Cade Mariani

Navigate;

RUMOR MILL

NAME: Caden Anthony Mariani
PRONUNCIATION: Kay-den Mar-ee-on-ee
FACE CLAIM: Milo Ventimiglia
NICKNAMES: Cade
AGE: 38
BIRTHDAY: October 5th
GENDER: Male
HAIR: Black
EYES: Brown
HEIGHT: 6'3"
WEIGHT: 157 lbs
BUILD: Svelte

MARITAL STATUS: Single
SEXUALITY: Gray-romantic pansexual; leans toward femininity
OCCUPATION: Spymaster for the Rosales gang; sometimes babysitter
CURRENT RESIDENCE: Rents a studio apartment

RACE: Nightmare Creature
RACE SUB-CLASS: Bogeyman

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

EXTRA ART: Balancing act || On the wall || Looking fly || Cute kitty || Wind struck || Chillin' at home || Suit and tie || On a stroll || Younger years || Cool hat, bro

From a purely objective standpoint, Caden is an attractive man of Italian heritage. He is the kind of guy who can come off in many different ways depending on how he styles his hair or shaves his facial hair. He has a learning for formal casual or just casual apparel and appearance. His hair is naturally curled and falls to around the ears, and he maintains somewhat messy facial hair, giving him that careful devil-may-care look.

Cade cleans up nice, and he knows it. When slicking back his hair and trimming his beard, he looks like a man of power and walks with the confidence of someone who rules the world.

Cade's eyes are a bright purple and while he is fit and tall, his body is more lean than outright muscular. He's the kind of man that can fill a tuxedo without marring the edges of the suit. His facial shape is more masculine than feminine, with thick eyebrows, narrowed eyes, thinner lips, and a strong jawline.

Caden doesn't usually smile or scowl, rather his expressions tend to fall into the stoic territory and paired with his height, that can be intimidating to some people. His husky, gruff voice doesn't help his intimidation factor. Neither does the fact that Cade must wear thick, dark sunglasses at all times to protect his eyes from the light. Scent-wise, Caden smells of smoke and hickory.


In his true form, Cade is sleek and pitch black. Looking at him is like looking into a void. He is vaguely shaped like a man, with smooth dark skin the same as the tight leather he wears. He tends to be dressed in a cloak in this form, as well, hiding his pitch black face so only two bright purple eyes are visible. His lower arms are covered in Iguana-like spines, and his fingers are long sharp claws. He is as tall as he is when disguised and his voice remains the same.

There isn't much to say about his true form physically speaking, but there is a sense that he may not be wholly present on this plane, and there is a cold, gripping sense of fear that follows him like a personalized shadow.

Caden could be considered psychopathic (or sociopathic, depending on who you ask). Many of his emotions are stunted and some he is incapable of feeling at all. Cade has no empathy, and he cannot feel fear, he can love but is selfishly inclined and is incapable of loving as a normal person might.

As a child, Cade's parents noted that he was extremely intelligent, but also very impulsive. He couldn't understand the consequences of his actions and had the habit of using manipulation to get his way. The older he grew, the more he learned to hide this side of himself. It wasn't normal, he knew. People didn't feel like he did. He was weird. A monster. A freak. These things didn't bother him as they should have. On the contrary, Caden knew he was better than his peers. Smarter, stronger, capable of more.

By the time, he was a preteen he had become superfitially charming when it was required of him. Caden prefers to remain quiet, keep his observations to himself, though he notices a lot. He is easily bored and in constant need of stimulation. There are certain things he is truly passionate about. Work, for one and those he considers under his protection. His attention is easily held by his job, puzzles, or those he deems interesting or fun.

Caden isn't a partier. He doesn't like big crowds or people he doesn't know at his back. His type of fun is people. Watching them, speaking to them, playing with them. He wants to know what makes someone who they are. What are their fears? Hopes? What breaks them?

Respect is the truest form of love Caden can provide. Without respect, Cade's love for you is paper in the wind. He respects those with strong work ethic or passions. People who are firm and have opinions they stand behind. His respect and loyalty are hard to earn, but eternal once achieved. Caden is a lawful neutral personality. His morals are those that align with whatever business he is in. His organization's morals are his, and he follows them without a fight.

You could call Cade a wicked person. He certainly has many bad qualities and his inclination for manipulation and ruthlessness make him villainous, but Caden wouldn't consider himself a bad guy. He doesn't go out looking to hurt people when he doesn't have to (though; he does enjoy the pain of others) and it's not his fault he can't feel like the average person. It's not his fault he had trouble caring for people or relating to them or even seeing them as people and not pawns.

❚ like ❚ dislike ❚ undecided ❚ attraction

Explanation of the Relationship System

❚ Represents how much the character is liked or respected. This doesn't refer to trust or even friendship.
❚ Represents how much the character is disliked. Reserved for characters who are not only not respected, but also disliked.
❚ Represents when a character is neither liked nor disliked. An opinion has not been made about them.
❚ Represents physical or mental attraction. This isn't only used for crushes or romantic interests. This bar isn't used for romantic attraction.

Addy Agustine

Boss' Kid.

★

She asks very amusing questions. Cade doesn't understand why Addy does half of what she does, but that's precisely why he enjoys her company. She always leaves him entertained. He doesn't like all the parties she wants to create, but he's willing to put up with her quirky behavior because he finds it hilarious.

Cecily Marionette

Doll Servant/Co-worker.

★

A loyal servant to the Rosales. Cade can appreciate thew work she does. It helps that Doll Girl is absolutely precious and a real cutie. Beyond slight pleasantries, Cade and Cecily don't talk.

Eliana Ria

Co-worker.

★

Eroshay Rosales

Boss' Kid.

★

Klaus Rosales

Boss.

★

Illia Mariani and Senka

Daughter.

★

Troy Abis

Under Rosales Protection.

★

Quintessa Rosales

Boss' Kid/Co-worker.

★

Vito Rosales

Boss.

★

UMBRAKINETIC COMBAT

Caden is capable of solidifying and shaping the shadow he uses so long as he remains in physical contact with his creation, it won't disappear. The time required to create or solidify shadow depends on the size of the item he's making. A baseball sized shadow wouldn't take more than a few seconds, nor would a dagger, but a greatsword would take around thirty seconds (long enough to be attacked). If he is struck while shaping the shadow and loses his concentration, the shadow dissipated.

Unlike his other shadow abilities, his creations won't be destroyed by ambient light or sunlight. However, they will be destroyed when touched by light magic or light magic infused weaponry.

This magic isn't just shadow, it's a mixture of negativity as well. For Caden to manipulate the shadow like this he has to either be feeling nothing (apathy) or negative emotion. Positive emotions or things such as worrying for another person's safety or love will render him incapable of solidifying shadow while he's feeling these things.

SHADOW MANIPULATION

Shadow Stealth: Cade can move through the shadows as a form of stealth. He is not able to skip through areas of light (such as street lights etc.), and he moves about as quickly as he normally does. Don't think of this as him just sneaking through the shadows as a regular person might, he literally becomes a part of them.

His movement in the shadows are subtle, but they can be seen. When Caden is standing still there is a barely noticeable waver to the shadow he's using to hide; this shifting in the shadow becomes larger the quicker he tries to move. Think of how water reacts when someone is walking in it, the quicker someone goes, the more ripples appear, the same goes for shadow, though to a slightly lesser extent. He cannot touch someone or speak while in stealth, or he'll be forced to appear. The same is true if light moves passed him as he's lurking in the shadows.

Shadow Expansion (semi-passive): Caden cannot create shadow, but he can use the present shadow in the area to stretch/expand it in whichever direction he likes to snuff out lights and the like. Think of this ability working like a rubber band, the more shadow in a given area the farther Cade is capable of shifting the shade. To quantify shadow in any particular area is as easy as detecting the sources of light and determining how bright they are.

Keeping with the rubber band analogy, Cade has to stay focused on the shadow he is manipulating, or it will return to its original location and the farther he stretches the shadow, the more concentration he must use. Caden must also be careful that he's moving the shadows as naturally as he can. Otherwise, people would be able to tell something wasn't right. For instance, Caden could create a bridge of shadow between two street lights at night, but that would look unnatural.

Shadow is naturally attracted to Caden's presence. When he's around, the shadows feel almost alive as if they were reaching out for something. The air is different, just a smidge colder where the darkness lies. This doesn't do anything for Cade, but it's a subtle tell for when he's around.

Shadow Healing (Passive): Caden heals twice as fast when he's in total darkness. He cannot heal light based wounds this way nor can he regenerate or reattach limbs. Only moonlight doesn't disrupt this healing effect, other lights (night lights, flashlights, etc.) ensure he cannot use this ability. He has to be resting for this ability to work; he can not use it in a fight or be moving around.

SPECIES INFO

Caden isn't human in the slightest, although he was raised with them his body functions differently. For one, his blood is not red or coppery in taste. Rather, his blood is a dark (almost black) purple and has the same afterburn as champagne; there is no sweetness to it, but it does have strong magical properties. There is no guarantee how those properties will impact anyone who drinks it, though.

Caden's prime time is night time, though in actuality he doesn't require sleep. He does need rest. He generally meditates when he can as a method of replenishing his energy. He has an easier time meditating in the day than at night while the night is afoot he's restless and would rather do something physical or stimulating.

While at this point in his life, Cade is more or less used to his human guise, he is still most comfortable in his natural form. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on the situation), Caden's natural form induces fear to those who look upon him. The voice that is his body reveals their deepest fears personified. This doesn't work for those who feel no fear. Along with this ability, Caden is capable of understanding people's biggest fears upon spending a few minutes speaking to them.

Caden's presence is cold, particularly while he has dropped his guise. He's not freezing, but there is a certain chill to his body, not like ice but like a light breeze against a wet body.

Due to his young age, Cade still isn't certain whether he is semi-immortal or not. His body has slowed down significantly since he's reached his thirties, suggesting he will have a long life but not necessarily an endless one. Caden has no ability to respawn, though when he is killed he is not dead so much as eternally banished from this plane to the realm of nightmare. He is harder to kill than an average person may be as he can take more damage and doesn't bleed out as quickly. Caden moves naturally more silent than the average person, but he is not stronger, faster, or more agile than what would be normal for a human.

WEAKNESSES

Severe Photophobia: Being a creature of nightmares and darkness, Caden has severe photophobia or light sensitivity. This is true for both ambient and natural light sources. He can stand very dim lighting (for instance, a weak nightlight won't hurt his eyes) but most lights hurt. This means he is constantly wearing thick, dark sunglasses to shield his eyes.

Symptoms of light catching his eyes include:
♦ Eye pain
♦ Headaches
♦ Nausea
♦ Neck stiffness
♦ Blurred vision
♦ Redness
♦ Itching
♦ Swelling
♦ Dizziness
♦ Numbness or tingling elsewhere in the body
♦ Changes in hearing

Deuteranomaly: Cade was also born with deuteranomaly, a form of colorblindness, also called green-weak. He is hard-pressed at discriminating small differences in hues in the red, orange, yellow, and green region of the spectrum because these areas are somewhat shifted toward red for him.

The chart below gives a rough view of Cade's vision versus normal vision:

So, while he can see most colors (red and purple being the most difficult for him) subtle hues are lost on him.

Light-based Magic: Being made of shadow has weakened Caden to light-based magic. Magic like this burns his skin as if it were holy ground to traditional vampires. His darkness can combat this magic, but it's very brittle to it. Yin and yang. When prolonged exposure to this magic occurs, it is as if Caden has been burned by fire. Oddly, this is true for most healing magic, too.

Taste of Fear: Caden, being a Bogeyman, feeds off fear rather than normal food. While he can consume food, it doesn't do anything for him other than taste good. He doesn't lack a sense of taste, per say, but his is lessened. Note, he doesn't eat people, only absorbs the essence of their fear, which does require him to hunt.

Small bits of fear, like jump scares or anxiety, is like a snack to him, but it will never fill him. He needs intense fear, the fear of losing one's life or the life of someone they love. Also, note that he still gets thirsty. Fear only substitutes food, not water.

Without consuming fear, his starves The process is the same as it would be for the average person who doesn't eat.

Human Guise: Glamours don't work as efficiently on Caden as they do most people. His always seems just a little too breakable. When hungry, in pain, or in any heightened state of emotion, Cade's glamour will appear like static, flashing his true self -- if not breaking completely.

CW: child abuse, infant death, teenage pregnancy, and other possibly offensive content.

Originally, a woman named Andrea Mariani and her husband John Mariani had a child who had died of SIDS. Having lived near a known mage who dabbled in the dark arts, the parents visited him the night of their newborns death and begged for him to find a way to revive the child. The mage did not resuscitate their child. Instead, he used the dead body as a vessel and called to the nightmare realm. The parents were ecstatic, simply thinking their child had been brought back to them, they thanked the mage profusely and paid him a hefty sum.

It was years before they began to expect that their child was not theirs and wasn't human. This led to resentment and coldness on their part. From the time Caden was five, he grew up without emotional affection or understanding the importance of family ties.

From a very early age, Caden exhibited disturbing behavior. Not only was he very violent when other children touched his things, but there were times, on play dates, that parents would return him, faces pale and unable to speak of what they saw. When he was seven, Cade tortured and mutilated animals. This continued for a few years until his parents were fed up with his behavior. His mother drank and ignored him, and his father would hit him. Caden wasn't afraid. He was furious. How dare they ruin his fun? How dare they try to boss him around?

He showed them fear and it was wonderful. It was better than feeding off animals. It was delicious and rich. Made better by the fact that it was his parents. That he hated them. That something in their terrified expressions soothed a beast in him. This would not be the last time Cade fed off his parents fear. After every fight, ever strike, every time he was ignored, he made them pay, and it was gratifying.

As Caden entered adolescence, he primarily took care of himself. He worked and bought his own groceries. It was at sixteen that the final straw broke the camels back. When Cade got a girl by the name of Ruby Wright pregnant. His parents shipped him off the Manta Carlos the first they heard of it. It didn't matter if the school was good, all that mattered was that it was far away.

Cade has lived on Manta Carlos since he was sixteen. His ex-girlfriend had a baby girl, who she named Illia. Caden didn't see his daughter until he was twenty-six when her powers began to show and her mother sent her to live with her father.

Caden's life on Manta Carlos was different than it had been before. He had gotten a handle on his more nasty habits and with the help of power coaches, he learned to better control himself.

When he turned twenty-six and Illia came to live with him, he took up working with Klaus Rosales, a new resident on the island who showed promise.

N/A
He is part of the Rosales gang and has been since it began, while the community may know of him, there isn't any rumors circulating about Cade. Interesting.