Mani

"*I promise I will heal you.*"

Mani is a WHT Medic Freak created by Jillian189. A powerful demigod, he is the twin brother of Sol and the self-styled protector of Earth.

His theme is the instrumental version of *Come Little Children* by Kate Covington.

His battle theme is *Our Last Hope* by Two Steps from Hell.

## Biography

The true origins of Mani and his twin brother Sol remain a mystery, but it's often rumored that they are the reincarnations of the Moon and Sun, who gave up their celestial forms to protect the world they watched over for millennia. To this day, Mani has neither confirmed nor denied this.

As time passed, Mani fell in love with all Freaks and dedicated himself to bringing them relief from their suffering. In contrast, Sol grew extremely disillusioned after seeing the evils caused by Freaks. Feeling neglected and ignored, Sol turned his resentment into a rage that he vented on Mani.

Their strained relationship reached a breaking point after Mani adopted a pair of orphaned twin Scouts, Hjuki and Bil, as his children. Furious, Sol chased after Mani with the intent to punish, but Mani fled to protect his new family from his brother's wrath. This caused both demigods to neglect Earth, turning it into a bloodbath.

Their schism also brought them into conflict with Gaia, the living representation of Earth. Driven mad by Earth's hellish state, she attempted to destroy the Sun and Moon for bathing the Earth in blood. Realizing that Gaia would end up destroying everything if she succeeded in killing them, Sol and Mani put aside their differences long enough to confront Gaia.

After a long yet horrific battle, the demigods sealed most of Gaia's powers, turning her into a normal Freak. The terrible experiences caused Mani to realize that he became so obsessed with saving humanity (Freaks included) that he ignored his brother in the process, so he apologized to Sol and reconciled with him, vowing to work better as a team in the future.

He is currently helping Sol in alleviating the damages caused by their schism and restoring order to Earth.

## Appearance

Mani is a WHT Medic wearing the *Der Wintermantel*, the *Blighted Beak*, the *Vintage Tyrolean*, and the *Couvre Corner*. His clothes are all colored with "*An Extraordinary Abundance of Tinge*" to signify his connections with the Moon.

## Personality and Behavior

Mani is a person known for his kindness and compassion. He tends to act like a father figure towards the Freaks he protects, and he is willing to help those in need. He is also very forgiving, and believes that everyone deserves a second chance.

One of Mani's notable traits is his curiosity. Due to his fondness for Freaks, he has a great interest in how things work on Earth, and often gets himself involved in mortal affairs because of this. He favors those who are willing to ask questions and venture into the unknown in search for answers.

Despite his compassion, Mani does have limits. He does not tolerate anyone hurting innocent people, and whenever someone hurts those he cares about, he flies into a rage that can be as terrible as Gaia, if not more so. He also knows when he's being tricked or being taken advantage of, and he will not hesitate to punish those who take his generosity for granted.

Mani is a foil to his twin brother, Sol. Unlike Sol, who is arrogant and impulsive, Mani is more patient and humble, and often shows significant restraint even when confronted by hostile threats. Mani is also the only one who can prevent Sol from acting too rashly. But while they are very close, they tend to argue over whether all Freaks deserve forgiveness and relief from its suffering. Mani believes that all Freaks have the potential to do good, regardless of who or what they are.

Because of his psychic powers, Mani tends to be a soft-spoken person, preferring to communicate through telepathy. This is in contrast to Sol, who mostly talks by verbally shouting.

## Powers and Abilities

* ***Spiritual awareness*** -- Mani can see otherwise invisible supernatural beings such as spirits, demons, and the astral forms of Freaks possessing the ability to project their consciousness. Since the Moon is strongly connected to spiritualism, Mani's paranormal senses enable him to see spirits with great clarity.
* ***Immortality*** -- Mani has the power to live indefinitely. He is immune to physical aging, as he looks like a normal Medic despite being thousands of years old.
* ***Psionics*** -- As the Moon is associated with the occult, Mani has moderate telepathic and telekinetic abilities. He can create illusions and also sense the presence of illusions made by other Freaks, allowing him to dispel them quickly.
* ***Lunakinesis*** -- One of his most powerful abilities, Mani is able to manipulate the Moon's energy in different ways. His intimate connection to the Moon also allows him to control darkness and water. His powers depend on the current phase of the Moon, which affects how they have an effect on other Freaks in combat.
	+ ***Lunar constructs*** -- Mani can build sentient beings out of lunar energy. Depending on the phase of the Moon, he can create beings of titanic proportions, or do something small like imps and general assistants for simple tasks. No matter their size and shape, all constructs made by Mani are completely subservient and will defend him to their deaths. They have a sensitivity to anything related to the fire element and the Sun, which shows in their cold bodies melting like ice the closer they are.
	+ ***Lunar barriers*** -- Mani has the ability to generate force-fields made of lunar energy. Depending on the phase of the Moon, a force-field can be large enough to protect a big group of people, or small enough for self-protection. Their durability also depends on the lunar phases; a full moon renders a force-field able to withstand extended assaults, while a force-field during the waxing and waning phases is extremely fragile.
	+ ***Lunar blasts*** -- Mani fires damaging streams of pure lunar energy. These blasts has a wide variety of effects depending on how its used and the current Moon phase; a full-powered lunar blast may burn and/or completely obliterate an average Freak, while a minor blast can either knock them away and/or stun them.
	+ ***Lunar empowerment*** -- Mani can draw on the power of the Moon to enhance himself and his allies. Those mortals empowered by the Moon tend to gain heightened spiritual senses, limited control over lunar energy, and budding psychic powers. However, he can only use this ability during the full Moon, where his powers are at their peak.
* ***Dream manipulation*** -- Mani can enter and manipulate the dreams of others. This includes modifying, suppressing, and observing them. Since the Moon is connected to the element of dreams, Mani's power knows no bounds. He often protects humanity (Freaks included) by defeating their nightmares and helping them overcome their greatest fears.
* ***Solar sensitivity*** -- Mani can detect anything connected to Sol and anything related to the Sun. Since the Sun is connected to the fire element, everything related to it exhibits a very hot aura. Mani will start to sweat when at a sizable distance, but will feel as if he is being cooked alive if he is right next to anything touched by his brother.
* ***Twin telepathy*** -- Because of the intimate connection shared between the Moon and Sun, Mani shares a psychic link with his brother Sol. However, their bond is unique in that it is telepathic and empathic in nature, allowing them to share a deeper sense of connection than normal twins do. They can not only share their thoughts, but their emotions as well.

## Faults and Weaknesses

* Mani's lunar-based powers depend on the phases of the Moon. During the waning and waxing phases, Mani may struggle against a mid-level Freak (if he's lucky). The full moon and half moon, on the other hand, allows him to hold his own in a fight against more powerful Freaks.
* Mani has little experience regarding melee combat and tends to heavily rely on his powers. He can be easily defeated during the waning and waxing phases.
* Mani's compassion can become a disadvantage as he is willing to help everyone he meets. Shady and/or evil characters can pass themselves off as good people to take advantage of his kindness.
	+ Mani is also generous to the point of being self-sacrificing at times, as he will help people and ignore his own well-being (as well as his friends and family) in the process.
	+ Mani also tends to believe that all Freaks are simply ignorant and in need of guidance. Therefore, he can unwittingly appear patronizing to the people he helps, despite his good intentions.
* Unlike a normal psychic link, Sol and Mani's unique bond can become an even bigger disadvantage as the combined experience of mental and emotional pain can weaken them both incredibly.
* Although Mani is immortal, it is possible for him to be killed. It is also possible for him to gain injuries that will cripple him for life, physically and mentally.
* He never admits it, but due to his psychic powers, Mani is sometimes exposed to the evil and cruel thoughts of most Freaks, which causes him to experience extraordinary pain.
	+ If Mani tries doing something with his psychic powers that is beyond his usual limits, he will suffer from painful headaches, nosebleeds, and (if the exertion is extreme) unconsciousness.
* Mani's powers can be countered by someone wielding the power of the Sun, like his brother Sol.

## Trivia

* Mani's name literally means "moon" in Old Norse and Icelandic.
* Mani's affectionate nickname for Sol is "Solly".
* Both Mani's name and concept as a Freak were based on the German moon god of the same name. In Norse mythology, Mani was destined to be devoured by Hati Hróðvitnisson ("*He who hates*", "*Enemy"*), a divine wolf, during Ragnarok. Like the source material, the Freak Mani is male and the brother of Sol, a sun deity.
* Mani was partly inspired by the character Princess Luna from the animated children's show *My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic*.
* Mani's personality was inspired by a number of characters, including Mother from Todd McFarlane's comic book series *Spawn*, Princess Celestia (see above), and Sapphire from the cartoon show *Steven Universe*.
* Mani was originally a god, but he was later rewritten to be a demigod to remove any traits of being a Mary Sue. Likewise, his brother Sol received the same treatment.
* Sol was originally written as Mani's lover in reference to the incestuous elements of classic Greek mythology, but it was later excised to remove the squick factor as well as any references to homosexuality.
* Being empowered by Mani (and, by extension, the Moon itself) is often seen as a "blessing" by both Freaks and humans.