Post by Lepa on Aug 22, 2023 5:24:00 GMT -8
(Left: True form | Right: Surface elf disguise)
Name: Nyxia Arkenviir Hawthorne
Alias: Leithe Hawthorne
Nicknames: Nyx
Gender: Female
Age: Unknown (Potentially between 100-200 years)
Race: Drow (Dark Elf)
Home: Aster City
Alliance: None
Alignment: Chaotic Neutral (formerly Lawful Evil)
Family: Cygnus Hawthorne (Husband), Eden Hawthorne (Daughter)
Friends: Arisu Reizo
Rivals: N/A
Enemies: Probably a lot
Likes: Magic, politicking, gathering information
Dislikes: Cold weather, bright lights, surface elves
Job: City Council member (specializing in gathering information and monitoring criminal activity)
Relationship: Nyxia takes charge in the relationship between her and her husband Cygnus, but he doesn't mind at all. She's strict towards her daughter, Eden, and the two have had their fair share of quarrels while she was growing up.
Personality:
Nyxia is a no nonsense, ambitious woman who radiates a stern intensity. She grew up in a culture that celebrates chaos, murder and constant treachery, so she views everyone as a potential threat or target. She is incredibly cynical and very slow to trust others, especially after her own noble house was annihilated. She tries put her emotions aside, mostly adhering to logic and self preservation, though anger and spite can work just as well for her. She won't hesitate to engage in unlawful or morally questionable tasks if she can achieve what she desires and cover her tracks in the process. Her life on the surface has softened this somewhat, especially after gaining a few friends and starting her own family. All that's really changed was narrowing down her list of acceptable targets, which usually concern whether or not they've brought harm to the few she cares about...
Powers:
Dark Vision - She can see in dim light as if it were bright light, and see in darkness as if it was dim light. She cannot make out colors in darkness, however. In exchange, she generally has more difficulty seeing in normal lighting conditions.
Sleep & Charm Magic Immunity - Her elven ancestry makes her immune to charm or sleep spells.
Illusion Disguise
Nyxia can activate a passive illusion spell to change her appearance to resemble that of a normal surface elf or human, who goes by the alias Leithe. She usually only uses one specific template appearance and is skilled enough to maintain it indefinitely. (She would have to study and practice to create a different disguise.) Nyxia uses her disguise to avoid the (typically justified) prejudices against her kind, as well as to avoid tarnishing the reputation of those she trusts by sparing them from being seen with a drow.
General Spellcasting & Combat Training
Nyxia's main means of attack are elemental darkness spells, coupled with more strategic utility spells to misdirect or deceive foes. Some of these utility spells include Dancing Lights or Faerie Fire, or sight/darkness based spells to temporarily blind foes. She used to be able to magically levitate at varying heights, but that ability has waned with her time on the surface, so she can only barely hover off the ground. She also was trained in using two handed swords and can use one efficiently enough to defend herself, though she prefers magic.
Persuasion & Politicking
Most of Nyxia's skill lies in her ability to politic, persuade, and manipulate. While she's excellent at gathering information on people and taking advantage of it, she's also legitimately skilled at debating and persuading others. Her stances tend to be very firm, and her demeanor in debates can be borderline threatening. She views other points with a cynical view, allowing her to plan her counter arguments and point out general flaws.
Weaknesses:
Nyxia has trouble with light in general. Having grown up in pitch darkness, she has difficulty tolerating direct sunlight, so she has to cover up when it's particularly bright. She also has extreme difficulty seeing things during the day since her eyes were made for seeing in the dark. She usually wears sunglasses to avoid being blinded, but it still agitates her. She also struggles with cold weather or cold based magic.
History:
Nyxia once lived in a drow city deep underground. Like many others of her kind, she was a noble living in a hierarchy determined by ruthlessness and betrayal. To climb in rank, one noble house needed to completely (and stealthily) decimate the one ranked above them - which is exactly what happened to Nyxia's house. Her kinship wasn't tight, however, for at the first sign of trouble, Nyxia abandoned her house and fled into the darkness, not daring (or caring?) to look back. Even though she knew she could act as a witness against their aggressors, it would mean her house would have already fallen - and she would be completely and utterly alone.
Desperate but determined to live, Nyxia escaped into the underground wilderness, making a long and dangerous trek to the surface. She wasn't sure where she arrived, but she survived the only way she knew how - through deception, magic and ferocity. Immediately met with hostility by nearby inhabitants, Nyxia repaid them in kind, eventually garnering local infamy as "the wicked dark elf." She thrived off of this reputation, using it to scare and persuade others to do her bidding. The local inhabitants endured it for years until one person finally stood up to her. Nyxia was so certain of people's fear for her that she'd let her guard down, believing none would dare to fight her. In fact, she would have died then and there if it weren't for the intervention of... a strange fox woman with many tails.
Baffled by her actions, Nyxia believed the creature to have an ulterior motive and began trailing her in hopes of predicting her next move. After all, there was no reason for her to have protected her - she must have been after a favor or had some sort of plan in place! It was what Nyx was used to, after all... it was the world she came from. Yet, to her astonishment, Nyxia would learn that this creature - a kitsune named Arisu - had no such plans. She had difficulty believing it, and when the kitsune went so far as to invite her company, Nyxia grew more suspicious than ever.
Still, she stayed near Arisu, determined to find her lies. Nyxia would find none. Instead, it was in time that she'd grow fond enough of the kitsune to even consider her a friend, though Nyxia would never admit it. It only became clear through her new habits: The dark elf would learn to channel her trickery and disdain only towards others that would insult or attack Arisu, even going so far as to reign in her more treacherous and violent tendencies at the kitsune's request. It didn't make much sense to Nyxia, but... she preferred it to being alone.
After adapting to less cutthroat and murderous ways, Nyxia for a time made a new living off of illusion magic. Using it to appear as a beautiful human woman, she would seduce men and swindle them out of their money. She would eventually try this on Cygnus Hawthorne, the youngest of the well off Hawthorne family. He was laughably naive but genuinely kind - perfect for deceiving. His mother Merula would not be as foolish however and suspected something off, but Cygnus wholeheartedly defended her at the risk of disownment. It was then Nyxia realized she felt... guilt.
Nyxia then tried to push Cygnus away, trying all manner of schemes to convince him to leave her, only for him to remain devoted. Flustered at his stupidity, Nyxia planned to leave him herself, realizing it was because she'd finally developed feelings for him. It was because she cared about him that she believed it best to distance herself from him... and because she couldn't stand living a lie. She couldn't bear the thought of him rejecting her true form.
However, Cygnus' mother uncovered Nyxia's ruse. The drow quickly used the opportunity to officially break up with Cygnus, claiming she was using him to get close to their fortune. When her feelings for him eventually overpowered her fears, Nyxia secretly returned to steal a glance of him, only to learn just how badly Cygnus' own family treated him. Infuriated, Nyxia stormed into the household using every spell she was capable of, stealing him away from them and starting a new life alongside him.
The pair would move around for a bit, with the biggest challenge being the hatred and distrust that followed Nyxia. While she was able to tolerate it, it would become a problem for their half-elf daughter, Eden. This eventually prompted them to move to Aster City, where Arisu had settled down with her own family. Even though the kitsune welcomed her, Nyxia still felt the need to keep her distance in order for Arisu to keep up appearances, despite the city's hope to ease tensions towards people like Nyxia. She would go on to work for Arisu at City Hall, though only under her human disguise when in public.
When Arisu died, to say Nyxia was devastated was an understatement. A flurry of terrible emotions filled the dark elf, most of them being a desire to find and unlawfully execute those responsible. While she has not done this (yet), Nyxia has spent the last several months obsessively looking into the circumstances of Arisu's death. She's been able to piece some things together, but she has nothing concrete just yet...
Anything else:
- Arisu's death has made Nyxia incredibly hateful - similar to how she was before she fled her home for the surface. Nyxia struggles to not relapse into old habits however and is only kept in check by her husband.
