Description
Eva is petite, standing just over five feet tall. The dark brown wavy hair falling framing her face offsets her green eyes. Eva used to always wear her hair down in an attempt to hide a hideous scar running down the left side of her face, from the corner of her eye to her jaw, however since being captured and then freed again, she has less concern about it. When speaking with people, she faces them only with her right side to keep the attention away from her scar, a habit she gained while on the run.
Typically shy, Eva's eyes are normally averted, but should one get the opportunity, they would find buried deep within an unbearable sadness out of proportion with her 25 years. Recently, they sparkle with a glimmer of hope.... or they had, but the hope had been smashed away.
Eva wears a simple silver amulet with a purplish blue stone. She is intensely protective of it and avoids answering any questions about it.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/46817147@N07/4412988688/ Her body is covered with scars, varying in size and severity. The majority of her clothing covers the majority of these scars - something Eva is deeply self conscious of.
Personality
After being on the run for a long time, taken into custody, thrown into slavery, released, and then taken into slavery again, Eva is very suspicious of strangers. She can seem very aloof and detached, but is actually spending a lot of time paying attention to others and eavesdropping. She has become very guarded and is constantly looking over her shoulder. Being covered in scars, she is extremely self conscious about them. Eva does not like to touch other people, with the exception of her beloved Alrion, and absolutely cannot stand to be touched by others.
After more than three months in the Underdark as a slave and pet to the drow Brizriia, Eva lost her mind. She believed her love, Alrion, to be dead, and gave up, resigned to her fate.
Eva is a Lazaro, which means she is inhabited by a powerful sorceress, Lazaria. Eva calls her "The Other" and will occasionally refer to her in conversation. Also, Lazaria will take over Eva's body occasionally, usually while performing some act of sorcery. Her powers are slowly being transferred to Eva so that Eva might continue her work.
She loves red wine and has a tendency to overindulge.
Equipment
Eva had lost all of her possessions upon her capture by the Guard. Since her release, she has started to accumulate items again... or had, until she was captured by the drow...
She carries a sharp knife in a holster on her belt.
She carries a worn leather pack that she stole from Thaddeus. In it she carries various items including a tattered journal, a few pens.
History
Daughter of a jewelcrafter and a sorceress, Eva grew up familiar with the finer things in life. Her father, Evan, had been commissioned to craft all of the royal jewelery and both of her parents were called in to work on special secret projects. As such, Eva was familiar to the royal family and to the elite police force known as The Guard. While her parents worked, Eva made herself a pain at the blacksmith's shop, eventually befriending the apprentice, Silas. He and Eva would sneak out into the forest and he would teach her to swordfight.
Seven years ago, however, when Eva was 18, she and Silas had been practicing out in the forest just as on any other day. The sounds of clanging metal and laughter drowned out the sounds of approaching footsteps just as it had drawn them to the teens. Without warning, Eva and Silas were surrounded by 14 members of The Guard led by Thaddeus, the king's brother. Silas, always noble, attempted to bravely extricate the two from their predicament, but Thaddeus and his friends had murder in their minds, and decided that Eva was a treat much too delicious looking to be passed by any longer. They had seen her around the village, and decided to take what they wanted before accomplishing their mission. Silas bravely fought to protect Eva's honor, and to his credit, managed to slay three of the guards, but was quickly subdued and killed as the rest of the group advanced on Eva. Without thinking, she picked up a sword and attempted to take out as many as she could before being overpowered. When it was over, Eva had killed five of the Guard. The remaining six spent hours torturing her, having their way with her, cutting into her flesh to watch her bleed, calling her by name and forcing her to beg for death. When all was said and done, Eva was inches from death, and she stared into the lifeless eyes of Silas as Thaddeus and his men left her to the wolves.
But despite all of her begging, she was not to die. Her brother, Rathos, had heard her screams. He managed to get her back to their home where her mother, Sonja, attempted to heal her wounds. Despite her gift, it took months to heal the extensive damage done to Eva. While she could have repaired the scars covering the majority of Evaās body, she left them, telling Eva that they would give her courage. She was never the same. Her body was riddled with scars, her nights haunted by memories. Her nightmares, like her scars, never left her, however, and she would wake up screaming nightly for years. Sonja and her husband Evan conspired together to create special amulets for their children. Eva was told to promise that she would never remove the amulet, and she kept her promise.
Four years ago, Eva ventured into town on an errand. Despite her care at covering herself, she was seen and recognized by a member of the Guard - one who had been part of the group left alive. He ran to tell Thaddeus who decided that Eva was to disappear. Eva returned home, unaware of the men following her. She was captured, but somehow managed to slaughter the men who held her, before watching helplessly as her family was murdered in retaliation - her mother, father, sister Anna, and baby brother Jocham. As the Guard was about to kill Rathos, he screamed for Eva to run and kept the villains busy while she disappeared into the woods. She stayed there for three days, hidden, until she could take it no longer. She returned home and buried her family. She was unable to locate the amulets worn by her siblings ā identical to hers except only for the stones. She packed a few necessities and a few valuables into a pack and ran, attempting to outrun the Guard while simultaneously attempting to locate her siblingsā amulets.
Despite her determination to never stay in one place for long, she eventually found her way to Gambitās. For the first time since Silas was murdered, she was able to call another person āfriend.ā But Thaddeus found her, and his men captured her. While fighting to escape capture and the subsequent incarceration, she killed a few more men, but was overpowered. Taken back to the kingdom, she was brought up for sentencing for her crimes. The King, at Thaddeusā assistance, sentenced Eva to life as a pleasure slave to the Guard. She was fitted with irremovable slave bands, and bound to Thaddeus. Thanks to a collaborative effort, Thaddeus had been captured and power over Eva had been transferred to Drakus Flavaar, brother of Alrion. Eva admitted her love to Alrion, partially prompted by Drakus. She developed a wavering friendship with Drakus.
Attempting to assist Alrion in seeking god-hood, Eva fought against her inner fear of losing him while trying to help him acquire the objects needed to ascend. Upon his ascension, the goddess made him a demi-god. Eva was overjoyed to have him stay with her. She felt a pull to go back to her family's home, to find her parents' notes on their enchanted jewelry, in an attempt to find a way to remove the slave bands. Instead, she dug up the truth about the Lazaria. This disturbed her greatly.
The slave bands were eventually removed by the LDA at the prompting of Special Agent Marlene Angel. The procedure involved Eva being heavily drugged while the bands were removed so she wouldn't feel the pain. Unfortunately, she could still feel it, but couldn't say anything about it. She retreated into her mind and The Other gained more ability to control her.
After having found the other amulets, Eva was taken as a pet and slave to the drow Brizriia. Forced into the Underdark for a minimum of two and a half months, Eva originally contacted Alrion through the amulet around his neck... but she closed the connection one day and hadn't heard anything since. Assuming him to be dead, she became resigned to her fate, slowly sinking deep into insanity. The only light in her world were the dreams she had about Alrion, about a house with endless green fields, dotted with horses, two children running around... arm in arm with her Love... a reality that she thought would never happen.
In the Underdark, Eva and Lazaria came to rely on each other, forming a bond. Eva would have given up completely in the Underdark if she hadn't discovered she was pregnant with Alrion's child. Given a new reason to live, she prayed to one day be able to escape, which she eventually did. As soon as she climbed into the light, however, her body miscarried the child. She was, however reunited with Alrion, and slowly began to come out of the psychosis brought about by the events, even moving in with Alrion.
... and then she found out about the other women.
It broke her. She gave Alrion an ultimatum, but he refused to choose, so she chose for him, deciding that happiness for her would simply always be only a myth... Deciding that she could not spend the rest of her life feeling inadequate... knowing that the one she loved would never give himself fully to her. She met a new friend who offered to wipe her memories. Eva agreed, wanting to forget everything that had happened since she entered Gambits for the first time.
So begins...
EvaLazaro sat up from where sheād been deposited, disoriented for a moment until she saw Alrion. Moving over next to him, she felt his head. The surroundings could wait. āAre you alright?ā she asked, worried. She searched for any sign of a wound ā a bump, a cut, blood, anything. Smoothing his hair she looked down into his eyes, studying his pupils. āAre you alright?ā she asked again before realizingā¦ The groundā¦ was different. It was brighterā¦ Turning, she looked out to the world, squinting in the brightness. Reaching down for Alrionās hand, she bit her lip. āWellā¦ hmmā¦ Maybeā¦ maybe this exploring thing wasnāt such a good idea,ā she muttered. āButā¦ Where are we?ā
EvaLazaro tied her dripping hair back, wringing her skirt out onto the dry red rock floor of the cave as she looked down the cliff face. She spun her head around to look up the cliff just as it started to rain. Moving toward the back of the cave, she sat on the floor, hugging her knees to her chest, her brows furrowed in thought as she tried to put two and two together. Okay. Whistling noise. Cave. Water. Sword. Water. Caveā¦ and now it was rainingā¦ and the cave was leakingā¦ She looked up at the ceiling to discover the metal scraps. Not a cave. What the hell was going on?
āNothing we can do but wait, right? I think it would be stupid to try to climb down in the rain. One slip andā¦ā She couldnāt finish. She tried to focus her magic, staring at her fingers, willing them to do somethingā¦ but nothing. āAlrionā¦ I canātā¦ my magicā¦ā She bit her lip and looked at him nervously.
EvaLazaro leaned into the hug, wrapping her arms around him tightly. āAn adventure,ā she repeated, smiling despite herself. Glancing nervously to the roof, she held him tighter. āAnd weāre together. Thereās no place Iād rather be than with you.ā Looking up at the ceiling again, she frowned, her eyes shifting to the opening of the cave. That waterā¦ that cliffā¦ Turning her eyes to Alrion, she bit her lip before dropping to one knee and tearing a strip of cloth from her skirt, about two inches wide, about 18 inches long. āGive me your hand,ā she said urgently, glancing up at the ceiling again as she reached for his hand with the intent of tying his wrist to hers. At least theyād be together, right?
EvaLazaro quickly tied the scrap of cloth around their wrists, looking up at his words. She studied his face for a moment, her own brows knitted together. āBlame you?ā She glanced out to the green sun and then up at the ceiling. āDamnit, Alrion. Why would I blame you? It was yours as soon as you touched it. I know youāre not the type to back down when thereās something that you want.ā She slowly broke into a grin. āBesidesā¦ if you wereā¦ would I be standing here with you?ā She glanced around again, trying to find some other way out of the room they were in, something they hadnāt seen before. āThat sword? Itās ours. Weāve just got to find it again.ā
EvaLazaro held tightly to Alrionās hand, despite tying their wrists together. She was afraid the scrap would break, afraid that sheād end up somewhere without him. The sound of the ceiling collapsing rang in her ears, the torrential rush of water roaring, nearly drowning out all other sound. She heard him scream, and she screamed the same back to him. If this was the end for them, at least they were together. Despite the things that she had been able to remember about the memories that sheād had erased, she knew now that Alrion would never hurt her on purpose. She loved him. Truly loved him. And with his hand in hers, she was able to face the surely certain death with relative calm. As they were swept out of the cave, she too squeezed her eyes shut, her mind flashing not with regrets of what she hadnāt done in her life but with images of what she had been able to do.
And then, suddenly, ground. She landed in such a way that all of the air was knocked from her lungs. For a moment, she wondered if her back was broken and as, she laid there, she stared up at the orange sky, trying to force her lungs to remember how to take a breath. Finally, with a loud gasp, they filled with air and she merely laid there, breathing for a moment, assessing her physical self. Was anything broken? She wiggled her toes, wiggled her fingers and became aware of Alrionās groan of pain. Turning her head to look at him, she tried to speak, her voice quietā¦ tired. āAre you alright?ā
EvaLazaro sat up, wincing as the muscles in her back protested, but nothing appeared to be broken. She took a deep breath, took note of a sharp pain in her side and frowned. A rib. Possibly broken, possibly bruised, possibly cracked. Rising to her feet, she looked around herself. āIām alright,ā she nodded, downplaying the discomfort. āJust got the wind knocked out of me, thatās all.ā She reached out to brush some debris from Alrionās shoulder, listening to the sounds around them, trying to get her bearings. Toppling head over heels had really screwed up her sense of direction. She heard the river and wrinkled her nose. More water? Was this mysterious place trying to drown them? But then she noticed the smoke. āWe might not be alone,ā she said quietly, gesturing to the smoke.
āThen we shall go beyond the smoke,ā she smiled. Eva followed along a little slower, trying to coax some form of magic from herself but finding all attempts woefully empty. The colors here were strange to her as she wasnāt used to the green sun. Upon approaching the clearing, she scanned for any sign of life but her eyes kept returning to the strange fire, the grotesque mask. She stared at the mask for a moment before glancing around uneasily. Sheād feel a whole lot more comfortable in this strange place if she could use her magic. As it was, all she had wasā¦ wellā¦ nothing. Should she be in a situation where she had to defend Alrion and herself, she had nothing. It worried her.
EvaLazaro thought it had been her imagination. Sticks couldnāt move themselves. But when Alrion pressed his back against hers, she merely eyed the masks suspiciously before nodding. āIā¦ I think so. I canāt be sure.ā She glanced off to her side. Yesā¦ that one had definitely moved closer. āYes.ā She looked toward the jungle again. āThink we canā¦ run for it?ā
EvaLazaro turned her head to try to look at Alrion. It was turned for only a moment before she turned back, but now they were even closer. āWe need to get out of the circleā¦ once weāre out, we can turn around. They donāt seem to move when weāre not lookingā¦ā A plan formed in her mind and she reached back to squeeze Alrionās hand. āNot yet,ā she said quietly. She thought about it, judging the distance between her and the edge of the sticks. Okayā¦ if she could get them to come a bit closer, it would decrease the distance she would have to runā¦ She didnāt want to communicate her idea to him lest they be somehow able to understand her. So she counted them to herself. At least, the ones she could see, mentally mapping them out. Okayā¦ She could do this. That one was the furthest away soā¦
She turned her head away from the mask for a moment before turning back to see that it was closer. Good. Okayā¦ Just a bit more. Turning her head again, she allowed the mask to come closer. Now. All she had to do was run past the stick and then turn around. It would workā¦ right?
Taking a deep breath, she squeezed Alrionās hand. āNot yet,ā she said again. āStay hereā¦ Iāve got a planā¦ā
Before he could protest, she released his hand and sprinted toward the perimeter. If she made it past, she would turn around immediately so she could see all of the sticks at the same time.
As she turned and made sure that she could watch all of them at once, she nodded. āYesā¦ but quickly.ā She didnāt want to take any chances.
EvaLazaro glanced up at Alrion and grinned. āNot flee.ā She glanced up toward the green sun. āVenture. Journey. Questā¦ but never flee.ā She turned to look at the sticks again, watching them for a moment before following Alrion.
EvaLazaro grinned at Alrionās joke, looking up the temple. āI donāt even think this place is on a map! Thatāll teach me to use my magic to find an adventure, huh?ā She looked up at the green sun. āSo are you thinking about climbing thāā
The roar made her jump and she turned around, backing against the stone as she scanned the area around them. āBecause climbing sounds fine.ā She finished, hastily.
EvaLazaro sprinted up the stairs beside Alrion, turning to look back at the lizard creature. One had to wonder about the people who had built the temple in the first place. What had happened to them? With the way the lizard was pursuing them, she had a pretty good idea. āDonāt supposeā¦. Itāsā¦ vegetarianā¦ā she tried to joke as they ran. If only they could use their magic.
EvaLazaro reached out to attempt to help pull Alrion up, all while looking up at the lizard nervously. āOh, go away!ā She furrowed her brow, wondering if all of this had been for naught. Wondering if theyād actually get their hands on that sword. Theyād earned it, hadnāt they? She kept a wary eye on the tail as she tried to formulate a plan.
EvaLazaro glanced over at Alrion, taking note of his amusement. Even though she was very nervous about this situation, it did beat the hell out of the stagnancy that had taken over as of late. Run it? Of courseā¦ element of surpriseā¦ It was all they had in the absence of weaponry and magic. āYes,ā she nodded, eying her path. She looked at him for a moment, biting her lip. āIāll meet you at the top?ā She reached out to squeeze his hand.
EvaLazaro took off a split second after Alrion did, sprinting up the other side of the creatureās head, periodically glancing at Alrion from the corner of her eye before staring straight up at the green sun. This was why they were hereā¦ and they werenāt leaving without it. No way.
The sound was horrible. So loud! Eva reached the sword and turned, waiting for Alrion to join her, anxiously watching the creatureās confusion. Once they had the sword, they could use it on the creatureā¦ they wouldnāt be unarmed any longer. But she wouldnāt draw it without him at her side.
EvaLazaro blinked at the echo, the temple suddenly gone. She glanced around, seeing that once more they were in the cave. Had she imagined the whole thing? She looked to Alrion, seeing his look of uncertainty and she shook her head. Noā¦ she experienced it tooā¦ On three, she yanked upward as well, not looking at the sword but instead at him. When he smiled, she did too. It was a smile of accomplishmentā¦ a smile of prideā¦ and a smile of affection.
Alrionās laugh was music to Evaās ears and she laughed with him, embracing him happily. The voice above them startled her and she looked up, trying to see someone, but she could only see the sky. The blue sky. How skies were supposed to be. āYou get to pick the adventure next time,ā she laughed, as she made her way down the steps. āSo, what do you suppose that sword is anyway?ā
EvaLazaro watched Alrion, curious about the sword. Suddenly a devious grin caught her lips. āYou want to try it out, donāt you?ā she asked, tilting her head. āIf it saps magic, it could prove very useful in the arenaā¦ā She focused her thoughts on calling magic to her fingers, trying to conjure enough of a spell to attempt to close Alrionās fresh wound.
