C&C app - Accepted

[sable_cloak]

[PLAYER INFO]
NAME: Myra
AGE: 23
JOURNAL: agent_myra
IM: MyraReldon (AIM)
E-MAIL: cavetedivia@gmail.com
RETURNING: No.

[CHARACTER INFO]
CHARACTER NAME: The Shadow
FANDOM: The Shadow
CHRONOLOGY: The Shadow Strikes - DC, complete run [issues 1-31]
CLASS: Anti-Hero
SUPERHERO NAME: The Shadow
ALTER EGO: Lamont Cranston, playboy millionaire.

BACKGROUND:
The Shadow comes from 1930s New York City. World War II is on the horizon, the world is still reeling from “The Great War” (WWI) and America is recovering from the Great Depression. Prohibition has been repealed, but the mobs are still prevalent powerhouses of crime. The Shadow steps forward to solve murders of intrigue and danger, defeat masterminds who intend to destroy or rule the world and otherwise right wrongs that would go unpunished. If the case is too big for the police department, the FBI or some other government/policing body to handle, The Shadow is there to see it through. He brings justice in the form of well-laid master plans that seem more befitting of a villain than a hero, a pair of massive .45s, and a maddening laugh that leaves his enemies shaking in their boots.

The Shadow, before he became The Shadow, was involved in “The Great War” as a secret agent. He spent time working with the Czar of Russia. He was a protectorate of the family, assigned by the U.S. government. This is where he gains the trademark Fire Opal (the girasol) and makes enemies with Rasputin as a result. Not long after, he is reassigned, and the Russian people rise up to overthrow the Czar, killing the entire family.

Not long after, The Shadow is sent on an operation that becomes a complete failure, and the deaths of thousands results from his activities. Realizing the terrible toll his blinding patriotic loyalty has caused, The Shadow disappears into the depths of China.

It is here that he trains to become the master of himself. He masters his mind and body beyond what the most intense spy training could ever accomplish. He enters the practice of a master who only takes men of the most powerful minds, the very master who trained Rasputin and Shiwan Khan (both eventually becoming The Shadow’s greatest enemies).

Eventually The Shadow, as retired WWI ace Kent Allard, meets Lamont Cranston. Through a series of events, Cranston comes into contact with men of crime and The Shadow proposes to use Cranston’s identity to infiltrate them. Through a series of events that include a double-cross by Cranston, a woman is murdered, and The Shadow finds the situation to be the proverbial straw that breaks the camel’s back. He goes on a murderous rampage against the men who had set the trap for him that claimed the woman’s life, with one thought in his mind: justice.

The deeds finished, he commands Cranston to spend his time in anonymity, traveling the globe while The Shadow takes over his role in New York, using the social connections to aid his cause.

The Shadow would eventually face Rasputin again, a man who should not have survived being shot, stabbed, poisoned, drowned and buried. The Shadow finds out also, that Anastasia, the daughter of the Czar of Russia, did in fact survive. In the end, Rasputin is destroyed and The Shadow must stop Anastasia’s murderous vendetta, being forced to take her life. This is an act that he does not hesitate to perform as she attacks her last victim.

His next great encounter is with Doc Savage, the man of bronze. While both are great men of justice, Doc Savage uses non-lethal methods to defeat and subdue his opponents. The Shadow finds these methods too merciful for men of crime, and it is a great source of contention between the two, even after they defeat their common enemy.

There are two incidents involving the notorious Shiwan Khan. The first involves the introduction of Khan’s forces to The Shadow, but Khan escapes. He is incensed that The Shadow would not even see fit to shoot at him during his flight. In their second encounter, The Shadow uses his Fire Opal to tap a dangerous and immense source of power that even he admits, should he ‘drink of it deeply’, would cause the rage within him to grow beyond his control. Empowered by this new force, he returns to China to face Khan, rescue a kidnapped agent, and destroy the threat Khan and his army pose to the world. On the way to Khan’s hidden city, he meets Mao Tse Tsung himself, who provides The Shadow with a handful of soldiers to help him enter the hideout.


PERSONALITY:
The Shadow is a man driven to bring his own brand of justice to those who suffer at the hands of others. He knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men, he’s seen it in others, as well as himself. He considers himself beyond help, but rather than brood about it, he uses it as an excuse to justify his violent tactics. He expects his agents to give up any semblance of a normal life to do his bidding. They are not so much agents, as they are his pawns, put into place to manipulate the game until the king piece is captured. He is patient, willing to bide his time as he orchestrates the self-destruction of crime, and always more than willing to step in and deal out lead when plotting is not enough.

He is a fantastic study of people, and when playing the part of Cranston, has an ability to meet and greet many of society’s finest with perfect poise. As The Shadow he is constantly barking orders and is generally inconsiderate of personal feelings. While his agents are willing to sacrifice their lives for him, The Shadow is rude and curt to the point of being downright mean. He is intolerant of anyone who questions him, knowing that his level of intellect is that of a genius, and has very poor social skills when it comes to dealing with non-agents while he is The Shadow. Often, he’ll default to treating non-agents as if they had become members of his contingency, which often causes problems where the non-agent will either leave or they’re actively attempt to spoil his plans.

The Shadow does not give special treatment to man or woman, agent or master. At one point, The Shadow even threatens the life of his master when the man refuses to give The Shadow information as he tries to keep out of the conflict between Khan and The Shadow. In his mind, there is no exception to his justice. Those who do not help The Shadow become an enemy.

The Shadow’s idea of justice would best be described as unmerciful and generally uncompromising (exceptions are rare, and require good reason to stay his hand). He slays murderers with little thought; any opponent willing to threaten his life, an agent’s life, or the life of a law-abiding citizen is considered having revoked their right to live. He very much supports and indulges in ironic deaths when the opportunity presents itself. Shysters, thieves, and those who abstain from murder or deadly force, may simply be wounded, interrogated, handed over to police in a senseless state or all three, depending on what serves The Shadow’s designs.

POWER:
The Shadow is naturally gifted with a genius-level intellect that allows him to quickly link events and people in unconventional ways. This skill allows him to see important details and relationships in cases where such connections are often missed. He is a quick study and is fluent in many languages including Russian, Chinese (specific dialect unknown), Japanese, Turkish and German, to name the few that are defined implicitly. He is highly skilled in many forms of martial arts (specifically listed are Tai-chi chuan and Jujitsu, as well as a number of secret methods) and is a crack-shot with most firearms of his time period, from rifles, to handguns. In The Great War, The Shadow was an ace pilot of extraordinary skill who was also professionally trained in espionage and the most advanced methods of stealth and disguise available at the time. This skill of disguise and his abilities in hypnotism were later improved when he studied under the unnamed grand master in China.

He is practiced in hypnotism, an art where he uses his Fire Opal as a focus point to augment his ability to open the mind of his subject. He is able help them see memories that are blocked by other forms of hypnotism and mental blocks that may have developed as a way for the mind to deal with such things as traumatizing events. Depending on the urgency of the situation, if he has the time to concentrate, he is able to see the memories for himself, rather than requiring the subject to verbalize. This is also used in interrogative cases as well. When having tapped the true source of the Fire Opal, he has the ability to reach out and contact other people through their minds across great distances. This is accomplished either by reaching directly into their subconscious and imposing images and words in their dreams, or feeling the emotions of the subject, and being able to send his own emotional signal back.

In The City, given the opportunity to focus his efforts inward, The Shadow may eventually discover that the power of the Fire Opal to contact other minds in the same manner as previously noted is now a natural gift. Upon his first arrival, he will be unaware that the ability has become a part of him, and therefore unable to use it. The Shadow has already received the training necessary to discover the gift on his own, but it will not be a simple matter of realizing the true potential within. It will require The Shadow to reach a meditative state where he becomes aware of the ability. He will then need to work through persistent meditation and focus to master control of such an ability; a combination that even with his extensive training, is something that still eludes his restless spirit.



[CHARACTER SAMPLES]
COMMUNITY POST (FIRST PERSON) SAMPLE:
[The video comes on with an irritated snort as it focuses on the form of a middle-aged gentleman dressed in fine evening attire. He sits in a rather simple chair, smoking a cigarette disinterestedly. There's a dull lethargy to his actions as he seems to know he's making the viewer wait, and just doesn't care.]

So, much to my disappointment I seem to have found myself dragged from the club and rudely dropped into this...

[He blandly glances about the standard issue apartment.]

...rather dreary place. Your city here looks like some strange perversion of New York. I had hoped, after my introduction, to retreat to my home in New Jersey, but it seems that, as well as my fortune no longer exists, therefor leaving me in this sorry excuse of an apartment.

[He gently blows smoke through his nose in a manner that appears both annoyed, and yet lacking the desire to care at the same time.]

In my now former life I was a financier and world traveler. My skills in international relations and issues were, if I must admit, excellent.

If you are the sort to find a use for such skills as mine, I understand these devices work as communication devices. As I have yet to master them, you'll have to provide your own encryption if you wish to talk about private matters.

If you'd rather defer the conversation to a later date, you may contact me at [number], my name is Lamont Cranston.

LOGS POST (THIRD PERSON) SAMPLE:

The Shadow sat within the quiet, dark confines of The Sanctum, a single blue bulb shedding light onto the desk before him. The hands that lay on the desk were still, but even with the lack of motion, the reflections within the resplendent Fire Opal on his left hand flickered and danced, the only indication of activity in the mind behind the steel blue eyes that stared into the blackness of the far wall.

He had orchestrated Khan’s death, allowing the man's own disillusioned followers to destroy him in the final master stroke that had ended the reign of Khan. Even so, his own fingers itched, as if searching out for the dead man’s throat. Claude Fellows had been murdered, and while justice had been wrought, it had not been with his own hands.

Having partaken of the powers of the Fire Opal, he could feel the desire to lash out greater than ever. There was yet more justice to be had, more wrongs to be righted, more battles to be fought.

More blood to be shed.

The Opal abandoned that confining circle of light, the hand pressing to his temple as he gave a hiss. The Shadow pulled out files from the desk drawers, placing them open before him. None had any connection to the other, but he needed to focus his energies on useful enterprises, and one case would not be enough. Sharp eyes flickered quickly across data and images. Lane and Vincent were on leave for one more day, but the remainder of his forces had been going about business as usual. Burbank was busy with reports flowing in and orders being sent out.

He was orchestrating yet another showdown between gangs. Inspector Cardona would most likely be opposed to the strategy as he had been in Chicago, but he had been accounted for in The Shadow’s carefully laid plans. The police had been meticulously misled, and while Cardona had been following a hunch that this was the case, the lack of evidence meant he couldn’t do anything apart from glare at the smug Lamont Cranston every time they ran into each other at the Cobalt Club.

The thought of the infuriated Cardona incited a brief, spiteful laugh from the hidden lips of The Shadow. The inspector was paying for interfering with The Shadow’s plans, and he would continue to do so, until The Shadow had need of the man again.

As the sound died on the walls of The Sanctum, The Shadow picked up the phone that lay just outside the ring of light.

“Burbank, it is I. Notify agents Lane and Vincent that instructions await them at the Hotel Metrolite...”


FINAL NOTES ABOUT YOUR CHARACTER:
The Shadow will take on any identity that he finds to his advantage. He is just as likely to take on the appearance of Kent Allard, world-renowned aviator as he is Fritz, janitor in the NYPD. Temporary personas and identities are donned and shed as he sees fit to infiltrate groups and locations of interest.