Character Application
Out of Character Information
Player Name: Joey
Player LiveJournal: carcharodon
Playing Here: Isley (Claymore); Yazoo (Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children)
Where did you find us? Originally, Shannon told me about the game
Are you 16 years of age or older? Wouldn't you like to know?
In Character Information
Character Name: Kunsel
Fandom: Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core
Timeline: End of Game (after sending his last e-mail to Zack)
Character's Age: Unknown (Approximately 20-25)
Powers, Skills, Pets and Equipment: Kunsel doesn't possess any outstanding powers originally, aside from those gained through becoming a member of SOLDIER, which is why I will be having him arrive with one special ability gained by coming through the Door, as well as through exposure to the Mist in Anatole: the ability to dim his physical appearance/presence, thereby making himself harder to notice. This ability does not make him invisible and does not camouflage him with his surroundings, but rather acts as an optical deterrent, pushing attention away from him and helping him become easily glanced over when in use. Individuals with a strong invulnerability to illusion, or even those with incredible focus will likely not be effected as much, or at all by the ability.
Like all members of SOLDIER, Kunsel has both hand-to-hand combat training, as well as weapons combat training. He has also been infused with JENOVA cells and showered with Mako like other SOLDIERs, thus making his physical strength, speed, and agility superhuman in nature (comparable to Zack Fair, but not quite as strong given their difference in rank). It is also suggested throughout Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core that Kunsel has ways of getting all the information he shares with Zack; due to this it's safe to assume he's tech-savvy and fairly stealthy.
No pets will be arriving with Kunsel, as tempted as I am to have a chocobo or cactaur follow him through the door.
Kunsel will be arriving with little by way of equipment, also, but one thing that will be accompanying him for certain is his SOLDIER 2nd Class sword which can be seen here and here, bearing the SOLDIER symbol upon the hand guard.
Canon History: Where was he born, who are his parents and what happened to them, how old is he exactly, what are his motivations for joining SOLDIER, how did he and Zack meet and become friends, what is the cause of his deep rooted need to know everything... and why does he never take off his helmet? These are all questions about Kunsel that are never fully explored in Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core. In fact, little about Kunsel is gone into with any great depth, and what is known about him tends to be more of a rough estimate than anything else.
Kunsel has all the makings of someone who was born, or at the very least grew up in, a big city like Midgar or its Slums; he never speaks of a hometown (which suggests that Midgar may be where he was born), has obvious trust issues (which, if the run-of-the-mill folk of the Slums are anything to go by, could have been caused by living under Shin-Ra's nose for any period of time, being lied to by the monstrous corporation), and all his speech patterns and mannerisms otherwise are similar to other citizens of Midgar and its Slums (reflecting a city boy rather than one from the quaint countryside).
It's safe to assume he is roughly the same age as Zack Fair given that they are so close in height and stature, but also because (the game begins with) both of them being 2nd Class SOLDIERs at the same time. Also, while on the subject of SOLDIER, Kunsel's motivation for joining is never quite identified, but given his obsession with truth-finding, I like to speculate that he has been a victim of some mass cover up (likely to do with his parents, which is not altogether foreign to those in the Slums, living under Shin-Ra's reign) and that it gave birth to his trust issues as well as his burning desire to know everything. It's difficult to say when or how he became friends with Zack, but since Zack is friendly with everyone, I believe he and Kunsel clicked right away, and that Kunsel (liking Zack's graciousness, honesty and virtue) decided he was the one person in SOLDIER, in all Shin-Ra, that he could trust and keep close to him above anybody else.
During the actual game play Kunsel goes on several missions of his own, but he is very rarely paired with Zack to do anything (and most face-to-face exchanges between them occur during downtime in between missions), leading to his constant need to keep in touch with Zack via e-mail. In fact, he is (the player's) Zack's main informant throughout the whole of the game, but unfortunately for Kunsel, there's still a lot that he doesn't know, a lot that is classified that he is unable to help Zack with (as evidenced by some of the e-mails he sends Zack, that also detail chronologically what he did during the events of Crisis Core).
Toward the end of the game Kunsel claims that he will be waiting for Zack to return to Midgar, even though Zack is now a wanted man, an escaped test subject. He insists he will be there for him no matter what, and that he just wants his friend to come back alive, (never having believed him to be dead in the first place), regardless of whether he is an enemy of Shin-Ra or not. Of course, we all know that Zack doesn't make it back alive, but what we don't know is what happens to Kunsel after the fact. He never appears in the rest of the Final Fantasy VII compilation (and many fans presume he is one of the SOLDIER members that are killed during a raid on Shin-Ra HQ in the original game).
Personality: Never having harbored any great aspirations of his own, Kunsel has always been content with being second best to the colossal figureheads of SOLDIER. Although he may not possess the strength of Angeal, the charisma of Genesis, the prowess of Sephiroth, or tenacity of Zack, he more than makes up for it with his incomparable dependability, and he has earned his place amongst the fighting elites known as SOLDIER due to that, even if he is only 2nd Class.
Of course, there is more to Kunsel than his position in Shin-Ra's special forces (and the laid-back approach he takes to his work). He has a thirst for knowledge that can never be quenched, a desire to know all things, and he is more than willing to do whatever it takes to learn those things, bar hurting anyone (because deep down he's a bit of a softy at heart, going so far as to admit in an e-mail that he broke down bawling during one of the productions of LOVELESS he went to see). It's quite obvious that he takes a bigger interest in his friends and those that are close to him than he does in his job; he tries to offer his help to Aerith when the wheel of her flower cart falls of, practically stalks Zack (okay, so there's no "practically" about it) and tells his friend that regardless of whether he's made an enemy of Shin-Ra or not, he'll be there for him and waiting for him to return safe and sound.
That being said, Kunsel doesn't take himself very seriously. Although he doesn't exactly wear his heart on his sleeve, he's something of an open book (with sections left deliberately unwritten in order to keep people on their toes). For example, he has no qualms with making light jokes at his own expense or telling truths (or half truths) that might seem laughable to others, but he refuses to remove his helmet and show anyone what he looks like underneath it. He'll never claim to be the most brave member of SOLDIER, not when faced with terrible monsters or especially Hojo's bizarre experiments, but whenever any of his friends are in a pinch, he's the kind of guy that would move mountains for them. He's more of a "do it for everyone else" kind of person than a "do it for myself" one, and it's not because he feels the need to seek anyone's approval, but more because he believes in the dreams of those around him and wants to support those dreams.
He looks up to Angeal Hewley a great deal for this reason; the 1st Class SOLDIER, friend of Genesis and Sephiroth, and mentor of Zack, was known for his wholehearted belief in dreams and honor being what SOLDIER was really all about, what made them men instead of monsters... and this is something Kunsel can respect, and it is also part of the reason he took to Zack the way that he did (who embraced Angeal's philosophy with wide open arms and an eager heart). Of course, his trust issues have gotten a little worse since Shin-Ra pulled the veil down over his eyes and the company lied about Zack's death (not to mention all the other cover-ups that took place), and so, while he's still bright and approachable for the most part, still optimistic (while remaining sober-headed), Kunsel has now developed a bit of a chip on his shoulders and a protective streak a mile wider than it used to be.
He's still very much an agreeable fellow, still gets along well with most people (so long as they're trustworthy and sincere, because there's nothing that upsets him more when it comes to personality traits than those that are blatantly, maliciously dishonest in nature), but Kunsel will remain hesitant to trust even in himself, now... especially what with having let down his closest friend.
Why do you feel this character would be appropriate to the setting? Despite being only SOLDIER 2nd Class, Kunsel has been trained well in terms of combat and survival skills; due to this, he knows how to endure the mental and physical hardships of the real world. His game canon's also prepared him for some pretty bizarre happenings, although I'm still fairly certain Anatole will take the cake (not that Kunsel won't roll with the punches, because that's what he does, soaking it all up like some kind of sponge). Occupational and canon event-based preparations aside, however, he's a fairly likeable guy (when he's not being a total creeper and stalking everyone). I can't imagine him not making friends in Anatole or getting along with the majority of the population (disregarding the obvious villains and Scorched-loathing NPCs he will inevitably encounter along the way and probably irritate by asking too many questions of).
Writing Samples
Network Post Sample: So, this timeworn little town is called Anatole, huh?
Can't say that I've ever heard of it before. At first mention I thought that it might be one of Shin-Ra's new development sites, but after taking a closer look at things, I'm convinced that it's not even a possibility anymore. For starters, the (near-to) complete lack of Shin-Ra personnel is a dead giveaway, but beyond even that...well, you know.
There's a lot of folks saying that the "Door" in the center of the city is responsible for us winding up here; plenty of folks are saying it's because of the Mist, too, or a pair called "The Twins." As for me, I'm not really sure what to believe. The Door doesn't exactly lead anywhere, the Mist is nearly impenetrable, and the Twins...they're rumored to be just a couple of kids, aren't they?
...Anyway. The point is, I'm not sure how I've wound up here, or if "here" is even still on Gaia. The last thing that I recall is the complete freakout that happened at HQ, when there were all those rumors circulating about the SOLDIER legend. Got me thinking of...coming back from Fort Condor those years ago, and receiving a personnel announcement from General Affairs regarding changes in status. I'll never forget what it said.
Two infantrymen had died, and...two SOLDIERs, first class, were killed in action.
It's probably a random shot in the dark, but if anyone out there knows anything about any of that, I'd be really grateful to you if you could fill me in. And if not, any information regarding this place would be appreciated, too. I've already come across the how-to guide to the Forge (courtesy of that tech junkie, Matt), Duncan's guide to Anatole, a map of the city, as well as that network broadcast by Mello (who's not very mellow at all if you ask me), but that can't be all that there is...or is it?
Well, anyway... if you need to reach me, I'll be familiarizing myself with the town some more, but I'll have my Forge at the ready.
[ LOCKED to SELF ]
This can't be right.
...Angeal Hewley. Sephiroth. And...Zack Fair.
They're all...alive? They're here?
It looks like Tseng is, too (as well as some other Turk named Elena), and that infantryman, Cloud Strife, who went with Zack to Nibelheim.
What the heck is going on?
[ /LOCKED ]
Third Person Sample: It was him, alright.
This place needs a party, or something...something to unwind with. Too many folks have been down lately. Anyone have an idea?
Not that it could have been anyone else...
Is anyone still here? Anyone from my time? Did anyone come with me? Kunsel? Aerith? Anyone?
...He'd always known Zack had made 1st for a reason, that he'd been destined for it from the very beginning.
I've earned a day off, don't you think, boss-lady?
So, when he'd heard about what had happened, there was just no way that he could bring himself to believe it...
And guys? You shouldn't believe everything you hear. Rumors are just that: rumors.
That's right...rumors were just rumors. And since when had General Affairs ever gotten those personnel announcements right, anyway?
Kunsel's gloved fingertips brushed over the lit up interface of his Forge and he knew one thing with certainty, one sure thing since he had been uprooted from his world and dropped down smack-dab in the middle of Shiva-knew-where. It was something that, for all intents and purposes, could never be refuted, not now...not ever again; Zack Fair, SOLDIER, 1st Class...was alive.
So what if it was a truth that turned the rest of the world upside down and on its head? It was a truth that stood his own world right side up and back on its feet again, a truth that cleared the brume inside of his mind, and suddenly things were beginning to make sense!
"Zack...what's been keeping you, buddy? Was it this place?" The 2nd's eyes lifted from the communication's device in hand and his eyes roamed the cityscape from where he sat, back to the Door, leaning against the smooth face of the stony structure.
Anatole reminded him of Corel Prison: an inescapable little niche in the world that had once been inhabited by people that had wanted to be there, but was occupied now by a people that had no choice but to be there. It loomed all around him, a juggernaut in and of itself... but Kunsel couldn't bring himself to hate the place.
If Zack had fallen... Anatole had caught him. Saved him. Whatever the dangers (and those would exist anywhere), his friend was not lost forever. Sure, it was no Lifestream, no float in the green sea breeze, no trip to the big-easy... but it was something, and something was a lot better than nothing. Always had been in Kunsel's opinion.
Anything else? Kunsel is a relatively minor character in Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core, but he possesses a great deal of personality, not to mention a suitable amount of supporting game canon to back it up. However, given his minor character status, coming across information online in abundance is probably going to be a daunting task, so I've taken the liberty of providing some links to aid you guys in your research. I hope they're helpful.
Final Fantasy Wiki
Final Fantasy Union
E-mails to Zack Transcribed from the Game
Complete Timeline of Final Fantasy VII Compilation
As well, given that Kunsel is generally in-the-know, I was wondering if it would be okay by the mods to occasionally fill me in on the goings on of the NPCs in game, and whatever rumors and the like might be circulating around amongst them? Even stuff as minor as 'so-and-so is opening a new shop in the such-and-such district' would be dandy, but every now and again it would be nice to have something big to report, too!