"Stephanie" Erona / 25 / Female / Human / Janitor

Stephanie looks, acts, and talks like a noblewoman of high standing. Her speech is refined, she wears the latest fashions, and she appears to be skilled at both commanding and manipulating people with her words.

And yet, she's the janitor. She works hard, doesn't complain, and is excellent at cleaning, yes, but she's still a janitor.

When asked, Stephanie will just reply with a short description of her family situation– a failing noble line needed influence and a hand in the latest developments and as such needed to send their first daughter to work on the Fornacis. After all, such a reunion of a legendary crew could only mean that the world was changing once more. That meant taking any possible opening. Unfortunately, Stephanie's lack of experience in navigation, cooking, and combat greatly limited her options.

Name: Talon "Tally" Aurora

Age: 23

Gender: Female

Race: Phuvata

Ship role: Engineer

Appearance: The first thing one notices about Tally is that she’s very tall, even among men of her race. The second thing one might notice is that she’s absolutely ripped, though she tends to keep most of her muscles covered under a large gray coat and an old red scarf when she’s not working. Under that, she wears a plain white undershirt and a well-worn pair of blue jeans, a tool never far from her belt. Other than that, her features are rather fair, such as her pale skin and light blonde hair that tend to end up colored by various forms of dirt and grime. Her brown eyes always manage to shine through, though. She’s got an impressive set of large brown horns, which she’s rather proud of.

Personality: Tally, around those she doesn’t know, prefers to project the more intimidating exterior of the gruff, silent type. She’s bigger and stronger than just about everyone she meets and she knows it. She’s someone who likes to think, though, and her interests tend to lean towards more intellectual pursuits. She’s happy to talk to those she likes, maybe even get loud and rowdy when she feels truly comfortable, though if she feels bothered or annoyed by someone she’ll just as easily switch back to glares and single-word sentences.

Background: Tally grew up in Mehrnez, working in factories to support her family pretty much from the second she was physically able. Which was very young; she grew like a weed. It wasn’t too long before she was bigger than all her superiors, which prompted her to start thinking. It was a good way to pass the time.

In her teens, when she got her Pyxis, and people started treating her as something slightly more important than a nice pair of arms, she began thinking even more. There was something distressing about it, working and working in a system that made countless arms for a taiva that was obsessed with wars it never fought, and for what? So she could change her name that she hated? Her body that she hated? And then just keep on working until she died? As soon as she had made those changes, she left to become an Empyrean. It was easier to think on an airship. It stood a better chance of being honest work, too, by Tally’s standards.

With time, she founded it to be a fulfilling calling. A lot of her old skills transferred over nicely, and she was still learning new things every day. It wasn’t long before she felt like a comfortable and experienced engineer, and when she got the chance to work on a ship as renowned as the Fornacis, it only made sense to say yes.

Background: A rather brilliant, and easily bored, young engineer from a tiny, backwater island in Ortzi called Rathall, the prospect of employment on a skyship - any skyship - had been something Kerry leapt at all those years ago, not realising the legend that the Fornacis would eventually become. She wasn't exactly the most experienced back then, and it's fair to say that her Pyxis was certainly more than a small factor in her opportunity. Nonetheless, she held her own, and quickly developed a love for the Fornacis. Back then, the girl was rather bright and excited for the adventures that awaited her. Indeed, one could even call her reckless in her enthusiasm.

And indeed, that recklessness was her undoing - though she won't elaborate exactly on how. It hadn't been planned for her to be in any sort of combat, of course, and she was supposed to stay out of harm's way; indeed, it wasn't in any official capacity that she was out. A few years into their adventures, Kerry had struck up a relationship with one of the other mechanics, Laurie, and the two had decided to distance themselves for the day at port, the second anniversary (at least, according to Kerry's data) of their relationship. Not some grand adventure or terrifying scheme, for on those there was the protection of the captains, the more capable fighters who'd take the hits.

No, Kerry lost her eye on what should have been a simple, peaceful, date.

All that any of the crew knew was the scene that met them that night; Laurie, distraught and sobbing. Kerry, leaning on her for support with face half-burned and the light gone from one eye, never to return.

Kerry never was the same afterwards. She grew paranoid of most things, overly cautious, and found comfort in the ship's workings. Things she could be sure of, that made sense to her. The outside world had become frightening and unpredictable, and the bitterness that lodged in her heart was apparent to most. Her moments of light and kindness, once ever-present, became reserved for her girlfriend alone. Her joy, though it would still spark up on occasion, seemed mostly concerned with the ship, with improvements and discoveries. Despite that, she was diligent in her work, even if she preferred the company of engines to people.

At the time that they parted, she and Laurie left together. Perhaps not as sickeningly saccharine as once they were, but they appeared content enough to leave their life of adventure behind them. To while out their days in peace, with an uneventful marriage and perhaps a family of their own.

Kerry's return to the Fornacis, without Laurie, tells another story entirely.

Pyxis strength - Analysis

Form of the Pyxis - An intricate, brass, monocle, inlaid with intricate gears: oddly enough, it manifests over her ruined eye when in use.

Pyxis skills -

• Baseline: she can quickly get a measure of any non-organic subject she focuses on, gaining a somewhat bare-bones understanding of its measurements, purpose (though the explanation is often vague and never elaborated on), and material and magical composition.
• Spotting the Break: the Pyxis allows her to quickly analyse non-organic materials, devices, and structures, allowing her to understand their workings and discover flaws or weaknesses that can be fixed - or, in some cases, exploited.
• Monitoring: regarding people, it can provide a quick analysis of a person's measurable, physical, behaviours - a database to fall back on. The tics someone has when they lie, a habit of picking their nails. Small, mostly inconsequential details. She appreciates it, if only because her own abilities to keep track of human behaviour are apparently 'total crap'. Thanks, Laurie.
• Behind the walls: a simple enough ability, allowing her to, by choice, see through physical materials. However, it seems she can only see through one at a time - she can't tell you what's going on several rooms away, but could spy on the floor above easily enough.
• Thermal vision: does what it says on the tin, essentially. She doesn't particularly like using it, and claims it makes her head hurt.

Age: 25
Gender/Sex: Female
Race: Human
Ship Role: Combatant

Some Background: 8 years ago, on the streets of Ortzi, Alix began a new life for herself from nothing. Determined only to hold on to a select few lessons that made her the person she was, and a few others that taught her the things she needed to know, she began again from scratch. It was difficult for her at first; beginning from nothing means you have no stability to hold on to, but she was nothing if not determined, and after a year or two of floundering, she finally got her feet underneath her. She found the person she wanted to be, and that was a huge step for her.

She was positive that she would never allow herself to be a victim.

In Ortzi, a land almost driven to her knees, there were too many victims already. She found the best way to prevent herself from being preyed upon was to bloodily fight her way to the top of the food chain. Of course, having her Pyxis certainly helped; a lot of people that she found herself up against couldn’t defend themselves from her skills, and it was far easier to avoid death at the hands of some monster if you had the abilities necessary.

Alix knows her path. For her, the Fornacis is just another stepping stone on that path. She didn’t seek to join the crew for any reason other than it promised new adventure and new challenges for her to overcome.

#33ec06

Name: Robert James Morgan

Age: 64

Appearance: Robert stood about 195cm or about 6'5", though with a lanky build. He wasn't often seen without his overcoat and hat, and his right hand was obviously replaced by a crude looking contraption. He was also missing a right eye, hidden under an eyepatch.

Gender/Sex: Male

Race: Human

Ship role: Any.

Background: There was once a sky captain who haunted the skies of all six Taivas, in an infamous ship named the Red Mary, where even the sight of its faded red and black coloring threw even grown men into despair. A simple but mighty corvette, with its six engines the captain was rumored to have outrun and outmaneuvered many a warship. Its faded red and black was told to be from its forays into the Ash Range, where the soot stuck to it, and it was said the ship ventured fearlessly into the dangerous regions of the world, even into the Belt or or the Sky den. And those who did catch up to it, faced the full might of its captain and its crew. Guns would blaze from every inch of its side, and the captain taller, darker and stronger than any man, would tear apart any man that dared faced him. Said to be a ghost of an angry taruva, or the incarnation of one, the last stand of the Red Mary and her captain was said to be a legendary one, one ship against an armada, guns blazing in the skies like thunder, the red of burning ships lighting up the night's sky. At the very end, the Red Mary was boarded, and the captain fought like a wounded beast. He took 16 shots and several sword slashes and fought on, before being beheaded. It was said he rose up again, wreathed in the fires of vengeance, and swore vengeance upon all the six taivas. The Red Mary exploded into flames, wrecking several more ships and killing more men, before disappearing. It would be sighted again and again in the years to come, a ghost ship floating in the clouds, ready to pillage and kill any it comes across.

Robert, was not that person. He was rough and flamboyant, but whenever asked, he would always say he came from a simple farming family on a simple floating island community just off Araceli. He worked his arse off on a military ship for a bit before going on a whaling ship. With all the experience he had, he was confident in his skills on a ship, be it a navigator, a helmsman or even as an artillery officer. Experience, after all, was what he had in abundance, even if he was not as spry as he was years ago. As far as anyone was concerned, he was there to earn as much money as he can for his aging parents.

Equipments: His mechanical hand has a mechanism to shoot it out to about 10m in lenght, with a powerful motor to pull it back almost instantly. Other than that, his weapons were a brace of pistols, as well as a nice looking sword.

Name: Yslain
Age: 37
Gender/Sex: Male
Race: Sanyan (Reptile)
Ship Role: Helmsman
Background: Yslain was born on the streets of Ventius, to a poor Sanyan family. From this beginning, Yslain never stopped moving forwards, building on past successes and reaching to even greater heights. He is hell-bent on figuring out why Ortiz fell apart, and believes the information he is looking for is out in the Boundless, but he has yet to find even a clue. This devotion led him to become one of the few to successfully Manifest a pyxis in Ortiz, which lead him down the path to become an Empyrean. Yslain signed on with the Fornacis years ago, as a general crewman in the original crew, and later grew into his own legend as an unflappable Helmsman, able to stare down the worst the endless skies can throw without so much as twitching from his course.

After the Void Incident, and the Captains Coma, Yslain stayed in town, doing odd jobs to pay the bills, and keeping an eye on the ship until he had that dream. The Fornacis, falling. The next morning, he showed up at the Fornacis, bags packed and ready to board.

Pyxis Strength: Toughness
Form of the Pyxis: His Pyxis takes the form of a small shield, able to fit in the palm of his hand.
Pyxis Skills:

• Tank - Yslain can harden his Aura to greater resist attacks for a time. Harder hits drain more mana.
• Anchor - Yslain can focus his aura through his legs and feet, anchoring him to one particular spot.
• Resist - Tslain can focus his aura into armor for the soul, lessening its damagemitigation, but greatly increasing his resistance to curses and the like. (Doesn't work on Ysir's Curse, much to his dismay)