Elijah Porter

**Elijah James Porter** is a mild-mannered werewolf with a love of photography and mechanical things. He's shown to be find, friendly and gifted, yet shy and a little awkward. He's very intelligent and good-natured, and does all of the things he does with good intentions, though he doesn't always see eye-to-eye with **Erica**.

He has something of a dark side stemming from his lycanthropy. He is constantly haunted by guilt and remorse over the people he's killed and the ones he failed to save. He's got a bit of a temper and can be territorial. If he isn't careful, his wolf instincts come out in fights, which can lead to Elijah being violent and destructive. He works hard to overcome and suppress his dark side and tries to atone for his past failures and sins by helping and protecting others.

## Characteristics

Elijah is a sweet, but awkward, werewolf and former journalism student. He is trusting and polite, and is generally an optimist. He's a talented photographer and writer, as well, and he's got an eye for making a profile for people or things they're hunting. He's soft spoken and tries to see the best in people, and most the time he's mild-mannered, calm and level-headed. While he's usually able to keep his emotions in check, he does posses a temper that he struggles to keep in check at times, usually flaring in anger.

Elijah was one of the "new guys" in the group though he quickly proved himself when he threw himself into battle against Clive and his cronies, even though he didn't know a lot about what was going on at the time. Ever since, Elijah has proven himself a loyal and true friend to Erica time and time again, constantly putting her needs and safety above most other concerns. Even beyond just Erica, he is very protective of those he cares about and his wolfish tendencies tend to flare the most when those he cares about are threatened or in danger.

While he's never had many friends, he genuinely came to view **Erica's Army** as a sort of family. After all of their adventures and close calls, Elijah became one of Erica's most trusted confidants and he eventually became a well-liked and respected "senior member" of the team. His teammates valued his opinions and his insight and opinions were often considered during the planning stages of any operation. He loves the family he made in the team, as dysfunctional as it can be at times. Since Erica's disappearance, Elijah has found himself alone and packless once again.

Others often underestimate him, even his friends and allies, due to his soft-spoken nature but they do so at their own peril. Despite his sense of morality, Elijah is capable of horrific violence if pushed far enough.

Elijah has social anxiety and as such, has a hard time getting to know people. He connects with the people and the world around him through his photography, and his writing serves as an outlet for his anxiety. However, his adventures have forced him to confront these issues somewhat and forced him to better actively contribute to the group's well-being. He's still a neurotic bundle of nerves and is still pretty awkward, but he's more confident now than he used to be.

He's very responsible and neat, and in the group's downtime, he was often the reluctant "den mother"; he cooked, he cleaned and otherwise fussed after his friends. He was also the most fiscally responsible member of the group, except for maybe **Rowan**.

Elijah's got a very strong conscience and a deep sense of morality, with clear sets of right and wrong.He feels supremely guilty about the deaths of all those he's killed due to his lycanthropy, as well as the deaths of those he's failed to save, such as **Sam**. He hates the lycanthropy and sees it as a curse, despite the power it's given him. He hates turning into the Wolf, and he really hates what he does when he is in that form; the violence, murder and eating of human beings makes him ashamed and nauseous. Although he is willing to transform if he absolutely has to, he will generally avoid that unless there are no other options. While he has mastered his transformations, able to trigger at will, he can still sometimes turn against his will if he becomes enraged enough. Elijah detests killing and will try to find other ways to resolve a situation without resorting to that. The one exception are obvious monsters, such as Trolls or Dragons.

In a fight, though, Elijah is very efficient. He's incredibly fast and agile, able to jump, dodge, roll, weave and lash out with lightning-fast efficiency. He tries to non-lethally disable opponents unless that is not an option. He tends to either fight with his hands or with objects close at hand, such as table legs. He also utilizes terrain, jumping, perching, swinging and rolling at his foes; he uses whatever he can find to his advantage. While he isn't formally trained in hand-to-hand combat, his natural werewolf strength makes him a formidable foe. His wolf form is much more brutal, however, clawing, tearing, ripping and biting his enemies into dismembered piles of mush.

Elijah used to be an "angry nerd" growing up, lashing out at those around him. Since triggering his lycanthropy, Elijah has become much more mellow than he used to be and his moments of rage have subsided to zero. He's taken up yoga to center himself and to better control his emotions.

### Powers & Abilities

As a werewolf, Elijah possesses all of the **standard abilities of his kind**. In addition to this, Elijah also has the following skills:

* **Controlled Transformation:** Through intense training and meditation, Elijah's capable of inducing a transformation at will. He's also able to resist involuntary transformations most times, though like all werewolves, he can't ever resist the change at the full moon.
* **Enhanced Speed:** Elijah is fast and agile, even for a werewolf.
* **Journalistic Investigation:** His background as a journalism major has lent itself well to research, speaking to witnesses and making up criminal profiles.
* **Photography:** Elijah is an excellent photographer.
* **Willpower:** Elijah has incredible amounts of willpower, able to shrug off most mind-effects.

### Weaknesses

As a werewolf, Elijah has all of the **standard weaknesses of his kind**.

## History

### Early Life

Elijah was born in Anchorage, Alaska to Desmond and Linda Porter, the youngest of three children. His mother was a pilot and Desmond was a systems analyst at a security firm in Anchorage, but before Elijah was born accepted a job as the data manager and head of the Research & Development department for the Hoffman Institute, which required regular travel between Alaska and Portland, Oregon. Growing up, Elijah got to take frequent trips for a week at a time or more to Oregon with his dad and was home schooled until high school. He was close to his siblings and cousins with few friends outside of them.

Elijah always showed an interest in photography, and he received a camera for his 14th birthday. He took it everywhere, taking pictures every day and developing several rolls at once every other week. When he was 15, his parents divorced and custody was awarded to his mother (although he was the only one of his siblings still living at home at the time). Elijah kept in close contact with his father, but trips to Portland ceased altogether after awhile. That same year, because of the divorce, Elijah was taken out of home school and enrolled in Dimond High School in Anchorage. He laid low, due to his social anxiety but he quickly signed up for the school paper, as photographer.

### The Curse

When he was 16, on the way back from school band practice, the weather was really bad; the snow was falling hard, creating near white-out conditions. Unable to see, he skid through a stop sign and ran into a much smaller car, whose driver was killed in the accident. Elijah was forced to serve community service, though the accidental nature of the collision got him out of any criminal charges.

During the first full moon after the accident (two weeks after, to the day), Elijah involuntarily turned into a human/wolf hybrid and went on a rampage through his neighborhood. That night, he killed three dogs, a moose, a jogger and caused no fewer than two auto accidents.

The morning after, Elijah woke up in the forested hills outside of town, nearly frozen to death. He took shelter in an old ski lodge, broke into a locker and stole somebody's clothes before slipping out, taking a bus back home. He found after this incident that he was stronger, faster and tougher than before; his senses were heightened: he could see in almost no light, had superhuman hearing and he could sort of different scents, eventually being able to recognize others by their scent.

Wracked with guilt, Elijah began locking himself in the basement of his home every full moon for almost a year. His mother, who he discovered was also a werewolf, was very understanding and helped him cope with his change. Eventually, with her guidance, he learned to master the transformations, eventually able to transform at will.

Near the end of his junior year, his mother paid for him to attend a "Writer's Camp"; a two week workshop in Seattle, Washington.

### The Hoffman Institute

His senior year in high school, he joined the track team and became editor for the school paper. He received an internship at the Anchorage Daily News and sharpened his skills.

Just before his graduation from high school, his mother passed away in a freak accident that Elijah has, in recent years, started to think may not have been an accident at all. He is still struggling with his depression from this.

Elijah enrolled in the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA) and majored in journalism, minoring in photography. He moved into the residence hall and had an annoying roommate, just like all college students, really. Aside from his studies, he was miserable there.

For Christmas, Desmond paid for Elijah to come spend the holiday with him in Portland. Just after the new year, however, Desmond disappeared. Elijah began looking into his father's disappearance and found an old laptop computer hidden in a secret nook inside his closet. Elijah discovered the computer held records of the entire Hoffman database and was shocked to discover they had records of many shadow creatures, conspiracies and other esoteric knowledge. There was even a page in there on *him*. Shortly after this, Elijah noticed he was being tailed.

At the airport, Elijah was jumped by a pair of Hoffman agents. He beat them up, in public, and escaped. He managed to travel through Canada to Alaska, narrowly evading agents the whole time. He was surprised to find out he had been expelled from UAA for made-up drug charges (he blames the Hoffman Institute) and he fled to the Matinuska Valley, where he drifted from house to house. All this time, he worked on trying to decrypt the files on the computer, enough to figure out exactly what the Institute was, exactly and hopefully learn what happened to his father.

### Mental - Season 1

Right before meeting Erica, Elijah had fled to Big Lake, Alaska, to crash with an old friend from high school. However, a group of Hoffman agents showed up and drove Elijah from the house. While running from the agents, he ran into Erica--literally--and he begged her not to tell the agents where he was. She agreed, and he also suggested she find a better hiding place.

Elijah fled deeper into the woods, hiding in the trees. However, he soon heard agents find Erica, who was trying to flee them. Unable to leave her to the mercy of the Hoffman agents, Elijah leaped into action--literally; he pounced on Snyder's ally to buy Erica time to escape. After the threat of agents passed, Elijah and Erica talked more in-depth. He told her that he was a werewolf and explained what had happened to his father.

From there, Elijah would join Erica's group, where he played a very important part in the effort against Clive. For more information, **see the episode guide**.

### Mental - Season 2

Elijah was one of the three members of the group to be sent back in time after an attack by the warlock **Takeshi**. Elijah was vital to their survival in the Victorian era; he was very familiar with the time period, for one thing. He would play an instrumental part in recovering the **Holy Grail** and getting back to the present.

For more information, **see the episode guide**.

### Mental - Season 3

Once back in 2014, Elijah continued to travel with Erica and the others in the **War against Clive**. He would play a pivotal role in the campaign, becoming one of Erica's most trusted and closest friends. He was present for the Final Battle and was one of the final four to face Clive at the end.

For more information, **see the episode guide**.

### Life on the Road

In the wake of the Final Battle, Elijah was absolutely beyond crushed and devastated by Sam's loss. Elijah attended the funeral and was one of the four pallbearers, along **Dave**, Rowan and **Troy**.

He had planned to move to Lawrence with Erica and her parents, to help her take care of **Bruce** and generally help her out around the house. Erica and Bruce were like his family now, after all. However, he would once again be devastated when Erica and Bruce disappeared overnight. He tried to find her for a while, to convince her not to cut ties with the people who love her, but he was never able to find her. Not even with all of his journalistic and lycanthrope abilities and tricks.

Eventually, unable to return to school and with little else going on for him, Elijah just...started going in one direction, unsure where he was going or what he would do. Since then, he's worked a number of odd-jobs, staying somewhere for a few weeks. However, he's unable to step aside and let people be hurt or exploited. He's become a sort of vigilante, helping people in need wherever he goes. However, every time he does, he finds he's got to gather his things and go, disappearing into the shadows after his good deeds are done.

## Major Relationships

### Erica Bridges

Elijah and Erica met on a whim of fate, literally running into each other while evading Hoffman agents in rural Alaska. Since then, the two quickly connected in a way that Elijah had never experienced before. The two share a deep, close bond over their adventures and together have laughed, cried and fought tooth and nail against Clive's evil. Throughout their time on the road, Elijah acted as a shoulder to cry on and always offered a supportive ear or a helping hand when she needed it. In turn, Erica helped Elijah reconcile the wolf with the man somewhat, and she's inspired him to never give up.

Elijah loves Erica, deeply and truly. She's the best person he's ever met; kind, generous, sweet, funny, smart, stunningly beautiful. He misses her, her loss having ripped his heart apart in a way he didn't know was possible. His life just doesn't seem as colorful or complete without her in it.

### Sam Hudson

Sam was Elijah's best friend in the world, not to mention Erica's former fiancee. The two were inseparable and shared a bond like brothers. Elijah respected Sam as a good, brave person. Elijah would have died for Sam and his loss absolutely devastated him. He feels guilty and responsible for Sam's death and genuinely feels that it should have been himself who died, not Sam.

### Troy Whitman

The former football-star was the first person in the group to accept Elijah as a part of the group. He's always been an easy-going guy and the two quickly became friends. After the Final Battle, Troy was there for Elijah, sharing a beer with him in honor of their fallen friend.

### Alberto Bianchi

**Alberto** is a savage, cunning predator and Elijah isn't afraid to say that he detests him. Elijah has never fully trusted Alberto when he defected to their side. He resented that Alberto referred to him as a dog, and he disliked that Alberto tried to snake his way into Erica's pants the minute Same left the picture. He also hated that Alberto was so hard on Erica: she needs a comforting, encouraging hand, not somebody being a blunt jerk-off. Overall, he doesn't like Alberto but Elijah finds that he has to at least be thankful for all of the help Alberto gave them during the war against Clive. But that doesn't mean he has to like him.

### Weezy

Elijah afound he had a natural, almost empathetic bond with Weezy the pug. Next to Erica, Weezy seemed to like Elijah more than the other members of the group.

### Noah Morris

A clone of Clive Talbot, Noah has a lot in common with Elijah, and the werewolf was the only one of Erica's allies not to want to kill him as soon as he was discovered to be a clone. In fact, he was the one who discovered Noah was a clone in the first place. He and Noah became friends and Elijah was like the older brother that Noah never had. Elijah was the one who often comforted Noah and talked with him about movies to calm his nerves. Of the group, Elijah was Noah's best friend besides Erica.

### Babs Porter

Babs, who was born only a year before Elijah, was his best friend growing up. They've always been close, though Elijah admittedly hasn't talked to her as much as he'd like to since he joined Erica's group.

### Linda Porter

Elijah deeply loved his mother, who taught him how to control his werewolf transformations. They were always very close and her loss devastated him.

### Desmond Porter

Elijah didn't get along with his dad as well as he got along with his mother, especially as Elijah grew older. He still loved his dad, however and his disappearance has haunted Elijah for the last few years. He's accepted that his father is probably dead now, given Clive's hostile takeover of the Hoffman Institute and if Desmond *were* alive, he'd have probably tried to get in touch with at least one of his children by now.

## Equipment

* **Wooden Stake:** Elijah usually has a wooden stake on him, just in case.

## Trivia

* An admitted hipster, though he ironically insists he did and liked all of those things before hipsters claimed them.
* Ever since he ate a guy during his first transformation, Elijah has been a vegan. He's also a very good cook. The thought of eating meat sickens him, though this doesn't seem to transfer over to his wolf form.
* His favorite movie is a tie between *Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind* and *The Big Lebowski*.
* Favorite superhero is Captain America.
* Elijah is the only one of the three who went back in time to keep their real name.
* His favorite book is a tie between *The Lord of the Rings* and *World War Z*.
* He's a total music snob. His favorite bands are, in no particular order: Arcade Fire, Of Montreal, The Decemberists, Band of Horses, Modest Mouse, Camera Obscura, Whitestripes, Iron & Wine, Noah and the Whale, Beirut, Animal Collective, Cassiotone for the Painfully Alone, The Smiths, MCMT, Cake and Nirvana, among many others.