| Introduction
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A walking self-contradiction. Always looking for that elusive connection with other people, but terrified should it present itself.
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| Description
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Sam "Cyan" Liach is 5'8", on the scrawny side of lean, with an intense look in their dark - almost completely black - eyes, frequently giving the impression that they are staring intently at something just behind whomever they’re interacting with. Their hair is a black unruly mess, which does its best to spite gravity, usually covered with a beanie or hood. Their skin is pale, almost grey. If their sweat pools it takes on a translucent green-blue (one might say cyan) color, which evaporates quickly, but can cause aurora-like shimmering in Cyan’s skin. Cyan is usually sweaty. They always try to cover up their skin as much as possible, electing for large coats or oversized hoodies. Wearing old worn boots (big and heavy), loose-fitting pants (cargos or sweats), and do their best to keep their mouth and nose covered with a face mask or scarf at all times.
Cyan is non-binary (he/they), usually leaning towards a masculine presentation, but their mannerisms sometimes become more feminine, especially when nervous. They've never felt a need to define their sexuality, but gender does not factor into it.
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| Reputation
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Cyan has tried to make sure as few people as possible has ever heard of them. Notoriety usually means trouble after all.
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| History
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Sam Liach was born into the privileged position of being the only child of Eliza Liach, a high-profile defense attorney for the rich and powerful. Growing up they were treated mostly as a doll, a blank slate for their mother's expectations and the pressure that came with them. Sam was sent to a fancy boarding school in Britain, getting an education that included ballet, music and etiquette. However, as their mutant powers manifested during their first party, everything changed. Uncontrolled, Cyan's powers caused an incident that would later be chalked down to mass hysteria, with several people jumping out the window of the apartment the party was held at (it was the second floor, they were fine), and their first and only girlfriend throwing herself off the roof and breaking both her legs.
Confiding in their mother Cyan found themselves sent to an institution set up to “help unfortunate sufferers of the x-gene anomaly” - essentially locked up and hidden away - while their mother publicly pretended they had never existed.
The institution turned out to be Verela, one of the labs involved in the Prometheus Project. Cyan lived here from ages 14 to 18 before being moved around. The experience was traumatic and they harbor a lot of EmotionsTM about it, among them a lot guilt over being used to experiment on others and a deep-seated fear of being constrained.
After the Prometheus Project was exposed to the public, Cyan found themselves released in the summer of 2023 with no place to go and no one to turn to. With a deep distrust of authorities and wanting to avoid drawing the attention of their mother, they elected to simply disappear.
For the last one and a half years they’ve been drifting aimlessly from place to place, growing increasingly hesitant about trusting anyone, both due to the generally rising hostility towards mutants in society at large, and due to several encounters with people who’ve tried to exploit their powers. Most notable the Kansas Incident. The steadily increasing effect their powers have on their own sanity is also making it harder and harder for Cyan to trust their own perception of reality.
At this point Cyan is skittish, and on a surface level selfish, if a bit overly proud about receiving anything they deem a hand-out. But, despite their insistence they can look after themselves and don't need anyone else, they are both very naive and desperate for somewhere to belong. Cyan can easily be goaded into doing things they deem stupid, especially if it comes with the possibility of making friends.
They recently arrived in New York City after finding what they interpreted as a sign tagged on a bus stop wall.
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| Powers
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Cyan’s skin, spit, sweat, and blood produces a substance that causes a range of effects such as hallucinations, delirium, a sense of euphoria, megalomania and addiction in those exposed to it.
While not affected nearly as much as other people, Cyan has started experiencing a weak version of their own power. This is especially present if they are using their power on others, or spend a lot of time breathing in their own fumes. This has accelerated as they’ve grown older.
The power can not be turned off (at least Cyan has not found a way).
Effects fade rapidly when the substance is not within a biological container (aka when it's not part of Cyan or affecting someone) and thus can not be harvested for later consumption without the use of creative methods.
Below are the various observed stages of exposure by Prometheus researchers. Note these stages are just a guideline, effects may vary from person to person based on physiology, metabolism and other applicable factors (i.e.mutations).
- Stage 1: The Mellow High.
Induced by: Casual skin contact, breath.
Common effects: a sense of euphoria, senses are mildly numbed, provides mild pain relief. Subject might experience spatial and temporal confusion.
- Stage 2: An Introduction to the White Rabbit
Induced by: Contact with visible droplets. Prolonged skin contact.
At this point the subject starts experiencing hallucinations, delirium and occasionally vertigo. Senses switch between being numbed and intensified. A focused mind can still navigate the world at this stage, but any regular individual will at this point be, as they say, tripping balls.
- Stage 3: And Here Comes Mr. Nightmare
Induced by: Prolonged skin contact for 20 minutes+. Transfer of small amounts of bodily fluids (2-15 ml).
At this point the subject might experience megalomania, waking nightmares, loss-of-self, increased irritability/aggression. The effects are temporary and commonly lasts for 6-12 hours. At this point the subject starts completely losing touch with reality. Subjects with known cardiac issues should not be subjected to testing at this level.
Induced by: prolonged exposure over 4 weeks. Blood transfusions.
Nausea, psychotic episodes, paranoia, murderous rage, permanent damage to higher brain functions, paralysis and in some subjects sudden onset death. We have still to see subjects return to normal after being subjected to this level of exposure, further testing would be required.
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| Skills
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Cyan was trained in ballet and contemporary dance from a very early age, and even though their formal training ceased when they became part of Project Prometheus, they kept at it on their own any chance they got. Cyan is thus very graceful and dexterous, and a good dancer should they ever choose to not wear clothes and boots that weigh more than they do.
They are also above average at classical piano and know the theory of social etiquette in high society.
Since their powers manifested Cyan has done everything they can to learn about chemistry and pharmaceuticals, and while they don’t have a formal degree, they are highly skilled at the practical application of these topics.
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| Connections
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Friends
- Natsumi - Shared Trauma, Must Protect, Gossip Buddy
Foes
People that are Definitely Not Hallucinations
- Ion - Sparky Soup Man
- Gino - Musical Theater Barnacle
- Damien - Golden Pants, the possibility of them being an Hallucination is Still on the Table
- Lucien - Everything My Mother Warned me About, Suit Man
- Anahita - Cryptic but Sensible Plant Lady and Probably Capable of Getting Away With Murder
- Kadar - Hot Guy Who Ran Off With My Bear Head
- Steve - Mister America
- Ryan - We are the Drug, Very Dangerous Person to be Around
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| Trivia
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- Cyan loves dancing and will practice if they find a place where they think they're alone. This has led to them unknowingly being the source of a urban legend about a dancing ghost.
- They have a phobia of dogs, especially loud ones.
- Cyan is Very Bad at names and tends to refer to people by descriptive nicknames
- We do not talk about Kansas
- Kind of speaks Russian if it's very slow and very basic
- Cats love Cyan on account of them doing their best to avoid them. Cyan likes cats but is terrified of accidentally using their powers on them. Thus, in places with cats, Cyan often ends up trapped by cats who choose them as a lap as Cyan can't bring themselves to remove the cat. 98% of the images on their phone are blurry pictures of various cats.
- Can't cook for shit, but makes an amazing cup of coffee
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| Gallery
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| Sam Liach
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| Codename
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Cyan
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| Birthdate
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29.02.2004
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| Birthplace
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Boston, Massachusetts
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| Species
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Mutant
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| Affiliation
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None, yet
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| Alignment
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Desperate
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| Powers
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They are The Drug
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| Occupation
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Anything that pays cash, comes with a minimum of questions and lets them avoid physical interactions
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| Registration Status
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Unregistered
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| Faceclaim
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None
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| RP Hooks
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| May I have this dance? - Cyan will go far for a chance to dance, even to the point of bending their own rules about staying away from people. As long as they don't actually have to touch anyone they can easily be convinced if the right opportunity should present itself.
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| A fellow pyromaniac? - Cyan was released from Project Prometheus when it crashed and burned in the summer of 2023, but before that they were a long-time resident at Varela and harbors some very strong feelings about the whole thing.
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| Your friendly neighborhood drug dealer - For those who knows who to ask and where to go, there's talk about a dealer in town that can provide you with a very special high. You'll need to prove you're not a problem first though, or Cyan won't let you know they're anything but yet another NY weirdo shouting at pigeons.
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| Part of the background - Cyan likes hanging out places where they overhear other people's conversations. Or maybe someone just needs to go out and scream out their frustrations for a bit and don't notice the pile of laundry until it starts asking them if they want to talk about it.
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| Thirsty for Knowledge - Cyan is worried about their powers and believes the secret to keeping it under control lies in chemistry and pharmaceuticals. They often hang out at public libraries digging through books on the subject, if they can do so unbothered by authorities. Their knowledge on the subject is also quite expansive and they could be a good advisor or help for anyone who needs expertise in the subject. Or they might, albeit carefully, seek out someone who has a reputation for knowing more about it than what's publicly available.
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| Looking for Work - A job would be good, something where they don't have to touch anyone and they get paid in cash. If there's not too many questions asked that's a bonus. Although they have no qualms about lying should that be the only thing standing in their way.
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