Character: Sleipneir O'Hara

Character Sheet (Sleipneir O'Hara)

Combat Value: 7

You are Sleipnir O'Hara. And you really aren't sure who you should be helping any more.

Your family is an old noble Irish house, dating back many centuries. Indeed, when Her Undying Majesty Elizabeth hadn't yet been born, the O'Haras had already been fighting against the British Royals for a hundred years, using primitive clockwork robots and simple monsters. Damn: now you're getting misty-eyed about home again. Gotta stop that.

Your father's arch-enemy was Lord Dunsany -- still is, really, but the Baron put a stop to that. When Baron Klaus von Wulfenbach went barrelling across Europa, with his huge army of Clanks and Jaegermonsters, some of the great houses fought back. Heck, some of them even stood up to him for a while. But not Dunsany: he rolled over and showed his belly, handing control of the lands northwest of Dublin without a fight. Dad raged about his cowardice, but you have to admit that it went well for Dunsany: for being such a "loyal vassal", the Baron named him "King" of the surrounding area, and promised to do something about his various rivals. Which, of course, included the O'Hara clan.

So you got stuck in Castle Wulfenbach for most of your childhood. Yeah, it was all for the noblest reasons -- you were "learning the art of nobility", and the "science of rulership", and all that nonsense. But you knew what was really going on, just like all the other kids did: you were a hostage, being held to keep your father in line. If he rebelled against the "gentle guiding hand" of the Dunsanys, Klaus would -- well, do something terrible to you. You're not really sure that he has it in him to kill you in cold blood to teach a lesson, but you've never been inclined to ask Dad to test it.

And you have to admit, being stuck on the Castle hasn't completely sucked. You do miss home: there's nowhere quite as beautiful as Ireland, and living several thousand feet in the air in Castle Wulfenbach isn't much for the scenery. But you've always been a bit of a tomboy, and life in the Castle has given you a lot of opportunity to be yourself. Your parents always wanted you to dress as a proper Irish lass, and you being a Spark wouldn't have changed that -- you would make a prize catch for some fat noble. Here, instead, you get to romp around in trousers, work on the ship's engines, and learn everything there is to learn.

You're not an especially powerful Spark, especially when compared to someone like Gil, but you've got a real knack with machinery: you can repair almost anything, and you're most comfortable with a little bit of grease on you. That makes Von Pinn a bit crazy, but she's mostly given up on trying to clean you up and make you respectable. (Not that she's one to talk, with all that tight leather she always wears.)

Von Pinn is -- well, you've never thought of her as a sort of mother-substitute the way that Theo does, but you have to admit some sneaking affection for her. Terrified affection that you would never, ever dare to tell her about, of course: the only thing scarier about her getting pissed off about it would be if she returned it. But still, you know perfectly well that she cares a lot about all of the kids in her care, and would never let anything harm you. Her biggest problem, really, is that she's kind of overprotective. Any time you do something a little bit interesting, she's always sure that you are on the verge of getting yourself killed, and then she's picked you up by the neck and is yelling at you, and that is unfun enough that you've learned to not get caught too often.

Of course, you're far from the only one in Von Pinn's tender care. At the beginning, ten years or so ago, there were just a few of you, and you wound up getting pretty close. There was Theo, the Head Boy, last of the Mongfish family, who the Baron took in partly because he had nowhere else to go and partly because he was always a little scared that Theo might grow up to be like his aunt Lucrezia, creating giant death machines and generally causing havoc. (Theo's actually a real sweetie, maybe the gentlest person you know; you still sometimes suspect that he isn't really a Mongfish.) There was Z, the son of the Iron Sheik, probably the most powerful person other than the Baron himself in his empire. There was Zulenna -- sorry, Her Highness, Zulenna Luzhakna, Princess of Holfung-Borzoi (and don't you forget it!), official group Pain in the Ass. You tried to be friends with her a bunch of times, but she is so oversensitive about being the token non-Spark that she spends all her time being More Noble Than Thou. Your father is "only" a clan chief, so you scarcely rate as a person to Zulenna.

And of course, there was Gil. Lonely Gil, who never talked about his family, so that you all just kind of figured that he was an orphan like Theo. He was the biggest troublemaker of you all, and you were sure that if anyone would grow up to defy Baron Wulfenbach, it would be Gil. You were pretty damned angry with him when he finally revealed that he had been the Baron's son all along, lodged with you all to teach him -- well, something. He got to go off to Paris to finish his education, while the rest of you were stuck on the Castle. Bastard: you still love him like a brother, but you've always been jealous of him getting to play in Paris.

On top of that, a gaggle of younger kids gradually arrived, as the Baron conquered more and more places and needed more and more hostages (sorry, "students") to keep them all in line. Some of them were sweet, some of them (like Otto) were real dimwits, but as the older kids you all were placed in charge of keeping them in line. That mostly fell to Theo, who was always good with kids, but you tried to help where you could.

That was how things stood, until about four months ago, when Agatha arrived and turned everything upside-down. She was brought on board because she was the lover of a guy named Moloch von Zinzer, a new Spark who had just broken through: the Baron wanted to see what he could do, and was using Agatha "Clay" as a hostage for him. She seemed pretty weird at first -- always running around in her bloomers and seeming awfully confused -- but she was fun from the beginning. She and you got assigned to be roomies, so you saw a lot of each other, and you got to introduce her around to the rest of the "family".

In the month she was on the Castle, she seemed to blossom, slowly getting less confused and more sure of herself. Somehow, it didn't surprise you when it all blew up, and you all discovered that she was actually Agatha Heterodyne, daughter of Bill Heterodyne himself, and a Spark of no small power. The bunch of you worked together to help her escape the Castle: as a Heterodyne, she certainly wasn't ever going to have freedom, and it all seemed such a great adventure.

Yeah, adventure. That one didn't go well. In the course of helping Agatha escape, Zulenna went and got herself killed by that monster DuPree. You wouldn't have thought it of her -- no, that's not true, you would. She might have been a stuck-up pain, but she was never a coward, and she is the best swordswoman you've ever seen: she taught Gil everything he knows, and he's practically a legend with the blade. You've never admitted it to her, but you were glad when the Baron revived her afterwards.

Agatha got away, and so did Theo. You were in the process of coming with him -- following practically right behind him -- when Von Pinn caught you and held you back. You fought tooth and nail, but that did exactly no good, as it always does: whatever Von Pinn is, she's as strong as a Jaegermonster, and no ordinary human like you was going to be able to break her grip. So instead, you got to watch Theo vanish into the distance in the escape gondola, while you were left behind.

Theo -- it's really kind of hurting to think about Theo nowadays. The two of you were always close, from the time you were kids: best friends, running around the Castle together. And somewhere along the line, you started to think there might be something more. Officially, it could never happen -- the Baron had arranged a marriage for you with a minor Spark back home. It wasn't that horrible a concept: you'd met Roger twice, and he was pretty enough. But he was dull, dammit! Compared to people like Theo (and, you admit, Gil -- you'd carried quite a torch for Gil for a couple of years), he wasn't very interesting. So you started to daydream about running away with Theo. The time would arrive eventually, and you'd eventually tell him how you felt. But you never did, did you? Not until he got away from you.

Not that anybody got a happy ending there, except maybe Theo. (You're not going to resent him his freedom. You're not.) Agatha got away, but not for long. Gil went after her: it was clear to anyone with half a brain that Gil was terribly in love with her. Hell, it was obvious to the Jaegermonsters, and they're not exactly models of sensitivity. And he found her -- just after she'd been incinerated by some roving Clank out in the woods. He hasn't been the same since then: always angry and brooding, searching out and destroying every Wilderness Clank and Construct he can find. He kind of deserved it -- if he'd told her how he felt, things might have turned out differently -- but it kills you to see him like this.

And then there's that butler of his, Wooster. A butler! Sheesh! Not exactly the thing that you ever imagined troublemaker Gil to have. He brought Wooster back with him from Paris, and Wooster does his best to be as efficient as Klaus' aide-de-camp Boris. (Tricky, since he doesn't have Boris' extra arms.) But you are pretty sure that there's something not quite right about Wooster. A few months ago, he started talking to you for no apparent reason, about the "ancient ties" between Ireland and England, and speaking kind of wistfully about the days before the Wulfenbachs divided them by conquering Ireland.

You're fairly sure that he was trying to sound you out about the idea of working against the Baron, but you stayed carefully neutral: this was spy stuff, and you realized that you were out of your element here. And yeah, it's true that you don't exactly love the Baron's rule of Ireland -- but like all Englishmen, he conveniently forgets that the Irish don't love them much more. Really, from your point of view the best thing that could happen would be if Her Undying Majesty Elizabeth wound up duking it out with Klaus, and kept each other busy enough to leave your home alone.

So is Wooster some kind of English spy? That's exciting, and the idea of working behind the scenes to set the two annoying Empires against each other is exciting. But it's also scary as hell. And you worry about Gil: if his butler is some kind of spy, is he safe? It's one thing to like the idea of his father starting a pointless little war, quite another for your old friend to maybe be in danger from it.

Well, right now you're off the Castle, at least for a while, and getting to see a little of the world. Klaus did manage to bring Zulenna back to life, but the shock apparently just about killed her father. So she was summoned home, to assume the mantle of Duchess once he finally kicks off. Von Pinn was to accompany her, and you and Z insisted upon coming along. Z stood with her throughout -- he refused to escape with you and Theo, saying that Zulenna would need friendly faces around when she was revived. And while you can't exactly say that you've learned to like her, you've started to realize that she's not as bad as you always thought. You kind of wanted to see what sort of a Duchess she would make.

Not that that plan survived contact with the enemy. It was bad enough that you got no end of hell for showing up in Holfung-Borzoi in your usual trousers. (Zulenna was scathing about it. Even Von Pinn wore a dress, which was surely the funniest thing you've ever seen, but it just didn't feel right for you.) And these people really don't like Sparks. You gather that they made their name fighting Sparks, and get along badly with them on principle. Powerful Sparks are to be feared and respected; minor ones like yourself as to be used like servants.

But Zulenna herself didn't get any kinder a reception. It was like your folks always said: those high noble houses are just strange. You never quite grasped the logic, but they consider revivals to be only one step better than the dead. "No walking corpse has ever ruled their house, and none ever shall!" was the actual quote from their Seneschal. You began to see that Zulenna comes by her friendly manner honestly.

So she got assigned what has got to be the most humiliating task ever: to go find her replacement. She has a cousin named Marie, who ran off and joined the Circus years ago. That wasn't a big deal with Zulenna around, but with her disqualified from the throne, Marie was the only member of the Royal family left to take over. She tried to send you all away, saying that this was her task to do, not yours, but you just couldn't. Z and you could tell how much pain she was in, and hell, you might as well prove that you were better family than her blood was. Von Pinn was torn, but easily swayed for once -- she didn't want to leave Zulenna alone like that any more than you did.

So the four of you have spent the past several weeks tracking down "Master Payne's Circus of Adventure" -- all reports indicate that Marie is travelling with them. You don't anticipate the reunion being fun. Zulenna is too dedicated to her family honor to do anything other than her duty, but it's killing her to do it.

And after that? Well, it might just be time for a little freedom. You've envied Theo his for too long, and now you're away from all the Castle Clanks. Once Zulenna has disposed of her duties, you may propose to her and Z that it's time for the three of you to start doing a little adventuring on your own. And maybe, somewhere out there, Theo has managed to not get himself killed yet.

Public Info

Personality

You are always a happy person on the surface, even bubbly sometimes, but down below you get so damned frustrated sometimes! You don't easily get really angry, but you are tired of being manipulated by others. So much of your life, you've been a pawn, used by others for their ends. You crave freedom to be yourself, more than anything else.

You love easily, and are not prone to jealousy, but you are slowly despairing of ever getting what you want. That little despair creeps through occasionally, embarassing though you find it when it does.

Some People You Know (Sleipneir O'Hara)

Theopholous DuMedd: Your childhood best friend, who escaped the Castle before you. You are still shying around the notion of telling him how you feel about him. Hell, you aren't sure you know yourself.

Zulenna Luzhakna, She of Big Titles: Now deprived of those titles. Not exactly a nice person, but still kind of your sister.

Countess Marie: Zulenna's older cousin, now the heir to Holfung-Borzoi. You've never met her, but Zulenna's always made her out to be completely irresponsible. She sounds like fun.

Z: Son of the Iron Sheik. Sometimes a bit of a stick in the mud, but probably the steadiest of the bunch of you, and always reliable.

Gilgamesh Wulfenbach: The last of your close friends, at least until he revealed himself to actually be the heir to half of Europa. You worry about him, though -- he's been kind of scary since Agatha died, and you're afraid he may hurt himself.

Von Pinn: Your leather-clad den mother. Scary to everyone (including you), but there have been times when knowing that she is protecting you has been awfully comforting.

Wooster: Gil's butler. Is he an English spy, or what?

Klaus von Wulfenbach: The Baron. 'Nuff said.

Boris: Klaus' butler, a four-armed, stuck-up Construct. Probably the least fun person on the Castle.

Agatha Heterodyne: Theo's cousin, your sometime roommate, the love of Gil's life. Now inconveniently dead.

Dingbot Prime: A cute little Clank that Agatha built, which always followed her around. You sometimes wonder if it got out "alive", and what happened to it. It was always so devoted to her.

Bangladesh DuPree: The Pirate Queen, the Baron's cheerful killer. You have to admit that you always kind of liked DuPree: she was always so alive, and encouraged you to get into all kinds of trouble. But since she went and killed Zulenna so casually, simply because she was in the way, you've realized that behind the friendly smile is something very scary.

Jenka: The Baron's personal Jaegermonster in charge of "special projects". Almost as strong as Von Pinn, almost as much fun as Bang, and she's never killed any of your friends. (What is it about Klaus and dangerous women? Between Von Pinn, Bang and Jenka, you sometimes wonder if he's got some really interesting kinks.)

Krosp: Agatha's pet talking cat, who escaped with her. He apparently claimed to be the "King of Cats", but you always thought he was just cute.

Moloch von Zinzer: Agatha's supposed lover, who she assured you had simply been in the wrong place at the wrong time. You never knew what to make of him. Half the time, he actually seemed pretty nice and down-to-earth; the other half, he was a demented soldier, shouting at people for no obvious reason. Last you saw of him, he was being shipped off to Castle Heterodyne, poor bastard. Shiver -- no one deserves that.

Othar Tryggvassen: Legendary hero and famous dreamboat. You gather that he had been held on board Castle Wulfenbach, and Agatha helped him escape in the chaos. Definitely someone you want to meet someday.

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Female Spark (from Comic) (Status: In Game)

Pictures
Her first appearance can be found [here].

Plots:
Runaway Students (Runaways)
The British Spies (Spies)
People of the Mirror-World (Mirror-World)

Abilities and Disabilities

Mechanic (Mechanic) -- You are a skilled and practiced mechanic, who understands technology quite well. If you are not a Spark, you can't casually invent new devices the way they do, but you are quite talented at understanding existing devices -- you do that as well as most Sparks, and better than many.

You may examine any device for two minutes to puzzle out what it does. (There may be some rare exceptions, of exceptionally complex technology.) If it is broken, but not missing any key components, you may spend one Point and five minutes to repair it.

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Historical Background

The following were notes while the character was evolving. They do not necessarily represent the way it came out.

One of the hostages on board the Castle. Something of a tomboy technician. She is frank and forthright -- a friendly and nice person, but doesn't mince words. Her father is the head of one of the great houses in the Baron's territory; he is rivals with a King Dunsany, as seen [here].

Sleipnir prefers trousers to dresses, as described [here].

She is expecting to have an [arranged marriage], set up by Klaus.

She is almost as [dangerously whimsical] as Theo.

History

Sleipnir was Agatha's roommate on board the Castle.

Amount of Character Potential: Fair (Needs plot, but a good middling character for roleplay, with good ties.)