Kassius
Appearance
Kassius is a moderate sized half-orc. His dusky colored skin and slight overbite more than hint at his mixed heritage, although this can be easily missed to one not looking for the signs. He wears drab, dark clothing, carefully maintained, but clearly used and inexpensive. His appearance is unimpressive but when nervous or tense, he moves with a predator's grace, elegant and fierce. He wears light leather armor and carries a shortbow and a sword, and wears a vicious looking spiked glove (cestus) on his right hand.
Personality
Kassius isn't shy, although he isn't a man of words. He is uncomfortable with social games, and bored by small talk. He tends to be direct, even blunt, and carefully maintains a common, guttural accent. However, his more refined training is occasionally evident in his vocabulary, and those who think him unintelligent are frequently surprised by his keen wisdom and his biting sarcasm hidden behind a characteristically mild tone of voice.
Kassius makes friends slowly, but once he considers someone a friend, he will run through fire for them. He is likewise slow to truly hate another, but once his anger is roused, it burns fierce. For everyone else in the world, he will help them if he can, and not stress out if he can't.
BACKGROUND
Kassius is a 3rd generation half-orc, or quarter-orc really, since his mother is
mostly human with just a touch of elven blood, easily able to pass as human himself
unless he smiles showing off his pronounced canines which he rarely does, or brushes
his unkempt hair back past his pointed ears.
Kassius' childhood was dominated by his awe and reverence for his father, the
once-famous gladiator. Kull the Konquer as he was known, was a half-orc barbarian
from the savage frontier. He wasn't stupid and instead of squandering his winnings on
gambling, women, and drink like most other young gladiators, he saved them up over a
10 year reign as one of the most popular gladiator champions of the time, then retired
and married a feisty girl from the Sunrise district and settled there. With his amassed
fortune and his new father-in-law purchased a half-stake in what would become a highly
successful plantation on the edge of the jungle.
While Kassius's younger brother, Brutus, was more like his mother, Kassius was very much his
Father's son. Kassius practically worshiped Kull, following the man around, and getting
into vicious fights with any neighborhood boy who dared taunt him for being a half-orc, a
former gladiator, or the like. Kull, however had high hopes that Kassius would have a
different, higher status life than he himself had, insisting Kassius get proper schooling.
The only time Kull ever shouted at his son was the time Kassius mentioned fighting in the
arena like his father; Kull made Kassius promise never to do such a thing.
Everything changed in Kassius' life when he was 15, and Kull met his death tragically at
the claws of an escaped wyvern in the Azure district. Kull died protecting the lives of
others instead of running away to safety like everyone else, killing the creature with only
a dagger, but bleeding out on the streets before a healer could reach him.
In the years that followed, Kassius became increasingly rebellious of the leisurely life of a
young landowner, rebelling against his schooling, his tutors, and brawling with his classmates,
much to the disgust of his mother and grandfather. Kassius himself was torn and confused.
He knew his father wanted the life of a gentlemen for him, but all Kassius could see was its
fakeness, and how all of the other "gentlemen" had run for their lives, leaving Kull to fight
on his own against the wyvern.
Confused, guilty, and angry at himself and the world, he found himself working at his
family's plantation, odd jobs as a canal dredger, or just wandering through the jungle
trying to come to terms with his Father's death and his own responsibilities to the man's dreams.
Finally, his grandfather attempted to put a stop to Kassius' "youthful rebellion" that was
shaming the family, and ordered him to stop "moping over that blasted dead ex-Killer and keep his
frakking tuchus in line!"
Kassius responded by running away, finding a small band that had the idea of making money
venturing into the jungle to capture wild animals for sale in the Azure markets. Kassius
fancied he knew something of the jungle, having wandered the border near his plantation,
and joined up. Mostly, he just wanted out. He learned a lot under the guidance of these
fellows. The first and most significant thing was that wandering the edge of his patrolled
plantation was NOTHING like going into the depths of the jungle.
He almost certainly would have died two days in to his new life. He had wandered away from
the group and gotten lost, and then accidentally barged into the territory of a nesting
mother bear. Kassius was sure he was going to die when a strange, albino panther leaped in
front of him, distracting the bear. Kassius stood, dumbfounded as the two animals fought.
Finally, the panther broke away for a second, and stared at him, as if wondering "why aren't
you running yet, stupid?" Getting the hint, Kassius finally ran away, somehow making it back
to the group.
He was starting to wonder if he had hallucinated the whole thing when the panther showed up
that night when he was on watch. Cautious but appreciative, Kassius gave the beast some of his
dinner. It was a surreal start to what would be a strange but amazing partnership.
Kassius spent several years with the band of jungle hunters, gaining many important experiences.
He learned the ways of the woods, and how to truly be stealthy, fight with bow and sword. He
befriended the strange panther, who he named Kibeti, teaching it tricks that the cat would follow;
when it felt like it at least. But most importantly, he learned something about himself. He was
not meant to sit around, and act proper, and scheme or connive. He was meant to be out, doing
things and seeing new places.
And so, after a year in the wild, Kassius returned home to his mother and grandfather.The reunion
was awkward and a bit stilted, but eventually the family came to some agreements.
Kassius would be allowed to do what he wanted: hunt, explore and adventure. In return, He
foreswore his inheritance rights, allowing his grandfather to administer the plantation until
his younger brother was ready to take over. He agreed to come to "important" family and society
events in return for a promise not to be pressured into coming the rest of the time.
Since that meeting, Kassius has stayed in contact with his mother and grandfather. His rooms in the
family home are kept ready for him, and he typically stays there when he's not off on some mission
or job. He thus sees his family in sporadic doses, something that seems to work better than constant
contact for all involved. The relationship, particularly with his grandfather, is still quite cool.
He has a soft spot for his baby brother however, and will drop anything to help the boy.