Eferhilda rolled 1d6 and got a total of 6:
6
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Name: Ardessi AldrittGender: Female
Age: 32
Description: Large and awkward would describe her best, as she stands at a towering 6’7 and weighs in at 285lbs. The blonde hair on her head has been bleached white from the hours of toiling in the sun and what would have been fair skin, has been tanned a nearly permanent olive color. Since her time in the military a number of scars now cover her body, though the ones on her back are old and the product of a “loving” uncle. Despite her age, the blues of her eyes hold an innocence to them, which is often clouded over by bouts of rage and anger when provoked. (note: The image referenced is not my own and all credit due to it for the artist linked here:
Gary Grey )
Home City: Utane
Bio:Ardessi Aldritt was the unwanted child of her mother, who had high hopes of being more than her simple upbringing. The beauty and quick tongue she possessed she was well on her way to improving her social standing if she could have merely kept her legs closed. Ardessi was an unwanted burden and as such her mother sought to discard her as soon as possible, which happened to be on the doorstep of her older already disgraced brother. With nothing but a note and a handful of gold included in her basket, Ardessi was left to be cared for by a man whom her mother hardly spoke with anymore. Such was the true lack of care, her mother had not even bothered to check if her brother was home, or at least wait around to see if he was there to answer the door.
For two nights, Ardessi sat there on the doorstep crying out to a world that did not care to hear it.
When her uncle finally stumbled home, he nearly kicked over the basket in his drunken haze and truthfully it was only the fact that he was drunk at all, that he had managed to miss crushing the poor babe that had finally cried herself to sleep.
Brought into his cold dank home, she was left on the floor by the fireplace, while he tried to make sense of the note that was left. With little love for his sister, he thought of taking the infant to the river, weighing down her basket and drowning her. However, the note mentioned some monetary reimbursement should he tend to the child. So, for the time being, he would keep her around, which meant that he had some extra help about the farm, once the brat learned to walk. Ardessi was spared death, though the life that she was to lead one might have thought death would have been better.
Right away it was obvious he had no idea what to do with the child and as such, when she was an infant she developed a nasty ear infection that resulted in loss of hearing in one ear and partial hearing loss in the other. Given he cared little for her the child was never taken to see anyone to help her and as she grew he assumed she was defective in the head, which was why she had never learned to speak or was just slow on the uptake. However, none of this truly concerned him, for he was more focused on her physical uses than having anyone around for conversation. Once she was big enough to walk and not murder herself, he had her in the fields with him. Toiling away at the earth, her body learned to adapt not only to the hard labor but the harsh diet as well. She became tough and it was figured that early on she would have inherited some substantial height from whoever was his father.
The stronger she became, the harder he worked her to the point where he had her hooked up to the plow like some cattle and whipped fairly much the same as well. The people of the town were not completely sure he should have treated her as such, but then again none of them wanted the burden they though her to be with her apparent “defect”. Ardessi, or “Idiot” as her uncle called her, had a lonely childhood and a life without knowing any true kindness. When she finally came into her magical powers, life only got harder for her.
Children, like adults, can be cruel especially when they are confronted with something that is different and they did not understand. Ardessi was both of those. One day, as she sat by herself something she did often some of the meaner and bolder children thought it would be funny to have a little fun with her. They made it a game, on who could hit her with a stone. Simple enough concept, though there were bonus points given for vital parts of her form, along with some extra points to be scored if they made her cry. Aridessi had just turned eighteen that summer and preferred to be left alone for the most part. Under a tree by the river she sat, some stone toys she had managed to carve her only friends and true means of enjoyment sat before her. Caught up in some heroic adventure private to her, she was happy.
Then a rock was thrown.
It struck her shoulder, with a solid thud that brought a sharp pain and drew her attention. On their faces she saw their amusement as well as more stone waiting to be thrown. With a sigh she tried to ignore them as she went back to her toys, only for another rock to strike her in the back. This time she ignored the pain, fought back the tears and tried to just focus on her toys praying that they would grow tired of their games and leave her be.
ThumpThis one struck her in the head and made her cry out in pain, even if it was more of a wordless guttural sound more akin to an animal than anything a human should make. Tear stun her eyes and blood dripped from the cut on her head, still it was not until the next rock “missed” and landed on her toys, completely destroying them that the anger set in. Vision clouded over with an unseeing rage, the next rock thrown halted mere inches from her face only to be flung in the next moment back at the person who threw it. When it connected there was a loud smack and the kid was knocked off his feet, and was still when his body connected with the ground. Fear was in the eyes of those that were still on their feet as they watched her raise her hands and felt the ground tremble beneath their feet, before a large fissure opened up and threatened to swallow them whole. They scrambled back desperately to get away, while the broken fragments of her toys were levitated and hurled at them.
There was no stopping her, their cries literally fell on deaf ears and it was only when her uncle happened by and being able to get the drop on her and knock her out cold did it stop. The beating that she received that night was the one that earned her the scar on her right cheek she bares today. From then one she stayed on the farm and only went into town with him if she ever went at all, kept like some monster in the basement her contact with the human world became nonexistent. That is until the army came through town.
Magical Skill: Novice (strongest being lightening)
Preferred Elements: At the moment the wild and unruly elements that she seems able to muster is lightning and earth.
Dragon's Color: Yellow
What did I do to deserve this?
All her life, Ardessi tried to please the man she lived with, the man who treated her like little more than an animal at times and often worse than that. She worked hard and tried her best, though he was never happy or pleased, especially after that day when she had attacked those other kids. It was not her fault and she did not even remember what she had done, but still she did her best to not be any more different and to make him happy. Which was why she had been down at the fields alone that day, to try and get an early start at her chores while he had gone into town to drink, he was always in a foul mood when he came back and she wanted to try and spare herself a bit of his rage.
Back to the house, she had been trying to move a large stone that had suddenly found its way into the field. It was heavy, but she had managed to heft it and get it up to her shoulder when she felt someone grab her from behind. Strong hands on her arms, made her panic the rock was dropped with an odd stroke of luck onto her attackers foot. Released from his grasped she ran straight to the house, as she wanted to go and hide herself somewhere until the man returned. Relief washed over her when she saw him standing there though that relief quickly turned to fear when a group came from within the house, one of them holding a small sack in their hands. When he spotted her, the man who had been in her life, the only “family” that she knew pointed to her and called the armored groups attention to her.
One of them gestured and the others took off after her. Panic fueled her actions though she did not get far as the one whose foot she had injured accidently with the rock tackled her to the group. Nothing made sense and no matter how much she struggled, fought or cried out no one stopped. The tears came down her face and she felt her hands being bound behind her back and a metal collar being slipped around her neck before she was hauled to her feet.
“Uhhhh! UHHHH!!” she called out to the man who stood there with an all too pleased smirk on his face as he counted his dirty money. Only once did he glance up at her, only once did their eyes meet. Her’s filled with the question of
Why?, his filled with a look that read
Good riddance. It was the last thing she saw before a burlap bag was placed about her head then.
“She is a strong one,” remarked one of the soldiers who had been struck by one of her kicks in the struggle. “Should have seen the size of the rock she had lifted to her shoulder when I came upon her in the field,” the chain to her collar secured to the back of their wagon.
“The dumb ones are usually strong. Nature’s way of making up for them being so vulnerable otherwise,” the captain remarked from atop his horse.
“We sure she’s a mage? I mean she did not try anything when we were wrestling her to the ground,” another soldier spoke up as he nudged Ardessi with his foot from where he sat atop his horse.
“Besides the drunken fool, some of the other town folks said she had attacked some of the other kids some years ago. Made the ground open up and threw rocks at them,” the captain shrugged. “Even if she is not one though, her strength can be put to use. We will have one of the other mages look at her when we get to camp. I am sure they will know what her story is.”
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Cold and WetWater was thrown on her to rouse her from where she slept in the corner of her cage. The wild mage they called her, more animal than human with a rage that scared even the dragons. Though she appeared slow, her strength became more of an asset to the group and they enjoyed the protection her wild magic could bring to them when she used it. To try and make it more reliable they had partnered her up with another mage, by the name of Maggie a younger girl who was kind of heart and patient where others were not. She knew Ardessi was not just some monster, nor was she dumb she just could not hear much of anything. Though many did not think it possible, but the two had bonded and whenever she could Maggie tried to stick up for her.
“Must you wake her like that!” Maggie snapped at the soldier who had the task of being on guard duty for the “Wild Mage” this day, a task that many of them despised more than any of the other duties in camp. Besides the danger from her uncontrollable magic, the girl had the tendency to bite and spit when provoked. These on days when she was more manageable.
“Want me to go in there and stroke her face? Coo softly to her?” he spat then laughed as he walked off.
Ardessi crouched in the corner of her cage, damp from the cold water as she shook seemingly from the change in temperature. Her head hung low as she tried to shake the last of sleep from her form and calm herself before she lashed out and hurt those around her. A notion that did not sit well with her, even if she felt some of them certainly deserved it. Slowly, her eyes glanced over to the side of the cage and a smile beamed broadly on her face as she shuffled over to the bars where her friend stood.
“I’m sorry,” Maggie said as she reached for Ardessi’s hand and watched as the larger hand basically engulfed her own. Calloused and rough from the years of hard labor and what bit of training she had received since she was taken by the army. Still, she was always so gentle when she held Maggie’s hand as if she knew she could hurt the other woman easily.
Though the words did not mean anything to her, even if she had tried to read her lips, the frown and sadness in her eyes was enough to convey to Ardessi that she was sad about something.
“Uh…uh,” she waited till she had Maggie’s full attention and smiled more before she gestured to the other woman.
“Want me to smile?” Maggie asked, a smile already hinted there at the corners of her mouth.
“Uh!” she nodded and smiled more again.
“You like when I smile, huh?” Maggie said with a smile that quickly turned to a laugh when Ardessi made a face to try and get her to smile even more. “I am going to get you out of here, my friend…I promise," she sighed though she worked to keep her face alight with happiness, least she upset Ardessi again."Let’s work on some stuff, okay?"
The question asked though she knew the other woman could not understand, though the meaning set in when Maggie sat down and took out her book. The first page held her name, as it had from the moment that Maggie learned of it. A scrap of paper, old and worn, written in a fine hand, held the name of the giant woman, along with the origins of her birth. There was little else to the paper, no words of love, encouragement or the promise to find her again. Just her name scrawled out along with some talk about money and payment. It was like she had been sold from the moment of her birth and then sold again to the army when they had happened upon whoever took care of her.
It was a sorry and sad arrangement that only further spurned Maggie's personal desire to see her friend free.
From the first page, they went through the motions with the rest of the book. There were no words in it, but pictures that she had begun to use to try and teach the giant of a woman as much as she could. With the pictures, she started to assign gestures and the beginning of word sounds. Something to get the woman to communicate better, besides the grunts and limited vocals that she had at the moment.
The lesson went well, and she wished her friend a good night before she returned to her own tent. They had come upon a dragon nest and the plan was to attack that night and Ardy was supposed to be at the head of the line. As it was they liked to keep her awake and frustrated, it helped to set her off. Yet another motive to set her friend free and give her the taste of a life that was better than this.
Night fell upon the camp, the stars were clear in the sky as a full moon hung in the air and bathed the whole of the encampment in its eery glow. The guards on watch could not shake this...sensation, as they were being watched from somewhere. Though just where that was, they could not tell for the life of them and so they tried to push the unease down and wait for the coming of the next day.
If only they had looked harder...
Smoke.Thick and black, rolled through the camp while Ardy slept peacefully, oblivious to the screams of those around her, their voices muted to the girl as they perished with the surprise attack from the dragons. It was only when the ground shook violently that she was roused from her sleep in time to see the chaos that had taken hold of the camp.
Fire licked nearly every section of the camp and what was not in flames suffered some other form of elemental attack. Rock slides, bolts of lightning, whirlwinds, etc. It was as if the whole of nature had decided to gather right then and there in the middle of the camp. The place stank of burnt flesh and death.
The simple straw mat that she used to sleep on was damn near destroyed as she scrambled from it and rushed to the bars that were her imprisonment. Perhaps, she should have been pleased to be there and "safe" while those without were left to fight for their lives within the sudden hell that had erupted.
“Ah! Uh! Ah!” she grunted against the cage door, to try and get someone to let her out. Not a foot from where she stood was the chest that contained her armor and Greataxe. If they would release her she could help them, could fight. Yet, no one stopped, everyone too wrapped up in their own business to care enough to let her go, even when the cage was nearly crushed no one came…except for one.
“Quickly! We have to get you out!”
Her friend, covered in dirt and blood frantically tried to work the knife she had managed to grab, against the lock. She was almost there, but then her actions stalled and there was a look of terror on her face that the giant woman did not understand. At least not until the shadow cast over them. She had missed the roar, thought it nothing but the rumble of the earth again with her muted hearing. Maggie, however, had not and her eyes had been fixed on the beast she saw dive toward them. A final frantic attempt was made on the lock before she was snatched up and yanked from Ardessi.
From there, the world went red.
The door of her cage burst open and out stepped…. “The Wild Mage”.
All around her the battle still waged, people perished in frantic desperation though her actions did not seem rushed. Armor slowly donned, the horned great helm hiding her face, the scale mail/hide armor fashioned more for intimidation than true protection only added to her size and sheer bulk; especially, with the thick furred shoulders and cloak. The Greataxe as “summoned” to her hand and thrust up into the sky as a bolt of lightning was called down to infuse the weapon with power.
A battle cry, born from pure rage ripped from her throat as she charged into the fray. Those who had been lucky enough to spot her as she broke free had renewed hope and cried out for joy when they saw her race through the carnage. Their "Wild Mage" was on the battlefield, so now the tides would turn in their favor. Which, it indeed did look like was to be the case as Ardy moved with her magically assisted speed. A dragon dropped before her, head reared back to unleash a torrent of flames, only to be met by a wall of earth that was thrown up to protect her. The flames licked and washed over the rock, melting the earth with its heat though she seemed fairly un-phased.
"Mage! MAGE!" the general shouted to her and she turned toward him. The shadow of the helmet hid her eyes from view and it appeared as if death peered back at him. "WE NEED COVER! COVER!"
The man flailed his arms about as if to show her what he meant and she raised the hand which held her axe and aimed it at him.
"YES! YES! COVER!" relief washed over him and he thought that this might be what they needed to make a retreat. Now if she would just...
Whatever thought he might have had was lost when the sensation of being jerked up into the air overwhelmed him. Whatever noise he made he was too high for her to even just hear him, even if he shouted Ardy cared little either way. With her head cocked to the side, she gestured back and then made a throwing motion. The poor bewildered General went screaming into the throat of a dragon, who stumbled back into one of the rocky walls. This left the one that she had held at bay with the wall of earth that was now more interested in crush the wall and whatever was behind it.
Just before it crashed its bulk down on the molten wall, Ardy dropped the earth shield and threw her lightning infused axe like one would throw a disc. The heavy weapon spun through the air with a shriek of power as it crackled and sparked from the lightning that clung to its surface. Unable to move, from the full commitment of its weight toward crushing the now gone wall, there was little the crimson beast could do as the axe sped toward it. As it bit into its flesh, the cry of pain was cut short as the neck wound was instantly cauterized while the blade continued on through in a wide arc that brought it back around to the outstretched hand of its wielder.
Another animalistic cry left her lips as she threw back her head and called out her pain and anger to the very skies above. Before her eyes could lower to the waiting targets of her rage, a familiar shadow blotted out the moon and drew the entirety of her focus.
"Maw...geh..."
The name was barely able to be said, and nor did she try to repeat herself either. Instead, she was once again off into the fray, only this time there was a target in mind. Not once did her focus shift or deviate, though she managed to somehow still dodge what was happening around her. She ducked beneath bodies, she vaulted over the slain carcasses of the fallen beasts, her rough bare feet scrambled past one obstacle after another as she strove to catch up with her target. Closer and closer she drew, until at the last moment she used a pillar of earth to launch her into the air.
For the briefest of moments, she had the sensation of flying and weightlessness. Had she been herself and within her own mind, this moment might have meant more to her. As it stood it was a means to an end, a means to get to the target she most desired. So, as she began to plummet back down to earth she angled herself toward the dragon that still held the form of her friend and slammed into it with as much force she could be mustered with the aid of some gusts of wind.
In a jumbled pile, they careened back to earth, only to have the dragon’s wings get caught up in a narrow passage between the walls of the valley. From its back, she tumbled and smacked herself hard on the head when she slid into a boulder. As she gradually came it, it was like a fog was lifted from her eyes and she was back into the present, rather than an unaware bystander. It took a moment to realize that not only was she no longer in the cage, but she was near on the other side of the valley fully armored for fight at that. Worry, dread, and uncertainty began to set it, but the sight of a familiar sprig of hair from beneath the wing of the dragon drew her attention.
"Maw...geh!"
The name barely recognized as a name was exclaimed as the giant rushed and stumbled to the side of her friend. A low grunt escaped from between her teeth as she lifted the heavy dead weight from the downed dragon's wing from atop her friend's body. There was the strong need to get help and bring someone to her, but a look up at the world around her left Ardy with one choice.
To run.
The precious bundle that was her friend's body was scooped up, cradled in her strong arms as gently as possible the large and awkward woman fled. Fatigue and pain, near constant enemies though she strove to press on for as long as possible if only for the sake of the woman she carried. Into a small cave, she hid, the back passageway widened with a gesture so that the bulky woman with her precious cargo could squeeze through. Deeper into the mountains, she took the woman, even as it became a chore to keep her eyes open let alone hold the weight in her arms. A misplaced step caused her to trip and fall, and there is where she laid as blackness fell over her.
When she awoke later it was to the sensation of being cold and finding the now cold and stiff body of her friend. It looked like she had been dead before the dragon landed, but Ardy had not bothered to check when she grabbed her up. Silent tears slid down her cheeks, as she felt lost and completely alone. The axe was taken from her back and she forced it between two rocks at her friend’s back. If she was careful and timed it right she could just end her life right now. That way she and her friend could go on into the next life together.
Just as she was about to commit to the act the body of her friend stirred and renewed hope kindled in her heart. Tentatively she moved her friend’s body and there she saw…an egg. A large egg, whose brilliant surface gleamed in the darkness of the cave. As she stared at it, it moved again, then a crack formed and out from within the egg poked the head of what looked like a small lizard. It chirped though she could not hear it, but she felt this…connection when she reached out to it.
At first it shied away from her, back into the safety of its egg.
“Uh…uh….”she
tried to sound nicer to the creature, who responded to the sound she made and poked its head back out. It sniffed the air, then sniffed her outstretched hand before it quickly crawled into her palm, up her arm and secured itself a spot beneath her furred cloak at her shoulder. She felt connected to it, drawn to it like she had her friend…
"Maw...Geh!"
Eyes now on the lifeless corpse and she just knew that this lizard must have been her friend! The woman knew great magic and must have put herself in the egg when her body became broken. So, that Ardessi would not be alone! Instead, she had a new purpose and that was to get them both out of the darkness and into the light. Both would need food and she was not going to let anything happen to her friend.
Not this time.