Raya Nakamoto

Kijin Template

Name: Raya Nakamoto
Appearance Age: 27
True Age: 501
Sex: Female
Personality: Raya Nakamoto is an explorer at heart. She likes nothing more than sailing the seas with her crew aboard her ship, Raya’s Gambit, finding new things and discovering old ones. With a confidence borne from centuries of experience combined with a natural affinity for her chosen fields of expertise, Raya is a renowned mariner and shrewd businesswoman, with a crew she trusts and who trust her in return. She combines theatrics into her overall presentation, which makes her appear to strangers as an aloof and goofy pretender, but those who know her properly know she is skilled, clever and kind in equal measures.

Underneath this cheery and breezy exterior however, is a complicated and layered individual. Raya has shared the story of her origins with no one, and it is a tale she has carefully compartmentalised and kept hidden. The scars and memories from those early days in Yokuda City, her parents’ executions at the hands of Kamatori Tsuno, her run-in with Eijiro Kuroi-Tsuno, and her rough upbringing in the poorest sections of Yokuda City were just a couple of the things that Raya has locked away. There were good memories too, with her love for her parents, her days spent exploring caves near her home, and her times playing with Taisho Sanada, but she could not remember the good times without the bad ones attached to them, so she had to keep it all repressed for safe-keeping.

This of course means that Raya has a deep-rooted and highly-repressed hatred for her own people, believing them to be backwards and crude at best, and downright cruel and evil at worst. She saves special hatred for Kamatori and his clan, believing the Tsuno clan to be representative of everything wrong with the Kijin as a whole, with their obsession with martial prowess, their rigid, draconic laws and their hierarchical society that clearly and unfairly favours the upper class being Raya’s main impressions of her people. Raya has completely left her people behind, and she prays that she never sees anyone from Yokuda City again.

In her new life, however, Raya has cultivated a successful and fulfilling life for herself on the surface. But despite all of the treasures and sights she has witnessed in her long life, nothing strikes her soul quite like the sight of her ship, Raya’s Gambit. Her ship is the key to her freedom, and with it she feels like she can do anything. In fact, one of the lowest moments of her life was when she lost the original Gambit quite early in her career on the water, something she vowed to never let happen again. Raya is at her most comfortable and confident when at the helm of her pride and joy, and she values it over any wealth or treasure in the world.

Of course, Raya knew that in order to not lose another ship, she would need a good crew, and she got a great one. She rescued her crew in the aftermath of the Second Great War, and after recruiting them to help her crew the new Gambit she learned to trust them with not just her ship but her very life. Radahn is like an uncle to her, and she uses her charm to often bypass his gruff exterior to get advice from the stern Heanta. Xinra Kal’Dior was a novice Undari scholar when he joined Raya, and she used to poke fun at his naivety and eager nature quite often. However, Xinra has garnered the crew’s trust with his keen mind and extensive knowledge of ancient cultures, as well as his kind demeanour. The Undari twins Kaiden and Kaina are both naturally gifted mariners and capable combatants, making them ideal people for the dangers of the open sea. Raya considered them to be the brother and sister she never had, complete with pranks and hijinks. Raya was at a disadvantage due to the twins’ nearly telepathic synergy, but Raya was able to pull rank when needed.

Besides her crew, Raya generally kept people at a distance, despite her jovial nature. She kept a large network of contacts and acquaintances over the years, but she never let anyone get as close to her as her crew until she met Bethany Merciallus and Aline Drexara. Raya met the two Asentari when the Gambit happened across them, marooned on an island after their transport was driven off by pirates. The two Asentari then travelled with Raya for many years, eventually establishing the city of Edaria together. Aside from the crew, they are the only people Raya has let get closer to than a casual acquaintance. Raya considers them both close friends, and will always go to them when they need help.

Of the various races she has encountered on the surface, Raya generally gets on well with most of them. She has good relations with the Eldari, due to her efforts in returning lost artefacts to them, and in particular enjoys the company of Merlin. The old Magi has a wealth of knowledge and experience, resulting in very interesting and entertaining stories. She has a healthy amount of respect for Rowan Aratris as well, having seen his skill and professionalism in the flesh. Raya is wary of Heanta, but she does not shy away from dealing with them, in particular because of Radahn being proof that there are Heanta that are reasonable and won’t kill you on sight. Raya did get on very well with the Undari, due to her three Undari crewmembers, and their horrific fate affected her deeply.

Raya has dealt with Humans the most, given their proliferation over the continent over the ages since they arrived on Ka’Lesa. Her relationship and opinions vary as much as the race themselves, and she has masqueraded as a Human for entire existence on the surface, her real origins unknown to even her own crew. The relatively short-lived race are an enigma in and of themselves, but they are also the easiest to deal with given the ease at which they embrace new ideas and approaches. This of course makes them tricky adversaries, but Raya has not lived as long as she has without learning a few tricks herself.

• Sailing the Seas: Upon her arrival on the surface world, Raya became enamoured with the idea of leaving land altogether and sailing the seas. The freedom and new experiences that could be enjoyed gave her new life.
  
• Exploration/Treasure-Hunting: One of Raya’s passions since she was a child was finding remnants of the past. She has spent her life exploring the world both geographically and historically, unearthing remnants of long-forgotten civilisations. She does this not for profit, but for the knowledge, and anything she finds is given to museums and historians.
  
• Raya’s Gambit: Raya has had many romantic experiences of varying quality and duration, but the one constant love of her life has been her ship, Raya’s Gambit. Raya worked hard to amass enough wealth to buy her own ship, to replace the original ship of the same name that she lost early on in her life as a ship captain The Gambit has given Raya the freedom of the seas, and the old girl has never let her captain down.
  

• Archaeological Looters: Raya explores the world for knowledge and discovery, but there are others who explore only for profit. The Kijin captain despises those who would defile and loot ancient sites only to turn their haul for a tidy profit. There is no greater sin than denying the world knowledge for money.
  
• Sea Pirates: Though Raya’s reputation as a wily and resourceful treasure-hunter has seen her incorrectly labelled by some as a pirate captain, she has never turned to piracy in her life. To Raya, the act of ransacking someone else’s cargo is abhorrent, and she has had to deal with more than her fair share of pirates trying their luck for a payday.
  
• The Kijin: Raya’s early life in Kijin society was plagued with strife and eventually tragedy. While she still harbours a soft spot for Taisho Sanada after all of these years, she is cold and wary towards the other members of her former people, with the Tsuno clan earning singular hostility thanks to Kamatori Tsuno’s role in the death of her parents.
  

• The loss of the Gambit: Raya values her ship above all other possessions. The thought of losing her is something she cannot even imagine. Having lost one already, Raya has made sure to avoid a repeat.
  
• Ghosts of the Past: Raya’s presence on Asmir Ka’Lesa was a result of her family’s disgrace and exile from Yokuda City. Though this event has given her a new life to enjoy, the memories of that time give her pause and cause her great consternation.
  
• Flying: Raya has spent her entire life either on the ground or on the seas, due in no small part to her fear of flying. She will exhaust every other option before she will even consider an aerial solution.
  

Height: 5’ 9”
Weight: 138 lbs


Appearance: Raya appears as a beautiful woman of Southeast Asian features and complexion. She is of average height with a slender, slightly muscular build, tan skin, long black hair, and dark brown eyes.
Clothing: Raya usually wears a yellow shirt, a brown vest, a brown belt, olive green jeans with light green stripes, dark brown boots with maroon cuffs, a red cape with a thin turquoise stripe and a yellow necklace around her neck, and a conical hat. She also wears a blue band above her elbow, and a thick brown wristband on her right arm. When travelling Raya wears a red travel cloak and a bamboo-woven salakot, a wide-brimmed conical hat that serves to keep the rain from her head and the sun from her eyes, particularly useful for a Kijin whose eyes haven’t yet fully adapted to the surface world.

Fighting Style

General Fighting Tactics: Raya generally avoids combat whenever she can, but she has accepted that certain situations necessitate getting stuck in. She will try and escape when possible, as she is not a trained fighter, but she has enough natural skill and experience to fall back on. In these cases, Raya is a very elusive and unorthodox fighter, making heavy use of her environment to gain any advantage over her adversary. Raya’s unique weapons give her many options in a combat situation, and indeed many a foe have struggled to predict what the captain of the Raya’s Gambit will do next, as Raya herself most often hasn’t planned the next move yet. Depending on the situation, Raya can harass with bolts from her wrist crossbow, she can pepper her opponent with magical abilities or she can perform hit-and-run attacks using her weapons for maximum manoeuvrability. This unpredictability makes her a dangerous opponent, but it is also a weakness if an opponent is clever enough to exploit it.

Raya’s main strength lies in her ability to adapt to new situations. She will frequently use her weapons as grappling devices, often grappling high places in order to maximise her manoeuvrability until an opportunity presents itself to either finish her opponent or escape. She uses her powers regularly, utilising any advantage that they might offer. Her decent Magical Power allows for a variety of options, and while Raya is not the absolute fastest nor the absolute strongest, she has enough to provide a decent challenge to any would-be adversary. She is also an incredibly determined and resolute fighter, should she be forced to fight, having come too far and lived too long to meet her end from not trying her best. Raya is too well-travelled to have any qualms about ending lives, though she stops short of killing a surrendering or otherwise helpless enemy.

Combat Stats-

Strength || Average
Speed || Average
Agility || Good
Durability || Poor
Stamina || Average
Magical Power || Good

Strengths:

• Unarmed Combat/Brawling: Raya lacked the formal training of a military life, and so she was forced to improvise when she emerged on the surface of Ka’Lesa. Countless bar fights and run-ins with pirates and looters have given her a lot of experience with defending herself. Raya tries to avoid fights where possible, but the countless scraps she has found herself in, often without her weapon, have made her a very scrappy and tricky fighter in unarmed combat.
  
• Resourcefulness: Raya has had to get herself out of many a sticky situation over the years. As such, Raya has developed almost a sixth sense when it comes to her environment and the items/people in it. Raya can use anything and everything to dispatch a foe or escape an unwinnable confrontation. Many have found that pinning the wily captain down is easier said than done.
  
• Unorthodox Sword Style: On top of her scrappy and unpredictable unarmed fighting skill, Raya is equally as tricky with Riptide in her hand. The weapon’s unique ability to split and extend into almost a whip-like construct gives her many options not normally available to a standard sword wielder. No-one knows quite where the next attack from the elusive seafarer is coming from.
  

Weaknesses:

• Poor Tactical Skill: Raya has never served in any military, and so has never trained in basic battlefield tactics. Having only herself and her crew to worry about, Raya instead relies on an intuitive sense of where to be in a particular situation, and she disregards the bigger picture. She can keep herself safe, but she is unlikely to win a battle.
  
• Lack of Basic Training: While her unorthodox self-taught style has served her well in many confrontations, Raya’s lack of basic combat training means that she is vulnerable to a well-coordinated plan of attack, and some situations are beyond her ability to adapt.
  
• Weakness to Lightning Damage: Raya takes 25% extra damage from lightning-based attacks.
  

Primary Equipment
Name: Riptide
Type: One-Handed Sword
Description: Riptide is an exquisitely-crafted sword that has been Raya’s companion for almost her entire life on the surface world. The weapon appears as an ornate one-handed sword with a distinctive wavy blade, symbolic of First Age Eldari design. Upon closer inspection however, it becomes clear that the weapon is more than meets the eye. A hidden toggle in the handle, just below the guard, will disengage a number of concealed mechanisms. The blade will split horizontally into 20 segments, each segment connected by a thick metal wire. The weapon when deployed has a reach of 25 feet, which allows Raya to use it to grapple to out of reach places. The weapon is made of enchanted steel, though the wires connecting each segment of the blade are made of regular steel. Despite the extra weight from the wires, Riptide is nonetheless a well-made and wonderfully balanced weapon.
Enchantments:

Name: Roaring Torrent Type: Offensive Damage Category: Strong Description: Raya releases Riptide and spins the blade in front of her in a spiral fashion. A powerful vortex of water surges forth, dealing Strong damage to anything caught in its path, knocking them back with force, and extinguishing any fires that are not being directly manipulated by another person. The water vortex is 3 ft in diameter, and has a range of 50 ft before the vortex disperses. Cooldown: 4 posts

Secondary Equipment
Name: Raya’s Tanto
Type: Tanto
Description: A memento from her previous life, Raya’s Tanto is an ornate tanto made in the traditional style. The weapon is all that remains of her family, and it is kept for both function and sentimental value.

Extra Equipment
Name: Raya’s Wrist Crossbow
Type: Small Ranged Weapon
Description: Raya’s wrist-mounted crossbow is a work of art as much as it is a weapon. When deployed from its folded-up form, it becomes a crossbow with arms roughly a half a foot long. Raya manually loads small bolts from her pouch into the weapon, though the advanced construction means that it requires little effort compared to a normal crossbow. It only has a range of about 40 feet, but the clever captain is usually much closer than this to her enemy. A trick the weapon has up its sleeve is that there is a secondary spring-loaded launcher below the rails which contains a dart connected to strong steel wire. Once connected to a surface, Raya can retract the cable to pull herself towards the dart. Raya carries a pouch with 30 bolts, as well as 2 replacement grappling bolts.
Price: 600

Name: Raya’s Guide
Type: Enchanted Light Source
Description: A gift from the Eldari Magi Merlin, this small crystal is kept in a pouch on Raya’s belt. When activated by a voice command from Raya, the crystal takes up a position floating around Raya’s head and emits a light bright enough to illuminate the darkest of dungeons. Raya can control the crystal with her mind in a limited capacity, and she is able to make it float up to 5 ft away from her, and she can vary the brightness to a limited degree.

Raya’s Gambit: A ship with a reputation that stretches as far as its captain, Raya’s Gambit represents the cutting edge in marine travel on Asmir Ka’Lesa. Beginning life as a trading caravel called the Calixto belonging to a wealthy Mondolin merchant, Raya served aboard the Gambit during the last few years of the Second Great War. When the merchant announced his intention to sell his ship and retire, Raya couldn’t let an opportunity like that slip away, and she purchased the ship from him. Once she had acquired a great crew, they pooled their expertise to perform various upgrades and alterations to the vessel to make it the sleek, quick and tough beast that it is today. Measuring 80 feet long at the keel and 20 feet wide, the Gambit possessed both square and lateen sails, allowing the crew to adapt to a wide variety of conditions at sea. The Gambit currently has 5 crew (including Raya) though if needed it can hold up to 50 people at one time, and on trade runs it can hold roughly 120 tons of cargo.



Name: Abyssal Surge
Type: Support
Damage Category: N/A
Description: The Kijin harnesses the abyss and merges the power with one of their other abilities, or into their blade. This infusion adds weak damage to their next magical or physical attack, and counts as abyssal energy in regards to resistances. If the next attack is a multiple attack ability, this power only affects the first attack.
Cooldown: 1 post cooldown.

Name: Abyssal Conjuration
Type: Support
Damage Category: None
Description: Channelling abyssal energy into her hand, Raya can form solid objects that appear to be made from a dark glassy material, and that exist for a short period of time. The objects have a maximum volume, for instance she can make a 2ft x 2ft x 2ft cube or an object 1 inch thick but the size of a door. The objects exist for a single post, and they cannot be moved once conjured, though this means they will sit still in the air if summoned in the air. They can support a person’s weight regardless of dimensions, but any attacks or abilities will shatter it and continue unimpeded.
Cooldown: None



Name: Tidal Mastery
Element: Water
Description: Raya’s eyes brightly glow sea green, and tiny jets of water shoot around her body.
Effect: Raya is skilled in the manipulation of water. She can manipulate her element in several ways, like throwing waves, making a wall of liquid, or making elaborate traps. She can launch small, medium or large projectiles, which travel up to 100ft, 50ft or 25ft respectively, and deal moderate physical damage for their size. An often-used technique is to form a sphere of water around herself and up to two others(depending on size) in order to traverse a body of water. The sphere is 8ft in diameter, and provides no physical protection save for keeping water and small water life out, and oxygen in. The sphere contains enough air to supply three average-sized people for the duration of the ability, and Raya can propel it through water at roughly the same speed she can run on land.
Duration/Cooldown: 3 post duration with power points reduced by 2 for the duration, 4 post cooldown.

Name: Conjure Storm
Type: Support
Damage Category: None
Description: Once per thread, Raya can conjure a localised storm to her. The storm does no damage to anyone in it, but the heavy rain severely affects visibility and will put out any non-magical fires. The storm’s maximum size is 150 ft in diameter, but it can be any size smaller than that, and it lasts for the whole thread or until Raya dismisses it.
Cooldown: Once per thread

Name: Hydrofield
Type: Defensive
Damage Category: Average
Description: Raya creates a cylindrical defensive barrier around her, made of water and roughly 5 feet in diameter. The barrier is a vortex of wild currents that absorbs an attack up to Average damage, but anything else goes straight through. The barrier can stop a single attack, and exists until this happens, or for a post if nothing hits it.
Cooldown: 3 posts



Appearance: In this form, Raya remains much the same in appearance as her normal form. The only differences are a pronounced sharpening of her features and expression, as well as a gentle sea-green aura emanating from her entire body.


Name: Advanced Abyssal Conjuration
Type: Support
Damage Category: Varies
Description: A combat-oriented refinement Raya is able to use abyssal energy to create a solid construct made of the same dark glassy material as the previous incarnation of this power. The difference here is that the object is as hard as stone, but with much tighter size restraints and is also completely random. The object will never be bigger than a sword or a small shield, but could be anything from a table leg to a skillet. The objects are uniform in weight, and cannot be used to repel non-physical attacks, or physical abilities over weak strength. Weapon strikes from someone with Very Good strength or higher will shatter the weapon.
Cooldown: 1 post


Name: Flowing Palm Strike
Type: Offensive
Damage Category: Average
Description: Raya raises her hand, and a giant hand made from water appears in the air above an area up to 40 ft away. When Raya lowers her hand, the giant water hand will fall and slam the ground and anything on it. The hand is 10ft at its widest and longest.
Cooldown: 2 posts

Name: Bubblebeam
Type: Offensive
Damage Category: 20x Very Weak
Description: Raya takes a deep breath and blows a dense stream of bubbles from her mouth. Each bubble is the size of a billiard ball and pops on impact to deal Very Weak damage. The full stream of bubbles travels quite slowly. The stream expands in a cone 20 ft long and 10 ft wide at its widest, and each bubble travels randomly in a scattergun pattern within that cone.
Cooldown: 2 posts

Name: Hydro Armour
Type: Defensive
Damage Category: None
Description: Raya uses her water mastery to create an armoured shell made from water. The water functions like Medium Armour but with several key differences. Lightning attacks will deal double damage to Raya if they strike the armour, while fire attacks will deal half damage. The armour lasts for 3 posts or until Raya wills it or loses consciousness, requires a 2 PP upkeep while active, and can be used once per thread.
Cooldown: Once per thread

Boosts: Agility +1, Durability +1, Stamina +1, Magical Power +1


Appearance: Raya’s appearance remains largely the same, though the seagreen aura is now brighter. Raya’s body also takes on a slightly shimmery effect, as if being viewed through a liquid medium, though it doesn’t blur her actual dimensions at all, and her hair floats slowly around as if submerged also.


Name: Abyssal Shelter
Type: Defensive
Damage Category: Strong
Description: Raya can create a barrier made of abyss energy that can potentially be big enough to encompass her ship. The barrier can be anywhere between a 5ft to a 50ft radius, and can block anything up to Strong damage, with anything stronger having its damage halved.
Cooldown: 5 posts



Name: Winds of Change
Element: Wind
Description: Raya’s aura changes to an ice blue hue, and her hair begins to billow upwards as if being blown by an updraft.
Effect: Raya is skilled in the manipulation of a chosen element. She can manipulate her element in several ways like throwing out waves, balls and blasts that can travel up to 50ft, or shoot it as small projectiles up to 130ft. Larger blasts and waves deal average damage but travel slower, and smaller projectiles travel faster and deal less damage. Raya mainly uses this ability for its defensive properties, using wind barriers to deflect non-magical projectiles, and occasionally to provide emergency wind for the Gambit’s sails if she messes up her wind predictions.
Duration/Cooldown: 3 post duration with power points reduced by 3 for the duration, 4 post cooldown.

Name: Jelly Form
Type: Support
Description: Raya changes the properties of her body to be closer to that of a liquid. She does not completely change into liquid, but rather she takes on an extremely gelatinous quality. She is able to stretch and squeeze her body to ridiculous levels, allowing her to make herself taller or shorter and navigate small spaces, though her overall volume does not change. She can still be physically and magically harmed in this form, though her structure allows her new and interesting ways to dodge attacks, such as stretching her stride to escape area attacks or bending her body around weapon swings or beams. She can maintain this form for two posts, or until she ends it or loses consciousness.
Duration/Cooldown: 2 post duration, 2 PP upkeep, 5 post cooldown

Name: Storm Zero
Type: Offensive
Damage Category: Very Strong
Description: Raya summons a storm, one heck of a storm. In a 150 ft radius, a storm appears and rains torrential downpours on the area, complete with howling winds. This is accompanied by a ferocious water spout that travels quickly from one end of the storm to the other, dealing Very Strong water damage to anything in its path and sending it flying. The water spout is 20 ft wide and its wind power can suck smaller objects in from 10ft away. The storm itself lasts for 3 posts, with the water spout lasting for 1 post.
Cooldown: Once per thread, 7 PP cost

New Boosts: Strength +1, Speed +1, Agility +2, Durability +1,Stamina +1, Magical Power +2

History:
Born in the year 500 of the Second Age, Raya Nakamoto knew from a young age how to look after herself. Her family lived in the outskirts of Yokuda City, very near to the city’s perimeter wall and in one of the poorer neighbourhoods. Raya’s parents, Toshiie and Keiko, both worked as giant-spider-silk farmers, a low-paying job that while necessary was also dangerous and undervalued. They made enough to survive on, but the job also meant that they spent long periods of time away from their only daughter and so Raya became a strong and self-sufficient young girl in this environment. The only thing that kept Toshiie and Keiko going was the reassurance that their daughter could look after herself. Despite her harsh environment, Raya managed to maintain a positive outlook, and always also possessed a wry sense of humour.

Naturally bright and a quick learner, Raya attended one of Yokuda City’s public schools while her parents worked. Though she found most of it rather mundane, young Raya took a rather strong interest in history and geography, becoming fascinated with stories about the origins of the Kijin and of the trials the early Kijin faced. When she was not in school, Raya would explore the city, collecting trinkets and learning about her surroundings. Her travels would often take her to the centre of the city where the Kijin’s municipal buildings were located, along with the residences and estates of the noble clans. It would be on one of these jaunts through the noble districts that young Raya would make a friend that she still thinks about to this day.

When she was fifteen-years-old, Raya was exploring a copse of trees when she found a young man, a little younger than herself, swinging a wooden katana around. Raya admired the boy’s form and skill with the training weapon, and decided to say hello. The young man was surprised at first by the intruder, but Raya’s easy-going charm disarmed the boy of his suspicions. The young man introduced himself as Taisho Sanada, and Raya was taken aback as she realised she had entered the property of one of the more renowned noble clans. The Sanada clan was renowned as a clan of master swordsmen, rivalled only by the Tsuno clan. Raya was about to introduce herself when a voice thundered from behind, ordering her to step away from Taisho. Raya turned to see a Sanada guard approaching, weapon drawn. Raya put her hands up and began to step back when Taisho came to her defence, telling the guard that Raya was his guest and to stand down. The guard begrudgingly sheathed his weapon and bowed, before leaving hurriedly. Raya thanked Taisho, and a friendship was born.

As Raya grew from a girl to a woman, she began to develop goals for herself to accomplish in life. Once she had finished her time in the public school system, Raya’s passion for history and geography led her to working various jobs in order to try and fund entry into one of the more expensive schools, but she found that her avenues were always blocked by a fact she couldn’t change: she was not of a noble clan. However, she did have a source of help in the form of Taisho Sanada. The young man had also grown up considerably in the intervening years, and though he had become more focused and serious than when he was younger, Taisho still had a soft spot for Raya. To that end, Taisho would let Raya sit in when he was working on schoolwork at home, so she managed to learn a great many things despite not being allowed into the noble clan schools. Taisho even taught her a little bit of swordsmanship, finding it fun even if she lacked Taisho’s natural talent.

While Raya was enriching her own knowledge and expertise, her parents found themselves having to navigate treacherous waters of their own. Their silk-farming was becoming more treacherous, and the money they were making was no longer sufficient to provide a living for them. Raya contributed as much as she could to help out, but it became clear that they would need some extra help to survive. That help arrived from an unlikely source, in the form of the Kuroi Tsuno clan. The Kuroi Tsuno clan were an offshoot of the noble Tsuno clan that had been exiled from Yokuda for denouncing their family name and turning to banditry. A representative from the Kuroi Tsuno approached Keiko and Toshiie one day and offered to buy large amounts of silk from the Nakamotos, thus saving their livelihoods. The cost would be using their access to the city of Yokuda to ferry illicit cargo out to the Kuroi Tsuno clan camps out in the various tunnels that branched off from the main Yokuda Cavern as well as providing information on the city as requested. The Nakamotos were hesitant at first, though they eventually acquiesced when the representative promised them that the cargo in question would only be medical supplies and non-military equipment.

Needless to say, Raya was not happy about the arrangement in the slightest. Her interactions with Taisho Sanada had rubbed off on her as much as they had on him, instilling her with a sense of honour and deep contempt for the act of banditry. She saw the Kuroi Tsuno clan as untrustworthy troublemakers, and there was a sense of unease in the Nakamoto household that things were reaching a dangerous level. Raya’s friendship with Taisho was at its strongest around this time, but Raya found it difficult at times to deal with having to conceal her family’s secret from the Sanada scion. Raya had become very close with Taisho over the years, and she deeply respected both his skill and his strength of character. She desperately wanted to tell him, but deep down she knew that his duty would require him to report her parents, and she couldn’t let her parents be put to death. She owed them that much.

Keiko and Toshiie also were not happy with the situation, but the money from the Kuroi Tsuno job was enough to allow them to keep their house and keep everyone in it fed. The Kuroi Tsuno clan at least seemed to be sticking to their word, only sending medicines, food and clothing out of the city, and the information that was requested was trivial at best. Raya continued her own journey, taking a job in the Yokuda City library. She used the time to read whenever she could, and she began to find certain accounts of a tunnel leading to another realm, where the cavern roof was replaced with a vast and seemingly-endless expanse. This concept intrigued her, though she could find little information about how to access this area. Nonetheless, Raya read up extensively, vowing one day that she would make the journey to the “surface world”.

Toshiie and Keiko’s arrangement with the Kuroi-Tsuno helped them out immensely, but it also meant they were in danger of getting in trouble with the Yokuda authorities if they were caught doing business with the outlawed clan. By the time she was eighty years old, Raya had acquired a new job as an assistant librarian for the Yokuda City library. As well as giving her more time to spend with Taisho and books, the pay was better than any job she had been in previously, and she believed that the income would be enough to allow her parents to end their association with the Kuroi-Tsuno. However, the Nakamoto’s found that simply ending the agreement was not as simple as they thought. Their smuggling activities had become too valuable to the rogue clan, and they found themselves being blackmailed into continuing. Keiko and Toshiie were told in no uncertain terms that their involvement with the Kuroi-Tsuno would be exposed if they were to try and renege on the agreement, which would mean punishment for not only themselves, but Raya as well.

Raya’s parents reluctantly agreed to continue, to Raya’s consternation. While her parents worked, Raya used her spare time to try and find a way to get back at the Kuroi-Tsuno clan for the blackmailing of her parents. She used her parents’ connections to find out details of other groups operating nearby and reported them anonymously, which resulted in numerous arrests. Ultimately though, it was the Kuroi-Tsuno who would get the last laugh. Keiko and Toshiie were told to bring a shipment of supplies to a camp just inside the extensive caves where the clan largely existed. Unbeknownst to the Nakamotos, the Kuroi-Tsunos had managed to uncover Raya’s activities, and Eijiro Tsuno had moved Raya’s parents out of the way in order to act against their daughter.

A report had made its way to the Yokuda authorities suggesting that the Nakamoto house was the storage site for supplies intended for smuggling to the Kuroi-Tsuno clan. There were indeed supplies there, and the diversion to the other camp meant that Keiko and Toshiie had not had time to take the supplies from their house. The house was raided, and Raya was taken into custody. The report had made it clear that Keiko and Toshiie were not involved, and that their daughter had been working independently. When the Nakamotos found out what had happened, they rushed back to the capital. Raya was tried and sentenced to death for smuggling on behalf of the Kuroi-Tsuno clan by Kamatori Tsuno, head of the main Tsuno clan. Keiko and Toshiie pleaded on behalf of their daughter for leniency, before confessing to their own smuggling activities in the vain hope of exonerating Raya. They were instead also taken into custody and sentenced to die alongside their daughter.
On the way to the execution, Keiko and Toshiie pleaded with Taisho to help his friend before she was wrongly executed. Taisho was put in an uncomfortable position where he had to weigh his conscience against his duty. Taisho knew deep down that Raya was innocent, but going against the decision of Kamatori Tsuno was not a course of action he savoured either. In the end, he made a compromise. Since Keiko and Toshiie had actually been smugglers, they agreed to stay and face punishment while Taisho secretly freed Raya and helped her escape Yokuda City. Raya argued against the plan vehemently and hysterically, but her parents’ minds were made up. When the Nakamotos were called up to the chopping block, Raya had been taken away by Taisho to safety. The last memory Raya had of her parents was Kamatori’s sword descending swiftly upon the neck of her father.

Taisho smuggled Raya through backstreets and passages until they were safely out of the city. Raya was heartbroken and shattered, unsure of what to do now. Taisho stayed with her until she had regained some measure of composure. He informed her that he had to return to Yokuda, and that he wished things had gone differently. He gave her a pair of tanto, and apologised profusely, before leaving. One of the tantos was Taisho’s, complete with Sanada insignia, but the other was a design she was familiar with, for it had belonged to her mother. Raya looked at the weapons for long moments, taking in everything that had happened to this point. She knew who had wronged her, and she knew what she wanted to do. Kamatori Tsuno was safe in his city, but Eijiro Tsuno was not. She remembered the location of some of the camps she had heard about, and she set a course.

The first camp Raya came across had no idea what had hit them. The young woman was a storm of ruin as she swept around the camp dispatching the occupants. From the pile of notes and messages she was able to determine which camp she would be able to locate a lieutenant at, and from there she could find Eijiro. Raya moved on with purpose, locating the camp with the lieutenant. She dispatched the sentries, but found herself against much sturdier opposition when she encountered the lieutenant and his guards. Raya had not had much sword training at all, save for the occasional time spent sparring with Taisho, and while she was a whirling dervish with her pair of tantos, she was still relying heavily on instinct and surprise.
Against a group of experienced Kuroi-Tsuno fighters, Raya’s luck ran out. She was beaten pillar-to-post, and eventually captured by the lieutenant. Before she was defeated, Raya managed to stow one of the tantos in her boot, forming one final plan. Raya was brought deep into Kuroi-Tsuno territory, and after a painful journey she found herself in front of the man she had been killing to see, Eijiro Tsuno. Eijiro laughed at the woman in front of him, pretending to be frightened of her. Raya spat at the man’s feet, and received a hard punch across the face. As she recoiled, she saw her other tanto stowed on the belt of the guard to her right. Eijiro finished his spiel, before ordering the guards to lower her head. Raya saw the two large feet planted in front of her, and heard the sound of a weapon being unsheathed. Her time had come.

Eijiro cackled as he raised his weapon, but Raya was not going to die here. Pulling the tanto from her boot with lightning speed, she rammed the blade into Eijiro’s foot, causing the man to howl in pain and stagger back. The guards were in shock, knowing that their incompetence was going to cost them dearly. Raya used this opening to grab the other tanto and ran as the guards attended to their leader. She looked over her shoulder just in time to see Eijiro decapitate both of the guards before ripping the blade free from his foot. Raya ran, evading patrols and alarms as she went. She exited the settlement and kept running, arrows from yumi piercing the air around her. She ran into two patrols from a nearby camp, and was nearly killed, but she managed to kill one before evading the other one and fleeing.

Exhausted, Raya stopped for a moment. She could no longer hear the sounds of arrows or footsteps, but she was also hopelessly lost. As the adrenaline faded, Raya’s body started taking inventory of her injuries, and it wasn’t good news. Pain flooded her senses from several sources, the most worrying of which was her side where she had shipped a hit from the guard she had killed. She began to stagger through the cave passage she was in, following the winding tunnel slowly, until she reached a dead end. Completely spent and losing blood fast, Raya leaned against the wall at the end of the tunnel, and fell through it. Tumbling for a moment, Raya eventually came to a stop on some sort of grassy surface. The pain was now overwhelming, and she was losing consciousness. When she opened her eyes slowly, Raya was blinded by an intense light that seemed to scorch her brain. Raya Nakamoto faded, and embraced eternity.

But it was not the end.

Raya’s first impression of death was that it felt soft. It also smelled like fresh linen. That was when she decided, maybe she wasn’t dead after all. Raya opened her eyes, and was immediately greeted with the same scorching light that she had been assailed with before she fell unconscious. She recoiled and held a hand up to try and block the light, and heard a voice beside her.

“Close the curtain, quickly.”

With that command, the light was abated. Raya opened her eyes slowly, and while it wasn’t complete darkness, her eyes managed to adjust to the low-light. She was lying in a comfortable linen bed, in some kind of medical room. She suddenly remembered why she blacked out, and reached for her wounded side. She was surprised to feel no wound, only a neat layer of linen dressing under her white gown. Raya tried to sit up, but a gentle hand stopped her and encouraged her to lie back down.

“Not so fast. You’re not fully healed yet.”

Raya looked to the source of the voice, and saw a young woman in a white tunic standing beside her bed. The woman held a glass of water to Raya’s lips, and the Kijin drank deeply. When done, the woman put the glass on a nearby table and pressed a soft hand to Raya’s forehead. The woman looked pensive for a moment, before she retrieved a parchment and inkpot from the table and sat beside Raya’s bed, dipping the quill in the ink and beginning to write some notes on the parchment. After a moment, the woman peered at Raya with an encouraging smile, one borne of warmth and the desire to help.

“What is your name, my dear?”

Raya looked at the woman for a moment, but something about her seemed to inspire trust.

“R-Raya.”

The woman scribbled a quick note and then looked back up again.

“Where are you from, Raya?”

Raya opened her mouth again, but this time she paused for a long moment. The memories of her life in Yokuda came flooding back, and she decided that she wasn’t ready to revisit them. Not yet, anyway.

“I... I don’t remember.”

More note-taking. The woman seemed concerned.

“There’s nothing at all you can remember?”

Raya shook her head, before posing a question of her own.

“Where... am I?”

The woman set her parchment down on the table and smiled earnestly.

“You’re in Sunshield Hold, home to the Order of the Sun.”

None of this made sense to Raya. She had never heard of this place, or indeed the Order that inhabited it.

“Am I near Yokuda?”

The woman frowned in confusion.

“Yokuda? What is that?”

Raya sighed, feeling more tired than she had ever felt in her life.

“It’s... nothing.”

The woman nodded and folded up the parchment with a reassuring smile.

“Well, we’re lucky we found you when we did. You were in pretty bad shape, but we’ve managed to patch you up. You’re free to go, but I would recommend you stay here for another day or two, until your injuries heal fully.”

Raya suddenly had a horrifying thought.

“But I... have no money.”

The woman shook her head.

“The Order does not charge for aid. We help those in need because it is the right thing to do, not to turn a profit.”

The woman rose to her feet and pointed to a bell on the bedside locker.

“You should get some rest. If you need anything at all, just ring that bell.”

The woman strode serenely out of the room, closing the door behind her and leaving Raya to absorb her situation. There were so many questions in her mind, but she decided that she would take up the woman’s offer of safety for the moment. Her previous life was over. Her new one was about to begin.

The next year was one of adjustment for Raya. She had to cast off much of what she learned in Yokuda, and essentially start from scratch. However, she relished the opportunity at this new life, never having imagined such wonders laying just beyond the rock of her home cavern. Raya had always assumed that the caves and caverns of her home were the limits of existence. But now she had discovered a whole new world full of adventure and discovery. But her adaptation would take time, and she was determined to do it right from day one. No mistakes this time.

Raya’s first job was to learn as much as she could about the world. For this, she found the place she had ended up in to be invaluable. Sunshield Hold was home to the Order of the Sun, a faction established at the end of a great war over a century before. A peacekeeping organisation formed by former Knights of Mondolin, the Order’s main tenets were peace and cooperation, aiming to avoid wars like the one that had devastated much of the continent. This policy meant that Raya was able to study the other races from the vast library of the Hold. She was drawn to the Humans, the most numerous and diverse of the surface people. They resembled Raya’s own Kijin race, but more varying features and a scarcity of magical powers. There were Humans with powers, but such abilities were certainly not as common as with the other races.

Raya also learned about the various dangers of the surface world. As it turned out, banditry was rife up here from multiple different mini-factions and companies. Whereas she only had to worry about the Kuroi-Tsuno in the underground, the surface world was heavily infested with all manner of bandit companies and criminal gangs. Raya had her fair share of run-ins with these unsavoury parties, but for the most part she was able to use her resourcefulness to avoid any major danger. Using Sunshield Hold as a base of operations, Raya put herself to work.

The jobs Raya acquired over the years were numerous and varied, from shopkeeping and bookkeeping to farming and fishing. Anything she could turn her hand to, she gave it a shot. This journeyman existence bestowed upon Raya a well-rounded skillset, and her adaptability allowed her to travel the lands of Asmir Ka’Lesa safe in the knowledge that she could find a job anywhere. Once she had amassed a decent bit of money, Raya moved her life and her belongings to Mith Verdanus, where she bought a house on the river and began to return to her roots by studying history and geography. She found a rich and varied history to delve into, and began to move her life towards exploration and archaeology again. To this end, Raya decided that she had to push the boundaries and go where others rarely went.

Over the next seventy years, Raya found many fascinating things, but she had developed a deep obsession with the open seas. The oceans of Asmir held many mysteries and secrets that were just waiting to be uncovered, and Raya began to hear the water calling her. Having secured herself a comfortable and stable life in Mith Verdanus, Raya decided to buy a boat to explore the seas. She had acquired maps and information from the various sailors that frequented the Maritime Quarter of the city, and she had taught herself the various theoretical and technical knowledge needed to operate a sailing ship successfully. The ship she had purchased was a caravel, which she named Raya’s Gambit. The Gambit was small, quick and manoeuvrable, which made it ideal for keeping a low profile and avoiding trouble while she ventured out into the unknown.

Raya’s first voyage went off without a hitch. She set sail on the Gambit with plenty of supplies, and traversed the River Undine West on the way to the sea. Upon reaching the Great Sea of Dreams, Raya found several islands that she had seen from the coast. They were all pretty small, but Raya used them to practice sailing with her ship. She landed on one of the larger islands and had a quick run around before getting underway again. The intricacies of sailing and navigation seemed to come naturally to her, despite the fact that she lived underground for most of her life to this point. Despite a few hitches, Raya did manage to get herself out there and back in one piece. She knew now that she had it in her to traverse the seas, so now she could do anything.

For the next few years, Raya’s travels took her right the way round the continent. She made stops in the various port towns that populated the coast of the Ka’Lesa landmass, making a note of the type of trade each area dealt with. She used her skills and equipment to forge a very successful career as a trader and cargo hauler, and used her new wealth to make upgrades to the Gambit, as well as acquiring maps and information about various historical sites around the continent. Once she had established herself with financial security, Raya began to look to the unknown once more. Her trading runs became more infrequent, though her reputation for speed and reliability meant that she could charge a little more when she was in the area.

With the maps and papers she had acquired, Raya’s travels took her farther and farther afield. She found numerous sites that had been documented in her gathered intelligence, and in conjunction with the reports of fellow sailors and explorers Raya began to identify what to look for when searching for undiscovered sites. Before long, the Kijin outcast found her first brand new artefact site. On a remote archipelago south of Sindaron and west of Harodiel, Raya found an ancient burial site hidden beneath an existing dig that had somehow gone undetected. Eldari in origin, the burial site held many unique treasures that would no doubt have been very valuable on the black market. Raya was not for that kind of business however, believing the best thing to do was to return the haul to its rightful owners.

Packing up everything on her boat, Raya set sail for Gateway Harbour in Endaron. In order to cross the magical storm barrier around Sindaron, vessels needed a special temporary rune applied to them, and Gateway Harbour was the only place to acquire them. Things would go slightly awry on the way, however, as Raya soon spotted an unmarked sailing vessel approaching from behind. A couple of crossbow bolts crossed the Gambit’s path, with one such projectile lodging in the ship’s port-forward gunwale. Raya could see the crew of the other vessel were looking for a big score, so she called upon all of the tricks she had learned so far, and pushed the Gambit to the limit. Another flurry of bolts came her way, but the other crew simply had no way of competing with the Gambit’s sheer pace.

Once Raya had navigated to within a dozen miles of Gateway Harbour, the enemy vessel was nowhere to be seen. She acquired the necessary paperwork and rune, then headed out for Sindaron. Raya had heard stories of the legendary Eldari capital, but to sail across the Cerulean Rift herself was a wondrous experience. The Gilderan glowed like a beacon in the sun as Raya approached the Sindaron port, and she made a note in her journal to make sure she came back whenever she could. Once docked, Raya met with a scholar named Merlin, who was very grateful to receive the artefacts she had found. Merlin offered a substantial amount of money, but also allowed Raya to keep a single artefact of her choosing, as a gesture of goodwill. After careful consideration, Raya decided on an intricate and beautiful sword that had belonged to the ancient Eldari whom the burial site belonged to.
Along with Merlin, Raya learned that the weapon was called Riptide, and that the Eldari that had owned it was one of the earliest Eldari to appear in Ka’Lesa during the beginnings of the First Age, when much of the continent was still unexplored. The weapon was also a useful navigational tool, being able to disengage into multiple parts connected by a metal wire. This allowed it to be used to grapple onto surfaces as well as objects that were out of reach. The weapon had also been bestowed with a powerful enchantment that called upon the very tides themselves to protect its wielder. It was a fine weapon, and Raya was honoured to receive such a gift.

Raya reflected on this adventure for some time, and she couldn’t deny the rush that she got when she discovered the ancient tomb. In addition, the sense of fulfilment that she got from returning the artefacts to their homelands gave her a purpose that she had lacked for a long time. Like most stories however, it would not be without its bumps along the way. As Raya undertook a few more voyages on her own, she was always on the receiving end of some favourable conditions, nothing that really tested her skills as a sailor. This would change on her fifth voyage out to sea. Her destination was an island that was known as Crystal Isle.
Raya had reached Crystal Isle with little to no incident. She remained there for a few days, exploring the island and even venturing out into the “Forbidden Zones”, though this was done surreptitiously as it was seen as a form of trespassing to go in there without a proper guide. The zones, the Crystal Badlands and the Lava Fields, both presented serious and unique challenges to the unwary adventurer. Fortunately, Raya had done a bit of research involving these areas, and despite a few injuries and close calls she successfully managed to retrieve some archaeological items from the areas, some belonging to early inhabitants of Crystal Isle itself, and others belonging to early Eldari. She returned the native artefacts to the authorities on the island, and packed the rest to bring back to Sindaron.

There was no storm or other malignant weather forecast, but it was clear when Raya set off that something was amiss. Sailing as quickly as possible to the Ka’Lesa mainland, Raya remained as close to the coast as possible as she made north towards Gateway Harbour. A powerful storm had formed in the area, and Raya’s hubris meant that she was unprepared and undermanned for tacking through a storm. Struggling to maintain control, the Gambit was buffeted by powerful currents and intense gales, while driving rain scored the deck. Raya fought hard, using everything she knew to try and salvage the situation. But the storm was determined to bring her down, and despite a brave fight, the Gambit was smashed against a rock outcropping that jutted out from the coast, and the vessel did not get up again.

Raya took shelter in the wreckage until the storm passed, but the damage to her pride and soul was absolute. Once the wind and rain died off, Raya emerged from the wreckage of her love, and was subdued for sometime. She analysed what had happened, and she knew deep down that she had allowed herself to become complacent. Raya was an immensely talented and competent sailor, but she was only one person. She soon realised that since leaving Yokuda she had never trusted anyone. Help was available from many sources during her existence on the surface world, but Raya had been determined to do everything herself, to only trust herself with her most valuable possessions in life. Though her memories of her past life were not gone, Raya knew that if she was going to properly make a name for herself in this new life, she needed to make a change.

Once she had reached the nearest settlement, the city of Zadartis in the Free Lands, Raya hired a salvage team to return with her to the Gambit. She had no desire to leave her faithful companion on those rocks to rot in the sun, so she retrieved whatever valuables she could from the wreckage, and the salvage team also managed to salvage some equipment which covered their payment. Then, the rest of the wreckage and debris was pushed out into the water to sink. It was the closest thing to a burial at sea that Raya could think of, and the least she could do for her friend. Once that was done, Raya began to turn her gaze inland.
Though she initially studied the various land-based nations upon her emergence from Yokuda, Raya had very quickly turned her attention to the seas and beyond. But the geo-political climate had changed substantially in the intervening years, and it was clear war was brewing. There was a tense atmosphere throughout the land, and it became more and more difficult to travel freely between nations. In particular, the Eldari and the Heanta were on a war footing. The Humans, for their part, had simply increased their commitment to their policy of isolation and non-interference.

Raya managed to work her way into Mith Silvanus, and took some jobs to balance her finances once again. Though she now had the money, Raya still found it hard to get her hands on a ship. Most seaworthy vessels were being drafted into service to supply a large military build-up near the border with the Heanta and the Eldari. Raya was unsure what was going on up there, but there were enough rumours and innuendos to indicate that the Kingdom of Mondolin were planning something big. Raya took up a posting on a caravel called the Calixto in order to both earn a bit more money and to build a rapport with the Mondolin naval authorities. She figured that the better she was known and liked by them, the easier it would be to acquire a ship when one was available.

In 657 AII, war commenced. Reports flowed into Mondolin daily of the fighting and destruction that was spreading from the Heanta-Eldari border. The Calixto was one of a group of smaller and faster ships that carried supplies and equipment up to the Kingdom’s northern border. The combat zone managed to stay confined to Eldari and Heanta lands for a few decades, though there were reports of some speculative troop movements south in the Free Lands. From what Raya could tell, the general consensus within the King’s council was that this would not be the case forever, and in 712 of the Second Age, the Council was proven correct.

In the year leading up to this point, it became clear that the war was reaching its inevitable and violent crescendo. The fighting had reached the point of near desperation, and it was now beginning to spill over into Mondolin territory. But the Humans bided their time, and eventually all roads converged on Serenity Valley. The stage was set for the largest and most devastating clash the land had seen to date, with the Eldari-Eldross and Heanta-Undari forces converging on the valley in massive numbers for their fateful showdown. The King of Mondolin personally led his own forces, an army of massive numbers in its own right, to the battlefield, and Raya would now witness the true horror of war.

By the time the King of Mondolin arrived at the battlefield of Serenity Valley, the two sides had already inflicted heavy losses on each other. This coupled with the element of surprise meant that the armies of Mondolin were able to batter their way through to the main front in double-quick time. The Humans were well-equipped, well-organised and efficient in their advance. Though Humans individually were at a disadvantage against the other races, as a unit backed by their own tactical nous and technological skill, they were as formidable as the forces they now fought. What had started as a straightforward battle to the death between the two warring sides, now became a rout for both as the Humans drove both exhausted forces backwards, until they both sounded a general retreat.

Through the combined efforts of both the Eldross Collective and the Order of the Sun, the Eldari and Heanta were brought to the negotiating table, and an uneasy truce was hammered out. Though the war was now over, the cost to the peoples of the continent was both severe and long-lasting. Raya would be forever changed by the horrors she witnessed as men and women sought to end each other’s lives out of sheer hatred. Unlike other conflicts Raya had read about in the library of Sunshield Hold during her stay there, this one had not been about territory or greed. The Second Great war had come about simply because the Eldari and Heanta had hated each other since the dawn of time, a hatred that could explode again at any moment.

Thankfully, Raya thought, the sheer cost of this conflict would at least delay another one for a long while. For her part, Raya had managed to avoid the vast majority of the fighting and destruction. Still though, it was impossible to completely avoid the damage caused, and during a mini-counterattack launched by the Heanta aimed at the Mondolin supply lines, the Calixto had taken casualties. The vessel herself had only suffered minor damage, but the captain had been severely injured and many of the crew killed when they were boarded by a Heanta attack unit. Raya and the survivors managed to dispatch the Heanta, and through some nifty seat-of-the-pants sailing manoeuvres from Raya, they had managed to prevent the enemy ship's escape.

Raya and the survivors of the Calixto crew managed to board the enemy vessel, a small cutter which was crewed by three Undari and another Heanta. The crew were taken prisoner and held until the truce was signed. By that point, the captain of the Calixto was no longer able to sail due to his injuries, and he released his remaining crew from his service, Raya included. The captain intended to sell his ship and retire, and Raya knew the perfect opportunity had presented itself, and she may never get another one like it. Using her pay from her service on the Calixto, Raya purchased the ship from her former captain, who gave her a considerable discount for saving the ship and his life.
Having acquired a new vessel, which she renamed Raya’s Gambit II, Raya next pondered the question of crewing her. Her gaze fell upon the captured crew of the cutter that had attacked the Calixto, as they awaited transport to the authorities. She spoke to them, remembering that they had put up no fight once boarded and in fact did not remotely look like soldier types. As it turned out, the cutter they were on was a simple trading vessel that had been pressed into service for the war effort due to the vessel’s speed and manoeuvrability. The original captain of the boat protested, but the Heanta contingent that appropriated the vessel executed him, and forced the crew to fall in line. Raya decided that these unfortunates would make a fine crew.
One of the Undari was in fact a scholar, named Xinra Kal’Dior, who had booked passage on the cutter in order to explore the mainland of Ka’Lesa, and he was pressed into service as a victim of circumstance. Xinra was a genius when it came to cartography and geology, and through his travels he had acquired enough marine know-how to contribute to any prospective aquatic transport. What Xinra lacked however, was real-world experience. The young scholar was academically adept, but he was very much a novice when it came to surviving outside of a school or library. Fortunately, he had the others to keep him from falling astray.
The other two Undari were twins, a male named Kaiden Loris and a female named Kaina Loris. The twins were young adults by Undari standards, but they had a near-telepathic connection that allowed them to anticipate each other’s actions. This unique ability, coupled with their natural aptitude for sailing, made them invaluable as crewmembers. The twins were precocious and excitable, and though they did find themselves bickering a lot as siblings do, they knew when to stow the chat and buckle down. Raya had witnessed the twins’ handiwork first-hand when she tried to stop their ship from fleeing once the boarding party had been dealt with, so she was eager to get them on board.
The Heanta was an imposing presence, to say the least. A former soldier in the Heanta army, Radahn had become disillusioned with life in the military. He didn’t mind a fight that was worthwhile, but the constant bickering and posturing between the Heanta and the Eldari leading up to the war was just a waste of time and talent in his eyes. So Radahn left the military and decided to take up service on the various independent trading ships that travelled the coasts and waterways of the Free Lands, initially as a bodyguard. However, as he travelled and gained experience, Radahn became well-versed in the mercantile aspect of his chosen profession. A jack-of-all-trades, he joined the crew of the Calixto as a quartermaster of sorts, responsible for requisitioning the supplies and equipment for his shipmates, as well as cooking for the crew. As adept at counting coinage as he was beating it out of ne’er-do-wells, Radahn was a rough and tough operator who brought an air of professionalism to the otherwise young and excitable crew.

Raya negotiated with the Mondolin authorities for the release of the captives, paying their bounties in exchange for pardons, and it didn’t take much convincing for them to join her on her travels. The Loris twins couldn’t wait to get underway on a ship again, while Xinra was just happy not to be in jail. The young scholar was also eager to explore again, with Raya’s tales of her travels to date too much to resist. Radahn presented a bit more resistance, but the big Heanta was taken with Raya’s honesty and all around guts to even attempt to reason with one of his people. With a new ship and a fresh crew secured, Raya set sail for the next phase of her life, and for once she was not alone.


Once things had settled down from the war and the tradeways were back to normal, Raya found new impetus with her new ship and crew. She started off trading commodities initially, allowing her crew to get the feel for the new ship. The Gambit II was slightly bigger than the original, but between Raya and the twins she became a beast of a ship on the open seas. Once they had mastered the Gambit and got a decent amount of money behind them, Raya returned to her favourite pastime, searching for artefacts and exploring. Ever since she lost the original Gambit, Raya couldn’t wait to get back out into the blue, and with her new crew she felt more confident than ever.

They started with Crystal Isle, Raya’s first destination all those years ago. They resupplied and prepared, with Radahn managing to get a deal on fresh produce for their trip, with the big Heanta taking pride in the freshness of his cooking. Once preparations were complete, Raya had the ship set course for another archipelago, further out into the Great Sea of Dreams than her previous voyage. The archipelago seemed to be uninhabited in and of itself, but there seemed to be some naval traffic there nonetheless. They dropped anchor at the island furthest from the activity, and Raya took Xinra with her to scout out the area.

It was apparent straight away that someone had been through here recently, and that whoever it was had put little effort into concealing their movements. Raya and Xinra found the remnants of a camp, with tracks leading inland towards the jungle. The two followed the tracks and found a poorly constructed excavation site which revealed some ruins that had been half buried over time. Whomever had been here had been looking for something, though it was unclear if they had found it. Raya and Xinra examined the ruins, which were Eldari in design, and it was clear that the would-be looters were not really familiar with ancient Eldari architecture. There were many crevices and compartments that held trinkets of varying sizes.

Raya and Radahn finished scouring the ruins and had uncovered many artefacts, though there was nothing that seemed to warrant an excavation of this size. Before they could look further, the Gambit’s horn sounded in the distance, and Raya and Xinra took their findings and returned to their ship. Once aboard, Kaina told them that there were unidentified vessels heading their way. Raya peeped through her spyglass as they got underway, and recognized the markings on the sails of the pursuing ships as the ones that were on the pirate ships that had chased her previous ship to an early grave. Raya knew this time would be different however, as she had a faster ship and a good crew.

The pirates chased them for some time, but when the Gambit began approaching Eldari territory the pirates changed course and left. The Gambit arrived in Gateway Harbour, and once Raya had negotiated for another rune and set of documents for her new ship, they headed for Sindaron. Raya was determined to find out what had the pirates so interested in that archipelago, and she knew a guy who might know. Once they docked, it was agreed that Radahn would stay below deck for the duration. Given the fact that the war was not that long ago, Radahn was not eager to try walking into the Eldari capital. Though he had long grown out of the primal hatred for the Eldari that his people harboured, he was not confident that his restraint would be reciprocated here.

Once she had arranged a meeting with Merlin, Raya and Xinra presented their findings to him. He accepted the artefacts and reimbursed them accordingly, before addressing the point of the increased pirate activity. The Magi thought for a moment, before revealing that a rumour had spread of a powerful Eldari relic being located in the area. A group of Eldari archaeologists had gone to investigate recently, but had not returned. Merlin introduced them to Rowan, a powerful Eldari who was a member of the Eternal Watch, the Eldari’s highest military organisation. The case has since been dismissed as an accident but Rowan was adamant that something had gone wrong, and he was determined to investigate.
Raya was asked to investigate on the Watch’s behalf, on the condition that she would take Rowan with her. Raya agreed, and soon they set off, determined to get to the bottom of the case. Initially, Raya was a bit concerned as to how the Eldari Warrior would gel with her crew of his recent enemies. However, Rowan was at least professional with them, even if he was distant. Raya had tried to break the ice with him, first with small talk and then with mission talk, while Xinra tried to ask him questions about Eldari history, but they made little headway. Raya decided to just be grateful that Rowan had decided for the moment not to kill her crew.

Once they reached the archipelago, identified by Merlin as the Coprates Islands, they found a pirate ship speeding towards them almost immediately. Raya ordered evasive manoeuvres, but Rowan told her to aim straight for them, then change course at the last possible moment. Raya did as he asked, and just as the pirate ship entered range and began raining projectiles on deck, Rowan took a running jump and hurled himself across the gap, landing with preternatural balance on the deck of the other ship. The Eldari then proceeded to beat the crew into paste, before emerging through the side of the ship and thus sinking it. Raya and her crew were stunned by the efficiency of the man, but the captain still had the awareness to drop a rope ladder for Rowan to climb back aboard.

The crew of the Gambit stared at him for a moment, before he reminded them casually that they had work to do. Rowan produced a blood-covered patch of fabric and showed it to Raya. The patch bore a crude image of a claw with a blue ring around it. Rowan explained that it was the symbol for a pirate gang called the Sea Talons, a group who had plagued the trade routes around the Free Lands for some time. Raya surmised that they must have gotten wind of the rumours surrounding the Eldari relic, and thought to score a handy fortune. When the Eldari researchers turned up, they were most likely attacked by the Talons on arrival.

Once they arrived at the Coprates Islands proper, the crew formed a plan of attack. Radahn and the twins would remain aboard the Gambit and draw the Talon ships away, while Raya and Rowan would take the rowboat and stealthily make landfall on the island they were hovering around, and look for what the Talons were looking for. Once they were away, Rowan rowed powerfully for the shore, and they made good headway. Raya stole a quick glance over her shoulder at the Gambit peeling away quickly, and lamented not being on it at that moment. But she was in good hands Raya knew, and she instead focused on what they had to do.

Raya and Rowan made landfall quickly, and they dealt with the few stragglers that were patrolling the beach. They tracked the rest of the land Talons to a camp that had been set up near a set of freshly and haphazardly excavated ruins, ruins much larger than those on the previous island. The camp was populated with a smattering of Talons, though it was clear most had remained aboard their boats in order to ward off witnesses. In the middle of the ruins were a pair of Eldari, being closely watched over by a Talon in much more expensive gear than the others. They were all that remained of the researcher group that had come to check out the ruins.

The new plan came to them at once. Raya would provide a distraction while Rowan snuck in and rescued the researchers. Looking at her options, Raya decided to use her sword’s alternate form to pull down one of the crumbling walls around the perimeter of the camp. Silently asking the long passed Eldari for forgiveness, Raya detached all of the segments of her weapon and swung it at the wall, latching on to the top of it. Then, pulling with all of her strength, Raya pulled the wall down with a massive crash, before retracting her weapon and disappearing into the brush. From her vantage point, Raya saw Rowan cut down the fancy-pants Talon leader, before throwing an Eldari over each of his shoulders and leaving.
Raya smiled and was about to leave when a pair of Talons confronted her on her way out. She tried to talk her way out and failed, so she ended up fighting her way out instead. Her swordsmanship was unorthodox and scrappy, but it was enough to deal with the two Talons. She heard more emerging from the camp, and ran for the coast. When she got there, Raya found Rowan with the two researchers in the rowboat, and the Gambit sitting just off the coast, not a care in the world. Once aboard, Raya looked at Radahn curiously, and asked where the other Talon ships were. Radahn answered for the crew of the Gambit, explaining that they had managed to trick the Talons into hitting a reef and getting stuck.

As they got underway, Radahn remarked how disappointing it was that a band of dangerous pirates knew little of actually sailing a ship. Rowan spoke to the researchers, and he learned that despite the rumours, they had found no evidence of the relic the pirates had been searching for. The Talons had scuttled the ship that the researchers had taken here, and killed the crew. Then they forced them to decipher the various markings and inscriptions around the ruins in order to locate the relic. But it was clear that the relic did not reside there. Though, they didn’t tell their captors, just in case they decided the researchers were no longer useful.

Once they reached Sindaron again, the researchers were returned home and Rowan thanked Raya and her crew for their help. The Eternal Watch gave Raya and her crew a decent reward, and Raya made preparations to leave once more. Rowan met her at the docks and offered his assistance, should they ever need the services of an experienced Warrior in the future. Raya gratefully accepted, and before long the Gambit was underway again.

Over the next century or so, Raya’s crew made a name for themselves as treasure hunters and masters of the seas. They took on many jobs including transporting people, cargo hauling and pirate hunting. They also managed to map out several islands and archipelagos, as well as recovering many relics and artefacts from the various ruins and structures they found. Raya found Crystal Isle and Gateway Harbour to be the most useful ports on their travels, but they mapped out many different trade routes in order to maximise their efficiency. Radahn had cultivated an extensive trade network, while Raya and the Loris twins continued making improvements to the Gambit, making her faster and tougher than ever.

Over time, Raya began to cast her net over a larger and larger area. She soon found herself exploring the eastern side of the continent and the Belargir Sea. Exploring this area came with risks of course. There were less ports to shelter in on this side of the land, and the Kri’Lak Badlands always presented a challenge also. They found more ruins on the nearest islands, but these were Undari ruins. Undari ruins were primarily subterranean, and were very tricky to get into and out of. These expeditions required the skills of Kaiden and Kaina to navigate. They also used the time to visit Medin Taji, the home city of the Undari people. Kaina even taught Raya an ability to create an air bubble around herself using her existing water powers in order to make the trip.
It was during one of these visits that Raya and her crew learned about a land in the far east across the sea. Intrigued, Raya had the Gambit make port at a small port town called Umbar, and Radahn made provisions for a long voyage. Everything was stocked up to the full, and everything on board the Gambit was checked and double-checked. Then they were off, sailing east to see what they could find. They voyaged for almost a week, before Kaiden alerted them all to land ahead. Raya peeked through her spyglass, and saw that it wasn’t just land, but a city. The Gambit approached a large port city, and a patrol vessel sailed out to meet them. They were boarded by the port authorities of Lantree, the largest port in the Kingdom of Trevatya.

Once they were inspected and interviewed, Raya and her crew were allowed to dock in Lantree, though as outsiders their movements were restricted to the mercantile districts. Radahn immediately got to work identifying the trade situation in this new land, while Raya acquired maps and charts of the area, as well as reading at the libraries in the town to find out about this undiscovered country. The Kingdom of Trevatya was a primarily Human nation on a continent known as Aftokrator. There were two other nations were the Gnoll Tribes and the Archon Assembly, and there was a constant threat of war throughout the continent’s history. The Kingdom of Trevatya was itself a heavily hierarchical and authoritarian outfit, with a heavily enforced social caste and a clear xenophobic bent.

Raya’s attempts to learn more were impeded by the Trevatya authorities, as were her attempts to leave the city and explore more of the continent. Unhappy but also unwilling to antagonise their hosts, Raya and her crew made preparations to leave. That was when they found themselves on the wrong side of Trevatya’s distrust of outsiders. Before they could get underway, Raya and her crew were taken into custody by Trevatya port authorities. When she asked about the reason why, Raya found out that the King of Trevatya had decided that the Gambit’s presence in his country was suspect, and thus ordered the ship to be impounded and the crew held for interrogation.

Raya, for her part, was unwilling to be the subject of some monarch’s paranoia, and thus she formed a plan with her crew. When the guards came down to take Raya for her interrogation, the plan was put into motion. The twins jumped the guards while Radahn hit the guard post for the holding area they were in, dispatching the guards inside and retrieving the crew’s confiscated equipment and the keys to the other cells in the building. They released all of the other prisoners on their way out, most of whom were Gnolls who had been captured at the border between Trevatya and the Gnoll Tribes territory. Raya and her crew used the distraction created by the Gnoll escapees and snuck out. They dispatched the guards at the docks and managed to escape aboard the Gambit, though they did sustain damage from the port’s defensive ballistae.

Raya and her crew learned much in Trevatya, but they were forced to flee for now. They took what they had acquired and learned, and got underway. Before they were arrested, Radahn had made some contacts, and had traded for some extra provisions, while Raya took her maps and charts with her to study later. They would come back some day to try and explore properly, but for the moment they had no wish to fight anybody here. They made all haste and got themselves out of Trevatya as quickly as they could.

When the Gambit returned from its extended excursion out to Aftokrator, Raya and her crew found that the continent of Ka’Lesa had undergone some changes in their absence. To their horror, they discovered that the once-lush Forests of Harodiel had been utterly destroyed by a powerful Dragon named Onyxus. The ethereal homeland of the Eldross people was no more. The suddenness of the attack also meant that the Eldross themselves had been almost completely wiped out, with the survivors numbering less than a hundred. Though the Dragon had eventually been slain, the damage caused was immense. Many lives had been lost in the battle, including that of Dalrodir Shor himself, the great Eldari warrior giving his life to put the Dragon down.
Raya and her crew used their ship to help with Eldrossitarian efforts, ferrying supplies and people to and from the area. They also assisted as best they could with salvage operations in Harodiel, though it became very clear that there was very little that could survive Dragonfire. Supplies and materials were transferred to a new settlement that the Eldari had helped to set up and protect in Endaron, a forest village that became known as the Ashaya Forest Settlement. It was an experience that would change Raya’s outlook from that point on, and she would have immeasurable sympathy for the Eldross people, as well as great admiration for the strength demonstrated by the survivors to continue to endure despite the loss of their home and most of their race.

Over the next decade, Raya and the crew of the Gambit returned to their previous activities. They interspersed trade runs with their customary archaeological trips, and things were going very well. It was during one of these trips that Raya would meet a couple of people that would have a dramatic impact on the continent of Ka’Lesa. The two people were both Asentari, Bethany Merciallus and Aline Drexara. Both had left their homeland of Edia in order to explore the world, something that was forbidden to their people in general, though the Asentari government made no real effort to retrieve anybody who did leave.
Raya and the crew of the Gambit were en route to an island off the southern tip of Ka’Lesa, having decided to explore it on their way back to the western coast from Medin Taji, when they spotted a pirate ship anchored just off the coast of the island. They had passed a small transport vessel not long before, tearing away from the island at the highest speed a boat of its size could possibly attain, and it was now clear why that ship was in such a hurry. Raya was in disbelief as they boarded the pirate ship and found no crew aboard, with the lot of them having gone ashore to look for something. Either that, or they had stumbled upon a pirate base on the island.

After scuttling the pirate ship, Raya took Radahn and Xinra with her and headed ashore. Moving quietly through the forest, the party were able to easily follow the tracks of the pirates to a set of ruins deep in the jungle. Xinra identified the ruins as being of ancient Undari design, meaning there would be extensive subterranean construction as well as underwater areas. There was evidence of a struggle, and there were a few thugs patrolling around the entrance to the structure. Between Raya and Radahn, they managed to dispatch the thugs handily, and the three of them entered the structure.

Once inside, Raya and the others carefully navigated the labyrinthine network of corridors and tunnels that were the hallmark of early Undari architecture. They occasionally came across lost pirate thugs who had become separated from their fellows, but they were quickly dispatched. Xinra’s expertise prevented himself and the others from a similar fate, and they moved quickly towards a sound of shouting from the direction of a large chamber which Xinra identified as a meeting room. Raya and the others snuck in through a rent in the wall, and found a pair of people crouched behind a large overturned stone table. The two women were exchanging pleasantries with the pirates outside the blocked up door across the room, and it was clear that the conversation was nearing its end.

Raya and the others watched as the door came down with a pronounced smash, and pirates came teeming in. One of the women stood up from behind the table, and a large jet of fire burst forth from her mouth, immolating the first half dozen thugs who were unfortunate enough to be in the way. That was when Raya and the others made their move. Xinra and Radahn both unleashed a pair of crossbow bolts, before taking cover with the two women behind the stone table. Before they could say anything, Radahn advised them to stay in cover, as Raya stepped in front of the table and unleashed the Roaring Torrent ability of her sword, sending a massive blast of water into the doorway. The remaining thugs were no more, and Raya then introduced herself and her crewmates to Bethany and Aline.

Xinra led the whole group back to the surface, and Raya offered the two women a lift back to the mainland, having witnessed their original transport fleeing for his life and leaving them marooned on the island. Once underway, Raya and her crew seemed to hit it off with Bethany and Aline, a pair of young people who just wanted to explore the world. Once the two women had tracked down their cowardly former transporter and got their money back, Raya offered for them to hang out on the Gambit for a while. They could learn about the world and about trade while in the relative safety of a reliable crew, and more importantly, it would be fun. Bethany and Aline agreed, and they set off on numerous adventures and journeys for the next few years.

After a few years of sailing and exploring, Raya and the others came to a decision point in their journey. Aline had enjoyed her life on the seas, but she inwardly longed for the security of a home. Bethany, as her lover, would follow suit as she wanted to be with Aline. Raya herself welcomed a break after travelling for nearly 350 years. They had amassed a large amount of wealth over their journey, through a combination of clever trade and the return of historical artefacts, and so the decision was made to establish a small settlement. Selecting a useful spot in the Free Lands, about 150 miles directly south of Karem and on a prominent point on the delta where the East Undine River joins the Belagir Sea.
Initially, the settlement would consist of a few houses and a tavern. Named Edaria by Aline, Raya would use her extensive contacts and trade partners to acquire materials and manpower, and with the money the fledgling settlement was bringing from trade via its clever position, Edaria began to expand rapidly. They took in any who needed shelter, and after a decade Edaria had grown into a prosperous port town. Raya’s trips became less frequent, with Radahn taking the lead in a lot of the trade voyages, while Raya herself assisted Bethany and Aline with the day-to-day running of the town. The twins stayed with Radahn aboard the Gambit, but Xinra used the opportunity to open a history school in the city, relishing the opportunity to pass on everything he had learned on his travels with Raya and the crew.

Over the next forty years, Edaria became a beacon of hope and prosperity in the eastern Free Lands. Expanding continually until it had become a massive port city to rival Gateway Harbour in Endaron, Edaria had garnered great attention from other parties in the Free Lands interested in acquiring a slice of the good fortune that was on offer. Most of these parties were generally harmless to the overall operation of Edaria, but there were some that were more nefarious in nature. One such party was the Red Fang, a criminal mercenary organisation that plagued trade routes in the Free Lands with sporadic attacks on caravans and travellers.

The Red Fang were based in Karem, operating at the behest of the Nyberrite Alliance and they began to harass Edaria by attacking caravans and outlying settlements to try and intimidate Edaria into surrendering to them. They also attempted naval attacks, but these were significantly less successful due to the presence of the Gambit and other allied vessels that Radahn had acquired for Edaria’s defence. Another force then arrived claiming to be there to aid Edaria against a common enemy. This force turned out to be from Oleas, though Aline and Bethany were quick to deduce that the move was a ploy to try and manipulate Edaria into siding with the Ardorian Conclave, themselves adversaries of the Alliance.

Once it became clear that they were not going to get what they wanted from Edaria, the Oleas forces retreated, leaving a clear path for the Red Fang forces to attack Edaria directly. However, the impact Edaria had on the region and its inhabitants was far more profound than anybody knew, and a large civilian force rose to defend the city. The battle was costly for both sides, but the Red Fang were eventually driven off. Edaria survived, but it became clear that they would need a standing defence force if they were going to safeguard their future. A defensive army would be formed from volunteers and trained by the best veteran instructors money could buy, and the result would be a well-armed, well-drilled unit who could ably protect Edaria from whatever came at them next.

While Aline had found her calling as the leader of Edaria and an important figure in the world of continental politics, Raya and Bethany had eschewed the dressings and privileges of state office, instead preferring to remain undertaking background duties and responsibilities and supporting Aline from behind the scenes. Both of them were free spirits, however, and it would only be a matter of time before they both heard the call to venture forth into the world again. Bethany would hear it first, and together with the general stress of running Edaria it would result in the end of her relationship with Aline, who had no desire to keep Bethany near if she would be unhappy. So they parted company relatively amicably, and Bethany left Edaria.
Raya, for her part, would resist the initial urges she felt once Bethany left. However, she knew in her heart that she was an explorer. But she felt obliged to make sure that she wasn’t leaving Aline to do everything herself. She began by taking back command of the Gambit and embarking on the trade journeys personally. She scouted the numerous mercantile guilds that they were in contact with for astute and wise operators that could manage the workload and knew their way around, but also ones that were dedicated to the prosperity of the many as opposed to the prosperity of themselves. Once Raya found a trustworthy replacement, one of her old trade partners as it turned out, she brought him to Edaria and trained him in everything that Raya herself did during her day-to-day running of the city’s trade networks.

Raya didn’t tell Aline directly until last, but the Asentari was already fully aware of what was coming. They talked for hours to make sure everything was organised, and Raya explained why she was doing what she was doing. Over the years running Edaria, Raya had become very close to both women, to the point where she considered them very close friends, second only to her crew on the Gambit. Aline had seen the same wanderlust in Raya’s eyes in recent times, and though the Kijin had weathered the stresses of her job quite well, the conflict between her wish to travel and her loyalty to Aline and Edaria was a source of increasing consternation for Raya. In the end though, Aline assured Raya that she had everything she needed, and Raya agreed to visit regularly when in the area.

Raya resumed her travels with Aline’s blessing, and she wasted no time in getting back to the thing she loved most. Exploring. She set sail with her crew sans Xinra, who had remained behind to run his school, and headed for Gateway Harbour first of all. The Eldari had made some advances in ship design in the years since she had last visited, so Raya commissioned some upgrades for the Gambit, bringing her back to the forefront of standards for sailing vessels on the continent. Raya’s ship was now faster, tougher and more manoeuvrable than ever ,something that would serve them well as they headed back into dangerous waters once again.
On her travels, Raya had repeated encounters with Bethany, who had taken an unexpected path through life. The Asentari had been wandering the land, taking on any odd jobs she could find to keep her busy. Raya would occasionally bring her along whenever in the area to dungeon-dive, but in truth Raya was worried about her friend. Bethany’s drinking had gotten worse and she seemed to be doing odd jobs out of boredom rather than any kind of fulfilment. Raya brought her aboard whenever she could, and it certainly seemed to help, at least temporarily. However, it was clear that Bethany was still not comfortable when it came to Aline and Edaria, so Raya declined to broach that subject whenever they were together.

Things took a unnerving turn a few years later, when Raya made a stop at Edaria to check on things and take on supplies. Bethany was aboard at the time, but she refused to go ashore for fear of being recognised and word reaching Aline that she was there. Raya was met by Xinra in the marketplace, and he had an urgent matter he needed help with. Apparently all contact had been lost with Medin Taji about six months prior. All trade had ceased and any parties sent to investigate had failed to return. Xinra was going to go himself, but he had heard the Gambit was en route to Edaria so he waited for a crew and a ship he could trust.

Raya agreed at the urging of Kaiden and Kaina and the reunited crew with Bethany set sail for Medin Taji. Once they reached the surface watchpost, they found that they were completely abandoned, and there were no signs of the former inhabitants. Thoroughly unnerved, the crew made their descent. Raya used her water manipulation powers to transport herself, Radahn and Bethany underwater in a bubble, while the twins and Xinra swam ahead to lead them all there. The large underwater city of Medin Taji was dark, even by its own standards, which only added to the unease of the group.

Once they made it inside the city however, it only got so much worse. Medin Taji was no more. The streets were infested with horrific monstrosities that seemed to be mindlessly attending to various tasks without any sign of cogent thought. But there was evidently some sort of intelligence at work, as the tasks were not random or aimless in themselves. Some creatures worked to construct various things, while others worked to recycle damaged or unwanted structures into workable materials. It was unclear what was driving these creatures to work, but what did become abundantly clear was that there was no one left to save in Medin Taji.
Raya and her team moved quietly and carefully, trying to appear as inconsequential and non-threatening as possible as they tried to understand what had happened to the once thriving city of the Undari. Xinra and the twins were speechless as they found out how bad things had gone. One of the tasks that was being undertaken by some of the creatures was maintaining a mass grave in one of the caves. The bodies being stored there were Undari, and thousands of them. The twins were overcome by grief, while Xinra was in complete shock. Then a voice spoke to them, beckoning them to the palace district. Composing herself, Raya nodded to Bethany and the crew set off.

Upon reaching the palace district, they were confronted by scenes that would put their worst nightmares to shame. Where once was a magnificent stone palace carved out of the seawall itself, was now a giant organic mass that seemed to grow from the palace itself. The now organic front door opened, and a figure emerged from the opening. Whatever she once was, the Blight Witch of Medin Taji was now unlike anything Raya and the others had seen before. The Blight Witch welcomed them, before explaining to them how the downfall of Medin Taji had occurred, and it was a tale of hubris and vengeance.

Seemingly, after the Second Great War had occurred, some amongst the Undari still held resentment towards the Eldari, and Naderi Morin was one of them. The Undari leadership had adopted a policy of peaceful isolation in the aftermath of the war, something that rankled with Morin and her followers, who desired revenge against those who had fought and killed many Undari. In secret, Morin devised a ritual which would put a devastating curse upon the Eldari people. With the help of her followers, Morin began the ritual in secret, but the plot was discovered. Undari troops stormed the ritual hall and interrupted the procedure at a critical moment. The result was that Morin bestowed a curse on her own people instead of the Eldari.

Morin fought hard to protect her followers from what she had wrought, but her powers were not enough to completely shield them. Those Undari who didn’t die from the curse were changed into the creatures that Raya’s crew encountered, and they were all connected to the Blight Witch Naderi Morin in a collective consciousness. So here she waited, rebuilding the city and biding her time, until she could finally get her revenge on the Eldari as she originally intended. When she finished her tale, Raya and the others were suspicious of the Blight Witch’s willingness to share her tale to strangers. That was when the Blight Witch revealed that she had no intention of letting them leave alive.

Kaina loosed an arrow at the Blight Witch, while Xinra and Kaiden drew weapons. The Undari were enraged at the Blight Witch’s callousness and ignorance, and were getting ready to give their lives to bring her to justice. Then Raya and Bethany noticed the scores of creatures moving towards them, and Raya knew the trap had been sprung and they would have only a slim window to get out. The Blight Witch used magic to blast Kaina’s arrow out of the air, and Raya grabbed Radahn’s sleeve and told him to get the twins out. She then turned to Bethany as Radahn hoisted the twins on his shoulders and began running for the entrance and instructed her to grab one of Xinra’s arms while Raya grabbed the other, and they dragged the protesting scholar after Radahn.
It took a lot of ducking and weaving, but they eventually made it to where they had entered the city. Radahn put the twins down and convinced them and Xinra that trying to fight the Blight Witch wouldn’t get any justice for their people, it would just mean forfeiting their lives in a senseless fight they couldn’t win. Undari crew members pacified, Raya began to make a bubble for the non-water-breathers to escape in. A swarm of creatures was approaching fast, and Bethany suddenly fired an immense gout of flames from her mouth, immolating scores of the creatures in an instant. Raya used the momentary cover to finish her task, and they returned swiftly to the surface. There was no sign of pursuit.

Things slowly returned to normal after that. The Undari crew members were understandably subdued after they discovered that their race was mostly wiped out. Xinra closed his school and rejoined the crew of the Gambit full-time. Raya offered all of them time off if they needed it, but they all decided to stick together. They were a family now, and for some of them it was the only family they had now. Bethany left to wander again, but this time she went completely, and Raya would not see her again for quite some time. She tried to keep tabs on her, and she was deeply concerned at the path she had taken, forming a bandit group that waged guerilla warfare on the Red Fang on behalf of the Ardorian Conclave, before seemingly disappearing off the face of the continent entirely.

Raya and her crew tried to track Bethany down regularly over the years, but she had very little success. She kept in regular contact with Aline, informing her of both the situation with Medin Taji and the situation with Bethany, but she now had to also inform Aline that she had no idea if Bethany was even alive any more. Given this news, along with the flashpoint that had emerged near the Vultani Jungle as Aline’s own race clashed with the Kingdom of Mondolin, Raya was worried about Aline, so she made port in Edaria and made her ship and crew available for a little while, at least until the Edia and Mondolin conflict was resolved.

As it was, help soon came in the form of the Order of the Sun, who had dispatched a small force, led by renowned Order member Kairi Thorne, to Edaria to ask Aline for help, just as Aline was preparing to intervene herself. The combined Edaria and Order task force, led by Kairi and Aline, interjected in the fighting that had broken out in the Free Lands, and managed to successfully negotiate a ceasefire. War had been averted, thanks to some expert negotiating from Aline and Kairi. Raya marvelled at how great of a leader Aline had truly become, and only wished Bethany had been there to see it too. Raya would tell her all about it when she found her. Not if, but when.
Side Notes: (Anything else?)
RP Example: (Give us an example of your rp style. Note, you only need to do this for your first character.)

Approved A-5.

seconded