Lady Inga Draegonia

I am Lady Inga Draegonia of the House of Draegonia, once a prosperous family in Torvaldsland. Let me give you a brief family history as I know it and what I've learned of my family.

My family was once prosperous, living the way of the North, following the tenets of Thor and Odin, All-Father. My father was a Hold Jarl and mother was from the Plains of Turia. She was was one of his conquests as a raider, captured on her way to visiting family in Asperiche and Bazi. From that I've been told, they were happy as a couple, Mother supporting Father on his various endeavors and the family continued to prosper during their lifetime. My family was decimated when I was young by a combination of disastrous circumstances. We had been hit with a virulent sickness that wiped out entire families in our village, then we were raided a few times until the village was wiped out. My home, my lands, my family were wiped clean and left for the animals to pick over. The only reason I wasn't among my family at the time of their demise is that I was with Father's Harbormaster at the time, learning the family business. Just because I was female, I was first born and my parents noted that I was truly smart and showed an aptitude for business dealings. I was told they considered this an asset to the family that I learn the business along with history, accounting, laws of the land and household management from others to expand my knowledge base. I was sent to southern schools for short periods of time, and even apprenticed for short periods of time to various castes to learn what I could.

I was raised along with the Harbormaster's family and from time to time, the he would give me things that had belonged to my family and tell me tidbits of my home. I wore a pendant on a long bit of leather and chain; the emblem of my household, a dragon, with wings raised. It resembled a tarn and I learned that my father's family had originally hailed from a land called Earth. This dragon was supposed to represent strength, honor, and wisdom. That particular emblem stayed with me all these years and it was something I clung to when things were not at their best. I grew up alongside the children of the Harbormaster. The closest of these children to me was Storm, later to be known as Captain StormRaider and to have a place in this narrative. We grew up, learning our various duties and as children will do, fighting, playing together and fighting again. But as a family, we were all close. Yes, we were close when we were young but when I was about to blossom into young womanhood, we were separated. I didn't understand it at the time and neither did he. The few times we managed to sneak off, we talked about why we were separated and commiserated with each other.

Now, as a Free Woman of Gor, there were certain constraints on me that did not allow for me to regain my family lands as a Man would have. I could not pick up a sword and win back my lands with honorable battle. I didn't have the riches to hire warriors to take back my family lands. So you might ask what I managed to do instead. I learned. I learned everything I could. When sent to a new place to learn the basics of a new caste, I would read everything I could get my hands on. I learned how to set up businesses and the laws ruling those businesses. I learned about various peoples and how they were treated and how to use that to my advantage. But the one thing I needed above all was the riches and money to get all my ideas off the ground. And I learned disguises. As a Northern child, I was not as tall as most of the Northern women were. I was small and petite but my one outstanding trait was my fiery red hair. That was my pride and joy. I however, did learn how to dye that hair, so that I could blend in with the population of my chosen areas. Now, how to earn funds for my various ideas to get off the ground? I did one of the few things that only required a bit of time and a strategic contract to complete. I basically contracted by body out to breed the future. The contracts were lucrative, 1 year or 1 child, to be raised by the Father regardless of gender for a specific amount of treasure, land, and/or advantage. Strangely enough, all those years, and I only produced daughters. But those daughters were fine, strong women. All born with varying shades of my red hair.

As I managed to earn those funds through my various matings, I invested those funds into business ventures. I went into business with the Captain's family, and Storm became Captain StormRaider, taking over the family business of Harbormaster and Ship's Captain, a combination of raiding and landholding. We built the boats that was needed and we prospered. I had buried my family name and opted for a shortened version of the family name of Dragon. Not very imaginative, but I would not give up the complete family name. All during the time of building the family fortune up again, I continued to court those lucrative contracts for my body. I was young, healthy and my company was sought out. And as I might have led you to believe, I did not turn my back on my many daughters. I managed to build doweries for each and every one of those beauties, presented to them upon their reaching their adulthood. Even StormRaider and I managed to produce a daughter, but that is one that was not planned and was not for gain. He and I were ship-wrecked and spent a number of weeks on a deserted piece of land until we managed to finally wave down a passing ship. Storm hid his identity, managing to pass himself off as a traider that had been sailing home with his mate. Storm did raise his daughter, his mate helping to raise her.

In my past, I had been many things. I had been representative of various castes, Merchant Caste, Slaver Caste, short time as Physician Caste, but mainly Scribe Caste. Between Merchant Caste and Scribe Caste, this gave me more opportunity to meet those people I was interested to meet, with more opportunities to expand my growing empire. Much of the gains I collected were from StormRaider's ill-gotten gains from raiding. I was even a Tatrix for about 10 years in the past with my own enforcer (or Hammer as He liked to be known as) and guardian. That person was called KarHallarn. He was a one-of-a-kind being that resembled an Earthen wolf or a Kur. That was probably the most lucrative years of our lives as Captain StormRaider continued his raiding and I set up the warehouses and businesses to dispose of his ill-gotten gains. Kar was my enforcer and knew and kept track of all my business ventures. In return for the warehouses and businesses, I kept a small percentage of each shipment either in funds or in goods. I had managed to set up several storage caves that I kept hidden with treasure and goods for that proverbial "rainy day". When the Tatrix was overthrown, I was not unaware of the plot and managed to escape with the aid of Kar, the Harbormaster and a few trusted staff.

Now to recent events. I knocked about a bit in the intervening years after my time as a Tatrix. During that time, I contracted with a man from Lydius for again the 1 year or 1 child, whichever came first. He was a good man, but unfortunately, he was killed when a raiding party tried to take Lydius. When I learned of his death, I traveled to Lydius and retrieved the child we had produced as he had no remaining family to rear the child. Leaving Lydius, I travelled the Laurius upriver for a time, settling in an Outlaw camp for a time. We built the Outlaw camp up into a small town, naming it River Cliffs of Laurius. Along with the Outlaw camp, we had befriended the local PantherWomen, opening trade with them also. Out camp began to thrive, exporting lumber, hand crafted furniture, furs, some ores from mines that had been abandoned and handcrafted items. I became the Village Elder and the village prospered. I grew close to the Lead Huntress, almost like sisters we were. During this time, I raised my daughter, the only one I actually raised myself. She wanted for nothing and was spoiled. I had her sent to southern homes and trained as a scribe and she became interested in the law, specifically Merchant Law and became a Merchant Magistrate. I was quite pleased with her overall. She accepted a posting on the Isle of Asperiche and asked that I join her. Clearing my affairs and setting up the village with a good support base, I departed downriver and again, met up with Captain StormRaider for a trip down to Asperiche. During the time I was clearing my affairs and her posting as Scribe Magistrate, she had met and mated a Northern Man. Upon my arrival at Asperiche, I had a full family, rented a small house and set up house as Head of Caste of Scribes for the area.

Now my Daughter's Mate was an ambitious man, wanted to return to the North and set up his household there. He knew that my daughter was financially sound, but he didn't know just how well financed, but soon learned that Mommy-dear was the brains behind the finances and he and my daughter proceeded a campaign to finance his return trip to the north and settling in his family's lands. Now I was not unaware that he was milking me for financing for his venture, as I was thinking that it was time to re-establish the family name and family honor. None of my daughters knew the true family history except for my daughter, Lykopsis, with StormRaider. She knew it as it was Storm's family that had saved me as a child. So I financed his trip North, staying with my daughter in Asperiche while he began the building of the long houses and such in Axe Glacier. While he was gone, I began the process of gathering things that would be needed in the north and shipping up to the area of our new home, also building a couple of warehouses and I began stocking those warehouses of things that would be needed at some point in time. The settlement would not want for anything. What I did NOT know was that my Daughter's Mate was robbing me blind of those items and hiding them, or cashing them in for materials and manpower he needed for building up the land.

Now while I was visiting an outlying village, my daughter received notice from her mate to come immediately to the north that he was ready for her. She completed her preparations to join him and left, leaving me a message to join them when I returned. Little did I know that they were setting me up to take what I had built. Upon my return, I contacted Captain StormRaider and arranged to travel to the north. On the way, we stopped at several ports of call and visited various daughters, picked up more supplies and such. Now, while sailing North, Storm informed me of what he had seen of the settlement and noted that certain items in the warehouse was being systematically removed. Storm had ceased delivering items to those specific warehouses, instead, storing the items I had sent North in Torvaldsberg in the warehouses there. Storm also presented me with the cape of my Father with the family crest emblazoned on the back. The cape had been resized to the size of a normal Torvie woman, which meant it was still a bit largish on my petite frame. Storm's mother was a fine seamstress, but she always expected me to be much larger than I really was. I decided at that time to reacquaint the world with the family name of Draegonia and resumed my actual name of Lady Inga Draegonia.

Upon landing in the Axe Glacier region, my daughter and her mate met my boat and welcomed me with smiles and dinner, showing off my quarters and so forth. I was told I would be sharing in the Hold duties as my daughter was the Hold Jarl's woman. I was also asked to be the Ambassador for the home, make treaties and trade agreements with other homes and settlements. Little did I know that this was just a plot to bring other settlements under the rule of my Daughter's Mate. I learned that my daughter and her Mate thought they were entitled to my wealth and holdings as they considered that they were my next of kin and HE tried to take over the reins of those holdings he knew of. I had planned a trip back down towards Asperiche to take care of some business dealings. While I was gone, they seized my warehouses, little knowing that Storm and I had already cleared them out of the most valuable items and moved them down to Torvaldsland. Storm and Kar did return long enough to Axe Glacier to deliver a message from me that I would not be returning, that my business dealings were not as healthy as they once were and that they were on their own. My daughter sent messenger birds on a regular basis, begging me to return. I was of the mind that she was a grown woman now, with a mate. HE could provide for her as she was not entitled to more of my fortunes.

I settled back into the life at Asperiche as it had become my home. It wasn't a northern area, nor was it Southern in that it was a port city that catered to everyone. I remained torn between 2 societies of Gor. I became the Scribe Magistrate, enjoying life again. My daughter by StormRaider came to stay with me for a time and moved into my home. She had shown an aptitude for medicine, and Storm and I had arranged for her to be trained in the ways of the Physician Caste. By pure accident, StormRaider found that the PantherWoman I had befriended and grown close, was actually my natural born Sister. She had struggled with this information, but had decided that she wanted to reunite the family and had arranged to relearn the ways of a FreeWoman and came to try to learn how to be a proper FreeWoman again. It was a struggle, but she will manage it. Our family are survivors and we WILL endure what we have to, to get ahead in this world.

I am Lady Inga Draegonia, eldest living member of the House Draegona.