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Born as princess, forced out of her kingdom and flung into a world of a hired mercenary, and now enwrapped in a mysterious smear of worlds and people so unlike her own, Yukira is ultimately someone who just wants to do good in the world, and protect all that she cares about. She was raised to rule, her kingdom Arachia, the kingdom of the Dragon one of the most powerful in her world, though many, including Yukira, found fault in her father's militalistic conquerer strategies. But a coup took her father down and nearly killed her in the process, forcing her to flee. Scapegoated for the death of the king as a series of nobles took over the ruling of the kingdom, Yukira went into hiding, surviving on the edges, moving from place to place.
Yukira's family has always had magic, royal blood magic that has passed down through their ancestors since the forging of their kingdom by the original Dragon. However, it manifests in different ways- sometimes stronger, sometimes weaker. Her father became an expert in destructive dragonfire quickly. Yukira, however, always seemed to struggle with magic. Unbenownst to her, when really young her magic did begin to manifest- scales and wings could appear based on her strong emotions, a much stronger manifestation of the ancestral dragon magic than any of the ancestors noted in the scrolls. For her safety and those around her, her magic was suppressed in a 12-part series of seals, with the idea that throughout her life each seal would be opened at opportune times, so she could slowly become accustomed to the magic and learn how to wield it without being overwhelmed. However, her father, fearing the power she possessed, killed all the mages involved in the sealing ritual, and kept the knowledge of Yukira's magic hidden.
Frustrated with her struggles with magic, Yukira quickly turned to swordfighting, wanting to be useful in the role she was given. And she was good at it, the physical discipline much easier for her to grasp and master than anything in the tomes she had to learn as well. But fighting in her father's wars was never to her taste- she had to, or felt she had to at the time, but ultimately she wants to protect those who are suffering, not cut them down if they don't submit to her kingdom's rule.
Personality-wise, Yukira is...all the emotions. She is extremely empathetic, and struggles to control her own emotions much of the time. Still, ultimately she is loving, confident, and curious, interested in figuring out how everything works and wanting to help anyone she can along the way. She cares deeply for others, and cares very quickly, and will do anything she can to help them. She just may stumble a bit- the right choices aren't always crystal clear.
General Timeline Presmear
Kingdom name- Arachia
King- Brukza Luteph
Queen- Jinnv Dhesha
Birth-12- The childhood of a Princess- constantly made to be busy with tutors from across the kingdom, largely ignored by her father at this point, mostly because she largely did her due diligence and was an obedient child. She was very close to her mother, and one of their favorite activities together was baking- her mother was originally from a neighboring kingdom that Arachia has sense merged into itself.
Death of mother and the great plague- at age 11, a great plague started to spread through the kingdom- it began with a few isolated incidents, particularly on the outskirts, but quickly spread. Quarantines were put in place, the palace was locked up to try to stave the sickness, but the Queen managed to contract it. Everyone in the palace was then put under lockdown and kept separate as much as possible- no one was allowed to see the Queen except for the doctors working on her, which was especially hard for Yuki. The Queen didn't make it though, and Yuki never got to say her goodbyes.
12-18 training, dealing with abusive dad- where before the king largely ignored Yuki, after he waffled between his previous ignoring and becoming overly restrictive, especially trying to force her into more typical feminine roles. He also developed a strong drinking problem at this time, and had a habit of becoming physically abusive under this influence- Yuki would try to avoid him for this reason. He was more interested in going out on the battlefield and murder enemies than try to run the kingdom, so Yuki often would attempt to take his place in council meetings and policy making. This did not always matter, as the council viewed her as merely a child and would not listen to her. This is also where she began to pick up swordplay and battle tactics- struggling with magic in her studies, she defaulted to the other main area she could work at, and she believed would help as a leader. And she was good at it, though being sent onto the field starting at the age of 15 was a bit much even for her, but she had to prove herself if she ever hoped of evoking change once she took over.
18- the night of the coup- invasion of the castle, Yuki finds her father already dead on the throne, is attacked by assassin and gets the burn scar on the side of her face but through some sort of luck she manages to escape. 18-21 largely on the run, little work, really hard few years, basically living in the forests, does result to stealing during this time though limits tries to only steal from those who would not miss it and only what she needs to survive.
22-25 mostly live on outskirts, commonly worked as guard for brothels and similar establishments- she starts to become popular as a guard, but her sense of righteousness does get her in trouble a few times. She no longer has to hide, no one seems to be looking for her at ths point.
26-29 became more confident, no longer just worked on the outskirts- decides to enlist to see if she can start changing from the inside. She gets promoted relatively quickly into the higher knight order, as her squad leader appreciated her earnestness in doing the job right. This is where she acquires her current gun- its standard issue for higher ranking knights. It is of limited use though- its more of a status symbol than a weapon that is commonly used, but she does have a few bullets just in case.
Magic in Yukira's World Magic is not unheard of but not everyone will use it, and there are a few different brands. Elemental Magic is the most common- this is your typical magic, and anyone can learn it, but it takes a great deal of study to truly master it. In the early history of the kingdom teachers of the elements would travel and teach all who wished to learn, spreading the knowledge to all corners of the land- a farmer might learn enough to help their crops prosper or more easily till their field, while a midwife might learn a touch of healing magic to reduce a patient’s pain. However nowadays elemental magic is only taught in state-run universities reserved for those who can afford it, and is viewed as more of a luxury to show one's prowess than something to help yourself or others. Fire, light, and shadow magic are the most commonly studied as they tend to have the flashiest utilities. Manipulation magic is much less common, and one needs to have a natural knack for it to attempt to study- there are three main types- manipulation of objects, manipulation of mind, and manipulation of self. Manipulation of object is your typical telekinesis- it is limited by your mental strength, so through training one with this type may be able to lift things much larger than they could physically, but even the greatest masters struggled to lift a cart for longer than a few seconds. Manipulation of mind includes both mind-reading and mind-control. This type is extremely rare, as it is the easiest to become overwhelming for the gifted before they are able to master control of it. If, however, one becomes a master, they can find good employment as Truthtellers, a special regiment of the kingdom that specializes in making sure peace talks and prisoner interagations go smoothly and as the kingdom plans. Manipulation of self is truly unknown how common it is, as it involves the ability to change one's own appearance. This one is often more subtle, as even for those who have total control it will take at least a couple of days to fully change one's appearance. People with this ability, if found out, are actively recruited by bandit gangs, and if they can grab them young will groom them into efficient thieves that are near impossible to catch. Royal magic (dragon magic)- this is the type of magic Yuki naturally has, and it is derived directly from her bloodline. The origins of the royal family, while not fully understood, involved some sort of blessing from the Dragon, the original ruler of the land. As such, each successive generation has a touch of the original Dragon running through their veins, as well as a brand signifying this, blessing them with a unique blend of magic which can manifest in a number of ways. The most common is fire and brute strength, and this is what Yuki’s father’s manifested as- he is a terror on the battlefield, wielding a flaming ax around him with total disregard for himself or any friendly soldiers. Yuki, though bearing the brand, did not exhibit these qualities- she was good in training, but could never manifest any of the fire or unnatural strength of her father, a great disappointment to him. Or so she thought.
When Yukira was quite young, she did exhibit spots of the dragon magic, more than her tiny body could handle or control. Wings would appear to help her climb a tree, or scales would glitter over her body to protect her from a fall. Her tantrums would become firey if she wasn't calmed. This was the strongest and earliest manifestation of the Dragon magic the kingdom had seen in generations, and for her protection it was decided to lock the magic behind a series of 12 seals. These seals would be slowly released over time, as she mastered her own discipline and gained the ability to control the magic without it being overwhelmed. However, her Father, fearing her magic that was most likely so much stronger than his own, killed the mages involved in the ritual of the seals, and never told Yukira of the ritual, instead admonishing her of her own lack of ability, hoping it would keep her humble and in line. Instead, it simply drove her to improve in other areas in an attempt to prove him and the rest of the kingdom of her worth.
Even with the seals in place, Yuki does manifest quite a few traits derived from dragon magic, but she does not realize all of them are magic- the ability to blend in, which has helped her since her escape, is not just skill, but an ability that allows her to become not invisible, but unnoticeable, completely nondescript for anyone that sees her. By all accounts and purposes she should have been turned in early on, she is brash and eager to jump to defend, and yet no one seemed to connect her to the wanted posters littering the kingdom. Her ability to learn new fighting techniques and being at the right place at the right time are not just lucky coincidence, but magical influence. Royal magic is generally more naturally powerful than the other types- so royal fire magic > elemental fire magic, though a great fire master could still be more powerful than a royal who just is starting to learn fire
Yukira was pulled into the Smear, an amalgamation of worlds from peoples across different realms and possibilities. Following a pull down the cobblestone streets, her dagger growing warm in her pocket and she found what seemed to be a window into another world, she stumbled in, not knowing what she was getting into.
Yukira primarily comes from a realm of fantasy- technology-wise they have begun to explore more, but most are militaristic- guns and vehicles are starting to make themselves more common, but technologies we take for granted like phones or computers are not on the horizon yet. However, Yukira is overall curious and inquisitive, and though the conglomeration of worlds in the smear are completely new, she is learning as much as she can. She has encountered computers, fast food chains, cell phones, swimming pools, all things she has not encountered before but she approaches these things largely as things to learn, particularly when with others in the world. She is quick to befriend but also quick to anger, and will jump to defend someone at the earliest possible time if she can, and has tried to in this world. But this brashness has led to problems- missed strikes and hurried defenses have at times caused more harm than good, and perhaps Yukira could learn to pause and strategize a bit more in the future.
One of the first people she encountered in the Smear was Aem, who Yukira immediately felt was her True Love upon their first meeting, a mix of overwhelming amazement and pain- though that could have been the accidental knife through her gut as well. Regardless, Yukira is...persistant in her affections, and would do anything for Aem if she could. But it seems the Smear has other plans- Yukira's brashness turned against her, as her desire to protect Aem from something hidden in the vents brought out a rage mode in another person pulled into the World- in the fight, Yukira's sword turned on her, and instead of protecting went right through Aem, killing her in the process (don't worry, she got better!). Overwhelmed with grief and guilt, Yukira had a chance encounter with the resident fae? salesman Beetle, who she sold her own guilt to in order to get a new sense of purpose, a quest.
The thing with guilt is it won't stay gone forever, and truthfully it shouldn't since without that weight Yukira's actions had even less pause than before. But return it did, and with her guilt's return, now in a shapeshifting vaguely-cat-like form most of the time void she now calls Uzi, Yukira was whole once again.
Yukira continued to work with others in this world, to find a way home perhaps, or just to help where she could, but was pulled away by non other than the Dragon themself, who gave her visions of what her kingdom would become without someone's intervention. He broke through all 12 of her seals at once at left, simply giving her a warning and telling her to learn to control if she wanted to see her home again as she was overwhelmed by her own magic, transforming into a full dragon for the first time.
Yukira did manage to transform back into her primarily elven-self after an encounter with a creature and trying to save once of the groups she was with from before, but her magic is still leaking and she is still struggling to figure out how to control it. Wings and a tail now sprout from her back even in elven form, and her former scars are now replaced by glittering scales. Still, with more encounters, including a recent one at Beetle's magnificent and definitely not dangerous at all masquerade where she was able for a brief moment to conjure dragonfire without fully transforming, she is making some progress to learning how the magic works. Albeit in a very learn as you go process.
Named Uzi as it means "my strength", Yukira ultimately regrets getting rid of them in an attempt to escape her guilt after accidentally impaling Aem. She views them as her responsibility now, and while they cannot really be harmed physically, she is still ultimately protective of them. She abandoned them once, she will not do it again.
Yukira's feelings for Aem were sudden and deep, and she truly believes she has found her True Love in the most unlikely of places. Aem, however, is unsure, and believes it may have more to do with her own contract that Yukira appears to be able to accept herself. Yukira knows nothing of this, however, and their relationship is complicated by accidental stabbings on both ends. But, who knows, maybe it will work out in the end.(image by dianalw)
Yukira wasn't sure what to think about Dr. Jones at first, viewing him primarily as a coward, but the more she interacted with him the more she grew to respect his intelligence and ability to navigate the varied worlds of the Smear. He is patient with her, willing to answer her questions when they inevitably come up, and where she has the brawn he definitely has the brains. (image by MagpieM)
Yukira was very unsure about Turing at first- how could they be made of metal and gears, and yet be so much more? She doesn't fully understand that things like emotions work differently for Turing, and perhaps took her job of bodyguard for him a bit too seriously. Ultimately though she cares a lot for him, and the simple act of him putting himself in potential danger to protect her touched her more than she can say. No simple machine that she knows of could ever do something like that....(image by Shazzbaa)
Yukira's first encounter with Static was...dynamic to say the least, not realizing that the glitched feral mode he had entered was not simply a monster at the time. After the battle and stricken with grief for Aem, she learned what that was, and doesn't hold that anger against him. Still, Yukira is not exactly great at deescalation, and would like to avoid encountering that feral side in the future. That has definitely worked out swimmingly so far.(image by Mafic)
Both Yukira and Jay have a tendency to be brash and jump to conclusions at times, and their interactions have varied from acquaintance chatter to literally trying to kill each other. Still, Yukira would like to avoid a fight, especially with recognizing how deadly Jay's rage mode seems to be. She's just....apparently not great at avoiding that. Thank goodness for protective robots...(image by Parda)
Manny is someone that Yukira met pre-Smear, seemingly appearing out of nowhere while she was on the run and hiding from the majority of the kingdom. He helped her for a bit, taught her how to shoot (she....might have misfired a bit into him but it's fine....) and overall gave her some hope when she thought she had run out. And then he disappeared...He is also in the Smear but she has not met up with him yet, at least to her knowledge.(image by stopboorider)
Kazuya is a pickle for Yukira- on one hand, she recognizes his protective side, its something she relates to greatly, and appreciates his more warrior abilities. On the other hand, he keeps accusing her of trying to harm others, which is the last thing she wants to do (not that she has been the best at avoiding that). Will have to see how their relationship will pan out in the future, but right now there is simply a lot of judement, even when they don't realize who the other is.(image by toanovu)