Name: Malakai Ahlryk Tahl’Lymein
Nickname:Mal, Mally
Age: 27
Gender: Male
Species:Human
Position: Neutral Good
Former Prince of Elysium Gardens
Powers: Malakai is a Geomancer – someone who can manipulate the natural world around them into powerful and devastating attacks. It’s a “Magic” often compared to that of a Mage’s, but unlike Mages, Geomancers do not have a set list of spells that they can use at anytime.
The skills that a Geomancer can use are all circumstance based, determined entirely by the elemental make up of the terrain around them. (For example: a mountainous terrain would yield a powerful Earth elemental attack, perhaps calling up jags of rock to strike a foe; if it is considerably windy in the mountains a Wind elemental attack is also viable.) Furthermore, Geomancers cannot “summon” a specific element like Mages can: they cannot make water appear out of thin air, a flame, etc. They cannot use water, earth, or fire where there is none, the power of their skills is directly proportional to how much of a desired element is available, and should there be no natural terrain present at all (in a modern city or town for example) a Geomancer could find themselves powerless. In addition, they cannot manipulate manufactured substances, such as plastic or steel.
The skills of a Geomancer are very powerful, and at times can be devastating. However such power comes at a price.
While the most basic and weak of a Geomancer’s skills can be used instantaneously, the more powerful abilities of their arsenal have a longer cast time, spanning over many turns. Such skills are best used when fighting alongside allies, as while the stronger skills are being casted the Geomancer is unable to move. Also, the casting for skills can be interrupted by a foe’s attack making contact with the Geomancer or be canceled by the Geomancer himself. If a skill is canceled or interrupted, the casting duration resets.
“Backfire” is another drawback to using Geomancy, and perhaps the most crippling. Every three times a Geomancer uses a skill, be it interrupted/canceled or not, there is a 50% chance of Backfire taking effect. Backfire causes extreme bodily pain and renders the Geomancer unable to use further skills for X turns, where X is determined by a six-sided dice roll.
The following is a list of example skills Malakai can use through his power of Geomancy, ranging from the most basic to the most complex. More can be learned and developed as other terrains and conditions are encountered.
Basic Skills:
• Airlash
o Cast Time: Instant
o Elemental Type: Wind
o Terrain Requirement: Breezy Winds
o Description: A sweeping arch of wind unleashed in a fan-like array, used to knock back foes too close for comfort.
o Duration: Lasts for the turn that it is cast.
• Water Whip
o Cast Time: Instant
o Elemental Type: Water
o Terrain Requirement: Water close at hand, no smaller than puddles of rain water.
o Description: Creates an airborne stream of water that can be wielded like a whip.
o Duration: Lasts for the turn that it is cast.
• Flametongue
o Cast Time: Instant
o Elemental Type: Fire
o Terrain Requirement: Flames close at hand, no smaller than a camp fire.
o Description: Launches a concentrated stream of flames forward. Cannot be redirected.
o Duration: Lasts for the turn that it is cast.
• Sand Screen
o Cast Time: Instant
o Elemental Type: Earth
o Terrain Requirement: Sand, no less than that required to fill a small sandbox.
o Description: Stirs up a small whirlwind of sand that covers a half-circled spread, used to obscure the vision of all within the vicinity.
o Duration: Lasts for the turn that it is cast.
• Spire Strike
o Cast Time: 1 turn
o Elemental Type: Earth
o Terrain Requirement: Stone, solid earth. Takes 1 turn longer to cast in areas with paved/cobbled roads.
o Description: Channeling energy from the body from the body, into the hand, and then into the earth, creates a stone spire that erupts from the ground beneath a target.
o Duration: Lasts for the turn that it is cast. Stone spire does not sink back into the ground.
Intermediate Skills:
• Draft
o Cast Time: 1 turn
o Elemental Type: Wind
o Terrain Requirement: Medium strength winds.
o Description: Calls down the winds from above to throw foes aside in an arch going from right to left.
o Duration: Lasts for the turn that it is cast.
• Whirlpool
o Cast Time: 1 turn
o Elemental Type: Water
o Terrain Requirement: Medium-sized bodies of water (i.e. ponds).
o Description: Draws streams of water to the caster who creates a spinning wall around them and then lets the waters fly outward in a circular array around the caster.
o Duration: Lasts for the turn that it is cast.
• Gush
o Cast Time: 2 turns
o Elemental Type: Water
o Terrain Requirement: Medium-sized bodies of water (i.e. ponds).
o Description: Calls forth a mighty stream of water into the sky and crashes it down upon a single target.
o Duration: Lasts for the turn that it is cast.
• Mist
o Cast Time: 2 turns
o Elemental Type: Water
o Terrain Requirement: Medium-sized bodies of water (i.e. ponds).
o Description: Creates a thick mist that covers the battlefield that clouds the vision of all who are within the vicinity.
o Duration: Lasts for 3 turns.
• Fire Wall
o Cast Time: 1 turn
o Elemental Type: Fire
o Terrain Requirement: Many large open flames.
o Description: Pulls a wall of fire before the user in a fan-like array that injures all who try to pass through it.
o Duration: Last for 2 turns.
• Dragon’s Breath
o Cast Time: 2 turns
o Elemental Type: Fire
o Terrain Requirement: Many large open flames.
o Description: Concentrates searing flames into a single small ball of fire in the caster’s palms, and then blasts forth in a powerful stream of fire. Cannot be redirected.
o Duration: Lasts for the turn that it is cast.
• Sand Wall
o Cast Time: 2 turns
o Elemental Type: Earth
o Terrain Requirement: Desert.
o Description: Creates a thick wall of sand to protect the caster and allies, absorbing the impact of incoming attacks.
o Duration: Lasts 3 turns.
• Spire Stream
o Cast Time: 2 turns
o Elemental Type: Earth
o Terrain Requirement: Stone, solid earth. Takes 1 turn longer to cast in areas with paved/cobbled roads.
o Description: A more powerful version of Spire Strike. Causes a series of stone spires to erupt from the ground in a stream that homes in on a target. Spires remain on the field.
o Duration: Lasts for the turn that it is cast.
Advanced Skills:
• Tornado
o Cast Time: 3 turns
o Elemental Type: Wind
o Terrain Requirement: Areas with really powerful winds.
o Description: A devastating wind based attack that generates a small tornado. Capable of tearing small house from their foundations, it sucks up all in its path and spins them around in the air. Once cast it cannot be controlled, and can suck up the caster, allies, and foes alike.
o Duration: Lasts for 4 turns.
• Maelstrom
o Cast Time: 3 turns
o Elemental Type: Water
o Terrain Requirement: Sea or ocean terrain.
o Description: Similar to Tornado, it creates a devastating storm at sea. It cannot be controlled once casted and can suck up water vessels, the caster, allies, and foes.
o Duration: Lasts for 4 turns.
• Inferno
o Cast Time: 4 turns
o Elemental Type: Fire
o Terrain Requirement: Volcanic terrain with the world’s internal fires accessible.
o Description: Causes a volcanic eruption to explode beneath an earthen surface. The fires of this attack break through the earth and reach high into the sky, raining back down all over the field.
o Duration: Eruption lasts for one turn; fire raining from the sky last for 3 turns.
• Sand Storm
o Cast Time: 3 turns
o Elemental Type: Earth
o Terrain Requirement: Desert
o Description: Creates a vicious, massive sand storm that buffets everyone on the battle field, obscuring their vision and filling the air with sand particles.
o Duration: Lasts for 4 turns.
Desperation Move:
• Gaia’s Wrath
o Cast Time: 2 turns
o Elemental Type: Earth
o Terrain Requirement: Can be used wherever there is land. Takes 2 turns longer to cast if used in a residential area; takes 1 turn longer to cast if in a forest.
o Description: A skill of utterly destructive power that unleashes the full power of the earth. When cast it causes the entire terrain to go into an upheaval akin to an eruption: the earth shakes viciously and cracks, breaking apart and upturning. Countless spires of stone explode from the earthy depths, ripping the battle field apart. Once cast, the user immediately suffers from the effects of Backfire and is unable to use further Geomancy skills for the rest of the thread.
o Duration: Lasts for 2 turns.
o Can only be used when Malakai is on his last legs.
Weapon:Gaia Bell - A small, round, ornate bell that Mal wears on a collar around his neck. While it looks unassuming, the bell is in fact the key to Malakai’s power of Geomancy. The chiming of the enchanted bell stirs up the latent ether that rests within the natural terrain, enabling Malakai to manipulate that terrain’s own magical essence.
Without this bell, Malakai would be unable to use any of his skills, and would have naught but his own strength and fists to fight with, thus he is very cautious as to never get separated from it.
Picture:
Appearance: Standing at about six feet tall with a muscular build, Malakai looks more intimidating than he really is. He’s regal in appearance; lightly tanned in skin tone with messy, pale, red-brown hair that sweeps his shoulders. Some of his hair hangs in his face, swept to the side so that it covers his left eye. The one eye that can be seen is a bright blue, while the one hidden is a duller blue, its cornea scarred.
Once upon a time he was a rather handsome young man, but a quarrel with his brother and the fall of his world has left him marked. Some of his most prominent scars, and identifying ones, would be the three parallel slashes that run across the bridge of his nose (given to him by a Shadow Heartless) and the large burn scar running down from his face all along the left half of his body (given to him by his brother Malkuth). He generally tries to cover the scars on the left side his face, as he gets relatively uncomfortable when people stare at them.
His everyday Traverse Town attire consists of a deep, violet overcoat over a gray button down shirt with beige pants and a pair of worn, ankle-high boots. He wears no actually jewelry, but does have a collar around his neck from which hangs his Gaia Bell.
Personality: Solemn, reflective, and adamant, Malakai is a young man who seldom smiles or laughs these days.
Once upon a time a blithe, ambitious, and intrepid prince of the world known as Elysium Gardens, his brother’s betrayal and the prospect of his kingdom fallen to the Darkness, by his own unwitting hand, has caused him to sink into a shocked despair that he has yet to fully recover from. As a result Malakai’s become critical of his own character, very wary of whom he trusts, cautious of every step he takes and steadfast in what he believes – be it right or wrong.
He’s become a meticulous thinker, since the fall of his home world, to the point where he practically lives inside his head, and because of that he can seem antisocial, cold, and stubborn. But with those bad qualities he has his good ones. His noble upbringing (a fact that he chooses to keep secret, more out of the fact that it may not matter anymore) did not make him a pious, selfish twat as some would believe. Malakai is noble, just, and compassionate towards those he can call his companions, and while he’s normally not quick to anger he does have one berserk button…
The topic of his brother, Malkuth, is not to be taken lightly, and can very easily bring out the worst in his character: an unreasonable, utterly destructive, grief-driven rage.
There are other poor – at least what he considers poor – qualities of his character that he tries to hide from others. The foremost of these is his fear of the Darkness. The second is his fear of the Heartless. He remembers very clearly the fall of Elysium Gardens, and the sight of unnaturally dark shadows and even the smallest Heartless can cause him to freeze up with fright. He’s still trying to overcome such silly fears and finds he can better face them when in a group.
Deep down he is still the man he was before the fall of his world – courageous and independent – and continually works towards becoming that man once again, and at length stronger than that, in hopes of one day rectifying the damage his foolishness has done.
Misc. Details -
Likes: Silence, stargazing, nature, companionship
Dislikes: Noise, cities, large crowds
Hobbies: Day dreaming, reading
Talents: An excellent ballroom dancer
Original World: The fallen world of Elysium Gardens
Current World: Traverse Town – First District
History:Malakai came from a distant world called Elysium Gardens.
Elysium Gardens was one of those "between" worlds -- a world ever lingering between the realms of Light and Darkness -- and one of exceptional beauty. Built as one with the forests and mountains that made up the land, the centerpieces of the world were the Royal Palace Yggdrasil and the Polaris Lighthouse -- a majestic castle and sky-reaching tower built into the side of a massive tree. Though not technologically advanced, the world was accomplished in many forms of magic, particularly the art of Geomancy.
In regards to Malakai’s own life, he was born into the kingdom’s royal family, his father being the king himself, though he was not regarded as a prince for most of his life. He came from a rather large family – one of twenty-four children – and due to being of lesser birth – his mother being one of the king’s many mistresses – he was far from inheriting his father’s crown. That was something his older half-brother, Malkuth, was destined for.
Through his own mother Malakai had no brothers or sisters and was not particularly close to any of his half-siblings, save for Malkuth. Older than Malakai by five years, Malkuth was the oldest of the King’s true wife’s, the Queen’s, children, and therefore was next in line to inherit the thrown. Despite having different mothers, and the Queen’s bitterness towards the King’s mistresses and all their children, Malkuth seem very fond of his younger half-brother and spent much time with him – though later Malakai would begin to suspect that Malkuth only hung around him because he was lower on the royal totem pole, and hoped that he would look better in comparison. Never-the-less, Malakai maintained a cordial relationship with his older brother.
During their younger years they were practically inseparable and together took to lessons in Geomancy, the art of manipulating the terrain around them and a particularly difficult skill to master (because of this, Malkuth later took to Pyromancy, the manipulation of fire and considerably easier to master than Geomancy). However, around the time Malakai turned fifteen their relationship changed for the worse.
Malakai did not know the exact details, but Malkuth had done something that severely upset the king and as a result was stripped of his title as Prince. Malkuth was no longer destined to become the next king of Elysium Gardens, that destiny instead fell upon Malakai, much to his own surprise and dismay. Whenever he would ask the king why he had chosen him over his other, perhaps more qualified sons, the king would wave him off and say that was a discussion saved for another time. It also didn’t help that this earned him Malkuth’s ire for years to come.
As the new crowned Prince of Elysium Gardens, Malakai was required to undergo tutoring in various disciplines to prepare him for when it came for his time to take the throne. He hated it, and wanted nothing than to go back to studying just Geomancy; he only put up with it all out of respect for the king. Only one thing made his life bearable during all of it: Sarah.
Sarah was the girl that would eventually become Malakai’s fiancé. She worked as a lowly flower girl in the kingdom’s marketplace, selling blossoms to whoever would buy them; Malakai was one of her most frequent customers. For the longest time he admired her from a distance before scrounging up the courage to talk to her. When he did, she did not take him to seriously, him being the Prince and she just a flower merchant, but in time she began to see that his feelings for her were genuine, and eventually began to return them.
His time with Sarah became the one thing that kept him from going insane during those stressful days, and he soon began to wonder how long it would last. He wanted to propose to her, but he was afraid how his father the king would react to his successor getting married to a flower girl. He chose to carry out his romance with Sarah in secret, and decided he would wait until he was the king to marry her.
And then Sarah turned up dead in one of the many flower fields she would often visit, twelve years after he was named Prince of Elysium Gardens.
Devastated by her death, Malakai sank into a silent despair that worried a number of people at the castle. When they asked what was wrong with him, he would only tell them that he was tired: no one in the court knew of his romance with the girl from the market place. He remained in this somber state for several weeks until one night when Malkuth, of all people, decided to pay him a visit.
At first Malakai thought his older brother was only there to make things more difficult, until he admitted that he knew all about Malakai’s relationship with Sarah.
“I saw you sneak out of the castle on occasion,” Malkuth had said quietly. “Seen you speak to the flower girl, seen how you acted around her… Even a fool can see that you were in love.”
Malakai told his brother to go away, but Malkuth would not budge. Much to Malakai’s irritation he kept taunting him about his “bittersweet” romance, mocking him. He was about to hit his brother until: “What if I told you that there may be a way to bring her back?”
That stilled his hand. A way to bring Sarah back? Truly? If there was a way… If there was a chance…
Malkuth could see it in his eyes: he wanted to know more, so he continued.
“Do you know what they keep up there? What they keep up at the very top of the Polaris Lighthouse?” Malkuth asked, referring to the massive tower not too far for the castle. “I’ve done some reading, and I’ve heard some whispers. They say that they keep a star up there, a wishing star. They call it the ‘Heart of Polaris’ and say that it grants any wish its holder may have. You can wish Sarah back to life. Help me get to it, and you can have your love once more.”
Malakai was silent for a long time. He knew about the tower. Everyone, except for the king, was forbidden to enter it, and it was guarded at all times by the palace guard.
But then again, he would do anything to have Sarah back.
He asked Malkuth what needed to be done.
Malkuth smiled and merely told him to meet him near the Lighthouse’s base after dark.
That night Malakai made his way to the meeting place he and his older brother agreed upon at the base of the Polaris Lighthouse. As per usual, there were two guards that flanked either side of the grand doors that led to the Lighthouse’s winding stairs. They would need to be taken care of, and Malkuth had told him that he had a plan in mind. Malakai wondered just what he had in mind.
Malkuth showed up moments later and told him that the distraction he had planned for the guards was already in motion.
“I started a fire in the Royal Library.”
“Malkuth!”
“Do you want to bring back Sarah or not,” his brother gave him an impatient look. “If you’re so concerned for a bunch of old tomes then hurry up and go tell the guards to see to it. You’re the crowned prince: they’ll listen to you.”
It looked like there was no turning back. With one last furtive glance at his brother, Malakai creeped out of their meeting place and ran up to the two guards and told them that Malkuth lost his temper in the Royal Library and that need to see to the situation right away. Immediately the two headed his orders, and bowing their heads in deference they hurried off to the library. Once the two were out of sight Malkuth emerged and together Malakai and his brother pushed open the massive doors of the Lighthouse and began to climb its many stairs.
Both were hard for breath when they reached the top and entered the lantern room. The room was massive and circular, and the walls were lined with many spectacular stained-glass windows, starlight pouring through them. At the very center of the room was a dais, and upon that dais a pedestal that held aloft the ancient relic itself: the Heart of Polaris.
Malkuth said that he would keep watch by the stairs, listening for anyone that may come and discover them, and that Malakai should be quick and grab the Heart. Nodding, Malakai climbed the dais and approach the sphere that sat atop the pedestal. Carefully he placed his hands upon it, this magical object that would return Sarah to him.
The sphere was cool to the touch and perfectly smooth, and a soft light like a flickering flame glowed at its core. It was almost hypnotic to watch and Malakai found himself lost in its glow. It was the sharp voice of his brother urging him to hurry that pulled him out of his blissful reverie. The palace guards would not be distracted for much longer.
Placing a hand on either side of the Heart of Polaris, he lifted it from its perch at the center of the lantern room. It was quite light.
At first nothing happened. And then a great tremor shook the Lighthouse.
Malakai found himself falling forward. Dropping the Heart of Polaris and letting it roll away, he caught hold of the pedestal before him as the whole room shook furiously. Like a hand covering a candle’s flame, the starlight that poured through the Lighthouse’s windows dimmed. A sinister shadow seemed to have fallen across the whole kingdom.
When the quaking ceased, Malakai pulled himself up to his feet. The gears in his mind were churning, trying to comprehend what had just had happened. He had never felt the earth shake as viciously as that, not ever. Were the two connected – the sudden quake and the removal of the Heart from its perch? Deep within himself something told him that they were, and that he had just made a very grim mistake.
“Brother,” he said breathlessly as he turned to face Malkuth who was now holding the glowing sphere – he must have caught it in the quake – and stepped down from the dais. “I don’t think this was such a prudent idea – something’s not right. Give me the Heart – I’ll put it back.” But Malkuth did not budge; Malakai’s brow furrowed in distress.
That’s when he noticed out of the corners of his eyes that the two of them were no longer alone in that room: something was moving in the shadows. Rather, the shadows themselves were moving. He could hardly see them in the fading starlight, but black creatures with twitching limbs and eyes that glowed like hot, yellow cinders were crawling out of the ground. And they were coming towards him, their haunting gaze swiveling about the large lantern room before landing on him, locking on him, as though he had something they desired.
He kicked away one shadow the crawled too close for comfort and turned back to his brother, the alarm rising in his voice: “Give it here, Malkuth. Hurry!”
Again, too little too late, Malakai realized that something else was just not right.
“No… I think I’ll keep it,” Malkuth said calmly. “You’ve already taken so much from me I’ve begun to think: ‘Hey! Maybe I should start doing the same!’”
Malakai was rooted to the spot, staring at his brother and verily perturbed by Malkuth’s shift in demeanor. He suddenly felt very small: “I don’t understand…”
“Of course you don’t – you’ve always failed to see the bigger picture, little brother. Allow me to elaborate: I want to be king, but you are in the way. You have no idea what it’s like, to be revered and regarded as someone important, someone everyone respects and has such high hopes for only to have it all taken away because some intrepid, little brat comes along and wins over the heart of the king, convinces him that he, not his older son, but some bastard child, is better suited to inherit the throne.”
Malkuth went on to explain how he had resented his brother since then, and had longed to exact his revenge. Opportunity came when he learned what the Heart of Polaris really was – an enchanted relic from most ancient times that protected the world from a deep Darkness that threatened to swallow it. Surely such a relic possessed great power, and he sought to claim that power as his own so that he may once again call the throne his. However, he learned that there was an enchantment placed over the Heart of Polaris to protect it from those who would seek to abuse its power: only the current king of Elysium Gardens and his destined successor could touch the Heart without suffering dire consequence. Malkuth would need Malakai to retrieve the sphere for him.
To Malakai’s horror Malkuth explained how he was the one who was behind Sarah’s death, how he had gained some semblance of control over these shadow creatures and used them to end Sarah’s life. In Malakai’s resultant grief he had planted seeds of hope with lies about the powers of the Heart, how it would grant his wish and bring his dear Sarah back from the grave.
Malkuth had far different plans for the fabled Heart of Polaris.
“With it I will reclaim my throne, my kingdom, and then claim all kingdoms beyond this one as mine own as well. And you…” Malkuth regarded Malakai with his cruel eyes, hatred seething deep within them. “You will be nothing more than a smear of flesh, blood and bones at the foot of this Lighthouse.”
That said, Malkuth raised his hand and let fly a Firaga spell.
Shadowed creatures digging their claws into his legs, Malakai could not get out of the way fast enough. The pain he felt as the flames seared his skin was disorienting. He was sent flying back and the next thing he knew his back had hit glass. He heard a shattering noise, the roar of rushing air. In a brief moment of clarity he could see the lantern room of the Polaris Lighthouse rushing upward, away of him. Then there was nothing but blackness.
Malakai didn’t know how much time had passed when he finally came to, nor where he was. He was convinced that he had died. The woman who found him unconscious in an alley in Traverse Town said he nearly did.
He awoke in the bed of a strange woman who had found him and kindly nursed his many burns. She explained to him where he was, that this place was called Traverse Town, a world where people who have lost their worlds end up, and that’s probably what had happened to him. Malakai did not comprehend what she was saying at first – he did not know anything about “worlds” or anything about them being destroyed. He stared to talk about how he lived in the kingdom of Elysium Gardens, that he was the crowned prince and that he needed to get home as soon as possible to stop his brother and those living shadows he controlled
The woman only smiled. It wasn’t an encouraging or happy one.
“Hun,” she said carefully. “If you saw shadow creatures like you said you did, odds are you don’t have a kingdom to return to. I’m sorry to say this, but you’re prince of nothing now. Best to start a new life here and forget your Gardens. I don’t think you’re getting home anytime soon.”
Malakai was quiet for a long time after she said this. She had said his home was gone, destroyed.
He couldn’t believe that; he refused to. He was sure that his home, his “world” as the woman had put it, was still alright, still there. He just had to find a way to get there and set things right. Once he was fully nursed back to health – and thanked the woman for her kindness – he set out on his own to find a way to get back home. It didn’t take long before he discovered that he was stuck, unable to leave that place without what he heard someone call a “gummi ship.”
It was yet another obstacle he was determined to overcome. He would procure himself one of these gummi ships, and then set out to find his home – a task that sounded simpler at first, as he quickly discovered that these vessels were not as easy to come across as he thought. He would have to wait an opportunity to get on one.
Till then he decided to at least establish a home for himself in the dark town, renting out an apartment in the First District and work a few odd jobs here and there to support himself.
He would find a way off that world and a way back to his own. He would set things right, and if he happened to run into Malkuth along the way, well, he would figure out how to deal with him when the time came.
