I knifed a girl in Sylira just to watch her die.

[Ileana Erika Ionescu]

508 AV, Summer {flashback} Ileana had met Georgia at a clothes shop in Syliras, where they had both been interested in the same dress. Georgia was a year older than her, blonde, and working as a barmaid. Since Ileana frequented taverns -- not for the alcohol, but for the men who could easily be separated from their money -- she saw the other girl on a fairly regular basis after that. They chatted idly on occasion, and two seasons later, Georgia had asked Ileana on an outing. "I'm going just outside the gates to do some berry picking. They're lovely this time of year. Want to come, Ileana? It should be fun." Oh yes. It was going to be fun, if perhaps not the kind of fun Georgia was planning. ***** It was a hot day. Ileana had brought a sack with a hunk of bread, a piece of cheese, and a long knife in it. Georgia had her own lunch; the plan was to pick berries for a couple of bells, and then enjoy a picnic. For the next while, they talked idly. The berries were a deep blue, perfectly ripe and delicious. "I'll be right back," Ileana said. She walked back into the clearing where they had set their things; Georgia, assuming that Ileana was trying to find a private spot to relieve herself, simply nodded and continued to fill her basket. Ileana, upon reaching her bag, opened it and removed the knife. It had recently been sharpened, and the sunlight sparkled on the blade. With the knife in one hand and her bag in the other, she turned and walked back to the spot where Georgia was working. The other girl had her back turned, and was taking a handful of berries into her mouth. Ileana walked quietly, and distracted as she was, Georgia didn't hear her approach. When she was perhaps three feet behind her, Ileana stopped. "Georgia?" The girl turned in surprise and whirled around to face Ileana. At the same time, Ileana tightened her grip on the knife into a fist and punched Georgia in the chin. Completely unprepared for this, Georgia went down instantly, falling onto her back. She groaned in pain, and then gazed, bewildered, up at Ileana. "What...what are you doing, Ileana?" Ileana, for her part, had dropped her bag, and was now standing over Georgia, the knife in her hand. "Well, to put it quite clearly, I'm going to kill you." She said it as if she had been saying that she was going to run to the store, or discussing the weather. Georgia's eyes widened in terror. "It's...that's a bad joke, Ileana." "Oh, it would be, if it were a joke," Ileana agreed. "But it really isn't." With one quick move, she ran the point of the knife across Georgia's cheek. Blood came immediately to the wound, the crimson mixing with the blue juice running from the corner of her mouth. "Wha...why?" "Oh, no particular reason," Ileana said, putting the heel of her boot on the other girl's stomach. "Other than that I'm curious to see how you'll die. You're not making a very good show of, by the way. Not even a struggle? For shame, for shame." Georgia immediately started to wriggle, but her move to escape was cut short as Ileana pressed a good deal harder with her heel. Georgia moaned in agony, and then fell still. Ileana clucked her tongue. "You give up so easily, Georgia. Really, it's pretty pathetic. In a way, I guess I'm doing you a favor, because precious little flowers like you don't last very long out in the real world. If you can't fight, you might as well give up early and save everyone the trouble." Georgia started to say something, but was cut short by further grinding of Ileana's boot. "Did I say I wanted you to talk?" With a flick of her wrist, she drew a matching wound on Georgia's other cheek. The unfortunate girl gasped in pain. "You're not a very good listener either." Despite the reprimand, Georgia pleaded, "Ileana...I have parents, a sister, a fiancee...please don't hurt me. I won't tell, promise!" "Funny," Ileana replied calmly. "I don't have any of those things. And no, you won't tell, because dead girls don't talk." She gave Georgia a swift kick in the head; it didn't quite knock her out, but it rendered her unable to make any more comments. "Georgia, this is a Valterrian world. It isn't a playground or a candy store. When you see Lhex, say hello to him for me, and maybe ask him to help you be more careful next time." With that, Ileana plunged the dagger into Georgia's abdomen. There was a scream, and the victim began to twitch violently. Ileana watched with interest as the blood flowed from the wound, as Georgia gurgled and gasped her final breaths, as the spittle came to her mouth. She watched as her eyes grew dull, as her body grew still, and as her skin began to turn the same color as the berries. When Georgia was quite dead, Ileana sat down, picked up her bag, and ate the bread and cheese. Only when she was full did she stand, pull the knife out of the corpse, and toss it into a particular dense thicket nearby. Then Ileana ripped one of her own sleeves, mussed up her hair, and then dashed away toward the city. ***** "Help! Help! They've killed her, oh, they've killed her, help!" As Ileana ran screaming up to the gates of Syliras, one of the Knights immediately stopped her, concern in his face. "Killed who? What's wrong, young lady?" "I was...we were picking berries...Georgia and me...and then there were bandits, two of them, with knives. I ran away into a thicket, but...but Georgia didn't make it. I heard her scream, Sir....that scream..." Ileana broke down in tears, unable to continue through her sobs. "Quick!" the Knight called out to his companions. "Two of you, come with me!" To Ileana, he added, "Can you show me to the place?" She nodded miserably as the Knight helped her onto his horse. Then she guided him the distance to Georgia's body, continuing to sob at intervals. The Knights searched the area, but there were no clues, and certainly no help for Georgia. All the Knight could do was look at Ileana with sympathy. "I'm sorry, young lady. Sorry for your loss, and for what you've had to see. But you're a brave one, and may the gods reward you for your strength." ***** Some six days later, there was a knock on Ileana's door. Upon opening it, she saw Georgia's mother, clutching a package. "Ileana? I'm sorry to disturb you. But I was going...you know, going through Georgia's things, and I think she'd want you to have it. Please, take it." Ileana nodded gently. "Thank you, ma'am, thank you kindly. My condolences again for your loss." The woman clapped Ileana on the shoulder, but couldn't say anything. She just nodded back, and then turned to leave. After she was gone, Ileana opened the box. Inside was a small piece of embroidery, done in red and blue thread. There was only one word, centered on the fabric: FRIENDS

[Gossamer]

. Character: Ileana Erika Ionescu Experience: 1 XP Strategy, 1 XP Dagger, 2 XP Acting, 1 XP Brawling Lore: Lore of Staging a Scene, Lore of Plotting Murder, Lore of Gaining Attention from Authority Figures, Lore of Seeing Someone Die Additional Note: I think your pc is a little sick, first and foremost. But that's obvious. Secondly, I think it would have been a little better if you would have instrumented a few signs of struggle and perhaps made some fake footprints that could have been tracked in or out of the scene. She could have done this by putting a pair of men's boots over her own shoes and walking around just to make some prints etc... and breaking up the grass, thicket, etc... showed some signs of 'bandits' other than just the dead knifed girl. If there's no sign of 'trauma' then there needs to be another reason for the murder... robbery is a good one. I would have also robbed her to make it look plausible in terms of cause. Otherwise, this is really excellent character development. I don't want our PCs to meet. As always, you can feel free to alter your post for additional XP. The FRIEND thing at the end was over the top demented. .