Codex Unlocked: The Plumage of a Crow
A Crow at Rest
Her blouse is off-shoulder, made of layered lace with embroidered feathers stitched across the chest like wings. Lace allows her body to breathe during fadework, the off shoulder cut leaves her collarbones and throat uncovered, believed to be the best entry points for mana contact. Her skirt is long and flowing, sewn from square scraps of patterned cloth, some bright, some faded, all chosen with intention, all fade-touched. (**This style is rooted in Dominican ceremonial faldas, where patchwork holds memory and protection as its magic. No two skirts are alike.) Daianira’s are made of cloth passed down from her mother, blessed by her mentor, Ria, or gifted in rituals. She wears a heavy belt layered with pouches, chains, dried bundles and protective charms. Each pouch holds something necessary: salt, string, herbs, poisons, and at least two small blades. She’s rarely seen without gold hoops and stacks of bracelets that jingle when she walks. The sound is as much a warning as a declaration: lightning is near or Daianira is.
Among southern Antivan conjurers, especially those raised in Elven or diasporic neighborhoods, gold holds both cultural memory and magical charge. It is not simply a sign of wealth, but of lineage, favor, and power. The body becomes an altar and gold is what you place upon it to honor those who came before you and to protect that which may reach out on the morrow.
Excerpt from "Gold and Its Spirit: An Antivan Conjure Practice" Dragon 9:14
Sending Regards
Daianira’s armor is built to be watched, she's a crow. Her chainmail's made to mimic gleaming feathers, flexible but strong. As an orb and dagger user, she's used to close combat and her skirts are open for flexibility. The boots are sculpted high up the thigh, inspired by old Antivan ceremonial armor, a hidden compartment in found in the heels. She does not believe in light plates, not while she's up close, so she opts for medium chainmail. Get close enough, and the scales dipped in poison will kill you before she does. The wide, veiled hat is part mourning veil, part statement piece, common in the southern coast where spirits are honored with mourning garb and Daianira repurposes this grief to give her marks a proper send off. Bone charmwork is sewn into the armor’s lining, and the crow skulls, a personal nod to her father and her own inheritance, but mostly, to honor her fallen summons. Each element of the armor is enchanted.
Antivan Crows are masters of contact poison, delivering death with a brush of fingers. Standard methods include: lace delivery, spelled gold or bone rings, gauntlet daggers and kissable poisons.
Excerpt from "Antiva and their beloved Crows" Dragon 9:27
The Witch of Blades
The corset hugs her waist tight, “bind the body so the soul can fly,” her mentor taught her, the skirts are layered with lace and fine silk, with a shape that became popular with the nobility post-Inquisition. Her cloak is dramatic, sweeping, and feather accented, draping across her shoulders like wings. Her boots are heeled, her jewelry even more intentional than usual. Each ring, each necklace selected for the performance she will give that night, her perfume is also heavier.
Catalogued by Ydelmi Amara, Apothecary in Rialto
Client: Daianira Tabris
Use: Personal scent
Notes:
Top: Gardenia, guava leaf, amber
Heart: Clove, cinnamon rum, ocean salt
Base: Burnt sugar, jasmine, woodsmoke
Commissioned for ritual and personal use.
Blend anchors the wearer in the Fade, wards against spiritual interference and leaves a sensory imprint on the living.
Not for casual wear, do not replicate.
art and design notes by @alamangoes
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