Asuras

Blades of Iron Roses: An Anime-Inspired Fantasy Knight RP

<Snipped quote by Psyker Landshark>



THE TWO TIME

@OwO

The difference being that miss six-foot-three became Christmas-cake long before she even hit 25. :3

Blades of Iron Roses: An Anime-Inspired Fantasy Knight RP

Maybe a floating castle too?

Blades of Iron Roses: An Anime-Inspired Fantasy Knight RP

Forina Vindramael

Name: [Lady] Forina Vindramael
Age: 27
Gender: Female
Race: Human
Appearance: Nobility and grace bleed through Forina's well-kept appearance. Only the gruesome nature of the battlefield seems capable of changing such images for her. Standing at a notable five feet and nine inches, Forina is fairly tall for a lady, and it adds to her already dominating and demanding visage. Despite the propensity for a lady-like grace, underneath Forina's rarely-unworn armor is a toned physique lending to her quest for power and respect.
Personality:
Prideful, harsh, strict.

Any mere nobility could produce an individual that conducts themselves properly whenever they so desired, but only a true aristocrat understood the importance of behaving at all times. In this Order of knights, Forina sees children and their chaos, unfit to hold a sword no matter how skilled they professed themselves to be. In times of war, those units which exerted the greatest discretion and self-control were the ones who truly struck fear into their enemies. Those which strode across the battlefield clad in faceless helms, and killed with a controlled violence.

This is who Forina strives to be, and what she is certain she embodies better than most in the order. To the noblewoman, a freedom to be eccentric and unconventional is what plagues the Iron Rose Knights most. Forina knows that she cannot simply dismiss such characters, but looks down upon them with no less disappointment. And yet, despite all of her favoring cohesiveness and structure, Forina takes towards a bold and independent nature on the battlefield, trusting most in herself than the help others can offer. If it weren't the case that she could handle things on her own, then her sense of superiority would surely be a lie, wouldn't it?

Even as she characterizes herself as a selfish and arrogant noble, Forina is extraordinarily fond of her immediate family, and seems poised to ensure they attain all and as much glory as she can achieve in her life. More than the Roses, more than her country, more than her life, Forina is driven by the quest to enhance the status and power of House Vindramael.

Brief Backstory:
"The very fact that you hold a blade, even alongside me, is proof enough that the aloof nature of our Order has lost sight. There are no signs of things ever changing for us, or for the world, and I shall see to it that we are not caught off guard by the inevitability of war. One day... you may not be alongside me as you are."

The Vindramael family is one of the most powerful in all of Thaln, having lived through the century through patience, cunning, and the artful manipulations of a long-deceased member honored as the "Lord of Betrothals". Due to a genetic predisposition, the men of House Vindramael are oft to produce female heirs, normally a curse to the future prospects of retaining power. However, early on in the then-middling noble house, a man existed who had guided them upwards through sheer planning and intelligence. The Lord of Betrothals, as he was so called, had managed countless beneficial marriages between the aristocracy, all to careful shift the balance under the radar of other houses. Even as he set to heightening the status of House Vindramael, his apparent knowledge had prompted other lords to ask for his consultation. Though he would bring them success, he would always do so with the hidden pretense of ensuring it would always come back to House Vindramael.

And so, the powerful family had risen through the ranks through the power of marriage. From then on, this inherent connection between so many other important houses allowed Vindramael to retain its power whilst it turned to other mediums to continue accruing strength. Today it yet remains at the very top of Thaln society, its hand dipped into the businesses of everything that lives and breaths within its borders. But such wasn't enough for a young Forina, heir to the Vindramael head seat. She saw an opportunity for more, and devoted herself to the cause.

Eldest sister of six other red-haired female siblings, Forina abdicated from her position as next in line, granting it to her immediate junior, Marianne Vindramael, a lady who would surely have the penchant for statecraft that Forina had sometimes struggled with. Instead, Forina enlisted in the Order of the Iron Roses, seeking opportunity both as a knight and a prospective military leader. Her family name behind her and with ambition and clear skill, Forina pushed into the Order's ranks with ease.

During the War of the Red Flag, House Vindramael of course sided with the Monarchy, and Forina struck fiercely into the rebellion as the captain of a small banneret. They were, however, never cruel. Comprised entirely of individuals from the Vindramael family, they carried out a very focused campaign to simultaneously fend off those of the rebellion whilst maintaining good relations with the local populace. They never once sacked a city or town, and strictly followed a code of honor. Victories were followed immediately by building rapport with liberated locales, as well as by heavily promoting the already established Mayonite religion.

Though allied with many other houses under the sitting king of Thaln, House Vindramael continuously and purposefully used Forina's banneret, by word or sword, to undermine the image of other fighting groups as violent and brutish, especially in House Larette.

After the war, Forina dissolved the banneret and sought to join the Iron Rose Order. The time is ripe to use her status and position to make change, though one may question if her allegiances lie not in the Order's thriving, but in something more personal...

Equipment:
Modestly armored, but not totally vulnerable, Forina is the spitting image of an appearance-centric noble family. One would, however, be foolish to assume such an expensive woman was not also layered in the most expensive enchantments money could buy. Multiple protective wards extend defensive ability not only to the metallic surfaces of her plate, but even to the leather and cloth portions.

Her longsword, named Tress Vindrmir, was passed down through generations since the very first knight who had formed the Vindramael family itself. Over the century-plus of its lifetime, it has been modified and blessed by its wielders and the fortune of the family supporting them. Its mere appearance seems to instill a kind of courage and fervor in those allies who look upon its risen form. The exact nature of it is unknown even to Forina.

Skills:
An insight early on in her age had started Forina training very young. The single-minded determination she exhibited lent to childhood and young adult years spent honing the swordsman craft she now so expertly demonstrates. Though very restricted in her martial diversity, Forina's skill with the sword is unbridled and exceptional. The single weapon, devoid of a protective shield in her other hand, is the style which her eldest ancestor had brought to the family forevermore.

She is herself incapable of any magical feats, but enjoys the support of her wide family, which can supply her with all manner of enchanted objects to enhance her fighting prowess.

Blades of Iron Roses: An Anime-Inspired Fantasy Knight RP

@Asuras: I would not, as long as you run stuff by me first. And she'd be one of very few nonhuman Iron Rose Knights.

Also your signature is one of my favorite pictures of Raikou!

@VitaVitaAR

Would you prefer things to be run by here in the OOC or over DM's?

Blades of Iron Roses: An Anime-Inspired Fantasy Knight RP

Would you be opposed to an elf knightess?

Lostman Grafitti

WHAM.

Mana barreled into the wall back as a solid object slammed upon her windpipe. She gasped for breath in the split second she had before her back hit the solid surface. Mana cried out in pain, whimpering as the tables so suddenly turned violent. She clasped at her throat, eyes wincing as the girl continued her assault with words. Through tears she looked up, pain written in a spin around her face.

"You... you didn't hear me calling your name?" she asked with a hoarse voice. The exhaustion she had been powering through was apparent in her chest and breath. Setting a hand aside, she tried to dislodge herself, pressing against the wall. "Hanami. I saw you on the train. Look I just... wanted to talk. Do you really not remember me?" she asked. Her tone had become a mixture of frustration and sadness, already lamenting that she might have been able to save herself this sprint and clothesline if she'd just been more upfront and approachable.

"I'm an acquaintance of your boyfriend -of Kouta?" Mana said, trying to jog Hanami's memory. She let out a precautionary cough, as if afraid that Hanami might have severely damaged something, and was testing it out. "He's worried about you. Where have you been? He says you haven't responded to anything!" Mana protested, grasping Hanami's arm with her other hand and trying to wrench it off. Even if she had frightened the girl into feeling so cornered, Mana wasn't about to just play guilty and let Hanami continue hurting her.

Lostman Grafitti

What? Oh no, no, no.

Mana was not about to be ignored like that. But then... surely there was a reason? She knew Hanami would have recognized someone as characteristic as her, so Mana doubted the girl simply didn't like that some ragged girl her age somehow knew her name. Mana gave chase, passing by the other passengers. Some of the cars were more crowded than others, and knowing the best tactics for escaping chase in a train station, had herself made sure not to simply pass Hanami by, were she to have taken a seat in hopes of throwing Mana off. She went through each car deliberately, searching for the short-haired girl in the seats and ahead. She was running out of cars to retreat to, and Mana knew that Hanami was definitely aware of it.

With the next stop arriving in mere seconds, Mana could tell the girl was aiming to get as much distance before ducking out of the train car, and lose her in a crowd outside. That is, if Hanami were smart. If she were doubly smart, though, Hanami would know that and stay on board, waiting for Mana herself to jump out. Such thinking would have quickly devolved into a guessing game, so for the time being Mana simply aimed to keep the girl in her sights. If she dove out of the train, so too would she. If Hanami would opt to run all the way to the tail end of the train, Mana would corner her there. Whatever was amiss, she wasn't about to just give Hanami the benefit of the doubt and offer her some privacy.

Kouta was depending on her.

Lostman Grafitti

The disinterested look that she had left upon the crowd and trains persisted for a second more as a realization sunk in. An involuntary action, Mana slamming her stretched fingers down upon the dirty subway table, was followed by a dropped lower jaw. Mana didn't even have time to really reflect on what she saw before her feet carried a hesitant body forward. The two appearing there was such an unlikely event, processed barely by an unconscious portion of her brain, that she couldn't even fathom an internal voice more complex than a silent 'what'. She rushed forward. The eyepatch-wearing girl was of little consequence; whatever their relation, Hanami dropping right into her vision mattered far more

If she had run like a sprinter before to save the suicidal girl, then she was the Blue Blur himself right there and then. The doors inched closer and closer, threatening her with images of snipped fingers, but she dropped any sense of self-preservation for this. Already she had brutally shoved three innocents aside to reach the train car and recklessly threw her palms between the doors. She had no idea if they worked like elevators, but any prospective pain just didn't matter. The doors paused, their bristly rims spreading between her fingers as she tried to wrench the doors open. Automatic or by her determination alone, they gave way, followed by a robotic request from the intercom not to mess with the doors.

Mana threw herself inside with a huff, and absent-mindedly checked her fingers. They were all there. A look up met her with disgusted and fearful stares from the rest of the riders, no doubt a combination of her appearance and the total lack of decency in her forcing her way on board. She ran a hand through her short hair, and paid them no mind.

"Hanami? Hanami?" she called out to the car. Surely they thought she was an early drunkard by then, fumbling through the cabin to seek some 'Hanami' out.

Lostman Grafitti

What else could she have suggested? Mana knew of no other suggestions, but that very fact kept pounding at her head. She was lost in the situation, feeling all too useless for the young man. Perhaps it was his pallid appearance, reminiscent of what she saw in herself every morning, that tugged so tightly at the strings to her heart.

"Keep in touch, alright?"

"Ah," Mana mumbled, lifting a hand as if to pause Kouta. She did have his number, but got too lost in thought to answer him. It seemed he himself was done with the running about. She wasn't much of a help, clearly. Nevertheless, Mana resolved to try. It was the least she could do to try and bring a boisterous smile back to Kouta's life. He, at the very least, could always get such a thing back unlike some others. Mana drearily returned to her post, continuing on with the shift until labor laws released her from the full grasp of menial work. She folded up her apron, paid for a discounted lunch, and set off down the street to enjoy her break.

For a time, the incident the prior day seemed to fade to the back of her mind passively, though of course being replaced with an unfortunate missing person's case didn't help to draw stress away from Mana anyways. As she strolled through town, always frustrated that she wasn't 'supposed to' on the go outside like Westerners could. She was somewhat tempted to go to the same rooftop foodcourt as yesterday, if only out of a curiosity that the heterochromatic girl would be standing there again, but thought better of the whimsy. If she were there, Mana would have to sprint again.

Eventually she found a different food court, settled in a dusty subway of Tenoroshi. Outside rush hour, the comings and goings of pencil-pushers was settled, but no less constant. Mana sat down at an old metal table, barely big enough to hold two meals, and thought on who would be best to contact first. A brief consideration sprung to mind, as Suzume's dark red hair manifested in her eyes. Mana chuckled to herself. It would be extremely rude to assume the daughter of a yakuza knew all about kidnapping's. She'd get punched for sure.

As Mana continued chewing on her randomly-chosen pre-made meal, she fell deeper into a sense of uselessness. What the hell could she possibly do? Making a promise to Kouta then only felt like empty words, but she couldn't just call Kouta and tell him she was sorry for even offering. But... she also couldn't just wander around doing nothing productive, all in the name of 'trying'.

Mana let out an audible growl to herself, uncaring of any stares she might receive. She dug into the food faster out of frustration with herself.

Lostman Grafitti

Mana absently rang up the pack of gum, her eyes still quite drawn to the young man's dilapidated downgrade of an appearance. A few button presses, a 'kaching' of the register, and she cupped some change for him with curled fingers, dropping it into his hands as he continued to speak. She hummed intrigued by his situation. She knew Hanami had a tendency to just drop Kouta each and every fight they had, but always came back. It was unusual to hear about her being missing for this long, and with a total lack of contact to seemingly anyone.

"A-!" Mana stopped, feeling Asahi's hand. She blinked, and moved aside, silently ushering Kouta out of the way of the confined convenience store. "Are you sure she didn't... book it out of town or something? Maybe her parents spirited her away, y'know? How'd they feel about you? Did you check her house?" Mana questioned Kouta in a hushed voice. Her hand slid into a hoodie pocket beneath her apron, touching at the pack of cigarettes resting half-empty inside.

"I know it's not ideal but... I mean you could report it to the cops, right? Surely it's not completely pointless, 'specially if you're that worried." Mana tried her best to comfort Kouta with a reassuring tone. She'd dealt with missing acquaintances before, but they almost always turned up, or turned out to have simply moved out of Tenoroshi. Sometimes the panhandling wasn't enough, and they had to ingratiate themselves before a relative for shelter outside the city. Other times their families simply took them with them. It didn't seem all that likely Hanami would have left Kouta without a word, unless the perfect storm of circumstances prevented her from doing so. Mana began to worry herself, by then, but kept up appearances.

"I'll help you look for her, if you can give me some suggestions where to start. I might know some folks who're familiar with her too."