Gender: Male
Age: 29
Height: 5'10
Weight: 125 lbs
Hair: Thinning in most places, a patchwork of blacks, greys, and reds he tends to keep hidden beneath a cap or beanie for obvious reasons.
Eye: Once a bright blue, darkened into sunken black pits over the last year.
Ethnic origin: Irish.
Species: Human.
Other Information: His vagabond lifestyle is reflected in his thin, sickly frame, wrapped in several layers of flannel to fight off the ever-present chills that have plagued him since the night he was cursed. Indeed, most of the bulk that makes up his silhouette is nothing more than cleverly stacked shirts and vests packed over his shivering bones; nearly all his muscle and body fat has withered away, lending more credence to the 'zombie' theory his neighbors have been murmuring about for the last year or so.
Skills and Abilities:
Cursed by a maddened arcanist, Reagan is the victim of a terrible curse dubbed Omerta Ignis by its creator. Meant to silence the man, but not kill him, the curse prevents James from revealing information he may have about anyone or anything directly. Attempting to do so will cause him to burn-- literally ignite --for several moments, though the flame seems to only cause pain rather than inflict permanent damage. Unfortunately, the caster's flawed method resulted in several side-effects, the first of which is obvious to anyone who looks at Reagan: over time, his body has withered and lost its natural strength, though this 'thinning' effect seems to be reversed momentarily whenever the flames are invoked. Another less damning side-effect is the inclusion of several vulgar words and phrases into the curse; James is unable to cuss without igniting the mystical flame that burns his flesh, making for very unusual conversations given his nature.
Before receiving the curse, Reagan was a capable fighter, and despite his lack of formal training could, at times, combat opponents several times his size without difficulty. This is mainly due to his survival instinct, a gore-loving drive that has pushed him to commit many horrible acts to secure victory over an enemy, from kicking mud in someone's eyes to force-feeding them powdered glass through a plastic funnel. He still exhibits this same knack for violence, albeit in a less brutal way thanks to his failing strength.
Biography:
Once a philandering mid-level thug for Carlo Mezzini, a fourth-generation arcanist, Reagan James was popular among his fraternal mates for his courage in
the face of the supernatural. While lacking powers himself, his confidence in various charms and his traditional Catholic leanings made him a feared enemy of
the Wickeds as he called them-- blood-suckers, psychotic talents, and the like. It was with this confidence that he mustered up the courage to turn state's
evidence against his former employer in exchange for what he thought would be total immunity. Unfortunately, in a world inhabited by masters of deadly arts
there is no true immunity: his last day in court was his last day of life, as far as Mezzini was concerned. Cursed with the Omerta Ignis moments after
sentencing, Reagan James' life forever changed the moment he opened his mouth to answer the first reporter's question on the way out of the court
house.
He has since then lived a rather quiet life, untouched by Mezzini's men, and dealing with his curse rather well given the circumstances. Living under a new name (Philip Brooks) and hiding out in a new neighborhood (South Philly), Reagan sought to change his life for the better. He went to mass on Sundays, donated to the church, helped raise funds for the children's hospital...but it never went away. The cold that gripped his bones and shook his life away with every shiver grew stronger every night. He felt his life slipping away, a side effect of the Omerta curse that would likely end his life by year's end. Desperate for help, he left his home in search of true penance, and a way to bring his soul back into the light.
