Seth Balmore (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
freedomfound) wrote2013-06-23 09:54 pm
freedomfound) wrote2013-06-23 09:54 pm
Throne of Shadows: Application
1. Player Information
Name: Lauren
Username:latiaos, email: lauren[at]krugh[dot]com
Current characters in ToS: Aileen Ritter
Reserve: Right here!
2. Canon Character Information
Name: Seth Balmore
PB: Game art
Journal:freedomfound
Age: She's 1030 years old, but appears about 30.
Appearance: Seth stands about 5'10" with straight, confident posture. She's a medium-dark skinned woman with sharp features and a lot of tightly curled blue (yes, blue) hair. She has wide, strong shoulders but is not without a feminine shape. It's obvious that she gets a lot of exercise, and she is tends to move around a lot when waiting idly. Seth talks with her hands, and is very expressive.
History: Seth's existence began in The Shining World, a universe where beings of pure energy live. For some reason, their world began to break down, and Seth, along with four others from The Shining World, was sent into the human world of Plank to study their magic. While there, Seth and her companions took on human forms. However, due to the varying rates of time in the two universes, the five newcomers appeared to be immortal. In truth, time in Plank simply progresses one thousand times faster than time in The Shining World.
Seth became the only woman pirate in Plank, and gathered quite the reputation for herself. Some feared her, others respected and admired her. They called her that "Righteous Buccaneer," though she wasn't fond of the name. Seth enforced a strict code in her pirating days: Only wealthy cruise ships would be attacked and plundered. Maybe they would scare the more uppity passengers a little, rough 'em up a bit, but killing was strictly forbidden. They sold their winnings to shady dealers and donated much of the money. Seth had become a pirate because she hated the law, hated those who flaunted it and used it to chain others down. She lived fearlessly, at one point unwittingly taking on queen Ming Numara's flagship. She was inevitably captured. However, instead of imprisoning her, Ming did something rather surprising. She reached out to Seth as a friend. The two felt an immediate bond, sharing the weight of immortality. Seth would tell Ming stories of her adventures, and the queen would listen in a trance of fascination. Seth felt a great chemistry with Ming. When it was time for Seth to leave, Ming lent her a precious amulet of hers, making her promise to visit once again so she could bring it back.
But even though she was well-loved, Seth also had a lot of enemies and was captured often in her recklessness. Bound in a cave on a desert island, a gang of well-known pirates left her in the darkness alone, where she would be trapped forever. The island wasn't on any chart nor sea line. Not even a fishing boat had a chance of finding her. Obviously, her time spent in the cave was severely traumatizing. Seth did not know how long she was trapped. With only her thoughts to accompany her, she began to believe the jeers of the pirates who had trapped her- that in her immortality, she was some kind of monster. A monster that did not belong among humans. Seth faced absolute solitude, and even her once-liberating view of her immortality was broken.
At some point, long into her imprisonment, came a blinding flash of white wings; a shining beast calling himself Aneira. He claimed to be the last of his clan, a being capable of living for thousands of years- similar to Seth herself. Aneira knew Seth's name, knew that she was an immortal. They were connected in their solitude and loneliness. Seth convinced Aneira to become a pirate with her, and he freed her. They became partners, the closest of friends on the high seas. After hundreds of years of travelling with Aneira, Seth found a husband and soon had a son, Sed. Shortly after Sed's birth, Seth's husband died in an epidemic. Aneira helped Seth raise her son. Thirty years prior to the game's main story, when Sed was in his 50's, Seth suddenly remembered her mission as an immortal and returned to the Tower of Mirrors, the place where she originally came into Plank. Her mission was complete: She had one thousand years' worth of knowledge of this world. But waiting at the Tower was Gongora, another immortal whom Seth was tasked to report to. Seth figured out at the last moment that Gongora planned to use this knowledge not to report back to The Shining World, but to conquer this worldlike the cliché RPG villain that he is. She rushes back to her ship to find that Aneira has bitten Sed's leg clean off, and then turns on Seth. She then passes out in a flash of white light, unable to remember what happened next. When she awoke, Aneira was dead on the dock with Seth's sword protruding from his chest. Gongora appeared, telling Seth that she had been the one to kill Aneira. In reality, it had all been a horrible illusion created by Gongora to weaken Seth enough to be able to hide her own memories from her mind. From that moment, onward, she forgot the existence of her mission, all of her one thousand years in Plank, and was no longer a threat to Gongora's plot.
Fast-forward thirty years, and Seth is an officer in the 43rd magic division in the Republic of Uhra, fighting as a mercinary. After surviving a devastating meteor crash that killed thousands of soldiers, she was brought back to Uhra. This is where she meets Kaim and Jansen, telling them that all she can remember of her past is that she used to be a pirate called Seth Balmore and that she is immortal. Kaim is another survivor of the crash, and Jansen works for Gongora, who is now a chief executive in the Uhran Republic. Since Kaim also has had his memories sealed, nobody knows that Gongora is actually using Uhra to carry out his desired rule over Plank. The three are sent to Grand Staff, the giant magical engine blamed for the meteor crash, on a spying mission. Upon their arrival, the party is taken captive by Numaran forces and held on the queen's flagship. All the while, Seth is suspicious of Jansen, who seems just a little too interested in Seth and Kaim's slowly returning memories.
Upon their escape, Jansen gets sidetracked and sneaks into Queen Ming Numara's chambers to sneak a look at her. It is then that Seth reveals to Kaim that she knows the Queen personally, which is odd, considering Ming's characteristic self-isolation. She isn't positive how they are friends, yet, but the memories are starting to resurface. Jansen is (obviously) caught, and the three are taken before Ming in handcuffs, who lets them go much to her military commander's frustration. It is already becoming obvious that Seth is not fond of Jansen, especially his casual flirtatiousness with Ming. The three reach the outskirts of Numara, where they meet two children: older sister Cooke and her younger brother Mack. Seth immediately takes a liking to the two, especially Cooke. After a squabble with some soldiers, the group ends up at the children's house, where their mother lies on her deathbed. At this moment, Kaim remembers that the mother, Lirum, is in fact his daughter, and that Gongora had something to do with some great pain that had been inflicted upon Kaim in the past. He also remembers that he had a wife, Sarah, also immortal, thus completing the list of immortals: Kaim, Seth, Ming, Sarah, and Gongora, whom they now know to be taking their memories. Lirum dies shortly after this reveal, and Seth and Kaim discuss the threat of Gongora. In a fit of despair, Mack runs off to the dangerous Crimson Forest, hoping to see his mother. Her spirit appears to them in the form of flowers, and Seth proclaims that Lirum has brought them a miracle.
Upon their return to Numara, Tolten, the prince of Uhra, makes an international announcement that he is restoring the monarchy of Uhra and that Gongora, who has won his absolute trust, will be the second in command. Seth calls it out immediately as government by regent. Gongora is the one actually in control. The Uhrans are able to prove that the Numarans are planning an invasion of Uhra through footage on a magical camera that Gongora outfitted on Jansen's eye without him realizing. The party has to leave Numara immediately, because they were also on the footage and have been labeled by Numarans as Uhran spies. They are caught, and surrender to the Numaran guard to avoid conflict. Obviously, at this point, what little trust Seth had in Jansen is broken. Thanks to Cooke and Mack's help, they were able to escape imprisonment. They pretend to take Ming hostage in order to make their escape, and Seth is able to properly speak with Ming for the first time since losing her memories. Much to Seth's dismay, Ming does not remember her; she has also had her memories taken from her. The queen decides to join the party due to the corruption of the officials under her control. Seth leads them all to the harbor, where they steal a ship and flee. The stolen ship actually contains Seth's own engine that she used to use. Cooke is overjoyed to be meeting an actual woman pirate, and becomes Seth's "apprentice" of sorts. While on the ship, Ming reveals that she is beginning to remember things as well. Jansen continues to come onto Ming, and Seth continues to tell him off.
Upon arriving on the shores of Gohtza, Seth remembers her past with Aneira and her son.
She continues to be a bit of a bodyguard with Ming as they arrive at a small tavern, where Jansen manages to get the queen drunk. Despite Jansen's innocent intentions of just wanting Ming to be able to let go a little, Seth acts suspicious and angry. This is a pattern throughout most of the game, a strange love triangle forming with Ming at the apex and Seth constantly at Jansen's throat.
En route to Gohtza still, the party joins up with Sarah, Kaim's wife, who has also suffered the loss of her memories through an extremely painful event. (Gongora had convinced them both that they had allowed the death of their daughter to happen, which was not true. Similar to Seth's experience with Aneira.) The party actually gets to see Gongora in person at another Magical Staff building site. They confront him, Seth losing her temper and trying to attack him. At this point, she can remember what Gongora did to bury her memories, but Gongora still tries to remind her that it was she who killed Aneira. Ming barely manages to physically hold her back from charging Gongora head on as he rambles his lies. He eventually uses his magic to knock them all unconscious, planning to sink the entire Experimental Staff into the ocean. King Tolten of Uhra appears as well to see Gongora, and despite the bodies scattered on the ground, continues to trust Gongora. The two leave, and Cooke and Mack are able to revive everybody just in time to escape. They travel across the water and through snowy mountains to finally arrive in Gohtza.
Splitting up, Seth goes with Ming and Jansen to see the king, where they discover that the man on the throne is just a stand-in. They track down the actual king, who is on a train with a meeting with King Tolten. Kaim, who knows the king of Gohtza personally, informs him that Ming will sit in on the meeting with Jansen and Seth there as "body guards." Ming tells Tolten the truth about Gongora and that he has been used as a puppet this entire time. The meeting does not go in their favor, and plans end up being made to build another Grand Staff instead of destroying the old one.
While they are still on the train, Gongora executes a devastating attack on Gohtza: He freezes the city and its people solid using the power of Grand Staff. Tolten and Seth end up warped out of the train before the freeze completely penetrates it, leaving the Gohtzan king, Jansen, and Ming trapped on the train. They arrive in Uhra, where they learn that Seth's son, Sed, has been captured and will be burned alive for being a pirate. Thanks to the distraction of an all-out attack from the remaining Gohtzan army, they are able to rescue Sed and make their way into the sewers, where they find Sed's ship. The three take the ship through the sewers and into the sky (yes, it can fly, too). By tracking the magic energy output in the pendant Seth returned to Ming, they were able to be reunited with the rest of the group. (Ming and Jansen had since found Kaim, Sarah, Cooke, and Mack.) They all travel to a small island, home to some ancient ruins where they can gain more power to take on Gongora in Grand Staff. With that new power under their belt, the team is able to return to Numara, where they dethrone Ming's militaristic general before leaving for Grand Staff on Ming's flagship.
Arriving at Grand Staff, the party takes on Gongora, who is using a portal formed by magic mirrors to pull energy from the Shining World into Plank. During the fight, these mirrors seep unique energy from the Shining World that harms the immortals; the humans create a magical barrier to stop the energy from coming through the mirrors so that the immortals can take down Gongora. But once the battle is through, the shields fail to drop. Because of the energy seeping into them, they have become too strong to be let down. The mortals are trapped inside the light given off by the mirrors and it is quickly killing them because of the time difference between the two worlds. In a last ditch effort, Kaim breaks the mirrors, opening the portal completely. Seth grapples Gongora through to the other side and into their dying home world, sharing one last meaningful look with her son in the process. The disheartened party escapes Grand Staff as it breaks down from the portal's power. Seth's spirit appears to Ming and Sed later in the form of a small spark. This confirms that she did indeed die in the Shining World.
Powers/Talents: As far as plain ol', humanly possible abilities are concerned, Seth is a very athletic woman, most notable for her speed and coordination. She is an expert pilot, swordfighter, and smooth talker. Her 1000 years of working with ships has made her an expert on magical technology.
Beyond that, Seth is immortal when she is outside The Shining World. Her existence is pure magic energy tied to a human body. Because of this, she is magically very powerful. Seth can use offensive, defensive, and healing spells, though they are not as powerful as some of her other immortal companions (Ming, Sarah, and Gongora), so she focuses herself more on physical attacks. Lost Odyssey magic is very traditional RP magic; organized into White and Black, White is for healing and Black is elementally based. Without items to amplify her abilities (earrings, in the Lost Odyssey canon) Seth can perform basic spells- heal small wounds, start a fire, snap a chain, etc. Overusing her abilities over a short span of time will exhaust them, and she won't be able to use them for a while.
Personality: At first glance, Seth is a radiant and high-strung woman in spite of her age. She shows a childish wonder in all new things, and seeks new people, places, and challenges with great enthusiasm. She seems fearless in all things, facing the unknown with a smirk and diving in headfirst. A chance for a grand new adventure is the opportunity of a lifetime for her. With that in mind, Seth hates rules. She was initially driven to be a pirate because she saw how the law was used in many areas of Plank to oppress people. Seth did what she could to ease the strain, if only a little, thought her piracy. She was something of a Robin Hood figure.
The deeper root of her hatred for binding rules becomes more obvious upon seeing one of Seth's two true fears: Entrapment. She is the epitome of a free spirit, and holding her still in one place will drive her crazy. After her imprisonment in the cave, this fear was amplified immensely. Even being forced to wait in a room for an extended period of time will make her uncomfortable. She does have a bit of claustrophobia. This dislike of feeling trapped also extends into her lack of patience for useless waiting around. Several times in canon, she comments that something is taking too long, or that she's sick of waiting on something/someone.
Seth's other greatest fear is loneliness, also fostered by her time spent in the cave with only her thoughts to keep her company. Throughout much of her life as a pirate, Seth distracted herself from her loneliness with her conquests. But living as an immortal meant that she watched countless generations be born and die out of this world. There was never anybody to live permanently by her side. This is why she grew so close to Aneira, who shared her pain of the loneliness that came with immortality and chose to stay by her side for all those years. Losing him was the most traumatic moment of Seth's entire life. The subsequent event of losing her memory "turned Seth into a walking corps." She couldn't even remember her son, the biggest joy she had left in her life. Now, Seth is more terrified of the idea of eternity alone than ever. In spite of this, though, she does not reject the past. She embraces it, the joy and the pain, with the point of view that it is what has brought her to this point.
Seth's greatest passion is for the ocean. To her, it is the gateway to all things. It is her past, present, and future. Piloting is one of her greatest loves in life. It's obvious when she hasn't been on a ship in a while; she savors it like nothing else. Having never made a "true" home for herself, the ocean is Seth's home.
In day-to-day interaction, Seth is likeable, witty, and can be very sarcastic. She may be a little too much for the more mellow folk, but she typically has no trouble making friends. She can be extremely clever and persuasive when she knows what she wants, and isn't above charming a man or a woman into a few free drinks or a little intel. Seth knows what she wants and how to get it. She is very sociable, and is notably good with kids. She is a open-minded and fun mom to Sed, even in his old age, and acts as a mentor figure to Cooke and Mack, even taking on Cooke as her "pirate apprentice." (Though that was more Cooke's idea than anything) She is selfless woman, this being most obvious in that she gave her life for a noble cause. She takes on the role of Ming's "knight in shining armor," always jumping at the chance to defend her, be it from danger or Jansen (which are basically the same thing in her book). Seth is very fond of Ming. Upon their first meeting, Seth can remember truly laughing for the first time in a long time. She sees a special kind of strength and kindness in Ming that she greatly admires. Seth can have a bit of a temper; she lacks patience for people who don't take her or the people she cares about seriously. Ming acts as a counterbalance to that several times in canon, her docile spirit calming Seth's fiery one.
Why would your character be chosen? Seth would be chosen for her quick wit, optimism, and fearless love for adventure. She is also a powerful fighter and always willing to try something new. Seth is a woman constantly in motion.
How much does your character know about nonhumans? Seth has traveled all over Plank, accustoming herself with every myth and legend in the book along the way. She's aware that worlds outside the two she knows exist, but has never seen them for herself. Being a non-human herself, she knows full-well that there are other types of non-humans out there.
Why this character: The story of Lost Odyssey is absolutely captivating, and not even on a plot-based level. It is the characters' interactions, mainly their struggles with memories and immortality, that makes them fascinating to explore and, by extension, rp. Not being the main character, much of what makes Seth tick is only scraped upon in canon. ToS is definitely a place where I can explore the lesser shown parts of Seth and expose her to an entirely new culture, which will fascinate her. Lively and upbeat, keeping focus on her voice is pretty easy.
AU Addendum: N/A
Past Game History: N/A
4. Samples
First-Person: Wow, um... [The new voice on the network hesitates for a beat.] I can't say this is where I was expecting to come out... [Meet Seth Balmore: pirate captain, immortal magical being, Mom of the Millennium.] Not that I'm going to complain. Good riddance to that creep.
[A sigh.]
So I guess this means I'll be stickin' around here for a while. I'm Seth Balmore. If any of you guys know about a place called Plank, I'd love it if you'd let me know. Other than that... Introductions, I guess? I'd like to meet you all, seeing as we're all in this together.
[Whatever "this" is. Seth isn't quite sure what to make of it all, yet.]
Third-Person: In which Seth accidentally gets the queen of Numara drunk.
Third Sample: "That's it, you've got it! Parry and... counter!" Seth spun out of the short reach of Cooke's wooden sword as the young girl thrust back at her with an overly enthusiastic motion.
"You're off balance- that'll be the death of you in the sand like this!" Seth demonstrated, giving a surprised and indignant Cooke a light hip check and catching her before she hit the ground.
"Come on, Captain! You're way bigger than me!"
"So are many of your enemies. You just need to play to your strengths. And a little magic never hurt." The older woman winked at her unofficial protégé and pushed her bangs away from her eyes. She'd always wanted a little girl. "Come on, let's take a break. You're getting all sweaty." Seth nodded downshore and placed a guiding hand on Cooke's back. The two didn't need to walk long before running into the rest of their motely group. Cooke ran off with her brother, leaving Seth to flop down beside Ming.
"She's coming along wonderfully," the queen said in greeting. "It serves as a distraction, I think."
"Mmm." Seth lay in the sand, folding her arms behind her head and letting the Numaran sun beat down on her face. A true island paradise. She could get used to this, if it weren't so quiet here all the time. She opened one eye, watching Ming.
"You knew Lirum pretty well, then?" Seth's heard the kids call her 'Aunt Ming.' The queen nodded, but she seemed preoccupied.
"Yes, she was... What in the world is Jansen-" Ming's words were cut off by a loud bang followed immediately by a cloud of smoke coming from the direction of their stolen ship. Seth sat bolt upright, bewilderment quickly turning to anger.
"Jansen! What the hell are you doing?!" Seth all but ignored Ming's quiet amusement as she stormed across the beach in the direction of the ship and a very flustered Jansen. Cooke, who seemed to have an extra set of ears for the moments Seth chewed out Jansen, was soon at her captain's heels.
"I-I-I was just, I was, you see-" He babbled like a child caught with his hand in the cookie jar, fumbling to hide whatever damage he had managed to cause the ship. More importantly, the engine of the ship. Seth's engine. Nobody touched Seth's engine. She snatched a wrench from Jansen's hands and leaned over the main engine access to her poor, smoking ship.
"It was making weird noises, so I opened it up and-"
"Shut up, Jansen." Seth's tone was dangerous. He was getting another swift kick in the ass when this was done. It took several minutes of tinkering before Seth shook her head and straightened up to see Jansen standing behind her like a man on death row. Cooke was almost humorous, glaring up at him with her arms crossed. "I need to go into town for some parts. Don't touch her again." 'Her' being the ship, but she was sure she'd made herself clear.
Seth stalked back across the beach and towards town, ignoring Ming's mildly raised eyebrows as she made her way for the market.
If this idiot was going to keep sticking around, this was going to be a long trip.
Name: Lauren
Username:
latiaos, email: lauren[at]krugh[dot]comCurrent characters in ToS: Aileen Ritter
Reserve: Right here!
2. Canon Character Information
Name: Seth Balmore
PB: Game art
Journal:
freedomfoundAge: She's 1030 years old, but appears about 30.
Appearance: Seth stands about 5'10" with straight, confident posture. She's a medium-dark skinned woman with sharp features and a lot of tightly curled blue (yes, blue) hair. She has wide, strong shoulders but is not without a feminine shape. It's obvious that she gets a lot of exercise, and she is tends to move around a lot when waiting idly. Seth talks with her hands, and is very expressive.
History: Seth's existence began in The Shining World, a universe where beings of pure energy live. For some reason, their world began to break down, and Seth, along with four others from The Shining World, was sent into the human world of Plank to study their magic. While there, Seth and her companions took on human forms. However, due to the varying rates of time in the two universes, the five newcomers appeared to be immortal. In truth, time in Plank simply progresses one thousand times faster than time in The Shining World.
Seth became the only woman pirate in Plank, and gathered quite the reputation for herself. Some feared her, others respected and admired her. They called her that "Righteous Buccaneer," though she wasn't fond of the name. Seth enforced a strict code in her pirating days: Only wealthy cruise ships would be attacked and plundered. Maybe they would scare the more uppity passengers a little, rough 'em up a bit, but killing was strictly forbidden. They sold their winnings to shady dealers and donated much of the money. Seth had become a pirate because she hated the law, hated those who flaunted it and used it to chain others down. She lived fearlessly, at one point unwittingly taking on queen Ming Numara's flagship. She was inevitably captured. However, instead of imprisoning her, Ming did something rather surprising. She reached out to Seth as a friend. The two felt an immediate bond, sharing the weight of immortality. Seth would tell Ming stories of her adventures, and the queen would listen in a trance of fascination. Seth felt a great chemistry with Ming. When it was time for Seth to leave, Ming lent her a precious amulet of hers, making her promise to visit once again so she could bring it back.
But even though she was well-loved, Seth also had a lot of enemies and was captured often in her recklessness. Bound in a cave on a desert island, a gang of well-known pirates left her in the darkness alone, where she would be trapped forever. The island wasn't on any chart nor sea line. Not even a fishing boat had a chance of finding her. Obviously, her time spent in the cave was severely traumatizing. Seth did not know how long she was trapped. With only her thoughts to accompany her, she began to believe the jeers of the pirates who had trapped her- that in her immortality, she was some kind of monster. A monster that did not belong among humans. Seth faced absolute solitude, and even her once-liberating view of her immortality was broken.
At some point, long into her imprisonment, came a blinding flash of white wings; a shining beast calling himself Aneira. He claimed to be the last of his clan, a being capable of living for thousands of years- similar to Seth herself. Aneira knew Seth's name, knew that she was an immortal. They were connected in their solitude and loneliness. Seth convinced Aneira to become a pirate with her, and he freed her. They became partners, the closest of friends on the high seas. After hundreds of years of travelling with Aneira, Seth found a husband and soon had a son, Sed. Shortly after Sed's birth, Seth's husband died in an epidemic. Aneira helped Seth raise her son. Thirty years prior to the game's main story, when Sed was in his 50's, Seth suddenly remembered her mission as an immortal and returned to the Tower of Mirrors, the place where she originally came into Plank. Her mission was complete: She had one thousand years' worth of knowledge of this world. But waiting at the Tower was Gongora, another immortal whom Seth was tasked to report to. Seth figured out at the last moment that Gongora planned to use this knowledge not to report back to The Shining World, but to conquer this world
Fast-forward thirty years, and Seth is an officer in the 43rd magic division in the Republic of Uhra, fighting as a mercinary. After surviving a devastating meteor crash that killed thousands of soldiers, she was brought back to Uhra. This is where she meets Kaim and Jansen, telling them that all she can remember of her past is that she used to be a pirate called Seth Balmore and that she is immortal. Kaim is another survivor of the crash, and Jansen works for Gongora, who is now a chief executive in the Uhran Republic. Since Kaim also has had his memories sealed, nobody knows that Gongora is actually using Uhra to carry out his desired rule over Plank. The three are sent to Grand Staff, the giant magical engine blamed for the meteor crash, on a spying mission. Upon their arrival, the party is taken captive by Numaran forces and held on the queen's flagship. All the while, Seth is suspicious of Jansen, who seems just a little too interested in Seth and Kaim's slowly returning memories.
Upon their escape, Jansen gets sidetracked and sneaks into Queen Ming Numara's chambers to sneak a look at her. It is then that Seth reveals to Kaim that she knows the Queen personally, which is odd, considering Ming's characteristic self-isolation. She isn't positive how they are friends, yet, but the memories are starting to resurface. Jansen is (obviously) caught, and the three are taken before Ming in handcuffs, who lets them go much to her military commander's frustration. It is already becoming obvious that Seth is not fond of Jansen, especially his casual flirtatiousness with Ming. The three reach the outskirts of Numara, where they meet two children: older sister Cooke and her younger brother Mack. Seth immediately takes a liking to the two, especially Cooke. After a squabble with some soldiers, the group ends up at the children's house, where their mother lies on her deathbed. At this moment, Kaim remembers that the mother, Lirum, is in fact his daughter, and that Gongora had something to do with some great pain that had been inflicted upon Kaim in the past. He also remembers that he had a wife, Sarah, also immortal, thus completing the list of immortals: Kaim, Seth, Ming, Sarah, and Gongora, whom they now know to be taking their memories. Lirum dies shortly after this reveal, and Seth and Kaim discuss the threat of Gongora. In a fit of despair, Mack runs off to the dangerous Crimson Forest, hoping to see his mother. Her spirit appears to them in the form of flowers, and Seth proclaims that Lirum has brought them a miracle.
Upon their return to Numara, Tolten, the prince of Uhra, makes an international announcement that he is restoring the monarchy of Uhra and that Gongora, who has won his absolute trust, will be the second in command. Seth calls it out immediately as government by regent. Gongora is the one actually in control. The Uhrans are able to prove that the Numarans are planning an invasion of Uhra through footage on a magical camera that Gongora outfitted on Jansen's eye without him realizing. The party has to leave Numara immediately, because they were also on the footage and have been labeled by Numarans as Uhran spies. They are caught, and surrender to the Numaran guard to avoid conflict. Obviously, at this point, what little trust Seth had in Jansen is broken. Thanks to Cooke and Mack's help, they were able to escape imprisonment. They pretend to take Ming hostage in order to make their escape, and Seth is able to properly speak with Ming for the first time since losing her memories. Much to Seth's dismay, Ming does not remember her; she has also had her memories taken from her. The queen decides to join the party due to the corruption of the officials under her control. Seth leads them all to the harbor, where they steal a ship and flee. The stolen ship actually contains Seth's own engine that she used to use. Cooke is overjoyed to be meeting an actual woman pirate, and becomes Seth's "apprentice" of sorts. While on the ship, Ming reveals that she is beginning to remember things as well. Jansen continues to come onto Ming, and Seth continues to tell him off.
Upon arriving on the shores of Gohtza, Seth remembers her past with Aneira and her son.
She continues to be a bit of a bodyguard with Ming as they arrive at a small tavern, where Jansen manages to get the queen drunk. Despite Jansen's innocent intentions of just wanting Ming to be able to let go a little, Seth acts suspicious and angry. This is a pattern throughout most of the game, a strange love triangle forming with Ming at the apex and Seth constantly at Jansen's throat.
En route to Gohtza still, the party joins up with Sarah, Kaim's wife, who has also suffered the loss of her memories through an extremely painful event. (Gongora had convinced them both that they had allowed the death of their daughter to happen, which was not true. Similar to Seth's experience with Aneira.) The party actually gets to see Gongora in person at another Magical Staff building site. They confront him, Seth losing her temper and trying to attack him. At this point, she can remember what Gongora did to bury her memories, but Gongora still tries to remind her that it was she who killed Aneira. Ming barely manages to physically hold her back from charging Gongora head on as he rambles his lies. He eventually uses his magic to knock them all unconscious, planning to sink the entire Experimental Staff into the ocean. King Tolten of Uhra appears as well to see Gongora, and despite the bodies scattered on the ground, continues to trust Gongora. The two leave, and Cooke and Mack are able to revive everybody just in time to escape. They travel across the water and through snowy mountains to finally arrive in Gohtza.
Splitting up, Seth goes with Ming and Jansen to see the king, where they discover that the man on the throne is just a stand-in. They track down the actual king, who is on a train with a meeting with King Tolten. Kaim, who knows the king of Gohtza personally, informs him that Ming will sit in on the meeting with Jansen and Seth there as "body guards." Ming tells Tolten the truth about Gongora and that he has been used as a puppet this entire time. The meeting does not go in their favor, and plans end up being made to build another Grand Staff instead of destroying the old one.
While they are still on the train, Gongora executes a devastating attack on Gohtza: He freezes the city and its people solid using the power of Grand Staff. Tolten and Seth end up warped out of the train before the freeze completely penetrates it, leaving the Gohtzan king, Jansen, and Ming trapped on the train. They arrive in Uhra, where they learn that Seth's son, Sed, has been captured and will be burned alive for being a pirate. Thanks to the distraction of an all-out attack from the remaining Gohtzan army, they are able to rescue Sed and make their way into the sewers, where they find Sed's ship. The three take the ship through the sewers and into the sky (yes, it can fly, too). By tracking the magic energy output in the pendant Seth returned to Ming, they were able to be reunited with the rest of the group. (Ming and Jansen had since found Kaim, Sarah, Cooke, and Mack.) They all travel to a small island, home to some ancient ruins where they can gain more power to take on Gongora in Grand Staff. With that new power under their belt, the team is able to return to Numara, where they dethrone Ming's militaristic general before leaving for Grand Staff on Ming's flagship.
Arriving at Grand Staff, the party takes on Gongora, who is using a portal formed by magic mirrors to pull energy from the Shining World into Plank. During the fight, these mirrors seep unique energy from the Shining World that harms the immortals; the humans create a magical barrier to stop the energy from coming through the mirrors so that the immortals can take down Gongora. But once the battle is through, the shields fail to drop. Because of the energy seeping into them, they have become too strong to be let down. The mortals are trapped inside the light given off by the mirrors and it is quickly killing them because of the time difference between the two worlds. In a last ditch effort, Kaim breaks the mirrors, opening the portal completely. Seth grapples Gongora through to the other side and into their dying home world, sharing one last meaningful look with her son in the process. The disheartened party escapes Grand Staff as it breaks down from the portal's power. Seth's spirit appears to Ming and Sed later in the form of a small spark. This confirms that she did indeed die in the Shining World.
Powers/Talents: As far as plain ol', humanly possible abilities are concerned, Seth is a very athletic woman, most notable for her speed and coordination. She is an expert pilot, swordfighter, and smooth talker. Her 1000 years of working with ships has made her an expert on magical technology.
Beyond that, Seth is immortal when she is outside The Shining World. Her existence is pure magic energy tied to a human body. Because of this, she is magically very powerful. Seth can use offensive, defensive, and healing spells, though they are not as powerful as some of her other immortal companions (Ming, Sarah, and Gongora), so she focuses herself more on physical attacks. Lost Odyssey magic is very traditional RP magic; organized into White and Black, White is for healing and Black is elementally based. Without items to amplify her abilities (earrings, in the Lost Odyssey canon) Seth can perform basic spells- heal small wounds, start a fire, snap a chain, etc. Overusing her abilities over a short span of time will exhaust them, and she won't be able to use them for a while.
Personality: At first glance, Seth is a radiant and high-strung woman in spite of her age. She shows a childish wonder in all new things, and seeks new people, places, and challenges with great enthusiasm. She seems fearless in all things, facing the unknown with a smirk and diving in headfirst. A chance for a grand new adventure is the opportunity of a lifetime for her. With that in mind, Seth hates rules. She was initially driven to be a pirate because she saw how the law was used in many areas of Plank to oppress people. Seth did what she could to ease the strain, if only a little, thought her piracy. She was something of a Robin Hood figure.
The deeper root of her hatred for binding rules becomes more obvious upon seeing one of Seth's two true fears: Entrapment. She is the epitome of a free spirit, and holding her still in one place will drive her crazy. After her imprisonment in the cave, this fear was amplified immensely. Even being forced to wait in a room for an extended period of time will make her uncomfortable. She does have a bit of claustrophobia. This dislike of feeling trapped also extends into her lack of patience for useless waiting around. Several times in canon, she comments that something is taking too long, or that she's sick of waiting on something/someone.
Seth's other greatest fear is loneliness, also fostered by her time spent in the cave with only her thoughts to keep her company. Throughout much of her life as a pirate, Seth distracted herself from her loneliness with her conquests. But living as an immortal meant that she watched countless generations be born and die out of this world. There was never anybody to live permanently by her side. This is why she grew so close to Aneira, who shared her pain of the loneliness that came with immortality and chose to stay by her side for all those years. Losing him was the most traumatic moment of Seth's entire life. The subsequent event of losing her memory "turned Seth into a walking corps." She couldn't even remember her son, the biggest joy she had left in her life. Now, Seth is more terrified of the idea of eternity alone than ever. In spite of this, though, she does not reject the past. She embraces it, the joy and the pain, with the point of view that it is what has brought her to this point.
Seth's greatest passion is for the ocean. To her, it is the gateway to all things. It is her past, present, and future. Piloting is one of her greatest loves in life. It's obvious when she hasn't been on a ship in a while; she savors it like nothing else. Having never made a "true" home for herself, the ocean is Seth's home.
In day-to-day interaction, Seth is likeable, witty, and can be very sarcastic. She may be a little too much for the more mellow folk, but she typically has no trouble making friends. She can be extremely clever and persuasive when she knows what she wants, and isn't above charming a man or a woman into a few free drinks or a little intel. Seth knows what she wants and how to get it. She is very sociable, and is notably good with kids. She is a open-minded and fun mom to Sed, even in his old age, and acts as a mentor figure to Cooke and Mack, even taking on Cooke as her "pirate apprentice." (Though that was more Cooke's idea than anything) She is selfless woman, this being most obvious in that she gave her life for a noble cause. She takes on the role of Ming's "knight in shining armor," always jumping at the chance to defend her, be it from danger or Jansen (which are basically the same thing in her book). Seth is very fond of Ming. Upon their first meeting, Seth can remember truly laughing for the first time in a long time. She sees a special kind of strength and kindness in Ming that she greatly admires. Seth can have a bit of a temper; she lacks patience for people who don't take her or the people she cares about seriously. Ming acts as a counterbalance to that several times in canon, her docile spirit calming Seth's fiery one.
Why would your character be chosen? Seth would be chosen for her quick wit, optimism, and fearless love for adventure. She is also a powerful fighter and always willing to try something new. Seth is a woman constantly in motion.
How much does your character know about nonhumans? Seth has traveled all over Plank, accustoming herself with every myth and legend in the book along the way. She's aware that worlds outside the two she knows exist, but has never seen them for herself. Being a non-human herself, she knows full-well that there are other types of non-humans out there.
Why this character: The story of Lost Odyssey is absolutely captivating, and not even on a plot-based level. It is the characters' interactions, mainly their struggles with memories and immortality, that makes them fascinating to explore and, by extension, rp. Not being the main character, much of what makes Seth tick is only scraped upon in canon. ToS is definitely a place where I can explore the lesser shown parts of Seth and expose her to an entirely new culture, which will fascinate her. Lively and upbeat, keeping focus on her voice is pretty easy.
AU Addendum: N/A
Past Game History: N/A
4. Samples
First-Person: Wow, um... [The new voice on the network hesitates for a beat.] I can't say this is where I was expecting to come out... [Meet Seth Balmore: pirate captain, immortal magical being, Mom of the Millennium.] Not that I'm going to complain. Good riddance to that creep.
[A sigh.]
So I guess this means I'll be stickin' around here for a while. I'm Seth Balmore. If any of you guys know about a place called Plank, I'd love it if you'd let me know. Other than that... Introductions, I guess? I'd like to meet you all, seeing as we're all in this together.
[Whatever "this" is. Seth isn't quite sure what to make of it all, yet.]
Third-Person: In which Seth accidentally gets the queen of Numara drunk.
Third Sample: "That's it, you've got it! Parry and... counter!" Seth spun out of the short reach of Cooke's wooden sword as the young girl thrust back at her with an overly enthusiastic motion.
"You're off balance- that'll be the death of you in the sand like this!" Seth demonstrated, giving a surprised and indignant Cooke a light hip check and catching her before she hit the ground.
"Come on, Captain! You're way bigger than me!"
"So are many of your enemies. You just need to play to your strengths. And a little magic never hurt." The older woman winked at her unofficial protégé and pushed her bangs away from her eyes. She'd always wanted a little girl. "Come on, let's take a break. You're getting all sweaty." Seth nodded downshore and placed a guiding hand on Cooke's back. The two didn't need to walk long before running into the rest of their motely group. Cooke ran off with her brother, leaving Seth to flop down beside Ming.
"She's coming along wonderfully," the queen said in greeting. "It serves as a distraction, I think."
"Mmm." Seth lay in the sand, folding her arms behind her head and letting the Numaran sun beat down on her face. A true island paradise. She could get used to this, if it weren't so quiet here all the time. She opened one eye, watching Ming.
"You knew Lirum pretty well, then?" Seth's heard the kids call her 'Aunt Ming.' The queen nodded, but she seemed preoccupied.
"Yes, she was... What in the world is Jansen-" Ming's words were cut off by a loud bang followed immediately by a cloud of smoke coming from the direction of their stolen ship. Seth sat bolt upright, bewilderment quickly turning to anger.
"Jansen! What the hell are you doing?!" Seth all but ignored Ming's quiet amusement as she stormed across the beach in the direction of the ship and a very flustered Jansen. Cooke, who seemed to have an extra set of ears for the moments Seth chewed out Jansen, was soon at her captain's heels.
"I-I-I was just, I was, you see-" He babbled like a child caught with his hand in the cookie jar, fumbling to hide whatever damage he had managed to cause the ship. More importantly, the engine of the ship. Seth's engine. Nobody touched Seth's engine. She snatched a wrench from Jansen's hands and leaned over the main engine access to her poor, smoking ship.
"It was making weird noises, so I opened it up and-"
"Shut up, Jansen." Seth's tone was dangerous. He was getting another swift kick in the ass when this was done. It took several minutes of tinkering before Seth shook her head and straightened up to see Jansen standing behind her like a man on death row. Cooke was almost humorous, glaring up at him with her arms crossed. "I need to go into town for some parts. Don't touch her again." 'Her' being the ship, but she was sure she'd made herself clear.
Seth stalked back across the beach and towards town, ignoring Ming's mildly raised eyebrows as she made her way for the market.
If this idiot was going to keep sticking around, this was going to be a long trip.