CHARACTER ANALYSIS & HISTORY
"Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved."
-Hellen Keller
Ryoma Oshiro
Ryoma Oshiro (ṙyo-mah O-SHEE-RO) is a male Kalon. His approximate birthday and age is unknown-- However, it is known that his zodiac sign is Scorpio and extremely old. He stands at 6'2 and weighs approx. 213 lbs.
Originally born in Japan, he and his family had to move away from civilization due to tough times and rising political powers that threatened the life of the Oshiro family. Ryoma is an only child, he has no siblings. For the majority of his life he knew his mother and father, and his grandmother who journeyed with them to escape the economic tension.
Ryoma continued to grow up in the mountains his family fled to, there was no reason to leave. After his grandmother passed, his father and mother soon to follow, he stayed isolated from the outside world.
He occasionally travels outside of his cave, of course. He also entertains the thought of visiting the town he used to live in during the holidays, but never goes. The only civilization he visits is a village far away that has a local library, herbs, inkwells and paper.
Oshiro indulges in knowledge, his family had a vast library and he dedicated his life to learning more, scribbling it down in notes and drawing wildlife to find out how other organisms work. He has a deep appreciation for life and enjoys the little things. Ryoma is open-minded and flexible, with a broad range of interests and abilities. He is also prone to losing things. (Chances are, they're right in his hand and he's stressing about where he put it.)
However, he is not without fault. When things grow too difficult, or don't go the way he planned, Ryoma can grow furious and impatient. Tossing and crumbling up paper that did not come out the way he intended. Something his mother got onto him about, Ryoma's temper is something that needs to be worked on a lot. He hoards, taking anything that comes into sight. Large piles of sticks, interesting looking rocks, leaves and even bones of fish and other animals he had eaten before are stacked in corners and crevices in his cave.
Due to being isolated the majority of his life, he has forgotten common courtesies and can be rude, off-standish. Sometimes brash. His mother's words come back to him, and he may gruffly apologize for his behaviour.
Still, he can be kind and warm once he has spent more time with you. Too busy indulging in his quest to know more to care about such petty, trivial things.
After many years had passed, Ryoma ventured far away from his cave, leaving his old life behind him. He became a nomad, whispers in the dark about him grew more and more. He became a myth, a legend. "The Kalon with wings of steel." Eventually he found himself in another mountain range, outside of Japan, far away from his original home. Ryoma met monks, who had taken him in. Learning more, dedicating his life to peace, his temper and anger gradually subsided. Ryoma grew more relaxed. He cherished life around him. He was enlightened.
More about Ryoma
INTJ
"Have original minds and great drive for implementing their ideas and achieving their goals. Quickly see patterns in external events and develop long-range explanatory perspectives. When committed, organize a job and carry it through. Skeptical and independent, have high standards of competence and performance - for themselves and others."(Myers, Isabel. Introduction to Type. Cpp, Inc. 1980. Print.)
Likes:
Reading and writing, going out for walks. He likes the aesthetic of winter, but also enjoys the aesthetic of spring cherry blossoms and bamboo shoots that stand tall. Ryoma's favorite animal is a hedgehog. The smell of books, cloud watching. Small things like the warmth of a fire, and the comfort of knowing he's loved.
Ryoma also enjoys the sound of people singing, or cellos. He likes the feeling of cold marble/slab beneath him, though he can also appreciate the feeling of warm grass. The smell of ink, freshly fallen snow or blooming flowers.
Neutral, "Undecided"
"A neutral character does what seems to be a good idea. She doesn't feel strongly one way or the other when it comes to good vs. evil or law vs. chaos. Most neutral characters exhibit a lack of conviction or bias rather than a commitment to neutrality. Such a character thinks of good as better than evil-after all, she would rather have good neighbors and rulers than evil ones. Still, she's not personally committed to upholding good in any abstract or universal way." ("The Alignment System" http://easydamus.com/alignment.html, nd.)
Dislikes:
Ryoma dislikes narrow minded, and thick skulled people. He doesn't like the heat, either. Most seasons are preferable to summer. Open spaces make him feel vulnerable. Has a fear of water. Hates unpredictable outcomes.
Doesn't like the sound of lutes. Also hates it when his mechanic wings freeze up in the winter.
Voice Claim: Hiroyuki Sanada
Name meaning:
Ryoma- This name combines 龍 (ryuu, ryou, rou, tatsu) meaning "dragon, imperial",
竜 (ryuu, ryou, rou, ise, tatsu) with the same meaning as 龍, 良 (ryou, i.i, -i.i, yo.i, -yo.i) meaning "good, pleasing, skilled",
亮 (ryou, akiraka) meaning "clear, help", 凌 (ryou, shino.gu) meaning "defy, endure, keep (rain) out, slight, stave off, surpass, tide over",
僚 (ryou) meaning "colleague, companion, official", 涼 (ryou, usu.i, suzu.shii, suzu.mu, suzu.yaka, hiya.su, makotoni) meaning "nice and cool, refreshing" or
諒 (ryou, akira.ka, makotoni) meaning "appreciate, fact, reality, understand" with 馬 (ba, uma, -uma, ma) meaning "horse" or 真 (shin, ma, ma-, makoto) meaning "Buddhist sect, reality, true."
Oshiro- From Japanese 大 (o) meaning "big, great" and 城 (shiro) meaning "castle".
What's with the wings?
Of course, one may have noticed his odd, robotic wings by now. There is a story to everything, some say. His wings have just that-- a story.
Ryoma had just finished gathering more firewood and some moss to soften his bed, which had gone flat the night before. He ventured out to forage and hunt for food, the wildlife around him was teeming with eagerness. It was the first day of spring, animals buzzing around to find potential mates and waking up from their hibernation. He had gone farther down the mountain, a thick woodland that resided upon the slope of the mountain surrounded him.
Alas, he tripped over a rock and tumbled down the hill, bumping into trees and getting completely tattered and injured along the way. He had finally stopped himself just in time to avoid falling into a river.
Ryoma trudged up the mountainside once more, with no meal in his hand, too exhausted to care about his hunger. Perhaps he'd eat lichen that day. Arriving to his cave, Ryoma began to inspect his wings which were absolutely brutalized from the tumble. His joints screamed in pain every time he tried to stretch them out. He decided to give it a couple of days to heal.
Days passed, and eventually weeks. Ryoma's wings were in no shape to be used to fly. It was sore, his once glorious feathers now tattered and unattractive.
Grumbling to himself, Ryoma grabbed scrap pieces of paper and furiously began sketching away at possible solutions and remedies to heal his wings. At first he thought of herbal remedies, and it didn't work. He tried meditating, but couldn't find a suitable place to do so. Eventually he gave up, deciding to live with his useless wings.
Then, it hit him.
Ryoma scrambled to gather all his supplies, and sketched out metallic wings to cover his wounded ones, to aid him in his plight. It took months to construct the robotic wings, then to fuse them into his own body; an extremely painful task.
The science behind it was convoluted and hard to follow at first, but he made it work. Months, almost a year of practicing flying to try and get it right, he achieved what he sought.
That, my friends, is the story behind his wings.
Art by cherrydoge (me)