Role

Chapter 1

From a young age, Nephinae envied those who were branded as black sheep and
any who were 'burdened' with a scarlet letter. As a perfectly unremarkable
young woman living in Tir-Talath, Nephinae learned that being shunned meant
that you were recognized for your abilities, even if the attention was
negative.

These beliefs came from her upbringing: Nephinae and her twin brother Aeldan
were the children of a successful merchant family who lived comfortably within
Tir-Talath. Comparisons between the two were the topic of note over dinner and
their father emphasized the importance of being successful so that one of them
could inherit the family business. Nephinae's parents started the family
textile business in Hamsah Mu'tazz in their early 20s and struggled against
other merchants, the Sultan's taxes, and all of the other pressures that came
with being young entrepreneurs in a port city. Her mother and father worked
long nights for decades to build an easier life for their children. As the
twins grew to the age of adolescence, the lack of strife produced a pair of
lazy grifters that had no real skills and no ambitions aside from 'earning'
the family business from their father.