Post by pterodactyl on Oct 27, 2010 20:00:03 GMT -5
i should blame you for the falling rain
i should blame you for my constant pain
i should be there to remind you every day
i should walk you through the halls of my own fate
i should let you taste the tears that fell in hate
i should be there to remind you every day
i should...MY NAME
but only the one you saydane gunnarssonYEARS
that i've lived on earththirty-sevenRACE
one among manyhumanOCCUPATION
thwarts the devil's effortspaladinALLEGIANCES
are made in blooddane's allied with the hand of leona, but somewhat reluctantly. there's nothing he can do, though, because his blood's in the phylactery. his own life is not as important as the life of his children, who he is certain will be killed should he desert.APPEARANCES
can be deceivingdane is of average height, only standing at five feet ten inches. he makes up for it in strength, though. having grown up on a farm and being a paladin, dane keeps his body in excellent condition. he does not overpower in battle, but uses quick thinking, sharp reflexes, force of will, and mastery over his chosen weapons to defeat his opponents and kill runaways. his shrewd dark gaze gives nothing away. dane maintains a short beard and mustache, along with medium length, curly brown hair. he has a high forehead and a rounded jaw, softening his features. scars decorate his back and sides from his father's beatings when dane was only a child. tanned skin is the norm for dane, even in the colder months, because he trains outside every day, no matter the weather.
outfitted in loose, neutral colored clothing, dane enjoys being comfortable. his tunic and breeches conceal thin armor, made of boiled leather, which is light but hard enough to protect him. when trying to blend in, dane will dress in clothing that matches the style of wherever he is, but prefers his own clothes if he can get away with wearing them. dane is an accomplished archer (he often doesn't need to engage a runaway in combat) and carries his bow and quiver with him on most occasions. he is good with a sword and with throwing knives and the like, but he holds flails, maces, morning stars and such in contempt.WHAT'S INSIDE
is what countsdane is, in general, a jovial man. he likes to laugh, likes to dance, likes to drink, and on occasion likes to sing (mostly when he's had a little too much to drink.) he has an ability to make friends quickly and has always been a friendly person, if rather more quiet in disposition than other, more rambunctious men. this paladin's tastes are simple, since he grew up a farmer and still retains the farmer's contentness with what he is given. he doesn't need expensive clothes or wine or furnishings to indulge himself, being more suited for the common fare of the land and comfortable, breathable clothes. however, dane does have a weakness for women and is easily seduced and swayed by feminine wiles.
due to his tasks as a paladin, dane often has to remove himself from his main personality. when on a mission to track down and eliminate a runaway from the hand, gunnarsson becomes grim and focused on nothing but the kill. he has enough skill; the only thing to hold him back is his gentle nature and grinning attitude. during his time with the hand, however, dane learned to lock himself away and just do what is asked of him with a single-minded focus.THE PAST
remains behind usdane gunnarsson was born in a small village in broddring thirty-seven years ago. his mother died in childbirth, and his father was a horrible man ever after. dane was an only child, and bore all of his father's drunken rage. he still bears the scars of gunnar's wrath, mostly on his back where the switch or belt landed. he grew up hating his father, and would sneak out into town or into the woods whenever possible.
dane suffered under his father's iron fist until he was fifteen, considered a man. that day, he woke up to his father leering at him with mead on his breath. dane stood up, got dressed, and washed. by the time he was finished, gunnar had worked himself up to a rage and was seething with a dark expression and a ready fist. dane, already grown to nearly the size of his father, looked the drunken man in the eye, told him exactly what he thought of him, and then hit his father so hard between the eyes that gunnar fell to the floor, knocked out. dane packed his things and left that very day, never returning to the village.
for a while, dane traveled from village to village, living off the land as he went. at the age of seventeen, he met his wife, alaina, in a village near the spine. the courtship was short and the wedding was discouraged by alaina's parents, but it went ahead anyway. dane was completely smitten with his bride, and nothing would stop him from attaining the object of his fancy. the newlyweds moved to a new village far from alaina's home, and soon after she discovered she was pregnant. nine months later (they were both eighteen and some months) two boys were born. they weren't identical twins, but they did have a striking resemblance, even as babies. they were named rainer and sebastian, and the family was happy.
alaina soon grew unsatisfied with her life as a simple farmwife married to a simple farmer with two sons. dane never had any chance of resisting her, entranced as he was with her beauty and quiet manner. they moved to ceunon, looking for a change. the boys loved it, of course, with the hustle and bustle of trading and exotic things everywhere. dane was more skeptical, but was able to adapt for his wife. while here, alaina became caught up in broddring's official religion, the voyage of nine moons. she brought the whole family with her, and all four of them embarked on the journey together. they moved to the tears of leona not long after, where alaina and dane joined the cathedral as initiates. one of the nobles was taken with dane's young wife, and she was forced into slavery with dane and the boys held aside by burly guards. they have never seen her since, but it is assumed that she is dead.
now twenty-five, single, and the father of two seven-year-old boys, dane had to find a way to live on his own. things were hard, but he vowed that he would never become like his father. there were good and bad times, but the years passed and somehow they survived, missing a family member but riding out the waves. when the time came for the boys to achieve manhood and strike out on their own, rainer and sebastian left together to make a world for themselves. they left on good terms with their father, unlike when dane had the same moment with his own father. dane was then thirty-four and ready to pass his first essence test. he had learned to master a bow as a young man fending for himself, and the sword was something he'd been practicing with for many years before joining the cathedral and afterwards. with no ties to hold him now, dane became a paladin under some duress. he was needed and the hand knew where his sons had gone to, promising to kill them both if he didn't obey.
a little over three years later, in the present day, dane has completed extensive mindbreaking training and combat is natural to him. he has changed some since the time when he had a family, but his jovial disposition remains when he is not on a mission. he has come to accept the hand, although he disapproves of some of its goals and purposes.A DAY IN THE LIFEdane gunnarsson swung himself off of his horse, warm tunic making a swishing sound as he dropped to the ground. his boots thudded against the packed earth, and his eyes roved over the dirt, looking for trail he had lost. he was following a runaway, had been for the better part of the day. she had about a day's lead on him, but she was on foot and he was catching up, thanks to the strength of his muscular black steed. finding the disturbed earth and broken plants he was looking for, the paladin swung smoothly back into the saddle and urged his horse in a quick trot down the trail.
he took out the arrows in his quiver again, checking the flights for damage and examining the shaft for any bowing. the trail for a while was quite blatant, so he didn't have to pay much attention and could check his weapons. removing the bow from his back, he smoothed a hand over the wood and studied the feel, the curve. it was unstrung, something he could take care of when he closed in on his target. replacing his bow, dane removed what remained of his midday meal from a saddlebag and gazed at the land before him as he ate. the sun's rays didn't provide any heat now that they were no longer directly above him, but his clothes and boots were quite warm enough.
the steady rolling motion of the horse beneath him was putting dane to sleep. focus on something else, he thought. so he went through the steps to string his bow, a process that was automatic now. he thought through his mindbreaking techniques, and he reviewed all he knew of defensive swordsmanship, all the while watching the ground. this is an exceptionally bad runaway, he mused. she can't disguise a trail to save her life, which is precisely what it would do. not that she'd live anyway. dane was after her, and his grim purpose was set. that thought woke him up more than anything.
by this time, it was almost sunset, and the trail was increasingly fresh. his horse's swift pace had taken him close enough to complete the kill. dismounting once more, dane circled around a forested area. there was a clearing among those trees, and he knew instinctively that the runaway would have stopped there to set up shelter for the night. he strung his bow, walking with it to a thick stand of trees where he'd have a good view. sure enough, there was the beginning of a fire, a shelter, and the girl was there, too. she moved around in the shadows, obviously tending to her shelter. stupid girl. making a fire makes smoke that a paladin would see, and leaving your fire unattended risks a forest fire that would surely kill you. it's as if you're begging me to kill you. she moved into the firelight, and dane nocked his arrow. he drew the bow. he aimed the bow. he released the string of the bow. the runaway fell.
there was a sort of grim satisfaction, almost pleasure, that he felt then. it was perverse, and dane wanted to wave his hand and blot it out, but the sense was there nonetheless. he approached the body to confirm his kill, only to observe no pulse, no breath, and a sort of smile on the dead girl's face. maybe she was begging all along.
dane unstrung his bow, retrieved and cleaned his arrow, and walked away.
