Ang Pan
Cutting Devils

Eji of the Kitsune
Koryo of the Opal Lead
Fist of the Gray Gloaming
Steel Guardian of the Sheltered Waters
Blazing Phoenix of the Court of Bamboo Talons

Description


Hitogata: ~A hybrid of Chinese and Japanese combines with a co-mingling of grace and strength. Although of average height and build, Ang Pan appears well-toned and healthy. The handsome young man displays an avant-garde sense of fashion, too. He wears too cool street-bold sports suits, often in "power" colors like burgundy or electric blue. His smooth features are angled and fierce in demeanor. His cold brown eyes exhibit commanding and piercing expectations. Pan wears his hair chin-length and loose, but he's dyed it from black to dirty blonde. Were it not for his street savvy style, he'd look like some kind of Prince Charming. Fluid in cadence and self-confident in presence, this foxy fellow knows no equals.~

OOC: Appearance 3; Glory 7, Virtue 5, Wisdom 3

Sambuhenge: ~Comically adorable in this "near-man" form, Ang Pan generally passes the Sambuhenge right over for Koto. His handsome features grow foxy indeed, with pointing ears, sharpened teeth, and an extended nose. Fur sprouts from flesh and a pair of fluffy tails peek out of his trousers. His hair color deepens with a red tint. Ang Pan does not grow much in mass, though he does fill out his current attire a bit more tightly. However, his grace and elegance cannot be denied however unusual his features may now be. He's still your highborn Fox.~

OOC: Appearance 3; Glory 7, Virtue 5, Wisdom 3

Koto: ~The Kitsune's analog to Crinos, this man-sized bipedal Fox isn't much in the way of combat. Ang Pan gains little muscle mass or body weight, and stands only an inch taller (by merit of those radar ears!). If "on the street" when adopting his natural form, the Shinju appears naked, clothed in only his luxurious coat of red fur with white points and underbelly. But he normally assumes Koto for more courtly functions, and comes prepared with a specially made imperial-styled robe. It is made of heavy silk dyed orange-red with a flame-like motif, and embroidered with gold trim and designs of dragons, tigers, phoenixes, and (of course) foxes. Pan's vulpine head contains a muzzle full of sharp little teeth and a pair of cunning black eyes that only seem to grow with intensity and intellectual hunger. His nimble limbs end in small but sharp nails. The Koto demonstrates elegant agility and royal aloofness. Two long, fluffy tails sprout from his backside, poised for balance and with attentiveness. He has many subjects to oversee, and this Shinju is ready to see them all.~

OOC: Appearance 0 (3); Glory 7, Virtue 5, Wisdom 3

Juko: ~The choice "war-form" of any Kitsune, especially the Eji, Ang Pan adopts Juko when it's time to get down and dirty with Yomispawn and other dire foes. A wolf-sized Fox, admittedly Pan is now just a larger-sized specimen of his more innocuous Kyubi shape. But he's not just bigger -- he's meaner, stronger, and deadlier. Sometimes, he will even dive into battle with a sharp dirk perched in his mouth, slashing this way and that like an elephant swinging its tusks. His keen muzzle match shrewd instincts with piercing and vicious dark eyes. A pair of fluffy tails dart straight back from his lean body, baring his intent to charge, fight, and kill! Whether with teeth, claws, blade, or sorcery, Pan intends to cut away many devils indeed.~

OOC: Appearance 0; Glory 7, Virtue 5, Wisdom 3

Kyubi: ~This small and gorgeous vulpine boasts bright and irresistable black eyes, hungry for many things. Sometimes known as "Crimson Lightning", Ang Pan earns that nickname anytime he wants to move fleetly. The little fox is a blur of rich orange-red and white fur. Usually all one sees is a flouncing, fluffy tail before he vanishes again behind cover. Sneaky and shrewd, the Kyubi knows just what he's looking for and how to get it!~

OOC: Appearance 3; Glory 7, Virtue 5, Wisdom 3

"Oh, there are enough people like you already. I don't think anyone will notice at all."

History


Burdened Auspice

Ang Pan, Shinju Eji of the Kitsune, had the unhappy history common to most "metis" Foxes. When he was born, one of his two Kitsune parents died. His mother, Tian Chen Hua, was a Chinese Gokutsushi in Hong Kong. His father, Ryoku Ken, came from Japan, a Doshi sorcerer from the Tokyo area. The pair enjoyed a tryst in Canton about 1990, and then Ryoku went home. Luna chose Chen Hua to die, and she only got to lay her eyes upon her son once before passing away. She didn't even get to name him, and so he was just called Shinju at first.

Shinju was reared in a Beast-Court right there smack-dab in the middle of Hong Kong. The Court of the Iron Cedar was populated mostly by Boli Zouiszhe, led by Elder Dushi Fa Hanzi. Shinju's upbringing was something of a communal task everyone took part in to some degree or another. The Iron Cedar's bawn included a palatial park estate, enabling Shinju to taste scenic nature even in the middle of the city. His Change was inevitable so he was raised close to the ways and rules of the hengeyokai. An experienced Kataribe named Wenya Shuqin saw to his Foxy teachings. From him, Shinju learned the Mandates of the Emerald Mother and the Laws of Heaven to which werefoxes particularly prescribed. Shuqin's romantic tales included the imperial beauty and carriage of heroic Shinju. This only deepened Shinju's ego, but his perfectionism was guided inwards so he wasn't as insufferable as he might be otherwise. Still, most of the Garou of the Sept wanted little to do with him. The Ahroun taught him how to handle himself and that was about it.

In truth, Shinju was a guiltless and free-spirited young Fox. He didn't really miss having parents around; Shuqin was quite an adequate role model. His fearless curiosity lured him closer to gatherings of humans in the parklands and he eavesdropped as close as he dared. Of course, Shuqin never let him leave the estate -- not until he was "old enough" and underwent the Change. His Koto appearance would only violate the Veil. Shinju's future Path was pretty obvious. For one, he preferred to hunt and chase instead of frolic. The various rodents he ran down earned him the nickname of "Rat-Chaser". His dreams were more illustrations of his destiny. He saw great cracks in the earth and lava flows like rivers crossing the land. Butterflies and beetles both flew closer and closer until they risked incinerating themselves in the heat. Shinju wanted to save the butterflies, they were pretty!

Crossroads

Shinju's maturity peaked in '97. His curiosity got the better of him one night and he crept farther from the bawn than he dared before. At the edge of the park was a gazebo. In the gazebo, Shinju saw a bunch of cool-looking, sharply dressed humans discussing business of some sort. He soon overheard phrases referring to criminal enterprises. How intriguing! Unable to refrain from folly, Shinju stepped forward and walked right into the gazebo. Fortunately, his Change drove him forward more than anything else, and the gangsters saw only a Homid. Shinju plainly asked what they were talking about.

And they answered by seizing the kit and drawing their guns, preparing to shoot him dead. Shinju heard some of their names bantered back and forth and realized these were Boli Zouiszhe. He cried out his name, since they obviously didn't recognize him now. Furious that he was eavesdropping and that he violated the boundary of the bawn and thereby threatened the Veil, the Wise Guys dragged a mollified Shinju back to the heart of the Dragon Nest. But he didn't get in any trouble, since he didn't actually break the Veil. And tonight was his special night!

Shuqin took Shinju away from the grumbling werewolf gangsters and executed the Rite of the Opened Ways to help Pan realize his superior Kitsune powers. For the next month, he caught Shinju up on the only things a Shinju wouldn't know by this point. Shinju practiced stepping sideways into the Mirror Lands. He developed all five of his different Foxy forms. And finally, Wenya Shuqin oversaw the Rite of the Crossroads. The choice was no choice at all. Shinju knew all his life what his Path would be and the kit plunged his hands into the bowl of spirit-lava. Ow! But it was what the war-fox had to do.

Well, sure, that was enough for the Kitsune. But to become a full-fledged member of the Beast-Courts, the rest of the hengeyokai expected a little more. So Shuqin released him to follow a pack of werewolves on a Path-appropriate mission. The Boli Zouiszhe fell upon an illegal slave trade that was made far more sinister by the fact that the slavers were bakemono! There were many of them. And the horrors they had visited upon the children and young women in those grimy basements were frightful to view indeed, even for a Shinju. His Rage burned and he joined the Garou in their righteous crusade that night. With pistol and saber, Shinju helped clean house. For his graceful and glorious efforts, he was thereafter known as Kan'Emo -- Cutting Devils.

Gangster Games

Once the Eji took up the Great Burden and became hengeyokai, the Boli Zouiszhe were not nearly so outraged. In fact, the Triad-like Wise Guys took him under wing. Their "godfather", Neiran Yachi, invited him to join their "syndicate". Curious and excited to be part of such a dangerous, thrilling, adrenaline-pumping world, the Kitsune readily agreed. He adopted the alias Ang Pan, which stuck ever after. With his unique Foxy skills and crafty nature, the gangster werewolves employed Pan as a hit man. Over the next couple of years, he executed numerous bad seeds, largely human targets from various rival "syndicates" throughout Hong Kong and the Canton region. Pan always behaved with cool-headed discretion and perfectionist precision.

Consequently, Ang Pan only suffered one serious failure and it jarred his life badly. His target was more than human this time, which surely contributed to his failure. But still! Ang Pan leveled a sniper rifle on a Kowloon Devil, one of the Hong Kong vampires. After sending a bullet into what he thought was the vampire's head, he left his perch to go and finish the poor bastard off. Unfortunately, the Kuei-jin actually dodged the bullet and through twisted vampiric Arts sprayed some blood of his own accord to feign critical injury. When Ang Pan got close enough, the Kowloon Devil turned the tables and shot him up badly. Before he could be finished off, a bullet-riddled and crippled Kan'Emo leaped off the dock and fled through the water.

The Devil escaped and vanished. Pan couldn't find him and was too battered to do anything about it even if he did find him. He crawled back to the Beast-Court for healing, but felt miserable and even self-deprecating. Nothing anyone could say reassured him. Worse, the Wise Guys were upset, and chastised his failure. "No more jobs", they swore. Not until Pan improved his skills.

So from 2001-03, Ang Pan stayed at the Court of the Iron Cedar. The elders there let him train the few cubs that came through and any Kinfolk in the ways of combat and self-defense. Shuqin was the only person to offer reassuring words, but they were cold and distant. The Kataribe didn't want Pan to feel like he needed to be coddled every time he failed. During this period, Pan encountered a cool and classy gangster woman who happened to be Kitsune Kinfolk, too. Her name was Jian Mei and she had ambitions to be a Triad assassin, too. She was once the wife of a prominent overlord, but he and their whole family were murdered in a mob hit. Mei barely survived and swore revenge.

Together, Pan and Mei trained and "played" together. The pair fell helplessly in love. Pan began to help her carry out her deadly missions, and he once more tasted the blood of killing. Unfortunately, the "syndicates" that Mei worked for were rivals of Pan's Wise Guy comrades. When they discovered who was helping her, they suspected treachery and were just plain pissed. The next mission they undertook was a savage set-up and Mei was fatally shot. Ang Pan only suffered an injury before he escaped. But now he was the pissed one and no human thug could ever comprehend the raw Rage he felt that day. The Eji went on a killing spree, slaughtering every gangster he could find throughout the city. The police couldn't stop him; he would step sideways after every site left in carnage. Neiran Yachi and the other Wise Guys finally had to corner and calm the furious Eji. And instead of castigating the Shinju, he found himself heaped with praise. He'd done them all a favor by taking out rivals they couldn't touch due to treaties.

Revision

However, their praise did little to make Pan feel better. Only word from Shuqin lifted Pan's spirits a little. According to the spirits, he was told, he was ready for promotion within hengeyokai society. He just had to challenge someone older and more experienced than he. Ang Pan challenged Shuqin without hesitation, eager to climb the ranks of the hengeyokai. The Fox Bard demanded an on-the-spot recital of one good tale. And the presentation had to be flawless, no backtracking or inconsistencies in the story.

Shocked, Pan wracked his memory for such a tale with which to impress the Kataribe. He told the story as best he could, but unfortunately mixed up one name. Shuqin pronounced his challenge a failure. What an unfair test for a warrior! Pan bit his lips and tried not to spaz out despite his frustration and blow to perfectionist pride again. He was bubbling with anger, largely self-directed, but Rage all the same. He managed not to frenzy, however. And with a smile, Shuqin proclaimed his test a success. All along, the Kataribe was testing Pan's patience and self-control. Ohhhhhh!

With his new authority in rank, Pan walked the earth proudly again. And the Eji started walking the Yang World with pride, too. He explored the Mirror Lands more than ever. He often cornered spirits he encountered and imperiously wrested the secrets of their Gifts from them. Of course, Pan often paid the price by running errands, performing strange favors, or undergoing minor quests. By early '04, he was a much more skilled and talented warrior. Neiran Yachi's outfit invited him back, this time as a general enforcer rather than hit man. The Eji enjoyed this new role. It granted him insider status and enabled him to better sniff out the real creeps of the criminal world. When the Yachi Triad moved some of their operations to America, Ang Pan agreed to follow. In Little Asia, Kansas City, a Beast-Court and many shen were gathered. Here, Kan'Emo knew, he would truly shine at last.

Fetishes


Etherflame
Level: 3
Gnosis: 8
Origin: This upgraded handgun was crafted for Ang Pan by the Boli Zouiszhe of his former Court. The Wise Guy Triads of the Tribe felt it would be useful for their Foxy ally. Furthermore, he deserved (earned) it! The weapon has the essence of a Star-spirit distilled into its fetish-prepared housing.
Description: This appears to be a modified SigSauer 9mm handgun. It is matte-black in coloration, includes a heavier stock for the extended clip, and a laser sight mounted on the top. The weapon has a safety catch as well as a cocking mechanism.
Effects: 1) shoot spirits through the Wall (but not vice versa)
Activation: The safety catch has an extra setting, denoted by a Kitsune-go glyph.

Battle Scars


Class: Deep
Description: Strip of burnt flesh
Location: Underside of his left arm
Origin: A Kowloon Devil's ghost-flame
Effects: Aches when it's humid or the weather is about to change

Class: Superficial
Description: Two small bullet pocks
Location: Left side of the belly and left shoulder
Origin: A spray of SMG fire from an enemy gangster
Effects: none

Significant Other


Ang Pan didn't meet Shikibu Ayame until he moved to the Court of Bamboo Talons in August, 2005. The Eji found her winsome and sweet, and his natural urge to protect the Kin kept him attentive to her needs. As an author of fairytales, Pan also found Ayame attractive for the way she reminded him of his old mentor. But those tender sentiments are off-balanced by his clinging fear of losing Ayame. He could lose her to violence, he could lose her to the Curse. So no matter how they feel about each other, the Shinju refuses to offer full commitment until he's more certain she won't die on him.

Ayame

Weakness
Imperial Expectations


Ang Pan is Shinju through and through. He's too perfectionist for his own good. Pan loses his temper easily when things don't work out just the way he intends or plans. The blame always returns to himself, but the stress makes him...less fun to be around than some Kitsune! Pan is borderline obsessive-compulsive when it comes to his personal expectations.

Likelihood of Corruption


Average.

Pan is shrewd and attentive to the spiritual events around him. However, the time he spends around human criminals exposes him frequently to the taint of Yomi.

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