Guild Seer. Keeper of the Hearth Engine.
Who She Is
Nyla Vexorian is the most knowledgeable living person on the subject of the Hearth Engine - possibly the most knowledgeable person, full stop?!
She trained in what could be learned about the traditions of Thalorin Vex, the archmage who predicted the Frost and whose work forms the theoretical backbone of everything the Guild now maintains. The Engine’s operation, its calibration, its arcane requirements - Nyla understands all of it, and she and Luthor are collaboratively the reason it hasn’t failed. She also uses the Seer’s Orb, a divinatory Relic, to locate concentrations of relic energy in the Wastes. When the Guild sends you somewhere, there’s a good chance Nyla is the one who found it.
Appearance
Fiendkin and adorned with an intensely frizzy-haired afro, with a dark complexion made pale by a life spent leaning over manuscripts. Her fingers are perpetually stained with alchemical burns and ink. Her robes are layered, practical, and covered in margin notes and grass clippings. She adjusts them constantly, fidgets with the cuffs, moves her hands even when she’s standing still.
Personality
Gentle and a little nervous. She talks fast when she gets excited about something - and she gets excited about almost everything theoretically interesting, which is a lot. Ask her a simple question and you might get a two second or twenty-minute answer, but it’ll be worth it.
Her and Luthor can get into a flow-state when they’re running maintenance on the Engine. The Engine is her responsibility and she takes that weight seriously - sometimes too seriously. She avoids eye contact unless she’s lost in an explanation, and she gets visibly uncomfortable when people treat relics as interchangeable fuel rather than objects worth understanding.
Her Role in the Guild
Nyla keeps the Engine running and tells the Guild where to look. She briefs expeditions on what they’re likely to find at a site and what to prioritize recovering. If you bring back something unusual - an artifact with strange properties, a manuscript in a language nobody recognizes - she’s the first person to talk to.
You’ll find her in the Engine chamber, the archive room adjacent to it, or the beautiful courtyard. She’s always there. It’s not entirely clear she goes back to her Guild quarters, because those three rooms may as well BE her quarters.