Oops, I almost forgot the best character.
Description: Vornis is a human whose body has been modified by magic. He is muscular, over seven feet tall, and is balding with wild tufts of hair on the sides of his head. His lips are thin and expose white teeth underneath. Large, organic scales cover his upper chest and pelvic areas: they are arranged in rows, like a coat of armor. Each scale is around six inches across. Two long, straight, bladed spines stick out from the sides of his stomach area. Two additional, smaller spines jut out from his neck in a “V” shape. His hands have sharp claws on each finger. He wears no clothing.
History/Personality: A gruff conman that grew even more pessimistic when society wouldn’t allow Parlay to remove a deadly virus from his girlfriend, Zenny. In a fit of rage, Vornis then allowed Parlay to transform him into a monster. They never got their revenge on society, as the world ended soon after that. Vornis survived, and accepted the planet’s fate. He estranged himself from Parlay, however, unable to deal with the drastic changes in his once-friend.
Vornis’ grouchy demeanor has somewhat lessened, now that he has found new friends in Mean, Dark, Trisk, and Darrow.
Abilities: Vornis has immense strength and agility. He can grip the bladed spines at his sides and swivel them in wide arcs to act as weapons. He has been programmed with animal instincts that can take over his voluntary actions completely when his life is in danger. In this state, all external sensations are blocked, save those that are necessary for survival.
Inspiration: My friend Matt went to a different high school that I did. Most of the time, anyway. He would tell me about a particular teacher, and how his classmates nicknamed this teacher “Vornis.” Matt and his buddies did not seem to care for this man, as I would always be regaled by tales of Vornis’ monstrous deeds. Homework! Detention! Oh, the terror they endured.
After high school, the legend of Vornis continued. World of Warcraft came out a bit later, an Matt would create characters bearing Vornis’ name. These would mostly be horrifying ‘undead’ characters, and they carried Vornis beyond any attachment to a real person. He was now a mythical monster, bound only by our imaginations.
So when I started writing I just HAD to find a way to bring Vornis to life.
I am still looking for an artist to draw him, however. And I will NOT take someone else’s drawing and put it here! I’ve learned from my artist, Thomas Hugo, that stealing artwork is wrong. So just, uh, go look up a picture of Swamp Thing in the meantime. 😅