Jack Baker

@Califorum Her answer was as blunt and to the point as usual, but for some reason, I could almost see a hint of... irritation in her otherwise unmoving glance. I slowly looked away, fearing I might have struck a nerve. "Ah... I see." Welp, Raze, you didn't want it to be awkward, and you somehow managed to achieve the complete opposite of your goal. Awesome.

@Califorum "Ah... Well I did have that much figured out," I said to her. As she moved away from me to sit down, I rubbed the back of my head with my hoof. Still couldn't really tell if she was offended or whatever. But that didn't really stop me from taking a seat next to her. "So you know a bit about metalsmithing, eh? That's pretty cool. You know a lot more than you seem..." I paused for a bit, not really sure what else to say. Did I need to say anything? Why was I trying to push a conversation on her? I guess I just didn't want it to end on an awkward note or whatever... "Oh, that reminds me, I mentioned what I did, but you never really told me what you did before all this. Did you have some sort of mining job back then?"

@Califorum "Hmmm..." I looked at my blade and sheathed it. "I actually don't know myself. The smith never did tell me what the blade was made of, which is why I asked. He called it a trade secret of his. But--and I don't mean to knock your knowledge or anything-- I can say with certainty it ain't cobalt steel. Sure, cobalt is very hard and has a high temp resistance, which makes it good for tools like drills. But when you use it for something like a sword, that hardness can make the blade really brittle, since it doesn't have much flexibility. Meaning if you swing that sucker at a hard enough surface, the force of the impact will shatter the blade at the point of contact, since lack of flexibility in the material means the force can't be distributed across the volume of the blade..." Oh crap. I just realized what I was doing, and I started to wave my hoof dismissively. "Ah, b-but you don't have to care about that! I was just getting carried away; I wasn't trying to outdo your know-how on metals, which I'm sure you know waaaayy more about than me. That smith I was talking about just happened to teach me a little about weaponsmithing, is all..." I shook my head and sighed. Smooth Raze. Real smooth... "...Sorry. I, uh, tend to geek out over the things I'm passionate about."

@Califorum I tilted my head slightly. "No I don't... well I mean, it is a cutie mark, so I didn't really think about something like that..." Suddenly, I had a thought. I drew my blade, and showed it to her. "Maybe you could tell me what metals my actual sword is made of?"

@Califorum "That's cool!" I said to her with a nod. "Me personally, well... my talent lies in martial arts. Or more just like fighting in general, I suppose. Could pick up just about any weapon or fighting style out there. I'm a pretty quick learner." I turned to show her my crossed swords mark. "I was in the Royal Guard, before all of this. Served as one of Celestia's personal guards, before it all went down. So you don't gotta worry to much about the spawn down there. You're in good hooves." I smiled slightly at her.

@Califorum "Pleasure to meet ya," I said as I shook her hoof. I looked down at the rock she showed me. "...Huh. Pet rock, huh? Interesting..." I nodded at her. I cannot sense anything special about that stone... why does she carry such a mundane object with her? Thanatos questioned. It's, well... we call them "pet rocks", Than. They're like... sentimental objects someponies carry around and treat them like companions. Mmmm... do all creatures partake in such a ritual? Not all... most do. Hell, even I had one as a colt, just because. I called 'im Pete. Cuz you know, it sounds like... peat. Like the coal...? ....How peculiar. Oh, shut it. I turned my attention back to Maud. "So, I guess you really like this stuff? You know, mining and all that."

@Califorum As she looked directly at me, eyes seemingly staring into the depths of my soul, I could only stare back with a combination of both surprise and confusion, mouth slightly agape. "D-uh... I... uhhh... ok then." That was all I could manage to get out. What was up with this chick? Can't really seem to get a read on her, can't really tell what she's feeling. No change in her tone, not even the slightest change in her expression. In a weird sense, it was like... well, talking to a rock. I managed to compose myself a bit, and sighed, looking away a bit. "Look... I'm sorry if I might have offended you, or weirded you out in some way. I was just a bit... concerned you might not be feeling well is all, and I wouldn't want anypony going out there if they were... well, out of it." I looked back at her. "Let's start over then." I extended a hoof. "Name's Raze. I actually just got here today."

@Califorum Sweet Celestia above, she even sounds dead too. "Me? I'm doing alright," I responded back to her. "I, uh, was just wondering because... well, I'm not really sure how to, uh, put this, but you looked a little... uhhhh..." I twirled my left hoof, trying to think of what to say without somehow offending her. "...Spaced... out??"

@Illiad Easle @Califorum After I got my gear and was escorted to the group I was meant to guard, I nodded to the minotaur as he left. "Take care, boss," I said to him. A mining expedition, eh? Sounds good. I looked around at the various miners getting ready. None of them particularly stuck out to me... save for one. A grey earth pony; purple haired chick, with the most stone-faced, deadpan look I've ever seen. Like all the life had been sucked out of her. If this were Royal Guard boot camp, she'd definitely give the other recruits a run for their money when it came to military bearing... "Wonder what her deal is..." I said under my breath. I do not sense anything particularly strange about her, Thanatos chimed in. Perhaps that is simply the way she is. Always observing every creature you come across, eh Than? Of course. If danger lurks, I will know. And be ready to strike, should the need arise. ...Fair enough. Still, never seen anypony like that before, and I couldn't help but walk up to her. "Hey... you good? You seem a bit... out of it."

@Illiad Easle How interesting. I grabbed one of the antimagic grenade rounds and observed it. As an earth pony, normally I wouldn't really think too much about these, but now was different. Thanks to the connection I shared with Thanatos, I could feel it. This stuff was bad news. Think this'd seal you away for a bit? I asked him. I'm afraid so, since it is my magic that binds us, he responded. But it shouldn't be for long. Regardless, I suggest we steer clear of this compound, or at the very least be alert when handling it, as the creature says. Fair enough. I slowly put the round back on the table and looked at the new rifle he laid out for me while listening to his rundown on the gun and the special ammunition. Now this stuff-- especially that contagious variant-- seemed even more dangerous to me than the last one. Sensing my concern, Thanatos spoke. Do not worry, these rounds are incapable of breaking our pact, should they be used on you. The only thing that can break the pact is death. If anything, these should only seal me away for a bit longer. Well, that answers that, I suppose. Still, best to be safe with this stuff. I looked up at the minotaur. "Alright... anything else you'd like me to know?" I asked him. "With all due respect, I'd like to get started working as soon as possible."

@Illiad Easle Her name was Taffy? Heh. Who would've guessed? As I quietly laughed at their exchange, I went to examine the "slug launcher" the armorer issued me. Hmm... looks like any other rifle I'd seen before. I picked it up and made my way to the safety line of the range. I focused on the target, and aimed for center mass. I stood up, raised the gun, flicked the safety off, and fired.

@Illiad Easle I twirled the wooden sword around. "Don't really need armor if they can't hit you in the first place," I said to the quartermaster. "With this combat style, I try to keep moving as much as possible, never really stickin' in one spot for too long. It's mainly to confuse the enemy so they can't read my movements. I could be slashing at them one minute, then suddenly I'll immediately roll back to create distance while moving to attack from a different angle. It's all about mixing it up so they can't adapt..." She mentioned my former position, and I stopped twirling the sword. My head slowly lowered to face the ground, and I sighed. "Yeah, I was part of it then. I can still remember what it was like. The loyalists, they had breached the throne room from all sides. The front door, the windows, everywhere really... At first, it wasn't too much of an issue. Our ranks were pretty small, about 30 or so protecting the princess at the time, but we had the skill to take 'em on. Shit really started to hit the fan when about half our numbers revealed themselves to be loyalists and turned on us. So not only were we dealing with the original group of jobbers that raided the throne room, but the group of turncoats as well. Fighting off the loyalists while determining friend from foe in the middle of all of that... it was absolute chaos; exactly the way that damned draconequus wanted it to go." I paused. "The princess, she, uh... well, in true Celestia fashion, used her magic to fight off the horde and teleport whoever was left standing to relative safety, including me... guess she figured the lives of her subjects were more important than her own. Stupid, but selfless... as only an alicorn princess can do. A damn shame, for all of us though. Couldn't even do our jobs and defend the princess. What kind of Personal Guard were we..." I paused again, then shrugged. "Welp, not like it matters now though. What's done is done; the only thing I can do now is keep living for the princess's sake, I guess. Would rather not put this second chance to waste, you know?" I put the wooden sword back on the rack, and turned to face the quartermaster after she mentioned firearms training and my repeater. I laughed slightly. "I think I'll be good. I don't exactly carry that gun around for show you know."

@Illiad Easle "I mainly do swords, but I'm capable of using any weapon, given enough time. Was in the main corp for a bit, but my skills saw me placed in Celestia's personal guard. No family that I know of. And no medical history either. I guess I could mention my zebra type markings...? They're just a birth mark; I'm not actually a zebra; though I always get mistaken for one..." I answered each one of her questions, then followed her to the training room. I looked around. Impressive, I gotta say. Wooden training versions for almost every weapon type, plus actual training dummies. Definitely better than practicing on trees all day. I unbuckled the short sword from my waist and set it aside. Surveying one of the weapon racks, I found a training short sword that looked similar to mine in length. I picked it up and began to analyze it. The blade itself, 'bout 15 inches, double edged. Holding it in my left hoof, I gave it a few test swings. A bit lighter than what I'm used to (it's wood, obviously it would be), but not by much. Excellent. I then turned my attention to one of the dummies, specifically the one shaped like a pony. I looked at the quartermaster. "I realize you want me to show you what I knew from my guard days, but I'd like to demonstrate something else, if you wouldn't mind." With that said, I took up a combat stance. I brandished the short sword, stood up on my hind hooves, and held the sword back-hooved, blade arm in front. Unorthodox? Yeah. But it's not like the enemy fights within conventional standards either. Just the basics isn't gonna cut it anymore. You wanna fight savages, sometimes you gotta fight like a savage. Do you require my assistance with this, my master? I could hear Than's voice. Nah, it's all good. It's just training, after all, don't need to go overboard. As you wish. I focused on the dummy, bending my hooves slightly. Then, I lunged forward, while simultaneously spinning to the right, delivering a powerful outward strike with the tip of the sword. I used the remaining momentum to deliver a spinning roundhouse with my right hoof, then quickly rolled forward. I used the momentum from the roll to tackle the dummy, then followed up with a flurry of backhooved strikes, weaving the sword around from all directions. I finished the flurry with a horizontal outward slash, while using the momentum from that to flip backward, creating distance from me and the dummy. I landed on my hind hooves, then quickly reverted back to my combat stance. There, that should be enough. I looked at the quartmaster. "Was that good, or do you need more?"

@Illiad Easle I raised a brow at what she had said. Another one? How many tried to apply for a combat role? Though I guess it made sense. Most who were rescued were probably angry and wanted to fight back now that they had the opportunity. Ponies and other creatures who lost it all, their loved ones and livelihoods. My mind wandered back to the griffon cook and the remnant he carried of his sister. Maybe he felt the same way. Maybe he didn't. At least he had the sense to not needlessly throw his life away by impulsively volunteering to fight. Seen too much of that in the wastes already... I looked over at the chair, and slowly took a seat. The quartermaster proceeded to ask about my prior experience. "Former Royal Guard, before the fall," I said, leaning slightly forward on the chair. "After the fall, I worked as a merc, driving off the spawn and various raider groups and loyalists. And well, if you couldn't already tell..." I motioned to the mark on my flank: two crossed swords. "...Combat's kind of my specialty."

There, I've removed it.

Oh my bad. That's usually how it goes in other RPs I've been in. Also, I had my character move over to the upper decks to explore the place. I can remove it if you want. @Califorum

@Illiad Easle "Nah, but I realize why you'd think that," I told him with a small laugh. "The smith was an earth pony, though I think he might have mentioned being trained by a minotaur at one point... nevertheless, the guy was pretty talented." My ears perked up at the mention of his sister. "I'm... sorry to hear that. It's... tough being separated from the ones you care about, 'specially during times like this. Maybe she might still be out there? And if she is, maybe we'll find her." I sighed. Despite everything I had just said, there was a part of me that doubted it. I'd seen it firsthand: nothing survives out there. If it wasn't for ponies like me, those who lent a hoof to protect whatever shard of civilization was left, I'm pretty sure there would be even less down there than there is now. And there weren't many of us to begin with; not everyone is suited to fighting off hordes of spawn, let alone wielding a blade... Oh, come on, Raze. Now's definitely not the time to be thinking like that. I stood up from my seat, taking the container of food with me. "Well, as much as I'd love to stay and chat, I oughta get going. Never really been to Minostralia before, and I'd like to get a look at this place myself. Then I gotta report for this combat training or whatever is... nothing I can't handle." I waved a hoof at him. "Oh, and if I ever get hungry again, I'll know who to come back to! Amazing stuff man, I swear." I walked back to my room and stored my food in a mini fridge I had found next to my bed, then decided to head over to that training I had heard about. "Alright, where's that quartermaster..."

For visualization purposes, here's an image that best matches the image I have in my head of Raze's weapon:

@Illiad Easle I looked at the container the griffon had given me, then back at the griffon. "You said what now...?" That was about all I could get out before I felt a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach, followed by a sudden rising sensation. Realizing what was happening, I quickly scrambled to put the rest of my food in the container that was given to me as the feeling continued about a few more times, then ceased. Feeling slightly dizzy, I took a few deep breaths. "Ugh... gonna have to get used to that." I sat back, staring at the ceiling for a bit, before I noticed the same griffon taking a seat in front of me. He complimented my blade. "Oh, this thing?" I put a hoof over the scabbard. "Some blacksmith gave it to me as a reward for saving his family and forge from a bunch of raiders. Said it was one of his finest. He wasn't kidding." I smiled slightly. "Wonder how the guy's been doing..."

Overwhelming. That would be the word I'd use to describe my first couple hours on this... "project", as the denizens here loved to describe it. The moment I got off the aircraft that had rescued me I had my sword and repeater taken away and was scanned for any evidence that might point me to being a Discord loyalist of some kind. Which was great and all, until the scans had picked up some sort of huge magic aura around me; caused by the new friend I had recently made. I then spent the next ten minutes trying to convince them that I wasn't a loyalist, and that hunting the spawn of Tartarus, as well as Discord's lackeys for too long may have caused some sort of magic anomaly to appear around me. Because these are strange times we live in; who knows what could happen to anyone living down there right? Very convincing, I know. Either way, they let me pass, and before I had a chance to take in my surroundings I had the pleasure of choosing one of the project director's deputies to follow, so as to efficiently help forward the project's cause. It wasn't that hard to pick; I'm a fighter, so I fight. I decided to follow the earth pony stallion, who gave me a quick rundown of the place, then showed me my living space before telling me to report to the quartermaster to begin my training. Before he left, he quickly introduced himself as General Quarters. What a name. I had barely settled in when my stomach let out a huge growl, reminding me how long it had been since I had eaten anything. Using the maps posted across the facility I managed to find my way to the nearest cafeteria, and I ordered some grub and sat down. And now, here I am, finally able to relax and collect my thoughts. I had joined this place on a whim. So much had happened over the last week, and after having two close run-ins with death, not to mention the encounter with my new friend, I thought to myself, "might as well." Speaking of which... What an interesting turn of events this has been... A deep voice echoed in my head. To think their metal constructs would be able to sense my presence... It's called technology, Than, and it happens to be pretty advanced, I thought back to him as I ate. You seem pretty calm about it though. If they thought I was a loyalist, we could've gotten thrown out. Or even worse, shot on sight. Oh wait, this doesn't really apply to you does it? With you being a spirit and all... you'll be just fine. The opposite, I'm afraid, Thanatos said. You and I are soul-bound. If you were to perish, so would I. It is why the pact we made carries a deep significance, and why we guardian spirits are very particular of whom we choose to serve. I am putting my very life in your hands... How comforting to know... I said to him as I continued to eat. I glanced around the cafeteria, eyeing a couple of Pegasus mares, one of them having a prosthetic. I could overhear their conversation. One of them was a Wonderbolt, eh? And here I thought none of them made it out... ((Damn autocorrect)) @Windy Breeze @Illiad Easle

@Blitz Boom It's not a nature spirit, but I'm certain your character could feel him regardless. To those who are well versed in magic of any kind, they'd feel something, even if it was a little bit. As a spirit, Thanatos has immense magic power.

@Illiad Easle He's like a familiar, one that only shows his true form when Raze summons him. Otherwise, he is basically harbored within the depths of Raze's soul. When hanging around Raze (if one is incredibly talented in magic) one might feel something akin to a strong presence surrounding him. What would show up in scans would be a strong magical aura surrounding him, which could create some interesting scenarios in terms of this. Thanatos can speak by projecting his voice directly into the minds of others. Raze and Thanatos can communicate telepathically to each other as well. His origins would remain a mystery at the beginning, but one of the goals for Raze in this RP would be to find out exactly where he comes from. Does that explain a little bit more? EDIT: I'll be going with the Earth Pony deputy, since he's looking for combat oriented members.

A master of arms, Raze is a former Royal Guard member turned wandering mercenary after the fall of Canterlot. He traveled across Equestria, hunting the spawn of Tartarus and defending survivors from Discord's raiders in exchange for food and supplies. During one of his many missions, which involved hunting a group of demons, Raze, while putting up a good fight alone, had found himself at death's door, overwhelmed by the enemy's sheer power. Just before one of the creatures could land the final blow, an apparition appeared in a flash of blue light, defending him. With a loud roar mighty swing from its sword, the apparition cleaved the group of demons in two. It then turned to him, and with a deep, calm voice, introduced itself as Thanatos. It called itself a guardian spirit, a type of familiar from a higher plane of existence appearing only to those whom they deem have the potential to command them. He had observed him for the entire fight, impressed with his combat prowess and strength, but seeing that his life was in danger, had decided to intervene. He then offered to form a pact with Raze, becoming his guardian spirit henceforth. He was unsure at first, not knowing whether or not this could have been a trick of some sort from Tartarus. But as he looked closer, he could not sense any sort of deceit or hidden malice coming from the apparition, and ultimately accepted. Now, he and the guardian spirit fight as one, and they continued their travels across the realm... Until once again, they were ambushed by a horde of spawn. Once again, Raze had found himself cornered in, until suddenly, a powerful explosion had struck the horde, thinning out the spawn attacking him, seizing this opportunity to strike, he viciously cut down the remaining monsters. He looked up, and saw some sort of large aircraft slowly descending towards him. One armed pony came out and motioned for him to come aboard, saying they were with the city of Æther, a so called "Bastion of Civilization." Intrigued, and with no better option that he could see, Raze decides to get in and see what this ciry looked like for himself... Equipment: Raze wields both a repeater rifle and a shortsword. He has a very unorthodox way of fighting, holding his sword backhanded and using it in tangent with his rifle. He attacks with quick, precise slashes and kicks to both harm and pressure the enemy, then retreats back and fires off a shot (or two) from his rifle, only to quickly dash back in and continue again. He can also summon Thanatos, who uses a sword and harnesses powerful magicks. For a very brief time, Thanatos can also possess Raze's sword, embuing it with magic energy. There are downsides to using Thanatos: having him summoned for long periods of time will slowly drain Raze's physical energy. If he is exhausted, he cannot summon it. Also, whatever damage Thanatos takes in battle will be directed back to Raze as well. Thanatos may also be "destroyed" during combat, ending the summon early and temporarily sealing him for a period of time. In additon, Raze will also suffer heavy damage. Thanatos: I'll also have Raze about to get picked by whichever deputy deems him fit at the sorting call. @Illiad Easle

Will leave character here