The Truth of Luxphalia (closed; started)

Name: Ashen Millen

Age (any age is fine): 15

Gender: Female

Position (Specify which of the characters in the character list): Commoner

Appearance: Ashen is about 5 foot 6 and about average weight. Everything about her screams average from her average brown hair to her weight to her height. The only thing different is her electric blue eyes, which nobody can explain.

Personality: Ashen is quiet and intelligent, and is used to sneaking and lying. She is very cunning, though you wouldn't guess because of her shyness. Ashen is extremely hard on the inside and takes help from no one, having had horrible experience with favors in her past. Extremely soft-spoken.

Background/History: Ashen was only five when her parents were killed in a war among the kingdoms. She was taken in by a man who figured that he was doing her a favor, though he worked her to the bone so she could earn her "keep." When Ashen couldn't do something he beat her until she ran away at eleven. She lived on the streets ever since and has kept herself alive for four years. All she worries about is living another day.

Strengths/Weaknesses: Ashen is smart and cunning, which can help her to get food and pity. Her weakness is that she won't let anyone in and won't trust anyone because of her past, which can be extremely problematic when faced with a problem. This will stand in the way of her somehow helping her with the disease and dragon. This is something she will have to overcome.

Up for love?: Yes, but she needs a boy who will understand and not push the relationship too fast due to her distrust.

Other: Ashen is a key to solving the dragon/disease mystery, especially with the dragon because of her cunning and sneakiness.

Name: Leyna

Age (any age is fine):13

Gender: Female

Position:Fairy

Appearance: Leyna is tiny with fair skin. She has silky blond hair that she usually pins with a clip shaped like the sun, and has a sword through it which is the sign used to represent her fairy race. She wears a light yellow tunic with black tights and strapped sandals. She also has a yellow wand that can turn into a full out sword.

Personality: Leyna is sweet and sour, as she is sometimes called. She has a heart of gold for those who she thinks deserve it and a scowl accompanied by a few words for people who are rude. She loves to help others and enjoys fighting just as much as she does helping out the other fairies and villagers with whatever they need. Leyna is usually obedient, but rebellious when the time comes.

Background/History: Aura and Patrick, Lenya's parents had moved to the kingdom of
Luxphalia, right before she had been born. Leyna was born in the month of July. Her father believed that it was important for her to defend herself,while her mom wanted her to be polite and proper. Therefore she carries a wand/ sword everywhere. She wasn't spoiled,but never abandoned by her parents. She also got a dog last year which she named Sunny.

Strengths: Leyna's magic and fighting background helps her in tough situations, and her mother had taught her how to use magic really young.

Weaknesses: Leyna can be scared away and is still growing, which means that she's at that age where her magic may sometimes be unpredictable. Leyna can also over think easy situations. This gets her confused often.

Up for love?: She's ok with liking someone, but isn't the kind to openly confess.

Other: She has tons of other fairy and magical friends.

Reserving a spot

Name: Warren Falderan

Age (any age is fine): 16

Gender: Male

Position (Specify which of the characters in the character list): Commoner

Appearance: Warren is tall, skinny, and somewhat gangly. He has a mess of curly black hair, bright green eyes, and tan skin from being in the sun. He has fine hands with long, nimble fingers. They are calloused, but refined - a defining feature for him because they are so singular on a Commoner. The only irregularity about him is a thin scar on his cheek from a knife incident.

Personality: Warren is quiet, but not afraid to stand up if people contradict what he believes in. He is a loyal friend for those who know him well, who are not many. Warren is a fine carpenter (that is what caused his hands to be so remarkable) and mostly works in wood carving and artwork, sometimes that go to the castles of nobility. He is extremely attached to his work,which is partly what makes him such an introvert. He loves to carve wooden instruments, and also loves to play music, although he has not had any official instruction on the subject. Warren is very kind and inwardly brave.

Background/History: He lives with his father in his wood workshop. His father is very hard on the outside,and gruffly solemn to the unobservant eye. But, his father was also a carpenter (making larger things) and is very artistic and kind. However, both of them have to live with the biggest sadness in Warren's childhood: When the boy was about six or seven, his mother was brutally murdered because of a political dispute in their village that no longer exists today. The murderer was who gave Warren the knife scar on his cheek. But, the murderer fled after the fact and was never seen again. Warren wishes to seek out the killer, though, and take revenge.

Strengths/Weaknesses: Strengths: Warren is kind, brave on the inside, and a very loyal friend. He will do anything for those he most loves, and will never turn a cold eye on those who need help.
Weaknesses: He is so shy that he does not have a ton of friends. He is not very physically fit and would not be good in a fight.

Up for love?: Yes, he would be very loyal, though shy, and very nice.

Other: Warren lives a little south of the kingdom's capital, and will be closer to the plague. He also has a little lute that was his mother's and is his most prized possession.

Countess Wilhelmina of Favell; at her castle

I sighed, trudging into my quarters and pulling off my leather riding boots. I sat down on the four-poster bed with a groan, and leaned my head against the pillows, thinking. How could I catch a glimpse of this scaly beast, this creature which had so long been avoiding my gaze? So many rumors, complaints even, and yet...

I shook my head. Never mind. I had been riding around the outskirts of the mountains for days, and all I had to show for it was icy fingers and a cold. If there was a hint of a problem like this, a dragon, then I had no choice but to go to the capital to consult with the King. I sighed again. If only I could see the creature before I had to go...but no. With a groan, I got off the bed, changed into a more respectable evening gown, and headed down to dinner.

When Laila, my servant, had finished bringing out my supper, I remembered that the Duchess I invited over would not be coming. Yet another lonely dinner. But, I reminded myself, I would have plenty of time for catching up with friends when I arrived at the Capital.

I couldn't resist saying good night to Helda, my stallion, before bed. I knew I would see her again early in the morning tomorrow to begin the long journey, but she deserved some love after getting such a workout in the mountains this past week. I swept into the stables and headed for her stall, not even noticing the stable boy who bowed with an "Evening, Countess". I rubbed the beautiful grey stallion's nose, soothing it.

"We're going to the Capital tomorrow, Helda," I whispered to her, "And we're gonna find this dragon."

Warren Falderan; at his home village

I burst through the landing door, banging my forehead on the doorway in the process.

"Father! Father? Are you there?" I said, holding my hand to the growing bump on my head. A gruff voice answered,

"Uh-huh. What's the big fuss?" My dad walked through the one interior doorway in the top floor, between the bedroom and the kitchen. We lived on top of the woodshop.

I rubbed my head in a dejected manner, then replied, quietly, what I dreaded to. "There's a plague, father. Coming our way. And not a normal one, either." I looked down, back to my normal, quiet self. The middle-aged man rubbed his stubble of a beard.

"Mmgh," he grunted, eyebrows furrowing. I sighed.

"The messenger just made an announcement in the square. There's a bad plague that's starting down in the deep south, making its slow way up. They say it's magic. Dark magic.". I sat down heavily in a wooden, carved chair. My head throbbed. "It won't reach here quickly. But if they can't stop it in time, it will make its way right up to our village.". I let it sink in.

"Mmgh," was the reply.

Sighing, I got up and walked down the stairs to my workshop. I was working on a small viol right now, with a mermaid as the scroll. I carved a few half-hearted curls into her flowing hair, and put the delicate instrument down again.

What would we have to do?

Diana Cloven, Castle in the Capital City

I rushed through the courtyard, my feet scraping on the uneven stones that created it. My dark hair flew out behind me in uneven tangles, promising pain later on. I zoomed past the stables, where I hardly noticed the surprised look on the stable-boy's face as he watched crazy Diana Cloven rush about the castle, late again for another feast.

I had been wondering in the forest, climbing trees to perhaps get a glimpse of this dragon I had been hearing rumors about. Instead, all I had gotten was scraped hands and muddy trousers. And, unfortunatley, garunteed embarrassment.

I flew through the castle and finally found my chambers, where I yanked a brush through m hair and changed into a gown that would pass for formal.

I stared at my small figure in the mirror for a moment and wondered if what people said was true, if I could be beautiful if I took more care with my looks. I suppose my hair was nice enough, my cheekbones high, and my skin even. I looked at my reflection a bit longer, then remebered the time. I turned away. What did it matter what others thought? This was me. Diana. And they better get used to it.

Though the past three years, getting used to me is the last thing people have ever done.

Ashen Millen, her home village

The market was crowded at this time of day, which was good for what I was planning to do. I hunched my shoulders and let my brown hair fall over my shoulders, screening my face. I let myself sink it averageness. This was heaven.

I shook my head and set myself to the task ahead of me. A man bumped me and I mumbled an apology, slipping my newfound three silver coins in my pocket. I bit my lip to conceal my smile and picked a gold coin and another silver. This was my lucky day.

Don't spend it all at once, I reminded myself. I walked over to the bakery and nodded at the owner, Mark. Only one person knew what I was doing and Mark was not one of them. So therefore, not trust there.

I bought a loaf of the cheapest bread I could find, it cost me half a silver. Mark gave me my change and I walked away, a hostile look on my face, appropriate for the place I was going.

I walked into the pub and listened to the shouts of angry, drunken men. I grit my teeth and kept walking, these men reminded me of my torturer, the bane of my nightmares.

I walked up to the bar and sat on a stool, my sharp blue eyes gazing for the man I was looking for. Anthony walked up from behind me and sat on the stool next to me.

" Ashen," he said, grinning at me.

"Anthony." I said sharply.

He cocked his head and ran his fingers through his orange hair. "I do hope you had an enjoyable afternoon."

"You of all people know that I hardly enjoy anything I do," I replied, scowling at him.

Anthony laughed and leaned over the bar.

And bought me a drink.

Spoiler

sorry it is so short and there might be mistakes. On my phone. I will fix it later.

Stephen

The feast was the the last thing on my mind. Mel and I were walking around the house and had no motive to get there on time. When I was with my little sister, I did not have to be the prince I was expected to be. I could just be me. "So where did you run off to today?" I ask her.

"Just the village. I was trying to catch a peak of the dragon, but I did not see any thing." She sighed.

"I guess that is a good thing, but it could still be out there. " I say. "Did you go with Diana?"

"I did I not go with her, but I am pretty sure she went. She said she was going to go. Wait, why do you want to know?" She asks, giving me a weird look.

"I was just wondering. Sister, do not think anything of it." I said, blushing a little. We walk into the huge room where the feast is being held. My father and mother shoot looks at us, but I do not really care. I take my seat next to my sister and I notice Diana is not here as well. All of a sudden the doors burst open and Diana comes in, out of breath. I smile at her and she sits down across from my sister.

"Now that everyone is here," She says, shooting us looks. "We can eat."

Balik Douala; Castle

He sat at the head of the table silently, staring at his childrens' empty seats, and tapped a finger against the arm of his chair. He smiled a Lily as she tapped her feet against the floor impatiently. At least he didn't have to worry about one kid yet. He narrowed his eyes at them as they came in.

Stephan looked like his normal, sullen self, unrepentant, a little angry. Melina just flashed a sparkling smile, just as unrepentant, but a bit happier about it. I was about to begin when Diana ran in.

Kamira said softly, her voice cutting through the murmurs in the room instantly, "Now that everyone is here. We can eat."

And the blasted awkward routine began again. I carefully ignored my family and tried to care about what the multiple advisers on my left hand side were saying. Which I didn't because it was one big gloating contest. I looked up when the door banged open for the second time that night.

A harried messenger ran up, quickly followed by another. They bowed quickly. One handed me a letter with the Favell seal on it. The other stood there, looking distressed. I waited, watching him, and he cleared his throat.

"Ah, this is better said without other ears," he whispered.

I glanced around and nodded slowly. I bowed to my wife and nodded to my advisers. "If you'll excuse me." I left, opening the letter as I walked.

The countess was coming to share some particularly bad news, news that could apparently not be trusted in a letter. I sighed. People. I was so great with people.

I ushered the remaining messenger into my study. "Now what do you need to tell me?"

Lily Douala; The Castle

I sat across my father, swinging my feet. I smiled as I hummed under my breath thinking about what the dragon may have looked like. I imagined a red dragon with large wings and flame's that shot out of it mouth.

My imaginary dragon was starting to get good when the rest of the family walked in. Stephan sat next to me and Diana ran in a minute later.

Mother was obviously mad when Diana showed up late but I couldn't care less. Father seemed at his usually state till a messenger ran in and pulled him aside. We kept eating none of really noticing our father's absence, he never talked anyways. Mother shooed us away when we finished and she set off to take care of something.

Stephan, Diana, and I stood in the hall as the other's fled out of the dining hall. Stephan gave me a look and I nodded. He knew I was going to run off to try to see that dragon again, so I did.

I ran out of the large castle and into the village. I could hear screams, so I followed the sound. They brought me to the dragon.

I almost screamed in joy, but I wasn't going to risk me being found. I felt a hand rest on my shoulder and turned to find Stephan.

Ashen Millen, her village

I lay against my tree and watched the sky. My home was a tree in the forest next to the village, so I knew what was happening. The stars formed constellations above me, but I wasn't as interested in them as I normally was.

Something felt off about today. After I had talked with Anthony for awhile I had returned and eaten a dinner of bread and cheese. That had been normal, tonight wasn't. I could feel it in my bones.

I suddenly saw a flash from above. I frowned. I saw another flash and climbed to the top of my tree to see what it was. Before I could see what was causing this strange light something torched the tree next to me.

Survival instincts kicked in. I jumped from the tree and began sprinting away from the fire, tearing through brush as I went. I cam to the village and saw chaos.

" Dragon!" People screamed, running with their few precious belongings. I knew that's was what had burned my home. All my money was in that tree, all my food. My fist clenched. My hand flew to my neck where my mother's locket was. At least I had that.

Someone grabbed my arm from behind. Anthony's face was lit in the fire that was everywhere. "Go!" He screamed, pushing me forward.

I shook my head. Even though I was fighting the urge t get as far away as possible, I decided to help my conscience and assist people in escaping. I caught a glimpse of the fiery red beast and my hands began to shake. I didn't get a good view, though.

I rushed to a small girl who was staring in awe at the sight and grabbed her hand. "Go!" I yelled. She didn't budge. I tried to propel her forward.

Suddenly a girl about my age in fine clothes and dark features pulled my hand away. "Go," she said, grabbing the girl's hand. A tall, muscular boy stood beside her. "I'll take care of it."

The dark haired girl led the younger me off in the other direction, the man ( I had realized he was older than he looked) took off after them.

I stared in their direction and shook off my shock. I had to leave.

Stephan- The village

When Lily ran off, I began to panic. I remembered the dragon and my eyes grew wide. Before I knew it, Diana and I were running out of the castle in a full sprint. I could hear screams all around and I run as fast as I can to find my sister, but she was right there. Standing in awe of the dragon. I snuck up and touched her shoulder, but my eyes were locked on the dragon. I could hear people telling her to go and shake my head, snapping out of the trance I was in.

I pick up Lily and Diana and I run back to the castle. Diana stumbles over a branch and falls. I reach down for her hand and pull her along. I see knights running out of the castle with swords in hand. When we get to the castle, I give Lily to Diana. "Both of you, please go somewhere safe." I say. Diana nods and I kiss Lily on the cheek before they run inside. I grab a sword and run back towards the village. I see mages and knights attacking it, but it is not doing enough to kill it. I try to think of something to do, but I do not know. Then it hits me. I run up to two on the knights and motion them to come with my. They did as told and we climbed up onto the roof of a shop. "Prince Stephen what are we doing up here?" One of them asks.

"We are going to try to kill this thing." I say. "Now on my mark, we are going to take it from up here. It will not kill it, but it will hurt it enough for someone else to." I look down to see it right under us. "Now." I scream.

We jump down and our swords stab into the dragon. It lets out a huge cry and we jump of it. "Take it down." Some one said. The dragon let out a huge breath of fire and then dropped to the ground.

Diana Cloven, the castle

I let Prince Stephen save my life. Those were my thoughts as I brought Princess Lily to somewhere safe. I was angry. I breathed through my nose and clenched my fists.

"Did you see the dragon?" Lily squeaked, running beside me.

"Yep," I said with much less enthusiasm. " Amazing." I breathed a sigh of relief when we finally found Mel. She grabbed Lily and nodded at me.

"Thanks, Diana," she said, hugging her sister.

"Don't mention it," I said, sprinting away to my chambers. I ransacked my drawers until I found my sword. I strapped it to my side and ran to the stables. No time for running, I had to ride my horse.

I opened the door to Storm's stables and jumped on bareback. I urged her on and we raced out of the castle. I got to the village in no time flat and saw that they were having no success in killing the thing.

I jumped off my horse and ran to the dragon from behind, slashing it's back leg. It roared in anger and kicked. I dove out of the way and weaves through knights and mages.

Prince Stephen saw me and his eyes widened. He yelled something to me but I couldn't hear from the roars of the dragon. I turned away and faced the dragon. It hardly looked hurt at all, which wasn't encouraging.

I ran up to it and stabbed it's foot. It screeched and took off, it's wings throwing people aside. One of it's talons caught me on my side. I screamed as a sharp pain ripped through me, from my waist to my armpit. Blood soaked through my shirt and I barely had time to catch a glimpse of the dragon flying away when I blacked out.

Stephen

I run out to Diana and look at her. I quickly pick her up and run back to the castle. I told someone to bring her horse back to the stables as I run. Right as I run through the doors I start yelling. "I need help now!" A few ladies come to my side and motion me to move. They patch her up to stop her from loosing too much blood. When they finish, I carry her back up to her bedroom. I lay her down and sit in the chair right next to her bed.

"I keep forgetting how strong you are." I whisper. I have never met any girl like her before. She is so brave and strong.

Mel darts into the doors. "What happened to her?" She asks.

"She stabbed the dragon in the foot." I say. "She did not even get to see it go down."

I look down at Diana and sigh. "Is she going to be okay." Mel asked.

"They said she would be and that she should wake up soon." I say.