.Cragroot x Jack Of Stars

do not post unless your name is in the title!

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• Kinetic Dive: Roma can tuck her pinnions and enter a vertical 'stoop' (like a peregrine falcon), reaching speeds that permit her to hit a mark with the force of a small car before snapping her pinnions open to bleed off momentum.
• Thermal Tracking: Her golden-hued irises are modified to see heat signatures. From 5,000 feet up, she can spot the 'heat bloom' of an engine or the body warmth of a crouched sniper hidden in viscous brush.
• Near-Silent Flight: Due to the serrated edge of her primary feathers (similar to an owl’s), she can glide almost silently. She is often used for 'Whisper Drops,' where she lands behind hostile lines without causing a sound.
• Environmental Hardiness: Her mutation allows her to breathe efficiently in thin, oxygen-deprived altitudes and withstand freezing temperatures.
• Acoustic Triangulation: Even while flying through clangorous winds, she can filter out 'noise' to pinpoint a specific sound—like the click of a safety being turned off—on the ground below.

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Asura, also known as Eagle 0-1

Gender: Female (She/Her)

Species: Canine (Mutated)

Age: Almost 4 years

Orientation:

Has no gender preference whatsoever; is somewhere on the demiromantic spectrum.

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Role:

Asura is the first of a new programme attempting to perfect a combination of species to use as Foxhounds. An optimally enhanced hunting dog primed to pursue and take down whatever target is set in front of them. Selectively chosen for prey drive, speed, endurance, and maximal agility.

Build:

Asura is, or was, an Arabian wolf - smaller and lighter than their Eurasian counterpart. She's built sturdy and compact, all tightly corded muscle and coarse, wiry fur. Her coat is light grey, blending into a mild brown shade along her flanks and then down her legs. The colours are dull, a pattern followed by her wings - barred light brown and grey on the inside, and a solid darker blue-grey on the outer side. They're large enough to support her body in flight, but not exceptionally wide - she's not going to be soaring, after all. They're built for high speed and manuevering, allowing her to weave and chase her quarry through chaotic or cramped environments.

Likewise, her body, while modified to have a lighter skeletal structure in order to allow flight, is created to be a powerhouse of an engine, supporting her through the high intensity chases and inevitable capture of her targets. The reinforcement of her muscle is concentrated primarily along her chest and wing anchors, and then her shoulders and hind legs. Built for pursuit on land as well as in the air, Asura's powerful limbs allow her to reach high speeds as fast as possible, as well as launch herself off of any objects with a significant amount of force. Her claws have also been modified, paws elongating to become more talonlike, with retractable claws as to not hinder her while on the ground.

Asura's head looks more like your standard canine, if a bit more foxlike than anything - narrow snout, large ears, and a white splash on the underside of her muzzle. Her teeth are regular-sized, if unnaturally white. Her eyes are perhaps the most striking thing about it, being a vivid orange in colour.

Voice:

Asura's voice is clipped and raspy, although she generally has a more upbeat tone. She simply has not had much opportunity for conversation, so while she is absolutely open to the possiblity, she tends to not to hold them very long, assuming that an interaction is over before it actually is. The rasp comes from the barking. Trained as a pack hunter, Asura was trained to communicate frequently and clearly during combat and hunts. The barks, while restrained to certain codes, are sharp and extremely loud, thus putting strain on her vocal cords, especially due to the extensive training hours she has just come out of.

Scent:

The scent of the damp underbrush in which the majority of her training exercises took place is unshakeable, but Asura tends to appear impeccably groomed and sterile-smelling - due to her handler's fastidiousness in that regard.

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Core Traits:

Eager | Driven | Open | Not Particularly Socially Capable | Focused | Disciplined | Bold |Detached | Naive | Dependent | A Follower | Persistent | Unquestioningly Loyal | Curious | Doesn't Take Initiative

Social Behaviour:

As previously mentioned, Asura is somewhat unpracticed in navigating social situations outside the context of a mission or training exercise. She works well with others inside specific situations, but when it comes to open socializing, she approaches it the same way she would during a simulation - brisk and friendly, but short. She tends to be caught off guard by people attempting longer conversations, and, while not hostile to it, simply does not know how to carry on the interaction. Hence, when she does want to spend more time with a person, she may attempt to do so in other ways - physical proximity, volunteering to assist them with any other structured exercise et cetera.

Abilities:

Enhanced Endurance and Durability - Asura's muscles and organs have been engineered in order for her to be physically able to sustain high-intensity chases that are incredibly taxing on her body. This allows her to fly and/or run at a constant high speed for around 40 minutes maximum. Along with the physical reinforcements, Asura's pain receptors were also dulled in order for her to be able to tank the impacts of possible collisions in the process of the chase. This means that while she is able to continue operating without being incapacitated easily, there is also a risk of serious injuries going unnoticed.

Agility - Asura's compact frame, shorter wingspan and adapted claws allow her to execute sharper maneuvers and essentially propel herself off surfaces without breaking stride. This, along with rigorous training, makes her incredibly hard to shake once she has set her sights on something. While not the most effective on open ground, she is a formidable enemy in the brush or surrounding forests.

Enhanced Senses: As expected, Asura's senses were bolstered in order for her to be an effective hunter at the breakneck pace of future missions. Her eyes are modified to 'lock onto' a target, while her reflexes and response times were increased as well. She does have a form of infrared vision, closer in function to PIR motion sensors, allowing her to search in the dark, or environments where normal vision would be obscured.

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Short Background Description:

Asura was born into the laboratory. Her mother had been stolen from the wild for the sole purpose of obtaining her litter. That litter would become the first round of test subjects for the Foxhound Program. As soon as they were deemed old enough to start the modifications, they were separated. Two of the five would not make it through even the first surgery. Asura was the only one successfully modified to fulfil the criteria that the lab was aiming to achieve. She was then put through intensive training to ensure that she was unquestioning, obedient, and physically in top condition as the pilot experiment for the program, which led to her entering the field much later than other canines would. Her assignment to a partner from the SRAI Unit is more of an opportunity to work alongside a more experienced canine, rather than a reflection of her skillset.

Handler:

Special Agent Emery Walken

Unit:

N/A

Theme Song:

[ When I think of one I'll put it here lmfao ]

The expanse of the room was drab, full of bustling soldiers and sharp shifts of gear tossed and turned to silence out the peace that was oftentimes found after midnight. Roma sat upright on her haunches, pinions close to her flank and snout tilted like a statue, posture stringent and demanding as her holder left four minutes ago, exactly. This was one of those days that Roma had to cooperate with a fellow workforce; it was not uncommon, but it was not systematic either. The world had not gotten around to acquiring more of Roma’s species, a mutated canine that was utilized as a weapon.

But she had gotten around to seeing those crossbreeds when she began working as a partner with numerous divisions worldwide. It was mainly juveniles, wannabes, even little pups that Roma had to… Almost nurture, until Sargeant Vane realized this was not her strong suit and put her back on the field when the world needed them the most.

Today was the same, Roma was not able to eavesdrop on the exact orders from the commander, nor her holder.

All the muffling followed by the growling of soldiers around her made the conversation less comprehensible, except for the last bit.

"A recruit partnering with the SRAI." Roma's lobe flickered in mere interest at the call from the commander, stiff as a nail, her eyes drifted to her holder, who abruptly nodded. Oh. That meant that the mission was highly classified and dangerous. If two mutated canines were required to successfully proceed with the mission, Roma had already begun to overthink the cons and the aftermaths. And the canine she will meet, the canine she will have to, unfortunately, get along with until the assignment is accomplished. Screw her and her scarcity of social skills.

When her holder approached, Roma tilted her snout in acknowledgement, already strapped in her gear, earpiece in, vest wrapped, necessary accessories adorning her frame, adding just a bit of weight but remaining breathable and moveable enough that she would not bumble mid-flight or stunt. "Listen, girl—tough time's comin' up, we've finally accepted a contract with another department, we're takin' on the Operation Styx," Vane crouched down, one hand on the furry expanse of Roma's narrow head, intently listening to the words of her holder. "It’s bad—but we gotta' face it sooner or later, especially when we startin' to get supplementary enforcement and aid from different workforces." All the rambling from Vane made Roma less attentive. Operation Styx, that code-name hummed in her brain like a freight train; it sounded so familiar, set on so many notes, said through so many mouths.

"And that man gotta' come out dead, so either that or we face what he's done for the whole world," Vane added, rising back to his feet and murmuring a short, "Come on," as Roma instinctively pursued beside, meticulous in her strides but more so stuck on the familiarity she felt of that name.

Well, now it did not matter; Roma needed to concentrate and greet this newcomer with an open hand for this mission to succeed. Even if it meant taking on a violent adversary.

The hallway was packed with uniform-clad officials milling outside of the various doorways that lined it, the air filled with the steady hum of low conversations. Asura, from her post in the gear room, had an almost perfect view out the doorway and into a closed office in which some poor soul was getting berated within an inch of his life. Both the canine’s eyes and ears were trained on the scene unfolding opposite, paying no mind to what else was going on around her. Her handler, Emery, her name was – was strapping on Asura’s gear, deft and practiced, despite having only been assigned to her a couple of weeks ago. The woman didn’t speak much, dutifully caring for her and taking her around while she had adjusted to being sent to the new space that she’d be occupying for… well, Asura didn’t know. She had been present for many lengthy conversations where her only contribution had been to sit pin-straight while videos taken from her training sessions had been played for the room of faceless people. In those instances, she had picked something else to focus her attention on – the cold, dark rooms had only offered drifting flecks of dust or the light glinting off a man’s glasses. However, sitting in this room, she was offered an entirely new array of sensations – more people than she had ever seen in one place save for a few brief instances, the overpowering smell of polish, metal and sweat and the blur of voices that she was tempted to let herself sink into and pick apart, but she was steadfastly tuning all of it out, all her attention focused on the man who was now slinking, ashamed, out of the office and making his way down the hall.

Asura watched him until he disappeared out of her line of vision, immediately turning her head to find a new object to capture her attention, but Emery had stood up after fastening the last buckle in place. A sharp click of the tongue and the canine’s gaze snapped back to her handler; vivid orange eyes fixated on the woman’s face.

“Come.” The woman gave Asura a quick once-over, ensuring that everything fit like it was supposed to before turning on her heel and walking briskly out of the room.

Asura immediately followed, shaking herself a bit to adjust to the familiar weight of the vest, earpiece securely in her ear. The gear was light and fitted to her frame to avoid constricting her mobility or weighing her down. A flicker of excitement and anticipation rose in her chest. This would be her first assignment outside of the training facility, meaning that it would be different. None of the patterns she had come to familiarize herself with over the years, nor the unconcealable scent of the lab that permeated every inch of the ground around it. The crowd in the hallway parted before them, a slight break in the murmuring before it returned, this time with an air of suspense. The sight of a mutant canine was in itself an indicator of some high-profile mission, so the appearance of an unfamiliar one, accompanied by a Special Agent no less was obviously drawing a measure of attention.

Of course, Asura did not think about the reaction of the people around her, nor her assignment to – to her, what was simply a nameless Unit. She was intent on simply going wherever they were heading, claws clicking against the floor as she trotted dutifully after her handler.

Emery stopped outside of a nondescript room, greeting the young person posted outside of it with a nod and a glance towards Asura. The soldier looked both of them over and opened the door as they entered.

The door swung shut after Asura, sending a gentle rush of air through her short fur. That went unnoticed by the canine, however, as her attention was taken up by the other people in the room – a man waiting behind a desk, another waiting by the side, and most interestingly, another canine. The wolf was equipped in a similar fashion to her, jet-black with massive, sleek wings that shone under the harsh light in the room.

Ah. Partner.

Asura gave the other canine a quick look, tilting her head ever so slightly as a means of acknowledgement before padding over to the opposite side of the room to sit beside Emery, now both canines and their respective handlers – which she had gathered the other man in the room was – were on either side of the desk behind which the last man was seated.

“Good morning to the both of you, I trust it was…”

The man continued speaking, but Asura had already tuned it out, this time choosing to focus on the canine opposite her, intently taking in everything else about the other wolf.

When the much-looked-forward-to department docked, Roma breathed out the little apprehensive jitters off her nerves, sitting beside Vane's foot to greet the newcomers with... welcoming paws. This was the fourth time in her entire life that Roma would team with someone; it was strange and aggravating that nobody understood that Roma preferred solo missions. It was more manageable; you did not need to stress over your teammate, and it demanded no communication.

If only they heard her thoughts.

But after a good, solid minute of waiting, Roma's irises flicked and gouged onto the canine, like her, though prettier. With earthy tones and with no masculinity forming her physique.

Sargeant Wane immediately greeted them upon sight, introductions cleared through, names sat in her head like nails in a wooden plank, attentively listening to the conversation weaving between the people. "S'not harmful, Eagle 0-1 and Specter 4-1 are nimble 'n silent, so there won't be any trouble, especially if Specter 4-1 takes the lead," Vane discussed, hand motions gesturing about, "It's simple, the base has been cleared, it’s just gathering information, that’s all," He gestured toward the canine near Agent Walken's feet. "Once they’re back, we can discuss further ‘bout the mission of Operation Styx," Roma batted her eyes at the name and licked at her lower mandibles, still relatively tense. But it sounded uncomplicated; Roma knew this base firsthand. SRAI sat laboriously on bases having ties with the Operation Styx, so there was day-to-day yowling about whether it went successfully or not.

"If there are no more questions, Roma will guide Asura to the exit. I’ll be heading back... Oh—Agent Walken, Commander Nethorden is in the room 4-O-7, there is some paperwork to sign, don't forget it." And with that, Sergeant Wade was gone. Abandoning Roma like a chiselled statue until her muscles coiled on instinct and managed to rise to her feet, approaching the canine in meticulous strides whilst maintaining a comfortable distance with one another to not cause any issues or discomfort for the first introduction.

"I’m Roma," Her head bobbed faintly, a greeting before her irises slid downward the wolf's frame, pinnions... must've had a similar puphood as me. "It's a pleasure—" She drawled, cranium craning over her shoulder at the outway of the base, a take-off ledge made just for this moment.

"The exit is that way—the mission base is close-by," Roma murmured calmly, withdrawing back to turn her frame and meander; silent after that and more concentrated on the thoughts overrunning through her brain. Just in & out, get the information, raid through the cleared base, and return. It sounded easy; no strain would be put between the two, and they would have a light conversation, nothing else.

And once Roma weaved through the reinforced underpass, approaching the end of the entrance of the base, wind tousling through them in spurts, Roma paused, head craning to the side. “I assume.. you've done somethin' alike?"