Taktuk Roostwarden
A venerable old goblin woman, nearing 100 yrs, who runs the Roost at Talon's Reach.
She cares for the vultures when their riders are away and is responsible for guiding the new Talons as they learn to bond with their animals and ride them into battle. In truth, she cares little for the riders themselves, but bonds deeply with every bird that roosts within the Reach. She will protect them zelously from any rider foolish to allow them to be hurt through ignorance, neglect or even poor luck. She has a developed such a deep raport with the Giant Vultures of Tokaru, that even the birds who remain wild and untamed by the goblins will welcome her into their presence. She is the only Motu who can visit The Eyries of Aetora without fear of being attacked.
Despite her gruff and rude exterior, Taktuk is devout in her desire to see the forces of the Protectorates driven from Tokaru. Any ally who proves themselves against the Protectorates will earn her favour.
Before that though, any young Talon who hopes for her advice or guidance with their bird must ingratiate themselves.
The quickest way to do this is through the sorucing and provision of alcohol of any kind, but she has a particular fondness for the Firewine produced by the Congregation of the Sodden Fleet.
While she is not as physically strong as she was in her youth, Taktuk is capable of moving with suprising strength and agility when needed. The thing is, she is also old anough and ugly enough to know she doesn't have to. To this end, she loves sitting back and ordering others around - including Xilocoth Stormholder. Her young assistant Mako recieves the brunt of it, and she delights in torturing him at any opportunity.
Physical Description
General Physical Condition
Taktuk is completely blind, and her spine curled from age so she stands barely 2 and half feet. She is near balding with just slights wisps of grey hair that seem to float about her in the wind. HerFiretouched patterns have risen with age like purple welts across her deeply wrinkled and grey skin.
Special abilities
Even though she is blind, she has developed uncanny abilities in her other senses, almost to the point where it seems she can see sounds and smells, or sense the subtle changes in the air caused by movements around her. She is rarely unaware of others nearby, unless she wants to make them think she is.
Mental characteristics
Personal history
Born into slavery
Taktuk was born into slavery at Omberstad. Her childhood was spent working the terraced fields of her ancestors under the ever present eyes of the Protecoirate forces. Her father died not long after her birth during the construction of Fort Kustos, but her mother, and others of the slaves kept within the Icepen looked after her, and secretly raised her in the traditions of the Motu and the history of her people.Dreams of being a warrior
Her mother was a devout follower of Wala-Kofa, and raised Taktuk in the teachings of Ashtiri - the cycle of life, death and rebirth, as well as the importance of the Motu's vigil over the ruins of the Uferbrech Gyre. Taktuk was most inspired by the story of Aetora and her mythic vulture Hela, and the heroism that Aetora had showed in saving the Motu from Kofa's wrath (as told in The Broken Dream of Wala-Kofa). As a young girl she dreamed of riding one of the great birds into battles against the Protectorates just like her hero.Escape and resistance
As she grew and learned more about the oppression of her people at Omberstad, she also learned of the growing resistance across the Uferbrech archipelago. Words came to her that the The Talons of Aetora had taken up arms, and the Mothers of Motu had begun organising the various tribes of the Uferbrech goblins into a coordinated resistance. She delayed her escape until after her ageing mother had passed away peacefully in her sleep. On her deathbed, she vowed to avenge their people. She escaped from her captors at Omberstad, and spent a long and arduous journey finding her way across the Uferbrech sea to Motu Island where the Mothers had gathered their people.Freedom fighter
Once there, she immediately sought to join the ranks of the Talons, and began her training with the Giant Vultures. Her raporte with them was immediate, and the Mothers nurtured the obvious talent she had with working with them. Taktuk was instrumental in altering the culture of the The Talons of Aetora from that of quiet monks acting as scouts and messengers, to the feared freedom fighters they would become. She quickly earned a reputation for being fearless and reckless in the raids and skirmishes apon the Uferbrech sea, sometimes to her detriment, as she almost died herself on multiple occasions, and put many others in peril too. This recklessness caused many issues, but no-one could deny her fervour. There were those among the Talons that followed her lead, and those among the Mothers of Motu who warned against the escalation of violence against the Protectorates. As the skirmishes wore on, Taktuk became less of a front-line warrior, and worked behind the scenes, ensuring the safety of the birds, and the worthiness of their riders. She continued to spur them on, and groomed the Talons further in the arts of ever more risky military aggression. A younger Kaila Reefwatcher, saw both sides, and managed to convince Taktuk to work with one of her most daring followers, Aktaca Galerider, to lead the Talons in taking back Tokaru.Retaking Tokaru
At this stage, even though she was nearing 80 years of age, Taktuk took little convincing to secure access to the Eyries, and Aktaca too was keen to bring the fight to Tokaru. Together they took the most fervent of the Talons, and in secret set up Talon's Reach. Since then, they have conducted nearly a decade of geurilla warfare which culimated in the Drowning at Telela and the destruction of both the Protectorates' fleet, but also saw the death of many of the golbins and birds at Talon's Reach, incuding the loss of Aktaca himself.Sexuality
When she was younger, Taktuk had a long succession of lovers, both male and female, sometimes many at a time. She is even fond of telling anyone that she thnks will be put off by it that she experimented with the occasional inter-species affair, including those involving sentient plants from the Blight.
No relationship has ever blasted long. She does not want emotional connections through physical intimacy. Even now at nearly 100 years old, she craves the occasional companion, much to the discomfort of the younger goblins of Talon's Reach. She's not really interested in any of them though, but uses the idea of sex to intimidate and unnerve them. Mostly, she thinks it's funny.
Accomplishments & Achievements
Taktuk's greatest achievement was leading the Talons back to Tokaru and establishing both Talon's Reach and the Eyries. She worked
Mental Trauma
Her experiences as a young girl, growing up in slavery in Omberstad have forever coloured her outlook. The trauma is deep, and she burns with a deep hatred for the Protectorate forces, and anyone who is clearly one of the Returned.
Her escape following the death of her Mother, put her on the path of vengeance, and a personals desire to never be subjected to the will of others ever again.
As a result, anything that remotely seems like someone forcing heir will on her own, or even mild disagreements, can trigger cold and calculated rages.
Taktuk's gruff exterior also hides a deep fear that she has failed. The loss of Aktaca and the many others who died at Telela haunt her. She senses her own death of old age approaching and knows that her lifelong dream of retaking her home at Omberstad is slipping away.
Personality Characteristics
Motivation
- Taktuk seeks the explusion of the Protectorates from Tokaru, and for Omberstad/Okuda to be reclaimed for the Motu.
- She wants the slaves still held at Omberstad to be freed
- She wants to see Lord Akron suffer for his crimes.
Social
Religious Views
Taktuk was raised ia devout follower of Wala-Kofa and Ashitiri, but if truth be known, the balance is lost. She fears the gods have turned their back on them. Instead she follows now Aetora as a figure of holy retribution.
Current Location
Species
Ethnicity
Other Ethnicities/Cultures
Year of Birth
2895 AD
96 Years old
Children
Gender
Female
Eyes
Squinty, one is white and blind from catacracts
Hair
mostly bald with thin tufts at the sides
Skin Tone/Pigmentation
Pale b;lue-green, heavily firetouched with purple markings
Height
4'3"
Belief/Deity
Wala-kofu, Aetora
Aligned Organization
Other Affiliations
Related Plots
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