Vespa Ruvina, Blood Witch of the Full Moon
With tresses as black as night and irises the color of sapphires, Vespa stands with some contrast to her fraternal twin, Elina. The differences don't end there, however. She is a proud, ambitious and driven young woman bent on mastering the secrets of the arcane, although her frame is just as light and as petite as her sister's. A brave girl who is unafraid to speak her mind and rather brusque in demeanor, she is nonetheless possessed of a stout heart - to some degree, as she surely not above human sacrifice to feed her developing powers. Vespa is bright and cheerful, and can be expected to greet one with a smile. Raised as proper lady in an aristocratic house, however, she is no stranger to etiquette, and were she to meet a man worthy enough to take her hand in a dance, he could bring out her softer, slower side: a different face, one that blushes often, smiles shyly, and looks away with embarrassed eyes.
Age: 21
History:
Born alongside her fraternal twin, Elina, to Reyna Ruvina under the auspices that she came out first, her louder newborn cry would never be lost as she grew up and it developed into her bright and brave personality that has been with her since early childhood. Raised in a castle where the servants and household knights were undead, her aristocratic upbringing instilled in her a strong duty to her family and the notion of continual self-improvement. As Vespa grew up and her mother began to expect only the best things from her, the pubescent girl rose to the challenge with a confident grin and a sparkle in her eyes.
So she was more enthusiastic than her sister when the time came to remove the Ruvina Curse and unleash her magical powers. However, the fact that the curse even existed in the first place disgusted Vespa to her very core. She could barely fathom the idea that her ancestor, whose forever shamed name was then long forgotten, was actually so weak to have lost to a rival witch and caused the affliction, which hindered the expression of magical potential, to infect the noble Ruvina bloodline. The Gods' graces were with her family, however, and after several generations the seal had weakened enough that current members of the House of Ruvina could cancel it with an appropriately bountiful blood sacrifice.
Any creature of magnificence would have sufficed, say, a lion, a bear or a pegasus. But Mother wanted only the best of things for and from her children, and so demanded that the key to unlock the gates to their potential
be a creature that could similarly attain unlimited greatness: another human being.
To facilitate this task, she and her sister Elina were sent to live in the manor of some distant relatives who dwelled among non-magical, common folk. The sisters were to catch a sacrifice by any means necessary, and as they were more or less confident about their looks, they decided seduction to be the best avenue of approach. Vespa personally hated the whole affair even though it was an important task, for though she mingled with nobles, their auras were frail and weak. Only their egos were strong. She had never been gregarious, living in a mostly empty castle, and so had social difficulties at first. There was also the issue of young men who wanted her so obviously that it made her cringe. The most annoying was a man named Marcus, son of Gaius, the Baron of Aurelius Castle.
He was the noble's second son, which meant that he was nothing, as only the firstborn inherited the lands and the estates and the titles. Blonde of hair and blue of eye, prone to boasting and spouting banter, he flirted with her as if it were a bad play. There was kneeling, roses, and even public declarations of his love which embarrassed her to no end. He'd serenade her from below her window, and would always say that he'd be back tomorrow as she always ignored him. This lasted for weeks, and the whole time she thought of him a fool. Until the day he gave up in the middle of a song and walked away, head held low. Vespa couldn't believe it, but she actually felt horrible. Almost immediately, she rushed down to meet him, which made him smile. For some reason, it made her smile too, and he teased her for it. So she slapped him. But in the end, they developed a conversation - and once the two got to know each other, so did a friendship.
That friendship turned into a romance rather quickly, at the height of a religious holiday where the folk celebrated in a large, festive carnival. Vespa and Marcus drank, sang, and made merry for the whole of the day. And in the night, as the town became sleepy, they sat upon a hill to rest and look at the stars above. The young woman soon came to realize the good traits of the man whom she'd had so much fun with - he was arrogant, sure; but he was sincere, bold and determined to get his way. Under the light of the moon, they held hands. But that wasn't enough for youthful hearts. They kissed.
And then he took her to his bedroom. The moment the door clicked shut, the lock was put in place, and their tongues were intertwined. He held her by her hips, his grip so consciously present to her mind, while she had thrown her arms over his shoulders to wrap around his neck. Buttons and straps were undone as they slowly took off each others' clothes. And soon they were bare, save for their underwear. Her body shone like the finest silver under the moonlight. Marcus told Vespa that she was the most beautiful thing he'd ever laid his eyes on, and she blushed the deepest crimson.
He had guided her to the bed when it hit her. What was she doing? Why was she in-love? Wasn't this man, who hovered before her, who was trailing warm kisses down her stomach, supposed to be but a mere tool in securing her future? And wasn't she supposed to be back at the Castle by now? A crisis developed within her, and she asked for him to stop. Marcus asked what was wrong. Her reply was a clever one: she said that she wouldn't sleep with him until they married. So he clasped his hands around hers and asked her to marry him now.
With her heart being frozen by a suddenly overwhelming sense of duty, she told her that, as a fellow noble and the firstborn of her parents, the final say came to her mother. So they comandeered a carriage and headed straight for Ruvina Castle, which was just a few hours away. Reyna detected their presence the moment they stepped foot upon the outer castle grounds, and came to the front gates with a wide grin.
Marcus bowed. Reyna simply pointed at him. And then he fell to the ground, unconscious. Vespa bowed her thanks as her mother's familiar, a great black wolf named Dracul, began to carry the unconscious Marcus to an unholy altar deep within the Black Forest. A beast of blood, it had no patience for tasks that saw no killing, and so briskly returned to the Castle upon depositing the body there. A short while later, Elina also arrived, although empty handed. It turned out that the shyer girl did not have the guts to kill the man whom she had seduced - a waste, too, as that man was a Hunter. She could not help but lash out at the waste of such great magical potential, but in the end, she calmed down.
Vespa could not bear to see her sister so helpless, so she offered to share Marcus' life energy with her. Taking the handle of the knife together, they drove it deep into the witless noble's heart just as the bells tolled midnight.
Afterwards, the rendevous with their mother was as violent as expected. Reyna could simply not tolerate such a failure. Vespa and Elina were supposed to be the ones to carry the torch of House Ruvina when she inevitably expired. That night, she expected greatness, but got only half-baked rejects. For the first time, the Matriarch of Ruvina found her daughters to be wanting and utterly
disgusting. She threatened to kill them, and that was her mistake - in the heat of the moment, they held hands and disappeared. Where to, she did not know. And so she lost her daughters, and began to weep.
Vespa and Elia wandered for several months. Eventually, they came upon the Coven of the Bloodrose, who took them in with open arms. Finally having found a place to belong, away from the shame of having failed their family, the two are among the most enthusiastic of their members.
Type of Man:
A strong and driven person able to match her own ambition. Someone who is worthy enough to climb to the peaks of the tallest mountains with her, and look fondly at what they have accomplished together.
Special Powers:
Blood Magic: A type of dark art that revolves around the aspects of mortality: life, death, blood and sex. Vespa is able to use the life forces of sacrificed creatures to grant her various, almost limitless boons, from temporarily increased physical strength to even outright teleportation. She is also able to draw power from the recently dead, although to a much lesser extent, and to manipulate blood like a hydromancer would water, but not as well: the primary agency of Blood Magic has always been sacrifice; and her greater powers pivot entirely around what and who she kills.
To some extent, she is able to draw power from sexual energy as well. So the efficacy of her spells may also hinge upon who she beds.
Her path of magic grants her a unique affinity to predatory creatures: wolves, snakes, lions and other such large carnivores do not think of her as prey or a threat, but a friend.
Family Members:
Father -
An unknown cockslave of good bloodstockMother -
Reyna RuvinaSister -
Vespa RuvinaThe za Donnima Family - Magically weak relatives who live among the common folk
Pets/Familiars:
None.