Ivan Benjamin
Nickname:
The Reaper - though this is an old nickname that was never really mentioned to his face, more as a snide insult people would snicker to each other behind his back.
Height:
6'5"
Weight:
154 pounds
Race:
Nightbane
Age:
18
Appearance:
Facade:
Tall and lanky, with long wavy hair to his shoulders - possibly gone white from stress. Otherwise Ivan isn't particularly remarkable, though he's quite neat in his way of clothing, preferring to look like a gentleman even though he couldn't really be considered to be one.
Nightbane
Normally standing at above 6'7", the creature seems to be made out of pale grey bones. In short, it's a long and misshaped skeleton, though instead of being an actual skeleton, the creature instead seems to have a bit of skin, having simply starved to a point where the bones are prominent enough to show through. The fingers of his hands are long enough to be used as claws, and the dark hollow of his eyes contain a single burst of blue light. Dust and wind sometimes rushes through the openings it can find (which are many), though Ivan often drapes himself in a large black robe to hide the worst of it, but all of this still gives the impression that he sometimes is completely insubstantial - if it is, indeed, an illusion.
His nightbane form stems from hysterical nature and bottled up rage as a result of his abusive childhood. It seems the world has done its best to strip Ivan of every drop of sanity he has left, while he in turn clings on that last breath that remains as best as he can, refusing to go under. Though his ability to tell the difference between good and evil have been considerably damaged, he still likes to see himself as a good guy. At least he wanted to, until all of this started to happen. This is why, instead of a large and massive monster, he has turned into something that might be considered an acolyte of death - a neutral force.
Personality:
If, for some reason, someone were given the task of describing Ivan in one word, they would most likely define him as "disturbing". Even before everything happened, Ivan was the sort of person you could talk to, even quite like, but you would always know there was something more hiding behind his eyes. Not exactly dangerous, you could simply never really tell which side he was on, or even if he was remotely trustworthy. He could never really meet your eyes, and had the habit of being in constant contact with his hair - scratching his neck or dragging a hand through it. That was before, of course - it's grown so long he mostly keeps it in a ponytail these days, even though he has the habit of playing with the tips. In behaviour these days he is shifty, with an unfortunate tick that sometimes raises the left corner of his mouth vigorously, and a tendency to glare at anyone or anything. Especially the latter.
Ivan was not pleased to find out what he had the power to turn into. Had it not been for an already present descent into madness, he would most likely have followed the large percent that killed themselves upon the discovery. However, a little voice inside his head urged him to move on and make the best of the situation. Even so, it all has left him slightly hysterical, nervous, though he does his best to repress it.
Likes:
The smell of old books, hot cocoa, large coats.
Dislikes:
Fish, his glasses, cold.
Talents:
Ivan's nightbane form has two main powers. His first is, that in the insubstantial form he can become lighter than air and allow the dust of his form to be transported where he should wish it. The downside is that the power is difficult to control, as it requires much of him to move around in the direction he actually wants to go.
His second power involves robbing other creatures or plants of their life force. Though this may seem overly powerful, I should mention that the power requires a willing mind and a lot of concentration - an unconscious mind will work as well, but in order to steal it from someone awake, they would either need to be brain dead, consenting, or broken down. He has little problem with plants or unintelligent animals, though, which poses as a slight problem should he, for example, take a walk in the park.
Biography:
Ivan's father was insane. Let's get that on the table right away. The man physically and mentally tortured his son as long as they lived together, which was until Ivan was sixteen years of age, and managed to run away. Still, friendless and unpopular, Ivan always found solace in the quiet surrounding him as books told him their stories at his own pace, which I suppose you could say was his main source of happiness and sanity. Once his father threw him out and he realized he couldn't afford to do anything else, he took work in a bookshop. The owner disappeared amongst countless of others, and left Ivan in charge.
Nightbane. I may have a short attention span, but I read what's important.