Malachite
The malachite stone
Role: Malachite Tainted
Gender: Female
Nickname(s): K, Grey, Kei
Age: 20
Appearance:
As far as first impressions go, Keira's always been considered rather fragile; practically emitting the feeling of 'if you touch her, she'll break'. This feeling is strong enough that people generally see her lean, practiced figure as skinny and rather small, fostering their thoughts that she needs protection (which is to the contrary, since she's usually the one protecting others. Or she used to.). In reality, she has curves like those of a dancer (though she usually hides behind baggy shirts), and is every bit as durable as the next guy. Beyond that, though, is her strange, startlingly green eyes beneath an equally green, short mane of hair; which has, more than once, earned her the thoughts of being weird, otherwise untouchable. At first glance? You can see that Keira isn't normal, and most keep their distance that way. Like a pretty doll in a glass case, only to be looked at, sometimes admired, as you happen to pass by.
Keira's dark hair is nowadays usually cropped short; well-managed, free and the type that never really gets messy. Her eyes are almost always brooding, a little cold, uncharacteristically burdened. If anyone knows her well enough, they'd find that she always seems a bit sad; though, if they did, they'd know why. Besides that, she naturally has an aura of peace and calm; which takes an effect on others whenever they stand close by. On that note, Keira is generally a nice and friendly enough person towards others; even if she's following Chaos. It's hard to tell what kind of person she is, through her aloof and distant manner.
Keira's dark green malachite stone is embedded just over her hip on her right side, in a place where it could, fortunately, be hidden from view. The gem itself used to be brighter, a much more vivid shade of green, but that changed when she crossed the line between 'pure' and 'tainted'. Because of it's hard-to-see position, Keira hasn't been subjected to much ridicule for it as a child; certainly nothing beyond the usual insults towards her abnormal hair/eye colours.
Preferred Clothing:
Keira isn't the type to really care about appearances. She believes in practicality, as simple as that. Most of her wardrobe consists of either white, black, green, and the shades inbetween; usually in the loose, easy-to-move-about-in kind of style. The only coordinating she ever does is getting up in the morning and grabbing the first set of clothes she can reach; which actually end up matching well, because everything's practically the same. The only exception is that Keira always wears a red, plaid scarf around her neck. "What can I say? It's warm."
Keira is unreasonably against wearing things like dresses and skirts. She won't even go near them. Kind of like an allergy, actually.
Height: 5'6"
Weight: 100lbs
Hair Color: Sea Green
Eye Color: Dark Green (or at least darker than her hair)
Personality:
Despite her conflicting alliance, Keira has always had, and still does have, a protector-like mindset; albeit less than she used to. When she was a child, she was always the one standing up for other kids and treating the wounds of random strangers, but that's another story for another time. The root of her powerful, underlying drive to help others comes from an almost overwhelming sense of empathy; which, in reality, came from the stone embedded in her side. This sense, before she learned how to ignore it, was strong enough to make her feel the wounds of anybody she happened to look at as if they were her own. As you can imagine, it could've easily broken her, turned her insane; and it almost did. Now, though, the worst that it can inflict is the occasional hurt, pangs of sympathy and the rare breakdown; all of which no longer impede her judgement. This change happened only three years ago, as she crossed to become Tainted. She changed, from the innocent, needlessly giving child into a detached, isolated adult; by way of post-traumatic effects.
Presently, or at least to strangers/other people in general, Keira is a very well-grounded individual. She never gets angry, and rarely ever shows any extreme emotion. Peaceful calm is the unbroken status quo. So, really, she's always rather nice and easy enough to get along with; the dependable, down-to-earth adult, albeit distant and incredibly hard to read. She doesn't believe in first impressions nor sides, and is willing to get along; if only for the brief lapse before returning to the hunt. She's sympathetic enough and knows how to read the mood/situation. The only thing she seems to be is a bit sad, as if something always weighs and bears down on her from all sides. As a result of that, people generally find it hard to get to know her well, hardly enough to call a friend. Not that many try now, when she's on the side of Chaos.
To her fellow allies? Keira may not seem like it, but she's a bit overprotective. They may not be that close to her, but she kept enough empathy to rush, without a moment's hesitation, into the fray to help them out. She also tends to mother her allies, especially if they happen to be younger than her (and they usually are), unconsciously opening up to them. Rather than anything else, she's careful, the kind to plan and think before speaking; her ticket out of failure. Sarcasm and scolds for simple, reckless acts would usually come from her. Keira has only one bad habit, when confronted alone by an enemy. She tends to talk to them; drawing out a conversation to sate her curiosity. She wouldn't be the one taking the first hit, either. More like acting on a need-to basis.
She might not seem like it, but Keira's quite the skeptic; especially to those that are passionate. Even if she doesn't believe in what she's arguing for, she'll be disagreeable just for the sake of the debate. She's not particularly stubborn, rather more like she thinks the world would be a better place if others would listen to counter arguments. The only things that she's thoroughly disgusted by is the topic of religion, and when people judge her without knowing anything; if you leave her be, she'll never stop.
The underlying reason for a person such as Keira to follow destruction? Revenge. That's all it is. Revenge for all the abuse that she's went through in her past, every insult and hit she's taken for the sake of a stranger. It mounted up, until the innocent, helping child she was turned into one that was unable to care. She just couldn't take it anymore.
- The incredible dislike for dresses
- She's bisexual. Just saying. She fell in love with a girl, once.
Likes:
+ Classical music of any kind
+ Sunrise/sunsets
+ Freedom
+ Generally being warm
+ Those who think before they speak
+ The feeling of having no obligations
+ Playing any instrument of any kind
Dislikes:
- The mistreatment of an instrument
- Sensory overloads
- Overwork
- Being stared at
- People who 'judge the book by its cover'
- Loud, sudden noises
Hobbies:
+ Playing instruments (mainly the violin)
+ Lazing around
+ Helping out random strangers for no reason whatsoever
+ Sleeping
Phobia(s):
- Swimming, large bodies of water
- The mention of her past
Skills:
Keira is a musical prodigy, a genius; particularly for string instruments. Her ability to self-learn is amazing, up to the point that, within a couple weeks/months of forced practicing, would make her sound almost like a professional. Composing and playing is like second nature, though she only does it for a hobby (or to raise money on the streets). Anything else besides instruments? Keira's horrible at them. She's okay at physical exercise, but only to the average. "The price to pay for a gift, I suppose."
Power:
In accordance with her gem, malachite, Keira has purely only healing and protective abilities; making barriers. These barriers are created when she visualizes them in a shape, for example a dome, and are usually translucent green, thin 'walls'. She can set them for a set number of damage before they break, or focus on one to stay alive for as long as she needs it to (though, of course, she can't keep it up forever). Overextending herself will first result in a bad headache, then unconsciousness. When put under pressure, these barriers will crack and splinter in accordance with how strong they are. They can also keep things in rather than keeping things out; for simpler purposes like keeping warm.
Keira's healing powers aren't, admittedly, as good as they could be. She can only heal by directly touching the wound and her gem, at the same time. Things like repairing broken bones, impaled objects and the odd gash here and there are within her ability. Anything larger? She'll only be able to stop the bleeding, and perhaps speed up natural recovery. Healing is rather time consuming, it's not bound to work instantaneously, and wears her out faster than her barriers. Hence why she'd rather protect than to deal with the havoc afterwards.
As you might have guessed from her powers, Keira's pretty much the pure defensive person in the group. Often times, she'll be able to see when a friend needs help and draw up a barrier around them. Her physical prowess isn't lacking, though not really fit to be constantly running everywhere. She thinks of herself more like a backup helper than anything else, part-timing as a strategist. One of Keira's few, useful aspects is her ability to carry herself without letting on a sound. But other than that, she isn't really trained in any kind of martial art; though it hardly requires technique to stab a dagger.
The last thing? Keira might not look it, but she can take hits. Lots of hits. Pain isn't a problem, but she'd prefer not being a punching bag.
Personal History:
When Keira was first conceived, her upper class parents didn't know what to think. Sure, they knew that such a strange child would raise suspicion and damage their reputation; but they weren't so bad that they could cast away a baby for the sake of that. So, as a compromise, they hid her away in a remote village while researching about people born with gems; hoping to find a 'cure' for what they thought of as a disease. A few years later, when they discovered the truth, they abandoned their attempts and left her with a paid, fake family; entrusting the knowledge of the gems to them so they could tell her when she was old enough. From then, Keira's real parents never tried to contact her again; and she herself never knew any truth until she was seventeen.
Her childhood years were relatively uneventful, the only upsides being the discovery of her musical talent and budding healing abilities. Many days were spent out in the streets (under parental supervision, though they never really understood her), helping out senior citizens, keeping people company or bandaging the odd wound. Keira's school life began with her being, strangely, popular and well-liked; as the weaker students found that she'd always stand up for them. It was never a secret when she came home covered in bruises under an innocently proud smile. However, kids who'd actually befriend her were an endangered species. There was only one, a girl named Rhea Bryant, a childhood pianist and friend she'd eventually fall in love with later.
Time went on in the usual, simple pace until she turned fifteen; where a random group of kids caught sight of her embedded stone by accident. The news spread like wildfire, and though the close-knit people around her knew she wasn't so special, rumors and lies poisoned the easy relationships she had. Within a month, Keira was completely alienated, besides her only best friend, who'd known all along.
The stress and peer-pressure from the ridicule around her began to build, often causing her to wonder why she'd even bothered to help the people around her. Negative emotions clouded over her feeling of empathy, making her far colder to those that threatened her than she used to be. Stages of minor depression had already begun. when her fake parents decided to finally tell her the complete truth, the week after her sixteenth birthday. And oh, was she bitter.
To admit, Keira had seen it coming. She'd been curious enough as a child to research the stone embedded within her; and had made the connection of similarities between its' folklore and her own personality. But the part about her true parents? Every child has their fantasies. This was just one that she'd rather not believe in. She was so completely furious that day that it triggered her barrier-making abilities, locking herself away and taking out her rage on everything around her like a temper tantrum. Whoever nearby was just unlucky.
The only reason she calmed down was because of her best friend; the one she'd fallen in love with. It didn't take much to let it all out, everything from her past, even a confession. This would probably be the only mental breakdown Keira's ever had, when the anger drained away to face cold, hard reality. In the hours that followed, she was comforted and accepted within Rhea's arms until she could smile again, though her outlook on humanity had dropped another couple notches on the way.
As it turned out, Keira's family had unanimously decided to relocate, without her vote. Instead of following, like how she was expected to, she and Rhea toured the country instead; stopping at cities and using their musical talents to collect quick money. They were close, more than friends could be, but happier than anyone would have ever known. For a year, anyway.
On the eve of her seventeenth birthday, the two and their caravan were ambushed by a group of bandits. The first thing Keira did was erect a barrier around as many people as she could; though the effort remained futile as more and more attackers flocked around each friend. This went on until the only ones left were her, Rhea, and a couple other innocent children hiding out among the trees. Keira's mind was thoroughly exhausted at this point, and with a serious headache, plus the unconditioned feeling of being cut almost everywhere, it wasn't entirely surprising that her barrier was literally falling apart.
And from then, it can't be surprising that they were found while making a getaway. The only reason why she survived out of them all was because Keira had collapsed, thought as dead; just moments after Rhea had taken an arrow for her. When she woke up the next morning, revenge was the only filling her mind upon the sight of her loved one's corpse. Revenge not only from the bandits, but for every wrong that had been committed against her. And thus flew away the rest of her regards for humanity, crossing the line to the Tainted.
For the next three years, Keira wandered aimlessly through the countries, doing the same thing alone as she had done with Rhea. Her frame of mind grew more stable, and at one point the Chaos spirit spoke to her to find Nature; along with the other gemstones. Her protective abilities were polished, developed until they shone while her edge with healing diminished with time. She herself fell into a daily routine, her demeanor became so far distant and lonely; though she's never thought about it before, when she believes there isn't a need for anybody else. And that, my friend, continues to bring us to now.
Other:
Keira always carries around with her a violin, within a hard, black case. It's rather worn, since it's the same as the one she used to duet with Rhea, but rich nonetheless.
All art belongs to their respective artists.