Arilyn Moonblade

Arilyn Moonblade was a half-elf assassin and Harper originally from Evereska.

Description
Like most half-elf, her ears were pointed and she retained her youthful appearance and vitality even into middle age. Her eyes were blue, flecked with gold, and she had a more human build than elvish, though her skin was still quite fair. She had black hair and a hint of blue beneath her skin and generally looked more like an elf rather than a half-elf.

Relationships
Arilyn's mother was Princess Amnestria of Evermeet, and her father Bran Skorlskun, a human ranger. Amnestria's power that was added to the sword was the elfgate, which was judged extremely dangerous should word of it ever escape. Because of this the moonstone was removed from the hilt and (after replaced with a topaz) entrusted to Bran.

Amnestria, who moved to Evereska under the name Z'beryl, was killed by a pair of thugs. Bran continued to wander Faerûn until, in the novel Elfshadow, he returned to Arilyn in the city of Waterdeep, where the moonstone and the moonblade were reunited. He thereafter maintained sporadic contact with her.

Arilyn became romantically involved with the noble Danilo Thann, with whom she travelled and later to whom she became married. Arilyn had kept Danilo at a distance for some time, until she managed to make peace with her past, her elven side and family, and with herself, finally able to accept Danilo's honest affection and love for her.

Along the way she had a brief, but passionate, relationship with the wood elf chieftain Foxfire while helping defend his tribe in Tethyr in the novel Silver Shadows.

Arilyn established links with her family on Evermeet, at first through the young and liberal Prince Lamruil Moonflower and later with Queen Amlaruil Moonflower, when Arilyn proved herself by thwarting the machinations of Kymil Nimesin, who was conniving to bring about the end of Moonflower rule on Evermeet. Arilyn herself was unexpectedly assisted in this by the ambiguous Waterdhavian crime lord Elaith Craulnober, who was fond of her.

It was in the novel Dream Spheres that Arilyn and Danilo finally formalized their relationship, overcoming their past issues and the opposition of his formidable mother, who disapproved of her son's half elven love, an opposition hinting at secrets in the family.

History
Arilyn was raised in the elven city of Evereska, but was never really accepted by the community due to her half-elf nature. When she was fifteen years old, her mother was killed by a pair of common street thugs. From that time on, she carried her mother's sword, a moonblade from which she has adopted her surname. For the next decade or so, she studied swordsmanship under the tutelage of Kymil Nimesin, one of the teachers for the academy in the city.

Afterwards, when she left, she became an assassin for the Harpers, though she herself did not join the organization until later. She was a Harper for a while, but left them after undertaking a rescue mission for Isabeau Thionne, a noblewoman from Tethyr, whom she considered not to be worth rescuing.

Moonblade
Arilyn's moonblade was a hereditary elven sword, which had many different powers. Perhaps the most notable was that it harmed, possibly fatally, any unsuitable wielder who held the sword. It had nine different symbols on the blade, each representing a different power given to it by one of the wielders. The moonstone in the hilt enabled each successive wielder to grant a power to the sword over a period of time.

The different powers included: An abnormally fast swing to the sword, protecting the holder from fire, glowing blue to warn of close danger, silent warnings of danger, dreams warning of danger, projecting illusions to disguise the wielder, a portal between Faerûn and Evermeet known as an elfgate, and the ability to call forth the shadows of those who previously held the sword, or the wielder's own shadow. Arilyn's mark granted the blade the ability to glow green to warn her when the wild elves of the Wealdath were in danger. She used the two-handed style of wielding the sword, as necessitated by the quick strike power of the blade.

Novels

 * Elfshadow
 * Elfsong (first couple of chapters only)
 * Silver Shadows
 * Thornhold (only a couple of appearances)
 * Dream Spheres
 * Evermeet (mentioned)

Short stories

 * Realms of Valor: "The Bargain"
 * Realms of Infamy: "The More Things Change"
 * Realms of Magic: "Speaking with the Dead"
 * Realms of War: "Redemption"