Tavoy Haru

Fields of the UnDamned
Agent of the Court of the Silver Censer

Description


~A young-looking man of Malaysian origins swaggers across the gray earth and asphalt. Tavoy is donned in a black jacket, white undershirt, and baggy blue jeans. He wears dark blue Adidas and a gold chain around his neck. Now and then a pair of silver-rimmed glasses rest on the light brown skin of his smooth and serious facial features. Sometimes, in the right light, one can see striating patterns of white cutting through the grays of his ghostly face, as well as the exposed neck and hands, like tiger tattoos. Tavoy is a very animated spirit, moving without regards to the fact that he’s dead. Though swift and lively, he is checked especially by the stark reminder of his demise. Just under the jacket, a bullet-sized tear rips through his white t-shirt: right where his heart would be.~

OOC: Appearance 3 (effectively 4 when materialized); Notoriety 1

"The line between life and death is not black and white. I'm not dead and I'm not alive. It's up to me to choose how to spend this continuation of my existence. I'll face Eternity when it truly calls me and not before."

History


Life

Tavoy Haru remembered Singapore being a city of bright colors he wasn’t allowed to really gawk and smile and point at. He remembered his parents always shuffling their little boy along to get home. When his little brother, Bohru, was born when he was five, the Haru family decided to move out of Singapore. His folks wanted him and his brother to have a good start in life. So they moved to America.

In pursuit of a promised business consultant job, his father brought Tavoy and his family to Kansas City’s small Little Asia district. But the business went bankrupt and the job offer fell through. Tavoy’s father ended up pumping gas and his mother had to go to work at a Chinese laundry. They could afford to live only in the slummier part of Little Asia. Tavoy and Bohru lacked proper parental guidance, to say the least.

So growing up with exhausted and short-tempered parents, Tavoy and his brother swore a secret oath together. They promised each other that they would never live their lives the way their parents did. They would become successful businessmen. The problem was that school was pretty pointless in those neighborhoods. In fact, school was more of a breeding ground for all sorts of petty crime. It proved no safer or compassionate than the time Tavoy spent on his home streets. As he became a young teenager, Tavoy began to engage in minor crimes along with his buddies: vandalism, assault (of classmates), and petty theft.

But by Tavoy’s late teens, he was dealing drugs -- crack namely -- right in the alleys of Little Asia’s slums. He and his friends were dealing only a couple blocks from his home, no less. All went well for the first year. He made great money, even when he refused to sell to anyone under the age of fifteen. So Tavoy thought he was doing well on making good on that oath he swore years ago. His success enabled the youth to put cash aside, and he pondered quitting before he was too in so deep he was a dealer for life.

Death

Yet then Little Asia grew a little bit more, and with growth came gangs -- real gangs. His ragtag group was put of business permanently when a transplanted tong took over their turf. The “hostile takeover” involved six mix-matched crack dealers and five SMG-toting tong soldiers. Tavoy managed only to fire a couple rounds off from his .45 handgun before taking a bullet clean in the heart. Ironically, he fell only a couple weeks after he promised his younger brother he would quit. He even wrote a letter of repentance he intended to give his parents.

And with Tavoy’s death, his parents learned of his lifestyle. Justifiably disturbed, ashamed, and angry, his parents had little to do or say about Tavoy’s end. He was buried in the cemetery near his three pals. That was that. Bohru still loved his brother still, and he revisited Tavoy’s grave a few weeks later. The letter Tavoy wrote was buried in the earth near his urn. His hope for redemption ended with his life...so it seemed.

However, Tavoy’s existence did not end there. When he died that day, everything faded to black. All he could remember was inky darkness and there were also vague sensations of pain. Then he remembered hearing his parents weeping and he realized the agony he felt was not his but theirs. For apparently a month, Tavoy lay in his Caul. One long, dark dream lasted for weeks. And then there was a cold splash of water in his face -- perhaps the ectoplasmic fluids of his Caul as it was cut open by a Reaper party.

Unfortunately, it was a Slaver party taking advantage of the local chaos of the necropolis. In 1989, the Hierarchy’s influence was waning. Fighting spectres and Renegades constantly, the Stygians were steadily being routed from the city. In the loss of authority, many wraiths capitalized. Tavoy and five other Enfants were Reaped from the same cemetary -- three of which were members of the old drug gang and Tavoy’s pals in life. Confused and in anguish because of the transition from life to death, the four man Slaver party easily subdued and shackled the new ghosts. They were driven at sword point down the necropolitan back roads.

Concrete Shadows

For two days, the group was pressed through the outskirts of the dead city. But they were strong and rebellious young wraiths, and the head Slaver was overconfident and undermanned. Though manacled in Arcanoi-preventive chains, the half-dozen soon-to-be Thralls rose in revolt. The three guards and Slaver were beaten mercilessly into Harrowings. Many Relics were recovered -- and new ones taken. The chains were loosened, even as Tavoy delivered the final blow that sent his would-be Slaver into his own personal hell. A solid kick to the head followed Tavoy tearing the man’s glasses off his face, cursing him in Malay. Though most of the escaped Thralls took a few injuries themselves, including a slight puncture in Tavoy’s shoulder from a soulsteel sword, they all escaped the forges that day.

The six Enfants fled back the way they came, skimming through that Little Asia cemetery, holing up in their home district. There they spent the next two years weathering the guerilla battles between Renegades and Stygian forces. They learned the in’s and out’s of the afterlife, developing Arcanoi, Passions, and protecting one another’s Fetters. It was Tavoy’s idea to form their own gang of so-called Renegades. Calling themselves the Concrete Shadows, their only interest was to protect one another’s freedom and property from autocratic assholes and barbaric anarchistic thieves alike. They stayed in the slums of Little Asia’s Shadowlands, learning who and what to avoid. All six wraiths were interested in more than simply existing and creating material wealth (of a fashion) in the Underworld. They sought loftier purpose, particularly in making amends with living relatives. Tavoy was the most avid supporter of defending one another to make such goals possible.

Then in 1991, the necropolis’ Renegades, with certain Guild members, was unified to oppose the Hierarchy once and for all. The Concrete Shadows were invited and encouraged to join the rebellion. Tavoy voted for its support all the way, and so the Concrete Shadows went to war. They took orders handed down from the mysterious Mask, the leader of the coup. On the frontlines where the Shadowlands of Little Asia met Little Italy, the gang faced off with a unit of Stygia militia. Fierce and passionate, the Concrete Shadows broke the unit that outnumbered them two to one with a wild charge that inflicted injury but no serious casualties. The unit broke and fled; they were just citizens forced to serve in the Legion anyway.

Nevertheless, with that accomplishment the Concrete Shadows made a name for themselves in the recent annals of necropolis history. The gang retreated to their Little Asia Shadowlands. Once more they began to pursue personal desires, particularly involving the living. For several years, they remained together primarily out of interest of mutual protection from enemies. Gradually, the gang was growing apart as personal goals directed their attentions more and more to the Skinlands.

For Tavoy’s part, he spent a lot of his time observing his family. He even tried to manifest to his brother, now growing into a young man himself. But Tavoy found he couldn’t do much except freak Bohru out, who later pretended he never saw the ghost of his brother. That, or subconsciously ignored and forgot the incident. It bothered Tavoy that he could only invoke fear in his loved ones, so he struggled hard to improve his Embody skills.

Sadly, in 1997 tragedy struck Tavoy’s family again. Bohru began to follow his brother’s footsteps, and though he lived into his mid-20s, Bohru ended up being shot and killed, too. His parents, now heartbroken, buried their second and last child. Bohru never made the crossover to the Underworld, for which Tavoy was glad (and to a degree, disappointed). But seeing his parents’ misery, Tavoy made a personal oath to regain their love and pride. He promised himself to work hard on somehow making his parents appreciate their son, to forget his mistakes, and realize that he still loved them and prayed for their love, too. It would certainly not be easy, particularly since Tavoy had no proper tutor in Arcanoi that could help make those dreams come true. Indeed, perhaps because of his cultural heritage, old and ingrained superstitions, or just his own beliefs, he found he had an easier time piercing the Shroud at night.

But things changed completely in Little Asia around 1999. A contingent of samurai-like wraiths arrived to the district. Rumor had it that they were agents of the Fist of Nippon. Though worried at first, they watched as the contingent paved quite efficiently through the kuei, spectres, and hellraiser anarchists and Renegades. They earned the freewraith populace’s trust, restoring a sense of long-lost order (if not law) in the area. And once their place was secure, they remained as nothing but vigilant protectors. The Concrete Shadows were put at ease. And while minor Maelstroms still occasionally tore through the necropolis and disrupted afterlife, overall violence had dropped immensely in the district of Little Asia. The need for the Concrete Shadows dissipated completely and so the gang disbanded. This proved an inevitable end, as some of the wraiths’ living relatives moved out of Kansas City.

So soon only two of the original six remained: Tavoy and Paul Hsu. But Paul stayed only because he had nothing left. His mother died from cancer. Paul slinked off to another part of the necropolis, leaving only Tavoy in Little Asia. He kept a low profile. He was never much of a rabble-rouser anyway, so the Fist of Nippon ignored his presence. He spent most of his time haunting his bereaved, overworked parents, pondering fruitlessly ways to make it all up to them. Tavoy began to study theology and philosophy, listening to sagely wraiths who sat around in the middle of the street, preaching to whoever would listen.

Responsibility

Gradually, Little Asia’s Shadowlands became more and more organized. With that sense of order came greater stability and peace. Tavoy felt more confident about practicing and honing his Arts. He could finally manifest in the Skinlands in a form not unlike how he once was. He just needed to figure out a way to work that into plan to please his parents -- simply appearing before them and apologizing would do more harm than good, he wagered.

In time, his Arcanoi skills became known to a member of the Fist of Nippon in early 2003. This leading member, Semaisen Shiro, approached Tavoy several times. He was invited to help the Restless of the district maintain their freedom and this sense of peace. From Shiro, Tavoy learned of a wraith “Court”, the Court of the Silver Censer. Knowledge of the Coalition of Little Asia followed and he heard of the alliances between shen in Little Asia. Finally, Tavoy agreed to serve in the Court as a liaison between Eastern and Western ghosts in the necropolis of Kansas City. In exchange, Shiro agreed to help tutor the Lemure in Arcanoi to help accomplish his personal goals. Bearing that promise in mind, Tavoy began to earn his keep in service to a higher cause.

The P'o


Tavoy’s Shadow is sly. It wheels and deals, patiently looking to screw Tavoy over in an unfair negotiation. Tavoy’s search for enlightenment through religion and philosophy annoys his P’o greatly. It constantly tries to distract him by pushing him to fulfill Dark Passions, even if his most commonly fulfilled Dark Passion could also charge his Psyche’s Passion. It once tried to nudge Tavoy along a political agenda, when he was involved in the Concrete Shadows gang. When that dispersed, his Shadow despaired, but the Court of the Silver Censer provides new possibilities it has yet to explore.

Artifacts & Relics


Balisong
Type: Relic
Level: 3
Origin: His favorite urban weapon in life, this relic manifested with Tavoy when he was Reaped.
Description: This is just a balisong (butterfly knife). The two part, hollow handle is a chrome-like material, and has a faint green coloration. It has been mistaken for True Jade in the past.
Effects: Stab and slash stuff.
Pathos: Relic: 0; #1: 0
Activation: Flip it out, just like a real balisong.

Wiseman's Spectacles
Type: Artifact
Level: 2
Origin: Torn from the face of his would-be Slaver, Tavoy acquired this Artifact not long after his Reaping and sequential capture and escape. He doesn't know where it came from originally, but it seems to be made of finely-smelt and shaped soulsteel.
Description: These are just standard, silver-rimmed eyeglasses.
Effects: 1) enhance Hidden Sight ability of a wraith's Sharpened Senses
Pathos: Artifact: 0; #1: 1
Activation: The glasses must be worn and Pathos consciously fueled into them; this also supersedes the need to spend Pathos to activate Hidden Sight.

Significant Other


In July of 2006, Yumiko of the Fist of Nippon arrived to Little Asia, Kansas City. Tavoy and Yumiko were both patrolling the Shadowlands district and ran across each other. Tavoy affably introduced himself to the attractive wraith. He gave her the tour of the city, making sure they hit a couple Haunts that were packed with fun and action. She soon warmed up to the former Renegade. Finding that their past and present ran similar parallels, the pair bonded swiftly. Tavoy encouraged Yumiko to explore and enjoy her feelings, and the two were hooked up ever since.

But eventually, around 2008-09, Yumiko grew bored with Tavoy’s religious self-focus. They drifted apart as he remained intent on himself, on Transcendence. Though he missed their time together, making things right for himself came first.

Yumiko

Weakness
Dictum This!


Tavoy has little respect for authority. More accurately, Tavoy has no regard for specific rules that the authority would enforce. For example, the idea that certain powers are restricted is simply idiotic to Tavoy. If they aren't supposed to be used, why do the Restless even have them? Tavoy's disdain for autocracy is apparent in his occasional recalcitrance in Court matters. It may one day get him in a lot of trouble. The veritable anarchy of the necropolis won't last forever.

Likelihood of Corruption


Average.

Tavoy doesn't go bouncing around in the Tempest. But like any wraith, he is subject to corruption from within as well as from without. Doppelgangers and other forces can always plague his still vague search for Transcendance.

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