The Futile King
"Well, it's no use your talking about waking him," said Tweedledum, "when you're only one of the things in his dream. You know very well you're not real."
~Alice Through the Looking-Glass
~Alice Through the Looking-Glass
THE MYSTERY
Dramatis Persona: The Futile King
Other Names: The Man in the Tower
THE EVERYDAY
Everyday Name: Thomas Francis Kelly
Who are you in your everyday life? Tom Kelly is the CEO of TFK a huge conglomerate with its hands in so many industries it's unclear what exactly it does. Of course, that means he must be a villain with underground labs experimenting on missing teens or building killer robots. Though photos frequently turn up showing him at the most exclusive restaurants and events in The City, no one would ever be able to exactly recall having met him in person.
What are some of your flaws and foibles? Anyone who might have ever visited The Tower might note Tom's fascination with the color white. His office is decorated in white. It's obsessively clean. Perhaps he's actually the avatar of Howard Hughes in his final, troubled years. He's said to spend most of his time staring out the window of his penthouse suite atop said tower, sometimes (it could be said) to distraction. Anyone who might catch a glimpse of the tower from some nearby rooftop might at times catch sight of him there.
What's your deepest fear and/or pain? His greatest fear is that he's the dream and not the dreamer. His greatest pain is that he can't dream what he really wants to dream.
If someone saw you from across the room, how would they describe you? Tom is the epitome of an Avatar on the cusp of losing his humanity. On the outside, his crisp tailored clothes are immaculate while his face looks like he just woke up and hasn't yet shaved (as opposed to someone who consciously cultivates a five o'clock shadow or manicured beard). His eyes are ice blue and a bit distant, as though he's not really looking at what's in front of him but instead is focused on what's just beyond.
Those touched enough to have their own burgeoning Mystery will note that there's a shimmer around him, like a highway in the middle of the summer, heat moving the air, only not rising, but expanding, like the world itself is somehow less solid the closer it gets to him.
THE POWERS
The Sleeper Must Awaken
Type: Adaptation
Description: The Futile King lives in the realm of dreams. With a thought, he can change the world around him, be somewhere else and even fly (though he has to flap his arms like a bird for some unknown reason). He can also peer into people's dreams, though only superficially when they are awake.
Mystery: "What awaits us in dreamless sleep?"
Weakness: His dreams are easily shifted or disrupted by a mere word of distraction or complex thoughts. Like a reverse Bloody Mary the words 'wake up' are like kryptonite when said three times in a row.
Master of the House (Doling out the Charm)
Type: Subversion
Description: The Futile King sits at the top of the world, or at least the top of The City and he knows it. He can have anything he wants but mostly he wants what you want. There's a sense of that when you meet him, that maybe he's not a villain after all (despite the rumors). Like Santa Claus (or maybe the Devil) it's hard not to tell him what you want. After all, he wants what you want. You're sure of it, so you should probably follow his advice on how to get it.
Mystery: "Am I a butterfly dreaming I'm a man?"
Weakness: He can't tell anyone to do something they don't want to do, he can only help them figure out what that is and maybe guide them to a few side quests along the way.
Uneasy Lies the Head
Type: Expression.
Description: Even though they rarely come to the top floor, The Futile King commands a vast entourage and coordinates their actions throughout The City. In fact, more often than not, he acts through intermediaries, preferring to keep his distance from other Avatars.
Mystery: "Is it better to reign or serve?"
Weakness: Though he's well aware of what his followers do and can communicate with them, they are individuals, fallible and subject to the demands of their own identities and shadows.
THE DEFINING ELEMENTS
The High Life
Type: Possession
Description: Tom looks down on The City. He sees it all from a lofty perch. He lives the literal high life. Everything he wants is brought to him in The Tower.
Identity: The Tower is my tomb.
Weakness: Away from The Tower Tom tends to get a little forgetful, a little scattered and prone to doing foolish things.
THE REST
Other Important Details: None noted.
Reputation: Fastidious, nebulous corporation with its fingers in every pie, of course Thomas shouldn't be trusted and TFK is no better. Called by some That 'Effing Korporation, that steals your data, jacks up prices, controls the media, etc, etc, etc. His reputation outside The Tower is of some wanna-be Bruce Wayne, the sort who'll buy a restaurant just to get a table or rent out a theater just to get seats (and won't let anyone else attend the same performance). A lot of that might be tabloid lies (don't all tabloids lie) but it sure sounds true.
Theme Song: I Dreamed a Dream (KPop Version)