Alora
Age:
26 Turns
Sex:
Female
Sexual Orientation:
Bisexual
Weyr:
Other - Transient, bound only to the ship she calls the trade vessel Valeriya (named after her mother)
Rider Rank:
Fishercraft Journeyman - Captain
Previous Rank/Craft:
Wingrider - Western
Physical Description:
With skin weathered and tanned from the sun, and hair of a soft golden tone, Alora stands out ever so slightly in the crowd. Standing at a tall 5'11" in height, she is all lithe muscle from her days training in her original profession. She has many scars across her body, coming from brawls she once got in to. Her hair is long, but not terribly, only just brushing her shoulders, and her eyes are downturned ever so. Long lashes frame eyes of a hazel that almost look golden in the right light. Her lips are full, though the lower more than the upper, colored a deep rose against her olive skin.
Personality:
Alora is a woman who could be thrust in to the face of hell itself, and come out the other side calm and cool. She has no fear of the world around her, and is brave enough to do what must be done. She enjoys being pushed in to situations that test her mettle, and will happily do what she must to ensure that everyone else knows they are safe. After all, what is there, really to be afraid of? Death? Not for Alora. The girl tends to be the sort to pull the wool over people's eyes though. She has to lie to do her job, There is a certain skill to it, and she sees nothing wrong with saying what she must in order to get the job done. There is no moral issue to it, and she has an oft silver-tongue, used to make sure that she avoids trouble as best she can. Sure, it does't always work, but when you're a smuggler, you have to be able to smooth talk both the people whose haul you're taking, and the people that might try to catch you.
Alora likes to believe that it is hard to say no to her. She has a talent for knowing what a person likes, and using it to her advantage. After all, she already is aware that she looks to be something that most people would enjoy, so she is as beguiling as she can. It is constantly about finding a way to ensure that she's trusted and liked by most everyone that comes near her. She doesn't often allow herself to attach to anyone, or a place, however. Since her youth, she's been terribly distant from people as a whole, only ever finding fondness for her brother. It's not something she really thinks about too much, preferring only to focus on her transient wants and needs, rather than anyone else. Well, except for Rusilath of course.
The one thing that Alora is acutely aware of is what is practical, and what is not. She isn't one to fall in to what-ifs or flights of fancy. Becoming a ship captain of a 'trading vessel' means that she's consistently having to focus on her business first, rather than what she wishes would happen. The goldrider will take advantage of anything that presents itself, though, knowing that any business, no matter how sketchy, is better than no business at all. She is an opportunist and will disregards the feelings of others to snap up something that might provide her with a better situation.
Positive Trait List Fearless, Charming, Practical
Negative Trait List Deceptive, No Attachment, Opportunist
History:
Born to a middling class family in Nabol hold, Alora was the youngest daughter of a man who barely kept on his feet, and his Fishercrat trader wife who kept them afloat. The woman wasn't much around, leaving her with her elder brother and a man who drank too much and didn't really keep any spare marks lying around, spending it all on his own interests. When her mother was home, she taught Alora about the ins and outs of trading, about business, and about Fishercraft as a whole, through books brought back from her travels. With how often the woman was gone, however, it put the girl in the care of her brother more often than not.
He was a good teacher, caring deeply for his sister, and better versed in the art of survival than she was. The two took odd jobs, the girl learning quickly that either you looked out for yourself and your family, or nothing came to you. She did whatever she had to in order to make sure that she could eat that night. It was not easy, but honestly, as long as she had her brother, it didn't matter. The two of them had hit a rough patch when a Western Searchrider came to Nabol hold. She dragged him to see the beautiful Blue that was flying, and it so hapened that the two of them were taken along in short order. With nothing but him tying the girl to Nabol, she didn't even wait on the decision, ready to leave it all behind for the Weyr.
Being a candidate was easy. She did her chores, played nice with anyone she came across, and kept her head well below radar, standing clutch after clutch. It was the elder of the two that Impressed first, to a Brown that was something to be very proud of. She couldn't help but feel a twinge of happiness for him, but with him gone off to Weyrling training, Alora became withdrawn. No one in the Weyr was important enough for her to connect to, and what had once been interesting became something she hardly cared about at all. I was just a routine to keep her moving.
The last thing that she believes anyone expected was for Rusilath to hatch forth from his egg and pick the quieter, more unassuming girl, but when the brown did, her entire world changed. It was the only being she'd ever truly connected with, a creature that held her mind and heart as if it was her own. It suited her, as her Weyrling instructor would find out. Being a Rider was hard, and being stuck in one place even harder. Rusilath was as antsy as the woman he'd bonded to, and it didn't take long for it to show. He was distracted in his training, with Alora only really focused on making connections in the holds, and through to other weyrs, making nice with people and having a head for business.
As soon as Rusilath was of age, and the two graduated from Weyrling training, though, she began to show signs of leaving. She grew more and more restless, ther wingwork and routine feeling too much like a yoke around her neck. It was a tough decision, one that she and her Brown reached together, and without a word to anyone, even her brother, the two took wing in the dead of night. It was to a Fishercraft Craftmaster she went, to refine her skill as a trader. She needed to know how to learn that, how to be a captain, and never in her life had she been more grateful for her young Impression. From 18 Turns to 22 turns, she and Rusilath took as many courses as they needed, training exclusively in Tillek's crafthall until she was sure she was ready.
22 to 24, Alora was travelling, getting to know ships personally, learning trade routes, how they worked, and making more connections still. She learned the ways of both the above board and underhanded dealings alike, taking a particular interest in smuggling cargo with a legal cargo. It was at the end of one of these trade routes, at 24, that she found she and her life partner on a smaller, outlying island. That she found a ship for sale that was actually affordable. It took half a turn to fix, and another half turn to find a crew, but once the small trading vessel was ready, Alora and the crew of the Valeriya took to the seas in its own right.
It is the underhanded dealings that many will never know about. She knows well that riding a dragon and being a trader and smuggler is...an interesting position, knows the sway she could hold if she needed it. To this day, the deals that happen below the table have stayed below the table, and she always takes a legitimate cargo to disguise anything she smuggles.
Other:
Rusilath is named after a female pirate. Believed to have fought her brother Thrond for the thrones of both Denmark and Norway. Rusla was the daughter of a Viking king of Telemark called Rieg, and sister of Tesandus (Thrond), who was dispossessed of his throne by a Danish king named Omund. Rusla formed a Viking fleet to attack all Danish ships as revenge for the affront to her brother. Rusla was always accompanied by another woman (some sources cite her as sister) Stikla, who was her deputy in all raids. Stikla turned to piracy to avoid marriage, and her name is the origin of the Norwegian city Stiklestad. It's not known if she was fictional or not.
DRAGON
Name:
Rusilath
Age:
8 turns
(3565.02.18 Vimiath x Turoth)
Color:
Brown
Size:
41'
Physical Description:
A larger Brown, Rusilath is a beautiful creature made for lithe elegance and grace, with a long tail and long legs, to match great wings. His hide is pale brown. Across it is a lovely pattern of swirls and twists of deep brown that his Rider says looks like the turn of the current beneath the waves, which spreads across his back, and up his wings, creating a mask on his face. His ridges are of a darker tone as well.
Personality:
Rusilath is a rather energetic creature. From the moment he came out of his shell, he was made of happy bugles and silly antics. He's always all too happy to show off for anyone, dancing and twining on land and in the air. The male is devoted only to his, though, and any male or female he chooses to allow near his might be nothing more than a distraction or two. After all, Rusilath considers himself a fierce warrior in his own right, and isn't much one to be pandered to. His mind is sharp, that of a tactician, and he is content to lend His any plans that cross it when need be. The Brown honestly believes that he is the best chance both His and anyone that His works with has for survival.
Rusilath is a bit vain, however. He likes compliments, and hates a dirty hide, preferring to stay as clean as he can, so that no one can say any ill of him. After all, what good is he without appearance. Despite his energy, and his fierce nature, he can be a bit selfish, caring only for the needs and wants of he and his own. It makes so little sense to the Brown to think beyond the immediate demands that are made by the pair of them. He doesn't often like to reach beyond. He is also proud. Rusilath acts like a bronze, sure of what he deserves, willing to do whatever he must to get it.. There is no reason he should be treated like anything less, by anyone, and shouldn't be afforded the privilege that goes along with it all.
Dragon Art or Proof of Obtainment:
