handy_guy

Name: Andrei Volkov

Age: 31

Gender: Male

Type: Aspects - Other

Appearance:

Andrei is in shape with a medium build, and has blue eyes and dark hair that usually keeps closely shaved. He usually has some kind of twisted smirk or smile, as he's usually amusing himself in his head. He tends to wear rather casual clothes, because if he's gonna get blood on them and burn them anyway... not much point in dressing too classy.

Personality:

Andrei isn't the strongest or the quickest guy in the room, but he is absolutely the last person you want to get in a scuffle with or come across in a dark alley. That's 'cause his only object is pain, and in a fight he's an expert at inflicting it -- and he has every intention whatsoever of dragging it out.

It seems that he's almost always in a good mood. But his smile and laughter aren't the kind that actually really add merriment to the room if you pay close attention. He's constantly making jokes only he would think are funny, and is often chuckling at thoughts you really don't want him to share. That's because even the Syndicate's toughest have trouble stomaching what Andrei thinks up. While the Russians and their affiliates would have undoubtedly fostered a ruthless reputation without him, he's definitely helped bring it to a more twisted level. And even the biggest and baddest of the Syndicate would rather be out of the room while Andrei's working. With his mob cohorts he puts up a loyal front, even if he doesn’t really care about who is or isn’t in power. However, he doesn’t show his true face to anyone outside of the interrogation room. Around the general public he behaves himself, although if he does have a tendency to some people feel slightly uncomfortable even when he tones it down.

Officially, he gets paid a very pretty penny as a 'consultant' on various business deals. Really, he serves as an interrogator and delivers 'messages' for the mob. Occasionally he's sent to off some guy or gal (or child) to make a point, but he really isn't the best guy for a straight up hit job -- unless you want a particularly messy one. He greets his victims passing out or up and dying on him with a mixture of disappointment and annoyance; hey, it's not his fault a corpse doesn't feel pain... that he knows of.

But Andrei doesn't care about the money, nor does he care about the mob either. He's only working for them because they offered him the most creative outlet for his sadistic exploration. ...And the added bonus of a clean-up crew and the excellent lawyer doesn't hurt either. But if he were to go rogue he’d be killed in a heartbeat, so he’s has to be satisfied as an attack dog that only bites where the Syndicate points. Although the work he does may seem to be that of a grunt, don't be fooled: he's got connections that go very high up.

Sexuality:

Hetero

Constants:

Aspect -- Demon

Tormenting Mankind – yeah, that’s really the only goal in Andrei’s life and the only thing that can truly elicit a emotional response out of him. But his aim isn’t the grand overall scheming of tormenting all of mankind… he far prefers the more intimate, one-on-one method. He lives to inflict physical and mental pain. But he's a hands-on guy who says physical pain is really a two-for-one deal… when done right the victim ends up mentally fucked as well. He is extremely impartial as to his victims; he doesn’t care if they’re children, old, innocent, or guilty. Hell, he figures he can break even the baddest of the guys down to a sniveling girl… so why does it matter if he just starts with the sniveling girl?

Shape-shifting – like the demons of myth and lore, Andrei can take on many guises. No, this has never led him to actually donning an animal costume or cross-dressing as some lady or something… but he is always armed with some lies, an alibi, and a ‘guilt-less’ persona when the cops come knocking about some particularly nefarious handiwork. And they do come knocking. A lot. A girl’s brutally abused body show up in some downtown alley? Well honestly, Officer, he’s got nothing to do with that pretty lil’ mess they found down there. But the cops and everyone else can’t help but notice just that tinge of cruelty as his teeth bare into an innocent smile… or the little gleam in his eye as he’ll casually mention that, sure, every now and then he’ll escort a pretty little girl home… for her own protection, of course. Even though he puts on an innocent disguise, a person can’t help but notice that there’s just something off about it. Unfortunately, the cops can’t arrest the guy just because his evil little smile reveals what the evidence doesn’t.

Bottomless depths of depravity – calling him a sociopath is just doing a discredit to those guys. Hell, even the sickest of serial killers usually have some limit as to what they will or won’t do. Andrei has no limits; think of the darkest deed one person can do to another and his record probably has a slew of them that top it. The closest thing he has to morality is his distaste for killing his victims – but that's just because death ends the fun.

City History:

Andrei is only half Russian on his mother's side. Maria Volkova came from a cushy family that was connected to the Konoviches by marriage and business deals. She abandoned them for the sake of a non-Russian man who only stuck around long enough to get her pregnant; and when she went crawling back to her family, they disowned her for it. Spending all her attention trying to curry back favor with her family (naming her son after her grandfather, ensuring he knew her native tongue...), she had very little to spend on her young son.

Even had Maria been in the running for Mother of the Year (and she wasn't), it wouldn't have mattered. The fact is that Andrei never became the sick bastard that he is, he was always that happy little monster. And, in a twisted act of fate, his cruel nature answered his mother's prayers of becoming again accepted by her family.

At the age of thirteen Andrei’s particular talents first caught the eye of one of some Konovich members. But it wasn’t until the age of 15, when a less-than-careful mishap landed him in the police questioning room, that anything came of it. A bemused Andrei suddenly found himself with a very expensive, very good lawyer who exploited some legal loophole to get all charges dropped. The mystery behind this legal ‘angel’ was revealed when Eugene Konovich contacted him shortly afterwards. His uncle offered him an opportunity to, er, explore his particular pursuits with great creative freedom. Well, that was an offer Andrei just licked his lips and couldn’t say no to.

Special Skills and Abilities:

Inflicting Pain – pain is what Andrei does; and he’s very, very good at it. He knows where the most vulnerable and sensitive spots of the human body are, and he uses this knowledge to his advantage in fights and torture sessions. He’s also good at telling when somebody is close to passing out or dying, and therefore pull back before that occurs and his fun is over. But really? Sometimes he gets carried away… and shit happens.

Bilingual – he's fluent in both English and Russian.

Weaknesses:

People really don’t like him very much – the problem with being a pretty not-so-nice bastard is that even some people ‘on your side’ wouldn’t mind seeing you dead. In fact, just about all of Andrei’s cohorts would rejoice if his body were to wash up on the riverbank. Sure, the people really high up would lament the loss of such an effective messenger and interrogator, but they’d also be really, really relieved. Andrei knows this, and the fact is that he does enjoy living, so his victims are pretty much those the Syndicate assigns. Because he knows that if he were to start going rogue, well, there’re enough people who don’t like him enough that he wouldn’t last long.

Apathy – Andrei really, really doesn’t care about anything else than causing pain and not dying. He doesn’t form any emotional connections with any living being. Half the time he doesn’t even care enough to actually listen to the information he’s extracting during an interrogation. Which kinda gets on his employers' nerves. But it's okay --he doesn’t care at all about the people he’s working for. The only ‘side’ he’s really on is the side that lets him inflict the most damage upon his fellow man.

Crowds – He doesn’t particularly like crowds. And, as a result, is usually on his best behavior when he’s in one. Andrei far more prefers lurking around the edges and picking off his victims as they wander by their lonesome. And the experience is just more intimate that way.

Can’t be alone - the fact is that Andrei’s sense of satisfaction depends entirely on having other people around – either to torment or just harass. And sometimes just talk to when he’s stuck playing by the rules and can’t go with his preferred options. Left alone, Andrei doesn’t have anything; so he’d even take engaging in pointless small talk over being devoid of all human company.

He doesn’t want to die - he isn’t a coward in the sense that he’s usually willing to walk his talk, and isn’t afraid of a physical confrontation. But Andrei does his best to avoid any certain death situations, and if one of his choices is surefire death, then he’ll always choose the other option. And for the sake of self-preservation he works to hide his utter disinterest in the mob’s agenda from his employers, and he puts on his best face when he’s among the general public. Even though people usually pick up on something being off about him, the knowledge of his actual job and rumors of his depravity only reach those with some understanding of inner mob workings.

The Syndicate - although he likes to think that they don’t truly control him because he’s not actually interested in the material goods that they offer… the Syndicate has him in their pocket. If he were to really step out of line and piss them off, they could easily have him killed. So he has to play nice, and when they say “jump” he asks “how high?”.

Strengths:

People are scared of him - Machiavelli said that it is better to be feared than loved; and Andrei can attest to that. Most of what’s holding people back from killing him is the fact they know what unspeakable horrors he can perform if they were at all sloppy or unsuccessful. So usually his cohorts just avoid him when they can, and do what he says when they can’t. But he doesn’t share that face with the general public, so most people are more wary of his family connections than they are him. Of course, Machiavelli also said it is best to be both feared and loved, but Andrei isn’t about to starting walking old ladies ‘cross the street and kissing babies. He might help push an old lady down a flight of stairs though.

Intelligence – Andrei is pretty damn smart. The fact that he isn’t on death row or dead by now is a testament to that. Yes, he was caught once and almost sent to prison for it at the age of 15. But considering his already long list of depravities at the time… well, it’s almost a damn miracle he wasn’t executed by the age of 11. People are quick to assume he’s dim-witted, but that’s a mistake that more often than not costs them in the end. What is considered ignorance is usually a result of his apathy. Yes, he forgot some message… but that’s because he never cared enough to remember it. Yes, he usually does know that people are trying to play him, but he doesn’t care because it usually leads to some fun in the end… for him.

Family Connections – although his mother’s past discretion and his half-Russian blood will never be truly and completely accepted by the Konovich clan, he does have relatives that are high up. And his usefulness to those relatives means that they’re willing to stand by him and offer him aid. He’s got extra manpower if he ever needs it, and he can count on them to send a cleanup crew, and – most importantly – the lawyers they’ve got will make it harder for him to actually get convicted of a crime when he does get caught.

Family or Connections:

Maria Volkova (Mother) – Andrei doesn’t usually see his mother, but he doesn’t care and she prefers it that way. Although she’s in denial as to the extent of it, she knows that her son is trouble. But seeing as how she’s living a cozy life back with her family because of him, she’s more than happy to just let him be.

Eugene Konovich – one of his uncles by either blood or marriage (Andrei never cared to find out how they were related). Although Andrei develops no emotional connections and would be more than happy to torture even those ‘close’ to him, he does appreciate Eugene… which is the closest thing to emotion towards another being that he can get. His uncle did set him up with this sweet opportunity, afterall.

Konovich Syndicate – Andrei has numerous connections within the Konovich Syndicate and its affiliates; he’s done work all around the city for the Russian, Irish, and Chinese. It’s not uncommon for him to frequent any of their establishments.

The Police – although Andrei has never been arrested since 15, he’s been questioned more than plenty enough for the boys in blue to be familiar with him. A particularly nasty piece of work pop up? Yeah, it was probably him. And the police know it’s him, and he knows they know, but the evidence is just never there to prove it. And he can’t help taunting them by saying almost everything to admit to the crime… without actually admitting it.

Residence:

A fairly nice one-bedroom apartment not too far off from the homes of his other relatives.

Career:

Er, 'consultant' to the Konovich family... i.e. Interrogator, ‘message’ sender, occasional hit man, and all-around go-to Torture Guy for the Syndicate & affiliates.

PB: Wentworth Miller

Other Information:

Andrei is actually on his second incarnation within Eidolon City. His first incarnation was finally killed for his misdeeds by a group of vigilantes. Obviously, Andrei doesn’t remember any of this… but this current incarnation of his aspect is a bit more cautious than its predecessor.