Buddha Kwake

Buddha is a big guy. He's very strong, but also carries a lot of extra weight. He is strong enough to do things like toss a 75 lb anvil in the air a few times, but sometimes struggles with physical stamina. He also has mild asthma, adding to the lack of stamina.

Buddha's most distinguishing facial features are his kind eyes and his thick, impressive beard, which is beginning to lean more to a silver tone.

Buddha has a Chinese symbol for chaos on his right shoulder and a yin yang surrounded by a sun on his left shoulder. Also his hair and beard are both comprised of every human color of hair, which led to the Prinx occasionally calling him "Calico Beard."

Buddha's head is very large. He wears a size 8.5 hat. By comparison, Prinx Tempest wore a size 4.

The Duke is a technomancer as well as a literomancer, although he is very shy about displaying either skill in public.

Like most Lapin royals, Buddha tends to dress casually unless he needs to dress in more formal attire. Typically found wearing a graphic tee, cargo shorts, and sandals, he has also been seen wearing a button up shirt for news segments. Since he has only been seen from the waist up, people have surmised he continues to wear the cargo shorts even on air.

Buddha has a coffin handle staff that he used to beat zombies into submission during the Third Word War. How he got a coffin handle to use as staff, no one is quite certain and most are afraid to ask.

Buddha was born in the 1337 Speak Reality and moved to the Tomeverse in 2022. He met and married the future Prinx Tempest in his native reality, when Tempest left the foster home of Grace Miller "Mama Grace".   Tempest's disappearance following the reawakening of The Iron Tome in 2020 (Tomeverse date) left him heartbroken, but he celebrated their return. Upon learning of the Tome Wars, he decided to follow his spouse to the Tomeverse to assist them however he could in The Third Word War. He leant his technomantic skills to Lapin's defense, upgrading their electronic defense systems and computer grid to a standard only surpassed by Satrium, Wizard of GoT, and the electronic defenses of House Sauropoda.   With WriterGreg having to take a leave of absence from SWW News due to MancerMumps, Buddha stepped in to co-anchor the broadcast beside Erin Righ, and became a beloved voice of reason and calm during that terrible conflict. After WriterGreg's death at the Battle of Mount Mitchell, Buddha continued on as Erin Righ's co-anchor as SWW made the shift to WLA News through early 2023, and he was made Duke of Sacramento when he decided he was going to stay.     The birth of his son, Duke Uri Kwake, in late 2022 was something of a surprise to the Realm in general, especially since there had been no official announcement that Prinx Tempest was pregnant. The Lapins claimed they had kept the young Duke and Princess Luna hidden in a Void pocket after their birth to protect them during the war.     In early 2023, the Lapins began plans for Operation GTFO and the evacuation of the 1337 Speak Reality, which was soon to be destroyed in a process called Reality Recycling. Duke Buddha, who was familiar with the leaders of the movement in the 1337 Speak Reality, was appointed Lapin's official Ambassador to that reality, and served as the contact and coordination point between The Great Houses and the Operation. He spent several months in the 1337 Speak Reality, trying to convince as many "1337 Speakers" as possible to join the evacuation, and helping to coordinate the evacuation plan.   Since the tragic death of Prinx Tempest in the execution of the evacuation, Buddha has been quiet. He has taken a leave of absence from WLA News, and has remained largely out of the public eye. While he continues to assist House Lapin with their technomantic defenses and other needs, and assists with the work of the 1337 Speak Archive Project, he has mostly been concentrating on raising his son and maintaining the work required to run his duchy. There is a rumor that he may have accepted a teaching position at a new, secure World Literomantic Academy campus intended for child and youth Literomancers to learn their Art safe from the Word Wars and other such conflicts.

While Buddha presents and predominantly identifies as male, he is not at all shy about admitting he has parts of him that are not male at all. This is why his pronouns are he/they instead of he/him.

In the 1337 Speak Reality, Duke Buddha has a Bachelor's degree in theater.

Before he migrated to the Tomeverse, Buddha was a tech specialist for an American company that contracted with the American Department of Defense. This was a job he initially took while he was trying to break into acting, but he found he loved coding as much as he loved his other art.   Buddha was hired at SWW News as a backup anchor during the Third Word War. During the latter part of the war, Buddha was the only anchor available for the last broadcast before the zombies attacked for the Battle of Mount Mitchell. He continued to work as one of the anchors after WriterGreg's passing through early 2023.

Buddha has severe self-esteem and self doubt issues. He struggles with confidence and is occasionally subject to extended bouts of depression.

Buddha has higher than average intelligence and reasoning skills. He is an excellent teacher, specializing in assisting neurodiverse people in finding ways to understand concepts and skills that they struggle with. He retains information easily and loves learning.

Buddha's main motivation was keeping Tempest alive and happy. He would have do anything to keep them around, knowing his spouse was fragile in both body and mind. Since his greatest fear has been realized, he now concentrates his efforts on protecting his son and his many niblings.

Likes:

• Kids
• Food
• Learning
• Teaching people who want to learn

  Dislikes:

• People who drive in the passing lane when they are not passing anyone and are in fact going very slow
• Cats

Tempest Kwake: Spouse (MIA, presumed dead)   Sable Aradia: sister-in-law   Erin Righ: brother-in-law   Mykola Void: niece (deceased)   Senna Nightshade: niece (MIA, presumed dead)   Prince Galakrond: nephew

Buddha is an agnostic Buddhist, not really believing or disbelieving in any god but also not disbelieving in any gods.

Buddha is very social, with excellent communication skills. He is so adept at peopling that Tempest would sometimes ask him to speak for them if they needed to not ruffle already ruffled feathers. He was also very good at understanding what Tempest meant, even when they were not articulating clearly, and has applied this understanding and empathy in a variety of situations, including on behalf of the Bunny Queen herself.  

"Y'know, the thingy for the stuff."   "... the potato peeler?"

— Buddha interpreting Tempest

Buddha can sometimes be a little stiff in his mannerisms if he doesn't know someone well or feels uncomfortable.

Buddha has a deep, rich bass voice that many find pleasant to listen to, which may have contributed to his ease in getting a position at SWW News.