Vilthuril

Wizard who fled the university he attended after a public humiliation so thoroughly devastating that he dropped everything--including what was shaping up to be a promising career-- and fled into the night with the possessions he could carry.

He spent his waking moments in a haze in the secluded corners in the back of bars, ping-ponging from one clan to another. He knew he had to get as far away from his home as possible, what would he do if he ran into his colleagues (or darkness forbid his ex)? If he kept his head down and stayed out of notice maybe one day he'll have outlived them all and then--and only then--would he feel prepared to start picking up the pieces of the shattered remains of the sorrowful existence that had become his life. Days, weeks, went by in a blur until he woke up one day and realized he was dead broke and stuck freezing on the opposite side of the world.

The settlement he had ended up stranded in was a small fishing port on the coast of Ice territory. He sought out a local innkeeper who took pity on him, and was directed towards a friend's friend whom owed a favor, and thus he found himself boarding the Gullwind, a small fishing vessel with just enough room for two.

The owner, Splash, was glad to have an extra pair of talons on board, but there were communication issues. The spiral was deaf, and Vilthuril didn't know any sign--yet another practical skill he should have picked up if he had any sense at all--so the pair could only communicate through writing.

Vilthuril did try to be of use, but it was hard. He had never been one for manual labor before--he had never felt the need to learn other skills considering how effortlessly magic came to him, and oh boy was he kicking himself for it now. For even reciting the simplest incantations--the ones that new students would learn in the very first semester--would bring back a torrent of memories, and his failure to keep up with the tasks he'd been given only further proved how useless he'd become in his own eyes. Not that it really mattered.

The spiral not only could keep track of everything just fine on his own, he was often forced to take twice as long cleaning up after Vilthuril's sloppy attempts. He was lucky that he was kind enough to let him stay, the best thing he could do would be to keep his mouth shut and stay out of his way.

The shame of it all left him unable to face the world. He would shut himself his room for days. Even eating and drinking regularly proved to be an exhausting feat that he could not keep up with, and he found his clothes growing roomier by the day. He only found solace in his dreams, where his pain was dulled and all his problems were replaced with nonsensical, childlike revelry. He spent ever increasingly hours adrift, until he was barely able to hold his eyes open, as if under heavy medication.

Concerned with his near-catatonic houseguest, Splash docked his vessel and sent word to a healer. They looked him over and said that while they could keep his physical body stable, the skydancer was under great psychological distress and that he needed time to heal, as well as someone to keep an eye on him in the meantime. He spent the next few weeks relying on the goodwill of a string of strangers, who would do what they could for days or weeks, and then pass him on to yet another willing friend or family member. Later on he would try to recall the days Splash had spent caring for him, the things he'd said, but the more he tried to conjure up details the fuzzier they became. Reality had blurred with the imagery his unconscious mind had put together.

Gradually, he came back to himself. It still hurt, but it had shrank back to a dull ache, and for the first time in ages his mind was clear.

[...]

In an attempt to maintain the tenuous grip he had on his emotional state he swore off anything to do with wizardry or his former academic pursuits, even hiding away his beloved robes and swapping out his hat for something... decidedly less distinguished--but he felt exposed without something covering his head feathers, and it was warm at least.

-End up bonding over mutual issues with their exes. He learns some dragonic sign so they don't have to keep writing everything out.
-Vilth hates swimming, and cannot fly if his feathers get too wet, but has had some luck with line fishing. It won't be enough to feed anyone else, but, hey, at least it helps him chill out.
-Has had some promising results with making his own lures.
-Mostly he stays busy keeping the place clean while Splash catches the big ones.
-Terrified of his giant turtle monster pet. Has yet to catch it surfacing but isn't convinced it won't one day sink their ship and eat them.

-Disgraced wizard
-Working through a self imposed banishment after a public humiliation
-Avoids thinking about his magic, instead has poured all his energy into his new passion: keeping his head down and staying as far away from Shadow territory as possible in the hopes that he doesn't ever see any of his colleagues (or darkness forbid his ex) ever again, and maybe one day he'll have outlived them all and then--and only then--will he feel prepared to start picking up the pieces of the shattered remains of the sorrowful existence that's become his life.
-Currently living on the Gullwind with Splash. They could barely communicate at first--which almost didn't matter considering how little they had in common--but boredom is a powerful motivator.
-End up bonding over mutual issues with their exes. He learns some dragonic sign so they don't have to keep writing everything out.
-Vilth hates swimming, and cannot fly if his feathers get too wet, but has had some luck with line fishing. It won't be enough to feed anyone else, but, hey, at least it helps him chill out.
-Has had some promising results with making his own lures.
-Mostly he stays busy keeping the place clean while Splash catches the big ones.
-Terrified of his giant turtle monster pet. Has yet to catch it surfacing but isn't convinced it won't one day sink their ship and eat them.
-The cold has turned his skin cracked and dry. He has to regularly retreat to his quarters to apply medicated balms, otherwise his scales start flaking off and getting everywhere.


Gifted to me by Arkasi | Front page: 05/02/2021