Theia Timoria: A Sleight of Hand
Childhood
Raised in the Emserian halls of wealth and privilege, Theia Timoria was a gifted girl. At a young age her parents had her magical aptitude tested by the city's Arcanum tower. They were surprised when she showed an aptitude for magic. Wanting to provide the very best for their daughter, Theia was enrolled in the Arcanum tower's arcane studies program. Her aptitude for spells was less prolific than her ability to get into trouble. Much to her parents embarrassment Theia found herself at the center of several scandals during her childhood years. Nothing she caused, she was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.
She brought to light an Arcanum professor who was performing illegal experiments on undead within the city limits, exposed a minor house for selling information to a foreign government and stopped several students from selling counterfeit magical artifacts. Any parent would normally be proud of their child accomplishing these things, however, Theia would always find herself wrapped up in the scandals as a result of trespassing, skipping class and engaging in general delinquency. Several of her new friends seemed to continue Theia's tradition of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Rasmus, her best friend and another girl in her class was with her through most of her adventures. Theia's parent's embarrassment was matched only by their frustrations. The more Theia acted out, the harder they tried to lock her down. It got so bad that her father would send his valet to accompany her to and from her classes each day. Her parents didn't trust her, she was being smothered.
Adolescence
During her rebellious teenage years Theia had begun to meet the other disaffected youth of Emser. Sneaking out of her family's estate she would disappear to seedy parties deep in the well district of the city. It's there where she first began to learn of a new thrill. She didn't call it theft, that was a dirty word for criminals. She was redistributing wealth, at least that was the high minded ideal she sold to herself. Secretly Theia found the most excitement from simply being somewhere she wasn't supposed to be. would break into somewhere new a few times a week. Sometimes they would take something expensive, other times they would just make a mess, and then sometimes they would get caught. By the time she was sixteen Theia had become familiar with the inside of the Lark Society's jail cells. When she came home her father and mother would never shout. Her father would huff and puff out his mustache while her mother would just refuse to acknowledge her existence. She knew they were disappointed but she didn't care. She had already stopped attending classes at the Arcanum. Now Theia spent most of her days either locked up in her rooms at her parents estate or redistributing valuables with her friends. Then she met Tynan.
The age of Tynan
The dashing half-elf was so different. He had lived for so long and didn't look a day older than she was. Slender and fair with soft brown hair and deep green eyes. Tynan was from a place called Nightgrove and he was a Thief. The word had always sounded so dirty when people had applied it to her, but when Tynan said it the word Thief became something new and exciting. He told her and her friends stories of daring pirate adventures on the Dawn Sea, fighting off skeletons in the Ramlands and coming to Emser to search for new riches. Theia cut off contact with her insufferable family and started her new life with her chosen family. She was going to be a Thief like Tynan.
After a string of successful missions into the wealthy districts of Emser Theia, and her friends were riding high. They had money and more importantly, they were developing a reputation. Tynan, thinking to capitalize on their newfound infamy hatched a plan to rob another of the city's criminal organizations. A group in the Mill district called the Shadowsbane guild. Theia didn't know much about them but Tynan told a tale of the Shadowsbane's greed and dangerous magical objects that, in the wrong hands, could be dangerous to the city. If they all could get to the Shadowsbane Guild's vault deep in the sewers of the Mill district they could steal the magical items and sell them to the right people . At least that's how it was supposed to go.
The job was a setup and the Lark Society was waiting for her and her friends at the Shadowsbane vault. Before she knew it the Lark Society wasn't just arresting her friends they were killing them! Her friends fought back but they were no match for professional soldiers. Fleeing for her life, Theia watched her friends die around her. The last thing she saw in that bloody vault was Tynan's smile as one of the Lark Society guards helped him up and clapped him on the shoulder. He had betrayed them.
Early Adulthood
With the Lark Society, Tynan and the Shadowsbane Guild looking for her. Theia had to flee the city. For the briefest of moments she was suprised that she considered returning to her family. With the Lark Society and two criminal groups hunting for her her family would either be in danger or hold her down while everyone else took their pound of flesh. Not knowing where to go she fell back on the limited criminal connections she had made in her brief time as a thief. With nowhere else to go she returned to the one person she knew had nothing to do with this, Rasmus. They hadn't talked in nearly a year, but Theia knew she had nothing to do with her current problems.
Sneaking through the city in the dark Theia found her old friend and begged her for help. Rasmus was more than willing to help. In fact she had been making her own name for herself. Rasmus was also on the outs with her family and had started her own import export business. However, Rasmus specialized in moving irregular cargo between Emser and other far flung locations. She had connections with a group called the Ash Blossom Covenant, a group Theia had never heard of. Rasmus and her connections could get Theia out of the city that night. The could get her to a place called Lostport.
Deep in the desert of the Tressian Plateau Theia found herself among real criminals. Lostport was truly a dangerous place full of dangerous people. Around every corner was a gang of bandits or murderers. Theia's mischievous streak had well and truly put her in over her head. To make matters worse the people who brought her there, the Ash Blossom Covenant said she owed a debt. Apparently the midnight rescue from Emser wasn't free. They were more than happy to welcome Theia and her skills to help her work off her debt. They weren't cruel or unreasonable either. Providing her with a small apartment and what they said was a generous repayment plan she was able to use her skills as a magician and experience as a thief to great effect. She was a kind of captive in Lostport. Not allowed outside her apartment without an escort but never wanting for food or comfort, Theia traveled around the entire continent of Deren for the next five years. Traveling to far off lands like Ter'A-Til, Dun Bok and Riverweld, working with the Ash Blossom Covenant was exhilarating. They had access to knowledge and resources she had never even thought possible. In her role with the Covenant she was involved in several amazing scores and met incredible people. Yet she was never far from the watchful eye of her masters, always monitored. While she never saw Rasmus again, she did meet an amazing team of art counterfeiters, a tiefling woman with scratched horns named Bryer and her partner Jey. They worked as contractors too, it was through their intervention that Theia was made aware her debt was more of a collar than she thought. Bryer explained that Theia wasn't actually working off her debt and that the Covenant had no intention of letting her leave.
Escape
According to Bryer, Theia was one of several indentured servants who toiled for the Ash Blossom Covenant in Lostport. While Theia had met other contractors for the Ash Blossom Covenant it never occurred to her that they may have been in situations like hers. How many people were controlled by them? Was she really not paying off her debt? With any questions to her masters left unanswered or brushed aside Theia felt the walls of her curated apartment in Lostport closing in. The next few months were insufferably slow and her mind churned with plans of escape. But before her next job she was blessed by the gods to meet with Bryer again. The two women hatched a plan to 'lose' Theia her next mission. The job was piracy, a Fa Clan ship 'Golden Savior' was traveling across Lake Matsaya and she was going to rob it. During the night Theia and her Ash Blossom masters silently floated their ship up beside the Savior and crept aboard. Theia covered their approach with fog and other illusions and the Covenant thieves did the rest. They located several chests of jewels and gold. This was a treasury ship. Jewels in hand they piled back into their craft, but before Theia could make it off the Golden Savior the Fa Clan sailors raised the alarm. The Ash Blossom thieves cast off from the savior and Theia jumped over the side into the water. When the Savior raised sails in pursuit of their stolen money, Theia was left to wait in the water. She floated alone in the dark open water of Lake Matsaya for what felt like hours. Most people would have been afraid of the dark and the solitude, not Theia. She was free, the Ash Blossom Covenant didn't know where she was and they probably thought she was dead. When Bryer finally pulled her up into a tiny sailboat Theia was overjoyed. The two women sailed into Jangala and safety.
Bryer left her in the town of Trott's Ferry several days later. With a small sum of money and a promise never to go back to Lostport Theia parted ways. Using her hard won skills as a theif Theia began eeking out a small existence for herself in the town. She avoided notice of the town's guard and eventually discovered that the Ash Blossom Covenant had a small operation in the town. Apparently they had been using Trott's Ferry as a holding location for certain valuable and magical artifacts they'd stolen. She knew better, she knew that her best play was to leave her old captors well enough alone, but old habits die hard. Theia was mischievous. After locating several of their stash spots she set about making life difficult for the Covenant. She would break in and occasionally take things she wanted. When she needed money she would take something valuable, but not always. Sometimes she would just rearrange items or even move items from one stash spot to another. One day Theia found a particularly secure stash spot that was hidden under an old burned out building in the warehouse district. Inside she found something particularly valuable that sent her arcane senses tingling. A broach with a carved eagle holding a pearl. There was Dwarven script on the back but she couldn't read it.
Then something unpredictable happened. More Ash Blossom Covenant began to appear in the town. Without giving them a chance to bring her back to Lostport she booked passage on the first ship headed south. After several dull weeks she found herself in Riverweld.
