Sample Application (Good):

Name:
Celeste Lucia Idaeus

Powers:
Wind-Elemental

Points:
50 extra points.

Introduction:

"If after every tempest come such calms,
May the winds blow till they have waken'd death!"

-Shakespeare's Othello

Aether was recommended to me when I was trying out yet another Pern game. I've played Perns for three years, now, and they all seem to lack something, for me... I've lost the enjoyment I once had for them. However, I still love RPing; I simply needed something new to do. Somebody told me about Aether, and I took a little bit to look it over... and fell in love.

Once I'd finished with the news files and the web page, I knew what I wanted to do, and I began this application with the hopes that the character it has only taken me a few hours to love will meet your approval as well.

History:

"Born for success [she] seemed,
With grace to win, with heart to hold,
With shining gifts that took all eyes."

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

In the early morning hours of January 11, 3869, Galatea Septima Idraeus, wife of Lucian Arsenius Idraeus, went into labor. Given the hour, the midwife had to be roused from bed by a servant, but she arrived in plenty of time. At quarter after four in the morning, Galatea gave birth to a healthy baby girl, with hair like spun silver. They named her Celeste Lucia. And so, her life began in an exceedingly unremarkable manner.

Likewise, her breeding was not particularly auspicious; Celeste was born to 'common' blood. They certainly weren't poor, however, and her father had done quite well as an architect in the slowly growing settlement. Galatea was content to stay home with her baby, while Lucian was away with work. Celeste, being an only child, was always a little bit spoiled by her mother -- but in general, she was a cheerful baby.

She grew like other Empyrean children -- all those firsts. Teeth, steps, words, wings... slowly, Celeste went from infant to toddler to child. Cheerful, always smiling, she was also a little bit accident prone, as youngsters often are, knocking over everything that wasn't nailed down at some point or another. It was the subject of many knowing smiles, but no particular problem, until Celeste took her first flight.

It was an unalloyed disaster; she managed to crash into a wall, turning to avoid going head-first and therefore fracturing several of the bones in her left wing. Of course, it was just a small accident, and there was none in that area with the healing magic at the time, so it had to be set by hand. Within a few months, however, it was as though nothing had happened, and she was finally getting the hang of this flight thing.

Unlike Civitas Dei, far from the reach of storms in its lofty place, this settlement had no such protection; however, the occasional thunderstorm was hardly any subject for worry. They were rare enough as it was, thanks to the positioning of the town. One day, about six months after Celeste's injury, a storm began brewing on the horizon, and the little girl fled to her room in tears. Considering that she'd always been a bit shy of loud noises, Galatea assumed she was afraid of the thunder rumbling in the distance, and went to comfort her.

Unfortunately, it began to happen more often. She seemed genuinely afraid of the storms, and while the other children remained out and playing, Celeste would run inside at the first hint of a shower. Her mother grew worried, especially after the strangest incident -- the child ran into the house and locked herself in her bedroom at one point, and it was a full three hours before the storm hit. The worst one in several years. It was becoming a full-blown phobia, but Galatea didn't know what to do.

Then, Celeste turned fifteen. In itself not a remarkable event, but Galatea decided that it was time that Celeste saw a little bit of the world. So, the whole family went on a 'vacation' of sorts -- first to Civitas Dei, for a few days, and then to Haven. Celeste was intrigued by Haven, to say the least. All those lesser races -- and free mongrels? All sorts of sights, and sounds, and smells that she'd never encountered before.

In the midst of their shopping and visiting, they encountered another new thing -- an Esper. Who promptly insisted -- not too politely, but then, Lucian and Galatea weren't terribly polite about it, either -- that Celeste needed to go to Delphi. Of course, her parents thought this was ridiculous; Celeste had shown no sign of magical talent, and they weren't going to lose her if she had. But he insisted -- and, in the end, after much arguing, Celeste went to Delphi.

Those first months were both terrifying and enlightening. Celeste was quite homesick, and now surrounded by so many strange people, the once-cheerful child turned shy. However, learning this magic thing was fascinating, and she did quite well at it, having very little problem controlling her power. The problem was, once they got beyond summoning little breezes, everything... froze.

It wasn't just being afraid, precisely. It was mind-numbing, heart-pounding, sweaty-palmed terror every time they even tried to get her to call rain. Ashamed, Celeste retreated even further from her peers. Her teacher found it almost maddening; attempting to instruct Celeste was like trying to talk to a brick wall. She simply wouldn't do anything. In fact, Delphi almost gave up on training Celeste entirely -- until someone had an idea.

There was, apparently, a similar case, many years before, where fear had gotten in the way of a student's progress. His teachers had experimented, and finally found a method that worked. As bombardment with magic can disable the use of magic, they attempted to get rid of the phobia by exposing the person to that which he feared. Celeste was reluctant, of course, but things gradually got worse, and she finally realized that there was no other way.

It was a simple enough process. They went far enough out of the city to avoid causing problems, held her there... and called a storm. Of course, she screamed, and cried, and some might have called them heartless for continuing, but they did. For hours, it raged on, thunder rolling and lightning striking. And finally, miraculously... Celeste began to calm down. Finally, it dissipated, and they returned to Delphi. Cured.

From there, her studies went much better, and she soon progressed to Acolyte. Now that she was not separated from the others by her fear, she became more social, even made friends. Now that she had nothing to fear from it, she studied constantly, and took joy in her magic. For all intents and purposes, it was as if the fear was gone. Now, she had a calling. And a dream. She wanted to help other people as her teacher had helped her.

As she progressed towards Adept, studies began to preclude all else. Her friendships suffered as she spent hours meditating and practicing. Still, it paid off; in her early thirties, she reached 'Adept' ranking, and the right to wear the third diamond. Now that she was able, she decided to try and call a storm. It was, perhaps, a foolish thing to do -- but she wouldn't realize that until later.

Unfortunately, the one she managed to pull towards Haven was stronger than she originally intended -- near-hurricane strength. She chose to ignore the warnings her own senses were giving her; after all, she believed she could control it. The sky turned dark, the wind picked up, and the sea grew choppy, but still she continued. Then, in the midst of it, there was a glimmer of the old fear... and her control slipped, just a little. Thunder, lightning; a ship crashed into the docks, two others collided and sank. There would have been a great loss of life, if there hadn't been several Atlanteans who helped the people to the shore. Lightning struck, causing a fire in the nearby woods which was luckily put out by the sheer magnitude of rain.

Finally, she was able to regain her control with the help of another -- but that didn't change what had happened. Even though nobody had died, that was only chance; Celeste felt guilty enough as it was. But guilt changed nothing. There were still the Askari to worry about. Too unsure of herself to stay at Delphi anyway and now afraid for her life, Celeste fled the city, and returned home to her parents.

Meanwhile, more was going on in the world, even as Celeste attempted to resume a 'normal' life. Matters with the Varati were not getting any better, and then the news came, that the Emperor was dead. Soon after it was revealed that he would be succeeded by Lucian Deiepetes, Celeste realized that she had to get a grip, get control of herself. She felt out of place enough at home, after having been away for so long; finally, she returned to Delphi. Now thirty-six, she took a position as a teacher.

Psyche:

Fear: In childhood, Celeste developed a strong phobia of storms -- which progressed, as she grew older, into a fear of anything remotely resembling such, down to the lightest rainfall. For one with an affinity for the air element, this was debilitating, and for most of her training, she never fully conquered it, which is why she lost control that once. Now, however, she has it under control, although she'll never be comfortable during a thunderstorm.

Willpower: Although she at first had a very good control of her magic, Celeste took a very long time to be able to confront her fear... and, in fact, eventually the fear itself caused her to lose control of the magic. Only after taking time off was Celeste able to summon up the willpower necessary to conquer her fears and return her life to normal. Now, she has become a strong individual -- although the downside is that she can be a bit headstrong at times.

Pride: Like many Empyreans, Celeste is very proud of her race and their accomplishments. Although she was raised as a commoner, her magic brings her respect she might not have otherwise warranted; although not truly arrogant, she has developed, perhaps due to it being expected of her, a small amount of disdain to those who cannot do what she can.

Racism: However, unlike many Empyreans, Celeste is not an out-and-out racist. She hates the Varati as a group, having heard the war stories as much as the next person, but has no qualms with individuals, as long as they are not directly associated with it. Although she, too, considers the Sylvans no more than barbarians, she has a healthy respect for those who learn true control of the magic they wield, as she has gone through the same troubles. Her initial thoughts may be colored by these judgements, but she has learned to take the time to get to know people before making true judgements. After all, the people at Delphi did turn out to be friendly. Unfortunately, these sentiments do not extend to mongrels; halfbreeds may be respected for they, too, hold magic, but the mongrels do not -- for that, she sees them all as servants, although some few warrant a feeling of pity.

Passion: Celeste has recently come to realize that she does not 'belong' among the common people of the Empyre; she has gone beyond what her family will ever hope to achieve, and likewise the others. Magic is what sets her apart -- and magic is what she loves. Now that her fear is under control, her magic is likewise, and she rejoices in being able to impart a part of that upon her students.

Patience: What teacher can live without patience? Especially in such a delicate subject as magic, Celeste's studies have given her a near-infinite amount of this. She's willing to go over something as many times as are necessary, for the final satisfaction of seeing herself -- or her student -- accomplish what they hoped to do. Besides, the Empyreans are relatively long-lived folk, and she is relatively young; she has plenty of time.

Confidence: Although for many years, Celeste's fears undermined her self-confidence, conquering those has given her a new measure of self-respect. If she sets out to do something, she will, and she's utterly confident in her abilities -- it may not entirely be founded, but if she didn't, she'd have to face the possibility of that disastrous loss of control that nearly killed someone. So, instead, she will not let herself fail.

Goals: Celeste is now a teacher, first and foremost; she hopes to advance herself, but her primary goal is teaching her students. It's very important to her, and while for others, success means wealth or a good name, Celeste merely hopes to see her pupils someday outshine her. Of course, her own magic does not go to the wayside, but it is put to more 'useful' purposes... mundane, perhaps, but it's quite nice to be able to close doors without having to get up. :)

Stats:

Explanation: Celeste is a reasonably small woman, even for an Empyrean, and has little time for physical pursuits; although she can, if necessary, defend herself by the most basic of means -- hence the 5 in Warfare -- she's nowhere near being any sort of 'physical powerhouse' -- hence the 10 in Force. Practice and training have increased her mental and physical stamina, so that despite being petite, she can maintain her magic for a reasonable amount of time. Although as a child, she was somewhat awkward, as an adult she is at least coordinated, if not graceful. It is in recent years that she has gained the willpower necessary to truly control her powers and exercise them to her greatest advantage -- and it was that willpower that allowed her to finally overcome her fears. As a current teacher at Delphi, she is reasonably perceptive, and her thirty-six years of experience have given her a certain amount of wisdom. Her regular education was fairly basic; she can read, write, and figure, but most of her education has been in the use of her elemental magic, not in book-learning. And, of course, she is an Adept of the element of air.

Conclusion:

"They have sown the wind,
And they shall reap the whirlwind."

-Hosea 8:7

Ta-da! The third version of the application, now, hopefully better than ever. More detail, more drama... and something which I like a little better. Once again, thanks to Astraea for pointing out the areas in which she needed work. Now, with her rewritten background, I once again submit Celeste for your approval. She's become even more dear to me in this work; in being forced to think these things over one more time, I think I'm beginning to get a better sense of her than I have of any of my characters elsegame who were created with less forethought. Thank you for reading through this; I hope I'll have the chance to actually RP her in the near future. Celeste is a character with possibilities, and I'm eager to see where she goes from here.  

[ Home | News | Staff | Players | Links | Gallery | Logs | Library | Updates | Mail ]
[ Connect to the Game ]