Difference between revisions of "Emily James Graveland"

Revision as of 16:20, 22 June 2014

Emily Graveland.
Player: @TheFishtoad
[[Image:|300px|]]
‘I’m your dry cleaner. Probably.’
Biographical Data
Real Name:	Emily James Graveland.
Known Aliases:	Em, Emmie, Jamie.
Gender:	Female.
Species:	Human.
Ethnicity:	American.
Place of Birth:	Mercy Hospital, Millenium.
Base of Operations:	Millenium City.
Relatives:	Daughter of David Graveland (deceased), Arleen Morgan (deceased); Cousin of Guy Morgan, Tate Morgan; Niece of Maurice Morgan, Jade Morgan; God-Parent of Chloe Tallaghan.
Characteristics
Age:	20
Height:	6’5
Weight:	63 kgs.
Eyes:	Light Green.
Hair:	Charcoal Black.
Complexion:	Pale.
Physical Build:	Athletic.
Physical Features:	Deathly Crow’s Feet.
Status
Fame:	██ ██ ██ ██ ██ ██ ██ ██ ██ Recluse
Alignment:	LG LN LE NG TN NE CG CN CE
Identity:	Public Knowledge.
Years Active:	0
Citizenship:	American.
Occupation:	Dry Cleaner.
Education:	High School Diploma.
Marital Status:	Dating, In Committed Relationship.
Known Powers and Abilities
Masterful Ratiocination (Sherlockian School of Thought), Gun Training (Pistols and (Scoped) Rifles), 9 Styles of Martial Arts (Brazilian Capoeira, Ju-Jitsu, Judo, Karate, Kung-Fu (Shandong Praying Mantis), Muay Thai, Ninjutsu, Thai Kickboxing, Zui Quan), 3 Styles of Gun-Fu (Chinese Gun-Kata, French Bullet Ballet, Japanese Zen Riflery), Car-Fu.
Equipment and Paraphernalia
Two Luger Pistols, One Scoped Ruger Mini-14 Rifle.

Physical Attributes
	Strength			Weapon
	Durability			Armor
	Speed			Reflexes
	Resistance			Stamina
	Dexterity			Agility
	Combat			Regen

Non-Physical Attributes
	Energy			Psionics
	Telepathy			Willpower
	Sorcery			Tech.
	Intel.			Knowledge
	Charisma			Bravery
MaekadaBoxSlim created by @Maekada

This page is a work in progress. All additions and edits (such as comments and responses, or typos and errors) are gratefully received, but please run anything else by me before posting. Thank you, and I hope you enjoy reading this character as much as I enjoyed writing about them.

Introduction

"Saying that Emily is a unique character would definitely be an over-statement. Although she keeps to herself, and only admits to working at a dry-cleaners' store that prides itself on its express delivery service, there's one thing that's blatantly obvious: she looks just like a regular girl." -- Emily's in-game description.

Emily James Graveland (born February 1, 1994) is a member of the Neutral Services Union (NSU), working as the Assistant Manager for the union supported "Langley’s Dry Cleaners". She is also noted as one of the few survivors of “Redmond’s Disease” – a degenerative disease in which her body cannot maintain a magic aura to absorb and break down magical energies.

Emily has also been recognized by the Department of Registered Combat for being the creator of the ‘Lead Mantis’ technique, which incorporates a number of existing martial arts, structured around Chinese Gun Kata, French Bullet Ballet and Japanese Zen Riflery. She has been at the centre of minor controversies regarding NSU policies and concerns over moral standings with NSU clientele.

History

Past Life

"I'm your dry cleaner. Probably." -- Emily, on who she is.

Born to action cop superhero Arleen Morgan and stage magician David Graveland, Emily grew up in Central Millenium. She lived a sheltered life because of her disease. When she was 8, James Harmon Elementary School school came under attack by villainess Stormrise, who took Emily's class captive. Stormrise was shot and killed during the siege by a rookie cop under Arleen’s watch.

Emily started going to Westside Highschool at the age of 13. One year later, in what became a large topic of controversy, she was suspected of burning Drew Larsby to death with supposed mutant powers. She was heckled and harassed by the other students, and at one stage, a criminal expert conducting research into teen-related assaults. A vigilante believed to be Drew’s father, Leland Larsby, kidnapped Emily four days after the murder. A task force lead by Arleen stormed the warehouse she was being held in, but Leland was not found. The real killer, school captain Thomas Moores confessed not long after.

Emily was 15 when the Qularr invaded Millenium City. Not much is known about what happened to her during this time, other than her mother dying and her father escaping to a safe zone. It is believed that Emily had been cut off from her father at some point during the escape. Many survivors claim to have seen Emily rescuing other people, including her high school home group.

In 2010, Emily applied and began working for the NSU as a dry-cleaner, where she quickly made a name for herself in both the heroic and villainous cultures. She was also involved in the “Service Anywhere” proposal, allowing NSU workers to enter and exit restricted areas prohibited by the government. The proposal passed in 2012.

On August 9, 2013, Emily had registered her fists as lethal weapons. She had registered her “Lead Mantis” technique to the Department of Registered Combat, and was asked to instruct a Tactical Espionage team of mimics. She received a Service Medal and a recommendation from Field Officer Seth Swan.

"The Line In The Storm"

"Don't deny it. It's only going to get worse from here." -- Anonymous.

On February 19, 2014, David Graveland had been found dead by the back of Sherrera's Bar. Emily and then-journalist and girlfriend "Serenity Summers" were asked to identify his body. However, the wounds did not match the description of a suicide. The entry wound at an awkward angle to hold a pistol at and pull the trigger without spraining his right wrist; but his left wrist was the injured one. Emily spent the next couple days trying to match what could have happened. She decided to call Serenity and Robin Fenix to the White Dragon restaurant to discuss it in private. The building was stormed by Westside Avenger vigilantes in an attempt to kill her, but the three escaped.

A couple days later, Emily and Serenity infiltrated the Avengers' territory and interrogated their leader, Dredwin. They found out she was targeted by an unnamed Private Military Company, but he had no reasons why. He also mentioned that the PMCs were controlling several other low-key gangs and where they operated. Fearing he had said too much, Dredwin asked them to fake his death so he could escape cleanly.

Emily and Robin went to the Westside Docks, where the first gang, East Cartel, operated. They found and interrogated a member scouting the docks for any intruders. He told them a trade was going to take place between the PMCs and the Cartel. The PMCs were going to trade "Agent Cape" to the Cartel. Deciding he had the information they wanted, they rescued him. He told the two that several businessmen were paying the PMCs for protection, but one man, Mr. Ernest Yerkley, was paying the Avengers as well, implicating him in the conspiracy.

Emily, Serenity, and Naomi Aachen infiltrated Yerkley's penthouse to get answers, but were too late; another team of mercenaries, belonging to private contractor company Three Crowns had assassinated him. The three took them by surprise, looked through the building, and found the information they needed. However, they were chased out of the building by an attack chopper and more Three Crowns mercenaries. They narrowly avoided getting caught by the police.

"The Brink of Damnation"

"It's time to remember what you said." -- Anonymous.

Coming soon...

Skills and Attributes

Skills

"When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, must be the truth, however improbable." -- Paraphrased summarisation of Sherlockian Theory.

Car-Fu: Emily knows how to balance, position, and fight on top of moving vehicles, such as cars and bikes. This includes combat (close quarters and ranged) and repositioning ontop cars, motorcycles, trucks, and vans. She also knows how to scale across moving vehicles, and can successfully hijack a vehicle should the need arise.

Gun-Fu: Emily has a firm understanding and varying masteries of Chinese Gun-Kata, French Bullet Ballet (or Ballet du Duelliste), and Japanese Zen Riflery (or Woojitsu), enough to swap techniques almost instantly in the heat of combat.

She has also created a more complex technique, involving three seperate stances and moves from nine acknowledged martial arts techniques. The technique, officially known as "Lead Mantis", while much more complex than the techniques it is based on, offers practitioners the chance to learn all three stances and master either one or all three of them.

Gun Training: Emily has licenses for, and can operate, small-arms guns and scoped rifles.

Martial Arts: Emily has spent fifteen years of her life learning different styles of martial arts. These include: Brazilian Capoeira; Ju-Jitsu; Judo; Karate; Northern Chinese "Shandong" Praying Mantis Kung Fu; Muay Thai; Ninjutsu; Thai Kickboxing; and Zui Quan.

She has also created a number of take-downs to quickly dispatch foes: The "Tsumibito no shi" (Sinner's Death) has her force her foot into the back of her target's knee, forcing them to kneel; and the "Dokuken" (Poison Fist) is a powerful punch to the stomach that renders the victim violently ill.

She was requested to register her fists as lethal weapons. This was to ensure she could be legally identified and held liable for whatever action she takes against others.

Masterful Ratiocination: Emily is able to quickly deduce and identify facts and identities by stringing together ideas and logic to form circumstantial facts. This is done by examining small pieces of evidence and applying contextual logic to the string of identifications. With enough evidence, she has been able to guess hero's and villain's alter egos, and at one stage, a supernatural devil in disguise.

Parkour: Emily can easily navigate the city through freestyle parkour. Although free-running is legal in most places in the city, she reserves it for whenever she is running deliveries, as many customers, regardless of legal standing, tend to forget she is coming with their costumes.

Sleight of Hand: David Graveland began to teach Emily about the basics of sleight of hand when she was young. She uses the art of illusionary deception for other practical uses, such as keeping her inventory in her coat (flicking things out of her sleeves), and to confuse anyone looking to steal something from her.

Attributes

"I'm not the Emily you think you know." -- Emily, "clashing" with an unknown assassin.

Acrobatic: Emily's body is fairly flexible, making her the perfect candidate for a majority of physical activities.

Ambidextrous: Emily is capable of using both hands equally.

Durable: While not going out of her way to do so, Emily's martial arts training have allowed her to become strong enough to withstand a lot of pain. Anything scaling outside of "acceptable" for a human being, however, is not ideal.

Perceptive: Emily is unusually good with picking up on small details in almost anything.

Morality

"The real challenge of living in a black and white world is how long people can go before the margins are blurred." -- Anonymous.

Emily is a utilitarian neutralist. She believes that the best, justifiable outcome benefits all parties is the one that does not permanently benefit any of them. It is distinct from neutrality in that the latter is focused more so on mediation than outcome, while utilitarian neutrality seeks both consideration and a result. For example: a utilitarian neutralist's response to heroes and villains fighting is to maintain a status quo where one party is victorious, but not indefinately.

Many scholars note that the philosophy of neutrality allows a space for mediation and tolerance of either party, which places Emily in between the law, yet far enough from it that she is not placed on either scale of bias.

However, utilitarian neutrality has been the center of criticism by heroes and villains alike. Many arguments presented claim: that she must have some kind of personal opinion, and that it makes neutrality impossible; that neutrality is a sense of willful ignorance and delusion and that it is a glorified term for apathy toward the law; the code has the potential to make the utilitarian neutralist hinder lawful operations; and that her moral code does not allow bias in the sense that doing something to benefit one side or the other is immoral to her code.

Gear

Guns

"Snipers aren't the glorified assassins you see in films. They are not some pissed off spy with family issues. They are masters of reconnaissance; ones who can make or break an entire army with a few well-placed shots." -- CPT. Maurice Morgan, on teaching Emily about Sniping.

Two Custom-Made Luger Pistols: The "Pulp" pistols are based off Luger design, but were made for a Martial Artist in mind: The two pistols are reinforced, boasting upgrades such as metal plates on the bottom of the grips, allowing it to sustain damage should it be brought down on someone in force; however, to compensate for the reinforcement, the guns are somewhat heavier than the original design.

Emily's pistols originally belonged to Arleen, until her death in the Qularr invasion. It is unknown how Emily found them again, as at least one of the pair was on Arleen's person on the day of the crisis. Never-the-less, they play an integral part to Emily's Lead Mantis technique.

One Scoped Ruger Mini-14 Rifle: There is nothing unusual about Emily's rifle, and she is hardly ever seen with it. In the event of a city-wide crisis, such as encountering rampaging zombies or misfit toys, she has been known to use it much more frequently in self-defense.

Clothing

"How do you DO that?" -- Serenity Summers, on Emily producing items from her longcoat.

Black Leather Custom-Tailored Trenchcoat: The coat Emily wears once belonged to Arleen, tailored with the necessities of an action-cop in mind: it is light and accessible; it has two holsters on the inside for each pistol; and it has an intricate storage system (to replace any need for utility belts) that can be sorted through with the wearer's shoulder blades.

Gunmetal Grey Reinforced Leather Gloves: Emily's gloves are reinforced to help protect her when she is handling magical items. They are thick enough to protect her skin from the effects the item would otherwise have on them. However, keeping any item close enough to her would still result in organic injury (see Redmond's Disease under Weaknesses).

Weaknesses

"All warfare is based on deception." - Sun Tzu, The Art of War.

Redmond's Disease: Redmond's Disease is a spiritual degenerative disorder in which the user's body cannot project an aura to absorb and break down magical energies. Direct contact with any type of magic often results in the victim's body beginning to break down until the source of magic is removed. The victim will experience neurological and organic breakdowns, such as strong migraines, loss of co-ordination, intense muscle and joint pain stiffness, and tissue degradation. If the symptoms persist, the victim may die as a result.

If the victim is in close vicinity of, but not directly in contact with, magic, the effects otherwise induced will be weaker and work slower. The closer the person is with the source, the stronger the symptoms become.

Relationships

Lover

"She's an amazing girl, I'm sure you of all people could agree with me on that." -- Detective Barbara Day, talking to Serenity Summers about Emily.

Barbara Day: Barbara Day is a detective/forensics officer with the MCPD. She can see the lives of a dead person through contact. She and Emily met through the dry cleaner and started dating, months after meeting for the first time.

Ex-Lovers

"Emily, stop that! Sorry, she does that a lot. She analyzes everyone." -- Serenity Summers, on Emily deducing someone.

Serenity Summers: Serenity is a member of the The New Vanguard supergroup. She is often determined and enthusiastic, quick to act on her sense of good will and moral judgment; this often played against Emily's reserved and thoughtful approach. Nevertheless, the two shared a bond built beyond the initial mutual respect and trust they had for each other. Serenity is one of the only people Emily will make exceptions for, disregarding her own neutrality and morals to defend her from heroes and villains alike.

Their initial friendship got off to a shaky start. At first, Serenity was driven by a literal inner-demon, gaining psionic powers from it but losing control over herself. She would often attack and mock other people, including Emily because of her beliefs and goals. Despite this, Serenity was one of the closest people Emily had to a friend, and thus she kept close to her. Emily eventually convinced Serenity to consider removing the demon from her mind, even going so far as to allow herself to be used in its removal.

Emily continued to keep an eye on Serenity, helping her reconnect with people and start her life again. The two got closer until eventually Serenity asked Emily out. A month later, Serenity moved in with Emily.

Family

Morgans

Arleen "The Tombstone" Morgan: (Born 1962, Died 2009) Arleen became Millenium City's first African-American action-cop in 2004. As her mother, Arleen did all she could to protect Emily from the troubles of living in the city, including the dangers Redmond's and carrying her work with her. As her idol, Arleen often inspired Emily to shape her life around Arleen's. She taught Emily how to ratiocinate, and some martial arts techniques, including how to apply the "Form of the Tempest" to techniques.

Arleen had always been on first response on both of Emily's kidnappings, and was always fiercely protective of her daughter. When Emily was accused of murder, Arleen quickly dispelled accusations by providing legal and logical evidence that Emily could not have fulfilled the criteria of the crime scene, as she has no mutations to speak of.

Emily still looks to Arleen's life for guidance, despite her death. Her utilitarian neutralism stems from Arleen's heroic duty to "reclaim justice in the face of doubt", although not as radical as Arleen's approach to a moral code; while her passion of the martial arts comes from the clarity it provided her while she trained with Arleen.

Molly Morgan: (Born 1945) Molly Morgan was Arleen's sister and Emily's aunt. She served as an UNTIL field doctor from 1966 - 1992. She is also the mother of Tate and Guy Morgan, and wife of Captain Maurice Morgan. Althought she did not play a significant role in Emily's life until 2009, the two are both very respectful of each other, with Molly even seeing Emily as one of her own daughters.

When Arleen died, Molly helped to financially support David and Emily until they could support themselves. When Emily eventually moved out, she helped pay for several fees, such as accomodations and medical payments.

Emily still thanks Molly for helping her become independent, believing that her debt to her will never be repaid in full.

CPT. Maurice Morgan: (Born 1940) Captain Maurice Morgan is the husband of Molly Morgan, father of Guy and Tate Morgan, and Emily's uncle. He joined with UNTIL in 1960, eventually achieving the rank to Captain in 1964. He was moved to one of UNTIL's Commando Squads in 1964, where he was made a designated marksman. On Green Monday, 1966, Maurice was part of a two-man sniper team, but was shot in the spine and was honorably discharged after his service.

To Emily, Maurice is her preferred father figure. He taught her how to operate a rifle, and gave her tips on how to use it (in tandem with her actual training). He can appear cold at times, but has a soft spot for family and friends, especially Emily and Serenity, the latter of whom paid for surgery to restore function to the lower half of his body.

Tate Morgan: (Born 1992) Tate is the son of Maurice and Molly, and Emily's cousin. After his graduation, he became a vigilante with the Westside Avengers, unable to find work elsewhere. However, when the gang covered up a crime by claiming Emily and his family were responsible, he quit. Tate's testimony in court was enough to get the leader and half of the gang arrested.

Tate has always been like a big brother to Emily, defending her in school and on the streets. The two have a close bond, with him acting as her personal confidant when needed.

Guy Morgan: (Born 1995) Guy is Tate's younger brother and Emily's cousin. He often sees himself as a hardened gangster, although many of his antics always end in embarrassment. Secretly, he wants to follow Tate's footsteps and become a well-known defender of the streets.

Emily and Guy do not really get along well, with her disliking his irrational actions and naive attitude, but she has defended him on more than one occassion from would-be enemies and people looking to exploit him for whatever reason.

Gravelands

David Graveland:

Friends

Heroes

Cindy "Paragon" Rose: Emily acts as an unofficial source of advice to Cindy, leader of "The New Vanguard". Emily offers her opinions and thoughts on current events, though tries to remain a neutral arbiter.

Robin "Metal Raven" Fenix: Emily and Robin have been good friends for years.

Villains

Dr. Hamlet Greene:

Civilians

Benjamin Kyunichi:

Chris Tallaghan:

Henry "Bo" Ksang:

Foes

"Kingmaker":

Extras

Roleplay Hooks

Detective and Other Law Enforcement: While Emily might not be widely acknowledged as a detective in any regard, one might have heard that she doesn't hesitate to deduce something, or that her mother was a famous action-cop.

Martial Artist: Emily has learnt, practiced, taught, and mastered different kinds of martial art techniques, as well as created the Lead Mantis technique. Her fists are also registered as lethal weapons, putting her on some government lists.

Redmond's Disease Survivor: Not many people have such a violent reaction to magic as a Redmond's survivor does and live into their twenties, making the disease very rare.

Your Dry Cleaner. Probably: Whether a hero or a villain, an officer of the law or a mook, Emily will make sure your costume is cleaned and ready for your next battle!

Trivia

Cross-Genre Character: Emily draws on expectations from both the crime and superhero archetypes. She's a ratiocinative gothic detective, discovering clues through solidifying circumstantial evidence as hard fact (Gothic Crime Fiction). She's slow to trust others, but fast with her wits, and keeps her guns close (Hardboiled Detective Fiction).

She's also a parody of the anti-hero archetype, popularised by the "Dark Age" of comics: her costume mimics the dark aesthetics of the times; her mission is hardly heroic (to get the dry cleaning done); and her "powers" revolve around the awesome visuals of her Lead Mantis Gun Kata.

Alternate Universes

The Silk Rope Hangmen: Emily's father was murdered a year after her graduation. With the only detective willing to take on the case - an alien jailer masquerading as a Golden Age noir fiction detective ("The Detective") - she became a masked vigilante to further her investigation. The investigation lead them through an underground war of business espionage and blackmail. Eventually, alongside a Silver Age speedster ("The Outbacker"), and a Bronze Age empath ("Strongheart"), they created the "Chevron City Guardsmen".

The Cemetery Empire: 2010. Earth's government submits to the Isirions - an alien empire spanning a large expanse of the universe. Those who resisted were either branded as traitors and killed, or became part of a growing underground resistance. Lieutenant Emily "P.01021994" Graveland helped conquer the Isirion jailers and freed earth. She has since become a high ranking officer in the New World's United Hero Defense Force.

The Prince Spider's Web: An alternate universe to the Silk Rope Hangmen. Without the help of what would be seen as the Chevron City Guardsmen, Emily braved the investigation into her father's death alone. Unable to stop herself spiralling into a web of deceit and conspiracies, she became the thing she was trying to fight: a dangerous killer.

Quotes

Emily: "I'm your dry-cleaner. Probably."

Sparring Partner: "You're not going to win this."
Emily: "Sarcasm, right?"

Deductions

Dregs (@KaiserWiggly)

Emily: "Your interactions with us, just now, reserved but not without a hint of contained excitement, suggests that at some point in your life you had an issue with the wrong kinds of people, and now you have a difficulty of trusting people. You contain yourself because there is someone here who is holding you down? A mage, maybe? Someone who has access to magic. Your self-degradation is not limited to trying to hold yourself back, implying you were not always a dog. Now, judging by your coat, and your strong accent, I would assume this occurence happened sometime around the 1800's, which would explain your coat and your cravat, and the fact you may not have been a dog for all your life. You were... a Scottish scholar of the arcane arts, but were punished at some point, and this is what you became."

Dregs (Mouthing): "What the f***?"

Dregs: "Jist... jist who are yoo, lass...?!"

Emily: "I'm your dry cleaner. Probably."

Dregs: "Whit? N-naw, I... C'mon noo, yer no jist a dry cleaner, dry cleaners aren't aw' gothic lookin' Sherlock Holmes, I... How. I mean, jist. Ye'... whit ye' said, that cud be right. Maybe."

Comments

"She'd make a good hero if she wanted to be one, but... I can respect and understand why she doesn't. With that said, it doesn't stop her from being a personal hero to her friends and loved ones. ...I don't think she grasps how important she is." - Robin Fenix, the Metal Raven