The Red Gentleman
An Eccentric Masked Alchemist
Always red, always quick with a flirt or self-deprecating joke, always where you least expect him or want him. The gangly, homeless hyur either incites a draw for the mystery behind him or a quick dismissal for his ridiculous antics and mannerisms. He might be dangerous or he might be harmless--it's anyone's guess but at least he's entertaining!
The Red Gentleman
Personal Information
NAME -- Helios
AGE -- Early Thirties
NATIONALITY -- [REDACTED]
CITIZENSHIP -- Limsa Lominsa
GENDER -- Male
CLASS -- Assassin (OOC Ninja)
SERVER -- Mateus
HEIGHT & WEIGHT -- 6'2", ~160 ponze.
PROFESSION -- Travelling Alchemist, Odd Job Worker
HOBBIES -- Studying alchemy; sightseeing around Eorzea; baking
The Red Gentleman
Physical Appearance
There is little that can be determined by the masked hyur's facial appearance: a stripe of short hair along his jaw is kept trim and a pair of gold earrings are always fit into the lobes of the ears that frame it, yet the modest mask of white wood and black, vacant eyeholes gives nothing away for the man behind it.
As for the rest of him, Helios is a wiry man of above-average height. Under the typical crimson threads of his attire, his skin is marred with ink in the shape of alchemy symbols, with the character for 'mercury' peaking out of a shirt collar typically from it being tattooed at the front of his neck.
When staying still, Helios typically appears to be a well-bred gentleman. Yet in movement, it becomes apparent how eccentric he actually is. He walks and gestures with jerks of his limbs, and speaks rapidly when excited or attempting to explain anything. His actions are dramatic, like a dancer flourishing in time with some beat only he can hear. Many walk away from him feeling as if he is very odd.
His voice is deep and rich when speaking about serious matters or at a normal pitch--typically, however, it fluctuates into a higher pitch from excitedly chatting someone's ear off or nervously attempting to talk his way out of something.
Being that Helios is rarely without a steady roof to stay under, he typically keeps his precious possessions on him. Besides a pair of blades he's never far from, and a myriad of smaller ones he uses for throwing at ranged targets, he has satchels at his belt that are filled with bottles and vials of all sorts of concoctions; they are either there in preparation for a buyer to purchase them from him, or as a precaution for any bounty hunter to jump him from the shadows. Around his neck, Helios will occasionally have a silver chain tucked away that holds a charm of a gold colored crystal.
Helios is almost never seen without a mask on his face, specifically to cover the upper part of his face. If he is without a mask and it is daylight, he will wear a pair of goggles or spectacles fitted with red lenses. One will rarely get an explanation from him about the reason for his mask. Under his left sleeve, something bulky can be seen peeking out, with brass tubes and red Allagan circuitry glowing softly. He will also rarely explain this as well, and typically try to hide it unless he is fighting.
Fighting Style
Helios is a man who has been constantly on the run for nearly three years. In that amount of time, he has picked up plenty of skills of his pursuers, particularly ones for those not on the right side of the law.
With a dagger on one hand and typically a 'glass grenade' in the other, Helios will bottleneck opponents into tight spaces to deal with them as few as he can at a time. With larger crowds or enemies, Helios will attempt to control them with the heckling of gas, traps, poisons, and explosions.
If a fight drags on for too long, Helios will not stick around to see it through. He is best at turning tail and running; the device on his arm, which allows him to jump forward or backwards briefly through time, is perfect for this. And if you think cornering the hyur will make him for easy pickings, well--you've never cornered a desperate animal before. All in all, Helios as an opponent would not be a quick fight when he has control of the field.
Personality
The masked Hyur garbed in red might be possibly mad. Or mayhaps he's just eccentric? Even he does not fully know. With his lack of awareness at times for space and his fluctuations between brilliance and gullibility, it has to be wondered if it's an act or if he actually is as ridiculous as he appears to be.
Regardless of how he acts between friend or stranger, he has several consistent traits for his behavior. Helios is extremely aware of consent and respects anyone who gives him the same consideration. He never attempts to force anyone to trust him, as he realizes the failure of logic at expecting someone to trust a man who will not even reveal his face to them. On the other hand, Helios is also very meddlesome when he puts his mind to it, and sometimes he will act almost in a 'stalker' fashion to pick up information on a friend's location or gather details about them or anyone that is harming them.
He is extremely affectionate, but only to friends; when someone is recognized as his friend, there are many platonic touches and hugs given as well as an overwhelming amount of attention. Helios might not ever trust someone completely to call them a friend, but because he does not expect them to trust him either he is quite alright in 'pretending' he is close with someone, and living in the moment by going all out in this pretend deep friendship. And sometimes a deep friendship blooms under Helios' attentions when he's not looking.
Because of Helios' trust issues, he has limited ability in commitment when it comes to romantic relationships. If he recognizes that his feelings for someone are turning into something serious, or vice versa for them, Helios will typically climb out a literal window to get away from the situation, panicking at having to be vulnerable or possibly hurt someone. Instead of romantic relationships, Helios surrounds himself with friends, and if he feels the actual inclination for a sexual relationship, he will just pick from any friend who is open to the idea.
Helios has had a traumatizing past and therefore struggles with symptoms of PTSD. When he is not smiling and attempting to be a sunbeam for his friends, Helios is alone with himself--and he is not a great companion when this happens. Filled with self-loathing for past and present mistakes, Helios' internal monologue is a constant vicious cycle that drives him into a depression he feels most when alone. Helios will attempt to constantly keep himself among company to combat this, yet it is an inevitability that he has to be alone with himself eventually during the days or weeks. Alcohol or occasional drug use is typically used when he is desperate.
The Red Gentleman
RP Hooks
Half/Pureblooded/Conscript of the Garlean Empire? Half-Thavnarian and half-Garlean, Helios has a colored past he tends to keep hidden. However, he can be recognized by anyone with close connections to the Empire from a news-worthy story on a 'mongrel' who killed the man he was an apprentice under, along with stealing an experimental Allagan device before fleeing the empire. Have care, however--Helios can be violent to a Garlean will bad intentions, and suspicious at the good ones.
Interested in Alchemy? Needing Something Specific? Helios was self-taught in his early years before his eventual apprenticeship to a Garlean scientist; even without an ability to manipulate aether, his ability to dissect another person's work and replicate it on his own is rather good, allowing him to copy practices that go beyond what he could find in Garlemald. Whether you want a specific kind of elixir (nightvision, water-breathing, shape-changing, etc.), a certain kind of drug, or just a kind of glass-enclosed weapon to terrorize with--as long as it's not a mind control drug or something to use against someone's consent Helios can and will make it! And if you're just an enthusiast for alchemy, well...prepare to get your ear chatted off.
A Resident or Past Visitor of Kugane? Particularly the Criminal Kind? When Helios appeared in Kugane, he immediately schmoozed up to drug traffickers and other less-than-savory-types in the underworld of the Far East to survive. You could have met Helios at a tattoo parlor, dealt with him in back alleys or in the waterways of the city, or perhaps had just seen him out in daylight as a strange foreigner with a peculiar face...
Bounty Hunter Wanting to Make a Seemingly Easy Mark? Helios at one point had wanted posters all over the major cities for his head, from a mysterious person paying quite a bit of gil to have him dead or alive. The current state of his bounty might not be the same, but that's not saying someone can't find an old poster of his and see him around, thinking it's still active.