Ishiwaka Nariko

**Ishiwaka Nariko**, or **Adamant Tyrant**, is a Neutral character in Villainy and Virtue, created and portrayed by Arbor.

A famed mercenary who is well known for her leadership of the Adamant Tyrants, Nariko is a lethal warrior with a talent for brutal efficiency.

## Biography

The famous assassin Ishikawa Daichi founded the Adamant Marauders thirty years ago, during one of the European Wars. Already known for his personally mastery of combat, he lead from the front and his new force rapidly gained notoriety, pulling off increasingly lethal and brutal attacks for many different employers over the next few years. While feasting back in his home nation, Daichi accidentally, and unkowingly fathered a daughter. He left before realising the woman was pregnant, and so Nariko was born and raised for three years in Tokyo under a doting mother who always told her that her powerful father would return. As chance would have it, he did, but it wasn't the joyful reunion she had hoped for.

When luck lead to Daichi meeting the mother of his daughter again, bumping into one another as they had done three years previously, the mercenary was shocked to discover he had a child. He demanded the child be given to him and taken away, and when the mother refused and instead asked that he took them both, he killed her in front of her daughter. Nariko, splattered blood, was dragged away to become the warrior scion her father wanted her to be.

For the next decade, Nariko was constantly trained to fight and kill. Daichi was immensely pleased with his progeny, as she proved to be as if not more skilled as he was. She would make a perfect replacement when he was gone. For her part, Nariko never truly had any affection for the man who gave her birth- memories of her mother's murder stuck with her and in any event, he left her alone with her instructors for months at a time rather than raising her himself.

At thirteen, Nariko undertook the scarring ritual that made her a true member of the Maruaders. From then on she too went on missions, killing as and when her father desired. She knew it would be a long time before he died and she took power, but she desired his position immensely. As it was, she didn't have to wait too long. When she was fifteen, her father received a contract to hunt down an escaped laboratory made child by the name of Reaver. Accepting it proved to be a lethal decision for Daichi, for Reaver was waiting for them. When they tracked her to Heartania, she laid a trap, creating an ambush. When the Marauders stormed what was supposedly her hideout the doors sealed and a number of high explosives began to count down. Revealing herself, Reaver challenged Daichi to a duel for the lives of his men. With a smirk, the warrior drew his sword and accepted.

He didn't expect an eighteen year old girl to be any challenge for him. He certainly didn't expect her to out fight him completely and kill him by cutting each one of his limbs off in turn before slitting his throat. As he died, she released the captives and announced that the contract on her had died with their leader. No one argued. Nariko, who had watched passively as her father died, stepped forward and declared herself the new Tyrant. Then she offered Reaver a play in her mercenary band.

The pair grew surprisingly close over over the four years Reaver stayed with them (or at least as close as two sociopaths can get). The exact nature of their relationship was never disclosed, but when Reaver left to follow her own way in the world they remained in contact. Now, as Reaver begins her plot, she's reached out to her old friend and is bringing in the favours she earned when they were together, starting with killing Nariko's father.

## Appearance

Nariko is of Japanese decent. She is unusually tall, standing over 6' 4", and is extremely broad and muscular due to intense physical training. Her dark hair has been cut short to avoid it getting in the way. Her body is lined with scars, some ritual and some violently caused, and the right side of her face is severely burned and scarred, with a cybernetic eye replacing the one she lost.

## Personality

Nariko is a battle hardened, cold, efficient and fearless warrior who leads her men from the front. She rarely loses her temper, preferring to remain situationally aware at all times, but if infuriated or repeatedly slighted she takes great pleasure in extracting revenge, so long as this violent excess causes no further difficulties for her force. She is loyal only to a contract, but she and her men are famous for never breaking a deal once it has been struck, so long as the employers keep to their end of the bargain. If anyone betrays her, she will actively hunt them down.

## Abilities

Martial Prowess- Despite being one of the world's most feared warriors, Nariko has no super power. Her powers are strictly mortal in origin, and come from her raw skill and talent. She is, in fact, a master of every weapon, a paragon of technique and ability. Be it with sword or firearm, she has few equals, and against them her sheer tenacity more often than not grants her victory.

The Adamant Marauders- Originally founded by Ishikawa Daichi, Nariko's father, the Marauders are a force of forty-ish elite, well trained and equipped mercenaries. There are always new recruits available, so they rarely drop below numbers. Famed for their abilities amongst the criminal and military world, easily capable of both black-ops work and front line fighting, the Marauders are considered some of the best soldiers money (and a lot of it is needed) can buy.

## Paraphernalia

Various high-grade weaponry, including:

-A high-powered sniper rifle.

-A pair of bulky, extremely powerful pistols

-An advanced combat rifle, able to fire in single, burst, and rapid-fire modes.

-A powerful combat shotgun, loaded with brutal breaching rounds.

-A ornate Katana, originally her fathers and heavily upgraded by Reaver

-Multiple grenades of various types

Nariko is also equipped with a strong, solid set of bullet-resistant flak armour and a number of heavier weapons that its less likely that she'll have to hand. These include missile launchers, explosive charges

## Relationships

Reaver- Nariko has a strong working relationship with Reaver, to the point where they may be considered close. They will not turn on each other, and would rather turn away than ever face one another in battle.

## Trivia

She once killed a bear armed only with a knife and a can of tuna (at the age of 12).