Post by Toria Netari on May 5, 2019 3:12:23 GMT
Name: Toria Netari
Age: 29
Nationality: Illianer
Place of Birth: Illian
Place of Residence: Nowhere
Affiliation: None
Rank/Title: Former student of the Academy of the Rising Sun
Weapon Skills:
Martial: 2 | Hand-Held: 5 | Ranged: 6
Height: 5'2"
Weight: 107 lbs
Build/Complexion: Voluptuous/Olive
Eye/Hair Color: Green/Black
Distinguishing Features:
Short and slim, with black hair cut short around her shoulders, generally clad in a long coat and breeches, Toria Netari cultivates a boyish image sharply at odds with the rest of her features. Her eyes are a brilliant shade of green, wide and expressive and often hotly angry. Her lips are full but often drawn down into a frown or a scowl. She puts little care into her appearance yet maintains an allure, or she would if not so frequently and visibly angry.
Aside from the long coat and breeches, Toria wears a stylized cap, one of the few mementos from home. Her tops beneath the coat tend to be slightly more revealing, a remnant of her time on the road. The long coat has a number of pockets sewn into it, often containing a book or three, as well as odds and ends Toria occasionally has a use for. She carries a small crossbow of her own design along with bolts, occasionally visible peeking from beneath her coat.
Jaded and cynical, Toria Netari isn't one for making friends. She has a bitter, caustic tongue and a keen mind for insults, often able to see the weakest points in those unfortunate enough to draw her attention and as a result her ire. She does make an effort at staying silent and unobtrusive, but even in those moments she often seems sullen and condescending, Those few who stick with her in spite of it often see that the venom of her words is a front that rarely has her heart in it.
In truth, Toria's edges come from a life hard lived, She's quite brilliant but no longer trusts most people, using her behavior as a weapon to keep them away. The enforced solitude that she's cultivated is hardly healthy, but Toria believes herself far past the point of rehabilitation. Those few she keeps close can often see the somewhat fragile genius poking out from behind the facade; not that she'd ever admit it to them. She's driven by her ambitions; everything else has long since burnt away.
Spavil Netari tried his best. As the captain of a small trading vessel operating out of Illian with two young daughters and a deceased wife his best often wasn't enough. He owned his ship, and sometimes could a small place for his girls to stay awhile in Illian, but that was about all he could manage. The money was poor and he worried for his daughters' futures; what little extra he had went toward educating them.
Toria was the older sister, and even with their limited resources she quickly proved to have a quick grasp for any text they set in front of her. An older woman in Illian (their occasional tutor, when Spavil could afford it) was amazed by how quickly Toria learned from even the vaguest lessons. She filled the young girl's head with ideas of academia and invention, of a life beyond the docks of Illian and the rivers beyond.
Her sister Emara was another matter; she was slow to learn, but a hard worker. Pretty, but lacking her older sister's quickly blossoming beauty. Emara was always the dutiful daughter and a distant second best. Toria loved her dearly but always wanted more. Spavil's business, which continued to struggle as she grew into a woman, was not for her. Her father wished desperately otherwise and soon had her managing the business while he was captaining the vessel.
She resented every second of it and did the job about as well as anyone else would with that mindset: poorly. Spavil's business did even worse with her as its guide...and truthfully, Toria didn't care. She wasn't interested in managing the books for a struggling trader enterprise. So, on her 18th birthday, she left. Toria packed what few things she had and made her way to Cairhien as best she could. The Academy of the Rising Sun was one of the Westland's most famed schools, a hall of innovation founded by the Dragon Reborn himself.
Arriving in Cairhien was a culture shock. The Academy was like no place she'd ever seen. A whirlwind of study and invention, with people digging into the past, defining the future, and uncovering the secrets of the present. It was marvelous, though it took a great deal of effort for Toria to feel like she'd earned a place. Many of the students there were sponsored or had projects or mentors that warranted attention, and they often came from the nobility as well. Toria on the other hand simply wanted to learn and escape from the poverty that defined her youth. She spent several months in Cairhien before entering the Academy itself, training herself out of the Illianer accent and adopting the clipped tone of the Cairhienin. She studied everything and everything that caught her eye but soon fell in love with engineering in all its forms. Her pet project, the one that won her admittance to the Academy of the Rising Sun, was an attempt to improve on the steam engine. It had been invented at that same Academy during the era of the Dragon Reborn, but the costs and complications involved in its creation proved to make it impractical for wide use, especially with the spread of Traveling as a method of transportation. Toria, having examined several during her months in Cairhien, had theories on how to improve its efficiency. These theories proved very persuasive and earned her a spot in the Academy of the Rising Sun.
Being admitted to the Academy was the happiest moment of her life. It was also merely the start of further challenges. Toria had always been arrogant, and that attitude earned her numerous rivals and enemies; it did not ingratiate her with any faculty either. The brash Illianer didn't quite fit the mold of the Academy's students; she stood out, often in a negative way. Toria didn't care; she was doing what she loved, and assuming all went well she would earn the fortune of a lifetime for her studies. The stipend she earned for her work was already far above anything Spavil had ever brought home, and she took full advantage of every penny both for her work and for herself.
Her pet project advanced quickly; the cost and time of the steam engine shrank dramatically as Toria tried out alternative ideas. That gave her a fair amount of spare time, and she spent much of that poking around at other studies. History, weaponry, anything and everything that the Academy studied drew her attention at one point or another (often inciting the aggravation of whoever happened to be studying it at the time.) She gained a reputation for brash genius, often able to innovate on projects while simultaneously infuriating those who had spent their full attention on the project. Toria loved every minute.
She spent three impossibly short years in the Academy before her overconfidence bested her. Her improved steam engine was cheap and reliable, and Toria intended to prove it with a steam wagon that could cover ground cheaply and efficiently. It was a proof of concept that she hoped to expand into the naval trade as well; Toria's engine might not outdo Traveling, but the options for such an engine were plentiful. The wagon exploded mere seconds after the demonstration commenced, resulting in the deaths of several assistants. Toria adamantly claimed sabotage. The faculty, with no love for the trouble-making Illianer, ruled her negligent. Others whispered that she had been attempting to weaponize the engine in order to sidestep the Dragon Compact's ban on black powder. She was put out of the Academy penniless, even more destitute than when she'd arrived, and banned from any Academy in the Westlands.
The trip back to Illian was humiliating. Toria had never felt so defeated. She only had vague ideas of what her next step might be. Could she gain the funding to continue her project from her father? Perhaps, she reasoned, if she allowed him to use an engine for his own ship. That did not work out either. Their father had passed in her absence, leaving his business to Emara. Toria had never known, had never reached out at all. Her little sister, always second best, had thrived after taking up the reins. Netari Shipping, as it was now known, had its own small fleet of merchant vessels that carried goods from port to port along the Westlands and even the Borderlands.
Toria was laughed out of Emara's office when she reluctantly approached her sister for funding. Emara offered her sister a place in the company, but she had not forgotten how Toria had abandoned their family in its time of need.
She stayed in Illian two nights before leaving again. Her pride would not, could not accept this reversal of fortune; even though she hated herself for it, Emara's success was like a knife in Toria's back, and she would not go back to her old life. She could not. There had to be a path back to her life in the Academy, even if it wasn't in Cairhien. A life of scholarship, prestige, and wealth.
The next two years of her life carved bitterness into her soul. Toria was unable to find anyone to fund the engine; most cared little for the idea, and those who did care had heard of the incident at the Academy and wanted little to do for her. She wandered the Westlands a penniless wretch, forced to do desperate things to survive. Reduced to such a state was almost more than she could bear, but her pride would not allow surrender. She vowed to overcome everything in her path, to achieve the status she deserved, no matter what was required. Her descent into crime did not take particularly long.
She also turned out not to be a particularly good thief.
Toria's mind was sharp as ever, and she'd learned both stealth and how to take care of herself while on the road, but it turned out she lacked the charm and quick wits a thief needed if they were to be anything more than a common cutpurse. No matter how well designed the plan or the con something about her demeanor would give her away. If she ever wanted to escape the streets without returning in shame to Illian, she needed a partner.
Books read: All of them!
Age: 29
Nationality: Illianer
Place of Birth: Illian
Place of Residence: Nowhere
Affiliation: None
Rank/Title: Former student of the Academy of the Rising Sun
Weapon Skills:
Martial: 2 | Hand-Held: 5 | Ranged: 6
APPEARANCE
Height: 5'2"
Weight: 107 lbs
Build/Complexion: Voluptuous/Olive
Eye/Hair Color: Green/Black
Distinguishing Features:
- Slips into an Illianer accent when distressed
Short and slim, with black hair cut short around her shoulders, generally clad in a long coat and breeches, Toria Netari cultivates a boyish image sharply at odds with the rest of her features. Her eyes are a brilliant shade of green, wide and expressive and often hotly angry. Her lips are full but often drawn down into a frown or a scowl. She puts little care into her appearance yet maintains an allure, or she would if not so frequently and visibly angry.
Aside from the long coat and breeches, Toria wears a stylized cap, one of the few mementos from home. Her tops beneath the coat tend to be slightly more revealing, a remnant of her time on the road. The long coat has a number of pockets sewn into it, often containing a book or three, as well as odds and ends Toria occasionally has a use for. She carries a small crossbow of her own design along with bolts, occasionally visible peeking from beneath her coat.
PERSONALITY
Jaded and cynical, Toria Netari isn't one for making friends. She has a bitter, caustic tongue and a keen mind for insults, often able to see the weakest points in those unfortunate enough to draw her attention and as a result her ire. She does make an effort at staying silent and unobtrusive, but even in those moments she often seems sullen and condescending, Those few who stick with her in spite of it often see that the venom of her words is a front that rarely has her heart in it.
In truth, Toria's edges come from a life hard lived, She's quite brilliant but no longer trusts most people, using her behavior as a weapon to keep them away. The enforced solitude that she's cultivated is hardly healthy, but Toria believes herself far past the point of rehabilitation. Those few she keeps close can often see the somewhat fragile genius poking out from behind the facade; not that she'd ever admit it to them. She's driven by her ambitions; everything else has long since burnt away.
HISTORY
Spavil Netari tried his best. As the captain of a small trading vessel operating out of Illian with two young daughters and a deceased wife his best often wasn't enough. He owned his ship, and sometimes could a small place for his girls to stay awhile in Illian, but that was about all he could manage. The money was poor and he worried for his daughters' futures; what little extra he had went toward educating them.
Toria was the older sister, and even with their limited resources she quickly proved to have a quick grasp for any text they set in front of her. An older woman in Illian (their occasional tutor, when Spavil could afford it) was amazed by how quickly Toria learned from even the vaguest lessons. She filled the young girl's head with ideas of academia and invention, of a life beyond the docks of Illian and the rivers beyond.
Her sister Emara was another matter; she was slow to learn, but a hard worker. Pretty, but lacking her older sister's quickly blossoming beauty. Emara was always the dutiful daughter and a distant second best. Toria loved her dearly but always wanted more. Spavil's business, which continued to struggle as she grew into a woman, was not for her. Her father wished desperately otherwise and soon had her managing the business while he was captaining the vessel.
She resented every second of it and did the job about as well as anyone else would with that mindset: poorly. Spavil's business did even worse with her as its guide...and truthfully, Toria didn't care. She wasn't interested in managing the books for a struggling trader enterprise. So, on her 18th birthday, she left. Toria packed what few things she had and made her way to Cairhien as best she could. The Academy of the Rising Sun was one of the Westland's most famed schools, a hall of innovation founded by the Dragon Reborn himself.
Arriving in Cairhien was a culture shock. The Academy was like no place she'd ever seen. A whirlwind of study and invention, with people digging into the past, defining the future, and uncovering the secrets of the present. It was marvelous, though it took a great deal of effort for Toria to feel like she'd earned a place. Many of the students there were sponsored or had projects or mentors that warranted attention, and they often came from the nobility as well. Toria on the other hand simply wanted to learn and escape from the poverty that defined her youth. She spent several months in Cairhien before entering the Academy itself, training herself out of the Illianer accent and adopting the clipped tone of the Cairhienin. She studied everything and everything that caught her eye but soon fell in love with engineering in all its forms. Her pet project, the one that won her admittance to the Academy of the Rising Sun, was an attempt to improve on the steam engine. It had been invented at that same Academy during the era of the Dragon Reborn, but the costs and complications involved in its creation proved to make it impractical for wide use, especially with the spread of Traveling as a method of transportation. Toria, having examined several during her months in Cairhien, had theories on how to improve its efficiency. These theories proved very persuasive and earned her a spot in the Academy of the Rising Sun.
Being admitted to the Academy was the happiest moment of her life. It was also merely the start of further challenges. Toria had always been arrogant, and that attitude earned her numerous rivals and enemies; it did not ingratiate her with any faculty either. The brash Illianer didn't quite fit the mold of the Academy's students; she stood out, often in a negative way. Toria didn't care; she was doing what she loved, and assuming all went well she would earn the fortune of a lifetime for her studies. The stipend she earned for her work was already far above anything Spavil had ever brought home, and she took full advantage of every penny both for her work and for herself.
Her pet project advanced quickly; the cost and time of the steam engine shrank dramatically as Toria tried out alternative ideas. That gave her a fair amount of spare time, and she spent much of that poking around at other studies. History, weaponry, anything and everything that the Academy studied drew her attention at one point or another (often inciting the aggravation of whoever happened to be studying it at the time.) She gained a reputation for brash genius, often able to innovate on projects while simultaneously infuriating those who had spent their full attention on the project. Toria loved every minute.
She spent three impossibly short years in the Academy before her overconfidence bested her. Her improved steam engine was cheap and reliable, and Toria intended to prove it with a steam wagon that could cover ground cheaply and efficiently. It was a proof of concept that she hoped to expand into the naval trade as well; Toria's engine might not outdo Traveling, but the options for such an engine were plentiful. The wagon exploded mere seconds after the demonstration commenced, resulting in the deaths of several assistants. Toria adamantly claimed sabotage. The faculty, with no love for the trouble-making Illianer, ruled her negligent. Others whispered that she had been attempting to weaponize the engine in order to sidestep the Dragon Compact's ban on black powder. She was put out of the Academy penniless, even more destitute than when she'd arrived, and banned from any Academy in the Westlands.
The trip back to Illian was humiliating. Toria had never felt so defeated. She only had vague ideas of what her next step might be. Could she gain the funding to continue her project from her father? Perhaps, she reasoned, if she allowed him to use an engine for his own ship. That did not work out either. Their father had passed in her absence, leaving his business to Emara. Toria had never known, had never reached out at all. Her little sister, always second best, had thrived after taking up the reins. Netari Shipping, as it was now known, had its own small fleet of merchant vessels that carried goods from port to port along the Westlands and even the Borderlands.
Toria was laughed out of Emara's office when she reluctantly approached her sister for funding. Emara offered her sister a place in the company, but she had not forgotten how Toria had abandoned their family in its time of need.
She stayed in Illian two nights before leaving again. Her pride would not, could not accept this reversal of fortune; even though she hated herself for it, Emara's success was like a knife in Toria's back, and she would not go back to her old life. She could not. There had to be a path back to her life in the Academy, even if it wasn't in Cairhien. A life of scholarship, prestige, and wealth.
The next two years of her life carved bitterness into her soul. Toria was unable to find anyone to fund the engine; most cared little for the idea, and those who did care had heard of the incident at the Academy and wanted little to do for her. She wandered the Westlands a penniless wretch, forced to do desperate things to survive. Reduced to such a state was almost more than she could bear, but her pride would not allow surrender. She vowed to overcome everything in her path, to achieve the status she deserved, no matter what was required. Her descent into crime did not take particularly long.
She also turned out not to be a particularly good thief.
Toria's mind was sharp as ever, and she'd learned both stealth and how to take care of herself while on the road, but it turned out she lacked the charm and quick wits a thief needed if they were to be anything more than a common cutpurse. No matter how well designed the plan or the con something about her demeanor would give her away. If she ever wanted to escape the streets without returning in shame to Illian, she needed a partner.
The idea was galling but sound. Toria needed someone who could be what she could not. She found him in the person of Raife Davoe. Toria stumbled upon him by accident, a seemingly simple gleeman with a cheerful disposition, an overpowering sense of charm, and a razor-quick wit. She also caught him attempting to break into the same shop she was casing one night in Baerlon. There was potential there, and as much as Toria was loath to admit it she needed him. Their partnership began that night and has continued for the past five years, mostly without incident. Toria concocted their schemes and acted behind the scenes; Raife was the frontman and the face they needed. They came into more coin that first year than Toria had ever seen. And, somewhere along the way, things between them became physical. She wasn't certain how, exactly, nor did she care to put a name on it. They were partners, and he was the only one fool enough to put up with her embittered rage. And, together, they were going to get everything they were owed.
TIMELINE
??FA - Spavil Netari marries Altori Nevahn. He buys a trading vessel and begins to carry cargo based out of Illian.
85FA - Toria Netari is born to Spavil and Altori.
88FA - Emara Netari is born to Spavil and Altori. Altori dies during childbirth, leaving Spavil to raise the pair and handle his struggling shipping venture.
95FA - Toria's intellect is noted by Spavil, as well as an occasional tutor Spavil managed to hire. Spavil brings Toria in to teach her his business.
103FA - Toria, chafing under the mundane and boring enterprise Spavil ran, leaves Illian at the first opportunity. She travels to Cairhien and is able to enroll in the Academy of the Rising Sun, working on a more efficient steam engine.
104FA - Spavil Netari dies, leaving his business to Emara.
106FA - Toria's project fails in spectacular fashion, resulting in several deaths. Toria maintains it was sabotaged, but she is ruled negligent and expelled from the Academy.
107FA - Toria returns to Illian to find that Emara has turned Spavil's struggling ship into an entire enterprise, known as Netari Shipping. Emara refuses to offer Toria a loan to complete her project, instead offering her a job working at Netari Shipping. Toria's pride renders her unable to accept the offer, and she leaves Illian for good shortly thereafter.
109FA - Toria spends years on the road, forced into begging and worse in order to survive. Attempts to delve into criminal enterprise fail her; she is able to concoct cunning plans, but lacks the people skills necessary to pull them off. Then she meets Raife Davoe, a young gleeman wandering the Westlands who possessed a silver tongue and a similarly gray view of the law. The two partnered up and soon fell in love (though Toria vehemently denies that to anyone, particularly Raife.)
