Post by Erika Arcos on Nov 26, 2014 10:10:44 GMT -5
[attr="class","main"] [attr="class","imgdiv"] [attr="class","name"]Erika Arcos [attr="class","race"]Ferelden, Elf
[attr="class","infoh"]Physical Attributes
[attr="class","infoc"]Erika's about average in size for an elf, which makes her a little on the small side, but don't let that fool you. She's definitely physically able, having travelled across Ferelden and even Orlais on occasion with goods to trade to those with the coin. The life of a travelling merchant isn't easy, and she's got the muscle and calluses to prove it. Typically she wears well-made travelling leathers, along with a hooded cloak, in order to protect herself from the elements. When dealing with people with money, however, she's got a few nicer, colourful garments available in order to give off a good impression. Where possible, though, she prefers to keep her hood raised so as to hide her ears – elves are more likely to get bad deals and raise attention, after all. [attr="class","infoh"]Personality
[attr="class","infoc"]Apprenticed at a very young age, Erika had to deal with a life of constant travel and work. As such, she's used to getting her hands dirty and is very diligent in completing whatever task is in front of her. Laziness is not tolerated. She's also learned how to speak good- well, rather, as a silver tongue is more valuable to a merchant than a steel sword. Erika enjoys the company of others, as the life of a travelling merchant can get quite lonely, but she also knows when it's better to be quiet and simply observe her surroundings. On the occasion that things go pear-shaped, she's always ready with a way to extricate herself from that mess, or think of a way to diffuse the situation in a way favourable to herself. However, given that she's both an elf and an apostate, she's always concerned about drawing negative attention to herself, and tends to see the worst in others. Erika doesn't like revealing too much about herself for fear that she might let something damaging slip – one wrong move and it's the Circle for her, at best. She's sensitive about what she is, and although she tries to hide it, she does wish that she could just fit in. While Erika may be aggressive with negotiations, she's got no stomach for physical conflict, and would rather run instead of stick around and fight, given the chance. [attr="class","infoh"]Background [attr="class","infoc"]Being born in 8:44 Blessed is not so blessed if you happened to be in Ferelden at the time. Unfortunately, that was the case for Erika. Born into the Dalish clans, she might have lived a relatively peaceful and isolated life out in the wilds if it weren't for an unfortunate incident with the Orlesians. She doesn't remember what happened to cause it, or who was at fault, but the result was clear for all: a massacre of her clan. Her earliest memory is of wandering through her still-burning home, filled with dead bodies of friend and foe alike, and stumbling upon a vaguely familiar man just before passing out. Petr Arcos was a merchant who had lost his business and family when Denerim had been sacked by the Orlesians. He risked losing even more if he stayed, so he sold what remained and took up the life of a wandering trader. It was hard at first, compared to simply running a store, but he grew used to it, and even began to enjoy the freedom it gave him. However, despite this, he never forgot his wife and daughter and the home they had worked hard to build together. He ended up forging a relatively amicable business relationship with the Dalish, managing to negotiate a regular trade for ironbark products. On a scheduled trip to their camp, he noticed smoke billowing up from the forest, and quickened the pace. There he witnessed the aftermath of a slaughter that reminded him of Denerim, only on a smaller scale. Petr looked for survivors, but evidently if anyone had survived they'd already fled. He was about to leave when he heard a sound from behind him. It was a young Dalish girl, around seven years old, although it was hard to tell with elves. She was covered in blood, but when he went to examine her for injuries, found nothing more than a few scratches and bruises. She'd been lucky, or as lucky as she could have been in this situation. He debated on what to do with the girl for a long time. The Dalish likely wouldn't want to deal with humans for a while now, given what had just happened, and that was even if he could find another camp. He considered taking her to an alienage, but that didn't sit right with him, either. Looking at her he couldn't help but be reminded of his own daughter who had died years earlier. Perhaps this was a kind of second chance for both himself and the girl. When she awoke some time later, she was very scared and inconsolable. It took her a while to open up a bit to Petr, and it seemed that while she understood that her home and family were gone, she didn't recall much of anything else, even her name. He elected to not push her on the subject, and tried to be as gentle with the girl as possible. It was clearly a traumatic event, and if she didn't want to remember it, then he wouldn't force her. At the very least she seemed happier not remembering. Though the girl never regained her memory, she did start to become more and more like how one might expect a child to be. She got a new name – Erika Arcos – and it was like the both of them regained something they had lost. Petr treated her like she was his own daughter, and hoped to raise her to follow in his footsteps. Unfortunately, there was another snag when Erika began to show some aptitude for magic. Again, Petr struggled with what to do... he knew that he was expected to turn her in to the Circle of Mages, but then he'd never see her again. But if he kept her, it would be dangerous for the both of them. Templars weren't known for their kindness to apostates. He explained the situation to Erika so she could choose, who, not surprisingly, refused to go to the Circle. Secretly, though, he was almost certain that she'd refuse and posed the question to her mostly to free himself from having to live with his decision. Neither of them having much knowledge of magic, they decided that it was best that she avoid it as much as possible, and to pretend that it didn't exist. No-one could know, and the fewer risks, the better. Any outbursts were covered up, and Erika told herself that any voices she might have heard were just the wind, or harmless dreams. Constantly being on the move helped them to evade suspicion, since they weren't around people long enough for them to notice anything strange. Still, it was something else to worry about on top of the occasional racism she'd suffer in towns, and while it was easier to hide than her ears, the consequences were much more dire. Life continued for the pair, and although Petr was starting get on in the years, they continued their route. They'd considered settling down in a remote village, but by this point it was the only kind of life Erika knew. Also, Petr had started funding the Ferelden rebels and smuggling supplies to them – it wasn't huge amounts, but every little bit helped. By being on the move it helped evade suspicion from multiple sources. Unfortunately, their luck had to run out one day, and it was to a much more common source – bandits. It wasn't the first time it had happened, but usually they just robbed them and left. These ones were a lot more violent, and Petr wasn't going to sit by and let them hurt him or his daughter. He tried to fight, and put up a valiant effort, but he was old and outnumbered. Seeing him get struck down like that triggered a cold fury in Erika, and she lashed out against them. Though untrained, she certainly had some latent talent, and an icy wind caught hold of the bandits and froze the blood in their veins. Shocked by the damage she had wrought, she hesitantly touched one of them, who cracked and shattered. She couldn't help but flinch away. It was too late for Petr, unfortunately. Erika went to him and tried to help, but his wounds were too severe, and she wasn't sure how to make her magic do what she wanted. She couldn't hear his last words, but she hoped that he wasn't saying that he hated her for using her magic, or not being able to save him. No... he'd never hate her... right? Either way, there was no changing what had happened... she'd just have to go on without him. He wanted her to take over for him in the near future, anyway. She could do this. It wouldn't be so hard on her own, right? |