Character Profile: Bassam Hussaini

[Chrysalis]

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||Mind To Power - Adaptations and Abilities - Part I

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Prior to his infestation, Hussaini lacked any real useful skills, his expertise extending to simple manual labor he performed for most of his life in indentured servitude. Post infestation, however, simple skills were gradually 'downloaded' into his mind via simple proximity to the elder infectee mindnodes on Samarra. This process sped up as the physical subversion of his brain progressed, the incubus maturing and expanding its tissue towards select brain regions. By the end of his time on Samarra, the incubus had reached an almost mature stage, the evolution of which was guided by strict instructions from the all-pervasive mindshare. Only a limited psionic ability was developed, limited to telepathic communication and violent assault on minds of lesser creatures and more susceptible humans.

After the violent destruction of the Samarran mindshare and the forced flight to Sirus via an unstable wormhole, the incubus and by extent Hussaini went into a state of traumatic shock, unable to fully process the sudden lack of all mindshare feedback, leading to genetic damage in the incubus. Confined to itself, the incubus' self-preservation instincts kicked into overdrive, bringing its mutable nature to the forefront in a panicked attempt to further integrate with its host and protect what its sub-sentient mind perceived as a last chance for survival. This chaotic process of hybridization continues to this day and results in an inconsistent array of adaptations and abilities.

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||Telepathy

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Part living organism and part technology, the sillicate biology of the incubus can read, store and transmit information to and from the K'hara mindshare, as long as it remains in sufficient proximity of a mindnode. Due to previous damage to his incubus' genetic code, Hussaini finds this ability to be sorely lacking in his case, capable of meaningful communication only through great expenditure of conscious effort.

The ability to transmit information directly into the minds of humans remained unaffected, however, and was even further enhanced as the incubus violently morphed and subsumed his cerebellum, then worked its way up to the rest of his brain. Though rarely utilized, he has the ability to 'speak' to a human in this way, who would perceive his 'speech' as something alike to his or her inner voice. In the same way, he can hear them if they speak back, and in rare cases, pick up on their simple thoughts and basic intents event if they weren't directed at him.

He can weave 'visions', that are perceived through the human's 'mind's eye' and can easily be distinguished from reality. He can also create illusions, that manifest in the actual field of vision and are rarely identified as simple hallucinations by the sufferer. And finally, he can issue 'commands', creating compulsions that sufficiently susceptible humans feel obliged to carry out. These abilities don't come without a price, however, as intense and reckless use can quickly deplete him and cause damage, leading to nosebleeds, migraines and in extreme cases even life-threatening symptoms.

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||Psychokinesis

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The ability to exert force on objects through manipulation of electromagnetism and gravity on a quantum level. Pyschokinesis - mind to power. This entails an impressive list of abilities, displayed most prominently by K'hara morphs, but also to a lesser extent by more mature infectees and hybrids. Hussaini's psychokinetic abilities started developing after his arrival in Sirius, first manifesting as a panicked fight-or-flight response in life threatening situations. Though he's gained a modicum of control over them in recent times, they still primarily manifest when his subconscious and animal-like incubus brain assumes all control of his actions.

Though theoretically everything is possible, realistically and practically he can at most manage to lift or push an object of with a mass roughly equal to his. Levitating and hurling objects as weapons, diverting incoming small projectiles and even more insidious feats such as exerting a crushing force on bodies of living foes, are all within the realm of possibility. The use of these abilities also contains drawbacks, similar to overuse of telepathic abilities but with even more severe symptoms. Aside from general wear and tear of the body, the energy requirements for sustained use of these activities are far beyond the scope of the average human body. Overuse of psychokinesis can cause starvation and quickly drain the fat reserves in the body, and even cause muscular dystrophy as the body struggles to power the mind.