Naja

Inventory

Some stuff Naja tends to carry on her person.

greatsword

A mighty weapon that has a large grip for leverage. It looks like it relies as much on its weight as its edge to cause damage. Covered in countless notches and scrapes.

Hair ornament

A simple decorative hair ornament made from yak bone, bronze and coloured pearls. Always seen hanging from Naja's champagne blonde hair.

feather necklace

A little necklace in the shape of a feather, carefully but inexpertly hammered from gold. A precious gift.

Dodo dowsing leg

A desiccated leg of a dodo. Naja seems adamant that the allegedly magicked object will vibrate when gold is near. So far it has not produced any results, but it might not react to small amounts.

Picture-taking-box

A mysterious box that can instantly capture the world on a piece of paper. Probably not cursed.

Chobobble hat

A yellowy and festive bobble hat with nifty holes for long ears to poke through. Sure to keep one's head warm in colder climates.

Herb pouch

A small hip pouch for carrying medical miscellany. It has a strong smell of herbs to it.

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Gallery

• Screenies
• Artwork

Taking screenshots is a nice extension to my photography hobby! Feel free to poke me to share ideas and such!

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Gallery

• Screenies
• Artwork

Various artworks commissioned, received as gifts, and even my own silly doodles! Most exist just for funzies, so they might be wildly out of character!

Vaia and Naja enjoying a peaceful nap in a forest (commissioned art by Clivef梨子)

Homebound bunventurers riding Sunchaser through the skies (commissioned art by Nalak-Bel)

Bunbuddies having a peaceful stroll on a pretty summer day! (art by me!)

Naja in an alternative universe where porxies nap under umbrellas(commissioned art by Selvagemqt)

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Gallery

• Screenies
• Artwork
• NSFW

Artworks commissioned from various talented artists! Most were just for funzies, so they might be out of character!

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Story I

Breathe

Skatay Mountains 🙢 1550, 6th Astral Era (age 6)

• ♬ Inon Zur • Skeleton of a Town

Icy winds howled across the snowy mountaintops. The bright of the sun shimmered on the white slopes, no clouds to hide its warmth. It felt like I could soon look upon the whole world after reaching such heights, the endless horizon stretching out before my green eyes. It was easily the most beautiful morning I had ever seen.Making my way higher towards the peaks, I shielded my eyes from the sun and turned to look down over my shoulder, seeing the high treetops and sprawling rope bridges of my village far down below. I was never allowed to climb so high, but my mother had asked me to join her in finding some levin blossoms, beautiful flowers that grew only close to the peaks.I stumbled, feeling woozy after glancing at the base of the mountain. Before I could even make a sound, I could feel my mother’s hands wrapping around me protectively, steadying me. “Look where you are going, Naja.” The gentle, melodic tone she spoke close to my ear felt comforting. Even though I was so high up in the perilous paths, I felt perfectly safe.I nodded silently and squinted my eyes, gazing upwards to try and see the pretty red and blue flowers against the banks of snow. Mother squeezed my fingers gently, and I squeezed back. Together we climbed, hand in hand.

⬩ ⬥ ⬩ ⬥ ⬩

High places always made me uncomfortable. Just looking down from our home built amongst the trees was enough to make me incredibly dizzy; the other children in the village never stopped teasing me about it.My sister Neeta was the complete opposite. She had a head for heights, always scaling trees and dangling from the branches using only her feet. It was so reckless, yet secretly I wished I had the courage to follow her. I always tried to, but even climbing on the lowest branch had me too scared to even hop back on the ground.When alone, crossing the many bridges connecting the trees of my village was always a struggle. I had to keep my eyes firmly shut, using the feel of the tattered handrail ropes to slowly guide me over. I was endlessly thankful whenever my sister was there to help me, pulling me by the hand and keeping me up when my feet slipped between the planks.

⬩ ⬥ ⬩ ⬥ ⬩

My mother hummed a calming tune like she always did when trying to soothe her children. It was not really even a melody, just one long note after another, weaved together to echo in the winds. It always brought me great peace, and this time was no different.Suddenly my eyes settled on a dash of petals in crimson and brilliant azure, shining in the bright spring sun. Levin blossoms? Surely enough, a bed of delicate flowers stretched out before my eyes, well concealed behind a bump in the snow. I let out an excited shout and rushed on to kneel next to the frail blossoms. My high voice was still carrying across the snowy slopes as I reached out my hand to pick up one of the pretty flowers.Then suddenly something changed. There was a low rumble that grew louder in an instant. My tufted ears stood up, alert, warning me of a danger I could not see. Then the skies darkened. I turned around, eyes meeting a massive wave of snow quickly crashing down towards us at a frightening speed. I could only look at the white mist in terror as it approached. There was no shelter, no time to reach one even if there was.My mother stepped in front of me protectively, like her frame could somehow protect me. I screamed out from the top of my lungs, staring helplessly as the mountain of snow came crashing down, enveloping us. The rushing mist of frost grabbed my mother and sent her flying, hitting me before everything went dark.

⬩ ⬥ ⬩ ⬥ ⬩

Stillness. I couldn’t see anything, only feel a crushing weight pressed hard against my body from all sides. It was impossibly quiet, I could only hear my ragged breathing and the erratic thump of my heartbeat. I was… buried? I could feel air flow near my face, there had to be a small pocket of air that stopped me from suffocating. For how long… it was impossible to know.I couldn’t move at all. There was wild pain radiating from my left arm, yet I was helpless to do anything about it. Was this how I would die? Alone, buried under a mountain of snow? I could only hope my mother was safe, somehow.Moments passed, then many more. Had I been trapped here in the dark for a bell or a sun? Overwhelmed by terror, I couldn’t keep the panic away any longer. I tried to scream whatever air I had left in my burning lungs against the packed snow, hopelessly.Then there was a low sound. Maybe footsteps? The sounds grew louder and louder. I was certain there had to be someone standing right above me. I could hear a muffled voice speaking through the compressed snow. “Naja? Naja! Gods… please...” Was my mother already looking for me? The voice was too quiet to be sure.I couldn’t see, but I could sense my thoughts getting more blurred from the lack of air. How long would it take to dig me out? Too long… It was so cruel, to have someone so close, all for nothing. My mind started to slip into unconsciousness.I felt a sharp pain as someone tugged my ear. Right after I could hear the chafing sounds of snow being moved, shifted. Somehow the crushing weight against me seemed to ease up a little bit. Just as my mind was slipping over the threshold into darkness, a bright ray of sun struck my face, a fresh breeze of mountain air greeting me.

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Story III

Iron

Dalmasca Estersand 🙢 1553, 6th Astral Era (age 9)

“Hare. Pack up my tent. We march at dawn.”The familiar yet harsh voice pulled me away from my dreams. Through my eyelids I could see it was still very dark. It felt like I had curled up in a defensive ball to sleep only moments before, my entire body still screaming at me to rest my aching and sore muscles.I sat upright and rubbed my eyes to make it clear I was no longer asleep. By now I knew better than to ignore orders these strange men clad in iron came to bark at me. I had learned enough of their words to know what they wanted most of the time. There was another older Viera that had tried to teach me their tongue, but she vanished less than a moon ago. I didn’t dare to ask where she had gone.I opened my eyes to see that the obnoxious man was still looming over me. It was no surprise; he reeked of ale and piss, I could probably smell him several yalms away. Most addressed him as ‘Ser’, but some called him ‘Ott’. He was a giant of a Huyr, taller than even the tallest of my Veena tribe.The burly man appeared to be one of the leaders, only taking orders from another Hyur who was much shorter and lightly built, yet who everyone seemed to hold in highest regard. It was easy to see why; he had a harsh sense of justice to him and the desire to keep the group in strict order. The complete opposite of Ott, who cared very little about rules unless they gave him power over others.“Bring me breakfast after you’re done. Be quick about it or I’ll have your hide.”I climbed out from under the small patch of tent canvas that I used to keep warm and got to work, eager to get it over with as quickly as possible. Hopping from my nest to his tent a few yalms away, I noticed he had already packed most of his belongings in a sturdy chest, probably because he wouldn’t trust me with them.Whatever, it was less work for me. I lowered the tent pole and detached the pegs like I had done a million times before, then rolled up the groundsheet and the rest of the tent to make a tidy package, ready to be loaded upon a horsebird’s back. I could feel his cold stare boring into my back as I worked, the unkind grin he sometimes had on his hairy face.

⬩ ⬥ ⬩ ⬥ ⬩

Turning my face towards the mess tent, I saw many shadowy shapes also taking down tents, moving sluggishly on the torchlit sands. Most of them were Bangaa, like my friend Bubim. I had never seen the likes of them before joining the group; their scaly skin and lazy ears looked so strange to me. A few outsiders had visited my home village while I still lived there, but none were of this lizard-like folk.As far as I knew, I was the only Viera at camp now. The thought gave me great anxiety and made me feel incredibly homesick. How did I end up here, so far from my own? I could only wonder if my sister was in a better or worse situation.Everyone was busy, getting ready for the long march ahead. Those with insignias were putting on their heavy armor while the rest packed up the camp on sumpters. The mood seemed rotten and there were very few words spoken. Likely it had something to do with our next destination. I wouldn’t know, no one told us camp workers anything.Realizing I would bring about Ott’s wrath if I lingered too long, I hurried to the mess tent. Greeted by the delightful smell of popoto and carrot stew, I asked the camp’s chef, Fishguts, for a serving. He seemed very reluctant at first, but quickly changed his mind when I mentioned it was for the Ser. After he handed me the food, I ran back towards Ott's tent, carefully balancing the bowl in my calloused hands.

⬩ ⬥ ⬩ ⬥ ⬩

I waited patiently for him to start eating, hoping he would soon tell me to get a meal for myself and pack my few belongings for the road. I knew that I had to wait for further orders after doing whatever was asked of me.Looking indifferent, he brought a spoonful of stew to his mouth. It had been more than a sun since I last ate, so I couldn't stop myself from staring. My mouth watered from the smell of steaming carrots and popotoes and I could hear myself asking: “Can I eat n—”Suddenly I felt a jolt of wild pain and the ground tilted quickly towards me. I lost my vision momentarily as I crashed into the sand, barely conscious. The backhand blow had come unannounced this time. Laying motionless on my side,fought back the tears, knowing it was the very reaction he wanted to see.“Cold stew?! Did you think you could stop to steal a few spoonfuls on the way and expect me to not notice?” He shouted at the top of his lungs, angered. I could hear the poorly hidden malice and amusement in his voice. He threw out the first excuse for hitting me that came to mind. Not that he needed any.A stream of blood ran down my face. It felt cool against my cheek, easing the throbbing pain a little. I wondered which would be worse, keeping still or wailing out from the pain. He threw the wooden bowl at me, but I could barely feel the dull thud as it hit my body.I could hear a clank of metal and footsteps approaching, penetrating the loud ringing sound inside my head. Then a voice spoke out. “Ser, the commander has ordered everyone to gather at his tent for a meeting. Immediately.”I rolled to my back, looking up at the messenger with pleading eyes, but both men ignored me completely. I wasn’t part of this ‘everyone’, that much was certain. Ott stepped over me and they both left for one of the few tents still left standing.There was a distant crack of thunder, and moments later rain began to fall. The cold water felt soothing as it drummed lightly against my broken skin. I could taste the iron in my mouth. For a moment I wished I could just sink in the sand and never be seen again, but I knew I had to get up. To prepare for the long road ahead.

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Story IV

Medicaments

Dalmasca Estersand 🙢 1555, 6th Astral Era (age 11)

• ♬ Hitoshi Sakimoto • Dark Night

“It’s aright, Naja. You will not fail your second attempt.”The tone of Osgen‘s soft voice carried no anger in it. But his sharp ice blue eyes, those that I always found so very difficult to read, were now displaying his feelings clearly. And they were feelings of great disappointment.“Why should I learn this? Setting up tents is what I’m good at.” My huffed retort was certainly not lacking in anger. How could he expect me, a long eared runt of only eleven summers, to measure the passage of time so precisely, with my mind alone? Everyone else at camp had already made their low expectations towards my abilities painfully clear.Finding myself too scared to meet the old man’s steely gaze, I cast my eyes down at the emerald leaves swirling in the bubbling hot water. Whatever medicinal properties the leaves once held were surely now gone. Just like my excitement over being taught something useful, something that might have earned me at least a hint of respect from others at the encampment.With a defeated sigh my thoughts slowly drifted to the past. I had seen Osgen use the pungent substance brewed from bleatwort leaves many times before, and to great effect. The foul-smelling medicament was so potent that it knocked out even the brawniest man at the camp in an instant.The old man had mentioned that when eaten raw, the sticky leaves would make the stomach rupture, resulting in a death so agonizing I could not even begin to imagine it. So utmost care had to be used while preparing them. Brewing them too short a time would result in a deadly poison, while letting them soak in boiling water too long made them all but useless. Something I obviously shouldn’t be trusted with. Maybe hauling foodstuffs and setting up tents was the only thing I was good for.

⬩ ⬥ ⬩ ⬥ ⬩

“A second attempt will be forthcoming, yes?” His calmly presented question was enough to snap me out of my gloom. “Count the passing of time out loud. That way you will not miss the correct moment.” He continued, the very image of endless patience. His outstretched finger pointed at the cooking pot.“Y-yes.” I replied meekly, scrambling to replace the water, shoving the pot back over the eerily hot campfire. Hesitating only for a moment, I picked up another handful of sticky bleatwort leaves and dropped them in the water, waiting for it to reach boiling point, which did not take long at all. The crucial moment was at hand once more. I couldn’t help but dart a glance at the old man for confirmation, and he gave a slight nod of his head in response, leaning heavily against the long staff firmly gripped between his fingers.“O-one, two, t-three...” I felt stupid. Like a small child, struggling to put into words how many snow birds were sitting on a tree branch. I hated it so much. But I hated the idea of failing again even more.“Nine, ten… e-eleven...” How I wished I could escape, return to my home. Where I could play in the snow with my sister until dusk, hazy sunlight falling upon the snow capped mountains. But the stinging pain from the scars on my back always pushed away such foolish thoughts. “Fifteen, s-sixteen...” This was my life now. Being ordered around, no more than a slave to those with the Mesmenir insignia embroidered to their rugged outfits.“T-thirty!” Once my counting reached its end and I managed to calm my too-fast beating heart, I hastily removed the pot from the fire, turning to quickly pour away the water. I pulled a worn napkin from my pocket and started to place the well-soaked leaves carefully upon it. It was a simple undertaking, but I felt joy over accomplishing it regardless.“Yes. Now let the leaves dry, and then ground them to a fine powder. You may squeeze some juice out of honey lemons to soften the taste, but most that need this treatment will not know the difference.” He stood perfectly still, observing me with an expectant look on his wrinkled face. His faint wheezy breathing was the only thing accompanying the sound of the crackling fire.After what seemed like an eternity, he broke the silence. “Good. You’ll grow to be an adequate healer yet. Next, I will teach you letters, so you may one day read my book of Spoken anatomy. It will help you understand how to mend what is broken.”It was barely a praise, yet nothing could stop my spirit from soaring. I had done it. Perhaps one day the medicine I was making would save someone lingering at death’s door?

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Personality

• "This'll all be as easy as takin' a piss, yeah?" •

Skills ▴

🟊 Swordmanship
Many moons of arduous practice have left Naja with the skill and muscle required to wield large and cumbersome weapons with relative ease

🟊 Strong Feet
The leporine folk tend to have remarkably strong feet, and Naja is no exception, knowing when to use her powerful feet to gain an advantage

Strengths ▴

🟊 Herbology - The veena has been trained to recognize medicinal and harmful qualities of flora she comes across

🟊 Sharp Ears - Naja's tufted ears are exceptionally good even for a Viera, adapted to listening for even the slightest signs of danger

🟊 Mender - Many turns spent treating grave injuries have taught Naja a great deal about healing with both magical and non-magical means

Flaws ▾

🞬 Illiterate - Despite the best attempts of many, Naja never managed to learn how to read or write

🞬 Allergies - She has many!

🞬 Fear of heights - Naja is not very comfortable in high places...

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