Celia Maxwell

Full Name: Celia Merihem Maxwell

Age/Date of Birth: 27, born II Octidi Frimaire, 234 AU.

Gender: Female

Race/Ethnicity: Of noble Durantian descent on father’s side, Ghalean on mother’s.

Citizenship: Ghalean, Durantian (scholarly visa)

Appearance: Celia is what most would consider a waste of natural beauty, being blessed with the pale skin of her Ghalean mother and fair, wavy hair of her Durantian father, and by some favorable genetic circumstance granted generally agreeable features. Sharp, almond eyes of a curiously cold green, reminiscent of a plant in its final days, peer out actively. Rather than devoting long hours to emphasizing the flattering elements of the visage and suppressing all else, Celia is content to wash her face, sling back her hair and, with a satisfied sigh, go about her business. When this lack of concern for one’s maquillage meets a mien given to periods of brooding and concentration, the result is a severe brow emphasizing a firm jaw and broad chin, offering to the world a poetic beauty, though not one of a particularly aesthetic nature. A small mole is visible beneath her left cheekbone. She covers it with makeup for formal events, being slightly self-conscious yet not sufficiently so to merit constant concealment of such a blemish. Numerous miniscule bruises speckle her upper arms. Celia’s clothing is of Ghalean make. She doesn’t seem overly concerned with materials, but does pay considerable attention to the cut of the garment. Prefers to remain in laboratory attire consisting of black leggings, neat white riding boots and a long white clinical gown buttoned to the chin, as she is rarely in possession of free time. On formal occasions she is partial to Ghalean dresses, by which is meant conservative yet form-fitting garments of simple yet respectable tailoring and muted colors.

Languages spoken: Durantian Common, Old Murotian, Carmaghi, High Ghalean, some Godrite.

Occupation(s): Administrator and Researcher with the Kurtz Corporation, Researcher with the Lucretzia Compound

Likes: Clean metal, muted colors, water, subterranean spaces, nightmares, the occult, being right

Dislikes: Blind faith, rust, people who get too close when speaking, Maximilien Hilbert, being inferior

Biography: At the time of Celia’s birth, Cohen Maxwell had not yet attained the level of success within the diplomatic forces of the Ghalean government. This development was to arrive some time later, at the conclusion of the War of the Vassals in which Cohen played a key role. Twenty-seven years prior he was little more than an errand boy to the Board of Deans, fetching the occasional scone and patiently recording the dictates of his superiors. With the arrival of a child, some wellspring of ambition long stifled asserted its existence, marking what would be one of the most singular diplomatic careers in Ghalean history. This display of constant passion would have a marked effect on the development of young Celia, who upon learning to walk competently was permitted to accompany her father to his office, by then the handsome suite of a deputy relations minister. Amongst the halls of the high-ceilinged halls of the capitol building in La Lumière de l’Homme she grew, absorbing the energy of statesmen and scholars, the latter to a greater degree by far. This observation was neglected by Celia’s mother Helena, who formed visions of a daughter following nobly in her father’s footsteps in the diplomatic field.

These dreams were thoroughly dashed upon Celia’s ninth birthday when, contrary to the expectations of her parents, she calmly expressed a desire to be enrolled in Baronsfield Court, the only university known to accommodate all grades and ages. While Helena at once condemned this wish, instead preferring to implant Celia in the diplomatic corps early by way of their private education system, Cohen regarded his peculiar progeny with a thoughtful air. She was, he had often remarked, a singularly mature child, by all rights a genius and undeniably capable of astounding feats, if nurtured properly. Ignoring his wife’s protestations he contacted the Dean of Baronsfield, Doctor Matilde Blythe, and arranged an interview. This meeting proved to be the shortest in Dr. Blythe’s formidable career, concluding after only fifteen minutes in the favor of young Celia.

The school years of Celia Maxwell ought to be the stuff of which legends are composed, if her queer air and high intelligence are to be considered signs of prodigy. Yet they passed quietly. Yes, Celia’s grades were often perfect, and all intelligence surveys returned exceedingly favorably. She simply... lacked a certain something, that drive to employ her abilities in any significant way. Her instructors labeled this as a shortcoming, a failure to embrace the Ghalean lust for discovery, the famed work ethic of the scientist. Dr. Blythe offered an alternate interpretation: Celia was bored. The work was too simple, her classmates too simple, her professors too simple. In short, Celia’s superiority had convinced her that she had nothing greater to which to aspire, thus sapping her will entirely. Eager to combat this ennui and draw forth the potential of the girl, Blythe at once withdrew her from her present curriculum and, equipping her with a letter of explanation, thrust her into the waiting arms of Thieyons University.

Here can be identified the point at which Celia the child died and Celia the scientist rose triumphantly from the dust, wreathed in the radiance of Prometheus and Minerva. While Helena Maxwell endeavored to block this scientific ascension in a final effort to force her daughter into the footsteps of Cohen by refusing to allow family funds to go to Celia’s schooling, Doctor Eugenie Kehler, Dean of Thieyons, circumvented this petty stroke by offering a full scholarship on the condition that Celia become an asset of the Kurtz Corporation which, as some are aware, funds Thieyons. The agreement was made without difficulty; at the age of thirteen Celia was fully enrolled as a collegiate scholar, the youngest yet in Ghalean history, beating Sinclaire Thames by two years. Faced with the constant challenge of asserting her equality to the more conventionally qualified students, Celia truly excelled in all areas of study. Being especially gifted in the realm of biochemistry, she was quickly placed beneath the tutelage of Doctor Maximilien Hilbert, at the time an adjunct professor of the biological arts.

The relationship between Hilbert and Celia was a peculiar one, to be certain. None could deny that she was an apt pupil, absorbing all which he had to offer with startling alacrity, and that Hilbert seemed more interested in her progress than was his norm. Dr. Kehler was vexed by persistent rumors of nondescript mandatory private lessons taking place in the evenings between the two, however, and was urged by her conscience to put an end to their professional relationship after five years. Celia did not complain, but there was an apparent shift in her demeanor. Her ambition had not faded, no... if anything, it had grown all-consuming. She had grown distant, her visage hardened, her mind capable of grasping angles of thought better left alone. This was of some concern to Kehler, who forcefully suggested that Celia take on a research position in the Lucretzia compound, a medical convent under Kehler’s direct jurisdiction. In this way an eye could be at all times kept on the girl’s labors.

By the age of twenty-two, Celia had settled arguably comfortably into her joint role as a Kurtz and Lucretzia researcher. She had produced a number of brilliant papers on the subject of magic evolution and the potential of the human body to become something more than strictly human by way of excessive magic use. In a more practical regard, innumerable remedies on the market carried the name of Maxwell, as did a variety of potent toxins facing more select distribution. Facing a lull between projects, Celia was plucked from her researches by Kehler who, hoping to secure a free exchange of ideas with the Durantian government and its corp of researchers, had urged the Headmaster-General of Ghalea to deploy Cohen Maxwell on a diplomatic mission. It made the most delightful sense to send Cohen’s daughter as Kehler’s representative. So it was that Celia arrived in Durant, stood before the Archduke, and for the first time in her life she felt cognizant of an unconquerable, supreme force. This man, if he could be called a man at all, was utterly foreign to her, and that was... intoxicating. An impression had been made in her very soul, an imprint which at once altered the most essential of her perceptions. Then it was over. He retreated to his chambers, sparing her only a cursory glance. He was gone, but his presence would forever linger within her heart. Thus she resolved to make herself useful to this man, this god, in every possible way. Through her father she sent a letter containing only “cor meum tibi offero domine prompte et sincere”, o r’my heart I offer to you Lord promptly and sincerely’ in Old Murotian, receiving a reply within the week simply stating “gratum quidem suscipere te”, meaning ‘We are pleased to receive you’.

From that day forward Celia became an extension of His will, directing her brilliance as His Majesty required. She was not a slave, but a willing hand, a sword which delights at the taste of blood. It is ever her wish to grow stronger, to overcome the limitations of humanity to become truly useful to the Archduke. Years have passed, five of them, and her resolve remains unshaken.

Quote: “I have no problem with the text itself,” retorted Celia sharply, “I simply object to its ludicrously liberal interpretation in hopes of applying some bastardization of its teachings to every aspect of life. It is pitiful. People must find their own way, or they can scarcely claim to be more than slavish beasts."

Aliases: Merihem, Lia, Ms. Wainewright

Religion: The Caelestis Nobilium

Political Affiliation: Staunch royalist where Durant is concerned, considers Ghalea in need of firmer rule.

Education: Attended Thieyons University. Received degrees in toxicology, theoretical sciences, classical magic systems, biology, chemistry and biomedical engineering. Considered a prodigy.

Weapons: Poisons, often applied to a variety of objects such as, but certainly not limited to, knives, needles, syringes, pages of books, fishhooks, and arrows. Possesses a small flintlock pistol.

Special Abilities/Skills: Able to perform old Ghalean Alchemical Formes with a noteworthy degree of skill, also well-versed in Durantian Philosophies. Exceedingly talented chemist.

Organizations: Ranking administrator of the Kurtz Corporation. Well-regarded amongst the Durantian nobility through father’s ties to the Archduke. Considered a noble of the highest degree by Ghalean society due to academic prowess.

Mannerisms: Severe hypomania given to bursts of mania. This no doubt contributes to her magic addiction which, in her rush to grow more powerful, grows more demanding every day.

Relationship(s): Deeply obsessed with Archduke Erick Saint-Just, though this appears to be decidedly one-sided. Maximilien Hilbert has an odd interest in her.

Interests/Hobbies: Erick Saint-Just, Existentialist Philosophy, Idrach, the Research of Sebastian Wade, Poisons, Rare Plants, Reading, Swimming

Family: Preferring by nature the luxury of solitude, Celia did not grow particularly close to her family as a child and does not pretend to entertain any notion of familial obligation. She instead treats them as she would any other, which is to say, as foreign being to upon which to bequeath her respect and, if necessary, her scorn. The former, luckily, seems to hold sway. Celia's father Cohen enjoys her affections, though a rift grows daily for reasons unspoken. Her mother Helena is more of a neutral figure in her life, as Helena expressed disapproval on more than one occasion for Celia's decision to turn away from politics and enter the world of academics. As to Celia's younger sister Emily, Celia keeps a distance, due in part to the age gap but primarily to the essential differences in the natures of the girls. Regardless, Celia does her best to ensure that Emily is placed in the best position possible as she prepares to enter the world as an adult.