Zoe Alanis

Real Name: Azura'ellys
Renegade Name: Skypiercer
Alignment: True Neutral
Age: 33 Years
Gender: Female
Race: Draela'ei
Hair: Silvery-White
Eyes: Sky-Blue
Height: 5’11” (180cm)
Weight: 158lbs (71kg)




Artwork by TopoYiyis and DarkCrow, respectively.



Azura is a simple creature, but just on the surface. Being withdrawn from most social circles, she doesn't appear to be much more other than an awkward hermit, content to sit alone at the café with a cup of tea and a good book. Dig a little deeper, however, and most will find not only a fierce survivor willing to die for a lost cause, but a bird that's far from broken, ready to barrel into danger at a moment's notice with talons outstretched and a shrilling cry.

All that said, even on her good days she's aloof and indifferent, preferring the comfort of solitude, which she has learned to love, over the company of other people, who she has come to fear. Prior to being stranded and enslaved, she's never needed to kill to survive, and while taking lives isn't something she enjoys, never be mistaken that she won't do it when her life is on the line, for if she can't save herself, she won't be able to save anyone else.



Voyager
Azura'ellys was born into the Draela'ei tribe, a race of skin-changing harpies descended from the legendary Changewing dragons of yore. Isolated on the Runestone Isles from the rest of the mythical Realm of Aurophia, no one knew they even existed, for an eternal storm surrounded the circle of islands on which they resided, never letting anyone enter... or escape.

Life was simple, but good. Food was plentiful. The people were kind. Family systems were close-knit, if not a tad unconventional. Rather than being raised solely by their parents, the younglings were passed along from couple to couple throughout childhood in a foster-like system, and because of this, they developed multiple interconnected families within the same tribe. Azura was no different - connected to all, yet belonging to none.

Navigator
Survival was considered the most important set of skills one could learn among the Draela'ei. Ever since she was old enough to toddle around, Azura had been taught the basics of hunting, fishing, foraging, and most importantly, sailing. Every few years resulted in a migration from one island to the next so that nature may replenish itself when resources became scarce.

The first time Azura voyaged and felt the freedom beneath a sail other than her wings was the moment she found her love of travel, eventually becoming the tribe's navigator once she came of age. All adult Draela'ei belong to one of three Circles - the Soil, the Sea, and the Sky. In order to transition from girl to woman, Azura underwent a ritual in the center island, gaining Skypiercer in the process, a physical representation of her connection to the Circle of the Sky.

For many, the story ended there, for Azura did not return to her tribe. Not alive, at least.

Survivor
A near-death experience came to Azura the day that she entered the Circle of the Sky. Awakening in another reality, she found herself on an island not unlike her own, but perilous; threatening; hazardous; dangerous. The people trapped there were locked, loaded, and uneasily coexisted with an eldritch army that she came to know as the Order of Ouros.

Azura was captured by the survivors and enslaved into pit fighting eldritch abominations, and many horrific things happened throughout this period. The lucky ones were killed. Azura was not. Upon escaping, a one-woman war was waged against the island itself, learning of the cult's infectious motivations in the process, including their intent to invade her homeland and seed Aurophia.

Once she returned to her home dimension, a terrible truth made itself known. Either through time, space, or some other cosmic catastrophe, everyone was gone. Azura had failed. Ever since then, she's been bringing the fight to the Order of Ouros, wherever - or whenever - they might be.



Minor Skills
Azura possesses a number of minor skills.
- Athletics
- Crafting
- Nature
- Stealth
- Survival

Survival Instincts
Azura knows many survival skills, both tutored and self-taught. Apart from hunting, fishing, foraging, and tracking, she knows how to skin and quarter game, operate sailboats, and is proficient in scrapping (with a fighting style reminiscent of kickboxing) and primitive weaponry (with her expertise being the bow and arrow).

Celestial Navigation
Azura is the navigator of her tribe. By observing the stars in the night sky, she can determine which way is which and always knows where she is and what direction she's going in, as well as other little things, such as telling the time of day and reading horoscopes.



Draela'ei Physiology
Azura is a Draela'ei, or a draconic harpy. Armed with several natural features, she possesses sharp talons and canines, tough scales along her back, naturally reinforced bones, an enhanced sense of smell, and vision keen enough to rival a bird of prey, featuring the ability to zoom in and out. An average flying pace of 55mph (88kph) allows her to cruise the skies with highly dexterous aerial maneuverability, and under certain circumstances she can fly considerably faster.

As a Draela'ei, she can shed her skin to appear fully human, losing her natural abilities in the process. When not a part of her body, her skin will appear in the form of a scaled hide, although partial sprouting is possible so long as the skin is in her possession. Shedding and sprouting does not adjust her clothing, and if she isn't careful, doing so could destroy what she's currently wearing.

Mana Wellspring
Azura can harness mana, a form of spiritual healing magic, by drawing from her own personal wellspring. All natural things possess mana, and the Draela'ei have an abundance of it. When emptied, mana takes about 1 hour to fully regenerate, but this process can be sped up by resting in mana-rich environments, such as forests.

Being a healing force, she can channel mana to heal herself at an abnormal rate. Cuts and bruises can heal after 10 minutes, while more severe injuries like internal bleeding and broken bones can take up to 3 hours. This requires continuous mana use and is not a natural part of her physiology.

Circle of the Sky
Azura belongs to the Circle of the Sky. Using mana, she can perform environmental acts pertaining to the sky, from summoning a small gust of wind to a miniature twister or thunderstorm, among other things. Heavier feats require more effort, and the more mana she'll use. For example, 9 light-effort feats, 3 medium-effort feats, and 1 heavy-effort feat would completely drain her of mana.



Personal Belongings
Azura carries with her some personal belongings.
- Arrows (20)
- Woven Handbag
- Sharptooth Dagger

Skypiercer
Azura wields Skypiercer, an enchanted bow. Mystical in nature, the wood has a durability on par with steel, is tipped with large, serrated teeth on both ends, and can be both stored in and summoned from its own personal hammerspace, along with its arrows. When in hammerspace, it appears as a tattoo on her forearm.

Animal Tokens
Azura attaches several animal tokens to Skypiercer, which grants her the ability to transform into them so long as she possesses her mystical bow. The species she is allowed to turn into are limited to those that belong to the Circle of the Sky, such as birds, bats, and other airborne creatures. Unlike shedding and sprouting, items that aren't part of the change will disappear into hammerspace along with her bow.



Mortal Flaws
Azura is still just a mortal being. While the scaled parts of her body are capable of shrugging off tooth and claw, her face, chest, and stomach have same durability as human skin. An arrow to the heart would kill her just as dead as it would anyone else, and when stripped of her powers and equipment, she is as powerless as any normal woman.

Shed Skin
Azura's power comes from her draconic skin. Without it, she will be trapped in human form and lose access to her mana. After being separated from her skin, madness and depression will slowly begin to set in (reaching its peak after 3 days), and she will do anything to get it back. If the skin is destroyed, she will remain mortal forever.

Talismans
Azura is weak against certain talismans, which possess an abundance of counter-mana to her own. Protective talismans that ward off bad mojo will also repel her should she harbor ill intent, wearing a binding talisman will trap her in whatever form she's currently in, and so on.

Sky Iron
Azura is vulnerable against sky iron. Coming into contact with sky iron burns like branding iron and disrupts her mana flow, while wearing anything made of sky iron nullifies it altogether. Wounds caused by weapons made of sky iron heal twice as slowly and cannot be healed by mana.

Dragonsbane
Azura is susceptible to a mythical plant called dragonsbane. When ingested, discomfort becomes unbearable pain, and irritability blossoms into a full-on frenzy, turning her into little more than an aggressive animal. If the herb is not purged from her system, she will eventually die of poisoning.



Crickets chirping and mayflies dancing signaled the arrival of dusk in what was normally a very quiet and secluded little aviary located on Metropolis’s woodlands-y outskirts. “Goodnight, Zoe. I’ll see you tomorrow, hm?” said an elderly gentleman, sending his employee off with a cheerful wave.

Zoe raised a hand, opting to give a small, forced smile as her boss disappeared into the blackness of the night, leaving her stranded in the rough strewn parking lot. As soon as he was gone, her smile faded, replaced with something much more solemn - much more tired. A petite hand leathered from work reached up to rub the bags beneath her eyes, as if she could coax the sleep itself out of them.

Even the strong grew weary after a while, and the creature known as Azura’ellys was no exception. It’d been hard arriving. It was only by the good graces of her ancestors and their spirits - should they still even be watching over her - that an especially kind soul managed to register her into the system, and by extent, allow her to hook up with such an amazing job.

The job in question was none other than looking after and caring for birds, which included a very talkative raven called Menagerie, the star attraction of the aviary. While not generally known to the vast majority, the raven had begun to cultivate something of a following amongst underground bird lovers for her eerie communication skills. They were so developed, in fact, that she could hold an actual conversation with curious speakers, albeit very simple, primitive ones. Needless to say, the public was in love.

Zoe slung her woven bag over her shoulder and reached behind her head, undoing the complex pattern of hair bands that were lost in the thicket that was her mane of silver hair. With one good shake of the head, the entirety of her locks came fluffing down, and as she did so, something caught the corner of her eye. Twisting her neck - one that was perhaps just a tad too flexible - she craned around to lock onto the movement not too unlike a bird of prey that had spotted a-

Mouse?

Something escaped the back of her throat - a small laugh. What was she getting so worked up about? Plenty of creatures inhabited these outskirts, she knew that much. Feeling silly - and no little amount of embarrassment - Zoe turned the other cheek and began heading down the beaten path towards her little rented room.

As she did so, however, the mouse began to contort into something else entirely. Something humanoid.