Individual Character's full name: Chad Basil
Alias/ Nickname/ Code name: Baze, Megalodon
Gender: Male
Age: 29
Date of Birth: 04/01/1985
Birthplace/ Home/ Place of origin: Portsmouth, New Hampshire
Nationality: American
Ethnicity/ Cultural Heritage: American
AppearanceHair color and style: Dark blue; untidy, slightly longer on the top
Skin Tone: Grayish blue, scaly
Eye Color: Gold, slits for pupils
Height: 6 ft. 2 in.
Build: Broad-shouldered, athletic
Visible mutation: Baze's mutation is evident in his unusual physiology; he appears to have the physical characteristics common to sea creatures such as fishes and sharks. His skin is thick and of a bluish gray hue, with diamond-shaped scales covering his whole body, although they are less prominent on his face and on the palm of his hands. His eyes are a solid gold, with slits for pupils; technically speaking, his eyes do not glow in the dark, but it might just appear that they are, especially when he is looking at a light source in a darkened area.
His fingernails appear more like claws, reaching approximately 2.1 inches (5.3 cm) when fully extracted. His fingers and toes are slightly webbed, just enough so that it is impossible for him to wear gloves, but not enough for mobility in his fingers to be too restricted. For example, he can still use a scalpel or a pair of scissors. He has two sets of six gills just below his ribs, fins along both forearms, a dorsal fin, thin but hard bone plating near the collarbones, shoulder blades, elbows, knuckles, knees and feet.
Scars/ Tattoos/ Piercings: n/a
Other features: 
Everyday clothing style: Casual and comfortable trumps style, as far as Baze is concerned. With fins protruding from his limbs, including a dorsal fin on his back, most clothes are constricting at best. When he must absolutely wear them, he'll opt for button down shirts, muscle shirts or simple T-shirts and sweaters, even the occasional sweatshirt or hoodie if the weather calls for it.
He has an old black leather jacket that he wears quite often during cooler seasons. As far as bottoms go, he prefers board shorts or swim trunks, but will also wear faded blue jeans or dress pants. He'll wear the occasional baseball cap or beanie hat.
Uniform: Lab coat or a pair of doctor's scrubs
Sleepwear: Sweats, boxer-briefs
Miscellaneous clothing: He always wears a leather string around his neck with a shark tooth pendant.
CharacterPersonality: Baze is a generally easygoing and levelheaded man. He isn't the type to get flustered or riled up very easily, but when his temper does get the better of him, he prefers to simply walk away from a volatile situation in order to cool off on his own. Although you might consider him a pacifist by nature, by no means is he a pushover. If anything, Baze is as stubborn as they come; once his mind is made up on a certain matter, he will not be easily swayed. Nonetheless, he will not force his personal beliefs onto others and considers himself to be an accepting individual and a good listener.
He has been known for keeping cool under pressure, often to the point of seeming almost detached from a situation. All the same, and this might be somewhat contradicting, he has also been known to be impulsive when it comes to making decisions. He will act on instinct rather than think things through. Keeping with the theme of being under pressure, Baze has a high level of tolerance to stress. Incredibly active and energetic, he needs to have more than one thing on his plate, or else he'll go absolutely insane with boredom. He is always moving around, looking for projects, and some might even go to say he cannot sit still for more than five minutes without growing restless.
Although somewhat guarded when first meeting people, Baze firmly believes in loyalty and trust. Once you've managed to demolish the walls he's built around himself and found a place in his heart, you'll find a man that would do absolutely everything and anything in his power to help and protect those he cares about. I mentioned above that Baze is more or less a pacifist; while that may be so, it is to be noted that he takes betrayal very seriously and can be quite unforgiving of those who have hurt him or his loved ones. Once you've crossed him, there is absolutely no chance of making it back into his good graces.
Baze could also very well be described as a complete and utter nerd. His favorite hobby consists of playing video games, or playing around with computer programming and coding. He loves zombies; actually, he's obsessed with them. Pirates are also high up on his list of favorite things. First-person shooter games are by far his favorite, but he'll try anything with lots of gore, cool creatures, a great plot line and amazing graphics. Baze is also a major bookworm, preferring science-fiction, fantasy and horror novels above all. He also considers himself a history buff.
He is, without a single doubt, a workaholic. He will plunge head first right into a project and ultimately work himself to near exhaustion. Even then, he probably won't stop until someone else physically drags him away, forbidding him from returning until he looks a little less zombie-like. As a scientific, Baze is very thorough and, when it comes to his work, has a habit of over-analyzing the crap out of every single detail. Although his living quarters might look like the aftermath of a hurricane, at work, he is surprisingly tidy and organized. If only he were capable of transferring all of those habits to his personal life... but alas, that isn't the case.
Hobbies/ Interests: Swimming, jogging, kickboxing, driving, boating, mechanics, woodworking, cooking, practicing medicine, helping people, video games, computer programming, zombies, pirates, science-fiction and horror movies, food, caffeine, sweets
Job or part time job and description: ER Nurse
Fears/ phobias/ concerns: Rejection, being alone, disappointment
Special talents: Mechanics, cooking, kick-boxing, observational skills, practicing medicine (nursing)
MoralityGood/ bad/ neutral/ other: Chad could be considered a form of chaotic good, if we’re to use the alignment system. Chad is fiercely loyal to those he trusts and cares about, and would go to extreme lengths in order to protect them. He is the kind of man that will always look to help the underdog or vulnerable, often acting without regard to what others might think or feel. He has a difficult time with authority, often acting impulsively.
MutationsMutation description: Chad, known under the nickname Baze and the mutant name of Megalodon, has abilities commonly seen in animals of the aquatic variety, notably
underwater breathing, the ability to
swim at accelerated speeds, as well as an
adapted physiology to survive for lengthy periods of time at various depths.
While on land, Chad breathes as any human would: with the use of his lungs. However, when submerged in water (may that be salt water or fresh water) Chad has the ability to breathe due to the twelve gill slits located along his rib cage, with six on each side. The first set of gills is located underneath the fourth ribs; the second set is underneath the fifth ribs, and so on until the ninth set of ribs. Like many of his aquatic counterparts, Chad extracts oxygen from water as it passes over his gills.
He has the ability to swim at high speeds for relatively lengthy periods of time, an ability that is enhanced by the fins located on his forearms, sides and calves, as well as his webbed fingers and toes. The dorsal fin that trails along most of his spine, its furthest tip reaching a height of less than 3.5 inches (8.8 cm), functions as a stabilizer; it is especially useful when Chad makes sudden turns. Normally speaking, he can swim approximately 22 miles per hour (35.4 km) for a maximum of six or seven hours, at which point he will begin to feel the effects of fatigue; by then, his maximum speed would be lowered to approximately 16 miles per hour (25.7 km). It would take him another hour or two before succumbing to exhaustion and passing out. His maximum recorded speed was 33 miles (53.1 km), although he was only able to maintain such a speed for a few minutes.
Moreover, his thick, durable skin, the bony plating covering some parts of his body, as well as his adapted internal organs, allow him to swim down to depths of 1,000 feet (304 m). Only then will he begin to feel the increase in pressure, causing nitrogen narcosis, where he would feel oddly as though he were intoxicated. A hundred or so feet deeper, he would get oxygen toxicity, which is a result from breathing in oxygen at elevated pressures. This will result in cell damage and possible death, with effects most often seen in the central nervous system, lungs and eyes. His body is also adapted to withstand cold water temperatures; while he is most comfortable at around 60°F (15°C) to 70°F (21.1°C), he can easily survive in water that's just below 37°F (3°C). Note that the top layers of a lake normally freeze over at 32°F (0°C), which means he would be able to survive in a body of water during winter time, especially at the bottom, where water temperatures are much warmer. Of course, he'd probably be shivering his ass off for a while afterward, but he would survive.
While most of his abilities can only be used underwater, his durable skin and bone plating does have its perks above the water’s surface, although it is nowhere near spectacular enough to be considered superhuman. His skin is somewhat tougher and slightly more resistant to certain types of physical damage. While not invulnerable, a fatal knife wound to the heart would take a minute or two longer than an ordinary human before he bleeds out; on the other hand, a small scratch from a cat’s claws might not do any damage at all. His bone plates (located near the collarbones, shoulder blades, elbows, knuckles, knees and feet) give him as much protection as a football player's shoulder pads would; in some cases, it might just be the difference between life and death.
Strengths: Underwater breathing makes for the possibility of a hasty exit if a body of water happens to conveniently be nearby. Chad can merely hop on in and stay there until the coast is clear again, so long as he can keep moving without anyone noticing him.
In addition, Chad's eyes have more spherical lens than the average human, with rod cells that allow him to see better in low light conditions (scotopic vision) but also in well-lit conditions (photopic vision). Cone cells within the retinas allow for color vision. The ratio of rod to cone cells varies depending on the environment and water depth, adapting to the amount of light available.
Weaknesses and Limitations: Chad does not have the ability to pump water through his gills, which is necessary for most aquatic animals, notably sharks, while at rest. Thus, a lack of movement for an extended period of time would limit the oxygen flow to his brain, causing him to pass out and ultimately asphyxiate. Just like most athletic humans of average weight, with no history of lung problems, Chad could go approximately three minutes with no oxygen to the brain before losing consciousness, and six to eight minutes before suffering permanent brain damage; a few minutes longer and he would undoubtedly drown. In sum, it is crucial for Chad to be in constant motion while underwater.
As mentioned above, Chad can survive in both fresh water and salt water. It is to be noted that pool water (specifically chlorinated water) would not hurt him severely, but it would irritate his gills for a number of hours afterward, as chlorinated water would irritate one’s throat and lungs if he or she were to swallow pool water. If he was to be submerged for an extended period of time – let’s go ahead and say two hours – he would probably suffer from minor headaches, as well as feel nauseous, but it’s nothing life-threatening. When it comes to polluted water, the symptoms depend on what exactly happens to be in the water. Jumping into a lake where the water is filled with pesticides and other toxic chemicals that are used in industrial manufacturing would undoubtedly cause him a lot of pain and many days of flu-like symptoms. Of course, the longer he stays in the water, the more severe the symptoms would be. Oil runoff and oil spills can coat Chad's skin and restrict his gills from filtering oxygen, which would suffocate and possibly kill him. Radioactive waste would be absorbed through his gills and cause long-term effects, obviously causing mutations and birth defects in his offspring, as well as increasing his chances of developing cancer or similar diseases.
While Chad is perfectly capable of surviving out of water for weeks, even months, he will often start to feel weaker after a certain amount of time on dry land; usually a day or two. Symptoms will include nausea, dizziness, headaches, pale and/or dry skin, shortness of breath, fatigue and a somewhat irritable mood. Drinking water will help to a point, but the one true fix to this particular problem would be to dive on into a body of water. In fact, it only takes a few minutes of being submerged in water before he starts to feel back to his old self. The water can be fresh or salt water; they do not have differing effects. He could even go into a chlorinated pool for a limited amount of time, or just take a bath or a shower, although a bath would definitely be more efficient.
It was mentioned above that rod cells allow for high visual sensitivity; unfortunately, that comes with a cost – that of visual acuity, which is essentially the clearness of vision. While the average human without the need for correctional lenses has 20/20 vision, Chad has 20/35. This can be corrected with glasses, which he normally wears to read, especially at night.
Physical AbilitiesGeneral Physical Capabilities: Most of his skills in this particular department were self-taught from watching videos online. He has since kept up with his training, working out regularly. He is decent enough at hand to hand combat and kick-boxing, but by no means would he be considered a master of the martial arts. Growing up, and even to this day, he had a habit of releasing his pent up anger and energy by beating the crap out of boxing bags. He eventually came to develop a nasty right hook.
Fighting Style: He does not have any formal training, but has developed basic hand to hand combat skills in order to fend for himself if necessary.
Fighting Style Pros/Cons: n/a
History Of Your CharacterOn April 1st, 1985, a peculiar infant was born in downtown Portsmouth, New Hampshire, his skin, appearing almost rubbery in texture and shining slightly in the fluorescent light, an unnatural silvery blue. Almost six weeks premature, he was small and fragile, but with a hell of a set of pipes on him, wailing as though he wanted to be heard by whole maternity ward. Rushing to get him cleaned up and wrapped up in traditional baby blue, it wasn't until a few moments later that the nurses noticed the scales that covered him from head to toe, the six set of gills marring his torso, and the fins protruding from his sides, back, arms and calves. For most, it was their very first time coming into contact with such an obvious mutant, and none were too keen on holding him for longer than was absolutely necessary. They whispered hastily among themselves, throwing wary glances towards the new mother. Was she one of them, too? She was all alone and barely seventeen years old, looking completely and utterly terrified. Her big, watery blue eyes were like an endless ocean, searching the delivery room in an attempt to catch a glimpse of her newborn child; why were the nurses keeping him from her? She wanted to see him... hold him... just this once...
A little over six months earlier, two teenagers found out their lives would be changed forever because of one stupid mistake.
They couldn't have a baby, not now, not when they had their whole lives ahead of them. They made the dumb mistake of not being careful, and now they had a problem, one that needed to be dealt with as soon as possible, before anyone they knew found out. In a nutshell, those were the words Noah Kennedy told Jenna Basil, his on-again off-again girlfriend, when she told him she was seven weeks pregnant. They were high school juniors, wrapped up in their buzzing social lives: Noah lived and breathed football, and Jenna was the star of the drama club and on the school's swim team... not to mention they were both set on obtaining the grades they needed to make it into their university of choice. Jenna thought she had no choice in the matter when she made the appointment; with her boyfriend unwilling to step up to the plate, and her parents completely stuck in their old-fashioned ways, she was all alone. She couldn't do it alone, and at sixteen and a half, she couldn't see any other option but abortion. She sat in that crowded clinic for a whole hour, looking around her at all of the women, each in different stages of pregnancy. Her name was called, but she didn't move. The plump little nurse called her name again, louder this time, but Jenna merely stared blankly ahead. She couldn't do it. She couldn't end a life that hadn't yet started...
Her father was livid when he found out, and although her mother begged him not to, he promptly kicked Jenna out of the house and onto the streets – if she was mature enough to get pregnant, then surely she was mature enough to take care of herself. She would spend the next handful of months living with her older brother and his obnoxious roommate, working a few hours each week at her favorite bookstore to help with the rent and groceries. It was definitely an eye-opener for the blonde teenager; she did a lot of growing up that year, learning that there were far more important things in life than scoring the lead in the school production of Les Mis. One thing that truly marked her arrival into adulthood was when she realized that giving her baby up for adoption was perhaps the best thing she could do, as it would give the child a chance at a better life, in a good home, with parents that were ready and willing to love and care for him or her. So you see, contrary to what Chad Basil grew up to believe, his mother didn't give him up because he was a scaly blue mutant, but because she loved him with all of her heart and wanted nothing but the best for him.
Chad Spencer Basil never had the perfect family his biological mother wanted for him, as he would end up growing up bouncing around within the foster care system. Spending most of his first year of life emotionally neglected, living in an overcrowded group home, he was almost eight months old the first time his case worker was able to find him a family willing to take him in: Henry and Kelly Jennings. They were a nice enough couple, somewhere in their mid-thirties and unable to have children of their own. He was a carpenter, she owned a successful bakery – they had the nice house in the suburbs; you know, the one with the dog and the white picket fence. It seemed like an ideal fit, especially considering they were open to the idea of welcoming a mutant child into their home, thinking that it would be no different than raising any other child. So what if he was a little blue? They thought they were prepared; when the day came for the couple to meet the young boy for the first time, they were filled with nerves and excitement. Just like any eager foster parent would at the prospect of welcoming home a new baby. The thing is, they'd never been in direct contact with mutants, their only knowledge of these people coming from articles in newspapers and news broadcasts on television. One thing was obvious to them however: life with Chad would never be quite normal, but they didn't mind.
The first few weeks were complete chaos as Mr. and Mrs. Jennings tried to figure out the kinks of parenting. They were also faced with mixed reactions from friends and family as they all gathered to meet the new addition. Most were taken aback when they first saw the fishy features of the smiley baby; a few were pleasant and supportive enough, some were polite and tactful, while one or two caused Henry's fists to clench, and Kelly's heart to ache. One comment that grew to be repetitive was how 'Henry and Kelly were such courageous people for taking on the task of caring for the poor child'. One instance that truly stood out from the rest was when Henry's cousin laughed in the infant's face, referring to him as 'it', and calling him a ‘freak of nature’. Henry clocked him in the face, promptly throwing him out of the house.
The couple was very rapidly growing fond of the child, and as the months passed, they discovered some of Chad's odd quirks. For starters, bath time was by far his favorite time of the day. That first night at the Jennings’, he sure gave Kelly a scare when she discovered him completely submerged in the bubbly water; frantic, she pulled him out, only to discover his ability to breathe underwater. They also noticed how he was fascinated with the aquarium Henry had installed in the living room, and how he would be perfectly content if that one fish show from Animal Planet was forever on repeat. But, for the most part, they realized just how...
normal he truly was. He loved toys, especially his bright yellow Tonka truck; he would run around the house until his wobbly legs gave out; he was always climbing on furniture and, if Kelly's back was turned for just a second, he would always find a way of making the biggest mess humanly possible; he loved to pull on the cat’s tail; he didn't always eat his vegetables; his favorite word was 'no'... So you see, Chad did not look like most children, but it didn't matter, not to them.
Unfortunately, by the time Chad was three and a half years old, life for the Jennings had changed. It all started when a Starbucks coffee shop opened just down the block from Kelly's business, putting a major dent in her sales. Less than four months later, Henry, along with many other employees, was handed a pink slip and thanked for his services. Although they tried to make things work for the better part of six months, they could barely afford their mortgage or their car payments; let alone a third mouth to feed. It broke Kelly's heart when she had to say goodbye to the little boy that had become a son to her, and Henry, a man that never cried, shed a few tears himself. They were perhaps the best family Chad ever had; it's a pity he doesn't really remember any of it.
Very early on in life, Chad had to learn the hard way that he would always be better off relying solely on himself. Those first few months after leaving the Jennings', Chad was terrified. His case worker tried her best to place him in a home with only a few other children, but it didn't really matter in the end – his caregiver had three other kids to look after and couldn't give him as much attention as he needed, and he was treated like an outcast by the other kids, most of them older than him by a few years. He was seen more as a freak show in a circus than an actual human being. During the six years that followed, he spent the majority of his time in similar environments. He was picked on and bullied, not only by the other kids, but by the adults responsible for him. He was used to hunger, often having to pick at cold leftovers when everybody else was done eating because he was too shy or too scared to eat with them. At night, he would lie in bed, staring up at the ceiling, wondering if he would ever be wanted by anybody, but at the same time, he was determined to keep everyone at arm's length.
As he grew older, he absolutely dreaded leaving a group home or foster family for another, as he knew he would have to go through all of the same questions, all of the same remarks, all of the same stares... he hated the staring more than anything else, but could never quite escape it. Most of the time, he didn't have a bedroom to himself, which meant he could never quite find a safe place to be alone with his own thoughts. He did well enough in school, but spent all of his recesses alone, watching the other kids and wishing he could be like them. By the time he was nine or ten years old, he would almost always walk home from school, no matter the weather or the distance separating his current school from his current residence. Most of the time, he would stop at the nearest body of water – he could spend hours there, just swimming or lying on the bank... thinking... It was his way of escaping. Sometimes, he wished he could stay in the water forever and completely forget about life on land. Wouldn't it be so much better to be free?
His worst foster home was with Jim Sawyer and his wife, Patty. They were the kind of people that didn't give a damn about the children, wasting the money given to them by the State on booze, cigarettes and Patty's favorite hobby: bingo. They didn't care that the six children under their roof went hungry, and the case workers assigned to the kids had too many files to keep up with them all. Chad was the oldest of the lot at fourteen years old; there was another girl not too much younger than him, and then the others were all under ten. The first time he saw Jim hit one of the kids, Chad was furious. He wasn't a stranger to emotional abuse and negligence, but had been lucky enough to avoid the physical variety... until now. Something in him stirred when he saw that five year-old clutching his stomach and trying to keep his bloody nose from bleeding all over the carpet, knowing full well that if he made any kind of mess, everyone would get hell for it. For the first time in his life, Chad took it upon himself to act as the protective big brother; not only did he take the bulk of the abuse, but it wasn't uncommon for him to head out at night, when everyone else had gone to bed. With his hood way over his head in an attempt to hide his face, he'd venture out into the night, forced to steal in an attempt to keep the younger kids fed. The first time he came home with a loaf of bread, he was looked upon as a hero, and although Chad was reluctant to let himself care for these kids... as the days turned into weeks, and weeks turned into months, he did. For the first time in his life, he felt as though he actually
mattered to somebody.
One evening, after a particularly bad beating, Chad was followed out into the night by his foster sister, April, and the pair made their way towards the nearby creek Chad had discovered early on after moving into the foster home he called a hellhole. She tried her best to wash away the blood from his face, the cool water feeling like heaven on his bruised cheekbone and split lip. Chad flinched away the first time she tried to touch him, but when her fingers brushed against his skin, he saw no repulsion in her gaze, only concern. Her touch was gentle and so unfamiliar, but it felt surprisingly... good. She mopped away most of his blood with her sleeve, and then sat back, watching him with a burning curiosity. She asked him to show her what he could do. Chad looked at her then, trying to decipher her expression... He wasn't used to this kind of thing – people being nice to him, or treating him like an actual human being. Yeah, it didn't happen a lot. He found it odd: she wasn't looking at him as though he was a freak... In the months that followed, they became good friends, sharing the responsibility of caring for the younger children, although Chad was dead set on protecting her from their foster father's drunken beatings. That was one thing he would never let her take responsibility for.
Eight months later, Chad was shipped off to a new home, separated from the first girl he'd ever liked but had never dared confess his feelings for, as well as the kids that had become his family. For less than a year he stayed in a shitty foster home, all the while beginning his high school education. He was a smart enough kid, and although his home life was complete and utter crap, he always managed to hand in his homework on time, and received decent marks on all of his assignments, even in those dreadful social science and humanities courses. Chad was definitely more hands on than academically-inclined; he absolutely loved taking shop classes and excelled in biology and chemistry.
It was the spring of 2003; Chad was starting his second semester as a junior in high school, and mutant hysteria was higher than he could ever remember. That particularly cold Monday morning, Chad found that a handful of students with strong anti-mutant sentiments were standing at the front of the school, making their voices heard and blocking access to anyone they suspected to be mutants; obviously, being the only physical mutant at the school, Chad seemed to have unwillingly earned himself the title of public enemy #1. A sympathetic teacher (she had a nephew that was a mutant) was able to settle things, but that only added fuel to the fire. By noon that day, Chad had had enough, escaping a group of loud-mouthed jocks and making a dash for the cafeteria exit. He had to think quickly now – he couldn't go back to school, and, to be quite frank, he didn't feel like going back home to his foster family.
So he left, with nothing to his name but a small rucksack filled with a change of clothes and a few small personal possessions. Just like that he started his life on the run, sticking to abandoned buildings or alleyways, stealing food or rummaging through trash cans in order to survive. He was surprisingly quick to adapt; for example, he noticed how the waitress of a shabby little diner in the southern part of the city always came out with the trash at nine o'clock. For almost two weeks, Chad would be hiding in the shadows of the alley, waiting for her to get back inside before making his way over to the dumpster. Most of the food was still edible, some of it still warm. Chad was never particularly fond of eating fish, but during that handful of months, it was the better part of his diet, as it was the easiest food for him to come by (plus he didn't have to steal, which was something he always felt guilty about). Most importantly, in order to survive, Chad learned that it was best not to stay in one place long enough to make any lasting impression. Thus was his life for two years, right up until he was about nineteen.
He'd changed a lot in two years; a sight for sore eyes, he was underweight, scruffy and dirty; his hair was longer than he liked it, and thick, dark blue stubble covered his chin and jaw. His eyes had grown cold, his demeanor aloof, and his mouth seeming to be down-turned in a permanent frown. In September 2005, Chad woke up in a small, rickety barn in southeastern Maine, his muscles aching and his stomach growling. Had he eaten at all the day before? He couldn't remember. He just hoped these folks had a chicken coop; maybe, if he was lucky, he could steal himself a few eggs – wait, was that a little girl staring at him? She couldn't have been more than five or six years old, with a face full of freckles and the most vivid red hair he had ever seen. He opened his mouth to tell her he wasn't going to hurt her, that he was one of the good guys, but she fled before he had the chance to speak.
He was on his feet and about to make a hasty exit when she came rushing back, a loaf of homemade bread in her outstretched hand, an apple in the other, and a wary look in her giant green eyes. The scene was a peculiar one – an on-looker may have commented that it looked like a young girl trying to tame a frightened puppy. In the end, he accepted the food and muttered a quick 'thank you', his voice hoarse due to lack of use. Chad met the girl's father that evening, after she was caught sneaking him the leftovers of her supper. In any other case, Chad would have been long gone by then, but when the timid little girl promised him she would come visit again after her chores, he felt obligated to stick around for a little while longer. Besides, heated barns and a comfortable pile of hay to sleep in were rare luxuries.
Patrick Barnes was a big man with an intimidating stare; when they first locked eyes, Chad was certain that he was a goner. Chad would learn that Patrick and Ellen were warm people, always up to lend a helping hand; after all, they knew exactly what it was like to live in hard times, barely able to get by themselves. Much to Chad’s surprise, they offered him a place to stay in a small loft on top of the barn, three square meals a day at the main house... In exchange, all he would have to do was help out around the farm. Chad was shocked that there were still people like them on this earth, having long since abandoned hope in humanity. He did his job well, even though he had never worked a day in his life, and was quickly 'adopted' by little Mia, the cute redheaded girl that had fed him that first day. She was fascinated by him, asking all sorts of questions that would have normally made him bristle. A good, soapy shower, hot meals, hard work... combined, they did wonders to Chad's appearance; he gained weight quickly, building up his muscle mass. Clean, shaved and with fresh clothes, he looked a hundred times healthier. He worked there for two and a half years, all while simultaneously getting his GED.
In 2007, soon after the passing of the Mutant Registration Law, a small group of mutants escaped custody in a nearby town, sending the police department in a frenzy trying to locate them. Patrick and Ellen panicked when they heard about it on the News. It broke Ellen's heart to have to send him packing, but Patrick was right when he said they had to protect what was theirs, and having a mutant on the property was too dangerous - not only for them and their young daughter, but for Chad as well. The following day, with a backpack filled with warm clothes and home cooked meals that would easily last him a week, as well as two hundred dollars in his pockets, he started running again.
By the spring of 2010, he was in Connecticut, spending the next few months in a seaside town. Then twenty-four years old, he found himself working for minimum wage on a fishing boat with burly fishermen that, to be honest, couldn't have cared less about his blue skin. He was a hard worker, he could hold his beer, he was a sucker at playing cards, and he didn't cause any drama. Even though he was a quiet sort, they liked him. One evening in August, after a long day out on the sea, Chad found himself in the very middle of an anti-mutant hate crime, beaten to a pulp by six men. Fortunately, two of his fellow fishermen weren't too keen on watching their buddy get tossed around like that, jumping in to help him. Chad left after that, eventually arriving in a small rural area in upstate New York, where he enrolled in college classes.
Two years later, in 2012, Chad graduated college and earned his license as a registered nurse. He eventually made his way to New York City, at which point he was just way too damn tired of running. He didn't want to spend his whole life looking over his shoulder... hiding... being so damn lonely all of the time. Perhaps having a normal life wasn't necessarily possible for a guy like him, but he wanted to at least try.
Anti-mutant sentiments were still somewhat common, especially in New York where there happens to be a very large population of mutants, but Chad was able to get a job as an ER nurse in the Bronx, and he also volunteered a few hours a week in a free clinic in Queens. He was able to get a nice one-bedroom apartment in East Bronx and as of December 2014 still resides there.
RoleplayWhere did you learn about this site?: RPG-Directory
Do you have any other characters on MRO, if so who: n/a
Sample RP:If the young mutant weren't so accustomed to showering in little to no hot water, he'd probably force the rest of the hotel– no; scratch that, the entire block – to do exactly the same.
Fortunately, he much preferred cool water temperatures to hot or even warm.
Chad Basil didn't do well when on dry land for too long; unfortunately, New York City in the middle of December didn't offer very many opportunities for a nice, long swim. His skin felt dry, he was having a hard time sleeping and now his mood was irritable at best.
That morning, Chad felt as though he at least deserved the luxury of spending a little while under the cool spray of water, relishing in the feel of it on his scaly blue skin.
After turning off the tap and climbing out of the tub, Chad wrapped an ugly towel low around his waist, proceeding with the other steps to his morning routine. Ever since arriving in New York, the nineteen year-old had been living in a cheap motel room in the southern parts of the Bronx. It really wasn't much; the carpets were an ugly shade of yellow and the walls, in desperate need of a paint job, were paper-thin. Just last night he’d spent a good portion of it listening to questionable activities happening in the room next to his. It didn’t help matters much that the view outside his window was partially hidden by a large brick wall, or that the sheets smelled of cigarettes and... cabbage?
Honestly though, Chad could deal with those, as the cost was cheap and the manager had completely over-looked his peculiar hue. He was grateful for the place to crash, but that didn't mean he was enjoying his stay. He scowled at his reflection in the foggy mirror, the top of the wooden frame covered in a very thick layer of dust, not unlike the rest of the furniture.
It didn't really matter whether or not he enjoyed it – the funds he'd accumulated from a few odd jobs these last couple months were drying up very quickly, and by the looks of things, he only had enough to cover another two nights here, tops.
He swore under his breath, running his damp towel through his tousled hair.
With the thought still plaguing him however, Chad rummaged through his rucksack and picked out a pair of dark jeans. They were slightly wrinkled, but they were the cleanest pair he had. Next, he grabbed a simple, white button-down shirt he'd folded onto the back of an old chair the night before, giving the piece of fabric a quick whiff before deeming it acceptable. His mass of dark hair, usually quite difficult to tame, was slick and wet against his head, although the blue man knew from experience that it would not stay that way for very long.
Even then, as he considered his options for breakfast, he could feel a wayward strand making its way towards his scaly forehead.
Thus began his day...
To be honest, like most days since his arrival in New York, it proved to be an uneventful one. He didn't know how to make use of his time. The other day he’d considered visiting the Xavier’s Sister School, having heard of the place a handful of times over the years, but in the end he chose not to. Sure, the thought of meeting other mutants appealed to him, but all the same, after being on his own for such a long time… No, he was better off staying away.
By midday, the fish-man found himself sitting on a park bench, his bright orange eyes shielded by a pair of sunglasses; with a Yankees cap, he'd attempted to make himself stand out just a little bit less. A half-eaten hot dog was in one hand and a copy of the New York Times, left behind by the bench's last occupant, was lying open in his lap.
Occasionally, his eyes would wander towards different sights: a couple was talking and laughing on a checkered blanket, picnic basket next to them; kids were playing on the playground a few ways to his right, while parents watched from a nearby distance, occasionally yelling warnings and orders. Chad envied these people. He wasn't sure he could even remember being so care-free and happy... He rummaged through his memories for a moment, but only two things, two very fleeting things, seemed to pop out at him: the time he’d spent with April, his foster sister from so long ago, and the very short while he’d stayed with the Barnes on their farm.
“Look mommy! That's a mutant, isn't it? Like on TV?” a little boy chirped, pointing directly at Chad. The blue man lowered his head slightly as the mother hurried her son away, throwing him wary glances and whispering urgently.
Care-free and happy... Yeah, right.
