Aria Kasun

[A Waste of Faith]

Name: Aria Kasun
Age: 16
Race: Fur-Kin
Sex: Female
Height: 6’1”
Weight: 175 lbs
Occupation: Ambassador of the Fur-Kin

Personality: Aria is full of hope for the future, excited about adventure and seeing new things. She finds other races fascinating and enjoyed learning the culture and customs of the races she would be integrating herself into more than anything. Although she original dreamed of being a warrior and defending her clan, she is much more excited about being an ambassador of her people now that she is older.

She is a little naive, believing that things will work out for the best, because they always have. Despite her sister leaving some years ago, she’s sure that they will see each other again, even though she has no idea where Ophelia’s new clan would have traveled to. She believes that the humans and the elves will ultimately accept her kind, just as she believes that the lion-kin whose clan she and the others joined have sent just four fur-kin into human lands for peace. She has lived in seclusion most of her life and so, despite being sixteen and old enough in her culture to take a mate, she is still young and foolish. She seeks to see the best in people and, though she is probably right in many cases, this is also a dangerous stance to take in lands that are unfamiliar to you.

However, her training as a warrior has taught her some caution, and though she believes things will work out for the best, nervousness keeps her cloaked in her cowl and hiding what she is from the locals. Despite the years of training in speaking solely Tradespeak, she still slips into forms of body language to communicate, and she has a habit of purring when she is nervous, or hissing when frightened. She can’t shake the years she spent in a clan solely of fur-kin, who communicate in more than mere words.

She is a kind person. Having grown up with two siblings and raised among others of her same or close age, she is accustomed to being surrounded by many friends and family, of talking to people and sharing laughs, and of being able to trust those she is with.

Time and experience will no doubt show her that not everyone can be trusted, but it will be a hard, painful lesson.

History: Born into the clan of the panthera, a family of fur-kin who take after large cats, like lions and tigers and leopards (oh my), Aria was raised with her two littermates - a sister who looked almost identical to her and a brother who was born melanistic, all of his fur black with only vague shapes of spots.

As with all members of her clan, she and her siblings were trained in tracking and tree-climbing and hunting. When they were nine, they had to choose an apprenticeship to follow. Aria’s brother, Dougal, took to learning Tracking, learning how to assist hunters in tracking down prey or finding lost people in the woods. Her sister, Ophelia, took to learning healing. She would follow the healer around as she collected herbs and plants and learned which ones would hurt and which would heal, and how to bind wounds and create poultices.

Aria wanted to become one of the Edge Guard, the warriors who defended their clan by patrolling the border of their territory. She chose a bow as her weapon and she trained with the other kits who wanted to be warriors. She became close with the other kits who trained in archery, although as time went on, she surpassed them in skill. She learned how to track like her brother, so she could track a potential enemy, and she learned how to use both her bow and claw-to-claw combat.

When she was twelve, another Pantheras clan came to them for help. They had been injured in a territory battle with a Canis clan and their healers had been killed. Ophelia was chosen to accompany one of the clan’s healers in joining the new clan, to continue to learn and one day take over as that clan’s healer. So Aria and Dougal said goodbye to Ophelia, and she left with the other clan, not knowing where they would eventually settle down.

Two years later, a small group of lion fur-kin came into their territory, seeking ambassadors. They wanted to try and make peace with the nearby humans, but for that they needed young, well-trained individuals who could protect themselves, but were also willing to meet with other races. Having watched her sister leave to travel she didn’t know where, visiting places she could never dream of, the too-familiar scent and sight of the forest had become boring to Aria, and her once-dream of becoming a member of the Edge Guard seemed a chore. So when it was announced that the lion-kin sought able-bodied volunteers, she volunteered to be a part of it.

She said goodbye to her brother, her parents, to her archery-kin and her teachers, and those of her clan who had helped raise her, and she left with three others of her clan with these strangers, to join a new clan who wanted to try for peace.

When they reached the lion-kin’s clan, the four of them were split up, each assigned a different group to train with. They learned the customs of the nearby human clans and those of the elves. They took brief trips into the edges of small towns to observe. They learned how to communicate solely in Tradespeak, rather than the mix of Tradespeak with growls and animalistic body language. They were taught to dress like men or elves, how to order food, how to eat when in the presence of creatures who didn’t eat their food raw. (To be fair, some of the roleplaying was rather ridiculous and embarrassing; particularly the one about how to flirt.)

They spent much of their time in training on how to blend in, on language, and on diplomacy. And when Aria was sixteen, the four of them were paired with a partner who would stay close to them, sometimes in the same town or perhaps a few towns away, or in the outskirts, but at least on the same continent. This was the one that they reported to, the one they could go to if there was trouble. Their back-up and their contact with the clan. And then, each of them with their own partner, the four of them were sent in separate directions, on ships or across land on carts, to integrate themselves with the humans and the elves, and eventually to make peace.

Aria traveled west, through the Niadath Pass, and into Alerar, hopeful about her future.

Appearance: Aria has a tall, slender body covered in golden fur. She has the black square and dot pattern of her litter, the typical jaguar coat pattern. Her eyes are a bright blue. She has shoulder-length black hair she keeps pulled back in tight braids, decorated with various wooden beads or different sizes and shapes.

Because fur-kin are generally unaccepted, she is forced to hide her appearance as she travels around the world. She wears a long, heavy black cloak with a deep hood and a cowl that covers her entire face except for a strip around her eyes. Her hands are normally hidden in the sleeves of her cloak, but when not, she wears gloves to hide her distinctive fur and claws. She is unable to wear shoes because of the shape of her feet, so she relies on a very long cloak to hide them from view, same as she does with her tail.

Skills:

Archery: Aria was trained since she was very young in archery and is an exemplary shot both standing still and running.

Quadrupedal/Bipedal Variation: Aria is able to walk on two legs like a human or drop down and walk on all four.

Abilities:

Altered/Heightened Senses: Due to her animalistic nature, Aria’s senses are stronger than some other species.

• Sight: Having the lenses of a cat, Aria is able to see in almost-perfect darkness. However, the lenses over her eyes can give her away because they reflect light and glow if someone shines a light directly at them.
• Hearing: Having ears that oscillate and are shaped to catch noise allows Aria to hear for quite some distance. She can also detect small noises, like that of tiny footsteps or a scurrying mouse. Unfortunately, her heightened hearing means she is extremely sensitive to high-pitched noises, like sharp whistles or a close-by scream. They can cause her distress, headaches, or even complete disorientation.
• Taste: Lacking the proper taste buds, Aria cannot taste things that are sweet. So something like chocolate or maple candy offers no pleasure for her at all.
• Smell: Aria is able to recognize people/creatures by their scent and can track someone for some distance (a few miles), so long as their trail hasn’t been altered by a river or weather. Her heightened sense of smell can be distracting, though, and can overwhelm her if there are too many scents or if something is too strong, like flowers. She can also become more susceptible to chemicals or poisons that can be inhaled.
• Touch: The whiskers on Aria’s face are extremely sensitive and can help her detect things around her in the dark, like the pathway in a cavern or the dimensions of a hole - whether or not she could fit through it.

Speed Burst: Aria is able to run at an incredibly fast pace for about two miles at a time. On a straight path without obstacles, she can reach about the same speed of a galloping horse. Her dexterity means that she is capable of making quick alterations in her direction (abrupt turns) to avoid obstacles or leap over things like fallen trees, but these interruptions force her to lower her speed. She can only do this when dropped down to all fours and only four times within a single RP.

Scent Cognition: Once Aria smells someone, she is able to recognize that scent. However, if she Scent Marks someone, following their scent trail allows her to see, as though she is watching it happen, what they were doing at the place she is smelling. The strength of her scenting an area someone walking lessens as time goes by. Mere minutes after they passed that area and her vision of their actions will probably be all but perfect, but as hours pass, she may get less and less information, or mere flashes. Twenty-four hours is the limit of her ability and she will see nothing, and rain or other weather can obscure her vision entirely regardless of the time that has passed. Scent Marking someone requires her to lick their skin directly, which can be incredibly embarrassing at the best of times. This ability only lasts through a single post and can only be done five times during a single RP.

Equipment/Weapons:

Longbow (yew)
Quiver of arrows (oak, steel heads)

[Breaker]

Hi there, welcome to Althanas! I'll be assisting you with getting your profile approved. There are a few modifications I must recommend before we can proceed.

The first change I'd like to recommend is purely aesthetic and optional. You describe Aria as having a "tall, slender body", but the height and weight you've put in make her seem more short and stocky. You may want to consider increasing the height and reducing the weight in order to match your verbal description. But, this one is totally up to you!

Please move your "Altered/Heightened Senses" from Skills to Abilities. This is considered a passive ability in our system and it will be important to have it properly organized.

Please define what "incredibly fast" means in speed burst. You can put an actual speed on it or make a comparison to an animal.

Please specify how Aria Scent Marks someone, and what the range of this ability is.

Lastly, I'll need to know what materials your equipment are made from. I would suggest yew for a starter longbow, and arrows made from oak with either iron or steel heads.

I know that may seem like a lot, but I'm here to help if you have any questions. Once you have made these changes we'll move on to the next step in getting this profile approved.

[A Waste of Faith]

Updated!

[Breaker]

Looks good, you are approved!