Amara Zaya Blaise
OC: Madoka Magica, Magia Record, Little Nightmares, RWBY, and MV
AMARA HAS BECOME THE CURRENT GOVERNESS OF THE MAW.All her other lore is still canon to her, and one might sometimes find her visiting land for special missions. But since the trauma of mercy-killing her foster daughter Giselle, the Maw is now Amara's main home, her purgatory, and her Labyrinth.Unlike her first reign as the Governess, she doesn't have Doppel sickness now. She stays in her Magical Girl form most of the time, though she's more reserved and melancholy than usual. She only turns Doppel if she has need to; for example to teleport, or if she's particularly distressed.Her Doppel form resembles the canon Lady from Little Nightmares, but usually also with a halo of tiny glass shards above her head, and glass in her eyes. More rarely, she might also sprout six black wings from her back, or a long tail with a lantern at the end.She can change between Magical Girl and Doppel forms at will, but only within range of a very powerful center of dark magic and despair. Two such centers are known to exist currently; her adoptive mother, and the Signal Tower in Pale City. The Maw is usually within range of the Signal Tower. Amara's mission and burden is to shelter and protect refugees from the Signal; both from the Paris Tower which did untold damage before it was destroyed, and also from the original Tower in Pale City. Within the safe, comforting walls of the Maw, the Signal has no sway.And perhaps the suffering of Amara's Paris Tower arc has changed her, leading to some degree of integration between her Magical Girl, Doppel, and even Witch aspects? That remains to be seen.BASIC INFO🔥Height: 5'4"
🔥Eyes: Violet
🔥Aura: Violet
🔥Hair: Black
🔥Orientation: Lesbian, ace-spec
🔥Affiliations: Salem's adopted daughter (current and always). Branwen tribe (still technically a tribe member, but doesn't live at the camp). Atlas academy (formerly). Gb Merlot's biological daughter (current life, not on friendly terms)
🔥Occupation: Governess of the Maw, Magical Girl (current). Fashion model, Mercenary, Bandit and raid leader (former), Student (former, undercover), Slayer of Silver-eyed heretics (former)
🔥FC: Yachiyo Nanami (Magia Record) and Homura Akemi (Puella Magi Madoka Magica)
🔥Religion: Devotion to Kannon/Avalokiteshvara. Believes in some, not all, tenets of Pure Land Buddhism
🔥Former religion: Cult of Ozma, The Circle
🔥Age: 18 (RWBY vols 1 - 3) to 20s (RWBY vols 7-8). Zero to 3+ yrs (starting in vol 8)
🔥Current physical age: ~20PERSONALITYAmara is a kuudere. On the surface she appears cold, reserved, and mostly emotionless. She feels passionately about those she cares for, but will rarely show it.She has strong depressive tendencies.Her greatest fear is seeing people she cares for badly injured, or horribly disfigured. This has happened before, and she blames herself. Because of this, it makes her angry, often to the point of irrationality, when someone she cares about puts themselves in danger, especially if it's for her sake.
CURRENT LIFE & RELATIONSThis section deals with her current life and her most recent past life. In vol 8 she died, was reincarnated, and was subjected to accelerated growth, so her relations from her most recent past life (pre vol 1 to vol 8) still apply to her new one (begun in vol 8).In her past life Amara was born into the Branwen tribe. Her family name is Cerridwen and her given name was [CLASSIFIED]. She may go by Amara Cerridwen, Amara Blaise, or Violet.She's not directly related to Raven. But Raven took an interest in her, due to her being born with a diamond-shaped birthmark on her left wrist which soon turned into her Soul Gem. Amara looked up to Raven as tribe leader, family friend, and mentor, and still greatly respects her. (This applies to the specific Raven she knows; see below. As for other Ravens in RP, it depends.)From a young age, Amara's family and tribe treated her with kindness and considered her Gem to be a good sign. She appreciates this because in some of her former lives, as a baby and child, she's been brutally abused and killed by parents and families who feared and hated her.Raven sent her to Atlas academy to learn how to kill Huntsmen and Huntresses. She already knew how to kill them. But she improved, and studied current weapons tech, fighting styles, etc.She considers all members of the Branwen tribe as her (semi-estranged) extended family, even if she disapproves of their life choices (ie anyone who's involved with Ozpin).The Raven she knows wanted to protect the tribe, to stay out of the war, and to have nothing to do with Ozpin. This could change, however, depending on future events. Amara considers any Branwen who works with Oz, or is friendly with Oz, to be extremely suspect and a danger to the tribe.Eventually, Amara got permission from Raven to leave Atlas academy early. She stayed at the Branwen camp a short while, taught her 'how to kill Huntsmen' class to high-ranking raid leaders, then left, to figure things out.Amara started working for Salem after vol 7 (in this AU there were several months between vols 7 and 8). In vol 8 she died and was reincarnated as gb Dr. Merlot's daughter, Zaya. Merlot technologically accelerated her aging (to the apparent physical age of 9) and used her as a test subject and tech scavenger. Zaya/Amara was then rescued by Salem, who adopted her as her daughter. Later her physical age was technologically accelerated to ~18 - 20. (Note: It was one specific Salem who rescued her from Merlot in RP! She is distrustful of other Salems, but it depends on the individual portrayal.)She believes Salem is the only hope of preventing the brothers from being summoned, until a way is found to destroy them and liberate Remnant.SETTINGS (for RP, solos, or whatever else): Wherever I want her to be, but her main home is currently the Maw. RPs can happen in almost any setting, or time period, including her past lives, or in the post-war future.
CONTENT WARNING: BULLYING, VIOLENCE, CHILD ABUSE, MENTION OF SEXUAL ASSAULT, RELIGIOUS ABUSE, RELIGIOUS TRAUMATHE BEGINNINGThe first life she can remember began in a small village, in a time before Huntsmen and Huntresses, before Maidens, before the present kingdoms existed. Her parents named her Naomi. She was considered plain, was timid, and was often ignored or bullied.One day, Ozma appeared to her in the form of a white fairy, somewhat resembling a cat or a weasel. Ozma offered to make her a Magical Girl, and to grant her a wish, in exchange for which she would spend the rest of her days killing Grimm, especially the hyperintelligent Hexeblume Grimm (aka Cearubled, Gehðubled, and other names). By killing Grimm she would be a hero and protector of the weak.Naomi said she would think about it. Not long after, a group of boys and girls beat her, humiliated her, and mocked her for supposedly being ugly and useless. Naomi already believed she was ugly and useless. They said she would one day end up old and alone, unwanted, unloved, and a useless burden on society. When the bullies finally left, she cried bitterly. Ozma took this opportunity to come to her and ask if she was now ready to make a Contract and become a Magical Girl. Naomi asked if Ozma could grant her eternal beauty and youth. Ozma replied yes. But exactly how the wish would manifest depended on Naomi's personality and karmic potential.So Naomi said, "I wish for eternal beauty and youth! I want to be a Magical Girl!"In a brilliant flash of light, Naomi was changed into a Magical Girl, beautiful and powerful. Ozma presented her with her new Soul Gem and weapons, and taught her to fight, use her magic, and kill Grimm. She did not yet know how her wish would manifest itself, and neither did Ozma. But she beamed with newfound confidence, which made her beautiful. She was full of joy.Naomi went out into the world and killed Grimm, protecting people, saving villages, and being loved as a hero. Her main prey were the fearsome and terrifying Hexeblume Grimm, monsters surrounded by self-generated storms, labyrinths of shifting corridors, rooms, windows, and whirling things ripped from nightmares and given deadly physical form. When she slayed the monster at the center, the labyrinth would disappear, leaving a Grief Seed.Grief Seeds, as Ozma explained, were important for keeping her Soul Gem healthy. With time, and especially with the use of magic, her Soul Gem's glow grew gradually dimmer as it was covered by pollutants. When a Grief Seed was held next to her Soul Gem, the Grief Seed would absorb the pollutants, restoring the Soul Gem's glow. Once a Grief Seed absorbed all the pollutants it could hold, Naomi was instructed to give it to Ozma, who would put it to use as an energy source in his fight against secret evil forces (led by someone or something called Salem).What would happen if her Soul Gem got too polluted and she had no Grief Seeds to cleanse it? She was only told that it would affect her ability to use magic, and would be a bad thing. So she needed to keep a ready supply of usable Grief Seeds on hand, which meant killing a lot of Hexeblume Grimm.Sometimes Naomi teamed up with other Magical Girls. They also had made Contracts with Ozma. They also had Soul Gems, and were tasked with killing Hexeblume Grimm and collecting Grief Seeds. But only Naomi had the gift of eternal beauty and youth. The others had wished for other things.Ozma and the Circle sought to unite all of Remnant, politically and religiously, under one banner. Naomi was ruthless and fanatically devoted to the cause, and was called Inquisitor Four. All people must be unified in worshiping Ozma, who was the one and only mediator between the gods and Remnant. If this universal unity of all people was not achieved, Ozma told them, one day the gods would return to Remnant, judge it, and annihilate it. Not a single man, woman, or child would be spared.So, to unify all people and avert the apocalypse, Four slaughtered anyone who resisted the expansion of the Holy Kingdom of the great and divine uniter Ozma.Whenever she saved a village from a Grimm attack, she told them that she did so by the power of Ozma, whose holy name must be worshiped and glorified above all else.Four would eventually learn that, as fulfillment of her wish for eternal beauty and youth, she would live many lives, dying and reincarnating over and over. She would not conveniently skip birth and childhood like Ozma, nor possess the bodies of others. In each life, she would be born of a new mother and grow up (depending on how long she survived). She would never appear to be older than 24, even if she lived to be much older. But she would usually die a violent death at a young age. Being a slayer of monsters is hazardous work...Eventually, there would be further revelations about her Soul Gem, and about what she was really fighting for. Four would come to see her interminable cycle of violent deaths and rebirths as a curse, and accordingly, she would adopt a new name...THE FIRST DEATHReincarnation isn't that uncommon. It's only thought to be so because most people who reincarnate (and not everyone does) have no conscious memories from past lives, though traumas and emotional unfinished business from past lives may affect their behavior. In each life, if she lives long enough, Amara (formerly Four) gradually recovers enough memories from her past lives, and from between lives, to know who and what she is, much to her dismay. She does not have total recall, but with training she can access any memory while in a special meditative state that is painful and difficult to achieve. And even then, insight does not equal healing.The first time Four died was while trying to defend a village from an old and powerful Hexeblume Grimm accompanied by a large pack of Beowolves. The Beowolves mauled her while she was held down by mechanical dolls produced by the Hexeblume's Labyrinth. She was impaled by a long shard of glass, also part of the Labyrinth. Finally, the iron hub from a wheel struck and cracked her Soul Gem, killing her.When Four's Soul Gem was cracked on that battlefield, she died. This is the case for every Magical Girl who dies while still a Magical Girl. Just as weapons and tools are conduits for aura, so are Soul Gems, but even more so. A Magical Girl's life force is bound to her Soul Gem, until death. Normally, death releases her from the cares of this life, and from her Contract. But in Four's case the bond persisted.After the village was laid waste and the Grimm moved on, Four's cracked, lightless Soul Gem still lay in the empty field where it had fallen. Her body was eaten by wild animals. Months passed. Heavy rains came and turned the field into a marsh. Her brief time in the afterlife ran out, and her soul was drawn back to the world of the living, the world of sorrow and curses. A dim violet light began to burn in the depths of her Soul Gem.One evening a caravan stopped by the marsh and set up camp for the night. After the Sun went down and most of the camp was asleep, a young woman named M. awoke from uneasy dreams. She left her tent to walk under the full Moon, wanting to clear her head. She saw something glowing in the shallow water of the marsh, and felt it calling to her. Wading in, she found Four's Soul Gem. Enchanted by the Soul Gem's beauty, she took it back to her tent and hid it away as her most precious possession.*************Soon the caravan passed by a city, where M. stopped to live, as she had relatives there. It had been M.'s wish since she was a child to dedicate herself to service at a Temple of Ozma, and she did so in the city she now called home. She lived at the Temple, tending the lamps, removing the offerings of flowers when they dried up, distributing food offerings to the poor, singing during ritual sacrifices, and helping the Priests and Priestesses clean up the blood of the animals and human children who'd been offered up for the glory of Ozma and the Brothers of Light and Darkness.She prayed day and night for the unity of humankind. Songs of love and praise echoed through the Temple halls. She had never been happier. But her happiness would be short-lived.She still had the Soul Gem, wrapped in a soft, luxurious black cloth. One night, alone in her chambers, the Soul Gem called to her. She unwrapped it and, driven by an irresistible urge, she ate it.She then fell asleep and dreamed of a Goliath Grimm that touched her stomach three times with its trunk. She awoke with a gasp. Though it made no sense, she knew with absolute certainty that she was pregnant.One morning a few months later, as M. changed into her ceremonial vestments, she saw that she had a baby bump. Her pregnancy was undeniable. She could hide it for a short while with loose garments, but eventually it would be obvious to all. She would soon have to leave the Temple life she so loved.M. cried bitterly. She contemplated going out alone into the desert and letting herself and the unborn fetus be killed by the elements, dehydration, or Grimm. As M. wept, Ozma came to her and told her not to fear, that the child she carried would grow up to be a great and powerful warrior, a slayer of monsters and heretics, and a protector of the people. The child, Ozma said, was a gift from the gods, a girl who she should call Naomi. (She would go by Four again, later, when she restarted her work as a slayer of monsters and heretics.)M. was still aggrieved, but she agreed to keep the child and to name her as instructed.She told her family what had happened. They were skeptical, thinking perhaps M. had been seduced or raped, but they helped her. They found a man named J., who agreed to marry her and to raise the child as his own. This way M. would avoid scorn and possible violence from the community, who would have labeled her a fallen woman and a desecrator of her sacred Temple vows. M. and J. went on a year-long honeymoon, so that when they returned with a baby no one would know that the time of birth was so soon after the marriage.Naomi was born with a purple diamond-shaped birthmark, which would soon turn into a purple gem embedded in the back of her left wrist. This was her Soul Gem. Not until she was 12 would it become a detachable bracelet. At that time she would also become able to transform its shape between different forms, including the bracelet, a ring, and an acorn-shaped Gem.She had memories from her past life, and after her death. They started as jumbled sense impressions and flashbacks, and gradually became more coherent.When Naomi could speak, she talked about her past life. J. reacted poorly to this, and to the appearance of the Gem in her wrist. He called her a cursed demon child, and beat her-- often severely. M. watched the beatings in silence, for she resented Naomi for ruining her happy life as a consecrated Temple maid.One evening when Naomi was seven years old, J. sent her to the market for fish. At the market she saw a bouquet of White Lilies for sale. They were so beautiful, she thought! Surely they would make her mother and stepfather happy. She purchased the White Lilies as well as some fish.When she got home, she smiled brightly at M. and J., holding the flowers up to them. J. became enraged, screaming at Naomi for bringing home less change than she was supposed to, just for some stupid flowers. As M. sat in a corner crying, J. knocked the flowers out of Naomi's hand, slapped her, kicked her, and threw her against a wall.As J. came at her again, Naomi's Gem flashed, and from her hand she shot a ray of violet flame at him. The flame burned his arm. He screamed in pain, then stared at the girl in terror.Naomi's Gem glowed purple. Her eyes were fierce embers of smoldering rage, glaring at her stepfather. "Never touch me again," she said coldly.J. fled the house, never to return.Naomi slumped to the floor, her back against the wall, breathing heavily.The Lilies lay scattered and broken on the floor. Their color had changed from White to a deep Orange, the color of flame."Mother," Naomi said, "I will cook the fish."
CONTENT WARNING: VIOLENCE, RELIGIOUS ABUSE, RELIGIOUS TRAUMATHE SECOND DEATH[When she was about 12 years old in this new life, Naomi finally started learning to control her powers. Soon she left home to embark once more on her career as a Magical Girl. Killing Hexeblume Grimm, collecting Grief Seeds, and slaughtering all who resisted Ozma...More about her second life to be added later(?)]*************After a few lives, Ozma abandoned the cult, but it persisted under new leadership, becoming even more fanatical as it awaited His immanent return. On one mission the Magical Girls encountered something they'd never seen before: a warrior who petrified and vaporized Grimm when a blinding light flashed from her Silver eyes. When told about the Silver-eyed Warrior, the cult's Leaders were surprised, and calmly stated that they should have killed her.From then on, besides killing Grimm, Four and the other Magical Girls were also ordered to kill any Silver-eyed Warriors who crossed their paths. Why kill Silver-eyed Warriors? Because they spread heresy. Silver-eyed Warriors convinced the people to put their hope and trust in them. Or worse, in themselves. Or worst of all, in the desire to preserve life, which they claimed resided in everyone and was at the ground of all Being. According to the Leaders, this heresy must be destroyed without mercy.From then on, Four slaughtered Silver-eyed Warriors as ruthlessly as she killed other dissenters and Hexeblume Grimm.If Silver-eyed Warriors got involved in her fights against Grimm, sometimes she would let them help...and then kill them and mount their severed heads on stakes, as a warning against heresy.[To be continued...]
SEMBLANCE, WEAPONS, MAGICSEMBLANCE[Note that I wrote about this semblance in Jan. 2020, long before the Fairy Tales of Remnant book preview revealed that the Relic of Choice grants similar powers.]
Semblance name: 'Dread.' She has visions of probable future events, almost invariably deaths and other tragedies. Usually she can't stop them from occurring, or she can but with a high risk of something equally bad or worse happening instead.This is like a cursed version of Garnet's Future Vision in Steven Universe. (But Amara does not see possible futures all the time.)Every future she sees is a possible one. Nothing is pre-determined, because fuck Calvinism.Amara has very little control of when she has future visions, or what they'll show. (She eventually learned to use her semblance on purpose, with great cost. It is rare that she will do so.)Amara once saw visions of her friend getting killed at a certain coffee shop the next day. So she begged her friend not to go. The friend laughed at her, saying she hadn't even planned to go there, but now she would just to prove that the vision was stupid and incorrect.Amara secretly followed her friend to the coffee shop hoping to protect her. The friend discovered her and they got into a huge fight. This attracted a swarm of Grimm, which killed the friend and almost everyone else there.She doesn't like talking about her semblance, especially with people she cares about.For many lives her future vision was a random occurrence over which she had little or no control. It still is, for the most part. But now, with great effort she can do it on purpose, if there is something she really needs to know about possible futures.Actively using her semblance like this feels like a bad drug trip, hurts her mentally and emotionally, leaves her physically exhausted, drains her aura to zero or near zero, and clouds her Soul Gem. It can also permanently warp her mind if she looks far enough, or often enough. She hates it, and it is very rare that she'll ever do it.It also drains her aura and clouds her Soul Gem when her semblance activates randomly, but not as much, depending on how bad the vision is and how long it lasts.
WEAPONSDaybreak: A small buckler shield on her left arm. May produce hard light extensions and force fields. Can transform into a one-arm crossbow that shoots dust-infused bolts.Ai-chan: A staff/pole-axe with Artificial Intelligence (NOT the dystopian art theft kind; fuck generative AI! It's basically a highly advanced accessibility dialog assistant). It has a golden data crystal at the top near the base of the blade. The blade changes shape and can retract into the body of the staff. Shoots lightning bolts and plasma balls. Ai-chan can fold into a small compact form to be easily carried on a belt.(Update: she lost Ai-chan when she was imprisoned by the French Palace Guard and then banished to the Maw. She now has a new wooden staff with one or more purple crystals, given to her by the Ferryman. She is only beginning to infuse it with new spells and learn how to use it. She may or may get Ai-chan back someday.)She also carries concealed dust-infused knives, for throwing and close combat. And concealed handguns. And explosives. Lots of explosives.Will often also use rifles, machine guns, and rocket launchers.
MAGIC[Her magic abilities are a work in progress.]She can set things alight with purple flames, and shoot purple flames from her hands. She can shoot lightning from her hands. She may or may not have other elemental powers, like ice and water. She cannot do this on the same scale as a Maiden. Nor can she levitate, fly, or control the weather.She has telekinesis. She can levitate and move objects through the air, open doors, etc.She can sense pain, suffering, and despair, including lingering psychic traces from past events.She can sense magic in others, and recognize the unique magical signature of someone she's encountered before. She generally cannot sense what specific abilities someone has, just a general sense of the quality and degree of power. If someone with magic has been in the area recently and she catches the 'scent,' she can track them, as long as the trail doesn't go cold. Silver eyes do count as magic in this sense. Amara can specifically sense if a Silver-eyed person is nearby, or was nearby recently. (This ability is taken directly from PMMM and Magia Record. Magical Girls can sense and track the magic of other Magical Girls, Familiars, and Witches. They also recognize magical signatures they've encountered before.)She can change the forms of flowers, summon flowers, or cause them to wilt. Sometimes she will cause nearby flowers to wilt without realizing she's doing it. All these flower-related abilities are heavily tied to her emotional state.By focusing on her own negative memories and emotions, she can intentionally darken her Soul Gem, becoming a beacon of despair capable of summoning Grimm. A large swarm of Grimm, if she takes it far enough. She cannot control Grimm, other than her rage and despair sending them into a frenzy where they attack and destroy everything in the area-- including her, if she is not surrounded by a wall of fire, force field, or other protection. This ability is very dangerous, because of the rapid clouding of her Soul Gem.Her semblance, Dread, was unlocked early in her first life, before she became a Magical Girl. Since becoming a Magical Girl, her semblance is for all practical purposes a magic ability, subject to the same limitations as the others.LIMITATIONS: Using any magic at all causes her Soul Gem to collect impurities, which manifest as dark cloudiness obscuring its natural violet color. Her Gem can be cleansed of these pollutants by Grief Seeds, so she must keep a supply of Grief Seeds on hand, if she can. If the cloudiness reaches a certain point, she will become physically weak and tired. If the cloudiness becomes total, a point of no return is reached, and she [CLASSIFIED], meaning the end of her life in human form, until she dies and reincarnates again. She hates and fears this, and tries to avoid it as much as possible.