Obidos Dusk

Overview
Obidos (pronounced Ah-bih-dose) "Obi" Dusk is a 17 year old miniature dachshund with reddish-brown fur, green eyes, and a tan face. Due to messy and hard to comb hair, he can often be seen wearing a black beanie in public. He uses this beanie to store small and lightweight items from time to time as well, notably keeping a stockpile of paper talismans when on a mission. His wardrobe consists of dark purple jeans, a gray shirt, and a light violet coat. He also has a miniature planchette worn as a necklace that can be used to identify ghostly energy and detect illusions caused by said ghosts.

He stands at about an average height compared to other Mobians, standing at around 4'2" and is relatively skinny. His torso is slightly longer than most other canine species, but this is only due to being a dachshund, and is a rather common trait shared with others of his breed.

Personality
Obi's main positive trait is that he's mild mannered and polite. He is very introspective and self-critical when it comes to making and carrying out decisions. While his demeanor is nothing short than quiet and calm, he's rather easy to get along with due to his listening skills and easygoing nature. His body language evokes a sense of calmness with those around him. While this thoughtfulness and an intrinsically motivated self-discipline enables a deep sense of patience and vigilance, this also makes him susceptible to self-doubt and atychiphobia (the fear of failure).

Thus, Obidos suffers from anxiety and overthinking in the face of fear and adversity. He adopts a generally suspicious attitude towards new and unusual circumstances and when faced with dire situations, he tends to freeze up instead of taking action or moving out of the way. Anything out of his immediate realm of understanding is a threat, as problems that Obi cannot mentally grasp or figure out induce stress and frustration. He also struggles with distrust, as he fears that expressing his worriment will bother those around him and paint him as a weakling.

Early Life
Obidos was born and raised in Phthalo, Egrait (a country located on the West cost of the continent Ethierre). His father, a psychotherapist and counselor, and his mother, a newspaper editor imbued him with a a philosophy of logic and autonomy. As a person, they believed that it was up to you and you alone to succeed in life and make a way for yourself. While they still valued friendship and family (as any normal person should), they thought that it wasn't anyone else's responsibility to ensure your satisfaction.

This allowed Obi to form a hardy work ethic in school, generally making good grades in school. Phthalo was a smaller city though, with a deeply ingrained culture revolving religion and a sense of community through things like sports, hobby clubs, and other types of competitive and collaborative teams. The dachshund never really felt like he fully fit in with his various cliques because of this, despite a generally positive reception from both adult and adolescent peers.

Unnatural Disasters
Despite the generally humid climate from the land in the arboreal forest that engulfs the country, a large percentage of Egrait succumbed to a large wildfire. The lumber industry of Egrait was absolutely demolished, taking a huge bite out of the country's economy. The more inland part of the nation suffered as well, as other biomes suffered from a sporadic overpopulation of predators. Even more hardship came when the more urban cities experienced a flu-like epidemic that spread rapidly and caused extreme pain, hallucinations, and dehydration.

Egrait was under duress. Its citizens, including the Dusk family, lived in fear and prayed that this hardship would come to an end.

Epiphany
After months of plague after plague, most Egraitian citizens had evacuated the seemingly cursed nation. Thankfully, the Dusks were a multinational family and were able to move in with family in the land of Cadelnita. Obi and his mother and father settled peacefully in this new land, still perplexed and saddened by how everything went wrong in Egrait.

A few weeks later, Obi started having dreams about his once prosperous hometown. Cadelnita was far more rustic and undeveloped (urbanization-wise) compared to Egrait, so Obi missed the technology and convenience that thrived in the city of Phthalo. He saw a picturesque and nostalgic town instead of a devastated wasteland that it was in reality. He attributed these dreams to homesickness, but one night, one of these dreams really struck a nerve.

It was a brief one, but in this dream, Obi saw himself in a grand cathedral, one that looked as if it was constructed of gold and stone. The next morning, he woke up to the news, reporting on an uncanny swarm of tornadoes rampaging through Egrait as well as a possible observation of the dark clouds spreading and expanding. On the edge of Cadelnita, the television broadcasted an image of an ostentatious chapel that reminded him of the church in his dreams.

The Savior's Thurible
Curious about this seemingly familiar place, Obi spent his Saturday on a road trip, travelling to the edge of the country in order to find this church. Hours later, he finally approached the massive doors of the church. The campus of this church smelled of rose and incense, and while there were no visitors in the parking lot of the building, the doors were unlocked and slightly ajar.

As he entered this place, he saw a curiously-shaped, brass incense burner laying on an altar. Other than the decorations and statues that were attached to the building itself, there was no other objects lying about. The church had an eerie aura about it, somehow both welcoming and alone at the same time. It was as if the chapel was lonely, and calling out and begging for any sort of stranger to step in and attend.

Monsignor Barnabas
Obi looked around for a little bit, but soon lost interest in this place. There was really nothing to do around here. His intrigue waned. Perhaps he just had déjà vu regarding the whole incident. He turned around, and began to walk back to the entrance, but was suddenly cut off by a deep voice.

“So, you’re the answer?”

The dachshund cringed and stumbled a bit. He looked all around, but the source of this query was indeterminable. He continued walking towards the door.

As he walked to the exit, a tall, male cockatiel in cream-colored robes approached the dog.

“You look like the boy that I saw in the dream last night. Tell me, are you from Egrait?”

Obi was both surprised and angered by this stranger. How on Earth did he know who he was? Obi replied, refusing to give any details about his background. The priest only laughed in response.

“Listen, child. The Church has been tirelessly fighting and praying over this whole Egrait crisis, and I had a dream that someone came here. He said that he was from Egrait and wanted to know why it fell to ruins.”

This shut the dachshund up pretty quickly. Something about the dream reignited a curiosity about what exactly happened in his hometown, more than a dream normally would.

The man introduced himself as Monsignor Barnabus, the caretaker of this church. While he used to be greatly involved in missions and helping the needy, his chapel was understaffed and nobody else could take care of the church if he was gone. Barnabus discussed the Egratian plagues with Obi and that there seemed to be strange zones within the country that were immune to natural disasters. There were multiple different spots in the country that seemed unaffected by the various storms and maladies that ravaged the rest of the land, but the more people left, the more these spots disappeared. He noted that these places were home to extravagant and active churches with an active religious community. For some reason, they were spared from the crisis.

Thus, Barnabus theorized that this was a spiritual epidemic as well. There was some unknown force ravaging the land, and as the country became more and more uninhabitable, more of the clergy and devoted people left the land, thus removing any godly protection that watched over the zones. This plague was spreading further, and Cadelnita was far less populated and thus more susceptible to these unholy disasters.

“While I’m not going to force anyone into fighting the Church’s battles, I’m starting to feel that this country will have to fight the same force eventually. There’s been many reports of crazed people, rabid animals, and even monstrous figures roaming about the countryside. Whatever’s happening is spreading, and we need all the help and faith we can get to fight back.”

Thus, Barnabas gave Obi the brass censer and bid him adieu.

The Gift
Obi pondered about the whole scenario on his way home, but thought that the spiritual angle that Barnabas took was just conspiratorial drivel. Regardless, he knew the crazy old man believed wholeheartedly in what he had said, so Obi would feel bad if he didn’t take the thurible as a gift.

On his way home though, something caught his car’s tire and Obi found himself stranded in the middle of a country highway. He stepped out of his car to inspect the damage, but something was off. The sky had darkened in the span of a few seconds and there were suddenly no other cars on the world. Obi was too annoyed and preoccupied with his flat to really notice though. He retrieved his cellphone from his car’s cup holder, but there was absolutely no signal.

It was then that the dachshund looked around and finally took note of his surroundings. He felt a sudden rush of uneasiness and dread, as if the whole world around him was turning grey. The thurible resting in the passenger seat seemed to retain its sunlight-fueled glow, however. The brass shimmered a brilliant, gold color.

He scratched his head, perplexed by the whole scenario. He closed his eyes to take a deep breath and think about what to do, but his train of thought was interrupted by a guttural moan. He opened his eyes and looked around, only to be greeted by a pale, dead-eyed and slowly hobbling Mobian from the forest.

The Dreadful Encounter
Obi was scared to death, he called out and try to speak to the approaching figure, but nothing work. As it drew nearer, the dachshund noticed blood dripping from the corner of the figures eyes and mouth. Obi knew he was in extreme danger. He couldn’t move though. His anxiety and terror flowed through his body, paralyzing him in place.

He froze in fear, pleading in his mind what to do and hoping for some sort of miracle. The zombie-like figure was mere feet from the dachshund and his car. As Obi trembled and cried in panic, but out of nowhere, an unknown force began to move his arms.

Obi unwillingly leaned into the doorway of his car and picked up the elaborate incense burner. It was if there was some unknown force beckoning him to use it, but how? How was this going to save him?

Obi did what he thought was the most reasonable thing to do in this scenario, brandishing the thurible as a flail and smacking the zombie across the face. It staggered back a bit, but recoiled shortly after and began running towards the dachshund. So, Obi did it again. And again. Eventually, the zombie was beaten to a pulp and began dissolving into tiny embers. The remains blew away in the end, and suddenly the clouds cleared. Sunlight shined down on Obi’s face once again, and then, Obi woke up. His emergency lights were on and he was pulled over at the side of the road. Someone knocked loudly against the window, snapping the dachshund out of his post-nap fog. It was his father. Apparently, someone had texted him after his tired had popped, but the dachshund couldn’t remember thing after parking on the side of the road.

Since he seemed okay, the father and son had the car towed and the two returned home. Wondering exactly what the hell had happened, he went to the internet. Maybe that crazy old priest was right in some way… What could Obidos do to keep that from ever happening again? It was too real for it to be a meaningless dream. Should he come and see Barnabas sometime again? Regardless, he had the feeling someone would have to take action to end this whole, confusing crisis.

Fighting Style
Obi is not a born-and raised fighter. In fact, most of his battle capabilities are a result of internet research and trial and error when it comes to the various techniques and weapons that his web-surfing had provided. He’s had a decent amount of experience wielding his main weapon, however. Thus, he is somewhat efficient in dealing with unholy opponents. Through his research, he has also been able to soup up his chain censer to better deal with various other threats.

In actual combat, Obi’s main strength is his range. The thurible itself is attacked to a very long, sturdy, yet strangely elastic chain that enables him to lash and flail opponents with the censer. He has also attached a paper talisman, known as an “ofuda” (learned from an extensive internet search) to the tip of this censer, allowing for an extra point of contact for dealing with ethereal threats (such as ghosts or incorporeal demons). Thus, his weapon has two separate sweet spots depending on what type of enemy he’s fighting.

His main goal in a fight is to keep his opponent at a distance, as his hand-to-hand combat skills leave much to be desired. Mid-range battles are the most advantageous to him, because although he has researched dabbled into magic and holy summons, his interest in these are rather mercurial in nature, meaning he has never really taken the time to fully master a technique. He will move on quickly to different methods if it doesn’t immediately meet his needs.

Thymiatiri
Thymiatiri is what Obi named his censer-flail. As stated earlier, this is a long-ranged flail weapon that excels at disposing evil and unholy threats. There is also a paper talisman, known as an ofuda, tied to the end of the flail. Since this is an incense burner, Obi can also enhance the weapon's power by burning materials such as basil, frankincense, sage, and rose petals. By burning wormwood, he can also create a helpful "smoke phantom" that acts as an extension of power.

Thymiatri ​​'s chain is also uncannily elastic, allowing him to wrap it around platforms and other object and launch himself away or towards a location if the target is heavy or sturdy enough. It can also wrap around opponents for a short period of time before it returns, possibly encumbering them.

Prayer Tags
Obi keeps a resovoir of paper slips underneath his beanie. This have prayers in a sacred language written on them that he can use to command his faux-phantom. He can throw these talismans at a target location to direct his smoke phantom to move to a location.Some tags with a red mark also have exorcism spells written on them, disrupting spiritual and magical energy for a moment, lowering a target's attack and defense for a small period of time. These do not protect against physical attackers, however, can be easily ripped or crumbled, and  lose range and aerodynamic ability over time, sinking to the ground like a paper airplane if it doesn't hit a target in time.

Aromatherapy Prayer
When in a safe space and enough time, Obi can simply burn his incense and meditate to heal and remedy curses or negative energies from himself and his allies. This takes some time, cooperation from companions, and peace in order to pull this off, however.

Smoke Phantom
Obi can create a fabricated ghost from the smoke of wormwood and use it as a weapon in combat. By throwing prayer tags, he can command the spirit to fly to a target location, cursing and harming any enemies that it passes through on the way there. After reaching the prayer tag, it implodes in an area-of-effect, dealing extra damage to enemies caught in the blast. Despite it's scary and seemingly dark appearance, it is not actually a sentient being, meaning it still is a holy attack.

Judgement Glitch
Obi throws a specially marked prayer tag that explodes on contact with an enemy, briefly stunning them and lowering their defense for a small period of time.It does very little damage on it's own, however. Against dark, demonic, or evil beings, it also lowers offense and afflicts Blessing, a sort of anti-curse that deals damage over time.

Statistics
ATK: 3

Obi can deal a good amount of damage, especially against unholy or dark enemies. However, against normal foes, he may not be able to deal as much damage against a more well-trained fighter. regardless Thymiatiri is pretty heavy, and works effectively well as a chain mace. His ability to summon a Smoke Phantom and use Judgement Glitch is also efficient in keeping enemies away and disrupting their focus.

DEF: 2

Obi has average physical durability, but has spiritually conditioned himself to be resistant to magical or incorporeal attacks, especially against curses. Nothing that completely protects him from such, however.

SPD: 4

Obi's speed, like many other traits, is average at best, however what he lacks in run speed, he makes up for with the ability to use Thymiatiri to tether and pull/launch himself to a target. This is a great way to either escape to a farther or higher platform or to use his weight to perform a flying kick attack.

CTR: 4

Most of Obi's kit relies on encumbering or otherwise inhibiting the movement of opponents to stall for time and allow for Obi to get safe lashes on a foe. Thus, he can thrives in team battles where he can lockdown and setup allies for team attacks.

UTL: 3

Aromatherapy Prayer is undoubtebly a potent and divine healing tool, but it's useless in combat due to the amount of time and safety it requires. It's nothing to sniff at, however, and is an indispensable tool when embarking on long adventures with seperate, but many fights.

RES: 4

Obi calls upon godly power in order to perform his more magical attacks and Thymiatiri is durable enough to handle most abuse, however he can only hold onto a limited number of prayer tags at once and the ofuda on his thurible is easily damaged and must be replaced frequently

Total Points: 20

Trivia

 * The first sigil on Thymiatiri's ofuda is a reference to "Loss" a part of a webcomic Ctrl+Alt+Delete by Tim Buckely that has evolved into an internet meme.