Author's note: The actual inspiration for Will comes from my times in high school and college when I wanted to quickly drop into tabletop role playing games or pick up a new RPG video game without spending hours trying to invent a unique character. I also liked the idea of placing myself into fan-fiction stories of other universes. Once I had the idea of “myself, but able to go anywhere and blend in” I had to reverse engineer a backstory for how a person might become like that and a “dimension jumping Pretender” story was born (remember that show from the 90s?).

William Davenport

William Davenport is the main character of the Will Story (working title). He's a young adult in his early 20s who begins the story as a magi-apprentice at the magic academy on Myra, the grey world. He's from a non-magi family but he shows a lot of magical aptitude. Given that, he was taken from his family at a very young age (around 4 or 5) to attend the academy and move into the elite class that runs their society. Although his parents are merely a shadow in his memories, he still remembers their unconditional love and determination to make every day better than the last.

Although he is one of the top students academically, he's always struggled to fit into the rigid structure and strict rules of their authoritarian society (imagine living in North Korea). Even though he no longer remembers his home and family, he still misses his home, his family, and the freedom he knows exists outside the walls and magic bubbles that protect the cities.

As a creative outlet, William took up painting in secret. He found access to a private courtyard between the academy buildings where nature tried to push through the gravel and haze. He would often sneak off to the courtyard to paint and be by himself. It was on one of these divergences when he found it: the gemstone that would allow him to harness enough energy to leap away from Myra and begin his adventure.

Given Will's sheltered upbringing (literally never leaving the academy), he is completely naive to the world and how most societies operate. He has little experience with money, the environment, or common social customs. His interpersonal communications were always amongst a closed group that was seeking information to use for backstabbing and one-upping (something Will does not like to participate in, but must protect himself from).

Although naive, he's intensely curious and enjoys learning about new people, new magicks, and new technology. He has confidence in his ability from his mastery of even the hardest classes at the academy. He knows that, given enough time, he can learn almost anything. Every challenge is simply another learning opportunity.

As he progresses, Will meets Julia as well as discovers multi-dimensional versions of characters with a variety of backgrounds and dispositions. He'll learn over the course of the story that a person's unique situation isn't just driven by fate, but instead by the culture they are raised in. He'll eventually becomes nostalgic for his home and guilty that he's able to see freedom while so many of his compatriots are still stuck in an oppressive home. This pressures him to return and try to fix his homeworld's society.

In the current draft, Will will eventually meet Julie, who herself is a powerful sorceress from another dimensional world. She's been calling him across the void between worlds. Julie is evil and power-hungry but needs Will's goodness in a 'yin to my yang' situation that lets her increase her power with his. It turns out that Will, Julie, Julia, and another character (Marcus) are all the same 'person' or 'soul' but are each completely unique people with different attitudes. This is when Will realizes people are shaped by their environments.