Arienne, the Elf from the Elvenwood.
Arienne was a female Elf living in the Elvenwood during the New Age. She was the sister of Elladan, and was between 2,000 and 3,000 years old. She identified herself as a child of the Third House, Phyllotaxist of the Ninth Order, and heiress to the Kingdom of the Eternal Blossoms.
Arienne was a skilled healer, and possessed the ability to use various magical spells to help accomplish this. She knew enchantments that could mend injuries and negate poisons; she could create a magical barrier to shield herself and others from harm; she could also accelerate the natural growth of plants.
She had long, shimmering silver hair but a youthful face. As a member of a long-lived race, Arienne cherished novel experiences, craving adventure and excitement even when it might pose danger to her life.
The Curse of the Fate Shifter[]
Arienne introduced herself to Mariposa when the butterfly princess was visiting the Elvenwood in unctual year 3891. Arienne was intrigued by the newcomers, particularly the curious klee bahh weapon Mariposa was fashioning to replace her bloodrock sword. Recognizing it was not her weapon of choice, Arienne offered to teach Mariposa some basic magical incantations that might prove useful. Mariposa agreed, and initiated telepathic llenleth so that Arienne could impart the information directly to her mind. As a result of this, Arienne and Mariposa grew close, their minds in perfect synchronicity.
Arienne was fascinated with Mariposa and her way of life; she viewed her time as a limitless commodity, like water in the ocean or oxygen in the air, and the prospect of new experiences, and the possibility of risking her life, appealed to her greatly.
When Elladan made the decision to march towards Stonekeep and intercept the Giant war machine that was heading for the Elvenwood, Arienne expressed concern that their group was too small. Their first attempts to engage the Giant were woefully ineffective, and many Elves died. Elladan demanded that they press on, despite Arienne's feelings that further attempts to stop it were futile and foolish.
After Talla Unica had a premonition that Arienne and Mariposa would enter the Giant, Arienne accompanied Mariposa through an access hatch in the Giant's foot. Their goal was to climb to a vital point in the inner machinery and sabotage it from within. When they encountered a quartet of Dwarf sentries, Arienne did not hestitate to dispatch them with swift and lethal force. Mariposa objected to such measures, forcing Arienne to reconsider her tactics.
Eventually, Mariposa and Arienne reached the control chamber, and were surprised to find the humans Four and Mirabel there, seemingly in control of the Giant. They revealed they had also infiltrated the Giant in an attempt to sabotage it, but had been unsuccessful in seizing control. The party was extracted from the Giant by Forever the dragon.
By this point, the Elven army had amassed to deal with the Giant's approach towards the Elvenwood, and the Dwarf army had also arrived on the scene. At Mariposa's suggestion, Arienne rallied the Elven troops and—against Elladan's wishes—convinced them to drop their arms against the Dwarves and instead to focus their enchantments on the Giant. The plan was successful, but an incensed Elladan forbade the Elves from having any further contact with the buttefly people. Despite this, Arienne agreed to remain friends with Mariposa in secrecy.
Embarrassment of Riches[]
Arienne continued to communicate with Mariposa telepathically, teaching her magic spells and horticultural lore. In unctual year 3892, Wazipaloo visited Arienne on behalf of "Four" Wheeler, asking her to come help their group attack the sorceress Deorwynn Fletcher. Arienne initially declned the invitation, but her desire for excitement and novelty won out and she eventually made her way to the Forgotten Basin.
Although Arienne was helpful in the ensuing battle, she was not prepared for Four and Mariposa to be catapulted through a magical portal to parts unknown. Her telepathic link with Mariposa was broken following their exile through the portal.
The Veil of Souls[]
Arienne and the others narrowly escaped being killed by Deorwynn, fleeing the volcano and retreating to safety. En route to the Elvenwood to warn Elladan of the threat from the sorceress, she was stopped by the bounty hunter Brian Devonhyre. Brian gave chase, eventually catching her and explaining that he wished to join forces with her group against Deorwynn. Traveling to the Elvenwood, Arienne asked her brother for help, but Elladan would not involve himself. Arienne feared for the safetly of the Elvenwood if he did nothing, so she resolved to take action in his stead.
Their next hope was to recruit the dragon living in theSwordedge Mountains, so she and the group were propelled to the mountains using the Elf torsion thrower. By the time Arienne found the dragon's lair, however, Brian and Mirabel had already spoken with the dragon, who had likewise refused to help.
After discussing the situation with Brian in Stonekeep, however, they realized based on conversation with the dragon that Four and Mariposa could have still existed somewhere in Novapangaea. They were unaware of any magical means by which Four and Mariposa might have been preserved, so they opted to consult Tha'aron Mendonshire the wizard.
That night, while staying at the cabin, Arienne experienced a magic vision of Mariposa, confirming that the butterfly princess was unconscious, but sleeping, but was still alive. She lacked the magic power to locate her, however.
After Jenna expressed the idea that Four and Mariposa could be found through the power of love, Arienne realized that she could use her magic to increase the existing heartlink in some of their company in order to enable them to track their missing companions. Arienne used this magic on volunteers Mirabel and Brian, who were then able to determine Four and Mariposa were somewhere in the Badlands.
The group discovered Four and Mariposa alive and in stasis inside an ancient laboratory. Arienne examined Mariposa and her unborn baby, noting how the child's life force made Mariposa more powerful than ever before. After the group boarded the castle-ship Endeavor, Arienne was made part of the crew as ship's Doctor.
Arienne was disgusted by the sickening display of gluttony during the crew's first meal aboard Endeavor, but even more disgusting was when Mirabel accidentally spilled jellied bone-meal all over Arienne's lap and hair.
After the dragon Dreadnaught attacked Endeavor, Arienne warned the crew that it was dangerous and that they should flee. When Four ordered Arienne to use magic against it, she attempted a water enchantment, but it was unsuccessful.
Later, in their search for crystal shards needed to reassemble the keystone scepter, Arienne and Mariposa went with Talla Unica to Seventeen Horse Town to try to locate the cobblestone. Talla Unica advised Arienne and Mariposa to kiss, suggesting it would lead them to the crystal. Instead, Talla Unica revealed the stone had been swallowed by a local junglefowl, which Talla proceeded to kill and cut open in order to produce the stone. In the aftermath of this incident, Arienne tried to convince Brian Deovnhyre that lethal action might be required to deal with Talla Unica.
During the mission to Porticus Umbra to retrieve the sunstone, when Dreadnaught attacked a second time, Arienne proposed taking Endeavor and fleeing, leaving Four and Mirabel and Guzzler to their fate.
Worried that Mariposa would be unwilling to use the keystone scepter against Deorwynn, Four visited Arienne and asked her to teach him magic. He succeeded in little more than lighting his own gloves on fire.
Concerned with Four's obsession with finding the keystone scepter, Arienne confided in Brian regarding her desire to overturn his command. She later held a secret meeting on board the ship. She had invited Brian, Jessyka, Talla Unica, and Mirabel—crew members she had felt were likely to side with her. They all agreed that removing Four from command was for the best.
After Jax learned of the mutiny, she alerted the others, who intercepted the mutineers. Arienne explained to Mariposa she had previously attempted to reason with her, but now more drastic measures were necessary. Arienne intended to take Endeavor to the Elvenwood, prompting suspicions from Four that her true motives had been to deliver the castle-ship to Elladan and use it in a renewed war against the Dwarves.
Following their arrival at the Forgotten Basin, Arienne used magic bubbles to encapsulate the reanimated cadavers in her path until she and Mariposa successfully got inside the volcano. Once there, Arienne planned to use a curative spell to bring Deorwynn back to life, thus enabling them to kill the undead sorceress.
Deorwynn directed a large metallic blade that had been decorating the walls, sending it hurtling towards the crew. Mariposa had been able to react and partially redirect its path, but not enough to prevent the blade from decapitating Arienne.
In the aftermath of the encounter, Arienne's body was interred at the Forgotten Basin.
Behind the Scenes[]
Arienne's age was not directly revealed in The Curse of the Fate Shifter, only that she was about ten times older than Mariposa (who is around 300). Mariposa states in Embarrassment of Riches that Arienne was 2,000 years old.
Arienne was named after the song "Arienne" by Tasmin Archer.