Vaska Reynar
| Vaska Reynar | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Vas-ka Hri-yoree Ray-nar | |
| Created by | Bantha |
| Information | |
| Full name | Vaska Hryjorii Reynar |
| Gender | Female |
| Occupation | Novice |
| Affiliation | The Grey Tower |
| Nationality | Arafellin |
Vaska Hryjorii Reynar is an Arafellin Novice of the Grey Tower.
Description
Vaska Hryjorii Reynar is a no-nonsense woman with a seemingly cool and unflappable disposition. Like most from the borderlands, she is candid and views honesty as being next to godliness. When the Blight and creatures of the Dark threaten to take over one’s homeland, there’s no time for petty disputes. She differs from the Arafellen stereotype in that she does not come off as fiery as many from her land do, but the fire simply lays deeper within her, as a drive and a smouldering temper that arises only when pushed. Furthermore, she has a strong sense of honor and takes tarnishing it as a very serious offence. She would not hesitate to ask for a harsh punishment if she dishonored an individual she respected, and would in turn expect atonement from anyone equal to or below her. This comes out of sense of propriety and honor rather than joy to see another grovel at her feet.
Vaska possesses deep-set blue eyes and pale skin. Her features are blunt and masculine, and her pale blonde hair grows thick and coarse, reaching to the middle of her back. It is usually worn in a tight braid beginning at the front of her scalp. On occasion, small silver bells are woven into her hair in the Arafellin fashion which jingle whenever she moves.
She moves with clear self-assurance, her tall height and muscular frame making her seem more of a man than a woman when viewed from behind. Broad shoulders, narrow hips, a propensity to wear breeches rather than skirts further this illusion of male gender.
Biography
Vaska was born to Turold, high seat of the minor house Reynar, and Irenja [I-ren-ya], formerly of house Hryjorii. Her sister Eyrún [Ey-rune] was the oldest of all the children, followed by twin brothers, Darowyn and Ithael, and Vaska herself. While both Eyrún and Vaska were schooled in womanly arts, Vaska used every opportunity to get into escapades with her older brothers. Her tomboy nature was very apparent at a young age, tumbling with her brothers in the courtyards of their keep. Accordingly, Vaska was treated more of a son than a daughter, learning swordsmanship and tactics along with her brothers. In the Arafellin tradition, she learned the basics of how to dual-wield, as well as how to handle single swords and quarterstaffs. On her twelfth naming day her father gifted her a sword, making her swear to defend the Light until her last breath.
She joined the forces along the border of the Blight three years later, seeing trollocs, myrdraal, and the rare drakar. Being the youngest daughter of a minor house, both inheritance and pressure to marry into a higher house were minimal. It was her life’s destiny, as she saw it. Vaska was a soldier--thoughts of being a wife and mother were far from her mind.
Battle was both terrifying and thrilling. She did not court death, as some might remark, as she was eager to leap into the fray. Feeling the rush of danger made her feel...invincible. She could move faster, see keener, hear farther.
Her first experience with touching Saidar came years before, during a raid on her family’s keep. Their estates were nearer the Blight than many, yet it was still unusual for a raid to break through the line of tower defenses that ran the northern Arafel border.
Nearly a week later she came down with a terrible sickness, shivering and nearly fainting during morning swordsmanship practice. She was put to bed, but by the time the healing woman came to tend to her she had recovered. Other episodes came like this-- cluster headaches, nausea and vomiting, and even mania--the spacing closer and closer to whenever she touched Saidar. The only explanation she could come up with at the time was her changing body and becoming more of a woman, and it was not until years later that she would understand what these episodes of sickness meant.
The truth behind her episodes appeared in the form of an Aes Sedai of the Grey Tower, Morna Antares. The Brown sister was officially on a sabbatical to trace lineages of the noble Borderland houses back to the breaking, yet sought out Vaska individually after hearing of her unusual episodic illnesses through interviews of distant family members. It was virtually unheard of for an Aes Sedai, especially a brown, to visit defenses along the Blight unannounced. Yet Morna’sedai was afforded nearly the same level of respect as a visiting monarch. While very kind towards Vaska, she was adamant that for her own safety Vaska be brought to the Grey Tower immediately to receive training.
While Vaska was distraught and reluctant to leave her life behind, the pair of women left the next night to begin the journey South. She had almost no concept of what it meant to “be put in white,” and even less of what an Aes’Sedai was or what she could do. During childhood she had been told the infamous story of the Breaking and the aftermath, and of great feats performed by the Aes’Sedai of old. However, none of that could prepare her for what she would face in the Tower.
Career History
- Novice (3 March 2019)
