Age: Late Twenties
Faction: None.
Appearance (Click to Show)
Declan Stoddard appears as a 5 foot 9 inch tall Caucasian male with pale yellow eyes and short brown hair styled in a clean buzz cut among a somewhat gaunt and angular face; all topped off with a neatly trimmed and decently thick goatee. He has a rather lean, toned body structure and rightly so due to his fighting capability and mandatory training.
Mirage’s uniform(what he wears on missions) consists of a black, hooded leather jacket with an orange symbol of a vulture on the upper left shoulder blade. accompanied by a padded(as in extra protection) pastel orange undershirt and black pants. On his face he's supposed to wear a sort of bandana for the sake of anonymity but it honestly just gets in the way so he goes without it, tucking it in one of his pockets in case he ever needs it for something.
When off duty, Mirage will wear literally anything so long as it isn't too flamboyant an outfit or blatantly ridiculous.
Personality (Click to Show)
Declan is sort of all over the place from both a morality and character standpoint.
On one hand he’s what many would consider a “good” guy, but at the same time he’s usually only considered good when he’s helping defeat a much more threatening force. He is not opposed to unnecessary violence, but isn’t exactly for it either, and looks upon many of the world’s atrocities as issues that just are what they are- including his own servitude. On the other hand, Stoddard is by no means a saint. He’s murdered children, enslaved families, damned nearly hundreds of men and women alike to fates unspeakable, kidnapped plenty, and has even overthrown a morally just government so that his superiors could further their political agenda. He’ll help others in need, sure, but not if they’re too far out his way. He isn’t power hungry or a rebel at heart and, if possible, prefers to play a neutral role in large conflicts.
Mirage may be an enslaved mercenary, but he isn’t an unhappy one. He’s at ease with the lives he’s taken, pleased with his own, and the killing to this day fails to affect his sleep at all. The organization he’s bound to(not Sanctuary) pays handsomely for his continued loyalty, and the housing they provide, though not great, suits him well. He’s carefree most of the time and often speaks without filter, voicing his honest opinion unless something tells him otherwise. He enjoys jokes and laughter and all the jazz involved with having a good time, but can be deathly serious at times with a work-oriented attitude.
At the end of the day… Declan’s a bit of a wild card. He could be guarding the world’s next Gandhi(or Hitler, for that matter) during a speech, disagree with something he says, and murder him all in the same moment- then take the stage himself and propose everyone go ice skating to get over the loss of their future. His superiors, though not fond of him, respect his potential and recognize he is a valuable asset to their cause.
Story (Click to Show)
It's a pretty basic and uninteresting story.
Stoddard's parents, desperate for the funds to feed the boy's several starving siblings, were offered an ultimatum: sell their talented son to a man they hardly knew or starve to death alongside their children. The decision was mulled over for multiple days and nights, but ultimately ended poorly in the boy's favor.
Stoddard was sold to an underground organization specialized in the production, development, and militarizing(?) of the supernatural gifted. He, along with multiple other special children who many of which died in the process, was trained for various missions and fine-tailored to perform the most specific of functions. This training however, only ended up working against him as the strict rules and regulations of the organization compromised his otherwise unconventional and unpredictable personality. The result was an uptight, ineffective, and admittedly useless operative filled to the brim with potential.
After what felt like years of trying to fit a star-shaped peg into a round hole half its size, a prominent figure within the organization proposed a sect of divisions designed for the problem children(whom of which were in abundance at the time) they had acquired over such a short time.
The Woodpecker, Hawk, and Vulture divisions were established with each problem child filtered into the category best suited to their personality, abilities, and potential. While the specific reason for existence among the divisions is... unclear, Declan quickly grew fond of his fellow Vulture Division members and currently works with a much looser set of restrictions. The current days of the divisions have been some of their best and the organization he works under is eager to see how thing progress
Recently, the latest string of missions have been linked to what the organization calls the Surrogacy Project, an endeavor in which women deemed suitable for motherhood are kidnapped and forced to carry a child bearing a high chance of possessing special abilities.
Weaponry (Click to Show)
Man Catcher- Declan's main weapon is a modified man catcher made of very durable magnesium alloy, an esoteric type of pole weapon which was used in Europe as late as the 18th century. It consists a pole mounted with a two pronged head. Each prong was semi-circular in shape with a spring-loaded "door" on the front. This creates an effective valve that allows the ring to pass around a man-sized cylinder and keep it trapped. When it comes to Mirage's man catcher however, the ring that wraps around enemies is lined with pointed spikes that extend to impale the victim if the opposite end of the pole is activated via button, causing the weapon to potentially be lethal when wrapped around a vital area, such as the throat.
Though the weapon itself is primarily used for non-lethal purposes, Declan has no issue using it as a bludgeon to beat someone to death.
Visual referrence (Click to Show)
Miscellaneous- Declan's not very resourceful(as in making something out of limited materials), but he has no issue using random items as weapons(rocks, lamps, stray dogs, leashed dogs(ball and chain?), etc.).
Abilities (Click to Show)
Reality Manipulation- As impressive as it may sound, Stoddard's Reality Manipulation is but a magic field that he can activate at will. While within this field, Mirage gains access to illusory techniques that allow him to manipulate his environment and situation in quite a few ways.
First, Declan can make objects appear to exist within the environment that do not actually exist(example: creating a fake bench and watching people fall through it from afar when he gets bored). He can create anything as long as it isn't a living creature(no random elephant stampedes).
Second, the hired mercenary can render certain objects, structures, and items(see below for what he CAN'T interact with) of his choice mere illusions(example: the real bench just a few feet away from that fake bench is now also a fake bench). He can then re-solidify things that were already there to begin with.
Finally, Mirage possesses the ability to replace himself with a false image. This false image can walk, talk, and interact with objects, but is unable to engage anything with the intent to harm(it can't attack you. If it does, it's attack will go through you and the image will fade) and will simply fade from view if damaged by any physical means. While the false image is active, Declan adopts a somewhat spiritual form, becoming invisible so long as the image remains and remaining invisible for a brief 3 seconds after the image has been cleared.
Deactivating this field will return all affected items to their original state, while forcing all non-affected items to a point in which this can happen safely without error(you're not gonna get stuck in a wall when the damn thing becomes real again. You might be on the outside or inside of that wall, but you won't be stuck in it). Declan cannot de-activate his magic field while invisible.
Miscellaneous- He can do this thing with the muscles in his eyes that relieves headaches faster than normal. While one could call it useful in select situations, it's a pretty lackluster party trick.
Weaknesses (Click to Show)
Man Catcher- It's not bound to his hands. He can be disarmed and enemies can use the weapon against him. It's also not lethal unless enemies get caught with it(so if you can simply avoid getting caught you're golden) and though it may be durable, it is not invincible and can be broken/rendered unusable.
Reality Manipulation- The biggest counter to Mirage's special abilities would be an unfaltering mind and focus. Staying aware of the environment around you and knowing when and when not to trust your instincts render his illusions as mere parlor tricks.
None of Mirage's abilities are innately offensive as both summoned objects and false images are incapable of damaging you while real objects turned fake only pose a threat if you fail to pay attention to your surroundings.
Demo (Click to Show)
"Stand by, Saguaro, the bitch still has some fight in her." The hooded individual grumbles into his black and orange headset, the pole gripped tightly in his hands shuffling as the woman underneath its prongs writhes, kicking like a mad dog and prying at the ring wrapped wrapped around her throat with bloodied hands.
"Roger that, Mirage, just be gentle. We can't afford to lose any potential surrogates with the faulty deadline we've been given."
"That hasn't been corrected yet? Shit, just what the hell-" Lifting his foot from the woman's chest and heaving in air, Declan Stoddard holds it all in before bringing the bottom of his boots down hard on the jaw of his squirming paycheck. Repeating this process until the resistance ceases, the tracker exhales a long, steady stream of breath when the future mother's arms fall from his weapon. "-have those idiots in Assignments been doing?"
"Anything but their job... You, um, you good?" Still adjusting to the traumatic screaming and sound of crunching bone, the revenant known only "Saguaro" audibly trembles behind his top-tier microphone.
"Peachy."
"Well... Let's not drag this along, then. Get me an image so I can confirm her identity and you can drag her back to HQ."
"Way ahead of you." Foot back on the unconscious victim's chest, Stoddard begins to send the image via text when a voice calls from the opposite side of the narrow, gravel pathway. Not willing to pay the bystander any attention, the mercenary continues to surf the web from his handheld device, the only light source present amidst the frigid winter night. The figure calls once more and a text message from Saguaro confirms the woman as Mirage's target, so the yellow-eyed hunter raises his head and acknowledges the newcomer's appearance with a nod before tucking his phone away and releasing the girl beneath his catcher.
"Sorry, buddy, who did you say you were? Kind of busy with work at the moment."
The figure adjusts a golden monocle seemingly floating about its face, the rest of its appearance shrouded in darkness as Declan squints to make out what appears to be a well-adorned homeless man rambling from the distant grass.
"Simply a friend of the woman you have underneath your feet there, and one that intends to bring her home at that." The monocle on the intruder's face fades and reappears as a spear at his side, Mirage taking a step back at the realization he may be in for a real fight after all. Reaffirming his stance, Stoddard brings the back of his weapon around his waste and spits on the gravel beside his feet.
The spear-wielding enemy wastes no time, fading into a cloud of sparkling dust before reappearing before a startled Declan. The hunter narrowly evades a one-handed thrust, the tip of the attacker's spear puncturing the gravel-sprinkled earth and sending stone and grit alike flying into the midnight atmosphere. Feigning a loss of balance, Mirage baits the glittering gladiator, who attempts to follow up his lethal jab with a rushed backhand only to throw himself into nothing as he stumbles over his paralyzed ally strewn about due to his previous attack.
The once present image of Declan Stoddard fades into the night, the real copy of the sell sword hidden elsewhere as the spear-wielder once more assumes his monocled form. Unwilling to give chase, the ragged man bends down and lifts the woman in both arms before tearing open an extravagant portal and disappearing with the kidnapper's prey.
"Change of plans, Saguaro. I managed to attract the attention of someone interesting; I'm sending you a pic now, just let me know if you find anything of value."
"Wait, what?! Declan, what am I supposed to tell the higher ups?! We needed that-"
Yanking the earbuds from his ears, Stoddard lets his division's latest recruit vent for a few minutes, surfing the internet for any information he can find before heading off toward the distant city.
"I'll get the girl back... eventually."
Wins/Losses/Draws(A.K.A Ties)
4/4/2
Battle Record (Click to Show)
Ralic(Me) Vs. Lien(Oltarius)= Win
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Ralic(Me) Vs. Leoncio(Azure)= Loss
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Dex Omni(Me) vs. Genesis(Malacal)= Tie
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Dex Omni(Me) vs. Serif Winters(Crank)= Loss
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Winston(Me) vs. Zackeroar(XDHunterNest)= Win
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Winston(Me) vs. Zhelan(Lobotomizer)= Loss but a win in me heart ;-;
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Winston(Me) vs. Ethernu(Sharpiro)= Tie
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Mirage(Me) vs. Altaer(Alphaeus)= Forfeit. My L
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Winston(Me) vs. M.A.(Azure)= Won, much to my surprise.
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Declan(Me) vs. Abbas(Ignus)= Win.
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Searching.
Availability: Busy, but available.
