Individual

Character's full name: Tarin Brooks
Alias/ Nickname/ Code name: n/a
Gender: Male
Age: 35
Date of Birth: (03/19/1981)
Birthplace/ Home/ Place of origin: Rural Texas
Nationality: American
Ethnicity/ Cultural Heritage: Caucasian

Appearance

Hair color and style: Naturally Tarin is a dark blonde. He doesn’t wear his hair in any kind of natural style though. It’s longish and spikey and multicolored. Not odd colors, mind you, but reds, blondes, and darker browns. It really depends on the day and the season, but it’s never “normal”

Skin Tone: The lovely pasty white of someone who does not get out in the sun enough.

Eye Color: Brown
Height: 5’ 8”
Build: Tarin isn’t skinny by any means, but he’s not fat either. He’s probably about a medium build, he’s not extremely athletic looking or muscle bound either, pretty much just normal looking…rocking the dad bod.

Visible mutation: Tarin’s eyes go completely white and glow a bit when he’s actively connected to a spirit. When he merges, a completely new being is created, so his physical appearance could be anything…even an unicorn.

Scars/ Tattoos/ Piercings: Several of these. 4 in one ear, 3 in the other.


Other features: Nothing remarkable.

Everyday clothing style: Tarin looks like he belongs on a stage more than in a medium shop. Causal is a bit of a light word for the way that he dresses. Most often Tarin is seen in cut-off shorts that come to below his knees and some kind of button up plaid shirt. Most of his clothes are dickies or vans brand…basically he dresses like an old punk rocker when it’s warm enough.

When it’s cold, Tarin is bundled up like he lives in the arctic. Having grown up in Texas and Oklahoma he’s not accustomed to the cold weather that New York boasts. Inside though, he’s dressed pretty much the same as he would be in the summer, but the cut offs are replaced by jeans. When it’s cool but not cold out, Tarin is seen to constantly wear a black Social Distortion jacket.

Uniform: Nothing at the moment. Tarin has occasionally worn clothes fit for specific jobs, but nothing consistently enough to be considered a true uniform.

Sleepwear: Tarin is most comfortable sleeping in nothing but a pair of boxers. If it’s insanely cold in his apartment he can be convinced to sleep in sweats and a long-sleeved shirt. When it’s his choice though, he’s in nothing but boxers.

Miscellaneous clothing: N/A

Character

Personality: Tarin is naturally attracted to people. Despite the fact that he’s a mutant he’s always found himself surrounded by people…well at least since he finished his college degree. Because of the nature of his powers, Tarin is able to blend in very easily with most people. It’s his personality and appearance that make him stand out in a crowd. Over the years Tarin was a bit of a “player” he would find women in bars, and he got himself into the habit of taking a new one home at every opportunity. This habit arose out of a fear of committing to someone. This fear arose from the experience that all the people, especially women, he got close to ended up being hurt, physically and mentally. Tarin tries to act like he doesn’t care about people in general, but he helps when he sees the opportunity. Tarin is loyal and has a tendency to be selfless to a fault, unless it comes to women.

Hobbies/ Interests: Tarin loves music, specifically rock and roll. He also loves to go on short walks through Central Park and to do all of the things that New Yorkers do these days. On occasion, Tarin has ben known to sing karaoke and drink fine scotch.

Job or part time job and description: Tarin has had a few jobs through the course of his life. Most consistently though, he acts as a Medium, a true connection between the world of the living and the world of the dead. Tarin has a shop to conduct his business near Central Park.

Fears/ phobias/ concerns: Tarins biggest fear is and has always been that his secondary power is going to result in someone being hurt. As far as normal fears and phobias, Tarin isn’t particularly phobic of anything in particular.


Special talents: Tarin is good at faking his abilities as well as having true psychic encounters with sprits. When the going gets tough, sometimes you just gotta fake an interaction with a spirit. Then again…whether the connection is real or not, sometimes people don’t come to a medium unless they want to hear something from a spirit.

Morality[/u]

Good/ bad/ neutral/ other: Neutral. Tarin doesn’t really see himself of being any kind of use as far as his powers are concerned. Throughout his life they’ve only ever been a hindrance to him, and while he’s managed to find a way to exploit them to his advantage he doesn’t see them as anything that could really help anyone. Through his shop and being a medium he sometimes is able to help people who’ve lost loved ones move on with their lives. The few times he’s tried to use his powers to solve crimes or things like that it’s backfired on him and he’s ended up arrested or in trouble. Tarin is a good person at heart though, and would never ever do anything to knowingly cause harm to anyone, mutant or human. His powers have resulted in people being hurt though, and he feels the guilt keenly from time to time.

Mutations

Mutation description: To put it in the most simple terms possible, Tarin is a medium. This means that he can communicate with the spirits of the dead. For my purposes, not all dead people become spirits. Mostly it’s just people who have died violently or have serious business to finish when they die. Tarin can constantly sense those spirits and if he chooses he can connect with them, give them power, and allow them to become more corporeal. When he connects with a spirit, Tarin telepathically bears witness to the spirits thoughts, and how they died. To some degree, the spirits listen when Tarin asks them to do something since he’s one of their only links to the outside world and they think that by getting into his good graces, Tarin might do something for them.

Tarin has a secondary power that he calls “merging” It’s a little hard to describe but basically in situations of extreme extreme emotion, or when Tarin loses complete control he has the ability to merge his consciousness with that of another person. When that merge takes place a completely new being is “created.” That being has its own appearance, personality, and powers depending on who Tarin merges with. The personality of that being is completely random depending on more factors than it would be practical to mention. The merge ends after an indeterminable amount of time. In some rare cases Tarin had merged with a spiritual presence that is particularly strong. These merges are different in that Tarin retains his appearance, but in most situations his personality is completely taken over by the spirit.

Update 2/10/09: Power Growth: Astral Projection

Tarin is now able to project his consciousness out of his body and onto the astral plain. The benefits of this power are obvious, on the astral plain, Tarin can see things in the realistic plain, but can’t be seen himself. This would be beneficial to him because he would be able to spy, go through walls, and go into dangerous situations without risking bodily harm.


Strengths: The dead who have failed to pass on are desperate. Some of them will do anything to be heard, acknowledged, and given a chance to finish the business that has tethered them to this world. This can be very useful because Tarin can barter favors for favors. Spirits can move through walls and do all the stereotypical spirit things. Their help can be indispensable.

Merging is a very powerful state of being for Tarin, and even if it is unpredictable, it can be very helpful in dangerous situations.

Astral projection’s benefits are rather obvious. If Tarin can separate his spirit from his body, he can do a lot of the things himself that he used to have to rely on spirits to do. This reduces his dependency on their help.


Weaknesses and Limitations: Tarin can constantly hear the spirits, and see them. This is a con because if they find him, they tend to want something from him, be it communication with the living world or to use his body for their own devices. It also takes a lot of energy for Tarin to give a spirit a corporeal appearance and he’s often exhausted after something like that.

The cons to the merging ability are obvious. Sometimes the creature that Tarin becomes is not pleasant in the least. It’s resulted in several peoples’ deaths over the years and that power is a big part of the reason Tarin has moved so much throughout time. Tarin has absolutely no control over this power either, and when someone touches him when he’s in that state there’s no stopping the merge.

Update: 2/10/09
The downside to this power is also obvious. If his consciousness leaves his body, the body is left behind as nothing but a shell. Without a consciousness, Tarin’s body is able to subsist in that his heart will still beat and his body will still take in and expel air. In all other ways, though, he’s unconscious, he can't feed himself, he can't walk or talk or interact in any way. This leaves his body completely vulnerable where it lies.



Physical Abilities

General Physical Capabilities: Tarin’s physical capabilities are about that of any unremarkable 35 year old.

Fighting Style: Does flailing and running count as a fighting style? Tarin can take a dish out a decent punch, but there is nothing refined or well trained about his style.

Fighting Style Pros/Cons: n/a

History Of Your Character

Tarin grew up outside of one of the larger cities in Texas, played football like every other male child in the state and went to school as they all did. As a child, Tarin's father died of lung cancer. The night of his father's funeral, an 11 year old Tarin woke to find his father's form hovering over his bed. Naturally, Tarin panicked and roused his 2 brothers and mother who thought he was simply having a difficult time handling his father's death.

From this point on, Tarin could see ghosts everywhere. They could talk to him and he could talk to them. When mentally connected with a spirit, Tarin could see things about them and their lives and the way they died. Nobody else could see the ghosts and after a while, convinced that her son was still not dealing well with the spirits, Tarin was sent to a mental institution where he remained for a little over a year until he "stopped" seeing the ghosts. In reality, Tarin simply learned to ignore their presence from time to time.

Because of the reactions of the people at school, all of whom knew where Tarin had been while he was in the institute, Tarin tried to hide his abilities. This was when it happened. A group of jocks beat Tarin to a near bloody pulp in front of his best friend and at the time, girlfriend. When she tried to help him up, they merged. The merged form retaliated against the group of jocks, seriously injuring a couple of them, then walked onto a local highway where it was plowed by an oncoming diesel truck. The merge ended at that point and Tarin and his girlfriend were left unharmed, the same could not be said for the occupants of the truck. Realizing as he came back to himself that the truck was in pieces all around him and people were dead, Tarin once again panicked and ran, leaving his girl behind.

At this point, Tarin found his way to Oklahoma City where he finished high school, worked on controling his powers and started classes in psychology at a local college. Tarin completed his degree but still found himself plagued at times by the spirits that he could see but nobody else could. Talking to people about his 'problem' only brought on further isolation and any time he lost control of his emotions the spirits would appear and people would become even more terrified of him. Instead of continuing to fight against this fate, Tarin decided that he would use it to his advantage. Which brings us to the present, where Tarin continues to refine his powers.

At this specific point, after much moving around Tarin has found himself very settled in New York City where he met and subsequently fell in love with another mutant, Emily Smith. They moved in together, and decided to get married. After the marriage, things settled into a kind of happy monotony that included a stint working for a young man named Slate. That was a interesting time, to say the least.

[Update] After several years of marriage, the pressures of mutant life in New York became too much for Lee and she moved with her and Tarin’s son Kevin to the small Canadian town Lee had come from. Time and distance proved to be difficult on the marriage, and Tarin and Lee divorced. Lee has full custody of Kevin, but the boy visits his father regularly and spends summers in New York.


Roleplay[/u]

What’s your OOC alias?: Jules

Where did you learn about this site?: Some other random website’s “Links” forum…wish I could remember

Do you have any other characters on MRO, if so who: All the characters! Kealey Quinn, Riley Sommers, Quincy Archer, and Janelle Jennings

Sample RP:

Sometimes…New York was a total crap hole. Tarin shoved his hands deep into the pockets of his jacket as he made his way down the street next to the shop. There were homeless people everywhere, trash in the streets that never seemed to get picked up when it was supposed to, and the ever present wail of sirens at all hours of the night or day…it was disgusting. ….it was awesome. ….it was home.


Life had dealt some pretty crap hands over the last few years, but somehow he’d weathered all the storms, rebuilt the shop a few times, handled a marriage, and a kid, a slightly nefarious plot that could have had global implications, a divorce, and somehow come out of it all okay. Well, maybe there were a few more lines on that forehead, and maybe some of the furniture in the medium shop made him wince each time someone sat down, but the place was still his and it all still worked.

The shop had been closed for a while now. Through various means over the years, Tarin had saved up enough money to keep him comfortably ensconced in his apartment with a low profile for as long as he wanted. The problem was…he wasn’t sure if a low profile was what he wanted any more. He’d had his head down for what seemed like years, and it just felt like the right time to resurface. He was there now, standing in front of the rather large plate-glass window holding a sign that said, “Closed Indefinitely,” and listed a number for emergencies. It had even been a while since anyone had called.


Fishing a set of keys out of his pants pocket, Tarin had to try a couple before he remembered which one would open the door. Finally succeeding, the Medium pushed open a door that would definitely need some WD-40 and made his way into a shop that smelled mustier than it probably should have…great, there was probably a leak somewhere.


The spirits were restless today, not all that surprising when one considered all of the unrest and drama that had been cropping up all over the place. They also hadn’t seen anyone in the shop for long enough that the door opening and the bell jingling roused them from what was probably a bored stasis. They floated, or limped, or dragged themselves in Tarin’s general direction, whispering and poking and prodding for his attention like your worst nightmare's idea of kittens.


These guys were lowbies though, the kind that couldn’t find Tarin unless he was in the shop. It wasn’t that hard to push them to the back of his mind and start taking inventory. There was going to be a lot to do before he could be open for business again.

Welcome to MRO, Tarin. I've said it once, and I'll say it again: I'm looking forward to seeing how you'll play your powers out.

very interesting character relationship! Love that you organized beforehand. Great power. Should prove interesting.
If you need some help getting started feel free to send a PM or otherwise check out this Link created by one of our existing members to help out the noobs!

Welcome Man Nice idea of your power choice

Again Welcome Welcome... Really intrested to see how your gonna make all this work in our crazy world of ours

If you are a medium for people who die violently then you might want to steer clear of myself and my brother. *smiles* Otherwise, welcome to MRO.

AV Profile for Tarin

Individual

Character's full name: Tarin Brooks
Alias/ Nickname/ Code name: None
Gender: Male
Age: 32
Date of Birth: (05/04/1985)
Birthplace/ Home/ Place of origin: Rural Texas
Nationality: American
Ethnicity/ Cultural Heritage: White/Caucasian

Appearance

Hair color and style:Dark brown, generally short but can be a bit scruffy.
Skin Tone: Fair, but can tan in the right sun.
Eye Color: Green
Height: 5' 10"
Build: Average build, but reasonably fit.
Visible mutation: When communing with spirits, Tarin's eyes go completely white.
Scars/ Tattoos/ Piercings: none
Other features: N/A

Everyday clothing style: Tarin dresses for utility right now. Jeans and t-shirts for the most part, sweatshirts or hoodies when the need arises. He doesn't dress in anything out of the ordinary as far as clothing is concerned.
Uniform: N/A
Sleepwear: None!
Miscellaneous clothing: N/A

Character

Personality: In general, Tarin used to be a friendly guy. It might not seem like it, since he spends most of his time on an island full of dead people, but he always used to enjoy being surrounded by other folks. Having grown up with brothers, Tarin is most at ease around people who are straight shooters and generally operates better around men than women. Since secluding himself on Hart Island his communication skills with the living have gotten a tad bit rusty.

Hobbies/ Interests:

When he isn't being a hermit, Tarin likes music, bars, movies...
Job or part time job and description: Tarin still owns the same medium shop near Central Park that he owns in the regular MRO verse...he just hasn't been there much lately. He keeps up on his rent and makes an exception to see a few regulars, but the shop is generally cold and dark.

Fears/ phobias/ concerns:. Tarin is, and always has been terrified of hurting people with his powers. Strange things happen when the realm of the dead crosses over with that of the living and people do tend to get hurt...physically and emotionally. Besides that, Tarin is really only afraid of those particularly large and hairy spiders.

Special talents: Nothing to write home about.

Morality

Good/ bad/ neutral/ other: Good, but grey. Tarin will always do what he considers to be the right thing, even if he has to do bad things to do it. The ends can and often do justify the means.

Mutations

Mutation description:

Exactly the same as MRO Tarin

Strengths: Same as MRO Tarin

Weaknesses and Limitations: same as MRO Tarin


Physical Abilities

General Physical Capabilities: Having found out that physical strength helps him combat spirits that want to take him over, he has kept himself in reasonably good form. He isn't buff by any means, but he stays in good enough shape to hold his own.

Fighting Style: street scrapping. Tarin grew up with older brothers in rural Texas. There were scrapes with them and the Brooks brothers were never known to back down fro, a fight at school.

Fighting Style Pros/Cons:Tarin would struggle against a trained fighter, but could hold his own against a jerk in a bar.

History Of Your Character

Growing up as the youngest of three boys in rural Texas had its ups and downs. There was always something to do on the farm, and plenty of exploring to be done when the work was done. Brothers were okay too...for the most part. Tarin was a pretty normal kid, he went to school, got in trouble as ornery boys are libel to do, and made friends. There wasn't much time for the friends outside of school because of work on the farm, but he made due. All of the Brooks boys did, until Tarin was 12 and his dad got sick.

Cancer is a hell of a disease and it brought down Tarin's father as quickly as anything could. It was a trying time for Tarin, his Mother and his brothers, and when his father passed away Tarin knew things would never be the same...he didn't know how right he was.

The night of the funeral, Tarin woke in the middle of the night with a start. His father was standing near Tarin's bed. His father seemed disoriented and was babbling about the farm and all of the things that needed to be done. Tarin reached out and made his first connection with a spirit. Instantly Tarin's mind was flooded with the memory of his Father's death, memories of the pain, the exhaustion, and the utter helplessness. It was too much. The boy started to scream, woke the house, and tried to share his story.

Nobody believed him.

A great deal of therapy later, Tarin learned that it was best to keep his powers to himself and tell people what they wanted to hear. His father wasn't the only spirit he saw though...and as word travelled in their circles, more spirits sought the young man out.

Things were rough at school for a while, but over time things settled into a simpler, if uncomfortable pattern. For years, Tarin worked the farm with his brothers and went to school, always avoiding discussion of the things that kept him up at night. High school ended and while his brothers wanted to continue to work the farm, Tarin wanted more. So one day he left.

Sore feelings were had by Tarin's brothers, and their relationships are strained to this day. Tarin's mother, however, understood her youngest's need to go and sent him with her blessing.

Tarin travelled for a time, peddling his power and learning about a world where he wasn't always the strangest one in the room. Eventually he came to New York City and bought small shop catering to those interested in contact with the supernatural.

Things happened over the years though, and Tarin heard things through both mutant and spiritual channels that made him suspicious. Knowing what he knew about the history of Hart Island, Tarin figured it would be the safest place for him. He started spending time there several months ago and now stays almost exclusively on the island.

Roleplay
Where did you learn about this site?: (If you were referenced by a friend, what's their character's name?)
Do you have any other characters on MRO, if so who:
Sample RP:
(Please use the character you're applying for, not a character from another site.)