Solaria
from the
Land of the Sun

Solaria appeared coolly perceptive as her metallic eyes glanced back and forth, searching for any movement in the brush.

Instinctively, she stood still as a statue atop a giant boulder hanging over the edge of a deep rocky riverbed, looking like a wild predator that casually did not want to be seen by man. Not that being still would keep her from being seen on that warm auspicious evening; her clothing was too bright. She could have been spotted for miles away.

For what she was about to do, she had to look at least a fraction of the lady she once was. The week before she had traded in her beautiful gold Kahtemran earrings her mother had worn for a vibrant orange tunic, some tiger's eye stones, cord, and hundreds of fiery glass beads. Now she looked absolutely brilliant. All the little beads dispersed and reflected the sun's light like colored prisms. She also wore a pair of golden wristbands that flashed in the sun's light, especially as she finally stirred, reaching under one of them to scratch an itch. The bands were the only thing left from her painful past, a past she would try to set right one last time.

With cat-like athleticism, she dropped down from the boulder into the riverbed, and then picked her way through the polished stones and deep sand to the other side. She climbed up the opposite bank without slowing down. She didn't want to be down in the riverbed long; too many years of being hunted had made her leery about being in places where she couldn't see everything around her.

At the top of the opposite bank, she traveled westward until she reached a steep mountainous descent. There, on that spot, it was as though she were on the top of the world. She could see the ocean sprawling across the western horizon, along with the shining Black River lazily slithering down to meet it. She also saw her destination, a city nestled in the corner where river met ocean.

The smell of the ocean suddenly slapped her senses. It was such a bittersweet smell to her. For a moment, she closed her eyes with pain, as old emotions tried to possess her. She opened her eyes again. The bodies of water shimmered before her, like molten gold under the afternoon sun.

The sun.

The sun was also bittersweet to her. The sun had failed her. Or had she failed it? Was the sun even truly an all powerful deity to be worshipped as she always had believe it was, or was it no more significant than the ocean? Or the rocks? Or a person? If the sun was a deity, why couldn't she feel its favor upon her? Had she done something to anger it? These questions she had asked herself again and again. They were getting old. So many miserable years had slipped by since her life had turned for the worse. So many questions had been swirling inside her head. But she had yet to find any answers, nor a glimmer of hope.

This would be a last recourse. She was abandoning what little pride she had left, and going to a sworn enemy for help regaining what she had lost.

A few hours later, Solaria marched into the city.

The sounds, sights, and smells of the lively place lifted her spirits. She had been out of civilization for so long, and had forgotten how much she had always relished being around so many people.

Something softly touched the back of her arm. She jumped with a gasp and whirled around to see a boy looking up at her. He was dressed in a white robe and wore a gilded pendant around his neck of the Imperial seal, marking him as a servant to the never-dying Emperor of the Seven Provinces.

"My lady," he said, "My lord knows you are here, and wishes to see you. Come with me, if you will."

She sighed nervously, remembering how unsettling this nemesis truly was. How did he always manage to do these kinds of things? How did he know she was here? She'd been in exile for so long... nobody knew where she was anymore... except him, apparently. Was he psychic or something?

She flared her nostrils, jutted out her lower jaw, and followed the boy into the palace, past guards; and up a series of massive stairs; through a great hall filled with servants, musicians, and dancers; to the doors of a great balcony. The boy gestured for her to go onto the balcony without him, and closed the doors behind her after she passed through them.

An enormous black one-horned beast stood alone on the balcony, watching the sun setting over the ocean. He had a certain beauty and elegance to him, combined with a strong air of authority. His long tail occasionally twitched like a cat's, and his black fur stirred in the breeze as though it had a life of its own; otherwise he was disturbingly motionless.

Her heart rate accelerated as she walked over to where he was. She'd seen him before, far away on a battlefield. But the reality of what he was, and what he was capable of doing, became overwhelmingly clear now that she was this close to him. His shoulders towered way over her head, taller than some people's dwellings. She knew this did not keep him from moving with the speed and agility of a squirrel; she'd seen him in action before. There was a good reason they hadn't bothered taking her walking stick and knife from her before coming onto the balcony; he was dangerous.

"There is something much greater than the sun, Solaria Aunakre Re, rightful ruler of Kahtemra," he said, breaking the silence. He did not break his gaze from the horizon, as he continued, "You don't know it. But it knows you, and it's calling you. You have started to hear its call. That is why you are here."

"W-what did you say?"

The Emperor looked back at her. His eyes glowed a bright amber, like a crackling fire. Nothing could be hidden from those burning eyes. She looked away from them.

"You heard me", he replied. "Everything that has happened to you in your life has lead you here. You had to be broken, so your eyes could be opened."

She opened her mouth, and then closed it. After a moment of thinking she asked, "What makes you think any of this?!

"Listen to it, Your Highness, and you will hear it. A force much, much deeper than the sun is calling you. You are here for a reason, and it's time you start doing what you were created to do. It's time you come to life."

She was quiet. Her only goal in life had been to take back a throne that could very well never be hers. But now, in that instant, without knowing why, that zeal for power seemed downright ridiculous. She was wasting her life away over it. She clinched her jaw, knowing it was time to let go of her painful past, and hang onto something better. The beast was painfully right: her eyes were being opened.

"So tell me about this power you believe in that is greater than the sun," she finally said. "I want to know more about it."

"It is a force so mysterious, so awesome, and so much stronger than you could ever fathom. Some call it love. Some call it truth. Others call it The Great Divine. And it is love. It is truth. It is great and divine. It is also pure, just, patient, and compassionate. It is so many good things."

She thought about the stories told by her people about the sun god and other deities her people worshipped. They were stories about jealousy, obsession, and rage. Of gods doing the same silly things people do. In fact, now that she thought about it, the gods of Kahtemra were people, burdened with the same stupid flaws people had, only with special superpowers. But this? A majestic power that was pure goodness? Though skeptical, she was interested. The concept of such a force in existence caught her attention. She had thirsted for goodness in her world for so long.

"My entourage has certain business in West Braulio, north of here. We leave tomorrow. Journey with me, Solaria from the land of the sun, and I will share more about this with you."

"I will go north with you," she found herself accidentally saying without hesitation, and then added smoothly, "I could use a good cultural trip anyway."

The beast laughed at her attitude. It was a deep laugh, which seemed to shake the entire palace. "Good," he said. "My entourage could always use royal company."

~*~*~

About the Doll

Solaria was formerly a "Princess of the Nile" Barbie doll from the Princesses of the World collection. She stood approximately 11 and 1/2 inches tall.

Her character came from a proud desert race renown for their flaming hair, metallic eyes, rich tan skin, and drop-dead exotic beauty. A lot of care was taken to ensure the doll match all these characteristics.

First and foremost, she was given a gorgeous deep auburn mane, which involved a quality reroot (stronger than most factory jobs), a perm, and a razor trim. The reroot was done using a secure weave method, and could be restyled without fear of it falling out. The hair used for the reroot was some of that nice silky stuff Tina Amantula sells (I think the color was "Rosewood Auburn" or something).

All of her original factory paint was removed before she was repainted using acrylics, and then finished up with the appropriate varnishes. The paint was applied in very transparent washes, and as you can see, appeared natural and even. Because of the quality level of her repaint, she was fun to take pictures of, and looked spectacular up close. The amount of detail on such a small canvas was amazing!

Those metallic gold irises had no shine marks painted onto them; they had been capped with gloss to create a life-like "lens", and all the reflection marks on her "eyeballs" came from the gloss. Her eyes could just about be mistaken for being itty-bitty glass eyes. Metallic paint and fine glitters on the irises gave them that unusual metallic brilliance.

Highlights and shadows were used to "sculpt" and bring life and warmth to Solaria's face, including around her lovely eyes and on her brick-red lips.

Most of her face was lightly freckled, with some small beauty marks and skin variations on it, just like a real person's skin.

On her forehead she had a faint sun tattoo, marking her as Exalted Lady of Kahtemra (the supreme ruler of her country, from which she had been exiled).

Overall, she had been painted to be downright pretty, like the queen of a very vain culture. She was someone who cared about her appearance, even in when surviving in the wilderness.

The Costume

Normally, Solaria might wear something a little more "earthy" that would allow her to blend in better with her surroundings, but on this day, she felt the need to look like "queen of the sun people", to increase the chances of her getting a hearing with the foreign beast emperor. Her attire represented a fraction of the splendor she would have worn on the throne back in her homeland, and most likely had various tribal influences in it from her wanderings.

Under the chiffon tunic, she wore a well-made back-laced top (not shown), and draw string pants. Over the tunic she wore a real leather backpack, which had been distressed beautifully to show the wear and tear of her travels. The backpack was empty, but made pretty functional, so small items could technically have been stored in it.

Meticulous attention was paid to the detail and sturdiness of this costume. To keep it strong, all beadwork was done using multiple threads.

The silver jewelry bells on the belt had a sweet little sound, making it oh-so-tempting to move the doll!

In hand, she carried an embellished walking staff, which would have helped her fight off the wild dogs (human and canine) haunting the wilderness she traveled.

Around her wrists were gilded armbands. They were all that remained of her past as ruler of Kahtemra.

Last but not least, she wore a nice pair of leather sandals that matched her tunic. They were carefully handmade, and fit the doll a lot better than most factory-made shoes.

All of her costume pieces were removable (her head would have had to be gently popped off to get the necklaces off).

Auction

Solaria was sold on eBay in June of 2007.