Little One

From Familia Niveum

The Power of Mice

A tiny grey dormouse scampers through a field; after it scampers a huge, ill-tempered cat. In them burns a single, towering spirit.

Contents 1 Personal Code 2 Miraculous Abilities 3 Gifts 4 Limits 4.1 Light Touch 4.2 Deep Sleep 5 Restrictions 5.1 Hunted 5.2 Tiny 6 Bonds 7 Virtue 8 History 9 Anchors 9.1 Tiller 9.2 Sharon Farnham 9.3 Michelle Saint-Just 9.4 Alexei Kurtuzov 9.5 Rhashid Avamaparta

Personal Code

1. Go unseen by your enemies
2. Take joy in the Hunt, even as you are Hunted
3. As you run, love that which would destroy you

Miraculous Abilities

• Aspect 0
  • 5 Permanent Miracle Points
• Domain 0
  • 6 Permanent Miracle Points
• Realm 5
  • 5 Permanent Miracle Points
• Spirit 4
  • 9 Permanent Miracle Points

Gifts

Gifts are unique special abilities possessed by the Noble.

Little One has no special gifts.

Limits

Limits are handicaps under which the Noble operates; but in adversity there is power, and limits grant extra miracle points.

Light Touch

A limit of Spirit (+4SMP)

Little One could no more bear down on the sould of an anchor than he could crush the stones of a mountain. He must rely on the good will of his servants.

Deep Sleep

A limit of Domain (+1DMP)

The lingering effects of the Excrucian plot against the Regina Nivea remain. All her nobles sleep deeply. During their normal hours of sleep, they will awaken for no sensation less than great pain. This makes guarding their estates a more difficult task.

Restrictions

Restrictions are much like limits, but less universally problematic; they grant extra miracle points only when they become a major problem.

Hunted

A restriction of Domain (+1 DMP when appropriate)

Part of a mouse's life is to be hunted. This is reflected in Little One's life as a huge cat, almost two feet tall at the shoulders, that contsantly pursues him. The cat is an extension of his domain, and will never catch him as long as he is vigilant; yet it forces him to be always on the move. The cat is an extension of himself and thus shares his Auctoritas and Realm score.

Tiny

A restriction of Aspect (+1 AMP when appropriate)

Little One is but a mouse, miniscule against even the smallest of those powers ascended from amongst humanity's ranks. Sometimes this can be a great challenge.

Bonds

• Programs to spay and neuter small predatory pets (2)
• Vegetarianism as a cultural force (2)
• The Lady's grove at the center of Locus Niveum (4)
• The Autumnlands of Locus Niveum (4)
• His Love bonded anchors (4)
• Small warm hidey holes (4)

Virtue

Timid. No force of coercion or trickery can ever make Little One expose himself directly to his enemies.

History

In the time when Silence was failing, the old man set to guard Locus Niveum was the last of the Regina's powers left alive. He sat his lonely watch over his sleeping lady for centuries; yet in the end, it was old age which struck him down, for his gift of immortality failed. He went to the grotto where his Lady slept, there to spend his last day beside her in quiet companionship, and passed away into history.

When even his heartbeat no longer disturbed the silence, a tiny mouse crept out into that grotto, attracted by a loaf of bread the ancient power had kept to nibble on as he waited for death. The little mouse desired only a snack, yet when it shared repast with the departed power, it was infused with the shard of the Regina's soul which had made him guardian of the Locus.

Struck by towering, terrifying awareness of Selfhood that came with that shard, the mouse shivered for days curled up against the soothing warmth of the Lady of Snowfall. Only once did she open her eyes to regard him. She, thinking she was dreaming, said to him "It is good to know I have you to protect me, Little One. But you'd best be running along before a cat finds you." Her gentle smile banished all his terror even as the words of the Imperator made themselves true; he scampered away, ready to lead that cat- and any enemy who might intrude on his great, beloved Lady- on a merry chase indeed.

Anchors

Tiller

A huge albino mouse, almost rat sized, bred and once kept as a pet. Little One puts her in the keeping of allies so he can keep in touch. (She's not sentient in their own right, but he can of course take posession.)

Sharon Farnham

A kindly old lady who runs an animal shelter in New York, New York. She'd take all her work home with her, but her small apartment will hold only a few small rodents. Her special fondness for mice brought her to Little One's attention; his hypnotic charm made her perfectly willing to serve as his eyes and ears in North America.

Michelle Saint-Just

An elfin young French woman with an incredibly cute smile and a truly devious mind (as well as the dubious distinction of being descended from one of the Revolution's worst butchers). She was Tilly's original owner. She was Anchored when she was a little girl, but she attends University in Paris now. She attracted Little One's attention through her affinity with the nobler virtues of mousehood and her tiny size.

Alexei Kurtuzov

A middle aged Russian general, commander of the Russian Army in its furthest Northeast district, with his primary base on the shore of the Bering strait. A tall, broad man with steel grey hair, Alexei is arrogant and ambitious; he is fond of reminding people of his relationship to one of Russia's greatest historical generals, and fully intends to take high command (short of the President, of course) in a few decades. He has a strong distaste for rodents, and was responsible for launching a pest extermination campaign which called Little One's baleful attention on him. The Power of Mice put a stop to the effort, and in the process made an unexpected ally. As a man who feels distaste for mice he utterly loathes the being who embodies mousedom, but no amount of personal disdain could so override his ambition as to make him pass up the opportunity to strike a mutual benefit pact with a demigod.

Rhashid Avamaparta

An elderly Hindu man living in Kolkata, India. Though a layman, he is very widely read in Hindu scripture and literature. He became mildly obsessed with the meaning and portent of the mouse that is portrayed at the feet of Ganesha's most common aspect. This immediately attracted Little One's attention as the first time in decades that any human being honestly venerated mice. The old man is enthralled at the insight into the nature of the world that Anchordom has lent him.