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Overview[]
Elaine Corbin is a noble woman of Dokrayth. She lived in a castle that was in that was slightly south east of Caerleon and directly north of Briar Keep. She was the only daughter of Lord and Lady Corbin. Elaine in appearance had all the makings of a proper lady. She knew how to do needle point, play an instrument, hold conversation, dance, all the things that would make her an accomplished young woman. Despite this though Elaine had a wild spirit. She loved to sneak out and get her hands dirty so to speak. There were many tears in her dresses that would pop up at random. The woman longed for adventure and was constantly full of wanderlust.
Elaine is the mother of Galahad a young freshly knighted member of the Knights of the Round table. She had sent him to Caerleon to squire only weeks before the Blight. Elaine had Galahad when she was near sixteen years old. He was the product of a one night of passion between Elaine and Lancelot.
As it currently stands Elaine is wandering about Ga'leah trying to get to Caerleon to find her son. It is hard on the road and something always seems to push her further away from the city. Elaine's castle was destroyed by the Blight and she is the only remaining member of her family. In order to survive Elaine has taken to whoring. It is not something she enjoys, but she feels she has no choice.
Early Life[]
Elaine was born on the first day of the year just as the sun began to rise up over the hills around her home. Her mother had labored for a day and half to bring her into the world. The family was overjoyed to have her in their lives. Elaine would want for nothing. Her life would be all golden light, silks, music, and laughter. Life would be a song for Elaine Corbin. Her parents made sure that the she had only the best. However, Elaine was not to be a perfect little lady. The girl was a very willful child. She had a free-spirit and was wild at heart. She yearned for adventure and travel. As a young girl she would spend hours pouring over old maps and reading book from different lands.
Elaine while a bit of a wild child still was able to maintain her lady-like mask. It was her mind that was her strongest weapon. Knights had their swords, archers their bow and arrows, but Elaine's quick wit and ability to read people were her shield and sword. She used them to get out of trouble and to get her way. The blonde haired girl was a bit of a terror, but she did have a good heart.
Prophecy[]
When Elaine was fourteen her mother had a dream. In that dream the woman saw Elaine giving birth. From her womb sprang a bright light. That light consumed the entire room and only when the woman's eyes had adjusted in the dream did she see the handsome face that it had formed in to. The dream had felt so real to Elaine's mother that she sought out a seer to interpret it. The seer informed her mother that the dream was a prophecy. Elaine would give birth to the most valiant and honorable knight the realm would ever see. There would be many songs written about him and he would be renowned throughout Ga'leah.
Elaine's mother was thrilled to hear the prophecy. She made it known to everyone she met that Elaine was destined to be the mother to a great knight. It seemed almost right away that the woman began seeking suitors for Elaine, but she would have none of that. Elaine did not want to be tied down so soon in her life. There was still so much she wanted to do. Even if the dream was a prophecy and not the result of her mother's subconscious she would not let it rule her life.
Lancelot[]
When Elaine was fifteen she was kidnapped by a witch who had heard the prophecy. She wished to prevent the woman from ever giving birth to such a man. At first she thought that she could break Elaine in her captivity, but that proved to be incorrect. Elaine remained as obstinate as the day she had taken her from her family. No amount of threats or tortures seemed to break the girl down. She even tried to threaten rape, but Elaine only laughed at the woman and said, "And risk the possibility of me becoming impregnated by the man who does?" This had given the witch pause as there was no knowing who the father of the child would be. Nothing said that it had to be an honorable man to create the light seen in the prophecy.
"I will kill the babe then," said the witch hoping to still frighten the girl. Elaine again had only laughed and shook her head. "The child may still yet be born as it did not say if he would be my first child or my last. You know none of these things and would risk the prophecy coming to fruition?" So even such a threat as that did not harm or break Elaine's spirit. The witch needed if anything to remove the girl's ability to have children. So for weeks the woman began preparing for the ritual to make Elaine barren.
It was all for not as three weeks after Elaine's kidnapping a knight named Lancelot came to her rescue. He had been hired by the Corbin family to retrieve their daughter. Elaine was quite taken with this knight although she did not show it. He was rather arrogant and charming with a knack for pushing her buttons and trying to get a rise out of her. Elaine pushed back as well. The two got into little spats almost the entire way back. There was no denying the attraction between them though. You could feel it in the air around them. One night a simple kiss seemed to finally break through that tension. Elaine had been railing against Lancelot when finally to make her be quiet he kissed her and Elaine kissed back. The rest of the ride back to Elaine's home was strange. They tried to avoid one another, but Elaine could not help but look at this man. He had charmed her, bewitched her, and all she wanted now was to never leave Lancelot's side.
She knew though it was not to be. He was a knight of humble beginnings. There was no noble blood in his veins that she knew of and this was a time before he was the famous knight of the Round Table. Still Elaine wanted this man. Even if all she got was the chance to travel with him and see the world at his side that would be enough for Elaine. The night before Lancelot was to leave and walk out of Elaine's life forever she went to him. She told him that she knew that he had to leave and that she wished to thank him if he would have her. Elaine let her heart fall at his feet and Lancelot accepted. The two shared a night of passion. In the morning Elaine kissed his brow and said goodbye to him. She returned to her chambers knowing he would leave. The young girl of fifteen whispered a prayer to the Matchmaker asking that she may see him again.
Galahad[]
Elaine had given Lancelot her maidenhood and in turn he gave her a son. When Elaine was discovered to be with child her parents were ashamed. They could not believe that their daughter was with child out of wedlock. The prophecy soon became believed to be nothing but a dream as they did not believe the most valiant knight could be born from such a shameful blot. Elaine disagreed though. The whole pregnancy was kept quiet for a time, but when Elaine began to show her parents kept her out of sight of the public. The lie the told was that she was very ill. Of course everyone knew that was just a cover up. Elaine was not one to get sick at least not ill enough to leave her bed ridden for months.
Elaine's parents wished to try and contact Lancelot but Elaine insisted they not. By the time she had discovered she was with child it had been two months since seeing the man. He had not sent word to her at all. In Elaine's heartbroken mind this meant that the man had gotten what he wanted and walked out of her life forever. Why would a child bring him back to her side?
Galahad was born and Elaine swore to be as good a mother as possible. The lie they told the people as well as the other nobles was that Galahad was Elaine's cousin the son of the her mother's late cousin Matilda who had passed away after giving birth. All accepted the lie and thus Galahad hid who he was in the public. In private though he knew that Elaine was his mother. Elaine taught him as best she could. She got him the best tutors that she could and made sure that he was intelligent as well as proficient in swordplay. Galahad would be the knight in the prophetic dream even if Elaine was the only one who believed it now.
Blight and to the Present[]
Two weeks before the Blight came to Elaine's castle she had sent her son Galahad to squire in Caerleon. He was a boy of fifteen and had learned all he could with his teachers in Dokrayth. The woman wanted her son to be near men of honor such as Arthur and Ser Gawain. There was of course Lancelot who she knew resided in Caerleon, but Galahad had never met Lancelot and the man had likely heard that the boy was only Elaine's cousin. There would be no reason for the two to believe they were father and son. Perhaps it was wrong to hide the truth from both of them, but Elaine had given up on Lancelot many years ago. She had chosen not to tell him then and only deep down did she believe that was a mistake.
The Blight ravaged Caerleon first. News reached Elaine and she was devastated fearing that her son might have been lost. Other rumors floated about that Lancelot had lead the horde that attacked, but Elaine did not believe it. Eventually the blight came to her own castle. It came in via her father's squire who infected many including Elaine's father. Elaine's mother set the castle ablaze having gone mad at seeing her husband ravaged by the blight. It was a miracle that Elaine made it out alive. Had the cook not found her nearly passed out on the ground with the fire starting to lick at her she would have perished.
At first Elaine had been grateful to the man. He had saved her life even though he didn't have to. The cook fed her, dressed her wounds, and even comforted her all that day. However, that night he tried to become far to friendly. Elaine told him no which only angered him. The cook then decided to force himself on Elaine. He told her that she was to be his lady now and he her lord. For two weeks Elaine traveled with this cook having to answer to his every whim and let him do what he wished to her. Then one morning she awoke before him and slipped on top of him. Before the cook knew what her true intentions were she had slit his throat and watched him choke on his own blood. Elaine rolled him into a ditch to rot and then left.
Since then Elaine has traveled Ga'leah trying to find her way back to Caerleon where she hopes to find her son. However, she makes very slow going of it as she has found herself needing to whore to get by. Elaine is not even sure if she can be reunited with her son in the state that she is in.