Biography:
The Portable Grove: Balin emanated between the end of Perpetual Rose and the beginning of Portable Grove. We know very little about his past except that he and Cillian spent a number of months with Tara establishing the Shambhala colony. Balin is assigned to an experiment partnered with Manasseh and Chase, but it isn’t a cross-pollination, so other than using Balin’s psychological data as a comparison, Tarlach can’t understand where he fits into the experiment. As Chase’s psychological issues unfold, Tara and Tarlach arrange an intervention, asking for Balin’s assistance. Balin gets into a conflict with Whirljack, who is being protective of Chase. Balin accuses the Atlas branches of losing sight of n’aashet n’aaverti, and the end result is that Balin and Whirljack have a dual – a fucking contest. Balin wins, which provokes a crisis of confidence in Whirljack, but also a considerable amount of self-reflection in Balin. Balin gains an understanding for Chase, and wants to make up for his insensitivity by reaching out to him.
As the Archon of Shambhala, Balin is required to take part in the dedication of the new Cathedral of the Four Archons. Inadvertently, he is involved in the test of strength between archons, but fails miserably as his chosen miracle, turning everything in the cathedral into gold, is seen as both easy and obvious.
During the orgy at Suibhne’s, Balin is assigned to the same group as Chase. He conflicts with Driscoll (who is really being a prick!) and they nearly come to blows. The orgy seems to awaken Balin to the erotic potential of the other branches, and he ends up taking Chase as a pollen partner.
Correspondence Chart Entries from the Portable Grove
| Denotation | Balin del Shambhah’d (Hindi: powerful, mighty warrior, sword; all Ashvattha emanations have the surname del Shambhah’d, Skarsian: of Shambhala.) |
| Numeration | 45th emanation of Ashtara, 2nd branch of Ashvattha; 68 in the correspondence chart. |
| Age | 30 |
| Hotness | 8/10 |
| Vital Statistics | 1.967 meters tall, cock size 20.55 cm when erect. |
| Description | The second largest emanation (after Ari), but the most obviously and solidly muscular. The kind of guy you just wouldn’t mess with. Rugged, rectangular face with a strong jawline. Long hair, rich red at the roots shading to solid black at the bottom, like a wild animal marked with a shocking crest of fur. Wears his ceremonial robes as Archon on formal occasions, but usually prefers simple black trousers, a muscle-t in magnifique, and a black waistcoat. |
| Skills | Ashvattha Archon. Physically the strongest emanation. |
| Sexual Prowess and Kinks | Endurance, determination. |
| Average Duration of Play | 15 minutes 12 seconds. |
| Totem Tree | Cinnamomum camphora, the camphor tree. |
| Fixed Star | Arcturus, the bear-guard (α Boo), also called Tian Wang, the celestial king’s throne, or Daijiao, the Blue Dragon’s horn. |
| Color |  |
| Esoteric Symbol | The Minchiate trump La Forza, Strength. |
| Function | Facilitative gravity. |
| Official Title | His Most Sublime and Eminent Radiance, Archon of Shambhala. |
| His Prophecy | He becomes harder. |
| Dessert | Blue longevity buns filled with nau’gsh paste |
Persistence of Weeds Addendum
| Branch Growth Characteristics | Ashvattha was synthesized fully grown by Ashtara to anchor the Shambhala colony’s Cu’enashti orchard. |
| Nul-history | The component aspects of the Ashvattha entity responded to a call from Balin for heroes to undertake the most worthwhile endeavor in the universe. The Ashvattha entity was already sentient when it encountered Ashtara, who recruited it with the sight of Tara’s Destiny. |
| Proto-conscious Root Concept | Endurance, designated Strength. |
| Prime Number of Energy Resonance | 337 |
| From Self-Portraits Not-of-Me II: Baby Pictures by Driscoll Garrett |  |