Paola Kortez

Paola Kortez was an assassin with the Antivan Crows. After the Talon of her house betrayed the other Talons, House Kortez was sentenced to death and she has since been forced into exile.

## Overview

### **Physical Appearance**

Paola is a human woman of average height and a slight build. She has the tanned skin typical of an Antivan, short dark brown hair and hazel-colored eyes. A scar runs from the corner of her mouth across her left cheek to her ear, where the lobe is missing.

### **Personality**

Paola is an assassin through and through, feeling no guilt over taking other people's lives. To her, it is her job and her duty. She is a devoted patriot to Antiva and will do anything she can to protect it.

She is very dour and unsociable, refusing to engage with others unless absolutely necessary. She is deeply insecure about her scar, believing that it disfigures her face so badly that nobody could bear to look at her.

### **Talents and Skills**

Paola is exceptionally skilled in the arts of stealth and murder. While she knows how to employ archery and poison in her profession, she is most proficient with her daggers. She is masterful at using her daggers, whether it be in striking from the shadows or in open combat. She is an accomplished duelist who has even beaten knights in a fight.

## **Biography**

### Childhood

Paola was born on August 14, 9:10 Dragon in a village north of Treviso. Her parents were farmers, though they preferred to spend their time gambling away what little money they had, as well as a lot of money they didn't. By the time Paola was 7 years old, her parents had incurred a massive debt. In order to avoid their debtors, Paola's parents attempted to leave Antiva. In order to barter passage to Rivain, they approached a merchant who was well-known to be associated with the Antivan Crows and sold Paola to him for a sovereign.

Paola later learned that her parents never even made it to their ship. They were assassinated by the Crows while waiting on the docks.

### **Antivan Crows**

Paola was sent to House Kortez to be trained as an assassin. The training was harsh and unforgiving, but she endured it and even excelled. She showed a lot of natural talent for the assassin's trade, which caught the eye of Emil Kortez, the Fourth Talon of the Crows.

When she was 13 years old, Paola was injured during a training session, gaining her a permanent scar across her face.

Upon completing her training, she was assigned her first real job. While she managed to successfully eliminate the target, she had to sacrifice two of her fellow Crows in the process. While she personally felt guilty over this incident, Emil actually complimented her for a job well done.

Another formative moment was when she had been hired to kill a lord. The lord himself had died in an accident on the road while trying to flee from her, though his son survived. Deciding it was too dangerous to help the boy and risk exposing herself, she chose to leave him for dead.

While she was initially hesitant to make such hard calls, she quickly learned to steel herself and do whatever's needed to finish the job.

She continued to serve in the Crows for years, earning the respect of her House and the favor of Emil, becoming one of his most trusted assassins.

When Emil betrayed the other Talons and attempted to murder them all, Catarina Dellamorte sentenced all of House Kortez to death. Paola was among the lucky few that managed to escape the slaughter.

### Exile

Following her escape, Paola was forced to leave her beloved Antiva and flee to the Free Marches. There, she was being hounded by a group of Crows. Fortunately, the Crows hunting her stumbled upon another runaway Crow, Zevran Arainai. This provided Paola with an opportunity to strike at her hunters and finish them. Once they were dispatched, Zevran offered to put her in touch with people who could protect her from the Crows.

Zevran introduced her to Leliana, who offered to employ her services in exchange for intel on the Crows.

While Paola works with Leliana, she also takes on freelance work as an assassin.

## **Relationships**

Emil Kortez

Emil was the closest thing Paola had to a father figure. While she always knew that she was just as expendable to him as any other Crow, she still believed that he genuinely cared for her. He was the one who fostered her love and devotion to Antiva.

Andarateia Cantori

Paola disdained Andarateia due to her employing her beauty and charm to dealing with problems, which Paola viewed as an affront to the art of assassination. She also viewed Andarateia as incredibly naive when it came to the realities of life as a Crow.

## **Gallery**

* sample photo
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