A silvaeren in Cormyr

[trebarruna]

Varna is a silvaeren, raised inside the safe wards of Silverymoon.

-- Gonna edit this one as well, gotta fix some grammar--

[trebarruna]

--Edited for spelling and minor changes--

It was a very foggy evening. She was sitting on the stairs that opened onto the Redmist docks. Arms around her legs, head resting on her knees. She raised her head and looked for a moment at the sea; it seemed so calm that day. She looked down at her left hand as she opened it. The ring had left clear imprints in her skin from being held tightly for so long.
“Tempting, but it would never work. Gods I'm tired of this game. Things are getting out of hand!”
She wrapped the ring in a piece of white silk before placing it back inside a small marble box. She took a deep breath and tossed the box into the sea.

A sea breeze caught up with her as she walked towards the inn. That soft touch on her face almost made her forget all the problems that troubled her so much. As she approached the inn everything around her seemed to transmute. The breeze that felt like a sweet kiss on her face now seemed to cut like a sharpened blade. She pulled her cloak tight around herself and shivered.

The door to the inn was open and the noise and smell of the drunks, guards and visitors flooded the air. She approached the man behind the counter and asked for a room. She was given a standard room but didn't care, anything with a bed was enough. She went straight up to her room, and with the sounds of laughter, shouting and occasional glass breaking, she closed her eyes and relaxed.

Everything was quiet when she opened her eyes again, it was day already. That odd feeling of defeat, which she was not at all accustomed to, was gone. She was ready for what had to come next, even optimistic.

Hours later, after preparing herself, as usual, she went downstairs. The moment she sat down in her usual spot, one of the maids of the house handed her a letter closed with her family seal. Very surprised, she hastily opened the letter and read it through. She stared briefly at the flames in the fireplace, an expression of sadness on her face, then shook her head chuckling. A wave of emotions washed over her and left her confused and tired. She ripped the letter to pieces and threw it at the fire, most of it landing scattered on the floor.

“By the nine hells, why now?! I'll have to leave immediately or I will lose everything. A few days away from all of this wont make much difference. But it saddens me to leave you behind among these petty, ignorant, human fools. Will you be safe? So many who want to hurt you, so few who care...”

She grabbed a pen and began writing a letter. Half way through the first page she sighed, crumbled it in her hands and tossed it into the fire. This would be tougher than she thought. Hours later she finally had the letter ready. She sealed it and handed it to Talbot; this was not the first time she had trusted a letter to him.
"Hand it to the Captain."

She stepped outside and looked up at the afternoon sky. She longed for fresh air after spending so many hours in the smoke and heat of the inn's common room but she knew better than to draw a deep breath of city stench. Behind her in the inn a fight had erupted but she didn't care who or why, she was leaving. She did not know how Talbot tried to break up the fighting, how half the bar got trashed, how her letter got lost in the chaos.

She approached the city walls and leaned against the naked, cold stone. She withdrew the reagents from a small pouch on her waist and began the teleport incantation. Just as she spoke the final word Silverymoon she heard someone call her name. She turned her head and caught a glimpse of a blurred figure, then it was gone and she saw only the abandoned farmstead outside Silverymoon.

She took a deep breath as she approached the city entrance. The view was majestic; the sounds, the smells, everything about this place was familiar. Memories welled up inside of her yet it did not feel like home. Not anymore.

The business that needed attending, her reason for coming here, what she thought could be resolved in days, dragged on. Weeks passed, then months. She was outcast by her family, she failed to reclaim what was rightfully hers. For the first time in her life she tried the bitter taste of defeat. In the end there was nothing left for her there.

She needed time to think which is why she left Silverymoon by caravan instead of the faster, more comfortable way of teleportation. Weeks later the caravan reached Cormyr and eventually she found her way back to Redmist, now called Valkura's Roar. She felt like a stranger, so much had changed. Those she once knew had left, others disappeared. A feeling of emptiness and regret came over her as she walked towards the inn...

[trebarruna]

//Grammar and typos are to be ignored. My excuse: it’s almost 4am. Ohh and English isn’t my native language!!

*The elf enters inside the bedroom and walks straight to the two couches near the large fireplace. Removes her cloak and hood, placing them carefully in one of the couches; on the floor close to the wall near the fireplace she places her bags and pouches.

She kneels before her backpack and opens it, searches inside for a few moments and pulls out a book; the outside is made of flawless red leather with a golden lock. She sits comfortably in the empty couch and using a small key she had inside her pockets, she opens the book. The paper inside is thin and delicate, and half of the book has writings while the rest of it has nothing but white pages…

Randomly she opens the book and starts to read quietly to herself. *

«… I had a lot of fun tonight at the Dancing Goat! I think someone stole my golden ring though, it’s gone alright! But was worth it… it’s always fun to go out with Erurir… I like him. Well it’s time to go to Arkhen's Invocatorium for another day of lessons…»

*She pauses and looks thoughtful at the fire in front of her* “Erurir… gods! I completely forgot about you…” *she shakes her head and smiles before reading another random page.*

«… why is it that my father and I can’t just get along? He just refuses to accept that I am not like him or his ancestors… it is not my fault that my magic doesn’t come from hard training and book reading. Again he called me the black sheep of the family for using my own innate magic. He and all of his kind are just a bunch of jealous people who has to spend hours memorizing spells, unlike me, who can just feel the Weave inside my veins as if it was part of my own being…» *she takes a very deep breath and sighs before closing her journal.*

“Bloody hells, Erurir worth remembering… and I forget about him… my father whose memories are always so unpleasant and I just can’t delete them from my mind…” *clearly upset and frustrated she tosses the journal to the couch next to her.
A few hours pass and she remains in the same position; glances at the book and decides to read another random page*

«…Erurir and I successfully escaped without anyone noticing, avoiding spending a whole day at the Everdusk Hall. I hope they won’t make any questions about the place tomorrow at the Invocatorium… he took us instead to the Stagstand. We spent the whole day there! He is teaching me his other language now, it’s our secret.»

*The elf closes the book and opens it randomly again reading another entry*

«… last day here in Silverymoon, tomorrow we leave to the south. I don’t remember the name of the land where we are heading to, but Savi said she knew the place. I trust her. She is the only friend I have. I am so excited about meeting other places, I’m starting to feel claustrophobic inside these walls and all the wards…» some pages ahead «… so we have finally arrived at the Land of Cormyr. It’s all so different, besides Savi I haven’t seen any elves at all… mostly humans in here. And they don’t seem to like my kin too much. We have just arrived and have already been insulted and rejected by some already. Well I did say I wanted a challenge!»

(…) «… today was horrible. We are out of money so that means finding some tasks to do. The two of us and some humans were recruited to scout some ruins. Not only I end up filled with dirt, but I had to drag Savi’s corpse to the local temple… we failed in our mission and me and this other female human called Amelia were the only survivors. The other four died. We had to run like rabbits from a fox in order to survive. Savi is at the temple resting, and I’m sharing this filthy bedroom with Amelia. She is a wizard but doesn’t have that – I’m better than you Bloodmage – attitude.»

*The elf starts eating some cherries while continues to read more random pages.*

«… today it makes exactly eight months since we arrived at Cormyr. Savi must really love her God Erevan, she insists visiting him almost daily… gods. All the gold we have been making, she spends it with temple services, at local taverns and gambling. I don’t mind helping her but I saw this ring… and at this rate I will never be able to afford it. Amelia says Savi is useless. Well, she has her use… it is always handy to have a priestess by our side when adventuring, especially for healing when needed. In Savis case, I believe I’m a better healer than her. I have been travelling a lot with some humans and this half orc, they are part of this Silver Shield organization I believe. I have finally met another elf, but because I get along with – the filthy scum – as he calls them, all those who aren’t elves, we end up not getting along too well…»

*She burst out laughing for a while before reading another page, choosing this time one of the last pages, leaving behind dozens and dozens of pages.*

«…My whole body hurts. My head seems to be about to implode. I hate hins. I truly do. That ~ insert curse here ~ betrayed him… and I ended up being executed in front of the Inn. Beheaded by the zhents, while she and that filthy drow were watching. There was nothing he could do to …» *she pauses, sighs and grins* “Ohh this part I remember too well… no point remembering such unpleasant event…”

*She spends the whole night and day after reading her journal. Memories are brought back from the time when she was just an innocent elf who wanted to see more then the warded walls of Silverymoon. So many names and events are mentioned in her journal, some she had already forgotten, other she wishes she had never met.

At the end of the day she feels exhausted. A mixture of sadness, excitement and frustration fills her. She opens the book one last time and reads the last entry which was written more than a year ago.*

«… I have been marked by my Lord. I serve Him in everything that I do. My rewards shall be great, my power unlimited and all our enemies defeated.» *The rest of her journal has nothing but white pages, nothing more has been added since that day.
She wraps the book with a silky scarf and puts it inside her backpack.

Later she prepares a bath for her and undresses. Walks toward the bathtub and stops in front of a large mirror. She looks at her reflection. She smiles clearly pleased at it, she is physically flawless, and her long golden hair falls over her shoulders covering most of her torso. Instinctively her left hand gently grabs one of her many golden hair locks and places it behind her shoulder, revealing a small mark on the left side of her chest, close to her breast. She freezes for several minutes looking at the mark before hiding it under her hair again.

She rushes inside the bathtub and feels the warm water embracing her body as she lies down. She looks at the ceiling and takes a deep breath before closing her eyes.*

[trebarruna]

After spending two days in Dhedluk resting and enjoying the peaceful town, she decides its time to resume her duties. For quite some time she has been trying to decipher some strange text written in some old language. She tried her best to come up with some explanation for the text and the way the letters are placed, but more work needs to be done.

She enters inside her bedroom at the local Inn and starts to dress her travelling gear, wrapping carefully her casual clothes and placing them inside her backpack. She was ready to leave and picks up her hood… a beautiful and perfect cowl. As she pulls the hood up covering her head, leaving her face and part of her golden hair completely visible, she can feel the true nature of the cowl and can almost listen to the whispers that come from it. She has always enjoyed such; always made her feel like she had control over what was trapped in it, but this time was different. She wasn’t enjoying it; it was in fact bothering her to feel it. She felt uncomfortable. “I must be losing my mind” she whispers to herself.

An hour later she leaves the Inn and walks toward the caravan merchant. “One ticket to…” she pauses “…forget it, I’m not leaving, yet…”

She starts to walk and between two trees where no one could see her she casts a spell and disappears. She looks around, trees everywhere, birds singing and this soft scent of wild flowers and berries surround her. She looks up and sees a sky made of trees, a green sky dancing along with the wind. She never enjoyed being in such environment, she always preferred to be inside cities, and the bigger the better.
She was really addicted to the sound and smell of modern civilization.

“Well, what in the Nine am I doing here…? “In silence and making no gestures she casts a few wards and makes herself invisible. Starts to walk for no more than a hour and stops as she gets close to the Elven Settlement in the Hullak. She doesn’t approach more and just stands there, looking at the path that leads to the settlement. She had been there once, she remember it too well. Especially when she was accused of rejecting her own kin and their ways. “That female… what does she knows… judged me without even knowing a single thing about me!” she speaks to herself clearly frustrated.

She stays at the same spot for as long as her invisibility spells lasts, casting quite a few to remain unseen. She has no idea what is happening but feels this urge to return to the settlement, so she takes a few steps forward. Seconds later this horrible pain in her chest, where the mark is, makes her fall on her knees. It is just too painful to be ignored and tears fall from her eyes because of the pain as she rubs almost violently her chest. “What is happening…?”

She tries her best to teleport out of there but cannot focus enough for the spell to work; she just lies there on the ground made of wet dirt and grass for several minutes, until the pain becomes bearable again. She stands up and without thinking twice teleports out of the Woods. When she reaches her new destiny she finds herself in the so well known town of Valkurs Roar.

Rushes to the Inn and asks Talbot for the best bedroom of the house. She feels tired and drained. Moves to her bedroom and lies on the bed. Doesn’t close her eyes, but remains there for what seemed to her to be an eternity, until the pain completely vanishes and she feels well again.

“What have I got myself into…” she sighs and walks downstairs. Moves to the couches near the fireplace and sits in one of them. Opens a book and starts to read it. While she reads it something someone said almost two years ago comes to her mind… “In this chess game, lance board that is life, what is it you want for yourself…”

[trebarruna]

It has been quite some busy days for her. Tiresome days, her body claims some rest her mind some peace so she can put her thoughts together.

In a blink of an eye she finds herself in Dhedluk, a place she calls her personal hideout. Not many adventures travel there, and the townsfolk don’t seem to care about who stays there or not, they mind their own business, a trait she has learnt to appreciate, which makes her feel so comfortable there.

She rents her usual luxurious bedroom at the local Inn, paying in advance for a few days. A few hours later, after a long bath and a delicious meal made with the best fruit and vegetables she relaxes in front of the fireplace. The sound of wood burning blends with the sound of heavy rain outside; even though her bedroom windows are closed the smell of wet dirt infiltrates her delicate senses… doesn’t seem to bother; in fact seems to help her relax even more.

She looks at the fire; random thoughts invade her mind… again a deep feeling of frustration. “Again my attempts to communicate with You have failed. Again I feel put aside, a peon that’s what I am in this Lance board…” she sighs and speaks quietly “… who was it that asked me what I wanted to be… ah yes Morris… guess I’m nothing more than a number, just an expendable peon. And to think that I answered I wanted to be more than that… true, true… a peon if well played can also become something more…”.

For some minutes she starts this whispered monologue as if she was in fact speaking with someone. Once she realizes she is just talking to herself she frowns and shakes her head.

She leans closely to where her backpack is and opens it. Pulls out her journal, a pen and ink and opens the book. Gazes at the empty white page in front of her, wets the pen in the ink flask and starts writing.

« So this is the exemplar deathstyle you told me about? Where you want my seed in, is this the treason… my fatal freedom?
Is this the promised underworld you have craved in my heart? Where are you when I need you? Look at me now; hiding here in this mundane room, I´m so sorry to say but it only makes me laugh.
So here I have - your act of love; within the poison - of your every word; each night you stay in - each night I try to run; knowing that from darkness and hope there is no return. »

She writes fast and once she is done simply closes her journal and puts it again inside her backpack.

[trebarruna]

The elf takes one long deep breath… hum that smell of cold, wet and dirty rocky ground. Her footsteps splash in the muddy irregular floor, the sound of her walking is completely muffled by the breath of the city. It feels almost as if the cold stone walls, old wood doors and the water waves beating against the rocks make it a living being; with a soul and heart beating.

The smells… the many smells invade her delicate senses. They are not pleasant… a mixture of rather filthy city residues, a foggy stench carrying an oddly fish scent and the almost imperceptible smell of cooking when she passes by some of the houses; these seem to be the only scents she can distinguish as she slowly and graciously walks toward the city Inn.

It is night, the crescent moon goes high; a small and pale yellow slice of it in a pitch black sky… the city dim lights and the cold and wet thin fog surrounds everything. There is this lost sound of a bell which echoes through the night; it seems to be so far away though…

Even though the night is especially dark, she can see perfectly without any problems at all. She is able to distinguish her surroundings. The lost sound of the bell can no longer be heard, instead sound of laughter and singing replace any of the city sounds.

The door is wide open; she rubs her nose and grins: “Thank You for an open door…” Talbots Inn is crowded with local folk, as usual. She dusts off her cloak from any dirt brought from the outside, but quickly gives up such task. The Inn seems dirtier than her clothes. Most of the Inn clients, patrons are humans, she notices a couple of hins and one who isn’t neither “…Hmm! One half human… goes from bad to worse” – she whispers to herself.

Everyone seems busy with something, it is dinner time. The waitresses rush trying to please every single request as fast as possible, patience is not present at all inside those walls… everyone wants to be served, and most waste time complaining about what they are eating.

Even though she is wearing her perfectly crafted cowl, a flawless piece of cloth, she has her face and her long and golden hair visible, but as soon as she enters her first reaction is to cover as much as possible her features, concealing her face with the cowl and wrapping her cloak tightly around her body.

She approaches one of the Inn employees and requests for the best available bedroom of the house. Once a key is brought to her she rushes upstairs and walks toward her bedroom.

Sits on the comfortable bed, removing her boots and leaving her cloak folded on the bed right next to her; pulls down her cowl and leans back against some soft pillows and without any sign of magic casting, a bright light appears close to her.

She looks at her backpack, which she carefully placed on the floor next to her bed, and smiles when a small book with an old brown leather cover approaches her and slowly falls on her lap. She opens it and starts to read. The sounds which come from downstairs are sometimes hushed by sounds of female giggling and male laughter when some of the other bedroom doors are closed quickly; only to be open some minutes later.

She continues to read the book, the enthusiastic night sounds soon are replaced by the late night quietness. As soon as the day rises and soft sun beams enter her room she takes one last look at her book and prepares to close it. She sighs to herself and softly shakes her head slightly confused… she was still staring at the first page, she spent so many hours inside that bedroom yet never passed that first page; and didn’t even noticed it.

She closes the book, places it on the bed and starts preparing her to leave the bedroom…

[trebarruna]

Somewhere in the land of Toril the elf is spending the last months... back in Cormyr no one has ever seen her since she departed.

Inside a very luxurious suite she sits by a warm fireplace, many books stored inside that bedroom. The beautiful sun elf reads one of those books, speaking to herself as if repeating what she is reading... many times she sighs clearly frustrated, when she fails to repeat the words correctly, but quickly starts to repeat them again, one by one until she pronounces them correctly.

"I will learn this language, even if I take years!" - she whispers to herself...

But every single day, at least for an hour... she also opens another book she owns, her personal journal... and reads from it. Occasionally a tear or two run through her flawless face.

[trebarruna]

The night was slowly arriving, the city sounds fading… one of her bedroom windows was open and the cold night breeze quickly replaces the warmth of the day.

The elf takes a long deep breath before opening her eyes. Another day was ending. She looks at the room and smiles in relief as the darkness swallows the little light that remains of the day. “Another day without any problems” – she thinks to herself.

She quickly turns her attention to the bedroom door when someone knocks on it. Gets up and approaches it.
“Lady Celadrill it’s me, Fiona. Your meal is ready.” – A female voice speaks from the other side of the door.

The elf opens the door and smiles when she sees the woman “Thank you Fiona, but I will not eat tonight. I have a slight headache and will remain inside my room.”
“I can bring your meal to your bedroom, so you can eat later. It’s been a while since you last ate...” – Fiona replies with a concerned voice.

“So, this is the mysterious guest who is staying in my usual bedroom when I come to Waterdeep! Well met… cousin.” – A male voice speaks in elven, and as the figure approaches Varnas eyes open is surprise when she sees an elf. Long black raven hair, light skin and huge dark green eyes. The man was wearing fancy clothes adorned with gems; he stops walking and stays close to Fiona then looks at Varna smiling.

She nods politely at him and returns the smile “It was not that hard to convince the Innkeeper to rent me this room” – she replies in elven in a teasing manner. She rubs her neck with her left hand and smiles again, but this time it wasn’t a forced smile, she could not control it, she truly seems to enjoy speaking in eleven with another elf.

The man looks at her up and down and grins “Ohhh I do not doubt it was very easy for you to convince that man! I’m Elaethan and it is a pleasure to meet you.” – He bows politely while looking at her. He hesitates for a few seconds before continuing “Would you grant me the honor of your company downstairs? I was about to enjoy my meal. Perhaps we could do it together.”

Varna looks between Fiona and Eleathan and impulsively nods in agreement. “Allow me to refresh myself first and prepare and I will meet you downstairs. My name is Celadrill, and it will be my pleasure to share your company.” She then looks at Fiona, who was looking between the two clearly not understanding a single word from their conversation “Fiona, I will be having my meal downstairs, with him” – she speaks to the woman in common. Fiona nods and smiles before leaving. Eleathan looks at Varna and just slightly nods before leaving as well.

The elf closes the door and starts to prepare her, and then walks downstairs… hours pass before she returns … Eleathan accompanies her to her bedroom door. She smiles and seems quite happy. “I thank you for such delightful evening Eleathan, I can’t recall the last time I had this much fun. It’s as a whiff of fresh air to me. Many thanks.” – She says smiling. “I will be staying in Waterdeep for some more days, or more if something unpredictable happens. I will search for you for a stroll tomorrow, if you wish” – he replies. Varna nods and while smiling closes her bedroom door.

She looks around at her bedroom and smiles childishly. Rubs her arms and notices an open window, one she forgot to close before leaving her bedroom. Comes close to the window and right before closing it she notices something coming in her direction. She tilts her head curious and seems very surprised when a small feather falls right in front of her… she hesitates before picking it up, but eventually some minutes later she grabs it. Walks toward the couch next to the fireplace and removes the small paper attached to the feather. She opens it and starts to read.

Her expression is of disbelief, once she finishes reading the note she takes both her hands to her face and rubs it, biting her upper lip. Immediately she feels a strong burn in her chest, where she was /marked/… her left hand reaches her chest and she presses the area where it hurts. She starts to breathe heavily and only about half an hour later she seems to calm down.

“I knew it was only a matter of time… but… why now? What took you so bloody long!?” – She speaks rather loud and with some anger. She sighs and spends the rest of the night without moving, in the same place… the day rises and she continues quiet, very thoughtful. In the morning before lunch time someone knocks on her bedroom door, Eleathan calls for her a couple of times before giving up. She just shakes her head and doesn’t reply to him… The night returns, and she starts to write a small note. She attaches it to one of her feathers ((feather token: bird)), approaches her window and whispers a name releasing the feather. It moves very fast in the air and quickly is out of her sight…

She starts walking back and forward inside her bedroom looks at some of her personal objects near the bed. She comes closer and kneels before her backpack, opens it and looks inside. Her most powerful artifacts all gathered there. She randomly pulls out a hood, such beautiful and yet malevolent item. Touching it brought her immediately memories. She could feel the souls of those bonded to the item, whispering to her. “Not now” – she thinks to herself placing it inside the backpack again.

She stands up, cleans herself. Brushes her hair and dresses a recently bought exceptional well-crafted silk dress, decorated with flawless gems and gold. She leaves her bedroom and walks downstairs, didn’t take long to have almost every single person inside the Inn to look at her in awe… she looks around and smiles when she sees Eleathan, sitting alone. Once he lays his eyes on her, he gets up and smiles back waiting… "Are you a vampire Celadrill? Will I only be seeing you during the night?" - He kindly and playful asks her when she approaches... she just smiles back in reply.