[hider=Ilyana the Half-Human] [color=00746b][center][h2][b]Ilyana the Half-Human[/b][/h2][/center][/color] [hider=Ilyana] [center][img]https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/320x600q90/922/RSc6N6.png[/img][/center][/hider] [b]Race, Age, Time in the Caravan:[/b] Half-elf, 29, 2 months [b]Appearance:[/b] Ilyana is below average height for a half-elf, standing at 5' 3" with short-cropped sandy blonde hair and dark tanned skin from her time at sea. She's thin and wiry, but looks youthful, so sometimes mistaken for a boy. One cannot help but notice the pink scar that divides her left eyebrow and travels down on an inward slope to her cheek. The artificial eye she wears on the left has an amber iris that contrasts with her natural jade green right iris. She has an eye patch she wears to hide the socket when its out. One looking closer can see signs of other scars, and perhaps a peep at her skull tattoo on her chest neatly transected by another scar running from her right shoulder to her left hip. Few would ever see what looks like a second naval just under the ribs is actually a scar from a puncture wound, but anyone who rubs her back may feel the raised ridges of the scars from her flogging. Her right palm has an "L" branded there for "Leshere (thief)". [hider=History] Born on the 13th of Uktar in a brothel, where her mother took shelter. Unfortunately she died shortly afterward, so nothing is known of her human father. She was raised by the the staff of her Aunt Pol and Uncle Glyberos' house, largely ignored by the family, including their eldest daughter Sylna and their youngest son Keras. Many visitors assumed the young girl was a child of one of the staff, as she would be frequently seen doing various servant chores. But when Marquis Muleho, friend to the judge and frequent visitor, discovered she was their neice, her Aunt and Uncle, deeply embarrassed, moved her to a private room and forbade her from doing any more domestic work. They also hired a private tutor to address her neglected education. Marquis Muleho showed up one day with a spell book that he brought for Aunt Pol to examine, leaving it in the library. Later, when it was discovered missing, her uncle, his face burning red, went to her room first and found the burned out cover in her fireplace. Keras, who'd been checking her chest of drawers, turned around and presented the jewels that had adorned the cover. Glyberos flogged her until she confessed to taking the spell book (she hadn't), then used his authority as a judge to have her branded and imprisoned for five years. It was in prison that she learned how to be a thief, a necessary skill to survive in that place. During her third year, diseased ravaged the prison and she spent long hours tending to both guards and prisoners before finally succumbing to illness herself. While she couldn't say for sure, there were times afterward that guards and the other inmates gave her some grudging respect and the ocassional blind eye. On her release, now fully an adult, she was immediately pressganged into the Royal Navy as a sailor, handed over to the crew of galleon The Golden Falcon. The next four years were spent in hard labor. Crew were not permitted ashore except in the company of an officer, who was authorized to execute them on the spot should they attempt to desert. Her five years in prison had already inured her to the lack of privacy under close quarters. When Ilyana slung her hammock, it was in the middle of the group, rather than on the edges. She also realized that the thief mark on her palm would make others reluctant to trust her, while others would use it as an excuse to rob her blind by claiming she stole their things. Ilyana therefore kept most of her money on the ship's books, avoided gambling, taking care to mark her few possessions and to keep careful receipts with witness signatures. In her fourth year at sea, the Golden Falcon was one of a squadron of ships whose job was to blockade the harbor entrance to contain the ships of the Pretender. Under cover of darkness, the enemy launched some of their ships with skeleton crews to go out with the evening tide, creeping up unaware on the blockading ships before setting them alight before escaping as the fireships, drawn out by the tide, smashed into the blockading ships. In the confusion, the Pretender and the remainder of his fleet made their escape. Ilyana was the only survivor from the Golden Falcon. Desperate to pull some sign of victory from this disaster, Ilyana was hailed as a hero for her survival - but instead of being released from service, her wounds were treated and she was transferred aboard the galleon The West Wind. Because of her 'lucky' status, she was given the 'honor' of leading the boarding crews - which led to the loss of her left eye in battle. It was the first of many battle scars she'd earn aboard the West Wind. An arrow wound messed up her stomach - and wasn't helped much by the diluted healing potions they'd been supplied with, which made her very queasy and sick all over the place at the least sign of stress. They finally decided to discharge her from service in the Royal Navy, giving her a handful of medals, her silvered cutlass and dagger, the scarred leather cuirass she'd wear in battle, and all of her back pay on the books. [/hider] [b]Personality:[/b] Ilyana is always wary and reserved, keeping a weather eye not just on the horizon but the other pilgrims as well. In an open room, she prefers to have her back in a corner. A bit of a loner, she can be quick to anger, especially if pressed. Her speech is often blunt and profane, much to the dismay of others. She works hard at being self-reliant and always ready to lend a hand, Ilyana avoids seeking help from others. Many assume it's her pride holding her back, but really it's to avoid debts as not everyone seeks repayment in coin. She knows well the reputation that half-human girls have among her people. Ilyana is also aware what people will say about a known thief in their midst, so she keeps a careful inventory on her ledgers, recording each sale or purchase to fight any claims on her purse or property. [b]Motivation:[/b] Finally free, she decided to join the pilgrimage, since that would mean crossing over wide stretches of dry land that didn't pitch and roll from the sea and the wind, and allow her to see something other than a lot of water from horizon to horizon. [b]Skills, Strengths and Weaknesses, and Tools:[/b] [hider=Skills] Animal Handling - good with donkeys, ponies, horses. Archer - average skill with shooting a bow and arrow. Works best with a bow and arrows. First aid - experienced in the basic treatment of wounds and illness. Needs bandages and medicinal herbs. Lockpicking - some experience in the opening of locks without using a key. Usually reqires lockpicks, although some tools can be improvised on the scene. Navigation - sufficient ability to navigate using a map, compass, and/or sextant to get to their destination. Maps, compass, sextant required. Rigger - Experienced with ropes, knots, blocks and tackle, and rigging. Requires rope, fid, sail twine, pully blocks, serving mallets, etc. Sailing - experienced in the basics of sailing. Requires a boat with sails. Sailmaking - skilled in the crafting of sails and other articles of canvas work. Requires canvas, sail twine, needles, and rope. Swimming - allows them to cross bodies of water. Swordswoman - above average skill with her cutlass, especially in close quarters. Requires a bladed weapon. [/hider] Strengths - Right eye can see in the dark like it was dim light - Right eye can see in dim light like it was bright daylight - Speaks Elvish middle-tongue, thieves' cant, a few human languages. - long lifespan (just shy of two centuries) Weaknesses - Trust issues - Bears a thief mark - blind in one eye when not wearing her prosthesis - Visibly scarred - Mixed race with reputation of promiscuity (they grow up faster than elves, so many think they're older than they are) - Underdeveloped body [hider=tools] [hider=Vrudius' Eye] An artificial eye that carries an enchantment that allows the wearer to see through it as if it was their own natural eye. Does not work in mana-depleted zones.[/hider] [hider=Ditty Bag] a canvas bag with a wooden bottom and several interior pockets that hold various rigger tools - sewing palm, needles in a needle case, sail twine, serving mallet, fids, wood rasp, metal file, sharpening stone, various hanks of cords, bundles of oakum, screw eye auger, small hatchet. This also holds her lockpicks, a pouch of tobacco, and a smoking pipe.[/hider] [hider=Donkey & cart]A gray donkey harnessed to a small cart carrying her few possessions for the trip. Barrels of water, grain, & flour. A chest containing cooking gear, mess gear, lantern, a few flasks of oil, a small tea chest, and few spices. A sea chest holding spare clothes, bedroll, 50' of rope, hammock, some ledgers, a wooden comb, a lockbox with some gold and silver, and a few well-wrapped bottles of her medicine. A couple small casks of rum. A canvas tarp to cover it all while traveling. This also holds her bow, quiver of arrows and her armor while traveling.[/hider] [hider=Pen Holder] a bronze stem that unscrews at one end to reveal a dipping pen inside, while a small covered pot on the opposite end has a length of silk wadded inside, soaked in black ink so that it will not spill. It can be tucked into a pocket in the interior of her jerkin or slipped onto the belt.[/hider] [hider=Bosun's Pipe]A whistle that makes a shrill sound when blown, can be heard over high winds and far distances. A trained user can make a variety of sounds with one.[/hider] [hider=Healers kit]leather belt pouch holding two rolled bandages, two bundles of dried herbs to use as a poultice, other medicinal herbs.[/hider][/hider] ----- [u][b]Optional Details[/b][/u] [b]What They Most Want:[/b] Freedom [b]If They Had a DnD Alignment, It Would Be:[/b] Chaotic Good [b]Three Likes:[/b] [list] [*]A sharp blade [*]Rum [*]A good smoke [/list] [b]Three Dislikes:[/b] [List] [*]A dull blade [*]Storms [*]Hardtack [/list] [b]Do They Follow Their Heart or Their Mind?:[/b] Their mind. Heart's been betrayed too often [b]Worst Fear:[/b] Imprisonment [b]Favorite Color:[/b] Sky blue [b]Most Like The Animal:[/b] A fox [b]Favorite Time of Day:[/b] Daybreak and the promise of a new day, the sun shining warm on her face. [Hider=How They Dress] [list] [*] Brown wide-brim hat [*] Red bandana covering her hair [*]Cream-colored peasant's shirt [*]white bandana tied loosely around her neck [*]Lined Brown leather jerkin with her medals stitched on the left breast, a dolphin embroyered in aquamarine beads on the right breast. [*]Brown breeches [*]Green Hose [*]Brown leather boots with the tops folded down [*]Wide brown leather belt [*][Nested] [list] [*]knife with a broken tip (keeps from punching holes in sails and officers) in a leather sheath [*]Fid in sheath [*]Belaying pin tucked into belt [*]Belt pouch with some coins, flint, small pouch of pipe tobacco. [*]Flask containing medicine for her stomach [*]Cutlass with a silvered blade and scabbard. [/list] [*]knotted lanyard that holds a bosun's pipe [*] Leather curiass [*] Leather Braicers [/list] [/hider] [b]Favorite Season:[/b] Summer [b]What Gods/Spirits/Whatevers They Worship (If Any):[/b] Deep Sashelas - an Elvish god of the oceans who likes to tinker and create new creatures, somewhat flighty. One hears tales about him having affairs with mermaids and land dwellers. Popular deity among Elvish sailors. His symbol is of a dolphin. [/hider]