Lorena Parson [Kingdom of Strife/Grendam] [A]

[Lorena]

ORIGINAL or CANON:

Original

Face claim’s name: N/A

What was the inspiration for them / do they embody a particular feeling or emotion?

Literally just wanted an archer type character who used magic Well that and I wanted a more “adult” character that could be taken seriously.

Name: Lorena Parson

Nickname: N/A

Age: 29

Gender: Female

Species: Human

Being Type: Somebody

Position: Neutral Good

Current Primary Objective: With her homeworld gone, she's unsure of how to proceed next, but she wants to do right by her late master and goddess of Grendam, Relana. Lorena believes aiding in the fight against the Heartless, whether by combat directly or by studying their behaviors to learn more about them, is the best way to fulfill her goddess's wishes. And perhaps some day, she'll discover what became of her home world, and salvage it, if possible.

Learning type: Visual

Home World: Kingdom of Strife (Grendam)

Passive:


Heartborn Radiance

Weapons:

• Whisper - An elegantly crafted magick bow in which Lorena can channel arcane bolts through as projectiles. This weapon is carved of aspen wood and silver trimming and has no bow string or even arrows to fire from it. It is not meant to function in anyway other than the purpose of channeling Lorena’s magic. When she fires an arcane bolt from this bow, Lorena can manipulate the bolt’s trajectory to best suit her needs; not enough to change its direction completely, but enough to make wide arcing shots, or to improve her accuracy if need be. Back in Grendam among her fellow acolytes, Lorena had the reputation of never missing a shot. Even those behind cover should fear the wrath that she and this weapon can incur.
• Phantom Edge - Two thin daggers that were once one. Due to Lorena’s painstaking precision with Whisper, she split this weapon down the length into two pieces in order to protect her fellow acolyte from an assailant. As a gift to symbolise her mastery over arcane archery, the split dagger was reworked into two thinner blades. Used as any ordinary weapon, these twin daggers would surely shatter, but when used by Lorena, she imbues them with the same arcane energy that she uses for her bow, forming the missing halves of the blades and creating something far more durable than any normal metal. Though she normally uses these weapons as daggers, should the need arise, she can pour more energy into her magic to extend the blades, effectively turning them into dual short swords for a small period of time. However, it requires a lot more focus to maintain this shape, and after that certain period of time they return to their original dagger length.

The arcane energy she summons takes on the form of bright, pure glowing light which becomes tinged by certain colors based on powerful emotions. Hints of red for anger, blue for sadness or regret, green for calm, etc. etc. but this only happens when she is under extreme emotional circumstances. Should Lorena ever become corrupted, her arcane magic will become pure black. Her magic’s potency relies entirely on her state of mind. If she is certain enough of herself and her purpose, it is likely her magic can cut through anything- much like how she created Phantom Edge. The more that doubt clouds her judgment, the less effective her magic will be. And while she can use her magic without her weapons channeling it, its no where near the same potency and is difficult to maintain. Her weapons serve as the foundation and the focus in which to conjure it.

Appearance:

Lorena stands at a height of 5”2, with a lean frame. She’s stronger than she may appear under her bulky leather armor, as training with weapons and magic all her life has required that she be physically strong, not just mentally. Her chin-length silver hair is often pulled back out of her face with a simple black headband, doing nothing to conceal the often sharp untrusting gaze her coal black eyes exhibit towards others.The cloak she wears can be removed by one simple latch in the center in order to free up her mobility in a tight situation, and under the leather armor she wears simple clothes typical of the world of Grendam. She also conceals an amulet on her person of the insignia belonging to the Order of Acolytes in Grendam, the Kingdom of Strife. Her way of dressing may appear strange to those from more modern worlds like Twilight Town, though she tends to keep her distance from the majority of the populace anyways.

Personality: Lorena is a patient observer, and untrusting of new people thanks to her experiences and loss during her time on her home world of Grendam. Constant war and strife has ravaged her home, until the god and goddess (Azeran and Relana, respectively) fell and the heartless slowly consumed a world that could not unite together. She once was a dedicated scholar, desiring nothing more than to master the art of magic taught to her by those she served, but now she’s become skeptical of questing for power of any kind, as it only seems to breed more chaos. Thus, she is slow to trust anyone with great power, cautious of those who might abuse power for their own gains, as many have done back on her home world.

Being apart of the Order of Acolytes, those who serve the gods Azeran and Relana in order to protect them and learn their ways of magic, she has grown up isolated from the outside world for most of her life, knowing only her fellow acolytes and the ones they serve. Many nations disliked the Order, and so when heartless descended on the world, Lorena was often treated with distrust, even blamed for the chaos that had now descended on the world, so she’s had to adapt and become more reclusive, and when she interacts with others, she tends to hide who she really is and whom she remains loyal to.

With her masters now gone, the acolytes scattered, and her home world gone, Lorena feels lost in what she is meant to do next. Despite her skepticism towards humanity as a whole, she somehow still holds a desire to help Grendam achieve peace, as Relana would have wanted, but she is unsure how, or if it is even possible at this point, so instead she simply observes the ongoing events of Twilight Town, awaiting a moment where she would be most needed in the battle against the heartless. During her time in Grendam as well as Twilight Town, she tries to further her understanding of the heartless and how they function as a group, reverting back to her scholarly roots in order to find out how to deal with this new threat.

Natural Affinities/Abilities/Skills:

• Devoted Scholar - Having initially been born in the nation of Askala and raised as a ward among the scholars there, Lorena has a very studious perspective on the world and believes that knowledge and understanding can be just as vital as a good sword or magical prowess. When she is unsure of how to proceed with a situation, she often falls back on her scholarly roots and attempts to assess the situation, research if need be, and return with a more thought out plan of action as a result. She is also well read on the history of Grendam as a whole, at least from the perspective if the Scholars of Askala, and does not wish for the world to continue repeating the vicious cycle of war and conflict as it has done throughout history. Lorena has a tendency to weigh the benefits and consequences of important decisions, and tries to choose the best solution for the good of all.
• Stalwart Defender - Coming from a world fraught with war, the majority of the populace from the Kingdom of Strife has to learn to defend themselves, either to engage in war, or defend themselves against it. From the day Lorena began as on of the acolytes to Azeran and Relana, she has had to train tirelessly so that she could defend her masters with her life if need be. She has her magic of course, as do the other acolytes, but before she could conjure magic, she had to learn the basics. In her case, she specializes in archery, and swordsmanship, and while her focus is primarily on use of her bow, she is quite handy with the daggers she carries with her.
• Arcane Caster - As an acolyte of the order sworn to serve the gods of Grendam, Azeran and Relana, Lorena has been taught by those she serves to cast magic unlike any other in the world of Grendam. She can conjure pure energy and shape it as she desires. While it is possible to do this without any tools, it can be quite difficult and less effective, so more often than not, her unstrung bow and her daggers are used as the focus and base for her magic to take shape. It forms the arrows that she fires from her bow, and shapes the blades of her daggers into something sharper than any ordinary metal. Her magic is primarily that of white light, though under extreme emotional circumstances, the light can change color ever so slightly to reflect her inner balance (or lack thereof).

Limitations/Drawbacks:

• Overly Cautious - Lorena's need to assess a situation appropriately before acting tends to prevent her from acting too quickly, worried that her actions may have a negative effect on the situation, to the point where she doesn't act at all. This is also due in par to her isolation and outsider's perspective on the world of Grendam, and knowing that acting too hasty can make matters worse. But once she has come to a decision, eventually, she is confident that it's the right choice. She's also cautious towards people in this way, uncertain if they're trustworthy, as she has seen the way people are quick to turn and accuse one another or abandon their comrades altogether once the challenges seem to much to overcome. Her faith in others has become somewhat lacking over the years, but once she believes someone to have good intentions, she'll be a steadfast ally.
• Socially Lacking - Due to her untrusting and reclusive nature, she doesn't spend much time with many people, and thus tends to fumble a bit in social environments. She's likely to be the most reserved and quiet individual in most crowds, and would much rather keep to herself than engage with others. In situations where she needs to cooperate with others as a team, she doesn't communicate as much as she should, and is more likely to assume what the group needs her to do rather than ask directly. It's also important to note that she struggles to ask for help, even when she needs it most.
• Ranged Combat - Despite being an exceptional archer when it comes to normal arrows, the nature of her magic and the amount of concentration it requires tends to limit the range she can fight in, making it necessary for her to remain within close to medium ranged combat, rather than long range as one might expect from an archer. After a certain distance of firing one of her arcane bolts, once its far enough away from Lorena it tends to lose form and fall apart, making it ineffective. It also becomes difficult for her to manipulate the bolt's trajectory the further away it gets. This can put her at quite the disadvantage when it comes to melee combatants, but the risk is well worth the reward, as her arcane bolts are much more damaging than any normal arrow. The same can be said of her daggers.

History:

Scholarly Pursuits:

SPOILER: Click to show

Lorena was born within the borders of Askala, an isolated country of islands within the world of Grendam, otherwise known as the Kingdom of Strife. She remembers very little about her parents, as they left her with the Scholars of Askala when she was still fairly young, either in hopes that she would one day provide a great service to her country, or perhaps to settle some debts with the scholars they had incurred; it's difficult to say. Many children are subject to the same fate, and are put through rigorous training and trials, beyond simply book reading in order to prepare them as Askala's next generation of bright, young, and powerful individuals to lead the nation. Fairly early on in each of the students studies, they must undergo a ritual of obtaining the powers bestowed by Grendam in order to prove themselves worthy to become Askala's bright future. The Scholars waste little time in weeding out the weak, and thus test their students sometime between the ages of 5 and 10. Lorena was chosen to partake in the trial at the age of 6. The Scholars sailed a ship out onto the open waters surrounding the islands of Askala during a time where the tides rose higher than normal. Along with the other kids, Lorena was bound to a ball and chain, and thrown into the sea. In Grendam, the Kingdom of Strife, soldiers from each nation wield incredible power to control the elements. Askala prizes their water based combat, and it is why few other nations have been able to attack Askala and its powerful navy. To receive the power gifted by the world of Grendam, the students had to undergo this trial to be chosen as worthy. Those who were, received the strange power to control water, and thus be able to propel themselves out of the water and to safety. Lorena nearly died, but she returned to the ship along with 4 others.

She spent most of her childhood as a ward an student to the scholars, learning to read, write, and question everything around her, while upholding daily chores, training to fight, and helping the scholars with their various work. Though she was not the only child to serve the scholars in this fashion, she did gain the favor of one Professor Dedericus, who studied human anatomy. His research often meant dealing with cadavers donated to the scholars, and most of the other children were less than eager to deal with human corpses, even if it was for scientific research. This never seemed to bother Lorena as much as the other children, so she became the most apt assistant to the professor and learned much about human anatomy as she worked with him. In a way, becoming the best student was a way for Lorena to feel wanted and appreciated, so she poured all of her efforts into improving herself. She used what she learned from Professor Dedericus as a means of understanding an enemy's weak-points when she began her training in archery and she used her affinity with water to entangle her sparring partners and create openings for her shots. She was exceptional and resourceful among her peers, and continued to learn and grow, until she gained the notice of the Order of Acolytes.

Beyond Askala's borders, on the North Eastern side of the continent lies Tarsin Cape is where the Order resides; a group dedicated to serve and learn magic from possibly the most powerful beings on Grendam. These beings, Azeran and Relana are seen as gods to the people of Grendam, and the Order recruits young warriors who've proven to have profound abilities, and Lorena was the next candidate on their list. It was a great honor to have the acolytes approach her and be offered to join them, and she merely had to leave her life in Askala and all the loyalties tied to it. Leaving with the acolytes would mean devoting herself to a life of service to Azeran and Relana. Of course, it would be no different than her current obligations towards the scholars, but it was the difference between a life she knew and a lifetime of the unknown. She didn't have many friends among the other kids, seeing as how her need to be the best of her class created a lot of friction and rivalries with the others. And deep down, she knew that if she remained here in Askala, there would be a limit to what she could become; by joining the Order, she would learn things no other scholar in Askala could have dreamed of.

Hidden Truths:

SPOILER: Click to show

So she eventually agreed to go with them, and made the long trip across Grendam with her new teachers. It was a difficult journey that had them crossing many country borders, but the Acolytes deemed it a necessary step in her training, along with the other aspiring acolytes they picked up along the way. It was the most Lorena would see of the world for a long time, almost a whole decade, in fact. As they arrived in Tarsin's Cape, Lorena learned many truths within the first couple days. First of all, Azeran and Relana were not truly Gods: they were an ancient race from another world called Tarsin, and the power they wielded was simply magic the people of Grendam had never seen before. And the 'blessing of Grendam' was no blessing at all; the power that allowed the people of Grendam to control the elements, like how Lorena could control water, was really a parasite living inside of them, and it also prevented them from learning to wield real magic, like the kind Azeran and Relana possessed. So naturally, the very first step to becoming an Acolyte was to remove this parasite. The procedure itself is very delicate, and dangerous if someone makes a mistake, so it was usually left in the hands of Relana herself.

The anticipation of it had Lorena afraid of what would happen to her, and she was afraid of losing the powers she'd spent so long perfecting. When it came time for her to have it removed, it was also the first time she had met Relana in person, who was kind, patient, and comforting. Relana's kindness was something Lorena had experienced very little in her life, so she very quickly gained incredible admiration and respect for her. So the parasite was removed, and Lorena's power over water was gone. She thought joining the acolytes would be the same as with the scholars, she'd learn the quickest, train the hardest, but Lorena struggled the most out of all the new acolytes. Trying to learn an entirely new way of magic, when Lorena already thought she understood the world was the most challenging trial she'd ever faced. She felt useless, and jealous of the other students who were making more progress than her. One day she was taking her anger out during archery practice, since it was the one thing she could still do, and Relana approached her. Relana wanted to know why Lorena had been so upset, and Lorena explained to her how she'd been falling behind compared to the other acolytes. In a surprisingly perceptive manner, Relana asked her why she needed to compete with her fellow acolytes, and Lorena didn't have an answer for her. She meditated over the conversation for several days, trying to figure out the answer.

Back in Askala, the only students who were acknowledged were the successful ones. Lorena wanted to be noticed, and she became obsessed with being the best in order to do so. With the acolytes, though, it was different. The teachers were patient, and attentive to all the younger acolytes. At first, Lorena found it patronizing, but after her conversation with Relana, she began to see it in a new light. While the rest of the new acolytes were summoning balls of energy already, she was focused on how they managed to do it before her. She thought that made her less than them, but no one looked at her differently for it. So she tried to train without paying attention to the progress of the other acolytes, focusing on herself rather than the others. And in time, she started to grasp how this magic all worked, albeit at her own pace. Eventually, all of the new acolytes were given new weapons to train with, based on which weapons they specialized in. Lorena was given an unstrung bow, and like all the other students, her new challenge was to channel magic into her weapon; for Lorena that meant summoning an arrow from nothing.

She spent many nights alone practicing, trying to conjure an arrow to fire from the bow, but this task was one many other Acolytes struggled with. Conjuring energy was one thing, but shaping it and maintaining it was another, and so it took many weeks for Lorena to accomplish it. Eventually she started observing her other classmates at work, observing their success and asking for pointers. She was no longer focused on how they might be better than her, but instead on how she could improve herself. And eventually, during target practice one day, it just clicked, and she fired an arrow conjured of pure energy, and sliced the target board in half. From then on, Lorena began progressing rapidly, learning to control her arrows in mid-flight, fire multiple arrows at once. By the time she was in her early twenties, she was one of the best marksmen among the Acolytes, and was invited by the senior Acolytes to take the next journey with them to recruit new students.

Loyalty and Service:

SPOILER: Click to show

It wasn't until this journey back into the outside world of Grendam that Lorena realized how close she had become with her fellow Acolytes. There was this sense of family and camaraderie that she never could have experienced back in Askala. And she was grateful for her new understanding of the world, and knowing truths most couldn't imagine. But as they traveled through the nations of Grendam searching for new acolytes to recruit, it seemed that not all would share her views. To the majority of people in the Kingdoms, their powers over the elements were a sense of national pride, they had no idea it was merely a parasite living inside them that granted them this so-called gift. And many of the common folk believed the Acolytes were tearing their loved ones from them, or taking away one more child that could've grown up to be another powerful soldier to toss into war. For these reasons, the rest of the world hated Lorena and the other acolytes, but she and the others were representatives of Relana and Azeran; they had to avoid conflict wherever they could, but that wasn't always possible.

At one point, one of the senior acolytes was attacked, and would have lost his life had Lorena not acted so quickly. None of the other Acolytes were close enough to intervene, so she had to rely on her bow, but the assailant stood between her line of sight on her comrade. Relana still believed peace was possible, so killing the man would have gone against everything her master stood for. So it was either choose between her fellow acolyte, the assailant, or, niether. With precision befitting one of the best marksman, Lorena fired a bolt in an arc, coming around the side and slicing through the assailant's hand and splitting their dagger in half, right down it's center. The townsfolk didn't see it as mercy, but she saved her friend without taking the life of another, and when they returned to Tarsin Cape, Lorena was gifted the split dagger as a symbol of her mastery over arcane archery, and was given the respect and gratitude of her comrades. The split dagger could never be used normally again, but with her magic, provided a base to focus her magic into to become powerful weapons.

Not long after, Relana had managed to gather the different nations for a peace conference, and she was to go and help settle all this bloodshed once and for all. Relana was always a calming presence, and Lorena really started believing that peace in Grendam with someone like Relana around. Lorena was apart of the escort to the conference, and stood right beside Relana during the meeting. Sadly, the rest of the world did not seek peace as Relana did, and sought to launch a sneak attack during the conference. Relana was never the target, but was caught in the misfire, shot in the heart by a stray arrow. To this day Lorena feels a tremendous weight of guilt, believing if she had just reacted fast enough, she could have taken Relana's place. The world seemed almost... darker without Relana in it. The acolytes retreated, taking Relana's fallen form with them. The halls of Tarsin Cape were quieter after that day, and Azeran, husband to the late Relana, isolated himself in his chambers for several days. Lorena couldn't even look at her fellow acolytes let alone face Azeran to try and comfort him. Many of the others felt the same way, like they all could have done better- they had all failed to protect her. And in Relana's absence, darkness swelled up. No one's certain what happened to Azeran, only that the dark creatures who eventually consumed the world came pouring out of Tarsin's Cape. The Acolytes tried to fight back as best they could, but they seemed unable to kill the monsters, and many died trying to keep the shadows at bay from the rest of the world. Lorena was forced to flee, and the acolytes all went separate ways.

Kingdom of Strife:

SPOILER: Click to show

The rest of Grendam was even less ready than the Acolytes for this new enemy. Many nations were still at war, an eternal cycle of each power vying for the Kingdom of Dryden. Even in the face of this new enemy, they would not band together to save their world. Lorena, still grief-stricken and unable to rally her fellow acolytes, refused to give up when she believed Relana would still be trying to save everyone if she was still here. But few in the world of Grendam trusted anyone from the Order of Acolytes, and many blamed them for the appearance of the new enemy, considering they originated in Tarsin Cape. If they didn't just simply refuse Lorena's help they outright attacked her, and so she was forced to watch from the sidelines, sometimes intervening in battles knowing the Grendam soldiers would attack her on sight. It all started to feel so hopeless though, there seemed to be little Lorena could do. The shadows covered the landscape, devouring anyone who got caught up in their swarms. Eventually the entire world was consumed, and though the survivors of the Kingdoms eventually united for their last stand in Fort Sentra within the borders of Dryden, it was too little, too late.

Lorena began to resent the people of Grendam because of this. They were so focused on fighting amongst each other, to be the most powerful, that it led to the destruction of the entire world. Though if the Order of Acolytes or Azeran were responsible for what happened, Lorena couldn't bare to consider it, she only knew that it weighed heavily on her conscience. Perhaps if they'd tried to console Azeran, even if he refused them, they would have understood what really happened. Or if Lorena had been fast enough to save Relana's life, none of this would have ever happened. She couldn't bring herself to put all the blame on the kingdoms of Grendam, when there was still so much she didn't understand.

Know Thy Enemy:

SPOILER: Click to show

After being swallowed up by the darkness, Lorena wasn't sure what happened next, only that she woke up in a strange new place, without a heartless in sight. She found herself in an alleyway of a dense cityscape, with a central castle rising from its center. On the central tower were countless metal gear, all turning one way or another, some fast, some slow. It seemed entirely unlike anything Lorena had seen or heard of in Grendam, though it appeared to be a kingdom all the same. Nearby she could hear children playing in the street, and the typical hustle and bustle of townsfolk going about their business. It was quite some time before Lorena decided to get up and have a look around, eventually learning the place was called Radiant Garden. She tried her best to stay out of sight during her time in this place, as the people she saw were dressed fairly differently from her, and there wasn't a single shadow creature in sight. She was an outsider here, and likely to be treated with suspicion by anyone who saw her- perhaps this was what Relana and Azeran experienced when they first arrived in Grendam. If it was anything like their experience, however, it was best for Lorena to go about her business unseen. What business she was to attend to, she wasn't sure- finding a way back home perhaps, though she had the sneaking suspicion there was no home to return to now.

One day she overheard an older man and presumably his student discussing something that caught Lorena's attention. She was watching from a nearby rooftop as they spoke of creatures beneath the castle, though they spoke in hushed voices, worried they might be overheard. If they were talking about the creatures she encountered, however, that was bad news for this world, and she needed to learn more about them, before Radiant Garden suffered the same fate as Grendam. Even if there was nothing she could do, she had to try. She couldn't bear to sit idly by and wait for another world to be taken by the darkness. As she tried to listen in further on the conversation, however, a guard spotted her and she had to flee before learning more. She became obsessed with the castle after that, always observing it from a distance, studying the guards, particularly for the one that had seen her face. Eventually she managed to sneak into the castle's lower floors, where she had heard they were keeping the creatures. She found the creatures as well as some of the men's research, reading enough to learn they were called heartless, but it wasn't long before she heard voices approaching the room. She had to escape before she could learn anything substantial, but the enemy now had a name, and she would spend all the time she could to study them and find out how to fight back.

She spied on these scientists when and where she could, but the guards around the castle seemed to grow increasingly aware of her presence. Whatever the scientists were up to was leading Radiant Garden down the same path as her home world, and when she realized it was too late. The day Radiant Garden fell to darkness, she tried to stop the man behind it, but was intercepted by the same castle guard that spotted her before. They were locked in battle until the heartless came for them. It wasn't the last world Lorena saw destroyed, and she wasn't sure how to stop it, she seemed trapped in this endless cycle. And eventually she wound up in Twilight Town, where she remains today. Still trying to learn more about the heartless.

Role Playing Sample: See Avari Hyland's.

Questions/Comments/Suggestions?

[Jade]

As always, masterful. I have no hesitations in pushing this through.