In the Darkness there is Truth
- Name: Sumiko Tanaka
- Alias:
Darth Kharon - Illyria. Alias of her host. Also the name of the Eldorai Goddess of Death.
- Aeris Tyrai. Birth name of her host.
[*]Faction: Unaligned. Previously the now defunct Atrisian Empire.
[*]Rank: Sith Lord, Sith Sorceress class.
[*]Race/Species: Born an Atrisian Human. Has possessed an Eldorai.
[*]Age: 36. Her host is the Eldorai equivalent of mid-to-late twenties.
[*]Gender: Female
[*]Height: 170cm
[*]Weight: 52kg
[*]Eye Colour: Golden hued blue.
[*]Hair: Pale
[*]Skin: Pale
[*]Place of Birth: Atrisia. Her host was born on Kaeshana.
[*]Force Sensitive: Yes, very much so.
[*]Alignment: Dark Side, Neutral Evil.
Traits and Characteristics
- Strong Force Connection: She is a powerful sorceress. Most of her studies have revolved around Sith sorcery, dark magic and other obscure arts. She is also a strong mentalist, necromancer and proficient in telekinesis.
- Two Minds, One Body: Sumiko's soul inhabits a body that is not her own. When she possessed the body of Illyria, her traitorous apprentice' essence lingered on instead of being wholly annihilated. So far Kharon has been unable to completely rid herself of her. She has to occasionally fight for control over her host, especially when exhausted, stressed, injured etc.
- Scars of the Netherworld: Dying and being punished for her sins in the realm of the dead has left its mark on Kharon. Suffice to say she is not entirely sane. Having to share her body with another mind has not helped. Her imprisonment turned her into a powerful force of will, but she has never been entirely normal again. She knows what awaits her should she die again. It's not a desirable fate.
- Long Game: She manifests great patience and cunning even without the Force. Having one of her plans blow up in her face in such a drastic manner has also taught her some humility. She thinks long-term instead of focusing on instant action. She is quite capable of overlooking defeats to see the bigger plan. She is quite smart and learns fast.
- Sociopath: Kharon is not encumbered by morals.To put it plainly, she looks out for herself and views other individuals as threats or assets.
- Pragmatic Villainy: Kharon treats the Sith Code as a philosophical guideline, but is not slavishly bound by it. She has little interest in the eternal conflict between Jedi and Sith. Jedi are her enemies when they get in the way of what she wants, which probably happens a lot due to her amoral nature, but she does not feel obligated to pursue an ancient grudge. She's very organised and rejects evil for the sake of it because it is counterproductive and a waste of resources. Of course, at the same time she's capable of great cruelty.
Personality
Events and her own choices have shaped Kharon into a cynical, ruthless and deeply selfish woman. She was an Inquisitor forced to serve the Atrisian Empire, then a sorceress for hire and finally a Sith Lady who was probably more influenced by her dark side artefacts than she would like to admit. Suffice to say it went to her head. Her time in the Netherworld has tempered her arrogance and vanity, though. The facade of power was stripped from her. Being confronted with her sins has not motivated her to develop a conscience. But it forced her to acknowledge her limitations. She knows exactly what awaits her when death claims her again, and it is not peaceful oblivion. She really does not want to get dragged back to Chaos. Fear is one of the emotions that drive her.
Kharon believes in order, albeit in a rather dark fashion. She has an excellent memory and a talent for organisation. She treats the Sith Code as a philosophical guideline, but is not slavishly bound by it. This enables her to make pragmatic alliances if need be, even if they contradict Sith dogma. Kharon became a Sith outside of the formal framework of a master-apprentice relationship or membership in an cult. Thus she is not tied in any particular Sith faction. Empires come and go, after all. However, her experiences have also scarred her deeply. Being humbled in such a manner has caused insecurities to rear their head. This has made her somewhat paranoid. She is a good deal more vicious than she used to be. Kharon regards her inability to completely purge Illyria from 'her' body as a weakness in herself, which is something she despises. She is less inclined to debauchery than she used to be because lapses in control could risk her hold over her host body.
Sometimes she and Illyria argue over a course of action. To an outsider, it looks like the Sith is talking to herself. Some of Illyria's personality has rubbed off on her. While not overly laconic, she's more short with people these days. Her sense of humour has become rather morbid. She tends to be nicer to animals than sentient beings. This especially applies to her Sithspawn pets. Returning to the Galaxy after spending so much time in the Netherworld has also left Kharon more than a little disorientated.
Appearance
Kharon's host is not too different from most Eldorai. She is tall and slender, with pale golden hair and blue eyes. She bears the usual Eldorai pointed ears and long hands. She does have some unique markings though. A deep scar runs across her left cheek, and even repeated medical treatments have not fully erased it. Kharon has a tendency to wear long, flowing robes. She tends to wear gloves, hoods, boots and masks. Favours Stygian Robes and Cloaks of Hate. Her hair is tightly secured behind her head to prevent it getting in the way. She will armour if needed, but prefers enchanted robes to keep herself from being encumbered.
Powers and Abilities
Kharon skill set is focused on mentalism, specifically illusions and mental manipulation. To this end, she employs Sith sorcery and magicks. She can also raise the dead and turn them into her enthralled pawns. Her sabreplay lags behind her skill as a sorceress. She has a certain understanding of Soresu and Makashi, but not much beyond that. She is particularly skilled in shielding her mind and summoning realistic illusions. This goes hand in hand with an aptitude for Force Suppression and Dampening Force. One of the first skills she learned as an Inquisitor was to conceal her Force signature. Over time, she also became skilled in Force Cloak and in manifesting a false light side aura. Force Slow and its variations are utilised to debuff and debilitate opponents.
Her natural connection to the dark side coupled with her dedication to manipulating the Force and studying its arcane aspects gave her an affinity for Sith magic. She is capable of summoning several powerful spells, especially those related to manipulating someone's mind and perception of reality, and is an accomplished necromancer. Of course, dabbling in dark magicks comes at a price. Force Subjugation and Suppress Thought allow her to control or manipulate those around her. Moreover, she can summon realistic Doppelgangers and Phantoms. She is proficient with numerous Sith rituals, magics, and dark side rites, including various summonings and using Sith Alchemy to alter her servants - whether they want it or not. Her telekinesis is potent and she's inherited Illyria's affinity for elemental abilities.
However, while she is a strong sorceress, she is no physical powerhouse. She has inherited the usual strengths and frailties of an Eldorai. She is more nimble and dexterous than a human. But as a tradeoff she lacks in pure physical presence, durability and raw strength compared to one. She also has a lower pain threshold. Thus she must rely on finesse, agility and surprise to prevail in melee combat. Great stress, exhaustion, fear and serious injury can impede her control of her host body by allowing Illyria to manifest. Thus Kharon must always be on her guard, lest she risk losing control. This can be disadvantageous in mental duels. Her sorcery-related Force-abilities, as powerful as they are, also take immense concentration to use.
Alchemical Toys
- Souldrinker Blade
- Eternity Cube
- Ring of Dominion
- Stygian Robes
- Scarlet Serpent
- Kyōfu no masuku
- Uriel's Grace
- Ring of Purity
- Talisman of Uriel
- Oculus (gifted to @Vaylin)
- Tsawak and Temero (inherited from [member="Darth Shadow"]).
Backstory
The Force is a pathway to many abilities. Some are unnatural, others mind-boggling and frightening. As the old adage goes, power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Kharon, born as Sumiko Tanaka, is an example of this. Her story is tied strongly to the Atrisian Inquisition, for she grew up in the Atrisian Empire. The average Atrisian saw Force-users as deviant witches, certainly as dangerous. To the Imperial State, they were dangerous weapons that had to be controlled, given the destruction both Jedi and Sith were capable of.
Sumiko was born to a lower middle class family in Jar'kai. Her Force powers manifested at an early age. When she was young, she realised that she was different from others. She had strange dreams, sometimes saw things happen moments before they did and objects moved just because she wanted them to do. Her parents were deeply unnerved by her gifts and conditioned her to hide them.
An accident brought them to the attention of the local community. It was the Inquisition that saved her from a violent mob of common Atrisians, who had probably wanted to burn the witch. To fall into the hands of the Inquisition was both a blessing and a curse. For she was spirited away into their Citadel. She barely had time to say goodbye to her family. Contact with family members was forbidden. Young Sumiko had been a spirited, somewhat bossy but also kind child. The Inquisition moulded her into a weapon. Her younger sister Amaya was tested and conscripted by the Inquisition shortly thereafter.
Sumiko grew cold in the Inquisition. Her relationship with her more rebellious sister coolled. She learned from early on that she'd have to be strong and ruthless in order to survive. The Inquisition regarded her as a weapon, so she had to be useful. Once when she was disobedient, Grand Inquisitor Lai forced her to face one of her primal fears in order to teach her some discipline. Her face was strapped to a cage filled with rats, then he lit a fire at the other end of the rats' cage and let them scratch and bite her face while watching a heart rate monitor hooked up to her. Suffice say it was quite effective. Being locked for an extended period in a tiny, poorly heated cell where she was unable to sit down also gave her a case of claustrophobia that manifested during stress situations. She learned, conformed and played the game.
The Inquisition used her to monitor Force-Sensitives, hunt down rogues who opposed the Crown and assassinate high-value targets. She learned the trade of spycraft, but also developed a strong interest in history, the occult and Force arcana. She gained an idea of the outside world when she was stationed on Coruscant. There she acted as a spy and was responsible for eliminating a defector who might have blown the lid on the Inquisition. During this time she also grew close to Mirien Valdier, one of the organisation's senior Inquisitors. When Valdier toppled Lai and took his place, Sumiko supported her. She might have hoped to become the second in command of the Inquisition, but she was diverted to other fields. Perhaps the Inquisition's leadership sensed her raw ambition. Given the title of a Senior Inquisitor, she developed a rivalry with Naamah Aesham, a sadistic Clawdite. The Inquisition was such a twisted little family. While they were not related by blood, they were bound by it. They enslaved their own kind, yet kept them safe from the wrath of the common Atrisians. The Crown feared Force-users, but could not do without them.
For a while, Sumiko infiltrated the savage Bando Gora cult, who had become a menace in the western rim. She was responsible for stealing dark artefacts in the name of the Inquisition. When the Atrisian Empire expanded into the Unknown Regions, claiming worlds such as Csilla and O'reen, the Inquisition was at the forefront, fighting the secret war. Sumiko was part of the Inquisition operation on Csilla, where they were dispatched behind enemy lines and faced the fearsome Klaxxi, a race of sentient, Force-sensitive spiders, and helped sabotage planetary defences on O'reen. She stayed at her post when the Atrisian Empire was absorbed by the Lords of the Fringe in the aftermath of its ill-advised attack on the Omega Protectorate. She might have already been plotting her escape then. The Fringe practiced a laissez-faire policy that clashed with the harsh law and order regime that prevailed on Atrisia. Contact with Force-users outside of Atrisia expanded her horizons.
Then came the Purge. After Atrisia had been absorbed by the Fringe Confederation, Emperor Akio Kahoshi was assassinated. His successor Madeline ordered an Anti-Force-User Purge. Archangel's HRDs were her execution squads and primary enforcers. A number of Inquisitors managed to escape thanks to a warning from Valdier, who was sent into exile, but many didn't. Sumiko was captured, taken to one of the Empress' concentration camps and bad things happened: Torture, experiments and so on. She had come to see the Inquisition as her ersatz family. Now it was gone, she was helpless and at the mercy of an ungrateful Empire she'd served for so long. Unbeknownst to her, Archangel used a DNA sample extracted from her to create a Force clone. Ultimately, Empress Madeline was assassinated by a vengeful Mirien Valdier and Naamah Aesham. Ironically, Archangel recovered the dying Empress and turned her into an HRD, using her scientific prowess to jumpstart their Force Clone programme.
Either way, her apparent death sent Atrisia spiralling into chaos. While rival factions vied for the throne, Sumiko broke out of her prison. She left Atrisia behind her and became an independent contractor, selling her services to the highest bidder. For a while she associated with the Silver Sanctum Coalition, whose laissez-faire policies suited her, and accepted contracts from Firemane. She used her talent as a specialist for arcana to aid them in the campaign against the Xioquo and to rescue a Firemane scientist who had been abducted by Archangel. For a while she contemplated joining Firemane, as a number of her former colleagues had done. But she did not want to beholden to anyone anymore. Moreover, they were bound by too many regulations for her tastes and she did not want to be someone else's minion again. Her thirst for knowledge and power intensified. She scoured ancient Sith tombs for dark artefacts that could give her the power and security she so craved. After having been constrained for so long she wanted it all.
On one of these expeditions, she made the acquaintance of Darth Shadow, an ancient Sith Lord, and discovered the sentient Sith sword Souldrinker. For a while she worked with Shadow, becoming his partner in an alchemy business. She performed a number of assignments for the ancient one, working alongside his Eldorai apprentice Illyria. Then Shadow was seemingly slain by Siobhan Kerrigan in a duel. Being a conniving opportunist, Sumiko took control over his business. Illyria bent the knee and agreed to become her apprentice. Sumiko expanded her power base by recruiting disaffected Xioquo from Tygara and gaining the allegiance of a group of Nekghouls on Taris. Among Shadow's belongings, she discovered an ancient ring bristling with dark power. Her fall to the dark side was complete. The ring offered her power and soon began to influence her, driving her further along the dark path. Fearful of death, she researched ways to prolong her life and youth.
Finally she managed to dupe an apocalyptic cult called the Covenant of Uriel into believing that she was the chosen one of their god, Uriel, destined to lead them in the eternal struggle with the dark god Azrael. She enjoyed being worshipped by the cultists, who regarded her as the embodiment of light, and made grand plans for expansion. Ironically, the cult had been founded by a repentant Sith who had turned a new leaf after being raptured during the Netherworld event. In her hands, it became a tool to increase her personal power and stroke her ego. However, after she had subjugated the cult, they came into conflict with a violent sect of Bando Gora, which she had originally manipulated into attacking the Covenanters so that she could appear the saviour. The battle ended in the Covenant's favour, but Sumiko was severely wounded and maimed while duelling the Bando Gora's champion. Though victorious she needed medical care. Having tired of her mistress' dominance, Illyria murdered her in the medical bay while she was helpless. As they say, pride comes before the fall.
Sumiko died - and awoke in the Netherworld. Here, none of her powers mattered. Here, she was without her toys. Here, she had to face her sins and endure punishment. Entities that she had dismissed as mere fantasy tormented her. The souls she passed ignored or disdained her. Ultimately, she ended up in the Garden of Thorns. Time lost all meaning inside this labyrinthe. She was on the brink of losing her mind as her sanity was eroded. But she refused to be kept down. Eventually she was able to escape, finding a weak spot in the veil between the realm of the dead and that of the living. She adopted a new name, Darth Kharon, for she had been reborn in Hades. However, she was still an incorporeal being and was running short on time. She needed to find a host, otherwise she would be pulled back into the Netherworld or succumb to madness and lose her sense of self.
Vengeance filled her dark soul. At first she manipulated Illyria with dreams to get her where she wanted her, then she sought to take possession of her body. In this she succeeded, but while she was able to claim a host, Illyria's consciousness was not destroyed, just buried very deep. As a result, the elf who'd thought her mistress was dead became her mistress. Likewise, the Sith Lady was unable to be fully rid of her apprentice despite her betrayal. For the time being Kharon has control, but times of stress can cause a mental struggle to break out. At the same time, she's inherited some of Illyria's skills and, unconsciously, personality traits.
Note: This is a reboot of this character. Illyria used to be an independent PC. Her possession has occured with the consent of her writer, [member="Valiens Nantaris"].
