Latest revision as of 01:15, 6 April 2010

Melantha, the Chaos Siren!

I apologize in advance for any unnecessarily long descriptive passages. What? That's just how I write. >_>;;

Quick reference thingy, for lazy people like me!

A description of the Crystalline Menagerie, where Melantha is currently employed.

Fae-Blooded Character Sheet

Name: Melantha

Aliases: Midnight Blossom (as courtesan), Deadly Nightshade (as assassin), Chaos Siren

Player: Mieu

Concept: Courtesan / assassin with multiple personalities.

Nature: She has a total of three natures, which switch at random either during certain stressful situations, or upon awakening from sleep (as with the 6-pt. Erratic Temperament flaw). These are Caregiver, Hedonist and Survivor.

Experience points (total: 30, unused: 30)

Description: Melantha is dark where her mother is light, enticingly warm where her mother is cold and indominitable. Her skin is a warm brown shade, her hair thick and lush and dark and impossibly alive, the styles changing day to day with her whim: sometimes spilling willfully down her shoulders in waves of fragrant curls, sometimes cut short and angular with straight bangs over her eyebrows, sometimes groomed into a carefully shaped upswept twist. Her tilted eyes are a dark brown, almost black, openly reflecting her emotions of the moment: deepest devotion, exuberant joy, willful stubbornness, a wide range of feelings for each of her conflicting Natures. She clothes her voluptuous form in a short, blue-black kimono embroidered with flowering nightshade, slit on either side up to near hip level and cinched with an elaborately tied purple obi, and low-heeled, knee-length black leather boots fit snugly around her calves and feet.

History: Melantha was born in the pleasure houses, sired by an unknown mortal father, and has lived her eighteen years of life so far among the silks and perfumes, flowers and screens of the well-to-do courtesan. Trained as soon as she could walk to maintain the elegant poise, impeccable manners and talent for music and dance expected by women of the profession, she delved into such activities as naturally as a fish into water, having inherited some of the unearthly grace and ingenious creativity of her mother, Lady Crystal. Crystal is an Ornamental Raksha, once known as Lady Ismene of the Crystal Tears, before she was forced upon oath to take residence in the Boil. She had angered her Master by jealously slaying his favored Changeling concubine, and was since charged to remain in the Boil for as long as it would take to create and properly train a replacement for her. Now she is the madam of the Red-Light District's Crystal Menagerie, and Melantha is her most prized of courtesans.

Lady Crystal has been in control of Melantha's development from the very moment of her birth. Besides nurturing her natural talents in the arts of entertainment and pleasure, she has also taught her how to unlock and harness the part of her that is native to the Wyld, granting her beauty and persuasiveness beyond mortal capability, an intimate understanding of emotions and how to shape them to her needs, and -- in time -- the ability to feed upon the souls of the Creation-Born as Fae do. "Love them," she encouraged her daughter, mad whispers behind a mask of crystalline perfection, "so that you may know better how to kill them."

And killing she learned as well, as soon she mastered how to entice her prey to her embrace. Twisted to such a purpose, Melantha's body manifested into a weapon in its own right -- her very skin made toxic with the mere direction of a thought, her hair brought vividly to life as tools of bondage and strangulation. She did not, however, kill frivolously at her mother's whim, for Lady Crystal understood that, as a veritable prisoner in Creation, subtlety was an essential part of survival. With that in mind, she painstakingly built her lovely, deadly daughter an alternate persona as a young, up-and-coming assassin, acting as her agent to field jobs that would play to her strengths. It is this second, more sinister role that draws Melantha into the intrigue of the Boil's underworld, where she will surely weave more sordid tales of humankind's basest and most wicked of urges for Lady Crystal's vicarious delight.

But as much as Lady Crystal intends to wrest every last ounce of enjoyment she can manage from her captivity, she has far from forgotten her cursed, beloved Master and the conditions of the oath that binds her. She trains Melantha as both a courtesan and a killer, in the hopes that -- come her daughter's 21st birthday -- she may bring the result before Master Sabati, so that Melantha may please him into blissful distraction and kill him as he succumbs to her charms. And if her wretched offspring perishes in the attempt -- surely, at the very least, Sabati would be pleased and impressed by the effort, and bid her return to her place by his side!

Melantha knows of the love and hatred that war in her mother's heart for the Master, for she herself was created out of that conflict. As such, she is well aware of the ultimate purpose for which Lady Crystal has crafted her. Whether she harbors enough of a sense of self to free herself from such a fate, though, is another tale to be told...

Attributes (total bp: 8)

Physical

• Strength 2
• Dexterity 3 + 1 (4 bp) = 4
• Stamina 2

Social

• Charisma 3
• Manipulation 3
• Appearance 3 + 1 (4 bp) = 4

Mental

• Perception 2
• Intelligence 2
• Wits 2

Abilities (total bp: 8)

War

• Archery
• Athletics
• Awareness
• Brawl
• Dodge 3
• Endurance
• Martial Arts 3 + 1 (2 bp) = 4
• Melee
• Resistance
• Thrown

Life

• Craft
• Larceny
• Linguistics
• Performance (f) 3 + 2 (2 bp) = 5 (singing, shamisen, dance, shakuhachi, tsuzumi)
  • Specialty: Singing 1 (.5 bp)
  • Specialty: Shamisen 1 (.5 bp)
• Presence 2
• Ride
• Sail
• Socialize (f) 3 + 2 (2 bp) = 5
  • Specialty: Seduction 2 (1 bp)
• Stealth
• Survival

Wisdom

• Bureaucracy
• Investigation
• Lore 2
• Medicine 2
• Occult 2

Shamisen is a 3 stringed instrument played with a plectrum.
Shakuhachi is a bamboo flute.
Tsuzumi is a small hand drum played on the shoulder.

Backgrounds

Detailed at the bottom of the sheet.

From chargen:

• Contacts 3 (White Dog; Catriona Callas; Landen Cole)
• Resources 3 (Melantha's earnings as a courtesan and part-time assassin)

From house rules:

• Experience 1 (+8 bp for nonmagical stuff)
• Knowledge 2 (+14 bp for magical stuff)
• Patron 3 (Lady Crystal, Madam of the Crystal Menagerie)

From patron:

• Artifact 2 (Razor Petal; Reflection of Insanity; Mother's Bondage)
• Familiar 4 (Shadowguard, Wyld-Touched Great Cat)
• Gossamer 2 (Gossamer stipend directly from Lady Crystal)
• Mentor 1 (Master Alchemist Mirabel Mazie)

Charms (total bp: 7)

Transcendant Dream Shape (+2 Cha, +2 Man, +1 App) (7 bp)

Merits (total bp: 36)

Awakened Essence (5 bp)

Draught of Passion (7 bp)

Magical Attunement (4 bp)

Prodigy (Socialize) (2 bp)

Virtue Attunement (Compassion, Temperance) (6 bp)

Living Hair (6 bp)

Works similar to the "Long Tentacles" mutation except applied to Melantha's hair. Instead of her hair physically stretching to reach distant opponents, she can alter the length and style of her hair at will, from a short cropped cut all the way to five yards in length.

Poison Mastery (6 bp)

Melantha can expend 1 WP to suffuse a given poison, toxin or drug throughout her being for a scene, so that her touch transfers the given substance (and its positive/negative effects) to others. She may also produce drugs which cure diseases or even heal wounds, but it may require an Intelligence + Medicine roll at the ST's discretion.

Flaws

Erratic Temperament (+6 bp)

I do not remember being born. I suppose no one really does. But I would say that I was never born, but shaped by the will of my mother, into a form that pleases her most. For it is in my nature to please, and her most desperate of needs are extremes born of necessity. I am her selfishness and compassion, her bitterness and bliss, her scathing hatred and overflowing love. For she is not of Creation, and cannot feel these things as I do, nor express them with such genuine reality.

She, too, possesses it in her nature to please others. But she is merely a reflection of desire, and I am that desire embodied. The Cup and the Ring ascendant, passed through blood to my own hands. She bids me wield these Graces for her, half of flesh as I am, so that I may one day free her of her Master and the oath she made to him. I am to be his one day, she tells me, crafted for the very purpose of entertaining and serving his every whim, as was my predecessor before me. But the undercurrent of her voice speaks of betrayal, for the Cup brims over not with nourishment, but with a poison only spurned devotion can produce. "Disarm him -- earn your place by his side. Slay him, when his guard is down, and we shall both be free."

"For what other purpose do you have to exist in this reality? None will truly love you as you are. Creation-born fear you, and to the Raksha you are naught but a pet. I, your mother, understand you best, for I too am imprisoned as you are. I am tainted by the solidarity of Creation, as you are. I am meaningless without the desires of others. Just like you are."

Such whispers molded me into her dream made flesh -- her comfort, her amusement, her weapon of salvation. A tripartite mind with a singular goal. Sisters three, they dwell within me, each a part of the cast which plays out the story of my life, each a part brought to life by my mother's own dominant, conflicting needs. Midnight Blossom, the courtesan, the caregiver, she who so willingly and lovingly soothes the aches and worries of those who seek her gentle companionship. Chaos Siren, the carefree hedonist, she who blissfully indulges herself to excess in order to blind herself to the cold reality of her existence. Deadly Nightshade, the assassin, the survivor, she who seethes with indignant rage at her imprisonment and lack of autonomy and will dispassionately eliminate whoever and whatever stands in the way of her freedom.

But who am I, then, that speaks for the three? I am they, and they are me. I am the ghost of the whole that would have been, and I, too, long to roam free. Not by my mother's volition, but by what I long to be.

Complete again.

Melantha has three outward Natures -- Caregiver, Hedonist and Survivor -- which manifest themselves at the forefront of her consciousness during certain stressful situations (thanks to Greymane for helping me with this):

• Failing a Virtue roll.
• Reduced to less temporary Willpower than her lowest Virtue.
• Draining her whole Essence Pool.
• Other sources of stress (to be decided during play, because right now I'm indecisive).

If she goes through an entire day without switching Natures, she will switch the next time she wakes up from sleep.

Melantha also has a fourth Nature that is currently dormant and locked deep inside her consciousness. She is the Visionary, whose defining desire is freedom for herself and unity for the fragments of her mind. She only comes out during dreams, hypnotic trances and other such states in which her subconscious may be revealed -- and even then only rarely. The Visionary is the "spokesperson" of Melantha's other Natures; she will speak of them as if they are seperate beings and answer honestly about how they came to be, as well as what they represent of Melantha's psyche.

Oath Keeper (+3 bp)

An unfortunate side effect of her Raksha heritage, any promise that Melantha swears in all seriousness is inviolate. She cannot voluntarily break it, and if she does so involuntarily, suffers a catastrophic botch at the most poetically inopportune moment, exactly as if an Eclipse Caste had sanctified the oath. Lady Crystal has made full use of this aspect of her heritage in order to bind her more securely to her service.

Unusual Appearance (+1 bp)

Melantha is part Fae, and it shows -- perhaps not in any glaringly apparent manner, but in her carriage, in the sharp contours of her cheekbones, in the exotic tilt of her large, expressive eyes, in the slight point of her ears peeking through the living masses of deep black hair.

Virtues (total bp: 3)

• Compassion 3
• Conviction 2
• Temperance 2 + 1 (3 bp) = 3
• Valor 2

Essence and Willpower (total bp: 5)

• Essence 1 + 1 (5 bp) = 2
• Willpower 3 (Compassion) + 3 (Temperance) = 6
• Personal Essence 16 (Essence x 8) - 5 (committed) = 11

Health Levels

• -0 x 1
• -1 x 2
• -2 x 2
• -4 x 1
• Incapacitated

Expanded Backgrounds

Contacts

White Dog, Leader of the Half-Moon Howling Alley Pack

Melantha first met White Dog in a position of supposed danger -- cornered in an alley by several members of a rival gang of the Half-Moon Howling Alley Pack. He just happened to be surveying his turf in the Red Lantern with a group of his own men, and arrived on the scene just in time to charge in to save her. In actuality, Melantha was most likely more than equipped to defend herself, but she saw no need to let them know that fact. She easily endeared herself to White Dog, finding his good-hearted decency and aversion to violence -- so rare on the streets of the Boil -- utterly adorable, and in turn he pledged that he and his Pack would aid her in whatever way they can.

Since White Dog is Greymane's character, I'll leave it to him to describe him further!

Catriona Callas, Elder of the Council of Madams

Catriona is in her early 60's, marking her as one of the eldest of the Council and a voice with quite a bit of weight. Though a small woman (about 5 feet), and showing the signs of becoming hunched with age, she commands an air of respect as a wise woman who has been immersed in the lifestyle and politicking of the Red-Light District for all her adult life, worming her way to the top with sheer charismatic presence, artistic talent, and an uncanny "eye" for beauty. The fact is, Catriona has been completely blind since birth, and is attended at all times by two young courtesans in training who serve as her aides. Nonetheless, she seems to naturally attract beauty to her, choosing the cream of the crop from the masses of unwanted daughters and straggling young orphans occupying the streets, and carries herself with a certain enigmatic air that clients found deeply attractive during her working days. She is also a maestro of the shamisen with a strong appreciation for musical talent, which in turn deeply attracted her to the otherworldly abilities of Lady Crystal and her daughter.

Catriona is no fool -- she knows Crystal's nature, but honestly believes the Fae disarmed enough by her oath to her Master that she can do no lasting harm, and in fact would bring greater wonders of beauty to the Boil in the meantime. She has been Crystal's ally in the Council almost since her arrival in the city, and is always quick to put in a good word for Melantha as well, supporting the young protege as a "rising star" among the courtesans of the district.

Landen Cole, "Dreamweaver", Street Fixer

(Thanks to my husband, Kazuki, for help with this one. ^_^)

Landen is a handsome man in his late 20's, well groomed and equally well mannered, with amiable blue eyes and dark brown hair tastefully tied back in a ponytail. Once a small time street thief, Landen worked his way up to a comfortable life as a Fixer, providing other people's needs for the right price. Taking on the street handle "Dreamweaver", he has become quite succesful at his trade, and the pride he emanates when taking on his "duties" speak volumes about his love of his work. As twisted and strange as it might sound, Landen truly believes in giving people what they want, and fancies himself as a merchant of dreams - more than anyone, Landen understands that the harsh life in the Heartless city can be crushingly difficult at times, and he views the moments of happiness he can bring as priceless.

Landen originally met Melantha as a client in the Crystal Menagerie, impressed and enamored by her cultured beauty. He has since returned on several occasions to personally request her companionship. In return, she requests favors of him once in a while, particularly concerning items and substances that would otherwise be difficult (if not impossible) for her to procure. Melantha finds him attractive, as well, both for his good looks and his intelligence, so their meetings are always pleasurable and mutually beneficial.

A well learned and educated man, Landen carries himself with confidence and dignity. He is a man who chose his own path in life, and who follows it without doubt or hesitation. Even if many would shun it for his shady business, he is still a caring and understanding man - he is making a lot of profit, but this is proportional to the risks he takes, and the call of profit is not what keeps him going. He has been known to help out some down on their luck fellows in the past, and he is a mostly a pacifist at heart. And the Dreamweaver continues to alleviate the misery of the slums and the less fortunate parts of the Boil, by providing its children with what they want...

Equipment

Exceptional Quality Shamisen "Siren's Second Voice" (Resources 3)

Melantha's prized instrument is a shamisen crafted of quality materials imported from warmer climes. The long, slender neck is crafted of rosewood from the East, the hollow body of quince, a tree favored in the Realm for bonsai arrangements. Stretched over the hollow box-like body is the skin of a wild Southern cat, cured and bleached white to contrast the dramatically darker lacquered wood of the body and neck. The instrument is played with a wide fan-shaped plectrum used to strike the strings so that they resonate against the drum-like body.

Gossamer Kimono "Nightshade's Sheath" (Gossamer 2)

Soak 5L/6B / Mobility -0 / Fatigue -0

This kimono-style robe is crafted of gossamer, the yearning dreams of mortals woven into a surprisingly sturdy cloth with the appearance of blue-black silk embroidered along the hem and down the sleeves with vines of flowering nightshade -- deep purple, starburst-shaped flowers depicted with a sheen reminiscent the touch of moonlight, even in the light of day. The kimono does not fall to ankle length, but stops just above the knee, with slits on either side that cut nearly all the way up to the hip. The robe is cinched with a traditional obi sash of a shade matching the flowers, shadow-embroidered with a radiating pattern of petals edged in silver dreamthread. Crafted by the nimble artistry of Lady Crystal, the kimono is both a work of beauty and a surreptutious form of protection, hindering blade, bow and fist with its strong but surprisingly malleable surface.

Black Jade War Fan "Razor Petal" (Artifact 1)

Spd +2, Acc +2, Dmg +2L, Def +4, Rate 4, requires Dex 3, MA 3
Commit 3

Razor Petal is an ornate, deceptively decorative fan about a foot in length constructed of interlocking black jade plates. Each individually forged plate is painstakingly, perfectly fitted to fold in on each other, accordion-like, into an easily stored compact form. The plates are inlaid with amethyst and malachite so that, when they are spread and fully extended, they display the image of a twisting nightshade vine in full bloom against a field of inky black. The outer end of each plate is surprisingly razor sharp, so that the outer edge of the fan can cut through cloth and bindings and tear into vulnerable flesh.

Wyld Mirror "Reflection of Insanity" (Artifact 1)

This innocent looking mirror is in the form of a simple silver compact small enough to fit in the palm, much like one would use for applying makeup. Flipping open the compact to use the mirror within reveals to the viewer the maddening chaos of the Wyld, much like the effects of the Eyes of Wicked Madness Merit. Mortals who gaze into such visions flee in terror unless their players make a successful Valor roll at difficulty 2. Exalted and other magical beings find the scenes distasteful and perhaps unnerving but certainly not terrifying.

Sthiti Oath "Mother's Bondage" (Artifact 2)

Knife-Hand Dream (allows Melantha to parry/inflict lethal damage unarmed)
Regeneration (as the mutation)
Commit 2

You're the only one in the world who knows
what my heart always held, before all other love.

For this, I must tell you what is terrible to know:
in your grace was born my anguish.

You're irreplaceable. And for this
the life you gave me is condemned to solitude.

And I don't want to be alone. I've an infinite
hunger for love, for the love of bodies without souls.

Because the soul is inside you, it is you, but you
are my mother and your love's my bondage.

-- Pier Paolo Pasolini, "Supplica a mia Madre", as performed by Diamanda Galás in Malediction and Prayer. Translated by Lawrence Ferlinghetti.

Melantha's oath to her mother is this: "Until I free you from your prison in Creation, I too shall be bound to you in service." The hungry strands of Lady Crystal's possessiveness wrap around her like a vice and seep into her flesh, granting her fragile form greater resiliance against harm, even as they serve as an ever-present reminder of the purpose for which she was born.

Familiar

Shadowguard (Familiar 4)

(Thanks to CrownedSun for his Familiar background.)

Shadowguard is a Wyld-touched Great Cat. In his natural form, he stands about five feet tall at the shoulder, covered in pure black fur and characterized by bright amber eyes, unusually long, pointed ears and a pair of black, bat-like wings sprouting from his back. At this size, the wings are not strong enough to support his body, but function just as well for intimidation purposes. At will, he can shrink to the size of a housecat and meld into the shadows, nimbly evading detection and capture. When reduced to housecat size, Shadowguard can easily fly, and often uses this added mobility to his advantage.

This familiar was granted to Melantha as a bodyguard of sorts by her mother, Lady Crystal. It could be said, in a way, that Shadowguard and Melantha are siblings, since Crystal herself is the one that molded him with Wyld energies into what he is now. As a result, too, he harbors some vestigial loyalty to Crystal as well, though it is understood that he follows Melantha's orders explicitly because Crystal bade him do so. If Melantha ever decides to go against her mother's wishes in any significant way, Shadowguard may very well need some strong convincing in order to go along with the plan. Nonetheless, he is strongly protective of his charge, and is actually quite fond of Melantha, who dotes on him attentively and affectionately during times of leisure.

In terms of personality, Shadowguard is not a playful cat as much as an indolent one, content to sleep the days away when his mistress is busy and has no direct orders for him to carry out. Of course, as soon as he senses any sort of trouble, he springs to action as if that ostentatious show of laziness was nothing but an act. Normally stoic and indifferent in demeanor -- or so he strives to be! -- he becomes gruffly affectionate when pleased, particularly when scratched behind the ears or brought his favorite food: fish. Despite the similarities, though, he dislikes any insinuation that he is any ordinary housecat, and will put on haughty airs and poses if called such.

Besides serving as Melantha's backup protection, Shadowguard's speed and stealthiness in reduced size makes him ideal for reconaissance, during which he relays his findings through the sensory and telepathic link they share.

Attributes: Physical 6/3/5 (as great cat), 1/5/1 (as housecat); Social 2/2/2; Mental 3/2/2
Health Levels: -0x2, -1x2, -2x2, -4, Incap. (as great cat); -0, -2, -4, Incap. (as housecat)
Attack Spd / Acc / Dmg: Bite 6/6/7L, Claw 6/7/6L (as great cat); Bite 8/8/1B, Claw 8/9/1B (as housecat)
Dodge / Soak: 5/2L/5B (as great cat); 9/0L/1B (as housecat)
Abilities (as great cat): Athletics 2, Awareness 3, Brawl 3, Dodge 2, Presence 2 (Intimidation +3), Stealth 3 (Supernatural Bonus +3), Survival 3
Abilities (as housecat): Athletics 4, Awareness 3, Brawl 3, Dodge 4, Presence 2, Stealth 3 (Supernatural Bonus +3), Survival 3

Traits (14 pts total):

• Long-Lived (0 pt)
• Obedient (0 pt)
• Powerful Animal (4 pts)
• God-Blooded Familiar (Wyld-touched: Unusual appearance and wings) (3 pts)
• Sensory Sharing (1 pt)
• Sensory Bond (1 pt)
• Very Clever (free with God-Blooded Familiar)
• Intelligent (free with God-Blooded Familiar)
• Expressive (1 pt)
• Telepathy (1 pt)
• Minor Supernatural Ability (+3 to Stealth) (1 pt)
• Useful Supernatural Ability (Can change size and meld into shadows at will) (2 pts)

Mentor

Master Alchemist Mirabel Mazie (Mentor 1)

Mirabel is thamauturgist of great skill and few scruples when it comes to providing her wares and expertise, so long as the money flows freely or the customer sufficiently impresses her with attitude and skill. She is in her mid 50's, with thick dark brown hair streaked with grey (typically bound up in a bun at the nape of her neck) and hard, appraising flint-grey eyes. Her fair-complected face and surprisingly slender, weathered hands show the lines of age and wisdom, but her appearance is far from haggard, expressing a vitality that belies her age. In her prime, she worked for a time as an assassin herself, driven by a stubborn desire to escape the typical fate of young women on the streets, until she earned herself enough of a keep to open up her shop. Despite her severe looks and often critical manner, she has a soft spot for the youth of the Boil, and is only hard and practical out of a sincere, motherly desire to instill some semblance of street wisdom and survivability to her "children".

Though Melantha does not herself employ thaumaturgy, Mirabel -- at the behest and ample wealth of Lady Crystal -- has taught her most, if not all, of she knows so far about poisons, drugs, medicines and antidotes. She is also Melantha's supplier of such items, and has arranged with Crystal to educate her further if need be.

Patron

Lady Crystal, Madam of the Crystal Menagerie (Patron 3)

Melantha's mother is known as She Who Sheds Tears of Perfect Crystal, or simply Lady Crystal, in Creation. She seems, in her current form, an impossible, unattainable beauty: flawless, translucent white skin adorned by icy crystals that frame her eyes like a delicate mask of tears, contrasted with deep black hair that tumbles down her shoulders in perfectly formed ringlets, hard, glittering eyes so black they lack pupils entirely, long, sharply pointed ears and slender, dextrous fingers that seem just a mite too long to be human. She is a (relatively) young Ornamental Raksha of a Freehold in the Jet Court, the Tower Between Worlds, where she was better known as Lady Ismene of the Crystal Tears -- until recently. She displeased the Tower's enigmatic ruler, Master Sabati, the Tower Artificier and Shaper of Worlds, when she jealously slayed his favorite Changeling concubine, and was summarily banished to Creation wherein she was oathbound to live "as mortals do" until she is able to create a suitable replacement for her. To add insult to injury, he chose for Ismene's "prison" a particularly unpleasant locale -- the Boil, the industrial center of the north, where iron is so prolific and pivotal to the economy of the region that motes of it float in the very air.

Ismene was incensed, of course, but it could not be helped. Bound to her word, she did her best to make do in this harsh, dirty, all-too-real existence. Having once been an entertainer of great repute in the Tower, she now gravitated towards the Boil's Red-Lantern District, where her unearthly beauty, impeccable social graces and mastery of the arts would benefit her most. She took on a purposefully elaborate name and put her efforts into assimilating herself into the social structure of the pleasure houses, all for the ultimate purpose of winning the trust of the Smiling Lover so she may elevate herself from a fate of petty prostitution to that of a madam of a reputable house. Having now dwelled within the Boil for nearly two decades, Lady Crystal is the mistress of the Crystalline Menagerie, a teahouse of veritable delights known for its commitment to decadence in elegance. Melantha is both her child and her prized possession, for not only is she a courtesan of budding talent, she is also the key to her eventual freedom, in time. Nonetheless, she knows very well that her time in Creation has tainted her, so that even though she may one day walk free of her prison, she will never feel truly at home in Rakshastan again. It is a source of much bitterness, and her daughter bears the brunt of the moodiness that results.

Lady Crystal rarely ever leaves the confines of the Menagerie. She is known to be a harsh mistress for her perfectionism and her obsessive desire for cleanliness, but she nonetheless provides for her employees well. She has a particular distaste for factory workers and engineers for the stench of iron upon them, and will never, if she can help it, allow any individual carrying cold iron to step into her house.