Nero


"The road is now calling, and I must away. We came all this way, but now comes the day to bid you farewell."

the basics

Name || Nero

Nicknames || None

Age || Twenty-two

Species || Leopard

Gender || Male

Sexuality || Homosexual

God || Lestris, Esera, Goddess of Stars, Sahraia, Demigoddess of Song

Birth God || Lestris, Goddess of the Moon

Gifts || Truth-sensing, exceptional singing voice

Occupation || Slave/entertainer





the appearance

Voice Claim || Billy Boyd



Identifying Features || Nero is about average size for a leopard, slender, but with powerful shoulders and striking amber-gold eyes that stand out even against his yellow-gold fur. He has a series of scars on his belly, mostly only noticeable up close when one sees his fur doesn’t grow as thickly there as it should. A golden music note marks his right forepaw, while a unique double Mark of Lestris’ moon and Esera’s six-point star rests on his chest over his heart.



Clothing || When it comes to clothing, Nero is usually dressed in simple velvet vests or tunics, whatever makes him look more fashionable in his master’s estimation. While traveling with his master, he wears a thicker cloak that keeps his guzheng from rubbing across his shoulders too uncomfortably.



Weapons || Does Nero’s guzheng count as a weapon?





the personality

Overall || Even though Nero is an entertainer, he is actually quite shy, and it takes a great deal of effort to get him to open up and reveal his true self. Behind the quiet, lilting voice and searching eyes, the polite words and grace, is a creature very afraid of trusting.



He is an intelligent creature, with the crucial ability to sense when others are lying that has kept him safe both as a slave and as a creature intrinsically tied to the politics of nobility. Nero has a great capacity for compassion, but he is afraid of being perceived as weak, and his small kindnesses are often done in secret, where no one can see that he cares. He has a great passion for music, though he dislikes playing to a crowd.


Though Nero has his own preferences when it comes to attraction, he has never been free to love. Slaves are only free to mate, to produce more slaves for their masters, and Nero has no desire to do that, so he's remained alone and believes this is how he will always be, unless he is able to achieve the freedom that he secretly yearns for.


the history

Family || Father, White Claw, leopard. Alive. Mother, Senna, leopard. Alive. Sister, Little Thorn, leopard. Alive.



Important People || Madame Svari - Past Owner - Adoptable. Current Master - Adoptable. Keia - Priestess of Esera - Adopable.



Hometown || Rynidaan, Atheraan



History || Nero and his sister, Little Thorn, were born to White Claw and Senna, both slaves to a wealthy noble within the city of Rynidaan. From the first days he can recall, he has served a master, and he cannot remember any time in his life when he truly knew loved. His parents could not pay much attention to him, for their work took precedence. He and his sister were close, but Nero was sold from his family at a young age, specifically sold to Madame Svari, a beautiful and affluent proprietress of an upscale pleasure house.



Svari was not an unkind master, her goal being to raise slaves up and teach them the finer points of serving nobility. Then, when she had given her slaves education and taught them grace and manners, she would lease them out to nobles for company, entertainment, or, to a select few, as spies within noble circles to report to her clients. Svari bought Nero for his singing voice, which she’d heard while visiting the estate of his master. The proprietress taught him the art of entertainment, from manners to poetry, from singing to playing many exotic instruments. Eventually he settled on the guzheng as his instrument of choice, and he learned to play it with exceptional finesse. It helped that he had accepted, at his mistress’ bequest, the Blessing of the Demigoddess of Song, a Blessing that included his skill at playing music. His natural singing voice took on an almost otherworldly quality, bringing him to the attention of many nobles.



Svari greatly valued Nero for his voice and grace. His quiet nature only made him more malleable in her eyes, and she soon gave him a special place among her slaves, paying a great deal to grant him access to learning and education that many of the other slaves would not receive. As he grew older, Nero began to find himself earning the favor of many lords who wished to purchase him from Svari. Eventually, she received an offer she couldn’t refuse, and sold him to one of the wealthiest slave owners in the Kingdom Between the Twins. Nero begged her not to give him up, not trusting this new master to care for him, not believing the lies that he could sense when he claimed to admire Nero’s voice. This owner was not kind or benevolent. He forced Nero to play for hours at grand parties, forced him to sing until his voice was hoarse. If Nero collapsed from exhaustion, his master beat him. If he lost his voice, his master beat him. But his master was cunning. He would whip Nero where the marks would never be seen, dress him up so that other nobles wouldn’t see the abuse he endured. Nero ceased to love his craft, ceased to care about much of anything at all. He would go through each day, empty and alone, and no one cared what he suffered.



It was around this time in his life he met Keia, a Priestess of Esera, Goddess of the Stars and of Truth. She was a guest of his master, a beautiful and wise creature, and on many occasions she would slip away from his master’s parties or dinners and would sit and share her experiences and the sights she’d seen in her long travels with Nero. She befriended him, and spoke to him of the Goddess of Truth. She told him softly that the Goddess of Truth did not believe that Blessed animals should be slaves, and she said she wished she could take him away from that place, back to the Temple of Esera, to freedom. But she could not, and eventually Keia had to leave, but her words and her kindness stayed with Nero from that day forward. He found the strength to continue because he believed for the first time in his life that he was more than property - that he was Blessed.
Nero continued to serve Lestris and Sahraia, but he would always hold Esera in high esteem. 


The years since Keia left have not been easy on Nero. But he continues to pursue his craft, even under the rule of a cruel master. He has learned to navigate the politics of his master’s circles, learned to earn favor with the right lords, and his master’s treatment has improved as he’s seen Nero’s worth as a slave. Still, Nero does not want to remain serving a creature he despises forever. He dreams of freedom, of singing because he loves it and not because some lord forces him to. He dreams, and prays to Esera, to Lestris, to Sahraia, that his dream will come true.



the roleplayer

Alias || Lion

Pronouns || She/her

Age || Twenty-four

Other Characters || Meh, there are a lot of them lol.

Anything Else || I hope this bio has Flameh’s stamp of approval.

Admin Tag || Vera flameh

made by remi of rilla go!