Zeru Aldric

"Redemption? Such a concept holds little meaning here. If you truly wish to make this world a better place, you can't hesitate. Not even for a split second..."

Appearance
Standing at just slightly over 6 feet in height, Zeru is a somewhat tall and imposing looking figure. His outward features include short, somewhat unkempt black hair, along with clear blue eyes. Zeru possesses Caucasian skin and a somewhat muscled figure, mainly due to many years of training and fighting to become a hunter. However, this same lifestyle has also left his body heavily scarred in certain areas, with many distinct after-marks being located on his chest and arms. Though a testament to his many fights, a good portion of these features are hidden behind his largely combat-oriented attire. This includes light-weight, silver colored armor that coats his chest and torso regions, along with silver leggings to cover his lower portions. On his hands are two similarly colored gauntlets that he rarely ever removes, seeing as they act as his primary and secondary weapons. Zeru also wears a flowing, somewhat faded blue cloak with silver trims. The upper portion is disconnected from the lower part, which primarily allows for the upper cloak's removal during fights or other situations where it might get in the way.

However, Zeru's most notable and prominent piece of attire is easily his mask. Taking on a black, almost charred-looking color, the mask itself is designed for both intimidation and concealment purposes. Though initially created from raw metallic substances, it has been upgraded and re-forged accordingly since its conception. The facial expression on the mask is that of a jagged looking scowl, the overall look reinforced by the somewhat narrowed eye openings, along with two horns protruding from the left and right sides. Much like his gauntlets, Zeru rarely ever removes his mask, even if he happens to be wearing more casual clothes. In relation to this, his casual attire mainly consists of a white, button-up shirt and a pair of black pants. His cloak is switched out for a rather worn-looking black coat, one which he often drapes over his shoulders, rather than placing his arms through the sleeves.

Personality
At first glance, Zeru comes across as a very stoic and foreboding figure; if mostly due to his appearance and seemingly distant nature. Those close to him however can attest to Zeru being a rather passionate and charismatic person. He tends to speak in a somewhat commanding tone of voice, though without being overly stern at the same time. He is generally straight forward and to-the-point when speaking to others, though will still engage in small talk and general discussion. At his core, Zeru sees himself as a hunter and leader; though in these regards, he places his close friends/allies and loved ones above all else. He will generally go out of his way to ensure their safety and well-being; whether it be as complex as fighting for their sake, or as simple as talking with them on certain matters. In relation to this, Zeru's voice takes a hushed, almost apologetic sounding tone when speaking on more sincere subjects. While he is not beyond showing his deeper emotions, he believes that it's best to keep a relatively focused outlook and demeanor in more serious situations. Additionally, Zeru is very empathetic towards the poor and downtrodden, having grown up in poverty himself. As such, he generally treats those of such backgrounds with much of the same respect he shows his allies.

By stark contrast, while Zeru is very sympathetic to his allies, he is just as cold and merciless to his foes. He is very judgmental of felons and criminal groups, especially those in association with the White Fang. Due to a past situation that led to the death of his partner and love interest (Reseda Lexine), Zeru has become something of an extremist in these regards. He firmly believes that the only correct way to deal with major criminals is to kill them, and that if one were to let them live, they would only keep resurfacing to cause more trouble. Any individual that he sees as corrupt or irredeemable will more or less become his target, at which point he will take nearly any measure necessary to ensure their death. While Zeru is very adamant on this, he is not beyond giving others second chances. The act of him doing so is quite rare however, and is largely dependent on the situation at hand. Notably, while he immensely despises the White Fang, his hatred does not extend to all Faunus as a whole; as most of his ire is aimed towards criminal groups.

Despite Zeru's strong belief in his actions, there are still some form of doubts that cloud his mind. Most of these are in relation to Reseda, especially regarding her outlooks. Though he wishes for nothing more than to avenge Reseda, he believes that her moral code contributed to her death; In that her belief of seeing the best in others and giving them a second chance, while noble, would ultimately be in vain. He is very quick to point out that such acts of mercy will not always be honored by opponents, often siting Reseda's case as an example of such. Despite this, Zeru can't help but feel partially responsible for her death as well. He often wonders if he could have saved Reseda, had he not fallen asleep on the night of her death. Due to this, Zeru has developed irregular sleeping patterns, and generally feels uneasy when resting. This has even resulted in recurring nightmares - ones often involving his late beloved - which leave him suddenly waking up in a cold sweat. Zeru has never truly spoken of this problem to anyone however, as he believes it would only cause his friends and allies to worry more about him.

Backstory
Born into poverty in one of the rougher sections of Vale, Zeru's early life was something of an uphill battle. With his father having abandoned the family early on, Zeru's mother was the only parental figure left in his life. She wasn't able to spend much time with her son, seeing as she had to maintain multiple jobs to keep a relatively stable income for the two. With what little time the two could spend with each-other, Zeru's mother told him stories of valiant hunters and huntresses, who battled the sinister creatures of Grimm in order to maintain peace in the world. For Zeru's mother, aside from bonding with her son, these stories provided a very brief escape from the crippling reality of their situation. To the young and impressionable Zeru however, they were more than mere stories; They were a potential reality, which he believed could be achieved with enough hard work and determination.

In order to pursue this dream, Zeru began practicing fighting techniques. Being so young at this point however, he mainly attempted to replicate things he had heard in his mother's stories. While he had very little success at first, Zeru never gave up trying. As he grew older, so to did his knowledge and combat prowess. Once he was old enough, Zeru eventually found a part-time job to help support his mother and their financial problems. Even then however, he continued to practice and hone his fighting abilities in his spare time. All of this eventually came to a head a few months later. Zeru had finally decided to put his skills to the test; and so one evening, rather than heading home after finishing work, he wandered into the local wilderness instead. Seeing that her son hadn't returned home that night, Zeru's mother quickly set off to find him. Though she eventually did, the outcome definitely wasn't what she was expecting: She discovered Zeru in the woods as he had been battling several minor Grimm, and had emerged victorious over each and every one of them.

Though he was initially reprimanded for his actions, Zeru was eventually able to explain the overall situation to his mother. He described how he aspired to be like the hunters from her stories, and revealed that he had been saving up a portion of side-money to eventually go off to an academy. His mother was conflicted at first, and was concerned for her son's safety more-so than anything. Ultimately though, she became convinced that Zeru could handle himself, and that he had overall good intentions going forwards. With his mother's blessing, Zeru continued to train and prepare for his future enrollment. One year later, he was accepted into Signal Academy; where he would not only forge his own weapon, but also unlock his aura and semblance. Beyond this, Zeru would continue to improve upon his studies and fighting prowess, to the point where he would eventually be accepted into Beacon Academy at the age of 17. Before departing however, Zeru exchanged farewells with his mother and made a promise to her: In that he would continue to find ways to support her, even with how inevitably busy he would be.

Arriving at Beacon the next day, Zeru found himself eager to begin his classes, though couldn't help but feel some sense of nervousness as well. The relatively larger environment and the copious amount of new faces was quite a bit to take in at first. Fortunately, Zeru was able to circumvent these feelings during the team formation process. Through combat, he was able to focus more clearly and lend assistance to three other students who would eventually become his teammates. As a result, Team ZRCN was formed; composed of Zeru himself as the leader, Reseda Lexine, Clara Ledford, and Niles Gereon. As the four became acquainted through their classes and downtime, they quickly became close friends. Out of all of them however, Zeru found himself connecting with Reseda the most, as she seemed to share similar desires to aid those closest to her: She revealed that she came from an orphanage in Vacuo, and was more or less the guardian figure to some of the younger kids there. All of the team members had their own life-long dreams of sorts, though as time went on however, it became apparent that the team would eventually have to go their separate ways in order to achieve their goals; as Clara planned on moving back to Atlas to pursue a career in robotics, while Niles would travel to Mistral to become a teacher. Zeru would remain in Vale to become a hunter, while Reseda would go back to Vacuo to help manage the orphanage.

At the age of 20, Zeru and the rest of his team graduated from Beacon. Knowing their parting was inevitable, Team ZRCN made the most out of their time. The group spent one last night together, discussing their previous adventures and their future plans. As they looked back on their time at Beacon, it had become quite evident that Zeru and Reseda had developed feelings for each-other, though neither had truly spoken to the other about it. Taking notice of this, Clara eventually pulled Reseda aside, as Niles soon did with Zeru, with both urging them to express their feelings; as this could have been the last opportunity for them to do so. With this in mind, Zeru and Reseda soon revealed their affections to one-another, which ended with them kissing for the first time. The next morning, most of the group prepared to bid their farewells and go on their separate ways, though not before promising that they'd all continue to keep in contact with each-other.

Before Zeru could head off however, Reseda approached him with a proposition: That the two work together to form a freelance hunter/huntress duo of sorts. While they wouldn't be able to work in tandem with each-other all the time, they would still be able to keep their relationship going via traveling and visits. Quickly agreeing to this, the two soon made arrangements to meet up in the following months. Zeru would eventually travel to Vacuo, where he would go on local assignments with Reseda, along with helping her manage the orphanage. A few months later, Reseda would visit Zeru in Vale, where the two would take up missions as hunters for hire. This cycle continued for three full years, their relationship growing stronger with each visit and mission. For most of the assignments they took up, they were mainly hired to exterminate Grimm, along with the occasional defensive or escort jobs. One night however, as the two were relaxing after a successful mission, they both happened upon a gathering of several members of the White Fang.

Both Zeru and Reseda had experienced run-in's with White Fang members before, though they were nothing to this extent before: As the large amount of members seemed to be carrying out a sizable smuggling operation of sorts. Feeling the need to take action, the two hunters scoped out the White Fang's operation before intervening. Zeru and Reseda were able to fend off the would-be smugglers with relative ease, though the sheer number of would-be smugglers ensured that the battle would take some time to complete. The resulting commotion eventually caught the attention of local authorities, who soon rushed in as the fight was dying down. Just as Zeru was about to leave the rest to the police, he took notice of something nearby: A relatively young looking White Fang member had managed to hide through-out the duration of the fight, and was now attempting to make an escape. Giving chase to him, the two hunters eventually cornered the Faunus in a nearby alleyway. Although Zeru was prepared to knock out the White Fang member, Reseda stepped forwards to deal with them herself.

Rather than fighting them however, she talked with them, much to Zeru's confusion at first. Despite the crime he was involved in, Reseda spoke to the White Fang member in a very gentle and friendly manner. This puzzled the young Faunus at first, though he was eventually calmed down as she continued to speak. Reseda eventually agreed to let the Faunus go, under the condition that he go straight back to his family - stating that they were the ones in need of him the most at this point, rather than the White Fang. Agreeing to this, the Faunus quickly escaped afterwards. Zeru was more than a bit bewildered by this, though Reseda soon explained her outlooks on this: She believed in searching for the best in others, and that everyone inherently had some form of good within them. Seeing how young the White Fang member was, along with their unwillingness to fight, she felt it was only right to give them a form of second chance. Though Zeru was skeptical of this at first, he decided to let it go for now, and tried to see things from Reseda's perspective.

Roughly one month later, Reseda's visit to Vale was nearing its end. The night before she was set to leave for Vacuo, she received a minor assignment request: A simple job which would have her guarding items in a storage facility until they could be moved. At the time, Zeru was in a deep sleep, having just completed a mission of his own a day prior. The assignment itself lasted several hours from early morning to afternoon, which naturally left him exhausted. Not wanting to wake him up, Reseda left Zeru a note telling of her own assignment before heading off. Upon arriving at the facility however, it soon became apparent that she was lured into a trap. Both Zeru and Reseda had become targets for the White Fang after disrupting their recent operation; as a result, Reseda was ambushed by several of their members upon entering the building. Though she was able to fend them off, the sheer number of White Fang members was rather overwhelming, and put great strain on her stamina as a result. Once they were beaten, the White Fang members quickly retreated, seemingly leaving the huntress to recuperate. Before she could act any further, Reseda made a grim discovery: The facility had been planted with several bombs, which were set to detonate soon. Though she tried to escape, the previous fight had taken too much out of her. Collapsing near the exit, Reseda was engulfed in the resulting explosion that leveled the building.

Not long afterwards, Zeru awoke from his sleep. Seeing the note Reseda had left him, he quickly headed off to lend her assistance. Upon arriving at the facility however, the only thing he discovered was a collapsed building and an ongoing investigation. Fearing for the worst, Zeru quickly searched for any sign of Reseda. Unfortunately, the only things that turned up were fragments of her armor, with her full body never being recovered. Overcome with sorrow and grief, Zeru slumped to his knees at the loss of his beloved. Some of these feelings however, would not last for long...as something within the hunter snapped; his sorrow quickly transforming into an ever-burning desire for revenge. Forging a mask from the remaining pieces of Reseda's armor, Zeru set off to search for his beloved's killers. From his investigation, he quickly realized that the White Fang were the most probable culprits. As he traveled, he managed to gain several supporters in his fight against the White Fang, to the point where he had essentially formed a new hunter group. Dubbing his new faction the "Crescent Wings," he continued onward in what was essentially his quest for vengeance.

For the next two years, Zeru would continue to fight and gain support for his faction. Eventually, he had gathered enough resources to set up a permanent location for his faction, primarily on a remote island to the south of Vale. At around this point, he also began seeking out his old companions that made up the rest of Team ZRCN. While he was able to recruit Clara, Niles was far more opposed to the offer. He had seen just how vengeful his old leader had become, and couldn't agree to his new, extreme views of dealing with their foes. Though both Zeru and Niles prepared to fight at first, neither could bring themselves to actually attack the other; their old bonds essentially getting the better of them. Leaving his old friend, Zeru continued to build up his faction through the various connections and resources he obtained over the years, aiming to continue his "war" with the White Fang and any who would attempt to get in his way.

Battle of Beacon
Although Zeru wasn't present at Beacon exactly, he still took action during the events that led to its fall. Upon hearing the news that Beacon and Vale were being overrun with Grimm, Zeru sent out several scouts to help with damage control. One group in particular was lead by him to help defend the town his mother resided in. Though Zeru never met or spoke with her directly, he left behind several supplies and lien to his mother, along with a note reading as: "No matter what, I'll always make sure you're safe. - Your son, Zeru Aldric."

Weapons / Abilities
Having trained to become a hunter for a good portion of his life, Zeru is an extraordinarily skilled fighter in many regards. He is a very swift combatant, using a high amount of agility and dexterity to outmaneuver his foes. Zeru doesn't only rely on his speed though, as he also understands the importance of precision and tactics. He'll often observe his opponent's motions to pin-point openings or weaknesses, then strike when the moment is right. In these regards, he is also not beyond using the environment to his advantage. However, the most notable thing about Zeru's fighting style is that he actively employs his semblance as his main weapon. While this method can grant him several options for dealing with his opponents, it can also be a potential liability if he does not keep his semblance usage in-check. Zeru understands the importance of this, and never uses it for the entire duration of a fight; usually only activating it in quick bursts when it absolutely matters.

The way Zeru approaches a fight mainly depends on the situation and his opponent. If he is sparring with someone or taking part in an otherwise non-serious battle, Zeru will often gauge his opponent's abilities and skills before taking action himself. In most cases, he'll generally go easy on his sparring partners and use specific motions to help them learn from the match. When it comes to more serious situations however, Zeru can become outright cold and merciless. Whether it be criminals or Grimm, Zeru will focus almost solely on eliminating his foes in a fast and efficient manner. Because of this, he rarely, if ever, banters with his targets. This is especially so if he happens to be fighting someone that he's judged as irredeemable. In these cases, he will utilize any variety of techniques to ensure the target's death. In relation to this, one of Zeru's favored methods is through the art of "Endurance Hunting" - in which the hunter stalks and attacks its prey over long stretches of time, eventually killing the prey once it becomes exhausted. Zeru has been a practitioner of this hunting style since he was a child, and as such, has developed immense stamina as a result. His personal record in Endurance Hunting is 5 hours and 37 minutes.

Despite his impressive array of capabilities, Zeru is not without his own share of weaknesses. Mostly notably, the nature of his fighting style heavily relies on wind dust. Should he run out of dust or otherwise lose his connection with it, he will not be able to activate his semblance. Although Zeru is fully capable of fighting back with his bare hands and other weapon types, his semblance is still the most powerful tool at his disposal. Additionally, Zeru forgoes most forms of heavy armor in the interest of speed. While his aura may be prevalent enough to withstand a number of hits, his actual, physical armor is somewhat below average in terms of defensive properties. Beyond this, Zeru's overall fighting style is heavily melee focused. As such, he is put at a natural disadvantage against anyone with effective ranged combat, provided they can keep their distance from him.

Catalyst and Force Gauntlets
Zeru's primary "weapon" is more of a utility for his semblance. The Catalyst Gauntlet is a high-tech, armored glove that Zeru wears on his right hand. On top of the gauntlet's center is a small opening, allowing for the containment of dust crystals. In turn, this allows him to empower and activate his semblance. Zeru keeps a wind dust crystal within his gauntlet at nearly all times, and is known to carry several spare crystals should the initial one be drained. Beyond this function, the gauntlet itself is composed of very high-end materials. While this makes it somewhat heavy, it also ensures that it cannot be broken easily. With enough precision, Zeru is capable of blocking sword strikes and even bullets with it. The gauntlet is not completely indestructible however, as it can only take so much abuse before it eventually starts to wear out.

Meanwhile, on Zeru's left hand is the Force Gauntlet. This defensive glove was created by his friend and teammate, Clara, in order to cover the 'blind spot' in his fighting style. The gauntlet is outfitted with two "force generators," coming in the form of circular indentations with blue, glowing cores; one being located on the back of the hand, while the other is on the palm. Both of these generators are capable of producing small bursts of energy from their openings, primarily as a way to push opponents back. The bursts themselves have very short range, but are capable of sending people and objects back a fair distance. The gauntlet itself is designed in a similar manner to Zeru's primary one, in that it has high durability. Unlike the Catalyst Gauntlet however, this one cannot be infused with dust.

Mask of Grief
Zeru's mask, originally forged from the remains of Reseda's armor. Though originally somewhat crude in its appearance, the mask has been upgraded significantly over the course of time. Technological integrations and the re-forging of its overall shape have turned it into a very strong utility piece, primarily due to the visor-type filters over the mouth and eye regions. From these visors, Zeru is able to make the mouth and eye portions glow an ominous blue; though the color filter is soft enough to still allow its wearer to see through. Aside from intimidation and defense purposes, the mask's filters are equipped with night and thermal vision functions, allowing Zeru to more accurately fight in darker locations. Notably, the mask itself runs off an internal battery located on the left side, and is generally able to sustain itself for 9 hours before needing to be manually recharged.

Semblance: Fragarach
Zeru's semblance is "Fragarach," otherwise known as 'The Retaliator.' In order to use this ability, he must first have physical access to wind dust to be used as a catalyst. Through either touch, or by using his right-hand gauntlet to channel its energy, Zeru can create a sword-based construct. The sword itself is composed of wind energy, coming in the form of condensed, light green whirlwinds that compose its overall structure. The blade itself can extend up to roughly 31 inches, though can be made shorter if needed. The Fragarach possesses remarkably strong cutting power, capable of slicing through very dense materials such as large rocks and stones. Metallic substances have proven to be more resistant against the blade, though they can still be worn down given enough time and with enough pressure being applied to them.

While the Fragarach sword is quite strong, there are a few notable weaknesses to it. Aside from only being able to work in conjunction with wind dust, its biggest drawback is the sheer amount of energy required to sustain it. When active, this semblance will constantly drain energy from its catalyst. Due to this, Zeru must use this ability in short, precise bursts to keep it from draining his wind dust completely. Beyond this, the blade itself has one other glaring weak point; that being the 'hilt.' To prevent its user from being cut, the Fragarach is projected slightly outwards from the dust that creates it, while leaving the space around the crystal itself safe. While Zeru has taken measures to cover this weak point (primarily through the use of his Force Gauntlet), it can still be taken advantage of in the right situation.

Trivia

 * Zeru's name means "Sky" in Basque. In relation to this, his primary color is blue. This is mainly seen in his attire, hair color, and most prominently, his mask.
 * His last name, Aldric, means "Ruler" in Ancient Germanic.
 * Zeru's semblance, Fragarach, is named after a sword in Irish mythology. Aside from having the alias of "The Retaliator," the sword was also able to grant its wielder control over the winds.