Jophiel Lazarus, PhD

## General Information

### ☯**Personality**

A quite warm and down-to-earth person, initially at complete ends with her former role as a Harbinger. Lazarus is often altruistic and tries to look out for others. This lends itself to a habit of looking at the "big picture" - using her knowledge to benefit the world as a whole. As such, she considers further research her top priority; if it really comes down to it, she's not above throwing a few people under the bus in the name of a greater good. Since it usually doesn't come to that, she's usually satisfied with helping anyone who comes to seek her out and solving the occasional incident. Despite her skill with machines, she tends to come across as a little absentminded in a conversation.

### ☯**Appearance**

Lazarus has very long hair going down to her knees. While it seems white at first glance, it's closer to a very light shade of blue. A slightly darker fractal lightning marking runs over it, starting at the scalp and moving down. Vibrant blue eyes, and a thin frame. Her height is 5'5". Usually wears a black waistcoat and a heavily modified lab coat with the Mandelbrot set fractal on its back and a dragon's curve design running along the base. Her shirt and pants under them are pale blue, with another darker blue lightning pattern on her left leg. A similar design appears along the fingers and backs of her black gloves.

### ☯**Theme Songs**

* Kirby Planet Robobot - Laser Lab (Regular)
* Jojo's Bizarre Adventure All Star Battle - Dawn of Destiny (Battle)
* BlazBlue - SIX-HEROES (Harbinger)

## Backstory

Hailing from an indeterminate region, "Lazarus" began her natural life as a human under a different name, thousands of years in the past. Though she lacked any supernatural powers at this time, and science had yet to rise and begin offering explanations for worldly phenomena, she had a propensity for asking the single question of "why" - why the rain fell, why the sun and moon turned in the sky, why the gods held power as they did. The world was nothing but an endless font of questions she could never answer.

When EVE approached her, she brought with her the opportunity to uncover the world's secrets. Lazarus could begin finding her answers, one question at a time, until she knew the workings of the universe inside and out - a monumental undertaking, but one that she would have until the end of time to complete.

At her side, Lazarus delved into the art of magic and the mechanics of her own newfound ability - the power found in becoming a Harbinger, one of EVE's largest stipulations. She advanced her understanding of both the scientific and the magical well beyond humanity at large, culminating in the creation of Goukei close to twelve hundred years after her own pact with EVE. Refining the focus of each Harbinger vessel, Lazarus used his newfound Eye to dismantle the mechanics of the universe and built a vast wealth of knowledge with phenomenal speed. Over the course of millennia, she took on her current name and her role as the "mind" of the Harbingers - if nothing else, she was more suited to the position than the unstable Goukei.

## Story

### ☯**Eve of Destiny**

Lazarus' return to prominence in Gensokyo, instigating an incident that saw several characters' abilities swapped, modified, or temporarily removed.

### ☯**Dawn of Destiny**

An experiment in artificial life by tampering with dreams through Takami's ability gone awry. However, it provided the foundation for completing Lazarus' adjustments for her own attempt at artificial life, Erina.

### ☯**Imperfect Barrier Heist**

Convinced Akira to steal the Hakurei Shrine.

## Relationships

### ☯**Erina Emisane**

A culmination of Lazarus' studies into the workings of life. She's aware that Erina needs to get out on the field both for her research as well as the girl's own sake, but that doesn't stop her from doting on Erina, who likewise sees Lazarus as her mother.

### ☯**Akaichou Kano**

A major contributor to Erina's creation. The two regard each other as colleagues and occasionally consult each other or exchange research notes, though Akira has turned down the prospect of further collaboration with Lazarus.

### ☯**Goukei Zanshiku**

A fellow Harbinger. Lazarus finds it hard to tolerate him due to his abrasive personality and lack of respect for her or her studies, but she can just barely acknowledge him as another Harbinger with highly valuable insight on the very rare occasions he chooses to voice it. The vast majority of the time, he's an endless wellspring of aggravation instead.

### ☯**Eirin Yagokoro**

Tends to clash with Eirin whenever they meet - Lazarus disliking Eirin's medical focus and background, and Eirin disliking Lazarus' mechanical focus and background. While she respects Eirin and her knowledge, Lazarus prefers to check with every other possible source first.

## Abilities

### ☯**Ability to Manipulate Souls**

Capable of using the power of Famine to manipulate any soul upon contact with their head. In doing so, she can convert their power into a red-lined disc and draw it out. If the disc is transferred into someone else, they will gain all of the powers on it. However, if the target is incapable of "supporting" the amount of power in the disc, then they cannot use some of those abilities, or the disc will reject them entirely. For instance, Lazarus cannot make full use of Reimu's ability to "float," and she cannot use Yukari's manipulation of boundaries at all.

Blank discs can be used to "copy" the target's ability onto it without removing the ability from the user, turning the blank disc into a yellow-lined copy disc. These copy discs will quickly break down over the course of a day. Alternatively, copy discs can be used to replicate and store memories and information.

She can also create blue-lined command discs that carry one command each, and force the target to carry them out once implemented. The effect cannot be resisted through sheer willpower. If the command is one that will work over time, there is a time limit to how long it can work before dissolving. Command discs can also be used to perform feats such as "fling yourself headfirst into the floor at two hundred kilometers per hour," or even to force a plausible outcome such as "connect with your next attack." However, they cannot influence fate or reality with extremely vague and sweeping commands such as "win this battle," especially if doing so before the disc expires is effectively impossible.

Finally, Lazarus can fully extract a person's entire being or soul from their body using a green-lined disc. Once placed in a suitable body, the disc dissolves and restores the one stored inside. However, this is the only ability that requires the full cooperation of the target in order to extract the disc. While Lazarus' discs can be used by anyone, only she can remove the discs in the first place and modify them.

While most of Lazarus' discs can be broken, modified, or wiped clean, power discs and soul discs are indestructible; the only means of destroying the information contained within either is inserting them into a person and then killing them. There is a maximum limit to how many discs can be placed in someone simultaneously - the limit depends on the person and discs used, but is usually around five.

### ☯**Personal Studies**

Over the course of millennia, Lazarus has achieved a profound understanding of several scientific fields, most prominently quantum physics and machinery. Her laboratory experiments aside, Lazarus' body carries a variety of artificial augmentations to place herself on equal footing with most youkai despite her below-average constitution, and she has created many functional war machines integrating her technology and traditional magic. Several of the Harbinger's abilities operate off of her interpretations of their workings, and Erina Emisane's mind was "programmed" entirely by Lazarus. While she is also a competent surgeon, much of her experience in it is honed from simple trial and error.

## Spell Cards

 Override "Void Force Return"
 Stream "Uninitialized Barrier"
As soon as a card is replicated, the barrier immediately shatters regardless of whether or not the spell had remaining energy or duration, which can put Lazarus in a dangerous situation afterwards. This card can't copy complex danmaku patterns unless the vast majority of bullets strike the barrier in the few seconds it stays active, nor can it copy barrier-piercing spells or nonspell attacks.

## Weaknesses

### **☯Fighting Style**

Very powerful once she gets going, but often difficult to get going. Without another ability, Lazarus is left with very little in terms of proper combat capability. Her discs require either being used in close-range or being thrown, which can be difficult if the target is aware of their presence. She very little danmaku and spell card options of her own, and must rely on external aid to fight back. Even if her copy discs successfully strike the enemy, they can break the discs before Lazarus can retrieve and utilize them. Extracting discs from a target in the first place requires a blow to the head and cannot be done through alternative means, putting her at a disadvantage when most combatants are capable of swift flight.

And no, she will not fight using a giant mecha if she didn't enter the battle with one to begin with.

## Trivia

* Insists on the title of Doctor/*hakase*.
* The name "Jophiel Lazarus" is a pseudonym.
* Dislikes chocolate after being shown the "infinite chocolate bar" trick.
* Third Horseman of the Apocalypse, Famine.
* *Not* a certified surgeon by any stretch of the imagination.