Esredes's Links
These two have a long history of conflict between them and an old enemyship waiting to be reignited. It won't be long until their interactions turn into a competition for each other's throats.
Esredes and Ezekiel are in many respects, similar yet opposites, the most obvious of which being that their ideologies and alignments are completely different. While one will stop at nothing to destroy humans, the other will stop at nothing to protect them from knochen threats.
Naturally, with both of them having fought for their respective sides, they've ended up meeting each other in battle or conflict and clashing on multiple occasions, coming to recognize each others' face. However, after a force of anti-human knochen leveled the human village Ezekiel grew up in and Esredes was involved, the hatred on Ezekiel's end reached catastrophic levels. Esredes was also heavily involved in the raid on a human city that would cost Ezekiel his right wing, to make matters even worse between them.
Currently, Esredes is living with the impression that Ezekiel died as a result of that battle, and regards him as an old enemy with an ironic ending that he lives to tell the tale of. His feelings on Ezekiel are less those of burning hatred and more of remembrance of a formidable enemy he fought and won against, sort of an 'it's over and done with' kind of thought process. He certainly doesn't understand Ezekiel's drive to protect humans, and finds it almost pitiful that he was most likely finished off by the very humans he tried to protect.
Upon finding out that Ezekiel survived in the future, he will likely be surprised but yet enthralled in a sense by this twist of fate. Rekindling an old enemyship will be a new experience, and to him, it holds its own sense of excitement.
And as for Ezekiel's own desire to bring upon his death, well... he sure can try.
Aclyone is Esredes's commander, the leader of the human resistance, and he holds a lot of respect for her for it. Being directly under her as second in command (at least from a military standpoint) is a position he ended up in due to his long history of battle, and beforehand he had never really interacted with the leader, but in adjusting to the change he has developed a deep sense of loyalty to her. Not just to his faction, but to her.
When they interact, it is usually on matters of business and he keeps it very professional, always willing to perform whatever task she asks of him. But beyond the professionalism of the relationship, he has also developed an emotional connection to her, in the sense that he cares for her wellbeing, but he'd rather not show it in front of her.
Regardless, they have a common goal in mind, and he will do everything to help her achieve it.
He also envies her for her size and power, but wouldn't ever admit this with her around.
To Esredes, Aruza is a human in his way. Very in his way at times, most likely. It won't be until they meet multiple times that he will pay xem any mind and come to think of xem as a human enemy.
Xyr skill will definitely be the first thing he notices. With the thrill Esredes gets out of fighting, having a human pose such a challenge is an interesting experience for him. He'll certainly get more into their feud the more it happens.
[1/25/18] Since the original writing of this, Aruza has gone and befriended his little sister, which will make things much, much more personal and angry on his end. No human touches her. Not even one trying to help her.
[Knochen Lust AU Only]
Aruza always has to have red enemies even when xe isn't Xerneas, doesn't xe?
Well, this guy thankfully isn't a sexy bird lady of death, but he's still not much better. He's the reason Aruza has to fight knochen in the first place. If ones like him would stop trying to kill innocent humans, that'd be real nice.
Though in my head this isn't near the level of intimate enemyship Aruza had with Yve, as long as Laomi is out of the picture, it's still a very simple fact that Aruza will be one of many who want to kill him, as he's a threat to humanity. To put it in simple terms, there's an epic red-vs-blue-with-gold-accents sword fight waiting to happen.
[1/25/18] And now it’s more personal. Aruza has been made aware of his existence through his little sister Rowan. According to her, he’s an arrogant dork. But Rowan’s brutal honesty about this older brother of hers killing humans greatly upsets Aruza. Xe knows xe might encounter him one day, and xe wouldn’t know what to do in that situation.
No, these two have not met canonically, but the disastrous effects of them doing so are made clear in a hypothetical skit.
What a naive, stupid child. That sums up Esrey's thoughts on the girl taken in by an enemy of his. Thankfully she's only adopted, but Ezekiel has clearly already brainwashed her into loving humans. Seems he doesn't make for a very good parent, does he? Esrey can relate.
Have it be that Esrey actually ended up kidnapping her, it'd certainly be for informational purposes on her father and the circumstances surrounding the city he lives in. He's also very likely to use her as blackmail. It's hard to tell if he would give her back willingly, as he certainly doesn't want to deal with her for long, but he doesn't want to let her go back to her life of being told humans should be lived with. Perhaps Ezekiel will have to come fight him himself.
Needless to say, these two should definitely never meet for real.
*INSERT A LOT OF SHRIEKING AND SCREAMING*
Who are you?!?! GET AWAY FROM ME GET AWAY FROM ME GET AWAY FROM ME-
Eschiare has no idea how Esrey knows her father or why he doesn't like him, but being targeted as a result of that terrifies her. He even alludes to her that her father has done horrible things, a notion she doesn't want to believe but can't deny is something that would make sense to her given his... mysterious background.
Regardless, Esrey terrifies her and she doesn't want to listen to anything this mysterious horrible man has to say to her. She would shoot another icicle into his arm given the opportunity, if it wasn't going to result in her being hurt.
If he really thinks he can make her believe humans are bad and she should want to avoid and hate them, he's very wrong. You can't change me. Nobody can.
Please keep her out of his grasp.
Alise, Alise, Alise. What a name. A boring name that stands out.
Alise is just like any other human. Any other disgusting human. Except... maybe not. Maybe she's different, something useful and sympathetic amongst all the other horrible members of her species.
It's a bit strange to describe how Esredes got to making a business partnership with her. A simple scouting of a human village on his own time, a strange girl wearing metallic gloves and sandals. He had to pursue and ask her why she was wearing such strange things, and while he didn't get an answer, he did get an invitation to a weapons store she and her partner operated. It was in showing up there the next morning that he was first impressed by her-- she was an intuitive and smart one, able to figure out Esrey's identity as a knochen after some back and forth banter. And as a result, the two worked out a deal. If Alise told him about every hunter that came into her store so he could track them down, he would see to it that her village was left alone. A deal considered fair on both ends. And so it was sealed.
As far as humans go, Alise registers in his mind as a bit of an exception. A human who agrees magic should not be used by humans, a human who understands her place. Someone who is straightforward and deadpan enough, yet has her own flavor of speaking that ends up working off of Esrey's almost too well. And while purely a business partner at first, it will slowly become more than that between them as Alise teaches him more about humans and how they work.
...Especially when she ends up getting experimented on again and suddenly becomes a freak of nature, a human who can transform against her will into a knochen. This is not a concept Esredes has ever considered before, and it screws up his elaborate system of twisted, set behaviors towards a human. And it leaves it up to him to have to teach her to act like one of his kind.
It's safe to assume that the two of them will end up forming a strange bond, defying all preconceived notions and assumptions of fate, especially on his end. But what will truly come of it all in the end, in having this one simple strange human as an ally of sorts despite his hatred and despite the trouble it could eventually land him in, is yet to be seen.
[1/25/18] After several meetings with her, he’s become much more relaxed and open around her, even taking an actual interest in her life. It’s been enough for him to reveal his personal nickname to her. And between hunters and creepy men and the scientist Thiessen out to capture her again, he’s also grown quite aggressively protective of her. No one hurts his special little exception human.
He won’t admit they’re friends, but they most certainly are, and now that he’s willingly bound himself to this partnership, there’s no going back.
She definitely finds him dangerous and strong. An opponent she has no match against. So better to befriend him than make him an enemy. She likes the way he carries himself. He's confident, straightforward, she can read him like a book. She knows he hides a few secrets, but so does she. She's not one to judge.
Alise enjoys that he isn't overwhelming and overbearing. He does his job and does his job well, getting rid of the peskering clients that she herself cannot in her current state.
Levi is Alise's friend and partner, and that's most of what Esrey thinks of him too. He's somewhat wary of him due to what Alise tells him about Levi being... too friendly, but so far he's been tolerable, at least. Esrey finds it interesting that Levi wishes to advance humans without magic-- a noble cause, he admits, and it's always nice to meet a human that doesn't like magic, but he'd rather not see humans advance at all. Hopefully most of his strange ideas stay on the wall of the shop.
Beyond that, Esrey finds Levi to be... rather naive and innocent. It's a little cute, he supposes, the way he has an enthusiastic demeanor about everything and always looks on the bright side, and Esrey can't bring himself to ruin it. But that kind of thing can only be so beneficial in the face of reality. He gets a feeling that Alise isn't going to tell him about what's really going on between himself and Alise. Poor innocent thing thinks he's just a friend. But Esrey supposes it's not his problem if Levi ever found out and had a negative reaction to it. Either way, Alise probably knows what's best for him.
After some time, however, unforeseen events lead Esrey to start taking Levi seriously and to understand there is a side to him that he never, ever, e v e r, wants to trigger again. If it means avoiding that forever, he will gladly take a more honest and respectful approach to him even if it forces him to shift his demeanor and hold his tongue and submit to his rules.
Just like Alise, Levi is different. Esredes feels like he understands why in some ways, but is still left somewhat puzzled. Regardless of how he questions it, he appreciates that now in more ways than before.
Of the people Esredes knows in his life, Ceila has perhaps become the one who knows the most about him. It's a deserved title to have, too, after the things she's done for him. Though he won't tell her everything, there are a lot of things he will trust her with, and that's pretty much as good as things get with him.
A lot of time has passed since they originally stuck together closely, when both of them were vulnerable and impressionable new recruits. Since then, their lives have become more busy and complicated, and the world has revealed itself to be a cruel place that each has adapted to in their own way. Esrey ended up separating from her side when he was promoted past her level, but has never forgotten to check up with her occasionally and talk. It's a shame they don't get put together on missions more often. He'd love to be able to relive the times when they stuck together a little more.
Regardless, he's always appreciated her energy and all the ways she's different from him. She can do a lot of things he can't, and in a way, that's a comfort. And especially nowadays, Alise competes with her for the person able to read and understand him best. She definitely makes him relax, and can comfort his emotions better than a lot of others.
Though he trusts her more than he trusts a lot of nochmal soldiers, he'd still rather keep some of the things he ends up doing in his position out of conversation with her. Torturing captured knochen to figure out where a group of humans are, having made business acquaintance with a couple humans in order to kill other humans... Perhaps she'd understand, but he'd rather not risk it. It's better not to tell anyone about those things.
In short, Ceila will always have a fond place in his heart, though he'd never consider her anything more than a dear friend. Perhaps if the two ever did get to fight more together, they'd only be all the more unstoppable.
Esredes has always been an interesting case. Back when she initially approached the new recruit to make friends, she didn't really mind how far it would go, but boy did it go far. Ceila's used to becoming friendly with everyone, but in part due to the way they clicked and the fact that he felt the most comforted by her, they ended up sticking together a lot. She's always admired Esrey's drive and grit, and wasn't surprised when it ended up propelling him past her all the way to the near top. He definitely deserves his position.
While many other people find Esrey to be menacing and possessing an uncomfortable aura, she's always found him and his behavior to be sort of cute in a way. For as reserved and confident as he is, there's a streak of dorkiness in him that's rather endearing. Sometimes she can't help but tease him for the way he is, but she still respects him in a lot of other ways, even if she's always thought he could loosen up more than he does. She supposes it's just not in his nature.
As both of them have matured, it's also become more apparent to her over the years that he's never been as composed on an emotional level as she is, even though he usually acts like it. At times, she can't help but worry about him in a mom friend sort of way, but it's never concerned her enough to truly try to step in herself.
Either way, she's happy to talk to him whenever their lives allow them to meet and catch up, to learn about what's going on with him and all the things he gets to do up at the top. And while she knows she's nothing more than a dear friend to him, she's glad to let it be this way. She knows that, at least in this point in his life, he doesn't have a good enough understanding of relationships to handle one. She wouldn't try one because she loves him.
Still though, he has a lot going on both emotionally and in his everyday life, and she doesn't know all of it. She can't help but have an underlying feeling like something's going to happen with him someday. But hopefully it's just her worry getting to her. After all, if something did happen, she'd be the first person to rush in to try to stop it and help him.
Ah, this one. This one’s one of the good ones. Very loyal and has a lot of promise. Esredes doesn’t have a very personal opinion on Cypress beyond that, he is simply impressed by their work ethic as a nochmal soldier and finds them low maintenance to interact with and trustable.
Though this high opinion may be ruined to some degree if he ever finds out Cypress followed him without his knowing.... or if they do anything to hurt Alise in its wake.
Cypress respects Esredes as his higher up. He finds his dedication, strength, and unwavering will to be quite admirable.
However, upon finding out about his interactions with the human, Alise, he now distrusts Esrey to an extent. Cypress does well do hide his newfound skepticism, but now finds himself mingling more and more with the enemy...
They may become closer allies in the future...
This is... a bit of an awkward subject.
On one hand, Jack is just some poor child that mad scientist Thiessen got ahold of, and no child deserves to be brainwashed from birth into being that horrible woman's slave and only fed by her will.
On the other... after kidnapping Alise, biting his foot, and making his ears bleed to the point he lost his hearing for an hour, he's not exactly inclined to be nice to the thing.
While Esrey may have nearly crushed Jack's throat in retaliation and had him taken prisoner, he also allowed for the child to be released under Alise's care in hopes of letting him start a new life. He's not the most friendly towards him because of their little clash, not to mention his tendency to dislike interacting with children overall, but he's willing to at least... try to get over it. If the kid shows improvement and doesn't cause any further trouble. At the end of the day, he pities the thing for its horrible situation, and he genuinely wants Jack to be able to realize that Thiessen is a cruel caretaker and that he deserves a better life than with her. But that's for Alise to do, because he's got little concept of how to talk to this one, even though he'll be stuck having to keep seeing him in her home.
[RESA Only]
If you could imagine the deepest sigh being inhaled and then exhaled as slowly as possible, that'd pretty accurately describe how he feels about this one.
There's a mixture of shame, embarrassment, and anger involved. How was he supposed to know he would piss off the mayor of a new and small desert town by doing what he does in any other part of TMV and starting a fight in a bar?! And furthermore, that she would ban him from her town for it?! In reality, he had it coming to him completely for acting like an asshole and disregarding her warnings about this place being a peaceful town. Pissing off a world leader was not something he intended to do in his free time... but it's not like TMV and Magnolian relationships weren't already crumbling away.
Even though his only justification for his actions is that he didn't anticipate the place to respond so badly to violence, he's still angry at her and the town forevermore for banning him. Like he even had a way to know she disliked bar fights, she keeps herself out of the public eye.
Ultimately, he just wants to avoid all talk of the oasis for the rest of his life and kind of hopes the place never becomes anything more than a small little town out of the way of relevancy. And while he would never go out of his way to do this on his own, if the two nations just so happened to get into a war.... and the oasis just so happened to be somewhere Magnolia wanted to attack... He'd do everything in his power to make sure he was the one to lead an attack to destroy the place.
banned banned BANNED
Fuck this monster. She needs to die for all the knochen she's murdered in cold blood. And he would be glad to be the one to do it.
What an asshole! >:(
Ever since Esredes himself had been mentored by someone in the faction as a young member, he's always felt it in himself to have to return the favor someday. Seeing this young recruit so full of determination that reminds him of his own self and having already been abandoned by any other older nochmal that might've wanted to take him under their wing, Esrey decided in the moment it was time for him to repay that favor. By this point he was past ready for it.
Having maintained for a long time that mental strength is prevalent over physical weakness, this belief of Esrey's is directly tested through the kid, considering he's at a disadvantage with a missing arm and finger. Nothing that a request to Levi for a prosthetic and a sword for four fingers can't at least alleviate, but Esrey is willing to work with his disadvantage to watch his raw determination make up for it. While he may have some worries about trying to be a mentor, he feels he's well able to do it. And he's hoping he can take this kid far in doing so.
When Enlai was falling, Esrey grabbed him and pulled him back up from the abyss of self-hatred and self-doubt. Esrey saw something in him when no one else did; seeing only his injuries, not his determination and dedication. He hopes to be as capable as Esrey some day.
With Levi now unable to be a source of weaponry for Esrey, he went ahead and found another blacksmith he could use in his place, and, quite frankly, he's happy for it. She asks no questions and gets right into business, just as he needs. Even though she's a bit... odd, he can tolerate it. It's highly impersonal and that's all that matters.
Don't get many new faces in Lorea so it was odd that he somehow stumbled upon Tea's shop. Won't find her complaining though, he's paid her nicely for her services