[CHAR] The Illegitimate Baron of Burke (Fairess and Ontos)

[Ontos]

Name: Leon Burkes Age: 21 Race: Human Appearance: Leon stands at 1.66 (5'5") metres tall.

Leon Burkes

History: The illegitimate son of Baron Jared Burkes, Leon spent most of his life with his guardian and mentor, Sir Stamford Raffles. Sir Stamford was a relatively power administrator of the East Mamluqean Trading Company (a company granted charter by the Burke Barony, unvetoed by the Emperor of Holy Britannian Empire, to colonise the Mamluqean Region) and a close friend of his mother, Ellie Curtis. A numbers man by virtue of his upbringing, Leon helped his guardian, Sir Stamford, in managing the company's local branch in the city of Burkeport (the only coastal city within the barony). At one point, Sir Stamford purchased a few slaves from the Mamluqean region, but a female child drew Leon's intellectual attention. Persuading Sir Stamford to let him have his own slave, he named her Kaz and kept her around as a bodyguard, muscle and confidant. He eventually studied in a university, attaining two degrees, one in machinery and rifling, and the other in xenobiology, or the biology of exotic animals. When he was still with Sir Stamford, he ended up keeping a huge collection of guns, and a minor collection of rare animals smuggled from the colonial regions. When his father fell sick, Leon was spirited away from his comfortable life with his guardian, and placed back into his noble household, a world mentally away from the straightforward business life of Burkeport. While he did bring back most of the stuff, he did not like the place. A father that wanted him to take a role he did not want, half-sisters that enjoyed parties much more than he could care for, and a world filled with deception and doubletalk. Traits: Disillusion: As a child raised apart from his family due to the conditions of his birth, he retains ill feelings towards the family. Additionally, mannerisms in the city are quite different from the formal ones of the country, which often causes him to clash with other members of his family. Intelligence: He is educated and takes an eclectic interest in various histories, technology, and businesses. This is necessary for his desire to go beyond estate life. Disbelief: Believing in the ultimate rule of evidence, Leon's beliefs clash with the more religious aspect of the Burke Barony. The Burke family has always been a patron of the faith. Unnoble: Leon prefers to cloister himself in busy intellectual or practical work, than to do anything socially related. His only close friends are Kaz, Sir Stamford Raffles, and a few other intellectuals at the East Mamluqean Trading Company.

[Ontos]

Name: Kaz Age: 14 (physically and emotionally, the same as Leon) Race: Mamluq (An uncivilised race from the East, their great capacity for strength, having little muscular disparity between the genders and superstitious culture make them great slave laborers. While the tribal cultures have attempted to resist colonisation for some time, they are hurt by in-fighting and strategic moves by the colonial powers to divide and conquer.) Appearance: Kaz stands at 2.24 (7'4") metres tall.

Kaz

History: Unable to recall her life before arriving in the Burke Barony (due to age), Kaz was given to Leon upon his request. Though hearing about the Mamluqean's lack of capacity for intellectual pursuits, Leon attempted to test that empirically. He taught Kaz how to read, and she grew up quickly physically and mentally. Unlike the other Mamluqeans he saw and met, Kaz was smart. While not as specialised in topics as her master and friend, Kaz is more socially aware. When Leon was to go back to his family's estate, his most pressing concern was bringing Kaz back with him. While he eventually got everything, Kaz's presence was something he fought hard for. In the time Leon returned back home, Kaz served as his confidante, and the closest thing he had to a butler and valet. Traits: Combatant: A race of natural warriors, Kaz is highly skilled in fighting unarmed. Her race has a reduced sensitivity to pain as well. False Brute: Smarter than she looks. A Strange Friendship: The only person Leon can talk to well that currently lives in the Burke Estate.

[Fairess]

Name: Dania Engberg Alias: Verity Lund Age: 22 Height: 5’3’’ (1.62m) Weight: 137lbs Hair Color/Style: Blond/long and braided Eye Color: Blue Appearance: Verity has a robust body with taut, feminine curves. She’s spent her life honing her body, and as such, has a toned, muscular frame. Her complexion is fair, though her shoulders and arms are riddled with long, faded scars from years past. She puts hardly any effort at all into her appearance, caring only that her hair is out of her face while she works. Bathing frequently is a habit foreign to her. History: Verity was born in the northern highlands and raised as the daughter of a lord. Her people had barely any written language to speak of, instead adopting dialects of civilizations they had conquered in ages past. Her family did, however, have a love of music and art, and even considered combat to be a form of art. As the eldest, Verity was trained to be the perfect image of Northern nobility, taught multiple forms of dance, music, and combat. Because of her small stature, she was forced to work towards speed and finesse with the spear, but she was still never able to best her instructor. In her late teens, the civil unrest due to famine and a brutal winter ultimately led to war. Revolutionaries breeched the family castle and her parents were captured. She managed to escape with her sister and former nanny, but sustained serious injury that made the venture almost impossible. Her left foot never fully recovered, but she was able to receive refuge from her nanny’s family in another country. Her nanny’s relatives took the motley group in, and in return, the three of them became farmhands. Verity adopted the family name of her nanny’s as well as a new name, forgetting all connections to her country as she learned how to care for a farm and its livestock. In an effort to return the mercy and kindness given to her, she took every opportunity to help others, doing extra work whenever possible as well as going so far as to help neighboring families during harvest season. This left little time for hobbies, and she found herself implementing her own kind of training into everyday chores. Eventually, however, Verity decided that she could not spend the rest of her life as a farmhand. She sought for better work, but had no valid references to back up her desires. She felt she had no choice but to falsify herself further, claiming to have worked at other wealthy estates in order to gain the position of a working maid at the Burkes’ estate. Personality: She is best described as overbearing, ceaselessly worrying about her sister and the state of their steading. She strives for excellence and continually falls short of her own goals, forever handicapped by her own people in the northern lands. In many ways, her goals to become a true warrior and leader are impossible, yet she pushes herself beyond the breaking point to achieve nearly inhuman stamina and reflexes. She is easily embarrassed, harsh on herself, and for this reason, is frequently labeled as a masochist. Basic Traits: Masochist: She only feels fulfilled and functional when she is pushing herself beyond her own limits. Artist: She enjoys culture and revels in what few opportunities she has to engage in arts and study. Passionate: Whenever she does something, she is nearly incapable of holding herself back. Guardian: She finds fulfillment in becoming a better fighter and uses her abilities to protect others.