application; ataraxion

[pike]

PLAYER INFORMATION Your Name: tussah OOC Journal: dondarrion Under 18? If yes, what is your age?: N/A Email + IM: thebiographgirl (at) gmail | tullied (at) AIM Characters Played at Ataraxion: Robert Capa | Sunshine | payload Mouse (Gideon Graham) | original character | addictive Aberdeen (Hallah Tawse) | original character | wiretap | pending CHARACTER INFORMATION Name: Nigel Colbie Canon: Like Minds Original or Alternate Universe: N/A Canon Point: post-death Number: 002 » 111 (feel free to randomly generate, if taken) Setting: Essentially a remote boarding school in England, somewhere in the vicinity of Leeds. Most of Nigel and Alex's story happens within the confines of the school grounds, which seems to be removed from most of the outside world, save its nearby sister school. The specifics of where in England the school is located is unimportant and holds no bearing on the plot as a whole. It is important to note that the film is generally devoid of references that indicate any particular decade. Given that most of the movie takes place at a preparatory school, there are very few clothing references provided to create historical context. It is just as likely that Like Minds takes place in the seventies as it does take place during modern times. In general, I like to assume that it takes place in the late eighties/early nineties; however, if anyone is given over to apping Alex Forbes, I will defer to whatever preference that player has as far as decade placement. History: ❝ I guess it didn’t look good, but he had to die. It was a necessary means to an end. All I can tell you, is that the heavens were falling. The sound – oh – the sound was incredible, it was like. It was like the gods were rejoicing for what was done. ❞ —Alex Forbes, on the death of Nigel Colbie The story of Like Minds opens with a young man – Alex Forbes – detained within a police interrogation room. He is being charged with the murder of his friend Nigel Colbie, a fellow student at the boys’ boarding school where Alex’s father serves as headmaster. There is difficulty with the case, however, given that there is little physical evidence, not nearly as much needed for a conviction, and there is pressure from Alex’s father (who proves to be more than a little influential among the police) that the charges against his son be dropped. Intelligent, thoughtful and well-spoken, Alex quickly points out to the forensic psychologist assigned to speak to him about what happened (a woman named Sally Rowe), that Nigel wasn’t his friend and that, if she’s here speaking to him, then the police must be scrambling and desperate for some sort of lead. At first, Alex comes off as elusive and standoffish, but when it becomes clear that his situation is more dire than he had first assessed, he quickly relents. What follows is his slow and sometimes roundabout recounting of his relationship with Nigel, which began with his arrival at Alex’s school and the unexpected news that the new boy had been assigned to be Alex’s new roommate. This, of course, immediately outrages Alex who reveals himself to be the definition of a spoiled, rich little punk – complete with a small cadre of fellow privileged troublemakers. Given that his father is headmaster, Alex believes that he is entitled to certain luxuries – a single room is one, being able to talk back to his father in private is another. Both of these things come into play when Alex first confronts his father about Nigel, but he is quickly brushed off and dismissed, much to Alex’s chargin. Alex’s immediate dislike Nigel is simply made worse by what appears to be Nigel’s inherent creepiness. Beyond being prone to bouts of unapologetic staring, Nigel’s interests seem to mostly involve taxidermy, pseudo-science and the dissection of small animals – something that Alex discovers Nigel doing one day in their room, much to his dismay. This behavior is met with gross antagonism from Alex, bordering on out-right aggression, but none of this seems to phase Nigel who simply continues -- unphased and silent. It is not until Alex launches into a full-on debate with the priest that leads their history class that Nigel’s interest in Alex is first piqued. The argument begins over one of Alex’s favorite topics, the Cathars, with Alex citing the Knights Templar as an example of how the church is not above the dirty dealings of politics by way of murder and intimidation. This outburst in class results in another visit from his father, which Alex takes as an opportunity to prove just how “strange” his new roommate is by showing his father Nigel’s desk, which is a display of various things in jars, anatomical displays, and even a small rig that is used to inject formaldehyde during the embalming process. However, rather than the headmaster siding with Alex on this, it becomes clear that Nigel isn’t just some random boy shoveled onto Alex on a whim; Mr. Colbie is a prominent member of the same quasi-religious society that Mr. Forbes belongs to (modeled very closely after the Masons, but with roots to the Templars of the Crusades), and that trying to find a place for Nigel at the school by way of Alex is Mr. Forbes’s attempt ingratiate himself to the higher-ranking Mr. Colbie. (Rumor has it that Nigel was one a day boy at another private school but that he was transferred after “family troubles” at home.) “This boy will be made welcome,” Mr. Forbes ultimately asserts, closing the matter. Now provoked, Alex decides to take matters in his own hands. In an attempt to teach Nigel to “show some respect”, Alex and his two friends ether him in his sleep and transport him to a local train to bully him into submission. Nigel, however, fights back and in the middle of the scuffle, one of Alex’s compatriots (a fellow troublemaker named Josh) is pushed from the moving train and falls to his death. There is a moment, however, when Nigel has the opportunity to either pull him back and rescue him or leave him to fall and Nigel toys with the idea for a moment before clearly making the decision to just watch his death unfold. Unlike Alex, who is shocked and seemingly appalled by what has just happened, Nigel simply looks blankly at Alex – completely devoid of surprise or remorse or any emotional indication at all. After this, things slowly begin to escalate between Nigel and Alex. In the wake of the tragedy of Josh’s death, Nigel is moved to a separate room but – despite that – Alex seems unable to stop thinking about Nigel. He claims that his thoughts were overrun with him and that, somehow, he had managed to “get inside his head”, an obsession that soon reveals itself to be reciprocated. Nigel’s demeanor towards Alex suddenly changes, and instead of being aloof, silent and emotionally detached, Nigel begins to make what appears to be his version of attempts at friendship. Granted, given the fact that Nigel appears to have no investment in things that most boys their age find interesting or appealing, as well as his inherent lack of social grace or the understanding of societal norms – these ‘olive branches’ mostly come off as creepy or threatening, if not both. It begins with an attempt to speak to Alex during a play rehearsal, mostly to express his remorse over the loss of his friend (a sentiment that, once again, seems much more sinister than regretful), but then quickly snowballs. One incident involves a package left on Alex’s bed which, unwrapped, reveals itself to be a human hand (Josh’s, Alex guesses, though the hand and any evidence of it disappears when Alex runs off to be sick in the bathroom). When Alex finally uses some of the answers that Nigel provides him to get a good grade on an important paper, Nigel seems to accept this as proper acknowledgment of their newly founded ‘friendship’ and soon after wakes Alex in the middle of the night to take him somewhere special. “Alex, wake up,” he says, “I’ve got a night planned.” The night that Nigel has planned involves hopping a train to the nearby town where the Colbies live. The young man that takes Alex there seems suddenly miles away from the stoic, unaffected Nigel that both Alex and the audience has seen thus far. This Nigel is talkative, confident and oddly charming, prone to smirking at Alex and almost going so far as to tease him when he continues to insist on not having a good time. Eventually, Nigel takes Alex back to his home and to the small hidden crawlspace in the basement that he has made his own personal haven. “I’ve never brought anyone here before,” he admits to Alex before unlocking the basement. “You’re the first.” Much like his desk at school, Nigel’s private little space is crammed full of things in jars, anatomical drawings, tiny boxes full of god-knows-what and shelf upon shelf of books. Now that he has Alex’s ear, Nigel then begins to explain – in full – why the both of them are here, together. He admits open distaste for their fathers’ order, what it has become and how their fathers are the embodiment of everything that has gone wrong with the Brotherhood. Instead, Nigel suggests – bright-eyed with delusional enthusiasm – it is up to him and Alex to make right what centuries of apathy and ignorance has been made wrong and that together, they are set to inherit the power and the glory bestowed upon them by their ancestors – the Knights Templar. The truth, Nigel claims, is written on the face of an ordinary playing card – a Jack of spades, to be precise. He indicates the jack itself – “an unprincipled man, rogue” – to be Alex and that the spade – “the tip of pike” – to be him. “An implement for killing – that’s what I am,” he tells Alex with a kind of rapt intensity. “This is our time, Jack. We’ve been brought together for a reason, and it’s written here. For eternity.” Inheriting eternity, however, comes at a price, which Alex quickly discovers when he meets Susan – a young woman who has the lead role in the play that Alex on staff to help with. His interest in her is immediately noted by Nigel, who teases Alex about it once he has asked Susan out on a date. Circumstance, however, keeps Alex from meeting her on time, and it is not until the next day that Susan’s body is found in a nearby shed. Laid out in a Christ-like fashion, she has been neatly disemboweled with the use of surgical tools, her insides strewn around the shed like Christmas decorations. It’s not until later that Alex discovers that Susan died out of necessity, for the sake of eternity and the inheritance of a rite that both Nigel and Alex simply refer to as “Maraclea”. Maraclea was the betrothed to a Templar Knight – his one true love that died before they could marry, and the legend tells that the templar was so distraught at her loss that he opened up her grave and had sex with the body. It is not until later that the same templar was called back to Maraclea’s grave only to find her remains had been disturbed – her head placed upon her thighbones (which had been crossed); a voice then told the templar to “guard the skull”, since the skull would be the source of never-ending power. In the time following Susan’s death, Nigel meets Alex one night to bring him to another unknown destination – this time to the city morgue where Nigel uncovers Susan’s body, declaring to Alex: “She’s yours.” Alex’s reaction is – of course – one of disgust. He recoils from Susan and from Nigel, and yet – for still some unknown reason – is completely unable to break free from his influence. When one evening Alex comes home to find a letter from Nigel requesting his presence at “Chez Colbie” that night, Alex obeys and is shocked to find Mr. Colbie brandishing a shotgun at Nigel’s mother, who – it is important to note – is being confronted after being found in bed with Nigel. Nigel’s father is in the middle of showing Mrs. Colbie a lot naughty polaroids of her that have been circulating around the lodge and that, in the wake of these accusations of adultery, the implications of finding her together with Nigel are disastrous and have affected his position within the brotherhood. In a fit of anger and waving about his shotgun in rage, Nigel’s father accidentally shoots Nigel’s mother – killing her. It’s then when Alex rushes in, much to what appears to be Nigel’s joy. “Jack,” he says, his dead expression breaking into something like relief, “you came.” But when Alex picks up the discarded shotgun and brandishes at Nigel, a struggle with Mr. Colbie ensues which results in Alex killing Nigel’s father. Nigel – seeming a bit shell-shocked by the whole series of events – eventually tells Alex, “I’ll have my Maraclea,” and smiles before the both of them begin the slow process of cleaning up after their crime. It’s not until Nigel implies to having had sex with his dead mother’s body that Alex seems to have reached the breaking point and abandons Nigel, who shouts after him that they “will be united”. As Alex attempts his retreat, Nigel quickly follows with the shotgun, now seemingly desperate to keep Alex from leaving him, but unwilling to actually shoot Alex, who tries to get him to do so. Ultimately, another struggle ensues which gives Alex the upper-hand and the shotgun. However, Nigel declares that Alex pray for him, “we’re one now”, he claims and then reaches up and pulls the trigger himself. Eventually, because of the information that he provides Sally and the supporting evidence that his story reveals, Alex is exonerated for his part in Nigel’s death and is released from custody by the police. It is not until Alex has absconded – apparently with Nigel’s missing red notebook in hand – that further evidence reveals that Alex was in fact much more complicit the crimes committed than previously suggested. Instead of an unwilling victim, pulled along in Nigel’s twisted wake, there is proof that implies that Alex not only helped Nigel with the death of Susan (the girl from the play), he also proceeded with the ritual to claim her as his Maraclea (cutting off her head after ‘consummating’ their love with the body and stealing the skull). This reveal then throws all that Alex has told Sally Rowe into deep suspicion and it is unclear just how much of the story that has been told to her and the audience is real and how much is simply Alex manipulating the truth to make himself look like the victim. The last we see of Alex is him approaching a random boy on a bus to points beyond. One can only assume that the cycle of violence that began with Nigel is about to play itself out once again. Personality: Unlike his much more outgoing and charmingly manipulative counterpart Alex, Nigel seems to suffer from Schizoid Personality Disorder (SPD and not to be confused with schizophrenia). Simply translated, this means that Nigel has little to no emotional connection or investment in the outside world. This results in an almost vehemently solitary emotional existence, one in which Nigel is capable of functioning in society but suffers an extreme mental disconnect from it. He doesn’t feel the need to bother with the pretenses of most societal norms – things like politeness or common courtesy – and is capable of seeming disinterested, absent-minded, or cold when he does not feel the need to keep up appearances. Instead, Nigel focuses – to the point of obsession – on self-constructed fantasy with him in the center of it, and allows his moral compass to be guided by the rules of a fabricated semi-historical and quasi-spiritual mythology built around the Templars – one that allows him to become important and recognized in all the ways he has failed to in real life. Although he has no interest in things that most other boys his age would occupy themselves with (girls, sports, pranks, etc), Nigel does have a gross preoccupation with the morbidly fascinating (dissection, taxidermy, torture) which he perpetually documents in a collection of notebooks. The amount of work he places in these transcriptions is meticulous and careful, clearly indicating a definite level of intense personal investment. Even though most of Nigel’s attitudes towards others is general stoic and aloof, there are also exceptions to Nigel’s otherwise apathetic attitude towards other people. His mother – whom he shared an ambiguously intimate relationship in private and a generally fond filial relationship in public – and Alex. Given Alex’s importance in the fulfillment of his fantasized destiny, Nigel quickly latches onto to him and as a result is suddenly capable of displaying a level of intense emotional investment previously unseen. Where normally Nigel is tightlipped or would otherwise remain silent, he is suddenly verbose, eloquent, and animated around Alex, almost bordering on playfully boyish and charming. Evidence of his intelligence also arises when he converses with Alex, though usually at the cost of exposing the truth depths of his delusions. Abilities, Weaknesses and Power Limitations: WOLF IN SHEEP'S CLOTHING. Although the initial picture that Alex paints of Nigel is one of a cold individual with a flat (bordering on creepy) personality, evidence near the end of the film seems to point towards Nigel being capable of interacting sociably with people (or at least capable of maintaining a fairly reasonable facade). As a result, despite his sociopathic tendencies and delusional beliefs, Nigel is able to assimilate himself (with varying degrees of success) into society without raising too many red flags. He does still come off as somewhat odd, though this can easily be interpreted as part of his somewhat sheltered upbringing. DEAD THINGS IN JARS. Several times throughout the movie, Nigel proves himself to be completely obsessed with anatomy (both human and zoological) as well as taxidermy. He performs the dissection of a bird in his dorm room as something to do with his spare time and has an unnerving number of dead things in jars as well as taxidermied animals. Although the murder of Susan is never shown on screen, it is implied that Nigel is responsible for the technical precision in which its carried out. She is left with her abdomen completely flayed open and her insides removed, though the murder scene itself seems to be in pristine condition despite the carnage. It is later shown after the fact that Nigel's parents were not only stored in the basement of his house but completely dissected and embalmed with a level of skill that even impressed the on-site police coroner. THE BEST EDUCATION MONEY CAN BUY. Nigel is the product of money and private education. His private obsessions means that he is extremely well-read in certain areas: history (specifically the Crusades, the Templars, the history of chivalry, the history of the Catholic church and -- one may assume -- the Masonic order) and science (specifically human anatomy, zoology and biology with working knowledge of chemistry). According to canon he is also a local chess champion. It is important to note that nowhere in Nigel's background is it implied that he has any background or experience with criminology or psychology -- these are two aspects that seemed to be addressed by Alex as opposed to Nigel (who referred to his connection to Alex as 'destiny', while Alex constantly referred to it as 'gestalt'). Inventory: 1 preparatory school uniform (includes button-up shirt, slacks, blazer, tie, belt, dress shoes) 1 antique doctor's bag-style attaché case and its contents: 1 red leather thick-bound notebook (essentially, Nigel's Templar bible) 1 copy of the King James Bible 1 leather wallet, plus contents 1 7 3/4" Satterie bone saw 1 pair large rib cutters 1 field dissection kit with carrying case (full contents here) 1 deck of playing cards, the jack of spades missing 1 mechanical pencil with lead refills Appearance: Tom Sturridge as Nigel Colbie in Like Minds Tall, straight-shouldered and inarguably handsome for a boy his age, Nigel Colbie is pale-skinned and black-haired with dark blue eyes and a very strong jaw which he has a tendency to clench silently when pressed in ways he does not enjoy. Exceedingly well-mannered when asked to put on appearances, he is equally dismissive of things such as personal space and privacy when left to his own devices and in particularly when fixating on a given person. Unpredictably changeable at times, Nigel is just as capable of a charming schoolboy smile as he is a deadly glare or a dead-eyed stare. Given that he was raised moving from prep school to prep school, he is always presentable and his appearance is always tidy. His voice, much like his moods, varies from a flat, detatched deadpan to something much more enthusiastic and furtively engaged. Age: 17. AU Clarification: N/A SAMPLES Log Sample: At first, he isn't certain which is worse: dying, or being brought to life again after. In dying there had been pain, of course, but what accomplishment had true meaning if it was it not obtained at some great sacrifice of self. Nigel has made plenty of sacrifices over the years for the good of eternity — a family pet here, a neighbor's cat there. Susan, father. Mother. And then, when everything had been said and done: himself, at the very pinnacle of the pyre, like one of the kings of old atop his throne and wreathed in a fiery crown. He knows that he shouldn't blame Jack — blame is a useless thing, Jack would be the first to say so — but when Nigel first finds himself splayed on the cold metal floor of the medical bay, his fingers slipping uselessly in an attempt to find purchase as he coughs up stasis fluid and then his own bile, the thought cannot help but cross his mind. Jack, you utter liar. Look at what all our great work has earned us. Later on, he'll admit he wasn't sure what to expect — whether it was meant to be heavenly fanfare or perhaps some great city built of unworn stone and and triumph. All Nigel knows is that, whatever eternity is meant to be, it is not here and he has not earned it, and the realization of this is a bitter and foul pill to swallow. But delusions are called delusions for a reason and if logic were the tightly-wound thread that bound the scattered pieces of Nigel's mind, then he would have abandoned his quest for meaning long ago. If eternity was not here then it was somewhere else, beyond, and so long as it remained outside of his grasp, Nigel would reach towards it with words and with deed, as any true believer would. Jack. Nigel thinks the name as he settles himself in the corner of the common area, watching the others chat and prattle and exchange notes on things like antimatter and propulsion. His gaze alights on a hand here, the curve of a shoulder there, a particularly striking set of eyes. In the shadow of his corner, Nigel smiles to himself; a passing stranger thinks the smile is meant for her and so she stops to introduce herself, her hand offered between them. Look at what our great work has earned us— Nigel thinks as he accepts the hand, his fingers tightening around hers, testing the strength of the bone structure there, looking to see how readily she pulls away. She doesn't and Nigel just smiles more. —the opportunity to do more work. Comms Sample: Comms sample from Polychromatic. Inclusion pre-approved by mods.