Name: Aze
Age: Unknown
Race: Kitsune
Age: Unknown
Race: Kitsune
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Aze is the fourth longest surviving of the nine Valkyries of Eden: an elite class of otherworldly beings bearing tremendous power and boundless charisma. She was once regarded as the Herald of Dawn as an ode to her mounting victories during times of war. At present, she is preceded by her reputation as the Herald of Destruction, which stems from her intrinsic lust for blood and display of ruthless brutality in battle. She has ventured independently across Eden for most of her life, liberating all manner of places under the subjugation of monsters.
During the historic Era of Wars, Aze bore witness to the exceedingly rare demise of other Valkyries–and is loath to admit that she was directly responsible for many of them. In a time when war was rampant worldwide, she granted her favor to the Kingdom of Thebia and led them to victory over countless foes. The Thebian Empire grew to span nearly all corners of the continent–until their resources were depleted by the constant warfare and they were faced with inevitable collapse. In the years that followed, Aze disappeared from the forefront of the conflict to resume her ways as a lone wanderer. She observed from a distance as countless other kingdoms arose, thrived and conquered, and eventually crumbled throughout the course of history.
In time, the remaining Valkyries left humanity to its own devices, and the Era of Wars came to a long overdue end. New Valkyries soon emerged in place of their slain predecessors. Although Aze had not been seen in years and was presumed to have died in battle, a ninth Valkyrie never emerged in her place.
Her hunt for an elusive, unknown creature has led her to the Dark Scar: an uninhabitable place teeming with mana that has produced countless mutations over the course of its existence. Their numbers were vast, but with her unparalleled power, slaying them was child's play and she reveled in every minute of the three-day campaign. What came as a surprise was the unexpected arrival of a mage who bore both an immunity to the Dark Scar's toxic atmosphere, and a fierce if not hapless determination to challenge her. For the first time in millennia, Aze was once again faced with the idea of aligning with another kingdom.
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Aze carries herself with an air of nonchalance that is easily attributed to her disregard toward others. Notwithstanding, she harbors an innocuous curiosity toward Eden's affairs and politics, although she has maintained a neutrality in favor of following her whims across Eden.
The animosity in her eyes often strikes others as misleadingly conspiratorial–that is to say, she may look like she's envisioning the most sadistic way to strike down a foe, when in actuality, she's thinking about investigating an odd tidbit she overheard during a war meeting with the King of Khivaria.
Her charm and cunning makes it easier to overlook her contempt for humanity. In Aze's mind, these royals and their high priests, generals, and archmages would be all too easy to destroy with a mere crook of her finger, and are far too arrogant for their own good. They have her alliance, not obedience.
She is a strategist at her core, and is constantly on the hunt for new intel and opponents with which to hone her battle prowess. Over the course of her journey, she has amassed a broad array of knowledge regarding all manners of strange happenstance in the world. Consequently, she is unable to idle in one place for too long without growing bored.
Her entertainment comes in the form of confusing the people around her with the surprisingly harmless use of her illusory abilities. She often gets away with her schemes because people find it hard to believe that someone so straight-faced and regal would ever act so underhandedly—even if they've firsthand witnessed the amount of times she's deliberately and unrestrainedly picked on Ryuji.
On the surface, it seems as though Aze's strange fixation with Ryuji is the byproduct of a perpetual wanderer's boredom. Has she come to see him as a trainable pet? She'll never admit otherwise, but it soon becomes apparent that there's more to it in the way her mannerisms begin to change around him the longer they're together. Maybe he's wearing off on her, or maybe it's because she discovered that he places more value in his kingdom and its people than in himself that she's become substantially...kinder. Uncharacteristically soft gestures in place of coy remarks, and a newfound protectiveness in place of possessiveness… Perhaps siding with the Kingdom of Khivaria has become less of a matter of following her whims, and has more to do with a need to help Ryuji become Eden's most powerful spell caster.
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Aze has untamed waist-length white hair and amber eyes. Her all-white attire is accented with gray and red, and she dresses in a similar traditional style to her two weapons of choice.
She generally appears as having two white ears atop her head and can manifest anywhere between one to nine tails, often reserving the latter for battle.
She undergoes a minor transformation when tapping into a reserve of divine power that alters her sclera and creates a myriad of sigil markings across her skin.
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Charisma. Combined with her illusory magic, this borders on the power of persuasion. She is able to implant suggestions into people's minds and nudge them to act according to her will.
Illusory magic. Conjures illusions and hallucinations to misdirect, frighten, or play cruel mind games on enemies by altering their memories. Her favorite illusion to entrap people in is, by far, the Box: inspired by the performances of olden day court tricksters, this is the overwhelmingly dreadful sense of being trapped in a rapidly shrinking space.
Keen senses. Her sight, smell, and hearing are as sharp as her wit.
Possession. Allows her to temporarily control the actions of others. During the Era of Wars, she frequently used this skill to infiltrate enemy territory.
Regenerative healing. Quickly and efficiently repairs even the most fatal wounds, and can be used to restore mana. A Valkyrie's bloodlust must be backed by a potent regeneration that can bring her back from the brink of death to continue fighting, while also minimalizing the effects of exhaustion and blood loss until the fight is over. Also heals physical wounds on others, but is not liable to treat certain magical or congenital conditions.
Shapeshifting. Even while in a different form, Aze can opt to maintain her ears and tails. The exception for this is when she's disguising her identity, in which case she appears as a normal human. She seldom does this, although this ability was frequently used during the Era of Wars for the purposes of espionage.
Sigils. Can be used in a wide range of ways, such as warding off areas, laying traps, surveillance, stifling mana, confining an enemy in place, or summoning people and objects to a new location. This magic is innate and doesn't require a spell to be cast–laying her palm over the spot where the sigil will be placed is sufficient. Alternatively, she can prepare a sigil on a slip of parchment for future use.
Spectres. Able to conjure a number of fox spirits that can act as independent agents wherever she needs them.
Speed. Comes in handy when her prey dares to try and run away.
Stealth. She often seems to appear out of thin air and vanish just as quickly.
Strength. Ideal for smiting monsters, leveling mountains, and decimating armies.
Total magic affinity. Full utilization of every magical element known to Eden. This extends to the ability to use any and every known attribute without use of a Spirit.
Valkyrie's blessing. Valkyries are able to grant one blessing to a person of their choice. A person may only have one at a time. This blessing leaves a mark on the body which can be used as a homing signal by the Valkyrie who placed it.
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A 59" asymmetrical longbow used for stealth or magic attacks. The bow itself holds no magical properties.
Elemental sigils and their corresponding attribute sigils are placed on the arrow's fletching just before firing. The spell is released when the arrow hits its mark.
Its grip responds to mana by sustaining blossoms in bloom until the residual mana has faded in between uses. Its origins remain unknown, although it's speculated that Aze acquired it from a slain Valkyrie during the Era of Wars.
The ideal tools for close-hand butchering on the battlefield, these are Aze's weapons of choice. They are heavily reactive to magic and can further concentrate or enhance a charged attack.
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