Barnabe

The Fine Filigree

• An Unfortunate Series of Events

  
  

  Having long been an abolitionist, freer of the enslaved, collector of damaged people... Barnabe has finally reached the end of his slave freeing run.
  
  After having thwarted the slave purchasing efforts of one individual of power more than once, his generous nature and sometimes naive disregard for his own safety found him discovered, overpowered and put into the very same predicament the slaves he'd free have been in.
  
  Barnabe is a brute-- or so appearances would tell you. He took quite a licking and sustained a number of superficial (don't want to spoil the package and not get full price!) wounds and all around mistreatment to make him just a bit less resistant to the irons he now wears.
  
  FAQ -
  
  But I thought he was free!?
  He was, but I've been struggling with what to do with him for well over a year, and as I love the character, had him pegged as an abolitionist, this seemed like a fun and ironic little twist to his narrative.
  
  Will it last?
  For an indefinite amount of time, yes. Eventually, someday I'd like to see him returned to his status, but I'm in no hurry to see it happen right this moment.
  
  Gladiator?
  MMM, I DON'T LIKE THE DICE SYSTEM? And am also not an enormous fan of combat RP in general, but I am absolutely willing to follow the flow of character development. Just bear in mind that you'll need to motivate Barnabe in special ways, because he's taken a vow not to do harm and has - since his younger years - only fought when absolutely crucial to his or a crewmate's survival.
  
  I'll get around to a set of slave papers for him, but they won't tell you much you can't find in his normal stat setup. Just assume anything that involves 'personal choice' is rendered irrelevant. I'll fill out processing papers eventually.
• I keep all Barnabe's art offsite because the onsite hosting is awful. If you want to see more of Barnabe, you can find it in an imgur album.
  
  Click here to see his SFW art. || Click here to see his NSFW art.
• Name: Barnabé Alain Gustov.
  Pronunciation: Barnabé Alain(second is best) Gustov
  Alias(s): Capitaine Frapple(derogatory, fond name from crewmates) Pirate Gustov, Traitor.
  Nicknames: Barney - if you're feeling lucky, or stupid.
  Age: 45.
  Profession: Corsair - a pirate by any other name...

  Formerly Capitaine de Frégate & Privateer to the Frrench Crown.
  Stone Mason.

  Political Affiliations: Quite clearly, his own. Barnabé has long since decided that politics were something he was no longer interested, in much the same way that he decided fealty to a Monarchy also did not suit him.
  Income: Luxury - Booty, he's a riddler and each stash comes with its own trials.
  Assets: Glenloch Distillery & The Agathon.
  Alignment: Chaotic Neutral.
  
  Species: Horse.

  Breed - Comtois Draft.

  Build: Husky & Muscular.
  Height: 7 foot.
  Weight: Proportionate to build, breed and height.
  Coloration: Burnished cocoa & silver dapple.
  Hair: Short cropped mane, half braided tail.
  Eyes: A striking, playful cornflower blue.
  Blemishes: None, luck smiles on him.
  Afflictions: Jaw clicks from one too many brawls, minor arthritis during storms due to sensitivity to barometric changes.
  Attire: Remnants of his privateer colors, suede breeches in grey, navy blue, brass buttoned shank cuffs and a pair of sheep's wool lined leather, fingerless mitts.

  One of his personal quirks is a distaste for shirts and no one quite knows why. It may be some part of his nudist mindset, but it's tough to put a finger on.

  Accessory: A weatherworn pink ribbon and scuffed brass heart charm that's seen much. No one knows who it belongs to, but the general consensus is it was a favor from a girl he once cared for.
  
  Mother & Father: Eliza Cartwright & Richard Gustov (both deceased.)
  Siblings: Annabelle Gustov (died at age 5) & Edmund Gustov (living.)
  Wife: None.
  Children: Auguste Baker, age 17, bastard. Auguste is the only offspring he's been made aware of.
  
  Quirks: Nurturer (it's not unusual, but for a man of his particular lifestyle, it may seem odd.) Collector of small, codependent creatures, his left ear twitches when lying, tugging at his nose ring, grinding his teeth.
  Loves: Confectionery delights (substantial sweet tooth,) wine in excess, food in excess, tall tales, romantic ballads, poetry, happy endings, romanticized drama, fencing, intrigue, a daring escape (bit of a thrillseeker, he may probe French airspace just for the thrill of it.) challenging women, verbal fencing.
  Likes: Strategy, sunrise through the clouds, rain, a warm hearth, a full figured woman, children, good wine, aged scotch-whisky, pipesmoking, nude sunbathing, worksongs, string instruments, the miraculous phonograph and its portable music (he obsessively collects recording cylinders.)
  Dislikes: Being told 'no,' puzzles with no perceivable solution, the term 'traitor,' complacent or vapid women, too much heat, royalty, law, his brother.
  Hates: Physical altercations between himself and his sibling.
  
  

  Grounded - Backstory

  As with any origin story, it can safely be said that Barnabé was born to a relatively average, if very common mother and father. Richard was a Lyon native, but his wife was an English nursemaid and not particularly well liked by the rest of the Gustov family. Heedless of this dislike, the pair married and Richard continued the family trade as a stone mason, working long hours and often coming home caked in dust. They were married six long years before they ever conceived Barnabé, and his birth seemed to be the herald for many miscarriages and stillborns. Some four years later, Edmund arrived, and by this time, Eliza was nearing the end of her years with a fertile womb, but just when the family thought two boys was the end of their legacy, Annabelle was born.
  
  Annabelle survived the birth, but Eliza did not. Despite the sorrow of losing the matriarch of the household, the family soldiered on, and Annabelle was the light of all of their lives. Barnabe was particularly close to his youngest sibling and adored her more than any other family member. Life is needlessly cruel to those without means, and while Richard worked hard, and his boys toiled with them, a harsh winter and scarce work meant that much of the time, they went without. Annabelle's constitution was not as hardy as her brothers, and the fever took her swiftly from them. None of the Gustov brood quite recovered from that loss. Richard did his best to raise his sons, but after a point, they raised themselves, and while Edmund strove to be the apple of his father's eyes, Barnabé's eyes were to the sky. On his 16th birthday, he'd leave home to pursue his dream of a military career and his desire to someday command an airborne vessel.
  
  This caused a great deal of friction, as it was his duty as firstborn to take over the masonry and continue their legacy. He never spoke to his father again, and Edmund would forever resent him for his flagrant disregard for tradition.
  

  Common Genes & Common Themes - Recent Affairs

  In the years since he'd left home, he'd enlisted and gradually worked his way up the ranks, starting as a lowly powder monkey, up to rigger and eventually mate, where he remained for much longer than he might have liked. Eventually the First Mate had an unfortunate accident that cost him his life, and Barnabé made himself invaluable, assuming the role. He was well acquainted with many of the various functions on the ship and assisted in everything from taking stock of and maintaining the ship, to navigation. It was his unusual aptitude for astronavigation that earned his place as a navigator for the frigate he'd been assigned to. With aerial combat still so new to the world, there were a great deal of casualties, and many men made a name for themselves by being outstanding in the face of insurmountable odds.
  
  Fate had always been kind to Barnabé, and while it often took lives that he might ascend, it showed him for what he was: very good under extreme amounts of pressure. When the capitaine lost her life defending the deck, Barnabé swept in and took command, earning them the day and saving the frigate from certain doom. It was then he had taken his former capitaine's place and earned the title: Capitaine de Frégate, where he remained as its figurehead for a number of years.
  
  Eventually Edmund - whom the stallion had all but forgotten about - arrived as an enlisted ABS recruit on his ship. Be it kismet, coincidence or heavensent, the pair were an unlikely duo that began at odds and eventually came to understand one another. As an ABS, Edmund rose rapidly to the seat of first mate, but like his brother, he wanted to captain his own ship and had a tendency to remind his elder brother at length, suggesting he put in a letter of recommendation and see it done, they were always looking for replacements, after all. Unfortunately for brotherly support, Barnabé was a man who valued skill over blood and while Edmund showed promise his skill was still too fledgling to entrust one of her Majesty's Fleet to. Bad blood was fostered between them, but it remained beneath the surface, festering while a simple conversation might have washed away any doubt in the younger Gustov's mind.
  
  Barnabé had done a poor job of explaining to his brother that he needed more time to expand his skillset and learn to understand the ship and her functions before he could properly crew and command his own. To Edmund it seemed that his brother simply didn't want him to climb higher than him, so he accepted his role and distanced himself, following his brother not because he knew better, but because he was waiting for the moment he stumbled.
  
  In the years following, piracy took to the air, and the privateers extended their search to the skies. Barnabé and his crew adopted these colors and began the thankless, dangerous job of airborne vessel reclamation for the French Crown. The risks were steep, and he lost many friends in the years he worked that particular alley, but he ever toiled under the notion that he'd earn his own ship through the reclamation of those who did and did not belong to France. It seemed, however, that the timeframe in which he felt fair compensation be dealt, was not. The moment Edmund had been waiting for arrived as whispers of defection trickled down the ranks. Edmund would bend an ear and turn as many loyal Frenchmen against Barnabé as he could.
  
  This was just like Barnabé, he didn't get what he wanted, so he'd make a show of taking it. How could someone discard their lineage, their fealty-- their vows!? It brought shame to the Gustov name and felt like certain betrayal to Edmund.
  
  The mutiny would prove a failure and whilst mutiny was punishable by execution, Edmund was his little brother. They left him bound and gagged at port with the few who'd been loyal to the crown enough to support the mutiny. Edmund and Barnabé's relationship would never be the same.
  
  It's been Edmund's life's goal to bring Barnabé to his knees. Every action is personal affront, and the two have not seen eye to eye in years. Despite all this, Barnabé still loves his brother, and regularly checks up on him, even if it causes more problems than it fixes.
  

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