application for teleios

[snakecharmed]

Player Info

Name: Alishia
Age: 29
Contact: knightinqs
Characters Already in Teleios: Bruce Banner (The Hulk); Dylan Rhodes; John Druitt
Reserve: Here.

Character Basics:

Character Name: I'seth
Journal: snakecharmed
Age: Physically, I'seth appears to be in her late 40s; in all actuality, she's closer to 70.
Realm: Thebes

Native Character Section:

History:

I'seth is Native only by virtue of having been brought to Teleios as a part of the Indebted original to the first incarnation of the city; she was not born there or in any of the associated realms. Instead, she came, she saw and, when the experiment ended, she chose to stay on as a member of Hippolyta's Amazons rather than go home.

That said, I'seth was born on the high fantasy world of Odina, in a series of ruins under a vast desert and magical dead zone known as the High Wastes, that once belonged to the primeval Gods that created both her world and her people, the Yuan-Ti. Like all of her people, I'seth never knew her birth parents, raised in a communal setting by the broodguard (humans who, through a series of dark rituals, tried to become Yuan-Ti and failed, degenerating into near-mindless monsters), alongside others from her clutch. When she turned four, her education began. From the broodguards and older Malisons (Yuan-Ti, like herself, with a mix of human and reptilian features), she learned to fight; from the Abominations (her people's ruling caste, almost completely snakelike, and often priests and scholars), she learned about the world, how to plan and scheme and spy, and how to have a healthy distaste for the warmblooded races, above ground. From an outside perspective, it was probably a very disturbing existence, teaching children to be assassins and infiltrators.

Perhaps luckily, however, when I'seth was eight, a wandering adventuring party stumbled into the ruins, looking for glory or wealth or maybe just lost, the desert above consistently producing a sort of Bermuda Triangle effect. While most of them were killed outright by the broodguards or the Malisons, two managed to escape, a bard and his mortally wounded rogue companion. They took to hiding, hoping the Yuan-Ti would eventually give up on their search efforts and that they could escape when they did, and I'seth, thinking herself old enough to see and maybe kill a living, breathing warmblood, wandered away from her guardians in the uproar and went in search of the remaining adventures. Now, you ask, how is this lucky? Well, as it turns out, she found them.

The bard, at the time, had managed to drag himself and his now-dead party member up on a ledge, out of reach, and was in the process of singing a traditional human funeral song, albeit quietly, when she stumbled upon them. Rather than kill him, however, and for more than the fact that she couldn't reach him, I'seth was entranced and for no good reason other than the fact that she'd never heard someone sing before. When it was over, the two watched each other for awhile, and then I'seth wandered off. When she returned, it was sometime later, without letting anyone know she'd found the remaining adventure, and with food. Apparently she'd gotten it into her head that keeping the bard alive, secret and safe, would mean she'd get to hear more of -- whatever that was, and she was right.

After a few days spent trying to scare her away, despite the fact that she was regularly bring him food, the bard realized that maybe he could turn this to his advantage. I'seth was just a child, sure, but maybe she knew enough to help him find his way out. Maybe she could distract the guards while he made his escape. Whatever. She was useful. And so, in sort of a quid pro quo scenario, the bard traded stories and songs with I'seth for information about the ruins, her people and a continued supply of food. Slowly, through the course of it all, he managed to undo some of the vicious, warmblood-hating brainwashing she'd been raised with and make her curious about the world above. Eventually, before he could escape, he was found and killed, someone realizing that I'seth wasn't around as much as she should be and following her (and I'seth took the loss badly, not as one might a pet, as she originally considered him, but now as the first real friend she'd ever had), but the damage was done. He'd changed her young, impressionable mind.

In the years following, I'seth continued to train to be a warrior and temple guard, as was her lot in life thanks to the caste she was born into, but became increasingly disillusioned with the cruel teachings of her people. When she came of age, she'd had enough, and gathering weapons and armor from the ruinous vaults, stole off in the night and made her way to the surface. Through luck or fate, she managed to escape the High Wastes, and went off in search of human -- or Elven or Dwarvish, whatever, she wasn't picky -- civilization, and it really didn't take her long to find, the human city, the City of Thorns, not too far off from where she exited the desert.

Unfortunately, however, the people of the city had fought against the Yuan-Ti before, recognized her for what she was, and drove her off. Discouraged, albeit not enough to give up, return home and face punishment or even death for treason, I'seth spent some time in the steppes outside the city, gather resources and making plans to find a way to intergrate herself into the city and its people without being run out of town. Surely there was something she could do, if she was just patient enough, just smart enough -- it had worked with the bard, back in her childhood, after all.

Rather than make it into the city standing on her own two legs, however, I'seth was discovered sooner rather than later by an Orc caravan. Not the barbarians they're painted to be in our traditional literature, but rather travelers and traders not unlike the Romani people, and not nearly as quick to judge, the Orcs took I'seth in. She got to know them quickly, specifically the son of their leader, Zul'gar, and the two of them became fast friends, I'seth interested, as always, in his music and stories, and, despite the fact that I'seth wasn't much of an orator, Zul'gar in hers and her experiences. Zul'gar's father vouched for I'seth, once he realized I'seth was good people, going as far as threatening to stop all Orcish trade with the City of Thorns, and with the Orcs and finally, I'seth entered the city.

While the Orcs hadn't planned on staying long, however -- just long enough to resupply themselves, see the city and make some trades -- through a convergence of events, I'seth and Zul'gar ended up involved in a plot kill the regent of the city in order to gain access to his vaults and the effort to prevent it. Eventually, they stopped the would-be assassin, made critical connections with two of the most quietly influential people in the world, the paladin Salera Leranas and her bard companion, Rowher Zoles, and made the acquaintance of a demon-blooded rogue named Kerric, who, well, was the would-be assassin, albeit against his will and by way of blackmail. After getting him off the hook for the murder and realizing they all made a pretty good team, I'seth, Zul'gar and Kerric left the city, as well as Zul'gar's clan, and went to seek their fortune.

Over the course of the next few years, several things happened. They went after the guy who had blackmailed Kerric in the first place, brought him down and realized that he was part of a much bigger plan to revive the Gods that had created I'seth's people, crossed paths with Salera and Zoles a few more times, as they were working towards stopping the whole Bring the Big Bads Back thing, too, and recruited a number of other misfits, including a half-Dryad sorceress and a werewolf druid, and started a mercenary company known as the Black Fang. Together, they went on adventures, fought against the forces of evil, negotiated with monsters who really weren't all that monstrous once you got to know them, and so on and so forth, all while occasionally working towards the end goal of keeping the Big Bads down for the count. They became nearly a household name around the world, the kind of people you went to when there was no where else to turn, and all was well.

And then Zoles went and got himself possessed by the Old Gods, murdered Salera, took the human city of Crestfall, to the north, and declared war on the world. Good job, Zoles. Way to screw that one up. Anyway.

Just before arriving in Teleios, I'seth and the Black Fang had retreated to the City of Thorns, and were poised to fight what looked like a losing battle against Zoles and his forces in the City's defense. Surprisingly, it would be a battle that I'seth and her people would win, thanks to the last minute aid of the sorcerer, John Blackwood, and the reinforcements he managed to call in, and one that would go down in history as the War of Thorns, but considering she was snatched from Odina the night before the battle? She has no way of knowing that.

Personality:

Brought up in a culture that prizes cruelty, espionage and being as cold-blooded figuratively as they are literally, and despite the fact that she's long since moved on from that, I'seth comes across as a little cold, upon first meeting. It's not that she doesn't like people, human or otherwise, or has specific trust issues, it's just her nature, and the fact that she's spent the last decade or so being the brains behind a mercenary company, meeting potential clients and crafting attack plans, hasn't helped things much. She's learned to be cool, collected and impartial, as much as she was born into it, and, in business situations if nothing else, it serves her well. She makes an excellent mediator and strategist, preferring to listen rather than talk, even if she's not the quickest to make friends because of it.

Those who do take the time to get to know her know that I'seth is surprisingly warm, once you get her to open up. She smiles more, enjoys trading light sarcastic banter, and deep conversation, even if she's still largely just a listener. She is also intensely loyal to her friends, even if she's not the coddling type, ready, willing and able to bail them out of bad situations, if need be, and her listening skills and tactical mind make her good at giving advice, when someone's having a problem. Matters of relationships are oftentimes a little bit beyond her -- not that she can't love romantically, or understand such love (she can, in both cases, more than familiar with her friends' romantic entanglements back home and in love with her group's bard, Zul'gar, on her own), it's just that she has no idea what to do with it, most of the time. Romantic feelings were not covered, in her training with the Yuan-Ti, most marriages and pregnancies in that case a matter of opportunity or gaining political power, and despite the fact that she has a great love of songs and stories, both of which generally include a romance where she's from, how to deal with anything other than the bond between friends has never really come up, otherwise. Anything else, though, and she's probably got a plan for that -- or can come up with one, if you give her some time.

In terms of temper, I'seth has a comparatively long fuse. Anything that might get under someone else's skin doesn't seem to faze her, either because she's learned the self-discipline to ignore it or, particularly in the case of people staring at or making comments on her appearance, she's probably had worse. When she is angry, however, she tends towards violence at first, the near-necessity for it something she's never been entirely broken of, despite the best efforts of those around her, and thanks in part to living an existence where violence comes up on an all but daily basis. Bear in mind that this does not mean she'll jump into a fight when not provoked when other options are available -- rather that, if someone throw a punch at her, she will hit back, for the most part, with no questions asked. Continue to actually manage to get through her armor and needle at her temper, however, and then her responses turn less physically violent but no less brutal, in the form of quietly plotting your demise and then, provided she has the means, actually going through with it when you least expect it. She was raised to be a schemer, to approach sleights with the philosophy of the whisper over the fang.

Finally, despite all she's been through, both at the hands of her own people and their philosophies and others, she is, perhaps, something of an optimist. People can be redeemed, monsters are not always quite so monstrous, that the world may just be worth saving, and that, where there's a will in a bad situation, there may just be a way. She's not stupidly positive, mind you, not naive -- she can recognize when someone has no intent of changing their ways or when a battle is a losing one (and God, does she hate to lose) -- she just believes that not everything is as bad as it seems, at first glance. She certainly turned out to be something out of the norm, after all, as did most if not all of her friends, and she's won more than one battle by refusing to think that it's already over, in the face of overwhelming odds.

Teel deer? Initially off-putting snake girl seeks companionship of good-natured misfits for banter, stories and occasional ass-kicking.

Powers/Abilities:

As noted below, I'seth is partially reptilian in appearance. This, for the most part, is not just for show and comes with several specific strengths and weaknesses to be outlined as follows:

Poisonous: Like the King Cobra she so resembles, I'seth has a poisonous bite. Her venom is neurotoxic, meaning it attacks and destroys the central nervous system, leading to blurred vision, vertigo, drowsiness and eventually cardiovascular collapse via paralysis. Basically, her victims lose the ability to breathe, given enough time, and suffocate. It's not fun. Like most snakes, however, I'seth can be milked for her venom in order to create an anti-venom, and she knows how to do so, given time and the right combination of herbs. She can and has also bottled her poison for more creative uses -- such as making a coating that can be applied to piercing weapons to the same effect as her bite. In addition, she is immune to the effects of her own poison as well as most other, natural poisons -- so, basically, something like cyanide wouldn't affect her, since it's generally derived from plant material, but something like say, dioxin, a man-made poison, would.

Ectothermic: I'seth is very literally cold-blooded, and therefore, has no real means of generating body heat. As such, she runs a little colder to the touch than most humans, gravitates towards basking in the sunlight, and in periods of extreme cold, will enter a comatose state, to slow down her metabolic rate and keep her alive. The armor she wears, along with some of the clothing she's picked up over the years, however, is enchanted to circumvent this and keep her from getting progressively more sluggish before finally shutting down in colder temperatures, absorbing and storing heat from ambient sources (fire, sunlight, what have you) to be released when she needs it. Without it, though, she's basically useless in the winter, and it's a weakness that she's very aware of and still bothers her to this day.

Parselmouth: ... okay, that's probably not the term I'seth would use to describe it, since it's unique to the Harry Potter books, but it's accurate. I'seth can talk to snakes. This is more a low-level psychic connection to them than anything actually involving language -- she does not need to say anything aloud to speak to a snake (though oftentimes she does, just out of force of habit), nor are there language barriers to worry about, as such, and the snake does she's talking to does not verbalize back, either in spoken language or in hisses -- but she does need to be in what would be considered speaking distance for it to work. Bear in mind, however, that this ability is not always useful -- she's talking to an animal, after all, and it still has an animal's intelligence. It's not like it could tell her the meaning of life. It could, however, maybe tell her that, yes, some men went this way, though not much more than that. Still, sometimes that's enough.

Low-Light Vision: Basically what it says on the tin, as long as there's even a tiny bit of light in an area, I'seth can see as well as if it were completely well-lit. In complete darkness, she's just as blind as anyone else, but give her moonlight, starlight, a tiny candle flame in the distance, light peeking through the cracks of a cave wall, whatever -- she's good.

Regeneration: This one isn't a factor of her actual biology, but rather at some point during her stay in Teleios and the associated realms, I'seth spent one of her favors to gain a troll's healing factor. Most damage done to her will repair itself in a matter of seconds to minutes, depending on severity, lost limbs (including her tail) will regrow themselves in around twenty minutes, albeit painfully, drugs and alcohol are generally ineffective on her unless delivered in mass quantities, and so on and so forth. Despite this, however, I'seth still can be killed or injured. Decapitation, for one, would count as a game over, as would starving to death or being suffocated, and damage caused by fire or acid must be healed normally. Other than that, though, she's kind of scarily sturdy.

Beyond that and in terms of more mundane abilities, I'seth is an excellent fighter, trained from a young age to be so. Generally, she tends to rely on her natural weapons -- her claws and the like -- in a fight, but she knows how to use a sword and a bow, and both to good effect. She also has a good tactical mind, born of training and years spent running a mercenary company, and as such, can come up with decent plans on the fly as well as probably kick your ass in chess or poker, assuming she knew how to play either. And finally, she speaks Common (her world's equivalent of English), the language of her people, Elven (which, for clarity's sake, probably isn't too far removed from Tolkien Elven) and, likely, a err, few choice words in Orcish.

Despite being Indebted, I'seth will enter the city again with all her abilities intact, earned back over the years, before.

Appearance:

From a distance, I'seth looks to be a human of Asian descent, well-built despite the fact that she stands only 5'4", with dark, shoulder-length hair. Get closer, however, and it's not hard to tell that she is decidedly not human -- in fact, she appears to be in part reptilian.

Her eyes are brown-gold and slitted, a pattern of dark scales visible along her hairline, just above her right eye, that trails down along her neck before spreading out over her back, forming the pattern on a King Cobra's hood on her shoulder blades. Her fingers and toes, both more often than not left exposed, are tipped in narrow but strong and undoubtedly sharp claws, and she has a set of fangs, again not unlike a snake's, that she can extend or retract as needed, hidden under her gums above otherwise human canine teeth. She also has a tail, prehensile to a point -- think about the level of mobility as an actual snake's body, capable of coiling and grappling and squeezing but not, say, the fine motor function required to push a button or write an essay -- wrapped in the same black scales as the rest of her and banded in beige. Normally, she keeps this tail curled around one of her legs to avoid people accidentally stepping on it.

As far as clothing goes, for the most part, I'seth tends towards armor (banded leather, to be specific), made from what looks to be the scales of some bigger, nastier serpent and, as such, dark green. The faux chain mail worn under it to protect her arms is black, like her scales, and understandably so, considering that's what they were made from, a little bit taken from each time she shed her skin and enchanted for longevity and strength. Her feet are wrapped in green cloth that matches her armor, and open at the heels and toe, so she can make use of her claws, and more often than not, she wears a scimitar at her side, made of steel manufactured by her people.

Previous Teleios History

Teleios History:

As Indebted, I'seth did as the Indebted do for her tenure there, making connections, showing up in the main hall on the first of every month, looking for people from her world, and trying to find means of earning her abilities back, all while managing her debt. (Which, for the record, she thought was kind of stupid -- do you hold a wolf accountable for the kills it makes in search of its supper?) Most notably, however, I'seth was champion of Ares' Arena for one of his annual Ides of March contests and went on a mission or two with his daughter, Hippolyta, at one point or another. This eventually lead to her being offered a position with the Amazons of Thebes, and after the original city was destroyed, she accepted, thinking of Teleios and the associated realms as home, by that point, and wanting to stay rather than go back to the war she was taken from.

In Thebes, without a city for the Amazons to protect, I'seth simply lived, forging more connections with the native population and punching a guy going on adventures with Hippolyta and her people. It was a good existence, satisfying to her both as a person and a warrior.

How did the city change your character during their time there? What was it about the city that made them decide to come back?

I'seth's first run in Teleios warmed her up a little. While actively, obviously amicable around her friends, even before the City, now she's a lot more likely to approach someone and take the time to get to know them, rather than stand around, arms folded, waiting for someone to approach her, as always was the case, back home. She's also reached a point where she's stopped caring about her debt -- before, she was kind of angry about the whole thing, but now, she's fairly apathetic. The Agents and whoever else can measure her whenever and however they want; that won't stop her from what doing what needs to be done, and it's not like she has an interest in leaving Teleios or the associated realms for home or Utopia or whatever, anyway, anymore. She likes where she is and what she's doing, and she's gotten comfortable taking orders -- probably another change from when she first arrived, given that she was in a leadership position, back home. Finally, spending time in the city among the other Indebted, I'seth has learned about a number of things not present in her own world, like indoor plumbing and computers, and as such, has reached a point where things like that no longer surprise her or end up being labeled as magic.

As for what she's doing back when she had what she considered to be a good life back in Thebes, complete with friends and what she considered meaningful work, well, Hippolyta wanted her to come back with her, so she came. It's as simple as that.

Samples:

Actionspam Sample:

Here and here.

Prose Sample:

Here and here.