Aelyn and Kaldr

[Briae]

Name: Aelyn (Ay-lin) Vehrea (Vehr-reah)
Race: Human
Age: 21
Occupation: Lady of the Court / Imperial Dragon Rider
Dragon: Kaldr

Appearance:

Aelyn's hair is straight, falling in soft layers to a couple inches below her shoulders, ebony in color. Her hair is almost always impeccably clean, as her lifestyle would expect, though when she is on a mission, she pays no attention to how it looks, and lets it get windblown, and dusty. In court, she often leaves her hair down, in a half ponytail, or a messy bun, for formality's sake, with silver hair ornaments and occasionally a fancy chain circlet. When she is traveling, she keeps it either down, or in a plain ponytail. Her eyes are large, steely gray blue, holding traces of mystery and knowledge. They are very pretty, in court standards, rimmed with long, dark lashes. Her skin is flawless, smooth and clean, and her features are refined, with a small nose, and light pink lips. She is fairly tanned, from days traveling, and countless missions, though her training and practicing is held inside the Imperial Barracks in Uru'Baen on most occasions. Aelyn is slender and of average height, standing at the respectable height of five foot six, with a straight posture that speaks of self assurance.

During her time in the Kings court, she wears the expected range of dresses, though not as fancy as the other women's, for the sole reason that she hates dresses in general, and prefers the plainer, more efficient hunting dress style. The colors that she most often wears, dress-wise, are: deep, wine red; black; light gray-blue; mossy green; ivory; maroon; gray and other dark or muted colors. Aelyn's wardrobe for traveling is simple, dark grays, faded blues, and blacks mainly, with the occasional lighter gray, or midnight blue. Loose tunics comfortable pants are the staple clothing items, with soft, supple boots, belts, and cloaks worn almost constantly. As for exceptions, she sometimes decides on other colors, such as off-white and brown, or other clothing, like blouses that are cinched at the neck and wrists, or vests. She almost constantly has a hooded cloak on when she is traveling or on a mission, whether it be black, brown, or some indiscernible dark color.

Aelyn is a warrioress, but she chooses to take a more subtle path, rather than being the type of person who leads charges, and gives orders, she prefers to lurk around the sidelines, taking out her targets, quickly, silently, efficiently. Her position, in the Empire, however, is a position that causes her to pose as a Varden spy, and either get information from the actual Varden underground, or take them to Galbatorix, which can be a very interesting job, as, understandably, the Varden doesn't go with her to Galbatorix without a fight. For her weapons, she carries four throwing knives, two on the right side of her belt, one in the left sleeve, and one in the left boot. They are plain, double edged steel, with no crosstree for improved accuracy, and the hilt is wrapped in a thin layer of black leather for grip. Because of the need for stealth and an unassuming profile, Aelyn carries very few weapons, and is thoroughly trained in unarmed fighting by a master of the art, Kaylor Sudo. She trained with him for many years to learn the style of fighting that suits her best. Aelyn prefers this type of fighting best, because she can always be 'armed' without anyone being able to notice, and she is very agile, which helps a good bit.

Aelyn is unerringly accurate with her throwing daggers, and has trained unarmed for ten years. She fights with precision, preferring to duck and dodge rather than block, since her knives, hands and feet are not made for stopping large, heavy weapons. She is well muscled, very agile, and is quite strong, because she has been trained in her art since she was merely eleven, a young age to start, for a woman. Aelyn is rigorous with her training, making sure that when she is between missions, she is at the Imperial Barracks as often as possible, for she loves to spar with the soldiers there. She takes solace in the fact that she is as good, and more often better than many a man training there, though she is almost always beaten by the better warriors, for the sheer fact that she is a woman, and not as strong as the men.

She also owns a horse, a large gray stallion named Aynor who was birthed from an impressive line of horses. He is very strong, and fast, obeying either mental or voice commands, and body signals, which makes him invaluable to Aelyn. He is well trained, and has been with her since he was no more than a foal when she began his training, which she still keeps up, so that he continues becoming attuned to her voice, and now he can pick her commands out from a crowd. Aynor's mane and tail are a darker gray color, silky and smooth because of her care. His coat is a smooth gray, lightly dappled, his face has a white snip (a spot of white on the muzzle, between nostrils), and his eyes are a deep, chocolaty brown. His right foreleg is white to halfway up the cannon bone, and both his back legs have white socks. Aelyn got Aynor as a gift from Galbatorix for her good service, when she was eighteen; a year after she began avidly traveling through the land on missions, and needed a better mount than the horse that her father had left her when he died, who was then to old to be of good use.

Personality:

Aelyn is mostly a tomboy, disliking anything overly feminine, especially dresses, which she is required to wear to all imperial events. Aelyn is very disappointed that she was born into her status, because of the fact that she is expected to be a lady, and can't ever be below the radar, unless she is on a mission. She is very down to earth, not fanciful nor wishful, half because of her personality, and half because of the way she was raised; never being encouraged to want anything that she didn't need, or that came with the life that she lives. Aelyn is stubborn, and inquisitive, insisting on doing her own thing, and finding things out herself; the hard way, sometimes. She hates being made fun of, and being told what she can, or can't do, and lives in her own way, which is mostly traveling from one place to another, carrying out a mission when one is given to her, and the ever dreaded imperial balls and galas, and training at the Barracks. Her favorite place to be in all of the Empire is the Spine, with Teirm and Dras-Leona following close second and third. She finds the Hadarac desert to be too desolate, and the lofty Beors have never been her destination, unless she wishes for a long, painful death at the hands of the Varden. She is frustrated that she is limited to the Empire, and specific parts of Surda, because of her alliegance. Uru’baen is her home city, and therefore she is there often, it also being the staging place for all of her missions.

Aelyn is careful, and in situations that require planning, she makes all arrangements prior to the mission, so that everything will run as smoothly as possible, without the unnecessary tweaks to the plan, which seem to happen anyway, no matter how thoroughly she has planned. She hates it when people leave things undone, or done badly, and feels like she needs to clean up after many messily done jobs, even if it is out of her way, which makes many people's lives easily, but causes a good bit of hassle for Aelyn herself. Aelyn tends to ignore emotions, because most that have occurred often in her life, have been pain, sorrow, and regret, and so she buries them inside of herself, letting them out only when she is alone. She hates it when she is weak, or caves to emotion that is too strong to hold inside, especially if it is in a place where people can see. Aelyn is very calculating, but seems very open to the casual observer. The root of that appearance is the fact that she seems to hang around the outskirts of wherever she is, never taking center stage, but never being truly invisible, she is just... there. She carefully observes everything, however, with a practiced eye, and her mind soaks up information and training very easily, also retaining it to near perfection.

She has a dry sense of humor, loves sarcasm, and uses it frequently. She is pleasant and loyal to those who are her friends, but to business acquaintances, she is cold, and can be a little on the rude side. To enemies, she holds her guise of being on their side for as long as she needs, then is outright hostile, which is no surprise. Aelyn loves puzzles and mind games, but rarely has time for them. She is very smart, and can decipher codes and riddles easily. For missions, she prefers a silent, shadowy job to the outright fighting, or ambush, because it makes the job a little more interesting for her. She is often quiet, listens well and calculates, factoring everything in before acting. Aelyn is very defensive, and hates losing an argument, especially when her adversary has no proof that she is in the wrong. She also strongly dislikes when she looses a sparring match unfairly, and can be somewhat moody for a time afterward. She is proud, and hates having a bad name, but on the other hand, is respectful to the authorities, and is not boastful. Aelyn is also competitive, loving to practice with others at the Imperial ranges, or spend hours sparring with whoever would take her on.

Aelyn is not shielded from weaknesses and faults, as she is human, and of high birth. Aelyn can be quite cutting with the mix of sarcasm and wit that she wields freely, and rarely notices the effect that it has on people. She doesn't hold back when she dislikes a person, but expresses that in a somewhat polite way, but will not slander them behind their back, for she knows that she hates it when people do it to her. She is very intelligent, and assumes that everyone is, which is rarely the case, for though the ladies and lords of the courts know much of ballroom dancing and gossip, they know little of fighting and traveling, which are the subjects that most interest her. Aelyn can be quite cold, and silent when she is not in a good mood. It is somewhat rare that she is in a good mood, though more so when she is forced to go to galas and the like, which she abhors. Aelyn is very heart-strong, following spur of the moment ideas as well as the planned course.

Overall, Aelyn is quite pleasant when you get to know her, but she can be a dangerous enemy.

History:

It was a dark and stormy night (Wow, can you say cliche?) in late September, when Aelyn Vehrea was laid in Tervon, her father's, arms, wrapped in a black blanket to mourn her mother, who died in childbirth. A week later, her father carried her, dressed in a somber dress of black silk, to the carriage for the funeral procession. Her name was originally going to be Erril, meaning Brilliant, but after her mother's death, her father changed her name to Aelyn, which meant Sorrow, to commemorate her mother's death. She had one older brother, Terevel, who died of smallpox when Aelyn was at the age of two. He was four years older than she, and she doesn't remember him at all, only that her father became deeply depressed at this point, and so she mourns her brother, not as much for his death, but for what happened to her father. Her father was deeply scarred by the death of his wife, and then, just under two years later, his firstborn son. He began to think that he was cursed, and alienated himself from his daughter, to spare her the bad luck that he thought he would surely bring upon her, and locked himself in his study, only leaving for sustenance and private meetings.

Aelyn missed the presence of her father, though most of her time was taken up by lessons of many sorts. History, penmanship, writing, reading, dancing, embroidery, and sewing, along with the more interesting subjects such as self defense, and magical training to improve her natural ability with the ancient language, for however un-ladylike those may be, her father insisted that she learn how to defend herself, for when he passed on. Aelyn only got to see her father once a month, when he would come and they would have a grand banquet, just the two of them, and talk over the past month. Aelyn knew that her father loved her, and he showed it in how he cared for her, and listened when she spoke, treating her as he would an adult, and letting her think out problems, and explain herself instead of answering for her, and babying her, but her father never really seemed too interested in what she had to say. However, he was melancholy, and depressed, which tinted Aelyn's childhood gray.

Two months after Aelyn turned 10, in the middle of a particularly bad string of rainstorms when her father was as depressed as he had ever been, he committed suicide in his study, stabbing himself in the heart with an ornate dagger that had been Aelyn's mother's. No one found out about his death until the next night, for occasionally when he was quite depressed, Aelyn's father would skip meals, but when he did not come out for dinner, as well as breakfast, lunch, and tea, the eldest, most trusted servant of the household, the only person with a key, other than Tervon himself, unlocked the door, after calling through it for a quarter of an hour. What he found terrified him. His master was laying on the floor in the midst of a pool of dried blood, dead. At first, they all thought that he had been assassinated, but then realized that his room had no windows, and the door had not been tampered with, along with the fact that his wife's dagger was what had killed him. What followed was a painfully long funeral, more black clothing, and more sad memories for Aelyn.

The news of her father's death devastated Aelyn. She had loved her father deeply, and now that he was gone, everything he owned had been left to her, and she had a household to manage, with the fortune that he had hoarded all of his life in addition to managing her emotions that were running rampant. Tervon had never agreed with the frivolous spending that ensnared most nobles, and spent money on only what he needed, living in what was considered plain clothing, for a nobleman of Galbatorix's courts. He also taught his daughter to stay away from fancy, expensive things unless she needed them for a wedding or some such occasion. Aelyn finally dealt with her grief in the way that she would for the rest of her life, by burying it inside of her, and trying her best to ignore it. She managed the house quite well, for a ten year old, and when she was eleven, started training more intensely with her throwing daggers, and learning how to fight without weapons.

When Aelyn was sixteen she was very well trained, and was at least at the standards of a good imperial foot soldier, because she learned quickly, and retained all information. She had worked intensively to become the best that she could, and still does, making sure that her talent never decreases. A little more than a year later, she met with a General of Galbatorix's army, who said that Galbatorix had asked that she continue her training, and become an undercover agent for the Empire, and gave her details on what type of missions she would be performing, and the fact that she must not decrease, but increase, if there must be a change, her attendance of parties, balls, and galas, and things like that, which was a disappointing factor, but Aelyn knew that she must be a somewhat public figure if she wanted to stay below the radar. Aelyn almost immediately accepted, glad for a reason to continue her training, for she was getting soldiers joking behind her back that she was a lunatic to train for no reason, and she should just return to the fancy dresses, gossip and tea parties that suited her rank and status. Aelyn felt that they were jealous of her high birth, and would have gladly traded any one of them.

Since then, Aelyn has thrown herself into her training, and been very reserved at imperial events. Bowing out of as many dances as wouldn't be suspicious, and keeping on the outskirts of every scene. She knows almost everything, solely from the fact that she listens instead of speaking, and catalogs information quickly and efficiently. Aelyn loves traveling across the Empire, and perfecting a move, winning a sparring match or long range challenge. She has gotten over her father's untimely death, but is still sorrowful, as her name implies, because of all that she has lost.

----------

Name: Kaldr
Race: Dragon
Age: Hatchling (App written as if he was older.)
Occupation: Dragon
Rider: Aelyn

Appearance:

[/i]

Kaldr's scales are a deep, rich blue, a shade found between sapphire and navy. The scales are as hard as diamonds, and the way they reflect light is reminiscent of the precious gem. Kaldr's powerful wings have the texture of thick, soft parchment, stretched taut between the ribs of bone. His wings are warm and velvety to the touch, laced with veins that are visible through the thin skin. The row of imposing ivory spikes along the rest of Kaldr's back are interrupted at the base of his neck, where a slight dip shows the placement of his saddle. His fangs and claws are the same pure alabaster color, starkly contrasted to the deep blue of his scales. Kaldr's claws are curved slightly, serrated on the inside edge and as hard as his scales. His canines are long and sharp, protruding from his mouth even when it is closed. Kaldr's eyes are a few shades darker than his scales, minuscule flecks of black and silvery gray adding depth to them. His eyes have the air of knowledge, serenity, and cunning - a powerful combination for one yet so young.

Kaldr is a small dragon, even from hatching. He is built compactly, strong, conditioned muscles laying underneath his scales. Kaldr cannot boast the power of many other dragons, but he makes up for the apparent lack with his agility and talent for flight. Kaldr can out-maneuver and out-fly many of his larger, more powerful opponents, and his attacks tend to be fast and effective.

Personality:

[/i]

Kaldr is very serious and hardworking, throwing his all into whatever task he is given. Kaldr is intent on learning, and advancing his skill for his own pleasure and to please Aelyn. He loves training with Aelyn, though he finds that without his rider training is more tedious. Kaldr is intelligent and he possesses the wisdom that would usually denote one of an older age, which he wields to the best of his ability. Kaldr tempers Aelyn's occasional rash decisions, making the two of them cooperate even more fully. He is very practical and utilitarian, making sure that every detail is taken care of and every move is planned and executed flawlessly. Kaldr is a perfectionist, always wishing to improve in one way or another, which motivates him to stick to his rigorous training. Kaldr has the double sided trait of sarcasm that can both lighten the situation, or be cuttingly painful, according to his whim. He can be as stubborn and unmoving as a mountain, but when a logical alternative is clearly and competently suggested, Kaldr will - if grudgingly - consider it. Kaldr is irritable when tired, hungry or generally disgruntled and he hates it when his plans are upset or something goes wrong. He also can be destructive in his anger, though he does not try to do so.

History:
[Written as roleplay example]

[/i]

Aelyn walked slowly up a long, stone staircase. Thoughts whirled through her head in frantic, unorganized streams. The King himself had ordered her to go to the egg chamber and try her luck at getting a dragon to hatch. Aelyn was apprehensive about this order, because she did not know what would happen if a dragon did, indeed, hatch for her. Thankfully, the odds of that - ever - happening are very low, so I'm safe for now, at least. Aelyn frowned. ...hopefully. The flight of stairs ended at a large door, which was guarded by six men who barred the entrance upon seeing her. Aelyn held out an order from the king, which one took. The man verified it validity, then ordered the other guards to step down and let Aelyn pass. Aelyn flipped her hair out of her face, squared her shoulders and took a deep breath, pushing through the door hesitantly.

The walls in the room were covered in tapestries of past and current Imperial riders with their dragons. Galbatorix and Shruiken took up the entire back wall with an immense, detailed tapestry depicting both in regal and menacing poses. On the side walls were considerably smaller pictures, showing other riders and their dragons. A pedestal stood before each tapestry and most held the shards of the dragon's egg. A few, including Galbatorix's, were empty, looking strangely out of place. Aelyn glanced up at the wall she had entered through, startled for a moment at the woven cloth showing the thirteen forsworn with their dragons surrounding them. The focus of the room, was not the tapestries, not the picture of the king, not even the egg shards.

The focus was the live eggs.

A few intricate marble pedestals were spaced evenly around the room, each topped with a single egg nestled securely in a thick pad of luxurious black velvet. The eggs themselves were oval in shape, reflecting the soft light fro their smooth surface. The eggs were all different colors, webbed with veins of pure ivory .Aelyn's gaze shifted from a green one, to an egg that seemed the color of dried blood, then rested on a deep mahogany egg that sat on a pedestal on the left side of the room. Aelyn took a deep breath and stepped forward, reaching her hand out to touch the first egg.

Aelyn's fingertips brushed the copper shell gently, marveling t the unnaturally smooth surface. The eggs felt almost silky they were so smooth, yet the egg was cool, hard, and - as Aelyn carefully picked up the egg - Much heavier than they looked. Her hands gently rotated the egg, searching for any imperfections on the shell. Unsurprisingly, Aelyn didn't find a single mark. Almost reverently, she set the egg down in the nest of velvet. Aelyn proceeded to the next, a sand colored egg that seemed to almost glow from the golden candle light. Aelyn walked slowly around the room, touching and holding each egg in turn as she had been instructed. When Aelyn finished with her rounds, she retreated to the door, staring one last time at the fascinating objects. Reluctantly, she left the room, nodding stiffly to the guards.

(Three days later...)

Aelyn woke with a start, sitting up in bed. She quickly scanned the room for what had woken her, but she saw nothing, and assumed that it must have been a dream. Just as she was almost asleep, a voice jolted her back upright. Aelyn... Aelyn looked around, confused. No one was in her room, and her door was shut tight, and a guard, posted outside, would have told her of any visitors. Yet the voice was clear. Aelyn slowly stood up, looking around warily. Aelyn... Aelyn nearly jumped as the voice sounded in her head again. This time, she was sure she hadn't imagined it. "Who are you?" Aelyn asked the thin air, hoping whatever was mentally contacting her would be able to hear her voice. Silence filled the room. Trying a different approach, Aelyn cleared her mind and projected her thoughts. Who are you? The room was still silent, but Aelyn felt a strange presence brush her mind. Just as she was about to ask another time, the voice came again.

...A friend. Aelyn walked to her wardrobe, trying to decide how to answer. She waited until she had shrugged into a dark outerdress to answer. Where are you, and why won't you tell me who you are? Aelyn's bare feet padded softly against the cold stone floor as she hurried to her nightstand. She belted on her sword, leaving her daggers where they lay. I am in the egg chamber. Come. Aelyn shivered at the voice that was part commanding, part pleading. Then she realized the significance of what the voice had said. No, not the voice... the dragon. Aelyn opened her door, sweeping past the startled guard. Her feet slapped on the floor as she sped up her pace, flying down the corridor in atypical haste. Aelyn ran down three hallways, up a flight of stairs, down a long, curving corridor and up the spiral staircase that led to the egg room.

The soldiers let her through without a word. No doubt her dragon had contacted them and instructed them to let her in... or the King had. He always knew when the dragons hatched. A chill ran down Aelyn's spine as she beheld the dragon which she would raise to one day ride - a scrawny catlike being, covered in deep blue scales. Aelyn walked reverently toward him, reaching out her hand as if she was in a trance. The moment she touched the cool scales of her dragon, a burning sensation ripped up her arm and spread through her entire form. Her teeth and lips clenched to hold in an involuntary scream, effectively muting the sound. Aelyn felt her body collapse, and her vision faded to black.


[/size][/blockquote]

[Angmor]

Accepted!