LA MANCHA

LA MANCHA

Art by @lonelyweirdcat

Affiliations	SILVER LINING Karrakin Trade Baronies (formerly)
Aliases	Martín Hidalgo
Marital Status	Widowed
Date of Death	5016u
Place of Death	Evergreen, Hercynia
Species	Volador
Gender	Male
Height	12'1
Weight	1lbs
Eye Color	Red/Yellow
Mech	HORUS Revenant HORUS Banshee (formerly)

LA MANCHA is a Thinspace Researcher for the SILVER LINING and the inventor of the HORUS Revenant. He is an NPC in the Lancer Open-Table Campaign In The Shadows of a Willow.

Personality

LA MANCHA can often be described as a casual flirt with a bit of an off-the-wall personality. He has a certain way of being very convincing, to the point where he has convinced people into doing things they were not previously able to do. This is not a special ability of his, this is just something that happens.

History

CW: Sexual themes, self-destructive behavior

Prior to his time on Hercynia, Martín was married to another Volador within the Volador system. He had a longstanding lover's triangle between him, his wife, and his best friend, of which he had ended up being the "victor". In a fit of rage, his best friend (which he referred to as Toro), killed his wife and framed him for the murder. This resulted in him becoming excommunicated by Los Voladores and banished, no longer having access to their system. He became a very successful bounty hunter, sleeping around and drinking to numb the pain of his immense loss.

Eventually, a job given to him by Bala Shimano (his friend with benefits at the time) landed him on Hercynia during the Second Hercynian Crisis. This culminated in the invention of the HORUS Revenant which "killed" him and the end of the Second Hercynian Crisis at his and his allies' hands.

Information on him following the crisis is scarce. It's said he founded the Karrakin Trade Baronies' House of Tears, but that has been reduced to out-of-context footage and hearsay on various HORUS forums.

The Ingenious Gentleman

>PARTIAL_ACCESS_GRANTED

Welcome To The Family

CW: Sexual themes

There’s love in the air. Not real love, of course. That’s been gone for years. Instead, we get the aftermath of hot, passionate “love” that’s been “made”, accompanied with the familiar smell of sweat, cigarette smoke, and all manner of unholy fumes. Bala Shimano, a normally very dignified woman with an air of superiority, is just a bit of a mess at the moment while she desperately tries to cover her body with the covers of the bed. Martín, however, is enjoying his cigarette like it’s the only thing in the world, fully ignoring the naked woman lying next to him. After all, that would raise his heart rate. It hasn’t been above 80bpm in months. He’d prefer to keep it that way.

“Martín… I’d like to… to discuss something with you.” Bala slowly but surely regains her typical composure, speaking in as precise of sentences as she can muster at the moment. “An opportunity has risen.”

“Que es? If it’s work, tell me in six months. I’m taking a break.” He takes another drag of his cigarette. 45bpm. He hasn’t looked over at Bala, nor does he want to.

“The Karrakin Trade Baronies would like to celebrate your recent successes on Hercynia. They’re offering you a house.” She’s finally able to right herself completely. Her tone shifts from the lover to the princess as she delivers the information, as if already handing Martín a contract to sign his life away. “I know you don’t exactly agree with them, but I see this as an opportunity for change.”

“Don’t agree…” He scoffs. “Since when do Karrakin love when wars end? Isn’t war good for business? And why not Winters, or Gamer? ” 55bpm. Too close. Another drag of his cigarette.

“Traditionally, yes. But they may be open to new perspectives. I see no better person fit to do that than an exiled Volador. A symbol of new beginnings, in a way. You may be able to make them change their ways if you accept. At least partially.” Every word becomes calculated. Pointed. Purposeful. Martín normally wouldn’t consider such an offer, but… the chance at change is possible. The chance to prevent another crisis. And, selfishly, the life of royalty sounds like a nice change of pace. “So? What will it be?”

Hallowed Be Thy Name

Karrakin Royalty are known for many things, one of them being their particular taste for being over the top. After all, what better way to spend their blood money than on galas, festivities and celebrations for work they didn’t do? On days like these, though, they celebrate someone who actually did something useful. Martín Hidalgo, key facet in the conclusion of the Second Hercynian Crisis, just over 6 months ago. 55bpm. Too close. No chance to smoke or shoot up a Freeze, though, so…

“On this day, we celebrate a wonderful end and a new beginning!” An announcer stands there, almost certainly underpaid if he's being paid at all, screaming his head off at the top of a staircase, just by a pedestal. “The creation of a new house! And its leader, a true hero among heroes! I present to you…” Martín pauses, taking a moment before he climbs the stairs, his hands in front of him as if they were still in chains. One of the Droseras behind him pushes him forward, and he begins his ascent. It takes him no time at all to reach the top, stepping onto the raised platform and silently hoping it doesn't drop beneath him. “Leader of the House of Tears and hero of Hercynia! Martín Hidalgo!” 59bpm. Too close. Far too close. The crowd stares with bated breath. Some hoping for a grand act of defiance, some watching in awe, and some in fear of a new leader.

“Thank you for the honor. I can, uh… only hope to do good things.” They get nothing. Nothing more than a pitiful sentence at the top of a pedestal. A wave of disappointment falls over the crowd at their new “leader”. Booing. Jeering. And though no words are said, the energy is piercing. Unsatisfactory. 65bpm. Enough to be alive. Too high. “...I accept this House with grace and feel the weight of its responsibility. The Karrakin Trade Baronies have gone too long with no repercussions. I will usher in a new era. A KTB that sees its workers as equal. A KTB that fights for the good in the universe. No matter how long it takes me, I will build this house with tears of joy.” Just as the light begins to come back into the eyes of the crowd, the platform drops from underneath him to take him to the afterparty. Martín reaches for his neck to loosen a rope that isn’t there.