Edric Neven | Imperium | Reeve

[Edric Neven]

EDRIC NEVEN OVERVIEW » NAME: Edric Neven » ALIAS: Yellow Wolf, The Wolf and the Hound, Reeve » AGE: 28 » GENDER: Male » AFFILIATION: Imperium » OCCUPATION: Reeve » FACE CLAIM: Artwork » PLAYED BY: DNico PROFILE THEIR ASPECT Edric stands a head taller than six feet, with broad, heavy shoulders and a physically imposing build, required of anyone choosing to stay in his line of work. He has yellow, unsettling eyes, jet black hair that is worn long, usually tied in a topknot at the crown of his skull, with the back and sides of his head shaven down to stubble. Edric has seen too much and lived too harsh a life to smile, and wears a constant scowl or sneer that twists his once-handsome face into a dour facade, made grimy by the poor quality of life in his district. A gnarly burn scar stretches across the left side of his neck, something which provides him with a permanent itch. Grease and oil stains can always be found on Edric’s hands and forearms due to the amount of time he spends tinkering in his workshop, mostly on Brunhild, his reconstructed cyber-mastiff. This work also gives him scars and scratches all up his arms and legs. It is hard to stay clean in the heavily-populated, rarely-cleaned low-hive streets, avenues and alleyways, so Edric has adopted an “if it ain’t broken and it doesn’t stink, it’s fine” attitude towards the heavy leathers he always wears. He owns a scratched, pitted carapace breastplate with attached shoulder pauldrons that sits over his leathers when he knows he is expecting trouble - which is, incidentally, all of the time. Over everything is a tan, knee-length overcoat that is lined with ballistic cloth for extra protection. Noteworthy Features » Yellow eyes » Imposing, tall stature » Deep, long scar above left eye » Long black hair, shaved at the back and sides » Tan overcoat and dark grey carapace breastplate THEIR PERSONA Growing up in such a violent, dangerous environment, Edric learned at a very young age that to be brutal was to live another day. This is something that is now ingrained in him such that he knows he will never believe otherwise. He understands, however, that it is only a means to an end and not only does not take pleasure in but actively detests violence. Edric is an abrasive man to most, with little time or patience for frivolities or carousing. He is an intensely driven person, relentless in his pursuit of the hab-block’s stability or in whatever investigation he is involved in, unyielding in the face of whatever dangers he may encounter. This causes friction with the gangs he comes across, who care not for his attitude or his open disrespect for them, but necessity deems he has to compromise with them where possible as he is only one man and cannot take on an entire gang of cut-throats himself. Despite this need for compromise, Edric will not ignore blatant crimes committed by anyone, especially the gangs, and will follow any avenue an investigation leads him down. Edric is a bit of a loner, not entirely by choice but simply due to his profession, for none want to ally themselves too closely with a person so hated by, and a permanent possible target for, the local gangs. In reality, he is a compassionate soul, with a kind heart that has been blackened by the rigours of reality. If he did not, he would not continue in his crusade of insanity to ensure peace for his fellow hivers. It is the endless violence more than anything which he resents about his home and the people in it even as he strives to keep the peace in the hab block and protect its citizens. This desire for stability, or a crusade of insanity as Doc Straton calls it, is Edric’s driving force, and the greatest influence on anything he does. He is an intelligent man, if largely uneducated besides what Doc Straton has done for him, so his acumen is evident mostly in his intuitive knack for investigative work and the technological skill he has taught himself. » POSITIVE TRAITS ✔ Desire for Stability ✔ Relentless ✔ Intelligent ✔ Compassionate » NEGATIVE TRAITS ✘ Brutal ✘ Caustic ✘ Loner ✘ Inquisitive » LIKES ✔ Brunhild ✔ Doc Straton ✔ Duty ✔ Justice » DISLIKES ✘ Gangs ✘ Violence ✘ Abuse of power ✘ Nobles THEIR CONNECTIONS Allies » Brunhild Brunhild is Edric’s reconstructed cyber-mastiff that he salvaged from a mostly-wrecked Arbites model discovered in the underhive. Brunhild is a sort of frankenstein creation of Edric’s, with much of the original internal cybernetic “organs” having been repaired by Edric, but the outer shell of Brunhild is a mishmash of different armour plates, patched-up servos and restored high-speed actuators. The physical, animal parts of the destroyed model were rotted by the time Edric found her, but he managed to track down a suitable combat hound and affix everything mechanically that was salvageable from the broken model onto the new hound. Brunhild has no complicated auspex array or “sniffer” mechanics as they are currently beyond Edric’s technological skill even if the base technical organs for such capabilities are still present behind her outer shell. She is still a formidable presence when Edric deigns to use her, responding only to Edric’s vocal commands and capable of taking down opponents even larger than Edric himself with her heavy bulk and powerful jaw. She is hip-high to Edric and has a long, thick torso with tall legs, able to intimidate enemies with an ear-splitting howl. » Leukala dan Hendrix A Senior Arbitrator for the local Arbites precinct, Leukala has tangled with many of the same criminals as Edric since being transferred to her current precinct ten years ago. The two have always worked well together, with Leukala acknowledging the good that Edric does despite his unofficial status. The two have a respectful friendship despite Leukala’s high-born status that borders on romantic from time to time, though the two are so committed to their duties that neither would ever entertain the notion. » Vareas Straton Doc Straton, who runs the stitch-den of Edric’s hab-block, is an ex-medic of the 201st Corinthean Guard regiment who cared about the place he had grown up in and returned fifteen years ago hoping to help the downtrodden and the destitute. He is partly responsible for Edric becoming who he is, having taught Edric how to handle weapons and some hand-to-hand combat skills, but mostly it was his kind, caring ethics that he passed onto Edric, even if it has become slightly twisted. Enemies » Moros Brettgar Moros is the Proctor Marshall of the Adeptus Arbites Precinct that oversees district K-11. He is an old, aged curmudgeon of a man, indisposed to Edric’s unofficial policing and views him as more of a nuisance to be ignored or a potential source of trouble to be stamped out. There have been few interactions between the two, but they have all been unpleasant, if not hostile, even on Edric’s part who considers the Arbites largely useless. » Arcuri the Red, "Red" Captain of the hive gang that controls Edric’s home hab-block, Arcuri is a large, powerful individual that oversees the entire hab-block for his bosses in the Vultspear gang. Edric and Red have come to blows in the past, most notably four years ago when Red put out a black-hit order on Edric for breaking the gangster’s left leg, Edric himself receiving the grisly scar above his left eye in return. Edric barely survived the hit attempt, though Doc Straton would then intervene and broker a peace agreement between Edric and the gang. Still, the two will never see eye to eye and barely tolerate each other’s presence. » Roth Titus Edric takes issue with the vicious, callous attitude that Baron Ekkehart’s enforcers are infamous for, and over the years has run afoul of their attentions. He has survived more than one attempt to silence him and the noise he makes when he looks into the crimes committed by the enforcers. After killing the first team sent after him, with Doc Straton’s help, ten years ago, then barely escaping the blaze, though with a nasty burn on his neck, set by the next team sent only three years ago, the Baron has yet to make his next move. Titus holds a deep hatred for Edric, for reasons unknown, but seems to enjoy taunting and goading Edric whenever his duties bring him to the district. » Baron Adrian Ekkehart Baron Ekkehart, a minor noble whose lands technically stretch into district K-11, notably the levels with a few manufactorums that provide the district with the highest number of jobs, is a prime example of Edric’s distaste for nobles and those in power. Ekkehart has come to loathe Edric for the trouble he causes, though after repeated attempts to kill him the Baron has now adopted a policy of being more careful when ordering his enforcers into Edric’s district to try and draw less attention. THEIR APTITUDES Edric is an orphan, and not one lucky enough to be born from Imperial nobility so as to end up in a schola progenium. The low-hive district he grew up in did not care for the “strays” that wandered about the dirty streets, so he had no access to education or even safety. Edric has struggled to survive: as a young child this meant petty theft of food to avoid starvation and clothing to avoid freezing to death, as well as getting into vicious fights with other strays to keep hold of what few possessions he had. Thus, he has the skills of a criminal even if he now has the mindset of a law man. His harsh childhood is also the reason for his abrasive manner with others, as being nice never earned him a crumb when he was hungry, and in fact he is naturally suspicious of anyone that is too nice in their manners or speech for seemingly no reason. Doc Straton taught Edric everything he knows about weapons, that he learned himself from his time in the guard and as a hive ganger before that, as well as regimental hand-to-hand combat techniques. Straton also taught Edric to read, write and also instilled in him the ethic of doing the right thing no matter what. With little to do other than wander the district looking for food or shelter for the night, Edric as a child passed the time by playing with any piece of technology, broken or not, and attempting to discover how exactly the machines worked. It is from his curious nature that he realised his passion for technology, even if he lacks the formal education to understand the theory behind any of it. The one thing Edric has never had is a partner, besides Brunhild, and his abrasive nature since turning to his current line of work deters others from getting too close. His methods are unconventional, if ruthless at times, but clash with his ultimate desire for justice and his natural distrust of people makes him difficult to work alongside. » STRENGTHS ✔ Impressive Strength ✔ Intuitive Investigator ✔ Weapons Training ✔ Technologically Savvy ✔ Criminal Skills » WEAKNESSES ✘ Uneducated ✘ Abrasive ✘ Suspicious ✘ Doesn't Work Well With Others Abnormal Traits » Lucky While not actively psychic, having a grade of only Pi, Edric has a greater amount of luck than most, and has survived more potentially lethal scrapes and fights that could be put down to this luck. Things like turning at the last second and sighting a hidden attacker before he is shivved, discovering a vital clue to an investigation that no one else would have found, and other small, but important moments are all examples of this. » Trait Name Brief Trait Description » Trait Name Brief Trait Description ACCOUTREMENTS THEIR WEAPONS » Stub Revolver A basic, aged solid projectile revolver with six rounds in the cylinder. With reliable stopping power capable of punching through most body armour apart from carapace or anything more expensive than flak, it has never failed Edric and he ensures to keep it clean and well-maintained in line with the drills Doc Straton taught him. It has a scrimshaw bone handle, carved and fitted by Edric himself from some unknown remains he discovered in the underhive. He keeps two rounds of man-stopper bullets, that provide greater armour piercing ability, loaded onto speedloaders in a pouch at his belt » Shock Gauntlet A gauntlet and vambrace made of low-quality ceramite, this fits over his whole right hand and forearm and is wired with electro-conducting wire filaments wrapped around the plasteel knuckle-studs of the gauntlet. When activated, Edric’s already impressive strength is amplified by the shocking currents of electricity coursing through the filaments, able to “merely” stun an opponent or deliver a potentially lethal current through their nervous system, depending on the power mode selected. » Combat Shotgun Edric’s dependable, hard-hitting choice of weapon that he does not usually carry with him, but keeps at his workshop for situations when he knows he will need all the firepower he can bring. It uses a drum magazine, but new cartridges are not always easy to come by so most of the time he will make his own. THEIR ARMOR The Best An Underhiver Can Get Edric has a battered, scratched, dark grey carapace breastplate that includes a front chestplate and a backplate, with articulated shoulder guards. The heavy leathers that he wears underneath help to deflect glancing cuts but would not stop a bullet or a direct stab. Edric’s knee-length tan overcoat is lined on the inside with ballistic cloth, and has a hood to keep the chemical-filled, slightly toxic rain that falls from the darkened sky-vaults. THEIR EQUIPMENT » Miscellaneous Rebreather Magnacles Lho-sticks Multikey Signal Jammer » Combat Drugs & Injector Narcotics of every variety are widely available throughout the low- and underhive areas of Grevena, so too in district K-11. Edric frowns on the use of illegal narcotics but the combat drugs Stimm and Slaught have definitely come in handy for Edric in a tight spot. He carries one dose of each in a pouch at his belt, alongside a multi-use injector. » Data-slate Edric’s data-slate is a battered piece of technology that has been with him for years, is small enough to fit into the inside pocket of his overcoat, and is used to note everything he finds on an investigation as well as receive and transmit information on local comm-networks. It also has a built-in picter that can capture live or still images from a discreet lens on the back and is a vital piece of kit for Edric that he never goes anywhere without. THEIR VEHICLES » Mechanical Bike Edric’s mech-bike is a simple mech-bike with a combustion engine and two heavy-duty tires to deal with the mess and debris scattered about the low-hive district K-11 and the underhive. It also has locations to which Edric can strap baggage onto and the frame is sturdy and robust enough to handle the rough ride it is put through on occasion. Like most everything Edric owns, it was created by himself through salvaged and scavenged parts, so it needs semi-regular maintenance to keep it running. BIOGRAPHY “Down here, in the shit? Everyone’s getting fucked, but nobody’s happy about it.” Born into the muck and mire of the low-hive district of K-11, sometimes known as Kill-block for reasons unsurprising, Edric already had little chance of a safe, happy life. When his mother, his only living parent, died at age six he was then left to fend for himself, for no one else in the district had enough money to feed themselves, never mind an extra mouth. Edric then became a stray, a wandering orphan with no family and no support system, forced to beg for food and then to steal when begging got him nothing. He learned, much too young, that life will hand you nothing and what you want must be taken or earned. One day at a time, scrapping with other strays or even older gang members who wanted what little he had, Edric fought tooth, nail and claw to survive. This earned him a reputation as somewhat of a rogue, though as just a child who eventually went on to change his ways the district has largely forgotten this persona. Much of his time was spent wandering the district, venturing down into the underhive whenever he was truly desperate for food, and amused himself by tinkering with whatever kind of technology or machinery that he could get his hands on. By the time he was a teenager, he was well-versed in taking things apart, learning how they worked on a mechanical level and putting them back together. It was probably this that endeared him to Doc Straton, who returned from Guard duty when Edric was thirteen and set up an underground stitch-den. Straton’s first encounter with Edric was a pickpocket attempt, then an unsuccessful chase where Edric managed to get away. Weeks later, Edric crawled into the Doc’s clinic with a stab wound to the gut, not realising the Doc was the victim who chased him. Straton patched him up, and noticed Edric trying to fix some of the damaged mechanical components and fixtures inside the run-down clinic. Edric was initially cagey, wary of strangers who showed him anything other than disdain, but eventually opened up to the old veteran. The friendship began there, with Edric coming back often to learn how to read and write from the Doc, as well as to play countless games of regicide with the old man who beat Edric handily every time. Edric learned more about mechanics and technology from Straton than he ever could have on his own, even if engineering was not the veteran’s specialty, and drank everything in. Long discussions around how the two felt about their home, Kill-block, what their lives have been like, what they wanted for their own future and the future of the district, all contributed to Edric’s jaded perspective being morphed from a pure hatred of his home, to a desire to pursue the betterment of the district however he can. But first, he would need to know how to protect himself against worse than a rival stray armed with a metal pipe. “When someone is innocent, they have nothing but questions. When someone is guilty, they have nothing but answers.” To this end, Edric persuaded the Doc to teach him everything learned in the Guard, most of all weapons handling and close combat techniques. Still a force to be reckoned with, the veteran enjoyed teaching Edric who turned out to be a model pupil. At fifteen, Edric had already begun helping members of the local community with things like lost relatives, stolen merchandise and other minor criminal issues that no one else, neither the Arbites nor the baronial enforcers, were willing to deal with. It was a challenge at first, getting those he had been pilfering from for years to turn around and trust him with their troubles, but after one or two desperate souls took a chance and were rewarded for their gamble on this young would-be reeve, Edric started to build a reputation for fairness, compassion and ruthless determination. Over the years, Edric had been growing more and more of a pain in the arse to both the Vultspears and the enforcers of Baron Ekkehart, until he finally asked too many questions in too many wrong places. After refusing to desist in his investigations when confronted by enforcers, the next he saw of the baron’s men was in a narrow alley at dusk, both assassins armed with pistols and blades. Edric had years of one-on-one tutelage from Doc Straton by this age at eighteen, and handily slew both. No repercussions followed from this, though Edric made sure to keep his head down afterwards. He learned to be more covert in his work, something he was practised in when it came to his criminal past. After the assassination attempt, Edric decided he needed a partner, but Doc Straton claimed he was too old for such proclivities, and there was no one else Edric would trust to watch his back. Edric had already salvaged the remains of an old cyber-mastiff from the underhive some years before, and had been fiddling about with it ever since, but from then on dedicated his time to restoring the mechanical hound. After almost two years, many headaches, failures and setbacks - and a lot of help from the Doc - Brunhild was brought barking to life. It was a year before he was able to properly calibrate the vocal commands enough to bring her with him on an investigation, but ever since the two have been near-inseparable. By twenty four, Edric was well-regarded by the local hivers of K-11, but he was then to face the most perilous test of his already grim life. The Vultspears, a source of great misery to the district for decades, had mostly kept the worst of their criminal enterprise to the other gangs for a few years, however when two citizens with no ties to the gang world were murdered in their own homes, Edric traced the culprits to the headquarters of the Vult’s operations in the district. He knocked on the front door, Brunhild in tow, and demanded the perpetrators face justice. It was not his smartest move, but the butchered state of the victims and the blatant nature of the crime was the nail that broke the cyber-mastiff’s back for Edric, and he was in no mood to compromise this time. Edric confronted Arcuri the Red, who merely laughed at his request and ordered his men to put down the wolf and his hound. Edric barely escaped, but not before trading blows with Red, using his shock gauntlet to smash Arcuri’s left knee to pieces and receiving a long gash above his right eye in return. Doc Straton, already a respected figure in the district, managed to broker a deal between Edric and Arcuri in order to keep the peace. It was, in fact, mostly the support from the citizens of the hab-block that rallied around Edric’s workshop, homemade weapons and handcrafted shivs out, prepared to defend Edric from the gang for all he had done for them the past nine years, that swayed Arcuri and the Vultspears into accepting the truce. Having been unofficially installed as Kill-block’s Reeve by the citizens themselves, Edric has taken this responsibility extremely seriously, even more so than before as it is clear that his efforts are beginning to bear fruit. A year after his induction, he ran afoul of Baron Ekkehart’s enforcers once again, though this time they attempted to burn his workshop down in the middle of the night. Edric received a serious burn on the left side of his neck, but managed to make it out alive with Brunhild and some of his possessions, but the rest was burned to the ground. The community supported him through this after putting out the fire, and finding Edric a small warehouse in the middle of the district that was derelict for him to move into. It was not glamorous, but it quickly became liveable and Edric has spent the last three years building back up his small personal workshop inside. Although Edric knows who set his old home aflame, the spoor took him too close to the Baron so essentially out of Edric’s reach. For now, anyway.

[Last Order]

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