Raphael Deluna

Raphael deluna

One might expect the God of life to be outgoing; after all, he's the God of vibrant flowers, birds and bees and creatures of all sizes. You'd expect him to be a little more, oh, lively- but you see, that really isn't the case. When he was young he was as shy as could be, and though he's mellowed out a bit in his age he's still definitely an introvert. He doesn't age; everyone else does. It makes him withdrawn and distant, afraid of getting close to anyone. For the God of life he's quite terrified of death. But though he's timid and meek he's also incredibly sweet, prone to mother-henning over anyone and everyone. He's a sucker for animals in particular, spending most of his days taking in the downtrodden and nursing them back to health. People, creatures of all shapes and sizes- even those that normal people would be terrified of, he can't help but find adorable. If you're lost in the jungle and need a helping hand he'll be hard pressed not to help you, even if he's stuttering and terrified the entire time. He could just as easily be the God of healing, or the God of lost travelers, or the God of abandoned puppies- he pretty much just exists to fuss over everyone and make sure that they come out of life on this island, well, alive.

So yes, he takes his job incredibly seriously, but when it all comes down to it he's pretty much just a giant dork. He gardens, he raises little animals and raves over how adorable they are- no matter what monstrosities they might actually be. The idea that something could be scary or weird is completely over his head, he loves creepy crawlies just as much as he loves kittens. He's clingy and a worrywart, not to mention a total coward, but he means nothing but the best and that's what matters, isn't it? So maybe he's a bit of a screw up- he's well aware of it, tends to get incredibly guilty and depressed whenever he messes up. He can get so focused on taking care of everyone else that he forgets to take care of himself- but at the end of the day he has his pets and his lover to go home to, and somehow he manages to make it.

Some Gods have always been that way- they simply popped into existence once upon a time, and went on with their lives after that. Raphael is not one of those Gods. In fact, he only became a God upon arriving on this island, courtesy of his "Guardian", or whatever that mysterious figure might be. In fact in his home dimension he was born a mortal just like any other, no special powers involved. It isn't a terribly long or complicated story, really- his parents weren't particularly well off, his father hated him, etc etc. He spent a good majority of his time volunteering at the local animal shelter, if only to get out of the house. He found himself much more at home with animals than with humans, especially the humans that called themselves his family, and though he was kind of a screw up when it came to school (and, well, everything else) at least he could be of some use. It was an unremarkable life, he didn't have many friends, but he was sweet enough and he tried to help out when he could.

So was it too much to ask that someone miss him if something happened? It was a freak accident- he hadn't thought he'd seen any cars coming, and that adorable squirrel stuck in the middle of the road had looked so scared- but he guessed that it had snuck up on him, because when he turned all he saw were the headlights. To this day he doesn't really know what happened- he likes to think that the Guardian yanked him out of that dimension just before, if only because the idea that he was dead (however temporarily) is quite terrifying. All he knows is that he's here now and in one piece (more or less), with a temple and shiny new powers to boot. He doesn't really know anything about being a God or having powers, other than the letter from the Guardian that he woke up with- a letter quite similar to the ones possessed by most, except for his had an extra footnote that he was to "protect and nurture the mortals under his care", whatever that was supposed to mean. But he's made friends with all sorts off cool creatures, and he's got a shiny temple and stuff, and for now that's enough.

Tropius (Pokemon) - Saggezza

Scauldron (HTTYD) - Gurgles

Barioth (MH) - Sasha

Wroggi (MH) - Tonka

Varren Pup (Mass Effect) - Destroyer of Worlds

Thresher Maw (Mass Effect) - Fluffy

You'd think that, as a God of this island, he'd have some sort of awesome power; unfortunately that just isn't the case. He can shapeshift into a few different animals, his favored form being a giant Arbok, but seeing as he isn't really one for violence he doesn't use it often. His power's practical applications are more or less limited to making flowers bloom and talking to animals. He does have a knack for healing, but he hasn't yet explored it to its full potential, so... he could kiss a bruise better or something? Oh, and being the God of Life means he also lords over the creation of new life, which means he can cast 'spells' with a powerful aphrodisiac affect. Which... isn't terribly helpful, but makes for good pranks when he's cranky with his lover.

His is... something of a token position, truth be told. Just don't underestimate him, or let his emotions get too out of whack. If they do, weird things (well, weirder things) are going to come crawling out of the forest. Though his powers don't appear to have much of an immediate effect they're the reason the complex and crazy ecosystem of the island stays balanced. All those creatures shouldn't be able to coexist naturally, but so far the coconuts and the dragons and everything in between seem to be doing alright- he doesn't really know how he does it but he's certainly not going to question it.

He has a small, cozy little temple in the Realm of the Gods. The place is absolutely overrun with little dragons known as Terrible Terrors, and though he tends his gardens of tropical flowers almost religiously for some reason the place is also infested with lemon trees. He just can't seem to figure it out, but when you live in a place like this you learn to just take these things in stride.

ZERO -- [b]IB[/b], [i]garry[/i]; raphael deluna