Rykeld A. Merlyn

## **Personality**

(+) Kind, Observant, Empathetic

(/) Curious, Soft-spoken

(-) Anxious, Regretful, Messy

Rykeld is a very kind hearted pangolin. The many years of being conditioned to fight without mercy couldn't permanently rid of her empathy, which stayed in tact thanks to the outside kindness she recieved. Thanks to that, she tries to keep an open mind and positive outlook on life. She's rather reserved, and isn't too likely to assert herself until push comes to shove. She does not enjoy conflict, but if she feels the need to defend herself or if she thinks its necessary then she likely won't hold back. Due to her upbringing, she's still very unfamiliar with many things in the world, and is a curious little sandslash. She enjoys collecting little "treasures" she finds, which usually results in a pile of junk in her home.

Unfortunately, she tends to be rather anxious, namely around cops and anyone who tries to pry into her personal information. Despite her empathetic nature, she's likely to become rather snappish and dodgy if others start to get too nosey. She's incredibly regretful of her past and is rather paranoid that she's going to be captured or put in jail for everything that's happened.

## **History**

There was no personal record on the bastard youngling in this city, the tiny sandslash wasn't born in a hospital after all, not with that mother of hers always running from the law. No, just a highly questionable doctor and a ramshackle shed not much better than the dirty back of a dumptruck. She didn't want the youngling, of course not, the lady hadn't even intended to get banged up but here she was. The doctor caved, though, he hadn't expected the lady to just up and run off without the baby once she'd recovered her strength. Sure, he knew she didn't like the kid, but, well... Now who was gonna take care of 'er? He wasn't set up to care for a child but with what little savings he had he managed to put together what he could for the kid. He wasn't an expert on child care, but well, he did a damn good job in his opinion. Now maybe she would have been put into official city records then, but this doctor wasn't exactly among the... legal crowd as far as his work went. No, she'd just have to stay hidden.

Little Rykeld ended up being a mellow child, perfect for the doc's line of work, if not a bit too prone to sticking her nose into places that weren't too good for her. She put up with a lot, bless her little soul, with no real toys to play with or a clean bed or clothes and sometimes not even a meal each day. She persevered though and if the doc was as proud as any father could be. Of course, none of that could last. The young sandshew went to hide in the other room as she usually did when work came in for her father so nobody got any bright ideas. They were a couple of interesting fellas, worked in the underground fighting business and their champ seemed to be in a bit of a rough spot. The operation went fine, but turns out the guy refused to fight anymore. Things went downhill, the hidden toddler recalls the sounds of gunshots, though she didn't quite understand what led up to it. Voices spoke about a project, how this wouldn't have happened if they just went through with it and she didn't understand but whatever they were doing they were taking a lot of things and getting awfully close to her hiding spot. Heck, they might have almost missed her, but they didn't. Looks like they had someone to go through with their project after all.

The years that followed suit blurred together, Rykeld was trained and conditioned harshly. Learn to fight, learn to survive, learn to do as we tell you. They must have been pretty confident it would work, that they'd get a lot of money out of this fighting machine they were putting so much into. As she grew and was forced into evolution, her limbs were replaced, these were better and they cut through flesh easier. She was a weapon and she did as she was told, she did not lose and she did not have mercy. When the sandslash was old enough, she was entered in the matches of all sorts. Some where the fighters were people, some where they were just weapons where they'd fight until one dropped dead. She did not like fighting, but in the non lethal matches there was punishment waiting if she lost, and otherwise it was kill or be killed. She did not want to die, so she fought, and as the years went on and she continued to be a successful fighter, they loosened the leash on her a bit. She was allowed to interact more with others and maybe even gain a bit of popularity. Unfortunately, they were careless after basking so long in their wealth. Rykeld learned quickly that there were others that could treat her much nicer and how much else there was out there in the world. She struggled a bit more in fights, not because she couldn't win, but because she began to see the other fighters as actual people. They were not things to be beaten down for a victory so she won't be hurt, they had feelings and the more she realized this, the more she struggled. The pangolin remembered the doctor and how he helped people, how he helped her and she wasn't so sure she was ok with all this anymore.

It took some patience, but eventually it came crashing down. The police caught wind of one of the tournaments and stormed in during it, sending everyone into a frenzy. Rykeld hadn't gone up yet, thankfully, and was able to slip out without being caught, unlike her kidnappers who she'd left in the dust to be arrested. She'd known full well what she was doing and maybe she'd feel bad later, but maybe not. As free as she was, she had nowhere to go. The pangolin spent some time in hiding again, living off scraps, just barely getting by. She wasn't sure where to go or what to do. What could she possibly do? What if someone recognized her, how could she even get a job when she was almost completely uneducated? The sandslash eventually stowed away on a ship, fearing capture in her hometown and went from place to place. There were amazing things out there, but she was tired. She wanted a home and she wanted friends again, so maybe this next place was somewhere to stay for good...

## **Extra Facts**

* Has trouble speaking if she uses her voice for too long, tends to use sign language when that happens (which she learned either from her travels)
* The spikes on her back aren’t always hardened, but can do that as well as stick up at will or grow back if broken.
* Lacks reproductive organs and breasts
* Forearm flips from short claws that are suited to more more and grip things to longer, more deadly claws.
* Cannot dig well, as her claws are no longer shaped for that purpose (rather they’re now built to slash through as many materials as possible, namely flesh. Can also be used for climbing)
* If broken, while they cannot grow back as they are artificial, there are extras stored in her forearm as well in order to fix them on her own. They are limited in number though, and thankfully aren’t very easy to break.
* Cannot swim. At all. Water bad.
* Has some difficulty moving in the winter if it gets cold enough, limbs can become a tad stiff
* Despite all of the metal that makes up most of her body now, she can still curl up like sandslash normally do. She tends to sleep like this
* Not afraid to use “dirty” fighting tactics should she get into a fight.