Callista Maricel

• The Champion's Conquest: Callista participates in part of the celebrations for the Keeper's birthday!
• The Maypole Dance: Callista participates in The Maypole Dance celebration and festivities!

Callista (or Conk, to those who know her best - from Concordia, that is) is the scion of the storied and somewhat infamous Maricel family, a machinist and inventor with a reputation for having all of the intensity, brilliance, eccentricity, talent, unpredictability and wild imagination as the rest of her prominent but reclusive family. She arrives in Gateway to begin her political education as the heir to Tinker's Bench as well as open a workshop; though she's more than capable of repairing almost any commonplace item her specialty lies in creating esoteric clockwork creations as fanciful and beautiful to watch as they are dubiously useful.

She tends to keep odd hours, and visitors to the shop are as likely to find it wide open with all of its lights on in the wee hours of the morning as they are to stop by and find it closed and locked up tight in the middle of the business day, but those who've been inside of it report it's every bit the cluttered, fantastic jungle of very pretty nonsense that you'd expect.

The Maricel family has been noble for many, many generations, having held the seat of Tinker's Bench since before time out of mind on Draught, and flirted with political advancement and title on repeated occasions due to the history and noted education of the line. Unfortunately, they never seem to hold any position of greater power for long: theirs is a family tree noted for being exceptionally bright - some say too bright, as occasional branches of the family's bloodline have fallen into madness or eccentricity and either self-pruned due to mishap and suicide or withered away into obscurity. The current generations seem to've achieved comparative stability, and though the contributions made by the Maricels to the progression of technology over time have been markedly among the most significant in the Isle's history, its members are still viewed as potential loose cannons, to be handled like explosives: powerfully good for a purpose, but dangerous if applied incorrectly.

Callista's mother and father have a reputation for being extremely reclusive, which is perhaps in some way responsible for their daughter's unusually outgoing personality. They handle the matters of Tinker's Bench with businesslike aplomb and spend most of their time pursuing their shared passion, the development of new technologies for exploring the ocean. The family has a reputation for being so disinterested in emotional or familial matters (there is a running joke on Draught that the Maricels have only ever actually produced offspring by accident, stumbling over procreation the way they seem to haphazardly stumble over new ideas) that it's notable that her parents seem to be absolutely and utterly in love, so madly passionate that they're constantly looking for new and grandiose ways to express their love to one another. As they tend to do this using whatever inventions or ideas come to mind at the time, this has occasionally unfortunate results, and is another source of amusement for the denizens of Tinker's Bench.

It's known that Callista has a younger sister and a much younger brother, but aside from their names (Fascienne Solita Imogen Quintessa Maricel and Favian Adeodatus Ezio Quintus Maricel, respectively - the Maricels go in for a mouthful when they name things, inventions and children alike) not much is known about the siblings.

For more on the family, please see The Maricel Family page.

• Chemicals Collide, Cloud Cult: Human interaction: mystifying and awe-striking, or generally weird and incomprehensible?
• Coin Operated Boy, The Dresden Dolls: That would surely make the difference. ...right?
• Atlas, Battles: Because it's rockin' (and strange), and I listen to it when I play her. The inside of her head probably sounds like this sometimes. Scary, I know.
• Tras, Battles: See above. They're probably good workshop songs, though.
• The Secret Life of Dr. Caligari, Abney Park
• Building Steam, Abney Park
• The Death of the Cog, The Cog is Dead: Beautiful sprockets and dazzling springs...
• The Watchmakers' Apprentice, The Clockwork Quartet: Because every up must have a down.
• Behold the Machine, Vernian Process
• Internal Affliction, Sephfire (OCRemix): The process of invention isn't all shiny gears and polished brass...just ask Renata.
• Blood, Sweat, and Tears, The Cog is Dead: Breaking their backs 'til their workshirts were dirty and brown, as year after year they'd work for the good of town...

• Tinker's Bench: As noted above and elsewhere, the Maricel family has had rule of Tinker's Bench since Draught was raised. However, the reclusive Lord and Lady are rarely seen off the island, and most political presence expected from Tinker's Bench is given to Callista, the Lady Heir, on Gateway.
• The Golden Gear: Callista is the owner and shopkeep of the Golden Gear, a delightful place located in the Plaza of the Keeper West. Be prepared to enter a shiny, otherworldly place of clockwork whatchamacallits, sprung whirlygigs, and much-too-complicated cogs. If you'd like to commission some work to be done, just stop on by! Some of the recent pieces of business include:
  • A simple music box, of polished wood, gold accents inside and out. No moving gears were shown on this particular music box, that plays a Draughtian lullaby.
  • A corkscrew, made of gold-plated metal, in the shape of a butterfly; the proboscis is the screw, and the wings flap to the delight of the customer.
  • A puzzle box for the personal matters of a Draughtian noble.

Additionally, Callista has agreed to bring on Morgan Amarantos as an apprentice of sorts, to do simple tasks about the shop, and indulge her curiosity in the gizmos and clockworks

• Tutor to the Stars: The Imperial Chamberlain's search for a tutor to His Royal Highness Prince Jordan Caprios has lead her to Callista; she's agreed to help tutor the Prince in miniature weapons-of-war. When the snow accumulates, be wary of catapulted snowballs!
• Lady Sendai's Book Club: TBA!
• Merchant's Guild: TBA!
• University: TBA!

Callista's Relationships

On Pi Day, 2010-03-14, Callista changed player hands; that is, there is a new player! Every attempt will be made to stay true to the original character because she's awesome, but please excuse the new player if unable to get things right at first.

To that end! If you ICly knew, were associates with, or have input, please please please page or @mail in-game, with your insights! Your help is much appreciated! ^_^