Bailey Peach
You know, there's a lot more to me than what I eat!
Frial is home to heroes of all kind. Members of the Kreastos who serve to uphold order in the ranks of the army or Constabulary. Warriors, hospitalers, and wilderness rangers who strike out from the Lion's citadel to do the right thing while asking for nothing in return. Even some members of the Arcane Underground seek out lost lore purely to better the lives of others around them. Bailey Peach's place among these kind souls was all but guaranteed because of her charitable work healing the sick in the Trentpoole district. Then, she ate a kid.
Crudités
Bailey's life began not in Frial at all but Lockland; where her family operated a chandlery business and renderer's plant, producing some of the finest candles, soaps, oils, and paints. Peach's Sundry Shop expanded quickly thanks to the enterprising efforts of Bailey's father Lorric. The man sought the finest raw materials both in Lockland's territory and abroad, in order to create wares that all of the nation's most influential families had to have. This popularity brought with it a great deal of wealth and notoriety, both of which afforded him the opportunity to pursue a rather secret hobby... rescuing non-humans from the Locklander Pogroms. His expeditions for exotic supplies were often cover for escaping refugees. His business trips to distant cities would allow him to secretly leave messages about military movements and the location of vital persons. He did everything he could to resist the tyranny and fascism of his home. He risked his life with every effort and in the end he'd be called to pay that price. Lorric's disloyalty to the Locklanders' ideals were brought to light and his stature in society demanded the most visible of punishments. He was burned alive in Heritage Square by the Pyrophant, but not before using the last of his connections within the city to get his wife and daughter out. Bailey and her mother were already on the road with whatever belongings they could gather when Lorric's ashes were being scattered on the winds.
Life on the road was not easy, especially for fleeing Locklander nobility whom many were more than happy to see fall on hard times. Lorric's wife, Ilse, tried to reach out to some of the people her husband had helped but most were not in position to offer much, let alone safety from those that hunted her now. Ghal Pelor was far too open a city to hide from Lockland's reach and making it to the safety Homestead would be equally impossible as this is where all of the bounty hunters would be laying in wait for them. Instead, one of Lorric's allies offered a different opportunity. Frial. Not only would it be a familiar place thanks to the shared heritage with old Balmoral but many of those saved by Lorric had chosen to relocate there already.
The journey from Lockland to Frial was long and difficult. Bailey and her mother were able hide amongst the wagons of the Westbound Star Company thanks to the caravan's Ostler, Audun "Old Bear" Dane. Dane, the second in command of the company, owed Lorric a debt he could not ever hope to repay until now. Dane's wife, a half-elf, was rescued from slavers before she could be taken to the gaols of Lockland. Now, Dane finally had his chance to do something worthy of the miracle Lorric pulled off for him years earlier. Bailey met Navid Odred, the chairman of the company, and his daughter Rehele who became something of an older sister to her on this journey. Bailey also spent a great deal of time with Audun's assistant and niece, Ulara. These people became a temporary family to her, helping to lessen the blow dealt to her young mind by what happened in Lockland. Audan was a gruff man to all but his "little bear" who he became a doting grandfather to. Rehele made sure to bring Bailey to all of her schooling lessons that Navid conducted while they traveled. Rehele helped to flush the ugly ideas of Lockland out of her head and replace them with an appreciation for all life. She also took her along when then went hunting for herbs in the wilderness and when performing medical treatments while on the road. Everything Rehele was taught, Bailey learned as well. Ulara was every bit the cheerful, loving aunt, that Bailey would come to cherish. More than that, Ulara was the friend that Ilse was in desperate need of. Ilse had lost everyone, watched her husband burn to death from across Heritage Square, and been bounced from safe house to safe house for the better part of a year now. The two became very quick and very close friends.
By the time they'd reached Frial Bailey was 11 years old and with the help of her new family the trauma of Lockland had become a distant memory. A Wound that had left its scars for certain but it had also properly healed. Ilse enrolled her daughter in the traditional schools of the city and quickly found that thanks to her education on the road Bailey was years ahead of her peers. She herself knew only one way to make a living, and so quickly opened a chandlery and rendering plant. She named it Lorric's Lights and with the help of her husband's allies in the city this little shop became a humble success. It was far from the extravagant lifestyle they'd known in the high society of Lockland but it was kind and more importantly, it was genuine. Ilse ran the store, worked hard to provide for Bailey, and to find ways to support those who were willing to stand up to the Locklanders. That typically meant little gestures like giving free products to members of the Grand Order of the Lion who were embarking on missions in Locklander territory or giving jobs to those they managed to rescue. Meanwhile, Bailey worked her way through school and soon took an interest in medicine. Being able to heal what others were suffering from appealed to like no other course of study; and so she leapt to it head first. This particular vocation was an expensive one to pursue due to the costs of the school, permits, and tools needed but Ilse did whatever she could to make it a possibility for her daughter. It's during her medical apprenticeship that Bailey's cravings would first start.
Appetizers
Each year of apprenticeship came with mounting costs that Ilse was struggling to pay for and trying harder to make sure her daughter didn't notice. Try as she might thought, her daughter always knew. By the time her final year of apprenticeship came around her medical tools struggled to slice the skin of an apple let alone the medical cadavers she was practicing on. Repeated sharpening was making them brittle as well; by the time she began studying for her final practical a third of the tools in her set had snapped or were held together by bindings and glue. Rather than place yet another burden on her mother she began searching for a new set of on her own.
She checked over the city top to bottom. Stores in her native neighborhood of Trentpoole simply didn't sell such high-end equipment. The shops in more affluent places like City Center, Black Forest, and Ravens Perch sold many sets of medical tools but all of which were well outside of her means. The tools Bailey already owned were given to her by Old Bear, a second-hand set that survived in the caravan company's medical wagon for decades. A brand new set was well in excess of what the Lorric's Light brought in for month's profit. In her desperation she began searching darker places like the back-alley markets in Trentpoole's Mortebella Row and even the abandoned places in deep Bellhaven. It's there, in the desolation of the Bellhaven neighborhood she found what she was looking for, or so she thought.
Bellhaven is one of the many sections of Frial that has never truly been rebuilt. It's become a refuge for unchecked wilderness and those desperate to not be found. Nature creeps into the outskirts of the neighborhood; trees bursting through streets and buildings, weeds slowly eating their way through the bricks of crumbling edifices, and wild beasts coming to roost within the corpses of once-majestic keeps. It's always been thought of as an easy place to die and make sure your body is never found. Despite all the rumors Bailey had heard she took some gear and set about exploring the area, figuring that it had to have been home to a surgeon, apothecary, or clinic in the old days and if so then maybe a set of good tools might remain. She promised herself that she'd only spend a few hours there and only during the day. Yet, a few hours quickly turned into the dead of night. Building after building yielded nothing and shortly before giving up this hopeless endeavor she spotting a structure illuminated by pale moonlight. Toward the edge of the district where the line between the Rylan Woods and the city blurred beyond recognition was a twisted knot of dead trees that seemed to envelop an old mortuary. Only as she drew closer did she realize that this whole section of Bellhaven was once one of Frial's cemeteries and she now stood in the middle of it. For most others this would be an ill omen but to her, it was exactly what she'd been searching for.
Inside the twist of trees and rotting walls things were oddly well preserved. Nature seemed reluctant to grow within this place and decided instead to simply entomb it. Bailey crept deeper into the house of death and in its belly she found what she was looking for, the place where corpses would have been prepared for burial. And, laying splayed out upon one of the cold metal slabs was a set of surgeon's tools. Their handles sparkled with ivory-like grips and the blades... the blades were black as the darkness they'd been sleeping in. Obsidian she assumed, a material that been used by more primitive people in surgery for ages but this was cut with precision, a true connoisseur's set of masterworked instruments.
However; this place hid more than just a set of tools in the dark. A shadowy hand crossed over the instruments and revealed she was not alone here. It belonged to a stranger, one with a distant accent and yellowed eyes. He spoke in a way that sounded like both a growl and whisper. This aphotic stranger said he was a merchant and broker between collectors and new buyers; he said he was here to sell her exactly what it was she needed. The tools, which were beyond flawless in their make, could be hers and that it would cost not a single coin. Instead, there would be a pact between her and the owner of these tools. That owner, the Broker explained, was an entity of ravenous hunger that existed by many named. Broker said ancient tribes knew it as Waraabhiri or simply, Sister Hyena. Broker said the terms of the pack would be simple - Waraabhiri would eat what she eats - through her. It would share her meals and know the flavors of the living world once again. And, at least once a month Bailey would have to let the Hyena choose the meal they ate. In return, she would be given a special set of tools crafted by Waraabhiri herself as well as the magical gifts that came with such a pact. To Bailey, it was perfect. She knew about such scavengers thanks to Rehele and if having such tools meant that once a month she'd have to eat raw meat, maybe some bones, then so be it. Broker produced a contract and sharp pin so that she could sign in blood. With their business concluded Broker vanished into the night, leaving behind the gleaming instruments and nothing else.
Immediately after this strange night Bailey began practicing with her new tools. Not only were they impeccably precise but her mind was somehow even more focused when using them. In the weeks that followed she aced her practicals, impressed her teachers, and concluded her apprenticeship with stellar marks... especially in the area of surgery. And thus far, the only effect of her bizarre pact was that she was more hungry, more often. For a time, she thought the only price to be paid for this was having to do a little extra grocery shopping. That, unfortunately, was not to be the case. It began with cravings for more meat. Rawer meat. Soon, the urge called out for even fresher meals, ones cut straight from the bone. Bailey buried these cravings down deep or abated them with the occasional slice from a medical cadaver. The fear she felt over the changes was tougher to ignore but throwing herself into the opening of her own clinic helped.
Frial's bureaucracy is an oppressive one. The fees for practicing medicine were so steep that she couldn't afford them nor did she dare ask her mother for help. Instead, she opted for a loophole that she'd learned about while apprenticing. She would open a spa that offered "holistic" treatments. And she knew exactly where she wanted to open her clinic as well. Trentpoole. There were very few requirements or high fees for such businesses and even less regulation. The neighborhood was flush with those in need, especially the children. Trentpoole is hard on children and many grow up without parents to support them. These children quickly become fodder for gangs like the Lords of Trentpoole, The Lilly Street Slashers, or even the Black Thorn Society. She believed that by providing just a little bit of kindness and a safe place to turn, that some of these kids could be saved.
Some, but not all. One in particular wasn't meant to be saved, only savored.
Entrée
His name was Hugo Warburg but to the Lords of Trentpoole this violent little teenager was Hatchet Boy. He was a prolific mugger and a pathetic bootkiss to the full-fledged members of the gangs. When not doing their bidding on the streets he was lurking around Bailey's spa and secret clinic to harass the children coming to her for help. Many of her patients were just homeless orphans or those on the run, others were ex-gang members and even rivals to Hatchet Boy and the Lords. She found Warburg in the alley behind her clinic one night, harassing one of the kid's who's broken bones she'd reset just hours earlier. Bailey's memory of the incident isn't particularly clear. She remembers confronting Warburg, her former patient taking the opportunity to flee, and then... it's all a blur. The next thing she can recall is kneeling over his body, the scalpel from her tool set somehow in her hand, and chunks of Hatchet Boy in her mouth. But, mostly she remembers the feeling of it all. The way his blood dripped down her chin, the texture of his bits of throat-meat on her tongue and between her teeth, the shiver of warmth that ran through her body as she swallowed him down... the smile on her face when she took another bite. Bailey Peach loved eating him, loved every bite. As the body cooled, the taste and the warm shiver dulled and vanished, till she was left with only a shamble of a corpse. One that she'd quickly dispose of at the Trentpoole docks.
With the meal in her belly the cravings disappeared entirely too. It left her with time to think about what had happened. Part of her wished she was scared, wished the idea of eating Warburg had shaken her to her core, but it hadn't. She didn't like it, certainly, and hated knowing that something inside her could make her lose control like that but she wasn't frightened. Annoyed mostly, and maybe when she was truly honest with herself, missing the feeling of flesh in her mouth. The cycle would repeat itself - first her appetite would increase, then the cravings for meat, then living flesh. She would take the regular steps to keep it at bay like more food, raw meat, slices of cadaver, but all that was a temporary fix. The longer she made Waarabhiri wait the more the spirit would take its frustrations out on her: claw marks, bites, haunting laughter that only she could hear, and dreaded stretches of sleepless nights. All that till she finally gave in and fed the spirit again.
If she was going to have to feed the beast she would do it her way, just like with Hatchet Boy. She'd pick who dies and Trentpoole was a place with an abundance of those deserving to end up on her plate. When the urge became unbearable she'd find her prey in the local bars, at the dockside, lurking in especially grim places like Lilly Street, Mortebella Row, and Pikers End. Bailey lived in Trentpoole since she was a child and part of surviving here was learning how to spot the sort of people that were best to be avoided. Drug dealers, grifters, gang recruiters, and hired blades were all obvious to her and simple to prey on. They liked easy targets, the sort they could take any and every liberty from with little fight. Bailey knew how to look that way, she spent a great deal of time trying not to look like a potential victim so pretending to be one was easy. Then, when they were lured to somewhere away from where prying eyes might spot them, her blades and the gifts from Waarabhiri would turn these bad men into good meals.
This has been her life for the last few months, working day and night to help those in need with her free "spa". Searching for every possible means to earn enough money for a proper clinic and legal certifications. And, when the urges become irresistible, she goes out to find someone. Someone's who's stretch of spreading misery deserves to come to an abrupt, violent, and tasty end.
Bailey Peach No Blood Version by Steven Bellshaw
Physical Description
General Physical Condition
Bailey is very fit. She loves to exercise, especially running, and tries to stay active when possible.
Body Features
From time to time the marks left on her by Hyena will be visible. These marks fade quickly and don't leave scars but to anyone that sees a fresh one they will particularly severe. They feel very severe to her when they're forming
Special abilities
Bailey has a number of magical gifts thanks to her pact. One that manifests in a more physical way is her bite. She's able to chew through bone very easily, just like the hyenas of the open plains.
Apparel & Accessories
She spends a lot of time in her lab coat and simple clothes. She and her mother don't have a great deal of money and fancy clothing is far from being in the budget
Specialized Equipment
The tool set she got when forming her pact with Waraabhiri. All the tools in the set are very distinctive and most are very deadly. These are her pact weapon and she can summon them at will.
Mental characteristics
Sexuality
The idea of romance is something she's very attracted to but at this current stage in her life it seems impossible. She's always been very dedicated to her goals, something she picked up from her mother, and finding free time form a deeper and romantic connection with someone just never seemed to be possible. Now, it feels like an impossibility. She imagines the things she has to do to keep Waarabhiri satisfied would absolutely revolt another person, so the idea of being loved in that way is more a fairytale now than it has ever been.
Education
Bailey's early education took place in Lockland. While she attended the finest schools there, that also meant she had much of the Heritage League's hateful propaganda forced upon her. Lorric and Ilse did their best to temper some of what she was taught but knew it would be far too reckless to fully expose their young daughter to better ways of thinking. If she were to let anything slip to her teachers or friends it could have meant all their ends. Instead, they planned to slowly introduce her to the truth as she grew older. Bit by bit. That unfortunately never came to pass.
Her time with Rehele and the Westbound Star Caravan Company is what truly broke her of the Locklander teachings. She was surrounded by so many new and diverse people that it was impossible to accept what she was taught before as truth. In addition to the practical and academic things she learned on the road she also picked up quiet a bit about Baradradi culture from Rehele and her family.
Her later education would come from the schools in Frial. Here she learned about the authentic history of Old Balmoral rather then the twisted version taught in Lockland. She also trained in medicine at Frial's medical university and then completed her apprenticeships under some of the city's most renowned doctors. She even studied a bit of field medicine thanks to a few months spent with under the tutelage of a medic from the Grand Order of the Lion.
Employment
Bailey has taken part in a number of paid and unpaid apprenticeships but currently she works for herself, operating the Peach Family Spa in Trentpoole.
Accomplishments & Achievements
Completing her apprenticeships and earning her qualifications to be a doctor
Failures & Embarrassments
She doesn't feel super great about eating people
Mental Trauma
The death of her father and the turbulent time on the run had a deeper impact on her then she's willing to admit and even now as an adult it influences a lot of her action
Morality & Philosophy
With the advent of her pact with the Hyena totem Bailey has taken a general view "the ends justify the means". As long as she is doing the most good possible it makes up for the darker things she has to do to sate her hunger. This attitude is generally applied to others as well. It means that she's very quick to overlook or forgive certain things that others might not.
Personality Characteristics
Motivation
Helping the people of Trentpoole who have no one to turned to, especially the children there.
Savvies & Ineptitudes
She's very athletic and enjoys sports. She's also a very skilled physician and surgeon. Bailey has also picked up the basics of candle and soap making from her mother.
Likes & Dislikes
Likes
Dislikes
- Being Active
- Kids
- Dogs
- Eating People
- Decorative Mugs
Dislikes
- Unkind and intolerant people
- Itchy clothes
- Tart flavors
- Eating People
- Balmy Weather
Hygiene
Bailey tries to be clean and maintain good hygiene at all times. Cleanliness helps keep her patients safe during surgery. She grew up with rather humble means so she has no real taste for fancy perfumes or anything like that.
Social
Contacts & Relations
She has numerous friends and acquaintances within the medical community of Frial
Family Ties
She is very close with her mother. The two speak almost every day and Ilse will often stop by the clinic and help tidy things up for her daughter. She is also equally close with Old Bear, Ulara and Rehele from the Westbound Star. They only get to see each other a few times a year but they make the most of each visit
Mannerisms
Bailey is generally very respectful and courteous . She tries to treat everyone with an abundance of respect
Hobbies & Pets
She doesn't own any pets but does make a habit of feeding some of the birds that flock around the rather run-down park across from her clinic
Wealth & Financial state
The Peach Family Spa doesn't charge for the majority of the "secret" services provided. Sometimes people will give her gratuity (or hush money) but this is a rare occurrence. In order to look like a legitimate spa she does have to know how to perform a few spa services like massage and skin treatments. Fortunately, these services are rarely booked considering the location of the spa. This is all to say that Bailey is generally rather broke and all her excess funds go to maintaining her clinic.
Alignment
Chaotic Good
Current Location
Species
Ethnicity
Age
26
Children
Gender
Female
Height
5'6
Weight
120LBS
Belief/Deity
Bailey was raised to believe in Sandor but since coming to Frial religion has not been particularly important to her.
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