Akanai

Wife of Husolt, Mother to Sumila and Li Song, Chief Provost of the Sentinels, Mentor of Baatar, Grand Mentor of Rain.

Appearance
Standing close to 200 cm, a buxom Nordic beauty, blue-eyed with hair like golden silk, tied in a little bun. Toned muscles, broad shouldered, wide hips and long legs that seemed to never end.

Wide golden antlers grow from behind her ears, covering the sides and back of her head, nestled under her hair, framing her icy face. No tail (Rain checked).undefined

Volume 18
Her half-caribou heritage left no physical marks aside from two nubs of horn she kept filed down and hidden beneath her hair.undefined

Personality
A strict and demanding woman, who expects the best from everyone and herself. When it comes to defending her own people she tends to be combative but also knows her limits avoiding conflict when unfavorable.

She gives off an air of cold indifference. Whilst in private, she's much more amicable and forthright; quickly tiring of games.

Background
As a young child, she ran away from an orphanage to join the Imperial Army, dreaming of finding honor and glory through battle. She toiled and bled for the Empire as an unranked soldier for fifty years, but her efforts and achievements were ignored because of her gender and heritage. After she returned to the Village, she set to work in creating a community that fit her ideals, and so created the Sentinels to protect the Saint's Tribulations Mountains. She obtained the rank of Major sight unseen with five-thousand Martial Warriors under her command.undefined

She received her title, Herald of the Storms, after turning the tides of a battle near defeat to complete victory against 50,000 defiled and several demons. Her force of 3,000 Sentinels inspired the surviving Imperial soldiers at the small backwoods fortress after they started with a leaderless 10,000 and held for 10 days. After four hours of battle, the Enemy broke. Following the battle, she chased down every single group of Defiled that managed to slip past, eliminating them all. Under her direction, her surviving warriors hunted down over 20,000 Defiled in the coming weeks, an incredible feat of planning, tracking, and sheer willpower. Their efforts kept the Enemy from razing the surrounding farmlands and villages, saving the surrounding cities from starving through the winter. From a Major in the Defense Forces, she was promoted to Major General, jumping four full ranks, and bestowed with riches and accolades. Her title rang throughout the empire. The Herald of the Storms, for when she appeared, arrows would rain down upon her enemies. After that brief moment of fame, however, she had returned to her home, disregarding fame and fortune, living a simple life. undefined At least, that was the story known to most.

In reality, her title was given to mock her. When she was summoned to the Central Province to receive a medal denoting her as a Hero of the Empire, she was accused of lying and exaggerating her deeds. Even when she swore an Oath of truth, the court marginalized her achievement with a 'shameful' title since the Empire holds the bow in contempt. To make matters worse, Central's nobles sent warriors to kill her on the journey home, and though she survived, many of her accompanying comrades did not. Ostensibly, the former Emperor soothed her anger by promoting her another rank to Major General. Details of her killing dozens of decorated heroes and vaunted experts of Central were ruthlessly quashed. undefined

She loves the Empire more than most, or at least the ideals behind the Empire. ‘Every man and woman working towards a common goal, for the safety and well-being of all’. undefined

Powers and Abilities
Her signature move in duels is a fast charge at the onset with her ax-lance. Involving a combination of Mantis: Balance on the Windy Leaf and Deer: Pierce the Horizon.

In her words, religious debate could infringe upon her Martial Path, because it is the linchpin to everything she’s built upon. The Mother must be real, or else Akanai’s Martial Strength is built on a lie, so she will not even entertain the possibility that she might be wrong.undefined

Equipment

 * Double crescent axe-lance hybrid
 * Bow: Custom-made with top quality materials undefined
 * Armor: Flexible and form-fitting, a double layer of Megalodon leather, the inner lining stitched together with Terror Bird feathers.undefined

Relationships
Husolt: Theirs was a story of rivals turned lovers, almost a century in the making, but their love was all the stronger from their shared trials. A different time that had been, an era of turmoil and disorder, the Empire reeling from a massive incursion of Defiled and civil strife, the Emperor's assassination causing widespread panic. The village directors had gathered and unilaterally decided to close off the borders, and as a foolish child, she ran away from the orphanage, making the journey to Shen Huo on foot to join the army. Nationalism and personal pride had trumped common sense, leaving home to raise her status high enough to be 'worthy' of her lover, a journeyman blacksmith, warrior of renown, and child of luxury. Her letter did little to dissuade him from following, charging after her like a madman, his fury a spectacle to behold. Too late to stop her, he joined the army to stand at her side, leaving behind everything he held dear. Together, they fought for decades against both Defiled and rebels, until the province was safe and they returned home to be married. He never spoke of his adversity, never blamed her for becoming estranged from his parents or for missing their funerals, but it wore heavily on her. It was not until they adopted little Mila that she truly understood the love between family, and it plagued her to have been the cause of her husband's distress. undefined

Kankin: Her Quin

Baatar: The pup, a model disciple, spoiling her with how easily he learned and obeyed. Formally adopted him as her son.undefined

Sumila: Adopted after being delivered by a member of the Protectorate.undefined Named after the woman who took care of the orphanage Akanai grew up in. undefined

Li Song: Welcomed her into a home and formally adopted as her daughter.undefined

Tong Da Fung: Disciple.

Falling Rain: Grand Disciple, grandson and son in law.

Trivia

 * She's at least 300 years old since the Sentinels go back at least 250 years.undefined
 * Prefers to be referred to as 'demi-human', viewing 'half-beast' as derogatory. undefined
 * Laid with her husband out of wedlock after their first real battle. undefined
 * Got so close to the Divine Turtle of PingYao that the Protectorate chased her off.undefined