Vahki (true name: Enki)
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True (Vahki)
Vahki's true form is that of a giant, beautifully colored crimson Naga that reaches a total height of 11 feet and a total length of 24, though he is expected to grow throughout his lifespan, especially as he's able to live much longer than any Naga could through natural means. Vahki's body is muscular, and weighs a good 4 tons - enough muscle and weight to crush whatever he's wrapping himself around, even if there's more than one. Though not yet practiced in serpent, lizard, or draconic magicks, Vahki wears a necklace that could be harnessed for such a thing around his neck - a beautiful necklace of black bone and snake fangs polished to appear as though it is a gemstone, and set with a decently sized black pearl that has been embedded with ruby, as well as other rubies, it has the potential to come into play in the future; for now, however, it is simply part of Vahki's royal attire, and is always present even if you don't see it. Most often it is separated into various pieces of jewelry when Vahki transforms. Vahki has four arms in his true form, and each - with five fingers - has claws at the tip.
Atop his head, and framing his face, Vahki possesses a a crown of golden and black scales that transforms with him into the hair that he wears as Vahkian Ambrose, Vahki has a handsome face that embodies the aspects of traditional male beauty amongst most sapient species, and it is not as similar to a dragon or Naga as one might think, save for his fangs, tongue, scales, and eyes. Vahki's face is borrowed for his most regular human identity, one that he has taken a great liking to. Vahki features fur along, and at the end of, his tail as well as around his neck like a mane. He has yellow, serpent-like eyes and a long forked tongue that can lap at the air for additional scent capabilities.
Human (Vahkian Ambrose)
Elven (Andra, the Crimson Tide of Lo'dun)
(Feel free to elaborate on your character’s appearance here.)
Skills and Abilities
Naga/Great Sea Drake Hybrid
The Great Drakes, beasts of intellect and skill more than capable of and giving the knowledge for others to build cities within mountains far superior to their lesser drake cousins, are composed of many beings, but one of the youngest amongst their numbers - a half-Naga hybrid still coming into his own - his Vahki, the Crimson Tahk’s Prince of Deceit. He is not very old at 235 years old, but he is much older than any other Naga that he’s aware of, save for his mother - a pure blood that extended her life drastically through the magical art of Transference. The result of two magicians receiving near-identical visions, or visitations, perhaps - no one is quite certain, and Vahki as well as his parents are mum on the matter - Vahki isn’t especially large for a dragon, coming in at 11 feet tall and 24 feet long. He isn’t especially old, or impressive, either - and this is represented in his always-beautiful bipedal forms, save for his elven form, which is grandiose and tall for a female elf of her race. His beauty is undeniable, and perhaps he benefits from that more than he does his magic.
As a Crimson Tahk by blood, and the child of a shapeshifting sea drake connected to the Blood Stars, Vahki is capable of high-level shapeshifting into nearly any species or form that doesn’t exceed the size and weight of his own. Vahki excels in any form of shapeshifting, and has long been considered a trickster due to his savant-like ability to warp his form into a perfect imitation of the living, or inanimate, with a glance - down to their scent, texture, and finer details that one wouldn’t think he’d notice. This is the most competent ability of Vahki’s, perhaps due to the fact that he is both destined by his father’s blood and his society’s magicks to be a most excellent formshifter, a facedancer that has elevated shapeshifting into a high art. Though he cannot imitate species traits or enchantments in normal instances - and someone with the right magic can discern, at the very least, that Vahki is more than he sees - Vahki has developed a spell that allows him to consume something entirely and then imitate every aspect of it, from psychological quirks through a full absorption of memories, to skills, and species traits. As a result, Vahki is capable of consuming anything except that which is most deadly to the two species in his veins, and is near-impossible to poison. Deceit often goes along with toxicity, after all - why not embody that more fully? Of course, he can’t yet create composites at his current skill level - that being taking one form and having the abilities of more than one thing he has consumed, unless that ability is rooted entirely in skill/knowledge/memory - but he can pull his own species’ traits into nearly any form he can take, especially if that form is of something with organs. Vahki can also extend, shrink, and otherwise manipulate himself freely. He is learning how to imitate other pieces of matter as well, no matter the form he is in. He can, if wanted, create a form that is similar in appearance to a human's, elf's, or something else's, but made out of some sort of metal, crystal, or stone.
Vahki has what can only be described as intense sensory capabilities, and if described of any of his 5 primary senses, he could easily rely on the others even if stripped down to something like hearing due to the level on which the apex predator operates. Vahki’s sense of smell and hearing, while his sight is his weakest sense, with each having the benefit of working as well underwater as they do in land due to the fact that Vahki’s father is a rare breed of sea drake known for being intensely picky in breeding, and often only producing a handful of children with any species that they breed as well as mating for life. Using his scent of smell, Vahki can track down targets across great distances, and, often times, magic is the only safe bastion for someone once Vahki has acquired their scent unless they are aware of and possess a very rare retinue of sacred herbs meant to throw a Naga/Dragon hybrid off of one’s track. Vahki’s sense of hearing by itself can be used to scan an entire room, identifying just how many people, and, if he’s familiar with the species, of what species and gender are in a room, as well as what’s going on in it; he can likewise hear deceit and other emotions in one’s heart, their voice. His hearing is so acute that he can even detect traumatic or panic disorders in voices, though only as a result of Vahki’s professional understanding of the sapient mind as the alienist he was in his younger years is still there.
Vahki can swim at high speeds, and remain underwater for days at a time, in practically any form he takes - though the best results are achieved with his true form, which is biologically designed for optimal swimming. He would be able to stay underwater longer with training, but Vahki doesn’t possess the discipline or will to do so, and much prefers to spend his time on land in his favorite environment - places with interesting people. Perhaps one day he could learn, but there has not been much need, and he can always surface for a short period of time to breathe a gulp of air. It only takes a moment to get what he needs to survive for days, after all. Vahki is also capable of wingless flight in any form he’s in, and can travel vast distances when he pairs this with his capability to create whirlwinds - creating channels of air across which he can travel rapidly. His swimming is a bit slower, of course, but that’s primarily for safety.
Vahki’s strength and speed are rather high for a naga, but lower than an older dragon’s, and even in his human form he can react on levels that surpass that of the greatest elven athletes, and, even if he didn’t have extensive training in acrobatics, aerobatics, gymnastics, and parkour, could likely perform as though he was a trained gymnast. Physically, he is less powerful than the winged beasts that more aggressive dragons are, and not as fast as some other races, but he does combine both of his above average capabilities with superior flexibility, balance, reaction time, even if he isn’t as durable or innately combat capable as many winged beasts are. This combined with his other combat capabilities gives him a decent chance against those mighty monsters. Besides, he's half dragon. He'll never be as good at this stuff as an actual dragon.
Vahki possesses a breath of bright red light, same as his royal father (who was a royal even before his marriage; it was actually his Mandate of Heaven and Earth that gave the legitimacy necessary to form a royal house to lead the Crimson Tahk), that identifies him as being of noble descent to any dragons, dragonologists, dragon priests, worshippers, or other such people - perhaps even hunters, or people who like knowing whom to avoid - that see it. This intense, bright light can blind, ignite flame, and sear flesh. It can reach out to 42 meters away, but isn't able to melt through things as some dragon breaths can, as his dragon breath isn't well exercised. Vahki primarily uses it in emergency situations. It is as though the Blood Stars have moved closer and rained down light upon Vahki’s opponents, with enough exposure tearing them asunder. He often combines it with his venomous spit, which can also blind - and seep into the skin to, depending on the toxicity wanted by Vahki, potentially do so permanently, or simply cause someone to go to sleep. He can hold it in his mouth, and then deliver a bite. As a mutation of his mixed heritage, he can produce a version of this venom that is highly flammable and increases the intensity of a flame. After dousing organic matter in it, he can breathe his red light at it, and burn whatever is affected. He prefers not to kill in this manner, though. A predator needs to eat, after all, and Vahki prefers raw meat (at least he doesn’t like eating sapient creatures for sustenance, yeah? Just for power).
Pearl of Wisdom
Unbeknownst to most, Vahki has a Pearl of Wisdom. It's kept a secret because, if stolen, someone could use it to take control of Vahki. They are often sought out for their Wish Granting capabilities. Vahki can only grant minor wishes (especially in relation to storms, prosperity, knowledge, or crops), as he hasn't exercised his ability, but nonetheless the Pearl of Wisdom's existence is hidden. Just be careful. If you ask for a fortune, and aren't specific or Vahki dislikes you, there's a decent chance he'll drop that fortune on your head. Likewise, the amount of wishes he grants someone is arbitrary. If he decides someone can receive 3, and they ask for a shield, he might ask "sure you want to do that?" even as mortal danger closes in on that someone. Like with most wish granters and tricksters, Vahki can be a bit of a handful to deal with - and that can get the wrong person (or right person to Vahki; he's gotta have his fun somehow) dead. The Pearl's wish granting doesn't harness Vahki's magical energies or those of the person (or persons) seeking a wish, but instead from the natural energies of the world.
The Pearl of Wisdom is a second mind, amplifying and enhancing the speed of Vahki's first, and manifesting in a way that undeniably enhances his intellect. His mind is dangerous. He's dangerous. Tread carefully.
Right now, it's abilities are minor compared to other pearls, including the wish granting, granting Vahki intuitive aptitude, perfect physical synchronization, and abilities relating to physical and spiritual energy in its current, unexercised state.
Intuitive aptitude is interesting to say the least. Imagine being able to tinker with a watch, and figure out exactly how it works, how to take it apart, and how to put it back together again without ever having done so. Vahki can even hear or see when something is broken without ever having encountered that thing before. Following strings of logic, Vahki cannot create things simply by sitting down and trying to figure it out. He must come to understand an object before he can create it, however. Given time, he can learn to bypass most problems as a result.
Perfect Physical Synchronization is a synchronization between mind and body. The imaging systems and various other systems of Vahki's body are in synchronization with the motor control systems of his brain. This allows him to overcome the mental blocks that most have when it comes to lifting something too heavy, even in human form. That isn’t the only benefit, however. Vahki gain access to his brain, and can, say, deactivate pain centers. This has the side effect of enhancing reflexes and agility, allowing Vahki to catch arrows in mid air, land on a thin ledge without losing balance, or hitting a small coin in the air with a senbon (throwing needle) while in a tree some distance away. Course, the downside of controlling his mind is that, say, when he turns off pain receptors in a certain area is that he might not notice that he has been seriously wounded there, or when he deactivates safety mechanisms, he might end up doing himself some serious harm that could easily be fatal.
Among other things, the pearl provides knowledge on things such as plants, herbs, potions, and a great myriad of information having to do with life, nature, the earth and what it is composed of, the weather, and how to make use of those things. The wisdom held includes knowledge on astronomy, alchemy, and crafting. It would make him more of a target if people realized that he had a Pearl (encyclopedic knowledge, while common in dragons due to the fact that they think 3 times faster than the average human and are extremely intelligent, is also a sign that a dragon has a Pearl of Wisdom).
Vahki has the capability to create false physical signatures, which can be applied to himself, phantasms, or others, essentially allowing one to trick others, and even create faints that, for all intents and purposes, appear as though the user is about to, say, make a punch to area A instead of area B.
The Pearl can give one the capacity to see mana and life force. Thus they can identify just how much mana and life-force they or someone else has left, allowing Vahki to, in a way, predict the maximum lifespan that someone has, though this doesn’t take anything but the lifespan into account. This is in addition to the capability to see spiritual energy, which allows the user to detect things that are soulless or to identify techniques powered by spiritual energy; obviously doesn’t see much action.
This gives Vahki the ability to feel the status, shape, and other attributes of his own spiritual organs and pressure points, do the same for others through touch, and see damaged pressure points, spiritual organs, and other similar body parts. The Pearl can function as a complex sensory organ that can achieve taste, smell, act as chemical detectors and analyzers, as well as detect and analyze a variety of other things, allowing him to identify witches, magic users, and some magical creatures even from a distance, as well as sense magic, enchantments, mystical curses and blessings, and more. That is, if they aren't concealing what they are - or concealing their magic.
The Pearl grants Vahki the capability to create false life-force, spiritual energy, and/or mana signatures, manipulate the signatures signatures, and obscure his own pressure points and spiritual organs, or, through touch, obscure the pressure points and spiritual organs of others. These capabilities can be applied to phantasms just before they are formed, making them extraordinarily difficult to discern from the originator. It can also be applied to others, or even inanimate objects such as a cube that is in optical range, thus confusing sensors to a point that they don’t know which signature is the true one. Capable of lasting quite a while, the false signatures can allow evasion skills that other dragons simply can’t acquire without a bit of work (Vahki's harnessing of the pearl to do anything like this was a bit specific, and, as with other pearls, the abilities it grants are usually unique to each dragon). Thanks to being able to manipulate signatures, the user can mimic someone else’s signature signature perfectly, or make everyone in a combat group have the same signatures as an enemy that has been encountered. The pearl stores these signatures, and these can be called upon through the abilities at any point. Vahki can also create faints with these energies in a manner similar to how he can create faints with physical energy, creating falsehoods to confuse and disorient foes, making him dangerous to magic users as well.
Mentalism
Vahki can communicate through scent glands, and using this combined with his mentalist magicks allows him to control lesser reptiles - those that are not sapient dragons, or are considered lesser relatives - with relative ease without tapping into magicks. This, like his ability to communicate telepathically to anyone of any linguistic background, is a benefit of his mentalism being baked into his blood. He often controls a group of lesser reptiles, but has yet to establish one in Alliria.
Vahki’s most powerful abilities as a mentalist focus on his near-savant like comprehension of memories and empathy, and he can harness these to devastating effect in unique ways that many other practitioners of this Tahk magic cannot. This is a good portion of how he maintains his mysteries, secrets, and lies. He can survey, alter, and freely manipulate memories of willing targets, or those that are physically or mentally weakened, captured, or immobilized. The target could be exhausted, paralyzed, fearful, or even plagued by doubt. He is also capable of performing the art of Transference - transferring someone’s soul, shape, abilities, memories, skills, and more to a new body, with or without the soul portion [but only with a soul can the new body gain species traits, unless they are of the same species]. He can transfer knowledge of any kind with a touch, including skills, between himself and another, or a group of people, to, from, and back and forth. Vahki can place a memory somewhere for someone near it to pick up, being a specific person, or even just having a certain job. He can seal away his memories when he’s being tortured while simultaneously creating a false template, and retrieve the true memories after it is over. He can purge thoughts, ideas, and memories, or, in combat, manipulate or overlay false memories onto muscle memory, perform psychometry, or prevent people from forming memories about him, or in exposure to him; he can allow them to form memories, but not of specific details, with the mind filling in missing details with random, but false information that seems to fit. His most dangerous abilities - but not necessarily the most powerful, as some are limited in when they can be used - involve casting dementia-like curses, extracting the memories, thoughts, and soul of a person near death and implanting them in a new body for them later (a form of Transference called Salvation), performing infiltration techniques that tap into specific memories or emotions, and, in combat, cause people to relive recent memories through his mnemokinetic illusions, like walking through a door, or performing hypnosis, and illusions.
Vahki's specialization in mentalism has brought about the gifts of telepathy as well, allowing him to manipulate the mind just as he can with his mnemokinesis and empathy. Though he prefers the other two, his telepathy isn't anything to be scoffed at. Surgical in his use of it, he can ignite pain, cause a wound to feel more painful than it is, uplift someone's mind to optimize their combat capabilities, and knock someone out just as he can lull them to sleep. Psionic assaults are part of Vahki's repertoire, but the draconic mindbender is likely to do his best to handle opponents in ways that are a bit more fun, of course.
Vahki can perform empathy visually to decipher the emotions and honesty of a person, call upon the emotions around him to strengthen himself, and such. It has parallels with the human art, but Vahki's instinctive use of his mind has managed to corrupt his divination into a sub-type. He can do what other empaths can do, yes, and likely lays claim to being one of the only Naga empaths around - he did, after all, fall in love with the art over a century ago, adding it to his repertoire as a mentalist, and thus other Naga in the Crimson Tahk likely aren't to possess the human-originating art.
Vahki protects his mind through a mnemokinetic construct called the Discordia of Dreams. Calling it a "wall" around his mind is an understatement. The Discordia of Dreams is an art form - containing thousands of memories from centuries worth of taking them, and arranging them in a labyrinth, and an endless one at that, with most not being his own, and whose they are being indecipherable. The Discordia's experience is, for most, chaotic. This causes them to immediately pull out, for the most part. Some don't pull back, and end up forgetting who they are, however. The sad few end up with their entire minds lost in the Discordia of Dreams, becoming a part of it. Others find serenity and beauty in the Discordia - it is said that once this state is attained (although some are born with this trait), it will be easier to conquer it. No one has yet to do so beyond great force, and even then these individuals are a great deal more powerful in mentalism than Vahki is. All labyrinths constructed by someone, after all, have a map somewhere, in some form.
Skills
Vahki is sluggish at night, and, like all dragons - though his scales are not especially strong - he has a chink in his scaley armor just in the hollow of his left armpit, making penetrating this the easiest way to kill him at any point in any form. Vahki's pearl, if stolen, could be used to gain near-total control of him (though he'd still be sapient, one could use it to wreak havoc). Vahki is also experienced primarily in a single type of magic, which he is reliant on so much so that it has influenced his ability to properly learn the divination and weather manipulation that the Naga use. Likewise, his Pearl can't break the laws of magic. If someone tries to make a wish that would cause it to break the laws of magic, it won't work, or something horrible will happen to the person asking or someone close to them. If it could, in its current state, harness the magic necessary to bring someone back to life, then the Pearl of Wisdom would strike someone dead to bring them back. Vahki would be able to deny these wishes, of course, and would have an innate knowledge of what does and doesn't break the laws of magic. Vahki is a lot squishier, and less physically powerful than he is in his human and elven forms. Though not as frail as either of those species, he doesn't have the level of protection that his sizable (compared to them) true form would allow. Vahki also doesn't respond well to cold, despite his father being a sea drake. It makes him sluggish, and can easily kill him if he's exposed to it. More often than not, though, a spell harnessing cold will put Vahki to sleep. He has to use the energy stored in his Blood Gems to maintain warmth in cold environments, and prefers to stay out of them as much as possible as he can't gather energy in his Blood Gems while he's using them to survive. The magic stored is precious, after all. Even then, the warmth achieved through this won't defend Vahki against a spell of frost. Hit the snake with cold and he'll be much, much easier to deal with in a fight. This is a thing that Vahki is very, very sensitive to.
Vahki does better in locations with a decent balance of temperature than those that are frigid, and will be noticeably weakened if it is cold and the sun is bright, paler in his human form as though he is sickened.
Vahki can be killed with high doses of dragon's bane - a toxic mixture of certain metals and herbs. The dose necessary to kill Vahki is higher than is normal, even for a half blood, but he avoids it nonetheless. Even a small amount of it entering his bloodstream can be unpleasant. This can cause everything from a bout of a single night of insomnia, to Pox-like symptoms (of varying types, just without the actual physical manifestations), to rashes, to hormonal imbalances that require medical treatment. Wounds dealt to him with weapons coated in dragon's bane of any amount take three times longer to heal than normal. Though he can survive these wounds, this rising in difficulty if they are major, lethal, or plentiful, it is likely that he will be uncomfortable for quite some time and will have to seek help from a healer of some sort, or ask for someone to use a wish from his Pearl for him. He can't grant wishes for himself, after all. That appears to be a rule of magic that applies universally to all Pearls of Wisdom, save for those that no longer have a dragon to go with them.
Vahki can also be bound with something made out of solid dragon's bane (which can also be used to kill him, though solid dragon's bane is difficult to make, so it's uncommon to see), which will render him powerless.
Of all the dragons, as a royal Vahki and the components and even byproducts of his body are amongst the most valuable. He has, in the past, frequently had to contend with poachers, though the threat of poachers has become less common as he has become better at blending in. Those who are smart enough might earn his favor and be blessed with something from his body. Without killing him, Vahki's scales, fur, whiskers, tears, blood, shed claws, or shed teeth, and other such things would be the most valuable parts of him to be used for everything from spellwork to making armor. This puts him at a higher risk of being targeted than other dragons by people who might want to gain great power. The presence of the Pearl of Wisdom makes this an even larger threat. If he dies, it is likely that people will even seek out his corpse for bones of black and a myriad of other things.
FOOD! Geez. He actually requires food and water, in amounts much larger than that of a human being even when he's not in his true form, with it being the worst when he is in that full size, true form. This makes good survival methods especially important.
Vahki cannot know things through the Pearl that he couldn't reasonably know thanks to his ancestors, or other people. It does not ‘update’ itself unless interacted with in a direct and specific manner. This means that, because his knowledge is limited, he will not know an enemy’s weaknesses, know the secrets anyone has, or the identity of another dragon’s human form without being told. This is because the Pearl is meant to help guide someone on what path they believe would be best for themselves, not replace that path, or the learning and experiences that come from it. That would defeat the purpose of the Pearl, and over-reliance on this aspect of the Pearl has been known to cripple people; if used irresponsibly, even addiction becomes a possibility.
Vahki can only establish himself as someone’s spell source - the granting of power - if he is within their immediate radius. It is once he does this that those empowered by him will be able to access their power to serve him better from a distance, but not before he grants power in person.
Being stabbed with green glass can cause Vahki to revert to his true form.
Unfortunately, Vahki is not an expert in CQC and is likely going to be at a disadvantage in CQC unless he uses his illusions. Vahki is the runt of his family, and thus not as strong as one might thing. He can be overpowered by some skilled warriors if he's without his magic, and those are those without fancy weapons, seeing as how he doesn't have the nice scales an older dragon would, either. Vahki has all the power and reaction time of a tiny dragon, but not much physical prowess to harness it properly.
So... like, layering illusions? Vahki can do multiple illusions at once, but he can't layer an illusion to rid another illusion of a weakness. His thing is more seguing into illusions, like, someone making an attack and slicing at Vahki, cutting his shirt, and him stepping back - creating an illusory self while simultaneously veiling himself - and hightailing it. that's more subtle than just, uh, magicking a fake fire into existence - unless you present the illusion in a way that makes the people being magicked think you're a pyrokinetic, which Vahki has done before. Illusions are a good way to make someone think you're a lot stronger than you actually are, and then open them up to diplomacy, and thus manipulation to get what you want. It's, like, uh, magical sleight of hand, or grifting.
CRITICAL WEAKNESS: Stealing the Pearl of Wisdom will give one access to its power, and grant them control over Vahki. The only hopes for Vahki at this point are a powerful magic user allied to him, individuals retrieving the pearl and calming a potentially rampaging Vahki before putting it back in its place (tbh, I don’t think anyone wants another person with the Pearl of Wisdom, so it’s best just to give it back… but it’s up to you guys!). This is essentially what one might want to do if they want to be the big bad, becoming the threat rather than being the threat, and taking up a new mantle, thus making it a critical weakness and a major plot point. I’d communicate with me after doing this to figure everything out, since I’ll still be RPing Vahki carrying out commands. Just be warned that he will be royally pissed off. Stealing the Pearl is offensive on several levels, including personally and culturally.
The Great Drakes, beasts of intellect and skill more than capable of and giving the knowledge for others to build cities within mountains far superior to their lesser drake cousins, are composed of many beings, but one of the youngest amongst their numbers - a half-Naga hybrid still coming into his own - his Vahki, the Crimson Tahk’s Prince of Deceit. He is not very old at 235 years old, but he is much older than any other Naga that he’s aware of, save for his mother - a pure blood that extended her life drastically through the magical art of Transference. The result of two magicians receiving near-identical visions, or visitations, perhaps - no one is quite certain, and Vahki as well as his parents are mum on the matter - Vahki isn’t especially large for a dragon, coming in at 11 feet tall and 24 feet long. He isn’t especially old, or impressive, either - and this is represented in his always-beautiful bipedal forms, save for his elven form, which is grandiose and tall for a female elf of her race. His beauty is undeniable, and perhaps he benefits from that more than he does his magic.
As a Crimson Tahk by blood, and the child of a shapeshifting sea drake connected to the Blood Stars, Vahki is capable of high-level shapeshifting into nearly any species or form that doesn’t exceed the size and weight of his own. Vahki excels in any form of shapeshifting, and has long been considered a trickster due to his savant-like ability to warp his form into a perfect imitation of the living, or inanimate, with a glance - down to their scent, texture, and finer details that one wouldn’t think he’d notice. This is the most competent ability of Vahki’s, perhaps due to the fact that he is both destined by his father’s blood and his society’s magicks to be a most excellent formshifter, a facedancer that has elevated shapeshifting into a high art. Though he cannot imitate species traits or enchantments in normal instances - and someone with the right magic can discern, at the very least, that Vahki is more than he sees - Vahki has developed a spell that allows him to consume something entirely and then imitate every aspect of it, from psychological quirks through a full absorption of memories, to skills, and species traits. As a result, Vahki is capable of consuming anything except that which is most deadly to the two species in his veins, and is near-impossible to poison. Deceit often goes along with toxicity, after all - why not embody that more fully? Of course, he can’t yet create composites at his current skill level - that being taking one form and having the abilities of more than one thing he has consumed, unless that ability is rooted entirely in skill/knowledge/memory - but he can pull his own species’ traits into nearly any form he can take, especially if that form is of something with organs. Vahki can also extend, shrink, and otherwise manipulate himself freely. He is learning how to imitate other pieces of matter as well, no matter the form he is in. He can, if wanted, create a form that is similar in appearance to a human's, elf's, or something else's, but made out of some sort of metal, crystal, or stone.
Vahki has what can only be described as intense sensory capabilities, and if described of any of his 5 primary senses, he could easily rely on the others even if stripped down to something like hearing due to the level on which the apex predator operates. Vahki’s sense of smell and hearing, while his sight is his weakest sense, with each having the benefit of working as well underwater as they do in land due to the fact that Vahki’s father is a rare breed of sea drake known for being intensely picky in breeding, and often only producing a handful of children with any species that they breed as well as mating for life. Using his scent of smell, Vahki can track down targets across great distances, and, often times, magic is the only safe bastion for someone once Vahki has acquired their scent unless they are aware of and possess a very rare retinue of sacred herbs meant to throw a Naga/Dragon hybrid off of one’s track. Vahki’s sense of hearing by itself can be used to scan an entire room, identifying just how many people, and, if he’s familiar with the species, of what species and gender are in a room, as well as what’s going on in it; he can likewise hear deceit and other emotions in one’s heart, their voice. His hearing is so acute that he can even detect traumatic or panic disorders in voices, though only as a result of Vahki’s professional understanding of the sapient mind as the alienist he was in his younger years is still there.
Vahki can swim at high speeds, and remain underwater for days at a time, in practically any form he takes - though the best results are achieved with his true form, which is biologically designed for optimal swimming. He would be able to stay underwater longer with training, but Vahki doesn’t possess the discipline or will to do so, and much prefers to spend his time on land in his favorite environment - places with interesting people. Perhaps one day he could learn, but there has not been much need, and he can always surface for a short period of time to breathe a gulp of air. It only takes a moment to get what he needs to survive for days, after all. Vahki is also capable of wingless flight in any form he’s in, and can travel vast distances when he pairs this with his capability to create whirlwinds - creating channels of air across which he can travel rapidly. His swimming is a bit slower, of course, but that’s primarily for safety.
Vahki’s strength and speed are rather high for a naga, but lower than an older dragon’s, and even in his human form he can react on levels that surpass that of the greatest elven athletes, and, even if he didn’t have extensive training in acrobatics, aerobatics, gymnastics, and parkour, could likely perform as though he was a trained gymnast. Physically, he is less powerful than the winged beasts that more aggressive dragons are, and not as fast as some other races, but he does combine both of his above average capabilities with superior flexibility, balance, reaction time, even if he isn’t as durable or innately combat capable as many winged beasts are. This combined with his other combat capabilities gives him a decent chance against those mighty monsters. Besides, he's half dragon. He'll never be as good at this stuff as an actual dragon.
Vahki possesses a breath of bright red light, same as his royal father (who was a royal even before his marriage; it was actually his Mandate of Heaven and Earth that gave the legitimacy necessary to form a royal house to lead the Crimson Tahk), that identifies him as being of noble descent to any dragons, dragonologists, dragon priests, worshippers, or other such people - perhaps even hunters, or people who like knowing whom to avoid - that see it. This intense, bright light can blind, ignite flame, and sear flesh. It can reach out to 42 meters away, but isn't able to melt through things as some dragon breaths can, as his dragon breath isn't well exercised. Vahki primarily uses it in emergency situations. It is as though the Blood Stars have moved closer and rained down light upon Vahki’s opponents, with enough exposure tearing them asunder. He often combines it with his venomous spit, which can also blind - and seep into the skin to, depending on the toxicity wanted by Vahki, potentially do so permanently, or simply cause someone to go to sleep. He can hold it in his mouth, and then deliver a bite. As a mutation of his mixed heritage, he can produce a version of this venom that is highly flammable and increases the intensity of a flame. After dousing organic matter in it, he can breathe his red light at it, and burn whatever is affected. He prefers not to kill in this manner, though. A predator needs to eat, after all, and Vahki prefers raw meat (at least he doesn’t like eating sapient creatures for sustenance, yeah? Just for power).
Pearl of Wisdom
Unbeknownst to most, Vahki has a Pearl of Wisdom. It's kept a secret because, if stolen, someone could use it to take control of Vahki. They are often sought out for their Wish Granting capabilities. Vahki can only grant minor wishes (especially in relation to storms, prosperity, knowledge, or crops), as he hasn't exercised his ability, but nonetheless the Pearl of Wisdom's existence is hidden. Just be careful. If you ask for a fortune, and aren't specific or Vahki dislikes you, there's a decent chance he'll drop that fortune on your head. Likewise, the amount of wishes he grants someone is arbitrary. If he decides someone can receive 3, and they ask for a shield, he might ask "sure you want to do that?" even as mortal danger closes in on that someone. Like with most wish granters and tricksters, Vahki can be a bit of a handful to deal with - and that can get the wrong person (or right person to Vahki; he's gotta have his fun somehow) dead. The Pearl's wish granting doesn't harness Vahki's magical energies or those of the person (or persons) seeking a wish, but instead from the natural energies of the world.
The Pearl of Wisdom is a second mind, amplifying and enhancing the speed of Vahki's first, and manifesting in a way that undeniably enhances his intellect. His mind is dangerous. He's dangerous. Tread carefully.
Right now, it's abilities are minor compared to other pearls, including the wish granting, granting Vahki intuitive aptitude, perfect physical synchronization, and abilities relating to physical and spiritual energy in its current, unexercised state.
Intuitive aptitude is interesting to say the least. Imagine being able to tinker with a watch, and figure out exactly how it works, how to take it apart, and how to put it back together again without ever having done so. Vahki can even hear or see when something is broken without ever having encountered that thing before. Following strings of logic, Vahki cannot create things simply by sitting down and trying to figure it out. He must come to understand an object before he can create it, however. Given time, he can learn to bypass most problems as a result.
Perfect Physical Synchronization is a synchronization between mind and body. The imaging systems and various other systems of Vahki's body are in synchronization with the motor control systems of his brain. This allows him to overcome the mental blocks that most have when it comes to lifting something too heavy, even in human form. That isn’t the only benefit, however. Vahki gain access to his brain, and can, say, deactivate pain centers. This has the side effect of enhancing reflexes and agility, allowing Vahki to catch arrows in mid air, land on a thin ledge without losing balance, or hitting a small coin in the air with a senbon (throwing needle) while in a tree some distance away. Course, the downside of controlling his mind is that, say, when he turns off pain receptors in a certain area is that he might not notice that he has been seriously wounded there, or when he deactivates safety mechanisms, he might end up doing himself some serious harm that could easily be fatal.
Among other things, the pearl provides knowledge on things such as plants, herbs, potions, and a great myriad of information having to do with life, nature, the earth and what it is composed of, the weather, and how to make use of those things. The wisdom held includes knowledge on astronomy, alchemy, and crafting. It would make him more of a target if people realized that he had a Pearl (encyclopedic knowledge, while common in dragons due to the fact that they think 3 times faster than the average human and are extremely intelligent, is also a sign that a dragon has a Pearl of Wisdom).
Vahki has the capability to create false physical signatures, which can be applied to himself, phantasms, or others, essentially allowing one to trick others, and even create faints that, for all intents and purposes, appear as though the user is about to, say, make a punch to area A instead of area B.
The Pearl can give one the capacity to see mana and life force. Thus they can identify just how much mana and life-force they or someone else has left, allowing Vahki to, in a way, predict the maximum lifespan that someone has, though this doesn’t take anything but the lifespan into account. This is in addition to the capability to see spiritual energy, which allows the user to detect things that are soulless or to identify techniques powered by spiritual energy; obviously doesn’t see much action.
This gives Vahki the ability to feel the status, shape, and other attributes of his own spiritual organs and pressure points, do the same for others through touch, and see damaged pressure points, spiritual organs, and other similar body parts. The Pearl can function as a complex sensory organ that can achieve taste, smell, act as chemical detectors and analyzers, as well as detect and analyze a variety of other things, allowing him to identify witches, magic users, and some magical creatures even from a distance, as well as sense magic, enchantments, mystical curses and blessings, and more. That is, if they aren't concealing what they are - or concealing their magic.
The Pearl grants Vahki the capability to create false life-force, spiritual energy, and/or mana signatures, manipulate the signatures signatures, and obscure his own pressure points and spiritual organs, or, through touch, obscure the pressure points and spiritual organs of others. These capabilities can be applied to phantasms just before they are formed, making them extraordinarily difficult to discern from the originator. It can also be applied to others, or even inanimate objects such as a cube that is in optical range, thus confusing sensors to a point that they don’t know which signature is the true one. Capable of lasting quite a while, the false signatures can allow evasion skills that other dragons simply can’t acquire without a bit of work (Vahki's harnessing of the pearl to do anything like this was a bit specific, and, as with other pearls, the abilities it grants are usually unique to each dragon). Thanks to being able to manipulate signatures, the user can mimic someone else’s signature signature perfectly, or make everyone in a combat group have the same signatures as an enemy that has been encountered. The pearl stores these signatures, and these can be called upon through the abilities at any point. Vahki can also create faints with these energies in a manner similar to how he can create faints with physical energy, creating falsehoods to confuse and disorient foes, making him dangerous to magic users as well.
Mentalism
Vahki can communicate through scent glands, and using this combined with his mentalist magicks allows him to control lesser reptiles - those that are not sapient dragons, or are considered lesser relatives - with relative ease without tapping into magicks. This, like his ability to communicate telepathically to anyone of any linguistic background, is a benefit of his mentalism being baked into his blood. He often controls a group of lesser reptiles, but has yet to establish one in Alliria.
Vahki’s most powerful abilities as a mentalist focus on his near-savant like comprehension of memories and empathy, and he can harness these to devastating effect in unique ways that many other practitioners of this Tahk magic cannot. This is a good portion of how he maintains his mysteries, secrets, and lies. He can survey, alter, and freely manipulate memories of willing targets, or those that are physically or mentally weakened, captured, or immobilized. The target could be exhausted, paralyzed, fearful, or even plagued by doubt. He is also capable of performing the art of Transference - transferring someone’s soul, shape, abilities, memories, skills, and more to a new body, with or without the soul portion [but only with a soul can the new body gain species traits, unless they are of the same species]. He can transfer knowledge of any kind with a touch, including skills, between himself and another, or a group of people, to, from, and back and forth. Vahki can place a memory somewhere for someone near it to pick up, being a specific person, or even just having a certain job. He can seal away his memories when he’s being tortured while simultaneously creating a false template, and retrieve the true memories after it is over. He can purge thoughts, ideas, and memories, or, in combat, manipulate or overlay false memories onto muscle memory, perform psychometry, or prevent people from forming memories about him, or in exposure to him; he can allow them to form memories, but not of specific details, with the mind filling in missing details with random, but false information that seems to fit. His most dangerous abilities - but not necessarily the most powerful, as some are limited in when they can be used - involve casting dementia-like curses, extracting the memories, thoughts, and soul of a person near death and implanting them in a new body for them later (a form of Transference called Salvation), performing infiltration techniques that tap into specific memories or emotions, and, in combat, cause people to relive recent memories through his mnemokinetic illusions, like walking through a door, or performing hypnosis, and illusions.
Vahki's specialization in mentalism has brought about the gifts of telepathy as well, allowing him to manipulate the mind just as he can with his mnemokinesis and empathy. Though he prefers the other two, his telepathy isn't anything to be scoffed at. Surgical in his use of it, he can ignite pain, cause a wound to feel more painful than it is, uplift someone's mind to optimize their combat capabilities, and knock someone out just as he can lull them to sleep. Psionic assaults are part of Vahki's repertoire, but the draconic mindbender is likely to do his best to handle opponents in ways that are a bit more fun, of course.
Vahki can perform empathy visually to decipher the emotions and honesty of a person, call upon the emotions around him to strengthen himself, and such. It has parallels with the human art, but Vahki's instinctive use of his mind has managed to corrupt his divination into a sub-type. He can do what other empaths can do, yes, and likely lays claim to being one of the only Naga empaths around - he did, after all, fall in love with the art over a century ago, adding it to his repertoire as a mentalist, and thus other Naga in the Crimson Tahk likely aren't to possess the human-originating art.
Vahki protects his mind through a mnemokinetic construct called the Discordia of Dreams. Calling it a "wall" around his mind is an understatement. The Discordia of Dreams is an art form - containing thousands of memories from centuries worth of taking them, and arranging them in a labyrinth, and an endless one at that, with most not being his own, and whose they are being indecipherable. The Discordia's experience is, for most, chaotic. This causes them to immediately pull out, for the most part. Some don't pull back, and end up forgetting who they are, however. The sad few end up with their entire minds lost in the Discordia of Dreams, becoming a part of it. Others find serenity and beauty in the Discordia - it is said that once this state is attained (although some are born with this trait), it will be easier to conquer it. No one has yet to do so beyond great force, and even then these individuals are a great deal more powerful in mentalism than Vahki is. All labyrinths constructed by someone, after all, have a map somewhere, in some form.
Skills
- Survivalism
- Acrobatics/Aerobatics/Gymnastics/Parkour
- Language - can speak Nagish, trade, Elven, a draconic dialect, and is learning more in Alliria.
- Combat Experience/Swordstaff - Vahki is a swordsman, user of a staff, and various other weapons due to his combat experience. Unfortunately, Vahki is not an expert in CQC and is likely going to be at a disadvantage in CQC unless he uses his illusions. It is not very special beyond what it carries - its blade and hilt being made out of relatively modest materials that Vahki took to because of their simplicity, ease of replacement, and, honestly, because he wanted to spend his money on fashion accessories instead of a pricey weapon - but it can change sizes with Vahki, can retract its pole into a hilt to act as a sword, extend the blade or hilt to maximum size separately, or even break in two to be wielded as a sword and a half-sized staff. Vahki, using it as a status symbol, is the runt of his family, and thus not as strong as one might thing. He can be overpowered by some skilled warriors if he's without his magic, and those are those without fancy weapons, seeing as how he doesn't have the nice scales an older dragon would, either. That's not to say Vahki is totally useless. He can still teach someone the basics of using the weapon, a sword, and a staff, and dish out serious damage if one isn't careful - or skilled enough to outdo him, which isn't too hard. It can also shrink and wrap around his wrist, carrying Blood Gems in it, which can store magical energies for spells, or to be manipulated as pure energy - often purple or crimson - for combat. The art of using the Blood Gems is a form of Aethermancy (which is regularly used through stored up energies). Vahki may not be a master, but the Crimson Tahk Blood Gems are, Vahki has found, possibly the easiest way to use Aethermancy due to their properties. They are Vahki's primary mode for physical attack, but even then one can't be sure that Vahki's actually attacking you. That attack, no matter how real it feels, is probably going to involve Vahki finding a way out of the situation one has caught him in without bothering to waste any energy. Honestly, Vahki's best bet is just squeezing the life out of a target in close quarters combat.
- Alienism - When he was about 80, before he could leave the nest Vahki ran away to Alliria and began attending a renowned philosopher's classes in alienism. He graduated with a degree that he has renewed every so often using his human identity, and holds the highest possible degree in it. He is a professional master in the sapient mind, and this proves that Vahki has more constructive urges than just trickery. He loves people - not in the traditional way, but he does love them, and it can become traditional if he finds himself needing to help someone. He even has his old clinic open, under the name Vahkian Ambrose as an alienist-sorcerer (Vahkian is, in Alliria, thought to be at least one-eighth draconic, and is known to be of draconic descent). He's since returned home, and, eventually, back to Alliria to complete his newly assigned duties. It's exciting.
- Leadership - Even though he's away from home, Vahki has retained the leadership skills that he cultivated as an active leader of the Crimson Tahk's military in his younger years, and he still holds his rank. A brilliant mind, he can outpace human leaders not simply because of his draconic mind, but because he's always had a keen talent for a wide variety of tactics from traditional warfare, to naval warfare, to organizing the military of the Crimson Tahk to not need control of any territory to fight a war with an invader. Suppositories of supplies that freshly mobilized soldiers can acquire equipment and supplies from, boats that have the supplies necessary to maintain themselves for extended periods of time. That's all Vahki's doing. Vahki is one of the finest tacticians that the Tahk have to offer, and also has keen skills in finances, legislation, diplomacy (something he learned primarily away from home), and meeting the needs of the people. This is all, of course, so that he can inherit the throne when his parents feel that the time is right. Vahki also leads the Valtox Rift - a dragon cult of his own design, and has experience in interactions with other religions, as well as growing his religion.
- Sailing - Vahki is fully capable of captaining, or simply sailing, a ship. He owns the Polovokin as of now (which he doesn't really captain actively unless he's in the mood to sail or wants to show someone his ship), which is a private, fully armed vessel operating out of Alliria. It is enchanted, and has an impressive hold, as well as interiors much larger than they seem. It flies the flag of Alliria, and is capable of enduring serious damage as well as dishing it out. The Polovokin has a host of Crimson Tahk and sorcerers on it. All members of the crew are loyal to Vahki, and know his true identity. Many are constituents of the Valtox Rift. As a side note, Vahki isn't often on the Polovokin. It generally operates on its own, bringing in income as part of Vahkian Ambrose's largely discrete and modest business holdings and assets.
- Library - Vahki has an extensive library, filled with rare tomes and manuscripts with common books that form the foundation of magical skills alike, in his estate that he uses to educate his apprentices, followers, and family. It is large, and immobile unless you pick a single book, artifact, or scroll and move it outside of it. This is primarily a plot device.
Vahki is sluggish at night, and, like all dragons - though his scales are not especially strong - he has a chink in his scaley armor just in the hollow of his left armpit, making penetrating this the easiest way to kill him at any point in any form. Vahki's pearl, if stolen, could be used to gain near-total control of him (though he'd still be sapient, one could use it to wreak havoc). Vahki is also experienced primarily in a single type of magic, which he is reliant on so much so that it has influenced his ability to properly learn the divination and weather manipulation that the Naga use. Likewise, his Pearl can't break the laws of magic. If someone tries to make a wish that would cause it to break the laws of magic, it won't work, or something horrible will happen to the person asking or someone close to them. If it could, in its current state, harness the magic necessary to bring someone back to life, then the Pearl of Wisdom would strike someone dead to bring them back. Vahki would be able to deny these wishes, of course, and would have an innate knowledge of what does and doesn't break the laws of magic. Vahki is a lot squishier, and less physically powerful than he is in his human and elven forms. Though not as frail as either of those species, he doesn't have the level of protection that his sizable (compared to them) true form would allow. Vahki also doesn't respond well to cold, despite his father being a sea drake. It makes him sluggish, and can easily kill him if he's exposed to it. More often than not, though, a spell harnessing cold will put Vahki to sleep. He has to use the energy stored in his Blood Gems to maintain warmth in cold environments, and prefers to stay out of them as much as possible as he can't gather energy in his Blood Gems while he's using them to survive. The magic stored is precious, after all. Even then, the warmth achieved through this won't defend Vahki against a spell of frost. Hit the snake with cold and he'll be much, much easier to deal with in a fight. This is a thing that Vahki is very, very sensitive to.
Vahki does better in locations with a decent balance of temperature than those that are frigid, and will be noticeably weakened if it is cold and the sun is bright, paler in his human form as though he is sickened.
Vahki can be killed with high doses of dragon's bane - a toxic mixture of certain metals and herbs. The dose necessary to kill Vahki is higher than is normal, even for a half blood, but he avoids it nonetheless. Even a small amount of it entering his bloodstream can be unpleasant. This can cause everything from a bout of a single night of insomnia, to Pox-like symptoms (of varying types, just without the actual physical manifestations), to rashes, to hormonal imbalances that require medical treatment. Wounds dealt to him with weapons coated in dragon's bane of any amount take three times longer to heal than normal. Though he can survive these wounds, this rising in difficulty if they are major, lethal, or plentiful, it is likely that he will be uncomfortable for quite some time and will have to seek help from a healer of some sort, or ask for someone to use a wish from his Pearl for him. He can't grant wishes for himself, after all. That appears to be a rule of magic that applies universally to all Pearls of Wisdom, save for those that no longer have a dragon to go with them.
Vahki can also be bound with something made out of solid dragon's bane (which can also be used to kill him, though solid dragon's bane is difficult to make, so it's uncommon to see), which will render him powerless.
Of all the dragons, as a royal Vahki and the components and even byproducts of his body are amongst the most valuable. He has, in the past, frequently had to contend with poachers, though the threat of poachers has become less common as he has become better at blending in. Those who are smart enough might earn his favor and be blessed with something from his body. Without killing him, Vahki's scales, fur, whiskers, tears, blood, shed claws, or shed teeth, and other such things would be the most valuable parts of him to be used for everything from spellwork to making armor. This puts him at a higher risk of being targeted than other dragons by people who might want to gain great power. The presence of the Pearl of Wisdom makes this an even larger threat. If he dies, it is likely that people will even seek out his corpse for bones of black and a myriad of other things.
FOOD! Geez. He actually requires food and water, in amounts much larger than that of a human being even when he's not in his true form, with it being the worst when he is in that full size, true form. This makes good survival methods especially important.
Vahki cannot know things through the Pearl that he couldn't reasonably know thanks to his ancestors, or other people. It does not ‘update’ itself unless interacted with in a direct and specific manner. This means that, because his knowledge is limited, he will not know an enemy’s weaknesses, know the secrets anyone has, or the identity of another dragon’s human form without being told. This is because the Pearl is meant to help guide someone on what path they believe would be best for themselves, not replace that path, or the learning and experiences that come from it. That would defeat the purpose of the Pearl, and over-reliance on this aspect of the Pearl has been known to cripple people; if used irresponsibly, even addiction becomes a possibility.
Vahki can only establish himself as someone’s spell source - the granting of power - if he is within their immediate radius. It is once he does this that those empowered by him will be able to access their power to serve him better from a distance, but not before he grants power in person.
Being stabbed with green glass can cause Vahki to revert to his true form.
Unfortunately, Vahki is not an expert in CQC and is likely going to be at a disadvantage in CQC unless he uses his illusions. Vahki is the runt of his family, and thus not as strong as one might thing. He can be overpowered by some skilled warriors if he's without his magic, and those are those without fancy weapons, seeing as how he doesn't have the nice scales an older dragon would, either. Vahki has all the power and reaction time of a tiny dragon, but not much physical prowess to harness it properly.
So... like, layering illusions? Vahki can do multiple illusions at once, but he can't layer an illusion to rid another illusion of a weakness. His thing is more seguing into illusions, like, someone making an attack and slicing at Vahki, cutting his shirt, and him stepping back - creating an illusory self while simultaneously veiling himself - and hightailing it. that's more subtle than just, uh, magicking a fake fire into existence - unless you present the illusion in a way that makes the people being magicked think you're a pyrokinetic, which Vahki has done before. Illusions are a good way to make someone think you're a lot stronger than you actually are, and then open them up to diplomacy, and thus manipulation to get what you want. It's, like, uh, magical sleight of hand, or grifting.
CRITICAL WEAKNESS: Stealing the Pearl of Wisdom will give one access to its power, and grant them control over Vahki. The only hopes for Vahki at this point are a powerful magic user allied to him, individuals retrieving the pearl and calming a potentially rampaging Vahki before putting it back in its place (tbh, I don’t think anyone wants another person with the Pearl of Wisdom, so it’s best just to give it back… but it’s up to you guys!). This is essentially what one might want to do if they want to be the big bad, becoming the threat rather than being the threat, and taking up a new mantle, thus making it a critical weakness and a major plot point. I’d communicate with me after doing this to figure everything out, since I’ll still be RPing Vahki carrying out commands. Just be warned that he will be royally pissed off. Stealing the Pearl is offensive on several levels, including personally and culturally.
Personality
WORK IN PROGRESS
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note: these are only rough personality notes. it's not even a draft.
At first I thought he was going to be a lot more heartless, but now my Legion/Dionysus/Loki muse has stronger ties to the things around him, and has evolved past the original inspiration. I still feel like his broader sympathy is only awarded to specific individuals, and countrymen, though. he's still opportunistic, and seeking out the joys in life. Feel like he'd see human sympathy as a way to put a damper on that really quick. fickle. Likes pranks, and jokes, and mischief - with these sometimes being lethal for others. not that Vahki cares too badly, but he's a lot more personable than I thought he'd be. Some might think that lethal jokes would ultimately be lethal to him, and it's a maybe but, hey, can't live life without risks according to Vahki. I mean, according to me, too, but Vahki just takes some liberties with that. Artistic license and all, on his own life. Vahki's harmless pranks dun go wrong. If he wants them to go wrong he's probably just maiming or murdering you for funsies because you pissed him off or looked fun to screw with. Every trickster has a type and those who think they are big, strong, and untouchable - or just half-ass their lies, or even don't do their family an honor (absentee fathers, abusive sons) - are Vahki's type. I need to refine that a bit, tho. Figure out if I want to limit what really gets Vahki going to a single thing.