Taliira A'Daragon (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
interestingtimes) wrote2023-10-02 03:02 am
interestingtimes) wrote2023-10-02 03:02 am
History
the function of freedom, is to free someone else
History
Menzoberranzan, the City of Spiders, is perhaps the most well-known Drow city in Faerûn. The backbone of the city is forged by the bloodlines contained within the powerful, as the noble high houses are constantly vying for power and influence. Among such nobility was House A'Daragon; while considered to not be as formidable or significant as its opposing houses, the Matron Mother of the bloodline would not stand to have you believe anything else. Luaran A'Daragon led her House with a strict and unwavering doctrine of discipline, devotion, and cruelty. Those who couldn't perform to her chorus did not deserve to live within the walls of the House, let alone retain the rights to survive within their most sacred city.
Even as young as she was, Taliira already knew that her every action, every movement, and even her words were scrutinized by the House Matron and her elder sisters. Every lesson she learned from family and tutor alike dealt with the subjugation of those deemed beneath them, and the harsh punishment of asking questions that did not serve to advance the interest of their House. Torture was their house's specialty, and it was not reserved for their enemies or slaves.
Her family - more so the Matron Mother - was unrelenting in their demands for perfection, and the punishments for any perceived failure were brutal. Taliira knew the pain and agony of starvation early on, and the consequences that followed when she cried. Tears were a sign of weakness, and weakness only beckoned death. At the age of six, Taliira knew how to wield a knife, and at the age of eight, she was shipped off to Arach-Tinilith to study under the Quenthel herself.
Taliira spent the next several years training in the ways of Lolth, studying her scriptures and prayers. She was exceptionally gifted with a blade, weaving magic and swordwork together into a deadly dance. It was due to her skills that she was quick to work her way through the ranks within Arach-Tinilith, though it wasn't only magic and swordwork that she learned there. The Priesthood was just as ruthless as her own House, if not more so, and cruelty became second nature to her in order to survive.
For decades, she dedicated herself to perfection; perfection for Lolth, as demanded by the Spider Queen. Perfection for her Matron Mother, who demanded more of her than their Goddess. Perfection, for if she gave anything less, the punishment would mean her life. Still, such a mindset made her enemies, for no one could be more cruel than her own family.
Of all the opponents she had made, however, she never anticipated her eldest sister to be among them. While her other sisters either ignored her existence or tried to use her for their own gains, neither of those concepts were particularly new to her, having gone most of her early childhood years playing along as a puppet, or left in a corner of their manor to starve. Cazna A'Daragon, the first-born daughter of their Matron Mother, was as conniving and sadistic as Luaran. A mirror image of their Matron, mother differed from daughter in one vital way; Cazna was jealous of the rest of her siblings, especially those who had won the favor of Luaran.
Even after graduating from Arach-Tinilith with such exceptional praise and rank, Taliira was still just the fifth-born daughter and would never be a challenge to the title of Matron. The added fact that she did not want to pursue such titles didn't matter to Cazna, and one night, while Taliira was home for the first time in months, she was cornered by the eldest. The events that followed were paved with a mixture of blood, pain, and torture; when morning finally arrived, it arrived to Taliira standing over the dead body of her sister, and the accusation of murder hanging over her head.
Instead of the consequences that she had been expecting, Taliira was met with praise. Lurana had seen Cazna as a threat, someone who would be making a move against her. With Cazna was gone, the Matron Mother found a new purpose for her youngest daughter. Once a Priestess of Lolth, Taliira now found herself as the hidden blade of Luaran; anyone that the Matron Mother deemed a threat soon found themselves skewered at the end of her blade.
For the next few decades, Taliira did all she could to please Luaran. Killing became almost second nature, and as her skills grew, so too did Luaran's punishments become harsher when Taliira displeased her. The only reprieve to be found was when she walked the market on errands for the Matron Mother. It was one of these walks where she met a male Drow named Kalannar, the son of a merchant who peddled their wares in the market most days. Their meeting wasn't fate, nor out of a story. It simply happened, and kept happening, until she realized that he had come to be the only friend that she'd ever had.
Kalannar was the one who taught Taliira how to draw, giving her a leather-bound journal to practice in, and before she knew it, whenever she had time, she would slip away from her duties to spend time with him. For the first time in 95 years, Taliira felt a sense of happiness when she was with him; a sense of peace.
Of course, happiness was never something that one who served Lolth experienced for long; not like this, anyway. Happiness came in the form of conquest, torture, and the joy of subjugating those they deemed unworthy. It was Kalannar who showed Taliira a different perspective. And with that new perspective came the first hesitation of her blade, as well as the consequence of allowing herself to consider a life outside of the brutality of Lolth and her mother.
For Luaran A'Daragon was not a woman to be crossed, and her punishment for disobedience was meant to instill a lesson. The lesson that Luaran provided for Taliira, to understand her purpose in life, was to take Kalannar and have Taliira kill him. Trapped inside a crypt with him, watching him slowly bleed from the torture her Matron Mother had done to him, it would have been a mercy to end his life.
A mercy.
That's what she had to tell herself. If she didn't do what Luaran wanted, Kalannar would either die painfully, or live to be tortured and enslaved by the Matron. Her blade still hesitated, and for the first time since her childhood, tears stung her eyes. She took his life, but the lesson Luaran wanted to teach her failed. She left that crypt with an oath of vengeance brewing in her heart, and when she returned to Luaran's side, she drove the very same blade through her mother's.
Forsaking everything she had ever been taught — every scripture, every prayer, all the conditioning Lolth had instilled in her, all the hatred and fear that was driven into her by her family — she forsook it all. Escaping Menzoberranzan wasn't easy, and leaving the Underdark was harder still, but freedom was worth the cost.
+ TW: Childhood abuse & neglect beyond this point!
Taliira was born the fifth daughter of Luaran, the youngest female of House A'Daragon, and the eighth child of the Matron Mother. After her birth, Taliira was assigned a maid and a tutor, and from then out it was rare for her to see either of her parents. The majority of her earlier years were spent glued to her tutor's side, learning the ways of Lolth from her elder sisters, and realizing that it was better to be ignored than to feel the sting of a whip.Even as young as she was, Taliira already knew that her every action, every movement, and even her words were scrutinized by the House Matron and her elder sisters. Every lesson she learned from family and tutor alike dealt with the subjugation of those deemed beneath them, and the harsh punishment of asking questions that did not serve to advance the interest of their House. Torture was their house's specialty, and it was not reserved for their enemies or slaves.
Her family - more so the Matron Mother - was unrelenting in their demands for perfection, and the punishments for any perceived failure were brutal. Taliira knew the pain and agony of starvation early on, and the consequences that followed when she cried. Tears were a sign of weakness, and weakness only beckoned death. At the age of six, Taliira knew how to wield a knife, and at the age of eight, she was shipped off to Arach-Tinilith to study under the Quenthel herself.
Taliira spent the next several years training in the ways of Lolth, studying her scriptures and prayers. She was exceptionally gifted with a blade, weaving magic and swordwork together into a deadly dance. It was due to her skills that she was quick to work her way through the ranks within Arach-Tinilith, though it wasn't only magic and swordwork that she learned there. The Priesthood was just as ruthless as her own House, if not more so, and cruelty became second nature to her in order to survive.
For decades, she dedicated herself to perfection; perfection for Lolth, as demanded by the Spider Queen. Perfection for her Matron Mother, who demanded more of her than their Goddess. Perfection, for if she gave anything less, the punishment would mean her life. Still, such a mindset made her enemies, for no one could be more cruel than her own family.
Of all the opponents she had made, however, she never anticipated her eldest sister to be among them. While her other sisters either ignored her existence or tried to use her for their own gains, neither of those concepts were particularly new to her, having gone most of her early childhood years playing along as a puppet, or left in a corner of their manor to starve. Cazna A'Daragon, the first-born daughter of their Matron Mother, was as conniving and sadistic as Luaran. A mirror image of their Matron, mother differed from daughter in one vital way; Cazna was jealous of the rest of her siblings, especially those who had won the favor of Luaran.
Even after graduating from Arach-Tinilith with such exceptional praise and rank, Taliira was still just the fifth-born daughter and would never be a challenge to the title of Matron. The added fact that she did not want to pursue such titles didn't matter to Cazna, and one night, while Taliira was home for the first time in months, she was cornered by the eldest. The events that followed were paved with a mixture of blood, pain, and torture; when morning finally arrived, it arrived to Taliira standing over the dead body of her sister, and the accusation of murder hanging over her head.
Instead of the consequences that she had been expecting, Taliira was met with praise. Lurana had seen Cazna as a threat, someone who would be making a move against her. With Cazna was gone, the Matron Mother found a new purpose for her youngest daughter. Once a Priestess of Lolth, Taliira now found herself as the hidden blade of Luaran; anyone that the Matron Mother deemed a threat soon found themselves skewered at the end of her blade.
For the next few decades, Taliira did all she could to please Luaran. Killing became almost second nature, and as her skills grew, so too did Luaran's punishments become harsher when Taliira displeased her. The only reprieve to be found was when she walked the market on errands for the Matron Mother. It was one of these walks where she met a male Drow named Kalannar, the son of a merchant who peddled their wares in the market most days. Their meeting wasn't fate, nor out of a story. It simply happened, and kept happening, until she realized that he had come to be the only friend that she'd ever had.
Kalannar was the one who taught Taliira how to draw, giving her a leather-bound journal to practice in, and before she knew it, whenever she had time, she would slip away from her duties to spend time with him. For the first time in 95 years, Taliira felt a sense of happiness when she was with him; a sense of peace.
Of course, happiness was never something that one who served Lolth experienced for long; not like this, anyway. Happiness came in the form of conquest, torture, and the joy of subjugating those they deemed unworthy. It was Kalannar who showed Taliira a different perspective. And with that new perspective came the first hesitation of her blade, as well as the consequence of allowing herself to consider a life outside of the brutality of Lolth and her mother.
For Luaran A'Daragon was not a woman to be crossed, and her punishment for disobedience was meant to instill a lesson. The lesson that Luaran provided for Taliira, to understand her purpose in life, was to take Kalannar and have Taliira kill him. Trapped inside a crypt with him, watching him slowly bleed from the torture her Matron Mother had done to him, it would have been a mercy to end his life.
A mercy.
That's what she had to tell herself. If she didn't do what Luaran wanted, Kalannar would either die painfully, or live to be tortured and enslaved by the Matron. Her blade still hesitated, and for the first time since her childhood, tears stung her eyes. She took his life, but the lesson Luaran wanted to teach her failed. She left that crypt with an oath of vengeance brewing in her heart, and when she returned to Luaran's side, she drove the very same blade through her mother's.
Forsaking everything she had ever been taught — every scripture, every prayer, all the conditioning Lolth had instilled in her, all the hatred and fear that was driven into her by her family — she forsook it all. Escaping Menzoberranzan wasn't easy, and leaving the Underdark was harder still, but freedom was worth the cost.