Caelus is a half-incubus raised to believe that the world would, and should, bend to his will. Mostly his will is to be overpaid for his consulting work.
Capable of feeding on darker emotions in addition to lust, Caelus has discovered a particular taste for humiliation and fear -- especially when paired with desire.
Background
A half-incubus raised mostly by his human father, Caelus was taught to believe that world would -- and should -- bend to his will. His Succubus mother wasn't interested in parenting, but she did shift the occasional lever of power in his favor. Caelus attended the best schools, took the choicest internships, and accumulated a truly impressive resume before he graduated college -- at which point he was on his own. He built himself a small consulting firm, and like all good consultants is always a little vague about what exactly he does. Something to do with workflow optimization?
SIGNATURE ABILITY
Get Out of Jail Free Card
Caelus is reckless, and impulsive, and a bit of sadist -- and occasionally something goes too far. When a situation slips so far out of his control that the consequences threaten to end his carefree lifestyle (or his actual life), Caelus's self-preservation instincts kick in. His skill with mediation and deescalation, usually just a throwaway line on his resume, really shines when it's his own ass on the line -- and combined with his supernatural powers of persuasion, Caelus has been able to talk himself out situations he might not have walked away from otherwise.
This is a strong boost to persuasion during dangerous moments when he's acting in his own self-defense, most effective in smaller groups and before anyone has thrown a punch or called the cops on him. The ability is meant to help handwave away consequences for actions which are OOCly agreed-upon but legally or ethically problematic, not to avoid IC consequences. IC consequences are fun!
SKILLS
Deescalation - Novice Level
|
Sometimes mediation can get heated, and Caelus knows how to defuse and deescalate high-tension situations. The only problem is that he rarely wants to deescalate anything, because Caelus finds conflict entertaining so long as he's not the one at risk of of losing anything.
Evasion - Competent Level
|
Supernatural empathy and fast reflexes mean that Caelus is good at getting out of the way of potential consequences -- especially consequences like fists.
Mediation - Competent Level
|
For the most part, Caelus genuinely doesn't care about anyone else's issues -- but he knows what people want, and when it suits him (or when he's being paid) he's excellent at persuading disagreeing parties to reach a compromise.
Perception - Expert Level
|
Even if you stripped away his supernatural empathy, Caelus would still be extraordinarily good at reading people. He's spent years cataloguing the subtle expressions that betray emotion, and it's a skill he uses constantly, both professionally and privately.
Programming - Novice Level
|
Caelus has exactly enough knowledge of full-stack development to sound convincing when he consults with software engineers, but he doesn't have the patience to actually code.
Workflow Optimization - Competent Level
|
Caelus freelances as a professional consultant. What does he consult on? Optimizing workflows. A little empathy, a little persuasion, and a lot of telling people what they're doing wrong.
ABILITIES
Power: Dream Manipulation - Basic Level
|
Incubi are known in mythology for cornering the market in dreams. Caelus inherited enough of the ability to slide into the dreams of less-protected minds and twist them to own his purposes, feeding off of the emotional energy of the dreamer, but he can't cause physical harm or use the dreamscape as a conduit to travel through physical space. He can only enter the dreams of those he's met or those who are subconsciously crying out for visitation.
Power: Empathy - Enhanced Level
|
Caelus can sense strong emotion from those in close proximity, and pick up on subtler emotions and desires when in direct physical contact.
Power: Energy Feeding - Enhanced Level
|
As a half-incubus, Caelus can (and must) feed on lust and desire to sustain himself -- but he's also capable of feeding on darker emotions. Humiliation and fear are among his favorites.
Power: Half-Demon Physiology - Enhanced Level
|
Caelus is significantly stronger, faster, and sturdier than baseline humans, but far weaker than his True Demon cousins.
Power: Heightened Senses - Enhanced Level
|
Caelus has better-than-human senses due to his demon blood, including night vision. This is generally useful, but leaves him sensitive to perfumes and bright lights.
Magic: Magic - Basic Level
|
Caelus doesn't have the patience for complex magic, but he understands the fundamentals and is good with simple charms and energy shifts. He uses magic mostly for his own petty convenience: reheating coffee, detangling his hair, and lighting joints when he forgets his Bic.
Power: Persuasion - Enhanced Level
|
Caelus is supernaturally skilled at bringing others around to his point of view. This is done through silver-tongued manipulation more than psychic brute force, and is most effective when used to guide someone toward a conclusion they were already willing to consider.
Power: Telepathy - Basic Level
|
Far weaker than his empathy, Caelus's telepathy is usually limited to clear, surface-level thoughts from unprotected minds. He can pick up more when in direct physical contact with someone, especially if their thoughts are tangled up with strong emotion.
ADVANTAGES
Caelus's Succubus mother was rarely around while he was growing up, but she shifted the occasional lever of power in his favor. He attended the best schools, took the choicest internships, and accumulated a truly impressive resume before he graduated college -- at which point he was on his own.
Caelus is shamelessly unapologetic about his own desires -- although as a half-incubus who also feeds off of humiliation, he certainly doesn't mind if other people are ashamed of theirs.
WEAKNESSES
Caelus's bloodline is a sore spot for him, and his mostly-human half leaves him far weaker than his True Demon brethren.
Caelus prioritizes immediate pleasure and satisfaction over long-term goals.
Caelus is mercurial and easily bored, which leads to rash, impulsive decision-making as he looks for quick satisfaction. (See: Hedonist.)
Caelus enjoys provoking reactions out of people, and he's always at risk of pushing things a little too far. Sometimes that means an argument; sometimes it means a fist swinging toward his face.
Caelus is deeply self-centered. He may care about certain people or causes, but only inasmuch as they relate to him.