Description

Personality

Nate's personality can best be described as a pessimist. His glass is definitely half-empty. Because of several tragic events leading to the death of his young family, he has become a shell of his former self, and doesn't often find true enjoyment in life. While he does have a very dry sense of humor, most of his comments on something are snide at best.

He is quite calculating when it comes to strategy of any kind, and prefers to take his time to analyze the situation first, and come up with a response to any possible outcome that might happen. This particular personality trait stems from fear; Failure to completely analyze the situation led to the death of his family, and he seems to overcompensate after the fact by being overly critical. He is, however, quite decisive when he does not have the time to calculate the odds and outcomes.

Nathaniel is beginning to show signs of mental illness, and he seems to be aware of that. He does his best to avoid openly social situations.

Equipment

Equipment: Apart from his clothing, he doesn't have any more than what he would consider his essentials on a normal day. He carries on him at all times: several cigarette, a flint-wheel lighter, a pen, a piece of paper, the keys to his lab, workplace, and home on a keyring, a pocket-watch with the ability to boost his transmutations, and a pair of reading glasses.

On a less than normal day, Nate might have a rapier on his belt. Although he prefers to let alchemy do the talking, one never knows what situations might arise.

History

History: Nate lead a pretty average childhood. His father was an important man, involved in many military contracts, as well as playing a role in a successful business that created locomotives and other various steam powered inventions. He was trained at an early age on the specifics of boiler mechanics, including switches, valves, and even the water itself. He was taught personally by his father in the instruction in the alchemical arts, specifically that of Hydrogen and Oxygen, the two components in the water that powered all steam engines. As his father always said, "The engine is just half of the equation."

In his early teens, he became romantically involved in an arranged relationship between himself and the daughter of man who ran a particularly successful metallurgic company, so that the two families might cooperate corporately and financially. While the relationship was arranged, he and his love, Patricia, grew quite close, and eventually were married some years later. They relationship led to the birth of two twin boys, Jonathan and Isiah.

Some time after that, Nathaniel took the place at the head of his father's company after his father had died of old age and illness. At 29, Nathaniel was the president of one of the most successful steam-machine manufacturing companies in the country.

It wasn't much longer before tragedy struck his young family, however.

One day at work, Nathaniel was overseeing the limit tests of a new type of steam engine, which was supposed to be cutting edge technology, capable of burning at much higher temperature. There was, understandably, a high risk of boiler explosions, which is what the tests were for. Nate had warned them not to visit on that day. It was too dangerous, he had told them, but between the affairs of the day before and the present day, Patricia had forgotten. Maybe it was just bad timing, or maybe it was destiny.

Patricia had come through the door of the testing area with the children at the worst possible time. Whistles began to go off. Bells began to ring. The last thing Nathaniel remembered was scream at his family to duck.

A week later, he awoke in the hospital. His entire body was bandaged, and he felt pain in all his extremities. The memory of his family flashed before his eyes. It wasn't until later that he learned that they were killed in the explosion; The shrapnel from the boiler had torn through them, leaving no chance of survival.

For the next few months, he didn't bother leaving his home. He was distraught by the death of his family. It took years before he was able to get back to his job, which had been run in his leave by his brother. He has since gotten back to business, making up for his time gone by aggressively seizing business in the form of hostile takeovers of smaller companies, and spearheading several government contracts.