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It's all a matter of Angles.
Destiny strikes men in different ways- in some it is the crafting of a new spell, others find their faith rewarded and their Power speaks through them. Azrael dreamed of heroic exploits on the field of battle, or in a long- forgotten ruin battling unspeakable, ancient evil. Anything to get mentioned in some bardic accord.
Instead, his life changed in a Cormyrean cell, last winter. Not the sort of place he would normally be, of course, but the city watch in Tilverton were unusually strict in their Patrols the night Leonara decided to take exception to the fat Sembian merchant making eyes at her. The bar brawl that followed was one of the less memorable ones for Azrael, as one of the merchant's guards gave an impromptu performance of skull percussion on him with a bar stool, laying him low while the rest fled when the city watch turned up. The merchant was sent on his way after a hefty fine, and Azrael was left overnight in the cell block.
That's when he saw her. Through a semi-conscious blur, in a dank cell, at two in the morning, Sune looked down and smiled on Azrael. Nico Dawnbright, a Priestess of Mystra leaned over from the next cell, and healed his head wounds. He saw the most beautiful woman he could ever have imagined.
They spent the rest of the night, falling in love, talking lots, but saying little. When morn came, they were let out. Azrael discovered Leonara had taken the rest of The Clan of Light, into the Thunder Peaks, to plunder the ruin they had come after. Azrael chose not to ride and join his companions, but to stay with Nico. They spent time speaking of the past, the present, and dreams of the future.
The Clan of Light didn't return, and eight days later, when Nico's party left town, she stayed with Azrael. Together, they traveled to the Thunder Peaks in search of some sign of the Clan of Light. They found signs of The Clan's passing, but as they moved further into the Peaks, they saw a greater increase orcish patrols. Having lost the trail of The Clan of Light, they spent several days evading numerous orc patrols, and then ran into a Zhentilar patrol. They fought off the initial attack, and fled back to Tilverton.
After reporting their findings to the guard, they retired to a tavern. They spent the next morn describing their activities to the Guard captain, who was satisfied that they had nothing to add. During lunch, they overheard a merchant at the table next to theirs bragging about how his "brothers caravan wouldn't be fearing any attacks from those scum, now their new trail guard captain had arrived. She wields a sword of blue flame..."
Azrael almost got arrested again getting the full story out of the merchant- Leonara had a sword who's blade was composed of blue flame. They learned the caravan was headed west, along the Stonelands, and on to the Heartlands. The couple obtained horses, and rode after it. They pursued the caravan, across Cormyr, and into the Storm Horns.
One day, in the Sunset Mountains, they came across the remains of the caravan, burned and blasted. A quick search turned up the only remains as a couple of partly eaten limbs. The cargo had been looted or destroyed. They were prevented from investigating further when a patrol of ogres, led by a Zhentarim mage, turned up to smash up the remains. Azrael routed the ogres as Nico engaged the mage. The Zhentish wizardess fell to her death when her fly spell went wild. From the Mages possessions, they found evidence the Caravan guard was a Zhentarim agent, and was headed to the trade routes in the Heartlands.
They pursued him, and the trail ended at a Zhent agent in Arylon named Aghron Zhylik. After another fight, they ended up with the deed to his house, and a unique magical item. The trail ended here when the paperwork in Aghrons' house exploded.
So, the young couple settled in Arylon, reasoning the trail captain would return and they would be waiting. Plus, Nico was expecting their first child. The couple now runs a small storage facility using their Rod of Storing (taken from Aghron). Azrael has been looking for a permanent job, having done various odd jobs up till now.
Nico was fascinated by magic since her earliest days. Not a surprise, when your mother is an elven mage, and your father is a renegade Red Wizard. She was born and raised in Turmish, near in a small coastal village.
Nico was a quick learner and soon became competent in- trade, history, but most of all she loved magic. She would sit with her parents while they studied their spells, and watched in awe as summoned whirlwinds cleaned the house, cut furrows in the fields, washed clothes, called songs from nowhere, and lit up rooms at night.
Nico was introduced to Mystra when she was 14. A priest named Griffin
St. George, a Dweomerkeeper of Mystra inducted her into the priesthood. Mere
months later, she was cleaning one of the alcoves in the small shrine where
Griffin prayed, when she had a vision:
A place of power in a wooded glade,
Not in the light, but a shadowed place.
A bright blue blade, a purple helm,
The gateway, to a mighty realm,
Through evil hands, and darkened land,
Two become one, an adventuring band.
Listen to the Art, ponder what you hear,
Find the correct answer, that which you fear.
A hand to take, a spell to break,
Stir a terror, in your wake.
Griffin took this as a sign from the Lady. After long meditation and prayer, he announced Nico would find her destiny far to the north. Her proud parents waved her off, and with Griffin, she set off, traveling northwest, through the Orsraun Mountains, and Gulthmere Forest, and caught a boat from Starmantle Bay. They traveled through Sembia, and with the aid of the local priests of Mystra, made their way to Elventree.
Nico was in awe of the Sentinel, who tended the House of Mysteries- the most holy temple of Mystra in the Realms. She spent hours with him, learning of the Art, and listening to his thoughts on the vision she had received. Griffin did not get on as well with him, their philosophies differed, and so did their attitudes to the Lady and her ideals. More significantly, their interpretations of Nico's vision were at odds. Griffin was convinced the Helm in a 'mighty realm' was a reference to the Helmlands, in northern Cormyr. After all it was the site of a Celestial Staircase. The Sentinel was more inclined towards a personal event in Nico's life.
Griffin preached to the clergy at the temple, and after a heated argument with the Sentinel, gathered a group of Mystarrans, and with Nico, left for Cormyr. As they traveled, Nico started to become uncomfortable with Griffin as he preached 'his vision' of weaving mighty magics to clear the Helmlands, and then, with the favor of the Lady of Mysteries, they would ascent the Celestial Staircase, and join her in the heavens.
The disagreement came to a head in Tilverton, as they rested for the night, Nico confronted Griffin, and accused him of twisting her vision. He struck back, accusing her of shirking her duties to the Lady, and fearing her rightful destiny. Nico attempted to flee the town, but was stopped at the gate. She tried to force her way out when the gate was closed. She was taken to the cells to calm down until morning.
As she waited in the cell, a burly man was thrown in the cell next to her, he was unconscious, and bleeding from several wounds. As she looked at him, a spell formed in her mind. Nico leaned over and cast the curing spell onto his badly bruised head, and as he slowly came round. Their eyes locked, and love blossomed. Nico always wondered where that spell came from, and in the next few days, as they fell deeply in love, she prayed to Mystra about it. However, the Lady of Mysteries was living up to her name, and Nico never found out. She and Azrael confronted Griffin, and Griffin left, with the other clergy, eight days later.
After hearing about the sword Leonara wielded, she went with Azrael, convinced she was on the path to her prophesy. The path led her into spell combat with a Zhentarim wizardess in the Sunset Mountains. She and Azrael wound up in Arylon. The trail of the sword ended due to some exploding runes on the vital paperwork. After finding out she was expecting their child, they settled down to plan what to do next.
They plan to marry soon, but are having a small disagreement about which
temple to attend- Nico desperately wants to have a Starflight ceremony in a
Mystarran wedding, but Azrael, a follower of the Red Knight, feels he should
do all he can to help the small church.
The Rod of Storing acts like a Rod of Security(q.v.), but creates a stable
dimension for 99 days per charge. The internal dimensions are 30'x25' and
weight is not a factor in storage. The entrance portal is akin to a
Mordenkainen's Magnificent Mansion (which can be entered at any time by
expending one charge per trip).
Back to the story
Submitted by Jade Williams
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