MidwayLives
"What's your favorite scary movie...?"
Mistral's Puppetmaster
Artist's interpretation given scarce details obtained by insiders in his network.
Name:
His true name is said to have disappeared into the shadows. Any who might have known it met terrible fates.
'The Boss' 'Mistral's patron saint' 'The Shadow' to those who work for him.
'Grim Umbar' 'Mousse Géante' ' Kaki Velouté ' to some
He's gone through many aliases in order to keep his true identity a secret.
His current one when he's out 'indulging' himself is simply...
'The Mistral Murderer'
Canon
OC with heavy inspiration from Diavolo/Doppio from Part 5 of Jojo!
Powers/Abilities:
'The individual suffers from multiple personalities and there are three that dwell within him with their own needs and wants.
The main one and the one 'Jack' was born with (citation needed) is known as 'The Boss' and he has his hands in Mistral and has been trying to expand his reach elsewhere but due to Weiss Schnee's incredible leadership and Atlas's particular fortitude, progress has been slow. Nobody 'sees' The Boss and he works primarily through a series of proxies and middlemen. With them often passing off his messages/intentions for him. He's also been known to pass on orders/instructions through computer/scrolls. Some even believe that the 'Boss' as is doesn't exist and their criminal organization is run by a cabal of crooks or that it's all some conspiracy. Those who've tried going against the Boss or attempting to leave the organization have often wound up disappearing under mysterious circumstances.
The second's name is known only to the Boss. The locals have taken to calling it 'The Mistral Murderer' and it came about as a result of the Boss's murderous urges needing some kind of outlet. He couldn't properly run an organization if he was so focused on murder and perversions. This was the compromise and it's the personality that takes over when an urges strikes the Boss and he feels he needs to get out for a bit while also keeping in mind his paranoia. Hence why the Murderer personality often keeps his face obscured through whatever means necessary. It's also through him that a lot of the Boss's unhealthy and sickly urges surface.
The third is.... unknown. In his private moments, the individual refers to them as 'The Innocent.'
As nobody has connected The Mistral Murderer TO 'The Boss' and taking into account the various attire shifts/names both personalities have gone through, those who know of his semblance are usually those who've experienced it first hand. It's known as 'Schizoid Machine' and from the few eye-witness accounts leads one to conclude it's absolute manipulation over wind/air. From being able to keep an invisible barrier of wind around himself to throw off fists/feet from hitting their mark to cycling ammunition fired at him and returning it to sender or diverting it all together, he likens himself to being practically untouchable. The depths of the semblance don't stop there as they allow The Boss to levitate/float. His most common utilization of the semblance is to 'push' the wind. If he makes a 'grabbing' or 'pushing'/pulling gesture, he can summon/control gusts of wind to either throw a person off their feet/yank their footing right out from under them/knock debris over/send objects flying and more.
As the Mistral Murderer is a serial killer and not a professional fighter, he mostly tends to use the semblance in conjunction with his abnormal strength to throw the opponent off balance and grab ahold of them. Due to his being frame you might liken him to being a slow brute but he can push 'himself' with the wind by having a gust push him from one spot to another allowing for greater speed/dodging ability. He also tends to use it to mask his weapons and turn them invisible (similar to Arturia's Excalibur-thanks GG for that mention/reference!)
The Innocent doesn't much care for violence for violence's sake. But if anyone bad-mouths the Boss in his presence? He'll do everything within his power to see them DEAD.
Weapon:
As the Killer, the entity seems to favor two dual knives. Both made out of finely tuned steel that wouldn't look too out of the ordinary/special if not for the fact that he can mask them with his semblance leading to people wondering what's happened as they're suddenly gushing blood.
The knives themselves?
Eulogy and Epitaph.
He also has specially made gloves with gravity dust focused in the palms that allow him to draw his targets in.
Bio/Motivation(what makes them different from canon):
Mistral wasn't always the seeming hellhole that it is the present day. For a while it was one of it's kingdom's major cities-still is to a degree he supposed. You could come in and if you looked around hard enough, you'd eventually find something that caught your eye. The only question was whether or not it was illegal or legal and if it was the former? Who'd you have to bribe to turn the other cheek and how much would it cost you? That was of course the reality on the lower levels. The higher ones preferred to pretend as if they were better, nicer, superior to the rest. The boy who'd eventually grow up to become a key figure in Mistral's criminal world was born in one of the lower levels and he hated it.
Jobs were few and far between depending on what you were willing to do.
The boy did a variety of things. From carting deliveries to where they needed to be for certain deals, stealing when it was necessary, and even aided in some beatings if some people owed his bosses money and they were coming up more than a bit short. Some might have been content with that. To find a middle ground as an enforcer and to be happy with it. For better or for worse the boy grew to detest the idea of others telling him what to do and influencing his life and by extension who he felt HE was. If he was constantly subject to the whims of others what did that mean for him as a man? Was he going to be someone's errand boy for the rest of his life or would he strike out and forge his own path forward, unbound by the feeling and desires of those weaker than him? If they were too weak to stop him then they didn't deserve the power they held. Give it to somebody who could use it. Somebody like him.
He'd made up his mind.
Little by little he'd make his move and take out his former employers and hustle in on their turf. Those who knew him before he'd gotten mixed up in Mistral's seedy underbelly went missing and his family? Well, the official story is that they moved out of Mantle but if you listened to the rumors? He took care of that 'problem' himself. All to further his own deluded paranoia fueled agenda. He'd remain on top and to do that he couldn't let anyone get close to him. He couldn't let anyone know WHO he was.
He had to be more than just a 'Man.'
He had to become fear itself.
Over time, his influence grew as did his reach. Drugs, gambling, booze, and other vices, he went out of his way to try and stand on top of all those markets. All from afar giving out orders from the shadows, the fear of who the 'Boss' was and what he, no, they could do if their orders weren't precisely followed to the letter keeping those beneath him in line. Recently, he'd began dabbling in illegal weapons trading in certain venues throughout Mistral in order to help those downtrodden and scared and desperate for protection a chance to fight against the Grimm and those who hadn't believed bending the knee was in their best interests. Buy some weapons(some of dubious quality)or pay for protection. Either way it didn't matter. His enemies were being opposed and he was making a quick buck. But it wasn't enough, not for him.
His enemies would come around, just as they all did over time. He wouldn't mind crushing them first.
His efforts to try and find a major foothold in Atlas have been less than fruitful however. Many of those who'd he'd looked to as potential contacts/into the militarized kingdom was arrested. Schnee was a difficult one to test but he hadn't been beaten yet and he wasn't going to start now...
Weaknesses:
He's very VERY protective of his privacy when the 'Boss' is in control. To the point he'd rather flee a fight than risk his identity/face being discovered. It's such a subconscious fear that even the Killer'(who isn't aware that he's simply another of the Boss's personalities) hides his face for reasons known only to him.
When levitating or gliding, he needs a majority of his focus to be on the action and not outside stimuli. If say if an attack were to be successful, he'd lose the momentum of the wind he'd built up and would end up crashing downwards. The barrier around his person is also not impervious. Explosives still have a likely chance of being diverted before exploding but dust canisters are explosions on such a scale that he simply can't blow' away.
~~~
The Bound Ashes
After working his way up through Mistral's underworld, the boy that would soon become known simply as 'The Boss' to many solidified his grip on power and formed his own organization. The Bound Ashes was to be the name for everyone that joined swore allegiance not to their kingdom, not to their town, but to HIM. That bond would remain until they either did something to displease the gang/go against them in some way shape or for form. Thus they'd remain until their earthly days were over and they were little more than ashes drifting in the wind. Due to the growth of the organization over the years, it's been split up with different 'teams' handling/prioritizing different markets like one dealt with the drug trade, another with the black market supplying of weapons, others did good deeds for their communities/handled PR and some like the Hitman Team which handled assassinations(mostly of the gang's political enemies/journalists who said unfavorable things/authorities who wouldn't take bribes etc)took on more of the 'nastier' duties. Having seen the criminal underbelly of Mistral since he was a little boy, the Boss knew how to play the system and has stretched the Ashes's reach into other regions such as Vale and even has plans for Vacuo. Attempts to make potential footholds into Atlas/Mantle have been more than difficult however due to Atlas security catching wind of attempted meetings and arresting the gang's contacts.
As a whole though, the gang has three rules.
1: Don't embarrass the family. (This includes higher ranking members of the gang getting plastered/in trouble with the law. Or certain members getting mouthy when they shouldn't be and getting beaten up/assaulted by those stronger than them. The consequences for breaking this rule can range from a mere verbal thrashing to more...drastic measures)
2: Don't squeal on the family. (Although the Boss's reach is obviously quite impressive, there are some minions who slip under the radar and end up getting caught by authorities. Some of whom are less scrupulous than others and will gladly release the gang member in return for a hefty bribe/information. Giving away information on the family is tantamount to betrayal and those who break this rule will be liable to severe punishment, up to and possibly including death)
3: Respect your oath to the Boss (Everyone who joins is forced to reveal their semblance if they have one/what it can do so it can be marked down for future reference. They're also forced to swear an oath of loyalty to the Boss himself. There haven't been too many cases of it in recent times but after being unhappy with the pay cuts they've had to endure due to the Boss refocusing efforts to get a foothold in Atlas, the Hitman Team have tried reaching out to certain sources to try and find out the Boss's identity.
When the Boss caught wind of this?
The 'sources' were captured by two members of his Elite Guard and mailed to the Hitman Team carved up into picture frames holding individual pieces preserved in formaldehyde. If stacked up vertically, they'd see the entire horrific 'diorama' of what used to be a person with a simple message attached reading.
'Stop.'
It was a eye-opening realization of the Boss's influence and how far he was willing to go to preserve his secrecy. But there are still many secrets surrounding him and the gang as a whole, will they be uncovered...?
~~~
The Disposal of the Damned
Name: Shark.
'The Living Garbage Disposal'
'Man-Eater'
'The Cleaner'
Canon
OC : )
Powers/Abilities:
Having lived on his own for years, as far away from other as he could manage, Shark has quite the skill when it comes to stalking and hunting. He's also not above 'fighting dirty' if the situation calls for it. Biting, stabbing, kneeing or even drugging are all fair game as far as he's concerned. The last one is rare, however. Depending on the drug and how much of it is used it could foul the meat.
He's capable of hanging out underwater without any need to hold his breath due to his gills. He typically keeps them hidden however for fear of injury during battle. He's also entranced by the smell of fresh blood.
His semblance is 'And Justice for All...' and it basically creates an exact duplicate of Shark's intended target (he has to keep them within his line of sight long enough for the construct to manifest) and the resulting construct allows Shark to see through it's eyes, hear through it's ears and basically act as an automaton he can work through from a distance. It's not typically meant for fighting and is meant to be sicced on targets that generally can't afford to or physically can't fight back even if they wanted to. That isn't to say that the construct is a pushover at all. Far from it, it can smash through concrete walls with ease, dent steel walls/doors, and break bones of opponents who underestimate it. The semblance's usual purpose is meant to psych the target out and slowly drive them crazy/hysterical as only they can see/hear the construct. It can also copy the target's weapons (provided they have them on their person at the time of replication, otherwise, no.)
There are limits to 'And Justice For All...' as Shark cannot replicate Grimm extremities or semblances. Severe enough damage to the construct will break it/cause incredibly painful feedback to Shark.
Weapon:
Shark's weapon is his helmet/mask:
Megalodon.
Meant to resemble the back fin of a Great White shark, it's razor sharp and Shark has hard-light dust cartridges built into the helmet for added defense. It also makes for an incredibly potent/lethal headbutt if he manages to get his hands on you. Megalodon can also be removed and attached to a metal rod called Carcharodon carcharias to make an ax! CC has electric-type dust built into the shaft and so when Shark swings it, look out! Electricity can fly everywhich way and burn you while cutting you in twain! Megalodon can also be tossed, akin to a chakram or boomerang, and will return to Shark after it's initial toss due to gravity dust built into the sides of his helmet.
Bio/Motivation(what makes them different from canon):
Not much is known about Shark's past.
All that IS known is that at one point, he decided to just give up the ghost. Living among humanity (whom he saw as beneath faunus/little more than food, prey if you would) just couldn't mesh with him. So he went out on his own. Moving as far as he reasonably could from human settlements. Wasn't the easiest thing to do and the wash of negativity meant that Shark had to slay some Grimm here and there but at last he'd finally found some peace of mind. A lake that he could swim in and he'd get food for himself if he needed it. Occasionally a poor traveler would find themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time and end up disappearing. Shark would never tell you where even if he could speak (he prefers to speak through his constructs)
Having taken something of an interest in the urban legend of a 'wild man living by himself', the Narcotics Team sent a small group out to try and see if the rumors were true or if it was just some sick wannabe murderer getting too big of a reputation. When they found Shark, the meeting went south almost immediately with Shark injuring one of the three men and nearly killing a second. It was only thanks to being talked down at the last minute and threat of reprisals if Shark killed them that got the faunus to back down. Offering Shark a chance to work for the gang as they needed someone to help them collect debts, the faunus, much to their surprise, took them up on it. While he'd been relatively content with the life he'd been leading or trying to in relative seclusion, the thought of being PAID to hunt down humans sounded too tantalizing to pass up. The fact that he ate the corpses was a bit disgusting but if the Boss could overlook it, so could everyone else.
Shark didn't receive the warmest of welcomes upon returning with the others back to Vacuo. The Bound Ashes openly being anti-faunus didn't help and the Boss himself was an absolutely VIOLENT bigot. It was considered enough of a miracle that a faunus had been allowed onto the Hitman Team. It didn't take long for Shark to silence any critics. Baring witness to the sheer brutality and mental torment that he and his semblance could inflict on the gang's targets, he eventually found himself beloved by the rest of the Narcotics Team! It was though he was one of the boys!
But.
In his heart of hearts, Shark knew that they'd never truly accept him. For while he didn't mind their company and was fine with how things stood, he couldn't get past seeing them as prey. Just prey that'd managed to endear themselves to him and thus were saved from the chopping block. If any of them ever stepped out of line? He'd treat them like any other human and torment them, cut them up, and eat whatever's left.
Weaknesses:
Damage to his constructs made by 'And Justice For All...' is transferred back to Shark. Say for example if the construct's left hand is broken then Shark's own hand will break. If the construct is outright destroyed then a severe wash of pain falls over the faunus. Enough to temporarily debilitate him.
His gills are also a significant physical weakness if you punch em.
~~~
The Boss's right hand
"Ringringirngringinring!!~~~~"
ALIAS: 'Epitaph'
Name: Aurora Beige
Semblance: He claims to not have unlocked it.
Profile:
A sweet boy loved by all those who knew him, Aurora grew up with loving enough parents. if you were to ask him about his life, he'd tell you it was a 'fine enough childhood!' that taught him a lot of lessons he still uses in his life today!
....But today nobody even knows if he HAS family let alone any real friends.
He's always the person you'd spot out in a crowd with his bright pink hair and demure demeanor. He's friendly to a fault and usually polite without question. At the first sign of trouble he tends to balk and beg for mercy.
And yet he's one of the most dangerous people in the gang. Because unlike everyone else?
He has a direct line to the Boss himself. Their relationship is currently unknown but when Aurora speaks?
The Boss listens...
~~~
The Flame that Could Never Die
Name: Satin Jeune
Canon
OC : )
Powers/Abilities:
'Burning for You': It's an elemental semblance similar to The Boss's but instead of air, Satin can conjure up blue flames. The use of which can rage from simply desiring to immolate his enemies to blasting it from his hands to propel himself. The reason for his alias/nickname is that the angrier Satin is at someone, the hotter his flames burn. Auras can be eventually overwhelmed, bodies can be torched, corpses turned to ashes, all's possible with his blazing inferno.
Weapon:
Flesh to Flesh: a machete-type blade that Satin mixes in use with Earth-Type Dust, so that everytime he swings the blade and pulls a button across the handle, dust canisters slotted inside can activate and send rocks the enemy's way which Satin can THEN light ablaze with his semblance!
Bio/Motivation(what makes them different from canon):
Not much is known about Satin's life before he joined the gang or how he got the scar that blinded his right eye. What is known is that he's a suspect in numerous murder cases. Where the victims in question have been left as nothing more than charred skeletons. Thus, he's not seen out in public much these days. Still those close to him say that his murderous streak hasn't faded at all. If anything it's only gotten a boost with his increased self-worth thanks to his position as one of the highest people in the group. He does what he's told regardless because he knows that if the Boss ever finds his usefulness is dried up, he'll leave Satin out to hang.
Weaknesses:
His semblance isn't worth much on a rainy day or near huge bodies of water. He's also heavily reliant on it to the point that he'd rather retreat than stick around if his semblance is somehow neutralized.
~~~
The Chemist's Devil
Name: Émeraude Veloutée
Head of the Narcotics Team
Canon
OC : )
Powers/Abilities:
'What We Are In The Dark': Total darkness manipulation. Even controlling her own shadow isn't out of the realm of possibility with Emeraude's semblance. She can create spikes, tendrils, or even have her shadow attack an opponent. She can also use it to obscure herself by 'pulling' the shadows in any given room towards her and obscuring her. Many times the Boss has debated cutting her loose and having a former subordinate take her semblance believing it'd be perfect for him and much better in the hands of someone he could fully trust than a disgusting animal.
It can also swallow projectiles like gunfire, grenades, bombs, and so on with little issue. But perhaps the most terrifying aspect of Emeraude's semblance is what she can do to OTHERS with it. If she were able to pull you into her darkness, you'd find yourself trapped within a pitch-black void. Unable to see, barely able to hear the sounds of the goings on around you and the worst part is? You're stuck in there until Emeraude either dies or decides to set you free/deactivates her semblance. Many a test subject has gone mad within her darkness after Emeraude simply forgot about them. Who knows how many skeletons may be lurking in there...?
Weapon:
Devil's Baptism: A Dust-Imbued blade similar in nature to the weapons wielded by Adam Taurus and Raven Brawnen. In a similar regard to Satin, Emeraude has come to rely so much on her semblance that fighting without it is typically out of the question. To the point that she carries the scabbard for her blade across her back/summons tendrils with her semblance to wield the weapon for her, tossing the blade from tendril to tendril if the opponent cuts them down. The scabbard has a rotation of differing blades that's about at waist height for Emeraude so all she has to do is sheathe the blade, reach back and flick the rotator, and switch the blade out and rinse and repeat.
Bio/Motivation(what makes them different from canon):
Having been ostracized from her own village at a young age, you'd be forgiven for believing that it was an ignorant populace afraid of a 'monstrous' semblance. You'd also be wrong. Having gotten very much in touch with her semblance from a young age, Emeraude was a terror known far and wide across her village. Beloved pets would go missing and whenever they'd be found, they'd look like something straight out of a horror show. With various scars and wounds from different types of dust being experimented on them and missing limbs or other extremities. Or attempting to see if she could force an activation of aura through outright trauma. As she got older, Emeraude moved on from strays and pets and went after people in the village that she believed wouldn't cause a fuss if they went missing.
Besides, it's not like they'd ever find them with any traditional search parties. Bring the hounds, bring the huntsmen. They could search high and low but they'd never find them. Stuck in the depths of her darkness. Being old enough to rent out an old factory that'd been left to fall to ruin after the Great War, Emeraude continued her experiments. It didn't matter how many bodies she had to cut up, stitch back together, and go at it all over again. She wanted to see the depths of a person's ability to control their semblance and how it'd manifest in times of great turmoil and pressure. Enough was never enough for her and eventually it came back to bite her. One of her soon to be lab rats fought her off and ran to the authorities. Her lab was compromised and she only had enough time to grab her notes and flee before the huntsmen party showed up to arrest her.
For months she traveled from town to town, staying just long enough to get a good idea of who she could overpower and continue her tests on and fleeing when things got too hot. It wasn't until she found herself in Vacuo that her nastiness caught the eye of the Bound Ashes. It'd look terrible for the gang's reputation among the people if they just let this psychopath hunt down and kidnap innocent people. They might even start having second guesses about paying their monthly protection tributes. So, having noticed the work she'd put into researching both dust and semblances, the Boss-through Aurora of course-offered Emeraude a deal.
She could take a 'cozy' job as head of the gang's narcotics division and have an actual team to work with.
Or she could refuse and they'd tear her wings off and do Gods know what to her.
She accepted the deal of course.
Weaknesses:
Emeraude suffers from relying far too much on her semblance to practically do the fighting FOR her rather than treating it as a tool.
Extreme amounts of light can temporarily disable her semblance and leave her extremely vulnerable.
~~~
The Man Who Welcomed Hell
2nd in command of the Narcotics Team
Name: Cobalt 'Cobe' Blue
Canon
OC : ) But the faceclaim is the detective from Disco Elsyium!
Powers/Abilities:
'This Thing of Ours': Ever play the game Carrion?
No?
Well...
That's basically his semblance!
'This Thing of Ours' allows Cobe to manifest matter that continually absorbs other matter in order to increase it's size. Basically the more stuff he covers with this gunk, the more he has to play with. When he activates it, he can maybe manifest enough to defend himself with (a tendril or two or a snapping mouth of razor sharp teeth) but if he splatters it across enough stuff and it crushes/devours it/absorbs it into itself then you could have a real disaster on your hands! Before the gang got their hands on Shark, Cobe was who the Ashes would typically send to take care of rival gangs trying to step in on the Ashes's turf/pick up their customers or pry away potential business deals. Emeraude was often too busy with work to lower herself to the 'busy work' of raiding warehouses and buildings.
Cobe went in, looking like the epitome of a slovenly louse.
They never saw it coming.
He'd clear out the building and leave nothing behind to signify that he'd even been there.
Weapon:
Deadman's Tale:
Bio/Motivation(what makes them different from canon):
N/A
Weaknesses:
His semblance is GREAT for fucking shit up/leaving a gigantic mess and then being able to clean it all up. But there's not much it can do if Cobe is actually hurt/it can't heal as it goes against the semblance's whole purpose: it only takes, it doesn't give. Heat/extreme heat and fire also do a number on the semblance and will cause it to recoil/make it harder for Cobe to control.
He's also got a bad habit of getting drunk/high on his own supply.
~~~
'The Moneymaker of the Dead and Dying'
Name: Vio (Violet) Koamaru
Canon: OC. At this point it's kind of obvious, no?
Powers/Abilities:
Hasn't unlocked his semblance...yet.
Weapon:
'Blood Money': Having lost his arms during his time with the Ashes's Narcotics Team (for reference, Vio isn't really MUCH of a fighter. He's the guy you go to make sure all the books are straight and keep track of who owes what and how much) Vio had them replaced with prosthetics that allow him much greater physical strength than he ever had with his flesh and blood limbs. He's also gotten the arms modified so that he can fire out projectiles from his palm depending on what type of dust rounds are slotted into the back of his hand. He's thought about replacing his legs as well but the money and time just hasn't been there. He also has built in grip sensors on the fingertips allowing him to scale walls by crawling along them like a spider!
Bio/Motivation(what makes them different from canon):
N/A
Weaknesses:
As mentioned before, Vio isn't REALLY a fighter. He can scrap if he needs to but he'd strongly prefer leaving that to the heavier hitters like Cobe.
The Furious Demon
Name: Abyss Cerulean
Head of the Hitman Team
Canon: OC! As has been the case so far! Been using Picrew to make these fellas!
Semblance: Hasn't unlocked it. She leads the Hitman Team through sheer skill and respect alone.
Weapon:
The Devil's Dancer
Profile: Growing up in Mistral's lower levels, Abyss had an upbringing not too dissimilar from the Boss's. She'd seen what life was like down there. Drugs, weapons, dust, whatever you could sell and slap a price on? You'd bet your ass you'd have somebody waiting in line to buy a piece of it. But while the Boss eventually wished to dominate and control it, Abyss wished to work alongside the debauchery and work an amicable relationship with the scumbags that crowded Mistral's lower levels. Why try to control and force your hand and get everyone to stand against you when you could settle for second best? When the gang was first formed, Abyss was certain that she knew who the 'Boss' was. Hell, maybe she'd gotten a drink with him at one point.
Her efforts to confirm that would cause her team a great deal later on.
As she applied to join the gang, she was at first laughed off. Someone wanting to join who hadn't even unlocked their semblance? Maybe she'd make for a good grunt but not much more than that. The beating she gave the two goons who'd laughed at her caught the attention of one of the Boss's elite guards: Ghastly Ebony. The jester-like lad saw the brutal display of raw skill and put in his opinion that even without a semblance, Abyss would make for an amazing asset.
Word eventually got to the Boss and he approved.
Abyss would swear loyalty to him and become the leader of the Hitman Team.
After a show of force and some stern talking to, the respect of her fellow assassins wasn't truly earned until after a couple of missions together. So high on the believed superiority of their semblances/assuming Abyss would be dead weight, the other assassins were shocked to see just how skilled she truly was. Not to toot their own horn but with her in charge, the Hitman Team believed itself to be one of the gang's most valuable assets.
So it was with great shock that when they saw the dip in their pay. They knew that the Boss had been trying to make moves in Atlas and it just hadn't been panning out like he would have hoped. So he believed that throwing more lien at the problem would help 'figure it out' and the Hitman Team's salary suffered for it. They were understandably outraged, Abyss more so than anyone else. She'd fought tooth and nail to get accepted into the gang, swore that stupid oath, and all without a semblance and her boys were paying for the Boss's failures??? That wasn't going to fly and so the Hitman Team broke the the third and perhaps most important rule of the Bound Ashes.
'Respect your oath.'
Having hired some private investigators to do some digging on the Boss, all Abyss and her team could do was wait and see if any results came in. The operation of course stayed between all of them. The unspoken agreement was that if any of them tried squealing to the Boss? The others would murder them in a heartbeat. So, they waited and waited as the days continued to click on by...
Then one day a package arrived and another and then one more after that.
It was the PIs that Abyss had hired. Somehow the Boss had gotten wind of their plan and put a stop to it. The Hitman Team had already been on thin ice with the sudden lack of communication between them and the other teams but after breaking rule number three? Abyss knew that to keep her team safe from any further retaliation, she'd have to swallow her pride and do what she was told....what they were all told....
~~~
The Devilishly Dealing Duo
Name: Charred Lilac/Blanche Tranquille
Members of the Hitman Team
Canon
OC : )
Powers/Abilities:
Char: Null Zone: When activated it sets off an AOE effect that disables the semblances of anyone in Char's vicinity. Drawbacks are obvious in that if he's given a partner they need to keep their distance from him lest he end up turning off their semblance as well.
Blanche:
The Flame that Could Never Die
Name: Satin Jeune
Canon
OC : )
Powers/Abilities:
'Burning for You': It's an elemental semblance similar to The Boss's but instead of air, Satin can conjure up blue flames. The use of which can rage from simply desiring to immolate his enemies to blasting it from his hands to propel himself. The reason for his alias/nickname is that the angrier Satin is at someone, the hotter his flames burn. Auras can be eventually overwhelmed, bodies can be torched, corpses turned to ashes, all's possible with his blazing inferno.
Weapon:
Flesh to Flesh: a machete-type blade that Satin mixes in use with Earth-Type Dust, so that everytime he swings the blade and pulls a button across the handle, dust canisters slotted inside can activate and send rocks the enemy's way which Satin can THEN light ablaze with his semblance!
Bio/Motivation(what makes them different from canon):
Not much is known about Satin's life before he joined the gang or how he got the scar that blinded his right eye. What is known is that he's a suspect in numerous murder cases. Where the victims in question have been left as nothing more than charred skeletons. Thus, he's not seen out in public much these days. Still those close to him say that his murderous streak hasn't faded at all. If anything it's only gotten a boost with his increased self-worth thanks to his position as one of the highest people in the group. He does what he's told regardless because he knows that if the Boss ever finds his usefulness is dried up, he'll leave Satin out to hang.
Weaknesses:
His semblance isn't worth much on a rainy day or near huge bodies of water. He's also heavily reliant on it to the point that he'd rather retreat than stick around if his semblance is somehow neutralized.
~~~
The Chemist's Devil
Name: Émeraude Veloutée
Head of the Narcotics Team
Canon
OC : )
Powers/Abilities:
'What We Are In The Dark': Total darkness manipulation. Even controlling her own shadow isn't out of the realm of possibility with Emeraude's semblance. She can create spikes, tendrils, or even have her shadow attack an opponent. She can also use it to obscure herself by 'pulling' the shadows in any given room towards her and obscuring her. Many times the Boss has debated cutting her loose and having a former subordinate take her semblance believing it'd be perfect for him and much better in the hands of someone he could fully trust than a disgusting animal.
It can also swallow projectiles like gunfire, grenades, bombs, and so on with little issue. But perhaps the most terrifying aspect of Emeraude's semblance is what she can do to OTHERS with it. If she were able to pull you into her darkness, you'd find yourself trapped within a pitch-black void. Unable to see, barely able to hear the sounds of the goings on around you and the worst part is? You're stuck in there until Emeraude either dies or decides to set you free/deactivates her semblance. Many a test subject has gone mad within her darkness after Emeraude simply forgot about them. Who knows how many skeletons may be lurking in there...?
Weapon:
Devil's Baptism: A Dust-Imbued blade similar in nature to the weapons wielded by Adam Taurus and Raven Brawnen. In a similar regard to Satin, Emeraude has come to rely so much on her semblance that fighting without it is typically out of the question. To the point that she carries the scabbard for her blade across her back/summons tendrils with her semblance to wield the weapon for her, tossing the blade from tendril to tendril if the opponent cuts them down. The scabbard has a rotation of differing blades that's about at waist height for Emeraude so all she has to do is sheathe the blade, reach back and flick the rotator, and switch the blade out and rinse and repeat.
Bio/Motivation(what makes them different from canon):
Having been ostracized from her own village at a young age, you'd be forgiven for believing that it was an ignorant populace afraid of a 'monstrous' semblance. You'd also be wrong. Having gotten very much in touch with her semblance from a young age, Emeraude was a terror known far and wide across her village. Beloved pets would go missing and whenever they'd be found, they'd look like something straight out of a horror show. With various scars and wounds from different types of dust being experimented on them and missing limbs or other extremities. Or attempting to see if she could force an activation of aura through outright trauma. As she got older, Emeraude moved on from strays and pets and went after people in the village that she believed wouldn't cause a fuss if they went missing.
Besides, it's not like they'd ever find them with any traditional search parties. Bring the hounds, bring the huntsmen. They could search high and low but they'd never find them. Stuck in the depths of her darkness. Being old enough to rent out an old factory that'd been left to fall to ruin after the Great War, Emeraude continued her experiments. It didn't matter how many bodies she had to cut up, stitch back together, and go at it all over again. She wanted to see the depths of a person's ability to control their semblance and how it'd manifest in times of great turmoil and pressure. Enough was never enough for her and eventually it came back to bite her. One of her soon to be lab rats fought her off and ran to the authorities. Her lab was compromised and she only had enough time to grab her notes and flee before the huntsmen party showed up to arrest her.
For months she traveled from town to town, staying just long enough to get a good idea of who she could overpower and continue her tests on and fleeing when things got too hot. It wasn't until she found herself in Vacuo that her nastiness caught the eye of the Bound Ashes. It'd look terrible for the gang's reputation among the people if they just let this psychopath hunt down and kidnap innocent people. They might even start having second guesses about paying their monthly protection tributes. So, having noticed the work she'd put into researching both dust and semblances, the Boss-through Aurora of course-offered Emeraude a deal.
She could take a 'cozy' job as head of the gang's narcotics division and have an actual team to work with.
Or she could refuse and they'd tear her wings off and do Gods know what to her.
She accepted the deal of course.
Weaknesses:
Emeraude suffers from relying far too much on her semblance to practically do the fighting FOR her rather than treating it as a tool.
Extreme amounts of light can temporarily disable her semblance and leave her extremely vulnerable.
~~~
The Man Who Welcomed Hell
2nd in command of the Narcotics Team
Name: Cobalt 'Cobe' Blue
Canon
OC : ) But the faceclaim is the detective from Disco Elsyium!
Powers/Abilities:
'This Thing of Ours': Ever play the game Carrion?
No?
Well...
That's basically his semblance!
'This Thing of Ours' allows Cobe to manifest matter that continually absorbs other matter in order to increase it's size. Basically the more stuff he covers with this gunk, the more he has to play with. When he activates it, he can maybe manifest enough to defend himself with (a tendril or two or a snapping mouth of razor sharp teeth) but if he splatters it across enough stuff and it crushes/devours it/absorbs it into itself then you could have a real disaster on your hands! Before the gang got their hands on Shark, Cobe was who the Ashes would typically send to take care of rival gangs trying to step in on the Ashes's turf/pick up their customers or pry away potential business deals. Emeraude was often too busy with work to lower herself to the 'busy work' of raiding warehouses and buildings.
Cobe went in, looking like the epitome of a slovenly louse.
They never saw it coming.
He'd clear out the building and leave nothing behind to signify that he'd even been there.
Weapon:
Deadman's Tale:
Bio/Motivation(what makes them different from canon):
N/A
Weaknesses:
His semblance is GREAT for fucking shit up/leaving a gigantic mess and then being able to clean it all up. But there's not much it can do if Cobe is actually hurt/it can't heal as it goes against the semblance's whole purpose: it only takes, it doesn't give. Heat/extreme heat and fire also do a number on the semblance and will cause it to recoil/make it harder for Cobe to control.
He's also got a bad habit of getting drunk/high on his own supply.
~~~
'The Moneymaker of the Dead and Dying'
Name: Vio (Violet) Koamaru
Canon: OC. At this point it's kind of obvious, no?
Powers/Abilities:
Hasn't unlocked his semblance...yet.
Weapon:
'Blood Money': Having lost his arms during his time with the Ashes's Narcotics Team (for reference, Vio isn't really MUCH of a fighter. He's the guy you go to make sure all the books are straight and keep track of who owes what and how much) Vio had them replaced with prosthetics that allow him much greater physical strength than he ever had with his flesh and blood limbs. He's also gotten the arms modified so that he can fire out projectiles from his palm depending on what type of dust rounds are slotted into the back of his hand. He's thought about replacing his legs as well but the money and time just hasn't been there. He also has built in grip sensors on the fingertips allowing him to scale walls by crawling along them like a spider!
Bio/Motivation(what makes them different from canon):
N/A
Weaknesses:
As mentioned before, Vio isn't REALLY a fighter. He can scrap if he needs to but he'd strongly prefer leaving that to the heavier hitters like Cobe.
The Furious Demon
Name: Abyss Cerulean
Head of the Hitman Team
Canon: OC! As has been the case so far! Been using Picrew to make these fellas!
Semblance: Hasn't unlocked it. She leads the Hitman Team through sheer skill and respect alone.
Weapon:
The Devil's DancerProfile: Growing up in Mistral's lower levels, Abyss had an upbringing not too dissimilar from the Boss's. She'd seen what life was like down there. Drugs, weapons, dust, whatever you could sell and slap a price on? You'd bet your ass you'd have somebody waiting in line to buy a piece of it. But while the Boss eventually wished to dominate and control it, Abyss wished to work alongside the debauchery and work an amicable relationship with the scumbags that crowded Mistral's lower levels. Why try to control and force your hand and get everyone to stand against you when you could settle for second best? When the gang was first formed, Abyss was certain that she knew who the 'Boss' was. Hell, maybe she'd gotten a drink with him at one point.
Her efforts to confirm that would cause her team a great deal later on.
As she applied to join the gang, she was at first laughed off. Someone wanting to join who hadn't even unlocked their semblance? Maybe she'd make for a good grunt but not much more than that. The beating she gave the two goons who'd laughed at her caught the attention of one of the Boss's elite guards: Ghastly Ebony. The jester-like lad saw the brutal display of raw skill and put in his opinion that even without a semblance, Abyss would make for an amazing asset.
Word eventually got to the Boss and he approved.
Abyss would swear loyalty to him and become the leader of the Hitman Team.
After a show of force and some stern talking to, the respect of her fellow assassins wasn't truly earned until after a couple of missions together. So high on the believed superiority of their semblances/assuming Abyss would be dead weight, the other assassins were shocked to see just how skilled she truly was. Not to toot their own horn but with her in charge, the Hitman Team believed itself to be one of the gang's most valuable assets.
So it was with great shock that when they saw the dip in their pay. They knew that the Boss had been trying to make moves in Atlas and it just hadn't been panning out like he would have hoped. So he believed that throwing more lien at the problem would help 'figure it out' and the Hitman Team's salary suffered for it. They were understandably outraged, Abyss more so than anyone else. She'd fought tooth and nail to get accepted into the gang, swore that stupid oath, and all without a semblance and her boys were paying for the Boss's failures??? That wasn't going to fly and so the Hitman Team broke the the third and perhaps most important rule of the Bound Ashes.
'Respect your oath.'
Having hired some private investigators to do some digging on the Boss, all Abyss and her team could do was wait and see if any results came in. The operation of course stayed between all of them. The unspoken agreement was that if any of them tried squealing to the Boss? The others would murder them in a heartbeat. So, they waited and waited as the days continued to click on by...
Then one day a package arrived and another and then one more after that.
It was the PIs that Abyss had hired. Somehow the Boss had gotten wind of their plan and put a stop to it. The Hitman Team had already been on thin ice with the sudden lack of communication between them and the other teams but after breaking rule number three? Abyss knew that to keep her team safe from any further retaliation, she'd have to swallow her pride and do what she was told....what they were all told....
~~~
The Devilishly Dealing Duo
Name: Charred Lilac/Blanche Tranquille
Members of the Hitman Team
Canon
OC : )
Powers/Abilities:
Char: Null Zone: When activated it sets off an AOE effect that disables the semblances of anyone in Char's vicinity. Drawbacks are obvious in that if he's given a partner they need to keep their distance from him lest he end up turning off their semblance as well.
Blanche:
Beyond the Years-It's an AOE semblance similar in nature to that of Qrow's or Grey's. When it's activated, Blanc exudes a grey mist from his person that can fill a whole train car. The mist will slowly start aging those caught within it. Those who haven't unlocked their semblances/untrained civilians will be the most susceptible/at risk of dying from the effects of his semblance. Aura will slow the aging effect to a more gradula decline but it'll eventually bring out fatigue, fraility, aches, until the targets either keel over or Blanc is spotted while those affected are still in good enough condition to fight.
The effects wear off/the people return to normal if Blanc is either knocked out or killed.
Weapon:
Riot Control & Smooth Criminal
Bio/Motivation(what makes them different from canon):
The two hadn't known each other as kids or anything corny like that.
No, they'd met as teenagers. A bunch of punk jerkoffs who were little more than two-bit crooks. Blanche would use his charm (or whatever he thought passed as charisma) to distract the potential suckers while Char would move in behind and grab whatever looked valuable. As tended to be the case when lurking around Mistral, eventually the dynamic duo of idiots ran afoul of one of the Ashes's members. One by the name of Abyss Cerulean. The leader of the gang's Hitman Team: the folks they sent out when someone needed to be whacked and everyone wanted to be DAMN sure it happened.
Underestimating the criminal, Char activated his semblance believing that whatever surprises Abyss had in store would be worthless. No semblance could be used while in the AOE of Null Zone. This of course meant that Blanche couldn't activate his either. Something neither had thought about until it was too late. Abyss beat them both to a pulp but noted just how useful Char's semblance could be if he'd had any modicum of training to go along with it. Blanche got to stay alive mostly because Char threatened suicide if his bud got 86'ed while HE got to live. Shit just wouldn't be fair.
So, begrudgingly, Abyss took the two unruly delinquents under her wing and began training them up.
To be more than what they were.
To be killers.
Weaknesses:
Char's semblance, by it's very nature, makes it incredibly difficult for him to fight alongside other members of the team or the gang in general. It's a real pain in the ass to have to plan around and coordinate with the guy who could turn off your powers if you got too close to him. Which means that if there's enough enemies, they could potentially overwhelm Char before he could deactivate the Null Zone and call in backup.
Blanche is just an idiot.
~~~
'The Rookie.'
Name: Ame (Amethyst) Beige
Members of the Hitman Team
Canon
OC : ) Faceclaim is a genderbent Giorno!
Powers/Abilities:
Claims her semblance is unlocked but managed to get herself a spot on the Hitman Team without revealing it.
There's been theories depending on who you ask but no one knows for sure...
Weapon:
'Gold Experience'
Bio/Motivation(what makes them different from canon):[/FONT]
N/A
Last edited:
