Role: Absentis
Gender: Male
Nickname(s)/Alias(es): The grim doctor.
Age: 27
Love Interest: None at the moment.
Appearance: At first glance, David might appear as a typical young man in the business life. He keeps his suit immaculate, his tie perfect and his hair styled. However, a closer inspection might change this first impression. His eyes are cold and analytical, with little hint of emotion. His face doesnât show any signs of smiling, in fact, it seems like the expression is quite foreign to the man. His fingertips are calloused and worn, as if they have seen much use in the past. His stance is that of a man who practiced standing straight, but prefers to slouch, making him appear on edge at all times, as if fighting in some unseen struggle.
His ethereal form is that off one of mankindâs original imaginings of what the grim reaper might have looked like. Tall, clothed in black and his face hidden in the shadows of a hood. However, as he is a modern man, in his ethereal form he is clothed in a black suit, with a long pea coat over it. His hood seems to come out from under the pea coat, yet it canât be discerned where it is attached to underneath. The form finishes the mirage of a grim reaper from the past with a pair of black wings protruding out from his back.
Preferred Clothing: David prefers suits and will wear them whenever he can.
Height: 6â4
Weight: 170 lbs.
Hair Colour: Black
Eye Colour: Dark brown
Notable Features: David has cold, analytical eyes that are devoid of emotion. Yet they are very piercing, as if they can see something that no one else can.
Personality: Even before the start of his life as an Absentis, David had been somewhat unsociable. He preferred to read and be by himself, never playing much with other children as a child, or going to parties as a young adult. However, his cold exterior hides a kind and gentle soul who only wished to help others, but could not because interacting with people was too hard. When his father died, he developed a strong feeling of respect for mortality and extreme dislike for the suffering of others, which, coupled with his desire to help others, led to his decision to become a doctor. However, even as a doctor his unsociable personality shone through, and people started to playfully call the kind yet awkward doctor, The Grim Doctor. Although David was worried about the bad-luck that such a nickname might call upon, he accepted it, understanding itâs humorous origin and defiance of death. After all, no grim reaper would come near a patient being treated by such a grim doctor, that would simply be unfair.
His rebirth as a Absentis seems to have made his unsociability worse. These days it is hard to even catch a glimpse of that concerned man who wishes to help others and make their lives better. His rebirth also upset his previously strong beliefs about life and death, and made him somewhat bitter and sceptical about the afterlife, despite the fact that his job is to guide souls there.
Oddities: David is somewhat compulsive about cleanliness and washes his hands and suits often. He also seems to have a dislike for closed windows, always opening them when he enters a room.
Charm Points: David genuinely wants to help other people and makes their lives better, despite his cold and distant demeanour.
Likes:
Reading. David spends most of his free time reading.
Smoking. Although as a doctor he understands the dangers, he allows himself the one vice of smoking.
Handguns. David enjoys going to the firing range and firing a few practice rounds every now and then.
Rain. Unlike most people David enjoys the rain, both when heâs inside and walking through it.
Dislikes:
Telephones. David dislikes telephones because he canât see the other person speaking.
Heat. As he suffered from a slight sensitivity to heat as a child, he dislikes heat and hot days.
Coffee. Despite the fact that he used to drink a lot of it when he was studying at a university, David hates coffee.
Hobbies:
Before his rebirth David spent some of his free time at the shooting range, firing pistols of all sorts. He also enjoys reading and can spend hours absorbed in a book without noticing the passage of time, which only got worse after his rebirth.
Fears/Phobia(s):
Claustrophobic. David is claustrophobic and dislikes being inside. When he is inside he will usually open all windows.
Skills:
Expert marksman. David loved handguns in his previous life and practiced with them often.
Doctor. As he was a doctor in his previous life, he has extensive knowledge of the human body. Ironically, his training as a surgeon has also made him skilled with bladed weapons, knowing both what parts of the human body to hit and having gained finesse using smaller knives.
Powers:
Phasing. David can temporarily revert himself, other people or objects to a completely intangible form, allowing him to walk through walls or avoid attacks when necessary.
Enhanced healing. Even amongst the Absentii, who all possess healing abilities, Davidâs are considered to be uniquely powerful. This is possibly as a result of his previous life as an doctor.
Familiar: A black crow with red eyes.
Weapon: Automatic Pistol. (Caliber .45, M1911)
Fighting Style: David prefers to avoid fighting if possible. When he does get in a fight he is a very pragmatic fighter, preferring to win over archaic ideals like honour and fighting âfairâ. David will and can fight dirty, using whatever opportunity he can to create an opening and simply shoot his opponent.
Personal History: Born to a happy, well-off upper middle class family, Davidâs youth was an happy one. Although David preferred to be alone and read, he nonetheless made quite a few friends thanks to his caring nature. The only adversity in Davidâs way was his fatherâs illness: a chronic, devastating and incurable disease that trapped his father for as long as David knew him. The disease wrecked his once strong and proud father, leaving him in pain until his final moments. David was strongly affected by his fatherâs death, and gained tremendous respect for mortality and the fragility of a human life. But most important of all he began to believe strongly in a peaceful afterlife, where the woes and worries of the living were forgotten and only happiness could be found.
But his fatherâs fate also led David to his decision to become a doctor. He wanted nothing more but to make sure no one else would have to go through what he went through. So he studied and studied and then studied some more. Thanks to his intellect and drive to succeed he managed to skip a year and get an internship at a well-known hospital. Once more things were looking up and when he graduated he joined a famous hospital to begin his life as a doctor.
Although considered grim and somewhat distant by both the staff in the hospital and his patients, his dedication to helping others made him a well-liked and respected doctor. But one day an old woman came in to the hospital who had the same disease as his father. The old woman, already cursed by the rigours that came from old age, had no chance of surviving the illness. So David made a decision and advised the old woman to refuse any medicine besides pain killers and let the disease run its course. When the woman passed away, she thanked David for giving her the chance to leave this world in a dignified manner.
The old womanâs grandson, a troubled young man who lived with his grandmother after his father left and his mother died, did not see it this way. All he could see was the doctor who played god and killed his beloved grandmother. One day, when David was leaving the hospital, the boy confronted David with a gun, demanding he confess to killing the boyâs grandmother. David did, but added he did not feel guilty, that he did what he had to, to help a patient. David pushed a button he should not have. In trying to make the boy understand, he instead only made him angrier and the boy shot him as a result. However, despite being the victim of murder, David felt no hate or anger for the boy. In fact, he felt quite at peace, knowing he had done all he could to help the world. His only regret was that he could not have done more.
Even David could not clearly remember what happened next. Perhaps it was like this for all Absentii, or perhaps it was just him. All he knew was that he opened his eyes once more, even when he should have died. When or how it was explained to him remained a blur, but he clearly remembered what was explained. He had been reborn as an Absentis and it was his purpose in this, his next life, to guide the souls of the deceased to the next world. Initially he had been happy, ecstatic even, with his new lot in life, to help the souls of the deceased was the one thing he could not do as a doctor. He performed his duties in an exemplary fashion, but it wasnât long before doubt began to work itâs insidious way into his mind. All the work he did to help the souls of the dead began to wear on him. The connections made and lost, the uncertainty of where he was leading these souls, all of it shook the steady foundations of his belief in the afterlife. After all, he had found no peace. Who was to say other souls did? Perhaps the afterlife was not peaceful at all, perhaps such a thing as the afterlife did not exist to begin with and he simply led these souls to oblivion. The doubts began to eat away at his resolve and kindness and it wasnât long before he changed to the point where he began to see it as a job. He became colder and more distant, doing what was required, but never more.
Theme Song: Soul Society - Kamelot
If my soul could revive
from my carnal remains
what does it matter to me
If it all fades to black
If Iâm born once again
then no-one really is free
How could I be condemned
for the things that I've done
If my intentions were good
I guess I'll never know
Some things under the sun
Can never be understood
How can we believe in heaven
Human reason counters all
Ideas of a soul society
my life is just a fragment
Of this universe and all
there must be more than I can see
In the dark we're the same
In the concept of time
We're like a grain in the sand
And we strive for the flame
As if death was our aim
'Cause we cannot understand
How I wish there was heaven
All for one and one for all
a flawless soul society
Our lives are just a fragment
Of the universe and all
there may be more than we can see
How could I be condemned
for the things that I've done
If my intentions were good
I guess I'll never know
Some things under the sun
Can never be understood
How can we believe in heaven
All for one and one for all
Ideas of a soul society
my life is just a fragment
Of this universe and all
there may be more than we can see