"Got so much to lose, got so much to prove
God don't let me lose my mind
Trouble on my left, trouble on my right
I've been facing trouble almost all my life"
-Trouble by Cage the Elephant
BASICS
NAME: Nhelin
GENDER: Female
PRONOUNS: she/her/hers
ORIENTATION: Pansexual
BIRTHDATE: Early Spring 2730
AGE: 45 as of Summer 2775
LOCATION: High Reaches Weyr
OCCUPATION: Wher candidate
WING: N/A
APPEARANCE
EYES: Green
HAIR: Brown
HEIGHT AND BUILD: 6'4" with firm muscle, slightly more bulky than a runner's build
PLAY-BY: Djarn picrew
FULL APPEARANCE: Nhelin is tall, standing around 6'4" with a well-muscled build. She is not entirely bulky, but one can tell she is strong just by looking at her. As an athletic woman--the type who excels at physical pursuits--she is a capable fighter and adept at various practical and physical tasks. She wears her brown hair short, but femininely so; cropped just above her shoulders. It has a natural wave to it, and her long bangs are pushed to the side. Her eyes are green, with a small mole beneath the left. A scar mars her face, stretching over her lips from mid chin to just below her left eye. She holds herself like a soldier--strong posture and decisive, almost rigid movements. Her expression ranges from neutral yet judgmental to downright hostile--the definition of 'resting bitch face.'
Her voice is low and gravelly. She often omits words that feel irrelevant to getting her point across, and isn't against single word responses, or even grunts.
PERSONALITY
PERSONALITY: Nhelin takes herself very seriously. She is equal parts disciplined soldier and bitter grump. She challenges and pushes others to be their best, but pushes herself twice as hard, running herself ragged just to improve and grow. Although she may seem demanding, judgmental, and critical, it comes from a well-meaning place. She is a dutiful, protective sort, working too hard and refusing to sit still even for a moment. She is very honest, even blunt (but a terrible liar). With no tact or patience, Nhelin struggles with knowing how and when to be gentle, and is generally a prickly and externally unpleasant woman. At her best, she is awkward and quiet. She is terse, preferring to get to the point or say nothing at all. This woman is strong-willed and even willful--determined to do her best and stubborn as a mule.
Nhelin is also hateful, angry, and bitter. She isn’t afraid to back up her claims with her fists if needed, and she does not take any shards. Due to her jaded outlook, she trusts no one. It’s her against the world. As a result, she gets defensive easily. If she feels attacked, she lashes out like a cornered animal to protect herself. She generally seems cold and aloof, even rude, with a sharp temper. Her sense of humor is dry, sarcastic, and rarely present.
She often worries that she is not good enough or strong enough. Nhelin has a good heart, deep down, and feels guilt over things that have little to do with her. She wants to do right by her weyr, despite Golre’s reign, despite her own bitterness. Despite her love for High Reaches, she hates dragons and their riders--especially metallics. Vigilant to the point of paranoia, Nhelin never trusts when others are being nice to her.
HISTORY
FAMILY:
-Mother: Anhe
-Father: Malinir
-Son: Liniral [Linny, -25/16]
SIGNIFICANT OTHER: None
BIRTHPLACE: High Reaches Hold
HISTORY: TW: Kidnapping, injury
Born in spring of 2730, Nhelin wasn't even a turn old when the interval war began. She never knew a life without Golre. High Reaches Hold, while not the weyr, was impacted throughout Golre's reign, as candidates were eventually kidnapped, rather than typical search free of coercion. As the child of a loving but unimportant pair of drudges, Nhelin never assumed she was meant for greatness. She was not the type to be kidnapped, surely. She assumed the role of her parents with ease, working as a drudge when she turned of age. Her parents worked hard, and she took on their work ethic.
It all changed in 2748. Shortly after her 18th nameday, she was kidnapped--albeit not forcefully by any means--by a rider on search. She'd never had much interest in dragons, but began to hate them with a passion after this point. She wasn't given much of a choice, and went reluctantly. She wrote to her family, but eventually, she begrudgingly allowed High Reaches to become her home. For much of her life, she kept her head down, not wanting to bring any ire or attention upon herself, but she quietly seethed, hating metallics and riders alike--but especially Golre.
In 2755, thread returned and the war ended. While riders were suddenly less reprehensible, she still hated them. She aged out at 25 (though the age of candidacy would rise, later), and to celebrate her freedom and delegation to 'weyrfolk,' she enjoyed the company of a man. Nine months later, her son was born, with no involvement from the father. Nhelin used her father's name for inspiration, rather than typical naming conventions. She dearly loved her son, and was very involved in his life. Luckily, she hadn't Impressed, so she was able to be more involved in raising him.
A turn after her son's birth, she began wondering about wher candidacy. It was strongly discouraged for a woman--if allowed at all--but that was part of the allure. Someone told her that as a woman, she shouldn't have a wher; she fought him, an altercation that grew bloody when his belt knife slashed her face, leaving a scar.
Starting in 2760, although the war had officially ended, High Reaches continued to cause drama. It was a strange time, one of women bronzeriders and strange new garnet colors. High Reaches declared war on Fort, and finally, Golre died in an attack, along with some bronzeriders. Chromatic dragons began to lead High Reaches, but Nhelin continued mistrusting them. The age for candidacy was raised around this time, but even had she been young enough, she wouldn't have wanted to. That said, she did become a wher candidate, officially. Beware a woman with a wher? Yes, you should beware of her. She's a wher candidate now.
Eggs were stolen from Fort, and Nhelin grumbled about it. Dragonriders and their petty politics, their awful ways. How could someone steal the children of another? It seemed horrible, especially to such a loving mother.
High Reaches had poor luck with golds, but Nhelin couldn't complain about the structure of High Reaches. So what if no golds wanted to transfer in? It was tragic that people died, sure, but why should she care about the fact that High Reaches struggled with golds? After a while, she relented. Maybe High Reaches did need a gold, to replenish the wings. After traditional Aldoeith's hatching--with rumors that Toki was pushing for power--Nhelin changed her mind. Toki could freeze between, for all she cared.
In 2770, at the age of 15, her son became a dragon candidate, much to Nhelin's worries.
UPDATES
- Early Fall 2771: Impresses Gold Nhelisk.
