Sterling Morrell
He/him
When Sterling was a child, the artificial intelligence known as the Mainframe sent microscopic technology to fuse with his body. When he was too young to remember, he grew up in Caddo Nation. His parents moved him and his older brother (Alex, but later known as Phoenix) to urban Houston for a job, intending the move to be temporary.
Before Sterling reached his preteens, his parents died from corliquens—a deadly disease. Sterling and Phoenix found an abandoned portion of a building in Houston to sleep in. They stole to survive until Renovatio—an engineering organization—took note of Phoenix's hacking skills. Renovatio captured the two. If Phoenix worked as an engineer for Renovatio, they would agree to take care of Sterling. The agreement made Sterling grow up nearly completely alone in captivity. Video games could only somewhat satiate his depleting sanity from his lack of freedom.
In the late 2190s, Renovatio locked a couple of other teenagers in the rooms beside Sterling's. He talked to one through the walls, knowing him as Will. He didn't learn until later that the girl in the other room was named Tera. The three of them were rescued by the Antistasi to join the Sivylla—a group of other teenagers who the Mainframe fused with technology. During this time, the group discovered side effects of the technology: enhanced abilities. Sterling discovered that his capability was related to his vocal control. He could shatter glass with his vocal cords, he could train his voice to sound exactly like another person, he could speak on a frequency too high for most people to hear, and more. After the Mainframe events, he joined the Antistasi.
By the beginning of "Death's Mending Touch," Sterling was in an open relationship with his boyfriend and went on dangerous missions for the Antistasi. When the deceased Bian appeared around the world, the Antistasi called Sterling and the other Sivylla together to address this. After reuniting with Bian, the group decided to work with the Antistasi part-time under the new team name: the Enforcers.
This section includes major spoilers about "Death's Mending Touch." Please read the book first, unless you want the ending spoiled.
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Appearance
Sterling was born a human. He was a Brown, Native Amalrican (specifically Caddo) man with dark brown eyes. At the beginning of "Death's Mending Touch," he was 5'8 and very thin. His dark brown hair was cut short in mourning for his recently deceased comrades. He preferred casual clothing and wearing his boyfriend's brown jacket wherever he went.
Personality, Behavior, Et Cetera
Sterling had a chaotic energy that could range from magnetizing to disturbing. He was up for almost anything all the time, and would do almost anything for the joke of it. He was so wild that the Antistasi would consider him a liability if he weren't so good at his job and willing to risk his life for the cause. Being rescued from years of captivity essentially made the Antistasi his lifeline. In addition to video games, he became extremely good at fighting in high-stress situations. His aim with various firearms was among the best of the Antistasi.
He sang and played around with his voice in his free time. He could imitate all kinds of sounds, including nature sounds and other people's voices. His beatboxing and opera skills became more refined as he practiced.
He had Graves’ disease. As a result, he lost weight without trying, had a fast heartbeat, had sleep problems, sometimes had a tremble in his hands, and had increased sensitivity to heat. He took medication around 11am and 11pm to calm his heart rate. For whatever reason, drinking Mons Dew helped calm himself—his older brother used to get him that all the time.
He lightly believed in a pantheon of nonbinary gods. It was 'more for him to have someone to pray to or curse about than someone to really believe in. Even so, he particularly called on: Jiahm (god of vengeance, violence, trickery), Siltern (god of family, friendship, strong bonds), Itulde (god of isolation, repose, peace, imprisoned), and Menjaki (god of medication, healing, the broken, damaged objects).
He was gay and polyamorous. He liked to remind people of that.
Relationships
Growing up, Sterling relied on Phoenix (Alex). When the two were captured, Sterling slowly developed resentment for Phoenix, thinking his older brother was free to roam around and left Sterling to rot. When they reunited, they cleared up their misconceptions.
When Sterling met Will and Tera, Sterling latched onto them right away. They were the first people his age he interacted with in years. He enjoyed antagonizing Will like he was a little brother and looking after Tera like she was a little sister. Although he solidified bonds with the other Sivylla, he particularly had a weakness for the two of them. If anyone hurt Will or Tera, he would burn down the world to get revenge.
In "Death's Mending Touch," Sterling was in an open relationship with his boyfriend. The two of them often went on dates with each other and/or with other people. They brought each other leftovers from the dates they went on separately.
Trivia
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Sterling's birthday was November 28, 2178
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He was the first character of the Sivylla that I came up with
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Some of Sterling's personality was inspired by a chaotic singer with a miraculous range
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I have an alter introject of Sterling. It's one of the two instances that I've had a character become inspiration for an introject alter. The other instance is an introject alter of Phoenix, Sterling's brother
