@Wind Wild Weird! I derived all the dates from sources in this thread and the interest check. It may be the time scale I'm using, which was meant to mimic Earth's human history since I thought this was sorta an alternate universe. I've outlined my reasoning below.
Just a quick message: By rough estimates the year this season takes place is 2254.
2254 A.D. This is where I got the current date.
Surrendering her consciousness, Hazumi was dormant for the next 20 years. When she awoke Hell’s Gate was broken, her wielder was defeated and the Surface was populated by much more demons than it’d ever been. Hazumi was then convinced by Luciana to surrender most of her power to the humans and so she did.
2056 A.D. The reforming of the Peacekeepers was an estimate. Since it happened after the fall of Hell's gate, it had to happen during or after Judas' rule.
It has been over two hundred years since he helped stop Judas.
2054 A.D. Pretty simple math by going back 200 years from the current date.
The Gates were originally two, controlled by two Gatekeepers. They were created by Aaurus himself and served to keep the three races and three worlds apart. They did that by fuelling the essence of Heaven. Surface and Hell, defining who the angels, demons and humans are and what sets them apart. Heaven’s gate took on the appearance of a Violin and its player was Chime. She was the first to fall, killed by the Fleshshaper and causing the merging of Heaven and Surface. The second Gate was a Harp, played by Melody. Both were destroyed in 2014 by a madman called Judas, causing a huge amount of magic and Hellions to flood the Surface. The remains of both the Gates and Gatekeepers now live on in Hazumi and the Wielders’ Instruments.
A group of Hellions pushed their way past Hell's Gate and started killing and eating everything in sight, including Angels. The Council gathered the remaining Angels in a defensive manner around their headquarters. Hazumi was gone, and all the Council Members and Angels were there. As soon as the Hellions hit them and everything descended into Chaos, Lucien started killing Council members.
2020 A.D. This was another estimate based on these two sources. It would have been more accurate to list it under 2014, but there isn't really a year when Judas' rule is officially started. However, it would have to be assumed his empire was created and lasted somewhere between 2014 and 2045.
As Merlin mentioned, the Council was disbanded/crushed when Judas came to power so whatever surviving offshoots of it there are, they're not an official institution. There are a lot of para-legal groups in Loom and around the world(s) though.
2014 A.D. So the Council fell when Judas took power and destroyed the gates, which was in 2014.
Name: Hazumi
Alias: Essence (of the World), Violin, Chime, Motherslayer
Age: apparent: 27; actual: pieces of her existed in one shape or another since the creation of the worlds 7000 years ago. Hazumi as a single entity was created approximately 245 years ago.
2009 A.D. Another simple subtraction: 245 from the current date, which puts her 'birth' at 2009. It might make more sense for her to have been born a few decades or even centuries older, as that would give her more time before going into a torpor and awaking post 2014, after the fall of Hell's Gate. Of course, if her birth as an individual actually references her life after awaking from a torpor, post 2014 would make more sense, and so she'd be a few years younger.
For the past four centuries, the Peacekeepers were monitoring the entire populace for unauthorised murder and have ensured the culprit got what they deserved - be it punishment or mercy.
1854 A.D. This one was pretty simple, subtracting 400 years from the current date.
Everything else is okay and as far as the Great War is considered, don’t worry, that was over 3000 years ago.
0734 B.C. So this is an approximate date I got by subtracting 3000 from the current date, but confusion of its placement may be my use of the A.D. / B.C. time scale. A.D indicates all time after the death of Christ and B.C. indicates all periods of time before the birth of Christ. Since this world appears to be an alternate Earth, I used this scale, which places The Great War around the first Olympics in ancient Greece.
As for chimeras and the demon virus, they're also approximate dates because all I knew was they happened before The Great War.
7000 B.C.Looking over the scale again, I realized I was correct putting the creation of the worlds at 5000 B.C. this is because 5000 B.C. indicates 5000 years before Christ's birth, not 5000 years from the current date.
Soooo, the deeper I went into angel history, the more trouble I had. Having gone through the histories in the character sheets, OoC conversation, and the world details on the first post of the OoC, this is the timeline I've put together. Feel free to make corrections—I just wanted to get all the historic information down correctly in my head.
7000 B.C. The 'worlds' are created 0780 B.C. The first chimeras are created by The Fleshshaper 0740 B.C. Some newborn angels are subjected to a demonic virus 0734 B.C. The Great War, wherein Heaven's Gatekeeper falls and angels flee to The Surface 1854 A.D. Peacekeepers Form 2009 A.D. Hazumi is born 2014 A.D. The Council is destroyed 2020 A.D. Demons arise from Hell, Judas destroys the gates, the world floods with essences of Hell and Heaven, and Judas rules a demon/angel empire 2054 A.D. Judas' Rule Ends 2056 A.D. Hazumi reinstates the Academy, 3 representatives of each race reform the Peacekeepers 2254 A.D. Present Day
Wing Size: 16ft Wing Color: Pure White Type:Falcon
Social Status: Lone Guardian (little known by humans, angels, and demons)
Relations:
What are the Wings of Faith (TWoF)?
TWoF is a benevolent secret society, very small in number but large in purpose. It does not answer to Peacekeepers or any other authority of law, making it a renegade organization by definition. Instead, it is dedicated to the poor populations of Loom incapable of defending themselves or paying for proper care and protection. Thus, it works mostly to protect humans, but angels are sometimes involved as well, as they have long since become a part of the mortal sphere. Bonds of the Word and the Earth are not capable of distinguishing the race of people who utilize them, but it is more common than not for a guardian to abandon demons who gain use of these wards once their identity is discovered.
Members of TWoF take on a vow to protect the people of Loom. Each individual claims a precinct of the city and forms a small group to look after it. With the use of their ability to bond, they may perform a variety of actions, from rescuing folks in danger to curing the sick and injured who can't afford care. Outside these small groups, they don't formally communicate with other members of TWoF (meaning it is leaderless, and no one knows its exact numbers).
How does TWoF function?
The group in charge of a precinct spread word of their presence in two major ways--through churches and poor intercity communities. Pastors are provided with the sacred 'first' names of serving angels and pass around the incantation needed to activate the angelic wards of their precinct. Similarly, word of these incantations are spread through humanitarian centers and poor schools. Thus, the community in general is made aware of rune locations and how to access them, though the community also tends to guard this information from outsiders (like Peacekeepers).
When a person activates a bond, the angel basically drops everything to come and assist. They don't strive to conceal their identities (so they don't wear masks and things like that), but tend to blend so well into human society that not everyone who has activated a ward knows what human identity an angel may be attached to.
How do other organizations interact with TWoF?
TWoF is an organization “for the people,” and thus does not formally attach itself to any other group. However, isolation is impossible, and so TWoF does run into the agendas of other organizations at times. Although TWoF abstains from fatally harming those who attack its wards, death has been utilized as a tool for protection on rare occasions and thus members of TWoF occasionally appeared on the radar of Peacekeepers. It has no relations outside of this interaction, which is avoided as much as possible.
TWoF is seen as too small to be of great consequence, and because its objectives never spread from beyond helping poor and defenseless humans, it doesn't have a large role in the overall politics of the city. Even so, humans tend to have a high opinion of TWoF because of the selfless acts from angels it demands, and the organization could be blamed for giving some humans a higher opinion of all angels, promoting a not-entirely-true notion that all angels care for the well-being of humans.
Who are members of TWoF?
Adrian, Deorwine, and Malvina form the group of their precinct. All three of them are friends who share both duty and their 'human' lives. The runes of their precinct resemble graffiti, large cursive letters that spell “M.A.D.” The phrase to activate it, as rumor goes, is “absit iniuria.”
Physical Description: It's a small American cafe with lots of old Coke ads, license plates, city signs, and other miscellaneous memorabilia tacked to the walls. The structure of the place varies from brick and wooden siding to a black-and-white tiled floor and hanging lamps between small windows. It has its own bar with several seats and that section remains open until the wee hours of the morning. Most of the upholstery is a deep red, and the restaurant sports more cozy family booths than individual tables on the floor. As necessary by tradition, there's an old jukebox near the receptionist area where customers can insert coin for their own old tunes. There's only one main entrance/exit, with the other at the back of the restaurant where the kitchen is. The establishment even prides itself on its clean bathrooms—each with two separate stalls.
Menu: Darlyn's Cafe is mostly focused on gourmet burgers with everything from pastrami to avocado. As a true cafe, however, it also offers salads, desserts, and various ethic foods, such as tacos and surprisingly good orange chicken. What the cafe is known for, however, is its unique s'mores cake in a jar.
History: Established about 30 years ago, Darlyn's Cafe has always done relatively well. Its well prepared food with decent prices makes it a favorite of blue and white collar workers alike, and its barista drums in business for late night partiers. When Eloise's mother (Darlyn) died, she left the restaurant to be split between her four children. Given her siblings' disinterest in owning a business, she decided to buy off the other portions from them and runs it as its sole owner today.
General Activity: When not working at a human establishment, she calls her defensive acts for humans “patrolling for the Wings of Faith.”
Abilities: Guardian Angel
Roanne's power comes directly from the bond she shares with those she protects. Unlike virtually any other discipline regarding essence, hers requires faith. Without trust, compassion, and dedication, she is unable to use her angelic essence to channel her abilities. In older days, this bond was potent enough to create miracles, but with recent conflicts and demonic subversion, channeling this power has never been more difficult. Once a bond is active (i.e. when Bond of the Heart, Earth, or Word is invoked), Roanne attains a homing sense that guides her toward the location of that charge. Once danger is averted, the bond becomes inactive and this homing ability no longer exists.
Types of Bonds: Bond of the Heart: The strongest possible connection an angel can make. It requires consistent interaction and strong emotions and functions as an ongoing Bond of the Word. A charge with a Bond of the Heart doesn't need to know Roanne's true name, and the ability to mentally call her and for her to locate the charge with a homing sense is available at any time with some mental concentration. Bond of the Earth: This bond relies on groups of people within a geologic area, typically a small town or a precinct of a city (see "Ward" under Abilities below). Bond of the Word: Anyone in possession of a guardian angel's true name (their first name, i.e. the name of their first life before reincarnation) has the ability to focus on that name and telepathically call the angel (which is basically synonymous with prayer).
The Wax and Wane of a Bond: Bonds are strongest when an angel is trusted to act. Thus, a guardian angel's bond is strongest when she acts to fulfill the needs of those she serves. Times of desperation are usually when a bond is strongest, as the person being protected is naturally forced to have faith in the angel's ability to carry out the task at hand. This nature of the bond makes it impossible for an angel to use guardian abilities if the use of those abilities are not in line with the desires of whomever the guardian acts for.
Smite: Roanne can physically and psychically burn a target. This appears as a concentrated ray of light from her blade, effectively igniting the target with flame and causing them to relive the pain they have given to others. This naturally isn't as powerful against benevolent beings who haven't hurt others, which also diminishes the strength of the physical flame. The strength of the ray is also dependent on the angel's charge rather than the angel herself--her charge must actively have the desire for the angle to injure or stop her opponent from acting.
Empathy: Roanne can absorb the wounds of her bond, which in turn makes her more resilient to harm. The limit of damage she can absorb is limited to what she can physically survive, but the harm she takes upon herself is halved (or in the case of mortals, divided even further, as their essence tends to be less potent). For instance, taking a broken bone for another person would give her a bone fracture. She can even take disease into herself to remove it from another person, relying on her angelic stamina to sort out the disease in what may take anything from an hour to a week depending on its severity.
Shrug it Off: Roanne can heal her own physical wounds by channeling the faith of others to reinforce her essence. This requires active focus from her charge and its ability to heal minor or serious wounds in seconds relies heavily on that charge's trust and willpower. This can similarly be used to counter mental pain and domination, which makes guardian angels typically bad prey for such abilities.
Shield: Roanne can manipulate her essence into a shield of force that surrounds her body. This naturally reduces the power of physical blows she may come into contact with. Most often used to defend another person from massive trauma in a pinch, this shield can repulse the equivalent of a 2300lb car hitting an object at 40mph. Anything beyond that can bend the 'shield,' slowed but not stopped before it hits Roanne. This shield is a burst that lasts for only 5 seconds, and can't be used in successive bursts.
Holy Ground: Roanne can cast a circle of her angellic essence onto the ground (up to 10ft in radius). Any foe that steps into the circle with violent thoughts against Roanne or her charge is exposed to a psychic burn that causes intense pain all over the assailant's body. It similarly rebounds magic and projectiles aimed at harming those within the circle. Because it is largely a faith-powered spell, its duration depends entirely on the will of the person(s) it protects.
Ward: Roanne can carve the first letter of her true name into any particular object. After being given a specific phrase, anyone can speak to her through the rune by using that phrase to activate it. Without frequent use, however, the ward will fade until it disintegrates, usually within a month of not being used.
The ward effects people under different bonds differently. Bond of the Earth makes Roanne able to sense the danger a person is in as well as their location up to 1 hour after that person activates her rune. When those who have invoked a Bond of the Word are in danger, Roanne can sense that they are in danger and their location so long as they are within 3 miles of the rune. If a person has not invoked a Bond of the Word again after a week, the ward no longer has this effect on them. Finally, a person with a Bond of the Heart will always alert Roanne of their danger and location so long as they are within 5 miles of a ward.
Aura Sight: Roanne can distinguish angels, demons, humans, chimeras, animals, and so forth via the color of aura she sees surrounding them. The brighter the aura, the stronger the essence. Weak auras can be seen from 30ft and the strongest can be seen up to 200ft away. This is a passive effect that Roanne can disable mentally.
Sheathe: Roanne's wings are a direct form of her essence, and thus can be drawn back into her body, or 'hidden.'
Strengths: Roanne is a fierce and fast opponent, aiming to overwhelm foes in precise and unexpected maneuvers. Her defensive techniques lend her ample support against demons and other threats, and when the goal is to get people out in a rush or protect them from harm, her powers are difficult to contest against.
Weaknesses: Roanne's tactics aren't meant to be used in sustained combat, as they take a heavy physical toll. Even some of her strongest rush techniques are weak against foes who are prepared or equally fast. Bereft of those surprise charges, her ability in combat wanes even more, as she is trained to fight defensively and her angelic abilities also lean heavily on defense. Above all of this, she is unable to use her defensive powers at all when lacking a charge to protect.
Equipment: Aderes—The tempered blade Roanne uses in combat.
Armor—Y'know, the regular angelic stuff. It resembles steel, but her pure essence reinforces it to defy things like bullets and swords.
Spice Collection—Roanne is legitimately concerned with collecting every kind of herb, spice, and infusion recipe she can get a hold of. She keeps it at home, which is nothing more than a modest apartment.
Personality: There is nothing cold about Roanne. When she's stern, it's the motherly kind of stern to keep those she cares about out of trouble. When she fights, she does so with a fiery grit that easily leads her to overextend, thus leaving herself vulnerable. In her line of angelic duty, there is no room for questions, no time to ask whether or not she will survive whatever encounter she is asked to endure for the sake of others. Her view, then, on those who harm humans is fairly black and white. Any being that would harm or kill mortals with no regard for their lives is worth giving her life several times over to stop. Vengeance isn't part of her protective creed, but she engages in it more often than she should.
When she isn't engaging as an angel, however, she leads something of a double life. She doesn't know much about what Heaven once was and doesn't really care—what's better than the fun and food to be had around humans? To say she is passionate on the subject of food is an understatement: outside of saving lives, she wants nothing more than to try every kind of dish and flavor for herself. This natural curiosity and geniality leads her to naturally form bonds with humans without putting much effort into the task.
Biography: Roanne was born from the union of two angels—both, incidentally, who were guardians in the service of an angelic clairvoyant. She was raised to be a guardian just like them, stout of heart and loyal to the core to their charge. Swordplay, advanced flight, and manipulation of her own essence were taught to her from a young age, and she excelled at the practice. There was just one issue.
She didn't like the clairvoyant. In fact, she disliked angelic society and The Council her parents were a part of in general. Being still and quiet when not needed bothered her, and the mortal lives angels were forced to mingle with seemed so much more interesting. The more she went off on her own to observe and participate in the society of humans, the more determined she became to serve them instead. It was only a matter of time before she told her parents of her decision, which she did proudly and boldly.
Her parents were naturally offended and angry at the suggestion, but after defeating her father in a duel to settle the matter, there was no debating her choice. She ultimately broke contact with her parents, falling in with other guardian angels with interests more invested in humans. Over the years, she adapted seamlessly into human society, though her work as an informal guardian vigilante caused her to have a bad work history. Constantly leaving work to answer the bonds of her charges caused many issues until she finally found work at a cafe willing to accept her unpredictable absences. The owner was none other than a former human charge of hers who supported her efforts.
Roanne has a notorious history through her reincarnations as well, though at present she only remembers her original name and a number of fragments scattered throughout centuries of time. She's under the impression that she has served as a guardian throughout many, if not all of her lives, and deep bonds with other angels during those lives seem to have influenced what her essence is capable of achieving as a guardian. It's a reverent and personal (though not necessarily accurate) thought she treasures--that the memory of loved ones has remained in her angelic essence through reincarnation despite her inability to remember details about those people. The thought that they may still be giving her strength to help the world gives her hope she hasn't admitted to anyone.
Hmm... it seems most straightforward for Roanne's aura sight to be able to distinguish race and potency. A strong demon aura, for instance, would provide some warning of danger. I'll add that in and stick the CS in the CS section.
Why did no one move to apprehend the hooded man? Did he not appear, for all intent and purpose, to be anything but an intruder to a camp of hired soldiers? Did he not offend their honor, they who had gathered under Monseigneur Devaron to aid and defend his cause under the Concilium? Was it not suspicious beyond doubt that he had materialized just as Monseigneur Devaron left, and left just as chaos broke out? It could not be mere coincidence!
Perhaps he snuck into the camp or disrupted the meeting with the dwarves and intends to escape in the chaos? Who would speak of such trouble between allies so casually if he did not have ill intent! Estelle frowned as the thoughts bogged down her smile, the flirtations of earlier lost as Alfred made his orders and others scrambled to follow them.
Never mind that she was meant to act without question! Damn proper silence! Not to be ignored, she tugged on Alfred's sleeve as he drew out his wand and pointed over to where the odd man had disappeared. "Monsieur, surely you do not mean to let such a suspicious creature escape! Defense will not be enough--there are no dwarves among our group and so they will assume we side with the Concilium. Whatever happened at the diplomatic meeting--"
Her blue eyes went wide, her face pale. Monseigneur Leandre would have been at that meeting, no doubt to support King Wilmgard's diplomat. If something had happened and war was breaking out, he might already be...
"Nom de Dieu! Monsieur, if that man was right, something must have happened to the Arcadia representatives and the dwarven leaders! We must tell their captains to stop fighting and investigate, non?"
@Wind Wild :3 I have updated the TWoF, taking out mention of The Council and clarifying that TWoF is dedicated to poor inner city as a whole, not necessarily just humans. It also takes into account the history of Hazumi's murder suppression, so with any luck, the profile should be good for an approval stamp. I'm excited to see what plans you're coming up with for Roanne's role for the RP~
I do just have one significant profile-related question left, though. I didn't add aura seeing to Roanne because I wasn't sure what that meant on the site. Is seeing auras the equivalent of identifying another creature's essence, or something more related to emotions and intent?
Than you for your time~ I know I went over a lot and you've been busy. Your post answers pretty much all my questions for approval.
On point one, that was my bad wording again. TWoF is officially composed of guardian angels because only that type have bond magic. They are dedicated to serve humans who live in bad living conditions, but there is the occasional angel who falls into that category. So to be more accurate, TWoF dedicates itself to the poor above racial divides, which I'll rewrite to reflect better in the CS.
On point 2, I understand the Council thing better now. I'll just snip them out of TWoF, but it does make me curious about angelic communities and societies. Do they have any particular angel-specific groups living in their own territory (like fake Heaven?) Does God exist in this world?
I also understand Hazumi better, too. It's a crazy but fun idea, controlled crime going crazy-murder. Should I post up the CS as approved in the CS section, or is there anything else I should fix?
Hmm... I see the issue there, but at the same time, it makes me curious. You run into the issue of omnipotence and omniscience--in essence, seeing everything is not the same as being all-powerful. If Hazumi was omnipotent, that would imply no one has ever gotten away with murder for... ever. If Hazumi is omniscient in death, just because she can see it doesn't mean she can always stop, punish, or catch murderers even through other organizations.
I ask because I can alter TWoF, but it also imposes a very specific image of Loom and its underground for the past thousands of years. Note that you're talking about hundreds of thousands of people with people dying all the time.
And when you say "hunted and killed," note that you're talking about benevolent angels who kill only when they have to in order to save an innocent life. They don't work against peacekeepers so much as they are more aware of inner city problems and act independently to solve those problems.
So I can change TWoF to never, ever killing people (like Batman), but I think that's a somewhat extreme measure for Hazumi or any figure to have over Loom/The World unless Hazumi is the omnipotent stand-in for God.
