Lola Espejo

Lola Espejo is a Scion of Tezcatlipoca, God of the Aztec pantheon. She is the only female member of the Band, a fact that is very hard to forget, as much of her immediate power is attributed to her "feminine wiles."

Her primary focus is in Social attributes, with a Physical inclincation toward a Dex-Stealth build. Lola is Boon-heavy, with special attention paid to the Darkness, Magic, and Moon Purviews. Her best attribute is Appearance, and her strongest ability is Presence.

Lola worked as a call-girl in New York City during her time as a Hero, but has since made a name for herself as a sex idol, along the lines of Marilyn Monroe. Though no nude images of her exist, and though she cannot be linked to any single man, she is making a tidy living by modeling for suggestive shoots, and increasing her popularity by making public appearances with popular celebrities.

Ampona "Sunny" Hotah
As the youngest member of the Band after Lola and an equal fondness for personal freedom, Sunny is something of a kindred spirit to Lola. Despite having developed a consensual sexual relationship with him early on, Lola thinks of Sunny as the closest thing to a best friend that she's ever had. She wishes the best for him and his endeavors, and though she occasionally worries that he is too focused on his vengeance, she shares a similar hatred of the man he is tracking down. During disagreements within the Band, Lola and Sunny often find themselves standing on the same side, and when Lola finds herself the subject of criticism, Sunny argues on her behalf, which is something that she appreciates, though she wouldn't say as much.

Lola has used Sunny as an unknowing sacrifice when Tezcatlipoca got pushy with his demands for blood, though she was careful not to do any lasting damage. Their sexual relationship ended on friendly terms.

Elijah Chase
Lola's feelings toward Elijah have gone through the wringer, to the point that she is untimately afraid to dig too deeply to understand them. Initially, she thought him cute and harmless, a good ally to have, but not so important that she wanted to pass up toying with him. After some time passed, however, she began to realize that her teasing was serving more as a stalling tactic than anything else, and that she was avoiding having to force him into her bed, as she did with others. Though it conflicted with her goal to quickly build positive fatebindings with other Scions, Lola finally decided to let Fate work on its own. The teasing gradually diminished as she grew to appreciate that Elijah tried his hardest to see her as a person, despite having to struggle to look past the divine beauty she inherited from Tezcatlipoca. Still unwilling to fully commit herself to the Band, Lola took on the role of an observer, and watched as Elijah's inherent sense of goodness guided them through tricky situations, and she came to value him for that as well, appreciating his difficulty with the burden of having an under-appreciated conscience. Under-appreciation was something quite familiar to Lola, and she discovered, for the first time, common ground between them.

However, despite having an acute sense of empathy, Lola was mostly blind to the struggle Elijah was going through because of her, and his exasperated request that they "get it over with" finally spurred her into action. Not wanting to be seen as a burden, Lola convinced Elijah to go on a date, where they came to understand one another better. Nevertheless, Lola came out of that meeting feeling like more of a burden to Eli than a boon, and she didn't want to burden him further by agreeing to his request, though she did agree to stop teasing him. Not long after, possessed by Pan, Lola's mind was invaded by the Band, during which time they accidentally caused a personality shift, pulling her teenage ethics to the forefront. From that point, Lola made more of an effort to let her guard down around him, because she'd grown to trust his sense of justice and his goodness.

Lola was happy with this change, worming her way into Elijah's living space, until the events in Atlanta forced her into a new realization. When he was in danger, Lola found herself willing to put herself in harm's way to protect him, which was completely alien to her, and in direct contrast with her overwhelming push to survive. Knowing that her feelings might actually cause her harm, Lola turned her back on her earlier decision to open up to Elijah, and struggled to create a distance between them, though she realized the futility even as she did it. When Tezcatlipoca presented himself with the offer to become his consort, Lola agreed under the condition that he protect her friends. Eli's safety was chief in her mind, and the act served the dual purpose of infuriating him. Now with a proper divide and guaranteed protection for the man she had feelings for, Lola could settle comfortably into being hated (however, because she felt she owed him some sort of explanation, she tucked a note into the glovebox of his car, to be found at an indeterminable future).

Elijah's actions in the ensuing weeks spoke well of her success, and it became easier for her to tell herself that she didn't care, taking his abuse silently, despite Wolfgang and Sunny's adamant defense of her person. However, the recent discovery that Eli was replaced with a shadow doppleganger--by none other than Tezcatlipoca--has left Lola completely unsure of how to react. Elijah brings about sticky topics like love, which frighten Lola, because she feels like she doesn't deserve that kind of goodness, but also because she has only been able to survive her guilt by telling herself that love can't exist. Finally, deep in her heart, she thinks that Elijah will never be able to accept her for who she is.

Wolfgang Vo
Lola's relationship with Wolfgang began with a great deal of hypocrisy. Statutory rape and contributing to the deliquency of a minor were the first two crimes Justice Vo committed upon taking the position of Supreme Court Justice, despite also being married with a family. For the longest time, Wolfgang was nothing more to Lola than the man who got her started, and it was through some sort of perverse gratitude that she never used the pictures she took to blackmail him.

Upon re-meeting Wolfgang several years later, the pair shared a somewhat hostile relationship. Lola had dirt on the man, and he deflected his guilt over his family's muders onto her. Adding on a generally gruff demeanor, Wolfgang was almost antagonistic, and in the early days of their partnership, he often got into heated arguments with the others, especially as they worked to defend Lola's actions to him, since she hardly ever spoke up to explain herself personally. Over time, Lola became aware that Wolfgang's violent outbursts were partly fueled by concern, both for her, and of her. She felt it wise of him to be wary of her, and she appreciated his concern, though she grew weary of his bluster.

Lola and Wolfgang have been increasingly finding themselves on the same side of late, a fact which seems to startle both of them, though it might have something to do with the decreased frequency of gruesome sacrifices (at one point, Lola sacrificed one of Wolfgang's followers when Tezcatlipoca grew impatient for his offering).

Shi Gu Shi
Luckily (or unluckily) for Shi Gu, his acquaintance with Lola began some time after her possession by Pan. With a clearer understanding of fatebindings, and which a newfound reluctance to seduce everything on two feet, Lola put off her seduction of Shi Gu for a later date, though she hasn't dismissed the thought from her mind. The largest deterrant, rather than Elijah, is Shi Gu's obliviousness and his similarity in personality to that of his half brother, the Handsome Monkey Prince (which Lola finds offputting). Lola appreciates the strengths Shi Gu brings to the team, though he hasn't given her a reason yet to trust him, and she thinks him a useful fool more than anything else. At the very least, he is entertaining, and Lola is glad to see that Wolfgang finally has someone he can relate to.

Gods
Tezcatlipoca - The relationship between Lola and Tezcatlipoca spans many levels, up to and including incest. Tezcatlipoca has been careful, from the very beginning, to maintain a clear hierarchy, helped along by the fact that Lola is terrified of her father. Their early relationship was marked by frequent, bloody sacrifices, during which time Lola proved her reliability and value to Tezcatlipoca. She is wary, and doesn't let her fear prevent her from interacting with him when she has to, often resulting in bargains of some kind. However, as she grows in power, she understands more of how he works, and she finds herself able and willing to twist his conditions to her own benefit, though that is a two way street.

Lola has recently discovered that Tezcatlipoca has a strong streak of jealousy concerning her affections, though she hasn't yet found a way to turn that to her advantage.

Baron Samedi - The Baron is the man Lola thinks of as her father, since he raised her and shows more fatherly concern for her than Tezcatlipoca ever has. Since the fallout with Beth, Lola has been unsure of how to interact with the Baron, aware that his godly alliegances should lie with his real daughter over his adopted daughter. However, he has spoken on her behalf and shows no grudge, so Lola is slowly allowing herself to trust him once again. She can't help but acknowledge his importance in her life.

Kalfu - Lola is inherently suspicious of any Loa God, up to and including the one who raised her. While she accepted Kalfu's gift of a machete, she did so begrudgingly, only using the weapon after she'd already carried it for some time. Only later did Lola realize, as she broke free of the machete's hold, that some sort of curse had been laid on the weapon, which served to reaffirm her suspicions. Lola feels that Kalfu's intentions toward her are far from honorable, though she can't help but be curious about what a God could want with her. For now, she has decided not to use his machete.

Shizuko - Something about Shizuko's quiet patience with the unfairness of the world spoke to Lola, and she found the girl to be something of a kindred spirit. Early in their relationship, Lola sought to seduce Shizuko, though she gave up on that endeavor as she found the girl's company more worthwhile as a friend, much like Sunny. Once Shizuko began her relationship with Tatsuya, Lola gladly offered advice when asked, for the first time encouraging a lasting romance. While she is unsure of whether their marriage is folly, Lola is glad to see Shizuko happy.

Others
Carlos - The leader of Lola's cult and the primary financier of her activities. Lola rewards Carlos with companionship and sexual favors, though she is genuinely fond of how uncomplicated the man has become. He is responsible for making sacrifices to her and gathering followers, which he began doing of his own accord, after Lola tricked him into thinking that he killed his father to gain control of his company.

John - A leader of Lola's cult and a scion of Idun, offered up to Lola as a sacrifice to appease her appetites. Disgusted with the implication that she couldn't control herself, Lola chose instead to appeal to John's better nature, and brought him to her side as an ally (incidentally, she did sacrifice his friend in the process, bringing to question the validity of her claim to self-control). Lola feels increasingly guilty about the way she has treated John, and intends to return him to his mother as soon as she is able to.

Sampson - Rescued by the Band from the Order of the Divine Glory, Sampson's innocence was stolen by Lola as he was recovering from being brainwashed. Lola feels guilty over having manipulated him in such a way, especially because he has a quality of goodness that she respects. However, Sampson is unable to hide how much he hates her, treating his attraction like a disease to be cured, which Lola finds both annoying and pitiful. She wants to like Sampson very much, but she has difficulty not exercising her charms to make him fall in love with her again, just so that he'll stop making her feel bad about existing.

Magus - A former member of the Band, Magus was acelebrity psychologist, as well as a Scion of Hera, and has since been found dead. Lola used her power to bend him to her will, having a brief sexual encounter that quickly turned weird as Magus felt the need to woo her after the fact--and clumsily. Lola found him odd, and a bit creepy, but ultimately not much different from most of her customers in New York.

Shadow Warriors - Five Birthright Followers given to Lola by Tezcatlipoca, each Shadow Warrior has a mind and personality of his own. Because they are unerringly loyal to Lola, she trusts them more than anything else in the world, and they have become something like life-sized worry dolls for her. During down time between Heroing, Lola has taught her Warriors how to speak English, how to seduce women, and the art of sex--all for the sake of obtaining enough sacrifices. They serve as her entourage when she makes public appearances as a celebrity. More importantly, perhaps, is their ability to follow unseen, and Lola has been known to send her Warriors to keep a protective eye on her friends, though she always keeps the leader close to her side. They occasionally provide her with insight into the ways her Bandmates think.

Personality
Though she is incredibly sociable, Lola is a guarded individual who keeps her secrets close to her heart. She relies on surprise to make an impact, doing something shocking to distract attention from a line of conversation that veers too much into personal business. While she appears confident in her own skills, much of her confidence is based on a belief in the predictability of others, and she finds most people easily manipulated. She therefore has little immediate respect for people, and it takes an adamant will or an exceptionally entertaining personality to get past that barrier.

Lola has been known to take risks and rely on luck to carry her through difficult times. She has no faith in the concept of love, and actively seeks to destroy the illusion of love that people in relationships share, believing instead that one should live life to the fullest. That said, she encourages the folly of young love, because it teaches lovers to be wary even as they discover the joy of sex. In Lola's eyes, life is too short, and too many people are horny, to warrant prudishness--all the better if some gain can be made from it.

While she does want to ensure that she maintains profits from social situations, Lola has a mischievous streak that contributes to her general desire to destroy established relationships. She is a trickster, an agent of chaos, and actively works to tear down established order and challenge expectations.

More than anything, Lola loathes bullies, and she believes in the necessity of poetic justice. Not particularly vengeful or lawful, Lola follows her own code of social vigilantism, punishing those who warrant punishment, usually in embarrasingly public ways. Lola is proud and opinionated, though she doesn't feel the need to express her opinions when they might be better left unsaid--she would rather act on them in secrecy, which occasionally results in a wrongdoer's life going suddenly horribly awry. If she has been insulted or maligned, she suffers in silence, and acts if she feels the insult is bad enough to warrant some sort of revenge.

Freedom is the single most important thing to Lola, and as she grows in power, she finds it more precious, watching the jaws of responsibility close around her. After that, surviving the ravages of the divine world is her primary goal, as she works to build fatebindings with the belief that she will always have a protector to help ward off the enemies she makes.

Because of certain events in her youth, Lola carries a great deal of fear and guilt close to her heart, which has prevented her from wanting to develop any close friendships, though the persistence of some individuals has broken down some of this barrier. She struggles with her own acceptance of such friendships, which makes her seem indecisive and occasionally callous, though she would hardly attempt to vocalize her internal struggle.

Early Life
Lola Espejo (formerly Saturday), the younger daughter of two, was rasied by Baron and Theresa Saturday, deep in the swamplands of South Lousiana. The product of an unintended affair between Theresa Saturday and a disguised Tezcatlipoca, Lola was apparently adopted by Baron after her birth. The duplicitous activities of their divine parents were withheld from Lola and her sister, Beth, for many years, so the girls were raised as sisters. And because the exact circumstances of her birth were unknown to her until late in her teenage years, Lola also developed a solid relationship with the Baron, aware, as most of his children are, of his position in the unseen world of the Gods.

Most of Lola's childhood was spent happily, if oddly. Theresa Saturday only had the pleasure of her husband's company on Saturdays, which left most of the tiny surrounding town with the impression that she was a single mother, an image she didn't try to dissuade. Her easy personality and comforting good looks inspired the attentions of many suitors, all of whom were firmly and politely turned away. Beth, as charming and beautiful as her mother, showed similar promise, and proved quite popular through high school. Lola, on the other hand, was a more reserved child, painfully shy and content to watch people behind a mane of concealing hair. Even with her attempts to hide, Lola was visible, whether as the daughter of Theresa, the sister of Beth, or the quiet goth kid, and her reputation combined with her passivity to make the perfect target for bullies. However, Lola had a protector.

Anthony King, known mostly by the nickname "Beau," was three years Lola's senior, the varsity quarterback, and Beth's boyfriend. More importantly to Lola, he protected her from those who would tormet her, a relationship they maintained until his death. During her freshman year at Woodmere High, the attention she received from Beau, who had already been in a committed relationship with Beth for two years, ultimately did Lola more harm than good. By the time Beau graduated from high school, those whose bullying pursuits had been thwarted felt that they had to make up for missed opportunities. During a football practice in which Beau, now the assistant coach, was distracted by his charges, Lola's assailants beat and nearly raped her, stopped at the last moment by Beau's fortunate timing. Lola, who had been quietly nursing a crush on her sister's now-fiance, realized at that moment that she was hopelessly in love.

Visitation
Beth Saturday was due to marry Anthony King in the summer between Lola's sophomore and junior years of high school. By the eve of the wedding, Lola was desperate to stop her sister from making Beau untouchable. Convinced that her love was pure and right, Lola approached her future brother-in-law the night before his wedding, after he'd returned from a meagre bachelor party. Tired and slightly drunk, Beau tried repeatedly to make Lola leave, but she exhibited a persistence and forceful personality that he'd never before seen in her. Before he realized what was happening, she had wormed her way into his bed.

Seducing Beau was easier than Lola had anticipated, and she convinced herself that it served as evidence of his unspoken love for her. Her first time was everything that she hoped it would be, though she had to push away thoughts of her sister and feelings of guilt. When all was said and done, however, reality returned. Lola innocently asked Beau how he was going to break the news to Beth, wondering if he needed her support. But Beau shrugged her off, apologizing and affirming that their encounter was a one night fling, a last hurrah before he entered into a life of committment. Lola didn't have time to be upset, or to threaten him with Beth, before the woman in question showed up.

Having it in mind to sneak into her fiance's house to say a quiet good night before their wedding, Beth chose that moment to walk in. The sight that greeted her eyes was Beau, sprawled confidently naked across tousled sheets, and Lola, heartbreak plastered across her face and slouching to hide her nudity. Beth lost it, invoking powers she'd struggled to keep hidden since her father Visited her a couple of years prior. In the ensuing chaos, Beau was struck dead and revived as a corpse, and Lola was barely spirited away in time by the watchful Baron Samedi. For the first time, the Baron had a frank conversation with Lola about her parentage, informing her that, though he thought of her as his true daughter, she had been concieved by a God from Aztec myth. Depositing her in New Orleans with a handful of small gifts, the Baron told Lola to invoke the name of Tezcatlipoca when she found herself faced with life or death.

New York City
Faced with a new cynical attitude about life and love, 16 year-old Lola hitchhiked to New York City, hoping to lose herself in the crowds of such a big city. Some gut feeling told her that Beth wasn't far behind, dragging along a rotting and imprisoned Beau to torment her, but the paranoia never proved itself to be warranted. Too young to be legally employed and suddenly aware of the power her body held over men--even men as moral and good as Beau--Lola took her first stab at prostitution. She rapidly became more comfortable with her body and more adept at manipulating her potential clients, but Lola's first big break was the result of unanticipated violence. Some six months after she began her life in the alleys of the Big Apple, Lola was accosted by a john who had a taste for violence and apparently no intention to pay. Needing money to eat, with the memory of Beau fresh in her mind, Lola played along just long enough to stab the man in the back with a shard of glass that came to hand. Here, she saw the first evidence of her new power in action as the glass turned black and the nameless man bled out, giving her a surge of power she'd never before experienced.

From that point, luck was on Lola's side, and her second big break happened shortly thereafter. A few nights later, while partying at a selective club, Lola was introduced to a man named Wolfgang Vo, a new supreme court justice who had gotten properly drunk during the congratulatory celebrations. Through her own coercion and the encouragement of his colleagues, Justice Vo became the first of Lola's high profile clients, giving her enough cash for the evening to finance a proper penthouse, though he was insistent that she use it to turn her life around.

The next three years saw Lola focused on building her business as she focused on making deals with powerful clients in the political and financial worlds. She developed a reputation that suited her fine, and the occasional sacrifice to her absent father kept her going strong. While she had never spoken with Tezcatlipoca, or even attempted to contact him, she was careful to do the research that allowed her to pay him proper homage, and to quietly thank him for the favors he bestowed upon her. During her stay in New York, she heard from neither Theresa nor the Baron, and Beth stayed absent. Lola shed her childhood surname and adopted a new one, Espejo, to reflect her true heritage, and she forged false identification through her contacts to affirm her new identity.

However, Fate had other plans for Lola in the form of Scions.

For some time, though irregularly, Lola entertained a young man named Ramond, who, unknown to her, was a promising child of the Loa God Shango. Ramond, utterly charmed by the woman, fancied himself deeply in love, and shed his committments so that he might propose. However, Ramond was the backbone, the protection, of a small Band of Scions who relied on his for safety, and in deserting them for Lola's company, he assured their deaths. The sole survivor, a Scion of Ogoun name Louis, tracked Ramond and Lola down just as she denied Ramond what he wanted--though she would have been glad to continue their working relationship.

In a fury, Louis attacked, and Ramond turned his back on his partner to protect Lola. Their scuffle destroyed her penthouse and sent both men careening out of the window to the street hundreds of feet below. Now with the wrathful attention of the Loa focused on her, as well as the scrutinizing eyes of the NYPD, Lola found herself in  need of the life and death help of which Baron Samedi had spoken three years before. Packing her things and adopting yet another identity, Lola set off for Mexico.

Meeting the Band
Plotting a course to Mexico required that Lola avoid Louisiana even as she approached it, for fear of Beth and of the Loa, so it was somewhere in the Great Plains that she encountered Alejandro Dragon, a kind man who happened to be heading in the same direction. Still fleeing the police and avoiding divine attention, Lola took the good fortune of meeting a Mexican anthropologist, and they traveled together until they reached Mexico City. Through Alejandro, she learned more of her heritage, ultimately becoming suspicious that he might be a God in disguise. This suspicion saved him from any attempts at seduction, which ultimately served to help Lola. They parted ways as she went to find the ancient temple devoted to Tezcatlipoca, her obsidian dagger tucked carefully away.

Through the machinations of Fate or Tezcatlipoca, Dr. Dragon and Lola's destination wound up being the same, and as he explored the ruins, she became aware of what was needed to make contact with her father. Though Lola had intended to offer her own blood as a sacrifice, the presence of Alejandro decided it. Taking a gamble that he was, in fact, not a God, Lola subdued the man and cut out his heart, offering the bloody relic to Tezcatlipoca, who accepted it. Finally face to face with her father, Lola asked for his protection, agreeing to work in his name. With the expectation of regular sacrifices and a devotion to her duties as a Scion of the Teotl, Tezcatlipoca agreed, and gave her a task.

A month and several dead truckers later, Lola reached Arizona, where she met Sunny, Elijah , Magus , and, to her surprize, Wolfgang.