Arethusa- Elegant Lute

Arethusa is a beautifully crafted baroque lute.  The famed arcane craftsman Findel Bistare, shaped the shell from the deepest ebony, a soundboard of the palest spruce, frets carved from scales, and strings braided of the hairs a silver dragon both gifts from his old friend Vinetcia.  This grandest of lutes was lovingly crafted for his beautiful wife, Arethusa. 

Arethusa was a musician of much repute, catching the ears and hearts of the powerful.  Her playing was warm as a summer breeze with her voice a sweet echo of spring past.  Tragedy struck the house of Bistare in the form of a mysterious illness.  Arethusa began to waste away, slowly losing her ability to play as her fingers weakened.  Findel sought help from the greatest healers of the era, but none could touch the sickness that afflicted the lovely Arethusa.  In a panic, Findel called upon his ancient friend Vinetcia for aid.  The silver came as soon as she could.  The only thing she could do was to arrive as Arethusa began to slip slowly into death.  The Dragon and wizard found but one way for them to remain together, they entwined Arethusa's soul with that of the lute.  Tragically, the lute could only speak in the hands of a master and Findel was not.

Now Arethusa bonds with her musicians and as they play you can faintly hear the dulcet tones of the woman bound within, singing out in counterpoint to the melodies the bard calls forth. This drives most musicians away, but those it doesn't reap the benefits of Arethusa's company.  The more they play, the more of the woman's personality they can call upon.  The most dedicated are able to call on the millennia of musical and personal knowledge that she holds in her ebony shell. 

Notes: Expertise: Performance, Charmed, Bard, Male, Proficient in the Lute