Name: Countess Heidra va Rastenbruck
Gender: Woman
Age: 23
Race: Undead
Side in War: Dragon Cultist

Appearance/Description:

This portrait was made of Heidra some time before her execution. Since then, she was decapitated by the royal headsman after the civil war, so that her head needed to be stitched on by the Dragon Cultists to function properly. The job was servicable, although her head is a bit lopsided as a result. A good deal of hair has fallen out, as well. The general decomposition of her flesh after lying in a mass grave for a week or so also took its toll throughout her body, with a great deal of flesh having fallen out or eaten by insects. She is able to disguise it as best she can, sometimes wearing a mask or applying makeup to hide the signs of decay on her face to avoid detection. She also perfumes herself to hide the stench of the undead.

Backstory/Bio: Heidra belongs to the Rastenbruck dynasty, one of the many noble dynasties vying for dominance in North Vedrus, with the Rastenbrucks controlling an ancestral mountain keep to the north of Astal named Orrinnfell. She and her father became the last surviving members of their family after several cousins either died from a deadly plague that swept through the north or were executed by the King of Astal for plotting against him, making Heidra the sole surviving heir to the Rastenbruck dynasty and Orrinnfell Keep. Her father avoided the fate of his cousins by taking the side of the king, becoming a general in the Imperial Legion, and by sending his sole heir Heidra to Astal as a hostage. In Astal, Heidra was given a court education in the liberal arts and even extensive training in espionage, a popular profession among the nobility in the paranoid atmosphere of the tyrannical king's court.

When the king was murdered, however, the Ironbanes suspected Heidra's father of complicity, and so executed Heidra as punishment before moving to attack Orrinnfell. Fearing the prospect of his dynasty's destruction and his ancestral keep falling forever into the hands of the government, and mad with grief over his daughter's death, Heidra's father the Count made a deal with the Dragon Cultists to resurrect his daughter in exchange for his life. The cultists agreed, but further stated that the resurrected Heidra must serve the will of the Dragon Cult as the civil war goes forward. Heidra's father made the bargain, and signed his will declaring the County of Orrinnfell to be inherited by "the body of Heidra va Rastenbruck." The life force was then drained from him. Soon afterward, Heidra's body was exhumed from a mass grave outside the walls of Astal, and her father's life force was infused into her body, reviving her. The Dragon Cultists then bestowed her with her rightful title of Countess of Orrinnfell, although by then the Ironbanes had taken control of the keep.

Ever since then Heidra has been determined to one day come back to Orrinnfell and regain her birthright, to become more than a Countess-in-absentia. In the meantime, she must act as an agent for the Dragon Cultists, playing both the Ironbanes and Goldenblades off of each other, using espionage to defend the interests of the Dragon Cult. At court she was a proficient fencer, but whenever honest one-to-one combat fails she is often the first to fight dirty. Besides that, she is extremely obsessed with learning, books, and spellcraft, though try as she might she never had a talent for magic.

Choice of Weaponry: Rapier and carving knife.

Garb: Light, rough-hewn garments given to her by the Dragon Cultists-not exactly fit for a Countess, but on top of these garments she wears a long black cloak for keeping out the elements. She also has a bauta mask that covers her entire face, and together with the cloak she disguises herself from being revealed as undead.

Personality: Heidra grew up in an atmosphere of fear, suspicion, and dread, so she is naturally paranoid and suspicious of people's motives and finds it hard to trust people. She is very conscious of her class and education, often looking down on lower class characters. She is extremely determined at getting what she wants, to the point that she often becomes obsessed with completing her goals. Her caustic wit has a tendency to get on people's nerves. Despite everything, however, she knows an ally when she sees one and will not throw one away lightly, being extremely loyal to them as long as it serves her purposes. She has learned to be deceptive and manipulative, and most of the time she wonders if even she knows who she really is anymore beneath the lies. Her great ideal is taking back her birthright and avenging her family, and she will use whatever pragmatic means to do it.

Name: Elora Irian

Gender: Female

Age: 126

Race: Elven Vampire

Side in War: Ironbane

Appearance/Description: Elora has two different forms, due to her vampiric nature. She has her normal form as she is normally from day to day. Long black hair with silver highlights, silver-ish sparkling eyes, and a calm gentle face that doesn’t show threat at all. And pointy ears that poke out far from her hair. Then she has her vampire form with screams threat or “I’m going tear you to shreds just because I can”. With still long jet black hair, blood red eyes, horns, and a beautiful yet deadly sense about her.


Backstory: Elora was an average elven girl with a very uncomplicated, happy life. Her father was human and a veteran of war, while her mother was an elf and a spoil of that war. She lived in Astal for all of her life as a child until she reached 17. By then her parents wanted to leave the city due to the increasing tensions there. They feared a war would break out so they left Astal and built a cabin up in the mountains.

When the war finally broke out Elora’s father was found and taken into the army by Ironbane soldiers a year before the battle of Favorstead, leaving her and her mother alone in the mountains. Taking on the tasks her father had, Elora took care of her mother as she aged. By the time she was 26 her mother passed away and left her distraught and devastated.

Feeling as if she had nothing left to live for Elora walked down to the cliff that overlooked a small lake and jumped. However, when she hit the water she didn’t die. She only began to sink as the pain from the impact filled her body and cramped her muscles. Accepting her death, she didn’t do a thing to get back to the surface. Just before her eyes closed and her lungs filled with water a figure pulled her from the water. As she coughed out the water she took another look at the figure and saw horns and wings. Instantly afraid she tried to crawl backwards and away from the demonic looking person.

The person was a tall male with long-ish black hair and red glowing eyes that smiled at her with white fangs. Fear engulfed her and she went to scream but he covered her mouth and told her to be quiet. Then asked her if death was what she really wanted. Thinking about it Elora shook her head no and tried to scoot away again, but the demon was persistent. He told her about the afterlife and what it was like to be a servant of the daemon princes, making her almost want to say yes. He sat next to her and turned to a elven form life her, he looked like an average normal elf.

They continued to talk about what it was like to serve the daemons and Elora finally asked him to help her become a servant, she had nothing left anyways so what was there to lose. The daemon, Deamiel, took her by the hand and brought her to Datroastein where he bite her turning her into a vampire and taught her how to hunt and kill. Elora quickly learned the ways of vampires and demons and stayed close to Deamiel, taming her own dire wolf as they trained. She hunted with the wolf and slept with it as well. They grew close and Elora cared for it more than anything. Her dire wolf was her companion and family now.

As the war progressed she went back to the upper ground and began to hunt there. Only to be caught and captured by a group of unknowing bandits. She was to be taken to the Goldenblades for a reward due to her side in the war. But when the bandits that had captured her didn’t return one night and the stench of werewolf took over her camp, she turned vampire and broke her bonds, calling her wolf to her side. Her hunt had just begun.

Choice of Weaponry: A dark elven bow,
BOW

A silver double-sided sword,
DOUBLE SIDED ELVEN SWORD

An iron short sword,
SHORT SWORD

Dire Wolf,
Wolf

Garb: Elora has a hand-stitched, red dress with white designs embroidered in the bottom and collor with light, black armor over it. Both lace up the front. She has black, laced up leather gloves that got almost to her elbow. And black leather boots that go to her knees. Elora wears this out of battle.


When she is in battle however, she wears a bit more open but heavier armor. All black iron plated armor that covers her arms and legs completely but leaves her stomach exposed. Favoring style and trusting her skill to keep her from being sliced in half.


Also, while she was in Datroastein, Elora was scouted as an assassin and given a new attire to preform her new occupation. All dark black leather with a hood embroidered with the same design as her red dress. She keeps the garb in her bag just in case she needs it again.


Personality: Elora is independent and doesn’t like help with almost anything. She is very to herself and hands on when she does things. Elora does enjoy some company but mostly stays to herself due to her past. When she makes a friend, she will do anything to protect and keep them as a friend. She can be a bit overprotective at time and very cautious. She is weary of everyone and isn’t quick to trust anyone. Being turned into a vampire has made her less social and more afraid of big groups. She is also impartial to humans. It’s not that she doesn’t like them or like them, she just fears them and what they would do to her if they found out her current state. Although she is dead, so to speak, she still has a sense of humor and loves to play with people.

In her vampire form, her thoughts are mostly the same, but she does crave the enjoyment of a hunt. She loves to hunt when in vampire form, due to the fact that’s the only time she does hunt or eat for that matter. She is more responsive but less tolerant when a vampire. Elora is very playful and likes to toy with people’s minds. She is also very deceptive when a vampire, less so when human.

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Gaelin differs from his brother in two ways. Zed is more muscular and has his mothers eyes, while Gaelin has his fathers eyes but a lighter build.

refer to appearance picture.