Julius M.

Name:	Julius M.
Pronouns:	He/Him
Aliases:	Carajillo (Second Cafe), Manager 26 (Third Cafe), Big Guy (Florida Cafe), Manager No. 4 (Current Cafe)
Affiliation:	The Cafe and Diner (Florida Branch)
Trivia:	Animals

Julius is the strong, laconic Manager No. 4 of the Palm Beach branch of the Cafe and Diner, co-managing with his long-time allies Managers No. 5 and 6. He specialises in hands-on customer service.

Biography

Julius' first experience with the coffee trade began long before he joined any iteration of the Cafe and Diner, due to his being raised in a fast food joint, though he had a more formal introduction to the business when Sophie Grenbelrn invited him to join the Second Cafe and Diner, after the fire that destroyed the First Cafe. It was because of that fire that he accepted the invitation. He remained with the Second Cafe until its dissolution in 2004, after which he likely returned to his family.

In the ritual planned by the Cult of the Yellow Flame, in which Joy Livingstone would be sacrificed and the rest of the cult would self-immolate, in order to provide the Wicked with a mortal vessel, Julius' role was to be the sole survivor, to act as the Spark that would rekindle the Cult after the ritual. These plans were dashed by the intervention of Jericho Myerscough, in his capacity as an IRIS agent. Though he interrupted the ritual, he was slightly too late, and the three were trapped inside a burning temple. To survive, the Wicked made them a deal: become its envoys or burn to death. They took the deal, and the three have been mostly inseparable ever since.

At some point before August 2017, Julius joined the Third Cafe and Diner, led by Manager No. 3. In his position as Manager 26, he was third-in-command, behind the Owner herself and Manager 17. In September 2017, the Third Cafe became aware of the existence of the Palm Beach Cafe and Diner, and Julius left for Florida, to help them with Darker problems as Big Guy. In both of these Cafes his role tended to involve serving customers directly.

After the Florida Cafe Entered the light, and during the Cafe Crisis, the Palm Beach CaD was shut down, and its four employees - Julius, HR, The Manager and Payroll - were sent to work under the Long Beach CaD. This merger was made official when Muldra Yonomo took ownership of the CaD, and Julius was given the title Manager No. 4.

While the Fourth Cafe ventured into another world, Julius continued to serve customers with skill and efficiency. However, in 2022, Julius was involved in an altercation with Miss. Augustine, scratching his arm up. However, this was no normal wound; the wound was magical in nature, and Julius' Wicked Blight fed off of the magic, causing it to fester. Eventually, he was forced to have it amputated by The Pathologist. Employee No. 71 managed to source a Canadian donor for a replacement arm graft, but it cost the CaD the Scepter of Mammon.

Personality

Julius is a man of few words, quiet, stoic and straightforward. As a young man in the Second Cafe he displayed a fanatical devotion to fire, especially those of a particularly Yellowish hue. Now, though, his fervour has cooled, and a once blazing flame has smouldered to embers.

Ties That Bind

• Very close with Managers No. 5 and 6, as well as Ex-44A.
• Former member of the Cult of the Yellow Flame, and one of the mortal vessels for the Wicked, though he resists it by never utilising the Wicked's powers.
• Seemed to have taken a rather paternal role in the Third Cafe, ensuring that everyone took care of themselves.