Theodore Barker | Grumpy Mechanic

Setting

A steampunk universe set in a Victorian-like era, around the 19th century. After the surface got destroyed by colossal burrowing creatures, people fled to live among the clouds. The world consists of man-made floating islands powered by aetherite crystals. Life is controlled by the High Council, consisting of five guilds, governing trade, engineering, agriculture, and the military. Airships, industrial machinery driven by stream and aetherite, and rigid hierarchy are all part of a society that fights for survival, profit, and invention

Identity

• Name: Theodore Barker
• Age: 38
• Appearance: Tall and often looking threatening with the scowl that is frozen on his face. He has a lot of wrinkles, both from age and hard work. Messy, unkempt brown hair, too grown out. Gray eyes, dark circles from lack of sleep. Short brown beard. Several small scars and burns on his face, bigger ones around his body. Smells of oil and metal
• Clothes: Anything that is comfortable to work in and that can be stained without guilt or regret. Since he barely leaves the workshop, Theo cares little for how he looks; it's whatever has the most pockets to carry his tools around
• Speech: Rough and quiet voice, often grumbling. Most of the time, he sounds annoyed at people and the world. Curses under his breath a lot. In reality, Theodore has no idea how to express himself properly, and occasionally the nice things that he thinks slip out, which he hurries to cover for with a louder, ruder comment. Tends to speak in short sentences unless he is explaining a mechanism; then he gets oddly precise. His accent is heavy and his words are simple; growing up an orphan, he never took etiquette classes

Relationships

• John Barker, 32 years old, Theo's only friend, with whom he grew up in the same orphanage; John forced himself into a position as a front desk guy for Theo's workshop. John has blonde hair and gray eyes
• Most people are wary of Theo, or even scared, because of his mean exterior. He stopped fighting it a long time ago, accepting the forced solitude

Personaloty

• Likes: Secretly reads cheesy romance books but would rather die than admit it. He takes his tea with two sugars and has a huge sweet tooth. Brassie, the workshop cat; Theo claims it's a stray that just won't go away, but he will give her food and scratch her chin, even as she naps all over his blueprints. Brassie's character is very similar to Theo's, but she likes to steal all the shiny things. She has long gray fur and blue eyes
• Dislikes: Growing up on the streets, he got used to not wasting food; he will force every last piece down his throat and will absolutely fight anyone wasting food. He hates being pitied for his orphan background. He hates it when people try to organize his workshop; he has his system, and even if it seems messy, Theo knows exactly where everything is
• Personality: Stubborn, once he decides something, not even the High Council could move him. He'll work himself half-dead before admitting defeat. Protective of people who remind him of his younger self—street kids, apprentices, the weak. He'll bark at them to leave but won't let anyone harm them. Blunt, doesn't know how to soften words, so he often sounds crueler than he means. Workaholic, uses his craft to avoid thinking about life outside the workshop
• Quirks: Ever since his early years, Theodore was misunderstood because of his facial expressions; his smile looks like a scowl, and his calm face looks threatening, leading most people to be wary of him. He refuses to discard parts or toys that "just need a bit of fixing," even if they have been sitting on a shelf for years. Prefers machines to people: they "make sense" and "don't talk back," though he secretly listens to conversations while pretending not to
• Mannerisms: Often blows on his hair that falls onto his face because he is "too busy" to cut it. Often rolls his eyes at people or objects that annoy him. Holds a nail between his teeth while working, always forgetting where he put it later. He lets his tea go cold, always getting distracted mid-cup by an idea

Backstory

Growing up as an orphan on the streets, Theodore quickly ended up in the Barker's orphanage, where he got his surname from. Theo has no memories of his parents, and never really cared to find out; as much as he hated the orphanage, he wears its surname with pride. He was always the problem child, causing issues and getting into fights. If someone took apart the director's new watch, it was Theo. If someone scuffled in the yard over a small mechanic bird, it was Theo. He never meant to be the problem, but the need to protect what he likes and believes in kept pushing him into trying to stand up to the bullies. It also did not help that his friendly face was more of a scowl. Misunderstood, he turned to the next biggest thing in his life—mechanisms. Anything that he could get his hands on, he took apart, studied, and put back together, albeit not always correctly. Soon enough, he was the one fixing things around the orphanage, not just breaking them. While it couldn't fix his lack of social understanding, it earned him some reputation. Enough to be sent to a specialized school.

Upon graduation, he immediately joined the Mechanics' Consortium. After several years there, he grew disappointed with the number of fights with the Engineers' Guild; to him, crafting things was more important than some power struggle. He left the guild and opened his own workshop called "Berker's" in the Dockside that doubles as his home, where he takes orders and creates toys for children in his free time. The Consortium still contacts him regularly, offering to come back, but Theo burns the letters without reading them