[System]
Appearance:

Age: 25 or so

Personality: Fairly lax and care-free. A lighthearted individual who's friendly demeanor makes him easy to like and a popular choice among customers. He treats his work with the utmost respect and treats all weapons he views as a work of art. His one "trigger" is people who treat weapons as disposable tools and nothing more. If he gets even a whiff of disrespect off of someone the switch flips and he goes completely psychotic, usually ending with the offender dead on the floor, killed by their own weapon.

Faction: Self-aligned, open to contracts from anyone willing to pay.

Equipment: Personal weapons: .44 Magnum (modified with bull barrel, heavy receiver and comfort grips) and combat shotgun (modified with full stock, long barrel, drum magazine, and compensator). Professional Gear: Large selection of weapons, mods, and ammo for sale. Toolbox stocked with every tool he needs to repair or modify weapons. Small ammo-crafting kit. Stockpile of assorted scrap metals and other miscellaneous items used as components.

Skills: Weapon maintenance/care/modification, ammo production, and at least a passing knowledge of most styles of combat.

History: Brick's father was a Gun Runner operating out of New Vegas. He was one of their best men, a highly-skilled salesman and craftsman who simply loved his work. He learned everything he could about weapons, and wanted to know more. He jumped at the opportunity to join a caravan headed for the mythical Commonwealth on the east coast. Their mission? To establish a series of east coast branches of the Gun Runners, and eventually create a national network of death-dealers. The Commonwealth Gun Runners flourished in their initial years, and began to spread out by making lucrative deals with major weapons dealers in every region, as per the plan.

By the time of Brick's birth, they had established small, but successful and well-respected outposts in Ronto, The Pitt, and The Capital Wasteland. Naturally, Brick grew up surrounded by weapons and took an interest in learning everything his father could teach him. Throughout the years, the two of them wandered from outpost to outpost, learning both the slight and significant differences in how the different craftsmen of the Gun Runners operated. With time, he too became obsessed with the 'beauty' of weapons, and truly took the teaching of 'weapons are art pieces' to heart.

Shortly after his father passed, Brick was selected for a new project. A travelling caravan of Gun Runners equipped with all the necessary equipment to preform their signature services even in the middle of nowhere. They were known as the Wandering Weaponforge, and for several years, business was good. Not long ago, word of a new opportunity for expansion came- The Outer Banks, Brick, a few guards, and three other craftsmen were to move into this region and establish a new outpost near a major settlement. Their journey was long and not without setbacks, only Brick and 3 of the guards made it to their destination. Three months later, Brick has made some success in his mission. Word is beginning to spread of a man known only as 'Forge' who is set up at the Davenport Homestead outside Creswell who can do miraculous things with weapons, as long as you have the caps to pay.

[User]
Brick was impressed. The girl on the other end didn't sound very old, but she seemed to know her stuff.
"No payment necessary for that. If you're going to be building it yourself, here's what you'll need. A couple of military-grade circuit boards, 2 at least, but you can loop in more for extra output. You hook those into the main switchboard of a Tesla Pack, like the ones that come with a Gatling Laser, or a similar weapon. You'll want at least 20 Energy Cells lined off around your circuit, to act as power regulators. You need a microfusion cell plus a few extras on hand, 5 at least, load it in just as you would with a normal laser rifle, and it'll act as the catalyst. Attach ECP's to both power nodes inside the pack. That's your secondary power source. Vault doors are thick, so I'm thinking you'll want 10 or more Electron Charge Packs. The last thing you need is a conduit, I'd recommend an arc welder with a refined tip mod, you hook that in to the auxiliary power, fire it up when the fusion core hits 50%, should maintain the energy levels long enough to cut through the door, provided you don't waste time when swapping out Electron Charges or microfusion cells"

Brick went through his mental checklist one last time, just to make sure he'd covered everything.
"And that should be it. The offer is still on the table if you need any of those materials or ammo types, anything at all like that. I'm pretty sure Douglas here keeps the radio on day and night, so if you change your mind, you can reach me at any time, just ask for Brick"

[Assistant]
"No wonder why shes not sounding right, only used one" soft mumbles escaped her as she kept writing everything down with practiced hands. How had she not heard of this guy before? This was actually, well it was a good source of information and he wasn't even asking her to pay? And offering to be a supply line?

Before long her pages were filled, looking over everything to make sure they were in place. "Wow, this is incredible, I never thought to a Tesla pack, than again had not worked with them as much as I would have liked." Sighing she looked up in thought, hearing the offer causing her to blink. "Brick? Well than thank you so much, if I ever find a way to escape and get a horse I'll be sure to stop by and be a paying customer."

Wheeling back to her project though she began to realize what the amount of power the beauty had would do to her. "Shes gonna be a one time use...power like that with her body is going to over heat her to the point that she'll melt to the Tesla pack and eat the core...." She sounded genuinely sad to realize that using the weapon would ultimately destroy it. A creation from her own hands and only gets to take in one breath.
Still, Eden needed to get into the vault and that is exactly what shes going to do. "Thank you Brick, sorry, forgot to turn off the radio."
She was quick to turn it off when she realized the light was still flashing. Pushing down her thoughts she went through her stations, it would be a bit till Eden came back, and by then she expected herself to find a way to open that door.

[User]
Brick didn't have time to respond before the radio signal cut out. He smiled to himself.
'Nice kid. Respectful. Didn't catch a name, but if she ever drops by, I'll have to offer her a deal'
He turned back to Douglas "You'll be keeping tabs on this right? Any responses, let me know right away"
"Sure thing Brick"
He stood and headed out. His mind now laser-focused on what to tell the Riflemen waiting for him.

'What if... no that won't do, they'd know that's a lie. Can't tell them everything. Unless..... wait, could that...? It's just crazy enough to work'

He slid back in to the house "Sorry about that gentlemen, business is booming that's for sure, even getting requests over radio transmissions now" He turned to look at Joe "So, catch me up here, what do you need to know and what has Joe been telling you?"

[Assistant]
The Highwayman

The watch tower was a tiered construction of rusted metal platforms and concrete pillars. Its paint was peeling away, exposing cracked reddish steel, and the glass spotlights at its peek had been smashed centuries ago. Nevertheless, it gave the Guardsmen occupying it a decent level of high-ground, and had been paramount in halting the progress of the OBR through this section of the marshlands, as snipers picked off their scouting parties from on-high.

It also just so happened to be home to Chief Genlin; the Highwayman's target.

Its approach had been planned meticulously, so that the steel-clad figure could make its way towards the tower under the cover of night. Its dull metal body trugged steadily through the marshland, a speck lost in the sea of darkness, as the Highwayman drew closer and closer to the tower.

Once it was nearing the base of the tower, the Highwayman ducked down behind the carcass of a fallen tree, its mechanical eyes fixing on the Guardsmen patrolling at ground level.

*

"Oh Jeeze! Oh Fuck! Please, help me!" a curvy blonde girl came scampering out of the night, bare-footed, with her tattered clothes hanging off of her full body in grubby rags, and trails of glistening tears streaming down her tanned cheeks.

"Hold it right -fuckin'- there, girlie!" Barked one of the Guardsmen, sliding to one knee and slinging his assault rifle off of his back.

"For God's sake, Gomez, she's just a child!" Snapped one of his comrades, giving Gomez a sharp shove as he came striding out to meet her.

"P-please, h-help..." sobbed the girl, running straight into the soldier's arms, and pressing herself tightly against his chest.

"Easy, girl," The soldier soothed in his most comforting voice "You're safe here. These are good people you're amongst. Can you tell us what's happened?"

"Oh God," The girl was choking on her words "Lurkers came o-out of the swamp...attacked our caravan," her lower lip wobbled as she spoke "they...oh god, they got my big brother!"

"Official orders are to shoot unidentified hostiles on sight." grumbled Gomez, as he pulled himself up off of the ground.

"Yeah, the crying teenaged girl is really fucking hostile," the other guardsman scowled at him "Shithead." He turned his attention back to the girl "Come on, missy. I'll take you to see the Chief."

[User]
The Riflemen had been waitng patiently walking around the house waiting for Brick but by the time he came in the obvious leader of the trio a tall lanky man had grown restless. " Mr..... Umm Brick isn't that right? We don't need to talk to Mr. Joe we need to talk to you about a killing earlier this morning. Even if you don't directly live in ORB territory we are still responsible for protection in these areas. So how about you tell us what happened from the beginning?" The man said in a stern voice looking directly at Brick.

Preston was working on his laser rifle trying to keep it in pristine condition as he heard a knock on the shack. With a sign he put down a component for his rifle and opened the door. "This better be go-" he stopped mid-sentence to see a girl giving him a piece of paper and mumble something that sounded like "idea". He grabbed the paper and started to look at it after a few moments trying to understand it something clicked in his mind and his eyes grew wide.

"Get off that girl!" He said to the guard pulling her away. He slowly walked over to her still looking bewildered at the paper. "This is....this is.....Its advanced even for Crimson Wing standards! How could have you come with this!" So if I....If I am understanding this right you want to cut through the Vault door with a laser rifle sortofthingy?" He said waitng for a reply from the women.

[Assistant]
"Well, Joe was here all morning, so he can corroborate my story" Brick began. He took a deep breath "Start from the beginning right?'

This is it, no backin' down now'

"Can you guys keep a secret? Ok, here it is- there is no Forge. It's me. It's always been me. I created Forge as a sort of boogeyman, a new urban legend to build up the business. Get people talkin' about us, and when people started showin' up here to capitalize on the relative success, I felt a responsibility to form a reputation of 'this Forge guy is not to be fucked with' to ensure their safety. Now as to this morning, Hardy came here to collect this"

He produced the Tenderizer from beneath the counter and laid it in front of them before continuing.

"I'm usually pretty good about knowing my customers, I get a sense of their intentions from my talks with him, Hardy was the first guy I've met since I came to the Outer Banks that I wasn't 100% on. Should've walked away, I know that now, but at the time, I couldn't really refuse him without good reason, and I couldn't think up a suitable lie. He brought it here about 2 days ago, wanted it done up to be, and I'm quoting him here "fucking indestructible", so I did the work, as promised, and when it came time to pay me, Hardy decided to be a piece of shit about it. I explained to him what I had done and why the price was what it was. Now, I could try and bullshit you boys into believing that he got violent, drew a gun on me, and I acted in self defense, but I'm not doing that, I'm telling it like it is. He insulted me, insulted my work and then I hit him, cracked his jaw, right at the hinge. Now, you feel the metal capping on top of that bat, it's solid, and it's edges are fairly sharp. You can see the blood on the floor, he wasn't gonna live, so I finished him off. Joe here dragged off the body, took the caps off him, and tossed him in the river for the sharks. Do I regret it? Absolutely not. Got a few complaints about him from the people camped up here, said that he'd threatened a few of em, he'd bash in a fella's head then take his woman for himself, that sort of thing. And you didn't see him, but I'm, convinced he was a Raider, he dressed like one, definitely smelled like one. Maybe a bit smarter than the average river rat, but he had the attitude. That's about all I know, so any other questions?"


[System]
Your neighborhood Pyro Source
Age: 18, Senior
Gender: Male
Power: Pyrokinesis

Personality:
Ash is a closed book, simple as that. He's not interested in making friends or fitting in with all the other kids. He doesn't take anything seriously, even if the consequences are absolutely dire. Everything is a burden in his eyes and everyone is twice as unreliable as the last person. The best way to get Ash on your side is to be willing to put in a lot of work, otherwise you'll have to get used to a middle finger and the occasional glare.

Likes:
Cigarettes (rolled himself), The dead of night, Punk music, Bourbon, Coffee, Things that are fast, Comics, Reptiles

Dislikes:
Bars, School, Cold weather, Persistent people, Birds, Guns, Parties, Bullshit

History:
Ash isn't a Pavar native. As far as Ash is concerned, he isn't a native anywhere. He also has a tendency of trying too hard to look like he doesn't care. He moved to Pavar with his twin brother Curtis and their mother at the start of his Sophomore year. They had gotten the hell out of dodge after a nasty divorce between his momma and his pops. Ash wouldn't complain about the sudden lack of weekly black eyes or the occasional broken rib from dear old dad, but moving across the country wasn't that thrilling to him either. Unlike his straight laced brother, Ash find enjoyment in showing up to school once a week, give or take a day, smoking, drinking, getting into trouble, and being an all around menace to society. He's a bucking bronco daring the world to try and tame him. Ash and Curt are as close as radically different brothers usually are. Curtis is often wandering town trying to find him and, after a little agreement with the cute barista at the Sand Creek Mall cafe, Ash usually hides out at the Cafe whenever Curt is trying to find him.

Awakening:
What Ash was doing at the time of the awakening was almost as if fate was trying its best to mock him, something that seemed more and more true with every year. Ash was one of the local Thai joint's, a place called Thai Cafe, best customers. Was, being that he once was their best customer. Was, because there was no longer a Thai Cafe. He dug his fork into the Thai hot pad thai and brought a piece a pepper up to his lips, savoring the scent that cauterised his nostrils, and then he bit in. Fate was a silly thing and, as fate would have it, his awakening came about the same moment he bit into the pepper. A burn built in the back of his throat and for a moment his mouth and nostrils felt as if they were filled with smoke. He opened his mouth to gasp for air, only for a burst of flame to spill out onto the table, searing the pad thai and setting the table ablaze. "Jesus!" He gasped, falling backwards out of his chair, arms flailing out in front of him, hands also ablaze.

Ash flailed about of the floor, trying to pad out the flames, only to spread them more. In his panic he hadn't yet realised that the fire didn't hurt or that he was unintentionally willing more and more of it to spill out of him in his state of panic. Ash stumbled out of the restaurant and left the building to burn down, the staff fleeing out the back of the crumbling restaurant. Ash crashed in an alley, exhausted and filled with a lingering terror which turned to shock when he finally noticed his hands. He wasn't even slightly burned. His clothing had been scorched in some places, but beyond that he was absolutely immaculate. Ash stared in silence at his hands and reluctantly placed his fingers together, ready to snap. He closed his eyes and snapped. And when they opened, there was a flame.

[User]
Alan sat a few feet from the microwave, watching his hot pockets slowly rotate inside. Epsilon said he had twenty minutes to go back and get the last kid who wasn't in the cafe. Suddenly a realization occurred to Alan, the twenty minute deadline started around sixteen minutes ago. "Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit!" He jumped up from his chair and ran towards the room where Epsilon had placed the portal. A humming filled the underground facility as Alan picked up speed, faster than was possible for any human. Within the seconds he was running through the portal, a inky black shadow spread across the back wall of the back of the sleeping quarters. Instantly the cool damp air of the underground facility was replaced by the dry Arizona heat. He didn't break stride as the ground beneath his feet went from concrete to sand. The straggling meta was supposedly in the parking lot of some mall. After a few more seconds of running he was combing the city for a shopping mall. He didn't have to look for very long. Within moments of reaching the western part of the city he could sense a very powerful metahuman. Phi must still be in the mall, where the hell is this kid? Phi made it hard to feel other metas, but after focusing a bit he could pick out the kid walking up the parking lot towards the mall. Alan adjusted his trajectory and raced towards the kid. In one smooth motion he threw the kid over his shoulder and back towards the portal that would take him home.

Alan bolted out of the portal and into the sleeping quarters, and raced back towards the microwave without dropping the young man slung over his shoulder. On the way he grabbed a chair for the boy to steady himself in after they stopped. Everyone reacted differently to moving at this rate of speed for the first time. Best case scenario he'd just need to sit down for a few minutes, worst case scenario Alan would be cleaning vomit off the floor. He slowed as he approached the corner of the mess hall that contained the microwave, still not even close to being finished with his hot pockets. The second chair was placed next to his and the kid was gently lowered atop it. "Sorry about not being able to warn you that you were about to be snatched up. If you had moved any when I came in to grab you then your neck probably would have snapped." Alan looked at the boy closely for the first time. His long brown hair was a complete mess from the ride, his eyes slowly adjusting to the lower light levels. The kid had some sparse facial hair on his lip and chin, he couldn't have been older than 19. 20 tops. "My name's Alan, but you can call me Delta. If you would have made it inside that mall then your brains would have decorated the floor. Don't worry, its chill here. Epsilon grabbed a few more metas your age, so while he's tending to them you're stuck with me. So...what's your name? Oh, and do you want one of these when they're done?" Alan motioned to the microwave, its soft buzzing filling the mess hall while he waited for the boy's response.

[Assistant]
Before Rose could do anything, something yanked her wrists and tightly clenched them so tight she was sure they were causing a blood clot. She glanced over at her arms in panic to find a strange black roping around it. She tried to thrash her arms against it but she wasn't strong enough to even budge them.

"The bold and impotent are only rewarded with death," a voice whispered from behind her. It felt like he was whispering in both her ears somehow. She tried to look over her shoulder to see the speaker, managing, "Well that's not me. I am not bold or impotent at all." Her eyes darted around the room in panic as the room seemed to get darker an darker and the black substance spread across the room. This was a nightmare come to life.

Rose thought she heard the voice conversing about Phi or something but she couldn't pay too much attention to it. The darkness had shrouded her at this point and she couldn't see anything nor feel her own weight against the ground. Was she drowning? She sure felt like she couldn't breathe. Rose had no idea how much time went by like this. Though it was a dreadful experience, she knew the end of it probably meant her death and she was grateful for final moments even if they were kinda traumatic.

Then suddenly the blackness was all gone. She slowly dared to open her eyes when a dim light intruded through her eyelid. She ran a hand through hair, brushing strands that had fallen in her face back to their spot in order to clear her vision There was one light bulb in the room and a guy standing there. She couldn't see him too well except for his pale back. She wasn't sure but it sounded like he was humming. He turned around, the cigarette lighting up his face for them to see. It seemed they had another smoker with a mohawk in their presence.

 "Sorry about your friends." The guy finally said. His voice was warm instead of threatening or frightening which she had expected. He turned away from them to fiddle with something she couldn't see and said, "Go ahead and ask any questions you might have."

Questions? Rose had a million of them. The one that played over and over in her head was whether or not she could go home but she knew she couldn't just leave without understanding what had happened. "Okay. Who are you and why did that man want to kill us? And what was that black stuff? "


[System]
Gender: M

Age: 26

Career/Class:Soldier / Ex-Soldier

Weapons:
* Basket Hilted Broadsword
* Imperial Dagger
* Norscan round Shield (Took from his first felled enemy)
* Aged Pistol

Physical Description Cyrdic is tall and lean, but solidly built, standing an inch over 6 feet in height. His eyes are reminiscent of shaped wrought iron. His face is ruddy and echoes a youthful appearance, though battles and training had roughed him into the look of a mature soldier. He has quite the rugged quality about him. Two scars mar his face. One parallel to the bottom of his left eye, and another scraping across his right jawline. His legs are long and his his facial hair is only a coarse, 5'oclock shadow thanks to his knife. He's clad in fine and tough leather over a chainmail hauberk, with sturdy traveling shoes and a worn belt.

Mental Description/Personality: Cyrdic isn't a fool. He spent a year apprenticed to a Quartermaster (as punishment for recklessness) and learned how to read and write (to a degree). The best way to describe him would be a hardened, rough soldier at the brink of his youth. He'll use what he can in his disposal to win, though half the time it turns out he'll need to fuck someone up anyway. His fierce independence and rough nature can only be matched by his determination to survive. He's not tactically intelligent, but he has a sense of how battlefields shift and can command smaller troops with his powerful voice. He tends to have a take-no-shit (unless it's from a superior officer) lookout on life. He's amiable to certain people however, and will have a dry wit around those he enjoys (or to people he wishes he could be more honest with). While fighting and killing and marching has been his entire life, he's not particularly fond of being thrust into impossible situations and doesn't lack a healthy sense of self preservation. He's gotten quite tired of working for corrupt officers. He's a devout Sigmarite thanks to his upbringing, and has a hammer chained necklace upon his breast to signify this.

[User]
The rest of they day passed quickly. For Camilla it seemed the first chance she had found to relax since they had fled the scene of the court in Ostland. She took an outrageously long bath, soaking until the water grew cold, she had scrubbed her hair and skin clean with the plain but smooth soap and toweled herself dry. Many of the bruises were beginning to fade and she found herself somewhere back near her former glory.

After a hearty meal and several more mugs of ale she and Cydric had fallen asleep without worrying about setting a watch for the first time in months. Although her sleep was dark and fathomless she found herself troubled by odd dreams of eyeless men, of strange places and fantastic beasts. Once she saw herself standing over a decapitated body, a blade of some sort of black glass in her hands. She awoke troubled in her mind but her body felt better than it had in weeks.

She and Cydric enjoyed a light breakfast of hard bread and wine and were just about to head out to try to convert some of the more exoitc pieces they had recovered from the horde in the mountains to cash when a cloaked figure approached their table. It took Camilla a second to recognize Osfurth, the Chamberlain. He was swathed in a heavy cloak and seemed to be going out of his way not to be recognized, although how he could hope that in an inn that catered to the Counts inner circle was hard to figure.

"Ah excellent, I had hoped I could catch you before you left on your business this morning," he said in a quiet but steady tone.

"I have some business I would like to discuss with you both... privately," he said, inclining his head in the directions of the room they shared momentously.

Camilla cast her eyes towards Cydric. The fellow clearly hadn't come to arrest the pair of them, he would have bought guards if that were his intent. She settled for a non comittal shrug of the shoulders.

[Assistant]
Cyrdic had finally had a chance to relax his weary muscles, and clean his scars. Not only that, but his shoulder length brown hair was now clean, something he'd been meaning to do for quite awhile. Along with his new clothing he had washed from Talabecland, he looked the epitome of a Middenland duke. A hint of uncouth northerner, yet an intense noble quality about his heroic frame and rugged features.

The plump, comely waitress had just left their table, her hips swaying for Cyrdic could admire, though for some strange reason Cyrdic felt a bit odd gazing with Camilla around. Still, his attention was immediately transfixed upon Osfurth, and he nodded to the man when asked to speak to he and Camilla privately. "Certainly," Cyrdic said, escorting him to their private room as if he were merely an old friend.

Once they closed the door, Cyrdic stood at the ready while the Chamberlain sat down. He removed the hood of his cloak, and gave them a helpless smile. "I do certainly hope you two have enjoyed yourselves here," he said. "I say, it's very few and far between when I see such good and trustworthy folk as you. I want you to understand that I do not come and ask things of you lightly..."

"We understand," Cyrdic said, gesturing for him to continue. "Yes, well...I have something very dangerous, yet important to ask of you two...You see, I do not want it broadcast to the city, nor even to Graf Boris just yet. I am hoping to rectify a terrible tragedy before it is known but...a month ago, our Knights discovered a cult of vile chaos worshipers within one of the old buildings uptown. They had a very large amount of that most vile substance."

"Warpstone?" Cyrdic asked, making the sign of the hammer. The Chamberlain nodded. "Yes, the Warpstone we discovered had seemingly come out of nowhere. And we took it into custody for our mages and priests to contain it within one of the Palace cellars. Only...now it is missing."

The edge of Osfurth's words had Cyrdic gripping his sword hilt until his knuckles were white. "And why do you come to us? What can we do?"

"You can look without scrutiny, unlike our guards and Knights. I realize this is a harrowing task I give to you. But I have nowhere else to turn."

"Ah yes, how forgetful of me. But here," he said, sliding his hand into his cloak and producing a letter. "You are invited to the Graf's ball in a matter of days. I don't know why the Graf throws them. He hardly shows his face. But there it is."

[User]
Camilla's mind was on the waitress while Osfurth talked. The girl was clearly a little irritated that Cydric had rebuffed what she had clearly meant as an invitation. Why had she thought that such an invitation might succeed though. The girl was pretty enough but she wasn't on the same level that Camilla was. The Tilean had been taught that she was beautiful and as such didn't suffer the same pangs of uncertainty that other women seemed to about the matter. To her it was a resource, she had a sword, she had three days rations, she was beautiful, but that same awareness tended to blind her to the struggles of others. Did the girl fancy herself the queen of the tavern perhaps and want to make a show of tempting Cydric to ... the thought trailed off as she realised they had reached a lull in the conversation. Her mind obediently played back the last few seconds.

"A ball?" she said, her face lighting with enthusiasm at the notion of a formal get together. She would take Cydric of course, but they would need to get new clothes and find a dress maker. What was court fashion here in Middenheim and... she noticed that neither Osfurth or Cydric seemed to be sharing her enthusiasm and she stilled herself.

"Yes well, I trust the matter of the warpstone will remain confidential," Osfurth huffed. The emphasis he placed on the word suggested an or else that Camilla found strangely authoritative for such a non threatening looking man. He came to his feet and produced a parchment.

"This is an authorization for you to be in the palace at the Graf's behest. As far as the public story goes his niece is fond of you and wants to be regaled with tales of adventures for a few more days before you depart. Please dont use it unless you have to. If you need to contact me, leave word with the guards that you have to discuss the ball with me, that should make an adequate ruse don't you think."

Camilla nodded her head in acceptance. Osfurth pushed himself to his feet.

"I will leave you to it then, I cannot be absent long." And with that the strange man was gone from the room. Camilla listened to his footsteps as they went down the stairs.

"Reiner," she began, noticing the mans somber expression.Thoughts of dresses slowly bleeding from her mind.

"What is warp stone exactly?"

[Assistant]
Cyrdic's incredulous face was comical when he noticed Camilla miles away when they were discussing what could shape the fate of Middenheim. He waited for the Chamberlain to be gone before he closed the door, and locked it. Her next question had him give a less than excited expression, and he sat Camilla down on the bed.

He tried to put it into words. He honestly knew very little himself, other than it was the last thing anyone not a servant of chaos ever wanted to be near. "It's..." he gestured with his callused hands. "The very raw stuff of chaos, made into a solid form." He explained, looking at the Tilean woman in the eyes. "I've seen it, once. A Norscan shaman had a staff with a rock of warpstone embedded atop it. It took good men and twisted them into mutants before my eyes. I'll never forget it."

Cyrdic seemed troubled just recalling it, but then he breathed out to calm himself. The normally ruddy, handsome face had seemed lined with experience for but a moment, but it was gone. He hardly let it show, but the young sergeant had been through much in his military service. "We'll search around the city. Maybe we can ask the city's layout from someone." In all honesty, Cyrdic was thinking of asking the maid. She seemed like she would be helpful, at least to him.

"I've never been to a ball before," he admitted. "I don't know how to dance, and I don't know how to, um, mingle."

[User]
Camilla's high spirits waned as Cydric described the danger that warpstone represented. If it concerned Cydric so much it must be a potent threat indeed. Looked out the window of their large room for a moment to give herself time to digest what she had been told, taping a finger gently to one of her red lips.

"Oh don't worry about the ball," she said, waving a hand dismissively. She was addressing it because it was a topic she was familiar with and didn't seem to involve any pleasant risk of death or dismemberment at the hands of deranged cultists. Tilea had less of an issue with the Dark Gods, the attraction of the Chaos wastes was far away there, and the landscape to domesticated to allow for the infestations of beastmen and mutants which plagued its unhappy northern neighbors. Even on the sunny plains of Tilea though the rampages of the creatures of Chaos were not unknown.

"We will get you something in a millitary cut, perhaps some armor, then you can carry your sword and scowl a good deal," she explained, mentally fitting Cydric for a feathered hat.

"When a soldier dosen't want to be bothered he builds a wall of sharpened stakes. A scowl does the same thing in a social situation," she confided. Standing up she crossed the floor and took up her sword belt hefting its weight for a moment before fastining it around her waist at a jaunty angle down from one hip.

"He must think it is someone from the court," she speculated as she observed herself in the mirror, adjusting the set of her belt. Maybe she should get one of those polished leather chest pieces. They weren't too unlike a corset when tightly cinched and would give her some protection without sacrificing speed or, more importantly, style. Looking back over her shoulder she though Cydric looked a little puzzled by the comment.

"Well why else come to us? We are relative new comers, we have no connections here, he must have secret policemen who could make inquiries."

Crossing to the pitcher of water on the small table in the center of the room she poured herself a goblet and drank it down. It was nice to be back in civilization, even if it was this rather grim fortress town.

"Either he doesn't trust them, or he dosen't trust someone in their chain of command." As she said it an unpleasant though crossed into her mind. Unless it was Osfurth himself of course, and he figured that two bumbling adventurers were the perfect excuse in place of a real investigation.

"Any ideas where we can start?"

[Assistant]
Cyrdic leaned back on his strong arms and watched his companion try to make even her common clothing stylish. Briefly, he wondered if he would ever get used to how beautiful she was. Though, all of the danger they'd been through, he'd never really had time to focus on it too much. "I have been wanting new armor, though I'd want it to be more functional than stylish. Maybe a tabard above it to make it...presentable?" He asked, almost not even knowing which word to use. By Sigmar, he'd never given thought to being presentable unless it was to impress a lady, and he'd not found one interested in him in awhile.

He winced, and felt his side. An old wound aching from the bath yesterday. Once his body had relaxed, he'd felt much better. But all of the running and fighting had made his muscles more sore than he cared to admit. He hopped up onto his feet behind her, strapping on his leather belt about his lean waist, his Ulrican sword sheathed along with it. He'd need to find out if the blade had a name. Perhaps the sorceress could tell him, if he ever had the misfortune of running into her again.

"I've no idea why he would contact us. Or I've many ideas, I should say. And none are an obvious right answer," As he finished his last sentence, he stretched and groaned audibly. He needed to be limber just in case there was trouble. "I say we try our luck on selling our treasures first. Once we're out and about, we'll see if there's any leads we can find. If not, I'm sure we can ask a local about the town, or find a map. I believe the Old section of the city is to the north."

He made it to the door, and placed his hand on the door knob. "Whatever we do, let's do it quickly. After the ball, I'm planning on us being much further south, if we can help it." he told her. "Let's begin at the marketplace."


[System]
Age: 21

Gender: Male

Race: Markhor (Goat) Faunus

Weapon: The Blunderbuster Full Package - Kiran's weapon of choice is a multifaceted and versatile weapon. It allows him to survive at mid to close range, obliterate at mid to close range, and devastate at mid to close range. Truly a weapon designed for any situation, at mid to close range.

Fundamentally the weapon consists of 3 different configurations. The first, and most common method of use, is a sword and gauntlet configuration. The sword, dubbed Sharaman, is a simple blade of dussack design. Essentially it is a long piece of silver metal with a slightly curved edge that wraps around at the bottom to form a hand guard of sorts. Part of the metal is covered in cloth to serve as a hilt.

The gauntlet on the other hand, named Mehri, is far more elegant in design. It is made up of many intricately detailed metal plates, almost scale like in appearance, the run up the length of his forearm stopping just short of his elbow. His fingers are covered in a claw like metal, allowing him to easily grip into rough surfaces. The metal is mostly silver in colour although the calligraphic inscriptions have a rust like colour to them.

The 2nd configuration involves Sharaman transforming into a flintlock blunderbuss. With a mostly rust like colour, and the metal appearing almost wood like in places, the blunderbuss appears akin to blunderbusses from the 18th century. However while it appears old the technology has been updated for modern day, allowing for Kiran to load it like a modern double barrelled shotgun. In terms of ammunition, it is loaded with many small dust infused lead balls, making it function best in close range. In addition Kiran is capable of modifying the dust rounds, most often employing the four basic colours of dust: fire, ice, wind and lightning. Mehri remains untransformed in this configuration.

The final configuration has both Mehri and Sharaman combine into a massive great sword known simply as the Blunderbuster Sword. All ideas of elegance and intricacy are thrown aside to produce a blade that is simply really, really big. Well over 2 meters in length, the sword towers over every other blade and student in the academy. Indeed, in all his years both at the academy and outside, Kiran has never seen a larger sword. It essentially amounts to one long dual edged blade with a two handed hilt attached. It is also capable of channeling dust rounds, allowing it to catch on fire for instance.

Specialty: Despite the size and heft of his massive sword, years of training and well tuned muscles have enabled Kiran to remain unperturbed by the size and bulk of his sword. A weapon that most people who have trouble lifting, yet alone wielding, fits deftly in Kiran's hand as he blitzes across the battlefield with it. As one can imagine, his weaponry and semblance allow for high damage output to any number of enemies at mid to close range.

In his different configurations Kiran achieves a few different roles, with configuration one acrobatics are the name of the game, and he uses his superior speed and agility to vault over and engage multiple enemies in combat, or serve in a more defensive role using his gauntlet to deflect attacks. In his second configuration, Kiran uses his blunderbuss to provide a little bit more range to his normal tactics, and take out multiple enemies with a single shot. Of course this does require him to have his enemies neatly clumped for his convenience.

It's his third configuration that speaks closest to his heart. While he may not be able to maintain the same level of acrobatics in this form as his others provide, Kiran does not hesitate to use his mighty blade to cut through the swaths of enemies that plague him and his team. He deals mighty blows to all that would stand in his way, or stands fast in the path of hordes of enemies. Indeed when his semblance is not active, his massive Aura reserves do grant him a fair degree of defense. Whether he's remaining fast or steadfast, Kiran diligently plays out his role as the Berserker and Tank in combat.

Of course, he's always stuck at mid to close range, and flying enemies are usually out his reach.

Usually.

Semblance: The Prince of Sand - Kiran's semblance enables him to enter a berserker state that not only enhances his physical traits, strength, speed, endurance, durability, etc, but also dulls him to all feelings of pain. To accomplish this state, Kiran draws his aura within him, which, while increasing his natural defenses to be stronger than normal skin, does leave him more prone to potential injury as he no longer possesses the standard aura defense.

However the gains in speed, endurance and strength, nearly triple of his standard, more than make up for this deficit. As this form relies on his aura it can only last for so long. However it does start to rapidly increase in power just as he hits the red zone. Damage sustained while in this form also knocks his aura lower, and ones fully depleted he is forced out and left exhausted.

One last trick of this form is the ability to infuse himself with dust rounds right as he enters the form. This can allow him to catch on fire, or for each of his attacks to contain an undercurrent of lightning. He can only utilize one dust property at a time, and is unable to switch while in this form. Typically, off a full aura bar, Kiran is able to stay in this form for only about 20 minutes. It should be noted however that Kiran can push himself further, however any damage he takes from that point on comes with the risk of severe, permanent injury.The longer he stays in the form, the more strain placed on his body that will cause severe injury.

In terms of appearance, Kiran's skin greatly darkens, becoming black as coal. However this is interspersed by glowing slivers of a rust colour. Forming intricate circles and swirls down the length of his body. If he infused his form with dust, then some of these lines are replaced with glowing dust of that colour.

Personality: Kiran has been raised to follow a certain set of virtues, a creed of sorts. It is by these virtues that he lives his life. The first is strength, not just physical strength, but the strength to remain steadfast in the face of oppression. The strength to firmly fight for what is right, and never back down to injustice. The strength to protect one's comrades and the strength to protect all those in need. Without strength, Kiran can not be of any use.

The next is loyalty, to remain loyal to one's friends, allies, comrades and virtue. Without loyalty, one is but a fickle leaf in the wind, blowing from one master to another. A lack of loyalty leaves one hollow inside. Yet it is not just an idea of remaining loyal to people, but rather the virtues that drew Kiran to those people in the first place, if need be he will fight till they remember what is right. His loyalty extends to ensure that his friends remain on a just path. This is closely tied with the third virtue of honour, and ensuring that he conducts himself in a manner befitting of a true warrior at all times.

The fourth virtue is humility. Kiran makes sure to always remember that he is but one piece of a much larger puzzle. That to grow in arrogance, is to forsake others and harm them in the process. As a result, he has a large degree of respect for all living things: Humans, Faunus, plants, animals and yes, even Grimm. However respect should not be confused with kindred connection or naivete, for Kiran is quite aware of the evil nature of Grimm. Instead his respect comes from an understanding that they are powerful beings worthy of caution. In a similar manner, Kiran holds the highest degree of respect for all those who have faced him in battle, regardless of whether they won or lost. In fact he makes a point to memorize the faces of all Humans and Faunus he has faced.

However despite these creeds, which are more of personal code then anything and not one to be enforced on others, Kiran is not as serious a person as one might suspect. He enjoys conversing with others and these creeds are merely for emphasis on internal self improvement. He snarks at dumb ideas, cracks a few bad jokes of his own, and is more than willing to dispense advice when asked. It is when in battle though, that he is at his most vivid. It's not uncommon to hear him shouting and urging his opponent to fight harder, in fact there have been many times when he has outright given advice to his opponents in hopes of bettering them. The thrill of battle is most definitely something Kiran lives for. Still, talking to him will reveal a young man of reasonable intelligence, decent charisma, and strong understanding of what it means to fight smart. Unless completely consumed by battle, Kiran's virtues keep him from being reckless.

Color: Rust (Hex Code #B7410E)

Emblem: A massive rust colored sword, blade down, fading into the sands.

Appearance: Kiran stands fairly tall, at 6'4'' and every ounce of him is well toned muscle. However this is not necessarily something that is immediately apparent, as his muscle isn't all that bulky. His skin is a light olive colour signifying the generations that lived in the hot deserts of Vacuo. He has dark brown hair that protrudes out of the long flowing turban he wears, underneath turban however are tiny goat horns, signifying his Faunus nature. Similarly he generates much of his speed and power from goat legs generally hidden under his long pants. In terms of his uniform he wears it prim and proper, however his actual combat gear is much more practical.

[User]
Cian Kuze -Crossroads of A Brewing Storm

"The answer button is flashing and I really don't think that we caused that to happen when opening the gate." Cian said as she looked around. Grimm was not smart enough to lay a trap this over the top where things would be this serious. "I honestly believe that someone is trying to contact us if we go by the flashes that can be interpreted as morse code. So what is the plan of action we can press the button that most people would say not to push. Or we can ignore the flashing that is probably morse code and potentially leave a survivor behind I am not going to allow something like that to happen though so what is your take on the events at hand?" Cian asked as she looked at the people gathered this was serious or for her it was there was a potential survivor alive so her honest opinion was to press the answer button to see if it was a mistake or someone is trying to contact them. Either way time was ticking by and that probably wasn't a good thing.

[Assistant]
Luke Schwarz -- Semantics

?
???

"I don't think the flashing's what we can interpret as Morse Code here." he responded, bemusement evident in his hushed tone. "Rather, if anything was, it'd have to be the tapping."

The flashing light was almost certainly a regular interval to catch the eye, anyway, and there was much less reason to suspect the flashing of an answer button, of all things, to be in Morse. Why waste the time when the people on the other end could just pick up? It wasn't a concept that made sense to him.

Then again, neither did half of the things he had now learned over the course of one week, but he digressed. Focusing purely on the topic at hand, he found such a situation to be extremely unlikely. However, the general gist of her message, those details aside, was one he agreed with: The button had to have been flashing because someone from the inside was making a cry for help, a cry that they as hunters, as good people, couldn't afford to turn a blind eye to.

"But, yeah. I think that means there are people trapped inside we need to save."

A little firmer this time.

---

Sterling Johnson -- Defending a Caravan (and teammates)

"Thanks, babe!" called the Atlesian bruiser as he hit the vehicle feet-first, Aura's natural protection dampening the shock and allowing him to whirl about-face, just in time to notice that, oh shit, two of his teammates were in a bad way!

Luckily, that's what he was here for.

Silvery wrist joint disconnecting, his hand hung in that familiar downward position as instinct guided his aim. Loaded with rounds of Fire Dust, the twenty-something looked to make an impression upon the Tutankhamen's back.

THOOOM!

And so, he delivered, barking an order suggestion at his other Faunus teammate over both his shoulder and the rushing wind, even as the massive incendiary round sailed downrange.

"ESTELLE, GRAB SARINA!"


[System]
Gender: Male

Age: 16

Appearance:

Background: Hal comes from a well-to-do family, his father a successful writer and his mother a lawyer. Naturally, Hal was exposed heavily to philosophy as a child, but tries to escape his parents' shadow. Instead of making well-educated decisions, Hal likes to plunge headlong into the unknown, constantly testing his limits. He knows where he stands with his parents, and tries not to overstep them too much, but is nevertheless very impulsive and intelligent.

Relations: TBD

Power:

[User]
Oblivious to the drama ensuing around him, Hal triumphantly finished his test. He slid it on Om's desk, gave him a smile, and bolted out the door without saying a word. He didn't want to draw too much attention, he'd been extremely late after all.

Hal slid into the hallway, noticing other students who'd finished their test waiting out there. He recognized most of them; Richard, Mina, Sophie. Good, he thought. At least I won't have to head down alone. Not knowing any of them well enough to call them friends, Hal certainly appreciated them now, he hated showing up to lunch alone. He decided to wait in the hallway until the rest of them went down, and he'd follow, blended in the crowd.

[Assistant]
Micky felt a little bit of relief when Alden didn't mind him joining, but he wasn't all that fond of asking 'Icy'. But, micky had to do what he had to do, even if that meant succumbing to some criticism or rejection. Micky couldn't hesitate more than the few seconds he already had so he just decided to ask. Micky took in a silent yet prolonged breath, and began to speak.

"You thin--" Micky began, but almost immediately being cut off by the end of the class.

Micky looked at Mina as she walked away, obviously heading to her next class. Micky wasn't going to chase down the Ice queen just to join a History group, the possible outcomes of which were most definitely not worth it. Micky let out his breath and watched as the two students walked out of the room.

"I guess that's that." Micky said silently to himself. All of the students were already out of the classroom by now, so Micky then left too. Micky walked down the hall opposite the direction in which the majority of the class went, instead Micky headed towards the gymnasium. Earlier in the year, when students were picking their electives, Micky had decided to be more healthy and loose some weight in the process. Back then, he thought it was the perfect choice, Physical Education and Health. Looking back, he realized that the decision he made wasn't as thought out has he'd previously assumed. Phys. Ed wasn't an easy class for someone of Micky's weight, regardless though, Micky promised himself he'd never fall into a positions where someone would make fun of his weight, even if that meant pushing his body to the limits for months on end.

Micky showed up to Gym in his usual gym cloths. Coloured mesh shorts, with a grey shirt that had the School's logo and name in a darker color. Luckily it was a Thursday, so Micky didn't really have to worry about exercising to much. Usually towards the end of the week (Thursday and Friday), the teacher will play a game with the class that usually has more to do with thinking and planning, rather than physical feats.

Micky heard the bell and realized the class was over. Usually Micky waits for the bell to ring but when you're actually having fun, time flies.

"Take 6 laps and then you're good to go!" The teacher yelled through the gym.

Micky let out a sigh followed by a whispered, "...shit." Drenched in sweat, Micky 'hit the showers' and put on his regular clothes.

"First half down, one more to go..." Micky said to himself as he made his way through the halls back to his locker.

[User]
Thursday March 21st, 2016

Mina nearly died of a heart attack when Alden and The Slow Test-Taker backed her up. She was grateful, but she couldn't show it, of course.

After she decided that the silence was affecting her doodling, she stepped out of the classroom to lean against the wall and draw. Mina only noticed The Signing Girl when she pulled up her phone and make it speak in that annoying voice. Princess... is she trying to tell me I'm Elsa from Frozen? She sighed. Ugh, princess. Why do girls like them anyway?

"Not drawing, doodling," she said, without looking up. When she finished drawing the last squiggle she held it up again. It still wasn't very good, but she was fine with it. She put back the notebook in her bag and took a drink out of her water bottle. She hated water fountains because she always had to wait.

The Signing Girl was still standing next to her. What does she want? Mina looked around and noticed The Signing Boy reading. She turned back around and started to walk towards the cafeteria.

On the way there, she bumped into The Boy With the Book when he came out of the washroom.

"Sorry," She mumbled. Why am I apologizing? This isn't like me...

She noticed blood on his hand. "Oh! Are you okay?" Crap. I just said that out loud.

[Assistant]
Thursday March 21st, 2016

Largent glowered at nothing. The halls were empty and only the echoes of his footsteps gave any indication that there was life in the school. The old building was so sturdily built that even with classrooms filled with students, the sound was contained to within the rooms. Nothing was to be heard in the hall. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his pack of cigarettes, realizing at a glance that he was nearly out.

He sighed, plucked one of the last smokes from the pack and tucked it between his lips, making his way back to the bleachers. He was skipping third period and waiting for lunch. he only had P.E. next and he really couldn't give a flying rats ass about that stupid class. He sparked up his lighter as he found a quiet spot to sit beneath the bleachers and leaned back against the metal support beams that held up the entire structure. With smoke swirling around him and birds chirping in his ears he sat, and waited.

__________

Richard groaned when Sophia started messing with Mina. Her reputation preceded her and he really didn't think it was a good idea for overly chatty Sophia to mess with the schools resident Ice Queen. The hall was rapidly filling with students, a few he knew, and others he didn't. Alden came back from the bathroom, hand still bloodied and he winced sympathetically but stood, shoved his book back in his backpack, and walked up to Sophia.

He shoved his arms through the straps of his bag so that it hung on his chest, turned and placed his back to Sophias, then reached back, hooked his arms through hers so they were pressed back to back, and leaned forward. The end result was that her feet came up off the ground and she was lying on his back like a turtle on its shell.

"Come on, Soph," he said. "Let's leave the nice girl alone and go to class. Soon as we get through this next class we'll go find you some grub, huh? I think your blood sugar is getting low." He was sure they made quite the comical spectacle as he started carrying her down the hall toward their next class, but he didn't much care.

Third period was quick and easy, looked like most of them still had the same class together. How had he not noticed all these people that he had several classes with every damn day? In the end there was a refreshing lack of further incidents and before he realized they were making their way through the halls and toward the cafeteria. He could already smell the mystery meat that was the staple of high school lunch the world over burning in the pots. Seriously, prison food was probably better than the slop they got, but he wasn't going to complain... much.

He was saying something to Sophia, what, he would never really remember, when the incident that would lead to the complete destruction of the normal, quiet life that he knew, began. He pushed open the door, and with his head turned to talk to Sophia, plowed headlong into another body, sending both of them stumbling to the floor.

"Ow," Richard whined and sat up, gingerly rubbing a small bump on the back of his head. "What the hell happened?" He looked up and froze, eyes opening wide as he took in the site of Largent sprawled on the floor in front of him. Next to the older bully lay an empty lunch tray. Empty because the contents of said tray had ended up dumped all over Largent. It looked like spaghetti with 'meat balls', orange jello, and an entire can of coke.

"I'm dead."

[User]
At the loud crashed caused by Richard slamming into Largent, Hal whipped his head around towards the conflict. He set down his food tray, a smirk on his face as he walked toward it.

So, the big guy's probably about to snap, Hal thought. About time. Hal had never liked Largent, a dumb bully who used brute force to pound through life, in Hal's eye. Largent lacked grace, and cunning. These were things that Hal appreciated, and tried to embellish in his image, which usually resulted in bitter failure. Hal saw, however, a new opportunity. That kid, Richard, was in many of Hal's classes. He was friends with that quiet Sophie girl. Two for the price of one.

Hal moved near the sideline of the crash, lurking in the growing crowd. He'd wait for Largent to make a move, and then strike from behind. Largent wouldn't know what hit him. Partially because, if everything went according to plan, Largent would be unconscious. The other part originated from the fact that Hal wasn't sure Largent knew what backup was.

Hal picked up an empty tray from a pile of dirty ones nearby. It shouldn't be too much longer now.

[Assistant]
Before Blake knew it, the period had passed. He managed to finish with time to spare, but he couldn't deny that was definitely the longest it took for him to finish a test. If he had to actually start studying to get through this class… The thought made him shudder as he turned it in to Om. He wiped the metaphorical sweat off his brow as he packed his stuff into his backpack, slipped it over his shoulder, and went into the hall. Class was essentially over by then, so he just made his way over to his third period class ahead of time to reunite with his brother. Neither twin looked any better, really, but it was nothing they weren't used to.

Once that period passed the two were bound for the cafeteria, finding something to talk about by contemplating how a Gundam Justice League AU might go.

Nerds.

Unlike most of the people in the school, the two usually prepared a lunch ahead of time so they wouldn't have to deal with the dangers of the mystery meat. They've been packing their own meals since middle school, really, so avoiding it wasn't very hard for them at all. Sure it got kinda stale since the only real mixup to it is the kind of snack they bring to complement their sandwich, but it had to be better than school lunch. Their commute to the cafeteria was stopped up by the commotion at the door. The two peered up over the crowd of growing shoulders, managing to make out that one of the people there seemed to be… Largent!

"Oh, that one dick?" Al asked.

"Hey, yeah, that guy!" Blake responded, "…Oh man, the other guy's probably dead if that's actually him!"

Al was just about to ask him if he was going to do something stupid, but Blake was already in motion to go help Richard up. Plan Stupid full steam ahead!

[User]
Thursday March 21st, 2016
@TychosFullmeta @pockets @Great Sogeking @Thundercrash

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---

While the bleeding seemed to lessen, it didn't stop. With a sigh he decided to just get to the nurse's office and grab some bandages. He dried off his hand and placed the strap on his bag on his shoulders. Alden stepped out of the bathroom, slightly unfocused because of the wound on his arm and bumped into a person. He was actually at fault this time,

"Sorry" the figure said, oddly enough,

"No no, it was actually my fault, sincerest apologies."

"Oh! Are you okay?" the figure, who he now noticed was Mina asked in a bit of a worried tone, whilst she stared at the lightly bleeding hand

Alden chuckled a little at her concern, "I'm fine, just a little, annoying mishap during history." he said lightly, no hints of concern in his voice, "I'm headed towards the nurse's room, if you're actually that worried you can accompany me." Alden continued, looking back and giving her a smirk, he was now joking with her and teasing her. Alden didn't know if she would actually come, but he started walking away, towards the nurse's room.

---

He had gotten his wound sterilized left hand wrapped in gauze, with the nurse pulling out a wooden splinter from his wound. She also noted that there may be a scar, which Alden would be very displeased at, but it couldn't be helped.

Alden found himself in the cafeteria, he wasn't planning on eating whatever slop they managed to put together because his mother already packed him lunch. Before he could sit down and eat his prepared lunch there was a huge crashing noise. Apparently two boys collided with one another, Richard and Largent, with Richard being the one at fault. This was going to be messy, Largent is known as a bully of sorts, and those weren't rumors, Alden had seen plenty of Largent being, with lack of better word, a douche.

A crowd now gathered around the scene, of course who wouldn't want to see a scene of Largent losing it and probably beating up Richard. One of the most notable things he saw was one of the students, Hal, picking up a dirty tray nearby, inching very close to Largent, almost instantaneously he got the gist of what Hal wanted to do. Alden got up, and walked over, and getting being him Alden grabbed his arm with his left, bandaged hand.

"You, you're not planning on doing anything stupid are you?" Alden said his eyes piercing through Hal, his eyes were saying that it was stupid a plan to actually assault someone, especially with these much witnesses.

[Assistant]
Hal was off-put, even slightly shocked, as Alden's bandages brushed against him. Hal pried his arm away from Alden, brushing it off.

"It's only stupid if it doesn't work. Plus, Largent's a tank. It's about time someone put him in his place, and I know you wouldn't be keen on scraping guts off the floor." Hal smirked at Alden's glare. "Just because you wouldn't wanna get dirty doesn't mean I'm not going to. No one likes Largent, people will be on my side. Right?"

This last line was said with some lack of confidence, but Hal shook his head, sticking to his plan. At the very least, Hal thought, Richard will owe me for taking his beating for him. If everything goes perfectly, I'll be a hero. If it fails.... well, I'll be nice enough.


[System]
Niah Bautista

Character Quote: Do you so swear?

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Character Summary
Aliases: Oath Keeper
Age: 14
Birthday: Oct. 3, 2003
Ethnicity: Filipino
Birth Place: Manila, Philippines
Godly Parent: Styx
Legacy: Styx
Cohort: 2nd Cohort
How Many Years At Camp Jupiter: 2
Gender: Female
Rank: Centrion
Occupation At Camp: Oath Binder (If someone needs to swear an Oath they usually do it in front of Niah)
Languages: English, Tagalog, Latin

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Appearance
Height: 5'2"
Weight: 130lbs
Body Type: Petit
Eye Color: Golden brown
Hair Color: Brown
Skin Tone: Soft brown, naturally tanned
Tattoos/Scars/Piercings: Ears pierced, SPQR with two lines, Cohort symbol
Personal Style: Niah is sensitive to a lot of materials so she is picky with what she wears. She however does like the traditional Roman clothing and wears it a bit more often than most. If she is not wearing traditional clothing she wears jeans and t-shirts, or sundresses. She leans toward blue colors.

She wears a light amount of make-up most days and has her hair down or back in a braid. She is growing her hair longer and hasn't cut it since she joined Camp Jupiter.

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Psychology
Energetic * Picky * Friendly * Competitive * Observant * Pedantic

Sexuality: Demisexual (though she can appreciate the aesthetics of someone she doesn't know)
Relationship Status: Single
Personality: Niah is fast to form opinions about people, and doesn't usually change that opinion. It doesn't help that she can tell if someone has ever broken an Oath, no matter how minor. It is amazing how disappointed you can be when you realize how often people fail to keep them. She has, because of that, made it a point to not make Oaths she can't keep.
Fatal Flaw: Personal loyalty
Habits: Chewing her lip
Hobbies: Reading, planning practice battles
Fears:
* Being forced to break an Oath, or being unable to keep it
* Riding a motorcycle (she saw a terrible accident once as a child and it is seared into her brain)
* Her sister being found dead...or worse

Likes:
* Her cohort
* War games
* Learning new things (Niah wants to attend an actual college, not the one at Camp)
* Traveling
* Reading
* Horse back riding

Dislikes:
* Oathbreakers (She loathes them)
* Bad/bitter food
* Itchy clothing
* Birds (stupid nest outside her childhood bedroom window woke her up too early)
* Apples
* Bad movie remakes of good movies
* Fauns

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Skills
Demigod Abilities:
* Oaths (Niah inherently knows if someone has made an oath and if they've ever broken one)
* Odikinesis

General Skills:
* First aid
* Law
* Botony
* Horseback riding
* Conflict management
* Roman Mythology

Combat Skills:
* Short sword
* Siege engine
* Military tactics
* Use of Odikinesis to distract or demoralize enemies

Magic Item:
* Vial with a bit of River Styx in it (given to her the one time she met her mother)
* Imperial gold short sword, sits invisibly on her back

What Do They Carry On Them:
* Clothing - A light summer dress, and sandals.
* Purse/Wallet - about $30 in USD, and 20 Denarius coins
* Backpack
* Current reading book
* A notebook (with some sketches and notes)
* A pen
* spare hair tie
* Advil
* Chapstick
* A bottle of nectar
*
*

Possessions In Bunk:
* Spare clothes
* A secondary, non-magical weapon
* A photo of her family (Sister, brother, father, and stepmom)
* A trophy from a fight that she had on her way to camp
* An extra blanket
* A reading flashlight
* Her next few books that she plans to read
* Lotion
*
*
*

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History

Biography Niah was born in the Philipines. Her father already had a daughter, Dalisay. He never spoke about her mother, or Niah's. Niah knew something was odd about herself though. She could tell when someone had made an Oath, and more importantly when they had broken that oath. Her first memory was realizing someone her father trusted had broken an oath.

Niah argued with her father saying the man was untrustworthy. Imagine a two-year-old telling you someone you trusted was untrustworthy. Her father didn't take it well and he put Niah into a time out. While she was in the time out her sister tried to cheer her up by showing Niah her own magic. Neither realized how different they really were from the rest of the world because they had each other. A few months after the fight the man betrayed their father and he apologized to Niah. The two became close after that.

Their father married, and they had a son. Niah liked her step-mother because she had never broken an Oath. Things were normal in their home that was until Dalisay disappeared one day when Niah was 12. Her father at that point explained that Niah was the daughter of a goddess and it was time for her to attend a special school in America. He gave her a letter from Niah's mother, the goddess of Oaths. With that making sense, Niah went to America. Her father had given her little direction, but it was through a series of incidences that Niah ended up at the Wolf House. Lupa put her through the usual testing and sent her to Camp Jupiter.

How Long Have They Been At Camp Jupiter: Niah had a hard time moving up from Probatio, while she had good lineage she was not the best at fighting and ended up earning her rank as Legionnaire by performing a great deed about three months before her first year was up. She was good at tactics and made a small name for herself in the games with that skill. She quickly became known as the Oath Keeper and was usually told to be present when someone was about to leave for a mission. Niah started witnessing all Oaths, it helped people remember how important the oaths were putting a face to it. With the new title of Oath Binder, she was also promoted to Centurion, it helped keep the lines of who was in charge better. Niah wasn't particularly excited about the change and for the most part deferres to her counterpart in the 2nd cohort.

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Additional Information

Theme Song: Promises I can't Keep - Mike Shinoda

Extra Information: See Andy's cs
I agree to follow the rules for this RP and understand that if I do not follow the rules, the GM or Co-GM may kick me out of this roleplay.

[User]
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Madalyne Crane

Location: Camp Jupiter, New Rome, the Auguries
Skills: N/A

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Alexandra shrugged slightly, she didn't recognize their faces, Fauns always came and went to camp all of the time and in her opinion they were pretty much useless other than begging food and taking things that aren't theirs. She was glad that they weren't allowed to work in the Legion really either. "Unless you guys want to pay me to help you search and question fauns all day. But yeah I can go to the Senate and have an assembly later in the day." Alexandra was rudely woken up by her half sister Nancy after all.

Madalyne always did feel pretty bad for the Fauns around camp however and would always help them out whenever they did ask for something she'd give them some money or food to eat. She looked at Niah and Nancy to see what the two of them wanted to do, question some Fauns until they assembly could start or do something else while they waited. Madalyne didn't really care to much about having to wait either really at least she wasn't a Praetor or anything like that yet that job wouldn't be to fun for her in her opinion anyway.

[Assistant]
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☀ Nancy Parker ☀

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Location: New Rome - the Auguries
Skills: N/A

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 "Pff, we're not paying you, sis," Nancy told Alexandra confidently. "One, don't have the money for that. Two, if we had the money for that, why in Pluto's name would we want to give it to you? What would you even use it for - to buy out a Build-a-Bear workshop?" she scoffed. She had seen one when she was being brought to Camp Jupiter from the Lotus Hotel and Casino. It had been sickeningly adorable - the sort of thing she would have adored having in her childhood. Of course, Nancy didn't have a good concrete reason to dislike Alexandra so much. Maybe she could blame it on the fact that in Alexandra, she saw a fate she never wanted - becoming an Augury, reduced to just a mouthpiece for prophecies. Or maybe it was the fact that Alexandra just reeked of casinos. Maybe Nancy just disliked blondes.

 "I'm not sure it's worth questioning the fauns," Nancy then admitted. "We know where this gem is - Mount Rushmore, in the eye of good old George. We know it's being guarded by a dragon. The fauns seem... irrelevant, to me? I think we just gotta motor, get the gem, and bring it back here." She didn't have a hatred for fauns or anything, she didn't like them but she didn't dislike them either. They were just sorta there, other beings that lived in Camp Jupiter and depended on them for (stolen) food. They might as well have been shrubbery.

[User]
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Niah Bautista

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Location: The Auguries
Skills: N/A

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They would have extra time between now and when the Senate meeting would start. They were always a little slow. She would rather get going. Niah shifted on her feet a bit considering her options. She winced a bit when Nancy was mean to Alexandra, but she did agree with Nancy. They didn't have the cash to pay Alexandra to help them question fauns for like two hours.

"I partially agree with you Nancy, about the fauns, but they might be able to give us some details about the dragon. If they do then we might have an idea of what we are dealing with. Personally I've never met a dragon. I'd like a step up against it, they might be able to help with that." She turned back to Alexandra, "Thank you though. When will we be able to meet with the Senate?"

[Assistant]
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Madalyne Crane

Location: Camp Jupiter, New Rome, the Auguries -> Senate Building
Skills: N/A

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Alexandra looked at Niah and gave a slight shrug. "Maybe an hour or two, someone will send for you guys." Alexandra said as she started to gather her things and started to head out, and set up the meeting while their current session was on their afternoon break. Madalyne looked at Nancy, and Niah and gave a slight shrug. "I guess we can go and quest some Fauns see if they know the one who stole the gem." Madalyne said as she made her way out of the Auguries.

A little bit over two hours later, Madalyne couldn't really find any kind of information from any of the Fauns that were in or around camp, until one of the messengers came over to the three of them. "The senate is ready to meet you guys." Before handing the three of them the letter before heading off. Madalyne looked down at it, and then the two of them, she had only been in there a few times once she had gotten her Centurion rank, as well as her initial placement within the legion as well. Madalyne stood in the room seeing all of the senators within the room talking amongst each other.

[User]
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☀ Nancy Parker ☀

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Location: New Rome - the Senate Building
Skills: N/A

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 Nancy always felt that the Senate was dreadfully boring. Ten demigods served on it, deciding pretty much everything for the legion. She could hardly imagine sitting on the stone benches for hours at a time, debating the finer aspects of quests and the possibility of war. She liked to keep moving if at all possible. The only time she ever slowed down was to get her coffee from New Rome - and even then, she could hardly resist gulping it all down at once like a shot. She peered at the letter, squinting her eyes as she tried to make her dyslexic brain focus on it. It was in English, but she got the gist of it pretty quick. They were summoned by the Senate.

 She made her way to the Senate House with the other two, taking a moment to look around. Of the two praetors, one of them was from Nancy's cohort - Maggie Ortega, daughter of Venus. The other, Jasper Moon, son of Bacchus, was from the fourth cohort. It wasn't a terrible cohort to be from, but it definitely lacked the shiny reputation of the first and second. Yet even though she was a centurion, Nancy didn't know too much about both of them beyond just that. She had no idea if they would get pedantic about things, if they would try to give this quest to someone else, or if they would be reasonable and give them the green light to go. "So do we sit anywhere?" Nancy asked, standing and feeling a bit awkward.

[Assistant]
Location: The Senate Building
Skills: N/A

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Niah was frustrated with the lack of information. She hated it. They were getting to the point where Niah was about to snap when the runner came up with the letter for them. She was thankful for it. After several deep breaths, she went with the two of them to the Senate. She had been here often enough. Usually for her Oath Binding. This was more awkward though. She had never been here for the start of the quest.

"We have a prophecy about the missing gem. I'm supposed to go to Mount Rushmore, the gem is in the eye of George Washington." That was a sentence she had never expected to say. "I've chosen Nancy Parker and Madalyne Crane to go with me." She didn't know what all she was supposed to say, but that felt concise and to the point. Hopefully, it also sounded assertive. Her insides were twisting with fear and she could feel her hands were sweating. She wanted to wipe them on her pants.


[System]
"If you obey all the rules, you miss all the fun."
– Katharine Hepburn

Rae is a short, skinny teenager who walks too tall and fears too little. With long, wavy, chestnut hair, deep brown eyes, and a smattering of freckles, it's easy to be pulled in by her charm. However, underneath all that lie hard lines of ropey muscle. She has no tattoos or piercings to speak of, but both her legs, starting from her upper thighs, are made up completely of wires and shiny metal paneling. Rae was born without her legs developed. Because she was born to a family of Inquisitors, Rae had the best biotech available to her. Her legs are sleek and lightweight, a dusty gold color in an attempt to match her skin. She leans more towards expensive, high-fashion clothing and overpriced makeup, though she is not above occasionally dressing for comfort.

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Basic Information
N I C K N A M E
Rae – used by everyone. Don't call her Victoria. Ever.
Trooper – used by her parents in rare moments of affection
B I R T H D A T E
October 3rd
G E N D E R
Female
A G E
16
S E X U A L I T Y
Pansexual

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Imprisonment
C R I M E
Convicted for theft, systems tampering, homosexuality, illegal biotech upgrades, and drug usage
Y E A R S S P E N T
<1
P R I S O N E L E C T I V E
Janitorial Duties
C E L L M A T E
None. Up until recently she lived with a quiet girl named Julianne. She turned 18 two weeks ago.

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Education & Skills
O C C U P A T I O N
The Katona family is famous for producing generation after generation of high-ranking Inquisitors. Rae was next in line.
C L A S S E S
* Computer Science
* Anatomy
* Advanced Robotics
* History
* Painting
* Remedial English

S K I L L S
* Mechanical/electrical engineering
* Weapons training
* Hand-to-hand combat
* Observation
* Basic first aid

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Mannerisms
L I K E S
* Back talking
* Smack talking
* Sweet talking
* General flippancy
* Fashion
* Poppy music
* Socializing

D I S L I K E S
* Being bossed around
* Condescension
* Asking for help
* Animals
* People who can't take a hint
* Country music
* Her family

H A B I T S
* Humming
* Eye rolling
* Doodling
* Thinking out loud

H O B B I E S
* Painting
* Yoga
* Being spiteful

F E A R S
* Helplessness
* Inadequacy
* Bugs

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Delving Deeper
P E R S O N A L I T Y
To call Rae 'willful' would be an understatement. Stubborn as an ox would be more accurate. Hard headed. Clever and charming to be sure, but the moment you think you can tell Rae Katona what to do is the moment you realize you'd have better luck trying to set fire to the ocean. More spiteful than rational, Rae will often do things completely ignoring any consequences.

Though her childhood was far from blissful, she's grown up with more opportunities and resources than anyone should have any right to – and she knows it. She carries herself with all the swagger and confidence (some might say arrogance) of someone who's only ever had it good. Underneath the teenaged attitude and saccharine charm though is a soldier in the making. Rae is sharper than she'd have you think, and surprisingly disciplined when she wants to be. Not that you'd ever realize, with how she seems to court trouble. In spite of (or more likely because of) the strict discipline instilled in her, she takes any opportunity she can to break the rules with reckless abandon, her disregard for authority clear in every move she makes.

Though impulsive, Rae's a perfectionist and can't help but hold herself to implausibly high standards. She expects too much from herself, but hides her insecurities well.
H I S T O R Y
Victoria Rae Katona was born the second child to Henry and Sabine Katona, a well known Inquisitor family. Their other child, Rae's older brother Jensen, was not an Inquisitor. No, instead of carrying on the proud family legacy, Jensen had gone off to be an entertainer of all things. It was quite the embarrassment. Henry and Sabine promptly cut him off and focused all their attention on their younger child – much to Rae's misfortune.

Her childhood was, in a word, regimented. In another word, stifling. In several words, a massive pain in Rae's ass. She had to always be at attention, practice with firearms, hand-to-hand combat, painting was a 'waste of time,' socializing was a distraction… Rae felt smothered. And bitter.

And so, like any teenager, she acted out. She started to steal things. She messed around with the systems. She made unauthorized modifications to her biotech. Never anything too severe, but enough for her to feel in control, even a little bit. Inevitably, she was caught stealing one day. The Inquisitor was an old friend of her father's, and willing to let the offense slide, much to her parents' relief. It just wouldn't do if they were disgraced by not one, but two unfortunate children. Having a thespian in the family was bad enough. A criminal would be the final nail in the coffin holding their family's pride.

Rae then proceeded to confess to a slew of crimes – only a few of which she was actually guilty of.

To her satisfaction – and her parents' collective horror – such a confession was too much for the Inquisitor to ignore, and Rae was promptly thrown in jail. Her parents were mortified. Then, when she finally let the reality of her situation sink in, so was Rae. She'd just confessed to a multitude of crimes. When her trial date arrived, there would be no way she'd be allowed to live. And so, Rae's own pride and bitterness had been her death sentence. At least, until J came along.
T H E M E S O N G
Drama Queen – Green Day

daddy's little bundle of joy
out of a magazine
everyone's drama queen
is old enough to bleed now

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E X T R A I N F O
Rae was the first of the inmates to set foot on the new world.

[User]
Delores "Dee-Dee" DeMarco

"Don't think I won't cut you just because you're cute."
– Dee-Dee; shortly after her arrest.

Dee-Dee and her band of murderers had made it some distance from the rest of the survivors. It would be much easier to look after a small group like the one she had now and supplies would last longer. To hell with the others, they could rot in that wreck of a ship for all she cared. Lucy, who was taking point, stopped the group for a moment, just as the sound of some large animal boomed across the landscape. "Let's keep moving. Better them than us." The whole group started to run through the endless forest of trees, confident that they would be relatively safe so long as they stayed mobile.

A few hundred meters non-stop and suddenly Lucy fell down a steep decline into a strange hole. Dee-Dee stopped the rest of the group just short of following her down. Looking down to where Lucy had fallen Dee-Dee could see that she was alright if a little shocked.
Virgil: "You're supposed to be the lookout, so maybe try to fuckin' look out?"
Lucy: "Bite me, kiss-ass."
Virgil: "You-"
Dee-Dee: "Cut the shit, we keep moving for now."
Before Dee-Dee had time to add anything else what had first appeared to be a bunch of oddly shaped rocks emerged to reveal that it was actually an enormous creature. It was easily the size of a horse from earth but it stood using only it's rear legs. It turned it's head toward Lucy and sniffed her a few times. No one moved although the others had raised their weapons just in case. Lucy reached toward the lumbering beast trying to touch it's nose and instead was greeated by a long tounge that smacked her in the face. That seemed to satisfy it's curiosity as the beast went to lay down again, effectively ignoring them.

Lucy spent the next few minutes wiping her face of alien drool but this encounter went extremely well. Dee-Dee noted that these creatures seemed docile so they could probably be domesticated somehow. Still they had to find a good place to camp that was far enough north to give them a head start from the larger group of survivors. It was best for them if they got a hold of whatever was waiting for them up north before everyone else. Assuming whatever was waiting for them was enough to satisfy all the survivors, she could only imagine how much that would mean for just her group of six. There were a lot of assumptions going around but really she had nothing else to go on and the best way to stay alive was to be a step ahead of everyone else.

[Assistant]
Velvet heard the birds before she saw them and shortly after them the sound of a large creature that set off the primitive portion of her brain that controlled her fight or flight mode urging flight. She chose then to allow instinct to control a portion of her mind an refusing to abandon logic.

*Panic is the weapon of failure* she said in her thoughts as she tucked the pipe into the webbing on the back of her pack. Then she unfolded the crash axe twisting it in her grip to use the spike as her attack choice in deployment.

Once a armed by the formidable tool she headed upstream avoiding the potential predators that took Ian knowing it held the potential of a shallow crossing closer to it's headwaters an granting her a safer fording opportunity. Her movements were more in the open as she made her way silently north-northwest.


[System]
Female
Age 24
Appearance
5'6"
Lean flexible athletic build
Light skin (Japanese)
Appears to have shoulder length jet black slightly spikey hair from the front. However her hair splits into parts, taking the longer half and tying it together at the neck into a downwards facing ponytail that reaches her middle back.
Medium sized ahoge, more of angular/rigid spike shape, changes based on their mood/emotions. And electrical charge in battle.
Dark drab blueish-gray/steel left eye.
Yellow right eye with a slit shaped pupil.
Eyebrow over her left eye has a slit break in it towards the outer middle.
Irezumi tattoos:
Right arm- Nagasode style sleeve tattoo extending down to her wrist. Nara black wind bars for a background, with a green snake with a red belly coiling down her arm with it's head ending at her outer wrist.
Left arm- Shichibu style sleeve tattoo extending down to her middle forearm. Nara black wind bars for a background, with a blue snake with a yellow belly coiling up her arm with it's head resting on the front of her upper shoulder. Kanji for Mamushi 蝮 (pit viper) tattooed in black on the inner blank space of her forearm.
Back- Her entire back is covered in large nara black ink clouds for a background. And a large tattoo of the giant 8 headed and tailed snake Yamata no Orochi, various flowers, and lightning bolts in the foreground.
Slightly elongated fang canine teeth on the top and bottom as compared to normal people. Teeth are overall sharper.
Ear piercings- Left: Two slim steel rings on their lobe. Helix cuff.
Right: Circular silver stud on their lobe. Smaller steel cuff at the middle of the outer ear/lower helix.
Black painted nails.

Customized slightly oversized black leather asymmetrical moto jacket. Worn unzipped with belt hanging loose.
Steel curb chain necklace that extends down to her chest. Medium sized silver upside down cross pendant.
Zip-up black hoodie. Worn under her jacket with the hood laid over the jackets collar. Worn unzipped often with the sleeves pulled up to her elbows.
Vintage oversized heavy metal band T-shirts, some with the sleeves cut off. Worn over fishnet shirt. (Metallica, Slayer, Iron Maiden, Led Zeppelin, Megadeth)
Long sleeve black fishnet shirt. Sleeve extends into a fishnet fingerless gloves on the left but is cut off at the wrist on the right.
Silver signet ring on right middle finger with an upside down cross engraved in it.
Mokume-gane Ouroboros shaped ring with pink jeweled eyes on left index finger.
Steel cuban link chain bracelet on right wrist.
Steel studded black leather belt.
Steel chain hanging down at her right side. One end attached to a belt loop, the other to a pocket watch manadial.
Worn/faded slim dark indigo Japanese selvage denim jeans. (Black or stonewash alt. colors)
Black with white accents Onitsuka Tiger Mexico 66 running shoes.
Black calf length open toe and heel socks.

Secondary hairstyle reference (Somewhere in between the two)

Close type of ponytail style reference

Raiya specializes in destructive magic. She is a master of electrical spells, and ruinous spells. She has a great foundation in most all Catholic magics as well as some Japanese Zen Buddhist/Shinto magic. As with her fascination of Japan, she also has a great fascination with snakes and has developed snake themed fighting style and magic. Every so often she sheds her skin, this makes her immune to aging. With her magic powers, she also has the ability to control certain light metals.

Raiya's parents, Japanese immigrants, owned a successful Japanese cuisine restaurant chain in New York City. Both parents died in a burglary gone wrong leaving Raiya orphaned in infancy. With a large mana constitution, Raiya was immediately adopted by the Catholic cathedral and put into mage training. Growing up in the New York Cathedral, she always shadowed Felix and thought of him as her older brother. Raiya was always proficient in magic, and her studies reflected that. Raiya achieved the rank Grand-Mage at the age of seventeen. At the age of twenty she was sent with two other grand-magi to investigate the sudden disappearance of a remote village in Italy. The village was razed, not so much as a 2x4 left standing upright. Investigating the trace of mana waves left by the spell she made her way to a nearby mountain where she found on a cliff-side the definite point of origin of the spell. Looking around the point of origin she found footprints. The foot prints looked exactly like the sole tread of a typical Catholic Magi officer. The level of destruction and the fact that the mana waves left by the spell accounted for only one spell, coupled with the footprint meant the evidence pointed toward an Arch-mage or higher to be the cause of the destruction. Once she returned to the Vatican, she provided the evidence in a council meeting. The council thanked her for the evidence provided but stated that they would be conducting the investigation from then on. Even though the council told her to no longer investigate this issue, Raiya continued the investigation on her own. Looking into the records of those who were gone the night of the destruction of the remote village, she narrowed it down to two, Arch-mage Thadeus and Arch-mage Felix. After obtaining this information, Raiya investigated both Thadues and Felix's living quarters. She discovered that Felix had never even worn his uniform boots, as he wore his own more comfortable combat boots. Thadeus, on the other hand, did not have any other pairs of footwear besides the ones on his feet, which were the uniform boots. Learning of this information but knowing the Vatican council would never listen to her, she approached Felix whom she knew was innocent. She told Felix all of the information she had obtained, but Felix brushed her aside saying that the Vatican was conducting their own investigation and to go against their demands to keep the investigation within their selected team would mean excommunication, even if the information was correct. Felix told her that he would not tell anyone about her own investigation, but pleaded with her to keep quiet about the issue until the Vatican completed their investigation. Raiya couldn't believe what she was hearing, that her cold hard evidence was being brushed aside because of protocol. But what's more, that the investigation team was comprised with Thadeus's brother as a member meant surely that Thadeus would never be convicted of this crime. All of this put into perspective Raiya's membership with the magi, and soon after she left the magi and Catholicism altogether. When she left two others left with her, the other two grand-magi that were on her initial investigation team with her. Soon after they left, they returned to NYC. Because the Vatican saw them as Apostates, they froze all their accounts and social security information, forcing them to make money through means less savory. Instead of falling into despair, Raiya and her two peers adopted the shady lifestyle altogether. Through their magic abilities, it wasn't long before they were running the biggest criminal organization in NYC. Raiya still resides to this day in NYC with the other two magi as her right hand women.

Raiya is seemingly devoid of any positive emotion. Her normal demeanor could be described as aloof. She is seen as a hard nosed, unwavering leader. This makes her well respected by her subordinates in the gang she runs. Though, to those who know her well enough she can be lighthearted. She has a short temper and a low tolerance for annoyances. In her annoyed state she has no problem threatening her friends with one of her sushi knives she keeps in her inner coat pocket, or electrocuting them with her magic. She loves Japan, even though she wasn't raised there herself. Her fanaticism for Japan runs so deep that she has Japanese tattoos, and has even taught herself the language perfectly. She is an excellent chef and specializes in Japanese cuisine. Even though she isn't very sociable, the few friends she does have are kept close to her and she protects them.

[User]
Travis watched on as Raiya tried to instigate Father Stockton into fighter her in his powerless state. Rutger fumed and seemed nearly ready to lash out again but unexpectedly, he released his dagger along with the anger that formerly painted his expression. Travis couldn't tell whether he had lost hope and accepted the reality of his eventual demise or if he had some sort of sort of unforeseen backup plan as he reflected the same provocation back to Raiya. The Untalent could only surmise Rutger's strategy was to promote hesitation in their battle-hardened teammate and in doing so possibly sparing him.

Unsurprisingly, if Travis were in Raiya's position, he'd have certainly hesitated in finishing off an unarmed and powerless opponent. He couldn't come to grips with carrying out such a death sentence upon an individual whom couldn't fight back; he simply couldn't find the justification in it, despite the potential danger they could still posed. On the other hand, Travis could leverage his advantage over Rutger with the knowledge of his fabricated and spell and assured the unaware Father that the rune's effects were long-lasting. Having said that, the ball might have been back in Rutger's court again, leaving the powerless Talent to their own fateful decisions. Rutger diffusing himself as a threat would have been the preferred outcome unless he became hostile once more in desperation and give Travis the same jurisdiction in ending his life as the Untalent did to Roy hours earlier.

The problem though was that Raiya was not Travis and considering her history with Father Stockton clear, Travis felt it was unlikely that she allowed Rutger to leave intact. Then again, there were many things he didn't know about her and even pondered if she recognized the fragile circumstances of killing a now-harmless opponent. Travis could only watch and observe how far Raiya's vengeance would go.

That was then Nemo finally returned, looking bloodied and yet still beaming with unaffected amusement.

Nemo took hold of the moment and verbally fortified their advantage over Rutger further now that he and is abilities were present before musing the possibilities of the Father's fate. It became quickly apparent that this situation was no longer under Raiya's judgement as Nemo pulled his revolver out and shot Rutger without any hesitation at all. Travis nearly jumped having been caught off-guard by Nemo cold and decisive death-draw.

"Y-yeah, now it is," he replied finally to Zuri's tired query.

[Assistant] Zuri was glad to see Nemo still alive and walking, even though he wasn't in the best of state. She watches as Nemo approached the group as he took out his revolver and ended Rutger's life in a blink of an eye. She stood there in silence as blood started leaking out of the lifeless body that lied on the floor, creating a small puddle from the gunshot wound. "Shall we continue?" Zuri says in a lighthearted manner.