Novak Garbaldi
Novak Garbaldi
NovakOlder2.jpg
Portrayed By Bruce Willis
Gender Male
Date of Birth September 22nd, 1963
Age 46
Zodiac Sign ???
Aliases Teacher
Place of Birth Citt di Castello, Umbria, Italy
Current Location New York City, NY, USA
Occupation A Secret To Everyone
Known Relatives Elisabetha Belmont (illegitimate daughter)
Significant Other Formerly Sarissa Belmont
Cell Phone 283-1313
Known Abilities Superhuman Perception
First Appearance Dire Dinner

Novak Garbaldi is a well-travelled and very experienced man, who knows his limits and of those he meets, thanks to a sharp, analytical mind, and deductive reasoning skills. He formerly acted as a sort of private tutor for Elisabetha Belmont, teaching her how to cope in a world full of people who suffer both physically and emotionally. He took on a job with Pinehearst, but when the research facility burnt down, he set a new goal for himself, and has been pursuing it passionately for the past year.

History

To be done.

Timeline

  • December 30th, 2007 - Novak, Elisabetha, and Emily go out to dinner at Oldcastle. Novak finds out about Elisabetha's unauthorized power use (The Pain Is Gone) and warns Dani against showing off his Ability in public. The log can be found at: Dire Dinner
  • January 2nd, 2008 - Novak and Elisabetha take the subway, run into some hoodlums, and chat up Felix, and William. Elisabetha asks if Gene is a freak, too. The log can be found at: Profound Things
  • February 1st, 2008 - Novak gets some meager information regarding his investigation into the Sylar murders. The log can be found at: Nothing to See Here
  • February 22nd, 2008 - Novak and Elisabetha have a conversation about what is needed for her to "help" people. They then go out into the city to "practice". The logs can be found at: Or Else, and Death Comes to Harlem
  • March 3rd, 2008 - Novak travels to Pinehearst and has a meeting with Charlotte about joining the company. He reveals Elisabetha's nature, but keeps his own concealed, stating only that he has tutored many with abilities in how to use their gifts. The log can be found at: Philanthropy For Hire
  • April 21st, 2008 - Novak and Elisabetha visit the Imago Club, meet Quinn and get to see Billy Joel perform live! The log can be found at: Bloody Tears
  • April 23rd, 2008 - Kory enters Novak's dreams to attempt to recruit him for taking down Pinehearst. The log can be found at: A Conflict of Interests
  • May 9th, 2008 - Novak falls asleep at Pinehearst just in time for Kory to enter his dreams again. This time, however, it is for information gathering, not recruitment. The information she gathers is more than she expected. The log can be found at: Ashes And Ghost
  • May 17th, 2008 - Novak returns home from his work at Pinehearst and discovers changes have taken place while he was away. The log can be found at: A Great Work Ruined
  • May 22nd, 2008 - Novak attempts to warn off Kory from continuing to influence Elisabetha in her dreams. The log can be found at: A Lesson Learned
  • May 25th, 2008 - Novak and Angela have a meeting after more than a decade to discuss the future. The log can be found at: The Wicked Guardians
  • May 29th, 2008 - Elisabetha asks Novak to give her a lesson at the zoo. Novak agrees with a smile. The log can be found at: Smiles Are For Lying
  • May 31st, 2008 - Novak and Elisabetha go to the Bronx Zoo. There they meet Quinn (again), Jamie (again!), and Joule (not again). The log can be found at: Truths Less Spoken Of
  • June 4th, 2008 - Novak visits Gray & Sons and has a chat with Gabriel. Their meeting does not end as well as Novak had hoped. The log can be found at: How To Win Friends And Influence Enemies
  • July 12th, 2008 - Novak is doing work late at night at Pinehearst, when the power goes out. What's going on? The log can be found at: Phase One
  • July 13th, 2008 - Novak joins Arthur in seeking out those who attacked Pinehearst Research. In the aftermath, everything has changed. The logs can be found at: Retribution, Fragmented Clarity
  • July 26th, 2008 - Novak is busy locking up memories in his dreamscape, with the help of the Monk, when Kory decides to pay a visit. The log can be found at: Inside The Ivory Tower
  • September 9th, 2008 - Novak and the Monk pay a visit to Unity College, and have lunch with Hunter. The log can be found at: Research
  • April 7th, 2010 - Novak is working within Delta Protocol, and is contacted by a rather expected guest. The log can be found at: Betrayer Meets Rebel

Dark Future

  • September 5th, 2011 - Novak and Elisabetha are caught in the cross-fire as a group of drug-hungry individuals, including Quinn and Tyson raid a Pinehearst Laboratory. The log can be found at: Storming The Castle
  • Early 2012 - Novak is home form work earlier than usual, and encounters Elisabetha when she returns after being kidnapped by Peter. The log can be found at: An Extra Life

Ability

Novak's Ability is Superhuman Perception. It manifests as an overall heightening of all five basic senses, plus a 'sixth sense' of cognitive functioning. He is able to pick up the details of anything he can perceive, and 'read' them properly and seperately, rather than them being a mish-mash of overwhelming sensations. Seperate from his Ability is his skill at deductive reasoning, and thinking logically, however he can combine the two to interpret and reason through what he perceives, and thus obtain information that most people simply do not notice. All the details are there for anyone to notice, but due to a number of reasons, the vast majority of individuals just do not see, hear, smell, feel, or taste them, or if they do, their brains do not properly 'parse' the sensations in a way to obtain the same information that Novak does.

Novak is able to glean information not only from the environment (such as exact temperature, distance, light levels, decibels of sound, and so on) but also from individuals. If he can perceive someone's actions, mannerisms, facial expression, and other body language, he can gain a very good picture of the person's present mental and emotional state, their possible goal (short-term, not long-term. Such as being in a hurry to get somewhere despite trying to act polite, or trying to get something from him that they want, etc.), and even whether they might be lying or not. This latter is not foolproof.

While most people are open books to Novak, someone properly trained (such as CIA agents), or absent of emotion (such as some serial killers or insane individuals) can essentially sit there and lie through their teeth, and Novak will not be able to tell the difference. He only gauges physical response, such as increased perspiration, dialation of the eyes, increased blinking, or breathing, or erratic pulse rate, etc. He does not have any supernatural ability to tell instantly when someone is lying.

While Novak generally is in full control of his senses and perceptions, sudden, incredibly loud or bright or pungent or spicy or cold/hot/painful sensations can overwhelm him to the point of immobility. He will be essentially paralyzed, even if it's just for a few minutes, until he can cope with the sensory input.

As well, because his mind works on a different level than most people, just witnessing someone else experiencing a sensation (particularly pain) can be enough to unnerve him or cause himself pain. This includes seeing someone touching certain fabrics or objects with certain textures, which can give him the shivers at a sufficient level to foul up anything he is attempting to manually perform at that point in time, until he is able to stop perceiving the given action. There are various other inconveniences to being able to pick up on just about everything around him, such as the noise of a city being less background noise and more 'constant screaming and screeching and honking and talking' and so on. He can tune out some of it, but he will still be processing all that information, which can be a tiring experience.

Quotes

  • "All according to plan."
  • "Very interesting."
  • "They won't understand the sacrifices we have made to protect them. But we'd do it all again, just to keep them safe."

Trivia

  • Novak used to wear glasses despite being able to see with better than 20/20 vision in both eyes. This was due to the habit of wearing them, formed before his Ability manifested. He has since abandoned this practice.
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