Damned App

[kings_thief]

 

Name/Handle: Lysoke

Age: 18

Gender: Female

Timezone: Central Standard Time

Personal LJ: Lysoke

E-Mail: shapres@yahoo.com

AIM/Plurk: Lysoke

Is English your primary language?: Yes

 

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Series: Final Fantasy VI

Series' Medium: Video game

 

Character: Locke Cole

Age: 26/27

Sex/Gender: Male

Canon Role: Protagonist

"Real" Name: Alex Swanson

 

How long have you roleplayed your character, if at all?:

 I’ve role-played Locke for the past five months or so.

 

Where have you roleplayed in general and/or with this specific character?:

Locke is currently active in Vatheon rp and Utopia academy, he was also once in Route_29 as well as Zerodecim.

 

Are you personally familiar with your character's canon?:

Yes, I’ve played the entire game several times.

 

Please give us a personal history of your character's life and explain to us in detail how they grow and develop over the course of their canon:

Locke was raised in a small town called Kohlingen, with his mother and father. His father was a treasure hunter and would often tell his son about his adventures, nurturing the child’s love for the profession. However, Locke’s father died while he was still young and his mother died when he was a teenager.

While living in Kohlingen, Locke had a best friend, named Rachel; the two grew up together and she eventually became his girlfriend, and later, his fiancée. Rachel decided to accompany Locke on one of his explorations one day, because they happened to be looking for a jewel to use in an engagement ring. However, as Locke was crossing a wooden bridge, an earthquake shook the cave and the bridge’s support collapsed. Rachel pushed Locke onto the rocky ledge on the other side and fell with the bridge.

While Rachel survived, she had a severe case of amnesia and forgot all about Locke. Spurned by Rachel’s parents and Rachel herself, Locke left Kohlingen broken-hearted. A little while later, he was informed that the Empire had attacked his hometown and Rachel had been fatally wounded. Right before she died she remembered Locke, asking someone to tell him she loved him. This left him with severe guilt for ever having left her alone.

Due to this guilt, Locke swore never to leave the side of a woman in need. Locke became a traveler, going wherever he wanted when he wanted and “treasure hunting” for a living, following in the footsteps of his father. During his travels he became affiliated with a resistance group against the empire known as The Returners. Through them he met the young King of Figaro, Edgar, who became Locke’s closest friend.

Locke’s job for The Returners was to infiltrate the Empire for information on what it was doing and if it had any new weapons. While working with them Locke was given a job to find and help a young woman, with her own case of amnesia, Terra, who had defected from the Empire.

He promised to help her regain her memories, and took her to Edgar who helped them escape from their pursuers. At one point Locke is sent away on a mission to South Figaro, a town that had been taken over by imperial soldiers. While he was there he came across a woman who was being held captive. He rescued her and discovered she had been an imperial general but had begun to disagree with what the empire was doing; consequently they had imprisoned her for treason.

They escaped the town and the general, Celes, joined with the returners. Even at this point it’s evident that Locke has some feelings for Celes, but he doesn’t really pursue them at all because he is still trying to bring Rachel back. At one point Terra loses control of her powers resulting in Locke and the others needing to go to the heart of the empire, Vector. While there Kefka, the main villain, arrives and plants a seed of doubt in the others about Celes’ loyalty. She saves them by distracting Kefka and the soldiers, allowing the others to escape. After they get away Locke has guilt about doubting Celes, but is unable to focus on it due to their need to save Terra.

After saving her they are called in by the empire to work out a peace agreement. Part of this peace agreement is to visit a town and try to talk to the Espers residing nearby. Locke and Terra go on this mission and meet an imperial soldier by the name of Leo who is accompanied by none other than Celes who had been missing until this point. Locke tries to talk to Celes but she ignores him, and when she tries to talk to him the next day before they part ways, he does the same to her. It is, ultimately, the betrayal of the empire is what brings them back together. Their reunion is short lived however as they soon have to go to confront the emperor and Kefka.

 In a confrontation against Kefka, the team found themselves overpowered and they were defeated. Consequently, Kefka shifted the magical balance of the world and destroyed it, resulting in ‘The world of ruin’. The team escaped to their airship, but it was hit by a ray of light, a result of the magical imbalance, and it split in half; many of ‘The Returners’, Locke included, fell from the ship.

Locke, not certain what has happened to his friends, returns to his quest of finding the mythic treasure said to return lost souls. Later, Locke is reunited with Celes, Terra, Edgar, and the others in Phoenix Cave where he has discovered the Phoenix magicite, an esper who can supposedly bring the dead back to life. Locke takes this magicite back to  Kohlingen so that he can revive Rachel, whose dead body has been preserved and kept in the basement of the local herb specialist.

Locke uses the Pheonix magicite and Rachel does come back to life, but only for a few seconds, as the magicite was cracked and so not powerful enough for a full resurrection. Rachel tells Locke not to blame himself for her death, and to let go of his guilt, because she knows his heart now belongs to someone other than her. She dies, peacefully this time, and Locke is released of the guilt he carried with him for so long. This strengthens him emotionally and mentally, so he decides to rejoin the others and continue to fight to destroy Kefka. They regroup and attack the evil mage’s tower, finally defeating him and returning the world to its original balanced state.

Info on Final Fantasy 6: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Final_Fantasy_VI

Info on Locke: http://finalfantasy.wikia.com/wiki/Locke_Cole

 

What point in time are you taking your character from when he/she appears at Landel's and why?:

Locke is taken from right after the end of the game because at this point he is mostly over his guilt and he has become a better, more open person because of it, also, he will be pretty confident in himself and his abilities.

 

Please give us a detailed description of your character's personality:

Locke is very chivalrous and he cares deeply for his friends. He has got a loyal streak a mile wide and would rather die than betray someone’s trust. Consequently, when someone betrays him, he takes it very personally and is deeply hurt by it, though he might not express how deeply. While Locke’s profession is thievery, he calls it “treasure hunting” and takes great offense if someone calls it otherwise. Since Locke’s dad was a treasure hunter, Locke has developed this defense mechanism against the word ‘thief’ to protect his father’s honor and image.

 He loves to find new things and to hunt for items that are supposedly unreachable. Locke is very interested in challenges and will go for one if it is presented to him. Locke’s main bad habit is his general laid-back behavior and his blunt honesty, although, this is tempered by his happy-go-lucky attitude towards most things. While Locke has been guilty of brooding and being stuck in a bad attitude, he doesn’t like to remain that way for long and will try to find the silver lining of every situation.

His overprotective nature towards women could, and often is, mistaken for flirting even though it’s truly not. His attachment is nott limited to ladies; there are several men Locke would also protect with his life. Even if he has just met someone, he will protect them if need be due to his trusting and naturally caring nature.

At the beginning of the game, while Locke is very social and outgoing, he does keep his past to himself and avoids conversations that focus on his past. Similarly, he avoids explaining why he does things if they are connected to his past experiences, however, this doesn’t mean he gets defensive, instead he merely side-steps the issue. One thing about Locke’s personality that is revealed in the first half of the game is that when Locke is facing something strange, new, or unbelievable, he will take a moment to process, but then he just accepts it and moves on.

Part of the reason Locke avoids talking about his past is the painful memories of Rachel’s death. He feels guilt about what he sees as his failure not only as a lover and friend but also as a person in general. He had a constant mantle of guilt that he carries with him but hides from others in shame. This guilt begins to lessen when he meets Terra and Celes, their influence acting as a sort of balm for the wound. In the end though, it is Celes and his growing feelings for her that allows him to be freed from his mantle when Rachel releases him.

In the second half of the game, when Locke first meets the others he acts distant and detached, probably a combination of having been separated from them for so long and being focused on trying to revive Rachel. However once he does revive her, she relieves him of his guilt, he returns to the way he was before but a little more open and light-hearted. Locke is also more warm and caring towards Celes as he now no longer has to feel guilty about his feelings towards her.

When faced with a new person, Locke is very kind and caring towards them, acting almost as if he has met them before. While this might throw others off, Locke feels the best way to make a friend is to act as if they already are. Due to Locke’s thrown-together and often well worn outfit and his rough speech pattern of abbreviations and contracted words, many people take him as a simpleton with little education and few mental capabilities; although this is not true at all. Locke simply is not one for ‘pretty words’ and flowery language.

Please give us a physical description of your character:

Locke stands at 5’9” and has a lean physique. He has ash-blonde hair and brown eyes.

 

What kinds of otherwordly abilities does your character have, if any?:

The espers from his world granted him a decent amount of magical ability (considering he was not born with these abilities) which he has complete control over. The scope of these abilities includes offensive magic, such as fire, ice, and lightening spells, and defensive spells such as cure, barrier, reviving and other types of healing magic. Locke also has a couple of powerful spells, such as Ultima and Ragnarok.

If present, how do you plan to tweak these powers to make your character appropriately hindered in the setting of Landel's?:

Since he wasn't born with these powers nor was he genetically infused with them, they will simply disappear.

Does your character have any non-otherworldly abilities/training that surpasses the norm?:

His training and skills as a thief ensure he has great reflexes and speed. He is also skilled at breaking into any kind of physical lock and climbing nearly any surface.

What do you see your character doing in the scope of the game and how do you plan to use the setting of Landel's Institute to develop them and affect their psychology in a unique, interesting way?:

From Locke’s canon point he has got that ‘top of the world’ feeling and confidence that, if left unchallenged, could turn into arrogance. Bringing him to Landel’s would be a way to knock him off his proverbial high-horse. Another thing about Locke is that, even at 26/27 Locke has childlike tendencies, not to be confused with his happy-go-lucky attitude, that he would ‘grow out of’ for the most part and mature more. Bringing Locke to Landel’s would be a good test of his maturity and give him a chance to grow both emotionally and mentally. With Locke in Landel’s I want him to go through a sort of transformation where he realizes he is not as powerful by himself as he likes to think he is, but then develop the strength and maturity to become that strong.

 

I would also like to throw Locke somewhere more cramped and cage-like than he has ever experienced. Since Locke is used to being able to explore his whole world, cross fields, and climb Mountains, being cooped up in one building would definitely test and even break his patience.

 

Given that this RP takes place in an unsettling and outright horrific environment, how do you justify your character as being appropriate in both body and mind for this kind of setting?:

Locke has had to fend off horrifying and dangerous creatures in his own world; beings at Landel’s will not bother him much very much, initially. As for the events, he would handle most of them fine; he has seen his world get destroyed right in front of him. As for the others, finding out how he would respond is half the fun.

 

Third-Person Sample:

The warm sun on his face, the smell of spring grass in the air, the sound of birds chasing each other across the sky: that is what he’d gone to sleep with; relaxed, completely at ease in a world slowly healing from its previous devastation.

 

The peaceful field outside of South Figaro was not where he’d woken up. When they first opened, his eyes were assaulted by harsh lights, intensified by all the white of the room, and he could smell something sharp and nauseatingly chemical in the air. This wasn’t where he was supposed to be.

 

Leaping out of the bed that wasn’t nearly as comfortable as the grass he’d lay down in, Locke looked around, catching every detail and memorizing what he saw.

“Where….?”

He paused, looking at his bare hands and following his arm up to his shoulder and chest, realizing he wasn’t in his usual clothes, a quick pass with his hand across his forehead told him even his beloved bandana was gone. What the hell was going on?

The thief moved to the desk, looking it over, thoughts racing with questions, ideas, scenarios and theories. He could have been hurt while he was in the field; except the others wouldn’t have changed his clothes, at least, not into these atrocious things. The thought that this could just be some elaborate dream ran through his head, but he quickly dismissed it. Dreams made sense while they were happening, you believed everything going on, and this certainly didn’t make any kind of sense.

Locke was more than a little disappointed to find nothing in the room offered him any answers. It was pretty sparse; just a pair of beds and desks along with a book that, when opened, proved to be completely empty.

“What the hell is this place?”

The sound of the door opening caused Locke to jump and whip around; hoping Edgar, Celes, or one of the others would walk through the door and tease him for his jumpiness. There was no luck for him today. The person who walked in was a slight young woman in a white uniform, who grinned upon seeing Locke’s bewildered face.

“Oh, good, Alex, you’re up! Now, come on, don’t look at me like that, we don’t have time for it, you have to start your day!”

Usually Locke liked chipper, this time; however, his patience was wearing thin; he was not at all pleased about being confused or treated like a child.

“I’m sorry, you got the wrong guy, I don’t even know an ‘Alex’. Look, miss, I don’t know where I am, but could you tell me why I’m here?”

The nurse sighed and looked at him, disappointment tinged with impatience, in her eyes.

“Please, not today, we really don’t have time to waste, now come along.”

“I’m not going anywhere with you until you answer my question.” Locke crossed his arms and sent a glare the lady’s way, hoping to get his point across.

She sighed again, placing a hand to her head, almost as if she were trying to stave off a headache. “This is Landel’s Institute, Alex; you’ve been here for quite a while. Now, please, may we stop this silly charade and move along?”

                That wasn’t exactly helpful, but it was a start, information he didn't have before. He’d never heard of a place called ‘Landel’s’. He wanted to ask for more details, but he could tell from her tone and her body language that more questioning wouldn’t be taken very kindly. Well, he’d always gathered better information through observation anyway, might as well use the same techniques here. He decided to play along with this little game, for now anyway, at least until he could figure out what was going on and what this place really was.

“Of course, I’m sorry, miss, I was just teasing you; I didn't mean to be an annoyance!” He gave a small smile, mustering a look of apology.

The fake smile had the desired effect. Immediately the nurse brightened back up, every trace of annoyance leaving her expression. “Oh, Alex, you and your games. Well, it’s enough of that; let’s go join the others now.”

                As the lady turned and headed back out to the hall, Locke glanced once more at the room before following along into the equally white hallway. He’d find someone who’d tell him what was going on, perhaps he could find one of the others if they were in this crazy place too, and then he’d decide what he wanted to do.
 

First-Person Sample:

This place…there’s definitely something wrong here. I can feel it, and it doesn't take much to see it, but even beyond what I see, there’s something else, I just know it.

From what I’ve been told, all the fun’s at night, go figure. Guess I’ll have to wait around till then, for now, I think some prying may be in order. Can’t stand knowing nothing about this place…

 

I wonder how lax security is at night. Obviously the patrol during the day is way too tight, but, from my experience, no one tends to keep both eyes open at night. Either way, I’ll find something; these freaks can’t keep me locked up in this stupid cage forever.