[hider=Kaelan][center][color=a9a9a9][h2]C H A R A C T E R   S H E E T   T E M P L A T E[/h2][/color][/center]
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[hr][h2][color=#c5f5ff]Kaelan[/color][/h2][hr]
[color=399baf][sub][b]Appearance[/b][/sub][/color]
[justify]Kaelan stands at 210 centimeters, is slender, sinewy, and very pale. His fall of straight silky white hair extends past his shoulder blades. Outside of Lune’s Shelf, he has taken to wearing leather boots and sturdy cloth, which he prefers patterned and covering most of his skin. The long sleeves do not seem to bother him nor obstruct him, his movements ever nimble. His face is angular, his ears elongated, his eyes almond-shaped and light blue. When Death Sight is active, his pupils turn white, his irises misted. He travels with few possessions, making do with the bare essentials.[/justify]
[color=399baf][sub][b]Personality & Reputation[/b][/sub][/color]
[justify]Calm | Quiet | Gentle | Protective | Devoted

Kaelan is an oddity; a Shepherd outside of Lune’s Shelf. Simply due to his occupation, he is regarded as a mystery best left alone. Even so, he is dedicated to his cause, viewing his duties as sacred. He believes his higher calling should be enough for others to offer their help – but knows it is not so. So, Kaelan accepts the need for currency and exchange, but has little understanding for those enthralled by luxuries. It’s not as if he abhors comfort, but the one he knows is so different, it might as well be something else entirely. Simplicity is familiar to him, and he has retained it as a habit. Granted, the world presents many obstacles to one with few means, yet he persists. Kaelan seeks connection, but it's difficult to find a kindred soul among outsiders.
 
If he has built a reputation, it is mostly among Venators’ Vultures, who view him as reliable. Generally, he rarely makes promises, but doesn’t break them. When there is a task he must accomplish, he will do so. He is serene, angered only by the heresy of necromancy, which elicits his fury like nothing else. He can look past murder – but to disturb the dead? That is not only a crime, it is a sin.[/justify]
[color=399baf][sub][b]History[/b][/sub][/color]
[justify][hider=History]One day, a woman arrived from the Cascades, accompanying the caringly covered remains of her deceased lover. She was with child, but never looked back – she had cut ties with nobility and their games, even if it meant having to adapt to a humbler, harsher life. She dedicated herself to Bellua, seeking solace in faith. The Shepherds responded to her effort to learn their ways, and welcomed her into the fold. And so, the child was raised as their own.

When Kaelan was but one year old, his mother came to the decision to make a sacrifice for the sake of his future. Beseeching the gods, she entered into a contract, coming to a Compromise; in exchange for never being able to hear her child’s voice again, her son would gain the ability to study magic. To communicate, she learned to enunciate with care, to read lips and interpret gestures, or to ask for the written word. Her sorrow was profound, and when Kaelan was old enough to notice, he asked after the reason.

When he learned the answer to that, he asked again: [color=#c5f5ff]“Why?”[/color]

With a delicate smile, she confidently declared, “Because I love you, son.” Even as she still mourned her husband, whom Kaelan often heard of from her, and was burdened by her hearing loss, he saw her cherish their lives with such reverence, he couldn’t help but respond. So, he was driven to honour her and the gods, and endeavored to become the most reliable Shepherd he could.

His life followed a simple routine: studying, training, hunting, sharing stories by the fire before sleep, burying and guarding the dead, chasing off beasts, monsters, and interlopers. 

Yet a time came when things changed. His mother was supposed to have gone only to gather some wild plants in the vicinity of Thall. When she didn’t return in time, they sprung a search. However, as they would discover, she hadn’t succumbed to the natural elements, nor had a stray predator felled her. When Kaelan and one of his friends led a pair of dogs off the beaten path, they found a stray scrap of her attire caught in a branch. The dogs led them to a cliff, but that’s as far as they could go. 

“Kaelan, we’ll find her in time,” his friend Boel reassured. But the ylva wouldn’t have it. She’d been missing only a day, so what if she was still alive somewhere down there? 

He wasn’t thinking rationally; in his desperation, he knelt there and beseeched the gods to help him find her. So, his own Compromise was born, and in that moment, he became able to cast a spell he would come to understand later. The world became colourless, and a dull light emanated from Boel, the dogs, the trees and shrubbery. The piece of cloth he held was tarnished with gray stains, and a darkening trail led down the cliff. Kaelan descended, climbing until he came to a narrow crevice. Squeezing in, he proceeded into the cave, pursuing the trail – until a large black taint stopped him in his tracks. 

The spell receded and he saw her: his mother, deathly pale, signs of a struggle on her arms, her neck snapped. He cried out, so loud his shout carried far and wide.

Kaelan had seen others grieve, had thought he understood what it meant. The loss of his mother proved him wrong. It was a test of his faith, but ultimately, this experience provided insight. First hand he tasted what it was like to lose, and to hold onto belief and love – not in spite of the loss, but in its honour. 

He believed his master when it was said his mother’s murder would be investigated.

Adapting was difficult, but in the following years, his struggle inspired growth. When Memory Crow-Bell was trained there, he sparred with her often. Information of his new ability had been passed to trusted sources, and he tackled several requests where a lost or missing body had to be found.

His patience and faith bore fruit: it had taken some time, but agents and investigators friendly to the Shepherds had compiled their findings. Three months before his mother’s murder, a large procession had arrived to Lune’s Shelf. One of them had recognized his mother, and used that information to their benefit in the Cascades. As her noble relatives had been in the midst of waging a feud with her husband’s family over succession rights, both had cause to see her dead. There was no proof, but rumours abound that an assassin from the Silent Hand had been hired.

Kaelan discussed these findings with their people’s leaders. A small group was sent into the Cascades, he along with it. They worked to the bone to gain damning intel and see the culprits face justice. Kaelan was showed off as an heir of Aurelle to gain them advantage – mostly, this meant he was present in meetings and at the court. The rest, he left to his more cunning compatriots. With plenty of free time, he visited many a root village, as he felt more comfortable there than in any manor or palace. He took up freelancing work, and provided to the poor in exchange for intel on any missing bodies or signs of corruption in the land.

In his time in the Cascades, he had a few opportunities to visit Thuata, and he was impressed by the knowledge contained in the city. Not so much that he’d be compelled to stay, but it did spark a sense of wanderlust in him.

So, when they finally pressed the nobles of the Aurelle and Arvelen families for a concession – which was the best they could get without resorting to drastic measures – Kalean knew what he would do next. If his estranged relatives had faced some form of punishment (a paltry one, but at least the matter was settled), his mother’s killer was still out there somewhere. Not only that, but he had seen that there were many others in the world left to recover to be interred in the Saltlands.

Intent to do his calling as a Shepherd in the wider world, as well as to seek to unravel the workings of the Silent Hand, Kaelan’s next destination is Redmire. With a looming coronation, it just may be his best opportunity to uncover more about his mother’s killer.

And if not?

At the very least he will have access to Siliach, and he’ll be able to inspect at his leisure how well they take care of their dead.[/hider][/justify]
[color=399baf][sub][b]Strengths & Limitations[/b][/sub][/color]
[justify]As Lune’s Shepherd, he is conditioned to life in tundra. Conversely, the desert is an area he will avoid for decades yet if he can, for he knows it would weaken him. He is at home in rugged, sparse terrain, and is still getting used to navigating areas with more plentiful growth and higher populations. Kaelan is clever, but not persuasive, so his effectivenes in communication is hit-and-miss. He is familiar with funerary practices, and is a worshipper of Bellua, which many find alienating. He was trained as a guardian and protector in Lune’s Shelf, and his skills are detailed below.

[hider=Strengths][b]Spear & Hand-to-hand – Adept[/b]
His body is a weapon forged and molded from childhood, his chosen armament its extension. Kaelan is graceful, agile, swift, his movements calculated yet fluid, his strikes precise and lethal. His combat style relies on speed, flexibility, and deflection, using his opponent’s strength against them as he applies his own power in quick bursts meant to stun, destabilize, or finish off. He favours a spear, his long limbs extending his reach even further.

[b]Self-enhancement – Proficient[/b]
His mother, bless her, had gifted him the ability to learn magic as a youth. He spent some time developing the capabilities granted by his physique, then begun to carefully interweave magic into his efforts. While Kaelan ever strives to surpass his natural limits mundanely, magic enables him to do so in a moment of need: a greater leap, an enhanced attack, a speedier sprint. He can temporarily make his skin sturdier, becoming more resilient. To a limited extent, he can mend his injuries, shortening recovery time.

[b]Archery – Competent[/b]
As an archer he’s about what you’d expect from an ylva, trained due to racial proficiency. Kaelan prefers a longbow, which he uses to hunt, and to deal with ranged opponents. He’s well attuned to others’ movements and positioning, and can pinpoint his target from quite a distance. His shots are well-measured and powerful, capable of penetrating plate armour if fired from the right angle.

[b]Death Sight – Burgeoning[/b]
A utility necromantic spell. When activated, he sees the world differently: colours dull, but every living thing is filled with a faint white light. A more skilled user could estimate their life expectancy. At his level, Kaelan can find and detect those who are dying as well as the deceased. These traces of death range from outlines of gray to a stark black stain in the world. That which is touched by necromancy is apparent in a similar manner. He has been refining the spell to extend its duration as well as to obtain greater detail.

[b]Air Manipulation – Minor[/b]
An elemental type of magic he was initially taught for its utility: clearing fresh snow, guiding the harshest currents to pass by, carrying sounds and scents farther, aiding the propulsion of sleds and boats. He can slow down his fall, and lighten his step, improving his mobility even further. He can increase the reach of his arrows – though accuracy might decrease in exchange – and disrupt enemy projectiles. Nowadays, he circulates air around himself if he needs help cooling down.[/hider]
[hider=Limitations][b]Strength & Constitution – Lacking[/b]
Kaelan has a wiry form of corded muscle, but he is not built for feats of strength. Carrying heavy loads, pushing, pulling, and the like are tiring activities. He is not one to overpower a bulkier opponent by sheer might. With his soft ylvan skin and a propensity for a light attire, he possesses little in the way of shielding him from harm. Overcome his evasiveness, and he is easy to injure. He is not tough, so an opponent who bypasses his defenses can fell him with relative ease. While he does sweat, he is more prone to overheating than the average person.

[b]Crowd control – Poor[/b]
In single combat, he excels, but the more enemies he must face alone, the harder pressed he is. He has few means to deal with a group of attackers at once besides speed and wit.

[b]Stealth – Unpracticed[/b]
Soft though his footfalls may be, and patient as he is, Kaelan is not learned in the art of camouflage, deception, or infiltration. Tall and pale, he’s not easy to miss, and he doesn’t generally try to hide. In Lune’s Shelf, hunting was a skill reliant on ingenuity and cooperation, while trespassers knew very well the guardians were present. So, he learned to face them head on, and make them rue the day they underestimated the caretakers.

[b]Support – Variable[/b]
In his homeland, battles were waged shoulder to shoulder, back to back. Coordination was paramount, and he was as in sync with his brethren as they were with him. In the wider world, however, Kaelan lacks that companionship. Philosophically, he is inclined to teamwork, but practically, there are many little things that may throw him off.

[b]Paid the price[/b]
In exchange for obtaining the ability to cast a singular spell, Kaelan gave away his ability to feel warmth. Lost to him are the satisfaction of a hot meal, cozy lounging bundled up by a fire, the soft caress of the sun’s rays upon his skin. Never again will he experience the joy of sharing the heat of another’s body – a loss he mourns most deeply. Even something as simple as a hug reminds him of that lack, now. This is potentially dangerous, too; while he experiences pain from a burn, his senses do not warn him what is too hot, so he works from memory and observation alone. Thankfully, he does benefit from heat even if he only ever feels it as an absence of cold; else he’d already be dead.[/hider][/justify]
[color=399baf][sub][b]Miscellaneous[/b][/sub][/color]
[justify]N/A[/justify][/color][/cell][cell][sub][sup][color=2e2c2c]____________________________________________________________________________[/color][/sup][/sub][hr][color=Gainsboro][h3]◤  [color=#c5f5ff][sub]“Appreciation takes practice.”[/sub][/color][/h3][/color]
[img]https://i.imgur.com/VDLPR6z.jpg[/img]
[hr][color=399baf][b]Full Name:[/b][/color] Kaelan-ora Aurelle
[color=399baf][b]Age:[/b][/color] 32
[color=399baf][b]Voice Claim:[/b][/color] Ahn Hyo-seop
[color=399baf][b]Race:[/b][/color] Ylva
[color=399baf][b]Birthplace:[/b][/color] Thall, Lune’s Shelf
[color=399baf][b]Occupation:[/b][/color] Lune’s Shepherd (travelling)
[color=399baf][b]Affiliation(s):[/b][/color] His homeland. Besides that, he often cooperates with Venators’ Vultures.
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