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Exsilium | Application
» CHARACTER INFORMATION
Character NAME: Tempest
Character PULL-POINT: From the moment after her death. More explained down in history.
Character AGE: 26
Character ABILITIES: Tempest is a mage with mastery over nature-based magic, such as fireballs or calling down lightning. She's also trained as a healer, and has the ability to heal most wounds, or at least close up the worst ones. She's also a decent hand-to-hand fighter as well as a swordsman.
Character WORLD: Tempest is from a world where the main influence comes from the capital, situated in the middle of the main content. All trade, all those looking to better their lives travel there in the hopes of doing so, and many stick behind anyway because what else can one do when they've run out of money? Formerly a kingdom, the capital is more a place of commerce than anything, with the King merely being a figurehead and his counsel running things instead, much like a government. There are knights, of course, who are now more of a police force than the heroic beings they once were. And half the city is considered the "bad side", where criminals and vagrants go to make an easy buck, and where those seeking more . . . dangerous jobs go to pick up a campaign.
There are also numerous villages scattered outside the lands of the capital as well as hidden in the forests; some hidden just because that's how the land grew around them, but others hidden because they are unwelcome in the world. Those such as Half-Elves, creatures whom have an Elf and an human as a parent, are seen as abominations and curses upon the world, because Elves and humans despise each other. So the few that manage to find sanctuary in one of these villages usually remains there until they grow old.
Tempest fits into this world as a half-Elf; she's seen the discrimination against her and her people (more details down in character history), and while I say "fit", she really doesn't fit into either world either. On the one hand, she's lived and worked with humans, and done the same with Elves. But to her, seeing how they treat one another and how they treat her kind, well. She finds it despicable and would rather have nothing to do with either of them.
Character HISTORY: Aurae lead a pretty simple life from birth to just before she hit adulthood - she came from a well-off family in a small village outside the country's capital, primarily made up of half-elves like her and her family. Because of her heritage, however, she never left the village because elves and humans alike despised them, so her knowledge of the "outside" world was limited and often biased by what she was told by the elders of the village. She was unique in that her heritage was balanced; the looks of a human, the stature and features of an elf. Long blond hair, bright blue eyes - just like her parents, and she would grow to look like both of them in time.
But even so, Aurae didn't mind; she studied, she became an accomplished mage at an early age, and was a mere season away from her coming of age when her village received an odd visitor from the outside. A man, injured during a hunting campaign, had been brought there for help and aid, and the elders had agreed, taking him in and nursing him back to life. Aurae was heavily involved in this, being the accomplished mage that she was, and in spending so much time with the stranger began to learn more and more of the outside world, the capital, the different kinds of people she'd only heard spoken of in hushed whispers. And the man happily answered her questions, sometimes spending hours sitting with her and talking of things that the others in the village would be shocked to hear.
The man spent three weeks there, and on the eve of his departure asked Aurae to accompany him. It was dusk when they left, climbing up a nearby cliff-face just in sight of the village to spend some time together before the man had to leave.
But because of her sheltered life, and her optimistic nature of trusting everyone and everything, Aurae had no idea that she had been drawn into a trap. As soon as she had left the village, a group of bandits laid siege on it, burning everything in their sights and killing anyone who dared stopped them - and even those who were innocent and hiding away. A complete slaughter. When Aurae finally realized what was happening it was too late - and the man, angry that she had turned down his offer, decided to kill her instead and shoved her off the cliff face to her death.
. . . only she didn't die.
When she awoke, her village was destroyed and her family and fellow people dead, leaving her the last in her line. By chance a hunter had found her and tended to her wounds, but as soon as she was able she left to travel to the capital. It was here that she learned how cruel and harsh the world was, nothing like she had been told by the outsider or the elders; she could no longer be the naive, optimistic girl she once was. She adopted the name "Tempest", cutting and dying her hair black so she wouldn't stand out as much. Men's clothing was cheaper, so she adopted her classic over-sized tunic preference, and took up lessons with a sword from a young squire who had become taken with her as soon as they had met.
She joined up on hunting campaigns and explorations the following year, becoming a traveling mage and making her living by either finding treasure, killing monsters, or killing bandits - whatever would give her enough money to find an inn and a meal for the night. And she lived this life for years - until one day she ran into the very man who tried to kill her.
The obvious answer to anyone here would've been to kill him and seek revenge for her people, but no - Tempest instead joined up with his group under her new name, earning his trust as well as the trust from the others with him. They were successful, and while she wasn't in it for the riches or the fame, it did provide that inn and meal, and that was what was important to her. Of course, waiting for the right moment to kill the man was also important, but she wanted to wait it out. Wait for that perfect moment.
Things proceeded as normal, however, and Tempest kept close if distant, learning everything she could about the group and the man. She would still take up campaigns on her own, as per the agreement she had made with the man (like HELL was she going to be exclusively his), and on one such campaign . . . well. Tempest was a curious creature, and while the rest of her campaign group was exploring the abandoned building they had come across for treasures and the like, Tempest went into the wine cellar to explore by herself. Upon discovering a ring there, like any other person with a ridiculous amount of curiosity would do, she put it on to see just how it looked.
. . . except the ring was filled with dark magic. A curious thing about half-Elves is that dark magic is pretty much poison to them, and Tempest learned that very quickly and very painfully. But rather than seeking help, or trying to use magic to get the ring off her finger, Tempest went with another option: she cut off the finger with the offending ring instead.
It wasn't for a few more years that the perfect moment mentioned above came. She had grown too close to the man – Maias – that they were considered lovers by many in the group, and while Tempest scowled (and set a few men on fire for it) it was something she couldn't deny, and something she couldn't let continue. So one night, when the rest of the men were celebrating a successful campaign in the bar across the way, Maias invited Tempest to dinner. Something normal that had started up between the two of them. What Maias didn't know, however, is that while he had been off fetching the wine, Tempest had poisoned his food.
So they ate, and spoke of this and that – had a bit too much wine (or at least Maias did) and the talks became a bit more serious, a bit more personal. But the longer it drew on, Tempest realized that the poison wasn't working. So she was left with no other choice: after a dramatic retelling of her past and revealing to Maias who she really was, she slit his throat and severed his spine with a dagger. She spent a good twenty minutes crying before she realized she had to escape.
But luck wasn't on her side, and Maias men soon discovered their boss' body and chased after her. A fight ensued, Tempest goading the men on and holding up pretty well against them. But they outnumbered her, and she quickly grew tired . . . and forgot about the archer they had hired not a week previous because of his excellent marksmanship. She was pierced through the heart with his arrow and brought to the ground, the men closing in for the final blow . . .
But Tempest is Tempest, after all, and using the last of her magic, cast a spell that obliterated the surrounding area, as well as the remaining men. She was not one to go down without a fight.
Character PERSONALITY: Tempest is, in a word, what one thinks of when they think of a business woman. She's straight and to the point, willing to barter to get her way and also willing to take what she wants to get her way as well. She's quiet and closed off when it comes to most people and finds making friends difficult, both because she has no interest in forming real connections and also because she's constantly on the move. A lot of this stems from her fear of losing what's important to her again, and because she does live a somewhat dangerous life. Connections are meaningless if she can't keep up her end of it, after all.
She's also the kind of young woman who doesn't take anyone's crap - she has and will punch someone for offending her, and has made it very clear that while her sword is mostly for show, she is not afraid to us it, either, and most certainly not a slouch with it. Not that she goes around killing people across the countryside, but she has left a small path of men in her wake that know better than to offend a woman - let alone one who's armed.
But if someone does try to get to know her, and works on getting that connection she doesn't want, Tempest opens up, showing more of the optimistic, happy Aurae rather than the shut off Tempest. She still cares to a point, and does go out of her way for those in need . . . if no one else is willing to do it. She'd rather not draw attention to herself, and is the type to do her good deed and leave before anyone can thank her.
Tempest, however, is also willing to go as far as she needs to. She has knocked on death's door more than once, and has little to no care for her own well-being, as mentioned with the ring of dark magic above. If there's a need for a guinea pig of sorts she always offers herself, especially if it's involves magic. She comes off as reckless, selfish, and cold-hearted, which is fine by her, as it is all part of the "Tempest" persona she's taken on.
At 26 she's well into her adulthood as a half-elf, but keeps her heritage well-hidden. She doesn't mind, however, if people choose to guess at what she is, and has been mistaken for an elf, a human, and even a young man at times. In a way she finds it amusing, as no one has ever flat out asked if she was a half-elf - either because it's rude, or because they know better than to piss Tempest off.
Though if they do manage to piss her off? It's hard to see it coming. Tempest has a quiet kind of anger that slowly builds until it explodes - and heaven forbid you be in the way when it does. Though she's very good at reigning in her temper, and tries her hardest not to let anyone get to her - rude men in bars excluded, of course.
As for her usual demeanor, she prefers to keep herself a mystery, so to speak. She never talks about her past, or herself, and when people try to get her to open up, she slams the proverbial door in their face. She isn't quite a person of few words but tries to be, and will rarely will speak up if the situation suits her. . . . but if it doesn't, she doesn't hesitate to open her mouth and tell people how things should be and how things should go. While she isn't the take-charge type, she is by far a perfect example of a "back street driver" - giving direction from the back so that they "get there" as quickly as possible.
» EXSILIUM INFORMATION
Chosen WEAPON: Since Tempest is already a well-established mage, she would probably choose a sword that was better than the one she is used to. As for how it would evolve, I think it would grow to maybe sense the magic she chooses to use, and evolve itself in a way that she could use the magic to cast THROUGH the sword, or maybe use it as a boost to the sword itself. Sort of like . . . a sword with a magic spell cast on it, except she would have to cast specifically for it.
Character INVENTORY: A few gold coins, a small, cloth bag with a ring (containing dark magic) inside, her staff, and a simple sword.
Canon Update: Once upon a time Tempest hunted down her lover and after two years of self-imposed suffering working for him, finally killed him in revenge for what he did to her village and ended up getting killed in a final confrontation with his men.
Eeeexcept she wasn't allowed her death wish.
When Tempest returns to her world, she's "dead" for what seems to her like all of a few seconds. When she "wakes up", she finds herself alive if severely injured, left alone in an abandoned cottage with enough food to last her a few weeks while she heals. When her senses return to her, she can still feel the remnants of a revival spell on her; one cast in haste, if her injuries are anything to go by. She spends two weeks there, recovering enough so that when she's able she can heal her remaining wounds. Upon doing so, however, she notices a symbol that has been burnt into the skin of her shoulder, meaning "inevitable change" or “progress” depending on how one reads it. Whether it's from the failed spell or someone's sick idea of a joke, she has no idea - but it gives her a start as to where to begin hunting down the person who stole her death from her.
But as she travels back to the capital, there's something different; the Elven population, usually fairly large even in her area of the capital, is suddenly missing. Many of the mercenaries who frequented the area are gone, too. She learns that many had been hired out by the elves to journey with them north, to stop the beginnings of a war against the Drow.
Long story short, the Drow are a sub-race of elves who were pushed back into the mountains of the north years ago after a defeat at the hands of the elves - in her world, they are known as beings of evil, who would love nothing more than to wipe out the elves AND humans so that they can reign supreme. Having waited over a hundred years, the Drow had secretly strengthened their forces and went on the attack.
Being a mercenary herself, Tempest is immediately hired into the war by a group of Elven swordsmen passing through. Seeing this as a chance to hunt down the mage responsible for her resurrection, she goes with them to the north.
What she's dragged into, however, is much more than a simple battle - by the time she arrives, it has already grown into a full-blown war. She, surprisingly enough, ends up working with a group of humans and elves alike - who have put aside their differences to work together. Given their diverse skills (swordsmen, archers, another mage) and the fact that they are a few of the most powerful from the capital, they're given the task to sneak behind enemy lines. Should they succeed, the goal is to find the Drow in charge of the attack and either take them prisoner or kill them.
Tempest goes into this whole thing with the mentality that she had last she was in Exsilium - that, given the chance, she may be able to grow to trust someone, and even work with others for a common goal, rather than her isolated nature. This helps her come to genuinely trust the men and women and she's working with, and even at one point risks her life to save them - and has every expectation crushed when they save her life in return.
Not only that, but for the first time in her life, she's accepted, regardless of what she is in her world - which is a huge deal for her, as in Exsilium she only spoke of what she was if it came up in conversation, and in a manner that was wary of scrutiny or even hatred. Not only by her group, but by chance she ends up encountering her mother's relatives - an uncle and a cousin, both of whom accept her into their family and even invite her to return with them, should they survive the war.
A year and four months of this war and working with these people has helped her grow out of a young, damaged girl on a path of vengeance into a young woman who has learned to look past those who wronged her and finally *live* her life, and on her way to healing from her past. While Exsilium has already started her on this path, especially with the whole mutiny plot event that gave her far too many feelings to deal with, returning to a world she used to despise and actually experience a change her people used to dream about is what really kicks everything into gear, so to speak. While she hasn't’t forgotten that she’s hunting down a particular mage, she’s put it aside, and no longer wants to kill him like she did when she first awoke in that cottage. In fact, with the way things are going before she’s brought back to Exsilium, she may end up thanking him, for giving her a second chance.
The effects when she does get back to Exsilium will be fairly obvious right away - before, she was still wary, still hard to trust - and when she did give in and trust others, somehow, as always, she got hurt. She made friends, fought with them, nearly lost them; these are things she’s never experienced before, even as a child. When she gets back, however, she’ll be more open, a little less awkward about being friendly to people, and a bit more open about how much she trusts people. She’ll be able to talk about how she feels a little more easily, having more of an opinion that’s less a follower and more of a partner/co-conspirator (well, depending on the situation). A lot of her feelings on certain things (like the Initiative) will remain, although rather being stubborn about working with them like she was post-mutiny, she’ll be much more willing to listen to them, even if she disagrees.
Her feelings regarding such things like being a half-elf will remain the same, as it’s still something she’s getting used to both in Exsilium and in her world - that it’s something that doesn't truly matter in the long run. Which means, she’ll be much more open about being a half-elf, rather than only revealing it when it’s specifically asked in conversation. She’ll also be far less wary about working with elves in general, especially since she spent a great deal of time working with them back home. And y’know, the family thing really helps a lot. However, in the event a Drow comes into Exs? Yeah that shit won't fly.
Finally - physically, which is probably the most obvious change, is that she’ll no longer be hiding under her hood. Well - not as much, anyway. She’ll be much more comfortable going without, since she no longer has a need to do it because of what she is. Awkward social situations, though? Yeah, that’s still fair game. However, nothing that’ll have her reaching for her hood to hide under 24/7. Her hair will be longer, and while she’s not one to take extreme efforts to take care of her appearance, a notable difference will be that she actually does things with it. It isn't so much that she can, but more that she wants to. Because now, she doesn't bother hiding. (And it helps that her hair hides her ears, which is still a thing - more habit than anything)
Character NAME: Tempest
Character PULL-POINT: From the moment after her death. More explained down in history.
Character AGE: 26
Character ABILITIES: Tempest is a mage with mastery over nature-based magic, such as fireballs or calling down lightning. She's also trained as a healer, and has the ability to heal most wounds, or at least close up the worst ones. She's also a decent hand-to-hand fighter as well as a swordsman.
Character WORLD: Tempest is from a world where the main influence comes from the capital, situated in the middle of the main content. All trade, all those looking to better their lives travel there in the hopes of doing so, and many stick behind anyway because what else can one do when they've run out of money? Formerly a kingdom, the capital is more a place of commerce than anything, with the King merely being a figurehead and his counsel running things instead, much like a government. There are knights, of course, who are now more of a police force than the heroic beings they once were. And half the city is considered the "bad side", where criminals and vagrants go to make an easy buck, and where those seeking more . . . dangerous jobs go to pick up a campaign.
There are also numerous villages scattered outside the lands of the capital as well as hidden in the forests; some hidden just because that's how the land grew around them, but others hidden because they are unwelcome in the world. Those such as Half-Elves, creatures whom have an Elf and an human as a parent, are seen as abominations and curses upon the world, because Elves and humans despise each other. So the few that manage to find sanctuary in one of these villages usually remains there until they grow old.
Tempest fits into this world as a half-Elf; she's seen the discrimination against her and her people (more details down in character history), and while I say "fit", she really doesn't fit into either world either. On the one hand, she's lived and worked with humans, and done the same with Elves. But to her, seeing how they treat one another and how they treat her kind, well. She finds it despicable and would rather have nothing to do with either of them.
Character HISTORY: Aurae lead a pretty simple life from birth to just before she hit adulthood - she came from a well-off family in a small village outside the country's capital, primarily made up of half-elves like her and her family. Because of her heritage, however, she never left the village because elves and humans alike despised them, so her knowledge of the "outside" world was limited and often biased by what she was told by the elders of the village. She was unique in that her heritage was balanced; the looks of a human, the stature and features of an elf. Long blond hair, bright blue eyes - just like her parents, and she would grow to look like both of them in time.
But even so, Aurae didn't mind; she studied, she became an accomplished mage at an early age, and was a mere season away from her coming of age when her village received an odd visitor from the outside. A man, injured during a hunting campaign, had been brought there for help and aid, and the elders had agreed, taking him in and nursing him back to life. Aurae was heavily involved in this, being the accomplished mage that she was, and in spending so much time with the stranger began to learn more and more of the outside world, the capital, the different kinds of people she'd only heard spoken of in hushed whispers. And the man happily answered her questions, sometimes spending hours sitting with her and talking of things that the others in the village would be shocked to hear.
The man spent three weeks there, and on the eve of his departure asked Aurae to accompany him. It was dusk when they left, climbing up a nearby cliff-face just in sight of the village to spend some time together before the man had to leave.
But because of her sheltered life, and her optimistic nature of trusting everyone and everything, Aurae had no idea that she had been drawn into a trap. As soon as she had left the village, a group of bandits laid siege on it, burning everything in their sights and killing anyone who dared stopped them - and even those who were innocent and hiding away. A complete slaughter. When Aurae finally realized what was happening it was too late - and the man, angry that she had turned down his offer, decided to kill her instead and shoved her off the cliff face to her death.
. . . only she didn't die.
When she awoke, her village was destroyed and her family and fellow people dead, leaving her the last in her line. By chance a hunter had found her and tended to her wounds, but as soon as she was able she left to travel to the capital. It was here that she learned how cruel and harsh the world was, nothing like she had been told by the outsider or the elders; she could no longer be the naive, optimistic girl she once was. She adopted the name "Tempest", cutting and dying her hair black so she wouldn't stand out as much. Men's clothing was cheaper, so she adopted her classic over-sized tunic preference, and took up lessons with a sword from a young squire who had become taken with her as soon as they had met.
She joined up on hunting campaigns and explorations the following year, becoming a traveling mage and making her living by either finding treasure, killing monsters, or killing bandits - whatever would give her enough money to find an inn and a meal for the night. And she lived this life for years - until one day she ran into the very man who tried to kill her.
The obvious answer to anyone here would've been to kill him and seek revenge for her people, but no - Tempest instead joined up with his group under her new name, earning his trust as well as the trust from the others with him. They were successful, and while she wasn't in it for the riches or the fame, it did provide that inn and meal, and that was what was important to her. Of course, waiting for the right moment to kill the man was also important, but she wanted to wait it out. Wait for that perfect moment.
Things proceeded as normal, however, and Tempest kept close if distant, learning everything she could about the group and the man. She would still take up campaigns on her own, as per the agreement she had made with the man (like HELL was she going to be exclusively his), and on one such campaign . . . well. Tempest was a curious creature, and while the rest of her campaign group was exploring the abandoned building they had come across for treasures and the like, Tempest went into the wine cellar to explore by herself. Upon discovering a ring there, like any other person with a ridiculous amount of curiosity would do, she put it on to see just how it looked.
. . . except the ring was filled with dark magic. A curious thing about half-Elves is that dark magic is pretty much poison to them, and Tempest learned that very quickly and very painfully. But rather than seeking help, or trying to use magic to get the ring off her finger, Tempest went with another option: she cut off the finger with the offending ring instead.
It wasn't for a few more years that the perfect moment mentioned above came. She had grown too close to the man – Maias – that they were considered lovers by many in the group, and while Tempest scowled (and set a few men on fire for it) it was something she couldn't deny, and something she couldn't let continue. So one night, when the rest of the men were celebrating a successful campaign in the bar across the way, Maias invited Tempest to dinner. Something normal that had started up between the two of them. What Maias didn't know, however, is that while he had been off fetching the wine, Tempest had poisoned his food.
So they ate, and spoke of this and that – had a bit too much wine (or at least Maias did) and the talks became a bit more serious, a bit more personal. But the longer it drew on, Tempest realized that the poison wasn't working. So she was left with no other choice: after a dramatic retelling of her past and revealing to Maias who she really was, she slit his throat and severed his spine with a dagger. She spent a good twenty minutes crying before she realized she had to escape.
But luck wasn't on her side, and Maias men soon discovered their boss' body and chased after her. A fight ensued, Tempest goading the men on and holding up pretty well against them. But they outnumbered her, and she quickly grew tired . . . and forgot about the archer they had hired not a week previous because of his excellent marksmanship. She was pierced through the heart with his arrow and brought to the ground, the men closing in for the final blow . . .
But Tempest is Tempest, after all, and using the last of her magic, cast a spell that obliterated the surrounding area, as well as the remaining men. She was not one to go down without a fight.
Character PERSONALITY: Tempest is, in a word, what one thinks of when they think of a business woman. She's straight and to the point, willing to barter to get her way and also willing to take what she wants to get her way as well. She's quiet and closed off when it comes to most people and finds making friends difficult, both because she has no interest in forming real connections and also because she's constantly on the move. A lot of this stems from her fear of losing what's important to her again, and because she does live a somewhat dangerous life. Connections are meaningless if she can't keep up her end of it, after all.
She's also the kind of young woman who doesn't take anyone's crap - she has and will punch someone for offending her, and has made it very clear that while her sword is mostly for show, she is not afraid to us it, either, and most certainly not a slouch with it. Not that she goes around killing people across the countryside, but she has left a small path of men in her wake that know better than to offend a woman - let alone one who's armed.
But if someone does try to get to know her, and works on getting that connection she doesn't want, Tempest opens up, showing more of the optimistic, happy Aurae rather than the shut off Tempest. She still cares to a point, and does go out of her way for those in need . . . if no one else is willing to do it. She'd rather not draw attention to herself, and is the type to do her good deed and leave before anyone can thank her.
Tempest, however, is also willing to go as far as she needs to. She has knocked on death's door more than once, and has little to no care for her own well-being, as mentioned with the ring of dark magic above. If there's a need for a guinea pig of sorts she always offers herself, especially if it's involves magic. She comes off as reckless, selfish, and cold-hearted, which is fine by her, as it is all part of the "Tempest" persona she's taken on.
At 26 she's well into her adulthood as a half-elf, but keeps her heritage well-hidden. She doesn't mind, however, if people choose to guess at what she is, and has been mistaken for an elf, a human, and even a young man at times. In a way she finds it amusing, as no one has ever flat out asked if she was a half-elf - either because it's rude, or because they know better than to piss Tempest off.
Though if they do manage to piss her off? It's hard to see it coming. Tempest has a quiet kind of anger that slowly builds until it explodes - and heaven forbid you be in the way when it does. Though she's very good at reigning in her temper, and tries her hardest not to let anyone get to her - rude men in bars excluded, of course.
As for her usual demeanor, she prefers to keep herself a mystery, so to speak. She never talks about her past, or herself, and when people try to get her to open up, she slams the proverbial door in their face. She isn't quite a person of few words but tries to be, and will rarely will speak up if the situation suits her. . . . but if it doesn't, she doesn't hesitate to open her mouth and tell people how things should be and how things should go. While she isn't the take-charge type, she is by far a perfect example of a "back street driver" - giving direction from the back so that they "get there" as quickly as possible.
» EXSILIUM INFORMATION
Chosen WEAPON: Since Tempest is already a well-established mage, she would probably choose a sword that was better than the one she is used to. As for how it would evolve, I think it would grow to maybe sense the magic she chooses to use, and evolve itself in a way that she could use the magic to cast THROUGH the sword, or maybe use it as a boost to the sword itself. Sort of like . . . a sword with a magic spell cast on it, except she would have to cast specifically for it.
Character INVENTORY: A few gold coins, a small, cloth bag with a ring (containing dark magic) inside, her staff, and a simple sword.
Canon Update: Once upon a time Tempest hunted down her lover and after two years of self-imposed suffering working for him, finally killed him in revenge for what he did to her village and ended up getting killed in a final confrontation with his men.
Eeeexcept she wasn't allowed her death wish.
When Tempest returns to her world, she's "dead" for what seems to her like all of a few seconds. When she "wakes up", she finds herself alive if severely injured, left alone in an abandoned cottage with enough food to last her a few weeks while she heals. When her senses return to her, she can still feel the remnants of a revival spell on her; one cast in haste, if her injuries are anything to go by. She spends two weeks there, recovering enough so that when she's able she can heal her remaining wounds. Upon doing so, however, she notices a symbol that has been burnt into the skin of her shoulder, meaning "inevitable change" or “progress” depending on how one reads it. Whether it's from the failed spell or someone's sick idea of a joke, she has no idea - but it gives her a start as to where to begin hunting down the person who stole her death from her.
But as she travels back to the capital, there's something different; the Elven population, usually fairly large even in her area of the capital, is suddenly missing. Many of the mercenaries who frequented the area are gone, too. She learns that many had been hired out by the elves to journey with them north, to stop the beginnings of a war against the Drow.
Long story short, the Drow are a sub-race of elves who were pushed back into the mountains of the north years ago after a defeat at the hands of the elves - in her world, they are known as beings of evil, who would love nothing more than to wipe out the elves AND humans so that they can reign supreme. Having waited over a hundred years, the Drow had secretly strengthened their forces and went on the attack.
Being a mercenary herself, Tempest is immediately hired into the war by a group of Elven swordsmen passing through. Seeing this as a chance to hunt down the mage responsible for her resurrection, she goes with them to the north.
What she's dragged into, however, is much more than a simple battle - by the time she arrives, it has already grown into a full-blown war. She, surprisingly enough, ends up working with a group of humans and elves alike - who have put aside their differences to work together. Given their diverse skills (swordsmen, archers, another mage) and the fact that they are a few of the most powerful from the capital, they're given the task to sneak behind enemy lines. Should they succeed, the goal is to find the Drow in charge of the attack and either take them prisoner or kill them.
Tempest goes into this whole thing with the mentality that she had last she was in Exsilium - that, given the chance, she may be able to grow to trust someone, and even work with others for a common goal, rather than her isolated nature. This helps her come to genuinely trust the men and women and she's working with, and even at one point risks her life to save them - and has every expectation crushed when they save her life in return.
Not only that, but for the first time in her life, she's accepted, regardless of what she is in her world - which is a huge deal for her, as in Exsilium she only spoke of what she was if it came up in conversation, and in a manner that was wary of scrutiny or even hatred. Not only by her group, but by chance she ends up encountering her mother's relatives - an uncle and a cousin, both of whom accept her into their family and even invite her to return with them, should they survive the war.
A year and four months of this war and working with these people has helped her grow out of a young, damaged girl on a path of vengeance into a young woman who has learned to look past those who wronged her and finally *live* her life, and on her way to healing from her past. While Exsilium has already started her on this path, especially with the whole mutiny plot event that gave her far too many feelings to deal with, returning to a world she used to despise and actually experience a change her people used to dream about is what really kicks everything into gear, so to speak. While she hasn't’t forgotten that she’s hunting down a particular mage, she’s put it aside, and no longer wants to kill him like she did when she first awoke in that cottage. In fact, with the way things are going before she’s brought back to Exsilium, she may end up thanking him, for giving her a second chance.
The effects when she does get back to Exsilium will be fairly obvious right away - before, she was still wary, still hard to trust - and when she did give in and trust others, somehow, as always, she got hurt. She made friends, fought with them, nearly lost them; these are things she’s never experienced before, even as a child. When she gets back, however, she’ll be more open, a little less awkward about being friendly to people, and a bit more open about how much she trusts people. She’ll be able to talk about how she feels a little more easily, having more of an opinion that’s less a follower and more of a partner/co-conspirator (well, depending on the situation). A lot of her feelings on certain things (like the Initiative) will remain, although rather being stubborn about working with them like she was post-mutiny, she’ll be much more willing to listen to them, even if she disagrees.
Her feelings regarding such things like being a half-elf will remain the same, as it’s still something she’s getting used to both in Exsilium and in her world - that it’s something that doesn't truly matter in the long run. Which means, she’ll be much more open about being a half-elf, rather than only revealing it when it’s specifically asked in conversation. She’ll also be far less wary about working with elves in general, especially since she spent a great deal of time working with them back home. And y’know, the family thing really helps a lot. However, in the event a Drow comes into Exs? Yeah that shit won't fly.
Finally - physically, which is probably the most obvious change, is that she’ll no longer be hiding under her hood. Well - not as much, anyway. She’ll be much more comfortable going without, since she no longer has a need to do it because of what she is. Awkward social situations, though? Yeah, that’s still fair game. However, nothing that’ll have her reaching for her hood to hide under 24/7. Her hair will be longer, and while she’s not one to take extreme efforts to take care of her appearance, a notable difference will be that she actually does things with it. It isn't so much that she can, but more that she wants to. Because now, she doesn't bother hiding. (And it helps that her hair hides her ears, which is still a thing - more habit than anything)