RE: Masks 2
08-27-2018, 02:34 AM
(This post was last modified: 09-09-2018, 02:55 AM by Whimbrel.)
[Reserved for a reprise of the critically acclaimed 'Worst']
Show Content
Spoiler
Name: Alexandria P. Escher
Aliases: Lex, Lux, the Starbright Prince, the Dark Knight, Alexandria Escher Parker, various one offs.
Date of Birth: July 14, 2001
Place of Birth: Oakland, California
Place of Residence: "The Good Ship Glitterbomb" (The GSG) is VTOL rotor-plane, converted from an armored corporate transport into a cozy mobile home! The usable living space, at a rough estimate, is about four tiny-homes worth of room. Even with storage above and below, the back half of that is a dedicated workshop. The rest is a fairly small, but tasteful, tiny home--with everything that's not very soft more or less bolted down. Sleeping space in the loft, mostly continuous living area in between the workshop and cockpit. They've painted the walls, put up paintings--it's nice. Lex probably wouldn't be happy with it if she didn't have extra living space in another galaxy, but she does, so it works! The plane has minimal weapons, relying mostly on its stealth capabilities (and Lex's) to avoid trouble. It's not a combat ship, it's a house!
She also has an apartment on the other side of the universe. Well, more of a tower? At the time it was built her specifications were "I don't want to be near any of these mind controlling bastards," but her allies argued that administration would be VASTLY easier if she didn't situate herself halfway across the goddamn planet, especially since she didn't live on the planet full time anyway. So the compromise was an apartment still in the administrative complex, but high enough off the ground that no one could reach it with their powers! And that she could have a dog.
Appearance: She looks rich. That's the first thing people tend to note, when she's not wearing an illusion. At six feet, she's quite tall, and she sports the sort of easy perfection very rarely seen in anyone without a team devoted to that person's beauty routine, or some level of gene modding. She's very athletic, and while her natural capacities have been enhanced by gene modding, she also works diligently to build and maintain her strength and skill.
She can never age past 25. Which is nice, but increasingly makes her feel strange and occasionally disconnected, especially when around people her own age (approx 49).
Lex is on the darker side of tan, with curly black hair (currently cut extremely short), and dark eyes with golden, starry flecks--a minor mod that she's incredibly happy with. Her Lux mask glows fairly brightly, so it's not exactly a give-away, either, she hopes--Lex otherwise tries to avoid easily distinguished marks. She's forgone tattoos, and has her constantly accumulating scars removed on a regular basis--which makes her a bit sad, at times. It makes things seem... impermanent.
She wishes her lifestyle didn't mean she always had to consider whether an outfit could instantly become easy to fight in before wearing it out, or how it worked with her body armor--she wants some impractical beauty, too! But at the very least, she can pretend to be wearing whatever she pleases.
And she wants to be wearing the cool and gorgeous bleeding edge of fashion.
Personality:
Incredibly brave, driven, and ready to singlehandedly fight anyone and everything that so much as glances at Earth funny. She could have turned out so much worse if she hadn't had so much love, understanding, and support from her family, friends old and new, loyal servants, and yes, even starstruck fans.
She's still who she's always been, but hopefully improved by time and effort.
Powers, Skills, and/or Resources:
-Shroud - Light + Dark
...+Hardlight wings/limbs
-Ring---Retrievable, with sufficient time and concentration
...+Sword
...+Scepter
...+Crown
.......+Teleport to/from Throne Stone
.......+Improved 'detached' illusions
...+Manifest/consume objects
-standard 'god' powers
...+Dream Appearances
...+Speedier recoveries
...+Immortality
...+Incentive to be killed by Demigods
-fame
...+Friendly with many 'robin-hood'-esque pirate groups
...+Popular with many in the public
-some savings/investments (Most confiscated, still has a few in her Alexandria accounts and a few surviving fakes)
...+Houseship (see above)
...+Skybikes (modded by Emma, combat and 'civilian' models)
...+Motorcycles
...+Various armor suits
......+Most used: A tech suit and magic platemail
.........+She also had a "Dark Knight" plain suit remade in the Garden for emergency or aesthetic.
...+Some 'necessity' survival kits hidden around frequently visited areas, in weatherproof containers. Done more as a fun activity than a serious fall-back plan. She aspires to one day hide a megaweapon inside an elaborately trapped cave, but alas, is not quite there yet.
......+Though she did do that with several vital pieces of Hermien Kohne's device! That was fun.
-skilled combatant
...+Extensive Gardenstyle training in hand to hand, swords. Earth training in shooting a gun.
...+Has a Scepter stabilizer in the Garden that gives her greater accuracy, modifying it to fire like a gun.
......+Made one on Earth as well but it keeps breaking. Ugh! Must be the materials. Couldn't find the right crystals.
...+Aerial combat specialist
......+Loves skybike battles
.........+Still cannot ride a horse/pegasus well, despite attempts to learn
-1/15th of a planet
...+It's in another galaxy but it's doin' alright
Biography:
The first time Lex killed someone was in the One Day War. KNIGHT tried to convince her to lie low, go into hiding with her parents, but she wasn't having any of it. She took a bulletproof vest, her recently acquired magical powers, and the loyal servant temporarily trapped in a doll's body who had helped her unlock said magical powers and informed her of a distant kingdom that she had inherited, and took to the battlefield.
She took down a destroyer. Then she went to DC, and helped take down the mothership.
She was a teenager.
The many successive crises, the high stakes and higher pressures both personal and global, weighed upon her and left her a very scarred young woman.
But she kept learning, and training, and fighting. Hopefully, that's enough to keep the Earth safe.
After Ragnarok, she spent a lot of time trying to make sure everyone on Tyrasia in the Garden of Light survived and grew into a society she'd actually want to put on her resume this time. The last one was just... Not one to brag about.
To this end, she went to college. First majoring in politics, then switching to industrial engineering...then, after some intense discussions with Becky, graduated with a degree in photography!
During this time, she was frequently in a relationship with Emma Parker, AKA Devana, though they were prone to breaking up (Mostly Lex's fault), then getting back together after some wild nights of drinking and property damage.
She kept up her Viewcube channel, but her entries were far less frequent than they used to be. Just extremely busy with everything! Argh!
Maria got pregnant, which was a disaster. She tried desperately to talk her out of it, but Maria wasn't having any of it. They parted on poor terms, and Lex fled to Europe decided it was a good time to study abroad.
She headed over to Europe to study with the dwarves, and catch up with Freya. She did learn a little bit...and they did have materials she could use, even if they wouldn't part with the nice ones...But she feels like Everan got more out of it than she did. She resolved to practice more of the basics in the Garden of Light, and come back later. (It wound up being about a decade, and she was engaged to Emma by then. She did indeed get more out of it that time, managing to make some semi-useful minor artifacts for her friends and family!) She probably learned more by watching how Freya managed her kingdom. It was a good time!
But then the entertainment arm of the the emerging megacorp seized the rights to 'Lux', and she cut her trip short to go express her displeasure. She wasn't able to stop them, but she did make enough of a fuss that thermal sensors became far more common in places such as broadcast stations and mega-corp held server farms!
She also raised the profile of certain pirate organizations who assisted her, to their mixed benefit.
She went on a long trip to train with various master swordsmen, at the end of which her motorcycle was on its last legs. She brought it back to Emma, who had modified it in the first place, in the hopes it could be repaired. It couldn't...but they hit it off again. And after getting drunk and stealing a ship from the megacorp, they decided to try dating again.
All in all...her life became a blend of wandering hero, frantic scholar, and dabbling artist, in both galaxies.
Friends, Family, Acquiantances, Rivals, Enemies, and anybody else:
Hoo boy. Ok.
EARTHLINGS:
-Emma E. Parker: AKA Devana. AKA Emma Parker Escher. Lex's wife of seven years. A former child soldier trained by Father Orwell and rescued by Vigil, who had no choice but to mentor her after she blew up an alien spaceship and refused to stop fighting. Lex and Devana first met during the robot invasion, where they did not hit it off. Things went better after Ragnarok, where they got drunk and Lex kidnapped her for what turned out to be a date, complete with vigilantism and blowing up a bar. They dated off and on and off and on, then took a break, then got back together, and it seems to be working now that they've gotten a bit older? She's a master with the bow, mechanically brilliant, though she and Lex both stress at times over the fact that she's not immortal. Her wedding band is made of wood, to match Lex's (precious metals don't teleport well), and Lex spent a lot of effort and a lot of crystalwork to give it a special property: With a specific pattern of quick taps, Devana can activate it to cloak the area in shadow. Lex intended to pair this with something to give her sight that wouldn't be affected by it, but she never managed to figure that one out. So. Just use night vision glasses?
-Charlotte Escher: AKA Flux. Lex's older sister. After being hit by a meteorite, she became a functionally immortal shapeshifter, but has continued her life much on the same trajectory she had before that--becoming a blockbusting superstar actress. Admittedly, she did quite a bit of training with Jasper in the art of spycraft, and is now using her fame, powers, and anything else she can bring to bear to build an intelligence network with its fingers on the pulse of the world.
She's too 'old' to play action stars anymore, according to Hollywood, but some of her earliest action star roles were playing Lux, as she and her sister always joked about. She has some light and dark grenades from Lex, and a promise that she'll make something good for her once she gets some more materials, and they both think of something that would be useful. She did try a more ambitious project, but...Yeah, no. It's a lamp now.
-Sydney Escher: AKA Dragonfly II. Lex's eldest sister. She doesn't have to work a day job, having made quite a chunk of change as an e-sports champion, videos, and smart investments.
Two years after the visitation, she called up her sister after another epic clash with her archnemesis (DOCTOOORRR MAAAANTWIST), asking for her help rather than a high five. While her powers were still operating as well as ever, the bug in her body that provided them had gone completely unresponsive. Tro'Valekr had always struck her as kind of a lethargic jerk, despite claiming that his species didn't need nearly as much sleep as humans, but this was new. Lex contacted the bug in dreams, and he seemed pretty damn freaked out by this turn of events--this was not at all normal. He had been feeling a bit drifty and unfocused for years, (and in retrospect, that seemed fairly worrisome, he acknowledged) and now he could not seem to wake himself up.
Lex conveyed this to Sydney, who then took herself straight to Doctor Emily (local superpowered doctor). After a number of tests, her diagnosis was that Sydney had some kind of latent ability: some kind of bizarre reverse parasitism. The bug was cocooned in some Sydney-spawned growths, and being kind of...digested? Sort of?
Despite the risks of surgery so close to her goddamn brainstem, Sydney opted to have the bug removed to save his life--and with Doctor Emily's power, he made a full recovery. Weirdly, Sydney kept some of the powers.
Lex suggested that she could take on a new superhero name: REFLUX. This was shot down. As were her more serious suggestions of "Conflux" or "Redux", and that Sydney should try swallowing a bunch more magic space bugs to see if she could get more powers. Sydney was very happy to continue being Dragonfly II, and NOT swallow a bunch of bugs for science. Val found a new host.
Dragonfly II (under a new hero name) and III are still currently active in Boston...and married with so many dang kids, at that. Lex gave her a charm that can make her look like Old Style Dragonfly, if she wants to fool someone about where Dragonfly III is, for some reason?--this one actually turned out well! It does not cast a proper shadow, though, unfortunately.
Which brings us to...
-William K. Williams: AKA Dragonfly III. A public defense attorney, he wound up in the hospital early in his career after being roughed up, whereupon a certain bug decided 'whatever, this guy works'. And so he became the third Dragonfly. He kept up his day job for a while, and still does some paperwork, but...to be honest? The legal system's gone from bad to inexcusable. There's not much he feels he can do from within anymore.
-Chelsea Williams: Seventeen, and still no sign of powers. But she has a strong grounding in martial arts, some sword skills, and marksmanship, so she'll probably be good for whatever life throws at her. Hopefully.
-Melody Williams: Fifteen, and has a fixation with the idea of camping in the woods and living off the land. She's never actually been outside of the city, and would probably hate it. Book smart, but not the most coordinated, despite everyone's efforts.
-David and Matthew Williams: Both fourteen. They're going to become pirates some day, it's almost guaranteed. Lex said she was going to teach them magic and then taught them a stupid magician's illusion. They got a box that can conceal a person out of it!
-Alice Williams: Nine. She pushes herself to prove that she can keep up with her older siblings, but she's still just a kid. One that's ready to throw down with anyone.
-Her parents: Saengdao and Hayden Escher. Two of the lucky few who found places in middle management, and perhaps the last generation to actually have a retirement to enjoy. They are supportive of their daughters, and Lex drops them a line through dreams from time to time. They still live in Florida. Lex gave them a magic lamp. It was supposed to be something else, but...Yeah. It's a lamp now. Sigh.
She has a few other scattered relatives who have survived, but she hasn't really kept in touch.
-George Mason: Former KNIGHT agent. He really just wants to live his life at this point, and Lex thinks he more than deserves it. She checks up on him from time to time, mostly in dreams.
-Rebecca Walden Bruce: Becky, Becks; Best friend. Confidante. Normal mortal human being who pushes Lex to actually take care of herself and be happy. She's also an investigative reporter for various organizations, anonymous columnist to several resistance papers, and occasionally a run-of-the-mill detective for hire. She has kids, but they're grown and have gone their own ways. Mostly to work for their dad, who has a far safer job as an accountant.
-Emily Volts. An A.I. created by Max Volts. They used to go sight seeing together, but she doesn't go out so much any more. Especially not to America. She doesn't sleep, as far as Lex can tell, so secure communications with her are hard to come by, which is sad. Lex misses being in easy contact with her, she's a great friend.
-Maria Maldonado: AKA Coyote. Lex's earliest god-friend, and one she still wishes well, despite Maria's current ongoing suicide attempt in the form of having children. Lex tried to step in a few times to keep her safe, but Maria wasn't having any of it. So there's really nothing to do but try and steel her heart against the inevitable end to this tragic decision.
-Vigil AKA Marcus: They've known each other since the One Day War. A good dude, if a bit (reasonably) concerned about the whole 'child soldier' thing, to Lex's initial frustration. Received invitations to the wedding from both Lex and Emma, the latter of whom was his sidekick for many years.
-Desmond AKA The Raven: She nearly killed this fellow hero after Ragnarok over a combination of misunderstanding something he said and not recognizing him. She eventually sent an apology by way of his mother, but it didn't sound super penitent.
-Adrasteia:
-Ulrika:
-Rafael and Catalina:
-Freya:
-Etrana:
-Jasper: Former KNIGHT agent and Lex's first instructor. She's still fond of him, and she and her sisters pay for him to have a nurse he doesn't really need, but they worry. He's old, man!
-Michael Fontaine: Lex saved his life during an assassination attempt, but was unable to save his parents. She encouraged him on the path of vigilantism, protected him from further assassination attempts, and helped him gain control of his company. He was a good kid, and a good friend. She gave him some light and dark grenades, and, potentially more usefully? A pendant that keeps him from casting a shadow while worn. She was trying for a pendant of invisibility, but, again, real difficult to get right.
-Candy Fontaine: Michael's kid!!! She managed to drop in and see Candy a few times. She's certain the kid's going to make waves, somehow. How exciting!
-The Chillwind Prince: AKA ??? Ok. Where the **** is this dude? He hasn't died again, that's as near to certain as it can be, but it's been thirty two years since he was reincarnated, and there's absolutely no sign of him anywhere. Not even in dreams. It's a source of great stress to Lex, as so many things are.
MISC. VILLAINS: I'm tired.
ALIENS:
The whole...Space Pantheon:
-Hermien Kohne: A brilliant scientist who invented the bomb they used to blow up the hostile dimension, and the power dampener that severely lessened their losses in that battle. He has tenure, and is allowed to pursue most any line of study that catches his interest--though Lex has requested that he set aside some time to teach, as well. He is biologically about fifty-five at the moment.
-Dame Ivette: Grandmaster of the Starguard.
-Sir Ernaut: Second-In-Command of the Starguard.
-High General Gotfyre Strouken
-Grand Admiral Rowlend. Former Admiral of the First Fleet, a genius tactician.
-Spymaster Krea Kuhn.
-Penrose: A crystal elemental loyal to the Starbright Prince since long before Lex was born, though his employment conditions have improved significantly under her rule--once he got out of the doll body, anyway. An advisor, a servant, and a friend; her go-to guy when she needs something.
-Some other...staff.... Cid I'm tired, this section is very long, we'll figure it out as they become relevant! She likely has many domestic advisors, but probably hasn't filled the 'Steward' position due to the joint rule situation that's currently in place with the Princely Council. Besides, that position likely needed to be several positions in the first place.
-Tybare: Terrorist/Freedom Fighter/Former enslaved soldier of the Starbright Prince. Years ago, he freed her from her enslavement under mind control (by killing her) and helped her escape, which provided her with all the information she needed to liberate the galaxy, eventually. She's still grateful but also thinks he hates her, so she isn't always sure how to act around him. Lex actually quite likes him when he isn't crawling through her ship's air ducts, being all suspicious, but their dynamic tends towards her trying to stun him into silence with how impressive she is, and him trying to argue that she's not all that special, actually.
He's a politician, making sure the Princes stick to their promises.
Name: Alexandria P. Escher
Aliases: Lex, Lux, the Starbright Prince, the Dark Knight, Alexandria Escher Parker, various one offs.
Date of Birth: July 14, 2001
Place of Birth: Oakland, California
Place of Residence: "The Good Ship Glitterbomb" (The GSG) is VTOL rotor-plane, converted from an armored corporate transport into a cozy mobile home! The usable living space, at a rough estimate, is about four tiny-homes worth of room. Even with storage above and below, the back half of that is a dedicated workshop. The rest is a fairly small, but tasteful, tiny home--with everything that's not very soft more or less bolted down. Sleeping space in the loft, mostly continuous living area in between the workshop and cockpit. They've painted the walls, put up paintings--it's nice. Lex probably wouldn't be happy with it if she didn't have extra living space in another galaxy, but she does, so it works! The plane has minimal weapons, relying mostly on its stealth capabilities (and Lex's) to avoid trouble. It's not a combat ship, it's a house!
She also has an apartment on the other side of the universe. Well, more of a tower? At the time it was built her specifications were "I don't want to be near any of these mind controlling bastards," but her allies argued that administration would be VASTLY easier if she didn't situate herself halfway across the goddamn planet, especially since she didn't live on the planet full time anyway. So the compromise was an apartment still in the administrative complex, but high enough off the ground that no one could reach it with their powers! And that she could have a dog.
Appearance: She looks rich. That's the first thing people tend to note, when she's not wearing an illusion. At six feet, she's quite tall, and she sports the sort of easy perfection very rarely seen in anyone without a team devoted to that person's beauty routine, or some level of gene modding. She's very athletic, and while her natural capacities have been enhanced by gene modding, she also works diligently to build and maintain her strength and skill.
She can never age past 25. Which is nice, but increasingly makes her feel strange and occasionally disconnected, especially when around people her own age (approx 49).
Lex is on the darker side of tan, with curly black hair (currently cut extremely short), and dark eyes with golden, starry flecks--a minor mod that she's incredibly happy with. Her Lux mask glows fairly brightly, so it's not exactly a give-away, either, she hopes--Lex otherwise tries to avoid easily distinguished marks. She's forgone tattoos, and has her constantly accumulating scars removed on a regular basis--which makes her a bit sad, at times. It makes things seem... impermanent.
She wishes her lifestyle didn't mean she always had to consider whether an outfit could instantly become easy to fight in before wearing it out, or how it worked with her body armor--she wants some impractical beauty, too! But at the very least, she can pretend to be wearing whatever she pleases.
And she wants to be wearing the cool and gorgeous bleeding edge of fashion.
Personality:
Incredibly brave, driven, and ready to singlehandedly fight anyone and everything that so much as glances at Earth funny. She could have turned out so much worse if she hadn't had so much love, understanding, and support from her family, friends old and new, loyal servants, and yes, even starstruck fans.
She's still who she's always been, but hopefully improved by time and effort.
Powers, Skills, and/or Resources:
-Shroud - Light + Dark
...+Hardlight wings/limbs
-Ring---Retrievable, with sufficient time and concentration
...+Sword
...+Scepter
...+Crown
.......+Teleport to/from Throne Stone
.......+Improved 'detached' illusions
...+Manifest/consume objects
-standard 'god' powers
...+Dream Appearances
...+Speedier recoveries
...+Immortality
...+Incentive to be killed by Demigods
-fame
...+Friendly with many 'robin-hood'-esque pirate groups
...+Popular with many in the public
-some savings/investments (Most confiscated, still has a few in her Alexandria accounts and a few surviving fakes)
...+Houseship (see above)
...+Skybikes (modded by Emma, combat and 'civilian' models)
...+Motorcycles
...+Various armor suits
......+Most used: A tech suit and magic platemail
.........+She also had a "Dark Knight" plain suit remade in the Garden for emergency or aesthetic.
...+Some 'necessity' survival kits hidden around frequently visited areas, in weatherproof containers. Done more as a fun activity than a serious fall-back plan. She aspires to one day hide a megaweapon inside an elaborately trapped cave, but alas, is not quite there yet.
......+Though she did do that with several vital pieces of Hermien Kohne's device! That was fun.
-skilled combatant
...+Extensive Gardenstyle training in hand to hand, swords. Earth training in shooting a gun.
...+Has a Scepter stabilizer in the Garden that gives her greater accuracy, modifying it to fire like a gun.
......+Made one on Earth as well but it keeps breaking. Ugh! Must be the materials. Couldn't find the right crystals.
...+Aerial combat specialist
......+Loves skybike battles
.........+Still cannot ride a horse/pegasus well, despite attempts to learn
-1/15th of a planet
...+It's in another galaxy but it's doin' alright
Biography:
The first time Lex killed someone was in the One Day War. KNIGHT tried to convince her to lie low, go into hiding with her parents, but she wasn't having any of it. She took a bulletproof vest, her recently acquired magical powers, and the loyal servant temporarily trapped in a doll's body who had helped her unlock said magical powers and informed her of a distant kingdom that she had inherited, and took to the battlefield.
She took down a destroyer. Then she went to DC, and helped take down the mothership.
She was a teenager.
The many successive crises, the high stakes and higher pressures both personal and global, weighed upon her and left her a very scarred young woman.
But she kept learning, and training, and fighting. Hopefully, that's enough to keep the Earth safe.
After Ragnarok, she spent a lot of time trying to make sure everyone on Tyrasia in the Garden of Light survived and grew into a society she'd actually want to put on her resume this time. The last one was just... Not one to brag about.
To this end, she went to college. First majoring in politics, then switching to industrial engineering...then, after some intense discussions with Becky, graduated with a degree in photography!
Show Content
SpoilerSome initiatives she pushed for in the council included universal literacy opportunities--she introduced the idea of the alphabet book around the same time she brought over schematics for printing presses.
She wanted public general education available at least 5 to 12, with nursery care available before then, and various specialty schools available after. She declined to introduce the specific structure of Earth schools, since they were boring and sucked. They could figure out something that actually worked, right?
She also wanted the civilians to have somewhere to go in the event of a disaster, whether weather related or more...invading army of angels, unexpectedly, sort of disasters. So she pushed the urban engineers for communities outfitted with plenty of defensible structures, durable building/bunkers with stockpiled provisions that could double as community centers in peace time...while also being aesthetically pleasing and inviting instead of being something dismally utilitarian.
She wanted public general education available at least 5 to 12, with nursery care available before then, and various specialty schools available after. She declined to introduce the specific structure of Earth schools, since they were boring and sucked. They could figure out something that actually worked, right?
She also wanted the civilians to have somewhere to go in the event of a disaster, whether weather related or more...invading army of angels, unexpectedly, sort of disasters. So she pushed the urban engineers for communities outfitted with plenty of defensible structures, durable building/bunkers with stockpiled provisions that could double as community centers in peace time...while also being aesthetically pleasing and inviting instead of being something dismally utilitarian.
During this time, she was frequently in a relationship with Emma Parker, AKA Devana, though they were prone to breaking up (Mostly Lex's fault), then getting back together after some wild nights of drinking and property damage.
She kept up her Viewcube channel, but her entries were far less frequent than they used to be. Just extremely busy with everything! Argh!
Maria got pregnant, which was a disaster. She tried desperately to talk her out of it, but Maria wasn't having any of it. They parted on poor terms, and Lex fled to Europe decided it was a good time to study abroad.
She headed over to Europe to study with the dwarves, and catch up with Freya. She did learn a little bit...and they did have materials she could use, even if they wouldn't part with the nice ones...But she feels like Everan got more out of it than she did. She resolved to practice more of the basics in the Garden of Light, and come back later. (It wound up being about a decade, and she was engaged to Emma by then. She did indeed get more out of it that time, managing to make some semi-useful minor artifacts for her friends and family!) She probably learned more by watching how Freya managed her kingdom. It was a good time!
But then the entertainment arm of the the emerging megacorp seized the rights to 'Lux', and she cut her trip short to go express her displeasure. She wasn't able to stop them, but she did make enough of a fuss that thermal sensors became far more common in places such as broadcast stations and mega-corp held server farms!
She also raised the profile of certain pirate organizations who assisted her, to their mixed benefit.
She went on a long trip to train with various master swordsmen, at the end of which her motorcycle was on its last legs. She brought it back to Emma, who had modified it in the first place, in the hopes it could be repaired. It couldn't...but they hit it off again. And after getting drunk and stealing a ship from the megacorp, they decided to try dating again.
All in all...her life became a blend of wandering hero, frantic scholar, and dabbling artist, in both galaxies.
Friends, Family, Acquiantances, Rivals, Enemies, and anybody else:
Hoo boy. Ok.
EARTHLINGS:
-Emma E. Parker: AKA Devana. AKA Emma Parker Escher. Lex's wife of seven years. A former child soldier trained by Father Orwell and rescued by Vigil, who had no choice but to mentor her after she blew up an alien spaceship and refused to stop fighting. Lex and Devana first met during the robot invasion, where they did not hit it off. Things went better after Ragnarok, where they got drunk and Lex kidnapped her for what turned out to be a date, complete with vigilantism and blowing up a bar. They dated off and on and off and on, then took a break, then got back together, and it seems to be working now that they've gotten a bit older? She's a master with the bow, mechanically brilliant, though she and Lex both stress at times over the fact that she's not immortal. Her wedding band is made of wood, to match Lex's (precious metals don't teleport well), and Lex spent a lot of effort and a lot of crystalwork to give it a special property: With a specific pattern of quick taps, Devana can activate it to cloak the area in shadow. Lex intended to pair this with something to give her sight that wouldn't be affected by it, but she never managed to figure that one out. So. Just use night vision glasses?
-Charlotte Escher: AKA Flux. Lex's older sister. After being hit by a meteorite, she became a functionally immortal shapeshifter, but has continued her life much on the same trajectory she had before that--becoming a blockbusting superstar actress. Admittedly, she did quite a bit of training with Jasper in the art of spycraft, and is now using her fame, powers, and anything else she can bring to bear to build an intelligence network with its fingers on the pulse of the world.
She's too 'old' to play action stars anymore, according to Hollywood, but some of her earliest action star roles were playing Lux, as she and her sister always joked about. She has some light and dark grenades from Lex, and a promise that she'll make something good for her once she gets some more materials, and they both think of something that would be useful. She did try a more ambitious project, but...Yeah, no. It's a lamp now.
-Sydney Escher: AKA Dragonfly II. Lex's eldest sister. She doesn't have to work a day job, having made quite a chunk of change as an e-sports champion, videos, and smart investments.
Two years after the visitation, she called up her sister after another epic clash with her archnemesis (DOCTOOORRR MAAAANTWIST), asking for her help rather than a high five. While her powers were still operating as well as ever, the bug in her body that provided them had gone completely unresponsive. Tro'Valekr had always struck her as kind of a lethargic jerk, despite claiming that his species didn't need nearly as much sleep as humans, but this was new. Lex contacted the bug in dreams, and he seemed pretty damn freaked out by this turn of events--this was not at all normal. He had been feeling a bit drifty and unfocused for years, (and in retrospect, that seemed fairly worrisome, he acknowledged) and now he could not seem to wake himself up.
Lex conveyed this to Sydney, who then took herself straight to Doctor Emily (local superpowered doctor). After a number of tests, her diagnosis was that Sydney had some kind of latent ability: some kind of bizarre reverse parasitism. The bug was cocooned in some Sydney-spawned growths, and being kind of...digested? Sort of?
Despite the risks of surgery so close to her goddamn brainstem, Sydney opted to have the bug removed to save his life--and with Doctor Emily's power, he made a full recovery. Weirdly, Sydney kept some of the powers.
Lex suggested that she could take on a new superhero name: REFLUX. This was shot down. As were her more serious suggestions of "Conflux" or "Redux", and that Sydney should try swallowing a bunch more magic space bugs to see if she could get more powers. Sydney was very happy to continue being Dragonfly II, and NOT swallow a bunch of bugs for science. Val found a new host.
Dragonfly II (under a new hero name) and III are still currently active in Boston...and married with so many dang kids, at that. Lex gave her a charm that can make her look like Old Style Dragonfly, if she wants to fool someone about where Dragonfly III is, for some reason?--this one actually turned out well! It does not cast a proper shadow, though, unfortunately.
Which brings us to...
-William K. Williams: AKA Dragonfly III. A public defense attorney, he wound up in the hospital early in his career after being roughed up, whereupon a certain bug decided 'whatever, this guy works'. And so he became the third Dragonfly. He kept up his day job for a while, and still does some paperwork, but...to be honest? The legal system's gone from bad to inexcusable. There's not much he feels he can do from within anymore.
-Chelsea Williams: Seventeen, and still no sign of powers. But she has a strong grounding in martial arts, some sword skills, and marksmanship, so she'll probably be good for whatever life throws at her. Hopefully.
-Melody Williams: Fifteen, and has a fixation with the idea of camping in the woods and living off the land. She's never actually been outside of the city, and would probably hate it. Book smart, but not the most coordinated, despite everyone's efforts.
-David and Matthew Williams: Both fourteen. They're going to become pirates some day, it's almost guaranteed. Lex said she was going to teach them magic and then taught them a stupid magician's illusion. They got a box that can conceal a person out of it!
-Alice Williams: Nine. She pushes herself to prove that she can keep up with her older siblings, but she's still just a kid. One that's ready to throw down with anyone.
-Her parents: Saengdao and Hayden Escher. Two of the lucky few who found places in middle management, and perhaps the last generation to actually have a retirement to enjoy. They are supportive of their daughters, and Lex drops them a line through dreams from time to time. They still live in Florida. Lex gave them a magic lamp. It was supposed to be something else, but...Yeah. It's a lamp now. Sigh.
She has a few other scattered relatives who have survived, but she hasn't really kept in touch.
-George Mason: Former KNIGHT agent. He really just wants to live his life at this point, and Lex thinks he more than deserves it. She checks up on him from time to time, mostly in dreams.
-Rebecca Walden Bruce: Becky, Becks; Best friend. Confidante. Normal mortal human being who pushes Lex to actually take care of herself and be happy. She's also an investigative reporter for various organizations, anonymous columnist to several resistance papers, and occasionally a run-of-the-mill detective for hire. She has kids, but they're grown and have gone their own ways. Mostly to work for their dad, who has a far safer job as an accountant.
-Emily Volts. An A.I. created by Max Volts. They used to go sight seeing together, but she doesn't go out so much any more. Especially not to America. She doesn't sleep, as far as Lex can tell, so secure communications with her are hard to come by, which is sad. Lex misses being in easy contact with her, she's a great friend.
-Maria Maldonado: AKA Coyote. Lex's earliest god-friend, and one she still wishes well, despite Maria's current ongoing suicide attempt in the form of having children. Lex tried to step in a few times to keep her safe, but Maria wasn't having any of it. So there's really nothing to do but try and steel her heart against the inevitable end to this tragic decision.
-Vigil AKA Marcus: They've known each other since the One Day War. A good dude, if a bit (reasonably) concerned about the whole 'child soldier' thing, to Lex's initial frustration. Received invitations to the wedding from both Lex and Emma, the latter of whom was his sidekick for many years.
-Desmond AKA The Raven: She nearly killed this fellow hero after Ragnarok over a combination of misunderstanding something he said and not recognizing him. She eventually sent an apology by way of his mother, but it didn't sound super penitent.
-Adrasteia:
-Ulrika:
-Rafael and Catalina:
-Freya:
-Etrana:
-Jasper: Former KNIGHT agent and Lex's first instructor. She's still fond of him, and she and her sisters pay for him to have a nurse he doesn't really need, but they worry. He's old, man!
-Michael Fontaine: Lex saved his life during an assassination attempt, but was unable to save his parents. She encouraged him on the path of vigilantism, protected him from further assassination attempts, and helped him gain control of his company. He was a good kid, and a good friend. She gave him some light and dark grenades, and, potentially more usefully? A pendant that keeps him from casting a shadow while worn. She was trying for a pendant of invisibility, but, again, real difficult to get right.
-Candy Fontaine: Michael's kid!!! She managed to drop in and see Candy a few times. She's certain the kid's going to make waves, somehow. How exciting!
-The Chillwind Prince: AKA ??? Ok. Where the **** is this dude? He hasn't died again, that's as near to certain as it can be, but it's been thirty two years since he was reincarnated, and there's absolutely no sign of him anywhere. Not even in dreams. It's a source of great stress to Lex, as so many things are.
MISC. VILLAINS: I'm tired.
ALIENS:
The whole...Space Pantheon:
Show Content
Spoiler
-Everan: The first Starbright Prince. He's dead. But he and Lex share a soul, so he's still kind of around. When she wants him to be. Which is actually most of the time, now that they've worked out their problems! She even lets him talk to people sometimes. All in all, she's much closer to her predecessor than most other reincarnated Princes are. They tend to want to ignore theirs.
-Sonrosk: The Waveringsmile Prince. Currently in self imposed exile for the numerous crimes against the galaxy and his fellow Princes that he committed while inflicted with madness. Lex is very happy not to see his face around, even if it's not technically his fault that everything went awful.
-Vissael: The Mindsplit Prince. Everything bad that happened is her fault. Even though she set it into motion after she had been driven mad--which was, itself, her fault. Lex eventually tried to warm up to her, mostly because it would make Agnolis happy if they were friends.
-Agnolis: The Plagueborne Prince. Lex's first ally among the Princes, and still one of her closest. Her apartment is closest to Lex's out of trust, and also as a matter of practicality. Lex does teleport over badly injured with an alarming frequency! While as a way of avoiding hurt feelings, it was decided that every Prince who wished to was to be allowed to lead the Princely Council once before the cycle started over again, the order was determined from year to year by a vote. When it was the start of a new cycle, Agnolis has thus far always been the first choice. (Lex has declined to lead thus far due to time constraints, but somehow thinks she'll have time for it eventually)
-Gwynira: The Swiftstop Prince. Lex's second ally, frequent sparring partner, and heroic sacrifice in an alternate timeline that allowed for a glorious victory over a soul devouring dimension instead of a costly and tragic one. Lex likes to study around her--not just because she can change the flow of time and give Lex more hours in the day, although that is certainly a plus. She's intelligent, patient, and kind, and usually can find time in her schedule to just hang around. ...Maybe she's a bit lazy...
-Cemactor: The Soulflight Prince. A sweet cinnamon roll of a man who deserved none of this. Isolated himself for over a century while his friends killed each other in their madness, reincarnating them so they weren't lost forever. Lex thinks he's too much of a goddamn hermit and has ambushed him many times to force him into social situations. He didn't mind nearly as much as he pretended to, never having truly wanted to be a hermit in the first place.
-Aercear: The Chillwind Prince. Yeah Lex killed this guy. Oops! He was her vassal and everything. How terrible. His soul's been reincarnated on Earth somewhere...supposedly...
-Thunar: The Gleegiven Prince. Also went mad, but it caused fewer problems than some of the others! He's alright, Lex guesses.
-Lucatea: The Keeneye Prince. Over the course of many years, was able to get Lex to suspend her intense fear and distrust of mindcontrollers enough to befriend all---or, most of the other Princes. Though friends, Lex is at times frustrated at how difficult it is to fool her---but as this is the line of thought that led to Vissael driving herself mad, Lex knows full well not to pursue it.
-Ogana: The Lockform Prince. One time Lex got drunk at a party and tried to kidnap Ogana to go fight a megafauna with her and she wasn't having any of it. Another time she got drunk and admitted that Ogana was the hottest prince. Ogana was not at all interested, for many reasons. There were a few more incidents. Lex has been dying of embarrassment and has doing her damndest to avoid Ogana ever since.
-Ataston: The Fellground Prince. Lex actually enjoys his company, even if he can be a bit of a prideful, stuffy old man. The white hair doesn't help, either. She's nicknamed him 'Gramps', but no one besides her gets the joke because it's English slang that she hasn't taught them.
-Silvana: The Heartcrawl Prince. A more recent friend than some of the others, due to her ability. Since they've become close, she and Lex have spent many hours devising, refining, and practicing new strategies for and against ranged weaponry, and pulling risky bullshit just for kicks.
-Vandur: The Stillecho Prince. Through dreamsharing, the natural conduit for sharing music from Earth with her friends without having to visit them all individually. He didn't care for this at first, but warmed up to it. He still pretends he doesn't like Earth music. Is down for pranks, but is simultaneously one of the few Princes to consistently give a fuck about formality. Lex quite enjoys this dynamic. He is a fan of Songbird!
-Ulrus: The Stormborn Prince. Very short, and short on fucks to give. His predecessor sold their soul to aforementioned hungry dimension, making him the only Prince aside from Chillwind rendered unable to fight in that galaxy changing battle. The youngest Prince before Lex came around. They butt heads frequently.
-Alais: The Fatesight Prince. Despite agreeing on many issues, being nothing but kind to Lex, and having some rad tattoos--Lex really can't stand her most of the time. She comes off as very patronizing! And preachy! And why do all the rebels love her so much! Urgh!!!
-Everan: The first Starbright Prince. He's dead. But he and Lex share a soul, so he's still kind of around. When she wants him to be. Which is actually most of the time, now that they've worked out their problems! She even lets him talk to people sometimes. All in all, she's much closer to her predecessor than most other reincarnated Princes are. They tend to want to ignore theirs.
-Sonrosk: The Waveringsmile Prince. Currently in self imposed exile for the numerous crimes against the galaxy and his fellow Princes that he committed while inflicted with madness. Lex is very happy not to see his face around, even if it's not technically his fault that everything went awful.
-Vissael: The Mindsplit Prince. Everything bad that happened is her fault. Even though she set it into motion after she had been driven mad--which was, itself, her fault. Lex eventually tried to warm up to her, mostly because it would make Agnolis happy if they were friends.
-Agnolis: The Plagueborne Prince. Lex's first ally among the Princes, and still one of her closest. Her apartment is closest to Lex's out of trust, and also as a matter of practicality. Lex does teleport over badly injured with an alarming frequency! While as a way of avoiding hurt feelings, it was decided that every Prince who wished to was to be allowed to lead the Princely Council once before the cycle started over again, the order was determined from year to year by a vote. When it was the start of a new cycle, Agnolis has thus far always been the first choice. (Lex has declined to lead thus far due to time constraints, but somehow thinks she'll have time for it eventually)
-Gwynira: The Swiftstop Prince. Lex's second ally, frequent sparring partner, and heroic sacrifice in an alternate timeline that allowed for a glorious victory over a soul devouring dimension instead of a costly and tragic one. Lex likes to study around her--not just because she can change the flow of time and give Lex more hours in the day, although that is certainly a plus. She's intelligent, patient, and kind, and usually can find time in her schedule to just hang around. ...Maybe she's a bit lazy...
-Cemactor: The Soulflight Prince. A sweet cinnamon roll of a man who deserved none of this. Isolated himself for over a century while his friends killed each other in their madness, reincarnating them so they weren't lost forever. Lex thinks he's too much of a goddamn hermit and has ambushed him many times to force him into social situations. He didn't mind nearly as much as he pretended to, never having truly wanted to be a hermit in the first place.
-Aercear: The Chillwind Prince. Yeah Lex killed this guy. Oops! He was her vassal and everything. How terrible. His soul's been reincarnated on Earth somewhere...supposedly...
-Thunar: The Gleegiven Prince. Also went mad, but it caused fewer problems than some of the others! He's alright, Lex guesses.
-Lucatea: The Keeneye Prince. Over the course of many years, was able to get Lex to suspend her intense fear and distrust of mindcontrollers enough to befriend all---or, most of the other Princes. Though friends, Lex is at times frustrated at how difficult it is to fool her---but as this is the line of thought that led to Vissael driving herself mad, Lex knows full well not to pursue it.
-Ogana: The Lockform Prince. One time Lex got drunk at a party and tried to kidnap Ogana to go fight a megafauna with her and she wasn't having any of it. Another time she got drunk and admitted that Ogana was the hottest prince. Ogana was not at all interested, for many reasons. There were a few more incidents. Lex has been dying of embarrassment and has doing her damndest to avoid Ogana ever since.
-Ataston: The Fellground Prince. Lex actually enjoys his company, even if he can be a bit of a prideful, stuffy old man. The white hair doesn't help, either. She's nicknamed him 'Gramps', but no one besides her gets the joke because it's English slang that she hasn't taught them.
-Silvana: The Heartcrawl Prince. A more recent friend than some of the others, due to her ability. Since they've become close, she and Lex have spent many hours devising, refining, and practicing new strategies for and against ranged weaponry, and pulling risky bullshit just for kicks.
-Vandur: The Stillecho Prince. Through dreamsharing, the natural conduit for sharing music from Earth with her friends without having to visit them all individually. He didn't care for this at first, but warmed up to it. He still pretends he doesn't like Earth music. Is down for pranks, but is simultaneously one of the few Princes to consistently give a fuck about formality. Lex quite enjoys this dynamic. He is a fan of Songbird!
-Ulrus: The Stormborn Prince. Very short, and short on fucks to give. His predecessor sold their soul to aforementioned hungry dimension, making him the only Prince aside from Chillwind rendered unable to fight in that galaxy changing battle. The youngest Prince before Lex came around. They butt heads frequently.
-Alais: The Fatesight Prince. Despite agreeing on many issues, being nothing but kind to Lex, and having some rad tattoos--Lex really can't stand her most of the time. She comes off as very patronizing! And preachy! And why do all the rebels love her so much! Urgh!!!
-Hermien Kohne: A brilliant scientist who invented the bomb they used to blow up the hostile dimension, and the power dampener that severely lessened their losses in that battle. He has tenure, and is allowed to pursue most any line of study that catches his interest--though Lex has requested that he set aside some time to teach, as well. He is biologically about fifty-five at the moment.
-Dame Ivette: Grandmaster of the Starguard.
-Sir Ernaut: Second-In-Command of the Starguard.
-High General Gotfyre Strouken
-Grand Admiral Rowlend. Former Admiral of the First Fleet, a genius tactician.
-Spymaster Krea Kuhn.
-Penrose: A crystal elemental loyal to the Starbright Prince since long before Lex was born, though his employment conditions have improved significantly under her rule--once he got out of the doll body, anyway. An advisor, a servant, and a friend; her go-to guy when she needs something.
-Some other...staff.... Cid I'm tired, this section is very long, we'll figure it out as they become relevant! She likely has many domestic advisors, but probably hasn't filled the 'Steward' position due to the joint rule situation that's currently in place with the Princely Council. Besides, that position likely needed to be several positions in the first place.
-Tybare: Terrorist/Freedom Fighter/Former enslaved soldier of the Starbright Prince. Years ago, he freed her from her enslavement under mind control (by killing her) and helped her escape, which provided her with all the information she needed to liberate the galaxy, eventually. She's still grateful but also thinks he hates her, so she isn't always sure how to act around him. Lex actually quite likes him when he isn't crawling through her ship's air ducts, being all suspicious, but their dynamic tends towards her trying to stun him into silence with how impressive she is, and him trying to argue that she's not all that special, actually.
He's a politician, making sure the Princes stick to their promises.
Show Content
SpoilerGod: Absolute irresponsible jerk. Won't catch her sticking around his stupid afterlife prison setup. Just watch, she's going to break it right the hell open somehow.
~◕ w◕~