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Description

(Photo 1 is of Jack during the time just after his parents death. Photo 2 is Jack during his EMT years before his accident. Photo 3 is him at current.)

Notes:

As a character Jack is best suited for modern story lines set in the real world.

Although I prefer him in realistic setting I do occasionally play Jack as a super or mutant as well. In such cases Jack has the ability to hear and interpret sounds and movement as if they were three dimensional elements. Generally he has control over the ability but when he's fatigued or under great distress his abilities can absolutely cripple his ability to function and drive him mad.

Settings:

Realistic, modern, fantasy.

Genre:

Literary (Complex SL examining specific themes), Super Hero/Mutant, Drama, Romance, Action (specific to the Super/mutant Genre).

Personality

Age:

Late 30's

Personality:

On the surface Jack is very a calm individual with a reserved sense of humor that boarders on the edge of being pleasant. He’s also very civic-ally minded and has a strong sense for order and discipline which makes him reliable both personally and professionally. He’s generally liked by most people but can sometimes become the object of amusement for more cynical individuals who seek to get a reaction out of him. Friendly and open in more business-like settings Jack tends to withdraw from people who pry too deeply into his personal life.

Furthermore his docile surface can be misleading. When sufficiently provoked; Jack’s anger is precise, unforgiving, and all consuming. Once exposed his often unexpected over-reaction hints at a profound personal rage hidden deep within him. Usually kept well in-check, his aggression is largely expressed and safely directed through his work which he can sometimes get over involved in. During times of extreme stress Jack’s control over his less attractive tendencies can become strained and difficult for him to manage. During such times the fear of inflicting his unreasonable moods and short temper on others will cause him to withdraw almost exclusively or intensely limit his normal interactions and activities which can negatively impact both his personal and professional life.

Appearance:

Jack is impeccably well kept to the point of being obsessive and can usually be found in business attire even in casual atmospheres. This can sometime make him seem intimidating when coupled with his hook nosed hawkish features and height. His appearance is somewhat explained however when one notices that Jack does in fact use forearm crutches when walking. Leg braces accompany these but are virtually unseen under his tailored pants. With this information in hand it’s easy to see that Jack’s controlled appearance probably has something to do with certain feelings of inadequacy.

Another physical feature that might not be immediately clear is Jack’s strong physical physique which is usually hidden under the straight lines of his suit. Although not bulky his body tone implies he was once athletic in the way one might expect a gymnast or dancer to be.

History

History

Following in his prolific parents footsteps Jack was considered a dancing prodigy at a very young age. After spending most of his adolescents in Europe touring with his parents the Ward family returned to the United States to retire and to raise their second child Emma. Meanwhile Jack applied and was accepted into Julliard to study dance. Life was grand for the Wards up until a tragic car accident involving a drunk driver took the lives of Jack and Emma’s parents. As a result Jack was forced to leave Julliard and put his dancing career on hold in order to take care of his sister who was still just a toddler at the time of their parent’s death.

Thrust into the unexpected role of single parent Jack did everything within is power to support him self and Emma using the limited amount of money left to them by their parents as well as the Jobs Jack undertook. This proved to be extremely stressful at times as well as restrictive to Jack’s personal and creative life. As Emma got older Jack was able to return to the dancing world however due to his late return and inability to go on tour for long periods of time he was forced to pursue a second more stationary career as an EMT which brought him a sense of renewed professional satisfaction. Although his long term intentions expressed a desire to return to the stage as soon as possible.

Jack’s dream was destroyed however when after coming off a particularly long and fatiguing shift he fell asleep at the wheel on his way home and crashed the vehicle into a highway median. Jack suffered extensive injuries to his legs including long term nerve damage which ruined his ability to dance an seriously impaired his ability to walk.

More of a father figure than a brother to his sister Jack faced a period of uncharacteristic jealousy and anger when his little sister expressed interest in entering Julliard. Unlike Jack whose financial resources had been depleted in caring for his sisters needs, Emma’s inheritance from her parents was still intact allowing her to enter Julliard’s dance program without difficulty. Due to these various hardships and numerous personal disappointments Jack has slowly withdrawn more and more from relationships with others. This is mostly do to his desire to keep his anger and suffering a secret from others who could use the weakness to exploit him or, paradoxically, to become closer to him.

Having become used to taking care of others Jack does not accept the gesture well in return. Jack also experiences residual pain from his accident with sometimes dampens his ability to function. Refusing to slow down Jack often overextends himself to the point of exhaustion in a vain attempt to make up for his perceived defects.

Character Excerpt

Jack Ward had no compulsion to go outdoors when he woke that morning. In fact with the exception of a few necessary departures from his residence, it was fair to say that Jack hadn't spent more than an few hours out of doors at any given time in nearly a month. While many might have interpreted this behavior as unhealthy, even reclusive, the truth was that Jack had trained himself to simply not think much about it. Thus the thought of being out in the elements among the people usually didn't occur to him.

Did he need to feel the wind upon his face to know that it blew? No. Jack could feel the wind gently blow through the trees as clearly as if he'd been out among it. If this awareness was somewhat flat without the accompaniment of sound, and taste, and smell; Jack still didn't need to experience the other sensations to know, quite intimately, the movement of the world at large. Like sitting before a window looking out, Jack saw the world and knew its rhythm; but he was not apart of it. Like a wild animal that had been removed from its natural and rightful place in nature and placed in a glass cage, Jack knew and remembered what it was like to live a life of absolute connectivity with everything and everyone around him. The memory was all he had left.

While everything around him moved and flowed into it self, Jack remained still and separate from what he felt. He had become a man without. He was a man who knew every step in the Dance of Life by heart, but who could no longer hear its music and personally experience the magic it invoked.

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Jack's bedroom was neither small nor particularly large, nor did it have many decorations. There were no lamps or any light fixtures at all and the room seemed all together empty with the exception of the neatly kept bed and a oversized free standing wardrobe that had an almost tomb like aura about it. Jack never touched it. It simply existed in the room the same way Jack existed in the world. Isolated. Separate. Sacred.

His dwelling was located two thirds of the way up an older city high-rise. Simple and un-extraordinary the apartments one truly admirable trait was the amount of long windows through out that over-looked the cityscape. Jack greatly enjoyed this detail and with the exception of his bedroom, kept the windows plain and undraped, if not usually open, which allowed for optimum exposure even if the glass panes still allowed for a certain degree of separation. The room also lacked any kind of clock or alarm and the windows were lined with heavy drapes that were meant to black out the room even during the peak of the day.

Jack awoke at the same time every morning. By design or coincidence at the exact moment he opened his eyes shop owners all around the city were unlocking the iron rod gates that protected their establishments and lifting them open in a strange kind of unison that flowed through the city like a rattling wave signaling the start of a new day. To Jack the grandiose movement of hundreds of shops all opening at once gently jingled on the edge of his awareness easing him awake. For a moment, just before his memory caught up to his awareness, Jack's mouth lifted into an exquisitely tranquil smile. For the briefest of seconds it was as if he was apart of the world again. It was as if the music of life was just barely audible to him.

Then, just as quickly, the feeling of connectivity abandoned him as the cruel cold rush of self awareness and memory ambushed him like a thief in the night. Jack's smile faded and an almost righteously defiant resolve to face another day griped his soul like a vice.

Perhaps, he thought. Perhaps today would be different. Building up the resolve to pull back the blankets and swing himself up, naked unto the darkness around him, Jack absently went through he motions of feeling for his leg braces as he carefully put them in place and secured the binds. While the idea seemed daunting, perhaps he'd break his usual routine and venture out that morning before the rest of the city got on with their busy existence.

Jack Ward's Story