Jarkov Malachai
A simple Traveler, consumed by Wanderlust.
Well, heres to a edited CS. *raises a glass in toast*
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[The Official RPN Character Challenge 2015]Mikhail Arcturus
- Thread starter Jarkov Malachai
- Start date
Jarkov Malachai
A simple Traveler, consumed by Wanderlust.
Now I only hope that, 1 I got this in the right spot to be posted, 2, I didn't forget anything major about him in my mad rush to finish this. *holds head in hands* haaaaaaaahhahah
Name: Mikhail Arcturus (a Breaking Wars Character)
Age: 25
Gender: Male
Species: Human
Link to Rp From: https://www.rpnation.com/threads/dragon-island.113197/
Genre: Fantasy
Combat: Yes
Picture:
Appearance:
Mikhail Arcturus is an intimidating man to behold. Standing well around seven feet tall combined with a heavily muscled physique, tends to dissuade the occasional traveler from pursuing a conversation. Mikhail wears large custom made leather lamilar boots with a steel shin guard which covers everything up to his knees. The ex-soldier lovingly calls them his ‘shit kickers deluxe’. His pants are a multi layered thick fabric which has been heavily proofed (reinforced, thickened, hardened, etc). For upper garments he wears a simple roughspun cloth tunic under a large, thick, dark blue fur lined sleeveless overcoat made of the same material his pants are, which lays over a broad, deep chest. The coat is bound with heavy stitching and covered in a sort of fireproof outer layer. It is held shut with many metal latches, straps and buckles that go over the chest region which contain small plates lead interwoven within the many layered overcoat. A multitude of bandoliers, pockets, and pouches line the upper portion of the overcoat and some even down on the tongues of the garment, filled with everything from the days money pouch to highly volatile bottles of Greek Fyre. Mikhails arms can be easily described as small tree trunks, speaking of long hard days without rest or pause in working either a forge, or a warhammer. His hands and palms are rough and calloused, hands which have had more experience with a blade than a scythe or some farmers tool, the hands of a soldier. His head has a mop of long lustrous black hair which sticks up everywhere rather haphazardly as if he was just struck by lightning save for a single warrior braid which drapes down over one of his eyes. Mikhails face is rough and weathered beyond what a man of his years should be, like a weathered tree trunk by the sea. His strong chin and sharp cheekbones couple with that weathered look give him a rugged roguish look that is not uncomely. His nose which was once angled and sleek now lays crooked and bent, evidence of it having been broken and set more than once. But the most pronounced feature of Mikhail which was well known by the end of the Legendary Breaking Wars is his grin. A grin that says ‘ you see this man? this man who’s face i'm on? He doesn't give a single mighty fuck.’ and indeed good people, when it comes to the laws of normality, sanity, and occasionally the laws of physics… Mikhail does not.
Personality: Mikhail Arcturus is a seemingly carefree good natured wanderer with many a secrets and a much darker side. No one came out from the physical and mental meat grinder that was the Breaking Wars unscathed, nay, many did not come out from that fray at all. The Outer-shell is a happy, outgoing, dependable and slightly crazy man who struggles to contain a monster which wreaked havoc on the fields of war. He does not want to live on forever haunted by a war that the world would rather not remember, living eternally in its hell as some of his fellow Breakers (Name for the Veterans of the Breaking Wars) do… though the carnage is never far from any of their minds and it always with lurk about in their soul.For the moment though, Mikhail simply wanders the word in search of a reason and purpose, living on the fringes and doing so happily. Helping travelers, searching the long dead ruins of ancient civilizations and people. As many Breakers, he loves to solve puzzles, be they of the mind, body and or soul as he sees them as a challenge which is what all those who survive the Breaking Wars seek. A Challenge so they can feel alive again, so often enough they do what Mikhail does… wander in search of either it or a place they can finally call home. Trying to be a better person, trying to get the world to judge him for he is not who he was… though it is hard. One does not simply throw away eight years of their life in an instant.
Backstory:Mikhail Arcturus grew up in a small hidden village in the misty Androgni mountain range. The son of one of the areas most renowned blacksmiths, he had a happy childhood there for most of his young life up until the age of 12…
Thats when the Breaking Wars broke out. A horrendous conflict which ranked up as one of the worst in world history. A war of which every other species in the world, be they elvish, dwarvish, fae, daemon, dragon, went on a genocidal warpath to clear out all the other races and wipe them from existence.
The cause of this war to the present date remains a mystery, it just erupted one day into a utter bloodbath which would carve itself into the very spines of the history books. Some say that mankind overstepped some boundary set by the gods, others say that the discovery of some ancient relic from the time of the Precursors sent the ruling powers into a frenzy over its control and the war was just a front for it all. A few say that Mother Earth… Lady Gaia herself, demanded the genocide as a part to determine who would be the ultimate inheritor of herself. Only a few higher powers know the truth and their lips are sealed. Mikhail's village was one of the first great tragedies of the war, the territory it was in had been disputed between the human and draconic governing powers. The Dragons decided they would purge the infestation from the lands they considered rightfully theirs. It was around mid-day when his village first saw the smoke, coming from the neighboring village. A great big, black ugly plume of ash and burning wood which rose up from the valley over and streaked the sky. They didn't have to wonder for long as to what was the cause. Great big scaly, monstrous creatures flew over their village and began indiscriminately burning the entire place to the ground, they spared no one.
Mikhail fled, after having watched his family burn alive in their own home he having arrived seconds too late to warn them of the impending doom, with his two lifelong friends, Kyridian, and Corwyn. However, as they fled one of the great Dragons took notice of them and took off in hot pursuit. The three boys ran for the safety of the river downhill but unless something happened they were not going to make it and they would burn in the fiery agony that the rest of their family and friends had, but something did. Corwyn, a small, lanky, think, book worm sort of lad, suddenly stopped. He gave Mikhail his favorite journal, a small leather bound tome with two pressed dragons in a mating flight, ironic indeed, and he said to them. “Avenge us… do not let us be forgotten.” Before they could question what he meant by that, Mikhail and Kyridian, he abruptly took off towards the dragon pursuing them and took a hard right leading the monster away from them. Mikhail tried in vain to go after him, to stop him even though it would mean his own death but Kyridian held him back. So they watched their friend vanish into the opposite tree line, and that tree line erupted into a fiery inferno of which nothing living could have survived. Sobbing, crying and in a state of shock, the two survivors threw themselves into the river and rode it all the way down to the footholds of the mountain where the human armies themselves only just began to gather in response to other similar acts of war and aggression by the other races.
The recruitment officer in charge a week later found himself confronted by these two country bumpkins, covered in dirt, open wounds, ash and singed clothes who told him quite openly that they wanted to fight. Now this officer should have refused them for one being under age, and two they just were not the type that the army thought it wanted. But it was this mans job to find and recruit what the army needed and the look that these two little boys had was without a doubt was what the army needed. They had vengeance in their hearts and a will to carry it out instead of the pompous young men he had been dealing with who thought war was a game. Here before him stood already blooded meat. So a handshake between a single man and two young boys sealed the path for one of the greatest legends in the Breaking Wars Mythos.
After barely 5 months of the most basic training with a blade, shield and how to march… they, Mikhail and Kyridians unit, saw action. Their army had high expectations, they would beat these heathen creatures and show them who the real heirs of the earth are. The Entire human coalition force was wiped out in a few hours, nearly 15,000 men died that day. Massacred, slaughtered. The first thousand never even got the chance to draw out their blades before they were cut down by the lightning quick movement of the Fae swords. They lost that battle of course, Kyridian and Mikhail as well as a few hundred others struggled back into a camp which they found sacked, burned and stomped into the ground. The survivors hoofed it another 20 miles in the dark to the nearest city where they recuperated and told their tale. While waiting for orders and reinforcements the onslaught of the Fae reached the small walled city. They held out for two days before reinforcements arrived. They lost again that day, the city was completely demolished and once again the two young men were forced on the run farther into human occupied territory. They were shuffled into a army being assembled to fight off the ‘heathens’. New faces, a new commander who was some noble whom had never seen actual combat and didnt listen to a word the survivors said. They all went out into the field, and died. Make no mistake it was not as bad as it was the first time, they were not slaughtered without giving resistance. They gave as good as they got… but they still lost. It set the mood for the next… 5 years. Loss after loss, defeat after defeat. Mikhail and his brother would get shuffled into the deck of another force being formed to fight for humanity. Try to imagine it, every week or so, you would be set in a unit with these happy hopeful faces, who were so sure of themselves.
But you knew they were going to die, and they did. Friendships didnt last, hell, there was barely time to get to know someone before everyone was ordered onto the field, and you ended up carrying him back in a body bag. Most of the time they were not even awarded that courtesy. there was simply to many dead to bury, closed eyes, a few prayers was all that could be afforded. So the survivors of these conflicts continued on, kept fighting, fought harder, more savage, and always trained for the next fight. Always were ready for death but never surrendered to it. Always danced the fine line, but they simply refused to die. These men, women, on all sides of the conflict, human, dragon whatever. Slowly became legends amongst those souls of war. Their deeds became legendary for they indeed were. From Foalan, the Lycan swordsman who was part of the outlying raider packs, killing and vanishing like figures of fog in mist. Kyra, the Mighty Dragon Magus, high matriarch of the royal dragon empire, she who annihilated towns with her bare fists and devastating magics. Neravare, the eartth Shaker. Even Kyridian became a legend, known as the Steel Wall of the North. Famous for never giving ground and having a defense strong enough to weather the strongest of magical or phyiscal attacks.
Eventually in the sixth year, Mikhail was awarded a command, not because of heroic deeds though he had done plenty, there was simply none left of noble blood in the area to fulfill the position.It turned out to be perhaps one of the best things that the human armies could have hoped for, aside from more of the survivors which were beginning to have a profound impact on the frontlines as they adapted more and more to the brutality of this war. Mikhail was a utter genius at leading men. He in those six years since the wars started had gone from a underfed waif who didnt know anything else other than ‘pointy end goes in bad thing’ to a prime specimen of humanity and a all around dangerous motherfucker. He caused absolute havoc on the battlefield with his utterly unorthodox battle plans, random strategies and being almost completely unpredictable. It wasnt unheard of for the Breaker to launch himself at flying dragons via catapult and somehow, by the grace of whatever gods were watching him, landed on one almost every time.
Mikhail, by the end of the wars end, was one of the most hated humans in the world, because he didnt fight fair, he didnt fight with honor. Because he had realized something that it took the other races too long to figure out. This wasnt some war for territory, which is what they had been acting as if it had been… this was a war for survival! He went behind enemy lines, taking with him the most elite soldiers he could muster, and waged total war. He destroyed entire villages giving no quarter to all those in them, men, women, children, the old all of them were put to the sword. He sowed the fields with salt, poisoned the wells, lakes rivers and streams by whatever means he could find. Raided dragon nests and killed the hatchlings, smashed their eggs, burned the faes forests down. Killed the Lycans herds, and flooded dwarven mines. Did whatever he could to draw troops off the front lines to come back and protect their homelands from his reign of terror and when they found him they lost an arm and a leg driving him off.
For, once again, Mikhail realized how to win this war, and that wasnt fighting fair. Whenever he was engaged in by an enemy force he thought not on how to win, but how to cause the most damage, cripple as many foes so that it would bog them down to care for the wounded, how to make it so costly to fight his band of men that it wasnt worth attacking them, and he did so admirably for that in the long run is what would win this war. Send as many people home not in a body bad, but with an arm cut off, legs gone, eyes blinded. So that the people back in their home might realize that this madness had to end.
Mikhail won very little battles, maybe 12 his entire 8 year period in the war, but humanity no doubt would have suffered much worse if not outright extinction if it wasnt for this man and his willingness to sacrifice his humanity to commit these horrendous atrocities for the survival of their race. Then suddenly the war ended… as quickly as it had come. Mayhap the ruling powers that be came to their senses finally, the Dragon Empire was in an uproar after the war as the Dragon Breaker Kyra killed the Empress and claimed the throne for herself. But for the rest of the Breakers they simply were lost. What would they do now? Their entire lives were spent up in the war, they couldnt remember a time when it wasnt going on, when they were not ankle deep in their fallen foes and comrades blood. They no longer had a purpose. Granted they tried to come back home, to live normal lives after the Breaking Wars but they came back to the cities and towns they had given up so much to protect and found they were not wanted. Breakers of all the Races came back home to face an ugly truth… their own people were afraid of them, wanted to forget them for they were reminders of a war that held nothing but bad memories for all. So they wished the Breakers to be forgotten to. They were not allowed in most towns, governmental jobs were forbidden from them, they were banned from buying land. They. Were. Unwanted. Unloved. Hated. Held in Contempt. Feared. A multitude of other things as well. They simply were different, the war had changed them, made them more than what they once were, who they once were.
So… Mikhail, the Shining Star of Humanity, was cast off into the black. Like a tool that served its purpose he was thrown away into the shed to be forgotten. He couldn't believe it, didnt understand it. He had sacrificed everything! time, life, his very morality for these people and they wanted not to do with him. So as many other Breakers did, they joined in small bands and wandered off into the far reaches of the world where they would not bother anyone, rejected for doing what they were asked to do, the stains of a war, the scars, which would never wash away or fade. Marked by their eyes, those haunted, hunted eyes, which had seen to much.
Abilities/Skills:
Craftsman: As a blacksmiths son, Mikhail practically lived the forge life. He had a pretty good idea of metallurgy when he went into the war and has only honed his craft even more so outside the battlefield. But eventually it was not just metalworking that caught his attention but carpentry as well, then engineering, architecture etc. Mikhail is exceptional and building things to fix the problem at hand, though sadly most of the problems put before him involve dealing death so the most the world has ever gotten out of this gift is war machines.
Martial Arts: The Body and Mind are two of the greatest weapons a Breaker has, and they will only fail you when you yourself have pushed too far. One can learn the limits of their body and go beyond whilst a blade generally cannot. Exceptionally strong, but tempered with the fine movements and precise blows that studying under the martial artist masters brings. It leads to a devastating weapon which is Mikhails body alone. The man can drop kick your head into your stomach to sum it up.
Resistance: Mikhail… lets just say that being set on fire, electrocuted, frozen, poisoned, beaten by a dragons fist and sometimes all of those at once. has Given Mikhail a high resistance to most elemental attacks. He is pretty tough and can go through the fire and the flames and carry on! (*play epic guitar solo*)
DieHard: Mikhails Will is his biggest weapon however, it is what allows him to Draw the Sealed Blade, weather the Dragons fyre, and as this ability suggests. DIE HARD. In the original rp where this guy was from, he was shot 5 times with crossbows, rib cage was caved in, his leg and both arms were broken from BEATING his enemies to death before Kyra, the then Dragon Queen turned Empress Immolated him. Caused Fire to erupt from every pore and orifice in his body. A gruesome way to die especially between friends. However this characteristic is shared by all Breakers to some extent, like cockroaches they just refuse to die!
Null Field: A property of the Sealed Sword (Explained down below) is that everything in a 5 meter radius that is magical in nature, or energy based is eaten up by the blades incessant hunger which is born from literal nothing. So… an example would be trying to get the ground from underneath him to explode, if the magic has to reach into the null field its eaten instantly, however if one were to say chuck a boulder at him magically, since the magic to chuck said boulder is outside the Null field, the boulder would keep its velocity upon entering.
Stamina and Regen: The horrendous punishment and long hours and days fighting in the breaking wars has made Mikhails Body exceedingly good at fighting well past the limits of human endurance and healing itself afterwards. He has a amazing vitality which allows him to shrug off some serious hits because he simply bounces back with that crazy grin on his face and a fist in yours.
Others:
The Sealed Sword: The second relic (other was deemith to OPith) that Mikhail carries, and arguably the most powerful of the seven relics of The Final Sybill. Tis a blade of many secrets, hidden strengths and abilities.The sheath of the sword is made of a old yet still supple blue leather with silver runes burned into the ancient animal hide. The hilt is made of what appears to be simple wrought iron, with harsh sharp edges angling up to unnatural points with a large clear crystal set into both the guard and pommel of the hilt. It is easy to see that this is no ceremonial weapon, this sword was made not to be viewed… but to be used.. The weapon is sealed shut to the hilt and sheath via thick black unassuming iron chains. The length and width of the actual blade is that similar to a hald and a half or bastard sword save perhaps a quarter inch wider and thicker. However while the hilt is unassuming, the blade itself is a thing of beauty.Appearing to be the cross of a nordic (celtic) hero sword and a sword breaker, the Sealed Sword inspires both awe and terror to even those who know not what it is. The front cutting edge is made up of a semi-transparent white silvery material. This material seems to dim and or grow more solid and corporeal depending upon who wields the blade. Metallurgists and smith's across the land argue as to what exactaly the two parts of this blade are made up of. But the cutting edge of the blade… it is a secret that not even Mikhail knows, only some of the oldest creatures and gods are privy to it. You see, that is no metal on the blades edge. The Final Sybill had found a way to made a physical manifestation of his will. The more powerful the will, the sharper and harder the blade is. The Sybill had been recorded cutting through the space time continuum and defecting high velocity anti-tank rounds with the utmost of ease. The rest of the blade is made of nothing…. Its simply a black void covered in a light silver sheen of the same metal/nonmetal that is the willpower of the user. The Anti-Thesis to existence barely contained by the willpower of the user and the long gone Sybill. It is why only a few can break the chains which bind the blade, sealing the blade shut so that only a sufficient willpower can safely draw the blade, and prevent it from imploding.Thankfully Mikhail is no where NEAR the level of the Final Sybill and odds are there will never be another close to his power, so we have no need to worry about Mikhail ripping holes in the space time continuum or the like. Though he is no doubt capable of cutting your head off with it. He is almost a master swordman, he has not the years yet but experience in the field he has no shortage of.
Long Range, whats that?:Mikhail only has a single long range weapon which is a massive Bessie Mauler heavy assault crossbow which he created to go through the hide of dragons at more than 100 meters, more a ballista than a crossbow. The best way to deal with this man is long range, do NOT engage him in close range combat, his particular fighting style is extremely dangerous when in one on one. But as said up above he's weak long range, for he only has one weapon that is a ranged and to be quite honest its a damn sight unwieldy to use but nevertheless effective. Be sure to note however, that while long range is his weakness, dont expect to sit there and shoot at him while he stands there staring up at the sky. The man is a tactical genius and will most likely be looking for how to nullify these disadvantages.
1v1 me bro: Mikhail is more suited to small confrontations where he can dish out the most damage in the shortest amount of time. Unlike his friend Kyridian who fought on the front lines the entire war, Mikhail fought more hit and run so to speak. He is sadly not as experienced with dealing large groups on his own, as his wont was more to kill larger creatures all alone like dragon, trolls, giants and the like. His fighting style is great for small confrontations but larger groups he would quickly be incapacitated.
Friend of humanity: Mikhail oddly enough, is only decent at killing human beings, his reactions are suited to the lightning quick movements of the elves, the brutal strength of ogres and other such non human creatures. He was trying to save humanity, not kill it so he tries to avoid fighting in general but humans most of all. He overcompensates so to speak, when fighting his fellow man. though he is getting better at killing his own kind as many men want to try and bring back the head of a breaker for the reward money that is offered for them in some places. He no longer moves so fast to parry blades that it misses completely and he gets a nice cut across the face but he still is unsure as to what to do when faced with other men.
Instilled Hate: The hatred for the ‘others’ (as the races were called by humanity) has died down since the wars end but it still strong and a steady black, oily, flowing river in the Breakers heart. He tries to stamp it out, dry it, dam it up but such things are only healed with time. Mikhail does not want to go back to who he was, the monster he had become in order to survive. He doesnt want to survive any more, he wants to LIVE! to be alive and free, happy as can be and enjoy all the things he never could. But the beast still lurks, as it does in all of us, down in our hearts for we damn well are our own worst enemy.
Name: Mikhail Arcturus (a Breaking Wars Character)
Age: 25
Gender: Male
Species: Human
Link to Rp From: https://www.rpnation.com/threads/dragon-island.113197/
Genre: Fantasy
Combat: Yes
Picture:
Appearance:
Mikhail Arcturus is an intimidating man to behold. Standing well around seven feet tall combined with a heavily muscled physique, tends to dissuade the occasional traveler from pursuing a conversation. Mikhail wears large custom made leather lamilar boots with a steel shin guard which covers everything up to his knees. The ex-soldier lovingly calls them his ‘shit kickers deluxe’. His pants are a multi layered thick fabric which has been heavily proofed (reinforced, thickened, hardened, etc). For upper garments he wears a simple roughspun cloth tunic under a large, thick, dark blue fur lined sleeveless overcoat made of the same material his pants are, which lays over a broad, deep chest. The coat is bound with heavy stitching and covered in a sort of fireproof outer layer. It is held shut with many metal latches, straps and buckles that go over the chest region which contain small plates lead interwoven within the many layered overcoat. A multitude of bandoliers, pockets, and pouches line the upper portion of the overcoat and some even down on the tongues of the garment, filled with everything from the days money pouch to highly volatile bottles of Greek Fyre. Mikhails arms can be easily described as small tree trunks, speaking of long hard days without rest or pause in working either a forge, or a warhammer. His hands and palms are rough and calloused, hands which have had more experience with a blade than a scythe or some farmers tool, the hands of a soldier. His head has a mop of long lustrous black hair which sticks up everywhere rather haphazardly as if he was just struck by lightning save for a single warrior braid which drapes down over one of his eyes. Mikhails face is rough and weathered beyond what a man of his years should be, like a weathered tree trunk by the sea. His strong chin and sharp cheekbones couple with that weathered look give him a rugged roguish look that is not uncomely. His nose which was once angled and sleek now lays crooked and bent, evidence of it having been broken and set more than once. But the most pronounced feature of Mikhail which was well known by the end of the Legendary Breaking Wars is his grin. A grin that says ‘ you see this man? this man who’s face i'm on? He doesn't give a single mighty fuck.’ and indeed good people, when it comes to the laws of normality, sanity, and occasionally the laws of physics… Mikhail does not.
Personality: Mikhail Arcturus is a seemingly carefree good natured wanderer with many a secrets and a much darker side. No one came out from the physical and mental meat grinder that was the Breaking Wars unscathed, nay, many did not come out from that fray at all. The Outer-shell is a happy, outgoing, dependable and slightly crazy man who struggles to contain a monster which wreaked havoc on the fields of war. He does not want to live on forever haunted by a war that the world would rather not remember, living eternally in its hell as some of his fellow Breakers (Name for the Veterans of the Breaking Wars) do… though the carnage is never far from any of their minds and it always with lurk about in their soul.For the moment though, Mikhail simply wanders the word in search of a reason and purpose, living on the fringes and doing so happily. Helping travelers, searching the long dead ruins of ancient civilizations and people. As many Breakers, he loves to solve puzzles, be they of the mind, body and or soul as he sees them as a challenge which is what all those who survive the Breaking Wars seek. A Challenge so they can feel alive again, so often enough they do what Mikhail does… wander in search of either it or a place they can finally call home. Trying to be a better person, trying to get the world to judge him for he is not who he was… though it is hard. One does not simply throw away eight years of their life in an instant.
Backstory:Mikhail Arcturus grew up in a small hidden village in the misty Androgni mountain range. The son of one of the areas most renowned blacksmiths, he had a happy childhood there for most of his young life up until the age of 12…
Thats when the Breaking Wars broke out. A horrendous conflict which ranked up as one of the worst in world history. A war of which every other species in the world, be they elvish, dwarvish, fae, daemon, dragon, went on a genocidal warpath to clear out all the other races and wipe them from existence.
The cause of this war to the present date remains a mystery, it just erupted one day into a utter bloodbath which would carve itself into the very spines of the history books. Some say that mankind overstepped some boundary set by the gods, others say that the discovery of some ancient relic from the time of the Precursors sent the ruling powers into a frenzy over its control and the war was just a front for it all. A few say that Mother Earth… Lady Gaia herself, demanded the genocide as a part to determine who would be the ultimate inheritor of herself. Only a few higher powers know the truth and their lips are sealed. Mikhail's village was one of the first great tragedies of the war, the territory it was in had been disputed between the human and draconic governing powers. The Dragons decided they would purge the infestation from the lands they considered rightfully theirs. It was around mid-day when his village first saw the smoke, coming from the neighboring village. A great big, black ugly plume of ash and burning wood which rose up from the valley over and streaked the sky. They didn't have to wonder for long as to what was the cause. Great big scaly, monstrous creatures flew over their village and began indiscriminately burning the entire place to the ground, they spared no one.
Mikhail fled, after having watched his family burn alive in their own home he having arrived seconds too late to warn them of the impending doom, with his two lifelong friends, Kyridian, and Corwyn. However, as they fled one of the great Dragons took notice of them and took off in hot pursuit. The three boys ran for the safety of the river downhill but unless something happened they were not going to make it and they would burn in the fiery agony that the rest of their family and friends had, but something did. Corwyn, a small, lanky, think, book worm sort of lad, suddenly stopped. He gave Mikhail his favorite journal, a small leather bound tome with two pressed dragons in a mating flight, ironic indeed, and he said to them. “Avenge us… do not let us be forgotten.” Before they could question what he meant by that, Mikhail and Kyridian, he abruptly took off towards the dragon pursuing them and took a hard right leading the monster away from them. Mikhail tried in vain to go after him, to stop him even though it would mean his own death but Kyridian held him back. So they watched their friend vanish into the opposite tree line, and that tree line erupted into a fiery inferno of which nothing living could have survived. Sobbing, crying and in a state of shock, the two survivors threw themselves into the river and rode it all the way down to the footholds of the mountain where the human armies themselves only just began to gather in response to other similar acts of war and aggression by the other races.
The recruitment officer in charge a week later found himself confronted by these two country bumpkins, covered in dirt, open wounds, ash and singed clothes who told him quite openly that they wanted to fight. Now this officer should have refused them for one being under age, and two they just were not the type that the army thought it wanted. But it was this mans job to find and recruit what the army needed and the look that these two little boys had was without a doubt was what the army needed. They had vengeance in their hearts and a will to carry it out instead of the pompous young men he had been dealing with who thought war was a game. Here before him stood already blooded meat. So a handshake between a single man and two young boys sealed the path for one of the greatest legends in the Breaking Wars Mythos.
After barely 5 months of the most basic training with a blade, shield and how to march… they, Mikhail and Kyridians unit, saw action. Their army had high expectations, they would beat these heathen creatures and show them who the real heirs of the earth are. The Entire human coalition force was wiped out in a few hours, nearly 15,000 men died that day. Massacred, slaughtered. The first thousand never even got the chance to draw out their blades before they were cut down by the lightning quick movement of the Fae swords. They lost that battle of course, Kyridian and Mikhail as well as a few hundred others struggled back into a camp which they found sacked, burned and stomped into the ground. The survivors hoofed it another 20 miles in the dark to the nearest city where they recuperated and told their tale. While waiting for orders and reinforcements the onslaught of the Fae reached the small walled city. They held out for two days before reinforcements arrived. They lost again that day, the city was completely demolished and once again the two young men were forced on the run farther into human occupied territory. They were shuffled into a army being assembled to fight off the ‘heathens’. New faces, a new commander who was some noble whom had never seen actual combat and didnt listen to a word the survivors said. They all went out into the field, and died. Make no mistake it was not as bad as it was the first time, they were not slaughtered without giving resistance. They gave as good as they got… but they still lost. It set the mood for the next… 5 years. Loss after loss, defeat after defeat. Mikhail and his brother would get shuffled into the deck of another force being formed to fight for humanity. Try to imagine it, every week or so, you would be set in a unit with these happy hopeful faces, who were so sure of themselves.
But you knew they were going to die, and they did. Friendships didnt last, hell, there was barely time to get to know someone before everyone was ordered onto the field, and you ended up carrying him back in a body bag. Most of the time they were not even awarded that courtesy. there was simply to many dead to bury, closed eyes, a few prayers was all that could be afforded. So the survivors of these conflicts continued on, kept fighting, fought harder, more savage, and always trained for the next fight. Always were ready for death but never surrendered to it. Always danced the fine line, but they simply refused to die. These men, women, on all sides of the conflict, human, dragon whatever. Slowly became legends amongst those souls of war. Their deeds became legendary for they indeed were. From Foalan, the Lycan swordsman who was part of the outlying raider packs, killing and vanishing like figures of fog in mist. Kyra, the Mighty Dragon Magus, high matriarch of the royal dragon empire, she who annihilated towns with her bare fists and devastating magics. Neravare, the eartth Shaker. Even Kyridian became a legend, known as the Steel Wall of the North. Famous for never giving ground and having a defense strong enough to weather the strongest of magical or phyiscal attacks.
Eventually in the sixth year, Mikhail was awarded a command, not because of heroic deeds though he had done plenty, there was simply none left of noble blood in the area to fulfill the position.It turned out to be perhaps one of the best things that the human armies could have hoped for, aside from more of the survivors which were beginning to have a profound impact on the frontlines as they adapted more and more to the brutality of this war. Mikhail was a utter genius at leading men. He in those six years since the wars started had gone from a underfed waif who didnt know anything else other than ‘pointy end goes in bad thing’ to a prime specimen of humanity and a all around dangerous motherfucker. He caused absolute havoc on the battlefield with his utterly unorthodox battle plans, random strategies and being almost completely unpredictable. It wasnt unheard of for the Breaker to launch himself at flying dragons via catapult and somehow, by the grace of whatever gods were watching him, landed on one almost every time.
Mikhail, by the end of the wars end, was one of the most hated humans in the world, because he didnt fight fair, he didnt fight with honor. Because he had realized something that it took the other races too long to figure out. This wasnt some war for territory, which is what they had been acting as if it had been… this was a war for survival! He went behind enemy lines, taking with him the most elite soldiers he could muster, and waged total war. He destroyed entire villages giving no quarter to all those in them, men, women, children, the old all of them were put to the sword. He sowed the fields with salt, poisoned the wells, lakes rivers and streams by whatever means he could find. Raided dragon nests and killed the hatchlings, smashed their eggs, burned the faes forests down. Killed the Lycans herds, and flooded dwarven mines. Did whatever he could to draw troops off the front lines to come back and protect their homelands from his reign of terror and when they found him they lost an arm and a leg driving him off.
For, once again, Mikhail realized how to win this war, and that wasnt fighting fair. Whenever he was engaged in by an enemy force he thought not on how to win, but how to cause the most damage, cripple as many foes so that it would bog them down to care for the wounded, how to make it so costly to fight his band of men that it wasnt worth attacking them, and he did so admirably for that in the long run is what would win this war. Send as many people home not in a body bad, but with an arm cut off, legs gone, eyes blinded. So that the people back in their home might realize that this madness had to end.
Mikhail won very little battles, maybe 12 his entire 8 year period in the war, but humanity no doubt would have suffered much worse if not outright extinction if it wasnt for this man and his willingness to sacrifice his humanity to commit these horrendous atrocities for the survival of their race. Then suddenly the war ended… as quickly as it had come. Mayhap the ruling powers that be came to their senses finally, the Dragon Empire was in an uproar after the war as the Dragon Breaker Kyra killed the Empress and claimed the throne for herself. But for the rest of the Breakers they simply were lost. What would they do now? Their entire lives were spent up in the war, they couldnt remember a time when it wasnt going on, when they were not ankle deep in their fallen foes and comrades blood. They no longer had a purpose. Granted they tried to come back home, to live normal lives after the Breaking Wars but they came back to the cities and towns they had given up so much to protect and found they were not wanted. Breakers of all the Races came back home to face an ugly truth… their own people were afraid of them, wanted to forget them for they were reminders of a war that held nothing but bad memories for all. So they wished the Breakers to be forgotten to. They were not allowed in most towns, governmental jobs were forbidden from them, they were banned from buying land. They. Were. Unwanted. Unloved. Hated. Held in Contempt. Feared. A multitude of other things as well. They simply were different, the war had changed them, made them more than what they once were, who they once were.
So… Mikhail, the Shining Star of Humanity, was cast off into the black. Like a tool that served its purpose he was thrown away into the shed to be forgotten. He couldn't believe it, didnt understand it. He had sacrificed everything! time, life, his very morality for these people and they wanted not to do with him. So as many other Breakers did, they joined in small bands and wandered off into the far reaches of the world where they would not bother anyone, rejected for doing what they were asked to do, the stains of a war, the scars, which would never wash away or fade. Marked by their eyes, those haunted, hunted eyes, which had seen to much.
Abilities/Skills:
Craftsman: As a blacksmiths son, Mikhail practically lived the forge life. He had a pretty good idea of metallurgy when he went into the war and has only honed his craft even more so outside the battlefield. But eventually it was not just metalworking that caught his attention but carpentry as well, then engineering, architecture etc. Mikhail is exceptional and building things to fix the problem at hand, though sadly most of the problems put before him involve dealing death so the most the world has ever gotten out of this gift is war machines.
Martial Arts: The Body and Mind are two of the greatest weapons a Breaker has, and they will only fail you when you yourself have pushed too far. One can learn the limits of their body and go beyond whilst a blade generally cannot. Exceptionally strong, but tempered with the fine movements and precise blows that studying under the martial artist masters brings. It leads to a devastating weapon which is Mikhails body alone. The man can drop kick your head into your stomach to sum it up.
Resistance: Mikhail… lets just say that being set on fire, electrocuted, frozen, poisoned, beaten by a dragons fist and sometimes all of those at once. has Given Mikhail a high resistance to most elemental attacks. He is pretty tough and can go through the fire and the flames and carry on! (*play epic guitar solo*)
DieHard: Mikhails Will is his biggest weapon however, it is what allows him to Draw the Sealed Blade, weather the Dragons fyre, and as this ability suggests. DIE HARD. In the original rp where this guy was from, he was shot 5 times with crossbows, rib cage was caved in, his leg and both arms were broken from BEATING his enemies to death before Kyra, the then Dragon Queen turned Empress Immolated him. Caused Fire to erupt from every pore and orifice in his body. A gruesome way to die especially between friends. However this characteristic is shared by all Breakers to some extent, like cockroaches they just refuse to die!
Null Field: A property of the Sealed Sword (Explained down below) is that everything in a 5 meter radius that is magical in nature, or energy based is eaten up by the blades incessant hunger which is born from literal nothing. So… an example would be trying to get the ground from underneath him to explode, if the magic has to reach into the null field its eaten instantly, however if one were to say chuck a boulder at him magically, since the magic to chuck said boulder is outside the Null field, the boulder would keep its velocity upon entering.
Stamina and Regen: The horrendous punishment and long hours and days fighting in the breaking wars has made Mikhails Body exceedingly good at fighting well past the limits of human endurance and healing itself afterwards. He has a amazing vitality which allows him to shrug off some serious hits because he simply bounces back with that crazy grin on his face and a fist in yours.
Others:
The Sealed Sword: The second relic (other was deemith to OPith) that Mikhail carries, and arguably the most powerful of the seven relics of The Final Sybill. Tis a blade of many secrets, hidden strengths and abilities.The sheath of the sword is made of a old yet still supple blue leather with silver runes burned into the ancient animal hide. The hilt is made of what appears to be simple wrought iron, with harsh sharp edges angling up to unnatural points with a large clear crystal set into both the guard and pommel of the hilt. It is easy to see that this is no ceremonial weapon, this sword was made not to be viewed… but to be used.. The weapon is sealed shut to the hilt and sheath via thick black unassuming iron chains. The length and width of the actual blade is that similar to a hald and a half or bastard sword save perhaps a quarter inch wider and thicker. However while the hilt is unassuming, the blade itself is a thing of beauty.Appearing to be the cross of a nordic (celtic) hero sword and a sword breaker, the Sealed Sword inspires both awe and terror to even those who know not what it is. The front cutting edge is made up of a semi-transparent white silvery material. This material seems to dim and or grow more solid and corporeal depending upon who wields the blade. Metallurgists and smith's across the land argue as to what exactaly the two parts of this blade are made up of. But the cutting edge of the blade… it is a secret that not even Mikhail knows, only some of the oldest creatures and gods are privy to it. You see, that is no metal on the blades edge. The Final Sybill had found a way to made a physical manifestation of his will. The more powerful the will, the sharper and harder the blade is. The Sybill had been recorded cutting through the space time continuum and defecting high velocity anti-tank rounds with the utmost of ease. The rest of the blade is made of nothing…. Its simply a black void covered in a light silver sheen of the same metal/nonmetal that is the willpower of the user. The Anti-Thesis to existence barely contained by the willpower of the user and the long gone Sybill. It is why only a few can break the chains which bind the blade, sealing the blade shut so that only a sufficient willpower can safely draw the blade, and prevent it from imploding.Thankfully Mikhail is no where NEAR the level of the Final Sybill and odds are there will never be another close to his power, so we have no need to worry about Mikhail ripping holes in the space time continuum or the like. Though he is no doubt capable of cutting your head off with it. He is almost a master swordman, he has not the years yet but experience in the field he has no shortage of.
Long Range, whats that?:Mikhail only has a single long range weapon which is a massive Bessie Mauler heavy assault crossbow which he created to go through the hide of dragons at more than 100 meters, more a ballista than a crossbow. The best way to deal with this man is long range, do NOT engage him in close range combat, his particular fighting style is extremely dangerous when in one on one. But as said up above he's weak long range, for he only has one weapon that is a ranged and to be quite honest its a damn sight unwieldy to use but nevertheless effective. Be sure to note however, that while long range is his weakness, dont expect to sit there and shoot at him while he stands there staring up at the sky. The man is a tactical genius and will most likely be looking for how to nullify these disadvantages.
1v1 me bro: Mikhail is more suited to small confrontations where he can dish out the most damage in the shortest amount of time. Unlike his friend Kyridian who fought on the front lines the entire war, Mikhail fought more hit and run so to speak. He is sadly not as experienced with dealing large groups on his own, as his wont was more to kill larger creatures all alone like dragon, trolls, giants and the like. His fighting style is great for small confrontations but larger groups he would quickly be incapacitated.
Friend of humanity: Mikhail oddly enough, is only decent at killing human beings, his reactions are suited to the lightning quick movements of the elves, the brutal strength of ogres and other such non human creatures. He was trying to save humanity, not kill it so he tries to avoid fighting in general but humans most of all. He overcompensates so to speak, when fighting his fellow man. though he is getting better at killing his own kind as many men want to try and bring back the head of a breaker for the reward money that is offered for them in some places. He no longer moves so fast to parry blades that it misses completely and he gets a nice cut across the face but he still is unsure as to what to do when faced with other men.
Instilled Hate: The hatred for the ‘others’ (as the races were called by humanity) has died down since the wars end but it still strong and a steady black, oily, flowing river in the Breakers heart. He tries to stamp it out, dry it, dam it up but such things are only healed with time. Mikhail does not want to go back to who he was, the monster he had become in order to survive. He doesnt want to survive any more, he wants to LIVE! to be alive and free, happy as can be and enjoy all the things he never could. But the beast still lurks, as it does in all of us, down in our hearts for we damn well are our own worst enemy.
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