Saidra
Character Information
Character Name: Saidra, daughter of Cyrus, Exiled Princess, Demon's Bane, and the White Rose of Cordoba
Class: Mysterious Stranger(Gunslinger), Legate Paladin, Nornkith Monk: (6/4/2)
Age: 17 years old
Gender: Female
Height: 5' 5"
Weight: 97 lbs
Eye color: Vibrant Blue
Fur: Pearlescent White.
Species: Catfolk
Homeworld: Cordoba
Weapons and Equipment
Weapons:
"Promise" -A simple flintlock pistol, with a polished red wood grip, and dark iron parts. The only defining mark is the simple Templar Shield mounted in the grip.
"Reach" -Her first Pepper box, and first successful attempt at the craft, this pistol was enchanted at her father's command to give it extended range. It is a mix of brass plated steel, and creme colored wood, ornately scrolled with Cordoban designs.
"Pepper Box" -A second pepper box, crafted as she continued to work at her skill in gunsmithing, this pistol is rather simple, but also sports brass plating and pale birch wood.
"Hawk's Moon" -Her first personally designed and constructed firearm, Saidra labored for months on this particular design. When it was ready, she ordered the parts machined, and personally checked them for perfection. She finally crafted it while visiting Brummen's family in Chanson, and later had it enchanted with Holy Magic. This pistol is also tied to her belt by a leather strap, a gift from Brummen.
"Cordoban Scimitar and Curved Dagger set" -Befitting her royal status, these weapons were largely for show. She was preparing to lead her armies at the time of her exile, and thus is armed with the regal pair of blades.
"Dragon ballista" -Purchased in preparation for the mission to find Aysel, this weapon is a underslung canon, made to fire ballista bolts with gun powder charges. She has great plans for expanding this weapon's properties in the future.
Equipment:
Ring of Grit Mastery Bag of Holding type 1 Bag of Holding type 2 Belt of Dexterity +2 Boots of Speed Endless bandolier Gloves of Arrow Snatching Headband of Charisma Cracked Kintuk Pendant Scarab Pendant(A gift from Arnon Katsu) Ioun Torch Ring of Protection +4
First and Second Impressions
Appearance: Saidra is a young catfolk female, but her eyes bear a potential for both strength and compassion that are uncommon in one so young. She has pearlescent white fur, gleaming in the light with hues of pink, gold, and purple. In her world, this is a mark of those who carry the blood of the djinn in their veins, but so far from home, the true meaning of the coloring is lost to most.
Personality: Having been raised in a palace, Saidra has had to learn many of the day to day skills that common people learn as children. Still, she has a deep loyalty and determination in her, and has set herself to accomplish whatever she needs to, if it is for the good of her friends.
Other Skills: Saidra is an excellent marksman, and an accomplished craftsman in firearms and ammunition. She has also learned to cook passably well, and continues to improve under Mu's tutelage.
BackStory
Background: Saidra was born to Cyrus the Unifier, and Nadia. She lived a carefree life in the palace of Cordoba, but always had an interest in anything her father was doing. While many thought this unbecoming of a young lady, Cyrus encouraged her interest, and put his Captain of the Guard to work training her in the sword. Artaxes had been a long time friend of Cyrus, and so while he also questioned the importance of the princess' instruction in such things, he would not deny his emperor and friend. Saidra grew up the oldest of four children, with twin sisters Atya and Nayia, and the baby of the family being her brother Hassan. When Saidra was seventeen years old, tragedy struck the nation. Assassins from the west managed to breach security at the palace, and murdered the royal family in their sleep. Only Saidra survived, being plagued with nightmares that night, and tumbling from her bed as the fateful crossbow bolt struck the pillow she had slept upon. The assassin was never able to complete the last kill, thanks to the Royal Guard that intervened at that time.
Saidra was robbed of her family, and set to be empress in her father's place, all in the same night. Her heart was filled with pain and anger, and she immediately set about gathering the army to bring war to the west. Her army was gathered and dispatched to the west, while Saidra observed the required rites of coronation in the capitol. With the rites completed, and with news of border incursions already in the court, Saidra prepared to join her armies at the front nearly a month after the death of her family. She received word from Artaxes that a mysterious old craftsman had offered to make the armor for the empress, and had done an exquisite job. Upon donning the armor however, the empress was caught in a magical sand storm, and with a strong voice telling her that she was exiled from her home until such time as she could return and save it, Saidra was cast out into the ethereal plane.
She lingered there for only a few hours, but the time seemed both eternal and but a moment. She felt only a coldness in her mind, and sunk into darkness. When she awoke, she was in a bed at the gold goblin, surrounded by a strange group of people, all looking inquisitively at her. They seemed to feel some level of responsibility for her, and as she grew to know them, she grew to love them as friends and family. She tried to work, to show her appreciation, but when her cooking proved disastrous, she was invited to learn from the best, and as Mu taught Saidra to cook, she became more at home in this new strange world.
About three months later, Saidra was invited to join the others in a trip to visit Brummen's family in a place called Chanson.
After spending the new year in Chanson, the group were asked to join in the fight against the Drow, a war that taught Saidra a lot in terms of her own abilities, and the value of loyal friends. Particularly, this was the time in which Aysel vanished, and thoughts of Katsu began to grow more in her mind. He was her friend, like the others, but he was also more than that. He had pulled her from the planes, rescued her from being lost forever, and had since pulled her life back from the darkness of death on multiple occasions. He was a quiet and mysterious man, with a past that he didn't talk about, but also with a irrepressible light that resonated deeply within Saidra.
Upon returning from the war with the Drow, the group were again called away to handle a problem with in the Kintuk people.
returning from this last journey, it was finally time to get Aysel back. The group gathered information by all means available, from old libraries to summoned Djinn, they got closer and closer. When they were finally ready, they prepared for three days to wage war on a god. They traveled to the Feywild, and breached the Fellnight Realm. Within this realm, they battled their way to the castle of Ranalak the Cruel, before breaching it, and finding their friend. Aysel was not as happy to see them as they were to see her, and finding that Ranalak still held sway over their friend, the group went to face him. If he would not release her, then they would kill him. It was that simple. It had to be that simple.
The battle against Ranalac was hard and long, but in the end, the team prevailed. Ranalac the Cruel was dead. Even in death however, his cruelty was still felt by Aysel, and the scars ran too deep for any hope of a speedy recovery. Saidra felt sorry for her friend, but also understood that such pain could not easily be expressed, until it worked itself out. Until then, Saidra intended to be present for her friend, and waited until Aysel was ready to be helped.
The next six months passed in relative calm. Aside from two exceptions, Saidra remained close to Riddleport, and focused on helping her friends. Kin was still learning to use the Dragon Ballista better, Aysel was around off and on, and of course there was Katsu to think of. Saidra enjoyed the calm, and was just beginning to settle into a comfortable rythem when the six months came to a close, and an unexpected new chapter began...
The few exceptions
[The Wild West] Saidra had been helping around the Gold Goblin, when a curious horse approached her. The beast seemed to be intelligent, and was beautiful to say the least. Its name and coat were snowy white, and its eyes were a soft grey blue, like the cold north sea. The horse then surprised Saidra by speaking to her. The message that the horse carried was a cry for aid. The horse had hoped to find the one called Brummen, or perhaps Mu, but related its tale to Saidra anyway. A small frontier town in the southwest of Hyphantonar was beset by a necromancer. Who the necromancer was remained a mystery, but the horse begged Saidra to bring aid to the town. The people there were innocent, and didnt deserve the fate they would otherwise receive. Saidra accepted the quest, and set off to meet her friends, and help this poor town. The horse, named Eden, turned to go, satisfied that her mission was successful. Saidra and the others fought against the undead that attacked the town, and finally battled the necromancer himself. When he died, Mu made a startling discovery. It was none other than Kerrick, and he bore an ominous holy symbol: a twisted piece of hard wood known as Uskwood.
[A land pulled from time] on a routine trip via teleportation, Mu and Saidra were snagged by some unknown force, and deposited on an island. They soon met up with several others, and the group set off to find out what was keeping them here, while also not getting killed by the prehistoric wildlife. Tracked by T-rexes, and ambushed by Raptors, the group finally found the stranded crew of a human warship, one from the stranger's own history. They made uneasy allies with the commander and his men, before plunging into an old temple that proved to be the mouth of a great earth elemental. Once inside the creature, they found the source of their containment, as well as the source of the elemental's agitation. A thorny briar was growing in the roof of its stomach, cracking the stone, and poisoning the creature. While fighting to destroy the briar, the party also had to contend with a shadow dragon that was also captive to this place. When they finally destroyed the plant, the dragon teleported away, and Mu was able to identify the briar as being the same wood as the holy symbol he had taken from his dead friend: Uskwood.
[Taking back a Wish] Saidra had returned to the Gold Goblin after the latest of her adventures, and it was nearly six months since they had freed Aysel and gained ownership of the fell night realm. One day, as Saidra mused about her favorite cleric, and absentmindedly drew plans for some new mechanical toy; she was abruptly stopped by the familiar rush of warmth as her sand armor burst around her. It was shifting again, but this time not so much in appearance, as in potential. Although Saidra was no arcanist, she somehow knew in her heart what this meant. The armor was ready to return home, and somehow, it could get her there. She waited excitedly for her friends to return, to share the good news!
Upon plane shifting to Saidra's homeland, the party was not met with the sight they expected. Saidra had hoped to introduce them to her city of Cordoba, but now found only a ruined village, and a small oasis. They stayed with goat hearders that night, and learned that much was not as Saidra had left it. That night, Saidra found some solace in seeing her own stars for the first time in a year and a half, and even took time to point out the greater constellations to Katsu. She pointed out the Warrior, and his stand against the western wall, choosing not to mention the other constellation in that story: the maiden that he is defending. According to legend she was a princess, but also represented the land. Saidra slipped up, accidentally verbalizing some of her own thoughts, "you could be my warrior." She quickly pushed forward with other constellations, feeling embarrassed at her slip.
When the party gathered the next morning, they teleported close to the now Capitol city of Sheherezade, but were immediately noticed by a patrol. The patrol came to intercept them, but was ambushed by a group of freedom fighters I the same moment. The party, unsure what to do, could only follow Saidra's example. She seemed to recognize the patrol as a western unit, and threw in with the freedom fighters right away. After a brief combat, the patrol lay dead, and the freedom fighters gathered to identify the party as friend or foe. They agreed to bring the party back with them, but as they prepared to move, one of the leaders of the local fighters, realizing that Saidra was a faithful follower of Etaf, removed her face wrap to introduce herself. "It is a welcome thing to find a follower of Etaf here. I am Nadia." This declaration brought a look of recognition and shock to Saidra's face as her blue eyes went wide and her voice nearly broke. "Mother?"
To be continued...
