Post by Aftershock on Jun 3, 2012 14:50:39 GMT -4
rift
two steps ahead and staying on guard
basic information
and every lesson forms a new scar
NAME Rift
NICKNAMES Riff, an affectionate pet name from her close friends and the humans who raised her
SPECIES Equine
BREED Andalusian
GENDER Mare
AGE Eight years old and born in the spring
appearance
they never thought you'd make it this far
EYES Dark chocolate brown, almost black in color
COAT A light gray with many small dapples and darker points
MARKINGS No markings, and if did have any, they'd be difficult to spot due to her base color
OVERALL Rift takes the form of the ancient, graceful Andalusian breed, with an almost-bulky but enchanting build. She measures in at exactly 15 hands high, just shy of her breed's average for mares. Her coat is dappled gray, a contrast of light gray and steely silver. Her mane and tail are equally dark, with a few silver strands scattered in it and they are long and flowing, save for the tangles that are unavoidable. Her fur fades to black on her legs, though only around her knees and hocks, as well as down her cannon bones. The rest of her legs remained a light gray, stained with old mud. She has a stripe of dark gray along her back - a dorsal stripe, like a dun would have. Her eyes aren't terribly large, but the dark brown is expressive nonetheless.
persona
but turn around, they've surrounded you
LIKES Being treated as an equal, learning new things, flirting (occasionally), trying new things, staying busy, helping those in need
DISLIKES Frivolities, being looked down upon (particularly due to her gender), losing those she cares about, those who judge her based on her past, seeing young ones abandoned, pointless deaths
STRENGTHS Headstrong, brave, blunt, intelligent
WEAKNESSES Doesn't let herself get attached to others easily, stubborn, tries to handle things on her own more often than not
HOPES To live to see the fighting end
FEARS Losing those she gets attached to and cares for
TRAITS Rift's most noticeable trait is her headstrong independence. She doesn't like being told what to do by anyone, and she certainly doesn't like being told she's worth less than anyone else just because she's a mare. She is just as strong or capable as any stallion - she's made sure of it through sheer hard work. She's not afraid to get her coat dirty or get in over her head, and she's not about to bend to your will because you think she should. She's her own horse, and there's no doubt in that.
There's a wild beauty in this sort of behavior, of course, that can often find her attracting attention from all sorts of sources - typically males, but she's seen a few females eying her as well. She's not the type to lead them on, though a little harmless flirting never bothers her - so long as they don't expect her to just up and settle down like some pretty little lawn ornament that needs protection. That will never be her - not a chance. Although she loves to mother others, and is really quite good at it, she isn't the mare to just stop and wait around. In foal, with foal or not, she's going to be up and moving and checking out the world for new, exciting things to see or do. She'll be careful, of course - she would never endanger her foal or anyone else intentionally - but she isn't going to stop being who she is just to be someone she's not.
Of course, that's not to say she's easy to understand - she isn't. She longs for love to a degree, but after her first heartbreak she became cautious. After the loss of her daughter, she closed her heart off entirely - she has yet to let a single soul in past certain boundaries. She's far from cold - the opposite, in fact, as she is still quite warm and loving - but to get anywhere beyond a mere friend with her is difficult at best, impossible at worst. To put it simply, she's afraid to lose the ones she loves, so she simply does not allow herself to love. It's a lonely life - a fact she'll readily admit to - but it is the life she's chosen.
Her caring stands out as well among various other little quirks. Although she rarely lets anyone in, she is very much a mother figure at heart - a healer, despite her ability to fight well when necessary. If she sees someone in danger, she'll fly in to help them whether they want her help or not, and whether she knows them or not. That is, until she determines their character. She's not content to let anyone die on her watch, but if it's a choice between helping a generally evil creature or letting them suffer a little, she'll definitely choose the latter option.
Among all this, she is intelligent - calculatingly so, and she has a habit of seeing beyond what is right in front of her. This is a trait she was not born with - no, this was trained into her by Vallati, who can only be described as her mentor. He taught her how to observe, how to pay attention to the little details just as much as the big ones as they were often the most important. She can be fooled, yes - but not easily, and she'll often pick up on hidden meanings or feelings you might not even realize are there, and she has an uncanny knack for being able to predict and prepare for future outcomes. This trait is what has allowed her to survive, despite her previously pampered lifestyle.
history
it's a showdown and nobody comes to save you now
MOTHER Kyota, deceased
FATHER Merlin, deceased
SIBLINGS A few, though she doesn't know their names
IMPORTANT FIGURES Vallati, father figure, unknown status
Trick, previous mate, alive
Naoko, daughter, deceased
STORY Rift has had anything but a boring life - in fact, this is something she made sure of. Born three springs before the initial outbreak of the virus, she was raised on a small Andalusian breeding farm in England. It was a pleasant life, though she never relied on anyone too much and she certainly never listened to her soft-spoken mother. She didn't want to be the perfect little filly who never spoke a word. No, she wanted to make something of herself - and an older gelding in the field catered to that need very well, guiding her as a father would.
His name was Vallati and he was five, but he had injured himself badly in a fall once and was unable to be ridden. He was kept in the paddock as the barn owners didn't have the heart to get rid of him - he was their first foal after all - and he was no longer in pain so long as he wasn't worked. He became a mentor to young Rift, and through him she began to settle down slowly. She learned proper manners and etiquette, she learned what sorts of things to avoid and which were good for her, and she grew into a strong-willed young horse, ready to be backed, with a much better grasp on the world, and a very clear understanding of just how it worked.
Shortly before turning three, her owners had decided to move their operation to the States - business was better their for the horse industry. So, the young ones, Vallati, and the best of their broodmares and stallions were shipped overseas. They had only just settled in to the new farm when the virus broke out. It took a while to reach them, but when it did she was forced to watch as many around her simply died - one of her owners, some of her herdmates, and one of the barn cats she was particularly well acquainted with. Her other owner grieved for quite some time, but Rift was due to be backed - and so, she was. She took to the saddle and the dressage movements with the ease and grace with which she handled life, learning to work with the human on her back to accomplish a great many things.
Then, disaster struck again - the call to cull any potential carriers came. Given the extent of deaths in the barn, Rift's owner was one of the first to round up all the animals on property and ship them off. They were certainly the first to arrive - except it was nothing like a temporary spot set up for this. Due to the early round up in the area, they were sent to a place already built for this - a slaughterhouse. She took it in stride, protecting Vallati as he did the same for her, and together they plotted an escape - except it was too late. The humans came upon them with bullets, and everyone in the pen panicked. Rift bolted, managing a running leap over the fence. Not built to jump, she crashed through the weak top rail, but she ignored the shards of wood and the pain they caused. Instead, she just kept running - running until she could run no further. She didn't know what happened to Vallati - all she knew was that she was free and she was alone.
For a few months, that was how she spent her time - alone and fighting to survive. It was a drastic change, after all, and she was weakened from her stay in the slaughterhouse's pen. But then, her world changed again - she met him. Trick was a handsome fellow - a fine boned thoroughbred stallion, a racer. He caught her young heart in the instant she saw him streaking across the plains, and she caught his mere minutes later as she cut him off and they fell into a playful dance that lasted a good half hour before they finally both stopped to catch their breath and exchange names. It was a whirlwind romance, but it was pure and innocent - they were in love. Within two months, she was expecting and he fell in to protective behavior. She indulged him occasionally, just to keep him from getting too snappy - but it was in this time that he changed.
He came across a herd, a herd which had claimed the safest spot available - and he pushed it too far. She didn't know immediately, of course, but she later learned that he had enlisted the help of wolves in killing them. When she found out and questioned him about it, he turned his threats to her. She stayed for awhile - she was too heavy with foal by this point to leave. It didn't help that she had assumed he wouldn't do it again. He had found a taste for violence, though, a soon more equines were turning up dead due to the teeth of wolves. The second her foal could run, they did just that - they ran, with wolves snapping at their heels. She's earned a few scars on her legs from that mad dash, from whirling to kick the pack away and let young Naoko escape rather than fall prey to their fangs.
And again, her life was her own to handle and she raised her filly on her own. As much as she feared the foal's father and what he had become, she loved her daughter with every piece of her heart. But, in this perilous world, things are never meant to last - and humans found them when Naoko was a headstrong yearling and Rift was nearing five and a half years. Naoko matched her mother's attitude - but she was much more daring. The filly dared to charge them, and Rift could only watch as the bullets riddled her daughter's chest and she fell. The andalusian ran for the third time in her life - but for the first time, she returned later. They had yet to burn the body, so she took her few moments to say her goodbyes and she has never been the same since. That day, she closed off her heart - and she has wandered alone ever since.
player
but you've got something they don't
NAME Aftershock
AGE 20
EXPERIENCE 10 years
CHARACTERS Vitae
REFERRAL ---