Sasha

**Sasha** is an ancient mutant encountered in Aeternis.

## Background

Sasha was a member of a Pict tribe inhabiting north-eastern Scotland in the fourth century CE, who discovered the caves of Wick. She and her sister, Niamh, were forced into the caves as a human sacrifice during a solar eclipse to return the sun to its rightful place. The ceremony saw people come from a hundred miles away and the sisters entered the caves to meet the God Sun... However, they wound up lost, traveling through the byzantine corridors for years on end, slowly succumbing to grailstone. The beasts that lived in the caverns below drove them back and prevented them from penetrating the lower realms. Eventually, they managed to find a way below. Sasha became enamored with the ancient buildings below and separated from her sister. It was then that Oisin came, with dark hair and a cloak clasped with an amulet. Oisin spent a year with Niamh, before Sasha returned and he left to return to his people.

Niamh was later killed while sitting by the watering hole, near an ancient Byzantine well. A creature attacked and dragged her body into the well... And it is entirely possible that this creature was, in fact, Sasha, as long term exposure to grailstone caused her to heavily mutate and become one of the most dangerous creatures in the waters underground, terrorizing man and animal alike. It is entirely possible that the creature that attacked Niamh by the ancient

By the time the Templars established Aeternis, she was already a permanent presence in its waters, Her appearance degenerated further, with only the parts visible on the surface retaining some semblance of hominid form, with the submerged portion of Sasha being extremely large, unidentifiable, and heavily mutated, with cell structure literally laced with grailstone.

## Interactions

* Sasha is an environmental obstacle and only poses a real threat in two situations:
	+ When taking the dinghy from the second part of the docks to the alchemist lab.
	+ When encountering Jack for a second time, after Tobias floods Aeternis.
* In both cases, Sasha can be forced to flee from the location by using the inkwell, amulet, or aqua fortis.

## Behind the scenes

*She is old and wise now, but terribly alone. Tobias found her centuries ago, befriended her and taught her to speak English. She is therefore aware of the Holy Grail, the Raptors and the terrible Vision of the future that Tobias has foreseen. A player can sometimes summon her by tapping on the side of her fountain on Level One (near the Grand Library) or else she may appear in one of the other fountains or canalways on Level Two. Her thought processes are very different from ours which makes her difficult to understand, but if a player perseveres and a relationship develops, she may confer a gift of knowledge about the waterways.''*

## References

1. ↑ Holy Thief: "*I saw what I think was a ghost by an old well.*

*Tobias: "*Yes. Niamh. She was part of a Pictish tribe that lived outside Aeternis in, I think, the fourth century. They were a barbarous people and she was a sacrifice to the beasts. As for the presence of her soul. This place has a certain reluctance to let the dead remain so. Even when a body can no longer support life, the soul will not leave it*"*
2. ↑ Niamh: "*Sasha? She was always willful. She hated me when we were infants. But later she was as willing a sacrifice as I. Until that is, we went down into the deeper realm of the Gods and she became so enamoured of that place she spent longer and longer away from me*"
3. ↑ Niamh: "*He is from Errin. He is wondrous. He taught me to read and write and the history of his land. We spent a peaceful year together (sudden fierce jealousy) then my sister returned. She wanted him. She tried to confound his mind. I know it.(becomes sad). Then he left to return to his people. I would have joined him but the sun burnt my eyes. How much longer will I have to wait here>*"
4. ↑ Niamh: "*(despair)Oh no.(slowly, sadly, she sighs)My name is Niamh. Our tribe gave my sister Sasha and I to the Gods when Sun closed his eye many years ago. (BREAK) It was the greatest honour. People came from a hundred miles. (BREAK) We entered the caves hoping to meet the God Sun himself, but instead we wandered, avoiding the guardians for years. [BREAK) We couldn't go down to the deep realm of Sun for fear of them. (Sighs) I thought Oisin was Sun come at last when he walked into the cave of blossoms. Perhaps you've seen him? He's tall and beautiful. He has long dark hair and beard and a cloak fastened with a shining brooch*"
5. ↑ Entry 19
6. ↑ Niamh: "*Wondrous places. Their shaping of stone was like nothing I have seen. But Sasha was changed by it. She wanted Oisin. (her voice becomes fierce and protective)And the Gods had punished her by making her ugly. Oisin would have nothing to do with her.(Again sad)But why hasn’t he come back?*"
7. ↑ Niamh: "*(laughs) A ghost. How can that be. I'd know if I had......Wait a minute. There was some kind of creature in the well. It hurt me. (The ghost shape turns toward the well.) (her voice filling with fear) Who is that in the water? (It moves closer.)No. No. No. OISIN!........*"
8. ↑ Tobias: "*We have all seen this thing. It is unlike the other beasts of the caves. I have no idea what it is. Just that it is very powerful. And very dangerous. I tell you this because its presence is not a part of the test*"
9. ↑ MS-2: "*DNASCAN - unknown hominid species detected - severe cellular mutation detected - catalyst unknown*"
10. ↑ MS-2: "*WARNING - WARNING - extremely large unidentified creature detected beneath waterline - DNASCAN - MALFUNCTION - cell structure laced with and hardened by unclassifiable mineral - PROCEED WITH EXTREME CAUTION*"