Men's Second Style

He did not know his own name.  It was an interesting conundrum, but neither entirely uncomfortable nor, it seemed, wholly unfamiliar.  He felt that he floated somehow in a peculiar limbo of personality.  He knew some things—what languages he spoke, what foods he enjoyed, that he had never known his parents—but little about his own self.

He did not know his own name, but he knew that he could fight.  His mind might be all but blank, but his sense memory was strong, and his body could do things he did not remember learning or training to do.  He felt his muscles tense and thrum as he moved, wanting to defend, yearning to engage, aching to attack.  He pitied the ill-advised fool who attempted to draw him into conflict; his day would not end well.

He did not know his own name, but he knew that his body told a story.  Although he couldn’t guess what might be on his back, he could see clearly that his chest and arms were elaborately tattooed with what appeared to be some kind of creature.  That would bear closer inspection later on.  He had no idea if all the ink were due to his own personal choice, or if the artwork signified something larger, like clan or guild membership, or if it bound him to a code of conduct or unknown mission.  He found nothing familiar or even vaguely resonant in the curving lines and shading that swept over his skin.

He did not know his own name, but he knew that he was a man of many worlds.  At times his thoughts and emotions, which otherwise felt and flowed naturally, an invisible river in which his consciousness floated, darted and jittered like living things with their own volition.  He suspected that he was not always thinking in any language that he spoke, possibly not in any language that could be spoken in words, which might not be even remotely human.  He wondered if, when he slept, he would dream, and if so what his dreams might be like.

He did not know his own name, but he knew that he had work to do.

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The nameless Zero Warrior is wearing Nagaru Kawashima’s “X-Cross” ensemble.  Crossed leather belts adorn hooded top and pants, as both hand-painted texture artwork (on torso and thighs) and as detailed sculptie attachments (worn on the arms).  The garment-layer straps are artfully shaded and appear to be realistically bunching up the underlying fabric just slightly.  Sculpted armbelts encircle the biceps completely in double X’s of leather and metal.  The sculpted hood and chain-attached back pouch are included in a few different colors and finishes, so you can mix and match for a variety of looks.  Prim pieces are scripted for automatic resize.  The included pants have an interesting, slightly mottled fabric texture and are decorated with bright metal zippers and the aforementioned crossed belts.  L$350 for the set, with hooded top in your choice of White or Black.

For variety, you may also like the Winter Strap Pants.  The fabric here is consistently dark rather than variegated, and it’s studded with metal grommets and a shiny buckle plate.  You also get a sculpted array of five buckled straps that attaches to the right thigh.  Buckles and straps are matte black, which might risk disappearing into the pants, but the straps are edged in a dark, coppery red that really stands out against the black pants.  This is a nice bit of detailing that adds real interest without screaming for attention.  L$100.
 
I’m kind of in love with Nagaru’s tattoos.  “Argos” uses apparently abstract curls and whorls to depict in gorgeous, graceful detail what appears on closer inspection to be a dragon or some other great creature.  I can’t help but wonder if this might be the Kraken, the mythological sea creature released by Poseidon to destroy the Greek city of Argos by order of Zeus (see “Clash of the Titans”).  Kraken or no, this is a beautiful, impressive tattoo.  L$300.

In a Greek creation myth, Ophion is the great serpent that lays the egg from which the world hatches.  Nagaru’s “Ophion” tattoo drapes a stylized serpent around your body in loving embrace.  The markings that span the sinuous lengths are more than just markings—they resemble the lidless eyes of a snake, with elliptical pupils that suggest a snake of the venomous variety.  I once had the opportunity to hold (be held by?) an albino python named Tinkerbell.  This tattoo reminds me of that surreal, fascinating experience.  L$300.

All available at Demise (Yokohama City 110, 64, 21).

The Zero Warrio’s battle-ready hair is called “Ahiga,” by MissAllSunday Lemon.  It is surely no coincidence that “Ahiga” is a male name in Navajo that means “he fights.”  Until relatively recently, I only rarely found long hairstyles that “clicked” for me, but MissAllSunday Lemon’s impressive, complex male (and sometimes unisex) styles are like some kind of gateway drug—I tried just one and I keep going back for more.  Like her other styles, “Ahiga” is artistic in conception, thoughtful in execution, and beautiful to behold.  The long, flexi braid is especially eye-catching in motion.  L$200 each (or L$1500 for the pack of 26 colors, which includes two colors available only in the pack) for the “regular” version, which features scripting for automatic resize.  L$1000 each (or L$2500 for the pack) for the “combat” version, which is scripted for CCS, DCS2 and other collision-based systems and includes custom gesture-driven draw and sheath animations.  I don’t know anything about combat scripting, but it all sounds really impressive.  Available at Wasabi Pills (Thibedeau 39, 95, 23).