a scrap from the diary of a general, 001.
[a spilt bottle of ink blots out parts of the text.]
masquerade tonight [ . . . ] a mockery of a presentation. who did those jesters think they were? [ . . . ] no idea where they're from. what could they have possibly wanted [ . . . ] ? king of thorns, queen of sorrows, kingdom of hollows—sagas help me, it rhymes [ . . . ] were they even thinking? who brought them there?
i knew something was going to go wrong. there was this gut feeling [ . . . ] waved it off as nerves. i don't do events frequently, it had to be that, even despite me being okay with people [ . . . ] gets nervous! but i was right. i should've known. i should've done something.
this isn't your kingdom, qynna. it's not on you.
five thronebearers (masked as crows [ . . . ] quite beautiful), plus the two jesters equals seven people overall. [ . . . ] significant? does it have something to do with these "three" that [ . . . ] mentioned? what are they referring to? held three what? [ . . . ] are there three of that are significant enough to be important?
qynna. 28. she/her. the general of asteria. the strategist. –
. – beck. 20. they/them. utc-6.
as a child, qynna was easily excitable, and that never seems to have diminished over the years. she grew up in asteria with her father and younger sibling, running around with her fellow children and playing rough with the boys.
her father was a knight, and trained her in combat from the time she was young. from the minute her hand touched the hilt of a sword, she knew it was what she wanted to do in life. she gravitated towards weaponry lessons and mastered as many forms of combat as she could—swords, bows, shields…
she's always had an affinity with animals, though it didn't really come to light as true power until one day in the middle of winter. qynna was lost in the forest on a hunting trip, trying—and failing—to find her way home. eventually, she came across a deer, and rather than shooting it to fill her already empty pack, she asked it to help her home. it conceded.
eventually, she was appointed general of asteria at the age of 23. she takes her job quite seriously, and it's one of the few times you will see her without a smile on her face. (especially around this time, with this foolish marriage and strange stirrings.)
IC INFORMATION
NAME: qynna astaret
AGE: 28
PRONOUNS: she/her
FC: thaddea graham
CHARACTER TRAITS:
+ cheerful, thoughtful, observant, loves animals, social, bubbly
– optimistic, talkative, can't hide her emotions, confident, emotional
HEADCANONS:
+ qynna is deathly allergic to garlic. garlic flowers, garlic smell, eating garlic; it doesn't seem to matter—she will break out in hives and a rash. it only gets worse from there.
+ she adores music, and knows how to play some small hand string instruments, like the lute or lyre. what she really wanted to learn were wind instruments, but she was told she didn't have the lungs for them, and therefore never got to learn.
+ she is fully trained in combat; her father was a knight and thought it was important for her and her sibling to know how to defend themselves. she loved it, and took to it quickly. despite her preference for non-violent methodology, she still has the reflexes—and the though pattern—of a fighter, and she will use her first impression to subvert expectation. her favorite weapon is a shortsword.
+ qynna loves food. she'll eat almost anything given to her, and even some things that aren't given to her. she can't cook worth a damn, but she doesn't let that stop her from trying.
+ despite her appearance and shortcomings, she is fiercely protective of her armies and her country, and she would sooner give her life for them than let something sneak past her. she is massively observant, and has a tendency to look at problems in ways others don't.
POWERS:
animal communication. she has the ability to speak with animals. most of the time, it's just like talking to humanoids—just like with any language, it takes practice. she can do this at any time, but if she hasn't talked with a specific species before, it is liable to be more difficult—or even impossible—for her to understand them.
+ she is best with four-legged mammals and birds, and fluent in most bird dialects.
– she is incapable of communicating with insects.
animal manipulation. for a short period of time, she can command any animal she can see to do what she wants. only one animal at a time, and larger animals are harder to control.
+ the spell can last anywhere from ten minutes to an hour, and no longer.
– there is a verbal component for this magic, and she has only a basic series of commands she can use, including attack, hide, fetch, follow, come; things of that nature.
– while using this power doesn't exhaust her, the animal will be aware it is being controlled, and is able to react however it likes when the magic wears off.
