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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Davies" data-source="post: 8461400" data-attributes="member: 30538">Gomi-Nezumi<img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/My-First-Gallery/i-RRXBV9M/0/5e775bd8/S/Nezumi_Otoko.PNG-S.png" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " data-size="" style="" />Gomi-Nezumi ("Trash Rat/Mouse") is both the occupant of the house of the Rat in the Shēngxiào, having held that position since the formation of the organization, and the group's primary spy. While ill-suited to any sort of social intrigue, his abilities to reduce himself to a tiny size and to use rats and mice as remote sensors allow him to observe and report on numerous supposedly private conversations, and his skills as an infiltrator and saboteur are nearly unmatched. (He can also summon a swarm of rats to bite and harrass many targets, but it's a fairly minor threat by most standards.) While frequently looked down on by the other members of Shēngxiào, both literally and figuratively thanks to his focus on material gain in an organization which seeks the destruction of the human race, his talents have kept the group functioning far longer than it might otherwise have.He was born Nozawa Chikao, and none of this was supposed to have happened to him. Up until 2006, he had what he considered to be a fairly good life, working in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fujitsu" target="_blank">Fujitsu</a>'s research and devlopment department and assigned to a project developing an artificial super-intelligence. Despite what he might sometimes claim, he wasn't the project's leader, or even all that essential to it. If he had been, he probably wouldn't still be alive.In 2006, the lab where he was working was raided by superpower mercenaries who killed the project head and most of the senior staff; Nozawa was one of the few survivors, and counted himself lucky to have sustained only minor injuries. Unfortunately, the matter didn't end there. When the mercenaries were defeated and captured by the Sea Dragons, they claimed that their actions had been taken in response to the lab's work on systems designed to detect the existence of superpowers, the better to assassinate them. Arrant nonsense, but their other claim was much more serious -- they fingered Nozawa as the one who'd tipped them off about the situation.His pleas of innocence were disregarded, and he found himself without a job or prospects for finding a new one. Evicted from his apartment, he attempted to take up residence with his elderly parents, but they soon kicked him out after a fight. This left him with nowhere to go, and he became a member of Tokyo's unhoused community, occasionally using his skills to repair their salvaged electronics but more often lost in fantasies of revenge and renewed affluence. This was his condition when Diorite found him, and recruited him for her Shēngxiào.Over the last decade, Gomi-Nezumi has had many opportunities to learn more about the reasons for his downfall, and worked out what he believes to be the full picture. The mercenaries, unsurprisingly, lied about their motives; they'd been hired to assault the lab by representatives of the Vietnamese-based corporation which was run by the artificial super-intelligence Axiom, in order to put a halt to the research which could have created another ASI. And Nozawa had been randomly selected as a scapegoat.Discovering all this naturally led to renewed thoughts of vengeance, and his associated discovery that Axiom intended to destroy as much of the mystical side of the world as it could led him to view the Shēngxiào as its natural opponent. He has been able to convince some of the other members of the group of the danger that Axiom represents, but has not succeeded in convincing the group as a whole to start targeting its forces. Like many mystics, they are inclined to denigrate the products of human technology (while employing them for their own benefit) and thus don't regard Axiom as a priority.This situation, and the lack of respect that he receives, are wearing away at Gomi-Nezumi's loyalty to the group. He remains with the group out of fear of what Diorite might do to him if he ever rebelled, as he's seen her do to other rebellious members of the Shēngxiào. Nevertheless, he represents a major weak link in the organization's leadership that could be exploited to damage it. However, he is still utterly misanthropic and self-serving, and should not be trusted for a moment.One of his personal weaknesses is also noteworthy. Understanding that he and his associates have powers that relate to the Chines zodiac led him to learn a bit about the subject, and he learned one aspect of the myth. In some stories about the origin of the concept, it derives from a great race held by the Jade Emperor where he rewarded various animals with places in the calendar based on their arrival at the gate of heaven. The cat failed to arrive due to the schemes of the rat, and this is the reason that cats hate rats. Imputing perhaps a bit too much significance to this myth, Gomi-Nezumi has developed a severe phobia of cats, and believes that Diorite created a cat personification somewhere in the world to be his nemesis. (This does not appear to be the case, but who knows? You're not really paranoid when someone's out to get you.)Gomi-Nezumi -- PL 10Abilities:STR 2 | STA 2 | AGL 2 | DEX 0 | FGT 2 | INT 4 | AWE 4 | PRE 1Powers:Rat-Eyes: Remote Sensing 5 (30 miles; auditory, visual), Medium (rat or mouse); Senses 1 (low-light vision) - 11 pointsRat-Size: Linked Continuous Shrinking 12 (6 inches tall; -6 Strength, +6 Dodge, +6 Parry, +12 Stealth, -6 Intimidation, -1 Speed), Normal Strength, Quirk (limited to minimum size); Linked Speed 6 (includes size penalty) - 42 pointsRat-Swarm: Linked Burst Area Damage 4, Concentration; Linked Ranged Environment 1 (impede movement 2) - 14 pointsAdvantages:Defensive Roll 2, Evasion, Improved Defense, Improved Initiative, Improved Trip, Move-by Action, Startle.Skills:Athletics 4 (+6), Close Combat: Unarmed 4 (+6), Expertise: Criminal 6 (+10), Expertise: Science 7 (+11), Intimidation 7 (+8), Perception 5 (+9), Stealth 5 (+7/+19), Technology 7 (+11). Offense:Initiative +6Unarmed +6 (Close Damage 2)Rat-Swarm -- (Burst Area Damage 4)Defense:Dodge 13/7, Parry 12/6, Fortitude 6, Toughness 7/2, Will 8Totals:Abilities 32 + Powers 67 + Advantages 8 + Skills 19 + Defenses 16 = 143 pointsOffensive PL: 4Defensive PL: 10Resistance PL: 7Skill PL: 6Complications:Greed--Motivation. Fear (cats.) Hatred (Axiom.) Mild Paranoia. Subject to Orders (and increasingly resentful.)</blockquote>

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