Avas Letterford

Avasantius Letterford, also known as Avas, is a young Hylian from Kakariko Village. He is a cheerful soldier of the Knights of Hyrule and a former member of the Silver Blade mercenary faction. He is also the original persona of Anti-Avas, his Shadow doppelgänger.

Character Appearance
Avas is a teenager with an average physique and a short height for his age. Even so, frequent training and a wholesome diet is likely to help him grow overtime. He strongly resembles his mother and shares many of her traits; his skin is a light-tan color and appears delicate with scratches in a few areas, his eyes are dark-gray, and his hair is a caramel color kept at a short length. His usual articles of clothing consist of a bland, teal-colored tunic with the sleeves rolled up, a Knight's Badge pinned to the left sleeve, a utility belt with many pockets and a Red Potion bottle, a dark pair of trousers, and charcoal-colored engineer's boots. The badge on his sleeve serves as a telepathic communicator and transportation device in which the Knights of Hyrule use to travel wherever they are needed. A longsword and Hylian Shield are usually secured to his back by a black leather belt. However, his clothing and accessories may vary to accommodate different environments.

Personality
Avas is portrayed as a friendly and carefree person. He has a typical, courageous spark about him and sees no problem helping others through the toughest of trials if given the chance. His bravery might be influenced by heroes he either met or read about in ancient lore. This bravery sometimes dissolves to cockiness when some sort of competition arises, followed by an idiosyncratic smirk and crossed arms. This behavior usually serves as a major weakness to his decision-making as he lets this boldness go to his head. Avas is also a solid believer in the Triforce and a devout patriot to his country, as shown by his unyielding service in the Knights of Hyrule.

Because of his positive attitude, Avas tends to forge friendships with many different people regardless of their race or background. He also seems to have a remarkable capacity to forgive certain others of their wrongdoings. Opposing the young man's bright exterior is an underlying sadness shown on the right occasions. To the contrary, Avas also possesses a foul temper, and when provoked in extreme ways, he forgets his diplomatic tactics and resorts to violent means of resolution. Although he is far from stupid and seems well-informed, the Hylian can be heavily impulsive whenever his sense of justice clouds his judgment, jumping into situations without afterthought or without considering valuable advice.

History
Avas was birthed to Maya Letterford and former Knight General Adrian Letterford in Kakariko. At early youth, Avas learned to tend to himself as a breadwinner of the family by taking odd jobs from villagers and forging cutting tools as an apprentice blacksmith, while his father handled agriculture and livestock and while his nurturing mother maintained the household. It was during these early years that he met his closest and most reliable friend, a Fountain Fairy named Día, at a New Year's festival in Castle Town. During the festivities, an ominous figure set loose his hoard of minions to ravage and set fire to the town. Avas managed to narrowly escape and save Día as she lied on the brink of death from collapsing debris. He and surviving townsfolk fled to Kakariko while knights snuffed out the creatures and the walls of fire. Since the incident, Día visited Avas periodically and watched over him as a long-lasting expression of her gratitude.

Unlikely Successor
At age six, the child surely met with a dazzling encounter. Avas dismissed the village curfew to play with his friends at the graveyard. The children spent their time emulating the famous heroes they read about in ancient lore, often stirring the unbridled hatred of Poes lingering near the headstones as the children messed with them. As the children fled playfully toward the furthest part of the graveyard, they encountered the wandering soul of a fearsome warrior. The children shrieked at the sight of this and exited the graveyard. Avas, however, remained frozen where he stood. Curiosity overtook the boy's fear of this lingering ghost, so he asked the warrior why he had not passed on like the others. The spirit replied, "I was once a Mystic Swordsman within the Knights of Hyrule and taught many hopefuls. Alas...I died with the regret of never choosing a successor for my legacy. I simply wasn't ready to yield my life when my friends and family counted on me...I failed them."

Young Avas offered the spirit a sympathetic look. "That's sad, mister...Oh, by the way, I'm Avas. What's your name?" Before the spirit decided to answer, he took quick note of the growing number of Poes that were provoked by the children earlier. Drawing the sword slung to his side, he raised it to the sky and summoned a shower of lightning to vanquish the malevolent ghosts, leaving nothing behind but their soul-housing lanterns and young Avas in awe. The spirit's rough face wrinkled with a thin smile. "They called me Virtus. I admit you are considerate for lending me your ear, Avas, and gutsy for standing before the dead. How would you like to be my successor?" The boy thought to himself for a moment. Never had he been chosen for such a momentous undertaking before, and the thought of becoming a great warrior's "successor" left him intrigued. Not to mention, Virtus’s powerful display of magic impressed him.

"Alright," the child answered. "But aren't you dead?? How would I go about being your successor, then? I'm just a kid...When would I do this?" The spirit chuckled at the child's many questions and replied, "You will see," then faded into a bright mist, fusing with the child's essence. "As I rest within your spiritual core, you shall be endowed with Magic Power," the voice echoed. "A path has now been set for your future..." Overwhelmed and dazed by his newfound union with the warrior spirit, he silently agreed and exited the graveyard.

Knighthood
Many years flew by. Now a teenager, Avas worked as a mercenary for hire under the Silver Blade resistance movement for some time. Determined to fill his wallet until it bristled, he took on various assignments alongside prominent members such as Frost Zenoria, Niomi Kenza, and several others. It wasn't long before his abilities were recognized by official eyes. Greater opportunity sprang when he enlisted in the Knights of Hyrule receiving valuable training as he endured the Soldier‘s Training Corps. With the help of his moody friend Día and her insight, he worked his way through the ranks and discovered his calling. Hardship reared its ugly head on a frequent basis as he and the knights served vigilantly under their charismatic Knight Grand Master. Altogether, the knights and their allies faced the onslaught of the mastermind Zeth, the Dark Interlopers, and a series of major threats throughout Hyrule. A dark creature nicknamed Anti-Avas was Avas's personal enemy and frequently showed up to battle him, torture him, and render his goals nearly impossible to complete. Countless experiences that built up to these showdowns have given him the chance to meet many interesting characters.

Current Goals
Avas currently works as a soldier within the Knights of Hyrule. His goal is to root out lawlessness from the system and help improve environmental conditions for the people of Hyrule. While the Knight Grand Master and a few company leaders have taken leave, he and the knights are currently on stand-by, but remain ready for duty. He also intends to sharpen his skills in the art of the Mystic Swordsman, a fighter class that combines the use of magic and blade. His more selfish desires are to seek a life of adventure and enjoyment with the riches he and his family could never achieve.

Abilities
Like typical Hylians, Avas possesses an acute sense of hearing and can possibly hear noises above a frequency of 20 kHz. He may also be attuned to the supernatural on account of his race having mysterious connections to certain deities. His regular practices are forging cutting tools and other useful appliances as a novice blacksmith. He also understands explosives at an efficient level, able to put together devices such as fuse bombs and mechanical land mines based on his studies at the academy.

As a trained swordsman, he proves himself unrelenting in melee combat with speed and endurance as his governing attributes, his typical attacks being comprised of quick swipes and sweeping, horizontal cuts. He is able to cast magic due to Virtus's spirit residing in his spiritual core, though he lacks mastery over his abilities. One of which he can perform is the Magic Spin Attack, a sword technique having been exclusive to the Knights of Hyrule. He also uses a rare counterattack known as Dead Man's Volley to reflect magical attacks, if done successfully, back at its caster. Other abilities have yet to be revealed. Otherwise, he is seemingly an ordinary boy.

Trivia

 * Although he is short and possibly younger than other characters, Avas is meant to grow up through progressive RP.
 * His allergies to Cuccos and comments about them are direct references to Anju from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time©, while his other weaknesses include claustrophobia and fear of extremely dark places.
 * His abilities as a "Mystic Swordsman" is a reference to the "Mystic Knight" job from the Final Fantasy© series.