Editing Character:Silk

'''Silk''' a.k.a. '''Gavane''' a.k.a. '''The White Reaper'''<br>
<i>Night Caste (former) assassin</i>

''A man of wiry build with the tanned skin and dark eyes of the south. Short black hair and a finely trimmed beard frame the agelessly youthful face of an Exalt; only the hardness and hidden pain in his eyes betray his true age. In his clothes he prefers silk and fine leathers in tones of gray, cut so as to allow the maximum range of movement and conceal a multitude of weapons. Thin leather gloves, moccasins and a cloak of rough, gray cloth complete his appearance. He speaks softly and his demeanor is mild, that of a man who has nothing to prove. When he drops the pretense of normalcy his movements are extraordinarily graceful and almost completely silent.''


==Motivation==
To help usher in a new and better world order.
==Anima==
The colors of Silk's anima are a pale mix of white and gold contrasted by strange shadows of gray and purple flickering all around him. On the rare occasion that he is is forced to reveal his totemic anima it shows as the shadows of his anima flowing together to form powerful dark wings spreading from his back. Being aware of his status as one of the Wretched Silk is darkly amused by this imagery, which in popular tales is reserved for messengers of the celestial gods.
==Attributes==
PHYSICAL: Strength 2, Dexterity 5, Stamina 2<br>
SOCIAL: Charisma 2, Manipulation 3, Appearance 2<br>
MENTAL: Perception 4, Intelligence 3, Wits 4


==Abilities==

===Caste Abilities===
Athletics 3, Awareness 5, Dodge 5, Larceny 4, Stealth 5 (In Plain Sight +2)
===Favored Abilities===
Martial Arts 5 (Rope +2), Thrown 1, Performance 3 (Dance +2), Resistance 1, Investigation 1
===Unfavored Abilities===
Integrity 1, Lore 1, Linguistics 2 (''Firetongue'', Low Realm, Riverspeak)

==Backgrounds==
===Artifact 3===
''Orichalkum Hearthstone Bracers & Infinite Wardrobe''<br>
When his flight from the past brought Silk to Nexus he was astounded by the enormity and attitude of the Riverlands' greatest city. Originally he meant only to stay long enough to fade into the chaos and let the thousands and thousands of people trample over any trails he might have left behind. But then while spying on a merchant of information he caught wind of something greater, something that brought up memories not his own. An item had allegedly surfaced in the inheritance left behind by an old and successful scavenger lord, an item of a material shining like gold but impervious to all harm. Gripped by a previously unknown fascination Silk pursued the artifact's trail from the old grave robber to his heir, sold to a Guild merchant, bought at extraordinary expense by the Immaculate Order seeking to destroy the unholy thing and finally stolen by a Merchant Prince's retainer. In the prince's heavily guarded palace finally he clashed with a strange green-eyed woman who apparently also sought the same item. It quickly became clear that her skill in the arts martial was greater than Silk's but in the end his own mastery of subtlety and shadows won out and he was able to disappear into the night with the much sought-after artifact.<br>
Besides the usual powers of hearthstone bracers this pair has has an immensely useful additional power: It can spin new clothes of every possible sort - be they rags or courtly robes of the most exotic kind - from the Essence of its wielder at the cost of merely 1m. This has benefited Silk greatly as disguising himself has become much easier since he now always has the exactly right clothing for every possible situation and disguise at hand.
===Resources 3===
The merchants' payment was a nice bonus but of course that wasn't the reason why Silk participated in the operation against the Barrow King. Even before the recent influx of silver his Guild accounts - of the 'no questions asked' variety - weren't too bad off. His money stems in part from the coffers of the NAME and the many hide-away caches prepared for its agents. Upon leaving all of that behind Silk took a good sum of unmarked silver and jewels with him, considering it payment for his long service and arguing that with NAME's destruction his would likely be the best hands the money could fall into. The other part comes from private deals and contracts he's made since his flight, sometimes a pittance, sometimes enough to get by for weeks without touching his fallback options. Working as a blade for hire, a mercenary, is something Silk despises but it has been necessary a few times. Now thankfully it will be some time before anything like that will be required again.
===Contacts 3===
His old networks of informants don't reach into the East, but Silk has been well trained and despite his otherwise poor social graces he has a knack for finding the right people for the right job. Whether it is someone familiar with the games of the high and mighty or just someone who knows the street and will talk in exchange for a free drink, whether it is an honest moneylender, a corrupt guard, a learned scholar or just a few guys who will bash in anyone's head for a few pieces of silver - Silk knows them or at least where to look for them.
==Charms==

===Stealth===
Easily Overlooked Presence Method ''(3m, remain perfectly unnoticed unless drawing attention to yourself)''<br>
Mental Invisibility Technique ''(5m, 1wp, roll Dex+Stealth, add Ess sux, everyone with lower MDV needs to spend 4wp to perceive you)''

===Athletics===
Graceful Crane Stance ''(3m, perfect balance)''<br>
Monkey Leap Technique ''(3m, jump as move action and double jumping distance)''

===Dodge===
Shadow Over Water ''(1m, dodge at full DV)''<br>
Seven Shadow Evasion ''(3m, perfect dodge unless it goes against his convictions)''
 
===Larceny===
1st Larceny Excellency<br>
Perfect Impenetrable Disguise ''(7m, perfect illusionary disguise)

===Awareness===
Surprise Anticipation Method ''(1m, notice unexpected attacks or other dangers)''
===Martial Arts===
Crimson Dance of Shadows Style
* Shadow Dancing Concentration ''(3m, add 4d to shadow dance, 2d to actions requiring physical contortions)''
==Intimacies==

<i>All I have left in this world is my daughter. She shouldn't have to suffer for my inadequacies.</i> (5/5)<br>

==Essence==
Essence: 2<br>
Peripheral: 30/30 (34)<br>
Personal: 15/15<br>
Committed: 4 peripheral (Hearthstone Bracers)<br>
Anima Status: None

Dodge DV: 8<br>
Health Levels: -0, -1, -1, -2, -2, -4, Incapacitated<br>
(wounds are designated as ''bashing'', '''lethal''' or <strike>'''aggravated'''</strike>)
==Willpower==
OOOOO OOOO (Willpower 9/9)

==Virtues==
Compassion: 1 - <i>I'm not a monster, you know? But the math is simple: Better you die than one of my own.</i><br>
Conviction: 5 - <i>For a worthy cause, one I can truly believe in, I will accept the deaths of millions or even my own.</i><br>
Temperance: 4 - <i>To those who walk the path of the assassin absolute discipline is ever the harshest mistress.</i><br>
Valor: 1 - <i>You call me a coward, I know that I'm the smart one. Meeting a stronger opponent in a straight-up fight, that I call suicidal.</i><br>
(Virtue channels used: None)

===Limit Break===
<b></b><br>

Limit Condition: <br>
Limit: <b>None</b>

==Equipment==

Hand: Spd 5, Acc 11, Dmg 4B, PDV 6, rate 3<br>
Kick: Spd 5, Acc 10, Dmg 7B, PDV 3, rate 1<br>
Clinch: Spd 6, Acc 10, Dmg 4B (P), rate 1

Exceptional Knife Spd 5, Acc 12, Dmg 7L, PDV 5, rate 3<br>
Exceptional Knife (thrown) Spd 5, Acc 7, Dmg 7L, rate 4

Garotte Spd 6, Acc 7, Dmg 4B (+asphyxiation), PDV -, rate 1<br>
Bladed Rope Spd 5, Acc 14, Dmg 8L, PDV 5, rate 3<br>
(stats as Urumi - a MA weapon from Scroll of the Monk - of exceptional quality)
==History==
''"Sort of man they're like to send believes hard. Kills, and never asks why."'' -- Shepherd Book, "Serenity"

Silk was born in Chu, one of the desert kingdoms south-east of the Varang City States. His memories of his parents and of living with his family are unaccountably blurry and disjointed. Clear memories of his childhood begin only with being part of a group of seven children aged four like himself and sitting through long and boring hours of teaching broken up by much more interesting periods of physical exercise. An aura of sadness and an undercurrent of fear flavors those memories - he'd learned quickly, that the Cult of Harama's Dancers didn't look kindly on their young initiates crying or even mentioning his family and that following their every instruction was the easiest way to escape punishment. Forgetting about his parents who had sold him to the cult was probably the easiest way to cope with his situation. In any case the endless lessons and competitive games under the constant supervision of hard-eyed adults comprised much of Silk's - who at that point had not yet earned any name - childhood and adolescence. In time the subjects shifted from cult indoctrination to actual learning and exercise became training in truth. He learned the name and teachings of Harama, the Southern Goddess of Assassination, and of the things she demanded of her cult in return, he learned the lay of the human body and its vulnerabilities, he learned the dance of shadows and how to use them to his advantage, he learned to keep body and mind to strict discipline and how to use that body to kill with efficiency. With 16, now called by the name of 'Silk', he began to take part in the duties of these hard men and women that had taught him. The cold gleam of fanaticism in his eyes he was ready to do anything in the name of the cult and the kingdom of Chu that sheltered it.

And Chu's king as well as the masters of the cult made good use of their investment: Spying on the kingdom's more powerful nobles and later on foreign powers, delivering secret messages or intercepting them, blackmail, threats, and of course the highest of the disciplines, assassination. Initially he kept count of successful operations but as he grew in experience he abandoned the practice, consigning himself entirely to the pursuit of efficiency. Carried by singular determination his skill improved greatly and he rose quickly in the ranks of the cult, becoming a solo operative and then with only 24 a cell leader. It was only then that he began to notice things around him, became aware the precepts he'd been taught weren't always put to use. And where an off-duty life of decadent luxury might be excusable the discovery of factions in mutual conflict existing within the organization stood entirely against the singularity of purpose demanded of its members. After numerous attempts and finding him unable to do anything about it without being drawn into the conflict himself Silk reluctantly had to accept the state of affairs as reality and that particular principle as only theory. This was the first blow against his faith and it wouldn't be the last. Even harder hit him the desertion of Sari One-Hand, one of his mentors and - as far as that was possible within the cult - his friend, a few months later. Silk volunteered for the team to go after him, most to hear from Sari himself why in the world he'd do something like this, but the older man wasn't a master for nothing and the trail went cold quickly and he was left with only questions and no answers.

It was in this confused state of mind on a mission to the neighboring kingdom that Silk met Teja, a healer's apprentice living in Ilá's capital city. Where at first confusion reigned quickly fascination followed, then love blossomed between the unlikely couple. When Silk was recalled a month later he was conflicted but in the end indoctrination won out. He returned to Chu both happier and more sad than before, but also for the first time in his life with a secret he kept from the cult. Over the next few years Silk used every opportunity to get assigned to Ilá and be with Teja as long as his missions allowed. By the time his daughter Leah was born he had already stopped thinking about the split loyalties inherent to his situation, aided by the lucky circumstance that the two absolutes never met in outright conflict. In any case, the days he could spend with Teja and Leah were his happiest, an entirely new dimension added to the life of efficiency, the only joy of which was in an assignment well done. This state of affairs could have continued for a long time if Silk's superiors hadn't become - perhaps inevitably - suspicious of the all the time their star pupil was spending abroad. Convinced after covertly investigating the situation that he'd become ensnared by their opposite agency's trap they send a full cell to 'resolve' the matter.

And so when Silk returned to Teja's house one evening he found her lying dead in her bed, the shadows full of cold, judging eyes and Leah simply gone. From the moment of realization to his former colleagues' attack it was barely a second, but in that second his world burned to the ground and shattered into pieces along with all the faith in the cult he had left. His silent cry of pain  vow of retribution for this injustice might have been enough to make Harama frown, but is wasn't she who heard it. Instead Silk was heard by Sol Invictus himself who smiled his perfect smile and in an instant derailed destiny's carefully laid plans. The cell assigned to Silk's liquidation died within seconds of the eruption of shadowed golden light, within a week much of the cults command structure was annihilated and Leah was the first child in decades to be freed from their clutches. Silk might even have gone after Harama herself, hat he known how to find her. After ten days only scattered cells of the once mighty cult remained and the kingdom of Chu had lost its most potent weapon against the now invading armies of Ilá, in whose wake traveled a Wyld Hunt. Now beyond caring for such things Silk along with his daughter left the falling kingdom behind and began his flight, choosing the East as his destination just as Sari One-Hand had done years before.

Several months ago, just after leaving Nexus behind him, Silk realized to his horror that among the things he'd tried to teach to Leah were not only some of the basic lessons that he himself had received from the instructors of the cult but also part of their indoctrination. His motives had been entirely noble, namely to help her remain beneath notice and keep up the disguise hiding the two of them from possible pursuers. But hidden among the simple techniques had been the roots of mental shapings that were the very reason he had fought to keep her away from the cult. Concluding that his own upbringing and one-sided education made him ill-equipped to be a good father without help from others and in fact even dangerous to be around too much - especially if he was indeed still pursued or if he started implementing his more ambitious plans - he searched long and hard for a good foster family for Leah. Finally he found a family in the city of Northeast Spoke that had already taken in one foster child to raise among their own children and appeared (in background checks and shameless spying) both compassionate and just. Although he visits her often it was a painful move for both of them, but Silk is certain that it will be for the best.

==Personality==
Seven positive words: Controlled, patient, determined, cautious, worldly wise, clement, hopeful.<br>
Three negative words: Mistrustful, egoistic, a murderer.
==Goals and Motivations==
In order of scope from smallest to largest:<br>
1. ''"For my daughter I want a better life than the one I've had. I will look out for her."''<br>
2. ''"I didn't ask to become one of the Wretched but it certainly has proven useful. Until I can be sure that I can trust this power however, I will have to investigate its nature and origins. Know yourself, control yourself - I will allow no demonic force to claim mastery over me."''<br>
3. ''"Wherever you look the people in charge are cruel bastards that delight in fighting wars over nothing. Sometimes even the gods themselves who really should know better play at being kings, crushing mortals underfoot. This has to stop. Now I see two possible solutions to this mess: Either we find a good and sensible ruler for every throne or we find one just man with the right ideas and sit him down on all of those thrones. One way or another we shall have peace."''

==Quotes==
''"An assassin lives efficiency, he kneels before necessity and his credo is discipline."'' 

''"In this whole world I trust only one person fully but that doesn't mean I can't like you or even call you 'friend'."''

==What the other characters have learned about him==
The man calling himself Gavane is of the quiet and serious kind. Not that he doesn't appreciate a good joke, but a smile is all he usually permits himself. From bits and pieces he has mentioned you've gathered that he used to be some sort of spy or assassin down in the South and left behind a life in ruins when he came to the Riverlands to make a fresh start. Whatever happened, it seems to have left him with a strong negative opinion of about 99% of all people calling themselves kings, princes, empresses, emissaries or otherwise being in charge and ruling over others. Gods meddling in mortal affairs is a another matter he seems to feel strongly about.<br>
He has a daughter of about five years who now lives in Northeast Spoke with a foster family and he is more than a little overprotective of her, going so far as to keep her location a secret. The almost frightening intensity he displayed during the operation against the Barrow King probably stemmed in part from the threat - however tenuous - to her. For all that he keeps some of his secrets close to the chest he has been one hundred percent dependable in the time you've known him, though.<br>
Gavane's most pronounced skill is that of moving in silence and unseen. Even walking in plain sight his movements can baffle the eye and keep him unnoticed. He is also a master at disguising himself, a quite convincing actor and handy with a set of lock picks. In combat he prefers to strike with surprise on his sight, using knives or a strange contraption that looks like a length of rope with razor blades set into it in an arcane pattern. His weak point is the arena of diplomacy and negotiation, where he prefers to either stay in the background or to condense matters down to cold logic and hard facts letting people draw their own conclusions.
==XP==
XP gained: 9<br>
XP spent: 0<br>
XP unspent: 9

XP spending plans:

BP used: Abilities 9 + specialties 3 + virtues 6 = 18 (still working on it)
==Miscellaneous==
===The Nameless Weapon (Artifact 3)===
''Starmetal bladed rope, Spd 4, Acc +5, Dmg +7, Def -2, rate 4 (including Starmetal bonus)''<br>
''As clinch enhancer: Spd 5, Acc +4, Dmg +5 (P), Def -3, rate 1 -- 8m to attune for non Sidereals''<br>
There are no great legends attached to this unassuming weapon, no histories recorded even in the endless libraries of Yu-Shan. It is in fact not even much to look at - a simple piece of blackened rope of varying length without any hint of its magical nature or the threat it poses. And indeed only an Exalted master of the arts martial can coax more from it, awaken the subtle threads of Starmetal woven into its design. In the hands of such a master despite its humble appearance it becomes a weapon no less dangerous than a daiklave. This is accomplished by taking on the respective destinies of other kinds of weapons at the moment of impact - a hammer to deliver blunt trauma despite it's lightness, the destiny of a blade to cut without an edge or that of a spear to pierce armor without a point. It is a strange sight indeed seeing this weapon employed.<br>
One benefit of this peculiar modus operandi to those engaging in subtle operations is that the wounds left by it can point to any kind of weapon its wielder can imagine. It can even kill without leaving any mark at all. Who would suspect foul play when there are no signs of a violent death and who would halt the man carrying a rope when a murder victim was obviously cut by a heavy blade? A second power of the Nameless Weapon, one that isn't immediately obvious yet particularly dangerous, is that those slain by it are destroyed entirely, just as if the Ghost-Eating Technique had been used on them (though with none of the other benefits of that Charm). Finally it can also be used in the way its appearance suggests, in which case it follows the intent of its user almost as if alive, changing its length seemingly without limit and even moving on its own, granting its wielder four automatic successes on every non-combat action for which a rope is of use.
===Crimson Dance of Shadows Style===
This little known sister style to the Ebon Shadow Style takes a similar approach in its emphasis on stealth and misdirection and indeed shares many techniques with it. It is not known, whether this style is the result of a different Exalt's deal with Five Days Darkness, an attempted improvement, plagiarism or perhaps a precursor to the much better known Ebon Shadow Style. Below will be noted only those techniques that are markedly different from their equivalents.<br>
Form Weapons for the Crimson Dance of Shadows Style are the lowly knife as well as fighting chains including bladed ropes, a weapon which few outside the practitioners of this style employ.

'''Shadow Dancing Concentration'''<br>
'''Cost:''' 2m ; '''Mins:''' Martial Arts 2, Performance 2, Ess 2; '''Type:''' Reflexive <br>
'''Keywords:''' Combo-OK, Obvious<br>
'''Duration:''' One Scene<br>
Initiates of the Crimson Dance of Shadows Style begin by learning a special form of dance, one that is performed not by them but by the shadows they cast against a wall. The extreme flexibility and body control this requires make the art of the Shadow Dance a valued instrument in the training of assassins even in this day when few remember the greater arts that it is a part of. A true initiate has learned to contort and control his limbs to a degree that is nearly superhuman, but more impressive still is his ability to guide and shape his shadow even in ways that seem contrary to nature, making them the true masters of this dance.
An initate invoking the Shadow Dancing Concentration gains 2 additional dice to actions that require bodily flexibility (like slipping out of handcuffs or through a tight space) and 4 additional dice to Performance (Shadow Dance).