E. E. Thomas

NAME:
Edwin Edsel "E.E." Thomas

AGE:
62

GENDER:
Male

NATIONALITY:
'Merican

BIRTHPLACE:
Boston, Massachusetts

BIRTHDATE:
April 6, 1950

PICTURE:

Spoiler:

PERSONAL DETAILS

DESCRIPTION:
Thomas is a bit of a paradox. While largely a calm and gentle soul, and having some progressive ideas from time-to-time, he does not always appear to be a welcoming person. He's aged quite well, though the years are beginning to catch up to him. His white skin has a patchwork of scars along his torso and arms, and crows feet are beginning to develop. His brown hair has begun to thin out a bit and has already receded. However, the most striking detail is his eyes: a lovely, welcoming shade of green, but cold and distant from years of doing what needed to be done.

In terms of clothing, as President, he's often found in suits, button-up shirts, ties, and wingtip shoes. His hair, although short, is brushed to give a nicer appearance, and he's known for a friendly greeting and a warm smile.

Inferis is another story altogether. Gone is a professional look and one of modern civility, instead replaced by a darker time in his life. A cross between the cutting edge and times of olde, the basis is largely inspired by his uniform in Vietnam. While it appears to be just plain black clothes, nano-armor has been applied to the fabric itself, and a layer of liquid armor is worn underneath, so as to disperse the energy of physical attacks more effectively. Several pockets exist on the jacket and pants, filled with various goodies from his time hoofing it through the streets, jungles, and rivers of Vietnam. While very plain, some medieval-style armor does exist on his person. Layered shoulderpads, bracers, and leg coverings help cover him for what little value and comfort that is. It contrasts with his black clothing, as each time he appears in Inferis it is back to its brand-new silvery sheen, completely spotless from whatever horrid attacks they helped protect him from previously. Although this is rather light in terms of protection, he was trained to rely on stealth, tactics, and sheer range whenever possible.


PERSONALITY:
Thomas is, as a human being, a largely kind person. More than a devoted believer in the Bible, he also tries his best to live by His code. While some religious folks claim to help the poor, it is often nothing but words or mentions of charity. Thomas doesn't believe in that sort of action, and instead acts to do better for those less fortunate. He donates to charities, volunteers, gives sermons, and is known to be a loving husband and caring father.

He is, however, known to be a slightly intolerant person. While he believes most science is the result of God's influence, he's known to be enraged by certain acts, studies, products, and such. The topics of Gay Marriage and Abortion, for example, will set him off on what many will consider an uncharacteristic religious flurry of words slung back at the perpetrator.

His morality, believe it or not, is largely gray, and he has a very fatalist attitude towards his involvement with the Templars. He believes in good, and tries to do good. He is well aware that killing is wrong, and is even against the death penalty. However, at the same rate, he knows it is his duty. As a soldier, he was tasked with neutralizing civilians in the name of the government. Now, sometimes, he's asked to do the same thing in God's name, and for the greater good of mankind. He is aware that he has sinned, and doesn't like to make an exception for himself. He truly wants to do good, and, being Catholic, confesses to a Templar-affiliated priest after every mission he goes on for the Order.

Behind closed doors, Thomas takes on the mantle of a Paladin, and as such becomes a much more serious man. The Templars provide a structure similar to his time in the Navy, and as such he often falls in line with the chain of command, regardless of the fact that he's far up on the ladder.

Thomas isn't known for being particularly intelligent, but is very much clever in the fact that he's resourceful and opportunistic. From growing up in Boston to his time in the SEALS, he's grown used to scanning his surroundings for just about any advantage he can get.

HISTORY:
E. E. Thomas was born into a simple, but rough, life. The middle child of 5, times were tough in his youth. Food was short, money was tight, and his siblings weren't particularly kind in response to the lack of resources. Even in school, he wasn't a model student, often getting in trouble and got used to the idea of capital punishment.

Moving in-and-out of schools, he had little interest in his education and, instead, wanted to get away from his family entirely. Dropping out of high school once he hit 18, he made his way to the closest Enlistment Office and signed up. His choice, ultimately, was the Navy, as the Army and Marine recruiters were out to lunch at the time (and the Air Force is for pansies). Soon he found himself shipped off to bootcamp, and was in for the ride of his life.

Adjusting to such a drastic change was rough to say the least, but Thomas was faced with something that had never been in his life before: stability. The previous troublemaker soon became a prime example of a sailor, and so when he requested to join the SEALS, he was given a tentative go-ahead. The test was rough, but he was more than willing to work towards it in order to serve his country better. However, the training ahead of him was even longer and tougher. 18 more months of training, and he finally was able to call himself a SEAL.

It was 1970, and the Vietnam Conflict was still raging on. He was sent over and put under the watchful eyes of the CIA to take part in their Phoenix Program. Its purpose was to use surgical strikes to neutralize (kill, capture, or convert) high-value targets, largely those operating in South Vietnam. Thomas, for his luck in the matter, found himself doing a lot of operations requiring stealth, tact, and targeted killing. He did things that he would never be able to undo, or forget. And, unfortunately, he saw things that fell into the same category.

In 1973, even as the US began withdrawing its forces, he signed another contract. He had the regretful duty for being one of the last US serviceman to leave Vietnam, knowing the inevitable course that history would soon take. He stuck with the SEALS until May 1984, when his third contract was fulfilled. He was part of SEAL Team 6 in the Invasion of Grenada, tasked with securing the island's only radio tower. Things, unfortunately, didn't go well, due to an overall lack of accurate information, hasty preparations, and a rushed briefing on the mission at large. Having stood against united Grenadian and Cuban forced with light armor support for a considerable amount of time, he and the remnants of Team 6 retreated to the water during a lull, hid away, and swam their way to open sea until they were extracted.

The experience was rather tough on Thomas. He grew up in a religious house, and although he wasn't an atheist, he had never contemplated on life all that much. His time holed up in the deathtrap of a radio tower, seeing his close friends get gunned down, and reflecting on all he had done over the past 15 years took a toll on his mind. He left the Navy honorably, though the lessons he took from his final days continued to haunt him.

Adjusting to civilian life was hard for him. He found an apartment using the money he socked away for the previous 15 years, and picked up a job just to bide his time. He did continued exercising, and started reading. He reunited with his family, and started doing better by them. He began volunteering, and going to church. He read the Bible. Day by day, his life seemed to be renewed with purpose, growing ever stronger.

In 1985, he released a book titled Scenes from my Memories: a Tale of Sins and Retributions. In it, he described (as best he could while tip-toeing around government censors) his life, looking back on it from a strange perspective: a hardened, but Bible-following, serviceman. It was part autobiography, part tale of retribution, and it scored well with military buffs, ex-military personnel having trouble adjusting to civilian life, and the religious alike. This is also what happened to catch the attention of the Templar.

His first meeting with the Templar Order occurred during the censorship phase. He had expected to be meeting with a government official, as some of the details he wrote about may very well could've been classified still. The talk he had with the liaison was surprising, to say the least. Although he could not explain all of what he had seen in Vietnam, from the sacrificed children to corpses that looked like something exploded out of them, and the beast that haunted the jungle, he had never once truly thought what calling it “the Demon” would've been accurate.

Thomas, though, was sympathetic and empathetic to the cause. A devout religious man at heart, he couldn't deny that the people he had killed were required for a higher cause, although the authorities between the two (the US government versus God) were vast. He was soon drafted into a local team of Crusaders, doing charitable works during the day and putting his SEAL training to use at night. He managed to work his way up the chain of command, being respected for his experience and precision, and found himself as the Crusader-General in 1992. In 93, he found himself married, and with it he also expanded his charity. With more free reign, he focused more and more time on Templar business, though with the introduction of his first child, he had a momentary crisis of faith.

It was 1997. His firstborn was growing to a point where she'd need a father around the house. Wanting to continue contributing to the good fight, the Templars arranged for a rather unique opportunity for him: politics. He was a man with a name, life experiences, and, to the public at large, a bold outlook. A Dark Horse in the House of Representatives that year, the media proclaimed his victory as a voice from the masses signifying change, although the Order likely had a hand in the results. Officially, he was an Independant, running on a platform hat many criticized was a Frankenstein Monster of Democrat and Republican policies. More spending on social programs, more taxes on companies, but also infamously against Gay Rights and the issue of Abortion were those pointed out most commonly. Still, he continued to run for re-election, running Crusader affairs in his spare time and also lending assistance to the Blackhaven wing whenever possible. In 2004, he took advantage of John Kerry's presidential bid and slid into the Senate office, as well as also being invited to become on of the prestigious Paladins.

2006 was, since he was invited to become a Templar, the most interesting point in his life. George W. Bush died in office, leaving and growing sentiment against the Republican party led to a rather unique position for the Templars. Thomas, with support from the Order, took his bid to the Republican party. After all, they were a group of religious folk, all Christians of one sect or another, and told it to them straight: they were out of touch. Although his own views didn't align with the established party line, he pointed out that there were many benefits to adapting to the new times, and to be better Christians.

The 2008 election turned into a strange show. Former Senator John Edwards was the Democratic nominee, despite being seen as an underdog during the primaries, and Thomas' own unanimous backing from the Republican party shocked the nation. The election was long, and filled with other twists and turns, but in the end Thomas won. He had achieved what few Templars had managed: to become the President of the United States.

Thomas took many of his campaign promises to heart. Welfare programs were better backed, military funding increased, and he took the War on Terror very seriously. It was to no one's surprise when he advised sending SEAL Team 6 to raid a compound in Pakistan, and was reported as giving a wide grin upon watching the feed. He contributed the success as a result of better funding for the intelligence networks, and is planning to use it as one of many examples of his successes in his first term.

The year is 2012. Thomas is preparing his his second campaign to run for President, although he knows that encumbrances are vastly more likely to stay in office. He's continued his work as a Paladin, using the resources of an entire country to help aid the Order without question or hesitation, although he has grown wary of the resulting calm since 2011...


SKILLS:
Speech, leadership, religious studies, marksmanship, accomplished bear rider, squad-based tactics, politics, covert operations, particularly sharp vision

WEAKNESSES:
Appropriate acids, paralysis, using his family against him, his pride, interpreting the Bible wrong, his feels, snakes (anything but snakes)

COLOURS COLORS*:
English (Orange), Demonic (Red), Latin (Yellow).

TRIVIA:

- Roman Catholic
- Russian politician Vladimir Putin has been said to have modeled his image after Thomas. This, however, has neither been confirmed nor denied by Putin.
- Feats: Leadership, Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot...
- Confesses to a Tempar-affiliated priest very often (at least bi-weekly).
- Suggested the Templars influence John Edwards into the Democratic nominee position in 2008, figuring he was an easier target.
- Doesn't have a college degree.

USER DETAILS

ALIAS:
Izzy

OTHER CHARACTERS:
None as of this current moment in the space-time continuum, though I certainly have a few ideas.

ROLEPLAY HISTORY:
Going on 13 years, on-and-off, from forums to IM's to LARPING to tabletop. Longer if you include playing Imagination with other kids on my street when I was young.

FACECLAIM:

Code:

[b]The Legend Of Koizumi[/b] :: [b]Vladimir Putin[/b]

CUSTOM RANK:
Purge the Wicked

I know this isn't finished, but if Vladmir Putin manages to be the best US President in history, I will laugh so hard.

Done. Might want to take a look at the trivia.

I hereby dub thee with a bestowal of [APPROVAL].