SFW
Helga Stormwind
Viscountess Ishgardian•
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No Badges
Race
Hyur
Clan
Midlander
Free Company
None
Introduction
- Viscountess and leading Lady of House Stormwind
Player's notes
No additional notes provided by the player.
Character Information
Basic details about Helga Stormwind
Age
23
Race
Hyur/Midlander
Pronouns
She/Her
Social Status
Viscountess/Leading Lady
Body Type
Normal build
Birthplace
Ishgard
Residence
House Stormwind
Background
The story of the character's origins
[Prologue]
Coerthas is, to many, a climate to contend with; rivaled only Garlemald. If there were those looking for salvation, one would look no further than Ishgard; a city that has tested against the climate and even dragons themselves in long going wars. Travelers and guests who enter the city would be greeted by friendly faces as well as those who'd share bread with the unfortunate. While the city and it's civilians are living in better times, this didn't used to be case. Those who have seen the older generation of members, or have even read the history would know that Ishgard wasn't as friendly as it is now. Helga Stormwind, a hyur midlander surrounded by elezens and others of high status, had to co-exist the more uglier side of Ishgard at her time.
Helga's Stormwind's life mostly started behind closed doors. With her being home taught by both her father Kerrich Stormwind, and her mother Mirabelle Stormwind, most of Helga's positive experiences came from both her family and the various maids in the estate. Though they want the best for their child, and thus wanted her to socialize with other children, Kerrich was concern of the complications and delicate nature they were in. In Ishgard, the city is populated by elezens; mostly those that moved from Gridania. There's also important figure heads seperated by estate status; most of the highest were elezens. There were only a rare amount of hyurs working with elezens; hyurs of a higher status being even more rare. This led to those that weren't elezens facing scrutiny over some Houses in some fashion, leading the result of being caught in scandal or worse. The mother, being born from Gridania, assured her husband that all will be well and to have faith in Helga's judgement.
When Helga was given the opportunity to socialize with the other House's children, things did not go in Helga's favor. Despite her good intentions of wanting to be friends and play, some of the children weren't interested due seeing little worth in what her father's house offers. Others had more of a clique; only allowing under specific condition. The next day, she tried her luck with kids in the Foundation. What started off as promising soon turned into misfortune as the kids quickly tricked her to befriending her; showering her with Gyashi greens and watched her chased by the black Chocobo. The kids felt that this was a ploy to keep an eye on the lowborns. After one of the Knights saved her from the bird, Helga spent the rest of her day in her room. When her family came to check up on her, Helga informed them how her days went with trying to make friends. With a heavy heart, all they could do was support her and inform her on how people in this city can be. Her father, however, told her to never falter and to keep striving. “A Stormwind pushes forward,” He'd say. “No matter how strong the winds pushes against them.” Having heard this has given her newfound strength. When she was alone with her thoughts, she pondered on what to do, all while the echos of her dad's word keeping her company. On that night, it was decided; if she can't make friends who shares her thoughts, then she'll push forward with her own beliefs; even if it meant she'd be alone.
After that self-declaration, she spend most of her free time either in books in her house or learning more about Ishgard. Up till now, she accepted what news her family and her maids were willing to share. Filled with determination and a chip on her shoulder, she wanted to push herself onwards to being successful. To her, that meant embracing House Stormwind's creed and gaining as much knowledge as she could. Never one to falter from her objective, she managed to learn some bits of Ishgard's history. Her time of observing other people have shown that she can get her points across without need of resorting to violence, such as using her words and knowledge against others in confidence. The esteemed children mocked her, she responds back by using her intelligence to her advange; informing the kids their lack of use for her goals among exposing their lack of intelligence against her. Their insults, while strong, did not bother her, for they couldn't back up their claims in the end; another trait she not only managed to learn but also needed to flex her wisdom. Intelligence could only go so far, so she learned how to defend herself using a wooden pole she bought from a carpender. Some of the lowborn kids tried tricking her once more, but she was wiser and managed to turn the tables. While she managed to outsmart some, others had to be knocked down with her wooden weapon as a means of self defense. Despite her being disliked by the higher society kids who mocked her as well as the lower society, there was an unexplained, but satisfied feeling that filled Helga and she was all for it. What's more, there were some kids she ran into in the Foundation that wished to befriend her. Happy for this conclusion, she accepted their friendship, but still kept them at arms length. Both the books and her experience have shown her that civilization is fickle; there are those who are honest and upfront of their desires, and others like the lowborn who may trick you at a moment's notice.
“You may befriend me, but do not betray my trust.” - Helga, age 7, as she speaks to her newfound companions.
Life onward were normalized. Friends came and went, but her thirst for knowledge was neverending. As the years grew by, she became more ambitious; taking on challenging tasks presented within her house or within the city. Her mother passed away due to a rare ill-ness, but the Stormwind family pressed on. When she was old enough, she attended the schools held in Ishgard. She enrolled herself in archery as well as combat training with the sword. Her ambition and ego clashed with the other participants, which had many results. There were times where she fell short of an objective, and thus spent the rest of her free time honing the skill to become better. She thrived on beating other classmates in archery, sword training, and especially history lessons. To her, showing her might to others was a means to inform them not to overestimate her. When asked why she didn't sign up for mage lessons, she was hesitant to give a straight answer. “It would be an unfair advantage.” she would say. In truth, her father hoped she'd become a thaumaturge as well, but refused, informing her that she didn't want to take over his profession just yet. She wanted him to savor his moments of being a great. She's been told of having immense aether; promising for a potential mage. Instead, she's been following her heart and using her time with archery. She soon became one of the best archers in her class with a promising future.
One day, her father was invited to join the Sharlayan's council. To him, this was a big break for him, for he wanted to share his knowledge with the Sharlayans and perhaps gain some new knowledge from their perspective. He went out on his journey to meet the Sharlayans. Days have turned to weeks, and weeks turned to months. Word reached over to Ishgard one dreadful day of her father's passing. The reason was unknown, and after sending some Inquisitors to investigate, they return with his body. With little information to go by, all they could do was prep Helga's status as the next leading lady. For her to aquire this title will take some time, for she needs to be of age to get it. Mourning of her father's passing, all she could do was ponder on what to do should that time come and she's leading lady. Sadly, that time did not come to pass. While returning from archery, she disovered her Mansion caught ablaze. There were several that were badly injured, but others were fine. No one knew how the fire started, but it was clear it was an assination attempt. Helga would need shelter and protection, but none of the other houses would allow her in. Some were concern for their own lives, while others want something out of this. Seeing as how her title was vulnerable, she decides to leave Ishgard to Ul'dah in hopes to avoid danger as well as join the Thaumaturge guild. Once she made the preparations, she took a cart to Thanaland in hopes to use the time away to figure out both her life as well as her father's murder. Once she arrived safely and aquired one of the nicer homes in Ul'dah, she began to focus on her new life as a Ul'dah resident.
[Realm Reborn, Ul'dah]
While she lived a new life in a new city, she decided to keep her family heritage a secret as well as where she was born. To others at the time, she was simply an adventurer looking to make gil. While she hired someone to look into the case of her father, she made use of her time either reading the tomes available in the city, or attending lessons in the Thaumaturge gil. True to her father's statement, she proved to be an exceptional mage; already grasping the fundementals and placed pressure on some of the students she was pitted against. Using what she learned, she continued to raise her skills on the request of the adventure guilds whenever a problem arise. With her reputation being raised in both guilds, things were looking up to her once more. One of the students, Loha Zolwe (miqo'te seeker), noticed this and decided to put her skills against Helga in a friendly competition. Helga accepted the challenge and competed against one another. The fight was fierce; neither side wished to give in. After awhile however, Helga once again became victorious…but not without feeling winded. Upon realizing it, this was the first time her victory was heavily hard fought. She congradulated Loha on a job well done, and informed her that she enjoyed the bout. Hearing that earnest statement gave her a strange feeling, but she nodded. Since then, Helga's been seen conversing with Loha from time to time, usually about asking for pointers on her skills and anything aetherical related. For the first time, she felt she was speaking to someone of the same mind, to which made her lower her guard far more than normal. Loha shared some of her advice, as well as aquired advice from Helga, to which wasn't much according to her. Most of what Helga advised were fundemental practices of Thaumaturge; something she felt she already knew. In truth, she felt determined to beat Helga in aetherical for she wasn't going to let a brand new student out-shine her. When they had more bouts, Helga kept winning and the gap looked to be farther and farther each time. Helga offered to assist her, but Loha declined bitterly. Loha attended less classes afterward, which bothered Helga. One day, Helga was given a letter by Loha to meet her in the ruins of Thanaland. Upon arriving there, Loha challenged Helga once more in combat. Helga noticed the air around Loha was different, then she saw why; a black mage soul stone. Determined, Helga accepted the challenge. The fight started, and Loha's pressure was stronger than Helga's. For the first time in awhile, Helga felt like she was on the backfoot. She knew she couldn't out power Loha, so she had to beat her in a different way. When she found an opportunity, she focused her sleep spell onto Loha's dominant hand. Normally this spell would make the target fall asleep, but since she was focusing on a specific spot on her arm, it resulted in her dropping her rod. With the opportunity presented itself, she charged forward and swat the miqo'te away from her weapon. Then, she used several Fire I spells on Loha in hopes to defeat her. After taking several direct hits, the miqo'te passed out. Helga approached her and took away the Black Mage soul stone and looked at her. To her knowledge, this all happened because there was a feeling of jealousy, for she looked sane throughout the fight…and the soul stone didn't seem corrupted. Silently, she placed the miqo'te in a safe corner of the ruins, treated her wounds, and then left silently. That bout, was the last time she ever trusted anyone ever again. No more would she rely on help from others. Instead, she'll rely on her own wits and prowess, for she's the only one she could trust at this point. Helga informed the guild master of Loha's actions and she was expelled from the guild.
[Heavensward]
Despite Eorzea's three major cities were at war with the Garleans, a lot of her focus were of her own affairs. The investigator in charge of the case spoke to Helga from time to time. Feeling both stronger and wiser, she decides to travel back to Ishgard. Upon her arrival, several have greeted her and updated her on the situation in Ishgard. Some of the workers under House Stormwind have seeked other employment once they recovered their injuries, while most were working in other places in Ishgard till she returned. The maids, knights, and other workers wish to continue assisting Lady Stormwind once she's ready to be the leading lady of the household. Matters in Ishgard was worsening with the Dragonsong War. Not wanting to lose her city, she took arms in assisting matters in the war; even so much as to putting Dragons to the sword. Thanks to her and other volunteers, peace between Ishgard and dragons was achieved, though there were some that resented their co-operation with the dragons. Helga was ready to take on the title of Viscountess, and her first order of business was to rebuild her new household in Ishgard. While she was getting her own home built, she assisted in the Restoration of Ishgard to the best of her ability. Once the workers were re-screened and House Stormwind was built, she informed everyone of their duties and how things were going to run. As Leading Lady, she was going to explore the outer reaches of Ishgard and gather knowledges for her to share with her maids, as well as those in Ishgard.
[Stormblood - Shadowbringers]
While she handled matters in Ishgard in terms of the restoration, she helped managed the new library built. This library would have books from various other locations of Eorzea, filled with various books that tides the readers over to being more informed of the outside world of Ishgard, as well as other things such as instruction books, recipes for new dishes, gathering resources for plants, and other helpful things. When House Stormwind was self-efficient, she began to set her sights on assisting some Free Companies. There have been moments where she grew a headache, she did learned of some helpful things, which in turn helped her become stronger. It was then her investigator would be showing up less and less, to the point where they would exchange letters. The last few letters she recieved spoke of them not having any new leads, but would inform her if anything new were to resurface.
[Endwalker]
Not wishing to rely on the investigator any longer, she turned her attention to an FC she was familar with; (insert aevum name). Thanks to their help, Helga have discovered many things. The investigator that was tasked to investigate her father's murder was killed; the person who sent the letters were sending her on wild chocobo chases to discourage her from investigating any further. The one who burned her home was in the same faction as those that killed her father, who managed to stab him in the back when he wasn't looking and left to rot. These people were actually a small group fo Sharlayans that have watched Helga's family line for some time. (insert FC) and Helga learned of their motive: the reason being is that Helga's family line have been watched for some time as they've been known to learn too much and thus are too stubborn. This group killed her dad because of his small, but legitimate proof of Hydalyn's existence. While the council of Sharlayan did not knew nor would approve of this, the small group's leader took it upon themselves to correct the issue by killing Helga's dad. With the case brought to light, the associates were brought to justice, and the leader was put in a special holding cell as he was one of the Sharlayan council members. Quite mysteriously, some suns after the leader was put in the gaol, he was found dead in his cell. No one know how the assassin came in, nor were there any witnesses that could account to this event. What could be said, however, is that this marked an important chapter in her life that finally had closure. With his father's killer taken care of, the council not only removed the ban off Helga for stepping on Sharlayan soil, but she managed to secure a one day trip to the aetherical sea…on the condition that she now assist in Sharlayan matters. While the conditions felt steep, she was glad she managed to meet her father and mother one last time; a place where they were waiting for her. They spoke what felt like hours of their feels; her father imparted what wisdom he had left, while her mother imparted her wisdom. Upon hearing Helga's adventures, they couldn't be more proud of her, and made sure she knew that. The father imparted all the powerful thaumaturge techniques he learned, while her mother shared with her some cooking recipes as well as conjurer spells that would aid her. Before she left, her father encouraged her heavily to explore; to see every corner of the star, and then to explore things beyond the star. With a simple nod, she made sure to keep this in mind as she left the aetherical sea.
Once she was out, she searched for a quiet corner in Labyinthos. Once she found a tree to sit, she looked around to make sure she wasn't followed nor were there any people around. Once she affirmed that no one was around, she sat down and allowed herself to cry and embraced her feelings for the first time in a long time. She was happy, yet sad. It was an odd feeling, yet it felt natural. Her family passed away, but they could now rest knowing how proud to have a capable daughter. She knew this to be true, yet she disliked how it all came. Once she was done crying, she relaxed and let her mind wonder. Another thing she rarely did in such circumstances. It felt…nice, to just embrace her emotions and take in the scenery. She was skygazing for hours; just letting her embrace in this one thing that felt so foriegn to her. Something she knew by definition, yet never experienced it till this moment.
Inner peace.
[Dawntrail]
OOC: WILL HAVE STUFF TO SHARE WHEN THE TIME COMES!