Mirror Goro/TR Goro Bio
The young Prince of the Shokan, son of King Gorbak and Queen Mai, a known and respected warrior in his kingdom, as well as by many other people in Outworld he has fought alongside through the years.
Goro has been prepared his whole life to live up to the expectations of an ideal prince of his people. The Shokan society puts special emphasis on the glory of combat and the honor of a warrior, and as such the members of the royal family are expected to be among the strongest, most honorable and wisest among them. Growing up like that allowed Prince Goro to develop the virtues expected from Shokan warriors, but also the flaws.
The Shokan society preaches that anything can be won through combat, and that every individual must fight to the very end to become their perfect self. An ideology which sometimes allows individual growth, but has also easily led to glorification of death and war.
The Shokan warriors never lose a chance to participate in one of the many territorial conflicts of Outworld, they see war as a chance to earn glory and prove themselves to combat, as well as doing their people a service by proving themselves the strongest race of their realm. Their never-ending conflict with the Centaurs have been a consequence of these beliefs.
Goro followed the ways of the Shokan without questioning for most of his life, never doubting to lead his people to war. Every death of his comrades in the battlefield was unfortunate, but ultimately something which could be celebrated, since all of them died in honorable combat. Every death of an enemy soldier was necessary, since sparing them would usually be an insult to their pride as warriors. Almost every battle had to be fought, since preventing them would usually be seen as a sign of cowardry. Nonetheless, the Prince started doubting all these beliefs some time ago, after he almost lost his home.
Kuatan had been managing to resist the Edenian Regime’s aggressions for many years, since their forces were mostly occupied dealing with the powerful dragon Onaga and his alliance. Despite this, the Regime saw an opportunity to take over Kuatan some years ago, due to how weakened the Shokan forces became after many difficult battles against the Centaurs. They wouldn’t waste that opportunity to take control of such a powerful kingdom.
The Edenian forces led by Princess Kitana alongside their allies of Vaeternus clashed with the Shokan in a long, brutal battle. Goro himself was present, and was met in combat by Kitana. It was a difficult fight for both sides, but ultimately Goro fell, just after gaining a new scar in his face. With his defeat, the Shokan forces started getting overwhelmed, and it seemed like Kuatan would become a part of the Regime soon. It was only thanks to the sudden intervention of the Kahn Guard and the Osh-Tekk army, who didn’t wish the Regime to keep spreading, that they were able to maintain their home that day.
Goro was simply shocked. Princess Kitana and the Edenians had turned out to be even more dangerous than he had thought. They had certainly earned his respect, and his fear. As he recovered from the battle, he started to think about how his people would need help like the one they got that day. While both he and the Shokan in general remained too prideful to establish an alliance with the Kahn Guard or the Osh-Tekk, Goro himself became much more willing to collaborate with them alongside the warriors most loyal to him, at least when it came to fighting against the Regime.
It was during this time of collaboration, when he happened to meet some Shokan who had abandoned Kuatan and were now also collaborating with the Kahn Guard and Onaga’s alliance in general, that Goro would learn things which challenged his worldview. He was told of how they all were disappointed of Kuatan’s ways, that they had lost a lot in battle and couldn’t stay in a kingdom which seeked battle above other things, and that in other more peaceful territories of Outworld they felt they had started living a good life for the first time. Goro initially couldn’t understand, but the more time he spent with them, the more he started to see how many good lives were wasted in combat, that very aspect the Shokan glorified.
Nowadays, Prince Goro is still dubitative and in process of changing his beliefs, still too occupied fighting the Edenian Regime to fully reflect. It is almost certain that he won’t allow Kuatan’s society to remain the same, especially since recently, he has dared to propose a peaceful solution to the conflict with the Centaurs, his people’s sworn enemies, to focus on fighting the Edenian Regime together. The success of that initiative will not only be in his hands, but also those of every Shokan and Centaur.
