Gwenavere Blackthorne

Gwen in 1086AE

Iris Storm (daughter)

Ethan Blackthorne (brother)

Astrid Blackthorne (half-sister)

Odysseus Knox (half-brother)

Valoria Blackthorne (aunt)

Edmund Blackthorne (cousin)

House Blackthorne (formerly)

Princess **Gwenavere Blackthorne**, usually known by the shorthand Gwen, is a circus performer and the former heir to the Aradian Crown for her father King Gordon I. Following the fall of the Blackthorne monarchy, she went into hiding under the pseudonym "Gwen Storm" rather than returning to noble life, and currently works among the commonfolk. In her long exile she took many roles to support her daughter, most recently at The Psyjonic Circus where she performs a "taming" act with her bonded Griffin, Coriolinus or "Kitty."

Gwen is the only living daughter of King Gordon I and his first wife, Victoria Knox. As of 1086AE, she has a living brother Ethan Blackthorne. Extended relatives include her great-aunt Valoria Blackthorne and her great-uncle Theodor Blackthorne. She also has a living half-brother, Odysseus Knox. She cares for her young baseborn daughter Iris Storm; the child's father is unknown, though there is a pervasive rumour that she was sired by Gwen's cousin The Dark Prince, an accusation that Gwen strongly denies. Adding to the mystery is the fact that Gwen is only interested in female lovers.

In 1086AE, threatened by her aunt Valoria, Gwen sought refuge with the criminal vigilante group the Barbed Quills which she currently works with alongside her daughter and Griffin.

## Appearance & Character

Gwenavere as she appears in 108AE is described from her daughter's perspective;

> *Iris looked up at her mother, an older copy of herself. Gwen was a bit taller and skinnier than most other women; she had a pale, freckly face with a pinched look to it, rangy, hunted and haunted. Iris vaguely remembered someone calling her mother vulpine, foxlike, rather than wolven as was usual for her lineage--Iris didn’t quite know what that meant, but she liked the sound of the words, and thought of them often. Mamon had vivid auburn hair, which you could only really see was as red as it was in light like this. And her eyes were a unique, bright green, but sometimes in dim light they looked almost yellowy, and Iris thought that was pretty wolven. Gwen didn’t look like anything amazing or superhuman. But Iris thought Mamon was the most beautiful most strongest, most amazing person in the world.*
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Throughout her life, Gwen has been compared to her father in her temperament, though talk among the nobility shows that she was viewed with much more favourability than Gordon was. One such missive from Lord Highcliffe in 1074 describes encountering the Princess and describes her as "flat-chested and neurotic," but also notes that "she has conviction, wit and poise, and unlike her father can actually look you in the eye when she speaks. I would sooner have her brother, but I should think that this one will make an able ruler, come the worst." Gwen was close to both her parents and was considered to be Queen Talia's favourite grandchild.

While devoted to her daughter, Gwen can occasionally struggle as a mother & role model. She has a sharp, easily-roused temper and is frequently goaded when other people attempt to assert their status over her. She is businesslike and to-the-point in interactions. An introvert, even in her youth she did not cultivate many close relationships; but it is believed that she is still hopelessly in love with her childhood sweetheart, Sofia Rookwood.

## Skills & Abilities

Noble Education: Gwen has received a full complement of training in her role as a royal heir. She has extensive scholarly knowledge in a range of languages, arts, histories and economics; as well as some of the roles expected of a noble girl such as dancing, musicianship, crafts and horseback-riding.

Bard: Gwen has excelled in performing arts from an early age. She is a highly skilled dancer, and can play the lyre, the viola and the harpsichord to a professional level. She also has a "sweet" singing voice with a range of two octaves, compared by many to the voice of her grandmother Queen Talia.

Athletics: The Princess was noted to excel at gymnastic pursuits in her youth, and has retained the ability as an adult. Her rangy, lightweight, but tautly muscular build gives her a natural advantage in acrobatics, and she has several times displayed feats of surprising agility such as somersaults.

Combat: Gwen never had her brother Ethan's talent for fighting, but she is competent in the use of firearms and light bladed weapons such as scimitars and daggers. When called upon to fight, Gwen will often lean on her agility as opposed to her brother's brute strength, using acrobatics and simple spells to dance around and overwhelm a foe rather than simply beat them down.

Magic: Suffering from the stunted mana pools that frequently stymied mages of her generation, Gwen was not a particularly strong mage by the standard of before the Void's closure, but she is considered skilled and impressive by 1086. She can summon and shape tides of mist to her will, and use a controlled lightning-bolt cantrip as a weapon in fights. A terramancer, she is capable at handling her Griffin "Kitty" but often struggles to control his whims.

## History

Princess Gwenavere was born in the Demon's Moon of 1055AE. Her mother, Princess-Consort Victoria, was nearly 40 years old at the time of the birth and found the process immensely difficult after already miscarrying two of Prince Gordon's sons, Kavin and Ronnet. The royal couple did not attempt more pregnancies and stated they were content for their second living child to be their last, though this would later cause strain in their marriage. Gwen was a bookish, solemn and obedient child, having less taste for the frivolities and mischief that other children did. She was treated with more affection by her father Gordon than her brother Ethan was, which caused tensions between the two when they were very young. The two siblings were noted to be combative by outsiders, with Gwen the frequent subject of Ethan's pranks and japes, but those who knew them better often countered that the Prince and Princess had a very deep-seated affection for each other, often demonstrated by how protective Ethan was of her. Gwen was also doted upon by her mother Victoria, who viewed her as a precious gift following her prior difficult pregnancies, and her grandmother Queen Talia who was delighted to finally have a granddaughter to match the two grandsons she already had.

tbc

## Recent Events

In the Lady's Moon of 1086AE, Gwen journeyed with the Psijonic Circus to her birthplace Bastion City, where she was to put on her act at a party hosted by Armand Piers. However,

tbc

## Ancestry

The Blackthorne Royal Family tree as of 1086AE is viewable here

## Trivia

-Named after Queen Guinavere of Arthurian legend, with the shortening to "Gwen" coming from the BBC series Merlin.