Stitchdoll
From Unofficial Handbook of the Virtue Universe
| |
| Stitchdoll | |
| Player: | |
| Origin: | Magic |
|---|---|
| Archetype: | Mastermind |
| Threat Level: | Confidential |
| Personal Data | |
| Real Name: | Susan Carver |
| Known Aliases: | Stitchdoll, Stitch(es), Patch(es) |
| Species: | Patchwork Human / Undead |
| Age: | 33 |
| Height: | 4'11" - 5'1" |
| Weight: | (varies) |
| Eye Color: | (varies) |
| Hair Color: | (varies) |
| Biographical Data | |
| Nationality: | American |
| Occupation: | Drifter |
| Place of Birth: | Confidential |
| Base of Operations: | Confidential |
| Marital Status: | Single |
| Known Relatives: | (none) |
| Known Powers | |
| Necromancy | |
| Known Abilities | |
| Skillful in magically aided amputations, transplants and grafts. | |
| Equipment | |
| army of the dead, surgical tools, various necromantic reagents | |
| No additional information available. | |
Susan Carver or Stitchdoll as she is more commonly known these days is an unfortunate individual that has turned to a combination of surgical grafts and dark magics to prolong her life in the face of certain death. She now straddles the increasingly fine line between life and undeath.
Contents |
Origin
It began with pain and weakness in the extremities. Her fingers and hands ached and her feet could barely support her weight on some days. What was worse was that it was beginning to spread to the rest of her arms and legs. Each day, little by little and bit by bit she could feel whatever it was rising through her limbs, the parts furthest out eventually losing all sensation.
The doctors could give her no answers despite thousands of tests for every possible ailment, only prescribe painkillers and reassure her that they would figure it out soon.
They did figure it out, but not until Susan was confined to a wheelchair and the tips of her fingers and toes had begun to rot and decay and the rest of her skin begun to discolor.
The cause for her misery was an extremely rare genetic defect that she had carried her entire life, only recently triggered by an unknown source. Its rarity was so that nobody on the planet knew how to treat it. It would be all they could do to make her comfortable in the six months they gave her to live.
Not willing to accept her fate Susan looked everywhere for even the slightest glimmer of hope that she could survive this. Everything she found proved ineffective or effective but too much to afford.
It was magic that eventually showed her a potential means to prolong her life, the irony being that it was necromancy.
The book that uncovered this had no title, just a skull burned into the leather cover. It was buried deep in the seldom visited "Occult Reference" section of the library and promptly stolen so as she could pour over its secrets in earnest.
Through tireless research over the next month Susan discovered that with this power she'd uncovered it would possible to prolong her life indefinitely by grafting the remains of the deceased onto her own decaying frame.
Her first experiment was crude, using an animated corpse to ambush and murder a homeless woman which was brought back to her home. Susan removed the woman's fingers with a butcher knife. As an experiment she severed her own left pinky, the pain killers and numbness dulling this pain down enough to make it barely tolerable, and placed the corresponding finger from the dead woman against the stump and sewed it on as best she could.
She uttered the incantation over the finger and found that it bonded bone and muscle and nerves back together. She had movement and feeling there once again and didn't hesitate to rework both her hands in the same fashion over the course of the night.
The day she lopped an entire foot off with a circular saw, and attempted a similar graft. She was delighted to find it worked like a charm.
Of course being from the dead themselves these parts do tend to decay just as her own body does. Formaldehyde and other preservatives can extend the life of these grafts but ultimately they decay too far to be of any use and they too must be replaced.
Because of this Susan has become something of a drifter. Moving from place to place, pausing only long enough to steal supplies and harvest what parts she needs to get her to the next town. It is to this end that she has found her way to the Rogue Isles, believing that in a place so populated with villains of all stripes would be the last place anyone would give too much thought to disappearances or mangled bodies.
Appearance
Because she can so easily replace or repair broken limbs, ruptured organs or flayed skin Susan tends to not take very good care of her body. If something becomes too damaged to be of any good she will simply kill until she finds a part that is to her liking.
Due to this behavior she is something of a patchwork entity, gladly incorporating any part that is of the right size regardless of the source; men, women, monsters, mutants and even the occasional cybernetic implant or other prosthesis are all fair game. The results of these reconstructions are anything from abjectly horrifying to strangely appealing, something Susan is well aware of. Depending on what she has added to herself she may gain or lose weight and to a lesser degree height.
The latticework of scars, staples and stitches that run across her various hides is what gave rise to her moniker.
Due to the cycle of surgery and grafting she puts her body through to stay alive she has developed a certain affinity for medical paraphernalia. Lab coats, surgeon caps and masks, rubber gloves, eye-patches and even bandage wraps are common in her wardrobe.
No matter what shape she is in or what she wears the smell of preservatives and death follow her like a vile cloud, just barely masked by the pungent reagents needed for her spells.
Personality
Susan's personality seems to be almost as patchwork as her body, as if by combining the remains of others into a working body she has also unintentionally integrated aspects of the original owners into a new self.
Her memories and powers remain constant but the way she behaves and interacts can change drastically with the addition of just a few new parts. She can be the bloodthirsty maniac one day and a light hearted party girl the next, all depending on who is a part of her that day.
Cynic Stitch, the Survivor - Not entirely good or evil this personality is driven primarily by the need to survive. The lives of others are seen as mostly inconsequential, she'll work with others but only when it benefits her. In this mind Susan displays mostly a bleak outlook and a dry and sarcastic sense of humor. She takes any opportunity to make jokes at another's expense and scoffs at anyone who complains about petty trifles such as jail time. Name calling and general bitchiness is to be expected.
Still there is a bit of interest in others, if nothing else a need to understand the few she considers allies as well as a tinge of the thirst for power she displays as "the Aspiring".
Her body in this state looks a bit dirty and diseased. Her clothes are poorly fitting and ragged.
Socialite Stitch, the Sensory Addict - With a little luck and work Susan has managed to temporarily rewire her nervous system so that the pain she normally feels is replaced by feelings of intense pleasure. Not only that but any sensation no matter the source becomes enjoyable.
She becomes uncharacteristically cheery and lighthearted, laughing easily and freely even if the joke is at her expense. She welcomes company and loves teaming up with others to bust heads. Combat becomes extremely enjoyable wether defeat or victory is the outcome.
To compliment her new outlook Susan dresses almost scandalously, showing off her mutilated form to great advantage and forcing others to deal with it wether they approve or not.
Wretched Stitch, the Bound - Of course when you can eliminate all pain eventually you can deaden out any sensation all together. Numb to everything physical Susan's mind will turn inward and she really takes a long hard look at the monster she has become and drives her to despise herself intensely.
She sulks, hides in corners and is generally distant. She honestly believes herself worthless and deserving only of misery. She only continues to kill and harvest to spread the emptiness she feels, gaining no joy in the slaughter or rewards that come with it.
True to her opinion of herself she conceals as much of her body as possible so her horrible visage won't bother anyone else, even going so far as to don chains or other measures of torment or binding she believes herself worthy of.
Sorceress Stitch, the Aspiring - Thirsty for knowledge and hungry for power the identity referred to as Sorceress Stitch finds Susan at her most driven. While before she just used magic here she completely embraces her power and seeks to increase her control of the dark arts at any cost. Indeed it becomes something of an obsession with her tirelessly searching for anything that could bless her with even a little more power. She no longer simply wishes for survival or entertainment, instead becoming driven to become nothing less than a goddess of death.
She is not necessarily hostile but behaves cold and aloof in regard to matters that don't involve the accumulation of power or displays thereof. Any setbacks are liable to incur the fullest force of her wrath.
Her appearance reflects nothing less than her aspirations, robes and gowns like the magic users of old, festooned with charms and gaudy ornamentation.
Psychotic Stitch, the Demon - The most hated and feared of Susan's personalities is referred to as "Psychotic Stitch" or simply "The Demon". A hellbroth amalgamation of parts that is driven by the sheer love of chaos and slaughter.
She has little interest beyond bringing hurting or killing others in any way shape or form, often baying for blood at the mere sight of another being. There is no pity or restraint in her actions, if she wishes to do something she simply does it and to hell with the implications. In this mindset nothing short of her own death will stay her hand once she get it into her head that something needs to die.
The body that drives Susan to such behavior is as equally monstrous as her actions.
Necromancy
Susan is still learning the magic of the dead but shows great aptitude for raising the dead and placing potent hexes on those that stand in her way. As stated she has even adapted this power to utilize parts of corpses to repair her own decaying form. Some say that due to this she is more undead than human at this point.
Surgery
Her first replaced pieces were done with everyday household items: needles, thread, a butcher knife and a circular saw. Since then though she has taken to stealing hospital grade medical equipment, including a battery powered bone saw. Since she never knows when she'll need a patch job or replacement she carries this equipment everywhere in a satchel slung over her shoulder.
Replacing anything a human might live without for a while is easy, slice off/out what is causing the problem and stitch the replacement on/in and perform the incantation so it reanimates properly. In the event of something more vital like a heart, brain or lungs, she will transfer her essence into one of her minions and work through them.
Despite the frequent reworking of her body with dead tissue she is still in constant pain the decay causes her, painkillers are fortunately still effective and she takes them in large doses just to stay "normal".
There are those who argue that she is truly undead at this point say that she doesn't really need to worry about organs or anything beyond the cosmetic anymore. Susan dismisses these claims, citing the pain she deals with day in and out is all the proof she needs that she is still very much alive.
Misc. Information
• Due to her condition her voice almost always sounds like that of a three pack a day smoker.
• Has been known to give "souvenir's" to those she becomes close to as a show of loyalty. These are usually former parts of her body bound in twine to form a sort of necklace, with teeth and patches of hair (both occasionally pulled out on the spot) being the most common.
Regardless of wether it actually was an original part of her body she still considers the sentiment to be the same and may be offended if it is refused or disposed of.
