Jen Lai

(Pic drawn by Starsong.)

--Name: Jen Lai di Ranshael
--Sex: Female
--Age: 28

--Position: Former member of the Brotherhood of the Blade, last of the House of Ranshael, leader of its clan, and all-around loose cannon ;o)

--Appearance: Tall and slight, with dove-grey feathers and blue-black hair that falls to her knees but is usually worn twisted up, most of the time in a simple bun but in complicated styles for special occasions. Her face is almost always serious, calm, and neutral. Only her dark blue eyes change with her emotions, and only someone who knows her can tell. She stands confidently, and there's something about her that implies that she's very, very dangerous.

--Attire: Almost always deep blue and silver, as those are her House colors. Her battle gear consists of a dark blue, high-collared and sleeveless bodysuit and sometimes a long black cape with a silver clasp. She wears her sword slung across her back and her shield dagger at her waist. They usually the only weapons visible, though they are seldom the only ones she carries. When dressing casually she wears mostly silk chinese-cut shirts and dresses. She has rather expensive taste, actually, but pretty much gravitates toward clothing that reminds her of what she used to wear back in Gacia.

--Accent: Gacian (Asian)

--Personality: She's very formal and usually cold, particularly around people she doesn't trust. Jen Lai was brought up in a position that demanded strict emotional control and discouraged public displays of any kind of emotion. After joining the Brotherhood, Jen Lai carried that emotional control to such an extreme that she appeared to have no feeling at all, besides a deep-burning anger that flashes in her eyes and usually ended in a fight. However, Jen Lai is a deeply passionate woman, throwing herself heart and soul into everything she puts her mind to. Half-way, to her, is failure. She was taught that showing such passion and emotion reveals a weakness to your enemies, and therefore to let that side show only in the presence of her closest friends. Unfortunately, Jen Lai has lived for years surrounded by those she saw as dangers and enemies, and finds it very difficult to let down her guard at all any more. She is slowly warming again, now that she is back in a supportive environment and fighting for a cause that touches her honor, but remains controlled and closed off in many ways.

--History: Jen Lai rarely speaks of it to anyone. She considers it a private matter and in the Houses, private matters remain private. She is one of the last surviving members of the House of Ranshael, one of the four Great Houses that has ruled Gacia since before the time of DuCaine. The Houses no longer wield political power over Gacia but remain figureheads and the common bond for all Gacians, a link to their past and traditions that most honor and revere. Ranshael was a largely aggricultural province, and the clan was made up mostly of farmers and artists. Crop failures and fire financially decimated the House and clan when Jen Lai was very young, and illness killed most of her family, leaving her, her mother, and a few cousins to fend for themselves. The clan's holdings were repossessed and most of their heirlooms sold to pay off their debts, including the house/palace that was their home. The remaining three Houses protested the treatment of the Ranshael, but were not heeded. Their influence had deminished greatly and most were too busy dealing with their own problems to bring any real pressure on the modern government. The House weapons master was one of those that went with Jen Lai and her mother, and he trained her to fight with the assumption that she would need the skills to get the House back on its feet some day. Jen Lai was relatively happy in Lencar, as happy as she could be under the circumstances. She was good friends with Kai di Lencar, the son and heir to the Lencar House, and she and what remained of her family lived comfortably there. When she was eighteen, her mother died, and her trainer advised her that it was time to take the next step in her life.
Jen Lai reluctantly left Lencar and joined the Brotherhood of the Blade, where she sent money back to her clan in the hopes that she would eventually steal enough to get the clan back on its feet. She also managed to steal back some of the heirlooms they had been forced to sell, and they were kept hidden by the clan at home. Jen Lai was warned to take care that she did not lose sight of her goal and her honor, and to remember that her new calling was a necessary evil, the means to an end and not an acceptable life choice. She found herself getting addicted to the thrill of the hunt, however, and it frightened her badly. She had always been calm and controlled, but she began shutting herself off even more from everything around her, isolating her emotions and locking them behind a wall of ice. Her only outlet was fighting and winning.
When the Saurians attacked, Jen Lai left the Brotherhood and returned to Gacia to defend her home beside her childhood friend Kai, who now led his House. She was kidnapped on Dragaunus' orders, since he had been informed of her rivalry with the young Blade leader Duke L'Orange and he believed she could be pursuaded to destroy him and the rest of the Ducks.
Jen Lai refused and escaped from the warlord, staging a break-in to catch the Ducks' attention and joining the team, though they had some reservations at first.

--Weaponry: A dagger that she uses instead of a shield, enamalled needles coated with a sedative that she wears in her hairare usually coated with a sedative. Her aim with these (and most anything else that can be thrown) is deadly. She also carries the Sword of Ranshael, the hereditary blade of her house, and prefers it to all else. She has a passion for blades of any kind, however, and collects them for more than just show. She's adept at concealing weapons on her person and often carries pieces from her collection with her, in case a need arises.

--Likes: Being left alone, quiet, calm, tradition, honor, and blades. She's fond of Nosedive, for some reason, and lets him get away with more than most as far as his attitude goes. She has a growing appreciation for Duke, now that they have come to an understanding, and considers him to be one of the few who can come close to understanding her.

--Dislikes: Cowards, thieves (ironic, seeing as how she was one), dishonor and anything that might cause it, scum in general, people with no regard for what is sacred to others.

--Other: She's a bit of an artist, mostly a painter, but rarely shows anyone her work.

--Overheard: "The Sword of Renshael serves the Mask of Drake DuCaine. As it was, so it shall be. By the blood of my ancestors I swear it."

"A queen without a land to rule is merely a woman living in the past."

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