Post by Amicus on Sept 20, 2022 22:59:44 GMT
Lina Holt
Age: 20
Height: 5’3”
Description: Lina Holt is a small and pale white haired woman with blue eyes. Her movements are unusual, almost always a little too swift or a little too slow, and almost always are her steps quiet.
History: Lina’s home was never going to be a normal one. Born to a lone skinwalker woman deep in the woods, she met few people, even those like her. Her abilities were as much learned as they were natural, born pale and white with red eyes when bright lights were on her, and brought up by a witch in the woods. She was taught in the woods to be a predator as much as any wolf or bird was, but one of people, one of fear. Fear made them more powerful and the more of it they inflicted on others, the stronger they could become. And the more faces they could steal, the easier they could hide among their prey. That was the way of things, inflict fear and terror, kill, steal faces, and hide. However before her mother truly taught her how to hide among their prey properly, how to sit in their homes like a guest, how to visit with them as if they weren’t enemies, she died. Lina didn’t know why, and she definitely didn’t know what to do. She mourned her, but it didn’t hurt as much as she once imagined it would. After it already began to rot, she hid her body deep in their home away from any animal and sealed in a coffin. Perhaps someday she’d decide to do something with it. For now, she was there. A reminder that death could be around any corner. She stayed for some time on her own, still practicing acts of terror on those she could find in woods or near the forest at night. But this wasn’t enough for her. She wanted more, more than just what the writings of her mother or her instruments could tell her. She wanted to explore, and so she did, she left the cursed cabin to find what else there was, whatever she’d decide that would be.
Abilities:
-Shapeshifter: Lina Holt can take the form of any animal while she has a piece of their body, and has once tasted their flesh. Though imperfect, as it appears drained of color, and the movements of the creature are almost always just a little off, and it’s size is a bit too large unlike her normal body. However, the true perfected form she can take, is that of a human she’s eaten, if they are living she may become an imperfect form as she still needs their flesh and bones for the perfected version. Using their flesh or their bones to fashion something to wear, she can take a form that is almost perfectly identical to them in every way. The only giveaway, red eyes in bright light. These forms typically take on even more powerful characteristics.
-Unnatural physical abilities: Though her appearance would not suggest it, Lina is nearly able to keep up with a car and leap several stories. This strength isn’t exact to how much she can actually put on others, but rather on herself. Though her strength is definitely still quite abnormally high for her size. Her senses are likewise quite considerable. She’s also able to mimic many sounds and voices with incredible accuracy.
-Lina is able to cause individuals or those around her to become more fearful, it’s not an absolute ability. But it’s often a nudge in the right direction of fear and concern, and even better, panic. This is even more effective if she can look them in the eyes. And the fear of others is something she can draw from to gain more power.
-Lina can influence animals, but mainly predators, to do her bidding. Though they are far from as intelligent as humans, a mere order of ‘attack him’ could make a big difference in the wild where bears or wolves live.
-A predator: Lina is nearly as much of a predator as those she takes the form of. She moves quietly and when she wishes to be unseen she can be nearly utterly still. She’s used to the unusual navigation found in the woods.
Disadvantages:
-Her eyes turn red in a bright light which can be used to see what she is. However in animal form her eyes often appear very human still.
-Both her animal and human form often look drained of color
-Possesses a draw to the dead and unnatural, but unlike the stories she was told, she never participated in group meetings with other skinwalkers.
-While entering a home of a living human uninvited doesn’t completely remove her powers, it does greatly weaken her mental powers, as well as makes any process of shifting far more difficult.
-Lina has not gained her full power, and is also very unaware of many of the rituals that her mother knew. Or how to use some of her tools and weapons.
-Lina’s education was limited to some degree. Though she can read and write she has had almost no interaction with the more advanced technologies that have come about. If it functioned on electricity, she almost never saw it. And when she did, it was likely because they were seeking a victim, meaning she mostly only understood how to turn it off or break it and a base understanding of what things like vehicles do and that some devices allow humans to communicate, though she wouldn't know how to operate either one.
Lina’s shifting only works with her and the flesh she’s using to transform. As a result, anything she’s wearing at the time of transformation may fall off or become damaged by the process. This can make it quite problematic if she wants to bring weapons with her, not even considering the general issues that can come from a lack of clothing should she return to her normal form again.
HOME:
A cursed cabin deep in the woods. For Lina, this could take only ten minutes to reach. For anyone else…they may never reach it at all. The path to the cabin doesn’t exist if you do not know how to find it. And trying to track anyone to it only seems to lead right back out of the forest, and sometimes to places much more familiar to the tracker. Or if they seek harder, they may find a worse fate, a path that winds deeper and deeper into the forest, and near any animal that might be angered or frightened by them, a snake in the leaves, a cave of a bear, someone else's cabin who doesn’t want visitors. The illusion is thick and well cast to keep away those who are not taught the way.