Have a mess of words about Unna under the cut! I think her history and such might be in a bit more s

Have a mess of words about Unna under the cut! I think her history and such might be in a bit more solid place now. Input is definitely welcome! I am a sprout at this and the words are indeed messy  ง( ᐛ )ง I like to try to stay lore-friendly, but my immersion bar is “so long as it isn’t MSQ Eulmore” so oopsPersonal -Name: UnnaAge: Born roughly half a year after the Flood.Race: ViisGender: Nonbinary, any pronouns, used to hearing she/herSexuality: Biromantic, demisexualPhysical Appearance:  Her pale hair, eyes, and bleached-bone pallor have been the cause of many unfortunate misunderstandings, especially in the full glare of Everlasting Light. Gangly, notably tall and long of ear, she retains much of the androgyny all Viis begin with, and carries herself with a complete uncaring of all social expectations. Large hands and feet. Several of her claws are well-chewed, and her eyes always look tired, but she’s rarely seen without goggles. Dress: Never without flowers in her hair, especially the small white ones popular in the planters of Eulmore (she never picked from the planters, honest). Favors loose clothing, often grease-stained – it has been remarked that she must hate the smell of clean clothes, and she does. The perfumes of Eulmore make her nose-blind, and that makes her anxious. She has a unique, formal “uniform” reflecting her station in the city, however, and that one she keeps meticulous (just not scented). It included a gaudy ring, set with an obnoxiously large gem; she keeps it on her left index finger at all times, and often worries at it when she is stressed. Profession: Engineer. In combat, relies on her guns and aether-generated shields.Hobbies: Aether, airships, and aether. She hasn’t shown much interest in anything that doesn’t relate in some way to her work since she was young.Languages:  Common Residence: EulmoreBirthplace: LakelandRelatives: Jodille Greenstep (birth mother, alive); Casmet Stillbough (mother, alive); Warder Ysan (elder brother by Casmet, presumed deceased); The Word Of The Wood (otherwise unnamed elder Wood Warder, father to both Ysan and Unna, presumed deceased)Traits -She speaks in short, blunt sentences, and holds direct eye contact to a point some find it discomfiting. If she feels someone is cautious/fearful of her, though, she will visibly try to shrink from  their view – ears low, arms folded tight about herself, and she then avoids eye contact at all cost.Severely introverted. Keeps her burdens to herself, but will readily and quietly carry the troubles of others, even to her own detriment. Has difficulty reading deceit, but Eulmore has been a harsh teacher. Has even more difficulty being deceitful herself.Sleeps poorly, and usually anywhere but a bed – it’s more a collapse from exhaustion than actual rest. Snores very, very loudly – Captain Shan-Lask, commander of the mostly defunct Eulmoran airfleet and supervisor of her patronage on Vauthry’s behalf, made a game of “find her ladyship” when she nods off at the docks: a “sting” of choice at the Bee to whoever finds her first, though they never wake her.She was prone to night terrors in her childhood, but that became more uncommon as time passed.Dislikes the sound of loud, rushing water, as she can’t hear clearly around it. Prefers baths to showers.Must be reminded to eat if she is focused on a  task. Prefers plain/savory foods. Dislikes most sweets, but loves honey. Does not like the taste of alcohol. Will happily guzzle all the buffalo milk or tea she is given.Others rarely pick up on her infrequent attempts at humor, but she rarely picks up on theirs.She is unable to utilize aether, not even so much as a teleport. To compensate for this, her first invention was a pair of specialized goggles that allowed her to see the flows, though the overpowering Light makes them all but useless for that purpose outdoors.Pixies of Il Mheg shun her/fear her, so much so they will not even play their oft-fatal tricks on her. They insist she is “haunted”.Her aetheric imbalance towards the aspect of growth and life seems at times to attract Sin Eaters, which hasn’t really helped the misunderstandings.History -The Afflicted:The first child born in camps that would later become the original population of the Crystarium, Unna should have been a sign of hope to the grief-stricken survivors there – instead, she seemed a warning of the future that awaited them, born with an unsettling pallor akin to those who fell victim to the Light. The chirurgeons soon determined this did not seem to be the case – rather, in an anomaly they tied to the Flood, the babe had an uncommon surfeit of aether, tilted so heavily toward Umbral that the Astral seemed forced outward to manifest in her very flesh.The infant was carefully monitored nonetheless, but she only grew to be a friendly, curious child – though however it happened, her condition seemed to have rendered her incapable of harnessing aether to any degree. (She spoke often of a buzzing in her ears, but it seemed a far more natural complaint for a Viis in loud surroundings.) They were uncertain the imbalance would ever right itself, but it was likely that the Everlasting Light would slow the process considerably even if it could. It mattered not one whit to her relieved mothers – but nothing would ease the lingering suspicions in some, not with the Flood and its losses so fresh in recent memory. Prone to long, vacant stares, odd fixations, and more than occasionally talking to herself, the child was oft avoided, politely or otherwise (though the impolite ones were set right by her mothers, politely or otherwise). Later in life, she recalled she once thought “Afflicted” was her name, as often as she’d heard the word directed toward her.She became more and more withdrawn as she grew, and despite her mothers’ encouragement, her child’s creativity turned instead to devising ways of keeping herself from sight. She was convinced she was the cause of all the tension she felt around her, whether it was the truth or not. She was not afraid of the other survivors, but rather, of being whatever made them afraid of her – “the bad thing”, she called it then. She reasoned if she could do enough good, she could escape becoming the bad thing she was clearly going to be, and she became an unseen helper to the people she’d frightened with that goal in mind.The Crystal Tower arrived but a few summers later, and after much initial shock and caution, the camp took the invitation of the tower’s master to build a safer life in its shadow. Casmet and Jodille engaged their daughter in helping to found the Horotorium: Jodille a tender and keeper of herb lore, Casmet an engineer who turned her skills from weapons to waterways to better aid her wife. Unna showed far greater attentiveness – and skill – in building a hydroponics system with Casmet than cultivating Jodille’s gardens, and when she was not continuing her campaign of helping others in secret, she spent long hidden hours within the Tower, fascinated by its mysteries and machinery. She developed a fixation on the artifical manipulation of aether she found there. She cast aside ideas of “fixing” herself in favor of ideas to protect the others against Eaters, to help the truly Afflicted, maybe even find a way to break the cycle of rebirth that made Sin Eaters such a persistent danger. Her own troubles were naught in the face of those.The only project she allowed in her own interest was a pair of goggles that could help her see the aether she could not sense. It was completed eventually, but only a partial success, due to the saturation of Light making it hard to discern the elements polarized by it – but something was better than the nothing she’d known. The idea of being surrounded by something she couldn’t see made her uneasy.As the camp swelled to a proper city and was even named, of course the rumors were still heard on occasion, and spread to new ears. But with more places to hide, Unna was seen less and less by anyone but her mothers, and the tensions she’d felt relaxed. Her mothers were heartened to finally see a lifting of her spirits.The Crystal Exarch knew well of the Tower’s secretive visitor, and having some awareness of her plight, he tried to coax her from her solitude more than once to teach her whatever she wished to know. When he was successful, he found himself impressed by the girl’s almost preternatural grasp of the flows she couldn’t innately sense. Eventually he thought to introduce her to his ward Lyna, hoping the two young Viis would become fast friends – but Lyna had been old enough to remember how she came to be orphaned, and the initial flicker of surprise in her eyes upon actually seeing her potential companion was instead taken as a sharp reminder to Unna that she should not seek friends.She wasn’t good yet. Her visits became became far less frequent and she no longer revealed herself to him, much to the Exarch’s regret. Jodille and Casmet later politely thanked him for his efforts with tight smiles, but suggested he never try such things so carelessly. Lyna sought to apologize to her, but she was not to be found again.Instead, she had redoubled her already unforgiving efforts to find a way to protect the city from what they thought she would become. Several of the city defenses known today are of her make, but when they were first created she asked Casmet to see the plans delivered to the city in her stead. She explained that she wanted them to see proof she meant them no harm before revealing herself, and that was truth–but though she understood the misgivings of others by now, she also was thoroughly dispirited that they only rarely tried to understand her back. The fear of frightening them as a monster was finally outweighed by the hurt of it.She decided to abandon that battle, and focus on the ones she had a chance of winning, however small. The defenses already had some success, and combined with the successes of other engineers on the matter, she considered that work done. Her other goals – breaking the Eaters’ cycle, aid for the Afflicted–had been abandoned by most as hopeless. But she gave up on herself far easier than she is wont to give up on her work.The Hunter: Eventually she spent most her time afield, seeking to gain a more direct understanding of her quarry; as she’d theorized, her aetheric imbalance made her an irresistible target when an Eater was near, and she had no shortage of test subjects. It wasn’t long before she gained notoriety among local clans as a suspicious loner hunting Sin Eaters – probably a thief and a dangerous one at that, armed with crudely modified yet effective weaponry and a disquieting penchant for speaking to the Eaters before she dispatched them – or simply as a Sin Eater, depending on the situation and who was asked. Even if she saved lives, more than once she was pursued as a Sin Eater herself in the process.Her mothers bent her ears with the most surprising retellings of her work every time she returned home, but she never lingered at the Crystarium long before leaving to make new stories they swore would silver their eartips someday soon.Sometimes shallow caches of Light-suffused crystals were found where she’d killed her targets. This once led to a bit of panic among certain local adventurers that perhaps the Eaters were beginning to lay eggs. Speaking of Nutsy–The Unforgivable:Unna was reviled by some clans for “stealing” kills when she was not outright mistaken as a target. Clan Nutsy in particular has never forgiven her (at least, one of them hasn’t):“I had the Eater right where I wanted it! My blade was braced to slit its gizzard as I was swallowed – but then SHE showed up! She stole my prize and patted my pom! I’ve never been so degraded – and with Xylle here, that’s saying something, kupo!” - Nutsy, head of Clan NutsyHe even had her posted as a mark sometimes – “The Dread Sin Eater, The Unforgivable” – until Xylle was alerted and tossed the paperwork into the trash. Nutsy apparently had targeted rivals in the same fashion before. She had one true and vocal defender, ironically also clansmate of Nutsy: a lass named Katrey, who swore the hunter/Eater–whom she had nicknamed “Miss White Ears” as a child–saved her from Eaters back then, and guarded her from afar long after. But the girl’s stories weren’t nearly as thrilling or believable, and so she was typically ignored.The Assassin:Some twenty summers past, Unna saw her first airship in the skies over Lakeland. She became obsessed with seeing it up close, to learn how the aether was made to move it. It made landing at one of the outposts, and she smuggled herself and her meager belongings on board in a crate of produce bound for Kholusia, waiting for her opportunity. She spent half the journey scribbling out ways to address the possible little inefficiencies she could hear in the flow of the engines, and other small problems she perceived as she risked snooping about while the crew was out of earshot.Eventually they returned, and cabbages proved a pillow comfortable enough to lull her to sleep for the rest of the ride.She awoke to a panicked engineer on Eulmore’s docks screaming there was an Eater among the cargo. She leapt from the crate ready to fight it – but then she realized the Eater causing the commotion was actually supposed to be her. There was a merry chase as she tried to flee – unused to there being no trees to help lose her pursuers, she looked instead to the banners lining the outer walls. It ended after the engineer who discovered her almost fell off the balcony trying to stop her from risking her life–she swung ‘round to rescue him instead, and delivered both of them into the arms of waiting soldiers. She was then given a gaoler’s welcome to the city.She found out that she was an armed infiltrator when the Eulmorans had just ushered in a new leader that very morn. “Airships” did not seem an acceptable answer for her motives as she was interrogated, and her anxious behavior was noted as highly suspect, but her captors had to grudgingly agree: she certainly didn’t act like a hired killer, though the fact she seemed about to turn made some suspect it was a suicide mission. Her confiscated belongings included not just her weapons, but also crude tools and the scribbled plans of how she thought the airship she stowed on might be improved–so her claim that airships and not assassinations were her goal did seem to hold merit as well.Yet their new lord was only in power due to the untimely death of his father. Perhaps the former had been right about the conspiracies he claimed were in place to end his line? They were inclined to err on the side of their own necks. Rua-Shazz, the engineer whom she had saved at the cost of her freedom, was ashamed of his role in her ordeal and hastened to make amends by alerting his patron to her intriguing airship ideas, because they looked as though they just might work. In turn, Captain Shan-Lask intended to convey his own interest to the new lord, in hopes she would be turned over to his engineers.She didn’t have time to think on the greater Sin Eaters that gathered dormant in the chamber where she was brought forth to face her very public trial. Nutsy of Clan Nutsy made a surprise spectacle of himself when it appeared Shan-Lask would have his way (he was allegedly there to rep the clan to the new leadership; he was actually there for the free and fancy food). Once again he declared her The Dread Sin Eater, The Unforgivable, who devoured her own mother upon turning. The moogle was not moved by the obvious distress the accusations were causing his mark, and he demanded justice for Lakeland, preferably with a lot of blood.The young and untested Lord Vauthry was already in a sour mood since the woman’s antics had distracted from his inauguration day. For a tiny ball of fluff to make demands of him at his first official act of leadership – and try to stir a panic over Sin Eaters while greater ones sat docile around the room, by his will – tipped the scale. That girl could have had the blood of his own father staining her claws, and still he would not give the moogle satisfaction.If she were a Sin Eater as claimed, well then, she’d come to the right place, hadn’t she? Change had come to Eulmore, and the Sin Eaters were an essential part of it. If this “Sin Eater” was indeed a threat, his power would see to it that Lakeland was kept safe from her. He DID mention his power, didn’t he?  A miraculous thing. Just imagine what could happen to a poor moogle were that power not as miraculous as it was! So she was “dealt” with to Eulmore’s satisfaction. And as a ward of Eulmore, he expected Nutsy and his ilk to never again trouble her–or any other Eater in Kholusia, for that matter – else they would face a trial of their own. Nutsy dropped his charges – and more than likely emptied his bowels – as he hastened to flee “spread word of Eulmore’s judgement” to Lakeland. The woman was there with talents useful to the city and the intent to use them – a good example which all should see, it was decided, although her method of bringing those talents to Eulmore’s attention was ominously warned against for future hopefuls.  Vauthry then claimed personal patronage of her before the onlookers, and ordered Shan-Lask to make good use of the potential they had promised him she possessed –with an expectation that none of them would make a fool of him for his generosity. A short time later, Unna was given an ostentatious set of clothing to replace her own ragged equipment, as well as a tacky but very expensive-seeming signet ring – an unspoken dare to any others who might think to take further issue with Vauthry’s decision, be they small and furry or otherwise.Thus suitably attired, she was turned over to the captain’s supervision and put to work on her airships.Nutsy hasn’t been back to Eulmore personally since – the hors d'oeuvres were cheap and gave him gas, kupo. The terrible legend of The Dread Sin Eater, The Unforgivable, has all but died out from Lakeland, save for stories adventurers may tell their children to keep them in bed one day.The Engineer of Eulmore:She did not disappoint them in the purpose she was given for the city. The engineers and maintenance crews of the airship docks welcomed her  –  rather than remain  wary of her odd looks and ways, they became quickly delighted by her quiet kindness, attention to detail, and knack for making things work. Hungry for all the knowledge they could  teach her, Unna quickly gained reputation and rank in their (admittedly dwindling) numbers, almost unawares. And as much as she tried to keep herself apart from others, the Eulmorans  made her forget sometimes the monster she was supposed to be.The Bonded Citizen of Eulmore:Regardless of motive, Vauthry’s unexpected and very public show of defense affected her profoundly. Unna had almost forgotten how it was to be looked on by a stranger without fear, and although her benefactor’s eyes on her had leaned toward exasperation at her trial, her newfound contentment was of his making.  She was bonded in name only – never once was she called upon, or restricted – so in gratitude she began to make any excuse to “report” to him daily, with progress on the airship docks, new schematics he could scarce understand, or little gadgets she’d made hoping they would amuse him (they didn’t).And, of course, to learn more about the power over Sin Eaters that he took such pride in.She discovered there was something very wrong with his aether after she was given back her goggles – although she still couldn’t even guess how it might have happened, let alone how he was able to use it to such an advantage, no matter how often she visited him. His was an imbalance towards the Light, far greater than her own tilted to Dark, and far more volatile. It seemed unwise to ask the circumstances outright, however, and he never offered to tell her. His guarded manner reminded her much of her own – and though he isolated himself, he remained in plain sight for any who sought him out.Perhaps he felt he was a monster too. Yet he was the source of the Eaters’ silent calm in that chamber, he was the source of the comfort and safety his people enjoyed. She held only admiration for what he clearly hoped to achieve.But there was nothing calm about the aether he carried within, and each passing day, it became stronger. If her suspicions proved correct, eventually his kindness would come at the highest cost, and then his beloved city would likely pay as well.She couldn’t take the chance she was wrong. Her odds of successfully solving this new puzzle were far better as a highly ranked engineer in Eulmore than as a scavenger and thief in Lakeland; some of her ambitious studies into maximizing airship efficiency were already veiled research that she hoped would lead to the breakthrough for her other projects which had eluded her so long. But that was still so small a chance after so many fruitless years which remained fruitless even now–and this problem came with a deadline of grim urgency, the moments ticked off by the Light waxing and her patron’s living aether waning, a presence already more forceful than any she’d seen––save the Lightwarden Philia.But even if it was hopeless, she had to try. There was a likely a monster, but it wasn’t her patron.She would first see the Eulmorans were protected as the Crystarium was – should she fail in protecting her patron, she would at least protect his people as he would. Seeking outside help was out of the question, in her mind. Not even the airship crews, or their captain, as much as she silently loved them all. She was all too familar with what could befall monsters among mortals–and her patron could be seen as a far, far greater threat than she ever was.Vauthry had only once before known eyes to look on him without fear, ambition, or revulsion, concealed with varying degrees of success. And as satisfying as he always found the fear and fawning obeisance at first, in the end it was always empty, and only filled him with more bitterness and anger at the world. None sought him out unless there was something they wanted for themselves, be it material trifles or the resolution of petty grievances. So when this ragged Viis he had spared returned, again and again and again, it wasn’t long before he grew tired of the toadying and bluntly sought  an end to her mummer’s farce. He’d given her the place at the airship docks she’d wanted – what did she REALLY want from him now?He hadn’t expected her answer to be “a friend”. And he hadn’t expected how desperately he’d want to believe her.The Devil Of Eulmore:Unna abruptly fled Eulmore five summers later, and was branded a traitor by General Ran’jit shortly thereafter, on charges of attempted assassination. She has still been seen dispatching stray Eaters across the lowlands of Kholusia even to this day, but Ran’jit himself could never find where she hides, nor manage to catch so much as a glimpse of her. (In fact, she later had somehow gained entry back into the city and left her uniform neatly folded on the balcony of Vauthry’s chambers.) Beleaguered soldiers who were ordered to help in continuing the search came to call her “The Devil Of Eulmore”, as much for the frustration of their failures as for her treason. (though they became rather successful at patrolling beyond the city’s borders, almost as if by design). Smallfolk took their chances for the bounty offered – a place in Eulmore as a free citizen – and met with the same failure. Free citizens sought to make sport of her, but Nutsy had taught her well how to avoid the ambitions of clans. Eventually the urgency to have her found diminished, but the moniker remained.To this day, her patronage by Lord Vauthry and her dramatic departure is the source of gossip – some fit for polite company, most of it not (the most popular being that despite a Viis, the girl carried off, ah, something His Lordship didn’t want seen)–but none save Shan-Lask and his crews care to know the truth, and the Devil herself isn’t forthcoming.Yet. -- source link

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