(no subject)

[bornandforged]

PLAYER INFO.
✖ Handle: Cass
✖ Contact: PM to journal
✖ Are You Over 16: Y
✖ Other Characters Played in Consignment: n/a

CHARACTER INFO.
✖ Character Name: Aegirsdottir, Lady Sif (n.b. the surname is made up as she has never been given one in any version of canon, and obviously is rarely if ever used ICly)
✖ Canon: MCU, after Thor: The Dark World and Agents of SHIELD 1x15
✖ Character Appearance:
✖ Character Age: ~1000
✖ Pick A Number: 743, 274

✖ Canon Setting: The Marvel Cinematic Universe generally is like our real one, but with superheroes and impossible scientific geniuses and aliens. Among the aliens are the Asgardians, a race of Norse-pantheon-inspiring spacevikings who for millennia have watched over the Nine Realms, of which Earth (Midgard) is one. They do so from their home, Asgard, a shining city on a strange non-planetary mass where oceans pour ceaselessly over an invisible cliff into space but they never run out of water. It's a place of impossible beauty and wealth that has enjoyed centuries of peace until very recently. They have connections to the eight other realms via the Bifrost, a magical rainbow bridge that throws people through space along the branches of Yggdrasil, the World Tree, and they are also at least passingly familiar with a variety of other alien civilizations.

While Asgardian society shares some of its aesthetic with Midgardian ages past it is incredibly advanced technologically and also home to users of magic, the two disciplines thoroughly and confusingly blurred. Asgardians are extremely long-lived by our standards, living thousands of years despite that theirs is largely a warrior culture. It's also a definite patriarchy with fairly strict gender roles, where female warriors like Sif are unheard of to the point of being laughable. It is a place that largely exists outside of time, which some call stability and others stagnation.

In the last couple of years it's seen a great deal of sudden upheaval, with Thor's banishment, Loki's death, reappearance, and imprisonment, the reestablishment of diplomatic relations with Midgard, and the breaking of the Bifrost. This last left the other realms abruptly without the mantle of Asgard's protection and threw them into chaos. Even once travel was restored it took months for Sif and the Warriors Three and the armies of Asgard to put things right again. And then came the return of the fabled Dark Elves. They wreaked havoc on the realm eternal, killing Queen Frigga and Loki, and causing serious damage to the capital and the palace in particular. It will take some time for Asgard to recover, physically and spiritually, and the loss of Thor to Midgard yet again surely doesn't help, not when the king has seemed at times half-mad in his grief. In a place where change comes slowly this is a lot to assimilate, and one of Sif's gravest concerns is how Asgard (and she) will manage if the ground keeps shifting beneath their feet.


✖ Character History: History

✖ Character Personality:

Since she has been known as the Goddess of War, let's start with the obvious: Sif is immensely skilled in the arts of battle and there is little she loves better than gallivanting across the realms with her companions hunting down monsters and evildoers of all sorts and capturing or slaying them for the glory of herself, her friends, and her kingdom. She thrills at the exhilaration of combat, at the struggle and the risk and the joy of answering a true vocation. She strives always to better herself, to maintain and enhance old skills and gain new ones, that she may never meet a challenge she is unprepared to face. She is essentially fearless, aggressive, and bold sometimes to the point of recklessness. She is intensely loyal, as well, entirely willing to give her life for her realm or her friends and never hesitating to fling herself into danger on behalf of the people and things she values if necessary (and occasionally just for fun).

She revels in the rowdy celebration that comes after a victory, songs and stories turning exploits to legend, mead by the gallon drunk in toast to triumphs. She is generally outgoing, friendly, and magnanimous, with an easy laugh and an open hand. She boasts less than her friends but plenty over all, and while she isn't much of a storyteller herself she'll chime in to help embellish or correct a tale every now and then. Her temper burns quick and hot but rarely lasts long, though she's been known to start her fair share of fights and even a battle or two. Insults against friends are more likely to be answered with harsh words and fists than are any against herself alone.

Though she would never be mistaken for an intellectual she has a better head for tactics and more willingness to strategize than some of her fellows. She has been known to charge blindly into the fray but usually (usually) prefers to at least try to approach serious battle sensibly and do what can be done to minimize losses and maximize chances of victory even should that come at some expense to risk and glory. She doesn't entirely share the common disdain for tactics like Loki's, believing that intelligence and cunning have their place in combat just as brute strength and bravery do, and while she tends towards the latter herself she walks the line more than most (though let's be honest: it's a low bar). She doesn't just charge straight up to the Destroyer and try to stab it through the neck, she comes from an unexpected angle and requests a distraction, first.

All this has come more to the fore since Asgard was forced into war by the Bifrost's destruction, as what reckless arrogance could be excused when gallivanting about with her friends cannot when it concerns thousands of lives and the safety of the nine realms. That conflict has tempered and honed her skills, particularly with regards to leadership, as with Thor gone on Midgard Sif took on many of what were once his roles (with varying amounts of success and, uh. Fire.). The year of near-constant battle, the attacks on Asgard and the deaths of the queen and Loki all leave her more cautious than she was once.

She's often quite perceptive, particularly about the emotional states of others. She's wary of Loki before her friends are, familiar with his dangerous jealousy of Thor before it's become common knowledge. She might not have guessed just how deep it ran but she saw more than most, enough to question his motives even in the early going. She perceives the change in Thor after his return from Midgard, the distance and distraction he tries to hide as he quietly pines for Earth and Jane. She is the one Frigga goes to when she wonders how Thor is doing and doesn't wish to ask him directly. Obviously Sif's known Loki and Thor all her life, they grew up together and it makes sense she'd be well versed in reading them. But she also catches on very quickly to Melinda's May situation when she visits Earth, picking up on the usually poker-faced agent's relationship with Ward after only very limited interaction.

Despite that emotional intelligence she's not really the touchy feely type. She's not shy about her love for her friends, or the sort to flinch and tense up when hugged, but she's definitely better at the back-slapping sort of displays of affection. She doesn't particularly enjoy talking about her own feelings, or having them talked about by others, and her on-again-off-again crush on her best friend Thor is definitely a source of embarrassment. As for that crush, it waxes and wanes. What she thought was a youthful infatuation well in the past unexpectedly flared up again when Jane suddenly stole his heart, but at the end of the day whether she loves him as her dearest friend or something else, Sif wants Thor to be happy. Her wariness of Jane was protectiveness more than jealousy, and she is inclined both to get to know the scientist better and, from the little she's seen so far, to like her. But the next person to needle her about Thor's long history of oblivious non-reciprocation is probably getting punched.

Growing up as the only girl attempting to become a warrior Sif was smaller than the majority of her opponents and a quick mind was what kept her in bouts when quick hands weren't enough on their own. It was always accompanied by a ferocious tenacity which as much or more than her innate talents was the reason she managed to achieve her unprecedented place as a warrior in the king's service. Sif set her mind to it early and refused (over, and over, and over) to take no for an answer. This unrelenting determination is applied now to every aspect of her life, most notably in her nearly complete, almost pathological unwillingness to give up on a friend in all but the most extreme of circumstances. She'll do anything and everything in her power to help those she cares for and those she's sworn to, right up until the last possible moment.

Like most Asgardians, she is proud of her realm and her heritage almost to a fault, and considers them the greatest warriors and rulers in the Nine Realms, more than worthy to be placed above all the others. Midgard has only recently begun to be taken seriously as potential allies in even a limited sense, and this largely because of Thor's regard for them. She is driven to protect the people of Earth from Lorelei's threat, though once there she isn't the sort to remain willfully blind when presented with displays of skill. She treats the agents of SHIELD with respect initially because her friend has spoken well of them, and then because she sees for herself that they're capable and dedicated.

Of all things, what she values most is Asgard. She revered the king and queen both, trusting in their wisdom and judgment, and has been a devoutly loyal supporter of the House of Odin. Slights against the honor of Asgard or its monarchy are bound to raise her ire, particularly now, still grieving Frigga's loss. She is a true believer in its importance and superiority and there is nothing she will not do to aid it, nothing she will not sacrifice to protect it. At some point in the past a man she loved was co-opted and turned against the realm, and to protect it Sif eventually found it necessary to kill him. Later, even when goaded and mocked by the woman who manipulated him into it Sif resists the urge for revenge and follows orders to simply return Lorelei to Asgard captive and alive.

But while 99% of the time she takes the dictates of her liege very seriously putting Asgard above all, for her, means putting it even above its king. When the frost giants broke into the vault her resistance to Thor's plan for retribution was token at best. Asgard's reputation needed to be maintained, and if Odin would not do so, then they would. When Loki took the throne and refused to lift Thor's banishment even in the face of an impending Jotun threat, she led both the appeals against this decision and the eventual trip to Midgard to find Thor and bring him home. When Thor's plan to rid Jane of the Aether and save Asgard from the Dark Elves involved breaking Loki out of prison, Sif violated Odin's commands then, too. All of these were acts of treason and Sif took none of them lightly. But in these instances even her own honor and obedience, even the king's will, all had to be set aside so that Asgard could be preserved. That two out of three times she turned out to be right doesn't do much to dissuade her from this view.

In general on a day-to-day basis Sif is actually pretty easy-going, her intensity well-buried and saved for the right circumstances. She isn't very good at being idle but she enjoys conversation and is usually interested in meeting new people and hearing about new places and experiences, and is happy to talk about her own life and home. Overall while she maintains a base level of reserve she is an extrovert, and a friendly one. Her sense of humor tends to be rather dry and she enjoys wit and banter, her temper difficult to tweak without intent or very bad luck. She will not be pleased to discover the true nature of the CDC, and the transition will be a rocky one, but once the initial distress wears off and she is convinced that her work there preserves Asgard's safety, she's likely to be a productive member of her team. She might even have some fun now and then.


✖ Character Powers: Though they look like just taller-than-average humans, Asgardians are exceptionally long-lived by earthly standards and strangely dense, which allows them extraordinary strength/speed/reflexes/agility/etc. and durability far beyond what others can handle. They can be thrashed repeatedly into the floor by a Hulk and get up with a few minor cuts, cling to the roof of a speeding jet plane without any ill effects, and just generally take a very serious beating without much trouble. They heal exponentially faster than humans, as well, which helps with the general impression of invulnerability. They also speak the All-Tongue, which allows them to understand and be understood by any race from their home universe.

Sif prefers a sword and shield but is master of many weapons and fighting styles, and is as physically gifted as any in Asgard but its princes. Leaping from great heights, flinging men across rooms, shifting vehicles with a kick, battling a shifting horde of foes - all of this comes easily. Even though she lacks the special additional abilities of the sons of Odin she is one of Asgard's finest warriors, and that means quite a bit in a culture where nothing is so exalted as prowess in battle. Were she for some reason reduced to human levels of strength and agility she would still be exceptionally formidable through sheer skill and experience. (Once she stopped being really pissed about it.)

She'll pick up use of much of CDC's unfamiliar technology pretty quickly, particularly the guns and any opportunity to drive dangerous vehicles because you always learn faster when you're having fun.

CHARACTER SAMPLES.
✖ First Person POV: These have all sadly gotten put on hold a bit by my exam schedule and aren't especially long, so I offer a couple options:

Spotting Jane

Hunting w/ Thor

Texting w/ Thor & w/o a shift key

✖ Third Person POV:


They come to her on the training ground, as she settles a practice spear into its rack and brushes the dust of the day from her armor. She hears the approach but is slow to turn, weary and unwary after a long day evaluating new recruits, dozens of would-be Einherjar come from across Asgard eager to help re-fill the ranks. "If you're here to sign up you have to report to the Master-at-arms," she says as she rearranges a pair of pikes, "Practical assessments are finished for today, so you will have to come back."

"I am here to offer my assistance." The voice is strangely arresting despite its youth, enough for Sif to direct a look over her shoulder before she abandons the rack and turn. A tow-headed young man like a hundred others she's knocked down before smiles a smile that makes her want to reach for a blade. His teeth are perfect.

"As I said, you'll need to see the Master-at-arms. I do not handle recruitment."

He laughs, delighted. "Oh, I am not here to be recruited. I am here to recruit you."

Sif's patience has never been great and it wears thinner lately. She lifts a brow, gestures sharply. "To what? If there is a troll menacing your village or something I may be able to assist, but you would do better to petition the king directly so he can assign someone."

He laughs again and as he tilts his head back to let loose his mirth she imagines closing her hand around his throat. "Oh no, no no. This is not a troll loose in a village, Lady. This is -- this is the land consumed in fire, this is Asgard in pieces, left to the wolves and the eagles to pick over its corpse. Surely you will not brush that off on someone else?"

"You're mad," Sif decides, and his eyes are unnaturally bright, his bones sharp beneath his skin in a way that makes her wonder, for a second--. She shakes her head, "I do not have time for this, go tell your tales at a tavern if you require an audience."

"This is no tale, Lady Sif." He goes from teasing to grave in an instant and leans, looms down from a height she had not noticed, voice low. "You know of what I speak. Even now, it has begun. Do you believe the Dark Elves are Asgard's only foe? Lorelei its only theat? Do you believe others will not come when they hear how soft and weak the realm has grown? How its throne teeters now the legs have been cut from under it? One by one by one, by--."

Sif's face is stony, but her mouth pulls too tight, too thin. Her hands are fists at her belt. She was tempted to call him mad again but the strangeness that prickled up her neck each time he spoke somehow gave lie to that idea. "What do you want? If this is a threat--"

"It is a warning. And an opportunity. Asgard is on a dangerous path. You sense it, that is why you've been chosen. Asgard's greatest threats come from other worlds, and so too do the means to safeguard it."

"And what means are those?"

"A team of warriors, working together to protect their homes from devastation."

"Like Thor's Avengers?"

"Ssssort of. Yes."

No. Sif turns sharply as he finally strikes a false note. "What does this team do? Be precise." She fixes her eyes on him and watches as he chooses his words.

"They eliminate threats."

"How?"

"By eliminating worlds."

Sif stares, and then scoffs. "You want me to eliminate other worlds? You really are mad. This is all-- no." She lifts a hand and suddenly is in motion, pushing past him. "No, whether this is true or some bizarre sort of jest your answer is no."

"I hope your friends are not so quick to put their honor before their duty. Asgard seems a pretty place even with this new decorating scheme." She turns to glare and sees him twirl a finger at the gash still visible in the side of the palace where Malekith's ship had struck it. "It would be a shame to see it crumble. Burn."

"My duty is here," Sif growls, "To my king, and my people. Do not presume to suggest I am neglecting it."

"Your king is not himself these days," the youth notes, "But even he would see the sense in this. The service of one warrior in exchange for the safety of an entire realm?" He clicks his tongue against his teeth.

"Ask the king, then, if you are so certain. If he believes this tale and orders that I go with you, then I will do it." Even as she says it, confidence and skepticism in equal measure in her tone, Sif wonders. The king had sent her on more than a few strange errands of late. But that was the point, wasn't it? He needs her here, to take on those missions. With Thor and Loki gone, Hogun seeing to Vanaheim -- surely Odin could not spare her? And would not need to, for there is no way the Allfather would pay any mind to this nonsense. Would he?

But the youth is grinning at her. She'd call it beaming, so bright is his smile, but there are just far too many teeth involved. The way he stands against the dimming sky his smile looks wide enough to swallow a sun. He says:

"We have a deal."

CHARACTER ITEMS.
✖ Pick a Team: Green Team

✖ Mission Freebie: I don't think she's currently inclined to ask for anything that fits under what's allowed, but if she can ask for some sort of impenetrable defense system for Asgard she'd probably do that. If not, and you want to have CDC accidentally assign her some sort of random power that was meant for another character, that could be fun. Otherwise she'll just do her job minus the extra carrot this go-round.

✖ Personal Item or Weapon: Her sword, which has a retractable second blade that can turn it into more of a spear-like weapon.

✖ Character Inventory:

One set of armor (as seen in the photo up top)

One set of clothes: pants/tunic/etc.

One pair of boots

One necklace

Confiscated:

Six knives and daggers of various sizes and shapes

One shield

Four healing stones