Jaxs From The End
Male| Human| 29(ish)
Appearance:
Jaxs is very non-descript. He really could be from any part of the North. His clothing is plain and he bares no regional markings. He is no shorter or taller than other human men. His hair is blonde and his eyes are mostly brown. During the day it's hard to see him from anyone else one might pass on the road. Until the sun goes down and his eyes glow slightly green.
Brief History:
Jax has a handful of skills that have helped him survive his wretched land. He knows his way around a forge. He can swing a hammer (although, not with any amount of grace) and smash anything that seemed to be getting up to too much mischief. Knows his basic maths and how to make an amazing sour meat pie.
The struggle comes when someone asks the dreaded question of "Where did you learn this". It seemed like a simple enough question the first time it was asked. Surely anything known must have been taught. But when it came time to produce a name or relation, all that came to mind was a fleeting voice. Sometimes it was a glimpse of hair or a name dancing at the tip of his tongue. The response to his lack of answer varied from person to person. Eventually he just found it easier to mention a dead ma or pa and hope that the questioner would move on.
He also learned quickly to not mention where he was from. The End had a reputation after all. Everyone knew of The End. Everyone knew someone who had gone to The End, but had never met someone from The End. It wasn't the type of place people returned from after all.
The End is a small settlement about as far North as someone can get without falling off the map. Tucked in the base of the mountain range. It is rustic, rural and about as inhospitable as a place can get without immediately killing off any who enter.
The settlement itself is more like a shallow cave system resting against an algae filled river that casts a faint fog at all time. The algae is the settlements life blood. It seeps into the water, making all who drink it full of courage and those who breath in the unfiltered mist find that it dulls the senses. Music, drums mostly can be heard from all areas. Fires burn constantly. People come and stay a few days and then they leave the earth. Fighting evil in a blaze of painless glory. Or so they say.
People come to the End when the North is too much for them, but they are far too cowardly to end their lives themselves. The End paints a picture of a glorious, brave, pain-free death fighting the darkness for the good of the living. Children don't face The End. It's not allowed until their 30th(ish) named day. It's the only rule enforced by the settlements two true occupants--Edi and Pau.
The world had a name for children like Jaxs, the Endless Orphans. Although they were mostly myths, as Endless Orphans rarely left The End and mostly followed their parents as soon as they were able.
Jax had only tried to describe his life there to a handful of people. But every conversation about it seemed to make people more uneasy.
"What did you eat?"
"Animals...I think? Maybe bread… I know I had a carrot once"
"Were there other children there?"
"Yeah, lots"
"Any friends?"
"Yeah, Jaxs was my friend,"
"Another named Jaxs?"
"We were all named Jaxs"
It took him awhile to figure that one out, he knew that different people had different names, but every child he had ever met was always called Jaxs. He supposed the elderly dwarf couple that lived there and 'tended' to the orphans had simply found it easier to call every child Jaxs. Growing up, he had never thought to question it...but now. He supposed things were easy to forget there. He had tried to remember any name he had had before, but that too was lost in the mist.
How he survived was hazy. He remembered that there were rules that had to be followed. Only adults could drink unboiled water and it was important to always wear a mask.
What was even more hazy was how he left. The only unhazy thing about his life, was the fact that Jaxs planned to follow after his nameless and faceless parents. Any other life had failed to cross his mind until he met
her.
He cannot even say if the girl was real. The mist often plays powerful tricks. But the girl felt so real and she ran from The End. He chased her for days and ended up in the Hollows. He never saw her again and couldn't begin to describe her, but her image always haunted the dreams of his dreams. If he just tried hard enough, he could see her again.
Until then, Jaxs was able to settle in to the Hollows, even if he was a bit odd. He worked for a blacksmith, doing odd jobs 'just until the busy season' was over. Which had yet to let up in two years.
Jaxs had only expected to live another year and hadn't ever thought about what comes next. But being away from the mist has cleared his mind and started him wondering if there was something more. Yet a part of him kept nagging him. The part that longed to die to help the good. A part of him that might never really leave.
Skills
Human Earth: While this is less of a skill as of yet, he has found that he is able to control earth with limited success. It is not a skill he relies on in any sense, but he has started to explore its possibilities.
Long Hammer: As with most young men, he has a childish dream of wielding a sword. But that takes time, money and a teacher, none of which he has. So he makes do. A good squash will kill a baddie just as well as a slash.
Plant Knowledge: This one had come as a surprise to himself. He is able to name and describe the plants and their various properties and uses. Which makes him valuable to the village healer (she will sometimes pay him to gather for her). Even more so, as he doesn't have any idea the amount needed nor the proper way to prepare the plants.
MISC Cooking: The rare times he has a variety of ingredients on hand, he is able to create delicious dishes. It just sort of happens.
Smithing: His skills are practical at best. He'll make you whatever. It'll get the job done, just don't expect it to be pretty.
Inventory:
The majority of Jaxs supplies come secondhand from 'soft hearted' citizens and from more than a few bodies out of the 'Heros Return'. His early days in the Hollows were fuzzy at best. Judging by the scars on his feet, he had left The End without so much as a pair of shoes. Even two years in has failed to let him build his life up completely as a man starting from nothing.
Long Hammer: One of the few items that followed him from The End. He remembers it being a gift from someone. It is heavy and more useful as a weapon than a tool.
Cloak: A gift from the smiths wife. It was meant for her son, but he ran off before she could give it to him.
Pack: It is less of a traveling pack and more of a bag to hold all of his life possessions. It is mostly empty, save for a simple dagger he made himself. It has the potential to hold his bedroll, food and meager food supplies.
