River Swann

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Biographical Information	
Biographical Information
Full Name	
River Melody Swann
Nicknames	
None
Homeland	
Essetir
Born 	
1215 AD 
Died 	
n/a
Occupation	
Queen of Essetir
Physical Description	
Physical Description
Race 	
Human
Gender	
Female
Height	
5ft 6in (1.68 m)
Hair color	
Brown
Eye color	
Hazel
Distinguishing Features	
Her eagerness to please others and her unique style of fighting.
Languages Spoken	
English, French, Elvish (limited)
Family	
Family
Parents	
*King Ulrich Swann †
* Queen Lydia Swann † (nee Tallos)
Spouse(s)	
*None
Children	
*None
Other Family Members	
*King Odin Tallos - Maternal Uncle †
* Prince Valiant Tallos - Maternal Cousin †
Allies	
*Torani Storm
*Sir Porthos
"I don't copy. I echo."
From "Kings & Queens: Love and Leadership" by Samson Arigiros
River Swann is the daughter of Ulrich and Lydia Swann - the rightful King and Queen of Essetir. When Lydia's younger brother Odin usurped her and her husband, murdering them in cold blood, by rights the crown should have passed to their daughter River. Instead, Odin claimed the throne and had his niece imprisoned, whilst his son went on to claim neighbouring Tregor in a similar fashion.
It would take twenty years, but eventually River would claim back her throne and take her place as the rightful Queen. However, after this victory, she soon realised that her work was far from over, and has not stopped in her quest to make the kingdom a better place, ever since.
==History==
River was a tiny baby - hours old in fact - when her parents were cruelly taken from her by her uncle, Odin Tallos. Had it not been for the fact that his soldiers refused to kill a tiny baby, she would have joined her parents in death. As it was, the soldiers were punished for failing in their duty, but River was allowed to live - if only so that Odin could raise her in the way he wanted, as his slave.
She never knew what had happened to her mother and father, and was led for most of her life to believe that they had been killed by assassins who would have killed her as well, had her uncle not 'saved' her and taken her in out of the 'goodness of his heart'.
As a child, she was forced to live and work as a servant of the castle, was forbidden from calling her uncle anything other than 'My Liege' and had to constantly endure the bullying and harrasment from her older cousin, Valiant. Every time she fought back or did not obey her uncle, he'd have her punished or thrown into a cell. She quickly learned from her mistakes and became meek and subservient, accepting her lot in life as a lowly servant. Banned from leaving the castle or socialising with guests and attending social functions such as feasts and balls, River was denied a lot of the life skills that many others took for granted - such as how to dance and shop, how to correctly greet people of various classes or genders and even how to read or write.
During feasts and balls, she was often sent to her room, or to the servants quarters where she was supposed to stay so as not to interact with the other nobles who might recognise her as the true Queen of the realm. Odin had been telling everyone for years that she had died along with her parents, after all, so it would not do for her to be seen alive.
River sometimes threw caution to the wind, however, and would sneak down to watch through the keyhole of the door, or even sometimes if the door was open she'd peer inside to see what was going on. Balls always fascinated her because of the bright colours, lively music and elegant dances, and she one day dreamed of being able to go to one, though she doubted this would ever happen and simply contented herself with watching the dances and mimicking them when she was alone, back in her room. She taught herself how to dance by watching others, and when one of the servants questioned why she copied the nobles, her reply was to tell him simply, "I don't copy. I echo."
Life started to look up for a short while and whilst things didn't improve about the castle in general and the poor people of the kingdom still suffered under Odin's rule, River had learned to keep her head down and stay out of trouble. She'd learnt to be neither seen, nor heard and could enter a room, refill everyone's drinks and exit the room again withou a single person ever knowing she'd even been there. This skill would come in handy later on in her life, but for now it was the best way of avoiding her uncle's wrath.
Until she made the fatal mistake of tripping on the corner of a table cloth completely by accident during one particular mealtime. This wouldn't have been a problem - she was able to save herself from falling completely thanks to her natural born grace, agility and quick reflexes. But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't save the wine from spilling from the jug she'd been carrying at the time.
And to make matters worse, the wine spilled into the lap of Odin himself. Outraged and convinced that she'd done it on purpose, he had his niece arrested by the guards and dragged to the dungeons where she was beaten for her 'insolence' and left for dead in one of the cells. By some small miracle, River didn't die but it would take her a very long time to recover afterwards, and had it not been for the timely arrival of Torani Storm, she may never have recovered at all.
As it was, Torani was not at all impressed by Odin or his son during her visit, but she needed their armies so was forced to endure them for the sake of the allegiance.
During her stay, she set free the village elder who had been cruelly chained to a tree and left to the elements after begging Odin for a little more food for the starving villagers. Following her example, Gwaine and the rest of her Queensguard then decided to investigate a suspicious looking piece of wall which turned out to be concealing the entrance to the dungeon where River was being held.
Gwaine rescued River and after seeing her terrible state, Torani declared that the girl would be joining her back in Elysium. When Odin protested, Tora lashed out angrily. Having recently escaped a similar fate herself at the hands of Siro of Arcadia, Tora could sympathise with River completely, and took pity on the girl. 
She took her back to Elysium and treated her like a daughter, personally seeing to the treatment she was given for her wounds and helping to nurse her back to health. River struggled at first to comprehend the complete contrast in the two kingdoms, and deduced after only an hour that she much preferred Elysium and expressed her desire to stay there forever. She was more than welcome to, especially after she befriended Tora's two daughters Mithian and Laini. They saw how timid and nervous River was about everything, and how she had no idea how to live in the real world, having been locked away all her life, so they instigated Project Riverdance (after witnessing a rare display of enthusiasm on River's part as she danced in the marketplace, momentarily letting her fears and her nerves go as she was swept away by the music). 
Project Riverdance was a huge success as with much encouragement from the two girls, River was finally able to regain her confidence and come out of her shell. She learned so much in their company, and was thrilled when Natham Myron also taught her how to read and write. He was a patient teacher, and she a good student who carefully observed then echoed with almost perfection, picking things up in an instant.
==Dawn of a New Era==
When River arrived in Elysium, she owned nothing but the simple tattered robe she was wearing, and some well worn leather sandles that were practically falling to pieces. So Laini and Mithian took it upon themselves to take her shopping and buy her an entire new wardrobe. After all, who was better or more qualified at such a task than the Queens of fashion themselves?
But rather than a dress, or shoes, the very first thing River bought from the market was a pearl necklace. Blue and black pearls linked in a line of strong thread that would not break easily. She then spotted an armour stall and despite the protestations of the fashion queens, expressed a great interest in a particular chainmail shirt.
The chainmail shirt would in fact become the very first gift anyone ever bought for her, and was purchased by Natham Myron after he felt sorry for her.
The two princesses would not hear of such a 'manly and horrible' thing and tried to entice River with dresses and sparkly things instead, but after River explained her reasons for wanting the chainmail (so that she could feel safe in the knowledge that her uncle could not hurt her any more), Natham bought it for her as a gift and she has never forgotten his kindness or generosity ever since. She has vowed to one day make it up to him, but has yet to find the right moment.
Using the black chainmail as a basis for the whole outfit, she has since acquired and put together the rest of her battle attire over the course of the next few years, choosing the colour black because it allows her to walk in the shadows, blend in and hide in plain sight. It also proved to be the best colour to hide dirt and rust, making the outfit surprisingly low maintenance - perfect for a Queen who has very little time to worry about her appearance considering she has a kingdom to reclaim and get back into some sort of order.
The chain belt around her waist can hold an assortment of weaponry, though River likes to keep things simple and chooses only to carry her sword (and occasionally a knife).
The chainmail undershirt is black to prevent rust from showing, and is lightweight but strong, whilst the thick leather vest over the top provides warmth in colder climates and also an extra layer of protection.
Her arms are protected by leather gauntlets and built in wrist guards protect her wrists and the backs of her hands, also.
Her boots are thick but supply leather that give her good grip over most terrains and are 'all weather' boots, meaning they will literally withstand all weathers and conditions.
However, during that very first shopping trip with the girls, River knew that she would not be able to wear a tattered dress or a chainmail shirt for the rest of her life, so allowed herself to be talked into buying several dresses as well, each one more extravagent than the last. She developed a taste for the finer silks that flowed like water, and dresses that were light and airy rather than thick and heavy, and had soon discovered her own unique sense of fashion (nothing near as flambuoyant or extravagent as Laini or Mithian, but no longer plain and simple either).
River stayed with the Royal Storm family until the end of the War of the Phoenix.
She saw the darkness consume Torani Storm but she did not fear it, as Tora had never lifted a finger towards her in any way and had only ever shown her kindness. She did worry for the Queen's safety, however - a worry that was not entirely without cause considering that Tora's own niece Shaina Storm would eventually be her downfall.
River was there at the banquet when everything literally went to hell, and she was there to help pick up the pieces in the aftermath. She went on the run with the Royals when they were hounded from their own kingdom by an army of dwarves and she helped to organise the forest camps where the fugitives took shelter.
She saw the return of the Queen - literally - from the dead, and she watched as the armies marched off to the distant shores of Greece to finish the war once and for all. She did not join them, because she was no fighter - that much was painfully obvious, even to her, but she was inspired by the things she had seen since coming to Ealdor. The courage and bravery of the Royals and their extended family, and how deep down beneath it all they loved each other dearly, despite everything. This became increasingly obvious to River as she watched Torani forgive the woman who had killed her, and encouraged everyone else to do so, as well.
By the war's end, River had seen enough to know that things had to change for her, as well. She had the confidence to consider taking action against her uncle now - something she'd never have dreamed of doing a year earlier - now all she needed was the confidence to actually TAKE that action. Confiding in Torani one evening, River was amazed when the Queen gave her the army of Elysium to help her - on a temporary loan of course. River, now with an army at her back and the confidence to finally stand up for herself, returned home to Essetir and took the kingdom back from her unsuspecting uncle with barely any fighting. He hadn't been expecting it and her attack came as a complete surprise, meaning he had very little time to rally his men in defense. River had Odin arrested and forced to kneel before her. She then told him calmly and with as much conviction and confidence as she could, that she was the Queen. The lands were HERS and she was taking them back. Odin was given one chance to surrender, but when he drew a dagger on his niece, his intentions were made perfectly clear and she ordered his immediate execution.
He was to be her first and to this day only execution as everyone else quickly fell into line when they realised that she was serious. Once she was confident that she finally had her own army back under her command, she sent the borrowed army of Elysium home again and finally took her rightful place upon a throne that she had once claimed she never wanted. Now she had a very different opinion and was glad that she'd taken the throne and become Queen, simply because the gratitude she received from the people for freeing them from tyranny was enough of a reward in itself, to make the whole thing worthwhile.
Sir Porthos, a knight of the realm, was one of the first to pledge himself to her cause and remembering that he had always been kind to her as she grew up, looking out for her and keeping her as safe as he was able to under the circumstances, she appointed him as her right hand man and personal bodyguard. The two were rarely seen apart from then on, and Porthos was the one to teach River how to use weapons and defend herself. She is far from amazing in combat, but she can at least hold her own now and defend herself long enough for help to arrive, which is all she ever really wanted to be able to do. Protect herself.
Now, thanks to the confidence the Storms gave her, plus the combat knowledge that Porthos has given her, she can do exactly that.
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Gallery=
1354155981224.jpg|Mimicking one of Mithian's famous pouts
arrow2x22_098.jpg|All grown up and ready for battle
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Music=
Swann Song|River Swann's Theme
River's Dance|Swept away by the dance, River forgets all her woes, and for one beautiful moment finds peace
Training Montage|Porthos trains River how to defend herself
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Artwork=
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Category:Human
Category:Royalty
Category:Female
Category:Third Generation
Category:Misc. Families