NAME: Hazuki Ishiwata
AGE: 24
WEAPON(s): Modified broom shaft spear, fillet knife
BACKGROUND: Hazuki spent the first few years of her childhood in Japan, her country of birth, before immigrating to the United States with her family to join their relatives in the country upon the popping of the economic bubble in Japan. At such a young age, she did not quite understand her family's reasoning for immigrating, growing up distant and awkward as Hazuki struggled to adjust to life in the United States. Animals, books and other introverted hobbies became her primary source of comfort throughout her childhood, and although Hazuki didn't know it at the time, such things would ultimately shape her future and career as an aquarist—which probably helped save her life, too.
When the apocalypse came, Hazuki had been working at the city's aquarium and taking care of the exhibits. She had heard of the sickness in the news before, but to see in person was a nightmare. Perhaps by God's grace or just plain luck, Hazuki and the other scheduled staff had managed to hunker down in the aquarium with some guests, waiting until they were relieved by the local police force or military. Such rescue never came and the surviving group was forced to ration what little they had as the days turned to weeks and weeks turned to months.
By the turn of the new year, it became apparent that, without resupply, the aquarium wasn't meant for long-term survivability. A splinter group began to form between the survivors; people who chosen to place their own survival over the animals within the aquarium. Her coworkers and guests began to fight amongst each other, driven mad by hunger as blood spilled onto the aquarium floors. Refusing to take another's life, and to escape the dead who had been drawn by the commotion, Hazuki took the opportunity to flee while she still could and promptly disappeared off into the city streets alone with only an old fillet knife to her name.
