Francesca

art by Leaf Gem

**Francesca** is a half elf vampire played by *Isaiah Peters.*

**Francesca** was first introduced in Episode 11 replacing Radovan .

She is currently with the Adversaries on a mission to stop the Benefactor.

## Backstory

Francesca was born to two unknown sailors. Both were half-elves. At the age of 6, Francesca and her parents suffered a shipwreck. Killing her two parents and leaving Francesca to wash ashore. For the next 3 years, she lived on the streets, resorting to murder in order to survive.

After seeing a precession for the Lord Cosmin Dragosta, she followed the party with intent to steal some of their private feast. Francesca was able to bypass royal security and began stealing food before being caught. Radovan, Lord Cosmin Dragosta's official duelist, caught her but was wounded several time by a makeshift dagger Francesca had hidden. Rather than inflict the law on her, Radovan legally took her under his tutelage. He would later cite seeing a "a fierce capacity for greatness in her" for being the reason he spared her.

For the next 10 years, Francesca trained under Radovan. She showed great talent at a very young age. Radovan's relentless teachings made Francesca a top duelist. Despite her success, Radovan wrote cautiously about his young pupil, stating:

> “Francesca demonstrates a concerning capacity for cruelty. She seems to revel in victory, not from her achievement but rather someone else's failure. While competitive, headstrong, and impatient she displays intense calculation and drive. On top of all this she is extremely skilled in the art of dueling. More discipline and training should prove to shape her out, she is young and at 12 she still has time to grow.” - Radovan's Personal Journal
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Working as his apprentice , she would accompany Radovan on any and all outings Dragosta had to attend. Here she traveled the world and was privy to the political innerworkings of a Lords job (one of the responsibilities of a duelist). The only conversations she wasn't present for was because Dragosta believed "No matter how loyal she might be, she's still a women and can't be trusted with important information." A barrier she struggled to overcome despite being an undefeated duelist.

The relationship between Francesca and Radovan strained immensely towards the end of her apprenticeship. At 19, Francesca resigned as Radovan's apprentice and began working as Lord Remus Lupu's duelist. To those who viewed dueling as a sport this move had been predicted. Francesca's taunting fighting style paired with the intense rivalry between Lupu and Dragosta made the move obvious. This undoubtedly was perceived as a massive insult to Radovan, who was dealing with a string of dueling loses. She was only 2 years out from completing her time under him.

### Harvest Duel Incident

After a number of arm conflicts between Lord Lupu and Dragosta, the two agreed to a duel in decide ownership of a disputed territory. The event was to be a large occasion both for the matter at hand but the meeting of master and student. Francesca and Radovan met for the first time in three years in the dueling ring. One man in attendance reported it being a notably difficult duel to watch as "Francesca's insults might have done more damage than her sword...but that's just women for you." Radovan was taken to the ground at which point Francesca won the duel, choosing to spare his life. As she was doing the customary bow, Radovan rose after a long silence and chocked Francesca's. The audience watched as he held her for 30 seconds before he dropped her and walked out of the arena. Three days later Radovan formally retired from dueling, never mentioning Francesca in his public resignation.

## **Trivia**

* Hates scorpions
* Fastest duelist in the land