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BASICS
nameDr. Isaiah St. Germaine
alias
Izzy (for closest friends)
division
Research / Medical
occupation
Geneticist
age & dob
31, Sept 6, Virgo
pronouns
he/him
family
Dr. Gloria St. Germaine (mother)
Irwin St. Germaine (father)
CONCEPT
Pretentious scientist relies on his surroundings, but never other people.POWERS
perfect spatial awareness;Isaiah is psychically connected to his surroundings. In about a 35' radius, he is intimately aware of every single physical object, including living creatures. He knows what everything is, and where everything is, absolutely. This has many perks, as Isaiah never loses anything, and always knows where to find it. He can sense every spider in the corners of his room, and it's impossible to sneak up on him. Upon entering a new, unfamiliar area, he needs about 15-20 minutes to fully attune to it. If he focuses, he can extend his reach, but too much strain results in an immediate migraine.
There is no option to turn this off, which generally he doesn't mind. He's lived like this for decades, and finds comfort in the way his brain works. You would think this might encourage Isaiah to be a neat and minimalist person to cut down on all of the information, but it's the exact opposite. Isaiah loves stuff and both his room and his lab reflect this. He's hates dirt, but does love his mess.
One major drawback is that any damage to his immediate surroundings, especially those he's familiar with, will cause very real physical damage to him. The results can be as minor as a headache, or as severe as internal bleeding. This makes him completely unsuitable for any field work.
*Caveat: In new areas the specifics get a little more vague. For instance, in his room he knows exactly what book he's sensing across the room without even having to try. However, if he's in a new space, he can only tell it's book-shaped and maybe what color it is. If he strains, he could maybe feel out any embossed letters. But that'd risk a migraine. The more time he spends in a space, the more he learns. If presented with an object completely alien to him, all he can gather it its physical presence.
psychometry;
Speaking of Isaiah's love of objects, if he touches any item with bare hands, he will pick up immediately on any strong feelings associated with it. He can get flashes of its history, hear snippets of dialogue, or just the basic emotions. This depends on how intense the memories are, and how important and/or old the object is.
This is also an involuntary power, so he usually wears gloves when outside of his personal areas, or when handling peoples' belongings. Sometimes he's more lax about this with people he knows, as it's unlikely they'll hand him a family heirloom without warning.
sanitize;
If Isaiah handles an object, by just giving it a quick wipe or dust he can effectively sanitize it.
PERSONALITY
+ Precise, clear, and articulate. Strong sense of justice and fairness. Dry sense of humor, and surprisingly willing to go along with a gag. Good listener. Dedicated. Hard worker.= High standards. Runs a notoriously strict lab, even though his organization methods are obtuse. Opinionated — has an opinion on everything and you will be informed of it. All bark, no bite. Nostalgic. Morbid. Loves gothic horror. Proudly independent. Bossy.
- Pedantic. Pretentious. Neurotic. Won't ask for help. Deeply insecure. Hard on people as a way to express his affection and care, as well as to keep his walls up. Worrier. Thinks he's more logical than he actually is. Clutterbitch.
APPEARANCE
HISTORY
Isaiah does not have any clear memories of not being treated like he was made of glass.Isaiah was born in Plano, Texas. He was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes as a young child, with two parents who were already a little too anxious about their new son. His mother was a psychology professor chasing tenure, and his father was an accountant. The two of them had an high strung disposition (one that Isaiah would inherit), and his health scares were hard on them. Money was tight, but as they got a handle on things, it all seemed to settle down. It wasn't ideal, finances were tight, but they managed. Isaiah was a bright, precocious child who met all of his development markers early &emdash; his mother kept detailed scrapbooks recording all of them. His parents were attentive, but sometimes to a fault.
This did not improve when a rift opened up unexpectedly close to his grade school. It created an uproar in the small town, but initially it seemed as though Isaiah himself hadn't been impacted by the irradiation. He remembers how grateful and relieved his parents were, talking in the other room about how they already worried too much about him. So, when things started to change, he kept it quiet.
He became gradually aware of all the little details of his home. He knew where the Christmas presents were hidden without looking, and even more, he knew what they were. He pretended to be surprised anyway, because this was not something he was supposed to know and Isaiah prided himself on always doing the correct thing. He befriended spiders under his bed, and just by touching things he suddenly "remembered" memories that weren't his. One example, learning that his father had an affair, after touching a necklace he gave his mother as an apology. Sometimes he couldn't keep track of what were his own memories or what were things he accidentally learned.
For the time being, he was just a "spooky child", but his cover was blown when a tornado brushed past his school. The damage was scary, but mild. And yet, Isaiah collapsed. The blown out windows and general chaos done to the physical environment impacted his body, and he was quickly determined to be a Liminal. With the considerable vulnerability his powers created, it was decided he'd be best off going to an IRIS run boarding school in Abilene, TX: the Lyndon B. Johnson Educational Facility.
Isaiah had always been an incredibly good student. He thrived in academic settings, and this was no exception. At the cost of any significant social life, Isaiah maintained impeccable grades while joining Model UN, Recycling Club, and became president of the Debate Club. He became fast friends with his debate partner, Annie Song, and joined her Philomathean Society as a result. He was smitten with a fellow classmate, Jarrod Fowler, who was one of the few reasons he ever stepped out of line and sometimes neglected to show up for Philomathean meetings. (It was mostly just him and Annie anyway.)
Isaiah was absolutely delighted when he made valedictorian. Maybe only a few people in school actually liked him, but in his mind, he had won at high school. It was, in a way, a chance for him to prove that he could handle himself. He aggressively pursued a career in genetics, once again excelling through sheer force of will. He was clever, of course, but more importantly he was stubbornly committed to becoming independent. He moved out of his parent's home as soon as possible, after a lot of arguing over it. They were protective, but Isaiah wanted to be alone and take care of himself.
Isaiah had taken an intense interest in the genetic makeup of Liminals, and how exposure to rifts impacted it. It's still early into the research, of course, but Isaiah has every intention of being a founding source of information. He gained a reputation for being extremely interested in the rights and safety of Liminals, but could often be extremely single-minded. Although he'd never admit to it, he had personal experience with liminalities that could be... less than ideal for the impacted individual. Either due to them being harmful to themselves, or unintentionally dangerous to others. He's not interested in curbing the abilities so much as understanding them and advocating for them.
Since being hired by Enodia, Isaiah's even given multiple very public talks and interviews on the subject. He's a semi-familiar face on the news, even if his personality's a bit polarizing.
Over the years he kept in contact with Annie Song. They were sort of partners in crime, after all. And when both of their careers led them to Enodia? That was very convenient. The presence of several other high school acquaintances was somewhat less expected.
