Ariel DeLisle

Wow, those look great! Especially Iroh! Though Katara looks a tad man-ish

Sure! I think there might be an extra skill point here or there as I don't have a copy of the starting stats anymore, but I'm sure you'll adjust to suit anyway I also had a full wardrobe planned out with the initial scrip but I'll leave that out Generally, she charms and lies her way out of most things. Name: Ariel DeLisle Pursuit: Performer Physical Aspects Might: -1 Grace: 3 Speed: 1 Resilience: -2 Mental Aspects Intellect: -1 Charm: 3 Cunning: 1 Tenacity: -2 Derived Aspects Defense: 5 Willpower: 3 Wounds: 4 Walk: 5 Charge: 5 Heigh: 2 Characteristics: Living, Fated Skills Bewitch 3+3 = 6 Deceive 3+3 = 6 Acrobatics 3+3 = 6 Pistol 2+3 = 5 Melee 2+3 = 5 (with Flick of the Wrist) Music 2+3 = 5 Evade 2+1 = 3 Thrown Weapons 1+3 = 4 Literacy 1 + 1 = 2 Engineer (From Station - Academic: Engineer) 1 - 1 = 0 General Talents Governor's Gift: Gain a +'ve twist to Bewitch and Scrutiny duels made against women. Flick of the Wrist: Substitute Grace for Might for all close combat attacks with a weapon held in one hand. Performer Talent Powerful Impression: Gain trigger on all social duels: () After resolving, draw a card. Equipment B&D Pocket, AV: +5 --- Rg:6 --- Resist: Df --- Target suffers 2/3/3. Cap 4. Reload 2 AP. Concealable Cavalry Sabre, AV: +5 --- Rg:2 --- Resist: Df --- Target suffers 2/3/4. Throwing Knife (Melee), AV: +5 --- Rg:1 --- Resist: Df --- Target suffers 1/2/3. Concealable Throwing Knife (Throwing Weapons), AV: +5 --- Rg:3 --- Resist: Df --- Target suffers 1/2/3. Cap 4. Concealable, Thrown Twist Deck: Masks, Tomes Rams, Crows Destiny: 5 , 3 , 7 , 3 , 11 When you wake from the dream of ancestors, she is known to your divine for the coldest courts bow to their king. Hence, the dried lands are watered with the blood of sinners and you will drive the chariot of winter. Triggers Bewitch - Flirtatious Wink (): after succeeding, the target develops a crush lasting a week. They will not immediately throw themselves at you, but will offer you small favours and speak favourable about you (highlighting strengths, downplaying weaknesses). Deceive - Straight Faced (): after failing during Narrative Time, succeed the challenge if the target has no ranks in scrutiny.

So we started a TTB campaign last September and decided to write a short backstory for our characters. I kinda got carried away and it's now a bit long (and still kinda unfinished). Thought I'd post it here and see what you guys thought. --- We begin this tale on a windy December evening within the sleepy settlement of Ville-Marie. A soft blanket of snow covered the ground. The streets normally quiet and empty were whipped into a wild frenzy by wintry gusts. A warm glow shown through the windows of the small cottages, chimneys puffing out small wisps of smoke. An otherwise uneventful evening on an uneventful winter to end an uneventful year. Or so we are led to believe. In an otherwise uneventful moment, a sharp cry ran out in the air. Just then, the winds died down, the trees ceased to creak, and a silence took so that the stars could listen in. “It’s a girl, Elizabeth! It’s a girl!” “Oh, Arthur, she’s beautiful!” Actually, it was apparent to all who were watching without the lens of parenthood that the baby looked unremarkable. In fact, the eyes and ears were a bit too big, her skin shaded beet red, and the nose (the only redeemable feature) could best be described as plain. “Ariel, her name is Ariel.” And so the air stirred once more, the stars gleefully winking at one another with the knowledge that an adventure had just begun. --- Ariel had an uneventful childhood, moving from place to place as her parents' work dictated. They were engineers you see, tasked with the most cleverest of creations and dreams of the most intelligent of machines. But for poor young Ariel, all she could see was one friend fading into another like waves merging and separating indistinguishable from before. "I don't want to move!" Elizabeth sighed. This was not the first time that they had this discussion, nor would it be their last. "You know we have to, the job here is done and another town needs our help.” “But Lisa’s birthday party is in 2 weeks and I’ve never been to a birthday party before and you said I could, you did!” It was true, Elizabeth had said she could go. But the hydrodynamic steam engine was completed early and Parham was in desperate need of a new water distribution system. With near a century since the closing of the Breach and ever tighter Guild soulstone restrictions, smaller towns were desperate for alternatives to power their infrastructure. “That’s enough! People need our help and we are leaving to help them tomorrow. Pack your things or you can leave them here when we go.” Ariel stormed off in a huff and Elizabeth sighed again. She was a loving mother and could not help but feel sympathy for her daughter’s situation. She knew it wasn’t easy or fair for someone so young to move so often, unable to make any long lasting relationships. Fortunately for Ariel, she had inherited a certain charm from her mother’s side that allowed her to easily make friends. And thank goodness for that! Her nature was not one of books and solitude, but of dancing and parties. Of course she had been to neither a dance nor a party, but was as certain as any girl of 6 years and 4 months can be as to how wonderful they were. --- A scurrying of feet echoed down a long room, muffled by the weight of the books. Dust swirled at the motion, dancing and laughing after a long slumber before slowing drifting once more back to rest. "Who's there?" A grey haired man turned into the darkness, straining to catch a glimpse at the disturbance. He slowly walked towards the noise, pausing halfway down the room. Must've been rats, he thought. Unfortunately for him, he had not noticed the footprints on an otherwise undisturbed dust covered floor leading to a nearby shelf, and so was quite startled when two screaming girls ran past him, clutching onto their baskets for dear life. “Run!” screamed one as they took off, dashing through a set of double oak doors, turning down another hall. He turned to give chase, but the girls were long gone and his companion, silence, had returned. Slowly, he made his way back to his chair, reminiscing of youthful indiscretions. The two girls ran out into the courtyard, quickly rounding another corner before coming to rest in a small passageway between two marble and stone buildings. Long shadows casted from tall spires provided a welcome cool air on an otherwise hot summer day. They panted in their exertion, lightheaded and giddy from their crime. Both wore long flowing dresses, one blue and one green. Mud caked both their boots, thick enough for an archaeological expedition (unbeknownst to them, there was in fact a small fossilized insect stuck to one). Victorian bonnets covered their heads, freshly picked daisies slipping from the sides. However, their similarities ended there. One was a head taller than the other with carrot orange hair frizzing out next to her freckled face, half of which was taken up by a Cheshire-like grin and dull blue eyes that seemed to glint even in darkness. The other had flowing blonde hair and piercing green eyes with a pale complexion. She was not used to such exercise and turned to her taller friend, huffing, “How did you find a hidden way to the LIBRARY from the kitchens?” Ariel beamed, “This place is loads more interesting if you don’t go to class.” The two opened their baskets, the smell of freshly baked croissants, lemon drizzle cakes, and pastries wafting out to freedom. Eyes watering at their prize, the two pulled out a slice of cake each, ready to devour their well-earned reward. “Ariel Isabelle DeLisle!” Ariel froze, the cake inches from her mouth. Her stomach grumbled, howling at the injustice of being denied what was rightly hers. Slowly she turned around. A man stood towering over her, a look of disapproval in his eyes amplified by the large round glasses. His arms were crossed across his chest, patches covering the elbows of his tweed coat. “If I’m not mistaken, shouldn’t you be in Metaphysical Calculus with Prof. Langdon right now?” Ariel lowered her head, “Yes, papa.” She never liked Prof. Langdon, who seemed more interested in his own voice than teaching. Though, Ariel rarely took to any of her teachers. While clever in her own right, classical education was never something that she excelled at. Arthur looked down at his daughter, wondering what he was going to do with such a free spirited child. Suddenly, his mouth began to water. The scent of lemon and baked goods had slowly found their way to his nose. He breathed in again, the sweet and tart aromas waltzing through him, singing a siren’s tune. His research had engrossed him so completely that he realized he had not eaten for some time. His disapproval began to falter. Catching sight of a potential opportunity, Ariel held out the cake she was holding to her father. “Would you like some cake? It’s freshly made.” A battle raged within Arthur’s mind. The forces of discipline readied their rifles as the horde of hunger charged across the field. The air filled with the sulphurous scent of gunpowder as discipline held steadfast. But soon, the line began to waver as wave after wave of the relentless horde crashed against the defenders. A crack formed and slowly spread until the line finally collapsed and three sharp horn blasts pierced the air signalling a retreat. Discipline had been routed. Arthur grabbed the cake and wolfed it down in one bite. Ariel sat down and crossed her legs, nibbling on a slice. Arthur looked at his daughter again and with a sigh, gave in as he smoothed out a nice patch of grass and grabbed another pastry. “Was that Sarah with you just now? She ran off awfully quick.” Ariel grinned, “She’s not used to getting in trouble. I’m working on her.” “I wish you’d take to your math and science lessons as well as you did to fencing and dance. You are supposed to get a complete education.” The sentence was muffled by a half-eaten croissant, all gravitas lost amongst soggy pastry. “You’ll still have time to run around after you’re finished with your work.” Though Arthur would never admit it, he was rather thankful of his daughter’s resourcefulness at that moment. Ariel look sheepish. “Is mama still in the lab?” “Yup! In fact, we’re getting close to a breakthrough! You see, all we needed to do was enhance the current to mass ratio …” Ariel thoughts turned to the nearby lake and the frogs they might catch to scare the porters with. Sensing that his daughter was perhaps not as interested as he was in the minutiae details of his work, Arthur sighed again. “Come on, let’s go see your mother. You can watch as we turn it on for the first time.” Arthur paused, “Bring the pastries.” The two strolled across the field towards an old grey building on the west side of campus. The building was one of the oldest at the Oxford University of Metaphysical Studies, and housed their most ambitious projects. As they stepped into the laboratory, Ariel glanced around. It was the largest lab in the building, stretching 100 yards in length and encompassing the entire south wing. Scaffolds ran the length of the room and tables scattered throughout with bits and bobs of bolts, screws, wrenches, and odd equipment that Ariel did not recognize. At the centre was a giant machine stuffed full of gears, pistons, wires, and glass tubes interwoven together in harmony, steam puffing from the rear. At the very centre was a small stone, no larger than a penny but glowing bright through all the machinery. As a whole, the machine almost resembled a heart and seemed to whisper when one strained to listen. This was not the first time Ariel had been in the lab and she noticed that there were more people than usual and none wore the distinct grey lab coats, the dull brown work vests, or the bland tweed jackets that was typically seen around Oxford. These men and women were vigilant, eyes darting back and forth, never fixing their gaze for more than a moment but catching every detail. On their hips each wore a pair of pistols, well polished, and a scabbard poking through their cloak. This many guards meant only one thing, the vibrantly glowing stone was a soulstone and her parents were indeed very close to a breakthrough. Ariel recognized one of the Guild guards and he gave her a near imperceptible smile as their eyes met before resuming his scan of the room. Edmund had a soft spot for the young girl and was always more lenient of her trespasses. Suddenly, there was a flurry of motion from within the machine by a few particularly large cogs. A few loud grunts and a bang, followed by silence before a large metallic pipe came flying out, narrowly missing a guardswomen. A head popped out, hair tussled, glasses askew. “Arthur! Didn’t expect you back so soon! Did you find the … is that a lemon tart?” Elizabeth gave the machine another hard thwack, metallic ringing echoing across the chamber. Then, she slammed the grate shut, jumped down and bee lined towards the food. “Thanks, dear! I’m famished.” Arthur glanced down at Ariel and gave her a wink. “Thank Ariel, she thought we might be hungry. So? Are you finished with the magnet couplers? I just need to check the pressure levels in valve 3, and I think I’m ready to go on my end.” Leaving the basket of food on the table, Ariel wandered around the machine as her parents discussed their experiment. She felt an immense sense of pride, seeing this giant mechanical beast that her parents had created. Not so smooth and polished as the automatic magneto aqueduct or as majestic as the steam powered lighthouse, but somehow more wonderful and incredible than both. Of course, she had no idea what it was supposed to do, but that mattered little. As she circled back towards her parents, she felt a sudden stabbing pain in her head followed by a bright flash. Images and voices raced through her head, screams and explosions rising to a cacophony. The visions faded, but fear kept hold and Ariel found herself shaking and cold. "Ariel? Are you alright?" Elizabeth half jogged towards her daughter. She placed her palm on Ariel's forehead, "You're freezing! Have you caught another cold?" Speech slowly returned to Ariel, though fear continue to grip her. "Don't turn it on! Your machine, something bad's gonna happen!" Elizabeth laughed, "It's going to be alright! It's perfectly safe and we're only going to turn it on the tiniest bit before turning it off again. Nothing's going to happen." Ariel stood firm, and shook her head violently. “Please! I saw something happen! The machine blew up and you were all gone!” “You must’ve had a bad dream,” Elizabeth comforted. She pulled Ariel in to a tight embrace and held tight. “Papa and I have checked over everything a dozen times. Besides, if something starts to happen, we can just turn it off.” Elizabeth slowly loosened her hug, but held on to Ariel’s hand. She slowly led Ariel to the end of the long room near the entrance and into an observation room. The room was a mess, coffee mugs and papers half-filled with indecipherable scratchings littered every surface. An old couch lay in one corner, a blanket half hanging off the end. Two chalk boards hung off the rear wall, covered with numbers and equations that extended past the board, onto the walls around the room and continued onto the large glass window that looked upon the main lab. The room resembled more of an extended workspace than used for any kind of observation. Elizabeth sat Ariel on the observation chair and went to grab the blanket. Covering Ariel tightly, Elizabeth leaned against the large window and unclipped her necklace. “Tell you what, you can watch everything from here and see that it will be all fine. We’ll go for a proper meal after this, just the three of us.” She fastened the necklace around Ariel, with the silver spiral twist hanging low on Ariel’s smaller frame. “I was very worried once about my mother and I didn’t want her to leave. She gave me this and told me that she’s coming back because it was her favourite necklace. And she did, so now I’ve giving it to you.” Ariel held on to the necklace and the shaking slowly subsided. “You promise?” “I promise. I have to go help papa now, you know how helpless he gets when he’s excited.” Elizabeth smiled and hugged Ariel again, “We’ll be done in a few minutes!” Ariel held the necklace and watched as her parents ran around making the last few changes, before walking to a table full of switches, buttons and cables running to every corner of the lab. Arthur gave a thumbs up to one of the guards who nodded back in turn. He flipped the first switch and a low hum throbbed throughout the lab. Slowly, gears within the giant machine began to wake and metallic clicks and grinds rose in a crescendo. Arthur and Elizabeth were running around to various gauges and dials, hastily taking note when suddenly the low hum rose in intensity and pitch. What was once the baseline to the machine’s symphony soon began to mimic shrill shrieks of horror. The gears and pistons doubled in speed, before doubling again and again. “It shouldn’t be doing this! We didn’t give it enough power for this!” Arthur screamed, barely audible over the machine’s screech. Elizabeth ran towards a large cable extending out the side of the machine, “We need to turn it off! There’s too much pressure in the main valve!” A yellow glow began to radiate from the soulstone, blinding in intensity. Its hues began to shift to light blue, than orange, red, and onwards. Ariel’s eyes widened in horror and ran out from the room. “Mama! Papa!” But she could no more hear than see her, shapes indecipherable amidst the bright light. She stepped closer and closer each step more difficult than the last as the air itself pushed back, unwilling to relent. Just then, a hand shot out through the glow reaching for Ariel. “Mama!” Ariel pushed harder against the unseen force, grabbing for the out stretched hand. Slowly, she strained until it was just within reach. Their finger brushed against each other, trying to take grasp of the other when a pulse blasted outwards, knocking Ariel to the ground and a deafening silence took hold. The guardsmen looked towards the centre of the lab in shock as the cables running from the generators hung in mid-air for a moment before clattering to floor. The machine was gone, as was Arthur and Elizabeth. More importantly to the Guild and therefore the guards, however, was the fact that the soulstone was gone with them. Finally, the captain of guards came to his wits. “Secure the area! You, inform headquarters of what happened, no one else in and out the building until I give the word.” He pointed to Ariel’s collapsed body, “Take her to observation room and keep her under guard, I’ll question her later.” --- Consciousness slowly returned to Ariel as she pushed herself up from the coach, memories visible through a thinning fog. A callused hand appeared in front of her, holding a cup of water. She drank it in one gulp, much to the relief of her aching throat. Suddenly, she jumped to her feet and ran toward the door, the fog completely lifted. Just as quickly a man grabbed her shoulder, stopping her dead in her tracks. She turned and looked up at the man. He was old with a callused face to match the hands. Grey hair and a moustache covered his impassive face. Unable to move, she looked to the window for a sign of her parents but found the blinds were drawn. “Where’s mama and papa?” He sat and gestured for Ariel to do the same. “That‘s what we’re here to find out. Now why don’t you tell me where you think they went?” Ariel was puzzled and annoyed by what seemed to her to be a rather stupid question. Why would she ask him where they were if she already knew? She examined the man again to see if he was perhaps a simpleton, but could not find any signs in his rigid and blank demeanour. Worry began to settle in and she turned to the door once more. “Sit.” He said in a deep voice, barely above a whisper. Slowly, Ariel sat, dread overcoming her other emotions. She had gotten in trouble many times with grownups before and knew what was coming. Somehow, this one felt like it would be worse than the others, especially as she wasn’t sure what she had done wrong in the first place. “You see, Ariel, your parents are in a bit of trouble and unless you help me find them, you’re going to be in a lot of trouble too.” The man rose and began to pace around her, “We trusted them with something very precious and now that it’s gone, we have some questions. The Guild takes thefts VERY seriously.” “My parents aren’t thieves!” “I believe you, really! But my captain needs convincing, and if you help me find them, I’m sure we can sort this out in no time! So, tell me what you saw?” Ariel did not trust this man. His breath stank of day old tobacco, spit flying at the end of every sentence. “You were there, I saw the same as you. That bright light and then they disappeared.” “Yes, but what about the day before? Did they pack their bags?” “No, why would they be packing their bags?” “What did they say to you?” “Boring stuff. Mama asked about homework and class and if Ally -” “Yes, yes, but did they talk about leaving or running away?” “Why would they do that?” The calm mask that the man wore began to crack. “I’ll be asking the questions here. I don’t think you understand how serious this is.” “Well maybe you should stop asking stupid questions.” A tinge of red flushed across the man’s face when a sharp rap came from the door. “Wait here,” he growled. As he stepped out, Ariel ran over to eavesdrop but could only hear muffled voices. The exchange was short and soon dull, rhythmic, and fading thuds could be heard. Running to the window and peaking through the blinds, Ariel could see that it was now dark with the moonlight softly beaming across the now empty lab. More importantly, there didn't appear to be any guards around. Now's my chance! She thought to herself. Ariel pulled on the door but of course it was locked. Looking around, a glint caught her eye from under a pile of notes on the table. A screwdriver! She grabbed it and pushed the flat end into the lock. Unfortunately for her, lock picking was not a skill she had honed while on her many misadventures and it wasn't long before the screwdriver was stuck. I have to get out of here! Ariel walked back and forth across the room, searching for anything that would help. Worry turned into fear, then to sadness, repeating in an endless dark whirlpool. Hours seemed to have passed before she heard footsteps again. Grabbing a cup, she hid next to the door. The lock jiggled but wouldn't budge with the screwdriver jammed in tight. A man swore, followed by silence and a loud crash as the door flew inwards, splinters exploding out from the wooden frame. As the man stepped through, Ariel jumped, hitting him across his face with the cup. "Ow!" The man took a step back, leaving just enough space for Ariel to bolt through. Incoherent yelling followed her in her tracks, but Ariel didn't look back. She turned left and right, sprinting down the dark shadow lit halls, echoes of footfall encouraging her forward. Another corner, and Ariel could see the door out beckoning her to freedom when an arm struck out and pulled her into a room. "LET, ME, … Mphhh!" A hand muffled her cries. The man turned her around and put a finger to his lips. Edmund! He gestured for her to stay and stepped out into the hall. Was he going to turn me in? Ariel looked around for another way out. No windows! The echoes of footfall flooded into the hallway outside. Ariel edged towards to door and listened. Muffled shouts between gasps of breath diffused through the door. Drops of sweat trailed down the side of her face. Finally, someone ran off with a door soon clanging after them. Edmund stepped back into the room as Ariel was suddenly reminded of the necessity of breathing. Edmund looked down at Ariel. “I’m only going to ask this once, do you know anything about what happened?” “No!, I –“ “It’s ok! I believe you! But I don’t think the rest of my colleagues feel the same. You have to leave, now.” “But where will I go? “The university gets a supply delivery everyday just before midnight. Wait for them to unload it and you might be able to hitch a ride to the coast. After that ...” He shrugged. Edmund’s pitying eyes told Ariel everything she needed to know. Emotions held back by anger and terror began to flood to the surface. What am I going to do now? “There isn’t much time. Here, this is all I’ve got.” He handed her a few scrip and opened the door, glancing nervously around the hallway. He stepped out and Ariel followed. They walked quietly through the now empty building, the walls returning to their slumber. Edmund opened another door and a welcome breeze of the cool evening air thrust its way into the stale academic halls. “Don’t let anyone see you until you reach the coast. And trust no one.” Edmund gestured for Ariel to head out. “The carts will be behind the old alchemist building in the Northern quad.” A half-moon winked through the dark clouds. Ariel looked around, and ran towards the beckoning shadows. Terror and adrenaline had once again taken hold. “Hey!” Ariel paused against the wall and looked back. “I’m sorry about your parents.” A soft apologetic whisper, then Edmund was gone. Fate was kind to Ariel that night, or perhaps simply took pity after what transpired that day. The clouds hid the moon behind a thick heavy veil and the winds whipped through the academic monoliths, howling with rage. Guards swarmed throughout the campus, angry wasps hunting for a single prey. Despite this, every lecture missed now rewarded Ariel with unmatched knowledge of the grounds and she reached the carts with no one the wiser. Two workers were unloading the final supplies. Chickens for the kitchens, squawking with terror over the high winds. Three carts down, a tarp hang loosely across the wooden wagon. Stepping softly, Ariel inched towards it and crawled in. One bright red chicken broke free and ran towards the nearby woods, proving too much of a distraction for the workers to notice a young girl of twelve, especially one who did not wish to be seen. Ariel curled up against the side of the cart and waited. “That’s everything! You off already? It’s almost midnight!” “Eh, I’ll sleep goin’ back, the horses know where they heading. My anniversary’s tomorrow,” The man’s voice became higher pitched and nasally, “Once a year Cecil, that’s ALL I ask for! You can’t even do something nice ONCE a year!” His voice returned to normal, “Never hear the end of it.” Somehow, Ariel could hear his eyes roll through the raging wind. “Hold it! You can’t leave until we’ve checked all the carts. We have a fugitive on the loose.” Ariel froze as a third voice cut through the air. “They’re empty! What’s to check?” “I’ll make that call.” So close! Ariel thought. She slowly looked around, wondering if anything else could hide her. A shadow grew across the tarp as a hand took grasp. “What was that?” The hand paused. “Did you see that? Did it look like a young girl?” The owner of the hand was very demanding. “Oh ... yeah, might’ve been a girl. Saw only a flash, quick as a bird.” The second worker chimed in “Could’ve been anything, but if it was your girl, you won’t catch her if she gets any further into them woods.” Cursing, the guard ran into the distance. “Y’know, he’ll be chasing that chicken for hours. Don’t reckon he’d take kindly to being lied to.” “Said it was quick as a bird, didn’t I?” Both men erupted in laughter. Ariel breathed a sigh of relief. The wheels began to groan and creak as the cart slowly moved forward. A steady rhythmic beating of hooves could be heard, blending in with the wind and bumps along the road. As the convoy rumbled further away, so did the grips of terror. The soft lull of Queen Mab began to whisper. Slowly, clutching her mother’s necklace, Ariel drifted asleep. --- A thin haze slinked through the streets and an intricate bouquet of smoke, iron, ink, bread and pastries pirouetted through the growing crowd. And sewage. It didn’t matter which city or which district, from the opulent society ballrooms to the darkest gambling alleys, the hint of sewage was always present. Like an old loyal friend or that annoying uncle who just won’t leave. In London, it was more like three uncles