Quintessa, the Lady of Desires...
Dungeons & Dragons
01:57 Nov 13 2007
Times Read: 779
Since one of my SoulCalibur III/Dungeons & Dragons characters ascended to godhood, I felt it only fitting that I backed up her deific might with a little history lesson. She's come a long way, after all. Her visage graces my portfolio.
'Feast your eyes, yonder mortal, at the legend that I am about to tell you, for you are about to learn the secret history of Quintessa, the Goddess of Desires. That's me, for those who haven't figured it out, yet. I've usually kept such things to myself but now I feel it is time to share my past with the gallant peasanty. Certainly such an act would remove any air of mystery that I had about me, but it would be a crime to deny them such sought after information! So it is here in this humble parchment that I present to you my tale in it's fullest.. minus a detail or two, I suppose. Hmm, now, where shall I start this little tirade? Well, why not start this at the beginning, shall we?
Childhood
I was born upon a mid-winter's day in the small village of Amariel, nestled in the heart of the Leänder Valley, deep within the bossom of the Echidnea Mountains, and did not the angels sing praises of that glorious event? Ever since my first moment in this world I was shown to be a most exceptional child; if my striking, snow-white hair was not enough proof, the luscious, magenta eyes that I was blessed with would surely point out a heritage far nobler and more enriched than my human parentage would leave one to believe. Not to mention the fact that I grew up without a father certainly brought curiousity and even fear towards my mother and I. Ah, yes, my mother. How can I continue without saying a few words about the woman who gave me this life? She was a simple woman of modest means, working as a seamstress and living off a workable wage that always kept me well fed and clothed with garments that made me look more a doll than a child, but the jealousies of the neighboring serfs more than made up for this bravado.
Although my mother appeared little better than most other women of the village on the outside, the sight of her deepset and pure brown eyes, as well as the curvature of her face and the soothing sound of her voice, would leave one to believe that she were of noble stock; a princess, perhaps, who had lost her memory and found herself a pauper in unfamiliar lands. Or she may have been a forest nymph in human guise, who's love for such creatures had taken her from the wild. She always told me that she was special, as was I, but that everyone had something special about themselves, and that it did not matter how you sounded or acted or where you came from, but what you did with your life that makes you who you are and gives you purpose in this life. I never quite understood what she mean't, for surely I stood apart from these simpletons, no? Otherwise I would not be sitting here writing this today!
My childhood was, with great misfortune, uneventful. Yes, there were the occasional stares and taunts and rumors about my appearance and who my father must've been, and a great deal of silence regarding this did not help matters. I heard everything about who or what father must've been, from great adepts or princes, to dragons and angels, devils and... well, I'd rather not speak of this anymore. No matter what the circumstance, I do believe that my parentage resulted not only in my unearthly beauty and grace, but the inate mastery of the arcane that came into being upon my thirteenth year. It began subtly at first; glowing lights would surround me at night, ghostly sounds emanating from an empty house I walked past. I would whisper something to a friend, only to have it heard by a person no more than a hundred feet away! Whatever fear and hate my mother and I received from the townsfolk only worsened as my power began to develop, and when I learned how to tap into and control it, it was the beginning of the end of my innocence. And every end has a new beginning...
Early Years...
It wasn't long before the hatred came to a boiling point, for my own personal disdainment towards the peasantry and my love of pulling pranks on them with my new abilities led them to accuse me of being some sort of hellspawn and nearly have me burnt at the stake. My mother, may the angels bless her, snuck me away from the village one cold eve when the moon shown it's fullest, telling me to run as far as I could, to never look back and to never let anyone make me feel less human than I really was. Her final, tear-stained words remained within my heart till this very day and have guided me on my escapades since then. I traveled out of Amariel and away from the Echidnea Mountains, carrying with me only the clothes on my back, a few meager belongings, and a walking stick, along with my arcane might which I was quickly strengthening day by day.
I did whatever a young woman of fifteen could do on her own during those years; I slept under the stars when an inn could not be had. I picked fruit from nearby orchards when I could not receive a warm meal. I lied, I cheated, I stole, I... did other things to get whatever money I could. I even murdered, if I had to. Did I feel remorse? No, I shall plainly tell you that I did not! Why, why should I feel remorse for taking advantage of the weak? After all, if there's one law that is engrained in the human psyche, it is that only the strong survive, and those who do not cut it are left by the wayside. After all, if they were fool enough to be tricked so easily, then they deserved to have their lives snuffed out; after all, what else had they planned? Procreate more vermin to infest this beautiful world? Besides, I was free. I had no restraints telling me I couldn't go where I pleased, no rules telling me I couldn't do what I wanted. They couldn't touch me while I was alive, and if I died, who cares?
Yet it was by chance, however, that I came upon an apothecary owned by a wisened, if not altogether unsavory, sage. When I tried to distract him with my abilities while I nicked a potion from his shelves, I was shocked to discover that he saw right through my guises! How rude of this man to keep me from what I desired! Still, he liked what he saw (in more ways than one, I'm sure), and offered to retain me as an apprentice in the arcane arts. I will tell you that as much as I despised this character I did learn a lot, focusing my abilities to a finer degree and paving my way towards a path to greatness. Thankfully, although less criminal circumstances would've been preferred, my teacher was murdered shortly after removing me from his service and I, of course, was blamed for his death. Ah, the joys of the mortal legal system. I escaped inprisonment and once more found myself free, however. As if they could ever keep there for very long, and no way was I going to stick around.
Ah, to be on my own once again, to do as I pleased. I found myself a most lovely blue gown; it was elegent, yet mysterious and alluring, perfect for an enchantress, no? I need not bore you with too many more details, I suppose. I had the usual adventures, met allies and made enemies, and grow ever more powerful and radiant. Then came him. I do not know his name, nor where he came from, only that he was a Necromancer of awesome power. He destroyed us, my companions and I, and I knew death. Light enveloped me, sounds became distanct, merged, like some ethereal choir, and I soon found myself stading before Pelor, God of the Sun. He knew of the threat that this man brought against the forces of Light and had enlisted us, one and all, to return to the world of the living and combat this threat.
I was alive again, and my force of will was more determined than ever before. We found our quarry and again did battle, and 'twas by my very finger that he was finally laid low. Ironic, is not? That such a great Necromancer should be felled by a Necromantic spell.. that one of such experience and power was, in the end, of no greater level than the one who killed him. It tickles me pink to this day whenever I think back to that monumentive event. Now Pelor and I may not see eye to eye, but for what transpired that day the Shining One shall forever have my respect. Why, I may not be where I am today if it wasn't for his intervention.
So, what happened after that day? Well, not a whole lot, I can assure you. I fought Pit Fiends and dragons and other nasty things. I travelled through the Plane of Eternal Night and entered the service of a local king for a brief period, helping him to combat an enemy army (made of Paladins we later found out, oh dear!), as well as finding his queen's missing kitten. An army of vampires, some of whom we had tussled with before, came next, and I found an everlasting enemy and rival with their queen, one Lucy Wenestra. Not only was she and her ilk defeated on the field of battle, but I also happened to have later defeated her during a beauty pagent. Who new the undead could get so red in the face? My power began to affect me, as well, for those that see me now will surely know that my beautiful, magenta eyes are hidden behind pools of glowing blue; haunting, I suppose, but it has it's uses.
The Goddess of Desires
Ah, and now onto the final portion of this splended tale; what you've all been waiting for, I'm sure. After escaping the Plane of Eternal Night, I and some associates came upon a temple deep within a thick forest. It had turned out that this forest was home to a particular Druid who was not only deathly against anyone harming so much as a leaf on any of his trees, but also had the same goal as myself; immortality. We entered his little abode (turns out the temple was dedicated to himself, the cheeky fellow) and with the usual, "tell me everything you know or die" mindset he inquired us as to how such a goal could be attained. Well, it just so happened that we had with us a Cleric who could open the gateways to the various planes, and his knowledge of the various religions was steep.
He knew what to do. He opened a gate and called upon Imhotep, a deity from a far away land who was associated with crafting and medicine and whatnot; he certainly didn't look like much, and it didn't take a whole lot of convincing to have him to bless this temple, something he seemed to take quite an interest in, too. That's what I love about the peaceful, good-natured folk; so many of them are so easy to dupe. Down went the Druid's scythe, and the Cleric finished him off. Tsk, didn't give me a chance at all at having any fun!
What happened next I still find it difficult to put into words...
My body became imbued with this.. this.. life. That's all I can really say, I was filled with life. This pure force entered me and flowed through me, filling every fiber of my being. I was brimming with power, my senses were heightened, my knowledge of the universe deepened, and I was blinded by the sensation of countless souls, feeling their desires and jealousies as strongly as I had felt my own or those of my companions. I saw my destiny, felt my purpose.. all those years ago back in that small valley seemed like nothing to me anymore. A mere day could pass no more slowly than a second of time, I could transcend eons like a passing breath.
It took some time for me to get used to my abilities, but I was soon able to mold my newly received divinity the way I wanted, strengthening my power to influence others, bolstering my already hefty arcane power, and otherwise glorifying my natural poise and grace. Desire had drove me on. Jealousy had fueled the flame. Was it not natural for a woman of beauty and elegance and power to embrace these emotions with all her heart and make them her own, to become their utter embodiment? That's what I would be.. a goddess of desire. I could peer into the hearts of the many and see their greatest desires, their most imflamed jealousies, and help strengthen them through these feelings, show them the way to their goals just as I had found my way. For my symbol I chose a blue rose encircled by it's stem; it, like my dress and myself, was beautiful, elegant, enchanting, and mysterious. Long have florists wanted to create this most inspiring of flora, and it has appeared in countless motifs over the years. And, now, whenever someone sees it, they shall think of me. Oh, how wonderful!
Well, that practically brings me up to the present day. I'm still quite young compared to the rest of the pantheon, but that doesn't mean I haven't already had my share of epic adventures. I heard rumour of the death of Tiamat, Queen of Evil Dragons, and felt that her passing would usher in an era of peace and prosperity amonst the good scalykind. Tsk, such an imbalance should never persist! So I set my eyes upon Bahamut, King of Good Dragons, and challenged him to battle. Whatever fights I found myself in before were nothing compared to this. The landscape below us was changed forever by the attacks that we continued to throw at each other, and I nearly lost my immortal life before I even had time to enjoy it.. but I won. Bahamut lay slain before me. The balance between good and evil was restored, and whatever power I had before was dwarfed by the sheer magitude of energy that came to me.
Finale
A lesser deity; that's what I am now, because of that battle. My role as a goddess of desire is now permantly etched into the cosmos. Being able to wish for whatever I so liked, or to change the very face of reality.. such a power that I had barely dreamed of in my youth... right there, right at my finger tips. Granted, the cost was quite high; I've still an entire people and a species to contend with, but they are no matter to me. What could they possibly do?
Now for those reading this, you must be wondering, "Why, Quintessa! What does a goddess do day after day?" Well, I'll tell your right now, it's not easy! Sure, it comes with unlimited power, but with great power comes great responsibility, right? Whoever made that rule up should be bitten by a spider, I dare say! Then again we gods don't really do very much on our own, do we? Outside of the occasional miracle, anyway. I mean we have Clerics and other followers to do our work for us.
Yet that doesn't mean that we are effectively useless in the grand scheme of things; everything has a purpose, I suppose, and even we gods have our parts. Why, I dare say it feels good to be important, to be needed! I mean I could just follow after Boccob and care less for the world; I have, after all, the power that I craved. No, I like being worshipped, and it warms my heart to help the less fortunate; to aid the young woman seeking the heart of the married man she so loves, or to help a lord win the power over an entire populace. All these people have given me so much, I guess it's time I gave back, right? Seems a fair enough trade, at any rate. Give the people what they want, and in return you are worshipped, you are wanted... you are loved.
...was this what is was always about?'
Quintessa
COMMENTS
-