Ideas, Art, Lore, and Character Backstories

Backstories (Rory Mercury)

Rory Mercury (this iteration of her. She's in her 20's.) grew up in a town called Archibald in the Republic of Elbe, unfortunately for her the Allied Republics, the government is incompetent and can't defend its towns properly, so towns like Archibald have to rely on paying town guards like Rory's father, a Dathaomirian ex-merc and mercenaries to rely on protecting the town, it's citizens and resources from raider gangs. Rory's mother was a painter who became a nun at Archibald's church, unknown to what god/goddess she prays to. Rory's mother was a caring, and compassionate woman who Rory and her neighbor, Maybel and her mother were close with. Because the father is protecting the towns, the mother cannot raise Rory by herself, so she got help from Maybel's mother, and Rory and Maybel were like close friends. Rory's mother built an necklace for her daughter and kept in a secret case as Rory was not to wear it yet. She had a note in the case for Rory. Rory and Maybel were close with her mother. All was well until one night a group of raiders ransacked Archibald, killing anybody including Rory's parents and Rachel. And burned down houses, including Rory's, leaving her homeless. She escaped the town penniless, with no one for support, and her parents murdered, causing Rory to develop a pure hatred for raiders. Rory wanders and finds a shanty town where she settles in. She has to working at a shitty garage, lucky to get three meals a day, and barely gets enough. A group of mercenaries were looking for more people to recruit in her town with the promise of a high-paying job. Rory reluctantly joins them because her mother is religious and is against killing people, and she was close with her parents, especially her mother. But, given her condition she doesn't have much of a choice. In case you ask where Maybel was during the raid, her father brought her along as he was a part of a caravan sending supplies to Archibald. Maybel asked Rory what became of Rachel, and Rory said that she during the raid. Well, as it turns, the mercenaries were at war with the same raider gang who destroyed Archibald and destroyed Rory's life. Her motive went to just money to making money and getting revenge on the raiders, despite her mother's rule. The mercs won and Rory killed the gang leader, with her being exceptionally well-paid. But, Rory began to become disillusioned and depressed as she broke her mother's rule. She's only comforted that her mother isn't alive to look at her, but that didn't ease her mind. As Rory's living situation improved and as she got older, she fell in love with a man, she told him that she was a mercenary, (as Rory had to go through a process that certifies her as a mercenary after the war, because she got lots of money that way, even though she hates herself for it and regrets her job.) they got married and settled Actually, Rory has three kids. Two sons and one daughter. As hard as it is to believe, Rory was a good mother. Despite the fact she regrets all of her actions both in the raider/merc war and her mercenary activities. She sees that having a family and raising her kids right as a chance to make up for her violation of her mother's 'thou shall not kill rule'. Rory doesn't want any of her kids to become mercenaries or soldiers. She regrets being a merc and tries to prevent them from going to the same path she did. Both Rory and her husband lied and said that Rory was a soldier when in fact she was a private contractor. She wants them to live happy and peaceful lives. Rory was doing jobs, involving one where she to protect a caravan from a raider group stealing from the caravan that came by. This comes back to haunt her tho as her husband won a poker game, and one of his opponent was a raider. Eventually, the raiders found that the husband is married to Rory, so they kidnap her family and then killed them, sending Rory on a rampage to kill the raiders responsible. This left Rory depressed, devastated, wracked with guilt, self-loathing and despair, and above all else, broken. She fears that the next person she falls in love with will earn the same fate as her deceased husband, son, and daughter. Rory here is meant to be a tragic character. And later on she makes contact with Emroy, he makes her his apostle with the promise that Emroy will assist Rory when necessary. It wasn't as Rory had to do tests and trials for the God of War. Rory at one point does return to Archibald and finds her mother's necklace and with a note inside the case containing the necklace while traveling. The necklace does bring back her memories of her mother, but she is only glad that her mother is dead, in the fact that she doesn't get to see what her daughter has become. To say that her mother would be disappointed and Rory would be a huge understatement and Rory knows it. A depressed, broken, reluctant mercenary with a vengence and a justifiable animosity towards raiders. She hates killing people and is ashamed of her job. Rory hates her job, and deep down she regrets all of her actions. Rory being a mercenary isn't much of a secret. She wants a family and loves them. She saw the job she regrets as a way to support her family financially regardless of whether she's proud of it or not. (She isn't.) Rory tries to have a good relationship with her family, doesn't want her kids to grow up to become either as raiders or as mercenaries like her. She sees having a family as a way of redeeming herself after the war. She's ashamed of her job and lifestyle. And Falmart is a cruel and brutal crapsack world where danger and dealing with raiders is an everyday commonplace. Nobody leaves their house without a firearm or two in case they get attacked, robbed, murdered, or worse. To describe Falmart in a few simple words; brutal, violent, hostile, vast, large, technologically advancing, unforgiving. Resorting to violence is essentially the most common thing in Falmart, especially back in Rory's time where raiders and violence was at a critical point. In Falmart, it's nigh impossible to do anything without violence. War and crime is an everyday commonplace, even after a thousand years after Rory become an apostle, things have not been significantly better. At the time, the concept of therapy didn't really exist, so there hasn't been much support for that. Rory feels like she's destined and doomed to become what she became. The worst part is that she's 100% right. If she was born in a different, much peaceful world or she wouldn't have resort to violence, then the Rory Mercury that's known would have never she would been a completely different person and led a completely different life. Rory wants to find love again and wants to move on from her terrible life and seek a better future, but it's her justified fear of losing that beloved that keeps her. Given her reputation, it's the more reason for her fears to be justified. Raiders don't care and they want to make everybody's life difficult by going personal, they will do so. They steal from those too weak to protect themselves, burn, kidnap, and kill without mercy. Rory hates raiders, and given her reputation, raider gangs are either terrified of her or want to try to kill her. Rory's loyal, snarky, affable, caring, cold, private, professional, strong, tough as nails, an introvert biker, a dangerous combatant in any given situation, but she is anti-hero through and through. If not for a better life, Rory's consistent goal is either money or revenge. Rory's more like in the grey area if we're talking morals and ethics, it's hard to say if she's either good or evil. At one point, Rory took two jobs that took place in the same location: The first is to take out a raider gang it's been harassing a city, and the second job to is collect an artifact located same city, and give it to her client. To Rory's convenience, the raiders have the aforementioned artifact in their hideout not far from the city. As it turns out the artifact was relevant to another job from the client; to grab a sacred charm locket. Rory initially refused, given her knowledge with the fallen god, Rory knows that this can't be good, she hesitated. But, didn't have much choice as her boss at the time told her to complete the job. Rory doesn't trust the client, as it turned out that the raiders were paid to protect the artifact. She only did the job for money and her boss told her to. She approaches the locket, but before she could take it, the client took it from her. See, the client wanted Rory to do the dirty work of taking care of the temple guards to get the locket, because the locket belonged a dark god called Beelzebub. The client ran away, and Rory would be confronted by an angry god. Seeing her situation, the god gave her a chance to take the locket back from Beelzebub before the clinet gives it to him. In order to do this, Rory would be transported to the Netherverse via a portal by the god. Rory took the chance to redeem herself. (Netherverse is Falmart's version of Hell), and the thing about that place is the more time you spend in the Netherverse, it maddens and corrupts you. But, Rory doesn't seem affected by the Netherverse's corruption at all, which concerns her. The client notes that there is a vengeful darkness within her, which Rory didn't take those words well inside. It worried her even more, given this Netherverse, she couldn't think of another reason why she's not affected by the Netherverse. She fights some demons and the client's lieutenants, sparing one of them. She gets the locket back to the God which he assures her the Rory isn't evil to her core, especially considering that the God knows of Rory's history and why she became a mercenary. It's clear to him that Rory wants to leave the mercenary life and live a life in peace with a man and start a family with them. Rory hates her job and is ashamed that she has kill bad guys (still people in her mind) just to make money or just to survive. War, the merc life, as well as her becoming disconnection since she violated her mother's "thou must not kill" messed her up. Add the fact, that Rory's husband and kids are murdered by raiders. Rory just wants to be left alone mostly. She does start to care for a neurotic Urakha ex-officer called Pavelov. She wants to start a relationship with him, but fears that she will lose him too. Rory and Pavelov becoming affable associates at best, business partners at worst brings her sadness. She wants to love again, however she's so broken she can't accept a marriage as she fears that what happened to Roman (Rory's husband) will be a similar fate that Pavelov will suffer. At least, she finds solace in the fact that they became close friends. Speaking of Maybel, the relationship with Rory falls apart when she found that Rory lied to her in saying that her mother died in the housefire. When in reality her mother was murdered by raiders. Rory did not want to tell her the truth as not only was it messed up for her, she was afraid that it could break her. Rory takes poorly to those who see her as an idol because she doesn't want another "her." The difference from her and those who inspire to be her is that Rory has a valid, albeit understandable and tragic reason to hate raiders. Her 'fans' are doing it they think she's a hero or they see her as someone very cool. Rory does take a minor role in the First Monte-Nepqingese War, if we can call it that. Kagehachi, the Captain of a yet-to-be-named Nepqingese submarine that has been stuck off the coast of Ashika Strait for the untold amount of time. When she first meets him, Rory can tell by the quiet, sometimes broken Saderan that Kagehachi uses that he's not talked to anyone for a very long time. He's spent who-knows-how-long repairing what he can so he could return home to Saparro, which he knows has probably been hit bad in the war, all the while sounding nothing but remorseful for the orders he followed in launching his missile at Montongaue's ships. He actually says that if he makes it to Sapparo, Nepqing he will build a house and hopefully reunite with his family, provided they're still around or at least lay down and die in his homeland. Rory helps him achieve this by getting him the fuel coils he needs to keep his ship from exploding when he starts it. Only for Captain Kagehachi to say that his crew's still there, and feral. That he can't bring himself to do the deed himself, as they are the only family he has left, a family that must die so he can finally make the trip back. (the former crewman have families at home in Nepqing, too. Killing the crewman is one worst things Rory has done, and she wholeheartedly regrets all of it. Kagehachi even called her a murderer, which regrettably admits that she knows. She knows that she can never forgive herself for it. Which is one instance as to why she hates being idolized or regarded as some hero to the public. She's aware of her sins and most of them she regrets.) Kagehachi just trying to talk to Rory Mercury is sad, as he is clearly struggling to remember the language he desperately needs to use to ask for help. Kagehachi does make it home, only for him to find that his home is destroyed and his family is dead, to his and Rory's sadness. He commit seppuku so he can join them, which Rory buries him, and places his sword to his gravestone. In Rory's mind, he deserved that much. Rory regrets killing the crewman as they won't attack Kagehachi because despite becoming feral, they consider Kagehachi as family by comradeship. They had lives outside of the submarine and had families. Rory hesitated and closed her eyes as she did it. Rory doesn't want to be a goddess. She has deep mistrust of the gods and goddesses. Emroy  (Dragovich to a small extent if it applies to Urakh. Dragovich despite being a god of ice, is a patriot to his country.) are the only Gods/Goddesses Rory has any trust, tolerance or respect for. Emroy because he is the God of War and both him and Rory have much in common especially since Emroy grew to hate his job. They were both mercenaries (before Emroy turned into a God) and has a special hatred towards raiders. Emroy is sympathetic to Rory, understanding her past. He deems raiders dishonorable and is willing to assist Rory if need be. Even though Rory, by her own words, doesn't have a much of a heart or pure soul anymore.

Rory Mercury's life has been filled with tragedy and loss. She has endured the murder of her parents and her neighbors, losing her home and town as well as becoming homeless, and having to work to survive. Her life changed when she reluctantly joined a group of mercenaries, and after a mercenary war against a raider gang, she became disillusioned with her job and self-loathing, but continued doing it for the sake of a better future for her.Rory eventually fell in love, got married, and had three children. However, the happiness she found was short-lived as her family was kidnapped and killed by raiders who found out about her mercenary background. This event sent her into a deep depression and caused her to loathe herself even more for her actions. She fears falling in love again, fearing the same fate for her loved ones.Despite her regret and guilt, Rory is a good mother and wants her children to live peaceful and happy lives. She tries to prevent them from becoming mercenaries just like her. When she finds her mother's necklace later on after said mercenary war, she is reminded of her mother's love and good memories of each other, but also of her possible disappointment in what Rory has become. Rory's life story is one of tragedy, loss, regret, and self-loathing. She hates her job as a mercenary but sees it as a way to support her family and herself. Rory tries to have a good relationship with her loved ones, but her past always seems to catch up with her.

Rory is a biker, and riding her motorcycle, while it doesn't absolve her self-loathing, despair, and guilt, riding brings some peace into her desolate mind.