Jeremy Larsen
(and bits on the guard in general)
- Started training basically at birth, being raised in a way to implant the psychology and values inherent to the guard
- Raised around other guard kids so their games were basically training for balance, agility, adaptability, resourcefulness, evasion, etc
- Body-conditioning started at 8-9, basic unarmed combat and such (Guard uses a fighting style similar to Muay Thai, using hands, elbows, knees and feet for their blows; 8 point fighting versus the typical 4)
- Meets Fran at 8 and gets his scarf from her (and thus a lifelong crush begins)
- Around 9 or 10 (depending on the kid) they have a test sort of thing to see how the kids handle a combat situation and being shot at (with paintball guns), kids that freak out are cut from the guard program and shifted over to auxiliary jobs; kids that pass move on to more intense training (I think Jeremy was 9 when he took his)
- Weapons training (specifically knives and guns) started after that if they passed (Jeremy obviously passed) and then training in other aspects of their jobs, etc
- They also like to use situation training by providing the kids with a model and asking how they would achieve an objective (they have about 20 of these small models and older kids tend to do full scale versions with real people)
- Like to use paintball guns for evasion and sniping training (will switch out which group is trying to break in and which group is trying to defend)
- By 14-15, he was basically a guard-in-training (on probation, more or less) and started working directly with Fran rather than just occasionally bumping into her and being her secret friend/bro
- Shortly after that he was on a protection detail for her and an assassin strangled him from behind with piano wire, it cut into his neck to some extent and wound up permanently fucking up his larynx. So now he talks in a very quiet rasp and has a nasty looking scar on his neck. (The assassin left him for dead because he was just a kid and then Jeremy got up and shoved a knife through his eye. And then passed out because he's a champ like that)
- He and Fran have two nonverbal forms of communication, one is a type of rudimentary sign language that they use for long distance and the other is basically morse code but they tap it against each others hands (they're really gay)
- Winds up getting kidnapped along with Fran and one point and they torture him to fuck with her. Gets his face sliced up and winds up with scars that help him look a little less girly and a little more intimidating. (but he's still pretty girly since he has pretty blonde hair that he keeps pulled back)
- Also like... he's an acrobatics nerd, I swear. He likes running on balance beams and swinging on parallel bars and climbing up drain pipes/trees/anything. Breaks his leg at one point and his uncle makes him walk on his hands everywhere so he gets really good at that.
- Has a surprising amount of upper body strength and is basically built for speed and evasion over hard hitting blows.
- Prefers to use kicks and open hand strikes rather than punches, it's hard to be useful with broken fingers
- Oh yeah, important note, the guard likes to use cortical remodeling to strengthen their bones in certain areas (generally by hitting/kicking wooden posts over and over)
- Jeremy winds up eventually having five kids with Fran:
- Riley, Casey and Morgan (triplet girls)
- Francis IV (boy, middle child; 2 years younger than triplets)
- Taylor (boy, the youngest; 3 years younger than triplets)
- I should probably also mention that there are really two "guards" even though everyone lumps them together into one group, what I'm talking about is the "inner" guard, the ones that were trained from birth and are the only ones really trusted with the Emperor's safety. This is the guard that Jeremy is a part of and the group from which the Emperor's personal bodyguard is selected. The "inner" guard has no real hierarchy and they're all related (or married in) and all bitch at each other equally and have no loyalty to anyone but the Emperor and the family. To be fired from this guard is to die. (They will occasionally do assassination/other missions that cannot be trusted to anyone else)
- The "outer" guard takes recruits and is responsible for guarding the palace, various members of the Imperial family and high ranking people. They can be fired/hired as needed. For the most part, they take care of things which are important but don't require the level of devotion that comes with the "inner" guard. They have a strict hierarchy and operate like a miniature army (the current leader is a member of the "inner" guard).
- The guard has a uniform but it tends to vary based on what they're doing. Generally it's some variety of brown, grey or green and made of cotton or other breathable/flexible materials. Seeing someone in combat pants, a long sleeve shirt, gloves and boots is not unusual. They are always armed unless the situation dictates otherwise. They will wear just about anything as long as it doesn't impede their combat ability. Will not hesitate to crossdress, wear ridiculous things, sleep with someone or kill people to get the job done.
- A note on those gloves. They're elbow-ish length and fit under the sleeves of the shirt because they have metal bracers on them. Can be used to deflect blows (and possibly break the opponent's hand) or to block bladed weapons. Would probably slow or partially deflect a bullet depending on the range/caliber/angle etc but the impact might bruise/break bones anyway and it's not that thick of a piece of metal (weight limitations and all).
- Another note. Body armor. The guard is not above wearing bullet proof jackets, helmets, masks, whatever the situation calls for. It's hard to defend the Emperor when you're full of holes. In general they very much go with a "The ends justify the means" approach.
- Members of the "inner" guard like Jeremy don't drink, smoke, do drugs, drink coffee/tea/soda, eat junk food or do anything that could inhibit their abilities. Jeremy just told me that he has never eaten chocolate or had dessert. I pity this boy. They also don't consume caffeine because it's a diuretic and tends to make you jittery/jumpy. They basically treat food as fuel and eat for nutrition/energy. Now I have to ask the loser what he ate today:
- Breakfast: One cup of oatmeal with whole milk; a banana; a hardboiled egg; one and a half cups of raw carrots
- Lunch: Salmon; one cup brown rice; one cup of steamed zucchini and yellow squash; glass of milk
- Snack: 3/4 oz of nuts; one cup of granola; 3/4 cup of dried fruit
- Dinner: 2 cups of whole wheat pasta; 1 cup of cooked spinach; 1/2 cup of steamed asparagus; 1/4 cup of cheese
- So yeah, he eats like 2500-3000 calories a day like this. More or less depending on what he's doing that day. (this is estimated based off of a 5'11 19-year-old boy weighing 155 lb and doing one hour or more of strenuous activity per day) (the weight is based off of an athlete height-weight chart showing examples of actual people)
