The Apprentice of Shisui
Riku Wakusei (a.k.a. The Apprentice)
A young boy who was enslaved by the eunuch advisors of the Emperor of Shisui and used for his genius. He was set to helping them figure out Corruption and ended up understanding it better than they did, which ended with them being killed by an embodiment of Corruption.
Mental characteristics
Personal history
While the details are unclear, it is known that Riku's late childhood was unrelentingly awful. It is believed that he and a number of other children were imprisoned in a cave or basement under the control of a violent and cruel man. They eventually managed to escape, killing him by accident in the process, but events conspired to see Riku enslaved again, this time in service to the eunuch advisors of the Empire of Shisui. Recognizing Riku's genius, the advisors forced Riku to put his mind to work for them.
After some time, a man named Ehel brought word of the power of Corruption to the eunuchs. The eunuchs quickly put Riku to work on this puzzle as well, and before long word was spreading of the terrible power of the eunuchs, who could erase a person from existence with a glance. But Riku's understanding of Corruption was growing much faster than theirs, and after the horrible abuse of so many of his formative years, he had little mercy for the world that had hurt him so.
Details once again become vague, but in the late summer of 23 ARL, an embodiment of Corruption appeared on Shisui. It is unclear precisely how this happened; perhaps Riku summoned or created it, perhaps Corruption decided it liked him and sent an avatar to help him, or perhaps it was an accident or byproduct of something else. One way or another, the avatar apparently followed Riku around and used him as an anchor for its learning. Around the same time, either as a cause or an effect, the eunuchs were killed to the last by Riku or the avatar.
Riku spent the following days manipulating his way into the membership or care of various organizations in the Imperial City and then tearing them apart from the inside before moving on to the next. His goal, as far as Doyle was able to determine, was to destroy civilization. It is unclear how much of what was done in this period was actually Riku's initiative and how much was the avatar's influence or independent action; Doyle's investigative reports described Riku as a cruel sociopath, but they also lacked any mention of the avatar.
On September 13, 23 ARL, the Shadows of Existence broke into Riku's Corruption-sealed dream realm. They enacted a series of purification rituals and other positive influences, climaxing in a ritual so powerful that it disrupted dreams across the continent and tossed the Shadows into the lifestream. The backlash put Riku into a coma in the waking world. This left him unable to respond when the Shadows returned later that day and, with Doyle's help, bluffed their way into the room where the merchant Riku had been manipulating had people caring for him. They cast another redemption on him, and then, hoping for peace but preparing for battle, they healed him and woke him up.
His first act was to pull them close, and in a terrified voice, tell them "You have the wrong person. You need to run."
The Shadows brought Riku with them when they beat a hasty retreat from the city to save themselves from the Avatar of Corruption's attention. They talked with him more after they were safe, gathering information, and when they subsequently launched a strike on the avatar, Riku independently helped as best he could with a ritual from their ship outside the city.
Riku has since been taken into Malakai's care and is living at Malakai's Forge. He has been undergoing treatment to help with the many physical deformities and scars left by his history of malnourishment and mistreatment.
Current Status
Resting, recovering, and learning
Current Location
Species
Age
Young
Children
Current Residence
Pronouns
He/Him
Gender
Male
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