Rhiona The thundering waves are calling me home to you The pounding sea is calling me home to you On a dark new year's night On the west coast of Clare I heard your voice singing Your eyes danced the song Your hands played the tune T'was a vision before me We left the music behind and the dance carried on As we stole away to the seashore We smelt the brine, felt the wind in our hair And with sadness you paused Suddenly I knew that you'd have to go My world was not yours, your eyes told me so Yet it was there I felt the crossroads of time And I wondered why As we cast our gaze on the tumbling sea A vision came o'er me Of thundering hooves and beating wings In clouds above As you turned to go I heard you call my name You were like a bird in a cage spreading its wings to fly "The old ways are lost," you sang as you flew And I wondered why.... The Old Ways by Loreena McKennitt CHARACTER HISTORY In the lands across the Western Sea from Beware, there is a legend...a legend of four sisters, born hundreds of years ago to one family. Full of elemental magic, they grew into powerful witches, guided by the Goddess. When an ancient evil rose up, broke free and threatened the land, only the combined powers of these sisters - earth, air, fire and water - were able to defeat it. As time passed, every few generations, the evil would rise again but the Goddess would provide four more women of the same ancestral line, one for each element, who would be brought together to once again defeat it and save the land and its people. Then, for a time, the nameless evil lay dormant, and, in the hearts and minds of the people, seemed vanquished so it seemed forever. Time passed and the fear faded, myth turning legend. Magic users became first mistrusted then openly persecuted and finally , what few were left, went into hiding. The descendants of the four sisters grew further and further apart, scattered throughout the land.... Until recently....things went on so. Evil began to stir and have its way, growing stronger, sensing its time had at last come.... Rhiona, a descendant of the sister who wielded the power of water, whose mother died during her birth, had placed the child into the care and keeping of Geafan, the wise woman of the seaside village of Cyr Cythwfyd. Unknown to all, Geafan was another aspect of the sea goddess, Amphitrite. Living in a hut outside the village, even with the prevalent attitude of the villagers regarding magics, she was often sought after for remedies and wisdom. Raised in the knowledge of the old ways, the child Rhiona was different than the rest of the village children and often alone, cautioned always by Geafan to remain cautious about her abilities. When the girl grew into young womanhood, she grew fair and one of the village boys sought to seduce her one afternoon on the cliffside overlooking the village and the sea. Giving rise to unknown and tumultuous emotions, the girl's connection with the ocean spiralled very nearly out of control, creating a tidal wave that rose up threatening the village. Though able to stop it, barely and at the last moment, saving the village, she was openly discovered for who and what she was. The villagers turned into a mob and chased her back to Geafan's hut. In the melee that ensued, they killed the wise woman and sent Rhiona fleeing for her life. Stowing away on a ship bound for anywhere, hiding still for her life, the ship set across the sea, east towards Beware. As the lands of Beware came into sight on the hoizon, a violent storm came out of nowhere and capsized the ship, sinking it, killing all aboard. The silkies, or seal people, saved Rhiona and swam the unconscious young woman to shore. Finding herself in a strange land among strange people, she had to learn to make her own way. Inherently afraid and wary of people from her upbringing, she came to a cave behind Dusk Falls, staying there throughout the winter, becoming an assistant seamstress to a shop in the Beware village where she also used her skills in spinning and weaving to make a living. She furthered her own magickal studies, until meeting Gorath, who appeared to her in the guise of the Horned God, Cernunos. He became her mentor, teaching her control and greater ability. Not long after, she became possessed of the twin blades, under the care of Zeltrax and became even more powerful studying chaos magic, enhancing her own powers. In a meeting with Gorath, who then became aware of what had transpired, she was transported into another plane, there locked in combat with him until they very nearly killed one another, but on in which he ultimately prevailed, killing her to free her of the blades' influence, then resurrecting her, using a piece of her soul he carried as a belonging. The incident scarred her in many ways and took a good deal of time to heal from, her memories of what came before are now jumbled and vague. In a ritual at Stonehenge, she came to the notice of the dragon god, IO, who took her to His island home, giving her a place to live there, recognizing her as a priestess. Only recently, He has given her a gift - to be able to transform into a silver dragon - which she is currently studying and learning more about. ABILITIES Natural Abilities: Cause Rain/Hail/Snow Storms At Will Can Turn Into Mist Can Throw Up Ice Walls Can Turn Into An Ice Statue Level 1 Spells: Orb of Water Create Water Animate Water Flurry of Snowballs Level 2 Spells: Water Double Scry Reflected Image Hide in Water Icejacket(coats self/target in magical ice and snow) Transmute Liquid (touch spell,can change a liquid into another, ex: water to wine) Ice Knife/Ice Lance/Ice Arrows/Shield Create Mist/Fog Level 3 Spells: Summon Water Creatures Summon Water Elemental Wall of Water/Ice Change Self To Water/Mist/Ice/Snow Create/Steal Emotion Fear of Water/Ice/Hail Calm Level 4 Spells: Manaan de Lir ‘s Horse(s) – creates one or more horses of water to be used as transportation Level 5 Spells: Steal Water (as in from another person/animal's blood) Iceball (similar to fireball but just for cold and impact damage, can be large enough to fill a room) Level 6 Spells: Summon Water Dragon/Dragon of the West (Naelyon is the Celtic name for this beast) Level 7 Spells: Whirlpool Waterspout Water Walk (transport from one body of water to another) Level 8 Spells: Sink (causes the ground under the target to liquefy calling up ground water) Create Boat of Water or Ice Level 9 Spells: Maelstrom (creates a portal from the current plane to the Plane of Water trapping target there, sucking everything into it - but the caster - within a 100 yard range) Tidal Wave Power Word Liquify (one or more targets turn to water,no saving throw,only restored by the gods) Some Previous Offensive Uses: Create Ice on End of Swords Create and Then Freeze Water in Quivers Summon an Underground Geyser Under Target Freeze Targets to Encase In Ice Use Water like Ropes/Tendrils Suck Water Out of Bodies to Mummify Create Walls of Water to Push Targets Off Edges of Cliffs or Buildings Fill Target’s Pants or Boots with Water or Ice Hailstorms Blizzards TRIPLES with EMMA