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P L A Y E R;
NAME: Vicki
AGE: 31
PLAYER JOURNAL: i_paint_the_sky
TIMEZONE: Eastern Standard
CONTACT:![[plurk.com profile]](https://plurk.com/favicon.ico)
vkm13
C H A R A C T E R;
NAME: Melisande Shahrizai de la Courcel
CANON: Kushiel’s Legacy
POINT IN CANON: Partway through Kushiel’s Avatar, after her second meeting with Phedre (page 203).
AGE: 38
APPEARANCE: Melisande is strikingly beautiful, even by Terre D’Ange standards. She is tall and statuesque, with alabaster skin. She has black hair and blue eyes. The passage of time seems to only change her beauty, rather than causing it to fade.
CANON HISTORY:
Melisande is a member of House Shahrizai, one of the most prominent families in Terre D’Ange, known for dealing in money and influence. Although they do not rule their home province of Kusheth, they claim to have the oldest and purest Kushieline bloodline. They are also well known as practitioners of sexual sadism. Like many D’Angeline nobles, Melisande is well schooled in the bedroom.
When Melisande was 16, she was married to her first husband. Within three years, she had been widowed and remarried. She was widowed yet again several years later. Both of her husbands were much older men and both left Melisande with a great fortune after their deaths. It was rumored that she may have caused their deaths, though this has never been proven.
It is unclear when she met Anafiel Delaunay but by the time she was 23, the year she met Phedre no Delaunay, they were considered old friends. At one point they were lovers, though not for long as they were poorly matched on that front. Anafiel trusted Melisande enough to tell her of the Unseen Guild, as well as sharing knowledge of their teachings in exchange for her teaching him how to better manipulate those around him. Melisande then sought out and joined the Guide, as she established a network of informants. She rose quickly within the ranks, soon rising to become a Guild master.
During the time she met Phedre, Melisande was courting the King’s nephew, Baudoin de Trevalion. However, she eventually betrayed Baudoin and it was her accounts at his treason trial that led to his sentence of death. Around the same time, she also began plotting with Isidore d'Aiglemort and the Skaldi general Waldemar Selig, to have the Skaldi invade Terre D’Ange and put Selig and Melisande on the throne. Delaunay’s plans got too close to derailing this plot and so was killed, though not at Melisande’s order, as his death was something she regretted. In the aftermath, she kidnapped Phedre and her Cassiline protector, Joscelin, and sent them into Skaldi, assuming they would die.
The Skaldi invasion was foiled ultimately foiled by Phedre and Melisande was charged and convicted of treason. Before she could be executed, however, she disappeared.
After her escape, Melisande went to La Serenissma, where she secretly married the new Queen’s uncle, Benedict de la Courcel, who desired that the bloodline of House Courcel remain pure, rather than have a half Alban child of Queen Ysandre inherit the throne. Melisande was also blackmailing Percy de Somerville, the Royal Commander of the Army, to support Benedict’s claim. In order to keep her identity hidden, she took up the veil of Asherat, which allowed her to keep her face covered.
During this time, Melisande had a son, Imriel, the only person she ever completely loved. She doted on her son, overseeing his care directly whenever possible, rather than turning him over to a servant.
Eventually, Phedre came to La Serenissma, searching for her. Melisande eventually revealed her identity to Phedre, before having her thrown into the island prison, La Dolorosa. Once again, however, Phedre managed to survive her ordeal and returned in time to save Ysandre’s life. However, as Melisande had been granted the sanctuary of Asherat-of-the-sea, she could not be taken into custody. And no trace of Imriel could be found.
For the next ten years, Melisande lived in the temple of Asherat, using her contacts in the Unseen Guild to keep informed on various world affairs. During this time, Imriel had been hidden at a Temple of Elua. Melisande saw her son once but he was kept unaware of her identity.
Then Imriel disappeared without a trace. Despite her efforts, Melisande was unable to discover where he had been taken, and so she turned to Phedre for help, promising to reveal information that would free Phedre’s childhood friend, Hyacinth, from bondage if Phedre was able to find him.
CANON PERSONALITY:
All her life, Melisande has relished and excelled playing games of power. She is very intelligent and crafty and has few scruples about using others to achieve her own ends. And even those people or things she does care for may be sacrificed, albeit regretfully, if the occasion warrants it. The only exception to this is Imriel.
Melisande is very charming, flirtatious and sensual, which create her own personal poker face, making it so it is hard to tell the difference between her amusement and her ambition. She is also a master of manipulation, which allowed her to achieve many things without ever getting her hands dirty. She is willing to take risks when necessary and never acts without a reason, or ten. Sometimes, these risks pay off; when they do not, she faces the consequences without flinching, provided that she is the one who pays the price.
She is also very patient, willing to play a long game if that is the hand she is dealt. She is particularly skilled at anticipating knowledge that may become useful to her and using it to either coerce or outright blackmail others into doing her bidding. The best way to disarm Melisande is to manage to keep her ignorant. However, this is something that has very few have ever managed to do.
Melisande is always seeking knowledge, even when it isn't clear if or how this knowledge will help her. It is curiosity that draws her to Phedre, as she is always interested in seeing just what the anguisette will do with the cards she is dealt. The quest for information was one of the few things she was able to continue while living at Asherat's temple and it helped ease the tedium of her existence.
As a scion of Kushiel, she takes great delight in the darker pleasures. She can be cruel and sadistic both inside the bedchamber and out of it, though she does not usually act out of malice or spite. She simply wants what she wants and will do almost anything to get it.
Despite all this, she does hold the sacred precepts of Terre D'Ange in high regard. As she often says, Elua cared naught for thrones, so playing her games never went against his precept to love as thou wilt. She also has great respect for Kushiel and his justice. A vow sworn by her in Kushiel's name is one she will always honour.
POINT OF DEPARTURE: N/A
ABILITIES: Melisande is incredibly beautiful, even amoung D'Angelines who are known to be beautiful. Like Imriel, Melisande's Kushieline heritage allows her to see the fault-lines in people's souls. Unlike Imriel, she knows how to exploit it. She is also well trained in the arts of subterfuge and manipulation.
INVENTORY;
The Veil of Asherat (a veil that covers her face, obscuring it from view, made of silver netting and glass beads), blue silk gown, silver shoes, a silver ring with a shell on the outside and a hidden message on the inside (referenced in sample below).
ANYTHING ELSE WE SHOULD KNOW? N/A
S A M P L E S;
Actionspam Sample: Melisande in the test drive
Prose Sample: (set before Melisand'es point in canon, to show her when she isn't in a panic over what's happened to Imriel)
Sometimes, it seemed unbelievable that ten years had passed since Melisande was first confined to the Temple of Asherat. Ten years since she'd played the game and lost, ten years since she had been able to go where she chose, honored as a Principessa who dreamt of becoming a Queen.
Ten years since she had last held Imriel in her arms. Only ten years. They felt like an eternity.
She had seen him only once since she'd been forced to send him away. It was a meeting that had been carefully planned at every point. When he finally stood before her, she could not believe how much he had grown. The swaddling babe had become a beautiful boy, who looked at her with pure awe. Maintaining her composure had never been so hard.
Naturally, he could not be told the truth. Instead, Brother Selbert told the child she was his patron and that mentioning this visit to anyone could put her in grave danger. She had seen Imriel's pride at being trusted with such an important secret. She wondered how he would have looked, had he known who she truly was.
Years had now passed since that visit. Every day since she thought of it and wondered what her son was doing now, what he was thinking. She received reports as often as possible but it was not enough, never enough. Between that and the dreadful tedium of life, the temple walls sometimes felt as much of a prison as La Dolorosa.
But not quite, since her she had people loyal to her, who brought her news and did her bidding. One of these, a young woman named Delia, approached her and Melisande greeted her with a smile.
"Hello, my dear," Melisande almost cooed. "Do you have the message?"
"Yes, my lady," Delia replied with a curtsy. Once, she had been just another whore working the streets of La Serenissma, albeit a smart one. Since Melisande had learned first-hand just how useful a smart whore could be, she had recruited her to the temple's service, and then her own. Now the girl was among the group who called Melisande 'Bella Donna', the avatar of Asherat. It amused her to no end to be worshiped so, and one day, she was sure it would be useful.
Delia placed a small wooden box in Melisande's hand. The box was well-made but simple, something that most people would pay no attention to. Melisande opened it and revealed a small silver ring inside. She held it between her fingers, inspecting it. One the outside was a shell, a symbol of the Hellene goddess Aphrodite. And on the inside she could feel a series of raised bumps. She stroked them with her finger, then smiled.
"I assume someone waits for a reply?"
"Yes, my lady."
"The answer is soon."
Delia curtsied again and hurried off, while Melisande placed the ring on her finger, the message safely hidden against her skin.
She was headed for her chambers when she heard a commotion and turned. A young man was trying to get past a pair of guards - a D'Angeline man, dressed in the robes of a priest of Elua. All thoughts about Solon of Cythera immediately disappeared.
"Let him through," she told the guards, who quickly back away on her orders. "What has happened?" she asked softly when the man approached.
"Lady Melisande, I ..." he could not meet her eyes.
"Speak."
The man shuddered, then turned his face towards hers. "Imriel is missing."
Ten years. Ten years she had kept him safe, away from the Queen who would turn him against her. Ten years, she had known he was happy and healthy. Only ten years.
It was nowhere near long enough.
P L A Y E R;
NAME: Vicki
AGE: 31
PLAYER JOURNAL: i_paint_the_sky
TIMEZONE: Eastern Standard
CONTACT:
C H A R A C T E R;
NAME: Melisande Shahrizai de la Courcel
CANON: Kushiel’s Legacy
POINT IN CANON: Partway through Kushiel’s Avatar, after her second meeting with Phedre (page 203).
AGE: 38
APPEARANCE: Melisande is strikingly beautiful, even by Terre D’Ange standards. She is tall and statuesque, with alabaster skin. She has black hair and blue eyes. The passage of time seems to only change her beauty, rather than causing it to fade.
CANON HISTORY:
Melisande is a member of House Shahrizai, one of the most prominent families in Terre D’Ange, known for dealing in money and influence. Although they do not rule their home province of Kusheth, they claim to have the oldest and purest Kushieline bloodline. They are also well known as practitioners of sexual sadism. Like many D’Angeline nobles, Melisande is well schooled in the bedroom.
When Melisande was 16, she was married to her first husband. Within three years, she had been widowed and remarried. She was widowed yet again several years later. Both of her husbands were much older men and both left Melisande with a great fortune after their deaths. It was rumored that she may have caused their deaths, though this has never been proven.
It is unclear when she met Anafiel Delaunay but by the time she was 23, the year she met Phedre no Delaunay, they were considered old friends. At one point they were lovers, though not for long as they were poorly matched on that front. Anafiel trusted Melisande enough to tell her of the Unseen Guild, as well as sharing knowledge of their teachings in exchange for her teaching him how to better manipulate those around him. Melisande then sought out and joined the Guide, as she established a network of informants. She rose quickly within the ranks, soon rising to become a Guild master.
During the time she met Phedre, Melisande was courting the King’s nephew, Baudoin de Trevalion. However, she eventually betrayed Baudoin and it was her accounts at his treason trial that led to his sentence of death. Around the same time, she also began plotting with Isidore d'Aiglemort and the Skaldi general Waldemar Selig, to have the Skaldi invade Terre D’Ange and put Selig and Melisande on the throne. Delaunay’s plans got too close to derailing this plot and so was killed, though not at Melisande’s order, as his death was something she regretted. In the aftermath, she kidnapped Phedre and her Cassiline protector, Joscelin, and sent them into Skaldi, assuming they would die.
The Skaldi invasion was foiled ultimately foiled by Phedre and Melisande was charged and convicted of treason. Before she could be executed, however, she disappeared.
After her escape, Melisande went to La Serenissma, where she secretly married the new Queen’s uncle, Benedict de la Courcel, who desired that the bloodline of House Courcel remain pure, rather than have a half Alban child of Queen Ysandre inherit the throne. Melisande was also blackmailing Percy de Somerville, the Royal Commander of the Army, to support Benedict’s claim. In order to keep her identity hidden, she took up the veil of Asherat, which allowed her to keep her face covered.
During this time, Melisande had a son, Imriel, the only person she ever completely loved. She doted on her son, overseeing his care directly whenever possible, rather than turning him over to a servant.
Eventually, Phedre came to La Serenissma, searching for her. Melisande eventually revealed her identity to Phedre, before having her thrown into the island prison, La Dolorosa. Once again, however, Phedre managed to survive her ordeal and returned in time to save Ysandre’s life. However, as Melisande had been granted the sanctuary of Asherat-of-the-sea, she could not be taken into custody. And no trace of Imriel could be found.
For the next ten years, Melisande lived in the temple of Asherat, using her contacts in the Unseen Guild to keep informed on various world affairs. During this time, Imriel had been hidden at a Temple of Elua. Melisande saw her son once but he was kept unaware of her identity.
Then Imriel disappeared without a trace. Despite her efforts, Melisande was unable to discover where he had been taken, and so she turned to Phedre for help, promising to reveal information that would free Phedre’s childhood friend, Hyacinth, from bondage if Phedre was able to find him.
CANON PERSONALITY:
All her life, Melisande has relished and excelled playing games of power. She is very intelligent and crafty and has few scruples about using others to achieve her own ends. And even those people or things she does care for may be sacrificed, albeit regretfully, if the occasion warrants it. The only exception to this is Imriel.
Melisande is very charming, flirtatious and sensual, which create her own personal poker face, making it so it is hard to tell the difference between her amusement and her ambition. She is also a master of manipulation, which allowed her to achieve many things without ever getting her hands dirty. She is willing to take risks when necessary and never acts without a reason, or ten. Sometimes, these risks pay off; when they do not, she faces the consequences without flinching, provided that she is the one who pays the price.
She is also very patient, willing to play a long game if that is the hand she is dealt. She is particularly skilled at anticipating knowledge that may become useful to her and using it to either coerce or outright blackmail others into doing her bidding. The best way to disarm Melisande is to manage to keep her ignorant. However, this is something that has very few have ever managed to do.
Melisande is always seeking knowledge, even when it isn't clear if or how this knowledge will help her. It is curiosity that draws her to Phedre, as she is always interested in seeing just what the anguisette will do with the cards she is dealt. The quest for information was one of the few things she was able to continue while living at Asherat's temple and it helped ease the tedium of her existence.
As a scion of Kushiel, she takes great delight in the darker pleasures. She can be cruel and sadistic both inside the bedchamber and out of it, though she does not usually act out of malice or spite. She simply wants what she wants and will do almost anything to get it.
Despite all this, she does hold the sacred precepts of Terre D'Ange in high regard. As she often says, Elua cared naught for thrones, so playing her games never went against his precept to love as thou wilt. She also has great respect for Kushiel and his justice. A vow sworn by her in Kushiel's name is one she will always honour.
POINT OF DEPARTURE: N/A
ABILITIES: Melisande is incredibly beautiful, even amoung D'Angelines who are known to be beautiful. Like Imriel, Melisande's Kushieline heritage allows her to see the fault-lines in people's souls. Unlike Imriel, she knows how to exploit it. She is also well trained in the arts of subterfuge and manipulation.
INVENTORY;
The Veil of Asherat (a veil that covers her face, obscuring it from view, made of silver netting and glass beads), blue silk gown, silver shoes, a silver ring with a shell on the outside and a hidden message on the inside (referenced in sample below).
ANYTHING ELSE WE SHOULD KNOW? N/A
S A M P L E S;
Actionspam Sample: Melisande in the test drive
Prose Sample: (set before Melisand'es point in canon, to show her when she isn't in a panic over what's happened to Imriel)
Sometimes, it seemed unbelievable that ten years had passed since Melisande was first confined to the Temple of Asherat. Ten years since she'd played the game and lost, ten years since she had been able to go where she chose, honored as a Principessa who dreamt of becoming a Queen.
Ten years since she had last held Imriel in her arms. Only ten years. They felt like an eternity.
She had seen him only once since she'd been forced to send him away. It was a meeting that had been carefully planned at every point. When he finally stood before her, she could not believe how much he had grown. The swaddling babe had become a beautiful boy, who looked at her with pure awe. Maintaining her composure had never been so hard.
Naturally, he could not be told the truth. Instead, Brother Selbert told the child she was his patron and that mentioning this visit to anyone could put her in grave danger. She had seen Imriel's pride at being trusted with such an important secret. She wondered how he would have looked, had he known who she truly was.
Years had now passed since that visit. Every day since she thought of it and wondered what her son was doing now, what he was thinking. She received reports as often as possible but it was not enough, never enough. Between that and the dreadful tedium of life, the temple walls sometimes felt as much of a prison as La Dolorosa.
But not quite, since her she had people loyal to her, who brought her news and did her bidding. One of these, a young woman named Delia, approached her and Melisande greeted her with a smile.
"Hello, my dear," Melisande almost cooed. "Do you have the message?"
"Yes, my lady," Delia replied with a curtsy. Once, she had been just another whore working the streets of La Serenissma, albeit a smart one. Since Melisande had learned first-hand just how useful a smart whore could be, she had recruited her to the temple's service, and then her own. Now the girl was among the group who called Melisande 'Bella Donna', the avatar of Asherat. It amused her to no end to be worshiped so, and one day, she was sure it would be useful.
Delia placed a small wooden box in Melisande's hand. The box was well-made but simple, something that most people would pay no attention to. Melisande opened it and revealed a small silver ring inside. She held it between her fingers, inspecting it. One the outside was a shell, a symbol of the Hellene goddess Aphrodite. And on the inside she could feel a series of raised bumps. She stroked them with her finger, then smiled.
"I assume someone waits for a reply?"
"Yes, my lady."
"The answer is soon."
Delia curtsied again and hurried off, while Melisande placed the ring on her finger, the message safely hidden against her skin.
She was headed for her chambers when she heard a commotion and turned. A young man was trying to get past a pair of guards - a D'Angeline man, dressed in the robes of a priest of Elua. All thoughts about Solon of Cythera immediately disappeared.
"Let him through," she told the guards, who quickly back away on her orders. "What has happened?" she asked softly when the man approached.
"Lady Melisande, I ..." he could not meet her eyes.
"Speak."
The man shuddered, then turned his face towards hers. "Imriel is missing."
Ten years. Ten years she had kept him safe, away from the Queen who would turn him against her. Ten years, she had known he was happy and healthy. Only ten years.
It was nowhere near long enough.
