Khareesh of the Dune Eagle

Full Name: Khareesh of the Tribe of the Dune Eagle

Species: Air Genasi

Gender: Male

Age: 28

Appearance: Khareesh is a wiry humanoid standing at a height of 5'11".  He has bluish-grey skin and white hair swept back from his face, occasionally in a ponytail that never seems to obey gravity.  The air moves around him constantly, making Khareesh a convenient living air conditioner on hot days but probably not someone you want wandering around loose paperwork.  The "whites" of his eyes are black, but his pupils are white, which make his claret-colored irises occasionally difficult to focus on.  Khareesh is not a broad man, though he isn't necessarily slender either, built mostly of whipcord and sinew.  He moves unnaturally gracefully, but that is, perhaps, to be expected from a child of the winds.

History: Native to Teragaia, Khareesh was born to the Tribe of the Dune Eagle of the Clan of the Wind, a nomadic tribe of elemental-blooded people who wander the vast desert south of the village.  The four Clans represent the elemental bloodlines: Fire, Wind, Water, and Earth.  Each Clan, then, is composed of myriad tribes who only periodically cross paths to trade goods and sometimes people.  The Wind Clan, and the Tribe of the Dune Eagle in particular, focuses primarily on mercantile endeavors, ferrying exotic goods across and through the desert.  Such was the life Khareesh and his twin sister Rashana thought they would lead when they reached adulthood, being wandering traders bringing the wonders of the far reaches of Teragaia within reach of distant civilizations.

That was, of course, until Rashana (aged fourteen at the time) learned of a ritual involving her and the rest of the tribe's virgins.  They were to be offered to air elementals ceremonially in the hopes of wind-blessed offspring.  While Khareesh can appreciate the desire to freshen the bloodline and keep it appropriately breezy, it was not the sort of ritual that should be sprung on a population by surprise.  Perhaps if the tribal shamans had informed Khareesh and Rashana's generation of their upcoming sacred duty and associated honors, it would have been a different story.  As it was, Rashana panicked and fled, and what else could a loyal brother do but follow?

So it was that Rashana and Khareesh found the village under the stewardship of Haven Weyr.  It wasn't easy settling in to a place with so many mundane people with so many walls, but they've gotten by in the intervening years mostly in working for the small merchant community in the village.  At least, that's how it was until the day Khareesh stepped onto the Hatching Sands and Impressed.  Myth has changed things somewhat, moving Khareesh to the Weyr and a little further away from his twin sister than he's ever been before.



Personality: Khareesh is usually an undramatic fellow.  He generally tries to be upbeat and mostly cheerful, but even on his bad days, he lacks any real temper to speak of and largely resorts to snide sarcasm on the rare occasion he's actually pushed to real anger.  He's a firm believer in equality and sapient rights, an active feminist, and always a patient and sympathetic ear to anyone who needs it.  Khareesh is a font of odd wisdoms and sideways perceptions, and a shrewd businessman no merchant ever wants to see darken the doorway as a customer, as when trade is involved, Khareesh can be the most charming, manipulative bastard around, capable of talking prices down to ridiculous discounts and still making the merchants feel as if they've won...until they actually take stock of their profits at the end of the day and realize they've been all but swindled.

Khareesh is not without his weaknesses, however.  He is not always the suave, charming, unflappable trader-turned-bluerider.  His people, the air genasi, consider themselves the Children of the Sky, and as such require some connection to the sky at all times.  In short, Khareesh is inherently extremely claustrophobic.  It doesn't always show.  Buildings are just walls, and even the Weyr, built into a mountain, is still fairly open-air to allow the dragons to come and go.  Stick Khareesh underground, however, and the results are not pretty.





Gust of Wind -- As an air genasi, a child of elemental wind, Khareesh can summon a gale force windstorm centered on his location roughly once a day, though doing so is incredibly draining and best done with considerable forethought, lest he damage something or someone he doesn't intend to.  It takes a lot out of him and he generally can't stay conscious if he pushes it too hard.

Storm Immunity -- Like all air genasi, Khareesh can handle a bit of electrocution with no damage or even discomfort.  Outrageous amounts of electricity will still hurt him, but he fares better than your average schmuck stuck out in a thunderstorm and he'd find a taser merely somewhat offensive.

Darkvision and Keen Eyes -- All genasi, regardless of specific elemental parentage, can see in total darkness with relative ease, and Khareesh is no exception.  Furthermore, as an air genasi in particular, his vision is just all around incredibly sharp.  He can see over long distances easily and with great clarity.  This is especially helpful when one considers that none of his other senses are enhanced in any real way.

Air Genasi -- Khareesh is a child of air elementals, and so it is that whenever he falls from or jumps off of a significant height, he is typically under a featherfall effect that allows him to drift to the ground unharmed, cushioned by the wind that surrounds him at all times.  The drawback to this, of course, is that he cannot under any circumstances swim.  Khareesh sinks like a rock in a whirlpool, sucked under even shallow water by the winds that naturally surround him.

Eyes of the Dune Eagle -- Khareesh has only recently been made aware of this power, but his blood carries his tribe's patron spirit animal's blessing.  In short, Khareesh is a Seer.  How powerful or knowledgeable he grows to be remains to be seen, as he has yet to get more than the most confusing visions and the odd ominous omen.

Desert Trader -- Khareesh, being a desert tribesman, is incredibly good at two specific skillsets.  One, he can survive in an arid, hostile environment, and two, he is the kind of terror merchants have nightmares about.  While Khareesh is little good in a brawl, he's an excellent traveling companion who will remember the water and food and shelter supplies you inevitably forget, and he'll have bargained like a merchant prince to get the best discounts on all of the gear he brings along.