Category Archives: Character Vignettes

Miscellaneous character history and stories for the Jade Regent campaign

Character: Qatana

From the Memories of Qatana Marchand: Hijinks

Starday, Sarenith 10, 4699 midnight
Sandpoint

“They’re gone,” Qatana whispered to Kali, ducking her head back below the top of the fence, “we need to move quickly.”

The two girls moved around to the stall door and pulled back the bolt and swung the door outward. They were greeted by the very large back side of a very large horse, its head hanging low in the far corner, its back bowed downward.

“Those bastards forgot to feed her again!” Qatana fumed, more loudly than was prudent.

“Hush,” Kali chided, “we’ll soon have her out.”

Qatana moved around to the front of the horse, which had still not reacted. Dispirited and ill from years of neglect and abuse, Qatana had first noticed the old nag some days earlier when the local junk dealers, the Flinch brothers, led their wagon loaded with some rusty hulk they had picked up away south, whipping and cursing at the obviously over taxed and tired horse to their yard.

Qatana’s first thought was to confront the men about their misuse of the animal, but experience had taught her that people could seldom be shamed into doing the right thing. And so instead she did the very next thing that came into her head: she told Kali.

“We can’t just take her,” Kali said a few days later as they went through options for rescuing the horse. “Legally the mare belongs to them, and if she were to go missing they would alert the guard and go looking for her. We need some way to make them be glad to be rid of her.”

It had taken the better part of that day and the next for Kali and Qatana to make a plan they thought might work. A few details seemed sketchy, but they were anxious to get started.

Qatana held out her hand, palm up, with a carrot sitting upon it. The horse’s ears moved forward as the beast sniffed first at Qatana and then at the carrot. They had both made the same trip to the junk yard each night for the past several days, offering the poor animal a treat. The first night was the worst. The horse just sat there and stared at their offering as if it weren’t real. Eventually she nibbled away at it. Now she was used to it, and eagerly crunched and munched the treat.

It was well past sunset and the back alley was dark, but the girls placed an old blanket over the horse before leading her out and toward the cemetery.

“Wait here with her while I fix up the stable,” Qatana whispered. Kali held the horse in the shadows beneath the old Cathedral for what seemed like forever, but only half an hour had actually passed before Qatana appeared. “The way is clear, let’s go.”

They passed through the northern gate and up the Lost Coast Road for about a mile before taking a path to the right. Another two miles and they came to the edge of a field. A pile of hay and bucket of water were waiting, and the horse eagerly tucked in while the girls waited.

Mists were forming about them, and the waning moon was just beginning to rise when a boy came out from the undergrowth. He scowled briefly at Qatana before taking Kali by the hand and talking quietly to her some distance off.

They came back and the boy took the lead rope and led the horse away without a word.

“And you trust him?” Qatana asked skeptically. “Oh, yes! Kali replied.

The next morning Uriah Flinch was rudely awakened by his brother. “Uriah, she done changed her skin. I don’t rightly now what she really was, but she’s gone and slithered on out!”

“Ezekial, pa was right, you are one stupid cuss.” But a few minutes later and Uriah was singing a different tune. “Holy shiite, what on earth was it? You dumb son o’bitch bought us somethin’ that weren’t no horse!”

In the middle of the stall was what looked like an enormous cocoon, still sticky and with one end burst open. Tracks that appeared to have been made by a half goat, half giant snake slithered through the dirt, past the broken stall door and out down the alley, toward the sea.

 

Character: Kali

From the Life of Kali Nassim: Old Flame

Sarenith 20, 4712 (Risa’s Place, Sandpoint, Late Afternoon)

“Do your parents still hate me?”

Kali gave Alexis a half smile and replied, “Do yours still hate me?”

His smirk turned into a huge grin. He picked up his cider and took a long draught from it, not taking his eyes off of hers.

“They didn’t hate you, you know,” Kali said. “Dad wasn’t happy, of course, but it wasn’t personal like that. Even less so for mom.” Kali paused briefly and smiled. “And you know what she’s like. As soon as others started making it their business, she almost became supportive.”

Alexis chuckled softly, took another drink, and said, “Wish I could say the same. Being half-Chelish really just made it worse.”

“I am surprised they even let me in the house.”

He shrugged his shoulders and cocked his head to the left. Kali was familiar with that gesture: he didn’t care what they thought. He probably still doesn’t, she thought.

He said, “It’s OK. You can say what you’re thinking.”

“What am I thinking?”

“‘The feeling is mutual.’ I know you don’t like them, either.”

“I wasn’t thinking that.”

“OK. But tell me I’m wrong about that last part.”

Kali grinned, then finished her drink without saying a word.

“Thought so,” he said smugly, and then grinned right back at her. “I’m used to it, you know. Comes with the name.”

“You’re the black sheep of the family. Or would that be the white sheep?”

Alexis snickered at that. “Maybe grey. I’m running one of the mills, remember.”

“Light grey. Send my best to Sefa, just in case I don’t see her while I’m here. And tell her ‘congratulations’ for me, too.”

“You should drop by the manor.”

“You’re hilarious.”

“We do have a private wing. One of the few good things that came out of the fire.”

“Oh, good! Then all we have to do is smuggle me inside, and back out afterwards.”

Alexis grinned as they stood up from the table. Kali pushed her chair in and then gave him a quick hug.

“Thanks for doing this, Alexis. It was good to see you again.”

“Same here. Tell your parents I said ‘hello’.”

Kali laughed at that. “Uh huh. Only if you do the same.”

Alexis gave her another huge grin and said, “You know what? I think I will.”

 

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