Alexander du Ikana
Nov 5, 2017 19:53:02 GMT -5
Post by Alexander du Ikana on Nov 5, 2017 19:53:02 GMT -5
alexander du ikana
THE DIFFERENCE IS THAT I AM RIGHT
PERSONALITY
The Emperor very much fits into the role of Ruler. He is a diligent man, hard working and acting very much in the best interests of empire of Ikana. He often spends his days working on legislation, dealing with the masses who come before him, carrying out justice, and dealing with the finances of the Terminean bank. Because of this attitude, he has been able to get a remarkable amount done not only in his short reign as the Emperor of a unified Termina, but also in the days before, becoming an exceptionally wealthy man who was able to conquer a country with his own hard work.
Despite the stresses it brings, he does enjoy the work he does. He understands that a leader only has power so long as those under them allow that power, so he does his best to keep the people and nobles of Ikana in a cordial relationship. He has a particular focus on public projects. More schools for better education, certain privileges for nobility as well as providing patronage, and festivals here and there in order to help everyone blow off some steam. The Carnival of Time remains especially popular, and he does what he can to make sure it is celebrated around the land.
Alex is genuinely respected as the Emperor of Ikana by his subjects. It is not merely love, nor is it merely fear. Rather, it is a mixture of the two. He comes across as a fair and just man to all castes of Termina, but at the same time, carries enough dignity, with a heavy enough hand that all know where they stand in regards to him. The rowdy and indignant quiet down when he enters the room, the loyal and true hold their heads high, secure in their standing with him. It grants him an air that informs any, even strangers, of who they are dealing with, if not in name, then in stature.
Because of this he keeps a rather distant nature with most of the people he works with. Alexander is by no means a cold man, but merely that he understands the trappings of power and acts as expected of an Emperor with people that he doesn't know, or when on official business. Because of this, it is difficult to make the man flinch on official business, or even to get him to take a drink. He can be a hard man, but much rather prefers letting his hair down. One can understand that they've been let into his "inner circle" as it were when the imperial mask begins to slip around them and he begins to smile more naturally, laugh, and overall enjoy himself. Even if it means forsaking some manners.
When the imperial mask is not in play, Alexander can best be described as... sassy. That is to say that he can be rather biting at times, but rarely in a hostile manner. He'll tease and retort and all that, but more often than not, he means it in good fun. There have been times where he's mixed this with the imperial mask but it's been rare, as he makes it a point to try and keep the two lives as separate as he can, lest he begin to take the stresses of his reign out on those he cares about. When he finishes for the day, he makes sure to leave everything about work behind him.
He carries with him a strong sense of honor. Alex usually will not lie unless he feels that it is necessary to do so. If a contract is signed, he will do his utmost to actually keep to the terms of the contract as described. If he should pass the death sentence, it will be him that does the beheading. It is not debilitating however. If he must play the game and make use of intrigue, then he is fully capable of doing so. But he does not actively seek to back stab and undercut those he works with as a first option. Creating dependency on him is one thing, actively assassinating people and destroying their lives is an extreme measure.
Because of this he can be extremely vengeful. One of the easiest ways to bring the intrigue into play is to gravely insult him. While he doesn't like people making light of his family (especially) or himself, he tailors the reaction as appropriate. It takes quite a bit before he begins actually playing his games. The simplest way to avoid this is to be respectful and to adhere to any agreements made. Breaking a contract is one of the fastest ways on his bad side, and he will enact retribution for it. That being said, it is safe to assume that any actions taken against his family are actions against him.
Despite his hatred for the game, he's not a fan of war either, and if forced between the game and an open war, usually just plays the game. He's spent time setting Ikana up that they don't have to fight an open war. Whether it's through military deterrence through the mass production of Goht, or by having slowly wormed the Terminean bank into the economies of all the nations of the world. An open war usually means it's either time for clean up in the event of conquest, or all other options have failed and he has to call the legions of Ikana to battle.
However, there is a blindness to the faults of his own family. While if he sees it in action, he can usually put everything together, but barring absolute proof, it's really hard to get him to act against his own family. He spoils them and coddles them, and seems to ignore some of their less heroic actions when they occur. Thus while it is acknowledged that he is overall a just man, there is also an acknowledgement by most everyone that he tends to show favoritism when it comes to his own siblings, allowing them to get away with things that he'd never consider from other people, even doing some form of mental gymnastics to justify or explain away wrongdoings.
He can be ruthless and calculating. Alexander, when sufficiently moved to be so, can aim for nothing short of total annihilation. He's not the type to burn the world so he can rule the ashes, but if someone is being just that big of a pain, he will begin to take stronger measures to have the obstacle in question removed, even if some wouldn't consider that method to be clean.
But there is a sense of pragmatism. Alexander does not simply fire a nuke whenever something is getting on his nerves, and tailors an appropriate response. He knows that if he doesn't go far enough, he appears weak. If he goes too far, then he appears tyrannical, and a balance must be kept. As such, he will often attempt multiple methods of solving a problem as it grows instead of just saying "screw it" and burning it to the ground without caring who gets caught in the crossfire.
He is also determined. When Alex begins something, he rarely stops unless something comes up that he must deal with, that he simply cannot solve after exhausting all options, or when he succeeds. It is a drive that allows him to continue consuming far past where others would stop. Those who take a more negative view of this trait would perhaps say that he is ambitious.
Alexander is exceptionally confident and sure of himself, almost unshakably so. He began as a mere man trying to provide for a family, before rising to become the Emperor of Ikana, unifying Termina, and getting his claws in with the rest of the world. Alexander is a man sure of his path, to the point where he can unironically declare himself right if need be. This has a downside in that he can be notoriously stubborn when he comes down to it, with the idea that the imperial truth will shine forth as events unfold.
Ah yes, the imperial truth. In short, Alexander isn't an atheist, he's a naytheist. He fully acknowledges that the gods exist. He acknowledges their role in events, acknowledges their divinity, and acknowledges their power. He just simply refutes them. The gods have kept man dependent on them, and he believes that mortals have the right to their own destiny that isn't determined simply because a god's having a bad day. His ultimate goal, at the end of all of this should he make it, would be a world free from the gods, where mortals have long surpassed them and achieved their own objective perfection. Lofty and probably impossible, but one can dream.
This confidence does however, give him a sort of mental resilience that makes it difficult to actually get into his head and work him up. Threats do not carry the weight they would with a common man, though he will address them seriously. Flattery may have results, but it won't grant you the privileges as he's all too aware of flattery. Simply put, Alexander is a man who is hard to manipulate.
DISLIKES [attr="class","scroll"]
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FEARS [attr="class","scroll"]
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HISTORY
Alex was the oldest of several children born to Midas and Sophitia in Clock Town. People so low on the social ladder that they only had one name. Both toiled away for their children, working long and hard to make sure that there was food on the table. As he grew and as more children were born to the family (he had quite a few siblings), Alex began to have to work in order to help provide food, doing odd jobs around castle town. Within a few years the second oldest would have to begin working as well to provide. It was a rough life, but they were able to keep from going hungry.
At the age of ten, he was one of the residents of Clock Town to live through the terrifying three days of Majora's cruelty. As the moon loomed closer and closer, his parents did everything they could, but ultimately did not leave the town. There was no point, they knew that. No matter where they went, the moon would kill them all when it crashed into Termina. At the last possible second, a boy in green, around Alex's age, managed to show up and save them all in the nick of time, before departing for parts unknown, and that was that. It was an image left in everyone's mind, but no one saw the boy again.
When Alex was fifteen, a sickness swept through Clock Town, and claimed the lives of both their parents, leaving him and his siblings as primary caretakers. Fortunately, their parents, by having them out and working, had prepared them for a possibility such as this, and while the house was a little more somber as the family adjusted to the loss of their parents, they were able to put food on the table still. They held strong. They were a close knit family, it would take more than that to break them.
Alex, for his part, took up a sword and offered to work on any expeditions. Dangerous, but the pay could be good, especially if one hit the mother load. He worked as a sellsword for two years, going on tasks, clearing out monsters, pillaging long dead lands. He took the long way, refusing to break contracts in return for a competitor's juicier offer. While they were a little tighter for it, it would pay off. Slowly, he began to build a reputation for someone who could be depended on, and whose word was as good as his gold. More offers began to pour in, and he was able to get better work for his family, keep them fed, keep them clothed, keep them alive. Yes, if things continued on like this, then Alex and his siblings would survive.
One day, one wealthy merchant of Termina approached him. He was forming an expedition to loot the ancient castle of Ikana, now abandoned by the world and its curse gone, long untouched by man for fear of the curse that once roamed it. They needed people to come and help loot the castle, destroy any monsters, and so on. While they would take the lion's share of Ikana's treasure, the mercenaries would be able to keep whatever it was they could carry. They fancied themself a fighter as well, and insisted that they would come along. It was... less than ideal. But work was work, and this would keep the family going for a few years, so he took it.
So at the age of seventeen, Alex, along with a group of other sellswords and the merchant finally entered the abandoned castle. Sure enough, it was empty, no one was inside. Most of the sellswords were on edge due to the rumors that swirled around the castle. Ikana canyon had begun to be inhabited after Majora's demise but never really flourished due to the superstitions surrounding it. But it wasn't the dead that they had to worry about when traversing the castle, it was the sheer amount of traps waiting for everyone as they continued to advance. Spikes, darts, pitfalls, so on. Bit by bit, the castle claimed more and more of the expedition, including the merchant themselves. The dead never rose, not for them, but it was still dangerous.
Whether by sheer luck or quick wit, Alex was one of the few who made it to the treasury. His pick was a magic blade, dark in power, lots of gold, and pieces of paper where he could find it. Specifically, records, writings, and so on dating back to the ancient kingdom of Ikana, worth more than their weight in gold. So he, along with the rest of the group, returned back to Clock Town with what they had. Alex deposited the gold where he could, and sold off the paper to scholars and collectors, barring one record that he kept for himself. Just like that, overnight Alex had enough to keep his family fed for the rest of their lives.
And yet it was not enough.
Oh his siblings enjoyed the new wealth. They got to have all the fancy clothes, go to events they couldn't have before. They were able to stop working, stop worrying. By all rights, many would have stopped there, but Alexander didn't. He began to invest. Money accrued in the bank, and he invested into other businesses, at first local, then across the scattered nations of Termina. Slowly, rupees began to amass in the family fortune, and he would reinvest it, again and again, and again. By the age of nineteen, he was building a new home for his siblings. By the age of twenty-two he was one of the wealthiest men in Termina, with his hand in nearly every business.
With his newfound wealth, he built his siblings a new home in Ikana canyon proper, starting at nineteen and finishing at twenty-two. There was a reason for this; it kept them close to the castle. It'd remained untouched in the intervening years, and he was putting a lock down on it now that he knew the layout and could simply raid the treasury for funds, so he did. He would then take that wealth and reinvest it into global enterprises, and keep it with the Terminean bank. Incidentally, this was also the time he finally got to meet the Great Fairy of Kindness, Lycoris. He took to her immediately, it was hard of him not to. She had an endearing sense of warmth that allowed him to simply come into her fountain, and let all the woes of the world wash away.
When the rupees came back, he would invest it into Ikana proper. He'd turned it from a dead canyon into a fertile valley; he began and finished an irrigation project, built schools, formed a guard that would be given professional training and would answer to him. He helped build homes and helped settle those looking for another chance. What was once a dead canyon was becoming a jewel of life in Termina. It took a few years, but by the time he was twenty-six, things were well underway. Those living in Ikana loved him above all others, for he gave them a better life, even if they had to pay him some taxes in order to help with up-keeping the canyon, not that he really needed it anymore.
Here he was, the owner of the grandest house in the valley, with a small army that answered to him, that was very clearly the head of the canyon, whom everyone adored and obeyed. Really, he was a king in all but name, so why not make it official? It was on an early spring morning that Alexander crowned himself and took the ancient dynastic name of Ikana. Lycoris had blessed the coronation, even having been present for the crowning itself, surely his right to rule was just. With one swift motion, he had gone from simply "Alexander" to King Iskandar du Ikana I of the reborn Kingdom of Ikana.
In one swift motion, he'd also started a war.
Not everyone took an upstart crowning himself king so well. A group calling themselves the Garo appeared. Whether they were related to the Garo of old or just a group that took the name as a sign of total opposition to the reformed kingdom, Alexander never really managed to figure out. What followed was a year of guerilla warfare against an enemy he couldn't really fight in the traditional manner. The valley held on as best it could, but between bombings and ambushes, his guards were finding themselves hard pressed. Soon, Alexander had to begin digging into his reserves to hire sellswords.
Simply put, Alexander outlasted the Garo. He had more funds and as a result, more men. The fighting went on for a year in the valley, but eventually they made a mistake, and the Master of the Garo had been captured and brought to Alexander in chains. He made a big show of it as he had the man dragged to the execution block. Alexander, as king, read off the list of crimes. The Garo made one surprise attack at the execution, but were unable to save their Master in time as Alexander beheaded the leader of the Garo. Justice had been served, at least to Ikana. The Garo continued to fight for a time after that, but they were never able to organize like they had, and eventually the war just simmered down and eventually died.
Realizing their potential, Alexander initiated a campaign to bring as many of the former Garo into his ranks as he could, understanding how useful they could be as assassins. While he didn't get everyone, there were many who took the offer, feeling it better to live on in comfort than to die out in the harsh wilderness. They didn't accept him at first, but a year of fair treatment and rebuilding began to win them over and convince them that perhaps life like this wouldn't be so bad, and to, if nothing else, give the king a chance. He made no move to end their traditions, if they truly were the Garo of old, and even allowed them to select a new master to represent them.
After the year to settle down, some more time was needed to recover, but that first battle was what set Alex forward and some may consider to have been the true birth of the empire. He waited, and he prepared. In the interim, he had begun to have his investments handles by several middlemen and other proxies. He felt it would not go over so well if the other nations began to realize how much Ikana had invested in their economies, nor that they were inadvertently paying Ikana's bills. With his massive wealth, he bought things for the sake of keeping warm. Thicker clothes, padded armor, furs, and so on. As he rebuilt his army, he waited for winter to come and for the snows to hit, and when they did, that was when he made his move. Specifically, at the onset of Winter in Termina, King Iskandar du Ikana struck north in order to bring Snowhead under his control.
Gorons don't do well in cold, they never have. They freeze, and are one of the few that can actually freeze solid during a nasty winter, with several documented cases. It's just that unlike most others, this doesn't kill them, and they can simply thaw out when spring comes; it's just a really uncomfortable experience. Alexander took advantage of this, striking at the Gorons while they were at their weakest and unable to really fight back. The war was over before spring hit, a treaty was signed, and Snowhead was annexed into the growing kingdom, but Alexander was not satisfied. He demanded to be taken to Snowhead the mountain, and it was in their that he would discover one of his empire's greatest weapons.
Twenty years ago, a boy had destroyed a beast in a room. Unlike other beasts though, this one was mechanical, and did not simply rot away like organics would. Under a pile of debris, preserved and kept from rusting by the dry, cold air, the remains of the Masked Mechanical Monster, Goht, was discovered. Alexander's first question was whether it could be repaired and reverse engineered. When he was told that indeed it could, he made it a top priority. It would take some time, he was told, but it could be done.
In the meantime, he waited for the fields to be planted and cared for, and he took a small army of sellswords with him to Great Bay come the summertime.
The pirates were the easiest to bring to heel. He had called for the Garo, his Garo, and they had answered his call. He gave them their instructions and off they went. It was a windy night in the heat of summer when, under the cover of darkness, his Garo linked together the ships that the Gerudo pirates owned, and simply set the entire fleet ablaze. Without their ships, the pirates were easy targets, but not in a battle. They holed up in their fortress, and for weeks Alexander waited them out, keeping his small army supplied, and making sure the pirates couldn't slip out. It took some time, but he starved them out.
After a couple more weeks, he gave the pirates two choices, he could storm the place and kill everyone inside as they'd be too weak from hunger to put up a meaningful resistance or... he could help rebuild their fleet and recruit them for his navy, but they'd have to give up piracy. Normally that last bit would have resulted in a battle to the death, but worn down from a season of starvation and weariness, the pirates agreed, and to their credit, have kept it since, turning from pirates to sailors. They were immediately fed, given water, and allowed to rest. Work began on their navy as promised.
With most of the pirates under his command as well as his sellswords, he moved on the Zoras of Great Bay. The Zora were not a military powerhouse by any means; the fact that the pirates were able to set up shop like they did was proof of that. The pirates knew the area well, and were again, able to get the Garo inside and wreak havoc from within, before the Zora could mount any meaningful response. Crippled before the fight had truly begun, the Zora surrendered, and the West, as well as the top half of Termina, fell under Ikana's control, having been annexed.
Alexander again waited out the seasons, and harvesting season came and went before he'd finally received the news he'd waited for the better part of a year for; it was ready. The Masked Mechanical Monster was ready. With winter on its way, he wanted to wrap up the south before anything could really go wrong with it. Calling his men and hiring his swords, he marched south, his new weapon in tow. Hopefully the inevitable difficulty of the coming invasion would be mitigated somewhat by the appearance of Goht.
The Deku, knowing full well what awaited them had prepared in abundance. They had filled their stores, fortified their defenses, trained their men, and so on. The Gorons had been caught by surprise, the west didn't have the discipline, the south would not have the same weaknesses. This was an army, ruled by a king of a dynasty that had lasted hundreds of years. They would break this resurgent Ikana before it could engulf Termina, and restore what had been considered stability for the past millennia. Had it not been for certain developments, they may have been able to stop Ikana cold.
At first, it seemed that Ikana couldn't get through. The infantry and cavalry would become mired in the swamp where they would become easy targets. Overtime, the Deku became cocksure of themselves and extended their defensive line further and further out of the swamp. Before long, the majority of their army had made it out of the muck, unknowingly painting a target on them and giving Alex the chance he needed to bring the south to heel. With the thundering of hooves, victory had come. It was not that of a cavalry rush, but rather one beast, fighting for the reborn kingdom.
For the first time in twenty years, Goht lived again.
With a hide of metal it was all but immune to the Deku's weapons as it trampled across the battlefield, dropping bombs and blasting its enemies with lightning. The Deku hadn't prepared for Goht, not at all. Backed up by another oncoming cavalry charge, it was a one sided battle. The cavalry had flanked around to cut off their retreat while Goht ran amok, electrocuting and destroying any resistance. With its army in tatters, the Deku were no longer a threat, but they continued to resist. It was only when the king finally saw Goht in person that he knew he could fight no longer, and he bent the knee to Alexander within his own palace.
For all but one place, Termina was his. It was also time to rectify such a gross oversight.
He simply moved North. It was far too early for Clock Town to have developed a counter to Goht. Only a week or so had passed before he moved right on it. To their credit, Clock Town realized that the battle was a lost cause and didn't even bother to fight it. The guards came by Alexander and Goht, one by one, and threw down their swords as a sign of surrender. Alexander, as a show of force, had the swords melted down into a throne that was placed in the old castle of Ikana. A throne that showed his victory by right of conquest, that showed his nation and his empire.
It was in spring, the year he turned thirty, that he was finally crowned Emperor of Ikana, a reunited Termina, and took a second regnal name, Iulius, or more commonly known as Julius. The ceremony itself had been quite lovely. The castle itself was close enough to the fountain that the Great Fairy of Kindness was the one to lay the crown on his head. It was clear that, if nothing else, he had the backing of one of the Great Fairies of Termina.
It was also around this time when he figured out how they were able to repair Goht. The actual body itself was nothing special and was rather easily and quickly done. The tricky part was figuring out how to power it without the mask in place. The answer that those working for him had come up with was to take someone and bind their soul to the machine. It was a heavy price to be sure, but the result was undeniable. Unwilling to ignore the sacrifices made, Alex since has kept a list of names of those who have volunteered to be turned into a masked mechanical monster with him at all times.
At first, keeping them all stable has been trouble. But as the year has gone on, he has put all his effort into paying recompense to those who had lost during the war, rebuilding the various kingdoms, and generally improving the overall life of the Termineans, while continuing his financial plays abroad, the other nations unaware that they played an instrumental role in the rise and current sustenance of Ikana. It is taking time, but his diligence and rule is beginning to warm itself to his subjects. Meanwhile, he has never forgotten his family, who are now enjoying the lives of royalty, all members of an imperial family, each one a prince or princess, each one worthy of any king or queen. They deserved it all, he believed, and he still believes it. He will still fight for them as needed.
With his free time however, he has begun to dream of his subjects, and of a future for them. He was but a man, no different than any other man. He was not blessed by the gods but he did not seem to be cursed. He had come from simply Alexander, and yet here he was, fifteen years later, as Emperor Iskandar Iulius du Ikana I, ruler of a unified Termina for the first time in who knew how long? He had no divine backing for his accomplishments. Would it not be wonderful if all the people of the world could have the same opportunities he had to grow and make their own fate?
Perhaps it was something to aim for, while he continued to strengthen the reforged empire of Ikana. The Carnival of Time was growing near, it would be the first time in years he had celebrated it.
APPEARANCE
Standing at six feet tall, Alexander can be a rather imposing figure for anyone who gets to meet him. Combined with his deliberately regal demeanor, he can just be downright intimidating. He is well muscled and in excellent shape befitting someone who won their empire through conquest. His hair is a bright blond that grows down to his neck, but he keeps it well groomed in a wavy manner. The color of his eyes are a dark red.
Clothing wise, Alexander has several outfits. When on official business, he is always wearing his ARMOR; a suit of black armor with tyrian colored cloth and golden trimming. He wears a simple black circlet around his head, not really needing the use of an elaborate and extravagant crown. Beneath the plate armor lies chainmail to provide further protection. During the colder months, or when in colder areas, he often uses a set of armor that replaces the chainmail with extra padding to keep him warm.
Under the armor, Alex wears more REGAL CLOTHING. Extravagant dark blue clothing, both shirt and pants. Beneath it he wears a white undershirt and a cravat. The clothing is lined with gold as well (all other colors are inferior before gold).
INVENTORY
WEAPON
Rank: Uncommon
Type: Sword
Handling: Bastard
Description: A BASTARD SWORD a little over 3'6 in length, said to be the royal sword of Ikana according to the notes he read. It's actually two swords in one. He thinks. It's either that or a sword that can split into two curved swords. Either way it can do that if he needs to. When combined, the sword of the Emperor is enchanted with a dark power that lets it SHOOTS BEAMS. Specifically it fires these beams from the gem of the sword. They don't have the area of effect that most other powers of this nature do, but its slim nature makes it more precise, as well as giving it a punching power that a beam conjured with a swing couldn't manage, able to punch through armors and barriers. When combined it also makes for a pretty handy swordbreaker, he guesses. In the papers he swiped and read, it was said that only one of Ikana's blood could ever wield the sword. Well, so much for that.
TRAITS
Upon creation, characters will be given a certain amount of points to place into crucial fields in the form of labeling terms: Novice (1), Apprentice (2), Journeyman (3), Adept (4), Master (5). Characters will also be given 4 blanks fields where they may place traits that are more oriented to their specific character.
Characters will be given the opportunity to reach a specific rank and upgrade their skill list as well as receive a new skill field.
If you include a history, it will be possible to earn more points upon approval by staff.
You have a total of 38 points to spend across these traits. PLEASE USE THE WORD TERMS. NOT THE POINT NUMBER. (i.e. use the term 'novice' instead of '1'). Starting with the full 50, Navi said it was okay.
Diplomacy: Master
Social Etiquette: Novice
Intimidation: Master
Persuasion: Journeyman
Tactics/Leadership: Master
History/Religion: Journeyman
Geography: Novice
Arcana: Novice
Weapon Proficiency: Master
Hand to Hand: Journeyman
Endurance: Journeyman
Stealth: Novice
Acrobatics: Novice
Horse Riding: Novice
Intrigue: Master
Mechanics: Novice
Fincances: Master
Law: Novice
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