forum Never Break the Chain (oxo | mature | closed)

Started May 19, 2023 by @knightinadream group

tune

What is something that is weak on its own, but stronger with others?
We must separate them one by one that way we can destroy them.
They will be weak on their own. We will be stronger if we are together.

A disgraced assassin from the Lupu Ring and a socialite join forces to take down the boss and high ranking officials of the assassin guilds. Bound by their need of revenge and survival, the chain linking them together hardens over time.

The Lupu Ring is one of the assassin guilds that links the criminal underworld to the world of wealth and luxury. You have the Lupu Ring, Men of Gujić, and Szarka Group. All three rivals against each other; sometimes they go after each other more than their usual targets. Still, the Lupu Ring is most known and spoken of compared to the two others. Most people are aware of the assassins of these guilds, but there's also the middlemen ("messengers") who hire the killers and hand them assignments. With these assassins and messengers together to go after targets their clients pay thousands, even millions, of dollars to go after. Politicians, celebrities, CEOs, lawyers, prosecutors, and even basic day-to-day people, all of them assassins of the Lupu Ring have gone after. No one knows how this guild works. Officers and government officials have tried to catch assassins, but have failed. Once one appears, they disappear in a flash.

Julius Stoica, the leader of the Lupu Ring, is one of the most wanted men in the world. Character A is one of his most wanted men. After being abandoned at birth, Character A was taken in by the plotter "Mister Ursu" and raised to be an assassin. Up until the death of his guardian, Character A was loyal to Julius Stocia. Mister Ursu was killed by one of Stocia's guards, and Character A was labeled as a traitor who must be killed at all costs. Now the assassin has been roaming around while coming up with a plan to take down Stocia and all those who follow him.

But he isn't the only one who wants to take down Stocia. Character B is the daughter of the Tolvaj Construction CEO. For most of her days, she has been close with and looked up to her father. When he suddenly is murdered and her older brother takes the CEO position of the company, she learns of her father and brother's connections with the Lupu Ring. The detectives in charge of her father's case are close to giving up, but she discovers two things; 1: an assassin from the Lupu Ring killed her father and 2: her brother was the one to order it. With her father gone, she suspects that her brother is going to go after her. So on one dark and dreary night, Character B decides to run away.

In the midst of running away, Character bumps into Character A. After saving Character B from the pursuers, the two soon discover their common goals: take revenge and take down the Lupu Ring. One of them proposes that they should work together, and the other agrees. Maybe if neither breaks the chain between them, they will be able to take down the Lupu Ring once and for all.

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Rules

• Experienced rpers only
• This rp will have some dark moments and themes, but will also have light-hearted ones too.
• Please try to respond at least once per day. My response times will vary, but I will do my best to respond as quickly as possible.
• Don't be too OP
• Swearing is okay
• Andrew's rules
• At least one paragraph response with good grammar and spelling
• No sexy times. If we ever get to that, we'll just skip over it.
• Just so you know, my character will be Character A.
• I believe that is it for now. If you have any questions, just let me know. :)

(Okie dokie! Here's the template, sorry for the hold up. I'll post my character as soon as I can)
Name:
Age:
Gender/Pronouns:
Orientation:
Personality:
Appearance:
Background:
Other:

Name: Gwynplaine "Gwi" Ursu
Age: 25
Gender/Pronouns: Male (he/him)
Sexuality: Polysexual
Personality: In order to be in a part of the world he's known for all his life, he has to be apathetic, calloused, and closed off. To some extent, he is or that is what Gwynplaine likes to think. Every now and then, he has to deal with the compassion and empathy that lingers within his heart. Sometimes being observant means seeing how much it would mean to someone if you helped them carry something heavy. Gwynplaine is a stoic loner type who would rather be swimming with sharks than to be in a group or to just ineravt with another human being. On the other hand, he feels like something is missing in his mind and heart. He doesn't know what it is yet at the same time, he does. Gwynplaine feels lonely when he isn't focused on kills, so he uses TV shows, movies, and books to numb the feeling. There is a small chance he could be warm or more than what he is now, but all Gwi can see whenever he looks at himself is an assassin, a killer.
Appearance: Gwi has nut brown almond-shaped eyes. He stands around six foot two, but his posture always makes him look bigger. Still, he has a lean build. His skin is a beige tone. There are callouses on his hands. His hair is a dark shade of brown that appears black in different lighting. It is shoulder-length despite him always wanting to cut it short; he has this weird fear about going to a barber shop and someone putting a hit on him. Not to mention it is always shaggy, so that's why he prefers to put it up in a man bun. Even though he has his hair up, he will have a black hair-tie on his right wrist. On his arms, he has tattoos that look like this. He also has the phrase "audi vide tace" across the back of his shoulders. There are times where he wears long sleeve shirts or a leather jacket and you can't see his tattoos.
Background: Gwynplaine was abandoned when he was a few months old. Being taken in by Mister Ursu, he was raised to kill. Ursu lived in a large, but abandoned, library where he planned out murders to give to assassins. The fixer gave the boy the name "Gwynplaine" from the Victor Hugo book "The Man Who Laughs." Ursu was reading it at the time and was tired of calling Gwynplaine "boy" or "hey you" all the time, but sometimes saying "Gwynplaine" would get to be too much for him too so he gave the boy "Gwi" as a nickname. While Mister Ursu gave Gwi food, shelter, and clothes, he didn't really raise him like a father would. Instead, he decided to teach Gwi how to be an assassin from the time he was five. Whenever Gwi wasn't training to kill, he would wander around the city or stay in the library. Gwynplaine taught himself to read. He never went to school, but he always spent time around books. Once he could read, he was able to learn how to do other things like cooking, sewing, and even fixing a car. When he was 16, he got his first kill. It was some business owner who was giving the client hassle over something; Gwi can barely remember the details. From then on, he lived day by day, worrying about when his life would end. Assassins rarely ever life past their thirties these days. When Mister Ursu was murdered and Gwi was blamed for it along with other false accusations, he thought his life would be done for. But it isn't; now he is going to make Julius Stoica and everyone in the Lupu Ring regret it.
Other: Ever since Mister Ursu was murdered, Gwynplaine has been hopping around going from place to place every now and then. He has a black cat named Benvolio who travels with him. Gwi always thought, if he had a different life, he would want to be a tailor or a librarian. Also, his favorite snack is chocolate pretzels.

Name: Kay Volio

Age: 22

Gender/Pronouns: Female She/Her

Orientation: Bi

Personality: Kay is usually a mellow person, not much temper, and can handle pretty much anything you throw at her. She can sometimes see through lies, but this really only works with people she knows very well. When backed in a corner though, Kay will lash out at anyone and anything. She doesn't take kindly to bring emotionally, physically or mentally in a corner. Kay will usually watch people, gathering information and storing it away, waiting to use it against them if the need arises. She has a good judge on people, able to tell whether they have good or bad intentions against her.

Appearance-

Eyes) Dark, but somehow warm, brown eyes

Hair) Brown with hints of gold and black.

Skin) Not dark, but not light either, probably a light chocolate brown

Height) 5’2

Weight) 157lbs

Body Type) Lean

Background: Kay grew up with a comfortable life. A loving father and no memories of her late mother who died six moths after Kay was born. Kay had an older brother of six years, Eli, and he always told stories of their mother. Kay never liked her brother for some reason, always getting a bad feeling whenever he was near. A feeling like she couldn’t trust him.

Kay was especially close with her father, always watching him when he worked, and creating a strong bond with him. She enjoyed following him around the offices and learning as much as she could about his business, as well as going on trips with him. She always hoped to be named heir of the company, knowing she had gotten involved with it much more than Eli. Her brother had always spent her father’s money, and barely did much work.

When Eli was eighteen this father, a wealthy and successful businessman, named him heir to the company, life when sideways for twelve year old Kay. It was a shock to not become heir, but her father was getting older and ready to retire. Kay was simply too young for the job. A few years passed and Kay got into a private high school. She went to the prestigious school, living on campus and going home for holidays and vacations.

When she was seventeen, her father was murdered, shot in the head while on the way to a brunch while Kay was visiting from school. Kay got the call just moments after the EMT’s had gotten to the scene. She rushed over, only to find Dr father was already dead. She was with her brother and a few close family friends when the will was read. The lawyer had stated that it seemed her father was trying to change the will, but nothing had been made official and no documents signed. Her brother got the company and Kay only received a large sum of money as well as a trust fund.

She had gone to her father’s funeral two weeks later. She was distraught, but didn’t’t let it all show. Only a few days later, while she was looking through some paper work and files, did she find out who killed her father and who had ordered it. Three days after that, and Kay was gone, taking the money with her and going ‘underground’, trying to find as much information to put her brother behind bars and the people who had killed her father gone. By any means nessicary.

Revenge does not happen overnight. Sometimes it takes days, weeks, months, or even years to accomplish. Sometimes it requires a team to achieve. Gwynplaine pondered all of this as he stood in the candy aisle of a downtown convenience store. His eyes lingered at the small variety of bags of chocolate pretzels. Not really the ideal place to mull over vengeance, but he couldn't help it. He had spent months hopping from place to place in order to survive. Coming back to the city was risky, yet isn't it better to be closer to one's enemies?

The man sighed to himself. Grabbing two bags of chocolate pretzels and a bottle of apple juice , he dragged his feet to the cash register. After shoving his wallet into his pant pocket, he grabbed the plastic bag then went out. Being out and about was always lethal for him. Even with his head covered with a black beanie and mouth and nose covered with a mask, someone could identify him from miles away. Part of him liked the danger though. As much as he valued safety and survival, he loved the thrill of risk too.

Streets were filled with people going out and about, enjoying the night life. Gwynplaine weaved through the crowds. His eyes stared straight ahead. Minutes had gone by till he stopped at a park. There were still people there, but it wasn't as busy as the rest of the city was. Even though there were empty benches, he decided to lean against a tree. Gwi knew that he wouldn't be here for long, but he wanted to take a moment to look around and take in the view. Then he kept on walking.

Kay looks over her shoulder, cursing softly. It had been hours since she’d left. Really, she’d walked out under the guise of a lunch with her friends, but Eli had her followed, and that meant, when she didn’t get to the resultant and instead went elsewhere where, well. It had become a game of cat and mouse. A pretty fun one if she wasn’t running for her life.

She then looks forward before ducking into an alleyway. Though it was somewhat dark in this area, it was not dark enough. I her pursuers passed her, she’d be caught, but she needed the breather. Her breath wasn’t quite ragged in her throat, but it was close. Very close. She tries to catch her breath as she moves closer to the back f the alleyway. She startled a small cat and she looked at it, smiling softly before shooing it away gently. After a moment the small creature runs off.

She sighs and rests her head back against the wall, she was stuck in the alleyway for now, until the pursuers passed the entrance or came and aught her. She pushes her hair from her face and slides down the wall to sits on the dirty wall. Holy crap, it’s dirty. . . But she supposed she should get used to it. She would forever be in the run from her brother, unless she could prove what he had done to her father. She hadn’t had time to grab the papers, or move any of the emails before Eli had. Come back from a meeting, she’d arely made it out of his office before he’d gotten into the hall.

Three days later, she was on the run and hiding in the alleyway. Her life had lead her from the top of the world to squatting in a dirty alleyway. She heard footsteps and her head snapped up, she say one of the men who had been following her enter the alley and look around. She was in plain sight. She was screwed, she knew it the moment his gaze locked on her and he started to walk towards her with purposeful strides. No way in Hell would her tiny frame hold up against his large one.

(okay, sounds good to me!)

The assassin kept on dragging his feet. While walking on the main path in the park, he took note of the people he walked by. None of them really stood out to him. He only would ever give a double look if someone was dressed in all black or just came off as suspicious. So far, he only did so twice. At the second glance, he assured himself that there was nothing wrong. Sure, it is a bullshit of a notion, yet it prevented him from going down on a spiral of anxiety and paranoia. As long as it kept him alive, of course.

Eventually Gwynplaine found himself on a sidewalk again. This one was not as busy as the others from before. There wasn't that many people going out and about, although there are a bunch of bars, clubs and venues in the block. Alleyways were empty. Nothing was there for Gwi. At the same time, he knew that this part of the city was definitely one of Stocia's hangout spots. Venue owners must pay him for "protection" from the others. Then Stocia and his goons use the places to get targets or for free drinks. Either way, Gwi picked up the pace as he walked through.

In time he passed three alleyways. Before the last one, a man and a woman caught his eye. A gut feeling had hit him. Dark alley, giant man, woman…those things never mixed. Gwynplaine turned around, wondering whether or not he should do something. He didn't really know what he would do, what to say. Although, he does have a switch blade in his left pocket.

By the time he'd walked back to that alleyway, he noticed the guy making his way to the woman. This doesn't look good. Gwynplaine sighed. "Yah!" He shouted. "What are you doing with my girlfriend? Huh?" Loosening his grip on the plastic bag, he gradually walked up to the guy. "Go on, get lost. Let her go and we'll leave you alone. Okay?" This might now work. If it doesn't, he has plan b. He already feels the energy buzzing in his fists. If this goes south, Gwi had a plan b.

Kay grits her jaw, moving back a few steps, Oh, God, I’m screwed. . . She silently curses herself for putting herself in this position. For letting herself get cornered like this. She stares at the giant of a man stalking towards her. She scowls slightly, sliding her hands into her pockets and opens her mouth to speak when someone interrupts her.

Her gaze swings to the new arrival. She didn’t recognize the newcomer. He was defiantly taller than her, and close to the height of her pursuer. His words ring in her ears and she blinks slowly before forcing a small smile. “Brian! I thought you weren’t going to be back in town for another day or so!”

The lie came smoothly, but the pursuer was not taking the lie very easily. He looked at Kay suspiciously, and then laughs. A low, gruff sound, “Eli said his little sister had no partners.”

Kay crosses her arms, “Well my brother doesn’t know all things Kay. Now get out of here, I’m sure Brian wouldn’t mind smashing your face in.” Kay hoped it would work, it seemed as if ‘Brian’ was taller than the goon her brother had follow her. She was hoping to bet the guy would be intimidated. At the look of uncertanty that crossed the goons face, Kay had gambled correctly.

Brian. Gwynplaine blinked before forcing a smile like the ones he sees on those dramas people like. "Babe, come on," He laughed. "You know I like surprises." Guess he's Brian now. There wasn't enough time for him to think of what to say next. Hell, he had no clue what to say. Words don't usually suffice in scaring away some random goon. And of course, he can't be Gwi too. For now, at this very moment, he has to be Brian. Whoever Brian is, that doesn't matter. What matters is that he is intimidating enough to scare this guy away.

Gwi sighed while rolling his eyes. Frankly, he did so to buy himself some time. Guess Eli is some boss man or whatever for this dog he's sent to fetch for the woman. Gwi clicked his tongue at the man. At least the girl was quick enough to say something. He was ready to spit some bs right then and there.

There was only so much he could determine from the way the guy was looking at him. He was almost as tall as Gwynplaine, but not exactly. This guy's alone though. Whoever this Eli is wasn't smart enough to send two more with this lonely one.

Dropping the plastic bag, Gwi took a few steps closer to the goon. His shoulders were squared. For a second, his face held the expression it normally had on: cold and calloused. When he was closer to the guy, he smiled, "Come on. Eli would you useful in one piece." He patted the guy on the shoulder before shoving his hand back into his pocket. "Go on. If Eli has a problem finding her, tell him to be a man and do it himself. Okay?"

Kay laughs softly, slowly inching her way towards her rescuer, preferring not to have the goon between her and the bigger guy. She’d rather leave the goon’s back to the wall, have him cornered. She smiles at the guy she’d dubbed as Brian and shrugs lightly, “Surprises are nice, but not when I paired for the reservation at The Rose and Thorn for tomorrow.” She gives a small pout, placing her hands on her hips. The Rose and Thorn was a fancy restaurant, known for it’s admission for couples only and a nice place for a date. As well as expensive.

The goon narrows his eyes at Kay, “Eli want you back at the house. He said I should bring you back, even if you’re kicking and screaming.”

Kay huffs, still making her way to ‘Brian’, “Well. My big brother can wait. For now, I have a date with my boyfriend. So screw off.” She was still taking small, careful steps. She was just hoping to get closer to the mystery guy before the goon’s paycheck game into his head and he thought a fight wasn’t all that bad. As long as he brought Kay back, he’d get that fat paycheck.

Kay knew that too many deaths in her family would arouse suspicion, especially if Eli was the only one left standing. So he would want Kay back alive and find a way to keep her under his thumb until he could get rid of her without arousing that suspicion.

He forced another smile. "It's okay, baby," Gwi beamed. "We can do that tomorrow. I just wanted to spend more time with you." When the other man spoke, Gwynplaine dropped the gleam on his face. It wasn't just the fact that he wasn't used to smiling for more than a second; he was trying to fight back the urge to just throw a blow to the guy's left side. Taking a deep breath, he tried his best to fight off this impulse.

"She won't be kicking and screaming if I take her home," Gwi assured. As he finished his sentence, a light bulb went off over his head. He can't convince this guy with words. Whoever this Eli is probably promised the guy money for taking this girl back. Despite not knowing how much, Gwi took out his wallet. The black velcro wallet still held money from his last hit before Mister Ursu was murdered. He pulled out three one hundred dollar bills, holding them out to the goon. "Take it. I'll have her back by midnight. No kicking, screaming, hassle…She'll be in one piece. She'll be okay. Take it."

This Eli probably would be paying this dude five times what Gwi is offering, but money talks. He's seen people turn sides all because their eyes landed on the cash. That's what happened to Mister Ursu. He doesn't know what will happen next, what the woman will do or where she'll go, but he hoped that the three hundred bucks would help her get away. If not, he can up the price or put up a fight. Gwynplaine really didn't want to fight; he just wanted to go home and eat his snack.

(Sorry for the wait)

Kay smiles slightly, looking at the man, "Right, I know, It's just-" She pouts, "My surprise has been ruined."

She watches the man as she moved closer to him. Just ten more steps. She laughs softly at the comment the man made and looks back at the goon. Her gaze snaps back to the other man as he reaches into his pocket and pulls out a wallet. Her jaw drops slightly as the man pulls out cash and offers it to the guy. She had the slight feeling of being bought. She didn't like it, but f it kept her safe. . . Five more steps.

She watches as the goon stares at 'Brian', then down to the cash in his hand. The goon scowls, "You think you can by me with that amount of money? Idiot." The goon shakes his head looks his gaze turns to Kay.

She freezes, only three steps away from where she wanted to be. She was so close, but she wasn't going to move with the goons attention directly on her. She looks at 'Brian', "It's going to take more than that to buy him off. My brother kees them deep in his pocket, I'm assuming."

Really, Gwynplaine had no idea what he was doing. He's hungry and just wants to lay on his bed while scratching the cat behind the ears. Plus he's not in the mood to screw up his fists, fighting this weirdo. Money talks, and he'll let it say whatever as long as he can save this lady and go home. Biting the inside of his cheek, he gave the goon a wide smile.

"Look, my friend, you're loyal and hardworking. That's hard to come by. I respect that." Gwi went through the rest of the cash in his wallet. There's at least a thousand in there aside from the three hundred already in his left hand. Well, as long as this woman can get out of this situation safely, it's worth it. He took out the rest of the money, putting it together with the other bills. "I'm sure that Eli will pay you way more for taking her, but let me pay you for your troubles. Alright?"

He slipped the cash into the guy's hand then went to take the woman's. "I'll have her home soon. You can bet on it." Turning around, he started to walk out of the alley while picking up his bag of snacks. There's no way he's going to way for this lackey's approval to let her go. He'll do it. After all, what's that Latin quote from that movie, again? Carpe diem? Seize the day?

As soon as he turned out from the alley, he started to pick up the pace. He began to speed walk as quickly as possible without making it look like running. "Do you have some place to go?" He asked the lady. "I'll take you there, alright?"

(Sorry again for the wait)

After long moment, the goon took the money silently and looked at Kay for a long moment before turning and walking away. His gait was slower than before, perusing. He now had time to relax and he would take as long as possible before returning back to Eli.

Kay lets the stranger take her hand, looking over her shoulder and waving at the goon, "See you later." She murmurs, he tone sing-songy. She walks beside the other man, quiet for a long moment before answering his question. "No, I don't have anywhere to go."

She looks at the man, stopping her pace and pulling her hand away from his. She looked him over, quiet for long moments before asking, "Who are you? You're not Brian. He doesn't exist. You obviously don't want to hurt me." She crosses her arms over her chest, "So what gives? Why save me?"