[ ✒ 000 ; info ]
[ basic information ]
NAME | Kengamine Nagi
SERIES | Deadman Wonderland
AGE | 32
SPECIES | Human
GENDER | M
HEIGHT , WEIGHT | 5'10" (177cm) ; 136 (62kg)
OCCUPATION | Teacher at a K-12 school -- grade 5 homeroom & general language
LEVEL | Terra
ID NO. | 2222272
[ appearance ]
He looks -- exactly like you'd expect from his personality, really.
5'10" -- not too tall, not too short -- 5'11" if you count those geta he's always wearing -- with a lanky limbs and a slender, graceful sort of build. He always holds himself in a somewhat hesitant way -- proper posture and careful movements -- it's rare to see him rushed or tensed, because that would worry his students, you see?
And just -- he's like your typical nice teacher who'd be really pleasant to talk to. Soft brown hair kept slightly long in loose strands about his neck, bangs framing pale violet-gray eyes -- clear and sincere and striking -- and well-shaped features usually in a mild, polite smile. And dressed nicely, of course -- nothing overly formal, but he's usually in casual dress clothes, with a fondness for V-neck button-ups and long jackets, a checkered shawl usually tied around his belt or around his neck and shoulders -- or at least, he'll have a scarf or bandanna pulled up to below his chin.
And wait -- you'd say. Why the scarf?
Well -- it's hard to ever find him without his scarf or bandanna or shawl, and that's because the skin at his throat is terribly marred -- an ugly, ugly surgery stitch-scar splashed across pale skin that won't ever fade. He knows better than to leave it open -- it would repulse people, scare his students -- and so he always keeps it covered, grows rather uneasy when he doesn't have it under wraps. And you might ask -- why does he keep wrapped up so tight ever during the summer? That, too -- he's pretty scarred. Because, you see -- he's been through a lot more danger than most people would think, and he's got some pretty nasty gashes across his body -- an ugly stab-wound-scar just below his ribcage on his right side, shallow cuts littered across his shoulders and arms and back and -- it's just not very pretty, you know?
And that would be a terrible thing to show people -- rude and insensitive and impolite -- and so he keeps it all hidden, tries to maintain that appearance that he's just a perfectly normal sort of person.
And he is, really, y'know? He kinda looks like a guy that you wanna talk to and have a cup of coffee with.
[ personality ]
If you ever read a book or watch a movie where there's some rebellion group fighting against the terrible ruling power, you always see the stereotypes -- there's the wide-eyed idealist new guy, and then there's the angry, bitter cynic, and then the charismatic leader, and then there's -- you know. The whole slew of your typical people, you know?
But then you have a guy like Nagi who's -- sort of not exactly in any of these groups. I mean sure -- he's the charismatic leader in that he's the one who established the Scar Chain anti-establishment group, but he's not the type to stand up and command people, he's the type to politely ask them and laugh and talk to them. He's the wide-eyed idealist in that he truly, really likes people a lot, and trusts people easily -- but he knows that war isn't so easy as black vs. white. And he's the cynic in that he's been through a lot, he's been broken and pieced together, but -- he's just not angry at all, really, all he wants is to achieve freedom for himself and his companions.
Starting to get what kind of person he is?
It's like this -- even though he's the leader of the anti-establishment organization fighting for an almost impossible goal, he still retains an almost impractically optimistic and kind personality. He's hopeful, and trusting, and he likes people! -- and his friends of the Scar Chain -- not 'subordinates' or 'lackeys,' those are rather ugly words -- are dearly important to him, and he trusts them unconditionally -- and please, nothing so formal, please call me 'Nagi.'. A little bit like -- how to say it -- a teacher. His language can be a bit wordy at times, but not intentionally -- and he always intelligent and kind and ridiculously polite. (No, seriously. Really polite. Always uses keigo, never swears.)
And sure, his voice tends to creep some people out -- remember, no vocal cords -- since he speaks with an implanted synthesizer, making everything he sound just a little bit robotic, monotone and with lapses of slightly odd pronunciation -- but he tries his best to mask that trait, tries to keep the attention away from what he's lost. That ugly stitch-scar spanning across his neck? Always hidden with a scarf or bandanna, because who likes having to see that? Pity that a few people notice his voice right away, but most people get over it quickly enough since he's really friendly. One of those guys who never makes enemies just because he's always so polite, and well-mannered, with good intentions -- great with children and easy to talk to and quick to forgive and -- seriously, you cannot be offended by this guy.
Or, well, I guess you can, but then that's only because -- you know that phrase, "beware the nice ones"? Yeah, it's exactly like that. I mean, he's usually smiling in that mild, happy way of his, but then when it comes to things that actually matter in a life-or-death situation, then you really don't want to get on his bad side, because -- how would he be the Scar Chain leader if he couldn't wipe the floor with your ass? It's not like he'll go around doing it unless he has a good reason, but when he puts his mind to it, he can easily blow your face off with a few well-placed explosions. Not that he's arrogant or confident about it in any way, shape or form, though -- he dislikes fighting, almost fears it, because he's already lost so much to meaningless fighting, and he knows better than to push his luck -- but when worst comes to worst, he's a force to be reckoned with. Sure, he might be mostly self-trained, but he's good, with great reflexes and a good sense of how to disable people without killing them outright. And --
Though, actually. That's not what you should be most wary of. His greatest strength is probably this: a level head at all times. (There's a reason his stage name's 'Owl.') Because no matter what happens, he's always calm, always thinking before he acts -- like ice, really, it's almost kind of scary, because sure, he feels shock, like anyone else, but he knows better than to let it take over -- and so he accepts everything without useless protest. Even death. It's not like he doesn't feel sorrow, though, of course he does -- he's lost more friends than he'd like to think about, and mourned each and every one of them, but -- ever tried living for years in a place where a few people are killed every week? Yeah. He's been mostly desensitized to the endless rounds of fighting and violence -- and of course, it still hurts him deep to think of just how people he's seen be killed, but -- to simply dwell over their deaths would be meaningless and counterproductive. So instead, he remembers all of them, and vows to fight in their stead. Because -- there's always a way, right? No matter what happens, there's got to be a way that things will work out, there's always hope!
-- and yeah.
That's the kind of person he is.
[ abilities ]
Pssssh, I hear you say -- he's a teacher, what the hell can he do?
But see, never judge a book by it's cover. Because if he ever really, truly wanted to -- he could easily kill you.
How, you ask? It's this -- just a tiny cut across the palms of his hands, enough to squeeze out a few trickles of blood -- then he has his weapon right there. Because he's a Deadman, one of the people with the ability to control blood and turn it into killing tools. And it differs for each Deadman, of course -- some people turn their blood into swords, some use knives -- whips, spikes, nets, lances -- you get the point. Nagi?
He goes explosive.
It's called the Owl's Eyeball, and he can form his blood into perfect red spheres that float in the air under his control, and when he deems it the right moment -- boom. Not enough to kill, but more than enough to blow a person off their feet and into the air, and a few well-placed explosions could easily slam someone across a room and into the wall -- a clean and bloodless knockout.
Even without his abilities, he can hold his own in a fight, surprisingly enough -- it's hard to survive for years in a dogfight-arena if you can't defend yourself, isn't it? Entirely self-trained, but he's got good reflexes, fast movements -- smooth and graceful and calculated -- and as lean as he is, he's not an easy guy to break.
Teacher, huh? Yeah, he's a teacher. Don't hurt his students. He'll hurt you back. Badly.
[ history ]
It starts with two people, perfectly normal, perfectly average -- Nagi was the only child to a young couple living in the Tokyo -- and he had a perfectly bland childhood. Nothing spectacular. Nothing amazing. He was a good kid, though -- bright and kind and polite and friendly -- and he grew up to be a nice young man. Went to a high-tier college, and decided that he would really like to be able to help other children also get nice education -- and so he studied to be a teacher, majoring in language and English.
And he graduated on schedule. Perfectly ordinary. Nothing strange or unusual. Got his first job at age 22 as a teacher at an elementary school near where he studied, as the language teacher -- it was a nice job, and he was good to the students, and they adored him, too! And it would have been nice if things continued on that way, right?
Haha. It would have been so nice.
The great Tokyo Earthquake happened when he was at school, giving a lesson on reading comprehension -- and he barely managed to get his students out of the building before it collapsed on itself -- none of them were hurt, but the city was devastated. Some of the kids lost their family, had to be picked up by the social service authorities at the end of the day -- and Nagi, too -- his parents didn't quite make it out of the earthquake alive. Now jobless, without a family -- alone -- but alive.
Lives shatter, but it's always possible to pick up the pieces, glue them together. The city healed itself over time, and Nagi did the same. There's always hope, right?
Five years later found him with a new job at a different school, still a good teacher -- loved by his students, friendly with his colleagues, liked by the parents -- and in love with one of the substitute teachers. It was like something out a novel -- it didn't take too long for them to get engaged, then married -- a quiet, happy young couple graced with the purest, most innocent love. And then -- one day, she told him in a soft whisper -- "I'm pregnant." A child. He'd never been happier, he held her close and hugged her tight.
(It was too good to last.)
Because -- he hadn't been paying attention to it, too busy taking care of his students and making sure that he was the best teacher that he could possibly be -- but over the past few years, people were shipped off to the nation's themepark prison -- Deadman Wonderland -- for crimes that were quite possibly nonexistent. Just like what he was accused with -- he had just dismissed his class one day, when the police came barging in, terrifying the few students still left, and slammed him into the wall, twisting his arms behind his back and handcuffing him. And they told him,
"You're under arrest for the molestation and murder of twelve of your students."
He was innocent. He had never hurt any of his students. He would never do that. But it didn't matter -- he was still declared guilty -- his innocent wife sentenced to the same fate just four month later -- and sent to Deadman Wonderland -- the nation's one and only prison-themepark.
That's right. Prison-themepark. Howzat work? Pretty simple. You take the prisoners, and make'em dance for the crowd, and hey, there's all sorts of things you can do! Put'em through deadly obstacle courses, make them do sports until they die of exhaustion, pit them against wild animals -- people love a good show! And who cares if they die in the process, it's not like they were ever assets to society or anything. And amidst all this gory cheer, there's just one special section of Deadman Wonderland, called Section G, and that's where all the special prisoners go -- the Deadmen, they're called -- prisoners with the unique ability called the Branch of Sin -- the ability to control blood and form it into weapons -- swords, whips, bullets, bombs -- cool, huh? Come on, they even have codenames, it's so awesome! So what better use for them than to use them as great entertainment! Throw two of'em in a boxing ring and let'em loose! The crowd gets to bet on the matches, see who comes out on top in these matches, it's a great way to earn money! -- as for the prisoners, whoever wins gets 'cast points' -- the currency of Deadman Wonderland, which they can use to buy clothes, food, whatever they need -- and the antidote to the poison that's continuously pumped into them to keep them under control.
But what happens when you lose? Ah, that's interesting. Let's say you get knocked out. Or disabled in some way so you can't fight any more. What happens is this: they drag you off to a side room and strap you down to a chair -- hey doesn't this look a lot like a surgical table? -- and fill the room with lights and cameras. (Can't miss a bit of entertainment!) And a roulette machine with a bunch of options, like so: "liver" "kidney" "teeth" "left arm" "right eye" "30 cm of small intestine." You get it? It's called Carnival Corpse, and whatever that roulette lands at, the prison staff chops out of you -- chop chop! Then you can go back to fighting for your life.
Pretty setting, huh?
Such a wonderful place, oh so romantic, and so, so lucky that Nagi and his wife were pitted against each other in a ring match. Come on, come on, fight. -- he couldn't do it, though. He couldn't bear to hurt her, or even consider the possibility of her being torn apart by the Carnival Corpse, so he made a deal with the prison warden. Begged him. 'Please. I'll lose. I'll surrender to the Carnival Corpse without protest. Please don't harm her.' And the warden -- such a nice man! -- agreed. Smilingly. Watched as Nagi stepped into the ring and was knocked out by a series of bloody strikes -- he'd persuaded her to attack him, told her it was the only way out -- and then the Carnival Corpse. The roulette landed on -- congratulations! -- 'vocal cord.'
He lost his voice that day.
And a lot more, because hey, guess what? -- promises are meant to be broken. ♥ The Warden told his wife, 'We don't allow rigged matches,' and made to drag her off to the Carnival Corpse as well, but she was scared and tried to run -- and Nagi, the stitches across his neck still raw and bloody -- arrived just in time to see the Warden and his bodyguard walk off. His wife dead on the ground. Too bad, so sad -- he wept profusely, mutely -- pity he couldn't even call her name.
And that, well. That sad fairy tale was a little over two years ago.
Let's be honest -- he broke down for a while. (I promised to protect you.) But -- no. He couldn't just give up. Because -- there was something waiting for him outside -- his child that he'd never seen. He'd lost his wife, lost his voice -- but to give up and crash and burn -- no, that was senseless.
Because there's always hope, right?
It started with just a few comrades, just a few trustworthy people, but everything starts out small, and it wasn't too long before word spread amongst the prisoners about a mysterious organization, the Scar Chain. An anti-establishment organization aiming to destroy the system of Deadman Wonderland, to free the innocents and grant them the freedom they deserved. And they fight on, you see -- not for revenge, not for anger, but simply to get the Deadmen the lives that they deserve, the freedom they should have. Foolish, some people told him -- too optimistic and idealistic and it would never work.
But there's always hope, right?
[ false memories ]
Rewind the clock and start from the beginning, but it goes down the same road for a while -- born and raised in a perfectly average environment in the Terra for a while -- growing from a bright young boy to a bright young man -- well-educated and a promising young teacher. Then, tragedy, but like this -- that science lab nearby? Looking into some mysterious project about improving human physical abilities and implants to make people stronger -- it exploded. No one knew why, but it was a considerable incident -- blew away everything in a quarter-mile radius and blasted windows out of buildings even a full mile away. Nagi spent all afternoon of that day calming the children, keeping them away from the shattered windows, then waiting for the social service workers to retrieve them -- and didn't bother to return home, because he knew that it and his family had been obliterated.
Lives shatter, but it's always possible to pick up the pieces, glue them together. The city healed itself over time, and Nagi did the same. There's always hope, right?
And it goes the same -- five years -- he'd found his place, found his wife, the promise of a child, and a life full of joy and love and nothing could go wrong -- except it did go wrong, terribly so.
Because the lab explosion so long ago came back to tear him apart -- he was returning from the school one night when everything went dark, a chloroform-laced cloth cutting off his breath -- and he awoke in a makeshift prison-lab, where the men told him -- "the traces of our experiment are in your blood. You belong to us, now. So fight. Kill. Tear each other apart. Show us what you can do."
And so the story goes -- a cruel, cruel twist of tragedy, and he lost his wife, his voice, the last dregs of normalcy he had left -- and then, after two more years of the dogfight torment, he was abandoned. The lab doctors decided that they'd reaped whatever information they could from him, and they released him, telling him with a smile, "Alright, you can go."
Funny how it works, isn't it -- yet another crash-and-burn, and he wandered for the longest time, searching for a place to go, a place to belong -- and nearly fell to the path of revenge, before realizing -- no. That wouldn't be what she'd want. (She'd tell him, "live on, Nagi. I love you.")
And so -- an attempt to return to normalcy. A new school, a new job -- his past reputation as a wonderful teacher didn't hurt -- and new students to live every day for. Pulling together the broken shards of his whole life and rebuilding it all. Because there's always hope, right?
[ relationships ]
ALUCARD | bird_0f_hermes | AKA 'Alice.' Resident of the Liebert Mansion, a supernatural being who freed him. Mixed feelings of fear and hatred.
FAUST VIII | knochenphiliac | Doctor in Abyss. Very trustworthy, and has gone to him a few times in the past.
GENKAKU | hypermonk | Deepset hatred, with faint undercurrents of fear. Has a past with him from the labs in Abyss, as well as a highly convoluted hate-need relationship stemming from his insanity. Purchased by him after death, and thus altered to 'love him.' Feels that something is off about the relationship they have, but also scared of delving into the issue, as he feels it will yield an immense amount of pain.
HANAMURA YOSUKE | waitingfora | Previous student. A bright young man that Nagi wishes the best for. Vaguely aware that Yosuke might look up to him a bit excessively, and hopes he isn't too disappointing.
MIHAEL "MELLO" KHEEL | cruxanathema | One of the people he trusts deeply. Blew his arm off during a rampage, but Mello seems to have forgiven him for that, and helped him snap out of his insanity.
NATAKU | soulparadox | Another person in the Liebert mansion. Finds him odd, but not evil. Slightly wary of him, but doesn't think ill.
ROKURO BUNDOU | nerveexits | Fellow ex-subject of the Abyss labs, and a traitor in the past. A cold dislike and general desire to avoid him.
SELPHIE TILMITT | gamblerselphie | Previous student. Very bright and cheerful, hopes everything turns out the best for her.
SHIRO | coooooookies | Previous student, still runs into her occasionally. A bit confused about her family status, but she seems fine. Fond of her.
VINO | therailtracer | Made to take him away from the Liebert Mansion once, has since then promised to kill him. Remembers him only vaguely.