Kalan'klyr Thabi

A Sun Seeker Miqo'te, free paladin, and dark knight.

Kal hails from Ul'dah, where his family emigrated when he was small just before Ala Mhigo fell to the Garlean Empire. His father owns a stall in Sapphire Avenue called Thabi's Fine Fabrics, from which he's sold traditional woven as well as imported fabrics to the various garment makers of Ul'dah. Ever since he was a child, Kal knew he was fated to take over the family business; he could thread a loom and do a whip stitch before he knew his first letters of Eorzean script.However, as he grew older, it became increasingly apparent that, despite his aptitude for crafting, Kal had no head for business. His bad memory for names and his difficulty doing math and regulating his attention span caused repeated issues for him as he grew older, and he regularly snuck away as a teenager to hang out with his friends in Pearl Lane, playfighting, exploring, and generally causing trouble. It was there that he began to recognize his secret desire to become a paladin and protect people, and took up training with the Gladiators' Guild -- although his father and sister disapproved of such an idealogically motivated and dangerous career, and urged him to take up something more sensible.When his little sister became old enough to assist in the family business, tensions escalated still further. Keyana's business acumen far outstripped Kal's, and Kal's sense of directionlessness and shame drove a wedge through the relationship between him and his father. During a particularly vicious fight, he quit the family business, and resolved to make his living thenceforth as an adventurer; although he could scarcely have predicted how the work would change him, and how he would in turn change the work.Kal's family are Ala Mhigan Miqo'te, and hail from the K tribe, whose territory includes the Fringes of Gyr Abania. His father, K'aresh, changed the family name early on to avoid the implication that they belonged to any particular tribe and to encourage his children to more fully adopt the ways of the city. Keyana, Kal's sister, takes exception to his assimilationism and is all too eager to socialize with other Sun Seekers. Bold, opinionated, and outspoken, she takes after their Moon Keeper mother, who left soon after giving birth to her and was never seen again.

Profile

Name: Kalan'klyr Thabi
Nickname: Kal
Age: 24 (ARR) - 26 (EW)
Pronouns: He/him
Height: 5'1
Orientation: Bisexual, aromantic, polyamorous
Vocation: Paladin and Dark Knight; he also recreationally has picked up the spear and gunblade
Affiliations: The Scions of the Seventh Dawn (employee); the Fortemps family of Ishgard (sworn knight); the Immortal Flames (captain); M tribe (ally and M'zhet wrangler); Midgardsormr (honorary father) and the first brood (honorary siblings), particularly after Endwalker; Valine (best friend and life partner)
Hobbies: Weaving, sewing and alterations, fibercraft (including embroidery, crochet, knitting, spinning, etc) botany, leatherworking, cooking, reading pulp novels

Personality

Kal is an inveterate extrovert -- a cheerful, plainspoken guy whose many hobbies and social contacts bespeak a man who has a great deal of trouble sitting still or minding his own business. Constantly caught up in some activity from dawn to well past dusk, Kal is always on the go, but nonetheless always seems to have a second to spare to catch up with friends or take on yet another project. Despite the stress of his work, he affects an easygoing and approachable attitude that make him easy to confide in. Indeed, if one was not watching closely, one might almost accuse him of not taking his occupation as a sellsword and adventurer seriously -- although this would be a grave mistake.Not one to accentuate his speech with fanciful turns of phrase, and somewhat prone to forgetfulness -- particularly for names, place names, lists of items, and the like -- it would be somewhat easy to write Kal off as a "dumb jock." However, this couldn't be further from the truth. While not a scholar, he's a consummate observer of behavior and is surprisingly perceptive in situations involving delicate negotiations or social situations. He has a knack for using his easygoing charm to smooth over awkward social situations. However, he's also utterly unafraid of confrontation or authority, particularly when he feels people are acting out of a desire to dominate or control others. His dearest ambition as an adventurer is to stop serving the imperialistic interests of politicians and world leaders, and to instead be allowed to fight for the downtrodden and disenfranchised in Eorzea and beyond.

Hooks

Journeyman Adventurer: While Kal is making his way through Endwalker in canon, he still considers himself open to new experiences and is by no means an expert! He's tremendously humble and always down to learn something new, whether it be hobbies, cultural practices, or new martial techniques. Just be warned that he doesn't really care about magic or any of that stuff; it kinda puts him to sleep to hear people talk about aether all day. (Yes, this has impacted his relationships with the Scions -- what of it)For Duty and Justice: Kal is strongly motivated to stand up for the disenfranchised, both as a paladin and knight and as a son of Ala Mhigo. Characters who are similarly motivated or who share aspects of his background will find a ready friend in him. However, he distrusts those who appear to serve causes -- geographical, political, or ideological -- without thinking critically about their role as potential instruments of oppression. He may be a paladin, but he's not a cop, and he doesn't fuck with them either. If he concludes you're one, he's not afraid to tell you so.

Conversationalist: Kal will talk to literally anyone about anything. Do you have gossip to share? Did you have something really rad to eat for dinner? Did you see a really cool thing in the marketplace? Niiiice, tell him about it! He'll happily mingle in group or mixed settings and contribute the occasional funny one-liner, but in one or two person groups is where he really shines. He'll build you up about whatever, chat with you about the duty you just did, pat your minion; just, whatever feels right, y'know?Send in the Clowns: Are you a little silly? Are you considered a bit of a fuckup? Did you develop a sense of humor to mask your crippling insecurities and set others at ease? Kal is holding your hand and looking deep in your eyes. You are as a sibling to him. He cares about you so much. Please talk to him, he is begging you. Come hang out with him and just goof off. Let's ditch this place... life is too fucking short, man. Let's go dancing or drinking or get waffles or deface a building or something! He would fight and die for you. You're best friends now.

For the Love of the Sport (nsfw): Kal loves casual hookups, particularly with partners who are taller than him (although he's not opposed to smaller people, either). His favorite flings have tended to have elements of powerplay included, whether it's catch/fuck, painplay, or simple bondage. While he's vers when it comes to topping/bottoming, Kal is a submissive at heart, and loves to be tormented, petted, played with, or made useful. He's somewhat choosy with his partners, however; be forewarned that at the slightest hint of unwelcome attention or, Warden forbid, expectations, he'll ghost at the drop of a hat.

Refsheet (Post-Endwalker)

Shadowbringers and Endwalker Lore

If Kal appears in a roleplay setting, it is unlikely the below will be used/referenced! However, for those interested in the complete picture, read on below.Shadowbringers Lore: During the events of Shadowbringers, Kal stridently resisted the Crystal Exarch's bid to pull him into the First, to the point that he split in two. His Living Shadow undertook the journey, reasoning that it spared him the most pain; Kal, adrift and missing a part of himself, was left alone on the Source. Thus abandoned, he resumed the war against the Empire and journeyed to Bozja to assist there.Endwalker Lore: During the events of Endwalker, Kal fought stridently to save the world, but was cast down by Svarbhanu in Vanaspati. With one of the Warriors of Light on the brink of death, Vrtra gifted Kal his eye, and Kal was reborn as a child of Midgardsormr. Initially very frail in his Au Ra form, he slowly regained strength throughout the rest of Endwalker, and is now restored to his usual stature, shape, and energy.Upon meeting Venat, he and Valine learned the truth of their origins; that each of them were created from parts of Venat and Azem, respectively. After Azem's long journey through multiple lives, Venat grieved her loneliness and created Kal as a boon to assist her, knowing the dark times that would soon be upon the world. Together, the two could bring about peace far more effectively than they could apart; and while Azem questioned Venat's plan, Venat herself never wavered. In like manner, Kal stayed Valine's hand in Elpis and stopped her from disrupting the timeline; the Sundering proceeded, and the two arrived safely in the present.In the final confrontation, Valine, possessed of empathy beyond her years, treated with and calmed Meteion following the battle with Endsinger, telling her of Midgardsormr's journey through the stars and of her own pain of loss. When Meteion readied to take Valine and Kal back home, Zenos intervened and pulled Kal into a dimension of his own creating, that they might grapple beyond limits and test their strength even unto death.Alone and dying at the edge of the universe, Kal looked back at his life and for the first time allowed himself to doubt whether it had all been for any purpose. Though he had hated Zenos, the two were made equal in death, and Zenos' question about fulfillment nearly drove Kal to despair. But as Zenos' eyes closed, his power to arrest Kal in his dimension waned; and Valine was at last able to use the Traveler's summoning spell to fetch him back from beyond. The two now enjoy a well-earned rest.

Important Relationships

Valine Gulrath: Kal's fellow Warrior of Light, an elegant and somewhat mysterious Roegadyn woman. Despite her serious, no-nonsense demeanor, she has a hidden, deeply mischievous side to match Kal's own. Initially friends, they quickly became both colleagues and lovers in ARR, but following the events of Heavensward their relationship became more distant due to their mutual grief. Still, Kal has always considered Val his dearest and most cherished friend; and after the events of Shadowbringers and Endwalker, the two reconciled and have never been closer.

M'zhet Tia: Dim-witted but good-hearted, M'zhet and Kal hit it off right away upon meeting each other; what began as typical Sun Seeker male rivalry quickly formed into something more. Kal, traveling a homeland he barely remembered, recognized more of himself than he wanted to admit in the plucky and disaster-prone M'zhet. M'zhet, for his part, never doubted that Kal belonged in his world, and offered him a chance to join it at every opportunity he could.Constant travel and distance mean the two of them meet only seldomly, but when they do the two are inseparable, wrestling, hunting, and talking for hours on end. But whether Kal can bring himself to truly put down roots is another matter entirely...

Cyr Blyme: Initially, Kal held nothing but antipathy for Cyr, whose pernicious rule-following made him eminently bullyable. But when Cyr turned his back on the Inquisition in favor of helping a soul-searching mammet find answers, Kal and Valine both found themselves charmed.Kal's tendency toward being forthright and delight in pushing people's buttons mesh well with Cyr's tastes; but besides that, the two have become fast friends because Kal will often observe truths in Cyr that he himself struggles to admit.

Emmanellain de Fortemps: While Kal had always been on good terms with Emmanellain, the aftermath of Haurchefant's death transformed the relationship between the two in a way that neither could have predicted. Given their cheery dispositions and their mutual predilection for dancing, social outings, and gossip, they naturally gravitated toward each other despite their sharp differences in background and upbringing. But when Kal was tasked with mentoring Emmanellain prior to the Grand Melee, he found that Emmanellain's struggles resonated with his own.Since then the two have become fast friends, and the denizens of Camp Dragonhead murmur that perhaps there is more to their relationship than meets the eye -- although Emmanellain will neither confirm nor deny such rumors, of course!

Haurchefant Greystone: While initially Kal held Haurchefant at arms' length, as time went on and circumstances conspired to bring them together more and more often the two recognized that they were kindred spirits. Both strongly motivated by their desire to protect their homelands and their fellow man, Kal looked up to Haurchefant and often turned to him for guidance and comfort when he was expelled from Ul'dah.Losing him nearly broke Kal entirely, and drove him into a single-minded quest for vengeance that was Achillean in its fury. However, following the events of the Grand Melee, and after having walked the path and become a Dark Knight, Kal is slowly coming to terms with his loss, and with how he can make sense of his vocation.

Keyana Thabi: Kal's baby sister. Five years younger than he, when she became old enough to assist his father with the family business, Kal was able to pursue his goal of becoming an adventurer -- although she thinks he's a bit of an idiot to try it.Bold and outspoken, she nonetheless loves her big brother, even if he is annoying. In his absence the house isn't as chaotic, but she does her best.

K'aresh Thabi: Kal's father. Expelled from his tribe just as Ala Mhigo fell to the Garleans, he led his wife and child to Ul'dah in search of a better life 20 years ago. While he's getting on in years, he still has plenty of energy and works to keep the family business running with the same single-minded purpose and charm that Kal employs for slaying primals and impressing dignitaries. Kind and supportive, K'aresh was nonetheless somewhat distant with Kal in his youth, and deeply laments his son's poor attention span. He taught Kal all that he knows about threadcraft, and on the occasions Kal returns home he doesn't stint to test his skill to ensure he hasn't stopped practicing.