Draco Laskarsis

• [Entry]

• [Entry]

תהום, Abyssus, ἄβυσσος, Tehom, Tiamat. The Abyss goes by many names, and has a myriad of interpretations, but to Traxa, it is the sea that represents the untamed flow of raw, corrosive emotions. Chaos incarnate. Its byproduct is nothing but vitriol. A primordial sort of lake from which the world is protected from. Any entity who enters it, excluding Draco and Leviathan, will be made miserable as discordant thoughts of self-hate enter the mind.

The Abyss is a physical domain that can be accessed by other entities, but is otherwise confined to Draco’s mind excluding a greater domain expansion*. By communing with the Abyss and embracing it, Draco receives the fundamental energies needed to construct all of his spells. This has led to Draco's spells tending to orient around some type of psychological debilitation. Compared to other sources of magic such as natural elements, machinery, or the human concept of violence, the Abyss is notable for its extreme power counterbalanced by high risk when utilized.

All magicians experience some sort of psychological stress just by using their abilities, but Abyssal communion is notable for the extreme degree to which it harms Draco's psyche in exchange for the immense power and flexibility it provides. Even moderate usage can lead to various psychological afflictions. The only thing keeping him from quite literally losing his mind is an incredible aptitude for the emotional and logical aspects of magic (high empathy and intellect). Every spell is perfectly engineered to maximize power and minimize risk.

But Draco is not the only one who asserts control over this domain. There is a hateful beast inside of it, and the titular daughter to which Draco receives her titles of "mother" and "queen."

_{*Greater domain expansions are an exceptionally powerful but crippling technique available to most experienced magicians where the superego is released into realspace, altering the parameters of reality according to the user's will. Reserved exclusively as a "last-ditch effort" maneuver. More information coming soon(?)}

In moment-to-moment combat scenarios, this manifests as a loathing of the self and world which alters Draco's perception. Initial effects include impaired judgement, focus, and perception. Hostiles may appear closer or farther than they should be for optimal shooting. Bright explosions might temporarily overload his senses and leave Draco momentarily stunned. Eventually, this can advance to massive sensory overload and hallucinations that force Draco's combat to rely on a vague impression of what is going on and where his targets are. 

In daily life, the constant presence of Leviathan's pessimism and the general unsettling aura the Abyss produces leaves Draco in a constant battle to retain self-control. This has led to the development of major mood disorders over time that constantly weigh on Draco's mind. Mundane actions can feel overstimulating, experiencing genuine joy is a rarity, and any absence of control over the present situation Is an opportunity for Leviathan's biting remarks to sting hard. Draco remains an optimist despite it all. Yes, he can appear sluggish on the surface, but every action he takes is influenced by a genuine desire to care for others and uphold his values.

Context

Normally, multidimensional travel for the military is impractical because the act of setting up a gate between two “adjacent” dimensions to allow for transportation en masse is a gigantic public works project that takes an incredible amount of resources, time, and still leaves the actual process of transition taking twenty-four hours on average. In other words, travelling far beyond the reaches of mortal society to far-away dimensions is a logistical impossibility. At least, normally.

Certain individuals with specific brain patterns are able to transit throughout the multiverse through use of magic. They are known as “anomalies,” and compose the entirety of PARMA and Gibraltar’s fighting forces as they are the only individuals who can actually operate far beyond mortal society. Despite the nomenclature, they are no different than any other individual in any other capacity. They are not "special," just lucky. Draco is one of these anomalies.

Impact

Draco can freely transit between adjacent dimensions through use of magic. This is not an instant process. Transit only creates a portal to a "waiting room” that exists outside dimensions to wait in as the other dimension "loads". In addition, only a certain amount of mass and volume of additional objects can be brought along, with higher amounts of volume and mass requiring longer transits. 

Physical and Psychological Enhancements

All aspects of Draco’s physique, from his strength to his agility, have been enhanced. He has attained semi-superhuman (not fully) physical prowess that allows him to match but not necessarily exceed many fighters of the dimensions he visits. This is notably not a result of the cybernetics by default, but their high receptiveness to a passive internal magic flow that actually grants Draco his power.

Psychological enhancements do not necessarily give any soldier “super smarts,” but rather help to prevent soldiers from freaking out and make them focus in the heat of combat/stress of war along. They are not by any means immune to a psychological breakdown during combat, just very well-adjusted.

This notably does not enhance Draco's constitution. Soldiers are reliant on heavy armor and other defensive measures to remain alive. Even light attacks that manage to pierce a soldier's defensive measures will either severely injure them or result in instant incapacitation. 

Self-Sustaining Survival Systems

Draco lacks many critical organs such as a digestive system and complete circulatory network. This allows soldiers such as Draco to perform normally without food, sleep, and other requirements for living. Still, practices such as eating and resting are necessary to prevent psychological dissonance.

Usually this means at least one "slow" meal a day, ideally in a social environment, and around 2-4 hours of sleep minimum. Going without these routines is possible but not advised for long periods of time.

Memory Wards

To prevent classified information from suddenly being leaked through telepathy, all soldiers have wards applied to the psyche that prevent access to memory without major hijacking of the mind. Reading current thoughts is still possible, but the memories they reference are difficult to read.

Draco can cast magic through any medium and uses multiple mediums to enhance magic (such as hand motions made while using a trigger phrase for a spell), but prefers the following mediums. Spells do not have to be cast using a medium (it would get exhausting using trigger phrases for every kinetic dash you made in combat), but reach maximum effectiveness if done in this way.

Preferred Mediums:

• Phrases, Language, and Poetry - Short, spoken phrases. Particularly prefers esoteric dialects. May manifest as a cognitohazard that sounds like static due to the occult nature of Draco's studies. Spells cast through phrases are usually more "bursty" focusing on potent, singular, purposeful casts rather than the chaining of smaller moves in succession to combo. Otherwise a general-purpose medium. Maximum functionality if user is audible to targets.
  
• Talismans and Seals - Charms, both pre-prepared physical and magically manifested, used to produce a specific effect restricted to an area or individual. Generally potent but needs to be preemptively set up or utilized through a delivery method such as a grenade, throwing knife, etc.

Educated in most basic forms of magic, he has access to a broad array of universal "civilian" spells most magicians would know like creating a small personal light, moving objects without touching them, locking entrances with a magical passcode, and more.

Due to how synthetic magic works, Draco can technically cast any spell in existence with enough touchstones and points of power to work with. That does not mean the spell will be effective, potent, fast, mana-efficient, or even safe. Spell imitation is situational and rarely used by competent magicians.

By understanding the composition of a spell, one can produce a highly focused and seemingly useless magical effect that will disrupt the spell. How countermagics function is as varied as how traditional magic functions. It can include invoking something anathema to the spell or its caster, overloading the spell's composition with energy to break it apart, or using a specific phrase.

Just make sure to remember the fundamental rule of countermagics: it is inherently more difficult to counter a spell than it is to cast it. You cannot win a duel by countering every spell the opponent casts.

Draco knows general countermagics like any magician, but is specialized in an advanced form of them. Read more below

This technique does not work on invisible enemies, allow magicians to see through illusions, or counteract concealment techniques unless heavily enhanced and utilized in a very specific manner such as scrying and illusion breaking. Competent magicians will keep their aura suppressed if they are sneaking around anyways, so he usually cannot detect magicians through that means either. Put simply, magical sense is used to discern potency and types of magic, not cheat magical concealment/confusion techniques. It plays an important role in countermagics as a result.

Context

Virtually all soldiers of the Union, including Draco, are taught in kinetics due to their foundational nature in learning magic and universal applicability in all areas of combat. Kinetics is a simple field of magic that concerns itself with the manipulation of kinetic force and creation of objects that are composed entire of "tension" fields which produce a constant minor outward pulse.

Impact

Kinetics can be directed inwards to enhance the physical force the body or equipment produces, or outwards to create "tension" objects and blasts of raw force. The techniques of this field are used in a variety of situations. They are most useful for performing movement techniques such as massive leaps or dashes, defensive techniques such as parrying an incoming blow with a temporary barrier of force, backup offense through needles of force, or utility in a pinch like pulling an unreachable object towards yourself.

Key Techniques

• Skate/Powerslide - Creation of tension fields around the lower body to eliminate friction and literally skate across the ground or drop into a massively fast slide. Used to reach high speeds and travel long distances, but runs the risk of reducing stability when active. See: Armored Core for reference.
  
• Movement Burst - Sudden imbuement of concentrated kinetic force in one direction to make a quick "dash." Can also be used to "double jump" if in midair.
• Strike Enhancement - All of Draco's offensive equipment is reliant on the use of kinetics to empower the strikes with additional magical and physical force. Can work with unarmed strikes such as kicks as well.
• Any other techniques that Kinetics could replicate not listed here are usually more effective if derived through another magical field.

Draco frequently fuses his Abyssal magic due to its natural aptitude for psychological damage into his countermagic for maximum effectiveness.

Draco's application of countermagics follows an occult theme, and utilizes his primary magical mediums of phrases/poetry and seals/talismans. This gives Draco a relatively flexible and somewhat defensive leaning approach to countermagics. Phrases and poetry work at virtually any distance, while seal and talismans are better for creating countermagical zones or dispelling a potent and persistent stationary effect.

Disruption/Nullification - The most traditional form of countermagic. Either weakens or outright denies the spell via medium of choice, like a riposte or block.

Counter Field - Utilization of talismans and wards inscribed into the environment to weaken or outright deny certain types of spells within a designed area around the inscription. Can also force harmful effects to take place when certain spells are cast.

Detonate - Causes the magic to violently explode in an early and unwanted fashion, harming the user of that magic. Not restricted to spells, as it can work on items like alchemical vials or magical ammunition. More difficult to cast, and particularly effective on destructive magic or "payload" magic (where some sort of effect is locked inside of a payload like a concentrated fireball).

Leak/Mana Bleed - Causes the target to needlessly burn or "bleed" magical stamina over time while disrupting their casting capabilities. Often imbued into an offensive strike, as the potency of the strike directly influences how severe the leak is.

Reflection - Notably difficult technique that completely reverses the effects of a spell on its user such as redirecting a projectile back at the caster. Can also work for helpful spells by "stealing them", causing the spell to affect Draco instead of the intended user. Usually requires some sort of sizable advantage or knowledge of the cast spell to work.

Like most elemental disciplines, water is a flexible and highly physical magical specialization that has applications for both personal and team defense, offense at multiple distances, crowd control, and forced movement. Water tends to lack the sheer power that elements such as lightning, metal, and fire can strike with, nor the speed of wind.

Water's main strength comes from its nature as a fluid, allowing the user to change the shape of the water they wield rapidly. Water's alternate forms such as ice, fog, and sludge are also much more expansive than the alternate forms of other elements. This culminates in a fighting style that emphasizes extreme physical adaptability.

Like with hydromancy, Abyssal communion is an adaptable  specialization of magic applicable in a variety of scenarios that emphasizes flexibility over raw power. The introduction of the Abyss' unique effects provides the once solely physical effects with new psychological ones. Abyssal waters provide offense, control, and defense on both the mental and physical fronts. 

Cutter Beam - A concentrated beam of Abyssal acid. The extreme pressure combined with the corrosive effects and mental debilitations makes this an incredibly powerful all-purpose option for offense, as long as Draco can sustain the effect. This is not a single projectile, it is a sustained attack that requires a window of opportunity.

Fog Clouds - The fog clouds of hydromancy are a highly versatile option for closing distances, keeping someone at range, maneuvering safely, or maintaining a concealed position. Abyssal Waters only improve these effects, allowing the fog clouds to shut down traditional means of countering them like thermal sights, while imposing mental afflictions on those who move through the cloud. Can be cast as a burst on Draco's, or send out as a concentrated project, kind of like a smoke grenade.

Sinkholes - Puddles of black Abyssal sludge with a seemingly infinite amount of depth. Those who get stuck in the puddles will find themselves heavily slowed by the sludge and beginning to sink into the earth as their mind is assaulted by thoughts of sloth. Sinkholes serve as an excellent way to restrict the movement of hostiles and set up for powerful attacks by immobilizing foes.

Black Ice Wall - A unique ice manifestation utilizing the Abyss' potential as a cognitohazard. Creates a massive, durable wall of ice that chills anyone nearby it. Hostiles who attempt to look at the wall will feel themselves overcome with an immense sense of dread and apathy. Allows Draco to project the effects of the Abyss without having targets make contact with the waters.

Creeping Death - An incredible sense of dread delivered through the medium of a light, rolling fog. Not enough to effectively obscure vision, but merely the carrier for that debilitating feeling.

Cognitohazardous Seal - A common and beloved technique among the more psychic disciplines, utilized by filling a talisman, seal, or similar delivery mechanism with some form of hostile information. Hostiles who bear witness for more than a fleeting moment to it take a mixture of immediate physical and psychological damage that can briefly stun them and leave them open to attack.

Transfer of Ire - A somewhat lengthy and difficult technique to utilize, Transfer of Ire turns something in the environment into the target of the hatred from anyone the caster chooses. Can be used to distract hostiles, cause infighting, and sometimes to bolster allies to continue fighting in an emergency.

Composed of a mixture of heavy alloys, magical wards, and powered components. Defends against most attacks extremely thoroughly, both magical and physical, while improving the raw speed of its user through powered components.

[If applicable, descriptions and information on the character's weapon(s)]