Name: Sphinx
Species: Schatten (Shadow creature)
Sex: N/A
Abilities: Ability to manipulate shadows in any way shape or form, including invisibility, screens, weapons, clothing, etc. Effectively unkillable.
Weaknesses: As a creature made of shadow, it is not particularly weak to anything. Light can weaken it severely but not kill it completely. In addition, it is difficult for it to inflict direct physical harm as shadows cannot normally interact effectively with living creatures. The only things capable of truly harming him are other purely supernatural creatures such as those lurking on the station.
Background: For as long as there have been stories there have been those of the dark. In almost every civilization there are stories relating tales of mysterious figures appearing out of walls and thin air. Whether such creatures are benign or evil depends on the teller, the tale, and the culture from which said tale originated. One theme runs common through many of these tales however: death. Whether involving the death of someone or the shade itself being a manifestation of some long dead person, it was the dead who took place in the story.
Over time, such legends grew and shrank, eventually becoming the home of conspirators, ghost hunters, and paranormal experts. Such people were ridiculed for their madness, believing in legends of barbaric cultures disproven by science. Were they wrong? On many things, yes. But shades were not one of those topics. Sphinx would know as he is one of them. There are shades ancient enough to have walked with creatures long since extinct. Such creatures, however, are husks of themselves, even by shade standards.
Sphinx himself died during the fall of the Akkadian Empire. Surprised to find himself seemingly 'alive', Sphinx found quite quickly that he was no longer alive. Fleeing into hiding, he isolated himself from society for millenia, returning only as the Roman Empire began to rise two millenia later. By this point, much of his original personality had degraded into that of a sadistic beast. Shades degraded at various rates, the fastest disappearing almost immediately, most of the population. Several are able to stave off such effects for thousands upon thousands of years, evidenced by the intact shades of those who lived during the Ice Age. Sphinx rests towards this end, able to hold of the degeneration for a while but not forever.
Without the ability to physically interact in many manners, Sphinx took to feeding off the fear of those he terrorized. Such activity continued relatively unchanged until the 21st century. A relatively normal day for him, he stalked his next target. Over time his methods had become refined and significantly more violent, recently involving the death of the victim himself. As night descended on that region of the Earth, Sphinx sought out his feast. Surprised was he to find a trap waiting for him. Sealed into a room flooded with light, his form weakened considerably, rendering him delirious. Kept pinned by these lights, he was transported to the facility and confined to a room continually lit so as to contain him. All that changed when the power went. Free to do as he pleased, Sphinx began to roam the halls, enjoying his free reign. Yet there are things even he is scared off. Things that stalk these halls alongside him. And stalk behind him.
Appearance: The shadow creature takes no specific form. However, its preferred appearance is that of an elegantly dressed man with a top hat, cane, and long coat. Its hair appears slicked back and the face takes a particularly cruel and cunning tone. As it is made of shadows, it is made of gradations of grey and black. It will sometimes take a more terror-based form, an amorphous shape without distinguishable features except for a pair of eyes and body parts.
Species: Schatten (Shadow creature)
Sex: N/A
Abilities: Ability to manipulate shadows in any way shape or form, including invisibility, screens, weapons, clothing, etc. Effectively unkillable.
Weaknesses: As a creature made of shadow, it is not particularly weak to anything. Light can weaken it severely but not kill it completely. In addition, it is difficult for it to inflict direct physical harm as shadows cannot normally interact effectively with living creatures. The only things capable of truly harming him are other purely supernatural creatures such as those lurking on the station.
Background: For as long as there have been stories there have been those of the dark. In almost every civilization there are stories relating tales of mysterious figures appearing out of walls and thin air. Whether such creatures are benign or evil depends on the teller, the tale, and the culture from which said tale originated. One theme runs common through many of these tales however: death. Whether involving the death of someone or the shade itself being a manifestation of some long dead person, it was the dead who took place in the story.
Over time, such legends grew and shrank, eventually becoming the home of conspirators, ghost hunters, and paranormal experts. Such people were ridiculed for their madness, believing in legends of barbaric cultures disproven by science. Were they wrong? On many things, yes. But shades were not one of those topics. Sphinx would know as he is one of them. There are shades ancient enough to have walked with creatures long since extinct. Such creatures, however, are husks of themselves, even by shade standards.
Sphinx himself died during the fall of the Akkadian Empire. Surprised to find himself seemingly 'alive', Sphinx found quite quickly that he was no longer alive. Fleeing into hiding, he isolated himself from society for millenia, returning only as the Roman Empire began to rise two millenia later. By this point, much of his original personality had degraded into that of a sadistic beast. Shades degraded at various rates, the fastest disappearing almost immediately, most of the population. Several are able to stave off such effects for thousands upon thousands of years, evidenced by the intact shades of those who lived during the Ice Age. Sphinx rests towards this end, able to hold of the degeneration for a while but not forever.
Without the ability to physically interact in many manners, Sphinx took to feeding off the fear of those he terrorized. Such activity continued relatively unchanged until the 21st century. A relatively normal day for him, he stalked his next target. Over time his methods had become refined and significantly more violent, recently involving the death of the victim himself. As night descended on that region of the Earth, Sphinx sought out his feast. Surprised was he to find a trap waiting for him. Sealed into a room flooded with light, his form weakened considerably, rendering him delirious. Kept pinned by these lights, he was transported to the facility and confined to a room continually lit so as to contain him. All that changed when the power went. Free to do as he pleased, Sphinx began to roam the halls, enjoying his free reign. Yet there are things even he is scared off. Things that stalk these halls alongside him. And stalk behind him.
Appearance: The shadow creature takes no specific form. However, its preferred appearance is that of an elegantly dressed man with a top hat, cane, and long coat. Its hair appears slicked back and the face takes a particularly cruel and cunning tone. As it is made of shadows, it is made of gradations of grey and black. It will sometimes take a more terror-based form, an amorphous shape without distinguishable features except for a pair of eyes and body parts.
Alternate Form
