.:|:. Saielna Evelyn Makira Wistry .:|:. In Brief

Born the daughter of a half-elven woman and her human husband, twin to a handsome blonde-haired boy and older sister by four years to an equally handsome and equally blond young child, Saielna seemed destined to have a life suited for fairy tales more than the sordid streets of Rhy'Din and its surrounding environs. It should have been that way, should have been story-book perfect. But with the death of her mother, Saielna's life changed unexpectedly.

Her twin Theloneus left their house outside of Rhy'Din, seeking refuge in magical training. Devastated by the absence of her other half, and heart-broken by the recluse her father had become following her mother's death, she set out for Rhy'Din in search of Thel. She needed help when she arrived, and she found it in an unlikekly source.

A group of warriors, spies, assassins, and the like had formed a family outside the lands, and she was welcomed into their midst. They called themselves the Shadow Guardians of Destiny, and were led by Debra Erin Sunhaven. Taken up with the sense of community she found there, she helped wherever she could, researching, training, cooking. She was eventually trained by a half-drow, Ro'Nar Del'Armgo, who would later become her first lover in the ways of the sword and dagger. During all this time, however, her heart strayed not far from thoughts of her father and brother at home, and her twin, somewhere in Rhy'Din, seeking his magical training.

She eventually came to be labelled with the warriors of the group, and showed much promise. The division was long headed by a young human-appearing maiden Sinah who befriended the young woman. There were others there, as well - including Kerowyn Tremane, with her bond to her goldentailed hawk.

During one of the many quests of which the group was a part, Saielna met a young female named Alanaytiena Kirah Volauvent whom she later learned was vampiric. A bond formed between Saielna and Lana, who was second in command of another group of soldier and seekers, not unlike that which had formed between Saielna and her division commander. In later days, Saielna and Lana became blood sisters, and Saielna etched the woman's name upon her arm with her own dagger.

Sinah was not forgotten - the sister that Saielna had always longed for, a spot of light and joy in a world that was becoming increasingly dark. More days were spent in the company of Sinah and her two young children, as darkness came to the fortress of the Shadow Guardians, and to Saielna's life.

A vampiric trouble maker, by the name of Mercutio, had found his way into the group of Guardians, and it seemed he took more delight in hassling Saielna than was proper. She sought refuge wherever she might, but there was a lure of danger to Mercutio that even Saielna could not ignore. Against the wishes of Ro'Nar, her drow lover, she began to associate more frequently with the creature, eliciting disgust and annoyance in the eyes of many, including the leader of the Guardians.

Meanwhile, unbeknownst to Saielna, her younger brother Madea, tiring of life underneath their now overbearing father's watch, had snuck off, and tracked her down in the midst of her work with the guards she associated herself with. He had come upon her in the middle of a night she spent tending bar, and the reunion was joyful and teary-eyed alike. With a part of her heart returned that she had long since thought lost, she could no longer ignore the tugging to find her twin. Together, the siblings set out to make a life for themselves, and to find the missing piece of their triad - Thel.

Ro'Nar waited patiently while Saielna found the threads of her past, tracing her twin to a magic academy in the heart of Rhy'Din. The half-drow was ever patient, and understanding, of all that she did, and it was his love that steadied her as she sought to rebuild the life she had thought shattered when she left home. Once she and Madea found Thel, a bit more of the puzzle of her life since she'd made her way to Rhy'Din was found.

Thel had kept watch upon his twin, seeing through her stormy grey eyes everything she saw, and assuring himself she was alright. Thrice when she had lain hurt, wounded beyond words from a fight she had stumbled into, he had come to her whilst she was delirious, and taken her back to her new home. She had never known the truth of how she had been found at the Shadow Fortress, and had assumed it was the gift of the badges that linked all of the Guardians, alerting them to her danger. Even in her darkest hours, though, the other half of her life had been there for her, and it humbled her.

It was a joyous reunion, and perhaps the spirit of goodwill overcame Saielna. For she felt it necessary to go back to their father's house, and speak with him, try to explain why his three children had left him, and why they had needed to. Theloneus and Madea were not so blinded when it came to the truth of their father's ways, and refused to return to his home. Left with the prospect of a journey that would take three weeks one way, and the certain knowledge that the Guardians were leaving to seek out an artifact of the gods in less than a month's time, Saielna made a desperate decision - she contracted the services of a mage, promising him anything if he would just return her to Shinshale, the place of her birth, via magic's path. He agreed.

It was a bittersweet reunion between father and daughter, met with angry tears and heated words that should never have been said. In the height of ire, the patron of the family shouted that he had no children, most especially no daughter. In the deathly silence which followed that thunderous outburst, Saielna had simply stared at her father, dumbstruck. When it became apparent he meant what he said, she turned upon heel, rushed out the door and to the streets. The passions she had been battling, the tumult of travel via magic's path, and the mark the mage had placed upon her soul dropped her halfway on her return to Rhy'Din, leaving her beside the road in a ditch, unconscious and prepared to die.

Ro'Nar, meanwhile, knew nothing of Saielna's plans, nor did her brothers. Only when Theloneus and Ro'Nar pooled their abilities, Thel looking through his twin's eyes and Roni using the magic of the guild's badges to locate her, could they hope to find her, and return her to safety. Theloneus, though, knew little of what had happened to her, and transported the three of them home via magic. The traces it left in her body began to twine with the marks the mage she had hired left, and Sai lost consciousness for a full month. Unable to leave her behind, defenseless in the fortress that was almost emptied, the Guardians took her with them.

It was while they traveled to search for the artifacts of the gods that the mage found them. A battle took place, with her guildmates putting aside all distaste for her companions and fighting for her. The mage was killed, and his magic lifted from her. Saielna was well once more... but she would not be for long.

The Guardians found what they desired, though they lost one of their own in the attempt, and he was left to wander the deserts while the Guardians returned home, seeking a way to recover him. Saielna applied herself to the problem as well, and when at last Tristan was recovered, the joy swept through all of the Guardians. In those moments, Saielna was once more part of the family. And she was content.

She settled herself to the life of business, at least on the outside, though she continued to pursue her own interests, and those of the Guardians. She rented a storefront and began importing fine linens, building a large business. Working hard, Saielna paid for her younger brother to enroll in the same magic academy as Thel attended. Mad and Thel were quite the pair, as gifted magically as any could dream of, able to perform spells which should have been beyond their grasp. Saielna, meanwhile, was content to watch her siblings succeed, wrapped in the comforting peace offered to her by Roni.

Two days, however, would change all that was stable in Saielna's life. In forty-eight hours, the petite woman would learn that nothing ever stayed the same. While out gathering information regarding an ancient magical artifact she had heard of on behalf of the Guardians, Saielna received news of an attack upon her brothers' school of magic. Fingers grasped the badge she wore, and she dropped it on the bar of the pub in front of the shocked tender, and fled from the tavern, cutting off all communication with her guildmates. Grief-stricken, she rushed from her duties, to Rhy'Din proper, and sought out any officials from the school which she might find. When at last she received news, twelve hours after the fact, that both brothers had passed away, she was numbed, having accepted the terrible news even before it had been confirmed. A link, a silent thrumming bond that had formed between the three siblings, had gone dead in her. It was hollow consolation, indeed, to learn that her twin brother Theloneus had left to her the clearing she had so dearly loved, with his vineyards in place there, aided by magic, and a small house built.

Unfortunately, a guildmate had caught the distress transmitted by Saielna's state of mind, via the group's mental connections, and thinking she was in great physical danger, had gone to the last place they had known her to be. By the time he arrived, there were enemies swarming the bar, and his spotting of the badge just confirmed his worst fears - that Saielna had been either killed or captured. Foolishly, he challenged them all to a fight. No doubt unsurprisingly, he lost. He was taken a prisoner of war, and war indeed was looming upon the horizon for the group of which Saielna was a part.

When Saielna returned to the fortress of the Guardians, it was to face the ire of the head of the group, and to learn that it was her fault a guildmate had been taken captive. Added to the loss of her brothers, it was too much for her. She stopped to visit one last person, Mercutio. There was hope in the woman's heart that he might end her pain. He did not, but instead turned her into one like himself. She knew she was an abomination, now, distasteful and despised. She had collapsed upon the bed shared with Roni, and sobbed quietly until even exhaustion was far from her grasp. A few items were packed, and she left a simple note for her lover, asking his forgiveness.

Then, like some thief in the night, she snuck away, taking only her money and daggers. The fault lay with the quest she had been so intent upon - finding the Null Amulet. Now, with the death of her brothers, the capture of a guildmate, and the threat of war, she felt that she must continue on. There was nothing left behind her. And if she didn't carry on, only madness lay before.

When at last she returned to Rhy'Din, almost three years later, it was scarred, and with a different name, so that those she once knew would not recognize her for who she was. Her hair had gone slightly gray during her battles and her struggle for life in the harsher lands of the far north, and realms beyond. Eyes which once were alight with innocence were slightly deadened by the weight of harsh realities and truths which were better left unfaced. Her money had increased during her times, however, and upon return, she purchased a large plot of land adjacent to that where her brother had built his home and vineyard.

That plot of land was soon covered with construction, and trees. She would make a home for herself here, and start her life anew, with the benefit of money. She purchased horses of a fine bloodline, with intent to train them for racing eventually. Cattle, chickens, and pigs were purchased, so that the house might be fairly self-sufficient in day to day food needs. The vineyard already planted was tended carefully, and soon grapes were growing. The vintage would be excellent. The crops, too, were high and bountiful. Eight full-time servants were hired on, to clean, cook, care for the farm and animals, and generally keep Saielna from feeling so alone.

During all this time, she thought of all she had left behind, and lost, from earliest of times. Her mother, her father. Her twin and younger brother, in that horrible accident. Her guildmate who had sought to protect her. Her old division commander, and her friend Lana. The love of her life - the drow who had trained her, who surely could not understand why she went away. Those whom she had loved in years past would be watched by the no longer young woman, and should they ever need assistance, she would be there for them. She would never tell them the truth, however. Easier to lie.

Solace could never be found in isolation, however, and eventually Saielna learned the truth of these words for herself. The house was rented out to a young family, the vineyards left under the lead of the master vintner who she had hired. She set out to find those few who remained whom she still cared for, and find a new home for herself. She could only hope that the future would be more forgiving than the past.

The first step she must needs take was finding a cure for what she had allowed Mercutio to do to her. She traveled far and wide, following hints and murmurs, until she came to a clan of tribesmen far to the north. Their shaman advised her that she could be cured, but it would take a year's time. With nothing to lose, and her life to regain, she agreed.

She was put through trials and tribulations, stripped of her voice, her sight, her pride. Bathed in the blood of others, and herself, and forced to relive every agonizing mistake she had ever made. But at the end of the year, she was cleansed, her spirit whole once more. And so she returned, once again, to Rhy'Din. This time bearing her own features, and her own name. What fate had in store for her, though ... was beyond telling.