Post by Ashlotte Maedel on Jul 23, 2012 21:07:55 GMT
Name: Ishimaru Kazuma
Age: 19
Gender: Male
Fighting Style: Self-taught
Weapon: Ishimaru fights with a katana and shuriken together. The katana appears unremarkable; the blade is ordinary steel, approximately two feet in length with "錯覚" (lit. "optical illusion") at the base of the blade. The hilt and scabbard are both simple black, doing little to hold attention.
The shuriken worn on Ishimaru's back stands out more as a weapon. It is large for a throwing weapon, with three eighteen-inch curved blades in a triangular arrangement. A roaring gold dragon is inlaid on each of the blades, and there is a short leather-wrapped segment extending from the center where it's safe to grip the weapon.
Weapon Name: Sakkaku and Ryunaru ("Optical Illusion" and "Rumbling Dragon")
Place of Birth: Kyoto, Japan
Appearance:
Costume 1
Costume 2
(Costume 1 is his natural appearance, 2 is just a reference for other clothes he wears.)
Alliance: Neutral Alliance (Considered too impure to align with Soul Calibur)
Personality: Ishimaru is typically a fairly serious, distant, pensive young man, but he can be a bit snarky when he feels the situation calls for it and is good-natured and kind-hearted if not particularly friendly. He's intelligent and fairly clever, but he can seem rather naive or idealistic at times, which can keep him from applying it properly. Attractive women tend to make him uncomfortable, even, or perhaps especially, ones that mean him bodily harm.
Ishimaru isn't quite as simple as he seems to some people, however. Despite being good-natured and self-disciplined, Ishimaru's seeming idealism does not extend to being honorable when it gets in the way of being practical; he cheats like a bastard when he gambles, is not averse to lying to people to avoid trouble or get information, and is no stranger to fighting dirty the second it becomes clear that his opponent is stronger than he is. Combat seems to bring out the worst in Ishimaru, which is why he's usually keen to avoid it or end things quickly; outside of combat he is kind-hearted and seems rather gentle, but when combat begins, Ishimaru must cope with another side of his nature, a part of him that only feels alive surrounded by violence and takes joy in hurting others and being hurt back. Ishimaru fears and hates this part of himself, which is why he will not allow himself to kill anyone in battle; not out of a true reverence for all life, but because he is terrified that if he gives in and kills someone, he will never be able to stop. These elements of his personality compared to the person he tries to be are likely the reason Ishimaru does not consider himself a good person despite going out of his way to help and protect others and fight against evil.
Background/History: Ishimaru began life as an ordinary child, the son of a simple potter. While his village was poor, Ishimaru grew up intelligent but with little potential, having nobody to educate him but fellow peasants and no knowledge of the world beyond his home. Things changed for Ishimaru when he was seven, and bandits fell on his village. Ishimaru's family and all of his neighbors died in a single night; Ishimaru, in the woods at the time, as attacked by a wandering bandit and escaped only by accidentally killing his attacker with an axe. While Ishimaru was terrified by his first fight, he was noticed by a different outlaw who observed the young boy's strength and ferocity in the face of his fear. With nowhere to go, Ishimaru was offered membership in a small group of bandit ronin and self-styled ninja cast out of various clans, which he accepted. Ishimaru would go on to learn as much as he could from his new companions, becoming an accomplished swordsman and studying ninjutsu and what little academic knowledge he could get his hands on. While the Sword of Heroes, Soul Edge, was a common campfire tale, Ishimaru gave it little consideration; a legendary blade would never be in his life, not when his concern was only to survive to the next day.
He was wrong.
Simple fortune brought a shard of Soul Edge into the keeping of the group, and it became the leader of the band's prized possession. However, one night, tempers flared unexpectedly, and the leader was attacked by one of his friends over the shard. Violence exploded, and the entire band suddenly fell upon each other; Ishimaru had no choice but to cut down a number of the men and women he considered his friends and family to save his own life, and met the dawn as the only survivor. The massacre in the night brought home to Ishimaru that it was no trinket the leader had carried; something powerful and evil had touched the group through the innocuous little shard, and if such a small piece could cause such destruction, what was the sword itself capable of? Troubled by these thoughts and unable to stay in Japan with everyone he knew dead yet again, Ishimaru decided to go to Europe to pursue Soul Edge, and destroy it if possible.
Ishimaru did not receive a warm reception in Europe; while he was able to begin tracking the legendary Azure Nightmare soon after arriving, it was not the knight he was fated to meet but its servant, Tira. The two would go on to clash many times as Ishimaru pursued the sword, Ishimaru narrowly escaping with his life many times. Despite his frustration at being unable to defeat Tira, Ishimaru did find something interesting in his search; information about a sword called Soul Calibur, a holy blade that could counteract and defeat Soul Edge's power. Surprisingly, Ishimaru's tracking suggested that the two swords were together, and he followed the trail to an ancient cathedral, where Tira was waiting for him.
The two clashed in a final all-out brawl, fighting with all their strength and cunning and doing their very best to kill one another. Strangely, Ishimaru reveled in the battle where he had previously fought desperately just to stay alive, and the two seemed evenly matched until the clash of Soul Calibur and Soul Edge nearby engulfed the arena in the energy of both swords. Tira's mind was split in two by the power of the swords, but Ishimaru was affected differently; his repressed bloodlust was strengthened by Soul Edge's power, and attacked Ishimaru's mind with an unwanted memory of the night that had started it all; he had not been defending himself the night his band self-destructed, but had been influenced by the shard and attacked several of his friends, enjoying the destruction around him. As he struggled with this realization, Ishimaru tried to quell the evil energy by connecting with Soul Calibur's power, but the sword's holy energies rejected the darkness in Ishimaru and burned him. Agonized and fighting against his own instincts to remain lucid, Ishimaru was no match for the split but still focused Tira and was defeated utterly. Tira left without killing him, either to let him die of his wounds, or out of a curious sense of mercy; for whatever reason, Ishimaru lived when he should have died.
Ishimaru left the cathedral days later, drained and disturbed by the new disquiet in his soul. Soul Calibur's power had hurt him, while Soul Edge's had strengthened part of his nature that he had always denied. What did it mean? Ishimaru began to meditate in hopes of finding answers, but he ultimately concluded he could only be at peace if he faced Tira and the Soul Swords again. The journey brought Ishimaru into deadly battle after deadly battle, but he managed to see his way through without taking a life, despite the growing temptation to fight to kill. He and Tira clashed again in the Tower shortly before Siegfried and Nightmare's climactic battle, and this time Ishimaru defeated Tira, holding her at his mercy. Despite the long-standing enmity between the two, Ishimaru found he had no desire to finish her off; he was able to find serenity in the knowledge he was not a killer and could feel sympathy for Tira despite all she'd done. Ishimaru spared her life, but both were in the tower as it was devastated by the clash in which Soul Edge was seemingly destroyed. Ishimaru, wounded and drained from his fighting but at peace with himself again, searched for Tira in the aftermath, but could not find her. The temptation to return to Japan was strong, but Ishimaru realized he had nothing binding him anywhere; there was no home for him on either continent he had yet found, and the only relationship he'd been able to maintain since beginning his journey was rivalry with other warriors…particularly Tira. Ishimaru sheathed his sword and became a vagrant, wandering the land aimlessly.
Because he had nothing to fill his time, Ishimaru was always on the lookout for any signs of the evil sword or its servant, and his careful watch eventually made him increasingly sure Soul Edge had not been destroyed as he thought. Its evil still dwelled in Europe. Taking up his sword again, Ishimaru set out for Ostrheinsburg, determined this time he would see the matter of the Soul Swords settled once and for all.
He forced himself to ignore the stirring in the back of his soul as the dormant part of him that still longed for the chaos and battle of his old journey raised its head…
Relations:
Family | Killed by bandits
Tira | Frenemy/Arch-Rival
Additional Information:
-Ryunaru is said to be a spiritual weapon inhabited by a minor rain dragon. This is of debatable accuracy, but the shuriken does display several unusual qualities; the blades thrum in the presence of evil energy, creating the myth that the "spirit within" growls when danger approaches the bearer. In combat, Ryunaru's only extraordinary quality is that it tends to return to Ishimaru's hand like a boomerang after striking something instead of lodging there like an ordinary shuriken.
- Theme: "To Glory" - Two Steps from Hell
Age: 19
Gender: Male
Fighting Style: Self-taught
Weapon: Ishimaru fights with a katana and shuriken together. The katana appears unremarkable; the blade is ordinary steel, approximately two feet in length with "錯覚" (lit. "optical illusion") at the base of the blade. The hilt and scabbard are both simple black, doing little to hold attention.
The shuriken worn on Ishimaru's back stands out more as a weapon. It is large for a throwing weapon, with three eighteen-inch curved blades in a triangular arrangement. A roaring gold dragon is inlaid on each of the blades, and there is a short leather-wrapped segment extending from the center where it's safe to grip the weapon.
Weapon Name: Sakkaku and Ryunaru ("Optical Illusion" and "Rumbling Dragon")
Place of Birth: Kyoto, Japan
Appearance:
Costume 1
Costume 2
(Costume 1 is his natural appearance, 2 is just a reference for other clothes he wears.)
Alliance: Neutral Alliance (Considered too impure to align with Soul Calibur)
Personality: Ishimaru is typically a fairly serious, distant, pensive young man, but he can be a bit snarky when he feels the situation calls for it and is good-natured and kind-hearted if not particularly friendly. He's intelligent and fairly clever, but he can seem rather naive or idealistic at times, which can keep him from applying it properly. Attractive women tend to make him uncomfortable, even, or perhaps especially, ones that mean him bodily harm.
Ishimaru isn't quite as simple as he seems to some people, however. Despite being good-natured and self-disciplined, Ishimaru's seeming idealism does not extend to being honorable when it gets in the way of being practical; he cheats like a bastard when he gambles, is not averse to lying to people to avoid trouble or get information, and is no stranger to fighting dirty the second it becomes clear that his opponent is stronger than he is. Combat seems to bring out the worst in Ishimaru, which is why he's usually keen to avoid it or end things quickly; outside of combat he is kind-hearted and seems rather gentle, but when combat begins, Ishimaru must cope with another side of his nature, a part of him that only feels alive surrounded by violence and takes joy in hurting others and being hurt back. Ishimaru fears and hates this part of himself, which is why he will not allow himself to kill anyone in battle; not out of a true reverence for all life, but because he is terrified that if he gives in and kills someone, he will never be able to stop. These elements of his personality compared to the person he tries to be are likely the reason Ishimaru does not consider himself a good person despite going out of his way to help and protect others and fight against evil.
Background/History: Ishimaru began life as an ordinary child, the son of a simple potter. While his village was poor, Ishimaru grew up intelligent but with little potential, having nobody to educate him but fellow peasants and no knowledge of the world beyond his home. Things changed for Ishimaru when he was seven, and bandits fell on his village. Ishimaru's family and all of his neighbors died in a single night; Ishimaru, in the woods at the time, as attacked by a wandering bandit and escaped only by accidentally killing his attacker with an axe. While Ishimaru was terrified by his first fight, he was noticed by a different outlaw who observed the young boy's strength and ferocity in the face of his fear. With nowhere to go, Ishimaru was offered membership in a small group of bandit ronin and self-styled ninja cast out of various clans, which he accepted. Ishimaru would go on to learn as much as he could from his new companions, becoming an accomplished swordsman and studying ninjutsu and what little academic knowledge he could get his hands on. While the Sword of Heroes, Soul Edge, was a common campfire tale, Ishimaru gave it little consideration; a legendary blade would never be in his life, not when his concern was only to survive to the next day.
He was wrong.
Simple fortune brought a shard of Soul Edge into the keeping of the group, and it became the leader of the band's prized possession. However, one night, tempers flared unexpectedly, and the leader was attacked by one of his friends over the shard. Violence exploded, and the entire band suddenly fell upon each other; Ishimaru had no choice but to cut down a number of the men and women he considered his friends and family to save his own life, and met the dawn as the only survivor. The massacre in the night brought home to Ishimaru that it was no trinket the leader had carried; something powerful and evil had touched the group through the innocuous little shard, and if such a small piece could cause such destruction, what was the sword itself capable of? Troubled by these thoughts and unable to stay in Japan with everyone he knew dead yet again, Ishimaru decided to go to Europe to pursue Soul Edge, and destroy it if possible.
Ishimaru did not receive a warm reception in Europe; while he was able to begin tracking the legendary Azure Nightmare soon after arriving, it was not the knight he was fated to meet but its servant, Tira. The two would go on to clash many times as Ishimaru pursued the sword, Ishimaru narrowly escaping with his life many times. Despite his frustration at being unable to defeat Tira, Ishimaru did find something interesting in his search; information about a sword called Soul Calibur, a holy blade that could counteract and defeat Soul Edge's power. Surprisingly, Ishimaru's tracking suggested that the two swords were together, and he followed the trail to an ancient cathedral, where Tira was waiting for him.
The two clashed in a final all-out brawl, fighting with all their strength and cunning and doing their very best to kill one another. Strangely, Ishimaru reveled in the battle where he had previously fought desperately just to stay alive, and the two seemed evenly matched until the clash of Soul Calibur and Soul Edge nearby engulfed the arena in the energy of both swords. Tira's mind was split in two by the power of the swords, but Ishimaru was affected differently; his repressed bloodlust was strengthened by Soul Edge's power, and attacked Ishimaru's mind with an unwanted memory of the night that had started it all; he had not been defending himself the night his band self-destructed, but had been influenced by the shard and attacked several of his friends, enjoying the destruction around him. As he struggled with this realization, Ishimaru tried to quell the evil energy by connecting with Soul Calibur's power, but the sword's holy energies rejected the darkness in Ishimaru and burned him. Agonized and fighting against his own instincts to remain lucid, Ishimaru was no match for the split but still focused Tira and was defeated utterly. Tira left without killing him, either to let him die of his wounds, or out of a curious sense of mercy; for whatever reason, Ishimaru lived when he should have died.
Ishimaru left the cathedral days later, drained and disturbed by the new disquiet in his soul. Soul Calibur's power had hurt him, while Soul Edge's had strengthened part of his nature that he had always denied. What did it mean? Ishimaru began to meditate in hopes of finding answers, but he ultimately concluded he could only be at peace if he faced Tira and the Soul Swords again. The journey brought Ishimaru into deadly battle after deadly battle, but he managed to see his way through without taking a life, despite the growing temptation to fight to kill. He and Tira clashed again in the Tower shortly before Siegfried and Nightmare's climactic battle, and this time Ishimaru defeated Tira, holding her at his mercy. Despite the long-standing enmity between the two, Ishimaru found he had no desire to finish her off; he was able to find serenity in the knowledge he was not a killer and could feel sympathy for Tira despite all she'd done. Ishimaru spared her life, but both were in the tower as it was devastated by the clash in which Soul Edge was seemingly destroyed. Ishimaru, wounded and drained from his fighting but at peace with himself again, searched for Tira in the aftermath, but could not find her. The temptation to return to Japan was strong, but Ishimaru realized he had nothing binding him anywhere; there was no home for him on either continent he had yet found, and the only relationship he'd been able to maintain since beginning his journey was rivalry with other warriors…particularly Tira. Ishimaru sheathed his sword and became a vagrant, wandering the land aimlessly.
Because he had nothing to fill his time, Ishimaru was always on the lookout for any signs of the evil sword or its servant, and his careful watch eventually made him increasingly sure Soul Edge had not been destroyed as he thought. Its evil still dwelled in Europe. Taking up his sword again, Ishimaru set out for Ostrheinsburg, determined this time he would see the matter of the Soul Swords settled once and for all.
He forced himself to ignore the stirring in the back of his soul as the dormant part of him that still longed for the chaos and battle of his old journey raised its head…
Relations:
Family | Killed by bandits
Tira | Frenemy/Arch-Rival
Additional Information:
-Ryunaru is said to be a spiritual weapon inhabited by a minor rain dragon. This is of debatable accuracy, but the shuriken does display several unusual qualities; the blades thrum in the presence of evil energy, creating the myth that the "spirit within" growls when danger approaches the bearer. In combat, Ryunaru's only extraordinary quality is that it tends to return to Ishimaru's hand like a boomerang after striking something instead of lodging there like an ordinary shuriken.
- Theme: "To Glory" - Two Steps from Hell