Role: The Innkeeper
Name: Jacqueline "Jackie" Reynolds
Age: 40
Gender: Female
Sexuality: Asexual
Appearance: 
(Natalie Portman)
Jackie is of an average height and average weight. She has skin that appears to be lightly tanned under certain lighting and honey-brown hair. Jackie's hair is wavy and currently ends just above her shoulders, though she wore it long for most of her life. Jackie has hazel eyes and eyelashes that are inordinately long. Her lips are thin and a pale pink hue. The backs of Jackie's arms and a large portion of her back are covered in burn scars from an unfortunate factory explosion that occurred approximately twenty years ago.
Jackie can usually be seen wearing simple though pretty dresses and blouses that have a slightly old-fashioned vibe to them (she would
never allow herself to be seen in one of those little dresses that these newfangled flappers favor so much, that's for sure). She rarely wears any jewelry, and if she does, then it is only a single gold chain or a pair of stud earrings. Jackie's clothes are always impeccably clean, even if they are indeed old-fashioned.
Occupation: Runs and manages the Summer Daffodil Inn (which is usually simply referred to as "the Daffodil), was formerly a schoolteacher in a small, run-down school on the border of Whisperwind Wharf and Pisswater Alley
Likes: etiquette, good manners, organized and accurate monetary accounts, a surplus of supplies, food that is simple yet delicious, hearty, home-cooked meals, tea, fresh fruit, the smell of bread baking, a clean inn, punctuality, simple yet elegant dresses, flowers, early mornings, the sound of a fire crackling in the hearth, mathematics, organizing supplies, taking inventory, everybody getting along with each other, efficiency, reading (especially classical literature and poetry), sensible clothing, teaching
Dislikes: messiness and sloppiness, violence, gang politics and tensions, drunkards, bar fights, dust, dirt, grime, permanent stains, coffee with no added milk or sugar, most alcohol in general, wearing low-cut gowns (it makes her feel very self-conscious), loud music, the smell of cigarette smoke, impolite people, rudeness (especially rudeness that is completely unwarranted), unnecessary extravagance and/or pomp and circumstance, arrogance, frilly dresses
Skills: managing accounts and supplies (Jackie does this on almost a daily basis since she runs an inn), teaching (Jackie's personality and education makes her an excellent schoolteacher), sewing and mending, cooking, settling disputes (Jackie has a reputation of being a peace-keeper), mental math and mathematics in general, giving advice
Weaknesses: physical altercations (Jackie detests violence and is not a fighter at all; as such, she would be helpless against a physical attack), singing (she can't do it for the life of her), painting (Jackie doesn't have a single artistic bone in her body), her inability to adapt to sudden changes in her life (Jackie is adamant about regularity and routine)
Personality: Jackie is probably the person you'd least expect to be involved with the three gangs and their associated illegal activities. Patient, gentle, and warm-hearted, Jackie is full of kind smiles and reassuring looks. Jackie tends to be rather soft spoken and is quick to forgive and forget. She is not easily excitable and rarely loses her temper. She would never turn away a person in need, no matter what their past history may be, and she offers her assistance indiscriminately, refusing to take gang affiliations into account. Jackie seems to be perpetually calm and dignified, a pool of serenity in the chaos of the factional warfare. Indeed, Jackie has somehow remained relatively neutral throughout the years, staying above the violence and machinations of the gangs and lending a helping hand equally to all of them when they turn up on her doorstep. As such, she is perhaps one of the only people who can walk through all three of the territories unmolested.
Jackie is open and trusting-perhaps a little bit
too trusting, at times. Her refusal to involve herself directly with any gang activities brings her both the admiration and ire of the respective leaders. Jackie's reliability and dependability are generally viewed as some of her best qualities, but with this rock-solid steadfastness comes a certain inability to easily adapt to changing, evolving situations. Those who know Jackie personally say that she is a bit stuck in the simpler ways of the past. She places high value in manners and civility and propriety, and nobody-
nobody, not even the leaders of the three gang-tells her how to run her inn. Once you step onto her property, you listen to nobody but her.
Jackie offers anyone and everyone nonjudgmental acceptance, and she tries to see everything from all angles. She is pragmatically intelligent, with a sharp mind perfectly suited to running her inn and managing the accounts with a practiced efficiency. She likes to take the time to appreciate the small things in life (stopping to smell the flowers, so to speak). Kind, calm and level-headed, and reliable, Jackie believes that people are inherently good and is very generous, acting as a mother-slash-teacher even though she is technically an innkeeper.
Biography: Jackie was born into a wealthy family that had been wealthy for generations upon generations. The Reynolds were old money, used to being rich and used to being powerful. It was no secret that Jackie's mother had no love for her father-their marriage was an arranged one, and an unhappily arranged one at that. Jackie's father was heavily involved with the Silk Skulls (one of their main financial backers, actually), something that her mother heartily disapproved of. As a result, Jackie was mostly shielded from the harsh realities of her father's life, and Jackie grew into a kind-hearted young woman who would rather read classical literature while sipping tea in a musty old library than rub elbows with suave gangsters (much too forward) and surly hitmen (much too crude). Her mother sent Jackie off to school the first chance that she got, where Jackie discovered that she was quite good at arithmetic.
Jackie eventually discovered the full extent of her father's involvement with the gangs as she grew older. When she finished her schooling and returned home, she was immediately thrust into the heart of the complex and cutthroat politics of gangsters with nothing to lose and the entire world to gain; two different men (one was a member of the Silk Skulls, while the other was a member of the Spiders) were vying for the hand in marriage of the daughter of one of the richest men in New Cordova. While her father deliberated, Jackie decided to take matters into her own hands. She absolutely abhorred violence, and she was not so foolish as to believe that she would wed one man or the other and all would be well; no, there was bound to be some blood spilled over a dispute of this nature.
Unbeknownst to her parents, Jackie sought out a job as a schoolteacher in one of the seedier parts of town (on the border of Pisswater Alley and Whisperwind Wharf, in fact), and she was given the position once it was determined that she had enough education to teach the children. She then went to her parents and told them that she would not marry anyone because it would spark a gang war, and besides, schoolteachers couldn't be married, anyways. Her parents were adamantly against this idea, but then her mother died of pneumonia and her father was killed by a stray bullet during a bar fight, so that was that.
Jackie packed her bags and relocated to a school building in the ambiguous swath of land bordering the present-day territories of the Silver Rats and the Spiders. There, she taught the children who would one day become the leaders and members of the three gangs that dominated New Cordova after the fall of the Silk Skulls. The school building soon became known as a safe haven of sorts for the children-Jackie was patient and kind, and she loved the children she taught with all her heart. When some of her children came in without lunches, Jackie would purchase something for them down the street. When they came in without coats or shoes, Jackie would hand out blankets for them to use in class to stave off the cold. She would not tolerate the children insulting or hurting each other, and although she was normally very gentle, Jackie could be quite firm if she wanted to, and the children soon learned to respect their new teacher.
Eventually, Jackie's children grew up and graduated (or they simply stopped coming to school altogether because of their...circumstances). Many of them got involved with the gangs that roamed the streets of New Cordova, though they knew not to touch Jackie or her school, because even after all those years, she still would have welcomed them inside with open arms and given them food to fill their bellies and a roof to sleep under. Jackie finally gave up her position as a schoolteacher when her uncle (who was just as wealthy as her father) died, bequeathing her a substantial sum of money and an inn.
She set up her inn, which is called the Summer Daffodil Inn (usually referred to as simply the Daffodil), and began running a moderately successful business. Her generosity with her former students and people in need, however, remained constant, and the inn soon had a reputation for being a sanctuary and neutral ground for all gang members. The inn itself has an endearingly quaint vibe to it that is reminiscent of a cozy country cottage.
Jackie's rules for her inn are rather simple: one-it is open to all; two-absolutely no violence is permitted; three-all gang politics and confrontations must stay off of her property, and four-if you break something, you pay for it (because smashing plates is just rude!). Jackie will frequently serve meals on the house as long as all of her rules are followed, and she rather enjoys conversing with some of her former students when they come in for a bite to eat or a drink. Jackie always ensures that the lodgings are immaculate and that the food is cooked to perfection, and she is very efficient at managing the accounts and taking inventory. As such, her inn is usually a busy place, and Jackie enjoys having something to fill her days.
With the onset of Prohibition, all alcoholic beverages were taken off the menu, though if Jackie likes you enough, she may offer you a little something in her wine cellar that was purchased before the law banning alcohol was passed.
Nowadays, Jackie is enjoying her life as a spinster and an innkeeper quite well, though she is concerned about the mounting tensions that threaten the shaky peace established after the defeat of the Silk Skulls. She can only hope that the children she once taught and her beloved inn will emerge out of the inevitable conflict relatively unscathed.
Power(s) and how they got it: Jackie is capable of pyrokinesis-manipulating and creating fire. As she doesn't really use her power on a large scale, Jackie is unable to simply snap her fingers and create roaring flames capable of destroying an entire city. Jackie mostly employs her pyrokinesis when cooking, either making the flame bigger or smaller. Other than that, Jackie does not really utilize her ability.
Jackie obtained her ability one morning when she was walking to the schoolhouse she taught in. She was passing by a factory when it simply exploded, showering the street with broken chunks of the building and ashes and smoke. The fire quickly spread through the surrounding area, though it was eventually contained once it reached Whisperwind Wharf. Jackie took shelter in an abandoned factory warehouse-only to have that warehouse burst into flames a couple minutes later. Trapped inside the burning building, Jackie doesn't remember much besides passing out due to all the smoke.
She eventually woke to find the concerned faces of her pupils around her. Jackie's arms and back were badly burned, though she would survive the ordeal with nothing more than scars and her pyrokinesis.
Other:
*Jackie wore her hair long and in a severe bun for most of her adult life; it was only recently that she was convinced to cut her hair shorter in an effort to follow the latest fashions (which she does not care very much for anyway-she has a rather old fashioned way of dressing)
*She frequently feeds and cares for the stray cats that turn up at her inn; as a result, Jackie has never had trouble with mice
*Jackie's personal living quarters are on the first floor of the inn, while guest lodgings are located on the second floor
*Though she loves children, Jackie swore off marriage before she became a schoolteacher, and as such, she is quite the spinster at forty years of age and
still without a husband
*Coming from a family with quite a bit of money, Jackie has never wanted for anything, but she was blessed with a large amount of sympathy for the less fortunate
*Her greatest fear is seeing her inn destroyed and seeing the children she used to teach spiral deeper and deeper into darkness
*Jackie values hospitality, a healthy dose of empathy, and good manners in others
Extras: Quote- "A true lady never starts a fight, but she sure as hell can finish one." ~Anonymous
Aesthetic board-
Playlist-
1. "Hey Brother" by Avicii: "Hey brother! Do you still believe in one another?/Hey sister! Do you still believe in love? I wonder/Oh, if the sky comes falling down, for you/There's nothing in this world I wouldn't do"
2. "Icarus" by Bastille: "Icarus is flying too close to the sun/And Icarus's life, it has only just begun/Standing on the cliff face/Highest fall you'll ever grace/It scares me half to death"
3. "Shelter" by The XX: "I find shelter, in this way/Under cover, hide away"
4. "Three Little Birds" by Bob Marley: "Don't worry, 'bout a thing/Cause every little thing gonna be alright/Singin' don't worry about a thing/Cause every little thing gonna be all right"
5. "Hunnie Pie" by Zella Day: "You see the moon, I see the sun/Your day is gone, mine's just begun/Our time is more than a day (ahh ahhhhh, ahh)/I can't forget with you on my mind/The moment we started to live separate lives/Our love is more than a day (ahh ahhhhh, ahh)"
6. "Merry-Go-Round of Life" from Howl's Moving Castle
7. "Bright" by Echosmith: "I think the universe is on my side/Heaven and Earth have finally aligned/Days are good and that's they way it should be"
8, "Rainbow Veins" by Owl City: "Cheer up and dry your damp eyes/Tell me when it rains/I'll blend up that rainbow above you/And shoot it through your veins"
9. "House of Gold" by 21 Pilots: "I will make you queen of everything you see/I'll put you on the map, I'll cure you of disease."
10. "Together" by The XX: "I know to be there/When and where, I’ll be there/You know what’s to be said/We said out loud, we never said"
11. "If I Die Young" by the Band Perry: "If I die young/Bury me in satin/Lay me down on a bed of roses/Sink me in a river, at dawn/Send me away with the words of a love song/The sharp knife, of a sharp life/Well I've had, just enough time"
Role: The Spymistress
Name: Maria Marjorie Moretti
Age: 29
Gender: Female
Sexuality: Heterosexual
Appearance: 
(Angelina Jolie)
Maria has a lightly tanned complexion inherited from her Italian father and her Spanish mother. Maria is all angles and sharp edges-she comes from a long line of tall, bony women with high cheekbones and an angular facial structure. In her awkward teen years, Maria appeared gangly and boyish, but she has grown into her figure nicely and has made the subtle yet immediately noticeable transition from "bony" to "slender". She is still inordinately tall, though, standing at 5 feet and 10 inches. Nothing to be done about
that.
Maria's hair is a warm, honey-brown color. It is thick and straight, falling about halfway down her back, though she usually styles it in accordance with current fashions and has considered cutting it short. Her eyes are blue-green and usually lined with heavy make-up. Maria has the long fingers of a piano player, mostly due to her genetics (she has never played the piano in her life), and she had perfected the art of gliding across a room. Maria is willowy and graceful, with the posture of a prima ballerina. Her lips are rather average, but with the purposeful application of her favorite red lipstick, they appear to be full and pouty.
Not all of Maria's beauty comes naturally. She worked on her posture and her walk for years, and she keeps herself on a strict diet to maintain her figure (Maria knows for a fact that she couldn't pull off a curvaceous, statuesque look, even if she had any curves; she is much too tall for it) and to keep her skin smooth and freckle-free. After all, when you're in the same business as Maria, your beauty is practically all you've got.
Occupation: Maria runs a high-end brothel that is accessible via one of the glitziest speakeasies controlled by the Golden Bulls. She also serves as the Bulls' eyes and ears, collecting information for the gang as a whole.
Likes: pearls, diamonds, and other precious jewels, expensive dresses, elegantly glamorous evening gowns, satin gloves, red lipstick (poisoned or not), money, power, her "girls" (Maria is very protective of them, and anyone who treats them badly has a pretty high chance of ending up dead sometime in the near future), wearing white (Maria is fond of the irony of someone as black-hearted as her wearing the color of innocence and purity), being respected for what she is capable of, being recognized by members of the Golden Bulls for how deadly she truly is, pretty weaponry (jeweled daggers and pearl-handled pistols and the like), her independence
Dislikes: powerful men, being sweaty, messy hair, dirty clothing, flappers (they're too loud and too flashy-Maria is all old-age elegance and refinement), bloodstained gowns, people who have no respect for expensive clothing, misogynists, the government as an institution, organized religion (something about women being "below" men doesn't sit right with Maria), feeling like she isn't in control of a situation, relying on others
Skills: charming the secrets right out of someone without their knowledge, getting people to do what she wants them to do, styling her hair, good with knives and a fair shot with a gun, pick-pocketing and picking locks
Weaknesses: Maria tends to look down her nose on people who she thinks are "useless" or "stupid", can be rather callous, has let her need for vengeance and her anger influence her decisions before
Personality: To others, Maria is a sultry, intoxicating temptress, capable of charming the secrets right out of someone with a coy glance and a flutter of her long eyelashes. She reads people like an open book, a skill honed through years spent in her particular line of work. Sharply observant, perceptive, and brutally analytical, Maria has been taught how to detect subtle shifts in emotion, how to seduce a man (and perhaps even a woman, though Maria has yet to cross that bridge), and how to kill someone in a dozen different ways while dancing the waltz. Enigmatically charismatic, Maria exudes a certain aura that instantly draws people to her. She puts up a playful and coquettish front all while maintaining a certain air of mystery that unfailingly attracts the attention of her target. Elegant and refined, Maria is able to engage in lengthy discussions about a wide range of topics, from European literature to the latest technological advancements and Parisian cosmetics.
Maria hides a spine of steel behind red lipstick and expensive silk gowns, pretending that she has morals and "womanly sensitivities" (whatever the hell
that's supposed to mean). In truth, Maria is as about as cold-hearted as they get, thinking mostly of herself and the few people she genuinely cares about. She can be stupidly, blindly loyal to a person or a cause, to the point where she is sacrificing everything for one single thing. Maria is sly and shrewd, often manipulating and blackmailing people into doing her bidding. When she isn't around clients, Maria comes off as a bit stand-offish and aloof, although she is fiercely protective of her "girls". She values her independence and is truly afraid of very few people. Deadly and alluring, Maria holds no qualms against playing men like a flute to achieve her own goals. And oh, play them she does-most people don't stand a chance against the wiles of the venomously beautiful Maria Moretti.
Biography: Maria was the product of a one-night stand in between an Italian gangster and a dockside whore. She grew up on the streets of New York City, foraging for food during the day while her mother worked the wharves and piers of the city at night. Maria's mother told her of her true ancestry when Maria was nine; how she came from a long line of women with...special
gifts, and how these women had taken advantage of their gifts through the centuries. Descended from Spanish gypsy snake charmers that fled the country during the reign of Queen Joanna the Mad, Maria's mother could hypnotize others with her big brown eyes, draw people to her with a single touch, and poison someone with a kiss. Maria's own abilities began to manifest in her early teens, and she suddenly understood how her mother could make so much money in the span of a single night.
It was another few years before Maria's mother revealed why she came to America. After getting mixed up with a dangerous crowd in London, Maria's mother woke up one day to find that she'd been robbed of everything she owned. Penniless and with nowhere else to go, she plied her trade until she had enough money to pay for passage across the Atlantic. Once she had arrived in New York City, she intentionally sought out a man to get her pregnant, for if the women of Maria's line reach thirty-five years of age without giving birth to a daughter, they die.
Maria's mother taught her everything she knew until she (rather ironically) died of the Spanish flu during World War I. She left Maria with a considerable sum of money and her father's name and current address. Armed with that information, Maria packed her bags and made her way to New Cordova.
When Maria got to New Cordova, she snuck into her father's ostentatious home and confronted him. He practically had a heart attack at the sight of her, but he recognized those alluring, mesmerizing eyes and intoxicating touch immediately, despite how long it had been, and he saw how incredibly useful Maria's abilities could be. Maria changed her last name to Moretti and began working as a high-class escort in one of the city's speakeasies while secretly passing along information to her father, Alessandro Rossini, who was a member of the Silk Skulls..
Maria spied for her father for a couple of years before she began running a brothel herself. Alessandro passed along funds for the establishment, and in exchange, Maria passed along any pertinent information and did odd favors for him anytime that he needed it. Maria developed a fierce, if unrequited, sort of loyalty to her father as a result of their highly profitable partnership. She is also ferociously protective of the young women who work in her brothel, though she won't take any shit from them.
During the "gang war" in between the Silk Skulls and the Golden Bulls, Silver Rats, and Spiders, Alessandro naturally aided his own gang, and Maria followed in his footsteps. However, during the "war", Alessandro framed Maria for a crime she didn't commit, causing her to be arrested by the police. Maria eventually managed to break out of prison shortly after the war ended, but she would
never forget what Alessandro did.
Maria sought out the Golden Bulls, the new gang of power, and joined their ranks. She found her father preparing to leave the city, and killed him with a passionate kiss on the lips. Nowadays, Maria does pretty much the same as she did with Alessandro and the Silk Skulls-she runs her brothel (the same brothel, actually) and spies for the Golden Bulls. Her reach extends even into Pisswater Alley, for prostitutes know that if they manage to get hired at Maria's brothel, she will most definitely take care of them.
Maria gave birth to a daughter when she was twenty-eight, a good seven years before her "deadline". However, when the leadership of the Golden Bulls saw how devoted she was to her daughter and how her first priority had changed to protecting the young girl rather than helping the gang, they had someone kill her. Of course, the Bulls deny everything, but Maria
knows. And she will
never forget.
Power(s) and how they got it: Maria is able to hypnotize others by looking directly into their eyes. Eye contact must be maintained, and the effects usually wear off after an hour or so. She can only hypnotize one person at a time.
Maria is immune to most, if not all, forms of poison, and there are trace amounts of poison in her skin. Prolonged skin-to-skin contact with Maria will make the other person feel foggy and a bit like they are drunk. It will make Maria seem irresistible as well, depending on the person. There is also a lethal, fast-acting poison in her saliva, which can kill a man within thirty minutes. Maria wears a thick layer of lipstick to dilute or nullify the poison if she has a client that she doesn't want to accidentally poison. There are also times when she wears poisoned lipstick, when she needs a poison that works even faster than her natural one.
Nobody is quite sure how exactly Maria's ancestors originally obtained their abilities, but Maria is fairly certain that it had something to do with their natural affinity for snakes. Women in Maria's family must give birth to a daughter before they are thirty-five, and any male children they have end up stillborn.
Other: Maria frequently wears long, ornate hairpins that have wickedly-sharp ends in her hair. She normally has some sort of blade hidden in her bodice or under her skirt, and she sometimes conceals a pretty little pistol with gilt metalwork and a mother-of-pearl handle on her person. Maria is no soldier, but she has a knack with blades and most certainly knows how to shoot a gun.
Extras: Quote-"Clever as the devil and twice as pretty" ~Holly Black
Aesthetic board-
Role: The Peacemaker
Name: Clarence Eugene Roberts
Age: 34
Gender: Male
Sexuality: Bisexual
Appearance: 
(David Dawson)
Clarence is by no means an intimidating man. He has a slight figure, though he boasts a bit of lean, lanky muscle on his arms and legs. His face is rather mousy. This is further enhanced by the little spectacles that he wears. He keeps his face relatively clean-shaven (he really,
really doesn't like facial hair) and his short brown hair cut in the most unassuming way. He wears solemn, simple clothing, usually in subdued hues. Clarence's eyes, like his hair, are a nondescript medium-brown color. His peachy complexion is fairly average-not overly pale, but not overly tan, either. In short, everything about Clarence's outer appearance is utterly forgettable.
Occupation: Clarence is officially the accountant and record-keeper of the Spiders, but he also serves as the unofficial "head" of their dockside black market. In addition, he is quite the negotiator, capable of extracting compromises from even the most stubborn of men and women in his own quiet way
Likes: clean clothes, clean spectacles, cleanliness in general, sharp pencils, tidy rooms, the smell of coffee, organized accounts, being polite to others, math, numbers and figures, going about on his way unnoticed, being underestimated by those outside of the Spiders, being prepared for
everything, elegant solutions, profit, daffodils and daisies, subtle earth tones (namely greens and browns and beiges), everything being resolved in a peaceful manner, efficiency, the smell of the sea
Dislikes: facial hair, inappropriately loud people, rumpled clothing, bloodstains, ineffectiveness, disorganized messes, chaos, incompetent people, being unprepared, messiness, drunkards, bar fights, fighting in general, obnoxious displays of force, being underestimated by the Spiders, people outside of the Spiders realizing how capable he truly is, alcohol (he'll take it in moderation, but not enough to get drunk)
Skills: remembering small details, manipulating the situation in his favor, drawing up compromises, balancing the checkbook, good with numbers and figures, good with complex mathematics to a certain degree (more on the economics side than on, say, the calculus side), quick and nimble in a fight and half-decent with a gun/knife (Clarence draws upon his agile cunning and element of surprise more than his physical strength when he is engaged in any sort of physical altercation), makes a mean roast chicken
Weaknesses: his lack of brute strength puts him at a disadvantage in certain situations, tends to be a bit passive and go-with-the-flow, not very intimidating or assertive (and as such, he would not be a great leader), singing and playing instruments (Clarence is the opposite of "musically inclined")
Personality: Clarence is an exceedingly mild-mannered man. He is quiet and reserved and shows very little emotion, no matter if he approves or disapproves of something. Calm and collected, even in times of crisis, Clarence is as steadfast and as unmoving as a rock. Dependable and practical, Clarence always makes sure that whatever has to be done is done-in fact, he makes sure that it is done
well. He carries all his tasks through with the utmost efficiency, and he values organized financial accounts over everything else. Clarence has a quick, analytical mind-he is always two, three steps ahead of everyone else. He prefers to examine all sides of an issue and take every variable into account before passing judgement, and he has a knack for coming up with elegant solutions that all parties can agree upon.
Clarence tends to keep his thoughts to himself, and he prefers to sit back and observe than get involved in the fray. He always feels slightly uncomfortable in large crowds of people, though he is not easily intimidated (something that others usually miss, considering his outward appearance). Clarence carries out orders very well, even if he isn't the one issuing them. Polite and respectful, it is too easy to mistake Clarence's deference for submissiveness. Clarence doesn't mind-it makes him seem perfectly harmless and not threatening in the least. He does this on purpose, knowing all too well that if someone were to unearth some of the things he's done in the past, he would be in big, big trouble, because behind those inoffensive little round spectacles and meek expression, Clarence is just as cunning and manipulative as the worst of them.
Biography: Clarence was born and raised in New Cordova. His father was a middle-class accounting clerk, and his mother was a bank teller. Clarence got his love of numbers and finance from both of his parents. He has an older brother named Andrew and a younger sister named Katherine. Andrew is three years older, while Katherine is five years younger.
All three children were enrolled in school for a good deal of their early lives. The Roberts were fortunate enough to be able to afford it, though the school that Clarence, Andrew, and Katherine attended was by no means the best school in the city. It was a run-down schoolhouse located on the border of Pisswater Alley and Whisperwind Wharf, and although the surroundings were bleak, Clarence grew to love going to school everyday. He excelled in mathematics and had excellent penmanship. The various teachers they went through were all fond of Clarence, because unlike his older brother, who instigated a fight in the schoolyard almost every day, Clarence was never one to throw fists at the slightest insult or injury. In fact, he was known to be a mediator in between the combatants at times. He tried to get them to stop and work it out peacefully. It was at that schoolhouse where he first met Miss Jacqueline Reynolds, though he was only her student for a couple of years before he graduated and went on to study finance, economics, and accounting in the city's public university.
Clarence and his brother both fought in the war. Andrew enlisted voluntarily, because he was bloodthirsty and eager for a fight, while Clarence went along reluctantly. He abhorred fighting. Luckily, a couple months after he shipped out to Europe, he was sent back home due to a gunshot wound in the rear end-a "million dollar wound", so to speak.
Once he came back to New Cordova, Clarence realized he had no money and no way of making money in a legitimate way, because who wanted to hire a newly-graduated accountant who'd just come back from the war? So instead, he sought out less savory employers. He eventually managed to land himself a job as a record-keeper and accountant for one of the leaders of the Silk Skulls, Earl Jones. The work itself was easy enough, so long as he didn't ask questions, but it was the...
other services required of him that made Clarence grow to despise Mr. Jones.
Long story short, Mr. Jones was drunk more frequently than not, and when he was drunk, he was prone to aggressive bouts of violence. Clarence bore the brunt of this, since he was always around Mr. Jones due to the nature of his job. Mr. Jones also had
different tastes in lovers: he preferred men over women in almost every instance. Clarence bore the brunt of Mr. Jones's preferences in these matters as well.
Clarence considered leaving the Silk Skulls many times throughout his time with them, but Earl Jones was paranoid because Clarence knew too much, so he threatened to kill Clarence's family if he left. With no other options in place, Clarence decided that the best way to be rid of Mr. Jones and his abusive treatment was to eliminate the Silk Skulls altogether. At that time, the Golden Bulls had just started to grow restless. Clarence intentionally fueled that restlessness by subtly suggesting to Mr. Jones that the Skulls brutally crack down on the Bulls. This only made the Bulls angrier, which had been Clarence's purpose all along. Rising tensions in the seedier side of town led to the Silver Rats siding with the Golden Bulls-again, partially due to Clarence's maneuvering-and the Spiders' participation was sealed with a backroom deal he made with their leader.
The Spiders were, and still are, led by an indomitable spinster who valued efficiency over personal loyalty. Clarence met with her, and both agreed that the Skulls were on the brink of imploding on themselves. Clarence offered to tell the Spiders everything he knew about the Skulls in exchange for a position within their ranks after the gang war was over.
With a promise of a job after the Skulls were gone, and the Spiders siding with the Bulls and the Rats, Clarence allowed himself to sit back and watch the puzzle pieces fall in place. The final stage of his plan was somehow removing Maria Moretti from the scene-she always,
always found out about
everything. So, he tipped off the police on one of Alessandro Rossini's-a member of the Silk Skulls and Maria's father and employer-illegal activities, then convinced Earl Jones to convince Alessandro Rossini to frame Maria for the crime. Once Maria had been jailed, the Skulls were all but defeated.
After the fall of the Skulls, Clarence personally ascertained that Mr. Jones was murdered in his sleep, then pinned it as suicide, because who could believe that the quiet man busily scribbling in his notebook was capable of
killing someone? Clarence took on his position with the Spiders as promised, and he has quickly risen through the ranks due to his efficiency and organization. He now manages the finances for the gang and oversees the dockside black markets and all its shipments.
Power(s) and how they got it: Clarence has no "powers" to speak of-unless both a photographic and an eidetic memory count as powers. He was born with a photographic memory, though his eidetic memory naturally developed as he grew older
Other: Clarence is very close with his sister, Katherine, though less so with Andrew. He mostly works in order to send money back to his family. Andrew is showing disturbing signs of post-traumatic stress disorder, and Clarence isn't sure how to help him, which is worrying. Katherine's husband died four years ago from pneumonia, which has also been on Clarence's mind. His parents and sister are blissfully ignorant of Clarence's involvement in illegal activities and gang politics, but he knows that Andrew has probably guessed what Clarence has been up to for the last few years.
Extras: Quote-"There are snakes lurking in the grass." ~Virgil
Name: Helen Margaret Smith
Age: 56
Role: The Commander
Appearance (image or written description, or both): 
(Meryl Streep)
Helen used to be a blonde-haired, blue-eyed beauty, but time and age has turned her hair white and caused wrinkles to appear on her previously unlined face. Her eyes, however, have remained a fierce ocean-blue. Helen is usually seen wearing a borderline haughty or dismissive expression, her face hard and flinty. She purses her lips when she is annoyed, and she prefers wearing serviceable gowns and skirts void of all decoration whatsoever.
Personality (2-3 sentences MAX): Blunt, assertive, and pragmatic, Helen
will get what she wants-even if she has to constantly harangue an unfortunate soul in order to do so. Helen doesn't give two shits about lofty ideals of equality and loyalty and devotion, and promises mean nothing to her: she wants results, and people will give her results, or she will verbally skin them alive. Helen wields boldness and stoicism like the viciously practical revolver she always carries on her person, and lord knows that she's not afraid to use it.
Relationship(s) With Other Characters: leader of the Spiders, which makes her familiar with all the gang members. Also has some sort of past history with Marjorie Wang, a flapper who runs the Silver Sewer in Pisswater Alley.
Additional Information: Helen runs a newspaper and a shipping company under her fake husband's name in Whisperwind Wharf. Nobody is quite sure what her ability is; some whisper that she has the capability of reading one's thoughts, while others go so far to suggest that her powers are broader than that, implying that she not only has the ability to
read one's thoughts, but also the ability to control what a person thinks.
