[Firefoot]

Character Description Form:

1.) Have you ever played in an RPG at the Barrow Downs? Yes, Bloodstained Elanor and Seekers of Truth.

2.) How many RPG’s on the Barrow Downs are you currently involved in? None

3.) Have you posted in The Green Dragon Inn? Yes.

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NAME: Adranel

AGE: 22

RACE: Man of Dale

GENDER: Female

WEAPONS: Adranel has a short knife, not really meant as a weapon but for simpler tasks (e.g. cutting cloth, leather, string). She also has a short bow and a quiver of arrows that she learned to use as a girl, but she hasn’t used them for a long time.

APPEARANCE: Adranel is slim and stands around 5'5" tall. She has brownish-blonde hair that is cut about half-way down her back. Her eyes are blue-gray. Due to the cold weather she dresses in heavy skirts, but given the choice she would wear breeches like the men do.

PERSONALITY/STRENGTHS/WEAKNESSES: Adranel has always been somewhat of a tom-boy, largely because of the influence of her two older brothers. When she was younger she would go hiking and hunting with them, and they taught her to ride horses (astride, of course), shoot a bow, and other wood-craft. Adranel is also very stubborn, and does her own thing. She won’t back down from a challenge, and if she sets her mind on doing or getting something, she won’t be persuaded otherwise. If someone tries to force her into something, she probably won’t do it. She isn’t really a leader, but she isn’t a follower either. Unfortunately for her, she lacks some common sense and intelligence, and can be forgetful, though she does have a strong intuition.

Once she gets to know a person, she is very kind. Until then, she can be very cool and unfriendly. First impressions of people matter a lot to her, and once she makes up her mind, she doesn’t change it readily. She is very protective, especially of her family.

HISTORY: Adranel has lived in her little village outside Dale all her life. She has two older brothers, whom she admires very much, a younger brother, and a younger sister. She was forced to grow up at the age of 13 when her mother died and she was left with the responsibilities of running the house and taking care of her younger siblings, ages 8 and 10. Adranel is engaged to be married in the spring to a man named Hergon.

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Firefoot's post:

Adranel looked out vacantly from her vantage point on the hill overlooking what had once been her village. The snow was no longer white. It was bloodstained by the people of her village and charred by the ashes of their houses. Night was falling, and it was getting cold. Adranel did not have a cloak, but she did not care if she froze. Nothing mattered, because they were gone. Everyone she knew and loved was dead or taken by the Orcs, the latter perhaps the crueler fate than the former. She tried to block away the horrible memories, but still they came back...

It had been a cold, crisp winter’s day. Adranel was alone in the house, for her younger siblings were off with friends and her father and older brothers were working in their small store. She was alerted by raucous cries, cruel laughter, and the ringing of metal on metal. Adranel, like every other person in the village, had hurried outside to see what was happening, though in her heart she knew that it was Orcs. She grabbed her bow without thinking about it, strangely enough since she had long since lost the habit.

Outside, the smell of smoke was thick in the air. The village was burning. She had to find her family and get away - it was the only way to survive. Oh, where could they be? Finally, she found her father on the other side of town. He was wielding a long hunting knife, undoubtedly the only weapon he could find in a hurry. She was about to call out to him when an Orc came from behind and swung its sword through her father’s neck. She stifled a scream and turned and fled, tears streaming down her face. In her haste she nearly passed the body of her fiancé Hergon. A black-feathered arrow shaft was sticking out of his blood-soaked chest. No, no, no, she thought. She knelt down beside him, and found him to still be alive. He opened his eyes at her touch, and the corners of his mouth turned upward.

“Adranel,” he murmured. His breathing sounded labored. Adranel took his hand in hers. “Get away from here, my love. Save your own life, for me. Let me know you are safe.” He closed his eyes again, and Adranel knew he was gone. She rose to her feet, sobs wracking her body. He couldn’t be dead; it wasn’t possible. Surely someone lived. Where were her brothers and sister? She did not know or care where her feet took her now. She ran blindly, her tears blurring her vision. She left the village, left the screams of women and children, left death behind her. Only it would never be gone, because she would never forget...

A lump rose in her throat once more. She had thought she had cried her tears away, but more came. Adranel turned away from the bloody wreckage of the village, for she could not bear to see it any longer. Hergon’s final words tugged at her heart. Let me know you are safe. These words were the only things that gave her will to live, because nothing mattered any more. They were gone. All of them were gone.