Nickname:
Ves - A simple cut off of his name that people say as its quicker and easier. It started when the local tradesmen Evan called him that in order to attempt and establish a sense of familiarity and friendship. A nickname almost everyone uses now.
Bloodhound - A compliment, a insult. and a threat wrapped into one. The militia gave him that name when he chased down and aided in the capture of a man and his family as they were trying to escape to another settlement. "Like a bloodhound" At the time, it was probably a compliment meaning that someone would never be able to run far enough, but now when it is said, it is with more of a mocking tone as they emphasize the 'hound' implying he is merely the Militia's dog. The poor and abused see the name as a threat and a leash. No matter how hard or how fast they run, no one can out run the Hound.
Age: 36
Gender: M
Role: Hugh Jackman - Tracker
Appearance: Ves has short ruddy brown hair that his daughter has been cutting for him as he refuses to pay the 'barbers' that are around to do his hair as its a waste of money, so his hair tends to be wild and unruly. He always has some kinda of beard on his chin rather its merely a 6 o'clock shadow or a full grown beard as he does not get enough down time to shave everyday, and even when he does, his 'shaving' is dragging his wet knife across his chin which really is never a pleasant experience, so its understandable that he would skip this when he can. Ves has wide shoulders and a thin waist. His hands are big and his fingers are wide from having been broken a few times, and the callouses alone are hard enough to stop a spider mid-bite. His skin is tan and leather from prolonged exposure to the sun as he will be out in the wild for days at a time, not exactly shade central at times. His hazel eyes are sharp and always watching for signs or tracks, or even more often, signs of trouble. His nose is a thin one lacking any of the ridges associated with nose breakage because that is something he has not broken! His hazel eyes almost always have bags under them as he never seems to get enough sleep. Ever. He has deep 'laugh' lines etched into his face, but he finds that he laughs less and less these days.
Personality: Every person needs a purpose, a reason for getting up in the morning, or life becomes meaningless. Ves's purpose is his daughter. His daughter has become the very center of his world and, perhaps even, the core of his obsession. If he loses her, what would he have left in this world? Such thoughts terrify him and keep him awake late into the night, and it is because of such thoughts that Ves is willing to do anything to ensure her safety, ensure she does not go to bed hungry... life before he came to New Haven is all a haze, a dream. The world now is all that matters, and the world is cruel. Ves is not allowed to be selfish anymore, he is not allowed to think only of himself, or even of himself at all. Every time he goes to move he has to think of the consequences. Of course he does not like the Militia and what they do. They rape women, women who had a father who once looked at them like Ves looks at Emily. How could he like such people? People who defile the ground with every step they walk? But he needs them. Emily is too young to be able to travel with Ves to another settlement far away from this place, and helping the militia ensures she stays fed and safe... even from them.
It would be a lie to say some part of Ves does not enjoy the hunt. The thrill of tracking something, or someone, through the wilderness. Rummaging through the trash, droppings, and tracks to find them; pondering on what they were doing at the time. Where are they going? What kind of people are they? It is... an interesting feeling. He knows where they will end up however, those he catches. In the Pitt... a powerful symbol of terror that the Militia use like a club. Ves has seen it before from the outside, it is much like a great beast waiting to devour the souls of whoever enter. People in there become a shell of what they used to be, and it would be better if the were given the mercy of a swift death, but he keeps his mouth shut. Blabbing on about idealism saves no one. It only condemns them. Honor, fairness... such things Ves holds close to his heart and teaches his daughter do not exist in New Haven. Those who try to be good and kind end up raped, dead, or in the Pitt. People say it is their fault for getting raped or murdered, they should have been strong enough to defend themselves, but to Ves, it just sounds like an excuse to rationalize the crimes they have committed.
Catching families that just want to find a better life and watching them get thrown into the pit as kids hold on to their mothers and cry... chasing down some teenage boy who killed the militia man who raped his sister and watching them torture him, taunt him, and then kill him leaving his body out in the middle of the wasteland... all the crimes and sins he had committed or watched by committed, and he can sleep without nightmares thanks to the one thing that keeps him going. He is protecting his daughter from this world... it is the small candle inside his soul that keep him going. What lets him wake up and get out of bed in the morning... the drive that allows him to take another step even when he knows the next step is going to be darker and crueler then the last. All of his hope and anger he hides behind a thin shell. The militia will not hesitate to use anything against you, so you cannot allow them to find anything. Survival depends on how well you can play your part.
Role: Militia Tracker
Likes:
- The Outdoors
- His daughter
- What little friends he has
- Sunsets
- Eating dinner his daughter attempts to cook for him
- Humming
- Dancing with his daughter
- Planning his eventual escape
- Watching the Militia's poor attempts at true hunting.
Dislikes:
- Idealist who endanger his daughter
- Rapist hates them more then murderers
- Any little boy that looks at his daughter
- Child-molesters
- Being used as a dog
- Seeing people treated like animals
- New Haven
- Peoples self-pity
- The Militia
Weapon of choice: While he has a Remington 700 (Hunting Rifle) he only has 4 bullets left as they are rare and extremely expensive, so instead, his weapon of choice is a KA-BAR knife, there isn't a problem in the world that can't be solved by a knife.
History: Ves was born in a very small settlement of roughly 20 people. It was in a very small town that was on the brink of collapse as many of the smaller buildings had all their support structure eaten away by the elements and insects. The only reason the town was even still running was due to being a trade post. Caravans and traders would pass through the town to rest and trade their wares before heading on to New Haven, so everyone in the town needed something to trade back in order to survive, in order to keep things moving, and the answer was hunting. The town did not have mines in which to get rare and valuable material nor any great scrapyards or factories in which could be scavenged, so they looked outside their town, and found an abundance of wild animals... animals that could be hunted and killed for their meat, fur, and leathers. Hunting was always dangerous though as there were various animals that could very well eat you such as wolves, mountain lions, and the dreaded brown bear.
Vesper's father Andrew had an old hunting rifle that had been passed down father to son for generations, it was their family treasure, and advantage over the other families in the town who had to use traps while the Norton family could use traps as well as hunt them down. Hunting had been a proud tradition of the Norton family for years, and it was this legacy that Vesper followed into since he could walk. He was imparted with all the knowledge of generations of hunters learning how to track an animal across miles of forest and plains, learning how to watch the habits of animals so as to better hunt them, how to set up elaborate traps using sticks, dirt, and small amounts of rope, what plants are edible, what plants will sooth pain, what plants will help bind wounds, and what plants would kill you. In this way, his childhood passed in what seemed like a blur, but it was a good one. He rarely went to bed hungry, and everyone was moderately happy, you always had problems of course. Like how Hectors wife kept cheating on him with the neighbor's son, but such things were just normal to him that was until he was 17 and everything started to change.
It was then that she came. The most beautiful woman he had ever seen, and the one he fell in love with the second he saw her: Alice. She was so soft-spoken, so... exotic. Unlike anything he had ever seen, sure they had visitors but none like her. It was later after he had invited her to eat with him and his family that he learned she was a runaway from New Haven, and she wasn't the first one either. They would sometimes get runaways, and it wouldn't take long for the Militia to come snooping by as this was one of the closest nearby towns, so the most likely stop for a runaway. In most cases they were handed over by the townspeople who wanted to avoid any problems, but Ves refused to hand over someone so beautiful and precious to those men, and so he begged that his father help him hide her, help him keep her safe, and his father relented for how could he say no to his son who just wanted to protect the woman he was infatuated with?
Due to the small size of the town, everyone was fairly close, and so they all agreed they would hide her, and when the militia came, they all told them the same story: they never saw anyone. The militia had no reason not to believe the people who had always been so docile and helpful before, and so they continued on in their search. Alice was safe... and Ves spent the next three years showing her the town, the forest, all of his home. She was older then him by almost six years, but he loved her all the same, and through his continual effort, he manged to slowly win her love. Tugging at her heart strings one by one until it fell for him. They spent five years together in the town as a 'married' family, and it was one of the happiest times of Vesper's life... but Alice's mind continued to haunt and plague her, making her awake and scream at night. Until one night, she finally told him why she was so distressed every night. She had left her younger sister in New Haven when she had fled... she had tried to forget about her, but no matter how hard she tried, she could not... She had to go back and save her. No matter what, and Ves tried to tell her it was foolish, he cannot even remember how long he had spent trying to tell her it was a stupid thing to do... but finally, he agreed to come with. If they got Alice's sister out of wherever she was, Ves was more then sure he could get them away from the Militia 'hunters' who had laughable skill when it came to true hunting.
It was a long journey because Alice seemed to come down with a sickness, puking her stomach out and being nauseous the entire time, and it wasn't until they reached New Haven that she told him the truth: She was pregnant. She had not known when they left, but now it caused so many problems. They could not hope to outrun the Militia with a pregnant woman who was already starting to show the signs. What could they do? It came as a blow when they discovered that her sister had died years ago in the Pitt... and it sent Alice into a deep depression. They decided to name the baby Andrew if it was a boy after Vesper's father, or Emily in honor of Alice's sister. The birth was... hard, made worse by Alice's mental state, and the childbirth cost her, her life, but the baby did survive. A baby girl. Keeping his word, Vesper named the child Emily...
He was lost for awhile after his wife died. What was he supposed to do now? For the last 9 years, his wife had been everything to him... and now she was gone. He had a large void in his heart that couldn't seem to be filled that was... couldn't be filled until the first time Emily looked at him and smiled, and finally, he understood, she was now his purpose.. But life is difficult, the Militia attempted to harass him and numerous occasions, and the first few times he fought back breaking one Militiaman's collar bone, and snapping another's right hand pointer and middle fingers, but he was beaten... and tortured before being released back into the populace, and example to the others. He started to hunt the nearby forest in order to bring in money for himself and his daughter, and the Militia learned of it... as they learn of everything. It came to him in some surprise, when he found out they did not want to beat him, but to use his skills.... to hunt down other people like animals, and they came to an agreement. The Militia would not harass or come near himself or his daughter, and he would hunt whoever they wanted.
As the years passed, Ves has caught many runaways... so many he does even remember faces, but in his free time he hunts for money and food, and has started taking Emily out with him on small hunts, starting to teach her all the things his father taught him because she would need to know this when they escaped... and if he was killed, she would need to know it to survive herself, but he will not allow anything to hurt her. For there is no safe place on this world from Vespar. He would hunt you, he would find you, and he would kill you.
Theme Song(s):
Beyond Freedom: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkg_afnKEnM
Other: Ves has a ten year old daughter named Emily Norton.