Leibsliede

Felix looked around with wide eyes. He?d never been around so many people from different places, outside of the London dockyard and Themes Estuary which he was forbidden to visit unescorted anymore. Vaguely, he wondered if he?d be able to visit the New York dockyard. He doubted it, the place seemed to be pretty strict, but it was always worth a try. Gathering his thoughts, he trotted over to the Mathematics and Physics professor who was wandering to his classroom. ?Professor Kerenski!? He absently clicked his heels and gave a brief bow before launching into his introduction. Kerenski raised an hand and cut him off before he started. ?Ah, Herr von Liebesleide. The lucky noble. So glad to make your acquaintance. What can I do for you?? Felix gawked for a moment, then continued, ?I just wished to confirm my placement in your physics and algebra classes.? ?Yes, Herr von Leibeslied, I have the great pleasure of teaching both those classes, and indeed you did test out of geometry and arithmetic. This is a source of great annoyance to me, Herr von Leibesliede; because of your late arrival my class numbers are off, but we all make do with what we have, eh? A word of warning, though. You are not to interfere with my physics classes or the statistics portion of the algebra class. I understand that unlikely things ?happen? around you. Not in my class, do you understand, mein Herr?? ?Yes professor.? Thoroughly cowed, Felix slunk off to Biology and sat very quietly at the back of Ms. Brook?s class, wondering if his luggage had arrived yet.

Ok... concept for Mathematics prof... you can decide whether or not you want him for all the math and physics or just some courses. Professor Arkady Kerenski Kerenski's family emigrated from Poland when he was a young boy in 1851. Thanks to contacts with families in the New World, they effected the transition relatively painlessly, and his parents worked as clerks in a large bank. The boy Arkady always had a startling facility with numbers that delighted his parents. He quickly got jobs working as a bookkeeper in company after company, but his mathematical abilities quickly outstripped anything seen before, and he had to subdue them in order to fit in, using a slide rule and paper when any question he needed to answer he could do in his head, instantly. At about the same time, he began to affect patterns in sand with his mind. Romantically unsuccessful, frightened by his telekinesis, and ostracized because of his mental abilities, he retreated further and further into his work, and began drinking heavily and using opium. He was broke and working in a carnival as 'The Human Abacus' when Madame Davis found him and discovered what he really was, helping him come to terms with his powers and weaning him off the gin. They remain fast friends. Powers: limited, but very finely controlled telekinesis. The ability to perform almost any calculation, up to and including second order integrations in his head effectively instantly and with little trouble. Teaching style: While his powers make him an excellent mathematician and physicist, they do not necessarily make him a good teacher. He tends to be impatient with anyone who shows what he feels is 'Intentional Imbecility'. He is extremely sharp tongued and often lapses into Polish when irritated, but only uses the strap when students are obviously not trying. He prefers his tongue... most students prefer the strap. His teaching, however, is incredible to watch. While largely useless, he uses his telekinesis to draw diagrams in the air with coloured sand which he keeps in basins under his desk, and he never uses a chalkboard. You have not seen a vector diagram until he has drawn it in the air with purple and green sand. Ok? Oh, and Ril wants World History.

Ril and I were wondering if, since there are so few PC teachers, if each of the players with a student could nominally control a teacher, or at least some of us could. That way we can more easily develop the teacher's personalities and have people running the classes rather than working on general concencus of NPC actions. Also, I was wondering what people in NY think of the school? Do they know there are mutants there? If they do, do they approve? If some don't, are we in danger of pogroms? Madame Davis gave a speach about toleration and equality, but the very existance of this school proves that not everyone is created equal, and some rabid egalitarians/bigots might have it in for the school.

[B]Journal Entry[/B] Sunday, Sept 10, 1899 I am writing this as we wait for our baggage to clear customs. We are finally in New York! This is my first time out of Europe, and I must say? it seems very familiar. Quite a bit like London, really. The only difference is their accents and the statue in the middle of the harbour. Both are horrid. There must be other differences though; I?ve heard that cricket isn?t terribly popular and instead people play something called ?baseball?. I don?t believe a word of it. Cricket is in style [I]everywhere[/I]! The weather certainly is like London?s? foggy and smoggy, with a bit of a chill in the air. It wouldn?t surprise me at all should it begin to rain. Dreadfully lucky I didn?t put my pea-jacket in my trunk, what? The crossing itself was fairly uneventful. I do think travel by steamer is less elegant than by sailing vessel, and it smells worse too. This is, however, the price we pay for convenience, and it wouldn?t do to start at this new school a week late because of the wind. I also learned ever so much about steamships, I can even disassemble several parts with only minimal damage to the equipment while under sail power. I?m sure I could do it again without ANY damage, but the captain suggested that the other passengers might not enjoy another six hour delay while the engineer helped me put it back together. I don?t see why they were upset, though, since we spent the six hours under sail power and we didn?t actually lose any time and the engines worked just as well as they did before. The captain was so helpful in getting us off the ship quickly. Too helpful, I think, though I disagree with Sophia that I was the cause of his drinking problem. I was planning on offering my services to him should he need any errands done in New York, but Sophia got That Look in her eyes so I didn?t. Speaking of the school, I really have no idea what to expect. First, it has both boys and girls in it! Aunt Susan was apoplectic when she heard about that, but father always has said says that I shouldn?t pay her any mind because the Bassington-Edwards are?I wish I had Sophia?s memory? something about? ah, yes... [ink blot] Hmm. Perhaps I shouldn?t write that down. In any case then there is this talk of the ?eccentricities? of the students and faculty. I?m sure I shouldn?t believe all the rumors I have heard, but even if one eliminates all but the most reliable of sources, one gets the impression that the school is? odd. Sophia certainly would qualify, but not I. My only odd skill is to play games of chance very well! Ah but I must stop writing now, I see one of the customs officers approaching. He?s frowning at our baggage tags, and there?s a porter behind him with Sophia?s luggage but not mine. And now he is looking at me as if he is sucking on a lemon. This is going to be a long day. -Felix

Hee, thanks! Ah... so we can choose classes based on player fiat. If we assume our character knows the stuff, we can skip the class... or do the exams happen on the first day of school? And do you have an instructor list so we can go tug on their shirts? Oh, and is there a uniform, or do we dress as we normally do. And if so... are we expected to DRESS for supper in evening dress?

Can you give us an idea of the geography? How big is the school? How many buildings? Is it walled? What kind of defences does it have... not only against people getting in, but against accidents with erratic powers? Also, what are the living conditions like? Do we share rooms? Do we have servents? Are there general dogsbodies who I can ask about my missing luggage and who will tell me it was delivered five days ago by accident because it was put on a clipper ship by mistake? =) How long have we been in the school? Also, is it possible to test out of courses? Given, for example, my character's education, many of these courses will be repetitions of stuff he has done previously, largely history (unless it gets fairly specialized or deals with odd areas ie. Mutant Powers and their effects on the resurgence of ancient culture 1400-1700) and the mathematics courses. Conversly, he doesn't know how to make a bed, his penmanship is dreadful (he prefers a typewriter) and he is vainly hoping he can find someone to play cricket with him. And he stammers and lisps a little.

[B]Name[/B] Felix Georg Lucas Mark Simon Mikhail Alexandre Philipe Charles Ivan von Liebeslied AKA That-Idiot-Felix, The Vienna Kid. [B]Age[/B] 15 (and liable to die at it, according to his tutors and relatives) [B]Origin[/B] Vienna, city of wonder, city of light. Austrian upper class. Parents are in Emperor Franz Joseph I?s court, but are currently out of favour and uninfluential. Still, given their unique talents, they are occasionally called to troubleshoot difficult, odd, or ridiculous situations (which erupt with depressing frequency? it IS Franz Joseph, after all). The Family is the offshoot of a powerful, but extremely discrete Family with ties to almost all royal families in Europe. Though the Family can be traced back to a powerful 15th century Venitian merchant family that expanded into Milan and Rome, most of the family resides in London (banking center of the world, and hub of the empire). Felix?s branch, which diverged during the French revolution, is based in Vienna, partly because the Family prefers having members in every capitol, and partly because Vienna is so far away and odd that no one will connect this branch's oddness with the rest of the Family. Parents are known to and respected, if not liked, by Bismarck (who died last year) and Metternich, and Clemenceau. The Family in turn LOVED Bismarck, and constantly send him letters inviting him to visit, which he consistently burned. They were invited to the funeral, but the invitation got lost, apparently. [B]Appearance[/B] Judging from his mother, who is quite beautiful now but looked even worse at his age, Felix is going to end up as a fine looking man. Right now looks a little like a marionette, with the same fast, jerky, seemingly uncoordinated movements. Felix is very thin, which transforms what will be an elegant, fine boned face into something just short of skeletal. He is short for his age, but with a large head, hands, and feet that indicate a massive growth spurt soon, not to mention the Family?s magnificently long and pointy nose. He has large, guileless brown eyes and close cropped hair in the Prussian style. [B]Power[/B] Entropymancer. Controls and can predict luck and probability. Currently at very low levels? can control values of dice and cards when he is holding them, and predict their values accurately regardless of who holds them. Tends to be hard to find when he doesn?t want to be, and the first place you look when he?s really needed. There is no point in giving him multiple choice tests. Can sometimes force patters to appear in complex random systems (throw sand in the air and have it land in the shape of someone?s profile). Generally useless in any sort of combat so far, though he tends to be hard to hit when fencing, and stupidly lucky events have saved him several times.. He also speaks a number of languages: English, Latin, French, and various dialects of German (Viennese, Hoch-Deutsch, and Yiddish, for some reason). The Americans think he speaks with an English accent, the French and English think he speaks with a German accent, the Germans think he speaks with a Viennese accent, and the Viennese think he lisps a little. He can swear in fifteen languages? but doesn?t. Usually. [B]Bio[/B] Born in Vienna in 1885 to wealthy parents in the Austrian court, he was marked at an early age as being ?charmed? when a number of accidents occurred around him. Each would have been potentially fatal to him except for dumb luck. His parents (Former opera singer and mid level signals officer) lived at court, and so he did with his cousin Sophia. At the age of five, in an attempt to civilize the boy and teach him more languages, he was sent to boarding school in England. He resided mostly in England until the age of nine when he was politely, but firmly ejected by Lloyds of London due to something the family calls only ?The London Incident?. They refuse to discuss it (for a time he was very good at reading the stock market. Children should be seen, not heard. Especially not heard saying ?That one, thath going up thix pointh.? Especially not if their right. The London Incident was actually unconnected with this, but this gives you an idea of the sort of thing he gets into). At this point, the idea of putting him in a military academy was considered and instantly rejected. He did begin fencing lessons though, and received the attentions of a number of tutors. His power means he received a rather spotty education, as any tutor he didn?t like tended to search in the wrong places, but what he enjoyed, he knows a great deal about. He did some traveling about Europe too, but this was limited because of the bizarre events that would follow him about. Unfortunately, Bismarck is dead, the Kaiser is an idiot, and things seem to be heating up in Europe. He and his cousin were sent to America, officially to study. Officially unofficially, it was to get Felix out of everyone?s hair. Unofficially, it was to get his cousin and her power out of court because of potential threats to her safety. Felix was sent along as an excuse and - god help us all - protection. No one really believes he has superpowers, including him, but no one can deny that the little bas? blighter is luck incarnate. Besides? things are Europe are getting dangerous, and no family can afford a scion who is bitterly disappointed that Engles never wrote the sequel explaining how it was supposed to happen. [B]Personality[/B] Felix is smart, personable, and extremely witty. Very charming. He?s also a weirdness magnet and always gets by doing the very least possible? which tends to be very little, thanks to his Power. He is notorious for finishing assignments a day late, only to find that the professor was sick and didn?t accept them the previous day. He forgets to look both ways when crossing the street, and never gets hurt. He leads a charmed life, and is used to it, which can make him extremely annoying to be around. His family is sure if he is manipulating events, or just maneuvering so they affect him best. For the record, so are the London Constabulary. Either way, it is completely unconscious, and as soon as he tries to make good things happen on a large scale, his power leaves. Along with his devil-may-care attitude, he loves games of chance. Currently, no one in Vienna will play any game with either him or his cousin, who fleeced the noble Viennese youth of their pocket money fairly regularly. He has begun learning chess and is intrigued, as it is a game his power has absolutely no effect on, even though he shows a great deal of native ability. Like his cousin, he adores music, but of a very different variety. He is addicted to the Maple Leaf Rag and loves the emerging ragtime and Dixie? though he is considering boycotting Dixie because of his socio-economic philosophy. He can also sing almost any Gilbert and Sullivan operetta in it?s entirety? and does, much to the chagrin of his cousin. She has perfect pitch, while he, though possessing a good voice, can not help but switch keys constantly unless accompanied. [B]Snippet[/B] ?[I]A British Tar is a soaring soul, as free as a mountain bir..[/I]? ?Will you stop that infernal racket, I?m trying to think!? The small boy stopped singing, blushing a little, and began kicking his legs under the table. They were far too short to reach the ground. The speaker, a burly young 2nd Lieutenant in the Guards, frowned deeply and pushed a couple of coins into the center. A town clown sitting next to him grimaced, and threw his cards in, as did a naval midshipman. The 2nd lieutenant glowered at the boy. ?Your turn whelp. Care to stay in, or do you want to go home and play with your sister?s dolls." He glanced derisively at an inconspicuous girl who was apparently going for a grand slam at a whist table. The boy tilted his head like a bright, inquisitive bird examining a particularly slow and plump worm. ?My name is Felix, not ?whelp?, the lady is my cousin, not my sister and she doesn?t care for dolls at all.? He tossed in a few coins. ?And it?s my game, because the two pair you must have cannot beat my twos over threes!? Gleefully, he leaned forward to scoop up the pot. ?Why you little..? began the 2nd lieutenant as he made a grab for Felix, but with a titter of laughter, the boy kicked the table into the officer and bolted out of the tavern trailed by the indignant girl, with only faint boyish singing to mark his passage. [indent]?[I]With cat-like tread [boom!] upon our prey we steal [crash!] We pirates dread [thump!] our cautious way we feel [bang!] No sound at all [clang!] we barely speak a word [smash!] A fly?s foot-fall would be distinctly heard! All Hail..[/I]?[/indent] The girl glanced at him irritatedly. ?Felix, if you cannot stay in one key, then please refrain from singing altogether.? Edit: I can nerf the power if nessisary.