Absolute Zero

Absolute Zero

Mage
If you can't handle the avalanche, stay off the mountain! ...Yeah, we'll keep working on that one.
Discord	@swearwolf3924
Reddit	Astro-Possum
Metatype	Elf (Nocturna)
Street Cred	0
Notoriety	0
Public Awareness	+1
CDP	30
D.O.B.	June 22, 2056
Age	29
Folder	[1]
Priority	Metatype - D Attributes - B Magic/Resonance - A Skills - C Resources - E

Character Information

Summary

A small town introvert hailing from north of the arctic circle, Zero's spent most of her life as the local weirdo, hiding the most dramatic parts of herself in a desperate and largely unsuccessful bid to fit in all while mitigating her parents' anxieties around her magic. Relocating to a place where very few people know her has brought out the urge to reinvent herself. To that end, Phoenix Kelvin of Utqiagvik and Absolute Zero of Seattle may as well be two different people, though a keen eye and the care to look for it could likely see past the thin veneer of bravado she wraps herself in to the anxious nerd underneath. Zero specializes in cold-based combat magic and illusions, with a survivalist's interest in extreme environments.

Goals

Zero wants, more than anything, to make a name for herself doing what she loves best: launching frozen projectiles at irresponsible speeds. And it certainly wouldn't hurt to make some friends in the process. Parallel to that but likely more pressing, relocating on a moment's notice means a need for cash, and fast. Zero left home for San Fran and then San Fran for Seattle without a spare second to plan ahead or think things through, which means she's got the clothes on her back and what she can carry in a duffel bag to her name and a desperate need for a way to bring in resources and keep them coming.

Happenings in Seattle have forced Zero to take on some new priorities. Namely, becoming strong enough to protect the people that matter most to her, and getting over the sick feeling in her stomach when she's required to do terrible things to that end.

Background

Phoenix “Nix” Kelvin was born to climate scientists stationed in Utqiagvik, Alaska, her father, Alec Kelvin, a Scottish immigrant and her mother, Dr. Eva Ashevak, a native Alaskan born and raised in the area. Her parents were well-meaning but perhaps a bit absent, dedicating themselves to their work and not always quite sure how to handle their nocturna child and her unique needs when they themselves did not share the metavariant.

Utqiagvik is a small town with a small population. Naturally, most people know one another. As such, Nix grew up with a reputation as the “weird kid,” and was unable to escape the notice of others with her strange appearance, need for distinctive protective eyewear, and inability to spend extended periods of time in direct sunlight. Compounded by her shy demeanor and esoteric interests, her social circle was relatively small. The annual polar night easily became her favorite time of year, while the midnight sun kept her locked away inside unless she was willing to don full protective gear.

Nix awakened around the age of 11, immediately launching her parents into further overprotective action. Not wishing for her to become a corporate target, for good or ill, they discouraged her from using her abilities, emphasizing that people would be afraid of her or not want to be around her if they knew what she could do. The stress of maintaining the lie would eventually dissolve her parents' marriage, leading Alec to return to Glasgow and his physical interactions with Phoenix to become a once or twice yearly occurrence. This only proved to exacerbate her low self-esteem and growing need to exercise some teenage rebellion. Frustrated and feeling increasingly rejected, Phoenix began heading out of town into the tundra to practice magic where no one would see her, with the aid of textbooks on magical theory stolen from the local archive. Unfortunately, she misjudged the incoming weather on one of these outings and found herself lost in whiteout conditions in the middle of a blizzard. That’s when she met the bear.

Illuktuk the polar bear spirit was and is a protector, first and foremost, and took pity on the child it found lost and freezing in the snow. It kept her safe until the blizzard passed and then led her home. They’ve been inseparable since. Illuktuk is long-suffering but treats her with an almost parental fondness, attempting against the odds to instill some thought into her impulsiveness and lead her away from rash decisions. It doesn’t always work.

Even after such a close call, Phoenix continued her training in the tundra. With her new mentor by her side, guiding her movements and teaching her to redirect the flow of energy around her, she was able to grow more in touch with the elemental magic of her frozen surroundings than she could have imagined on her own. She began dabbling in illusions and healing as well, and even took up sleight of hand “magic” tricks as a hobby during the midnight sun months that forced her to spend most of her time indoors.

Illuktuk was helpful for her social skills as well, and by the time she was in her late teens and early twenties she had acquired a small group of friends and acquaintances, much to her parents’ relief. After a torturous 13 years of school, She had little desire to pursue more formal education, taking up a mindless job cataloguing inventory for incoming and outgoing freighter ships and continuing her secret studies of magical theory in her spare time. All in all, it wasn’t a terrible life, though it could get painfully dull and repetitive. She even managed to get a girlfriend, Laura, a relationship that would last three years, until the incident that drove her out of Alaska and jumpstarted her dive into running the shadows.

Nix hadn’t meant for it to happen. One moment she had been hanging out with Laura and some of their friends, walking down the road on the hunt for something to do, the next, a car had come sliding around a corner towards them, traction lost on the iced over road. She had reacted, throwing up a wall of ice to shield them from the oncoming vehicle, Illuktuk’s ghostly signature igniting around her body as she did.

It turns out her parents had been right. People were afraid of her. The people she had thought were her friends turned on her, blaming her for the death of the driver when he impacted the ice. Laura was furious at her for lying by omission. People she had trusted were now treating her like a dangerous animal, and the woman she was in love with had tossed all of her belongings out into the snow and wouldn’t look at her without a mixture of fear and anger in her eyes.

So she left. Wrote her mom a note, packed a bag, and wheedled her way onto the first cargo ship she could, headed for who knows where. A few thousand miles and quite a lot of hitchhiking later, she found herself in San Francisco, ready to take on a new name, a new career, and a new life. Everyone in Utqiagvik knew Phoenix Kelvin, local weirdo. The anonymity of San Fran was incredibly refreshing. Back home she had to be a certain person. Here, she could be anyone she wanted.

Of course, then the question of money and accommodations reared its ugly head, and, much to Illuktuk’s weary resignation, Nix realized very quickly that she may not have thought this through.

A bit of dumpster diving, b&e, and busking on the street with magic tricks later, Nix had at least managed to set herself up with a bit of food and a place to stay (even if that place was the basement of an abandoned building that was incontrovertibly haunted). She had even made a few friends along the way, casually dabbling in Shadowrunning as a way to put food on the table. Things had just begun to look up when those few friends she had managed to make moved on, and if that wasn’t bad enough, the city finally demolished the house she had taken up squatting in. With little else by way of options, Zero did the only thing she could think of: followed her friends to Seattle, showed up on their doorstep, and resigned herself to starting over. Again.

Narrative Significant Qualities

Positive

Dedicated Spellslinger: Zero takes moral issue with binding spirits, and finds them largely confusing and uncomfortable to interact with besides. She much prefers relying on herself and her own abilities, rather than putting things in the hands of extraplanar entities with barely comprehensible motives and unpredictable temperaments.

Drug Tolerant: Zero's been on adderall since she was 8 and still has an attention span approximately 5 seconds long. It's gonna take more than a couple of hits to get her hooked on anything.

Mentor Spirit (Polar Bear): Illuktuk has been creeping around in the back of Zero's head for more than a decade, attempting to steer her away from the least well-advised of her impulses with mixed success. Somewhere between a concerned parent and an over-protective older sibling, he looks on his charge with an exasperated fondness.

Mentor's Mask: Nothing about Zero is subtle, least of all her magic.

Quick Healer: Zero protects the people in her care above all else, which includes patching them up after things go sideways. With Illuktuk's guidance, she's become adept at magical healing.

Negative

Combat Junkie: It's not that she's aggressive, it's just...c'mon, slinging spells for fun and profit? What's not to like? Zero's spent so much of her life hiding the fact that she can even do magic in the first place, now that she's free to be the loud and proud cryomancer she was always meant to be she can't resist the sweet siren's song of mana-fueled adrenaline.

Distinctive Style: It's hard to stay on the down low when you look like the lovechild of an elf and a yeti. Might as well lean into it.

Lack of Focus: ADHD combined type is a hell of a drug.

Phobia (Uncommon, Moderate) - Flatworm Vipers: Following her encounter with the flatworm vipers in Glow City (and the consequent agony of getting bitten by one), Zero has developed a healthy (read: hysterical) aversion to them.

National SINner (Phoenix Kelvin, Trans-Polar Aleut Nation): After over a decade of successfully keeping her abilities a secret from officials, Zero has finally been forced by circumstances to register a mage's license to her birth SIN.

Spirit Bane (Fire): Zero's not big on spirits in the first place (the big fuzzy guy in her head notwithstanding), but for some reason the flamey ones just hate her vibes. Call it artistic differences.

Run History

Name	GM	Metaplot	Threat	Date of Run
How To Play With Dolls	Sarcarian		Medium	28 September 2082
Let Snygones be Snygones	Sarcarian		Low	9 September 2082
Mobster Manipulation	Aurora		Medium	7 September 2082
Mother's Little Helper	Sarcarian		Low	31 August 2082
Mother Knows Best	Aurora			18 August 2082
Snimpin' Ain't Easy	Aurora			14 August 2082
A Trip to the Petting Zoo	Archtmag		High	12 August 2082
Kevin Sane Crimes	Asmodeus	The Life and Times of One Kevin Crimes Hail to the Pumpking	Medium	1 August 2082
Spy Games	Archtmag	By Royal Decree	High	25 July 2082
Worm City	Aurora			5 July 2082
The Lost Scales	OrionsRequiem		High	3 June 2082
A Nest of Vipers	Sarcarian		High	28 May 2082
One Man's Trashfire is Another Man's Recreational Arson	Aurora			23 May 2082
Murder Most Fowl	OrionsRequiem		Medium	4 May 2082
The Most Urban Brawl 2: The Metagame	OrionsRequiem	Cross Flight Love Fight	High	21 April 2082

Affiliations

Contacts

Contact	Connection	Loyalty	Archetype	Profession	Aspects	Chips
Granny Kosmic	3	3	Gear	Talislegger and Deepweed Dealer	Mobile, Talislegger, Awakened Drugs, Awakened Networker	Even
Sarah Snow	3	4	Fixer	Fundraiser and Housewife	Novacoke?, Novacoke!, Dinner Parties of Metahumans, Flawless Skin, On Retainer, Fundraiser	Even
BinChicken	3	1	Gear	Urban Shamanic Scavenger	Shaman, Scavenger, Smuggled Immigrant, Ex-Runner	Even
Dr. Isabel Wirth	4	2	Service	ER Doctor	Trauma Surgeon, Free Samples, Community Clinic Hours, Performs House Calls, I know a sales rep	Even
Kyra Samaras	5	3	Generalist	Spinradical Scientist	Esoteric Acquisitions, Interdisciplinary Collaboration, Collaborative Iteration, Actually Smart, Magic Mind, Whirring Gizmos, This is Research!, Spirit Friends!	Even
Kenneth "Flamesaw" Murphy	2	2	Custom(A,G,N,K)	Ganger / Tough Guy	Not the Brightest Bulb, Firesaw, Fraggin' Handsome, People Pleaser, WAIT I'm a runner too!	Even
Phil Haskill	8	2	Networking	Policlub Activist	California Free State, Corporations, Mothers of Metahumans, Policlubs, Politics, San Francisco, Shadow Community, UCAS, Ares Macrotechnology	Even

Allies

Vip3r: Romantic partner (!!!). Helped get Zero connected with the Haven after relocating.

Harebuck: Friend and roommate.

In Character Information

Matrix Search Table

Threshold	Result
1
3
6

Shadow Community Table

Threshold	Result
1	An Awakened freelancer operating out of Seattle. Rarely seen during the day.
3	A shadowrunner. Zero seems to spend a lot of time around members of various gangs and factions, but belongs to none herself. Appeared in a game of Most Urban Brawl on the winning team.
5	A spellslinger magician with an interest in cold-related spells. Fairly recent immigrant to the Seattle area. Known berserker. Has gained significant negative attention from Mitsuhama.

SINs

Summer Frost: R4 UCAS Fake SIN. Mage License.

Phoenix Kelvin: Trans-Polar Aleut Nation National SIN. Mage License. Legal.

Appearance

Zero is an unusually small (5'3") nocturna with piebald fur and large, yellow-gold eyes not unlike a cat's. Her fur is mostly white shot through with some dark spotting, and develops spots of grey streaking in the summer. Her winter coat grows in thicker and fluffier, with less obvious spotting. Her hair is black with white at the ends and typically styled up. Quite noodley.

Clothing

Zero's personal style changes with her whims, but tends to vacillate between gym rat and dad chic with a splash of color vomit, ensuring that she's the loudest thing in the room whether her mouth is open or not. Her go to running wear is an armored sleeveless parka with extra insulation for cold protection, insulated ski gloves with the fingers cut off, and a pair of goggles.

Matrix Persona

Zero doesn't do much Matrix deep-diving, but for casual browsing her Persona takes on the appearance of a cartoonish, anthropomorphic arctic fox wearing a parka.