application; scorched
Out of Character Information
player name: Adri
player livejournal: tridisaster
playing here: Basch fon Ronsenburg | brotherofhonour
In Character Information
character name: Galatea
Fandom: Claymore
Timeline: Chapter 107, roughly
character's age: UMMM. She doesn't have a canon age, although she appears in her mid/late twenties. Galatea is definitely a whole lot older than that, we just aren't given specifics.
powers, skills, pets and equipment:
Galatea is a warrior, also called 'Claymore.' That means she was born human and, when she was young, had the flesh and blood of a demon sewn into her abdomen to make her capable of fighting yoma through the enhanced abilities this provided.
Warriors are strong, able to wield the enhanced power granted to them by the yoma experimentation. This has a number of effects. Generally they have enhanced reflexes and senses, they are very strong, and they can sense yoma energy, which allows them to discern who is human and who is a yoma disguising themselves - a considerable advantage over humans, who are left completely vulnerable. Their physical strength also far surpasses humans, with each warrior toting around a giant sword that they can wield with ease.
They possess yoma energy, also called yoki, of their own. Controlling this yoki is extremely important; the more they release, the more raw power they have at their disposal. This carries the risk, however, of their humanity being overwhelmed by the demon aspect of their physiology.
Here is a basic rundown; at 10% their eyes turn gold, at 30% their faces begin to distort, and at 50% their bodies grow more muscular, taller and generally becoming progressively more like a yoma the further they release. Past 80%, warriors cannot bring their yoma powers back under control, and will Awaken (although this is a PLOT POINT as canon progresses, with some able to get past this without Awakening and thus permanently upping their power.)
Pushing themselves too far in battle or when placed under extreme emotional stress can lead to them losing control of their yoma power and going past the limit. Among other skills, Galatea is famed for having the greatest increase in yoki when she releases her power (in her generation, at any rate). She doesn't tend to use this often because... well. Because she's vain, and having veins popping doesn't 'appeal to her sense of aesthetics.' What it means, though, is that she is capable of immense physical strength, when it so suits so.
Different warriors have different areas of expertise, and they are ranked according to their power. Galatea was Number Three when she was in the Organisation, although it is speculated that after leaving her power rose to be equivalent to a Number One. Her ability is as a tracker, the 'Eye' of the Organisation, but it goes past that. She is extremely good at reading yoki (the demon energy, which apparently varies from warrior to warrior and yoma to yoma) to predict movements of her enemies and their attacks. She can also manipulate yoki, throwing attacks so they can't hit her and disabling her enemies. This is usually only possible if her enemy is emotionally weak or leaves some door open for her to take advantage of.
Warriors also have two types; defensive and offensive. Defensive types can regenerate any limbs they lose, while offensive can only ('only' being subjective, of course) reattach severed ones. Galatea is a defensive type, and thus has extraordinary self healing abilities.
She also has a big awesome sword. She like to kill demons with it. 8)
canon history:
HERE is a canon summary for Claymore. There is also a page on Galatea HERE.
The story for the warriors pretty much comes from a template, with variations here and there. While we don't know the specific details for Galatea, here is what you can assume; when she was young, she was picked up by the Organisation. Maybe her family was slain by yoma and no one in the village wanted her, maybe she was sold, maybe she just never had anyone to protect her. However she got to them, it wasn't by her own choice because no one (except weirdos called Clare) ever chooses to go to the Organisation. Why, do you ask?
Well.
The Organisation took her, and fused her with the flesh and blood of a bloodthirsty creature that enjoys nomming on human entrails called a 'yoma.' This process, followed by rigorous training, would turn her into a warrior, also called a claymore or silver-eyed witch. It was an extremely painful beginning to a life of being feared and reviled by the very people whom she was supposed to protect.
Basically, everyone in Claymore has a really horrifying childhood and is accordingly pretty poorly adjusted. For the most part, anyway.
In the Organisation, warriors who survived the process of being transformed (their DNA being rewritten is a pretty horrifyingly painful time, followed by fighting training) are ranked and assigned an area to protect. There are 47 regions, each one with a warrior designated to it. The warrior ranked 47 is the weakest, while 1 is the strongest. Over time, Galatea's abilities proved to make her an incredibly valuable tool; she worked her way up to be third ranked, and earned the title "God Eye." She worked as the Eye of the Organisation, which basically meant she stalked people, kept tabs, found people who went AWOL, and so on. This didn't mean she wasn't an able fighter - on the contrary, she was very good. They just tended to have better uses for her.
Because of her talents and missions, Galatea maybe had an easier time of surviving, in some respects. More time to learn and sharpen her mind, just become more savvy in general. She got a bit of a reputation as being one of the older Claymores, and accordingly more of a pain in the ass. However, she was extremely valuable, so she got a way with a lot (even stuff that others would get killed for, but that comes in later.)
Galatea is introed to the Claymore narrative as... kind of a stalker who just stands around and makes commentary on what is going on with Our Heroes to creepy Organisation members. Good times for all. At this time, it can be noted that she was being used to see what was going on, but maybe didn't relay everything on to her keepers.
When she finally is introduced with a name and rank, it's during another one of those Pickles that Clare so loves to get herself into. Galatea is sent to find Clare (or Forty Seven, as she tends to call her) after she disappears following a mission with Number Four - Ophelia. Clare has been using pills provided by the Organisation in order to suppress her energy, but Galatea shows up and claims to have found her very easily regardless. Clare is, at that moment, engaged in a pretty intense battle (read: receiving a sound asskicking) from Dauf, an Awakened from the time when male Claymores were still in production. They're also located right on top of an Abyssal One, Riful of the West, which Galatea remains pretty calm about. Her intention is to just grab Clare and then waltz on out, except that Dauf exhibits more brainpower than she gave him credit for, and blocks off their exit. The battle is really important for getting an idea of how Galatea works; she trolls and provokes, throwing the enemy off balance, and she does it extremely well. So well that it actually looks like they're going to get out pretty easily, until Riful.
Most people, when faced with a creepy 12 year old looking monster of DOOM would probably want to cry. Galatea, however, keeps her cool. That is basically what she does best, after looking fabulous and trolling; keep calm and carry on.
However, with Riful now talking Dauf through it, the battle gets more difficult. She orders Clare to get retrieve the (very conveniently located :|a) Number Nine, Jean, who has the (very conveniently 8|a) perfect attack to pierce Dauf's armour. Galatea holds Dauf on in the meantime, buying valuable seconds/minutes/whatever for Clare to go get Jean (who Galatea would probably have let die otherwise, on account of her terrible hair) so they can do some ownage.
It's basically really awesome that Riful is a whimsical monster, because otherwise they'd all have been dead very quickly. Anyway, moving on.
Clare has to bring Jean back from almost Awakening and it's all very moving, but meanwhile Galatea is just fighting away and getting kind of annoyed that they're taking so long, and THEN after that they manage to pull together, have some meaningful teamwork time, and then defeat Dauf. Hooray. Also she figures Clare is kind of Weird And Special, and it can be assumed that this contributes to a Decision which I will mention in a few sentences.
Riful doesn't seem so thrilled, but she's a classy lady and lets them go and then potters off on her merry way. Galatea is then about to grab Clare and make her way back to the Organisation and be all "HAY GUYS FOUND HER" but then Jean gets a little miffed at her, and after some intense staring, Galatea returns empty handed, offhandly saying that with a battle like that, the odds of either of them surviving are slim. The audience is left (in awe of her amazing hair and also) to ponder over what will happen next after Galatea lies to her masters.
Well, as it turns out, they figure out that she is lying (w2g, Galatea) and Aren't Best Pleased. However, she's basically invaluable, so instead of killing her, they let her off the hook. (WHICH MAYBE YOU SHOULD HAVE DONE FOR TERESA, MORONS.) It's pretty much the beginning of the end, though, or at the very least a trigger for something that's been coming for a long while. (I mean, they did cut her open and turn her into a demon, so I think being kinda peeved at them before this point would have been warranted.)
Galatea grows increasingly discontent with the Organisation, or maybe just more vocally so - she'd already been considered something of a pain just because she was one of the oldest Claymores and thus more confident and more experienced with how the Organisation works. After the events at Pieta, though, Galatea is showed a display of the strength of Beth and Alicia, the Organisation's Number One & Two. Learning that they have been trained to be weapons and only weapons from an early age seems to be the final straw. She comments that the Organisation makes her sick, and it can be assumed that she turns renegade pretty soon after that - in fact, she becomes known as "Renegade" from then on, rather than "God Eye."
Leaving the Organisation, Galatea allows herself to take massive damage to her eyes. She can suppress her yoki extremely well, so the key to keeping her identity secret is to hide the silver of her eyes. Blinded, and with considerable scarring across her face, Galatea goes to the Holy City of Rabona, and becomes a nun. It's a great move; the last place you'd expect to find a Claymore is a place where they are not allowed to be, least of all serving the church. There she stays, and there she becomes a guardian for the city. Over time, her arrogance and disdain are tempered. She comes to care more, be more empathetic. The people of Rabona have come to see her as a person, and she has come to see them as her responsibility. So much so, that after sheltering there for seven years, she decides to sacrifice herself in order to protect it. Galatea releases her yoki, revealing her location to the Organisation. It is, once again, a tactical decision; she does this only so that adequate warriors will be dispatched to defeat her, in the hopes that they will help her kill an Awakened Being that has taken up residence in Rabona that is too strong for her to defeat alone. They turn up, but they're a tiny bit fixated on killing her, which is kind of a bummer.
BUT THEN. The cavalry arrives, with the cavalry being the Sexy Seven Seven Ghosts who survived the slaughter at Pieta and were also hiding out. They kill her, there's a big exposition discussion about the real purpose of the Organisation and the role of the warriors and Awakened Beings within that scheme, and Galatea regrows her arm while they all chill out. Before they embark on their Grand Quest to take out the Organisation, though, Forty Seven 2.0 and her pet beserker decide to join Team Miria, and thus decide not to kill Galatea, which is a plus. A few of them decide to chill and recoup in Rabona (who is revising its position on warriors not being cool enough to hang out with them). While Miria and Galatea... idk play chess and discuss tactics, some of the other warriors wander off to go visit hometowns and so on, before what they anticipate is a battle where they'll get their asses handed to them.
While Clare and co. are off getting themselves into total shitstorms, Miria, Galatea and Tabitha hear news (courtesy of Dietrich, who apparently has been hunting Galatea for a while) hear that Things Are Going Down. They also find out that Alicia and Beth have been dispatched by the Organisation. Galatea sips tea and adjusts her wimple while Miria owns Tabitha and prepares to gooff to fight the Organisation, and Galatea also makes insightful comments. Then she gets to babysit Tabitha.
It's just after Tabitha wakes up and resumes training with her that Galatea arrives in Anatole. Yay.
personality:
Tactical talent + taunting = grand master troll.
Galatea is fabulous. There's no two ways about it. Living in a world where pretty much everything sucks and still being totally fabulous puts her in a league of fabulous rarely beheld by mere mortals such as you and I, but for the sake of keeping this brief(ish), I'll just say that she deals with the crap the universe has dealt her, and she deals with it fabulously.
So, if you take Galatea, she's got layers. A whole lot of them. The first time you meet her, there are a few things that are clear; she's high ranked and obviously powerful, she's unconcerned with whatever is going on that isn't relevant to her mission, and she has amazing hair is witty. Haughty, egotistical, kind of a giant jerk, trollmaster-- intelligent, tactically minded, careful, calm. All this makes for entertaining good times. Looking at the kind of background all the warriors have, though, a lot of her behaviour is really interesting to consider. For example, her vanity and regard for aesthetics may be a means of coping with... uh. Being cut open and turned into a glorified science project. It's a shield she can use against other people and to hold herself above them. It's also just because she is the most awesome person you ever met.
Past the ego, though, she is a careful tactician. She is aware of the powers of different warriors, probably because she's had to monitor them, and she knows how to utilise them (hay Jean, hay). She doesn't lay everything out on a platter; she keeps secrets, thinks more deeply and considers things past what others (most especially the Organisation) expect. When she takes action, it is for good reason, and after ensuring it is the best course of action. Blinding herself to hide in Rabona, for example, was extremely tactical. Releasing her yoki so that warriors would be sent to the Holy City in order to eliminate an Awakened Being was also tactical. Both were pretty dire acts, but ones that served a very specific purpose. It's mentioned at one point that she is one of the oldest warriors of her generation, and thus the biggest pain to the Organisation, at times - she can't have survived that long without being smart, because in Claymoreland, being strong isn't always enough. (The being a troll thing is also tactical - throwing Dauf off with mockery does a lot for her in their battle. Until, you know, Riful shows up. 8|)
She's proud. Blunt, sometimes, or at least not afraid to deal out the facts. She can, basically, be kind of a bitch. (Troooooll in the dungeooooon!) However, after seven years in Rabona, she also cares more. She is more open to emotion, in aware. Galatea cares for humanity, and would sacrifice herself to protect it. She doesn't think her fellow warriors are just tools; she thinks they deserve better. Her ego has been tempered (although seriously, don't touch the hair) and she's more peaceful, perhaps, than she used to be. When Clarice mentions that she has to kill her, Galatea basically says “yeah okay, I've done what I need to, so you do what you need to.” Pretty chill, really, all things considered.
So, she's vain. And proud. And stone cold, at times. But she also cares, and takes time to think things over. Galatea's pretty okay, really.
why do you feel this character would be appropriate to the setting?
Her canon world and her own history are all made up of horror, in some form or another. Her ability with a sword and experience with demons and battle mean that she's pretty tough; she can handle the change of scenery, much as she may dislike it.
Writing Samples
Network Post Sample:
voice;
[There's a little background chatter, and then a calm voice can be heard. She's not addressing the Forge directly, but rather speaking to someone nearby.]
And so that is how it works? My sincerest thanks for your assistance. I should be able to manage sufficiently now, thank you.
[A pause follows, the rustle of cloth and the chatter falling to silence as a door shuts.
Silence.]
It would seem that I have joined the number of 'Scorched' in this city, as one gentleman so... kindly explained. [That tone might just slightly suggest that he was not entirely forthcoming in his help. Just slightly.]
Forgive me for cutting to the chase, so to speak. Today's events are, as I am sure many of you would understand, rather past what I had expected, and I am aware of a number of familiar presences. [A strange note on the word 'familiar,' that is extremely subtle. Hard to put your finger on unless you are familiar with Galatea, maybe.] The gentleman was so kind as to mention a number of women with silver eyes and blonde hair, upon my asking. As I have reason to think we are of the same world, I'd be most grateful if you could speak with me directly.
[Lies. He didn't say anything of the sort, but giving herself away completely wouldn't be wise, would it?]
Ah, voice responses would be most convenient. Thank you.
Third Person Sample:
Of all the times for a window of escape from her world to occur, this was perhaps one of the least convenient. It was well suited to her, of course; a step away from that land and the grasp of the Organisation was, in many ways, very much in her favour. Unfortunately for Galatea, though, she had greater concerns. They pressed on her while she sat, the bustle of Anatole scurrying around her much as a current swirls around the low hanging branches of a willow tree. She remained there for some time, carefully considering the situation.
On the one hand, she was free, or at least, there was the appearance of freedom. Circumstances being what they were, just how much of an improvement to her own situation this relocation would prove to be had yet to be truly assessed. She knew, more than suspected, that it would take some time to truly have a grasp on this situation.
On the other, while she might be removed from the Organisation, Rabona and its people remained. They remained in place, and thus they remained vulnerable. A target to be struck down. It troubled her, and though her expression was, for the most part, serene, the slightest shadow of concern drew over her features. Furthermore, this relocation could be part of some plan by the Organisation itself, the deliberate removal of warriors or those with strength to leave the land further exposed. The massive yoki auras that she could sense were testament to the fact that all was not well, and the concentrated yoki that was so similar to Forty Seven's was not a concern to be lightly dismissed, either.
Something was wrong, and string were being pulled. Galatea would not allow herself to be a marionette. She was no longer a warrior for their use, neither toy nor tool. Just what, though, would she be able to accomplish? What might she be able to do?
With a soft sigh, she leaned back against the bench. At least, she mused, she did not have to worry about the mass of people she could hear knocking against her. Whether it was the unsettling white of her eyes that repelled them, or the large sword at her back, she was uncertain. It did not particularly matter.
Perhaps it was time to cease procrastinating. Or, perhaps it would be best to simply wait for the other warriors to come to her. Time would tell; for now, she was content to sit, and familiarise herself with the sounds of this strange new city.
Anything else? I really want some cheesefries.