Tiercel

Tiercel

Tiercel
Biography
Name	Tiercel Sayer (codename)
Age	~4000 years
Physical Description
Frametype	Non-Seeker Aerial
Gender	Female
Eye color	Red
Frame color	Dark grey with purple biolights
Personal Information
Family	Sire: Tarn Carrier: Shuttlemech femme
Enemies	//INSERT HERE INFO//
Occupation	Autobot Special Operations
Titles	Agent
Character Data
Character Sheets
References	Family Tree

Biography

Youth

The dragonet that would be Kuralnaii was born to the dragons Kulakash and Karkasta on 14th Insr in the year 2376, at the tail end of the Godsfall Wars. Kulakash, a red dragon known as the Coiled Smoke, and Karkasta, a silver dragon known as the Black Frost were a mated pair, siblings from separate clutches, who had born together three other nests; Kuralnaii's would be their fourth and last, as they perished less than ten years after her hatching in one of the last battles of the Godsfall Wars. She was one of sixteen eggs, seven of whom survived until hatching, and three of whom survived until their naming; of them, only one other survives, the red dragon Karuuth.

The dragonet that would be Kuralnaii was twenty-seven years old when it felt the call to name itself. It flew to the naming-stone, ascended, and in fourteen hours of song was named Kuralnaii. It was 387y when it chose to be female, and took as a first mate the bronze dragon Nyarthat. Together they bore a nest of seven eggs, three of whom survived until hatching, and none of whom survived until their naming, and a second nest of eleven, all of whom survived until hatching, and ten of whom survived until their naming. Three dragons from that second nest survive; the bronze Narthax, the bronze Kortanth, and the gold Kynura.

Kuralnaii parted from Nyarthat after that, and spent several decades studying magic under her grandsire, Kurojr. She then left to continue her training under the guise of a human named "Medea" at the newly-formed Red Hunt Aerie above the planar rift, although her true nature was known to the other mages there. She was 988y when she was nominated for the title of Archmage, and 1026y when it was granted to her.

Now an Archmage, Kuralnaii took to travelling the sixteen planes as a wanderer, meeting many of the First Races as she did. On the plane Celcenar, she met the archdevil Jovanhar, and bore with him three half-dragon tieflings, the mortal heroes Orsol, Gwar, and Ithl Kural, who she acknowledged. She also sired upon the demoness Cywn a bastard, the tiefling Orax Cywn.

As the Mortal Wars broke out, curiosity drove her to return to the Prime Material, where she would spend almost all of the war years.

The Mortal Wars

At the outset of the Mortal Wars, few dragons believed that they would be more than a few years of conflict - indeed, few members of the other mortal races viewed them as anything more than a handful of resource squabbles, soon to be resolved. Kuralnaii spent many of these early years travelling among humanoid settlements, using her experience with the Red Hunt to disguise herself as a wandering scholar. Her travels are almost completely unremarked upon in historical records - outside of her own recollection, the only evidence of her presence for much of these early days is the occasional notes in period journals remarking on a traveller passing through town, or military records noting a woman's visit to camp.

As the Wars spread and grew heated, it became less safe to travel, and communities grew less welcoming of outsiders. Kuralnaii withdrew from humanoid civilizations, resuming her draconic form and spending more of her time among other dragons for the first time in almost seven hundred years. She spent the years 3702-3984 almost exclusively within draconic civilization, carving a territory for herself on the eastern coast of modern-day Kuurs, and taking two mates, the blue dragon Xaithas, and the bronze dragon Lothannyl. She bore with Xaithas a nest of three eggs, all of whom hatched and survived until their naming, and two of whom survive, the blue dragon Xarojr and the red dragon Xalukash; she bore with Lothannyl a nest of seven eggs, none of whom survived until hatching, and slew him afterwards.

As the Mortal Wars dragged on, Kuralnaii returned to the Red Hunt's Aerie, and took a position there as companion to the human sorceress Rhys. The pair spent one hundred and forty-six years conducting an exploration of Gnomic ruins before Rhys' advancing age forced their return to the Aerie, and Rhys' retirement from active work on the Hunt's behalf. Rhys spent her remaining years teaching students artifice, with Kuralnaii assisting her in human form until her death. 

After Rhys' death, Kuralnaii secluded herself for almost a century, wandering the wildest parts of the world without contact with any sentient being. Many assumed her dead until her return in the earliest days of the Children's War.

The Children's War

Kuralnaii had spent the last several years in southern Kuurs, making her lair in an ancient gnomic temple where she and Rhys had studied in the early days of their collaboration, and occasionally travelling, disguised, to the surrounding towns for news. As the Children's Army began to rally in the north, she began to hear rumors about the charismatic new generals who were trying to gather enough soldiers to end the Mortal Wars. Intrigued, she took on a new human persona, one that would become Naii Tell, and made the journey north. There she eventually met several soldiers, including a young Liir, who would be her companions and friends for most of the war.

Soon after, she was introduced to General Arram. The General, being in truth the Avatar of the Kirin, recognized her at once as a dragon, and Naii recognized her in turn. Arram was quick to take her new ally into her confidence, and Naii was made a commander soon after, with Liir being placed as her second-in command. She set to collecting and organizing the handfuls of young spellcasters who had sought out the Children's Army, training them as best she could from the front lines, and within a few short years she and her unit were an indispensable part of the Children's Army as the war ground to a stall. 

During the slow years, Naii continued to train the mages under her. They would become the backbone of what would be the Mage's Guard post-war. It was during this period that she met a drow woman named Naviir, the leader of a small tribe of drow exiled from their homeland by human and dwarven invaders. 

At last, Naii came up with a daring plan: to claim the fortress of Cargath's Rock. It was a valuable strategic location, central to the continents and placed ideally at the middle of what was then called Cargath's Strait - a narrow water route between the North and South Continents. She rallied her Mage's Guard, and convinced Naviir and her tribe to support her in the invasion, promising in return that the ancient catacombs beneath the city would be ceded to drow control. During the battle that followed, Naii's mages disarmed the island fortress' defenses and shelled the island, their fireballs setting the salt-dried timbers of the fortifications alight. When the battle was over, the fortress was gone, destroyed by the raging fires - even the stones cracked and blackened by heat - but the island remained, and beneath it the catacombs.

Taking control of the island, Naii and her mages set to rebuilding, using their dominance over such a major trade route to commandeer shipments of stone, wood, and iron bound for enemy forces. Within months, a bridge was built, tying the island to the Northern Continent and allowing other units of the Children's Army to join the construction efforts, making the island a linchpin for their forces as the war ground on.

Postwar

As the Children's War drew to a close, Cargath's Rock was one of many fortifications held by the Children's Army. Well-located, it had tremendous potential as a hub for trade and commerce; unlike Tenebraith Citadel and Sagen Hoch, it was not a singular fortress but a city-sized island. As units were stood down, General Arram awarded the island jointly to both Naii and Liir; now Lady Naii and Lord Liir. The two kept those of their units who were willing to remain beside them and set to reconstructing the island as a city. Renaming it Tell's Howe by general agreement, they began their efforts by constructing a barracks and library for the soldiers and mages who remained, building outward from there.

As the city slowly resettled, Naii took a personal hand in constructing the wards, taking advantage of the totality of the destruction to work out an elegant house-to-house system for the city to be run under. Every aspect of the new design was viewed from the perspective of a dragoness defending her lair - wards set far out in the harbor to detect magical artifacts, a tracking system for powerful spellcasters in the city, firewards to prevent another caster from destroying it as she had. As Liir handled the rebuilding, she reached out to old friends and allies from before the Children's War, securing trade deals and building political alliances with other rebuilding nations.

In the modern day, Naii continues to lead her city as both Queen and Lord-Commander of the Mage's Guard. She keeps a firm eye on magic flowing through Tell's Howe, and remains an emissary to diplomatic allies, trade partners, and other schools of arcane magic across both continents.

Appearance

Lady Naii strikes an imposing form - at nearly six and a half feet, she towers over many of the residents of her city, but even beyond that, her presence commands whatever room she enters. She has very open posture - gestures always wide and sweeping to include all who are listening, eyes bringing her sharp wit to bear on whomever is speaking, with a warm demeanor that encourages discussion. She is an exquisite beauty, with clear olive skin and long, thick dark hair that frames her well-proportioned face. Typically, she wears her city's colors, rich moss green, raven blue, and white, most often in an elegant gown, although she wears a more practical blouse and cape when travelling outside the city. Nevertheless, she is instantly identifiable - few within a hundred miles of the Howe would fail to recognize her on sight.

In draconic form, Kuralnaii is considered no less lovely - she is granddaughter to Yvonne the Lightning, considered by many the most beautiful dragon in creation, and her granddam's sharp, elegant features and lithe bearing have passed down to her. Her horns are broad and sweep elegantly to frame her head, her barbels long and maintained in good health, and the fins that trail from her wings are a touch wider than those on most other golds - considered a very attractive feature. Like most gold dragons, her scales do not tarnish or fade, but when she plans to meet with other dragons in her draconic form, she often applies a nuln oil - a pigmented oil that sinks between the scales and brings each bright scale into relief.

Personality

Tiercel, despite his rugged frame, is, at first glance, almost strikingly reserved - quiet, almost to the point of shyness, among his fellow Autobots. The anxieties of his initial 'welcome' into the Autobots, and the disdain many rank-and-file soldiers showed him as a Decepticon defector, left him isolated for long enough that it became a way of life - and his later recruitment into Special Operations did nothing to encourage him to open up. He keeps to himself unless pressed, observing from the edges even when the group is welcoming, and always just a blush too wary of any attempt to reach out to him.

Within Special Operations, it's a similar story. Though much more at ease among his fellow agents, Tiercel isn't as chatty as mechs like Jazz and Bumblebee - he prefers to work with small groups of two to three mechs, and stay out of crowds. However, he's a confident mech despite his reservations - sure in his abilities, and more than willing to assert himself when on a mission. He very much plays into the stereotype of the cool, confident killer, though he tends to open up more with mechs he's know longest.

On the battle

ady Naii is a dragon who has lived a long time among humans - but she is a dragon. Although she bears a warm and inviting demeanor, she is usually regarded as the colder between herself and her husband, and most of her citizenry find her intimidating, although they still love her. This fundamental discomfit has put a barrier between her and her people over the years, to the point Naii is open with few outside her mage guard, preferring to keep closest council with those who understand her draconic nature.

Beyond that, she is a even temper, not prone to rages and rash action. She is a deliberate, a planner, and an observer, eager to fully understand the situation and in every situation to pick a battlefield that most favors her strengths - she will never rush into conflict unless there is some edge that cannot be lost in striking quickly. In negotiations, she turns her observations into actions - bribes, threats and bargains carefully tailored to each negotiator, careful to never insult or corner a rival into rash acts.

Despite the fact that her husband is a human, Naii rarely develops close friendships with the short-lived races of Fidel, preferring the company of elves, dwarves, and other long-lived peoples. She has polite working relationships with a number of human and halfling rulers, and there are many members of such races among her Mage's Guard she works closely with, but her genuine friendships are usually long-established. She is the close confidant and co-conspirator of Queen Naviir of Undercity, and great friends with Lord and Lady Halptir of Ragashtiik, and she communicates not infrequently with several of her draconic kin, including her clutchmate Karuuth, but socializes little with the nobility of her own city. 

Abilities

Lady Naii is a powerful wizard, with a vast collection of spells at her disposal. True to her heritage, she prefers fire spells in combat, but also has access to an array of mind-affecting spells, which she uses to cause chaos among her attackers and make openings for herself to strike. In a wider combat, she excels at battlefield control, summoning creatures and altering the terrain to protect her allies' vulnerabilities and take advantage of any weakness in her enemies' defenses.

When pressed in combat, Naii reassumes the form of a gold dragon, her native form. This gives her access to a dragon's impressive physical abilities - keen talons, a crushing bite, a fiery breath weapon, flight, and a host of damage resistances and immunities - without hindering her spellcasting. The only reason she withholds from taking this form is to avoid revealing her nature as a dragon - when she is forced to take it, she most frequently passes it off as successful use of True Polymorph or Shapechange, and she will occasionally use those spells to transform into a different color of dragon, as part of her efforts to maintain the ruse.

Despite her skill in battle, she rarely has occasion to fight, and most of her attention goes to maintaining the wards and rituals required for running of the city of Tell's Howe. Under her guidance, the Mage's Guard maintain a network of powerful wards to suppress fires, protect from attack, and maintain the safety and comfort of the city's citizens. In addition, she monitors spellcasters entering and leaving the city, traffic of magic artifacts, and regulates trade in magical components, and aids in the apprehension of rogue mages through a network of spells and spellcasters under her direct watch.

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