This'll be my third Nanowrimo. I'm both excited and worried, since I'm much busier than I was with the last two. It requires a lot of dedication and focus, but if you just keep writing no matter what you should be able to pull it off if you don't get hit by a truck of writer's block. For me whole thing became a lot easier once I created a chapter outline, which I unfortunately didn't have time to do this time around.
Since birth Cecily has had the ability to control and conjure electricity. As she has grown she has learned to control it better and her power has increased, but she is still learning. She can redirect electricity, cancel it out, and conjure it out of nothing. Thus she has the ability to disable, reactivate, and recharge electric devices and machines at will. Her most powerful ability is her ability to lung a bolt of electricity, manifesting itself like a miniature lightning bolt from hands. As a consequence of her powers she is immune electricity of all kinds, and not merely her own.
Loyalty: Erubescian; herself
Description:
Cecily has fair yet pale complexion that is marred by a life of poor skincare and hard years, blemishes dotting her face on closer inspection. She holds a long head of black hair which she has never cut in her life, going as far down as her knees. She holds a pair of striking bright blue eyes. Her hands hold marks and coalesces, a reminder that she has not lived a life of comfort. She is almost always in her uniform, a simple leathern combat outfit, with her rifle and her sword always close by her side.
Personality:
Normally Cecily holds a muted personality, remaining quiet and with an overly serious expression which never seems to fail. She is all too aware of how small and fragile her place in society is. Though never meek or timid she says little to others. Towards her superiors she is cooperative and disciplined, but never says a word more than is necessary. She comes off as cold.
Cecily is prideful to the point of arrogance. Though she certainly has talent, she consistently overestimates herself. She believes that in the power of her own skills, and believes in her own potential. She holds in contempt all those who she believes have done their best to keep her back and prevent her from rising to her proper place. She will not hesitate to look down on those she deems lower than herself. On the other hand she holds jealousy and hatred for her rivals, and is incredibly insecure of her failures and ignorance, and hates above all the feeling of powerlessness. Cecily has made few friends, which is fine with her.
Perhaps it is due to her arrogance that Cecily is as bold as she is. She believes that with time and effort she can overcome any challenge. She is eager to prove herself to her superiors in order to gain promotion and is scarcely worried that her own abilities would not be sufficient to complete the task. Her pride prevents her from admitting defeat unless she is forced to. Once she has committed her mind to something Cecily is remarkably durable and willing to withstand bodily harmed. She is dangerously tenacious.
Cecily is highly self-centered with tendencies towards amorality, which perhaps does not make her the ideal soldier for Erubesco. Currently she is intent on proving herself and advancing through the ranks. She can have an alarming lack of empathy for the plight of others, and has harmed and killed others in the past with a clear conscience. Even so, she isn’t above all acts of kindness.
Skills:
Cecily is skilled in hand-to-hand combat as well as in swordplay. A former thief, Cecily has learned how to be quiet and quick on her feet. She is also knowledgeable in a number of basic survival tools, such as farming, knitting, cooking, and the hunting of small animals, all of which Cecily participated in when she was young.
Weaknesses:
Cecily’s electricity conducts well with metal, but against poor conductors of electricity like wood and plastic she is mostly powerless. Water will also disrupt the flow of her electricity, and make her unable to do anything other than cover herself with it. Her arrogance is also a disadvantage. When she is winning a fight she may think herself to have an overwhelming advantaging, and will not mind playing with an opponent to humiliate him.
Brief History:
Cecily was born to an unassuming family, known to no one. The daughter of serfs, Cecily’s earliest memories are of her tilling the land. Her early life was relatively calm, and she enjoyed the song and merriment that seemed to surround life. Yet she toiled for long hours seven days a week, even as a child, and lived in poverty. Sickness took her father when she was eleven, and they became poorer. She was left alone with her siblings when their mother abandoned them when Cecily was only thirteen. She had gone to meet a man who had said would give her a well-paying job and was never heard from again. Cecily has always assumed she ran off with the man and abandoned her children.
Cecily joined an orphanage with her fellow siblings. It was not a bad place. However, Cecily never felt at home there. It was here that Cecily first began to feel ambitious. By fifteen she slowly showed signs of cruelty and uncaringness, and she felt very unsatisfied with the path her life was taken. She heard of the tales of great heroes and kings, and she wondered why it was that she could not join them. When she was sixteen she left the orphanage, and left to find her destiny. It did not as she planned. However, she was taken in by a gangster. He cared nothing for her, and used her without a care for her own thoughts, but he also saw potential in her, and trained her how to hold a weapon and how to shoot a gun. She escaped just before she turned eighteen, and promptly joined the Erubesco army as a mere commoner recruit. It wasn’t what she wanted, but it was a start.
Full Name: Riza Khan
Age: 28
Gender: Male
Rank: Agent of the Homeland Protection Sector
Gift: X-Ray Vision
Riza has the ability to see through things and structures of a reasonable thickness.
Loyalty: Liberty
Description:
Riza is tall, standing over six feet. Ethnically Hazara, he has tan skin. Though he has a thin appearance and a gaunt-looking face he is actually fairly muscular. He normally wears his Homeland Protection Sector uniform, and even his casual clothes are fairly nondescript proper-looking clothes.
Personality:
Riza has a pleasant demeanor, yet can be disturbingly dismissive about many things that seem important for people. He usually wears a smile, except in the situations where it is demanded he be completely serious, and usually maintains a pleasant attitude. This is not merely a disguise, either. His seedier actions do not conflict with his cheerful attitude in his own mind.
Riza is steadfastly loyal to Liberty, believing it to be the greatest system that there ever has been and shall ever be, and because of that it shall succeed where the human states failed. For the cause of furthering Liberty he will do almost anything. If, however, he thinks he receives an order that he thinks is contradictory to Liberty he will go over his commanding officer and ensure his superiors to validate the order.
Riza is a cynical person. However, for Riza cynicism must not be mistaken for pessimism. Riza has no patience for pessimists. To him they are nothing but lazy whiners who find excuses for not working hard. Riza is a cynic because he thinks that there is a certain way that the world works, and no amount of hope of wishful thinking will ever change that in the long-run. He thinks that it was their optimism that caused the fall of humanity, their insistency that their own whims and opinions could triumph over the truth and their black and white morality. In reality, says Riza, there is only one way that the world can function without inevitably falling apart, and that is the way of Liberty, where all are one and desire is purged from the soul. For Riza cynicism is the acceptance that morality, if there can be such a thing, is not black and white, and terrible deeds must be done for paradise to be achieved. This was something humanity could never accept, so they failed.
Skills:
Riza Khan is intelligent and observant, a skill that Riza relies on often alongside his Gift, perhaps even more so. His profession requires as much. Also a top-grade military fighter, he has honed his body into a weapon. He is skilled in military martial arts and hand-to-hand combat as well as with firearms, and his skill is elite in these.
Weakness:
Riza has a non-combat Gift, meaning that his Gift has little use in regular combat.
Brief History: Riza’s family has fought for the cause of the Gifted since the very beginning, if it can be called a beginning. When the Gifted appeared in force a hundred years ago a Khan appeared for the fight. Since then every Khan worth his salt has fought as a soldier of some type for the cause of the Gifted. When Liberty was formed the Khan family fought for them. The recent years have been cruel to the Khan’s however, and now Riza is the last of them.
Born into one of the sprawling Metropolis’ of Liberty, Riza had the simple upraising afforded to most of Liberty’s citizens. He had a complex relationship with his parents, and was quite rebellious for Liberty. However, the system successfully groomed him. He claims he had an epiphany that inspired in him utmost loyalty in Liberty. Her parents were glad for him, claiming that his rebellion was simply his passion misdirected. After cleaning up his act he joined the Liberty Special Forces. He excelled in training and went on to serve with distinction. He was recommended to the Sector of Homeland Protection, where he went to serve as an agent. It does not bother him that he does not participate in the war against Erubesco, as he has seen that there is another, equally important secret war against the dissidents and traitors of Liberty. He has been assigned and accomplished missions of assassination, counter-intelligence, clandestine human intelligence, and police raids.
Full Name: Sara Danton Hargrave
Nickname/Aliases: Nomad
Age: 25
Gender: Female
Loyalty: Ashlander
Description:
In terms of beauty, Nomad isn’t much to look at, with a harsh skin that is mired by the scars of battle and a life of hard work. It is difficult to tell her gender at a glance. Her clothes are mere tatters, things which she has bought for cheap from the various ashlander scavengers, which are hodgepodge of various linen and cloth sewed together without any thought to aesthetic. Her gender can be hard to tell, as she is extremely plain and wears very baggy clothes, and doesn’t have anything to speak of in feminine form. She normally wears a round hat over her head to protect her skin from the sun. She wears thick black gloves, and when she is traveling she is never without her spiked brass knuckles, which she all too willing to punch someone with. She has a belt that holds her canteen and pistol, which has its own hoisters.
Heightened Abilities
All of Nomad’s senses are above average, and she additionally has more strength and speed than can be acquired through training.
Personality
Most find Nomad very abrasive. She has a tendency to be crude, though not vulgar, and only knows how to speak in unpolished language. She also does not tend to hold back in her words. She is not very good with complicated emotions, or at least does not like to discuss them, and prefers bluntness over anything else. With those who are friendly and amiable to her she knows how to act accordingly, as long as they aren’t asking too much of her in terms of manners, but towards the arrogant and conceited she doesn’t hesitate to try and bring their ego down a notch. She tends to be quite talkative and inquisitive, and does not mind prying into someone else’s business.
Nomad is always looking out for herself, and is always hoping to get valuable things to barter. She, however, is utterly unwilling to become a trader. Instead, she is always doing favors for other people in return for reward. However, Nomad will never do any work she considers unscrupulous, and will not hesitate to help out someone in need if she has the time. Nomad hates to see good people suffers, which is why she despises bandits and slavers. She also despise mercenaries, mostly due to bad experiences.
Skills:
A veteran fighter. Adept at sneaking and hearing people approach her. Is skilled at unlocking locks. Experienced in bartering. She knows all the skills necessary to survive in the Ashland, such as how to make a fire, how to hide from incoming bandit or slaver raiding companies, how to hunt, scavenge, make clothes and blankets, how to cook, and how shoot a gun. With her pistol she is a crack shot, but it still is only a pistol. Though her training is minimal, she is an expert hand-to-hand fighter due to years of intense experience. She should not be underestimated under any circumstances.
Weakness:
Overconfident. Has a tendency to think she will never lose to anyone no matter how outnumbered she is.
Stupid. Never thinks things through and isn’t very good at making plans.
Brief History:
“Me and the slavers have a working deal. I shot them, they die. It’s a mutual relationship.”
Nomad doesn’t know much about her lineage. Despite the aid of a gifted doctor Sara’s mother died in childbirth, so Sara only had her father. Sara has only a few memories of her father, but remembers his name, Walter Danton. They were traveling together on a caravan with a number of others, heading towards a nearby settlement, when they were attacked by bandits. Nomad was the only survivor. She would have been captured, but she was saved by an ashlander named James Hargrave. Though he was not her blood relative, in time Sara learn to call James her father. He taught her the skills necessary to survive in the Ashland, and taught her how to fight and shoot. Nonetheless, James never let her come along when he ambushed small groups of bandits and slavers.
By the time she was twelve Sara had gotten used to calling James father. It was then when James’ enemies caught up to him, and the mercenaries of the Black Raven Company ambushed their hideout. James told Sara to retreat, and to run as far away as possible. Their departure was tearful. Sara knew that she was leaving James behind. She never looked back, though she knew that he couldn’t have lived. From then on Sara called herself Nomad, because she had become a drifter and wanderer.
People didn’t respect Nomad at first. They thought she was just some snot-nosed kid who was there to cause trouble. But she wasn’t there to be some orphan, she was there to take jobs just like her dad did. Things didn’t turn out like she thought they would. No one took her seriously, and no one was willing to give her the types of jobs she wanted. She wanted to kill bandits and slavers, not perform menial labor. So she ended up joining a traveling caraven. When it was attacked by a group of bandits Nomad was able to fight the off. She ended up traveling with that caravan for three years.
Once she turned fifteen, however, Nomad decided that people would start to take her a little bit more seriously. Long story short, they did. Nomad ended up in conflict with a group called the Aran Gang after she saved someone who a gang member was terrorizing. This was a long and arduous journey for her. Along the way she met Adam Culver, a former slaver who for years would serve as Nomad’s most trusted companions. In the end Nomad and Adam proved to be a durable and formidable pair, and left the Aran Gang severely damaged, with several of their leaders killed by them personally, and Nomad and Adam personally led to the events that resulted most of the Aran Gang members being arrested.
Later Nomad decided to travel through the Ashland more, helping all sorts of people along the way, provided they were of some sort of moral character. She vastly preferred to be reward for her efforts over not being awarded. Nomad frequently attacked small groups of bandits and slavers with Adam at her side. The Black Raven Company, the mercenaries who killed Nomad’s father, she has run into a great number of times, and always as enemies. They have put a bounty on her head, and attack her personally. She is good enough that she always wins out, however. As the years went by Nomad made many friends and gained the respect and admiration of many who were saved as a result of her actions. One day Nomad was out in the ashlands as usual when she and Adam were ambushed by a large group of slavers, who were intent on getting rid of her. She survived and killed them, but was injured and Adam was killed. Since then her hatred of slavers has increased, and she hates them even more than the Black Raven Company.
Since then, however, Nomad has carried on, alone. She does the same thing she always does, but she misses Adam.
Full Name: Rhea Roscelin
Nickname/Aliases: The Flying Fortress, The Hero of Buford
Age: 25
Gender: Female
Rank: Lieutenant (army)
Gift: Levitation
Rhea has the ability to hover in the air. Though she cannot go too high she has fully mastered her gift, allowing her to dash forward and great speeds and change directions quickly.
Loyalty: Liberty
Description:
Personality:
At Rhea’s core is her values about duty, loyalty, and justice. She is extremely honorable in all things. In battle she will not attack a fleeing opponent or one that cannot fight back unless she is directly ordered to by a commanding officer, and even then will only grudgingly do so. Though she does not prefer to fight against the weak, she will if they refuse to surrender, seeing such an action as a declaration of hostilities. She will respect any opponent as long as he or she shows himself worthy of it during battle, but will become angry if her opponent tries to do what she regards as underhanded techniques. She believes in the sacredness of words, and thinks that oaths are the highest of promises, and that there are few things worse than breaking an oath. She is completely loyal to her state, Liberty, and will never betray it or its leaders. She completely believes in equality, the supposed cornerstone of Liberty, and believes that everyone
Rhea has a firm personality. She is slow to back down, and is hard to frighten. It is her nature to have a friendly personality, though she always lacks any sign of passivity. She feels pity easily, and is quickly moved to a charitable mood by those who are less fortunate than herself. She holds plenty of inner strength, and is willing to go to great lengths to overcome any obstacle, even great pain. Even though she has a strong presence and a firm demeanor, she is also kind-hearted and gentle when not in a life-threatening situation.
Rhea puts on a strong front, and its hides the cracks that are underneath. A veteran of the war, she has been fighting a long time. She is suffering from extreme shell-shock. She is constantly reminded of the many friends who she has lost in her sleep, unable to differentiate the sounds of a city from the sounds of bombardment and battle, and is unable to bring herself to even imagine ever returning to civilian life. Hiding a deep depression in her, life seems to have lost its shine and luster for her.
Skills:
Rhea is very skilled in swordplay, and also knows how to handle to a rifle well. She is highly literate and well-versed in manners.
Weakness:
Rhea is an extremely honorable person who will never fight someone who is down or attack someone who has surrendered or is retreating.
Brief History:
As a child Rhea was very different from how she is now. She spent her early years in a Liberty orphanage, and to this day is still unaware of what exactly happened to her parents. Whatever happened to them, by the time she was checked in to the orphanage at age five they were long gone. Rhea was not a cheerful child. From her earliest years she was shy, and did not function well in the strict orphanage system. Though everything was provided for her, her standard of living was meagre. She was very shy and meek, and did not get along well with the other orphans. The only pleasant memory was of the assistant matron of the orphanage, who befriend Rhea and was kind to her, and ensured her survival. She was one of the two people who Rhea looked up to as she was growing up, because of her kindness.
At the age of six she was adopted into a family which already had two children. Her life did not become any happier. This was because of her new sister Clara. Clara was naturally cruel, and though not physically abusive knew how to lower Rhea’s self-esteem. Rhea never told anyone how Clara treated her, and wasn’t even aware that it was something that it was something she could speak up on. Her parents were not strict and did not show outward affection very much, but they never did anything that would attract the authorities. She was one of the two people who Rhea looked up to as she was growing up, because of her inner strength, tenacity, and unbreakable determination.
At the age of eighteen Rhea left to join the military. She joined the army, and tried her best to fit in there. Due to her experiences in childhood she fit in better than she did before. However, she still had a shyness and nervousness about her. The training was hard on her, and every day was a challenge. She earned the ire of her commanding officer as a result of her weakness. However, with the experiences of her past in her mind she made it a point never to give up. Eventually Rhea grew stronger, and as boot camp went on she became stronger due to her tenacity. As a result she tapped into her inner potential and turned into a fine soldier, perhaps the finest in her platoon.
It was during this time that the war between her state of Liberty and their rival Erubesco began a war with each other. During training Rhea had learned to control well her Gift of levitation, but she had not yet achieved mastery of it. She had plenty of growing to do. As the war began her regiment was one of the first to be sent to the frontline, and she was one of the first to fight in the war. Those first days would shape Rhea more than any other event ever would. Many of her comrades, who she had come to know in boot camp, died immediately. Those who survived, such as herself, were immediately besieged. The enemy was relentless, and fighting lasted for hours as they fought for single miles of land. Rhea did not think about it. She had learned how to block out all such thoughts that would merely force her to break down. She soldiered on – a fitting expression – and held the line. When there was an assault Rhea, with help, spearheaded the counterattack by her regiment, leading to her moniker “The Hero of Buford.” In the Battle of Buford she had sixty confirmed kills overall.
Rhea is not tactician, and she has never been well-liked by the military brass for her honorable and principled stance. The officers simply feel that Rhea is not “one of them.” She has been (privately) accused of being more like an Erubescan knight than a soldier of Liberty, but Rhea has never had any doubts regarding her loyalty. As a result of this situation Rhea has never been promoted any higher than lieutenant. She has without relief in the Liberty-Erubesco war, now in its eighth year, and Rhea believes there is no end in sight. She believes it will ultimately be a war of attrition, and that victory will only come when one side runs out of people. She does not like this situation, but she cannot see any alternative.
Since birth Cecily has had the ability to control and conjure electricity. As she has grown she has learned to control it better and her power has increased, but she is still learning. She can redirect electricity, cancel it out, and conjure it out of nothing. Thus she has the ability to disable, reactivate, and recharge electric devices and machines at will. Her most powerful ability is her ability to lung a bolt of electricity, manifesting itself like a miniature lightning bolt from hands. As a consequence of her powers she is immune electricity of all kinds, and not merely her own.
Loyalty: Erubescian; herself
Description:
Cecily has fair yet pale complexion that is marred by a life of poor skincare and hard years, blemishes dotting her face on closer inspection. She holds a long head of black hair which she has never cut in her life, going as far down as her knees. She holds a pair of striking bright blue eyes. Her hands hold marks and coalesces, a reminder that she has not lived a life of comfort. She is almost always in her uniform, a simple leathern combat outfit, with her rifle and her sword always close by her side.
Personality:
Normally Cecily holds a muted personality, remaining quiet and with an overly serious expression which never seems to fail. She is all too aware of how small and fragile her place in society is. Though never meek or timid she says little to others. Towards her superiors she is cooperative and disciplined, but never says a word more than is necessary. She comes off as cold.
Cecily is prideful to the point of arrogance. Though she certainly has talent, she consistently overestimates herself. She believes that in the power of her own skills, and believes in her own potential. She holds in contempt all those who she believes have done their best to keep her back and prevent her from rising to her proper place. She will not hesitate to look down on those she deems lower than herself. On the other hand she holds jealousy and hatred for her rivals, and is incredibly insecure of her failures and ignorance, and hates above all the feeling of powerlessness. Cecily has made few friends, which is fine with her.
Perhaps it is due to her arrogance that Cecily is as bold as she is. She believes that with time and effort she can overcome any challenge. She is eager to prove herself to her superiors in order to gain promotion and is scarcely worried that her own abilities would not be sufficient to complete the task. Her pride prevents her from admitting defeat unless she is forced to. Once she has committed her mind to something Cecily is remarkably durable and willing to withstand bodily harmed. She is dangerously tenacious.
Cecily is highly self-centered with tendencies towards amorality, which perhaps does not make her the ideal soldier for Erubesco. Currently she is intent on proving herself and advancing through the ranks. She can have an alarming lack of empathy for the plight of others, and has harmed and killed others in the past with a clear conscience. Even so, she isn’t above all acts of kindness.
Skills:
Cecily is skilled in hand-to-hand combat as well as in swordplay. A former thief, Cecily has learned how to be quiet and quick on her feet. She is also knowledgeable in a number of basic survival tools, such as farming, knitting, cooking, and the hunting of small animals, all of which Cecily participated in when she was young.
Weaknesses:
Cecily’s electricity conducts well with metal, but against poor conductors of electricity like wood and plastic she is mostly powerless. Water will also disrupt the flow of her electricity, and make her unable to do anything other than cover herself with it. Her arrogance is also a disadvantage. When she is winning a fight she may think herself to have an overwhelming advantaging, and will not mind playing with an opponent to humiliate him.
Brief History:
Cecily was born to an unassuming family, known to no one. The daughter of serfs, Cecily’s earliest memories are of her tilling the land. Her early life was relatively calm, and she enjoyed the song and merriment that seemed to surround life. Yet she toiled for long hours seven days a week, even as a child, and lived in poverty. Sickness took her father when she was eleven, and they became poorer. She was left alone with her siblings when their mother abandoned them when Cecily was only thirteen. She had gone to meet a man who had said would give her a well-paying job and was never heard from again. Cecily has always assumed she ran off with the man and abandoned her children.
Cecily joined an orphanage with her fellow siblings. It was not a bad place. However, Cecily never felt at home there. It was here that Cecily first began to feel ambitious. By fifteen she slowly showed signs of cruelty and uncaringness, and she felt very unsatisfied with the path her life was taken. She heard of the tales of great heroes and kings, and she wondered why it was that she could not join them. When she was sixteen she left the orphanage, and left to find her destiny. It did not as she planned. However, she was taken in by a gangster. He cared nothing for her, and used her without a care for her own thoughts, but he also saw potential in her, and trained her how to hold a weapon and how to shoot a gun. She escaped just before she turned eighteen, and promptly joined the Erubesco army as a mere commoner recruit. It wasn’t what she wanted, but it was a start.
Full Name: Riza Khan
Age: 28
Gender: Male
Rank: Agent of the Homeland Protection Sector
Gift: X-Ray Vision
Riza has the ability to see through things and structures of a reasonable thickness.
Loyalty: Liberty
Description:
Riza is tall, standing over six feet. Ethnically Hazara, he has tan skin. Though he has a thin appearance and a gaunt-looking face he is actually fairly muscular. He normally wears his Homeland Protection Sector uniform, and even his casual clothes are fairly nondescript proper-looking clothes.
Personality:
Riza has a pleasant demeanor, yet can be disturbingly dismissive about many things that seem important for people. He usually wears a smile, except in the situations where it is demanded he be completely serious, and usually maintains a pleasant attitude. This is not merely a disguise, either. His seedier actions do not conflict with his cheerful attitude in his own mind.
Riza is steadfastly loyal to Liberty, believing it to be the greatest system that there ever has been and shall ever be, and because of that it shall succeed where the human states failed. For the cause of furthering Liberty he will do almost anything. If, however, he thinks he receives an order that he thinks is contradictory to Liberty he will go over his commanding officer and ensure his superiors to validate the order.
Riza is a cynical person. However, for Riza cynicism must not be mistaken for pessimism. Riza has no patience for pessimists. To him they are nothing but lazy whiners who find excuses for not working hard. Riza is a cynic because he thinks that there is a certain way that the world works, and no amount of hope of wishful thinking will ever change that in the long-run. He thinks that it was their optimism that caused the fall of humanity, their insistency that their own whims and opinions could triumph over the truth and their black and white morality. In reality, says Riza, there is only one way that the world can function without inevitably falling apart, and that is the way of Liberty, where all are one and desire is purged from the soul. For Riza cynicism is the acceptance that morality, if there can be such a thing, is not black and white, and terrible deeds must be done for paradise to be achieved. This was something humanity could never accept, so they failed.
Skills:
Riza Khan is intelligent and observant, a skill that Riza relies on often alongside his Gift, perhaps even more so. His profession requires as much. Also a top-grade military fighter, he has honed his body into a weapon. He is skilled in military martial arts and hand-to-hand combat as well as with firearms, and his skill is elite in these.
Weakness:
Riza has a non-combat Gift, meaning that his Gift has little use in regular combat.
Brief History: Riza’s family has fought for the cause of the Gifted since the very beginning, if it can be called a beginning. When the Gifted appeared in force a hundred years ago a Khan appeared for the fight. Since then every Khan worth his salt has fought as a soldier of some type for the cause of the Gifted. When Liberty was formed the Khan family fought for them. The recent years have been cruel to the Khan’s however, and now Riza is the last of them.
Born into one of the sprawling Metropolis’ of Liberty, Riza had the simple upraising afforded to most of Liberty’s citizens. He had a complex relationship with his parents, and was quite rebellious for Liberty. However, the system successfully groomed him. He claims he had an epiphany that inspired in him utmost loyalty in Liberty. Her parents were glad for him, claiming that his rebellion was simply his passion misdirected. After cleaning up his act he joined the Liberty Special Forces. He excelled in training and went on to serve with distinction. He was recommended to the Sector of Homeland Protection, where he went to serve as an agent. It does not bother him that he does not participate in the war against Erubesco, as he has seen that there is another, equally important secret war against the dissidents and traitors of Liberty. He has been assigned and accomplished missions of assassination, counter-intelligence, clandestine human intelligence, and police raids.
EDIT: I got reminded that serfs aren’t necessarily regular people, but more or less indentured servants. Sorry for the mistake! I’m kind of forgetful sometimes, haha.
@EchoicChamber Not getting into balls doesn't sound too bad, but I'd probably pass on being a serf if there was a chance that my character could be excluded from parts of the plot because of his social status.
I saw your add and then decided that this looks interesting. I'll make a couple of characters, one for Erubesco and one for Liberty, but I'll need a little bit of time to make them. They wouldn't exactly be "nice" people, though.
Herona thought that perhaps she died after all. Perhaps her injuries were too much, and she was one of those unfortunate soldiers who died of their wounds after everything was already done with, like in the tragic stories the bards had recited. She could feel that this wasn’t heaven, and things didn’t hurt enough that she could call it hell, so she supposed she was in some kind of limbo, where she’d float around aimlessly like a wisp. Yet actually she was merely groggy from waking up from a less than pleasant day. As she began to slowly rub her eyes, she murkily saw someone was there.
“Who?” Herona said indolently.
“Sir Gwladus,” she said.
She knew the name. It was the knight who’d saved her. Herona was beginning to see she wasn’t dead at all, though she wasn’t certain whether that was a blessing or not. She began to look around, and saw she was laying on the ground, on top or some sort of thick cotton, and had a warm blanket over her. She supposed she had survived after all, and now she was back at the encampment, resting in some tent. Her leg ached, but it felt better than she thought it was. She looked to the knight that was beside her. She didn’t know anything about her – hadn’t ever heard of her – other than she could fight well.
“Sir Gwladus, is it?” Herona said. “Well, it sure is fancy meetin’ ya here. I’m pleased to make ya’ acquaintance in a proper place. Herona’s the name. Thanks for lookin’ out for me all this time. I owe ya one.”
“No need.”
“Oh no, where I’m from it’s ‘an eye for an eye,’ whatever that means,” Herona said. “So again, thanks, ma’am. So looks like I’m still alive after all, eh?”
“You were fortunate,” Sir Gwladus said.
“Fortunate?” Herona said. It was not a word she’d used to describe herself right now. But then she realized she meant she was fortunate because she was alive. “Ah, ‘cause I survived. S’pose I’m fortunate, then. So thanks again, Sir Gwladus. I owe ya’ a drink.”
“Again, There’s no need,” Sir Gwladus said. “I only did the right thing.”
“I insist,” Herona said. “Soon’s the cash’s mine I’ll be right at it.”
Herona saw that there were many others around her, in worse shape than she was. Some were missing limbs, eyes; all sorts of things. All she got was a cut just above the knee. She rose the blankets off of herself and tried to raise herself, and she felt better than she thought she ought to, but it was heavy.
“I had a mage heal you, and the wound was not terrible,” Sir Gwladus said. “But you should not be too quick to run.”
“Thanks! Ya must be my own personal guardian spirit to do so much for me,” Herona said. “Why’d ya’ do it anyway, for someone you don’t know?”
“It was right,” Sir Gwladus said. “I could not just leave you.”
“Good enough for me,” Herona said. “And I’m better for it anyhow. But you can count on that drink, Sir Gwladus. I swear I’ll get it too in all due time.”
So with that said Herona rose herself. Gwladus was watching her carefully, but Herona had no problems with getting up. She felt sore, and there was still a little pain, but she was beginning to see that magic certainly had its benefits.
Lycaon stood next to his lieutenants Sir Daeleth and Sir Glynda from within his tent. As the general of this brigade he had a large and spacious tent, though the floor still was dirt. He and his general stood before a great wooden table which had lain on it a number of important scrolls of paper and had a detailed map of Formath rolled out and pinned to the table with many markings on it. To the side was a rack of weapons and a simple wool camp bed. Currently Lycaon was talking with his lieutenants on the Order’s next move. Sir Glynda had gone over statistics for their recruiting chances across the Kingdom. She was pessimistic, and not without reason.
“Our recruiters have gone over the kingdom once already, making the number of possible recruits considerably smaller. Add in the fact that many men and women have been conscripted into the de Reimer, Blackwell, and Manshrew armies already, and our prospects look even bleaker,” Sir Glynda said. “And it is fair to say that Syphius, where the bulk of our soldiers came from, will not have many new prospects to speak of.”
“You worry too much, Glynda. Lycaon, those reinforcements we need will certainly arrive,” Sir Daeleth said. “If there’s one thing I know about the people of this land it is that they are hardy, and don’t turn away from a good fight, especially when you put religion in the mix. And religion is our business.”
“What do you think, lord?” Sir Glynda said.
“Pray,” Lycaon said.
“Milord?” Sir Glynda said. “Are you joking?”
“Will fortune favor us?” Lycaon said. “We cannot know. We must have faith not only in the gods, but in the people. We will recruit regardless. We must have new blood, or we will not have reinforcements. And if we do not have reinforcements, our future shall die before it has even been born.” Sir Sayer then entered, with a pair of guards at his side along with a troupe of other men and women who looked far wearier and wounded. They were an odd collection of knights clad in plate armor and lowborn peasants who wore little armor in comparison.
“You arrive at last, Sir Sayer,” Lycaon said.
“Yes, milord,” Sir Sayer said. “And for such an occasion!”
Laying on the table behind was a small, well-crafted box dark brown in color. Sir Daeleth opened it up, revealing that it was filled with many small silver medals octagon in shape.
“Soldiers of the Order of Saint Elenor, by the testimony of your fellow men-in-arms you have been shown to be true warriors. The gods have blessed you with strength and courage, and with right judgement you have acted upon your virtues, for many of our foes were felled by your hands,” Sir Lycaon said. “And such acts must be given the proper honors. I present to each of you the Silver Medal, given to true and mighty warriors who fight on behalf of the Church. But if your tastes lie elsewhere, you will receive not only prestige for your honors. I will see to it that the wages for each of you is raised for this month. And I can assure you this payment is not a small advance.”
Then Sir Sayer named each of the veterans one by one, signaling for them to come forward. From the small box Sir Glynda grabbed a medal, and then Lycaon put it over each’s head. A peasant woman, introduced as Herona, was the last of those who were given their medal. She bowed her head as Lycaon gave it to her.
“If any of you have any reasonable requests I will be happy to oblige in repayment of your honor,” Lycaon said.
“If you please, m’lord, I’d like some five pieces of silver,” Herona said. “I’d like to take a friend o’ mine to a drink, you see, m’lord.”
Herona felt the viciousness of the glares on her, like the stare of her baron, though it was like there was a dozen of him staring down at her now. Then she realized that his asking such was probably a bluff, a “formality,” as the high folk loved to put it. But how could she have known? His words sounded so earnest. She wasn’t privy to this sort of show. Yet Lycaon was not bothered by her request.. He tossed her a gold coin, and despite a bit of stumbling she caught it as it came soaring through the air.
“Do not mind the change. It would not be worth the effort for you to return it,” Lycaon said. “Now, brave heroes, you are excused. I will be leaving you now. You and your friends shall stay awhile to tend to your wounds and rest, but I am needed elsewhere.”
And with that said, Lycaon left the camp alone. He went to the stables quietly, where there was a small troupe of knights. Lycaon and they grabbed the fastest horses his Order had brought along and left. Sir Daeleth and Sir Glynda then informed the officers of Lycaon’s speedy departure and his intention to allow the men to rest, and told them to pass the information along to the soldiers.
Lycaon and the few knights that he had taken with him had hurried on to Nyhem. He had no doubt that he’d have plenty to do once he arrived. The call for the bishops of the land to gather in Nyhem and elect a new High Priest or Grand Cleric had already been sounded for the battle, and no doubt they had already mostly arrived. It would be disastrous if things did not go as he hoped. The very reason he had Mildred eliminated was because she was so exasperating. She was greedy, satisfied with the status quo, and far too clever. Once Bishop Irenaeus, loyal and quiet as he was, was on the Holy See then Lycaon could be sure his plans would go as planned. Yet there was still the problem of the heretics. Lycaon knew the danger they could pose. Unlike the wine sacks who stood aloft in their castles and palaces, Lycaon had seen the discontent of the people firsthand. With the tyranny of the mad king, two civil wars in a row, another war with the Blackwells just around the corner, high taxes, and abuses of power from both priest and aristocrat, their grievances were many, and Lycaon knew that many of them might follow any fool whose ideas half-aligned with their own. He needed to work fast in order to prevent Johannia’s ilk from spreading. There were already her sympathizers running amuck through the provinces.
All that would have to wait, however, for now. He had no choice but take things one step at a time. Lycaon was not barred by the gate guards, and he quickly rode into the city. Lycaon turned to the attachment of knights he had brought with him as protection and excused them, and commanded them to return to headquarters. He continued to ride quickly, though not so quickly that he would bump into the hustle and bustle of the city, which would only slow him down even more. Some in the city recognized him and greeted him, and he waved back at them. Yet then he returned to his ride, making them aware he had other places to be.
Lycaon arrived at a large mansion, very much standing out in the neighborhood in which it stood. This place was his home in Nyhem, lavishly made, newly-built, and did not quite yet feel like home. Lycaon pulled the reins on his horse and stopped the steed, alerting the two knights of the Order of Saint Elenor who guarded his house, but they were caught by surprise and saluted when they saw who it was.
“Sir, you’ve returned!” they said.
“Indeed,” Lycaon said. “See to it that this horse does not run away, for I will be needing it. And one of you I will need to return to headquarters. Bishop Irenaeus and Bishop Leonellius will need to know that I have returned. You no doubt have no idea where they are, but headquarters will. And make sure that you inform me of your success.”
“Yes sir!” they said. “Shall we alert her ladyship of your presence?” one asked.
“No,” Lycaon said. “I shall go to meet Felise myself.”
He opened up the door easily enough. He had a key for it, as this was his house. As he opened the door the maid who was in the main hall sweeping looked at him with surprise at first, but then bowed. They exchanged the proper pleasantries, but Lycaon told her to continue with her duties. She offered to alert to his wife Felise, but Lycaon was intent on doing it himself. So she told him the room she was in, and Lycaon walked in that direction. This place still did not feel like home. Lycaon entered the room he had been told Felise was in. It was a room filled with servants all at work at their spinsters. Yet they had all risen for their posts, and as he opened the door Felise was there to greet him.
“You were expecting me,” Lycaon said.
“A suit of plate is hardly fitting for sneaking about,” Felise said.
Then she leaned towards him, and they kissed.
“The house has been lonelier without you,” Felise said.
“And the road is lonelier without you,” Lycaon said. “But at least for now I will not be leaving Nyhem.”
“Even if that is true, I know you won’t simply be lounging around here with me,” Felise said. “Bishops from all four corners of the kingdom have been coming in, ready to elect a new leader for our holy church. It’d be all people could talk about, were the civil war not at its zenith. ”
“They say companionship heals loneliness,” Lycaon said. “To have you introduced to the King’s court shall be no problem. You are of noble blood, and married into noble blood. And I am sure that ”
“I am no longer a sixteen year-old maiden,” Felise said.
“But your beauty and charm hasn’t faded,” Lycaon said.
“Only you were ever impressed by my charm,” Felise said. “Putting that aside, where does your day now send you to, Lycaon? A bishop, or perhaps some official that needs some coaxing?”
“Soon, but not now,” Lycaon said. “We can finally have some time alone.”
It was over an hour later when Lycaon finally met with one of the Bishops. He sat in the dining hall alone with a man named Leonellius. Nearly seventy years old and a bishop of thirty-five years, he was well-versed in every art and skill a bishop would ever need to partake in, and he was well-respected by about every bishop in the kingdom, at least publicly. He knew Lycaon’s plans for the Chuch, and was one of his most staunch and competent allies, supporting even those plans which Lycaon dared not utter publicly, but he had no desire for power himself. He was also a friend, who Lycaon met many times in his youth in his father’s court.
“Grandmaster, it is a pleasure,” Bishop Leonellius said. “You are the first to return to Nyhem after the battle that I know of.”
“I did not march with an army,” Lycaon said. “And I returned as quickly as I could. But many bishops arrived before I could return. So tell me, while you have been here and I have been away, what have you seen?”
“Not much,” Bishop Leonellius said. “As things have not gone completely well. It is a blessing of the gods that we have managed to keep secular affairs out of our own. Whether the land is de Reimer, Manshrew, or Blackwell, the bishops have arrived. Bishops from Uzgob and even Telmarion have arrived. Still, the war has been disruptive. Some bishops whose sees have been turned into battlefields have arrived nonetheless, but they arrive late, and some have not arrived at all yet. Still we wait. And there are some who have no excuse at all for not arriving. Bishops from Ralda and Cawanor, who should have arrived already, are nowhere in sight. And Bishop Marko, who was here in Nyhem just a few days ago, is nowhere to be seen. The same goes for that theologian, Avicebrol. It seems she went with Marko. So for now we have been having nothing but idle debates, which mean nothing in the grand scheme of things.”
“And I trust Bishop Irenaeus is in the favorite as the choice for next High Priest,” Lycaon said.
“As the bishop of Nyhem and your chosen favorite he is naturally the frontrunner,” Bishop Leonellius said. “But you had better expect a fight, Lycaon. There are many bishops here who do not appreciate your influence here. They see you as a mage-sympathizer and an innovator against tradition.”
“And I would expect nothing less,” Lycaon said. “But now is a time of urgency, and with the advent of the Johannians I think they know it. They will want a leader, and they will feel the pressure to give in. And my opponents are not united. They have nothing to stand for, other than their dislike for me.”
“One day they will have unity, Lycaon,” Bishop Leonellius said.
“But not today,” Lycaon said. “For now I will trust in you to see to it that Bishop Irenaeus becomes High Priest.”
“I will, to the best of my abilities,” Bishop Leonellius. “I hope that we achieve a majority immediately, otherwise this will get ugly.”
“I can only leave it to you,” Lycaon said. “Though I feel that we will. Change is in the air.”
“Yes, Grandmaster,” Bishop Leonellius said. “Though it is exactly that sort of talk that makes so much of the bishops dislike you.”
Sir Daeleth stood at the head of the brigade of the Order of Saint Elenor as they marched on towards the capital, the pages who stood at the front at the edges of the first rank blowing loud on their trumpets, announcing their approach to the city. Also at the front were the two flagbearers, one bearing the holy flag and the other depicting the emblem of the Kingdom of Formaroth. The knights were in the front, standing atop their armored horses, and were followed by the militia behind them. Sir Daeleth rode alongside Sir Sayer. Sir Glynda had not joined them, and had gone to give their friend Sir Raeya a proper burial. They too had tried to give their friend a proper sending off, but in a different way. Sir Glynda dealt with the graveness of death and burial, while they celebrated with merriment, taking a detour to the city of Telmarion. Sir Daeleth could no longer remember much of it. The band began to play on their instruments as they approached the gates of Nyhem. Daeleth had met with this band personally, but only knew some of them, and others seemed only vaguely familiar. He vaguely remembered a lieutenant telling him that they had managed to convince some local Telmarion musicians to join them by offering an exorbitant amount of money. Most of the night in Telmarion he did not remember. He remembered joining Sir Sayer at a tavern. There were a number of Telmarion taverns that their units filled, with those who knew Raeya and those who served under her taking a few drinks in her honor. But he had joined with Sir Sayer. The event was very teary and heartfelt at first, and then became very rowdy and wild. The last thing Daeleth remembered was him getting into a drinking contest after he slighted his ability to hold down alcohol, the rules being whoever was down first was the loser. It apparently was a draw. The mourning went well into morning, and the soldiers had apparently caused quite a ruckus. An officer had reassured him that technically there had been no deaths, but Daeleth did not find this reassuring.
Both that night and the hangover it produced were long gone, now, and it was finally time for them to have a little rest after a long travel. The band continued to play jubilantly as they marched through the street, the people looking wide-eyed at them as they passed them by. It was then that they dispersed. They had already been given maps designating their proper location. Some units were to be sent to manors belonging to associates of the Order, some were to be sent to fill inns that had already been reserved before, and some were to lodge with residents friendly with the order. Daeleth had informed the officers that if any of them got lost and ended at the wrong place there would have hell to pay.
Herona marched with Sir Sayer’s unit, along with Sir Gwladus, into an inn. Sir Sayer was the first to enter, standing tall and spirted in his suit of plate armor, standing so fearsomely that none of his men dared to cause a ruckus as they entered. Sir Sayer walked over to the barwoman, and in a gregarious voice announced their arrival to her, as if she were not aware already, and gave her his thanks. The men were already taking their seats at the tables that were set out. Herona had her mind set on joining them.
“Now’s a good a time as any to get ya’ that drink I promised ya’,” Herona said, turning to Sir Gwladus, who merely nodded.