Xiantodo Application

Name: Xiantodo [shan - TOE - doe]
Nicknames: Xi, Xian, Toad
Age: Young Adult [2-3 years]
Gender: Male
Height:  35"
Weight: 117.8 lbs
Build: Sturdy and strong body; short strong legs; thick fur especially around the head and neck; rounded face and ears; long and full tail; large paws
Scent: Bamboo and fallen leaves

|| a b o u t ||

Personality: 

• Aloof - seemingly detached, he acts as if he doesn't care what others think or do, or even how they feel. Often comes off as apathetic. 
  
• Adaptable - a quick thinker on his feet, he's a flexible mind able to work with any position he finds himself in. He is easy to cooperate with others to get the job done. 
  
• Analytical - he is logical and often trying to find the rational explanation. He always has to understand the why, and as such acts as a great problem solver. 
  
• Calm - he acts as a peace-keeper among peers, never seeming to grow angered or upset. He has a stoic demeanor, unaffected by the brashness of others. 
  
• Critical - categorizes everything based on first impressions. He can come off as judgmental, though can change his mind with the right impressions. 
  
• Evasive - guarded and secretive, he can be difficult to get close to. He often has a habit of isolating himself, sometimes without meaning to. He keeps secrets well. 
  
• Honest - he is direct, always meaning what he says and does when his opinion is needed. He can be trusted to not hold back, putting the truth first. 
  
• Introverted - stays quiet and to himself often, preferring the company of the few over the many. Easily exhausted in crowds, he is often found in more peaceful locations. 
  
• Patient - laid back and in no rush, he allows others to work at their own pace. He is willing to tolerate others and learn with an open mind, giving benefit of the doubt. 
  
• Resourceful - he is able to easily work with what resources he has, sustaining them as long as possible. He is clever and creative, finding unconventional ways of getting the job done. 
  
• Proud - he is proud of his abilities and his heritage, believing without either he would not stand where he is today.
• Loyal - he is nothing short of reliable to those he is close to. He has never, and will never, turn away from his leader or allies.
• Snarky - with his wit often comes equally witty remarks. Those closest to him learn of his sarcastic sense of humor, though others may be caught off guard to his snide commentary.

|| p a s t  h i s t o r y ||

Xiantodo's history is one he will tell without any degree of pride or disdain- it simply was, had happened, and that was that.

He was born to a small roaming family; it was hardly a pack by any means. A nomadic handful of wolves that skirted the territories of larger packs, perhaps seen as thieves, but for Xiantodo, it was life in simplest terms. He shared this life with a brother and a sister- Xienwei and Yinshe, though it was not an easy life to say the least. The moon was their keeper, the night was their shelter, and their silence was their strength; for most of their beginning days the pups knew not why they hid from the sun.

The night was theirs, and game was plenty; these are the fondest memories they could share. None could recall the valley they hail from, but they could tell you the stars favored the tall peaks; often they would gaze at the skies, calling to the night and its brilliant show of lights. As children, it is easy to forget what it means to be a part of something- though they were taught young to cherish all and take none for granted, it wasn't until later that the words bore meaning.

The trials came when the pups were barely considered juveniles. Nomads, as they were told, relied on every member to play a part- if one could not hunt, they would not survive. Daily, Xiantodo and Xienwei would be taken by their father and uncles to learn how to hunt; and it was then that they learned why the night was so integral. Nomads that lived on the outskirts of territories, hunting the game of other packs in secrecy and picking off what they failed to catch. Some hunts were successful, but many were not; small game such as fish, birds, and rabbits were easy enough, but larger prey proved a challenge to the fledgling wolves. Yinshe, however, was taken often to forage, taught to recognize edible berries and vegetation, and gathering healing herbs under the watch of their mother and aunt.

A rite of passage, to come of age- that's how he saw it. They were young, barely out of puphood and striving to become adept hunters like their nomadic brethren; failure taught him gratitude for success, and success taught him perseverence. Their life was never easy, and never got any easier, but it was rewarding. The three held a belief that this life was all there was; the moon was their keeper, the night was their shelter, the stars were their guide, and silence was their strength. 

But nothing lasts forever- as Xiantodo learned and had never forgotten. The night the moon went away, their hidden valley shook, and the land swallowed all they had known from the forested mountainside to the quiet streams below. There was no time, there was no order; the nomads scattered to the winds that died, and vanished without a trace, leaving only Xiantodo and Xienwei behind. For days they searched- for their mother, for their father, for Yinshe, for their aunt and uncles- but found only the landslide had filled in their valley and buried it forever. The game had fled, the packs had followed, and the two juveniles had no choice but to do the same and leave their home behind if they wanted to survive.

Xienwei and Xiantodo were put to the ultimate test- survival with only themselves to rely on. They struggled, and entered a winter season with their heads down, though continued to press forward in the hope that their family would be waiting ahead. They crossed borders under the cover of night, continuing to seek solace in their celestial guides, seeking shelter in the mountain's shadows, and keeping their eyes ever on the horizon. For over a year, they learned to adapt, to read the land and utilize resources, to depend on one another as a pair of lone wolves shrouded in the cover of darkness. Silence was, after all, their strength.

They were used to storms and rain, to hiding in cliff faces when the skies opened up until the weather passed. They spent many nights hiding from the streaks of light that struck the earth, and resting to the sound of rain- but one night wasn't as the others. Xienwei and Xiantodo took their shelter in a riverside cove, but while Xiantodo slept something went awry. He awoke to nothing at his side- his brother was missing without a trace; gone like Yinshe and the rest of the nomadic family. He searched up and down the coast, striving to find even a faint scent, but to no avail; his one hope was knowing Xienwei was a strong swimmer and must have survived if the waters swept him away in the night. But he was forced to move on- he would starve if he continued to search, and trekked onward on his own.

It is here, he would say with a faint smile, that his story of his past would come to a close, as after the season changed another half cycle, he came to find the current borders of the Domain; and found a place to call home. The pack that would serve as his new family with the hope of finding the one he lost.

|| a r t i s t i c  l o g ||

Group History: 
N/A

Trivia:
♦ He comes from a distant territory and thus has a dialect that's different from the locals
♦ His isolation left him somewhat awkward socially- generating rather long bouts of silence eventually
♦ He rarely makes much noise- he never howls and hardly barks
♦ His solitude left him still in dire need of emotional nourishment- he has a hard time conveying and understanding complex emotions