A slight, short boy know for being very particular about his clothing along with an unnaturally precise sense of time.
Physical Description
Brown skin, dark brown hair, brown eyes, short even among his people — he'll be lucky to reach 5'. He's free of excess fat, even though his body tends toward it; his father would never allow that. He's still slightly on the stocky side, bigger-boned than Roland though far shorter.
Background
Sal was brought to Larstead when he was an infant by his father. Sal does not know of his mother and his father won't speak of it. In truth, his father refuses to speak anything of his past in general, though Sal has come to learn (sometimes the hard way) about his father's past, which included the military.
His father is quick to anger at perceived slights, and had beaten Sal for something so little as coming home dirty. He demands perfection, forcing his son to stand at attention a single hour every morning. This has burned into Sal's soul a neurotic sense of perfection, one he can never achieve.
Even though his people are the dominant race of the province, arguably of the entire Empire, Larstead is a remote village filled with white people (what his people commonly refer to as barbarians). While Sal tries to fit in, he does not succeed. His diminutive stature and brown skin single him out as 'other', something the local kids take extra measure to remind him. He is often the focus of their anger against perceived slights.
His only friend is Roland, his best friend, who protects him from the other kids. Roland is not only his protection, but his escape from his father. He can stand coming home dirty, endure the beatings, if only he can escape for a time in Roland's adventures. He could not stand coming home to his father having no friends, even should his father not lay a single finger on him.
Personality Profile
Sal initially appears as a meek, introverted boy. He is, however, repressing deep aggression and rage. He is particular, neurotic about his appearance and time. He seeks to control the world by controlling himself, and when he fails, his rage comes out.
Extroversion
Score: 3/10
Sal is initially introverted, though its hard to determine whether that lies due to internal proclivity or external factors. He lives in a place where he is constantly an outsider, deals with an abusive father, and has a single friend with which to balance out the difficulties of his life.
Loyalty is very, very important. He does not handle betrayal well, and for most of his childhood this is not an issue. He'll only discover this truth later, when he feels betrayed by Roland for destroying their home.
What he becomes remains to be seen.
Neurosis
Score: 9/10
Sal is highly neurotic, from the condition of his clothes to the very time of day (of which he is always aware, even down to the second), he is aware and particular about it all. Roland provides him a counter balance to this, luring him into adventure and allowing him to let go of his neurosis for a time. But he always comes back to it.
After Roland, it gets worse. Without that single outlet, his neurosis over takes all, and he finds himself constantly trying to keep everything in order and on time.
Openness
Score: 3/10
This score might be lower, but Sal longs to be like Roland, so he forces himself to enjoy new experiences... and usually fails. No matter how much he wants to be Roland, he is not, and he so much prefers environments that he can control.
Aggressiveness
Score: 8/10
This may be counter-intuitive, but Sal has a strong innate aggression. He suppresses it, but that only makes it worse, and his outburst are much more likely to be rage induced. This comes not only from his father, but from the constant pressure of being an outcast, dealing with beatings, and failing to live up to his own expectations.
Sal is prone to rage-induced outbursts. In Larstead, this never happened. Not only did he have no place he could express his rage, but his adventures with Roland provided a safe outlet for him to vent. Problem is, he's incapable of venting that way without Roland, and once he's gone, his rage will come out in the most inopportune times.
Ego
Score: 2/10
Sal does not think highly of himself, is prone to idealize others, and downplay his own ability. His seeks perfection in himself, but cannot define what that perfection might look like. He is never enough no matter how hard he strives.
Despite all this, his inner-monologue is turned outward, focused on control. When he looses control of himself, he will blame the environment, something he learned (or inherited) from his father. He is initially rewarded for this behavior, as his rage comes out during actual battle and results in saving others. This feeds his inclination. When it does not go well, he'll blame the outside, any scapegoat he can find. His inner-monologue will rewrite the narrative to justify the action he took: "It was the only thing he could do."
Character Flaws
- Sal's repression expresses itself in rage.
- He's deluded himself into believing that things can change if only he does well enough. This feeds his neurosis.
- His impeccable (and arguably perfect) sense of time is expressed as neurosis, and often alienates others (along with his other needs for perfection).
- He can be critical of others, projecting his faults onto them.
Skills
Control
- Sal seeks to control the world by controlling himself. If he can just be good enough, perfect enough, he can, if not bend the world to his will, at least form a shield against its onslaught.
Prose
Sal sees the world in time, quantities, and precision. A person won't look at him for a moment or two, but for exactly 7 seconds. He always knows how long something takes. Likewise, he'll catalog the names of things, their species, quantity, etc. When he opens his eyes, he doesn't see a bunch of large leaves, but thirteen maple leaves blocking the sun. He always knows how much, how long, and what exactly. Prose needs to be precise and exact.