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Individual

Character's full name: Lucas Benson
Alias/ Nickname/ Code name: Goes by 'Luke' basically all the time. Code name ‘Lycan'.
Gender: Male
Age: 17
Date of Birth: November 11, 2001
Birthplace/ Home/ Place of origin: Durham, Maine
Nationality: US citizen
Ethnicity/ Cultural Heritage: Luke doesn’t really think of himself as anything but American; his background is Anglo-Saxon.

Appearance

Hair color and style: Luke’s mutation is a permanent lycanthrope form, so ‘hair’ ascribes his entire outward appearance. Essentially, his entire body is covered in a short, thick layer of pale gray fur. This fur is relatively short on his torso, about .75 inches long, but almost 2 inches on his limbs, shoulders, and head. The top and back of his head has longer and darker fur, which does give the sense of having ‘hair’ in the human sense. His fur is relatively dense and slightly raised, making it look longer.
Skin Tone: Of course, being covered in fur makes this a difficult-to-gauge quality. His actual skin is gray-tinged and entirely obscured by his body fur. The palms of his hands and soles of his feet lack fur and are thick, leathery, and dark gray in color.
Eye Color: Dark brown, with large pupils. His eyes have no whites and at first glance may appear solid black.
Height: 6’7”, though he appears to still be growing and may gain several inches yet.
Build: Broad shoulders and long limbs, with a wide torso. His entire body is highly muscular. He weighs about 270 pounds.
Visible mutation: Luke has lycanthrope features, as noted, which makes him very distinct in almost any situation. Aside from the fur, his head is largely wolflike, with a short snout, large eyes, and huge pointed ears near his temples. He has an unusual dentition, consisting of highly pronounced canine teeth while still retaining more typically human molars, with a mixture of carnivore and human teeth in between. He has a tail, about 8 inches in length, with black fur on the tip; he can move it freely, but only as much as the average canine tail, essentially restricted to the cardinal directions.

Luke’s limbs are quite human, but his hands are disproportionately large, and each finger has one long, wicked claw, roughly 1 centimeter in length. His legs are plantigrade, though he his feet have large arches and his toes end in large claws as well. His typical posture is fully upright, though he doesn’t find being hunched over too uncomfortable.
Scars/ Tattoos/ Piercings: None of note.
Other features: Luke is very emotive, in both body language and facial features. Though his facial movements are rather restricted, he has very expressive eyes that give a good read on his mood. His voice is deep and throaty, as might be expected, but while his canine jaw is a hindrance he has learned to speak with little trouble, though in a crisis he gets a little less coherent.

Everyday clothing style: Luke’s torso fur is fairly short, so he is comfortable wearing shirts and does so most of the time. He wears sleeveless shirts or t-shirts, usually in flat monocolors. He favors shorts as well, especially baggier ones that don’t rub against him as much. Shoes are usually loafers, since trying to tie laces is frustrating for him with his claws. He needs very large clothes to fit his frame, and especially large shoes with a lot of toe room.
Uniform: (if applicable)
Sleepwear: Boxers most of the time, more out of modesty than anything.
Miscellaneous clothing: When he can Luke tends to wear fewer articles of clothing, disliking the sensation of fabric against his body, so he tends to go shirtless in private settings.

Character

Personality: Luke is pretty likable, all things considered. He’s friendly and sociable and prefers being around other people. He’s upbeat with a good reserve of social energy, and gets along well with other extroverted people, though he can tone himself down a little around quieter sorts. He’s kind of quiet, at least verbally, but move and acts in an animated manner at all times. Luke is the sort to get into other people’s problems to try and help, and he hasn’t yet grasped that butting in isn’t always appreciated, so being declined tends to confuse or irritate him.

His mutation gives Luke periodic hyperactive energy, though he uses training and exercise as an outlet for this. Though he’s got a mellow baseline, he has an explosive temper that makes him get loud and even physical very quickly. He’s very aware of this, but while he manages to stay calm for the most part, he is still prone to flashes of anger. Though being insulted and disrespected are common in his life, he’s gotten good at ignoring it, but when it persists his patience wears thin quickly. If someone starts being physical with him, he loses control very quickly.

Luke is decently academic, though he has more trouble focusing on such things than he used to as his mutation emerged. He’s decently smart, maybe slightly above average, but has a historically bad record with English classes. He knows he’s already conspicuous enough, so he is very nonchalant in public locations, not wanting to stand out even more, and definitely not wanting to attract negative attention.

When he’s not being a student or training, Luke is often found keeping up with his various self-proclaimed ‘nerdy’ hobbies. He’s a self-deprecating person and borders between humility and low self-esteem, poking fun at himself in humorous ways while internally feeling more serious about his comments. For someone so nosy about other people’s problems, he doesn’t like when his issues are intervened on, not wanting to drag others into his problems. Though he’ll act as if everything’s fine even if it isn’t, he’s learned that bottling this up just makes him increasingly likely to have an outburst.

Luke was raised as Protestant, specifically Methodist, and though his religion doesn’t come up much he’s fairly devout. The conflict of his faith with his appearance has long been an issue, and he still finds it difficult to attend public sermons because of the attention he draws. He chooses to be pretty lenient on his interpretations of allowed by the scripture, especially given his own sexuality. Though he has finally accepted himself as gay, Luke’s background in a less-tolerant environment makes him hesitant to be openly out, especially since as a gay mutant he cannot help but doubt that he will be received well.

Hobbies/ Interests: Computers and gaming, though keyboards and controllers are sometimes cumbersome. He favors JPRGs and Turn-Based Strategy games, since he doesn’t need to fumble with buttons or joysticks to act quickly. He watches a lot of movies, especially sci-fi, and is a bit of a pop culture nerd with a newfound interest in anime. He’s a member of a good number of online fandom sites.
Job or part time job and description: No current job.
Fears/ phobias/concerns: Luke really worries that he might slip up and get someone hurt if his animalistic instincts get the better of him. On a more mundane level, he isn’t a strong swimmer and doesn’t like deep water. Luke also doesn’t like being touched; in a fight it’s usually not his biggest worry, but even affectionate or benign contact can make him recoil if unexpected and being touched in a hostile way will piss him off in short order.
Special talents: Decent with computers and has dabbled in basic programming.

Morality

Good/ bad/ neutral/ other: Good. He’s had his moments, but Luke is overall a pretty selfless guy who really believes in the X-Man goal of peace. He is, however, willing to compromise to some extent if necessary, and will admit that violence and other unsavory things are sometimes the answer. When his emotions overrule his sensible nature, he can go to some dark places.

Mutations

Mutation description: Lycanthrope form; superhuman physique and claws, wolf senses, enhanced resilience

Luke’s permanent lupine form gives him superhuman physical qualities such as strength, resilience, and stamina. He has claws and sharp teeth, and superhuman senses of smell and hearing.
Strengths: Physically, he is strong enough to lift 3 tons with some effort, and his maximum capacity is estimated around 5 1/2 tons with considerable strain. He is able to run on all fours if need be, albeit not as well as an actual quadruped, and can still manage short burst of speed of around 25 miles an hour, and has enough stamina that he could sustain running normally for perhaps a couple of hours at about 10 miles per hour. He has reflexes roughly in line with a particularly fit human, though he possesses a short tail that assists in balance and turning while running.

He is unusually resilient, and while not bulletproof is somewhat resistant to a few forms of physical harm. A baseball bat wouldn’t quite ‘bounce off’, but the impact would be dispersed and be less painful and less damaging. He is resistant to slicing or stabbing, so a glancing blow with a blade or sharp weapon will be partly deflected and may only inflict a less serious cut. His fur seems to be the contributing factor protecting from dull impacts, while his skin is the edge-resistant factor. Internally his bones are very strong, but otherwise anything that bypasses his external body will still inflict serious or mortal injury. He can shrug off bullets of low caliber at long range, but any more powerful and they will become a real concern.

Luke’s primary offensive trait consists of his claws, which are long, sharp, and extremely tough. He can tear metal or even dig into brick with them, and can use them to climb, dig, or attack. He also has very high jaw strength, though he isn’t as proficient at biting as with other forms of offense. The claws curve from his nail bed over the tops of his fingers, and the claw on his thumb is about half the length of the others. These claws can be ‘retracted’ back along his finger, such that the tips do not extend past those of his fingers. When extended, the claws are about 1 centimeter past his finger. They are extremely resistant to damage and regrow quickly in the event that they are removed.

Luke has superhuman senses, specifically olfactory and auditory enhancements. He can hear well beyond the human spectrum and is able to pick out specific sounds like voices with relative precision even in loud environments. He can also use his sense of smell to identify or track objects or people, currently up to 300 meters away.

Luke heals quickly; not enough to close wounds immediately, but he can shake off minor injuries in a short time and major damage will be repaired at a quicker rate. Superficial cuts or bruises may heal over 10-20 minutes, depending on the severity. More severe wounds such as stabbing, gunshot wounds, or broken bones will repair themselves about 50% faster than a normal human’s, though in the short-term he is less hindered by such an injury because of his stamina. He could not regrow a limb or internal organ, and probably not even a digit, though his claws seem to regrow.

Weaknesses and Limitations: The most visible drawback is that Luke’s mutation is his natural body, and having a highly visible mutation at all times is a complicating factor in any situation. He’s tall, bulky, and heavy, so being stealthy is almost impossible for him. Anyone wary of on the lookout for mutants will spot him immediately, and no mundane disguise can conceal him against anything but the most casual of glances.

While claws are useful in a fight, fine manipulation with them can be time-consuming and difficult even if they are retracted. His lupine mouth can hinder his speech and though in normal conversations he is still fluid a high-stress situation makes him speak more sloppily and become harder to understand. His digestion is still able to consume most human foods, but he needs more calories than most humans, a lot more protein intake, and gets sick from most sweets or very salty foods.

Sensory powers are always double-edged, and his are no exception; strong odors and loud noises affect him more than the average person. High pitched noises in particular are seriously distressing to him and can cause him great pain or even incapacitate him given enough time and intensity. Although he’s very tough, he’s certainly still susceptible to harm and has little or no advantage against things like energy blasts, fire, or electrical attacks.

Having fur also makes hot weather harder to bear, and he doesn’t seem to sweat, so in hot conditions he needs to regulate his body heat through panting. In summer he found that he ‘sheds’ as well, which is unsightly and may make him more vulnerable, because his fur is part of his resistance to impact. Though he heals fairly quickly, this is an issue if he breaks a bone, because it will mend in the wrong position if not set properly, which would be painful and debilitating.

A trait sometimes associated with some animal-based abilities is a feral instinct, which drives the mutant towards more violent, predatory behaviors. Luke carries this, and though he is restrained in normal conditions, stress or conflict make it harder for him to control himself, especially his temper. When he becomes angrier he has a growing risk of losing control and possibly becoming violent, or even just needlessly aggressive. Because Luke needs to focus to control himself, he’s also especially susceptible to mental attacks, and psychically manipulating his emotions or compelling him to violence is easier than for most people.

Physical Abilities

General Physical Capabilities: His mutation is all about this; Luke is well into the superhuman on almost all of these fronts. These qualities would roughly rank at Strength >Stamina >Reflexes >Speed >Flexibility, though he is less flexible than normal because of his bulky frame.
Fighting Style: No formal training, but Luke’s claws and physical strength give him a pretty intuitive level of hand-to-hand skill. He’s also decently learned at certain holds, throws, and body checks, so he can incapacitate someone without ripping them apart.
Fighting Style Pros/Cons: Luke is strong, fast, and tough, has built-in fighting instincts, and his claws are always available. Melee fighting is the majority of his power’s benefit, so his biggest weakness is mostly psychological; he needs to balance the appropriate amount of force for the situation. He can easily fall into more feral bloodlust and go too far, but he sometimes holds back too much and lets himself get put at a disadvantage by pulling his punches, so it’s a line he needs to tread.

History Of Your Character The older of two boys born in a small, rural town in Maine, Luke’s early childhood was unremarkable. His father was a construction worker, his mother a teacher’s aide at an elementary school, and he had several relatives in the area, most notably his grandmother, who was retired and often helped take care of Luke and his brother Ethan.

His grandma Ella was a sweetheart, but also had a good-natured style of sass and was oddly more accepting of mutants and other things than her daughter and son-in-law. As she reasoned, things changed whether you liked it or not, and she encouraged Luke to either go along with new things or drive the changes for himself. He tended to clash with Ethan some, who was a little more hesitant, but it was more Luke trying to push Ethan forward than bully him.

For most of his life Luke was happy with his family, who were loving and supportive if occasionally misinformed. His childhood was typical and comfortable, and though he lived in a rural town without much for people, he found the internet as a great social vector in his early teens (age 12), and video games as a major source of entertainment and a source of social interaction. He was decently well-liked in school, had a strong online network of friends, and his family was close-knit and happy. Life was pretty good.

Of course, turning 15 messed that up because mid-February of 2017 he got in a squabble with another student after a bad day. While getting ready to go home, he saw a guy taunting another boy, mockingly offering help while getting overly touchy with the kids’ bag, who was timidly trying to pull away. Annoyed by the immaturity, Luke approached and initially tried to diffuse with humor. When it didn’t help, he got more irritated, telling the guy to lay off. The other boy shrugged and left, but lightly shoved Luke in the chest as he walked past him.

This was a catalyzing point for him, having already been on edge for a few minor reasons up to that point. Though known for a very mild temper, the sudden force caused him to experience a flash of rage, grabbing the other student by the back of the shirt and pulling him over with unexpected strength. Luke held him in place and demanded “How do you think it feels?!” then shoved him off.

The other student crashed through the bystanders and into the lockers on the other side of the hall, a display of force that shocked everyone around, even Luke. Suddenly reeling and stunned, he dropped his bag and ran out of the school. Though it was only a short walk to his house, the sudden rush of severe aching body pain and sensory disorientation caused him to nearly black out, and he found himself having wandered in the other direction and out of town when the effect of his mutation manifesting became unbearable. He managed to stumble off the road and past some snow-covered brush before blacking out.

Circumstances conspired in his favor, maybe or against it; Ethan was in the distant middle school, and had soccer practice, while his parents and grandma were out of town for the day for a baby shower. Though obviously the other students present saw the incident, they weren’t about to go looking for him; many were still his friends, but the obvious explanation dissuaded anyone pursuing Luke. He didn’t wake up for over two hours, by which point it was dusk.

Still confused and incoherent, Luke took another 30 minutes to mentally recover, by which point he could assess his situation; he had obviously manifested a mutation, and in the process had grown from 5’5” to 6’ tall, was covered in fur (which was soaked with melted snow), and when he tried to speak aloud he realized his face was totally different. He was overwhelmed by the sensation of an unfamiliar body, not to mention the revelation that he was both a mutant and one with a physically transformative mutation.

After about an hour of trying to quell the bizarre physical sensations and unexpected storm of emotional confusion, Luke managed to stagger into town, where it was now late night, and was lucky that he could avoid streetlights and pedestrians on the way home. His parents had not yet arrived at home, and Ethan was eating out with the soccer team, so when he got to his house it was empty. Still in shock from the manifestation and the cold, Luke didn’t even make it to his room, collapsing again face-first on the couch.

When he was awoken by screaming, his mind was much more alert than before, but he didn’t have much chance to focus because his parents had walked into the living room. Still soaked, with his clothes torn and stretched by the transformation, they had no idea how to react and couldn’t even recognize him. To make matters worse, he was unable to speak coherently, and as he panicked trying to explain himself his parents also entered hysterics.

Eventually, Luke managed to pantomime his identity, at which point the collective fear dissolved into collective despair. Ethan was given insistent permission to stay at a friend’s house, and Luke’s grandma was able to enter the picture and try to mediate. Initially, his parents’ explanation of divine punishment made things worse, but after about an hour the exhausted family came to the general conclusion that this was a trial but not all-encompassing, and that they could solve some of it in the morning, so they went to bed.

The next few days were a blur of hard decisions and scary ramifications. Ethan was informed, though Luke didn’t hear or know of his response because the conclusion was that he’d spend the week at his friend’s house. Luke managed to start making some sense verbally, though only with slow and deliberate enunciation. It was very clear he was now very strong, and he had to be careful not to break anything.

His parents meant well but were uncomfortable with the whole development that they only spoke to him to update whatever was going on. His grandma was more understanding and recognized that Luke could not stay here for long and did her best to make him feel more appreciated before the inevitable. That inevitable came when representatives of the Institute approached his family on the third day following his manifestation. The entire exchange was surprisingly short, and by the end of it everyone was clear on the outcome. Luke left that day and hasn’t been home since.

Having never been out of Maine, arriving at New York City was overwhelming, especially given the intensity of the sounds and smells he was now experiencing even in the enclosed car. Luckily there were dampening headphones around, because it really was that bad. After almost an entire day on the road, Luke arrived at the Institute, where the legal proceedings were explained, and his potential paths laid out. The next day, as things started to come together, Luke was finally able to meet with someone who could help his situation and was able to help him manage the side effects of sensory overload and relearning speech.

It’s been about a year since he arrived, and Luke is finally starting to really feel comfortable with things. Though he certainly doesn’t blend in even here, he is growing less self-conscious and has been able to be much more comfortable and act his normal self. He’s been back to his sociable habits with fair success and has developed the conviction to start as an X-Trainee, hoping to put a positive stance on what has otherwise been a difficult-to-cope with mutation.

Roleplay
What’s your OOC alias?: Espi
Where did you learn about this site?: RPG Directory
Do you have any other characters on MRO, if so who: None yet
Sample RP:

Luke knew snow pretty well, being from New England and all. But snow in the Big Apple wasn’t like Maine. It was kinda dingy and gross, probably pollution and such. Plus, the roads were filled with slush, like gallons of it every day, and it was muddy and gloomy and just drab. Winter wonderland this was not.

The bus stop was empty, more or less, probably because it was like 5 am when he walked by. Early morning was good for runs since there weren’t a ton of people in the way and also, he had to be honest, there weren’t a ton of people to gawk at him. If he wanted to try for covert he could wear a hoodie or something, but it wouldn’t do much good because A: it would not cover his face and B: it would probably have to be sleeveless and then there’d just be no point anyway.

Then again, he could at least make a corny ‘in the hood’ joke or something. Hm, not worth the effort. Luke paused by the booth and did a little stretching. He was a good way out by now; it was sometimes surprising, even now, how long it took for him to get tired. He’d been going faster than a job but slower than a sprint, but he was barely even winded. It probably helped that he was actually making use of the physical fitness to get stronger; he wondered if he’d get out of shape, or what that would be like, but he didn’t really want to try and see because duh.

Break over. Luke started walking again, picking up the pace from before and trying to push a little faster. It felt nice running in the cold air. He looked around, not for anything in particular, but then he noticed that without thinking his gait had gotten more hunched over. He could run on all fours, sure, but not in the snow, on a sidewalk, in the city, or in front of people. It was like, undignified.

A car was coming, in the distance, from behind him by the sound. It passed slowly, as he was running, and Luke glanced over at the sedan’s passengers; two adults in the front, a man and a woman who both looked a little uneasy and a little enthused. A little girl, daughter probably, had her face pressed against the window of the back seat, watching him.

You couldn’t have seen it, but Luke’s face blushed. Little kids were a thing; adults he could get, suspicious or hostile or curious or whatever. Being the object of someone’s fascination was just weird, though. He couldn’t decide if he felt embarrassed, like being a zoo animal, or proud, like being a superhero.

Well, okay, that was kind of literal. The car accelerated past down the road, and Luke watched it go.