Lemons

Lunar Dome 10

“Doctor Xi, do you require any additional sugars or dairy products for your teas this morning?”

Biting her lip as she fiddled with the microscope, Yingxue sighed and rubbed her eyes. God, was it morning already? That stupid cow, eating that stupid oily grass. She'd spent all night examining a thin section of its tissue to scan for genetic anomalies, just to make sure it was ONLY due to the oil, and now it had been rougly 24 hours since she'd last slept. "I keep telling you, Holiday, adding anything to tea is a downright heretical crime against reality." Finally turning off and leaving the large electron microscope, she slouched her way over to her corner, collapsing into her memory-gel beanbag chair with a long, protracted groan. She carelessly batted her hand to the side, turning her electric kettle on to the green tea setting, largely because she didn't really have the wherewithal to change it at the moment. She'd have Dragonwell this morning. She needed the caffeine.

A few minutes later, she took her delicate mug of steaming green tea--her favorite mug back home had the Caltech logo and her name on it, but apparently that wasn't regulation here--resettled her lab coat on her shoulders, and left the laboratory for the first time in twelve hours, drawn inexorably to the kitchen by the missed meals. She sipped slowly as she paced deliberately along, intent on fixing herself some eggs and toast or something. Just something substantial and hot to quell the rumbling in her gut and, along with her tea, chase away the cold sterility of the biochem lab.

Of course, going to the kitchen to eat in the morning meant that she'd have to interact with her...wonderful colleagues. She heaved a long sigh and realized belatedly that she'd been so occupied she hadn't applied her makeup today, so for once she looked at tired as she felt. As she fetched a pair of eggs from the fridge and cracked them into a pan to fry, the terminally chipper Arthur strode in and pottered around, asking a question of no-one in particular. She took a loooong drink of her tea. There wasn't enough caffeine on this moon to stop her from feeling shitty, but she was at least starting to feeel something. Enough to do an interaction with a person, at least.

Contrary to the somewhat lively tone she'd taken with Holiday, when she replied to his query, her voice was dull and flat. "I don't know much about it, but the cow is fine." No further answer was forthcoming; she knew that she probably should have something else to say, but damn if she knew what it was. No toast today; just eggs, which she plonked down in front of her at one end of the long metal table. The beat of silence felt like it stretched an actual lifetime, and she was finally overpowered by the urge to fill it with something.

"Genetically, I mean. It's still sick."

Lem's Stash

“Selfieee! Hey, get out of the--sigh...

#Candid, #Photobomb, #DumbTeam.”

Cherri Roux

Name

Cherri Cade Roux

Age

17

Race

Faunus (Mongoose)

Nationality

Valean

Physical Description

Small and slender at only 4'11" and 95 pounds, Cherri looks much younger than she actually is, and she is NOT happy about it. Bright blue eyes and bright red hair frame a sharp, narrow face, one usually sporting a fake smile.

Characterization

Detail your character's personality in as much length as you feel is serviceable.

Backstory

This is the section where you are to describe your character's family life and experience up-to being accepted into Haven Academy in Mistral. If they are not native to Mistral be sure to give the reason they chose to apply to Haven instead of Beacon, Shade, or Atlas.

Semblance

Describe your semblance and how effective your character is with it.

Weapon & Fighting Style

Describe your weapons and fighting style in some degree of detail.

Intangibles

What are you character's strengths and weaknesses? Are they an excellent combatant or are they more intelligent? List them to further distinguish your character from other characters so I know exactly who they are and what they can do. Anything that isn't covered by backstory or personality traits should go here.

Lunar Dome 10

There Has Been An Incident

X I Y I N G X U E
X I Y I N G X U E

^{"Yes, I know that I'm bad with people. How about this, maybe shut up about it?}

C H A R A C T E R P O R T R A I T C H A R A C T E R P O R T R A I T _________________________________________________________ P E R S O N N E L D O S S I E R P E R S O N N E L D O S S I E R _________________________________________________________ Name Dr. Xi Yingxue (习樱雪), DSc, PhD Age 27 Gender Femme Height 160cm (5'3") Occupation LD-10 Ecological Biochemist (works underneath Isaac) Appearance Slim and slight, Yingxue looks, above all, tired. With heavy bags under her distinctive gray eyes that she hides with concealer out of habit, she does her best to hide how exhausted she is, but the short-cut frayed black hair that all too often goes uncombed and the aggressive eye bags on the occasion she forgets her makeup really show that she spends a lot of the night tossing and turning, staring at the ceiling and perseverating her way around any personal problems she's thinking about that night. There are smaller signs, like suppressed yawns and eye rubs when she thinks nobody is looking; but she hides it as much as she can, and she's fairly practiced therewith. She habitually wears her prized monogrammed lab coat, usually over a dark button-down and occasionally a tie. Residence In keeping with her overall image, Yingxue's room is fairly spartan, as far as accomodations go. The walls are conspicuously barren, with only her diplomas and a single mirror hanging from them. She has a desk covered in papers and computing hardware, and a bed with a plain white cover immaculately made every morning. Ultimately, she doesn't actually spend her time in her room, for the most part; her happy place is the laboratory, where she has a little nook in the corner with a beanbag chair, computer, space heater (she gets cold easily), kettle, and tea set with selection of gourmet teas.

B A C K S T O R Y - H A Z A R D S O F P R O D I G Y B A C K S T O R Y - H A Z A R D S O F P R O D I G Y ________________________________________________________________________________________ Yingxue is a true prodigy, a genius that flew through schooling primary, secondary, and beyond at ridiculous speeds. Initially a student of chemistry, she specialized into biochemistry and hammered that down too. She graduated with a BA at 18 and immediately set into doctoral studies, gaining the title of Doctor of Science at only 23. Afterwards she decided to go into a professorship at a prestigious research university, and for almost the first time in her life, she was genuinely bad at something. Having spent all her time studying and working, she suddenly realized that she had no idea how to talk to people, and a job as a professor required her to, well, talk to people. Before much more time could pass for her to gain that skill, however, there was an Incident that chased her out of that university, and of universities entirely. As someone who lived and breathed academia, she had genuinely no idea what do outside of that setting; and it was then that the Concerns snapped her up. Marooned in life with no idea what other choice to make, she acquiesced, and to the moon she went. Now she works as an ecological biochemist. Her primary responsibility is monitoring the animals and plants, especially those that are sick or dead, for any kind of notable genetic anomaly that might cause the 'cock-up cascade,' as her superior puts it. And, when possible, using LD-10's advanced equipment to engineer that genetic deformity out of the population. Her clearest and only real observable 'leisure' activity is a small cordoned-off patch of Camellia sinensis tea plants in an unused corner of the laboratory that she carefully keeps diifferent parts of at various temperatures, levels of shade, oxygen densities, and so on to fuel her collection of teas (she is VERY into tea). P E R S O N A L I T Y - F O R C E D I N T R O V E R T P E R S O N A L I T Y - F O R C E D I N T R O V E R T ________________________________________________________________________________________ As a result of the life that she's led, Yingxue hasn't done a lot of talking to other people. She was just so busy that really, the only time she talked to people for any duration was for work, to say nothing of the fact that past like, elementary school age, she was always signficantly younger than any of her peers, the disparity only widening as she advanced further; and frankly, university students don't really want to talk to someone six years younger than they are most of the time anyway. So for the most part she's been shut away like a hermit doing her work. This culminated in a complete lack of skill in speaking to people when she became a professor for students only two or three years younger than she was and had no idea how to speak to them. Now that she's been chased out of academia entirely, that sense of isolation has only become keener, and she's also become quite bitter about the entire thing. She perhaps has a bit of a victim mentality, as a general rule, and this is a fairly good placee to see it. Now, here in LD-10, she still doesn't talk to many people, except on the occasion she has to. She spends more time speaking to Holiday; even if she's sapient, she's not ACTUALLY a person standing in front of Yingxue, and that makes the entire process easier. It's likely that the AI is the closest thing to a friend that she has here even after a few years, and there's something fairly sad about that. C H A R A C T E R A R C - S E C R E T E X T R O V E R T C H A R A C T E R A R C - S E C R E T E X T R O V E R T ________________________________________________________________________________________ As much as she's been turned into an introvert aggressively by both the Incident and of course her own life choices, Yingxue is, in fact, extroverted by nature. She doesn't particulary like spending her time in relative solitude. She would rather spend it with people; one of the reasons, in fact, that she so often speaks to Holiday. She just...really, really does not know how to actually approach people. So she doesn't; as a true prodigy, she's pretty unused to actually being incompetent as something, so when she has the chance to speak to people, it's likely that she turtles inward and retreats from the interaction because of the fear she'll fuck it up. Ultimately, with all her degrees and advanced knowledge, she just needs to learn how to socially interact with other people.

---

Lunar Dome 10

Okay, I think she's done!

There Has Been An Incident

X I Y I N G X U E
X I Y I N G X U E

^{"Yes, I know that I'm bad with people. How about this, maybe shut up about it?}

C H A R A C T E R P O R T R A I T C H A R A C T E R P O R T R A I T _________________________________________________________ P E R S O N N E L D O S S I E R P E R S O N N E L D O S S I E R _________________________________________________________ Name Dr. Xi Yingxue (习樱雪), DSc, PhD Age 27 Gender Femme Height 160cm (5'3") Occupation LD-10 Ecological Biochemist (works underneath Isaac) Appearance Slim and slight, Yingxue looks, above all, tired. With heavy bags under her distinctive gray eyes that she hides with concealer out of habit, she does her best to hide how exhausted she is, but the short-cut frayed black hair that all too often goes uncombed and the aggressive eye bags on the occasion she forgets her makeup really show that she spends a lot of the night tossing and turning, staring at the ceiling and perseverating her way around any personal problems she's thinking about that night. There are smaller signs, like suppressed yawns and eye rubs when she thinks nobody is looking; but she hides it as much as she can, and she's fairly practiced therewith. She habitually wears her prized monogrammed lab coat, usually over a dark button-down and occasionally a tie. Residence In keeping with her overall image, Yingxue's room is fairly spartan, as far as accomodations go. The walls are conspicuously barren, with only her diplomas and a single mirror hanging from them. She has a desk covered in papers and computing hardware, and a bed with a plain white cover immaculately made every morning. Ultimately, she doesn't actually spend her time in her room, for the most part; her happy place is the laboratory, where she has a little nook in the corner with a beanbag chair, computer, space heater (she gets cold easily), kettle, and tea set with selection of gourmet teas.

B A C K S T O R Y - H A Z A R D S O F P R O D I G Y B A C K S T O R Y - H A Z A R D S O F P R O D I G Y ________________________________________________________________________________________ Yingxue is a true prodigy, a genius that flew through schooling primary, secondary, and beyond at ridiculous speeds. Initially a student of chemistry, she specialized into biochemistry and hammered that down too. She graduated with a BA at 18 and immediately set into doctoral studies, gaining the title of Doctor of Science at only 23. Afterwards she decided to go into a professorship at a prestigious research university, and for almost the first time in her life, she was genuinely bad at something. Having spent all her time studying and working, she suddenly realized that she had no idea how to talk to people, and a job as a professor required her to, well, talk to people. Before much more time could pass for her to gain that skill, however, there was an Incident that chased her out of that university, and of universities entirely. As someone who lived and breathed academia, she had genuinely no idea what do outside of that setting; and it was then that the Concerns snapped her up. Marooned in life with no idea what other choice to make, she acquiesced, and to the moon she went. Now she works as an ecological biochemist. Her primary responsibility is monitoring the animals and plants, especially those that are sick or dead, for any kind of notable genetic anomaly that might cause the 'cock-up cascade,' as her superior puts it. And, when possible, using LD-10's advanced equipment to engineer that genetic deformity out of the population. Her clearest and only real observable 'leisure' activity is a small cordoned-off patch of Camellia sinensis tea plants in an unused corner of the laboratory that she carefully keeps diifferent parts of at various temperatures, levels of shade, oxygen densities, and so on to fuel her collection of teas (she is VERY into tea). P E R S O N A L I T Y - F O R C E D I N T R O V E R T P E R S O N A L I T Y - F O R C E D I N T R O V E R T ________________________________________________________________________________________ As a result of the life that she's led, Yingxue hasn't done a lot of talking to other people. She was just so busy that really, the only time she talked to people for any duration was for work, to say nothing of the fact that past like, elementary school age, she was always signficantly younger than any of her peers, the disparity only widening as she advanced further; and frankly, university students don't really want to talk to someone six years younger than they are most of the time anyway. So for the most part she's been shut away like a hermit doing her work. This culminated in a complete lack of skill in speaking to people when she became a professor for students only two or three years younger than she was and had no idea how to speak to them. Now that she's been chased out of academia entirely, that sense of isolation has only become keener, and she's also become quite bitter about the entire thing. She perhaps has a bit of a victim mentality, as a general rule, and this is a fairly good placee to see it. Now, here in LD-10, she still doesn't talk to many people, except on the occasion she has to. She spends more time speaking to Holiday; even if she's sapient, she's not ACTUALLY a person standing in front of Yingxue, and that makes the entire process easier. It's likely that the AI is the closest thing to a friend that she has here even after a few years, and there's something fairly sad about that. C H A R A C T E R A R C - S E C R E T E X T R O V E R T C H A R A C T E R A R C - S E C R E T E X T R O V E R T ________________________________________________________________________________________ As much as she's been turned into an introvert aggressively by both the Incident and of course her own life choices, Yingxue is, in fact, extroverted by nature. She doesn't particulary like spending her time in relative solitude. She would rather spend it with people; one of the reasons, in fact, that she so often speaks to Holiday. She just...really, really does not know how to actually approach people. So she doesn't; as a true prodigy, she's pretty unused to actually being incompetent as something, so when she has the chance to speak to people, it's likely that she turtles inward and retreats from the interaction because of the fear she'll fuck it up. Ultimately, with all her degrees and advanced knowledge, she just needs to learn how to socially interact with other people.

---

Lem's Stash

X I Y I N G X U E
X I Y I N G X U E

^{"Yes, I know that I'm bad with people. How about this, maybe shut up about it?}

C H A R A C T E R P O R T R A I T C H A R A C T E R P O R T R A I T _________________________________________________________ P E R S O N N E L D O S S I E R P E R S O N N E L D O S S I E R _________________________________________________________ Name Dr. Xi Yingxue (习樱雪), DSc, PhD Age 28 Gender Femme Height 160cm (5'3") Occupation LD-10 Ecological Biochemist Appearance Slim and slight, Yingxue looks, above all, tired. With heavy bags under her distinctive gray eyes that she hides with concealer out of habit, she does her best to hide how exhausted she is, but the short-cut frayed black hair that all too often goes uncombed and the aggressive eye begs on the occasion she forgets her makeup really show that she spends a lot of the night tossing and turning, staring at the ceiling and perseverating her way around any personal problems she's thinking about that night. There are smaller signs, like suppressed yawns and eye rubs when she thinks nobody is looking; but she hides it as much as she can, and she's fairly practiced therewith. She habitually wears her prized monogrammed lab coat, usually over a dark button-down and occasionally a tie.

B A C K S T O R Y - H A Z A R D S O F P R O D I G Y B A C K S T O R Y - H A Z A R D S O F P R O D I G Y ________________________________________________________________________________________ Prodigy biochemist, brief professor, there was an Incident she refuses to talk about that forced her out of academia and up into this dome. P E R S O N A L I T Y - F O R C E D I N T R O V E R T P E R S O N A L I T Y - F O R C E D I N T R O V E R T ________________________________________________________________________________________ Forced into isolation and introversion because of the life she's led and the consequences of social engagement that she's suffered, and she's pretty bitter about the entire thing. C H A R A C T E R A R C - S E C R E T E X T R O V E R T C H A R A C T E R A R C - S E C R E T E X T R O V E R T ________________________________________________________________________________________ Turns out that she's actually an extrovert that REALLY wants friends, she just has literally no idea how to make them because of her history. Has to learn how to make friends and talk to people her age.

---

Lunar Dome 10

YOU'RE TELLING ME I CAN MAKE A TABLED SHEET? DELICIOUS

Lunar Dome 10

Mmm delicious.

Scion: The Prophecy of Anani

---

“The truth is only hidden to those who do not seek it…”

---

Axan woke to a headache.

That wasn't particularly surprising; for once Axan had decided to obey the dress code--it was the Millennium Festival, after all--and that meant organizing a great deal of clothing that she hadn't worn in a loooong time. If she'd had her way it would be a button down blouse and pressed trousers, but there was no way she would be getting away with anything less than a floor-length gown, not with her dignity intact. So she'd spent the past several weeks corresponding with several designers and tailors, trying to figure out what the hell she waas going to wear.

For a while, she just let herself lay there. Maybe if she ignored the headache, it would go away. Another ten minutes passed before she let out a long sigh and reached for the painkiller bottle next to her bed, popping two pills and washing them down with a sip from the ever-present cup of water. She let her head fall against her pillow again. Ten minutes for it to take the edge off the headache. Then she'd start to operate.

Half an hour later she reluctantly hauled herself out of bed. She grabbed up her phone from where he'd left it to charge and checked the time. Nine in the morning. Quite a ways from when she had to get going, but still later than she wished it was. It was going to take plenty of time to actually get herelf ready for something like this, she thought. Time enough right now, anyway. She heaved a heavy yawn, then hacked her hair into a haphazard low ponytail. Tossing on a t-shirt, sweatpants, and coat to ward against the New Years chill, she headed for the door. First thing to do was pick up the dress.

---

In the back of a limousine, Axan rolled her eyes.

She'd initially planned 100% on just...walking to the Cathedral Incepta. And why not? She only lived a little ways away, after all, a few minutes' walk ordinarily. But she'd just had to choose to dress up today, hadn't she? And when she was getting ready to start walking, she acknowledged to herself that walking on the street, among crowds, in expensive heels and a brand new floor length gown was...probably a really bad idea. So she'd sent for a limo to ferry her the four blocks from her house to the beginning of the Cathedral procession's red carpet.

It wasn't all bad; it meant that she'd had extra time to do up her hair exactly as she liked it, a high ponytail carefully tied with two delicate braids. It had been quite a long while since she'd worn something like this; hopefully she remembered how the whole thing went. At that thought, the automobile rolled to a silent stop. Showtime.

While the proper procedure was probably letting someone else open the limo door for her, she ignored that, popping it as soon as the car stopped moving fully, turning in her seat, and rising to her heel-clad feet. As she emerged into the open, the sunset caught the fine white satin of her gown ablaze down to the lace fringe of the long sleeves, and the cape of red-orange tulle that floated behind her looked for all the world like wings of fire. All just like the designer had predicted; man, he'd really earned his paycheck. The clicking of her heels was swallowed by the plush carpet as she swept along. Paparazzi heads rotated, a few sporting nervous looks as they tracked the sheathed sword that she rested comfortably against her shoulder and had no intention to let go of. She stopped moving only when she came to--

"Your Holiness, Scion of Fire Sturke! A question!"

--A reporter. She let out of a faint sigh as the microphone was shoved straight into her face and wished that she could reach up and shove it back down again. "It's no secret that you have a contentious relationship with the rest of the Sturke family. According to the guest list, the Honorable Yulian Sturke will be attending the party after the ceremony. What are--"

He was interrupted by any pretense of solemnity dissolving into the huge smile that bloomed across Axan's face and the unexpected warmth in her voice. "Yulian's coming? Really? You're sure?" She tossed her head back in an exultant laugh. "Ahahahaha, oh Goddess, thank you! He's going to look SO stiff and awkward in formalwear, it's gonna be hysterical!" Her free left hand reached up and tossed her hair as she stared straight into the lens of the camera. "Haven't seen you in ages, Yuli! Let's get together over dinner tonight, hey?"

With an exaggerated wink, she brushed past the reporter, leaving him somewhat bewildered in her wake, then trotted up the stairs and into the Cathedral proper. Wouldn't be too long before Marqué showed up now. She'd get him to crack a smile this time for sure.

Amygdala Circuit

Upon finally reentering the CSC zone, Quinn let out a long, shaky breath. The time she'd spent with the Derisas had helped immensely, and she'd spent the remaining few hours trying to paradoxically be part of the crowd, yet skirt around it as much as possible. It was...not the easiest thing to do, and her nerves were screwed up so tightly she thought her whole body would snap. As the sun had begun to dip down over the bay she had been filled with a terrified crushing sensation that someething truly awful was about to happen. And so being escorted away from the crowd and into her quiet room was a balm on her raw soul.

And it was the right kind of quiet, too. Not silent, but Aerie quiet, where she could occasionally hear Besca or Dahlia clattering in the kitchen or filtering in and out of the dorm at odd times; or Roaki...growling in her sleep? That kind of quiet, where the occasional boots in the hallways outside became more of a comforting metronome than provoking any kind of anxiety.

Her door was cracked open just half an inch or so, not as much as she wished but hopefully little enough that it would keep most of the noise inside as she flopped down on her bed and let out a combination of a sigh and a groan. She let her eye slide closed for a brief moment, focusing on the bootstep metronome, as she tried to excise the tension from her body. And failed in spectacular fashion, an instinctual part of her still convinced deep down that the screaming was going to start from outside any second. Well, at least Camille couldn't fault her for trying, and she hadn't had a breakdown.

Well. At least it had been a week since she arrived in Casoban. And that meant...

She plucked her phone from where she'd haphazardly let it drop on the hotel nightstand, leaned back against the plush hotel pillow, entered her contacts list, and tapped on the very first name: Besca.

It rang once, twice, thrice, then was picked up on the fourth ring. Quinn's voice, when she spoke, had a familiar character to it: a thin, reedy thing, the unfulfilled but burgeoning promise of tears looming behind her.

"Hi, Besca..."

Scion: The Prophecy of Anani

Fire aunt, wine optional

---

________________________________________ Axan Adelheid Sturke Female | 36 | Rodion Scion of Fire _______________________________________________ "She's definitely frustrated with her accession, but she won't let it get in the way of being kind." ________________________________________

"Freedom and happiness above all else." Holy Sigil Location Her holy sigil is placed on her chest, directly above her heart. Appearance Axan is fairly tall for a woman, standing at a coniderable 5'9" with a mature, curvacous build. She is exceedingly proud of her hair, a long mane of deep auburn, and cares a great deal for it, keeping it as smooth and clean as she can. She typically ties it up. Her eyes are a sharp deep red, almost the same color as her hair, and their corners are just starting to pinch up in the first hints of wrinkles, set above a mouth that always seems ready to smile. She carries herself with a casual air, not much one for standing on ceremony. Her taste in clothing, similarly, edges quite casual. She's not much one for formalwear, though she does enjoy throwing on a fancy gown or a suit now and then if the occassion calls for it. She has an open, friendly face, and a habit of brushing her hair out of her forehead when she's nervous or distracted. Personality Some are a bit surprised when they first meet Axan; 'disowned Rodion noble formerly in the military and then working as a mercenary' carries a certain implication for the kind of person someone is. In spite of that, Axan is one of the sweetest, most genuine women you will ever meet. Quite emotional and with the propensity to wear it on her sleeve, you can usually tell how Axan is feeling simply by looking at her face. She's intensely caring and is fairly good at reading other peoples' emotions, figuring out the root cause and doing her best to help them address it. That feeds into her protective nature as well; especially for people significantly younger than she is, Axan can be counted on pretty reliably to throw herself in front of a problem for someone, whether it's physical or emotional. That said, Axan is not a perfect person. While fairly well balanced, that same reason she left the military is still there. Her distate for strict rules and order can certainly put her into conflict with others from time to time because of her somewhat chaotic nature. She can also be prone to arrogance and self-righteousness now and then, holding the firm belief that what she believes is right. It's not a particularly egregious case, but it's certainly noticeable if you spend an extensive amount of time with her. Finally is the core of her personality: freedom. Axan values freedom more highly than anything else. And not just her own; she feels equally strongly about that of others, and will go out of her way to try and remove barriers that might be in their way, blocking them from that all-important freedom. Biography The Sturke noble family has a long history of contributing to the Rodion military. Their children are trained from an exceedingly young age in the way of Rodion, and Axan was no different. But that training didn't seem to take hold, at least not for quite a while; as a child she was figured quite incompetent, seeingly unable to fully wrap her head around combat as a whole, least of all in service to a military power. Indeed, enough time passed for her family to start pushing her into other skills. Dancing; entertaining; keeping a household; in the Sturke family, skills left to a noblewoman unable to fight. A few uncomfortable years passed thus, frantically training to be competent in swordsmanship, sharpshooting, and tactics while it was taken for granted that she would never serve. Her constand dogged persistence did, however, pay off in the end, and at nineteen years of age she began her military service. ...Her brief service, because as it turned out, Axan kind of hated the military. The preoccupation witih discipline, the strict heirarchy, the need to comport oneself with dignity and honor. Axan, as she found out, was not a big rule follower. There were bright spots, of course. It wasn't all bad. But after the brief honeymoon phase of making her parents proud, it chafed like nothing else and she started counting the days until she could resign. The greatest palliative she had was a noble child of Rodion like her but fifteen years younger, hair an even brighter red than her own, who came by sometimes. She wasn't sure why, but she wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth. She loved kids, and it made life a lot more tolerable. The second she passed that threshold in her 26th year, though, she immediately dropped from the military without hesitation, disinherited herself before her family could disown her--which, it should be noted, they did--and disappeared to start a career as a mercenary. And as a mercenary was where Axan truly shone. Untethered from the strictures that had bound her since her birth and free to fight for her own reasons, she found herself genuinely enjoying combat. While she preferred jobs that involved killing monsters, she would naturally fight people as well. She needed to eat, after all. It was during this time, comprising the space between 26 and 34 years of age, that she would also come into her own ideologically. Her job was dangerous, difficult, and often disturbing, and so she resolved to grab hold of happiness and freedom wherever she could find it, and never let it go. She wonders sometimes if perhaps the Goddess has a sense of humor. She'd taken a job that she thought would've been a bit easier, she was quite skilled in combat, after all. Just a standard example of corrupted wildlife. But there's no accounting for simple bad luck. She tripped on a rock, and left herself wonderfully exposed. She was probably about to die. And then her whole body immolated, igniting in a blaze of white-hot fire that burned the monster to unrecognizable ash, and the mark of the Goddess burned itself into her. Now, two years into Scionship, she finds herself chafing again, the urge to freedom not yet pounded out of her and itching at her feet. But it's not like she can resign from being a Scion. So all she can do, she reasons, is roll with the punches and make the best of it. Weapon of Choice Axan's chosen weapon for a long time has been a standard-issue hand-and-a-half sword from the Rodion military. It's been cared for with obvious love, and she hopes it'll last her another ten years on top. The handle was carefully rebound with fine red leather when she was in the military. Alongside it she owns a high-caliber handgun. She's not nearly as fond of it as her sword, but she carries it for a good reason and she's a damn good shot. She keeps her sword with her at nearly all times, but her gun is often left behind. Misc. Axan is a very skilled dancer and incorporates it into her swordplay. She's been a Scion for two years as of now.