Wings/WalkerinBoundlessShadows

Walker in Boundless Shadows

"Call me naive, but...is it really wrong? To believe in kindness in this rotten world of ours?"

Like most children fated to join the Five-Score Fellowship, Walker was noticeably different. Born Damien Ragriz sixteen years ago, he was more often called "Little Walker", for his habit of wandering off on his own for hours at a time, much to his parents' frustration. He was the child of humble farmers; workers under the rule of the Malirien family in the River Province Administrative District, living just mere miles southeast of Greyfalls.

In his walks, he appreciated the beauty of the natural world, and wondered why the things created by humans lacked that "natural" beauty. Ashe became older, he wondered if humans were truly nothing but a disruptive existence, unable to live in harmony with the world around them, or even with each other. Wise beyond his years, he hoped he could somehow get away from living as a mere servant, to find away to make the world a better place.

Young Damien was quiet and submissive, almost too obedient, and possessing of a gentleness and kindness of heart that made women squeal and men dismiss him as a weak pussy. Not one to fight back even when struck, he was the kind of person who could still smile in front of his bullies, for he blindly believed in the goodness of human hearts. It might be this excessive optimism which attracted his two closest childhood friends: the tomboyish daughter of Malirien, Maya, and her neighbors' young girl, a waif-like redhead his age called Arisa.

At the age of fourteen, when Damien and Arisa were already more than friends but not quite at the point of being lovers, the girl joined him in one of his wandering escapades. This time, however, their trail took them face to face with a trio of bandits in the midst of planning how to rob the Malirien household. The trigger for Damien's Exaltation was the awareness that he and his dearest friend were in mortal danger, that Arisa's safety was most definitely his responsibility, and that he would never forgive himself should something happen to her. So, for the first time, he chose to fight: a losing battle, of course, but it mattered little as long as he could keep the thugs busy to allow Arisa to run away and get help. Aware that it was a matter of time before others arrived, the thieves beat and stabbed Damien mercilessly and left him to bleed to death before dashing away as fast as possible.

During that short period of solitude in which he calmly waited to be claimed by Lethe, he saw someone.

He saw a girl. A young girl of impossible loveliness, with skin clear as milk and sad, gentle eyes of indeterminate color. Her hair changed between silvery white and obsidian black every time he blinked. But then she was gone, and instead there was an agent of the Bureau of Destiny, who took him away.

The bandits were never found, and it was assumed that Damien was taken by them. While his parents and Arisa mourned his loss, Damien was explained his new status as a Chosen of the Maiden of Endings, and told he had to leave his former life behind. It was a proposal Damien calmly accepted: he saw it as his chance to fulfill his ambition to make Creation a better, kinder place, and he had always believed Arisa could do much better as well. He was not surprised to learn, a year into his training in Yu-Shan, that his former best friend had awakened as a Fire-Aspect Dragon-Blooded and sent to the Obsidian Mirror.

During training, Damien gained the approval of his peers solely by his dedication and eagerness to finish his training and get to work, as well as a plethora of scoldings every time he questioned the overly complicated and inefficient ways of the Celestial Bureaucracy. His nature drives him to make Yu-Shan efficient and transparent, something he sees as a (extremely) long-term ambition.

It was Damien's Sifu who increased his total training time to a year and a half, to further his understanding of martial arts and do something about his unwillingness to harm others. It was also his sifu who gave him the name "Walker in Boundless Shadows", claiming that it came to her in a dream.

His very first mission during training time were centered on the Realm, in a straightforward attempt to pull him to the Bronze Faction. The attempt failed, for Walker believed his mission and purpose existed outside of and transcended political differences. What he gained, however, was the valuable insight of the Realm and its bureaucracy, as well a small network of connections within Houses Mnemon, Ledaal, V'neef and Iselsi.

The elder Sidereals acknowledged Walker's devotion to his work, but disapproved of his "idealistic" perception of things. When his training was finished, he was dispatched to the West, if only to keep him away from Faction politics and roughen him up a bit by giving him a taste of "the real world". However, in the three seasons he spent there, he accomplished so much he has earned the favor of the entire Convention of Water--his honesty and well-meaning attitude make it hard for his peers to resent or envy his achievements. Among his achievements, Walker is known to have stopped an operation to smuggle produce out of Skullstone to Coral, a feat which earned him an audience with the Silver Prince himself. He's also known to have slain a Storm Mother and impose audit on a second one for abusing their positions, and for being behind the creation of the first formal Shipwrights' School in Abalone. The Convention of Water would have loved to keep Walker, and the Elder would not have minded much, but neither expected a direct command from the Maiden of Endings herself to transfer Walker to the Convention of Wood and his inclusion to the Convention on Deathlords.

Walker has come to believe it was Saturn herself who appeared before him the day of his Exaltation (it's either that or the delusions of a dying man, which is not nearly as inspiring). He does not get the changing hair color thing, but he assumes it has a meaning. Regardless, Walker has become a devoted follower of the most feared Maiden, and an eager instrument of her will. His devotion borders on obsessive love, and he tackles his missions with enthusiasm, no matter how unfathomable, for he believes such is Saturn's will. That does not stop him from shedding tears and quietly wondering why innocents must suffer for the sake of success in a mission and the stability of Creation.

Appearance: Not even the physical training involved in learning martial arts fixed Walker's rather thin and lanky frame, and his clothes tend to make him look weak and ordinary, concealing his well-defined musculature. He is white-skinned, but the last three seasons he spent in the West have given him a healthy tan. Short and messy black hair, sharp violet eyes, rough cheekbones and slightly sunken cheeks adorn an otherwise round face. His thin, nigh-colorless lips are almost always shaped into a smile, giving him a permanent "I know something you don't" aura. As an agent of Endings, he prefers dark clothes, favoring tight indigo t-shirts and baggy black pants. He is rarely seen without his black cape. He does not like gloves, and will only wear them if the circumstances absolutely demand it.

Character Stats

Caste: Endings
Nature: Caregiver
Anima: Ascending violet rings surrounding Walker's body.
Concept: Paladin of Saturn

Attributes:
Strength 1, Dexterity 5, Stamina 3
Charisma 3, Manipulation 2, Appearance 2
Perception 3, Intelligence 4, Wits 4

Abilities:
Athletics 2, Awareness 2, Bureaucracy 3, Craft (Fate) 5, Dodge 3, Endurance 1, Investigation 2, Linguistics 3 (Riverspeak, High Realm, Old Realm, Seatongue), Lore 3, Martial Arts 5 (Daiklaves +3), Medicine 2, Melee 2, Occult 3, Performance 5 (To Avoid Harm +3), Sail 1, Socialize 3, Stealth 3, Survival 2

Backgrounds: Allies 2, Artifact 2 (Saturn's Kiss), Artifact 2 (Amulet of the Maiden's Favor), Celestial Manse 2, Connections (Convention on Deathlords) 1, Connections (Convention of Water) 2, Connections (Division of Endings) 1, Connections (Division of Secrets) 1, Connections (Division of Serenity) 1, Connections (The Dragon-Blooded) 2, Salary 2, Sifu 2

Virtues:
Compassion 4, Conviction 2, Temperance 3, Valor 1

Willpower: 8
Health: -0,-1,-1,-2,-2,-4,Incap
Essence: 2
Essence pool: 12/24(30)

Charms:

• Craft
  

Mending Warped Designs
World-Shaping Artistic Vision (Dealing with Spirits)

• Bureaucracy
  

Icy Hand

• Investigation
  

Efficient Secretary Technique

• Lore
  

Systematic Understanding of Everything

• Melee
  

Impeding the Flow

• Performance
  

Compassionate Essence Replenishment
Perfection in Life

• Violet Bier of Sorrows Style
  

Blade of the Battle Maiden
Flight of Mercury
Joy in Adversity Stance
Secrets of Future Strife

Equipment: leather bag with writing materials, cash, large piece of linen cloth, flint and steel, soap, cooking utensils, salt and spices, maps, compass, astrological measurement devices, small writing board and chalk, traveling log; thigh pouch with cash and empty paper strips; Amulet of the Maiden's Favor; Saturn's Kiss

Combat:
Base initiative: 9 (18 in the first turn of combat)
Soak: 3B/1L/0A (unarmored)
Dodge: 8
Attacks:
Fist: Speed 9 Acc 10 Damage +1B Def 10
Kick: Speed 6 Acc 9 Damage +3B Def 10
Straight Sword: Speed 9 Acc 11 Damage +4B Def 11 Starmetal Daiklave (Saturn's Kiss) (Martial Arts): Speed 12 Acc 15 Damage +8L Def 15
Starmetal Daiklave (Saturn's Kiss) (Melee): Speed 12 Acc 9 Damage +8L Def 9

Expanded Backgrounds

Walker normally uses a straight sword with a blunt edge, both to conceal his Exalted status and to not kill unnecessarily. When push comes to shove, however, he draws his treasured starmetal daiklave, Saturn's Kiss, a heirloom from a previous Exaltation given to him by Nara-O. He also wears the Amulet of the Maiden's Favor, a small starmetal pendant in the shape of Saturn's symbol. This is a hearthstone amulet with two additional benefits. First, it allows the user to store and retrieve a single weapon from Elsewhere as per the Solar Charm Summoning the Loyal Steel), spending a single mote when performing any such action. Second, the wearer gains an automatic success in any prayer roll aimed at gods in the Division of Endings, not including Saturn herself. Walker found this amulet by his bedside the day after his training was deemed to be finished.

Walker's residence and manse in Yu-Shan is the Infinite Serpent Pagoda, a strange, gloomy building where snake basreliefs adorn the walls and depictions of starred skies transform the ceilings into observatories of times long past. Within the manse, all lights become pale flickers and fires do not radiate warmth. Walker shares the pagoda with his two allies and attendants, Alexara and Zophitria, the Twin Goddesses of the Main Gates of Meru, which he saved from the slums of Yu-Shan. They are completely loyal to him and keep their eyes on Heaven's developments while he's in Creation.

Walker's Sifu is Lineth White Lotus, Goddess of Ritualistic Dance and a member of the Division of Serenity.

Other Notes

Walker is a starting character, plus 15 XP, spent to increase Bureaucracy and Linguistics to 3, Sail to 1 and Survival to 2. The higher number of Background points (mostly Connections) compared to a starting Sidereal character reflects Walker's achievements in his short career prior to the beginning of the campaign.

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