Kevin Lagorio, Obelisk of kindness

Kevin was found abandoned at an orphanage on January first, 1076; the only thing found with him was a card with the name "Kevin” on it. As his exact date of birth is unknown, he counts that day as his birth day. The first 10 years of Kevin’s life are rather un-eventful; as an orphan most of his time was spent doing chores, with church being Sunday. The rest of this time Kevin would spend playing with other orphans, but nothing significant ever happened then, and no truly significant bonds were formed. The only thing worth noting is that he made friends rather easily, and that it was rare people would pick on him.

This simple existence, however, was put to an end when his abilities began to awaken. at the end of October, in 1086, Kevin began seeing things which others couldn't see: people who weren't there, beings dressed in strange clothes, and worst of all were the large, black shapes with skull like faces and holes in their chests which stalked through the town unnoticed, killing people as they pleased. Believing them to be demons, he sought the help of a priest. however, the priest thought him insane, decided he had no time to spare on a mad little boy, and simply told him that god loves him, there's no way that could happen, and sent Kevin on his way. Terrified of the creatures, and depressed that none would be able to help him, it was at this time that, though he did not know what was happening, his empathic link began to awaken.

Because of the power he had no knowledge or control over, coupled with his feelings of distress, any people who found themselves around him would have a constant sense of fear, and find themselves thinking thoughts far darker than what they were used to. this, coupled with the fact that, feeling abandoned by god, Kevin refused to go to church, and his previous comments about seeing demons, led people to believe Kevin was possessed. Many exorcists were called, but there was nothing they could do. And since with failure after failure Kevin’s depression worsened, his aura worsened too. Finally, after roughly the 15th attempted exorcism, the clergy had resolved to purge the demon from the body by lighting it ablaze. Kevin accepted this, as he hated his own existence. However, just 3 days before the ceremony, when the bishop, himself came to the village so the burning could be performed, he stated that he could help the child, and demanded that Kevin be taken back to the house where the bishop lived. Since the bishop was renowned for his healing powers, there was no question of this decision, and Kevin began a new chapter in his life.

Though he had low hopes for it, the first day at the bishop's estate turned out to be one of the best days of his life. When he awoke, the bishop, known as Brother Guiscard, asked him to describe the demons he saw, and after hearing the description, explained the existence of hollows and soul reapers. the bishop then explained that he knew this because he was in fact a Quincy; not only could he see these hollows, but he could slay them as well. Guiscard revealed that whenever he healed a person he in fact was simply killing a hollow which tormented them. Kevin was astonished; such a frail man was able to stand up to those monsters? Kevin eagerly asked Guiscard if he could learn to do this, and was told that that was the reason the bishop had brought him back, and they would begin his training tomorrow. Elated, Kevin began asking all about Quincies and hollows, and didn't stop until it was time for bed. As he prepared for sleep, however, he remembered the rumors of his possession and asked if Guiscard could help there. Guiscard explained that unlike the others from Kevin’s village, neither he nor his servants were feeling any different in Kevin’s presence, and thus he concluded that it was simply hysteria which had taken the people, due to being uncomfortable in the presence of someone as depressed and terrified as Kevin had been. In fact, Guiscard explained, it had been fairly similar when he was a child, and that it was for that reason he had decided to take Kevin as an apprentice. Happy with this explanation, Kevin went to bed.

Sadly, when he began training the next day, it became readily apparent that he had no skill at gathering reishi. this being the most fundamental aspect of Quincy power, Guiscard simply encouraged him to keep trying, and reassured him that he would get it eventually. When at the end of the day there was no progress, Guiscard told him not to get too discouraged, and that he could always try again later. After that he sent Kevin off too bed, telling him that perhaps doing some chores in between attempts would be a good idea. and so Kevin's new life began; doing chores regularly for the bishop, and using free time to either learn about the spiritual world or practice gathering reishi, at which he continued to fail spectacularly. While doing this he began to gain some appreciation for the people around him; since he knew how it felt to be alone, he endeavored to form good relationships with the people around him, and did so by attempting to help with their problems. It was as if his mere presence was enough to get some people through a hard time, and it became something that brought him joy to simply make others smile.

Kevin's continued inability to gather reishi confused the bishop; there was a huge amount of power hiding in the boy, and yet he could not do the most basic of techniques. He began to understand after an incident which occurred after Kevin’s 15th birthday; some of the servants Kevin regularly aided had gotten the idea that it would be nice to have a bit of a party for Kevin, and much consumption of alcohol had been involved. The next morning, all members of the staff were hung over, and only a small fraction had consumed any alcohol the night prior. Remembering the mass fear and depression from five years ago, Guiscard went to check on Kevin and, sure enough, Kevin was hung over. Not only that, but there was also a faint light emitting from his head with the telltale feel of reiatsu. Having a vague idea of what he believed this could be, he told Kevin to meet him in his study, once the hangover wore off.

Once they were in the study, Guiscard explained to Kevin what he believed was the cause of the phenomena which occurred that day, as well as the one which had occurred back in Kevin’s village. He inquired as to whether or not Kevin had been happy during his stay, and Kevin’s response was an enthusiastic yes. This proved Guiscard’s theory which he had prepared. While he wasn't sure how, he explained, it would appear that Kevin was transmitting his emotions to other people through his reiatsu. This meant, the bishop continued, that part of the increasing morale among the servants was in fact due to his presence, that Guiscard was not affected due to currently having a stronger reiatsu, and that Kevin ought to not despair over the trouble he had brought previously. Instead, Kevin must move forward, and learn to control these powers. Kevin contested this; what about becoming a Quincy? Guiscard explained that it had seemed unlikely before hand, but now he realized it was impossible; Kevin’s spiritual power had nothing to do with gathering reishi. He did however, have a rough idea of what that spiritual power was from. There were times in his past when he had encountered beings prosecuted for performing black magic, renowned for healing powers, or experts in the fields of swordplay or thievery whom had strange powers, beyond his comprehension. These beings all referred to themselves as "full bringers", and there was one who lived nearby which owed a great debt to him. Each of their abilities was unique, just as Kevin’s powers were. Guiscard tasked Kevin to travel to the local fullbringer, named Agatha, and learn what he could about his powers there. He supplied Kevin with enough money for the journey, and with a dagger made solely from soul synthesized silver, on the off chance he were to encounter a hollow. With his preparations gathered, Kevin set out on a quest for knowledge.

Kevin's journey was uneventful, without a single encounter with any other spiritual being occurring. Along the journey, he kept his determination strong, and didn't bother to think about what would happen if he found no help from the fullbringer. When he arrived, Agatha was waiting for him. She explained that she had spent much time practicing reiraku, and that his reiatsu was exceptionally strong and unique. Kevin explained that he had been sent by Guiscard the bishop to learn how to control his fullbringer powers, which caused Agatha to burst out into laughter. She explained that not only was his wavelength nowhere near that of a fullbringer, but fullbringer powers are not passive, and are linked to an object, or an aspect. she told him that Guiscard was actually fairly poor at sensing the subtleties of spiritual power, as his duties never caused these differences to matter too much; he felt the need to show up no matter what he felt. She concluded with the fact that she honestly did not know the source of his powers, and that it's unlikely that anyone would. Kevin was distraught; how was he supposed to control his powers now? He could wind up cursing a village like he did when he was a child! it was at this point that Agatha told him to snap out of it, and that his gift also worked the other way around; he could go into a town full of hopelessness, and help raise it up with ease. The only thing he needed to do, was be happy around them, and they would find their way to happiness. Agatha had an appointment with another client coming up, so it was at this point she sent Kevin on his way, telling him to think about her words.

And so he did. The entire journey back he thought about those words, and how simply by being near people he could sort out their problems. He had never considered that before, and the thought of it cheered him up immensely; he enjoyed making people happy, and simply by being in a good mood this would occur. Despite this, he thought, even if I never control it, I should at least learn to understand it. Upon arriving at Guiscard’s estate, Kevin was shocked to see destruction everywhere he looked. Worried, he began searching for Guiscard, to ensure his safety. He found him in his study, back against the wall and facing 3 large hollows. Guiscard appeared to be heavily wounded, and was panting, as if he were out of breath. Kevin was dismayed; Guiscard had raised him like he was his son, and now he would be forced to watch him die? but when all seemed lost, a strange thing occurred; the faces of 2 of the hollows broke off, revealing crying human faces underneath. Stranger still, these 2 hollows then proceeded to turn on the other, babbling about not wanting there to be any more harm. This continued for roughly 15 minutes, with both Guiscard and Kevin too afraid to even move. What broke their skirmish was a soul reaper showing up and defeating the one in the mask. The reaper paused for a moment, and then proceeded to do the same to the other two.

He was about to leave when he heard Kevin speak up to protest his killing the latter two hollows; they had human faces and fought to protect life, why did they have to die? The reaper explained what happens when a zanpakuto kills a hollow, and where hollows come from. Kevin could not believe what he was hearing; hollows used to be people? And they weren't hollows by choice? Kevin asked the reaper why he was so specific about how the hollow must be killed, and was told the truth; any other method disrupts the cycle, and the person who became a hollow is never born again. This included Quincy methods. Kevin realized at that point that Guiscard had been essentially murdering people. The reaper then asked Kevin if he had anything to do with the two hollows losing their masks. Kevin explained his empathic link, and the reaper made the assumption from there that Kevin must have been saddened at what was about to happen. That emotion in the hollows was enough to cause them to regain their former selves. At this, the soul reaper vanished. Guiscard attempted to justify his actions as a Quincy, but Kevin wasn't interested. He had gained an insight to the workings of his mind; he hated anything being truly gone forever. It appeared that his ability would help in ending conflicts in a nonviolent matter.

The next morning, Kevin spoke with Guiscard. In this conversation Kevin told Guiscard that while he no longer approves of Quincy methods, he understands why Guiscard would use them. He continued in saying that he would no longer be staying here, as he felt like travelling the world to see if he could find any others with powers similar to his. Guiscard did not bother to ask Kevin to reconsider; he could feel his determination. This was not a figure of speech; Kevin’s power was growing stronger, and he could feel Kevin’s determination through the bond. After a short goodbye, Kevin left for parts unknown. ever since that day, he has walked the earth; moving from town to town, aiding those he can, learning more about his powers, and working nearly every job imaginable; from public official to pimp. He worked with shinigami to learn how a zanpakuto behaves in konso and sublimation so that he could replicate these techniques. He studied how other living beings use their reiatsu, and learned to divert the reiatsu of other people into a life giving force; making them harmless while giving them a long time to repent. as the years wore on, it became apparent that Kevin had stopped aging once he hit 20; while the exact reason for this is unknown, it is believed to be due to his strange reiatsu. as he lived on, his dealing with people led him to be able to read faces easily, and while most would become world weary with years, Kevin remained excited and happy; his goal was never ending, and he always enjoined making people smile and keeping them safe. However, his personality became more sure; he stopped having to watch his friends being attacked in fear, and began fighting to protect them.

When Kevin learned of hell, he was appalled; once they’re there, there is no way to leave? No chance for redemption? He simply could not let this stand. He began devoting time towards finding a way to break the chains of hell; at first, he assumed that his confessional would simply be able to dissolve the chains, but he had no luck there. As such, he began to attempt to find a way in which a massive amount of power from numerous beings could be focused with pinpoint accuracy; similar to a magnifying glass in the sun. Progress was slow, and he began to lose hope. Recently, he heard about a new organization known as the Consecro. After investigating briefly, he realized there was a position open for the "obelisk of kindness". Knowing in his bones that he was undoubtedly the best suited for such a position. He was accepted into the institution, and his battle against the sins began.

It was an average day as Kevin walked into town; moderately cloudy, slightly chilly, but still sunny, and with a lack of wind which made things warm. He didn't know the name of the town, but this didn't matter to him; all that mattered was that he was drifting, helping those whom he found his way too, or vice versa. This was how he had done his duty all these years, moving town to town. Sure, there may be people who may need him more elsewhere, but he can't be everywhere at once. So he let fate decide his position moving through towns on instinct, sometimes taking a job if he was to stay a while. He gave a bit of a chuckle; those days were over now. As obelisk of kindness, he was paid quite handsomely, so he no longer needed to take jobs. On the other hand, this meant that he couldn't stay in any given town for long, as he was supposed to be looking for one of the sins.

There was an enigma, he thought. He was coming close to his millennial birthday, and he had never heard of them. Even despite all of his time researching hell, he came across nothing which even hinted at their existence. He never went too far into hell of course, always staying near the entrance in case a threat was to appear. Though there are souls there ready to be released, others were too far gone, even for his help. He did not know what happened to souls there, but he assumed the ones who disappeared were sent back into the cycle of rebirth for another chance. He couldn't imagine their being simply destroyed; the soul society would be researching ways to subvert something which breaks the balance in such a way. He still had nightmares about the conflict between the shinigami and the Quincy; he hadn't been involved or anywhere near the extermination, but the prospect haunted him still.

His inner reprieve was broken by a sound he had become accustomed to listening for; the sound of a child crying. Well, he thought, at least this sin hunt allowed him to continue drifting, so he could still help children like her. a couple had just walked straight past the child, so either the couple was heartless, or she was a plus. as he walked closer, his suspicions were confirmed by the telltale sign of a car passing by and the wind not blowing the child's hair. The sight of the child did not sadden Kevin, as he had seen enough children crying for it to become common place. He simply saw a problem that he could help with. he sat down next to the child and looked at her, waiting for her to stop crying. He knew this wouldn't be long; his optimism was certainly being carried through his empathic link, and slowly helping her improve her mood. he hoped she would ignore the shield; the non-spiritually aware usually ignored it unconsciously because he never focused on it. But spirits and the spiritually aware were less likely to ignore it.

Blissfully, she didn't seem to notice it as she looked up to see him, eyes still wet but no longer crying. Once she was looking at him, he decided to begin. "What’s wrong?" he asked. the little girl sniffed; "mama and papa were ignoring me." she said "I was around them all day and they didn't talk to me at all." this did not sadden Kevin either; after living for 900 years, one becomes used to such things, and sees far worse. He did feel pity for the girl, but this was fleeting and replaced with a strengthened resolve to help. Still, this did not change how difficult the next part would be. "You see," Kevin began, but was cut off by the girl suddenly screaming as a shadow fell over where they were sitting. Kevin already knew what was behind him, so he didn't rush; he stood up, then turned around. Sure enough, a hollow was there.

The hollow was fairly large, but this didn't count for much. Kevin didn't bother to note any other details about its appearance, as it was going to lose it soon. Kevin decided that he was going to, as usual, attempt to reason with it; if he could reach the soul on the inside, the mask would break on its own. After that, he could simply use his confessional to cure the hollow and send it to the next world. Kevin naturally hated hollows, but loved the soul inside. This was a potent combination with his empathic link; the hollow would begin to slip up as the soul within began to hate what it had become. Coupled with Kevin’s resolve to see him happy and his belief in his ability to overcome his hollow, the soul would regain control, causing the mask to break. this was the plan anyway; stronger hollows usually don't have enough humanity left to truly think past primal emotions, and though if he feels strong enough about a situation he can shock them back to their senses, such situations are usually dire, and he wasn't about to put lives at risk out of laziness. Thus, such hollows require their mask to be broken by force. "So," he began, "what brings you here today?"

The hollow grinned; it didn't have much choice. "I come for girl" the hollow said in a deep guttural voice. Kevin nodded; he had assumed as such. This hollow seemed fairly weak, so it made sense he'd come for a plus. Still, there was a script to follow for these situations, and he had honed it to an art form over the centuries. "What are you going to do with her?" Kevin asked. The hollow continued to grin. "I shall eat her!!" the hollow roared. The girl cringed behind Kevin, but Kevin didn't even flinch. Of all the answers he received, this was the most common. "so you're just going to eat this defenseless little girl?" Kevin asked. he readied his shield slightly just in case the answer was a yes. fortunately, the hollow hesitated. it had a look of confusion on its face; this was a sure sign that the hollow was losing control, that the inner plus was coming back. Kevin simply had to sit back, and wait until the mask broke. and this likely would have work, had a second, larger hollow not emerged and leapt at the first. as it happened, the first thing to cross Kevin’s mind was, no fucking way. he then repeated the line out loud: "no fucking way!" becoming briefly irritated with the situation, knowing that he wouldn't be able to talk the large one out of his mask in time to save the first, and that the longer the fight dragged out the more likely the first would lose himself again, he decided to leap in to action.

he began by pointing the shield at the new hollow, then firing a repulsion blast from the back of the shield as he began a jump. the resulting momentum launched him toward the large hollow at top speed, flying through the air. this closed the distance fairly quickly, and once he was within range, he fired a repulsive blast from the edge of the shield facing the first hollow, causing the first hollow to be pushed back a few meters and causing Kevin to spin in such a way that his forearm moved in an arc bringing the shield down on the large hollow's mask. Surprisingly, he not only had predicted the shield swing, but had also been quick enough to punch the shield before it could touch its mask. not surprisingly, it didn't expect for Kevin to not react at all to the shield being punched, and it most certainly didn't expect the inevitable blast of repulsion from the shield should have blocked it, thought Kevin as the hollow went skidding down the street while he back-flipped and landed on his feet. He then turned to the first hollow, which still appeared confused.

Kevin decided he would pull the "putting trust and believe into the hollow to help awaken the plus" tactic, briefly lamenting his inability to name things. "Are you just going to stand there looking stupid?" he said to the first hollow, "that monster is going to try to eat that girl; are you simply going to stand there and let it?" the smaller hollow began to look ashamed, and then gave the other hollow a look like he was ready to fight back. "No," said Kevin, "you protect the girl from there; I'll take care of the big guy. if he gets past me, it's up to you to stop him. Got it?" the smaller hollow nodded. "Good" said Kevin. if the hollow were to fight now, it may start to lose itself again. Having someone believing in it to perform a task which requires humanity would help break the mask, while Kevin knew his reiatsu would prevent the hollow from thinking of harming the girl; if Kevin wanted to protect her, the hollow would want to protect her.

He turned back to the larger hollow, which was just getting up. It seemed to be fighting with instinct; it's prediction from earlier being the result of experience rather than intelligence. Kevin decided he'd need to break its mask by force. He launched himself towards the large hollow with a repulsive blast, shield facing the hollow, just as before. however, rather than perform a spinning attack like before, Kevin fired a repulsive blast from the top of the shield to send him into a somersault while halfway there, following with a blast upwards using the front of the shield when facing up just in front of the hollow to launch him downwards. he then fired a blast down and back from the front of the shield when just above the road, launching him forward while countering the downward movement from the previous blast. he then fired a blast downward and forward while just below the head to launch straight up, a blast from the bottom of the shield while facing up to take him out of the summersault, and a blast from the back of the shield while facing up to add that last bit of momentum and catch it under the chin with the shield, shattering it's mask. This whole process after the somersault began took roughly half a second.

The hollow let out an ear piercing scream as its mask broke. Kevin hated that part; he truly disliked causing pain, so he preferred to help the plus break free so a confessional could be performed. Once it stopped screaming, Kevin asked the hollow "do you wish to be free from this curse?" the answer, of course, was a simple "yes". Kevin placed a hand on the hollows head. There was a bright flash, and the hollow was gone. He then turned back to the other hollow and the little girl. The girl was standing behind the hollow, and it was looking fairly insightful. Kevin decided to push for the finish. "What about you?" he asked the hollow, "do you wish to continue living the way you are, eating little girls?" the hollow seemed to consider this, and then his mask cracked. "No." the hollow said, and the mask came off in pieces. Kevin walked towards the hollow, preparing a confessional. As Kevin came within arm's reach, the hollow asked "does it hurt?" "no." said Kevin, and he placed his hand on the hollow's head. Another flash of light, and the hollow was gone.

Kevin let out a sigh; with the hollows gone, he could now take his time with the little girl. On the other hand, he could use the events which had just unfolded as a resource in helping them move on. "What were those monsters?" the little girl asked. Kevin smiled; "They were once people," he began, "but they lost themselves to loneliness and became monsters trying to find help. You too, are at risk of becoming one of those creatures." the girl looked shocked. Kevin hated scaring her, but it was the simplest way. "Fortunately, I can help you in the same way I helped them. I can send you to a new world, where people will be able to see you." the girl brightened up at this. "Will mama and papa be there?" she asked. "Yes," answered Kevin, "eventually, we all go there. Do you wish to go?" The girl nodded, and Kevin placed his hand on her head. There was a flash of light, and she was gone.

Kevin looked around him; a crowd had formed in the area, to see the man who was talking to himself and reaching at nothing. He smiled; these people probably thought him drunk. He decided that despite having only been in town for less than an hour, it was now time to leave. Walking away down the street he entered on, he moved forward, to wherever the wind took him.