#Lynkos the Living Diamond

[sepublic]

Did anyone else have multi-purpose OCs, who you’d use for different stories at once? Sometimes original, sometimes as part of some pre-existing media, with minor differences between incarnations. I recall Midas and Lynkos doubling as both Ninjago and Ghostbusters OCs.

[sepublic]

            It’s been a while since I’ve actually drawn or introduced another Escapee, so let’s change that up! Meet Lynkos the Living Diamond, right-hand man to Midas (feel free to interpret that as you will), a violent, brutish, and enthusiastic brawler.

         Lynkos is a character whose backstory I’ve admittedly done little to flesh out or explore, being more of an afterthought that I’ve procrastinated upon until the inspiration has struck. As of now, I’m workshopping on an idea I’ll get into later this post, but for now let’s focus on what I DO have cemented for him!

         Lynkos is a rough-and-tumble type who loves to get his hands dirty (fitting, diamonds are born of the earth), bash heads, trade fisticuffs, that sort of thing. There’s a bit of a sadistic edge to him, but mostly he’s here for a challenge, and that’s part of his motivation in joining Midas’ group to kill the Wayvrens; They’re an invincible family who has changed the course of history and taken down innumerable, unstoppable foes! Nobody’s killed a single one as far as anyone knows, and Lynkos looks forward to breaking that record.

         When the death of literal child Lloyd was brought up, Lynkos was skeptical; He didn’t find it to be good sport and probably a waste of time, but the others had their reasons and there was always a cooldown between encounters with the Wayvren who defeated him. May as well do it to kill time, get it over with… Except, Midas and his gang continued to fail, no matter how much they applied the effort.

         It wasn’t so much that Lloyd himself was powerful and difficult to defeat; He was surrounded by a whole host of individuals who were very interested in keeping him alive, and THEY were a challenge! And suddenly, what seemed like an in-and-out sidequest became a legitimately Herculean task for Lynkos, who now looked forward to killing Lloyd, mostly because to do so would be an enormous accomplishment in and of itself; Sounds fun!

         Diamonds are formed under pressure, so I imagine there’s some thematic symbolism I could incorporate here, of Lynkos as a person who loves to push his own limits, diving into the gauntlet to emerge fire-forged and stronger than ever! He’s like a brutal boxer, constantly training, toughening himself up as scars form to be more and more durable, until he comes out as hard as diamond.

         But despite being seemingly impervious to scratches and other damage… Well, diamond is also brittle, and CAN be broken, especially by a fellow diamond. If Lynkos isn’t careful and pushes himself too far, one day he’ll strain and come against someone or something that will leave him totally shattered… But if he can, he’ll just get back up, recover, and use it as an opportunity to heal over his wounds and broken facets, because what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger! Like a weightlifter tearing up muscle so it can reborn anew, phoenix-like.

         As mentioned, Lynkos is right-hand to Midas, and acts as his lieutenant; I thought there’d be some fun duality, since Gold and Diamonds go hand-in-hand as precious minerals. Granted, the actual value of diamond is exaggerated, so mayhaps that’s why Midas is just on top… Plus, there’s the duality, two sides of the same expensive coin, with Midas being a soft and malleable metal, Lynkos a hard and brittle crystal. One made himself this way, the other was always like this; Midas is a very heavy and existential, philosophical thinker.

         Lynkos? He’s a lot more simple-minded, blunt, and straightforward. He’s here for fun, for a violent brawl and a challenge, and is eager to bust heads and knock skulls together, haha! He doesn’t really get a lot of the complicated ruminations that Midas, Barracudox, and Tamericus frequently engage in… But it’s not like Lynkos doesn’t have a personal philosophy of his own, seeking challenge to emerge stronger for it, even if it breaks him, especially if it does even!

         Lynkos trusts Midas, he’s willing to jump in as a personal enforcer, and just for the chance to fight. He admires the Golden Man, engaging in complex discussions much too out-there for Lynkos’ brain, which technically IS a rock. Wherever Midas goes, Lynkos is probably going to follow, even if he doesn’t fully understand; Midas appreciates and values Lynkos’ loyalty, the trust is mutual, though there was an initial period in which the two had to acclimate to one another after escaping from the Tower of Tears.

         Despite is name, Lynkos isn’t made of actual diamond, but a wholly separate, unique substance, crystalline and almost alive in nature; Hence the moniker, ‘Living Diamond’ and all. This stuff grows, branches, splits apart into a web of fractals. It’s much sturdier than actual diamond, too, with just a bit more flexibility; But it’ll eventually crack under the right stresses, as Lynkos quickly found out.

         Lynkos grows his ‘living diamond’ from himself and is made of it; You could shatter his head and as long as a decent portion of him remains intact, he’ll regrow it, possessing powerful regenerative capabilities. He doesn’t really have any organs, he’s just solid crystal through and through, technically, and he’ll sometimes absorb and chow down on minerals to fuel himself. Call that carbo loading…

         One of Lynkos’ favorite methods of attack is to turn both hands into a jagged cluster of crytals, and shoot them out rapidly, impaling enemies from afar. Since the crystals themselves aren’t actual diamond, they don’t contribute to the devaluing of it like Midas and his gold touch, though to be fair actual diamond isn’t THAT rare either. Lynkos’ pillar-like limbs can also extend, growing to grab and/or stab people as the sharp ends jut out.

         There’s a pair of diamond clusters on Lynkos’ back that can each fire off and explode, acting as airbone mines that release waves of sharp crystal all over the place. Lynkos can pump the jagged ends of his arms or legs into the ground, growing trails of deadly prisms that erupt ahead of him. And when extending his limbs, crystals can split off from the rest, branching into their own directions like branches; And then those ‘branches’ can grow crystals that split off from the original, and so on and so forth.

         So if you managed to dodge a crystal spire, beware! It might just sprout another one out of its side to impale you with, correcting directions with each new extension. As a result, Lynkos can create some complex structures that zig-zag and intersect with one another, blocking off enemies’ escape by creating a ring of diamond to trap the two of them inside with. As I said, Lynkos might be simple-minded in terms of his outlook on life, but don’t assume that doesn’t make him clever when it comes to physical combat; He’s fully explored, weaponized, and made the most of his crystalline form.

         Of course, as fun as impalation is... Sometimes, nothing beats a good ol’ trade of fisticuffs! Lynkos’ claws and sharp crystals retract, leaving just a solid, durable prism out of his knuckles, before he rushes in and delivers a wave of beatings to break you down, make you crumble bit by bit. Diamond can be worn down and weathered away at, but it can also do the same to you as Lynkos. Be careful not to lock hands either, because Lynkos can always just sprout sharp crystals from his knuckles to shear right through your palms, yikes. Headbutts are similarly nasty thanks to that crown of Lynkos’.

         Being a living, growing mineral, Lynkos acts as the ‘mind’ for it, and can thus command it to shatter or recede even when separated from his body. This is helpful in case he’s accidentally blocked off a path, pinned down an ally, that sort of thing, and it’s useful in setting up prisoners, pinning limbs to the side within the embrace of several crystals; Sharp points stopping right below the chin and all!

         …An admittedly ridiculous idea I had for Lynkos when I was younger was also the ability to somehow carve and form four, tiny little wheels with sharp ridges on his chest and knees, even as Lynkos lies stomach down and tucks his limbs in; Enabling him to act as a ‘cart’ of sorts, the sharp wheels spinning on their crystalline axles to propel him forward. It’s really specific and implausible, but it’s an image and idea I’ve had so much fun with, that I might just keep it in anyway. Who needs a mine cart to transport crystals, when the mine cart IS the crystal transporting itself?

         Fun fact, it’s possible that if left on its own, under the right conditions… Crystals generated by Lynkos, planted in the ground, might be able to grow on their own! Spawning additional clusters and masses. I dunno if I’ll go through with this, but it’s a fun concept to me, since Lynkos is ‘Living Diamond’ and the mineral he’s comprised of is akin to an organism, even. Diamonds are formed from carbon after all… Maybe he’s considered in-universe the possibility of growing other Living Diamonds like him, but so far all he’s accomplished are identical statues.

         Which, now that I think of it, I could imagine Lynkos growing these as a decoy, or even leaving his original body behind as his consciousness goes down through his legs and into the ground, growing clusters of diamond that form a trail leading away, and eventually erupt and form into a newly-grown Lynkos! So he’s like a vegetable, a farmer in his own right, huh. It ain’t much but it’s honest work, Lynkos humbly declares as he tackles his old shell of himself into an opponent.

         As for Lynkos’ backstory, as I said; It’s always been more of an afterthought. Maybe I’ll play around with the idea of coal becoming diamonds; Maybe he was born of a species of rock monsters, some of whom are coal and can be lit ablaze, and/or are deathly terrified of that. As a miner, he gets trapped in a cave-in, pressurizes over countless years, and emerges as the Living Diamond!

         One of a kind but a possible mutation… Or not, it’s possible others of Lynkos’ species tried to replicate the process but failed. Maybe the conditions weren’t specific enough, and/or they ARE trying, they’re simply still in the process of forming when Lynkos escapes from the Tower of Tears, and still have plenty more years to go before they’d ready to emerge from their earthen cocoons.

         I imagine this would contribute to Lynkos’ rough-and-tumble nature, his philosophy of applying pressure and challenge, praising stress as a way to grow and evolve. He went through the gauntlet, the heat of flammable coal subjected to subterranean pressure, and like a phoenix was born anew, that sort of thing. So maybe there’s a bit of a fire motif for this crystal, after all.

         Maybe I’ll make Lynkos the same species, or an offshoot of the same species, as Magmint the Lava Golem. There’s so many transformed humans who are hardly human by now, what about members of other sapient species beyond recognition, not considering themselves as such? That does defeat the contrast of Midas becoming Gold while Lynkos supposedly Always Was, but maybe the foil comes from Midas choosing it while for Lynkos, it was a mining accident, a cave-in of fate.

         As for what happened when Lynkos emerged, hmm… I like to imagine a story in which adventurers hear of the world’s biggest diamond, braving an abandoned temple full of traps that are… long decayed by now and non-functional, how impressive! They see warnings on ancient murals telling them that those who seize the diamond will die, and brush off this alleged curse. They find an enormous, man-sized cluster of crystals at the end of the temple, sealed away… Only for it to split apart, forming limbs as it emerges, yawns, and stretches out! It’s Lynkos!

         So funny story, some ancient civilization captured Lynkos, seeing him as a precious artifact in his own right because he was made of diamond and could produce it. But then they realized he wasn’t ACTUAL diamond, had a rampaging brawler on their hands, and so shrugged and stored him away in a vault. So there’s no curse, actually; It’s not like the crystal brings some horrid fate upon you, it just grows limbs and kills you itself lol.

         I haven’t smoothed out the details and have considered this story for Midas, whom as I’ve brought up, has parallels to Lynkos; Maybe one or the other WAS valued and objectified as a ‘statue’ of precious quality, and hoarded away for it. Who knows? But if it happened to Lynkos, well, the Tower of Tears wouldn’t be his first rodeo being captured and locked away in an ancient stone structure, forgotten until awakened and freed, years later…

         His conflict with the Wayvrens is probably simple; Lynkos was being violent and destructive. Maybe they heard of how he was once sealed away, perhaps by his own species even, and opted to re-apply that solution, but with the Tower of Tears; Same difference, and more secure. But not completely as it turned out… When Lynkos escaped, he met up with Midas and the others, was attracted by the unbeatable task of killing the Wayvrens, and agreed to it.

         On the side, I like to think, either before or after the tower, maybe both, maybe this is how he encountered the Wayvrens, Lynkos became the champion of an underground fighting ring of misfits and other strange yet powerful individuals. His design has a bit of a ‘wrestling belt’ too, though that was admittedly more of a happy accident and coincidence as Lynkos’ story was fleshed out. Maybe he encounters Trexdis, Lloyd, and the others for the first time when they enter an underground fighting ring for Reasons, and discover that this enigmatic Champion is none other than an Escapee, and one of Midas’!

        Lynkos the Living Diamond… I expected this to be a lot shorter given his bare-bones backstory, but I guess I figured stuff out as I wrote along!

[sepublic]

Lynkos sometimes walks like the Ice Titan from Hercules, planting his foot into the ground, breaking it off at the knee, and then growing a new leg to step forward with, rinse and repeat; Leaving an entire trail of jagged spires behind him as he goes.

Come to think of it, looking back... I realize how much I was obsessed with the Ice Titan’s design as a kid, and how formative it was for me, with the recent epiphany that he must’ve inspired Lynkos’ appearance. I remember imagining the Ice Titan going on adventures in my head, wielding Santis’ sword from Knights Kingdom;

My reasoning of course was that the blade was a metallic blue and had a spiky, almost fractal base to it... So when designing Toa Kualus for Bionicle, SubParFauxPas clearly made the same connection as me;

[sepublic]

Midas: And so, that’s my plan to kill all of the Wayvrens! Including that one child of theirs, what was his name again, Floyd?

Lynkos: Mmh... Sounds nice for the most part, but that last bit don’t seem particularly sporting.

Dioclius: How so?

Lynkos:

[sepublic]

Lynkos Voice-Claim

I’d give Lynkos a heavy, southern, Texas drawl; He’s basically an incredibly violent and trigger-happy cowboy, so imagine the shock and horror of this ancient relic you found actually being a person... Only for him to yell WOT IN TARNATION in the most molasses accent ever.

He sounds something like Quickstrike from Beast Wars (Can you tell I really liked that show?);

(Quickstrike, as you can guess and is confirmed later in this clip, is the scorpion-cobra hybrid that turns into a robot.)

I realize Lynkos’ face bears a slight resemblance to Quickstrike’s in robot mode, but believe it or not I designed him way before I started watching Beast Wars in early 2021 (and finally resumed and finished in late 2022).