History: Aikine’s story begins before she was even alive, in some senses. Her egg was laid to two Asari parents who were part of a traveling caravan as traders or such. However, not long after that, the caravan was attacked and her parents were forced to flee for their own safety, leaving Aikine’s egg behind.

The remnants of the caravan were recovered later, within a few days, and the egg was found within; the people who found it had no way of locating Aikine’s parents, or even travelling to the nearest Asari/Thordani village. Faced with a complicated question and not a lot of time to solve it, they pass it off to the nearest tribe of avariel (winged elves) who are nearby, acknowledging that it’s not what they want to do, but it’s the best available solution.

The Avariel, who worship Faenya, the same goddess as the Asari, are able to hatch Aikine’s egg. She is then raised in their village; while the upbringing is not itself harsh or cruel, she’s always a bit of an outsider. Not because of her race, but because Asari grow to adulthood on a human timescale, and the time it takes elves to grow to adulthood is much longer. So AIkine was “perpetual new kid” as she continually outgrows her peers. When she becomes an adult, eventually she decides to find her own people, leaving the Avariel.

Fascinated by the innate magic used by some of the Avariel, being told that you either had the spark or didn’t, was a formative moment for her. Unwilling to take no for an answer, she applied herself to the study of arcane magic, determined to learn and prove herself. (In D&D terms she’s a wizard, in that she studies magic and learns, rather than having innate natural spark like a sorcerer.) This rebellious drive has continued throughout her life; telling her she can’t do something often results in her deciding to do it anyways, just to prove the other person wrong.

The wizardess eventually did find her way back to the territory of her people. However, when she arrives, she finds again, she’s an outsider. She’s a laity, and has some complex thoughts on Faenya, given her upbringing and backstory. She also is by that point someone who uses arcanism regularly, and the Thordani and Asari villages are somewhat distrustful of arcane magic, much preferring divinity from Faenya. Aikine’s primary goals are to find her parents (or learn their fate), and to gain the respect of her own native people, even despite her issues. To prove that arcane magic is a valid source of power, and that while it can be used for terrible things, that’s on the person using it, not on the arcanism itself.