Post by Hope Estheim on Oct 20, 2012 14:15:46 GMT -5
grey skies & light fading ,,
"Sister soldier, you've been such a positive
influence on my mental frame ;
if I could ever repay you, I would
but I'm hard up for cash and my memory lacks initiative."
THE OOC SECTION
---
"Sister soldier, you've been such a positive
influence on my mental frame ;
if I could ever repay you, I would
but I'm hard up for cash and my memory lacks initiative."
THE OOC SECTION
---
CHARACTER NAMEHope Estheim.
CHARACTER DESCRIPTION"Director of Academy Research, Team Alpha. Hope Estheim, at your service."
Standing at just five feet and eleven inches, the average-sized man is not average in appearance by any stretch of the imagination. Hope Estheim is notable for his soft features, feathered silver locks, and bright eyes the color of chrysophrase; he inherits most of his characteristics from his deceased mother, and is sometimes considered feminine because of that fact. However, his frame is decently muscled, and his shoulders broad, though his musculature is somewhat compact. He is fit, though seeming oddly lean, a detail that bespeaks of hardship in his past.
His clothing is that of a typical Academy uniform, but complete with his own bells and whistles. He wears the typical yellow-and-white jacket and blue tie over a white dress shirt, though his tie sports a pin that is a symbol of his status as Research Team Director. In addition, over his left shoulder rests a heavy dark strap with a metal buckle; before his left pectoral and behind his left shoulder blade are small twin packs of black with red additions. In the rear pack, he keeps as a memento his old Airwing model boomerang from his time as a l'Cie. Around his waist is belted another set of packs in the same design, though the red decorations have evolved completely into hanging, adjustable belts with buckles unto themselves. He wears sturdy work pants in an olive tone that are tucked into black boots with three buckles apiece on the outside calves. Completing the ensemble are a set of black work gloves that are plated on the backs of the fingers and back of the hand with metal ribbing.
CHARACTER PERSONALITY"For me, it's as if time has stopped. Everyone I knew is gone."
Having grown from the boy he was when he had been cursed as a Pulse l'Cie into the man he is now, ten years of the absence of all of his friends took a toll upon Hope, even though he has reunited with a scarce few. At twenty-seven years old, the ex-l'Cie is now a talented scientist, holding a powerful position within the Academy, and being the main advocate of the organization's ideals. Nevertheless, despite his considerable intellect and skill, the stoic young man harbors some vulnerability behind his tranquil exterior; the disappearance of all of those he considered close had led to his feeling ostracised from those around him, even more so than had been caused by the events of his Focus and his previously being a l'Cie.
Plainly, Hope is a painfully intelligent young man that had thrown himself into his studies following the Catastrophe. Even now, it is difficult for him to count himself among normal human beings, though he still feels responsible for their wellbeing. To that point, he is unusually persistent in his research, extremely diligent though somewhat asocial and quiet. Every fiber of his being is put to the task he has set upon himself; to protect the human race, find his friends, and rescue Fang and Vanille from their crystal prison.
CHARACTER HISTORY"I wanted to change the future. Not just bring Lightning back, but Fang, and Vanille... and my mother."
The only child born to Nora and Bartholomew Estheim, Hope was raised in the port city of Palumpolum in sufficient wealth and sheltered surroundings. His father worked as a government official, a member of the Sanctum, and his work kept him away from his family; into his teenage years, irrationally, Hope began to resent his father for this, thinking that he intended to choose his work over his wife and son. His mother raised him as a stay-at-home parent, to whom he was very attached.
Hope was fourteen when the family vacationed to the beach resort city of Bodhum. His father, beset at the last minute by work, wasn't able to come. In some ways, this was for the best, as the vacation took a turn for the worse. The discovery of a Pulse fal'Cie in the nearby Vestige led to the entire city being quarantined and deported - Hope and his mother among the residents. During the ensuing conflict with the military, Nora was killed saving the life of Snow Villiers, a man hailing from Bodhum and resisting the Purge. Blaming Snow directly for the death of his mother, Hope, together with a mysterious young woman named Vanille, pursued the man in search of his fiance into the Pulse Vestige that the army had carried with them. These events led to the group of five people being cursed by the Pulse fal'Cie to become l'Cie, the boy among them.
Their journey to complete their Focus causes the largest change in Hope, of all of the group of l'Cie. He learns to grow from the tragedies of his mother's death and his fate, holding Lightning in particular as a major role model. At one point, he is presented with the opportunity to slay Snow in retribution for his mother's death, though a nearby bombing knocks him off his footing and off of a high ledge; his life is saved by Snow, who dives after him and takes the brunt of the impact, surviving with a few shattered ribs. The sacrifice, despite his almost killing Snow, causes a monumental change in Hope's psyche - he admits that he knew revenge would never help him to heal or bring his mother back, but that he needed someone to blame for the events that had befallen him. With the help of Lightning, Snow, and the rest of the Pulse l'Cie, Hope grows from a desperate boy into a determined young man, helping the party to continue forward whenever they sank into doubt.
During the Catastrophe of Cocoon almost crashing into the surface of Pulse, Fang and Vanille sacrifice themselves to form a crystal pillar to hold the failed ark aloft. In its wake, Hope and the rest of the group awake from their crystallisation to see Serah, Snow's fiance, and Dajh, Sazh's son, approaching. However, Lightning is nowhere to be seen... save for her pocket knife, the one with which he had almost killed Snow, next to Hope's foot. This he gives to Serah, who breaks into sobs after Snow informs her that her sister hadn't made it - and must have sacrificed herself as well to create the pillar.
With this belief heavy in his heart, Hope reunites with his father, their relationship strained but much closer than it had been before his mother's passing. Bartholomew and the lieutenant of the Cavalry, Rygdea, are the two individuals responsible for incepting the Academy, a foundation of research with the goal of human independence in mind that is meant to later merge with the government. Hope throws himself into his studies, skipping several grades to finish secondary education just before his sixteenth birthday, and earning two degrees by his twentieth. At twenty-four, he learns of a temporal distortion in the Yaschas Massif (a region through which he had traveled, once) that is responsible for an unusual eclipse in the area, and sets off to investigate...
Here he reunites with Serah, an old friend of his and his assistant's. He is also introduced to Noel, a young man from seven hundred years in the future who travels the timeline to undo the vicious future that is to come. From his position in the Academy, Hope does what he can to assist in Serah's and Noel's endeavors, even traveling forward in time almost four hundred years. An adviser for the Academy in the year 400 AF, now he waits for Noel's and Serah's reappearance into the timeline, which cannot be far off... until he awakes in a dark alleyway in an unknown city...
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headlamps making patterns on the wall ,,
THE IC SECTION
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headlamps making patterns on the wall ,,
THE IC SECTION
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"Hello there. You've just arrived in the Distorted World. Why don't you tell me your name, and the first thought going through your head right now?"He frowns in confusion, but covers the expression with careful neutrality. "The Distorted World." Hope looks around, appearing thoughtful. "Distorted in what context; temporal, or otherwise?... ah, pardon me. My name is Hope. Hope Estheim."
"That's certainly interesting... forgive me if I don't know what to say to that. So tell me, where are you from?""Cocoon." He pauses. "At least, I was raised on Cocoon...a long time ago. Nowadays, the grand city known as Academia is my home." (Final Fantasy XIII-2)
"Can't say I've ever heard of it. Well, tell me about yourself. What do you do? What are some of your likes and dislikes?""Strange." He looks thoughtful again, though somewhat uncomfortable. "Does she mean Academia, or Cocoon? If Cocoon isn't familiar to her, what has happened? And where am I?" "Me? I work for the Academy; I am - was its Director - now I am more of an adviser, as it were." He smiles wryly. "That is to say, I dabble in archaeology and history, but have more of an emphasis on physics and theoretical sciences." He smiles more normally. "It's all right if you don't understand what I mean... likes and dislikes?" His mouth turns down at the corners. "I wonder why." "I suppose I like my job, the Academy itself, and my family. I dislike eggs, excessive physical contact, and delays in schedule...." He trails off, looking pensive.
"Ah, that's amazing! And not only do we have some things in common, you're quite the looker, too, aren't you?""I-" Hope's cheekbones are tinged a light pink. "Is there something you mean to say?"
"There's no need to be shy. They always say, if you've got it, flaunt it, right? Anyway, enough about that. Who are you allied with?""..." He cannot meet the interviewer's eyes. "There are many wrongs I've worked to right. In a place like this, my goals are more attainable than ever, however..." [ SURVIVOR ]
"I'm sure you have your reasons... Oh, on another note, how tall are you?"He blinks. "Five feet and eleven inches."
"Drat! Just four inches too tall. Although... hmm, would you mind if I asked you on a date? Don't worry, I'll buy.""I'm flattered that you ask, but I'm afraid I'll have to decline." He smiles faintly. "There's little room in my schedule for such things."
"Finding a venue might be a bit difficult, anyway, since I have no idea where we are... tell me where this is, again?""I am... not entirely certain." He confesses this with a worried frown, looking around once more. "Could this be... Paddra, in its prime? But how?" [ ARCHADES ]
"Ah, how could I forget? I'd love to vacation here someday, when it's not so foggy... It's scenic, you know?"He frowns, seeming lost in thought, only partially noticing the strangeness of her response.
"Well, thank you for the lovely conversation! I'm afraid I'll have to be leaving you, though, since I'm going to explode in about three seconds anyway. Buh-bye now!"He looks up in surprise. "Ah! I... see. That's certainly unusual." He begins to back away, though looks curious against his better judgment.
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uptown it's dead now but ,,
THE ROLEPLAYER SECTION
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uptown it's dead now but ,,
THE ROLEPLAYER SECTION
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ROLEPLAYER NAMEIt's a-me, Light / Luvidays.
ROLEPLAYER AGESixteen.
EXPERIENCESeven years.
PASSWORDHe might learn Curaja... if he gets his magic back.
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out here no one seems to care at all ,,
THE RP SAMPLE SECTION
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out here no one seems to care at all ,,
THE RP SAMPLE SECTION
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RP SAMPLEWide and carefully innocent eyes sharpened just slightly at the question. "I've none." The only response he was able to give before the silver-haired man before him moved, turned to face him with almost a predatory sort of movement. Ad'hora played possum, simply waited until the man spoke again, as if unsure of what to do with himself.
He spoke of the woman that had screamed, as he gently freed Ad'hora's grip from his own wrist. How he had seen the fate of her lover, with all the emotional connection of one discussing the weather. In that moment, Ad'hora thought to himself that he'd done well, finding a kindred spirit amongst the muck of sentimentality.
A brief flash of the man's eyes as he observed a connection between the brunette and the dead man; the Genome could but watch as he expertly wove his way through what would have been a conversation, would there have been any way to respond.
"I am not among those so easily to be cherished," he responded cryptically, cutting in. But the man's rhetorical question caught his attention, skeptical or not. "Tell me then, what am I searching for?"
The sudden darkness to Ad'hora's eyes and tone vanished as quickly as it had come, as the silverette fell to jesting about his (apparent) age once more. Though if one were to read deeply, the comment about the apple could be taken as...
Ah-ha. Susceptible prey, at last.
The brunette made to approach just slightly, a subtle shift of the feet as he made as if to lure the other into his presence. "However can I replace such a treasure?" he asked quietly. "But of course, that depends on what you have in mind."