<strong>name:</strong>Li Yanyi (Real Name: Wu Yanyi)<br/><strong>age:</strong>38<br/><strong>gender:</strong>Female<br/><strong>kingdom:</strong>Xiao<br/><strong>societal rank or occupation:</strong>Rural Martial Arts Instructor (Secretly the sister of the deceased leader of the Wu)<br/><strong>weaponry:</strong>A qiang forged by the greatest smiths of the Wu, it has never been given a name, though Yanyi has carried it since before the Wu fell. Despite its lack of a name, it does seem to have sentimental value to her, and she tries to avoid using it in live combat if possible. To the average untrained eye it would appear largely indistinguishable from an ordinary spear, though an expert would quickly notice both the exquisite craftsmanship and the care that has gone into maintaining it.<br/><strong>abilities:</strong>Yanyi is capable of manipulating chi to enhance her physical abilities, such as running faster, jumping higher, gliding through the air, running along water, or hitting an enemy harder.<br/><strong>special attacks:</strong><br/>Thousand-Spear Assault- Yanyi is capable of manipulating her chi into increasing the speed and force of her spear-thrusts, unleashing a blinding flury of assaults. It is said that she can thrust one thousand times in the course of five seconds, and while that is almost certainly a vast exaggeration, the name stuck.<br/>Counter Elbow Assault- Carefully dodging an attack, Yanyi steps back and focuses her chi, stepping forward again and striking with her elbow with full force, using her opponents momentum against them. She channels her chi into the attack, hitting her opponent with explosive force, and the resulting blow has been known to knock opponents several meters away.<br/>Exploding Palm Technique- By focusing her chi into her palm, Yanyi is capable of striking her opponent with enough force to break ribs through armor. Yanyi has displayed the ability to demolish boulders with a well focused palm strike, lending this technique its name.<br/><br/><strong>fighting style:</strong><br/>Spearfighting (Qiang)- Master: Yanyi's style of spear fighting involves both the use of the the bladed end to inflict slashing and stabbing wounds, as well as the blunt end to inflict non-lethal attacks. It is a highly aggressive style with a focus on intercepting and counters over purely defensive blocks.<br/>Exploding Fist Style- Master: In contrast to her spear fighting style, the Exploding Fist style of unarmed combat that Yanyi practices is more defensive than the name might suggest. A lot of its techniques revolve around dodging or blocking enemy attacks and biding one's time until the perfect opening appears, and then striking with sudden and explosive force.<br/><strong>mirror, mirror on the wall:</strong>Yanyi's appearance hides her physical power. She has a relatively slender build, filled out with rather respectable curves in all the right places. In her youth she turned all the heads of the Wu court, and not just because she was the princess. As she's aged, her body has held up rather well, though the youthful fire in her eyes has paled to a more mature, almost world-weary look. Her hair is long and generally held back in a low ponytail, with her bangs left to frame her face. Her face was the ideal of courtly beauty in her youth, with delicate features and lips just full enough to be tempting, though age has begun to make its presence known through crows feet. More than age, experience has matured her appearance, as she carries the look of a woman who has seen too much, and lost more than most. Her skin is still fair and smooth, save for the occasional scar acquired through training or combat. While her usual attire has been downgraded from the finest silks in the land to much more modest attire, she still carries herself with a certain courtly grace and elegance that comes from not only her background, but the mastery over her body that martial arts has brought.<br/><br/><strong>in my heart of hearts:</strong>Yanyi keeps to herself very much, and has ever since she exiled herself into the rural farmlands she now calls her home. She has told none of the people she interacts with of her history with one of the great clans; and for the last 10 years has lived only among those who couldn't even name the members of the Wu core family, let alone recognize one from appearance. She still holds on to cherished memories of her past, most noticeably the spear which is almost always on her back. Despite her secrecy, she comes off as a kind, if mysterious, woman, and has been spending the past decade instructing poor farmers in the way of the spear to allow them the ability to defend their homes against bandits and wild animals. She does seem to genuinely care about others, and many of the local villagers look to her with respect. Still, none can help but notice the somber look she holds in her eyes when she thinks no one is looking, a sad look, as if some great regret weighs on her heart. Out of respect, none have asked her about it, and simply pretend they've never seen it at all.<br/><br/>Back in her life as a princess, her personality had been far more lively. She had been very much a tomboy in her youth, but in her adulthood she found that she could be happy both training in the martial arts, and dressing in the fancy and elegant dresses of a princess, parading them around court. In matters of importance, she had a stern seriousness about her, but when it came time to relax or socialize, she was well known in the courts of the Wu as being social and fun-loving. While she never married or showed much interest in the noble men of the kingdom, she had many girls she called friends; and no shortage of speculation concerning her relationship with these friends. These rumors, of course, were spoken in hushed whispers and a source of frustration to her parents and her brother. She became less social as her brother took over the clan, and she spent more time assisting him, but she never disappeared completely from the courts; at least not until the war effort became her primary focus.<br/><br/>As a military leader, she was very much 'lead-by-example', and charged into battle with her troops time and time again, and through this she earned the respect of her men. She displayed a mind for strategy that came from her studies of the martial arts, and proved to be quite the effective strategist. She seemed to posses a natural insight into the mechanics of combat. She grasped elements of warfare that eluded many others. Where others saw chaos, she saw the ebbs and flows of battle, and was able to concoct strategies to take advantage of them. This did not always guarantee victory, as evident by the fact that the Wu fell with the rest of the clans. Still, her talents in these regards earned her respect and honor as a commander.<br/><strong>my dark past:</strong>As daughter of the leader of the Wu, Yanyi wanted for very little in her younger days. She never quite fit into the mold of the perfect docile noble woman, and loved to play with her brother and his friends. Her favorite thing to play was stick-fighting, though she always knew the boys all went easy on her, for fear of actually hurting the princess. Her love of these games persisted as she grew, and she insisted to be trained in the martial arts along with her brother. Their parents, as much as they wished she would grow out of her tomboy phase, allowed it, unable to disagree that she should at least be able to defend herself if a rival clan ever tried to hurt her.<br/><br/>As a matter of fact, she did grow out of her tomboy phase, and eventually blossomed into a rather respectable and elegant woman. This never stopped her passion for the martial arts, however, and she continued studying, and training, and it was only a matter of time before their teacher couldn't deny that she'd not only surpassed her brother, but learned all he was able to teach. She even began to find and correct minor flaws in his style, much to his chagrin. Her brother, likewise, had to deal with the fact that his sister was undeniably the superior martial artist, which was not easy for a man with such pride and status on the line. The two siblings developed a bit of a rivalry, and did not seem to get along well at all during most of their late teens and early adulthood.<br/><br/>When their father's failing health left the clan in his hands, however, her brother found his sister to be an excellent asset. She was familiar with the gossip going around the courtly circles, and her presence had a way of dissuading would-be assassins, given that her martial prowess was no great secret. Eventually, the two seemed entirely over their petty squabbles and found themselves constantly together, as she aided her brother on various matters of state. All the while, she continued her martial training, and eventually developed it from their family's traditional style into a unique style of unarmed combat of her own creation; adding more of an emphasis of defense and timing into her style. In addition to unarmed combat, she'd also become something of a prodigy with the spear, and did her best to balance practice of the two. To her parents' displeasure, all of this left her little time to find a husband and settle down, which did little to stifle rumors concerning her "persuasion". Any marriages her parents had tried to arrange for her, she adamantly refused to be a part of, regardless of what political advantage it may of held. Her brother's own attempts to find her a husband met with similar success.<br/><br/>War, for the Wu, broke out quite suddenly, and they were caught off-guard by the violence more than anyone. Still, they rallied their armies to defend their lands, and seek justice against those who had initiated the bloodshed. They were mistrusted by the Xiao, as well as the Zhou and the Lo, which meant they had enemies on all sides, and they were facing attacks from the latter two before long. While her brother refused to allow her the position of general, despite her protests; she was given a seat as her brother's strategic advisory, and did her best to aid the military effort. Despite several key victories, the fact was that they were vastly outnumbered, and their friends counted very small. As their generals fell in battle, her brother finally and reluctantly allowed her the title she had yearned, and she lead her troops to several victories against overwhelming odds, often fighting alongside them, and her displays of martial prowess served to quickly eliminate any misgivings they had following a woman into battle. She was deemed a hero by her clan, and a demon by their enemies; and yet she could do little to stop the inevitable end of her clan.<br/><br/>It all came to a head in a battle worthy of song and legend, two great armies baring down in a joint attack against her home, the great castle which she'd known from her early childhood. She headed the last remains of their army along with her brother. Though the defenders put up a worthy effort, the enemy numbers were just too great to hold against, and it was only a matter of time before they were broken. The Wu military was scattered, her brother captured and executed, and his family hunted down and assassinated, just to be safe. Official reports from the Zhou and Lo report the princess of the Wu as being killed in the battle, but the truth was that she had survived. How and why she survived are a mystery to anyone but her, but one way or another she found herself alone. She fled into the country to hide, and eventually settled in a rural farming community, far away from the hustle and bustle of the big cities, and more importantly, the politics, and the people who might be able to recognize her. As the war had created no shortage of bandits, she took it upon herself to defend the farmers who had taken her in from their assaults, and as the great clans crumbled and fell, she built herself a new life, teaching humble farmers to defend themselves.<br/><strong>plot line:</strong>Most Likely.<br/><strong>theme song!:</strong>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3V0opKObsPY (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3V0opKObsPY) (Sort of rock. Shut up. :U)