Tiriana, a young girl in the city of Tetherton, makes her living as a thief. She is a cat burglar, with an anonymous reputation for getting into places thought to be impenetrable. Much of this can be attributed to her small size. Most folks only know of her as the mysterious "Mouse". However, in Tetherton, all thievery is punishable by death. One day her luck runs out and she is caught in the act, and executed. An eccentric wizard salvages her body and resurrects her - so that she can become his servant, and steal things for him. Now, however, she is stealing mystical artifacts from other wizards - and maybe learning a little magic of her own on the side. The first several episodes of this story will take place in an urban city setting, so the ability to draw city scenes (from fancy to filthy) is a plus. Plus there are the arcane and ornate furnishings of wizards, which figure heavily in the story. The star of the story is a young girl, slightly buck-toothed, freckled, with round, somewhat largish ears. She should be appealing and cute in her own way. Prospective artists should keep all this in mind. |
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Characters of note: Lyda, Arwyrth, and Killeen are Mouse's cohorts - like her, they are thieves, and the four of them call themselves a "guild". Lyda is a trollbreed, using her strength to rob people through assault; Arwyrth specializes in pickpocketing and other feats of manual dexterity - in appearance he is shabby and pale, could be considered a "goth" in more modern Earth terms; Killeen is an elf with a x-shaped scar on her face who devises scams and fraud to steal things. After her resurrection, Mouse suspects one of her friends of betraying her to the authorities, though she isn't sure which one. Harvous Tan is the wizard who resurrects Mouse and puts her to work for him. He's an irritable elderly man with little patience for others. Lady Jyl Karrock is Harvous Tan's daughter, a wizard in her own right, and is married to Baron Karrock, the mostly unseen ruler of Tetherton. Salvaro is also a wizard. Dressing in a flamboyant pirate outfit (since he is both a wizard and a pirate), he puts on an air of sophistication while also managing to be lecherous and otherwise horrible. Thillanya is a seductive elvish sorceress who seems to take an interest in introducing Mouse to the world of magic. Her motives are unclear and seem to border on sinister. Erith and Jenk are a pair of roguish characters who procure Mouse's corpse for Harvous Tan before crossing to the Tatterlimbs story. Erith is an elf and an alchemist, Jenk is a burglar with acrobatic abilities.
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| The following synopsis is provided only to give a very rough idea of the kind of story that is being told; many details are omitted for brevity's sake. Artists who agree to draw this story will be provided with much more detailed scripts. |
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In issue one, Mouse is introduced to us as she burglarizes a house. She meets up with the other members of her "thieves guild" and they chat about things, particularly her reputation around town and the latest reward for her capture. Later, she is in a bar elsewhere in town when she overhears two guardsmen talking about a fantastic treasure being held in a local mansion. Back at her guild's hideout, she announces her plans to steal that item. However, the plan goes awry, and when she manages to get to the item inside the mansion, she finds an overwhelming number of guardsmen waiting for her. She is captured and jailed, tried for thievery, and sentenced to hang. She is unable to escape; bribery and pleading are useless. She is hung and dies. In issue two, a pair of seedy characters (Jenk and Erith) see Mouse's body and acquire it, taking it to the house of Harvous Tan, an elderly man who happens to be a wizard. They leave and the wizard performs a strange ritual over the corpse that brings Mouse back from the dead. Mouse is told she must now work for Harvous Tan. Mouse is confused, but tries to adjust to the situation. Lady Karrock and Salvaro show up at Harvous' home, having sensed a strange magical power, which they want Harvous to share with them. Harvous declines, but allows them to have dinner with him. During the meal, he informs them that he is magically sealing his house, and that once that's done, nobody will be able to enter or leave except Mouse. Mouse is to be his agent in the outside world. Mouse protests, but Harvous makes a magical gesture, and she falls down as if dead. In issue three, we find that Mouse is not dead, and was only incapacitated temporarily as a scare tactic to shoo off Lady Karrock and Salvaro. Harvous reveals that there is more to Mouse being his agent - he needs a thief to steal magical items for him that he will be unable to get himself, sealed in his house. Until he needs her, she is free to come and go as she pleases. Mouse leaves. She goes to her guild's hideout, reveals that she is alive, and accuses them of having a traitor amongst them. She does not know which one, but she thinks one of her friends tipped off the authorities for the reward money. Later, she is sulking in a bar, when a messenger approaches her and summons her to meet Thillanya - an elvish sorceress. Thillanya has learned about her becoming Harvous Tan's agent (but not the thief part, it seems), and claims simply to want to introduce herself. However, while talking about the nature of magic, Thillanya creates a cloud of energy that washes over and through Mouse, scaring her, but at the same time, thrilling her with new and unusual sensations. Thillanya ends the visit and sends Mouse away, leaving her standing on a street, thoroughly confused... In issue four, Mouse actually gets to steal something - a magical staff, with the ability to talk. It is located in the fortress of a wizard who has enchanted almost everything he owns with the ability to talk... |