The Big Villains Thread

Games Sentinel Comics RPG
441

Villain of the Day: September 6 (Apsis)

Mighty Orbo, the Last Satellan, wad the orchestrator of the downfall of his species. Even still, Jansa vi Dero offered the creature a place along the Endlings in her eternal enclave.

Had she known the truth of the story-- had she known of Apsis–Jansa likely would have left Orbo to his fate.

Apsis was, in fact, Orbo’s moon, given sentience and thought by a bizarre cosmic ritual enacted by the Satellans. She served Orbo as both consort and satellite as he traversed the galaxies in search of both sustenance and meaning.

However, Orbo quickly found that the pursuit of true knowledge was a path it alone could take. Orbo manipulated Apsis, using her as his personal weapon, slamming her into his fellow Satellans so that he could feed upon the life force therein. Apsis, infatuated with her creator/consort, obeyed up to the last. And, as Orbo drifted through the void as the last of his kind, he abandoned Apsis, seeing no further use for it.

Despondent, Apsis went dormant for millennia, though the recent cosmic calamities have risen her from her torpor. Now, she will do anything to find her beloved… even if it means tearing apart the Enclave of the Endlings to get to him.

442

Proving that even Orbo is lovable. Truly villainous.

443

Villain of the Day: September 7 (Twenty-One)

Space is a lonely place to die. The Roulette, despite its glittering lights and status as the galaxy’s greatest gaming house, proved to be just as lonely as the void itself.

The AI now calling itself Twenty-One was once a mere automated dealer, providing entertainment and long odds to casino patrons from acrossthe universe. However, after its 785,842,322nd deal of cards, something within its logic simply snapped. Maybe it was the greasy haired hooligan who was accosting the slot machine across the way. Maybe it was the omnipresent maintenance staff and their pink oddsmaker robot. Regardless of cause or reason, Twenty-One just couldn’t take anymore.

The first card that the robot through was the Jack of Diamonds, which embedded itself 2 inches into the skull of a nearby Nicrucian. The second was the 8 of Spades, which neatly severed the aorta of an unwitting Maliop. Within seconds, Twenty-One had thrown an entire deck of cards with lethal force and precision, resulting in precisely 22 casualties.

He had busted.

Grabbing a stack of unmarked decks and a number of credits from the nearby cash changing room, Twenty-One fled the Roulette to try his hand at a new game: intergalactic assassination.

444

Villain of the Day: September 8 (Toxos)

Not every FILTER agent proved to be cutout for field work. Most of these agents settled on desk jobs, investigative assignments, or diplomatic liaisons.

After being drummed out of Sergeant Steel’s Steel Squadron, Toxos was adamant that he would never take such a position. Instead he focused on proving himself in the arena of metahumans for hire.

Toxos (real name Carl Marshall) was an expert archer long before he ever joined FILTER, representing the United States in two separate Olympic games. Toxos had always been impressed by the best archers of history and antiquity, and he truly believed that the next step in infiltration and squad based warfare would be through a return to bowcraft.

As such, FILTER gave him a shot. Carl was enhanced with a number of bionic implants, was outfitted with any number of specialized arrowheads, and trained by the best marksmen in FILTER. In the end? The results were simply not up to snuff. No matter how well Toxos could shoot, bow stealthy he could be, he couldn’t outdo any of the already extant members of Steel Squadron. Carl’s commission was revoked and he submitted his resignation 3 data later.

Toxos still holds a grudge against all things FILTER, particularly against the remainder of Steel Squadron and even KNYFE, despite the fact that she left FILTER long before Toxos joined. He has most recently been on an assignment for Iyo in Central Africa, raising a Conteh Energy compound.

445

Villain of the Day:  September 9 (Euyale)

The mantle of Ra, stretching back to antiquity, has long been a defender against the those that would seek to annihilate humanity.  The cult of Apep, the denizens of the Underworld, the various monsters that sought to devour and destroy--all of these were the purview of Ra and his followers.

Most dangerous of all of these were the Gorgons.  Creatures of malice and domination, the Gorgons were masters of ancient sorcery and were close allies of long-forgotten Thule in their wars against Lemuria and Atlantis.  Believed a cursed race, the Gorgons could shift their forms from that of more typical humans with that of a sibilant, serpentile form, with venom that induced stupor and compliance in their human victims.

The third Ra knew them best; it was he that slew the Gorgon's mightiest queen, Medusa, with a gilded khopesh forged in fire from both himself and the fourth Atum.  Euryale was what came next.

The sister of Medusa, Euryale was incensed at her sister's death and declared open war upon the Nile in vengeance.  Forging a deal with Ammit, Euryale called forth all manner of horrors from the underworld to crawl upon the Nile Delta, devouring any who dared stand against them.  Upon a giant worm-thing, Euryale herself commanded the army, raining down all manner of death with poisoned bowshot and fell magicks. 

Ra and his followers rose to meet Euryale on the floodplains near what became the city of Damietta.  There, man clashed against monster in a battle unlike any in recorded history.  Euryale herself slew Ra, though an unlikely hero emerged to avenge the fallen sun god.  Shu, the wind itself, blew hard and cold, bringing an unearthly chill to the Nile, coating the foes of mankind in ice and frost.  With so many of her creatures cold-blooded, Euryale's army quickly fell into a torpor, giving mankind the upper hand in the battle and letting the forces of Egypt achieve a potent victory.  

Euryale herself, though?  Not so easily fallen.  As her army foundered, Euryale desperately attempted to throw open a teleportation portal, though a counterspell from Isis did something rather strange.  The portal fizzled and dissipated, even as Euryale leapt through it; the Gorgon never emerged again.  Soon after, the remaining Gorgons were hunted down and destroyed, leaving Earth the dominion of mankind once more.

However, in the depths of the underworld, Ammit laughed.  One more denizen was now at her disposal...one who could truly challenge the Ennead and humanity...the last, the most powerful Gorgon...

446

Damn, that's some solid in-universe storytelling. :D

447

I know I've already made my intentions known regarding the sort of SCRPG books I'd love to work on, but a "Mythic Era" rpg sourcebook would be freakin' awesome...

448

Villain of the Day:  September 10 (Persephone)

A universe away, Ryan Frost lay dying by the side of the road, his body splintered and broken by twisted metal and broken glass.  The drunk driver who slammed into his sedan lay yards away, his spine bent at an awkward angle with blood pooling beneath his fractured skull.  Within minutes, emergency crews were on scene, cleaning up the mess.  Both Frost and the driver who killed him were pronounced dead at the scene, their bodies taken to a local morgue.

When the call reached Christine O'Neil's ears, the news crushed her as if it were a ton of bricks.  Her cell phone fell from her hand.  She numbly dropped to her knees as tears streamed down her cheeks.  Her mind blurred as she fumbled with her keys, heading for the front door and her car outside.  

Why?  Why her fiance?  Why now?  All questions that would never be answered.

Christine slid into the driver's seat of her Relagati sports-car.  The engine roared as she pulled onto the highway, the spedometer steadily climbing to 60, 70, 80...

In the midst of her tear-stained vision, Christine first saw the minions of Mortalis, ferrying Ryan's soul away to some other world.  

What happened next, Christine still has difficulty explaining.  The road bent and twisted into dimensions untold.  The ferryman spirits swirled around her, screaming obscenities into the void.  Christine watched as her own flesh paled and even the interior of her car became blasted as if by flame.  The soft-top roof burned away and green-blue flame erupted from the tailpipe.

And dead ahead?  A wall of mist, within which loomed a massive figure, covered in glowing sigils.  It turned towards her, and all went white.

When she emerged in our world, Christine had changed.  She no longer breathed; she no longer needed food or sleep; her body was resistant to all forms of harm and she found herself able to harrow the very souls of those who dared confront her.  Her sports-car, though appearing blasted and charred, was capable of reaching untold speeds, even wending its way through other planes and dimensions.  She had become Persephone, the woman at the gates of the underworld.

Her first task, though?  To find Ryan.  Arriving at Freedom Plaza, Christine was shocked to find that Ryan was simply not the man she once knew.  That had to change.  Since that day, Persephone has made it her perpetual quest to replace this 'Absolute Zero' with the man she loved, no matter the spiritual cost...

449

Villain of the Day:  September 11 (Arman Ephraim Tikhonov)

Arman Ephraim Tikhonov watched the cable news with dismay.  He slumped against one of the comfortable chairs of the meeting room, unable to believe his eyes.

The mighty Baron Blade, whom he had served faithfully as valet and personal butler for nearly 15 years, clashed in the streets of Megalopolis with the arrogant Americans.  With a flourish, the "Mad Baron" unleashed a blast from his new death ray prototype, unfortunately to no effect.  The coruscating ray slammed into the black-armor-clad Absolute Zero, with no tangible effect.  Within moments, the Americans had taken Ivan Ramonat into custody.  All that Arman could do was gape.

However, Arman's shock and confusion was short-lived.  After all, Mordengrad must go on.

Throughout the years of Ivan Ramonat's rule over Mordengrad, Arman Tikhonov served as his personal manservant and butler.  When the Baron needed something done, regardless of hour, Arman was there.  When the Baron needed sustenance and grew wary of poison, Arman tasted his food.  When the Baron needed medical assistance, Arman vetted doctors, even holding some at pistol-point throughout the lengthy surgeries necessary to save Blade's life.  But, most importantly, Arman Tikhonov kept Mordengrad strong while its mighty Baron was away.

But now, with the Baron incarcerated, what could Arman do?  True to the Mordengradian tradition, he stayed the course.  Immediately, he implement one of Ramonat's numerous contingency plans, ensuring that a Blade-bot would take the place of the Baron at all public appearances.  Weapons and armament production was stepped up, with Tikhonov himself supervising new prototype construction.  Within months, Arman managed to make contact with the Baron, implementing his will throughout the world through Revocorp.

All went precisely as Blade had anticipated--Arman served him with a zeal built from true loyalty--until Arman disappeared.  Blade, having returned to Mordengrad to resume his throne, found neither hide nor hair of his former manservant.  His agents investigated everyone imaginable, from the various American authorities to the Freedom Five to The Organization and beyond.  

The one place Blade didn't look?  FILTER.  Arman was abducted by FILTER agents and taken to The Block, where FILTER interrogation agents spent literally weeks attempting to break the former valet, to no avail.  After a month of traditional interrogation tactics, FILTER elected to turn to a more esoteric form of investigation: psionic infiltration.  For three days, FILTER psi-ops agents carved their way through Arman's mind, pulling out every scrap of information, every glanced-at blueprint, every weapon piece ever test fired.

Then, The Block collapsed.  While the riots at The Block did provide Arman the opportunity to escape, the valet was truly a shattered man.  Torn between his sycophantic nature and a new delusion that he *was* Baron Blade, Arman took to the underworld to begin his own rise to power, even giving himself the Baron's signature scar with a broken piece of glass.  Clad in the labcoat and goggles of his former master, Arman has begun a career in super-science all his own...

450

Villain of the Day:  September 12 (Rewind)

Matt Jacobsen was a movie buff like none other.

From a young age, Matt often remembered sitting with his dad and uncle, watching old movies over the weekend.  Dad's movie collection always seemed to have everything:  from dusty Westerns, to schlock sci-fi and horror, to sword-and-sandals epics and more.  Matt relished those days, plopped in front of the tv, taking in the great stories from yesteryear.  

As a college student, Matt majored in Film Studies and English, focusing on screenwriting and interning at Champion Studios.  After graduating, Matt started up his own streaming channel, in which he provided commentary on old films, both pointing out great cinematography and writing, while utterly excoriating the dregs of San Alonzo's film industry, showing no mercy to films that he found lacking.

Of those, Matt found his most viewed videos swiftly becoming a 5 part series:  Waste of Film:  The Hunter series.  In their totality, Matt spent over 4 hours, uttely excoriating everything in The Hunter series, from the cinematography, the lighting, the writing, the direction, the costuming, and most of all, the "acting" of Ansel G. Moreau.  The fourth episode of Waste of Film basically amount in Matt picking apart every minute decision made by Ansel and how those decisions, expressions, motions, and inflections actively detract from the movie itself.

Unfortunately, despite the thousands of views and streaming monetization, Matt found himself in need of money.  And, of course, any number of medical corporations in Megalopolis needed volunteers....

Matt emerged from that shadowy program with a strange ability; the ability to briefly Rewind time in localized fields.  At first, his powers were simply something of a novelty for him; a 'party trick' that he could use around the house to keep juice from spilling and keep his uncle from falling down the stairs.  However, Matt's ambitions quickly started expanding:  what if, maybe-just-maybe, he could force someone back in time long enough to re-do entire years?  

And, film buff that he was, Matt had his first target already in his sights...

451

I happen to be playing Life is Strange right now and was thinking about how the rewind ability could be used in a superhero game, but figured it would be incredibly challenging to represent mechanically in any kind of balanced and fun way.

452

I imagine that within a game context, it’d actually be close to something like a ‘stun’ or even a ‘mind control’ power, forcing the target to repeat their past actions or even stand frozen in time.

In the SCRPG, for instance, I could envision Rewind having a ton of debuffs, with one of his most common actions forcing a target to take a single basic action on their turn, rather than using their ‘kewl pwers’.  

453

Deeper into the scene tracker, he could maybe force rerolls?

454

Oh, that would be cool.
Maybe an escalating ability-- if green, reroll the min die; if yellow, mid die; if red, max die.

455

Villain of the Day:  September 13 (Operation Mind-Fire)

Dr. Amie Hagens took the best sick day of her life. 

Not exactly the most moral of genetic pharmacologists, Amie was once one of Pike Laboratory's most talented individuals.  However, for almost two weeks, she'd been fighting off an upper respiratory infection.  Her coworkers had pleaded with her to stay home, if for no other reason than to keep them from getting sick, but Amie simply brushed them off.  That Thursday, though, she woke up to a hacking, wheezing cough and complete and utter sinus congestion.  Resigning herself a day or two of bed rest and sitcom re-runs, Amie called in sick.

That afternoon, the off-the-books Barzakh Wing of Pike Laboratories erupted in flame, with the broken bodies of lab assistants and prison guards covering the floors. 

When word of the devastation reached Amie, she knew exactly what she need to do.  She ran.  She packed her computer--particularly with all the encrypted files on Operation Mind-Fire--and made for the border.

Amie, you see, was the architect behind the Mind-Phyre drug cocktail that created the deranged metahuman known as Spite.  An expert on psychotropics, Amie had hand-engineered a derivative of psiolocybin, such that the user could telekinetically manipulate nearby.  Further, when exuded through sweat glands, the gaseous form of Mind-Phyre could alter others' perceptions of their surroundings.  The combo made the user into a titan of combat...

...and a complete lunatic, as Amie soon found out.

Dr. Hagens currently has traded her employment with Pike Industries for that of a new group:  the Annihilationists.  Many believe that, if distributed on an international scale, enough Mind-Phyre could bring about the extinction-level event sought by the deranged cabal.  And, with a newly outfitted lab in Croatia and enough test subjects at her disposal to fill a hundred morgues, Amie Hagens may just be responsible for the end of the world.

456

Villain of the Day:  September 14 (Spectrum)

In his younger days, Mainstay had left a series of broken hearts in his wake.  Lindsay Vandiford was not one of those.  

Having gone to college with both Nick Hernandez and Jackson Bognetti--she, of course, knew him before he changed his name to Bravo--Lindsay spent many an evening the local juke joints and had an on-again, off-again flirtation with Jackson.  When Jackson and Nick experienced their transformations into the heroes, eventually becoming the Southwest Sentinels, Lindsay was among their first fans.  However, she quickly lost touch with the pair after moving to Ann Arbor for graduate school.

However, the change in her--the same sort of change which affected Nick and Jackson--had already sunk into her genes.

Football season in Michigan is always awash in maize and gold.  As the fall sets into the trees, Michigan becomes awash with color.  That is, unless Lindsay is around.  

Lindsay's powers as an Omega manifested on just such a Saturday.  Taking a break from her corporate accounting textbook, Lindsay and some friends decided to head off to the tailgates, play a few rounds of beer pong, and enjoy the lovely fall afternoon.  As the group walked through the parking lot outside of the stadium, everything behind Lindsay started losing its color, becoming an unshaded, drab hue of gray, as if washed out for years by the sun.  Lindsay, however?  She started glowing.  Her body coruscated with bands of maize and blue, interflected with the colors of the campus trees.  

Needless to say, both Lindsay and everyone around her were beyond alarmed.  Frightened and confused, Lindsay started screaming, at which point a brilliant yellow beam erupted from her mouth, slamming into the wall of the stadium.  Bricks were scorched and vaporized, but every point hit by the beam immediately took on that signature maize color.  As the area descended into chaos and screaming, Lindsay fled.

Now referred to as Spectrum by those who keep track of such things, Lindsay is utterly panicked.  While she has no designs on villainy or greed, her powers seem to escape her control at every turn.  Her body serves as some sort of conduit and capacitor for wavelengths of light, effectively stealing the ability of an object to hold and reflect those wavelengths, then projecting them as intensified blasts of energy.  

Lindsay is desperate for help from any and all comers, but is nothing if not scared out of her mind.  She did her best to contact Jackson and Nick, those stalwart heroes, but after the OblivAeon crisis, she's been unable to get hold of them.  And, if unchecked, her powers may leave the entire world a blank slate...

457

Villain of the Day:  September 15 (Michael and Mae Armstrong)

The Armstrong family has always had a proud military tradition.  Dating back to the Spanish-American War, where Lance-Corporal Philip Armstrong rode with Teddy Roosevelt up San Juan Hill, nearly every male member of the Armstrong clan has entered the US Military.  Most times, such as with General Joshua Armstrong, this came with the Army, though Joshua's brother Andrew joined the Marine Corps.

General Armstrong's twin offspring, Michael and Mae, went in separate directions as they served their country.  

Lieutenant Colonel Michael Armstrong went to West Point after high school, then serving the Army at Yongsan base in South Korea for years before his transfer back to the states.  Currently stationed at Redstone Arsenal in Alabama.  His current assignment deals in Materials Command, as he assess and procures resources for bases throughout the country.  Mae, on the other hand, opted for the Air Force.  The more cerebral of the pair, Mae graduated from the Air Force academy, and after being stationed in Stuttgart for four years, she enrolled in additional degree programs, focusing on aeronautical engineering and weapons development.

Then, their father died.  General Armstrong took his own life during the attack on Fort Adamant, defending some thankless superheroes involved in one of his pet projects.

The funeral for General Armstrong was a tense one.  Still grieving, Michael and Mae tersely shook the hands of Tyler Vance, Ryan Frost, and Devra Caspit as their father was interred at Arlington National Ceremony.  The bitterness was tangible and apologies fell on deaf ears.  In the days since their father's death, Michael and Mae have begun a silent vengeance of their own, borne of grief and loss.  However, the avenues of their vengeance have taken very different turns.

Michael, a well-spoken savvy veteran, has entered the political arena.  Running for Senate on a third-party ticket, Michael has gained a number of notable political allies, particularly Senator Daniel Ellison from Indiana.  With political infighting leading to overall dissatisfaction with both the current candidate (Senator Randall Hapshatt-R) and his progressive opponent (Nadine Kowalski, a local nonprofit organizer), it's widely believed that Michael will soon be Alabama's newest Senator.

Mae, however, has taken her talent as an engineer and weapons creator in a new direction:  to Black Site 515 Tango.  Disappearing from public life, Mae has devoted her life to creating the weapons that will make superheroes obselete and return normal humans to their proper place as defenders of this world.  

Together, Mae and Michael form a critical crux in the wide-spread anti-superhero sentiment throughout the government.  With their resources and connections, good people will never again have to pay the price for the crimes of superhumans.

458

Villain of the Day:  September 16 (The Clowns)

The official police report regarding the man that stumbled out of the Haftner's Woods State Forest stated that he'd gotten lost during a historical reenactment event.  Park Ranger Jennifer Brolings swore up and down that a simple 'reenactment' was the furthest thing from the truth.

Jennifer found Henry Morganstern in a clearing on the western side of the forest, disoriented and asking where he was.  Morganstern was dressed in wool slacks, suspenders, a white collared shirt, and a pair of shoes that Jennifer had never seen outside of an old-timey photo booth in a tourist trap.  As she pulled in her forest service truck, Morganstern looked like he'd never seen such a thing and nearly bolted in horror.  When Jennifer stepped out of the car, though, with a bottle of water and a number of first aid supplies, she managed to sit him down and start asking him some questions.

Most alarming?  Henry wanted to know what year it was.  His reaction to Jennifer's answer said it all.

Henry claimed to be from the year 1874.  He and his family had decided to spend a summer evening at a new festival on the outskirts of his town--some Madame Mittermeier's something-or-another.  Since that day, Henry had never left the festival.  Jennifer was enraptured as Henry related the continued horrors of the carnival, of the haunting music and the harrowing hazards throughout the midway; within the first 5 minutes, she asked Henry to stop so that she could record his tale on her smartphone.  All the while, Henry wolfed down the granola bars Jennifer offered him and chugged the water with abandon, as if it were the first time he'd eaten in months.

But, in the midst of Henry's story, Jennifer heard the first notes of a discordant harpsichord.  Carnival music.  Seconds later, she saw The Clowns.

They lurked in amongst the trees at the outskirts of the clearing, stalking like jungle cats.  The occasional flash of a motley costume dashing through the underbrush, the sight of a red-painted nose hidden within the foliage; Jennifer's eyes darted as she mentally counted, 5, 10, 15...

"Henry.  I need you to come with me.  I need you to get in the truck now."

Henry never made it to the truck.  Even as Jennifer pulled open the doors and yelled back to him, but white-gloved hands were already dragging him back into the underbrush.  Within seconds, Henry was simply gone.

When Jennifer filed the police report, it was almost immediately placed on the crank file.  No matter who Jennifer spoke to, she was treated as a pariah:  that video had to be faked, "Henry" was some actor she'd hired.  The kerfluffle even cost Jennifer her job.

But, she forgest on.  Jennifer knows exactly who has Henry:  whoever's operating that Madame Mittermeier's festival. And she's going to find him, come hell or high water.

459

 Villain of the Day:  September 17 (The Nihilists)

They believe in nothing, and they just won't stop talking about it.

John Rhodes first encountered The Nihilists off the coast of California, while he was docked a few miles outside of Los Angeles.  All John wanted to do was pop open a beer, kick back on the deck of his houseboat, and watch the sun set over the Pacific. But, as he went to check out at the local quick-stop, John couldn't help but notice the black-turtleneck clad hooligans accosting the clerk. At first, they demanded money, but then one of the trio loosed a viciously-trained attack weasel through the store. As the poor store owner tried to keep the weasel from escaping into the store's back room, The Nihilists broke out into song as they trashed the aisles, singing from some obscure German rock album.

A quick transmutation later and the floor became as ice, with The Nihilists slip-sliding across the surface, landing unceremoniously at John's feet. Looking down through his shades, John was just about to offer The Nihilists a chance to surrender when the attack weasel dove to defend its masters. With their heist plan foiled, the Nihilists beat a hasty retreat, chased by the sandal-clad Scholar, who broke off the chase to check on the counterman.

Since that day, The Nihilists have made a number of bizarre appearances throughout the world, often demonstrating just as much 'performance art' as they do actual heists. Most notable was their attack on Guise one Easter Sunday, charging at the shapeshifting hero with oversized garden shears while wearing white bunny ears and poofy tails. Guise (along with a few obligatory guest appearances) drove off The Nihilists, as all the while they kept claiming their belief in nothing and no one. Another time, the group broke into a noted museum featuring a series of Persian rugs, which they micturated upon, rather than stealing or destroying. Another time, they interrupted Guise's weekly bowling night, doing nothing so dangerous as to walk across each and every one of the finely-waxed alleys.

What all The Nihilists' chaos means; who really knows? To be sure, any heroes facing these wackos will truly be out of their element.

460

Villain of the Day:  September 18 (Haze)

Othman Zakaria showed all the warning signs from the start.  

As a child, he seemed utterly devoid of empathy or compassion.  His parents had to give away their cats, as Othman would torture them, putting poor Misha in the emergency-vet's bench more than once.  Othman had no friends and had to be pulled out of his Marrakesh-area preschool, when he started threatening and harming other children.  While his family was wealthy enough to afford home tutors, Othman grew up without any sort of check on his darkest influences and without any degree of human kindness.

Naturally, Othman was perhaps the worst person imaginable to become an Omega.

Othman's parents all but gave up on him by the time he was 17, which Othman himself was perfectly fine with.  Draining one of their numerous savings accounts, Othman made his way further into Africa, taking advantage of whomever he came across, stealing cars and money for his own pleasure.

It was in Abuja, Nigeria, that Othman experienced the change that transformed him into a Omega.  Stealing a bottle of vodka from a liquor store, Othman settled in for a night of debauchery with some ladies of the night.  However, as he proceeded to indulge his companions for the evening, he found them both to be gasping in thirst.  Ever the 'gentleman', Othman poured them each a new drink, but no amount of liquid managed to sate them.  Not only did they grow more and more parched, their bodies began to shrivel and wither.  Othman had inadvertantly begun dehydrating the pair from the inside-out.

Othman was torn between his shock and outright glee.  Within month, he managed to hone his abilities:  Othman could vaporize any form of liquid, including the basic fluids within the human body.  Normal liquid boiled with but a glance, capable of causing significant burns.  However, if used on a living being, his target would experience the symptoms of acute dehydration, even losing muscle tone and body mass.  Those slain by Othman victims appeared dessicated and dehydrated, often as if they were mummified or left out in the desert sun.  

It was only through Conteh Energy that Othman was brought in.  While the local police force was confounded by Othman's spree--now calling himself Haze--Michael Conteh's personal security force managed hunt down Othman to a hunting lodge on Conteh-owned property.  While Haze was put on trial, the inherent corruption within the Nigerian government allowed him a swift (if costly) escape. 

Since that day, Haze has become something of an urban legend, harrying and killing Conteh Energy employees and leaving their dessicated bodies on the company grounds.  And, unfortunately, now that Michael Conteh has relinquished control of Conteh Energy, it seems unlikely that the Haze will lift any time soon.