Avela Darkwood

The history of Amaun is filled with the deeds of adventurers of every stripe. Among these legends stand two especially unlikely heroes. These are Larrison and Avela Darkwood. Of the two, Avela was the rational one. She was more known as the true hero of the twins, with good reason.

Physical Description

Body Features

Avela Darkwood had a voluptuous, yet still athletic build. Her body mostly lacked raw power, but more than made up for that lack with grace and agility. She also possessed a suprising amount of toughness, and endurance.
She was also well-known for her beauty, possessing nearly flawlessly chiseled features. She shared the silken black hair, and exotic aquamarine eyes of her twin brother.

Special abilities

Avela Darkwood is primarily famous for her spellcasting ability, becoming a full archmage at a young age. This is, however, only half of her talents. She was also quite skilled in the use of a longsword.
She was extremely gifted independent of any combat ability, though. Her primary gift was for languages. It was said that given enough time and context she could translate anything without the use of magic. She was also a talented artist, with her journals full of elaborate sketches. Many of her paintings are considered masterpieces.

Apparel & Accessories

Avela always preferred to dress simply, exclusively in black. Her outfits were always chosen for comfort over style, especially while traveling. Even as she grew in wealth, her clothing was made of better materials and was heavily enchanted, but maintained the same basic style.
For weapons, she carried only her meteoric longsword, Heartbreaker. This was one of the famed Falling-Star Blades. Her most valued possessions, however, were the two books she carried, the first a fine spellbook, the second one of a series of worn travel journals.

Mental characteristics

Personal history

Life handed absolutely nothing to the Darkwood twins. They were born in Whiteriver and found in a back alley with their anonymous and deceased mother. The city's beggers named them Larrison and Avela, and made sure they survived for as long as they could manage.
They weren't cared for for long, however. They were soon on their own surviving however they could, usually through criminal methods. Avela had always dreamed of more, but unbeknownst to her brother, these weren't just dreams, but goals that she meant to see fulfilled.
She taught herself and Larrison to read and write, and even started keeping a journal. As she searched for any way to improve her life, one came to her. Her brother cut a man's satchel from his side, and inside was a spellbook. Despite his insistence on selling or ransoming it, she kept it for her own.
One day, while she was studying this text, the henchman of a gnoll crime lord named Cresh came for tribute. They couldn't pay, owing to rising rates, so the man agreed to pay for them in exchange for sexual favors from Avela. Larrison killed the unsuspecting man and the twins barely fought off his protectors.
The pair left town immediately, but just as quickly ran out of money. While eating at a tavern, she suggested to her brother that they take up adventuring as a means of earning the money they would need to sustain themselves.
Larrison was not convinced. In fact, he openly mocked her idea, even sarcastically suggesting they give themselves a dramatic last name, like "Darkwood". Avela was undeterred, and asked for one week to prove her point to him.
The very next day, they were hired by a collection of farmers to investigate some nearby ruins. They were trapped in ancient elven ruins and surrounded by undead, but they survived and escaped with valuable loot. By the time the farmers paid them, Larrison was more than convinced.

Accomplishments & Achievements

The adventuring life was very kind to the Darkwood twins, and the pair performed many feats well-known to history. Avela carefully kept a series of journals chronicling their travels, leading to an uncharacteristic accuracy in regards to their history.
The first of their feats that is of note is their defeat of the crime lord, Cresh. This man was attempting to exert his control over all the criminal income in Whiteriver, which was what drove the twins from the city in the first place.
He never stopped hunting them, so when they grew in power, the pair returned to their home city to confront him. Larrison, having more knowledge of their organization did most of the strategizing for their extended conflict, but Avela's magic was a vital part of their victory. It was her blade that ended Cresh's life.
Another particularly noteworthy incident in the lives of the twins was the recovery of the Deck of Many Things. Mostly heedless of the danger, both drew a single card. Larrison became a lord in an instant. This made Avela far more confident than she should have been.
Her morality was somehow reversed by the reality warping power of the deck. She grew instantly jealous of her brother's newfound wealth and influence and she wanted more. However, her dark ambitions weren't limited to rulership over some small town.
She went to the nearby kingdom of Candalia, where she already had some influence and instituted a coup to take over. She killed the king, bewitched his widow, and saw herself crowned in a matter of days. She quickly killed all who dared question her rule.
She ruled her kingdom with an iron fist and lived in the lap of luxury, but still her ambitions would never be satisfied. She started gathering her forces and preparing to go into a war of conquest against the neighboring Kingdom of Mandia.
It was during this time that Larrison started a rebellion that gained a great deal of support very quickly. When the siblings battled, Avela opened a portal to the Abyss and sent demons rampaging through her own capital. The battle was long and hard, but Larrison's lover, a wizard named Aranea ended her curse at the cost of her own life.
By far the most famous of the accomplishments of the Darkwood twins is the defeat of the Third Rising. As with the two previous Risings, the mind flayers created an Overbrain and invaded the surface all across the Twin Worlds.
While the armies of nations tried to fight off the unnatural invasion, adventurers all across the Twin Worlds delved into the depths of The Warrens in an attempt to find the Overbrain in the name of fame and fortune. Most were killed or enslaved by the beasts in the deep.
The Darkwood twins, however, were successful in finding the Overbrain. The terrible creation overcame them with its powerful psionic powers and trapped them in an illusion inside their own minds. Like so many others, they had become thralls.
Unlike the others, Larrison was able to break free from control. He was forced to fight against his sister, but instead he threw down his sword. Just before the killing stroke, Avela resisted the Overbrain's control. The twins worked together and killed it, stopping the Third Rising once and for all.

Morality & Philosophy

Avela Darkwood had nothing growing up. This led to a serious generous streak later in life. Of the twins, she was the one who frequently would help others in need, often with no thought of reward. This did lead to some conflict with her more materialistic brother.
Her gentle heart meant that she was often underestimated, but she was also very dedicated to the protection of others. If provoked, her wrath was swift and terrible to behold.

Social

Contacts & Relations

While Larrison was a known womanizer, Avela's love life was far more stable. Her one and only love was named only Gwen. She was the daughter of Lond, the blacksmith that made the Falling-Star Blades.
While still new adventurers, they were hired by Lond to save his son from slavers meaning to sell him at the Gnollmarket. The twins' efforts resulted in his death, but his grief-stricken father rewarded them for their efforts with their signature weapons.
Knowing that the poor twins had no home of their own, he allowed them to stay at his home whenever needed. This was when Avela met Gwen, and she was dazzled by the adventurers. She fell for Avela after some time together and the two were eventually married by a priest of Eariden.

Family Ties

In their early lives, the twins were cared for by the homeless of Whiteriver. They were, however, not a family to them. The only family Avela ever had was her brother, and the two were very devoted to one another.
They also knew nothing of their parentage at all, making her a "Daughter of None". Avela was very curious about this mystery. In particular, her half-elven nature was a point of fascination for her, as it implied an unusual story. She never could have suspected the truth.
As the pair grew to become successful adventurers, an elven mage named Selviar Hen'varasil came before them and announced himself as their father. Avela was instantly curious, but the man was extremely tight-lipped about their family history.
He only performed some magical tests on them for a purpose Avela couldn't place. After they were finished, Selviar began ignoring her completely in favor of Larrison. This threatened to drive a wedge between the Darkwood twins.
While he unwittingly distracted the mage, Avela investigated. She broke into his private lab and found women in horrid conditions and corpses of abominations. Disgusted by what she saw, she freed the women and recovered the wizard's research journals.
Selviar had predicted the coming of the Third Rising, and would stop at nothing to defeat it. To this end, he sought to breed psionically resistant troops to fight the mind flayers. The twins' mother escaped from his lab and died in that alley in Whiteriver.
When the elf discovered the intrusion, he was furious. He attempted to kill his children and when they escaped, he sent his minions after them. Larrison tried to force a confrontation too early and this meant Avela was forced to save him.
When she freed him from his magical paralysis, she told him to run. He escaped, but a wall of force prevented her exit. She was quickly losing the duel, so desperate measures were needed. She took hold of an oil of etherealness and cast Sunfire, dousing herself in the oil and collapsing the tower at the same time. The twins' evil father did not survive.

Alignment

Neutral Good

Species

Half-elf

Honorary & Occupational Titles

Archmage, Daughter of None, Destroyer of the Third Rising, Last Queen of Candalia

Circumstances of Death

Natural causes

Birthplace

Whiteriver

Gender

Female

Eyes

Aquamarine

Hair

Black

Skin Tone/Pigmentation

Pale

Height

5 ft 7 in

Weight

145 lbs