Gornuk
Name:
Gornuk
Nickname:
Nuk
Age:
43
Gender:
Male
Race/Species:
Minotaur
Powers/Abilities:
● Prodigious Strength: Due not only to his pureblood minotaur lineage but also his great size, Nuk's strength is something of legend for those that know him well. In terms of raw physical power, he has yet to meet his equal.
● Keen Senses: Though his kind are not known for their senses in the way that the Asurans are, Nuk still has a highly developed senses of smell and hearing and also taste. His sense of touch is somewhat more dull than that of humans, though his other senses operate at roughly twice the strength of a normal man, save for one - his eyesight.
● Darkvision: Nuk's eyesight in normally lit conditions allows him to see roughly twice as far as a human, but it is in the dark that his eyesight works the best and allows him to see without penalty at all to the limit of his normal vision. This does not work in magical darkness however.
● Preternatural Instinct: This ability is what gives minotaurs their legendary notoriety in mazes and complicated types of terrain, though it works very well for other things also. Their instinct is a true blending of animal and human, and serves them very well. When a minotaur feels something in their gut, they know it to be right. This ability can be so strong at times that it even borders on precognition; enabling a minotaur to avoid peril, dodge or block incoming attacks, toss aside things that might be poisonous and a myriad of other inexplicable actions. The minotaur has no control over this, but often unwittingly relies on this sixth sense.
● Highly Skilled Martial Artist: Due to his unique history, Nuk has a deep knowledge of martial arts. His "style" is a combination of both hard and soft styles, utilizing his great size and strength, and only doing mortal damage in the most dire of circumstances. Concentrating on hand strikes, throws and grappling, he rarely uses kicks, as he finds them awkward. With no feeling in his hooves that is comparable to his hands, kicks often have the ability to kill an opponent and Nuk is normally averse to such tactics. The same applies to the devastating charge that his kind have as well, and Nuk only uses his horns as a last resort.
● Polyglot: In addition to his own native tongue, Nuk also speaks the Common tongue, Dwarven, Elvish and Rah-jurian.
Appearance:
Nuk can be summed up in a single word; immense. He is a huge being at well over eight feet in height, his physique well muscled and almost statuesque were it not for his animalistic traits. Eight feet seven inches of solid muscle, and weighing two tons, Nuk presents quite the intimidating figure. His coat is a light brown color and he takes pride in his appearance. Around his head and facial features is a darker crown of hair that he often keeps braided or pulled into a simply topknot. His eyes are dark, the color of coffee, and filled with wisdom and intensity. His horns are a dark color and his left is adorned with two golden meditation rings.
Clothing is somewhat of an oddity for Minotaurs and those that wear garments tend to be minimalistic in their choices. Not so for Nuk, and he actually quite likes being fashionable. From simply functional and utilitarian to more ornate, Nuk has a variety of garmentsin his wardrobe. Robes, kimonos and laquered armors all have their places in his apparel. When alone he might where naught but a loincloth.
As mentioned previous, he keeps himself clean and well groomed, his hair washed and combed, usually with an odorless soap that keeps his fur from matting and makes it easy to manage. His hooves are meticulously cleaned to keep from having problems with them, and he often has them shoed like a horse.
Personality:
Most people view Nuk as a being to be scared of, to be intimidated by or to even avoid. Those are people that do not know the huge minotaur at all. He is, in all things, kind and merciful. To say that Nuk loves life would be an understatement. He revels in the joys that each day of life brings him. Food and drink and the fairer sex are things that please him immensely, though he tries not to do such things in excess. He has a kind word for everyone and conducts himself according to the Code of Bushido which he learned at the Eastern Temples, where he grew up under the tutelage of Master Oyo. In all things Nuk is honest and true, with a very strong sense of right and wrong. He is a perfect example of "nurture versus nature" and shows very few of the traits that make most people wary of his kind. However, simply due to his size he is often shunned. It does not help that he is so big, and finds most dwellings and furniture unable to accommodate him. This does not deter him in how he sees the world, nor does he let it discourage him.
Though he does not know it, Master Oyo often spoken about Nuk to the other monks and brothers at the Temples.
"Kindness is often mistaken for softness, and let me tell you friends... that is not a mistake you want to make. Kind people are not born that way, and they do not stumble into it. Kind people are forged in fire and darkness and imploding stars. They have cores of tempered steel. Throw a punch at them and you are going to break your hand. Kind people are kind because they know firsthand that the world is not. - Master Oyo
Deep in Nuk's past is the darkness and rage that his kind or known for, though he has conquered this temper through discipline. Master Oyo knows that someday that inner rage and pain will bubble forth, and when it does it will be Nuk's biggest test. Master Oyo has given the minotaur student all he can to prepare himself for this day, and it remains to be seen if Nuk will be able to conquer his personal demons.
Nuk is actually quite intelligent, though his thought process can be a little slow and he sometimes gives the impression he is dull. He simply takes his time before speaking, and is an astute observer, preferring for people to underestimate him.
Merits:
● Exceedingly Kind, often to his own detriment
● Connoisseur of fine material things
● Compassionate
Flaws:
● Exceedingly Kind, often to his own detriment
● Distrusted by others due to his race
● Huge size makes some everyday things nearly impossible
History:
The history of this huge but soft-hearted minotaur is very different than most of his kind. Nuk was not yet born when his mother showed up at the Eastern Temples. She was huge with child, and gaunt from her trek through the desert. Exactly where she had come from was never discovered as she collapsed on the steps of one of the temples, found quickly by the monks that took her in. Though they were not intimately familiar with her ilk, they did what they could. Unfortunately she perished in childbirth, as did Nuk's twin sister. The monks did find, in her possessions, her desire for the names of her children and a description of those she had fled from, though no description of the lands she had left behind. Though she never told, and Nuk himself does not know, he is of the Silk Ears tribe.
Gornuk, the name she had picked for her boy, is a descendant of a very old and strong bloodline. Pure blooded, there are those that would seek his death to end that bloodline. Namely the warlord of a rival clan. His mother never gave a name to the warlord that might seek him out, but pleaded that he be hidden and kept away from his own kind. To the monks this was an easy enough thing, and they could not send the babe out into the world. Not yet anyway.
Growing up in the Temples, Gornuk soon became to be known simply by Nuk, and he was an inquisitive child. Despite always being larger than many of the other young acolytes, Nuk suffered his fair share of bullying, simply because he was different. People from the areas around the Temples were particularly cruel, and finally Master Oyo took him under his wing. Of course, the young Nuk knew he was different, but Master Oyo deflected his questions until he felt he was old enough to know what had happened to his mother. Nuk felt utterly alone when he found out, and spent several weeks in a sullen mood. Master Oyo never told the boy that he was being hidden, he himself not knowing exactly whom might be looking for the young minotaur. In is he allowed the youngling some freedom, not wishing to burden him further. Nuk already was growing larger than their human acolytes, and Master Oyo thought it time to enter him into training. He needed discipline and something to guide and focus his temper. Nuk was not violent in any way, and yet Master Oyo could often see the young bull wrestling with his emotions. He felt abandoned and alone, an anomaly surrounded by those who viewed him with pity or contempt. Master Oyo wanted to give the youngling something else. Hope.
Nuk's training began, and as Master Oyo had predicted, the young minotaur threw himself into it. He was an apt pupil, a studious acolyte, and a dedicated youth. In many ways Nuk forgot he was a minotaur, and lost himself in his studies. He quickly began to develop a style of his own for fighting, one which allowed him to use his growing strength and size but was generally non-fatal. It was easy, perhaps too easy, for the young minotaur to resort to deadly violence, and his martial arts reflected this in some ways, and made him even more deadly. Yet, under Master Oyo's tutelage, he soon adopted a much more docile attitude and even stopped eating meat. Unlike other minotaurs, Nuk is fully vegetarian and the thought of eating those he has killed in combat makes him feel quite ill.
Nuk was learning the "Seven Pillars of Virtue" as taught by the Temples. The Temples have three branches of study, each going by various names but translating roughly into "mind", "body" and "spirit". Each path had various branches that could be studied, and Nuk found himself drawn to Body and to Mind. Spirit was not so easy for the minotaur, who found much of the philosophy to his liking but the practice difficult to grasp.
Once Nuk mastered his unarmed fighting style, Master Oyo began to train him in the sword. This required even more focus, and Nuk did not grasp it as easily. It was simple for the minotaur to grasp the concepts of fighting with his limbs, even if he was not ripping people apart. Wielding a blade as an extension of himself was altogether different. Still, he did grow to learn the blade, mater it, and the Masters of the Temples had to commission a blade to be made to accommodate his huge form as he grew to adulthood. Nuk calls this blade Keravnos, which means "Thunderbolt" in his native tongue. Though he is quite proficient with the blade he does not draw it unless he means to kill.
Over time the minotaur grew restless. Master Oyo had taught him all he could, and by now Nuk was full grown, towering above the other monks and finding most rooms far too small for his comfort. Having had the insight to see this day, Master Oyo had sent off word to procure a rather unique magical item for his student. It had taken some time to make, from his understanding, but it would serve Nuk well. Master Oyo knew it was only a matter of time before Nuk would want to wander, traveling the lands to see if he could truly find himself. That was the thing; Nuk knows who he is. Master Oyo knew that soon he would try and seek out whom he was. To help facilitate that, and knowing the minotaur would not be well received in most cities, and even if he were his great size would prohibit staying in most places, Master Oyo soon presented Nuk with his Magical Cottage. It was small, thimble sized for Nuk, and easily carried in a pouch - though roughly the size of a small human fist. It was a tiny cottage that when activated would grow to a size accommodating Nuk. A high vaulted ceiling, a huge swinging bed, a kitchen and a fireplace and washing room. Everything he would need to travel and have a roof over his head. When the day came that Nuk decided to depart, Master Oyo presented his gift. Nuk was able to take anything into the cottage when it was full size, including clothing and weapons, food and various sundries. All would be caught in the magic of the cottage so long as they were inside, and this kept Nuk from having to have a pack animal to travel with as well.
Leaving the Temples, Nuk went out to see if he could find out just who he was.
He quickly found that he was looked upon with suspicion if not outright fear, most people assuming the worst from his race and his size. However, many quickly learned that he was a gentle soul and some even let him help their communities when he could. Bandits and others were often hunted down and arrested with Nuk's help, and he left behind people that looked upon him in a good light. Still, as he traveled he ran into more that distrusted him than those who thought he might actually do good.
It was about five years ago when he had ventured far to the south that he found himself at Starrysea. Of course he had no illusions of finding an inhabitable place inside the port city, but he wanted to buy some food to restock his stores for his cottage. Of course his huge form garnered all manner of looks and whispers behind his back, though none dared to say anything untoward to his face. The bazaar was the natural place he found himself and a small commotion eventually drew his attention. Making his way toward the spectacle he found what appeared to be a feline woman, covered from head to foot in silks, and surrounded by several men. They seemed to be taunting her, calling her vulgar names and accusing her of thievery - among other things. She was obviously frightened and though Nuk somehow knew that she could take care of herself, he intervened.
It took some talking and convincing, and more than a few bits of gold from what Nuk had managed to save through his travels, but he managed to convince those in the bazaar that the woman was none of the things they called her, though suspicion still remained concerning her and also Nuk. Buying the few supplies he needed, Nuk made his exit from the port and offered his cottage for the woman as well. That was how he met Nakira of the Asura.
Since that time the two have traveled together, becoming first friends and then something more. Nakira has become the only person besides Master Oyo that Nuk trusts implicitly, and their bond runs deep. An inseparable duo, they have traveled together now for five years, forming the sort of union that can only be forged by brothers-in-arms as well as a deep reliance between them as outcasts.
Nuk's Magic Cottage
