06-04-2014, 08:49 PM
Name: Elisa Beaumont
Age: 20
Gender: Female
Nation/Allegiance: Etruria - allegiance to herself and those with a common goal only.
Appearance/Description: Elisa is taller than average for a woman, standing at five feet, nine inches. Her hair is a pale shade, almost white, with just the slightest traces of blue in it. It's typically tied off and tucked under her clothing to keep it out of the way, but if released, one could note that it's waist-length. Her eyes are a much darker blue. Along with the rest of her face, they can easily go from her 'usual' gentle and mellow expression to a fierce or even psychotic one almost instantly. As for her body, Elisa is a knockout, in more ways than one. She has an impressive figure, accented with enough muscle tone to suggest that she's packed an equally impressive amount of strength into her slender frame. She has several scars over her body, although normally the only noticeable one most of the time is on her face, running down the left side and narrowly avoiding her eye.
As for clothes, what Elisa wears depends largely on what she's doing. Traveling? A comfortable top (usually a tunic), thick pants and boots. Usually a hiking stick as well, although she's been known to use a polearm in place of one in the past. In public? Usually the same, although she'll break out Etrurian finery from back home whenever she feels comfortable wearing it. Sometimes with a hatchet or tomahawk at her waist in case of emergencies. Bandit-ing? Looser, lighter hide garments that let her move freely. And, occasionally, let her conceal extra weapons or spellbooks. She favors a rather large battleaxe, but also frequently carries a few spellbooks of anima magic. They're disguised as light magic, by way of replacing the covers with ones more indicative of light magic. A more discerning eye would notice this, but when she's not using them Elisa relies on them only being seen at a glance.
Once upon a time, Elisa was a very dedicated person. Dedicated to her studies, dedicated to learning magic, even dedicated to physical training after a few unfortunate accidents and current events. And in public, she keeps up this facade. She does try to maintain a 'totally not a bandit' side in friendlier territory, after all. But behind all that, she's discovered that the banditry she originally did for the sake of revenge is actually really fun, and a hell of a lot better than sitting in a classroom all day. And when she starts to get into it, it shows.
Bio/Backstory: Elisa was born to a family of nobles living in Aquelia, Etruria. She was the older of two children, the other being a brother four years younger than her. Her early life especially was very comfortable, fueled by her family's longstanding wealth and influence in the nation. They had a long history of producing magic practictioners, allegedly dating back to the days of the Scouring, but her parents were not among those practitioners. In fact, they didn't have an ounce of magical talent in them. So, while they were overjoyed when a young Elisa got into an old family tome and showed signs of the talent they laked, her parents were completely unequipped to teach her. Instead, she was sent to study under a mentor.
Said mentor, a former student of the then Mage General, took a number of apprentices at once and taught them much like a small class. While this allowed Elisa to make friends and have social interaction with some of her peers, it also meant that her studies were rigorously regulated and impersonal. What she could and couldn't do without her mentor's supervision was very strictly controlled, and that supervision was split among all of his apprentices. Elisa found her apprenticeship to be very limiting, but nonetheless she began to develop her talents and excel. When she had the time to visit home, Elisa frequently and eagerly showed off her talents Just as frequently, she was admonished by her mentor upon returning for practicing without supervision.
It wasn't just magic she learned, either. Her mentor insisted on giving all of his apprentices whatever education he and his personal library could provide. Of every non-magical subject she was taught, Elisa took most easily to history. Of course, it was history as Etruria knew it, which portrayed themselves as noble saviors, Lycia as heroes who defeated Bern thanks to Etruria's guidance, and Bern as an evil empire. But what else could one expect when history was written by the winners? Elisa acknowledged that, after awhile, but without any contrary views to go on, she still never learned any differently.
All the while, her mentality and personality turned inward the longer she studied. Her mentor's strictness and overall attitude taught her that oftentimes it was better to just keep her head down. She developed a quiet and soft-spoken personality, and after awhile seemed to have trouble talking with people directly. But in reality, it was just a side effect of keeping everything she wanted to say and do inside. And every now and then, she had to let it out.
And when she did, it exploded.
She was seventeen the first time it happened. News had come in about rising tensions and concerns caused by Lycia's reorganization into an empire. It contrasted harshly with everything Elisa had learned about the nation, and so she wanted to know more about it. But her mentor insisted that it not be talked about, that any tensions would soon blow over because Etruria had every intention to make peace with Lycia, and that there was no reason to be distracted from their studies over something as simple as that. But the situation didn't improve. People talked, and Elisa did her best to ignore it. She became increasingly frustrated with her mentor, but she did her best not to express it. She knew everything she was feeling was petty and ultimately pointless, but the sheer volume of it reached a breaking point. She snapped. And in the process of snapping, half of her mentor's library got incinerated when she lost control of her magic.
The next day was the last she saw of him before being forced to return home. The greeting she received when she did was not a warm one. Her family assumed she had ultimately failed to live up to expectations and been dropped. She didn't have the heart to tell them that she'd burned down part of her mentor's library. She just retracted back into her shell of being meek and timid and let it go. In the following months, Elisa came to terms with the fact that if she had more outbursts like that, continuing to use magic like that would end in disaster. So she trained herself physically, using the advice of passing soldiers and mecenaries as a guide and practicing alongside them whenever she could. It took several months of intense training, often to the point of exhausting herself and needing assistance getting back home, but at the end of it all, Elisa reached a point where she could wield a battleaxe with relative ease. After that time, however, no more soldiers or mercenaries could spare the time.
It wasn't long before Elisa found out why. Lycia, having long since lost the "hero" label of history books, had invaded the southern parts of Etruria. At first, Elisa thought to just wait it out, hoping that her country's army would be able to match Lycia. But within the next couple months, they had already reached the capital. Her old mentor's home? Burned, without Elisa's help. Her own home? Also burned. The heart of the Elimine Church? Destroyed, and some mockery put in its place. Then came the decree that the magic Elisa practiced was now banned. And with that, Elisa was forced to accept the realization that there was nothing left for her in what had once been her home. All that was left was a fire that needed to be spread across all of Lycia. On that day, something very fundamental about Elisa changed. The sudden, explosive attitude that arose when Elisa lost control a year and a half before came back as a slow transition. And then it stayed with her, long after she escaped. Long after she chose to embrace her lack of control. Long after she cut her way out of the city, laughing madly as she swung her axe down on anyone in her way. Long after she set fire to the forest to cover her escape.
A month later, she finally stopped running, and settled in the mountains surrounding Lycia. She joined up with a group of bandits, who sought to take advantage of the war by targeting border towns while the army wasn't around to defend them. Most of them, after all, were in Etruria now. She did it because it was the closest thing to revenge she could think of. She did it because she knew there was no way she could take on an army alone, or even with a small ragtag group of like-minded misfits. She did it because the crazy side that had come out during her outburst two years ago, and during her escape, was becoming much more "normal" for her.
And after awhile, she did it because she loved every minute of it.
Now, she's still at it. Every now and again, she'll pretend to be a normal, upstanding citizen of Lycia and go about her business in some town, all the while listening for news. She's difficult to approach, because she gets very nervous when forced to talk to other people and tends to avoid it when she can. But, appearances aside, very few would suspect her of being the same female berserker who occasionally showed up among bandit groups, looking like she's having the time of her life as she cuts down anyone and anything in her way.
Age: 20
Gender: Female
Nation/Allegiance: Etruria - allegiance to herself and those with a common goal only.
Appearance/Description: Elisa is taller than average for a woman, standing at five feet, nine inches. Her hair is a pale shade, almost white, with just the slightest traces of blue in it. It's typically tied off and tucked under her clothing to keep it out of the way, but if released, one could note that it's waist-length. Her eyes are a much darker blue. Along with the rest of her face, they can easily go from her 'usual' gentle and mellow expression to a fierce or even psychotic one almost instantly. As for her body, Elisa is a knockout, in more ways than one. She has an impressive figure, accented with enough muscle tone to suggest that she's packed an equally impressive amount of strength into her slender frame. She has several scars over her body, although normally the only noticeable one most of the time is on her face, running down the left side and narrowly avoiding her eye.
As for clothes, what Elisa wears depends largely on what she's doing. Traveling? A comfortable top (usually a tunic), thick pants and boots. Usually a hiking stick as well, although she's been known to use a polearm in place of one in the past. In public? Usually the same, although she'll break out Etrurian finery from back home whenever she feels comfortable wearing it. Sometimes with a hatchet or tomahawk at her waist in case of emergencies. Bandit-ing? Looser, lighter hide garments that let her move freely. And, occasionally, let her conceal extra weapons or spellbooks. She favors a rather large battleaxe, but also frequently carries a few spellbooks of anima magic. They're disguised as light magic, by way of replacing the covers with ones more indicative of light magic. A more discerning eye would notice this, but when she's not using them Elisa relies on them only being seen at a glance.
Once upon a time, Elisa was a very dedicated person. Dedicated to her studies, dedicated to learning magic, even dedicated to physical training after a few unfortunate accidents and current events. And in public, she keeps up this facade. She does try to maintain a 'totally not a bandit' side in friendlier territory, after all. But behind all that, she's discovered that the banditry she originally did for the sake of revenge is actually really fun, and a hell of a lot better than sitting in a classroom all day. And when she starts to get into it, it shows.
Bio/Backstory: Elisa was born to a family of nobles living in Aquelia, Etruria. She was the older of two children, the other being a brother four years younger than her. Her early life especially was very comfortable, fueled by her family's longstanding wealth and influence in the nation. They had a long history of producing magic practictioners, allegedly dating back to the days of the Scouring, but her parents were not among those practitioners. In fact, they didn't have an ounce of magical talent in them. So, while they were overjoyed when a young Elisa got into an old family tome and showed signs of the talent they laked, her parents were completely unequipped to teach her. Instead, she was sent to study under a mentor.
Said mentor, a former student of the then Mage General, took a number of apprentices at once and taught them much like a small class. While this allowed Elisa to make friends and have social interaction with some of her peers, it also meant that her studies were rigorously regulated and impersonal. What she could and couldn't do without her mentor's supervision was very strictly controlled, and that supervision was split among all of his apprentices. Elisa found her apprenticeship to be very limiting, but nonetheless she began to develop her talents and excel. When she had the time to visit home, Elisa frequently and eagerly showed off her talents Just as frequently, she was admonished by her mentor upon returning for practicing without supervision.
It wasn't just magic she learned, either. Her mentor insisted on giving all of his apprentices whatever education he and his personal library could provide. Of every non-magical subject she was taught, Elisa took most easily to history. Of course, it was history as Etruria knew it, which portrayed themselves as noble saviors, Lycia as heroes who defeated Bern thanks to Etruria's guidance, and Bern as an evil empire. But what else could one expect when history was written by the winners? Elisa acknowledged that, after awhile, but without any contrary views to go on, she still never learned any differently.
All the while, her mentality and personality turned inward the longer she studied. Her mentor's strictness and overall attitude taught her that oftentimes it was better to just keep her head down. She developed a quiet and soft-spoken personality, and after awhile seemed to have trouble talking with people directly. But in reality, it was just a side effect of keeping everything she wanted to say and do inside. And every now and then, she had to let it out.
And when she did, it exploded.
She was seventeen the first time it happened. News had come in about rising tensions and concerns caused by Lycia's reorganization into an empire. It contrasted harshly with everything Elisa had learned about the nation, and so she wanted to know more about it. But her mentor insisted that it not be talked about, that any tensions would soon blow over because Etruria had every intention to make peace with Lycia, and that there was no reason to be distracted from their studies over something as simple as that. But the situation didn't improve. People talked, and Elisa did her best to ignore it. She became increasingly frustrated with her mentor, but she did her best not to express it. She knew everything she was feeling was petty and ultimately pointless, but the sheer volume of it reached a breaking point. She snapped. And in the process of snapping, half of her mentor's library got incinerated when she lost control of her magic.
The next day was the last she saw of him before being forced to return home. The greeting she received when she did was not a warm one. Her family assumed she had ultimately failed to live up to expectations and been dropped. She didn't have the heart to tell them that she'd burned down part of her mentor's library. She just retracted back into her shell of being meek and timid and let it go. In the following months, Elisa came to terms with the fact that if she had more outbursts like that, continuing to use magic like that would end in disaster. So she trained herself physically, using the advice of passing soldiers and mecenaries as a guide and practicing alongside them whenever she could. It took several months of intense training, often to the point of exhausting herself and needing assistance getting back home, but at the end of it all, Elisa reached a point where she could wield a battleaxe with relative ease. After that time, however, no more soldiers or mercenaries could spare the time.
It wasn't long before Elisa found out why. Lycia, having long since lost the "hero" label of history books, had invaded the southern parts of Etruria. At first, Elisa thought to just wait it out, hoping that her country's army would be able to match Lycia. But within the next couple months, they had already reached the capital. Her old mentor's home? Burned, without Elisa's help. Her own home? Also burned. The heart of the Elimine Church? Destroyed, and some mockery put in its place. Then came the decree that the magic Elisa practiced was now banned. And with that, Elisa was forced to accept the realization that there was nothing left for her in what had once been her home. All that was left was a fire that needed to be spread across all of Lycia. On that day, something very fundamental about Elisa changed. The sudden, explosive attitude that arose when Elisa lost control a year and a half before came back as a slow transition. And then it stayed with her, long after she escaped. Long after she chose to embrace her lack of control. Long after she cut her way out of the city, laughing madly as she swung her axe down on anyone in her way. Long after she set fire to the forest to cover her escape.
A month later, she finally stopped running, and settled in the mountains surrounding Lycia. She joined up with a group of bandits, who sought to take advantage of the war by targeting border towns while the army wasn't around to defend them. Most of them, after all, were in Etruria now. She did it because it was the closest thing to revenge she could think of. She did it because she knew there was no way she could take on an army alone, or even with a small ragtag group of like-minded misfits. She did it because the crazy side that had come out during her outburst two years ago, and during her escape, was becoming much more "normal" for her.
And after awhile, she did it because she loved every minute of it.
Now, she's still at it. Every now and again, she'll pretend to be a normal, upstanding citizen of Lycia and go about her business in some town, all the while listening for news. She's difficult to approach, because she gets very nervous when forced to talk to other people and tends to avoid it when she can. But, appearances aside, very few would suspect her of being the same female berserker who occasionally showed up among bandit groups, looking like she's having the time of her life as she cuts down anyone and anything in her way.