Rendon & Rilla Hevell

RPs

From the Ashes

Summary

Twin children who served Dawn Valerian in her quest to resurrect Elaith Thenswick.

Background

Rendon and Rilla were twelve years old when Dawn Valerian found them. They were living with their father after their mother left him. Dawn located them and discerned their psionic potential, but they were no good to her with their father.

Mr. Hevell was a wealthy man, and guilty of little more in his life beyond some minor white-collar crimes like deceiving his investors and competitors. At least, that was the case until Dawn began to meddle. At her urgings, he became paranoid that his business was going under, that his investors had all found him out and were going to abandon him and leave him destitute. However, he did still have a few resources at his command: the children his wife had left behind.

So he started using them as barter items in business deals with some of his shadier clients. He figured if he could offer them customer service above and beyond what anyone else was offering, they'd stay. He came close to questioning this logic many times, but with Dawn's help he reasoned that it was better this way for all of them. He had to do whatever it took to keep his business going, and if he shrank from opportunities, wouldn't the kids suffer, too?

Armed with this logic and with twins who had nowhere else to go, Hevell started to "rent" the oldest of the twins, Rilla, to his investors as a bonus incentive. Rendon quickly found out, but his efforts at getting his sister away from their father and his business partners usually ended up in serious beatings and worse.

Then Dawn stepped in. She promised them safety, and a guarantee that their father would never find them. Rendon demanded that she kill Hevell, and Dawn complied. They went with Dawn to stay with her and her army of recruits. It was then that she told Rendon and Rilla about their power, about their potential to tear corrupt monsters like their father from the face of the planet if they only had the will to do it. Rendon accepted for both of them, and they became two of the most determined members of Dawn's Acolytes of the Phoenix.

As they continued their training, it became evident that while Rilla had greater talent than her brother, his anger gave him the motivation he needed to surpass her much of the time. It was several weeks before Rilla could even be persuaded to talk to the other students, and she never did quite get comfortable around the boys. Rendon never fit in, being in general far too concerned with the potential that someone might hurt his sister again.

When the adventuring party arrived from Doma that was to kick off the events of From the Ashes, Rendon and Rilla believed Dawn when she said that these adults were dangerous. Rendon and Rilla should not believe their kind words, because they would betray them just like their father had. She forbade them to fight these ones themselves, but when the adventurers arrived at her stronghold, Rendon and Rilla disobeyed orders and went to face down the party on their own.

According to the Hevell twins, the party could go no further. The party's shortsighted attempts to stop the Acolytes could not be tolerated, because there was too much at stake. The Acolytes were going to change the world, and get rid of this corrupt festering cesspool of abuse and neglect. They were determined that no adult would ever forget their power, and it did not matter what had to be sacrificed to achieve this vision.

The party, unable to truly convince the twins of the error of their ways, was forced to fight them, killing both.

There has been much speculation as to the twins' fates after their death. The concensus among the party seems to be that they were likely claimed by Nikumu, as hatred seemed to be their only strength anymore. This disturbing potentiality prompted discussion as to whether or not the twins should be resurrected.

The party decided against it for several reasons. First, the great expense required to resurrect the twins would likely not be returned with gratitude. The plane of hate is not the best place for two damaged children to recover their sanity, and while it would be morally correct to try and give the Hevells another chance, the risk was too great that Rendon and Rilla would end up being a greater threat as a result.

Rendon and Rilla are buried in a plot at Gunnir Academy normally reserved for Gunnir alumni.

Trivia

Hevell is a derivative of the Hebrew word "Hevel," the basis of Abel's name in the book of Genesis. Hevel means "pointless" or "nothingness," a reference to the fated brevity of his life.