Lady Elsa Shepherd
Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind.
Description: Elsa is a handsome woman, filled with a warmth and vibrancy that lends her a youthful air. A love of the outdoors has enhanced her complexion, granting her a tawny golden tan and a light smattering of freckles across the bridge of her nose. A crop of thick dark hair tinged with the faintest hints of dark auburn cascades in loose waves and curls to just below her shoulders. Eyes with a vaguely catlike slant to them are a vibrant forest green dappled with flecks of gold and ringed by the same, making them seem to almost glow in certain lights. Her figure is compact, athletic, and lithely muscled; a woman far more suited to the wilds, though she wears the silks of her station well and without complaint.
Personality: A wild heart beats hard beneath the layers of charm, civility, and etiquette. Elsa commands a room when she enters it, that intricately woven blend of rapacious ferocity and captivating charisma allowing her to move effortlessly through noble society. Decades spent slipping back and forth between two worlds have honed her instincts and taste to a razor's edge.
Background: Elsa began life as a Laurent, a cousin to the Duke, but far enough removed from the line of succession that she could largely do as she please. Provided she attended to her lessons as any proper Oathlands lady should, of course. Which gave her free reign to ride her horse across the fields of Artshall and plan hunting trips to the woods around Acorn Hill and what is now Duskshire. Her youth was very nearly idyllic, so far as Elsa was concerned. It was a shame adulthood had to go and ruin it. Her father arranged a match for her with a perfectly pleasant, if bland, young man from the Shepherd duchy... in the Crownlands. While she really had no interest in marriage or in leaving her home, she would never in a millenia dare to go against her responsibilities as a noblewoman.
Her adult life was largely filled with gatherings, parties, the duties of a wife and soon enough, a mother. But she never quite lost that love of the wilds, of a fast horse or a good hound, of a falcon sent skyward. She merely shifted her focus, turning towards the breeding and training of the Shepherd duchy's stock. As her children grew, so did her freedom and Elsa found herself once more able to slip away to ride and hunt. The woods were farther away this time, limiting her trips to once or twice a year. But it was during one of those that her husband, having come along, suffered a fatal accident. A sudden attack by a wild boar left their horses startled. Elsa's mastery of her mount allowed her to retain her seat, but her husband fell from his stallion as the fierce beast reared and stomped at the boar, snapping his neck instantly.
After the funeral, Elsa and her children stayed close to home, and while she helped to train the Shepherd troops in how to handle their mounts in battle, she never went into battle herself. The Silent Wars largely passed her by, though after, she did decide to bring her children to Arx to help round out their education, and bring herself closer towards the Gray Woods and the Lodge of Petrichor just outside the city. When the Gyre War came around, once again, Elsa helped to train Shepherd troops, but stayed home and ran fundraisers to help cover costs. When the Lodge was attacked, Elsa finally said enough was enough and joined the ranks of the archers helping to defend the Lodge. She took some hits, garnered a few scars, but came out the other side still breathing.
| Name | Summary |
| Alrec | I suppose it takes a certain kind of person to make a good archer. Maybe thats being careful. |
| Venturo | A sharp tongue, but one that is shrouded in the silks of manners. Engaging in conversation, attentive in listening, and prepared to share as much in return. |