Radiance and Shadows

Present day, Barovia, Ar'Lan Estate; One

"Sixteen.. what a day." The young woman said, reaching across her bed to her nightstand, grabbing a notebook and scratching another line alongside hundreds of others with a dry quill. Today was her birthday. She wondered if there was anything special for her.

She tossed her notebook back onto the nightstand, rising. Her violet nightdress fell to her feet as she unclasped it, leaving her naked and exposed. She moved to her dresser, yawning and stretching. Her dreams had been filled with images of darkness. In these lands, there was no escape from it, even in slumber.

The young woman reached for the handle of her dresser as someone knocked twice on her door and opened it. She squealed, snatching up her nightdress and hiding herself behind it.

A big, pale green head came through the door a second later. His hair was close cut and black, his teeth straight, save for his lower canines that stuck out past his mouth. He spoke gruffly for his age. "Synika, come quick, there's a batta-"

"I'm changing, get out!"

The male half-orc narrowed his eyes and pulled his head back out of the door, slamming it closed. "Be quick!"

"Go, Gevrin!"

He hit the door once and walked upstairs; Synika could hear his heavy steps above her.

She sighed, closing her eyes. "Why.. do we not.. have locks.. on the doors?"

She shook her head, throwing the nightdress onto the bed, again going to her dresser. She withdrew her undergarments, putting them on quickly. Her hairless body was a blessing of her race.

The young woman herself was beautiful by every meaning of the word. She was lean, like most elves, with small, pointed ears and a small nose. Her irises were shining golden-yellow, complimenting her light skin. Her eyebrows were thin and preened, high cheekbones giving natural contours. Long hair flowed down to her lower back, shiny and dark brown.

She ran her hands over her body, smoothing on lotion made of Chultan tree nuts. She didn't know who or what a Chult was, only that they made tree nut lotion, and that it smelled lovely. The lotion itself was one of the few gifts that her master had given her. She knew very well he often stole items for her and the others; she'd been part of one of many raids on the local Vistani supply only a few weeks back.

She pulled her armor from the closet, yanking it on and lacing it up. She slipped on her boots and arm guards after, standing in the mirror and adjusting herself. The young girl was lucky to have a small chest; most armor was revealing for females as a direct result of the men who usually made it. Hers was no exception.

Her leather armor consisted of a tight crop top laced up the middle, with shoulder guards, exposing the midriff, as well as the upper chest in a V. Around her hips, she strapped on thick, triangular hip guards that had forward and rear triangular leather flaps reaching to her knees at their longest, hanging from the front and back of the belt. She wore only her undergarments below, leaving her long, thin legs open. Her arm guards consisted of two different gloves, the left being a tight leather wrap, studded on the knuckles with iron and fingerless past the first knuckle. The right guard consisted of a curved, diamond shaped plate over the top of her hand, with two triangular curved plates underlapping each other going up her forearm. The plates were bound together on a leather sleeve. Her fingers were free here as well. Both guards stopped before the elbow, leaving her upper arms exposed.

The boots were very tight, but just as comfortable, made of drakeskin and buckled in four places up the front.

She eyed herself up and down.

She had dyed her armor completely black with scarlet accents, something only she had been allowed to do by her master. She worked the hardest, and that had made her the favorite of Ar'Lan.