application for lastvoyages

[telleveryone]

my name is max eisenhardt... to whoever finds this, i'm sorry
BECAUSE I'M DEAD, AND NOW IT'S UP TO YOU

User Name/Nick: Gwen
User DW: betterdeadthanred
AIM/IM: girlwonder004 @ AIM
E-mail: isthereair@gmail.com
Other Characters: Bucky Barnes, Eugene Sledge

Character Name: Max Eisenhardt
Series: Marvel 616
Age: 18
From When?: After he and Magda escape from Auschwitz in the final issue of Magneto: Testament

Inmate/Warden: Warden. Although Max is going to someday grow up to be the X-Men's greatest enemy (and on again, off again quasi reluctant teammate...), right now he hasn't had a chance to sour on humanity 100% and still has enough good in him to be willing to help an inmate graduate, if only to secure a safer future for Magda.
Item: The necklace he made for Magda

Abilities/Powers: As of right now, all Max is consciously aware of is the fact that he's very, very smart and very, very good at surviving whatever gets thrown at him. He's also always had luck finding money in the streets, and somehow he even managed to avoid being shot at point blank range along with the rest of his family.

What he doesn't know is that he is an Alpha level mutant, and eventually, that good luck with all things metal is going to manifest into comprehensive control over all forms of magnetism, including electricity and any other form of electromagnetic energy, although these come less naturally to him. He can manipulate ferrous and nonferrous objects, generate electromagnetic pulses, and use his abilities to create force fields of considerable strength. I do plan on having these manifest on the Barge after a particularly traumatic incident (tbd), but when he first gets here, he'll think he's just a normal human from a relatively normal universe, plus or minus the occasional superhero.

And while he isn't necessarily aware of it just yet as he hasn't had opportunity to do much studying, he's got a genius level intellect, an exceptionally good memory and has an ear for languages.

Personality: Before the Nuremberg Laws were passed, Max's teacher taught him a Japanese expression: "the nail that sticks up gets hammered down". Since then, Max's life has been - not necessarily consciously - a struggle to conform to that basic idea, or rebel against it. After spending the last several years being more or less willing to be one of the other nails the hammer leaves alone, he's finally hit the point of being tired of being stepped over and has decided to take control of his own destiny by any means necessary.

First and foremost, Max is a survivor. He always has been. When his family were relocated to the ghetto in Poland, he kept food on the table by going out and scrounging for money in the streets. When he was taken to Auschwitz, he became a member of the Sonderkommando and did the work he was asked to do, no matter how upsetting, because if he didn't, he would be gassed or worked to death in some other way. While there were times that he wanted to rebel, he chose not to because the consequences of pushing back against the Nazis would have meant death for him and for others. He did what he had to to get himself and others through a terrible situation, and he isn't ashamed of that. If necessary, he can be one of those other nails that doesn't stick out. He's willing to lie, cheat, go without food, bribe or even kill if he has to to stay alive, and was also willing to keep his head down and just focus on getting through the day rather than making a point and taking a stand.

But years of watching people die - strangers, his family, even the teacher who warned him about the importance of keeping your head down and blending in - even though he did nothing and they did nothing and no one else did either has worn on him, and worn badly. Max has always been frustrated by and silently railed under the necessity of just going along with what people tell you to do, even when you know it's wrong. He's looked up to his uncle Erich, who was more willing to stand up and make his feelings known, and even though it likely got him killed, Max admired that. After smuggling Magda out of what was left of the Gypsy Camp and knowing that she was going to be killed if anyone found her in his barracks, Max decided enough was enough. He had already allied himself with other Sonderkommando planning a revolt and pushed to have it happen that night rather than waiting any longer. He threatens one of the other inmates who suggests turning Magda in, and likely would have attacked him if one of the other inmates hadn't intervened. This new willingness to fight doesn't mean he's going to go around picking fights with everyone, but he's tired of being pushed around, tired of making concessions, and if backed into a corner, he'll fight.

That all said, Max knows what risks are worth taking, in that he's generally very comfortable with the decisions he makes. That doesn't necessarily mean he's good at making the smart or safe choice, but he accepts the consequences and knows how to weigh the risk against the benefit. In general, he's brave and decisive, doing what he thinks is right without waiting for or looking to someone else for guidance... Unless, of course, someone catches him and points out that hey, maybe that isn't the smart thing to do, let's do this instead. If he respects them, he's more likely to listen.

Generally, he's stubborn when he's made his mind up, and doesn't let go of certain behaviors just because it would be the safer or easier option. Even though he's grown up in the worst conditions imaginable and definitely been taught that it might be easier if he only looked out for himself, Max is empathetic and tries to do right by others however he can, whether it's family or a stranger. This is something that's by necessity been stamped down a bit - you don't make it far in Auschwitz by sacrificing things for strangers - but could definitely be coaxed out again under better circumstances. In the ghetto, he doesn't steal food from another boy after the kid drops it and instead hands it back to him, and at Auschwitz, he tries to convince another kid to lie and tell the guards he's 18 to prevent him from being gassed with the rest of the children. Neither of these attempts at helping others pans out especially well, but it doesn't stop Max from trying, and being in an on the whole safer environment on the Barge will help coax this back out more noticeably.

Although he was kicked out of school at nine because he bested his Aryan classmates and refused to bend to the administration's insistence that he cheated, Max is and always has been a very bright kid. He was top of his class in school, and he remains someone who knows how to read a situation very well. He's observant, and has by necessity needed to hone this skill to keep himself and his loved ones as safe as he can. This has helped him be a person of conviction: because he pays attention to his surroundings and other people's behavior, he's very confident in his ability to read a situation and know what the right course of action is.

Years of living under Nazi rule and being treated like scum because he's Jewish has made Max wary of others, and in a post Auschwitz setting will likely seem very guarded to other people. As stubborn and brave and opinionated as Max can be, he's been forced to learn how to keep his head down, and he'll be very careful about letting anyone know details of who he is and where he came from at first. Eventually, it'll be something he'll want people to know about, but for now, it's too fresh and painful, and he's been conditioned to think telling people about it is dangerous. Even after escaping Auschwitz, it wouldn't be ideal or safe to broadcast his status as a former prisoner, and Max will feel the same way on the ship. He hasn't internalized any of this hatred and he definitely doesn't hate himself, but he'll want to keep his cards close to the vest until he starts feeling safer.

It also probably goes without saying that after all this, Max is going to be dealing with some anger issues. Although these are likely to be bubbling under the surface or ignored for the most part, it is definitely apparent by the end of his time in the camp that Max is furious and ready to fight back. Anyone who tries to bully him or push him around will be met with serious push back, and he will be pretty aggressive if he feels like he's been backed into a corner.

In summation, Max is a bright, empathetic young man who's survived the most brutal atrocity in human history. Although he's emerged from Auschwitz a changed person with very real anger and a justifiable wariness of others, there's still enough of that good person in him to make him want to be an advocate for a deserving person in need. Given enough time and room to heal, it's possible he'll even begin to let some things go, or at least push them down far enough that he can be a mostly functional, happy member of society on and off the Barge.

Of course, it could easily go in the other direction, and he could grow up to become a megalomaniac hellbent on world domination. We'll see.

Barge Reactions: The Barge is going to make a very real difference in Max's life almost immediately. He hasn't had access to things like food, showers, medical attention and a bed with sheets on it for three years, and sometimes longer. Although he's been given enough food to work as part of the Sonderkommando, he's still lost a drastic amount of weight and will need to be careful in how he goes about putting that back on. He knows better than to eat too much food too quickly, but he'll probably hoard food and steal from the dining hall until he feels more comfortable on board and will likely do so afterward, too.

Despite the fact that it's going to be widely apparent that he's been through something traumatic, he'll also probably be very, very tight lipped about where he was and why at first. People will likely be able to figure it out - he won't be as cagey about being from the 40's and his accent will mark him as German - but the focus on blending in and keeping his head down will still likely apply here. He hasn't quite reached the point of wanting everyone to know because he isn't sure if it's safe to tell people in the post war world, and because of that, it'll take a bit of time for him to be comfortable talking about anything that happened in any real detail to people on the Barge.

Once he has warmed up to the place, he'll still likely be a little quiet and wary about telling people too much about himself, but he'll also really start embracing the opportunity the ship is providing for him. He's a very bright, curious person and hasn't had any opportunity for extensive intellectual stimulation for a really long time, so things like the library and being able to talk to people who are experts in their field will be highly appealing to him. Being around other people who have been persecuted because of their race/faith/supernatural powers will also help him let his guard down and open up to people, and honestly might help keep the future megalomaniac at bay if he sees examples of people being able to forgive or live peacefully together.

Ports, floods, and breaches are probably going to be taken fairly in stride. While it's certainly possible that some will hit him harder than others, Max is good at rolling with whatever horrible punches life throws his way. Turning into a woman for a few days isn't going to psychologically destroy him.

As a warden, Max will probably struggle a bit with having authority over another person because it's just so not what he's used to. He'll be uncomfortable and hands off at first in all likelihood, checking in and making cursory remarks about the person's well being before just letting them do their thing. He'll have an extremely difficult time with anyone who's not going to take him seriously because of his age, and will also not respond well at all to an inmate who tries to push him around, the latter of which will likely bring out his simmering anger issues pretty quickly. That said, he could definitely warm quite quickly to someone else who's felt persecuted or betrayed by a system that was supposed to protect you, and would likely do well with an inmate who's somehow in need of his protection. Max is willing to do extraordinary things for the people he cares about, so an inmate who he clicks with will have a loyal, extremely brave warden who will always have their back. It's definitely possible that someone who fits that bill would also be someone Max would eventually be more open with, and bringing out his gentler side would mean him taking a much more active and empathetic approach to addressing their issues.

Path to Redemption: N/A

Deal: Max will agree to the Admiral's terms on the condition that upon graduating an inmate, he and Magda will escape Auschwitz safely and be able to start a new life somewhere far away.

History: Max Eisenhardt at the Marvel Wikia

Sample Journal Entry:
[Port's been over for a day or so, and it's become clear no one's really come out unscathed. The aliens had rounded them up, warden and inmate alike, and forced them into their prisons, their factories, and laboratories, and gladiatorial rings, and it had all felt too much like the life he'd been running from to Max. Way too much. Even though he still looks healthier than he did when he first arrived - his hair's grown in and he's put on some weight - something in the teenager's expression has returned to the same hollow, angry tension he'd displayed when he'd first arrived.

His voice sounds about the same - bitter and flat and angry under all of it.]

Someone once told me that the Japanese have an expression: "the nail that sticks up gets hammered down." He said it to teach me a lesson, and keep me safe.

But keeping my head down didn't change anything that happened to me anymore than keeping your head down in that port did. That's why it isn't stupid to fight back when someone's planning to kill you anyway.

[There's a beat, and then he almost reluctantly adds:]

Has anyone seen Andrew? [At some point, he'd lost track of his temporary inmate.]

Sample RP:
[Once he's had a chance to calm down from the desperate, violent, helpless anger and frustration of it all, Max heads down to the dining hall. It's the tail end of the lunch shift, so even though people are settling back into their routine, the room's a bit less busy than it would be generally. When he'd first arrived, he'd been overwhelmed at first by the amount of food just lying about for anyone to take, but he's adjusted slowly, getting used to taking what he needs without feeling like a criminal for pocketing an extra tomato or piece of bread for later.

But now, Max finds himself standing in front of the buffet with his feet rooted to the floor. He's back to staring and wanting, feeling vaguely sick, or maybe just angry as his palms itch. He knows he doesn't need to, but the urge is there, and it just makes him angry.

Before he even consciously makes the decision, he's glancing quickly around the dining all and begins tucking an apple, then two, then three into the the pockets of the pants that are still a little too large for him. He grabs another, and then a roll, and heads for the door, face hot with anger and shame.]

Special Notes: Complete TDM, with more network and spam comments to flesh out those samples.