Jean-Marc Paschal

Captain Jean-Marc Paschal (a.k.a. "Jeamarc")

When you first meet Jean-Marc, he will not smile at you, nor will he give you any indication that he is happy you are here. Mostly because he isn't. It's not your fault, really, that is just the way Jean-Marc's upbringing has taught him to behave. His culture has taught him to fend for himself and not to go out of his way to help others while his childhood taught him that you shouldn't get close to others as they either die or disappear altogether.
However, he will be respectful of your space and will follow your orders to a tee if you are his superior. He also expects the same in return if you are his inferior.
Don't expect jokes, games or anything of that nature. Just following orders, finishing the job, and getting back home. Which for a full-time merchant-ship captain can certainly be tricky at times.

Physical Description

General Physical Condition

He has a slender build but sinewy strength, with lean muscles like corded rope. Firm Handshake.

Body Features

Black hair. missing the tip of his index finger on his right hand. (sailing accident)

Facial Features

Green Eyes. thin lips. no scars.

Identifying Characteristics

His voice. He has learned to project his voice from his career at sea. His voice has a sense of authority to it, so if you are an indecisive person, you are more likely to follow his lead.

Physical quirks

Some people use a lot of gestures, or move their hands while talking; not Jean-Marc. He stands perfectly still, hands at his side. Eyes are always scanning the area.
When trying to project authority, he walks with his hands clasped behind his back, chest out. When trying to intimidate someone, he rests one hand on the hilt of his sword.
Almost, ALMOST smiles the first day out to sea.

Apparel & Accessories

Normal everyday attire would be a linen shirt, linen trousers, knee-high boots, and a pair of gloves to protect his hands from rope burns.
Formal attire would be a fine linen tunic under a doublet, a sash around his waist, leather trousers, with a cape buttoned around the neck by 3 red jewels which was given to him in place of payment on one of his shipments. He would also wear his sword on his belt, his paisa pinned to his chest, and a money pouch.

Mental characteristics

Personal history

Early Life

Carlo-Matthieu and Judit-Delphine Paschal moved from Rosello, Ferrara to Tinmallel, Abydos when their son, Jean-Marc Paschal, was a babe of no more than three months, for reasons known to no one but themselves. By the time the boy was three, Carmath was established enough as a merchant that he was able to move his family to the larger, more bustling town of Mursiya.

Losing a Mother, Gaining a Friend

The young boy found it difficult to make friends, as the Abydosians saw him as an outsider. A girl named Kaiah Amittu became Jean-Marc's first and only close friend when they were eight years old and both lost their mothers to a resurgence of plague, although at first, Jean-Marc mistook her for a boy, as she dressed and acted like one because of her desire to go into the navy like her father. He also got to know Radames Amittu, Kaiah's father. Radames quickly took the young "outsider" under his wing, becoming a role model and -- in Jean-Marc's opinion -- more of a father to him than his own father, as he expressed affection in the Abydosian manner that Jean-Marc understood. Meanwhile, at home, Jean-Marc's relationship with his father grew more distant without his mother as a go-between.

Losing a Friend, Adopting a Father

The older they got, Jean-Marc noticed that Kaiah seemed more and more distracted. When she was a child, she'd simply gaze off into the distance sometime, but as she got older, when he was speaking to her, sometimes it would seem as if she was listening to two conversations at once. Around the time she was twelve she took to walking in the woods and the mountains. As time went on, they got longer and more frequent. One day when they were fourteen, she went for a walk and never came back. After Kaiah's disappearance, Radames latched onto Jean-Marc as well as a surrogate child.

Joining the Navy and Leaving It

Radames was the source of Jean-Marc's interest in the navy, as he was a navy man himself and often spoke to both Kaiah and Jean-Marc about the career when they were children. As Jean-Marc came to look up to him, he began to desire the purpose, unity, structure and status of the navy. He enlisted as soon as he could and trained under the mentorship of Radames. However, things gradually started to change his mind about it as a career path. One event in particular shifted something inside him. After he'd been in the navy for a couple of years, it happened that a juvenile sea serpent attempted to migrate through the estuary a little later than usual, and therefore on its own. Unfortunately, it seemed unsure how to get back out. A couple of young people had foolishly taken a rowboat out onto the water, and the frightened sea serpent decided to resent this. While most Abydosians showed their "sink or swim" mentality by being averse to rescuing them from the consequences of their own actions, something within Jean-Marc could not allow him to stand by while he had the knowledge and the equipment to help. His reason for helping those kids, unknown to him at the time, had to do with the Ferraran values for community that his father had instilled in him, and that moment was pivotal because he regained a small modicum of respect for his father, although he didn't understand the feeling, for the first time he earned the respect of other people, and for the first time gained a feeling of pride in himself. Jean-Marc remained with the military until he gained the rank of lieutenant. Afterward, he retired and bought himself a small ship to captain as an independent merchant.

Education

• Abydosian children are typically tutored by their parents at home. His father, a merchant, taught him the basics of mathmatics, commerce, negotiation, and business by taking him along on his contract negotiations and deliveries. Before bed every night, his mother would regale him with Ferraran histories, legends, and parables, as well as with the Abydosian histories she picked up from their neighbors.

• Learned the fishing and merchant trade from his father at a early age, since his mother passed away when Jean-Marc was very young.

• Sufficient in reading and writing (taught to him by Radames).

• Strong knowledge of Alkaran geography (taught by Radames).

• Basic self-defense (taught by Radames).

• Very limited knowledge of art, dancing, or any other creative arts.

Employment

Captain of the merchant ship the Lost Swan.

Long-term contracts include delivering lumber from Abydos to Korinthos. Gold from Korinthos to Abydos. Tea from Ferrara to Abydos. Will accept special short term contracts if they do not conflict with main contracts. These sometimes include ferrying people from one port to another.

Accomplishments & Achievements

Was in the navy for time, worked his way up to the rank of Lieutenent.

Retired from the Navy, he now owns his own shipping vessel, The Lost Swan. (Swans are known for thier faithfulness. With his mother gone, his father not close to him, and his only friend growing up disappeared, it seemed appropriate to call his ship the Lost Swan, or in other words, Lost Faith.)

Failures & Embarrassments

In the navy, he once tied a knot in a rope that came undone, which led to a sail not being set. The whole crew laughed at the blunder because when he tried to fixed it, he got tangeld and started to fall off of the rig and it ended with Jean-Marc hanging upside by his right foot.

Social

Contacts & Relations

Korinthos Lumber Buyer:
Korinthos Gold Vendor:
Ferraran Tea Vendor:
Abydos Lumber Vendor: Ahetotis Temujin
Abydos Gold Buyer:
Abydos Tea Buyer:
Crew (10) and jobs:
1) Zahor Ahmad
2) Kosey Hassan
3) Phaneas Ayyad
4) Ahi Gamal
5) Massui Sadek (ironically dishonest as his last name means honesty)
6) Baut Magdy
7) Elias Diamante
8) Kourtis Argyris
9) Pavlos Theodoropoulou
10) Esther Perrier

Family Ties

Relationships

Jean-Marc Paschal

Protege (Vital)

Towards Radames Amittu

5

2

---

Radames Amittu

Mentor (Vital)

Towards Jean-Marc Paschal

4

2

---

History

The father of Jean-Marc's closest childhood friend, Radames quickly took the young "outsider" under his wing, becoming a role model and -- in Jean-Marc's opinion -- more of a father to him than his own father, as he expressed affection in the Abydosian manner that Jean-Marc understood. After Kaiah's disappearance, Radames latched onto Jean-Marc as a surrogate child.
Radames was the source of Jean-Marc's interest in the navy, as he was a navy man himself and often spoke to both Kaiah and Jean-Marc about the career.

Commonalities & Shared Interests

• relationship with Kaiah
• a career in the Navy

Shared Acquaintances

Kaiah Amittu

Jean-Marc Paschal

Best Friend (Vital)

Towards Kaiah Amittu

5

5

---

Kaiah Amittu

Best Friend (Important)

Towards Jean-Marc Paschal

5

5

Honest

---

History

Kaiah became Jean-Marc's first and only close friend when they were eight years old and both lost their mothers to a resurgence of plague. Kaiah, wanting to go into the navy like her father, dressed and acted like a boy, so at first Jean-Marc mistook her for a boy.
The older they got, Jean-Marc noticed that Kaiah seemed more and more distracted. When she was a child, she'd simply gaze off into the distance sometime, but as she got older, when he was speaking to her, sometimes it would seem as if she was listening to two conversations at once. Around the time she was twelve she took to walking in the woods and the mountains. As time went on, they got longer and more frequent. One day when they were fourteen, she went for a walk and never came back.

Stern, follow-the-rules type of person. No sense of humor. Does not smile. Used to be in Navy, but is retired now and is a professional ship merchant.

View Character Profile

Alignment

Lawful Neutral

Ethnicity

Ferraran

Honorary & Occupational Titles

"Captain"

Date of Birth

yesterday

Year of Birth

1132 AV 28 Years old

Birthplace

Ferrara

Parents

Spouses

Siblings

Sex

Male

Gender

Male

Eyes

Green

Hair

Black (almost brown in the right sunlight)

Skin Tone/Pigmentation

Tanned and weathered by the harsh sea conditions

Height

6-1

Weight

175 lbs

Quotes & Catchphrases

"A true Abydosian is self-sufficient and hard working."

"You follow the orders of your superior, or you die."

"Outsiders are just as dangerous as wild animals, only they are less civilized."