Simol, The Hag Empress

Simol is the leader of her village and a rather mysterious entity. Little was known about Simol until the Spiritual Travelers investigated Tympi's House on Nurend 13, 308. Before then, all that was known about her was that she interacted with The Writer at some point and that she was supposedly a kind hag. Simol and her village have been mentioned to Kaswink on a couple of different occasions as a place to begin looking for information about her affliction.

The Spiritual Travelers finally visited Simol during the downtime between Nurend 31-40. Kaswink and Hysteria remained out of sight, but Agave was able to speak with her and learn some strange information. Simol Speaks of Dreams

“These dreams are not mere surreal adventures…they’re a glimpse at the mind of our dying mutual friend. Each vision is a memory, and you’ll need to perform them to the best of your ability. Though…i think those are only the beginning, the true challenge will be awhile from now, as she struggles with her last breaths and last thoughts against a sheet of oil that would hope to drown her.”

The Spiritual Travelers visited her again on Nurend 42 after an encounter with the Chittering Spirit as Kaswink's condition seemed to be getting worse. She accepted a painting from Namina in exchange for some information, on the caveat that it be painted using Kaswink's blood. The knowledge she provided for this trade was largely already known by Kaswink though, and another deal had to be made. The First Trade

“Watch your back, not much time left for you, best be on your way.
It’s not one to dawdle when it’s time to collect
“You will fall to its curse, much like he did long ago.
Your soul is lost, just as lost as the creature you seek”

Simol requested another trade for more information, and suggested maybe a limb or a life this time to get something more useful. This was met with some apprehension from the group, but Agave eventually offered his hand along with the story of everything it's ever done for him. As he told the story, the hand slowly dissolved into the air and Simol graciously accepted it while providing some more knowledge: The Second Trade

“Sometimes the best way to find the one controlling you
Is to follow the leash it has firmly attached to you.
Looking inward, then looking out, the path will be clear
Accepting that it is attached and walking toward the hand
That has been guiding you, though you must remember
This hand is powerful...and to be ready to face it, is to be out of time”

Kaswink seemed upset by this information and began to leave. Simol provided one last helpful bit of advice: "It will not accept you until you are ready, but I will help you find it when the time comes."

Before the Spiritual Travelers departed her village, Simol offered NAD the opportunity to save their brother in exchange for a favor. An Empress's Request

“Yes! Yes, the Spirals, the Spiraling Gate, the Twisting Gate, the Coiling Gate, they are all words that describe it well. Do you know what lies within? Do you know what leaks from it every moment? I want to stop all that. I want it to be…contained within only itself. Would you help me with this?”

“Good, yes, you know what must be done. And I will make this worth your while. I will give information on the one you seek, and I will guarantee you can get him to safety. I can tell you exactly where to go, and I can provide spells to protect you and your friends. The information will come as you solve the problems of the Coiled Layer. Each bit of Stability you remove will come with knowledge to get you closer to the one you seek. Defeating them or banishing them somehow will also provide extended protection from my magic. This is to guarantee that I get what I want and you get what you want. The Deal is most important to Hags.”

“Getting inside is of little consequence, I can tell you of rituals to get there …you could go with the Hermit, but entering through him will be a challenge if you are protected by my magic. I could…get you into the Gate whenever you wish with a guarantee to get in and out safely.”

It was revealed on Dualok 28, 308 that Simol used to be a L'huine. Tympi: "She used to be something else, something more like...like them *she pointed towards Hysteria*, but bigger. She fought with the Spirals for a long time, but then, well, I'm not sure what exactly happened, but one day she looked like that. I don't really question it, not up to me to question. You know how it is, but she always had it under control, even when the change was made. I'm not sure if I still trust her. Haven't spoken to her since I woke up."

Physical Description

Body Features

Simol's appearance was unknown until Nurend 13, 308. Until the Spiritual Travelers saw a painting of her in Tympi's House all they knew was that she was some kind of hag. She appears to be about the same height as Tympi and Ilven as she was positioned next to them and at a similar height, though this could've just been artistic expression, positioning, or any other of factors. She has cloudy, grey fog filled eyes with signs of some creamy white color behind the fog. Any exposed flesh is leathery with a mixture of different tones that are mostly pale and blotchy, though some sections are somewhat tanned or burned. Her Aura painting had a sillhouette that didn't seem to match her body, unless the horns coming from her "headdress" are actually her own. Her colors were Magenta, dark green, dark cyan and dark/murky violet.

Special abilities

Foresight - Simol seems to possess the ability of foresight and the ability to interpret prophecies written by other people. These abilities were often utilized by Tympi and Ilven along with others in the forest. Those that have spoken of Simol's abilities always explain that it feels like they're just hanging out, smoking, breathing incense, drinking, eating and experiencing Simol's guidance through an altered state of mind. To Ilven this seemed like just part of the process, like it was a means to an end, however, for Tympi it seemed to be more of just being with a friend and having the added benefit of receiving some advice. The Camp Directors were visited by Simol shortly after their arrival in The Gates. She offered conversation, drinking, eating, smoking and the like while insisting that it would help her know them, know each other, and to know a prophecy which held grave warnings for them all. Her mind altering substances caused time to go by a lot shorter ... or perhaps a lot longer? Their perception of time was altered, questions were asked, answers were given, jokes were told, secrets may have been revealed, or perhaps not? It became hard to tell what was being "thought" and what was being "spoken". All the strange dialogue of the encounter seemed to connect though, stretch out and condense, and all the words became several stanzas of some bizarre poetic prophecy. Prophecy

In the darkest depths the mind is wandering
Drinking from the wells, a promise, an offering
Lost, you’ll find your way
Or taken, you’ll step and sway
A beast uncoils, making new forms and folds
Its shell rises, each spike a spire a tale untold
Its being devours, a secret forgotten
Reveals a mind unraveling, a land rotten
You will see the ones you raised
Walking far from your provided grace
Their minds like one whose sins are vast
Their hollowed selves now a stolen past

Apparel & Accessories

She wears mostly earth tones with a primal aesthetic featuring bones, roots, knots and so forth almost randomly adorning different areas of the ensemble and her own flesh. A similarly designed headdress rests atop her scalp along with a hood and long grey/white braids of hair. Her headdress features three horns coming from different points, more roots, bones, and other grotesque items.

Mental characteristics

Personal history

Some strange and cursed information about Simol was revealed to Kaswink and Hysteria during the encounter with the Chittering Spirit. Hysteria's Cursed Knowledge

"The one you seek is no longer herself, she is a hag in service to Simol, the Hag Empress. Her form is just a ...persona created by The Oni."

Kaswink's Cursed Knowledge

"You have already found the one that has a hold of your heart. You have a piece of them in a jar, a bullfrog, and a hag that is a friend of the forest. It has many forms and many personas. Be careful when you seek it out, and know that my General is hungry for power beyond its normal means... power that only I should have or be capable of having."

Social

Mannerisms

Simol moves as if each step were heavier than the last. Stomping from place to place and raising her knees up higher than needed as if walking through some thick, knee-high mud. These steps cause the bones, roots, bags and other things strapped to her to rattle about and sound like a gruesome windchime. Her speech patterns are a combination of short, to the point, and poetic. She sometimes speaks in rhymes, using more words than needed to make the rhythm match the previous sentence, or she merely grunts. Like other fae, hags especially, Simol has a strange desire to make deals. These deals can sometimes be without the other party knowing, such as when she performs her Foresight and merely takes what she needs while providing her service. She also appears to have a preference for blood as it was the first thing she asked for when offering a written form of her prophecy.