Name: Lucius Darius Cross
Nicknames: Atreyu, The Jackal, Pluto of the East.
Age: 300
Visual Age: 29
Gender: Male
Rank: 4th Espada
Appearance:
Head: Atreyu has a very handsome face compared to many other beings of the Arrancar race. His handsome exterior is truly one of a kind, the type of face the lures in unsuspecting prey such as women. Only to have them become apart of a large collection. Cross has long shoulder length, yet spiky teal colored hair. His skin color is of a brown skin color, sticking to the theme of a Spaniard in certain regards to being an Arrancar. Atreyu also stands at 6 foot, three inches, boasting a well toned body, but not overly bulky. Cross has piercing green eyes, that are equally as seductive as they can be made to give off a devious stare. Atreyu's mask fragment covers portions of he left side of his face. Acting almost like an eye patch, but taking up more room compared to your general eyepatch. Atreyu's mask fragments are of course white, starting from the left side of his hairline, stopping just beyond his left eye moving down towards his jawbone.
Upper body: Lucius wears the typical black and white Arrancar attire, though the man has added his own unique flavor to it. Atreyu upper garments consists of white long-sleeve overcoat that fits closely to his body, but not close enough to hinder his movements. There is also a pair of black gloves being worn on both hands of the Arrancar. The man also seem to sport a what appears to be a black flack jacket, though not entirely military style. Its more like for fashion than anything, yet it sets Lucius apart from the other Espada. The flack jacket in question is buckled around his waist moving up towards his chest area. The buckles are of a silver color, with the flack jacket only having straps that covers only one shoulder. More specifically, these are strapped across his left shoulder. The flack jacket of course has a number of compartments that are used to store his card deck and other insignificant items.
Lower Body: Atreyu also wears a black sash around his waist rather stylishly. Cross neglects the usual Hakama of the Arrancar race, instead opting for more closely fitting trousers. The overcoat of the man also stretches pass his knees, ending up in an inverted "V" shape. Cross unlike many of the other Espada, wears black man boots, something many considers to be his own personal style. The trousers that Cross sports covers the boots mainly, leaving over the foot area visible, which excludes the shin area and upwards.
Personality:
Atreyu's main features in regards to his personality. Is the Arrancar's cunning that has gotten him through so many situations. This cunning comes to life in various ways. Atreyu is a very calm, collected and yet so calculating in everything that he does. He is not above acting petty and cruel in order to get a reaction out of someone. A very observant creature, that amuses himself with pain and joy of others. Atreyu is a gambler at heart, generally making bets. These bets may are generally put into place to keep things interesting in his own little world. Atreyu is very open to different ideas and ideals, as long as it fits in with his own in the long run. Atreyu prides himself on being as efficient as possible. This includes hunting, the general bantering, fighting, and even belittle others. Even with all of this, he is very cautious, the type of person that thinks before acting. The sort of person that takes calculated risks, refusing to play by the rules of others. Atreyu learned long ago not to play according to the rules of others.
Atreyu can be cold and unforgiving in certain situations. There is also the issue of him not being above betrayal. In the gambler's world, there is no honor among thieves, a code that has seen him survive countless situations. Lucius at times may show a lack of interest in things that others may find amusing. There is always the possibility that what others find sufficient is indeed lacking in some other aspect. Atreyu demonstrates his self-discipline by constantly moving forward. Intoxicated by the possibilities that lies ahead.There are times when he'd rather be alone, almost acting shy, often choosing to shun those around him on a whim. Atreyu's behavior can be very spontaneous as he is the adventurous type. Though that doesn't mean that these spontaneous acts won't get him the desired results. There is always a method behind his madness, a master of the art. A very conscientious person, that is always in control of his own actions.
In fact his spontaneous actions, may at times mislead others to think he isn't at all the conscientious type. But this is all apart of a cunning plan for advancement, the art of deception by putting on a poker face.
Fighting Style: The Jackal's fighting style is based on careful and well thought out actions. He can be easily as aggressive as the other person, but not foolish enough to let his emotions get in the way. The Jackal is the kind of person that will generally begin his fights at a slow and steady pace. Always building up to the grand finale, though sometimes he can be indecisive which is a disadvantage more that it is an advantage to him. Atreyu also lives by the code that "fools rush in". The Jackal will often incorporate hand to hand combat with his swordsmanship, thus making him a rather competent opponent.
Speed and physical strength plays a great part of his fighting style. The Jackal tends to analyze things, learning as he goes along before responding with what is deemed as the correct counter. Lucius is able to analyze and think things through under pressure, a force to reckon with, but not brutish like most other warrior types.
Background:
Human Arc
Lucius Cross, the man, the legend was born a very poor during really harsh times. And during the time he was a human, Lucius has had to learn a few tricks that ensured his survival. Lucius grew up in a rather poor family of five. At a time where his family earned little to no money, food and clothing was scarce. This means that the youngster had to find a way to survive. He succeeded where others failed to find a way through the blockades, created by society. Lucius succeeded by going around the system, through the art of deception, thievery and general wits. He also showed that he had great intelligence. His family might have been poor, but they were not a bunch of dunces. Lucius parents made sure to teach him the basics. This is what gave him the tools to move forward, being as crafty as possible while doing so. As the young man come of age, he had already learned how to steal in a very graceful manner. This included picking pockets, coming up with strategy to steal from merchants. And with everything that he did, Lucius always placed a wager. His life revolved around bets, gambling and a number of other things. His most favorite aspect of this was a game of cards. The young Lucius was also somewhat of a jester. His inability to truly take anything serious might have cost him his life many a times. Some would say that is was through sheer luck that he survived at times. And thats exactly what he was a survivor.
A little over a decade passed by, and the boy was now a man. He continued to steal, deceive and gamble nonstop. In the end, this all paid off for him. Lucius was able to feed, clothe and shelter himself. Soon enough others came following in his footsteps; he became a gang leader in time. One that actually showed that he had morals, at least in regards to some things. Life was just life for Lucius, though exciting for him. It is mundane for those looking in from the outside. Lucius Cross was a man that lived his life based on intoxication. Woman, alcohol, money, clothes, he wanted it all. And so he did almost anything possible to get what he wanted. For women, he'd simply use charm and wits. For money, clothes and the likes, he relied on deception among other means. The life of Lucius came to an abrupt end. Leading up to this event, Lucius Cross continued his work, lying, cheating, stealing, etc. The time had finally come for him to face his judgment. Lucius and his gang of thieving scoundrels, were arrested and to be executed. The numerous crimes amounted to the death penalty. And in one last effort to buy his freedom, Lucius made a wager of sorts. A game of Russian roulette, though this game was not called such as yet. The idea behind the game was that, if Lucius won, he'd be set free. Should he lose, then he'd be put to death. This game of life and death, involved Lucius and his foe, and a pair of crossbows. They started off with their backs turned to each other. And each of them had a loaded crossbow in their hand. The person that Lucius had to face off with was one of his own comrades. A close friend of his, which saddened him, but such is life. Both men walked 12 paces apart from each other, and turned around and aimed. There was no way to tell where each man was, since they were blind folded. On command of the executioner, both men let loose their arrow of death. Perhaps it was luck or destiny, but both men hit their mark. Lucius was shot through the throat, while his friend was shot through the head. That was the end of their unfortunate human lives.
Hollow Arc
The death of Lucius marked a new beginning. He was cast into the unknown, which supposedly was the after life. Even death could not separate this band of menace to society. There were at least 37 of this band of criminal, an organization if you will. And they all followed Lucius into the after life, where they shared a brief reunion. They wandered the streets, searching endlessly for a resting place. All of these men soon fell into despair, their chains of fate, began to shorten, being consumed by an unknown entity. As they fell deeper into despair, the process sped up even quicker. Redemption had long gone for them, they all in the end transformed into hollows. A gang of hollows bent of destruction fueled by the hunger that consumed their empty souls. This gang of hollows, while beast like, showed a natural instinct for survival. There was a clear coordination between them. They demonstrated the ability to take down prey and feed on them in a very effective way. Lucius as a hollow started off feeding on souls that recently died. They were easy prey for the gang, not to mention there was an abundance of these souls. The endless gorging on these souls resulted in an overall increase in strength. The time had finally come, Shinigami were now on the hunt. It seems Lucius and his gang was beginning to draw attention to them. Many Shinigami came and many Shinigami along with Hollows died. Lucius however was one of the lucky ones, not to have fallen victim. Instead, he was getting more and more powerful. The gang of hollows that surrounded him were fed on too. Further empowering the low class hollow, though a little stronger that average.
But for every hollow that roamed the material world, they would soon be drawn to Hueco Mundo. That is where they belonged after all, and that is where they would go. They made their way there by following a Menos Grande through a Garagunta. And by performing this act, the Hollow found himself in the forest of Menos. It was a strange place; a new habitat compared to what he was use to. There were only hollows like himself, and to survive he had to feed on these other creatures. This didn't go on for too long however, a grouping of hollows prevented this. Lucius was apart of this group and so underwent an evolution. He was now apart of an accumulation of hollows, that formed into a Menos Grande. Cross would have been lost forever, had it not been for his desire. The desire to continue existing was far too overwhelming for the others to quell his uprising. That was when it happened. Lucius was able to become the superior consciousness, and by doing so, reached another stage of evolution. He managed to reach the Gillian class of a Menos Grande, now even more powerful than your typical Menos Grande.
From Gillian to one of many Kings
Lucius spent some more time in the forest of menos, decades, feeding on lower level hollows. Menos grande and the new comers, but they could only offer him so much. It was simply not enough for Lucius, who was now able to reason and think for himself. He maintained the same personality that got him through hard times. The Gillian set out across the white sandy plains of Hueco Mundo. There he came across many other hollows, and through the use of tactics. He was able to succeed in consuming as many as possible. The journey across the desert was leading him nowhere. He'd long forgotten how long he'd been in Hueco Mundo. His instincts drove him to the realm of the humans. Lucius was now armed with the ability to learn Sonido, among other hollow techniques but wasn't quite there yet. During his missions to the material world, he'd always try to consume as many souls as possible. Quincy, Shinigami and plus souls of humans. Even other hollows that got in his way were not spared. Always scurrying back to Hueco Mundo, Lucius found that he was constantly changing. He became more and more humanoid as time went by. He reached the level of an Adjuchas, he was of the Adjuchas class now. This meant that hunting and such was even easier for him. He also started developing new techniques, those unique to him. It wasn't long before he once again, found himself in the company of others. Lucius came across four other Adjuchas like himself, this of course brought on a sense of nostalgia. A distant memory which he couldn't quite place, or truly remember anything from past events. Years went by and Lucius Cross was doing what he always did and that was to survive. The time had finally come for him to take another step further into hollow wood. But before that could happen, war broke out in Hueco Mundo. There was civil unrest among warring hollow factions, fighting for supremacy.
This of course meant that every hollow, would be caught in the crossfire. And not wanting to become prey, Lucius formulated a plan. He and his small band of hollow brethren hid themselves and awaited signs of weakness. The war will no doubt have casualties, rather powerful ones. And thats exactly what Cross was hoping for. He and his brethren would often descend onto the battlefield. Seizing injured prey, both the strong and weak alike. This act ensured that they had powerful hollows to feed on. There was never a harvest of hollow food like this before. With the war going on, Cross was growing in power more and more. He was at the pinnacle of his power, thats when he felt a sudden urge to do something. Although he had been changing more and more, his transformation wasn't quite complete. The above Adjuchas level Cross felt the need to rip his mask off, in order to reach a new plateau of individuality. One that would see him take on the form of a man more or less. He was in the form of a humanoid Jackal. But now it was different somehow. He was more human, and far more powerful than ever, a Vasto Lorde was born. He soon joined the actual war, making his presence known. Deals were made, and so were wagers on the lives of others. And as the war came to an end, they soon realized it was all for nothing. Then again, that is not entirely true, since there now lays a structure in Hueco Mundo. The structure suggests that there is some kind of order, in these savage lands. A military power was formed in order to combat the Shinigami. And from within the walls of this structure, came about the Espada. They are said to be the best that Hueco Mundo has to offer. Lucius remained somewhat skeptical about all of this for sometime before actually choosing to join their ranks. His reason for doing so has not arrived as yet. And so we move onto the present day.
12/3/2013, 6:23 am by 
