Welcome to the.....
Eldarion, Zeph, Corporal Joreen and Dardt facing the Darkguard before
the portal to Tynntangial (For those following the [Dark] thread).
How the [Dark] all began (Overview)
Zephillia (Zeph) Elessidel
Eldarion Elessidel II
Garrison the Druid
The Warden ('bush')
Joreen Sandor
Elana Elessidel
Flanner
Walks-on-two-legs
The Dark is an epic struggle betwixt the forces of good and the forces of evil. The evil
comes in the form of the Dark One, an evil from ancient times, immortal, and with god-like
powers (he has, in fact, been worshiped as a god by many). The Dark One was last cast down
nearly a millenia ago, by the combined efforts of the great powers on Ifreann at that
time. Now, during a time in which his past horrors are all but forgotten, he has
resurfaced, and sends forth his minions from Shadowkeep (his fortress at the polar north
of Ifreann), to pave the way for his return. As in most epics, the forces of good, whether gods or fates, set into motion events
which would bring together strangers to stand in the way of the Dark One. First, a young,
half-elven girl steals what seems an important scroll from the desk of her evil master. In
flight from her master, she comes upon one who has been seeking her, an elven soldier from
a far off land. At the same time, a blind old man, perhaps sent by a god, meets with them
at a strange inn. It is at this inn that the group has first sighting of some of the Dark
One's servants, the Darkguard. During a struggle in front of the inn, a green-hued
halfling, who counts all things in nature as a friend, comes to the aid of the fallen
elven soldier. Thus begins the course of events which will come to be known as The Dark...
Zeph ia an orphaned half-elven girl with remarkable red hair that resembles fire in the
sunlight. She stands at a height of 4'10 with long slender legs that lend her speed and
agility. Her life has been hard and adventurous. She can be described as a grifter who
knows how to live by her wits. Emerald green eyes and a brilliant smile make it possible
for her to charm the sourest old man or coldest witch. She has a good heart regardless of
her difficult past, but she will not hesitate from relieving the unexpected of their
purse.
A child born of love and compassion, but lost within a world about to explode into
chaos, her parents had escaped not persecution or hatred, they had left their families and
home carrying their unborn child to escape shame. Zeph was born a child of two distinct
races. Her father, a brave descendent of a powerful and diverse family of elves from the
lands of Tynntangial. Her mother, a beautiful maiden from a human band of travelling
Gypsies who happened upon the doorsteps of the great city of Daventry.
Her parents acted on passions that created both love and hate. The elven aristocrats
(not necessarily Seleseri's immediate family) looked upon the union with suspicion and
damned the pair. The Gypsies felt the union to be unholy and foul. Their love strong, the
two cose to elope.
Years had come and gone with the wind. Zeph's family settled and grew together happily.
As Zeph aged slowly through her childhood, she could not help but notice the rapid aging
of her mother. Her once young and vital mother began to slow and complain of aches and
pains while her father's physical state like her own remained almost constant in
comparison. The time would come when she would be told of her origin, but that time never
came as it had been planned by her loving parents. As cruel as life and death can
sometimes be, her aging mother was taken from her one morning, when she was but a babe.
Her strong and courageous father, she thought, had also perished on that awful morn.
Afraid, lost and lonely, our young heroin, found solace in foster parents who lived the
life of the nomad. In return for food, clothing, shelter and even sometimes kindness, Zeph
learnt and practice the trades appropriate to her newly found fosters. She worked and
performed eloquently. Her natural talents and agility proved to be beneficial in her new
life.
The price her new life expended was her innocence. At such a young age, a child should
be busy at play, not merely dreaming of it. Work is for the adult, the provider. Zeph grew
up in a world that spat you out as quick as it chewed you up. She was a quick learner. She
excelled at the game...
Eldarion is a Captain of Legentors from far off Tynntangial. He is the son of Eldivyne,
the Lordholder (Duke) of House Elessidel. He has a twin sister named Elana, and he is
cousin to Zeph. Their uncle, Eventyne Elessidel, is the Highlord (King) of Tynntangial.
Eldarion is six feet tall, with silver hair and piercing amber eyes. He is usually
dressed in the uniform of the Legentors, a mix of elven plate, chain and leather armour
made specifically for the elven cavalry. He rides a horse like he was born to it, and is
very proficient with lance and sword.
Eldarion possesses one of the thirteen cursed swords made from the black fangs of the
dragon-demon Xeen. This sword is a soul drinker, and Eldarion feels it is his duty
(curse?) to bear the sword so that its powers will not be used for evil. Being elvish,
Eldarion is somewhat resistant to the mind controlling powers of his sword, though he has
lost that battle on occasion. The sword possesses the souls of all who have been slayn by
it.
Another aspect of the curse is that the thirteen bearers of the swords of Xeen must
seek each other out, and duel to the death. The winner's sword claims the soul of the
loser, and the sword of the loser is destroyed after it too, has it's soul? claimed by the
winning sword. Eldarion has had to fight such a duel twice (though his sword lays claim to
the souls? of five of its brothers). There are possibly seven other swords of Xeen still
out in the world.
Besides drinking the souls of victims in battle (a *_very_* potent psychological
weapon), the swords protect their bearer's from certain destructive magics and wards. They
also have the power to quicken the healing process of those who carry them.
Eldarion has the devoted friendship of a pocket dragon named Dardt. Dardt is the size
of a large house cat. Though he can't breathe fire, he does possess very sharp claws and
teeth to defend himself. He is often asked to scout for Eldarion, a job he has become most
proficient at.
Garrison a very old man dressed in plain peasants clothes. His gray beard and long hair
are very ragged in apperance. The most notable feature about him is that he is blind.
Garrison has been accused of being many diffrent thing through out his life. A Druid, a
Warlock, a King, a Demon. What he really is, is a incarnation of Nature. He came into
existance at the dawn of time. He gets summond from his sleep in a place called 'the void'
when the land is in danger. Garrison is eternal, not immortal. When he dies he is sent
back to the void where he rests to regan his strength until he is needed again. However,
also born at the same time as Garrison was the Being known to some as the Dark One. He
also hold the same eternal status that Garrison has.Garrison and the Dark One have battled
time and time again in an endless cycle. A circle the the Dark One wishes to destroy.
Garrison's other senses have become extremly heightend since Garrison became blind. He
lost his vision from a attack inside the void by a pet Shadow Demon of the Dark One's
called Jericho. Garrison also has many powers of a Druid.
Garrison has lived many diffrent lives and has been known by many diffrent names
through out history. Even he has lost track of them all. Often he works behind the scene
and supports this group or that Hero letting them get all the fame. Occasionally, things
get so bad that he has to take direct action. Such a time is now, as he battles in the
[Dark].
The traditional role of druids has been to guard their sacred lands, and perform
druidic rites, etc. Occasionally, they go adventuring. But who looks out for the intrests
of Nature where there are no druids guarding their lands? Who follows those who wrong
nature across several lands. This is where the Wardens of the Plants come in. Not
necessarily druids, the Wardens are Nature-worshipping beings who have been appointed by
Sharionas (Nature deity) to the post. 'bush' is one of these. 'bush' towers over the
average halfling, though they are by no means tall. They have a pale green skin color most
times, with darker green hair that waves like grass. Their limbs are knotted, certainly
humanoid, but with a tough skin that feels almost like the bark of a tree. More than one
person, Sharionas combined the mind of a male halfling skilled in personnal psionics and
druidic lore with those of a dyrad and her rowan tree, into the body of the halfling. The
body has changed to reflect those inside. By doing this, Sharionas saved the lives of all
of them, in a way, and combined with the granted powers of a Warden of the Plants, formed
a creature more suited to the job than most.
Joreen is a member of House Sandor, and serves her house as a Lanceleader in the Legentors
of Tynntangial, placing her at the lowest rank of the officer corp of the elven cavalry.
She was elevated to this rank for her service while as a Corporal assisting Captain
Eldarion Elessidel in bringing Zephillia Elessidel home.
Joreen is 5'8", with blue black hair and grey eyes. She is quite beautiful (for a
soldier), but has never let her looks get in the way of being a Legentor. She is not a
member of the inner household of house Sandor (being a fourth cousin, thrice removed, from
the current Lordholder Sandor), so has never participated in life at court.
She is quite proficient on horseback. She is an expert with a lance, a sword, or even a
longbow. She has a minimal amount of magical abilities, having been given some training in
magic as a Legentor.
Though she has never thought of love before, she has recently become enamoured of
Eldarion. She has not shown this outwardly (being a breach of Legentor etiquette to do
so), but feels that perhaps he too may have similar feelings for her.
Elana is cousin to Zeph and sister to Eldarion. She is the daughter of the Lordholder
(Duke) Elessidel. Elana has spent most of her adult life in service to the court of
Tynntangial in the capitol city of Daventry.
Elana is a graduate of Mount Kalador, and has gone on into graduate work. She is an
extremely accomplished mage, having studied many of the forbidden tomes kept in the vaults
of the library at Mount Kalador. She has surpassed many of her former instructors in both
skill and power, and has been invited numerous times to teach at the college.
Elana is 5'10", has dark brown hair with blonde streaks framing her face. Her eyes
are amber in colour, and she is lithe of frame. She is gracious and quite friendly in
nature until she is crossed (or someone crosses a member of her family), at which point
she is still gracious (ever the politician), but aloof to the offending party. Elana is
quite beautiful, and has had many suitors attempt to win her hand. Elana is quite
suspicious of such suitors, not sure whether they wish her hand for love, or for political
gain and access to the Highlord and Lordholder Elessidel (House Daven is notorious for
their arranged 'political' marriages). She has sworn not to marry for political reasons
(such as an alliance with another house).
She stays current with the fashions of Tynntangial (being a member of the royal court).
She is a firm proponent of the ideals of House Elessidel, and will voice the opinions of
her house quite vociferously in council.
When they were younger, Elana had a falling out with her twin brother when he decided
to leave home to join the Legentors. They have since patched things up, both seeing the
need for the two of them to do what they do best for the good of House Elessidel and
Tynntangial.
Flanner goes only by the name Flanner. His full name is, of course, fuller than that --
much fuller than that. However, it is acutely embarassing to him to have to admit that he
cannot remember all of it and therefore, he compensates by insisting on just being called
Flanner. (When one's full name runs on for nearly ten minutes of recitation, this becomes
a little more understandable, and after stumbling too many times in the development
section of his performance, Flanner simply stopped trying.)
Flanner is terribly dwarven. Since he looks terribly dwarven, people tend to expect him
to act terribly dwarven -- and Flanner usually obliges them. He can grumble with the best
of them, and always find something to complain about.
Unusually for someone with such a dour disposition, Flanner is outrageously lucky. He
can go through hours of melee combat without suffering a scratch. This is because he was
born lucky but spent nearly all his life carrying around a marble which, while powerful in
ways that aren't yet understood, also brings misfortune on its owner. Flanner finally gave
away the marble very recently and his karma is now trying to make up for lost time.
Flanner's karma seems to take a lot of his luckiness out of whatever weapon he's wielding
(finding ways to break even the unbreakable stuff...)
Walks-on-Two-Legs is a giant weasel. The really strange thing about him is the fact
that he has human intelligence. He got his name from his woodland brethren because he has
the ability to do just that, walk on two legs.
Walk-on-Two-Legs has felt alone in the world due to his uniqueness. His intellegence
makes the animals of the forest wary at times and his appearance makes man-kind look down
on him.
He has obtained several items that allows him to fit into human society. He owns a
pendant that translates his thoughts into words that humans can understand. Also he owns a
cloak that when worn while standing up, makes him appear almost human. He also carries a
walking stick that he uses if he has to walk upright for any long period of time.
He still claims the forest as his home and often finds human ways very confusing. He
tries to avoid human involvement when possible and occasionally acts as guardian of
certain forests from evil forces.
Walks-on-Two-Legs has come out of his forest ways to join a group of humanoids because
of a request by a powerful woodland spirit. He deosn't know his true role in what is going
on, but trusts he is doing the right thing.
Last revised 07.22.2001 03:32:03 PM
