[u][b]Name:[/b][/u] Autumn Bladerunner "Little One"
[u][b]Age:[/b][/u] Late teens by appearance, 27 in reality.
[u][b]Race:[/b][/u] Human
[b][u]Appearance:[/u][/b] 
[hider=Physical Appearance] At 5' tall, on the button, Autumn's size can quickly be established as "small" for a Human. Her body is lean, and her curves mostly modest with exception of her hips and rear. Her athletic, toned figure is quite trim, her modest C-cup bust fitting her torso nicely. A thin waistline giving way to larger hips, the girl's shape can roughly be described as "Pear". Her skin is soft and pale, splashed across the nose with freckles that run down her shoulders, arms, upper chest, and even her legs. Her hair is cropped short at a rough angle, high in the back and just shy of her shoulders in front. Coppery-orange with an almost metallic sheen to it. She keeps most of it pushed to the side over her right eye, two stubborn strands hanging down on the left. Her eyes shine a brilliant blue with an almost piercing quality to them. A few minor scrapes and scars mar her otherwise unbroken skin, and the only piercings across her entire body are a pair of silver rings piercing the upper portion of her ears, just barely larger in diameter than the width of her ear itself.[/hider]
[u][b]Attire:[/b][/u] 
[hider=Clothing] As far as Clothing is concerned, Autumn dresses simply. A pair of mostly form-fitting cotton leggings, dyed black with loose bottoms that she typically keeps tucked into her boots. Her boots are a rough dull gray leather with more polished orange accents along the hem and at seams. For a top she wears a black sleeveless silk top with a mid to low cut exposing her upper chest. She also tends to wear a pair of finger-less linen gloves, dyed black, as well as a cotton cloth bandanna that she she ties loosely around her head so that it covers from just below her eyes on down like a mask, trailing down to a loose point in front of her chest. Whether this is to ward off sickness or mask her identity is anyone's guess, but she almost never takes it off. She is often also found wearing a traveling cloak with a hood. Dark linen and able to drape around her form easily.[/hider]
[hider=Armor] Autumn is seldom seen out of her armor. The leather cuirass that covers the front of her chest and back is stained dark. The sides are open and the front plate is strapped to the back by a series of leather strips that run up along her sides. She has similar hardened leather pads adorning her thighs and forearms. All of it stained dark and accented around the seams with little orange-dyed accents. Over her upper chest, she layers a slate-blue cotton top with short sleeves for an extra layer of protection against slashing weapons, but more importantly to bundle against the elements. She wears a thick leather belt with pouches and holster straps for carrying her gear. The final piece is a pair of iron pauldrons on her shoulders, trimmed with dark leather and stained dark to keep the metallic glint from shimmering in the light. The pauldrons have strips of leather that hang down over the upper arm to act as light protection to the otherwise un-covered area.[/hider]
[b][u]Bio:[/u][/b] 
[hider=Backstory] Born to a couple from very different backgrounds, Autumn's mother was one of the Cherinok mountain folk, whereas her father was from the fertile rolling hills of the isle of Foji. Her mother, an explorer and adventurer, had traveled all across Abbaden. Finding fascination in the Foji for their culture and idealism, she traveled the island for a few years before finding, and eventually falling in love with Autumn's father. A farmer with an eye for the exotic. Autumn grew up on her father's farm and helped with the harvest when she was old enough. Growing up as the child of a 'mixed blood' was difficult. People did not trust her mother- and by extension, her. Her family's farm was far away from the city, out past the outskirts of protected territory. 

Tragedy befell her family when Autumn was the age of 15. Raiders, and a few outlaw sorcerers were roving through the area and attacking farmsteads along the way, pillaging them for food, tools, weapons, magical reagents, and anything else they could get their hands on. Autumn's family was harboring a few of the displaced families of nearby farms, and the rag-tag group of honest workers meant to make a stand if the bandits showed up. Sure enough, they attacked the farm, setting fire to the fields with outlawed spells. The farmers took up arms and a battle broke out. Autumn's mother handed her a few precious heirlooms, including a set of her old daggers, and urged her to flee while she still could. Obeying her mother, the young girl ran and found an old hollowed tree to hide within. Peeking through a knot-hole in the remains of the tree she watched and listened as the sounds of death, chaos, and smoke rose over the horizon. When she returned to her farm, the bodies that lay strewn about were so badly charred with ash she couldn't even tell friend from foe. Not even if the bodies were of her family or not. As far as she was aware, she was the only survivor.

Autumn spent the next several months scavenging the ruined farmlands in the wake of the roving band. As the group settled in she took to picking off strays from the group and stealing from their supply stashes when their numbers were absent. Eventually the group grew wise to her tricks, and lured her into a trap. Making a 'plunder stash' near one of their road blockades with a few guards hidden up in the trees above. When the little red-head appeared to pick through the plunder she found herself suddenly surrounded. The group meant to taunt and torture her for being such a pain, surrounding and attacking her as she tried to fend them off with the daggers her mother had gifted to her. She held off the first few attacks but she was not trained. She would have surely died that day if a passing adventurer hadn't walked right up the road next to the fight. The group, not having any trouble with the girl turned on him for being a witness. Much to their surprise did they discover that he wasn't just an adventurer- but a master of blade and shadow. Quickly and efficiently he dispatched the group and stood over the girl huddled on the ground. He told her to follow him and led her deep into the forested mountains on the northern end of the isle.

Taking the the leery young girl into a secluded home tucked into the mountainside, he turned on her and pressed an attack. Testing her. Defending herself out of instinct, she drew dagger and parried more by chance than skill. He pressed his attack again, pushing her back but not actually landing a hit on her. Autumn stumbled over a stone and fell onto her back. As she was on the ground, he moved to stand over her. He then sheathed his weapons and offered her a hand. Confused, she took it and he helped her up as he said simply, "So be it. Come." Without much more word than that he took her inside and set up a place for her to sleep. He told her to rest- and that he'd wake her early to start teaching her. Confused, Autumn obeyed and slipped off to sleep in the offered bed.

The next 5 years were spent working for and training under the man that became her Master. He insisted she refer to him as "Sep", rather than master. But she would never know his full name. She would tend to the home while he was away- but some of her days were spent training in the basics of martial and armed combat. She only saw one other man while she was with her master. A portly man that seemed as mysterious as her master. He would make occasional visits, bring news and letters to Master Sep. 

When she was 18, she had taken a letter for him from the portly man, she called for her master, but did not find him. The portly man departed and told her to give his regards to her master. Looking down at the letter she hesitated to take it inside before she couldn't take it any longer and moved to carefully peel the letter open without crumbling the seal. Before she knew what happened she felt herself grabbed by the long strands of hair that reached down to her hips. She was hauled to the ground and dragged into her master's study. Harshly, her master struck her as he snatched the letter from her and as she saw him draw a blade. She thought surely she was going to die. When his arm fell, she felt a tug on the back of her head, the blade slicing clean through her hair and severing the beautiful locks from her head. As she was cast to the floor and scolded he walked off with the letter in one hand and the bulk of her hair in the other. As he reached the door he pulled it closed and latched it shut- leaving her in the pitch black room for 3 days. She has kept her hair short ever since.

After that day her training was much harder. Each lesson painfully stricken into her body. It was tough. Her Master would lock her in rooms without light and attack her from the shadows. He would assault her unexpectedly when she was doing chores to insure she was never caught off guard. He would often spar with her until she was barely capable of standing- but he would always nurse her back to health as he taught her. He showed her how to meld with shadows. To fight in the pitch black of night. And even how to move through shadow to reappear wherever she desired. He started to take her with him on jobs. Spying, scouting, even as an extra set of eyes for an assassination.

When she was 21, Master Sep took her on a mission, not telling her what it was. She kept pressing him to fill her in, but he remained silent. He led her to the city of Tour de Rouge and slipped into the crowds in the marketplace. She turned for a second and blinked and he was simply... gone. She spent a week scouring the city, desperately trying to find her master, sleeping in the alleys and each day finding little gifts left for her, but no return of her master. The gifts ranged from parcels of food and coin, to bits of adventuring gear. The most noteworthy of these gifts were a pair of blades made from elemental crystal. Then one day, the gifts stopped. She was left alone to fend for herself with nothing but the gear she had on hand and the gifts left to her by her Master. She never saw him again.

Over the next 6 years, she took up jobs as an adventurer and scout. Bounty hunting became a hobby. And she picked up a career as an adventurer and sell-sword. Throughout her travels she has picked up trinkets and weapons to add to her collection, trusting only a few weapon and armor smiths from lesser known towns. She now finds herself in need of a new job. A fresh contract. Anything from guarding a low-time traveling merchant to scouting ahead of armies or assassinating snobbish nobles. It matters little to her as long as she gets enough coin to make it through the next several months. [/hider]
[b][u]Personality and Aspirations:[/u][/b] [hider=Personality] Autumn is very reclusive. She doesn't like sitting and chatting over the fire. She likes taking action. Never one to sit still, she is cold to those she doesn't know, often only polite enough to pass as a common adventurer, keeping to smaller groups or even on her own. She has no love of magic nor the practitioners of it. Her trust is hard earned, but once gained she grants unshakable faith and loyalty to those who do right by her. She lives in a moral gray area where lives are traded for coin through bloodshed. She does have a strong sense of justice about thievery, refusing to do so. She isn't sure yet what she wants from life. Everything she has ever known has been taken or hidden away from her, and she is not quick to trust a hope that any new venture will bring her the meaning she's looking for in her life. For the time being she's simply happy to make coin as an adventurer and hone the skills she was taught as a younger girl. [/hider]
[u][b]Inventory:[/b][/u]
[list]
[*] [hider=Daggers] A family Heirloom, given to her by her mother, these unassuming daggers are simple in design, and yet... seem to yield unusual properties. The blades themselves bear no mark of runes, but rather a protective folk symbol. Simple lines drawn in an intricate, overlapping knot. While no obvious enchantment is found on the weapons, they do seem to bring her unusual good luck. Having saved her life more times than she dares to count. [/hider]
[*] [hider=Specter Blades] This pair of short-swords are arguably the most expensive thing she carries. The short blades are somewhat thicker than an average short-sword and made of a translucent blue crystal forged from elemental essences. The blades seem somehow tempered not to shatter when struck by other blades, but otherwise act like normal weapons. However, they have a hidden property to them. The blades are able to strike the intangible, cut the ethereal, and slash at the incorporeal. Ghost slayers. [/hider]
[*] [hider=Travel Pack] Her travel pack keeps her coin, and all sorts of various bits of adventuring gear tucked neatly away on a pouch worn on her back. She also stores her cloak in this bag when she isn't using it. [/hider]
[/list]
[u][b]Skills:[/b][/u] 
[list]
[*] [hider=Languages] She is moderately trained in Abbalic, and uses it commonly enough that she can hold conversation, but it isn't perfect. It is clear that it is not her first language. She also picked up a few phrases and words from her mother, knowing just the smallest bit of Cherinokin. Enough to hold a very bare, minimal conversation. Having grown up on the isle, she is most fluent in Foji. The mysterious tongue of her homeland flows off her tongue as if spoken by a noble- even though she holds no title, nor land. [/hider]
[*] [hider=Stealth] Having been trained in the ways of staying unseen, Autumn is able not only to move silently and stay out of sight, but indeed to blend with the shadows themselves and obscure herself from vision. She can become nearly invisible to all but the most trained eye. It is hard to disappear from sight while being observed directly, and thus she typically needs to employ some form of distraction or something to obscure view of her to slip into the shadows. [/hider]
[*] [hider=Shadowstep] A very taxing ability gained from years of training in shadow, Autumn has learned how to disappear in one place, and reappear somewhere else up to 20' away. She tends to leave a swirling cloud of shadow in her wake both from whence she disappeared and where she ended up. She can in times of great need do this in rapid succession, but doing so is incredibly taxing on her body and will quickly deteriorate her health and potentially, kill her. [/hider]
[*] [hider=Shadowdance] Another ability gained from so many years spent training in shadows, Autumn is able to phase her physical form into the shadow-realms, becoming almost half incorporeal. Solid objects seem to pass clean through her for a few seconds of sustained focus. Any longer and she'd risk pushing her body beyond it's limits and tearing itself apart. It is an ability she uses only in extreme situations. [/hider]
[/list]
[b][u]Starting Location:[/u][/b] Main settlement of Twilight Fields, looking for work as a hired blade.