Caelene/RekuAvakaza

Background

If you were to ask Reku Avakaza about his past, he would say that nothing of consequence occurred before he was taken in by the Endless Desert. He would say this, mind you, because he honestly does not recall anything that came before that. This doesn't seem to bother him much, though; Cecelyne is everything to him, and those who might suggest otherwise soon find themselves on the business end of his dire chain.

Reku was born in Gem as Bright Iron, the second son of a Fire-Aspect merchant. Both of his brothers were Touched by the Dragons, but Iron was still the most loved of the trio. His skill at oratory and the musical arts was paralleled only by the Exalted, and he had any number of women available to him. His eyes, however, were on one woman alone: Brilliant Silk, the eldest daughter of the Despot. He courted her constantly, and she seemed interested in return. However, one of her other suitors grew jealous of the young mortal who was - in his mind, anyway - stealing the heart of his future wife. So, this suitor arranged for the girl to become pregnant and for the paternity test to point to Iron. Her father, enraged by his supposed actions, had Iron castrated and exiled into the deserts.

Wandering the desert, he found an abandoned Manse filled with what looked like dead agatae. He made his way into the building looking for shelter; what he found was both his salvation and his downfall. While navigating the ever-changing passages of the Manse, he was touched by the Sun's Light, Exalting as a Copper Spider. Unfortunately for him, though, his shard had once served the Yozis and the taint of Malfeas was still upon it. This taint pulled him towards a certain book that was located in the hearthstone room: namely, the Broken Winged Crane. As he read the text, his mind slowly cracked until it shattered; he threw down the book and ran into the desert, singing wildly about the Empty Space between worlds.

In time, the desert changed, and he found himself wrapped in Cecelyne's loving embrace. She reshaped the young Twilight in her image, then sent him out filled with love for her sandy wastes. Upon his return to Creation, he went back to his Manse; his presence stirred the sleeping agatae to wakefulness. Soon after, he gathered followers and began a cult to Cecelyne which has never been fully wiped out, no matter how hard both the mortal governments of the South and Immaculate Order have tried. The Endless Desert will always have her servants, Reku is fond of saying.

Description

Despite all that the Twilight has been through, Reku is still a rather handsome man. Years of traveling the deserts of the South have made his once-robust frame quite thin, leeching the man's strength. His eyes are a pure black, filled with the mad pathways of Malfeas done in Ligier's green light. His dark red hair is kept short; long hair has no place in the desert. He wears light clothes fit for desert travel; at his side hangs an orichalcum dire chain which he had found in the Manse when he Exalted.

The Basics

Name: Reku Avakaza
Caste: Twilight
Concept: Infernal Wanderer
Anima: Book pages fluttering around him

Motivation: Bring more people to Cecelyne's service
Intimacies: Cecelyne

Akuma Ability: Open a portal to Malfeas from anywhere [essence] times a day

Attributes and Abilities

ATTRIBUTES
Physical
2 Strength
4 Dexterity
3 Stamina
Social
3 Charisma
3 Manipulation
3 Appearance
Mental
4 Perception
4 Intelligence
3 Wits

ABILITIES
Caste
5 LORE
5 OCCULT
Favored
5 AWARENESS
4 LINGUISTICS (Flametongue; River, Old Realm, High Realm, Tribal)
4 MARTIAL ARTS
4 PERFORMANCE
5 PRESENCE
Other
2 INTEGRITY
2 DODGE
2 RESISTANCE
3 SURVIVAL

Specialties
1 Survival: Deserts

Backgrounds and Tempers

5 Patron
5 Inheritance
4 Artifact (Orichalcum Dire Chain; Orichalcum Chain Shirt)
3 Cult (Reku is known through the South as the Herald of the Desert, leading a cult of Cecelyne)
3 Familiar (Kratha, a raiton)
2 Followers (The inner circle of the cult)
4 Manse (See below; HS socketed in Dire Chain)
4 Resources
4 Whispers

1 Compassion
3 Conviction
4 Temperance (Ascetic Drive)
2 Valor

8 Willpower

04 Essence
20/20 (25/25 with Familiar) Personal
42/47 Peripheral
05 Committed

Health
-0, -1, -1, -1, -2, -2, -2, -2, -4, X

Artifact

Orichalcum Dire Chain
Strike: Spd 5 Acc +1 (9) Dmg +8B (9B) Def +3 (11) Rate 3
Clinch: Spd 6 Acc +2 (10) Dmg +6B (7B) Def - Rate 1

Base Level: 1
Hearthstone socket (in chain handle): +1
Mirage (Target's DV is down by (wielder's Essence/2, rounded up) against attacks due to the phantom images of the chain as it flies towards them:) +1
Total Level: 3

Manse

Name: Padavirina, The Desert Path
Aspect: Earth
Level: 4
Location: Deserts east of Gem
Produces: Stone of Refuge

Base Points: 8
Drawbacks - Maintenance 2 (Human sacrifice to Cecelyne on the night of the new moon)
Total Points: 10

Attunement Recognition
Basic Senses
Cosmetic Displays

Bound Servant Force (Magnitude 4 Agata Swarm) (3)
Puzzle Manse (3)
Wyld Revocation (4)

Charms and Sorcery

CHARMS
Integrity
Integrity-Protecting Prana
Lore
Second Lore Excellency
Occult
Second Occult Excellency
Spirit-Detecting Glance
All-Encompassing Sorcerer's Sight
Terrestrial Circle Sorcery
Performance
Respect Commanding Attitude
Presence
Second Presence Excellency
Majestic Radiant Presence
Terrifying Apparition of Glory
Resistance
Durability of Oak Meditation
Iron Skin Concentration
Ox-Body Technique

SORCERY
Commanding The Beasts
Emerald Countermagic
Flight of Separation
Malediction of the Distorted Compass
Paralyzing Contradiction

Combat

COMBAT
Weapons
Orichalcum Dire Chain
Strike: Spd 5 Acc +1 (9) Dmg +8B (9B) Def +3 (11) Rate 3
Clinch: Spd 6 Acc +2 (10) Dmg +6B (7B) Def - Rate 1

8 Join Battle (wits + awareness)
Defense
4 (5-1) Dodge DV [(dex + dodge + Essence)/2 - mobility penalty], round up
6 Parry DV [(dex + ability + defense)/2], round up
Armor Penalties (Orichalcum Chain Shirt)
-0 Mobility Penalty
0 Fatigue Value
Soak
8 Bashing (stamina + armor)
8 Lethal (1/2 stamina (round down) + armor)
5 Aggravated (armor)
Hardness
2 Bashing
2 Lethal
Move
4 Move (dex - mobility penalty yards/tick)
10 Dash (dex + 6 - mobility penalty)
2 Jump (strength + athletics - mobility penalty)
Social Defense Values
6 Dodge MDV [(Willpower + Integrity + specialty + Essence)/2], round down

Merits and Flaws

MERITS/FLAWS
Mutation (Fire Adaptation) 1M
Mutation (Night Vision) 1M
Mutation (Inexhaustible) 2M
Gatekeeper 1M
Mark of Infernal Favor (Cecelyne's mark covers his back) 3M
Hidden Manse 2M
Inner Compass 1M

Sterile 2F (Was castrated after his exile)
Climate Sensitive (Deserts) 3F
Amnesia (Time before Akumadom) 2F
Known Anathema 3F (Comes from both Anathema status and being a cult leader)
Disturbing 3F
Affected by Wards 4F
Eyes of Wicked Madness 3F

Bonus and Experience Points

BONUS SPENT (65)
Presence 5 (2)
Occult 5 (2)
Lore 5 (2)
Performance 4 (1)
Martial Arts 4 (1)
Awareness 5 (2)
Linguistics 4 (1)
Survival 3 (2)
Temperance 4 (3)
Conviction 4 (3)
Spec: Survival (1)
Merits (11)
Dexterity 4 (4)
Stamina 4 (4)
TAoG (4)
OBT (5)
FoS (4)
MotDC (4)
CtB (4)
PC (4)

10-11: 10 gained, 0 spent, 10 total
10-19: 10 gained, 0 spent, 20 total
10-25: 8 gained, 0 spent, 28 total
11-8: 8 gained, 0 spent, 34 total
11-29: 10 gained, 0 spent, 44 total
12-6: 10 gained, 0 spent, 54 total
12-20: 6 gained, 0 spent, 60 total
12-27: 8 gained, 0 spent, 68 total
1-3: 20 gained, 0 spent, 88 total
1-3: XP Addition - 14 gained, 0 spent 102 total
1-10: 8 gained, 8 spent (Emerald Countermagic), 110 total (102 unspent)