colorofthesky | Application to consignment

PLAYER INFO.
✖ Handle: RW
✖ Contact: arrdubz
✖ Are You Over 16: Yes.
✖ Other Characters Played in Consignment: N/A

CHARACTER INFO.
✖ Character Name: Fair, Zack
✖ Canon: Final Fantasy VII; post-Advent Children Complete
✖ Character Appearance: Image!
✖ Character Age: 23 at his point of death. He hasn't aged physically in the Lifestream.
✖ Pick A Number: 779, 489

✖ Canon Setting:

The story of Final Fantasy VII takes place on a world known as Gaia (also commonly referred to as the Planet). Like many action/adventure RPGs, it is a world where monsters roam freely, and only the brave, the skilled, and the foolish wander outside the cities without reprisal. Magic is common, great beasts such as dragons call the Planet their home, cellphones and modern weaponry do exist, and power hungry corporations make their mark by draining the world of its life force.

Pretty standard stuff, right?

But no, in all seriousness- Zack's life has very much been shaped and defined by the fact that the world he comes from is, in fact, a living organism. It has a consciousness of its own, it creates giant monsters called WEAPONS when it perceives a massive threat, and its lifeblood is called the Lifestream. All life comes forth from it, and in the end, the souls of all living things return to it after death. A great deal of the conflict surrounding Zack's life and experiences is the struggle between the ShinRa Electric Power Company and AVALANCHE. While the former tried to drain the Planet's lifeblood (called Mako, once it breaches the Planet's surface) and use it to expand their influence and power, AVALANCHE fought ShinRa in an attempt to prevent the company from sucking Gaia dry. Needless to say, neither party is completely guiltless, but that is the main conflict in the original game.

Said conflict eventually intertwines with yet another struggle that dates back 2000 years prior to the events of Final Fantasy VII. In that time, a shape-shifting alien crash-landed on the Planet's surface, leaving a gaping wound later known as the Northern Crater. It then proceeded to systematically destroy the ancient race of beings known as the Cetra, who had the ability to understand and communicate with the Planet itself. The alien monstrosity, later named JENOVA, succeeded in wiping out nearly all the Cetra except for a few remnants who managed to seal the creature away.

Fast forward 2000 years later, ShinRa's power is on the rise. Fascinated with the idea of the Cetra's "Promised Land" (a place they believe is overflowing with Mako, and therefore PROFIT!!!1), ShinRa scientists excavate JENOVA's remains and, wrongly believing it to be a Cetra, begin experimenting with its cells to try and create a human-Cetra hybrid to lead them to said Promised Land. The first experiment performed resulted in the birth of Sephiroth. Though he did not possess the fabled powers of the Cetra, he did possess other powers that made him superior in every way to normal human beings. Enamored with the idea of having an army of super powered soldiers to keep the rest of the world under their heel, ShinRa launched the SOLDIER program -- a division entirely separate from the regular army in that young recruits were infused with Mako (the Planet's lifeblood) as well as JENOVA cells to create (essentially) super soldiers.

The origins and workings of SOLDIER are elaborated upon in the prequel to FFVII (Crisis Core), which revolves around the story of one Zack Fair, who lives (and dies) by the ideals taught to him during his tenure in SOLDIER. Though he is surrounded by corruption, the lies and half-truths of men who engineered horrors he eventually sees comes full circle (the Genesis war, degradation due to JENOVA's cells, Sephiroth's fall and the destruction of Nibelheim), Zack himself holds true to his own ideals and remains uncorrupted despite the harshness of the world he lives in.

✖ Character History: Wiki!

✖ Character Personality:

Zack Fair is, in a word, genuine. Though in the beginning of the game, Zack appears to be a young, hot-headed SOLDIER with an arrogant streak, there's a great deal more depth to him than what meets the eye. Throughout Crisis Core, the player witnesses the transformation of a cocky, fiesty teenager into what can only be called...a hero.

Director Lazard: By the way, what is your dream? 'To become First...is it?'
Zack: No... To become a hero!
Director Lazard: Ah, good! Unattainable dreams are the best kind.
Zack: Uh, thanks?

On the surface, Zack is a chipper, upbeat fellow. There isn't much that gets under his skin, and he has a tendency to roll with things as they come, sometimes to the point of losing his focus. (When he met Aerith, for instance, he seemed to forget about the siege of Genesis copies in the city above, or at least put it from his mind.) He has a tendency to tease as well as a bright sense of humor.

In truth, however, Zack Fair is a very driven young man. Despite how young and untried he is at the beginning of the game, Zack hopes and dreams for the impossible. Having idolized Sephiroth, the SOLDIER hero, since he was a youth, Zack left home at an early age with every intention of becoming a hero himself. It's not something he takes lightly; it's something he lives and breathes, and though his focus on attaining that ideal recedes more to the background as he matures, there are ideals he does take to heart.

For example, Zack believes very strongly in right and wrong. He's the first to tell a kid in the slums it's wrong to steal and only later (a bit grudgingly) hears the story why. Though he has a bit of an arrogant streak in the beginning, this also becomes more tempered as his fledgling sense of honor is tried and tested. He's forced to fight his mentor Angeal and take his life -- an act that causes him no small amount of grief since the two were very close. At one point, it even leads him to question the path he's chosen.

"What do I have left to fight for? What is SOLDIER honor...?"

Despite this, however, Zack comes through his own doubts and re-emerges with a renewed sense of direction and purpose. He doesn't desert ShinRa but rather picks up the mantle of Angeal as his own and attempts to the make the best of a bad situation. Though he does get sad and question his own decisions ("Angeal, what should I do?") there are certain things he never wavers from. His dedication to his friends is absolute; he loves Aerith and would do anything to protect her. The same goes for Cloud after they escape Shinra Manor, as he refuses to leave him behind even though the other is suffering from a severe case of Mako addiction and unable to respond or help him. Despite the shadiness of the company he works for, Zack finds meaning in helping others and trying to do the right thing.

"Embrace your dreams. And, whatever happens, protect your honor...as SOLDIER!"

If there were ever words Zack Fair lived by, it's these. The ideal that carried him through the death of his mentor, the madness and betrayal of Sephiroth in Nibelheim, as well as that trying period where he was on the run with Cloud, Zack adopts this as both his sword and shield. For this reason, Zack has a quality about him that is incorruptible; however far he falls, he will find the strength within himself to get back up again, and he will put others before himself.

That isn't to say, however, that he doesn't get discouraged or upset and that he doesn't have his own set of very complex issues beneath that bright exterior. Zack Fair is emotional; he reacts to things, especially if they strike at his own issues or if he finds them offensive in some way. After Angeal's mother committed suicide, for instance, he reacted in rage and punched his teacher Angeal, thinking he was responsible. During the mission in Nibelheim, he was clearly hurt and angered by Sephiroth's actions ("Sephiroth, I trusted you!"), and though he managed to do what needed to be done despite that, the loss of people he once looked up to, idolized, and considered friends has left unseen scars. He's been betrayed, abandoned, and hurt on many different fronts, and the incident in Nibelheim was traumatizing in more ways than one. A man he considered a friend went completely insane, burned down a town, and tried to kill him, and in the aftermath of it all, he was taken as a test subject for inhuman experiments. He had to run for his life after that with the one connection he had left (his friend Cloud), and even in that, he was alone because Cloud's mako poisoning made it impossible for him to help Zack. He's had time to come to terms with some of these issues (betrayal, loss, a seeming inability to save what he considers important) thanks to his time in the Lifestream, but being forced into the CDC, an organization with objectives so radically different from his own, will likely push him a bit off balance to begin with and make it difficult for him to adjust.

Still, Zack is a man defined by courage as well as determination in no small degree. He has a willingness to sacrifice for others, even if it means putting himself in harm's way. He's gotten his hands dirty by necessity, and though he doesn't trust as easily as he once did, his heart beats for his fellow man.

✖ Character Powers:

- Mako-enhanced human: Zack is, in layman's terms, a super soldier. The Mako infusion he was given when he became part of SOLDIER makes him stronger, faster, and more agile than the average human being. His enhanced metabolism allows him to recover faster from wounds than an ordinary human would (though it is by no means fast enough to be considered regeneration). He can withstand greater amounts of punishment than a normal human, as well, but he is far from invincible.

- SOLDIER: In addition to being physically enhanced, Zack was part of an elite fighting force known as SOLDIER. He's well-versed in the ways of combat, infiltration, and war, and his expertise lies in wielding swords.

- Materia: Zack has the ability to wield Materia (crystallized Mako), and this allows him to cast magic spells and Summons, as needed. I understand that, for the purposes of the game, he will not be able to HAVE Materia since it qualifies as weaponry (and I'd like him to have the Buster Sword initially), but if possible, I'd like him to possibly be able to request it sometime down the road.

- Digital Mind Wave: The Limit Break system for Crisis Core, it is directly influenced by Zack's emotions. The more powerful his emotions, the stronger the effect of the attack, whether it be a Summon or a physical attack. Since Summons require Materia, Zack will not have access to them in CDC at any time. However, he does have some physical/magical abilities tied to his Limit Break system that he will retain.

These include...
1) Chain Slash (physical attack)
2) Octaslash (physical attack)
3) Rush Assault (physical attack)
4) Lucky Stars (physical attack)
5) Healing Wave (magic/self healing)
6) Meteor Shots (magical attack)
7) Apocalypse (magical attack)

Zack also has the unique ability of being able to copy the Limit Breaks of others, which is why he uses attacks attributed other characters in Crisis Core. Obviously, he will not be copying anyone else's attacks without 1) expression permission from other players and 2) unless it makes sense that he'd be able to learn it. Techniques and attacks that fall more in line with what he already knows (swords, martial arts, etc) will be easier to learn.

CHARACTER SAMPLES.
✖ First Person POV: TDM Thread

✖ Third Person POV:

Zack drifts.

It's been more than two years since the battle that took his life, less than that since Sephiroth summoned Meteor, and the world has changed a great deal since then. ShinRa no longer looms as it once did, and the threat of JENOVA and Sephiroth has been resolved twice over. Cloud's victory has brought peace, at least for a while, to the Planet, and Zack can feel that in the depths of his soul. The Planet rests, settled and at ease in a way it hasn't been in a while, and that, in turn, reassures him.

Though his life was cut short early, Zack has no regrets about that particular sacrifice. It was for a good cause, a legacy that lives on in his friend, and Gaia is safe so long as the ideals and dreams he cherished remain.

Still.

He lingers in spirit anyhow, flitting in and out of true awareness, keeping an eye on his friends and family as much as he can. It's hard not to slip away sometimes, to not fade away entirely into the chorus of voices like his drifting in the warmth of a never-ending current. There's no loneliness to be found here, only peace, and Aerith is never far away. It would be easier to let go, to fade into memory, and he thinks, maybe, it's alright if he does.

Do you want to see them again?

The voice is pleasant, inviting, like so many of the others surrounding him. It resonates, and he doesn't think much about when he answers.

Who?

Those people. The ones you were watching.

I do see them. He was just watching them a little while ago, it feels like.

The voice, however, persists. They're far away. You can't touch them like you once did.

I know. A twinge of sadness flits through him as he says it.

Don't you think you should help them?

Zack hesitates, something about those words cutting through the hazy peace that permeates the Lifestream.

I have. As much as I can. A ghost without substance.

If you could, would you do more? Protect and help them?

The silence that follows is a heavy one, and for once Zack is uncertain how to respond. He barely even notices how the other, familiar voices begin to recede, the bright green glow of the Lifestream brightening slowly to pure white.

Again, he hears the voice.

Do you want to see your friends again?

After a long moment, Zack finally answers.

...Yes.

The jolt that follows is a sharp one, a flash of all-encompassing light enveloping him as nerve endings flare to life. Air fills his lungs (lungs!) one shocking breath at a time, and the suddenness of new life and blood pounds in his ears. He barely has the time to register any of these sensations before he finds himself hurtling through the air. Mako-blue eyes snap open, limbs flail, and Zack stares in shock at the planet he's about to crash into.

What the hell is going on?!

CHARACTER ITEMS.
✖ Pick a Team: Green

✖ Mission Freebie: Zack will request his Materia (listed below) at some point.
✖ Personal Item or Weapon: Buster Sword (his personal weapon)

✖ Character Inventory:
- Buster Sword
- SOLDIER First Class uniform (which he will be wearing)
- A letter from Aerith
- Arm band with Materia slotted in
- Materia:
1) Firaga (shoots three fireballs at enemies)
2) Blizzaga (drops a large block of ice on enemy; may inflict Stun)
3) Tri-Thundaga (shoots bolts of lightning outward in three arcs)
4) Curaga (restores large amount of HP)
5) Wall (lowers physical and magical damage taken)

Note: I expect Zack's Materia to be confiscated so he will ask for their return, pending mod approval.