Author Games: The Absent Empress

Slot Seven: Obsidian

Yes, they're natural. No, you can't have one.

Name: Matthias Cirillo

Alias: Obsidian

Gender: Man

Age: 20

Nation of Origin: Why? Who wants to know? (USA)

Appearance: Matthias loves to wear sweaters more than he probably loves anything else. The soft, warm, long sleeves make him happy in a way he can't describe. But it's not just the warmth that they provide that he loves so much-- it's the bulkiness of their sleeves, the extra cushion it gives his body to hide what might be seen in more form-fitting attire. Matthias's hair and nails grow at an alarmingly fast rate. While he keeps the latter trimmed as much as he can, he prefers to let his black hair grow out so he can put it up in ponytails and get it out of the way. His skin is tanned from time spent outdoors and his brown eyes always give away whenever he tries to lie.

Personality: Although his demeanor might seem intimidating at first, beneath his serious expression and muscular build is a socially awkward college student who raises rabbits and loves teasing cats with laser pointers. He doesn't have a lot of experience with people. He was homeschooled by his father and all of his college classes have been online. He's relatively gentle, not easily provoked into random acts of violence, and doesn't like to see anyone get hurt. He can be naive and gullible, but he tries to do what's best for everyone around him. Although his confidence in his own self is low, his confidence in his gifts is very high. He knows that if it comes down to it, he can get the job done.

Superhuman Abilities: Being vegan has given him a number of amazing talents. He knows all the best restaurants, can deflect the never ending scrutiny of his life choices faster than a speeding bullet, and can use this talent to distract from the fact that he has scales growing out of 1/3 of his body. This isn't your usual epidermal infliction, these are thick, glossy, black scales that protrude from his skin. Nobody knows where the scales came from, but they act like an armored plate and protect most of his vital organs and muscles. This proves itself to be incredibly useful but the scales are not entirely invincible. Repeated blows or exceptionally long exposure to heat can cause them to crack and fall off. His main ability, however, is his super strength. Matthias often forgets just how strong he is, which has led to many broken pickle jars. He can easily lift several people and works hard to make himself stronger every day. He also has no problem carrying anyone who feels too lazy to walk. He's been there, he understands.

Equipment: Matthias loves pumpkin seeds and always carries around a small bag of roasted ones in his pockets. They're an excellent source of protein, iron, and magnesium. He doesn't have a super suit, mostly because spandex disagrees with his skin.

Other: Lemon meringue pie is my favorite.