Alicia, Etrurian Knight [Elly Alt]
Feb 14, 2012 22:34:15 GMT -6
Post by Alicia on Feb 14, 2012 22:34:15 GMT -6
"I am an iron wall. In Saint Elimine's name, I shall purge this world of evil!"
Name: Alicia
Class: Knight
Hair Color: Dark blonde; her hair easily reaches down to the middle of her back. She keeps it brushed straight and well cared for, as any self-respecting, proud knight should. Twin braids fall on either side of her face, which she considers almost a badge of honor; she began braiding her hair the day she became a recruit, and has kept doing so as a symbol of her commitment afterwards. Her armor's helmet is the piece she dislikes using the most, and she refuses to wear it whenever she can get away with it in a rare display of frivolousness.
Eye Color: Steel gray, often narrowed down in stern focus or a determined stare. She often holds her head high, and her gaze constantly darts around in alertness. It is rare for her eyes to relax or portray other emotions, at least in public, and certainly not around strangers.
Age: Twenty-four.
Appearance: Alicia firmly believes in giving everything she attempts her all. As such, her appearance is of utmost importance to her. She does her best to always appear presentable in public, and she deals with both mud stains and loose strands of hair with the same ruthless efficiency with which she wields her lance. She takes good care of herself, and bathes as regularly as possible.
She has trained herself in manners, too; beyond the salutes drilled into new recruits, she pushes herself to learn the subtle gestures and nuances her superiors use through observation. She holds her head high and keeps her back straight at all times; hands folded before her when in the presence of a superior or guardedly at her sides when at ease, ready to act. Her table manners are exceptional for a commoner; while she has never been to a banquet, and couldn't make heads or tails of a formal dinner, she makes sure to always display proper inn etiquette, with the exclusion of brawling and loud drinking songs.
She keeps her emotions guardedly close, though she can't avoid the occasional flicker of competitiveness that crosses her features at times. Her voice tone varies depending on the person she's addressing; if she believes her companion to be her superior, she will modulate her voice accordingly, speaking guardedly, her answers short and straight to the point. She holds high standards for herself, and expects others to live up to those as well; thus, she is rarely tolerant of mistakes and flaws. Often, an overbearing, condescending edge can slip into her words unnoticed, especially when she observes repeated offenses to the code of conduct she believes everyone ought to uphold.
Though she wears her full armor while on duty at all times, Alicia greatly dislikes the confining feeling of it. When allowed to do so, she prefers to wear either the much-lighter ceremonial armor or simple dresses bought in her natal city. Her build is quite athletic, as a result of the rigorous training she was forced to endure before she could stand wearing the knights' armor for any amount of time. She is slightly taller than average, though not enough to really stand out; it still bothers her, however, and despite having learned to accept it, she does not react well to comments on her height. Badgering her about it is a sure way to cause her temper to rise up to the front past her firm emotional control.
Personality: Alicia is both proud and competitive to a fault; the firm, cold, polite mask she wears melts away at a challenge or insult, neither of which she can resist for long. She dislikes relying on others, firmly adhering to doing tasks by herself if she can, asking others only as a last resort.
She seeks to be the best, basking in the praise of others; losing has never been acceptable for the Etrurian woman. Alicia does not care whether the prize is the recognition of her superiors, or victory in a game of rock-paper-scissors; once she undertakes an endeavor, or accepts a contest, she aims to be at the very top, complete the task as thoroughly as possible, and emerge victorious. For this same reason, trickery and deceit are abhorrent to the knight; a conquest is only worth something if achieved through devotion and hard work. She has a soft spot for games of chance, despite having terrible luck at them; she believes it to be a level playing field, where the winner is chosen solely by luck and fate.
Alicia is honest, but reserved; she finds manipulation distasteful, but she will remain quiet if she believes it to be to her advantage to do so. However, she refuses to play with words or twist the truth. When she does speak, her words are blunt and intense, passionate, without double meanings, her promises as binding as contracts before Saint Elimine herself. She is not naive enough to expect the same of others, but is not versed enough in the arts of words to avoid being tricked from time to time.
Her unwavering faith in Saint Elimine is a defining trait, one she has carried for long. Being raised in one of the church's orphanages in Delfia, she has been exposed to religion since very young. She sincerely believes that her survival must have been Saint Elimine's will; else, why would the orphanage take her in, when dozens of children starved on the city streets for lack of space in the abodes? She dedicates herself devotedly to the deity. Thus, she can't afford to attempt anything but her best effort; she must prove herself worthy of being chosen to survive, both before herself and the eyes of her goddess. As a loyal knight of the church, she has sworn to follow Saint Elimine's will, whatever it may be.
While she may appear aloof and uncaring most of the time, Alicia has a profound love of children, particularly those who live on the streets; as long as she is sure she won't be recognized, she always has time for a game or two, entertaining them with trinkets and baubles, or offering them a hug and a warm meal at the local inn. She has difficulties connecting with people her own age, however, having a deep-seated distrust of other adults in general; those she opens up to are few and far between, the last one being the old caretaker of her former home, who helped raise her.
Born in: Delfia, Etruria
Story: Alicia's earliest memories are of the orphanage she grew up in, one of many in the great city of Delfia. The caretaker there had been a priest once, long ago; nobody remembered the man as ever having been young, however, his wizened face and kindly features belying his strict approach to raising children. The old man made sure they never lacked food or a roof, but the kindly assistants, most of them priests in training, lived in fear of his switch as much as the children did. He did not wish to hurt them; far from it. His intentions were always to raise them to become productive members of society, and though he never expressed it, his love for his charges knew no bounds. His methods to achieve his goal, however, did raise some questioning frowns in the eyes of the townspeople, though none dared claim they weren't effective.
As she was told years later, she was abandoned as an infant, not far past her first year of age, on the doorstep of the orphanage. Someone had knocked at the door, and left before it was answered, leaving behind a tearful, crying child. By all rights, she should have been shown the door as soon as she was old enough to walk through it. The orphanage was already overpopulated, with children sharing beds and some sleeping on the floor; and yet, the old man let her stay.
She shared her room with over twenty children, and yet she might as well have been alone; for some reason, the girl always remained aloof and distant, never really getting along with any of the other orphans. The old man taught them all to read and write as they aged, and she sought solace in books. They offered worlds to disappear into, and at times she could imagine herself inside their pages, sharing a meal with the parents she never met, a warm hearth in the background and a beautiful doll in her hands.
Still, she felt lost, unsure; while some of the children enjoyed painting and carving, and others grew interested in masonry and smithing, she drifted along, unable to find it within herself to grow passionate about anything, apathetic and uncaring. She spent her days reading in the tiny backyard of the orphanage, beneath the wispy willow tree. It was there, a few months before her ninth birthday, that the old man sought her out. He didn't stay long, but his actions that day had a profound impact in the young girl's life, and forever changed the path she would follow.
With his usual, gruff demeanor, he told her that Saint Elimine had chosen her from among dozens of abandoned children, that she ought to be grateful for the opportunity she was given, before showing her the door. He told her to return in a week, taking her books with him as he shut the door, leaving her outside with nothing but the clothes she was wearing at the time.
For the first time, the girl opened her eyes to the truth around her; for days, she wandered the edges of the orphanage, and truly saw the terrifying reality of the children who lived on the streets as she begged for food. Mysteriously, she never seemed to lack enough; just when she thought she would pass out from hunger, a kind stranger would always show up with a piece of bread or a basket of apples. She shared her bounty with the children around her, some half her own age, shriveled and covered in rags and dust. At night, they slept huddled together, one of them always awake, keeping watch for older children, or worse, street thugs and thieves.
The week seemed to stretch out into years, and the Alice that returned was not the Alice who had been shoved out of the door, sullen and callous. Her eyes shone with determination; for days she would sneak out and bring her share of the food to share with the children outside, but there never was enough. She dedicated her heart to Saint Elimine; if she had enough faith, surely she would hear their plight and save them. Not just the children, but everyone who suffered and was in pain.
Almost overnight, she became a role model, working as hard as the assistants throughout the day, helping with the other children, tending to the huge abode's chores, and keeping track of the orphanage's expenses under the old man's watchful eye. Every day, she woke up and said her prayers to Saint Elimine, repeating them before bed, knowing with calm certainty that they were being heard. She would make Saint Elimine proud, and dedicate her life to her.
And so, as the children grew into teenagers and left to find their paths, or become apprentices, she stayed behind, helping the old man with the new generation of children, watching over them, bathing them, and singing them lullabies before bed as his assistant. Yet, the girl still felt uneasy, and as the years passed, couldn't help but grow curious about the world outside. As her seventeenth birthday drew near, she chanced to listen to a curious speech while shopping; at first, she paid it no heed, but the more she heard, the more the words resonated within her heart. The speaker was a recruiter for the Etrurian army, under orders of the Prophet, and Alicia's eyes lit up with joy; if Saint Elimine called, then it was her duty to answer the call. She bid farewell to the old man against his wishes, dead set on becoming a holy knight.
The years of training were grueling and hard; the Etrurian army was not for the faint of heart, and she soon found that the best way to avoid trouble was to harden herself against everyone. She kept vigilant at all times, training well past the usual hours to win the regular spars throughout the day, nearly dragging herself to her bed at night, yet knowing it was all in Saint Elimine's name. She was hailed by her instructors as a genius; curiously, she found herself enjoying their praise, and struggled to keep up to their expectations. Whatever one of the other recruits did, she could outperform them a day later; she would train well into the night until she was satisfied or passed out.
Recalling the old man, she adopted his character, rebuffing her fellow recruits as they tried to approach, pushing them away; she needed no one but herself. She drew on her old personality, wrapping it like a cloak around her, growing aloof, her only passion to become the best at her newly found home, to earn the respect of those around her, and to serve Saint Elimine's will by becoming her best knight. For six years, she trained. Nothing else mattered.
