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Jul. 31st, 2013 01:23 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
havegunName: Albiel
Personal Journal:walther
Contact:AIM: Ion Lazarus / PM:walther
Other Characters Played: None.
Character: Kino
Series: Kino no Tabi
Age: 17 (Educated guess)
History: The nature of Kino’s life doesn’t lend itself well to a linear story anymore. She started her life much like any other girl, albeit one having to live within one of the many culture-centric settlements in her world. What this meant was that Kino had to accept the main rule of her country, which was that, once she reached the age of 12, she would have to undergo the same brain operation as all citizens, which would assign her a job she would be perfectly comfortable with, whether she wanted to or not (in her case, it was managing an inn, which was at odds with her dream of being a singer).
Like all other citizens, the girl accepted this. However, days before the event came, a traveler came into town. See, though all countries are different, a constant among them seems to be a respect for travelers, which seem to be more commonplace in this world. He stayed at the inn, which gave him some time to talk to Kino. They talked about his life, about the vehicle the traveler was trying to fix, but most importantly, they talked about how not all countries imposed a fixed future on their children. The time for the brain operation came, but the traveler’s influence had convinced the girl that she didn’t want it. She told her parents she wouldn’t accept it.
They didn’t take well to those news. In that country, refusing the operation branded you an undesirable. With no hesitation (in no small part thanks to their own lobotomies), her parents decided to kill her, the elder of the town allowing the traveler who ‘corrupted’ her to leave in peace. This traveler, Kino, was too compassionate to do such a thing and, unwilling to indirectly lead to the girl’s death, sacrificed himself, taking the knife meant for her. Left without options, the girl fled in his vehicle, a motorrad that called itself ‘Hermes’.
The girl took to calling herself ‘Kino’ after the fallen traveler, using his coat and changing her way of addressing herself to a more masculine one. Unfortunately, imitating so many parts of him didn’t actually prepare her to travel. It was by pure fortune that she ran into an old woman in the forest shortly after setting out. She was taken in and trained, taught a variety of lessons to help her survive.
One day, Kino investigated rumors she heard of the family of the traveler she once saw killed. She met with his mother, but in a not-at-all subtle foreshadowing to most of her future encounters with people, she tried to kill her. Kino responded in kind, only then truly understanding what it would take to stay alive as a traveler. Cutting off her long, blood-stained hair, she set out without permission from her teacher with a single purpose in mind.
Kino has been visiting countries ever since, learning more about their culture, land and people. She has no intention of stopping anytime soon, and is quite happy with her current life, despite all the dangers it attracts.
Canon Point: Current point in the novels. Doesn’t really matter, though. Not with this canon.
Personality: The most important part about Kino, the one everyone familiar with her is aware of, is her strict adherence to not interfering in the affairs of others. She's witnessed deaths that could have been avoided by following this philosophy and, considering living crucial above all else, she doesn't intend to follow the same path. Kino is capable of witnessing unspeakable atrocities and crimes carried out by other human beings without so much as raising a finger. This is not to say that she doesn't feel anything about them - internal narration and some dialogue now and then indicate that Kino possesses some moral standards, but she remains unwilling to act all the same, at least until such a point as they start threatening her.
She is extremely cautious. Certainly not without justification. The countries in Kino's world have about a one-in-four tendency to try to kill you before you leave. Kino keeps a gun below her pillow or in her hand when she chances upon the luxury of using a bed, and out on the road, she has Hermes keep an eye out at night.
She is resourceful, as would be expected of someone who has to live on the road. Though pulling a gun face-to-face on Kino will undoubtedly get you killed within the half-second, she has gotten tricked a couple of times, yet manages to get herself out of the situation through one way or another, typically by using terrain or lack of knowledge about her arsenal. It should be noted that Kino can be rather cold-blooded during confrontations, and is not above using tactics many would consider unsavory, such as the use of corpses as bait. She also makes reasonable assumptions about her opponents. For example, upon believing that a person's comrades would move his corpse, she rigged it so it would activate a nearby explosive. Kino will also have no qualms about killing a child if it helps her survive or is part of one of the very few jobs she takes. She has also made persuaders live up to their name before, drawing information by putting others at point blank (although this was made at a time when completing a job was essential to continue her way of life).
This brings us to the fact that Kino has been taught to keep living by any means possible, and has taken to that advice all too well. Kino's habits are very well defined, and everything she does has a purpose. Small animals are better to kill over older ones, simply because they are easier to carry. Corpses are entirely acceptable to steal from. Kino has grown, much to her own unawareness, jaded by the world, and though she is sometimes willing to share her own past, or drop subtle hints to it, she does mention she doesn't like to bring up bad memories.
A person of diligence, Kino likes to form habits. The most prominent among these is her three-day rule, which dictates that she should never stay in the same country for more than that duration of time. Kino explicitly mentions that this rule is not enforced to avoid boredom, but the opposite. If she were to stay longer, she fears she would become attached, and eventually unwilling to leave. Kino avoids making bonds with anyone but her means of transport as another method to make the inevitable farewell easy. She's also gotten into the nightly habit of practicing her quick-draw and cleaning her arsenal, which comes in more handy than you would expect.
She is very philosophical, and does indulge in contemplation of the places she's visited. Though she never casts judgment, she likes to focus on the abnormal traits of each country and figure out why their people took them up. Why they have maintained them. What will be the benefits and eventual repercussions of doing so. Kino introduces her own way of life into this pondering, thinking about what parts of the countries are applicable to her.
Kino is not a brave person, it should be mentioned. While she is more than capable of standing up to anything that gets in her way, typically killing them with ease, she soon enough reveals that she felt fear for herself, sometimes even needing a moment to calm down. Kino’s admirability comes from how she’s able to push these feelings deep down until they’re safe to show, either through willpower or, more likely, a single-minded drive to survive.
She does not favor killing as the first course of action, and will only do so when she is completely sure that there’s no other way to subdue an opponent (or when it is the explicit purpose of a job she takes). She will feel regret at taking the life of someone she could have spared, but if there’s no other way, she won’t spare the victim’s death a second thought. It's very interesting how this part of her philosophy works in different situations - Kino does not grant mercy kills, even if the person in question is in extreme pain.
Kino rather likes singing, which seems to be about the only remnant left from her former life. Impressive singing is actually one of the things that elicits a more personal reaction out of her, leaving her genuinely moved.
Most of the time, Kino is an incredibly stoic character, but humorous aspects to dent the surface now and then. First and foremost is some of the snark she gives her companion (and only her companion), Hermes. He may very well be the only person who Kino treats with something other than wary respect. This can vary from simple verbal jabs at each other to genuine companionship to actual light physical abuse from Kino's part if Hermes really gets out of line. Another habit of hers is the tendency to never let a way to save money pass, which is more than understandable, given her situation. Kino has shown herself to be more than willing to take advantage of a town believing the world will end to indulge in the everything-for-free fire sales that come with it. Despite that, it is shown that Kino does like to eat decent food whenever she can (sweets, in particular), but she restricts herself to bar rations on the road. Often, the one thing she remembers about a country is how good its meals were. She also appreciates things such as beds and showers to a much greater degree than the average person, for obvious reasons. I think I may actually even be underplaying her love for it here, since promising food is actually a very good way to get Kino to do jobs or favors for you.
Describing Hermes' own personality is a much easier task, but that's not at all to say its simple. Hermes may look like simple comedy relief at first, but he actually shows an extreme lack of worry at all times. He has been known to non-chalantly wonder if Kino's dead (despite sometimes expressing that he'd much prefer it if she didn't). That said, he does try to help in his own way (without exception - Hermes never takes a stance opposite to Kino's), keeping a look out whenever possible and of course providing as a means of transport. Unfortunately, when he does fall asleep, Hermes has a really, really hard time waking up.
Most notably, he has a tendency of butchering idioms, which he uses in no small quantity. The only exception to this, as noted by Kino, is when the situation is exceptionally dire.
Despite saying he loves nothing more than traveling with Kino, Hermes gets bored very, very easily, and he's in the habit of complaining. Kino herself makes note of this several times, but it doesn't stop him. Unfortunately, Hermes gets even more talkative when he's bored, and he may start simply repeating his feelings over and over or start cracking jokes.
Despite that, Hermes is shown on occasion to be as good at calculations as you would expect a machine to be. He knows his own body quite well, knowing exactly how to be fixed up, and he also has a very good grasp of the mechanics of firearms, one notable time figuring out the exact properties of a cannon before a country that had worked on it for fifty years.
Skills and Abilities: Kino has no supernatural abilities in the least. She is, however, a peerless marksman, particularly excelling in the speed of her draw. She is also a great sniper. The novel implies she has a black belt in martial arts. Difficult to imagine how it was acquired, but there’s no doubt that Kino knows her way around a knife, and is capable of defending herself in hand-to-hand combat. Lastly, she knows how to maintain motorrads and firearms, as well as possess enough knowledge to pull out the odd trick from time to time. These gambits are what give Kino an edge in battle, and she proves to be surprisingly creative with whatever she’s got on hand.
Hermes, while not explicitly supernatural, seems to have some sort of hyper-awareness originating from him being a machine. I have already mentioned his abilities at math, but he also seems aware of the exact numerical values of the wind, temperature, and many other variables valuable to a sniper. There is also the fact that he can talk. Should have mentioned that. The origins of this ability are not mentioned, and the single person who finds his ability to speak bizarre happens to be a dog.
First Person Sample:
[Kino looks at the rune on her nightstand, still unused, even after being in this world for so long.]
Can't sleep?
This is why you don't wake up in the morning.
I've been thinking: why not use it? You grab stuff from other countries all the time, Kino.
...I guess it's because it's different this time.
Different how?
Well, it's... like meeting everyone in the world at once.
I thought you loved meeting new people.
[A firm nod.]
But if you see everything in the world at once, then that takes away from traveling.
Do you have to be such a long-term kind of person?
[Despite herself, Kino gives a small smile in satisfaction at having her point come across.]
I wonder if that's really true.
Third Person Sample:
Bullet casings litter the beautiful green grass, briefly reflected in the blood droplets rolling down the blades.
"Another close call."
The motorrad's companion, its rider, remains silent. The hammer is uncocked, and Cannon returns to its holster soon enough. Kino thought she would notice the typical smell of black powder that accompanies her more. The environment around her mercifully cloaks it. She does not realize the dissonance in thinking such trivial thoughts at a time like this. Perhaps it's exactly the gravity of the situation that prompts her to do so. A way to block out her own regret and fear.
"Kino?"
"There's a lot less danger here."
"...Are you sure about that? We've come across some scary people the last few weeks." Hermes had a lot to say about the dangers of their world, but there was never the presence of what they could truly call the supernatural.
"No. What I mean is... people don't murder each other as much here."
"We seem to run into trouble at about the same rate." Both travelers knew that, if Hermes had eyes, they would be referencing the unfortunate individuals who only confused Kino for the very thing she was watching out for.
Traveler and motorrad remain silent. Maybe Kino would have dropped the subject then and there, but as if a reminder not to ignore her own actions, the previously helpful smell of nature is overpowered by the copper-like scent unmistakably belonging to blood. Brings back too many memories. Kino can't help but be brought down to earth by it.
"It could be that we're the odd ones out here." The number of bandits and murderers could be reduced, but Kino's experiences with them lived all-too-vividly in her head. Even now, realizing the change in circumstances, she could not bring herself to drop her ever-present caution.
It's a sobering thought for someone who wishes to remain free of assimilation into other locations. As Kino prepares to set off again, she comes to the realization that, in the grand scale of things, all the countries she has visited during her life do count as one place.
Personal Journal:
waltherContact:AIM: Ion Lazarus / PM:
waltherOther Characters Played: None.
Character: Kino
Series: Kino no Tabi
Age: 17 (Educated guess)
History: The nature of Kino’s life doesn’t lend itself well to a linear story anymore. She started her life much like any other girl, albeit one having to live within one of the many culture-centric settlements in her world. What this meant was that Kino had to accept the main rule of her country, which was that, once she reached the age of 12, she would have to undergo the same brain operation as all citizens, which would assign her a job she would be perfectly comfortable with, whether she wanted to or not (in her case, it was managing an inn, which was at odds with her dream of being a singer).
Like all other citizens, the girl accepted this. However, days before the event came, a traveler came into town. See, though all countries are different, a constant among them seems to be a respect for travelers, which seem to be more commonplace in this world. He stayed at the inn, which gave him some time to talk to Kino. They talked about his life, about the vehicle the traveler was trying to fix, but most importantly, they talked about how not all countries imposed a fixed future on their children. The time for the brain operation came, but the traveler’s influence had convinced the girl that she didn’t want it. She told her parents she wouldn’t accept it.
They didn’t take well to those news. In that country, refusing the operation branded you an undesirable. With no hesitation (in no small part thanks to their own lobotomies), her parents decided to kill her, the elder of the town allowing the traveler who ‘corrupted’ her to leave in peace. This traveler, Kino, was too compassionate to do such a thing and, unwilling to indirectly lead to the girl’s death, sacrificed himself, taking the knife meant for her. Left without options, the girl fled in his vehicle, a motorrad that called itself ‘Hermes’.
The girl took to calling herself ‘Kino’ after the fallen traveler, using his coat and changing her way of addressing herself to a more masculine one. Unfortunately, imitating so many parts of him didn’t actually prepare her to travel. It was by pure fortune that she ran into an old woman in the forest shortly after setting out. She was taken in and trained, taught a variety of lessons to help her survive.
One day, Kino investigated rumors she heard of the family of the traveler she once saw killed. She met with his mother, but in a not-at-all subtle foreshadowing to most of her future encounters with people, she tried to kill her. Kino responded in kind, only then truly understanding what it would take to stay alive as a traveler. Cutting off her long, blood-stained hair, she set out without permission from her teacher with a single purpose in mind.
Kino has been visiting countries ever since, learning more about their culture, land and people. She has no intention of stopping anytime soon, and is quite happy with her current life, despite all the dangers it attracts.
Canon Point: Current point in the novels. Doesn’t really matter, though. Not with this canon.
Personality: The most important part about Kino, the one everyone familiar with her is aware of, is her strict adherence to not interfering in the affairs of others. She's witnessed deaths that could have been avoided by following this philosophy and, considering living crucial above all else, she doesn't intend to follow the same path. Kino is capable of witnessing unspeakable atrocities and crimes carried out by other human beings without so much as raising a finger. This is not to say that she doesn't feel anything about them - internal narration and some dialogue now and then indicate that Kino possesses some moral standards, but she remains unwilling to act all the same, at least until such a point as they start threatening her.
She is extremely cautious. Certainly not without justification. The countries in Kino's world have about a one-in-four tendency to try to kill you before you leave. Kino keeps a gun below her pillow or in her hand when she chances upon the luxury of using a bed, and out on the road, she has Hermes keep an eye out at night.
She is resourceful, as would be expected of someone who has to live on the road. Though pulling a gun face-to-face on Kino will undoubtedly get you killed within the half-second, she has gotten tricked a couple of times, yet manages to get herself out of the situation through one way or another, typically by using terrain or lack of knowledge about her arsenal. It should be noted that Kino can be rather cold-blooded during confrontations, and is not above using tactics many would consider unsavory, such as the use of corpses as bait. She also makes reasonable assumptions about her opponents. For example, upon believing that a person's comrades would move his corpse, she rigged it so it would activate a nearby explosive. Kino will also have no qualms about killing a child if it helps her survive or is part of one of the very few jobs she takes. She has also made persuaders live up to their name before, drawing information by putting others at point blank (although this was made at a time when completing a job was essential to continue her way of life).
This brings us to the fact that Kino has been taught to keep living by any means possible, and has taken to that advice all too well. Kino's habits are very well defined, and everything she does has a purpose. Small animals are better to kill over older ones, simply because they are easier to carry. Corpses are entirely acceptable to steal from. Kino has grown, much to her own unawareness, jaded by the world, and though she is sometimes willing to share her own past, or drop subtle hints to it, she does mention she doesn't like to bring up bad memories.
A person of diligence, Kino likes to form habits. The most prominent among these is her three-day rule, which dictates that she should never stay in the same country for more than that duration of time. Kino explicitly mentions that this rule is not enforced to avoid boredom, but the opposite. If she were to stay longer, she fears she would become attached, and eventually unwilling to leave. Kino avoids making bonds with anyone but her means of transport as another method to make the inevitable farewell easy. She's also gotten into the nightly habit of practicing her quick-draw and cleaning her arsenal, which comes in more handy than you would expect.
She is very philosophical, and does indulge in contemplation of the places she's visited. Though she never casts judgment, she likes to focus on the abnormal traits of each country and figure out why their people took them up. Why they have maintained them. What will be the benefits and eventual repercussions of doing so. Kino introduces her own way of life into this pondering, thinking about what parts of the countries are applicable to her.
Kino is not a brave person, it should be mentioned. While she is more than capable of standing up to anything that gets in her way, typically killing them with ease, she soon enough reveals that she felt fear for herself, sometimes even needing a moment to calm down. Kino’s admirability comes from how she’s able to push these feelings deep down until they’re safe to show, either through willpower or, more likely, a single-minded drive to survive.
She does not favor killing as the first course of action, and will only do so when she is completely sure that there’s no other way to subdue an opponent (or when it is the explicit purpose of a job she takes). She will feel regret at taking the life of someone she could have spared, but if there’s no other way, she won’t spare the victim’s death a second thought. It's very interesting how this part of her philosophy works in different situations - Kino does not grant mercy kills, even if the person in question is in extreme pain.
Kino rather likes singing, which seems to be about the only remnant left from her former life. Impressive singing is actually one of the things that elicits a more personal reaction out of her, leaving her genuinely moved.
Most of the time, Kino is an incredibly stoic character, but humorous aspects to dent the surface now and then. First and foremost is some of the snark she gives her companion (and only her companion), Hermes. He may very well be the only person who Kino treats with something other than wary respect. This can vary from simple verbal jabs at each other to genuine companionship to actual light physical abuse from Kino's part if Hermes really gets out of line. Another habit of hers is the tendency to never let a way to save money pass, which is more than understandable, given her situation. Kino has shown herself to be more than willing to take advantage of a town believing the world will end to indulge in the everything-for-free fire sales that come with it. Despite that, it is shown that Kino does like to eat decent food whenever she can (sweets, in particular), but she restricts herself to bar rations on the road. Often, the one thing she remembers about a country is how good its meals were. She also appreciates things such as beds and showers to a much greater degree than the average person, for obvious reasons. I think I may actually even be underplaying her love for it here, since promising food is actually a very good way to get Kino to do jobs or favors for you.
Describing Hermes' own personality is a much easier task, but that's not at all to say its simple. Hermes may look like simple comedy relief at first, but he actually shows an extreme lack of worry at all times. He has been known to non-chalantly wonder if Kino's dead (despite sometimes expressing that he'd much prefer it if she didn't). That said, he does try to help in his own way (without exception - Hermes never takes a stance opposite to Kino's), keeping a look out whenever possible and of course providing as a means of transport. Unfortunately, when he does fall asleep, Hermes has a really, really hard time waking up.
Most notably, he has a tendency of butchering idioms, which he uses in no small quantity. The only exception to this, as noted by Kino, is when the situation is exceptionally dire.
Despite saying he loves nothing more than traveling with Kino, Hermes gets bored very, very easily, and he's in the habit of complaining. Kino herself makes note of this several times, but it doesn't stop him. Unfortunately, Hermes gets even more talkative when he's bored, and he may start simply repeating his feelings over and over or start cracking jokes.
Despite that, Hermes is shown on occasion to be as good at calculations as you would expect a machine to be. He knows his own body quite well, knowing exactly how to be fixed up, and he also has a very good grasp of the mechanics of firearms, one notable time figuring out the exact properties of a cannon before a country that had worked on it for fifty years.
Skills and Abilities: Kino has no supernatural abilities in the least. She is, however, a peerless marksman, particularly excelling in the speed of her draw. She is also a great sniper. The novel implies she has a black belt in martial arts. Difficult to imagine how it was acquired, but there’s no doubt that Kino knows her way around a knife, and is capable of defending herself in hand-to-hand combat. Lastly, she knows how to maintain motorrads and firearms, as well as possess enough knowledge to pull out the odd trick from time to time. These gambits are what give Kino an edge in battle, and she proves to be surprisingly creative with whatever she’s got on hand.
Hermes, while not explicitly supernatural, seems to have some sort of hyper-awareness originating from him being a machine. I have already mentioned his abilities at math, but he also seems aware of the exact numerical values of the wind, temperature, and many other variables valuable to a sniper. There is also the fact that he can talk. Should have mentioned that. The origins of this ability are not mentioned, and the single person who finds his ability to speak bizarre happens to be a dog.
First Person Sample:
[Kino looks at the rune on her nightstand, still unused, even after being in this world for so long.]
Can't sleep?
This is why you don't wake up in the morning.
I've been thinking: why not use it? You grab stuff from other countries all the time, Kino.
...I guess it's because it's different this time.
Different how?
Well, it's... like meeting everyone in the world at once.
I thought you loved meeting new people.
[A firm nod.]
But if you see everything in the world at once, then that takes away from traveling.
Do you have to be such a long-term kind of person?
[Despite herself, Kino gives a small smile in satisfaction at having her point come across.]
I wonder if that's really true.
Third Person Sample:
Bullet casings litter the beautiful green grass, briefly reflected in the blood droplets rolling down the blades.
"Another close call."
The motorrad's companion, its rider, remains silent. The hammer is uncocked, and Cannon returns to its holster soon enough. Kino thought she would notice the typical smell of black powder that accompanies her more. The environment around her mercifully cloaks it. She does not realize the dissonance in thinking such trivial thoughts at a time like this. Perhaps it's exactly the gravity of the situation that prompts her to do so. A way to block out her own regret and fear.
"Kino?"
"There's a lot less danger here."
"...Are you sure about that? We've come across some scary people the last few weeks." Hermes had a lot to say about the dangers of their world, but there was never the presence of what they could truly call the supernatural.
"No. What I mean is... people don't murder each other as much here."
"We seem to run into trouble at about the same rate." Both travelers knew that, if Hermes had eyes, they would be referencing the unfortunate individuals who only confused Kino for the very thing she was watching out for.
Traveler and motorrad remain silent. Maybe Kino would have dropped the subject then and there, but as if a reminder not to ignore her own actions, the previously helpful smell of nature is overpowered by the copper-like scent unmistakably belonging to blood. Brings back too many memories. Kino can't help but be brought down to earth by it.
"It could be that we're the odd ones out here." The number of bandits and murderers could be reduced, but Kino's experiences with them lived all-too-vividly in her head. Even now, realizing the change in circumstances, she could not bring herself to drop her ever-present caution.
It's a sobering thought for someone who wishes to remain free of assimilation into other locations. As Kino prepares to set off again, she comes to the realization that, in the grand scale of things, all the countries she has visited during her life do count as one place.
