Tetsu

Tetsu is a serious, deep-spirited dragon. He’s quite rigid and does things without question, and silliness from any other dragon will annoy him to no end. He has a strong sense of justice and follows his morales seriously, but he believes duty triumphs over that, and, as a result, he will execute any order and instruction without question, even if they outright reject his beliefs. He loves the sea, the constancy of the waves and the smooth sounds, but being a Plague dragon, he does not have the skills or gills to discover its depths. However, he is quite content sitting beside the shore, watching the water lap at the edges of his world. It is one of the few places where he can feel at complete peace.
@CookieMayhem1308



Tetsu was born to a clan of assassins who made their home in the Rotrock Rim, a hardy group of dragons who valued only the strongest, most loyal dragons. The nest Tetsu was born in contained two eggs- him, and his sister, a weak, sickly hatchling who was almost immediately disowned. However, Tetsu felt awful seeing his nameless sister abandoned and left to die, so he hid her away in the family's crypt. He brought her food weekly, though he couldn't help but feel guilt gnawing at his heart knowing his sister was essentially alone with the dead, devoid of society and kinship. Whilst his sister remained alone in the crypt, he trained with the elders of the clan, becoming a skilled assassin, and preparing for the final test of his initiation.

Unknown to Tetsu, however, the elders had learned that he had been keeping his sister hidden in the family's sacred burial grounds. Instead of punishing him by normal means, however, the elders instead ordered Tetsu to kill the dragon he had been hiding to complete his initiation into the clan. Unable to bear the thought of killing the sister he had worked so hard to protect, he came to her in secrecy and urged her to run from the clan. She escaped into the night, flying for days on end, but to safety. Tetsu knew he had done the right thing, but at what cost? For failing his test, Tetsu was punished- he had to go through a whole extra year of training before he would be allowed to take the initiation test again. He agreed to the conditions of his punishment, and began to obey any orders the elders gave him, no matter how much they conflicted with his ideals. After a particularly vicious assassination which would certainly make any dragon question their morals, the elders were so impressed by his performance that they agreed that Tetsu could take his initiation test earlier than they had planned.

Tetsu's initiation test required that he travel to the edge of the Sea of a Thousand Currents and assassinate an oracle who would be heading towards the Starfall Isles. He made the long journey to the edge of the Water Flight's territory, taking time to rest alongside the edge of the mighty sea. As he listened to the sound of the waves crashing onto the sand, he found a part of himself that was more peaceful than any other part of him. At the edge of the sea he could feel a Tetsu whose claws weren't stained with blood- a Tetsu who had been given a chance to live a happy life with his sister...

However much he wished for it, though, that world would never be. He was who he was, and he had to live in the moment. That, to him, meant completing his duty, no matter the steps he had to take to do so. Currently, it meant squishing that pesky Fae oracle who was heading towards the Starfall Isles. When Tetsu thought about it, he realized he didn't even know why he was killing these dragons... He just knew it was his orders, and that he had to fulfill them. Duty calls, after all. Tetsu couldn't be bothered to think about the morality of his profession any longer. It wasn't like he could change his life. He had pledged his devotion to the clan in blood, after all... He closed his eyes to listen to the waves for a little longer. Tetsu felt at peace with himself. He was ready. He stood up, stretched out his wings, and took to the sky, ready to stalk his quarry.

He returned to his clan later that night, and was heralded by a feast, cheering, and congratulations- the clan of assassins was unusually noisy and cheerful whenever a new dragon passed initiation, so much so that it was enough to bring his spirits up. Despite his rigidity, perhaps a bit of time to have fun with other dragons was okay. He slept that night with a smile on his face for the first time in a long while, finally secure in his space in the clan. However, it wouldn't be long before Tetsu was sent on mission after mission, tiring him and making him stressed, angry, and upset. Dragons in the clan began to fear Tetsu would lash out at them. He spent a lot of time by himself, remaining silent and tryintg to figure out what in the world had made him so unreasonably upset?

In an effort to see himself more clearly, Tetsu traveled back to the Sea of a Thousand Currents, lying in the sand and letting the waves lap over his talons. He watched as the foamy water washed the caked dirt and blood off of him, allowing him to see the iridescent scales which shone so brightly underneath once more. He stepped further into the water- first he let his body be submerged, soon his wings- then his neck, and finally, his head. The water washed away his guilt, freed him of the chains binding down his soul. With a powerful flap of his leathery wings, he burst out of the water, watching the water droplets fly through the air and catch the light of the sun within them. His own scales shone like those droplets of water, too. It had been so long since he had seen himself- he had grown up so much since the times where he was a small hatchling trying to protect his sister.

Would he ever see her again? He wondered as he watched the clouds roll overhead. His sister, who he didn't even have a name to remember by? He wished that he had the opportunity to see her. She had meant more to Tetsu than any dragon ever had. he looked down at his own claws once more. They shone like stars, the reflection of light within them a reminder of his shining self. Underneath the assassin that he was, Tetsu knew he was something more. Someday, he knew, he would have the chance to show everyone that he wasn't a monster. He was just Tetsu.


A Shining Spirit

Tetsu knew he couldn't leave his clan without repercussions. He knew that he was duty-bound to be an assassin for the rest of his life. But Tetsu knew that he was more than just an assassin. He had a shining spirit. Tetsu was a dragon who, despite his Plague origins, had a soul that shone with the essence of Light itself. The feeling had been there for longer than he knew- But he thought that surely, why would his soul truly reflect the element of Light when the Scarred Wasteland had been his birthplace, his home, and where he had been trained to kill. Why the Lightweaver pour her essence into a dragon so apathetic and cruel? Tetsu himself didn't know. Perhaps it was his Imperial origins, or perhaps it was just leftover elemental magic from ancestors of long ago.

But there was one way to test his theory- elemental magic. He had not been trade in magical slashes nor bolts- he had no idea what element he could control- it was easy to assume it would be Plague. But now... now he had reason to doubt that. He poured himself into his training, studying tirelessly to figure out how to control the element that burned within him. It took months, but finally, finally he managed to succeed and casting a spell...

Light bolt.

He was horrified by himself- how was he able to control the light? He was a plague dragon through and through- that was certain! However, Tetsu still had doubts, and he had to check... he ran to the mirror he kept in his room- a small, handheld one- and pushed it up close to his face, looking at his eyes... and in his vibrant red eyes, he saw two tiny, shining cracks of gold peeking through the red, as if the color of plague was just an outer skin for it to shed.

Oh, this was bad, and Tetsu knew it. He spent at least a day worrying about it- keeping himself locked up in his quarters to hide himself from his companions-- he didn't know what they would do if they saw his eyes. The cracks of gold were spreading, branching out like the antlers of an Imperial. He could only panic even more for a short while before an idea came to him- a veil. Assassins often wore them to hide their faces from possible witnesses- what could stop him from wearing one? And so, Tetsu donned a golden veil to protect his secret from the rest of the clan.

It wouldn't be long before his Light abilities truly manifested- during that time, he was prone to avoiding shadows with an almost comedic level of fear for them, though that embarrassing phase did not last long before his eyes turned a fully shining golden tone. The veil hid his eyes from the sight of the other dragons, but it was clear that his clanmates were always nervous about something when he came around- and not even Tetsu's clanmates knew what they were afraid of. The fear seemed irrational to everyone except Tetsu- he just worried that the other dragons would become suspicious of him.

However, he soon returned to his assassinations like normal, and to his surprise, his eyes remained the golden color of the Light flight. It was still a mystery to him of how and why, but he soon became to embrace him. After all, he had always known that there was something special about himself that separated him from other dragons. He just had no idea that it would be his shining, golden soul.


The Black Wolf

On an assassination trip to the Southern Icefield, Tetsu was doing his best to sneak through a section of the Snowsquall Tundra, he encountered a Black Wolf- fearful that it may attack him, he drew his weapon- but to his surprise, the Black Wolf spoke in common to him. "Do not fear me, assassin. I came to you because we have common enemies. The dragon you are trying to kill... He has wronged my family. Would it be wrong for us to pair up?"

Tetsu, though he was unsurprisingly shocked by the Black Wolf, agreed, and assisted Tetsu in his mission, leading him to where the dragon lived. The missions went without complication, and Tetsu thanked the Black Wolf and prepared to leave. However, at that time, the Black Wolf asked Tetsu if it could come along with him, and he agreed, taking it back with him to his home. The two soon became a pair that was not separated easily. They traveled together, ate together, and often confided in each other- in fact, the Black Wolf is one of the only creatures who knows of of Tetsu's Light secret.
@shaunti