Desmond "Des" Holt

[Axe]

Desmond Holt

Age:	38
Gender:	Male
Primary Occupation:	Mechanic
Secondary Occupation (optional):	General Hand/Cook
Equipment:	Desmond carries the usual personal items, a large duffel of clothing, his set of tools, personal cortex pad, a few horn handled knives, a couple hatchets, survival gear, and his pride and joy, a pair of ornate hand canons that he won in a card game a couple years after he left home. 6 shot .500 Magnum Revolvers
Appearance:	Desmond is 6 foot 4 inches tall and 255 pounds of lean muscle. He has green eyes, and dark brown hair that is often sun bleached because of how much time he spends outside when planet-side. He usually lets his large mane of hair fly free, but pulls it back in a ponytail when he's working in the engine room. His tall wiry form, coupled with his long hair, beard, and unusually angular eyebrows (plus the scar on one of them) paints a pretty intimidating picture, even if he's smiling. His clothing style is an odd mixture of surfer and mountain man, with some random bits of Core fashion thrown in from time to time.
Faceclaim:	Jason Momoa
Initial Personality:	Desmond, or "Des" as people tend to call him, can initially come off as bit intimidating. Its not usually his intent, its just how he looks. After you spend a few minutes with him you'll see that he is easy going, fun loving, and laughs a lot. He can be a bit snarky and will sometimes good naturedly tease his friends. Though he can also be deadly serious when the need arises. He is usually very slow to anger, but beware if you push him to far, because he can be as ferocious as a bear and as quick as a shark. He enjoys talking to people and socializing, anywhere from the ships galley to a local port bar, but also enjoys solitude. This works well with his profession, because people tend to leave the mechanic alone while he's in the engine room. He is very self aware, and very confident about his skills. He knows what he's good at, and knows exactly how good he is. He loves the outdoors and loves being active. His interests include swimming, surfing, mountain biking, motorcycle riding, rock climbing, and camping out in the wilderness, just to name a few.
Underlying Personality:	After getting to know Des, not much really changes. He is a man who knows who he is, and is unafraid to let the world see it. There are a couple things you might notice after a while though. He really is just a big teddy bear. He prefers peace, but knows that sometimes you have to fight, and if you have to fight you better be good at it. He also has a bit of a soft spot for beautiful women, though its not quite bad enough to get him into trouble... usually.
Known History:	Search: Desmond Holt Results: Desmond Holt Born: August 1st, 2480, Newhall Mother / Father: Military Service: Independent, exact service unknown Government Service: None Occupation: Mechanic
Other History:	Desmond Holt was born in a rural area on Newhall, and his childhood was filled with adventure. There were oceans to swim in, islands to explore, mischief to be made, and bars to sneak into to hear the pilots talk about their off world escapades. The household he grew up in was full of love, and of siblings. Desmond was the middle child of 6 other siblings, 2 more boys and 4 girls. They were the terror and heart of their neighborhood. Always getting into mischief, but also always the first to jump in and lend a hand if someone needed it. It remained this way until Desmond's oldest siblings went off to college, signaling the beginning of the end of his childhood. Desmond's father was an engineer who worked maintaining one of the processing plants for Newhall's greatest export: water for Terra-forming. Des became interested in the profession at an early age, and proved to have a knack for keeping machines running, as well as modifying them. He went to a local college, got certified, and started his career in the same processing plant as his father. After a year he was promoted to maintaining the transport ships they used to move the water off world. It was here that he had his first experience with smuggling. He inadvertently discovered a hidden compartment on one of the transports one day. After a quick conversation with its captain he was cut in to buy his silence. He did them one better though, moving all their hidden compartments, and making them much less detectable. This provided and introduction into a network of contacts that would help keep him employed a bit later in life. In the meantime, things continued to go well for Desmond, but in the back of his mind there was an itch that he just couldn't scratch. The seed that had been planted in his mind all those years ago, hearing the pilots spin tails of the places they'd seen and experiences they'd had. He longed to go out into the black and have adventures like that of his own. He suppressed the desire for another year or two before finally giving in. At the age of 21 he left Newhall for the first time as the mechanic of a small transport, crewed by smugglers, surprise surprise. Over the next couple of years be bounced around the verse, sometimes as a mechanic, sometimes as just a general hand. Most of the jobs he took were with smugglers, and he gained a small reputation with the close knit sub group of criminals. He spent a little over a year on St. Albans, mostly out in the wilderness. The snow and icy wind was a totally different animal than that of Newhall, a challenge that he welcomed. He spent nearly two years on Greenleaf, losing himself in the forests and jungles there, another totally new experience for him. The coming of the Unification War brought new dangers, but also new opportunities. He supported the Browncoats, even going so far as to technically enlist with them, though he never saw a battlefield. He spent the majority of the war smuggling anything they needed, from food and medicine to guns and ammo. He and his crew got whatever the Browncoats needed, and they managed to avoid capture for the entire war. After the war not much changed for Desmond. He went right back to doing what he'd been doing. Enjoying life, smuggling, having adventures in the Verse. He has gone back to St Albans and Greenleaf several times, spending roughly another three years worth of time in total between them. Every few years he goes back to Newhall and stays for a couple months to visit his family. Almost all of them are still there, minus the brother and two sisters who died in the war. And thus is the life of Desmond Holt the mechanic and roguish smuggler.
Skills and Strengths:	Mechanic: Years of experience and training has made Des a bit of a genius mechanic and engineer. He's installed more hidden compartments on ships than he can remember at this point. Survivalist: Des has spent literal years worth of his life out in the wilds of several planets, and knows how to survive anywhere from the frozen tundra, to the deep forest, to the tropical jungle. Extreme Sports: Des is a very good swimmer, surfer, mountain biker, motorcycle rider (Hog, Dirt, and Hover), skateboarder, rock climber, skydiver, just to name a few. Physical conditioning: Des is in utterly fantastic shape. He's strong, fast, resilient, and has an overabundance of energy and stamina. Brawler: While Des lacks any formal training in martial arts, he learned from the best teacher there is. Experience. He is a wonderfully proficient brawler, and can definitely take a few hits. Despite his peace loving nature he's been in quite his fair share of bar brawls and fist fights. Gunslinger: Des has fancied himself a bit of a gunslinger ever since he won his overly ornate hand canons, and in actuality he is a pretty crack shot with them. He is fair to middling with any other firearm though. Smuggler: Des has been smuggling on and off for a little over half his life, and he is very proficient at it. He knows the best routes to take and the best places to hide things on a boat. He is also a excellent liar, though he almost exclusively lies only to law enforcement. Cooking: Desmond is a fantastic cook, having learned from his parents, as well as many friends along his journey through life.
Weaknesses:	Piloting: In recent years Desmond has begun learning the ways of a pilot, and while he is experienced enough to get his ship from point A to point B in one piece, he is by no means primary pilot material. Hacking: While very experienced with ships systems, door controls, etc, Des has no experience with anything hacking related. Medical: While his survivalist skills do include a decent bit of first aid and naturally occurring remedies, Des is definitely no doctor. Beautiful Women: Des has a bit of a weakness for beautiful women, and it can occasionally get him into trouble.