Ambika Shanti Phairot
Aug 10, 2024 9:03:34 GMT -5
Post by Ambika Shanti Phairot on Aug 10, 2024 9:03:34 GMT -5
Ambika Shanti Phairot
Gender: Female
Age: 62
Race: Human
Nationality: Zeinav Desert
Appearance:
Her hair is predominantly greys and whites, the left side covering the left of her face and kept in place through a clip at the back while the right side is tied into a side bun with spare hair drooping down her right shoulder. She has slanted eyes and a wrinkled face and both eyes are functional. Her wardrobe consists of mostly blacks and muted colours, and she prefers to wear practical clothing that cover her while also not limiting movement much. She has an upright posture and her footwork is generally silent, lending an unsettling air about her.
Personality:
Her life experiences have left her cynical and world-weary, preferring to keep her words short and to-the-point. While she tries to play up the image of a kind grandmother for when she reunites with her son, it tends to not come out the way she hopes it does.
As she is in her twilight years, she is highly purpose-driven and spares little time for leisure. While she does have the capacity to enjoy the little moments and create anecdotes, it is mainly so that she has something to share with her family rather than for her own sake. That said, she is aware on a subconscious level that she has no close family left and can end up taking her time out to help others.
History:
A former rogue adventurer who had retired to start a family 35 years ago, her family life came crashing down when her residence was besieged by mysterious attackers one fateful night 2 years ago, killing everyone in her immediate family except her and her son, Kishan Raj, who had left the household 9 years prior. She has been looking for her son as a travelling bard ever since, and keeping a close ear on any possible clues about the identities of her family's murderers. There's just one problem - her son had already passed away and she's repressed that fact.
She's had her fair share in dirty deeds throughout her adventurer days. She speculates that one of these jobs might be what sealed her family's fate. The only question is, which one?
She's had her fair share in dirty deeds throughout her adventurer days. She speculates that one of these jobs might be what sealed her family's fate. The only question is, which one?
Early history
Born in the harsh confines of Zeinav Desert, her family lived in a communal town where the ways of thievery were quickly taught to all children at a young age, on both the taking and receiving ends to help them prepare for the harsh ways of the world. "Do not carry what you are not prepared to lose," was the motto of the town, though there was also an unspoken rule on either making sure you keep your stolen spoils intact, or be ready to compensate should its owner come knocking. Music and dance were another important part of their lives as well, and everyone was expected to be able to perform a minimum of 2~3 tunes and dances in front of all other townsfolk. Morality was a luxury in the face of survival here.
She eventually left her hometown, believing the outside world would be kinder than that hive of thievery. She was swiftly proven wrong and her first kill came as an accident, done in self-defense to prevent herself from being defiled. Soon after, she ended up in a thieves' guild, finding eerie comfort in the ways she had once wished to escape from. Thievery soon escalated into assassinations as the thieves' guild found her repertoire of skills useful, as though she was born for it.
Learning love
Ambika's assassin life would go up in literal flames when a coordinated raid struck the Gilded Delphinium, leaving few survivors aside from herself. Incensed, she sought revenge by ingratiating herself into the commanding noble's circle as a squire - this was how she met the future love of her life, Florentio Elias Haysinthe. She had believed her target a fool, but Florentio saw her for who she was - a deeply scarred woman who stopped wishing better because she was blind to it. So Florentio showed her better, treating her as her own person rather than approximations wrought about by her other labels. It led to much anguish on Ambika's part, but she was unwilling to let go until the day he had taken a hit that she engineered together with other remaining survivors of the Gilded Delphinium. The hatred revealing itself as love, she murdered her former guildmates in unmitigated fury, then Florentio revealed he knew who she was the entire time while pretending otherwise and that he was perfectly fine, having prepared in advance, which led to Ambika actually stabbing him and so she had to get him treated. It was pretty much official from that point on.
Not long after, Florentio began to see signs of him being set up as the fall guy due to familial infighting, and seeing that it was imminent, decided that he might as well go down in a blaze, extracting a sizable amount of wealth from his fellow relatives and pulling every favour he could to get away with just being disowned and excommunicated from the Temple of the Sun. He, Ambika and a few of his loyal retainers then travelled around the world as adventurers and fun times were had.
Not long after, Florentio began to see signs of him being set up as the fall guy due to familial infighting, and seeing that it was imminent, decided that he might as well go down in a blaze, extracting a sizable amount of wealth from his fellow relatives and pulling every favour he could to get away with just being disowned and excommunicated from the Temple of the Sun. He, Ambika and a few of his loyal retainers then travelled around the world as adventurers and fun times were had.
Eventually, one of his retainers suffered a fatal curse and was due to pass shortly. Their final request was to see Florentio and Ambika officially tie the knot, and a simple marriage was had just between the party members, with Florentio taking up Ambika's surname. Ambika had her own reservations surrounding the matter since she had mixed thoughts about her family, but ultimately conceded when he pointed out it was relevant to his safety.
Starting a family
Following the retainer's passing, the remaining members decided that perhaps it was time to part ways and pursue their own desires. The two originally wanted to live by the countryside, but it quickly became obvious that the farmstead life was not for them, and Ambika adamantly refused to return to her hometown. That left Sol City as the only choice. Luckily, the eponymous capitol was an extraordinarily large place, and since Ambika was never one to be in the limelight, they managed to secure a house under the Phairot name.
Not long after, Ambika would bring their firstborn into Charon - Kishan. Kishan has always been an oddball since birth - he rarely cried compared to his future younger siblings, generally opting to try to get what he wants without regard of his own safety and causing unholy amounts of stress for his parents in the process. Kishan was also a very curious child with a horrible tendency to wander off if left to his own devices, enough that the couple decided that being a travelling family might be a better idea than being cooped up at one single spot. It did work in making sure that one of them always had their eyes on Kishan, which made him all in all pretty happy. For his part, he didn't understand why his parents were so worried whenever he was injured or felt unwell - as far as he knew, his parents were the most powerful people around and they could achieve almost anything, and he thought he knew his limits. It would take the birth of Semaini for him to really comprehend why.
They also happened to find a injured baby horse in their travels when Kishan was 1, whom Florentio would christen with the name Levania.
Semaini arrived on Charon when Kishan was 4. Semaini's was a difficult birth as she swiftly fell ill with an illness, and it was through seeing her fragility that it finally clicked in Kishan's mind that this was probably how his parents saw him when he was injured. He certainly didn't like seeing Semaini struggling to breathe the way she did, or how his parents seemed so powerless in the face of the illness. From that point on he was much more mindful of the way he carried himself, and swore to keep his family safe. Semaini eventually had a full recovery, and would grow up to be feistiest sibling among the three, relishing all the freedom she had amidst her family's travels and constantly competing with her brother over even the most trivial of matters. Kishan found Semaini's attempts amusing and would regularly entertain her, with one of his favourite ways to play being to let her win first, then slowly squeezing out wins in subsequent rounds. Everyone thought the days as a travelling family would last forever, or at least a long while. These dream-like days would vanish into thin air as an unforeseen consequence to Cordelia's birth.
Cordelia was born with Kishan at 8, and Semaini at 4 years old. It quickly became clear that Cordelia was unlike the other two siblings - she was born with the Wasting Disease, which meant that she had to have a steady supply of food unlike everyone else to stay alive, and that meant the family could no longer travel as they used to. Ambika was devastated to learn she'd brought a child to suffer the winds of the world with a predetermined disadvantage, and both parents agreed that Cordelia would be their last. The family would return and permanently reside in their home at Sol City from then on. Kishan accepted the change quite readily, understanding that it was a sacrifice that needed to be made for his sister's well-being. Semaini, on the other hand, deeply resented Cordelia for stealing her freedom and would take any opportunity she could to make the latter's life just a little harder out of spite.
Not long after, Ambika would bring their firstborn into Charon - Kishan. Kishan has always been an oddball since birth - he rarely cried compared to his future younger siblings, generally opting to try to get what he wants without regard of his own safety and causing unholy amounts of stress for his parents in the process. Kishan was also a very curious child with a horrible tendency to wander off if left to his own devices, enough that the couple decided that being a travelling family might be a better idea than being cooped up at one single spot. It did work in making sure that one of them always had their eyes on Kishan, which made him all in all pretty happy. For his part, he didn't understand why his parents were so worried whenever he was injured or felt unwell - as far as he knew, his parents were the most powerful people around and they could achieve almost anything, and he thought he knew his limits. It would take the birth of Semaini for him to really comprehend why.
They also happened to find a injured baby horse in their travels when Kishan was 1, whom Florentio would christen with the name Levania.
Semaini arrived on Charon when Kishan was 4. Semaini's was a difficult birth as she swiftly fell ill with an illness, and it was through seeing her fragility that it finally clicked in Kishan's mind that this was probably how his parents saw him when he was injured. He certainly didn't like seeing Semaini struggling to breathe the way she did, or how his parents seemed so powerless in the face of the illness. From that point on he was much more mindful of the way he carried himself, and swore to keep his family safe. Semaini eventually had a full recovery, and would grow up to be feistiest sibling among the three, relishing all the freedom she had amidst her family's travels and constantly competing with her brother over even the most trivial of matters. Kishan found Semaini's attempts amusing and would regularly entertain her, with one of his favourite ways to play being to let her win first, then slowly squeezing out wins in subsequent rounds. Everyone thought the days as a travelling family would last forever, or at least a long while. These dream-like days would vanish into thin air as an unforeseen consequence to Cordelia's birth.
Cordelia was born with Kishan at 8, and Semaini at 4 years old. It quickly became clear that Cordelia was unlike the other two siblings - she was born with the Wasting Disease, which meant that she had to have a steady supply of food unlike everyone else to stay alive, and that meant the family could no longer travel as they used to. Ambika was devastated to learn she'd brought a child to suffer the winds of the world with a predetermined disadvantage, and both parents agreed that Cordelia would be their last. The family would return and permanently reside in their home at Sol City from then on. Kishan accepted the change quite readily, understanding that it was a sacrifice that needed to be made for his sister's well-being. Semaini, on the other hand, deeply resented Cordelia for stealing her freedom and would take any opportunity she could to make the latter's life just a little harder out of spite.
Family life
(content warning: attempted suicide, depression)
The Fracture
(content warning: attempted suicide, depression)
Needless to say, Cordelia was much more attached to Kishan who was very protective of her, which further enraged Semaini since it felt like everyone was bending over backwards for Cordelia and it was so horribly unfair. The two's relationship would remain strained and one day reach a tipping point whereby Semaini, having had enough of Cordelia due to her presence limiting the choices of food they could have in family outings, locked Cordelia in her own room and unloaded all her rage at her younger sister, even accusing her of feigning illness for her family's attention amidst her diatribe. So imagine her surprise when Cordelia instead apologized for even existing.
Semaini and Cordelia's relationship has improved since, but Semaini still felt stifled living in a grounded household, so ultimately, with the blessings of her family, she would leave to travel around the world on her own at the age of 16.
Meanwhile, Kishan has been steadily improving his skills year by year, though he has no real friends around his age to speak of. Not that he cared, since older people were more likely to yield the wisdom he desired anyway, though his parents were worried that his single-minded focus on his family would bring him misery later down the line.
"I'm sorry, Mai. It would be better if I wasn't around, wouldn't it? Then mum and dad could be travelling with you and Kish. Kish wouldn't have to watch over me so often, even if he never has any complaint about it. And Mai, you'd be free to spread your wings. I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I'll go now."
Semaini frantically unlocked the door to find Cordelia holding a knife to her neck and forcibly wrested it out of her hands. The two then broke down into tears while hugging one another. Semaini and Cordelia's relationship has improved since, but Semaini still felt stifled living in a grounded household, so ultimately, with the blessings of her family, she would leave to travel around the world on her own at the age of 16.
Meanwhile, Kishan has been steadily improving his skills year by year, though he has no real friends around his age to speak of. Not that he cared, since older people were more likely to yield the wisdom he desired anyway, though his parents were worried that his single-minded focus on his family would bring him misery later down the line.
The Fracture
Despite Semaini's departure into the wider world, there had been hope yet that the family could reunite once more some day. Those hopes would be summarily dashed when just one year later, Kishan finally chanced upon victory against both parents in a 2-versus-1 match, and he would leave without even a word the very next day alongside Levania.
The rest of the years would be no less kind to the Phairots as Cordelia's condition worsened year after year and the time she could be physically active in a day gradually reduced, that by the year of her death, she was largely bedbound. Semaini did return every now and then to share tales and enjoy some family time, but Kishan never showed himself again, leaving the family with only trust in that his hypercompetence would ensure his survival.
The rest of the years would be no less kind to the Phairots as Cordelia's condition worsened year after year and the time she could be physically active in a day gradually reduced, that by the year of her death, she was largely bedbound. Semaini did return every now and then to share tales and enjoy some family time, but Kishan never showed himself again, leaving the family with only trust in that his hypercompetence would ensure his survival.
The Truth
What Ambika is trying to find out.
What Ambika is trying to find out.
Important NPCs:-
Kishan Raj Phairot - Her eldest son. He's dead, and Ambika is subconsciously aware of it. Though recent events might suggest an entirely different story.
Kishan Raj Phairot - Her eldest son. He's dead, and Ambika is subconsciously aware of it. Though recent events might suggest an entirely different story.
Other NPCs:
Laertes - One of Florentio's former retainers, and personal friend to the family.
Laertes - One of Florentio's former retainers, and personal friend to the family.
protect him at all cost. (can’t use discord anymore so making use of this here)
