Pakoosha

[Pakoosha]

Pakoosha Basic Information Race: Chaktawe Birthday & Age: 11th day of Spring, 492AV. Gender: Male Physical Description Pakoosha stands at a lanky long-legged 5'11, and weighs a deceptive 183lbs. A large part of this weight is made up by the dense water-storing organ specific to Chaktawe, but anyone ignorant of that fact would be quite surprised by just looking at the lithe willowy young man. He has what can most easily be described as a runner's body, very little put to waste so that nothing would slow him down while running on the sands of the desert. Some women have said he is attractive, but the majority find certain aspects of his life too unsettling to closely befriend him. Like all Chaktawe, his skin is coppery and his hair is a glossy jet black that matches his long-lashed eyes. It is worn long and straight in the back, but his bangs are braided into thin cords that hang down to frame his face. These braids are twined with reddish beads made from hardened clay and various small animal bones(though there is always some whispered gossip that they may be little human bones) at uneven intervals, which gives his normally warm and friendly face a strangely contrasting macabre look. Two long raven feathers are tied/stuck into his hair in such a way that they lay flat on the inside of his ears and point back horizontally. Marking him of the Kalanue tribe, he paints a thick band of black paste in a stripe just below his eyes. His clothing consists of a shawl that is made mainly from the pelts of the Eypharian Jackal and sewn with bird feathers, one for every year of his age and varied in species. He wears a slitted wrap about his legs, stitched together from tanned goat skins and worn comfortably baggy. Overall, he gives off something of a shamanistic tribal look, but he's a pretty nice guy underneath. Character Concept Pakoosha of the Kalanue is a nice person, good with children, and motivated. The females of his family happen to be of the Aybala bloodline, and as such he has grown up around a great many occasions for telling and hearing stories. Obviously, being a man, he was never taught the sacred stories and histories of his tribe, but even still it would have been difficult to grow up in such a family without some not-insignificant love of storytelling. He is prone to making up silly, perhaps even childish, parables and folksy tales complete with a moral lesson. Being Kalanue meant a great deal of running after goats and bartering with Benshiras. Pakoosha has always been more adept at the latter, preferring to deal with people rather than stubborn goats. It is important to him to solve matters peacefully, to compromise and come to agreements, and this has made him into a very easy person to talk to. He is not much of a fighter. Perhaps the most important aspect of his personality and how others view him involves his key pursuit: Spiritism. The people of his tribe call him a healer, or a barterer, but all his titles are more there to avoid talking about his spiritual interests. More accurately, Pakoosha is a Spiritist. While the Chaktawe are not so disturbed by his practice as some other races might be, it does not mean Pakoosha is treated the same as everyone else. Character History The day Pakoosha received his name was the same day his sister was born, after trying to get her to stop crying by making funny faces. He was only four years old then, but his harmless nature was already apparent. As a boy, he followed along by his father to learn the way of the Chaktawe, the way of the Kalanue, and the way of the desert. It's debatable how well he succeeded at learning any of them, though. From then till his Searching, Pakoosha was unfocused and flighty. As the Chaktawe would put it, he wasn't worth his water. The things he found interesting were not the things that one could make a life out of doing, they were just childish fancies that were allowed but not encouraged. A life of tracking down goats and arguing with shepherds was the one he was expected to get used to, but they did not resonate with the peculiar boy. The start down the path to Spiritism was not as complex or mature as one might expect, rather befitting the more simplistic ways of Spiritism itself. It is also the part of a story Pakoosha tells to the children of his tribe, when appropriate... A young boy named Pakoosha grew attached to a certain bowbacked goat of the family's cattle. He fed the goat some of his food, and his father told him, "Pakoosha, you will regret this when your own belly goes empty and his grows too full!" but the boy did not listen. The next day he decided to name the goat Pookoo, and his father warned him that he would regret it when the goat was gone but the foolish boy did not listen. Days later the goat grew fatter than the rest of the herd due to Pakoosha's treats, and he was attacked and killed by golden wolves. The boy cried and cried, and finally Pakoosha's father consoled him, "Pakoosha, do not cry. Pookoo will remember your kindness wherever he is now, and perhaps will watch over you like your very own goat guardian!" The father was a wise man, but this was a foolish thing to say. About there he usually ends his story with a cryptic smile. The true story begins very much like that one, starring a Pakoosha of barely 13 years that befriends an ill-fated goat. The end, however, is not the sort of thing easily told in a children's story. After losing his pet and having the idea of a spiritual goat guardian watching over him implanted into his head, Pakoosha grew intensely interested in all things spiritual. Where did the Guardians that aided his people come from? How did they exist? Where did people go when they died? Did they exist in this world similar to the Guardians? He first dabbled in true Spiritism more by accident. The intense interest became such that it attracted a ghost on one dark night, a ghost that took upon itself to possess the unconsciously 'open' and willing boy. Luckily for Pakoosha, the ghost was a benevolent sort that was merely lonely and looking for a friend. Pakoosha was happy to fill the role, and he managed to learn a surprising amount about ghosts from the encounter. After that night, his eyes were open to a future of something greater than goats and sand. After his Searching, his interest in the afterlife was only intensified. In the span of a few short years he turned from a lazy indecisive boy into a driven young man, a man with a purpose. The people of his tribe were not precisely enthused by his choice, but they could not help but admire his dedication and ever-present ability to make people smile. It was accepted, if not talked about too loudly, and it turned out that there were skills a Spiritist had that coincided with the interests of the people. Knowledge of basic herbs and medicine, keen negotiation skills, and sharpened wits are now what he publicly gives back to his tribe, but his true pursuit will always be Spiritism. Language Tawna - Fluent Common - Basic Shiber - Poor Training (Skills, Arcana, Gnosis, Lore) Camouflage: 10(RB) Spiritism: 25(SP) Negotiation: 10(SP) Herbalism: 10(SP) Medicine: 5(SP) Flora of Eyktol(SP) Dummy's Guide to Ghost-Whispering(SP) Equipment and Possessions Wears: -Animal pelt shawl -Lots of feathers owns: -1 medium tent -large tarp -100 ft of rope -lantern -2 torches -bedroll -blanket -Set of Clothing (cloak/coat & footwear included) -Waterskin -Backpack which contains: -1 Set of Toiletries (comb, brush, razor, soap) -Food for a week -1 eating knife -flint & steel Ledger 600gm Thread List