(girl friday)
V A L K E M A R E V N A
mercenary, wanderer, adventuress
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Ht: 5’10 / Wt: 99 lbs / Hair: auburn / Eyes: blue/red
Age: 220 / Creed: Vaara (Kos) / Status: ACTIVE
PROFILE
Despite her youthful appearance, Valke has been around. By her own account, she has been roaming the Great Continent for the better part of a century, ranging from Helicos to Utgaard, and from Kalthea to the Taizul Steppes. Serving as a mercenary and freelance adventurer during this time, she has acquired redoubtable skills, numerous curious trinkets, and a seemingly unending supply of tall-tales, of which she brags openly and often.
Considering all her travels and fantastical deeds, she seems no wiser for it. She lives her life with a devil-may-care outlook and her own signature swagger. Her sardonic attitude, rough manners, and short temper may be well-suited to a war-camp, but not to more subtle situations. Valke enjoys red meat, strong booze, and good tobacco, and always seems up for a fight.
Valke's itinerant lifestyle keeps her on the fringes of both human and Vaara society, and she seems to prefer it that way. She is unusually at-ease in the daylight world compared to most of her folk, and mixes easily with humans. Rather than keeping a low profile, she is instead a boisterous presence, counting on her bravado and outlandish stories to distract from her true nature.
Like most Vaara, Valke chooses not to feed on the blood of humans or other related humanoids, and instead subsists on the blood of livestock animals. She spends more of her time among humans than her own kind, and is quick to insist that she “doesn't drink people."
On rare occasions when Valke is in an introspective mood (usually with the contribution of alcohol) her tales occasionally take on a melancholic tone, ruminating on days gone by with her old comrades, many of whom came to bad ends, or simply succumbed to old age.
She rarely speaks of her childhood, or why she chose the adventurer's lifestyle. She left her remote community at an early age, and was doing mercenary work by the time she was 130-years-old.
Valke has a younger sister, Elke, who works as an apprentice at the School of the Varantine Order in Ladroa, under the tutelage of the Lady Cardena Dela Vara. It is unclear what history Valke shares with Dela Vara, but she has alluded to meeting her in wilder times, before Dela Vara became the Doctor-Curate of the Scuola Santa-Vara.
Valke tends to bristle at any mention of her older sister, Nadja, who is reportedly a notorious pirate and folk heroine called the Burning Queen.
APPEARANCE
Valke normally wears an embossed leather eyepatch that she switches from eye-to-eye based on whether it is day or night. Her left eye is the common rusty colour of the Vaara, which flashes a vibrant red when she manifests her powers. Her right eye is a startling blue colour of impossible clarity, which she claims was molded for her from magical clay. This magical blue eye seems to have the ability to see spirits and other mystic phenomena.
Her attire is mismatched and outlandish, with an ill-kept, weathered quality that suggests usage beyond simple eccentricity. Her armoured shirt and leggings are wrought of an unusual and extremely fine scale with a polished black surface. In the light, it reflects a flickering sheen of red and blue streaks, like an oil slick on black water.
On her feet are soft-leather boots of exquisite craftsmanship and exotic design, with slightly pointed toes, swirling patterns and elaborate inlays. Her gauntlets are studded leather, but fingerless, revealing long, pale fingers with dirty nails.
She wears a shortsword with an elaborate silver hilt on one hip, and on the other, what appears to be a broad dagger with long cylindrical grip. This is in fact her magic spear, the Rejta Vigr, an enchanted weapon that can change its length, from a couple of feet to as long as 20 feet, simply by uttering a magic word. She has learned to use this unique ability quite effectively in the heat of battle.
A wineskin hangs from her belt, wrapped in ribbons inscribed with mystic symbols. Clasped at her neck is a thick, voluminous blue cloak with a full hood, with a faintly visible shimmering double lining. In the field, she carries an old round metal shield slung across her back.
ABILITIES
Although still quite young by the measure of her folk, Valke belongs to a very old lineage, and her Blood Arts are exceptionally potent. In combat, she may manifest tremendous physical strength, speed her healing, and even assert control over the elements to generate strong wind or even call down a bolt of lightning from the clouds (an unusual feat among Vaara). She is also able to shapeshift herself into a wolf or bat, but admits she has never been particularly good at transforming into mist.
In addition to her magical blue eye, Valke also has the power to summon a ghostly wolf (named Thorn) to fight at her bidding, using arcane runes tattooed to her forearm. This spirit was once her close companion in life, and now their souls are magically bound together for eternity.
In addition to her magical blue eye, Valke also has the power to summon a ghostly wolf (named Thorn) to fight at her bidding, using arcane runes tattooed to her forearm. This spirit was once her close companion in life, and now their souls are magically bound together for eternity.
Valke also carries with her an assortment of wondrous objects she has acquired over her adventures, including Elvish enchanted boots of leaping, an ancient magical Duathan spear, dragonscale armour, and an illusionist's light-bending cloak (among other things). Additionally, she carries a wineskin bound in enchantments which keeps its contents fresh - an essential item for one who must sustain herself on warm blood.
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