[CENTER] [hider=ASLAUG] [IMG]https://31.media.tumblr.com/5a24d6547546e6a11c76fc633dbbe731/tumblr_n5e4nmuPdq1tqwzjzo1_400.png[/IMG] [COLOR=#999999]Username[/COLOR] - Erranruin [COLOR=#999999]Name[/COLOR] - Aslaug [COLOR=#999999]Age[/COLOR] - 37 [COLOR=#999999]Gender[/COLOR] - Female [COLOR=#999999]Race[/COLOR] - Human [COLOR=#999999]Class[/COLOR] - Warrior, Griffon Knight [COLOR=#999999]Weapons[/COLOR] - Sword and Shield, a Spear when astride her Griffon. [COLOR=#999999]Alliance[/COLOR] - Anti-mage. She's met good and bad on both sides of the conflict, but she certainly agrees that Mages are dangerous and should be controlled. Aslaug has been a Warden for [COLOR=#999999]Four years[/COLOR] and[COLOR=#999999] Nine months[/COLOR] [IMG]https://31.media.tumblr.com/5a24d6547546e6a11c76fc633dbbe731/tumblr_n5e4nmuPdq1tqwzjzo1_400.png[/IMG] [COLOR=#999999]Personality[/COLOR] [IMG]http://33.media.tumblr.com/2c6d998e9ba61e548210e0399a490dd7/tumblr_nfdj4l7rqZ1rjjr2to4_r2_250.gif[/IMG] [COLOR=#999999][I]Hard//Tough//Stalwart[/I][/COLOR] Aslaug doesnt do backing down or giving up. She deals with the problem at hand and, while she may grumble and mutter about the situation, she'll do it while taking out the problem with a heavy sword swing to its face or one precise Snipe to its nether regions. She'll endure anything you can think of and more. Beat her, shoot her, throw her off a cliff, but you'll never break her. She has held the record for longest resistance against torture without dying or giving up and she plans to beat it if she's ever stupid enough to get captured a second time. [IMG]http://38.media.tumblr.com/51e853f91a9c8c1769ba35f297a07cd4/tumblr_n4lyxkFiP91r5cpiuo5_250.gif[/IMG] [COLOR=#999999][I]Loyal//Determined//Trustworthy[/I][/COLOR] If Aslaug gives you her trust and friendship then you can expect her to deliver. The problem is knowing when she has, because its often hard to tell with her. She might be patting your back and suggesting names for your children one minute, then throwing you into a dungeon and grilling you for information the next. The best way to know she's got your back is if you have hers (and you arent involved in anything particularly illegal). Still, even like this, it doesnt mean she'll treat you tenderly or gently. Say someone had you at knife point and was screaming something about slitting your throat if she doesnt put her weapon down. She'd most likely shoot you herself somewhere mildly non-lethal, use the surprise factor to shoot your captor and then slap on some Medical salve and drag you back home. To be honest it takes alot to be Aslaug's friend, but at least you know you wont die. [IMG]http://38.media.tumblr.com/5fb0b599b71c9088e21e0b8a4fdf0c2e/tumblr_nfdj4l7rqZ1rjjr2to5_r1_250.gif[/IMG] [COLOR=#999999][I]Harsh//Unyielding//Heartless[/I][/COLOR] Aslaug doesnt particularly care about your children, your wife, your husband, your parents. Aslaug has no qualms with harming innocent civilians if there is no way around it. This doesnt mean she wont try and find another way, she isnt cruel or excessively callous and its in her best interests to leave a place with more friends and allies than when she came. But she has a mission usually, and she intends to report back with a 'Mission completed' at the end of the day. She's not a Villain, she's not a Hero, she is just the essence of practicality. [IMG]http://33.media.tumblr.com/82bd10f3474492ba1b846cb99d15bcb6/tumblr_n4lyxkFiP91r5cpiuo8_250.gif[/IMG] [COLOR=#999999][I]Unwilling Leader//Strategic//Inspiring[/I][/COLOR] Aslaug wouldn't like to admit it, but she's good at being a captain. She's done it before and she's probably going to have to do it again but that doesnt mean she'll like it. As a Leader, she cant help but take the whole squad under her wing and think of them as entirely her responsibility. She might be okay with sacrificing some buildings, civilians or unknown military, but she finds it very hard to sacrifice soldiers put under her command. If she does that, it means she did something wrong, she was in control and she screwed up and it would be her fault if any of them didnt come back to their families afterwards. She deals with this heavy guilt fine, but that doesnt mean she likes it and it doesnt mean she'll seek it out. Still, her dedication to the men and women beneath her means, ironically, that she can quite easily make soldiers ready to die for her, ready to charge into battle with a roaring battle cry and ready to follow any order she gives even if its to the death. [IMG]http://38.media.tumblr.com/68cb819f7665d2574865a1ec18b76c60/tumblr_nfdj4l7rqZ1rjjr2to1_250.gif[/IMG] [IMG]https://31.media.tumblr.com/5a24d6547546e6a11c76fc633dbbe731/tumblr_n5e4nmuPdq1tqwzjzo1_400.png[/IMG] [COLOR=#999999]Biography[/COLOR] Aslaug was born to a noble family, charged with the running of one of the Border towns in Balefall. The town was situated right between the borders to Vanthorn and Vardendale and so a position in constant peril from all the various skirmishes that broke out between the countries. It was also a cold place, snow falling for the majority of the year and summer being the only time the poor townsfolk felt the warmth of the sun. It was a harsh and dug down existence with conflict and death around every corner, border towns often took the brunt of the hostilities. Aslaug's family were full of excellent and noble warriors and Aslaug had three elder brothers who were all Griffon Knights, a family tradition, but year after year the attacks got harder to rebuff and their small army dwindled in number. And so it happened that, in four years of particularly heavy attacks, one by one her father and elder brothers were taken from her. Aslaug was just twelve when first her father died, barely out of childhood by most accounts. Her third eldest brother succumbed to his wounds soon afterwards. The experience solidified a certain type of steel in her, the young girl throwing herself into her studies in favour of spending time with grief. By the time she was fifteen she was the heir to her family's holdfast and with only her grieving mother to support her. And then her mother was quickly taken ill with heartache. She did recover eventually however, in the time she was bedridden, Aslaug took the responsibilities laid upon her without complaint and diligently worked to rebuild what had been destroyed. She found she had good ability with organisation and inspiring the troops but her political machinations were pitiful compared to her little sister, a constant presence at her side, who just simply shone in that regard. And so once her mother returned to work alongside them, Aslaug was decided. She was no dainty woman to find a husband and settle down. She wanted to find the strength to fight for peace and protect others, devote herself to the sword and be a great general eventually. She left her home quickly, making for one of the mountain fortresses that trained Knights to ride upon Griffons into battle. All in her family with the leanings of a Warrior had made the trip, her dead father and brothers included. It seemed like a good way of honouring them, to follow in their footsteps. She assumed she would find it simple, an easy thing for someone so dedicated. Of course, she was wrong. It was quite the learning curve, she was an angry youngster and she hated authority so the first few months were very difficult. But she adapted and she learned, all her rebellious attitude and fury at the world worked out through lots of hand-to-hand combat training and a smattering of shouting matches. Aslaug was an outcast at first and had no problem that. She did not have a particularly kind heart and had no real desire for friends, along with being very standoffish at that age. But eventually, make friends she did, once she'd climbed down from her high horse long enough to talk to people. She was glad for it. Friends, she found, were something she had long wanted but never had the time for. She ended up cherishing friendship above a lot of things and her friends always knew they could trust her to defend and protect them. Caring for her Griffon also helped tolerance grow into her personality. If you were impatient with Griffon, it would bite you and even young Griffons have large, strong beaks. Eventually, she took a Griffon of her own, later than all her peers, although she was insistent that she wasn't going to get attached. He was a majestic, tawny coloured male with thick feathers and a bushy tail that he liked to sweep about like he owned the place. She named him Bjorn and, of course, he burrowed into her heart, though she denied it for a good long while. [COLOR=#999999][I]Combat History[/I][/COLOR] Aslaug distinguished herself in many different ways during her years as a Griffon Knight. The Commander of the Fortress took interest in her, noting her prowess and control in battle and her ability to inspire her comrades, placing her in positions of Command quickly. She worked in a variety of different patrols and gained a wide variety of experience in war. However, no matter how disciplined and by the book she tried to be, she was still a bolshie and combative and argumentative soldier. Her respect for her higher ups usually showed as her arguing with them more. The Commander could cope with this, other Soldiers not so much. This obviously was not something the Military tolerated and the amount of insubordination charges thrown at her were immense. Her nature continued to her comrades as well, some people she would get on with, some not, and she'd meet all of them in the combat ring at one point or another. Her whole career was an up and down rollercoaster ride. Sometimes she was lauded for her impressive tactics and decisive victories and she would be promoted to Commander. Then she would take her Soldiers, disobey orders, succeed with much less casualties and bring a victory home anyway. But those in Command criticized her for the disobedience and she was punished accordingly. This usually lead to her Soldiers getting angry and rebellious on her behalf and the whole thing became a mess. Aslaug became known as a troublemaker throughout the entire Country. At the very least, she became infamous for her exploits. Most everyone had heard of Aslaug, the Griffon Knight, all round pain in everyone's side. However infamy can be a curse as well as a blessing and eventually the inevitable happened. At first it seemed an honour, to be hand picked by the King of Baleful to command a force in a siege on one of the border Fortresses of the Vanthorn Kingdom. Take the Fortress he'd said. But when Aslaug reached the place and looked at her meagre forces and considered the stretched thin Army of Baleful as a whole, she disregarded that order without a second thought. The place was huge, she had no hope of keeping it past a few days and she would lose good men trying to defend it. Even if the full garrison had arrived in time, the country was stretched thin already. They were never going to sustain-ably hold the place, so Aslaug decided to destroy it instead. She blitzed the walls with what little siege equipment she had and then used those found inside the keep. If they couldn't have it then might as well make it useless for their enemies too. Needless to say, she pushed just a little too far in defying the King of Baleful's orders and she was forced into exile immediately afterwards. [COLOR=#999999][I]Recent History[/I][/COLOR] Aslaug wasn't particularly distressed by the sudden change in her life. She missed her family, but she had often spent time away from them and, in all honesty, she didn't think a brief trespass across the border to see them would be too difficult. Suddenly she was freer with her time and her talents. She searched for a cause that helped all rather than just one country and she gave her help to others as she went. She didn't resent this type of work, she loved it in fact. She finally felt challenged and the people she worked with generally liked and respected her, which was a new experience. And then she got to meet Military Veterans and high-ups from other countries and races. There was one in particular, a human man named Knight Commander Jorah Horedan who lead a Legion of Templars in Morcrest. Templars were Noble Knights who sought out and destroyed demonic creatures and evil magicks, as well as controlling the Mage population and making sure to hunt down any Mges who went rogue. They were not necessarily well liked as an order, certainly some could abuse their power, but Jorah was a very honest and impressive man. He was a tall, wide, and bear like, with streaks of grey in his thick black hair and beard and a bronze tone to his scarred skin. Aslaug found that she got along with him very well, though inevitably they disagreed on many things, and she followed him for a period of time in which she met and became acquainted with the nobility of Morcrest. It was through this connection that she heard of the King's plan. To cease the fighting altogether? To unite the land under one banner? To redeem herself to her Country once more and be able to see her family once again? She would fight for that. She'd be damned if she believed it would work though. Of course not! If anyone thought that uniting five warring countries under one high King would cease hostilities between them then they were preciously innocent of the world. But that didn't mean that Aslaug couldn't devote her entire existence to the cause and fight for it until her last breath. This was a cause she could die for, exactly what she wanted. [IMG]https://31.media.tumblr.com/5a24d6547546e6a11c76fc633dbbe731/tumblr_n5e4nmuPdq1tqwzjzo1_400.png[/IMG] [COLOR=#999999]Relationships[/COLOR] [COLOR=#999999]Vienne - [/COLOR]Aslaug has [COLOR=#999999]Sildana[/COLOR]- These two fierce women certainly have their ups and downs. Whilst they agree on some things, they also have very polarising views on others and that can lead to conflict in their interactions. Not only that, but they both like brawling, just for the hell of it. All in all you wouldn't imagine they felt anything but hatred for each other most likely, which is far from the truth. Aslaug respects and even likes Sildana for her passion and loyalty and strict moral compass. She's an impressive woman and worthy of Aslaug's esteem. She'd risk her life for the woman if it came to that, knowing there was something in her that was worth saving. [COLOR=#999999]Lauchlan[/COLOR] - Strangely, though the pair disagree on the problems of Mages and Templars, they get on rather well. Aslaug has no need to argue over such things and she respects Lauchlan for believing so strongly in his views and fighting for them. He's blunt, which she endlessly appreciates, and she can easily take any comments he sends her way with a smile and a laugh. Perhaps they are not friends yet, but they certainly like each other's presence. [COLOR=#999999][IMG]https://31.media.tumblr.com/5a24d6547546e6a11c76fc633dbbe731/tumblr_n5e4nmuPdq1tqwzjzo1_400.png[/IMG] Other [/COLOR] [I]"You think my life is some precious thing? I grew up with Soldiers. I learned how to die a long time ago."[/I] Bjorn and Aslaug are certainly good partners but they aren't attached at the hip, Bjorn often spending days away from his rider. Aslaug has no problem with this, she can defend herself fine without him and its nice to spend a few easy days without feathers in your face. [hider=My Hider] [IMG]http://fc02.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2010/316/5/b/5b98058a7a87d47407f6a664ea3313d1-d32q2g4.jpg[/IMG] [/hider] [/hider] [/CENTER]