Arkanov

* Pendsbury
 Affiliation
 Position
 Nationality
 Family
Irmia (mother),
 Significant other(s)
 Weight
 Gender
 Hair Color
 Age
 Mage Type

**Arkanov** is an astute shadow mage, a former Elite Seven member, and a former undercover spy for the Pendsborne government. He practiced magic in secret in Pendsbury until he was found out and forced to serve the government as one of the Elite Seven's undercover members for the magic type of shadow. However, when on a mission to hand Thomas over to Sihrasul's slave trade, he ended up befriending various mages and helping them on their quest for recovering Mana's heart shards, a direct violation of his intended mission. He's currently a runaway from Pendsborne authorities and is considered a treasonous renegade in his own home city.

## Concept and Creation

Arkanov was based off of a Sonic the Hedgehog fan character created by SigmaAlphaThree in 2014 by the name of Upsilon the Mink. These two characters share similar powers, personalities, and in some cases, appearances.

Both Arkanov and Upsilon have their like shadow powers, irritable and serious demeanors, and hairstyles with red jackets. Their backstories are drastically different, however. Upsilon grows up with an abusive, neglectful mother and Arkanov's mother loves him deeply, for example. Additionally, the locations are obviously different.

Once the character Upsilon was eventually abandoned to pursue the creation of Mana et Mecha, some of Upsilon's character traits and features were recycled to create Arkanov, one of the central characters for MEM, in 2016.

## Personality

Despite having alternate identities throughout his mission as a spy, Arkanov keeps his demeanor roughly the same when in Pendsbury or Samadurai. He tends to be a loner and steers clear of crowds and people he does not know; this could have stemmed from the fact that he must do so to remain inconspicuous in his mission, but it is mostly due to the fact that he grew up without many friends and it is most comfortable with solitude.

The solitude may be caused by his excessively negative, uptight demeanor. It is very rare when Arkanov wears a smile on his face, but he does not scowl either. Most of the time, he is expressionless as to keep up a pokerface for his job. However, he is known to be agitated very easily, and very little can make him pleased or happy. Additionally, he has very strict ideas on rules he must follow. He knows to follow the rules of the Elite Seven. He knows not the follow the rules of anti-magic of Pendsbury, since he simply cannot agree with it. However, Arkanov is a self-proclaimed gentleman, and adheres to the conformations of Pendsbury society and chivalry. Thus, in confrontations with opposing Samadurian views, Arkanov typically reacts with extreme vocal opposition, as can be seen by his inital rejection of the anti-magic laws through vandalism, for example.

However, Arkanov is certainly the family man. He forces himself to purge mages in Pendsbury, something against his own principles, for the sake of providing monetary assistance for his family. Whenever he is able to, he teaches Kestral all he knows about magic and, contrary to usual sibling relationships, he cares for his little sister with the utmost adoration, as if she were his own child. He is willing to sacrifice his principles and risk his safety for the sake of his family, and for anyone he cares deeply about, which is not a large number of people. And he holds high respect for people who are just as willing to go to great lengths for their families, as he is with his father Valdus.

Arkanov is somewhat confident in himself, but he is not overly cocky, opposite to his half-brother Santiago. He believes he must have some potential given how the Pendsbury officials gave him the duty of infiltrating Samadurai for all of Pendsbury. However, given how he has been ridiculed in the past by his Elite Seven members, and very few other mages in his home city for comparison, Arkanov is unsure of his own capabilities in shadow magic, and thus, he does not let this get to his head.

Arkanov does have the capacity to make friends. However, he usually distrusts most who attempt to befriend him due to his past relationships with others. At this point, most abandon their advances, but if one were willing to try beyond that point, they would have the key to his heart and friendship.

But even still, this would not be much of a change as when they were acquaintances. Arkanov regards his few amounts of friends with sarcasm and faux hatred, like with him and Thomas. However, Arkanov genuinely harbors feelings for these comrades. It is only in extreme circumstances, usually life-or-death ones, that result in Arkanov ultimately admitting his feelings. Essentially, he is just a rather private person who needs to be exposed to a more open world, and Samadurai provides this opportunity for him to be more accepting of other cultures and able to communicate effectively. Though he is not willing to deny his original religion of the Church of Pendsbury completely or immediately, he is willing, with the help of others, to see other alternatives.

## History

### Unstable Beginnings

Arkanov was born into a lower middle class family in Pendsbury to his mother, Irmia Underwood, and his father, Valdus Underwood. From his birth, Arkanov has had a complicated life. Within days after being born, Irmia's past lover, named Don Vega, arrived to the Underwood house with Irmia's other eight-year-old son Santiago. Don Vega had a romance with Irmia but left to embark on the first Pendsborne expedition with Santiago and was considered M.I.A. eight years prior, so Irmia moved on and married Valdus and had another child. Don vowed to never let Santiago see his mother or new half-brother again. Irmia and Valdus continued to love each other despite this traumatic event.

Aside from this, Arkanov grew up normally until his tween years. When he was around nine years-old, Irmia and Valdus had another child together, named Kestral. Kestral immediately imprinted on Arkanov, and likewise, Arkanov took to his new little sister happily. He cared for her around the house, and assumed the average big-brotherly role. At Prinsburn Institute for the Naturally Gifted (PING), he tested into shadow magic and began to train in anti-magic practices. However, the test proctor, Pendsbury's church's highest leader, the Mortim himself, warned his parents that Arkanov's heart was filled with an unruly attitude and was destined to be deceitful, untrusted, and "uncivilized" in Pendsbury social standards. Now concerned, Irmia and Valdus vowed to pay close attention on Arkanov and his upbringing.

However, tragedy struck. Irmia came down with a cancer that was hereditary in her family's line. Pendsbury is only equipped with expensive private doctors with ineffective methods of treating illnesses such as cancer, so Valdus volunteered to take a new job to help pay for her medical expenses: a coal shoveler to power the floating city's engines. Despite the unglamorous job description, coal shoveling was the highest-paying job in Pendsbury that average citizens not in the clergy could take. But, it was a job that required many hours away from home given its importance, so Valdus' presence at home became nonexistent in Arkanov's later years. But before he left, he gave Arkanov his favorite red coat that had been passed down along his father's lineage for many years, as a parting gift. However, Arkanov looked up to Valdus in his willingness to support the family by whatever means necessary, and he vowed that when he would be of working age, he would do the same.

### The Rebel

Arkanov figured the best way to support the family for the time being was to do well in PING and to make his family proud. However, the lessons did not stick with Arkanov. In fact, he hated these lessons. It did not make sense to Arkanov why Pendsbornes would deny themselves to use magic, something they were born with. Surely, if it was a birthright, they must have the right to use said skills, Arkanov figured. His desire to be a good Pendsborne citizen for his family's sake was trumped by his rebellious nature against a social norm he felt was completely unjust. When Arkanov vocalized his opinions about anti-magic, he was criticized by his peers and treated as an outcast. Students at PING reported what he said to school officials, much to his mother's chagrin.

Soon, Arkanov could not contain himself. In a defiant manner, he began to use magic in secret, and he practiced shadow arts at home. In abandoned alleyways or on church walls, he would create elaborate shadow markings and paintings attacking the church and what it stood for. This became his favorite passtime, and this became a vicious cycle. Isolation, retaliation, repeat.

This continued on for six years, until he was fifteen. He had no friends, except his sister, who he inspired to reject anti-magic ideals. He was frustrated with himself and tried many times to follow the rules, but he felt that Pendsbury's ideas were far too oppressive to simply let pass.

### Welcome to the Elite

Word had been getting around that Arkanov was using magic to vandalize the churches and alleyways, and public opposition to him grew to a fever pitch. One night, he was arrested on the spot after being caught using shadows on the biggest chapel's walls, something he had never done before. Kestral was a bit too young to understand, but Irmia was ashamed. Thankfully, Valdus was too busy with his job to have heard about his son's arrest.

Arkanov faced a private trial with the city's leader, the Mortim, who acted as the judge and jury. But for some strange reason, the Mortim asked him to demonstrate his shadow magic. Arkanov did so, and the Mortim was impressed. He gave Arkanov an offer: he could face death for his previous crimes, or he could train to become an Elite Seven member, go on missions for the team, and receive compensation for his family for each job. Arkanov wanted to support the family for once. He was able to use magic with the Elite Seven, but found it extremely hypocritical how the Pendsborne church banned magic except for the Elite Seven members that used magic for the church's "benefit." However, he wanted to make his mother at least somewhat proud, so he accepted the offer begrudgingly. He returned home with the news. He had to tell his sister he was an ambassador in creating mage and non-mage relations because the true nature of the Elite Seven's missions, which usually entailed going on missions to kill mages and to destroy Samadurai, was far too dark for her, and it would have upset her since she was now pro-magic. Irmia learned and was disheartened by the nature of the job, but she was just thankful her son would not be arrested again, and relieved that more support would be received for her medication. She was now bedridden and had trouble simply caring for and feeding Kestral.

### Training Up

From age fifteen and until age eighteen, Arkanov trained with the underground magic mentor in Pendsbury, known as The Slinger. The Slinger trained Pendsbornes in secret with their magic types and became the Mortim's and the Pendsbury official's main source of mages for the Elite Seven. All of the Elite's members came from Slinger's underground network, known as the Mystic Mentorship, so under his guidance, Arkanov honed his already advanced shadow magic skills. He learned how to forge a shadow sword, how to create shadow moving pads, and even how to jump into shadows and to travel on their plane. Even for training, Arkanov received compensation, and he finally felt as though he was doing something right. By eighteen, he was ready. He was tested and faced the Mortim again. The Mortim deemed him satisfactory, and Arkanov was admitted into the Elite Seven's headquarters.

### Living with the Elite

Now that Arkanov was the master under shadow, he had to be formally introduced to other members. He encountered Waverly, the master of wind and air, Hyacinth, the master of earth, specifically botany, Ramesses, the master under fire, Pytha, the master of astral who stayed within headquarters, Morgrim, the Mortim's son and the master under light, Evangeline or Eve, the master of water and the team's leader, and surprisingly, Santiago, his half-brother, who was the master of geological earth. However, Arkanov did not recognize Santiago as his half-brother and was not affected by his presence. Santiago was visible shaken from seeing his half-sibling in the same squad, of all places. It turned out that Arkanov hated him.

The team went on their various missions together, one of them being the heist against the Cirque du Rebelles that was allegedly using magic from a light mage. This was against Pendsbury's rules. Arkanov never grew close to anyone but had a crush on Eve for a little while. He was even going to muster up the courage to confess his feelings until one evening, he overheard a conversation between her and the Mortim. She was criticizing Arkanov behind his back and pleading for him to leave the team given his pro-magic past. Heartbroken, Arkanov slunk into even more isolation from the other members, even against Santiago's constant attempts to make contact and get to know Arkanov.

### The Ultimate Task

Finally, after a year, Arkanov got the mission of his lifetime. The Mortim decided there was a new plan for Arkanov, the most detailed, insidious, and expansive one of Pendsbury's history. He had been selected out of all of the members, despite Eve's disapproval, to go on an undercover mission. He was to land in Samadurai and pass as a reformed Pendsborne seeking to assimilate. Since this was accepted in Samadurian culture, he was to have no difficulty in doing so. Arkanov would then infiltrate Samadurai's cities' governments, take out its leaders by whatever means necessary, and allow the infrastructure of these cities to crumble and topple as struggles for power errupted and internal control was low. The Pendsbury officials would then swoop in, overthrow the oscillating dictators, and establish a new anti-magic despotism, and this would spread across the entire country to rid the world of magic use once and for all. Since Arkanov was an extremely-skilled shadow mage, it would not be difficult for him to literally blend into the shadows and escape and never be suspected as the culprit. He was to receive a grand payout: a private doctor free for Irmia and their family for the rest of their lives, as well as additional monetary compensation that would support the entire family and its subsequent two generations. His father would never have to work again.

Arkanov was flattered from being chosen, apprehensive from the high probability that he would be caught, yet ready to embark on his journey and support the family in the ultimate way. He agreed, and set out. However, the Mortim also requested that he take a prisoner from the dungeons they had captured a year earlier from the circus, and to deliver the prisoner to the Sihrasul slave trade. It had to be done earlier, so Mortim decided since Arkanov was going to be in Sihrasul, then was a better time than ever. Arkanov figured that for such high pay, a small additional job was more than okay.

Arkanov retrieved the prisoner, named Thomas, and told his family that he would leave for his journey. Valdus was present and now heard about the Elite Seven job, and both he and Irmia hoped to see their son alive again. Kestral was still under the ruse that her brother was an ambassador and wanted desperately to see the magic world. She created a pocket dimension in Arkanov's pack with her astral magic for her to travel in, and left a note detailing her parents where she had gone. Arkanov, Thomas, and a stowaway Kestral left the city. Irmia and Valdus came upon the letter, and realized their daughter had not gone on an ambassador trip, but on a secret, deadly mission involving overthrowing governments and killing city leaders. But it was too late to get Kestral back, and there were very few means of contacting them now. Those communications were for Elite Seven members only. They could only hope for the best as their daughter, son, and this new prisoner headed to the desert floor below the floating city to begin their quest.

## Relationships

### Irmia, Valdus, and Kestral

Arkanov, surprisingly, has no problems with any of his parents or Kestral. He does not see them often enough to constantly be clashing because he is always working, but in the past with his delinquent years, he got into frequent bouts. However, he always realized how supportive his father was in regards to his ill mother, and he appreciated this as a child and hoped to eventually compensate them.

Arkanov looks upon his mother and father with humility and reverence for dealing with him through his rebellious years. He shows this love through his work through the Elite Seven, and through taking care of Kestral as if she were his child. He and his sibling are surprisingly close, and jumps through hoops to teach Kestral about magic and vice versa. Sometimes the two annoy each other because they spend the most time together, but in the end, they rely on each other to keep their ill mother and their hard-working father proud.

## Trivia

* His personality is a more conservative form of Upsilon's.
* On Temperfest, Arkanov will actually drink, and gets drunk rather easily. He is way more loose, more relaxed, and less reserved when he is intoxicated. In fact, in one of his few nights of Temperfest, he kissed a girl in Pendsbury who he was not betrothed to. He does not remember this incident, however.
	+ This girl was Eve.
	+ Eve, however, remembers the night and was embarrassed upon remembering it. This is what led her to snub Arkanov in front of the leader of the Elite Seven. This was done to convince the leader to reassign the mission to Samadurai to a different member.
* His favorite food is the Pendsbury equivalent of cinnamon buns.

## Gallery

Finished pictureSketch of the finished pictureSketch of the wolf formThis is a freaking adorable rendition of Arkanov by the most fabulous person in the world