į“ Źį“į“į“į“Źź°ŹŹ ź°Źį“į“ź± ÉŖį“ź± į“”ÉŖÉ“É¢ź±, į“É“į“ Źį“į“ É¢į“į“ Źį“ÉŖÉ“ ÉŖÉ“ź±į“į“į“į“ į“ź° ź±į“É“ź±ŹÉŖÉ“į“. ā a study in redemption. the human capacity for transformation. personal identity. smothered empathy. the search for unconditional love in a transactional world. THE UNIVERSE HAS A PLAN FOR YOU.
independent urban fantasy oc, regulus Ć¢me dupois! written for comicverse settings & adapted for everything else. developed by g.
affiliated with : writspell roysenal prophetin bitesharder
1. i will not follow anyone without an accessible rules page or whose age is not clearly marked.
2. i prioritize plotted dynamics and mutual engagement. i love chatting with and meeting new people! if i follow, i am interested in interacting.
3. i am slow, and i understand that others are as well. this is a low-med activity blog. i often run on a ghost queue.
4. i will not interact with hp characters or settings, hard stop.
5. the nature of this character involves themes of self-sacrifice, death and the macabre, and other dark themes. everything is tagged to my fullest ability, and i will gladly tag anything requested. i also try to tag the most common tw's.
6. i value honesty and communication. if there is a problem, please speak to me. i view open conversation as a remedy for anxiety and misunderstandings. i am willing to have hard conversations and will never be mad at someone for approaching me in good faith.
7. all other basic rp etiquette applies ā this is not a safe space for transphobia, homophobia, racism, antisemitism, discrimination, or any other form of hatred.
SECONDARY INFO & ETIQUETTE...
8. currently, my main focus is on regulus' mainverse settings (this includes comic & urban fantasy settings). this is his most-developed verse and the one i find easiest to write for at the moment. i do have other AUs and also write in a high fantasy setting but i will definitely need a little more help plotting in those AUs!
9. i enjoy shipping but will rarely be the one to initiate a ship; i get a lot of joy from romantic ships that evolve organically. i am happy to explore romantic ships with those who are interested, but otherwise i value non-romantic relationships very highly. i generally do not send ship-related memes unless you have made it clear that you are interested. you can find more thoughts on shipping & exclusivity here.
10. this is a low-med activity blog but wednesdays and thursdays are very busy days for me. thursdays i will be mobile for the majority of the day ā so on these days my dash interaction and ooc communication will be spottier.
11. * i'm currently on a "follow first" freeze ā this includes blog remakes and new blogs; i am always open to new followers & interacting with new characters but at the moment i will not be following anyone first!
Not "The Character did nothing wrong" or "The Character is irredeemably awful" but a secret third thing: The Character may display moments of deep love & compassion, may even have a strong sense of ethics, and may also be capable of brutal cruelty that is irreconcilable with those traits. The constant tension between the different sides of The Character's nature is exactly what makes them compelling, and attempting to reduce them down to simply "a terrible person" or "innocent & misunderstood" is missing the point of the questions a media with nuanced characters is asking you to consider
"..." it's like stepping through a funhouse mirror. wayne manor is both familiar and... not. high ceilings and grand halls, the slightly-ominous sense of being watched. regulus is no stranger to atmospheres of wealth and finery but he is the stranger here ā in gotham, in the states. at the mercy of whatever hospitality he can grasp through the fog of greed and deception. the smiles here are different, but dollars and pounds sound the same when you rub them together.
regulus has decided to take whatever hand is offered him when he finds one that does not burn at his touch.
but this. this ! is a circumstance wrought with tension. he thinks this must be what it feels like to have one's mother arrange a game of swings between two children at the play park. if his mother ever cared to do so. whether it is awkwardness or indignance or indifference or boredom, reg cannot tell ā he can't even tell which of them it's coming from. the weight of some expectation presses inward on his ribcage like being squeezed through a tube.
regulus pulls in a stilling breath and reminds himself that he's still here, in a tall-backed chair in a lovely parlour, sitting opposite bruce wayne's son. and metaphorical rib-crushing tube be damned, they're having a lovely, terse chat about gotham's raucous night life.
ā you'll be as depraved as the rest of us in no time. ā @reknight
is that sarcasm? the corners of his mouth tick upward like something of a smile. " will i? you'll have to teach me. " because certainly regulus knows nothing of depravity ā polished and perfect son that he is. he knows neither the kiss of death nor the clawing of fingernails on moist earth, the scent of his own blood or the taste of bile. he watches jason with an open stare, lips frozen in something polite and haughty. "now ā i don't attach much importance to rumour and gossip; but some of it makes it sound as though every man in gotham has killed at least one person in their life. what on earth are you all doing?"
zatanna breathes before she offers a reply. she feels the chill of the air coat her lungs as she crosses one leg over the other while she sinks into the cushion, leaning forward to rest her elbow on the meat of her thigh. her palm cradles her chin as she rests it on top, contemplation sinking into the canvas of her expression as her lids hood in observation. the portal oozes murky blackness that feels constricting to her when she attempts to gauge the sensation and nature of it.
mostly to exhaust all avenues, her vacant hand lifts in the space between them and she mutters an incantation under the mist of her breath; her hand illuminates from the tips of her fingers down to the hem of her gloves, brighter than the ambient lighting, but the portal doesn't dissipate.
ā i want to say that stepping through it would be a horrible idea, since neither of us know where it came from, ā she begins, turning her face to raise an eyebrow at him. her back straightens and she uncrosses to stand, dusting off her legs and crossing her arms while she returns her gaze to the menacing opening with a squint. ā however, i can't ignore the potential threat, and i'm a little more than concerned about it and why it manifested here. it's not responding to me either, so i don't think it can be closed from the outside. normally i'd be against anyone joining me, but i already know you'd be a good fit. ā
and i would agree with you ! but when has anything ever been truly learned without a little personal risk. books are informative. experience is better. and ten years ago if regulus heard himself speak the very thoughts he's having now, he would say he's taken a wrong turn somewhere. but perhaps in his older-age... regulus has learned that it's just as dangerous as it is to act too quickly than it is not to act at all.
or so he would justify the thread of curiosity that tugs at his ribcage like the curling fingertips of a siren. still ā zatanna is right. there must be some compromise between falling through head-first, and losing an opportunity to quell the matter before it becomes larger.
"... me? a good fit?" oh, he's preening ! and he makes no secret of it in his lifted nose and crooked smile when he pivots to face her, "i've changed my mind. let the portal sort itself ā we'll stay here and you can expand on that thought." noānot even he is so gluttonous.
but he does wear the self-satisfied smirk as he passes by her towards the bookshelf, selects a new-ish title and tears a page at random. holds it between his index and middle finger, concentrates for half of a moment. the page twitches, writhes, folds and reconstructs itself into the shape of a bird standing neatly on his palm. it hops. it chitters. and with a little push he directs his paper chickadee across the room and through the portal.
it enters in silence, the flickering edges of their portal neither larger nor more disturbed than before. but his eyes are trained on its abyss, misting fingertips at the ready for whatever should happen. and a minute after the bird enters, it flies back out ā lands on the carpet between them without a mark or a scratch on it. it hops. chitters.
@proditeur sent : ā are you human? ā / from here & accepting.
for as much as he'd heard this exact question, it did actually make at least a little bit of sense. for those that were unfamiliar with the green lantern corps, and the power that they held within their rings, hal could just be a superhuman, or some real cool alien from another world like superman.
unfortunately, his story was a hell of a lot less cool than that. ā one hundred percent. this ring gives me a lot of cool abilities [ ... ] ā he trailed off.
ā translating just about any alien language out there, making constructs of whatever i can will up, flying at speeds incomprehensible to the human mind [ ... ] and intergalactic space travel. that's super cool, too. but without it? just a dude from california. ā
"..." regulus is on the surface far less fascinated than he feels ā one side of his brow perks in dry acknowledgement with a hand perched neatly at his hip. magic? technology? the tell-tale shiver in his fingertips senses nothing.
oh ! how he'd like to take it apart and study it from the inside; but he couldn't very well ask. that would be rude.
"awfully grand responsibility for just a dude from california." how hard is it to take that ring off? and he can't read thoughts, can he? "sounds a little like magic. but i can't fly at... 'incomprehensible speeds.' " and if it's truly incomprehensible, then how is the green lantern's mind... comprehending it?
"... you must like being a hero. doesn't sound worth it, otherwise."
he must know killian knows. there's not been much of a choice ā as much as he's kept his distance, shed all of his former life just short of his last name, it's been impossible not to see memoir all throughout the city, all throughout magic and all throughout reality. regulus may be hidden as a person and as a mage, his magical signature as fingerprintless as his gloves, but not to his brother. killian has never truly tried to see it, either. he just sort of ran into it, and couldn't unsee it. like turning a page and facing an image of your past, a part of yourself you had forgotten. weaves made in your distinct characteristic pattern, but you never remember making them.
memoir's voice and smile, of course, are confirmation enough. the ghost he'd been outrunning stands inevitably before him, and although this day was bound to come, killian wishes he was anywhere else. any place that gives him a solid exit strategy. but here, he is bound by duty and conviction. even if he disagrees with the methods.
is it coincidence that he's gotten a headache ever since regulus entered the room? maybe it's one of his party tricks. killian lets out a deep breath. it's time to let go.
ā no one's been saying that about me. least of all to you. come on now, i will show you the site, ā in one swift motion, he grabs one of the clipboards from the desk and throws it at memoir's chest. he doesn't care for protocol, and he doesn't frankly care for regulus' notes either. the quicker they can go over this the quicker they can be done. killian grabs his own pen and clipboard and turns around to the corridor towards the elevator. he doesn't care to address regulus directly or wait for him to get sorted. ā follow me! ā
the hastily-tossed clipboard strikes his chest and regulus catches it against him with a sardonic chuckle. in a rush, kil? but beneath the mask and further still beneath the sharp-edged banter is something old and nostalgic, like a hug-worn teddy bear, face etched in sadness.
once upon a time, there were two little boys in a very big house ā and they loved each other very much. and they laughed and they played and they told stories, and they found swords in branches in the garden. and they told each other they would always be brothers.
"are you sure? so, you haven't heard the one about you and the swivel chairā" prickly shite; it feels like slipping on an old pair of boots that still fit after all this time. but if he keeps them on for too long, he'll remember why he's stopped wearing them.
once upon a time, there were two slightly-less-little boys in a still-very-big-house ā and they [???] each other very much. and they shared grimaces in the hallways and flung mushy peas across the dinner table. and they were too afraid to ask whether they had stopped being brothers.
they are in the elevator. and to regulus' credit he's being appropriately silent, clipboard tucked down at his side, waiting with an almost comedic patience as the cabin ādings! at every floor. it's somehow easier like this ā masked, hidden. killian may know who he is but as long as he refuses to show his face they can make believe. even for show. but how long can this last? they are of two different minds trying to unwind the same conundrum, and clash is inevitable, he thinks. "this is a very nice clipboard," he initiates, finally, "and the notes are fine, as well. impressive. it's so hard to find competent people, these days."
i am going to get to my dynamic/interaction call soon, but lately i've been really into jurassic park and wanted to throw together a basic jurassic park au for regulus ā¤ļø it would mean a lot to me if you could all give it a quick look!!
AHHHH š we just got back from a fundraiser event for animal shelters in my state and it was dog-friendly so i brought rupert with me. he was such a good boy and he was so well-behaved and they had a kiddie pool and he just invited himself in and sank down. then i went to get food at a food truck and my mom held him for me (pictured) and he just stared at me the whole time. what a good boy what a lovely day
i've never really toyed with the idea of reg having a witch's familiar but i might give him one in his fantasy verse. because i think it would be neat for him to have a falcon or another bird of some kind.
i've never really toyed with the idea of reg having a witch's familiar but i might give him one in his fantasy verse. because i think it would be neat for him to have a falcon or another bird of some kind.
"regcyclopedia" is such a funny name for a sideblog but now that i'm actually putting things on it and using it for more than i intended to i think i need a better and cooler name š what do i do with regcyclopedia...
regulus, magical abilities and powers.
applicable to : dc, marvel
regulus belongs to the meda, a subclass of sorcery that derives its power from maega ( MAYZH-ah ), a celestial entity.
the meda are capable of general magic use but, like any skill, every person has a different area of competency. the magical potential is there for any person to learn any skill, but their level of skill is defined by their dedication to study and their field of interest.
THIS IS NOT AN EXHAUSTIVE LIST. the magical skills here cover the main and most common areas of proficiency that may appear in plotting and threads. just because something is not on this list does not mean that he cannot do it ( though it also doesn't mean that he can ).
EDUCATION & LEVEL OF SKILL.
importantly, regulus isn't prodigious in any respect. whatever it is that he knows about magic, he knows because he worked so hard to learn it. whatever skills he has, he has them because he trained and practiced and failed and tried and tried and tried and tried again. whatever knowledge he has, he has because he studied and researched and traveled and yearned for it. it's true that he was born with the capacity for magic but the ability to wield it effectively is because of his effort. his curiosity, his blood and sweat.
that said, he does have a great advantage over many other magic-users of his kind ā given his upbringing in a magical environment and his access to resources and millennia of forgotten knowledge. he was born into the privilege of access to this knowledge and a safe environment in which to learn it. outside of this self-study and family-provided tutelage, there is no type of magic school or centralized system. those who have connections to other magical people will learn what they can from them, or will rely on their own efforts to discover and knowledge and practice the limits of their abilities.
between his self-study, curious nature, and home environment, regulus develops highly-skilled magic use at a young age ā and continues developing it long into old age.
while he could be described as an overall magical proficient, he does have several specialties which have been his particular focus.
MASTERED SKILLS.
MEMORY MANIPULATION ( INNATE ABILITY ) : every meda is born with a single, unique ability. this ability is neither learned nor practiced; it is an innate, advanced-level skill born into each of them.
regulus was born with the ability to wield memory magic. he can read, copy, add, remove, alter, or completely erase memories. this power will work on any being capable of memory, including animals extraterrestrials, and supernatural entities. though not every being's memory works the same, and regulus often has to experiment with techniques to learn how to manipulate different mental spaces.
this power can be used to lethal effect, but regulus, as a highly-principled person, rarely does so. the most common use of this ability ( in combat scenarios ) is to turn his opponents on one another by implanting memories that implicate them against each other. he has also targeted leaders and manipulated them to direct their forces against another enemy force.
ABJURATION : protective wards, shields, barriers. regulus' father was born with the innate ability to produce them ā and while regulus can never reach the apex of his father's skill, he learned what he could and expanded on that knowledge with his own experimentation.
he can produce wards that keep someone out of a space, either by installing an impenetrable barrier or a barrier that harms and disintegrates those that touch it. it could also be a barrier that, once crossed, spits the person out on the other side of the protected area.
he can produce wards that trigger a trap or trigger a quiet alarm to alert the spellcaster, without the intruder knowing an alarm was sent.
regulus' shields can withstand high blast pressure, especially if he's there to continually maintain and repair the shield as it's damaged. however, constant maintenance does draw a lot of his energy and it's not something he would choose to do often without some great need.
regulus also uses wards for more mundane uses, such as soundproofing rooms and spaces or blocking the view in through his windows so outside figures can't see into his home, office, or car.
ENCHANTING : binding spells to spaces or objects to augment existing properties or add new properties. regulus frequently uses magic to enhance clothing and weaponry or to create new things that serve a higher functional use ( ie. a blanket that cannot be penetrated by the cold or keeps a person cool in the heat ). he loves gifting these objects to his friends and loved-ones ā especially those leading dangerous or complicated lives. clothing that is fire or cut-resistant, gloves that remain warm in the coldest air, trick arrows that surpass that which technology can perform, etc.
this is a particular fascination for regulus and something at which he greatly excels specifically because he finds so much joy in it. it is the balance of knowledge and creativity that lends extremely well to this kind of innovative magic use.
POCKET DIMENSIONS : regulus opened his first pocket dimension when he was fourteen, largely out of curiosity. three years later he created the memorium, which became his lair base and private refuge.
ā> there's a more detailed look on pocket dimensions and the memorium here.
while regulus has the ability to open new dimensions, he doesn't do this often. the amount of energy it requires to complete the spellwork would knock him out for a few hours at best, and a few days at worst ā and regulus doesn't invite that kind of vulnerability without a good reason.
it is, however, something at which he's extremely skilled and he would do if a particular need arose, such as finding a new base of operations in the event of an emergency, hiding or trapping figures, or creating areas of absolute secrecy.
*interdimensional travel is not a particular skill of his but may fall under a "skills that regulus can learn later in life" category.
CLIMATE CONTROL : in his early-20's regulus adopts a deep interest in plant life and, around this time, begins cultivating a massive garden property with flowers, trees, shrubberies, and every manner of flora. in an effort to preserve and care for these plants he put a great deal of effort into learning climate control magic; ie. controlling the temperature, weather, and pressure in a given space. his entire property is interwoven with intricate spellwork for the sole purpose of keeping his garden alive and thriving year-round.
outside of this use, he can also magically control the temperature in the space around him, enchant items to retain warmth or coolness, and otherwise create a comfortable environment without electrical appliances.
CURSEBREAKING : ... and its counterpart, cursing. regulus' access to dark magical materials makes him rather adept at identifying, placing, or unwinding curses. it was a particular interest of his in his youth and he carries this knowledge with him into adulthood, at times working as a cursebreaker in exchange either for favors or services, or for fun.
MID-LEVEL ABILITIES & POWERS.
there are certainly things that regulus is very good at, even if he hasn't put the most time and effort into learning them. these are things that he uses often and with confidence but wouldn't consider himself to be "one of the best" at.
TELEPORTATION : regulus can teleport from one area to another via "manifesting" or "space-walking." he disappears into a cloud of black, billowing mist and reappears in another cloud of billowing mist, in another location. the action is completely silent and appears as if he's simply walking out of space.
he can take one or two people with him but taking larger groups of people requires more energy than he's usually willing to expend. his butler, paul, was born with the innate ability of teleportation and regulus will often enlist his help for emergencies.
LEVITATING OBJECTS : regulus can levitate large objects, though larger objects ( ie. walls and buildings ) would require more focus and energy. he can lift and move small objects with negligible ease and often does so when he's in the private company of people who know he's a sorcerer. he can also levitate people ā however, he can't levitate himself and therefore can't fly. this is largely due to disinterest, as he prefers to teleport.
CONJURING : regulus can conjure smaller and more basic objects, and he can use conjuring to retrieve objects from other locations.
SHADOW MANIPULATION : purely for entertainment, particularly for children. he can move them like actual shadow-puppets and puts on little shows. it is one of his most favourite forms of playful magic.
ELEMENTAL MAGIC : manipulating and creating with the elements. this might be slightly related to his proficiency with climate magic, but generally speaking he does not work often with fire or water; though he can start fires, grow them, subdue them, and manipulate water.
SENSORY MANIPULATION : spells that alter sight, sound, and confuse the senses. can be considered a form of ILLUSION MAGIC, creating images that bewilder, redirect, or otherwise trick another being. regulus prefers to work in this indirect type of combative magic and has therefore focused much of his time and energy into learning it.
SHAPESHIFTING : himself and others. he can shapeshift himself into simple creatures and typically adopts the form of either a black cat or a peregrine falcon. he can transform the shape of others and has on more than one occasion performed rescues by turning someone into a mouse and tucking them into his pocket.
GLAMOUR : he can apply glamour to himself, others, as well as a given space; either to conceal or transform it visually into something else. regulus does not prefer doing this due to the number of factors affecting this type of magic ( ie. others who can see through glamour, the magic somehow failing, someone entering that space and therefore bypassing its appearance ), and it's therefor not a type of magic he typically relies on.
DEFICIENCIES.
while regulus has many high-level skills, there are certain things that have never ever interested him and he's therefore put little to no effort into learning them ā or things he has stayed far away from, either for moral or cautious reasons.
BREWING & POTIONS : "how much can a single potion cost? ten dollars?" the subject of brewing has never interested regulus, especially given his resources and connection with those who are highly-skilled. he's always just assumed that if he needs one, he can buy one from someone else.
HEALING : "when will i ever need this?" famous last words, because he needed it and didn't have it. regulus is not a completely hopeless healer, he can heal small scrapes and bruises and he can mend most things long enough to get them to someone who's actually medically-capable, but he shouldn't be relied-upon.
DIVINATION : he wants no part of it. regulus holds no negative thoughts or feelings on others who practice these arts, but he himself doesn't want to know the future, does not want to speak to the dead, and refuses to believe in 'fate,' 'destiny,' or the other wise pre-ordained.
NECROMANCY : also wants no part of that. and while i fully believe that he could successfully perform a necromantic ritual, regulus does not fuck with the dead. this is therefore a subject that he actually knows a great deal about, academically, but has never intentionally practiced himself.
Elain watches, wide-eyed and open-mouthed, as flowers gather to the centre of his palm in spirals. Not unlike how the flowers had danced for her before, each one moving to find its place until ā- what had been many becomes one. She takes the flower from his hand without a beat spared, turning it once between fingers. ā Well, you've left me no choice now but to insist you do that again! ā Elain raises the flower until it sits right under his nose, and with a tilt of her head, adds innocently, ā Different colour this time? ā
regulus has never been the sort of man that's needed praise and attention ā but he does enjoy the look in elain's eyes as she stands in marvel to the beautiful piece of magic he weaves from the air. that's what magic is for; creating stuff of wonder, an expression of one's passion, and if there's time, a little keepsake. she plants the flower beneath his nose and he tilts his eyes downward to see it, "different colour? how demanding," he tuts, but an open palm kept low at his side already begins stirring up the wind and the petals it carries, "and what will i get, if i do this for you?"
basically the best thing any character can do is decide they don't want to be afraid anymore - in fact they never want to be afraid of anything ever again - and take action so drastic they fail to realise that this too is a decision motivated by fear. or to account for the Consequences of that.
