Ruold~Walker of the Wheel

[starseeker]

Theme: Quatre Mains (4 Hands {Piano}), Toccata(at that point, yes, until 2:11)
Battle Theme: Sinister Shadows/Desire for all that is Lost
Phantom Only The Corrupted, Destiny's Force
With Dark XII: Boss Theme

Name: Ruold (Pronounced row-uhld)


Nickname: Fluke, Alkana(his alias when undercover)


Organization XIII or Dark XII Nickname: The Walker of the Wheel


Age: Unknown. Appears in his late 20's/30's


Gender: Male?


Species: Humanoid Heartless


Position: Dark XII. 'Nuff said


Powers:
~Deft: Ruold is quick on his feet, but can't do acrobatics or such.

Darkness: As with every other Dark XII member, Ruold is capable of manipulating Darkness. His abilities concerning the element are amplified, as little to no abilities related to Time can actually hurt anyone. Examples of his prowess are:
-using Corridors of Darkness (entering/exiting)
-strong Darkness attacks/manipulation
-'smelling' others, stealing Hearts
-controlling minor Heartless; his specific dominion is over Black Ballades and Stealth Soldiers.

Transform:At most times, Ruold can fuse with his Macabre Mantle and purify himself into darkness.
-Change form(limited to shadowy appearance)
-Usable to vary attacks with Charades.
~Phantom: the change itself requires a 2-post cooldown after he reverts back. It allows him flight, and the ability to not be damaged by most medium-weak attacks(he may still flinch).

Time Manipulation: He can't bend it to his will, but can perform multiple feats related to it.

~Chronopath: An innate ability to sense reverberations in time. He can see, hear, and feel things that have happened in the past (in the immediate area, within the topic). This can also be applied to specific people, or areas he's been in before. By concentrating(and with a 2-post cooldown) he can discern the brief future.

~Alkana Force: Ruold casts a seal on the foe that saps HP and prevents usage of items and magic. The seal lasts for as many posts as Ruold has gone without attacking with Charades.

~Time Magic~

-Stop- Stops movement of targets, or time itself, for a double in cooldown. Can be used in radius or target fashion, and lasts for 1/4(stop), 1/2(-ra), 1(-ga), or post(s).

-Slow/Haste: Slows or speeds up targets. Lasts for up to 2 posts.

(Note: the targets' sense of time changes with the afflicted spell.)

-Immobilize: Prevents the target(s) from moving for up to one post. They can still use attacks/abilities/magic that don't require movement. 2 post cooldown after it wears off.

-Disable: Prevents the foe from attacking or using abilities(magic is still an option) for up to 3 posts. 2 post cooldown after it wears off.

[glow=teal,2,300]Limit Break: Lethal Frame:[/glow]

Ruold, for the next post after activation, has time itself at his whim. He usually starts this with a huge Stop spell. Damage dealt accumulates until time resumes, and then is dealt in chronological order. Usable every twelve of his posts.


Weapon: Charades: Numerous orbs of energy whose colors and other visual effects vary. They hover or circle around Ruold, and deal damage upon contact. The key to this weapon is that the type(cutting, blunt-force, etc.), element(determined by Vis. effects), Magic/Physical(by me)and even the amount of damage(to be determined by the target of the attack) vary uncontrollably.

-Macabre Mantle: A flowing piece of fabric that he waves about to use. It's sewn from Darkness, and can use multiple attacks with the element. It also lets him turn into Phantom.

Picture:
Appearance: A light-boned individual, Ruold is 5'9" and 135lb. His black hair is relatively mid-length, his bangs being long; they flow with the wind, just as he does. Typically, Ruold's attire consists of a black buttoned jacket with a thick, beige turtleneck as an undershirt. From his recollections of human life, being a Heartless is... cold, to him. On recon missions, or days that he feels extra 'cold', he wears a cap for either protection or disguise. Then, his expressionless eyes are camoflauged completely by his matching coat collar, hair, and the shadow of his cap. His pants generally are tan, in fashion of his head-covering. He wears shoes in style of brown loafers, completing his version of semi-formal attire.


Personality: As with his Nobody counterpart, Ruold is among the most whimsical of his group, even if he hasn't the heart to actually be a droll individual. He takes few situations as his 'absolute serious' catagory, and as such sometimes gets off-task. However, that's not to say that he's lazy; just easily bored, and thus distracted. He's rather odd, as his mind is constantly veering off of the course he's set to, but can stay on-topic when he's really focused(or as he would say, 'into something'). Even though lack of a Heart leaves him emotionless, somehow he manages to feel the smallest bit of remorse for the mass Heart-stealing that is his main vocation. Even with his semi-bubbly "personality", he has a formal side to him, much like his mind and soul; evidence is his outfit, his walk(in fashion of DiZ) and his eloquence in speech. He's known for his combination of sarcasm and formality. Overall, he is a very convincing human; whether this is an act or the result of echoes of his lost heart is unsure even to him. His Heartless nature invokes in him, at times, an uncharacteristic twitchy state. He's known for his attention to nuance, and things others might find trivial 'irk' him at times.
Disguised as Alkana, he tends not to talk too much, for fear of blowing his cover. However, if someone gets his speech running, there's no guessing what he may reveal. He tends to remember his secrecy orders mid-sentence, and stops himself akwardly.


Original World: Realm of Darkness
Current World: The World That Never Was-Castle of Abyss

History:
It wasn't that he forgot... he just can't remember it all. It probably was the same with most like him: clueless at first, and then developing more of a sense of identity as it came back to him.

So far, he remembered his original self; he didn't resemble Ruold, as he had short, brown hair. His destruction wasn't clear; it had something to do with another's ill will. However, his own wrongdoing seemed to have perpetuated this. One thing he knew: He was not going to take chances on every little thing. He couldn't help being compelled to gamble a little, though.

He wasn't sure if he submitted to Darkness, or it had taken over him. Either way, he was here now. Although....
Where was "here"?
In fact, he was in where all Heartless originated; the Realm of Darkness. However, how was he supposed to get out?

After who-knows-how-long, as time in the Realm of Darkness is immeasurable, Ruold discovered his power to exert control over the element that had managed to trap him. Although it strained him, he managed to open a Corridor of Darkness to the neighbor of the Realm: The World that Never Was. Little did Ruold know that this would be where he'd take up residence for a good, long while. Walking through the Dark City, he saw numerous fights, white and black. At one point, even he was attacked; the ones he would know as his underlings defended him. As he ran from the fight, he found himself facing two castles. Oddly, he felt more at home near one than the other, and entered it in the same fashion as the world itself. Walking the halls and corridors of this fortress, he felt as if this place was made for him, where he belonged. After a time, he discovered a resident of the giant castle, one that from just a glance, Ruold could tell was like him.

After a not-so-brief discussion with a friendlier member, he gained a sense of selfhood: He was a Heartless. Not just a Heartless, he could think and plan. Sort of like a second life. It wasn't so bad; losing a heart did not come without its perks. At the very least, what happened to him this time would not repeat itself.
It was rather comforting to know what one was. It's too often taken for granted.

It took maybe a few days for Ruold to get adjusted. The routine soon became a lifestyle, which he quickly attuned to. At first, missions were tough; he didn't have any way to defend himself, and he didn't exactly sneak around. After training for extensive periods of time, he tapped his potential-- or, rather, his collaborated powers from his two past incarnations. It took quite a bit of time and work, but Ruold is among the higher-ups in the XII in terms of mission success.

Role Playing Sample: Ruold walked the halls of the Castle of Abyss. For the most part, he knew his way around the castle; however, he always got lost in the highest levels. He wasn't one to idle, so he always spent his free time walking around. The occasional guard Heartless would force him to stop for a split second, and he would proceed again.
Today, he decided to venture into the Dark City. The tall skyscraper made a good place to think. It reminded him a bit of his past life at the clock tower; the wind was constantly blowing, being high up in the sky. It brought back enough memories that he decided to relive the few moments he had back then. It was rather strange, because for a moment, he didn't feel as empty as he looked. After a few oddly joyful moments, he returned to the top of the giant building. This actually made him question his nature: was he really without a heart? Were there some residual emotions left insde of him?

The profound conversation with himself was cut short by a rather untimely attack by the Nobodies. Nothing too major, there couldn't have been more than thirty, not counting the Dusks. The latter were nothing of a problem, but given his lack of fighting experience at the time, the Dragoons, Samurai, and Sorcerers, collaboratively, were a challenge to defeat. One could do what the other couldn't, and they all kept MOVING, that was the biggest part. They should have known their fate, and just stood there. However, it was inevitable against a Heartless of his stature, and after ten minutes of fighting, he had finally finished things. He had noticed the Assassins and Snipers waiting for him to let down his guard, however, and proceeded to attack those.
They were even MORE annoying, especially because he couldn't spot them when they moved. Charades couldn't hurt the Assassins, so they took awhile. The Snipers were worthy of their name, as they swiftly moved away as he tried to attack. This was a battle that, while more easily fought, was hard to fight in the first place. While he couldn't say it wasn't a fair fight, it still peeved him that the Nobodies chose to attack him. He wasn't the weakest link or something. Was he? He couldn't possibly be weaker than... than... than... Oh, crap, he thought. He couldn't think of anyone weaker than him in the Dark XII. ((Because there's no one playing half of them XD))

Wearily, he walked back to the Castle of Abyss; he probably could have summoned a Corridor of Darkness, but he sure didn't feel like he could. That settles it. I'm gonna become stronger, so I won't be the weak one!
Nary a Nobody even got near him as he returned to the place he called home. After a good long rest, he walked about the castle.
Ruold decided to just let it stay that way.

Questions/Comments: I really don't think that Ruold being the Phantom violates the plot. Nothing said where the Phantom's heart came from or where it went.