Mobile-Friendly About Pages: Application
Character series: Fullmetal Alchemist (continuity of 2003 anime/Conqueror of Shamballa sequel movie) [small scattering of characterization inspirations from the manga and Brotherhood]
Point taken from: Immediately after the end of Conqueror of Shamballa
Character age: Over 400 years (appears to be in his mid 20’s)
Do you allow canon doubles to app?: YES. PLEASE give me manga/Brotherhood Envy; I’d love to see these two fight like territorial tomcats
Short character about (content warnings: child death, necromancy, body horror, mass murder):
Once upon a time, more than four hundred years ago, there lived two alchemists, a man and a woman, who loved each other very much. The man’s name was Philippus Aureolus Theophrastus Bombastus von Hohenheim–also known as Hohenheim of Light. The woman is now remembered only as Dante. These alchemists were content, for a time–they were experts in their field, they were content in their love, and they had a young son who they loved very much. But then their little boy began to grow ill. And then their little boy began to grow very ill, and the two alchemists wondered: ‘if alchemy can turn lead into gold, can it extend the life of our son?’
Hohenheim of Light and Dante tried everything they could think of to help their son. They then tried things that had never been tried before, things that only existed in theories, and then things that only existed in myth. But all of it amounted to nothing–and worse. One of their treatments, a mercury tincture that Dante had invented, appeared to only make their son sicker. But the little boy’s parents were desperate. And so, they kept trying, and trying–until finally, the little boy passed away. But the desperate parents were not done. Not yet.
The grieving alchemists then tried something no one had ever done before. It was fully taboo, and no one had ever been bold enough–nor skilled enough. But Hohenheim was. He was the first person to attempt human transmutation. But though the creature who appeared in place of his young son breathed…it did not live. It was not alive. It was not human. He had turned his son’s remains into a monster. And so Hohenheim of Light turned away, and withdrew into his grief.
Dante, however, had still not given up yet. She hid the creature that her son had become, the sick, malformed thing, and did her best to keep it alive. She nursed the creature in secret, unbeknownst to her lover. And then, she began pushing upon Hohenheim a project that even he had not yet dared: the creation of the Philosopher’s Stone. Eventually, the Philosopher’s Stone project succeeded. Hohenheim, with the help of Dante and another alchemist assistant, sacrificed the human lives of an entire city to create the Philosopher’s Stone. The process, however, nearly claimed Hohenheim’s life. Dante, in her desperation, used the newformed Stone to transfer her lover’s soul into her assistant’s body. Thus did the two alchemists discover immortality. And thus did Dante gain the key to keep what was left of her son alive.
In secret, Dante fed the malformed creature that had been her son shards of the Philosopher’s Stone–and slowly, the twisted being began to heal. Slowly, its limbs and organs resumed their proper places. And finally, the being spoke to her. She told him that he was her son. She told him that he was her and Hohenheim of Light’s son. But then Dante introduced the young boy to Hohenheim.
Hohenheim was horrified. What had his lover done? What madness–what sin–had she wrought with the Philosopher’s Stone? Again, he turned away. A second time, he abandoned the thing that thought it was his child. And so, the child-thing began to hate.
Soon, Dante came up with a name for what it was–Homunculus. Artificial human. Created being. Something both less than human, and yet more than. Soon, the Homunculus rejected the name it remembered having, the name it had had as Hohenheim’s son. It demanded a new name for the new thing that it was. And Dante thought it fitting to call it a sin, as Hohenheim had. She named him Envy.
And Envy was content with his new state of being…but only if he could have his revenge. He would never know peace until he took the life of the man who had created him, only to reject him. He would never know peace until he watched the last life leave Hohenheim of Light’s eyes. And if, in the course of this quest, he gets to snuff out the lives of every human who stands in his way…? Well. That’s just a fun little bonus.
Personality (content warnings: child death, nihilism, murder, dehumanization):
Envy is a 400+ year old child. For the most part, he acts calm, collected, and cynical. He’s a champion of nihilism. He likes to come off as unflappable, as the guy who always has a plan, always has a strategy, as a master tactician. After all, he’s centuries older than most humans will ever be–and he believes that his non-human traits make him the Perfect Being. The fact of the matter is, despite trying to appear emotionless, Envy is incredibly emotional. Every feeling he has, he feels very strongly. Joy, passion, anger, rage, hate…Envy’s emotions have a tendency to rob all logic and send him barreling headfirst down whatever path the emotion of the moment has set him on.
Envy’s default expression is “cynical smirk.“ He’s got about 25 versions of that smug, superior grin. If he’s smiling, he usually does not mean well. He smirks before he gives his unsolicited opinion; he smirks before being cryptic and insufferable; he smirks before he does violence. However, his smile rarely reaches his eyes. His gaze is cold and predatory. He looks at most humans as either pawns to be manipulated, or as prey to be slaughtered.
Most alchemists who have studied the taboos of human transmutation could tell you that a Homunculus would not possess a soul, and they’d be correct. Homunculi do not have human souls. However, it’s not proven whether or not a Homunculus can have any sort of soul. The expression and experience of emotion is usually brought up as a theoretical data point when it comes to souls–surely a soulless being is an emotionless being? But this does not seem to be the case. Envy, along with most other Homunculi, all feel their feelings very strongly. If anything, it seems like a lack of a soul is also a lack of emotional regulation.
Envy is very proud of being a Homunculus. He’s very proud of every inhuman quality he possesses, every power he has, every fact he’s learned as a result of his long life. But his weaknesses are clear: he was named for the Sin of Jealousy for a reason. He wants to destroy the man who created him…but he also despises the fact that the man who created him married another woman, and had children with her. Children that this man loves. (Obviously, they all need to die.)
Envy’s most acute weakness, though, is probably the simple fact that he consistently underestimates humans. Living a long life full of hate is bound to make a person cynical, but it also means that he expects the worst out of humanity, because he's seen the worst. As a result, he consistently overlooks humanity at their best.
Abilities (content warnings: body horror, necromancy, murder/death, severe wounds):
Shapeshifting: Key ability. Envy can assume the appearance of any humanoid, or any animal, in a broad range of sizes, from tiny insects to massive predators. His transformations are not illusions, but true physical transformations, down to almost the molecular level. (Creatures who have an enhanced sense of smell pick up the scent of the disguise, but also the ozone-burn common to all Homunculi.) When Envy changes shape, it’s no effort of will to keep whatever form he chooses indefinitely. This makes him perfect for espionage, able to replace a person for an entire lifetime if necessary. Envy is able to perfectly mimic his disguise’s voice, too, not just from transforming the physical aspects of speech, but by using his acute hearing (and observational skills) to perfectly duplicate his target’s pitch, cadence, rhythms, vocal quirks, and more.
Polymorphing: Partial shapeshifting, such as turning his arm into a long knife, or turning his head into that of one person, and leaving his body in the form of another. Usually only uses this ability when he’s unarmed, when he’s trying to freak someone out, or when he’s trying to conserve energy by opting out of a full shape-shift.
Default Form: The androgynous body he mostly appears in during the course of the series (the form described under Physical Description on his Stats page). Envy sculpted this form himself, molding it to align with his ideals of what it means to be a Perfect Being. Above the constraints of gender, compact enough to retain all his agility, but sculpted enough to be strong. If something interferes with Envy’s powers or his concentration, this is the form he’ll revert back to.
Original Form: He’ll never tell. He’ll never assume his original appearance. Envy claims he’s forgotten what he originally looked like. This is a lie–but the truth is far more painful (a sickly child, a broken thing) and he won’t face it.
True Form: Because of his absolute rejection of his original appearance consistently over the centuries, and due to his hatred and rage growing to ever-rising heights, Envy’s true form itself has shifted. At the end of the Fullmetal Alchemist anime when he threw himself into the Gate and was transported to a world without alchemy, where his powers were stripped from him utterly, he reverted to this form. He takes the form of a giant serpent, or a massive wingless dragon, with jaws easily large enough to envelop a human fully. In this body, Envy moves like a snake, but his massive size carries a wealth of destructive power. He cannot vocalize with the movement of his jaws or tongue, but still manages to speak somehow (even he’s not sure how this works, but it works like a form of telepathy). The fact that his true form is so massive is why Envy is able to shapeshift into creatures of almost any size, and part of the reason why he possesses such frightening strength–his mass doesn't go anywhere, but merely gets compressed into a smaller shell.
Homunculus Physiology: In the strictest, most physical sense, Homunculi are identical to humans. They're made up of the same cells, the same tissues, the same organs and limbs. However, Homunculi lack a certain quality to them that alchemists have struggled to define for centuries, though most agree to call this quality a soul. Homunculi are not born, they are created--and when they are made, they lack the spark of life that newborn humans possess. They cannot survive without an outside energy source. Naturally, the source most suited to replace a human soul is a source comprised of human souls. Homunculi are sustained on the Philosopher's Stone, usually by consuming (eating) smaller, incomplete Stones, or smaller pieces of larger Stones.
Regeneration: Envy, like all Homunculi, has a very high-octane healing factor. He can regenerate any injury, from full-body burns to losing a limb. If a part of his body is removed, the detached portion will dissolve, and the missing part will regrow in a matter of seconds. Even death cannot stop Envy--if his heart stops beating, the damage he sustained will regenerate, and he'll be on his feet again in seconds. Like all their powers, a Homunculus's regenerative abilities are powered by the energy of the Philosopher's Stone. The Stone creates a sort of perfect homeostasis: it does not want the body to change. Because of this, Envy can't even do recreational body modifications, like getting a haircut, a piercing, or a tattoo. His hair will regrow in an instant, and his skin will expel the studs and ink. Thankfully, Envy can change his hairstyle with shapeshifting, or mimic piercings or tattoos with shapeshifting, but just like his clothes, the accessories are actually part of his body.
Enhanced Senses: All Homunculi have enhanced senses, but which senses are the most potent depends on the Homunculus, and on their power set.
Hearing: Envy’s hearing is his most powerful sense. It’s not powerful in the “radius of hearing” sense, but in the sense that he has perfect pitch, is able to hear tones both higher and lower than the normal human range of hearing, and he possesses perfect auditory/echoic memory. This is a big part of how he’s able to perfectly duplicate a person’s voice and speech patterns for his shapeshifting.
Scent: Envy’s sense of smell is a tiny bit more acute than a human’s. It’s just enough that he can detect his fellow Homunculi at short range (they all smell a bit like ozone). The unfortunate side-effect of this is that Envy constantly complains about “human stink”.
Enhanced Strength: Envy is preternaturally strong, able to punch a 40-foot wide crater into the ground with a single blow.
Enhanced Agility/Speed: Envy's agility is fueled partially by his intense strength--he's able to perform Olympic-level acrobatic feats with ease--but he's also just plain fast. Envy's ground speed while running can match that of your average horse.
Food and Sleep: Since Homunculi are sustained on the life-force they absorb by ingesting Philosopher's Stones, they don't require typical organic food in order to use energy. They don't require sleep, either. They may eat recreationally, but they find it difficult to sleep even when they desire to. (Envy in particular hates sleeping; he finds it a waste of time.) A Homunculus is a fully organic construct, so they can still become intoxicated by the same substances that would affect a human. Generally speaking, though, a much higher volume of those substances would be needed to replicate the same effects (because of the "homeostasis" created by the Philosopher's Stone, mentioned under Regeneration).
Weapons/important items: None
Pets: N/A (most animals think his vibes are rancid)
OOC contact and your name: Hi, it’s Elf! (she/her, age 35+). Message me at puckish-thoughts (my personal blog), or my two main indie RP blogs, unholykeyblader or minstrelmaglor.
Other characters in Isola: 4 - Lorene, an OC; Harpuia from Megaman Zero; Riku Replica from Kingdom Hearts (he goes by Ikki); and Millie Thompson from Trigun Maximum
