Ear icon By Filipos Trineros in the Noun project.

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Dr. Grinker (23)

Project: YA Novel (Psi High)

Known as: Dr. Grinker

Real name: Lenard Grinker

Group affiliation: School staff

Physical description: Grinker is in his 50ies, though he looks more like he is in his 60ies. He is overweight, mostly bald (though he wears a terrible toupee which is dark brown on his remaining gray hair) and has a scraggly beard. His eyes are small and watery, and he sniffles a lot (maybe the poor guy has allergies).

Personality: Grinker seems perpetually distracted, as if he’s always thinking of something else no matter what he is doing. Furthermore, he can be testy when someone pushes him to pay more attention to the matters at hand. This carries over to his teaching, where he has memorized lectures to the degree that he is almost on autopilot when lecturing. Questions from the class disrupts this autopilot so he is often cranky and dismissive of questions when they come. Thus he is a lousy and mean teacher.

He is smart but not brilliant. He considers himself quite brilliant and feels the world has failed to properly recognize it. He is distracted as he’s thinking about his inventions and believing that one day they will succeed, and he’ll get the respect he deserves. So, add a little arrogance and delusion to the mix.

History: Grinker was a biology professor at a mid-level university. An Electi (hyper hearing) doing research on Electi, he managed to have some luck securing grants for his research. Largely around using biofeedback to enhance Electi abilities and the effects of certain herbs/chemicals on Electi. The problem was his work did not yield anything useful and both the likelihood of tenure and his grant prospects were starting to look grim.

He foolishly began to fudge research data to keep his prospects alive. While his “results” started to get him so notoriety, the inability for anyone to replicate his results called them into question. Not bothering to falsify the raw data, his subterfuge was eventually uncovered. A minor scandal emerged, and he was summarily dismissed.

However, he had used his abilities to overhear some information about and exchanges between key people. Some vague threats did help him get a position as a science teacher at one of the Electi high schools (Coldwater of course) as well as some minor funding to continue his research in a semi-informal way.

A terrible and irritable teacher his mind is usually on his half-baked ideas to enhance Electi abilities. Students can volunteer for his studies for mild compensation and privileges. This usually means the poorer and less successful students tend to most often be his test subjects. Several of the Omegas are practically forced to as part of their scholarships. Ironically, this does not include Jeep as his unusual physiology causes Grinker to not want to use Jeep in his studies.

Grinker has occasionally made a few students feel ill but otherwise has accomplished nothing with his efforts at Coldwater. He knows not to falsify data again but students (and even some of the faculty) fear he might start experimenting more wildly.

Role in the narrative: Grinker will drive some plot (Mateo will be falsely accused of theft by him). Largely, however, he is a bit of a red herring. The administration keeps enough of an eye on things that his more excessive impulses will be kept in check. Still, he will seem like a bad guy (because he is one) but he is not moustache-twisting evil. More of just an ineffectual jerk.

He will seem like a likely candidate to the students for more sinister events that occur.

Abilities: The most common form of Electi power is SSP. Where ESP (extra sensory perception) is rare, Super Sensory Perception is not unique. Someone with SSP can usually enhance only one of the senses, and it takes focus and concentration to do so.

Grinker can enhance his hearing with concentration, roughly to that of a canine. He does have to be careful, as a sudden loud noise close to him will cause him pain.

Inspirations: A little bit of Snape, I suppose, though Grinker isn’t effective enough to really be as sinister as Snape. Also, he has no personal axes to grind he’s just frustrated.

Icon By VectorBakery of the Noun Project

First time at this blog? Check out Home for details on the project and the Character Index for an overview of the projects and characters.

Jeep (22)

Project: YA Novel (Psi High)

Known as: Jeep (for GP, or guinea pig)

Real name: Henry Reams

Group affiliation: The Omegas

Physical description: Jeep is a scrawny, small-for-his age 15-year-old. He has sandy blond hair, straight as an arrow, cut in a bowl style. He wears thick glasses, old blue jeans and t-shirts with super heroes.

Personality: Jeep is a doormat. He’ll basically do anything in order to have people let him hang out with them. Given his powers, this includes letting them bruise him, give him a fat lip or a black eye, and the like. He just likes the attention and will cover with the administration if any questions are asked (after all, he let the other kids hurt him). He’s the kid that takes any dare or does anything for a dollar really, he’s doing it for the attention (and his power protects him from his foolishness).

He is a sad, lonely kid. He’s not particularly exceptional at anything and this makes him have low confidence. In another school he’d be able to find others who shared his interests (B-grade horror films and comics), but Coldwater is so exclusive that he doesn’t have much luck in this department. He is grateful to the Omegas that he is allowed to hang out with them but even with them he feels like he doesn’t really fit in and they tolerate him out of pity.

History: Jeep only needed a few things to fall his way and his life would have been different. Born to an upper-class Electi family, both his parents were psychic healers and doctors. In the world of Psi High, the mere presence of healers promotes health. While they can’t lay hands on people and instantly cure cancer or the like, people around them are less likely to get sick, have infections, etc. and are also more successful recovering from ailments and injuries. This improvement has been scientifically demonstrated (it’s not just a belief), so healers are very prized Electi (especially as medical professionals).

Jeep’s parents were very successful and planned to focus on their careers rather than family. Jeep was both a bit of a surprise and the result of some carelessness. Still, they loved and wanted him, it’s just that growing up their careers, causes, and social events kept them very busy. He had any number of affectionate caregivers but was a very undemanding child that was easy to ignore. This made him a bit of a loner, while at the same time desperate for attention.

Things didn’t improve once testing revealed his Electi power in adolescence. Jeep was a healer like his parents and an unusually strong one, but with a caveat. Jeep was the rare healer whose power was only focused inwardly. Thus, he was hale and healthy, recovered quickly from injuries, and was resistant to poisons and the like. While amazing, the problem was he could not improve the health of others. This made him a disappointment to his parents and really anyone else who heard about it (“You are a healer! Great! My uncle has this thingwhat’s that? You can’t heal anyone else? Umm. Well, that’s nice for you, I suppose”).

Once uncovered, his classmates would have some fun “testing his power.” What would happen if someone drank this glue? What if they snorted this candy? Henry was game to try lots of things, because at least people were paying attention to him. This got him the nickname “guinea pig” since people liked to test things on him. Later this was shortened to “GP” and still later to “Jeep.”

It would be bad enough if this was just a cruel nickname from cruel kids but Jeep also sees it has his future. There has already been interest from people around testing him to see if his ability can be replicated. If not that, he is the most low-risk human test subject on the planet. Note that while he recovers from things quickly and thus the duration of painful events is shorter, he still feels pain.

So a sad kid with a sad future. Of course, were he to find a way to use his power to improve himself

Role in the narrative: Poor Jeep. I’m afraid he’s going to be a tragic figure in the work. The history above describes his state at the beginning of the story ignored, picked on, etc. Selena and the Omegas are kind enough to him but their pity in some ways upsets him more than those who “play” with his powers. He will be a minor character by design early in the story, easy for the reader (just like everyone else) to ignore and forget about.

At some point, he’ll realize he can use his power to control his body to a greater degree. He’ll put on quite a bit of muscle and become a jock. He’ll attribute it to a “growth spurt,” but in truth he’ll be directing his body to develop that way. Given testosterone will be key to this, his personality will also shift (yes, bit of a steroids allegory here). He’ll become more popular but also move from an abused to an abuser.

Worse still will be when he tries to address his aggressive tendencies by manipulating his neurotransmitters. Eventually he will discover he can make himself euphoric any time he wants, and that will be the ultimate end of him (yup, drug allegory).

BTW, the automotive “Jeep” came from the military’s General Purpose vehicles, called “GP” and ultimately “Jeep.” I just expanded it to “guinea pig.” I think it will seem like a derogatory nickname early in the story, but kind of a cool one later.

Abilities: Jeep is a super self-healer. All traces of small injuries bruises, black eyes, fat lips tend to vanish within a day. A broken bone can heal in a couple of weeks. His body is fast to reject toxins, diseases, and bacteria, so he is usually fine. Give him arsenic and he’ll most likely vomit it up quickly and survive.

But he’s not Wolverine. He couldn’t be a super-soldier or the like because his healing isn’t so fast that he’d recover from a fatal gunshot wound (it would just be fatal).

Later he’ll find with concentration/meditation he can influence his body’s processes. So, without particularly exercising he can encourage his body to develop muscle. He will also be able direct the chemicals in his body to some degree (things like adrenaline, serotonin, and the like).

Inspirations: Man, in an effort to avoid one cliché you get pushed into another. I wanted to have a “psychic healer” type, but then remembered Psi-Force had one. So, I thought I’d do a variation, and ended up with Wolverine-lite. Still I like the “Jeep” (from guinea pig) thing and believe he will be an interesting allegory for a few things (which, of course, might end up making his character preachy I think the key will be that the downfall of Jeep was he never found true confidence in himself).

Icon from Saishraddha Malage at the Noun Project

First time at this blog? Check out Home for details on the project and the Character Index for an overview of the projects and characters.

Maria Reyes (21)

Project: YA Novel (Psi High)

Known as: No nicknames

Real name: Maria Reyes

Group affiliation: The Omegas

Physical description: Maria is 16-year-old Hispanic young woman (she is Mateo’s fraternal twin). He has dark eyes and hair (wavy to her shoulders) and is overweight. She is attractive and has a warm smile that is very rarely on display.

Personality: Maria is warm, fun, and funny. She is confident and teases her brooding brother mercilessly. She is nosey and has boundary issues but is overall hard not to like. Still she finds small talk tedious and enjoys spending her free time alone or with close friends. Selena likes Maria but suspects more is going on with Maria than Maria reveals.

It turns out Maria REALLY has boundary issues.

History: See Mateo’s entry for their shared history. Maria loves her brother but finds him to be overprotective. Also, they are examples of how shared experiences can have different results. While the unfairness of the world has made him cynical and withdrawn, Maria never expected fairness from the world. So, when it happens she is more apt to take it in stride. Since stuff happens, Maria is keen to enjoy things when times are good.

Her difference in perspective is also due to her powers. It’s harder to feel trapped when you feel like you can escape at any time. Her powers also give her a unique perspective on her physicality. She knows for a fact that her body is not her, so she can be lackadaisical about her appearance and health.

Her powers also cause her to take others a bit less seriously. She knows that the public face people show is not the real them (even the most confident person is hiding some secrets). It’s harder to feel intimidated by people when you can see them in private moments. She is like her brother in hiding her true potential (knowing that people wouldn’t take her abilities well).

Despite her warmness, she is very much an outcast (and Omega). Given she is known to have fainting spells, it is not unusual for her to spend the day in a wheelchair. While tied to her power, rumors abound that her fainting spells are sometimes faked (Mateo’s reputation doesn’t help here).

Nice as she is, her voyeurism is a moral weakness. But how many people would spy on others if there was no chance of getting caught?

Role in the narrative: Characters like Maria can be highly useful when you need a key piece of information handed to your protagonist (need not to abuse that). But mostly I find her power interesting. Maria loves using her power. She might at some point abandon her physical body completely. The only thing that prevents her from doing so is her inability to interact with others in her astral state.

Down the road I might even have her ultimately reside in a different body (which opens up some interesting social commentary).

Abilities: Maria can astrally project her soul outside her body. In this form she is invisible and intangible, but can still see and hear things (she cannot physically interact with the world). She can fly, traveling vast distances very quickly. She is able to go anywhere.

The limiting factor is that her body is vulnerable while she isn’t in it, and there is a limit on how long she can be away from it.

Everyone believes, btw, that she is a simple clairvoyant. She has no reason to disabuse them of the notion. Where clairvoyants can see things happening some distance away (usually in an uncontrolled fashion), Maria’s ability is more powerful.

Inspirations: I’m a little worried I’m ending up a little too Psi-Force here. Not in terms of characters, just in terms of teenagers and powers. I have no plans to have them create any merged entities and whatnot, but don’t want to line up too closely. Still, not like Psi-Force invented these powers, either.

Icon above originally from Alexander Skowalsky in the Noun Project.

First time at this blog? Check out Home for details on the project and the Character Index for an overview of the projects and characters.

Mateo Reyes (20)

Project: YA Novel (Psi High)

Known as: No nicknames

Real name: Mateo Reyes

Group affiliation: The Omegas

Physical description: Mateo is 16-year-old Hispanic young man. He has dark eyes and hair (cut short), is of average height, and is lean and muscular. His aloofness causes him to not make eye contact with people regularly, and he often keeps his eyes down and his hoodie up. This means he doesn’t always get a second look but when he does people realize he is quite handsome with chiseled, well-defined features.

Personality: Mateo is cynical and aloof. He does not trust easily, as he has seen too many people betrayed and mistreated. He does not see being an Electi as a blessing that elevates him, rather he feels it resulted in him being surrounded by people with agendas the kind he feels like he can trust the least. He doesn’t like fake people and finds most people fake. Rules and administration are means to control the people in his mind. So while he doesn’t seek to do wrong, he certainly doesn’t hesitate to break the rules to do what he feels is right. This results in him having a bad boy reputation.

It is undeserved. Mateo believes that the system works against the little guy and he has tremendous sympathy for the little guy. If he perceived someone as disadvantaged, he is quick to step in and defend them. He is pretty much fearless, so it doesn’t matter who the abuser is. As a result, even though he is neither talkative nor particularly social, he becomes the core (leader) of the Omegas. The misfits of the school either hang with him because he has helped them in the past, or simply sense he is a protector.

And they are right. He is loyal to a fault. No one frustrates him more than his sister (Maria, who doesn’t put up with his brooding), yet he’d crash through the gates of hell for her. Once he has connected with you, and found you “real,” he’ll give you the shirt of his back (though with an eye roll of frustration). As a result, he takes betrayal very, very hard.

He is first drawn to Selena as he suspects she is someone the Alphas will exploit and take advantage of. When he discovers that she is more than capable of taking care of herself, he falls for her. His affection for her is hard on him, as she won’t declare herself a member of one group or another. He admires this but at the same time it makes him uncertain he can trust her. The fact she seems to have feelings for both him and Ethan doesn’t help matters.

“Then Selena saw it Mateo smiled. In all the time she had known him, she had not seen a genuine smile. And it was transformative. While always handsome, Mateo was beautiful when he smiled. Perhaps because it was so rare, it seemed more real than any smile Selena had ever seen. It was made of light. He realized he was smiling, and it melted to a lopsided grin. It was as if his smiles were gifts he doled out hesitantly, and she had just stolen one from him.”

History: Mateo and Maria are from a working-class family. Electi are not unusual in their family and in history they were Brujeria and spiritualists. They are still dedicated to their community and appreciated by their neighbors. However, their abilities never resulted in fame nor fortune for the family.

We will find out over time that Mateo’s family were unfairly treated by the authorities and the criminal elements of the community. This has made Mateo cynical and withdrawn against his fundamental nature.

His time at Coldwater Academy has done little to change his perspective. It is a microcosm of classism with the powerful and pedigreed students enjoying advantages over the others. He is drawn to and protective of the less powerful students and has broken the rules when he thought it necessary to balance the scales. This has made him an easy target for blame when anything happens and early in our story he will be blamed for a crime he didn’t commit.

The administration would just as soon expel him but the laws around the training of Electi reduce their options on this front. While protective of others, he tends to quietly accept injustice towards himself. His goal appears to be to survive high school and go back to his real life.

He is not however a complete loner. He loves his sister who keeps him from withdrawing too much. Though he won’t admit it he also likes his fellow Omegas and appreciates their company (it is the only community he has at the school).

Selena’s arrival complicates things for him. Early on he tries to intercede when he things Selena is being treated unfairly only to find that Selena can take care of herself. Her sympathy towards her as a potential outcast turns to admiration. He is very drawn to her but isn’t completely sure he can trust her as she seems to reject being pigeonholed into a certain group. He loves her but she fears she may end up an Alpha.

Selena also helps him (she isn’t as accepting towards injustice aimed at him as he is). This is something of a new experience for Mateo as he is usually the protector. Things become more complicated when he hurts a fellow student (in self-defense) when Selena can’t be completely sure he didn’t take more extreme action than he should have.

Mateo has a hero’s heart but he might need Selena’s help to learn to let go of some cynicism and recognize his own prejudices.

Role in the narrative: The third point in our love triangle. Mateo and Ethan are sides of a coin. From opposite ends of the social spectrum, they both have a decency that has been tainted by their experiences. Their natural rivalry is exacerbated by Selena (who in turn has zero patience for people “fighting over her”).

He is also a key plot driver (see abilities as well). Early on Selena exonerates him of a wrong doing, only later for Mateo to use his power in a very questionable way in self-defense. This makes Selena question Mateo and Mateo question himself. Selena is ultimately able to undo some of the damage Mateo did which still increases his gratitude to Selena as he regrets his actions. This starts him on a journey to take a harder look at himself.

BTW, I don’t know how the love triangle resolves itself. I doubt I can write a good one unless I feel both relationships are contenders (in fact, Selena may end up with neither they both need her more than she needs either of them). OTOH, I am rooting for Mateo.

Abilities: Mateo is a telekinetic (like Ethan another source of rivalry). However, where Ethan is seen as very gifted, Mateo is considered a marginal talent. He can only affect small objects around the size of a marble.

There are a few things that suggest that this assessment may not be accurate. First even though he can only move small things, he can move them very quickly and with tremendous precision. As the scale of power for telekinetics is whether they can lift as much with their minds as they can physically, his low rating does not account for these skills. Yet they are truly exceptional and unmatched.

Furthermore, Mateo has abilities he hides due to his mistrust of authority. Virtually all telekinetics have to see things to move them. Mateo has a sort of telekinetic sonar. He can touch an object and sense and manipulate the mechanisms within it. This means he can open locks and the like without being able to see the inner workings with his eyes. This also means that he can do some truly nasty things to a person he touches if he chooses to do so (small movements can be devastating in parts of the body).

Mateo will drive part in one final way he is secretly a “blocked Prime.” He actually has the extreme power of the type of elite Electi that has hidden itself from the world. One of the ways they maintain their secrecy (and their power in the hands of a few) is that they detect those with tremendous potential and have their telepaths place a mental limit on their abilities. In extreme circumstances this means these blocked Primes could be activated but otherwise they are no threat to either the secret or power of the Prime cabal.

What would be a threat is an unknown Prime telepath that has slipped between the cracks (one so gifted, she instinctively hid her potential). Such a telepath might remove these blocks, and Primes with power equal to the cabal but outside their control would be active. Cabals don’t like such things.

And Selena is just such a telepath. Which means one day Mateo might become an extremely powerful telekinetic.

Inspirations: I’ve been watching some Gotham lately, and Ben McKenzie might have put Ryan Atwood of the OC in my brain. Mateo may evolve into a Tatsuo type from Akira (though minus the lunacy and so forth). The inspirations for Psi High might be relatively short because I’m playing with archetypes, which means the inspirations are many and hard to specify (misunderstood guy from wrong side of the tracks pick the one you like most for my inspiration here).

First time at this blog? Check out Home for details on the project and the Character Index for an overview of the projects and characters.

Cassidy Crisswell (19)

Project: YA Novel (Psi High)

Known as: “Cassy”

Real name: Cassidy Crisswell

Group affiliation: The Alphas

Physical description: Cassy is 17 with long blond hair and blue eyes. She works very hard on her appearance (in the gym, clothing store, and vanity). She is attractive but is a bit overdone.

Personality: Cassy is reserved and haughty and is talented at passive-aggressive shade. Secretly she carries a lot of anxiety that she will be uncovered as a fraud. Though a member of the Alphas she feels she is lacking in the power (she is in due to being a rare telepath, but she is not a powerful one), social status, or talent to really deserve to be there. Her biggest fear is to be pushed out of the Alphas and she sees Selena as a threat.

History: Cassy has a few things in common with Selena. Though Electi were not unheard of in her family, she was a surprise telepath. When this was revealed, her life took a left turn. From a more blue-collar family, Cassy grew up liking sports, rough-and-tumble games, and exploring. She was never a great student, so a non-physical gift challenged her self-image.

At first, she thought attending Coldwater would give her an opportunity to redefine herself. Instead it was like she put on a disguise that she couldn’t take off. Spinning herself as a confident, high-class beauty creates a great deal of stress. The main way she deals with the anxiety is by reassuring herself that, as long as she is an Alpha, the deception is working. Her greatest fear, then, is losing this status.

She therefore chooses her friends, activities, and nearly everything based upon what she thinks will help her stay an Alpha. She has sustained this for enough years that she is now challenged to even know what she, herself, wants. This is exacerbated by her telepathy. Though she is relatively weak, it is still a strong empath and good at reading other people. This places still more demands on her to try to behave in a way that the Alphas react to in a positive way, while she also feels guilty for the way she sometimes makes others feel to meet that demand.

When Selena, another telepath, joins the school Cassy immediately perceives a threat. Worse still, her telepathy gives her a sense of Selena’s underlying confidence which alarms her still more. Finally, when it is clear that Selena might be one of the most gifted telepaths to come to the school, Cassy becomes downright worried. Cassy undertakes a mission to undermine and limit Selena. This results in still more guilt, as she instinctively knows Selena is a good person and has a similar background to her own.

Role in the narrative: Cassy is the frenemy. One common aspect of high school is how confusing your peers can be. Enemies become friends and vice versa sometimes on a daily basis. You can’t always be sure of someone’s sincerity (are they asking me out to make someone else jealous?). Given in high school we also aren’t sure of ourselves, it’s all a pretty volatile mix.

The thing I like about the Selena/Cassy dynamic is that Cassy will be overtly the mean girl. At the same time, Selena’s telepathy will suggest a mismatch between Cassy’s actions and her underlying feelings. It will be mystifying for Selena to know how to react to Cassy. I hope ultimately they end up friends some “evil” people just need some help and understanding.

Abilities: Cassy is a telepath, but not a strong one. It is very difficult for her to pick up specific thoughts, and she has shown fairly little advancement across the years of school. Still, with focus she is extremely good at reading people. It is hard to lie to her, and she senses the motivations behind people’s actions.

Inspirations: The mean girl with secret insecurities is an archetype (or even a trope). As a result it is in a million things (I think the most recent instance for me was a Netflix movie maybe “Sierra is a loser” or something).

Icon – yugudesign from Noun project

First time at this blog? Check out Home for details on the project and the Character Index for an overview of the projects and characters.

Ethan Coldwater (16)

Project: YA Novel (Psi High)

Known as: “Quake”

Real name: Ethan Coldwater

Group affiliation: The Alphas

Physical description: Ethan is 16, handsome, and athletic. Stylishly cut chestnut hair, and very striking pale blue eyes.

Personality: Ethan is a confident young man who is very laid back. Most things in life has come easily to him but he is not adverse to hard work and practice to master something. At times he can be arrogant, and certainly has some level of contempt for lesser-powered Electi and non-Electi. Time will tell if he will grow out of or into this.

History: It is not coincidence that Ethan shares a name with the school he is attending as he is descended from its founder. His family not only has some of the more psychically powerful known Electi but also is one of the more financially and politically successful. Note that the Electi are barred from holding office but they have strong ties with many political leaders and are the driving force behind the lobby for Electi rights.

So Ethan is a celebrity in the high school, and rich to boot. Add to that he is good-looking and talented and it is no surprise that he is one of the most popular and influential kids in school. He is arguably the leader of the Alphas, a circle of friends consisting of the elite of the school (note some upper classmen would not acknowledge Ethan’s leadership). Several of the Alphas can be cruel in an effort to display their dominance but Ethan tends to support the Alphas behaving more charitably.

To some degree, this is due to Ethan being kind. However, he does feel there are classes of people, he just thinks that the more gifted and higher classes should be charitable to those who aren’t as blessed. Unfortunately this means he has a casual contempt for the less gifted that he himself isn’t fully aware of.

Though not the oldest he is the golden child of his family. Though his family has high expectations of him, Ethan has a confidence that keeps him from feeling pressure here (just responsibility). His future is laid out for him and he views it as destiny.

It would be good for him to perhaps get a new perspective on others, and Selena might just be the ticket for that. Although he is initially kind to her out of magnanimity, he later begins to see that she is exceptional (looks, intelligence, power, etc.). This surprises him due to her humble origin, but he sees in her a budding Alpha (and maybe something more).

Role in the narrative: Ethan is a love interest. I don’t have much experience in the romance genre (I don’t have much experience in ANY genre), so for our love triangle I’m sticking with some archetypes. Ethan is the king of the high school, who can have any girl he wants, but might be falling for the new girl (maybe in part initially because it’s not so obvious that he can get her). Selena finds him attractive and does note his many good qualities. Still she worries about his classism and is wary of the popular kids. If Ethan grows to let go of some of his prejudices, they just might have a future together.

Also, the secret cabal of very powerful Electi (ok I’ll make it less secret: the Primes) actually find the Coldwaters to be a thorn in their side. They would much rather the powers that be believe they have the Electi well contained, and the Coldwaters’ activity upsets that. This may at some point put Ethan in some jeopardy where he will need help from Selena and her friends.

Abilities: Ethan is the most powerful telekinetic in the school. Telekinetics are the jocks of the school and their power is measured by to what degree their ability to affect objects with their minds matches how they can affect objects with their bodies. The most powerful telekinetics can lift nearly as much with their minds as they could physically, while the less powerful can only manipulate small objects.

There is virtually no difference between what Ethan can do physically and with his telekinesis (and he is physically strong for his age). In fact, he pushes the boundary. He can produce a sudden telekinetic push equal to him slamming into someone full tilt (hence his Quake nickname). As weight and velocity contribute to the force when ramming into someone, his telekinesis matching that suggests he can at least slightly exceed raw muscle power.

His range is also exceptional versus his peers (he can affect things at a distance of 20 feet).

Inspirations: Tons of telekinetic out there (see yesterday’s inspiration section, also). Ethan will be hard not to make cliché the somewhat arrogant rich guy who has everything. He could fall into the secretly sensitive soul category, or the true jerk category. I’m hoping he’ll straddle the line.

 

Selena image above is from my talented friend Jennifer Garnett. So humbling when someone like her produces an image even better than the one in my head :).

First time at this blog? Check out Home for details on the project and the Character Index for an overview of the projects and characters.

Note: Shifting gears again. I have a few more ideas for Wells that I might return to later. For now, to keep things flowing, I’m going to shift to a YA novel idea I have.

Selena Jones (16)

Project: YA Novel (Psi High)

Known as: No nicknames

Real name: Selena Jones

Group affiliation: Sometimes the Alphas, sometimes the Omegas

Physical description: Selena in the first book is 14 (soon to be 15) and a freshman. She is tall (5′ 11′) and is self-conscious about it (she thinks it makes her look too thin and gangly). She has smooth brown skin, large brown eyes, and wavy black hair. She doesn’t spend too much time on her appearance as she is afraid it will only draw attention to her imperfections. In truth she is insecure, and quite pretty.

Personality: Selena needs to find herself. She has many exceptional qualities that are a little hidden at the moment due to her insecurities. She excels in spite of herself. She tells herself to stay quiet in class, but invariably has questions and comments. She doesn’t believe she is courageous, but never hesitates to stand up for a friend. She never intends to take charge, but often seems to be the only one who knows what to do. A strength and weakness is that she if very curious, and has troubles letting things go.

History: Our story with Selena begins on her first day of a new high school: The Coldwater Secure Academy for the Psychically Gifted (known colloquially as “Psi High”). Despite the fact that there is no known history of psychic powers in her family Selena recently tested positive for the rarest of psychic gifts: telepathy.

The Electi (those with extraordinary mental powers) have existed among human kind since the beginning. Extremely rare, most of the Electi’s gifts were mild enough it was difficult to separate them from other extraordinary people. A few of those rare people had gifts that could not be easily dismissed as luck, intelligence, or perception (e.g., staring a fire with a stare instead of flint and steel). These individuals were met with a host of reactions by different cultures over the years: worship, elevation to leadership, appreciated, or slain as witches.

In modern times, most countries had arrived at rules to govern these gifted few. Armbands so normal humans would be aware that someone with gifts would be in their midst, special laws with steep consequences for an unauthorized use of power, and restrictions from holding certain potions (e.g., political leadership) are all common. In general, the Electi’s gifts provide them with advantages but not overwhelming ones. Additionally, they have truly useful roles in society. Telepaths did not have the level of power where they could casually plunder information from anyone’s mind, but they could get impressions and were very useful as lie detectors. Telekines can only move what they are physically able to lift but their ability to do so at a distance makes them useful in several situations, and so forth. This mix of usefulness with restrictions usually mean the Electi function reasonably well in society or so it would seem (they certainly are known to cause discomfort and suffer prejudices).

Selena never expected to be one of them but now finds herself attending one of the rare schools where she will not only learn the curriculum common for high school but also receive training on her gifts and her place in society. She has never even known an Electi before this, so this is all new to her. If you thought high school was bad wait until you add psychic powers.

Role in the narrative: Our protagonist. As someone who never expected to be in the world of the Electi, she will learn along with the reader about them. She’ll face many of the challenges and heartache that all teenagers do, but more complicated with moral choices and adventures mixed in. The school holds some secrets, as to the Electi in general (it’s possible that not all the Electi are as limited in power or well-managed as they seem). Her curiosity, leadership instincts, and drive to protect others will make Selena the straw that stirs the drink, story-wise.

Abilities: Selena is a telepath she can “read minds.” She assumes she must be a pretty limited telepath. While she is good at reading emotions and detecting lies, she can only pick up simple thoughts thought very clearly by people (basically, the other person has to cooperate to send a clear thought). She’ll soon find that this level of ability already ranks her among the more talented telepaths at the school (there are only a few it is a rare skill).

Her abilities will grow with practice. Without getting to spoilery, she’ll ultimately uncover abilities that are beyond what she understood Electi were even capable of, which will put her on the radar of a shadowy organization. In fact one day she might even uncover truly unprecedented levels of ability that could change the world.

Inspirations: Harbinger (the comic) is a clear influence with a bit of Psi Force mixed in. The X-men, Harry Potter, and countless other stories of young people with extraordinary gifts learning and facing challenges together are influences. Fictional telepaths abound. I wish I had the guts to set this in Japan for an anime flavor (another influence), but I just don’t think I have the bandwidth to do the necessary research to make such a setting resonant. I would attempt some romance/love triangle type things (which also makes me shake in my boots).

Buy the gnome statue in the image above at: https://www.homebase.co.uk/garden-gnome-go-away_p398011

First time at this blog? Check out Home for details on the project and the Character Index for an overview of the projects and characters.

Ostrog (15)

Project: Television mini-series (“Wells”)

Known as: Ostrog

Real name: Ostrog

Group affiliation: None

Physical description: Ostrog is a gnome. He’s around three feet tall, portly, with short arms and legs. His fingers, however, are long and dexterous. His beard is dark brown but with blond highlights that almost look like gold embedded in rock. He is totally bald, and never wears hats.

Personality: Ostrog is determined and can be fierce in the pursuit of his goals. He is an ends justifies the means sort, and feels almost any act can be justified by the fact that he and his people have been mistreated. He wears his “champion of the gnomes” (a self-given title) sobriquet like a badge of honor, but in truth he is extremely selfish. In his mind, his best interests are all gnome’s best interest and if he is elevated above other gnomes that is fair given his efforts, no?

History: The gnomes of Serpent Vale were a happy group. Local legend had it that their valley had been formed when I friendly, enormous snake settled itself into a large U shape to take a nap. This nap lasted for millennia and mountains formed on the snake’s back forming the dale. While comfortable and happy, the gnomes looked forward to when the Sleeper (as they named the snake) would wake as they believed their mighty patron would lead them to an even greater land of increased prosterity.

For centuries, the wizards of the White Council had a contract with the gnomes of Serpent Vale. The council provided protection and choice magical knowledge in exchange for the gnomes using their exceptional craftsman abilities to create magical artifacts for the wizards. The wizards then kept choice pieces for themselves but sold much of it for a handsome profit.

At first this was a mutually acceptable arrangement. As time passed though the White Council became more and more impressed with its own importance as a bastion of goodness and magic. The members felt it was reasonable to ask more of the gnomes as the council not only was of tremendous benefit to the gnomes, but the world at large. Eventually the wizards realized they could spread more good magic in the world if they had the gnomes produce many simpler magical objects (e.g., glowing amulets) rather than the slow to create exquisite artifacts that the gnomes loved to make. The fact that this was more profitable was a happy side effect.

As the White Council’s benevolence continued to swell, they decided they should provide for the gnome’s basic needs (food and clothing and the like). Again, a side benefit: the gnomes could focus more on their crafting. The wizards even provided extra security and hired guards to make sure no thieves would attempt to steal their wares. The wizards even found that the guards were an inspiration to the gnomes to increase production still more.

The gnomes saw the situation differently (and honestly, more clearly). Them raising with the White Council that they were being mistreated fell on deaf ears (“We shall think on it and decide what is best for all.”). More strenuous objections got them treatment like unruly children. While revolution was contemplated by the gnomes, the wizards were powerful entities who had placed guards in the community. Many lamented and dreamed of the Sleeper awakening.

One gnome, Ostrog, was a little different from his brethren. More determined, angrier, and with more vision. He began to lead a group of the gnomes he could convince into some mild forms of rebellions (e.g., those glowing amulets didn’t glow for long). In secret, he and some others began creating and stocking magical items of a decidedly more martial variety. He sewed seeds of discontent and waited for his opportunity.

It came when he, another gnome, and a guard were checking stores. The other gnome accidentally pulled a stack of crates down upon himself and was killed. Ostrog, knowing that the guard had a reputation for anger saw his opportunity. Ostrog cried for help, and when others came accused the guard of pushing the crates on to his fellow in anger. The guard denied by also bristled at Ostrog’s accusation and his anger seemed to lend credence to Ostrog’s story. A line and a shouting match formed between the guards and gnomes.

No one knows who struck first. But soon the guards were fighting the gnomes surprisingly armed with magical weapons. The guards were unprepared, both numerically and tactically, for the sudden savage attack of the gnomes. Soon several guards and gnomes lay dead, while the remaining guards were driven off.

Ostrog became the leader of the newly liberated gnomes, and quickly began to fortify their community and moved all new manufacturing to weapons. The White Council was split on what action to take. Some said that on principle the gnome’s ingratitude and murder could not stand and argued for reprisal. A few sided with the gnomes; those that had been harboring reservations about their treatment of the gnomes.

Ultimately the most pragmatic group won out. This group suggested that they did not really need the gnomes’ craftsmanship for the more basic magical items that had become most profitable. Those skilled in creating golems and other artificial lifeforms thought they could make some that might repeat endlessly the steps in creating these simple devices. This not only alleviated the need to go to war, but actually gave the wizards a still more profitable alternative. They sent word that they would respect the gnomes’ independence but warned the gnomes would one day regret their choice.

The gnomes were at first ecstatic and Ostrog was a hero. But problems emerged. The gnomes did not have the necessary reserves of food and had not planted crops and no longer kept herds of animals. They feared that in the absence of the White Council some other group might attempt to subjugate them. It was Ostrog that realized that their stores of magic items had value and proposed selling and trading them for the resources the gnomes needed.

This saved the gnomes, however this would not last forever unless new items were crafted. Ostrog told his people that they would craft again but this time to their own benefit. The gnomes began to craft again with a renewed sense of pride.

Unfortunately they found themselves in competition with the White Council, so Ostrog called on his people to toil at greater levels. Ostrog promised them that one day they would again craft the most extraordinary items, but during their moment of crisis they still needed to produce the most profitable. The government would provide them with the food that they needed, so they could focus on their work. To protect his people, he created group of armed soldiers who stood watch. These soldiers also addressed any conflict among the gnomes and helped make sure each gnome was doing his or her part. Ostrog himself, carrying the burden of leadership, did not craft and had some comforts others lacked.

Many lamented and dreamed of the Sleeper awakening.

One day the gnomes though the Sleeper, while still slumbering, aided them as Ostrog simply vanished. This time the gnomes managed to return to the simpler times before the White Council had first made them a deal.

As you might have guessed, Wells had written a story (“The Sleeper Awakens”) to bind the gnomes’ magic to science. While he thought the gnomes themselves were gone, he hoped some of their magic items might still be about. Of course, when Wells came forward in time Ostrog was caught up in the spell explaining his disappearance.

Now Ostrog is in modern times. He still has his knowledge of crafting magical weapons, and there is a certain witch tied to a local crime organization

Role in the narrative: The social/class commentary here is probably pretty obvious here (see Inspirations for more). Ostrog will also spread magic weapons around that will cause more problems for Morgan. Ostrog will resent the stuffings out of Baba Yaga, seeing her as a modern White Council. Basically, Ostrog is a wild card that can cause issues for any of the other characters, and make seek to exploit and manipulate them.

Abilities: Ostrog is a skilled magical craftsman and talented at communicating and manipulating. All gnomes are unusually long-lived.

Inspirations: You might think Animal Farm is an inspiration here (the revolutionaries ultimately becoming indistinguishable from the oppressors). However, take a look at H. G. Wells’ “The Sleeper Awakes” and you’ll find that the theme is there (Ostrog was a revolutionary that ultimate exploits the working class in that story). BTW, the White Council were the oppressors in that story as well (how nice for a move to a fantasy retelling, no?).

Moon image courtesy of https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZXc8Vsh3bE (learn to draw the moon!)

First time at this blog? Check out Home for details on the project and the Character Index for an overview of the projects and characters.

The Selenite (14)

Project: Television mini-series (“Wells”)

Known as: The Selenite

Real name: Unpronounceable

Group affiliation: None

Physical description: The Selenite is a 5-foot tall insect-humanoid. Its body is beetle-like, but its four limbs are long and spidery. It has a somewhat human head and is capable of speech.

Personality: The Selenite is very formal and reserved. It believes that every being has a role to play and dutifully playing that role brings one the highest honor. Being in 2018, and separated from its people, is quite vexing for the Selenite. Inevitably, it will find some task to dedicate itself to.

History: The moon was a very different place during the heyday of magic. An active land with moon gods and goddesses and exotic flora and fauna. One could travel there if they knew the mystic paths or if they could fly the distance (this took a degree of caution).

One of the most remarkable things about the moon was that underground there lived a race of insectoid “people.” A highly regimented society, these Selenites (as they were known believed to be a creation of Selene) were incredibly organized and self-sufficient. Like insect colonies of Earth, the members of the society had unique roles and performed them diligently. They had an amicable relationship with the surface dwellers largely driven by the fact that neither side particularly needed anything from the other.

As magic began to move into decline, the moon went through major changes. It grew colder, the air less breathable. The surface dwellers evacuated (likely to some other plane) and eradicated all trace of their existence there.

No one knew what became of the Selenites however. The loss of magic also curtained journeys to the moon and there was no method for the Selenites to remain in contact with the people of Earth. As they lived self-sufficiently below the surface, it was always possible that they were still there. Even in modern times visits to the moon by humans were so infrequent and brief that they may have simply failed to encounter the Selenites.

Given that a race of magical creatures may still exist on the moon, Wells knew this was another opportunity to bind the waning magic in existence to science. He wrote “The First Men in the Moon” and cast his spells upon it to tie any remaining magic of the Selenites to stories of science one day getting people to the moon.

Then his spell that brought him to 2018 also carried a single Selenite. The Selenite was separated from its people and miserable. Furthermore, it could not reasonably blend into modern society. However it was perfectly comfortable living underground and moved into the sewers. Selenites need purpose, and this one had been a shepherd of “mooncalves” on the moon. Mooncalves were large, fat beasts that was the primary food source of the Selenites.

What is a Selenite to do on Earth? Why not start keeping a herd of mooncalves in the sewers? Of course there are no literal mooncalves available but perhaps the Selenite can find an alternative

Role in the narrative: Setup and surprise. The Selenite will not be overtly hostile to Morgan nor Wells. They will have some cordial exchanges with it and will begin to believe that some of those swept up in Well’s spell might be able to live in peace.

It will eventually be revealed that the earthly “mooncalves” are something…troubling.

On the more pure entertainment front: it is possible that the Selenite will lay eggs, or perhaps the Selenites are still on the moon and will make contact. Morgan and Wells will end up with some hard choices. Can the Selenite be given a new perspective, or does it need to be ended as a real threat to humankind?

Abilities: The Selenite with its insectoid armor and musculature is much faster, stronger, and more durable than a person. It also has a venomous bite that will typically render a person unconscious, but may sometimes kill.

Inspirations: As usual, the true Wells’ story (The First Men in the Moon). Bug from the Micronauts crossed my mind when writing this, but I don’t see a direct inspiration there. Space bugs as a threat aren’t new Starship Troopers leaps to mind. Mostly I thought about the Wells story and used it as inspiration to plug into this fictional universe I’m not sure I can list all the unconscious influences that probably guided me here.