Greer

Retrieved from: https://www.nzonscreen.com/title/boy-2010

## Overview

**Greer** was a gay/bisexual Islænian (Hundred Isles) who migrated with his family to the same sea colony in Stetriol Samell lived in when he was seven years old. Like Samell, he was born just after the emergence of the Great Beasts, and grew up in the time period before the First Devourer War. He became fast friends with Samell Færson, after he and his father rescued him from his own snare trap.
From then on, Greer grew close to Samell. By the time he turned ten, it became very apparent that he had a *very* strong emotional attachment towards him. Unfortunately, this was cut short as Greer suffered a fatal stab wound in an attempt to protect Samell from a group of bandits. Greer, through his sheer ferocity to not stop until he was reunited with the boy he wanted to be with, was reincarnated into a female Komodo dragon spirit, granted by Tellun out of respect for his tenacity and his unyielding love for Samell.
The elk then grants Greer the ability to "protect his mate" before allowing the newly transformed Greer to be sent down to Samell's Nectar ceremony at the very last minute. Samell, unaware that the komodo dragon in front of him is his deceased best friend, dubs Greer under the new name of "Dox." From here, Greer's life becomes an adjustment to his new body, and the debate on his conscience if he's ready to tell Samell who he is and the feel's he's held onto before and after his death.

## Appearance

Before his reincarnation Greer was tan/brown-skinned boy with brown eyes and very dark hair. His hair was wavy but would have likely straightened out a little if he grew older. Upon reincarnation, he is a moderately-sized komodo dragon with some green tint to his mostly gray and dark brown scales. As "Dox," there is a puncture wound scar on the underside of her belly, serving as a mark from her past life.
In his human life, Greer was very agile and quick when it came to seizing the opportunity to strike at an opponent's weak spot. His weapon of choice was long ranged arrows like Samell, but he preferred daggers or various knifes for close combat situations. He was very dexterous, being able to quickly scale up trees to gain advantage on his enemies. Greer was also proficient in stealth, often being able to jump Samell by surprise in most sparring situations.
As Dox, Greer's ambushing skills were still retained along with the ability to climb trees, which is not natural for a normal Komodo dragon. In combat, she uses short bursts of speeds to latch onto enemies and hinder them, providing Samell a window of opportunity to attack. His eyesight for arrowmanship was also retained, allowing him to scout for Samell to gain an upperhand in the fight.

## Abilities

Through Tellun, Dox was granted a special ability:

* *"Arma de Amoris"*- Can grant Samell temporary invincibility for a short period of time. After use, Greer regresses into the dormant state and it can take up to an hour for him to recover.

## Personality

Greer was a very withdrawn, observant, and quiet boy. He didn't use to be this way, and was very similar in Samell to being outspoken and blunt, particularly on his opinions. Due to his past experiences, he often erred on the side of caution and analyzed other people heavily before making the choice to interact with them. He was obsessed with the theoretical and little details, often going into tangents about concepts that most found foreign and bizarre. Despite his lack of assertiveness, he was very blunt, especially around the people whom he trusted (i.e. Samell). He had a strong sense of tenacity, particular when it came to the people he loved. One fault Greer had, likely due to his past, was that he internalized his emotions often. The buildup of feelings often lead to him having outbursts that sometimes got on the intense scale. As Dox, he slowly learned to correct this bad habit.

## Backstory

### Life in the Hundred Isles

Greer and his family migrated to the Stetriol sea colony due to being banished from the Hundred Isles. Greer himself was the cause of it, as he was refusing to keep quiet about his beliefs that were considered highly controversial for the time period. Greer questioned the intentions of the Great Beasts, not all fifteen of them were known at the time, and thought that they could be evil just as much as they could be good. He also believed that spirit animals could come in the form of humans, and used this as the main reason people who were good and pure did not bond to a spirit animal in the sense they already had one. Greer thought a human spirit animal was the best type of spirit animal to have, because humans were far more powerful than any animal or Great Beast due to their intelligence and endurance.
At his age, Greer was very upfront and outspoken; he was not the type to conform out of social consciousness, even if the situation called for it. In turn, his words ended up reaching the ears of the Hundred Isle's king and queen. Knowing they couldn't let Greer stay on the island preaching words of heresy to the citizens, yet not wanting to hurt Yarrowan and Elena's child, they forced the family to exile. During the time it took for his family to make the small boat that would they would use to sail to the nearest continent, Stetriol, Greer was betrayed and outcasted by the people whom he thought were his closest friends. This experience would later lead to the quiet, cautious, and judging demeanor he'd have when moving into Stetriol.

### Life in the Stetriol Sea Colony

Upon the second week of settling into the colony, Greer first encounters Samell when his cries of help reach the young boy. The former Islænian had set up a foot snare trap in an attempt to catch rabbit but ended up getting himself caught on accident. Samell, being very gregarious at his age, immediately talks up a storm with the new boy and before the two go their separate ways to their homes, the native Stetriolian promises they'll have a chance to meet up again. The following day, a very surprised Greer sees that Samell kept his word and the two head out into the forest to go foraging together.
From here, Greer learns more about Samell and what the customs and traditions are like in the Stetriol colony. Greer shares what he learned from his homeland, feeling very appreciative at Samell's awe and curiosity to things that were different from him. As the years pass, the two become very close friends and start doing everything together: foraging, hunting, stargazing, exploration, playing and etc. Eventually, Greer finally manages the courage to confess to Samell the reason why his family moved to the colony and the Stetriolian doesn't give Greer the response he expected. Though he is shocked and doesn't agree with all of what Greer believes in, Samell reassures him that it doesn't change their friendship so long as Greer won't try to change what he believes. The Islænian boy is more than happy to oblige.
On the night of Greer's twelfth birthday, a friend of Yarrowan's stopped by the colony to give the boy a birthday gift, two vials of a sweet sap and fruit juice mix from Euran that some tribes in the mountains would drink before summoning their spirit animal, believing the mixture to increase the chances of one summoning their spirit animal (similar to the Nectar of Ninani), one vial was for him and the other one was for his father. Knowing how attached at the hip his son was with Samell, Yarrowan gave his vial to Greer to give to his friend. Greer, though displeased, hides it with joy and heads over to Samell's place, feeling like he had no right to hide the gift from him.
Inside, Greer was panicking, thinking that Samell would care for him less once if he did summon his spirit animal with the help of the liquid. He feared that Samell would turn his attention and care to the creature and not him. In this moment, Greer realizes just how attached he's become to Samell, yet his gut tells him it's impossible.
Just as Greer gives Samell the vials to inspect, in a burst of emotions, he tries to get Samell to destroy the vials again and never attempt summoning his spirit animal. They get into an argument until Greer breaks his angry facade and Samell, having known him for three years at this point, figure out that Greer is afraid of him abandoning him. Samell reassures him that he won't do that to him, and that they can still be "different friends," no matter what happens. Just as they reconcile and head to do what they planned for the night, build a tree fort, they encounter a small group of child bandits in the woods.
The bandits, upon realizing Samell is in possession of the rare Nectar, immediately demand he hand it over. The Stetriolian refuses and a skirmish ensues. In an act to defend the person he loved, Greer takes the killing blow for Samell and dies.

### Reincarnation and Onward

In the afterlife, surrounded by spirits, Greer is devastated that he is forever gone from the boy he strongly feels attached to and is determined to get back to him. He fights his way through countless, powerful spectres, some erasing him to near death until he accidentally stumbles into the realm of the animal spirits. He spots an opening, and upon hearing the voice of Samell, he makes a manic attempt to get to the portal leading to the living world as much as possible. However, the almighty elk, Tellun, blocks his way. He then asks Greer just how far is he really willing to go for Samell. Greer, in a mix of rage and desperation answers he'd sell his soul if it meant being able to be with the boy again.
Noticing the wounds all over Greer's spectral body, and the fiery determination in his eyes, Tellun allows him to crossover via a reincarnation. He grants Greer an ability called "*Arma de Amori*," warning him that though powerful it will cost him heavily if used. Greer then is blinded by a flash of whitelight before finding himself standing in front of a very surprised Samell staring at him. Despite feeling weak, he sprints over to Samell and gasps out his name telepathically. A little shocked but unafraid, Samell touches Greer's forehead, solidifying their bond and saying, "I'm going to call you 'Dox'."
Overwhelmed with joy, Greer regresses into the dormant state. The next day, having fully composed himself again, and onwards, Greer spends the rest of his life revitalizing the bond he shared with Samell as a human and eventually Samell figures out his identity. The two then grow old together, moving more inward into Stetriol and away from the sea colonies. Eventually, they must go into hiding when they learn of the new king forcing older men to recruit for "a battalion with a righteous cause." Wanting nothing to do with this, the duo lay low for a few months before Samell decides that he wants to avoid combat all together and proposes the two should go out peacefully before they are found. Greer agrees and the two drink a poison made by Samell together, drawing their last breaths before the recruiters could find them.

## Gallery

Greer as "Dox"What young adult Greer would have looked like. Taken from: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/333547916127371216/What adult Greer would have looked like. Taken from: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/516295544751924759/
## Trivia

* Dox's name is an homage to the Spirit Animals RPG game.
* "Arma de Amoris" is a portmanteau of "arma de" (Spanish) and "amoris" (Latin). Dictionary definitions translate both to "weapon of" and "love" in their respective languages.
* Greer would have either had a bird of prey or a large reptile, if he were to summon a spirit animal.