Thorn of House Elastraea
"The plane of dreams is an enchanted land of soft lights and wonderment, a place of music and death, a realm of everlasting twilight. It is a chaotic reflection of the physical world, where primordial energies flow like an endless river and the rules of time and space become unhinged."Millennia ago there existed a select few elves who knew of nature's dream: a group of honored outcasts who were chosen based on the circumstances and alignment of the stars during their birth. House Elastraea was fortunate enough to give birth to such a child, whose fate was to become a hidden member of the Guardian Enclave. Thorn, as they are now known as, had a typical childhood for an elf of their time. They spent years alongside other children from their allied houses, learning to control their baser emotions while slowly being indoctrinated into believing those elves from lesser houses to be physically inferior. During these years, Thorn grew close to a young girl named Lóte, but their friendship was doomed from the start. Time eventually came for Thorn to take up their esoteric duties as a ranger, and as a self-defense mechanism they cut personal ties with all those they knew, including their own family. Thorn spent a year in the wilderness with no guidance other than the stars in the sky, slowly wandering farther from civilization while trying to learn for what great purpose they were meant to serve. Eventually, the answer came to them in a dream. While nestled in an ancient oak, Thorn’s body became very still. Vines grew over them, turning into roots and branches. Their mind transcended, becoming one with the grove around them and they began perceiving the world as if in a dreamlike state. In that instant everything began to make sense, and nature itself seemed as precious and vulnerable as a newborn. Thorn knew their purpose was to safeguard this grove, the land, and even the entire world; so full of magic and yet so easily exploited. While Thorn’s body rested, their mind continued to look on and perceive new enemies. Bogeymen stalked the sea of dreams, and like in a nightmare these creatures would eventually transform into twisted projections of real tangible threats. These visions were dire portents of things to come; and with this cryptic information at hand, Thorn would awaken from the dream to begin preparations and dispatch whatever menace they were meant to encounter. For years they lived in this strange isolation. Tracking down and slaying blighted animals, savage tribal humanoids and even other elves whose strange barbaric practices and nihilism had often encroached upon nature. Long periods alone had made Thorn into a creature of instinct, wild and unbound by the laws of society; and while they secretly craved friendship with other elves, each new vision made Thorn happier and more content with their prearranged path. That would change when the sigil of House Elastraea appeared in the misty night sky of the dream. Through the lens of nature, Thorn began to learn of a conflict that had befallen the elven civilization they’d left behind. These symbols they saw were especially hard to interpret, but what Thorn managed to piece together was that elves had finally succumbed to waging war against one another, and caught in the crossfire was all the land around them. At the center of these new visions was a singular conflict over a magical artifact with latent power, known as the Stone of Ithilmir. It was a glowing crystal of silvery starlight that was the font of magic for an ancient elven house, which in the wrong hands could unleash untold destruction. Thorn saw in horrid detail what might happen should the stone be used for evil: the very stars themselves extinguishing in an instant, overshadowed by a cataclysmic force more immeasurable and vast than the sky itself. At the center of this conflict was the familiar eye-shaped sigil of House Elastraea, Thorn’s family’s House. Thorn returned to their home and was met with open arms, as the Lady of the House had great need for soldiers in the coming conflict. The return of their prodigal child was seen as highly providential, although Thorn did not tell their mother for what purpose they had actually returned, instead allowing them to believe that it had simply been out of loyalty. As the visions had shown, House Elastraea were soon to attack their neighbouring houses over possession of the stone artifact, something which would guarantee their position of power in the wars to come. Thorn had agreed to join this battle with the full intention of hiding the stone before it could be used; and if Thorn’s family survived the coming wars, they would ask them for forgiveness then. When the conflict came it was like a nightmare brought to life. The soldiers of House Elastraea had decimated their fellow kinsman, cutting a swathe through House Lúmorna who had held the Stone of Ithilmir. The brutality of the killings horrified Thorn, and thinking about the greater good this slaughter potentially served failed to provide them any comfort. Thorn's faith in the visions they saw faltered entirely after they recognized the appearance of one of the elven defenders they’d cut down. What they saw was astonishment and betrayal painted on a familiar looking young woman, whose face had become frozen in the moment of their death. Lóte, an old friend all grown up now laid dead by Thorn’s own hand. The nightmare did not end there, as after the battle ended and all of Elastraea’s enemies laid slain, the Stone of Ithilmir was never found. Thorn had utterly failed, and a grim sense of dread encompassed their entire being. They were utterly overwhelmed by their actions, the consequences of failing to gather the stone, and what dark future lay just over the horizon. Lost, and with no where else to turn, Thorn returned to the wild without saying a word to anyone else. This would be the last time they would ever be seen again, disappearing entirely without a trace.
Alignment
Chaotic Good
Children
Eyes
Grey, speckled and starry.
Hair
Long, unkempt black.
Skin Tone/Pigmentation
Pale white
Height
5'10"
Weight
122
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