Post by Deleted on Nov 12, 2007 12:53:28 GMT -6
Name: Gu-Shen Gou
Age: 46
Like everyone else in the Gou family Gu-Shen grew up a skilled archer and a political dissident. While he attended the Fire Nation Academy for boys Gu-Shen acquired a repuation for arguing against even the most basic of lessons from his teachers. His father joked that being suspended from the academy was a Gou family tradition. Gu-Shen held up that tradition at the age of 16 for boldly declaring that the war against the other nations was impossible to win. Suddenly, his archery skills were not enough to balance out his unpopular political beliefs.
While still an opponent of the war Gu-Shen applied for military service under the belief that a skilled archer such as himself could save lives on both sides of the war via non-lethal combat. He maintained his reputation for his low number of kills until he was accepted into the Yu Yan archers and his life was changed. Whether from his skills or just a twisted joke on the part of his superiors he had been given an assignment to assasinate an Earth Kingdom official in Omashu. In order to balance out his poor close-combat skills Gu-Shen was given a handler specializing in in-fighting. This person turned out to be Fei, his future wife. Though battle-scarred and foul-mouthed Fei showed great compassion toward Gu-Shen as she comforted him when nightmares plagued him after his first assassination. As his status rose in the Yu Yan archers so did the frequency of his lone missions whereupon he always requested the same specialist in close-quarters combat for protection.
Every mission he completed would end the same with him weeping openly and Fei comforting him by silently holding him. Gradually, Gu-Shen rationalized his role in the military as killing few to save many.
The years passed and the two soldiers were married. By that time Gu-Shen's reputation as a soldier overshadowed the reputation his family had as trouble-makers. As a result when he requested to be allowed a less dangerous assignment as an instructor for the sake of his pregnant wife and unborn child his wish was granted. Finally, after a life of constant doubt about his purpose the master archer had everything he could hope for in the form of a loving wife and a job that didn't require bloodshed. The running joke in the Yu Yan archers' ranks was that his child would be shot out like an arrow.
After a fight with his wife that echoed through their neighborhood Gu-Shen attained his greatest victory: he convinced Fei to settle down in a remote village safe from the war.
His intention to retire early and live out his life with his family was cut short when Fei and other inhabitants of the village disappeared. The cause was unknown and no known terrorist groups claimed any responsibility. As such, no one was found and all those who had vanished were assumed dead.
Many people expected that after a period of mourning Gu-Shen would emerge a man intent upon destroying the enemies of the Fire Nation. Instead, he returned to his work as an instructor with indifference and asked once again to take part in dangerous assasination missions. When he would refuse or abandon the soldiers whose job it was to provide protection for him it became obvious that the grieving archer was indirectly attempting suicide.
The pain of his loss came to the brink of destroying him until he stumbled in front of the royal procession of Fire Lord Azulan. It was common knowledge that the Fire Lord's wife had been deceased for years.
Awe filled Gu-Shen as he apologized and volunteered himself to help carry the Fire Lord's palanquin. Once again his life had changed dramatically. He dedicated himself to the man who had felt the same pain as himself but carried on anyway. As a result he became deeply loyal to the Fire Lord, if not the Fire Nation in general.
He trained legions of archers with an enjoyment he had not felt in years. Gu-Shen replaced his pain with the singular purpose of serving his Lord.
The young Gu-Shen who questioned everything was replaced by man who relished the simplicity of strict obedience to the Fire Lord and other superiors. When Fire Lord Azulan died the archer decided to retire as he considered Oozai a pale reflection of his father whom he idolized.
The next several years were spent still training students but only those of the civilian variety, some of which were children of old friends and others who were unofficially adopted by the master archer. Old friends noticed that around children he would always seem the most happy and at peace.
The old rebellious youth in him resurfaced from time to time when he compared the reigns of Oozai to that of Azulan and encouraged his students to subtly criticize Oozai by noting how differently Azulan would have handled things.
Most people simply attributed this to an aging man looking back fondly at the "good old days" and humored him.
When the last of his students entered the Fire Nation Academy or took civilian jobs, retirement no longer suited the middle-aged man and he applied for limited military service once again and currently waits for orders.
Gu-Shen's hair turned from black to dark gray and recently to white in the space of only a few years. He keeps his hair tied into a tight braid that hangs from the base of his skull to the middle of his back. The overall whiteness of his hair is marred by a few streaks of dark gray. His eyes are hazel but are mostly hidden due to the red-tinted, rectangular glasses he wears to augment his fading vision. Living the bulk of his life in the military he keeps himself cleanly shaved at all times. In contrast to his white/gray hair he does not have the wrinkles associated with most middle-aged men. He attributes this to genetics and keeping out of the sun.
His arms are toned and muscular from rigorous training. Judged on them alone people could mistake him for a man in his prime. On his right arm he bears a black tattoo of a flaming arrow which he keeps exposed via the missing right sleeve of his scarlet robe. His left arm remains covered by the sleeve of his robe. This tends to give him a lop-sided look but he despises cumbersome sleeves getting in the way of drawing an arrow.
Rather than wear common Fire Nation boots he opts for thin, black shoes lacking any treads on the soles to make him harder to track despite the fact that during his retirement it is no longer an issue.
His nose remains somewhat crooked from the fight he had with his departed wife where she punched him in the face. He is fond of pointing to his nose when giving young men advice. "Never make a woman angry."
The black-trimmed red robe he constantly wears contains many inner pockets from which he produces his pipe and matches and other small items such as a small bag of fire flakes for snacking. It also bears his family crest of a flaming arrow on the back.
When it comes to melee fighting where he is weak, the retired archer has kept his habit of doing nothing once someone came within a certain radius. Without his wife to protect him he automatically considers himself as good as dead once an enemy manages to get that close anyway. That has yet to happen as he has not yet been captured or killed. He acknowledges his great weakness in that area but reinforces it with his faith in his ranged combat ability, stating that anyone who could manage to get close enough to kill him can have his life without a fight.
Although he is and has been a loyal Fire Nation soldier, he feels an even deeper connection with fellow archers, especially young ones no matter their alliance or from where they hail. As a matter of pride he would rather die at the hands of another archer of superior skill should he be given the choice.
Some of Gu-Shen's miscelleneous quirks include a hatred of crossbows which he considers the tools of lesser archers. He also carries himself like a much older man when not in battle partially to fool others into thinking him weak and as an excuse to not take part in drills or chores.
His favorite phrase when receiving mission information he deems un-needed is: "Look, I'm the Fire Nation's arrow. Just point me at the target and shoot." Most of the time his cantankerous old man act is only for his own amusement as it allows him to say things a younger man could not get away with. Generally, he enjoys the company of other soldiers and takes a special joy in acting as something of a mentor to the more young and inexperienced .
Gu-Shen still believes the war to be impossible to win but still wishes to fight for his nation out of a combination of patriotism, boredome and a mid-life crisis.
Gu-Shen has been known to carry four weapons named after mythical beasts. Seiryu, a blue bow and his primary weapon. Genbu, a large black which fires arrows converted from spears, used as a heavy weapon. A red cross bow mounted on his left arm which he despises called Suzaku. His final weapon is a white sword crafted by his father-in-law and given to him as a wedding present named Byakko. While, Gu-Shen carries it with him whereever he goes using a sword goes against his archer's pride and is kept for sentimental reasons.
Age: 46
Like everyone else in the Gou family Gu-Shen grew up a skilled archer and a political dissident. While he attended the Fire Nation Academy for boys Gu-Shen acquired a repuation for arguing against even the most basic of lessons from his teachers. His father joked that being suspended from the academy was a Gou family tradition. Gu-Shen held up that tradition at the age of 16 for boldly declaring that the war against the other nations was impossible to win. Suddenly, his archery skills were not enough to balance out his unpopular political beliefs.
While still an opponent of the war Gu-Shen applied for military service under the belief that a skilled archer such as himself could save lives on both sides of the war via non-lethal combat. He maintained his reputation for his low number of kills until he was accepted into the Yu Yan archers and his life was changed. Whether from his skills or just a twisted joke on the part of his superiors he had been given an assignment to assasinate an Earth Kingdom official in Omashu. In order to balance out his poor close-combat skills Gu-Shen was given a handler specializing in in-fighting. This person turned out to be Fei, his future wife. Though battle-scarred and foul-mouthed Fei showed great compassion toward Gu-Shen as she comforted him when nightmares plagued him after his first assassination. As his status rose in the Yu Yan archers so did the frequency of his lone missions whereupon he always requested the same specialist in close-quarters combat for protection.
Every mission he completed would end the same with him weeping openly and Fei comforting him by silently holding him. Gradually, Gu-Shen rationalized his role in the military as killing few to save many.
The years passed and the two soldiers were married. By that time Gu-Shen's reputation as a soldier overshadowed the reputation his family had as trouble-makers. As a result when he requested to be allowed a less dangerous assignment as an instructor for the sake of his pregnant wife and unborn child his wish was granted. Finally, after a life of constant doubt about his purpose the master archer had everything he could hope for in the form of a loving wife and a job that didn't require bloodshed. The running joke in the Yu Yan archers' ranks was that his child would be shot out like an arrow.
After a fight with his wife that echoed through their neighborhood Gu-Shen attained his greatest victory: he convinced Fei to settle down in a remote village safe from the war.
His intention to retire early and live out his life with his family was cut short when Fei and other inhabitants of the village disappeared. The cause was unknown and no known terrorist groups claimed any responsibility. As such, no one was found and all those who had vanished were assumed dead.
Many people expected that after a period of mourning Gu-Shen would emerge a man intent upon destroying the enemies of the Fire Nation. Instead, he returned to his work as an instructor with indifference and asked once again to take part in dangerous assasination missions. When he would refuse or abandon the soldiers whose job it was to provide protection for him it became obvious that the grieving archer was indirectly attempting suicide.
The pain of his loss came to the brink of destroying him until he stumbled in front of the royal procession of Fire Lord Azulan. It was common knowledge that the Fire Lord's wife had been deceased for years.
Awe filled Gu-Shen as he apologized and volunteered himself to help carry the Fire Lord's palanquin. Once again his life had changed dramatically. He dedicated himself to the man who had felt the same pain as himself but carried on anyway. As a result he became deeply loyal to the Fire Lord, if not the Fire Nation in general.
He trained legions of archers with an enjoyment he had not felt in years. Gu-Shen replaced his pain with the singular purpose of serving his Lord.
The young Gu-Shen who questioned everything was replaced by man who relished the simplicity of strict obedience to the Fire Lord and other superiors. When Fire Lord Azulan died the archer decided to retire as he considered Oozai a pale reflection of his father whom he idolized.
The next several years were spent still training students but only those of the civilian variety, some of which were children of old friends and others who were unofficially adopted by the master archer. Old friends noticed that around children he would always seem the most happy and at peace.
The old rebellious youth in him resurfaced from time to time when he compared the reigns of Oozai to that of Azulan and encouraged his students to subtly criticize Oozai by noting how differently Azulan would have handled things.
Most people simply attributed this to an aging man looking back fondly at the "good old days" and humored him.
When the last of his students entered the Fire Nation Academy or took civilian jobs, retirement no longer suited the middle-aged man and he applied for limited military service once again and currently waits for orders.
Gu-Shen's hair turned from black to dark gray and recently to white in the space of only a few years. He keeps his hair tied into a tight braid that hangs from the base of his skull to the middle of his back. The overall whiteness of his hair is marred by a few streaks of dark gray. His eyes are hazel but are mostly hidden due to the red-tinted, rectangular glasses he wears to augment his fading vision. Living the bulk of his life in the military he keeps himself cleanly shaved at all times. In contrast to his white/gray hair he does not have the wrinkles associated with most middle-aged men. He attributes this to genetics and keeping out of the sun.
His arms are toned and muscular from rigorous training. Judged on them alone people could mistake him for a man in his prime. On his right arm he bears a black tattoo of a flaming arrow which he keeps exposed via the missing right sleeve of his scarlet robe. His left arm remains covered by the sleeve of his robe. This tends to give him a lop-sided look but he despises cumbersome sleeves getting in the way of drawing an arrow.
Rather than wear common Fire Nation boots he opts for thin, black shoes lacking any treads on the soles to make him harder to track despite the fact that during his retirement it is no longer an issue.
His nose remains somewhat crooked from the fight he had with his departed wife where she punched him in the face. He is fond of pointing to his nose when giving young men advice. "Never make a woman angry."
The black-trimmed red robe he constantly wears contains many inner pockets from which he produces his pipe and matches and other small items such as a small bag of fire flakes for snacking. It also bears his family crest of a flaming arrow on the back.
When it comes to melee fighting where he is weak, the retired archer has kept his habit of doing nothing once someone came within a certain radius. Without his wife to protect him he automatically considers himself as good as dead once an enemy manages to get that close anyway. That has yet to happen as he has not yet been captured or killed. He acknowledges his great weakness in that area but reinforces it with his faith in his ranged combat ability, stating that anyone who could manage to get close enough to kill him can have his life without a fight.
Although he is and has been a loyal Fire Nation soldier, he feels an even deeper connection with fellow archers, especially young ones no matter their alliance or from where they hail. As a matter of pride he would rather die at the hands of another archer of superior skill should he be given the choice.
Some of Gu-Shen's miscelleneous quirks include a hatred of crossbows which he considers the tools of lesser archers. He also carries himself like a much older man when not in battle partially to fool others into thinking him weak and as an excuse to not take part in drills or chores.
His favorite phrase when receiving mission information he deems un-needed is: "Look, I'm the Fire Nation's arrow. Just point me at the target and shoot." Most of the time his cantankerous old man act is only for his own amusement as it allows him to say things a younger man could not get away with. Generally, he enjoys the company of other soldiers and takes a special joy in acting as something of a mentor to the more young and inexperienced .
Gu-Shen still believes the war to be impossible to win but still wishes to fight for his nation out of a combination of patriotism, boredome and a mid-life crisis.
Gu-Shen has been known to carry four weapons named after mythical beasts. Seiryu, a blue bow and his primary weapon. Genbu, a large black which fires arrows converted from spears, used as a heavy weapon. A red cross bow mounted on his left arm which he despises called Suzaku. His final weapon is a white sword crafted by his father-in-law and given to him as a wedding present named Byakko. While, Gu-Shen carries it with him whereever he goes using a sword goes against his archer's pride and is kept for sentimental reasons.