The Sirantil valley was always so uncomfortably warm this time of year. The sun gazes down overhead, and it would seem that only the myriad creeks and rivers- born of snowmelt- would give relief to the weary. Gentle winds caressed swaying grasses as trees slowly swayed together as wooden dancers in a melody of birdsongs.

A perfect day for a chase.

"They went this way! This way! Go!"

The quiet orchestra of breeze and birds were quickly drowned by the raucous cacophony of barking dogs and shouting men. Twigs snapped underfoot and branches broke aside to make way for a fleeing family. Six in total, parents and four children, sprinting like frightened deer through the brush, uncaring for direction; the safest place was "anywhere but here." Men-at-arms followed apace behind their barking hounds, clad in their maille and spears in hand as they made their dogged harry.

What misfortune falls that such a family found themselves forced to cross a wide stream. What choice was there? Swim, or be captured. One after another, words of reassurance spoken and shouted, they plunged into the water. Their youngest- a girl of four- had to be carried upon her brother's shoulders to keep from being washed away as they waded across. Those shouts of man and beast became louder and closer still.

In such desperation does one pray for a miracle.

__________________QUICK STATS
Name: Elthraye
Epithets/Other Names: "Granter of Wishes," "Bearer of Ambition"
Age: >1000, by its own memory.
Gender: Varies
Species: Outsider
Ethnicity: Varies
Height: Varies
Residence: N/A

__________________IN-DEPTH STUFF

Physical Description
Elthraye is, in its base state, formless. When it manifests, it can take the form of (largely) whatever it wishes or needs to be. In some cases it has been an aged Human man, in others an armored hulk, and others still an abomination of scales, scything claws, and wicked teeth.

Personality
The creature is typically playful, but cagey in attitude. It will go out of its way to protect those it has granted wishes to (see: Magic/Abilities below), but at the same time is reluctant to give much information about itself in plain speech.

Moreover, Elthraye seems to loathe contentment, but only in a specific context. The creature despises the mortal "go with the flow" attitude, but expresses joy at the contentment found in an accomplished goal.

Magic/Abilities

• Desire and Ambition – Elthraye's power waxes and wanes with what desires, ambitions, and wishes it grants. It has, in a minor capacity, the power to shape and bend reality to its will. However, its abilities has an upper limit to what it can influence, depending on the state of its power. These granted wishes (usually) have no (purposeful) ironic twist, if Elthraye can help it. Such a thing is not its purview. After all, what good would an enemy do, when a friend would do so much more? In fact, Elthraye will typically go out of its way to protect those it grants wishes to, as those fulfilled desires keep it alive and grow its strength.


• For Example: If a mortal wishes for "Wealth," Elthraye can readily and easily create things like a pouch of infinite gold, or simply materialize resources (for those who view goods as "wealth") for that mortal. However, if a mortal wishes "to be king of Serendipity," Elthraye cannot grant that simply because the amount of changes made to the world would be too great for the creature to manage. As a middle ground, a wish such as "I want a loving family," could be more easily granted as Elthraye can simply create facsimiles of people for that person to have as a "Family."


• Manifest Form and Power – The creature- while normally formless- has the power to manifest itself into a physical form (or forms, in some cases). Sometimes that is an old man, or an armored behemoth, or an animal, or even an eldritch abomination of scything claws and wicked teeth. Destroying the physical form does not seem to harm Elthraye in a meaningful way, as doing so would be akin to smashing a clay jug in an attempt to harm the water inside.


• Symbiotic Parasite – To call Elthraye a "true parasite" would be misleading. The creature does grant the wishes and assist carrying out the desires of its "hosts," but at the same time it takes their life force from them. Slowly and surely, it drains away at parts of their souls to grow its own strength and keep it alive.
  
  
• More Than a Name – "Elthraye" is a series of sounds the creature calls itself. The name "Elthraye" is more than simply a word or name, it is Elthraye. To know and replicate this creature's name is to control its very consciousness, as without it Elthraye is simply a concept without thought or presence.
  

Relationships


History
"So long as mortal life has wanted something- anything, I have existed.

Ambition, desire, want... These are things that have existed in the mortal mind even before those same mortals became aware of their own consciousness. It is from these things that creatures like Elthraye are born.

By its own memory, the creature "Elthraye" became aware of its own existence about a thousand years ago. Before that, it has no memory. From its very awakening, it knew its purpose and its needs. Unlike what mortals call "gods," Elthraye's power has a distinct and vaguely quantifiable upper limit to its powers, and its main goal to exist is to grow that power.

Folklore in both Serendipity and Connlaoth tell of a Granter of Wishes or a Bearer of Ambition, an entity with as many forms as it has variations of its legend. The commonality among these legends though is that the Granter of Wishes does indeed give people what they want, but what creeping doom does one bring upon themselves by making such a deal?

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Tag @visualspice
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Serendipity
Summervale
Windfall Village
---------
Windfall Village was truly unremarkable, and thus the perfect place to live a quiet life. The villagers gossiped, the fishers fished, the bakers baked. A population of two hundred at the most, idyllic, and peaceful.

The young son of Lord Daniels Draven of Connlaoth, Dezrehn Draven, had been living here for some time under the roof of a Dwarven fisherman. The gruff, stout man insisted that Dezrehn call him "Fishbeard," since "that's what everyone else calls him." What's more is that Dezrehn had also spent this time in the employ and tutelage of Windfall's resident mage: Tathfheithleann.

Dezrehn's latent magical ability had caused the boy's own (accidental) exile due to Connlaoth's strict anti-magic legislation. Being the son of a lord had its perks, such as not being immediately executed or sent to an internment camp to die. But now here he was, far from home in a foreign land. Yet, an ambush from a demon and a stroke of luck from two Dryads had put the boy here in Windfall, and here he could study and practice in peace.

Tathfheithleann was not an easy boss or easy teacher, albeit not for a lack of trying. The workshop and laboratory was primarily automated; the Halfling woman was a business of one, and that was just the way she liked it. Taking Dezrehn as an apprentice was a difficult adjustment. She had trouble giving him things to do!

The Halfling woman's methods were meant to be practical. While she gave Dezrehn literature to study, she taught him in a practical setting. The basics of alchemy and botany were first, then magecraft. By now she taught him some non-harmful cantrips to practice and hone his mind. Things like making illusory script, or transmuting feedstock material into something usable. Magic was... Complicated. Magecraft was an intricate and particular art that required and understanding of the chemical and material in order to function efficiently. Or so Tathfheithleann said.

Like every morning, Tathfheithleann waited diligently at her desk, expecting Dezrehn to arrive for work and study.

Tag: @visualspice

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Follow the eastward path, they said.

An encounter with a pair of Dryads and living to tell the tale is no small feat for any mortal being. Being saved from a demon by a pair of Dryads is a rare occasion indeed, and one that most definitely would be a story worth telling to one's children and grandchildren.

Dezrehn must have walked for only a few minutes; his wounded leg gave him nary even a protest or ache as he moved along the footpath through the forest. This was no road, but rather it appeared more like a deer or goat trail, walked thousands of times over by the animals of the woodland and beaten down into a vaguely flattened terrain. But with that walk, the forest thinned and the trees gave way to the outskirts of a village. A Serenian village, and a coastal one at that. Farmers and homesteaders worked their small plots of farmland and fishing boats dotted the horizon. Humans, Halflings, Elves, and Dwarves all mingled and spoke amongst one-another in the village proper, though this small settlement only housed two hundred people at most.

This was Summervale, and it was a beautiful, picturesque day here.

In a hole in the side of a hill there lived a Halfling. Not a nasty, dirty hole filled with worms, nor a dry, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or eat. This was the home and shopfront of Tathfheithleann of Summervale, and that meant comfort.

The combination of her home-and-shopfront was of a rustic sort: A picket-gated yard with a cobblestone path leading to a perfectly round door nestled neatly into the side of a small, grassy hill. Out front was a simple sign reading "OPEN" in the local language. Just through the door was a cozy and meticulously organized shop: Shelves lined the walls, adorned with glass cases and vial racks, some empty, others containing all manner of objects both magical and mundane. The scent of cinnamon and vanilla gently caressed the senses as one navigated through the roomy- albeit small- store; and at a desk far too tall for any reasonable Halfling, sitting on a tall stool, legs childishly swinging back and forth, was the woman herself, Tathfheithleann of Summervale.

"But how does one do business in such a small, quaint little village?" you might be wondering. Those who need Tathfheithleann's services or creations, be that a poultice or salve to ward off fever, or a wand for a newly-apprenticed novice Mage, knew how to reach her. The little Halfling was a well-connected woman indeed.

__________________QUICK STATS
Name: Aung Kyiang Suu (/àʊɴ tɕàɪɴ sṵ/)
Nickname: "Thura" (/θù ɹa̰/), meaning "Bravery"
Age: 25
Gender: Male
Species: Rulastinian
Ethnicity: Anathanati
Height: 5'5" / 165cm
Occupation: Hunter
Residence: Hunter Fortress near Teshin


__________________IN-DEPTH STUFF

Physical Description
Aung is a man of average height and athletic build for his people. As a Hunter, physical conditioning and training has given him a strong, agile body. His arms, torso, legs, and even the side of his head are marked with colorful line tattoos depicting various aquatic reptiles or snakes, partly for artistic value and partly to cover up the scars of a storied career. His eyes are a shade of unremarkable, dim green.


Personality
Aloof, but not purposefully so. Aung is something of an introvert and tends to spend much of his free time reading or exercising. Words have never been his strong suit, and he is not a very charismatic man. However this does not mean he does not enjoy the occasional social interaction. After all, it is the role of the Hunters to train the local militia.

Magic/Abilities

• Inner Magic - Aung's practice of magic is one that "falls inward" rather than "cast outward." He is able to utilize his arcana to augment his physical abilities, such as increased speed, strength, agility, or even the ability to see in the dark. He can even use this power run across the surface of water, or attach himself to vertical surfaces without using his hands.
  

Notable Equipment

• Alchemical Silver Swords - This pair of short, curved blades have a steel core surrounded by a silver "jacket." This construction- while complicated- ensures the durability of the blade's structure while still retaining its cutting power against monsters like the Suturigoi. The downside to this construction is that, due to the softness of silver compared to steel, the blade edges require constant maintenance and care.
  

Relationships

• Kyiang Taik Sabai (Father)
  
  
• Suu Theingi Nilar (Mother)
  

History
Aung's early life is an unremarkable one; he was born of two Anathanati fisherfolk from a village around the vicinity of Teshin. These two were one of the dwindling peoples in Rustilania that still practiced the ancient Anathanati culture and language, and like how their forebears before them passed those customs and teachings onto them, so too did they pass that onto Aung. He learned to speak Embass, but he always spoke Anathanati at home.

At the age of thirteen, Aung was taken into the Hunters and trained to be dedicated to the Art. He took to the new knowledge easily; he enjoyed the reading. His potential for magic was refined into the magic he practices today, and he has since used that to benefit his trade.

Despite the difficulty that comes with a Hunter's profession, Aung has been able to maintain a relationship with his family. While he does not live in his family's home or village, he visits them often, regularly after he returns from missions or when he needs to recuperate from injury.


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__________________QUICK STATS
Name: Tathfheithleann ("Tah-fayth-linn"), or "Honeysuckle"
Nicknames: "Linn," "Honey"
Age: 24
Gender: Female
Species: Halfling
Ethnicity: Serenian
Height: 4'0"/122cm
Occupation: Alchemist
Residence: Serendipity; however she travels to where the work is.


__________________IN-DEPTH STUFF

Physical Description
Tathfheithleann, or "Honeysuckle," for ease of reading, stands at a dainty four-foot-nothing with slight build. She has large, purple eyes that dart this-way-and-that with a seeming hyper-active energy. Her fluffy, nut-brown hair is typically kept around her head, though is tied back when she is working or out on the road.

Personality
Honey is a fairly high-energy woman; she constantly flits this way and that as she plies her trade, and never seems to slow down until whatever project she is working on is finished or she is forced to wait for something to finish "cooking." She can be aggressive when not taken seriously, which has led to many-a-person getting verbally beaten down by Tathfheithleann's fits of indignant fury.

Magic/Abilities
Honey is an accomplished alchemist, having attended formal schooling and being one of the youngest to graduate and obtain all her certifications. She seamlessly blends magic and chemistry, and despite her age she has published two academic journals on magical-and-chemical formulae.

Alchemy aside however, it is not the only trick in her book. She is no stranger to the arcane arts and schools of wizardry, though such spellcasting is far from her specialty. She knows and is well-practiced enough to keep herself protected, weave minor illusions, or deter the kinds monsters and assailants one mind find while traveling, but don't expect her to be dropping massive explosions or teleporting long distances on sheer spellcasting might alone.

Relationships
Uisce (pronounced like "whiskey") – A black mule that serves as both mount and pack animal for Tathfheithleann. Given how he is usually Honey's only companion when travelling from one place to another, he probably knows too much.

History
Tathfheithleann's early life was largely unremarkable. She grew up among Halflings, pursuing academia and wizardry under the tutelage of her village's wizard. It wasn't until she enrolled herself into a formal academy that she found her love of alchemy, and in this study she excelled.

Post-graduation, she took to creating a lab in her hometown, and from there published two academic journals regarding alchemical formulae and the relationship between arcana and formal chemistry. But, unsatisfied with that, she has since taken to the road to pursue a much more lucrative and adventurous life.

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__________________QUICK STATS
Names: "Ahib" and "Vedi"
Ages: Roughly 400
Gender: Female
Species: Dryads
Heights: 5'8" / 172cm
Residence: Anywhere there is woodland.

__________________IN-DEPTH STUFF


Physical Description
Ahib and Vedi appear to be almost exactly identical in their Elf-like forms. Green hair like dark, healthy grass at exactly the same length, braided exactly the same way, with the exact same flowers and leaves woven into their locks at the exact same positions; their skin, pale at a glance, hides the barest green tint. The only way to tell the two of them apart would be through their heterochromia; both of them have one deep green eye and one red-yellow eye like that of a leaf in autumn. Ahib's autumn eye is on her right, where Vedi's is on her left.

Their graceful appearances, while true shapes rather than illusions, are more akin to disguises than bodies to the pair of Dryads. If left in their element, their true forms are much less appealing to the eyes. Their bodies become covered in woody, bark-like armor and their appearances become more like that of walking, possessed trees only vaguely humanoid in shape.

Personality
Ahib and Vedi's personality is eerie in its execution; each one speaks as if the two of there were one unit; the only time either of them use the word "I" is when one is speaking to the other. As a pair, they are curious and inseparable, but as individuals, they couldn't be any more different.

Ahib is serene, charming, and warm to outsiders. She listens to outside council with intent, and is much more likely to consider advice. She is also what some might say, "the merciful one," with herself being the one who prefers the path of peace over violence.

Vedi, on the other hand, is hot-blooded and wild. She is standoffish to outsiders, and seems to spurn any council that is not her sister's. She is also the glory hound of the two; once a fight is joined, Vedi makes her personality known by throwing herself (and Ahib by extension) into the fray with seemingly reckless abandon.

Magic/Abilities

• We Are One
  
  Ahib and Vedi move, act, and speak as if they were two parts of a single entity. But this goes beyond a mere personality quirk; the two are joined at the mind. What one perceives and experiences, so too does the other. Physically they behave like an ambidextrous pair of hands, moving and tumbling around, under, and over one-another with unnatural surety and grace.
  
  
  


• The True Name
  
  The folk of the Fae Realm are bound by a certain supernatural set of rules. One of which is the True Name, where one who knows the "True Name" of a Fae creature has power over it, and can compel it to obey actions dictated by the speaker. With that in mind, no Fae would willingly surrender their True Name. "Ahib" and "Vedi" are mere things the Twins use to interact with mortalkinds. Their "True Name" is much more abstract and perhaps impossible for those outside of the forces of nature to produce: The rustling of the forest canopy across the northern parts of the Draconi Forest as the wind descends from the mountains.
  
  
  


• Dominion Over Nature
  
  As Dryads, Ahib and Vedi share a connection with all that grows. With barely a thought and some effort, the twins can command any plant life around them to their bidding, be that to order the movement of an entire oak tree, or calling roots or branches to ensnare or entrap. But this power goes far beyond simple harm... The two of them are also nurturers; their magics revitalize and vivify plant life.
  
  
  


• Agility of the Otherworld
  
  The speed and agility at which the twins can move is more than "superhuman," it is inhuman. The Dryad pair sprint, dive, roll, and maneuver as if weightless. Perhaps there is an element of the unbelievable to them, for despite their actual mass, they could easily stand on the flat of an outstretched blade without weighing down the wielder.
  
  
  


• Where There Are Trees, We Are Home
  
  Ahib and Vedi possess a seemingly impossible ability to cross great distances in literal minutes, or even seconds. The truth of the matter is much less impossible: In their centuries of travel, Ahib and Vedi have created Groves all over the continent from the Kilanthro Mountains to the Thunderblacks. So long as they have access to a mature tree, the twins can travel to a Grove of their choosing, provided they have the energy to make the trip through the Otherworld. Traveling vast distances is a tiresome and draining task, where traveling half a day or a day's travel is as easy as walking there.
  
  
  


• The Weaknesses of the Fair Folk
  
  For all of their abilities, Ahib and Vedi are still affected by the compulsions and aversions of all their kind: They cannot tell a direct falsehood (e.g. to say a person is alive if they are in fact dead), a promise made thrice is a promise they are compelled to keep, and the harmful touch of iron. Iron will physically injure them if touched with bare skin.
  
  
  

Relationships

• Orim, Elder Treant
  
  Orim, an ancient Oak Treant, is one of the parents of Ahib and Vedi. He can be found wandering through the northern Draconi forest, tending to its health and keeping an eye out for any invaders that might harm the woodlands.
  
  


• Diri, Hamadryad
  
  Diri is a Hamadryad bound to one of the oldest trees in the Draconi forest. Her grove sprouted up around three of her birth. She has had many Dryad descendants of her own; none of which sharing her "binding" to her tree. She pollinated the flowers on Orim's body, and one of the results of that union was the twin creation of Ahib and Vedi.
  
  

History
Ahib and Vedi are unique among Dryads in that, when they were borne from Orim's flowers, they were born as a pair, unlike their siblings who all appeared individually. Their mother, Diri, pointed out that their birth together would give the twins a deep, unbreakable bond, and instructed the newborn Dryads that, whatever should happen, they should always look out for one-another.

Since then, the twin Dryads have lived among the trees of the Draconi and Niahi forests, traveling to far wildernesses and creating groves for themselves. Unlike their kinfolk, the two always had a strange curiosity with mortalfolk. Their stone artifice and their inability to communicate with nature initially made the young Dryads think that mortals were cold, detached, or even worse, simply too simple to understand the damage they could cause to nature around them. But they also were curious of those rangers and spellcasters who found themselves at peace in nature and lived in harmony with it. It was through these folk that Ahib and Vedi found themselves venturing closer and closer to mortal civilizations, each spring making them ever-bolder to perhaps finally see why mortals flock to these "cities."

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Cynbel 'Zima' Kovac-Graza - Lancer of House Graza

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Calen Ardanel - Vampiric Lord of Castle Luna Nova

"Akher? That old ruin? Why would you want to go to that place? Nothing but dust and strange locals out that way."

"Akher" was once a name spoken with awe and reverence. Those times have long since passed into myth, but the City of Ten Oases still remains on the lips of treasure hunters to this day. Since the fall of the grand city-state, all but a single oasis remained as a natural spring to bring life to the barren desert. Fed by natural springs and rivers deep underground, the locals of Akher still live in the ruins. Or rather, those ruins that had not been swallowed by the Moraki Desert.

The locals, the Akheri, were a mysterious folk compared to others of the Moraki, having shied away from the customs of the imperial Essyrni and instead retaining their cultural and linguistic identity, paying tribute and reverence to the long-dead dynastic Kings and Queens, rather than the Shah. After all, it was Queen Netjeretkhau who settled here and pulled the Ten Oases from beneath the sands to save the Akheri people from thirst. Though the Akheri people no longer stand in the shadows of the great pyramids, they still burn offerings to the ghosts of Netjeretkhau's line for all they had done. They lacked a currency, holding to the roots of their nomadic ancestors; their economy, or what remained of it, was based on barter and usage. To possess more than one could carry or bring with their family was and still continues to be a foreign concept.

Treasure hunters have always flocked to Akher. Each time the great winds of the Moraki desert pull the sands away and reveal a long-buried part of the city, foreign plunderers seeking to loot the treasures of the old kingdoms rush to the site. Such hoards of gold, jewels, and magical artifacts sell for hefty prices in Essyrn.

More recently... The winds blew in an unforgiving gale, revealing a sacred, holy place of the Akheri people: A pyramid of one of their ancient kings. The half-buried structure stood like a monolith rising from the sand into the skies; an obsidian spire tipped and adorned with gold structures stretching skyward as if it sought to reach up and touch the sun itself. News of it spread to Essyrn, and so the treasure hunters would come... Like flies to come feast on a corpse, no doubt.

Fate, chance, destiny, call it what you will. It has a funny way of its machinations, if you're inclined to believe that there is an order to this madness called "life."

The Winter Knight Taernichanthach had been looking for something to boost her spellcasting: A meeting place of ley lines. The natural lifeblood of a world flowed beneath its surface like a vast and complicated root system or the blood vessels of some great and mighty creature. To drink from these rivers of magic was a common practice among mages, but tracking down and taking from a meeting of these rivers... That was a different thing entirely. Taernichanthach sought power, and taking from a confluence of ley lines would be quite the boon to her inherent magical might.

Finding the place was easy. While most of the folk of this plane had very few ways of perceiving the natural magic that ran over their world, a Faerie could easily track it. Being a creature literally made and bound of magic, Taernichanthach could see, hear, and feel the ley lines running beneath her feet as if she was stepping lightly along a gently-flowing creek. Following that flowing creek through the verdant forests of Northern Serendipity was a simple, perhaps even relaxing walk. The Fae Knight was fleet of foot, and light of step. Vegetation parted and made way for her passing, and her footfalls produced no sound nor left no print in the dirt. Here, in these wintry woodlands, she was most at home. She finally reached a cave entrance at the foot of the mountains to the north.

Finding the place was easy. Dealing with its jealous warden would be the hard part.

A Giant, practically aglow with magic lumbered from the cave mouth, wielding a small tree fashioned into a club. Ten feet tall, heavily muscled, eyes and veins glowing blue with the power of the wellspring he guarded. His wandering out was no accident... He knew Taernichanthach was here.

The Fae knight approached, silvered mithril longsword in hand. The Giant responded by doing what any territorial, magically-hyped-up Giant would do upon seeing an intruder: He tried to kill her.

"Little Faerie..." the Giant rumbled, "Eat... Faerie..."

Taernichanthach was expecting this Giant to be stronger, tougher, and hardier than his kind, but what she wasn't expecting was for the Giant to unleash a barrage of ice shards in her direction before lighting his tree-club aflame. The Faerie twitched a brow and the ice shards stopped short, floating in the air as she re-assessed... This fight would be tougher than normal.

The shards were returned to their sender, and they struck true in the Giant's chest; not that he noticed. His thick hide had done well to catch those icy splinters... But they froze in his chest; even if they only made it into him a little, the shock of frozen blood would hurt.

The Faerie and the Giant clashed, the Giant's massive, fiery club sundering the ground where it landed. Taernichanthach gracefully danced out of the path of the Giant's swings, dealing cuts with her sword with each retreat. Magic had proven frustratingly ineffective against the Giant's warded flesh, hexes of slowing or curses to slow the great foe down or at least slow its attack did all of nothing. The Winter Knight opted for something more direct: She lashed at the Giant with her wind magic, winds so focused and sharp that they cut like razors. The Giant's hide was strong, and its wards only made it stronger. Taernichanthach clenched her jaw in irritation; no matter how many times her blade bit into his flesh, the creature refused to fall. She had had enough.

The Giant swung, and once more did the Fae evade. But this time, she latched onto the Giant's outstretched arm. Her swiftness and agility carried her upwards, past the wrist, to the shoulder...

Silvered mithril sang, and the thief stole one of the Giant's eyes.

The Giant roared, and Taernichanthach tumbled to the ground with feline grace. She landed and redoubled the attack as the Giant recoiled. But she had hyperfocused. An errant swing from the Giant's other arm caught her mid-step and sent her dazed and reeling. She landed in a heap some distance away, her vision blackened with stars as she tried to catch her senses. She had come up just in time to see the Giant's attack, that flaming tree-club already descending by the time she saw it coming. It was nothing her reflexes could not handle.

Call it cruel fate, call it horrific destiny. Centuries of training, honing one's senses... But even an apex predator can fall victim to simple, terrible luck.

Taernichanthach's heel caught a stone, and rather than move out of the arc of the Giant's swing, the Faerie tumbled onto her back, staring up at a Giant about to crush her beneath the swing of a salvaged, burning tree.

"What are the chances," Taernichanthach humorously wondered, "That I would end like this..."

__________________QUICK STATS
Name: Taernichanthach (tɪɻnɨ̞xänðəx | ter-n-eh-han-the-h), or "Tay," or "Tir"
Age: 300
Gender: Female
Species: Winter Fae
Height: 5'10
Occupation: Monster Hunter and Knight of the Pale Queen
Residence: A snowy forest in the Feywild.


__________________IN-DEPTH STUFF

Physical Description
Taernichanthach's appearance is as ethereal as the animals she takes from. She is lithe, lean, and possessed of a supernatural grace that does well to give away her inhuman nature. Snow-white hair dances about her pale features, and her armor does well to blend aesthetics and protection.

One of her signature pieces of garment is her cloak: A cape of white, snowy owl feathers that drape over her shoulders like wings, with a shawl of lynx fur around the shoulders. When Taernichanthach shapeshifts into her animal forms, this cloak wraps around her body and becomes her wings, or her fur.

Personality
She tends to be aloof or standoffish, but one might wonder if that is a personality trait of Taernichanthach herself or if that is simply something inherent to all Faeries of the Winter Court. She is sharp of tongue and observant, but is also intimately aware of the laws of hospitality and courtesy that bind and compel all Fae-folk.

Magic/Abilities
Like all Fae, magic is inherent to the Faeries, and Taernichanthach is no different. It comes as easily and instinctually to them as breathing. She has natural power of Glamour, the natural Faerie magic used to influence mortals. But her power extends farther: She has mastery over wind, water, and ice magics, and compared to the other primal magics that are opposite to her element they require virtually no conscious focus for her to cast. Of nature magic, Taernichanthach feels most comfortable in snowy forests, but she is capable of wielding and manipulating living plant matter around her or communing with the flora and fauna; the only caveat being that the farther away from her natural elements the climate is, the more difficult it is for her to enact her will upon.

Taernichanthach does possess the power power of shapeshifting, but it typically is one of two animals: A snowy owl, or a white lynx.

As a fighter, Taernichanthach is supernaturally fast and agile, and her favored weapon is an alchemically silvered longsword. While the silver will not hurt Fae like herself (at least not by simple touch alone), it has plenty of power against monstrous or supernatural foes, such as those incorporeal or possessing regenerative abilities.

But of course, like all Fae, Taernichanthach possesses the compulsions inherent to her "race," as it were. She is physically incapable of telling a direct lie (as in something that is obviously untrue), however that is not to say that she is incapable of deception. Not only that, but any promise made three times is a promise she is compelled to keep.

Relationships
The Pale Queen - A powerful Archfey that Taernichanthach has sworn her life and service to. Taernichanthach executes the Pale Queen's will and agenda, but not even Tay herself knows her master's True Name, or what the goals of that agenda even are. To Taernichanthach, the Pale Queen is "mother."

Aksho - An elderly Beast Fae that she found wounded in her domain, and nursed back to health. She respects and adores Aksho's company, and despite that the beastman owes her a favor in exchange for his life, she has no intention of wielding the laws of the Fae to take advantage of him.

History
Tay, Tir, Knight of the Pale Queen... Not much is known by mortals about this particular Faerie. She comes and goes like the wind, disappearing as suddenly as she does appear.

There are some Serenian folk tales about the Pale Queen, of a mysterious queen of winter, sending her hunters and servants to spy on the mortal folk as she sits upon her mountain throne. Some view the Pale Queen as an evil, child-eating witch; others view her as a mysterious benefactor, delivering generous gifts as repayment for acts that please her. Both are true.

There are tales of the Pale Queen having a daughter, but of course such accounts even among the Fae-folk are whispers and rumors at best. While the Pale Queen may or may not have children... What she does have are her Knights. These Knights act as her intermediaries, her emissaries, and should the Pale Queen be roused to anger and action, her fist.

__________________QUICK STATS
Name: Tá-ngouà-yè-tlokui-à-tsokè (shortened to "Tángowà," or "Seeker"), meaning "Seeker of the Lost Path"

Age: 350
Gender: Male
Species: Màkuixa
Height: 8'0"
Occupation: Seeker of the Sun
Residence: N/A



__________________IN-DEPTH STUFF

Physical Description
At eight feet of muscle, hide, and teeth, Tángouà is a rather imposing representation of his species, even for a Màkuixa. His life on his mission has left him with many scars and marks, but somehow he manages to keep a wizened demeanor, rather than a savage one.

His most notable feature would be that he is missing his left arm. It has been replaced by some kind of enchanted prosthetic. This prosthetic arm is a relic from the time the prophet "Journey-of-the-Sun's-Smile" traveled Le'Raana. This alchemical "golden" artifact was found in a cave by another Seeker of the Sun, attached to a statue that looked exactly like Tángouà, down to every scar and birthmark despite the statue being ancient. There is an engraving in Ixa cuneiform on the inside of the shoulder that reads:

To You Who Walks the Lost Path, your Time of Trials is upon you.
Your body is broken, your spirit fractured.
But I have made you complete again.

It is deduced that the enchanted prosthetic was constructed by Journey-of-the-Sun's-Smile herself, given how she was the only member of the Ixa that had such powerful and far-reaching Divination magic.

Personality
Tángouà is typically calm and centered, as his long life and training as a Mage-Priest have allowed him to think methodically. Despite his imposing appearance, he would much rather take tea or share a meal than challenge a person with violence.

Magic/Abilities
Tángowà has spent his early life training for the purpose of being a Seeker of the Sun. He has memorized the ritual Blood Magic of his people and has a reasonable power of the Primal Magic of the Ixa religion. Through a combination of astronomy and dreams, he also has the power of Divination magic; though like many of the Mage-Priests and Prophets of the Ixa, these dreams are often cryptic and difficult to interpret.

Relationships
Mekuà-tá-chyokuá (or simply "Chyok-Cyhok") - "Steel-Biter," or affectionately nicknamed "Bite-Bite" is a saurian predatory creature native to the Kishahn Jungle, and is Tángowà's animal companion. Tángowà raised her from when she was an egg, and her century of life has only deepened her bond with the Ixa.


History
From his hatching, Tángouà's position as a Seeker of the Sun was foreseen and foretold, and as such his name reflected that prophecy: Seeker-of-the-Lost-Path. He was raised to be both warrior and priest, groomed and trained to be able to wander the world seeking the Prophet's lost texts.

He has spent the last 250 years traveling, performing his duty as a Seeker of the Sun. Occasionally he returns home to keep in-touch with his culture and recuperate, but always he takes back to the road again. The prophecy that determined his path had demanded it.

The divination gleaned from his dreams is almost always cryptic information, and so much of his wandering is spent looking for the signs interpreted from those Divination rituals. He has met many folk in his time, learned much, written more... But until the very last writing of the Prophet is returned to its rightful place among the Ixa, Tángouà's work will not be finished.

(Note on vowels with accent marks: Vowels with a grave (à) are pronounced with a high-to-low tone, and vowels with a diacritic (á) are pronounced with a low-to-high tone.)

Racial Description
The term "Ixa" (pronounced like "ee-kha"), translated simply as "People" is not so much the name of a single race, but an umbrella term for a set of closely-related, co-habitating lizardfolk species that dwell in the western Kishahn Jungle. They can be divided up as-follows:

• Liyéxa (Lit. "Star Ixa")
  
  
  
  • The largest and bulkiest of the three Peoples. These hulking creatures resemble bipedal, muscular crocodilian folk and are ten feet tall on average. Their thick, tough hide is covered in armored scutes and they typically appear in shades of blue, ranging from sky blue to nearly black.
    
• Màkuixa (Lit. "Soul Ixa")
  
  
  
  • The Màkuixa are a saurian species, possessing scales, scutes, head crests and sometimes even small horns. They range in heights of seven to eight feet, and are much leaner than their larger cousins, but still possess a substantial amount of muscle. Their armored hides also appear in similar colorations to the Liyéxa.
    
• Ngeuixa (Lit. "Spirit Ixa")
  
  
  
  • The smallest of the three Peoples, the Ngewixa are are nimble people that are much leaner and significantly less armored than their larger cousins. The Ngewixa are also the shortest, ranging between four and five feet tall. They are also the only species of the three to grow fin-like appendages; though these are often used for communication or appeal as well.
    

Society
Fashion
The Ixa do not wear much unless they have to, such as when visiting a colder climate. Their fashion typically consists of brightly-pigmented body paint, decorative jewelry, or bones from sentimental creatures such as past pets or prizes from a hunt. It is also common to decorate oneself in colorful feathers.

Age
The Ixa have extremely long natural lives, with some of the oldest and most venerable among them reaching a thousand years and counting. However, it is worth noting that many of them do not reach such an age, as the life of living in a jungle filled with large, dangerous predators and the ever-present threat of disease and natural disaster can often cut an Ixa's life short.


Language
The Ixa language makes heavy use of stops, fricatives, and glides. It consists of fifteen consonants and four vowels, two of which have high and low tones. When speaking, the primary stress of the word falls on the second-to-last syllable.

Ixa grammar is, in general: Subject-Verb-Object-Oblique

• Word-Initial Consonants: j, k, kw, l, m, n, ng, s, sh, ts, tsh, tl, w, x
  
• Mid-Word Consonants: j, k, kw, l, m, n, ng, s, sh, ts, tsh, tl, w, x 
  
• Word-Final Consonants: k, l, m, n, ng, tsh, x
  

Note: "w" is written as "ui" or "ue" or "ua," depending on the vowel that follows it.


Names
The Ixa name hatchlings based on aspirations, guesses of the future, or certain physical traits. Ixa do not have male-or-female specific names, though some names may refer to reproduction (such as "Will-Bear-Many-Eggs"). Names can sometimes (or often times) get long-winded, and are often shortened in casual conversation.

Example names are:

Tà-liye-huitlèmi (Shortened to "Tàhuitlè" or "Studier") - "One who studies the stars," a name for a seer or astronomer.

Tá-tlità-chuiká-kèmá-shokuà (Shortened to "Tátilità," meaning something like "Never gives up.") - "One who never submits to evil," a name for a particularly brave person.

Huohà-yè-huolá (Shortened to "Huohà" meaning "One," or Huolá" meaning "Love") - "One of Love," a name given to a hatchling conceived by two very in-love partners.

Gender and Sexuality
The Ixa do not care much for gender roles. While courtship rituals do exist, there is no predetermined "gender role" or "place in society" depending on if one can lay eggs or not.

Diet
Lots and -lots- of meat and fish. Ixa lack the proper teeth to grind leafy foods, but they are still capable of eating it, though it is with some amount of difficulty. Spices and sauces are extremely common and a part of everyday meals.


Technology
The Ixa do indeed possess advanced metallurgy techniques, though it appears to have taken a slightly different route than what one might expect. The Ixa's natural armored hides are capable of shrugging off attacks from most things their own size that would do them harm, and hence Ixa "armor" is primarily for protecting the head or augmenting talons or teeth.

They possess metal weapons, however many folk still carry clubs and spears with obsidian teeth. They never forgot their Old Reliables.


Views on Magic
To the Ixa, it is considered a great honor to be born with the gift of magic. Though some take to it more easily than others, the Ixa also believe that any of their species can learn how to wield it to some degree.

Primal Magic
The Ixa utilize the primal forces of the planet for tasks such as agriculture, construction, and defense.


Divination
Through a combination of astronomy and dreams, the Ixa have been able to map out possible futures and adjust the actions/course of their culture by keeping these prophecies in mind. Their scrying is... Difficult to interpret at times, but it has kept their culture on its toes.


Blood Magic
Blood magic and rituals are performed by way of sacrifice. Willing subjects can "sacrifice" their blood in the rituals of mage-priests to cause magical effects otherwise unable to obtain with a single spellcaster. While sacrifices of lives (by way of draining the body of blood and using the organs as spellcasting reagents) are heard of, a sacrifice of that kind has not been carried out for at least 200 years, as citizens giving up a little bit of their blood each can achieve a similar effect.

Effects include vigor in battle, with warriors' wounds healing unnaturally quick, or possessing unparalleled strength. Less war-focused effects include boosting the yield of a harvest, or influencing the weather to cause more rainfall in a year of drought.


Religion
The Ixa believe that all life was born of the elements. The sun, wind, and rain combined with the earth to create the Great Jungle and all things within it. In the Ixa religion there are four main elements are Sun, Wind, Water, and Earth. While each has a powerful role to play, they revere the Sun above all others, as they believe that without it, all things will freeze, wither, and die. While the Ixa worship these things, they do not believe that they are necessarily "gods," but rather they are supernatural forces of nature to be revered and respected.

The stars and astronomy are also important to their spirituality, as they use such beliefs to fuel their Divination magic.

Songéuà-yè-tsélèliyé-yékè, Journey of the Sun's Smile
Journey-of-the-Sun's-Smile, or simply "Songéuà" ("Journey") is an ancient prophetess of the Ixa culture, as well as the most powerful mage in their written history. In an era long passed, the Ixa experienced what they call "The Time of Trials." Through a combination of natural disaster, in-fighting, and external threats, the Ixa were nearly pushed to the brink of extinction. But then, from the blood of the fallen, appeared a Màkuixa, wreathed in the golden rays of the Sun itself and the Wind carrying her voice and word, she single-handedly ended the Time of Trials. Whether that be through violence, diplomacy, magic, or some combination of the three is unknown. However, it was the building of the Ixa's temple-city Iuè-yè-Máliyé ("Shrine of Stars") that marked the end of the Time of Trials.

Songéuà looked to the combined Ixa people and declared that she would traverse the world, seek new knowledge and magics, and return to teach them to her people. And that she did; according to the Ixa's written word Jouney-of-the-Sun's-Smile ventured forth with a retinue of Ixa for five hundred years, returning periodically with the knowledge of writing, alchemy, technology, and powerful magics. With these things, the Ixa prospered.

Unsatisfied, Songéuà looked to the stars and declared to her people that she would use her magic to seek out a paradise for the Ixa, where they could cast off the shackles of a world soaked in blood and rest forever in a peaceful land. She dressed herself in her ritual gold adornments, ventured beneath the Shrine of Star's central temple pyramid, and entered a deep slumber as her mind projected out across the Planes.

The Ixa have watched over her resting body ever since. It has not mummified, rotted, or even shown signs of death. Journey-of-the-Sun's-Smile simply... Sleeps.

But as she has slept, her writings and treasures have become lost to time, be they stolen or simply having never made it back while she was abroad. The Ixa have sent a small army of individuals out across Le'Raana searching for them, they are known as the Seekers of the Sun.


Settlements

Iuè-yè-Máliyé, the Shrine of Stars
The main capital and cultural hub of the Ixa. The Shrine of Stars is a city of temple complexes and market plazas, surrounded by hunting grounds and roads that wind through the dense jungle. Here the Ixa number to roughly three hundred thousand, all told.

Tsà-Ngéngikimá, or "Stretch Your Fins"
The settlement of Stretch-your-fins is a trade hub on a small island between the main continent of Le'Raana and the Yoreiqi isles. Here Ixa sailors and traders resupply before heading farther north or out to Yoreiq. The island's population is only a few hundred in number, but the people are welcoming and accommodating to those who enter their port. The settlement's name comes from the local folk's love of swimming, and often times it is said to travelers to "stretch their fins" before heading out on their long voyages.

__________________QUICK STATS
Name: Rel Usaad
Epithet: The Iron Empress
Age: Ancient
Gender: Female
Species: Dragon
Ethnicity: N/A
Height: Varies with the form she takes.
Occupation: None at time of writing.
Residence: A tomb nestled somewhere in the Thunderblacks.

__________________IN-DEPTH STUFF

Physical Description
As a Dragon, Rel Usaad is a slender, sleek creature of rust-red scales. Four long limbs and two wings that- when unfurled- span the length of her body tip-to-tail each. Her scales do not shine metallic like so many other dragons; rather they appear like a series of perfectly smooth ceramic pieces.

As a woman, the Iron Empress (or perhaps, the former Iron Empress) stands with all the tranquil might and grace as her Draconic form, though perhaps much smaller. A tall Humanoid woman with canted, golden eyes and hair the red-brown of rust or red earth, her umber skin smooth, too much so perhaps.

Personality
Like many of her kind that once called themselves kings and emperors, Rel Usaad likened herself a ruler. She keeps herself composed and even-tempered; for even in times of strife a leader must maintain an era of calm. This composure sometimes puts forth the impression that she is cold and apathetic, or even worse disinterested. This is not the case. The truth is, she has a mind that is near-constantly turning its gears. Always wondering, always curious. For a person who acts like a gilded empress, there is nothing Rel Usaad enjoys more than getting comfortable on something soft and reading scrolls, or listening to music, or perhaps even discussing philosophy with another. That side of her, however, is not one she shows unless in trusted, private company.


Magic/Abilities
In her heyday, Rel Usaad was one of the most powerful mages in her region. With enough time, effort, and reagents, she was capable of bringing mountain-shattering spells to bear. But that was a long, long time ago, and time is cruel, unforgiving. The grievous injuries that she suffered, the very same injuries that caused her sleep, cut deeply; to her very soul, even. She has awoken with but a fraction of that power. While the power to sunder entire mountains is gone, blowing a chunk the size of a house out of one is still decent.

What hasn't left her is her knowledge. Songs, history, mathematics, architecture, arcane knowledge... All of that, she has retained. While her libraries have been either burned down or lost their battle against the slow and patient siege of time, the knowledge of the Iron Empress remains.

Her power of Artifice has stood well against the test of time. She can conjure and create what equipment or art she needs, and if given the proper materials (and enough time), could even use her Artifice to build structures great and small.

Relationships

• Sahrot Shul Aaram (Deceased) - An old friend and ally from a bygone age.
  
  
• Gravuun Qo Gram - While the Autumn Lightning Cloud served a foreign king, the storm dragon was a dear and cherished friend.
  

History
"Once, I was an empress."

In the Terrin Mountains, there exists a series of peaks known as "The Iron Gate." The Iron Gate hides a series of lush river valleys that once fed and housed the city-state of Ulsemar. Ulsemar's ruler and founder was an Iron Dragon commonly referred to by its people as "The Iron Empress."

Of course, that was the long, distant past. Ulsemar was attacked, by whom is irrelevant. Its grand structures have fallen to ruin, its libraries burned to cinders and scattered to the winds, and its treasuries and armories still are plundered by treasure hunters brazen enough to invade the tombs of the fallen.

The Iron Empress was an Iron Dragon named "Rel Usaad." She ruled with wisdom, and valued knowledge and learning above strength of arm or military might. While many modern dragons hoard gems or gold, Rel Usaad took to learning and magic with the same enthusiasm.

But unfortunately knowledge draws the fears of the ignorant. The zealot, the inquisitor, the extremist. Ulsemar was besieged, plundered, and burned. But Rel Usaad fought for her people and her city, but suffered a near-fatal blow from a magical attack. Her retainers took it upon themselves to entomb their empress beneath the mountains of the Iron Gate itself, and using their artifice they crafted a resting place for Rel Usaad, where she would remain while her body and soul recovered from their wounds.

After the passing of an eternity, Rel Usaad awakened. She awakened to a city and empire long forgotten, with all of her works burned and her riches plundered. But the ghosts of her retainers remained, and the Iron Empress was welcomed to the land of the living once more.

Now she seeks to rebuild her precious libraries, writing down her knowledge and traveling to see what this new world had to offer, and how it had changed from the old world she once knew.

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When you're living life in some Podunk, isolated village on the outer edge of the Thunderblacks, every day brings a new struggle. Especially when the local government is so busy sneering at its political rivals that it has decided you and all your kinfolk are insignificant by comparison. No one outside your little hick-town cares if you live or die; and if every man, woman, and child here simply disappeared off the map, no one outside would even bat an eye.

The village of Zagasnuur is one such village. While isolated, the village was filled with a hardy folk. Every day brings a new struggle, but the people of Zagasnuur face it with their heads held high. Despite being technically "Adelan," these folk still retained much of their Duhjaric roots due to their isolation. They rode squat, strong horses and all of them possessed some trade skill or another. They were necessary out here. Many of them were shepherds or fisherman that relied on the nearby lake for their trades.

The new struggle of the day would better be described as the new struggle of the week. Young shepherd men and women had been going missing; leaving flocks of sheep simply unattended or scattered. Some guessed that it was the local Orc tribes, or a group of Trolls or mountain giants had moved into this part of the mountains... But why leave the sheep? It didn't make sense; and when things don't add up, people get scared.

How fortunate- or unfortunate- for them then, for a "master wizard" to have strolled into town. No one expected this spellcaster to be a Goblin of all things, but she pays her rent to stay at the local inn (indeed Zagasnurr had an inn, albeit a tiny one) and doesn't cause trouble. Suspicion did fall on the Goblin at first when she appeared in town, but such things were quickly dashed as- with a little bit of reassurance (and threats of disintegration) and an alibi- "Master Tee-kup" was decidedly not behind the disappearances. In fact, Tee-kup had business of her own here!

What the people of Zagasnuur either didn't know was that this part of the Thunderblacks held a secret. Nestled in these rocky cliffs was a temple from the old world, from a time when Fell had not suffered its calamity. According to the writings of Tee-kup's old master, this temple was the tomb of a powerful dragon named "Sahrot Shul Aaram," her name translated to "Mighty Sunlight Prism." Tee-kup hoped to gain some insight on the creature, and learn more secrets of this prehistoric, Antediluvian time.

__________________QUICK STATS
Name: Tee-kup A.K.A. "Tea," "Tee," or "Teacup"
Age: Adult
Gender: Female
Species: Goblin
Ethnicity: N/A
Height: 3'3"
Occupation: N/A
Residence: A hidden tower in Serendipity.




__________________IN-DEPTH STUFF

Physical Description
Tee'kup, is shorter than most of her kind, she stands at about waist-high. And of course, like many Goblins, her gold-and-black eyes and mouth seem to be too large for a head that size. She isn't very muscular, but considering how little she weighs at her size, she doesn't exactly need all that much bulk to move her tiny body around.

She typically dresses in big robes and an obviously too-large hat when she is gallivanting around populated areas; she adores the stereotypical "wizard" aesthetic, bless her heart. While out in the brush adventuring, she's well-aware that the big, baggy robes and big hat of a "wizard" aren't helpful. Such things can get caught when trying to run, jump, or climb through difficult terrain. Instead, she wears traveling garb like a hooded tunic and greatcloak ("great"-cloak, considering how she's only about the size of a child).


Personality
Tee-kup carries about as much frantic energy as every other Goblin; though in her case it seems to be channeled into more productive actions and hobbies. When she isn't passed-out-sleeping, she's usually scurrying about, drawing something, reading something, or casting cantrips to entertain herself. She tends to be friendly, though that friendliness and lack of suspicion of others seems to stem from an unreasonable bravado from the little Goblin. She is not some hissing, fanged maniac because she is so confident in her ability to escape from or vaporize threats (regardless of whether or not she is right) that she feels wholly unthreatened by them. Something something Goblin bravery.


Magic/Abilities

"Tee-kup is a wizard!" – No, that isn't the drawling of some raving lunatic. This tiny Goblin is actually a wizard. A self-taught wizard (one might even argue or call her a "hedge mage" or "hedge wizard"), but a wizard nonetheless. She carries an enchanted spellbook with all of the spells she knows and all of the alchemical/transmutational formulae she has either cooked up or learned from someone else. She's quite a spellcaster, having several schools of magic under her belt; though one might not be able to notice that at a glance, considering how her favorite school of magic to wield is Evocation, for obvious reasons. Fireballs and lightning bolts are just more entertaining.

"Tee-kup can read! Tee-kup speak that!" – This Goblin can speak a multitude of languages, and is literate. Though her written word and spoken tongue are extremely different. So different in fact that one would probably think they were two separate people.

"Lucky, lucky!" – Tee-kup is rather lucky. It's almost unnatural how she manages to miraculously avoid injuring herself with all of her antics.


Relationships

Hoot – "Hoot" is a barn owl and Tee-kup's familiar. He possesses an extremely sharp wit and an even sharper tongue when he feels like speaking. As a familiar, he shares a supernatural bond with Tee and she can channel some of her magic through him, thus giving him a little bit of spellcasting of his own (when Tee feels like letting him use magic). Hoot is fiercely protective of his partner and has gouged out more than a few eyes in her defense.


History

Luck and fate are two strange siblings. They can cause great fortune and cruel, dizzying falls. Keep that in mind.

So Tee-kup's path to magical might (and having a strange name) starts with a Serenian wizard. He had his estate, his local guild membership, his assets... Some of those assets included Goblins. According to the legislation of his local guild, Goblins were classified as vermin, hence he could experiment all he wanted on them. So he did. When Tee-kup was born, she was so very small, and so that wizard said that she was "like a teacup." She was too small to be useful and he had plenty of other experiment subjects, so he took "Teacup" as a pet.

Remember luck and fate? Well... This is where they come to play.

That wizard was not brought low by an assassin's dagger, nor was he taken down in a flurry of Goblin claws and teeth in some kind of sick, karmic revenge. No, this wizard was felled by a misplaced tome and the corner of his desk. A rather weighty book- precariously placed on its shelf above the wizard's writing desk- tumbled from a wandering breeze and struck the wizard on the head with its bronze-plated spine. The wizard stumbled after suffering such a blow, and broke his skull upon the corner of his own writing desk.

Which left one adolescent "Teacup" with nothing but herself, a dead wizard, and an entire tower's worth of magical equipment and books. Having learned to read as some kind of humorous project from her former master, "Teacup" read. She studied. She learned. She set free the prisoners of her former master, but rather than flee into the countryside with them, she stayed. This... "Magic." It was a wellspring of both knowledge and entertainment. But wanderlust had to take hold at some point. So "Teacup" grabbed her favorite spellbook, put on some fancy digs, and left her (she considers herself the new owner) her tower as "Tee-kup, master wizard!"



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__________________QUICK STATS
Name: Calen Ardanel
Age: Unknown
Gender: Male
Species: Elf (Vampire)
Ethnicity: Serenian
Height: 7' (Height is a result of transmutation. It's variable)
Occupation: N/A
Residence: Western Fallial, Serendipity



__________________IN-DEPTH STUFF

Physical Description
Calen likes to keep his appearance fair and beautiful, strong of jaw and with hawk-like features. The color of his eyes range from the blue-black of a night sky, to burning amber, to a glowing ruby-red; depending on his mood and tastes of the day. While his power over Transmutation can have his appearance vary wildly, there are certain color choices that he enjoys. He keeps his skin and hair a pale, snow-like white unless his situation calls for it to be different. He is of athletic build; tall and lean with chiseled muscle. His vanity shows through his appearance.

Of course... What he truly looks like is much more gruesome. A towering, bat-like behemoth of a creature, with large ears, wings, and a gaping, fang-filled maw. This nightmarish form of Calen's is not something he takes often; it disgusts even the man himself. But this walking stalker of the night does carry a distinct appearance and is much more intimidating to behold. While Calen is loathe to wear it, he also does acknowledge that he can use it to make a point.


Personality
Calen is a man who goes by the saying of, "I like what I like." He is not so uncouth and selfish as to live a manic, hedonistic lifestyle, but he is also slow and resistant to change if he has his mind set on something. Perhaps what is striking for him- as a Vampire- is that he enjoys going outside and traveling the countryside; perhaps some days as a simple adventurer, other days as some kind of wealthy merchant or nobleman. He prefers charm over intimidation; for why have enemies when you can have friends and lovers instead?

Magic/Abilities
Calen has a well-trained mastery over Transmutation magic; he uses it to shape his creations, as well as shape himself. Centuries of near-constant practice have given him an understanding of it that few can compare to. By that same token, he also has an equal understanding of Necromancy; it is something he has wielded or channeled virtually every day since his turning. Evocation and abjuration are not his strongest suits, but he can wield them. He won't go dropping a fireball on a city, but he can use the more destructive and protective magics to keep himself out of danger. Much of his magic and extreme physical might is fueled through Blood Magic, a system of magic that involves using blood as a battery for magical power. One can call on it to perform great feats of magic, or great feats of physical power. While Calen can use his own in a pinch, he much prefers to use the blood of those he has drained or fed upon.

Castle Luna Nova
The ancestral home of the Ardanel line, and Calen's personal fortress. Situated on a mountainside and watching over a valley, Castle Luna Nova is as difficult to besiege as it is to even reach if one does not know the roads. Beneath it lies the Ardanel Library, a vast archive of knowledge collected by every generation of Calen's family dating back to who-knows-how-long ago. Its front gate is, strangely enough, a thick and mighty drawbridge made of steel overlooking a vast, yawning chasm. The mechanism that draws it up and down is usually magical, but one of Calen's ancestors developed a mechanical way to open and close it using counterweighs and machinery beneath the castle. Calen has taken it upon himself to maintain both mechanisms.

For all its intimidating appearance, the atmosphere of the castle's interior is rather welcoming. Soft blue lighting cast by magical lamps and color schemes of reds, royal blues, and royal purples give Castle Luna Nova a feeling of warmth and safety for the weary. Thinblood Vampires and ghouls guard the halls and courtyards, while thrall servants staff and attend to the needs of the residents.


Relationships

The Order of the Iron Chalice – A chivalric order of knights that swore fealty to Calen long ago. They order somewhere around three hundred, and every single one has been turned by the Embrace. They are an elite fighting force of heavy infantry, but their role is twofold; for they also serve as guardians of the land the Ardanel family watches over. They are not a tyrannical lot; in fact it is quite rare for them to draw their enchanted weaponry or even don their magic armor to go to war. They are viewed by the townsfolk on Ardanel land as helpful, for they have sworn fealty to their lord, and that means protecting his people as well.


History
Calen is the last son of an ancient family, one that extends long into distant memory, and the only witnesses to the full history of the Ardanel line are the ancient stones of Castle Luna Nova. Almost a thousand years ago, a shadow fell over the noble house of Ardanel. The then-head of the family had struck a deal with a court of Vampires. What that deal entailed was a regular "tribute" of people to the Court, and in exchange the house of Ardanel would be blessed with the power the Embrace granted. The young Calen Ardanel complied with his grandfather's wishes, not at all knowing the strife that would come afterwards.


A century passed, and Calen watched in silent rage as his people were used, herded, and treated like simple cattle. Selfish as he was, he had standards; and one of those standards is that people, no matter how low they were on the social ladder, were still people. Not pets, not cattle, people. So the Vampire Calen Ardanel bided his time and built up his power in secret. He honed his abilities, built an army, gathered magical implements... And another century later, the last son of Ardanel struck against his forebears. His grandfather and father never saw it coming. Calen murdered both of them as they rested in their lairs. The Knights of the Iron Chalice, the army Calen had spent a century assembling and equipping, besieged Castle Luna Nova. In the battle, Calen and his Knights did battle with and murdered every member of the once-proud and noble family of Ardanel... And as the dust settled and the sun rose over Castle Luna Nova,the last son of Ardanel was all that remained of his bloodline. He was battered, weakened, and beside himself with grief. After all, even if they were warped into monsters, Calen still loved his family dearly. Or perhaps it could be argued, that he loved who they once were, and hated who they became. With the last of his strength, Calen put the Vampire Court that had turned his family to the torch and reformed the lands of Ardanel. His people viewed him and his knights as heroes, never knowing the truth of what had happened on those fateful and bloody nights.

Calen returned to the castle, grievously wounded and grief-stricken. He returned to his lair in its depths and laid his body to rest, where he has slept for centuries. As his knights and servants tended to him, the slumbering Vampire Lord recovered from his injuries, and now they mean to awaken him once again.


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Cynbel was always an early riser, and so too was Gravuun Qo Gram. They functioned well together, and as such their bond had deepened much quicker than other Lancers. By the time the morning sun had dawned over the horizon, the Half-Elf was already up, washed, and changing into his armor. He shot a look over at Adallindis, still asleep in the bed across the small room the two of them had rented. She was a quiet sleeper, with her long, snow-white hair about her head like a cloud obscuring her face from sight. Cynbel gently brushed a lock of hair away from her nose as she slept, his amber eyes shifting to the white-blue of Gravuun Qo Gram's.

To the Dragon's sight it was clear that while Adallindis was asleep, Nonvul'Kendov'Jun was wide awake. The immortal Noble Warrior King did not bother to rouse his Bondmate; his was a patient soul, and the girl had spent the past couple of weeks doing nothing but training her Wind Magic. If anyone was deserving of rest, it was Adallindis. Nonvul'Kendov'Jun gave a near-silent hum of acknowledgement to Gravuun Qo Gram and Cynbel. The two of them returned with a nod. Adallindis was in good hands; Cynbel needed not watch over her until later.

With horned Lancer helm on his belt, the young man ate his breakfast downstairs and set out into the Serenian town of Driftshore. With its location on the Ora river and its proximity to the Adelan border, the town saw not only plenty of trade, but plenty of travelers as well in the form of adventurers moving from place to place, following work. Even the Adelan Dragonriders were not something uncommon here, though the townsfolk usually gave those a wide berth; it is unwise to rouse a Dragon's wrath.

Cynbel found himself out and about. He enjoyed the walk in the cool morning air, before the entirety of the town was awake and in full-swing. It was quieter than usual. It gave him some time to think.

Most Essyrni wear their sheer or transparent fabrics. The temperature around the Oasis was  much kinder and more forgiving. The wind didn't bite and whip at one's flesh, and even the cold of the night allowed for some degrees of freedom to be taken when it came to one's fashion.

Like every day, the city's many markets were alive with the hustle and bustle of buyers, sellers, merchants and traders, customers and employers... All with their something to sell. The air was filled with the near-deafening din of workers selling their services, of merchants hawking their goods, or street performers showing off their latest trick. And amidst all the chaos skulked a rather short, robed figure. Clad in colorful cotton robes and face hidden behind a porcelain mask, she stalked about with very few barely even noticing her passing, let alone her presence. She pulled her headscarf up, wrapping even around the face of the mask and to not draw attention.

She visited the markets almost every day, this lone walking pile of robes. And all the time she would peruse the same group of textile vendors, like a creature of habit. The merchants knew her by sight, and none of them knew her by name; but they all simply called her "karayika," after a species of small crane. She could haggle like the best of them, and those amethyst, Thanati eyes were as sharp as razors when it came to quality. In the years since she had begun frequenting their side of the market, all of them knew not to swindle the "little crane." But she paid fairly and always would send new buyers their way... Perhaps, despite all the mystery surrounding that walking, billowing robe, the Little Crane was good for business.

This day, like most days, the karayika showed up to market, bought up spools of silken thread and bolts of cotton fabric, and disappeared into the city.

She had a room near the market, and many nights would be spent in lamplight, weaving beautiful silken cloth or sewing together clothing to be sold. Little Crane made beautiful work, and more than a few times she saw her sashes or sarongs worn by the upper class. It was nice to have some money flowing in... But the karayika never forgot her goal: Track down a curse-breaker, and have her Affliction taken so that maybe one day, she could live as Beyhe Kanayhen once more.