Post by The D.J. C.J. on Feb 27, 2016 8:08:25 GMT
HUMANS
BASIC INFORMATION
Name: Lucia Alexandra Garland
Aliases: Tanner's experiment, The Black Blade
Age: 22
Gender: Female
Class: Clergyman
Faction: The Church
Division: Exorcist Division
Rank: Acolyte
PERSONAL INFORMATION
Image:
Appearance: The first thing one would notice about Lucia is her long, flowing red hair and her cold, yellow eyes. She is quite tall, about 6'1". She is usually seen in her Religious Vesture wherever she goes, which is always surprisingly clean - she washes it quite regularly, and keeps herself regularly looking clean and respectable. Her body has some developed muscle, but this is difficult to see underneath her clothes. She usually is either looking at a book or staring off into space, either way she is rarely looking at anybody unless she has a direct reason to listen to people. Whenever she stands, she has a posture that makes her tower over most people.
In battle, she is fully focused on a fight, and her eyes seem to light up, though she'd never admit it. She prefers being fully equipped for battle whenever possible and will be this way unless otherwise ordered, though she is forbidden from doing this on Church grounds unless for an emergency.
Personality: Lucia is cold and rarely shows emotion – in a way she is almost robotic. She suffers from a serious anti-social personality disorder, and can barely be said to interact with people. She is, at best, incredibly blunt with people, and doesn’t seem to understand that her words can hurt others – to this extent, she does not make friends easily, and does not enjoy working with others. Nonetheless, she tries to be ‘good’, and follow a pious path as best as she is able to. She serves those who she deems her superiors, and expects those who are her inferiors to do as she says – not out of any kind of malice or to dominate others, but simply because she is right, and they who choose not to listen are fools – in essence, almost no ability to be diplomatic.
To Lucia, the light of the Lord is the only thing that is just, and all else in the world is tainted by sin. She considers herself no exception to this rule, but follows a ‘code’, taught to her by her mentor, as a way to try and keep some semblance of order, if only for herself, in the lawlessness of this sinful world. While she enjoys killing, she typically keeps it repressed, only letting it show through in a heated battle. She will kill whomever is necessary in order to do the Church’s will, and would (theoretically) go so far as to even kill the Pope himself if he were to be corrupted. However, she also tries to ensure that as few innocents are hurt as possible, as even if she does not love people, her Heavenly Father does.
Lucia has a stunning lack of ambition – only wanting to destroy as much evil as possible in this world, whatever the cost, she follows the orders given to her as best as she is able to. This is one of the reasons she is considered such an effective soldier. However, she also displays a stunning lack of subtlety, caring little what other people think or for nearby property damage, sharing her mentor’s ‘the end justifies the means’ philosophy (though to a lesser extent), which makes her only useful for certain missions. She has little understanding or care of the political power-playing that the Church partakes in.
Lucia has a fondness for reading, and when not on a mission will often be seen reading whatever books she can get her hands on, despite whether they could be considered heretical or not. She will read just about anything from Church scripture to pulp romance fiction, and she is thankful to those who give her books - the closest thing to a friendly act she can understand.
History:
Nobody really knows where the girl came from. The first time anyone saw her, she was found on the steps of the Silver Oaks Home for Lost Souls, a children’s orphanage located somewhere in the dead-end outskirts of Denver, Colorado. It was remarkable to the nuns who found her on the steps that she did not cry, but she was brought in regardless. While this was partially out of goodwill, the Silver Oaks Home for Lost Souls was one of the recruitment fronts of The Church, and orphans would always make for more malleable recruits.
As the girl grew up, the caretakers slowly realised that there was something wrong with her. For one thing, she never played with the other children, and would do little else but read the Bible in her room. In fact, she rarely ever responded to the children or even the adults, except for to acknowledge the adults. While the nuns at first thought it was just shyness, some could tell there was very little light in her eyes. Even when children teased her, she barely even acknowledged their existence. Those that tried to bully her usually ended up being brutally beaten - despite her figure and youth at the time, she had a surprisingly vicious response. Those few stupid enough to bully her learnt their mistake and did not do so again. Word was sent out to The Church – the young girl could be a potential.
However, the girl’s reputation came to a head when for once she went outside, and saw a young boy being bullied by an older girl – the older girl roughly shoving around the young boy, who was in tears. The girl never really learnt the reason as to why it was, but simply went back inside, stole a knife from the kitchen, went back outside and shoved the knife deep into the older girl’s stomach in front of the young boy and plenty of other children inside. Even as the nuns moved to quickly act, they noticed there was a spark in the girl’s eyes, that hadn’t been there before – not only had she shown no remorse, she had even enjoyed the action.
She was too dangerous to let live. In fact, the nuns probably would have arranged for a terrible ‘accident’ right there and then, but not for one co-incidence – the arrival of a man from the Church, having responded to the reports of a potential candidate. His name was Father Edward Tanner (the girl would later find out this name was false, but never what his real name actually was), and where the nuns saw a terrifying evil, he saw a powerful weapon that was not only incredibly pious, but incredibly powerful. He convinced the nuns to instead turn the girl over to him. With rumours of Tanner being a more radical priest, the nuns figured that she was as good as dead under him anyway.
Interestingly, the girl had never responded to a name in her time at the orphanage, so Tanner gave her one – Lucia Alexandra Garland. She seemed to respond to Lucia, not caring about the rest, surprisingly. Tanner officially enlisted the girl into the Church, and assigned himself as her teacher. Some members of the church questioned whether or not Tanner was a suitable teacher, but he was wily enough to keep the more conservative members off his back. He was certainly a unique trainer, introducing Lucia to more ‘unorthodox’ texts of Christianity. Lucia had learnt from a simple copy of the common King James Version bible at first, but she was carefully introduced to other versions, such as the Vulgate, and some more unorthodox Christian texts – even a few heresies were very carefully mixed in to galvanise Lucia’s resolve as merciless fighter, and indeed she grew into this. The code that Tanner carefully guided her into creating was perhaps the one thing that kept her restrained from turning into a full-fledged psychopath, and she was grateful to him for this, for the most part. She did not truly love him, but she looked up to him more than any other in the Church.
Tanner himself realised that she was not suited to the typical fighting styles of the Church. She was not particularly agile as the Archangel’s Iron Nails would allow, but her strength was surprising even among Church members, able to carry objects far heavier than most her age, and so with the help of some of the church’s more willing martial stylists, helped design a martial style more suited to her way of fighting, the Gate of Eden style. She took to it like a glove, though it’s relatively new design still has left much for her to learn.
Lucia’s anti-social nature made it difficult for her to make friends, and she tended to be seen by most as “Tanner’s experiment” or “Tanner’s weapon”, among other things. She didn’t care of their opinions, simply taking to reading texts or practicing her swordplay. Few talked to her, and she talked to few others, with the exception of Tanner. Her superiors respected her obedience and piety, though her ultimate loyalty still lay with Tanner, which many thought was a problem. Ironically, it would be a problem that would solve itself.
Edward Tanner had always been a radical within the Church, closely watched by the Inquisition, but thanks to his connections within the Inquisition and the Church, his heresies had been tolerated for the ‘greater good’ – to a point. Eventually, however, rumour spread that Tanner was collaborating with vampires, a rumour that the Inquisition could no longer afford to ignore. He was finally marked as a heretic – the Inquisitor who was assigned to hunt him ordered Lucia to join in the mission to assassinate her mentor, believing that the girl was one of the last few things Tanner cared about and might be used against him. Lucia, for her part, felt a confliction for one of the few times in her life – while the orders were absolute, and she herself had heard the rumours of Tanner’s heresy growing ever stronger, she still felt some loyalty to her mentor. Still believing in his creed of ‘the ends justify the means’ and that even in the darkness he served the Lord, she wanted to know what it was that would drive her mentor to such lengths.
The Inquisitor and Lucia, through painstaking research found an area that seemed to have elements of his work, following strange reports of the ‘walking dead’. The rumours of zombies roaming the night turned out to be true, even though in surprisingly fewer number than expected by the Inquisitor – if someone around here was studying necromancy properly the entire town should have been razed to the ground by this point.
In the midst of investigating the origin of the walking dead, the two were attacked by a group of Strigoi vampires. Despite putting up a valiant fight, the two were overwhelmed – the Inquisitor was torn apart for his troubles, and Lucia was skewered by claws piercing and raking her body. As she died, her only regret was that she couldn’t have killed them as well.
And then she woke up, on a cold slab of concrete, with her mentor’s face overlooking her. Horrified, her first action was to demand to know what Tanner had done. He explained his experimentation – a ritual to raise those who had been killed so that they could again serve the Lord. The zombies had been by-products of his experimentation and failures – Lucia, apparently, was his first true success, not just returning to life but also retaining her sentience and physical body and prowess, at least as far as could be seen. He had collaborated with the Strigoi for the knowledge necessary, and Tanner had claimed information on certain important individuals in the Inquisition – the senior who had gone with Lucia being one of them – that the Strigoi had wanted to rid themselves of. When the Church got hold of this information, he believed, the few that had been killed for his heresy would be forgiven when the Church had a theoretically infinite amount of soldiers, and no group of evil could stand in their way. As far as Lucia could tell, he honestly believed what he said.
And certainly, Lucia felt almost completely the same as she had before she’d been killed. Her body and her mind felt as they had always had. But she felt something in her soul was gone. She slowly got up. Tanner smiled at her, and he was the same as he always was. Conniving, but still a man whom would and had gone to any length in service of the Lord he believed in, just like her. It was almost like he had never changed. He was still Tanner, the mentor whom had saved her from Silver Oaks.
She picked up the closest and largest of the knives laid out nearby in a careful order, and without a word, slammed it into Tanner’s heart. To this day, she doesn’t know if Tanner was surprised or expected it, but his response was to smile and with his last breath whisper, “Now there is no enemy beyond your reach.” With those words gone, Lucia kept stabbing him, again and again, blinded by sorrow, anger and a twisted enjoyment. She wasn’t exactly sure when or how he died, but the next thing she knew she stood over his body watching it bleed from several holes in his chest, arms and neck. Tanner’s actions may have saved Lucia, but she could feel they had also damned her, and the gates of Heaven were now forever beyond her reach – an action that she could not and never has forgiven him for. Nonetheless, she decided to return to the Church, as it was the only home she had, and she still wanted to serve the Lord, even if the Lord had forsaken her.
What Tanner had done had marked the already distrusted Lucia, but she didn’t care about the Church’s reaction. When she reported back to the Church, she was confined to Cathedral grounds while members of the Church debated what exactly to do with her. Some argued that she should be executed as she was now a heresy against God’s name, but others still felt she had been trained too well and was too effective a soldier to simply throw away. In the end, the vote was for her continued existence and she was even officially granted the post of an Acolyte in the Exorcist Division, but she was placed under ‘house arrest’, never to leave the Church – though some to this day still believe she should be executed as a heresy. While the Church was now also her prison, it didn’t bother her much, as she would spend her time as she had in the orphanage, reading whatever various books she could find, and ignoring the rest of the world.
And so, with no reward awaiting her whatever path this false life of hers had, Lucia decided that if she could no longer reach Heaven, she would take as much evil as she could to hell with her, guarding the world that her Heavenly Father so loved from the nightmares that were spawning.
STATISTICS
Faith: E
Strength: E
Endurance: F
Agility: F
LOADOUT
Equipment:
Name: Longsword
Rank: E
Description: A typical Italian-style longsword, capable of being wielded in one hand to hold another weapon or two-hands for more cutting power. It is 45" long from pommel to blade tip. The mark of the Cross is embedded on the pommel of the sword. Lucia's preferred weapon, she wields it with a serene, almost robotic grace that would make any knight proud.
(see www.sword-buyers-guide.com/images/cf409-08.jpg for image)
Name: Chains (consecrated)
Rank: E
Description: A 3-metre length of chain (the links being 7mm thick) with two heavy weights on both ends of them. The chain/s are typically used offensively, by setting them as a trap or simply swinging them like a whip. The length of chain can also be split in the middle to form two 1.5m lengths. At it's full length, it is too heavy to wield one-handed, though one of the half-lengths can be wielded one-handed with some effort.
Their blessed properties not only harm, but allow them to hold and trap demonic enemies. Against a human it is simply a heavy chain.
Name: Body Armor
Rank: E
Description: A protective ballistic vest which is worn over the chest and torso; typically bearing the Church’s insignia across the chest in a grandiose manner. While still somewhat tough, it does not mean that they are going to be completely protected from the real monsters in the supernatural world. At best covers the internals and important organs while leaving the limbs unprotected for maximum mobility. As the Church takes pride in being very recognisable and intimidating, this armour is only used in duties that are acknowledged as especially dangerous by the organisation – they would much rather their work is known as that of the Church’s to the public courtesy of their iconic garb and weaponry; the more blatantly so the better.
Name: Radio
Rank: E
Description: Basic radio assigned to each unit to communicate with the administration and control of the operation. Typically it is designed as a wireless earpiece receiver and microphone combination, but often lower ranking members end up with older generation equipment such as ones that rely on hip-mounted controls and batteries. These radios work off of a variety of radio channels used by the Church, but are able to pick up other channels perfectly fine. Ideally they can pick up transmissions from about 30km around in an urban environment; but in a clear area they can pick up transmissions at a range of around 40km.
Uniforms:
Name: Religious Vesture
Description: A common attire of the Hunters. They commonly wear an overcoat with a hood over less formal vestments for the sake of the work they devote themselves to. Others may wear a cassock and a clerical collar. Females may wear a nun-like attire, instead, of their choice. Many members wear a golden cross necklace around their neck. Body armor is to be worn under their clothes as part of their protection.
CAPABILITIES
Skills:
Name: Gate of Eden
Description: A form of Special Fighting Style designed by the Church. Those that practice this style of fighting are taught how to engage their foe in brutal close-quarters combat and, once there, prevent them from advancing or retreating until the victim or practicioner die, while containing the monster and limiting the amount of damage to the surroundings. The style is primarily specialised in 1v1 encounters with monsters of a higher ranking, though this style can still be effective against groups.
Rank: E
Name: Melee Weaponry (Longsword)
Description: The capability to use swords, particularly longswords in one or two hands skilfully. This does not extend to two-handed swords, such as greatswords.
Rank: E
Name: Melee Weaponry (Chains)
Description: The capability to use lengths of chain as a melee weapon, as well as interact with the environment, skilfully.
Rank: E
Name: Divine Sacrament of Binding
Description: The magical system of the Church. Though the organization calls them miracles that are bestowed upon its believers. Sacraments are the categories in which Rites are divided into. This is the skill where a Hunter has access to Rites. The rank of this skill determines how good you are at utilizing said Divine Sacrament and will be a big factor in determining how well advanced you are within your specialized field.
Rank: E
Abilities:
Name: Faith
Description: The point where one's Faith can be realized through the Church's Sacraments, Rites, and other means of combating the supernatural through the Church's way. While not exactly mirroring a member's actual "faith", it is a quality that gives them power that can be harnessed. This is required for every member of the Church in order to use Sacraments/Rites or even Holy Relics.
Rank: E
Name: Bravery
Description: The resolve to function towards an intended goal despite the numerous mental interferences. This can range from fear, pressure, confusion, and so forth.
Rank: E
Name: Environmental Awareness
Description: The ability of heightened keen observation of one's own environment. It is gained from being involved in dangerous situations that may cause death or drastic injury. This capacity for sensing danger relies on increasing the sensitivity of all five senses.
Rank: E
Techniques/Spells:
Name: Shining Barrier
Incantation: "Hiericho autem clausa erat atque munita timore filiorum Israhel et nullus egredi audebat aut ingredi." ("Now Jericho was close shut up and fenced, for fear of the children of Israel, and no man durst go out or come in.") (Joshua 6:1 - Vulgate translation)
Description: A holy sigil glows on the ground, creating at it's edge a barrier of light that none may cross until the either caster removes it or is killed. The barrier is a 10m-wide circle (it can be made smaller if necessary, but this will not make the spell use less mana) acting as a physical wall of light around the surrounding area. The barrier cannot be escaped by magical means akin to teleportation while active, however with enough concentrated physical or magical force it can be broken.
Rank: E
Cost: 2 Mana per post
Type: Defense (Anti-Team)
Name: Animate Chain
Incantation: "Cateno!" ("Chain!")
Description: When the consecrated chains are in motion, Lucia can suddenly redirect it in mid-air, causing it to suddenly and sharply change direction. She only has to speak the incantation once for each time the chain is thrown, but each time the chain redirects it counts as one extra usage of the technique.
Rank: F
Cost: 1 Mana
Type: Movement