Icterine, Joel [Complete]

Joel was born as a citizen of Atlas, a world of sophistication would not await him however. His parents were simple, down to earth folk that ran a dust shop in the commons of the capital. Of course, times were often tough as the Schnee Dust Company rose to prominence around a similar time. As a young boy Joel had seen war, The Faunus Rights Revolution had only ended when he was a teenager, he didn't really think much about it at the time, he had the unpopular opinion of treating the faunus like he would any other human. He had a very average upbringing and graduated high school as a star student. Joel could also see that the family Dust shop was doomed to fail given the large amount of competition surrounding them, so he did what he thought was best for someone without very much passion for anything.

 Joel enlisted with the Atlesian Military at the age of 19 and was an Officer by 20. Given that there were no real conflicts at the time, there wasn't much of importance for a general soldier to do excluding patrolling the outskirts for Grimm. That warranted no interest to Joel, so he thought of an alternative and found himself as a member of the Atlesian Military Police.

 Joel didn't just find that he enjoyed his job, he found that he was also good at it, however that enjoyment diminished with time as the White Fang, whom had risen shortly after the war as a pro-peace organization had slowly drifted more and more into the position of protesters and even terrorists. Joel soon found himself in several warzones within the city, forced to subdue several of the citizens of Atlas who simply wanted equal rights for their people. He empathized with them, but he had to fulfill his duty to Atlas, and that was how he met her. At one point, a protest had turned into a large scale riot, and people were going so far as to body slam the shield wall. One woman, jumped over it altogether and right toward Joel. He grasped her arm and she turned to look at him, and he saw her eyes beneath a hood. No anger, no hatred, just fear. He was stuck there and time seemed to pass endlessly slowly. That is of course until she stabbed him with a piece of glass and he was forced to subdue her anyway. He took her personally to the holding cells and got her name, Maria, a bunny faunus. Shortly after, he went to the infirmary and was layed-up for a few day. They ended up talking a lot in the time he was injured and she was locked away.

 It was much to her surprise when Joel dropped any and all charges against her with a few favors he had accrued over the years. The two of them had a daughter and Joel was given paternal leave for a time. He was happy, and they were together for 3 years, he was 28 then. Maria had never stopped protesting though, and there wasn't much that Joel could do short of arresting her again, but he wouldn't, partly out of love and partly out of knowing that even that would not stop her. Several days later, he found that he had wished that he had arrested her when a protest turned violent. She was left in critical condition and passed away in the hospital. Joel was alone with his 3 year old daughter, and the only friend that he had left was in a bottle. His drinking soon became a problem, and he lost everything because of it. He was deemed unfit for duty and discharged, but what hit him hardest was when he was deemed an alcoholic, and his daughter was taken from him and into foster care. There was nothing left for him in Atlas, he didn't try to fight for his daughter because she needed a real father.... not him.

 He left for Vacuo on the anniversary of the end, Maria's death. He did keep one thing from his old life, an old Aussie hat, the only thing that he could link to his daughter, he always wore it. What was a man with over 10 years of military experience to do for a living in a land of expansive desert? Be a soldier of course. Although it was a big change, Joel was a soldier and needed to fight, so he took up arms in the harsh land as a soldier of fortune, but he wasn't used to living without rules. Nobody to tell him he was unfit, nobody to scold him for drinking, and nobody to stand in his way. He spent 12 years in Vacuo as a merc, operating with his revolvers, a tatted duster, and a blood red scarf. Joel was a tough soldier and earned the title of The Shepherd of the Wolves, but he couldn't be a lone wolf forever.

 He started a merc company called The Shepherds, made up of people whom had been in similar situations as him, although they were technically outlaws, they were some of the best, excluding a few, The Huntsmen. Joel found himself in combat with Huntsmen of Vacuo once or twice, and he had the scars to prove it, never winning, but always surviving. The Shepherds however, were not so lucky, his squad was all but wiped out when a large pack of Grimm stumbled upon their camp. Some of them escaped, most fell, but at the end of it all, the only one left in the camp was Joel himself, face scarred and bloody, surrounded by the bodies of Grimm and men alike. Several huntsmen soon found him in the aftermath, sitting silently and alone, smoking a cigar and holding a 1000-Yard stare into the dunes. He held the gun to his head, but the huntsmen grabbed him and forcefully unlocked his aura.  He stopped fighting, dropped his guns, fell to his knees, with tears streaming down his face and tattoos burning their way onto his arms. "Why? Why did you do that? WHY DID YOU DO THAT?!?!" He could see something, he wasn't sure what, but he saw it. One of the Huntsmen spoke up "Aura belongs to those who have a soul, as you have a soul and still a purpose, another chance to atone for all that you have done." They left him and he stared farther and farther into the abyss, contemplating life as it had passed him so quickly and mercilessly. "I am but a single Shepherd left in a sea of wolves." He holstered his guns and started walking toward the closest coastal town. "But I am destined to show them the way." He once more abandoned a kingdom and left on a small ship by himself.

 Landing on the island of Bellmuse he saw opportunity to fulfill what he saw. Despite his age he applied to Syne and found himself accepted, stepping into a whole new world, the likes of which he'd never seen before. He had only one goal left, become a Hunter, and see his daughter again when he was worthy.

Joel sat in a booth at the corner of the bar. He was surrounded by empty mugs and his boots we kicked up onto the table with his hat tilted over his face. He looked restful but he was quietly thinking aloud. "Let's see here... 25 mugs of whiskey, not glasses, not shots. These are pints, mugs and I do not feel anything. Well, guess I feel a little bit calmer. Stupid Huntsmen, not thinkin about how their little stunt would possibly affect me before they pulled it." The room was dimly lit and the tiniest bit smoky from some of the past patrons of the day.
 By this point a group of 6 men knocked on the table he sat at. "Go away." He said without even looking up.
 "We need to have a talk with you Old Man!" This one got Icterine's attention. He tilted his hat up and examined the posse that addressed him. There were a jumble of whispers between them. "I told you it was him..." Joel had a bored look on his face and he sighed.
 "You boys gonna make it quick? I had a long day and I got a longer one tomorrow." He then looked up at the bartender so that he could get his tab. The man dropped a check at the table and Icterine handed it back with essentially his entire wallet.
 "You got a lot of our friends dead Shepherd..." Joel waved his hand cutting off the one that was speaking.
 "Hey, hey, hey, hey. Let's not discuss things like that in here you idiot. " Icterine got up and pointed to the door behind the bar. "Back Alley." He said as he started to make for the exit, with the little gang right behind him. He stepped out into the alley and he immediately lit up a cigar. He blew a bit of smoke into the air before addressing the party
 "Awright. What in the name of god is your problem that interrupted my personal time?" This statement angered one of them, sparking him to slap the hat off of Joels head, and the rest of them surrounded him.
 "You know exactly what our problem is Shepherd. You."
 Icterine looked down at his hat on the ground. It had fallen into a puddle of water and sand on the dingy alley sidewalk. He sighed before looking around at all of the men around him. "Ya see, that there, was a great idea." He quickly drew his revolver and spun around, fanning the hammer once on each of them. He landed a solid hit on all of them and they fell like a poorly constructed building. He finished his cigar and flicked it away, picking up his hat and dusting it off, making audibly disgusted noises before placing it back on his head. He holstered his gun and caught a glimpse of his reflecting in the puddle. "Jesus, I look like I tried to get frisky with a weed whacker." He audibly laughed about the situation he was in for the first time in days. He then left the alley with a renewed vigor and some passing thoughts. 'Gonna be a long boat ride.'