Free spirit, pariah, tart, warrior, avenger…savior. All these words have been used at one time or another to describe the extraordinary woman known as Lady Mierri Hirroven. Few figures in the history of the Shattered Continent of Miren have inspired such admiration, fear, and loathing as this proud and lethal instrument of the Black Unicorn.

An Unquiet, Disquieting Youth

     Mierri’s parents, Aurarin and Miria Hirroven, were clerics of Lohrianna who lived in a simple cottage on the fringes of Araseph, the capital city of the elven Fourth Kingdom. Despite their devotion and their grace in the eyes of their Goddess, they were relegated by their superiors to serving the city’s poor. It seems that both parents of the young Mierri had human blood in their distant ancestry, and therefore not worthy to minister to the scions of Araseph’s noble Houses.

     This lowly and unjust opinion of the elder Hirrovens was only reinforced by the odd behavior of their daughter. As she grew up, Mierri began to display a host of disturbingly unelven traits: she was irritable, impatient, and unpleasantly precocious. It was as if the diluted human blood of her ancestors had been somehow distilled in this willful and contrary child. She was also a loner, prone to disappear deep into the forest for days at a time, where she was quite capable of taking care of herself.

     Though an excellent student, her almost human maturity made her no friends at school. She was finally expelled at the age of 74, after leaving several male classmates bruised and bleeding in the street. The boys had been taunting the son of a dwarven dignitary for his oafish gait and wispy, adolescent beard; Mierri, however, saw only a stranger being picked on for no good reason. After the incident, Mierri would not admit to any wrongdoing, and stubbornly refused to apologize. As far as Mierri was concerned, the making of her first real friend that day was well worth the price of an aborted education.

     After this incident, the elder Hirrovens knew that they could no longer remain in the capital. Packing their belongings, the family retired into the deep forest. There they would serve the elves of the hinterland while they pondered a way to aid their troubled daughter. The Hirrovens knew that few in Araseph would weep over their departure.

     A pivotal moment in Mierri’s life came some ten years later, when her tiny hamlet was attacked by a band of marauding orcs. Instead of hiding as her parents commanded, Mierri grabbed a dagger and attacked like a wild thing. Before her father could drag her off, she had slit the throat of two orcs and was busy strangling a third with the reins of her horse. Thoroughly distraught at this vicious display, the Hirrovens hurried their daughter back to Araseph, desperately hoping that the great elven clerics could find a cure for Mierri’s apparent madness before she "went gray"—or worse.

     As it turned out, it was Ambassador Orin Bitterblade, father of Mierri’s dwarven friend Yarl, who found the key to the young elf’s salvation. When his son told him of his friend’s admirable handling of the orcs, Orin was impressed with the almost dwarven fire of the girl. After hearing Mierri’s version of the story that very night, Bitterblade’s mind was made up. If the elfmaid was to become a sword, her white-hot steel would require the skills of a master smith.

     And he knew just the man for the job.

     Six days later, Mierri’s parents instructed her to report to the Atrium of the Temple of the Scroll. Someone very important, she was told, wished to speak to her about her future. Sensing something was amiss, Mierri rushed to the temple grounds; rarely were her parents so serious and somber. There, waiting for her in the empty chamber, stood a tall, stern human male dressed in the black-and-silver robes of a Grace of the Black Unicorn. Determined to show no fear, Mierri coolly stepped forward and bowed in sincere respect.

     Mierri’s composure was hardly lost on Algerast Norronel, the legendary priest of Phyrrus known throughout Minarra as the Timewanderer. Bitterblade was right, he thought to himself; the potential in the young elf was as obvious to him as the years of work it would take to realize it. By nightfall, Mierri had agreed to accompany Norronel to Araseph’s loria’endiär, the elven temple complex dedicated to the House of Light, to begin her training as an Acolyte.

     To Mierri’s delighted surprise, her parents assented with barely a murmur. They had always placed great faith in the True Gods, and agreed that this was perhaps the best course for their child. They could also take comfort in Norronel’s promise that he would personally see to her training.

     About a week after the young elf arrived at the loria’endiär with her meager belongings, Mierri was assigned a most unusual roommate: the Rat Cherlyndria Snowdrift, granddaughter of the Serenity of the Scroll, Karl Cheddarchaser. Away from home for the first time, Sheri was lonely and a little afraid, and Mierri was distressed that there was little she could do about it.

     Then, one night, Mierri saw a disrobed Sheri sitting on the sill of their chamber window, staring absently at the silver moon. Mierri’s elven love of beauty was roused, and she imagined herself before a living, breathing sculpture of shimmering silver. "How very lovely," the elfmaid whispered to herself.

     Mierri hadn’t counted on Sheri’s keen hearing. The Rat turned her head…and warmly smiled at this unexpected kindness. An enduring friendship was born that day over 150 years ago, one that has survived through trial, bloodshed, and death.

     Mierri and Sheri were the best of the Timewanderer’s students, their friendly rivalry a source of inspiration for the rest of the class. Mierri’s days as an acolyte were the happiest of her life, despite the hard work with sword and spell, shield and prayer. But it was also the days of a tragic incident that would rock the society of the Fourth Kingdom to its very core—and turn Mierri into a racial pariah for the rest of her days.

Worldly Scandal and Divine Retribution

     In the eighth year of her studies, Mierri began a passionate yet clandestine affair with a handsome young elf noble, Sirion Hawkflight. Norronel and Sheri learned of the affair soon enough, and both were worried that Mierri was riding for the proverbial fall. But after voicing their concerns as friend and mentor, they respected Mierri’s decision to pursue the relationship. The day after her ordination, Mierri and Sirion were married by a human priest of Lohrianna, the Patroness of Lovers, with a deeply worried Sheri as the only witness.

     But no sooner was the honeymoon over that Sirion began to treat his new bride rather strangely. The two set up housekeeping in a secluded glade, far from the social life of Araseph. He never invited his family to visit, though one would think that an elven noble would be proud to share his happiness with his elder sister and brother. Strangest of all, Sirion never seemed willing to take his wife to any public gathering.

     Mierri was vaguely aware that something was amiss, but her busy career rarely gave her the chance to confront her husband. On the few occasions they were together, Sirion always managed to deflect her suspicions with an intimate trip into the forest or a torrid night of passion.

     It was Sheri who discovered the ugly truth of the Hawkflight marriage. While passing by the Araseph Green, she couldn’t help but notice the public banns: Sirion Hawkflight was to marry Hinalia, Daughter of the Royal House of Rianarra, on Midsummer’s Day, some two weeks hence. Infuriated almost beyond endurance, Sheri had enough good sense to seek the advice of her grandfather, the Serenity of the Scroll, before confronting her friend with this terrible news.

     It was a wise move. Having dealt for centuries with the conniving of the powerful, Karl quickly saw the cruel game Sirion was playing. The elf noble had been presented with a unique opportunity, and was determined to take advantage of it. His marriage to Mierri would be of little consequence; by tradition, elven nobles could be wed only by a priest of elven blood. Furthermore, Mierri was a minor who wed without the consent of her parents, making the whole affair null and void anyway. As for the scandal that would surely follow, Sirion could always claim that the lovesick priestess had lied about her age. As the Serenity’s tail twitched in mounting fury, Sheri realized that Karl was not about to let this ignoble creature get away with it…

     When she finally learned of her husband’s treachery, a stunned Mierri retreated to her beloved woodlands alone to ponder her future. Though her heart was shattered, she swore before her divine lord that whatever happened, she would place her duty to Phyrrus above her own suffering and thirst for vengeance.

     After a long and lonely evening in the wood, Mierri returned to Araseph to find Sheri and Karl waiting for her. A third Rat was there, a stranger who would become a lifelong friend: Sheri’s father Malcolm Quickskitter, Knights Commander of the Scroll. Though a bit overwhelmed by the rank of her benefactors, Mierri was deeply grateful for their help, and for Sheri’s friendship in asking for their help.

     The next day, the Elfking was delighted to hear from the Serenity of the Scroll himself that he wished to personally conduct the wedding ceremony, an enchanting suggestion that was immediately accepted. It was no less a task to convince the Elfking to allow Malcolm to see to the security arrangements. The trap was set.

     At last, the blessed day came. All was beauty and grace in Araseph, especially in the palace chapel, where the wedding party listened in rapture as the young elves gave their vows. The moment the groom pledged his troth, Karl stunned the assembly with a formal charge of bigamy against the young Lord, and ordered the sacred chamber sealed by Malcolm’s Knights.

     Malcolm’s prosecution was as flawless as it was merciless. The witnesses were called in turn: first, the human cleric who had married Sirion and Mierri in good faith—and who found himself reassigned to faraway Theris the very next morning. Next were the oblivious Elfking and his daughter, and then Sirion’s distraught and shamefaced siblings. But the most damning witness was Mierri herself, who coolly spoke of every intimate detail of their relationship.

     Malcolm then demolished Sirion’s erratic defense of lame excuses and dubious legalisms. It was indeed elven tradition for elf nobles to be married only by elven priests—but as Karl’s presence at the altar proved, tradition is not all. And while no one denied that Mierri was legally underage, the Astarith had its own way of defining adulthood. Taking the sacred volume in hand, he read a single blunt passage from the Third Book: "The Gods do not accept Children into their Service."

     With guilt proven beyond all doubt, Karl called Mierri forward to carry out his sentence. With a snarl that would have sent a lion running , the priestess struck her husband’s narrow jaw with a magnificent right cross. Her jeweled wedding band tore into Sirion’s cheek, and the blow sent the elflord reeling. With a word of Istari, the wound began to char, and Sirion screamed in agony. Then, grabbing a fistful of the elflord’s hair, she pressed her holy symbol into the wound. Sirion screamed again, and pawed at the smoking brand left behind—a mark that would disfigure him body and soul for the rest of his lonely, wretched life.

Deadly Instrument of a Defiant God

     The bitterness that lashes at so many of her calling struck Mierri some twenty years after her divorce. As a great humanoid host began to ravage the hills of the Maplerim, Mierri recalled how the Rats banded together in her time of need. Mierri summoned all her surviving classmates, and enlisted other servants of the House of Light along the way. This holy host engaged the humanoids and crushed them, but at a terrible price—of the fourteen servants of the Black Unicorn who entered the fray, only five survived. After burying their dead, Sheri returned with Mierri to the Library of the Rats, hid away in an empty storeroom, and drank themselves into a stupor.

     It was Karl who found them the next morning, sickened at the sight of his granddaughter and her closest friend lying in their own vomit. After the two sobered up, he coldly pronounced their penance: deep in the Lorahwood, a large swath of virgin forest had been recently devastated by fire. For the next five years, they would help restore the land, working alongside the local elves and the servants of the Leaflord. They were also forbidden to pick up a blade or employ any offensive spell unless their lives or those of innocents hung in the balance. The two listened in silence, and were callously dismissed.

     By the end of their sentence, both were deeply indebted to Karl for the wisdom of the punishment he had devised. They had made many dear friends among the locals, and the new green they had nurtured was a profound reminder of the wonder and beauty of life. It was a lesson neither would ever forget.

     In the decades that have passed, Mierri has more than made up for her youthful shortcomings with a distinguished, almost legendary career. Many have measured her success by her reputation as the very embodiment of the Black Unicorn upon this plane.

     The citizens of New Karasti still remember when Lady Hirroven commanded the legion of Avaril cavalry in the storming of ruined Old Karasti, breaking the centuries-long curse of Ka’arpav the Corrupter. The elves of Sorrosenni remain grateful for her exposure of the darkness poisoning the very halls of the Royal Court. And the dwarves of the Iron Marches will never forget the golden-haired elfwoman who helped rid them of the red dragon Charr. But if you asked her to name the most fulfilling act of her ministry, she would answer with a tale seldom told in the civilized world, but one fondly remembered by the human tribes that inhabit the Westplain.

     Soon after her installment as Serenity, she came upon two of these tribes about to engage in one of their endless border wars. Appalled by the useless bloodshed that was about to ensue, she boldly rode between the two armies and dismounted. Through an artful barrage of challenges, threats, and insults, Mierri finally shamed the two chieftains into meeting with her face to face.

     Realizing that talk would get her nowhere with these arrogant and prideful tribesmen, the Serenity decided on a more dramatic approach. Striking the ground with her staff of office, the very earth split apart; in moments, sulfurous fumes and searing flames began to erupt from the fissure. Then, with a sharp phrase of Istari, she knocked the chieftains to their knees, and forced their gaze upon the horror beneath them—for writhing in the flames were denizens of the Five Pits, beckoning their "kindred spirits" to leap into the hellish maw. "Patience, patience," Mierri assured them pleasantly. "You’ll get these two and many more, as soon as they finish their foolish little war." Her staff struck the earth again, and the fissure sealed.

     Their pride broken, the chieftains returned to their men, only to find that they had witnessed the event through their leader’s eyes. As word spread throughout the Westplain, the tribes vowed never to fight such a war again until their sacred land was healed…a day that will never come, if Mierri has anything to say about it.

     Not all of her gestures have received such warm regard. Mierri never forgot the shabby treatment her parents endured in Araseph, and her first official act as Serenity was to pour a defiant dose of humility down the throat of the body politic. After buying the rotting shack that was once her home, she burned it to the ground and hired a team of dwarves to build a blocky stone edifice on the site.

     Quickly dubbed "The Barracks", it was to be the training hall for all the future servants of the Black Unicorn. The elves of Araseph were quick to denounce the building as a disgusting eyesore, but when all the Serenities of Light came to sanctify its beautiful chapel, the grass-roots drive to have the seminary closed was quietly dropped.

The Lady in Black

     Like so many others who serve the Black Unicorn, the inner soul of the Serenity is something largely kept from public view. This is truly a pity. If Mierri allowed the world to see her as her friends and confidantes do, it might go a long way to dispel the mistrust that wafts about her faith like an ashen fog.

     As violent and ugly as her life gets, Lady Hirroven remains an elf at heart, especially in her appreciation of nature and its beauty. In her quiet moments, one can often find her deep in Miren’s vast forests, or riding bareback through its endless grassy plains. If duty confines her to some urban setting, Mierri might spend hours wandering through the sculpted gardens of some accommodating noble. Always a lover of the water, the Serenity indulges whenever the season allows…and if the moons are out, so much the better! But her most precious hideaway is a beautiful stretch of tropical beach somewhere in the isles of the Spice Crescent, known only to her and a handful of intimates.

     When at peace with her surroundings, the Serenity can take off the armor and become just a woman. Indeed, when wearing the "casual vestments" of her own design, she becomes a rather striking one at that. Cascades of golden blonde hair border a finely chiseled countenance. Brilliant eyes of ocean blue have earned their owner her share of admirers, but not nearly as many as Mierri’s toned, tanned, and (for an elf) curvaceous figure. Though hardly beautiful by elven standards, the Serenity’s intriguing form and proud bearing gave her an allure that has entranced many a gentleman for decades. (Her appearance has recently undergone a radical change—more on this later.)

     In her private moments, Mierri is open, personable, and surprisingly sensitive and warm. She relishes a fine wine, a lively dance, and spending a cold evening by a warm fire as much as anyone. Her fellow prelates have always looked to the Serenity as a font of passionate integrity, and as a wellspring of pride and inspiration for the Acolytes and Squires under her tutelage. She is fiercely devoted to her few close friends, and woe be to any who treat them with anything less than respect. But few ever see these facets of her nature; those who might even wish for her company at social gatherings are often intimidated by her office.

     But what truly sets Mierri apart is her totally unabashed and very public love life. Having had her fill of marriage, yet as hungry for affection as any woman, Mierri has shared much her life with a host of like-minded human gentlemen. Mierri’s lovers have been a rather eclectic lot: a composer, a jockey, and a shipwright…but never a fellow servant of the True Gods.

     Mierri’s paramours have had several traits in common: a polished core of dignity and self-confidence, a defiant streak of independence, and the admiration of their peers as masters of their respective fields. In short, Mierri selected men so secure in their careers and in themselves that they could easily brush off any feelings of jealousy or inadequacy. Unshakably loyal to but a single beloved for as long as he lived, she would spend as much time with her companion as the Black Unicorn would allow...and was always be by their side when they departed this life.

     Mierri’s faithful liaisons have become the stuff of romantic legend throughout Miren, though not always as one might think. Some have found in her example a practical solution for such an uncertain lifestyle, others a freedom from social convention. But just as many see the Serenity as a champion of loose morals, a cowardly hypocrite unwilling to make the commitment that decorum and divine will require of her. Yet no clergy of the House of Light has ever denounced her, and Lohrianna herself seems to have left the Serenity well enough alone...

Looking to the Future

     But now, with old age finally upon her, Mierri does not have to face the future alone. After decades as one of Miren’s most celebrated singles, she has found a husband with whom she can share her remaining years: Y’sidro N’tansah, an isaki bard from the desert wastes of the Hallaj. It is a most unlikely pairing; the cultures, lifestyles, and even mindsets of their respective races could not be more at odds, and prejudice has long tainted their mutual perceptions of each other.

     Their union has done what centuries of service to the Black Unicorn could not: Mierri has "gone gray", and in a manner most unique. Her entire body has been reshaped, not only to make her more alluring to her isaki partner, but also to render her more tolerant to life in the deep desert. Her hair has become a brilliant white, her eyes the red of rusted iron, and her skin a deep reddish gray. Standing taller now than many human women, Mierri’s already trim and toned form has been similarly enhanced. Nonetheless, her elven heritage clearly remains in her delicate pointed ears, willowy grace, and lovely figure.

     The marriage has helped to crystallize Mierri’s plans for the future. With the selfless and patient support of her husband, she has returned to Araseph to train one final generation of priests and Knights. After that, she intends to share the office of Serenity with her lifelong friend, Cherlyndria Snowdrift; Mierri will see to the northern half of the Shattered Continent, while Sheri administers the southern. Eventually, the day will come when Sheri will lead the Order alone, and the spirit of Lady Hirroven will serve her lord from the Blessed Havens.

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