A Personal Quest [Solo]

[Fiera]

Timestamp: 54th day of winter, 512 AV In a small bar by the docks, at a small table by a small window sat a small young woman, her blue eyes alive with curiosity. Through the grimy window, the bustling docks could be seen - ships, moored along the piers, crowds of hurrying people, sailors unloading goods – this was a scene that most would disregard, but Fiera found it intriguing. She observed the passing strangers under her window and found that most where rushing. Fiera was amused at their sense of purpose, was it not simpler to take life as it comes, instead of planning ahead? She glanced at the kelp beer in front of her; it stunk of rotten fish and Fiera wondered if an employee at the bar might have slipped such an ingredient into the brew. Not long ago, Fiera would have been scared, scared of anything different, anything that she hadn’t known since birth. This used to be one thing that did not change when she shifted into a human. She had learned much in her travels and this had, in turn flared her curiosity. Fiera likened it to drizzling a flame with oil, the flame being her curiosity. The alarm of being presented with something new had now taken second place in her mind. After so many years of living in human company, Fiera had learned to mask her animalistic nature and was now almost indistinguishable from them in both appearance and actions. She turned her attention back to the scene outside her window, wondering if she might be able to spot a thief somewhere in the crowd. There should be many operating at this time of day, when there where plenty of unsuspecting victims to pick from. She watched the moving people for a few minutes, but to no avail. Fiera was distracted by an obnoxiously loud laugh coming from a nearby table, where a group of sailors where sitting. One of the men was loudly boasting about the money he had recently earned after transporting some goods from Sunberth. She noticed one of his friends indiscreetly eyeing the bag of Mizas. Fiera shook her head, that is one way to get yourself robbed, she though. She stood up, leaving her kelp beer untouched and walked out the bar door, earning a few curious glances from the other customers and a scalding look from the brown haired shop owner. Fiera had no intention of witnessing the brawl that would no doubt follow such stupid vocalizations. Fiera strolled along the docks, enjoying the warmth of the morning sun, letting her feet chose which way she was headed.

[Fiera]

She had nowhere to rush and so, as she meandered along the streets, Fiera recalled some interesting events of her life before she arrived at Zeltiva. The most vivid of her many memories was Riverfall – where she had been living before arriving in this portside city. Riverfall was populated by the blue-skinned Akalak, and Fiera had found their discipline-oriented lifestyles and twin souls particularly intriguing. She was jerked unceremoniously out of her reverie as she stepped into the cold shadow a large building Fiera soon recognised to be the old quarter of the university. Fiera smiled, she had been meaning to visit the library located within this building. The library was at the very edge of the old quarter, and contrasted greatly with more modern construction of the buildings on the opposite side of the street. Fiera knew that the Archives Building, as was its proper name, was not open to public. In fact, it wasn’t even open to the staff and students of the university. The only reason for her interest is this building was that it was the only building in the Old Quarter she had not seen. And the Old Quarter was the only pre-Valterrian building still standing in Zeltiva. Fiera held an unexplained interest for architecture. The building was built of polished granite, with a large, arched entry way in which were set oak and brass doors. Lavishly carved columns graced the exterior of the building. The inscription above the entrance said “City Library.” Fiera gazed at the building for a while, and then turned back the way she came, heading for the newer section of the library. The Archives building had given her an idea. Perhaps there was a public library here as well? It took a while for Fiera almost the whole morning to locate the Wright Memorial Library, but when she did, she knew it was a morning well spent. The library quite large and rows of bookshelves lined the floor. Fiera headed straight for the medicine section, she was planning on preparing a little for the university course she was yet to begin. As she walked, Fiera noticed tables set around the libraries perimeter that students used to study on. She read the shelf names to her right: Agriculture, Alchemy, Animal husbandry, Animation, Anthropology… Fiera paused, Anthropology? What could that be? The bookshelves in that row were full of books such as The underwater lives of the Charoda, Inarta – the Eagle Riders and Human culture. One such book caught her attention, a thick, leather-bound volume titled The history of the Kelvic race. It occurred to Fiera that she knew nothing about the history and roots of her own race. All she could remember of her childhood were vague memories of her mother telling her stories of brave Kelvic men who brought honour and respect to their race. Whether those stories were fact-based or not, Fiera could only guess. She slid the book from its position on the shelf, and took it to the closest free table.

[Fiera]

Blue eyes shining with an excitement that had not touched them in a long while, Fiera placed the book carefully on the table and sat down. Before opening the volume, Fiera explored the exterior of it. The soft leather, in which the book was bound, had faded with age but the golden letters that were printed onto the cover were still bright. Leaning closer and opening the book, Fiera inhaled. The sweet, lingering smell of parchment flooded her nostrils and took her back to the early days of her childhood. *** A little girl in a blue frock tightly clutched her mother’s arm as they drifted through the thick crowd of the marketplace. The general noise of such a busy place frightened her, and she wished nothing more than to go home. Her mother steered her towards a fruit stall and began bargaining with the shop keeper. The woman grew more and more frustrated as the shop keeper kept shaking his head, until she finally turned to her daughter. “Will you let go of me!” She exclaimed, pulling her hand free from the young girls’ vice-like grip, “you’re not that small anymore, so stop hanging on my arm!” The girl could not help but feel all the more frightened with the removal of her mother’s arm, but she dared not cry out. Instead, she covered her sensitive ears with her hands and observed the market place through terrified eyes. A small bookstore caught her attention and she stumbled towards it, cringing every time she brushed against somebody. The old woman at the store smiled kindly at the girl. “Would you like to see a book? I have one just for you.” She said, picking a thin book from one of the shelves and handing it to the girl, who nodded her thanks and opened it. The girl gazed at the hand drawn pictures until her mother burst into the store, looking flustered and angry. “Fiera! Never run of like that on your own! Let’s get home now.” Fiera handed the book back to the old woman with a sad look. The mother scolded her daughter all the way home but the girls mind was still immersed in the book from the store. *** Fiera opened her eyes, and looked around her at the library; she didn’t remember having closed them. She noticed she was still smiling at the memory, but flinched as she remembered the beating she received from her mother for running away at the marketplace. Finally returning back to the present moment, Fiera looked down at the handwritten text of the book and began reading.

[Fiera]

Fiera frowned at the title; she had not heard of “Marcus Kelvic” and wondered what role he played in the history of her race. Marcus Kelvic is seen as one of the most potent morphing mages of his epoch. He lived a solitary life in the most deserted part of Alahea – an area which is now found on the border of Taldera and Kalea - in a mountain stronghold which was known as Ironrock. Ironrock and Marcus Kelvic both seem to have been destroyed at the time of the Valterrian cataclysm and no one has ever found any traces of either. Marcus Kelvic did, however, leave behind something in this world to remember him by. Being such a solitary character, Marcus did not trust any human, nor did he wish himself to be immersed in the hassle of hiring servants or completing day-to-day tasks such as cleaning or cooking by himself. He wished to focus solely on his magical studies and so, found that, using a combination of morphing and familiarity, he could create animals that would do such tasks for him. This was the beginning of the Kelvic race. Different animals were used for different tasks. Wolves and dogs he used as guardsmen, horses were used as mounts, and squirrels foraged for food. Markus fashioned these creatures in such a way that they needed to be bonded to a human and would serve them loyally. Only when he perfected these creatures to his own liking, did he allow them to breed. Due to the fact that Kelvics would not always produce a kelvic offspring, but simply a human, Marcus Kelvic sold some of these “throwbacks” into slavery. “Throwbacks” would hide the secret in their blood for generations until another kelvic child was born. Thus, the Kelvic race dispersed throughout Alahea… Fiera closed the volume with a loud snap, causing some of library’s visitors to jump and look in her direction. She did not care, and thrust the book back into its original position on the shelf with an indignant “hmph!” She had certainly not been expecting something like that. My race was originally created as slaves? Fiera thought as she stalked back out of the library. The bright sun blinded her for a moment as she exited the building but this served only to frustrate her even further. Striding along the street, Fiera felt an overpowering need to change into her cougar form. Breaking into a run, she headed for the edge of the city, and towards the tree line of the mountains. There, she could hunt, clime and basically release her inner cat while she mulled over what she just read. That information would definitely take some time to get used to.

[Paragon]

Fiera : Fiera Skill XP Reward Observation +2 Intelligence +1 Running +1 Lore: Playing Human, Let Your Feet Guide You, A Longing to Learn, Zeltivan Directions (partial), The Kelvic Truth Other: N/A Great solo, I really enjoyed seeing Fiera discover the truth. Welcome to Zeltiva, and I hope you stay for a while, there's lot of exciting things in store - if you have ANY questions or concerns about this grading, don't hesitate to PM me.