I toyed with the idea of making an elec^3 blaster way back in Havens, mostly because I was a little disappointed with blaster Jack’s then-anemic psi damage on teams. (Mind you, this was before Incarnates…or before I knew much about effective IO/slotting combos.) Also, the end drain on elec was very tempting to me, because it’s a lot more fun to BE a Sapper, than face one. :P Now, all I needed was a concept. That actually came pretty quick. I’ve always thought the Mu were pretty badass as an enemy group. Red lightning that holds you and sucks your end away? Yikes!
So, at that point, I’d decided to make Scarlet Heretic an ex-Mu Guardian. The problem I had at the time is that Erik’s backstory and personality wouldn’t fit very well in Havens. I felt that it’d cause a lot of friction and tension, so I opted not to put him there. I don’t know if anyone else can appreciate the irony of that now, but I know I can. Anyway, after the split, I thought he’d fit well in SCC. Problem is, we never seemed to have the time or interest to RP him in, and truth be told, he’d have just probably sat there anyway. Fast forward to after Tommy became an officer. I was looking for someone I could make an alt for when I needed a break from Tommy. So….I took him redside.
Now that you have his OOC history, let me tell you who Erik IS.
Erik Waechter was born and raised in Augsburg, Germany. His father and uncle owned a successful locksmith and safe building business. Growing up, Erik learned the business, showing a real aptitude for it. His father planned for Erik to take over the family business when he retired. However, when Erik was nineteen, his father developed a gambling addiction, and the debts owed to this bookie or that put his family in serious financial trouble.
With no legitimate way to raise money quickly, Erik turned his experience with locks and safes to another application, becoming a thief. Over a period of six months, he’d stolen enough to pay off his father’s debts. However, after a particularly big score, Erik began to realize that he enjoyed being a thief. The challenge and excitement were intoxicating, and the payouts were more than he’d make running his father’s business. When his ‘sideline’ came to light, he parted from his family after a bitter fight with his father, and moved to New York.
After a couple years in New York, his name started to become known in the criminal underworld as a master thief and safecracker. He started being called for higher-profile, high-risk jobs. One of them took him to Paragon City, where a botched bank job in Atlas Park landed Erik in the Zig. After four months on the inside, Erik found himself freed during an Arachnos prison and decided to set up shop in St. Martial. That was where everything changed.
He re-established his reputation and clientele, and found himself right back in the life he loved. One day, he was hired with some others to pull a heist on the Giza. The theft was thwarted by a group of Arachnos patrons, one of which was an elder Mu Guardian, who discovered that Erik, unbeknownst to even himself, had a powerful natural Mu bloodline. Seeing the potential in him, the Guardian convinced Erik that if he consented to joining the Mu Mystics, not only would he get off scot-free for the botched heist, but he’d find a powerful ally in Arachnos.
Erik accepted the offer, and became a Mu Mystic, rising quickly in both rank and power. However, the restless thief chafed under the strict rule of his elders and after three years, he’d had enough. He crept out of the Mu compound one night, stopping to steal an ancient helm from the Mu armory. What he didn’t know is that the helm served as a prison for the soul of an ancient Mu archmage named Loraan. When Erik put the helm on his head, Loraan’s soul bound itself to his. Erik’s bloodline prevents Loraan from seizing control of his body, but Erik cannot separate Loraan’s spirit from his.
Loraan’s spirit cannot rest because, in ancient times, he was a guardian for a Mu priestess whom he also loved. However, he failed to protect her, and she died during the last Mu-Circle of Thorns war. Grieving, and guilt-stricken, Loraan bound his soul to his helm, never to rest until he’d found a way to erase his failure. Unfortunately for Loraan, though, he doesn’t have the power to compel Erik to help him with his quest. Erik has struck a bargain of sorts with the bound spirit of the mystic. In exchange for his aid, Loraan has sworn to teach Erik the ancient secrets of the Mu long lost to Scirocco’s Mystics.
Now, Erik has returned to being a master thief, but now he also steals knowledge and magic artifacts, looking for clues in Loraan’s quest, and selling what he can’t use. He frequents the Kingsmen Club, and through them has made contact with Titan Enterprises. He has accepted employment with the mercenary firm as a way to establish more contacts, and make more money.
Erik’s one of those characters that I like, even if no one else does. I’m curious to see how he fits in with Titan. He’s respectful of his superiors, and his colleagues, if a bit detached. However, he knows he’s good, so he won’t allow himself to be pushed around. He won’t respond with chest-thumping alpha behavior, just more a sense of ‘I don’t really care what you think, I know my own worth.” He likes what he does, and who he is.
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