Lonely, Scared Duke

Where to begin on Max?

Why not on what pulled him into the underground, thats a good a place as any right? So here goes.

Max used to collect books. He loves books, books of all sorts sizes and content. Knowledge was a drug to him and books were his primary dealer. One day Max was going about his reutine of checking over Ebay for interesting books, and he found one. “The Secrets that they don’t want you to hear…” the title, although incredibly bland attracted him for some reason.

So he took out several bids on it, until he eventually won the bidding at $3,000, quite a price but something about this particular book drove him to need it, like a craving. The owner of the book, was quite happy when Max tried to offer teh man payments for the book seeing as it was $3,000. The only thing that man wanted was 3 payments of $1,000. A price Max was only to happy to pay.

About a week later the book arrived. Tossing it open as soon as it was in his hands. He was shocked, the whole book was blank. Outraged he quickly mailed his sender and complained. Only to receive the reply.

“YOU OPENED IT!!!!”

This didn’t make any sense to Max, but he went back to his study where he had kept the book to take one last look at the bound blank book that had cost him all that money before he tossed it out, only to find the book laying open on his desk, writing itself.

Max did nothing but sit there and stare for a few moments before picking it up, closing it and running out of the house to consult a friend of his on the matter that and try to convince himself he wasn’t crazy.

A few hours later he returned home, the book half filled with its own writing, which Max still had not read, either out of fear, or something else.

Over the next few days Max had increasingly stranger and stranger visitors, and the emails kept filling up from one “Mr. Moneybags” about how he shouldn’t be at home, he should be getting out of there, and that they were gong to come and get him.. Soon..

That was until he late one evening he was sitting at his computer, and ‘bling’ he recieved yet another email from Moneybags.. only caontaining to words..

{i} Too Late {/i}

That was when the front and back doors of MAx’s home were kicked in.

For 3 Hours they yelled at him, hit him, and made him wish he were dead. All they wanted to know was where the book was and what was in it.

Something inside him, made him play dumb, “I lost it, I sold it, It’s not here, I don’t have it. ” all these excuses earned him a beating, and those aside he kept spewing them out, because something inside him made him want that book, even if it meant his life.

Just as they were ready to put the gun to his head and figure the problem out on his own, something or someone burst into his study, and withing a matter of seconds, had survived what Max counted as 12 Gun shot wounds, and tore off at least two arms like they were paper, and all 6 of his captors were dead.

This thing that saved him, spoke only one sentence to him which was.

“That was your one favor, Abel or I will not be so easy the next time, now take that book… and RUN.”

The raspy voice and the gental cling of metal has haunted Max’ s dreams for years now, and he never wants to hear it again.

That night Max grabbed the book and a few other acessories and left town, no one who knew him has seen him since, and he’s never heard from Moneybags either.

He’s still out there, trying to get all the knowledge he can, but of a different sort, he wants to know who those men in his house were, who Abel is and how he’s connected, and even though it scares the crap out of him, who the thing that tore those men’s arms off like nothing was, and how he did it.

That brought Max to the underground, and he’s done a damn fine job of figuring things out on his own, much to his own woe.

Max isn’t hard to miss if you know what your looking for, he walks with a constant limp to his right leg. Which can be attributed to either “One of those Love Pirates, or
cobweb farmers, since the doc’s can’t find anything wrong with it, they must be making me think there’s something wrong with it.”

Like anyone Max has his share of enemies, and unfortunately Max has em in spades, Abel wants him found, and well who knows what the Freak ever wants right?

Max, Lonely Scared Duke

Summary: Just a scared and lonely man, who wants his old life back, but knows enough to know he can’t ever have it.

Personality: A likable guy if he takes the time to talk to you, always thinks the best of people unless presented with a reason not to, although he still is rather shy, or afraid of everyone else….

Obsession: Connections, finding them, and tracing them to their roots.

BODY:55 (Brawny)
General Athletics: 35
Self Preservation (struggle): 47
Keep Going: 30

SPEED: 45 (Limping)
Drive: 20
Dodge:35
Shoot AT something:25
Initiative: 25

MIND:70 (Open and Ready)
General Education:45
Clear the Waters: 63(Obsession)
Notice:42
Break and Enter: 47
Conceal: 25

SOUL: 65 (In touch more then he knows)
Lie:28
Charm:29
Good old whats his name: 15

Clear the Waters: This skill allows Max to make sense out of things, provided he has experienced something first hand, and then hears something that may be connected to it, with reasonable similiarities he may be able to draw a conclusion to it.

EXAMPLE: If Max reads something in a book about Sorcerers who called Skinners who can melt their own faces on command, he may get a roll and realize that the (The Freak) was one of these men..

(SORRY I CAN’T THINK OF A BETTER EXAMPLE RIGHT NOW)

RAGE STIM: Backstabbers- Just doesn’t like the idea of hanging a ‘friend’ out to dry.

FEAR STIM: The man who ‘helped’ him out those years ago. (Any thing that reminds him of The Freak, will set this off, ratling chains, raspy voices, the sound those arms made… Though he doesn’t know WHO the freak is, he’s heard about someone like him) (HELPLESSNESS)

NOBLE STIM: Education (Likes to talk to others about anything Educational to them or himself, when he can he stops off at discussion groups or newsgroups online, butnthose are rare times now.)

Madness Meter:
Violence 3/3
Unnatural 2/4
Helplessness 1/3
Isolation 3/0
Self 0/0

Max takes with him:

A glock 9mm 9/17 shots (50 damage cap)
He’s only fired those 8 shots, and has hated it every time.
a Switchblade (+3)
A lockpick kit, some gloves.
A Backpack with several books (Allen, Hite, Powers, etc, he’s taken an intrest in Allen, and is considering tracking him down) some notes he keeps and regular accessories, deoderant, toothbrush etc.

Max also has a Lucky Charm bangle he’s found in his travels, there are only 3 charms left (3 uses of the lucky charm artifact)

Max has been making a habit or breaking into houses he knows are empty, or staying in alley’s and other abandoned places, as he doesn’t like spending money, becasue of something he’s heard about people able to track you through magick with your bills.

(Thanks for taking the time to read Max, I tried to create a char that would be a fun NPC hope i did..)