BurgerSlave/CynisIronMountain

Cynis Iron Mountain

Cynis Iron Mountain has spent nearly all of his 30 years at the Palace Sublime, contemplating the Immaculate Philosophy and earning renown for his flawless calligraphy. Of course, owing to his curious heritage, this latter is not so strange. The former, however, is a story all its own.

His mother, Cynis Zanba, had a reputation as one of the finest lapidaries in all the Blessed Isle. Her father, a wealthy Ragara diplomant, was one of the more respected liasons to the Mountain Folk. Zanba, however, had inherited as much of her mother's Cynis nature than her father's Ragara business sense, and she was fascinated by the Mountain Folk, who could create such exquisite trinkets. Rumor has it that she used her feminine wiles to gain the favor of a Mountain Folk craftsman, and dallied with him for a season while buying up his stock to sell at triple the price in the Imperial City. When she got pregnant, however, everything changed. Zanba dared not abort the child, lest she earn the Dragons' ire for killing a babe of Dynastic heritage. And yet, she could not keep it either, for she had no desire to have a half-fae baby haunting her.

So it was, when Zanba delivered her son, he was left with the Immaculate Order and a healthy tithe to make up for the inconvenience. Thus did Cynis Iron Mountain find his way into the care of Kei Manda, an outcaste Aspect of Earth. Manda would become like a father for young Iron Mountain, who earned his name for his squat physique he inherited from his Mountain Folk father. Manda was one of the senior copyists in the library of the Palace Sublime, and it was from him that Iron Mountain was to learn his passion for calligraphy. He also began emulating the Earth Dragon, Pasiap, almost as soon as he could walk. For his part, Manda was impressed with how easily Iron Mountain took to his lessons. By the time he was eight, Iron Mountain was literate in both Low and Old Realm, and had begun learning the first techniques of Five Dragon Style martial arts. It was clear that he had a gift for grasping the meditative techniques of the martial arts, but it was calligraphy that was Iron Mountain's first love, and he developed the finest penmanship in the entire Palace.

When he was fourteen, Iron Mountain unexpectedly awakened his Essence. He had been tracing out a particularly complex yantra, and had wasted much paper and ink trying to get it just so. When he finally traced the last lines perfectly, he felt a rush of power blossoming from the heart of his creativity. Manda, for his part, was both surprised and pleased. He had not realized that Iron Mountain's fae parent had been a being of such great Essence, for Iron Mountain had inherited quite a lot. However, his mother's Exalted Essence influenced his magical development as well, for he manifested an anima banner not unlike a Terrestrial's. Thus enlightened, Iron Mountain began mastering the Charms of Five Dragon Style martial arts. He also learned to fear cold iron, the bane of the Fair Folk, for talismans made against the fae caused him great pain.

By the time he was twenty, Iron Mountain had become one of the most reknowned calligraphers in the Immaculate Order. And his mastery of the martial arts earned him a great deal of respect from his peers. He would have been content to spend the rest of his long days in peaceful contemplation of his Essence, becoming more Immaculate and preparing for his next life. However, events would conspire to shake Iron Mountain out of his life of bliss and idyll.

The Empress had been gone nearly a year when Iron Mountain's sifu and foster father was found strangled in his sleep. Heartbroken, Iron Mountain vowed revenge, and begged the abbot for permission to seek out his sifu's murderer. At first, the abbot was reluctant to let Iron Mountain leave, for it would be his first time leaving the monastary in his life. But Iron Mountain was a stubborn as his father's folk, and began fasting in a protest that would last nine days before the abbot acquiesced.

Now, Iron Mountain has followed the trail of clues to the Threshold, where he seeks out what he believes may be an Anathema. It has been a difficult test of his faith, but for the time being, Iron Mountain's discipline remains unshaken. Whether or not it continues to be so remains to be seen, for he has many truths to uncover before his journey is complete.

Image: Cynis Iron Mountain is immediately distinct. He stands just below five feet tall, and yet is half again as broad as an average person. His head remains perfectly tonsured, but his iron gray beard is thick and bushy. His features are craggy and angular, and yet his eyes are a gentle shade of velvety green. His skin is the dark gray of hard granite. He dresses in the simple robes of his faith, bound by the sash of his coil. He wears a broad straw hazori in his travels, and carries a walking stick and a begging bowl. His voice is deep and gravelly, and he rarely raises it above quiet speaking tones. Iron Mountain is quite ascetic, and does not indulge in any vices. His only true passion, aside from his faith, is calligraphy, and it shows. He is never without ink and pen, and he always has some paper or a bit of silk. His fingertips are often ink-stained.

Statistics

Name: Cynis Iron Mountain
Nature: Paragon
Heritage: Mountain Folk Fae-Blooded

Strength 3, Dexterity 2, Stamina 4 (Tough)
Charisma 2, Manipulation 2, Appearance 2
Perception 3, Intelligence 2, Wits 2

Favored Abilities: Crafts (Calligraphy) 5, Martial Arts 4
Abilities: Athletics 2, Awareness 2, Dodge 1, Endurance 3, Linguistics 2 (Low Realm, Old Realm, Riverspeak), Survival 1, Investigation 3, Occult 2, Lore 2

Backgrounds: Inheritance 3, Backing 2, Manse 2 (Earth-aspected Demense)

Virtues: Compassion 2, Conviction 2, Temperance 5, Valor 3
Advantages: Willpower 8, Essence 2 (Personal 5, Peripheral 11)
Charms: Five-Dragon Fortitude, Five-Dragon Blocking Technique, Five-Dragon Claw

Merits: Prodigy +2 (Martial Arts), Longevity +2, God-Body +3, Awakened Essence +5
Flaw: Unusual Appearance -2 (Mountain Folk heritage), Pacifist -5, Aura of Power -4, Affected by Wards -4