Nantosuelta

It is a question she is often asked. "Why you, Ice-born? Why a name of fire?"

She always takes the time to grin before responding in the same tone, "Why not? Do you look and see only one aspect of a person?" They are always confused by that. The old world gods, ancient beyond belief, known only to those who dig into the deepest reaches of the earth, are never just one thing. The goddess Nantosuelta - or Nantosvelte if you prefer - is most known for fire, but even her name can mean "of winding stream".

It is a name she chose for herself, long after she left the nest, after her abject failure at the Trials, after neutralization. The Necromancer who saved her had been of fire, and that is all she knows of them. She was near death when they found her, and they were gone when she woke, but she does remember their eyes through the fever dream. She had thought it only fitting that her rebirth should come from one of the element opposite that of her birth. That was the original impetus for choosing a name of fire.

Then she travelled. There would be no returning to the Rookery, not with her plumage so discolored as to be worthless. But she had run away from that a long time ago, ready to be a Necromancer. Now even that was denied her, so she set herself to finding some new pursuit, some new passion. In the many years she traversed the realm, never did she return to her birthplace.

Fire was her first destination, inspired both by her new leash on life and her new name. It was there she first learned that Nantosuelta was not all a being of fire. She was known as a fierce warrior, and one of her symbols was that of the crow. Nantosuelta distinctly remembers laughing aloud at that. So long she had spent away from her blood, only to now learn that her name reflected them so closely.

That discovery had inspired her to search deeper into the history of her name, of the goddess who wore it first. In the course of finding new places and meeting new people, she would find that Nantosuelta held sway over earth, nature, and water, and that it was likely not the name she was born to. At that, she had decided that her name was well-suited to herself.

Fire - for the Necromancer who had saved her and given her this chance. Earth - for the place where secrets are kept and discovered. Water - for the ability to adapt and change and seek something new. Nature - for the goodness in the hearts of those who shared their knowledge with her. The crow - for her bloodline and history, no matter how much she claimed it held no part of her, there was no denying that Effluvial society was what had driven her to the Trials.

At first, she was upset that there did not seem to be a measure of plague to connect with, but it was only fitting in the end. She failed quite miserably at being a Necromancer. And though she retains the abilities of contagion that come with being a crow, they are different now than before. Eventually she decided that her plumage would stand for itself. While she and the ancient goddess share a name and many of their aspects, they are not the same, and she should not seek to base her entire identity off of that.

The name Nantosuelta is hers, more than any other name could be.