Hyde Taylor

The Jackal Hyde De'gwaine (a.k.a. Hyde Taylor)

The highly-influenceable Hyde Taylor may not be the strongest fighter in the world, but he makes up for it with his eager heart. He's been sheltered most of his life and doesn't have a body built for soldiering. He's had a rough history with combat and is more of "a lover, not a fighter", however either he is secretly good at it when its truly demanded of him, or is very lucky.
Young, naïve, and incredibly eager, Hyde Taylor strives to be a good person as much as he can, and to be worthy of his Father's legacy. Unfortunately, his hopeful and impatient nature tend to get him in trouble. He's usually found near a terrible situation and when asked how he gets out, he just shrugs.
Truly a hard worker with something to prove, he is willing to learn and hungry for adventure... even if it gets him killed.

Physical Description

General Physical Condition

• Agile
• Skinny
• Not large or buff
• Not strong
• General good health

Identifying Characteristics

• Eagerness
• Naivety
• Tries too hard
• Doesn't give up easily

Mental characteristics

Personal history

Hyde grew up without a father. He died just before Hyde's 3rd birthday, leaving Hyde and his mother with just enough to scrape through. Having been left a poor and broken family, Hyde grew up learning the trade of his mother, a Tailor in Lond.
As a boy his mother never talked about his father. After some time he began to realize it caused her pain to even think about him, so he stopped asking as often, but would occasionally probe for more information. Usually his only response was "I'd rather not talk about it", but occasionally he would get a little snippet before she would close back up with "I'll tell you when you're older." That never quenched his desire to learn about him though, and Hyde would go through his boyhood imagining his father as a great knight, a noble leader, or some other powerful man.
Growing to adolescence, Hyde would gain sedentary interests and become a somewhat sheltered young man. With rising taxes and hard times without the man of the house to provide, Hyde grew older and his goal was that of keeping his mother safe and secure. A safe life, he chose, one of cloth and measurements, one of accounts and bookkeeping.
But the life of his father was always a curiosity. Until his 20th birthday, when he asked his mother yet again about his father. That's when she told him the truth - that Hyde's father was once a great adventurer and warrior.
She told of a fierce and stalwart man who was courageous and strong, a man whose bravery was known throughout the entire royal army! She regaled him with stories about the man who saved the prince, the heir of Inglaand, so many years ago, and thwarted assassins and corruption alike. She told him all of this, bestowing onto him his Father's own sword.
Of course, this was more than a little overwhelming for Hyde at first, especially since he was none of those things. That's when he set himself upon a quest; one of glory and honor! To become a hero like his father was. He marched into the barracks in Lond, to a man he had grown up around - Sergeant Grayson - and demanded to be trained as a guard.
Unfortunately for Hyde, he was not "built" like a guard, and therefore failed his training. After that he searched for any way to make his mark on the world - even to the point of badgering Grayson for work. Eventually, however, Grayson relented, and assigned him to an easy task: guarding a particularly wealthy noble. This job was uneventful and well within Hyde's capabilities, so he took it...
And was sidetracked by the noble's beautiful daughter. After seeing her for several weeks, Hyde fell in love, although it was considerably one-sided. This prompted him to ask the noble for her hand. His response: "Become worthy of her".
That's when Hyde decided he'd have to preform an act of heroism... whether it was true or not...
That's when Hyde joined Issac Miller, Jackson Addler, and Lance Mayr for a time, helping the people of Lond and Bartlow, and was even made a Knight of Bartlow.
It was during this time Hyde's sword was given the ability to grant superhuman strength after falling into a radioactive goop from the death of a monstrous spider-like living tree.
However, this hot streak was to be cut short when King George of Lond V threw the group into Helena Prison and took Hyde's sword from him.
Hyde then became a double agent for Queen of Inglaand Ellen de Bans, seeking to gather information about William of Bartlow and his nefarious plot of steal the throne.
Shortly thereafter, Hyde was appointed as Captain of the Guard in Lond and used his position to track down his fathers sword. Upon finding it, he only found a shattered blade.
Seeking to re-forge his blade, he met with Culbur, the Smithy, whom he only knew as "Smithy", and begged for his help. Smithy re-forged his sword, but at a cost. It would no longer grant him superhuman powers... instead it would unlock the power of his bloodline; the power his father had, and his father before him.
Upon donning the sword, however, Hyde became no different. The Smithy explained - "Only in the service of Inglaand's rightful bloodline ruler will you regain your families honor..."
There was no choice for Hyde. He had to serve William - in earnest. Turning his back on his former friends he then threw himself into William's service, training harder than he ever had before, and eagerly pursuing William's vile goals...

Employment

• Tailor
• Hero-for-hire
• Captain of the Guard, Lond

Accomplishments & Achievements

• Killed "The Tree-Spider"
• Broke out of Helena Prison
• Helped free Garrett de Bans from William's grasp
• Liberated the red crystal from William
• Became a spy feeding Ellen information
• Replaced Grayson as leader of the guard in Lond
• Became William's 3rd in command

Failures & Embarrassments

• Lost fathers sword
• Found sword only for it to be broken
• Joined William to regain his honor in service to the crown.

Social

Family Ties

Revealed by Smithy in Gotha, Hyde's father was a "De'gawine" and was in service of Inglaand for many years as his father before him and his father before him. Hyde comes from a long line of loyal servants of the Crown and has a special affinity for protecting who wears it.

Wealth & Financial state

• Status 1
• Wealth 1

Species

Human

Ethnicity

Inglish

Age

25

Date of Birth

22nd of Slaest, 42 AGD

Current Residence

Lond

Gender

Male

Eyes

Dark Green

Hair

Shaggy brown hair, usually tied up into a small tail.

Skin Tone/Pigmentation

White, un-calloused

Height

5'8"

Weight

160 Lbs

Aligned Organization

United Kingdom of Inglaand

Known Languages

Inglish