Szardiis
Legacy Name: Tardiis

The Sea Horse

The cavern was shaped over centuries by the forces of wind and tide. It was one of many in an enormous reef system that spanned the ocean floor, reaching all the way to above the surface. While millions of sea creatures called this network home, none could claim an abode quite as gorgeous or well protected as Szardiis'.

She had gone to great lengths to shape furnishings from driftwood, seashells and other natural materials that would not do harm to the ocean she loved. All of her favorite seafoods were kept fresh and tasty in a spelled pantry that served as both storage space and lure for those sea critters she found most delectable. Glow globes on the ceilings invited starfish and sea horses to swim in globes of perfectly temperature-controlled water, giving her a fantastic shadow show on the walls whenever she felt the need for entertainment. Mementos from her prior days of travel are in evidence everywhere and her darling Chesca has no shortage of comfortable niches carved to perfectly cushion the minion's fins.

Out of all she has acquired though, nothing brings Szardiis more pleasure than her library on magic. She has every tome imaginable from Air Magick for the Uninitiated to Zuzu's Guide to Zombie Spells. It was her combined love of reading and magic that led her to a cursed life beneath the sea.

She chose to turn her curse into a blessing, but the fact remains that she can never again live on dry land or explore the wider reaches of Subeta. She sees its shores through a filter of flowing blue water, for she made a dare against Merana, the most powerful denizen of the sea, and lost.

In her youth as a student at Subeta U, she would travel to all corners of the world, sampling the local cuisine, snapping photos with the locals and generally loving every minute of her life. She spent three years without a major because she loved learning so much that she never could decide on just one set of classes to take.

When her advisor sat her down and demanded she pick one subject she adored above all others, she decided it had to be sorcery. The gestures, the arcane languages and the mysterious brews that went into a spell fascinated her as nothing else had managed to do. She agonized over the decision of what to write her dissertation about. Would she finally perfect the spell that would allow travel to Atebus minus a helmet? Would she help to maintain the spells that kept the sewers of Centropolis from exploding due to the recent uptick in Qyrkee population? Or would she seclude herself in a branch of the Sacred Shrine, hoping to one day become an acolyte of the Oracle?

She chose none of the above because just as magic had called her name, so the ocean haunted her dreams.

Everywhere she went, she found herself seeking water. It might be the ripples of Veta Lake, the stagnant pools at Darkside or the sludgy swamps of Shadowglen but in every one of her trips she would inevitably end up on a shore of some kind. The Omen Islands had long held a special place in her heart. She even had a tattoo commemorating the birth date of Babette's precious cubs.

She labored over her theories for months. Then came the day when she found herself in a little rowboat with three stern-faced professors looking on. She had spent the last three hours boasting up her spellwork. Now was the time to fish or cut bait.

She was going to halt a whirlpool and reverse its spin.

The ocean turned an angry shade of red as thick black clouds rushed in to blot out the peaceful blue sky. The three professors went flying over the stern as if slapped aside by a giant hand. From the midst of the whirlpool's heart rose Merana herself.

"Ye play wi' forces ye cannot hope to understand nor control. Th' sea is a thing of beauty, a delicate balance of life and death. Ye have upset this balance and saved lives that were rightfully mine. For this, yer own life be mine from this day forth and ye shall never again walk th' land as a creature of earth and stone."

Purple and light blue fur twisted and shrank, leaving her covered in a coarse brown coat that resembled brittle dry coral. The only token of vanity allowed to her was a mane of rich brown hair which she learned to resettle with a casual toss of her head. Where once she had browsed every shop and stall she came to for beauty products, now she was reduced to relying on squid ink and clam jelly to tame her wild mane.

Despite her hardships, she grows in wisdom both magical and otherwise with each passing day and it is her most sincere hope that someday she will accomplish a feat so great that Merana will find it in her inky heart to forgive the mistake of a youth and restore Szardiis to her true form.

Credits

Profile Code by: Ringo
Extra Code by Shantal & Tashamon
Edited by: Chrysariel
Story by: Pureflower
Overlay by: Goth
Overlay Recolor by: Morse
Background by: WallpaperSafari
Free Floating Bubbles by: snoopykins
Sea Shells by: FreeIconsPNG
Name Art by: Chrysariel