Windsonde--Alaeus

Name: Alaeus (A-lay-us)
Aerie: Skrekrill
Breed: Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) x Cougar (Puma concolor)
Sex: Female
Rank: Young gryphon

----------------------

Background
Alaeus is, to put it frankly, a very bad Skrekrill. She is cheerful, talkative, and outgoing, and really not a malcontent at all. She finds Grandesques impressive and Twistoults adorable (no, she's not overprivileged and condescending, why do you ask?). She means well but has a bit too many book smarts and not enough common sense.

Born to two high-ranking advisors to Queen Maud, Alaeus's childhood was about as pleasant as it gets in Skrekrill. Since she demonstrated from a young age both an interest in politics and the ability to sit still, her parents would occasionally let her sit in on their less-important council meetings. Alaeus thinks the world of Queen Maud and is deeply loyal to Skrekrill--but she also has a strong sense of right and wrong, and certain aspects of both her Queen and her aerie have begun to trouble her as she grows. She doesn't yet realize that Maud is mad, and it's uncertain how she will react when she finds out.

Personality
She has a great deal of ambition, and has always longed to become a diplomat (is there such a thing in Skrekrill?) and "broker peace between the aeries." This is partly because she finds the other clans fascinating, and she doesn't understand all the hostility...and, well, she intends to go down in history somehow. The war, however, stands in the way of her plans...

Alaeus is an introverted egghead at heart, but makes an active effort to be gregarious and talk to literally everyone. This is less because she really wants to be friends with everything that moves, and more because she feels like that's how a future very-important-gryphon should act. She has a very big ego and a quick temper, but she doesn't hold grudges and gets over slights easily.

Physical skills
Alaeus's forepaws are a combination of feline and avian traits, which both helps and hinders her. Her paws are largely catlike, with talons that are extremely long and non-retractable. Her osprey side gives her what is very nearly an opposable thumb, but her nails are so long that she has trouble manipulating objects. She has considered filing her thumb-talon down, but decided to wait at least until the end of the war--just in case. Her paw-pads are covered in sharp scales that give her excellent traction on slick surfaces.

She is smaller and lighter than most Skrekrills and has only minimal combat training, but she can still do some damage in a fight. When you have claws that long, even flailing wildly can make an impression. That said, she is very aware that a big Grandesque could squash her and prefers to talk her way out of confrontation where possible, and she will run if necessary. She is reasonably fast on all fours and a good jumper, but more than anything...

...Alaeus LOVES to fly. She flies everywhere, all the time, and if you're looking for her, you should look up. She flies laps around all of Windsonde on a regular basis, to build up her endurance, and makes trips to Tookie Island to "study" the locals (mostly, she watches them for a while until she falls asleep in the sun, more often than not waking up covered in Tookie graffiti). She's not the fastest gryphon, but she prefers to practice her technique, endurance, and aerobatics. Her water-resistant and uniquely-shaped osprey wings give her a strong advantage when flying over water or in bad weather. If she gets scared, her first instinct is to fly up, and she will try to lure any enemy into an aerial battle where she has the advantage.

While Alaeus is still young and somewhat ungainly, her constant practising means that she is already an extremely good flier, and as she grows, she will work herself to the bone to prove to herself and her aerie that she is one of the true masters of the air.

* * *

TLDR Curious, friendly, idealistic, and somewhat misguided, with an ego the size of Queen Titania and a somewhat worrisome bonfire spark of ambition. Wants to be a hero and the greatest flier alive.

She is not sure about this whole war thing. She loves Skrekrill and respects Queen Maud, but does not yet realize the depth of hostility between the aeries, and that Maud is mad. How she will respond remains to be seen.