Penelope Apexus

Penelope Apexus was born in the City State of Krup in 1145 to Adolphus and Constance Apexus. Penelope was the 9th daughter born to her parents and was the youngest child within their family until the birth of her brother Orson in 1146.

After the fall of Krup to her uncle Alec Apexus II's Yasgari army in 1156, Adolphus moved his remaining family to their last noble holding in the City of Highport. After several years of continued misrule, Highport was eventually lost to gnoll raiders. Penelope was one of three remaining Apexus sisters still living within the City of Highport during its sacking in 1163.

Forced to watch as hobgoblin raiders devoured her mother and father and put her remaining relatives to the sword, Penelope was taken as a prize by gnoll chieftain Hyrn Armbreaker and worked as a slave within his encampment. Penelope's radiant beauty and unparalled benevolence stole the heart of her captors, and before long she found herself advising Hyrn in his campaign to consolidate his power over the other gnoll chieftains within Highport.

Through her selfless sacrifice and willingness to work with her captors, even those that she knew slew her own family, Penelope inspired the common human populace of Highport as they struggled under gnollish dominion. Ultimately, Hyrn too became enraptured by her compassion, and fell madly in love with her as they worked together to secure his peaceful ascendance to overlordship. Hyrn's love was so deep that the fearsome gnoll adopted human dress and converted to Penelope's own patronage of the Temple of Ioun. Penelope eventually reciprocated this love and the two announced to the world that they would be wed in 1166.

Authorities in both Greywind and Nazca had made plans to liberate and subjugate Highport under their own banners, but through Penelope's deft manuevers, she kept the gnolls from murdering the human inhabitants and the outside armies of the great powers from slaying the gnolls. Although she was killed by Apexus rebels on the evening of her wedding to Hyrn, her legacy remains within the city of Highport as a relatively peaceful co-existence stands under her former husband, the newly dubbed "Hyrn the Enlightened."