#haligren's ocs

[sitraachranovel]

Just a King and her Secretkeeper. :>

A crop of a larger sketch with some very quick and messy shading.

[haliteatiger]

This my "Tav", Silence. I'm still sorta working out her background details, but for now it's safe to say she's had it pretty rough.

Check below the cut for a lot of rambling and pointless, self-indulgent headcanons.

Her name comes from the fact that she didn't speak for the first few years of her life, instead learning to play the violin and communicating through her art. Someone started calling her "Little Silence" and it just sort of stuck. She didn't know her parents, but was adopted by a noble who saw her as a unique "pet" given her unusual appearance - even for a tiefling - and her musical and artistic talents.

Unfortunately, the guy was bad with money, and ended up gambling away a good portion of whatever Silence earned, in the end becoming desperate enough to try and auction off her virginity when she came of age. Silence, obviously, was not going to stand for this, and managed to escape - possibly killing the man who bought her in the process, she wasn't sure and frankly doesn't care.

With only her violin and a precious few belongings in tow, Silence made her way to Baldur's Gate and was eventually found by a gang of performers and thieves (that I have yet to come up with a name for) where she learned ways on how to survive on the streets and defend herself with her art. Now in her late 20s, and poised to set out on her own due to some complications within her social circle, she was taken aboard the Nautiloid.

There are two sides to Silence - one is kind of quiet, observant, and sensitive. She has a way of simply blending into the background if she doesn't want to be observed (she's good at Stealthing, I guess), and the other is her more or less "bard persona", which is outgoing and charismatic. Contrary to her name, Silence can be quite talkative when the mood strikes her. It's usually when she becomes angry, flustered, or anxious where she seems to forget words entirely and has a hard time articulating herself, which has led into some dramatic situations when she lashes out more physically.

Overall, she's easygoing, and tries very hard not to let her emotions get in the way of her making decisions, and so often comes off as more pragmatic than anything. She's also pretty accepting of those around her even if she is, in actuality, slow to trust. I guess you could say she's highly manipulative as a defence mechanism. So it's not that she lies to people, per se, but she can come off as liking someone more than she does if only to deflect harm from herself. She is not a people-pleaser, however, and has very defined boundaries in terms of how far she's willing to concede to someone, especially a stranger. She's excellent at reading people (most of the time), acts more confident than she seems, knows a little about a lot of topics, and is always eager to learn more. She can be impulsive and rude without meaning to, and has something of a sarcastic and dry sense of humor that always seems almost prepared in advance whenever she snaps back at someone. Her charisma and wit often seem to leave others with the mistaken impression that she knows what she's doing in any given situation, and thus has often been beset with expectations she's sure she's more often than not fallen short of. Somehow, people just seem to think she's the most competent one in the room because she talks a good talk. Due to her dual upbringing, she is capable of blending in with high society as well as she does low. Silence will generally act within her own best interests or those of her friends, but it doesn't really take much to persuade her to do the right thing.

A good example would be when she and the gang arrive at the druid hold and is asked to help the tieflings. Initially she denies getting involved until mocked by Astarion for "turning her back on the needy", at which point, just to annoy him, agrees to help. (Although, when pressed she admits she mostly did it because she realized they needed some things in the area anyway and helping them could be beneficial to their cause). She can have kind of an impish sense of humor and while she doesn't like to see others get hurt, probably does take more pleasure in watching her enemies die writhing in agony than she'd care to admit.

Random fun fact: Silence is a feral tiefling, and her tail is supposed to be reminiscent of a heraldic unicorn's or lion's tail. She often carries it with a curl or S shape as she has a somewhat chronic fear of it being stepped on or pulled. She also has cat-like eyes (that I've had to mod in, but really wish Larian would include them naturally in the game because why not??? Same with more variations in tails...)

Other fun fact is that Silence has a Secret Power in which she's capable of using her tadpole to influence those around her when she plays a song infused with a particular strong emotion. Unfortunately, she cannot replicate the song later, at least not in the same way or with the same impact as when she played it. This generally acts like an empathic attack on those who can see and hear her, impressing upon them the emotion she's attempting to convey through song which can manifest in the audience's minds as how she imagines it - so a full orchestra if that's what she's hearing in her head. As one can imagine, the situations in which this is actually useful are few and far between, as it would require the proper conditions and emotional preparation for it to be effective, although I like to imagine she has used it a few times on a smaller scale to calm tensions in the group when camping some nights.

Relationships with the other NPCs:

Lae'zel - Admires her strength, but is suspicious of her motivations mostly because she seems more than capable of finding this creche by herself, but instead wants to drag the rest of them along with her. Either she's hiding an altruistic side to her or something else is going on. Silence tolerates Lae'zel's nasty attitude, but also can't help but find her and her people's culture fascinating. She often tries to overlook the Gith's biting tongue in order to inquire more about it. It's a mystery to Silence what Lae'zel truly thinks of her, but it's probably nothing good (even if she seems to get bonus points every time she shows an interest in her people.) About the only time she gets anything resembling a compliment from her is when she agrees with her about the use of their tadpole or if she does something worth being commended for in battle. Otherwise, Lae'zel doesn't seem to be terribly fond of Silence's violin playing as the high-pitched tones seem to bother her.

Gale - Gale and her get along famously, and, next to Wyll, finds him probably one of the easiest to talk to in the group. They both share a great interest in magic and, at times, a similar sense of humor (which is to say she's about as bad at puns as he is). They're both well-travelled and well-educated, and if she doesn't know or understand something magic-related, she's quick to ask Gale for guidance, and enjoys seeing him in his element. Gale seems fond of her wit, open-mindedness, and appreciation and interest she takes in the world around her and those that live in it. She seems to have a genuine interest and appreciation for everyone in the group and admires her dedication to watching their backs, even if it's obvious she doesn't entirely trust any of them. He likes that she seems to know a surprising amount about wizardry despite not being one herself - at least enough to ask advanced questions about things that he might consider to be outside the interest of most bards, as well as the fact that she isn't easily fazed by things that would turn most people's stomachs or make them balk in disbelief. As could be evidenced by her rather extensive anatomy studies on the bodies of their fallen enemies ("It's free art references!")

Admittedly, Silence was a bit shocked and uncomfortable to learn about Gale's history and his need to consume magic artifacts, but as he seems sincere in his efforts to keep it under control, chooses not to worry about it and does what she can to support him, which he greatly appreciates. There's still that little nagging voice in the back of her mind, however, even if he's friendly enough to get her to forget that at times. She has to remind herself on occasion that she doesn't really know him.

Shadowheart - Shadowheart and her also get along very well, even if they're both somewhat guarded around each other still, and Shadowheart, when not in the right mood, can be very difficult to talk to just in general. But, it's Silence who is first to lower her defenses, and speak to the Shar acolyte candidly. Silence finds the two of them have a lot in common in terms of how they approach most situations - pragmatic but always erring to self-preservation or that of the group's. Shadowheart seems to appreciate Silence's amicability, willingness to compromise, and respects that, even though she is friendly, she isn't naive about it. It also helps that Silence doesn't seem to have a problem with her being a worshipper of Shar and respects her desire for privacy even without being prompted. Silence appreciates how much of a team player Shadowheart really is, with her main interests usually centring around maintaining the group and essentially keeping everyone content enough not to turn on one another.

Astarion - Even though she enjoys picking on him from time to time, it's almost always in a way that he can also appreciate. She finds it more fun when the other person is in on the joke as well. This can and does include flirting, but thus far, she's made it pretty clear that she perceives it as simply something to laugh about (even if he might be absolutely serious about it). Unfortunately, at least initially, she also finds Astarion to be one of the hardest to read among the group, and picking on him isn't something she started doing until she knew where his boundaries lay. Up until then, she approached him delicately, allowing him to lead the conversations and learning what she could along the way, which, fortunately, he seems more than happy to do. As a result, he takes her quite a bit longer to translate than the rest, and doesn't feel entirely comfortable around him for a long time to come, really only engaging with him whenever he wishes to engage with her. As a result, the vampire tends to find Silence the most comfortable and trustworthy one of the group even if she seems careful enough not to let him get too close. He's likely the first to notice how little Silence voluntarily shares about herself, often distracting the others with reassurances, compliments, and asking questions she thinks they would enjoy answering.

Despite this he appreciates that she's easygoing and down-to-earth, while still having a good sense of humor and seems to know when to take something seriously, and, while at times seemingly easily impressed with the world around her (like he's one to talk), also seems to accept it for what it is and adapts accordingly.

In actuality, Astarion has about as much trouble reading her as she does him, as he's found it impossible to tell if she's genuine in her compliments and expressing interest in others around her. She certainly seems to have a gift for getting people to trust her. She's good at taking control of conversations and deflecting away from topics she doesn't want to talk about in the least offensive way possible, and he's made the mistake of reading her sincerity as naivety. She intrigues him as almost every time he thinks he has her figured out, she does or says something unexpected, or contrary to what he would assume about her, and he's not even sure if she's doing it on purpose. It's possibly a matter of them being out of step with one another, being of differing natures, even if he gets on better with her than he has anyone else in recent memory (insofar as we know about his story at least).

About the only things that get on his nerves at times is that she's maybe a little too soft, and a little too cautious and prone to overthinking than is good for her, mostly because it ends up involving dragging them into doing something boring or "unproductive" (not to their overall benefit). Never mind that she's encouraged him to wait in camp or go on without them if he has a problem with their decisions. It also bugs him that, even if she sees the merit in using the tadpoles, she's on board with the others that it isn't safe to do so until they know exactly what it is they're dealing with. Rather by accident, it would seem, Astarion finds himself liking her more than he realizes, especially after his condition comes to light and, lo and behold, she's not only okay with it, she wants to know everything about it and how they can use it to their benefit, even if she doesn't seem to be too terribly keen on being fed off of, as long as he can sate himself with bandits and ne'er-do-wells, she's off the hook insofar as she's concerned... for now, and has basically told him that she's his "emergency supply" if circumstances require it.

Despite all this, Silence is still vigilant, and while she trusts him with certain things, doesn't trust him completely, and knows full well the lengths to which his type is willing to go to cover their attempts at taking advantage of a situation.

[sitraachranovel]

Third King of the Third Circle, Beleth. Aka The Reclusive King, The Hidden King, Oracle of Tuonela, Mother Muse of the Eventide, The Scarred Sovereign Sphinx, The Unbreakable Tempest, Fleshripper, Demoneater, Truthspeaker, wielder of the great halberd Antiphon. She has never been defeated.

[haliteatiger]

So, there's this scene in the game where Astarion laments he hasn't seen his reflection in 200 years and asks you to describe him. My Tav, being an artist, offers to draw his portrait(s) in her... very well-worn sketchbook, that she's had to be a bit precious with since blank drawing pads are hard to come by.

I imagine she's got a few tomes in her pack that are probably covered in scribbles and sketches overlaying the printed text. She's also a tiefling hence (my very lacklustre) attempt at Infernal - probably a dialect of it to lean into the fact that I didn't have a reference at the time I doodled this, with the more tidy one being written more formally, and the other what I imagine their every-day handwriting to look like. Also some random doodles for testing out the red pen she was using. lol I'm not sure what the Infernal says but it's probably a draft of an unrelated poem since she's also a bard, and/or just some off-hand notes or reminders about his personality and initial impressions. "Conceited noble, flamboyant, aquaphobic(?), eccentric, haunted unicorn." (rough translation would be someone who thinks they are unique and special because of their physical attributes. The "haunted" indicates he's obviously hiding something dangerous... aside from the fact that he's a vampire. My Tav doesn't trust people easily, and tends to take everyone's stories with a grain of salt, although she probably trusts Astarion more than the rest of the party right now. Gale and Wyll are "too nice". *narrows eyes*)

Personally, not particularly happy with these, but that's just me. I feel like my style of drawing people is too "tight" and doesn't really look much like the person I'm trying to draw until I add shading to help define features better, so these I don't feel do the character justice. Buuuut I'll just have to make another attempt later.

Also a bonus doodle from a NSFW sketch I was working on and lost interest in, but liked how his profile was turning out. :3

[haliteatiger]

*microwave hum*

Messing around in Daz some more. This time with the animation feature. Made a turntable and a blinking/expression shift (which I will attach in the reblog since I can't post more than one video per post.)

Also been picking at textures a bit more. I've been kind of a wuss about adjusting the model in Blender since I will need to eventually get around to sculpting his proper horns, paws, tail, and maybe hair. But that looks like that'll be the greatest challenge. They've made hair quite easy to sculpt in Blender, but as he wears a ribbon, I'm not sure how that's gonna work. Guess I'll find out! >.> I'm not super planning on using him for animations, so less concerned about adding physics to anything, but it would be nice if only as a learning thing. I also want to sculpt his clothes too but a;kfje;ak g I'm working on a much more simple model of a music box in the meantime and wanna finish that up before I really tackle anything more complicated in Blender.

[sitraachranovel]

Third Duke Valefar of the Third Circle

Opinion among the Goetia regarding Third Duke Valefar is fairly evenly split. A known trickster and miscreant, he has very few solid allies in the Infernal Court, but those who are tend to remain so. Despite his specialization being that of deception, it does not necessarily mean that he cannot remain loyal to his allies.

Still at the end of the day, Valefar is as self-serving as any Demon, save for when it comes to his King. Mostly everything he does is for his own pleasure, and anyone else who benefits is either simply incidental or by design in order to assure their cooperation with whatever scheme he has planned.

Aside from being known for his unmatched shapeshifting abilities, his talent for thievery, and the capability of weaving illusions so potent they could even fool a King, Valefar expresses a capriciousness that make most other Demons seem like well-balanced individuals. As he says so himself, he does what he likes, when he likes, and if someone says he can't, then that will basically boil down to whether he's fond of the person demanding it of him as to whether he will listen. Even so, Valefar is surprisingly less of a brat than one might expect. His relaxed attitude, hedonistic nature, and tendency to see everything as a kind of game seems to mitigate any damage dealt by blows to his ego. He is as delighted with someone outsmarting him as he is when he bests them outright. Because, for Valefar, it's less about the destination and more about the journey.

He may be a thief, but it is the act of stealing itself that is the reward, as well as what may come next, as he is inclined to simply sitting back and watching the effects of his actions on those involved.

Never one to fear consequence, Valefar has been punished for his transgressions in many ways since his Fall, at least for the ones he's been convicted of. Although he may not hold the record for most killed among the Goetia, the repeated ends seems to have made him wiser than most, and he tends to not make the same mistake twice. To those who know him best, watching him walk willingly into what is most obviously a trap, is surely an indication that he has already planned well in advance. This isn't altogether an unusual attribute, as Demons, being quite ancient and of a non-human disposition, perceive reality and the flow of time differently. Humans are usually predictable in their behaviors, which is why Valefar has the good sense to applaud those who defy expectations, as some would say.

Where Valefar is most deceptive is in his self-expression and how he socializes. He seems to be perpetually in a good mood, and even being bested only means that you have now gained a friend, likely a permanent one, who is going to make a habit of checking in on you or following you around until he succeeds in driving you insane. His behavior is often paradoxical; he may actually be upset that he lost to someone he underestimated, thus, his way of getting "even" is by giving them what they most wanted out of whatever game or deal that was decided. But it is exceedingly rare that he will make his displeasure known openly, as nearly everything he does is done with a sharpish grin and sincere enthusiasm. One must be quite explicit when communicating with him as he will act on what he perceives the response to be rather than what it truly is, especially if it might benefit him to do so. Being berated for this will usually result in him blaming you for not being clear enough in your explanation, thorough enough in your reasoning, or that you simply should have known better as he was just acting "according to his nature".

Naturally, Valefar, thinking himself the most clever of the 72 members of the Infernal Court, has taken it upon himself to regularly remind the others that none are better than the other, even if their titleage implies otherwise. All still have human Souls and all are still subject to the same pitfalls, even himself. Still this "public service" he claims to provide is more or less just an excuse for him to avoid boredom.

If ever there was an enemy to Valefar it would indeed be boredom and isolation. Although he isn't above taking quiet moments to himself, he would much rather remain in the company of good friends or lovers for as long as possible. Valefar is, at his heart, an entertainer, and he enjoys nothing more than being the center of the attention or being the source of one's pleasure or pain. Unfortunately this means that he can be manipulative and controlling in some situations, and more than a little sadistic in others.

Valefar is not immune to his own penchant for deception as he will do most anything to avoid having to be honest about his deeper, more complex feelings. Indeed, the Demon seems to suffer from an inability to articulate certain aspects of himself even if he wanted to, particularly if it may risk painting him in a more vulnerable light. Valefar does not trust easily, but expects everyone to trust him as easily as he trusts himself. If he ever were to open up to someone else, it would be most likely be expressed through something that must be observed rather than explained outright.

Third Duke Valefar is one of the only members of the Goetia that is capable of true transformation. While other Goetics tend to have one, maybe three, forms they have access to - typically their true form, a human, and/or demi-human form - Valefar can choose to manifest any he wishes. Like all Goetia Demons, his true form is his actual default form, the one that has become a mockery of its former life as an Angel among Ein Sof's Heavenly Chorus. Although standing roughly 10 foot at the shoulder on all fours, which is his main form of locomotion in this shape, Valefar is rather on the average side for the size of a Goetic. As well, he will often default to his demi-human form (seen above) or its human equivalent, especially if he's intended on leaving someone - usually a mortal - with a certain impression. Being a showman at heart, Valefar regards his talents with transformation and illusions as a form of art, and when bored, will practice it by himself, whether for amusement or out of the desire for perfection.

Valefar will also casually manifest illusions as a form of expression, and has made a habit of doing this so regularly, that they can happen in his sleep. Despite his energy, Valefar is a big fan of sleeping, and has been known to take days long naps, his dreams manifesting as illusions and warping the world around him so long as he remains in REM sleep.

Anyway, no one is really reading these anyway so I just felt like rambling nonsense about one of my favorite OCs. lol Valefar is fairly new, maybe only three or so odd years old, but so far has accumulated more art than I'd care to admit. He's probably my most drawn character to date and likely will be for some time to come. And he's as fun to write as he is to draw. Fortunately he is one of the main characters of the story, albeit he spends a good portion of it trapped in a different... state of being, I guess I could say. The Valefar described above is the OG Valefar, what he was before the Terrible Thing happened from which he will be recovering for a good portion of the story.

If you did happen to read this then thank you very much for your attention! It means a lot. c: And I hope you enjoyed reading about Valefar.

For another perspective on him and his role in the story, you can check out my previous post.

[haliteatiger]

She Thinks She's So Funny

"You see? You're Undead, so it's... well, it was funnier in my head, I guess."

(You have to read the second line in the same inflection as the first for this to really be funny. Anyway.)

I spent way too long on this, and honestly couldn't decide what Astarion's reactions would be as he really does feel like the kind of person who can act on moods in conjunction with how he feels about people. So he'd either be annoyed or amused - maybe a bit of both? I figured he might like a surprise hug from his favourite tiefling bard, but not her awful puns at his expense. Meanwhile, Gale seems like someone who likes dumb jokes because they're dumb and that's what makes them funny.

[haliteatiger]

So, I've been dealing with burnout by messing around in Daz3D a lot, and made Valefar to the best of its ability, which turns out is pretty advanced. It's basically a glorified character creator with a moderate learning curve, and I had to do a lot of touching up in CSP since the clothing system is very hit or miss. The spots and scars I also added myself by editing the base textures and will probably see a revamp at some point since I'm not that happy with the one over his eye. Unfortunately, I'm not well versed enough in 3D programming wizardry to figure out how to seamlessly edit over... well, seams. Yet, anyway. And I tried a dozen different ways to do something more efficient and more accurate than my initial attempt, but turns out what I did actually *was* the simplest. lol

Other features I intend on doing myself, such as his branding tattoos, horns, tail, paws, and maybe hair if I'm feeling brave. Since his is technically longer and usually tied back with a ribbon. All of that sounds very simple but then you gotta remember that it must be done in Blender and I die a little inside. Because nothing is ever simple in Blender. Anyway.

The cool thing about Daz is that you can create scenes and such and the lighting system is very good and it's fairly easy to light a scene and take pictures decently well within a few minutes. I have yet to perfect the art so all I have to show are WIPs and "test" renders.

The first two here were from a much earlier version of him before I figured out how to bend the horns to my liking as well as the lower half of his face. The last one was also kind of an experiment. The clipping is an unfortunate feature that I don't think can be easily fixed from what I know. The clothing layering system is rather... unintuitive. But thankfully, I have the skills to just edit whatever most bugs me in CSP. lol

Also I like making his eyes do the thing.

He's about to get The Zoomies.

[sitraachranovel]

Silly little self-indulgent thing.

[haliteatiger]

Small assortment of Valefar-related art and sketches. The girl is E, someone important from his past, and the fox is him in his fox form. c: In DnD, Valefar is basically a youkai adopted into becoming a fey. It's kind of a long story.

[haliteatiger]

He do a blink.

I talk more about this in a previous post.

Learning animation with Daz Studio.

Also not sure what happened with the one eye. It's like the shader glitched a bit. I adjusted the materials for the eyes at one point so it was probably something I did to the textures. They just seem to not react to light as they should at certain angles. I'm way too lazy to go and fix it for this though since this already took almost an hour to render. The original video is much better quality, btw. Tumblr compression just sort of chewed on it.

[sitraachranovel]

An excerpt from the book; A History of the World After & Its Denizens by Noctua Quill

"(Pages from an untitled codex of illustrations recovered from the late Zagan Era, circa 4795, Epoch 341934.) The illuminated lettering around the edges of the pages reads as follows starting from left to right:

[left most vertical] The Patron Devil of Thieves

[top horizontal] Master of Ephemeral Arts

[right vertical] The Many-Tailed Thief

Opposing page

[right most verticle] "Materials For Summoning:

A Few Gold Coins

Three Bottles of Fine Wine

One Book of Stories

Nine Drops of [the Summoner's] Blood

[bottom left] BEWARE. IMPORTANT UNIQUE GLYPHS.

(These are unique glyphs used in the summoning of Lord Valefar. Each Goetic has their own set that must be included in the Summoning Circle otherwise they either may not appear or will appear but be not contained to the circle, which, in many cases, would be undesirable, let alone fatal, to the summoner. The meaning of some of these symbols have been long forgotten, being used only in these instances, but Valefar's, loosely translated, reads: "No Tricks, No Trade". Thereby binding the Patron Devil of Thieves and preventing him from conjuring any illusions or making attempts at résistance. Not mentioned here for unknown reasons, is that all Summoning Circles must be drawn in a radius of 2 or more meters. It should provide sufficient space for the Demon to remain comfortably seated.)

[right bottom] (Valefar's Summoning Circle. These must include the aforementioned glyphs as well as the Demon's Sigil. The blue markings invite the summoner to "place offering here". Thus, the objects mentioned in the above list of summoning materials will be placed in the designated spots. The tilt to the circle is important as mathematics have as much significance to the Goetia as words. These coordinates designate that Demon's unique position in the universe - essentially a tele-wire number. Misplacing the Circle can result in the absence of the Demon's manifestation.)

The small text is Ingris-Lorician and reads as follows:

"Duke Valefar retained his title of Third among Twenty-Three Dukes for as long as anyone can remember. Secretkeeper to Her Royal Highness, King Beleth of the Third Circle, he acted as a trusted advisor and loyal consort for many hundreds of years.

Before his death, Lord Valefar was renowned for his mastery of illusion and thievery, and was unmatched in his ability to shapeshift. His unique talents among the Goetia had him simultaneously respected and cautiously regarded despite his gregarious nature. He was otherwise a known trickster and miscreant, who relished in sowing chaos among the Court.

This Reputation extended to those outside of the Goetia, and well into the World Before, where those who wished to summon him would have done so expecting a blessing of charisma or good fortune in whatever devious exploits they intended. Otherwise, Lord Valefar was often called upon in matters of thievery, charlantry, or reconnaissance, and was, perhaps somewhat paradoxically, respected for his penchant for fairness in all dealings. However, it was the convalescence of these qualities that in turn ultimately led to his downfall.

Regarded as the catalyst for the event now know as the "Akashic Purge", Duke Valefar accomplished this by besting Fifth King Purson in a bet that he could steal his Horn within three days. Having done so, the pompous Duke decided to announce his success by blowing the instrument, which has the power to herald the End of Days. While he was stopped before the call could be completed, the damage had been done, and for his crime he was to be drawn and quartered. His Nine Tails, source of his power, were excised from him and distributed among the Eight remaining Kings by King Beleth Herself as a sign of solidarity against the events that were to come.

The whereabouts of Lord Valefar's Tails, and whether their Power was used at any point, remains unknown. For his disgrace, his name was to be stricken from the Infernal Court, his seat left vacant, albeit conditions resulting from the Purge have instead, made him something of a folkloric figure in the four hundred years following."

(Notice that the amount of time used to calculate Valefar's absence is expressed via the human calendar. While the author of the text is unknown, this gives an inherent clue as to their identity.)

What this text does not describe is King Beleth's enabling of Lord Valefar's antics, and it is of this Scholar's firm belief, that in doing so, she may have inadvertently coaxed these events into place. Not to speak ill of Her Diligence, but the King's soft spot for her Secretkeeper was plain for all to see, and was something she had been repeatedly cautioned against, as she had become somewhat over-reliant on his more distinct talents in order to compete with the egos of the other Kings. Her Majesty was as much the "Truthteller" as she was the "Truthkeeper". Her inability to lie coincided with her ability to detect lies in all things said and all gestures performed. Valefar's powers were futile to her discerning eye, but less so to others. She was wise for keeping him close, but in the opinion of this Scholar, foolish for being so lenient on him and allowing him to enjoy immunity for his crimes against others up until his own hubris cost her everything. In truth, it was remarkable that she was not subject to the same fate by the other Kings even with her gesture of sacrificing her consort's body in the hopes that they may aid in the mitigation of the coming disasters. One can only hope that the King's gift of foresight extended to anticipating the nature of her subject, and that her willful ignorance bore consequences she was willing to accept in order to indulge in his affection. Alas. Duke Valefar would have most likely become amused at the overall futility of his sacrifice. Irony being a favorite form of comedy. And his undying love for his King would doubtless hinder any compulsions of vengeance or violence, the Duke being as helpless to forgive those he loves as Her Majesty.

What might be seen as a source of vexation for many, Lord Valefar almost always interpreted as a challenge to enjoy, much to the dismay of those around him. However, even should his Soul find its way back from the World Before, he would surely find the reunification of his lost parts a daunting task. This assuming that there will even be a world to which he may return as the Purge continues onward, a fact which the mortal population seems to remain blissfully ignorant or, altogether, uncaring.

[haliteatiger]

A Salvaged Wreck (Or An Attempt Thereof) A short Baldur's Gate III fanfiction

In which my Tav, Silence the tiefling bard, encounters Astarion for the first time with Shadowheart in tow. It goes about as well as you might expect with two fundamentally evil characters and one neutral who just wants everyone to get along.

Eventually I will draw a better picture of Silence, but this will do for now, I suppose. Anyway, read on below the cut!

Silence was grateful to finally see blue sky when she and Shadowheart emerged from a jagged opening in the wreckage of the Illithid ship, its forlorn and dying wails drifted out over the burning landscape, and just about the roar of the flames she could hear a man calling for help. With her undershirt stretched over her nose to protect it from the acrid smoke and stench of burning flesh, she looked up at Shadowheart with wide questioning eyes, before the cries were heard again.

“Help! Over here! Hurry!” 

Pulling up the hill and away from the ruins, Silence could just make out a pale man in dark clothes amongst the trees on an overhead rise. He motioned to them frantically. “Up here!”

As they drew closer, Silence was immediately on alert. The man seemed uninjured other than the wild-eyed expression of someone who had just survived a traumatic event, his formerly fine clothing and face soiled from having pulled himself from the wreckage. 

“Over there!” he said, once they were near enough, and pointed to some obscure location in the nearby reeds. Silence noted the long, pointed ears partially hidden by his mess of pale curls - an elf with red eyes. How curious. “I’ve got one of those brain things cornered. There! In the tall grass! You can kill it, can’t you? Like you killed the others?”

Silence craned her neck, squinting in the bright daylight. Shadowheart peered over her, evidently feeling similarly cautious. After a moment of the elf staring at them expectantly, Silence grinned politely.

“With all due respect, sir, you seem perfectly capable of finishing it off yourself. My advice would be to leave it alone and get clear of the wreckage. Heavens only knows what hazards it’s leaking.”

The elf blinked, his head pulled back as though in disbelief, not having expected such a refusal from the petite tiefling, let alone such a polite and cautionary one.

“Good luck!” She gave him a brief wave and turned to walk away, when suddenly the crunch of a boot on dry earth had her swinging back around, albeit it was much too late as the cold edge of a blade was pressed into her throat, and a firm grip across her chest lifted her up from the ground.

“I was hoping for a kind soul,” he hissed, in her ear. Shadowheart drew her sword. “But, no matter.”

The moment her feet touched the ground again, Silence jumped up with all of her strength. She felt the teeth-grinding crunch of his nose against the back of her head, and he jerked back in surprise, the two toppling to the ground.

“You cheeky, little, bitch!” he snarled, and made to grab her before she could roll free, but instead found his hand grasped by sharp teeth sinking into the fleshy part of his palm. The shock made him swear again, and drop the knife.

In actuality, the attempt to bite him had been on impulse, and Silence was, quite frankly, surprised that it had worked as she was quickly on her feet, snatching up the dagger on her way to gain some distance between the two of them, but he was faster than she’d anticipated. When she whipped back around, he was already on his feet and had come to a skidding halt at the tip of his own blade pressing into the centre of his torso. His hands shot up in surrender, and he stepped back, widened eyes glinting a furious, deep red only a few shades lighter than that which streamed from his nose and the small, jagged, tear on his hand.

“I saw you on the ship!” he hissed, a flash of white and very pronounced eyeteeth drawing her attention briefly. “Strutting about while I was trapped in that pod!”

“Strutting’? Ha!” scoffed Silence, with equal venom despite the anxious grin across her face, more of a snarl given that her own fangs were openly displayed, albeit distinctly smaller than his. She nodded to the cleric behind her. “We were captive, too!”

“Really?” he sneered. “That’s not what I saw. What did you and those tentacled freaks do to me?!”

She shook her head. “No, you- ugh!” The bard flinched, grabbing the side of her head as a brilliant light filled her vision, intense heat breathed against her face - the sun? The acrid, smothering smoke of the burning refuse gave way to the sweetness of wine, the perfume of wealthy women and men, their laughter in her ears, and suddenly the coolness of damp, night air flooded her senses as she stood, looking up at the familiar streetlamps of Baldur’s Gate.

“What? What was that? What’s going on?” gasped the elf, urgently, looking around himself in confusion until his gaze finally landed on the small tiefling stood before him.

Silence blinked back to reality, rubbing the pain from her eyes and temples, the vertigo receding just in time to sense movement in front of her. The blade snapped up again, maintaining her guard. “You stay right where you are,” she commanded.

“Wait! You were there! They did take you! I saw it just now when… during… whatever just happened.” The elf stood straight, resuming his position with his hands raised, although now it was more in an attempt to soothe her fear than in defence of his own. The sharpness was gone from his tone when he spoke again, an accompanying half smile softening the words, but was certainly no less nefarious than his scowl. “My apologies… Now would it be possible to have that back? Handed to me, preferably.”

Silence’s eyes snapped down at the weapon before returning to him, narrowing. “Let’s get to know each other a bit better first - you have an Illithid tadpole in your head. Like us. That’s what connected us just now.”

“So it would seem!” He nodded, looking down at her through lidded eyes. “Do you happen to know anything about it?”

“Unfortunately,” replied Silence, there was a short pause as she wrestled with how to describe it. “If we don’t do something about it sooner rather than later - it will turn us into Mind Flayers.”

“Turn us into-?” The pale elf’s eyes widened, the scowl draining away as surprise took hold when he finally threw his head back in a sudden, disdainful series of laughs that wilted into a grimace directed at the ground. “Of course, it’ll turn me into a monster. What else could I expect?”

Some of the fear in her gave way to sympathy at hearing that, but her grip on the dagger remained steadfast.

“Although… it hasn’t happened yet,” he said, looking up, an idea seeming to light the crimson of his eyes. “If we can find an expert, someone who can control these things - there might still be time.”

“‘Control?’” the bard’s nose scrunched slightly in dismay. She titled her head. “What do you mean? We need to be rid of it! Have you ever known any sort of parasite to actually benefit its host? Psionic powers or not, these things are going to kill us eventually, there is no ‘controlling’ it, good sir.”

“Well, yes, of course!” he snapped. “But one thing at a time…” The elf paused, appraising her from boot to horn. His eyes narrowed and he slowly lowered his hands. “You know, I had thought of going at this alone, but perhaps it would be safer to travel with the herd. After all, you seem like someone I should know… Let’s say we let bygones be bygones. You need me and I need you. But… In the meantime, I would suggest that I may be far more useful armed than not.”

Silence glanced at Shadowheart who had lowered her sword by this time, quietly observing the two. She shrugged, brows raised. “What? Don’t look at me. I say kill him and keep the knife,” she said, loftily, and gestured with her shield. “He obviously can’t be trusted.”

“I could say the same for you!” sneered the elf. “Bloody fine then! Keep the damned knife. But, I expect you’d know what to do with it when it comes to defending me from any villainous ne’er-do-wells.”

The tiefling’s stance relaxed somewhat, shoulders lowering along with the dagger. She eyed him closely a moment more, as if trying to see where else he might be hiding some sign of treachery, before tossing the weapon at his feet. Behind her, Shadowheart sheathed her sword, even if wariness still lingered in her gaze.

“For your sake, I hope you’re better at wielding that against real enemies, and not helpless bards,” remarked Silence, stepping off to the side to allow him to pass once he’d re-sheathed his dagger, and pulled out a handkerchief from a trouser pocket to attempt to staunch the bleeding from his nose.

“Helpless? Ha!” He winced, grimacing behind the cloth as it made contact with his face. “I’m the one with the broken nose and lacerated hand. Of course, had things turned out as I had initially intended, I might have ended up decorating the ground with your innards. Only then would I adequately describe you as ‘helpless’.”

“Then, it’s just as well,” she shrugged, lips thinning. “That shade of crimson really clashes with that shade of dirt anyway.”

Red eyes widened above the white kerchief, and he suddenly found himself observing her a little more closely, as though having truly seen her for the first time. “Let’s just assume you’re right,” he replied, slowly, as if surprised at not having thought of the concept himself, and made sure to keep pace beside her for the time being. “In either case, I owe you an apology.”

Silence was quiet a moment, appraising him for sincerity, before finally relenting to the idea that she’d need to let it go if they were to get along. “Apology accepted,” she sighed. “After all, I might have done similar were I in your position.”

“Ah, a kindred spirit, I see,” he purred. This new tone of voice making her even more on edge than the one before it. “My name is Astarion.”

“Silence.”

Astarion’s brows dropped in a scowl. “I beg your pardon?”

“My name is Silence.” A slight smile flitted across her features. “Sorry. I should know better than to announce myself without some kind of supra.”

He rolled that over in his mind for a moment. “A bard… named Silence. How very…”

“Ironic, yes, I know,” she said, with a wry smile and made a gesture to the cleric walking in front of them. “And this is Shadowheart. Maybe, if you ask nicely, she may even heal you.”

She glanced over her shoulder, first at the tiefling and then at their new companion. “Charmed,” she greeted, dryly. “I accept gold, too.”

“Ah, a duplicitous minstrel and an entrepreneurial cleric,” he muttered, glancing up at the passing trees. “I’m in good company, I see.”

“And what are you?” asked Silence, with a small laugh, and his gaze snapped back to her, brow furrowed as if not knowing what to make of it. “Aside from a terrible highwayman.”

“I was a magistrate for the city of Baldur’s Gate.”

“[Oh! I’m from there, too!]” exclaimed Silence, in Baldurian. “[Small world.]”

“Really? Clearly, we must move in different circles,” he drawled, unimpressed. He removed the kerchief to briefly inspect the intensity of his bleeding. It seemed to be slowing down, but he continued to carefully wipe around his nose and lip, sniffling softly between speaking. “I’d fancy that healing sooner rather than later. If you don’t mind. Shadowheart, was it?”

The cleric stopped and turned, again eyeing him haughtily, but such was her manner. She held out her hand. “Gold first. Healing second. If you please.”

Astarion frowned, and then let out a scoff. “Surely, you must be joking!” He looked to Silence who, after a moment’s contemplation, simply shrugged.

When Shadowheart continued to stand there patiently with her hand outstretched, her expression impassive, the lines around his mouth deepened, eyes all the more piercing before he finally relented. With an exasperated and dramatic sigh, followed by coughing and more wincing, he began sifting through his pockets until he finally produced a gold coin. “I do so hope I’m not going to have to pay you every time. That could become a real hindrance in a pinch, you know.”

Shadowheart caught it as he flipped it to her, and she and the bard exchanged amused glances. The rogue raised an eyebrow, but before he could say anything, the cleric had stepped forward. “It’ll work faster if you stand still and don’t speak,” she instructed, raising her hand to his face and muttering something under her breath.

A softly glowing green light grew from her palm, sparks of it were gently drawn into his injury, until it disappeared with a flash and the elf stumbled back, blinking and inspecting the area carefully with his fingers. He wrinkled his nose, testing it. “Excellent,” he said, satisfied, and held out his injured hand.

Shadowheart glanced down at it and then back up at him. “I get paid by the injury,” she said, promptly. Silence tried to stifle a giggle behind a hand and pursed lips.

The ruby red of his eyes flashed fiercely, glancing between the bard and the cleric. “What!? You can’t be serious!” he barked. “I can assure you, you treacherous whore, that you certainly will be paid in some manner.” The elf reached for his dagger when Silence stepped forward, touching his forearm lightly, causing him to jerk away, but stop short of pulling out his weapon when she held out her hand.

“Here,” she said, evenly. “Give me your hand. I was the one who bit you, and I can do a little healing. Enough to close it at least. I’m sorry we tricked you.”

“I’m not,” said Shadowheart, a subtle smirk and a quirked eyebrow warming her usual cold demeanour. “I said I would heal him if he paid me, and I did. And I must say that a ducat for such a service is a real bargain.”

“Then I’m sorry for tricking you,” she said, shooting the cleric a sharp look, and Shadowheart’s eyebrow remained raised. “It won’t happen again. Now, here, let me see it.”

“To hells with the both of you!” he snarled, disdainfully, pulling back, and gripped his injured hand. “Do something like that again, and I will be entitled to more than a mere apology. Never mind the wound. I’m sure it’ll heal well enough on its own.” He looked down his nose at the bard, lip curling in disgust. “Assuming you’re lacking in any kind of transmittable diseases.”

With a slight toss of his head, he turned and stalked on ahead of them. Silence frowned after him, and turned to Shadowheart once he was far enough away to likely not hear them speaking in lowered voices.

“Frankly, I didn’t find it that cruel of a prank,” muttered Silence. “But… I suppose it was in rather poor taste given what just happened.”

Shadowheart scoffed. “Perhaps. I still think it was funny. I hadn’t expected him to take it that seriously.” The half-elf looked down at the tiefling. “Admit it. You were curious to see if he would actually pay for my healing him, weren’t you?”

Silence looked away, pressing her lips together, and gave a sight shrug. “Maybe a little.” She sighed, her gaze returning to his back farther up the trail. “I’ll see if I can’t do something nice for him later. If we’re going to be travelling together, we should all try to get along.”

A slight creased formed between the cleric’s brow, frown lines deepening. She let out a light scoff at the idea. “I should have known you’d end up being a bleeding heart for arrogant fools like him. The man just tried to kill you. Cheating him out of his money is the least of what he deserves.”

“I know that!” countered Silence, firmly. “And just because I care about making amends over something stupid, doesn’t mean I’m any kind of  ‘bleeding heart’, I’ll have you know. We’ve all been through a lot, and he’s clearly addled. And he did just get bested by a tiefling nearly a quarter his size. And just because I want to make peace with him doesn’t mean I want to be his bloody best friend or anything. But, I’d rather not start off on any more of a wrong foot than we already have. You do realize we are going to have to sleep in his presence, and he’s clearly not afraid to pull that knife on a whim.”

“Hm, perhaps you’re right. But, if that’s how you want to go about it, I’m sure you can repay him simply by doing what you said you would -which is by not doing it again.”

“You know, actually. I wasn’t even the one who tried to con him out of his money. So really, it should be you trying to fix this.”

“Yes, but you were giggling, too. And I didn’t see you trying to stop me until the last minute. Besides, you're the only one interested in mending fences here.”

Silence frowned, feeling foolish.

“Just leave it be, Silence. If he holds a grudge over that, then he’ll have proven he’s just another petty noble, and we’d be better off just killing him if he’s going to insist on making it a problem.”

The bard didn’t respond to that, knowing very well she was right. 

[sitraachranovel]

A peek at the main cast. The final will be posted to my Patreon before coming up here, although I'm not entirely sure what I'm gonna do with the lineart, but I'm gonna try to keep it if I color it. I like how it's turning out.

Valefar dominates here because I got half way through shading his mane before I decided to include some other characters. The small lady is Rune, her ape-cat companion is Torvald, and the tall bird lady is Stolas.

[sitraachranovel]

Earlier versions of Saga (formerly Rune) and Valefar.

[sitraachranovel]

Third Duke Valefar of the Third Circle of Sitra Achra has good reason to grin, being the cleverest of the Infernal Court. Or so he'd like to think. A versatile shapeshifter and illusionist, Valefar rarely manifests in his True Form.

His shadow arms should be more skeletal, but I got lazy.