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Aether Torrent
The following are the recurring and/or important "bad guys" in Aether Torrent, classified as such for being in opposition to Tori and company. All mugshots done by the lovely ASM.
Main Foes -- Secondaries -- One-Shots
Age: Unknown, upper-middle-aged
Element: Water, summoned through a Japanese katana sword.
Physical: Powerfully-built 7' tall navy-on-gray raiza female. Often seen in businesswoman attire such as suit-dresses.
History: Forty years ago, a younger Karrun took over the ancient polis East Granbridge and evicted the squatters and Elementist monks who had called it home. Years of modernization turned the ruin into the international headquarters of Nexus Division One, disguised as a powerful city-state under a powerful ruler. At some point in her tenure as archon, Karrun befriended a human woman who would die giving birth to Tori, whom Karrun trained in elementalism and raised as her own. When Tori returned home after a four-year, post-high-school tour, Karrun revealed that she was in fact "Cirein Cròin the Whale-Eater," an executive in the Nexus and the head of a massive organized-crime operation. That revelation, and Karrun's repeated attempts to murder Avani and Cirrus for harming the Nexus, drove Tori away from her. But Karrun's reach is as wide as the ocean...
Personality: A powerful objectivist mind in a powerful raizan body, intimidating at a glance yet outwardly polite. Under her congenial matriarchal aura lies a dangerous mastermind who would readily manipulate and murder if doing so would further her plans. Her greatest success has been rising to prominence while concealing her Nexus affiliation from the world and her own daughter.
Likes: Tori, roasted turkey, consorts, results, pineapples
Dislikes: Failure, being found out
"The question is
not
who is going to let me,
it is who is going to stop me."
who is going to let me,
it is who is going to stop me."
Age: Unknown, middle-aged
Element: Air, summoned through his body due to being an Air monster.
Physical: In his true form, a semi-feline creature called a wind tiger. His sharp-featured human form has all the perfectly common litheness of a male wind tiger, clothed most often in wide-leg slacks and a flight jacket.
History: Once Cirrus's husband, Levanter somehow talked his dear mate into sending their cubs away to be trained and educated by the most experienced handlers of elementalism in the world. He neglected to mention that those handlers were a mercenary army which made up an entire division of the Nexus, of which Levanter himself was a part. Years later, Cirrus and Levanter met again as Levanter launched the opening salvos of the war between Dorn and East Ragloa. Cirrus and her companions put a stop to his greater war plans, but enough damage had been done to satisfy him, and he flew off to parts unknown.
Personality: Much like other Nexus members, he obsesses over utility and allows nothing to get in his way. What sets him apart is his deviousness and a slight sadistic streak, made most apparent when he is at his most enthusiastic. His motivations about bringing his cubs into the Nexus are at the moment unclear, but presumably he wanted to increase their "usefulness."
Likes: Utility, airships
Dislikes: Uselessness, Cirrus
"Those who are
useless
do not deserve to live."
do not deserve to live."
Age: Unknown, visibly late 20s
Element: Water, summoned through his body due to being a Water monster.
Physical: An eleven-foot-long, jade-on-beige example of an Imperial Dragon, a species of aquatic dragons capable of taking human form. His human form is somewhere near six feet tall and a little too pretty by human standards.
History: Prince of the Eastern Sea, son of the Great Ocean King Ryujin, and part-time lover of many attractive males in the undersea kingdom of Ryūgū-jō and elsewhere. His title is traditional for the heir apparent of Ryūgū-jō and carries practically no duties, which frees him to indulge in royal excesses (mostly of the flesh). Though officially loyal only to himself, he is certainly not above working for others if it means access to new consorts. At that price he has been in the employ of both Karrun and Levanter, during which he fought Tori and company several times -- each time ending in a loss or a draw.
Personality: Being royalty, Youdai has always lived the high life, and like most Imperial Dragons he tends to be on the vain side, but not without due cause. He never hesitates to use his looks to get exactly what he wants. Despite that, he is quite loyal to his kindgom if not always respectful to his father. Until he inherits the responsibilities of ruling the ocean, he intends on having as much fun as he possibly can.
Likes: Doing what he wants, doing who he wants
Dislikes: Dirty clothes
"I am Prince of
the Eastern Sea. I will do as I please."
Age: 20s
Element: Water, summoned through a curved sword; Ice, on occasion, summoned through a bullwhip and his own belt.
Physical: Black-haired human male. Has a scar on his abdomen from a dire anteater attack and scars on his arms from a lion-wolf attack. Recently grew a chin-curtain beard.
History: A self-assured thief and former Caravan member. Not much is known about him other than his deep rivalry with Tori and apparent affiliation with Kurnung, having called himself one of "Kurnung's boys." An attack by Cirrus freed him and many other members of the Caravan from certain imprisonment or execution, whereupon he immediately pursued Tori and unsuccessfully tried to best her in combat on several different occasions. Events in East Granbridge landed him in prison, where Karrun took him on as an indentured servant rather than executing him.
Personality: Once Addanc's purpose in life was being useful to the Caravan. Now his purpose in life is to live -- dangerously free, free to do whatever he likes with only himself as a limitation. He can only stand working for Karrun for the very good reason of certain death if he ever becomes useless to her. He has a strong rivalry with Tori based on Tori having constantly one-upped him in the Caravan.
Likes: Winning, succeeding, victory
Dislikes: Tori, Karrun
[No picture available]
Age: Late 20s
Element: Unknown, presumably Fire
Physical: Lanky human male with long hair and a short beard, both brown. Wears a lab coat.
History: Largely unknown. He is an "elemist" by trade, one who studies magic's effects on biology. Tori's party found him in Sandward when they searched for a boat ride to Djittor, which he eagerly provided. In the events that followed, it was revealed that he is in fact Tatzelwurm the Sharp-Eye, second-in-command to the Beast of Fire and head of Nexus Division Three's experimental monster breeding program. Using an ancient aether-focusing structure, he began exposing aquatic creatures to concentrated aether and breeding them to create a monster. He succeeded beyond all expectation...
Personality: "Mad scientist" is an apt term, and occasionally literal. Sometimes he acts perfectly normal and even interesting, but sometimes, particularly when concerning the monster he created, he comes unhinged.
Likes: Monsters, monster-breeding
Dislikes: Delays
[No picture available]
Age: Unknown, early 30s
Element: None
Physical: A tall, hairy, muscular man in buckskin clothes. Can be mistaken for a Sasquatch at a glance.
History: Randall was an experienced hunter before joining the L-M unit managed by Rin. His mother alluded to "ten years of catching Tergaian alligator gars barehanded," but even that level of extreme physical fitness didn't make him invincible. As his unit traveled downriver with Tori and company, he grappled with Youdai underwater for an impressive few seconds before the dragon prince tore off his right arm. Still, Randall recovered from the injury surprisingly fast, and in a matter of days was fit enough to give Cirrus and even Karrun a thrashing.
Personality: Gruff yet not unintelligent, as evidenced by his undeniable fighting skill and occasional big words in his terse sentences. He is very loyal to the commands of those above him, most of all his mother.
Likes: His mother
Dislikes: Unknown
[No picture available]
Age: Mid-50s
Element: Ice, summoned through a manriki weighted chain weapon; later, Water, summoned through Rin's daggers.
Physical: A thin, fit woman with a long graying braid. Tends to wear conservative dresses.
History: "Randall's Mother" -- a name she prefers to "Mod" for reasons unknown -- was an experienced hunter before joining Rin's L-M unit. A formidable elementalist, Randall's Mother nearly defeated Tori and Naur by herself on different occasions, but an oversight toward the former and motherly mercy toward the latter halted her victories. At some point in the past she was romantically involved with the famous craftsman Gen Gikou Kameuji, a union which produced Randall.
Personality: Thoroughly professional with a matronly undercurrent, reflective of her position as nominal team leader. Nothing seems to phase her except injury to her son.
Likes: Randall, tea
Dislikes: Unknown
[No picture available]
Age: Unknown
Element: Fire, summoned through sharp-pointed rock hammers.
Physical: A 4' tall lurutt in a leather jacket, a neck bandanna, and some form of hat (preferably a fedora).
History: Before joining Rin's unit, Tarassas was an archaeologist who investigated ruins in monster-filled parts of the world. Though lurutts are not known for their elemental skill, Tarassas honed his Fire magic well enough to deal a devastating blow to Levanter's airship fleet when his unit and Tori's party arrived in Talus. When Rin ordered the unit to attack the party, however, Tarassas was the most reluctant and least successful member. Later, his knowledge proved indispensible at discovering the party's ultimate destination.
Personality: Unlike most lurutts, Tarassas makes an effort not to speak in third person and is mostly successful at covering his "lurutt accent" of repeated syllables. Unknown to most, he wants to be taken seriously as a scholar and fighter, which he finds difficult due to his ethnicity. As an L-M unit member he is highly capable, yet recent events have him doubting the full honesty of his boss.
Likes: Hats
Dislikes: The Taunting Wall
[No picture available]
Age: Unknown
Element: Earth, summoned through a mythril sledgehammer -- and later, a suit of full plate armor.
Physical: A muscular blue-on-white raiza wearing a tight green medieval tunic. Also seen in chainmail and a suit of articulated steel armor with mythril plates riveted in.
History: Reportedly a knight in a foreign kingdom before joining Rin's L-M unit, Green considers Rin his "lady" in the entirely unromantic sense of "the one to be obeyed." Green serves as the unit's "defense" member, as he was when Tori's party moved to steal Rin's cane.
Personality: Loyal, polite and generally "knightly" in demeanor, to the extent that he always speaks in iambic pentameter, even in short exclamations.
Likes: Chivalry, Rin
Dislikes: Uncouth behavior
[No picture available]
Ages: Unknown, middle-aged
Elements: Somer: Water, summoned through a long curved dagger. Rofun: Water, summoned through a scimitar.
Physical: Skinny yet toned gray-on-white raiza males. Twin brothers. Clothing varies.
Histories: Currently mostly unknown, aside from the fact that they are twins who came to East Granbridge five years ago. While Rofun maintains a respectable job as chief of police and serves Karrun by defending her city, Somer is little more than Karrun's driver, whipping boy and all-purpose lackey. Both brothers, however, are Karrun's trusted (and enjoyed) consorts.
Personalities: Loyal above all. Rofun is serious and stubborn, while Somer thinks and acts on the fly. Somer's impulsiveness and open eagerness to please Karrun occasionally gets him in trouble with, and punished by, Karrun herself. However, as a professional consort for a mistress as strong as Karrun, Somer is used to punishment. Whether or not he enjoys it is unknown.
Likes: Karrun, taking orders
Dislikes: Unknown
[No picture available]
Age: Early 30s
Element: Flora, summoned through a straight-bladed sword cane; also Water, summoned through curved daggers.
Physical: Bleach-blonde Japanese woman in a black suit-dress. 5' 3". Uses a cane topped with an octopus head due to physical frailty.
History: Rin is the wealthy owner of the Almahook City Airport and neighboring Blue Ring Hotel, and also the supplier for one of the Dornan army's autonomous elementalist (or "L-M") units. Such units are run by their suppliers to keep a safe distance from the overall army structure. This fact makes Rin all the more useful to the Nexus. Rin is in fact Karrun's "regional manager," Rin the Venomous, one of the individuals who allow Karrun to operate all of Nexus Division One from her remote city-state. At Karrun's order, Rin attempted to drive a wedge of suspicion between Tori and her party, but succeeded only in wounding Avani and Naur.
Personality: Professional yet congenial, known to spend time in her lush greenhouse and disarm people with self-depreciating humor. Her professionalism shows itself most strongly when in battle, as she wastes absolutely no time in putting down an opponent. She is incredibly skilled with Flora magic, to the point of causing deadly bacterial blooms by a single cut of her sword-cane. However, her skill comes at a price. Since Flora magic is Water plus Earth, and she is deficient with Earth magic, every time she uses Flora her body loses Earth magic -- meaning her skeleton becomes weaker. The fact that she would use it anyway shows she has a very strong will.
Likes: Flowers, art-deco, calcium supplements
Dislikes: Unknown
[No picture available]
Age: 50s
Element: None
Physical: A robber baron charicature with a big beard and bigger gut.
History: Became archon of the city-state of Meddon some time in the past, though what duties he has beyond throwing his weight around and living in obscene luxury are unknown. He picked up Avani off the street and brought her to his mansion with the intent of having his way with her, but the arrival of Tori and soon afterwards Kreutzet spoiled his plan.
Personality: Has an eye for the finer things in life and a stomach to hold them all. Gets what he wants all the time because he can afford it.
Likes: Massive wealth, corrupting young women
Dislikes: Losing treasures
[No picture available]
Age: Unkown, possibly in the 30s
Element: Air, summoned through a pair of nightsticks and a blackboard pointer.
Physical: Tall and thin human male with a hooked nose, pointy chin and very long blonde hair.
History: Kreutzet described himself as a soldier in the "East Ragloan Air Force" and as an "enforcer of the peace." He followed Avani to kill her for something she did in his homeland. After an unexpected defeat at Tori's hands, Kreutzet enlisted the help of local police to hunt down both of the girls. In the ensuing fight, Kreutzet attempted to kill Tori and failed.
Personality: Fiercely loyal to his nation and quick to strike hard yet wise enough to seek help in defeating a foe. A sadistic streak emerged when he tried to kill Tori by lung trauma.
Likes: Giving orders, going quickly for the kill
Dislikes: Unknown
[No picture available]
Age: Unknown, middle-aged
Element: Unknown
Physical: A typical gray-skinned raiza shark-man. Wore conspicuously conservative attire.
History: The boss of the Caravan, a black market trade group to which Tori was bound. Grampus saw worthwhile elementalist talent in Tori when she stumbled into his hideout an unknown number of years ago, so he let her live at the cost of her service. When he learned from Addanc of Tori's desire to leave, he broke her sternum without hesitation and prepared to break more. Avani fought him and saved Tori's life.
Personality: Tough and humorless, always putting profit first. His quickness to punish Tori for trying to leave suggested a violent temper behind his innocuous button-up shirt.
Likes: Profit
Dislikes: Disloyalty
[No picture available]
Age: Mid-30s
Element: Earth, summoned through six hammers concealed under his robe.
Physical: Human with gold-rimmed glasses and a dark green priest robe. His priestly collar is gold and a steel square with a gold dot in the center hangs around his neck.
History: Unknown, beyond being sent by the Nexus's Beast of Earth to reclaim the magical guitar Orfeo from Rilo M. Sawyer. Apparently he has pursued Rilo for some time and is loyal enough to the Beast of Earth that he attacked Cirrus and Naur on sight, mistaking them to be agents of the Beasts of Air and Fire. Like Avani, his body has somehow been treated with Earth magic to be extremely durable, such that he survived a direct bludgeoning upside the head with a steel ladder. Unlike Avani, he considers the god Teizen as the one and only great deity, not merely "the first among equals."
Personality: Fervently religious to the point of zealotry, but with enough self-control to somewhat temper his deep-seated beliefs in public and come off as trustable. Either his faith in his god or his pride in his strength, or possibly both, gives him such confidence that he will attack monsters head-on, yet he is intelligent enough to know when to retreat.
Likes: Teizen, preaching
Dislikes: Polytheists, monsters
[No picture available]
Age: Unknown, middle-aged
Element: Unknown, presumably Water
Physical: A typical gray-skinned raiza female with a pair of brass rings in her eyebrow. Wears nothing above the waist -- a moot point for indecency, considering raizan anatomy.
History: Leader of a small forest village which she runs as an organic production facility for carapite, the Water vessel material, and as an educational center for future Caravan thieves. She presumably came to that position by being the sister of Grampus, though whether or not the village was affiliated with the Caravan before her arrival is unknown. Addanc is apparently a former charge of hers.
Personality: As tough and profit-minded as her brother yet more compassionate about those in her care, in her own way. Almost pleasant to be around, if a little gruff, but her willing involvement in aiding organized crime suggests a dangerous inner spirit.
Likes: Profit, children, giant crabs
Dislikes: Adventure stories
[No picture available]
Age: Late 40s-early 50s
Element: Air, summoned through an aluminum bo staff.
Physical: Smooth-featured human male with brown hair graying at the temples. Wore billowing white and gray clothes.
History: Likely a young monk who took to following Karrun when she took over East Granbridge. He and five other "skyswimmers" were an elite Air-elementalist strike force deployable by Karrun or by Rofun with Karrun's permission. Somer tricked Rofun into dispatching them to kill Avani and Cirrus after Somer had failed to kill them himself. The Skyswimmer and his comrades nearly succeeded in crushing them in an air bubble while staying out of sight, but Avani and Cirrus broke free -- which made the Skyswimmer and his men perform a suicide attack.
Personality: Clearly fanatical, given his (and his men's) willingness to die. He defined his entire life by his usefulness as a skyswimmer. Defeat meant uselessness, so he simply saw no reason to live.
Likes: Unknown
Dislikes: Unknown
[No picture available]
Raróg
Age: Unkown, possibly in the 30s
Element: Air, summoned through a long pair of nunchakus.
Physical: Skinny and short, 4' tall in his boots. A midget, not a dwarf. His stature and weight allows for very easy flight via Air magic.
History: Raróg was a lieutenant in Levanter's fleet who struck out ahead of the rest of his comrades in a bid to grab glory by accomplishing their assault mission with only himself and his subordinates. If not for the timely appearance of Avani and Cirrus, Raróg may well have succeeded, but he and his men were defeated soundly and sent packing. Levanter did not appreciate the defeat...
Personality: Arrogant, perhaps an overcompensation for his size, but not without reason considering his elemental abilities. His error was overestimating his own skill.
Likes: Victory, personal glory
Dislikes: Unknown
[No picture available]
Age: 40s
Element: Fire, summoned through his teeth.
Physical: Thick-bodied, red-haired human male. All his teeth are artificial fangs made of orichalcum.
History: His past is not yet known, but at some point in the recent past he used Fire magic to assist in a takeover of the remote polis of Rannom. He is obviously of some reasonably high rank for an underling of the Nexus, considering the number of "Guy" henchmen at his disposal and how he was entrusted to keep Rannom under control.
Personality: A born boss, if not a born leader. Intimidating and direct.
Likes: Being in charge, spitting fireballs
Dislikes: Unknown
[No picture available]
Age: Early 30s
Element: Air, summoned through an aluminum nightstick.
Physical: A tall, fit man in a tight blue flight jacket and brown, goggled flight helmet from which long blonde hair flows freely.
History: Mostly unknown, aside from having become a Captain in the East Ragloan Air Force. He served in Levanter's fleet when it assaulted Talus and took it upon himself to continue to the next target, Rin in Almahook City, even though Levanter had abandoned Talus with the destruction of his airships. Captain Tiercel took his remaining men to Rin's airport hotel and attacked her directly, seriously underestimating the moves which Rin could show him.
Personality: Hotblooded and overconfident. His pride is such that he telegraphs his strongest attack by shouting "Tiercel PUNCH!"
Likes: Showing his moves, being shown moves
Dislikes: Unknown
[No picture available]