Achidyemay wrote:Character Name: Olufemi Lutris
Animal: Sea Otter
Biographical Details:
Olufemi was born at the height of the Tyrantess' reign on the Isle de Barbarossa. Growing up he was a fun loving and adventurous kid, often getting in trouble on the merchant ships. When he was very young, Olufemi was pressed into his father's privateer company. He excelled. Olufemi became renowned for his affable and stong-willed temperament, often being extremely level-headed and serious while in command, but during time of relaxation partying it up without a care in the world. The "two sides of Olufemi" often surprised those who didn't know him, either not expecting the fun-loving, wise-cracking otter to be exacting and no-nonsense at the helm, or vice versa. As soon as was available, Olufemi was promoted to captain by his father and he spent the next few years protecting long haul freighters across the seas. He was in Llúdriga when the declaration of independence arrived and he spent the summer there, sabotaging the war fleet's best ships so that an adequate offensive couldn't be mounted. When the Barbarossa diplomats first arrived to begin to renegotiate trade deals, Olufemi rescued them from prison and organised a glass and wax trade ship for them all to ride home. After that ship arrived, trade relations began to normalize again.
When he returned home, he immediately signed with the Lutrinae Guard and served his father loyally, becoming an effective lieutenant. His creative solutions to problems often lead to a new way of doing things and he was the first to pioneer the snake spearing technique. He generally positioned himself in the front line and relied on his agility and acrobatic prowess, as well as the environment, to take down opponents. He believed strongly in acquiring knowledge and worked with the rodent shipwrights to understand ship designs and made many many friends wherever he went, always keeping his ears open to tips. He attributes his being alive today to his many friends and connections. His own ship was lost in the Third Walsh-Barbarossa Skirmish. Thankfully both he and his crew were as comfortable in the water as the rigging and were able to escape back to the island. He fought at the North fort during its siege and escaped through a small couch when the southwest tower began to fall. He was very sad to see his home burn to the ground and spent many days mourning its loss.
Swearing vengeance he convinced his friends within the Provocax family to join him. They knew the rivers better than any other otter family, and Olufemi spent a long time studying the waterways and habits of the other animals and their communities before launching his first offensive. It was against a small fishing vessel with connection to the Elapids, a powerful family within the snake caste, this was the first of many ships that he would sink. That family in particular, being the most powerful in the East, would face the brunt of Olufemi's rage. Olufemi was careful to establish a good relationship with their mouse slaves, a hard won effort since he recognized a few from the slave trade that he had defended only a few years prior.
When the Tyrantess started to turn her attention to the frequent attacks, Olufemi was forced into a bit of a retreat. His band hand to become much more careful and more of their time was spent constructing hideouts and planning attacks than actually doing any good. The effort payed dividends, however, as even during this time of high scrutiny, with crocodiles patrolling the water and the warning calls of the kingfisher, no one in his band was captured. Well, not for long anyway.
When Samuel arrived, Olufemi was keenly interested in how capable the mongoose adventurer may be. He heard his father had begun to serve as his adviser in the area and he was delighted to see estate after estate fall to his swift hands. While the open rebellion made him quite nervous, the chance that it may succeed and this dynasty may finally defeated was an alluring proposition. He made arrangements on three separate occasions to meet with Samuel, but had to cancel each time, once to avoid a raid and twice due to an unexpected shift in patrol that prevented his travels. They began a correspondence, however, providing support by cutting supply lines and destabilizing forts as Samuel lead the charge against the Eastern provinces. When the two finally met it was well after the siege of Fort Blacktree, one of the cobra strongholds and the heart of the Elapid family's holdings. It was a strong blow against the Tyrantess. As the fort was being garrisoned and in the down time between the next few days, Samuel trained Olufemi personally on fighting stances effective against snakes. Olufemi was tireless during these lessons, working hard to master the forms.
Despite greatly improving his effectiveness against the snakes, Olufemi preferred to work with the element of surprise on his side, and left Samuel weeks later, travelling west, ahead of the campaign, to rally the old Lutrinae Guard and smuggle information back to Samuel. When it was time to siege the capitol, Olufemi worked with the slave mice and his Marauders to scuttle ships in the bay and also along the rivers, posting his fastest men and women at critical junctions. Of the four Royal family members to escape, three were caught immediately. The whereabouts of Sala proved to be a mystery, much to Olufemi's disdain. Since then, tracking her down has been his prime goal in life.
It's been three years know and the trail has become very cold. Every vaguely mean or purple snake is reported to Olufemi as Sala and it's harder and harder to parse the growing conspiracy that Samuel missed one and the reality that he did. Olufemi knows the power of information better than most and respects the secrecy promoted by the council, but it does make his job harder. With each report growing more and more hopeless, Olufemi was preparing to throw in the towel, content to watch for mean snakes and not just this specific reptile. The report that crossed his path of Sala's return seemed to be just another story, but the specifics of the evidence were damning. News of her capture by the Birds of Prey was followed by yet another report of her evident escape and just a day later the council announced, albeit quietly, that it was calling a meeting of the disparate groups on the case. It seemed things were ramping up.
Equipment: Olufemi typically wears a sash around his waist and maybe one over his shoulder, securing his saber and a variety of small daggers around his body. Right now he's holding a bottle of rum and has three oysters and his stone in his arm sacks for later consumption.
Welcome to the RP, and the most recent IC post may be of some interest. Right now (as I gather you are aware) a meeting is being held. Also great way to weave your character into the world.