Paradisa Application
Oct. 19th, 2013 11:59 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
godmakemeastonePERSONAL
NAME: Cyn
PERSONAL JOURNAL: N/A
EMAIL: askme.howiroll@gmail.com
AIM: askme.howiroll@gmail.com
CURRENT CHARACTERS: N/A
CHARACTER
CHARACTER NAME: River Tam
SERIES: Serenity
CANON POINT: Post movie
LOSS: Her psychic ability
ABOUT THE CHARACTER: River was an exceptionally bright young girl who adored her brother, Simon, and lived happily with her family until she heard about a school for gifted children, called simply, The Academy. River, then 14, was excited to be accepted to go. She was a quick learner and had already far surpassed her classmates.
However, once at The Academy, she realized that the government was more interested in creating assassins and experimenting on people than it was on teaching. River was subjected to inhuman experimentation that delved into her mind and surgery that caused damage to her brain. The Academy sought to enhance her pre-existing intuitive abilities, and eventually suceeded in making her psychic (the term "Reader" is also used in canon). It was not without cost, though. River lost touch with reality, though she had lucid moments when she sent coded messages to her brother in an effort to escape.
River spends two years at The Academy before Simon is able to rescue her. By that time, her mind seems completely broken. The government (called "The Alliance" in canon) is after her and Simon, and Simon finds passage for them on a ship named Serenity, led by Captain Malcolm Reynolds. Simon sneaks River on board in cyro-freeze, and when Mal finds her, he agrees to keep them safe from the Alliance (after an inital misunderstanding about Simon being a slave trader).
On board Serenity, River does start to slowly heal. There are still rough times, like when she slashed Jayne's chest because he looked good in red, but for the most part things were okay.
An argument between Simon and Mal ended with Simon saying that he and River would leave the ship at the next stop. When they reached that stop, the crew was in a bar, and River saw a commercial on the television for Fruity Oaty Bars. She whispered the word "Miranda," then proceeded to take out the entire bar, injuring Jayne and pointing a gun at Mal. She paused rather than shoot Mal, and Simon was able to put her to sleep using a safe word.
It's discovered that Miranda is a planet at the edge of the solar system, a planet everyone thinks is uninhabited. When Serenity makes the dangerous trek to Miranda, they find out that The Alliance put the chemical G-23 Paxilon Hydrochlorate in Miranda's atmosphere in order to decrease aggression. However, it lead to the majority of the inhabitants to lose their will to live and eventually lay down and die.
The few that survived had increased aggression, and instead became "Reavers," cannabalistic monsters that rape and kill whomever they encounter. River knew The Alliance's secret: the government had created Reavers. This is why they were so intent on killing her.
When the truth about Miranda is revealed to the crew, River falls to the floor and vomits. When Simon goes to check on her, she looks at him and says "I'm alright." It is the most lucid moment for River throughout the series to this point, and it gives the hope that now that the secret is literally out of her, that she can begin to heal.
As the Serenity crew seeks to broadcast the truth about Miranda, they are attacked by Reavers. Simon is injured, and River jumps into a group of Reavers to save the rest of the crew. She does this thinking that it's a suicide mission. However, her assassin training kicks in and she is able to slay the entire group of Reavers with no physical harm to her. The crew is able to successfully release the truth about Miranda and River assists Mal in piloting Serenity.
Serenity is the first place she has ever truly felt at home. Even in her darkest times, she has been able to rely on the safety of Serenity and the willingness of the crew to hide her and keep her safe. This brings a sense of peace to River's chaos, and it's one of the reasons she is able to heal. Each person on Serenity has their own brand of crazy, and they are accepting of River's crazy as well (for the most part). There is an instance where Zoe and Wash are talking about what River will do next. Zoe says "Either blow us up or rub soup in our hair. It's a toss up." Wash says "I hope she does the soup thing. It's always a hoot, and we don't all die from it." They accept her as one of their crew, and with that comes accepting that she's not always the most stable crew member. But they accept her, and they grow to trust her and love her. That works wonders for River's everyday life.
Living on Serenity provides River with a stability that she needs. Things may change from day to day, but Serenity is always the same. Mal is always captain. Zoe is always stoic. Each crew member plays a role for River, and it combines to the whole comforting atmosphere that enables River to heal. She had been through some horrific things at The Academy, but on Serenity, she is completely safe and nurtured and accepted, maybe for the first time in her life.
Her parents refused to make any move to try to rescue River from The Academy. Simon risks his life and gives up his career to rescue her, but their parents just end up disappointing both of them. The crew of Serenity has risked their lives to protect River, and rescue her when she needs it. She's never had anyone other than Simon willing to do that for her before. It makes her incredibly loyal to her crew, to know that they are willing to fly through Reaver territory to find Miranda based on nothing but River's word, even after she's destroyed a bar full of people and almost shot Mal. This is the main reason that River is happier on Serenity than she has been anywhere else in her adult life. She has found a family and a home, and that brings peace to most of her days. She is able to laugh, dance, and play in a way that she hasn't been able to since she was a child.
ABILITIES: River has incredible hand-to-hand combat skills, as well as knowledge of guns and impeccable aim. She is able to shoot and kill with her eyes closed. She's very graceful and loves to dance.
THIRD-PERSON WRITING SAMPLE:
River hadn't realized how much she missed the sunlight on her face. She tilts her chin up, eyes closed, and basks in the warmth of the sun. She loves the Black, more than she ever thought she could love anything other than Simon. She loves Serenity, with her constant hum of life as she houses the people River holds most dear, she loves the way Serenity whispers to her, protects her. But sometimes, she just misses the sun.
Smile still in place, River opens her eyes, taking a moment to adjust to the light. She looks out over the nature she's not used to seeing very much, trees and grass she can wiggle her bare toes in. She does it, simply because she can, because she can't remember the last time she felt grass. She hums a tune and moves her feet, dancing a little from the joy of the moment. She loves the feel of her skirt swishing around her legs as she spins, the heady feeling of dizziness and the way her arms almost move of their own accord.
When she stops spinning, she turns and looks up at the building in front of her. A castle. An honest to goodness actual castle. Paradisa. Like paradise, but not. She knows too much to expect anything like paradise, but for now, that's okay. There's no Serenity here, but there is Mal. There is no Black, but there is Simon. And Simon is her home, in a ship in the Black or in a castle in the sun.
FIRST-PERSON JOURNAL SAMPLE:
It's quiet here.
[She closes her eyes where she stands in the castle lobby, raises her arms out to the side, and tilts her head, listening.]
No noise. Can only hear my own thoughts.
[She opens her eyes and walks toward someone in the lobby, eyes narrowed as she tries to hear their thoughts. When she can't, she gives a bright smile to the passerby, then pirouettes gracefully a few times, before she breaks into joyous laughter. The laughter lasts only a moment, and her face clouds as she realizes something.]
Can't hear my crew. There, not here. Peace, but no Serenity. Need to find my crew.
INTENT: River is a challenge. In order to be true to her character, it takes a lot of thought and canon knowledge. I love Firefly and all of its characters, but River has always spoken to me. She's so strong yet so broken all at the same time, which is a fun dynamic to play.
NAME: Cyn
PERSONAL JOURNAL: N/A
EMAIL: askme.howiroll@gmail.com
AIM: askme.howiroll@gmail.com
CURRENT CHARACTERS: N/A
CHARACTER
CHARACTER NAME: River Tam
SERIES: Serenity
CANON POINT: Post movie
LOSS: Her psychic ability
ABOUT THE CHARACTER: River was an exceptionally bright young girl who adored her brother, Simon, and lived happily with her family until she heard about a school for gifted children, called simply, The Academy. River, then 14, was excited to be accepted to go. She was a quick learner and had already far surpassed her classmates.
However, once at The Academy, she realized that the government was more interested in creating assassins and experimenting on people than it was on teaching. River was subjected to inhuman experimentation that delved into her mind and surgery that caused damage to her brain. The Academy sought to enhance her pre-existing intuitive abilities, and eventually suceeded in making her psychic (the term "Reader" is also used in canon). It was not without cost, though. River lost touch with reality, though she had lucid moments when she sent coded messages to her brother in an effort to escape.
River spends two years at The Academy before Simon is able to rescue her. By that time, her mind seems completely broken. The government (called "The Alliance" in canon) is after her and Simon, and Simon finds passage for them on a ship named Serenity, led by Captain Malcolm Reynolds. Simon sneaks River on board in cyro-freeze, and when Mal finds her, he agrees to keep them safe from the Alliance (after an inital misunderstanding about Simon being a slave trader).
On board Serenity, River does start to slowly heal. There are still rough times, like when she slashed Jayne's chest because he looked good in red, but for the most part things were okay.
An argument between Simon and Mal ended with Simon saying that he and River would leave the ship at the next stop. When they reached that stop, the crew was in a bar, and River saw a commercial on the television for Fruity Oaty Bars. She whispered the word "Miranda," then proceeded to take out the entire bar, injuring Jayne and pointing a gun at Mal. She paused rather than shoot Mal, and Simon was able to put her to sleep using a safe word.
It's discovered that Miranda is a planet at the edge of the solar system, a planet everyone thinks is uninhabited. When Serenity makes the dangerous trek to Miranda, they find out that The Alliance put the chemical G-23 Paxilon Hydrochlorate in Miranda's atmosphere in order to decrease aggression. However, it lead to the majority of the inhabitants to lose their will to live and eventually lay down and die.
The few that survived had increased aggression, and instead became "Reavers," cannabalistic monsters that rape and kill whomever they encounter. River knew The Alliance's secret: the government had created Reavers. This is why they were so intent on killing her.
When the truth about Miranda is revealed to the crew, River falls to the floor and vomits. When Simon goes to check on her, she looks at him and says "I'm alright." It is the most lucid moment for River throughout the series to this point, and it gives the hope that now that the secret is literally out of her, that she can begin to heal.
As the Serenity crew seeks to broadcast the truth about Miranda, they are attacked by Reavers. Simon is injured, and River jumps into a group of Reavers to save the rest of the crew. She does this thinking that it's a suicide mission. However, her assassin training kicks in and she is able to slay the entire group of Reavers with no physical harm to her. The crew is able to successfully release the truth about Miranda and River assists Mal in piloting Serenity.
Serenity is the first place she has ever truly felt at home. Even in her darkest times, she has been able to rely on the safety of Serenity and the willingness of the crew to hide her and keep her safe. This brings a sense of peace to River's chaos, and it's one of the reasons she is able to heal. Each person on Serenity has their own brand of crazy, and they are accepting of River's crazy as well (for the most part). There is an instance where Zoe and Wash are talking about what River will do next. Zoe says "Either blow us up or rub soup in our hair. It's a toss up." Wash says "I hope she does the soup thing. It's always a hoot, and we don't all die from it." They accept her as one of their crew, and with that comes accepting that she's not always the most stable crew member. But they accept her, and they grow to trust her and love her. That works wonders for River's everyday life.
Living on Serenity provides River with a stability that she needs. Things may change from day to day, but Serenity is always the same. Mal is always captain. Zoe is always stoic. Each crew member plays a role for River, and it combines to the whole comforting atmosphere that enables River to heal. She had been through some horrific things at The Academy, but on Serenity, she is completely safe and nurtured and accepted, maybe for the first time in her life.
Her parents refused to make any move to try to rescue River from The Academy. Simon risks his life and gives up his career to rescue her, but their parents just end up disappointing both of them. The crew of Serenity has risked their lives to protect River, and rescue her when she needs it. She's never had anyone other than Simon willing to do that for her before. It makes her incredibly loyal to her crew, to know that they are willing to fly through Reaver territory to find Miranda based on nothing but River's word, even after she's destroyed a bar full of people and almost shot Mal. This is the main reason that River is happier on Serenity than she has been anywhere else in her adult life. She has found a family and a home, and that brings peace to most of her days. She is able to laugh, dance, and play in a way that she hasn't been able to since she was a child.
ABILITIES: River has incredible hand-to-hand combat skills, as well as knowledge of guns and impeccable aim. She is able to shoot and kill with her eyes closed. She's very graceful and loves to dance.
THIRD-PERSON WRITING SAMPLE:
River hadn't realized how much she missed the sunlight on her face. She tilts her chin up, eyes closed, and basks in the warmth of the sun. She loves the Black, more than she ever thought she could love anything other than Simon. She loves Serenity, with her constant hum of life as she houses the people River holds most dear, she loves the way Serenity whispers to her, protects her. But sometimes, she just misses the sun.
Smile still in place, River opens her eyes, taking a moment to adjust to the light. She looks out over the nature she's not used to seeing very much, trees and grass she can wiggle her bare toes in. She does it, simply because she can, because she can't remember the last time she felt grass. She hums a tune and moves her feet, dancing a little from the joy of the moment. She loves the feel of her skirt swishing around her legs as she spins, the heady feeling of dizziness and the way her arms almost move of their own accord.
When she stops spinning, she turns and looks up at the building in front of her. A castle. An honest to goodness actual castle. Paradisa. Like paradise, but not. She knows too much to expect anything like paradise, but for now, that's okay. There's no Serenity here, but there is Mal. There is no Black, but there is Simon. And Simon is her home, in a ship in the Black or in a castle in the sun.
FIRST-PERSON JOURNAL SAMPLE:
It's quiet here.
[She closes her eyes where she stands in the castle lobby, raises her arms out to the side, and tilts her head, listening.]
No noise. Can only hear my own thoughts.
[She opens her eyes and walks toward someone in the lobby, eyes narrowed as she tries to hear their thoughts. When she can't, she gives a bright smile to the passerby, then pirouettes gracefully a few times, before she breaks into joyous laughter. The laughter lasts only a moment, and her face clouds as she realizes something.]
Can't hear my crew. There, not here. Peace, but no Serenity. Need to find my crew.
INTENT: River is a challenge. In order to be true to her character, it takes a lot of thought and canon knowledge. I love Firefly and all of its characters, but River has always spoken to me. She's so strong yet so broken all at the same time, which is a fun dynamic to play.