Serra Everjoy

Player: Lurker
Name: Serra
Race: Tiefling
Initial Alignment: CN (Now CG)
Deity: Lliira
Eyes: Red
Hair: Black
Class: Stealth Arcanist/Sorcerer (Shadow Bloodline)

Description: This tiefling woman has the plush curves of decacence, with wide hips and the little paunch of a belly dancer, but the plump form does not detract from her agility. Her skin is a dark coppery tone, darker and redder than most of her Calishite kin, and two distinguishing features that set her as something not quite human are the nubs on her temples that seem to be latent hints of horns, and a long, whip-like tail that swishes and sways idly behind her. Her body is a jewelry box of piercings – ears, nostril, lip, and others in more or less scandalous places can be seen when she is disrobed. Her clothing, be it her stealth catsuit, casual attire, or dancers veils, is always immaculate, and she has taken to wearing her half-rimmed glasses more often, set on the bridge of her nose, as she has taken more to the study of her arcana and knowledge. Whatever she wears, she also wears a pendant of Lliira prominently around her neck.

Background

Serra started her life in the Muzad of Calimport as an abandoned youth, dumped into the slave market for the taint of demon blood in her veins. From the markets of the Shackles Ward, she quickly found herself taken in by the church of Loviatar, as they saw potential for her to be raised and trained as a tool of the church.

She was subjected to torment, taught to endure as well as deal various sorts of pain and punishment to other slaves of the temple. She performed under duress, but realized lack of zeal would only be rewarded by harsher discipline upon her. She never saw the outside world, from her days in the Muzad to those in the temple dungeons — never saw the beauty of flowers, or even the seashore she dwelt so close to. She was subject to a life of deprivation by taskmasters who tormented her, saying her taint rendered this the only lot in life for her.

The misery she suffered in the bowels of the Lovite temple came to an abrupt end, no sooner than she was made “ready” by her taskmasters. As she was being herded through the Muzad in Calimport, along with a group of other slaves, headed back toward the slavers’ markets for trading, their group was intercepted by a silent contingent of rescuers — quick, like dancers of death, that lay waste to the Lovites that guarded the procession. The Scarlet Mummers had made their play to free the captives, as joint rescuers of the Ilmateri and Sharessan temples ushered the slaves to refuge.

That refuge was the Festhall of Eternal Delight, the temple of Sharess, which often served as safe harbor for rescued slaves awaiting transport out of the city. Among the former slaves, Serra was the most broken, and she caught the attention of the Madame of the Festhall. A lifelong Sharessan, a Celebrant and another who loathed the actions of the Lovite faith, the Madame took the young tiefling under her wing in the hopes of healing her broken spirit, rather than turn her out into the world at large.

The Madame found the way to break the bondage of pain and deprivation Serra had suffered in the Lovites’ hands: to show the former captive the sensations and affections she had missed. She and the faithful of the temple showed the tiefling that any and all were deserving of pleasure and joy, and they patiently soothed the emotional scars of the former slave, making her feel like an equal — not the monster her tormenters had made her believe she was.

They also taught her the thing she loved most – to dance, and entertain others in the Festhall. She learned to find joy in bringing joy to others, and she was nothing short of an exotic beauty on the dance floor. The more she found her happiness in that of those around her, the more the pain of the past faded, and she no longer felt bound by the pain that had been used to break her. She was her own person, beholden to no one.

She repaid the temple who had delivered her, and those that had slain her captors, by pledging her heart to the Joybringer, Lliira, and pledging her body to Sharess and the Festhall as a courtesan and dancer. The exotic beauty wowed patrons with her dance, woven together with illusions and arcane tricks she’d learned from latent talent, as well as her agile form.

It was here that she met Madame’s prior lovers — Erliza and Ashera — on a visit from the Arabel, and what ultimately developed over the course of several visits was a bond that forged as the couple’s unconditional acceptance and affection broke through walls around Serra’s heart she had placed there from captivity to shield her emotions from harm. The more the walls came down, the more Serra longed for the two to arrive on their visits. And the more she longed for their presence, the more she realized that the festhall she could not leave the sanctuary — while a gilded cage — for her was still a cage.

She has since come to the North, curious of the places and sights her Madame had once seen, and told her of in stories as they grew closer to one another. Ultimately, Madame encouraged her understudy to travel there and seek out the couple, telling her there was no reason for both of them to have to pine. She now seeks adventure, and excitement to add to her experiences, and has built a home and family in the process.

Personality Profile

Serra is, in a word, feisty. Her fiendish bloodline passed on a capricious spirit that is only tempered by her humanity, and her teaching by the Madame and sisters of the festhall. She vents her nature with mischief, be it a careless trick, or morbid, sarcastic humor. The poise and grace she gained in her courtesan training fades rather quickly to reveal the pesky imp beneath.

A huge transformation in her priorities in life came at the point she rescued a young captive soul from a soul ship in Hades upon the river Styx. Little Mary, having been captured and left without parents, triggered Serra’s own buried traumas of slavery and lacking a parental figure in her youth. Rescuing the girl became the only thing that mattered to Serra until they returned to the prime. And once returned, Serra’s only thought was how to give the girl a family she’d lost, something Serra never had. Serra has since then taken the girl under wing with her partner Erliza as a stepdaughter. What shall become of the girl as she grows is yet to be seen, but Serra will be watching out for Mary for the duration of it.

Her transformation has furthered with the rescue of another child, again a tiefling, abandoned in the slums, Serra and her partners have since taken in the young child as a fixture of the thieves guild downstairs, as Serra teaches them her tricks and treats them as her own.

She still has few qualms over a life of larceny, but she has a very solid code of honor that mollifies the greed. She will want to avoid taking an innocent life, and prefers to deprive or swindle those she perceives as able to afford it.

Goals

Her original goals were rather simple — to see for herself the northern country where her Madame once visited, and meet people who might have known her. While her present goals are benevolent, and does avidly follow her Goddess’ ways of spreading joy and freedom, she has a greedy side driven by her past deprivation, and she’s had few qualms on how to acquire what she wants, so long as those who stand to lose both afford and deserve it.

Serra is no longer on the crossroads of morality. She is a champion of freedom, and embraces her Goddess as the Breaker of Chains. While she uses the guild fronted by the Tea House to further her goals of sneaky benevolence. Her connections with the Scarlet Mummers made during the guild’s encounters, and the signet ring given to her that once was worn by a hero of said faction have made her all the more wanting to join their ranks as well. And the more of those of Lliira’s faith are drawn to the rogues’ hideaway, the more Serra wants to see it evolve into a cell of the Goddess’ chosen.

Possible Plot-Hook Ideas and Misc Facts

• A possible attempt to be accosted by her former captors. Should word get out of Serra’s location to the slavers back in Calimport — particularly in the wake of the Loviatarn church’s own losses in that rescue — enough bad blood could warrant an attempt at vendetta, more on the principle of it than for the sake of recapturing a slave.
• Encounters to reinforce her dream of becoming a Mummer. She knows full well who she has to thank for her freedom, and she now idolizes the tales of the secret enclave of joyful assassins.
• Any situation that would put Mary into danger, is going to bring Serra in full force, likely irrationally so.

Notable Items

Theramin Silks of Eldritch Trickery: Silken Armor (+1 AC, No DEX max, 0 ACP, 0% ASF, 6lbs, Material: Aranea Silk), Value: 21,330gp

One of a pair of elven relics, first gifted to an elven couple who dwelt in the forests of Mir in Calimshan — Gweyr Icesands, an Arcane Archer, and her beloved, Nithroel Zelphyra a swordmage. These tunics of silken armor were crafted by the Aranea of the forest as a token of alliance between their tribes. The two were never known for doing their work apart, friends since childhood that became lovers in their adulthood, not even trysts over the years kept them far from from each other. Because of this, the aranea made a special enchantment on their gift: these tunics can only be used by true lovers. Any attempt to be used by a single wearer would be rejected by the silken garments until and unless a lover, or unwitting soulmate were to wear the second set.

As they went about their travels, they once were assailed by a war party of House Jaelre. They ended up as slaves, for twenty years, both former free spirits had to endure being the concubines their masters in Cormanthor, losing any offspring made to the clan. Through circumstance and persistence, they ultimately managed to escape the chains of their captors and for a brief time, had their freedom once more, but fate would decree their lives as free spirits be cut short by betrayal. As they ventured west again toward home, they watched one of their own — Follen Ryzceiros — murder another elven kin as they traveled in each other’s company. The couple attempted to intervene but Gweyr was fatally shot by one of Follen’s gang before she could act to defend the fallen kin. Nithroel, upon the falling of her true bondmate, died of her own grief within minutes of her partner.

After years that transpired since, two lovers, Serra and Erliza, helped in part to bring Follen to justice in another act of betrayal against his own kin, and the twin tunics had remained in the possession of the band of renegades for the pair to find. Upon donning the armor, it bonded to both lovers in the same fashion as it had for the original soulmates. The sweetness and irony of the story — the capture and ending of Follen’s gang at the hand of two soulmates, and the relics’ eventual blessing of the pair — does not evade even the dimmest of wits.

Powers: This suit of silken armor creates a mental link that only functions so long as its twin is in the possession of or worn by the soulmate of the wearer; the bond created forms link between the wearer and her allies. The wearer can telepathically communicate with allies within 30 feet (although this communication is one-way, unless an ally also has telepathy), however the two wearers of the matching suits may communicate without limits, as if joined by a Telepathic Bond spell. If either soulmate, or an ally within 30 feet of either is aware of a threat, the wearer of this armor is aware as well, and the wearer is never flat-footed unless all allies within 30 feet and the wearer of the second suit are also flat-footed.

Because of its construction of Aranea silk, it turns aside many the point of a rapier or arrowhead, giving it Damage Reduction of 3/slashing or bludgeoning.

Beloved of Brandobaris: Bandolier, Value: 10,400gp

This belt was crafted by Wilkin Maremin, a halfling Divine Trickster of Brandobaris and a renowned Planeswalker. It was integral in his legend of — if not stealing outright from his targets — playing such trickery that none save for a Copper Dragon would forgive him.

It is said he flooded one of the pockets of the Dismal Delve and created a Pocket of Mud within the Plane of Earth, enraging the Dao Lords. He traded stained glass to a dragon, He tricked the fey into unearthing a silver mine, He has impersonated distinguished persons throughout the realm and embarrassed their servants, and the nobles themselves. His mistake was a desire to assist a cell of Harpers against the Zhentarim. He was betrayed by one of their own, a traitor who saw to the destruction of his own cohorts prior to deflecting to the Black Hand, Wilkin included. For all the cunning of the hin, he did not anticipate true betrayal.

This bandolier later came into the possession of Serra Everjoy during her efforts to assist the Crown of Cormyr in the retaking of Swordhaven from the Zhentarim. Serra was there to help bring down the walls of the stronghold that had been held captive for years, and to drive the Zhents in retreat back to their own borders. The Beloved of Brandobaris was among the spoils the tyrants had left behind, once again in the hands of a trickster for the cause of mischief and freedom.

Powers: This bandolier of comfortably worn black leather features a number of compartments, from small, enchanted pouches to scabbards that size themselves to fit an assortment of small weapons. up to 1 cubic foot or 10 pounds of contents may fill each of ten such compartments. It functions much like a ‘Handy Haversack’ and allows its wearer to reach within any pocket to find what they seek immediately, as long as it is stored within the bandolier.

Quite curiously, there can be found things that the wearer had not placed. They cannot be found in a casual search, not for show, and certainly not for organization. It is only when the time is at hand that the belt offers a solution — a set of lock picks, or a handy tool for disabling a trap, a collapsible balance pole, a grapple and rope — there are a number of these items of providence unbeknownst to the owner who wears the belt before they might be depleted. This grants the wearer a +4 competence bonus on Disable Device, Climb and Acrobatics checks, and she is always considered to have the proper tool for any skill check.

The last resort to reach into the belt for, is a dip of desperation to place trust in chaos when the situation is at its most dire. It is a pleading unto the gods of fortune themselves to declare for damnation or salvation. In this case, roll the dice as a Rod of Wonder, once per day.

Dangerous Game: Kukri – 1d4 Slashing, Finesse, 18-20/x2 Crit, Training (Deadly Agility), Menacing, Fortuitous, on-crit DC14 blindness; Material: Adamantine; Value: 24,308gp

The Fire Knives of Cormyr were known as one of the most dangerous organizations in the entire country. Founded in the Year of the Fireslaughter, 932 DR, they were originally a loose band of rogues active in the southern edge of Cormyr, particularly in Marsember.

After Cormyr reclaimed Marsember in the Year of the Wall, 1227 DR, the Fire Knives were blamed for the deaths of King Dhalmass Obarskyr and his wife, Jhaless, at which time they were exiled from Cormyr. Over the next century, the organization reassembled in the border regions of Cormyr such as Daerlun, Elversult, Tilverton, and Westgate, and unexplained killings continued, chiefly amongst the noble and royal houses of Cormyr.

Yet again, the Fire Knives struck Cormyr in an attempt to pull off a coup and supplant the leadership of the country. In 1382 DR, they struck soon after the attack of the ghazneth at the palace in Suzail that began the War of Broken Crowns. Fire Knives dispatched to assassinate high ranking military, noble, and Harper opponents, quickly found themselves dispatched in the following months of the war.

Into this fray stepped the guild of Serra and Erliza Everjoy. Though hard-pressed and captured by the Fire Knives in their initial confrontation, they managed to escape and slaughtered the cell of Fire Knives who had imprisoned them. In so doing, they saved nobles still loyal to the Crown and helped to uncover an important part of the conspiracy against Cormyr.

This blade, recovered from the captain of the Fire Knives cell that was obliterated, is of exquisite make, wreathed in dark Adamantine and studded with beautiful rubies. The blade keens the strikes of an agile wielder, not just its own edge, but that of any other short blade wielded in compliment to it. Further, as an assassin wants his blows to strike true, or at least leave no witness should the first strike fail, it is enchanted with the Menacing and Fortuitous qualities; further, if the wielder scores a critical hit, the target must make a DC 14 Fort save or be blinded as per a Blindness/Deafness spell. it is a dark reminder of a truly evil, vengeful organization.

In Serra’s hands, she can use it for good, and perhaps turn this dark blade to a greater purpose.