Maluiaokaneahukai
Kiai, the White Breaker

Kanaka of the Kokua
Defender of the Kahiko-Kai

Description


Mortal Seeming: ~Strapping and strong, Malu epitomizes the pure-blooded Hawai'ian youths of eld. Tanned flesh lingers in full view as Malu is most often clad in only swimming trunks, preferring bold blue or solid black. A lifeguard's whistle hangs around his neck and down over his broad, muscular chest. Indeed, Malu can boast an excellent physique, with a sturdy build and well-defined musculature. And Malu's face is easy to look at, too. The handsome, chiseled features appear both exotic and heroic. His inky-black hair is kept fairly short, but there remains enough hair for the wind to sweep bangs across his brow and winsome, baby-brown eyes. His left ear is doubly pierced with silver hoops. Malu's only other adornments involve tattoos. Clearly present on the man's back spans a wide, toothy maw of shark jaws. Hovering above the well-designed tattoo are the predator's black and alien eyes. His other markings seem more peaceful and gentle. Seashell patterns beautify both his arms, circling up from the wrists to his shoulders. They give his limbs the look of ancient, underwater fossils, though his muscles ripple with animation. Malu's proud stature tells a tale of gallant competition in contrast with a lazy love of the sea and land of Hawai'i.~

OOC: Appearance 3 (4)

Fae Mien: ~The Kokua's true appearance varies little from his mortal façade. Malu remains strong and dark, exotic and heroic. If anything, Malu only seems to embody these qualities perfectly. But there are some very noticeable differences. Malu's simple voile shifts from swimming shorts to a maroon tunic made of a "red dirt" cotton-like substance. The garment hangs from his waist to just above his knees. Malu's whistle is replaced, too. A necklace made of small seashells strung together loops around his neck. All shapes and colors of shells adorn the man. Malu's tattoos do not vanish, however. If anything, the sepia seems to embolden on his unblemished skin. And finally, Malu's eyes radiate even more life and jubilance than imaginable. Everyday brings a new challenge that the Kokua loves to meet face-to-face, mono e mono.~

OOC: Appearance 3 (4)

"Funny. Don't make me swim out there to you, chuckles."

History


Youth

Maui, Hawai'i: tropical and beautiful were its beaches and resorts. Into this exotic land of magic and myths, Maluiaokaneahukai (Malu, for short!) was born. He wasn't always named that. He was born as Akoni Kekoa, and lived with family near the beach. Close-knit they remained, even as the whirlwind of tourism thrived around their homestead. Of course, both his parents had to work to make ends meet. Hawai'i might have been a wealthy land, but that just meant the cost of living was high, too. Akoni's little sisters danced, bringing in even more money. Akoni? He just surfed and swam in the Pacific. So when he was old enough, became a licensed lifeguard at swimming pools and beaches.

And Akoni did go to school, like any youths in America. In public school, he made plenty of friends. He was always popular and charismatic, particularly due to his physical talents. While he was a superb swimmer and an excellent surfer, like any good Hawai'ian youth, he could hold his own in just about any sport. And Akoni was very competitive about his hobbies, too. Even from a young age, he held that winning was important. Of course, winning "well" was more important than just winning, or he'd cheat. And Akoni was no cheater. But Akoni wasn't just about "pressing the flesh". The teenager proved rather introspective and insightful, especially in social studies classes (at least when the subject pertained to Hawai'ian culture, which it often did).

So as time went on, Akoni began to envision less and less "paltry" things most teenagers do. Instead of "wet dreams" of the homecoming queen, Akoni enjoyed dreams of standing on the backs of sharks, holding them by reins, "surfing" on these predators. Also in his feverish, adolescent sleep, Akoni saw himself swimming…in floes of volcanic lava, harmless and untouched. Perhaps it was the dreams or just his true nature beginning to peek through, but Akoni grew bolder and bolder in his waking hours. He dared bigger waves when he surfed. He picked fights with bigger and stronger guys. And whether he wiped out or got his ass kicked, Akoni never lost his driving courage to experience and live through more.

Chrysalis & Tutelage

Akoni began to buy into the myths he learned of at home and in school. The myths of the menehune and mano, and how the old kapu still held true, even if the people of Hawai'i turned their backs on the old ways. He found it all romantic and heroic and secretly wished he were one of the old gods. Of course, he actually was, and he just had not yet undergone the change. That changed in 2000, when he was seventeen years old.

One afternoon, Akoni was lifeguarding at the beach. He spotted the dorsal fin of a shark and blew his whistle. But one swimmer decided to ignore the warning and took his sweet time in the waves. The shark was upon the swimmer, even as Akoni dashed and dove into the water. Blood filled the water as the swimmer was yanked under by the persistent predator. Swift swimmer Akoni caught up to where the attack happened, nabbing the swimmer and tugging him free even as he slugged the shark clean in the eye. The man was released even as the shark turned on Akoni. The man managed his way back to the shore while the great white and Akoni did not surface for a long minute. And finally, the surface parted with the monster…and Akoni balancing on the predator's back. A wild shout of glee filled the air, and a pulse of dream-energy -- Glamour -- marked Akoni's Chrysalis. The proud and triumphant Kokua passed his first rite of passage!

Then the Mists descended on the beach. All onlookers soon forgot the sight of a young man riding a shark like a surfboard. All but one -- a fellow Kokua witnessed the Chrysalis. He rushed forward to the shore to help the victim and Chrysalid alike. The bitten swimmer was soon rushed off to the hospital while the man approached Akoni and introduced himself as Ola Iaokaala. Akoni thought that man was dressed rather strangely in his archaic tunic…until Ola flashed a mirror Akoni's way and shocked the Chrysalid with his own antique voile.

Akoni didn't feel weirded out at all by the revelations Ola presented. Akoni was very pleased to discover that he was the creature of his dreams. He bought right into the Menehune ways, learning their traditions and how they are to obey the sacred kapu. And Akoni learned his new fae talents right off the bat, before his rites of passage were complete, to try and convert people back to the old ways. His own human family was his first success, and they were soon as romantically in love with Hawai'i as he was. And at the same time, the Chrysalid maintained his job as a lifeguard on the Maui beaches -- he dropped out of high school to do that. Akoni kept an eye out for trouble like sharks. He revered the sacred mano, shark-gods, and decided he was more interested in stopping shark attacks for the sake of the shark rather than a foolish or unlucky swimmer or surfer. And of course, the young man also kept an eye on the hot babes. His mentor was, suffice to say, quite impressed with Akoni's adaptability. But then, he was Kokua, the strongest of all fae!

During Akoni's fosterage under Ola, he only ever met other Menehune. He met the Ali'i princes and princesses of Maui and all the other Callings. Though he was educated about the presence of the Western Kithain, he didn't show the least bit of interest in their existence. What did they understand about the ways of the Menehune? Not much, or they'd leave Hawai'i! Akoni grew more and more competitive over the first months of his new life. Surfing and swimming became his sole hobbies really, and he challenged mortal and Menehune alike to constant tests of skill. And he also continued his lifeguarding. He believed that maintaining safety was vital if people were to be allowed to decide their own fates, instead of being carried away by the whim of nature. Strength -- not just of body, but will -- was important to Akoni. And to prove it, he even challenged Ola to surfing, swimming, and fighting. Although Ola beat him on the first two accounts and refused to fight the youth, he recognized Akoni's maturity as Kokua. For overcoming that boundary of limitation, Ola renamed the youth Maluiaokaneahukai.

Early Years

And so now the young Kokua, nicknamed Malu for short, continued his education as Menehune. Over the last few months, his dreams as a "tamer" of the great "mano" (sharks) grew more regular and steady. He reported this to his mentor, who remarked that it was normal. So then any different dream became decidedly abnormal. So it was that Malu dreamed of himself walking down the shoreline, not a shark in sight. He was simply picking up seashells in his dream, only the best and loveliest ones. So that's what he did the next day when he woke up. He walked all over north Maui, taking up the best shells. At noon, he took his pockets full of seashells to a grassy knoll overlooking the shore. There he laid them all out. Blinking, he realized their shapes, sizes, and colors all coincidentally appeared to fit in some strange design. He toiled at working out just what that design was, setting shells together like some jigsaw puzzle.

Soon enough, Malu figured it out. When he looked upon the resulting shell-pattern, epiphany flashed brightly in the youth's head. And at that moment, he was contacted. The real world phased out and he was transported into the magical realm of the spirits. The puzzle still lay there before him, but now it pulsed with ephemera. It was talking to him! It introduced itself as the aumakua -- spirit-totem -- Seashell. It told Malu that it (or she, as Malu decided) wanted him to help her, and in so doing she would help him. She wanted him to help keep the beaches clean, and to treat all natural things at the beaches -- people included -- as unique and beautiful things to be protected. Malu considered that, and knew that protection was well in-line with his Calling as Kokua. So he heartily agreed, honored by the spirit. The two joined, forging a bond common to most Menehune. Few of these fae go without aumakua patrons, after all. And to Ola, this was a sign of Malu's manhood. The fosterage was over. So the mentor called his fellow Kokua of Maui to the beach that night and they all celebrated and rejoiced. Malu was accorded the respect due all kanaka adults, and he felt right at home.

But not long after his Naming, Malu dropped almost completely out of any kind of communal lifestyle with even other Menehune. Malu saw his personal mission clearly. In service as both Kokua and to his totem, he would continue serving the public as a lifeguard. In this regard especially, he could look out for the sharks of the nearby seas. After all, if the sharks leave people alone, people will leave the sharks alone.

Unfortunately, not all of the sharks agreed to this sensibility. Man-eaters of the true Mano species -- the Rokea, as called elsewhere -- were frequenting the Maui area. And some of them were purposely hunting and chomping down on humans. Either they got some sick amusement out of it, or wrongly expected the people to stop swimming. All it did was cause shark hunters to take to the sea more frequently in retaliation. Since this was happening near the beaches he protected, Malu decided to take action. He waited until nightfall, then dove into the sea. He swam outward, and simply kicked his feet in place, waiting for some shark to take the bait. Knowing there was only one man-eater at large, the attacking shark would be his "man". And after only ten minutes of treading water, the hungry wereshark assaulted Malu. But the Kokua was ready, and dove under as the shark rammed forward. The Rokea missed his target, and soon found himself being misled and confused by the Kokua's fey magics and tricks. Within an hour, the Rokea took its humanoid war-form and demanded a "cease-fire" to the duel that was going nowhere. Malu honorably agreed, and there, treading water, he came to a peaceful arrangement with the wereshark and its slew compatriots. Malu returned to shore and the Rokea to the sea, and the Kokua's beaches were safe once more.

Recent Years

Besides this victory, Malu kept mostly to himself. He only ever interacted much with other Kokua. And those encounters usually resulted in competition and challenge. Malu admitted that he was becoming more and more lonely. He realized perfection was a lonely thing, and how close to perfection he was meant he was a pretty lonely guy. Malu spent most of his time lifeguarding by day, and in communion with the elements by night. But always he yearned for a worthy partner, someone who neared him in skill and grace. Malu wondered how long he would have to wait until the gods granted his wish. Time was only ever against the Menehune, and Malu wasn't sure how much he had to spare.

Aumakua


Seashell

Description: Seashell is enigmatic only in her primal antiquity. Her essence is actually quite straightforward. Malu earned her attention by proving his value as a caretaker of the beaches and that he can use his head as well as his brawn. The test that this spirit administered the Kokua was part of his fosterage, since all respectable Menehune bond with aumakua (usually during this early period of their lives). Seashell emphasizes and educates her children about the unique beauty of all things natural, including human beings. She is an excellent totem for a protective Kokua, since her ubiquity at the beach helps her children keep a good eye out for trouble.

Traits: +1 Appearance; -1 difficulty to Alertness rolls on the beach to notice danger

Taboos: He must always strive to protect life at the beach, and keep it clean of litter and other unnatural garbage

Chimera


Whalebone Club
Level: 2
Origin: Malu has owned this weapon for ages. It was presented to him long ago after he saved the daughter of a prestigious Ali'i prince from demons.
Description: This weapon appears to be an aged, off-white bone that was carved from its natural state to adapt the features of a club. The main shaft of the twenty inch bone serves as a sturdy handle. Straps of leather hide wrap around the grip area near the base. The well-rounded, smooth, and knob-like joint at the top serves as the bludgeon.
Effects: Club sense into people.
Medicine Costs: Club: 0; #1: 0
Activation: Start clubbin'.

Bunk Styles


Style: Counting Coup
Examples: Stay evasive/defensive for at least 3 turns without taking a hit, drink a cup of own blood, inflict only superficial injuries on enemy, bodysurf the waves

Significant Other


Two Kokua in Hawai’i are bound to compete and contest each other in every endeavor. When Malu met Olakeakua in the summer of 2004, that’s exactly how it began: fierce competition. Surfing, swimming, running, and even wrestling between the two soon sparked into a delicious passion. The two seduced each other ultimately. Soon Malu found himself competing with a haole (ex-!) boyfriend. But once he was knocked out of the box, it seems that Malu and Keakua will have smooth-sailing together from now on. So long as they can stay away from the Banal cultural death of haoles on their beloved islands, everything will be just fine. Except then got Keakua pregnant… They spent those nine months dodging her Banal parents and ex- while dealing with a more sedate lifestyle. But it paid off: on March 4th, 2005, Alaula was born. Their beautiful daughter is even destined to become Kokua like her parents, should they raise her well and keep her fragile spirit away from anti-culture. To that end, the budding family considers moving from their home to some other island in the Hawai'ian chain, away from the Banal fetters of their lives.

Olakeakua

Weakness
Good Intentions...


Malu members the Feast Camp primarily. But he has his vicious side like all Kokua. He can start a deed as a benevolent act. But it can turn sadistic and cruel before he realizes what he's doing. A playful head-lock, for example, might result in a friend being half-suffocated.

Likelihood of Corruption


Low.

Malu's a good soul, always looking out for trouble. He keeps his beaches safe, from the sharks rumored to swim nearby ("Mano" as he always calls them) to the tourists that come for Maui's gorgeous shorelines. But of all the Menehune Callings, demons target the war-like Kokua the most for corruption. He must be careful when the shit hits the fan that he doesn't go too far.

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