Kaylina d'Hir'rasi

Name: Kaylina d'Hir'rasi
Gender: Female
Age: 32
Race: Human (long-lived)

Background:

Kaylina was born in the small kingdom of Hir'rasin, which has now been absorbed into a larger kingdom after the royal family died out. At the time, Hir'rasin could boast many citizens who possessed any number of magical abilities. Her mother was noted for extensive herbal and healing lore, and her father was a master-level song mage. For some time, it was though that Kaylina did not inherit any magical abilities at all, until it was chance discovery that if she was humming or singing, she could heal at the same time. Her mother and father both taught her all the knew in herbal lore, healing craft, and song craft.

Her life was idyllic until a rogue mage tried to coerce her father into giving up a closely guarded spellsong, known innocently enough as Harmon's Tune. The rogue mage had cornered her father, and kaylina walked into the middle of their fight. Desperate to save the knowledge, her father used a spellsong to transfer his knowledge to her right before the mage killed him. Before the mage could turn on Kaylina, the town guard arrived, alerted by the mage energy that had been expended The mage vanished an instant before the guard arrived, leaving Kaylina - at the tender age of 15 - to take the blame for her father's death.

Kaylina was exiled from her home, her tale of the rogue mage not believed by the council. They also could not believe that her father would willingly transfer all of his knowledge to her via a spellsong. Even young Teryn, to whom she was betrothed, turned his back on her. She fled, taking only what she could easily carry on her back.

She spent several years aimlessly traveling, stopping in smaller towns and cities to find anyone who could continue to teach her. She never stayed in one place for too long, always afraid that the mage would come after her if she settled down. Despite all of her traveling, she managed to attain mastery in Bardic Lore and Healing, and was styled as a Master BardHealer...an apt description for her unique talent.

It was chance, or fate, that found her at Mylander's Inn one day, and in a party that was going after the same mage that had been haunting her footsteps for so long. She and another mage managed to destroy the rogue mage, and Kaylina finally made her home at Mylander's.

A year or so after settling down at Mylander's, Teryn showed up, having tracked Kaylina down. He begged for her forgiveness, acknowledging the hurt that he had caused both of them by his behavior. It did not take long for everyone around them to realize that they shared a lifebond, his shielding skills uniquely melding with her healing skills to give her a buffer as she healed others. They were quietly married, and spent the next few years traveling together, volunteering their services to an army battling a war against demon-wrought creatures. Despairing over the loss of life, and believing that they were about to be overrun, Kaylina made the decision to use Harmon's Tune to stop the demonic creatures, thus ending the war. Before anyone other than her inner circle of friends could find out who had defeated the enemy, she and Teryn left.

The two of them traveled for several more months, bringing a healer to some of the more remote villages in the kingdom. It was while they were on their way back to Mylander's that they were ambushed by brigands, and Teryn (supposedly) killed. Kaylina was found in the wreckage of their wagon the next day, delirious and mad with grief, the lifebond somehow severed. It would be several months before any of her friends felt her stable enough to be left alone for any length of time.

Once she was deemed stable and as healed as possible, Kaylina threw herself back into her studies with a single-minded devotion. It would be another year before she would make a pilgrimage to two separate Collegiums (healing and bardic), to attain the status of Adept Bardhealer. As part of her Adept trials, Kaylina was sent to various remote areas to not only bring news, but to work as a healer and a bard, training likely youngsters, vouching for them if they had a desire for further study at either Collegium.

It was during one of her far-flung travels that she came across a man by the name of Barlon. A fierce storm had swept through the area, driving Kaylina to search for shelter. It was after the storm had passed that she came across an downed tree, Barlon pinned beneath it. She managed to shift the tree enough to free him, and even though the weather was still threatening, she healed him enough to be able to pull him up onto her horse, since his had long since vanished, and he directed her toward his inn - Crossroads Inn. They became fast friends, and Kaylina became relatively known in the area as a healer.

Barlon was dying though, and nothing Kaylina could do was enough to change the fact. It was enough that she was able to alleviate most of his suffering, so that he went peacefully. In gratitude for all of her help, and recognizing her as someone worthy, he left her Crossroads Inn, though he died before being able to explain just what Crossroads Inn actually was. He also named her as legal guardian to his young ward, Meryla, who was just 8 years old at the time.

There was some confusion about the inheritance, but after having an audience with the King of Sepvarta, Kaylina was named Baroness, and given Crossroads Inn and the nearby town as her lands. She was also confirmed as Meryla's guardian.

Personality:

Despite all that happened to her when she was younger, she is a rather cheerful person to be around. She hasn't let the sadness in her past get in the way of enjoying life. There are times when she'll be solemn and withdrawn, and it's a pretty good guess that she's thinking of Teryn and other friends that have been lost, but those days are rare. She can be rather contained at times, keeping most of her emotions behind a calm exterior.

Strengths:

Kaylina is an Adept Bardhealer, and wears the rank pin as such. (Rank pin is that of a gold harp with a silver caduceus over it. Two deep blue sapphires adorn the pin.) Between her magical abilities and her extensive herbal lore, there isn't much that she cannot cure or heal. Injuries of the mind/spirit are extremely difficult for her to work with, though she has had limited success. She is also an empath, able to sense the moods of people around her, and using some of the non-healing spellsong lore, she is able to 'modify' the emotions of her listeners - a handy talent should there be a mob ready to riot.

Weaknesses:

She is a minor telepath, only able to speak mind to mind with other telepaths, and within limited range. While she knows some defensive spellsongs, she is not to be counted on in a long fight. She also knows the rudiments of defending herself with a staff, but since she usually tries to avoid confrontations, she is woefully out of practice. She is also so dedicated a healer that she can (and has) put herself in the way of danger to save someone else.

While she is a strong empath, this is also a source of weakness for her should her shields fail for any reason. If this should happen while she's in a densely populated area, too many emotions will overwhelm her, causing her to lose consciousness. Because of this, she does not like to stay in large cities for very long, a week or two at most if necessary.

Possessions/other information:

Kaylina is wealthy in her own right. She once performed for a dragon, who repaid her with several gemstones the size of her head. She doesn't flaunt her wealth though, and most people would not know just how much wealth she has, because she rarely ever dresses the part. (The gemstones have long since been exchanged for gold and other coins, as well as smaller gemstones.)

She also has a wagon. This looks like an ordinary canvas-covered wagon, but there are many charms laid upon it. The canvas itself, while supple, has a stoneskin charm cast on it, to repel attacks and even weather. The wooden body has charms against fire, wear, and age. Inside, there is a special chest that will keep food stored in it fresh indefinitely. It also appears to be larger on the inside than on the outside, thanks to another charm. Kaylina used to use the wagon as a mobile infirmary, and there is space inside the wagon for six cots, as well as a curtained off area containing a narrow bed for two just behind the driver's box. There are lanterns hung from the ribs to provide light, and two small traveling braziers to warm the interior. There are also special storage compartments under the bed of the wagon, between the wheels, that hold a dozen more cots and two tents. Access to the back of the wagon is achieved by a cunning set of steps that can be pulled up and fastened while the wagon is in motion. Despite all of this, the wagon is light enough to only need two horses to pull it.