live with her and attend school there until graduation. Elain and Malcolm remaining in Boston, Caroline moved weeks before school began. Her last year of school was spent distanced from the other kids, her emotional wall trained to thrive, but her privileged life living on the estate her grandmother inherited was something she truly enjoyed.
The large house was one matter, but her grandmother also owned an illustrious theater, obtained on her late husband's passing and now named in his honor. Caroline chose to work at the place, doing such jobs as selling tickets or escorting wealthy patrons to their seats, though Glenda did teach her the tricks of the trade in running the place. In the meantime, Caroline enjoyed almost every performance shown at the Desmond Carter Memorial Theater, and it soon became one of many such venues where Caroline commonly made an appearance-- even on her nights off. With the freedom of working where her grandmother could pull strings, she breezed past graduation fully intending to keep living the good life, and fell in with friends similar to the ones she had back in Boston-- this was due to familiarity, of course, except this time she knew how to strike back if she were double-crossed. Overall, her pursuits aimed not for higher and greater goals, except this would prove difficult when Glenda was hospitalized some years later.
Her health declining quickly, there were few times where the elderly woman was awake and where Caroline was actually present, not out living it up in order to escape boredom and the depressing sight of seeing her once-lively grandmother confined to a bed. When actually in the room with Glenda, Caroline would find herself so bored and distracted that time seemed to sometimes stand still. However, Caroline soon realized that this stillness would apply to everything around her, from the clock to her grandmother and even the nurses walking down the hall. At the rare event when Glenda reached a moment of lucidity and the two could share conversation, Caroline again slipped into stopped time without her knowledge, and when snapping back to normal, she felt obliged to blurt out exactly what happened. Glenda smiled knowingly, but it was the last time the topic was discussed between them. Sadly, Glenda passed away on the very same day that many of her relatives were scheduled to arrive, though she had welcomed visitors before. Wondering what would become of her lifestyle, Caroline sullenly sat and waited through her grandmother's funeral and subsequently, the reading of her will.
However, Caroline perked up when mention was made that her grandmother had left her both the Desmond Carter Memorial Theater and large sums of money, simply because she had been there at the right time. Awestruck even though she had to move out of the palatial home Glenda imparted to Caroline's aunt and uncle, Caroline felt empowered to buy her place and, relying on what business advice her grandmother had given her, keep the theater running. Those plans were fresh in mind when a man called Randall Avery approached Caroline mere minutes after the will's reading had ended. She was taken aback when the man made several offers, even mentioning her power in clear terms. She was soon told about how her grandmother and Desmond had connections to an organization called The Collective, whom Randall commanded, and how Glenda had told him plenty of things about Caroline. Aware of the young woman's past and present, he gave her the choice to join them or get out of their way. She accepted the former, allured by the leverage they had, and was allowed to continue ownership over the Desmond Carter Memorial Theater. Behind public eyes, her association with the group deepened and, like any other member, she and her abilities were used time and again to promote their plans.
c r e d e n t i a l s . . .
what do you bring to the party ?
/// PLAYER INFORMATION
Name or Alias~ Froggy
CBox Name~ FroggyNine
Contact Info~ PM or Cbox
Age~ Twenty-two
Years of RP Experience~ Eight
How Did You Find Us? Never mind the details! It just happened, okay?! Yeesh...
/// SAMPLE RP
Decked in red velvet, ebony, and marble, the theater's lobby looked ravishing that evening. Rigoletto, done by an acclaimed traveling company, stopped in the place during a regional tour, and their single-night performance had sold every seat in the house. What meant entertainment for some meant revenue for the owner, who happened to be standing by herself in the crowd, dressed in a full-length lavender gown complete with a matching shawl and tanzanite jewelry. The tall woman's dark hair was curled and pinned up high, and she held a decadent raspberry and white chocolate martini in her hand. She seemed to blend in with the opera-going masses just fine.
Caroline, as she minded her own business whilst sipping her drink and contemplated the finer points of the opera's story, was soon approached by one of the theater's patrons; Arturo Cabrera. A handsome, older man with a well-kempt moustache and combed hair as white as snow, he extended his hand to Caroline, whom he saw as a memento of his old friend. Obliging Arturo, she feigned delicate femininity while giving him her hand, which he soon kissed politely.
"Ah, Miss Preece," he smiled, showing off the impeccably white teeth. Several details made Caroline halfheartedly take note of how much the man cared for his apperance, even into his golden years. "How are you this fine evening?"
"Charmed," Caroline said, steadily holding the stem of her cocktail glass, "Enjoying yourself?"
"Yes, very much...but I cannot help but think of your grandmother and her husband every time we meet." He pointed to her, his glass of brandy cupped in his hand, sloshing a bit over the ice cubes inside. "Desmond was an old friend of mine, very dear to me. Well...I've probably said this too many times before."
Even though the man chuckled, Caroline's face was like stone, completely serious. There were times when she felt like pouring on the charm, and this wasn't really one of them. It was best to make it known, she felt. "Yes. Yes you have," she said, one hand perched on her hip and the other still holding her cocktail.
Chuckling again, his tone and smile a bit less comfortable, the elderly man swayed a step back, making his reply. "Ah. Forgive me, then."
Raising an eyebrow, her lips not tugged in a single bemused curve or slant, Caroline was silent. So silent, in fact, that it must have left the man speechless himself. Surely, in other circumstances, someone else would have made a droll comment or two, but not Caroline.
Arturo's wide grin narrowed, and Caroline could tell his eyes were quickly seeking out better conversation before the intermission came to a close. Having encountered the man before, she could have predicted from the start how their brief encounter would end, especially considering his topic of choice. There was simply no accounting for some people.
"Yes. Sorry," she said insincerely, distant as she neglected to make eye contact, "I'm feeling rather...distracted tonight." While far from the
"Of course," Arturo backed away further still, nodding his head in respect. It was perhaps those words alone that didn't sever the man's patronage to the theater-- at least not immediately. "My apologies, Miss Preece," Arturo said, likely moving onward to friendlier pastures.
Irony dripping from her voice, Caroline's fingers cascaded in a slight wave of farewell. "Ta-ta!" Whether she offended him or not, she wasn't too sure the loss of a single measly patron would send the theater into ruin, anyway.
Did you read the rules: Yes. Why wouldn't I?