pexchysa

Your character has just arrived in a swampy, dim town. As they look around, their gaze is met with shacks and cabins. It smells of rotted wood and wet moss. They duck and step into a tattered tent, illuminated by a series of candles suspended in the air. At the back of the tent, an old hag raises her head, “What brings you to this dingy town? She begins, then pauses to study your face—”Ah, it’s you. I’ve been expecting you. Sit,” she gestures at a cushion, “Tell me your story.”

((How do you respond?))

Aurelith steps forward, her long robes brushing against the damp ground as she lowers her hood. The smell of the swamp is unpleasant, but she keeps her face even. Her eyes stay fixed on the hag, calm and watchful. She moves quietly, sitting down on the cushion with her back straight and hands resting neatly in her lap. 

"Then you already know why I am here," She says, keeping her voice low and steady. "But I shall speak plainly. I hail from Haelun'or. There's something wrong in these lands-- too much death, too much silence where there should be life. The trees are sick. The water is stale. Magic feels twisted here."

Aurelith's face feels warm as the hag studies her dark skin and hair. She juts her chin a little higher. "My parents have been presumed dead. I do not know my heritage. I have no family, I may not look pure, but I have devoted my life to studying as much literature as I can. I will prove to be a divine scholar, a scientist, a mage, just as any other High Elf. I only have a mentor who has taken me in as a baby into the city. I have not been exiled, and neither has he, for reasons unbeknownst to me." 

She swallows a hard lump in her throat.

"In Haelun’or, a worthy life is one of discipline, of intellect, of purity. We protect our kin. We safeguard our traditions. We do not let rot fester unnoticed." She murmurs. 

"If you have been waiting for me, then you must know more than I do. I ask that you share what you know. I ask that you do not let this town continue feeding on its despair and rot the townspeople's souls. I ask you trust me, and let go any presumptions you may have about my appearance."