Post by Lady Elestirne on May 8, 2007 9:24:51 GMT -5
I am the Lady Elestirne, Queen of the elven-realm of Taraer and this is my story...
I was born in the realm of Taraer on Solstice night in the closing centuries of the last Age-the third of the world in the fashion of time as my people reckon it-to the elves Elentirmo and Amaurea;their only child and daughter.
My mother, Amaurea, was named 'the Golden' among her people for her tresses of radiant gold. She was the daughter of a noble family of Elven-folk that dwelled mainly in the southern forests of Taraer. She was famed among them as a skilled healer, tracker,and rare beauty. She was also well-known for her way with animals. Her father was ruler and prince of the wood-folk but beyond that I know little of him,or any other of my mother's family.
My father, Elentirmo, was a high elf of the House of Nolimon-a very noble house of high blood. He was known as a skilled warrior and seer. To a degree, he was known to have an ability with magic-but he was rarely seen to use it. Yet there was more to my father than just this only. In addition to his House being noble it was also very ancient. Long though it had been forgotten,the House of Nolimon was originally-in happier times long past-what the royal house of the forgotten kings had been called;back when the house of the kings had been remembered and in power,and the name had been known and used. But now it was forgotten;as the house itself and its descendants largely had been.
The reason for this was that an ancient fued had occured many centuries ere my parents' time, which had sundered the noble houses of the high kindred and deposed the royal family-in addition to driving a wedge between the high elves and the silvan wood-elves that were my mother's people. The instigater of this fued-and the one responsible for driving the wedge between the kindreds and sundering the noble house-was an ambitious, power-hungry young high elf. Once, he had been in high favour and honour with the nobles and royal family,but he became too proud and fell from grace and the king's favor.
Disgraced,he was stripped of his titles and nobility and sent into exile with his sons and those that would follow him of the House he had formed. Things went on as they had been for a time but in his dark fortress the exiled one brooded on his disgrace, and his anger at his humiliation and imagined wrongs turned quickly to a bitter, all-consuming hatred of the royal family. His previous ambition came back to him and he began to plot to dispose of the of the royal family and seize power in their fall;styling himself better fit to rule than they. Soon, he had gathered enough force and launched his attack;coming in the dead of the night to the capital city,which was open and defenceless. In his pride and arrogance,he believed he had accomplished his goal.
But,unbeknownst to him,a scarce few of the royal family survived that day and their descendants-of whom my father came-were carefully hidden and gaurded in the years after;whilst the steward-another survivor of the attack-governed the remnants of the people and realm in the name of the kings. Also unknown to the faithless one-for thus he was referred to after the attack-a prophecy was made foretelling that one of royal blood who remained would rise up and unite the two kindreds and the noble houses of the high elves and make the realm whole again. This was to be me.
But all of this I was not to learn for many years-not until I was nearly full-grown in the accounting of my kind-for my heritage,true lineage and the prophecy had all been kept secret from me,to protect me. For-although he had not yet discovered the prophecy and its meaning-the faithless one had discovered that some of the royal family had escaped his attack and survived, and he had since devoted his time and energy to finding the descendants and survivors and killing them. Though my father's parents had been killed by the traitor years past,my father continued to manage to elude and hide from him,so my childhood-brief although it was-passed relatively quietly.
Eventually though-as unfortunately is the nature of things-the faithless one deciphered the prophecy and learned of my existence and, in the same moment, discovered where my father had been hiding for so long;a secret grove,deep in a forest. Within a few years as we account time-while I was still a child in the eyes of my people-he attacked;killing my father in an ambush as we rode together through the forest. I survived the attack and brought my father's body back to my mother-who faded away shortly after from grief and shock,leaving me orphaned and alone.
After their deaths I was found by the ancient seer Galion and taken to the city of Mirenan-the capital of Taraer. There, I was fostered for a time by the steward Mardil whom-along with Galion-was one of the very few that knew of the prophecy and the continued, secret existence of the royal family. They were also, I was to find out later, distant kinsmen of my father-not born of the ruling royal line-but family nonetheless;related of a different line.
Before my parents' deaths, I had been taught healing and the ways of the forest by my mother, and learned some swordfighting, handfighting and minor magic from my father. But now,in the city,my weapons training would begin in earnest. Two things though,that I would not need to be taught was healing and the foresight-for I had natural, innate talent and ability for both of these and in time was given the positions of healer and seeress of the city; becoming the youngest elf in all the long history of Mirenan to hold either position, much less both at the same time.
One of my instructors in the ways of weapons was a grim, arrogant elf by the name of Aegnor. As Fate would have it-and unbeknownst to me at the time,or for some years after-he was the one that had killed my father and,at the same time,the ancient enemy of the royal family;initiater of the age-old fued. Much I learned of him of the little he would teach but something about him always made me uneasy and so, I was ever wary of-and kept my distance from-him and never spent more time in his company than I had or needed to.
Time passed,as time will. I missed my parents,and the little home we had had in the forest,and would slip away-or run away some might say-from time to time to return there,but I gradually grew used to my life in the city,and began to look on Mardil almost as a father substitute and Galion as mentor and gaurdian. My life in the city,it could be said,was not bad,but it was lonely and quiet. Besides Mardil and Galion,and perhaps one or two others it was devoid of companionship. I kept to myself and interacted with others seldom outside of what I needed to. I was not even found associating with elves my own age very often.
I had gone from a life of having no one other than my parents to talk and interact with-and from having seen no other elves but they until Galion-to having elves everywhere. Going from a life of quiet and peace in the wods to a life of noise in the city was overwhelming and something I never got used to. All the while Aegnor-after realizing who I was-bided his time and waited for the right moment to strike.
When I was roughly the equilvalent of an 18-19 year old according to the way mortals reckon age and time,Aegnor attacked Mirenan;hoping to accomplish what he had started and make an end of the royal family once and for all. But I was not in the city when he struck and so, escaped. However,I would not learn Aegnor had led the attack until later. Leaving the realm, I wandered;eventually finding my way into a neighboring land of mortals called Loderia.
While in Loderia, I was found by,and fell in with, a mortal warrior named Aldanius and his group. Accompanying them to a fortress some distance south of Loderia I helped them to fight and defeat an army of possessed dwarves-in the process saving the life of Aldanius,who had been wounded in the assault. During this, I also helped them to defeat and kill a powerful demon-the source of the dwarves' possession- accidentally summoning a powerful light elemental in the shape of a unicorn to help accomplish this deed. After the demon was dead,the dwarves defeated, and the fortress taken, I journeyed with them again-this time far to the north,to the evil land of Daeron,which had once been Aldanius's home, to defeat his former lord and set him on the throne instead.
During that journey,I became aware that someone was hunting me,and had moreover been having visions and dreams since summoning the unicorn,which gave me insights into my past and lineage, and clues into my future and destiny. And always there was an undertone of warning, danger, and darkness to the fragments of dreams and sight I was given on the journey to Daeron.
After being attacked by dark magic through one such dream on the way,I left the group and continued on alone with my stallion Olore,whom I had found near Loderia,or nearly alone,for a mortal mercenary that had joined us-Grease Lugnut by name-had followed Olore and I, seeking to pay a debt he felt he owed,for I had saved his life when the group had come upon him.
While in Daeron, I met and slew Aegnor after a terrific battle-for he had been hunting and tracking me ever since he had learned I had escaped his attack on Mirenan. From him,I learned everything of my destiny, lineage,and the prophecy and all was made clear to me. While I was battling the faithless one, Aldanius and the others-who had caught up-had infiltrated the castle and overthrown the tyrant lord. I rejoined them after my own struggle with Aegnor had been concluded and,after Aldanius was made king I returned with Olore to Taraer and fulfilled the prophecy;becoming Tar-Elestirne Starbrow,Queen of the elves. And thus do you know my story-or at least as much as needs be told for now.
ooc:this is a revised,better edition of my character story. feedback is welcome
I was born in the realm of Taraer on Solstice night in the closing centuries of the last Age-the third of the world in the fashion of time as my people reckon it-to the elves Elentirmo and Amaurea;their only child and daughter.
My mother, Amaurea, was named 'the Golden' among her people for her tresses of radiant gold. She was the daughter of a noble family of Elven-folk that dwelled mainly in the southern forests of Taraer. She was famed among them as a skilled healer, tracker,and rare beauty. She was also well-known for her way with animals. Her father was ruler and prince of the wood-folk but beyond that I know little of him,or any other of my mother's family.
My father, Elentirmo, was a high elf of the House of Nolimon-a very noble house of high blood. He was known as a skilled warrior and seer. To a degree, he was known to have an ability with magic-but he was rarely seen to use it. Yet there was more to my father than just this only. In addition to his House being noble it was also very ancient. Long though it had been forgotten,the House of Nolimon was originally-in happier times long past-what the royal house of the forgotten kings had been called;back when the house of the kings had been remembered and in power,and the name had been known and used. But now it was forgotten;as the house itself and its descendants largely had been.
The reason for this was that an ancient fued had occured many centuries ere my parents' time, which had sundered the noble houses of the high kindred and deposed the royal family-in addition to driving a wedge between the high elves and the silvan wood-elves that were my mother's people. The instigater of this fued-and the one responsible for driving the wedge between the kindreds and sundering the noble house-was an ambitious, power-hungry young high elf. Once, he had been in high favour and honour with the nobles and royal family,but he became too proud and fell from grace and the king's favor.
Disgraced,he was stripped of his titles and nobility and sent into exile with his sons and those that would follow him of the House he had formed. Things went on as they had been for a time but in his dark fortress the exiled one brooded on his disgrace, and his anger at his humiliation and imagined wrongs turned quickly to a bitter, all-consuming hatred of the royal family. His previous ambition came back to him and he began to plot to dispose of the of the royal family and seize power in their fall;styling himself better fit to rule than they. Soon, he had gathered enough force and launched his attack;coming in the dead of the night to the capital city,which was open and defenceless. In his pride and arrogance,he believed he had accomplished his goal.
But,unbeknownst to him,a scarce few of the royal family survived that day and their descendants-of whom my father came-were carefully hidden and gaurded in the years after;whilst the steward-another survivor of the attack-governed the remnants of the people and realm in the name of the kings. Also unknown to the faithless one-for thus he was referred to after the attack-a prophecy was made foretelling that one of royal blood who remained would rise up and unite the two kindreds and the noble houses of the high elves and make the realm whole again. This was to be me.
But all of this I was not to learn for many years-not until I was nearly full-grown in the accounting of my kind-for my heritage,true lineage and the prophecy had all been kept secret from me,to protect me. For-although he had not yet discovered the prophecy and its meaning-the faithless one had discovered that some of the royal family had escaped his attack and survived, and he had since devoted his time and energy to finding the descendants and survivors and killing them. Though my father's parents had been killed by the traitor years past,my father continued to manage to elude and hide from him,so my childhood-brief although it was-passed relatively quietly.
Eventually though-as unfortunately is the nature of things-the faithless one deciphered the prophecy and learned of my existence and, in the same moment, discovered where my father had been hiding for so long;a secret grove,deep in a forest. Within a few years as we account time-while I was still a child in the eyes of my people-he attacked;killing my father in an ambush as we rode together through the forest. I survived the attack and brought my father's body back to my mother-who faded away shortly after from grief and shock,leaving me orphaned and alone.
After their deaths I was found by the ancient seer Galion and taken to the city of Mirenan-the capital of Taraer. There, I was fostered for a time by the steward Mardil whom-along with Galion-was one of the very few that knew of the prophecy and the continued, secret existence of the royal family. They were also, I was to find out later, distant kinsmen of my father-not born of the ruling royal line-but family nonetheless;related of a different line.
Before my parents' deaths, I had been taught healing and the ways of the forest by my mother, and learned some swordfighting, handfighting and minor magic from my father. But now,in the city,my weapons training would begin in earnest. Two things though,that I would not need to be taught was healing and the foresight-for I had natural, innate talent and ability for both of these and in time was given the positions of healer and seeress of the city; becoming the youngest elf in all the long history of Mirenan to hold either position, much less both at the same time.
One of my instructors in the ways of weapons was a grim, arrogant elf by the name of Aegnor. As Fate would have it-and unbeknownst to me at the time,or for some years after-he was the one that had killed my father and,at the same time,the ancient enemy of the royal family;initiater of the age-old fued. Much I learned of him of the little he would teach but something about him always made me uneasy and so, I was ever wary of-and kept my distance from-him and never spent more time in his company than I had or needed to.
Time passed,as time will. I missed my parents,and the little home we had had in the forest,and would slip away-or run away some might say-from time to time to return there,but I gradually grew used to my life in the city,and began to look on Mardil almost as a father substitute and Galion as mentor and gaurdian. My life in the city,it could be said,was not bad,but it was lonely and quiet. Besides Mardil and Galion,and perhaps one or two others it was devoid of companionship. I kept to myself and interacted with others seldom outside of what I needed to. I was not even found associating with elves my own age very often.
I had gone from a life of having no one other than my parents to talk and interact with-and from having seen no other elves but they until Galion-to having elves everywhere. Going from a life of quiet and peace in the wods to a life of noise in the city was overwhelming and something I never got used to. All the while Aegnor-after realizing who I was-bided his time and waited for the right moment to strike.
When I was roughly the equilvalent of an 18-19 year old according to the way mortals reckon age and time,Aegnor attacked Mirenan;hoping to accomplish what he had started and make an end of the royal family once and for all. But I was not in the city when he struck and so, escaped. However,I would not learn Aegnor had led the attack until later. Leaving the realm, I wandered;eventually finding my way into a neighboring land of mortals called Loderia.
While in Loderia, I was found by,and fell in with, a mortal warrior named Aldanius and his group. Accompanying them to a fortress some distance south of Loderia I helped them to fight and defeat an army of possessed dwarves-in the process saving the life of Aldanius,who had been wounded in the assault. During this, I also helped them to defeat and kill a powerful demon-the source of the dwarves' possession- accidentally summoning a powerful light elemental in the shape of a unicorn to help accomplish this deed. After the demon was dead,the dwarves defeated, and the fortress taken, I journeyed with them again-this time far to the north,to the evil land of Daeron,which had once been Aldanius's home, to defeat his former lord and set him on the throne instead.
During that journey,I became aware that someone was hunting me,and had moreover been having visions and dreams since summoning the unicorn,which gave me insights into my past and lineage, and clues into my future and destiny. And always there was an undertone of warning, danger, and darkness to the fragments of dreams and sight I was given on the journey to Daeron.
After being attacked by dark magic through one such dream on the way,I left the group and continued on alone with my stallion Olore,whom I had found near Loderia,or nearly alone,for a mortal mercenary that had joined us-Grease Lugnut by name-had followed Olore and I, seeking to pay a debt he felt he owed,for I had saved his life when the group had come upon him.
While in Daeron, I met and slew Aegnor after a terrific battle-for he had been hunting and tracking me ever since he had learned I had escaped his attack on Mirenan. From him,I learned everything of my destiny, lineage,and the prophecy and all was made clear to me. While I was battling the faithless one, Aldanius and the others-who had caught up-had infiltrated the castle and overthrown the tyrant lord. I rejoined them after my own struggle with Aegnor had been concluded and,after Aldanius was made king I returned with Olore to Taraer and fulfilled the prophecy;becoming Tar-Elestirne Starbrow,Queen of the elves. And thus do you know my story-or at least as much as needs be told for now.
ooc:this is a revised,better edition of my character story. feedback is welcome