Lylindra was born deep in the tundra, her birth killing her mother. Her father Kale was a hunter of great skill, though, so she never went hungry, at least not in the beginning. He had determined to pass these skills on, so as soon as she could walk Lylindra was trained in the use of blades. Her father taught her to fight, not with power, but with speed and precision. The Death of a Thousand Cuts, he’d call it, and she learned to use it well before the years of grueling training were through.
Soon after Lylindra began learning the blade she began learning the hunt. She learned to be silent. She learned to be observant. Most of all, though, she learned to be patient. Her father taught her how to focus on a quarry, how to follow silently, for days if need be. The spirits were kind, and prey was plentiful. There were years of plenty, as much as needed by two living in the cold lands of the south.
That ended when a group of raiders set upon their camp to steal a recent kill. Kale was overwhelmed by the three, while Lylindra hid, knowing herself outmatched. She knew how to hunt though, and how to follow a quarry. She hunted the men, waiting until each was alone, and slaying him. She was able to kill two, but the third realized he was being stalked and took precautions, overcoming Lylindra’s neophyte skills. Finding herself unable to finish the job, she fled into the tundra, and has been on her own since.
The cold lands are unforgiving, but she had the skills to survive, and avoid becoming prey herself. She ventured northward into the central areas every so often, following prey, or simply exploring, but she gave the inhabitants of the dragons’ lands a wide berth. She avoided most human contact, though she would trade skins and surplus meat for some supplies, should a weapon break or her armor wear out, as she lacked the skills to make those items herself. For the most part though, she was a lone hunter in the wilderness, surviving only by her blades, her intuition, and her wits.
Lylindra has come to believe that survival is strength. Those that live are stronger than those who die, and she finds evidence of this in the workings of the spirits, Nature itself. Survive and grow stronger, those are her primary concerns.
