capeandcowl

[not_his_best]

[PLAYER INFO]
NAME: Jean
AGE: 28
JOURNAL: palomito
IM: AIM: summoninggods
E-MAIL: summoninggods@aol.com :]
RETURNING: N/A

[CHARACTER INFO]
CHARACTER NAME: Alpha
FANDOM: Dollhouse
CHRONOLOGY: Season Two; Episode 8 -- A Love Supreme
CLASS: All of the above? Which will be explained later, but we'll go with the 'Anti-hero' as the solid, overall title.
SUPERHERO NAME: n/a
ALTER EGO: Alpha

BACKGROUND:

In the Dollhouse universe, minds can be erased with a simple flash of light and certain sound frequency. The LA Dollhouse was a spa-like resort, dedicated to giving people what they wanted -- or needed, as the sales pitch went. There are over 20 just like it in the world, each of which has a group of people that have volunteered -- if you will -- for various reasons to have their mind emptied. All they had to do was sign on for five years, and then when the contract was up, they would have whatever trouble was bothering them before erased as well as a large, lump sum of money for their service. But a business wouldn't be a business without a certain level of shadiness to it...and thus comes Alpha.

He was born Carl William Kraft; a would-be serial killer (had he not been caught) who enjoyed slashing his victim's faces. The Dollhouse originally experimented on criminals in exchange for a shortened term, and Alpha was no exception. His mind was emptied and filled with different personalities over the course of his service there. As a doll, however, their minds are blank and they can be comparable to children -- empty vessels waiting to be filled with a personality, wiped, rinse and repeat. Whiskey was the most requested active in the house, but Alpha grew fond of Echo. He thought that she was the best, and deserved to be in Whiskey's position. So one day when Whiskey was about to get a treatment (this is what they call it when they either erased or imprinted a personality) -- Alpha walked up to her and said, "Let Echo be number one..." and grabbed the scissors he was using to cut his bonsai to slash her face.

Alpha was immediately taken to the imprinting room where they could figure out what happened before dumping his body in the attic (this was where all the 'defective' dolls were to be sent). They ran through all of his imprints to see if anything residual had been left behind that may have triggered his episode, but Alpha didn't understand. He didn't understand what he did wrong, why he wasn't his best, and so he fought. He kicked his handler into the computer, causing it to short-circuit. The scan for a match became an imprinting process, dumping all 48 personalities Alpha had throughout the course of his service there into his brain at once.

The result? A 'superior' being with many different skills that can be accessed whenever he needs -- and throughout all of it, he still maintained his obsession for Echo. A 49th personality was added when he wished to see what was so special about Paul Ballard (the man Echo loved). He tied Paul up to the chair used for imprinting and fried his brain, essentially killing him. Then, Alpha put the personality inside of him.


PERSONALITY:

To summarize Alpha, he is a conglomeration of multiple personalities. Some are good. Some are bad. Some, just plain don't care. But most importantly of all, he is brilliant. His genius allowed him to access the imprinting process away from any of the Dollhouses using regular, mundane materials. Alpha believes that his original self had abandoned him, and therefore destroyed it so he could never go back to what he was. Though to call him a solid person would be an exaggeration. Alpha will slip in and out of his personalities, sometimes in the middle of conversation, though if it is of importance -- he can maintain a single one. He's a master of deception, having 49 masks to wear...and will likely use it if it means getting what he wants. It's his obsession with Echo that drives him; leading him to kill, lie, and intimidate those around him.

But surely he's not all bad. Alpha can, and will, protect people if it will also protect him. He also has Paul Ballard inside of him, which Paul is your stereotypical knight-in-shining armor and being that he's a real person, he has a lot more sway over Alpha's mind than the created personalities. Though to give an example of one said personality, there is a sex criminal named Bobby in there who was sent on an engagement with Whiskey's imprint Crystal -- who was the object of his affection. Together, they became paranoid of their client, kidnapped him and ran, proceeding to torture him. Alpha also hints in the series that one of his personalities was a sailor and another an eagle scout, and it could be assumed that a couple of those personalities are, indeed, homosexual given the brothel-like-nature of the Dollhouse.

While Alpha enjoys intimidation, it is less likely that he will kill without reason. And in a world without Echo, he will likely work on forming alliances -- being the background guy who plays well with others (or perhaps not plays well, but is a quirky agoraphobe) until he decides that he wants to rise above. Everything is done within his own time frame, and he appears to be awfully patient when it comes to implementing his ultimate goals.

POWER:

Shadow Puppeting - the manipulation of a desired object's motor skills, causing them to bend and move to his own will.

-- I also don't know that this would be considered a power, but Alpha will likely try to rebuild the imprinting technology that exists in his world. But I have no problem with him not being able to ever complete it. :]



[CHARACTER SAMPLES]
COMMUNITY POST (FIRST PERSON) SAMPLE:

Hero? Hero...? You know you always dreamed about being a hero. Ever since you were a little boy. -- Were we ever little? No, and that's the beauty of it. A city unimaginable, almost impossible...yet here it is. Has this place come to rise from the ashes much the way I -- we -- have? And if it has, is my beloved -- Omega -- here?

It certainly is a change of scenery from LA. -- Reckon LA might've been a bit scarier, though. -- this can work, though. Yes, yes...this can definitely work. What normal people fail to understand is that it is not the mystery itself that is the mystery, but their perception of such a thing. I'm certain that fear governs this place. So many don't know where they are...lost and confused, sheep in an unknown flock. And it's not what we internalize, but what is on the outside that counts. It took 48 of us to come to this conclusion, and the 49th is just a spare -- I resent that -- are YOU the 49th? No, you're just the pathological liar.

But wait...if you look hard enough in a city of unfamiliar faces, there are always those that are familiar. Those that are lost and waiting to be found. I'll find you, li'l lamb...

LOGS POST (THIRD PERSON) SAMPLE:

Change and unfamiliarity -- there were parts of Alpha that didn't like it; even felt unsettled by such things. But none of these parts really cared enough to show it, and the rest of him found the strange city comforting. This wasn't Kansas anymore, to use an old cliche. He was brought here to be a hero? Well, he could certainly save them. He could save everyone from their misery; from their minds who would abandon ship at the first sign of trouble if they had a chance. It was what his had done. Gone to sleep and forced him to carry the burden for the next five years -- brought him into existence and expected him to just go away for his original's freedom from prison. Well, he wasn't going away. And as a matter of fact, his previous personality had taken a far more permanent vacation; something slightly forced by Alpha's hand, but Karl would be none-the-wiser.

Someone bumped his shoulder, causing Alpha to lose his thoughts for a brief moment. His eyes followed them until they disappeared into a certain building -- something that he mentally noted. Unapologetic, in-a-rush male lives in that building. As a matter of fact, there were many things he needed to take note of. The location of things, the people, the powers, and what all of that could mean for him. They could very well become human pawns, or perhaps willing helpers should they ever find a way back home. LA was the world he wanted to make his. This one -- well -- he hadn't decided. Well, 37 hadn't decided. Five wished to call this home. Two had a strong desire to destroy it. The other four thought it would be funny to go around and declare himself the mayor. And the last one, Paul, well...Paul was too stubborn to have an opinion.

And that's what he always was. Stubborn. He must have still been sore about Alpha killing him and stealing his mind. Really, it was so petty. And it hadn't even done him any good anyway, so why was Paul getting all bent out of shape over it? Alpha shook his head. For now, he had more pressing concerns. Finding himself a place to stay.