Brenn Wasserman (brennwasserman) wrote in eldritchwiki, @ 2011-04-21 15:13:00 |
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Entry tags: | eldritch hunters, supernaturals |
CHARACTERISTICS
Rebellious, antithetical, stubborn. These are words that describe Brenn well. Never having come to terms with the life thrust upon him, Brenn has always rallied against the harsh impositions of his creed. It wasn't his fault he was born, so why should he live under the strict rules imposed on him from childhood? Brenn prefers to be alone. Having been raised to believe he was unclean, unwanted, and unnatural, it's understandable. Often times broody and difficult, Brenn kept the other members of his cloister at bay with sharp comments and a generally dismissive attitude. He doesn't want to embrace their way of life. He loves nature and the elements, and couldn't care less about following what is, in his mind, a long-dead religion. And if anyone tries to tell him otherwise, they're in for an earful. It's yet to be seen how this attitude will affect his relationships with his new friends among the Eldritch hunters... Background Brenn was a bastard child, born out of the "weakness of temptation" to a nun and monk of a Zionist cult called the Templars. Unwanted and abandoned, he doesn't know who his parents are, nor will any of the other cult members tell him. He believes they may have been cast out and excommunicated by the order, but he has no way of finding out for sure. Brenn's earliest memories are not of people, but of water. Bathing, specifically, and the peace and comfort a warm bath gave him as a child. He has always had an affinity for water; a significant change in his demeanor and personality can be seen when ever he has a chance to be near a natural body of water, and he is especially fond of rivers. He always keeps a glass of water at his bedside; not to drink, but just to know it is there and be at one with it's forces. As soon as he could speak, Brenn was forced into the most strict of studies by the members of his order. He was an unclean child, born to parents who had not been chosen to mate by God, but who had given in to their most base animalistic urges. But he was still one of them. It was decided that he had to be guided through life, to be watched closely, so that he would not fall into the same trap and bring shame and depravity into their midst. The elder council of monks decided Brenn would be raised in strict sequestration, away from other children and certainly separated from any female, lest the base desires passed on from his impious parents rear their ugly head. He was forced to copy and recopy their sacred texts as a means to teach him to read and write, and at 8 years old he was set to labour for 2 long years, struggling to complete a new replica of the ancient script to meet the Father Abbot's severe standards. Though his hands were always blistered and cramped, he would diligently work for up to 18 hours a day, perfecting the beautiful calligraphy of the Templars. It was a minor miracle that he did not lose his sight working in the dim light of candles and oil lamps; today, he is severely far-sighted as a result of the strain. As a reward for completing a resplendent replica of the holy scripture, Brenn was allowed to learn the fine art of mortification. At ten years old, he was taught to self-flagellate, spending hours at a time perfecting the art. This left him with horrific scars across his shoulders and back. Feeling a deep-seeded need to find approval and acceptance from the order, Brenn befriended an old, ailing monk named Benedict. Brenn didn't fully understand the man's mental state, but the old man was obviously becoming senile, and tended to ramble as they spent their afternoons together making candles for the monastery. It was from Benedict's inane ranting that Brenn learned the truth about his parents -- he was always told he was an orphan -- and why he was so horribly mistreated by the Father Abbot. It was the first time the young Brenn felt any sort of injustice about his life. If he hadn't known the truth, he would never have questioned the Abbot, nor the practices the elder council imposed upon him. When Benedict finally realized what he had been telling Brenn, he tried to backtrack and minimize the villainy of their leader's choices, but the damage had already been done. Brenn said nothing, however; he didn't want to get Benedict in trouble, and at such a young age there was nothing he could do to help himself. At the age of 12, Brenn was taken on a field trip of sorts by one of his mentors at the cloister, to help a farmer who was having trouble with his crops. Having never been outside the walls of the monastery, the experience was eye-opening for the young cleric. He envied the life of the farmer and his family, despite the hardships they were undergoing. To live freely, to choose what you wanted to do on any given day, this concept was completely alien to Brenn. It was a memory he kept close to heart through his teenaged years, as he yearned for an opportunity to live like any normal person, even just for one day. This yearning lead to trouble in the adolescent Brenn. He didn't lash out, so much as brood, ignoring instruction from his elders and withdrawing from the few friends he had finally met within his own age group at the cloister. He spent endless hours in the gardens of the monastery, tending to the plants, imagining he was a farmer, trying to escape the reality of his life under such strict rules and conditions. The elder council felt his withdrawal and sulking about the place could perhaps be "cured" by allowing him to live more "freely". He was sent out on simple acts of mercy to local villages in need of help, but always under the strict supervision of an elder. Feeling helpless and trapped, Brenn made an effort to take what joy he could in helping others, and being at one with nature in general, finally allowed to leave the stuffy confines of the stone walls of his cloister. He became an excellent horticulturalist and gardener, and had a natural affinity with animals. The elders made sure, however, that Brenn never spoke to any of the townspeople, and he still felt completely alone. The turning point came one day when he was 21. Left to his own devices by an elder monk who was more interested in the large breakfast feast set out for him by the impoverished people of a nearby village than in watching his charge, Brenn made a break for it. Taking nothing but a walking stick and a small pack full of food and supplies, Brenn headed into the forest and just kept walking, leaving his life and his pain behind. Having walked from early morning right through to evening, Brenn was well and truly lost by the time light started to fade. And he felt elated. Never had he experienced this sort of freedom. Even if the elders hunted him down and insisted he return to them, he didn't care. He'd had this one day to be himself. To be alone. He slept at the roots of a tree, at peace for the first time in his life. When he woke the next morning and started to walk once more, he soon heard the babbling sounds of a river. Following the noise, he reached the river's bank and followed it upstream for several hours, until the midday sun forced him to stop and eat. He bathed in the river, it's cool waters soothing his aching muscles. But the current was stronger than Brenn anticipated. He quickly lost his footing on the slippery rocks beneath his feet, and fell into the strong current. Having grown up so isolated, he'd never learned to swim. Panicked, he fought against the stream for a few moments, before realizing it was hopeless. The river was simply too powerful. Closing his eyes as the water pulled him under, Brenn cleared his mind and reached out with his spirit to the river. Instead of embracing his fear in that moment, he embraced his freedom. If he was going to die, he'd rather die free, in the grips of the river, rather than at the angry hands of the Abbot. Sensing the power of the river washing over his body, Brenn thanked her. He sent out waves of love and admiration to the river, her beauty and her power. The sentiment unleashed, he opened his eyes and opened his mouth, accepting his fate and expecting to drown. But the very opposite happened. His body suddenly felt extremely light, and he rose to the surface of the river, floating upon her turbulent waters. It took Brenn a moment to realize, but not only was he floating, he was traveling against the current, upstream. Letting out a joyful laugh, he sat up, cross legged, and caressed the surface of the water with his hands. Spotting his robe and pack as he neared the spot where he fell in, Brenn reached out with his hand, and with a mere thought, a pillar of water rose from the river and scooped up his belongings, carrying them through the air and depositing them in his lap. It was incredible. He was at one with the water, and it was the most amazing feeling he'd ever had. Reaching a meadow on the opposite side of the river from where he'd started, Brenn climbed onto the shore and fell to his knees, weeping in joy. He was loathe to call the experience a miracle, but he had no other word for what had just happened. Determined to spend the rest of his living days beside this river, he set about building himself a shelter. Using the water's help to dig a large hole in the meadow, Brenn felled some small trees and built a hut, filling the spaces in the bark with mud and dried weeds. He then constructed a thatched roof. This would be his home for the rest of his life, or so he thought. For 6 years, he lived in blissful isolation, ignorant of the trouble he'd left behind. The elder council were incensed and enraged that Brenn had left them, and were determined to get him back and make an example of him. They hired bounty hunters to track him, but no human could find him. Though the Templars renounced anything Supernatural as unGodly, they had only one choice left to them... While bathing in his river one morning, Brenn was attacked by a Tiefling. The elders had been so desperate that they hired an otherworldly being to track Brenn down and kill him. He tried to reason with the creature, pleading that he'd been alone all this time and wanted no more than that. He posed no threat. The Tiefling would have nothing of it, but before she could behead Brenn, a strange sound came through the haze of the foggy meadow. Soldiers. Brenn was relieved, thinking that they would offer some assistance. Little did he know, the men fast approaching them were Malice soldiers, and both Brenn and his adversary were fair game as shooting practice. In a matter of seconds, the bounty hunter and the rogue monk became allies, and did all in their power to fight the horde. To her credit, the Tielfling took on several at a time with her sword, while Brenn held his ground and swept the soldiers into the river's depths. Both did the best they could, but the Tiefling was eventually overrun. As Brenn watched her die, he gathered as much strength as he could and forcibly threw the river at the remaining fighters, drowning them all and washing their bodies away, along with his would-be killer. Badly beaten and suffering numerous bullet wounds, it was all Brenn could do to stumble out of the water, back to the shelter of his hut. As he struggled, crawling along the grass, he fell at the feet of one Garrett Ransom, the man's concerned face being the last thing he saw as he passed out. RELATIONSHIPS Garrett Ransom Though still wary of including strangers in his life, Brenn feels a great deal of gratitude to Ransom for saving his life. He feels indebted to the man and is dedicated to proving his worth and repaying him somehow. Seth Holbrook Brenn was set up in Seth's loft by Garrett and has started to make a home there. He isn't used to sharing a living space with another person, and is sometimes overwhelmed by Seth's personality, but he knows the man is a good friend to have. Verena Bernier coming soon! Abilities and Skills Through a spiritual connection to water and it's power, Brenn is able to manipulate it into shapes and forms, anything from water tentacles to forcing rain to form from mist particles in the air. The water must, however, be somewhat pure: Brenn cannot control salt water, nor water that is heavily polluted. On top of his mage powers, Brenn is also a well-trained and skilled gardener and apothecary, creating salves, balms, poultices and unguents from the plants he grows. Facts and Trivia
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