Sembas Filden
5'8"
25 years
Brown hair
Golden eyes
My father was a falconer, as was his father before him. The appreciation for the majesty and grace of these creatures has been instilled in our blood. The knowledge of the care and treatment of falcons has been passed down through the ages. I am the youngest of three brothers. I am the only of the three that a wild falcon has chosen to bind herself to. I do not know what strength she saw in me at the time. I was so young. But so was she.
I was but a boy when we first met, spending the summer in the mountains with my uncle's family. His son was building a cottage for he and his new wife. My father sent my brothers and I to go help with the construction. After the work was done for the day I took the time to explore the mountains in the area. One night I strayed too far from the places I was familiar with and was caught in a storm. I spent the night under a wayward pine, the thick branches shielding me from the worst of the downpour. When I woke in the morning I was greeted by a chirping ball of feathers sitting on a branch above me.
She was eying me curiously, tilting her head each time I shifted on the ground until I sat up. Slowly, I pulled a piece of jerky out of my pocket and offered it to her. Intrigued she stepped closer to my hand and snatched the jerky out of my fingers. Grinning, I watched as she gobbled up the meat. I pulled my sleeve over my hand and held my arm out to her. Warily, she stepped onto my arm keeping her eyes locked with mine.
After that moment we were inseparable. I returned home to my father the next week. He was ecstatic that a wild falcon had chosen me as a companion. He explained that birds bred in captivity had all but lost their magical properties. Falcons from the wild were often enchanted creatures. As he spoke I looked down at my falcon. I could have sworn that she was listening. She turned and gave me a bewildered look.
I spent many years training with my father and my falcon. I could never decide on a name for her. Each time I thought one up it simply felt wrong. Then one day I heard a girl whisper in my mind. "Faile," is what she said. Startled, I saw that my falcon was staring right at me. "Faile!" This time louder. I turned to my father, who was busy working a piece of leather, oblivious to the voices I was hearing.
"Faile," I said out loud. "Her name is Faile."
"Wassat? You decided a name for her?"
"No..." I said, hesitantly. "No, she just told me..."
Wide eyed, my father and I both turned to look at Faile, sitting on her perch. She puffed up and chirped at the both of us, reaffirming her decision.
"Well I'll be..."
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Sembas is a falconer. Faile, his falcon, is enchanted. Having found each other after the violent storm in the mountains, neither Sembas or Faile knew the extent of her abilities. From very early on the two knew that they could feel each others emotions. When putting their mind to it they can project a thought into each others head.
Faile's enchantment effects Sembas in more ways than their communication. Growing together through the years he became quick on his feet. His eyes took on a golden hue, matching Faile's. Faile is very strong for her size, and as such so is Sembas. Being so agile and tough, he was recruited by the local militia. Not being one to shy away from responsibility, he grudgingly accepted. There he was trained to be a protector of the village. Refusing to be left out, Faile was determined to hone her own skills. It was during this time that the two became a force to be reckoned with.
Faile began focusing on the enchantment within her, drawing forth abilities neither Sembas or her would have ever dreamed of. As she drew forth her own latent magical abilities, Sembas too gained abilities of magical nature.
The two can always be seen out in the fields, either hunting or patrolling for the militia. They dislike large cities and crowds. Sembas's golden eyes draw probing questions. And when Faile is on his shoulder or arm a crowd always gathers.
Faile is a very prideful individual, while Sembas is much more reserved. They are extremely protective over each other.
Sembas typically wears a green hooded cloak over plain leather armor. A thick gauntlet covers his left hand and stretches all the way back to his shoulder. This gives Faile somewhere to land and perch. The leather protects Sembas's skin from her razor sharp claws.
Attributes and Abilities
Strength: Athletics - Sembas gained enhanced strength from his bond with Faile. Although still compact in size, he is a great deal stronger than he looks.
Dexterity: Dodge - The nimbleness of a falcon has given Sembas exceptional quickness and finesse.
Wisdom: Spiritual Magic - The bond between falcon and human has caused them to share Faile's enchantment. As such the two of them can cast spells to enhance and protect each other.
Weapon Proficiencies:
Sembas is adept at wielding a spear. This is his weapon of choice and one can typically be found strapped to his back.
He also carries a long bowie knife strapped to his hip. This is used in close quarters for when a spear is much too large.
When out in the field he favors a short bow.
Sembas is a scrappy fighter when weapons aren't involved. His strength and quickness allow him to get in quick jabs and submissions. As such he is a proficient boxer and wrestler.
Spells:
Due to Faile bonding with Sembas, she has given him control of the lion's share of her enchantment. As such Sembas must will her enchantment forth with Spiritual Magic. As they grow together Faile discovers new latent abilities, but for now these are the only ones they are aware of.
Faile:
Project Shield - Faile erects a shield around Sembas, protecting him from simple projectiles and attacks.
Essence of the Falcon - Faile grants Sembas a larger amount of her enchantment. This further increases his dexterity and strength. This also increases the effects of Sembas's buffs on himself.
Sembas:
Because the two share Faile's enchantment, when Sembas casts a buff on Faile he receives a similar effect to a much smaller degree.
Grow Falcon - Sembas enchants Faile and makes her grow in size. This increases her strength but decreases her maneuverability. As such this spell is used for heavy lifting or transportation. Sembas typically doesn't receive the effects of this spell. Faile blocks the enchantment so that she can more easily carry him. He does seldom use it to do some heavy lifting.
Lightning Hawk - Sembas enchants Faile with the essence of lightning. A lightning bolt streaks out of the sky and strikes Faile, charging her body with electricity. She can release bolts of lightning and fly at super speeds while under the effects of this spell. This spell charges Sembas's spear and arrows with lightning.
Fire Breath - Smoke billows out of Faile's beak and her body temperature dramatically rises. When she chooses she can release a blast of fire from her beak to scorch her foes. This raises Sembas's body temperature and causes him to puff smoke for a time. If Faile is using Essence of the Falcon he is able to spew fire 1 or 2 times.
Stone Fall - Faile's body solidifies as she falls from the sky. Upon landing her body is solid as a rock. Whatever object she hits is devastated from the impact. This spell harden's Sembas's fists to allow him to strike harder.
Mend Falcon - Sembas concentrates and pumps restorative energy into Faile, healing any wounds she has. The more severe the wound the more effort the spell takes. This is a close range spell. Sembas receives no benefit from this spell.
Project Shield - Sembas erects a shield around Faile, protecting her from simple projectiles and attacks. Sembas receives no benefit from this spell.
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Death:
To understand how Sembas died you must further understand the bond he shares with Faile. When Faile attached herself with Sembas she linked their souls together. This granted Sembas the gift of sharing her enchantment. As they grew together the bond grew as well. The link was so complete that their souls were as one. Meaning that if one of them were to pass away, the other would drop dead. Their life force snuffed out. In their hearts they both knew this, but it was something they would never share with anyone else.
His death happened on a routine patrol around the village. Sembas had heard reports of a few cloaked figures roaming the hills to the north. Faile was frustrated. She would catch a glimpse of someone off in the distance, or a glint of metal from below in the thick forest. Once she got closer to whoever she saw they were gone.
"Fire Breath! I want to burn this thing out of the hills! I can't stand it any longer!" Faile would yell in Sembas's mind before letting out a loud cry, challenging whatever was eluding her. She didn't like not being able to track something, taking pride in her incredible eyesight.
The pride in herself was warranted. The two of them were proving to be experts at defending the small village. Bandits never show their faces these days, having heard word of the Deamon Bird haunting the skies. The village was basking in a period of peace for the time being. This was exactly why Sembas was worried about these shadowy figures in the surrounding hills. They weren't simple bandits, whatever they were.
Sembas had taken a break, sitting below a tree on the outskirts of a wide field. He was watching Faile as she was playing around in the air, tumbling and performing acrobatics. Suddenly, he started feeling uneasy. Faile leveled out in the air and was flying away from him, towards a group of trees a fair distance away.
"Faile?" He asked, "Where are you going, you should wait for me."
"It's going to get away! Its-" Her thought was cut off. Sembas watched as she fell to the ground. He quickly erected a shield around her. It absorbed her impact on the ground, but that was all the shield could take at this distance.
Sembas took off across the field. Faile would have dodged any arrow coming at her, she was much too quick for that. There were no other birds in the area that could match her either. It must have been magic.
He felt his muscles become invigorated and his steps quicken. Faile was still conscious, at least. She was giving him more of the enchantment. She rarely did this. She must be in trouble...
The tall grass around him blurred as he sped through it. He could see three figures standing around Faile on the outskirts of the trees he saw earlier. An arrow catches one of them in the back and pierces through his chest. As he falls Sembas continues his charge.
"Lightning! Now! While they're distracted!" Faile screams.
Sembas holds a finger up to his lips as he wills forth Faile's enchantment. He thrusts his hand into the air and the sky cracks open with two bolts of lightning. One arcs down his arm and settles into the tip of the spear tied to his back. The other strikes Faile's body. The two figures surrounding her jump back from the explosion. Faile springs into one of them, tearing at them with her razor sharp claws. The figure falls backwards in pain and Faile launches a bolt of lightning at them. The electricity arcing through her body fading after she expelled the majority of it during her attack.
The other figure was holding a shimmering bow, an arrow knocked into place. As Faile flew away from her victim she saw the arrow aimed directly at her. She was still recovering from whatever struck her from the sky, and giving Sembas more of her enchantment also drained her. If that was a normal bow and arrow it would be no contest, but something was odd about it. Something magical.
Sembas was running as fast as he could. Spear in hands. The arrow released from the bow, and in the blink of an eye he watched it pierce through Faile. His next footfall collapsed underneath him, sending him tumbling forward. Lying on his back he saw Faile flapping madly in the air until she finally fell to the ground. As he lay there he could feel her pain, her fear. A tear ran down his cheek.
But the darkness never came. He heard footsteps approaching him. Slowly, Sembas moved his hand to grasp the bowie knife strapped to his thigh. He could still feel Faile's thoughts. Confusion, frustration, pain. The arrow was hindering her from getting up. For some reason she was still breathing... Still alive.
The figure stopped next to Sembas, a cackle wrenches itself out of the man.
"You were the one the others spoke of. The one with the Deamon Bird. A shame we had to kill it, but we'll still pull any magic we can out of her hide, I assure you. I don't seem to recall you being stuck, in all the commotion. Your bird killed the mage with us. And I'm only missing one of my magic arrows. It seems you and your bird share more than just magic..."
Sembas leaps off the ground and plunges the long blade of his knife deep into the man's chest. He violently rips it away and lets the body fall to the ground. Faile was chirping a few meters away, lying on her back. Sembas runs over to her and gasps. An arrow was sticking straight through her body.
"Faile!" Sembas says in all but a whisper, "You should be dead... We both should be! Is this part of your enchantment?"
"No..." She says in his mind. "No, I believe this is something of your enchantment..."
Death Wound
Faile carries the scars from a magic arrow being fired from a bow of quickness. Her feathers cover the scar most of the time. If one were to look very, very closely you could see that she is missing a few feathers around the scars. When under the effects of Grow Falcon the missing feathers are more visible.
