Snowdrops
Izurich
Bombardier
ChronoBovino
Name: Itou Takeshi / Freyr Fridravǫtn
Age: 2X / Dehmelic Cusp of Adulthood
Gender: Male
Race: Dehmel
Original Appearance:
Current Appearance:
Personality:
Beneath a placid and professional surface, Freyr is still very much a young man unsure of his place in the world. His only desires are to not disgrace his parents and mentor or waste the opportunities they gave him, but he clearly lacks an impetus in his life. In addition, he’s a very timid person, assured only of the strength in his sword arm and the duties assigned to him. Fortunately, his self-control and guiding philosophy make him capable of rolling with the punches well – if a tad passive as well. Though he demonstrates the discipline and determination expected of his order, he possesses a rather naïve view of the world and often fails to take decisive action outside of battle. With this in mind, it comes as no surprise that Takeshi’s personality is the dominant influence to his actions as of late, making him more socially aware but also more invested in the world around him. Unfortunately, they possess poor synergy between each other. A sudden influx of memories cannot eliminate years of introverted body language and poor social skills, but it can shake one's worldview with the experiences it carries. In the end, it seems that they have merely made him more lost than he was before.
Brief Backstory:
Itou Takeshi was once somebody who was going places. He was born to a reputable, well-off family, and raised to become a paragon of wholesome traditional Japanese values. As well, from a young age he proved himself a good student and a better athlete, two talents which would guide his lifestyle and form the foundation for his status as the top dog of his local community. For years, Takeshi lived a life that others could only envy, and as he neared the conclusion of his high school experience, all signs pointed to even greater heights. Unfortunately, his luck ran out after being involved in a terrible crash only hours after his graduation ceremony. The damage to his body and mind was severe, and being forced into a long, painfully slow period of rehabilitation put a stop to any plans he had for the life ahead of him. The past few years have been a traumatic and depressing descent inward, but also a period of reflection for someone so self-concerned.
Freyr Fridravǫtn, on the other hand, was somebody whose life was far less blessed. He was born in Skanxia, the cultural heartland of the Dehmel peoples, to lowborn parents. Fortunately or otherwise, he would not be able to live with them long; soon after he learned to walk and talk, they left him at a monastery to be raised and educated as a monk - a final gift to ensure their son a good life rather than have him consigned to a lesser place in society. A good life, but assuredly not an easy one; the monastic warrior orders of the Dehmel are notorious for their staunch dedication to discipline and self-improvement, and Freyr was not a particularly talented warrior. So when he was not being educated in culture and the sacred texts, he was practicing katas or sparring against his peers; by his persistent efforts, he was able to keep up with, and ultimately surpass, his peers. His life would be like this for years, rarely ever leaving the confines of the temple or socializing with his fellows as he did his best to sharpen his skills to a razor edge.
He is currently undertaking his Pilgrimage, a coming-of-age rite among Dehmel martial artists, where the undertaker must walk the world, testing their character and skills to achieve a greater understanding of the universe.
Abilities
Skills
Equipment
Origin: Our World
Age: 2X / Dehmelic Cusp of Adulthood
Gender: Male
Race: Dehmel
Original Appearance:
Current Appearance:
Personality:
Beneath a placid and professional surface, Freyr is still very much a young man unsure of his place in the world. His only desires are to not disgrace his parents and mentor or waste the opportunities they gave him, but he clearly lacks an impetus in his life. In addition, he’s a very timid person, assured only of the strength in his sword arm and the duties assigned to him. Fortunately, his self-control and guiding philosophy make him capable of rolling with the punches well – if a tad passive as well. Though he demonstrates the discipline and determination expected of his order, he possesses a rather naïve view of the world and often fails to take decisive action outside of battle. With this in mind, it comes as no surprise that Takeshi’s personality is the dominant influence to his actions as of late, making him more socially aware but also more invested in the world around him. Unfortunately, they possess poor synergy between each other. A sudden influx of memories cannot eliminate years of introverted body language and poor social skills, but it can shake one's worldview with the experiences it carries. In the end, it seems that they have merely made him more lost than he was before.
Brief Backstory:
Itou Takeshi was once somebody who was going places. He was born to a reputable, well-off family, and raised to become a paragon of wholesome traditional Japanese values. As well, from a young age he proved himself a good student and a better athlete, two talents which would guide his lifestyle and form the foundation for his status as the top dog of his local community. For years, Takeshi lived a life that others could only envy, and as he neared the conclusion of his high school experience, all signs pointed to even greater heights. Unfortunately, his luck ran out after being involved in a terrible crash only hours after his graduation ceremony. The damage to his body and mind was severe, and being forced into a long, painfully slow period of rehabilitation put a stop to any plans he had for the life ahead of him. The past few years have been a traumatic and depressing descent inward, but also a period of reflection for someone so self-concerned.
Freyr Fridravǫtn, on the other hand, was somebody whose life was far less blessed. He was born in Skanxia, the cultural heartland of the Dehmel peoples, to lowborn parents. Fortunately or otherwise, he would not be able to live with them long; soon after he learned to walk and talk, they left him at a monastery to be raised and educated as a monk - a final gift to ensure their son a good life rather than have him consigned to a lesser place in society. A good life, but assuredly not an easy one; the monastic warrior orders of the Dehmel are notorious for their staunch dedication to discipline and self-improvement, and Freyr was not a particularly talented warrior. So when he was not being educated in culture and the sacred texts, he was practicing katas or sparring against his peers; by his persistent efforts, he was able to keep up with, and ultimately surpass, his peers. His life would be like this for years, rarely ever leaving the confines of the temple or socializing with his fellows as he did his best to sharpen his skills to a razor edge.
He is currently undertaking his Pilgrimage, a coming-of-age rite among Dehmel martial artists, where the undertaker must walk the world, testing their character and skills to achieve a greater understanding of the universe.
Abilities
- The pinnacle of excellence in their field is what all Dehmel strive to achieve, be it arts, trades, academics or anything in between. For Dehmel monks who have achieved the pinnacle of martial arts, there is a special name: battle-saint, and of the innumerable aspirants to the title, there have only been eighteen who have earned it. Freyr is one of the many disciples who pursue this path each generation, undergoing years of daunting training to strengthen his mind and body in pursuit of martial enlightenment. The marque feature of this tradition is its two halves:
The external arts – the styles – encompass all physical forms of combat. It determines which aspects an individual excels at, and which weapon skill is refined to become an extension of the user's body. Taught by any willing mentor, these are not something exclusive to monks, but rather something attributed to the Dehmel race as a whole – and one of the reasons they’re regarded as the premier warrior race. The intent behind learning a style is the distinguishing factor between mere warriors and those who seek enlightenment; for the latter, it serves as the disciplinary foundation upon which an individual’s sutra is developed rather than a be-all-end-all of combat. All styles ensure their practitioners have a foundation in hand to hand combat.
The second half, the internal arts – the sutras – are something that cannot be taught. Said to take decades to develop and a lifetime to master, a sutra stems from holistic understanding, from synchronicity within and without. Though Dehmel mages are a rare commodity, by the power of one’s sutra, martial feats on the level of magic can be executed through a combination of sheer skill and connection to the world. The supernatural effects of these feats are tied intrinsically to the individual's character, affinity, and fightinh style. The perfected form of a sutra is a set of ten powers tied to paired five-line chants, but most aspirants will only ever learn two or three of their sutra's ten lines.
In terms of pure metaphysical science, a sutra turns the ambient mana into one’s own magical fuel, akin to converting the body into a biological altered machine using the mind and spirit as the functional blueprint, with the chant and techniques as the trigger. Yet despite apparently knowing the theory, modern attempts at replicating this phenomena have failed, so something about that assessment must be off.
However, the ability to use both is what characterizes a Dehmel martial artist, and Freyr has not yet expressed his sutra. Therefore, to say Freyr is a competent martial artist would be incorrect.- A lightning-fast sword style originally developed to do one thing: slay dragons. But while the skies of Skanxia have been silent for a long time, the techniques of the ancient dragonslayers remain, and are taught by an order of monks from a certain temple near the capital. The marque features of this style are its compatibility against enemies that surpass the user in power, and its brutal counterattacks, executed against exposed weakpoints at blinding speeds. Compared to others, it excels at speed and mobility, but is poor at absorbing blows and only average at controlling enemies with pressure – a dragon is neither fearful nor weak, after all.
- As mentioned before, Freyr hasn’t taken a single step towards unlocking any capabilities under the purview of this sutra. Presumably tied to his affinity for water and related concepts, but who knows how the insertion of a new identity has influenced things?
- While his natural strength unexceptional for his race, the total strength that Freyr boasts still far outstrips that of other races when compounded with his extensive physical training. However, the exact nature of his conditioning means that his build is lean and powerful, more akin to the agile power of a big cat than a bull-like mass of muscle.
Skills
- Freyr possesses a working knowledge of the two subjects Dehmel warrior monks are expected to be educated in, namely social studies and language arts. Most notably, Freyr possesses above average knowledge of skaldic poetry, sagas and eddas. In addition, he has recently been bestowed with knowledge encompassing a Japanese secondary education with honors and the technique of a star athlete, albeit with an understandably diminished ability to recall facts. Likewise, it should be noted that applying sporting techniques in a new body is a different issue entirely.
- Skanxia is a very cold, very aqueous environment; there are rivers, fjords, lakes and coasts enough to make someone sick of them, but also enough to make establishing efficient roadways relatively cumbersome. As a result, navigation by boat remains a popular method, and one that Freyr is sufficiently well-versed in as someone engaging on a worldwide journey. He still pales compared to true sailors, but he knows enough to maintain the course of a craft on rough waters. Anything more complicated than sail or oar is out of his league though. It should be noted that Freyr can't drive or pilot modern land vehicles, but with Takeshi's knowledge, he can drive a car. But Takeshi doesn't like cars, and travel by foot can be more effective for them depending on the terrain anyway.
Equipment
- With their monstrous strength, the Dehmel are often bereft of suitable armaments by which to battle. Normal, unenchanted blades warp and shatter under their use - a significant problem for a martial race in an era before Altered Weapons. As a result, ancient Dehmel blacksmiths have developed a steel alloy used to forge weapons appropriately resilient and wickedly sharp. While such a practice is generally unnecessary in this age, young Dehmel warriors are traditionally granted Dehmel steel arms by their masters.
- Carries all the essentials for life on the road, as well as paper and writing implements. It should be that he has no money due to the nature of his travels and so has to rely on good will or hard work to get by.
Origin: Our World