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Name: Sabriel (![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
i_toll_for_thee)
Fandom: The Old Kingdom Trilogy, by Garth Nix
Media: Book(s)
Physical description: Sabriel is in her late teens, with straight black hair cut bluntly just above the shoulders. Her skin is incredibly pale broken by a few darker scattered scars across the right cheek, eyes a dark brown-black. Long-limbed and fairly tall for a girl at 5'8", she has a dancer's build--muscle and small curves. At home, her clothing is medieval-casual: tunics and leggings and boots. When about her duty as Abhorsen, over the usual garments goes a long coat of lightweight ceramic scale armor and a surcoat with the Abhorsen's crest on it (a silver key on blue) with bells and sword. PB is Leigh Lezark.
Personality: Sabriel has always been fairly solemn. Her sense of humor tends towards the wry and sardonic. She's very polite, though direct, and has a gift for diplomacy. Her comfort in both Ancelstierre and the Old Kingdom show a very basic sort of flexibility, a willingness to adapt to whatever the situation calls for, and a quick intelligence. She's fairly reserved, focused and thoughtful. Her recent history on the battlefield and things she's seen in Death make her fairly intense; most people feel uncomfortable under her scrutiny, but if you're in serious trouble she'll be at your side in a heartbeat even if she's only met you five minutes ago, because it's the right thing to do.
Short biography: Sabriel's world is actually two worlds divided by the Wall, a construct that divides two very different worlds. South of the Wall is Ancelstierre, much like 1930s England, where Sabriel was raised and went to school. North of the Wall is the Old Kingdom, where Sabriel was born. The Old Kingdom was founded on the Charter, a living magic made of millions of Charter Marks the gifted can call upon for many purposes, but it also lies much closer to Death, allowing the talented to push through the boundary and walk the river, or call things from it. Her father was the Abhorsen, the binder of the dead and magical guardian for the Old Kingdom, until he was trapped deep in Death.
A servant brought Sabriel his bells and sword, and she immediately set out for the Old Kingdom, where she hadn't set foot in 15 years, to find him. Along the way, she learned that the kingdom wass decaying and the Dead ran rampant since the former ruling family was slaughtered 200 years ago. Acquiring a talking cat bound to the Abhorsen's house and a berserker trapped in a ship's figurehead as companions, she made her way to the capital to find that the creature who slew the royal family is also the same that captured her father and intended to use her blood to break the Charter and merge Death and the Kingdom. Here, Sabriel learns that her father has been too deep in Death for too long to return, and that she must become the new Abhorsen and help the rightful king take his place--her companion Touchstone, the soldier she freed, a bastard son of the old queen.
With the help of many on both sides of the Wall, Sabriel binds Kerrigor and lays him to rest beneath the Abhorsen's house, and when Touchstone is crowned King, joins him as his Queen and serves as the 53rd Abhorsen.
As of this canon point, Sabriel and Touchstone have been married for almost a year, and most of that has been spent laying the Dead to rest and helping rebuild the kingdom.
Physical Abilities: Sabriel's strength isn't anything out of the ordinary for an athletic, well-trained and practiced young woman. She has a sword and she knows how to use it, and has faced both human and nonhuman opponents in life-or-death combat. Solid reflexes, fighting experience, and intelligence make a difference, but she's not arm-wrestling bodybuilders any time soon.
Superhuman Abilities: Sabriel is the current Abhorsen, making her essentially the anti-necromancer. She sends the Dead to rest, and can walk in the river of Death without being corrupted or falling prey to the river's many traps and pitfalls. Her practice and skill with the bells, the necromancer's main tools, are considerable, and she's also a capable Charter mage, though anywhere but the Old Kingdom and some areas elsewhere, the Charter's presence seems to come and go, making all of these skills unreliable and the bells too dangerous to try.
Unusual or Magical Possessions: The Abhorsen's Bells never leave her sight--seven bells of different sizes in pouches on a bandolier worn across the chest, each with a different name and ability.** Her sword is Charter-blessed, making it stronger, sharper, holier, and for lack of a better word more sword-like than your average blade, and something of a family heirloom. She also has the Book of the Dead, which only opens to the Old Kingdom's stronger bloodlines, and holds information on everything to do with Death and the Dead, as you might guess from the title.
**On the Abhorsen's Bells, Their Names and Properties
There are seven bells any necromancer must master in order to truly command the Dead. Each is named for a different powerful Free Magic spirit of the seven who created the Charter, and each has its own unique abilities. From smallest to largest, they are as follows:
Ranna, the Sleepbringer - Sweet and low. Puts restless minds at ease, and can send the weakest Dead slipping back into Death. If rung improperly, distracts the ringer from their purpose, causing yawning and inattentiveness.
Mosrael, the Waker - Harsh, rowdy. Throws the ringer further into Death, as it brings the listener into Life.
Kibeth, the Walker - A bell of many sounds. Can grant the Dead freedom of movement, or cause them to walk where the ringer wills. Often has a mind of its own, and will try to make the ringer walk where she would not.
Dyrim, the Speaker - A musical bell with clear tone. Can give the Dead their voice, or still a moving tongue.
Belgaer, the Thinker - A tricky bell, always seeking to sound itself. Can restore independent thought and memory, all the semblance of life, or if used carelessly, erase them forever.
Saraneth, the Binder - The bell of deepest tone, strong in sound. Binds the listener to the will of the ringer. Most commonly used bell of the seven.
Astarael, the Sorrowful - Also called the Weeper. Cold to the touch, never used save in the direst of circumstances. Properly rung, it casts everyone who hears it far into Death...including the ringer.
i_toll_for_thee)Fandom: The Old Kingdom Trilogy, by Garth Nix
Media: Book(s)
Physical description: Sabriel is in her late teens, with straight black hair cut bluntly just above the shoulders. Her skin is incredibly pale broken by a few darker scattered scars across the right cheek, eyes a dark brown-black. Long-limbed and fairly tall for a girl at 5'8", she has a dancer's build--muscle and small curves. At home, her clothing is medieval-casual: tunics and leggings and boots. When about her duty as Abhorsen, over the usual garments goes a long coat of lightweight ceramic scale armor and a surcoat with the Abhorsen's crest on it (a silver key on blue) with bells and sword. PB is Leigh Lezark.
Personality: Sabriel has always been fairly solemn. Her sense of humor tends towards the wry and sardonic. She's very polite, though direct, and has a gift for diplomacy. Her comfort in both Ancelstierre and the Old Kingdom show a very basic sort of flexibility, a willingness to adapt to whatever the situation calls for, and a quick intelligence. She's fairly reserved, focused and thoughtful. Her recent history on the battlefield and things she's seen in Death make her fairly intense; most people feel uncomfortable under her scrutiny, but if you're in serious trouble she'll be at your side in a heartbeat even if she's only met you five minutes ago, because it's the right thing to do.
Short biography: Sabriel's world is actually two worlds divided by the Wall, a construct that divides two very different worlds. South of the Wall is Ancelstierre, much like 1930s England, where Sabriel was raised and went to school. North of the Wall is the Old Kingdom, where Sabriel was born. The Old Kingdom was founded on the Charter, a living magic made of millions of Charter Marks the gifted can call upon for many purposes, but it also lies much closer to Death, allowing the talented to push through the boundary and walk the river, or call things from it. Her father was the Abhorsen, the binder of the dead and magical guardian for the Old Kingdom, until he was trapped deep in Death.
A servant brought Sabriel his bells and sword, and she immediately set out for the Old Kingdom, where she hadn't set foot in 15 years, to find him. Along the way, she learned that the kingdom wass decaying and the Dead ran rampant since the former ruling family was slaughtered 200 years ago. Acquiring a talking cat bound to the Abhorsen's house and a berserker trapped in a ship's figurehead as companions, she made her way to the capital to find that the creature who slew the royal family is also the same that captured her father and intended to use her blood to break the Charter and merge Death and the Kingdom. Here, Sabriel learns that her father has been too deep in Death for too long to return, and that she must become the new Abhorsen and help the rightful king take his place--her companion Touchstone, the soldier she freed, a bastard son of the old queen.
With the help of many on both sides of the Wall, Sabriel binds Kerrigor and lays him to rest beneath the Abhorsen's house, and when Touchstone is crowned King, joins him as his Queen and serves as the 53rd Abhorsen.
As of this canon point, Sabriel and Touchstone have been married for almost a year, and most of that has been spent laying the Dead to rest and helping rebuild the kingdom.
Physical Abilities: Sabriel's strength isn't anything out of the ordinary for an athletic, well-trained and practiced young woman. She has a sword and she knows how to use it, and has faced both human and nonhuman opponents in life-or-death combat. Solid reflexes, fighting experience, and intelligence make a difference, but she's not arm-wrestling bodybuilders any time soon.
Superhuman Abilities: Sabriel is the current Abhorsen, making her essentially the anti-necromancer. She sends the Dead to rest, and can walk in the river of Death without being corrupted or falling prey to the river's many traps and pitfalls. Her practice and skill with the bells, the necromancer's main tools, are considerable, and she's also a capable Charter mage, though anywhere but the Old Kingdom and some areas elsewhere, the Charter's presence seems to come and go, making all of these skills unreliable and the bells too dangerous to try.
Unusual or Magical Possessions: The Abhorsen's Bells never leave her sight--seven bells of different sizes in pouches on a bandolier worn across the chest, each with a different name and ability.** Her sword is Charter-blessed, making it stronger, sharper, holier, and for lack of a better word more sword-like than your average blade, and something of a family heirloom. She also has the Book of the Dead, which only opens to the Old Kingdom's stronger bloodlines, and holds information on everything to do with Death and the Dead, as you might guess from the title.
**On the Abhorsen's Bells, Their Names and Properties
There are seven bells any necromancer must master in order to truly command the Dead. Each is named for a different powerful Free Magic spirit of the seven who created the Charter, and each has its own unique abilities. From smallest to largest, they are as follows:
Ranna, the Sleepbringer - Sweet and low. Puts restless minds at ease, and can send the weakest Dead slipping back into Death. If rung improperly, distracts the ringer from their purpose, causing yawning and inattentiveness.
Mosrael, the Waker - Harsh, rowdy. Throws the ringer further into Death, as it brings the listener into Life.
Kibeth, the Walker - A bell of many sounds. Can grant the Dead freedom of movement, or cause them to walk where the ringer wills. Often has a mind of its own, and will try to make the ringer walk where she would not.
Dyrim, the Speaker - A musical bell with clear tone. Can give the Dead their voice, or still a moving tongue.
Belgaer, the Thinker - A tricky bell, always seeking to sound itself. Can restore independent thought and memory, all the semblance of life, or if used carelessly, erase them forever.
Saraneth, the Binder - The bell of deepest tone, strong in sound. Binds the listener to the will of the ringer. Most commonly used bell of the seven.
Astarael, the Sorrowful - Also called the Weeper. Cold to the touch, never used save in the direst of circumstances. Properly rung, it casts everyone who hears it far into Death...including the ringer.
