Herberto Silvestre
| Name | Herberto Silvestre |
| Gender | Male, he/him, bi |
| Homeworld | The World of Dishonored, born and raised on an island to the east of Serkonos' mainland, well known for being a pirate's haven, and thus has always been around ships, fishing and whaling, and less savory sorts of people. Maybe if he goes home with a dragon, they'll be able to clean up some of that piracy, or y'know. Be more lucrative at it! |
| Class | Sophomore, you're allowed 25 KnacKudos for knacks, skills and clusters; note that Herberto is slightly older than some students at this grade, mostly because his prior education was sorely lacking, he is 16, but he learns quickly |
| Nut | Definitely feeling like a nut |
| Totem | Chinchilla, the 'I am sneaky but please do not immerse me in water or all my fur will fall out in clumps' totem; Secretive, quiet little freaks, the chinchilla often manifests itself in the form of dark arts, skullduggery, subterfuge and telemarketing - ironic description given his level of swimming! He is however quite nervous around authority and tends to mantle his lunch so others can't steal it, he's used to being the 'low kid' on the local pecking order +1 Bod, +1 RWP, +1 Luck, -1 Drive, +2 Looks, +6 extra KK's. |
| Smarts | 5 |
| Bod/Feet | 3+1 = 4 |
| RWP | 3+1 = 4 |
| Luck | 7+1 = 8!! |
| Drive | 3-1 = 2 |
| Looks | 3+2 = 5 |
| Cool | 5 |
| Bonk | 4 |
| Powers | Favor - Vinnie, you know, he's got a soft spot for the kid, jus' call 'dis numba'..., Whether this is a 'power' depends on who he can tap for this favor, and he does have some strangely powerful friends, as he seems to have an emotional support God in the form of instructor Leviathan Shindaerey (who yes, is the same Outsider...) Though not technically Marked by the Outsider, this student has access to a talisman of bone and wire which seems to be embued with very strong magical powers, and he keeps this on a cord and tucked under his shirt at all times. It allows him to perform several things that aren't normal for a Human, including: Shape Change - like it says, buster; temporary, but can also get stuck; he uses this to transform into a fish or "dolphin" (key quotes there, 'whales' from his dimension are distinctly not the same as whales from Twoarth, dolphins also follow this, having weird tendrils and other features not common to ours); he can maintain this shape for about 2 minutes at a time, and can repeat it as often as necessary after about a 1 minute break - he is not allowed to compete in swim meets with this power active (image doesn't really include the weird bits...)
Duplication - mimic another object or person down to the stats for a certain amount of time; this ability has gotten him into trouble but he also has been learning how to use it to impress the teachers, after disappointing them for having tried to pass himself off as the star pupil or even the instructor themselves... |
| Clusters | Water Water Everywhere +4 Herberto grew up on an island and it has many dangers; from the riptide and currents rushing around the reef that surrounds it, to hollow caverns that fill with water in minutes when the tide comes in, and even pirates and Imperial navy ships to contend with, it's no wonder Herberto is an incredibly adept swimmer, fisherman, and map maker. If it has to do with the shape of an island, water survival, fish, swimming, or other such things, he's all about it! |
| Skills | Attentive To Details +3 because he must always be on the lookout not only for 'meaner' pirates (than his parents, ... who are also pirates) as well as the Overseers of the Abbey, Herberto has always been able to take a quick look around and assess the dangers, hiding spots, weak points, and potential of an area. He can also use this ability to duplicate someone's appearance, voice, and body language (though not their knowledge) using his talisman, with exceptional accuracy Issues With Authority +3 it takes everything he has to not do the opposite of what a given authority figure tells him to do, and while this has brought him into the detention room a couple times, it also helps him begin learning how to deal more conventionally with them - now if only he could pass that Royalty class... he is the 'regular folks' to that Royal instructor, and sometimes he is apt to be extremely rude. This might cause trouble if he has to become 'regimented' but to him that's a danger he's always faced in the form of being conscripted by the pirates locally; he can tweak his behavior to emulate an authority figure, however, and slowly but surely he's learning 'why' they do what they do, so eventually this might transform into 'being an adept authority figure' himself Environmentalist +2 Having grown up with whales and the disaster that befell their population shortly before his birth (he was born during the 'Corvo Era' in that dimension, when whale oil was still in use but became phased out during his childhood), he knows first hand that humans have an impact on everything around them; from whale and fish population dwindling due to over-harvesting, and ruining the lungs and lives of hundreds of silver miners from over-mining the Silver down under the Shindaerey Peak, Herberto is all about discovering ways to bring back the natural beauty and bounty, without destroying it; if there's a cause to join, in this regard, he's definitely going to be up front about it, and perhaps bring about changes without getting put in jail... |
| Bonecharms | Swift Shadow +2 bringing a quick step to his stealth, Herberto hustles around in the shadows easily outmaneuvering his opponents Aquatic Nature +2 his normal swimming speed (not shifted) is increased, yet another reason he's not allowed to compete... Strong Lungs +2 as well as this, since he can hold his breath for nearly a full minute and hardly needs to breathe 'every other stroke' while doing laps |
| Knacks | Great With Flavors +3 Serkonos is known for its spices, flavorful dishes, and 'spicy' dancing! It's no wonder he is acing that sushi class, he can hardly wait to try out some new spices and herbs! |
| Period | Class/Instructor/Grade |
| 1 | Practical Composition / Feliciane / Decent |
| 2 | Royalty and Regular Folks / Sean / ... Passing? |
| 3 | Naming and the Power of True Names / Akarist / Excellent |
| 4 | Steam Technology and Alternate Power Sourcing / Wheeler / Excellent |
| 5 | Cartography / Lari / Excellent |
| 6 | Pool Sports / Dude / Superb |
| 7 | Camouflage for Better Living / Carver / Decent |
| 8 | Advanced Sushi Tech / Herring / Excellent |
| Pets | none, he kind of wants a bird or maybe some kind of flitter? |
| Parents? | a child of heretical parents, likely on the run or having to hide their magical possessions (gain several Bonecharms which offer up to +2 bonuses in existing skills each) |
| Siblings? | Unknown, probably none |
| Image From | Doll Divine xSheepi Waviera (Flashpoint used) |
Story points per class:
His penmanship is absolutely flawless, but he still doesn't know how to address certain people or when to use specific phrases appropriate to, say, writing a resume, or an email (he ... does know what email is but he's unlikely to have an email address ever), and his instructor urges him to utilize forms and fill-in-the-blanks to get himself familiar with those methods. He does learn pretty quickly, and he can figure it out, perhaps by the time he graduates he'll be able to do it without a guideline.
He isn't exactly failing his Royalty and Regular Folks class, but he definitely needs a bit of help passing it. He doesn't respond well to authority figures and often enough does the opposite of what they recommend, leading to some... interesting interactions in this class. It's taught by actual royals, and they have consulted with each other to figure out the best way to help this problem student with his issues.
Akarist thinks this student is very well suited to learning magic. His grasp on what a name can or does mean is strong, though sometimes his pronunciation of words is a little off (leading to summoning things or dispelling them when not really intending to). Also Akarist is glad that the kid can keep a secret to himself, given his upbringing as a heretic he needs this in practical terms.
Apparently the Isle of Serkonos is known for its wind-based energy resourcing, and that's ideal for most worlds, according to Bart Wheeler. Having grown up around the tall windmills and waterwheels of the area, as well as having seen the disaster that can come of over-use of a natural resource (in their case, whale oil - over-hunting and nearly driving those whales to extinction in the process, as well as the dangerous oil itself which when refined is highly explosive), Herberto seems baffled that other worlds still even use non-renewable resources!
Even if Herberto first balked at having a bird teaching a class (this professor as well as Queen Sean of Gelgela, his Royalty professor are his only visibly non-human instructors) he soon realized that having a flighted map maker and a birds-eye view of things could be really handy! And even if the people of his homeworld have begun exploring the vast seas and huge Pandyssian continent on foot, they have never developed flight... so what if... His upbringing of life with pirates does mean that he was always around nautical maps and pirate-treasure maps, so he enjoys this class quite a bit.
Obviously being a pirate-heretic kid on an island known for its choppy reef and challenging rip-tides means his swimming is on par with the very best this world can offer. He is encouraged to use his alternate form on occasion, mainly to offer a pace to other swimmers who are naturally above human level at it, and though he isn't allowed to compete, he is often enough tapped to help coach or even tutor weaker swimmers. Surfer Dude the instructor really enjoys sitting around chatting with this kid too, with a slightly more mellow approach to 'fleeing authority figures' he's helped Herberto learn to adjust to the setting and people around him, perhaps even more than a guidance councilor could.
Wilson Carver wants to know whether this student is just jumpy as hell, or actively able to choose a hiding spot consciously. It seems both, but he'll need to be able to do it with dedication to detail rather than just speed of scampering at some point. His clever use of his duplication power however definitely brings a smile and approving nod!
With Red Herring, taste and presention is everything, and Herberto seems to know just the right spices to work with fresh foods! He could doll up the dishes a little, but prepration and quality for this Sushi class mean that he's almost guaranteed to get a great job if he chooses to work at a restaurant! Herberto doesn't see himself in that role, but he does enjoy the fact that he can out-cook most of his peers, and catch his own dinner!
| Weerlegth | Name: Weerlegth |
( from hatching ) Black- White (Storm) Weerlegth (m)
There had been many bonds and pairings before the young student realized...
Above the surface, the weather had deteriorated further and a lot of the spectators returned to the shelter of the mountains. Herberto Silvestre though knew there were still hatchlings in the water. He felt that he would throw out all the stops and dove into the water, shifting into his dolphin form would have to wait. He could only hold it for 2 minutes so he needed to make it count. His strong limbs and longs propelled him through the water. A white flash caught his attention and he watched as a black and white hatchling jumped out of the water like a little lightning bolt.
"Wait!" Herberto called and he shifted, giving everything he had to follow the stormy dragon.
The hatchling turned and flashed a toothy grin, "Catch me if you can!"
The weather calmed as the storm dolphin-nekrat moved away with his bond and yellow rays broke through the cloud cover.
They spent a short amount of time at Lantessama, learning the basics of land and water navigation, and training up for strength. Though the hatchling was not exactly weak, Weerlegth still needed a bit more practice and endurance training.
***
Eventually this pair returned to Carramba, when arrangements had been made for them to reside more full time on the location's offshore lab site. They developed a good routine, with the dragon sitting in on classes remotely - fascinating that they had the capability of bringing everyone together with technology... that sometimes acted like magic. Sitting behind his shoulder in class, hovering as a 'hologram' (Herberto called it his 'ghost'), Weerlegth soon started branching out on his own looking for the right classes for himself! Always the go-getter, and actually much more bold and self-confident than his rider, the dragon helped out with numerous sea-based classes and learned a lot about local wildlife and even dragon care.
***
When they were just about graduated, Herberto with a slightly better outlook about how to interact than he'd had before, they were granted an invitation to an unusual event. Held deep undersea, that was probably why! The Checkerboard Ball was amazing for both dragon and rider! But what's this? There weren't any actual dragon hatchlings that were even remotely aquatic!
And on his trip around the facility, swimming with dragons and whales and 'whales' alike, Weerlegth met up with those dragons nearby and hatched a scheme... there had been some other dragons partnered up to attendees that weren't as impressed with the results of all those air dragons getting out to their worlds, but no creepers, no furries (well, some, but not like these), no floaters. They were going to change all that!
