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Name: Vieno Takumi

Age: 23

Hometown: Fallenshine

Personality: Vieno is a very solemn man; he hasn't smiled or laughed much in nearly five years. He is quite possibly an empty shell, with no soul driving him to live his life. He goes through the motions every day like a robot with no true consciousness. Most would think he has no reason to live, but he finds a reason to; in protecting the defenseless innocents. Despite all that has happened to him, he still clings to a small bit of hope that things will get better.

He harbors a great deal of anger towards the King. Since beginning his residence in the main city, he has seen so much brutality and crime. Surprisingly, most of it comes from the King's guards, the ones supposed to be stopping the violence and wrongdoing. He is an honorable man; he would never, in any circumstance, harm an innocent person.

To put it simply, Vieno is melancholy and distant. It is hard for him to make friends; he fears if he lets anyone get close to his heart, he'll only lose them, and suffer. Not what you would expect from a man like him, but it's how he is. It has been so long since he had an actual friend, it's fairly obvious he doesn't socialize often.

If one does get past the barriers around his mangled heart, they'll discover a truly kind, honest, caring man. Life has been cruel to him, but, somehow, he avoids becoming cynical. Though helping others gives him a reason to stay alive, he sometimes feels like there really is no hope and there is nothing but a desolate future awaiting him.

Appearance: A tall, raven-haired man, he stands at around six feet tall, with smoky bluish-gray eyes, tanned skin, and a slightly square-shaped face. His hair is shoulder-length and wavy. When fully clothed, there are hints to his nicely built body. Under his clothes you'll find well-rounded biceps, strong pectoral and abdominal muscles, and muscular legs. His hands are fairly large, but proportionate to his body.

He dresses rather simply, not too complicated. He wears a long-sleeved scarlet shirt, black pants, and, finally, dark brown leather boots. He has a bit of money, but he chooses not to waste it on trivial things such as excessive clothing. His sword hangs from his ebony-colored leather belt and his bow is slung over his shoulder, the bowstring used as a strap across his chest. His quiver's strap is also suspended over his shoulder, causing his bowstring and quiver strap to make an 'X' across his chest.

Upon his neck he wears a silver choker; a silver ankh pendant dangles from the chain. On his left ring finger, he wears a golden band.

Weapons: A double-edged long-sword with no obvious signs of use, despite being passed down from father to son for generation after generation in his family. That can be explained with the meticulous maintenance of his sword. Despite its age, the archaic ruby set into the pommel shines brightly as if it were recently placed there. Another weapon in his arsenal is a yew longbow, which he practices with, along with his sword, daily.

Abilities: Healing, though his specialty, isn't his only magical skill. He can also conjure up fire, lightning, and ice as methods to hinder his opponent.

Bio: Born in the small, southeastern town of Fallenshine, he, as a child, had dreamed of becoming a swordsman who protected the weak and the innocuous. His father was a warrior once, in his younger days. But, once he had a child and his wife died, he had to stop fighting to raise his only son. When Vieno was old enough, his father bestowed upon him an ancient family heirloom, a sword with a blood-red ruby fixed into the pommel. He also taught his son important skills needed to become a skilled swordsman, like how to wield a weapon, fire a bow, and how to use magic.

He doesn't remember much of his mother, she passed away when he was just a young boy. The only reason why he knows what she looked like is because of his father's description of his mother. Vieno could see how brokenhearted his father was. He gathered, from that, his father had loved his mother very much. He figured that his father's broken heart was why the man drank so much.

Vieno and his father weren't very wealthy, because of the King's expensive taxes. Vieno's father openly voiced his extreme disdain for the king, even though most would keep their mouths shut. He had known the murdered king personally, and he wished his old friend could be avenged. But, he was too old and too many people feared the evil dictator. There wasn't anything that could be done.

Throughout his childhood, Vieno had one close friend, a girl named Anna. They were rarely apart, only when Vieno had to train with his father or when both children had to go home. As the pair grew older, they realized that they were truly in love with one another. When Vieno was eighteen, he asked Anna to marry him. Of course, she accepted, and the two were married in a small ceremony with all the villagers of Fallenshine in attendance.

Later that same year, the King's Guard came to the Fallenshine. With them, they brought a draft. Many people feared that they would be forced into service. That day, Vieno and Anna were at his father's home, helping the old man around the house. Then, the house echoed with the sound of heavy knocking on wood.

His father answered the door, and found that he had been into drafted the King's Guard. This horrified Vieno, his father was far too old to be apart of the Guard. Plus, his father hated anything that had to do with the military. But, his father had little choice. Either die, or serve in the Guard.

His father chose death. Before the guardsmen took him away, Vieno stepped in, saying he would serve in his father's place. His father disapproved of this action and told him to not get involved. But Vieno would not hear it, he wanted his father to live. After a small discussion, the guards decided to acquiesce his request.

Anna was, also, strongly against her husband's choice. His father had chosen to die rather than be apart of the King's Guard, so he should respect his father's resolution. But, even she couldn't change his mind. So, it was decided. Early the next morning, Vieno would travel to the main city to serve in the Guard for five years.

Anna didn't want to spend five years without her husband, and pleaded with him to let her come to the main city with him. Vieno wouldn't allow it. The main city was a dangerous place for a young woman. He'd rather die than risk his wife's life like that. Vieno knew it would be a painful ordeal for the both of them, but it was the only way, he believed.

The next morning, he said goodbye to, first, his father and his friends. He spent nearly an hour saying goodbye to Anna, he knew he would miss her terribly. It was tearful parting, Anna could hardly stop crying. With one last kiss, he left her to join the Guard caravan. That morning would be the last time he would ever see both Anna and his father.

After a month of exchanging letters, Vieno learned Anna was pregnant with his child. This saddened him yet made him proud. He would be a father, but it would be nearly five years until he would be able to meet his child. Time progressed, Anna and Vieno continued to exchange letters, keeping him up-to-date on how life in Fallenshine and how her pregnancy was going.

He didn't really tell her about what went on in the main city, because most of it was extremely disconcerting. After six months, Anna wrote him a letter telling him that his father passed away. As he read the news of his father's death, he cried. He and his father had been so close, he was the only family he had left. Three months later, he received another letter from a friend of his.

This one made him cry more tears than he knew he had. Despite the doctors' best efforts, Anna had died in childbirth, and the child, a boy, didn't survive either. He was completely alone. He had no family, his wife was dead, and his son didn't even survive a day in this world. He blamed himself, he thought things would have been different if he had been there when his wife was giving birth.

He contemplated suicide, but he didn't go through with it. He just kept on living, if you could call his existence living. He would get up in the morning, go off to work his shift, come home, eat dinner, train, and then sleep. The next day, he would do it all over again. He did this every day for five years.

Today, five years later, he is finally free of service. He is unsure if he should travel back to Fallenshine, because it may be too emotionally draining, even for him. Right now, he continues to reside in the main city until he figures out what he will do next.

Name: Amira Kure
Age: 21
Hometown: Nubai
Personality: Amira is fairly childish and shy. She finds it hard to talk to people she doesn't know. When approached, she will attempt to run if she feels threatened. She is easily scared by most weapons.
Appearance: Amira has long ivory white hair, having nothing to do with her age. Most people living near the Shrine have this characteristic. Her clothes are brown and plain, with patches over places where they've been worn over time. She wears a beautiful jeweled circlet which was given to her by one of the villagers that cared for her. It belonged to her mother. She has weak sandels, made of wood and cloth. It breaks regularly. Occasionally she'll go barefoot, but she finds it hard to do on rocky surfaces, desert area or tundra.
Weapons: A small knife, not really used for fighting. It is a small blade, with a black handle on it. Nothing entirely special.
Her staff, which looks to be just a long stick. She can use it for defensive purposes, though it's not much of a weapon.
Abilities: She has control over the basic elements, Earth, Water, Fire and Wind.
She also has the extremely rare ability to see and speak to spirits. Only people in her bloodline have this ability.
Bio: Amira's parents are Xander and Aria Kure. They were a young couple living in the main city of Aroshia. They had views that differed very much from the king's. They eventually moved to Nubai where they parented their first child. Their first and only child.

Amira was born in the small village, Nubai. Very very close to the Shrine. At the very young age of one, her parents disappeared from the village. She was left in the care of an elderly couple who raised her for the majority of her life. It was then that she was taught to use the elements, mostly for protective and healing purposes. She then inherited the duty of tending to the Shrine of Shadows.

Her parents however hadn't disappeared. They went to the main kingdom. Her mother, being an avid magic user, easily took control of the guards, and her father slayed the king . They took over, leaving their child. Xander however still missed his daughter, and wished he could give her the life they experianced. Aria urged him she wasn't ready yet.

This life continued for a short time, until her eleventh birthday. She had returned home, only to find the house's door broken down. She entered, to find her adopted father dead, and mother barely clinging to life. She ran over, intending to help, but had not come early enough. She was told what had happened. The army had broken into their house, and demanded to know the whereabouts of 'The Kure girl'. They refused to tell, and the soldiers attacked them, killing the man instantly. Soon after telling her this, the woman passed away. Amira cried for what seemed like forever.

After hearing that his soldiers had failed to find his daughter, Xander became horribly angry. He knew that it wouldn't help to send his soldiers to get her again, not until he knew where she was. Aria helped him to calm down, reminding him that she would join them soon.

She took up residence in the Shrine itself, knowing it would be the only safe place. No one else would take her in, claiming she was bad luck. The only time she left was to travel into town to get food. Most of the food she got was stolen, but she had no money.

Four years later, her sent the guards again. He finally discovered the place she was at. The shrine, where he had learned to use magic. He was amazed that she would follow his footsteps so closely. Maybe she was ready to join him as his wife claimed.

Years passed, and the girl aged, until one year, on her 15th birthday. The soldiers came for her again. this time invading the sacred ground of the shrine. She was helpless, and could not stop them. They took her away to the main city, where she was thrown in the dungeons for little over a year.

Amira was brought before the king. Xander looked at the girl, seeing exactly how much his girl had aged. How she had changed. Dressed in Lordly Cloths, and wearing a spectacular crown, her father asked her a simple question. If she wanted to join him. She glared at him, and said she would never, even if her life depended on it. Xander looked at his daughter sadly and ordered her to be taken to the gates of the city and thrown out. No one was to touch her, or they would have Aria to face. This kept them from hurting or abusing the girl.

She was finally thrown out, not even learning why she was put in there in the first place. She traveled back to her homeland, taking shelter back in the Shrine. Amira had grown a horrible fear of the guardsmen after her experiences. That's why she flees from anyone wielding a sword.

The leader of the Village found her, and gave her the circlet, belonging to her mother. The circlet was etched with runes from a wall in the shrine. She still wears it today. She decided that she would fight this king, after seeing what horrible things happened to the people in the dungeons firsthand. She has no idea her enemy is her own father.

The new-improved version of my character...

Name - Jenova Silverlight/Lauren Elizabeth Ramsey

Age - 17

Hometown - Wildgrove/Galway, Ireland

Personality - Jenova is a young, free girl who loves all things of nature. She can be quite kind and fun to be around, but get on her wrong side and she'll hunt you down one way or another. Her temper is short and often enough turns her anger into fury before you can blink your eye.
She is usually rather impulsive and follows her heart and emotions more than her mind, though that too has some impact on her decisions.
Quick-tempered, yet so compassionate. Jenova has lived through many horrors that normal people do not face, and she's built a strong will and determination to cover her deep, easily-wounded heart.
Though her trust and sensitivy often fall at the hands of others, she isn't weak. A fiery spirit dashed with streaks of competetiveness lights up like flames in her eyes if you offer a challenge.

Appearance - Standing at five foot eight and weighing a hundred and twenty-five pounds, Jenova is quite slim and athletic. Her arms and legs are muscled, although you might not guess how strong she truly is until she face her in battle. Her legs and long and made for running, her build slender and flexible to aid to her agility.
Deep blue eyes gleam like sapphires, tiny swirls of emerald green twisting around her pupils. Her eyes are her pride, her love, her fury. They show whatever emotion that runs through her veins. But this betrayal doesn't make Jenova hate them. Her eyes change color, from blue to green to grey, making her one of the most unique people you'll ever meet. Who wouldn't love their eyes if they did that?
Jenova's hair is long and wavy, reaching down to just cover her shoulder blades. It is silkly and flows with the wind, each strand a different shade of a brunnette's and a blonde's to give it a shining golden-brown color. The front lock on either side of Jenova's face are cut an inch or two shorted than the rest of her hair. This brings a sort of layered look to it, yet not too much.
She usually wears low-rising, flared, dark jeans along with a black sleeveless shirt. A long, black trench coat and black leather boots make up the other half of her clothing. Her accessories include a silver ring on her right ring finger with a crown upon a heart over two hands, an emerald shard hanging from a silver chain around her neck, and a dark brown leather belt with a broken clasp through the loopholes of her jeans.
On occassion, however, she is sometimes willing to shed this attire for a more elegant, formal one.

Weapons - Jenova does not feel an over-powering need to carry a weapon, but that doesn't mean she won't. After living a life of pain and misery, you sort of learn that even your own abilites, not matter how strong they are, can fail you at times. It's best to carry something instead of nothing at all.
To solve this problem, Jenova had an old friend create a unique weapon for her unique self.
It was a simple sapphire hanging from a gold chain, but we all know looks can be deceiving. Many men have taken Jenova as beautiful and innocent only to have their butts kicked a minute later for under-estimating her. Somehow, someway, the maker forced drops of Jenova's blood inside the sapphire and strands of her hair into the chain. One of her abilities is shapeshifting, so adding a bit of herself into this necklace gave it the same power. With some determination, Jenova can grip the sapphire in her palm and force it to take the form of any weapon of her choice.
Usually, it becomes a silver-handled scythe with a shimmering black blade, the sapphire appearing just above the ebony stake on the bottom end. Her weapon might also be a black-hilted long sword with a sapphire-colored blade. It usually depends on her mood, but the scythe is her favorite.
She keeps this weapon-disguised-as-a-necklace in her pocket.

Abilities - Jenova's main and most beloved ability is that of a shapeshifter. Though her hair be golden-brown, she changes form into any animal with dark black fur, feathers, or scales. She has used her power since she was thirteen, so it has been so well-perfected that she can change in only seconds. She could even choose to change a small part of herself if she wished so, like her teeth into fangs or her nails into claws for example.
But that's not all. Jenova also has something like superspeed, though not fully. She cannot run faster than light, but she runs faster than most.
It's the same with her strength. She's not likely to lift buildings, but she can well beyong hold her own.
Jenova also finds herself immune to the burning touch of fire. Though she can neither create nor control it, save dragon form, the dancing flames leave no mark on her.
Her last power is empathy. She has always been able to understand and know the pain of others, but since having the chip in her spine (see history) she truly knows it as her own. Jenova can sense different emotions, understand them, know them, and feel them as if they were her own.

Bio - On the outside, Jenova may seem beautiful, friendly, innocent, and naive, but you might not look at her the same way if you knew her past.
Jenova was born in the forest city of Wildgrove. She had an older brother, two caring parents, and a wonderful treehouse of a home to live in. Animals and art mystified her from the beginning, and this was the perfect place for her.
But her father was drafted into the King's army before she was ten. This tore a hole in the family that would never fully heal, for after three years of being away, a letter was sent back to them saying he had died in service of "our wonderous king".
Jenova's mother took it the hardest, falling ill within two months of the news and dying shortly after. Her older brother of two years, Dakkon, had to take care of Jenova now.
The two siblings lived in their once home-sweet-home treehouse alone and in misery for two years before their meager jobs couldn't afford to support them any longer. The rest of the community pitied the young ones, but no one could see any way to truly help them.
When they reached eighteen and sixteen, Dakkon left to join the military. Jenova felt terribly fearful and at a loss without her brother, but she saw how much pain was in his eyes every time she looked up at him. She knew it might help take it off his mind, even if only for a while. Jenova accepted his decision and left the forest to make her own. As a child, she had heard of hot, sandy deserts to the south. The grey wolves of the forest had told her of the red wolves of the desert. And she wanted to see it all.
Jenova had begun training herself as a shapeshifter, a fighter, and a runner ever since her thirteenth birthday when she found these magicks inside herself. Now that she was journeying to the unknown, she found these skills in even greater need than in the forest.
At first, it felt strange to encounter actual hostile creatures who actually wanted a battle that usually ended in death. Jenova had lived much of a sheltered life in Wildgrove, as much freedom as she had there. She had never known how cruel the world really could be.
The compassionate-hearted young girl soon became a fearless fighter. No one could step in her way without her passing one way or another. True, she wouldn't make the first move nine times out of ten, but hers would be the last.
Upon reaching the desert, Jenova found it to be much like what she pictured. Intense curiosity burned in her heart and eyes to discover all the sandy horizon had to offer, and she eagerly raced onward away from all she had ever known.
It wasn't long until she met some of the natives.
The first creatures she saw were the red wolves which the grey wolves had told her about. Jenova watched them curiously. Never had she seen such large pointed ears, thin but stiff crimson and scarlet fur, thick busky tails, and such long, thin, muscled legs and necks. These wolves were so different from the brown, grey, and black stocky, musclar wolves she had known in her forest.
Then she met humans.
A tribe of beduoins happened to be passing through and spotted the young girl surrounded by red wolves. They quickly charged and circled her, scaring off the wolves in the process. The leader dismounted his beautiful steed and approached Jenova with suspicion and distrust in his eyes. Jenova gazed over his shoulder for a moment at the most glorious, magnificent creature she had ever seen that this stranger had riden. Deep blue eyes glowing like sapphires under the hot sun swept over the beautifully chiseled head, the powerfully arched neck, large muscled body, long powerful legs, and silky crooked tail. The stallion's entire body was blacker than the night, the same color Jenova became when she changed form.
Jenova could not understand whatever language this tribe spoke very well, but after a while, they found a way to communicate and she explained what had happened to her family and why she was here. The tribe seemed rather hostile at first, but eased down once they found no threat in the girl.
She stuck with the tribe for almost six months, learning their language and their ways of survival and life in the desert, but Jenova didn't feel like she truly belonged. Just like in the forest, her place wasn't here. Not now.
Jenova said goodbye to her new friends one day, telling them she needed to find herself before she could be happy again and that perhaps something else out in the world would help her do so. The tribe seemed sadened having just grown used to having her around, but they did not try to stop Jenova as she set off across the desert on another journey south.
After many other experiences both good and bad, Jenova finally ended up in the Kingdom. A nagging feeling of distrust tugged at her heart to be in this place, but the need to explore overpowered it.
Jenova wandered aimlessly through the Kingdom, stopping only to investigate or hide from the many guards that she passed. For whatever reason, they seemed to chase her whenever they crossed paths, so she learned to ty to avoid them. Jenova didn't know what she had done or didn't do but realized they probably weren't coming after her for her autograph. There seemed to be a mean yet haunted look in their eyes whenever they saw her, and Jenova had the dreaded feeling of a criminal on the run.
That would have been her history anyway if she was really born in Wildgrove. But ah, no, she was not.

History - The above bio was made and put in Jenova's mind to keep her from knowing who she really was, for those who did this feared her.
In reality, her name is Lauren Elizabeth Ramsey. She was born in Galway, Ireland in 1753 in different dimension from this.
Lauren's mother was a prostitute, her father a drunk. Not really the most noble of births, but those titles do not matter. What truly does is that her father Liam was sired as a vampire later the same night he met with Ms Elizabeth Ramsey, she whom soon showed signs of being a witch.
Liam soon became the worst demon Ireland and the rest of Europe had ever seen. Elizabeth took her young child with her as she fled to England in an attempt to escape the horror and destruction that Liam, now called Angelus, brought wherever he went. Unfortunately, he caught up to them, and Elizabeth opened a portal to send her now two-year-old daughter away from certain death.
Ten years later, Lauren who has been living in Kentucky, is abducted out of her neighborhood. Her captor, a man named Sean Davis, implanted a tiny pyramid-shaped microchip in Lauren's spine between the shoulder blades. He ran tests on her daily until she escaped five days after turning thirteen.
Lauren ran and ran until she found her way back to Kentucky where her parents were very happy to see her. She told them all that had happened to her, then they confessed she was adopted. This stirred something in her heart, and Lauren felt a new spirit burning inside her that desired so dearly to find her birth parents.
Soon she discovered that the chip in her spine had changed her. Lauren discarded her glasses since her vision became more than better. She ran after school with the track team as her speed and stamina increased drastically. She found she could hear almost as well as a dog. She discovered while playing with a candle that she was now immune to the burning grasp of fire.
But that wasn't even the best part. Lauren found she was a shapeshifter. How? She couldn't tell you, but it excited her, and she practiced and built up her willpower and determination so she could use her new powers.
Almost a year later, Lauren had been waling through the woods when a glowing blue portal opened and sucked her in. She screamed and screamed but she could not stop where she was going.
Lauren ended up in another dimension so very different from the one she had grown up in. So I don't have to go in too much description and waste time, it's the world of Final Fantasy X. She traveled there for a little under a year then she was sucked back through the portal into the dimension she had grown up in, our world in other words. Depression overtook her to find that for whatever reason her adoptive parents had lost their love for her upon having a child of their own. Lauren moped about for a month or two, then the portal sent her into a new dimension. It was the world of Jak and Daxter. She lived there for almost two years, then she came back to our world for a short period of time before entering a new one. The world of Buffy the Vampire Slayer is where she stayed for a year; fighting and living with the Slayer, going to school with Buffy's little sister Dawn, working at the Magic Bow with Giles and Anya. And over a few months, she learned bits and pieces of Buffy's former lover Angel.
For some reason, this name made something pull at her heart, and Lauren began visiting LA every weekend to get to know him. Angel's gang, Cordy and Wes and Fred and Gunn, noticed some key similarities between Lauren and Angel like how they walked, brooded, smiled, and reacted.
More and more with every visit, they began to wonder until finally they looked into it. They found that Angel had been sired in 1753 in Galway, Ireland. By casually mentioning it to him, they discovered that he had been an unruly young man and had visited a prostitute just before following Darla into the alleyway where he was sired. The gang pieced this information and anything they got out of Lauren together, and they found this true story. Then they did a DNA test and confirmed their hypothesis; Angel was Lauren's father.
She was ripped out of that dimension weeks later, and the portal has sent her to this one. She must have been caught, fought, and severly out-numbered then taken somewhere to have her mind tampered with, but she doesn't remember. A certain beduion tribe used their magicks to help unlock Lauren's memories, but she cannot recall how, why, or even really when exactly she was messed with.
Now Lauren's wandering about these lands, wondering why she is here and who are the people who tried to cover up her memories.