Coral Sutosi
Coral Sutosi
Coral is a lifelong cleric from an average family in Anuren. Despite her father's hatred of the land and all who dwell on it (believing their corruption is extending to the sea), she has an intense curiosity for it after meeting a dwarven adventurer. She convinced her temple to send her on a mission of friendship and discovery.
Physical Description
General Physical Condition
Lithe and muscular with, for powerful swimming.
Body Features
Long, muscular legs.
Facial Features
Large, pale yellow eyes.
Identifying Characteristics
Her silver-blonde hair - a shimmering colour generally found only in aquatic people.
Physical quirks
Very short by land-dwelling standards; average by sea-dwelling.
Special abilities
Can shatter a seashell to powder with her thighs.
Apparel & Accessories
Used to moving underwater without clothing, so begrudgingly wears loose-fitting robes on land.
Mental characteristics
Personal history
Had as stable and normal an upbringing as one can have in one of the deeper, darker parts of the ocean.
Sexuality
Sees Dryworlders as reserved and slightly prudish; craves sexual activity, and is especially curious about sex with Dryworlders.
Education
Well-educated in matters of religion and the history of her own people, but lacking when it comes to the Dryworld.
Employment
A full-time acolyte of Selune.
Accomplishments & Achievements
Once saved a ship in distress, and the lives of all on board.
Failures & Embarrassments
Hopelessly naive about the matters and conventions of the Dryworld.
Intellectual Characteristics
Bookishly intelligent, but not always sensible.
Morality & Philosophy
Sees the good in everyone, where possible. Values patience, wisdom, and forgiveness.
Taboos
Sees fire as an alien and destructive force with no moral compass.
Social
Contacts & Relations
Jade Silverbuckle
A friendly dwarven bard Coral met and befriended when a treasure ship she was escorting came into trouble above Coral's home city. Jade meets Coral occasionally, and is fairly successful in her quests.
Family Ties
Mother - Shelryn Sutosi
Friendly and welcoming. Works at the temple. Is curious about Drylanders, but has to confine her interest to talks with Coral.
Father - Vannas Sutosi
Has been to the Dryworld and hated it. Instilled a lingering distrust of Drylanders, and a fear of fire. Is a laborer.
Sister - Sirene Sutosi
Coral's younger sister. Sees Coral as the golden child, and is a troublemaker. Also distrusts Dryworlders.
Husband - Tydas Persath
Coral's husband is an archivist. He's very friendly, but struggling financially due to his research not being funded properly.
Wealth & Financial state
Inherited 9 years worth of comfortable living - 6570 gold waiting if she goes to claim it (and if her little sister hasn't figured out how to get it herself).
Alignment
Lawful Good
Age
26
Birthplace
Anuren
Children
Current Residence
Anuren
Gender
Female
Eyes
Yellow
Hair
Silver-yellow
Skin Tone/Pigmentation
Light blue
Height
5'0"
Weight
110lbs
The Crushing Depths
The narrowness of the tunnel as we descended into the earth was not what bothered me; rather, it was the dryness of the air. I've swam in reefs barely wider than myself in the past, and darker than the deepest depths - but the persistent dryness of the air served as a constant reminder of my vulnerability. As the time dragged on and on, I found myself clutching my own handmade trinket, reminding myself that this was my path.
I was glad that my focus was so high, as it happens, because I was able to prevent my party from stumbling upon a couple of Duergar. Mackie was able to knock them out without rousing attention.
Eventually we came into an open area where two fire drakes were on guard. Mackie was unable to dispatch them both, so we wound up fighting, and more Duergar joined the fray.
Most interestingly of all, they were using a pile of glowing mushrooms for a light source. It's the first time I've seen bioluminescence in action! The mushrooms look similar to some of the flora we see in the deeper parts of the ocean. I'm noticing more and more parallels between our worlds.
Anyway, the fight quickly went in our favor, and we found that the Duergar had been transporting a strange black tar. Unable to discern its use, we poured it onto a fallen foe. It turned out to be a starving slime. Clearly they were weaponizing the creatures in preparation for some type of war.
We hastened on, but after our victory, clearly I was too confident. I carelessly stepped on what appeared to be some sort of spiked trap, not unlike a clamshell. The trap snapped shut, and then continued to attack me savagely. After my wounds were tended, we continued on through the caverns.
My Path Revealed 5 of 5: The Kindling
Well, today was the day. I have spent several months praying and trying to figure out where to set my foot on the next step of my journey. I have long known that, as there are no tides to carry me up here, I must learn to walk again, so to speak.
Soon our party will be venturing into the Underdark - an impossibly vast cave system larger than some oceans. The Dryworlders fear the crushing darkness, but that does not bother me - at the abyssal depths of the Ocean, sunlight is a mere concept, referred to in passing by tongues that don’t understand its nature. The darkness does not frighten me. However, if I had thought the flat plains of the Dryworld restrictive, the Underdark is far less forgiving. Far short of being able to swim upwards and downwards, parts of the Underdark are narrow enough that no movement save for forwards and backwards are possible.
The thought still terrifies me, but I must go. However, I knew that I could not go until I truly understood what it meant to overcome fear and adapt to true hardship.
That is how I found myself standing before The Hammer of Dawn, a molten hive where fire bends steel like reeds, and great boulders crumble in terror before its monstrous forge, on the edge of the aptly-named Embervale. Belching clouds of smoke like an erupting volcano, the Hammer seared me with its tidal heat before I was even at the threshold.
I considered turning back.
Fire is an alien concept to my people. We know it as a destructive force wielded by Dryworlders to wage war on each other and kill and destroy homesteads with inhuman efficiency. My father instilled a deep hatred of fire in my sister and I - or, at least, he tried to. He told us tales of his brief stint as a labourer on the coast, assisting the Dryworlders with their maritime construction projects, and how he witnessed single twigs alight with flame to instantly destroy grand vessels that took whole months to build.
Sirene drank up his cautionary tales, and now holds a hatred for the Dryworlders purely inherited from our father. I am fortunate that I share my mother’s curiosity more than my father’s mistrust.
Some coin allowed me access to The Hammer of Dawn, and several times I almost bolted. So persistent were these tendencies that I wondered if Selune herself were trying to steer me off my path, but I persisted.
The first time I took the hammer in my hand and began to slam down upon the flames, they sparked and growled, and the metal in my tongs was crushed beyond salvage. But I understood why this was. I was trying to dominate the flames, and like any part of nature, attempts at domination are swiftly rejected.
Like any part of nature.
That was when it clicked for me. Fire is not an alien force of death - it is a part of nature.
I took a second piece of metal, and moved my hammer not like the lash of a horseman’s whip, but in a controlled arc, like a craftswoman at work. I watched the flames, but did not shy from their growls. I worked together with the fire and, side by side, we forged a lump of lifeless gold into the rough shape of a ringed coin.
I saw fire, the villain in many a story of my father, create something out of nothing. Suddenly, a spark of realization set, and my understanding was kindled. I realized how, if we work together with nature, we can accomplish great things. As well as being a tool of war, fire also heats homes, boils water to make it safer for Dryworlders to intake, cooks food, and creates beautiful jewelry.
As I put the coin around my neck, I realized I would have to employ this new mentality with many things in my life, starting with the Underdark. Those narrow caverns that restrict movement are no different than some of our own reef-networks outside Anuren, and whilst they may prevent me from moving side to side, they also prevent ambushes from far reaches, and can assist in keeping one's bearings.
My path has been lit not by the pale glow of moonlight, but the violent orange of flames. Nature is more than just plants and animals. It is the world itself. The skies, the seas, the mountains and the hills. Selune has blessed me with the vision to take on the world in a whole new way, and I must begin immediately.
I have some preparation to do.
My Path Revealed 4 of 5: The Ioun Stone
Though from an outsider’s perspective today may have looked unremarkable, today was one of my most personally profound days since I left Anuren.
One of my companions is a woman named Lenore. Although understated in her personality next to some of my bawdier companions, her nature seems to hide a great power, like a slumbering volcano, and her wit is sharper than a stingray's tail.
Lenore has in her possession a powerful artefact she calls the “Ioun Stone”. This unassuming gem orbits her head like a tiny moon, bestowing her with a mysterious ambient power that makes her mind capable of great feats.
What had such an effect on me today, however, was not the Ioun Stone itself, but the way Lenore earned the right to hold it. A series of puzzles of fiendish difficulty were put to her by - and involving - the very library that claimed rightful ownership of the Ioun Stone.
Though often perplexed, Lenore persevered diligently through the puzzles, eventually triumphing just when all hope seemed lost.
I said little during this time, due only in part to my ignorance of the puzzles solution. The primary reason I held my tongue was that something about Lenore’s plight was stirring up all the quiet worries and doubts I’ve held of late.
When I walked behind Lenore, watching her prize orbit her like a celestial crown, I realised what I admired. It was that she had obtained this power through overcoming adversity. And not the type of adversity you might find in a nest of giant spiders - a much more personal one. One that forces you to make use of your own mind and talents to overcome.
I now know what I must do to be able to start on my new path.
I must overcome my fear of fire.
My Path Revealed 3 of 5: A New Approach
After our recent confrontation with Lady Mortalis, it was almost a relief to receive a more ordinary assignment. At least, as ordinary as things get on the Dryworld.
The assignment was simply to clear out some creatures that had made their home too close to the road. “Spiders” are a type of Octopus with rigid tentacles, and what they lack in dexterity they make up for in speed and precision. Interestingly, they are among the most feared of all creatures up here, despite their relatively low threat level.
The encounter itself was simple; I don’t even remember the details, the fight was so brief. But after I had dusted myself off, I started to wonder about these creatures. What about them inspires such terror? And why were they nestled so close to the road?
I’ve found myself having similar thoughts about the wildlife up here. The creatures are easily as varied as those from the Ocean, and in some ways even moreso. Some have even developed the ability to fly, despite most land-creatures being bound to their earthly plane.
The teachings of Selune have been my guiding beacon my whole life, but I now find myself thirsting for knowledge of this alien realm. Perhaps I should start to approach my mission from a more scholarly angle?
I used to fear the nature of this world, but for now, the yearning to learn and to integrate myself with it is impossible to ignore.
My Path Revealed 1 of 5: Selune's Vessel
Everyone who knew me growing up said I was my mother’s daughter, and it’s true. Not only did I follow her footsteps in the Temple of Selune, but I also took on her curiosity about the Dryworld. That alien world far beyond our domain, where most of our tidal wildlife can’t even exist. A place where the customs are alien and destructive, and the denizens live close to the Gods.
Close to the Gods. That was the catalyst that sparked this journey. The temple never would have blessed, let alone funded, my expedition beyond the silver surface of the sea were it not for that one fact.
I remember talking late into the night to Tydas as we lay together. His work brings all manner of alien writings to him on the tides, and so he knew far more about the Dryworld than I did. He spoke of beings and contraptions and environments he couldn’t possibly even conceptualize from his seabedden life, and yet he spoke with passion. I felt the swell of water moving around as he waved his arms, not because he understood a thing he was recounting, but because it was new information.
That delighted curiosity is one of the reasons I love him. He set the spirit of discovery aglow in my own heart, like the neon-colored jellyfish swarms of the tideless dark. I wanted to discover this bizarre semi-divine world for myself, and to share its mysteries with my peers. Perhaps, through knowledge, even my father, even *Sirene*, could come to appreciate their culture a little.
Tydas even helped me to convince the temple. He knew that, far from being the goddess of the tides, Selune had a magnificent presence in the Dryworld. While the Drylanders mayn’t benefit from her watery caress as we do, they feel - and see - her presence in a way more distant, and yet closer.
Selune’s domain is a great celestial body that circles the Dryworld endlessly. From this heavenward plane, she pulls the tides and directs the currents, and moves the very oceans themselves. She gazes down upon the mortals in a vessel that appears dull and distant by day, but glorious and luminescent by night.
There is a reason I am journaling this. I must emphasise the importance of Selune and her manifestations, because nothing could prepare me for the lurking dread I felt when I pierced through the silver sea-veil and stood heavily, land-bound, and gazing up at the endless, massless void called Sky.
Selune is not alone.
A sibling vessel, Hecate, sails ominously through those empty upper-waters. This may be semi-common knowledge to the more educated Anurians, but to know her name and to feel her deathly gaze are not the same.
But alas, it gets worse.
A third vessel haunts the blue void. A blood-red bastard sibling from an origin dubiously unknown. An enormous vessel that dominates the night and sometimes the day, its eerie glow giving it a look of a creature most venomous.
It is called Heol, and it is a plane of madness.
I feel as though simply by observing this burning omen, the cold fingers of madness have touched my own mind.
A part of me wishes I had never learned of its existence, but I owe it to the temple - to Selune - to learn the origins of this interloper.
My Path Revealed 2 of 5: Glowing Madness
The Dryworld is a remarkable place! Though I shall forever lament my lack of swimming abilities on dry land, the lengths the Dryworlders have gone to in order to swim around their curse of groundedness are admirable. One of my companions recently unearthed an entire habitat from magic alone. On his command, chiselled stone spires pierced the sky, and an entire living space within could be found, grand enough to house a small village and warmer than a reef-vent. A small pocket of water had even been provided for me, and I spent the night suspended in Selune’s blissful, waterborne slumber.
But it didn’t last.
The spires failed and the magic became twisted, ejecting us all as though through unseen volcanic pressure. As we scrambled to find our wits, we were set upon by creatures that defy explanation. They belonged to a group of land-creatures called ‘lizards’, and they looked something like a shark that is forced to walk upright, its tail limp and lazy behind it.
The fight was brutal, and amongst the carnage, a companion was felled. The paladin Cormac was overwhelmed. I wonder if the abyssal Heol smiled as we bathed in its blooden glow.
Danni was able to revive Cormac. I did not realise how attached I had gotten until we almost lost him. I now realize it was likely due to Jade being the only Drylander I knew previously, and also of dwarven birth? I must remember to ask Cormac if he has made her acquaintance. This information was almost lost forever, and that thought fills me with darkness. Selune can guide us with her light, but she is not the protector of knowledge. I wonder, should I search beyond her rays for my answers? If Selune were willing to grace us with this knowledge, would not she have bestowed it upon us through her tidal songs? Wouldn’t the temple already know?
I dislike that I am having these thoughts. I wonder if my faith in Selune falters, and it hurts my heart to put it to paper thus, but truth must be respected, no matter how harsh.
Selune, please continue to guide me, and show me how I must proceed, before the leering fire in the sky consumes my prayers before they reach your ears.
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