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Description

Name: Kōtenbō
Nickname: Koten || Tengu
Age: 750
Gender: Male
Species: Karasu-Tengu
Height: Human - 6’3” (1.9m) || Crow - 30” (78 cm); Wingspan - 60” (152 cm)
Weight: Human - 150 lbs || Crow - 2 lbs
Eye Color: Red
Hair Color: Black
Skin Color: Pale
Feather Color: Black

Job:
- Personal Bodyguard to the Bathhouse Proprietor
- Captain of the Guards

Abilities:
- Summoning Lightening
- Summoning Winds
- Martial Arts

Weapons:
- Shakujo Staff
- Hauchiwa

History:
When Kotenbo was born, his mountain didn’t have a name. It was just a small, isolated place, one of many in a long spine of mountains, but it was his mountain, and he loved it more than anything else. His duty was to protect it, and so he did. Like all tengu, he was wise and skilled in martial arts even from a young age, even without a teacher, and he used these skills to protect the mountain from any straying humans, though he would occasionally give advice to travelers with purer intentions. However, over time the occasional human turned into groups of humans, and then several groups of humans, until one day a large gathering of humans came and never left, their village settled into the base of his mountain.

He tolerated them for a while, until they began to cut down the trees to make their village larger and larger. They more then cut and scarred his mountain, the more clouded his mind became, until everything he was was lost, and he fell into becoming a spirit of vengeance. It started with him disposing of the villagers who came too far up the mountain, but the further submerged in hate he became, the more violent he became, to the point that the villagers were too frightened to leave their homes lest he take his vengeance out on them. His mind was lost to the anger, but some part of him knew that even if he hadn’t been lost, he’d have hated them anyway.

The village, though, could no longer afford to keep losing their members to the “enraged demon.” They pooled their money and paid a priest to come and exorcise the angry spirit so that they could continue to live in peace. A wandering Buddhist answered their call, and travelled up the mountain to confront the demon. Kotenbo treated him with no more courtesy than he granted any of the other humans, despite the fact that he should have seen the holy man as a brother of the spirit world. They engaged in a battle, and despite Kotenbo’s rage and power, he was defeated. Though he had triumphed over the Tengu, the monk could not destroy his spirit completely, so he had a shrine built at the very top of the mountain and bound the spirit there, to sit harmless forever. The village was overjoyed, and they were able to carry on with their lives.

And so Kotenbo was for over four hundred years, chained with only his rage and hatred to comfort him. As time passed, however, the rage faded away, until only regret was left to sting at his soul. He had no remorse for what he’d done to the humans, except that his reckless, mindless actions had led harm to his precious mountain, but he did regret that he’d allowed himself to become so thoroughly consumed by his anger that he’d lost himself.

The villagers eventually forgot that the demon Tengu of the mountain was anything more than a story, a fable for why it was dangerous to go up to the top of the mountain for any reason. Eventually, though, someone came to that village, and despite all of their warnings to turn back, she travelled up the side of the mountain, the first set of feet to walk that path in over four hundred years. And also for the first time in four hundred years, Kotenbo looked up and saw light instead of darkness, and a kind, quiet smile asked him if he would like to come with her to a place where there were no humans at all. He couldn’t have said no if he’d wanted to.

His bonds broken, Kotenbo came to see just how much the world had changed around his mountain in four hundred years. Humans no longer believed in his kind and other spirits like him, and there was no place for him on his mountain. The Bathhouse of the spirit world became his new home and sanctuary, and more importantly, he found himself living for the single purpose of protecting and serving the witch that saved him.

Random Facts:
- When he changes between his Raven and Human forms, a faint smell of ozone and lightening accompanies the transformation.
- He can hide his wings in his human form, but it’s uncomfortable for him and he only does so when space is limited.
- He always, always, always has his hauchiwa with him. It is very precious to him, and he never lets it out of his sight. It is a symbol of his species and power, and without it he is severely weakened.
- His shakujo is enchanted so that it can shrink down to a small, ornate earring. He can undo the spell and return it to it’s proper size whenever he needs it.
- He has a small weakness for the susuwatari who work in the boiler room, and he often brings them little treats.
- Koten hates humans for what they did to him and his mountain, and even now he has little tolerance for them.

Description

Name: Kōtenbō
Nickname: Koten || Tengu
Age: 750
Gender: Male
Species: Karasu-Tengu
Height: Human - 6’3” (1.9m) || Crow - 30” (78 cm); Wingspan - 60” (152 cm)
Weight: Human - 150 lbs || Crow - 2 lbs
Eye Color: Red
Hair Color: Black
Skin Color: Pale
Feather Color: Black

Job:
- Personal Bodyguard to the Bathhouse Proprietor
- Captain of the Guards

Abilities:
- Summoning Lightening
- Summoning Winds
- Martial Arts

Weapons:
- Shakujo Staff
- Hauchiwa

History:
When Kotenbo was born, his mountain didn’t have a name. It was just a small, isolated place, one of many in a long spine of mountains, but it was his mountain, and he loved it more than anything else. His duty was to protect it, and so he did. Like all tengu, he was wise and skilled in martial arts even from a young age, even without a teacher, and he used these skills to protect the mountain from any straying humans, though he would occasionally give advice to travelers with purer intentions. However, over time the occasional human turned into groups of humans, and then several groups of humans, until one day a large gathering of humans came and never left, their village settled into the base of his mountain.

He tolerated them for a while, until they began to cut down the trees to make their village larger and larger. They more then cut and scarred his mountain, the more clouded his mind became, until everything he was was lost, and he fell into becoming a spirit of vengeance. It started with him disposing of the villagers who came too far up the mountain, but the further submerged in hate he became, the more violent he became, to the point that the villagers were too frightened to leave their homes lest he take his vengeance out on them. His mind was lost to the anger, but some part of him knew that even if he hadn’t been lost, he’d have hated them anyway.

The village, though, could no longer afford to keep losing their members to the “enraged demon.” They pooled their money and paid a priest to come and exorcise the angry spirit so that they could continue to live in peace. A wandering Buddhist answered their call, and travelled up the mountain to confront the demon. Kotenbo treated him with no more courtesy than he granted any of the other humans, despite the fact that he should have seen the holy man as a brother of the spirit world. They engaged in a battle, and despite Kotenbo’s rage and power, he was defeated. Though he had triumphed over the Tengu, the monk could not destroy his spirit completely, so he had a shrine built at the very top of the mountain and bound the spirit there, to sit harmless forever. The village was overjoyed, and they were able to carry on with their lives.

And so Kotenbo was for over four hundred years, chained with only his rage and hatred to comfort him. As time passed, however, the rage faded away, until only regret was left to sting at his soul. He had no remorse for what he’d done to the humans, except that his reckless, mindless actions had led harm to his precious mountain, but he did regret that he’d allowed himself to become so thoroughly consumed by his anger that he’d lost himself.

The villagers eventually forgot that the demon Tengu of the mountain was anything more than a story, a fable for why it was dangerous to go up to the top of the mountain for any reason. Eventually, though, someone came to that village, and despite all of their warnings to turn back, she travelled up the side of the mountain, the first set of feet to walk that path in over four hundred years. And also for the first time in four hundred years, Kotenbo looked up and saw light instead of darkness, and a kind, quiet smile asked him if he would like to come with her to a place where there were no humans at all. He couldn’t have said no if he’d wanted to.

His bonds broken, Kotenbo came to see just how much the world had changed around his mountain in four hundred years. Humans no longer believed in his kind and other spirits like him, and there was no place for him on his mountain. The Bathhouse of the spirit world became his new home and sanctuary, and more importantly, he found himself living for the single purpose of protecting and serving the witch that saved him.

Random Facts:
- When he changes between his Raven and Human forms, a faint smell of ozone and lightening accompanies the transformation.
- He can hide his wings in his human form, but it’s uncomfortable for him and he only does so when space is limited.
- He always, always, always has his hauchiwa with him. It is very precious to him, and he never lets it out of his sight. It is a symbol of his species and power, and without it he is severely weakened.
- His shakujo is enchanted so that it can shrink down to a small, ornate earring. He can undo the spell and return it to it’s proper size whenever he needs it.
- He has a small weakness for the susuwatari who work in the boiler room, and he often brings them little treats.
- Koten hates humans for what they did to him and his mountain, and even now he has little tolerance for them.