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[b][h3][color=#6C2DC7]Corin[/color][/h3][/b]

[color=#A9ACB6]Interactions: Elithar [@Infinite Cosmos]

[hider=Character Art][img]https://i.imgur.com/aQgEYQM.gif[/img][/hider]

[img]https://i.imgur.com/LxsxasM.png[/img]


The mind of a soldier is often plagued with battles long since concluded–of faces washed away against the tides of time. When he’s conscious, Corin can easily fight off these errant memories trying to ambush him the moment he lets his guard down. Unfortunately for the veteran, everyone has to sleep eventually. Well, at least humans do.

[hider=Dream Sequence + Flashback?]
Lightning and crimson painted the horizon. Corin stood at the forefront of the siege, sword and shield in hand, staring up at the impossible walls of Thaliost. Reports claimed their defenses were weak. But it couldn’t be farther from the truth. Aundairian mages lit the skies in fire, their spells tearing siege towers apart before they touched stone.
The smell of burnt flesh and metal filled his lungs. He pressed forward with the others, just as the cry of griffons split the air and sent a feeling of dread through the troops. The sky fell on them in talons and flame, and the Cyran line broke. Corin stumbled, tripping over the corpse of a man he’d spoken to that morning. He closed his eyes in a moment of fear, unable to process what his next move would be.
Then — the scene shifted. This time with a prominent rail junction in the distance, Brelish supply lines gleaming under a grey sky. Older now, harder, Corin led fresh recruits into the storm. He raised his company’s crest high, deflecting bolts of elemental fire. This operation ran much smoother than ones previously, and the company had managed to mostly secure the compound in the name of Cyre. But there was one loose end, a final engineer who sent a bolt of magical hellfire at the company. The blast that followed was meant for his men,but Corin caught it head-on with his shield. The impact hurled him through smoke and wreckage.
“Is he fucking crazy?” someone shouted, as the world went dark.
Maybe he was. Maybe that’s why he survived. So he could be there to stop the dangers of the world from taking even more people from him. His dream ended in a bright flash, the Mourning that had consumed his home and what family he had left after the war. All while he stood helplessly watching the Light overtake everything. Then he woke up.
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Corin had spent most of his voyage aboard the Stormrider asleep. After weeks of travel, exhaustion had settled deep into his bones. Sleep, when it came, brought only nightmares. His restless movements and muffled groans had earned him more than a few scowls. A sharp smack on the shoulder jolted him awake. “Look, pal, we let you sleep long enough. If you’re gonna make all that noise, go somewhere else.”
Corin blinked blearily, muttered an apology, and stood with a symphony of creaking joints. He slung on his cloak and gathered his gear.

[color=#6C2DC7][i]Perhaps a bit of air would do me good.[/i][/color]

The Upper Viewing Lounge greeted him with warmth and quiet elegance. He flashed his VIP badge to the staff—an irony not lost on him, that wealth had only found him through tragedy. Still, he would use the privilege for what it was worth. It’s what his family would have wanted.
Outside, clouds stretched endlessly beneath the hull, the horizon bathed in golden light. For the first time in years, Corin allowed himself to breathe. Soon he would be home—though what “home” meant now, he wasn’t sure. 
His thoughts scattered as the ship lurched violently. A deep groan rolled through the hull, followed by screams. Shadows flickered across the lounge before solidifying into armed figures. The first invader lunged from behind. Corin spun, caught him mid-stride, and sent him sprawling with a right hook across his jaw.

“You’ve got quite the fight, old wolf! Draw that blade and—”

Corin’s hand closed around the man’s throat. [color=#6C2DC7]“Sorry. I don't like hunting rabbits with a cannon.”[/color]
He tossed the man over the railing. Two more rushed him—sloppy, desperate. Corin dropped them in quick succession, their feint groans signalling that they were down for the count. Across the room, a young elven boy was cornered. Two assailants toyed with him, cruel and careless.

[color=#6C2DC7]“You lot, however… don’t get that courtesy.”[/color]

His hand brushed the amethyst on his necklace. The gem flared to life, and a stream of energy darted across the room, hardening into a crystalline barrier that caught the assassin’s blade inches from the boy’s chest. “What the—UOOMF!” The man’s breath vanished as Corin’s shield slammed into his ribs, sending him crashing into a wall. [color=#6C2DC7]“Close your eyes!”[/color] Corin barked at the boy. His blade flashed, feinting once before finding its mark. The woman crumpled soundlessly.

He caught the boy by the shoulders. [color=#6C2DC7]“Find the captain or any crew you can. If you see anyone else...run.”[/color]

The man turned toward the door, intending to escort survivors, but a voice blared over the intercom. The ship was going to be doing a crash landing in the Lhazaar Principalities of all places...Then came the tilt. Tables slid. People screamed. The ship had begun its chaotic descent.

[color=#6C2DC7]“Everyone! Get to the table! They’re bolted to the deck!”[/color] He shouted across the chaos.[color=#6C2DC7]“Hold on. No matter what happens—don’t let go!”[/color]

For a heartbeat, he hesitated, taking in their terrified faces. [color=#6C2DC7]“Everything’s going to be okay. I’ll get help.”[/color] Then the floor dropped. Corin stumbled, the ship tilting hard to port. His hand caught the rail just as it tore free.

[color=#6C2DC7]“Shit!”[/color]

He was falling. Clouds, trees, the Lhazaaran jungle spinning up to meet him.
[color=#6C2DC7][i]Is this really it? I've tanked cannons, blades, spells…and I fall to my death in a damn jungle? Great.[/i][/color] He gritted his teeth and angled his shield. [color=#6C2DC7][i]Like hell I’m letting myself go out like that.[/i][/color]

The world blurred green. He struck a tree, shield-first, ricocheting from branch to branch. Leaves and splinters ripped at his armor. He reached for a limb and pain exploded as his arm cracked, but he managed to twist his fall. One last strike of his shield against the trunk slowed him enough to hit the ground alive, if not unbroken.

Silence followed. Just the groan of bending metal above, and his own ragged breath below. Corin simply stared at the canopy above him, his eyes squinting as he noticed other objects falling from the ship. One such object almost seemed to come right for him—and before he could properly react his chest felt fiery. As if he had just been freshly stabbed. In the blink of an eye, a weird shard of some gem or crystal had embedded itself into his sternum. Corin shouted briefly and slammed his fist into the dirt before looking back at the ship.

The Stormrider continued on its traumatic course through the jungle. [color=#6C2DC7]”If memory serves…there’s a port town in that direction. But this is a really terrible neck of the woods to be in.”[/color] He glanced around, a brief chuckle slipped from his lips at the inopportune play on words.

Corin struggled to his feet, each breath filled with labor and effort. In his mind, the logical thing to do was to follow the ship’s course. So he decided to head towards the port city, but quickly noticed another figure amongst the foliage. A dark-skinned elf who seemed to have met a similar fate to him.

Corin stopped and offered a hand—[color=#6C2DC7]”You one of the survivors of that chaos that just flew past?”[/color]
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