May96

In Search of Gaea: A Seafaring Fantasy Adventure

I'VE BEEN FOUND OUT flees

In Search of Gaea: A Seafaring Fantasy Adventure

Marea remained silent and still through through the scolding, resting her gaze between both of them. As it ended, and they both went their own ways, the girl moved to follow after Marlowe. Won't let a village skiff out...Hm. Perhaps...

She would then find herself bumping into one of the visiting Divers, stumbling as she shook her head. Realizing that she had fallen behind the Aide, Marea picked up the pace and quickly caught back up to walk alongside him. Her eyes were looking straight at him, locked on to his face as she maintained her usual neutral expression.

"My father only said that people from the village couldn't sail to the island on a skiff." That should be enough to spur his imagination.

Duke's Quest

Jeanne-Marie

Name: Jeanne-Marie de Anjou

Sex: Female

Culture: Gaulle

Age: 16

Physical Description

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A fair lady with golden hair, her form is distinctly feminine with noticeable curvature and busom. Standing at 5'3", Jeanne-Marie's body is soft and untrained by a lack anything remotely close to physical labor or martial training and her wrists are notable for being thin enough for her slender fingers and thumb to wrap around and overlap one another. For her attire, she both borrows from other cultures and challenges many norms of dress. Keeping her hair uncovered, refusing to wear hats or hoods that hide her blonde locks, she instead opts for, at most, a cloak. Along with that, she has abandoned the normal gown of her seniors for ones with a snug fit, tightly hugging her figure and held well with buttons and laces. The most infamous of her alterations, however, comes in the length of the skirt which brazenly displays the girl's ankles and far more, in some of the more extreme cases.

Occupation/Skillset

Born into the great wealth and prestige of the de Anjou house, Jeanne-Marie was blessed with great education far and above those of lower station. Languages, literature, music, courtly manners and functions, history, stewardship, horse riding, and diplomacy were all part of her daily lessons.

Her aptitude for entertaining others with with and skill with flutes was certainly an appreciated feature, but it was the connections she formed and the use of them that truly made her stand apart from her siblings. Once she realized the power that word and coin could afford her, Jeanne-Marie became keen at using intrigue to get a leg up on, or even sometimes outright remove, her rivals.

The princess is noted to enjoy games which can be played without much physical demand, with chess being one she is particularly fond of. Though it originally was a hobby, tailoring has found itself as a major focus for Jeanne-Marie as she designs almost all the attire she wears herself.

Personality

Ascribed as a spirited youth, even in her childhood, the girl seemed to have an endless energy and passion for things that she set herself towards. Unfortunately for her caretakers, this energy also made her restless and rebellious. Well known to simply run off on her own accord to do something, rather than letting servants take care of it, she is supposedly the reason that some of her handmaidens have some noticeable gray hairs.

Beyond that, Jeanne-Marie is also puts forth a great deal of energy into standing out and impressing others, wearing personally designed outfits that are both striking and well-known to cause the older members of court to blush. On that same note, the princess despises her siblings, believing them to be underachievers that are unworthy of being a part of the Anjou house.

Backstory

Early Life

A legitimate child of Robert, King of Naples, Jeanne-Marie found herself in a difficult situation for any ambitious member of royalty. Being a lady, she had to contend with her multiple brothers for positions of notice, who were generally favored for their potential status as heirs to the Naples throne. Even as a young child, she was resentful and envious of her brothers for the preference they recieved over her. For a time, she lamented in silence until one of her tutors asked what had been bothering her so. As troubles of her childish heart were laid bare, the musician was inspired by her struggle, having gone through similar troubles in his own lifetime over who would inherit his father's instrument. Deciding to aid the child he found a kindred spirit in, he began to impart the wisdom of his own life onto her so that she might overcome as he did.

Jeanne-Marie learned to cast aside doubts and gain the confidence that will force people to take notice of her. If she wanted something, the girl just had to reach out and take it. And take she did. Increasing the amount of lessons she took, the girl was determined to overcome that which she had once thought to be impossible obstacles. With time, her ability to entertain combined with the knowledge she held at even a young age turned attention from her brothers onto this golden-haired girl.

With this attention, however, came those that would seek to have her undone. Her eldest brother, in particular, grew tired of hearing the praises of his junior. Hiring one of the maids, he had her ruin the girl's wardrobe in hopes of teaching the girl her place. Unfortunately for him, Jeanne-Marie no longer wept when trouble occured. Using her skill with tailoring, the girl personally mended her attire and, deciding to send a message to any rivals that she was truly unstoppable, she incorporated the damages into the design of her once-tarnished clothes. Arriving at court the next day, the confident youth shocked the courtiers with a dress that left almost all of her right leg bare, fully exposing the stocking she wore. Yet, the trim she had embroidered into it made it seem as though it were a purposeful design choice. The immodesty caused an uproar, but she would not be shamed or embarassed. Refusing the cover herself, the confidence she had been instilled with shone through, and she remained in court that day.

Current Affairs

As she came close to adulthood, Jeanne-Marie began influencing her father for potential marriage options for her. Ever shooting for the stars, the girl sought to secure a marriage with the Gaulle heir in hopes of becoming the next queen. After planting agents in the Gaulle court, she waited for her chance which, as fortune would have it, came quite soon. A dance was coming up, so she arranged for her to visit the city of Avignon in the Provence region and made her appearance there quite public. Once there, she then secured herself a spot at the dance since she just happened to be "in the area." With her position set, she attendeded the event and focused her efforts on the heir as she flirted with the prince and held his attention for almost the entire event. Even after returning home, she refused to let up as she began to write letters to him containing poetry and romantic writings.

For a period, all seemed to go perfectly according to plan until one of her planted agents informed her that the King was planning to spurn her advances towards his son and capture the Savoyard Princess with the intent of forcing a marriage between them. Refusing to let such a situation unfold, Jeanne-Marie wrote a letter addressed to the Duke of Brittony and made another trip to Provence. Upon arriving, she gave her attendents funds and permission to simply relax in exchange for their discretion until her return before adorning a disguise and setting off to Brittony herself. She knew not if her plan would work, acting under the disguise of an Anjou agent, but she wanted the prince's hand for herself. And if she wanted something, the girl just had to reach out and take it.

In Search of Gaea: A Seafaring Fantasy Adventure

Marea responded to Marlowe's initial reaction with a simple, knowing nod. Focusing her attention ahead, the girl did what she could to try and see over and around all the others, pushing up onto the ends of her toes and leaning every which way. Even with her looking, however, her expression remained unchanging and distant. For a few moments, she seemed to not even register what he was saying to her.It's not a crime to dream, Marlowe. You just need to get past the eclipse and find the hidden sun.

Then, blinking rapidly a couple times, she stopped trying to peer over everyone and focused back onto Marlowe as she responded, "Mmm. I can feel it as well. All these new people and that storm have stirred up quite a lot of energy. Do you really think they'll be able to fix it, though? I don't think any of these Divers come from the area, so they won't know what all to look out for, especially with their thoughts occupied by treasure."

In Search of Gaea: A Seafaring Fantasy Adventure

Marea stumbled as she felt the entire island shake as the air was flooded by the sound of an explosion. Gripping the basket she held tightly, the girl did her best to make sure none of its contents spilled out onto the ground. Once she was sure it had steadied out, Marea looked off into the distance at the stormy clouds that seemed to cause all these troubles. Her gaze locked onto it, and a distant air seemed to permeate from her. Hopefully the Divers can resolve this before Marlowe tries to get involved.

Letting out a long sigh, she pressed on for a few steps before having a moment of pause, blinking a couple of times. Several long seconds passed as the blue-haired lady just stared off at nothing in particular as she receded into her thoughts. Actually...Knowing him, he's probably planning to try and get in with the first group that leaves.

Marea then took off, hurriedly delivering the basket and starting to quickly walk around the island, searching for Marlowe. Finding his usual training grounds empty, she went to the next place he could be: the docks where all these fresh Divers could be seen milling about and unloading.

Hunting for that familiar brown hair flopping about, Marea mostly ignored the newcomers until she began picking up on those in unmistakably Imperial garb. Those individuals would get a wide berth from her and express effort to avoid eye contact as she picked up her pace to hurry past.

Spotting her mark, the blue-haired girl's shoulders would droop slightly as her gaze softened. Quickly walking towards Marlowe, she remained silent save for her approaching footsteps. If he seemed to spot her, Marea would offer a slight wave to him as she closed in.

In Search of Gaea: A Seafaring Fantasy Adventure

Marea

Marea

“Though rivers rarely flow straight, they always find a way to reach the ocean.”

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Name
Marea (Wayfinder)

Age
18

Gender
Female

Home Sea
Imperial Sea

Aether Sign
Moon

Aether Abilities

[+]

Aether Infusing - Used as a way to safely use her powers, Marea channels Aether into objects and people to give them temporary enhancements such as coating a person in a layer of protective ice or creating blades on shoes for skating.

Frost Lance - A simple attack in the form of creating a frozen projectile and launching it at a target.

Mother Ocean's Grace - By imbuing a living being with Aetheric energy, wounds begin to close and stamina is restored.

Glacial Prism - Used to protect individuals, it entraps them into a thick block of ice until it is melted, broken, or dispelled.

Sculptor's Touch - A general ability that allows for simple, mostly harmless tricks through freezing of water and manipulation of ice.

Personality

[+]

Like a still lake, Marea is a calm, collected individual. Though willing to share her thoughts on matters, she keeps problems to herself and maintains a steady composure. While her expression rarely betrays her thoughts, she is nonetheless a caring individual and is more than willing to intervene on behalf of others with the same fervor of more energetic individuals.

Marea tries to find beauty in all hand-made crafts. From a simple dish prepared by another to the labor and resource-intensive Ironclads.

Her favorite food are mussels, having become enamoured with them when they were the first food she had eaten after gaining her freedom. In a way, they remind them of herself with their strong, protective shell.

History

A Proud Imperial Citizen

Though born in the Imperial Sea, Marea would call it a home only in that she was born there. Her parents were both soldiers for the Empire, raised on its virtue and divine decree that its borders should blanket all of Aruth. Serving together on the same ship, they grew close to one another during their tour until one fateful day in the Frozen Sea, the sky was blanketed in beautiful, green light that seemed to dance and swirl like the ocean their ship coasted along. It was on that night that they united to create a child they would never know.

After their duties were complete, the lovers returned to their homeland to settle down and pursue a life suited to raise a child. However, as the mother's pregenancy developed, she began suffering from increasingly detrimental health as all the energy she once had started to seep away for seemingly no reason. Eventually, they were approached by the Imperial Military not for recruitment, but for the child the mother carried. The mother could be saved, but they needed to act quickly and cut the child out before she was entirely drained of life force. If they agreed, the child would be taken from them, but she would live.

With little choice, they both agreed and the operation. Marea was ripped from her mother's womb and taken away to live a life mandated by the Empire. The many symptoms her mother was exhbiting were investigated, and it was found that Marea had an immensely potent connection to Aether. Their plan was to mold her into a powerful weapon they could use to conquer their rivals with the powerful Aether magic she could wield. For a time, the process went well for the Empire. The child was trained almost daily to wield the Aether, and her prowess with it rapidly grew.

Unfortunately, while excellent trainers, her overseers were poor caretakers. Constantly pushing the child beyond her limits, they had little patience for anything but perfection and progress. Most days, after the sessions were complete, Marea would instantly pass out in her simple bed before being sent back into the grinder. The only times she truly got rest was when she would collide with the very limits of her body and pass out for several days at a time. She hated her life in Galma, trapped within the walls of her facility.

Eventually, Marea's growth began to stagnate. No matter how hard or long they pushed, she simply did not seem to improve. Drastic measures were taken to try and force a breakthrough. The young girl was placed into live combat with an elite officer with the hopes that the stress would cause her to tap into that latent might she carried. They got what they wanted, but not quite how. Marea was no match for the battle-hardened veteran and beaten down over and over again, only to be healed up and sent back in.

She pleaded, begged for them to stop, but each time she was forced back to the arena until finally, she snapped. The stress and desperation forced an explosion of Aether Magic. Ice erupted from Marea and tore the facility apart. The connection it had to the rest of Galma was destroyed, and the entire place was sent sinking deep into the ocean. Comatose and encased within a jagged block of ice, Marea drifted out of the ruined building before being carried off by the tide.

A New Home

A warm light pierced Marea's darkened vision, and her eyes slowly fluttered open.

"...Wh-Where?"

"A child, encased in ice and floating through the sea? Can't say We've fished up something like that before."

As her eyes refocused, the blue-haired girl found herself within a large, wooden building kept lit by a pleasant fire in the center. People were all around her, staring with curious expressions at what had been dragged from the water. Right in front of her, though, was an older man adorned in attire much more decorated than the others. He spoke calmly to the mysterious child.

"I am glad to see you are okay, young one. I do not know where you are from, or why you are here, but I will not turn some lost child away."

The man looked over his shoulder and barked out an order, "Marlowe! Get some food for the girl! Surely, you can at least get that right!"

As a brown haired youth ran off to fulfill the request, Marea's new life began. Though unable to forget her taskmasters, she was free from them. Though he never learned her past, Talu Wayfinder took Marea in as his own and raised her well while encouraging her to live and grow at her own pace.

In this strange, foreign land, she had a place she truly could call home.

Family

Marea stared at Marlowe, bent over slightly as she used her elbows to keep herself propped up against a window sill. Watching the boy swinging his inherited blade around as he tried to mimick the movements he saw Divers performing. It was clumsy and slow, but at least he didn't accidently send the weapon flying into a tree this time.

A voice broke the hazy, peaceful afternoon and caused the girl to jump, "Marlowe! Have yo-"

Quickly spinning around on her heel, Marea cut off the chief in her usual calm voice, masking the surprise from his sudden outburst, "It's already taken care of. I helped out, so we got it done quickly."

Talu eyed his daughter incredulously for a moment, seeing straight through her lie before giving a long exhale as he decided to let it be. Leaning up against the window, the chieftan joined her in spectating the training.

Eventually, the man's gaze fell back onto the girl as he said, "You shouldn't just do all his duties for him so he can slack off. Marlowe is a man now, and he should start acting like one."

"I suppose so," Marea responded while looking up at her father "but he wants to become like his hero. Helping him reach that dream is just how I want to repay him for finding m-"

A sudden, metallic thud loudly echoed out followed by a pained groan. Both of the Wayfinders snapped their attention out the window, spotting Marlowe laying on the ground with a bright red mark forming on his forehead and his blade on the ground next to him.

They both stared at the young adult for a few seconds before they both just shook their heads. Marea started moving to go heal the minor injury before she felt her father's hand rest on her shoulder, stopping her.

"Take care of the lad. We don't need that blade delivered here again. I owe his mother that much."

The girl had a moment of pause, mulling over her caretaker's words, before giving him a nod and hurrying off to go heal that fresh bruise.

Gear

[+]

Clothing - Of higher quality than most members of the Free Islands, they are befitting of a chieftan's child, even if adopted.

In Search of Gaea: A Seafaring Fantasy Adventure

sprlrz

Mòrag

best tank

In Search of Gaea: A Seafaring Fantasy Adventure

Some really nice picks there. Personally, I've been listening to a bunch of Xenoblade music while writing stuff up.

mooseek

In Search of Gaea: A Seafaring Fantasy Adventure

Make sure you turn in your paper to @DruSM157 before you leave class. :^)

In Search of Gaea: A Seafaring Fantasy Adventure

I've added more to Marea's history, fleshing out her motivations some more and explaining something I realize I left unanswered.