Rasha

## Lore

*Caged Wings*

Rasha always dreamed of leaving her home and wander around.

People from all over Etryna sang songs about the beautiful High Elf capital, Al'Falas. It was believed to be blessed by the gods. Maple trees with golden bark and crimson leaves grew from the fertile ground. The city was built with yellow bricks, and the buildings all had red shingles on their roofs. They used fire lanterns to illuminate the streets at night, so that no matter the time of day, the whole city glowed like the rising sun.

Or at least, that was what Rasha had been told. She'd never seen it with her own eyes, other than a single maple tree that was visible out her bedroom window.

Rasha was the youngest daughter of the consul of Al'Falas, but she had never actually seen the city herself.

She's spent her whole life locked up in her home. Her family put bars on all the windows and instructed the mansions guards to never let her leave the house. When the consul had company over, Rasha was locked in her bedroom until they left.

Rasha grew up being told she was cursed, and a shame to her family. Despite her family's pure elven bloodline, she was born with talons, wings and covered with fiery red feathers, a harpy.
Her father turned her away in disgust. Her mother cried every time she saw her, as if Rasha was evidence of some past sin. Even the caretaker who brought her food wouldn't look her in the eye.

One night, Rasha overheard her father praying before bed.

"How could my daughter have been born as such an abomination? Harpies have long been the cursed renegades of the High Elves. Why would the God of Gods do this to me? Why would he make my daughter a monster fit for the Dark Lord's army!?"

The idea has weighed Rasha down ever since. Does father truly believe I am a monster? Just because the harpies served the Dark Lord, do I destined to do the same? Do my wings really have power over my heart and mind?

As the consul of the city, Rasha's father feared the political fallout that would happen if his daughter was discovered. People would be outraged that he didn't put her to death immediately after she was born.

Harpies caused so much devastation to Al'Falas in the past and the High Elves were not ready to forgive.

Rasha felt desperate and began destroying her bedroom's furniture out of anger, hoping it would get the attention of her father. However, the wealthy family simply replaced the furniture every day, without saying anything to her about it.

Rasha had an idea. If she kept honing her destructive capabilities, one day she'd be strong enough to break the bars and set herself free.

She began practicing on her furniture every day, learning to snap different kinds of material with her claws and throw her feathers like knives.

One day her father stopped replacing her furniture and stopped letting her wander around the house by herself. She was locked in her barren room for weeks, without so much as a word from her family.

Her home had become a prison. Every day she would attempt to break the iron bars in her bedroom window, but she never succeeded. She was living in a cage.

Rasha had given up hope. She cradled herself in the corner and cried throughout the night. But suddenly she felt a dark presence fall over the room. The moonlight from her window was blocked by a dark figure. Then she heard a slice and a snap! The iron bars in her windows fumbled to the floor. She looked up and saw a mysterious man enter the room.

"The Dark Lord sends his regards."

The man suddenly vanished just as suddenly as he arrived. "The Dark Lord?"

Rasha remembered her father's prayer. Is she really destined to join the Dark Lord's army? Will these old stories decide how she chooses to live her life?

Rasha walked over to the window and saw the maple tree. For the first time, it was unobstructed by iron bars. The street lights gave it a radiant glow. It filled her with hope.

Rasha stepped out the window, spread her wings, and flew.

She smiled as she rose into the sky, and looked at the brilliant city shimmering below her. There's no turning back now!

She flew to a nearby tower, and perched on a small ledge like a gargoyle.

"What if what they say is true?" She thought, "Al'Falas is gorgeous. Could it really be my destiny to destroy it?"

The sun began to rise over the horizon, scaring off the shadows. Golden sunlight washed over her, and made her feathers glow a fiery orange.

## Synergy

Gorestomp

Reinhardt

Wukong

Beau