Luciano Baroni
From Inga no Kusari wiki
| Baroni, Luciano ♂ | |
|---|---|
 10th Seat, 12th Division | |
| Date of Birth | 13th January, 1923 (89) |
| Place of Birth | Rome, Italy |
| Zanpakutō | Asauchi |
| Player | Lumancer |
| Shinigami | |
Contents |
Appearance
Windows were a luxury deemed too hazardous for Luciano's sick room, lest he shatter the glass and harm himself or others: thus he had not seen sunlight for the last sixteen years of his life and is deathly pale. In spite of this, his neat, wavy brown hair, soft eyes, and gentle smile lend a certain disarming charm to his appearance. He is more than a little vain, a trait he inherited from his father, and is very proud of his well cared for kimono. Though the scabbard of his Zanpakutō is fairly innocuous, the blade itself looks to be in terrible condition- in places, the edge is more likely to tear or grind than cut.
In that vein, when fighting Luciano's demeanor changes considerably. His facial expressions twist in to the most sinister of snears, scowls, and snarls; his stance is brought from perfect posture down to a near four-legged crouch; and his otherwise well-kempt appearance becomes rapidly disheveled.
Personality
Luciano is polite, charming, unobtrusive- in short, a generally likable guy. In spite of this, he was essentially living in a box for more than a decade and a half, and as such is more than a bit eccentric and socially awkward at times. Those that knew him in life would barely recognize him- his alternate persona dominated him then, making him violent, wild, nigh cruel at times. He is haunted by these memories, and will grow anxious and jumpy when confronted with anything that reminds him of the experience. For this reason, he carries his sword as gingerly and as far from his person as possible- he won't admit it, but on more than one occasion he's almost sure he's heard it speak. ((But whether this be a function of his madness or the nature of a zanpakutō remains to be seen...))
History
In life, Luciano was the son of a wealthy and prosperous Italian merchant. Had circumstances been different, he might have lived the wonderful life afforded to his siblings; educated by private tutors, taken on frequent trips throughout Europe and Asia, and exposed to many things that such young men and women are rarely afforded the opportunity to experience. However, there was a distinct difference between Luciano and his brothers and sisters; his father was ashamed, even frightened of him. From a very young age, it was clear that the boy was deeply disturbed. Countless exorcisms and the best doctors money could by did not calm the boy's wild, violent alter ego. Ultimately, Signor Baroni locked his youngest son away, banishing him to a padded room in a quiet corner of the estate. Luciano was barely 10 years old at the time.
For the next sixteen years Luciano knew nothing but his room, his aunt and caretaker Donna Francesca, and the screeching monstrosity in his mind that he and the Donna would eventually refer to as Il Folletto - the Imp. Discarded, alone, and tormented by his condition, Luciano sank deeper and deeper into a silent, resigned depression.
On his twenty sixth birthday, Donna Francesca brought a small cake to her nephew in the hopes that the token gift might bring him some cheer. Sadly, the increasingly old and slightly senile woman did not think to remove the knife from the pastry before bringing it in. In a final fit of madness, the young prisoner ended his own life with the small blade.
When he awoke in soul society some time after, Luciano discovered a wonderful thing; he was outside, in a field and in the sunlight, far from the box that had been his world for so long. And, more notably, for the first time in his memory, Luciano had peace, quiet, both in the world around him and in his mind. He also had one other, unexpected item; a thin one sided sword, similar to the souvenirs he had seen his father bring for his brothers when he returned from trips to Asia. It was a katana, ragged, unpolished, scratched, chipped, and chillingly familiar in some way.
If he listened closely, he could almost hear the sword laughing...
Luciano was quickly snatched up by the academy and began what may have been on of the strangest academic tenures the institution had ever seen. By conventional terms, Luciano was a mess, and had passed very few of his classes; but by the time he reached graduation, every instructor he had encountered agreed that he was more than competent as a shinigami. Their confidence was deserved, but hard bought, as course upon course had begun disastrously; traditional sword fighting styles and stances were awkward and gave him irritating joint pains; he stumbled through the usual incantations and was lucky to illicit even the most fizzling spark of kidō; meditative exercises meant to facilitate communion with one's zanpakutō resulted in everything from brief comas to violent seizures; and virtually every conventional technique with which he was presented resulted in miserable, epic failure. But gradually, something strange happened- Luciano began to find his own ways around his stumbling blocks. Bringing his swordplay inward and downward, he resorted to crouching, leaping, and rolling around his opponents while peppering them with rapid, stinging jabs of his weapon. Allowed a little time to concentrate on the spells, he produced unintelligible incantations that nonetheless produced the desired effect. And, gradually, he forged an uneasy alliance with his unsettling zanpakutō.
Combat
Strengths
A kidō user he is not. Though Luciano himself was instantly interested in the arts upon seeing them, his fighting is almost exclusively physical- powerful, instinctive strikes and abnormal, almost inhuman movements that grow more unpredictable as the fight wears on. However, when he DOES use kidō, his bizarre incantations are liable to catch opponents off guard.
Weaknesses
Unconventional has its drawbacks. The biggest issue Luciano has is his reach. His sword is average length, but because of his compact stance he typically has trouble against opponents with good range. Moreover, thanks to his odd methods, Luciano is only vaguely familiar with what might be considered "normal" attack methods- you're as likely to catch him off guard as he is you.
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