Entry tags:
application - tlv
User Name/Nick: Stella
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stellationing
AIM/IM: N/A
E-mail: stellationing @ gmail.com
Other Characters: N/A
Character Name: Helen Magnus
Series: Sanctuary
Age: 274
From When?: end of 4x13: Sanctuary For None, Part 2, between the time when she blows up the Sanctuary and when Will finds her at the Underground Sanctuary
Inmate/Warden: Warden -- Helen's extensive life has revolved around helping humans and Abnormals coexist on Earth. Her life's work is to save and help unfortunate creatures, to protect them, to keep the public safe. The Sanctuary Network was founded on this principle and her life has been dedicated to finding Abnormals to protect them. She works with them, helps them. If possible, she reintegrates them into society, but if not, they are given a permanent residence at the Sanctuary. Until just recently, she had Sanctuaries across the world and though there is only the one now, her mission remains the same. As far as she is concerned, helping rehabilitate inmates on the Barge is literally just another day at the office for her. She believes very highly in redemption and getting help for everyone, if help can be given and received.
Item: A small book that she can easily carry in one hand and slip into a pocket.
Abilities/Powers: Helen Magnus may be human, but she’s also considered an Abnormal now. The Source Blood affected her in quite a simple and yet profound way: it gave her longevity, extended life. Helen has the ability to live forever, provided something else doesn’t kill her first. She can be physically injured -- though she’s immune to viruses, conventional illnesses, and the like -- and can even die from these injuries if they’re severe enough or left untreated. However, barring that, she will not die or age on a normal time-table. This is why she looks about 40 years of age despite being 274. Her IQ is also a bit higher than normal humans, another side-effect of the Source Blood. Physically, Helen is human, with slightly above average strength, if anything at all, because she’s capable of shooting up to a rifle with no trouble and fights quite well when pushed. She has also trained to defend herself, so she has a fighting style and can wield just about anything as a weapon. Guns are her specialty and she is a very, very good shot.
She speaks several different languages fluently in canon: English (her native tongue), Hindi, Zulu, Norwegian, French, Italian, Latin, Japanese, Cambodian, Spanish, can haltingly read the language of the Sanguine Vampiris race and that of the Praxians (which is similar to Summerian cuneiform, both of which she can read with help from a book), and can even recognize and decipher Morse Code. I would imagine she can speak the other major languages of the world because of her work with the Sanctuary network, as well as any where her Sanctuaries were once located (such as Chinese, German, Russian with bonus Cyrillic, and some of the African dialects, plus there's a mention of Portuguese) and Polish and Egyptian Arabic, as she's been in Poland and Egypt for extended periods (thus giving her the ability to recognize Arabic in general). Considering she spent five years looking for Tut’s tomb, she should also be able to recognize Egyptian hieroglyphics and decipher them with help from a book. Her specific fields of study (outside biology, anatomy, and chemistry) include medicine, teratology, crypto-zoology, and xenobiology.
Her medical skills have grown over more than a century, as she has seen the advancements from the 1880's up to 2012, and she is one of the most accomplished and well-learned doctors of the 21st Century. She has perfected her survival skills, able to make it through any situation using just the tools at her disposal. She also has an almost photographic memory and is a quick study as a result. She adapts quite well to situations and often uses that to her advantage.
Because of her emotional detachment, she is an excellent actress and can fool just about anyone who is not Nikola Tesla. Or, occasionally, Will Zimmerman, who cheats via his psychology degree. This means she’s also very good at reading people. Her brilliance normally allows her to manipulate her enemies in return, regardless of how much they are attempting to manipulate her, and she is very good at bluffing. She does not, however, have much in the way of defense against such things as telepathic and empathic abilities or mind control.
Personality: To put it simply, Helen Magnus is a brilliant mind with a lot of walls and layers. She’s an extremely calm and in control person –- in fact, she thrives on being in control of her situation and isn’t pleased when that control is taken away from her. She even says she's a chronic micro-manager and used to getting her own way. She’s not cold-hearted by any means, but rather calm and controlled. Her default expression is a pleasant smile and calm interest. Going hand-in-hand with her control issues is the fact that she keeps track of everything, from her daily schedule and that of every Abnormal in the Sanctuary right down to what day it is. Things are very wrong if she loses track of something. She has a decent sense of humor and can banter with the best of them. However, when something goes wrong, she buries her feelings, preferring to do the comforting rather than be the one who is comforted. Helen has many protective walls between herself and the rest of the world. Because of this, she is actually very selfish when it comes to her personal life. She would rather push people away and break relationships on her terms than risk losing anyone later on, despite what the other person might feel towards her. Helen considers her longevity to be a curse, not a gift. Having to live most of her life twice has also given her more time to think over all of the mistakes and decisions she has made over her long lifespan. She's well aware of everything she's done, both good and bad, and the weight of who she is and where she fits into the world hangs heavily on her. Guilt is something she carries every day of her life, though she rarely shows it. Despite her long, long life and occasionally wishing she could just lie down and not feel anymore (and actually having attempted to shorten her lifespan once), she is afraid of dying. Permanently dying. Only under dire circumstances would she be all right with the concept of death and only if her death is creative and done on her terms. Control. She's all about control.
Helen cares very deeply for her people. It takes quite a lot to break through her barriers and get her to trust -– mostly because she’s lived so long that she has trouble accepting and coming to terms with potentially outliving everyone she becomes close to –- but once that’s done, she attaches hard and fast to those she calls her own, and she would do anything to protect them. She is a realist at her core; though she holds optimism if there is any to be had, she will not tell someone the prognosis looks good if it does not. She is quite accustomed to getting her own way and is very aware of that fact, however unflattering she realizes it is. On the flip side, she’s not afraid to lecture when she feels the other person has done something to deserve it, and even she lets her emotions get the best of her at times; as a result, she has been known to overreact when pushed too far. Helen is very stubborn and proud as well. Once she gets an idea into her head, she will run with it, preferring to see it to the end rather than be dissuaded, especially if it involves attempting to save someone she cares about. She’s a Victorian lady through and through, very British to boot, and will not sacrifice her pride for very much. This makes her quite tight-lipped about her past and her personal life, though that also has to do with her general unwillingness to get too close to people. Her private life is her own and she will keep it that way.
She’s also a very accepting person. Having worked with Abnormals for so long –- and having been a woman in the fields of science and medicine during the Victorian era –- Helen knows what it’s like to be an outcast, to be different. She gives the benefit of the doubt to everyone she meets. She will never judge someone based on looks alone, only on their actions and strength of character, and she embraces the unknown. She doesn’t want to destroy, only to understand and appreciate the value of all life, not just that which is considered “normal” –- especially now that she is no longer “normal” herself. She has a thirst for knowledge because of this, drinking in everything that’s presented to her and enjoying it for the information she can gather from it, no matter how small.
Usually, she is calm and logical, but in the case of serious emotion or lives at stake, she has been known to lash out, physically and verbally. She’s generally not afraid of much, because she can usually outsmart or overpower her adversaries, even if they have abilities that she doesn’t, but the fear of endangering or losing lives is a very real one for her, one she strives to minimize as best she can. If she encounters someone poking too much at her emotions or her past, especially someone who knows which buttons to hit, she will more than likely walk away, refusing to deal with the problem so she doesn't risk blowing up. Her Victorian upbringing means she does the walk away routine often, closing herself away rather than dealing with heavy emotions. If she can help it, she avoids difficult discussions, either by changing the subject or ignoring the person completely. If she doesn’t want to talk about something, she won’t, and that’s the end of it. However, if something angers her enough, for instance if her hot buttons are pressed or her attempt to avoid a topic is ignored, she will bite back with venom, not bothering to censor herself as she normally does. Her biggest triggers are John and her daughter Ashley, the latter of whose death Helen blames on herself. Anyone who mentions these two without having enough knowledge of the actual circumstances –- or who claims to know more than they do –- will see Helen freeze emotionally. Ashley and John are the two subjects that can make Helen snap.
Helen plans for everything. Along with her preference for control comes a decidedly strong attention to detail and logical thought process. She takes every option into account, plans for every possible failure, every possible success, and can come up with the most brilliant and complex solutions to problems even in the most dire of situations. She’s also not afraid to make unpopular or otherwise difficult decisions and would rather drink coffee than cater to politics (which is saying something, as she considers coffee to be uncivilized). She knows the rules, perfectly willing to manipulate situations if she has to in order to achieve the desired results. She is willing to go to any nearly lengths to get the job done. Along this line, she’s a workaholic, known for putting in many, many hours as the head of the global Sanctuary network, even going so far as to skip sleep altogether if there's too much on her mind, and often gets so lost in her work that she forgets to eat. She only vacations once every seven years for an extended weekend at her private villa in Italy because that’s the longest she can stand sitting around doing nothing. She prefers to keep busy and it could never be said that she’s lazy.
Helen won’t put comfort over safety, preferring to go so far as to sleep with a gun under her pillow, even though her bedroom door is always locked. She’s a terribly light sleeper, which probably makes having the gun there a little more sensible. She’s very adventurous and hates being bored, often going into the unknown with a quip that there’s “only one way to find out.” The trick to her is that she knows well that the safety of the multitudes far outweighs the safety of a few, even if those few include her, her staff or even her own daughter. She’s had to make the difficult decision to risk killing herself, Will, Nikola, and even Ashley in order to stop someone from trying to either destroy the Sanctuary network or the whole world population. Helen knows where the importance lies and she will do anything to protect it.
Barge Reactions: Helen would view this as a unique opportunity, to earn something to help her Sanctuary and the Hollow Earth Abnormals rebuild Praxis, as well as to learn more about the world and universe(s) around her. She is nothing if not curious and would likely be hard-pressed to turn down such an opportunity. She can handle a great deal of things, from comedy to straight horror, and never turns her back on someone in need. As for the people, she would be there to help them all, to learn from them and teach them in turn. Her whole life's work revolves around helping people and creatures either reintegrate into human society or peacefully exist away from humans. Either way, Helen is good at sorting out conflicts and difficult situations, so she would be more than happy to continue that here. The floods and ports might confuse her in part at first, but she is not unaccustomed to strange things happening or alternate universes being implanted into her mind. She would handle these situations with care and be as much of a controlled support system as she can be for everyone else. Honestly, being here will be like just another Tuesday for her.
Path to Redemption: N/A
Deal: In a two-fold move that both aids her Sanctuary's existence and the efforts of others rebuilding their home, Helen would request anything related to Praxian advancements in Hollow Earth. Specifically, as long as getting the item doesn't screw the timeline at all (and she would be very specific about this), the holographic Praxian map and the book the storage/projection device rested on. She isn't entirely sure she trusts this deal, but if it works out, she's a step further than she was.
History: "I can promise you the adventure of many, many lifetimes."
Sample Journal Entry: Day 22: My ward appears to be doing well today. We have spoken several times over the course of the day and everything seems to be well, or as well as it can be. He seems a tad less agitated than yesterday and I will be looking into the cause of his overall state; however, better is better and if I can keep him on this course, I believe it will be quite good for his overall well-being.
Otherwise nothing is out of the ordinary. My time is mostly spent in the infirmary when I am not keeping an eye on my charge. I don't doubt that my, ah, colleague knows that and uses it to his advantage. Although, I did find something interesting in the infirmary today. The cork from a bottle of red wine. Fresh; if I'm not mistaken, it was opened today. I suppose that means I should find Nikola. He never does make requests the normal way. Why would he ever be boring when he could have me play scavenger hunt instead?
The question is... where is he? Ah, but that is the fun part, isn't it? I will simply have to find him.
Sample RP: There's a red stain on her papers.
Helen's day has gone easily enough thus far. No surprises and her charge has been amiable enough, though she suspects he might be hiding something. That is something she will need to look into. Her mind has spent most of the remainder of the day on the rest of her existence here, her reason for being aboard the Barge in the first place. As she passed by those she knew, she nodded, offering words of greeting. Outwardly, she had nothing to hide; inwardly, she always has everything to hide.
But now she has returned to the infirmary, her typical haunt, to a stain on her pile of papers. The culprit isn't hard to find. The cork of a wine bottle, standing perfectly upright, as though it had been intentionally positioned that way. Like an official government seal on the pile of notes from her day, both in the infirmary and after seeing to her charge. Helen has seen enough of those in her lifetime to recognize the sign this is. A wine cork, taken from a bottle of red wine and placed in this specific manner, could only be from one person.
Helen rolls her eyes upward with exasperation she doesn't even bother to hide, carefully grasping the dry part of the cork so she can pick the whole thing up and examine it. Red wine could mean any number of things. Most likely, the specific wine he has used is indicative of his mood -- the two of them rarely speak in actual words when they could showcase over a century's worth of knowledge of each other (or two in her case) through actions. It could also simply be a reference to the Source Blood that flows through both of their veins. Or it could be a reference to his specific diet. A frown crosses her face at that last thought. She would rather not imagine a scenario in which he might be losing control.
Which leaves her to the task of figuring out what type of wine this bottle is closest to. She doubts they have the same exact brands as Earth, or the Earth she knows, but it's important that she at least try to identify what this one most closely resembles. Is it a Bordeaux, a simple claret, Chateau Margaux? Or perhaps a Merlot? Something with a kick to it or something sweet? What mood is Nikola trying to tell her to prepare for?
"Oh, Nikola," she murmurs as she gives the cork a good sniff. "You never did like to make things easy."
It would be nearly impossible to find out the age -- she could give it a good guess if pressed, but really... No, actually, she likely should, as Nikola would use that in his "message" as well. In the end, she decides that the wine is closer to a recent Bordeaux than anything. Satisfied that she won't be waltzing into a depressed Nikola trying to get drunk again, though he might be feeling particularly nostalgic and/or flirtatious, she finally turns to leave the infirmary. First stop, his cabin. If he isn't there -- he should be, if she has read his message correctly -- then she will try the pub. If that doesn't prove fruitful... the library. Wherever he is, it's Helen's turn to find him. She has a few hours before she will need to check on her charge again, a few hours in which she can allow herself to relax for once in her life as she asks Nikola why he had to sully her notes with the cork of a wine bottle of all things. As though she doesn't already know the answer.
Her lips curl upwards just slightly. She can just hear Will saying, "Every time, Magnus! Every time." Nikola always does have a hidden agenda. The fun often comes in figuring out what it is. Perhaps he's the king of a lost tribe of wine connoisseurs and he wants Helen for his court. Or perhaps he has simply misplaced his cork.
Whatever the case, Helen will find out. Never a dull moment in the lives of two immortals and that's exactly how she likes it.
Special Notes: Nikola cameo done with permission from the player.
User DW:
stellationingAIM/IM: N/A
E-mail: stellationing @ gmail.com
Other Characters: N/A
Character Name: Helen Magnus
Series: Sanctuary
Age: 274
From When?: end of 4x13: Sanctuary For None, Part 2, between the time when she blows up the Sanctuary and when Will finds her at the Underground Sanctuary
Inmate/Warden: Warden -- Helen's extensive life has revolved around helping humans and Abnormals coexist on Earth. Her life's work is to save and help unfortunate creatures, to protect them, to keep the public safe. The Sanctuary Network was founded on this principle and her life has been dedicated to finding Abnormals to protect them. She works with them, helps them. If possible, she reintegrates them into society, but if not, they are given a permanent residence at the Sanctuary. Until just recently, she had Sanctuaries across the world and though there is only the one now, her mission remains the same. As far as she is concerned, helping rehabilitate inmates on the Barge is literally just another day at the office for her. She believes very highly in redemption and getting help for everyone, if help can be given and received.
Item: A small book that she can easily carry in one hand and slip into a pocket.
Abilities/Powers: Helen Magnus may be human, but she’s also considered an Abnormal now. The Source Blood affected her in quite a simple and yet profound way: it gave her longevity, extended life. Helen has the ability to live forever, provided something else doesn’t kill her first. She can be physically injured -- though she’s immune to viruses, conventional illnesses, and the like -- and can even die from these injuries if they’re severe enough or left untreated. However, barring that, she will not die or age on a normal time-table. This is why she looks about 40 years of age despite being 274. Her IQ is also a bit higher than normal humans, another side-effect of the Source Blood. Physically, Helen is human, with slightly above average strength, if anything at all, because she’s capable of shooting up to a rifle with no trouble and fights quite well when pushed. She has also trained to defend herself, so she has a fighting style and can wield just about anything as a weapon. Guns are her specialty and she is a very, very good shot.
She speaks several different languages fluently in canon: English (her native tongue), Hindi, Zulu, Norwegian, French, Italian, Latin, Japanese, Cambodian, Spanish, can haltingly read the language of the Sanguine Vampiris race and that of the Praxians (which is similar to Summerian cuneiform, both of which she can read with help from a book), and can even recognize and decipher Morse Code. I would imagine she can speak the other major languages of the world because of her work with the Sanctuary network, as well as any where her Sanctuaries were once located (such as Chinese, German, Russian with bonus Cyrillic, and some of the African dialects, plus there's a mention of Portuguese) and Polish and Egyptian Arabic, as she's been in Poland and Egypt for extended periods (thus giving her the ability to recognize Arabic in general). Considering she spent five years looking for Tut’s tomb, she should also be able to recognize Egyptian hieroglyphics and decipher them with help from a book. Her specific fields of study (outside biology, anatomy, and chemistry) include medicine, teratology, crypto-zoology, and xenobiology.
Her medical skills have grown over more than a century, as she has seen the advancements from the 1880's up to 2012, and she is one of the most accomplished and well-learned doctors of the 21st Century. She has perfected her survival skills, able to make it through any situation using just the tools at her disposal. She also has an almost photographic memory and is a quick study as a result. She adapts quite well to situations and often uses that to her advantage.
Because of her emotional detachment, she is an excellent actress and can fool just about anyone who is not Nikola Tesla. Or, occasionally, Will Zimmerman, who cheats via his psychology degree. This means she’s also very good at reading people. Her brilliance normally allows her to manipulate her enemies in return, regardless of how much they are attempting to manipulate her, and she is very good at bluffing. She does not, however, have much in the way of defense against such things as telepathic and empathic abilities or mind control.
Personality: To put it simply, Helen Magnus is a brilliant mind with a lot of walls and layers. She’s an extremely calm and in control person –- in fact, she thrives on being in control of her situation and isn’t pleased when that control is taken away from her. She even says she's a chronic micro-manager and used to getting her own way. She’s not cold-hearted by any means, but rather calm and controlled. Her default expression is a pleasant smile and calm interest. Going hand-in-hand with her control issues is the fact that she keeps track of everything, from her daily schedule and that of every Abnormal in the Sanctuary right down to what day it is. Things are very wrong if she loses track of something. She has a decent sense of humor and can banter with the best of them. However, when something goes wrong, she buries her feelings, preferring to do the comforting rather than be the one who is comforted. Helen has many protective walls between herself and the rest of the world. Because of this, she is actually very selfish when it comes to her personal life. She would rather push people away and break relationships on her terms than risk losing anyone later on, despite what the other person might feel towards her. Helen considers her longevity to be a curse, not a gift. Having to live most of her life twice has also given her more time to think over all of the mistakes and decisions she has made over her long lifespan. She's well aware of everything she's done, both good and bad, and the weight of who she is and where she fits into the world hangs heavily on her. Guilt is something she carries every day of her life, though she rarely shows it. Despite her long, long life and occasionally wishing she could just lie down and not feel anymore (and actually having attempted to shorten her lifespan once), she is afraid of dying. Permanently dying. Only under dire circumstances would she be all right with the concept of death and only if her death is creative and done on her terms. Control. She's all about control.
Helen cares very deeply for her people. It takes quite a lot to break through her barriers and get her to trust -– mostly because she’s lived so long that she has trouble accepting and coming to terms with potentially outliving everyone she becomes close to –- but once that’s done, she attaches hard and fast to those she calls her own, and she would do anything to protect them. She is a realist at her core; though she holds optimism if there is any to be had, she will not tell someone the prognosis looks good if it does not. She is quite accustomed to getting her own way and is very aware of that fact, however unflattering she realizes it is. On the flip side, she’s not afraid to lecture when she feels the other person has done something to deserve it, and even she lets her emotions get the best of her at times; as a result, she has been known to overreact when pushed too far. Helen is very stubborn and proud as well. Once she gets an idea into her head, she will run with it, preferring to see it to the end rather than be dissuaded, especially if it involves attempting to save someone she cares about. She’s a Victorian lady through and through, very British to boot, and will not sacrifice her pride for very much. This makes her quite tight-lipped about her past and her personal life, though that also has to do with her general unwillingness to get too close to people. Her private life is her own and she will keep it that way.
She’s also a very accepting person. Having worked with Abnormals for so long –- and having been a woman in the fields of science and medicine during the Victorian era –- Helen knows what it’s like to be an outcast, to be different. She gives the benefit of the doubt to everyone she meets. She will never judge someone based on looks alone, only on their actions and strength of character, and she embraces the unknown. She doesn’t want to destroy, only to understand and appreciate the value of all life, not just that which is considered “normal” –- especially now that she is no longer “normal” herself. She has a thirst for knowledge because of this, drinking in everything that’s presented to her and enjoying it for the information she can gather from it, no matter how small.
Usually, she is calm and logical, but in the case of serious emotion or lives at stake, she has been known to lash out, physically and verbally. She’s generally not afraid of much, because she can usually outsmart or overpower her adversaries, even if they have abilities that she doesn’t, but the fear of endangering or losing lives is a very real one for her, one she strives to minimize as best she can. If she encounters someone poking too much at her emotions or her past, especially someone who knows which buttons to hit, she will more than likely walk away, refusing to deal with the problem so she doesn't risk blowing up. Her Victorian upbringing means she does the walk away routine often, closing herself away rather than dealing with heavy emotions. If she can help it, she avoids difficult discussions, either by changing the subject or ignoring the person completely. If she doesn’t want to talk about something, she won’t, and that’s the end of it. However, if something angers her enough, for instance if her hot buttons are pressed or her attempt to avoid a topic is ignored, she will bite back with venom, not bothering to censor herself as she normally does. Her biggest triggers are John and her daughter Ashley, the latter of whose death Helen blames on herself. Anyone who mentions these two without having enough knowledge of the actual circumstances –- or who claims to know more than they do –- will see Helen freeze emotionally. Ashley and John are the two subjects that can make Helen snap.
Helen plans for everything. Along with her preference for control comes a decidedly strong attention to detail and logical thought process. She takes every option into account, plans for every possible failure, every possible success, and can come up with the most brilliant and complex solutions to problems even in the most dire of situations. She’s also not afraid to make unpopular or otherwise difficult decisions and would rather drink coffee than cater to politics (which is saying something, as she considers coffee to be uncivilized). She knows the rules, perfectly willing to manipulate situations if she has to in order to achieve the desired results. She is willing to go to any nearly lengths to get the job done. Along this line, she’s a workaholic, known for putting in many, many hours as the head of the global Sanctuary network, even going so far as to skip sleep altogether if there's too much on her mind, and often gets so lost in her work that she forgets to eat. She only vacations once every seven years for an extended weekend at her private villa in Italy because that’s the longest she can stand sitting around doing nothing. She prefers to keep busy and it could never be said that she’s lazy.
Helen won’t put comfort over safety, preferring to go so far as to sleep with a gun under her pillow, even though her bedroom door is always locked. She’s a terribly light sleeper, which probably makes having the gun there a little more sensible. She’s very adventurous and hates being bored, often going into the unknown with a quip that there’s “only one way to find out.” The trick to her is that she knows well that the safety of the multitudes far outweighs the safety of a few, even if those few include her, her staff or even her own daughter. She’s had to make the difficult decision to risk killing herself, Will, Nikola, and even Ashley in order to stop someone from trying to either destroy the Sanctuary network or the whole world population. Helen knows where the importance lies and she will do anything to protect it.
Barge Reactions: Helen would view this as a unique opportunity, to earn something to help her Sanctuary and the Hollow Earth Abnormals rebuild Praxis, as well as to learn more about the world and universe(s) around her. She is nothing if not curious and would likely be hard-pressed to turn down such an opportunity. She can handle a great deal of things, from comedy to straight horror, and never turns her back on someone in need. As for the people, she would be there to help them all, to learn from them and teach them in turn. Her whole life's work revolves around helping people and creatures either reintegrate into human society or peacefully exist away from humans. Either way, Helen is good at sorting out conflicts and difficult situations, so she would be more than happy to continue that here. The floods and ports might confuse her in part at first, but she is not unaccustomed to strange things happening or alternate universes being implanted into her mind. She would handle these situations with care and be as much of a controlled support system as she can be for everyone else. Honestly, being here will be like just another Tuesday for her.
Path to Redemption: N/A
Deal: In a two-fold move that both aids her Sanctuary's existence and the efforts of others rebuilding their home, Helen would request anything related to Praxian advancements in Hollow Earth. Specifically, as long as getting the item doesn't screw the timeline at all (and she would be very specific about this), the holographic Praxian map and the book the storage/projection device rested on. She isn't entirely sure she trusts this deal, but if it works out, she's a step further than she was.
History: "I can promise you the adventure of many, many lifetimes."
Sample Journal Entry: Day 22: My ward appears to be doing well today. We have spoken several times over the course of the day and everything seems to be well, or as well as it can be. He seems a tad less agitated than yesterday and I will be looking into the cause of his overall state; however, better is better and if I can keep him on this course, I believe it will be quite good for his overall well-being.
Otherwise nothing is out of the ordinary. My time is mostly spent in the infirmary when I am not keeping an eye on my charge. I don't doubt that my, ah, colleague knows that and uses it to his advantage. Although, I did find something interesting in the infirmary today. The cork from a bottle of red wine. Fresh; if I'm not mistaken, it was opened today. I suppose that means I should find Nikola. He never does make requests the normal way. Why would he ever be boring when he could have me play scavenger hunt instead?
The question is... where is he? Ah, but that is the fun part, isn't it? I will simply have to find him.
Sample RP: There's a red stain on her papers.
Helen's day has gone easily enough thus far. No surprises and her charge has been amiable enough, though she suspects he might be hiding something. That is something she will need to look into. Her mind has spent most of the remainder of the day on the rest of her existence here, her reason for being aboard the Barge in the first place. As she passed by those she knew, she nodded, offering words of greeting. Outwardly, she had nothing to hide; inwardly, she always has everything to hide.
But now she has returned to the infirmary, her typical haunt, to a stain on her pile of papers. The culprit isn't hard to find. The cork of a wine bottle, standing perfectly upright, as though it had been intentionally positioned that way. Like an official government seal on the pile of notes from her day, both in the infirmary and after seeing to her charge. Helen has seen enough of those in her lifetime to recognize the sign this is. A wine cork, taken from a bottle of red wine and placed in this specific manner, could only be from one person.
Helen rolls her eyes upward with exasperation she doesn't even bother to hide, carefully grasping the dry part of the cork so she can pick the whole thing up and examine it. Red wine could mean any number of things. Most likely, the specific wine he has used is indicative of his mood -- the two of them rarely speak in actual words when they could showcase over a century's worth of knowledge of each other (or two in her case) through actions. It could also simply be a reference to the Source Blood that flows through both of their veins. Or it could be a reference to his specific diet. A frown crosses her face at that last thought. She would rather not imagine a scenario in which he might be losing control.
Which leaves her to the task of figuring out what type of wine this bottle is closest to. She doubts they have the same exact brands as Earth, or the Earth she knows, but it's important that she at least try to identify what this one most closely resembles. Is it a Bordeaux, a simple claret, Chateau Margaux? Or perhaps a Merlot? Something with a kick to it or something sweet? What mood is Nikola trying to tell her to prepare for?
"Oh, Nikola," she murmurs as she gives the cork a good sniff. "You never did like to make things easy."
It would be nearly impossible to find out the age -- she could give it a good guess if pressed, but really... No, actually, she likely should, as Nikola would use that in his "message" as well. In the end, she decides that the wine is closer to a recent Bordeaux than anything. Satisfied that she won't be waltzing into a depressed Nikola trying to get drunk again, though he might be feeling particularly nostalgic and/or flirtatious, she finally turns to leave the infirmary. First stop, his cabin. If he isn't there -- he should be, if she has read his message correctly -- then she will try the pub. If that doesn't prove fruitful... the library. Wherever he is, it's Helen's turn to find him. She has a few hours before she will need to check on her charge again, a few hours in which she can allow herself to relax for once in her life as she asks Nikola why he had to sully her notes with the cork of a wine bottle of all things. As though she doesn't already know the answer.
Her lips curl upwards just slightly. She can just hear Will saying, "Every time, Magnus! Every time." Nikola always does have a hidden agenda. The fun often comes in figuring out what it is. Perhaps he's the king of a lost tribe of wine connoisseurs and he wants Helen for his court. Or perhaps he has simply misplaced his cork.
Whatever the case, Helen will find out. Never a dull moment in the lives of two immortals and that's exactly how she likes it.
Special Notes: Nikola cameo done with permission from the player.