“I wonder what it’s like. A world where I don’t have to worry about death at every corner.”

Althee is a young Tiefling that resided for most of her 12-year-old life in Matthew’s territory, with her strange, kooky, Dragonborn mentor, Victor. While she loved the old man, she had to wonder: why did he chance upon picking her up?

Althee’s current existence is an anomaly in and of itself. Being found within several bundles of cloth abandoned in an old vehicle in a parking lot surrounded by Delivered, she figured that Victor was insane to have picked up a baby in such an area while looking for scraps. What if she had contracted the disease? She was vulnerable, with no parents to be seen, nor a guardian to be found anywhere.

Objectively speaking, she should have died ages upon ages ago. Even she knows that much.

But here she was, years later. Victor was a gun-maker, and scavenger. Many of his wares are made of left-over parts, and he was a valuable asset to any others looking to traverse the harrowing, undead-infested environment of Permundi. He often kept Althee at home in her formative years, letting her get acquainted with technology, weaponry, as well as books from a time long, long past. He also allowed her to interact with the many casters in the apartment complex, and her innate curiosity led her to a love for studying and figuring out how things worked, eventually culminating in her being interested in guns as well. (And perhaps Victor’s eccentricity led him to think that it would be funny to give a child a weapon.)

Growing up in Matthew’s territory and under the guidance of Victor, it was only natural that Althee would take to marrying the mysteries of the arcane with the ability to blow shit up with a a big fucking gun. She was taught spells by the several wizards and scholars residing in the apartment complex, while Victor taught her how to point and shoot a rifle at the age of 8, modifying a rifle for her to use. Her studies and genuine curiosity lead her to progress at a frightening rate, and the next thing she knew, she was infusing her shots with all sorts of magic to help combat the Delivered.

It wasn’t long until people heard of her talent, and eventually, Althee joined scouting parties that surveyed the area. Perhaps it was the fragility of her young mind, but experiencing the horrors of the true nature of Permundi’s state took a toll on her mental state. All the death, pain, and difficult choices may have been too much for her to bear, to the point that after her first expedition gone wrong, she refused to go out of her room-- much to Victor’s worry.

After a good talking to and support with Victor, she referred to the books she once read that detailed a time of peace. A time before the Delivered became a common occurrence. A time where children like her didn’t have to grow up knowing how to hold a gun.

And then, her idealistic self wondered:

“Would a world like that be possible?”

She certainly wanted to see it for herself.

From then on, Althee decided that she would strive to assist in the creation of that world. Even if she had to pick up an automatic rifle and risk her life to do it.

Cloistered Scholar Library Access

As a child, you were inquisitive when your playmates were possessive or raucous. In your formative years, you found your way to one of Faerûn’s great institutes of learning , where you were apprenticed and taught that knowledge is a more valuable treasure than gold or gems. Now you are ready to leave your home- not to abandon it, but to quest for new lore to add to its storehouse of knowledge. The most well known of Faerûn’s fonts of knowledge is Candlekeep. The great library is always in need of workers and attendants, some of whom rise through the ranks to assume roles of greater responsibility and prominence. You might be one of Candlekeep’s own, dedicated to the curatorship of what is likely the most complete body of lore and history in all the world. Perhaps instead you were taken in by the scholars of the Vault of the Sages or the Map House in Silverymoon, and now you have struck out to increase your knowledge and to make yourself available to help those in other places who seek your expertise. You might be one of the few who aid Herald’s Holdfast, helping to catalogue and maintain records of the information that arrives daily from across Faerûn.

Though others must often endure extensive interviews and significant fees to gain access to even the most common archives in your library, you have free and easy access to the majority of the library, though it might also have repositories of lore that are too valuable, magical, or secret to permit anyone immediate access. You have a working knowledge of your cloister's personnel and bureaucracy, and you know how to navigate those connections with some ease.

Additionally, you are likely to gain preferential treatment at other libraries across the Realms, as professional courtesy shown to a fellow scholar.