Eliah is a average-sized human. A bit lanky, but she's not quite as weak as she looks. She wears drab, loose-fitting clothing with plenty of pockets over boiled leather. Her hair is long, mostly straight (though rather unkempt), black but for a streak of dark gray on her bangs that fades into the surrounding dark. A wide-brimmed hat keeps the sun off of her face. She is an easygoing, sociable person. A bit quirky, and excitable, but passionate about new experiences. She's knowledgeable and loves books. She also has a tiny pet lizard she calls Scratch.
Eliah's father was a tutor, employed by one of the minor noble families in Cassomir, in the nation of Taldor. The family lived in the outskirts of the city in a sprawling manor. Eliah and her father lived in a small building on the edge of the hunting woods. They shared the cabin with the elderly gameskeeper, his wife, and grandson. Eliah's mother died during childbirth, so Eliah never knew her, and had no other siblings. She got along well with the grandson, who was only a few years her minor. They often explored the woods during their free time, and sometimes helped the boy's grandfather with the animals. The details aren't important, but it sums up to this: Eliah lived a relatively well-off, but sheltered life. Her father was sure to teach her as well as the noble children, so she learned a lot about world and it's wonders. She was especially taken with tales of the ancient Thassilonian in northern Avistan. She was smitten with the idea of traveling the Varisian wilderness and naming a newly-discovered ruin herself.
When she came of age, Eliah left the home she'd known her entire life. She wanted to live the stories she's heard as a child. She traveled the Inner Sea for three years, earning her livelihood offering tutoring lessons to well-off families. Though she never stayed in one place for more than a few months. Eventually, Eliah made her way to Absolom (as all adventurers do, of course). She was fascinated by the melting pot of cultures she saw. It was enough to keep her interest for... who knows how long! She found herself a source of income and a modest apartment in a middling neighborhood district, then started exploring the city. After a time, she came upon a lucrative opportunity: an offshoot of one of the city academies needed someone to teach history of ancient civilizations. It was perfect! And the best part: it came with the possibility of field expeditions! Needless to say, Eliah snapped it up quickly.
She performed quite well in her new job, and the pay was much better as well. Within a year she was invited on as part of an exploratory expedition to Central Varisia. It was only an initial exploration ranging in the mountains east of Riddleport. They didn't find much, though there a few finds hinted at a lost Dwarven Sky Citadel to the east, possibly as far east as the Hold of Belkzen. But, nothing concrete ever came of it (Though, there was supposedly a team of Pathfinder Society Agents a few years later that infiltrated the orc homeland and found the ruins- but who believes tall tales anyway?). In any case, Eliah fell in love with the area, and the search for lost relics. Almost as soon as she returned, she began researching and organizing her own expedition. Since then, Eliah has been on a extended leave of absence running her expedition (though calling it an expedition is a stretch, more like a solo venture with a lot of local fieldhands).
As of her last report, she was organizing an expedition to a remote temple in the mountains of northeastern Varisia. The temple, an ancient structure long-abandoned, was thought to be Thassilonian in origin, but a few sources suggested something even older and more mysterious. She hasn't been heard from since, however, and she was scheduled to return by now.
Unbeknownst to the outside world, Eliah was one of the few survivors of her team. She had been on an expedition for weeks, searching northern Varisia for a rumored Thassilonian ruin. She found it, eventually, but that was just the start. The ruin itself was filled with deadly traps, giant spiders, and all sorts of nastiness. As far as Eliah knew, she was the only one who made it out alive. But she had her prize: a 2-foot tall statue of a man with a jackal's head. Or maybe it was a jackal with a man's body? Doesn't matter-- the point is, it was supposed to be a powerful relic defended by the surrounding structures (though they were no match for Eliah Daring!) Specifics on the statues powers were, predictably, scarce. And, as expected, she escaped the ruins only to be accosted by another treasure seeker from the Aspis Consortium. Always getting in the way, those Aspis! Anyway, he had the numbers and took the artifact, leaving her for dead as the antagonists so often do. Luckily, Eliah managed to follow the group and swooped in to take back the Ruby Jackal when an opportunity presented itself.
Unfortunately, the escape plan wasn't fully formed yet. Eliah ended up running through the jungle, clutching the ruby statue and trying to escape the Aspis. She reached a deep gorge, too far to jump, and no way around for miles. The only course left was to jump, and hope the artifact actually did something useful...
Which it apparently did! She escaped her pursuers and landed safely in... wherever this is, with the artifact safely in hand... or so she thought...
mech:
Archaeologist Bard - Eliah Daring!
professor (of course) -- eccentric, excitable, naive, outgoing
--Net, also LASSO!!
