Clarence "Eldritch" Wilde

=• •  • LINEAGE= Half-breed: His mother was a human dreamer, and his father was one of Azathoh's pipers. He inherited the following abilities from his parents:

Dreamwalking: Clarence has the power to enter a deeper state of dreaming than most people. The steps of deeper slumber are a familiar pathway to him, and in some instances he knows the dreamlands better than his waking home.

Symphonia Soul: Arcane manipulation via music theory; the universe at its core is all about math. Musical theory is essentially mathematical theory about harmonies and wave forms, thus music can be a way to manipulate the math of the world. I.E.: With healing, say that someone's symphony is out of tune, he could then adjust it until it was back in sync, mending their wounds. The amount of energy and effort put into playing is directly related to the result it creates. He cannot create something from nothing, that is beyond him.

=• • • APPEARANCE= Clarence keeps a rather good outward appearance. He's well-groomed, his brown hair while shoulder-length is always finely brushed or pulled back into a loose ponytail. He stands near 5'9", and has a lightly muscled, lanky build, more akin to a dancer than any heavy athlete...It gives his stature a touch of effeminacy. His face is smooth, with a gentle jawline, and dominated by large dark eyes, verging on hazel but really more brown than green. He prefers slacks and button downs for everything, really. The difference between casual Clarence and formal Clarence comes down to whether or not he has a vest on, or if his sleeves are rolled up, etc.

=• • • PERSONALITY= Soft spoken with a slight stutter, Clarence often comes off as shy and skittish. Even before his incident, he was more of an introvert than anything, but his experience in the dreamlands has made him even more so. There is an awkwardness in him due to the fact that he's not quite convinced this is all real yet. It makes it hard for him to form friendships, he really is rather lonely...but doesn't want to get so emotionally invested only to wake up and discover it was all for naught again. He's plagued with a few nervous tics and is prone to fidgeting...Generally, he's a very insecure individual, though he would never admit it. He does his best to seem normal and brush away all the negatives. He's good at putting on a brave face which quietly breaks apart when he's alone. Besides those failings, Clarence is a very polite individual, he has a rather demure disposition which makes him pretty easy to be around. Despite his social inadequecies, Clarence can be very dedicated and focused...Being a busy body and maintaining a good work ethic helps him keep his mind from straying to darker territory. Likewise, he has been known to put others ahead of himself, partially for selfish reasons as it draws attention away from his eccentricities...But if anyone manages to get beyond his awkward shell, he is a devout friend.

=• • • LIKES= Coffee, his violin, good food, those quiet and still times where he can actually hear himself think, dreaming.

=• • • DISLIKES= Large crowds, that stare people give you when they're judging you, the mutability of reality, not knowing what to say in certain situations, dreaming (why yes, it's a love/hate relationship).

=• • • BACKSTORY= (Author's note: this is a little rough around the edges, but it's got all the important details!)

Clarence Wilde's life started out fairly normal. Born in a rural town around the turn of the century, raised by his mother, he had a remarkably mundane childhood which lead up to an equally mundane adulthood. He attended university and graduated with a degree in musical theory. Fresh out of the dorms, with his degree in hand, Clarence set about finding a job.

Luckily for him, there was a hotel in Arkham looking for a musician for dinner-time entertainment. Despite the fact that he had specialized in saxophones and not violins, beggars couldn't be choosers and he happily signed up. Things seemed to be going awesomely for Clarence at first: the job paid well, the hotel clerk Linda was rather attractive, and he got to do what he loved. What else could he ask for?

But upon settling in to his room at the hotel, he noticed something odd. Waiting for him in the room was some sheet music that appeared to be from his mother...Whom he had lost contact with during his college years. That perplexed him, but it was a rather nice melody, and so he played it for the dinner guests.

Unbeknownst to him, the sheet music he found was a spell that held back a dark entity; by playing it he let it free. Later that evening it confronted Clarence and Linda; a mind-bending horror that reached out of misty corners with sharpened piano wire. Clarence barely survived the encounter, and having miraculously sent the creature back from whence it came, collapsed into a catatonic state due to the mental strain.

At this point, he is found by locals and shipped off to the local asylum when it becomes apparent that he is not coming out of his coma, though is otherwise healthy.

While in a coma in reality, Clarence began his journey into the dream world.

Upon coming to in the room that the otherworldly battle had occurred in, Clarence found that not only was it soaked in blood but also Linda was no where to be found. Accosted by the local authorities he was put on trial for a murder that had taken place at the hotel, and then shipped off to the asylum. At the asylum, he was plagued by dreams and nightmares and quickly lost his ability to differentiate between what was real and what was dream.

During one particularly bad night, Clarence found himself confronted with an immense stairway. Met with the keeper of the gate he was offered passage into the Dreamlands. Between the option of going back to his padded cell or following the stairs downwards, he opted for the latter. This lead him on a rather long trail of breadcrumbs, trying to find out his heritage and his fate. Which was full of surprises, to say the least. Through his exploration of the dream lands, he discovered that his father was one of the lesser pantheon that surrounded Azathoh; one of the pipers, and thus his connection to music...While his mother was human, though a very active dreamer. These traits combined lead him to his path of enlightenment within the dreamland; his father having disguised himself as a dream king to goad his son on to accepting his destiny.

Meanwhile, during all this time, Clarence has been in a coma back in reality. It was quite the shock to wake up in an Illuminati laboratory nearly a century later. The fact that he had slept for so long without aging was something of high interest to the society. When he finally did awake, a horribly bewildered and disorientated Clarence was easily recruited into the Illuminati. He had potential, and they wanted to see how useful he could be.

=• • • EXTRA TIDBITS=

5 things everyone knows about Clarence:
-He's extremely socially awkward, which, depending on company and current emotions, can cross over into social anxiety. -He has a stutter, and it gets worse the more worked up he is. -Even though he has strong ties to music, Clarence doesn't dance. Whether or not this is because of embarrassment or lack of skill is unclear. -He can't hold his liquor. No, seriously...drunk Clarence is bad, mmkay. -He tends to avoid sleeping, and is fond of caffeinated beverages such as coffee and tea because of this.

5 things few people know about Clarence:
-Saxophone was his first instrument-love, rather than violin. -His social anxiety stems from the fact that he has difficulty telling if the people he is meeting and forging friendships with are indeed real. -Despite the fact he's still hung up over Linda, he craves romantic companionship...he just has no idea how to initiate something like that, let alone figure out who he's compatible with. -Music (performing, composing, etc.) is one of the rare topics of conversation that can get him over his usual shyness. You may even have to tell him to shut it. +1 I'm still brainstorming.

5 things Clarence'll never tell:
-As much as he loves music and performing, he very rarely does large public performances...due to a fear of the side effects of the melodies produced. -He knows the streets and pathways of Dylath-Leen better than those of his hometown. -He does not always need to sleep to dream. The walls of dream and reality are so thin for him that sometimes one spills into the other and vice versa...Not knowing for certain what is real and what is not frightens the hell out of him. -Linda, his first true love whom he's not quite over yet...Is a product of his subconscious. She is not a real person, but he still loves her like one. He is scared to confront what that might say about him. + 1 thing he doesn't even admit to himself: -Despite the fact that Linda is referred to with female pronouns and most often described as a woman...Linda is really an androgynous figure and when it comes down to it, might be better coined Laurence. (Repressed sexuality, anyone?)