Lord Cassius

Cassius von Holt is an elven noble and mercenary. He is the eldest son of Count Maximilian von Holt



Basics
Age: 80 Gender: Male Race/Nationality: Takaran Elf

Appearance
Cassius is a lithe and sinewy individual who is a could degree stronger than he looks, owing to his elven ethnicity. He stands at exactly 187 centimetres, and is about 72.5 kg. His hair is a pedigree blonde; perfect enough to make Hitler beam with pride, as he undoubtedly would over Cassius deep blue eyes. His skin tone is acceptably tan for an elf, but paler than your average human's, again owing to his elven heritage. He often keeps his hair in a slicked back way, with some feathering out from his slight widow's peak, which is fairly stereotypical considering his personality and general attitude to life. His wardrobe is diverse and expensive--but he ignores it if he's not in Court. His main attire is composed of comfortably worn, previously course shirt over a silkier undershirt and a cloak or cape. There is always a collar. Colours include lots of red, white, brown, and black, and not a lot else. His boots are a lower cut than a pair of jackboots, but the tough, dark brown leather is higher up the calf than your commoners’ shoes.

Personality
While most would view Cassius as a base, callous person with little regard to morals and grandiose schemes and ambitions, he has not forgotten the grace and honour that his race is naturally imbued with. Actually, he'll never EVER fail to remind you that he is better than you. He is cultured (per se) and learned, and can be deceptively well mannered if he wants to be. He doesn't often want to be. This doesn't mean that he holds mercy or kindness in any large degree though, and would have no qualms with running a former colleague through the back if they turn traitor. The best way to describe Cassius though, is by noting his larger-than-life attitude and sometimes rather maniacal behaviour. Whether it be everyday actions, or in the midst of battle, Cassius has a demanding presence and a flare for the theatrical. One thing that does tend to humanize Cassius though, is his love for art. And it doesn't matter what art it is. Singing, painting, magical feats, archery, poetry, and dancing are all of worth to him, as is nature, which art is often inspired by, despite his apparent lack of regard for other such "trivial" things. And despite his otherwise crass and holier-than-thou demeanour, he has no problem showing this off. He actually flaunts it to a degree, and can't resist putting on a show, whether wanted or not. And by no means will Cassius hold back from speaking his mind, even if it is touches on some things others may regard as taboo. He sees a hot girl, he'll call it. He thinks the Captain-General is being a moron, he'll say it. The King of a powerful foreign power has their fly open and it's driving him crazy? Well, he'd probably restrain himself out of tact and honour, but he sure would consider it.

Biography
Being of the elven race present in Takara, 82 years puts Cassius as a young person. If likened to a human life scale, you might liken him to someone in their mid-twenties. He was raised as a companion to the Takaran Empire's prince, who is now the Lord-Emperor. Though not of noble birth himself, this fact of his upbringing makes it seems as if he is indeed of royal lineage. Until he was about 60 he was in constant attendance with the prince, and was more than a mere servant (though, in all honesty that's technically what he was). He was also a page, and the closest friend the young prince had. The prince himself--as well as the royal family overall--had been kind to the Holt's, and after over 100 years of service to the Emperor, Cassius's father had been dismissed from his official position of "servant" and been given a very small lordship, making the Holt's the von Holt's.

Cassius, overall, has had a roller-coaster childhood. He was only 11 when his mother kicked the bucket from a disease that started making itself evident at the time his sister was born and turned aggressive. So he was raised by his father and family servant (oh the irony) for the duration of his childhood. His father, Maximillion von Holt was a very harsh, stern person, who was good at what he did but tolerated little within his own fold. So while Cassius was raised with a strong regard for discipline and order--and can appreciate it well enough--he's prone to rebel at times. Then again, you probably would too if your father's idea of a hard punishment was actually holding your left hand in an open flame, then healing only the skin, muscles, and the bare minimum of nerves to prevent crippling the appendage so you're left with nothing but the pain. Lloyd Elbe was the more compassionate father figure in Cassius' life, but Cassius never really jumped on that bandwagon as Serenity did. Lloyd has always been his first and foremost--and most taken for granted--servant to Cassius.

The brighter times in his childhood came from his intensive sword-training with a katana, and what praise he received for being a magical prodigy even amongst the elves. It wasn't that he was especially powerful amongst other mages, but Cassius was adept at exploiting shortcuts, and could devise relatively simple, quick spells to accomplish tasks normally taking precious minutes in a duel. In other words, "a natural." Too bad this would later spoil him, since military tactics and politics rarely allow for the same shortcuts you can take with a spell, and his impatience makes it difficult for him to sit down and really think for hours at a time. Is he capable? Yes, and he had to do so for a long time.

By the time he was in 40s, Cassius was tired of being the occasionally crude, but mostly embittered and studious Lordling son, and took off from the family estate. His father accepted it, and said he could come back as often as he wanted, as long as he didn't make a habit of coming back merely to fill his personal coffers--he'd have to make his own living. So Cassius drifted about the Takaran Imperial Army as a low-ranking commander settling squabbles and disputes within the Empire before setting out to sea with the universally known elven trade patrols, actually helping people who met tragedy along the trade routes on the Milky Sea. Pirates, navies, feuding merchant guilds, he's seen all those things. Perhaps that's why he overcame his distaste with the human species overall and founded the Mobius Legion in time for his 80th birthday. The wax seals hadn't even cooled on the charter when he was hired by Viscount Xen and asked to move to Azulae.