Unicorn Daedalus [READY]

[Dio]

Daedalus
No magic is good nor evil. It is merely there. Whether it is used for good or evil is the sole prerogative of its practitioner.

 

[WOE Version]

Name: Magister Daedalus of Maretonian Noble House Sardonyx
Sex: Male
Age: Stallion
Species: Unicorn
 
Coat Color: A faded sanguine.  Ash white fetlocks.
Mane/Tail Color and Style: Ash white with cinereous grey streaks.  Mane and tail are impeccably kept and lovingly done into long braids that hug closely to his body so as not to get in the way when casting.
Eye Color: Blue.
Physique: Lanky, bookish, and not very threatening, perhaps even cute, though looks can be deceptive.  Has a preference for loose-fitting, hooded attire, though is known to be a sharp dresser when the situation calls for it.
 
Residence: Born in Kastrot.  Travels often for “work.”
Occupation: Mage, arcanist, and ritualist for hire.  Specialist in strange and unusual magic.
 
Cutie Mark: The all seeing eye, representing his value of arcane knowledge and his desire to acquire and preserve it.  The compass it is overlaid on represents his desire to turn it from harm and toward constructive use.
 
Character History
Daedalus’ father is a Maretonian noble and his mother a Saddle Arabian trophy wife.  From the very beginning, politics permeated the home.  The constantly shifting balance of power in Maretonia necessitated many trips between both the other city-states and the Equestrian mainland.  Through shrewd political maneuvering and selective purchase of properties and businesses, his father managed to secure a middling estate in Kastrot proper and a place in the Kastrotian envoy to Equestria.
 
Daedalus practically grew up in Canterlot, spending much of his time alongside his father.  Though the elder Sardonyx was all work, a young Daedalus found plenty of time to explore in between private tutoring sessions.  His curiosity and desire to consume information was insatiable.  When he had exhausted his sources of conventional magic from his tutors, he began plucking tomes from the Canterlot library on the subject.
 
Magical mastery came naturally to Daedalus and before long he had advanced far beyond his grade level in its study.  While studying it, he discovered the connections between dark magic and emotions, coming to a realization: the art itself was not evil.  Like the summoning of fire and ice that he had so easily mastered, it could be used to create or cause harm as the user chose.  With that epiphany, he constructed an unusual spell, a cold flame that cloaked the room in shadow.  His cutie mark appeared at that instant, the all seeing eye emblazoned on a compass, representing his everlasting search for knowledge, his efforts to preserve it, and his desire to direct it all for good.
 
Daedalus was now faced with a quandary.  Dark magic was a taboo subject in the family, stemming from the legend of a terrible Maretonian prince rumored to have been part of the Sarconyx line and practitioner of the dark arts.  When he informed his father of his achievement, he handily left out the part about dark magic, instead saying much about the general acquisition and preservation of knowledge.  Unfortunately, this prompted his father to take it one step further in his joy; the elder Sardonyx saw fit to begin educating Daedalus about politics and business.  It was immediately apparent that the younger Sardonyx found the subject eminently distasteful, his great intelligence and initiative notwithstanding.  
 
For years, Daedalus endured the lessons on deal-making and pageantry and the endless council sessions until finally he could take it no longer.  He came out to his father about his accomplishments in dark magic and distanced himself from politics.  Daedalus never speaks of the confrontation directly, instead saying only that he will return to Kastrot when he is ready and not a second sooner.
 
He now makes his living as a mage and ritualist for hire, with a specialty in the arcane, the obscure, and the taboo.
 
Character Summary
Daedalus is a mage of great skill, an avid reader, and something of an amateur philosopher.  His spells are constantly being revised and tinkered with in an attempt to make them more potent or efficient as he deems necessary.  His tongue is as sharp as his magic and he possesses a natural, boyish charm tempered by the flames of real world experience.  While usually pragmatic, he can at times also be vain and petty, particularly when he feels he has been personally slighted by someone who should know better.
 
His upbringing has created a stark juxtaposition of kind vagabond and vicious political radical.  On the one hand, Daedalus has great compassion for those less privileged.  He would happily give up bits for somepony who needs them or lend a hoof or horn where labor is required.  On the other hand, he is intolerant of individuals he believes need to be put in their place.  Having dealt with Maretonian politics and Canterlot high society, Daedalus knows how to navigate his way through, but also all the right buttons to push to cause maximum agitation.
 
Daedalus has a preference for mostly practical attire, but also delights in dressing up when given the opportunity.  Because of his occupation, however, he rarely gets the opportunity to do so.

[Dio]

Ready.

[SteelEagle]