Diemma
Manus Diemma
Description
This elderly woman is tall for a woman, and measures some 6ft from plain black leather shoes to her silver hood. Her face is worn, full of the lines and wrinkled sustained from a life of hard work, and from the occasional beaming smile. It is a kindly face, however ancient. Her voice, when she speaks, is cracked, but her speech is measured, full of the wisdom of a venerable healer of minds as much as bodies.
Her light blue robes, trimmed in places with thick silver and golden thread, are all encompassing, revealing only her wrinkled leathery hands through the deep sleeves; however, she is light of foot, suggesting of the thin, frail frame beneath. She walks now with a thick staff, trimmed with hard brass tips suited for walking the cobbled streets of Alexandros. In the other hand she carries a covered basket, filled with kit suitable for a healer and midwife. A simple hempen rope forms a belt, from which a small pouch hangs, again filled with herbs and other components.
A carefully woven string around her neck holds a pendant, a rosewood symbol of Telmentar, the evening star. This hangs over her chest, demonstrating her role as a hearthguard of Althea.
Background
This is provided for OOC flavour, and is not common knowledge.
Hearthguard Diemma is an old woman now, and indeed from her lined face and cracked voice it would seem she has always been this way. Born some 77 years ago, her name before taking her vows was Fonta Anius, the eldest of three very different daughters of very poor tenant farmers in the Alexandran town of Antissa. Survival was often hand-to-mouth, and although she views her childhood with fond memories, she acknowledges that this was a hard upbringing.
Her hometown Antissa has a strong tradition of drawing together through hard times, and so throughout her childhood she received some training from the town militia, from where she has received her entire martial training. But when in the darkest midwinter her mother died during the birth of her third child, Diemma's second sister, the young girl felt as though she had been betrayed by her town as a whole. Seeing the care taken of her sister by the itinerant Hearthguard who helped the child survive, she shifted her faith from Angoron, traditionally worshipped in Antissa, to Althea, whose divine presence filled Diemma with hope and positivity.
This shift from the traditional deity of the town eventually came to turn Diemma away from Antissa and towards the convent. Small things at first: attending the travelling ministry instead of the town temple, focussing on different aspects of her study; then greater things: seeking to heal rather than harm, suggesting community rather than strength; and finally, attempting to convert others to her new faith, rather than the traditions of the town. Although this could have ended acrimoniously, it was agreed by all that the best path for Diemma would be to become a manus minor in the Hands of Ithildin, one of the Althean cults, in the city of Alexandria.
During her training as a Hearthguard of Althea, her focus shifted again, as she tried to reconcile her turning away from tradition in her hometime with her new responsibilities. In this respect, she trained as a skilled healer, going out into the community as a midwife, healer, herbalist and carer. It is this role which, along with her other sisters of the order, she has undertaken for the last 55 years, delivering thousands of new lives of all races into the world, and caring for countless others beside. Her only demand is of the loyalty of those for whom she cares, such that she may form a strong bond to her community, and shirking this loyalty can draw her ire. Her body may be ailing, but her body remains sharp, and she intends to continue in her role as long as she is able.
Roleplay Hooks
- Nurse, carer, midwife: Perhaps your character has a need for one of these, or knows somebody who does;
- Venerable: Often shares her knowledge, experience and wisdom with others;
- Nun: Has been a nun of Althea for almost half a century;
- Gardener: Volunteers at the gardens throughout the city, such as the Memorial and Hospital Gardens;
- Herbalist: Has some working knowledge of how to prepare herbs and spices into medicinal compounds;
- Family: As a vowed nun, Diemma has neither seen nor heard from her family since taking her vows;
- Hands of Ithildin: Diemma is a long-time member of the Hands of Ithildin, a monastic cult focussing on the teaching of healing arts.
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