Mikaede Grimtotem

Category:HordeCategory: TaurenCategory: DruidCategory:Guildless
 
== Image of the Beast ==
Due to extensive famine and a rough lifestyle, this bull sports signs of a stunted growth; he is much shorter than most other Tauren. Instead of a normal average of 9' feet, this male stands instead a bare inch under eight. But then, there are many aspects of this Tauren that do not match his brethren. His snout is rather long in comparison to his kin, jaws sporting two jutting tusk-like teeth that are not unlike a worg's. His eyes often appear pupil-less and instead gleam a bright blue, his brows almost always lowered into a cold glare. Long black horns are anchored to his skull - if viewed directly from the side, it is difficult to see his eyes. He sports not the typical hunchback, though his head is extended forward a little, and a thick black mane - not hair, more like a lion's mane, flares back from his head and settles over his shoulders. Long ears are normally pinned back behind the head. A scruff of facial hair juts down from his chin, giving it an angular look, and flares along his jawline. The powerful chest is perhaps the more impressive part of him; they sport two long arms, not as muscular as fellow Tauren but bulky all the same, ending in fingers that sport almost hawkish claws. The body then narrows down to two long and strong legs, well-bent instead of held stiffily, balanced out by a long and tufted tail. His cloven hooves are pitch black and dusky, often splayed for better traction. His dark fur sports black stripes, sometimes hard to see.</p>
Additionally, all of his shapeshifted forms are black and striped. The bear is enormous and beastly, with shining bloodred eyes, massive paws decked out in overlong claws, enough power in the front legs to rip down a small building, like the wooden huts visible in Durotar. But this is not his favorite form: it is too slow for him, and though he may turn into it to express his feelings sometimes, he much prefers his feline form. The feline appears as a pitch-black lion, eyes a cold golden color, his mane thick and glossy. Obsidion fangs lance from the jaws, paws are loaded with cruelly curved claws, proving as an expert stalker of the shadows. He is most often seen in this form as opposed to bear or tauren.
== Quirks, Habits ==
Along with an unusual, lionlike appearance, he sports several habits and attributes that may both set him apart, and link him, to his own kin. One of these that sets him apart is that he rarely fits the 'big, lumbering' class. He moves swiftly, with his head lowered and hooves springing along deftly, arms moving very little and normally almost behind him as though ready for action. His gaze is normally intent and unwavering, definitely predatorial. When he sits down, it resembles more of a troll's stance than anything, double-bent legs folding underneath him as he poises on both hooves in a perfectly balanced manner. This allows him to be able to spring up at a moment's notice should he need to, instantly launch into a run or a jump. One of his quirks is perhaps aftermath from his being in animal bodies more than his own recently - he often growls, snarls, and roars, and - in very very rare cases - may be heard purring. He has an affinity towards wild animals more than he does bipedals (humanoids), and can be surprisingly gentle with very small animals. He is not, however, completely un-tauren. Though he did grow up at some point with the Grimtotem, the few vestiges of druidic nature that did not leave him occasionally shows up in that he turns to nature and thoroughly enjoys its presence for a while. He seems to like communing with the spirits of the trees, or even just watching the wildlife move about. His actual connection to it has far passed, however, he is no longer allowed into the Emerald Dream, and any peaceful moments are only recollections of a purity he has long since lost.
== Heart of a Lion ==
Gaur is a quiet, contemplative Tauren, at least when he's in an easy mood. In battle, he is a monster, and though he may have a bit of a temper, he does not let it control him. He never really smiles, has never been seen laughing (at least not recently, with the loss of his brother). He is not very friendly anymore, and does not like to be touched. Any signs of tenderness, or friendliness, even, are exceedingly rare and cannot be expected to be shown, at least to humanoids. He probably could fall under the 'strong silent' type, but is definitely a vigilante, and hosts a deep, deep hatred of centaur and those in the Grimtotem tribe. Courageous, brave in battle, yet also a cruel monstrosity, he kills quickly and brutally. Taken upon the skinning skill, he can do further damage to his kills by taking their pelt or skin...whether he can use them or not. If he doesn't need them, he apparently just skins for the fun of it, or to get his final blow on his target; many a kill of a humanoid, Centaur, bypassing travellers - even fellow Tauren, have been seen occasionally without their skins. Mikaede is vicious, and though he is not a mindless killer, it is perhaps not the best idea to make enemies of him.
== A Troubled Past ==
Before the construction of Orgrimmar, many years prior in fact, "Gaur" Mikaede was a member of a very small tribe under the name of the Cliffstrider tribe. Though his parents had already vanished before then to some unknown fate, he was still in the presence of his siblings: Azzok his older brother, and Nahani, his younger sister. There were six other tauren in the tribe at that point, most of them male; only 2 others were females. Everyone in the tribe were suffering from famine, as they'd lost the trail of the kodo and were forced to find other means of sustenance. They were always on the move, always avoiding the marauding centaur that swept the plains and cliffs in search of Tauren wanderers. And then, one day, a centaur group found them. They had no chance; most of the group was sleeping, and the ones on guard were carefully snuffed out. Gaur awoke to panic, fire and confusion. Half-starved though he was, he launched to his feet, shaken awake by Azzok. Together, they both sought out Nahani to save her from the incoming raid. And though they dragged her from the fray, she had been mortally wounded, her stomach opened. Though they tried to go back to see who else they could try to rescue, they saw nothing but chaos; dead Tauren and centaur alike lay on the ground, and the Centaur were mere specks in the distance, chasing the remnants of the Cliffstrider tribe into the bloodred, rising sun. That was the last of the Cliffstrider tribe.
Nahani only lingered for a few days after that. Desperately seeking to save their sister, both brothers hid from any further roving centaur by retreating into a cave they found embedded in the cliffside. There, they did what they could, used what knowledge they were in posession of, to try and keep her alive. Perhaps this work to try and heal her made it all the more difficult to lose their sister; one horrifying day, Gaur returned from an unsuccessful hunt to find Azzok sobbing over her lifeless body. She had, apparently, died while Gaur was out...and had died in her sleep. The next few weeks were a haze for the two brothers. They buried her body, and then wandered the plains alone, getting only enough to survive. Gaur was fifteen. 
One year later, the orcs arrived to help the remaining Tauren tribes. Gaur and Azzok watched from afar. They hadn't joined a new tribe, nor helped them, known only as the Wandering Brothers. They felt somewhat of a grudging dislike of the orcs by this point...perhaps it was unfair of them to do so, but they were unhappy that the orcs had not decided to help them before the loss of the Cliffstrider tribe. Azzok's idea, then, was to join the newly gathered Grimtotem tribe. "We'll prove we don't need allies to be strong!" he claimed, and Gaur followed his older brother as they headed towards Stonetalon. There, for the next few years until Gaur was 19, they remained with the Grimtotem tribe. Both of them grew hardened, though Gaur more so than his brother. It was here that his druidic nature became warped, as did his body; he became more lionlike than tauren, a veritable murderous beast that the Grimtotem were proud to boast. They were excellent recruits to the Grimtotem until recently. A spy was brought into one of the tents, and Azzok was requested to kill her. Azzok looked in horror upon the spy - for she looked exactly like Nahani. He claimed he was unable to kill her - in result, the rage of the Grimtotem fell on him. Gaur heard the noise and charged into the scene, in time to see his brother getting ripped apart by their former allies. In a rage, Gaur transformed again into a beast and tore into the fray. All was a bloodred haze, for even Gaur doesn't remember what happened, but he managed to drag both Azzok and the spy out of there.
Unfortunately, Azzok was too injured to go on. He died just a few moments afterwards despite Gaur's desperate attempts. What was strange, however, was that when Azzok died, Gaur was...silent. As dusk settled, he didn't move, and merely watched his brother's body as though expecting it to move, to get up again, to take up leading as he had done for the majority of Gaur's life. But finally, when night fell, his eyes turned away from Azzok's cold body and onto the spy, of whose name Gaur never got. Wordlessly, he escorted her all the way to the outskirts of Thunder Bluff, neither of the two saying anything the whole way. Now, Gaur wanders the plains alone...he may aid the Horde sometimes, but seems extremely reluctant to join a group of any kind. He is the wanderer, the vagabond, a lone beast working under his own unseen goals. His eyes are no longer alit with a fierce and alert look about them, no longer humorous and friendly as they so often were, but now they are cold, his voice silent. He feels, himself, as though he is wandering in a void space of black...alone...with no company, nor wanting any. The last of the Cliffstriders.
== OOC Information ==
Hey! *waves* Just so you know, OOCly I'm not as messed up as Mikaede is. I love meeting the people behind the characters I RP with, so feel free to strike up a chat ^^ Because I've found if I don't pay attention to the people behind the RPer, I never really get to know them, the RP doesn't last, and everything's all awkward. That, and I love meeting new people. As for RP itself - please note that I am not a godmoder, or a powerplayer, or anything of the sort, and I won't RP with people like that either. Godmoding is a HUGE no-no. If you don't know what that is, then you should go look it up.