Character you're applying for: Nathan Petrelli
Character's role in their canon: Nathan is neither an antagonist nor a protagonist -- if he had to be considered one, it would be protagonist, but at the current place in his story, he is really too busy mourning his brother to take an active role in much of anything.
Character's age: It's not stated in canon, but there is a comic (War Buddies, Part 5) that takes place in September of 1968 where Nathan is taking his "first steps". Since this usually happens around one's first birthday, it's safe to assume that Nathan was born in 1967 and is now 40 years old.
Character's gender: Male
Character's "Real Name": Harrison Campbell
Please give us a detailed personal history of your character: Nathan Petrelli was born sometime in 1967 to parents Angela and Arthur Petrelli in, one assumes, New York state, where the family had a home. Being born into a family with two parents with abilities (Angela was gifted with predictive dreaming, while Arthur was capable of absorbing the powers of others on touch), Arthur had high expectations for Nathan to also demonstrate a power. When it became apparent that this was not going to happen, Arthur authorized his company, one he created alongside others with powers, to perform experiments on his son. Nathan was injected with a formula that forced him to gain an ability by rewriting his genetic code. It is unclear exactly when this happened to Nathan, but it was likely at a very young age, as Nathan has no memory of the experimentation or injection of the formula. Nathan developed the ability to fly, but it would not manifest itself until years later.
Nathan's childhood was likely happy -- he did very well in school (due to pressure from his father to make something of himself) and had a good family life including taking fishing trips with his father and all other things that come with a normal childhood.
In 1979, when Nathan was twelve years old, his brother Peter was born. It's unknown exactly what Nathan and Peter's relationship was like early on, but I speculate that it was probably quite close, considering the close relationship they have later on. Although Peter was less of a disappointment in the beginning to Arthur due to having an ability (although how Arthur knew this is anybody's guess), Peter soon shaped up to be not quite the kind of son Arthur would have liked. As a result, Arthur poured all his hope into Nathan, wanting to have a son in the military and, subsequently, politics. Nathan easily complied with his father's desires, working hard to graduate top of his class in high school and through college.
Although Nathan was competitive, I believe all the competition was kept outside the family -- although Nathan did not hesitate to let Peter know, as he was growing up, that he needed to work hard, go to college, and have a "real" career. Even so, the two brothers, even if fighting, stayed very close to each other, even as Nathan went law school and Peter entered fifth grade. Nathan graduated top of his class and went into the Navy. For a short time, Nathan served in Bosnia, Serbia, and Rwanda as a peace-keeper. After this, he returned home and quickly began his political career. (It is possible that Nathan attended law school first and then went into the military -- it's not stated in canon either way.)
It was sometime during this period that Nathan got involved with a woman named Meredith. Nathan, always a bit of a playboy, had a sexual relationship with her that resulted in Meredith getting pregnant. She had a daughter and named her Claire. Nathan was unaware of this at the time, but Meredith also had a power -- the ability to summon fire from her fingers, controlling and manipulating it. Meredith worked for The Company -- the same one started by Arthur, to help (or put away) people with abilities. When Claire was one year old, Meredith was on a mission for the Company when she lost control of her powers in a building Claire was inside. The flames engulfed the building, supposedly killing both Claire and Meredith. Nathan attended Meredith's funeral, believing her to be dead. In actually, both survived, although Meredith did not realize Claire was alive until Claire sought her out fourteen years later.
Then Nathan -- and, more importantly, Arthur -- met Heidi. Heidi was probably a casual girlfriend Nathan picked up somewhere, but after she met the family, Nathan quickly married her. (Later, Nathan tells someone that he married Heidi because it was the woman Arthur wanted him to marry, although I do think he held a certain amount of affection for her.)
Soon, Nathan was working as a prosecutor for the New York City District Attorney's Office, quickly earning a reputation for himself as someone who could easily put criminals behind bars. Nathan was catching people's attention, which suited him just fine. It's unknown whether or not Nathan moved up from being a prosecutor before focusing on his campaign to run as a Representative for New York's 14th District. (There are a few sources that claim Nathan ran for the 30th District; however, this district does not actually exist as of 2000, and the district number actually spoken in the show is the 14th.) There's a bit of confusion over the fact that Nathan's campaign website, votepetrelli.com, claims that Nathan is running for U.S. Senate and calls Nathan "Senator Petrelli", when, if Nathan is running for a district at all, he would be running for a spot as a Representative in the House of Representatives, not as a Senator in the Senate, considering Senators run for states, not districts. Luckily, this doesn't really matter so much now, I just thought I'd call attention to that... confusion.
At this time, a close friend of Arthur's, Daniel Linderman (the owner of a Las Vegas casino and leader of organized crime groups) was coming into some pressure by the DA, who was asking Nathan to prosecute him. It happened that Arthur was Linderman's defense lawyer, and was giving Nathan pressure to drop the case. Nathan was adamant that he would continue to seek justice regardless of familial ties. Later, while driving home from a party at Peter's apartment with his wife, Nathan was suddenly attacked by another car (most certainly a ploy by Linderman to scare Nathan into dropping the case), forced off the road, and sent crashing into a row of water-filled road "cones". Just before impact, Nathan's flight ability suddenly kicked in and he was launched up into the air from the car, helplessly suspended as he watched his wife crash into the barrier.
Heidi was rushed to the hospital, but after hours of operations it became evident that she would never walk again. While at the hospital, Nathan told Peter that he was certain it had been Linderman's men who'd attacked them, and that he was definitely not going to drop the case. He asked Peter to give a deposition, and Peter agreed. Meanwhile, though, Nathan had his hands full with Heidi. She had been paralyzed from the waist down, and was confined to a wheelchair. The event left Nathan feeling guilty every time he looked at his wife, effectively halting their romantic relationship. The effects even went as far as Nathan's campaign -- it was decided that Heidi should stay out of the limelight, with the concern that she could make Nathan look "weak".
The morning that Peter was scheduled to give his deposition, however, Nathan came to Peter's apartment, informing him that the deposition had been canceled because their father had been found dead that morning of an apparent "heart attack". (It's later revealed that Nathan was led to believe it was a suicide and did not share this information with Peter, however the truth is that Arthur was poisoned and killed by his wife, Angela.) Nathan didn't take too long to grieve, however -- after all, he had a campaign to run.
Once Nathan began his campaign for whatever office he was running for (I'm going with "congressman", specifically House of Representatives), it consumed his entire life. He became very focused on his campaign, so much that he began neglecting his wife. It seemed like forces were working against him, however -- family issues continued to look bad on Nathan. His mother was arrested for shoplifting (she needed the "thrill", supposedly) and Nathan was forced to find a way to keep it from the press. Soon after, Peter, convinced he could fly, jumped off a fifteen-story building in Manhattan to demonstrate his skill. Unfortunately, Peter did not yet have the ability to fly, and Nathan was forced to use his ability to fly up and catch his brother. The weight was too much for him, though, and both brothers were thrown off-course -- but not before Nathan realized that Peter, for just a moment before they hit the ground, flew.
Unfortunately, Peter's injuries were bad enough that he had to be taken to a hospital, and the only suitable explanation that could be given was that Peter had jumped. It didn't take long before reporters began to dig into the story, and Nathan was forced to make a public statement that Peter had attempted to commit suicide. Peter wasn't very happy about this and the next time the two met up (on a New York City street) Peter punched him square in the face. This didn't do much to knock Nathan off-track -- he'd managed to spin the event in a way that, while casting doubt on his family's history of mental health, kept the truth from the public at large.
Nathan soon proved himself to be the master of spin, continually placing himself in situations that could cast doubt on his candidacy and yet always masterfully extricating himself from them without taking any sort of blame. Such was the case when he traveled to Las Vegas to visit Daniel Linderman, counting on the family ties he'd once cursed in order to fund his costly campaign. There, he was introduced to a woman named Niki Sanders, sent by Linderman to "seduce" Nathan (due to her own problems resulting from borrowing money from Linderman). She did her job well, and the two slept together in Nathan's hotel room, unaware of the fact that they had been filmed by hidden cameras so that Linderman could use the evidence as blackmail if Nathan were to step out of line.
The next morning, Nathan was suddenly abducted from his bed by two men (Noah Bennet and The Haitian). He was pulled, only in pajama pants, out of the hotel and into a parking lot. Before Nathan could really figure out what was going on, Bennet's phone rang, and Nathan, glad for the distraction, pushed away from his captors and rushed across the lot. His escape attempt was stopped, however, by a chain link fence, and as his pursuers grew closer, Nathan found no alternative but to take to the sky to escape them. He didn't fly long -- realizing he needed to find some clothes and get back to Las Vegas, Nathan touched down a little too close to a small diner in the middle of nowhere, Nevada. He was seen coming down by another "special" person, a Japanese man named Hiro Nakamura. As Nathan stepped into the diner, he received a few strange glances due to being without a shirt, but it didn't seem to bother him too much. Nathan sat at the bar, asking if he could borrow a cell phone and requesting a cup of coffee and a diner t-shirt from a waitress. He was then joined by Hiro, who told Nathan (in broken English) that he saw him land, calling him "Flying Man". Nathan was quick to tell Hiro to stay quiet and mostly laughed at him, brushing the whole thing off. It wasn't long before Hiro told Nathan that he also had a power, and about a giant explosion he saw overtake New York City on a trip to the future. Nathan turned to leave as a car came to pick him up, but paused to ask Hiro if he saw who won the election. Hiro told Nathan that he did, and Nathan was humored enough that when Hiro asked for a ride, Nathan obliged him.
The two separated when they got back to Las Vegas. Back at the hotel, Nathan met up with Niki, who told him that their encounter was videotaped. As Nathan checked out the hotel, he talked to one of Linderman's workers, asking for $4 million for his campaign, despite the agreement being $2 million. Nathan was able to talk his way into getting the full $4 million that he asked for, taking it home with him to New York City.
Unfortunately, it was at this time that things began to spin out of Nathan's control. When he returned home, he discovered that Angela had set up an interview with a writer from the New York Journal, a prominent newspaper. The writer was to come over to have "brunch" with the family and talk to Nathan, Heidi, Angela, and Nathan's two young sons (Simon and Monty). Unfortunately, things went a bit sour when Peter suddenly showed up, pulling Nathan aside and asking him to get a painting from Linderman's personal collection from him, convinced it was painted by a man who could paint the future. Nathan told Peter he wouldn't do it and asked Peter to leave, but Peter took the opportunity to threaten that he would fly off the terrace in front of the family and reporter if Nathan didn't try. Nathan finally agreed, and the two returned back to the brunch table. As Nathan returned, the reporter suddenly started asking questions about his sudden disappearance in Las Vegas and involvement with a "blonde". Nathan hesitated, and Peter saved the day, telling the reporter that Nathan left his hotel in order to check out a private clinic to help Peter with his mental health, and that he met with a woman doctor there. It's clear to Nathan that Peter did this so that Nathan would be more inclined to help with the painting. True to his word, Nathan did call Linderman about the painting, which Linderman agreed to send to him.
When Nathan saw Peter again, though, he told Peter that Linderman wouldn't part with the painting and that Peter should just give it up. He also told Peter about the two men who took him from his hotel room, though Peter claimed not to believe it.
When the painting arrived from Linderman, Nathan looked at it -- realizing that a figure in the painting (depicted as dead and mangled) looked an awful lot like Peter. Deciding he didn't want Peter to see the painting and think he needed to go to the location in it, Nathan dumped a paint bucket over it, erasing the image. Unfortunately, Peter was able to obtain a digital copy and discover where he needed to go in order to "save the Cheerleader" and "save the world". Nathan was forced to travel to Texas in order to get Peter out of jail for getting caught up in a particularly violent Homecoming night, and just as the two left the jail, Peter suddenly collapsed, having a vision of exploding and destroying New York City. Peter was rushed to a hospital, and Nathan and Angela kept vigil by his bedside for two weeks as he slept in a sort of coma. At the hospital, Simone, a friend of Peter's, arrived, and she and Nathan talked about Isaac Mendez, the man whom Peter believed could paint the future. Nathan insisted that Simone take him to Isaac. In Isaac's loft, Nathan discovered a painting resembling a man exploding like a bomb and other paintings showing the destruction of New York City. There, he once again met up with Hiro, and the two talked more about the explosion Hiro had seen. Now significantly worried about Peter, Nathan returned to his hospital room, only to discover an empty bed -- Peter had woken and was gone.
It took a while, but Nathan did manage to find Peter -- bringing Mohinder Suresh, a geneticist studying people with abilities in tow. They cornered Peter in his apartment, finding the man packing a bag as if going to leave on a trip. Nathan tried to talk Peter out of leaving by telling him they could find a way to keep Peter from absorbing a dangerous ability and triggering the explosion Isaac painted about, but Peter rushed out, turning invisible and slipping out of Nathan's figurative grasp.
Things were already going bad for Nathan when Meredith contacted him -- letting him know that she was not, in fact, dead, and neither was Claire. Meredith threatened to expose Claire as his illegitimate daughter (therefore ruining his campaign in scandal) and Nathan was quick to offer her $100,000 to stay quiet about the ordeal. The realization that he had a daughter, however, made Nathan want to fly to Texas and meet her -- a notion Angela tried desperately to talk her out of, scared it would jeopardize his campaign, or that Claire would try to milk all of Nathan's money out of him. Nathan did send money to Meredith, but also ended up going to Texas in order to visit her and Claire. Unfortunately, Nathan thought Claire was not there when he arrived (in reality she was listening to him and Meredith talk outside of the nearby window). He and Meredith didn't really get anywhere (although he did see Claire's picture), and Nathan left, clearly troubled by the encounter.
When he returned to New York, Nathan was visited by two FBI agents who revealed that Nathan had agreed, at some point, to work with the FBI and deliver Linderman to them. They wanted to know why Linderman set up a meeting with Nathan. Nathan told them that, since he was behind in polls, Linderman likely wanted to meet to give him advice on securing a win, since he had so much invested in his campaign. The agents told Nathan he would have to wear a wire during his meeting with Linderman in order to secure necessary evidence to put him away, and Nathan agreed. After the agents left, Peter (who'd been hiding by use of invisibility) appeared, and Nathan explained he'd been working with the FBI ever since the "accident" left Heidi paralyzed.
Things went a little badly during Nathan's meeting with Linderman -- the two agents listening to the wire were killed by Niki Sanders (overtaken by an alternate personality (?) and now working for Linderman) and he was intercepted by her. Discovering from her that Linderman was aware he was preparing to turn him over to the FBI, Nathan was escorted to the kitchen, where he was given a private meeting with Linderman while the man calmly cooked his dinner. They had a short conversation, and Nathan suddenly pulled a gun, threatening to kill him. For the most part, Linderman laughed the attempt off, telling Nathan he knew about his ability, and Peter's situation, and that Nathan was certainly going to win the election. Nathan decided not to kill Linderman. Instead, the man showed Nathan his own ability -- to heal things.
Linderman explained to Nathan that he was aware of the explosion Isaac had painted and Peter had dreamed -- telling Nathan that the explosion would be a "catalyst for good" and "change"; that people would, out of it, find a "united sense of hope couched in a united sense of fear", and that Nathan would be the perfect candidate to lead people through that time. Nathan told Linderman that it would be Peter who exploded, and Linderman assured him that he already knew, and that that would be Peter's role to play. Nathan left, disgusted, calling Linderman "crazy".
When Nathan arrived home, it was to the worst news he's ever heard. His mother informed him that Peter was dead, and Nathan cradled Peter's body in his arms as he cried, saying Peter was not supposed to die "like this". Claire was there, too, although in his sorrow Nathan hardly noticed. Claire, gifted with the ability to regenerate her cells when injured and heal herself, realized that there was a shard of glass stuck in the back of Peter's head. When she removed it, Peter suddenly revived, coming back to life due to having taken Claire's power in the past.
Nathan realized suddenly that, if Peter could heal from anything, he would also be able to heal from the nuclear explosion. He also told Claire that he wanted to be available to her, but he wouldn't be able to do that until after the election -- so he asked her to leave with Angela for Paris for one week, therefore avoiding the explosion herself. In the meantime, Nathan began to have doubts about Linderman's plan and seeing in through, but Angela tried to further convince him, saying that it wasn't just his plan, but a plan that had been put into place by many people. In order to further ensure Nathan's loyalty, Linderman came to see him and touched Heidi's leg casually, healing her from paralysis. Meanwhile he had sent one of his people with a child who had the power to manipulate technology to go to a voting poll and rig the election so Nathan would win in a landslide.
Nathan was visited suddenly once again by Niki Sanders, asking why Nathan hadn't killed Linderman when he had the chance. She told Nathan she would kill him instead, and Nathan agreed to tell her where Linderman was as long as she promised to make sure finished the job.
Nathan won the election thanks to the rigged votes later that night, and was visited by Angela, informing him of Linderman's murder. She told him, though, that his death changed nothing and the plan still needed to go through, again reminding him that it was not only his plan. Nathan assured her that Linderman was not necessary for the explosion to occur, and that he would still go through with the plan without him. When Nathan saw Peter again, Peter read his thoughts about the plan, realizing that Nathan could not be trusted. He ran away.
Knowing that Peter was still dangerously close to exploding, Nathan, rethinking his opinion of the plan (thanks to a little stubbornness from Claire) somehow found Peter, moments away from explosion in Kirby Plaza (how he did this I still don't really understand -- I assume he may have flown around New York City looking for the light coming off him?) and flew down. Nathan stopped Claire from shooting Peter because she thought killing him would be the only way to keep him from exploding and killing everybody. Nathan told her there was another way and turned to Peter, taking him in his arms and shooting up into the sky, away from the city, away from what would be a scene of murder on a mass level.
In the air, Peter tried to tell Nathan to drop him, but Nathan refused. Peter continued giving off high levels of radiation, burning Nathan's skin so badly he was nearly unrecognizable. Finally, Nathan wasn't strong enough to hold Peter any long and the younger brother fell out of his arms. Peter fell a short distance before exploding, and Nathan, somewhat caught in the blast, was knocked unconscious and began to fall towards the ocean himself. It didn't take long before Peter recovered from the blast and flew down, grabbing Nathan and rocketing back towards the city with his brother in his arms. Peter stopped at the closest hospital, rushing in and handing Nathan off to a very quick team of nurses who put Nathan on a stretcher and wheeled him away. Peter, no doubt feeling guilty, ran away.
Nathan didn't wake for quite some time, and when he did, it was a shock to come to terms with his physical changes. The burns covered his entire body, and he wasn't getting any better any time soon. His first word was "Peter" -- concerned with his brother's safety and location. Angela, standing by his bedside, told Nathan that Peter was missing and had been for some time. For quite some time, Nathan stayed in the hospital. His mother had given some kind of story to questioning law enforcement and doctors that Nathan had been in some kind of car accident, and when Nathan discovered the story he was quick to tell Heidi it was a lie, trying to explain the truth to her. Angela tried to tell Heidi that Nathan had "delusions of grandeur" and was making the story up, but it's easy to tell that Heidi was pretty scared off by the whole ordeal.
Nathan stayed in the hospital until, one night, while still asleep, he was visited by Peter and a friend -- a man named Adam Monroe, who, like Claire, had regenerative abilities. Adam injected a small vial of his blood into Nathan's IV, and the effects were nearly instantaneous -- Nathan's skin healed and the burns faded away. Peter, however, could not stay with his brother -- he was on the run, and had to cut out too quickly to see Nathan come around.
It was just about this time that Nathan was pulled into Landel's Institute.
Please give us a detailed description of your character's personality: For an accurate description of Nathan Petrelli, one might want to look no further than the man himself -- "I'm a shark, Pete," he tells his younger brother, "everybody knows it."
The dictionary defines this particular definition of shark as "a person who preys greedily on others, as by cheating or usury", and while I don't necessarily agree that Nathan is this type of person, it is interesting to note that he considers himself so. Certainly, Nathan is not above cheating or other illicit methods to getting his way -- he is a skilled "smooth talker" and can often find his way out of any trouble by relying on his charisma, charm, and silver tongue, even though he rarely means the things he says in public.
But it's also important to note that Nathan has a soft side that he lets get the best of him at inopportune moments, as well. For example, when he discovers that he has a daughter (Claire), Nathan claims he owes her "more than just a phone call" and wants to fly out to Texas to meet her. This shows that Nathan is somewhat warm and can be personable, even when it does not, in the end, really benefit him one way or the other. This may, however, be related to Nathan's very strong focus on family, bonds he feels are very important. Regardless of disagreeing with his mother at times, Nathan constantly talks to her about anything he's unsure about, following her advice almost exclusively until it so exceeds his vision of right and wrong that he can't any more. And although he and Peter often disagree on things, it's very clear that Nathan, through his actions, feels it is his job to protect Peter, no matter what is going on with him. (This connection is obvious to Peter, as well -- when he dreams about Nathan while in jail in Texas, Nathan tells him "you get in trouble, I drop everything and fix it. Isn't that how things work?". This may be putting a bit of a rose-colored filter on Nathan's motivations, but regardless, the point still stands.)
A big part of Nathan's personality is kept hidden from others. During all of season one, Nathan spends his time doing things that will make himself look good -- a habit he's forced himself into that may be somewhat difficult to crawl out of. Nathan doesn't necessarily have a hard time letting people in, but he is a politician -- it's hard to say if anybody really knows what he's like, including the family he holds so dear.
He prefers to have his moves planned out, and doesn't always work so well when an unexpected curve ball is thrown his way -- the surprise (malicious) questions he's asked by a reporter and his painful, awkward, minute-long hesitations are proof enough of this. Although he's not above lying, Nathan has a hard time coming up with a lie on the spot -- he prefers to have any stories thought out beforehand.
At the place in canon I'm taking him, Nathan currently believes Peter is dead -- a fact that hits him so hard he's having a difficult time with anything other than mourning him. Until he discovers otherwise and has been able to have a very serious conversation with his brother, Nathan's interactions with other people will be limited and likely dysfunctional -- his temper will flare up at even slight provocation and he will be closed off and unavailable.
Please give us a detailed physical description of your character: Nathan has changed a little from the all-American look he was going for during his campaign for Congress -- his time in the hospital has changed him, and his belief that Peter is dead has dated him a bit. A look of restlessness and depression linger on his face. He is miraculously free from scarring or other show of wounds from Peter's explosion, but he does have scars on his face from an accident when he was younger (the scars are actually Adrian Pasdar's from a car accident he was in during college, but they are so apparent on Nathan's face that it's hard to completely disregard them) lining his jaw line, though they have faded with time. He has a very strong face with a square jawline, a somewhat prominent nose, and lips in a very unique shape (which are also, incidentally, very difficult to describe). Nathan has intense, piercing brown eyes and medium-length brown hair. He is of average to above average height (but nothing out of the ordinary) and has broad shoulders, both of which give him a commanding stature. When he is frowning or has a serious expression on his face he is intimidating and always commands respect -- in the rare moments when he is laughing or genuinely smiling, it is difficult not to smile with him.
He dresses nicely and usually wears a suit jacket even when going "casual" -- Nathan has money, and from his clothes, it is quite obvious.
What point in time are you taking your character from when he/she appears at Landel's?: During season two, after Nathan is healed by Adam's blood and is discharged from the hospital.
What kinds of magical/special/crazy powers does your character have, if any?: Nathan can fly. His flight ability is different from others we've seen on the show and in comics -- it's not quite the dreamy, calm flight most people think about when they consider or dream about flying. Instead, when Nathan takes to the sky, he sets out almost like a rocket, leaving, even, a jet stream behind him. He can, however, float in midair as well, although he's only ever done this once in canon that I can recall, when he was pushed out a window. (Peter, having taken Nathan's power, has done this once as well, walking out in midair without even realizing it.) I like to assume mostly that the "floating" part of his ability isn't one Nathan's entirely familiar with, and he probably doesn't know exactly how to do it. Nathan's not exactly interested in honing his ability -- he's not ashamed of it, but at the same time he's not going to go out and spend the better part of his Saturday practicing his flight and learning exactly what he can do with it.
If present, how do you plan to tweak those powers to make him appropriately hindered in the setting of Landel's?: Obviously, Nathan isn't going to be zooming down the halls of Landel's any time soon. I would plan to almost completely strip away his flight ability -- perhaps leave him with the ability to float a bit if approved, not that I can really think of a use for this ability. Even so, Nathan uses his ability so sparingly that it's likely he wouldn't even realize it was gone until a time that he really needed it, if one were to appear. If approved, I would like to let Nathan have the ability to fly enough that he can fly for thirty seconds at about half-speed. This would give him some sort of edge against monsters and the like, because, as Nathan says himself to Peter, besides the flight he can't really do anything to help other people (or defend himself).
Does your character have any other non-magical skills or abilities that we should know about?: Charisma and the special talent for politics. Nathan also shows a wonderful ability during season one to cover up or spin anything in a way that will make him come out looking better, often at the expense of those around him. Nathan has a competitive nature different from most -- when he sets out to do something, he wins. It's fair to say that Nathan was raised almost the same way the Kennedy children were -- with a ridiculous pressure to win, no matter what, and with the belief that second place is the same as dead last. It's this philosophy that's given Nathan his edge, and this political talent is not something he will compromise for anyone.
How about improbable appendages?: None here!
Please give us an idea of where you'd like to take your character within the scope of the Landel's Damned RP: It's hard to say exactly where Nathan's going to go in the scope of Landel's, but as I covered a little bit in the personality section, before Nathan realizes that Peter is there, safe (relatively), and alive, he's not going to be the most fun person to hang around. He's not going to be too interested in making friends or even too emotionally available to have a very decent conversation with. He may lose his temper easily, be moody, and generally not really make any friends.
Once he does talk to Peter, though, Nathan's going to come around pretty quickly. He won't go back instantly to his politician's charisma, but he will want to talk to people who have been there a while, figure out what he can about Landel's as fast as he can, and concentrate on finding a way out. Nathan is not a defeatist by any means -- he will not accept the fact that there isn't a way out of the Institute (because "the world just doesn't work that way!") and will focus all his energy on breaking out and taking Peter with him. I think it's also possible that Nathan will seek a sort of leader's position and might even, eventually, come around enough that he'll attempt to rally people to his cause of information gathering and keep them "on his side".
Nathan isn't stupid, though, and there may be times that he'll feel the impossibility of escape bearing down on him. Sometimes, he will likely doubt himself, or worry he'll be trapped there forever or be unable to protect Peter during Night Shift. Definitely, these things will get to him, but I might be jumping ahead a little too much into the next question with this.
What kind of psychological effect do you see Landel's Institute having on your character?: Finding out he's in a mental institution is definitely going to throw Nathan for a loop. I covered a little bit of this in the question above, but I see Landel's, specifically, throwing Nathan through a whole series of emotions. At first, the change in venue may not generate much of a response, but after it's had time to sink in, Nathan will be angry and vehement about escape.
It's also important to note that the Night Shift will both scare and leave Nathan feeling a bit helpless -- he's never dealt with anything so physically threatening before (not personally, in any case) and, while he will be scared for his own life, he is going to be even more angry that there is nothing he can do to protect other people (especially Peter, whom Nathan is very used to looking out for).
After a long time planning or looking for escape, it's likely Nathan will begin to feel, privately, as if it's impossible, and begin to feel bogged down and defeated -- but he won't be keen on showing this to much of anybody.
He might even turn to God! ...No, I'm just kidding about that.
Given that this RP takes place in an unsettling and outright horrific environment, how do you justify your character as being appropriate in both body and mind for this kind of setting?: Although Nathan spent time in the military, he hasn't seen a lot of death or violence in his time. The worst situation he has been through was Peter's nuclear explosion (and, subsequently, seeing the state his body was in afterwards). Landel's and its monsters is certainly going to be a shock to Nathan's system, but not one he can't handle. Only months ago, he was forced to accept that people can have supernatural powers (including himself!), so it's clear that, even when something huge rocks his world, Nathan is capable of riding it out. He is an adult and does have basic combat training (although he may have forgotten quite a bit of it), but will likely struggle to defend himself in a physical attack due to being, minus his flight ability, a very normal human being.
Even so, in a bad situation, Nathan has already proven that he can and will do what is necessary of him, and I believe he would quickly get over the shock of Landel's and be able to survive and fit in nicely in the setting.
Third-Person Sample: It had been twenty minutes since he'd woken up. He'd opened his eyes, and for a moment, it was as if nothing had changed. He considered going back to sleep; letting the drugs lull him back into a slumber so artificial he was certain not to dream. There was no pain, but that wasn't surprising -- the constant IV of painkillers the doctors kept him on made certain he didn't feel a thing. Not physically, at least.
Nathan's head was a whole different story. His thoughts had been a whirlwind since the first time he'd woken up in this place -- a whirlwind that moved slowly, abated by the same drugs that kept him from feeling the fact that half of his face had been taken off by the explosion that destroyed his brother.
Peter can't die, he always told himself -- a repeated mantra that swam through the convoluted thoughts in his head, the visions of where his younger brother could be now -- each more sinister than the last.
The thought of Peter locked away in a "facility", taking pills to diminish his power and talking only to a strange man on the other side of the wall had never occurred to Nathan. Perhaps his imagination was a bit too limited.
Even so, this time, when Nathan opened his eyes, he was certain he had dreamed. He was certain he'd dreamed of Peter, standing over his bedside, apologizing for something (what could he be apologizing for?), a look on his face so heartbreaking that, had Nathan been able to move, he would have done anything to erase it.
It was when he looked down, letting his eyes trail across the bed, across his hand limply holding the bed's remote control that he began to suspect that something really had changed. His hand, previously scarred and ripped open to show red flesh, burned at the edges, was clean -- a healthy peach, untarnished.
Slowly, he raised the other hand to his face. Nathan only hesitated a moment -- he couldn't be dreaming again, he hadn't really dreamed for months -- before letting his fingers skim over the skin.
Instead of the bumps and tears that had greeted him last time, Nathan's fingertips skirted smooth, strong flesh -- marred only by the faint echo of scars he'd received when he was younger, scars he hardly cared about or even registered having in this moment.
Almost simultaneously, Nathan's other hand gripped the remote control, guiding the bed to an upright position, where Nathan could look into the mirror, and see what he could only hope was there.
And it was.
He swung his feet out of bed, adjusting quickly (he felt strong, whole, it was incredible) staring at the side of the room he'd stared at from an entire different perspective for months now. He glanced down at the nearby chair -- usually occupied by his mother, it was instead filled with a nicely folded shirt and pair of pants. Nathan was surprised for a moment -- how long had these been sitting there?
Ensuring the door was closed, Nathan changed quickly, marveling in his repaired body, marveling that he could walk, move, cross the room to the window and stare out of the glass to the city and sky beyond.
"Peter," he whispered, quietly, a word he was so used to now that he hardly noticed he'd spoken it at all. A dream of Peter, and sudden health... could it be a coincidence?
But he remembered his mother's face, the tears in her eyes as she explained to him that Peter was missing, that the coast guard had been looking for him but there was little hope, how each time she came to see him there was less and less light in her eyes. He stared out of the window, down to the street. Below, people passed each other, each going about their day, not caring one way or the other about the man in the building above, watching them, or about his brother. Why did those people deserve to live, when Peter had done everything he could to save them all?
The world didn't make any sense. Nathan lost himself in that moment, in watching out his window, in thinking, one moment hoping, the other certain he would never see his brother again.
It was that moment that the door swung open, and Nathan turned, meeting his mother's shocked expression, his own face showing a grim line devoid of hope.
First-Person Sample: [I don't personally see Nathan keeping too much of a personal log -- I'm sure he's well aware of the fact that anything put into writing can be found and read by anybody, and he wouldn't want his innermost thoughts, which he finds too private to share with anybody, to fall into the wrong hands. Even so, for the sake of the application, I'll write a short entry, though I think it will be a very infrequent occurrence in-game, if I'm accepted. This is a hypothetical entry in-premise that takes place after he's been there a while, since I'm sure you're sick of reading a ton of "what is this place where am I I need to get home" entries. If you want something else, I'll be glad to oblige!]
Don't know what the date even is, anymore. I've lost track.
What is there to say? I'm not even sure why I put this pen to this paper. It seems pointless; everything does. Sure, I want out of here. Who doesn't? I feel like every day (or maybe I should say every night) that passes is another day I'm lucky to be alive. And escape? I don't even know why I bother. I feel like I'm feeding people false hope, saying I'm certain we can find a way out. Obviously, certain is the last thing I am.
Sometimes, I miss the days where my biggest concerns were where I was placing in exit polls.