Flicker

Gender: Male

First Appearance: (Primary Flicker) "Trials" by Joshua "Flicker" Schwartz. (Flicker Shard) "Hell Hath No Fury Greater Than Thee" by Amanda A. Hilliard "Shadowstar" (Complete Flicker) "All The Kings Horses" Part II: "Crossover" by Joshua "Flicker" Schwartz and Amanda A. Hilliard "Shadowstar"

Other Appearances: (Primary Flicker) "The Voice Of Vengeance," "Flicker's Story," "Crisis," "All The King's Horses" Part I by Joshua "Flicker" Schwartz, "To Lose Avalon" by Amanda A. Hilliard "Shadowstar," "All The King's Horses" Part II: "Crossover" by Joshua "Flicker" Schwartz and Amanda A. Hilliard "Shadowstar" (Flicker Shard) "Hell Hath No Fury Greater Than Thee," "The Agony Of Memory" by Amanda A. Hilliard "Shadowstar," "All The King's Horses" Part I by Joshua "Flicker" Schwartz, "All The King's Horses" Part II: "Crossover" by Joshua "Flicker" Schwartz and Amanda A. Hilliard "Shadowstar" (Complete Flicker) "Armageddon: The Battle For Avalon" Story 1: "Pawns And Rooks" by Amanda A. Hilliard "Shadowstar"

Created by: Joshua "Flicker" Schwartz

Flicker is a 2000-year old fay. He was created as a side-effect of an magical experiment gone awry. In the midst of a Talency, a contest of skill among the Children of Oberon, a female warrior named Ladybug attempted to give a mirror the power to reflect what was in a person's soul. Ladybug used too much energy in the spell to empower the mirror, and created a living being. However, in an alternate universe, a similar experiment was also being performed by another Ladybug, and this captured some of the energy from the forming being, breaking off a "shard" which left both incomplete. This also caused the main being and the shard to split as well, each into two beings, a being of light and color called Flicker, and a being of shadow called Shade. These four pieces of the same whole emerged into the different realities. Flicker and Shade emerged from the mirror in the initial reality, while the shard Flicker and Shade emerged into the alternate universe, a reality designated as XX2. All four were born fully grown, but with the minds of newborns. The overexertion from this spell gone awry caused the two Ladybugs' ages to increase far beyond that of any normal fay, and both were also rendered mute. In the reality of the primary Flicker, Flicker was given into the care of Titania, who raised him and kept his true history from him. Shade, on the other hand, was raised by Oberon, who kept no secrets from him. Shade became one of Oberon's chief servants, while Flicker became a trickster and one of Titania's servants. He himself participated in a later Talency, creating his favorite weapon, the Colorwhip.

The primary Flicker first encountered the Manhattan Clan in his reality when he put the three leaders of the clan, past (Hudson), present (Goliath), and future (Brooklyn) through a series of trials to teach them lessons. Sometime after that, he was assigned to be the teacher of a young female fay named Andrian. During one of their training sessions, Andrian saw images of another, dying Avalon, and crossed over to another reality, the one known as XX2. Not knowing that Andrian had gone to help that world, Flicker went to Puck for help. With the Titania of that reality's help, Flicker, Puck, and Goliath, who was Andrian's love in that reality, tried to cross over to Reality XX2. However, because counterparts must never meet, their crossover caused XX2's Puck and Goliath, who were on the other side of the portal, to be sucked into a void between realities along with the Puck and Goliath that had accompanied Flicker. Flicker, however, did get through, and he helped Shadowstar and Andrian free the Pucks and Goliaths from the Watcher known as Opaque. Flicker, Andrian, and their Puck and Goliath returned to their reality.

Next, he was sent by Titania to the "real world" to stop Banshee, who had been released from her punishment of silence by Oberon. Using two mystical artifacts known as the Correspondence Amulet and the Siren, Banshee made a floating fortress of Castle Wyvern, and used the Siren to rain destruction down onto New York City. Flicker, with the help of Owen, Goliath, Hudson, and Bronx, managed to defeat Banshee. Flicker punished Banshee in his own way, by using his powers to render her colorblind.

He then had to contend with Shade, who had secretly been ordered by Oberon to kill him. With the help of Puck and Hermes, Flicker was able to defeat Shade, but he escaped. Because of Oberon's behavior, Titania convinced him to live among the humans again until he learned humility himself. After this, Titania told Flicker of his origins. He didn't take it too well at first, but he got over it. However, he still held some bitterness towards Titania for not telling him sooner.

In Oberon's absence, Titania organized a council of fay to rule in his stead. Flicker was voted onto that council, albeit reluctantly on the part of some members. Unfortunately, Shade returned, having enlisted the assistance of a mad rogue fay known as Styx. Styx, along with his allies Charon and Prynn, had attempted to usurp control of Avalon a few years before Flicker's birth. They created an army of machines, known as the Styx machines, using the souls of the dead. The Styx machines were armed with iron weapons, making them deadly to the Children of Oberon. However, at some point, Styx killed his allies, and used their souls in two of the Styx machines. His soldiers, however, were few and shabbily constructed, and Oberon and his fay army easily destroyed them. Styx escaped during the battle, though, and began building more Styx machines for his revenge. When Shade ran from Avalon, he allied himself with Styx, and Styx attacked Avalon with a much larger and stronger Styx machine army. The Styx machines began to defeat the Children of Oberon, but Ladybug brought Flicker to his birth mirror, which gave him a vision of his creation, telling him that Shade had benn created with him, and was, in effect, his brother. It also showed him how Styx controlled his machines- using patterns of light. Armed with this knowledge, Flicker confronted Shade, who would've killed Flicker if Puck hadn't intervened by killing Shade. Flicker then risked his life by flying into the shy and unleashing a bright burst of light that allowed him to release the Styx machines from Styx's control. They turned on their creator, and left Avalon. Flicker nearly died from the exertion, but he was saved by Ladybug, who gave the last of her life energy to heal Flicker. After his "mother's" death, Flicker became sullen and moody.

In Reality XX2, the other Flicker's life unfolded in much the same way. He was a childhood friend of Angela. Oberon tried to have Shade assassinate him in this reality too, and Oberon went to learn humility in the human world. Here, however, he returned much sooner. Flicker welcomed Angela when she, Goliath, Shadowstar, and Puck visited Avalon on Angela's birthday. He was with Angela when the Olympian, Pallas Athena, had them take her to Oberon. Oberon and Athena fought, releasing the demonic being known as Hellfury. Flicker was captured by Hellfury along with all of the fay save Oberon, but was rescued by Oberon, Pallas Athena, and Goliath. The Flicker shard also helped Shadowstar defeat the being known as Eutaru, and helped her accept her true heritage, that she was the half-gargoyle half-fay daughter of the fay Rhayna and the gargoyle Midnight. To do this, he was in her mind, and as a result, they gained a sort of link. This link developed into love.

Soon, in the primary Flicker's reality, Oberon returned, in the possession of a Watcher. He created four soldiers, the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. He attacked Avalon with these soldiers, just as Shadowstar was accidentally pulled through Flicker's birth mirror into the main Flicker's reality. Only Flicker, Shadowstar, and Andrian survived the slaughter, and they managed to escape from the Horseman Death by entering Reality XX2 via Flicker's birth mirror. On the other side, the two Flickers recognized one another as the parts that were missing from themselves. With Shadowstar's help, the two Flickers merged back into one, along with Shade. Flicker was now a complete being, although the body of the shard Flicker remained. It was placed in the Hollow Hill, on the altar where King Arthur, then the Magus had been.

The newly complete Flicker traveled back to his reality, and with the help of Shadowstar, Allison, Deloon, Cress, Rhayna, Oberon, and Hermes, he defeated the Watcher-possessed Oberon and his Horsemen. Afterwards, Flicker decided to stay in Reality XX2 with Shadowstar, although he swore the Andrian that he would later return. Shadowstar was worried that the merged Flicker would no longer love her, but she was fortunately wrong.

In Reality XX2, Flicker has helped fight the forces of the Olympian, Hades, and there will likely be many more adventures for him and Shadowstar in the future.

Both Flickers had the normal powers of a Child of Oberon, including the ability to cast spells, levitate, and shapeshift. In addition, both could do a variety of tricks with light and color, such as blinding bursts of light, illusions, and rendering people colorblind, among other things. The merged Flicker has all the abilities of his two predecessors. His preferred weapon is the Colorwhip, a weapon he made himself.

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