Chaska (Friendly Other, Friendly Practitioner)

> *There was a situation in a town I bumbled into during my early Practice, in which old families and Judges were teetering for control of said town. I sided with the Judges so long as they assisted me and I secured their position. So I devised a surefire plan that forced all players to act and waste power, opportunities, resources, and options. Somewhat genius, if I do say so myself.*
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> *I then promptly announced that I was attempting the Demesne Ritual and was claiming the entire town as my own.*
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> *This, was a bad idea.*
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> - Chaska describing the events leading to ownership of his warded RV, and forever "WANTED: DEAD OR ALIVE" status in Abato county.
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## Overview

Chaska Roush, vagabond Valkalla who travelled the country for echoes, enjoyment, and Practice related employment. An individual who isn't quite all there from the Practice wearing him down, and an unfortunate brief escape from a demon of Madness. Despite his mind being severely affected from the echo influence, demon, and grinding state of the Practice, he still attempted to help up until his fall to Otherhood. Currently stabilized as a familiar to Celestino Ronrero, by wishes of his former familiar.

## Appearance

Chaska was a dark skinned Native American male in his early-thirties with unkempt chin length hair, with a preference for wearing black denim jackets.

After falling to Otherhood, his cracked stag skull mask has become permanently fused to his skull, and has accrued numerous minor injuries and cuts, where hosted echoes can be seen within able to enter and exit, with his largest injury being his gouged throat, preventing verbal communication in his normal form. He appears as a bald eagle in his familiar form.

## Powers/Practice

### Practice

During his time as a Practitioner, he accidentally forced himself onto the path of Necromancy with hasty picking of his Familiar and Implement after being newly Awakened, a Confederate Echo named Weston and kerosene lantern. Thus, he focused on the immaterial side of Necromancy, working with echoes stored in his Implement, and later taking souls and Selves after becoming proficient enough. His standard tactics of combat would be forming rudimentary formations and tactics from weak echoes and careful moves to have his opponents waste more power than he did per echo, and using bound wraiths for more dangerous or powerful foes.

### Powers

As an Other, he has lost most of his ability to Practice, but has gained new abilities and physiology. Now having echoes as his primary form of sustenance, alongside a high resistance against their effects, he is able to host and slowly break down the echoes he hosts. As well, he no longer requires sleep or rest, with injuries not as debilitating as before. His Sight is now permanently turned on, allowing him to see the type of spirits and magic an object or entity has as miniature civilizations or moving constructs with spirits as tiny denizens of these civilizations, at the cost of the inability to see facial expressions and making the Innocent incredibly difficult to see. And being a Ruins Other, he naturally has resistances to the Ruins effects and better at traversing its terrain.

## History

### Pre-OMO

#### Pre-Awakening

At a young age, his biological parents were arguing constantly turning near violent multiple times on a weekly basis. So much so, that Child Protective Services were called in to take him away into foster care, where he was adopted by the Roush family some time later. He lived in the sleepy town of Attlewell where he enjoyed his time with the occasional difficulty your average person of color would have in the Deep South. Unfortunately, he failed high school and seemed destined to have a low wage job while living with his parents.

#### Awakening

After closing up night from his job, Chaska age 19 fell victim to a Revenant summoned by an amateurish Practitioner, who recovered it but in the process of frightening Chaska and making him become Aware. An old stoner friend of Chaska decided to assist him, revealing the nature of the Practice and his status of being a Druid. Introducing Chaska to the Ronrero family and family leader, local Lord of Attlewell to Awaken him. Unfortunately, the friend had to leave for a Practice-related business before Chaska could fully learn most of the basics.

Panicking and having a negative view on the Practice from his first Other, Chaska hastily grabs his adoptive grandfather's lantern to do the Implement ritual. After, he goes to the Battlefield, where a Civil War conflict took place and hosts large amounts of echoes. He goes to find the strongest echo and horribly fails at binding it. With quick thinking and severe mental influence, he persuades the echo with with oaths to help him and to let him live and become Chaska's familiar. After the harrowing experience, Chaska falls into a slump where for a few years he falls into a monotony cycle of doing his job and little more, occasionally getting another echo for storage due to oaths made.