#epimetheus ( hell is other people ) || connections

[mutantsrisingrpg]

Congratulations ADDISON! You’ve been accepted as EPIMETHEUS with a FC change to JOEL KINNAMAN.

When writing Tierney’s skeleton, I tried to hint at how his emotions are something that can rule him - and you picked up on that right away. In fact, you picked up on it, wrapped it, and delivered it to us with a backstory that tore at my heart as the bow. ‘Had he always been a mutant?’ God, the way his power was discovered hit me in the face and I loved it. The theme of taking care of his family is one that I’m excited to see translate to the Blackburn Syndicate. I can’t wait to see Tierney flex his big dumbass energy on the dash! 

Welcome to Mutants Rising! Please read the checklist and submit your account within 24 hours.

Out of Character Information:

NAME/ALIAS: addison/hellsign

PRONOUNS: she/her/hers.

AGE: 20

TIMEZONE & ACTIVITY LEVEL: EST, uhhhh activity level….6

In Character Information:

DESIRED ROLE: Tierney Sinclair, FC: Joel Kinnaman

GENDER/PRONOUNS: Cismale, he/him/his

DETAILS & ANALYSIS: 

To sum him up, BDG - big dumbass energy. But anyway:

Tierney (Irish): lord’ or ‘master

With names like these, at age 40, why the hell was he just a hitman, a tool for other people to use? Like every man when close to power, he should want that power, right? With Tierney, I think that was the last thing he wanted. Let me explain.

The only time he ever came close to being a “lord” or a “master” was taking care of his brothers growing up. Not that he would ever demanded them to call him that, it wasn’t some kind of title he would’ve liked to keep since it never felt like he ruled over them. Power equated to responsibility and he was a boy forced to become a man. He does not trust himself with power, he doesn’t know what he’ll do with it. Being a hitman is simple. He can clearly see the line between success and failure and he knows what it takes to achieve both. That’s where he gets his comfort. Some people may perceive this as laziness. But Tierney had been alive for 40 long years now. It was about time things became easy.

Epimetheus (Greek): afterthinker, hindsight, foolish Sinclair (Scottish): pure, renowned, illustrious

“red eyes” “always with malice” “burn of whiskey” “rusty pipe…whole world a show”

Why was he so EMOTIONAL??? Perhaps, he was a fool because he was ruled by anger. I thought I had more thoughts than just this, but yeah, he’s just an emotional man showing signs of intermittent explosive disorder.

BIO:

TW: murder/death

Dallon Sinclair was a good cop turned dirty. It was the sort of thing that happens when you knock up your mutant informant. Katelyn Monroe never wanted this baby, but she wasn’t about to die getting rid of it either. At one point, what they had between them was love. This was that one point.

Regardless of the gun pointing to his head, Dallon sworn to protect Katelyn and his unborn child. But his tenure in the depths of the underworld didn’t last very long. After a close shoot-out, Dallon came home and begged Katelyn, please, let me marry you, let us get out of here. Her boss didn’t like that very much.

When Tierney first opened his eyes, the world was a bright flashlight. He was born in the back of a car, seats pushed down with sheets thrown on haphazardly. A night in July, new moon in the sky enveloping the world in darkness. Nothing spectacular about it. Later on, his mother would tell him the story of a car chase, screeching wheels, leaving flames in their wake. He would never remember it.

Here was what he knew: his father was a paranoid old fuck; his mother was a fleeting apparition; his brothers were the only ones worth anything. He would die for them. Really un-fucking-fortunate that he wound up killing for them instead.

Katelyn Monroe came back into their lives like a raging hurricane.

Look, Tierney was only a Sinclair through blood, never by meaning. All that fucking purity shit that was supposed to come with it, circumstance never allowed it. They lived on the outskirts of Chicago’s underbelly and he dove right in to provide for his brothers whenever his father would swan dive back into his own darkness. Fucking faster than going to college somewhere and getting a good job. Tierney fought for money. He scammed for money. He robbed for money. He had a damn line. But somehow, holding Keaton and Charlie in his arms, he couldn’t remember why he had it in the first place. She wasn’t going to take from them anymore.

Katelyn Monroe lied motionless, blood soaking the wood under her. Dallon Sinclair hung like an ornament, his head secured in the wall. The floating glass didn’t fall until Tierney collapsed to his knees.

That was the first time Tierney was aware of his powers. The second was later that night, floating his parents’ bodies into the graves hastily dug under the new moon. Now that he was a mutant (shit, had he always been a mutant?), more doors opened and more questions were asked. There were several syndicates for mutants in Chicago, but Blackburn caught his eye. Protection. And fuck, Tierney knew enough to know that he’d be way over his head to think he could do this on his own now (shit, had he always been a mutant?). Using his connections from the neighborhood fighting ring, he got some names and a way in. And the rest was history.

EXPANDED CONNECTIONS:

Okay, for CIARA SAWYER, I first noticed how young they were which gave me some pseudo-sibling vibes. They’re around his brothers’ age so I totally see Tierney taking them under his wing when they were younger. To Ciara, Tierney is why they still have a job within and outside of the syndicate. The two already work well together, but I think Tierney would’ve sought Ciara out even if they didn’t and make sure they learn how, projecting onto Ciara to cope with his failed relationships with his brothers. Ciara’s power is invisibility, but I also think personality-wise, they prefer to be unknown, or at least, try to be unknownable (“[Tierney doesn’t] ask too many prying questions” —so they prefer him). For whatever reason, they trust Tierney to see them and that means more to Tierney than he’ll ever say.

As for GERRARD BERMUDEZ!!!!!

“They have moral differences that clearly set them apart, but the similarities that they share are what makes Tierney hate them the most… What bothers them is how they notice the barely contained anger sitting behind their eyes because they’ve seen it too many times in their own mirror.”

DIFFERENCES:

Gerrard Bermudez: Jem Family, goals of a Mutant Supremacy.

They don’t kill/torture though.

Scare-tactic, bruiser

Doubles as a bodyguard when unassigned to a mission.

Hyperion - “God of Watchfulness, Wisdom and the Light”

1. One of the titan children that overthrew their father 2. Profitor on Cornerstone Convenience 3. No rules

Tierney Sinclair: Blackburn Syndicate, with a focus on being a safe haven, not necessarily political

Hitman - kills (+ malice = murder)

Epimetheus - “afterthinker, hindsight, foolish”

1. No positive trait for humans

I think it’s kind of ironic that despite being in different groups with very different goals, they are more closely aligned with each other’s organization.

The Blackburn Syndicate, for the past 17 (excuse me, SEVENTEEN) years, has been trying to shed its reputation as a crime-ridden mob. Here’s the thing though. Tierney is a hitman, he kills people but oh it’s okay because he’s one of the good guys. His anger feeds into a motive of justice. Gerrard is all bark and no bite, hiding under the Jem Family because of fear. Their anger is selfish and unproductive. Chaotic for the sake of chaos. That’s what Tierney believes anyway. To him, Gerrard is a victim that wants to be a school bully. Seeking revenge instead of avenging. In his post, his history with Gerrard “has long been forgotten.“ With Gerrard, their history is constantly brought up with snide remarks and an upturned nose. Tierney lies to himself because how can their history be forgotten when he can always feel it looming over him every time he’s in the same room with Gerrard? I think whatever happened between them solidified their morals and had them join different organizations with different goals. And it eats at Tierney to be so close to Gerrard—thanks to the treaty—but yet, they’re still lost to him. (This may change since I’m coming at this with the headcanon that the two were friends… not to god-mod Gerrard or anything). So really this hatred stems from heartbreak. (Tierney is a Cancer, of course).

AND LIKE… NOT TO GOD-MOD GERRARD OR ANYTHING, but if I were to hate Tierney, it’d be because of his hypocrisy and self-delusion. It’s like… what you do is bad but when I do it, it’s okay because I’m better than you. Which, bullshit. So I’m really interested to explore that.

EXTRA:

Honestly, the idea of Tierney having brothers stems from me thinking all white men look the same. I see one picture of Joel Kinnaman and I’m like is this Luke Mitchell?? Anyway, CHARLIE - Luke Mitchell, KEATON - Ross Lynch.

Okay, let me just get my family headcanons out of the way first.

Tierney’s oldest memory was of his little brother. He was six years old, eyes wide with wonder, with his hands reaching out for the warmth of his brother. They weren’t in a car this time. The Sinclairs finally had a house with a dining table, though the sheets might have been the same. Tierney wasn’t the first one to hold Charlie in his arms, but he was the first Sinclair to do so.

Tierney had his father, but Charlie had Tierney. And with those six years between them, Tierney always felt like Charlie was his.

Charlie, when he was younger, couldn’t pronounce Tierney so he called him Ernie.

Tierney used to walk Charlie home from school. Waited outside and everything because he got out earlier.

Being six years apart, they were never in school together so he had to teach Charlie how to fight so people wouldn’t mess with him.

Charlie never did like fighting though. And Tierney wasn’t above picking on kids so they’d leave his brother alone.

That was how he got a rep as a bully.

But if he liked you, he’d protect you too.

He got higher grades on the homework he did with Charlie because Charlie would ask him to explain everything and make him think through shit.

But usually he would do them during homeroom on the days they were due.

Tierney THINKS his powers activated on that fateful day, but really he’s had them this whole time and never fucking noticed.

It’s not that he’s good at finding things. He just subconsciously moves them closer.

He was able to hold Charlie because of his telekinesis. Charlie didn’t float because Tierney wanted to hold him in his arms.

At Fight Club, he expected to win with his punches and kicks, so he did.

Tierney had his fists locked by his side, but his mom flew out the door because he wanted it more.

He couldn’t join the Jem family because his father wasn’t a mutant and he had loved Katelyn, who was, and protected his family, who were. He couldn’t join the Jem family because his mother was a mutant and she hurt them more than anybody else.

Remember how I said that his connection with Ciara was to make up for his failed relationships with his brothers?

Charlie had a fiancé who was actually working for a small org that wanted to test mutation implementation (and Charlie were to be one of their victims). Tierney found out and mentally manipulated him to feel sick and disgust whenever he was with Charlie so they’d break up. Charlie found out that Tierney did that (but not the reason why).

Keaton never felt close to Tierney (mostly because of the age gap) and growing up, Tierney was mostly away working for the syndicate (not that Keaton knew that). Also, Charlie told him what happened and honestly fuck Tierney.

Tierney’s favorite color is yellow.

He never falls first, but he falls the hardest.

I mostly listened to THIS while writing this app. To me, it represents Tierney’s softness but also his desire to keep everybody at far more than arms’ length.

ANYTHING ELSE: 

ok i was never into mob/mafia rpgs but i’m so FASCINATED by the premise of mutantsrising anyway anyway i’m super pumped for it. i would apologize for sending in like 2k of analysis but i know yall live for this soooo YOURE WELCOME i hope i did well and this MAKES SENSE I’VE NEVER CONNECTED SO HARD WITH AN OLD MAN

[olympus-summit]

You Put Those Bubbles Right Back In That Bottle Mister | Nemesis | Re: Elliott, Shinobu

This was headache-inducing, and Nemesis had already had a headache, he usually did, so he presses his hands to his temples and rubs slowly, hoping for even a crumb of relief.

"Will you try actually listening to what I'm saying before you jump down my throat?" His voice is flat and tired, as is the expression he keeps on Elliott. "I'm not tearing her down, I literally just said I believed her and am willing to give her the benefit of the doubt. Which isn't fucking easy for me, you have no idea how hard it is for me to do that for someone, especially after all the other lies I've found out about today. And another thing - I never mistreated Mina, I didn't even really have a chance to talk to her before I started suspecting her. But go through the chat logs again yourself since you apparently didn't read the history properly the first time. You're mixing me up with someone else on that one, although frankly being friendly with our goddamn captors and torturers is going to draw suspicion, which is something Mina herself knew. And, by the way, you have no idea what information I had or when I had it. I didn't always share everything I knew. But I talked to her before the last trial, she didn't trust me completely either, but we were friends because we both understood that in this situation trust is hard. If I'm going to apologize to Mina for anything, it's going to actually be to Mina, after talking with her, and in case you haven't noticed she's not here. But she is involved and it's impossible to talk about all this without mentioning her or her connection to it at all, and the sooner you accept that and stop trying to argue with anyone who so much as brings her name up, the easier this is gonna be."

Nemesis didn't want to argue about Mina, but that didn't mean he was going to stand there and let people say whatever the hell bullshit they wanted to either. Waste of goddamn time... ironic that Elliott and Menai were two of the people so supposedly against anyone expressing any disagreements and yet here they were having an argument with a strawman. 

It was especially ironic since, if he was right, they had mistreated Mina a hell of a lot more than anyone else here ever had.

"Which brings me to what Shinobu's been trying to talk about. Prometheus shows signs in the letters that they and Epimetheus were close to Mina. He mentions talking to her. He wanted to recruit her. And I think you just illustrated pretty well yourself how that fact would fit the two of you perfectly. Besides, if the goal of all this was to 'break' us, then why wouldn't you, or Prometheus, choose the most traumatic format you could think of? Wasn't that the whole point? I think that's what Shinobu was suggesting, too, and I agree with them. Hell, maybe you even wanted to punish yourself for putting us through this, maybe you thought it'd make up for it somehow if you were suffering too. Whatever it is, I'm not going to believe any emotion-based defenses from you, not this time, not when the last time you started up with that you turned out to be lying. I went along with it last time, because Leland and Menai were so upset by how you were acting. I let it go even when I knew it didn't feel right, I decided to believe you were telling the truth and I voted to try and save you anyway, and got fucking burned for it. Not that you've ever offered but I don't even want an apology for that because I know you're not fucking sorry and would probably do it again. And god, Tenko is sitting right fucking there and you're still going to act like you can keep who killed her a secret? You don't even have a goddamn sliver of sympathy for the actual murder victim here- no, I'm not doing this, we're not re-hashing this right now."

Poor fucking Tenko though, he shoots an apologetic glance in her direction. She never really had any support, never seemed to feel able to tell her full side of things, and her murderer had gotten away with it because Elliott wanted to play martyr. And now her other attempted murderer was back, too. Nemesis doesn't know what the exact history between Nezumi and Tenko is, but he can take a few guesses, and none of them are good. He can't blame her for staying quiet now, but god it pisses him off that Elliott's just pretending she isn't there and that her murder doesn't matter. What the hell is wrong with him?

"You're both obviously on the defensive. You're not offering any counter-theories, or even any evidence, you're just trying to refute what we already have and not even doing a great job of it. How long is this supposed to go on, anyway? Are we not 'broken' enough yet? What's with the song and dance? We already figured out this is because the Titan Administration is corrupt as hell, we got that part of the puzzle in place, so if you guys aren't the real "big bads" then why draw this out?" This last question is directed upwards, at the Fates on their platform.