House Calnell

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House Calnell is a minor noble house of Kairos with ties to the Scoli Arcanum, known for their unique form of spellcasting known as Calnellian Bladesinging and white, porcelain masks worn by its staff. They have remained a small and aloof house for much of their history, rarely maintaining anything more than cordial relations with other nobles. The house has been marred by several controversies, including a sudden ascendance to power by Lord Autolykos Calnell Reppario in 2353, following season 4.

## History

House Calnell is a relatively young house, established in the early 2300s by Lady Loreia Calnell Lacrima during her graduation from the Scoli Arcanum and appointment as a transmutation professor. During this time she gave birth to a daughter named Theoni, who disappeared without a trace in her late teens. This event drastically changed the House, and the search for her missing daughter turned into an obsession. Loreia would create a group of seekers known as the Anaktisi, trained from a young age to track down and find her missing daughter. The first of them was Autolykos, the half-son of Loreia.

Together with his partner Eos, and various other individuals, Autolykos managed to find and retrieve Theoni, who was trapped in a pocket of the Feywild located on the continent. Instead of returning her to Kairos, the three disappeared in the aftermath of the Seeker's attack, hiding for several years and nursing Theoni back to health. They would eventually return to the Calnell Estate and declare Loreia unfit to lead the house, leading to a struggle that left Autolykos as the new head of the house.

As the new head, Autolykos worked to rebuild the reputation and legitimacy of the house, participating in the Senate as a new senator. While his authority was eventually recognized by the majority of noble houses, many still saw the house as an inferior entity in noble society.

By the 2370s, House Calnell has become a respected, albeit reclusive member of Kairosian noble society. However, allegations of colluding with Spellrunner elements during Planarbition once again soured their public status. These allegations were never proven, but many still suspect the roguish house to be responsible for certain Spellrunner attacks, including a raid on the Valkyrie distribution center in Kairos.

## Notable Members

### Loreia Calnell Lacrima

The original founder of House Calnell. Disowned by the family and noble society after her abuse of several other house members was been made public.

### Autolykos "Lycus" Calnell Reppario

The patriarch of House Calnell after Loreia. As the original Anaktisi trained by Loreia, he was the first sent out into the archipelago to search for Theoni. He became a senator serving within the Kairosian Senate, and was one of the nobles responsible for the withdrawal from Kanara. While still the official patriarch of the House, much of the actual administrative work is completed by their child, Mnemosyne Calnell Praevalidum since 2392. His last public appearance was made in 2399.

### Eos Calnell Risio

Autolykos' partner and spouse, acting as his closest counsel. They were the second Anaktisi trained by Loreia, and became a master of Calnellian Bladesinging. Eos is also a prolific author, known for their erotica work. While still involved with House affairs, Eos also holds tenure within the Scoli Arcanum, serving as an Arcanist for the schools of Transmutation and Conjuration.

Currently, Eos serves as an arcane advisor for the Kairosian Expedition Fleet.

### Theoni Calnell Expono

The full daughter of Loreia and the catalyst for many of the events that came to define House Calnell. After being rescued from the Feywild and her mental capacity was restored, she used her lineage and support to give Autolykos legitimacy to rule. She spends much of her time outside of Kairos, exploring the archipelago.

### Mnemosyne "Nem" Calnell Praevalidum

The only child of Autolykos and Eos Calnell, Nem currently acts as the de facto patriarch of House Calnell. While a talented mage in their own right, with natural arcane abilities due their lineage, they experienced a marred childhood due to a latent connection with the remnants of an elder brain Autolykos had encountered in his early past. However, with proper training and study, Nem was able to control their connection and even harness its power for their own benefit in dire situations, allowing them to participate in Kairosian society safely. They are currently married to Róisín "Rosy" Aoibhinn von Laurellac.

## House Crest

The original crest of House Calnell was a simple white equilateral triangle, with black lines running from the three vertices to the center of the triangle.

After the disappearance of Theoni, the crest was changed to feature a latticework of fissures originating from the bottom right vertex. After Autolykos assume control of the House, the sigil was changed once again to the original crest, but now features a maroon circle where the black lines meet.

The sigil is a piece of polished obsidian, cut in the shape of the original crest. Veins of gold are embedded across the stone. It is currently located in the center of the large scrying pool in the Calnell Estate.

## Calnellian Bladesinging

Calnellian Bladesinging is a style of spellcasting employed by the former Anaktisi of House Calnell and those they choose to train. Rather than relying on conventional verbal components used by wizards, Calnellian Bladesingers use a combination of whistles, reverberating blades, and striking shards to produce music-like sounds and sparks to form the basis of spells. Unlike other forms of wizard spellcasting, some techniques of Calnellian Bladesinging can be adapted to channel innate forms of magic found in individuals.

### Magical Theory

This form of bladesinging relies heavily on the user's natural connection to a font of magical energy. The stronger the natural connection, or the more they understand what their connection is, the greater the potency of the magical effects they are able to produce.

This connection or knowledge of it is manifested into a focusing shard, carried by a bladesinger in their non-dominant hand. As an individual becomes more experienced, they are able to pull more magical energy from their font and into the shard, allowing for more spells to be cast.

To use the mana stored in the shard, a specialized blade made of reverberating metal must be run along the surface of the shard. This is known as "Striking" the shard. Doing so pulls mana out from the shard in two distinct forms, called the "Spark" and the "Ringing". Depending on the kind of spell an individual wishes to cast, the Strike could cause more Sparks to be created and less of a Ring, or vice versa. An individual can create more sparks or increase the volume of the Ringing by changing the Strike angle, pressure placed onto the shard, and/or length of the Strike.

For more complex spells, bladesingers use their own voice or a whistle to create a harmony with the note the blade produces. For spells that require a significant material component, the blade is run across both the focusing shard and the component at the same time.

The sound of the Ring depends heavily on the metal object used to strike the shard. Blades of different lengths, widths, and sharpness can change the tone and timbre of the Ring. The color of the Sparks depends heavily on the magical connection a user has.

### Bladesong

The Calnellian Bladesong is a special technique that can only be taught by those who have mastered bladesinging. As of 2371, during season 5, there was only one individual capable of teaching this technique, Master Eos Calnell.

The bladesong pushes the abilities of the bladesinger to their absolute limit by forcing them to maintain a steady supply of Sparks and Ringing from their blades to create a magical aura. The aura enhances the user's agility and constitution for a limited time, and can only be done several times before the user must allow the shard to regain mana from its font.

Due to the nature of the technique, a bladesinger can't rely solely on their magical connection as it can easily lead to burnout. Reliable use of bladesong without any drawbacks requires time and practice to learn the correct forms of Striking.

### Practitioners

* Loreia Calnell Lacrima
* Autolykos "Lycus" Calnell Reppario (former)
* Eos Calnell Risio
* Theoni Calnell Expono (former)

## Notable Relations

### Bestial Tides

*Main article: Bestial Tides*

During Autolykos' quest to find Theoni, he became acquainted with the knight Winifred "Winnie" von Laurellac, who was later crowned as the Sovereign of Beasts of the Bestial Tides. The two became close friends during their time in New Gork and accompanied each other on several quests, including the retrieval of Theoni from the Feywild. After the Seeker's attack, Autolykos fled the city with Winifred and found asylum in the Bestial Tides for several years before returning to Kairos.

Eos also became close friends with Winifred and her familiar, Aster. During their time in New Gork, they acted as Aster's tutor, teaching her the basics of writing and storytelling. They also claimed responsibility for causing Winifred and Kiasra to become romantically involved, but this is unable to be confirmed.

The Laurellacs and Calnells remained close throughout the 24th century, with Mnemosyne "Nem" Calnell Praevalidum and Róisín "Rosy" Aoibhinn von Laurellac marrying and further intertwining the two families together.