The Serpent, Taichou Ryakketsu Vael [Hybrid Upgrade][FINISHED] [Approved 3-5]

Name: バエル略決退潮, Taichou Ryakketsu Vael
Title: 蛇, The Serpent
Date of Birth: 28 November, 1600
Age: 816 years old
Gender: Female
Race: Shinigami/Demon Hybrid
Affiliation: Gotei 13, student at Shin’o Academy
Blood Type: A-Negative
Zodiac Sign: The Archer, Sagittarius ♐
Reiatsu color: Silver

RELATIONSHIPS


Uta Aoyama - Mother - [DECEASED]
Kaku Ryakketsu - Father - [DECEASED]
Kaku Ryakketsu - Father - [REINCARNATED - ZANPAKUTOU SPIRIT]
Zentaro Ryakketsu - Grandfather - [MIA]
Takako Totoyami - Grandmother - [DECEASED]
Mirja Eeola - Mentor - [LIVING]
Arianda Vael - Sister - [LIVING]


APPEARANCE

Taichou stands at 173cm in stature, and 68kg in weight. Physically, her body type is muscular and tall, with ample amounts of natural fat padding her, ergo, curves in all the right places — large breasts, hips, and buttocks — though her waist is whittled. Taichou's entire body is covered in traditional Japanese Irezumi — spanning from her chin, to her ankles — the shape of a winding serpent, wrapped around several decapitated heads, whose scales encircle ornate blue-purple rippled clouds, with negative space left, her skin acting as the defining swirls to complete them; accompanied by red peonies wherever the snake's body curls. Her hairline arches in to a widow's peak, where her onyx tendrils are lopped off angularly, beginning at a shaven undercut at the base of her neck, and ending just atop her breasts in an elongated sort of bob cut.

The face of The Serpent is slender, her soft cheekbones, eyebrows and forehead set highly upon her face; her jawline soft, yet angular in contrast, venturing to a rounded chin, creating a heart-like shape. Her flaming amber eyes are rimmed by thickly set, dark eyelashes, and her eyelids are adorned with red shadow; Taichou's sort of trademark, if you will. Taichou's nose is flat, and rounded at the tip, a typical attribute of her Japanese lineage.

PERSONALITY

»Reserved: When Taichou was taken in by Mirja Eeola, she was very forthcoming in every aspect of the word — from her origins, her past, her lack of understanding, and most importantly, her feelings (see this thread: Shall I Belong). This section of her personality was snuffed out by Taichou after Mirja had disappeared from her (see this thread: Nothing To Worry About), following the physical and spiritual changes that she'd undergone while staying at Arianda Vael's residence.

Now it can be said that Taichou keeps herself closed off from others — dissassociating herself from them in order to create a protective barrier, effectively disallowing her to feel pain emotionally — this can be broken, however, as long as Taichou trusts one enough in order to fully open up, granting them entrance to her emotions, thoughts, and most of all, her heart.

»Protective + Obsessive: Once Taichou bonds with a person, she becomes increasingly obsessive, though this is only because she cares about them with her entire being; she has no off switch, so she worries to the point where she wants to shield them from pain in all forms — whether physical, emotional, or mental. To the best of her ability, Taichou wants to protect those she holds dear, because she cannot bear the burden of losing another.

»Cold + Cynical: Taichou often comes off as cold because she simply has a distaste for all sentient beings. Why? She found a pattern in them: they all deceive you, misuse your trust, abuse you, and leave you in the dust for their own personal gain. She does not hesitate to register her disapproval, either, as she is quite terse.

»Honest: The way one earns future trust is by accurately reporting facts, even if they hurt. Taichou utilizes this by telling things as she sees them, for there's no benefit or gain in sugarcoating the obvious — people can be seriously harmed by being deluded with lies, and Taichou wouldn't wish that on anyone.

»Tenacious: Taichou posesses an unrivaled will that refuses to submit, even under the most extreme of pressures. Some may call this foolish, but it's by this methodology that Taichou can improve, using the data and information gathered from both her failed, and successful attempts in all endeavors.

»Loyal: Taichou is extremely loyal, to the point where she is willing to sacrifice herself in order for her loved ones, and comrades to be spared — there are no ends to this loyalty, even if Taichou's relationship with the person in question crumbles; she will remain faithful.

HISTORY

The Ryakketsu family was founded in the 3rd year of the Choho era by Zentaro, a Shinigami from the District 1 of West Rukongai. Zentaro had vacated his position as a member of the Executive Militia of the Omnitsukido, seeking an end to the brute force and bloodshed that was required of him in his duties; often having to assassinate his former comrades. He settled down, and met a woman named Takako, whom he then married, and relocated to their familial home just beyond the walls of the Seireitei. Together, the two had six children, of which the eldest was Kaku Ryakketsu. Throughout the centuries, the family thrived within the first District, and were often considered a peaceable family, regarded highly by the Gotei despite their humble origins.

In the year 1300, Kaku Ryakketsu, the eldest son of Zentaro and Takako Ryakketsu, entered the Shin'o Academy. He was an unruly teenager, with a gambling addiction, and quite a mouth on him; who never failed to get himself into trouble some way or another. Despite this, Kaku studied hard during his time at the Academy, and his specialty, which he was renowned for before his exile in 1470, was kido. It was as natural to him as breathing, and as he rose through the ranks of the Gotei, his love, and skill for it only grew. Kaku was exiled to the Human World from the Soul Society after breaking out of his imprisonment — for using the Forbidden Kido — alongside his friend Tessai Tsukabishi, on October 12th, 1470.

It's from here, that Taichou begins. Taichou Ryakketsu was conceived on December 16th, 1599, fathered by Kaku Ryakketsu and an exiled Shinigami known as Uta Aoyama, in the Fushimi Ward of Kyoto. On a brisk February morning in 1600, Kaku made a grave error in betting against the Tokugawa shogunate. Unable to pay his massive debt, he was sentenced by the Fudai daimyo to death by execution. Before his execution, he witnessed the brutal rape and torture of his pregnant wife, and unborn child.

Taichou was thrust into the Soul Society as an infant, and grew up in the slums of the 67th District of North Rukongai. She was a peculiar child who kept to herself, particularly because she didn't have anyone to rely upon. Warmth and food were commodities that she had to forgo, often fighting the other children and their parents for decomposing scraps of food — which she could indeed regenerate and make edible due to her natural affinity for kido. Her diet there consisted primarily of the left over feet and scraps of pork, and she was often subjected to being beaten for showing signs of her growing appetite.

Often subjugated by the repressed memories of her parents and the manner in which they died, Taichou found herself wandering without purpose, abandoning the dirt alley she considered home, in direction of the forests beyond Rukongai. Days passed, then weeks, and slowly, they began to blur into months — her iron geta clad feet dragging along the grounds; mind clouded by the image burned into the backs of her eyeballs — the Soul memory of her mother, with Taichou in-utero, having her throat hacked and cleaved by the blade of a dull tanto, ultimately bleeding to death.

On a day in late August, 2416, Taichou succumbed to her emaciation, and collapsed on the forest floor; howling in emotional and physical agony, only to be discovered by a muscular, pink haired woman by the name of Mirja Eeola, a Shinigami skilled in hand-to-hand combat. Mirja took Taichou in, clothed her, bathed her, and trained her, while building an unbreakable bond with the girl, becoming the only person Taichou had ever come to be fully dependent upon; a lofty weight upon anyone's shoulders.

Taichou was motivated by Mirja to enroll in the Shin'o Academy, the fuel to her fire being the murder of her parents, and subsequently, herself. She was at the top of her class in Kido, though merely a beginner in all other subjects she studied, though she was only able to fulfill her first week at the Academy — Mirja had gone missing from her stead with the Demoness known as Arianda Vael, to whom Mirja had been a sort of sexual pet. This sparked Taichou to abandon her studies hastily, as she set out in search for the woman she'd regarded as a friend, mentor, and sister. She scoured the places Mirja used to populate ferverishly, to no avail. Taichou ended up wandering throughout the Wastelands in the World of The Living, her feet bloodied and raw from pacing in her anxiety, her psyche no doubt damaged — only to be exacerbated when the Ryakketsu woman found herself surrounded by Hollows. Unable to defend herself due to her Zanpakuto denying her the ability to wield it, the most powerful of her enemies were two Meni Grande, who fired their Ceros through her stomach, retreating when they felt her facing her untimely death, until someone found her, that is.

None other than Arianda Vael found Taichou. She too had been searching for Mirja, and for some reason, spared Taichou's life while inviting her to stay at her Manor, as a maid. Arianda was able to heal Taichou's wounds to an extent, though her Za Koa could not seal the wound completely closed, consequently leading to the wound re-opening periodically, risking massive infection to Taichou's vital organs, and nervous system. Arianda was faced with a choice, fuse her flesh into Taichou, or let her die. She chose the first option, naturally; and so, on a late January day, Taichou became a half-Demoness, entering a covenant of flesh and blood with Arianda — becoming her rather incestuous, full-blooded sister. Now, Taichou lies tasked in coping with her newly acquired Demon side, while juggling her duties as a Shin'o Academy student training to become an occupational Shinigami, and rekindling her relationship with her mentor, Mirja, and others as she grows further.

☯ SHINIGAMI ☯

Natural Abilities

-Immense Spiritual Power: Taichou posesses an immense amount of Reiryoku, but this is dampened by the fact that she has had no true training to hone in on the power that flows through her, thus sealing it away from her. In time, with training, Taichou will be able to utilize this ability fully, therefore being able to exercise control over her Reiatsu, which is currently difficult for her.

-Kido Prowess: A trait that Taichou discovered while she'd get in fights over food with other children, she noticed that she had the ability to heal her own wounds (Kaido), and when she'd be left with only scraps of food, often bruised and damaged, she realized that she could use the same restorative power to rejuvenate the scraps into something edible.

Over time, Taichou realized that she could use this ability to restore inanimate objects, but the catch was, the larger the object, the larger the amount of energy sapped from her. For instance, when restoring food, the level of exertion is similar to lifting something 22kg for an extended amount of time (2 posts). But when restoring wounds, the level of exertion for Taichou is much greater, as it requires the stopping/controlling of bleeding, reformation of muscular tissue/tendons, and the regrowth of skin over the damaged area. Restoring large wounds leaves her exhausted to the point where she often is left unable to restore any others.

As of late, Taichou has speculated that she could possibly extend this ability to restore weapons, but being as she cannot wield her Zanpakuto from the lack of spiritual training at the Academy, there's a level of uncertainty. Only time, and training will tell.

-Durability: Taichou is unnaturally durable, being able to withstand massive flesh wounds, such as two Ceros through the abdomen at once, emaciation, and psychological trauma for extended periods of time. This durability is fueled by both Taichou's affinity for kido, and her spiritual power, even while hampered currently. Conceptually, once Taichou can release her Spiritual Power in full, her durability will also increase, as it will when she is able to enhance her stamina through overall training. There is a limit to this durability, however, being that when she faces exhaustion, her durability decreases.

»Zanpakutou name:蝮 (まむし), Mamushi.
»Zanpakutou description: Mamushi takes the form of a nagamaki, measuring in at a lengthy 152.4 centimeters in length; of which 72.6 centimeters is the hilt itself. The hilt wrapping consists of black silk, atop a black, finely lacquered tsuka — while the blade is also crafted from black, 1566 Spring Steel, blood groove included.

Mamushi can be found hanging from Taichou's waist, holstered horizontally by a thick, silver cord suspended around her shoulder, fitting across her collarbone and chest — fastened from the hand guard, and the tip of the blade's sheath.

»Release phrase: 大蛇女神の剣を喰らえ; "Feast upon the sword of the Snake Goddess."
»Sealed Powers: Status Unknown
»Shikai: Status Unknown

»Bankai:

☯ DEMON ☯

Natural Abilities

»Unique Abilities: Status Unknown
»Adjustable Demon States: Status Unknown
»Appearance: Status Unknown
»Benefits: Status Unknown