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Forbidden Wisdom

Forbidden Wisdom is Chosen of the Maiden of Secrets. She looks like a not-unattractive woman in her early 30s-- of course, this could not be further from the truth. Although born under a name that only she and the Sidereals who took responsibility for her Exaltation and following training remember, she goes by the moniker Forbidden Wisdom in her life as a Sidereal Exalted. She drew her Second Breath nearly a century ago in Greyfalls, the illegitmate daughter of the majordomo of the Empress' estate and a prominent son of the local Nuri military elite. She had been raised by her mother to think of the Scavenger Lands as her home and the Realm as the seat of her loyalty, and in the Yu-Shan of a century ago, this drew her early and clearly into the ranks of the Bronze Faction.

The Faction elders immediately saw use for her. The only Bronze agent in the East was Sad Ivory-- hardly enough manpower for the Faction to counter the schemes of the Gold in an entire direction, despite the elder Chosen of Endings' great age and experience. Forbidden Wisdom was assigned as a junior agent to Ahn-Ahu. Forbidden Wisdom immediately caught onto Sad Ivory's talent for information-gathering, stealth, and infiltration, but where the elder Sidereal was a master of assassination, Forbidden Wisdom quickly acquired a subtler touch, an expert in misdirection. Where Forbidden Wisdom is active, a rogue demon is funneled into the territory of a god in violation of Celestial Law, and when one defeats the other, a detatchment of Immaculate monks from Greyfalls is already arriving to finish off the weakened victor and impress the local populace.

Since the disappearance of the Empress and the rapidly deteriorating situation of the Time of Tumult, Forbidden Wisdom's skills are now in dire demand. Chejop himself rearranged the duties of his two Eastern agents, instructing Sad Ivory to disappear from all attention but his own, dispatching her on missions only the Inner Circle knows the details of. Forbidden Wisdom, after a century of being the junior agent, now holds the reigns of the Sidereal influence on the All-Seeing Eye and the Immaculate order, and she can personally call down Wyld Hunts on newly reborn Solars. In Heaven she spends equal time consulting the plans of the Bureau of Destiny, attempting to politically maneuver any information about Eastern Solars from the Gold Faction that she can. In Creation, she has relocated her base of operations from Greyfalls to Nexus, in order to keep a closer eye on the Gold Faction agents there.

The Bronze's control of the evaluation system means that while the Convention of Wood's Gold agents are tasked with nearly all the fate-mending busywork, Forbidden Wisdom does far less than her fair share of Bureau work with no consequence-- this extra time, she commits to the Faction. She prefers to use her powers of persuation and destiny-manipulation to force reborn Solars into highly disadvantegous situations and then disappearing just as the Wyld Hunt arrives. So far, the tactic has been successful-- after several disastorous early forays against the Chosen of the Sun, Forbidden Wisdom's direction of the Hunt has led to a recent spike in successful destruction of the Solars.

Forbidden Wisdom has perpetually tanned olive skin and striking green eyes. Those who converse with her without knowing her ways often find that they have disclosed far more than they meant to without receiving much, if any, real information back in return-- she's infamous for this in the Bureau of Destiny, and Gold Faction agents avoid speaking with her at all whenever possible. Her demeanor is somewhat haughty, but she is unfailingly polite. She was close to Sad Ivory, but now since that Sidereal's location and activities require the highest clearances to know about, no one has any idea about Forbidden Wisdom's personal inclinations. She is quite tall for a woman-- almost six feet. When in Yu-Shan, she dresses as her Exalted self, wearing robes embroidered with emeralds and earrings of fox-shaped diamonds. In Creation, she dresses in over-sized traveler's gear and conceals her face, impersonating a non-descript young androgynous person. On her person she carries the items and clothing she needs to assume any of her Resplendent Destinies except for her identity as Forbidden Wisdom, the Sidereal Exalted-- she keeps her artifacts in her Celestial Manse in order to protect them from theft, and must return there to gather them if she wishes to enter Creation as herself. Forbidden Wisdom is more than capable of defending herself from mortals, and could hold her own against a young Exalted, but she prefers not to meet supernatural threats directly, at least not in combat. She is not above abandoning her plans and duties in order to save herself, and she is more than capable of forseeing and escaping a bad situation before it becomes so bad she might have to use her martial skill.

Caste: Chosen of Secrets
Nature: Architect
Anima: Dark Forest Green
Concept: Bronze Faction Functionary
Experience: 575

Attributes:
Strength 3, Dexterity 4, Stamina 3
Charisma 3, Manipulation 5, Appearance 3
Perception 4, Intelligence 4, Wits 4

Abilities:

Journeys
Endurance 2
Ride 2
Survival 2
Thrown 3

Serenity
Craft 3
Dodge 4
Linguistics 3
Performance 2
Socialize 2

Battles
Presence 4 (Persuation +2)
Resistance 2

Secrets
Investigation 4
Larceny 5
Lore 4
Occult 4
Stealth 5

Endings
Athletics 1
Awareness 4
Bureaucracy 4
Martial Arts 5

Ability Detail:
Craft: Fate
Linguistics: Old Realm, High Realm, Riverspeak, Forest-Tongue

Backgrounds: Artifact 2 (Starmetal Dragon-Tear Tiara), Backing 3 (Bronze Faction), Celestial Manse 3, Connections (Forbidding Manse of Ivy) 4, Connections (All-Seeing Eye) 2, Connections (Immaculate Order) 2, Salary 3, Sifu 3 (unavailable, see detailed notes)

Virtues:
Compassion 3, Conviction 3, Temperance 2, Valor 2

Willpower: 8
Health: -0,-0,-1,-1,-2,-2,-4,Incap
Essence: 5
Essence pool: 18/48

Charms:
Awareness
Prior Warning
Expected Pain
Wise Choice
Bureaucracy
Icy Hand
Terminal Sanction
Craft
Elegant Patterns of Fate
World-Shaping Artistic Vision (Deceit)
Dodge
Absence
Duck Fate
Trouble Reduction Strategy
Avoidance Kata
Endurance
Ox-Body Technique (x1)
Optimistic Security Practice
Investigation
Auspicious Prospects for Secrets
Efficient Secretary Technique
Marvelous Inclusion of Details
Larceny
Creation Smuggling Procedures
Sidereal Shell Games
Name Pilfering Practices
Dream Confiscation Approach
Honorable Thief Spirit
Conning Chaos Technique
Lore
Avoiding the Truth Technique
Systematic Understanding of Everything
The Methodology of Secrets
Occult
Mark of Exaltation
Tell-Tale Symphony
Incite Decorum
Terrestrial Circle Sorcery
Presence
Presence in Absence Technique
Stealth
Soft Presence Practice
Walking Outside Fate
Subordinate Inspiration Technique
Blinding the Boar
Ceasing to Exist Approach

Techniques: Mantis Style
Leaping Mantis Technique
Iron-Arm Block
Mantis Form
Joint-Locking Technique
Joint-Breaking Attack
Flying Mantis Kick

Sorcery Terrestrial Circle
Emerald Countermagic
Stormwind Rider
Open the Spirit-Door

Equipment: (In Creation) Travel Gear, Powerful Walkaway Talisman (lvl. 3, gift from Sad Ivory), excessive pocket change, various odds and ends neccessary to pose as a talisman merchant or a collector of oddities, concealed throwing knives

Astrology

Colleges: Guardians 2, Key 2, Mask 3, Sorcerer 4, Treasure Trove 2

Resplendent Destinies:

• Guardians: Lima, the odd old lady at the market. This is one of the two Destinies Forbidden Wisdom created in order to be able to make mortal contacts in Nexus. In this guise, she masquerades as being at least 50. Her hair is ill-kempt and she has lived in Nexus all her life as a trader, never having gone to school but knows everything you need to know to get a good deal in Nexus, or at least can do a good job of faking it. She's sells talismans, and mumbles about the weather. Lima has a reputation in the Nexus market of being hard to bargain with, but also of almost always having authentic talismans, which is more than you can say for most merchants (she buys them in Yu-Shan for much more money than she sells them for in Creation). She's supersticious and very suspicious that magic is being worked against her, and it is rumored that because of this, you can get a bargain from her in exchange for information about any magic-weilding creatures bumping about Nexus this week.\\

Effect Points: 2

• Key: Washa, the disheveled salesman/explorer. Washa is a messy, effeminate-looking man in his 30s who dresses in fine, expensive traveler's gear and trades in artifacts and antiques when he is in Nexus and not off on some adventure to elsewhere in Creation. He's traveled the world, and is known among the local Guild interests as an honest, if overly curious, trader. He carries tools for the appraisal of artifacts. He claims to be uninterested in remnants of the First Age in order to keep himself out of dangerous business, but those in the know realize that this is a lie-- that he keeps any true First Age artifacts he can find discreetly to himself (Forbidden Wisdom generally uses them as gifts in Yu-Shan), and that he has an insatiable appetite for these ancient wonders. He occasionally sells, at high prices, common First Age trinkets such as stones that eternally emit light, and recently he has been very curious about rumors of people finding/using the arcane metal orichalcum.\\

Effect Poins: 2

• Sorcerer: Forbidden Wisom, the Sidereal Exalt. Dressed in her full Yu-Shan regalia, with her starmetal tiara on her brow, Hearthstone prominently displayed, robes embroideres with emeralds in the shape of astrological runes and earrings of fox-shaped diamonds, in this guise Forbidden Wisdom bears herself as one of the Exalted, the Princes of the Earth. The sign of Jupiter shines on her brow through the Gem of Grace situated there, dispersing bright green light everywhere. Forbidden Wisdom generally uses this Destiny to deal with gods in Yu-Shan and Creation. Rarely does she directly reveal herself to a non-Sidereal Exalt, and when she does she prefers to do so with no Destiny so that the memory of the contact fades.\\

Effect Points: 4

Quick Combat

Combat:
Base initiative: 8
Soak: 3B/1L/0A (unarmored)
Dodge: 8
Attacks:
Punch: Spd 8 Acc 9 Dmg 3B Def 9
Kick: Spd 5 Acc 8 Dmg 5B Def 8
Throwing Knife (Thrown): Acc 7 Dmg 5L Rate 3 Range 15
Throwing Knife (Hand To Hand): Spd 10 Acc 7 Dmg 4L Def 5

Expanded Backgrounds

Artifact ••

Starmetal Dragon Tear Tiara
Artifact 2
Starmetal Tiara
Commitment: 2, starmetal

Minimalist design, starmetal reinforced with platinum with golden highlights. A gift she received upon finishing her training from the Bureau of Destiny as a whole, in order to welcome her to the service of the Maidens. +1 to Perception, +3 to Perception+Occult rolls.

This artifact has a setting for a single hearthstone and is set with the Gem of Grace from Forbidden Wisdom's Celestial Manse.

Backing •••

Bronze Faction. Forbidden Wisdom is the main Bronze Faction functionary in the Convention of Wood-- any other Bronze Faction Sidereals wishing to work in the area temporarily would coordinate with her and draw on her for mission data and support. She has been in the position briefly and is still proving herself-- officially, she only holds the job until Sad Ivory returns from her secret assignments, but the Inner Circle is watching her, and an excellent performance in this assignment will surely have rewards within the Faction.

Celestial Manse •••

A tower that reaches high into the sky of Yu-Shan, with numerous aviaries for large birds on the outside walls and a multitulde of private, sound-proofed rooms inside. The upper floors are a maze, with Forbidden Wisdom's living quarters at the center, roof open to the sky above with golden crystals shining all throughout the room, creating the illusion of eternal sunshine. The Manse is a level 3 Solar Manse, and it produces of Gem of Grace (+3 to Charisma, Manipulation rolls).

Connections: All-Seeing Eye ••

The leading members of the All-Seeing Eye in Greyfalls have instructions to follow orders marked with Forbidden Wisdom's crest and to periodically perform information drop-offs at a secret location in Greyfalls known only to them and Forbidden Wisdom. They have never met Forbidden Wisdom to their knowledge, although as the elder Bronze Faction agent in the East, all senior members of the Greyfalls All-Seeing Eye are known to her very well.

Connections: Immaculate Order ••

Forbidden Wisdom has a similar arrangement with the head Immaculate temple in Greyfalls as she does with the local All-Seeing Eye. The Order believe the orders come from a group of monks deep under cover in Nexus that work to strike down the Anathema in the backwards Scavanger Lands. Setting up a Wyld Hunt in the East requires that Forbidden Wisdom personally send confirmation to both the Immculate Order and the All-Seeing Eye in Greyfalls-- all Hunts must pass her for approval.

Connections: Forbidding Manse of Ivy ••••

In order to support her new responsibilites, Chejop Kejak has personally opened many of the sealed records in the Forbidding Manse to her-- he receives a weekly report on what restricted information she accesses and when, however. These records include all astrological effects requested by Sidereals that have been placed into effect in the East for the past 20 years and those being enacted at the current time. Only Chejop's, the division heads', and the Maidens' edicts remain sealed to her. Also, one of Naro-O's personal secretaries has been instructed to assist Forbidden Wisdom in any inquiries into the records the Manse holds of the activities of Sidereals in the East, including the Gold Faction.

Sifu •••

Before her reassignment, Sad Ivory was Forbidden Wisdom's Sifu and mentor, even if Forbidden Wisdom did not learn all that Sad Ivory knew of the ways of bringing quick death to others. In Ahn-Ahu's absence, Forbidden Wisdom no longer has access to this background.

[phentermine]