Esper Profile: Azeban

Length: 0.9-1.1 meters, tail varies
Energy: 10-15 GeV
Strength: Shadow
Weakness: Fire

Azeban are friendly spirits, but are somewhat difficult to interact with. They are inquisitive and startlingly bold, but untrusting as well, and somewhat mischievous. They have become quite difficult to predict, and caused a little bit of trouble in the lab before we learned how to properly train them. It seems that it is in their nature to try and get away with things, and they can be frustratingly good at it.

Appearance:
Azeban are moderately sized Espers that have adopted the mammalian aspects of a racoon. Their most notable feature is a mask that covers their eyes, a literal extrapolation of the animal’s iconic markings. The mask is shaped like that of a traditional bandit or robber, but it has been noted to shift its shape depending on the Azeban’s mood. On the Esper Screen they appear as a dim purple, or not at all, as they are very adept at concealing themselves. They seem to disappear with the slight shift of an angle, and suddenly only the mask will be visible, like a stoic Cheshire Cat. Their hands are incredibly dexterous, and more delicate than those of a physical raccoon. In fact, they seem almost human.

Behavior:
Azeban frequent suburban and forest areas at night. They avoid large groups of people, and can most often be found in the hidden nooks and crannies of neighborhoods. Objects that are hidden, thoughts that are kept unspoken, these are all things that fascinate Azeban, which seem drawn to particularly secretive people. When an individual is alone, he is much more likely to find himself approached by an Azeban or two. They collect emotional essences, the flashes of adrenalin that come from being unseen, the pride from the power of knowing what others do not, and wrap them up into spheres. They play with them, and then bash them against the ground (or what passes for the ground in the Thymosphere) into edible pieces.

Other notes:
I felt my mind wander quite frequently during my time spent with Azeban, often to find that I had become distracted and stopped doing what I had been working on. I do not believe it was a coincidence. I pride myself on my ability to focus, yet throughout my examination I found myself dwelling on my childhood and preoccupied with frivolous emotional issues. I became pensive and my agitation with certain, shall we say, social and philosophical issues among members of EsperCorp grew more pronounced. Afterwards I would reassert my concentration only to find that Azeban had scurried over to some obscure corner of the lab. Since Azeban is so closely aligned with deception and secrecy, I don’t think it’s unreasonable to hypothesize that it might use its minimal influence over human thought to its own capricious advantage. The notion is a disturbing one, but I believe it deserves fair exploration.