A Matter of Character(s)

What to say about certain characters? In some cases, it's been so long that it's hard to remember precisely what happened, or the order. I've been playing on MU*s for... 15 years or so?

I was asked why I hadn't mentioned a couple characters in specific. It was simply a matter of what was on my mind at the time. Those two having been brought up, though, I can address them, too...


Jade was a character I made... about the same time as Killian, I think. I wanted some variety from Sylvie, if I remember, and was tossing around an idea for an NPC in an offline game. The incarnations came to be at about the same time, though one was tailored more for the MUCK. In fact, I suppose Jade was my first Shirelander character - born in the Shire, albeit having learned her skills elsewhere.
I sort of glossed over her parents, though I always sort of though of them as having died in a rather quiet way - perhaps a disease or simple health problems - while she was away. She lived for a time as a "street rat" before being drawn in and trained as an assassin. That wasn't really a pretty part of her life. She didn't discuss it, and the one time I tried to work some of that into a TP, it proved too emotionally dark for the player, so was wrapped up without any detailed exploration - much to my frustration and disappointment at the time.
I'm not certain any character of mine has been the keystone of so much drama and angst, but I think I got enough with Jade to make up for a few high-school-like romances of my own. Several people latched onto her in various ways during the first... year or so? Thankfully, I can't say that I remember all the details now, but there were multiple kitsune characters who were possessive of her, or wanted to marry her, or tried to entwine their souls mystically, or...
It was a mess. Probably several months when by with me having daily self-discussions about just deleting the character to avoid it all.
But I kept her. She eventually settled with Foxtrot, though their relationship had plenty of rocky patches. Possessives and free spirits probably shouldn't get together in the first place. Some measure of drama went on for quite a while, until about the time Foxtrot transformed Jade into a kitsune herself. I've often wondered if he every really realized just how much that changed her, and if he ever had doubts or regrets about it. Altering someone on such a deep level always struck me as morally questionable at best. Just because someone is happy afterward, you can never know if that's real happiness from the original personality, or if it's just because of a new, "rewritten" personality. Does the person even exist as they once did?
There came a time when the mantle of daimyo was passed to her, though I've always felt it rather OOCly convenient to be able to just take your wife/friend/whoever and say "they're in charge now." If not for the fact that it makes things simpler on the MUCK, I'd probably object to that practice vocally.
And now she's retired with Foxtrot, off-grid in Naipon, making very rare appearances in scenes as necessary.

Dove, daughter of Mika and Lairu, sibling to Kyle and the others... Her significance is somewhat difficult to explain...
She started as a generalist of sorts - some minor interest in the warrior arts, some minor talent for psionics and magics. She was trained as a druid in the D&D sense, which is to say nature magics with a heavy bias toward neutrality and balance. Like the rest of the bunch, she was conceived with a Sin in mind, pride in her case. There was an edge of aloofness to her in how she kept her snow-white pelt pristine and such. Friendly and open, she was a popular character right off.
Then she had a bad tussle with a psychic being and died.
Of course, in a fantasy world, death isn't always permanent. In this case, her mind/spirit were transferred over to Jade, by designs not really mine (meddlesome kitsune), leading to the both of them being in one body for a little while. The two characters came to regard each other as "sisters" of a sort after that. Mika magicked up a new body for her daughter, and a ritual was done to put her back in place.
After that, Dove underwent a period of soul-searching. She served as a shrine maiden to the kitsune for a while, partly out of gratitude and partly for the serenity to find herself again. That didn't suit her on a permanent basis, but she did pick up the habit of using "hai" as a replacement for "yes." This is also about the time she started wearing some lutrai-style markings on her fur (actually making them natural with her innate, low-level shapeshifting) to break up her white fur - a subtle sign of humility in her.
And here... is where my memory fails. I'm not certain of the order of events, exactly. I think she underwent all that first, but I'm not positive. Other major points include:
- Being chosen to serve as the queen of Drachenkeep, sharing the crown with her brother, Tarken. Tarken would eventually move on to other things, leaving Dove the sole monarch until she married a good bit later.
- Dove got involved in the Untouchables/Unfettered of Arion. She helped conspire to defeat one who was threatening people and lands. She spoke with Tamper frequently about prophecy, history, and the future. She developed feelings for the immortal Horseman Shaden, even going so far as to help free him from his blessing/curse that he was chafing under, which involved destruction of a lich. In the process, she broke the powers that kept Shaden from dying, though, and made a desperate wish to keep him alive. This led to her becoming Untouchable/Unfettered herself.
- She was chosen as Arion's Archon of Life.
Dove eventually married Shaden, though she feels close to a great many people. Her Unfettered blessing/curse gives her the ability to heal others around her, and condemns her to sensing the death of everyone in Kith Kanaan. It's a big emotional burden, but she carries it willingly because she feels it keeps her closer to the people - it's a reminder of the lives she works to protect and better as much as she can.
Dove may well be the strongest character I've ever had, albeit not physically. She's probably transcended what's realistic and moved into the realm of anime and legend, but her will is essentially unbreakable. If it weren't, she would have crumbled under the emotional weight of her curse in short order. Instead, she exhibits a near-endless compassion for others, regardless of whether they're her subjects. While she still believes in a neutral balance of forces as she was taught long ago, she has come to believe her personal place in that grand scheme is to serve the light, working to preserve and nurture life and creation. She's basically immortal, still in a youthful prime in spite of having children - some of whom don't look much younger than her at this point. She's become an accomplished swordswoman, though she'll always prefer diplomacy to taking up arms.
She is... a form of perfection in my mind. But she's not perfect. Caring too deeply and too openly is a problem at times, especially for a queen. I could probably ramble on about her for pages more and still feel I'm missing the mark in explaining certain subtleties...

I wrote a series of alternate-world stories that sprung mostly from a thought of "what if Dove cracked and went evil." Also of note, my WoW paladin, Sashayla, is named after her (that being Dove's real name).