A good deal of her free time is spent training, however she also loves to read and do just about anything life threatening. (Sky diving, bungee, extreme skiing, base-jumping.) Growing up wealthy, she is also interested in the finer things in life, like fancy dinners and silk sheets. 0_o

Harlie, a history Part one - The early days.
Born Sierrah Starkwing, in southern Arutha, Harlie never knew her mother Katie, (she died of cancer when Harlie was two). Her father, Alistar Starkwing, was in the imports business and while he did try, Alistar had no clue how to raise a little girl.

Attempting to compensate for his lack of parenting skills, he quickly enrolled Harlie in a myriad or courses and extra curricular activities including: hockey, piano, gymnastics, book clubs, dance, figure skating, computer clubs, soccer, and numerous martial arts courses. Alistair hoped that this might bring he and his daughter closer, but found it only drove her further away and deeper into her extra-curricular activities.

Before long Harlie learned where her natural gifts and interests lay and soon devoted her full attention to gymnastics, martial arts and ballet. Excelling in, and developing a special love for Ballet.

At age ten, Harlie was invited to study dance at the exclusive Broxburne Dance Academy. Her father gave no objection to her leaving, so Harlie was quickly financed and left Arutha for Ducaine Metro to begin her studies. Harlie also joined a small dojo in Metro so that she could keep up her martial arts studies, much to the aggravation of her dance instructors.

Despite the fact that she was not the best dancer at Broxburne, her martial arts and gymnastics background provided Harlie a unique edge over most of the other students. Soon, she became one of Broxburne’s shining stars. She headlined quite a few of the schools performances, and it seemed that within a few years, Harlie would have a guaranteed future Metro Ballet Company.

Then, disaster entered her young life.

At the age of fifteen, Harlie broke her leg during a performance and was told that she would never be able to dance again. Crestfallen, she returned home to Arutha and soon grew bitter and cold at her loss. She often spent days alone in her father’s mansion, reading and sulking at the horrible hand she had been dealt.

At sixteen, a seriously overweight, Harlie hated the world and everything in it. She grew depressed and developed a morbid fascination with death, often spending her time learning about different ways to kill, various poisons and weapons. Harlie also took up the study of serial killers, murders and assassinations.

It was seven months later when her father re-married and Harlie - full of rage at him and herself - left home.

She returned to Metro, the only other place she knew as home and when her funds ran out, she found herself on the steps of the dojo that she had joined years ago during her time at Broxburne. Master Mau, owner of the Dojo, didn’t ask questions and quickly took her in allowing Harlie to work for him in exchange for room and board.

Harlie soon began her martial arts training, and while it did not bring her inner peace, it returned her to utmost physical health.

Part 2 – Becoming
Harlie had only spent a year in her new home, when master Mau past away. Within days, Mau’s brother Tir took over Harlie’s teachings, and she soon found her training becoming more aggressive and violent. This was bliss to the eighteen-year-old, who used the harsh new training as an outlet for her pain.

Not too long after, Harlie became aware the Tir was not what he seemed, and after a much research, discovered that he was one of Puckworld's top assassins. However, instead of going to the police, Harlie told him to teach her all that he knew, and Tir, knowing that age was beginning to claim his talents, began her teachings.

Harlie spent fourteen hours a day training in the art of murder and violence. Tir soon added weaponry and handguns to her training regime, and after a few years, said that it was finally time to put her lessons into practice.

Harlie was assigned to kill a news reporter by the name of Jake Torres, a man who Tir had had bad dealings with in the past. Harlie readily agreed. She broke into Torres’s apartment and not only killed him, but tortured him badly. She was using the pain she inflicted upon him as an outlet for her own.

Looking down at Torres's mutilated body, Harlie became disgusted with herself and what she had done, however there was a small part of her that felt alive again. It was as though killing, taking a life, was somehow compensation for what fate and disease had taken from her… A mother and her life long dreams.

Tir punished her for the Torres's sloppy murder, and over the next few killings, taught Harlie the secrets of the best assassins. The main one being, show no emotion. Harlie was an apt pupil and over then next few years, she perfected these tactics and rose to become one of the most feared and well-paid assassins on the Puckworld, second only to Tir.

However, that was about to change. Harlie had already surpassed Tir’s skill and having no more use for him, she killed him, making her the official number one assassin on the planet.

Part three – Recent actions
After killing Tir, Harlie took her millions and purchased a condominium apartment, playing the roll of an executive to the outside world. She even got a very part-time job with her father’s company as an import trader.

Her money had been accounted for and her cover was perfect. However all of Harlie’s emotional scars have turned her into a cold, callous killer. To this day, she’s had no desire to be one of the good guys; she enjoys killing, and is very much a pessimistic realist with a decent, albeit sick sense of humor.

Various Tid-bits: It is obvious just to look at her that Harlie has been trained at what she does, and trained well. Her skills at hand to hand combat are some of the best, and showing no remorse or pity for her victims, it is easy to see why she is tops in her field.

Guns are this girl’s weapon of choice, seeing blades as clumsy and useless from a distance, although she DOES keep a very small knife for emergencies and mild lock picking.

Not surprisingly, Harlie is mind numbingly serious and professional about what she does, so much so, in fact her employers often think she is a man of forty (often called Mr. Quin) as opposed to a woman of 25. (None of her employers have EVER met or seen her face and communicate with her only via her laptop, or through text messages.)


Harlie profile pic is © Emily @ http://www.darkelementals.com/ Do not use the image without the artist's permission... they seem to get testy when you do that.