Lucio Prieto

Luz is a cheerful half man/half bird demi-human who works at and manages Sirona's cake shop in the Air district of the Undercity (previously owned by Eir Sirona). Once human, he signed up for a trial study run by Avalon scientist, Alice Constantine, to test one of their products. The pay she offered was enough to relieve his family of the crushing debt the corps had over them, but what followed were a series of excruciating exams with various genetic medications meant to enhance dexterity and precision, with "side effects" causing him to have adverse effects to magic, decreasing the rate that at which his cells regenerated overtime, and finally, changing his appearance to have various birdlike features as his genetic code was reconfigured with DNA from several birds of prey.
When Avalon broke the news to Luz of his condition and shortened life span, he simply took his credits, paid off the debts his family had, and went on a self-imposed exodus into the Undercity to do more with his relatively short life.
==Origin==
Prior to Season 2, Luz’s family was under crushing debt from the Corporations that employed them. Despite this, his family tried to give Luz a normal life. Giving him an education and scrounging up funds to help him move forward in life. Luz felt guilty for this life his family gave him and for the suffering they put themselves through everyday to maintain it, so he sought out ways to clear the debt. Taking up odd jobs, working as a knife-for-hire in various restaurants, but all of these efforts made but a dent against the growing debt and Luz became desperate. 
One day Luz found an ad for a trial study run by Avalon scientist, Alice Constantine, to test one of their products. The pay she offered was good, real good, enough to wipe away the debt, so he willingly signed himself for experimentation. What followed were a series of excruciating exams with various genetic medications meant to enhance dexterity and precision, with "side effects" causing him to have adverse effects to magic, decreasing the rate that at which his cells regenerated overtime, and finally, changing his appearance to have various birdlike features as his genetic code was reconfigured with DNA from several birds of prey, the most dominant being the Barn Owl. Some changes like his avian legs, unbeknownst to Luz as he fell in and out of consciousness, were made simply on the vanity of the scientist as she amputated his old limbs to foster the new ones.
After coming to and the experiments done, Alice gave him his money and broke the news to Luz of his condition and shortened life span. She offered him an elective procedure that could reverse these debilitations and changes to his body, but it would cost him much more than the debt his family accrued. Knowing that his family would push for this procedure and mortified at the thought that they would plunge themselves further into debt to save him, Luz simply took his credits and left into the streets, paying any debts his family had, and went on a self-imposed exodus into the Undercity to do more with his relatively short life. He still keeps in-touch with his family, telling them that he moved out and got a job, but he would never say where or what, in fear of them finding him and suffering more for him.
==History==
In the undercity, during the events of Season 2, Luz returned to his cooking background by taking up a baker position under Eir Sirona in her cake shop. In this position, Luz made many friends of the patrons that would pass through the shop, bringing in a consistent flow of business as he would open up the store even during Eir’s absence. When he wasn’t working, Luz would explore the rooftops of the undercity to sate his curiosity, his avian instincts, and his want to keep an eye on his friends below.
This behavior led him to assisting Voxine Machinae by keeping tabs on Shomestu personnel who passed through the streets as she hid or escaped. It also led Luz to witness things that would scar him both mentally and physically, the death of his friend Levi and the explosion of his friend Vanto Ruve that shredded his wings and put him in the clinic. Luz was thankful the reparations paid for his injuries, but those events along with the helplessness he felt during the fire elemental disaster pushed him towards training himself to handle a weapon. A push that proved crucial during the invasion by the Illithari as it allowed him to assist in the protection of those around him, but cost him his health as he put himself directly in harm’s way, and cost him some aspect of himself as a predatory instinct in his genes awoke from the bloodshed.
Sustaining near-fatal injuries to his chest from the invasion, Luz’s lungs have been struggling to recover over the one year of relative peace under Masaru occupation of the Undercity. The residual effects of the alien weaponry combined with his poor cell regeneration, has caused Luz to develop a form of asthma. Though a condition that could be easily fixed by Avalon doctors, Luz chose to push through the recovery with his own amateur and deluded physical therapy to avoid amounting another debt. Despite making progress in physically improving his flight and combat skills, his lungs could never recover to their previous health through Luz’s efforts alone. Going as far as needing regular checkups in the undercity clinic to keep his condition from deteriorating.
Now barely able to make ends meet due to his many conditions, Luz is starting to consider secondary lines of work to keep himself alive to watch over the denizens of the Undercity and do better to protect them. A thought that may prove to further entrench his genetically induced behavior for better or for worse.
==Traits ==
===Edges===
*Major - BIRD OF PREY - If his wings are not restricted in movement, Luz can use his wings to propel himself into the air.
*Minor - KEEN HEARING - Luz has above average hearing.
*Minor - RAPTOR'S PRECISION - Luz has above average accuracy.
=== Flaws===
* Major - MALPRACTICE - Luz can not be healed by magical sources and any major injury he sustains that cripples a body part takes twice as long to heal. In addition, his lifespan has been shortened to 40 years.
*Minor - LUNG CORROSION - After performing any physically strenuous activity for more than 1 minute, Luz must take a short 30 second rest to collect his breath. If Luz is forced to perform a physically strenuous activity continuously without taking a full rest, he will fall unconscious at the 15 minute mark. He will remain unconscious until 5 minutes pass.
*Minor - FRAGILE BODY - Luz takes more lasting damage from mundane sources.
===Racial===
* Edge - DOWN FEATHER - Luz can slow his descent when falling.
*Flaw - HOLLOW BONES - Luz is vulnerable to bludgeoning damage.
==Links==
===Social Links===
*Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/crystalzenaida
*Twitter: https://twitter.com/crystalzenaida
===Episodes===
*Season 2 Collection: https://www.twitch.tv/collections/OY4EKAskZBY9Nw
*Season 3 Collection: https://www.twitch.tv/collections/tm7FBVKtzha1Rw
===Clips===
*Run
*Missed the Target
*Luz Witnesses a Microaggression
==Gallery ==
Category:Neon Divide Characters
Category:Demi-Humans