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TLV Application - Warden Edition
Sep. 25th, 2025 04:09 pmUser Name/Nick: Alex
User DW: N/A
Plurk & Discord:![[plurk.com profile]](https://plurk.com/favicon.ico)
aleeeeeeex & alexceptionally
Other Characters Currently In-Game: Maelle from Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
Character Name: Kylar Stern (No real name, lot's of aliases. Kylar's his preferred name)
Series: Night Angel trilogy & The Kylar Chronicles (Night Angel: Nemesis (book one))
Age: 21-22ish
From When?: Before he heals during his fight with Grand Master Vitruvius (Chapter 53)
Warden Justification:
Each time you fight, you add a little burden, a moment of fear or a regret, exhaustion or disgust or surprise or elation.
Thus in every battle, you carry every battle you've ever fought.
About ten years ago, Kylar graduated as an Inmate on the Barge. He’s seen what this place can do and he understands what it’s supposed to be for. He had a brief stint as a Warden but (life happened!) he never finished what he started.
So this is him trying again! Canonically, he does not believe in second chances or that the bad can become good. However, I’m pulling what he learned from his previous Barge experience to say he’s grasped that sometimes the Admiral knows best and he previously has accepted that, albeit begrudgingly and with no small number of reservations.
Kylar is a trained killer, a wetboy. He spent half of his life learning how to fight and kill, his whole life in a kill or be killed state. He was taught not to love others, keep away from relationships (he is unworthy of them), check a door three times for traps, always plan an exit as well as a plan for when that fails and murder before the deader can speak. He has a heightened paranoia, the deepest pit of self-loathing and guilt and a tendency to ruin lives and even the world. But don’t worry because this guy has figured out morals. 🎉
Where at one point he took coin for wetwork, he is now more a vigilante for the High King than hired killer. He refuses to take innocent life even if taking one might save more; he can’t bring himself to do it. On the flip side, he is compelled as if by nature to stop those who are guilty, either through murder or brutally cutting off every appendage so they can’t harm others again. It’s a give and take.
I am supposed to be a light in the darkest night, hope for the despairing, and despair to those who crush hope.
He also knows adamantly what it’s like to want to be better, do better but be stuck being the necessary evil to keep the world safer from the true evils. He’s learned to embody the image of the “bad guy” and relishes in the consequences of his actions when they come for him. He wants punishment and the fact he’s gotten away with his actions for so long troubles him deeply. In other words, Kylar brings relatability for thieves, murderers, cut throats and those from cruel and uncaring worlds and circumstances. He understands how nurture (or lack thereof) can corrupt nature while hatred for yourself is the only punishment that can be given.
Kylar isn’t the most patient individual, he rushes and it often costs him. He works only in extremes. But he’s stubborn and he’s persistent. When his mind is settled onto something, nothing can change its course. He’s perfectly capable of assisting an Inmate through sheer stubbornness and if he likes them enough he’d kill for them, if he thought the action just. He’d stick by them through thick and thin. He's the kind of guy to self-sacrifice if it meant benefitting others in the long run, and that would be especially true for an inmate he cares for. On the surface, he’s a down to earth, relaxed, charismatic and honest liar. He's great to have on your side.
Item: The ka’kari!
Abilities/Powers:
This is why I carry too many knives: There’s no such thing as too many knives.
Kylar is a Night Angel, a ka’karifier, holder of the black ka’kari, the judge, and immortal.
Kylar is a trained killer, or wetboy which is basically an assassin with magic (A.K.A. Talent). His name Kylar actually means to kill and be killed.
He is most skilled with daggers and swords, but he’s trained with every weapon imaginable (although he’s awful with a crossbow). Even in hand to hand combat he can kill a man quickly without even blinking an eye and never with hesitation. He is knowledgeable with herbs and poisons, understanding dosages that border a cure and death. He’s cautious to a paranoid point, capable of waking up and scanning his surroundings for traps, escape methods, and potential weapons in an instant, as well as how to use his surroundings to his advantage in a fight. He can pick locks and setup and disarm traps. He might be called a master of the shadows, but he’s a bit of a cheater.
Kylar’s Talent or magic ability is immense, he doesn’t even fully understand it and he is far from grasping its full potential. With Talent in mind, he can become completely invisible both to the mundane and to magical sight, alter his face, even his body’s bone structure (though it hurts like hell and takes a lot of time), create illusions, and see in the dark. Punch with the strength of ten men and leap and run ridiculous distances. He can shroud himself or objects with barriers that prevent sound from traveling; silencing his every movement. He can block smells from reaching him or reaching others. And he can see and recognize magic from a distance as well as heal at an incredible rate (a broken bone fixed in minutes, a lethal poison in a few days, etc.).
With the black ka’kari, also known as the Devourer or Sustainer, his Talent increases and his potential expands. As a ka’karifier, Kylar needed the black ka’kari to tap his Talent. Although now that he has bonded with it, he can be a large distance from it and still wield his Talent. Previously he had the Talent, a deep glore vyrden (think magical reservoir) but no way to tap into it. The black ka’kari created a bridge, allowing him to use his Talent. Having bonded with the Sustainer, Kylar is immortal. Not invincible. In the series he can still die, but within about two days he comes back to life, though at the cost of a loved one’s life. He is also known as the Judge, bringing the ka’kari to his eyes and judging those he sees. Sometimes he does this on purpose, making a show of it with blue fire for eyes and distorting his features to intimidate his deader. Other times, it’s by complete accident. He can tell when someone is good or evil to their very core, how many innocents they’ve killed or saved. All their bad deeds and good he can look upon, understanding them instantly or seeing them vividly to understand more than the glance given. But once he judges someone, should he find them guilty, he feels compelled to rid the world of them. Simultaneously, if he finds them innocent, he could never bring himself to kill them, no matter the circumstance. Previously on the Barge he only used his Judge ability once when he assumed a close friend had betrayed him (they did not and he let them live, he's so kind and caring!). In that instance OOC permission was given and that's a tactic I'd continue when bringing him in this time for this rather boundary breaking ability.
The Devourer gets its name for a reason, it devours things when it isn’t Sustaining them (it really just sustains Kylar’s life, you could say). It’s also the ka’kari known for its ability to conceal itself. It holds no particular shape and Kylar can make it cover his entire body like armor, shape it as a sword, webbing or wings to glide with, a hand, or distort his features into a fearsome creature. The only issue is, it eats away everything but the person its bonded with; clothes, and weapons included, unless they possess a magical quality and are of high make. It can also eat and absorb magic and magical items, giving Kylar the energy instead. If he coats his body with it, it becomes not only armor but a weapon in and of itself. He can use it as claws and scale slick polished stone walls. Perhaps the only set back is the occasional berating and sage advice the ka’kari decides to share with Kylar. Yes, it talks, but only in his head, of course. The ka'kari, I should mention, also has a mind of its own. It sometimes ignores Kylar's requests to act or at other times, protects him in ways he didn't know it could. The ka'kari only allows abilities that it thinks Kylar is worthy of. If Kylar breaks that trust, he risks losing his bond to the ka'kari and the abilities that come with it. An example of that broken trust is allowing a loved one to die when they could have been saved. Murdering an innocent does not appear to be on the list of no nos. While his predecessor lost his bond to the ka'kari for allowing a loved one's death, Kylar has actively killed innocents while bonded with no repercussions.
Last to note, Kylar is, in fact, missing his right forearm. He cut it off himself! He uses the ka’kari as a sort of prosthetic most of the time, though in Nemesis it is unclear if he’s still doing this or not as the majority of descriptions regard his left hand but avoid mentioning his right at all unless he is turning it into a blade (I guess think of it like megaman). It's like the author didn’t feel like explaining the arm loss or, more likely, since the book is Kylar's POV, Kylar doesn't want the weakness exploited and known so he doesn't talk about it. If he is without the ka’kari for whatever reason, he would be also out of a right arm.
Wardening Strategies and Philosophies:
How will your character respond to and operate on the Barge at large?
Kylar has been on the Barge before, though the majority of that time was as an Inmate. He knows it’s weird. It isn’t always fair. And he is very aware that there are hiccups that have terrible consequences (mirror Barge was a wild ride). He won’t be bothered much by it and on the surface level he will take everything in stride with only the smallest hint of endearing sarcasm.
How will they view their role as warden, and how will they engage their inmate in their efforts to help them on their path to redemption?
Being an Inmate wasn’t really a redemption for Kylar, but being a Warden is. His alternative to a deal is a planned slow and very painful suicide which he is adamant is the only thing he deserves despite the consequences it might bring if his calculations are wrong.
Kylar is charismatic and easy going. He knows he can’t push anyone to do something they don’t want to and he knows respect and equal footing are the best ways to get some form of rapport going between the two roles based on his own experience. He’s going to be the “wait and watch while invisible” type. The “double cross me, I dare you” type. The “come have a drink with me on a bad day” type. And the, “let’s bond over what the weight of the world feels like” type. He doesn’t mind talking, and he loves his analogies and metaphors. He’s going to be willing to put himself down to whatever level the Inmate needs if it helps them get a little bit higher. He can’t really provide any answers, but he can at least be a mutually frustrated at the system kind of friend to banter with.
What are their wardening strengths and weaknesses likely to be?
“I knew this kid, small kid, nothing to look at. Someone picked on him once, and he flew at the guy like he’d lost his mind.”
“Did the little kid win?”
“He got destroyed. But no one picked on that little kid again, because he approached every harassment as if his life depended on winning. There are no rules in a fight with him. He didn’t care how badly he got hurt. He would win.”
Kylar is an honest liar. He’s manipulative and a control freak. He never shows what’s up his sleeve unless he knows he has full control of what’s seen and understood. He’s extremely good at reading people, yet terrible at acting on it. From his own training as a wetboy, he's extremely insightful and knows how to get into someone’s head and try to think as they do in an effort to predict their moves and actions. He’s not always amazing at it, but it’s saved his ass before. He has no problem lying to someone’s face or manipulating them if he thinks it’s for the best or their benefit in the long run. Regardless of tactic, he’s always going to try to do what’s “right” within that pesky moral compass of his. He is fine with breaking eggs to make the cake. This can be both a weakness or a strength because lying and manipulating can always backfire and it’s backfired against him before (Elene finding out her good, pious life was built on his blood money).
He’s also a fantastic stalker. He can go invisible both to mundane and magical sight (not both at the same time) and has a tendency to walk on ceilings and drop from them if they act as a decent hiding spot. He has the physical strength and magical ability to subdue some of the more violent types (but he’s no Hercules). He knows pressure points, he knows his poisons, he knows how much blood loss a body can withstand before it's too much and, naturally, how to knock someone out without killing them. He’s a capable healer (poisons and cures are two sides of one coin) and not the worst at talking his way out of trouble. On the outside, he just looks like a short kid with a slight build. He doesn’t look like he belongs in his profession and he knows how to use his appearance and the underestimation it brings to his advantage.
But as mentioned, he can be impatient. He rushes into things, he makes assumptions, yet simultaneously hesitates when decisions can’t wait. This could easily backfire if an Inmate acts out and he’s left deciding consequences.
Kylar would be a good fit for inmates that are trying to get out of impossible situations. A corrupt world that won’t leave them be, a family business they can’t escape from, a debt they have to pay with their life. He’s from similar situations and one of the largest things holding him back during his own Inmate time was how to translate the “safety” of the Barge to the unsafe conditions of his homeworld. Somehow, he figured it out. Hence, moral compass.
He’d be fine with murderers and violent types and he’s used to fighting opponents far stronger and skilled than himself with every day being life or death. He also enjoys his usual work of murder and violence. He revels in it! It’s enjoyable to him and he knows he’s good at it. So he will absolutely enjoy the spontaneity from the mundane that a violent inmate could provide!
He’s also dealt and dealing with his own chasm of self-loathing, guilt and self-destruction. Although he’s being pulled halfway through the book, suicide is constantly on his mind with each of his failures. He’s been there, he is there. He gets it. No tactic he knows of is gonna help get out of that chasm, but he’s here for you, Inmate buddy. Or at least when his own self-loathing isn’t busy crushing him.
Lastly, Kylar does not do well with betrayals. He is fiercely loyal once that loyalty is earned and the Inmate will have to earn it just like he has to earn his Inmate’s trust (but will consistently argue he shouldn’t be trusted). But betrayals? Betrayals are paid with blood and it’s not a logic he’s ever shaken. An Inmate who lies to him is fine, an Inmate who betrays him or puts loved ones in danger is going to put him in a moral conundrum neither will likely walk away from unscathed.
He won’t mind if an Inmate insists they are a terrible person because he is too, but he will absolutely mind if they try to act out just for the sake of proving it. He won’t be able to handle those outbursts without potentially taking it too far.
Admittedly, Kylar is a fine line walking Warden that could easily topple over back into Inmate land, but with a good pairing he should probably be fine. He knows how to keep his head down and out of Bargolitics when needed and he knows the rules around here well enough to know where the boundaries are and how to break them. If Kylar ever fell back into Inmate territory, it would be because he is making a conscious effort to do so.
Deal: Save his best friend's twins. (one of which is actually his son but it's complicated, don't ask - he also has no idea that this is the case)
History: Wikia Link
The wiki has yet to be updated for Night Angel: Nemesis so here it is in note form!
All of this is based on what Kylar says in first person and he is absolutely an unreliable narrator. The events and his actions are intended to be questioned and taken with a grain of salt and there are constant contradictions between what he narrates and the ka’kari frequently correcting and contradicting him (the ka’kari is recording everything for him).
🗡️ Kylar kills Trudana Jadwin as final *revenge*
🗡️ Does not kill a child that’s about to be rushed by soldiers chasing him post-murder. By not killing the kid he has now triggered the end of the world!
🗡️ Returns home to Elenea, Momma K asks him to do a job, he declines
🗡️ Momma K brought Dorian the prophet for a chat. Dorian tells Kylar he’s triggered the end of the world.
🗡️ Momma K on trial for the murder Kylar committed. Kylar attends trial expecting to be executed, but King Logan instead lies to the public saying the murder was planned and he gave the order
🗡️ Lord Repha’im who was hiding Trudana OFFENDED the trial didn’t go his way (wanted Momma K or Kylar dead)
🗡️ Logan asks Kylar to babysit his twin sons while he makes nice with another country on Elenea borders, Kylar agrees. Logan’s wife Jenine H A T E S this and is positive Kylar will fuck it up
🗡️ Kylar fucks it up.
🗡️ Twins kidnapped, Kylar poisoned thanks to wine given to him by Vi - Repha’im did it!
🗡️ Kylar set out to steal something from the Chantry (Chantry and Kylar at odds, this is bad) and he has to have a partner to do it
🗡️ Item to steal is a magic compass that points in the direction of a person you want to see: Twilight Compass (Nemesis compass!)
🗡️ Meets up with Phaena (partner), they have to steal a bracelet as a form of invitation to a party from 1 of 3 important and dangerous invitees. One is Grandmaster Vitruvius of the Blue Mages.
🗡️ Kylar fucks it up.
🗡️ They have to speed run to the party with no invitation bracelet
🗡️ Kylar and Phaena make it to Stormfast ~2 days before the party and still need to find a bracelet
🗡️ Kylar gets a bracelet by torturing a noble to death
🗡️ On the way to the party, Vi shoves herself into their carriage explaining Kylar's bracelet was reported stolen (tortured noble actually stole it from someone else) so it won't work but Vi has her own to get them all in
🗡️ Vi explains High King Logan is also at the party and so is the Chantry (bad news) and the Blue Mages (bad bad news)
🗡️ Kylar spends the entire party not doing what he's told and making things mostly worse
🗡️ Kylar sees Phaena and Lord Repha'im talking, assumes Phaena might be a double agent. Also assumes the twins are at the party somewhere
🗡️ One of the twins at the party. Repha'im now dubbed King. Also is not human. Great!
🗡️ Kylar tries to get on a ship that has Repha'im, one of the twins, and the Chantry.
🗡️ Kylar fucks it up.
🗡️ Fights Blue Mage Grandmaster. Breaks a couple ribs, a shoulder, the usual. Chats to kill time so he can heal aaaaaaaand gets back on the Barge.
Sample Network Entry & Sample RP: A singular thread, eep. I will admit, it is not much! Do let me know if more is needed, I can probably attack someone else (/affectionately) and scrounge up another thread with some time.
Special Notes: So Kylar was around while posts were still on journals. I have all of his old stuff, probably could dig up more. But for the sake of decade old brainwidth, I’m going to say that some things (strong friendships (Vin, Jimmy, Kara, Abigail, Tucky, Boyd, (the list is massive) etc.) or impactful events (mirror barge, that time he got away with murdering a lot of people at port and his warden had no idea…, Kara’s birthday, graduating, etc.) will be vivid memories, while others will be very, very hazy at best. This is purely to cover my own ass. c: It’s been 10 years, I’m doing my best.
THAT SAID, he is still in all of the communities. There was a running joke back in the day that I always end up coming back with him so mods never removed him. I guess that's still the case lmao.
User DW: N/A
Plurk & Discord:
Other Characters Currently In-Game: Maelle from Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
Character Name: Kylar Stern (No real name, lot's of aliases. Kylar's his preferred name)
Series: Night Angel trilogy & The Kylar Chronicles (Night Angel: Nemesis (book one))
Age: 21-22ish
From When?: Before he heals during his fight with Grand Master Vitruvius (Chapter 53)
Warden Justification:
Thus in every battle, you carry every battle you've ever fought.
About ten years ago, Kylar graduated as an Inmate on the Barge. He’s seen what this place can do and he understands what it’s supposed to be for. He had a brief stint as a Warden but (life happened!) he never finished what he started.
So this is him trying again! Canonically, he does not believe in second chances or that the bad can become good. However, I’m pulling what he learned from his previous Barge experience to say he’s grasped that sometimes the Admiral knows best and he previously has accepted that, albeit begrudgingly and with no small number of reservations.
Kylar is a trained killer, a wetboy. He spent half of his life learning how to fight and kill, his whole life in a kill or be killed state. He was taught not to love others, keep away from relationships (he is unworthy of them), check a door three times for traps, always plan an exit as well as a plan for when that fails and murder before the deader can speak. He has a heightened paranoia, the deepest pit of self-loathing and guilt and a tendency to ruin lives and even the world. But don’t worry because this guy has figured out morals. 🎉
Where at one point he took coin for wetwork, he is now more a vigilante for the High King than hired killer. He refuses to take innocent life even if taking one might save more; he can’t bring himself to do it. On the flip side, he is compelled as if by nature to stop those who are guilty, either through murder or brutally cutting off every appendage so they can’t harm others again. It’s a give and take.
He also knows adamantly what it’s like to want to be better, do better but be stuck being the necessary evil to keep the world safer from the true evils. He’s learned to embody the image of the “bad guy” and relishes in the consequences of his actions when they come for him. He wants punishment and the fact he’s gotten away with his actions for so long troubles him deeply. In other words, Kylar brings relatability for thieves, murderers, cut throats and those from cruel and uncaring worlds and circumstances. He understands how nurture (or lack thereof) can corrupt nature while hatred for yourself is the only punishment that can be given.
Kylar isn’t the most patient individual, he rushes and it often costs him. He works only in extremes. But he’s stubborn and he’s persistent. When his mind is settled onto something, nothing can change its course. He’s perfectly capable of assisting an Inmate through sheer stubbornness and if he likes them enough he’d kill for them, if he thought the action just. He’d stick by them through thick and thin. He's the kind of guy to self-sacrifice if it meant benefitting others in the long run, and that would be especially true for an inmate he cares for. On the surface, he’s a down to earth, relaxed, charismatic and honest liar. He's great to have on your side.
Item: The ka’kari!
Abilities/Powers:
Kylar is a Night Angel, a ka’karifier, holder of the black ka’kari, the judge, and immortal.
Kylar is a trained killer, or wetboy which is basically an assassin with magic (A.K.A. Talent). His name Kylar actually means to kill and be killed.
He is most skilled with daggers and swords, but he’s trained with every weapon imaginable (although he’s awful with a crossbow). Even in hand to hand combat he can kill a man quickly without even blinking an eye and never with hesitation. He is knowledgeable with herbs and poisons, understanding dosages that border a cure and death. He’s cautious to a paranoid point, capable of waking up and scanning his surroundings for traps, escape methods, and potential weapons in an instant, as well as how to use his surroundings to his advantage in a fight. He can pick locks and setup and disarm traps. He might be called a master of the shadows, but he’s a bit of a cheater.
Kylar’s Talent or magic ability is immense, he doesn’t even fully understand it and he is far from grasping its full potential. With Talent in mind, he can become completely invisible both to the mundane and to magical sight, alter his face, even his body’s bone structure (though it hurts like hell and takes a lot of time), create illusions, and see in the dark. Punch with the strength of ten men and leap and run ridiculous distances. He can shroud himself or objects with barriers that prevent sound from traveling; silencing his every movement. He can block smells from reaching him or reaching others. And he can see and recognize magic from a distance as well as heal at an incredible rate (a broken bone fixed in minutes, a lethal poison in a few days, etc.).
With the black ka’kari, also known as the Devourer or Sustainer, his Talent increases and his potential expands. As a ka’karifier, Kylar needed the black ka’kari to tap his Talent. Although now that he has bonded with it, he can be a large distance from it and still wield his Talent. Previously he had the Talent, a deep glore vyrden (think magical reservoir) but no way to tap into it. The black ka’kari created a bridge, allowing him to use his Talent. Having bonded with the Sustainer, Kylar is immortal. Not invincible. In the series he can still die, but within about two days he comes back to life, though at the cost of a loved one’s life. He is also known as the Judge, bringing the ka’kari to his eyes and judging those he sees. Sometimes he does this on purpose, making a show of it with blue fire for eyes and distorting his features to intimidate his deader. Other times, it’s by complete accident. He can tell when someone is good or evil to their very core, how many innocents they’ve killed or saved. All their bad deeds and good he can look upon, understanding them instantly or seeing them vividly to understand more than the glance given. But once he judges someone, should he find them guilty, he feels compelled to rid the world of them. Simultaneously, if he finds them innocent, he could never bring himself to kill them, no matter the circumstance. Previously on the Barge he only used his Judge ability once when he assumed a close friend had betrayed him (they did not and he let them live, he's so kind and caring!). In that instance OOC permission was given and that's a tactic I'd continue when bringing him in this time for this rather boundary breaking ability.
The Devourer gets its name for a reason, it devours things when it isn’t Sustaining them (it really just sustains Kylar’s life, you could say). It’s also the ka’kari known for its ability to conceal itself. It holds no particular shape and Kylar can make it cover his entire body like armor, shape it as a sword, webbing or wings to glide with, a hand, or distort his features into a fearsome creature. The only issue is, it eats away everything but the person its bonded with; clothes, and weapons included, unless they possess a magical quality and are of high make. It can also eat and absorb magic and magical items, giving Kylar the energy instead. If he coats his body with it, it becomes not only armor but a weapon in and of itself. He can use it as claws and scale slick polished stone walls. Perhaps the only set back is the occasional berating and sage advice the ka’kari decides to share with Kylar. Yes, it talks, but only in his head, of course. The ka'kari, I should mention, also has a mind of its own. It sometimes ignores Kylar's requests to act or at other times, protects him in ways he didn't know it could. The ka'kari only allows abilities that it thinks Kylar is worthy of. If Kylar breaks that trust, he risks losing his bond to the ka'kari and the abilities that come with it. An example of that broken trust is allowing a loved one to die when they could have been saved. Murdering an innocent does not appear to be on the list of no nos. While his predecessor lost his bond to the ka'kari for allowing a loved one's death, Kylar has actively killed innocents while bonded with no repercussions.
Last to note, Kylar is, in fact, missing his right forearm. He cut it off himself! He uses the ka’kari as a sort of prosthetic most of the time, though in Nemesis it is unclear if he’s still doing this or not as the majority of descriptions regard his left hand but avoid mentioning his right at all unless he is turning it into a blade (I guess think of it like megaman). It's like the author didn’t feel like explaining the arm loss or, more likely, since the book is Kylar's POV, Kylar doesn't want the weakness exploited and known so he doesn't talk about it. If he is without the ka’kari for whatever reason, he would be also out of a right arm.
Wardening Strategies and Philosophies:
How will your character respond to and operate on the Barge at large?
Kylar has been on the Barge before, though the majority of that time was as an Inmate. He knows it’s weird. It isn’t always fair. And he is very aware that there are hiccups that have terrible consequences (mirror Barge was a wild ride). He won’t be bothered much by it and on the surface level he will take everything in stride with only the smallest hint of endearing sarcasm.
How will they view their role as warden, and how will they engage their inmate in their efforts to help them on their path to redemption?
Being an Inmate wasn’t really a redemption for Kylar, but being a Warden is. His alternative to a deal is a planned slow and very painful suicide which he is adamant is the only thing he deserves despite the consequences it might bring if his calculations are wrong.
Kylar is charismatic and easy going. He knows he can’t push anyone to do something they don’t want to and he knows respect and equal footing are the best ways to get some form of rapport going between the two roles based on his own experience. He’s going to be the “wait and watch while invisible” type. The “double cross me, I dare you” type. The “come have a drink with me on a bad day” type. And the, “let’s bond over what the weight of the world feels like” type. He doesn’t mind talking, and he loves his analogies and metaphors. He’s going to be willing to put himself down to whatever level the Inmate needs if it helps them get a little bit higher. He can’t really provide any answers, but he can at least be a mutually frustrated at the system kind of friend to banter with.
What are their wardening strengths and weaknesses likely to be?
“Did the little kid win?”
“He got destroyed. But no one picked on that little kid again, because he approached every harassment as if his life depended on winning. There are no rules in a fight with him. He didn’t care how badly he got hurt. He would win.”
Kylar is an honest liar. He’s manipulative and a control freak. He never shows what’s up his sleeve unless he knows he has full control of what’s seen and understood. He’s extremely good at reading people, yet terrible at acting on it. From his own training as a wetboy, he's extremely insightful and knows how to get into someone’s head and try to think as they do in an effort to predict their moves and actions. He’s not always amazing at it, but it’s saved his ass before. He has no problem lying to someone’s face or manipulating them if he thinks it’s for the best or their benefit in the long run. Regardless of tactic, he’s always going to try to do what’s “right” within that pesky moral compass of his. He is fine with breaking eggs to make the cake. This can be both a weakness or a strength because lying and manipulating can always backfire and it’s backfired against him before (Elene finding out her good, pious life was built on his blood money).
He’s also a fantastic stalker. He can go invisible both to mundane and magical sight (not both at the same time) and has a tendency to walk on ceilings and drop from them if they act as a decent hiding spot. He has the physical strength and magical ability to subdue some of the more violent types (but he’s no Hercules). He knows pressure points, he knows his poisons, he knows how much blood loss a body can withstand before it's too much and, naturally, how to knock someone out without killing them. He’s a capable healer (poisons and cures are two sides of one coin) and not the worst at talking his way out of trouble. On the outside, he just looks like a short kid with a slight build. He doesn’t look like he belongs in his profession and he knows how to use his appearance and the underestimation it brings to his advantage.
But as mentioned, he can be impatient. He rushes into things, he makes assumptions, yet simultaneously hesitates when decisions can’t wait. This could easily backfire if an Inmate acts out and he’s left deciding consequences.
Kylar would be a good fit for inmates that are trying to get out of impossible situations. A corrupt world that won’t leave them be, a family business they can’t escape from, a debt they have to pay with their life. He’s from similar situations and one of the largest things holding him back during his own Inmate time was how to translate the “safety” of the Barge to the unsafe conditions of his homeworld. Somehow, he figured it out. Hence, moral compass.
He’d be fine with murderers and violent types and he’s used to fighting opponents far stronger and skilled than himself with every day being life or death. He also enjoys his usual work of murder and violence. He revels in it! It’s enjoyable to him and he knows he’s good at it. So he will absolutely enjoy the spontaneity from the mundane that a violent inmate could provide!
He’s also dealt and dealing with his own chasm of self-loathing, guilt and self-destruction. Although he’s being pulled halfway through the book, suicide is constantly on his mind with each of his failures. He’s been there, he is there. He gets it. No tactic he knows of is gonna help get out of that chasm, but he’s here for you, Inmate buddy. Or at least when his own self-loathing isn’t busy crushing him.
Lastly, Kylar does not do well with betrayals. He is fiercely loyal once that loyalty is earned and the Inmate will have to earn it just like he has to earn his Inmate’s trust (but will consistently argue he shouldn’t be trusted). But betrayals? Betrayals are paid with blood and it’s not a logic he’s ever shaken. An Inmate who lies to him is fine, an Inmate who betrays him or puts loved ones in danger is going to put him in a moral conundrum neither will likely walk away from unscathed.
He won’t mind if an Inmate insists they are a terrible person because he is too, but he will absolutely mind if they try to act out just for the sake of proving it. He won’t be able to handle those outbursts without potentially taking it too far.
Admittedly, Kylar is a fine line walking Warden that could easily topple over back into Inmate land, but with a good pairing he should probably be fine. He knows how to keep his head down and out of Bargolitics when needed and he knows the rules around here well enough to know where the boundaries are and how to break them. If Kylar ever fell back into Inmate territory, it would be because he is making a conscious effort to do so.
Deal: Save his best friend's twins. (one of which is actually his son but it's complicated, don't ask - he also has no idea that this is the case)
History: Wikia Link
The wiki has yet to be updated for Night Angel: Nemesis so here it is in note form!
All of this is based on what Kylar says in first person and he is absolutely an unreliable narrator. The events and his actions are intended to be questioned and taken with a grain of salt and there are constant contradictions between what he narrates and the ka’kari frequently correcting and contradicting him (the ka’kari is recording everything for him).
🗡️ Kylar kills Trudana Jadwin as final *revenge*
🗡️ Does not kill a child that’s about to be rushed by soldiers chasing him post-murder. By not killing the kid he has now triggered the end of the world!
🗡️ Returns home to Elenea, Momma K asks him to do a job, he declines
🗡️ Momma K brought Dorian the prophet for a chat. Dorian tells Kylar he’s triggered the end of the world.
🗡️ Momma K on trial for the murder Kylar committed. Kylar attends trial expecting to be executed, but King Logan instead lies to the public saying the murder was planned and he gave the order
🗡️ Lord Repha’im who was hiding Trudana OFFENDED the trial didn’t go his way (wanted Momma K or Kylar dead)
🗡️ Logan asks Kylar to babysit his twin sons while he makes nice with another country on Elenea borders, Kylar agrees. Logan’s wife Jenine H A T E S this and is positive Kylar will fuck it up
🗡️ Kylar fucks it up.
🗡️ Twins kidnapped, Kylar poisoned thanks to wine given to him by Vi - Repha’im did it!
🗡️ Kylar set out to steal something from the Chantry (Chantry and Kylar at odds, this is bad) and he has to have a partner to do it
🗡️ Item to steal is a magic compass that points in the direction of a person you want to see: Twilight Compass (Nemesis compass!)
🗡️ Meets up with Phaena (partner), they have to steal a bracelet as a form of invitation to a party from 1 of 3 important and dangerous invitees. One is Grandmaster Vitruvius of the Blue Mages.
🗡️ Kylar fucks it up.
🗡️ They have to speed run to the party with no invitation bracelet
🗡️ Kylar and Phaena make it to Stormfast ~2 days before the party and still need to find a bracelet
🗡️ Kylar gets a bracelet by torturing a noble to death
🗡️ On the way to the party, Vi shoves herself into their carriage explaining Kylar's bracelet was reported stolen (tortured noble actually stole it from someone else) so it won't work but Vi has her own to get them all in
🗡️ Vi explains High King Logan is also at the party and so is the Chantry (bad news) and the Blue Mages (bad bad news)
🗡️ Kylar spends the entire party not doing what he's told and making things mostly worse
🗡️ Kylar sees Phaena and Lord Repha'im talking, assumes Phaena might be a double agent. Also assumes the twins are at the party somewhere
🗡️ One of the twins at the party. Repha'im now dubbed King. Also is not human. Great!
🗡️ Kylar tries to get on a ship that has Repha'im, one of the twins, and the Chantry.
🗡️ Kylar fucks it up.
🗡️ Fights Blue Mage Grandmaster. Breaks a couple ribs, a shoulder, the usual. Chats to kill time so he can heal aaaaaaaand gets back on the Barge.
Sample Network Entry & Sample RP: A singular thread, eep. I will admit, it is not much! Do let me know if more is needed, I can probably attack someone else (/affectionately) and scrounge up another thread with some time.
Special Notes: So Kylar was around while posts were still on journals. I have all of his old stuff, probably could dig up more. But for the sake of decade old brainwidth, I’m going to say that some things (strong friendships (Vin, Jimmy, Kara, Abigail, Tucky, Boyd, (the list is massive) etc.) or impactful events (mirror barge, that time he got away with murdering a lot of people at port and his warden had no idea…, Kara’s birthday, graduating, etc.) will be vivid memories, while others will be very, very hazy at best. This is purely to cover my own ass. c: It’s been 10 years, I’m doing my best.
THAT SAID, he is still in all of the communities. There was a running joke back in the day that I always end up coming back with him so mods never removed him. I guess that's still the case lmao.
