Taraak

[Angmor]

Name: Taraak (Last name unknown)
Age: 24
Race: Human

Other:

[/Center]
Perhaps Taraak’s most defining feature is his strange ability to remember any sound or image he has ever seen or heard with perfect clarity and recall. He first discovered this when he found that the rest of the trainees had their previous memories taken away, and he oddly had not. After this he found he was able to recall miniscule details and recount old conversations word for word. He kept this ability secret from the Empire, or they would have taken him out of the program and used him for other means. Although it is an incredibly useful skill when on a mission, it also renders it difficult to shut out the painful recollections of his past. He is often dogged by nightmares, and he has adapted to functioning with the little sleep he is able to attain because of them. Even so, it was discovered very early in training that he has no aptitude with magic, so the eidetic memory is not magic related.

Appearance:

[/Center]
Standing at around 6’ 1, Taraak’s height is very non-commanding and almost never calls attention in a crowd. Unless disguising his walk, he moves with the swift, calculated grace of a fighter. Set beneath a carpet of tousled brown hair, his face is very bland and forgettable, carrying no distinguishing features and for this reason quite non-descript. His complexion is tanned and weathered, mostly from time spent outdoors on missions. Cold and flinty, his eyes are a dark shade of slate grey, revealing nothing of what he may be thinking. These twin orbs carry no depth of emotion in any way, although they are almost always sunken and bloodshot from lack of sleep. Due to his intense training and the necessity of his profession, Taraak’s wiry build now carries more muscle than it might have, but he is conditioned more toward speed and agility then brute strength. In his little off time, he does exercises of the Rimgar that he has observed by watching several elven warriors of the Varden, keeping his flexibility and dexterity at its highest.

Of clothing, Taraak almost always wears a simple non-restricting tunic and pants made of a sable black fabric, as well as some durable leather boots that are made to provide a nearly silent tread. Over this, he prefers to wear a hooded, dark colored cloak that helps to conceal his face and silhouette, as well as providing warmth. It never seems to take long for this cloak to become ragged and stained, but this merely helps his normal appearance as a somewhat impoverished traveler. In addition to a small belt pouch, he also wears a dark leather shoulder-bag, secured closed by a loop and wooden fastener. In this he carries anything he needs for the specific mission, to be drawn out in triumph when the situation calls for it. He also sometimes wears a pair of fingerless gloves that help to keep him from breaking his hands when dealing out blows, without reducing dexterity. This is his typical outfit, although he is by necessity quite adept at disguising himself at need, and quickly.

During his time with the empire, Taraak mostly used a small, leaf-bladed knife as a closed quarter weapon, and learned to shun the use of large, conspicuous blades. Now after his defection to the Varden, he uses a knife of the same style that was made to his specifications. Including the haft, the dagger is eleven inches long, made to be light and easily concealed. Set beneath the slim leaf blade, the slightly curved cross-trees are marginally thicker and a good deal shorter than most knives. This blade is completely simple and unadorned, but by dwarven skill it never dulls or rusts, even after hard use. He normally carries it in a well-fitting sheath, strapped to the upper left arm and hidden under his sleeve, to be drawn by a practiced jerk of the arm to be caught up with the right hand. While many would scoff at this small knife’s effectiveness against warriors with swords or other long blades, Taraak has refined the ability to move in close to his opponent’s guard, and blocking not the blade but the limb that holds it, usually followed up by a swift finishing stab or slash. When unable to do so, he is very good at making sure his body is no longer where his enemy is striking. His true skill however is not in close quarters, but in long range.

In training, Taraak found that he was best among the trainees with a bow, although not by a huge margin. His natural talent was quickly and brutally developed, and soon he was able to consistently kill a man from a fair distance with a single arrow. He also learned to draw and fire to lethal effect at close range with incredible speed, even when quite outnumbered. After leaving the Empire, Taraak came across a young elf who was visiting Farthen Dur and carrying a bow that he admired very much. After some cajoling, Taraak was able to challenge the proud elf to a game of chance, which was more like seeing which one could out-cheat the other. Taraak was able to succeed through superior slight of hand, and he won the bow.

By far his most distinguishing external feature, it is sung from a single piece of some exotic hardwood, approximately forty-five inches long. Although not of the recurving style that most elves favor, it is very powerful for its size and Taraak finds its range greater than even that of the imperial longbows that he had used. However, since it was made for creatures of greater strength than his own, he is unable to exploit its full ability. The staff had at first been covered with ornamental designs of scrolling leaves, but he altered these to be less conspicuous and they can now only be seen if one looks closely. From the gently curved tips, it is strung by some sort of silver hair the origins of which Taraak can only guess.

To carry the ammunition for this weapon, he wears on his back a scarred leather quiver, housing many black-feathered shafts within easy reach over his right shoulder. The mouth of the quiver can be sealed with a drawstring, to prevent the arrows from falling out while running or fighting. While not carrying it, Taraak can hook the bow around the quiver and secure it with a thick leather strap on the side.

Personality

[/Center]
His profession and upbringing being what it is, Taraak mostly comes across as cold and unfeeling to those around him. Except to his very few friends, he broadcasts an aura of calm professionalism, especially when on a mission. Even though he might be just as scared as anyone by a situation, he has learned to channel his fear into desire to live, and not allowing it to affect his abilities. As such, he is almost never prone to much external shows of extreme emotion. His mind is intensely analytical and calculating, quickly examining details and evaluating for opportunities. His perfect recall allows him to piece together outcomes at great speeds, taking advantage when in tight spots. Due to this nature, he will never act without thinking unless he absolutely has to. Even so, he knows the value of a dumb idea, and has his fair share when called for.

Almost always tense and alert, Taraak is constantly viewing the world as a threat assessment. Even when in friendly territory, he is unceasingly gauging what a person can do for him, or to him. This heightened awareness has saved his life on many, many occasions, but it can become tiring.

This is the side of Taraak that he does his best to maintain, but inwardly he is a man at war with himself. Because of what he has been through and his inability to forget them, he is haunted by his memories. Not only does he remember the terrible things he has done for the Empire, he remembers the faces of a family that was taken from him. While at odds with his imperial nurtured habits, Taraak’s conscience is still in force over his actions. Despite the grueling training in which he spent most of his years, he has retained his humanity and his regard for life, and will avoid taking a life when he can. Having seen every side of what the Empire does to its people, Taraak’s one driving passion is to use the skills that they taught him to take it down.

In the time between missions, Taraak feels very much out of his element. The combination of his quiet nature and deeply ingrained habits leads him to be rather reclusive, keeping his own counsels and avoiding people whenever possible. He has confided in almost no one about all of his experiences in Spearshadow, and prefers to keep it that way. Despite his secluded nature, he avoids inactivity as much as he possibly can, or he fears his painful memories would overwhelm him. Only by fixing entirely on one action is he able to drown them out, which is easiest on a mission. The only other place he has ever found relief is within the pages of a book.

Perhaps because he was completely without exposure to such things for most of his life, Taraak now sets upon books with the proficiency of a passionate scholar. One of his greatest sorrows was when the Varden relocated to Surda, and he no longer had access to the extensive library of Farthen Dur.

History:

[/Center]
Taraak was born to a young couple in Teirm, although he never learned their names. He remembers his father being a successful fisherman, and he made a modest income from the sea. To most they were an average pair of citizens, keeping their heads down and not asking questions. But in secret, they supported the Varden any way they possibly could; passing on information and harboring their agents. The Empire eventually found out about this when Taraak was three years old, and both his parents killed within their home. For Taraak however, the Empire had other plans.

At the time young boys were being sought for a new program, and a newly orphaned child would be perfect. He was sent to Uru-baen and kept under care until he was about eight years old, after which he was placed into a training program called Spearshadow. Here he was taught to be an elite assassin for the Empire along with fourteen other youths, by a man named Ferial Baric. Baric was a very ruthless man, and he put his trainees through a brutal, often potentially fatal regimen that sharpened their minds and bodies, and taught them to make their very existence a deadly weapon against the enemies of the Empire. All the trainees’ memories of their lives before the program were erased by Imperial spellcasters, the one greatest measure to ensure complete loyalty. However, due to his particular ability, Taraak retained all of his recollections of the past, something he kept a secret but always found odd. He bought in to the Imperial indoctrination, but always harbored nagging doubts in his heart. Among all the trainees, Taraak’s only friend was a boy of the same age named Torska, with whom he was as close as a brother. They helped each other to survive, and were stronger as a result.

All this changed when Taraak reached the age of seventeen and the completion of his training. Baric had seen the signs of Taraak’s wavering loyalty, and ordered him to kill a helpless prisoner to prove himself. All of the doubt that had been building for his entire life finally came to a head, and he refused. In the fight and chase that followed, he used all of the skills that he had been taught to allow his and the prisoner’s escape from the city. He knew now that he could never go back, and wished to fight the Empire that had destroyed his life. He journeyed with the man he had freed, and together they trekked through the mountains and to the Varden.

Although all the information he could provide was gladly accepted, there was some time before he was trusted enough to offer physical service. It was frustrating to him, especially since he was now starting to be plagued by the memories of his past. During this time he was befriended by a kind-hearted dwarf named Frünor, who showed him all the wonders of the dwarven kingdom. He was a great help and comfort to Taraak, and they became very close. After about a year, Taraak was allowed to begin serving actively in the ranks of the Varden, taking advantage of his skill as a spy and assassin. He began to prove himself with his successes, and soon all doubt to his alignment was removed. Taraak now continues to serve, using his abilities to carry out assignments of information gathering, sabotage, and assassination. He hopes to do his part in the destruction of the Empire, and lives every day to that end.



[/size][/blockquote]