Post by Elloria on Nov 23, 2010 0:46:53 GMT -5
Name:
Niko Danta
Age:
245
Race:
Elf
Occupation:
Ilirean scholar
Allegiance:
The Dragon Riders and Ilirea
Physical Description:
Physically, Niko Danta is nearly the opposite of his elder brother. Though they are identical twins, Niko is the more masculine of the two. He has all the sharp features characteristic of elves. His face is oval-shaped like his brother’s, but it angles to a sharply defined chin. His lips are not as full as Josk’s, though the lower is slightly fuller than the upper. They are usually pressed tightly together, indicating that Niko is deep in thought - which is a good ninety percent of the time. Also lacking in facial hair, Niko has never pierced his ears nor modified his body in any way. His frame is slender, but each muscle is well-defined courtesy of his constant training with weapons and magic. He is somewhat taller than his brother, standing at about 6 feet 9 inches tall. His hair is the same silken black as his brother’s and is kept in a similar style. Indeed, the only difference is length. Niko’s hair ends just above the end of his spine.
His skin is lightly tanned. It’s not the brilliant golden-brown tone that is common amongst the elves, but neither is it the pale ivory of his brother. He splits his time evenly enough between being inside and out that his skin tone remains somewhere between the two extremes. On his forehead is a birthmark identical to his brother’s - a serpentine dragon emerging from a flame. However, Niko’s hasn’t faded with time and is very visible, making him easily recognizable in Ilirea. Perhaps the only trait that is identical between the brothers is their eyes. Niko has the same silvery eyes, filled with an intensity that oft gives people pause. But Niko’s is the intensity of deep and scholarly thought, not of violent action waiting to happen.
Niko also shares Josk’s preference for darker clothing. However, Niko prefers that his attire not be extravagant in any way. There’s nothing flamboyant or eye-catching about his clothing, reflecting his desire for a very simplistic life. In general, he can be found wearing dark blue tunics and trousers, the borders of which are usually trimmed with golden fabric. Though able to afford the finest quality of material for clothing - thanks to a generous stipend courtesy of his family’s wealth - Niko’s clothes are made of either wool or cotton. He enjoys the feel of wool against his skin over any other fabric. Because he is a scholar of Ilirea, he also wears the unofficial uniform of the Grand Library - a hooded, long, loose robe of soft grey wool. Embroidered on the right shoulder is the symbol of the Library, a silver scroll against a golden six-rayed star. The clasp is unadorned. Niko wears no jewelry or other accessories, save for a leather sword belt and light blue sash around his waist. He doesn’t carry an actual sword with him, but he does have a long dagger attached to the belt for self-defense. He is skilled in its use due to his continued training with all types of melee weapons, but prefers to talk his way out of conflicts wherever possible. The sash is a memento from a close human friend and fellow scholar who died several decades ago.
Personality:
As is sometimes the case with twins, Niko’s temperament is considerably different from Josk’s. Over time, the personalities of the two gradually shifted. Now it is Niko who is reserved, even scholarly, while Josk has become willful and darkly passionate. Niko, however, has always been curious about the workings of the world. In his youth, this curiosity had no focal point and thus he was always dragged hither and thither by whatever caught his fancy. Ilirea gave him much-needed focus and he has never regretted coming to the city of Riders. Yet one thing remains unchanged. Niko is very sure of his place in the world and that place will always be Ilirea. Josk’s calm exterior is a front for many deep-seated insecurities and is easily shattered. Niko’s is one of confident intelligence born of years of training in which he always excelled. He is slow to anger and ever ready to compromise if it will prevent violence.
That’s not to say he is lacking in viciousness or vindictiveness. When they were younger, Niko was known for his tantrums. In those days, he had no problems lashing out physically and verbally against anyone who sparked his temper. Most often, this was in defense of his meeker older brother, though it sometimes it was just to be contrary. His years in Ilirea tempered his inner fire, but his associates know better than to frustrate him too much. Still, the raucous reveler of his youth has become the determined scholar of the present. Though always cordial with the other scholars and citizens of Ilirea, it is safe to say that Niko now considers frivolity a genuine waste of time that could be better spent improving one’s knowledge and skill. This prompts much tittering and mockery behind his back, as well as some less than pleasant nicknames. But on the whole, Niko honestly couldn’t care less what opinions others are forming about him and never has. So long as he’s allowed to continue down his own path - preferably without outside interference - then the rest of the world can simply shove off.
History:
From the moment of their birth, Josk and Niko Danta were not destined for an easy life. Though twins - a great rarity that was happily greeted by the elven world at large - they were sons. Miala Danta could not have been more disappointed. The abused, neglected and miserable wife of Tios Danta, a nobleman in the courts of Ellesméra, Miala wanted no more males in her life. By this time, she had joined the Hive and begun to gain some confidence in herself. It was enough to occasionally stand up to her husband, though the drunken incident that resulted in Josk and Niko was not one of her most successful attempts. Neither Tios nor Miala desired children, but Miala harbored some hope that she would bear daughters and be able to raise them to be confident women, loyal members of the Hive. Instead she bore two beautiful boys - and instantly despised them. She had very little to do with them in their early years, allowing them to basically run around as they pleased to be chased by a nursemaid. Tios was rarely home for the first 25 years, always caught up in advancing himself in the Grand Game. Like Josk, Niko has very few memories of his father. As for his mother, she was simply there. He never felt any attachment to her, though he did resent her for the pain she perpetually caused Josk. If nothing else, he wanted her to acknowledge them simply to make his “big” brother happy.
While this disconnect from their mother was always a source of confusion and hurt for Josk, Niko was rarely phased by it. He lacked the deep empathy of his older brother that made Josk acutely aware of others’ opinions. He was, however, very aware of his brother’s pain and always sought to alleviate it. When Josk was happy, Niko felt he didn’t need to feel guilty for his own happiness. Thus, he reveled in the freedom that he was given by their mother. He was always the instigator of whatever chaos he and Josk were involved in, dragging his older brother along to “liven him up a bit.” The short-lived joy that would light up Josk’s face was all that Niko really lived for. In those days if he could only keep Josk happy, that was all he needed.
When it came time to send them away to Ilirea, neither Miala nor Tios had reservations. There were no teary goodbyes. Their clothes were packed up and they were shipped off. Niko was excited by the prospect. He figured that Ilirea would be a great place to really brighten his brother’s life. They’d be far from their oppressive mother and be able to learn all sorts of interesting things. With this in mind, Niko easily settled into the groove of life in Ilirea. Every day was filled with exciting lessons to learn and tasks to master. He had finally found a place that kept him focused and interested at all times. However, Niko couldn’t help but notice that his brother was now perpetually unhappy. Josk always seemed awkward and out of place. Though it pained him, Niko figured it was just taking his “big” brother longer to adjust. After a year, it became apparent that Josk would never find a place in Ilirea.
With this realization, a rivalry between the two brothers began to develop. Just as Niko was better suited to the lifestyle of Ilirea, so too was he the more powerful twin. Though he loved Josk and never wanted to belittle him, Niko couldn’t help but throw everything he had into every lesson. It wasn’t long before he thoroughly outshone Josk in nearly every single skill set. Only in magic was Josk more skilled than Niko. On the one hand, this delighted Niko because he saw the possibility of Josk finding a niche for himself. On the other, he was very jealous of his brother’s natural aptitude for magic. Both brothers were very aware of the mutual jealousy and simply let their bond naturally develop into a rivalry. Still Niko could never say he hated Josk anymore than Josk could say he hated Niko. For as long as either could remember, their twin was all either boy had ever had. That sort of closeness does not die so easily.
At the end of 50 years, however, the brothers parted ways. While Josk utterly despised Ilirea, Niko was enthralled by its history and the knowledge contained therein. Moreover, Niko harbored the dream that perhaps he could become a Dragon Rider. Though no dragon had hatched for either twin, Niko still hoped it might happen. Josk had expressed relief that something like this wouldn’t snare him. This little thing was really the final straw for both. They, who had once been inseparable, could no longer see eye to eye on anything important. Or at least on what each twin considered important.
Their parting was painful and bitter, but both knew that it was simply how they had turned out. Josk was not meant for Ilirea and Niko was never meant to leave it. Thus Josk returned to Ellesméra and Niko remained behind to further his training and education. It wasn’t long before he received word from Josk about Tios’ death and Miala’s dominance in their household. It was not particularly surprising or painful to Niko that these events had occurred. He had seen Tios little enough that the loss was no different from a normal day. As for Miala, she’d always struck him as a cat waiting to pounce. Her time, it appeared, had finally come. He easily pushed this to the back of his mind. He had begun working in the Grand Library and he’d never imagined such a fascinating job could exist. Scrolls and tomes uncountable were now his to peruse and tend to. The mere thought of the knowledge contained within the Library was staggering to him. And as with every other task he’d been set during his schooling, Niko became absorbed in the Library.
He quickly set up a routine which he firmly follows to this day. Every morning, he rises before the sun and watches it rise. He then meditates for an hour before breaking his fast. The rest of his morning is dedicated to training. Sometimes it’s melee work, other times he works with ranged weaponry. There are enough Riders there to spar with, regardless, so Niko is never lacking in “fresh” partners. He always ends his morning training with an hour of magical practice before eating a solitary mid-day meal. The better part of his afternoon is spent in the Library - alphabetizing the scrolls and tomes, reshelving returned items, finding new articles to pick out for his own reading. Nothing particularly strenuous or demanding, but every day is different enough to keep him content. When he retires for the night in his small villa near the edge of Ilirea, he eats his evening meal and just relaxes. This usually entails reading his latest Library finds or writing another piece of historical fiction, though sometimes he simply sits and watches the embers of his fire before going to bed. His schedule was regular as clockwork. The decades seemed to fly by in the blink of an eye - and that’s saying a lot, considering how inconsequential time often is to elves.
Niko’s time in Ilirea has been mostly peaceful. Here in the Dragon Rider stronghold, he barely noticed the 40-year war between the elves and humans. It was a topic only rarely overheard when Riders would discuss it amongst themselves. Only a small handful of events sent ripples through his calm routine. The first was an encounter with a human child. He met her in the halls of the Library when he was about 100 years old. That day, he had been scribbling notes from a large volume about the primary language of the lands beyond the Hadarac Desert for a new fiction piece. As usual, he was so absorbed that it was several long minutes before he became aware of someone standing beside him. He looked up from his notes, his face lightly spattered with ink, to find a young girl staring at him. He was immediately struck by how unique she looked. She was quite small - the top of her head only came up to his hips when he stood. Her hair was short, nappy, and mussed but clean and her skin was a velvety black. Her ears were rounded, indicating she was human. She wore a tattered dress that was very clean. Around her neck was an equally clean, but much older light blue sash. But all this was peripheral information to Niko, for he was caught up in her gaze. Her eyes were large and almond-shaped, fringed with thick lashes that made them all the more startling. But what held him in place was their color, the powerful resolve within them, and the latent magic hidden in their depths. They were the brilliant luminous color of polished gold. They spoke of years of hardship, years of pain that she nonetheless cherished as an integral part of herself. They longed for a chance to awaken that inner power. As he soon learned, they were the eyes of a slave.
She didn’t have name, she told Niko matter-of-factly when he asked her. She was simply fumbe - slave - to her master. Niko was both intrigued and horrified by the thought that this very young child was considered chattel by someone. Though her language - the very one he’d been making notes on - was a bit difficult for him to speak in, he continued to ask her questions in it. Constantly referencing the volume beside him, he learned a great deal about her - including that she was actually ten years old, not five or six as he had though. He questioned her for quite some time until they were interrupted by her master. He was a tall, burly man who was nearly as dark as her. He apologized profusely to Niko for his slave’s impudence and made an imperious gesture towards her. Her resultant flinch and reluctance to move nearer to her master stabbed at Niko’s heart. He rose from his seat and stepped between her and her master. In a firm voice, he said that she would not be leaving Ilirea. The man was taken aback, but eventually recovered enough to argue back. The argument went on for about thirty minutes before Niko finally lost his temper. In a much colder tone, he informed the slave owner that if he wanted to take the girl from Ilirea, he would have to do it over Niko’s cold, unmoving body. The conversation never made it past that threat because one of the older elf scholars chose that moment to step around a shelf and intervene. In the end, Niko was allowed to keep the girl in Ilirea. He paid a hefty amount for her freedom, but he considered it money well spent. He certainly wouldn’t have spent it otherwise - it would have sat, like all his left-over stipend money, in a vault in his home. The scholars would have placed her in the orphanage, but she had clung to Niko when they attempted to take her from him. It was finally agreed that she would probably be better of staying with him.
The first year was spent making her as comfortable as possible. Dipping into his rather extensive pool of funds, Niko bought a small villa near the walls of Ilirea. A dorm room in the Library simply wasn’t acceptable for raising her. After moving his meager amount of possessions in, he went on something of a shopping spree. He furnished the entire villa with top-quality furniture - anything and everything that was comfy, cozy, and made it feel homey. He continued his spending by buying the girl an entirely new wardrobe to replace the single sash and tattered dress she owned. Though she gladly swapped the dress for finer clothing, she refused to part with the sash. It took Niko several years to unearth why this was, but after he did he never argued on the subject. Rather, he placed a small spell upon it so that it would forever remain in the state it was currently in - practically pristine. It had belonged to the girl’s mother - the only thing the child had left to remember her by.
The transition for the girl was surprisingly easy. At least that’s how it appeared to Niko. Despite some quirks that he never rid her of - she would always do every house chore and cook for him - the girl settled into her new life within six months of having gained her freedom. Under his watchful eye, she put on healthy weight and began her education. Because he refused to call her slave and she had no name, Niko gave her the name Mchumba - meaning “sweetheart” in her native tongue. They were very attached to each other, though it was always something of a father-daughter relationship. Mchumba never did awaken the magic within her. But she was unconcerned about this. She slowly established herself as an exceptional orator and diplomat. She had a gift for languages and drank in everything she could about the Ancient Language, the common tongue of Broddring, and many others. This, combined with her calm and persuasive nature, made Niko proud of the woman he raised.
Life continued peacefully for the next 20 years. Niko and Mchumba settled into their own routines. And Niko continually delighted in Mchumba’s growth from a tiny girl into a petite woman. Then one day, Niko received a short letter from Josk. In it, he of their mother’s position in the rapidly growing Hive. He was quite appalled at the thought of his mother being such a high-ranking official in such a vile and disruptive organization, to say the least. His concern, however, came with the final lines of the letter. It was merely a post-script - hastily scribbled and an obvious afterthought - but it made him worry nonetheless. For the first time in nearly 100 years, Niko seriously considered leaving Ilirea. He hadn’t set foot outside the Riders’ city since first entering it as a boy. It took much convincing on the part of his colleagues to keep Niko from running off to Ellesméra. He instead contented himself with writing an equally brief reply, not deigning to mention anything about their mother. He did, however, offer Josk a place to stay if his brother chose to leave Ellesméra.
He didn’t receive a reply for nearly five years. The worry Niko felt during those years gnawed at him constantly. Though always on the verge of leaving Ilirea, Mchumba could always convince him to remain. It was on a day when he had finally decided he would return to Ellesméra that Niko finally received a letter from Josk. It was several pages in length and detailed everything that had happened since Josk had been cast from their mother’s home. Niko was pleased that his brother finally seemed to have found a place for himself and was happy with his lot. He wrote back, congratulating Josk. And for a time, consistent correspondence continued between them. And although Niko wasn’t overly pleased when he learned of his brother’s relationship with Rensu, it seemed to make his gloomy Josk bright and vibrant - that was all he cared about. So long as no details came, he would go along with it.
Nearly sixty years passed and the only notice Niko took of this was in his little Mchumba. To him, it was like watching a glorious rose wither away. It was made all the more painful because he had barely aged at all. Still, she remained quietly dignified and pleasant right up to her death. That day, Niko sat beside her as she slowly faded away. And for many hours afterwards, he remained unmoving. When he could finally find the strength to move, he carefully unwrapped her blue sash - the same sash she’d been wearing 80 years ago - and tied it about his waist. He wanted just one thing to keep near to him, just as he had kept her near and dear to his heart. He buried her beneath the cherry tree they had planted together on her twelfth birthday.
Two years later, he received a disturbing letter from Josk. It told of Rensu’s death and of Josk’s decision to bow to their mother’s previous request. Though deeply saddened by both events, Niko chose to respect Josk’s final request - that Niko remain Ilirea, for Josk had chosen this of his own free will. Indeed, he wanted it. It pained him, but he saw the wisdom in it. The decision had already been made and by now, Josk would already be a Hive member. What good could Niko do now? Instead, he settled into the same routine he had been doing for the past century - only now he did it alone. The letters continued sporadically through the next forty years. Never once did either brother mention the Hive or their mother. They never mentioned the pain each one felt.
During those same forty years, Niko gradually turned back to the passion that had first kept him in Ilirea - the dragons. He began spending increasing amounts of time in the Citadel of the Riders. Because he already spent a good deal of time in the Grand Library, it was hardly out of his way to do so. He knew that he was well past the age one normally became a Rider. But he still enjoyed seeing the dragons and the Riders. He often fell into lengthy discussions with both, becoming a common sight in the halls of the Citadel. During this time, he became involved with tending to the eggs. It had come up while speaking with one of the older Riders, an elf by the name of Melatoth. Niko mentioned in passing how much he would like to help with the task of tending to the growing number of dragon eggs. He didn’t realize at the time that Melatoth was in charge of that very same task. A few days later, he ran into Melatoth again and was told that his assistance would be appreciated at the Font. Thrilled at the prospect, he followed Melatoth to the Font. He has since learned everything he needs to know about how to properly care for the eggs held in the Font. Moreover, he keeps careful track of how many eggs are in the Font. He is there for every incoming egg and bears witness when the children walk past the eggs in the hopes of having one hatch. Though a small part of him wishes he could be in that position again, he contents himself with his duties.
When Josk wrote to him about their mother’s death, Niko felt no sorrow at her passing. By now, Ellesméra and the life he had lived there were very distant memories - things that happened before Ilirea and Mchumba. As such, they weren’t of much interest to him. He didn’t bother replying this time. He hasn’t heard from his brother since, but he doesn’t need to. On some level, he’s sure Josk knows that Niko will be there for him when he truly needs it.
In the five years since his mother’s death, Niko’s life has remained as routine as it did before Mchumba’s passing. But buried deep in his heart remains the small hope that, perhaps, he can still become the one thing he desires: a Dragon Rider.
Roleplaying Sample:
See Josk’s profile.
