Kurt Darkwalker

Kurt Darkwalker | Wyrmrest Accord | IC Blog | House Reinhardt Ranger

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A Token of Loyalty - White Pistols

These were given as a gift to the Lady of House Reinhardt. All items are in a red velvet bag sealed with an attached letter and left with the butler at Reinhardt Manor. The letter and bag, sealed with the deaths head sigil of Kurt Darkwalker states. “I offer these pistols and accessories as a token of my loyalty to House Reinhardt and to her Lady. They are yours to keep or give as you please. Sincerely, Kurt Darkwalker."

Description:

A matched set of white pistols, polished to a mirror finish. The lock mechanism is a silvery metal, well polished. At the butt of the stock are matched carvings of djinn. The pistols are accompanied by a powder flask with openings on both ends. One for the regular powder and the other for the much finer powder used in the touch-hole. Also included are rods for cleaning, spare flints, small wrenches and other tools for disassembling, as well as a bullet mold. All of the accessories are in white and silver or highly polished steel.

The pistols and other equipment are kept in a rose colored box inlaid with a pattern of stylized roses in white. The lock and other hardware are polished silver. The box opens to a black velvet interior, with indentations for the pistols, powder flask, and all other equipment. There is a small a partition for around 6 pistol balls.

The box is stored in a sleeve of white doeskin, sewn in white leather thread. An external pocket of the sleeve holds twin holsters in soft leather, dyed white and tooled with a single red rose on each side. The holsters have flaps to cover the pistols in inclement weather, the flaps can be reversed in good weather for quick access. A pair of silvered metal hooks on the inside allows the holsters to be slipped onto a belt or sash. Trailing leather threads allow the holsters to be tied onto the belt if necessary. The leatherwork is obviously the work of a master quality, made after long hours of hard and detailed work. The box is also made by a master carpenter, the wood clean grained, sanded to a glass-like smoothness and without any knots or blemishes. The pistols are obviously older than the rest of the accessories, but have been lovingly restored, cleaned and made lethal again.

Although high end and expensive, they are definitely not dueling pistols. These are traveling pistols, also called overcoat pistols, and are intended for defense and war as well as for showing off with dress clothing or at court functions where wearing arms is considered acceptable.

Note: These are the pistols from the picture below, looted from a Forsaken officer, refurbished, and with accessories either repaired or made by craftsmen in Lilydale. The leatherwork was all done by Kurt himself.

@madame-miersae

@house-reinhardt

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100 Days of Character Development - 15

How would you describe your childhood in general?

“Fine.” he said, shrugging and looking elsewhere.

I pressed him on the meaning of fine, which got me a blank stare, the one I get when he doesn’t wish to talk about a subject. I reminded him that he agreed to be interviewed, was warned the questions might be difficult, and he still agreed. After looking at me for a few uncomfortable moments, his shoulders sagged and he sighed quietly.

"My childhood was… odd I suppose is the best word. My uncle Sean was the head of the household. He was universally feared by the family, including me, but he taught me a lot, and encouraged me to better myself. His punishments for misbehavior, however, were always cruel and usually painful. My cousins were loathsome, vile, cruel, and amoral. I lived with them until I left Gilneas a little ahead of the law and a lynch mob at around age 15."

“Until I grew large enough to beat them soundly and they knew I would not hesitate to thrash them, they made my life a living hell. Both they and their visiting friends would taunt me because of my disfigurements until they grew to fear me. They called me Kurt the Creature, or they would run away from me when they saw me, screaming that there was a monster loose."

“My favorite times were with two of Uncle Sean’s men I called Nameless and Blameless. They were hard, cold, men who handled my Uncle’s more difficult enforcements and I idolized them. They took me under their wings and taught me a lot about the criminal trade. I think they liked my names for them.”

“Can you imagine? The best times of a child’s life were ones he spent with two men who were both hardened criminals and murderers. That is how I’d describe my childhood in general."

He looked away out the window, as a mood of silence took him. I knew he would not speak again the rest of the day, so I slipped away.

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Set of pistols Kurt looted from a Forsaken Officer in the Broken Isles.

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Near Hammerfall in Arathi Highlands, Kurt and companions keep a watchful eye for Scourge and Horde as they scout for Prince Galen Trollbane.

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100 Days of Character Development - 14

Do you have any quirks, strange mannerisms, annoying habits, or other defining characteristics? I decided not to ask Kurt this question, as I am not sure he could be completely objective. I think he believes he is normal in every way. I will endeavor to acquaint the reader with my observations.

Kurt has a few defining characteristics. Loyalty is one. Disrespect of authority is another. His dry sense of humor is the usual form his disrespect takes. He’s also slightly stubborn. He has the annoying habit of just going silent when he doesn’t want to discuss something, which I suppose might be an annoying habit common to all men. The difference is that his quiet could last a lifetime. He has no imperative to speak or fill silences like most people, myself included. 

I would say his defining characteristic is the stillness he radiates. Many times I’ve awoken to find him sitting on the ground outside, perfectly still and quiet, as he watches his surroundings or passers by. I could walk away and come back years later and it would not surprise me to find him still there. When he doesn’t know I’m watching, he has an expression I can’t decipher but which makes me feel somehow sad.

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100 Days of Character Development - 13

What do you have in your pockets?

Kurt just stared at me for a while, shaking his head with a baffled expression. He said nothing.

I suggested it was a fair question and awaited his answer. He crossed his arms and leaned back, staring at me silently. After about twenty minutes, I couldn’t stand it and suggested we move on to another question. I find it very disturbing that he can remain silent, just saying absolutely nothing for ages.

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100 Days of Character Development - 12

What words and/or phrases do you use very frequently?

“I don’t. I haven’t been much of a talker until I came back to civilization where there are people around."

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100 Days of Character Development - 11

What does your voice sound like?

I sit here again, writing to candlelight in the common room of the inn, while my subject, Kurt Darkwalker, sleeps in a corner on a bed of hay, crowded in near the fire with the other men and women who choose not to buy a room. It seems a roof over his head is luxury enough.

I will take this opportunity to describe, as best I can, his voice.

He has a deep, baritone voice, very pleasant to hear. I think he could make a living singing if he wished. I’ve seen him singing tavern songs with strangers, and his voice makes heads turn. Until they see him, of course, then they turn back, slightly embarrassed that they contemplated an attraction at the ruined face that could have such a voice. He has a slightly gravelly tone, I think from damage to his throat at the Wrathgate when he breathed in some of the Forsaken gas, but it adds to the attractiveness of his voice in my opinion.

For now, he sleeps, and surprisingly makes nearly no sound. I would expect snoring. All the other commoners sleeping around him are sawing wood fit to wake the dead, but he is silent. It is one of his characteristics, to be quiet and still.

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100 Days of Character Development - 10

Are you right- or left- handed?

He shrugged as he examined his hands, turning them over from palm to back.

“I’m left-handed."

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100 Days of Character Development - 9

Do you have any allergies, diseases, or other physical weaknesses?

“No, none. Sometimes I’m suspected of having some horrible disease, but no.” Kurt gestured to his skin. “This is from a childhood disease and the war in Northrend." 

I pressed him for details about the two events. He looked slightly annoyed, but answered. 

“My cousin Alicia gave me something to drink. She was practicing Alchemy. It gave me a pox, which damn near killed me. I broke out in boils and cysts all over, got a high fever, raved and hallucinated I’m told. The boils and cysts broke open and that’s what caused all these pockmarks over my skin. I survived, and no one found out it was her, except me. I couldn’t prove it though. I never got sick after that, though. Not even a cold when everyone else in the family was laid out with colds or the grip." 

The reader should note that grip is the word for influenza used by the lower classes in Gilneas. 

"The other scars I got at the Wrathgate from Forsaken gas." 

By other scars, he meant the burns, as if from acid, and portions of skin that were actually melted. That was all he would say about it, though, except to glare at me when I asked him for more details. Sufficiently intimidated, I moved on to other questions.

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100 Days of Character Development - 8

To which social class do you belong?

He arched his eyebrows as he took in the question. 

"Oh, that’s a good one. Actually a little tricky. I was born a Gilnean commoner, my family are all criminals, warlocks, and other undesirable types. Now, though, I’ve come up in the world a bit. I’m a retainer to House Reinhardt, though not of any special rank, that’s still a pretty big jump up from where I was. So… a commoner, but not a lower class commoner. My status is tied to House Reinhardt now, I suppose. My actions reflect on them, and the status of the House reflects on me.” 

After a few moments, he stopped and looked slightly embarrassed. 

“Sorry, sorry. My social class is commoner.” Quickly he stuffed a mushroom in his mouth to avoid talking any more. I almost giggled.

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Kurt during a brief respite from battle on the Broken Isles.

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100 Days of Character Development - 7

Write a full physical description of yourself. You might want to consider factors such as: height, wight, race, hair, and eye color; style of dress, and any tattoos, scars, or distinguishing marks. Kurt Darkwalker, the man I have been interviewing, needed to leave on an errand, so I take this opportunity to describe him to the reader.

At first glance, Kurt looks like a barbarian from Northrend who came to Stormwind with a raiding party, took a wrong turn down a side street, and is now separated from the rest of his raiding companions. He is rather large, hulking, quite intimidating, with flaming red hair and piercing grey eyes. His build is solid and densely packed, yet he walks with an unconscious grace that reminds me of the Night Elves. His skin is weathered, sunbeaten, and well freckled from a life spent in the wild places of the Azeroth. Said skin is also horribly disfigured - scarred and pockmarked all over from the ravages of a childhood disease and later exposure to Forsaken gas warfare at the Wrathgate in Northrend. In some places the gas appears to have actually melted his flesh. He does have tattoos on his arms, chest, and back, though he was strangely bashful in showing them. I’ve noticed as he walks down the streets, he is not jostled by passers-by as I often am. The common people tend to shy away from him, which is understandable given his size and demeanor. When he moves he puts me in mind of a predator, but when he stops, he is quite still, with a quiet aura I have seen in other men who are usually alone.

He smells of leather, oil, and a hint of exotic spices which make me think of faraway places. On formal occasions, the spices are dominant, with only a breath of leather and oil. Kurt wears a ring on each hand. On the left ring finger, a sizable ruby set in gold that pulses like a beating heart. On his right middle finger, a bulky platinum ring with a family crest. Closer inspection (I recommend asking permission first) shows a death’s head with a motto “Loyal After Death”. He wears a locket on a necklace hidden under his clothing that he would not show me or discuss.

Kurt’s everyday clothing is typically well made and durable, for travel or hard use. They are made of canvas, leather, and metal. In cold weather, he is bedecked in furs as well as the usual clothing. He tends to keep his skin covered. His colors are earth tones, and make him difficult to spot in the outdoors. In formal situations, he dresses in barbaric splendor, quite unlike the formal wear of the Stormwind upper classes. Expensive and rare cloth, furs, and metals are the norm, in colors of deep, rich, jeweled hues. Notably, his clothing does not reveal his skin, except hands and face.

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Nellistrae, aka Red Nell, Bloody Nell, and Nell the Hammer to everyone else; Little Nell to Kurt. (OOC Zarya from Overwatch was the best representation I’ve found of Kurt’s mentor.)

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Kurt and Nell the Hammer exploring Northrend just before the Third War.

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100 Days of Character Development - 6

What is your occupation?

He frowns, concentrating as he considers his answer. A quick, boyish grin crosses his scarred face and I see briefly that he could have been handsome without the disfigurements visited upon him.

“I’ve been called a professional hobo by a goblin in Ratchet when I used to work out that way.”

He continues to smile as he seems to remember good times, then looks up, drawn back to the here and now abruptly. The smile fades, and I feel a little sad to see it go.

“I suppose the most accurate description would be a Ranger. I explore, scout, hunt game and men, tame beasts. We, my partner and I, did that for the Alliance through the wars in Northrend, then by myself in Mount Hyjal, Pandaria, Draenor, and now the Broken Isles. I take time for myself, and sometimes I’ve worked for a noble House, such as Addington and now Reinhardt.

“Right now, I am a retainer for House Reinhardt. I hunt game and other meat for their kitchens, and also I help to build their holding. I have a few crates of weapons I scoured from the battlefields of the Broken Shore and around the Broken Isles for the House training grounds.

“Honestly, I’m not sure if they know I even work for them. I hardly see anyone else. I almost expect to be driven off by the guards as a spy or, heh, a hobo.”

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100 Days of Character Development - 5

Where do you live now, and with whom?

Wherever I’m at when the sun sets. I’ve lived outdoors most of my life, so a campfire and a blanket are all I’ve needed. Blanket is optional.

I think I have a place on the House Reinhardt estates, but I don’t really know who to ask about it. I’d probably just find a stall in their stables and sleep there, or up in a hayloft