JALSEN, Aaron

THERON

<<NAME>>

Aaron Jalsen

<<AGE>>

15

<<GENDER>>

Male

<<NATIONALITY>>

American

<<APPEARANCE/PREFERRED APPAREL>>

[CHARACTER ART #1] [CHARACTER ART #2]

Even in a world with apparel as dramatic and classically fantasy as Sword Art Online, something about Theron's appearance stands out. Maybe it's the cold, willful gleam of deep green eyes catching the gaze of any passers-by and the similarly emerald hued twin-headed dragon crest resting on his chest. Maybe it's the weirdly ostentatious yet minimalist narrow gold trim of his outfit, or the fact that the only visible armor on his avatar is a rather elegant pair of black-leather boots that go all the way up to his knees. Or maybe it's just the purple cape. Whatever the case, it isn't uncommon for other players who meet Theron for the first time to not quite know what to make of him. From the way he speaks to the way he carries himself the young man comes off as though halfway pretending to be some sort of medieval fantasy prince, as though he weren't aware of the life-and-death struggle to escape SAO and were casually roleplaying like it was any other game. Yet when situations grow serious, or when battle is joined, there is no playfulness in his disposition -- only a ruthless grace and a furious disdain.

<<PERSONALITY>>

The young man who calls himself Theron d'Metreon is an oddity in the captive populace of Aincrad. Those who've only just met him tend to view the regal -casual dressed swordsman as something of an eccentric, albeit a somewhat quiet and subdued one at times. He favors games of chess and, consequentially, shows tactical and strategic planning skill on the battlefield -- his arrogance and standoffishness, however, doesn't typically endear anyone to follow him save as a last resort. In a curious twist that is no doubt related to his choice of attire, Theron sometimes can come off as an upper-class snob whilst playing out his persistent 'prince errant' persona, a quirk which confuses a great many people. It isn't hard to think he'd rather not take seriously the entrapment of everyone in SAO and continue living out his petty roleplaying fantasies as if nothing had ever happened... but this isn't quite the case. To be clear, Theron was not unaffected by the SAO trap being sprung -- his response simply differed from that of most.

Where others were smothered by fear, "Theron" burned with rage.

Like many gamers, Aaron -- Theron's real life name -- used videogames and MMOs as an escape from the troubles of real life. But it wasn't awkward socializing, a boring job, or even becoming a responsible soon-to-be adult that Aaron was running from. It was living in his father's shadow -- the family pressure to enlist and become a US Marine -- that the young man blocked out when he sat down in a dark room to play games and browse the web for hours at a stretch. It seemed like all his mother ever talked about was getting ready for the training, how honorable it was to serve, and how proud she was that his father was out there protecting them. It only got worse when the news came back that Aaron's father had been killed in action in the Middle East, maimed beyond saving by an IED as his squad was investigating a possible enemy hideout deep in a barren mountain stretch. Even his mother's melancholy silence and sorrowful gaze at the funeral didn't blot it out of his mind: he was expected to become a soldier, expected to stretch beyond his limits, expected to blindly follow orders, shoot to kill, and likely get killed himself. It wasn't what he wanted for his life. And so he immersed himself more and more in games, where death was just a temporary setback and points on a scorekeeper. A world without crushing responsibilities and lasting consequences.

So when SAO released, he didn't hesitate to snatch up one of the precious copies and invest in NerveGear. He thought it would be the perfect escape, a world where he could well and truly escape.

"...a powerful burst of microwave radiation, destroying your brain and thus ending your life."

Except he couldn't. No one could. And that fury of being forced to fight, forced to become the warrior he'd never wanted to be, of having his refuge turned into a prison and his existence a life-or-death struggle, burned within him -- a cold fire, hatred coalesced and boiled down into the frigid winds of a bitter, resentful tempest inside of him. This, more than anything, is what drives Theron to do both great and terrible things in even measure -- a will to defy fate and spit in the face of the man who stood watch as the warden of this mass prison. It is this mentality that has caused Theron to reach a point where he doesn't truly care whether he lives or dies; he simply wants to keep playing the game, his own way, on his own terms. It's something he's thought long and hard about... likely too much, in fact.

Theron is quite intelligent, but also has a penchant for manipulating people, either for his own ends or just petty amusement. He is an uncertain shade of gray in a virtual world quickly veering towards extremes -- he doesn't care enough about beating the game to help much on the front lines (unless he's well and truly bored) but also has a strong distaste for sitting around cowering or doing nothing. PKing is right out of the question -- if there's one thing he hates more than being forced to fight for his life it's people who casually take the lives of others. Given half a chance he'd gladly set about shaming and publicly embarrassing those who stoop to player killing (though killing them is equally distasteful to the would-be prince). He tends to prefer subtle and strategic solutions over blunt force and brutish bullheadedness.

When not dungeon diving or hunting out in the field and forest areas, Theron typically wanders the towns and cities of Aincrad searching for something to divert his attention.

<<HISTORY>>

aaron was raised in a family with long-standing military traditions. His great grandfather had been a general during World War II, his grandmother a no-nonsense fighter plane pilot with no lack of stories to tell. Several cousins were in either the army or the navy; his older brother would have been a Marine following in his father's footsteps if not for a training accident that almost left him paralyzed from the waist down. The pressure, even from an early age, was plain and obvious -- toy soldiers, tanks, and fighter planes every Christmas, grandparents and relatives teasing him about which branch of the services he'd become a commanding officer in, the gunshot-riddled echo of half-quieted war movies downstairs after he'd been put to bed. It was enough that it gave him nightmares... but he never had the confidence to tell anyone he was terrified of being shot.

Couldn't ever tell him that his night time visions of hell were full of fire, lifeless bodies, and the cacophony of assault weapons.

Over time, silent and trembling childhood fear shifted into calculated apathy and cold disdain. 'Just a rebellious phase' is what everyone around him seemed to think, hardly able to comprehend that the young boy who'd played for hours with his little soldiers and tanks had done so because there weren't any other kind of toys in the house. Everyone saw Aaron's "gaming addiction" as evidence that he just hadn't matured enough to start preparing for the military, oblivious to the subtler suggestions of his increasing reclusiveness. They all expected he'd come around eventually and "grow up" -- he often couldn't even meet their gazes out of concern his true feelings might show on his face.

The game was supposed to be Aaron's -- "Theron's" -- dream come true. Instead paradise was warped and became purgatory with Kayaba Akihiko's declaration. He had truly escaped the real would, yes... but only to find his problems foisted upon him in imminent and merciless fashion utterly unexpectedly. His first fight afterwards rattled his confidence; over time, however, he began to channel his hate and cold anger in to replace the weakening feelings whenever he had to fight. And the more he did, the more he found a strange disconnect forming in his mind.

He gradually didn't even think of himself as Aaron Jalsen, a boy trapped in a game that was trying rather hard to kill him every day. Instead, as though pushing the vulnerable Aaron aside into a safe back corner, he began to think of himself as Theron Bradford d'Metreon, a prince on a mission of wandering to see the world and perhaps prove himself worthy in the eyes of a heartless and uncaring royal family far, far away -- if that was what fate had in store for him, anyways.

SKILLS

<<CORE SKILLS>>	<<SUPPLEMENTARY SKILLS>>	<<EXTRA SKILLS>>
>>one-Handed Swords >>Grip Focus >>Parrying >>Leather Equipment	>>n/a >>n/a >>n/a >>n/a	>>n/a >>n/a

SWORD ARTS

DEATH BY INCHES One-Handed Swords
1 Strikes, 0 Specials, 225% Speed, 25% Power

It was the messenger in Shakespear's play Coriolanus who famously warned the Roman senator Menenius Agrippa "fly to your house... or they'll give him death by inches". Since then, the concept of cutting down a foe "by inches" has survived as both a notion of torment and a military strategy of besting a stalwart foe not with a mighty blow but with a thousand tiny pinpricks.The name is perfect for a Sword Art that sacrifices power to unleash a swift and highly accurate slash -- not an attack that's ever likely to fell an adversary in one shot, but one that can consistently and precisely chip away at the enemy.

Compared to many Sword Arts, 'Death By Inches' doesn't readily announce itself with a radiant burst of color -- instead, like a lightning arc leaping from a tesla coil, a thin gleam of pale blue light travels from the base to the tip of the blade as the technique activates, then the entire blade will glow stark white for just a moment as the attack lashes out and attempts to connect. To activate Death By Inches Theron holds his blade single-handed and pointed behind him on sheath side (left, sword held right-handed), his left hand resting just the tip of his pointer finger on the flat of the blade until the moment of activation, at which point he charges forward with all the speed he can muster, aiming for a passing side-swipe strike on his foe. Ideally this will place him just behind his target if the Sword Art connects -- if performed quickly, it is even possible to chain this Sword Art into a bladed dance round about the target, keeping Theron a moving target and, hopefully, his opponent off balance.
Unsurprisingly, this Sword Art is significantly less effective against foes with tough skin or anything but light armor. It's mostly useful for light skirmishing and defender-backed team tactics.

RISING TIDE One-Handed Swords
2 Strikes, 0 Specials, 100% Speed, 100% Power

A very up-close-and-personal Sword Art that requires Theron to get directly in front of his target to use, Rising Tide distinguishes itself from many other Sword Arts in that, instead of leaping forward or charging at a foe once the Art is "released", it instead requires him to jump. Straight up. The attack is performed as such: Theron must first get close enough to his target that he could easily reach out at touch him/her/it, then crouch down with his sword held low at his side in a two-handed reverse grip. Once in this position and posture, the blade will quickly begin to glow a bright aqua blue as it charges up -- when unleashed, Theron jumps straight up in the air, dragging his blade's edge across the foe with the superior leverage offered by the reverse grip. Once he reaches the height of his jump, however, he nimbly switches over to a traditional two-handed grip and, blade still glowing blue, brings the weapon slashing down on his enemy from above in a heavy-handed overhead swing. The entire motion mimics the rising swell of an ocean wave... and the force of it crashing down.

<<Theron Bradford d'Metreon from [original character art: (art link #1 commissioned on the AnimeLeague forums -- art link #2 drawn by BritishWolfy101] as Theron d'Metreon>>

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