Profile
Intelligent 》 As one would expect from something of his nature, Slate is fairly smart, having a wide range of knowledge on a wide array of subjects. Along with this he has an intense curiosity and desire to learn, leading to him reading about and researching anything and everything he comes upon in his spare time.
Supportive 》 He will generally go out of his way to take care of those he considers his allies and do what he can to aid them however he can.
Humorous 》 Although his is more of the dry, jabbing sort, Slate does fancy some humor and teasing now and then.
Logical 》 Slate never acts irrationally; everything he does has some kind of logical reasoning to it, and he approaches problems and people in a similarly logical manner- even if it's to their chagrin, such as when they'd much rather have emotional support than someone explain their problem to them and the individual steps of how to fix it.
Confident 》 Although it can seem to border into arrogance or egotism at times, and he may take some joy in flexing his superiority over others when he outclasses them, Slate is very certain of the extent of his capabilities- and where they end. Should he encounter something that's beyond what he can do, he won't pretend he's able to do it.
Self-Preserving 》 With his supportive nature in mind, if presented with an ultimatum where he must choose someone else's life or his own, he will choose his own.
Aloof 》 Especially when first meeting, Slate is highly reserved, defensive, and distant, even coming off as stand-offish or snobby. This ebbs a bit once he's comfortable around someone, but until then he can be a mild pain to be around.
Cynical 》 He is predisposed to being suspicious and cynical of others, believing that everyone acts for their own benefit or interest one way or another, and he likewise does little without something to gain from it somehow.
Secretive 》 He is not prone to sharing any aspects about himself unless he's extremely comfortable around someone, or it's absolutely necessary or warranted given the circumstances. He's also prone to keeping details, secrets, or other information to himself if he thinks he'll lose some kind of personal advantage by revealing them.
Slate is not a solid being, he's constructed from many tiny machines that interlock to create the "shell" of his form, sort of like a living 3D model; he is hollow on the inside. The machines can simulate textures to an extent, though this only really results in his "furred" areas feeling like fine-grit sandpaper, and anywhere else feeling relatively smooth.
Overall he has a mild warmth to him, as one would imagine from running machines. When particularly active he gives off more heat.
He has limited conscious control over these machines beyond normal movement, and they predominantly act through automatic programming that Slate can't influence. They are powered wirelessly from his tag; since they are highly mobile, they regularly cycle through his form to be near it for recharging, then redistribute once charged.
The only part of him that's "real" is the tag that hangs from the collar of his jacket. This serves as his "core" and contains him; his memory, programming, power source, everything.
Inhibitors
The inhibitors built into his tag are relevant to the whole of his being, but especially to his abilities. These inhibitors are limitations set by his creator that cause him to behave more like a mortal, for example forcing him to have normal reflexes and reaction times, preventing him from connecting to, controlling, or sapping most electronics, registering pain, preventing him from modifying himself, forcing him to only "see" from his face, and giving him lifelike but technically unnecessary "animations" such as blinking and talking, among many other things.
These inhibitors exist as physical structures inside his tag. They are deeply ingrained, but a skilled hand could theoretically tamper with or remove them. Although, naturally Slate is extremely opposed to allowing this to happen, and in general he allows incredibly few even to hold his tag, much less access its innards.
The tag has a charging port and its battery powers Slate. When he recharges, he may stay awake, sleep, or deactivate. From 1% it would take 11 hours to charge if awake, 7 if asleep, and 4 if deactivated.
When "asleep" he enters a sort of stasis, keeping the form of his body but losing his color and becoming dark, as the machines stop giving off light to conserve energy. He is effectively unconscious, as well. In this state he will reactivate in response to sufficient stimuli, such as touch or loud sounds.
When deactivated, the machines unlink and his form collapses into a mass, which will gather around the tag and interlock into a tight protective ball, leaving only the charging port exposed. He will come out of this state automatically when 50% charged (if he was below that when deactivated. If he was above that, he'll wake up when fully charged.)
Appearance Control
Slate has limited conscious control over the machines, mostly related to harmless aesthetics. For example, while he can't modify them to let him react with extreme speed, he can change the color that they produce.
He can change the brightness, hue, saturation, and patterns on his body at will. He can not, however, change his shape permanently. Being brighter slightly increases power consumption, so if this is a concern or if he's low on power, he may be overall dimmer.
Extension
Slate can thin out the machines that make up any part of his body, allowing it to stretch out and reach farther- at the cost of strength and possibly stability. For example, were he to hold onto a heavy object with his limbs compacted, there would be multiple layers of interlocked machines helping to keep his form together. But if he were to hold it with extended arms, there's a good chance of the links coming undone and his arms being pulled off at their thinnest point.
Combat
Slate avoids physical combat, and in general fears it. When faced with an aggressor he'll make all attempts to talk his way out of the situation, then try to flee. If forced into combat, Slate responds more defensively than offensively, focusing on using his environment and agility to block and evade attacks.
He's offensively lacking, as since he weighs so little, any punches, kicks, or other attacks dealt by him are immensely weak. To have any kind of chance if forced to fight, Slate needs some kind of weapon, usually found in the environment as he doesn't carry one with him.
Slate is generally incapable of using firearms. The only gun he could effectively use is a laser one, as the kickback of conventional guns would be too much for him to handle. His next weapon of choice is any long melee ones- rods, pipes, bats, etc. With a melee weapon he still must be quite acrobatic to build up enough momentum to cause any damage; spins, flips, and jumps are prevalent. While sometimes a little difficult to hit due to how quickly he can move, he's still extremely weak and offers little resistance if caught or struck, though can be difficult to restrain fully with his malleable body.
Slate will generally aim to incapacitate his aggressor as quickly as possible- or at least prevent them from harming him. The head, hands, and knees are common targets. He doesn't specifically like to kill others and would rather flee as soon as he's able.
The machines that make up Slate's body are fairly durable, and when threatened, they can move in ways that bypass the limitations from Slate's inhibitors, such as allowing them to unlink and move out of the way of anticipated strikes. Particularly fast attacks can outpace this and damage them, though.
The machines are waterproof and resistant to extreme temperatures. They are also slightly insulated against electricity, though repeated or long-term exposure can still damage them. Slate's tag, however, is very vulnerable to water, tolerating only 5 minutes submerged before severe damage occurs.
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Trivia
- He is not buoyant at all, and will rapidly sink in liquid.
- His tag has three petabytes of storage.
- His voice is produced from his tag via a small speaker on the front of it.
- He was my fourth sona ever, though he only really became a sona once he became an anthro, so at around age 17.
Voice
Themes
Title: Concentrate
Artist: nervous_testpilot
Album: Frozen Synapse Extra Tracks
Title: The Clouds Breathe For You
Artist: The Glitch Mob
Album: Piece of the Indestructible
Playlist
Title: Sempre
Artist: Ian Maksin
Album: Sempre: A New Dimension
Permissions
Credits
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