#hcdump

Raiden is, if you hadn’t already noticed, a rule-follower. He is a rigid sort of man with a very strict code of honor. His constant consultation of the Elder Gods (however ineffectual) is testament to this and it is because

from his creation, he has been taught that his brother’s “failings” (leaving the sky temple to cavort with mortals, not being the guardian they wanted) fall squarely upon his shoulders. He feels keenly the immense weight of the guardianship of earthrealm that has been placed upon him and can only maintain sanity and order by also maintaining strict discipline.

He bleeds gold ichor in places where his divinity can be more fully expressed. Earthrealm, netherrealm, and outworld are not equipped to handle his full, divine form and the physicality of it turns his ichor to something which looks like blood, but still kind of ISN’T? Because he’s not a human being. Gods demand blood sacrifice, because gods do not bleed, is the saying…

He’s got OODLES of really nice white hair just like Fujin but keeps it hidden under the hood and hate as a symbol of his dedication to his duties, his chastity, and to keep it out of the way during kombat. Unlike his brother, Raiden never learned how to fight with his hair down. 

Raiden is aware that many earthrealm champions consider him a father-figure. This both frightens and flatters him. Gods (who have not reproduced COUGHARGUSCOUGH) do not have as clear a sense of fatherhood/motherhood as humans do, having cast that out eons ago in favor of their more aloof nature. Titans, who are beings of feeling as well as logic, understand, ironically, which likely propels Cetrion’s loyalty to her mother, despite being the goddess of virtue and order, an Elder God herself.

He is a cat person. Cats like him. He likes them.

Raiden’s relationship with the Elder Gods is not what you’d call healthy. His constant need to consult them comes directly from their insistence upon his inadequacy as the guardian of earthrealm—this, in turn, stems from his first act of true defiance, WAY back at the beginning when he refused to “fuse” with Fujin, to create the god of storm. He loves his brother too much to take his autonomy.

Fujin may or may not know this, but it is the reason Raiden fought so hard to keep him at the Sky Temple, knowing the Elder Gods would look with displeasure upon his refusal to act at least as Raiden’s partner in guardianship. Fujin still considers himself a protector and of course arrives when he is needed, but prefers to live among humans to better sympathize. Raiden understands the sentiment, but fears the consequences.

There is much the Elder Gods do not tell Raiden. He is the dutiful son, bound to half-absent/half-authoritarian parents with no light at the end of the tunnel. He rushes to obey, even harming himself in the process, to gain favor that he may never see. It is an eternal struggle.

Despite his aloof air, he loves his earthrealm champions and friends. Due to his constant need to please the Elder Gods, however, it is difficult to express this affection, so when people like Johnny Cage approach him and slap him on the back, or hug him, he does not know quite how to respond.

Raiden also loves Fujin more than life itself, treasuring his brother even when he feels Fujin is making foolish choices. In the end, the man does understand humanity better, because he has immersed himself in it, but their affection toward mortals is essentially equal.

He is genuinely unaware of how attractive he appears to mortals and gods alike. It isn't a false humility; he simply does not think in those terms. It is therefore shocking when anyone points it out.

Raiden is Shinnok’s son, but not in the human sense of reproduction, although Elder Gods are more than capable of doing so, as are the gods beneath them, like Argus of Edenia. It’s more like Raiden and Fujin were simply formed, as elements, one day in the grand scheme of kreation. 

Shinnok’s very act of creating him and Fujin was a defiance against the other Elder Gods, as he seems deliberately to have separated wind and lightning. It also means Raiden is an aspect of destruction which is anathema to his character as he has chosen to protect. The fact, therefore, that he can heal is nothing short of miraculous and speaks highly of his character. 

He is about seven feet tall and built like a brick shit house, though surprisingly fine-featured for all that. He keeps himself wrapped up like a nun as a symbol of his chastity and dedication to the protection of Earthrealm. (yep I’m aware of his deadly alliance getup, but given that a vast majority of his skins/costumes have him pretty much completely covered, I’m keeping that aesthetic)

Which also means Raiden is a gazillion year old virgin. Have fun with that.

Shang Tsung was his chosen champion in the very first tournament. The Great Kung Lao came later. As such, he very much feels Shang Tsung’s rise to power rests on his shoulders, but it was a strategic choice. They needed the win and Shang Tsung was (IS) ruthless as all fuck. The Elder Gods take Shang Tsung’s soul in punishment, not for stealing the soul of the man he defeated in the tournament, but to punish Raiden for having feelings for him. 

The reason Raiden is nerfed in the netherrealm is because he believes he should be. The realm of his father favors chaos and suffering and he wants no part in it. As a recursive being, that is, an elemental who defines HIMSELF, the phenomenon occurs in any realm other than earthrealm. The reason, therefore, he is able to slaughter hordes of demons in the assault on the cathedral is that he has begun, slowly, to embrace the aspect of him which is a god of destruction, hence the red lightning.

Much like Fujin, Raiden bears the marks of his divinity upon his skin, with his true name written thereupon, surrounded by intricate, glowing forms. The extent and position of it is unknown.

Raiden bleeds ichor, god blood, the stuff of deities. This is gold, like pure shining gold in any spiritual space, like the chamber of the Elder Gods. In more physical spaces it resembles blood shot through with gold. It is toxic to humans, but once it is shed, it solidifies VERY quickly and becomes an extremely rare substance known as Orihalcon. This can, with magic, be worked into fantastic weaponry or what have you, but if you’ve got that much blood, it’s bad news bears for the god whence it comes. When he says “then you know it overwhelms you” to Skarlet, he literally means it.

His tears fall in a quicksilver-like substance (technically it, too is ichor, just a different form) which is also quite toxic to mortals. In its solidified form (mimicking Orihalcon), it is known as Mythril and is an extremely light, metallic element which can also be fashioned into powerful weaponry. This is even more difficult to obtain because it does not spill as readily—you can’t cut tears out of someone.  

// genshin fans pls don't attack me for having a harmless hc..😕

Raiden uses male pronouns. He presents as male in the classical old-fashioned sense of tall broad shouldered person with adam’s apple, square facial structure, etc. because he’s been around since ancient times and it’s how he chose to manifest—no shade on ladies/female-looking folks, ‘sjust how it worked out.

ALSO maybe because it was easier to be male in ancient times? Idk?? I mean different cultures have different levels of female respect/equality, but Raiden isn’t exactly a Viking god—though some have called him both Odin and Thor in the past.

When Raiden manifested his physical form about nine gazillion years ago, he chose one that most suited his desire for efficiency of shape and function—zero danglies. It was expedient to be this way so one might consider him “intersex”, except that this carries none of the health complications it might with a human being because he and Fujin are not human beings, but elementals, incarnations of the elements of nature they otherwise embody, e.g. wind and lightning.

As Raiden is extremely guarded about his bare flesh, there are maybe a handful of beings in the realms who know about any of this. He isn’t bashful about his body because of its lack of resemblance to an average human one—he’s seven feet tall and is under no impression he looks human—but because of the concept giving himself that kind of freedom, allowing himself to be taken that way or taken apart… He fears not only to want these things, but wanting to be wanted. Anyone who becomes emotionally entangled with him is going to have their hands full, convincing Raiden it is all right to desire someone, but also to be desired and to WANT that desire.

All gods are capable of bearing/creating offspring and, were it not for the fact that his nature is that of a destruction god, he might be as well, except that if the other parent were mortal, his body’s energy—he is lightning incarnate, recall—would not sustain life to its full term and he would* lose any offspring.

The exception is Rayden if he is in Outworld, where his godhood is reduced to the same level as everyone else who is also a god (which is a lot of goddamn people???). When he enters the space of Earthrealm or Earthrealm-adjacent realms, he comes into his power and loses the ability to bear semi-divine offspring because of his elemental nature.

Raiden would identify as what Earthrealmers call “homosexual” (Rayden is a little more generous with his lighthearted affections and might be considered bisexual or pan), having never felt or shown romantic affection or attachment to women/female-presenting individuals of any race. It does take him some time to open up (e.g. take his fucking hat off), as well, so perhaps a conditional label of demi might fit on top of that, if such a modifier is appropriate.

Sandman grows up in an abusive home, but does not realize it until years later. His father Daniel’s religious fervor drives his second wife to alcoholism and his son into the military. Daniel blames, on some level, his iniquitous son for the death of Valerie, his first wife.

Sandman maintains contact with Carol (the only mom he’s ever known as his biological mother died of complications from childbirth) but will not speak to his father.

He is an incredibly decorated soldier, gifted but exceedingly humble for all that. The members of his team respect him for this and the man only ever raises his voice to be heard over gunfire.

Born in Atlanta, his mannerisms are incredibly southern. “Bless your heart” means “go fuck yourself”, in a roundabout way.

He leaves home as early as possible, joining the military and making a name for himself. Selected for SFOD-D at 22, he participates in multiple operations overseas, including Operation Gothic Serpent. 

Sandman is homosexual. His step-mother Carol has always supported him in this and it is for this reason she separates from Daniel, whose beliefs lead him to shun those of his son’s “persuasion”. 

Gavin Reed and Elijah Kamski are fraternal twins

Kamski’s name and DOB are fabrications, created when he graduated from the University of Colbridge in south central Pennsylvania—717 is the area code. He had sought to reinvent himself utterly and his parents still mourn him as if he’s died, so that’s what Gavin tells everyone.  

No idiot, Gavin’s IQ couldn’t come close to competing with his brother’s gifts wih regards to artificial intelligence—his creation of Chloe cemented himself as a mythical figure in the eyes of the 21st century and cements Gavin’s seemingly irrational hatred of androids.

Detective Reed hates his folks for withdrawing from him when Elijah withdrew from them. When he needed them most, they were suffering the loss of one son, forgetting they still had another. Gavin was sixteen at the time and made up his mind then and there to graduate high school early and leave, never looking back.

1. Ella is a pretty good artist. Throughout her childhood, her main form of escapism had been drawing. She isn’t as good with painting (even though she tries her hardest), she is better with a pencil. It is a way for her to express her feelings. For example: the picture of a man formed out of squiggles and messy lines is to represent her father. She hated him and everything to do with him is messy and destructive and that picture is her feelings about her dad. She is very interested in Riley’s offer of training to be a tattoo artist and maybe making a needle her new form of art.

2. Ella is secretly a natural blonde. She started dying her hair red when she left New York. It was almost a disguise and a means of starting new. Ella has become pretty good at hiding her blonde roots and making sure to stay on top of dying her hair. She identifies as a red head now and doesn’t tell anyone about her actual hair colour. 

3. Ella has never been in love. Ella has slept with people and had relationships that never really lasted long but she has never loved any of the men she has dated. The most her feelings have ever gone has been a crush. A part of her has never been fully able to give herself to someone out of fear of getting hurt by someone she is supposed to trust. Her idea of norms is completely messed up.

1.  Belle used to take her toys apart and put them back together again. We loved to see the ins and outs of things and how they worked. She had a mechanical mind from when she was little. It drove her mother crazy when she kept finding bits of plastic all over the house. Her mother blamed her father for it but what’s new?

2. Belle wears contact lenses. She only ever wears her glasses when she isn’t going out, when she is hungover (the only exception to the previous rule) and first thing in the morning when she wakes up and before she leaves the house. She doesn’t mind wearing her glasses but she just prefers not having to wear them.

3. Belle was a child beauty pageant contestant. This is the ONE thing Belle will never tell anyone about. She never won a crown but she came close to it one year but always lost to the blondes which honestly? Belle didn’t mind. She never really cared for the whole excess makeup and glitter and dresses. She still has the photos in her box of memories under her bed along with mementos from her ex-boyfriends and a Valentine’s card from her brother when he tried to cheer her up after one of her break ups. 

4. Belle can play guitar and sing. Noah (her first boyfriend) taught her how to play the guitar and everything he knew about it. They would often sing together and even though he tried to sway her towards doing music with him in the future, she already knew she wanted to do the whole mechanic thing. She doesn’t play as much anymore because it reminds her of Noah but since finding out about his murder, she has started playing it again as another coping mechanism.

After Maximum Impact 2 concludes, Alba is left alone, without his twin. Having only Luise to offer him any clues as to Soiree’s whereabouts, he desires, more than anything, to find his twin–his literal other half. It is almost impossible to continue on as Don of Southtown without Soiree, yet he must.

He is beginning to gather more powerful fighters to himself, to aid in his efforts to both keep the peace and find Soiree. Mephistopheles is still the main rival to the Sons of Fate, but now that Alba knows who they really are, he’s focused on driving them out entirely, seizing their territory and holdings and digging for clues to the origins of this mysterious race, of which he is evidently an important part.

Alba’s sexuality is ambiguous, but he is probably gay (or ace, if you like). “You don’t even like chicks anyway.” -Soiree

He still has the cats he picked up during the events of Another Day. He particularly appreciates cats for their cunning and agility. Their names are Kezwik and Tristam.

He loves electronic music.

Alba has, from a young age, dyed his hair bright red, mostly because he likes it. Much like Soiree, Alba’s hair is a light silver in color and there’re always a few strands that refuse to take the dye.

His eyes are a soft violet and rather sensitive to light, hence the shades. They’re not just an aesthetic choice. He’d always suspected some form of albinism, but now has no way of knowing as their parents are deceased–and might not have been genetically related to either Meira twin anyway.

Alba does not know why Judeim split himself into two halves and cast his spirit into the earthbound plane, only that he CHOSE to do it to himself. He has nightmares almost every time he is able to catch a few winks of sleep, each one depicting an event in the life of The Dark Fang–and none of them are particularly pleasant.

Luise, or Lakia, is not Alba’s lover. He suspects that she may have been the lover of his former self–his and Soiree’s–but he does not share these feelings. To him, she’s just one of them, one of the strange beings who took his brother away. He’s not particularly fond of her affiliations, but does not mind her as a person; she’s actually rather accomodating.

Jivatma also appears to Alba in his dreams. Sometimes the images are replays of their battle in the grand mosque and sometimes it’s simply the terrible creature’s sneering, smiling face, beckoning him back to himself. He always awakens before fully returning to his original form.