Takeshi ''TK" Kimura

TK is a young Asian-American (Chinese & Japanese mix) elf, barely in his twenties, though you couldn't prove that by his looks since he could easily pass for a sixteen or seventeen year old.

Born to Michio and Huiliang Kimura on 10/20/2042 at Seattle General. TK’s father ran a small martial arts school in the neighborhood. His mother was a professional waitress at Ling Ho’s restaurant.

Even though he was born to human parents, TK’s early life was uneventful for the most part. At the age of 8 his father began instructing him in the intricacies of the taido style – just as his father had learned it from his.

Attending the public school system in Seattle was a dangerous proposition as TK learned, especially in the International District where the predominately Japanese population still looked down on metas. After a clash with a small group of Japanese racist left him severely beaten, TK went on to join the Iron Fists - one of the few gangs in the ‘hood that didn’t have an issue with him being an elf.

Even though TK had joined the voluntarily, he unprepared for the level of violence that he ended up participating in. In the spring of his senior year at PS1152, all the violence of the gang life came to a head when he fired his first shots in anger during a run of the mill gang fight.

After graduation from high school, TK split his time between gang life and assisting his father with the teaching duties in the dojo. All that ended during the SURGE riots though.

On 9/13/2061 while the family was walking home from attending a festival downtown the SURGE riots started. Confused as to what was happening, the family struggled to make their way back to their small apartment. Unfortunately they chose the wrong path and ended up in the middle of a violent clash between a metahuman milita and one of the crazed mobs that were attacking the changelings.

All TK remembers of that night are three things. That he saw his sister, father, and mother gunned down (by which side he doesn’t know). That was the night that he first heard the voice of his mentor spirit, the Moon Maiden. And finally, that was the first time he was afraid of himself. When all was said and done, and Lone Star finally put down the riots and chased off the gangs, TK was found sitting by his families bodies staring numbly at nothing.

The next few weeks were a daze for TK. His family was dead. He had a strange voice in his head. Rent was due on both the family’s apartment and his father’s dojo, and he had no job. He was in shock from the trauma. Eventually he was forced to sell what he could and move into the gang squat once the landlord evicted him.

Fulltime life with the gang definitely wasn’t sunshine and roses. Shortly after starting to hang with the gang fulltime, he ended up having cybereyes installed to keep up with the rest of the gang; soon afterwards he was thankful that he had when during a gang fight that escalated out of control he was forced to kill someone to save his own life.

Life went on – at least that’s what it seemed like. TK now at least partially comfortable with gang life, was learning how to move on and even find small moments of happiness. All that came crashing down during the summer of ’62 though – when a small turf dispute with some rival gangs ended up spiraling out of control into a full fledged gang war.

When the war finally ended and the smoke cleared, TK realized that almost all the Fists were dead. Among the few that survived was Sayoko Wu – who TK felt protective of since she not only reminded him of his dead little sister but had had her parents killed by ricochets during the fighting. Promising himself that he wasn’t going to let Sayoko get killed like Hitomi did, he vowed that he’d take care of her.

TK and Sayoko moved from squat to squat for the next couple of weeks, keeping out of the way of gangs and letting trouble die down. Once all the trouble had died down, TK spent most quite a few weeks tracking down all the small caches of equipment that the Fists had secreted around the neighborhood. It was during this time that he knew he would need more of an edge to not only survive, but to take care of himself and Sayoko. Selling enough of the equipment that he had scrounged up – he approached St. Croix, one of the few fixers in the area that was still willing to talk to any of the remaining Fists.

TK had St. Croix set him up clinic to get muscle augmentation and toners installed – thankfully TK had enough nuyen and equipment to make it worth St. Croix’s time to find him a trustworthy clinic.

Shortly afterwards, feeling slightly better about his ability to take care of himself and Sayoko, he started looking around for a place that he and Sayoko could move into besides the run down squat that they had been living in. Finding small warehouse that had been converted into an apartment on the edge of the International District was like mana from heaven. It was still in the Asian district, but far enough away from the Fists territory that no one would associate either of them with the former gang.

Now that he has a place where he and Sayoko are somewhat comfortable and safe, TK started to seriously investigate his magic talents. He’s also taken the time to do a couple of small jobs for St. Croix, and start his new life in the shadows.

Background

1. Where and in what kind of environment did your character grow up?

TK grew up in Seattle's International District, as the only metahuman in a mixed Japanese/Chinese family. Even though the family was poor - they were close nit bunch, at least until his family's death in the SURGE riots of '61.

2. Does your character have a family?

With his immediate family's death, TK has no known family living in the UCAS. Though not particularly close, he does keep in touch with both extended families through email and phone calls. Has also basically adopted a fellow survivor of the Iron Fists (former gang).

Family -
Michio Kimura [Father - Killed in SURGE riots in '61]
Huiliang Kimura [Mother - Killed in SURGE riots in '61]
Hitomi Kimura [Sister - Killed in SURGE riots in '61]

Father's Family -
Hachiro Kimura [Uncle - 45/Male/Human - Japan]
Etsuko Kimura [Cousin - 15/Female/Human - Japan]

Mother's Family -
Zinhao Xue [Cousin - 22/Male/Dwarf - Hong Kong]
Lin Xue [Aunt - 39/Female/Human - Canton Confederation]
Jiao Xue [Cousin - 15/Female/Human - Canton Confederation]

Adoped Family -
Sayoko Wu [Adopted Sister - 16/Female/Human - Seattle]

3. Does your character have an ethnic background?

Japanese & Chinese (Cantonese). Is both proud and ashamed of his heritage, tends to downplay his Japanese heritage due to the prevailing Japanese attitude towards metahumans.

Appearance

4. What does your character look like?

TK stands 1.72 meters (5’8") tall, and weighs in at 62kg (138 lbs). Somewhat built and slightly toned and lithe muscles rather than big and bulky ones. His hair is ash-black; cut short on the sides and back, and being only a little longer on the top - he styles it in a modified College Cut. His eyes are brown, and appear natural. With his lightly tanned skin and youthful features, appears to be in the his mid teens.

5. What does your character dress like?

Everyday Attire: jeans, long sleeved t-shirts or pullovers, a worn pair of lace up boots, and a black leather biker jacket. Will don his black suit when needing to impress or visiting anwhere upscale.

6. Does your character have physical quirks?

He tends to flex and pop his right wrist and hand when bored.

Skills, Attributes, Resources

7. What did your character always want to be? (How did they go about getting this job/position/ability/image? Did they succeed?)

TK's dream when younger was to take over his father's dojo, both to continue teaching the Taido style and bring honor to the family name. His family's death during the SURGE riots of '61 and the stress of being newly magically active were the ending of that dream.

Now, TK is busy rebuilding his life while at the same time trying to provide a home for Sayoko to be worring about his dreams that lie in the past.

8. Where did your character learn their Active and Knowledge Skills?

TK grew up being trained by his father in the martial arts, both unarmed and with edged weapons to offset his slow muscular development. His skill in athletics and perception are due to this training as well, especially given the three dimensional aspects of the Taido style. Knowledge of other martial arts was also heavily empasized during this time.

Being from a low income family in Seattle, TK spent his time away from his fathers dojo either attending the fairly natorious public school system or hanging out with the rest of the kids from his (rather rough) neighborhood. This group of underage deliquents eventually became the core of the Iron Fists gang. His streetsmarts and skills with firearms, bikes, social skills, and stealth come from this time.

[Taido: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taido]

9. Where and how did your character get their major equipment and 'ware?

Most of his equipment was picked up in small batches here and there throughout his life. His armaments, armor, and cybereyes were either picked up during the escalating violence of the gang war that wiped out the Iron Fists, or bartered for after the war with the remaining assests that the gang had cached.

Having taken Sayoko under his wing after the gang war and knowing that he needed more of an edge - he had muscle augmentation and toners installed.

10. Where does your character live?

In a warehouse converted into apartments on the edge of the International District.

11. Who are your character’s contacts?

Sayoko Wu [16/Female/Human], Ex-Ganger/Club Kid [C:1/L:4]

TK's adopted little sister. Former member of the Iron Fists along with TK until they were wiped out in the summer of '62. Now sharing a warehouse apartment with
TK on the edge of the international district. Sayoko is a bright and cheerful girl for the most part - still somewhat bitter about what happened to her family and the
Fists during the gang war however.

Sayoko's relationship with TK can best be described as daunting. She's either nagging him for a ride on his bike, arguing with him about the need for her to keep
going to schoool, harrasing him about the women he dates, or saying she's old enough to take care of herself in the typical teenage female fashion. She and TK have taken care of each other since the Fists were wiped out.

St. Croix, Fixer [C:2/L:1]

Only contact of the gang that would still talk to TK after the Fists were wiped out. St. Croix is a small time fixer and fence that operates out of Downtown's International
District. After the gang war, St. Croix was who TK sold or traded all the remaining assests the gang had that weren't destroyed. He and TK have a mostly adversarial
relationship - neither of them actually trust the other, but both are willing to do biz as long as the nuyen is good.

12. Who are your character’s enemies? (How did they become your character's enemies?)

Still being relatively new to the shadows, TK has no enemies worth noting - at least not yet.

13. For Awakened characters, how did your character learn their magic? For non-awakened characters, how does your
character feel about magic?

TK has only recently started to explore his magic with the aid of his mentor spirt. He's self taught for the most part.

Personality

14. What are your character’s personality quirks?

TK tries very hard to present a professional image - he knows that most former gangers get themselves dead real quick by talking big and slotting off the wrong person. As such - he tries to approach running with the same seriousness that his father required of him when studying martial arts.

Outside of a work situation - TK can best be described as moody. He'll be entergetic, brash, and loud one minute but quite, serious, and
reflective the next.

15. What are your character’s likes and dislikes?

Even though TK is proud to be part Japanese, he really dislikes the Japanese traditionalist's attitude towards metahumans. He also has a dislike of small cars, prefering larger vehicles or his bike for getting around town. Dislikes being judged by his youthful appearance, though not enough to prevent him from exploiting the advantages it provides in dealing with certain people.

TK loves the bustle and energy of the sprawl, which is good since rural areas make him semi-jumpy. When not exercizing, looking for work, or spending time with his sister he likes to hit the club circuit - he really enjoys listening to wizpunk and neo-j pop.

16. What is your character's moral code?

TK is a pragmatist - at least he tries to be. His morals are influenced by his spiritual beliefs, experience, and trying to avoid bad karma - which is sorta tough in the 2060's with all the things a person has to do to survive. He won't kill for pleasure. Nor will he betray those he considers friends or family. He's not above killing an unarmed foe or torturing someone for info. He won't however torture someone needlessly. He'll lie, cheat, and steal if the need arises - though if dealt with honestly he'll try to keep his word.

17. Does your character have personal beliefs?

Like many followers of eastern spirituality, TK follows more than one spiritual path. A shintoist and daoist, he believes - but is non-practicing [at least at the moment]. Still tries to observe special occasions.

18. What are your character's personal motivations?

Nuyen, survival, self-preservation, taking care of his sister, and the exploration of his magical abilities. With only a high school education he's limited in his options. Gangs are out - too much hassle dealing with other gangs [as he's witnessed first hand],
same goes for syndicates.

Now that he's got another person to look after and try to keep out of trouble - he doesn't have the time to be running around with a gang or one of the mobs. He might do an odd job now and then for one of them, but he's not going to tie himself to a group that has the potential to get his sister involved.

Running the Shadows

19. Why does your character run the shadows?

With no advanced education and no real job prospects - TK has had to look to the underbelly of society for work. Granted he does have a high school education, but that's worth nil by itself in the 2060's. A chummer has to look out for himself and his after all.

20. What would make your character ever leave the shadows?

A big score that allows him and Sayoko to both go to college and get out of poverty that they're trapped in. Without something like that he knows that there just aren't enough opportunities when you're only a couple of steps up from a being a squatter. TK is still young enough that he's still full of himself - thinking that a couple of years of running the shadows will be provide the capital he and his sister need to get on with the rest of their lives.