Griffin
Griffin (a.k.a. Wolvestooth)
Physical Description
Facial Features
Has a tattoo of a ruby serpentine figure, associated with his time in the Nightshade.
Mental characteristics
Employment
During the times of the effects from the Flood of Light, he served as a member of the Nightshade, a group of elven brigands who actively antagonize outsiders to Lakeland.
Griffin is a member of the communities of elves who live in Lakeland on the fringes outside the Crystarium. Hardened by a life of survival for himself against the threat that plagues Norvrandt, Griffin never hesitates.
Character Location
Children
Eyes
Ice Blue
Hair
Black
Of once was
Born long past the glory of the elven nation, I can only rely on the stories that were told by my elders who longingly gazed at the Loft and the shores of the Source.
I remember sitting in rapture as they spoke of the days where they defended our lands with such zeal and enjoyed the company of each other, full of laughter, dance, and celebration. The name of the palace where they enjoyed the greatest of life's comforts was known as the Grand Cosmos, a representative of the most splendid elven craftsmanship in history. This glorious hall was both named for the envy it caused the heavens as well as the vibrant violet flowers that graced its gardens. I wish I could visit, but the palace fell, abandoned in the wake of the Light's oncoming waves. Due to this, rumors say the ruins currently find themselves occupied by all manner of Sin Eater or wild beasts, former glory lost in the departure of the elves after the king lost authority in the civil war. Perhaps after I slay Tudur, I can one day take Lowri to see this storied magnificence, to see the work of our ancestors and the memory of those that we fight. Such a place sounds lovely to explore. But this longing might distract me and cause me to slip. As much as I wish to see these places of eld, I must remain focused on my intent to strike the heart of Nightshade. I think, at least, I want to that consider such a place of radiant beauty that represents what the elves can truly accomplish together will push the goal to rout the evil that binds us.
Turning the tides
The plan developed over several periods of long tactical preparation is now into action. I've made contact with Lowri via messenger hawk, the message of my motives sent to her reception, and access to being able to contact assistance. It was a few days ago that I saw the fruits of my labor. Having alerted her to Nightshade's plan to occupy one of the ruins of eld, Crystarium Guard was leading a march to rout them to prevent their settling and securing of the stronghold. Ere long, Nightshade agents were forced back to the foothill hideout. Of course, I had to fight to keep my mask up, to make sure that they couldn't see through my plan to draw out Tudur from his hiding place to respond to the failings to secure defensible positions closer to Crystarium held territory. I never took a Guard's life, though. When they charged at me, I made sure to disarm them and knock them unconscious, causing them to pass as thoroughly defeated, though able to live another day. The din of combat would repeatedly ring through the days leading up to their final attempt to secure territory, and I was pleased with the dissonance I was causing.
I grow ever paranoid, thinking that there's something wrong with how easy it feels, but perhaps I shouldn't be so anxious. Maybe this organization was doomed at the start, prepped to fall due to the whims of a criminal too aged to consider current Vrandtic survivors. Those surviving the Flood from the sacrifice of our parents and ancestors shall not feed his life with their own. Tudur's time was close at hand, and I made sure to prepare. I've secured a weapon I desire to use against him, a family heirloom from the days of glory, one of the rare swords that graced the side of King Tolthewil's knights. A blade of real purpose will strike at the heart of a false one, the lie that ended so many that fateful day.
Shadows deep
I chose to continue my progression among the members of Nightshade, intent on uncovering the core of the corruption. It took some time for them to trust me, of course, but 'twas simple to match the zeal of the members. Following the lines of who they paid tribute to, I came across the records used, identifying one of the cabal leaders by the name of Tudur. I aim to avoid too many questions. I know that in this group, their secrets are well protected, so I must find a way to gain Tudur's confidence so I can strike at the heart of this order that rots our people even as the Light threatens us.
I've come to learn that Tudur is a survivor of the Laxan Civil War, a child of one of the followers of the Shadowkeeper who continue to keep that power that caused the elves to fall in the days of glory. He instructs other members of Nightshade on the rituals of binding the wargs, the beastmen who raid and pillage freely in Lakeland forests. By using them in our operations, there is a belief that Nightshade will gain a more significant advantage against the Crystarium Guard that has so far put a consistent stop to the organization's efforts to establish strongholds closer to the Guard's military camps.
Once I am approved to learn these methods, I will meet this remnant of our people's greatest err, and I shall be able to prepare my chance to attack. The abilities to glamour the self will prove useful, as they've begun already to teach me the methods of concealment to waylay travelers on the road. Illusive forms will give me a chance to cover my tracks as I make an effort to return home and warn.
I'm considering sending a message to Lowri. I've little means to do it, and returning home amid our preparations for the attack might be viewed as a weakness that will cost my ability to become closer to Tudur's inner circle of confidants. But if I can inform her that I understand why she was so upset and that I could use her help in my goals to aid my people even now in Nightshade, I might gain her trust once more.
She trusts the Crystarium; perhaps I can employ that to harry the followers while I go after Tudur in the wake of the chaos.
Realization
Nightshade's attractiveness lies in the fact that it is action, an effort organized for and behalf of the elven people. My people. From experience and thought on the motivations that don't make any sense, such as the smuggling rings, one learns that it is a cover-up. The love for Laxan shared creates only a mask on this group. Their real goals organize to protect not the lives of all elves, but the lives of the descendants from those who joined with the Shadowkeeper in antediluvian. The cabal I was assigned to learn and emulate had no empathy for how the actions of their ancestors caused a civil war, and they paraded their associations as if it was some gift to the land, not the direct reason for the fall of the nation. Those scared of the Flood and the threat of the Sin Eaters are simply buoys to keep these inheritors safe, some even convincing those of my people to embrace their end and sacrifice themselves for the greater good of protecting the cabal.
Such a truth was evident, but so many just ignored it against their own better judgment. The risk of being accused of a traitor to all elf kind on top of being a coward allowed so many to ignore the reality of who we were protecting. They forced all our aggression towards the Crystarium because it was they who feared it, not because it was an actual threat. Their cruelty and lack of concern for anyone outside their forces me to analyze everything that led to this point. And as deep as I was, I felt I was not going to be able to walk away with this knowledge.
Though I could do something, I still had Lowri I trusted, even if we haven't spoken in so long.
The nail in the coffin
When I made the pact with Nightshade, I knew I intended my membership to demonstrate a desire to protect. I knew that I was taking that step to be able to secure the safety of my people. I don't have many people I can call family. How can I? The Light robbed me of so much, robbed so many people of their lives and their dreams and hopes. But even in that incandescent doom that took away everything that we built, I am one of the remnants. And that has to account for something.
I want to think that it was a call to duty, a chance to make sure that I was willing to do what was necessary to outlast and survive, to push the legacy of Laxan past the threats that plagued all of Norvrandt. That, in the end, if there even is one, Laxan would be there.
When Lowri decried me and told me that I was foolish and caught up in the ignorance of our ancestors, ignoring me for so many days following my joining with the organization, I still dreamed that she would come to understand my intentions. Lo, I even wished for that as well, with the full strength of my heart, that she would come to her senses and learn why I did what I did.
But nothing, none of this, none of my desire would help me understand where I am now.
Nightshade is a lie.
Sharpened tooth, sharper mettle
The tension in the air was unmistakably noticeable as members of Nightshade ran to and fro in their hidden passageways. Arms and armor to account for, magical accessories in need of documentation, this and many more tasks were at hand to accomplish to prepare for the incursion. Assignments barked and received in short, snappy orders, and I listened to each one, taking in the experience, the effort to prepare. To some, they would disguise themselves as those in need and wait alongside the travel routes used by the people protected by the Guard. This disguise would allow them to take out soldiers stationed in critical areas heavily defended by the Crystarium. To others, blades were whet and arrows were fletched, making sure that all implements of war would serve their purpose when the time would come. I saw it all, the energy of the cause, to prepare ourselves with the means to cut off the Guard on their primary defense and secure a holding for our own. I internally balked, of course, at the idea we had to go to such lengths to fight for a land that was rightfully ours for generations. We were born here, raised here, and our elders laid to rest beneath the soil, nowhere else. And yet, we had to prepare to fight as if this was a genuine act of war against nations. How infuriating it was to see the blatant robbery of our way of life. I knew how terrible the Crystarium was. I needed to make sure that when this fight was over, I would be able to show to my friend the same crimes I understood so well.
When the leader of the march came to me with a specific request, I found it quite simple to accept. "You will take the rearguard. If we get forced back, I need you and the others to finish the assault."
Simple enough, I had thought, as the tactical aspects gained further highlight. The following request was the one I knew not how to respond:
"You're going to be preparing to learn the binding. We need you to tame the wargs."
I did hesitate slightly. The works of magic were indeed one I heard much about, but I was not one well versed in the method. Still, I had to prove to Lowri that the cause was just. I couldn't show weakness. If I lost this chance to prove to her the problem of the Crystarium, I would never forgive myself for losing her should she decide to join them.
I could quickly figure it out. If others could do it, why not me?
So I accepted the assignment. I was to learn the ancient method to command the wolf within.
Dare I hope it is so soon I have a chance to make my case? I haven't seen her in so long. It anguishes me that she could still entrap herself in those fabricated promises of protection that the Crystarium had no right to offer us. Once again, I remind myself this is for our people, even as I received orders to meet with the cabal to prepare myself for the rites. I would give what was necessary.
A chance at compromise
It's been a few days since Lowri and I have spoke. I've never been accustomed to the cold shoulder, and to receive such a response from the person I trusted above all others twas an experience I struggled to endure. I have to find a way to show her the falsehoods of the Crystarium. The nation that was recorded to have appeared to magicks invoked by their leader the Crystal Exarch, taking our sacred grounds for their own, cannot be a way to resist the threat of the Flood. The blatant disrespect for elven blood split to defend the Source cannot be ignored. I do not trust the Exarch and his people to defend our land. But I can understand why it's so easy to be persuaded by their protection. The uncertainty that grips every heart because of the Light has pushed many to the brink, their stares alone, bereft of comfort, breaks every heart. To me, that alone compels my commitment to Nightshade, a desire to take back what is rightfully ours and shield our people from the Flood. Surely there's some way I can speak to my friend and allow her to understand that elf mettle is the only way to protect elf land. Laxan was always ours and the Crystarium had no right to seize it.
Perhaps if I can bring her attention to the lie of the Crystarium Guard, she might see sense. If I can show her the falsehoods of their caged lives she will understand why I made the pact. I do this for our people. If the false shield Lowri hopes so much for breaks, she will see how our legacy demands our greatest effort and attention.
Did I make the right choice?
I find it a little bit strange to write the two dominant things on my mind right now. The first, as ever, was my choice to formalize my membership within the Nightshade. Ever their discussions reach the ears of my kin, and for most harried left and right by the terror of the Sin Eaters, it was all too easy to nod in agreement and make an oath to serve. But for me, I had my hesitation. Nothing opposed to their goals, as it might seem. For me, the delay came from Lowri, my most important friend I have known since the days she and I were children. Her pleadings that joining the Nightshade was, in fact, the worst option I could make. Her mind ever fixed on the Crystarium's promises, the tower of pure crystal said to have appeared in the middle of our ancestral lands from out of nowhere, she felt their people there had a better answer, a more significant way to solve the threat. Therein lies the source of my second thought. I've always taken her counsel to heart. She and I trusted each other over anyone else, even back as little children. But this was the first time that I could have considered that we disagreed. And mostly when it was in regards to something meant to protect our way of life, our history threatened by the ever consuming Light. I thought I was choosing the better for our people. But she said I was a fool and stormed off in anger. It's heavy upon my mind, but I can't back out of the decision I've made. The Nightshade doesn't take lightly on those who recant. I hope that in time she can see the reason for my choice, even if I have to part ways from her to accomplish my goals in service to this cause. Still, I can't help but question my actions. Lowri's never been so upset like this before.
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