Genesis Grim
From Unofficial Handbook of the Virtue Universe
The Genesis Grim is one of my new favorite characters, from a game play and role playing perspective. He's a fairly recent creation, but in terms of "fun" to RP with or run missions, I place him right behind my main, Leo Masterson.
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| The Genesis Grim, awaiting a client within the Midnight Club. | |
| The Genesis Grim | |
| Player: @Epsicon | |
| Origin: | Magic |
|---|---|
| Archetype: | Scrapper |
| Security Level: | 44 |
| Personal Data | |
| Real Name: | Confidential |
| Known Aliases: | Edward Campbell |
| Species: | Meta-Human |
| Age: | Unknown |
| Height: | 5'7 |
| Weight: | 140 lbs |
| Eye Color: | White ( No Pupils) |
| Hair Color: | White |
| Biographical Data | |
| Nationality: | English |
| Occupation: | Midnighter / Titan Industries |
| Place of Birth: | Blackpool, England |
| Base of Operations: | St. Martial |
| Marital Status: | Single |
| Known Relatives: | None |
| Known Powers | |
| Katana / Regeneration | |
| Known Abilities | |
| Shadow Stepping (Teleportation), Hover | |
| Equipment | |
| Soul Katana, Custom Light Weight Midnighter Armor, the Celestial Armor "Murmur" | |
| ' | |
Contents |
City of Villains ID Card
[Genesis Grim - Recognized among Midnighters as a veteran]
"God is dead. God remains dead. And we have killed him. How shall we comfort ourselves, the murderers of all murderers? What was holiest and mightiest of all that the world has yet owned has bled to death under our knives: who will wipe this blood off us? What water is there for us to clean ourselves? What festivals of atonement, what sacred games shall we have to invent? Is not the greatness of this deed too great for us? Must we ourselves not become gods simply to appear worthy of it?"
-Nietzsche
He moves with a supernatural grace and radiates an aura of peace. He exudes charisma, even if his sarcastically haughty demeanor gives off a negative first impression. Little is known about who Grim is or why he resides in the Isles of all places... but those with a sense of the arcane should notice the presence of a primal, powerful magic force. Those with finer senses may notice a dark tarnish to what would otherwise be a serene soul.
Personality
Soon!
Overview
Genesis Grim is a Midnighter who uses his skills with his mystical sword and knowledge of the arcane to do side-jobs in the Rogue Isles for the highest bidder. Little is known about his official background... he simply showed up in the Isles a little more than a decade ago and was quickly accepted into the Midnighters. He isn't registered among the Arachnos citizens, but does claim a small manor in eastern Cap Au Diable as his own.
Unofficially, Midnighters from Paragon whisper about Grim's true alignment. He radiates an old, powerful magic for sure... undoubtedly a useful ally in the war against the Rikti, Rularuu or anything else that would threaten our existence. However, this magic is a dark one.. tainted, tarnished and twisted to a point that few can recognize what it once truly was. To make matters worse, several savants who specialize in readings have claimed that despite it's age, power and darkness... it is truly a thing of great beauty. Few creatures lay claim to such auras; those that do rarely work in mankind's best interests.
Despite the rumors, Genesis Grim has proven extremely useful thus far. The Midnighters are even willing to overlook his questionable side-work, so long as Grim continues to bring the fight straight to those that threaten our realm.
History
Soon!
The Awakening
Grim's first memories, or at least, the ones that he can recall the clearest, are of waking in a forest - naked - just outside of Blackpool, England in the early 1900's. He stumbled about the wood for some days, dazed and confused, before finally realizing he needed to eat and find shelter. He climbed a tree and saw civilization in the distance, where he then made is way to. Upon arriving, some people greeted him as "Edward Campbell." (Whether it was a case of mistaken identity or not has gone un-resolved, as Grim has found little to no record of Mr. Campbell other than a property deed.) Grim adopted this new name and tried his best to live Campbell's life but found the life of a servant was much to his distaste. Also, during this time, he sought the help of many doctors to try and help cure his memory loss, but their fees were far more than servant could ever afford.
The Midnight Club
The Rogue Isles
The Rikti War
Boss Gao's Vendetta
Years following the Rikti War, Grim was making a comfortable living as a Midnighter in the Rogue Isles. He used the skills honed fighting the hordes of Rikti soldiers to do side work for whomever paid the highest price. As such, he often found himself called in for work that decidedly not lawful. One instance that made a lasting impact on Grim's life is when Boss Gao, a St. Martial gangster and information broker for the Kingsmen, hired him for what at first appeared to be an ordinary bank robbery. Once they began discussing the details however, Grim realized this was more than a bank robbery and instead, a revenge plot against one that had wronged Boss Gao.
Grim acquired a magical artifact from the Midnighter's vault, a dimensional sealer that in a limited area, prevented any energy from leaving. It was mainly used in sealing rifts to other demonic planes, but had other uses such as blocking the Rikti Medi-Porter technology used throughout Paragon City. The job, as Grim saw it, was to simply wait for Gao's target to enter the bank after them and then from the outside, seal off the bank so Gao could deal with the man as he pleased. It made sense on paper, with two men inside the bank, another running interference outside and all Grim had to do was seal the bank. However, not all went according to plan.
While the sealing worked and Gao was able to deal with his target, an unforeseen side effect of the artifact's use was the permanent disabling of Gao and his partner's teleporters. Meanwhile, Longbow and several Vindicators had arrived outside the bank and were pushing the man running interference, Leo Masterson, to his breaking point. Grim saw no other alternative than to attempt several large Shadow Steps in succession, from Paragon City to the Isles. The initial Step took it's toll on Grim's physical health, but he had more to do. By the time he had escorted Gao, his henchmen and then Leo Masterson back to the Isles, he fell into a state of near death with his body's internal organs having been ravaged by the strain of the Shadow Stepping.
Titan Industries
Leo didn't trust Arachnos funded hospitals and out of gratitude took Grim back to his mercenary firm's medical bay. Titan Industries took the patient in and kept him in quarantine as Grim's body began it's regeneration cycle. Grim was comatose the entire time during this cycle but when he awoke, found he had no memory of the day the job took place. He was filled in by Leo Masterson and Director Cale later, to which he realized he owed Leo a debt of gratitude.. and Titan Industries a financial debt for their hospital services. Leo recommended that Grim sign up, as it would be one of the fastest ways to pay the debt off, to which Grim reluctantly agreed.
Months have passed since the botched job and Grim couldn't be happier within Titan. He's found the rate of pay is far higher than anything he had achieved on his own, his team mates reliable and efficient, and lastly, their ethics carrying none of the false pretentiousness that burdened him within the Midnight Club. Though he still carries a card for the Midnighters, Grim now considers himself a Titan above all else.
Acquisition of Murmur
Powers
Soul Blade (Katana)
Grim's katana is formed from pure energy, said to come from within Grim. It's of an arcane origin and it's sharpness is determined by Grim's will. It can be as blunt as a baseball bat or as sharp as a nano-blade. It is Grim's primary means of combat and he shows excellent skill in handling this blade. It's said he's even stood toe to toe with Valkerye in a one on one sword fight, though the details of the encounter are vague at best. Grim has never explained where he learned to summon the blade, nor how he learned to handle it. If anything, it's use and handling are almost second nature, like an instinct.
Shadow Stepping (Teleportation, Soul Mastery)
In addition to his mystical katana, Grim has the ability to shadow step. He defines Shadow Stepping as crossing distance and time in our dimension by briefly stepping between planes of existence and re-entering our world from another place, presumably the Netherworld. He can use this to quickly cross long distances, but large jumps take it's toll on Grim's body. In addition to moving himself, Grim has the ability to pull allies or foes through the Shadow Stepping rifts, resulting in quick extractions or surprise attacks.
Recently, Grim has worked on perfecting his Shadow Step technique, resulting in some interesting and new uses of his ability to temporarily transverse planes of existence. By focusing the Shadow Step technique around his arm, he can channel a vortex of nether energy that roars through our dimension and devastates an opponent. It takes time and focus to pull off, but it makes for an excellent opening and finishing move for the unsuspecting enemy. Also, Grim has mastered a state of perfect balance when crossing planes which allows him, in laymen terms, to keep one foot in our world and one foot in the Netherworld. By doing this, he essentially vanishes from sight and becomes nearly impossible to detect or hit. In addition to the stealth and defensive utility of this technique, Grim can still strike out from this balanced state. In short, Grim can become much like an assassin on command. However, maintaining this balance is a great strain on Grim's body and the time he can stay between worlds is brief, at best.
Regeneration
Grim's body is unique in that it displays a state of total cellular stasis. In other words, it is between life and death. Upon being damaged, the cells activate to quickly regenerate and repair the damage, but return to stasis upon total regeneration is achieved. This allows Grim to survive numerous grievous wounds, including ones inflicted by extended Shadow Stepping.
A recently documented result of severe damage to Grim's body is one of memory loss. During an operation before his hiring at Titan Industries, Grim found himself Shadow Stepping between Paragon City and the Rogue Isles in rapid succession. Witnesses say it literally began tearing Grim up from the inside out, resulting in severe internal injuries. A confidential source reports the healing process took almost two months in total time and Grim can remember little of the day's events leading up to him pushing his limits. One must assume that Grim's amnesia from the time before his awakening in Blackpool, England is a result of even more grievous injury.
Author Notes
The Genesis Grim is a combination of several influences. Ichigo from Bleach would be one, Ivan Isaacs from the Priest manhwa is another. Some claim he resembles Sephiroth, but that's unintentional. Lastly, his combat armor is heavily influenced by the Skull Man anime series main protagonist, sans helmet.
Extended regeneration cycles result in damage to Grim's constant age in addition to his memory. As such, Grim suffers from amnesia inflicted during an incident taking place before his waking in Blackpool, England. During sleep, he can recall brief memories from before this time but nothing coherent or substantial.
