<strong>name:</strong>Lau No-Name<br/><strong>age:</strong>18<br/><strong>gender:</strong>Male, Hetero<br/><strong>kingdom:</strong>Xiao, but not Xiao<br/><strong>societal rank or occupation:</strong>The Highest Caste... PEASANT! Well, peasant martial artist.<br/><strong>weaponry:</strong>9-section metal whip, forged in the pits of Hell, which can block magic and always drains the Chi of the victim when it strikes. It's his family's relic, and is seldom if ever used, except in emergencies.<br/>He much prefers his body, a staff, or a couple of heavy knives/short sabres if he wants to kill. Which is to say, his preferred options are his body or his staff.<br/><strong>abilities:</strong>The Lau family uses chi!<br/>Lau can use the Space-eating Fist technique, attacking vital points of the victim. It's a technique that attacks with concentrated Chi, extending his attacks to many feet forward. And since it's a wave of pure Chi energy, who's to say that even ghosts and gods wouldn't feel it?<br/>Furthermore, he knows that just as Yang passes into Ying, so can the focus of an warrior's will influence the will of an enemy. It's really just a mystical refinement of one of his style's teachings, but he can appear shrouded in shadows, or mislead the enemy's senses of time and distance. Consequently, since he has practiced misdirection so much, it's really hard to misdirect him, whether by mundane stealth or by more esoteric means.<br/><strong>special attacks:</strong><br/>Playful Shadows Way, also called Forests of Playful Shadows - Misdirecting and vanishing from sight<br/>Space-eating Fist, also known as Distance-washing Fist – Striking with his fist at a distance<br/>Mantis Devours The Shrimp – A signature attack of Lau's family fist, he attacks with a series of strikes while closing, and closing, passing up to 21 steps forward, while attacking at every step!<br/><strong>fighting style:</strong>Despite his age, Lau is a veteran of the Southern Family Ton Long style, which is primarily an infighting technique. Up close, at the distance of fists, palms and elbows, he rains attacks that shatter bones and internal organs, and his attack sequence is meant to interfere with an enemy's ability to counter. Closer up, he relies on his throwing, grasping and dislocating techniques – although he prefers to first engage a dangerous enemy in a contest of raw endurance to tire them out before dealing with them. At longer range, he uses his Space-Eating Fist! That, or he uses an weapon.<br/><strong>mirror, mirror on the wall:</strong>174 cm, 78 kgs, fair eyes, long black hair worn in a tail. Usually wears a sleeveless jacket and long trousers, in a style that marks him as one of the foreign families - which he is, and most people could tell that from his face anyway. His preferred colours are blue, green, dark red and black. Usually dressing in black or blue as he considers them the most practical.<br/><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">Spoiler: Click to Show/Hide</div><div class="spoiler_body">No really good pictures I've found, but for a very rough idea, we could use a modern picture.<br/>See the guy on the right? That's him. http://www.martialartsgathering.com/foto2/gallery-hakkatiger01.jpg<br/></div></div><strong>in my heart of hearts:</strong>(personality description)<strong><em><br/>We are what we are.</em></strong>And Lau family was once described as "those guys the other foreigners* tolerate, because they make the locals afraid to mess with them, too". This description, as Lau** can attest, is not without merits. Of course, they also make sure no bandits would try to steal from their village... so it's not like the "locals" don't benefit from their presence. Yet people tend to get upset when someone describes themselves in this way on their own. That's usually something other people say about you, and it's not considered a compliment.<br/>We're what we are. But other people don't have to like us for what we are. That's why the ties between friends are so strong, because these are people that didn't have to like you - being your equals - but chose to!<br/>We're what we are, yet sometimes, we want to find someone who loves whatever we are. He knows there's such a person - he has been dreaming about her... yet the face eludes him.<br/>We are what we are, and my name is Lau the Young. Don't mess with him. And if you're an woman and he's smiling at you, maybe he's wondering whether he dreamt of you last night. Don't worry, he's just got nobody who could answer that for him... so he might be closed at first. Or way too open. Well, he's still young.<br/><br/>*They're only foreigners for their Xiao neighbours. In practice, they've been living in the same place for over two centuries now.<br/>**Fifth among seven brothers, sixth from a total of ten children.<br/><strong>my dark past:</strong>Lau hasn't got much to do, other than uphold his family name. Unlike most of his siblings, he likes fighting at Lei Tai. This, in turn, makes him well-known, and upholds the family reputation - so his parents allow it. And he loves the competition, or so he says - whether it's the competition he loves, or the sound of bones crunching, is something nobody has cared to ask him yet.<br/>Maybe his parents are afraid to find out he has walked through the flames of hell, and a demon has emerged. His older brother sure used to think so before he moved to another village. The community of the "foreigners" isn't big enough, and most of them have to travel to another village in order to find a bride. If they find work there, sometimes they don't return.<br/>Which leads to Lau currently being the second eldest son. He's not pressuring his brother to marry, since he hasn't chosen a wife for himself. And his brother prefers the company of training dummies, or so it seems. Their eldest sister, on the other hand, seems to hate this state of affairs - she has probably set her eyes on a husband...<br/>Yet Lau can't help but look at the face of every new female warrior that comes to compete in the Lei Tai, while his sister is taking their frustration on them. What he always wonders is, is that face I haven't seen before somehow familiar from my dreams?<br/>So far, the answer has always been negative.<br/><br/><strong>plot line:</strong>Not directly.<br/>Lau family has a bargain with empires and keeps to it. It is, as follows: Lau takes care of those around him, empires take care of themselves!… ;D<br/>(I don't mean a literal bargain, of course - because with this level of power characters have, it should be clear.)<br/><strong>theme song!:</strong><div class="codeheader">Code: <a class="codeoperation" href="javascript:void(0);" onclick="return smfSelectText(this);">[Select]</a></div><pre style="margin: 0; padding: 0;"><code class="bbc_code">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3JAFkT53_tc</code></pre>