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(Portrait by AzureFawn)
Ever the strong-willed child, there was not a person alive who could tell Kiriya something that she did not have to experience for herself before she would believe. Having lost both of her parents to the Deadlands, Kiriya had been warned time and time again to stay out of the forsaken place. And, for the most part, she heeded those warnings.
That was, until she met Calen. An instructor at the Academy, Calen became Kiriya's idol. Unlike most of the Academy mages, Calen favored a shortsword, and wore it over his right shoulder. Kiriya managed to procure one just like it, but there was a problem. She was left-handed and could not draw over her right shoulder. Torn between emulating her idol and practicality, she chose the latter.
Calen had tried many times to distance himself from her, to remove himself so that she could find her own identity beyond him. It didn't last for long. She caught up with him and confronted him about it, and it turned out there was a level of depth to her that he'd not seen. Kiriya idolized him because he represented progress, change, and something new that Valuar didn't have. If her parents had been like him, they might still be alive. With that conversation, Calen relented, and took to tutoring her when he had free time. She would be a great mage someday, he was certain of it. If only he could curb her stubbornness.
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(Full body art by AshtoxArt)
In their training sessions and outside of them, she strove to prove herself his equal. Calen was adept at Successions, flowing spell combinations that utilized the nakagari, or Delay submagic. Kiriya studied hard and learned the nakagari, and poured her focus into learning Successions. Calen could be found practicing with his blade in the sparring yard. Kiriya would sneak into the sparring yard at night after the Academy let out and try to imitate his technique.
Calen was a spell hunter for the Academy, and often went into the Deadlands alone. Kiriya ventured off into the Deadlands... and hasn't been seen for two weeks.
Now, Calen hunts for her, as he feels her disappearance is his fault. She was a good student, despite her stubbornness, and a promising mage. She had the talent to be a good fighter, and she made her grandfather proud with her progress at the Academy. Day after day, he ventures out under the excuse of spell hunting, hoping to catch her trail before it's too late.
