General Information

Name: Richard Nicholls
AKA: Ursa or ‘Nose’ for his regular friends
Gender: Male
Age: 19
Place of Birth: The Hague, Netherlands
Inoculated: Yes

Personality: Richard doesn’t jump into things. He likes to be cautious and think before he does. That doesn’t mean he would abandon someone if the situation seemed hopeless, but he would like to think of the best course of action instead of jumping in. Richard is a bit gruff, but he cares for his friends, especially if they’re female. He doesn’t do that because of some sneaky ulterior motive, but because he has a fondness for chivalry which he sees as the base of his being. He enjoys pulling back chairs or holding open a door for a woman, even if a lot of people (including women) in his vicinity feel that such mannerisms are misplaced in this day and age. Richard doesn’t get mad easily, because he likes to think things through a lot. But if someone or something does manage to push him over the edge, he snaps.

History:

At an early age, Richard and his family moved to the USA, where he had a pretty simple childhood until the end of elementary school, at which point he and his family moved back to the Netherlands. He passed high school with marks below his level, since he didn’t feel motivated enough to work hard for things. Richard quickly found that his interests lied mainly in writing and psychology, the latter also being the subject he wished to study in college. However, in the summer before he would leave for college, his father died in a chain crash on the highway when he was driving home from work.

Richard, being an emotional person, was unable to cope and decided that he didn’t want to be around his usual clique for a while, perhaps forever. This was when he decided to go back to the USA, visit some nostalgic places, basically be one of those wanderers that hops from town to town. It was a life he had always dreamed of, but figured it was simply too much of a drastic step to make. As Richards interests also laid in writing, he decided it would be interesting to keep a journal filled with his observations of the various people he would no doubt meet. With tearful goodbyes, Richard set off shortly after his nineteenth birthday, his mind swirling with various thoughts about his father.

Eventually, his journey brought him to the state of Wyoming. He got a job in a cheap diner in the town of Jackson; he figured he would be able to move on to at least the next state in a week or two. Then on around the seventh day, he had to serve coffee to a burly man wearing a suit and sunglasses, typically a man you would feel slightly intimidated by. Richard silently poured the coffee, thinking to himself that he would write a separate passage in his journal tonight about this man. He could feel the man observing him from behind his sunglasses, and Richard flinched slightly when he was asked: “Do you enjoy working in this dump?” Richard gave a weak grin. “Isn’t that question usually directed towards pretty waitresses dreaming of a prince on a white horse?”

The man gave a faint smile and took off his sunglasses. “I’m asking because I’m currently under orders to recruit healthy young men such as yourself for a medical experiment. And I know-” He held up his hand to silence Richard, who had already opened his mouth to refuse the offer. “-Such an offer from a stranger shouldn’t be accepted before examined carefully. So let me tell you about it, please.” Richard found his curiosity piqued, and after all, what harm could it do to hear the man out at least? He glanced over his shoulder at the kitchen and saw that Mario, the owner of the diner, was preoccupied with assisting a customer with the rigged vending machine. He sat down and beckoned the man to proceed.

He should have known better.

“What my company, Ovid, is testing is a pill that amplifies concentration. It supposedly also heightens your mental capacities slightly, although I imagine that the doctors could tell you more about that. In essence, this pill is what’s going to rid the American educational system of ADD. You might not have ADD, but the effects need to be monitored on ‘regular people’ as well. And if you do happen to have it, that’s even better. Do you have ADD, by chance?”
Richard shook his head. No, he did not have ADD. The man continued:
“And if you- Ah, my name is Noel Parker by the way” The man said as he extended his hand. Richard grasped it firmly. “Richard Nicholls.” The man coughed and his tone became friendlier.
“Now where was I… Ah yes, if you do decide to accept this offer I can guarantee that you will make double… no, triple what you earn by working here full-time for a month.”

That was the selling point for Richard. Hours later, he would wonder to himself why he hadn’t just stuck with his menial part-time job of washing dishes and serving coffee, but greed is not easily pushed away. Looking back at this point, he wanted to kick himself for being so stupid.

Without a lot of qualms, Richard simply walked out of the diner and followed the man to his car in the parking lot. A Toyota Land Rover, which was way shinier compared to the cars in its direct vicinity. Full of misplaced trust, Richard wanted to take place in the passenger seat, but Noel said: “No, there’s some papers you need to read and sign in the back seats, why don’t you sit there?”

Turned out that the back seat was one of those contraptions you always saw in cheap kidnapping movies, where the doors locked themselves, the windows and the opening to the driver and passenger seats were blocked off with a steel plate. Richard almost laughed out of sheer amazement of such a cliché when the back seat suddenly filled itself with some kind of gas. It wasn’t so funny when he lost consciousness, however. As Richards world became dark, all he could think was: “Stupid, stupid, stupid!”


Physical Information

Physical Appearance: Slightly too long dark-blonde hair, curly in the back. Grey-green eyes, a fairly large nose (his friends called him Nose because of this) which in reality isn´t *that* big, but a stereotype which just stuck at some point. He is 1.96 metres, and has a fairly slim build (You could even call him skinny) which completely contradicts his animal form.

Clothing and Armor: Richard doesn’t have a preference for clothing like most of his peers. If it’s comfortable, it’s wearable. He doesn’t care what he wears, as long as it doesn’t make him look completely stupid. The only thing he never *doesn’t* wear are jeans. Jeans are the most comfortable pants to him, and he has yet to find a set of pants which suits him better, nor does he strive to find them. Hoodies, blouses, low-cut T-shirts, he’ll wear anything for the upper half of his body.

Weapons: Richard is a jack-of-all-trades in this respect. He doesn’t use ‘weapons’ in the sense that he brings one along purely for the sake of combat. If he ever has to fight in human form, he usually uses his surroundings to give himself an edge over the opponent. If there’s sand or dirt nearby? He will use it to blind his foe. If it’s in a forest? He will pick up a stick and use the trees for cover.

Inoculated only

Alternate Form: Brown Bear (Ursus Arctos) Abilities: Iron Skin – If it had to be based on an element, it would most likely be earth. Ursa strengthens his body to the point where an attack made by (for example) claws will sting, but it won’t bleed. It would most likely hurt the assailant more than him. Piercing weapons, such as well-sharpened swords and bullets, and explosions will still work. Keep in mind that since he hardens his entire body, his fur will also provide protection to a certain degree. Since his fur is sort of a last line of defense before reaching his skin, Ursa *could* potentially negate a blow if there isn’t enough power put behind it. His power also means that a hit from Ursa *hurts*. Bears are naturally strong, and being mauled by a bear which has also hardened himself to iron levels could easily shatter bone and break through flimsy walls. Ursa, due to his iron properties can withstand being set on fire for longer than most.



Other Information
Faction: Test subject

This is all fine except fro one thing. Please get rid of one of the abilities you gave Ursa, compared to other characters, having both is excessive.

Once you get that, though, the approval stamp is waiting for you.

Personally, I would suggest keeping the iron skin ability, for two reasons(or rather, one reason and one ulterior motive ).

First: Iron skin seems more in keeping with the species you've chosen. It complements the bear's already impressive strength with an equally impressive fortitude.

And second: Assuming the skin actually transmutes into iron(a la Colossus), you could be the perfect support for the use of Damien's magnetic power. Specifically, pushing and pulling against you would allow me to pinball my armored coyote self into enemy forces.

But this is all based on subjective assessment; I do not pretend to make the choice for you.

Then again, if he keeps the sound abilities, I can see some potentially interesting compications as one of the other characters has super-sensative hearing

Very well, I just kept the secondary ability because it seemed to me as if I felt the character was lacking somewhat. If you feel that is not the case, however, I will simply stay with the iron skin ability.

As promised