Solomon
06-04-11, 10:33 AM
(Responding to an invitation from my dear ol’ chum Numbers guy I’m attempting to pilot this character once again. I left because this character’s storyline became muddled; it was no longer fun to play. I am ‘rehashing’ this character, following the popular Hollywood trend, without taking away from anything which added to his EXP. There was too much I came up with out of spontaneous ‘creativity’ which was never referenced. I am rewriting Solomon to better reflect the way I used him, and can forward his story)
Solomon, re-registration
Name: Solomon
Race: Xry
Gender: Male
Age: Late 20s
Height: 6'
Weight: 210 lbs
Hair Color: Black
Eye Color: Grey
Occupation: Student. A formidable martial artist Solomon journeys to get a grasp on the world he’s living in and, one day, uncover the full potential of his unique power.
Personality: Quiet. Although he is quite capable, Solomon has a natural tendency to avoid crowds and, if he hasn’t shied away, become awkward in conversation. He receives greater satisfaction watching the stars come out, or striding along a windy cliff side than any social situation. Even those few who’ve become invaluable to him know him for being a little slow or withdrawn.
Although Solomon works hard to keep his mind clear his damages can still hold sway over him. When antagonized, or under stress it is easy for him to act rashly or foolishly, or fall victim to another’s influence.
Appearance: Savant. Solomon’s dark getup and quiet stare tell of a man who is observant, calculated, and unmoved. Although unimpressive, his clothing has been tailored to suit his supplementary needs. His boots are tight, lightweight. His pants are roomy, and his shirt is looped fittingly down his chest without sleeves. The potential power of his exposed arms is muted by the long sleeves of his heavy, smokey-black traveller’s coat hanging loose around his boots with a tied waist; an attempt at modesty, however it tends to caution or captivate the imagination rather than deflect it.
The shirt is a tailored replica of his race’s military uniform, a heavy black cloth with embroidered edges and a lace-up running down from the left breast. Although the unique qualities aren’t recognized, its ‘military design’ is recognizable.
Skills:
“Shenda-Tri” Solomon’s most understood form of martial art. It is a deeply reflective form of combat based on the understanding and unleashing of “Shein.” Shein is the spirit energy which exists within the body and fuels every action. The techniques of this style are split into three: First is how to hit; Shein is wrapped into each move to overwhelm the opponent as fast and brutally as possible. Secondly comes where to hit, tender points on the body which weaken its structure. Finally there is grappling, manipulation of an opponent’s body to interrupt or break their flow of “Shein.” Solomon is currently at the level of ‘Advanced’ by “Shenda-Tri” traditional ranking standards.
Strategist: The study of martial arts encourages the view of an opponent’s body as a system of moving parts; removing a weak spot will crumble the foundation. This logic is also applicable to a surrounding, what can be used to hamper an opponent in a specific environment? Although Solomon has learned to break tough situations down into a series of procedures, he is no ‘natural.’ Good strategies require him to take up a defensive position, sacrificing an attack to plot the course.
Survival: Having travelled alone for many years, Solomon has learned the basics of wilderness survival. He can find food or water, build basic shelter and create fire providing the materials are in supply. Extreme weather conditions or dangerous situations can greatly impair this skill.
Abilities:
(For the sake of Role Playing all his energy based attacks will be measured through an ‘MP’ like payment system called Power Cells. I keep track of these OOC, in game it is seen as ‘approaching fatigue’)
Solomon has 6 Power Cells which recharge themselves 1/12 hours. If he reaches 0, he must receive adequate rest before they can begin to recharge. If he has not reached 0 He can boost this to 3/24 hours if he has food and rest. Upon reaching 0 Solomon is ‘exhausted,’ and he loses his physical bonuses.
Energy Abilities:
Fatal Vision: Burning energy beams which shoot from his eyes. Fast and accurate, but do minimal damage. Beams are roughly 6” long with the diameter of a quarter. Cannot penetrate steel, but singe leather, cloth and skin; excellent for stunning or scaring an opponent (2 Power Cells).
Eradication: A beam of energy which focuses on a target and condenses its power into destroying it. The beam has 3 stages: It initially fires wide from the palm in the shape of a lampshade. Dealing minimal damage stage 1 acts as a locator, trapping the target within its ‘cone.’ Part two condenses the light waves around the target’s form, dealing increasing burn damage and immobilizing subject. Stage three multiplies the intensity in a final burst, grinding at skin, muscle, and steel armor. Although the first stage ‘locates’ the target, it only lessens chance of evasion. Stage 1 lasts two seconds before the beam is too heavy for maneuvering, so if the subject is not weakened first they can out run the diameter of the cone. Stage two renders Solomon immobile, lasting for 3 seconds, and stage 3 continues his immobility for the final second. This is Solomon’s signature powerhouse move (4 Power Cells).
Mental Abilities:
Eyes of Life: Solomon can sense all “Shein” within a 10 mile radius. These appear as undistinguished colours in his mind, he cannot ascertain identifiable qualities other than how they compare to himself or one another. If he has familiarized himself with a person’s “Shein Signature” he can pick them out instantly if they come into his radius. Familiarizing comes through direct eye, vocal, or physical contact. Minor emotional traits may be determined by analyzing a signature, allowing Solomon to get a sense of intentions to weigh against physical or verbal impressions. As a meditative technique Solomon must be of clear mind for Eyes of Life to run unhampered. If Solomon tries to sense the intentions of an opponent it will come at the cost of his initiative; if he is emotionally charged it will not function. Characters that have a way to mask or cloak their ‘energy’ are immune to all effects (0 Power Cells).
Alert Sleeper: An effect of the Eyes of Life technique; the radar remains even while Solomon is sleeping. Although he cannot sense things on the same scale, when a signature gets within thirty feet Solomon’s subconscious rouses him from sleep. Characters that can mask or cloak ‘energy’ are immune (0 Power Cells).
Physical Abilities:
The unique qualities of the Xry physique naturally concentrate “Shein” into the body. Although trained to channel the energy evenly throughout, it is common for Xry warriors to realize their bodies favor a particular application of this power. This is known as a “Warriors Talent.” Solomon’s talent prefers threading Shein into the core muscles as well as the skin and bones; endowing him with:
Strength (x3): Each strike performed by Solomon is 3 times greater than that of a standard human. He also achieves impressive land speeds and jumping heights.
Defense (x3): Skin, muscle and bone resist damage. Blunt force and steel blades are reduced 3 times when used by a standard human.
Endurance (x2): So long as Solomon maintains 1 Power Cell, and is not mortally wounded, sick or unnourished, he can resist fatigue.
Reflex (x1.5): Solomon can carry his weight without slowing. He can maintain balance on rough, narrow or moving terrain and preform an effective dodge roll or flip if necessary.
Solomon – The Who, How and Why
Looking back all he can recall is the need and the obsession for preparation. If he wasn’t ready, they would come. They were in the night; a cloud sitting before the moon or a murmuring wind round their metal shanty warned him to dash beneath his blanket, lest he be taken away forever. The sun would strike him gently on the face, and he would have a moment to bow in gratitude before his father would utilize this day that Solomon’s survival had bought them.
His life was a training schedule; a series of exercises and trials he had to accomplish before his body grew to its next stage. Solomon followed this charge relentlessly, empowered by the revelation of what he was becoming. During the times his father would excurse Solomon would fortify their territory, setting traps and designing countermeasures, now almost anxious for the night They came.
He was three-quarters of his father’s size when it happened. He woke one night to hear his father, long returned from another venture, shouting and struggling outside their home. Solomon rushed in, finding himself dwarfed before a great and furious feathered behemoth. Executing all he’d been trained Solomon vainly attempted to fell the beast. It was only within seconds, when They had beaten him and moved to devour him, that Solomon killed the creature with a Shein force still unknown to him.
Fearing his father had been swallowed Solomon fled into the wilderness. He isolated himself from the wind and the sky and trained more furious and more brutally until his feathers had grown as full as his fathers; he intended to meet them when They came.
Yet They had outwitted him. Solomon choked awake one night as the light flittering through the trees threatened to take him. He ran trembling and aching out of the woods, but it was no use. He was sucked into the pale blue light.
***
A long time Solomon was to suffer the revelation of these new times. He couldn’t fight the lectures, the tests, or the surgery. The soldiers they employed kept him mute and disciplined; all he could do was sit, under watch or in chains, as they removed his father, the need, and They from his mind. The length of his stay is blurry, a great cluster of brawls and tears, until all he had left to fight with was silence.
Looking back, Solomon wishes he had stayed. There was much about to be discovered, but too much for his adolescent mind. No longer in chains or under constant watch, Solomon fled with dying hope that his life wasn’t what they’d told him. Yet returning to his home only confirmed it, and unwilling to accept the grief or the shame Solomon vanished into the wilderness, eventually finding a place far and away from civilized boarders.
He had ended up in a monastery; word had spread of a terrifying were-bird being kept nearby and the scholar Solomon was to know as Master Hemly, a man his father had frequently visited, sought him out. It was a long time before he was able to accept these strangers in his world, even longer before he could accept that they weren’t here to trick him. They had expansive notes on his heritage; Solomon was hard pressed to accept that his father, Saul, had been the one to provide an outsider with these notes but eventually his mind could not help seeing the correlations. The discussion over ‘aliens’ lingered in his mind, inevitably reducing him to his silence and driving him away to confirm what his memories had stirred. The little shanty he’d lived in wasn’t something his father had scrambled out of scraps, but was the ruins of a ‘planetary-vessel.’ With all the compartments and mechanics that Hemly had described.
***
He was Xry. His father crashed ship on this world escaping the authorities of their home planet. He was never unconvinced they had given up chase, thus he prepared Solomon for the showdown he was sure would come. Saul began visiting the monastery for use of their observatory, the ambitious Hemly discovered this disguised traveller was more than he seemed but made him an offer instead of interrogating him; Hemly’s monks would assist his search if they could study and document Saul’s species. Their later studies revealed a sickness that Saul was too preoccupied to heed; the gene producing the feathers had grown sensitive to lunar radiation, but that the genes would try to actually dominate was not discovered until Solomon appeared as the Were-bird during a ‘blue moon.’
Isolation intensified these feelings; he had killed his father, but did he hate him for not telling the truth? Surgery and medication ensured his feathers wouldn’t grow back, but what sort of ‘man’ was he now striving to become? Eventually one of Hemly’s monks tracked him down but Solomon was not interested in their support; by then he’d completely rejected his identity. Slipping town to town as a rogue Solomon found a place amongst a group of treasure hunters; however as Hemly’s letters persisted Solomon could no longer maintain denial. He opted to leave the group, but as their work had not been entirely ethical their leader Claimos attempted to ‘silence’ him.
He was quick to counter his leader’s ploy. The victory forced Calimos to flee for his life, and although Hemly had anticipated his return Solomon decided instead to track Calimos across the continent and into the Red Forest. Luck alone brought him out of the accursed labyrinth, but having experienced new depths of his power he further postponed uniting with Hemly and began a new, stronger training cycle in isolation.
Some months later Arrye, one of Hemly’s students, tracked him down. Hemly’s research had landed him in dangerous hands; he was missing and presumed dead. Solomon joined the search but Hemly was never found. Although Arrye had hoped he would stay at the monastery Solomon decided, now that Hemly was gone from his life, that it was best he move on from this little astrological monastery for good.
Arrye however remained persistent. Seeing that Solomon would not stay he sent him off with, and continued to send to his home, packages of books he told Solomon would be of benefit. They were mostly folklore, and other classic tales taught to the youth; however as Solomon’s grade as a reader was not too strong he had a feeling Arrye was attempting to challenging him and did his best to rise to it. As time went on and his intellect improved Solomon found he enjoyed the stories, and he allowed interruptions in his training schedule for the occasional dive into forgotten feats of heroism and gallantry.
***
Some time had passed. As the correspondence stopped Arrye took it upon himself to visit Solomon’s home in Salvar where he found him once more in isolation. Grateful for the company Solomon easily admitted he was no longer feeling like himself. Arrye had kept a tab on Solomon’s exploits, and bought up his rumored performance in the Citadel and the enclave of thieves he’d dissolved. Although proud, Solomon had returned because of his failures. He had defended a small coastal Inn from a pirate assault, but had failed to protect the owner’s daughter, Kira, whom he confessed he was in love with. Then came his defeat; he was nearly eradicated by the hand of geomancer Luc Kraus, and was forced to realize his losses were no fluke. He was not strong enough to have saved Kira, or anyone for that matter.
Arrye recalled the stories. Solomon didn’t understand at first, but as Arrye explained himself Solomon’s temper began to rise. Arrye asked: “Didn’t you notice? The heroes always failed when they could not let go of their ideals!”
Solomon defended, but Arrye pointed out the misconnections in Solomon’s tales. They continued long into the night until, enraged, Solomon cast Arrye out of his home. Arrye, however, had left something behind and although Solomon read it, it was not for a few days he was finally able to accept it.
“If our species have no other distractions, no false wants, then there is no limit to what we can achieve. I’ve designed a perfect simulation of what a mind with one dedication can accomplish, but only if the outside world does not contradict it.”
Hemly had kept a diary of his encounters with Saul. This was a small chapter that Arrye had kept out of interest, but had never known what Saul referred to until he’d met Solomon. Arrye had said he’d forgiven his father without thinking; he had not acknowledged the lie he’d lead, that he’d virtually lost fifteen years of his life. He had not known Kira for a full twelve hours yet clung to her memory as a reason to push himself; he would not let go of the idea he’d been especially trained for something great. Each of his failures had brought him to isolation only to fail again. His ‘knowledge’ about himself and of the Xry was self-explained, fabricated ideas to make up for his lack of understanding.
In short, 'Solomon' was a failed idea.
***
Something happened in Solomon’s mind which should have destroyed him. Coming to terms with his failure, understanding his will and even his hope were all doomed lead him to a point where his mind erupted. Yet instead of further decimating him, everything came together in one great mass and ‘dissolved.’ A strange sense of inevitability washed through him, and all he could do was surrender to the unknown.
Arrye, quick to forgive, responded to Solomon’s invitation and met him in Salvar. He offered him a place at the monastery where he could further his search in good company and high spirits. However, Solomon declined. There was little in the past for him anymore, and he was through with the ‘search.’ It was time he put more effort into seeing what this world, his true home, had to offer him; he could no longer consider himself an alien.
Happy for his friend, Arrye gave him some new storybooks and was on his way.
Solomon, re-registration
Name: Solomon
Race: Xry
Gender: Male
Age: Late 20s
Height: 6'
Weight: 210 lbs
Hair Color: Black
Eye Color: Grey
Occupation: Student. A formidable martial artist Solomon journeys to get a grasp on the world he’s living in and, one day, uncover the full potential of his unique power.
Personality: Quiet. Although he is quite capable, Solomon has a natural tendency to avoid crowds and, if he hasn’t shied away, become awkward in conversation. He receives greater satisfaction watching the stars come out, or striding along a windy cliff side than any social situation. Even those few who’ve become invaluable to him know him for being a little slow or withdrawn.
Although Solomon works hard to keep his mind clear his damages can still hold sway over him. When antagonized, or under stress it is easy for him to act rashly or foolishly, or fall victim to another’s influence.
Appearance: Savant. Solomon’s dark getup and quiet stare tell of a man who is observant, calculated, and unmoved. Although unimpressive, his clothing has been tailored to suit his supplementary needs. His boots are tight, lightweight. His pants are roomy, and his shirt is looped fittingly down his chest without sleeves. The potential power of his exposed arms is muted by the long sleeves of his heavy, smokey-black traveller’s coat hanging loose around his boots with a tied waist; an attempt at modesty, however it tends to caution or captivate the imagination rather than deflect it.
The shirt is a tailored replica of his race’s military uniform, a heavy black cloth with embroidered edges and a lace-up running down from the left breast. Although the unique qualities aren’t recognized, its ‘military design’ is recognizable.
Skills:
“Shenda-Tri” Solomon’s most understood form of martial art. It is a deeply reflective form of combat based on the understanding and unleashing of “Shein.” Shein is the spirit energy which exists within the body and fuels every action. The techniques of this style are split into three: First is how to hit; Shein is wrapped into each move to overwhelm the opponent as fast and brutally as possible. Secondly comes where to hit, tender points on the body which weaken its structure. Finally there is grappling, manipulation of an opponent’s body to interrupt or break their flow of “Shein.” Solomon is currently at the level of ‘Advanced’ by “Shenda-Tri” traditional ranking standards.
Strategist: The study of martial arts encourages the view of an opponent’s body as a system of moving parts; removing a weak spot will crumble the foundation. This logic is also applicable to a surrounding, what can be used to hamper an opponent in a specific environment? Although Solomon has learned to break tough situations down into a series of procedures, he is no ‘natural.’ Good strategies require him to take up a defensive position, sacrificing an attack to plot the course.
Survival: Having travelled alone for many years, Solomon has learned the basics of wilderness survival. He can find food or water, build basic shelter and create fire providing the materials are in supply. Extreme weather conditions or dangerous situations can greatly impair this skill.
Abilities:
(For the sake of Role Playing all his energy based attacks will be measured through an ‘MP’ like payment system called Power Cells. I keep track of these OOC, in game it is seen as ‘approaching fatigue’)
Solomon has 6 Power Cells which recharge themselves 1/12 hours. If he reaches 0, he must receive adequate rest before they can begin to recharge. If he has not reached 0 He can boost this to 3/24 hours if he has food and rest. Upon reaching 0 Solomon is ‘exhausted,’ and he loses his physical bonuses.
Energy Abilities:
Fatal Vision: Burning energy beams which shoot from his eyes. Fast and accurate, but do minimal damage. Beams are roughly 6” long with the diameter of a quarter. Cannot penetrate steel, but singe leather, cloth and skin; excellent for stunning or scaring an opponent (2 Power Cells).
Eradication: A beam of energy which focuses on a target and condenses its power into destroying it. The beam has 3 stages: It initially fires wide from the palm in the shape of a lampshade. Dealing minimal damage stage 1 acts as a locator, trapping the target within its ‘cone.’ Part two condenses the light waves around the target’s form, dealing increasing burn damage and immobilizing subject. Stage three multiplies the intensity in a final burst, grinding at skin, muscle, and steel armor. Although the first stage ‘locates’ the target, it only lessens chance of evasion. Stage 1 lasts two seconds before the beam is too heavy for maneuvering, so if the subject is not weakened first they can out run the diameter of the cone. Stage two renders Solomon immobile, lasting for 3 seconds, and stage 3 continues his immobility for the final second. This is Solomon’s signature powerhouse move (4 Power Cells).
Mental Abilities:
Eyes of Life: Solomon can sense all “Shein” within a 10 mile radius. These appear as undistinguished colours in his mind, he cannot ascertain identifiable qualities other than how they compare to himself or one another. If he has familiarized himself with a person’s “Shein Signature” he can pick them out instantly if they come into his radius. Familiarizing comes through direct eye, vocal, or physical contact. Minor emotional traits may be determined by analyzing a signature, allowing Solomon to get a sense of intentions to weigh against physical or verbal impressions. As a meditative technique Solomon must be of clear mind for Eyes of Life to run unhampered. If Solomon tries to sense the intentions of an opponent it will come at the cost of his initiative; if he is emotionally charged it will not function. Characters that have a way to mask or cloak their ‘energy’ are immune to all effects (0 Power Cells).
Alert Sleeper: An effect of the Eyes of Life technique; the radar remains even while Solomon is sleeping. Although he cannot sense things on the same scale, when a signature gets within thirty feet Solomon’s subconscious rouses him from sleep. Characters that can mask or cloak ‘energy’ are immune (0 Power Cells).
Physical Abilities:
The unique qualities of the Xry physique naturally concentrate “Shein” into the body. Although trained to channel the energy evenly throughout, it is common for Xry warriors to realize their bodies favor a particular application of this power. This is known as a “Warriors Talent.” Solomon’s talent prefers threading Shein into the core muscles as well as the skin and bones; endowing him with:
Strength (x3): Each strike performed by Solomon is 3 times greater than that of a standard human. He also achieves impressive land speeds and jumping heights.
Defense (x3): Skin, muscle and bone resist damage. Blunt force and steel blades are reduced 3 times when used by a standard human.
Endurance (x2): So long as Solomon maintains 1 Power Cell, and is not mortally wounded, sick or unnourished, he can resist fatigue.
Reflex (x1.5): Solomon can carry his weight without slowing. He can maintain balance on rough, narrow or moving terrain and preform an effective dodge roll or flip if necessary.
Solomon – The Who, How and Why
Looking back all he can recall is the need and the obsession for preparation. If he wasn’t ready, they would come. They were in the night; a cloud sitting before the moon or a murmuring wind round their metal shanty warned him to dash beneath his blanket, lest he be taken away forever. The sun would strike him gently on the face, and he would have a moment to bow in gratitude before his father would utilize this day that Solomon’s survival had bought them.
His life was a training schedule; a series of exercises and trials he had to accomplish before his body grew to its next stage. Solomon followed this charge relentlessly, empowered by the revelation of what he was becoming. During the times his father would excurse Solomon would fortify their territory, setting traps and designing countermeasures, now almost anxious for the night They came.
He was three-quarters of his father’s size when it happened. He woke one night to hear his father, long returned from another venture, shouting and struggling outside their home. Solomon rushed in, finding himself dwarfed before a great and furious feathered behemoth. Executing all he’d been trained Solomon vainly attempted to fell the beast. It was only within seconds, when They had beaten him and moved to devour him, that Solomon killed the creature with a Shein force still unknown to him.
Fearing his father had been swallowed Solomon fled into the wilderness. He isolated himself from the wind and the sky and trained more furious and more brutally until his feathers had grown as full as his fathers; he intended to meet them when They came.
Yet They had outwitted him. Solomon choked awake one night as the light flittering through the trees threatened to take him. He ran trembling and aching out of the woods, but it was no use. He was sucked into the pale blue light.
***
A long time Solomon was to suffer the revelation of these new times. He couldn’t fight the lectures, the tests, or the surgery. The soldiers they employed kept him mute and disciplined; all he could do was sit, under watch or in chains, as they removed his father, the need, and They from his mind. The length of his stay is blurry, a great cluster of brawls and tears, until all he had left to fight with was silence.
Looking back, Solomon wishes he had stayed. There was much about to be discovered, but too much for his adolescent mind. No longer in chains or under constant watch, Solomon fled with dying hope that his life wasn’t what they’d told him. Yet returning to his home only confirmed it, and unwilling to accept the grief or the shame Solomon vanished into the wilderness, eventually finding a place far and away from civilized boarders.
He had ended up in a monastery; word had spread of a terrifying were-bird being kept nearby and the scholar Solomon was to know as Master Hemly, a man his father had frequently visited, sought him out. It was a long time before he was able to accept these strangers in his world, even longer before he could accept that they weren’t here to trick him. They had expansive notes on his heritage; Solomon was hard pressed to accept that his father, Saul, had been the one to provide an outsider with these notes but eventually his mind could not help seeing the correlations. The discussion over ‘aliens’ lingered in his mind, inevitably reducing him to his silence and driving him away to confirm what his memories had stirred. The little shanty he’d lived in wasn’t something his father had scrambled out of scraps, but was the ruins of a ‘planetary-vessel.’ With all the compartments and mechanics that Hemly had described.
***
He was Xry. His father crashed ship on this world escaping the authorities of their home planet. He was never unconvinced they had given up chase, thus he prepared Solomon for the showdown he was sure would come. Saul began visiting the monastery for use of their observatory, the ambitious Hemly discovered this disguised traveller was more than he seemed but made him an offer instead of interrogating him; Hemly’s monks would assist his search if they could study and document Saul’s species. Their later studies revealed a sickness that Saul was too preoccupied to heed; the gene producing the feathers had grown sensitive to lunar radiation, but that the genes would try to actually dominate was not discovered until Solomon appeared as the Were-bird during a ‘blue moon.’
Isolation intensified these feelings; he had killed his father, but did he hate him for not telling the truth? Surgery and medication ensured his feathers wouldn’t grow back, but what sort of ‘man’ was he now striving to become? Eventually one of Hemly’s monks tracked him down but Solomon was not interested in their support; by then he’d completely rejected his identity. Slipping town to town as a rogue Solomon found a place amongst a group of treasure hunters; however as Hemly’s letters persisted Solomon could no longer maintain denial. He opted to leave the group, but as their work had not been entirely ethical their leader Claimos attempted to ‘silence’ him.
He was quick to counter his leader’s ploy. The victory forced Calimos to flee for his life, and although Hemly had anticipated his return Solomon decided instead to track Calimos across the continent and into the Red Forest. Luck alone brought him out of the accursed labyrinth, but having experienced new depths of his power he further postponed uniting with Hemly and began a new, stronger training cycle in isolation.
Some months later Arrye, one of Hemly’s students, tracked him down. Hemly’s research had landed him in dangerous hands; he was missing and presumed dead. Solomon joined the search but Hemly was never found. Although Arrye had hoped he would stay at the monastery Solomon decided, now that Hemly was gone from his life, that it was best he move on from this little astrological monastery for good.
Arrye however remained persistent. Seeing that Solomon would not stay he sent him off with, and continued to send to his home, packages of books he told Solomon would be of benefit. They were mostly folklore, and other classic tales taught to the youth; however as Solomon’s grade as a reader was not too strong he had a feeling Arrye was attempting to challenging him and did his best to rise to it. As time went on and his intellect improved Solomon found he enjoyed the stories, and he allowed interruptions in his training schedule for the occasional dive into forgotten feats of heroism and gallantry.
***
Some time had passed. As the correspondence stopped Arrye took it upon himself to visit Solomon’s home in Salvar where he found him once more in isolation. Grateful for the company Solomon easily admitted he was no longer feeling like himself. Arrye had kept a tab on Solomon’s exploits, and bought up his rumored performance in the Citadel and the enclave of thieves he’d dissolved. Although proud, Solomon had returned because of his failures. He had defended a small coastal Inn from a pirate assault, but had failed to protect the owner’s daughter, Kira, whom he confessed he was in love with. Then came his defeat; he was nearly eradicated by the hand of geomancer Luc Kraus, and was forced to realize his losses were no fluke. He was not strong enough to have saved Kira, or anyone for that matter.
Arrye recalled the stories. Solomon didn’t understand at first, but as Arrye explained himself Solomon’s temper began to rise. Arrye asked: “Didn’t you notice? The heroes always failed when they could not let go of their ideals!”
Solomon defended, but Arrye pointed out the misconnections in Solomon’s tales. They continued long into the night until, enraged, Solomon cast Arrye out of his home. Arrye, however, had left something behind and although Solomon read it, it was not for a few days he was finally able to accept it.
“If our species have no other distractions, no false wants, then there is no limit to what we can achieve. I’ve designed a perfect simulation of what a mind with one dedication can accomplish, but only if the outside world does not contradict it.”
Hemly had kept a diary of his encounters with Saul. This was a small chapter that Arrye had kept out of interest, but had never known what Saul referred to until he’d met Solomon. Arrye had said he’d forgiven his father without thinking; he had not acknowledged the lie he’d lead, that he’d virtually lost fifteen years of his life. He had not known Kira for a full twelve hours yet clung to her memory as a reason to push himself; he would not let go of the idea he’d been especially trained for something great. Each of his failures had brought him to isolation only to fail again. His ‘knowledge’ about himself and of the Xry was self-explained, fabricated ideas to make up for his lack of understanding.
In short, 'Solomon' was a failed idea.
***
Something happened in Solomon’s mind which should have destroyed him. Coming to terms with his failure, understanding his will and even his hope were all doomed lead him to a point where his mind erupted. Yet instead of further decimating him, everything came together in one great mass and ‘dissolved.’ A strange sense of inevitability washed through him, and all he could do was surrender to the unknown.
Arrye, quick to forgive, responded to Solomon’s invitation and met him in Salvar. He offered him a place at the monastery where he could further his search in good company and high spirits. However, Solomon declined. There was little in the past for him anymore, and he was through with the ‘search.’ It was time he put more effort into seeing what this world, his true home, had to offer him; he could no longer consider himself an alien.
Happy for his friend, Arrye gave him some new storybooks and was on his way.