The noble line of Ismae is one of Cillamar’s oldest families. Dignified and refined, capable of waging war both with blade and word, House Ismae has established the model that all other noble lines seek to model. Grand Count Ismae distinguished himself in border skirmishes with the Warlands, has led strikes against the orc fastness Ergut’axx, and married a noble lady from the far off lands of Tian. Thus it was all the more distressing when, two months past, the Count’s daughter and heir vanished into the Warrens.
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While all of Cillamar’s aristocracy publicly frets and tears their lace over the disappearance of Sophie Ismae, in private few deny that the girl herself wasn’t at fault. For all his virtues as a warrior and tactician, the good Count is miserable failure as a father, and his daughter is a spoiled brat of the first order. Sophie Ismae made a habit of dressing as a bawdy girl and slipping into the Warrens, carousing and drinking for days at a time, knowing that her father’s men were hot on her trail. To Sophie it was a game: The longer she could elude her guards, the longer she could indulge in the sullied fruit of Cillamar’s slums. With each passing day, it seems that young Sophie must have gotten her wish, and there are few outside the Ismae family who believe that Sophie is still alive. Such notions, though, are never mentioned within earshot of the mourning Count—the last knave who joked of Sophie’s fate received a poniard through the temple for his trouble. Since her disappearance her father has been preoccupied with some secret work.
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Fortunately, Sophia was found and rescued by The Strangers after being captured by Jasper Livex. Jasper, an innkeeper for the Hall of the Manticore but secretly a necromancer with a secret lab beneath the inn had accidentally captured her when replenishing his stock for his experiments. Jasper was wanted in several other countries and The Strangers received a good sized reward along with the thanks of the Count after rescuing his daughter. The Strangers are now supplied by the Count and he has asked them to train his daughter now that recognizes how spoiled she had become. In spite of this happy ending the Count is still preoccupied with whatever secret work he started when Sophia disappeared.
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