Tahara

[Tahara]

Name: Tahara
Alias: Halfwit, slave, ‘Yena and two more none recall
Rank: Gosh’kar

Age: 23 - 26 at an educated guess
Gender: Female
Race: Mag’har
Clan: Laughing Skull
Class: Hunter
Alignment: Chaotic Neutral

Family: Unknown
Known Friends: Several members of Clan Red Blade, a tauren named Etoya and a goblin named Skeevil
Known Enemies: All slavers, most ogres

Appearance:
Noticeably skinny, lacking an inch or two in height to reach the orcish standard, Tahara is easily recognized as mag’har by her grey skin, clear of any greenish tinges. A youthful face and slim body don’t exactly make her a beauty among her kin, but the greatest offense are her marks. Her body is littered with scars, yet not a single one would fool any veteran to be noble scars earned in battle. The slaver’s whip and a handful of other abuses are carved into her skin. Her hair is a warm brown and her eyes a lighter shade of such, bordering on sandy. She doesn’t appear to own much in the way of clothing that isn’t scavenged on her own, only recently having come into possession of anything resembling armour. She is rarely without weapons and as of late has come into the possession of her own skull mask, as is tradition for her birth clan.

Personality:
Her slow and clumsy speech don’t exactly mark Tahara as a scholar. She can be anything from near childlike wonder to the melancholy of an elder depending on what she’s been thinking about - and how much. She tries hard to learn and improve, realizing she is several years behind most of her age in skill and knowledge. With patience and understanding, Tahara can become a fast friend, naturally cautious of others but always willing to give the benefit of the doubt. She loves all animals, save for insectoids and will try to befriend most, if at all possible. She is quick to frighten, but less so in battle. Hunting and killing are the bread and butter of her life and she can be surprisingly unmerciful - but there are many threats less obvious to others, that she knows just as well. Tahara often behaves as if perpetually hunted, finding true peace only in rare and private moments.

History:

Spoiler: "Beware of spoilers, no meta-gaming past this point!" • show

Much is unknown, to Tahara and every else, about her past. As far as she’s concerned, Tahara woke up one morning, eight or so years old, with no memory other than being who she was - a slave, working in the Apexis mines of the Bloodmaul tribe of ogres. Labouring her entire childhood for the tribe, Tahara made little in the way of friends or meaningful relationships, with the sole exception of Kroz, an older Blackrock orc. He treated Tahara unkindly, but still marginally less cruel than her masters. He would share food, when she looked about to starve and warmth when she looked about to freeze to death. Not exactly a good person, but the best Tahara knew, she stuck to him.

The beasts of the Bloodmaul pens were notoriously savage, the last three keepers mauled to death. Not eager to lose any more of his enforcers, Lurog, the ogre mage in charge of camp, decided to let Tahara care for them. She doesn’t remember all of the conversation. Something about her having “fulfilled her purpose, anyhow” and “being expendable”. Tahara was shoved in the pens with a bucket of meat and terror in her heart.

Miraculously, she survived. Instead of approaching the animals like a cruel master, Tahara was recognized as just another chained beast and the pens’ captives treated her as one of her own. The most brutal of all, a ruthless female raptor named Scythe, covered in hardened spikes and scales took to Tahara in an instant, beginning to clean and warm her like she was one of her hatchlings.

For years Tahara spent her time in the pens, caring for her fellow slaves of a different kind. Scythe was a fighting beast, renowned for her victories and in preparation of a great battle against the neighbouring camp’s champion warpstalker, Scythe was denied all food for days. It was Lurog’s hope the added incentive of panic and sheer survival instinct would give Scythe the fury she needed to win for the Bloodmaul tribe.

But he was wrong. Instead of becoming angry, Scythe just languished in her cage, ready to accept death. Tahara figured out why.

She was pregnant. The lack of food had pushed her past survival instinct into helpless stupor. She couldn’t move and less food was not going to fix her. Unwilling to watch the first creature who treated her with anything resembling kindness die in a pointless matter, Tahara broke her rules and fed Scythe.

She was caught, by none other than Kroz, who dragged her kicking and screaming in front of Lurog. He was fishing for a reward, not caring whatever fate awaited the young girl at the mercy of their slavers. But Lurog had a better idea. Kroz would get his reward - better food, his own cage, fewer hours of toil - if he agreed to be the one to punish Tahara. Kroz was handed a whip and Tahara thrown at his feet, silently pleading. For what it’s worth - conflict raged within the old orc for a good minute, at least, before he nodded his head.

Tahara was strung up by her hands in front of the rest of the slaves. Perhaps Kroz had been planning to go easy on her. Perhaps he’d always wanted to have someone at which to lash out in his frustration, but Kroz went above and beyond the number of lashes set by Lurog. Intoxicated by finally having power again, even if it was just the power to hurt a helpless young girl, he lost himself in the task. By the end of it Tahara was no longer standing, dangling from the strings around her wrists, feet slipping in her own blood.

Once again half a miracle that a perhaps 12, perhaps 14 year old Tahara survived the wounds, the fevers, the inflammation in an environment lacking in any kind of hygiene, she was put back into the mines, where Tahara toiled until late adolescence, resulting in poor health and a condition of her spine. As for Scythe, the useless fighter was slaughtered, the eggs broken and all of it served to the slaves.

Tahara was no part of any glorious uprising, but a slave revolt did happen and when Tahara was the last in her cage, with no ogres or orcish slaves in sight, she eventually left too - fear of dying alone pushing her past the fear of further punishment. The ogres pursued eventually and it was only with the help of a couple of Mok’nathal, that Tahara escaped Blade’s Edge safely. The huntress helped her clean herself for the first time in… ever. The warrior showed her how to fire an arrow. With a spare bow and a quiver full of arrows, they left her in Zangarmarsh, advising her to go to Nagrand.

She did find Garadar and she almost went and joined her kin, until Tahara realized she was no kin at all. Scrawny, weak, barely able to fend for herself she remembered Kroz’ words: “In my clan, you would have been drowned at birth.” Once more ruled by fear,Tahara decided she never wanted to find out if he had been right and wandered aimlessly for months, eventually reaching the very end of Outland - the Dark Portal. She accompanied a tauren, black of fur, who called himself Etoya and followed him all the way to Durotar. Spying the savannah of the Barrens from the top of the gates, Tahara found something that looked a lot more like a fitting home. She bid her farewell to Etoya and moved into the Barrens. She made another “friend”, a goblin named Skeevil who found an easy target to exploit for cash, Tahara selling her hard-earned hides and fur at ridiculously low prices, all the while happy and content, thinking she was making as much as she could.

Eventually, during a particularly rough rain season, Tahara tripped over what looked like a lump of mud. When the mud starting whining and laughing at her, Tahara bent down to pick up an abandoned hyena cub, near death. Confused by its good sense of humour, Tahara picked her up and took care of her, buying milk until the weak little thing was able to eat solid foods. Named Chuckles for her childhood weak laughter sounding more like a mildly entertained chuckle, the hyena outgrew expectations - literally. Growing up to a massive stature, Chuckles is smaller than the clan’s wolves, but of decent size for a rider, making her quite overgrown for a hyena. It’s unclear what caused this effect. Perhaps the magic of friendship, perhaps some other supernatural influence - or maybe just a freak of nature. Regardless, the two became family, the only one either had ever truly known.

Returning one day to drop off furs and other scavenged goods at Skeevil’s trading post at the Crossroads, Tahara came upon two grunts beating the small goblin to a pulp. Not really hearing what it was all about - something something, protection money? - Tahara and Chuckles stepped in. Scared off by the large hyena, the grunts fled the scene. Afterwards, Tahara got a few better deals… marginally so, at least. He got mouths to feed, after all, pal.

Tahara remained in the Barrens during all the world’s great conflict since the opening of the Dark Portal. She was briefly caught and almost enslaved again by the Kor’kron, was it not for Vol’jin’s rebellion and two of his shadow hunters stepping in before she could be forced into labour. Uncaring for politics, Tahara mostly took away that trolls were nice and Garrosh was not, from all that.

It wasn’t until the War of Thorns that Tahara was forcefully conscripted. Put to work as a hunter and gatherer for the army, she helped hunt for the supplies the Horde needed to march north. The fighting troubled her deeply, not understanding the thought behind the attack, having never had any personal quarrel with elves.

During one supply run, Tahara was spotted by a young kaldorei, possibly younger than herself, with barely fitting armour and a saber too young to ride. Realizing that the boy would raise the alarm, spelling out death for Tahara, Chuckles and their compatriots, Tahara chose to shoot the boy in a moment of pure instinct. The decision haunts her to this day, not the first sentient life she took - but the first she couldn’t justify to herself. The saber would have avenged his partner, were it not for Chuckles moving in sync with her, snapping the cat’s neck in one brutal instant.

In the end, Tahara left Darkshore traumatized and afraid. Realizing that she was a member of the Horde, one way or the other, she could be called upon again at any moment. She could die alone, fighting for something she didn’t believe in. She was forced again to move to Lordaeron and fight in Windrunner’s army, where she heard chatter of a clan who sounded different. Perhaps it was time to find out if she would be drowned....

Things you may know about this character:

• Even without Tahara explicitly mentioning it, the tell-tale scars of several dozen whip lashes mark her as a former slave easily.
• She has only recently uncovered her heritage, marked by the Laughing Skull mask she carries with her. She will not say whose face it is, only discussing it with the two members of Clan Red Blade who were present when it was… acquired.
• Tahara seems to have a deep bond with her hyena, the two communicating in almost imperceptible ways. She can also bond easily with most animals she meets, approaching them not as an orc, but one of their kind.
• Tahara seems very, very uneducated - stupid, one might call it. Many basic things are mysteries to her, she cannot read or write (yet) and her thought process seems very simplistic and basic.
• On occasion, Tahara will seem to not feel her wounds, despite being deep, obvious and painful. She seems to have a condition or something of the sort, that creates unique challenges and disabilities.

Things you may not know about this character:

Spoiler: "Beware of spoilers, no meta-gaming past this point!" • show

Morgkha, Gaar’thok and Gashuk have uncovered a secret not too long ago, unbeknownst to Tahara herself. A spell has been found on her mind, insidious yet with an unknown purpose. Concerned, all three sought to find out more about it and subsequently purge it, but chose not to take the final step. Apparently the spell is tied with Tahara’s mind - it would be an easy thing to dispell it and remove it, but at the cost of Tahara’s sanity and possibly her life. Gashuk eventually made a breakthrough, trapping the spell and containing its side-effects. Tahara seems to be feeling better, her mind a little clearer, able to soak in knowledge better and learn at a normal pace. Her headaches and fevers have also lessened significantly.

During particular dreams, Tahara begins to talk in her sleep - in a foreign language. Some may recognize it as ogre.

Memorable Quotes:
“Do you want to talk about it or stoically ride back?”
“So many.”
“Anyone tries that, I’m filling them with arrows.”