Application [Kenos]

[warmare]

PLAYER INFO

NAME: Rizu
CONTACT: stormcoming, PM
OVER 18?: Y

CHARACTER INFO

NAME: Hayame
SERIES: JINBA
CANON POINT: part one, ch. 11
AGE: ~20 (not specified in canon, but considered a young adult of her species, who mature around 16)

CHARACTER SUMMARY:
Hayame is introduced as an antagonist, the human-serving hunter of her fellow escaped jinba, who becomes a sort-of ally and potential friend to them after she's captured and shown there might be another way to live. She is ruled by denial (refusing to see until the end that she herself was a slave in a system that used her to control weaker members of her own species) and desperation (struggling to be a warrior though she is destined for the auction block where the usual options for a mare are mount, broodmare, sexual "companion", or armless battle fodder).

The turning point in her character comes when, after attempting to commit murder-suicide, the main character saves her life and points out that she was relieved not to die, offering to help her discover a new way to exist without human masters or buyers. Essentially, she gets a chance at a redemption arc in canon... But just like how she failed in her mission to capture the MCs, she ends up failing to trust them and the better future they offer her. She becomes the instrument of their downfall when actions she set in motion her first day of capture come back to to roost. So to sum Hayame up... "cruel and cold-hearted miniboss with a dark Stockolm Syndrome backstory finally starts to learn to love and hope and de-brainwash, but bc her whole life is a tragic comedy of self-sabotage failures she ruins her chance for a happy ending and has to settle for honor suicide".

POWERS:
Hayame is physically very strong by virtue of her species' biology and the physical training she has undertaken since childhood. However, since none of her abilities come from magic/supernatural sources and still fall within a reasonable range, I do not believe they need nerfing at this time.

Her "powers" include:
↣ max ~40km/h+ speed on land (for short bursts)
↣ master at archery (specifically the daikyu long bow)
↣ proficient with blade and naginata polearm
↣ above human levels of physical strength (capable of lifting a grown man off his feet with one hand, crushing bones under her hooves or hands, carrying hundreds of pounds on her equine back, utilizing a bow over six feet tall with a 100+ pound draw weight with no sign of strain, etc.)

GAME INFO

ASPECTS:
Iconoclast: Hayame fits this Aspect best, as a former Firebrand. She is resolute, vengeful, and proud, and her only goal for most of canon is to be acknowledged as a warrior and respected as a person rather than a beast/slave.
Harbringer: plz don't do this to me, but in the interest of following the rules and giving two, Hayame is determined and has a strong sense of personal motivation, she's strong, and arrogant, and she works tirelessly toward her goals (until she breaks)

ANTICIPATED FACTION:
After her experiences in Horos it may take Hayame some time to actually commit, and I anticipate she will spend at least a month or so in neutral territory just hiding in nature and thinking/trying to put off sect commitments, but eventually... She'll be going Meridian. She wants her world back, not just one or two souls cherry-picked (even though she'd take that over Nothing obv), and she just can't allow herself to believe that her whole world is just... gone. She wants to go back more than anything, and without the hope that Meridian is offering she'd likely try to choose death or slip into despair in Zenith unless something highly specific was done to keep her alive and useful.

SUITABILITY:
Hayame's entire story arc in her canon is about redemption and the struggle to live and maintain hope in a world where you have every right to despair or give up. Some give up their lives, others their humanity, and honestly Hayame does both at different points in her development. Continuing my hopes for her started in Aion Teleos, I want to continue exploring the choice between despair and hope, dark and light, something that Hayame struggles with a lot in her canon. I also aim to explore her character further, especially addressing the idea of whether her attempts in Horos to try and be a better person (keyword: attempts) will survive yet another world shift, and if they'll be sustainable long-term without her main supporter or any castmates, nevermind her struggling with interpersonal relationships.

I will be the first to admit that it is very difficult for Hayame to connect with other people and engage with foreign settings. Her sense of honor and proper conduct are rigid and medieval, she's quick to be insulted and quicker to lash out, and she'll be completely out of her depth with the concept of other worlds, which will make her defensive and on edge. But I like slow burn and the long haul, so I'm most interested in playing out the arc of a woman desperately trying to be good, trying to connect with others, trying to believe in being able to help her world/the people left behind somehow... but constantly dealing with the temptation of falling back into old patterns of distrust, negativity, despair, and resignation.

TLDR; I survived Aion Teleos, let me in...