[hider=Galen Derricson; Short App; DR: RETIRED][b]Name[/b]: Galen “Gale” Derricson [b]Gender[/b]: Male [b]Age[/b]: 16 [b]Species[/b]: Human [b]Appearance[/b]: Galen isn't particularly tall, slightly on the short side of average in fact. He tries to keep his dark brown hair short, but it grows quickly and tends to hang messily around his ears. His bright green eyes gleam with insatiable curiosity, and when he smiles others can't help but wonder at his oddly sharp, white teeth, only just dull enough to appear normal if a bit unusual. Long days aiding his father under the sun and in the shop have gained him a fit physique and tanned skin. [b]Personality[/b]: Gale has always been curious about the world around him, and eager for the next chance to learn something new. His thirst for knowledge has often gotten him in trouble, forging a rebellious streak in him. Gale has recently gained a penchant for keeping secrets and acting with more caution than the impulsiveness of his childhood. [b]History[/b]: Galen was born under questionable circumstances, the adults of the village always watching him speculatively, looking for the similarities between him and his parents. There was never any indication that his mother was expecting a child before his appearance in the town, yet both of his parents insisted he was theirs and took great offense at questions suggesting otherwise. His early childhood was spent in in the woods, chasing rabbits and climbing trees, but eventually his interests turned to the greater world and he would pester every adult for a story of their travels beyond their small town. Every time a trader or traveler passed through town he would follow them around until they either left or told him everything they knew. His pestering nearly got him in trouble when a messenger employed by the Empire stopped in town to resupply. As revenge for being denied a story, Gale stole three of the messenger’s books straight from the horse’s saddle bags. The man didn't discover the theft before leaving town, and never returned. Getting away with the crime was the starting point of Gale’s rebellious streak, but he never committed another crime after that. To break the streak, his dad convinced him to start working with him under the guise of spending time together away from the village. With the incentive of going to Gil’ead and seeing the greater world he was so curious about, Galen couldn't resist. Ever since he has been working at his father’s side, and with his father’s occupation being a woodworker; whittling trinkets, crafting furniture, and repairing houses, much of the woodcutting has fallen to Gale, who has become quite proficient at wielding an axe. The promised trips to Gil’ead were few and brief, allowing only fleeting glimpses of the world he sought to know. It was still the most impressive city he’d ever seen, and Gale suddenly understood why no one visited Mashal, which while it might have had picturesque views, scenic woodlands, and a fantastic river for swimming in, the small and dirty town had nothing on the order and density of Gil’ead. His sixteenth birthday saw him still bending rules to suit him and picking the brains of travelers who passed through town. However on that day his father took him aside and told him the secret of his birth, of how he wasn't truly their son. Opposite of his father’s expectations, Galen instead grew to deeply care for his parents in a way he hadn't thought to before. The revelation that they had chosen him to be their son, and that they had done everything they could for him as if he really was their flesh and blood, was enough to change his perception of them totally. Learning just how well they had kept the secret, Gale confided in them his own. Over the last few years he’d come to realize he didn't feel the same about girls as others his age did, and rapidly became aware of feeling something towards men instead. His father worried over what went wrong when they had raised him, but his mother took the news much better, walking around with a twinkle in her eye and a bounce in her step. Later she confided that she had once shared love with a woman in secret, but refused to identify which one, only elaborating that her parents and friends had pressured them to break it off and eventually she fell in love with his father instead. She was happy to finally have something to bond with her son over. The change in their family on his sixteenth birthday hadn't gone unnoticed by the village, and once again the usual gossipers stared at them speculatively, but never asked their questions aloud. Previously he had grown closer to his father as they worked together, but Gale didn't follow him into the woods or into the city anymore, instead he grew closer with his mother and spent much of his free time with his friends, either in the river or hunting in the forest, stopping every so often to pick herbs or flowers his mother liked for seasoning or just decoration. Nine months later he discovered a saddled horse in the forest, no rider in sight. He took it to town to be fed and watered, and a week later no travelers had come to town to claim it. A quick search of the horse revealed a pouch with what appeared to be letters written in a strange language no one recognized, except for the semi-serious suggestion of elvish, and a map leading to Mashal. With no idea what the belongings meant, the village largely shrugged it off. As he had been the one to find and take care of the horse, it was assumed he would be the one to keep it or sell it. By this time they had named her Freya and he couldn't justify selling her given that one of the older villagers had started teaching people to how to ride with her. Closer inspection of the map, and the foreign words scribbled there, would reveal that the marker did not lead to Mashal at all, but instead to a location close by. Not that anyone would be seeing those papers again, they disintegrated into thin air in the middle of the night. No, if they wanted to find the treasure they'd have more luck stumbling upon it than recalling a slight error in an odd map. [hr] [hr] [b]Name[/b]: Kolysakr [b]Gender[/b]: Male [b]Age[/b]: Egg [b]Egg's Appearance[/b]: [url]http://media.popcultcha.com.au/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/9df78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/w/h/white-egg-paper-weight-01.png[/url] [b]Hatched Appearance[/b]: [url]http://nightpark.deviantart.com/art/Silverdrak-Commission-381575353[/url] [b]Personality[/b]: Curious and thoughtful, Kolysakr is very observant of his environment. He was perhaps a bad choice to choose as a rider's dragon as he prefers privacy and independence, yet contrary to this he feels an echoing loneliness from his long years as an egg and is eager to make a friend to care for and be cared for. It is a rider that shares his desire for companionship and unrestrained acceptance yet is also a private and separate person that would prompt him to finally hatch. [/hider]