Montague Navarro (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
poisoninmypocket) wrote2017-06-03 10:48 pm
poisoninmypocket) wrote2017-06-03 10:48 pm
Entry tags:
We the Lost Application
Player Name: Terri
Preferred Pronouns?: she/her
Player Contact:![[plurk.com profile]](https://plurk.com/favicon.ico)
switalia
Other characters in play? Bertie Wooster, John Watson
Character Name: Montague D'Ysquith Navarro
Canon: A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder
Game Transplant: Carvaka
Original App: Here
Game Summary: Carvaka was a post-apocalyptic survival sex game. Characters simply came into existence through the will and belief of the local, highly incompetent NPCs, the Hedonists. They were bird-bug people with the ability to believe anything into existence, including whole realities. Characters were informed that the realities they knew were the dreams of the Hedonists, carried on after some great calamity hit and destroyed all of reality. The Hedonists asked the characters to help them in restoring the world that had been destroyed by, well... having a lot of sex for distraction. The magic of the world relied on the energy of delusion and distraction that could be generated by sex.
Abstaining from it, unfortunately, led to people simply blinking out of existence after a protracted time of fading when they'd stop being able to eat or even drink and would become transparent and lose their corporeal form. Having more sex, however, resulted in the ability to take on the Hedonist's belief power. At least for normal people (those without any super-human abilities). In turn, those with supernatural abilities were able to regain access to them. They tended to rely on those with belief for things like food, water, and comfort items in order to survive.
How long was your character in Game: 21 months
History of Character in their Game:
Arrival: Monty arrived in Carvaka suddenly. His castle, Highhurst, was seemingly transported to be part of a vast tree of other buildings that had appeared in a desert wasteland. This tree began to slowly collapse over the course of two days and Monty worked with several other people to get down from it, most notably Cecil Palmer, Mikado Ryuugamine, Kise Ryouta, Nah, and Ruby. Cecil and Ruby both helped to actively prevent Monty from dying when he fell from a tight spot. Cecil was particularly notable for his casual gallantry and beautiful voice, which immediately drew Monty to his orbit. Monty assisted Nah on the final steps to get down from the building. They began with an argument--Nah was the first non-human Monty had ever met--but they ended by working together and supporting one another on the journey, ultimately, discussing a shared passion for reading. With Mikado, Monty found that his nascent belief abilities were bringing to life the portraits of his long-dead relatives, turning them into vicious and murderous ghosts. Mikado helped Monty to fight them off and get out. Kise was another person with nascent belief abilities. He and Monty's combined belief resulted in them being chased by a zombie and vampire hoard through the building. Monty found Kise to be the sort to act a lot dumber than he actually was. The lad displayed a rather wicked sense of humor in their escape that made Monty wonder about him. Rather a lot.
Once down from the tree, Monty met with their guides, a pair of Hedonists that appeared... human enough. They were named Eudaimonia and Mencius. Monty considered Mencius the more intelligent and sober of the pair, but they were both fairly moronic, as far as he could tell. Also rather helpless. He had to save Mencius from being beaten up by a young girl, Kodachi, and ended up getting punched a fair few feet for his intervention.
Travel: Once the traveling party set off, Monty found himself struggling in his new environment. He wasn't a stranger to hard work, long hours, and unwanted labor, but he'd lived in the city his whole life and had few desert-based survival skills. He attempted to endear himself to Nah's commander, a woman named Lucina who seemed to be taking some level of leadership within the group thanks to the presence of multiple people from her own reality. Monty worked with this group to develop moveable shelters from the rubble they came across, learn to hunt with snares, and build a fire. On the move, however, Monty began to suffer the effects of fading in the absence of sex. He wasn't averse to adultery, but he hardly knew anyone in their traveling party and felt awkward asking. Cecil eventually found him beginning to fade out and helped, introducing Monty to his first sexual encounter with another man. Monty was ashamed by how much he enjoyed it, but he fell in love with Cecil in that act and in the months that would come after it.
As the party began to move toward what the Hedonists claimed was their fort, they all received a message on their communications devices (items that appeared with them a little while after they arrived that functioned as a network). It told them to go east. They did and came across another fallen tower of buildings, this one cloaked in darkness and terror where the ghosts of those who did not make it, who faded from reality because they did not have any guides who could tell them how to survive, haunted them. Some of them were people the characters knew, but many were not. The only way to stave off the spirits was physical intimacy. Monty indulged with another of partners on his way through, but perhaps most notable was Cecil once more. In the middle of some intimacy, Monty's mistress Sibella arrived in the game along with several other people. Monty was beside himself with embarrassment as he tried to explain the circumstances to Sibella. Per her usually selfish ways, she seemed to accept it... but only so long as she was receiving the majority of his attention and affection.
Once they made it through the darkness, people began to note that some had been lost in the place they'd just left behind. Monty noted that Ruby, the man who save him, was one of them. He began a roster to try to keep track of everyone, given that Eudaimonia and Mencius said they hadn't even noticed. This was the beginning of Monty's monthly missives, a regular report he sent out on the network to inform people who had disappeared and to ask for the names of people who had just arrived. It also became a spring board for discussing abilities, skills, and home worlds of origin.
The new month hailed the arrival of new people, this time at a spring the group stopped at. The water was such that drinking it induced a person to announce their deepest truths or complete lies to the nearest person nearby. Monty ended up confessing his murders and several other embarrassing things to people, but managed to avoid anyone delving too deep into his secrets with the exception of a woman name Ovelia. Monty had fancied her quite a lot before, but with the admission and her acceptance of his reasoning (revenge for his mother), they grew closer. Ovelia would go on to be one of the women Monty would actively pursue, making grand romantic gestures at her. He managed to offend her, in the end, though, by openly flaunting his relationship with another woman. In that vein, he also began talking to Renart, a fairy tale vixen who was the reincarnation of her literary counterpart, given form through belief. Monty had no idea of her precise nature, but he did find her amusing. Later in the month when they entered into a sandstorm with a time-paradox, he would find himself waking up naked with her, only to get back to that point through the day as he figured out how he ended up bedding her. Renart would become a staple of friendship, companionship and romance throughout Monty's time in Carvaka. He played the romantic 'hero' for her, and even through their spates (many induced by jealousy), their commitment to each other held firm.
Just before the sandstorm, Monty would also encounter Clay, a golem able to disguise himself as a human. Monty at first found him charming and extremely curious. It was a quick turn, though, when Monty discovered the man was absolutely fiendish, constantly teasing him publicly and privately, and treating him like a particular curiosity and pet. Monty's curiosity maintained through Clay's many proddings, much to his chagrin, and he did eventually come to care for the golem... after a way. They had what Monty would deem one of his more trying relationships, even though he did miss Clay after the golem faded from reality.
Once through the sandstorm, Monty discovered that his mistress and his best friend from home, Sibella, had vanished. He grew morose and took to drinking heavily for a short while, trying to figure out what he'd done wrong and why she'd faded when there were other people in their group whom he felt deserved that fate far more. In his heartache, Monty latched tighter onto Renart and Cecil, taking comfort in their kindnesses, along with a few others.
Fort Between: Monty and the others finally arrived at the Hedonist fortress after some three months of constant travel. Unfortunately, instead of a welcoming home, they found it to be filled with traps. There were new arrivals there who needed help, and no Hedonists to be found. Eudaimonia and Mencius had no idea what was going on. Monty found himself getting trapped a few times and had to be rescued by various people, notably by Renart and a creature called the Nogitsune. The Nogitsune was a dark chaos spirit who latched itself onto Monty, sensing an opportunity with him. He would go on to have a very love-hate relationship with the creature, tipping more toward hate as it became more and more difficult for Monty to actively control. Monty also had the opportunity to rescue others, including a man named Dio. Dio was a vampire weakened by the sun, although Monty had no idea. The gentleman sought and was able to obtain help in freeing Dio from a trap. They had a decently cordial conversation at the end of it. Cordial on Monty's side. Dio internally found him annoying.
Once most of the traps had been more or less dealt with, the group began to explore their new home, making the best of their bad situation. There were nest-like beds where one might find themselves sharing dream-memories with another person, along with mirrors that showed important people from a person's past. Monty became entangled in various shenanigans as a result of these, but most notably with Renart, who shared one of his dream-memories and discovered that Monty was a serial killer. She found it rather charming, rather than off-putting and they grew closer. Monty likewise found himself growing closer to Cecil and when an event came that began stripping their senses from them, Monty lost his sense of inhibition momentarily and was rather freer with his affection in regard to Cecil than he'd ever been before.
Aletheia, Goddess of Absolute Truth: Some time into this event, five people were called by a voice into a strange mist at the center of the fortress. Monty was among these. He was thrust into a fairy tale-esque setting where he was to play the knight for Aletheia, a goddess the Hedonists had trapped for fear of her powers. Monty was, at first, all too happy to play the heroic champion, but Aletheia quickly revealed her ability to see into the true hearts of people. She called Monty a murderer and a liar. Monty was taken aback, but he was bound by the rules of the story they were in to play his part and collect three tokens for her to free them. Along the way, Monty met a bookworm, a small, rainbow snake creature whose bite granted translation abilities. He won its favor by telling it stories. He also met a kelpie whom he tricked into assisting him. The Hedonists attempted to trick him by showing him a fake version of his wife, Phoebe, and Monty became incensed by the insult of it and the dishonor to Phoebe. His resolve to help Aletheia against the Hedonists hardened.
In the end, though, in order to free Truth, Monty lied, tricked, and stole his way to victory. When they reached the last point and Monty gave Aletheia all of the tokens she needed, the fairy tale world broke apart around them. Monty was able to see Aletheia's true form, that of chimera made up of a large bird, centipede, and gorgeous woman. For his assistance, she gifted him with a sword and partially healed the wounds Monty had sustained during his adventure. Monty assured her that he would be her knight, but that if her Truth got in the way of restoring the world, he would not hesitate to turn the sword she gifted him with on her. Aletheia just seemed to find that amusing. They also made a deal. Aletheia asked Monty to help her figure out what happened 10 years ago to end reality. Aletheia's abilities were being blocked somehow for this. Monty agreed on the condition that he receive a kiss if he delivered the answer to her.
Life in Between: After Aletheia, the fortress and much of the world reverted to a much harsher environment. Aletheia's escape brought Truth back to the world, and it wasn't a very nice truth at all. Monty lost his belief abilities for a month, being reduced back to a helpless human. He tried to make the best of it, regardless, making himself useful with information gathering and manual labor. He tangled with one of the resident detectives over his actions in Aletheia's quest, but ultimately resolved it by apologizing. This would become a general theme for Monty in his time in Between. As a poor boy with few prospects, he'd had to learn to bow his head and scrape to get by. His political savvy won him many allies and he was able to diffuse most tension directed at him. Monty used his growing influence to direct work within the fortress.
First and foremost, he organized a clean-up and repair of the local bathhouse. His next goal had him leading the effort to restore an aqueduct that led to the only nearby water source. He also helped others to organize restoration efforts. Most notable, perhaps, was Demyx. Monty was first drawn to Demyx because of their shared appreciation of music. He slowly befriended Demyx, though, intent on helping the man to find and obtain the heart that he'd lost. Demyx was a Nobody, a creature of Darkness. Monty took a shine to him as something of a Project. Demyx and Monty would go on to encourage Demyx's efforts at an amphitheater and believe up a few new instruments for him to try.
Another person who came into Monty's life in Between was Espio, a humanized chameleon. Monty and Espio butted heads almost constantly, first about the length of Monty's monthly information missives, then about how Monty tended to handle things. Where Monty was proper, prim, and subtle, Espio tended to be crass and direct. They eventually fell into an odd sort of friendship, though, arguing still, but ultimate supporting one another.
Undertaker was yet another to make a deep impression on Monty in his time within the fortress. Monty found the man entirely vexing in their first meeting where Undertaker was sly and evasive. It would go that Monty would generally keep that impression of the man, although he did very slowly warm to him as he began to rely on Undertaker and then catch glimpses of some of his tender moments and kindness. By the time of Monty's disappearance from Carvaka, he was more actively pursuing Undertaker as a potential romantic prospect, although it wasn't quite to the level of Renart or Cecil. Undertaker was more love-hate still than simple love.
A few other notable people from Monty's time in Between were Detectives Oda and Castellanos who became semi-parental figures to Monty. Castellanos, especially, became a father figure. Although a blunt and harsh man, Monty found himself wanting to prove himself to the other man, to show (after Castellanos discovered that he was a murderer) that he was more than just an ambitious serial killer. Oda, in turn, acted as a bridge between Monty and Castellanos, soothing the upset Castellanos would sometimes cause and encouraging Monty to solve his problems diplomatically and avoid taking the more violent route.
There was also Lucina, this one from a different universe than the one he first knew. Monty butted heads with her hard on certain issues, finding her irritating when she did not yield to his will on certain matters. He tried to out-maneuver her politically in the fortress or turn her to his designs, but he had a significant amount of difficulty doing this and ultimately had a bad break with her over a woman name Eris.
Eris: Eris was a murderer. An Historian (the rational counterparts to the Hedonists who worshipped Aletheia) that Monty did not recognize as such when he led an expedition back to the fallen tower they had first run across when they started their journey. Eris pretended to be just another refuge and Monty brought her back to Between. Eris went mad, though, attacking and nearly killing Demyx (who'd provided them with a portal to travel home). Monty helped to save Demyx's life, and he ended up blaming himself for what had happened. Eris attacked and killed multiple people for more than a week before she was finally cornered. Instead of killing her, as Monty wanted to, Lucina and the two others with her, spared Eris and began protecting her.
With murder off the table, Monty began advocating for virtual imprisonment for Eris and a 24-hour guard, which Lucina pushed back on. He was appalled, not just because he thought his request a reasonable compromise, but because he was still upset that Eris should be able to get away with wanton murder with little more than a slap on the wrist. His murders had been targeted at people who deserved it at least, and he considered it very unfair.
Sophia: Sophia was another goddess encountered in Between, although Monty never met with her directly. Aletheia warned of her obliquely, referencing a serpent come to destroy. She advised everyone to ignore Sophia and avoid her, if possible. Sophia's first arrival in Between was heralded by flowers and a giant pillar. She snatched up three people and put them through trials, observing their reactions and discussing whether they wanted absolute truth, really, or maybe something else. Monty found her despicable for her games, even without meeting her and generally continued to advocate for Aletheia's position. They would need to fix the world through hard work, rather than just belief.
As they would discover on a journey to meet Sophia, she was the avatar of 'reality,' somewhere in between Aletheia, absolute truth, and their brother, delusion. Monty again missed the chance to meet with Sophia, but did his best to assist everyone along the way. He again found himself frustrated with Sophia, as well, but began to reconsider her position as she seemed to be advocating a mix of hard work and belief, rather than just one way or the other.
The Dark Days: Returning to Between, Monty and the others were faced with Eris' disappearance. She'd been dragged away by creatures that had infiltrated the fortress in the absence of half of its residents. She'd left behind a note to seek out the door in the darkness, to enter into it and find what lay there as the thing that could, perhaps, restore the world. Monty had been curious about the door, which lay below them in the fortress catacombs, but Lucina was the one who had the key that could get them in, and she'd so far refused to use it.
Before she had the chance to make use of it, though, Aletheia's wrath struck the fortress. She washed away everything created with belief and took everyone's powers from them. Monty, severely confused by this abrupt shift became rather convinced that something had happened to the goddess. In all of their other interactions, she had advocated for truth, but had not actively destroyed their other progress. Aletheia stated the contact with Sophia as the reason she'd taken these actions. Monty decided that he would have to go against Aletheia at that point. The Absolute Truth was not, after all, always Reality.
It's at this point that I'll be taking Monty from. Characters were able to escape Aletheia's influence by simply leaving the fortress, which is what Monty did to regain his belief abilities, but he was left with very little as a result of Aletheia's actions.
How did they change from their canon personality wise (Please explain what caused it to happen?)
Monty has come into his own as an organizer and historian over the course of his stay in Carvaka. He began acting as a recorder his first month in the better to keep track of everything and every one when their incompetent guides failed and they lost part of their group. He has since used his recordings and information to encourage people to make improvement efforts on their own and to try to generally sway opinion within the populace.
Monty, in canon, is also focused heavily on revenge. Without that motivator in his life, he began to feel out his general morality. While he does not oppose murder, he's found his life is simpler when he can get what he wants through other means. He has become more politically savvy and adept at swaying other people. This is in part thanks to people like Detectives Oda and Castellanos who have tried to steer Monty to the 'straight and narrow' path. It's also somewhat Undertaker's doing. Monty once tried to attack him as part of an effort to 'free' Renart from Undertaker's villainous grip. Monty was able to slice part of Undertaker's hand off, but found himself entirely horrified by the sight of the blood and lopped-off appendage. He's always been a timid man with proper violence making him nauseous. That incident rather drove the point home.
In addition, Monty's morals have taken a shift. He was already a fairly progressive man for his time, but the for his time has always been the catch. With his experiences in Carvaka, his views on the role of women (most of whom could pound him through the floor easily) and on sexuality have broadened. Nah and Renart would be credited the most for his change of heart where women are concerned. Cecil is the one who most opened Monty's eyes about the possibility of two men truly loving one another.
Finally, Monty has become an intensely inquisitive man, curious about magic, other worlds, and other people. It's to his benefit politically, of course, to have the information, but he's honestly curious.
How did they change from their canon physically (Please explain what caused it to happen?):
Monty has become physically more fit. He's spent his time in Carvaka doing a great deal of manual labor, rather than working in an office as a banker. He's also gained a few new scars, which include one on the back of his left calf that looks like someone took a chunk out of it, and jagged slices across his shoulder blades. These were from his adventure to free Aletheia. Monty managed to tangle with a giant mechanical spider. He also has bite mark scars on his neck, put there from repeated bites from Renart... per Monty's request.
Powers:
Musical World - Monty comes from the world of musicals and has a tendency to break out into song and dance that seems almost practiced and perfectly staged. This is typically accompanied by phantom music that seems to come from no where, but is very definitely there, like a hidden orchestra.
Belief - This is a power from the world of Carvaka. Monty can create just about any object through sheer force of belief. However, using the ability will drain him and the reserve of that power. The only way to restore it is through intimate relations. If he doesn't have much stored up belief ability, he can only make small, non-complex items, and if he doesn't focus on something for a good long while, it will disappear. It's not real, after all. Maintaining believed-in items does slowly eat away at his belief store. Given the constraints of the Meadous, he would not be able to make anything much larger than a small horse, and nothing with complex machinery. He's also limited in that he has to know what something is to make it. He could conceivably believe up a fidget spinner, for instance, but he's never seen one before. He wouldn't know what to picture for it or how it's meant to work.
Possessions:
Sample One: [X] - Monty faces down a crowd of mini-robots, sings to teach them about love, and steals a crown from a very large spider as part of the quest to free Aletheia.
Sample Two: [X] - An example of one of Monty's welcome missives.
Sample Three: [X] - Convincing Zexion to use The Power Of Love to save Demyx's life.
Notes: Nope!
Preferred Pronouns?: she/her
Player Contact:
Other characters in play? Bertie Wooster, John Watson
Character Name: Montague D'Ysquith Navarro
Canon: A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder
Game Transplant: Carvaka
Original App: Here
Game Summary: Carvaka was a post-apocalyptic survival sex game. Characters simply came into existence through the will and belief of the local, highly incompetent NPCs, the Hedonists. They were bird-bug people with the ability to believe anything into existence, including whole realities. Characters were informed that the realities they knew were the dreams of the Hedonists, carried on after some great calamity hit and destroyed all of reality. The Hedonists asked the characters to help them in restoring the world that had been destroyed by, well... having a lot of sex for distraction. The magic of the world relied on the energy of delusion and distraction that could be generated by sex.
Abstaining from it, unfortunately, led to people simply blinking out of existence after a protracted time of fading when they'd stop being able to eat or even drink and would become transparent and lose their corporeal form. Having more sex, however, resulted in the ability to take on the Hedonist's belief power. At least for normal people (those without any super-human abilities). In turn, those with supernatural abilities were able to regain access to them. They tended to rely on those with belief for things like food, water, and comfort items in order to survive.
How long was your character in Game: 21 months
History of Character in their Game:
Arrival: Monty arrived in Carvaka suddenly. His castle, Highhurst, was seemingly transported to be part of a vast tree of other buildings that had appeared in a desert wasteland. This tree began to slowly collapse over the course of two days and Monty worked with several other people to get down from it, most notably Cecil Palmer, Mikado Ryuugamine, Kise Ryouta, Nah, and Ruby. Cecil and Ruby both helped to actively prevent Monty from dying when he fell from a tight spot. Cecil was particularly notable for his casual gallantry and beautiful voice, which immediately drew Monty to his orbit. Monty assisted Nah on the final steps to get down from the building. They began with an argument--Nah was the first non-human Monty had ever met--but they ended by working together and supporting one another on the journey, ultimately, discussing a shared passion for reading. With Mikado, Monty found that his nascent belief abilities were bringing to life the portraits of his long-dead relatives, turning them into vicious and murderous ghosts. Mikado helped Monty to fight them off and get out. Kise was another person with nascent belief abilities. He and Monty's combined belief resulted in them being chased by a zombie and vampire hoard through the building. Monty found Kise to be the sort to act a lot dumber than he actually was. The lad displayed a rather wicked sense of humor in their escape that made Monty wonder about him. Rather a lot.
Once down from the tree, Monty met with their guides, a pair of Hedonists that appeared... human enough. They were named Eudaimonia and Mencius. Monty considered Mencius the more intelligent and sober of the pair, but they were both fairly moronic, as far as he could tell. Also rather helpless. He had to save Mencius from being beaten up by a young girl, Kodachi, and ended up getting punched a fair few feet for his intervention.
Travel: Once the traveling party set off, Monty found himself struggling in his new environment. He wasn't a stranger to hard work, long hours, and unwanted labor, but he'd lived in the city his whole life and had few desert-based survival skills. He attempted to endear himself to Nah's commander, a woman named Lucina who seemed to be taking some level of leadership within the group thanks to the presence of multiple people from her own reality. Monty worked with this group to develop moveable shelters from the rubble they came across, learn to hunt with snares, and build a fire. On the move, however, Monty began to suffer the effects of fading in the absence of sex. He wasn't averse to adultery, but he hardly knew anyone in their traveling party and felt awkward asking. Cecil eventually found him beginning to fade out and helped, introducing Monty to his first sexual encounter with another man. Monty was ashamed by how much he enjoyed it, but he fell in love with Cecil in that act and in the months that would come after it.
As the party began to move toward what the Hedonists claimed was their fort, they all received a message on their communications devices (items that appeared with them a little while after they arrived that functioned as a network). It told them to go east. They did and came across another fallen tower of buildings, this one cloaked in darkness and terror where the ghosts of those who did not make it, who faded from reality because they did not have any guides who could tell them how to survive, haunted them. Some of them were people the characters knew, but many were not. The only way to stave off the spirits was physical intimacy. Monty indulged with another of partners on his way through, but perhaps most notable was Cecil once more. In the middle of some intimacy, Monty's mistress Sibella arrived in the game along with several other people. Monty was beside himself with embarrassment as he tried to explain the circumstances to Sibella. Per her usually selfish ways, she seemed to accept it... but only so long as she was receiving the majority of his attention and affection.
Once they made it through the darkness, people began to note that some had been lost in the place they'd just left behind. Monty noted that Ruby, the man who save him, was one of them. He began a roster to try to keep track of everyone, given that Eudaimonia and Mencius said they hadn't even noticed. This was the beginning of Monty's monthly missives, a regular report he sent out on the network to inform people who had disappeared and to ask for the names of people who had just arrived. It also became a spring board for discussing abilities, skills, and home worlds of origin.
The new month hailed the arrival of new people, this time at a spring the group stopped at. The water was such that drinking it induced a person to announce their deepest truths or complete lies to the nearest person nearby. Monty ended up confessing his murders and several other embarrassing things to people, but managed to avoid anyone delving too deep into his secrets with the exception of a woman name Ovelia. Monty had fancied her quite a lot before, but with the admission and her acceptance of his reasoning (revenge for his mother), they grew closer. Ovelia would go on to be one of the women Monty would actively pursue, making grand romantic gestures at her. He managed to offend her, in the end, though, by openly flaunting his relationship with another woman. In that vein, he also began talking to Renart, a fairy tale vixen who was the reincarnation of her literary counterpart, given form through belief. Monty had no idea of her precise nature, but he did find her amusing. Later in the month when they entered into a sandstorm with a time-paradox, he would find himself waking up naked with her, only to get back to that point through the day as he figured out how he ended up bedding her. Renart would become a staple of friendship, companionship and romance throughout Monty's time in Carvaka. He played the romantic 'hero' for her, and even through their spates (many induced by jealousy), their commitment to each other held firm.
Just before the sandstorm, Monty would also encounter Clay, a golem able to disguise himself as a human. Monty at first found him charming and extremely curious. It was a quick turn, though, when Monty discovered the man was absolutely fiendish, constantly teasing him publicly and privately, and treating him like a particular curiosity and pet. Monty's curiosity maintained through Clay's many proddings, much to his chagrin, and he did eventually come to care for the golem... after a way. They had what Monty would deem one of his more trying relationships, even though he did miss Clay after the golem faded from reality.
Once through the sandstorm, Monty discovered that his mistress and his best friend from home, Sibella, had vanished. He grew morose and took to drinking heavily for a short while, trying to figure out what he'd done wrong and why she'd faded when there were other people in their group whom he felt deserved that fate far more. In his heartache, Monty latched tighter onto Renart and Cecil, taking comfort in their kindnesses, along with a few others.
Fort Between: Monty and the others finally arrived at the Hedonist fortress after some three months of constant travel. Unfortunately, instead of a welcoming home, they found it to be filled with traps. There were new arrivals there who needed help, and no Hedonists to be found. Eudaimonia and Mencius had no idea what was going on. Monty found himself getting trapped a few times and had to be rescued by various people, notably by Renart and a creature called the Nogitsune. The Nogitsune was a dark chaos spirit who latched itself onto Monty, sensing an opportunity with him. He would go on to have a very love-hate relationship with the creature, tipping more toward hate as it became more and more difficult for Monty to actively control. Monty also had the opportunity to rescue others, including a man named Dio. Dio was a vampire weakened by the sun, although Monty had no idea. The gentleman sought and was able to obtain help in freeing Dio from a trap. They had a decently cordial conversation at the end of it. Cordial on Monty's side. Dio internally found him annoying.
Once most of the traps had been more or less dealt with, the group began to explore their new home, making the best of their bad situation. There were nest-like beds where one might find themselves sharing dream-memories with another person, along with mirrors that showed important people from a person's past. Monty became entangled in various shenanigans as a result of these, but most notably with Renart, who shared one of his dream-memories and discovered that Monty was a serial killer. She found it rather charming, rather than off-putting and they grew closer. Monty likewise found himself growing closer to Cecil and when an event came that began stripping their senses from them, Monty lost his sense of inhibition momentarily and was rather freer with his affection in regard to Cecil than he'd ever been before.
Aletheia, Goddess of Absolute Truth: Some time into this event, five people were called by a voice into a strange mist at the center of the fortress. Monty was among these. He was thrust into a fairy tale-esque setting where he was to play the knight for Aletheia, a goddess the Hedonists had trapped for fear of her powers. Monty was, at first, all too happy to play the heroic champion, but Aletheia quickly revealed her ability to see into the true hearts of people. She called Monty a murderer and a liar. Monty was taken aback, but he was bound by the rules of the story they were in to play his part and collect three tokens for her to free them. Along the way, Monty met a bookworm, a small, rainbow snake creature whose bite granted translation abilities. He won its favor by telling it stories. He also met a kelpie whom he tricked into assisting him. The Hedonists attempted to trick him by showing him a fake version of his wife, Phoebe, and Monty became incensed by the insult of it and the dishonor to Phoebe. His resolve to help Aletheia against the Hedonists hardened.
In the end, though, in order to free Truth, Monty lied, tricked, and stole his way to victory. When they reached the last point and Monty gave Aletheia all of the tokens she needed, the fairy tale world broke apart around them. Monty was able to see Aletheia's true form, that of chimera made up of a large bird, centipede, and gorgeous woman. For his assistance, she gifted him with a sword and partially healed the wounds Monty had sustained during his adventure. Monty assured her that he would be her knight, but that if her Truth got in the way of restoring the world, he would not hesitate to turn the sword she gifted him with on her. Aletheia just seemed to find that amusing. They also made a deal. Aletheia asked Monty to help her figure out what happened 10 years ago to end reality. Aletheia's abilities were being blocked somehow for this. Monty agreed on the condition that he receive a kiss if he delivered the answer to her.
Life in Between: After Aletheia, the fortress and much of the world reverted to a much harsher environment. Aletheia's escape brought Truth back to the world, and it wasn't a very nice truth at all. Monty lost his belief abilities for a month, being reduced back to a helpless human. He tried to make the best of it, regardless, making himself useful with information gathering and manual labor. He tangled with one of the resident detectives over his actions in Aletheia's quest, but ultimately resolved it by apologizing. This would become a general theme for Monty in his time in Between. As a poor boy with few prospects, he'd had to learn to bow his head and scrape to get by. His political savvy won him many allies and he was able to diffuse most tension directed at him. Monty used his growing influence to direct work within the fortress.
First and foremost, he organized a clean-up and repair of the local bathhouse. His next goal had him leading the effort to restore an aqueduct that led to the only nearby water source. He also helped others to organize restoration efforts. Most notable, perhaps, was Demyx. Monty was first drawn to Demyx because of their shared appreciation of music. He slowly befriended Demyx, though, intent on helping the man to find and obtain the heart that he'd lost. Demyx was a Nobody, a creature of Darkness. Monty took a shine to him as something of a Project. Demyx and Monty would go on to encourage Demyx's efforts at an amphitheater and believe up a few new instruments for him to try.
Another person who came into Monty's life in Between was Espio, a humanized chameleon. Monty and Espio butted heads almost constantly, first about the length of Monty's monthly information missives, then about how Monty tended to handle things. Where Monty was proper, prim, and subtle, Espio tended to be crass and direct. They eventually fell into an odd sort of friendship, though, arguing still, but ultimate supporting one another.
Undertaker was yet another to make a deep impression on Monty in his time within the fortress. Monty found the man entirely vexing in their first meeting where Undertaker was sly and evasive. It would go that Monty would generally keep that impression of the man, although he did very slowly warm to him as he began to rely on Undertaker and then catch glimpses of some of his tender moments and kindness. By the time of Monty's disappearance from Carvaka, he was more actively pursuing Undertaker as a potential romantic prospect, although it wasn't quite to the level of Renart or Cecil. Undertaker was more love-hate still than simple love.
A few other notable people from Monty's time in Between were Detectives Oda and Castellanos who became semi-parental figures to Monty. Castellanos, especially, became a father figure. Although a blunt and harsh man, Monty found himself wanting to prove himself to the other man, to show (after Castellanos discovered that he was a murderer) that he was more than just an ambitious serial killer. Oda, in turn, acted as a bridge between Monty and Castellanos, soothing the upset Castellanos would sometimes cause and encouraging Monty to solve his problems diplomatically and avoid taking the more violent route.
There was also Lucina, this one from a different universe than the one he first knew. Monty butted heads with her hard on certain issues, finding her irritating when she did not yield to his will on certain matters. He tried to out-maneuver her politically in the fortress or turn her to his designs, but he had a significant amount of difficulty doing this and ultimately had a bad break with her over a woman name Eris.
Eris: Eris was a murderer. An Historian (the rational counterparts to the Hedonists who worshipped Aletheia) that Monty did not recognize as such when he led an expedition back to the fallen tower they had first run across when they started their journey. Eris pretended to be just another refuge and Monty brought her back to Between. Eris went mad, though, attacking and nearly killing Demyx (who'd provided them with a portal to travel home). Monty helped to save Demyx's life, and he ended up blaming himself for what had happened. Eris attacked and killed multiple people for more than a week before she was finally cornered. Instead of killing her, as Monty wanted to, Lucina and the two others with her, spared Eris and began protecting her.
With murder off the table, Monty began advocating for virtual imprisonment for Eris and a 24-hour guard, which Lucina pushed back on. He was appalled, not just because he thought his request a reasonable compromise, but because he was still upset that Eris should be able to get away with wanton murder with little more than a slap on the wrist. His murders had been targeted at people who deserved it at least, and he considered it very unfair.
Sophia: Sophia was another goddess encountered in Between, although Monty never met with her directly. Aletheia warned of her obliquely, referencing a serpent come to destroy. She advised everyone to ignore Sophia and avoid her, if possible. Sophia's first arrival in Between was heralded by flowers and a giant pillar. She snatched up three people and put them through trials, observing their reactions and discussing whether they wanted absolute truth, really, or maybe something else. Monty found her despicable for her games, even without meeting her and generally continued to advocate for Aletheia's position. They would need to fix the world through hard work, rather than just belief.
As they would discover on a journey to meet Sophia, she was the avatar of 'reality,' somewhere in between Aletheia, absolute truth, and their brother, delusion. Monty again missed the chance to meet with Sophia, but did his best to assist everyone along the way. He again found himself frustrated with Sophia, as well, but began to reconsider her position as she seemed to be advocating a mix of hard work and belief, rather than just one way or the other.
The Dark Days: Returning to Between, Monty and the others were faced with Eris' disappearance. She'd been dragged away by creatures that had infiltrated the fortress in the absence of half of its residents. She'd left behind a note to seek out the door in the darkness, to enter into it and find what lay there as the thing that could, perhaps, restore the world. Monty had been curious about the door, which lay below them in the fortress catacombs, but Lucina was the one who had the key that could get them in, and she'd so far refused to use it.
Before she had the chance to make use of it, though, Aletheia's wrath struck the fortress. She washed away everything created with belief and took everyone's powers from them. Monty, severely confused by this abrupt shift became rather convinced that something had happened to the goddess. In all of their other interactions, she had advocated for truth, but had not actively destroyed their other progress. Aletheia stated the contact with Sophia as the reason she'd taken these actions. Monty decided that he would have to go against Aletheia at that point. The Absolute Truth was not, after all, always Reality.
It's at this point that I'll be taking Monty from. Characters were able to escape Aletheia's influence by simply leaving the fortress, which is what Monty did to regain his belief abilities, but he was left with very little as a result of Aletheia's actions.
How did they change from their canon personality wise (Please explain what caused it to happen?)
Monty has come into his own as an organizer and historian over the course of his stay in Carvaka. He began acting as a recorder his first month in the better to keep track of everything and every one when their incompetent guides failed and they lost part of their group. He has since used his recordings and information to encourage people to make improvement efforts on their own and to try to generally sway opinion within the populace.
Monty, in canon, is also focused heavily on revenge. Without that motivator in his life, he began to feel out his general morality. While he does not oppose murder, he's found his life is simpler when he can get what he wants through other means. He has become more politically savvy and adept at swaying other people. This is in part thanks to people like Detectives Oda and Castellanos who have tried to steer Monty to the 'straight and narrow' path. It's also somewhat Undertaker's doing. Monty once tried to attack him as part of an effort to 'free' Renart from Undertaker's villainous grip. Monty was able to slice part of Undertaker's hand off, but found himself entirely horrified by the sight of the blood and lopped-off appendage. He's always been a timid man with proper violence making him nauseous. That incident rather drove the point home.
In addition, Monty's morals have taken a shift. He was already a fairly progressive man for his time, but the for his time has always been the catch. With his experiences in Carvaka, his views on the role of women (most of whom could pound him through the floor easily) and on sexuality have broadened. Nah and Renart would be credited the most for his change of heart where women are concerned. Cecil is the one who most opened Monty's eyes about the possibility of two men truly loving one another.
Finally, Monty has become an intensely inquisitive man, curious about magic, other worlds, and other people. It's to his benefit politically, of course, to have the information, but he's honestly curious.
How did they change from their canon physically (Please explain what caused it to happen?):
Monty has become physically more fit. He's spent his time in Carvaka doing a great deal of manual labor, rather than working in an office as a banker. He's also gained a few new scars, which include one on the back of his left calf that looks like someone took a chunk out of it, and jagged slices across his shoulder blades. These were from his adventure to free Aletheia. Monty managed to tangle with a giant mechanical spider. He also has bite mark scars on his neck, put there from repeated bites from Renart... per Monty's request.
Powers:
Musical World - Monty comes from the world of musicals and has a tendency to break out into song and dance that seems almost practiced and perfectly staged. This is typically accompanied by phantom music that seems to come from no where, but is very definitely there, like a hidden orchestra.
Belief - This is a power from the world of Carvaka. Monty can create just about any object through sheer force of belief. However, using the ability will drain him and the reserve of that power. The only way to restore it is through intimate relations. If he doesn't have much stored up belief ability, he can only make small, non-complex items, and if he doesn't focus on something for a good long while, it will disappear. It's not real, after all. Maintaining believed-in items does slowly eat away at his belief store. Given the constraints of the Meadous, he would not be able to make anything much larger than a small horse, and nothing with complex machinery. He's also limited in that he has to know what something is to make it. He could conceivably believe up a fidget spinner, for instance, but he's never seen one before. He wouldn't know what to picture for it or how it's meant to work.
Possessions:
- The Sword of Truth - A magical sword gifted by Aletheia. It sharpens when the truth is spoken by the wielder and dulls when they tell lies. The deeper the truth/lie the more it sharpen/dulls. It can sharpen to the point that it would cut through just about anything if the truth spoken was powerful enough.
- A Bookworm - A shining rainbow snake that feeds on stories and whose venom has translation properties.
- A watch from Cecil Palmer
- A scarf from Renart
- His wedding ring
- His mother's jewelry box
- His father's Spanish guitar
- His diary, recounting his serial murders
- His full wardrobe from back home
Sample One: [X] - Monty faces down a crowd of mini-robots, sings to teach them about love, and steals a crown from a very large spider as part of the quest to free Aletheia.
Sample Two: [X] - An example of one of Monty's welcome missives.
Sample Three: [X] - Convincing Zexion to use The Power Of Love to save Demyx's life.
Notes: Nope!