Amanda Skellig

Amanda Skellig (Born 3092 AC) was a member of the Hunters and a close companion of Artoron L. Graves who joined the party in their quest to destroy the Praetor before becoming a permanent member.

Description
Amanda was a half-elf (a Wood Elf precisely), 22 years old and standing about 5'6" tall. She had short-cut black hair with brown eyes, flecked with gold. Though often covered by her clothing and armor, her body was covered with deep brands and arcane sigils, which constantly smoldered as if freshly charred into her flesh. These brands caused her immense pain, though she managed to project a calm and happy demeanor most of the time, despite the agony.

When channeling the presence that dwelled within her body, her hair burst into red and orange flames, and her eyes glowed a deep vibrant gold. Later into her flexing these powers, she even gained the ability to conjure massive wings of sunlight, upon which she could fly for extended periods.

Personality
Amanda was an extremely kindhearted soul, who would selflessly put herself into harm's way to protect others. She was especially loyal to the Hunters, and even more so to Artoron, whom she loved deeply. She had a nervous disposition, quickly forcing her into an unsteady stutter when she was particularly stressed or concerned. However, despite her nervousness, she would never back down from any threat to protect those she cared about.

She did have a notably jealous personality when it came to Artoron. Any interaction with other women would tend to prompt fawning behavior from her, though she never showed any disrespect to other women, merely wishing to assert her place. She, when her mind was particularly addled or manipulated, seemed to show signs of harboring a god complex due to the presence within her and the powers it granted her. While this seemed to lie deep beneath her surface, she did showcase some disturbingly possessive tendencies about Artoron at times, implying she intended to use her dangerous powers to preserve their love if need be.

Relationships
Amanda was deeply in love with and devoted to Artoron L. Graves, whom she gradually fell in love with over the course of adventuring together. While she loved the Hunters and regarded them as family, her two closest bonds were certainly those with Artoron and her deceased sister, Anna.

Early Life
Amanda was born in the year 3092 AC, to a couple of lowly farmers in the countryside of Lotheria. It was here that she spent much of her childhood with her parents and her older sister, Anna. This was until 3101 AC, when the constant flow of the Second Lotherian Civil War reached their doorstep. Her parents were killed when a battle destroyed their village and home, leaving then 9 year old Amanda and 14 year old Anna orphaned. The two sisters were found in the aftermath of the battle and brought to Saint Maria's Orphanage in Larkfield. It was here that Amanda would spent the rest of her traumatic childhood.

The clerics that ran Saint Maria's Orphanage were horrifically abusive and overbearing, and Amanda's childhood was not a happy one. However, her elder sister kept close to her and kept her company through it all. During this time, the horrific Deogenesis experimentation by the clerics went on in the basement passages beneath the orphanage. Amanda was chosen for these experiments one day, but Anna stood by and demanded to be taken instead. And so they did, as Amanda watched her sister be dragged away from her, the only thing she had left from her former life. Anna, like so many others before her, would die as a result of the experiments.

Amanda was eventually chosen yet again, and taken away into the basements. Enduring horrific torture at the hands of the diabolical clerics, the young Amanda was subjected to the twisted experiments like her sister before her. However, unlike every other, she survived. Their work a success, the clerics prepared to enact the second stage of their plot. Then, for the second time in Amanda's life, the war in Lotheria came to her. The orphanage was besieged by forces of both the True Legion and the Baron of Blood, each force desiring the building as a fortified stronghold in the region. The orphanage was destroyed in the ensuing battle, neither side realizing who inhabited it until far too late. During this time Amanda was able to escape basement captivity, but lost consciousness before she could get away. At some point she was saved by a kindly person, though exactly whom is unknown.

Amanda was brought to the Church of Emelora in Windhaven, where she was nursed back to health and rehabilitated to become a student cleric there. She spent around a decade in the church, eventually becoming a fully-fledged Life Cleric. However, Amanda struggled to channel healing magic from Emelora due to unknown reasons. Though she could cast the magic, it caused her immense pain and fatigue. For this reason, the church's High Priest Volinar chose to keep the girl in the church itself to serve as a handmaiden while her studies continued. As such, the few friends Amanda had were lost as they become roaming doctors or medics in the war. It was here Amanda remained, lonely and grappling with the presence inside her, which grew more and more insistent by the day.

With the Hunters
Amanda first met with the party when they arrived at the Church of Emelora in search of aid in finding the Divine Cloth and a cleric to use it (following the death of Payen Vertrauen). Initially High Priest Volinar was concerned about sending one of his clerics with an adventuring party, and he was even more adamant about not searching for the long lost artifact. However, he was eventually convinced by Travis Kash, and relented. Little known to the others involved, Volinar chose Amanda as a method to rid the church of her, as her strange condition and brands had long spurred rumors that she was possessed by a demon. Volinar knew Amanda would be excited to finally leave the church and see the wider world, and proposed her.

Amanda met with and eventually accompanied the party to the Emerald Temple, where it was rumored that the Divine Cloth had once resided. Amanda endeared herself to the party as they fought through the corrupted denizens of the temple by healing and caring for those who were wounded. Amanda discovered that the beasts they were fighting were once clerics of Emelora themselves, which shook her resolve for a time, before Artoron reassured her that what they were doing was just. After acquiring the Divine Cloth, the party bestowed it upon Amanda, who carried it with pride. Soon after the party's escape, they met with Lolth, who Bromm Tryndamere mistakenly released from imprisonment. Amanda, like the others, was terrified and nearly reconsidered her decision to continue with the party, but stayed along, knowing the destruction of the Praetor to be of utmost importance.

The Divine Cloth empowered Amanda's healing magic, but came at a great toll. The pain and fatigue that came with casting spells returned once more with a vengeance. During the encounter with Aired Vertrauen, she nearly died from the strain. The party encouraged her to cast as few spells as possible, and she did so, which seemed to limit the strain upon her. This came to a head upon the party's return to Windhaven and the preparation for the final assault on the Praetor. Amanda suddenly fainted, the Divine Cloth's energy seemingly overcoming her. Artoron and Sera Lenaice rushed her to the Church of Emelora, where High Priest Volinar attempted to heal the ailing cleric. The healing magic had only a catastrophically adverse effect, causing Amanda to release a massive burst of energy. The ensuing explosion destroyed much of the cathedral, as well as damaging several city blocks around it. Volinar was killed, and the party arrested by the Silver Guard in the ensuing chaos. Amanda was kept and turned over to the Witch Slayers for experimentation, prompting a daring jailbreak to free her. This jailbreak prompted Megaera Tryndamere to slaughter a great number of guards, and caused an encounter between the party and Baranziah, who was posing as the Grand Inquisitor Gederra Killdare.

Following the party's dramatic escape (with some help from Harka Bouldaire) from Windhaven, Amanda accompanied the party to and aided in the destruction of the Praetor at Coldhammer Fortress, nearly dying in the attempt. During her incapacitation following the destruction of the Praetor, Amanda communed with the being sharing her body. The two seemingly came to an agreement, becoming unified at last. From then forth Amanda channeled magic from within, instead of trying to channel it from another divine source. This prompted her to change from a Life Cleric to a Light Cleric, and alleviated the issues she had with casting magic entirely. Since that point, her powers only grew as she began to manifest more and more divine abilities.

Abilities
Amanda harbored some form of powerful being inside her body, sharing it as a vessel with the creature. By channeling the power of the being, she could cast divine magic similar to most clerics, but with her being the source for the magic as opposed to a worshiped deity. She also seemed able to manifest even greater forms of power temporarily, approaching levels of power more in line with a powerful celestial, fiend, or even a deity. These powers ranged from superhuman strength, powerful blasts of heat and light, angelic wings to aid in flight, and even time manipulation. Exactly what limit her powers had was uncertain, though manifesting these additional abilities did seem taxing upon her. As she spent more time flexing the abilities, however, her capabilities continued to grow.