[OOC] Cabal (An Old Kingdom RP)

[Jinxer]

Cabal: An Old Kingdom RP

A century has passed since the Destroyer was once again sealed, its resting location now a well-hidden secret only passed down from Abhorsen to Abhorsen-in-Waiting at the time of their death.

The bloodlines have separated again; the descendants of Lirael, once the Abhorsen-in-Waiting to Sabriel, carrying on her work while those of Sabriel and King Touchstone became the Royal line proper. The family has become numerous enough to have a Head family and Branch families but now there is no direct heir to the ageing Queen.

The Branch families vie for attention and power, putting forward their best candidates with the most substantial claims, and the most favourable virtues, to be declared heir but the Queen shows no appetite to declare for any of them so far. The families gather power from the guilds and other influential factions in Belisaere, and outside of it, ready for the struggle that seems inevitably violent.

The Old Kingdom itself has recovered well, guided by the stability of the Royal Line and the renewed dedication of the Abhorsens. Its cities have been repopulated and its towns grown, especially those long-since abandoned closer to the wall which have benefitted from the influx of refugees still fleeing wars racking the continent beyond Ancelstierre.

Belisaere itself has seen expansion beyond anything before in its long history. The old city which had been left to the Dead was torn down and built from scratch with the newest architectural techniques as well as plenty of running waterways. Although safety and security had returned, memories of the centuries of neglect had been raw leading to extensive measures being taken to prevent such a catastrophe returning.

But all is not well, beyond the squabbling of the Royal Family, looking set to continue for many years as the old Queen remains healthy and sound of mind. Relations between the Old Kingdom and Anclestierre are at their lowest point ever known, animosity embedded by the Destroyer's pawns in the Ancelstierre government bringing about a cultural shift in the modern country. To the people, The Old Kingdom has become a place of nightmare horrors, ruled by a tyrannical monarchy set in the ancient past of elitist rule with their necromantic servants, the Abhorsens, putting the fear of the Dead into any opponents to silence them.

For their part, the people of The Old Kingdom struggle to keep up with the thousands of refugees still funnelled onto their lands by Ancelstierre, pleas and requests for better planned relocations ignored by the government who move any undesirables out of their borders and prevent them from returning.

As if this crisis reaching its peak were not enough for the strenuous recovery of The Old Kingdom, rumours of a Cabal of Necromancers have spread. Little is known and the rumours originate from all over the Kingdom, the Necromancers apparently operating independently but with one cause. What the cause is, little is known and they have yet to move directly against the Abhorsens or any other servants of the Charter but the threat of their existence hangs heavily over the Kingdom.

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Greetings and welcome! Some of you may have seen the interest check and come here as a result of it and will already have a good idea of what I intend for this RP. For others, here are a few notes:

This is a high-casual or casual-advanced RP. I don't expect lengthy posts but I do desire quality and thoughtful writing. By all means, don't avoid writing a lengthy post if there is a purpose to it; I don't want to stifle your creativity!

I would also like to encourage collaborations where suitable (often where dialogue between two/three characters takes place) to prevent stilted posts of question and response which can kill off even the best RPs very quickly.

The usual rules take place and I'd like to think everyone is familiar with them so I shan't waste time typing them up. I'm fairly relaxed about people introducing lore they wish to but if it's substantial I'd prefer it to be run past me - nine out of ten times I'll support it but I'd just like that check first to make any tweaks should it interfere with any of my planned plot lines!

Any questions then fire them at me by PM or posting down below. I'm at work seven until six most every weekday and most Saturdays (GMT) but I've got my phone on and check it at lunch times, the journey in and the journey back so I can respond to any queries pretty rapidly when I'm not sleeping (we can't be perfect, sadly).

Below is a Character Sheet skeleton with some guidelines but by all means add/edit as you wish. I'll be reading through all sheets before I accept them anyway so it's just there to provide the usual structure should you need it.

Finally, I don't expect or require you to have read and know off by heart all of the Old Kingdom books (Clariel, Sabriel, Lirael, Abhorsen, Across the Wall and Garth Nix's most recent novella the name of which escapes me) but if you have not read any/all of them I would like you to brush up on the lore so as not to ruin the experience of those who have.

A good source I've found is here which also has a very handy map of The Old Kingdom!

CS

Name:
Gender:
Age: (Going for adolescents here, in keeping with Garth Nix's tales).

Appearance/Physical Description: (Image and/or description).

Personality: (Nothing much here, just something to give people a feel for your character).

History/Background: (If you wish to keep some of the character's history secret then I'd prefer background on the character e.g. where they've come from and what is known about them).

Skills: (Charter magic ability/combat training/knowledge etc).

[Gisk]

Jacel

Name: Jacel (Juh-cell), the Impure
Gender: Female
Age: 19

Appearance/Physical Description: Tall, slim, and blond. Jacel has an thin, angular face, with tired green eyes. She looks, quite rightly so, as someone who doesn't get a proper meal very often. The hair on her head is sheared extremely close to her scalp, and she covers her head with a blue headscarf, in the fashion of the Southerlings that have lived in the Old Kingdom now for nearly a century. She chose this as it allows her to cover her tainted charter mark without attracting very many questions.

She dresses in an amalgamation of clothing from both sides of the wall, and many walks of life. Her boots and trousers are those of a Crossing Point Scout. Made in the military style of Ancelstierre, but by hand so that they can withstand being in the Old Kingdom. She wears a button-up shirt that is faded and colorless. Over this is the bandolier of bells, signature to a Necromancer. Her belt is brown, and the seven handles that stick out of the pouches are of sandalwood, the bells themselves are brass. Her bells are typically covered by a wide triangular cloak, similar to a poncho. This she got from a band of Travelers, and it bears their clan markings and sigils embroidered in the fabric. Her head, over top the blue scarf, is adorned with a wide brimmed hat, the left side being pinned up in a cavalier fashion.

She has a sword belt on her waist as well, hanging with a plain shortsword that is Charter spelled. With the Free Magic flowing in her veins now, it hurts her to wield it and she only does so out of desperation.

Personality: "Curiosity killed the cat," one ought to say to her. When she was a child she would reply snarkily "Satisfaction brought him back." But, though still young, she's come to see her thirst for knowledge as a bit of a weak point for her. She's not a "watch and wait" kind of person, she has a need to do and experience. And so she isn't satisfied to explore the theoretical, hence her impatience with Wyverly's magical curriculum.

This is underlined by a compassion that has been born from seeing too many bad things happen(and causing some of them). Her time with her Master has left her less than willing to continue in the more traditional veins of Necromancy. Instead, she wishes to use her powers for good. She has a feeling like she needs to atone for past wrongs, and habitually sacrifices her own recovering Charter Mark to do so.

History/Background: Born Bethany Hooke in Ancelstierre, the Necromancer who would later be known as Jacel was a native of Bane. She came from a well off family that had long lived in the Northern part of the country, and grew up on stories of superstition and magic about the Wall and what was beyond. It was a subject she was immensely curious about, and so was always willing to hear scary stories of times that things had come across(though it never happened during her childhood).

She attended Wyverly College, and was all too happy to jump to the magic lessons that were taught this close to the wall. But she found it lacked something, she wasn't sure what. Some element of the stories and superstitions she had been told just seemed to be missing. She hungered for it, but couldn't place what it was. For two years at school she studied hard, but still found her magical education lacking. Over this time she fantasized about running away to the Old Kingdom, but it wasn't until she was fourteen that she finally did it.

Getting across was easier than it should have been. She put on a blue head scarf and hid in a group of refugees who were being forced across. Not only did the army not stop her, but they actually helped her!

The refugees were beset by all sorts of nefarious characters shortly after being shuffled across, but little Bethany Hooke was the only one among them with a Charter Mark, and so she attracted the worst of the attention.

Even these days, Jacel believes she was lucky with who got to her first. A Necromancer looking to recruit an apprentice. Anyone else might have killed her, she reflected later. Used her Charter Mage's blood for ritual, taken her soul and body for their own purposes. Instead, she learned those same dark arts that could easily have been used upon her. By age fifteen she had walked in the First Precinct, and eschewed her own true name.

By seventeen, her master had gone missing. She didn't know where, he often left to go about his own business, leaving her with tasks to complete. It was months before she realized he wasn't coming back this time. She set out on her own, but didn't have a clear plan at the time. Since then, it's become clear that her kind is wanted in very few places. Without the influence of her teacher, her own better nature was able to blossom, and she tried to use her powers for good. She would ring Kibeth to walk the dead back where they belonged, or Ranna to quiet a graveyard. Once she even used Belgaer to discover the identity of a man's murderer, and inform his family.

In some places she has gained a sort of respect. She is called Jacel the Impure, a semi-derogatory title. They dislike her powers, but these are places out of the way, where the Abhorsen doesn't come very often, and she is often their best defense against the dead.

Jacel wants to put Free Magic behind her, but she finds it hard not to use the Bells when she finds a village beset by the Dead.

Skills: Necromancy and Free Magic Adept. Novice swordfighter, she had classes at Wyverly, but had only taken one year before running away.
She knows a novice level of Charter Magic, but accessing the Charter is exceedingly difficult for her, nearly impossible.

[Jinxer]

@Gisk

Looks good, just the personality and skills bits to fill out but they don't need too much detail as much of it is already in your bio.

@Resonance@ChristaEinheart@Minimum

Just a poke for those who had shown interest!

[ChristaEinheart]

Hider

Name: Toriel(toe-ree-ehl)
Gender: female
Age: 16

Appearance/Physical Description: She has red hair, short, like a boy's cut. Her eyes are a vivid blue, that seem to glow. She is tiny and fragile looking, at a meager five feet tall and very thin. She has an A-cup chest and wears simple black tunics over white long-sleeved blouses with full sleeves. Her pants are brown, leather riding pants and she wears black boots. She carries a Charter Spelled blade and a pack of oddities. Being a descendant of the Wall-Makers, she tends to make little Charter items.

Personality: Very kind and soft spoken. Tends to avoid conflicts and tries to hide from bad things. She hums randomly, dazed and staring off into the distance or tinkering with items. A little goofy, she'll randomly hug or sniff people.

History/Background: She comes from Belisaere and is very knowledgeable of the cities architecture and streets. She knows all the hidden passages and shortcuts. She was raised to be creative and free, by a kind and loving father. She has little knowledge of her mother, but knows she lives somewhere in the Wilds.

Right now, she wanders about the city. She came home before, to find her father dead in a puddle of crimson blood. She's in a daze and needs help...
Skills: VERY skilled with Charter magic, knowing quite a bit more than most. Her father was a Blessed Charter Mage and he taught her well. She sucks at fighting, though.

[Jinxer]

@ChristaEinheart

Looks good to me.

Edited for potential spoiler purposes

[ChristaEinheart]

indeed@Jinxer

[Gisk]

Both are done. I just hadn't had the time before.

[ChristaEinheart]

I can't wait til this starts x3

[Jinxer]

@Gisk

Shiny.

All looking good so far. Now we just need one or two more. I'll have a CS up tomorrow. I'm out tonight with some work colleagues for a leaving do so I shan't be awake enough when I get home to write a full CS.

[ChristaEinheart]

wicked =D have fun!@Jinxer

[Jinxer]

Do my best! It's karaoke so I might be hiding near the bar with a stiff drink!

[ChristaEinheart]

I could never do that xD I don't go out, I don't have anyone to go out WITH, y'know? too shy to go out and make friends.

[Jinxer]

@ChristaEinheart

I'm the same. I just work with people who happen to be nice so I scored majorly lucky there! Mind you I always head home early, get too anxious and would rather be safe at home with my wife and a cuppa!

[ChristaEinheart]

I don't have a job. I want one, but my last try was traumatizing...

[Gisk]

I'm a full time cosmetology student. Though I've been out sick for the past few days, hence me always being around.

[Jinxer]

@ChristaEinheart

Mine also. I was immensely lucky with this one and was blessed with wonderful coworkers. My wife suffers from acute anxiety and depression so I am very aware of the issues re. job searching.

@Gisk

That's a fascinating discipline. Tell me more. I'm afraid I was a mere historian specialising in Tudor Wales history. Specifically socio-economic history regarding the creation of the British middle class. Because history nerds ftw!

On topic: @ChristaEinheart it took me six years to find a place I felt my skills were suitable and it is an uphill battle. Take heart from the fact I took seventeen job interviews before getting my first job and four years thereafter before I was in a job I felt was approaching right for me.

The struggle is worth it. All the more so the harder the struggle.

Further closer to topic: my CS will be up tomorrow. I am too cloud-minded due to the week from beyond the Ninth Gate to properly construct a CS.

Stay tuned!

[Gisk]

Well here where I live, you have to have 1500 hours of education, and have performed a specific number of services(hair cuts/colors/styles/ nail stuff) in order to be licensed. So I have two days out of every week I'm in a classroom, and then three where I'm workin in a salon attached to the school. So I get a lot of practical experience, and it's a lot like actually having a job.

It's not what I expected to be doing with my life. I wanted to be a teacher, but four year college isn't financially feasible. Maybe I'll go back to school some day, but with this I can be working in the industry as early as February, whereas before I was working minimum wage in the back of a Gabe's.

[Jinxer]

Heh, I wanted to be a teacher as well. The reason I haven't gone for it is because the government has screwed with the profession so much I'm waiting for it to implode so we they have to make it desirable again (that or we elect a non-elitist and right-wing government. Whichever comes first).

[Jinxer]

Name: Elaeriel (Ell-air-ehl)
Gender: Female
Age: 17

Appearance/Physical Description:
Elaeriel is much paler than the other members of her branch family, although they all have the dark hair commonly associated with the Abhorsens; a trait passed down through the generations. Her eyes are a bright blue giving her a ghostly appearance when contrasted with her white skin. Her raven black hair is straight and nearly always tied back into a ponytail, so as not to get in the way during her day-to-day activities.

Of average height, standing at five foot seven inches tall, Elaeriel often finds herself towered over by other members of her family, especially the men who stand at well over six foot. She has a slight but athletic build, most of her life spent being trained for any of the potential jobs she might be given should her family take power at the end of the Queen's reign.

Her clothing she chooses fastidiously and dependent on the occasion. When in the Royal Palace she wears silk dresses, although eschews the makeup that most of her fellow women apply as she also spends a great deal of her day actively and as such finds the time spent applying it badly spent. When not in the Palace she tends to dress herself in tight leather riding trousers and a tunic top, usually of a cool colour such as green or blue, with appropriate jacket or shawl dependent on the weather.

Personality: Serious and focussed, Elaeriel has spent her entire life being taught that she must be prepared for just about any role. And not just be capable but be good at it. This leads her to be overly serious when it comes to seemingly minor tasks, applying her desire for perfection to anything she faces.

That being said, she is relaxed in conversation although a bit awkward when not talking in an official capacity. Having had very few real friends, as opposed to family friends or cousins who could be potential enemies, she lacks the ability to interact with strangers easily and without suspicion.

History/Background: Born into one of the seven branch families of the Royal Line, Elaeriel is the third and youngest child of her parents. Her eldest brother, in his mid-twenties, is her family's best hope to succeed the Queen and as such she is somewhat eclipsed in any of her achievements. That is not to say that she has been ignored, having been given the best education in almost all matters so she can do her part to secure her family's future.

Her life has been spent amongst cousins who could one day in the future seek to have her killed or could become her partner should her parents and theirs decide it was in their best interests to ally. As such she has had no close friendships and speaks almost exclusively in diplomatic tones; polite and amiable but with little to no sincerity.

Elaeriel hates this life, feeling trapped in machinations she has no interest in with her existence to be a pawn in a much greater game that she wants to escape. Visits from the Abhorsen have always been something she looks forward to, allowing her to escape the confines of the subtle game to hear of the necromancer's adventures and the wider world. She had often pleaded for permission to visit the Abhorsen's House but she was never let out of the sight of her parents or their servants, lest something happen to her and put them at a disadvantage.

She is currently spending most of her days with the Royal physician, learning various methods of healing outside of the Charter and how to spot non-spelled poisons; a vital skill for when she has a spouse her parents assure her.

Skills: She is a skilled charter mage, having been taught it by a succession of guards, Charter Mages of every discipline and even the Abhorsen himself for a short time. Her skill is entirely through the tutelage she has been given rather than an innate ability, although her bloodline gives her a closer connection to the Charter than many enjoy and as such she finds it easier to reach for.

She has walked through the first two gates, although always with someone more skilled in the art at her side, and knows the use of the bells, and other musical instruments well, but only in a theoretical sense.

Aside from this she has skill with bow and blade, specifically with a rapier or any other light weapon, and has spent years on horseback. She is, however, not used to longer journeys and has little experience of living in anything but the lap of luxury.

[Fukazza]

Can i join to this?