Bio

Shay is the third of three sons of the Luxin family, a minor noble family (His father is a Baronet). His mother was from Ireland, but died under mysterious circumstances a couple years ago while on a vacation with her husband.

For the last two years, Shay has been attending a small college in London. His course of study is Philosophy and Comparative Mythology—with a special focus on mythological creatures. He’s always found mythological creatures fascinating, and has been researching them since he was young.

That meant he was all the more startled to find that some of them were real.

In a dark alley on a rainy night, he found himself facing a thug… who turned out to be far more. The monster was about to attack him when a young girl stumbled into the alley. The monster turned, sensing sweeter prey, and as Shay realized was about to happen, he felt a fire swell up within him. With a wordless cry, he flung an arm out… and watched in amazement as flames leaped out and struck the creature.

Terrence Waters, one of Shay’s coworkers who was secretly a Ripper, cam around the corner just in time to see the aftermath. He took Shay to the Rippers, and he was examined by members of both the Rosicrucians and the Order of St. George. Eventually, all they could conclude was that his source of power had some traces of holiness to it, and so was likely not of evil origins. Shay took the opportunity to learn the truth about many of the creatures he had studied. When given the choice, he joined the Rippers, wanting to protect others from the creatures of darkness.

Shay Luxin (Shay—Irish, hawk-like, noble. Luxin—Lux, latin, light, + In, from Igne, fire) is fair-complexioned, with fiery red hair and amber eyes. He’s of about middling height, and usually wears fairly average, well-worn clothes, with a flat cap.

In personality, he’s generally known to be cheerful and friendly, if a bit eccentric and sometimes prone to not noticing when he’s spent four hours studying how different versions of the Chimera relate to the different tellings of the story. He also enjoys falconry (only when at home, as he’s too poor and too busy in school for such things) and has an interest in nature. Shay is known, however, for his opposition to oppression, bullying, the strong taking advantage of the weak, and so forth. Unfortunately for him, he’s not very strong, so his interventions have in the past often ended up with him as a new target.

In addition to Theology, History, Mythology, and Philosophy, Shay is also something of an amateur ornithologist. He knows a little bit of singlestick and fencing, though his lack of strength means he can’t really be effective with weapons. He usually doesn’t say anything about his semi-noble parentage. He attends University College London.

Shay is from Cheshire. His father, Sir Martin Luxin, is a retired cavalry captain. Since the death of his Irish wife, he has stayed on the family estate. He’s well-respected in the area, by all except other more upper-class types, who view his close associations with the lower classes as scandalous. The family estate is mostly devoted to diary cattle, supplying the county’s cheese industry.

Shay’s oldest brother, Brannan, is a Lieutenant in the British Army, and is known as a charismatic officer and a brilliant tactician. His other brother, Merlin, is an officer in the Royal Navy, currently serving as ship’s navigator. The other Luxins were rather surprised when Merlin joined the Navy, as he was known more for disappearing into the woods for hours at a time than for any interest in sailing when he was younger. He’s also a very good shot with a rifle.