"Only when you've been betrayed by your own father, wasted away without food for days and had your very skin set ablaze... Only then will you know the pain I suffered to save my mother's life."
  Priestess of Seluna Kingdom of Lunaris Twenty-Eight Years Old ________________________________ | This is my story... Growing up in the shadow of Master Sorrowind of the King’s Eye certainly left Katherine feeling like she was always coming in second place to her father’s work. The time that he did spend with her, was spent building her into a weapon of espionage and interrogation. From the age of three, Kat was constantly tutored by some of the brightest scholars that Lunaris had to offer. It was not her father, however, that began to corrupt her. Not directly. Katherine’s innate abilities in psychic and dark magic had not gone unnoticed by other members of the King’s Eye and in particular, the well-hidden Lunarian Inquisition. An organisation long thought to have been dismantled shortly after the last war, the Inquisition forced Katherine through the trials of learning the forbidden art of necromancy. Constant study and painful trials of Katherine’s developing abilities filled her teenage years, and much to Katherine’s surprise, all of it had been endorsed--and ordered-- by her father. She learned to despise the man. Throughout the years, Katherine was almost never present at home due to her teachings, and it had become obvious to her that the few days she was able to spend at “home” were always absent of her mother. It was not until the final trial of her abilities that she found out why. Katherine was presented with the lifeless body of her mother in an interrogation chamber beneath the castle. It was an ultimatum disguised as a trial: resurrect her mother or be charged with her murder. Never had Katherine known so much hate. Second to the physical stamina needed to sustain a resurrection, hate was the only reason she succeeded the trial. Hours of focus, days of pleading for Seluna’s favour, and every minute of it filled with pain. Necromancy was not a refined form of magic like many others. It was relentless in the power it demanded, and it was brutal and unforgiving in its consequences. By the end, her mother gasped breath anew, but Katherine’s father had finally broken her. For no other reason than to preserve their investment of time and knowledge, Katherine was brought before the clergy at Moonrise Sanctuary. She was barely alive, barely breathing. It was only by Seluna’s choice that Katherine’s heart kept beating. Over the course of the following years, Katherine stayed with the clergy and lived under Seluna’s protection at the sanctuary. The goddess had forsaken her father and exiled him from the grounds. Were he to step foot inside, he would surely feel her wrath. Katherine slowly began to heal both physically and mentally, learning the more peaceful ways of Lady Seluna. She would eventually grow to become one of Seluna’s chosen, the goddess having recognized the pure heart that had developed underneath almost two decades of hatred. Now she makes her way to Dawnhaven by decree of the Inquisition. Despite her best efforts, they still had her on a leash through what she could only guess was a form of blood magic. By their order, she would remain in Dawnhaven to protect Lunarian interests from any Aurelian unrest, or any threat of the Blight. * * * |
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Magic Abilities
* Psychic * Dark * Necromancy *
Though very capable, Kat has only ever resurrected a person once--and it almost killed her. Her talents are used more for communication with the dead, be it ally or enemy. It is incredibly draining for her, and normally she can only sustain up to a minute of light interrogation before needing to stop, at risk of consuming her own life-force.
Katherine’s psychic and dark abilities feed from Seluna herself and mostly consist of concealment and the physical manipulation of objects. Katherine’s necromancy however, is fed solely from her own life-force. Seluna refused to provide her power for such abilities and therefore unless provided additional power through another caster, Katherine’s necromancy can and will kill her if pushed too far.
Seluna may not approve of her abilities, but they were not learned by choice. Similarly, her single resurrection was also done against her will, by threat of her own life. It is for both of these reasons that Seluna still allows Katherine as one of her chosen, and will remind her of such should Kat ever stray too far over the line.
Themes: Death May Die and Night Queen
Color: 19CACA
"Words hold power, mine more than most."
  Bard / Mercenary / Wanderer Kingdom of Aurelia Thirty Years Old "This night may become darker and darker, but that only means the stars shine brighter and brighter." _________________________ | Not a single person left alive knows the true story of the famous Aldrick Corveaux. Many a traveller had heard the stories directly from his lips, but they found that when confronted with others who had heard his tale, each and every story was different. A spy for the Aurelian court? Potentially. A mercenary in a travelling caravan? Conceivably. But a bard who’d captivated the hearts and souls of thousands throughout the years? That was for certain. In truth, Aldrick was a man of many titles and talents. He grew up as a commoner of Aurelia where he worked the fields with his family and received a passable education. He grew older and joined up with the city’s watch, wanting to serve the people he had grown to love. His life was every bit as mundane as the next guardsman’s. But it was during these years living in the barracks that he discovered his love of music. A night at the tavern had him intoxicated by the velvety sound of the performer’s violin. He had to learn to play like that. To absolutely entrance the people like he’d seen the bard across many nights of revelry. To control the crowds without a single lick of magic, without the slightest thought of malice. And after many nights of begging the man, Aldrick finally won. He gained his teacher. * * * Years later, the Corveaux name held much more meaning than simple farmers and field-hands. It held hope for the future, it held joy throughout long nights of music and drink, and most of all it held no judgment for any walk of life. Aldrick drank, played and eventually sang his way through the cities of both Aurelia and Lunaris alike, and all of the small villages that lay between them. Eventually, Aldrick would come to be a reliable source of information between the kingdoms as well. People of both nations learned that he would speak the unadulterated, unfiltered truth that did not hide behind the editors of the local news parchments. His performances and songs would carry his tales and fables across the lands, but approach him afterwards and he would speak of the happenings of the continent. Never written on parchment but the information spread like wildfire nonetheless. Not everyone was content with his truth-spreading however. Especially not after the blight began. It was unknown as to their origin, but someone wanted him dead. Someone was unhappy with Aldrick bypassing the scribes and censors. And what better way to dispose of a wandering bard than to have him disappear in the very blight that he had informed the people of? A bard who regularly passed close enough to the blight-infected lands that no one would question his disappearance. A bard that would be mourned, but would not be looked for. * * * He awoke in the darkness. His head pounded as if it would explode and his heart threatened to leap from his chest. Blood soaked his garments. Surely I am dead. His burning lungs and aching muscles disagreed. I feel so different. And as he walked through the darkness of the wilds, unassisted by any torch or lantern as he would normally have, Aldrick began to piece-together everything. Catching his reflection in a pond only confirmed his suspicions. He’d been taken by the blight, but had come out on the other side. The subtle changes in his appearance—horns like a devil with a tail to match, and a dusky red appearance to his skin—he could handle. But there was a sickening hunger present in his mind as well, and he hated it. * * * The once famous bard was now infamous in a way. Shunned by the people he used to call friends. Distrusted and disowned by the commonfolk. Disallowed entry to the taverns by their owners. Whoever had wanted him dead hadn’t fully succeeded in their endeavour but damn they’d certainly made sure that his life was lifeless. He was still accepted in the smaller villages, primarily those that didn’t see a bard for months otherwise. They were uneasy at first but grew to realize that the famed bard’s heart had not been changed by the otherwise vicious and unrelenting blight. But he needed to do more. He needed to be the difference in people’s daily lives like he once had been. Whispers of a new settlement that welcomed blight-born began to spread to the common-folk. Surely he could return to the life he’d once known, there. Or at least something similar. |
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Magic Abilities
* Fire * Healing * Light *
A practiced user of fire magic as many Aurelian-born are, Aldrick does not use the magic in the same manner as most. Of course the common uses are shared; Lighting candles and lanterns, warming himself during the cold winter nights. But Aldrick uses his fire magic as an extension of himself, most prominently during performances. He's refined his control of the flames so that he can sustain even the smallest, most controlled fire. With this precision in mind, he shapes the flames in thread-like vortices that he can use like his own hands to play another instrument, adding more depth to his music.
His healing magic is limited but practiced. Smaller wounds and breaks are mendable with time, taught to him by a mender of similar skill during his time with the Aurelian guard. Anything bigger than that would serve better from a more skilled healer or a doctor.
See blight-born section for light magic.
Blight-Born
Type: Emotional
Weaknesses: Psychic and dark magic especially, they drain his very soul. He feels physical pain through his instruments, now seemingly attached to him through the blight. If one were to be destroyed, he would feel extremely physically and mentally drained, taking days or weeks to recover.
Aldrick has taken on a devil-like form after succumbing to the blight. Two horns protrude from his head and a long, slender tail extends behind him. Parts of him, notably the neck, forearms, calves and tail, have developed a thin sheen of scales that are visible at the right angle. His eyes, once a soft and welcoming hazel, have now become piercing yellow orbs floating in a sea of black. Some swear they can see stars in the black depths of his sclera.
He did not develop the resistance to cold as many blight-born seem to, much to his disappointment.
He feeds through his performances now, seeing it as an exchange of goods and nothing more. He feeds off of the emotions of the crowd as he entrances them with music. Though it may leave them feeling a bit worse off in the morning, he tries to limit himself as to not harm anyone. He will refuse any monetary tips that are offered to him for his music.
Since being affected by the blight, his lesser knowledge of light magic has been honed. He can't wield it offensively but uses it to protect his instruments with a ward of magic. His instruments give off a gentle warm glow for the same reason.
Themes: Main Theme and Violin Tavern Music
Color: 6A0891
