Avid, Beguiling and Secret

Avid, Beguiling and Secret is a book uncovered through use of Study-related Inquiries by Arnica.

## History

The importance of her faith to the deity Vyra has underpinned much of the thoughts, choices and actions of the adventurer Arnica's life. Upon contemplating the the year past and that upcoming during the Holy Day of Divinus, Augur, she found herself compelled to look into the champions of the Goddess of Curiosity, specifically that of their ideals and deeds.

## Reading

### Completed by Arnica

Despite being vast in scope and majesty, for many, knowledge of a deity is a personal and intimate thing. Individuals may find their souls resonating with the celestial forces to which they are destined to be drawn, and yet the scale of the divine means that many gods may represent a number of things to different individuals, inspiring and exemplifying all contained within the domains of their portfolio. Vyra, for example, is variably known by countless names, but the three most prominent amongst those are that of Avid One, the Beguiling One and the Secret Sister, each representing a different facet of the same almighty entity. While many of Vyra's faithful actively seek to embody all aspects of their patron, this tome considers three champions that represented and stood for the ideals of each part individually - that of Elen Ashlance, Qays and Lyddiva of Tuuri Prohava.

#### Elen Ashlance, The Avid

Born to the noble Ashlance Family of the Duchy of Rhous, Elen found herself roaming the lands surrounding Castle Washguard as soon as she could travel, as per the teachings of Veth, the patron deity of the Ashlances. While the Pathmaker would inspire Elen, it would not be the God of the Winds, Waves and Travel that would resonate most deeply with the inquisitive teen as she continued to grow and mature, and after a brief period of patronage to the Eternal Minstrel after residing in the Tyndian capital of Evonlock for a time, it would be to Vyra that she would be in time drawn, the first whisper of the world that she would find herself readily following.

The noble scion was more accustomed to travel than most, but even by such a standard of her faithful family, her travels would carry her far and wide, accompanied by a party of likewise free-willed souls, wielders of divine magic all, in their own varied ways. As per the Avid One's teachings, Elen Ashlance repeatedly sated her appetite for curiosity in the hidden and forgotten corners of the Material Plane and beyond, and yet found herself hungry still. The exact details of their adventurers remain a mystery however - a supposedly deliberately choice by Elen to encourage others to make the wondrous journeys for themselves, discovering and uncovering as they went - but by the collection of souvenirs and keepsakes carried back to Castle Washguard on the rare occurrence of her brief return, she and her companions counted adventurers to the depths of the Brumal Deep, the Underdark, the Wildwood, and several of the Wandering Worlds, most notably that of Arborea, Hades, Limbo and Ysgard amongst the destinations spurred by enthusiasm and interest.

#### Qays, The Beguiling

Hailing from the Sunar port city of Astaz, located on the southwestern tip of the continent, Qays, despite claims otherwise, was never a merchant of spirits, nor a member of serving staff in a tavern - whether sleazy or highbrow, or, as the most slanderous of claims state, nothing more than a drunkard at the side of the street before they experienced the faith of the Beguiling One transforming their lives. By contrast, the childhood, adolescence and early adulthood of the much famed - and infamous in some circles - champion of Vyra were particularly stable and mundane. It would not be until Qays travelled to neighbouring Lachlen that he would find himself on the forwards path to change, during which he managed to fool his way out of an increasingly hostile situation involving a trio of mercenaries by acting drunk, stumbling down the cobbles in a manner that he posited made him look defenceless and without focused intent.

A week later, the mercenaries had been arrested on account of the evidence gathered by Qays after they had left, blissfully unaware of his sobriety and thus quickly lulled into dropping their guard. Over time, Qays would wear a number of disguises, his performance further refined - so dedicated to his craft that he would promptly reflect it in his fighting style, seeming to tumble and sway between tables and chairs as he incapacitated foes - consistently catching his marks and quarries off guard as they dismissed him for nothing more than a street urchin. Most famous amongst these was the gang boss Kedgal Stinoz, known also as the Mammoth Fang, who was apprehended by Qays in a private membership club in the streets of Inverden, an altercation started when Qays 'accidently' spilled a full flagon of mead over and around the criminal's dining table, before utilising the resulting spill to trip Kedgal to his back when he tried to flee the scene, his half-dozen henchman already incapacitated - singing a hymn associated with the Beguiling One throughout, as he was like to do once revealing his martial prowess.

#### Lyddiva of Tuuri Prohava, The Secret

Raised in the Shadowfell, although not of the Plane of Shadow, having established later in life that her family instead came from the Giado Territories - from which point she always made a point of introducing herself accordingly in reference to her familial Tuuri - Lyddiva stood out amongst the shadar-kai of the city of Kyl Adandale more than just by nature of her race. Even as a young child, Lyddiva seemed preternaturally resistant to the despair and ennui-inducing melancholic atmosphere that pervades throughout the Shadowfell. For many in the city, her laughter was an affront to the twisted sanctity of the settlement, the dark and gloom warping the sound to be haunting and mocking, a proclamation of what could not be had, could not be achieved. To this effect, Lyddiva would set forth from the city as soon as she was able, trudging onwards in the Shadowfell unafraid, unweary and without dread or delusion.

It would only be when Lyddiva made her way to the Material Plane - seemingly by chance, for she spent many years wandering the Shadowfell freely, never once faltering or showing any signs of true struggle, beyond finding a steady source of sustenance, that the divine presence on her soul would be thoroughly and fully examined. To the surprise of many, priests and arcane researchers of the Guild of the Wistful Willow included, it was found that Lyddiva was warded by a potent aura of divine magic that worked to somehow hide the lost Giadoese girl from the worst of the Shadowfell's despair, a blessing further augmented by the strength of her own spirit and gaiety in the face of troublesome surroundings. After returning to the Material Plane, Lyddiva spent the rest of their life - which unfortunately and regrettably proved to be shorter than the typical human lifespan - spreading merriment, finding a special proclivity for planting particularly interesting and intriguing secrets and challenges for the local children and youth to uncover during Tricksters' Night.