Ezrihel

[Ezrihel]

Alternative Outfit
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Ezrihel is a natural-born leader. He embodies the gifts of charisma and confidence, and projects authority in a way that draws crowds together behind a common goal. He is characterized by an often ruthless level of rationality, using his drive, determination and sharp mind to achieve whatever end he’s set for himself.

If there's anything he loves, it's a good challenge, big or small, and he firmly believes that given enough time and resources, he can achieve any goal. This quality makes him a brilliant entrepreneur, and his ability to think strategically and hold a long-term focus while executing each step of his plans with determination and precision makes him a powerful business leader. This determination is often a self-fulfilling prophecy, as he will often push his goals through with sheer willpower whereas others might give up and move on, and his extroverted nature means he is likely to push everyone else right along with him, achieving spectacular results in the process.

At the negotiating table, be it in a corporate environment or buying a car, Ezrihel is dominant, relentless, and unforgiving. This isn't because he is cold-hearted or vicious per se – it's more that he genuinely enjoys the challenge, the battle of wits, the repartee that comes from this environment, and if the other side can't keep up, that's no reason for him to fold on his own core tenet of ultimate victory.

If there's anyone he could respect, it's someone who is able to stand up to him intellectually, who is able to act with a precision and quality equal to his own. Ezrihel has a particular skill in recognizing the talents of others, and this helps in both his team-building efforts (since no one, no matter how brilliant, can do everything alone), and to keep him from displaying too much arrogance and condescension. However, he also has a particular skill in calling out others' failures with a chilling degree of insensitivity, and this is where he really starts to run into trouble.

Emotional expression isn't the strong suit of Ezrihel, but because of his extroverted nature, his distance from his emotions is especially public, and felt directly by a much broader swath of people. Especially in a professional environment, he will simply crush the sensitivities of those he views as inefficient, incompetent or lazy. To him, emotional displays are displays of weakness, and it's easy to make enemies with this approach.

Ezrihel is considered by many to be a true powerhouse, and he cultivates an image of being larger than life. He sees inefficiency not just as a problem in its own right, but as something that pulls time and energy away from all of his future goals, an elaborate sabotage consisting of irrationality and laziness. He will root out such behavior wherever he happens to go. He trusts his abilities, makes known his opinions, and believes in his capacity as a leader. He doesn’t give up when the going gets tough – he will strive to achieve his goals, but really nothing is quite as satisfying to him as rising to the challenge of each obstacle in his run to the finish line. He exemplifies the difference between moment-to-moment crisis management and navigating the challenges and steps of a bigger plan, and is known for examining every angle of a problem and not just resolving momentary issues, but moving the whole project forward with his solutions. All this in turn makes him very charismatic, drawing people into him, people who want him to be their leader.

But sometimes all this confidence and willpower can go too far, and he is all too capable of digging in his heels, trying to win every single debate and pushing his vision, and his alone. He is notoriously unsupportive of any idea that distracts from his primary goals, and even more so of ideas based on emotional considerations. This is something he won't hesitate a second to make that fact clear to those around him. Some people need more time to think than others, an intolerable delay to quick-thinking people like him. He can often misinterpret contemplation as stupidity or disinterest. He respects quick thoughts and firm convictions, his own qualities, and looks down on those who don't match up.

All this bluster, alongside the assumed supremacy of rationalism, makes Ezrihel very distant from his own emotional expression and sometimes downright scornful of others'. He often tramples others' feelings, inadvertently hurting his partners and friends, especially in emotionally charged situations. His obsession with efficiency and unwavering belief in the merits of rationalism, especially professionally, makes him incredibly insensitive while pursuing his goals, dismissing personal circumstances, sensitivities, and preferences as irrational and irrelevant.

As in other areas of his life, Ezrihel approaches dating and relationships with a set of goals and a plan to achieve them, and proceed to do so with impressive energy and enthusiasm. He is in it to win, and will gladly take leading roles in relationships from the start, assuming personal responsibility for how smoothly things go and working actively to ensure a mutually rewarding experience.

This sense of personal responsibility means that Ezrihel tends to put a lot of energy into his relationships, and he shows his creativity by always having something new on the agenda to keep things interesting, especially in the dating phase. At the same time though, he keeps his eyes on the long term, and if he determines that a relationship is heading towards a dead end, he will cut his losses and move on in what will seem, to his partner, an abrupt end to the attention they had been receiving. This occasional ruthlessness with personal relationships is one of his primary “weaknesses”, and if he isn't careful he can develop quite the reputation. Abiding by others' feelings and emotions will never be a comfortable experience for him, but it is critical that he work to develop it. If he doesn’t, he risks dominating and overruling his partners, and this insensitivity can easily break a relationship, especially early on.

If all goes well in the dating phase and a future is deemed viable, he will continue to impress with his creativity and energy. Ezrihel’s authentic confidence makes his sex life dynamic to say the least, and he will often push to explore new ways to express his affection with imaginative enthusiasm. Yet he still tends to have these innovations planned in advance, with some structure and predictability to his sex life. He is extremely growth-oriented, and will seize any opportunity to improve himself, listening to and acting on criticisms, so long as they are logical ones, and always striving to improve his knowledge. At the same time he expects this of his partners, and it is surprising to him that others, especially more emotionally expressive people, don't always share this attitude. Still more surprising to him is others' active efforts to avoid these “tense situations”.

In friendship Ezrihel seeks personal growth and inspiration, and he often has a plan for how to accomplish it. Friendships of circumstance, built on things like shared routines, are not his preferred method – rather, he pursues his friends, seeking out individuals who share his passion for deep, meaningful discussions, and who enjoy learning and development as much as he does. It is not always easy to be his friend – he demands a lot from these relationships – but he does pay a great deal of attention to his friendships, and it is unlikely that it will ever feel stagnant.

His friendships are built on ideas, and a lot of what he finds enjoyable is the repartee of putting thoughts forward and defending them from assault from every angle. He is very smart and highly critical, and won't back down if put on the defensive – in fact, there's no better way to earn his respect. It's not easy to stand up to a personality as big as Ezrihel’s, and he too often finds that others crumple under the force he applies when he really starts to enjoy himself.

Only the most hardened rationalists are able to hold their ground against Ezrihel’s strongly expressed ideals, who neither need emotional support, nor understand others' need for it. This lack of sensitivity is his chiefest social weakness. His tendency to challenge friends, question their conclusions, and dismiss emotional arguments as irrelevant is especially difficult for more emotional friends to cope with. Either a point is supported by logic and reason, or it is erroneous.

Storyline: Broken Dreams and Silent Screams [BDaSS]