Kazuki/VeilQuickBio

Veil of a Thousand Visages - Quick Bio

Here is a short Bio of Veil of a Thousand Visages, made to answer the questions asked for on the Return Home Character Creation document in a quick, accessible way. I have provided the questions listed on said document and have posted the answers below.

A small background of what kind of life your character lived before exaltation.

Young Nys November was born in Cerlyss, a medium sized town standing between Chiaroscuro and the Metropolis that will one day become Paragon. Despite the town's humble size, one major attraction kept it alive and relatively popular - Cerlyss was a town of entertainment, famous for its theater acts.

Nys was born the second child to a commoner couple, and was taught his mother's trade - stage aide - at a young age. Contrary to most stories with this premise, Nys was genuinely interested in the work, and chose willingly to follow into his mother's footsteps. His childhood was spent learning the tricks that allow all the smoke and mirrors to become a reality, surrounded by people pretending to be who they were not. Along the way, he also became very nimble and surreptitious, becoming the perfect aide: one nobody notices.

Deep inside, however, he longed to be one of the people that made the show a reality in a very observeable fashion... He held the hopes of becoming an actor. Chances of his dream being fullfilled were very slim, however: Against children of more fortunate parents, who could send their progeny to the theater and drama academies, he had little chance of ever being considered.

And so he fueled his dream by practicing by himself, when the theater was empty and he could use props and costumes, and the hallowed ground that was the stage was his realm. He would recite verses from famous plays, try to get into various roles, and more importantly, he learned how to disguise himself to become someone entirely different.

At least an idea of how they exalted.

Nys' Exaltation was triggered in a very improbable situation. His mother was working on an extremely prestigious production involving star actors, and young Nys was forbidden to come due to the importance of the whole affair (Still a teenager, he was not considered an employee yet). This fact disappointed the young man very much, and, once in his room at home, decided he would find a way to see the act still.

Using the skills he had gained from his numerous practice sessions and from observing actors performing, Nys disguised himself as a teenaged female noble. Playing the card of the sheltered spoiled brat at the doors of the theater, he managed to convince the employees that 'her' parents were inside and that she had lost them, and that the situation was most dreadful. The display was sufficiently embarassing to allow 'her' quick entry, and Nys, knowing the theater like no other, promptly bolted to hide away from the seating room to watch to play from above.

Only, an incident nobody had planned occured. An important official seated in the assistance was assassinated during the play. As a security measure, all exits were barred, trapping everyone inside while the theater was being secured. Nys was trapped.

Escaping his hiding place in order to try to mingle in the crowd, he was found by three security guards wandering one of the corridors of the complex. Doing his best to hide his nervousness, he acted his role to the hilt once more, claiming to have been separated from 'her' parents and pretending to have become lost. He somehow managed to convince the guards, and they escorted the young noble lady towards the auditorium.

Nys' willpower was eroding along the way, however. He did not know what to do or say when the guards would discover his 'parents' did not exist. Perhaps he would be thought the murderer? And then, what would they do to him to make him talk? The thought frightened him to the point he had to struggle not to shake. He maintained his role, however, draining his will to its last reserves... And then it happened.

He was bathed in golden and ghostly white light, illuminating the corridor, filling him with a warm that, combined with the stress of the moment, made him lose his facade. The first reaction of the guards was one of fear, and their fear led them to act out their own nervousness. And they did so by attacking Nys.

The young boy had no time to comprehend, however, before the three men were dead with knives in the back of their necks. Before him stood a woman he knew very well - the actress called simply "Incomparable Iris", dressed in a black cloak and weaved straw hat, offering a hand to him. Everything happened so fast, and yet the woman's allure was too much to resist, and when she held out a hand he reached up to it. "Come with me," she said, "and I will answer the questions that linger in your mind. You have been Chosen by Him, and you have been Chosen by me as well. Come. We have much to do, and we must make haste."

And follow her he did. He left everything behind, without a word, without a trace, and learned to sharpen his skills and to become a man of a thousand faces. On this day Nys November disappeared from Creation.

And on this day, Veil of a Thousand Visages was born.

Why they were chosen to be 'saved' by their teacher?

Veil is truly gifted at what he does - once the chosen apprentice of Incomparable Iris, a very well respected Night Caste actress. His already impressive talents for disguise and impersonation were sharpened and honed even more under Iris' able tutelage, leaving Veil as her worthy heir after her untimely death. This makes Veil of a Thousand Visages a highly competent infiltrator, a chameleon actor that can change form and face when needed, and a very loyal man to boot. This legacy would be enough for him to be noticed by Storm on the Horizon, and for the professor to consider the young man for further training...

A small description of the character.

Veil is a man of lithe build and average height, with tanned skin and deep honey eyes. He keeps his blue-black hair long, a few inches short of waist-length, in order to facilitate his impersonating either of the sexes. His face, when not concealed or altered by any means, has a certain exotic flair to it - angular, handsome features that accent somewhat of an air of mystery. His clothing vary greatly depending on the roles he is taking, from ragged peasant work clothes to the silken robes of trained courtiers. When dropping the disguises, however, Veil usually makes the Garments of the Flawless Tragedian take on clothes that look like his lost mentor's - Dark, long sleeved silken shirt with silver clasps and deep violet embroidery at the seams, worn over loose black trousers, violet cloth wrapped around the calves and comfortable, near-silent sandals. An almost floor-length cloak clasped by a single pearl button and embroidered with patterns of irises blowing in the wind covers the outfit, and an elegantly weaved straw hat completes it.

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