Tall and lanky with grey eyes, Garvey sports a head of pink locks smoothed messily back with water. While he’s usually somewhere between annoyed and apathetic, his lips either curled or set in a firm line, people are usually distracted from his facial features by the large scar above his right eye, which he lets show with carefree bravado. Dark colors and slightly baggy clothes are his go-to, paired with well-worn sneakers and a cracked but functional wristwatch.

Garvey’s childhood was fraught with hardships and cut ties. His biological parents abandoned him at an orphanage early in his childhood, where he remained for most of his younger years due to prospective parents being put off by his hot-and-cold nature that saw him bouncing between bouts of complete withdrawal and inexplicable anger. By the time he grew old enough to understand what was happening, he was old enough to take to the streets, and so he did.

Out of the orphanage, Garvey performed odd jobs here and there to make a living. Usually they were exorcisms or purifications where he’d go in and resolve a Pokemon-related problem, most commonly one relating to ghost- or dark-types, but in reality he was often just persuading the Pokemon to move to a different location, or just find a different target that would later become a client. So he earned money in an uncouth and slight underhanded way—he had to make a living somehow. With only himself to count on, and later perhaps his group of vagabond Pokemon, Garvey wasn’t too sympathetic with the world. It wasn’t his fault most people were unable to connect with shadowy Pokemon like he was, and he was technically fixing problems for some people, even if he was causing them for others. The world hadn’t treated him well, but he’d found a way to survive despite that.

Soon enough, though, people started questioning his origins. There were many unsurfaced reincarnations, sure, but Garvey matched the general profile with his strange ability to connect to Pokemon. As a result, his nomadic lifestyle grew more mobile, and he became more withdrawn, wary of having people ask too many questions. He’d heard of the terrible things that happened to unlucky reincarnations, and his own spirit Pokemon hadn’t been regarded with favor even before the disaster. The Reincarnation Tournament, though, had come as a surprise—an unwilling one, perhaps, but one that Garvey decided to take up after deep consideration. His current lifestyle left him wanting, in a way, and maybe there was more to learn about his existence. Thus, he accepted the invitation, more interested in the information he might glean and receive than the tournament itself. However, though he hadn’t come for fame or glory, Garvey wouldn't go down easy either. He was neither a winner or a loser in life; he was a fighter.

Born and raised in unkind circumstances, Garvey‘s developed an innate scrappiness to go along with his usual brand of annoyance. A frown or scowl is his default setting, if not a blank, uncaring front he puts up when he’s impatient or irritated. He’s also prone to anger, and though he’s gotten better at sensing, recognizing, and controlling the bouts, his control usually slips in tense situations.

From a young age, Garvey’s felt a connection to ghost- and dark-type Pokemon, perhaps because of their affiliation with the shadows. They’re drawn to him, as he is to them, and he’s often been able to sense them if they’re close. In addition, sometime during his childhood, Garvey found himself able to see what he would later realize is the Distortion World in mirrors and reflections. Though he is unable to enter it, he feels a strange yearning for it, as well as a fierce protectiveness over its existence.

Tall and lean with blue eyes and an ever-present frown over his pale features, Masahiro maintains a youthful, almost feminine appearance despite his age and status. His long, grey hair is tied back with a red string and usually in a bun for battle, and his choice of armor is light to allow him maximum agility on the field. Because he has several sets of armor, some ceremonial and some actually meant for battle, his field armor varies, as do his casual kimonos. He does, however, tend towards lighter colors both on and off the field, though he owns sets of red as well for formal occasions.

Masahiro’s primary weapons are his katana and tanto, which make up his daisho set and have matching scabbards engraved with the Yatsuhiro royal crest. Their hilts are made of a bronze-gold alloy, his katana featuring the Hotaru royal emblem and his tanto bearing his family crest. These hang at his hip and are used for close quarters combat.

In addition to his swords, Masahiro uses a yumi, a longbow he carries under his arm when in use and stores on his Altaria when not in use. Similarly, his quiver is also stored either on his Altaria or on his back. Though Masahiro wields his sword with skill, his true talents are with the bow and arrow, especially while riding his Altaria.

Masahiro often brings a satchel of basic items with him when he’s travelling. This usually contains bandages and ointment for scrapes and sores as well as a spool of red string for tying things, be it his hair or quiver. In addition, he brings along some herbs for his Pokemon: powdered herbs to heal, reenergize, and revive his Pokemon if necessary, bought from herbalists back in Hotaru. This satchel he keeps either on himself or on his Altaria, and apart from that he has a small pouch of coins he carries on his person.

Hailing from a frontrunning daimyo family of Hotaru, Masahiro received an early education common for a daimyo’s second son, being tutored in literature, arts, and military skills. Though he showed early talent with the bow, his family had him focus on his studies, prolonging his adolescence to avoid his coming-of-age ceremony, which would guarantee his presence in the front ranks of the battlefield. At the time, Hotaru had seen some rifts with Sher, a country to the west of Atlas that, according to stories, was built on blood and battle. War seemed imminent, and where the people of Sher seemed to celebrate the coming of war, those of Hotaru saw it as an honorable duty to fulfill and triumph in.

When war finally broke out, Masahiro saw it largely from within the country, fighting only a few battles with his father’s forces. From behind the battlefields, the loss seemed to come as a surprise, but Hotaru saw the reality in battle: Sher was simply too strong, too bloodthirsty. Unlike his fellow samurai, the Sher fought with a fervor the Hotaruans did not have, and their prevailing was a byproduct of this. Though Masahiro didn’t fight in the front lines like his father or elder brothers, he took this lesson with him as he grew, remembering the Sheran’s ruthlessness whenever he trained. Similarly, he applied this mindset in everyday life, rushing into the samurai ranks after his coming of age ceremony and fighting up the newly-opened positions. As the second son of the Himiya daimyo, he had a chance of becoming daimyo in the scenario his older brother passed away, but Masahiro wasn’t content to idle and wait for that opportunity. In order to fulfill his duty to his country and god, he needed to be doing the most he could, and he couldn’t do that by waiting for a position he might not get. Instead, Masahiro opted to make a name for himself to perhaps prove himself worthy of inheriting another daimyo’s house, should they lack worthy heirs to pass their assets down to. It was here that his age started working against him, since there were many qualified candidates for daimyo positions, and though Masahiro had proven himself as a high-ranking samurai under his father, other daimyo households would hardly acknowledge a position in his own house.

It was then that Masahiro was introduced to the Firebrand Tourneys. Though he’d always been a retainer of the emperor by virtue of being the son of a daimyo, he hadn’t become a retainer in practice until his entrance into the military as a samurai, and his newness made those under him question his inexperience. Fighting in the war before one reached adulthood was not really fighting, in many eyes, and though Masahiro had done well on the battlefield, the war’s ultimate loss attested to an overall testament of failure on the part of the nation’s military forces at the time. That said, the rise of the young emperor Yatsuhiro ushered in a new era for Hotaru—a new age for the nation to prove itself. The country’s successes in the tourney were, in this case, vital towards regaining its respect in the eyes of the other nations since the tournaments are held in Sher’s capital, and Masahiro knew that in order to rise further, he would have to be a part of that effort. As such, he sought out an invitation from the emperor to be one of the champions in the next Firebrand Tourney, intent on proving himself as capable both as a commander under his emperor and god.

Though he often wears a frown, Masahiro’s frown is more of the pensive sort, and he wields a quiet nature that utilizes both forethought and reflection to go about his daily life. His experiences push him to be ruthless and utilitarian in his ways, but his religion tempers this by encouraging him to honor and appreciate those around him. Since honor is a vital part of Hotaruan culture and life, violating one’s honor is the most sacrilegious thing one could do, and Masahiro takes poorly to those who dishonor their heritage or any of his own values, regardless of what they might believe. That said, while he may be disapproving of certain folk, he will do his best to treat them with respect unless they do not do the same back, though he can come off as a bit short when interacting with them. He keeps his opinions private for the most part, but he is not afraid to challenge authority if it violates his moral code, save for his emperor, who he sees as a direct conduit of his god.

A high-ranking Hotaru samurai looking to prove himself by winning the Firebrand Tourney for his nation, Hotaru.