Hailey Desmond
Shadow Name: Diamondback
Real Name: Hailey Desmond
Quote: "You can grab your books and scoot on home if you want, Doc, but I'm gonna keep digging. I can hear them down below; they're just begging to be found!"
Concept: Adventure-loving Archaeologist-Spelunker
Virtue: Hope ("Keep at it, guys! There's something big here, I can feel it!")
Vice: Lust ("Gosh, is it steamy in here or is it just me?")
Path: Thyrsus ("You might not hear them, but I do. They say everything'll be alright. Trust me.")
Order: Mysterium ("You can keep that shiny chalice, but I'll take this dusty slab any day. This one has a story.")
Legacy: Imagineer ("If you think there's a bunch of stuff in this world that we haven't yet found, think about everything that's beyond this world!")
ATTRIBUTES
INT 2, WIT 4, RES 2
STR 2, DEX 4, STA 3
PRE 3, MAN 2, COM 3
SKILLS
Academics: 2
Crafts: 2 (Spec: Repairs "Don't you 'pfft' me! Just gimme the duct tape, I'll figure something out!")
Investigation: 3 (Spec: Ruins "Hey don't throw that out! That's the corner of the epitaph I was deciphering!")
Medicine: 3
Athletics: 2 (Spec: Rocky Landscapes "I can scale that cliff face, no problem.")
Brawl: 2
Drive: 3 (Spec: Offroad "Ever surf on a dune before?")
Firearms: 3 (Spec: Revolvers "One shot is all I need, hon. The other five bullets are there for good luck.")
Survival: 2
Weaponry: 2
Animal Ken: 3
Streetwise: 4
MERITS
High Speech, Status 2 (Consilium), Status 2 (Mysterium), Iron Stamina 3, Weapon Finesse 2 (Knives), Direction Sense 1, Enhanced Item 2 (Sunset Coyote), Resources 3, Sanctum Size 1, Sanctum Security 1
ARCANA
Spirit 4 (Favored), Life 4, Prime 2
ROTES
"Fulfillment" (Supreme Honing): Life 4 (Resolve + Athletics + Life, Vulgar)
"Balm of Flesh" (Healing Heart): Life 3 (Composure + Medicine + Life, Covert)
"Into Shadow" (Spirit Road): Spirit 3 (Resolve + Survival + Spirit, Vulgar)
"Closing the Ways" (Place of Power): Spirit 2 (Resolve + Survival + Spirit, Vulgar)
WILLPOWER 5
WISDOM 7
GNOSIS 4
MANA 7/13 (Max 4 Mana/Turn)
SIZE 5
HEALTH 8
DEFENSE 4
INIT MOD: 7
SPEED 11
ARMOR 0
WEAPON: Sunset Coyote (Lt. Revolver, Damage 4[L], Range 20/40/80, Clip 6, Req. Str 2, Size 1)
- A .357 Colt Python with a 5-inch barrel, a polished rosewood grip and a gaudy copper finish over its stainless steel frame, Hailey's Sunset Coyote is no less an extremely lethal weapon in the hands of a trained marksman. The Atlantean runes carved into the handle and engraved onto the barrel improve the gun's balance and buffer its recoil such that even a person with Hailey's small stature can handle its kick. When not in use, Hailey keeps it in an extremely decorated velvet-lined rosewood case with the following engraved in gold: "When Reason and Civility flee with the setting sun, the Coyote comes a'howling."
MAGICAL TOOLS: Hailey's magical implement is an ornate bowie knife with a rosewood handle, decorated in intricate tribal carvings. The back of the blade is inlaid with a strip of brilliant copper that seems to shimmer even when there is no light. (Bowie Knife, 2[L] Damage, Size 1/J, Durability 4, Cost 1, +1 to Crafts involving wood)
STYLE AND NIMBUS: When Hailey performs her magic, she appears to be whispering softly into the air, and the ears of the Awakened can hear a tide of whispers as the air appears to respond to her. Especially powerful magic will produce a quiet roar of many ancient voices, whose words appear upon the air as wisps of smoke centered on Hailey.
APPEARANCE: At home more in the wilderness than in the city, Hailey puts out an image of a modern nomadic girl. Her short chestnut brown hair is short and frayed, her green eyes glisten like natural jade, and her skin maintains a healthy even tan from her many expeditions. A practical, outdoorsy kind of girl, Hailey prefers clothes that are suited for travel; loose, simple cotton clothes, cargo pants or shorts, and any amount of harnesses, backpacks or strapped bags to meet the number of pockets she might need. Usually she is seen with a dusty leather jacket with a shoulder harness for her knife, a cropped white shirt with a harness for her pistol, denim shorts and leather hiking boots.
BACKGROUND:
The daughter of accomplished historical scholar, Gilbert Desmond, Hailey takes after her father's love of ancient lore and past civilizations. While her father's passion is more academic, Hailey prefers the hands-on learning experience, aspiring to become an archeologist. Gilbert's collection or worldly lore was near completion, but he was unable to complete it, passing away only months before Hailey's graduation from college. After Gilbert's death, Hailey was more determined to set out into the world and complete her father's collection herself. When the estate was left to her, she took to spelunking and trained herself physically to traverse vast underground systems; a dramatic departure from student life, Hailey also trained herself in combat and marksmanship, becoming adept at both, and yet dreading the occasion to use them. Over time, Hailey grew into a seasoned explorer, establishing her career as an accomplished adventurer. Absorbed into the success of her expeditions, Hailey had all but abandoned Gilbert's incomplete archive. One night, however, Hailey heard strange whispers about the house. Following the wispy voice cautiously, Hailey was led to Gilbert's study, where the voice led her to some of his unfinished notes, buried deep within the archives. Looking them over, the notes detailed a tomb in Mexico that seemed to alienate itself from any recorded history of that area. After confirming the existence of an underground cave system at the coordinates she extracted from Gilbert's notes, Hailey set off to undergo the expedition she promised she'd do some years ago.
That summer in Mexico, Hailey confronted a discovery that would change her fate. Deep within the caves beneath Mexico's scorching sun, Hailey dug and dug, hoping to find some hint of the ruins her father wrote about. No matter how far she searched, she found nothing resembling any ruins or tombs within the caverns. And yet, she was compelled to dig; not for the promise of treasure or discovery, but because the ghostly voiced had returned to beckon her to dig deeper. Eventually, she found her way into a deep underground chamber. There were no signs of crafted works, but the shape of the room and the almost ritualistic arrangement of stones suggested an esoteric purpose. Careful not to disrupt the composition, Hailey stepped into the circle of stones, and there she took her first step into the Primal Wilds. Lost in the supernal wilderness, Hailey explored and explored for what seemed to be hours on end until she came upon the great stone spire, the Watchtower of the Stone Book. In its halls, she heard once more the ghostly voice that led her here, this time more clearly. Hailey could not understand its words, but she knew what it asked of her; a promise. Etching her name into the stone of the tower's walls, Hailey chose to expose herself to the world beyond mortality, and thus Awakened.
When she regained consciousness, she found herself on the surface of Mexico's deserts. The first thing she saw was a diamondback rattlesnake, shedding its skin. It was a good enough sign for Hailey to shed what she knew of the world and begin a new exploration of the Awakened world.
