@c23introsâ
chailai âlaiâ bunma (envy) is an alpha-level mutant with the ability of animal morphing. theyâve been in new york for two months where they spend most of their time as a bigwig essex corp. bodyguard / government agent. when i think of them, i think of the glow of a cheetahâs eye piercing the dark, the heat of desire become the flame of destruction, a wolf in silk clothing. they are affiliated with the seven deadly sins. || (brenda song, thirty-four, cis woman, she/her)
woof woof awooga itâs may !
UPDATE: lil disclaimer bc there has been confusion: unless she has told y/m, they will likely be unaware that she has any ties to the essex corporation.
QUICK FACTS:
full name: chailai âlaiâ bunma
date of birth: april 26th, 1964
zodiac big three: taurus sun, aries moon, virgo rising
gender & pronouns: cis woman & she/her
sexual orientation: bisexual
enneagram:Â 3w4
mbti: xntj
temperament: choleric-sanguine
moral alignment: lawful evil
ability:Â animal morphing
affiliation: the seven deadly sins
alias:Â envy
BACKSTORY
triggers:Â in the beginning, she is cinderella and fido all at once.
chailai bun ma was born to three generations of mutants, thus causing her status as a non-mutant to lead to great distrust. when she was already fourteen years old, her father demanded a dna test. and truth be told ? she hoped that it would show she didnât share her fatherâs dna, offer a scapegoat for why she could be absolutely surrounded by mutants... and just not be one. but the dna matched, thus forcing them all to settle on a conclusion of an anomaly.
without going into detail because iâm writing this part last and itâll make this intro very long, lai was treated as more of a servant in her home than an equal. at the end of the day, none of them knew how to take care of a human... so they figured a mix of cinderella and fido was suitable. do all the housework, sleep outside, and watch the bonding from afar. watch the amazement from afar.
that was certainly the worst part of it all. no george saunders-esque leash, no glass slipper: being absolutely awed by what everyone in her family could do.
it became cruel, this amazement. awe turned to jealousy, jealousy turned to resentment ( ...which shouldâve been there to begin with ), resentment turned to hatred. but all of it was sandwiched in curiosity over how it was possible.
thus, when she was twenty and met the credentials, she took up an internship in the mutant research department ( MRDÂ ), largely led by linda mccall. could a born human become a mutant ?Â
she kept a close eye on the study, counting the failures and successes. as it came close to termination, she saw the factors and the commonalities. her very base dna matched many of the successes, thus, she volunteered herself to become a part of the experiment. if she died, she died ¯\_(ă)_/ÂŻ
but she did not die. her body fought through the strain and had, if nothing else, changed. the eyes she met in the mirror were ones she did not recognize. the sclera was almost completely amber, the previously vast whiteness turning minuscule. malar stripes could be seen. trailing down, searching for any other imperfections... she caught markings around her neck that looked much like the spots of a cheetah ( later, she would identify them as closer to a leopard, but everything that would follow the initial change would have more relation to cheetah... she just lets it be, most people donât know the difference ). and with a single glance at her teeth, the fangs of a big cat were found. a single glance at her hands, the claws of a cheetah.
at first, these physical flaws seemed to be to her detriment. she was not as highly regarded as the five who came before. but when the experiments were launched, the origin of such flaws made quick sense: the first animal she morphed into was a cheetah. and it became her animal of preference, even as she discovered she could turn into so much more. she also learned that she could retract her fangs and, with a lot of work ( cheetahs donât have retractable claws, so ! ), claws... very important to being able to pass as beta, not gamma.
letâs fast forward a bit to when linda decided that the sinsâs training had been successful, decided that they could be thrown out into the real world ( or, in laiâs case, back out into the real world ).
with intrigue piqued over her own self, she began studying zoology, keeping up with combat training and mutant news on the side. she realized that, the more she knew about any given animal, the more effective she was in that form. and she learned that the reflexes and strength of various animals she was well-acquainted with was quick to come out in emergencies.
a few years out, she used both this information and the connection she, as one of the sins, had with essex corporation to become a vicious pint-sized ( yâall brenda song is 5âČ2 omg ) bodyguard. and, as she spent more time proving she was faithful to the corporation and keeping them safe, she was tasked with becoming the bodyguard of the bigwig only a step below nathaniel, edward atkinson. and this brought her to new york city following the death of one of his guards.
THIS IS NOT TO BE CONFUSED WITH THE ESSEX HOUSE ITSELF, BTW. ESCAPEES AND FORMER RESIDENTS WOULD NOT KNOW HER.
and then the call came... đ
( as two side-notes: thinks her markings are goddamn beautiful now, and also is lindaâs petcheetah.mp3Â )
TIMELINE:Â
BORN -- born in boston, the first human to three generations of mutants.
AGES 5-14 -- tasked with all house chores and treated a bit akin to a dog. they would become good parents when they knew how to take care of her, and they knew how to take care of mutants and mutants alone.
AGE 15 -- with no signs of progress or mutation, father orders a dna test. it confirms what everyone ( save for her mother, of course ) had feared: she was, biologically, his daughter. there was no easy explanation.
AGES 15-17 -- full-on dog mode. the awe she once held over her parentsâ and siblingsâ abilities turns to jealousy, jealousy turns to resentment, resentment turns to hatred of both the self and the family.
AGES 18-20 -- leaves on the dime of her grandparents and viciously studies anatomy and biology. pairs this with all the history she can find of mutants.Â
AGE 21 -- with the ire, but curiosity, that had driven her studies, she graduates early. plans to get her masters and scores an internship with the mutant research development ( mrd ) sector of the government in the meantime. pays attention to linda mccallâs study on turning humans into mutants. after many failures ( resulting in death ), but five successes, she takes the gamble and volunteers herself for the study. obviously, she lives. but not without the caveat of minor physical changes: amber scleras, faint cheetah markings along her neck, the claws and fangs of a big cat ( learns during the experiments that theyâre retractable ). through experiments, they learn that she can morph into various animals.
AGES 22-26 -- abandons her masters, instead spending time focusing on combat training, tuning into mutant news, and learning more about zoology whilst working as a bouncer at night. learning more about zoology taught her more about her mutation. for example, the more she knew about any given animal, the better she could channel them. sheâd always known she could turn into anything, no matter how much or how little she knew, but she found she reached her full velocity when she knew all the ins and outs. finds that this also aids in reflexes, strength, and speed. in emergency situations, she is able to execute various reflexes/strengths/speeds/etc of any given animal that sheâs very familiar with.
AGES 27-34: despite being a mutant, she is tentatively accepted when she âappliesâ to become a bodyguard at the essex corporation. because she is one of the seven deadly sins, all of whom are affiliated with nathaniel, she isnât seen as a direct threat or monster. is able to gain promotions, so to speak, and guard higher-ups the more trusted she becomes -- and the more they need her. ends up in new york city after one of the bodyguards of a bigwig, just a step below nathaniel (edward atkinson), is killed. FOR REFERENCE, SHE IS NOT CONSIDERED AN ESSEX HOUSE EMPLOYEE. NO ESCAPEE OR FORMER RESIDENT SHOULD KNOW HER.
AGE 34: receives the call...
CONNECTION IDEAS
( former or current ) essex employees / hazards ! lai is not a well-known employee of essex corp, given that sheâs simply a bodyguard, but she has her way of knowing who is and who is not on the payroll ( see: she turned into an unassuming fly and dug up files ). depending on where y/m stands in regards to essex, she may make herself and status known to them or keep it hidden. basically, just trying to keep the corporation in check from suffering another big blow.
âformer essex house residents / escapees ! this... will be harder, and will require much more development, but individuals she gains the trust of. namely so she can eventually fuck over the escapees as #payback and keep a close eye on former residents.
acquaintances ! lai has been in and out of the city for a few years now, but has only recently really planted her feet in. so just some folks sheâs met since !
âfriendsâ ! alright, thereâs a possibility for real friendship here, but sometimes... you know, youâre a spy, and thatâs just how things are ! she and y/m vibe, thereâs not much more to it. extra helpful if theyâre a mutant who happens to be openly connected with any given faction... in which case, the quotations are very applicable.
fwbs ! evil women move fast.
anything from the past ! very over-arching, as this could fit a number of things ( friends, exes, family -- haha, jk, we pretend we donât have a family here ) ! sheâs been in and out of new york city ever since she was âset freeâ thirteen years ago ( but, as stated above, has only recently really planted her feet ). before then, she grew up in boston -- though going that far back could get a little tricky since there was a whole to-do in her family over the fact that she never developed a mutation. if we want to go that far back, could always have her lie. but safest to stick to the thirteen years !
anything and everything ! always a little harder with a character whoâs new to town, but we can do it !