Being the only progeny of one of the city’s richest families meant Red had a very easy life early on. If she had been born a son, her most pressing concerns would have been finding a wife and not frittering away the family fortune. It was not the case though, and her father doted on her magnificently. Everything she wanted was provided, every whim acceded to, no matter the cost. When she expressed an interest in her family’s business, her father Gregor, was more than happy to take her under his wing. She was invited to all the best parties, and paraded around like a prize heifer to all. Lellandra was not happy being treated like this, and pushed more and more to learn of what her father did.
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As in all things, Gregor gave in to her will, and began teaching her about imports and exports, hoping that she would soon grow bored and move onto other things, as she had done after spending a summer determined to learn how to use a warbow. He was partly correct, but not in the way he had hoped. She grew bored with figures and mules, and started to wonder how her father made as much money as he clearly did from such ventures, when the profit margin was low, and the risk factor high. She began asking the wrong kinds of questions, and angered Gregor with her curiosity. The the right questions started; finding out just who her father dealt with, and how the profit on his illegal activities could be increased.
By this point she was in too deep and Gregor saw no other option but to bring her fully into his business dealings. For two years, she was happy with her life, enjoying the thrill of it all, without ever thinking about who the family was hurting to make its money. She started coming up with schemes of her own, and Gregor encouraged this; her freshness meant paths to riches that he had blinkered himself to through years of treading the same path. On more than one occasion, she joined in on overland trips to ensure no problems prevented coin from finding its way into the Vespera coffers. Until of course, it did go wrong.
She knew how important this was, and how much money it would make. More than that though, just how many enemies her father would make if he failed to deliver what he had already taken payment for. She wasn’t ready though. Her warbow was barely a help, and her lack of experience in leading men meant that the guards scattered as soon as they knew what was going on. Lellandra had no choice but to do the same, or die. She fled her city and became “Red”, took a job with a conjurer that was set to travel the continent. Her father wouldn’t think to search for her in the company of a Wizard, but she hoped he thought of her as dead in the ashes of his caravan. Although she was his beloved daughter, in matters of business, he was ruthless beyond measure.
She had seen the anger in him, and heard tales of business dealings gone sour, and his former partners’ bodies being found after unimaginable horror was visited upon their physical form. She was far from sure he would not do the same with her for letting him down, and so chose not to risk encountering him. IN her time away from her home, she devoted many hours of practice to the warbow, hoping to never again be let down in a fight because of her confidence outweighing her experience. She Also picked up a thing or two about magic, and wields what she calls the “Heart’s Fire” to a deadly degree. She has yet to learn total control however, and risks herself – both mind and body – whenever she uses her gift. The more destructive force she unleashes, the greater her chance of harm.
Only two years ago she moved back to the city, but kept away from the high born and business districts. Gravitating instead towards the waterfront docks and taverns, it didn’t take her long to fall in with the Shadow cartels. She has the criminal credentials to lead a crew of her own, but prefers to stay working with others, in the hope that this will keep her away from her Father’s attention. So far it has worked, but who knows what fall out to expect if the two should ever cross paths again.
Using Red in your game.
- Like the last few, she is a part of the Lucius crew. The closest in fact to a second in command, as she has a lot more experience than most, and being born to the city, knows how it works.
- It is possible for player characters to be hired by either Red or her father to pull off a job, and the conflict of interests could easily spark a plot line all of its own.
- And of course, they could just be hired by the father with the express mission of hunting down his daughter after rumours start to fly about her return to the city. This would bring the players either against a formidable enemy in the shape of Red, and even more so in the form of the crew, and the Cartel as a whole.
shortymonster
Hello there, learned reader. My name is not shortymonster, but since we will soon become firm friends, feel free to call me Shorty. I am a well versed and well traveled gentleman gamer, with no particular favourites in regard to system or setting, playing or GMing. You can also find me at my personal RPG blog.