WtHQM:Ken
Bowen's PC in Welcome to Holy Question Mark, a game of the Amber Diceless RPG run by Rook Seidhr.
Kenshiro "Ken" Tachibana
Truth is not what you want it to be; it is what is,
and you must bend to its power or live a lie.
Early Years in Japan
Katsu and Aoki Tachibana were unable to conceive and due to the patriarch of Katsu’s family, Ejiro’s very public scandal they were unable to adopt either. Ejiro, then CEO and President of Tachibana Holdings; he was exposed as perpetrating on of the biggest and longest-running loss/hiding arrangements in Japanese corporate history. Katsu sold his shares a year before due a falling out with his father and managed to come out of the companies dismantling financially sound.
Unfortunately for the Tachibana’s they became social pariahs, the only people that would speak to them with anything but cold civility were there own family. Katsu couldn’t get employment, not that money was an issue. They decided adoption would fill the void that had suddenly entered their lives. After a year of being turned down in Japan they began to sear elsewhere. They finally found an American law firm that would arrange for this adoption if they accepted the services of Mr. Warwick. The services included tutoring and child care as much as they wished.
Ken was born on March 31, 2000. That is what it said on his adoption papers. The Tachibana’s named him and loved him to death but their blond-haired child with the odd eyes didn’t get any affections from the rest of the family. The other children weren’t allowed to play with him and he was tolerated at best. Family was very important to them but by the time Ken was four they realized the situation would never improve.
Ken grew up learning to be as Japanese as one can be. His boundless energy was channeled into sports. Mr. Warwick noticed that a lot of children were very keen on pointing out he wasn’t Japanese and suggested Karate and Kendo. Katsu was a long-time practitioner of Aikido and Kenjutsu. He found great bonding time with Ken in teaching him the martial arts, father to son.
When Ken turned eight they moved to New York. Katsu wanted to do something more with his life than just live off his wealth. His lawyers discovered a company called GearPODS. Their owner was looking to sell and retire. It took a month for everything to be settled but Katsu felt like he had purpose again. The company moved to New York and he implemented a simple plan, you live where you work. After buying one of the skyscrapers of New York, the bottom ten floors became the company proper and the next forty were for the employees as apartments. Every five floors there are gyms, daycare and medical staff. It was a huge success.
Mr. Warwick
Mr. Warwick had been in Ken’s life from the beginning. Part bodyguard part mentor. He taught Ken about magic and even gave him is heirloom ring. Warwick coached and helped train Ken in all the sports that caught Ken’s interest and got him into HEMA. Warwick is very careful about his role, he isn’t a parent but is an authority figure.
At the Socinian Institute
Ken is at The Socinian Institute because his parents have the highest expectations of him and this is the place to realize those dreams. All parents want their children to do well scholastically but Aoki saw that the Institute also had a strong arts and Spirituality programs; she wanted Ken to try at something he wasn’t instantly good at like most physical activities. He has a very good memory which helps him maintain his grades on top of the other duties he has.
Ken is not antisocial but is rather sensitive about racism and tends to be quiet and reserved until he figures someone out. Once he calls you a friend though he’s friendly, thoughtful and rather protective. It just seems that things tend to not work in his favour as far as making new friends goes, very few people ever give him the chance to show that thoughtful and protective side.
Advanced Spirituality
Warwick has been teaching Ken the basics of Sorcery from the time he came into his inheritance and gave him the ring at 11 years of age. The concepts were understood, the philosophy behind it was harder to achieve. Warwick has a very formulaic and scientifically practical approach to Sorcery; that just didn’t suit Ken’s mindset.
When he got to Advanced Spirituality, it was the Reverend that sort of tied it all together for him in a big lightbulb moment.
Ken, like his parents, is a practicing Shinto adherent. When he started to think of Sorcery as asking the Kami for their favour it was like a major wall fell and he suddenly progressed rather quickly.
Skills and Hobbies
• Athletics & Martial Arts: he just seems to be good at most sports including things like parkour. He’s studied mostly Japanese martial arts like Aikido, Shotokan Karate and Kenjitsu. He is involved in HEMA as well to broaden the scope of his experience
• Photography: always feeling from a young age that he was not a part of the community or life he was observing. Taking pictures seemed perfect since the photographer was detached from the subject.
• Survival: this includes both urban and wilderness survival as well as strong elements of stealth.
• Art (Ken is horrible at drawing and sculpting; he hasn’t tried but he has a decent singing voice)
• Blog (Ken is writing down his thoughts [1] trying to fit in)
Personality
Ken has always been independent with a sharp, defensive wit at times. He has a strong moral code. Duty and justice mean a lot to him and he’s willing to look beyond his own bias to make the right decisions. Ken can be somewhat vindictive to people that he feels lie and manipulate as a way of getting what they want. Lately he’s been trying to tone down the deep intensity of what he shows others but he’s a passionate person.
Relationships
Ken wants friends he just hasn’t made any. He believes he may be cursed. If there are two ways to take something most people will look at the more negative side when it comes to Ken. He tries to see the good in everyone first because he hates the way he has been treated.
Appearance
Ken is deceptively solid. He works out a lot and has the build of a swimmer or a gymnast rather than being bulky. He's 5’ 11 and just over 200 lbs. He can afford to buy anything he wants but since he’s not seeing anyone and doesn’t tend to go out much he is usually in jeans, tshirt and some rugged looking jacket.
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