Life can be hard for a Faunus in Remnant, being constantly met with prejudice and insult. Most are crushed by the weight, but Rumo plans to rise above expectations.

A marked difference.

Rumo was born a bastard, the result of a wealthy Atlesian’s affair with his hired help. Or at least that’s what his foster mother, Mrs. Klaus, tells him. He believes she says such things to make him feel special. Unnecessarily so in his mind, as Rumo was made well aware that he was different from others. He was a Faunus with big pointy antlers, and all the foster kids would take turns poking fun at him. They would mock and tease him relentlessly, and exclude him from any group activities, only ever allowing him to play with them when Mrs. Klaus forced them to.

His luck did not improve as he got older. The bullying continued as he entered junior academy, his only friend being one Iris Finch, a girl from his neighborhood. She would join him for lunch and defend him from the other kids, specifically from Ike Butterfield, who saw Rumo as a rival. The feud between the two boys peaked when a game of pretend came to blows, and Ike and Rumo pounded each other long after their auras had broken. Ike was suspended for the incident. Rumo was expelled.

His self-esteem at an all-time low, Rumo considered abandoning hunting entirely. Without the encouragement of both Mrs. Klaus and Iris, he would have. But he honed his skills, perfecting his hunting lance, and helped around the neighborhood despite his reputation. Rumo passed the standardized tests for apprenticeship and, against all odds, was admitted to Beacon Academy.

The quiet little helper.

Rumo puts on a friendly face, always offering his help to others at no cost. He encourages others and rarely complains. The only ounces of negativity that come out of his mouth are targeted toward himself, as he constantly compares and puts himself down in the face of others.

He feels especially inadequate in the face of Tawny, who has chosen to master flight as he did. Fortunately or unfortunately, Tawny is often clueless about such concerns.

Flying bright in the sky.

Rumo fights in the sky, flying around on his rocket-lance. He hurdles toward enemies, piercing through grimm like a bullet in fabric. He is no slouch on the ground either, the thruster of his lance ready to equip with various dust types, turning it into a flame or arc thrower.

His semblance, Guiding Glow, allows Rumo to turn his body into a bright red light, letting off a little heat as he does. He uses it to signal his team, as well as lead civilians through disasters.

A reindeer ran ragged.

After arriving at Beacon, Rumo has earned himself the reputation of a people pleaser. He offers help, free of charge or expectation. He does not react to the taunts of the rowdier students at Beacon, no matter how hurtful they may be. He works diligently, without complaint, without rest. It is only a matter of time until this self-sacrificial nature comes to bite him.

At the core of these attempts is a desire to be loved. To be respected. When Rumo was a child, Mrs. Klaus did everything she could to protect him, and he hated it. It made him a burden; his forced inclusion marked him as strange more than his antlers ever did. He wants to earn that acceptance, and he thought being a hunter would help him do it. Rumo dreams that one day, people around the globe will see his big, pointy antlers and smile. Hopefully, he will be alive to witness it.

Strength, wits, and a complete lack of self-preservation. With these traits, it was only natural that Pearl Navi would strive to become a huntress.

A life stolen.

Pearl Navi was born in Beacon, though she spent her childhood on the rolling waves of the sea. Her parents fought after she was born, her father not wanting to leave his adventurous life as a treasure hunter, yet not wanting to abandon his daughter either. He chose the best of both worlds, leaving his wife and Beacon behind with his daughter in tow. As she grew up, Pearl got along happily with her father’s crew, each of them taking a role in raising her, her mother, and the normal life she wanted for Pearl, fading into distant memory.

Things were not to last, however. As the number of leads on precious treasure shortened, so did her father’s crew. Those who chose to stay often complained, but believed in the father’s promises of riches beyond all imagination. This ambition led the crew to an abandoned island, one that was once inhabited by Faunus seeking to escape the prejudice they faced on the mainland. After many, many attempts, the crew was unable to unearth the treasure hidden within the underwater labyrinth, and they turned on Pearl’s father.

The mutiny stirred up enough negative emotion to reveal what led the Faunus to abandon the island in the first place: A gigantic grimm in the form of an octopus rose from the sea and struck the ship. The crew tried to defeat the grimm, blasting it with the ship’s many canons, but their explosives had no effect. Crewmates were flung overboard left and right; that is, if they were not eaten first. A young Pearl had lost her hand in the commotion, the crew just managing the free her from the beast’s grasp as it prepared to swallow her whole. In a last-ditch effort, the crew prepared a lifeboat for Pearl and detonated every pound of dust left on the ship as the Krakkon pulled it toward the bottom of the sea. All Pearl could remember as she held her bleeding stump was the pillar of water formed by the explosion, burying her family in the sea she once loved.

Fortunately for Pearl, she was rescued a few days later. A local merchant took pity on her, supplying her with food, water, a prosthetic, and work once she got older. When he shut his market stall for the day, he ran a more lucrative business at night, one consisting of selling drugs to the poor saps down in the warrens. Pearl brought these drugs back and forth for him, wearing a red necktie marking her as a runner to those in the know. She saved her earnings to buy a ticket back to Beacon, never forgetting what happened to her family, and vowing to destroy the grimm that took them away from her and any other grimm that crossed her path.

Cold on the surface, warm in the depths.

Pearl maintains a tough-girl persona, brought on by her youth both at sea and in the streets. She is prone to belittle those she believes to be weaker, and earning her respect is a mighty challenge. Those who do, however, get to see her soft side. One that is not necessarily open, but no longer hostile, her jokes and teases being signs of affection.

She keeps an eye on her team, particularly Pahi, whom Pearl is slowly learning to respect. She sees an unspoken strength in Pahi, one that is not the raw grit and firepower Pearl honed for years. She’ll be keeping an eye on Pahi’s progress as a huntress for sure.

A calculated killing machine.

Pearl is a tank in combat, her abundant aura and muscular frame allowing her to stay in the fray for long periods of time, whether against grimm or against bandits. Her cybernetic hand launches from its socket with a cable, allowing her to land punches from meters away and swing around to her heart’s content. Her tactical genius is clear, too, with Pearl easily formulating attack plans around her and her team’s abilities.

Her semblance, Deep Blue, saturates her eyes blue color. Her aura is strengthened, her reflexes sharpened, and her nerves steadied. Deep Blue activates a state of pure emotionlessness, allowing her to think critically in the midst of battle, as well as masking her presence from grimm.

A sacrificial purpose.

Pearl feels a lot more than she would ever let on. In the farthest reaches of her subconscious, she wants to fulfill her mother’s dream for her. She would answer the many social calls of her team, answer the many proposals delivered to her by Slate, and allow herself to be vulnerable for even a moment. But this sentiment is buried behind half a decade of rage and an unfiltered sense of purpose. Pearl was meant to destroy grimm the way grimm destroyed her life.

But that drive could not fully explain her coldness. Perhaps she does not want a crew. Another group that would swear to defend her with their lives, only to make good on that promise down the road. She does not want to suffer that way again, nor does she want anyone else to suffer that way should she pass. So she closes herself off,…[Read more]

Due to the borked images on earlier posts (caused by hosting them in disc rather than a proper image hosting site. Oops), I’ll be reuploading/updating some posts. Don’t wanna spam yall; I’ll prolly do one a day

Scientists hold great power. They can use their knowledge and abilities to unleash both wonder and horror into the world. And there are no greater horrors than the creatures Verna Vidkinstein creates.

A Meek Menace.
Verna Vidkinstein was born in the upper ranks of Atlas society. She was provided with the best tutors, was enrolled in prestigious schools, and earned the highest marks. Her genius was not without eccentricity, however. Verna was a quiet child. She had no friends beside her best, a childhood friend named Henrietta Stone, who was her complete opposite. She was athletic and outgoing, compared to Verna\’s introversion. Despite this, they were inseparable. At least, before Henrietta enlisted in the Atlas Military.

It was during her graduate studies that Verna learned of her friend\’s passing. She was even quieter than before, and hardly showed any emotion at the funeral, though Henrietta\’s passing deeply affected her. In her grief, she conspired to bring her friend back. She studied resurrection rituals and dug her friend out of the grave. After much tribulation, Verna\’s semblance had allowed her to reanimate Henrietta\’s body. It was but a husk, but in Verna\’s mind, it was the beginning of a revolutionary science. She presented the risen soldier to her betters in the academy, and while Verna saw a shining example of scientific progress, the others saw it for what it was: a shambling corpse. Verna\’s affluence allowed her to avoid the worst punishments, but she was still expelled from the academy, her reputation ruined.
Unable to continue her studies in Atlas, Verna drifted around Remnant, eventually falling into criminal gangs in Mistral. Their unsavory antics allowed her ample access to corpses, and she continued to experiment with her semblance. While in this criminal gang, she met one Morgan Carmine, who attempted to overthrow the gang\’s leadership. After the coup failed, and Morgan\’s allies abandoned her, Verna stuck with Morgan, admiring her conviction. The pair became close friends and formed what is now known as the Carmine gang.

An Intelligent Enabler
Verna is cold and calculating, thinking through every action with her twisted logic. She\’s thoroughly convinced herself the value of her actions, and ignores the pleads of morality from others, viewing them as ignorant protestors against progress. Through that lens, Verna justifies every murder and mutilation she participates in, seeing every crime as a necessary step in her war against death.
This faux-utilitarian thinking makes her an excellent enabler to Morgan, as Verna often encourages Morgan to push through her doubts and continue her criminal path.

A Master of Monstrosities
Verna rarely fights herself; rather, she employs the monsters she creates with her semblance, which allows her to stitch together bodies and control them like puppets. Amazingly, these corpses even contain enough life to generate aura, although faint. It is enough for some to replicate the semblances of the fallen, making the fresh corpses of hunters especially enticing to Verna.
Beyond her monsters, Verna fights using her exoskeleton, allowing her to menace her opponents with her height, chainsaw, and robotic arm. She prefers not to fight, however, as extensive use of her semblance has left her weak and sickly. Some days, she can hardly walk without her exoskeleton.

Vidkinstein\’s Thesis
Verna\’s ultimate goal is to create life from death; to revive one\’s soul, or even create new life entirely. Current attempts have only resulted in mindless zombies, grunting as they obey her every order. She hopes one day to create a being possessing free will and intelligent thought like the gods had made man. How many will die before she reaches the end of her pursuits? Verna certainly isn\’t counting.

When You Live in a World as Cold as Remnant, You Can Cave to the Pressure or Take Your Licks with Grace. And No One Exhibits Icy Beauty Like Kari Neverwinter!

Born in Second Place

Kari Neverwinter was born alongside his twin brother, Kieran, who was the favorite. Unlike Kieran, Kari didn\’t take after his father much. He had a small frame, little interest in athletics, and a timid personality. As such, he was often pushed to the side in favor of Kieran, being resigned to the back whenever the family was on tour.

This didn\’t allow Kari to escape comparison, however. His mother pushed him to be more like his brother, and his father constantly invented new routines and punishments to mold Kari in his image. This treatment inadvertently created a one-sided resentment between the brothers, with Kari seeing Kieran as the source of his issues.

Unable to live up to his family\’s standards but still wanting to be a hunter, Kari doubled down on forming an identity of his own. He favored acrobatics and grace over athletics and power and a feminine style over hyper-masculine. He excelled in class despite his parents\’ disapproval and applied to Beacon to be rid of their influence.

A Colorful, Yet Contained Personality

Kari\’s timidity follows him into Beacon, keeping him silent as a mouse, even around his team. He keeps few friends, Yolanda Kreiss ironically being his closest. He shares his thoughts and complaints with her freely, and they share an interest in fashion.

Kari also formed an interest in Lilac, who he thought to be a kindred spirit. Both are reserved and shy, seeking to escape the influence of their family and create an identity of their own. Whether or not his affection would survive the truth of the matter, however, is yet to be seen.

Kari favors an acrobatic and evasive fighting style, using his slight frame to dart across the battlefield. He favors one-on-one combat and is trained to duel opponents with his sword. He\’s plenty capable without his weapon, combining his flexibility with martial arts.

His sword is more flexible as well. Not only can the blade take different forms, but it can transform into other hard-light structures as well: rotor blades, shields, poles; and any solid form he might need.

His semblance, Flash Freeze, allows him to coat his opponent in crystals, leaving them frozen in place.

An Unresolved Resentment

Kari\’s frustrations with his brother were maintained even after leaving Vacuo. His treatment at the hands of his family makes him despise Kieran\’s antics, even if there isn\’t anything wrong with them.

What makes it worse is Kieran\’s obliviousness to the issue. Blind to the distance, Kieran treats Kari as if they were closer than they were, a practice Kari finds demeaning. This makes interactions between the brothers stiff and hostile, which is unfortunate given they are on the same team.

A resolution to the tension would require compromise and understanding between both parties; a distant prospect to be sure.