Name: Phillip Rics (but his sister knows his first name)
Age: 112 (Born 1900, keeps age hidden from others)
Powers: Immortality, healing factor
Skills: Highly trained in a variety of martial arts and is skilled at a using wide variety of weapons and guns. His preferred battle style is with two short swords but he always carries firearms and smaller knives on him. Can perform a variety of accents, keeps his south London one as native though. He speaks fluent English, French, German, Italian, Russian, Greek and Latin (uses Latin to converse with his sister so not all can understand).
History:
Nobody is quite sure where the name Rics came from for the most established warrior family in Europe, and even fewer are sure when they first began. But by 800BC they had already made a name for themselves in Greece as warriors and had settled in Athens. Seeing a shift in power, especially military power, the Rics, although they were not using that name at the time, moved to Sparta and managed to climb the ranks swiftly to establish themselves as the skilled and blood thirsty warriors, who helped lead their armies and answered only to the king himself. Their participation in Thermopylae and Spartan victory in the Peloponnesian War brought them greater power and notoriety.
They claimed to be descendants of Ares, and that their strength and skill in war was due to the blood of gods. This claim only furthered their reputation and sometime during this period the family acquired the Spear of Ares. Granting its owner partial invulnerability in battle at the price of an increase in blood lust, it became the family’s greatest treasure. Fearing it may be stolen or taken from them, they hid it for safekeeping and opted to rely on their own strength until they found the Sword of Ares. It was predicted by the oracle at Delphi that they would indeed reach great heights of power while ‘blessed’ with the weapon, but that even greater power could be had, immortality even, if they could obtain the sword. They would reach their peak when this was found. The caveat being that their line would end at this peak.
Seeing Sparta’s decline, the Rics moved back to Athens, then to Macedon during its rise, eventually ending up in Rome as generals. They continued moving across Europe, going where they saw power would end up, placing themselves in the best position they could. Their conquests and reputation garnered them riches and the fear and admiration of others. They continued on, spending time as nomadic warriors, leaders of armies and favoured knights. But all the time careful never to take the crown for themselves, because as far as they were concerned, real power lay with those who could control the crown not those who held it. Famed for their bloodthirsty nature, as the age of wars changed to accommodate guns and the face of politics changed, instead of staying with the armies they went underground, controlling crime families, the new royalty as far as they saw it. Manipulative and still bloodthristy, they killed all in their path who opposed them. But not by hiring others to do so, no they would defeat their enemies themselves.
As a family they valued strength in battle and ruthless intelligence. Compassion only got in the way, the only people they should care for were blood relatives. Because not only was blood thicker than water, it was all that mattered to them. The members of this family are highly trained in all forms of combat, from old fashioned sword fighting to being expert marksmen. Their goal is to be the greatest and most powerful line of warriors that has ever lasted, and to never bow down to others. Throughout their history they have acquired many ancient and magical artifacts, most of which are weapons, but they hold a family vault, location known only to the direct line, in which these artifacts are safeguarded. The family is rather secluded and don't adhere much to current time ethics and norms. Women are warriors too in their mind and the only life worthy of preserving is that of the powerful, which must preserve itself. Others need not apply.
In the early 1900s, the Rics finally found the Sword of Ares, dug up on an archealogical dig in Greece, the sword found its way through the blackmarket, none of them aware of its true significance. Wasting no time, they arranged for it to be sent to London where they currently resided, where it landed in the hands of crime families that had been under their influence but were beginning to be unruly. These families rebelled and joined forces to try and get rid of the Rics, right before they reached the peak of their power. Having none of it, the current head of the family himself waded into the bloodbath that swept underground London to retrieve the sword himself. The sword was obtained and most of the crime families wiped out, but at the cost of the head of the Rics at the time.
Born in 1900 in London to the Rics, Phillip was slated to be the next head of the family. Trained and indoctrinated at a young age, he quickly showed the ruthlessness and skill required of him. As the last heirs at the time of the Rics's acquirement of both the sword and spear (they had held the spear for years previously) both Rics and his sister were chosen, as the remaining heirs, to gain immortality, for they refused to have their line end at that point. Immortality allowed them to circumvent this, yet neither of the siblings could have children as a result, which fulfilled the prophecy in the end anyway.
He was given the sword and his sister the spear for safekeeping. The two artifacts together were found to grant immortality to both their owners. Seeing as the sword and spear would be too cumbersome to constantly keep around, they consulted with remaining priests of the gods and found a way to leave the weapons in a great vault but still retain some aspect of the power they granted. This would be via a piece of metal of the weapon itself, moulded into a more modern form, example jewlery. With him it is an ear cuff, his sister has a different one (not sure on it yet).
To test out the newfound immortality, both he and his sister were sent into the Great War, not as common foot soldiers but performing raid after raid and countless missions by night, never dying. Whispers of their deeds resonated and through this experience they tested the limits of immortality. Starving, dehydration, horrific injuries, none of it killed them. It went exactly as they had planned. In between wars and until 1950 he spent around Europe, expanding the name of Rics's influence. Through bloodshed and controlling crime families how he wished, their empire was maintained even after the death of the other members of the family. After WWII he left for the US, seeing as the political and military power in the world was shifting. He went where power was. Orchestrating many crimes to test his limits, soon had a stronghold over many major mobs. The name Rics could send shudders through them. He spends his time wandering the continent, never staying long in one city. At the moment he has just been making sure some of the mobs in Denver would still listen to him.
Artifacts of Ares:
Spear- partial invulnerability in battle and increased sense of blood lust
Sword- feeling of pain is dulled and the more injured the owner is the greater their strength and speed
