The Simbul from D&D
I guess since I introduced her over the weekend, I should celebrate the return of ‘Ask a Character’ with Queen Ionia of Darkmill.
A simple recap of how this works:
- Ask anything you want of the character. Spoilers will be avoided.
- Character will respond to your comment as quickly as possible.
- Have fun.
So, Queen Ionia is the ruler of Darkmill, which is a magical city created from the ruler. This means that the city is born from Queen Ionia’s aura and will disappear when she passes away. She is not the first ruler of Darkmill and that’s not even the original name of the city. The ruling caster tends to change the name and the structure every time, so the citizens tend to not get very attached to street names and buildings. For the most part, the rules keep things the same, but each one has his or her own twist.
Queen Ionia is close friends with Cyril and Willow of Gaia. This means she has known Nyx since the latter was adopted at the age of two. Ionia is like the fun aunt to Nyx because they share the habit of playing with their magic. Most of Nyx’s tricks and pranks were taught to her by Queen Ionia, which Cyril is still not happy about.
So, ask away and see what you learn. Just have fun and we’ll see how this return of a classic blog post goes.
Legends of Windemere 
Hello your majesty! What is you most favorite piece of magic?
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I have a delightful magic piano that wanders my castle and plays whatever suits my mood. I found it in an abandoned cabin up in the ice caps. I’m not sure how it got there, but the little thing is happy now.
If you’re talking about a specific spell then I find it best not to pick favorites. You choose a specialty and you box yourself in. I refuse to miss out on the fun of magic because I’m scared to leave my comfort zone. Such casters tend to be very . . . dull.
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Very wise to be sure! I love the idea of a magic piano that wanders around your castle fitting your mood! Do you have a favorite color by chance or do you dress to mood?
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I prefer red . . . or purple . . . wait! I have an adorable emerald dress with flowing cuffs and keeps itself off the ground.
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Ah…so no particular favorite color I see, but really cool having a dress that keeps itself off the ground is not a bad dress to have. Don’t you have any sort of clothing that can change itself to your mood too?
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I might. I would have to check my closet when I have a free weekend. I do remember having a necklace like that. It changed gems to suit my mood, but melted during a peace summit. One of my . . . associates was being stubborn.
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Wow! Could be embarassing in a dress I think. 🙂
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Easily handled by someone with my magic.
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That’s a good thing, glad to hear it.
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I’ll have to bid you farewell…going off line for a bit, unfortunately I don’t have your magic and I’m thinking of throwing my computer up against a wall 🙂
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Good luck with your computer. I hear some people say cursing at it helps, but I know little about your world.
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Cursing it rather than at it would help…alas, it’s not my computer’s fault though so would be totally idiotic…but if I could get my hand on some programmers…oh how happy I would be!
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That would be best. Cursing an inanimate object would not help. It would only mean that whoever uses it would be a victim of the curse. I have met a few fools who forgot that an inanimate object has no will or luck, so they merely become a cursed item.
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Yep..too true and coming from such a wise lady I feel that I did well not to curse poor Sekhmet, which is my computer’s name.
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She would have had her revenge when you returned. Never curse an object that you own. Unless it is a prank spell and you wish to deliver it to someone.
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Very wise I must admit…Sekhmet can be quite a hand full for an inanimate object believe me 😉
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What is one of your most favorite pranks?
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I’m afraid I have little time for pranks these days. I do need to be taken seriously as a ruler, so I need to get my fun in other ways. As a child, I enjoyed magically changing the color of things. Animals, clothes, houses, and whatever people were gloating about. I’d always change things back . . . at least the animals. Some people truly never know what color looks best on them.
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I am assuming you are a good queen, not a bad queen. Do you think the Queen gets a bad rep in fairytales and fantasy? Also. You are Nyx’ Aunt. How old are you?
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The reputation of Queens is entirely what you make of it. There are benevolent Queens throughout your fairytales if you bend the rules. Nearly every Princess has a good-hearted mother, who is a Queen. Also, the Princess ascends to the throne to become a good Queen. Your stories are more about good overthrowing evil than the actual roles, which is very much like reality. An evil ruler while inevitably be undone.
As for my age, I’m 25 and nobody would dare to tell me otherwise.
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Your Majesty, anyone special in your life?
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I’ve had quite a few dalliances over my life. Sadly, I’ve been so busy as an adventurer and then as a Queen. I get gentlemen callers all the time and can easily find an escort for events.
There was one man that caught my eye, but he was turned into a tortoise by a necrocaster. He lives in my garden now while the one responsible is still at large. Though, I might be finding a way to settle that problem.
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Your Highness, if you were to take a vacation anywhere in the world, where would it be and why?
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Tough decision. I would love to venture into the various ruins on Canst’s Fields again. None of the monster-infested places, but maybe watch the ghosts of Varlis City. If not there then I know of a relaxing island in Cerascent where the only inhabitants are a Verenstone Dragon and a small clan of orcs. Those orcs make delicious fruit-based meads.
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Did you know that we share a name? Could we be related in some way?
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I have heard rumors of you. Mostly from the squirrels around my kingdom. It is possible we have a relation seeing as my father was known to indulge in women until his end.
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My mum has a weakness for power. Hmmm.
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Mine did too, but I heard he was a wandering adventurer. Not a very powerful man in terms of influence. Hard to tell with all the curse words my mother used to describe him.
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wait…my mum used curse words to describe my dad as well. I never met him….
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Good chance we are half-sisters then. I have heard you are a Queen of . . . Squirrels?
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and cupcakes. I am working on expanding the list but these silly mortals keep getting in my way.
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You have more ambition than me. I am content to rule the city made from my own energy. Simply crush my enemies or make them accept my treaties while they rule their own lands. This way I can go on trips from time to time.
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Road Trips are fun. Especially when i bring my minions along. I wonder though, have you ever dreamed of ruling all of Windemere? I was tossed out of England for such aspirations.
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Funny thing about such dreams is the Windemere is so vast that it would be impossible. At least for a solitary being. The Hejinn are the only beings to rule the entire world and we saw how that went. The gods of destiny are very concerned with such actions and create champions to undo such people. Now, to rule by use of a council would be acceptable because it has the appearance of unity.
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Do you as Royalty, have a specific religious group that you follow? Do you encourage your people to believe one thing or another?
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I am a loyal follower of Gola the Mistress of All Auras. I do not encourage people to believe one thing or another, but there are the darker gods that I prefer not to deal with. I keep an eye on their followers if they’re in my city.
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That makes sense. I had wondered if the priests in your world are free to marry or if they give that up when they are ordained.
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Depends on the order, but most marry if they find the right person. It is rather common for priests of differing faiths to marry too. I know a couple where the husband is a follower of Zaria the Purity Goddess and the wife is a follower of Lorvis the Necromancy God. Strange conversations can be had with those two.
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That is interesting. I have lots of questions. Tell me if I get annoying or you have something else to do. Do you have any children?
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No. I have not met the right man or found myself wanting to take on such responsibilities. Maybe when I’m older and less interested in wandering away from the throne. I could adopt like my good friends in Rainbow Tower.
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You could. You never know what you might find when you open your heart. I have six of the little rascals at the moment and I think one may be a powerful caster…at least his diaper would say so…
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I have servants for such things. You must have magic yourself to handle so many of them. I get a headache from a few of my agents. Might as well be children with the amount of times they get into trouble. Besides, I know what I was like as a child and I have heard that the gods enjoy showing people such events from the parental side. I believe you call it karma.
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I do occasionally make my squirrel master watch the kids.
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You have heard of the squirrel under my employ. I would not trust him with his own nuts.
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Speaking of nuts. What do you think about male warriors saying females can’t fight?
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I believe they have yet to fight a woman and I politely send them to be educated. These men are typically the same large, strength-based brick head that you find littering a battlefield. Although, I’m not the worst at tormenting these men.
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They must be the same ones who drop lame pickup lines in pubs.
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It has been years since I went to a pub, but my niece has told me of some horrible lines. Truly terrible ones involving swords and sheaths.
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There’s this one guy that uses the worst pick up lines ever. On the wordpress girls. Mostly me.
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That’s terrible. If it was me, I would tell him off and leave it at that. Persisting would result in me throwing him into a dungeon. If it was my niece, he would have already been set on fire and put through a wall.
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I sadly have to look nice. Even when I’m evil.
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Such is the difficulty with ruling and not being seen as evil. Adventurers have it so much easier.
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Envy that.
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