A Closer Look
-
"He who has overcome his fears will truly be free."
― Aristotle
ADRIÁN
Masculine | from Hadria | Spanish
EMILIO
Masculine | rival | Spanish
MENÉNDEZ
Surname | complete sacrifice | Spanish -
B A S I C S
◖BIRTH NAME◗
Adrián Emilio Menéndez.
◖NICKNAME◗
He goes mainly by Adrián, but the pronunciation differs greatly between his family and his friends. He has a tendency to pronounce it in English, whereas his family, especially his parents, always refer to him with a Spanish pronunciation.
◖ALIAS◗
None, something which will hopefully never change.
◖BIRTH DATE◗
18th June 1992.
◖AGE◗
24 years old.
◖OCCUPATION◗
He's the odd jobs kind of guy, currently working as a barista in a smaller, central coffee shop.
◖RESIDENCE◗
A small, yet nice apartment in Gotham.
◖ALIGNMENT◗
Himself.
◖BIRTHPLACE◗
Gotham.◖NATIONALITY◗
Venezuelan-American.
◖RACE◗
Metahuman.
◖ABILITIES◗
Variations of Light Manipulation.
◖HEIGHT◗
1,85 m.
◖BODY TYPE◗
Athletic and fit, defined.
◖EYES◗
A beautiful, deep, dark brown colour.
◖HAIR◗
Dark brown, almost black.
◖COMPLEXION◗
A warm, tan, brown colour.
◖TATTOOS◗
None and not planning any.
◖SCARS◗
None major, though he almost expects to get some eventually.
◖HANDEDNESS◗
Right-handed.
◖ZODIAC SIGN◗
Gemini.
◖SEXUALITY◗
Heterosexual.
◖RELATIONSHIP STATUS◗
Single.
◖LIKES◗
Staying in, a good cup of coffee, binge-watching series, ordering take out, and staying in bed, but he also enjoys parties and dancing, going out with friends and staying out all night. He enjoys working and making his own decisions, taking it slow, being outside, physical training and running, martial arts, riding, hiking, food, especially if he doesn't have to cook it.
◖DISLIKES◗
Alcohol and the likes, intoxicated people, obnoxious customers, sweets. He hates snakes. He cannot stand others telling him what to do when he hasn't asked for it, people trying to control him in general. He's not too good with cops and lawyers either, even if he has nothing to hide, but their presence has never meant anything good.
◖FACECLAIM◗
Sean Teale.
-
B A C K G R O U N D
"Those who do not move, do not notice their chains."
― Rosa Luxemburg
D E S T I N Y
Can you ever escape it?
Adrián Emilio Menéndez was born to Héctor and Lidia Menéndez as their third son. The second youngest, it was already determined from a young age that he was not going to be the newest head of the family, but nevertheless he had to be brought up to ensure the family legacy. His childhood was filled with intense discipline, luxury beyond your imagination, private school and rigorous training in a number of different disciplines, spanning from martial arts and horseback riding to musical instruments and rhetorics. It was tiresome, but it was the only reality he knew of growing up. He was always very aware, though, that he was not the first-born and therefore not meant to take over the family; but he quickly found out that he had no interest in that whatsoever.
Héctor Menéndez was not only a powerful metahuman, but the leader of Cartel de las Serpientes, the largest Venezuelan cartel on the east coast, something he slowly became aware of as he grew older. One of the first things he realised was how not all of his friends had body guards and then it just went on from there. He was never the most ambitious, but he decided early on that he was not going to be a part of the life style that his family was so fond of. To begin with, it was just partly, just that he wasn't going to join the business in any sense and that was perfectly fine as well - he was only the third son with metahuman abilities that were of no greater benefit to the family business. He was lucky enough to have that choice which his oldest brother didn't. It was easy to take it lightly; he was just going to finish school, do all of his hobbies as he used to, get a job, move away, nothing big, all of which his parents would probably help him with anyway, a rather sweet deal.
While he had realised what his father did, he had not realised the extend of it until he was looking it right in the eye. He never went behind the scenes, since he had made it clear that he had no interest in it, but after returning home after a weekend away in the country side, he found his brother's best friend unconscious, OD'ing, his brother, Diego, nowhere to be found. He will never forget what he saw nor what happened after he had called an ambulance - a grave mistake, he would learn. Following the paramedics, the police arrived, and before he knew it he had engulfed his family in a murder investigation, as his brother's friend passed away before they reached the hospital. His family has never really forgiven him for calling for help, even if his brother was never sentenced even after being charged and going through a long and rather tiring court case, as the prosecutors wanted to get to his father most of all, something which didn't happen. He had to take the stand simply because he found the guy and everything went fine, he had nothing to add that incriminated anyone, not even his brother. From there on, he was sure he would have nothing to do with his family, not even their money or safety, as it was all tainted anyway.
Adrián has very little contact with his family now, mainly his mother and his younger brother, but he lives alone, earns his own money, and is rather pleased with his life, even if it was not what he envisioned. He has no interest in returning to a world benefiting on the misery of others, even if they would definitely see his life as mediocre, he's pleased with taking it slow, as long as he's true to himself. -
C O R E T R A I T S
“How far that little candle throws his beams! So shines a good deed in a weary world.”
― William Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice
○ C O N S I D E R A T E
adj. | con·sid·er·ate | \ kən-ˈsi-d(ə-)rət
Thoughtful of the rights and feelings of others. Adrián has always been incredibly considerate and emphatic with others, a rare trait in his family. He's not sure where he has it from, maybe that's what you get from being the third child, easily overlooked. He has always cared for others and their best interest, always putting others before himself. He always seems a step ahead, the type of person who always remembers your name and your preferred drink without any effort. It's also easier putting others before one self and he has a tendency for forgetting himself in the middle of all of it.○ C O N F I D E N T
adj. | con·fi·dent | ˈkän-fə-dənt
Having or showing assurance and self-reliance. Adrián was raised to be on top of the world, something he still carries with him, even if his goals are much more grounded this time around. He carries himself with pride, standing lean and tall, as if he's meant to be there, even if that's definitely not the case. He feels safe within himself and the choices he has made in life, trying to carry the consequences with the same attitude, how heavy they might be.
▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔○ D E T E R M I N E D
adj. | de·ter·mined | di-ˈtər-mənd
Having reached a decision, firmly resolved. When Adrián decides to go for something, he does it. It might yet again have something to do with his upbringing, a time where he was easily given everything he wanted, and now he tries to go for it himself nonetheless. There's no reason not to try, failure is the only risk and he's the type of person who's alright with losing or failing. He's always prepared to go all the way if his mind is set on the goal, whatever it might be. He doesn't have grand goals, it can be something as simple as completing the day without letting the rain get to you, he's going for it.○ C L O S E M O U T H E D
adj. | close·mouthed | ˈklōz-ˌmau̇tht
Cautious in speaking. How determined and confident he might be, Adrián is loyal and closemouthed and he knows when to shut up. He really has been damaged by the environment he grew up in, even if he only really learnt how to apply this after he failed to do exactly so. Now, he never speaks too much. He's talkative and open, always ready to chat, but he know when enough is enough. If you tell him a secret, you can be sure that he will keep it. He can be a bit stubborn at times, standing his ground, but he will stay shut even when cornered, probably even take the fall or lie for you.
-
A B I L I T I E S
L I G H T
“To shine your brightest light is to be who you truly are.”
― Roy T. Bennett
Adrián has the ability to manipulate light - to a certain extent. He has nothing but close to full control of it and he probably never will, it is not within his capabilities or power, which he's completely fine with, since powerful in his world means becoming a tool. He finds his abilities to come in handy from time to time, yet he rarely uses them, there's no need and he mostly feels human, relying on his more "natural" abilities when it comes to defending himself for instance. Even if he could unlock more abilities within him, he is not interested in trying. An aspect of his abilities is that he has a tendency to glow, as if light is running through him, and if he sustain wounds, those will shine brightly, though he will bleed as well.
|LIGHT GENERATION|
Adrián's main ability is the fact that he can generate light from his body of various intensities. He can separate this light from his body as well, but he cannot use it as an attack, mainly as a distraction, while the radius of his ability is rather large. He can blind people momentarily, though, which is probably the greatest use of his ability and it makes it easy to escape others if needed. Otherwise, it is almost more of a party trick when he surrounds himself with an aura of light - it has no effect but to mesmerise, even if can always turn up the volume, making it impossible for others to even look in his direction. This aura doesn't emit heat, though his body does warm up significantly, beyond normal body temperature, if he uses a lot of his energy, making the aura somewhat of a shield. His body itself is always warmer than the average human being due to this. He has control over this ability, yet rarely uses it, and its side effects - such as glowing - are beyond his control.
|LIGHT ABSORPTION|
A sub-power to generating light is him being able to absorb light and utilise it, often removing it from the source partially, if not completely, depending on how much he takes. He can use this light to strengthen his light generation, but he can even use it to strengthen himself, not so much in physical strength, but energy wise. He has yet to try and test whether this physically enhances him, but he has never had to use it as he's strong enough in himself. His absorption can be both temporary or permanent depending on the source itself and how much focus he puts into it, while the gain is only temporary, though the period itself depends on the sheer amount of light that he absorbs.
|ENERGY RESISTANCE|
Adrián is highly resistant to energy attacks of all kind, especially those based on heat or light. He's not completely immune and prolonged or extreme attacks will affect him. Normal attacks, such as human punches, are nothing to him and it takes a lot to take him down, because his body naturally takes damage better than the average person.
