Novus
an equine & cervidae rpg
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Novus closed 10/31/2022, after The Gentle Exodus
Castalla
Inactive Character
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Age:

14 [Year 496 Fall]

Gender:

Female

Pronouns:

She / Her / Hers

Orientation:

Heterosexual

Breed:

TB x Lusitano

Height:

16 hh

Health:

9

Attack:

11

Experience:

12

Last Visit:

(Hidden)

Joined:

10-07-2019

Signos:

0 (Donate)

Total Posts:

46 (Find All Posts)

Total Threads:

14 (Find All Threads)

A wolf in sheep’s clothing, Castalla is often described as lethally beautiful. Lithe with muscle concealed by her slender frame, one look at Castalla and (were it not for the scars) you might mistake her for a princess or some other noble woman. And of course, she is a princess by title, but by nature she is a fighter.

At 16 hands she is of reasonable height, tall enough to not be considered short but not so tall as to stand out. Long-legged, but proportionately so, she is perhaps slimmer than you might expect for a warrior but that is no bearing on her capability. Her coat is a silken ivory colour, darker around her eyes and muzzle, her stomach and chest. Marred by scars, her body is a canvas of battle, bitten by swords, sliced by claws and kissed by arrows.

Long blonde locks fall from her proud neck, straight and cropped neatly at her elbow. Often it is left loose with plaits in sections or braided during a battle to avoid it getting into her eyes. Her tail is equally long and straight, luxuriously silken as it trails on the ground like the tips of a cloak. Sometimes, if she washed her hair in the ocean or does not have it combed, her locks may take on a curly appearance. Besides the scars wrought upon her form, the most eye catching aspect of her appearance her eyes. Blue in colour they possess an unearthly shade that often seems to glow (not literally) when her emotions swirl just beneath the surface, enchanting and framed by thick lashes.

(weapons not included)

A master of disguise, it is difficult to pin down Castalla’s personality for often what you see is but a mirage or a wall. Depending on the situation she easily comes across prideful and sarcastic, caustic and difficult to like with a commanding air and yet a playful smirk. Always armed with a beguiling grin and a swift quip, she is wild and reckless and as chaotic as fire. But when it’s called for, she can seem serious, all business as she speaks with an air of authority, the Queen incarnate. This is usually the manner she adopts for court visits, military arrangements or battle or if she isn’t overly fond of the person with whom she is speaking. A living, breathing weapon, she uses her appearance and reputation to her advantage, whether she is trying to be subtle or overtly intimidating.

Yet beneath the wild, reckless façade is someone who cares deeply and loves truly. She is surprisingly kind hearted and would do anything for her friends and for her people. Loyal to a fault she never stops seeing the good in those she cares about, particularly when she knows, with her line of work and her past, she cannot judge those around her. Guided by her own strong morals, she tries to only take contracts that would benefit the majority, such as killing murders or cruel kings. Stubborn and determined, she shows no weakness, not even to her friends, but behind her walls she is broken and lonely, consumed by guilt and anger. The hate for Adrian is an ever burning fire kindled in her chest, right where the hole in her heart was torn when Skender died. She blames herself for having him exiled rather than killed, and any lives he takes are on her head. Despite trying to only kill bad people, Castalla is under no illusion as to what she is, coupled with her animalistic side and her temper she considers herself a monster. But these are all such fears that she keeps hidden, trapped behind her many walls, never letting anyone in. Anyone who gets close enough usually ends up dead.

Training:
-All kinds of dance and as well as gymnastics and meditation
-Every form of combat known to Kajak kind
-How to use all different kinds of weapons, in both hands as well
-Combat in her alternative forms
-How to combine shifting with fighting and shift quickly
-Battle tactics, planning battles, predicting battles and strategy
-Court intrigue, manipulation and concealment
-Math and history
-Art, music and literature (things she chose to learn for herself)
-How to blend in, in any situation, be a spy, hide in plain sight, act, go under cover etc

(weapons not included)

Castalla’s history is a battlefield of sorrow and anger, a wasteland of desolation and horror, yet, like flowers in snow, happiness blooms resolutely.

Like with many characters from Alanaris, it is important to understand Castalla’s species before you can appreciate her history. You can find a little bit of information on the Kajak species here

Born Castalla, meaning Grace in the ancient Kajak language, she adopted the nickname Crystal (or Cysa in her language) a few years after working with mortals, to blend in. Castalla’s birth is something of a mystery, her parents, Tsaar and Melia found her alone at the age of 3 months in a forest near the pack mansion in Anvidian. All Kajaks are raised knowing how to fight, how to defend themselves, but as the future Queen, Castalla’s training was far more rigorous than that. Some might consider it barbaric or cruel to train a child to fight, to teach them to kill, but Kajak’s are not like humans, they are half animal. An Alpha, or indeed a King or Queen, are considered to be the highest power among Kajaks and therefore those who hold such positions must be able to prove their strength. In essence, Castalla had to become the most powerful Kajak in order to prove that she is worthy to be their Queen.


-Best friend (nickname Beth) was a traitor, was feeding the Darkness Occult information about the Kajak court, believed one of the higher ranked Occult members to be a true mate. Castalla caught her, was forced by the circumstances, to kill her. She was only 3. This forever haunts her and she deeply regrets and hates that there was no other way.
-Before there was one royal pack, there were two opposing ones but Tsaar united them and ended the centuries of feuding by defeating the other King. This occurred a decade before Castalla was born. The second King’s son, Adrian, joined the new pack and began to court Castalla when she was 4. She fell for him and believed him to be her true mate.
-Kajaks helped to end the second Darkness Occult coming, Castalla was part of a team of 5 Kajaks, including her father’s Right Hand, who was sadly killed. The war was a bloody one, drawn out and demoralising in many ways. Castalla still gets flashbacks and is riddled with survivor’s guilt- she was the only member of her team to live through it.
-When she was 5, she discovered a plot to usurp and kill her parents and found out it was run by Adrian, her boyfriend at the time. She stopped him, only just defeating him in combat but requested that her father exile him rather than kill him for treason. This decision has returned multiple times to bite her in the ass.
-Following that she went slightly ‘feral’ (see terms below for meaning) and lost herself in her work, taking as many assassin contracts as she could. It was during this time that she garnered her deadly reputation and nickname as The White Wolf (mostly due to her choice alternative form being a white wolf).
-During this time she immerses herself in mortal life, coming to understand mortals far better and sheds the distrust her kind always bear for them. She also begins (and ends) a relationship with Farun, her father’s Commander. It lasted only a few months.
-A few years later she meets Skender, the son of another Kajak Alpha. The two grow close and after a few years the mating signs begin to show and they discover they are true mates. They marry at first since Castalla didn’t feel ready to go through the mating process of tying her life to his, but after a year of happiness together Skender is killed by Adrian. Once more Castalla goes feral and in a fit of rage and sorrow she is captured by Adrian who once more proceeds to have her tortured and reveals that he was responsible for Skender’s death and for their capture in Anvidian. She is rescued but spends months recovering, receding into herself, finally broken.
-Castalla decides to take on a contract to kill the King of Andivian, Oranus, a cruel and ruthless tyrant who was responsible for the system for the classification of species and held a grudge against shifters. However Adrian becomes aware of this and sabotages the hit. In saving a mortal servant placed in her way by Adrian, Castalla and her team are captured, including Farun, Farun’s sister Sura and Castalla’s close friend Coarder. They are all brutally tortured, in the cruellest of ways, and a number of the teams sent out to rescue them are murdered. They spend months in the prison and finally believe there is no hope for escape. Oranus decides to make them fight each other to the death, to save their opponent from the misery they would continue to live. Farun picks his sister and takes her life to save her from more pain. Castalla fights her friend, the two trying desperately to kill the other to end their pain. Castalla emerges the winner. However Adrian grows displeased with Oranus’ methods of breaking the wolf and orchestrates an escape for the two kajaks. Castalla sees the opportunity, unaware that Adrian presented it, and escaped but not before visiting the King, killing him in his own bed. She and Farun escape but neither would be the same again. Farun blames her for their capture, since she saved the servant, and for the death of his sister and in the future, does all that he can to make her feel guilty.
-Upon Oranus’ death the Amaris family assume the thrown, but rather than end the hunting of shifters, it is continued out of fear. The point of Castalla’s mission failed.
-For the years following that, Castalla is not herself but she dives into work once more and is invited into the fair realm to help as a strategist. Meets Nova Ignicia, Lumaris, Elladan, Namaria and other high ranking elves and fae. Works with Rose and Valena, meets with other shifters like Nubia and Visenya, pursues Xadres with the intention of stopping the entire black-market shifter hunt.
-Other stuff happens but I’m not quite sure what, then she ends up in Novus.


Terms:
True mate- Kajak’s believe Nysa, the night goddess, chooses their perfect partner even before they are born. They believe there is one person out there, the other half to their soul and their equal in every single way. When true mates meet they display signs that confirm whether they are true mates or not, this includes a certain scent, a pull to one another, being unable to defeat one another in a fight. However sometimes signs can be mistaken, the feel different to each couple. True mates then perform a ceremony that binds their souls together so that if one dies, so does the other.
Feral- Being a shapeshifter, there is a part of you that is animalistic, that is begging you to shift, to become an animal. Every single shifter feels that pull and must shift in order to abate it. How strong the pull is, how well a shifter can resist it and how many times they must shift depends on their dominance. Shifters who give into the pull, who spend too long in their animal form are said to ‘go feral’, that is to become their animal.

Active & Parvus Magic


Castalla ; The White Wolf

Castalla’s power greatly diminished upon entering Novus. Previously she could change into any creature- small, large, real or imaginary. Like all Kajaks, her powers run on a cycle that is roughly the length of a month. For 24 hours each month she is rendered entirely powerless, losing both her pavus and active magic and left very weakened.

Discipuli-
Here she may now only assume one or two alternative forms, those that she is most familiar with. Shifting takes more energy out of her and is far more painful than usual, meaning she may only change perhaps once or twice in a week and may end up stuck in a different form should her well of power run dry. Though her control over her shifting is unrivalled in Alanaris, now she may shift accidentally, particularly when feeling strong emotions. She hangs onto her control by a tenuous thread, making her even more wild and dangerous than usual. Shifting is incredibly painful for Kajaks since their bones and muscles are morphing and changing. Many Kajaks take years to learn to shift instantaneously and phasing quickly and often is seen as an example of their strength, power and dominance. Castalla was at the pinacle of such strength however now that her powers are diminished each shift is far more drawn out and painful that it should be. Sometimes her phase may not be successful, given the struggle is it now. When she does manage to change form it takes her minutes to accept the change, often left wretching or exhausted and perhaps even stuck in her second form without the energy to change back. If she expends too much energy it can leave her greatly weakened, unable to stand, at risk of passing out or even at risk of death. At this level it is perhaps too costly to even change form entirely. However even altering one aspect of her can render her unsteady for a few minutes, her head spinning and her stomach turning. She is more likely to shift entirely due to a lack of control rather than by choice.

Vexillum-
At this level Castalla is able to achieve an alternative form, besides an equine or wolf. Usually this is a smaller form such as a bird, but at times when her energy is at its peak she may shift into a large feline. Similarly, the time with which she can maintain her shift has increased and the toll on her strength has slightly decreased, nevertheless shifting is still taxing. Her control is still tenuous at best. The effects upon her shifting are only reduced by the most minscule amount and it is still incredibly costly to change forms.

Periti-
Now Castalla can shift into any form equal to or smaller than her equine one in size. Moreover her control has improved vastly, as has the time for which she can extend the phase. Her control has equally increased, she is better able to change forms when she chooses and is not at as much of a risk of losing control depending on emotions. Though the negative effects of shifting are still consequentialy, she does not suffer them as strongly after a shift now and can change her forms a little more comfortably (but still experiences weakness, exhaustion and nausea when she changes too slowly or more than twice within a week).

Dominus-
Once again returned to full strength, Castalla may shift into any form she chooses, including those larger than her equine form such as a dragon or orca. Similarly she has once more regained her full control is far less likely to shift by accident (though it can still occur). Nevertheless she is and always will be limited by her energy levels and cycle. At last she can change far more quickly, reducing the weakness and nausea. Of course if she has used her magic too much she will experience them still and expenditure of her power always comes with the threat of exhaustion, unconciousness or death. But for now she can phase from one form to the next with far more ease.

Parvus Magic-
Thanks to her animal counterparts, Castalla has sense more advanced than most equines. She can see in the dark better, has greater hearing and superior sense of smell and speed depending on her form. Like her active magic, this is greatly diminished and depends on her energy and control.


Alternative forms [all but wolf are locked however]:

Wolf (favoured alternative form)- Pure white, blue eyes, lithe body, long legs, same scars, stands at 16 hands.

Tiger: White with black stripes, blue eyes, slender for a tiger, same scars and stands at 14.2 hands.

Lion: White with blue eyes, stands at 14.1 hands and a little more lithe than an average lion.

Peregrine falcon: Uniquely white with black markings, slightly larger than your average falcon

Dragon: At 21 hands, it is small for the species that it is but she cannot manage anything bigger. White with vicious looking horns and a blue tinge to the scales. Winged and four-legged.

Numerous other forms, but these are the main ones. Her colours will always fall in the range of the creature’s species but usually are pale in colour or white where possible. Will always bear her eyes and her scars.

within me a wolf is scratching at the walls of my throat-- a wildness whose howl is begging to escape me



C | I




Passive Magic





Bonded & Pets





Armor, Outfit, and Accessories

Castalla's weapon is a plainly formed short sword, roughly 20 inches in length. A gift from her parents the day she stopped ageing, although it appears ordinary and simple it is in fact forged from moon-iron, a stronger variant of iron that is very rare. It looks almost the same ordinary iron but can be identified by a mark near the hilt.

appearance


Agora Items & Awards



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Miscellaneous


Castalla ; The White Wolf

Credits

Banner image- link and link
Reference/design- silv
Headshots and icon- me
parallax background- aron

You can't touch a woman who can wear pain like the grandest of diamonds around her neck





A reclusive little english creature with a love for all things fantasy and night related

Played by:

Darkrise (PM Player)

DeviantArt:

DarkriseDivine    //   

Discord:

darkrise#9068

Staff Log




Saved incentives/prizes: None.



10/08/19 Character application accepted; +20 signos for visual reference. Active Magic pending. -SID
10/13/19 - Active Magic Approved used at free restricted item per member, sent Discullpi item. - NESTLE
12/20/19 +2 EXP from advent calendar, TID4402. -LAYLA
02/19/20 Weapon approved and added to the records! -SID
08/21/20 Character moved to Inactive from "Night Court Soldier" at member request- NESTLE