A Closer Look
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nature
自然
"If you live in harmony with nature you will never be poor;
if you live according what others think, you will never be rich."
― Seneca, Epistulae morales ad Lucilium 16
S H Ō H E I
翔平 | soar & peaceful | Japanese
D E N A H I
Masculine | great one | Athabascan -
B A S I C S
◖BIRTH NAME◗
Shuhei Denahi, though he has only recently been given his last name.
◖NICKNAME◗
He goes mainly by Shu, very few people refer to him as Shuhei, including himself.
◖ALIAS◗
He has heard himself referred to as The doctor and such like that, but he has no self-chosen aliases.
◖AGE◗
26 years old.
◖OCCUPATION◗
He's a travelling monk, doing whatever he can to help, mainly practising medicine.
◖RESIDENCE◗
He lives here and there with no permanent home to return to.
◖ALIGNMENT◗
The Padma Order.
◖BIRTHPLACE◗
Unknown, but he was found at the Kobayashi Monastery.◖NATIONALITY◗
Unknown.
◖RACE◗
Unknown, though he appears completely human.
◖ABILITIES◗
Plenty, both practical and magical.
◖HEIGHT◗
1,73.
◖BODY TYPE◗
Lean and muscular.
◖EYES◗
Dark brown.
◖HAIR◗
Long, thick, black hair, depending on the mood he might have it down or up.
◖COMPLEXION◗
A beautiful, brown tone.
◖TATTOOS◗
None. Those are reserved for the Elders.
◖SCARS◗
He has a few on his hands and feet from manual labour and walking, but nothing big.
◖HANDEDNESS◗
Ambidextrous.
◖SEXUALITY◗
He has not really felt attraction to anyone, it's not something he considers.
◖RELATIONSHIP STATUS◗
Single in self-imposed celibacy.
◖LIKES◗
Being outside, the night sky, the feeling of a light breeze against his skin, foraging, swimming, feeling the earth between his fingers, exploring. He gets a deep sense of joy and fulfilment when helping others, finding the last piece of the puzzle, and that final moment when he has finished the journey for the day so he can finally lay down and sleep. Running, talking, getting to know other people, martial arts is something he enjoys a lot as well.
◖DISLIKES◗
Seeing other people hurt, even more so if he sees other people harming other living beings, cruelty towards nature and animals, pollution. In general though, he dislikes very few things.
◖FACECLAIM◗
Booboo Stewart.
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B A C K G R O U N D
"Peace comes from within. Do not seek it without."
― Siddhārtha Gautama
R E I N C A R N A T I ON
The Wheels of Life, can you ever escape them?
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Shu was found outside of the Kobayashi Monastery what is presumed a few days after he was born. No note, no sign of his parents, just a newborn baby wrapped neatly in a woven blanket in a basket. No one knew how long he had been there, but he was entirely calm and without a trace of fear. He was taken in like any orphan would have been to be raised to become one of the Order. From a very early point, though, he showed signs of being much more than yet another child left to be taken care of. While many young children seem bright from early on, Shu showed great prospects of becoming something great just in the way he observed, how quickly he learnt to communicate, walk, and later on speak, but especially the immense empathy he had at a very young age. He was the only child at the monastery simply because the times made people fear leaving the safety of their home, and since Kobayashi Monastery was one of the few very secluded monasteries, they rarely got visitors. He managed fine, though, together with the older monks, which was the reason why they deemed him to be a quicker learner, simply because he only had adults around him.
As he passed the age of 1, Shu was given the final test of the Trial; the test that all children go through to determine their path, but mostly to see if they are the reincarnation of someone before them. As the monks had no idea of when or where he was born exactly, they could only guess, but as news had reached them long before the boy turned, they had a sliver of hope. His behaviour up until this point had given them the proof that they had hoped for, but the Trial would be the final proof. While no one could fail the Trial, they were definitely hoping for a certain outcome due to how the world was rapidly developing. Placed in front of a hundred items, Shu had to choose just one. What could be seen as a pointless task was one of the core beliefs of the Order and had proven right an multiple occasions. To no surprise, the child didn't simply choose what was right in front of him. It took less than a minute for him to choose and as he laid his small hand on the small wooden stick, his fate was sealed.
The monks kept it a secret: That they had found master Shenzu, the only man capable of taking Kaizen, now known as The Phantom Lord, down. His training began as soon as it could, but as an integrated part of his life. The first few years of his life was filled with discipline, yet heartwarming memories around the Kobayashi Monastery. Its isolated placement meant that he would roam around more or less freely, as long as he followed his studies. The peaceful studies only lasted for so long - at the age of 6, the monastery was attacked. He never saw it coming as he was moved before he could even realise that he was never going back. He was too young to understand what was really going on, but no one tried to explain it either. He knew that he was reincarnated, but not of whom or what was happening outside the monastery walls. In the end, he never knew what was happening outside, that there was even a world outside, but he learned that as soon as he was moved.
He spent the next many years moving around different monasteries, never asking the question why, simply learning. It was a way of life he loved and learning was everything he wanted, even as he now was aware what was happening at least outside the walls, just not how he fitted into it all. He proved to easily master multiple disciplines: The bō was his signature weapon, what he chose at the age of 1 as well as the preferred weapon of late master Shenzu, but his skill in medicine and hand-to-hand combat were superb as well. His magical abilities grew tremendously, but was kept a secret only for those invovled. The more of a secret he was, the better, not only for their sake, but definitely for his own.
When Shu turned 18, he left the wall of the monastery alone for the first time since he was a child. His pilgramage around Lordareon was to happen and he had proven that he could do it; but at the same time the monks knew that he might be more safe outside, now that they were one of the few monasteries left. They were correct: Not long after, the monastery was attacked and laid to ruin, but then along the knowledge of the master's rebirth. Shu was left alone, all the people he knew murdered, and all he could do was continue his journey, constantly moving around not really sure why he was running. It has been more than 8 years now, just moving around on his own, but so far he has been safe and he intends to continue until he finds somewhere that can be called safe or even just another member of the Order; something that has yet to happen. Instead, he can spread the word of the Order along the way while he searches for the missing parts of the puzzle. -
C O R E T R A I T S
“Your purpose in life is to find your purpose and give your whole heart and soul to it.”
― Siddhārtha Gautama
○ O P T I M I S T I C
adj. | op·ti·mis·tic | ˌäp-tə-ˈmi-stik
Feeling or showing hope for the future. Shu's optimism is what drives him. He has been taught to look at the bright side of everything in life and he actually manages to do so, even in these dark times. Sometimes it rubs off on others - most of the time, he is seen as a bit naive. How can you stay optimistic when the world is falling apart around you? It probably stems from his intense belief in the world and nature itself and as long as he believes, he feels like he cannot falter. Out of all the people around him, he has to stay positive at least.○ C A R I N G
adj. | car·ing | ˈker-iŋ
Feeling or showing concern for or kindness to others. Shu cares greatly for the well-being of others. Helping people is what he feels to be his calling and he always has a hard time moving away from one city to another. There's always someone to help, someone to cure, someone who needs a shoulder to cry on. It's clear that this is deeply rooted within him as a person and not just a superficial feeling and wanted to be needed, he genuinely cares for others, often more than himself.
▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔○ L O Y A L
adj. | loy·al | ˈlȯi(-ə)l
Showing loyalty. Just like he cares for people, Shu is extremely loyal, not just to those close to him, but even acquaintances, though it is stronger for those close to him. He is the type of person who would sacrifice himself for you in a heartbeat. He puts a lot of trust in others, which some would once again describe as naive, but he would just say that he's a great judge of character. That's not always the case, but his loyalty has yet to falter. His biggest loyalty is towards The Padma Order of course, but if you gain his trust, you have it for good.○ D E C I S I V E
adj. | de·ci·sive | di-ˈsī-siv
Having the power or quality of deciding. Shu is a quick thinker and on his feet, something a bit too quick to make a choice as he just jumps into things, even situations where he really should stop and consider all the facts before making a decision. Even when there are multiple choices, he tends to choose simply based on his instincts, a strange gut feeling might just as well pull him towards something more than the other choices, which has landed him in dire situations before. At least he's resourceful too, so he can often manage to get out of his own mess.
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A B I L I T I E S
P O W E R
“...and then, I have nature and art and poetry,
and if that is not enough, what is enough?”
― Vincent Willem van Gogh
While Shu seems to be human, he has surpassed this stage due to the long line of spiritual masters that came before him. While he still possesses not only the physical form of a human as well as the emotions, weaknesses, and strengths, he can with training become a beacon for the Mother. This is no easy task, as it takes vigorous and dedicated training to harness the power that he was born with, which is almost virtually impossible to do on your own. While the scriptures tell of the rites and trials of the spiritual master, Shu is not aware of what he should do as he was never told the significance of his abilities by the monks. Now that the Order is scattered and damaged byt The Phantom Lord, Shu is able to use the range of his abilities that he was taught, but he has yet to unlock its full potential.
|NATURE MANIPULATION|
The name does not fully grasp his abilities, as he would never be able to fully control Nature, since that is the powers of the Mother, but he can harness the power of Her within himself. He can channel this pure energy through his body, enhancing himself to a point where he might be close to becoming one with Nature itself. While Nature possesses a will that he cannot control, he can guide it by gaining its trust. He can communicate with it as if it was a being without needing a medium of a spirit, though he cannot always expect an answer. He can move its energy around from one part of Nature to another to create balance, enhance objects, or even infuse life. His strength comes directly from Nature, its powers flow through him, which means that he can also feel how it is weakening ― to him, Nature is just as much of a living, breathing being. He can sense it all around him, it mostly just feels like a slight tingling that grows stronger the closer he is to it, as if he is a extension of it. The more in unity his is with Nature, the more he is able to harness the powers within it.
|SOUL MANIPULATION|
Again, its name far from describes what exactly this power entails, as he cannot manipulate souls completely ― that is an ability of the Mother, not him. Through channelling Her and Her Nature, he can bend the soul, the core of every being, and its chakras. It is the very top of his nature abilities, when all else is possible, he can unlock this part of himself. He might be able to not only enhance, but decrease others with this ability since the soul is the centre of all. With this power, his link with the spirit guardians become extremely enhanced. Just like Nature, they have their own will, but if he is able to harness it, he can work in unity with the spirits, letting him be empowered by them just like he empowers them. It is a mutual bond, a codependency; he can already feel part of it, being able to distinguish spirits from others as well as sense their well-being, but he has not felt that in years.
|MARTIAL ARTS|
Like most monks of the Order, Shu's abilities within martial arts are great ― to a point where they exceed the most. He has been training since the very first moment he could and he has never stopped. It is his primary way of defending himself, though he would prefer that he would never have to do it. It is also within the realm of martial arts that he has taken up different weapons simply out of necessity. His weapon of choice is the bō, the preferred weapon of late master Shenzu as well, which he also uses as a walking cane on his travels.
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S I G N A T U R E
