Alysanne Waters

**Alysanne Waters** is a major character in Book 1. She is an assassin, working together with Clayton Teryl and Kersea Catelins. Having grown up under harsh conditions, Alysanne has a damaged psyche and is highly unhinged and violent, seemingly unable to understand concepts such as love or frindship, yet underneath her physical and mental scars, she yearns exactly for these things.

## Background

Alysanne was born as a Lysene, the child of unknown parents, with no recollection of either of them. She can't even be too sure if she was truly born in Lys, but takes the information given to her for granted. Born into slavery or, as she believes, sold by her own parents at a young age, Alysanne grew up in the brutal pits of Astapor, where she had to fight other children for the amusement of her master.

Reluctant at first, Alysanne was a sweet kid, not cut for the pits and most gave her only a few years to live at most. However, she proved them wrong when, during her first real fight, something inside her snapped. Forced to fight for her survival, she changed and brutally killed the child sent to kill her. This act broke her and warped her personality, as well as her sense of right and wrong.

Growing up in these pits, Alysanne came to see them as nothing wrong. She even grew to enjoy the act of fighting, of inflicting pain and killing, stating that it was the only time she could ever truly feel alive. By the age of fourteen, she had already killed more people than most would do in a lifetime.

Having financial troubles, her master eventually decided to sell her though. Ironically, he chose to sell her in Lys, sending Alysanne and several other slaves back across Essos. On the way to their destination, Alysanne heard about an escape plan the other prisoners came up with and they asked her to be a part of it.

Seemingly accepting, Alysanne, already a complete opportunist by then, took no chances. Instead, she warned the guards and after the other slaves had been caught and punished for their actions, Alysanne blackmailed the guards, asking for nothing more than to be sold to a location better than the pits she crawled from.

This location turned out to be Lys' most famous pleasure house. Alysanne, never a particularly lustful person, nonetheless mastered the arts of seduction and pleasing a man with the same methodic precision she used to kill people back during her time in the pits. Well-liked for her rough appeal, there was one custome who was particularly enchanted by her.

The man was a wealthy Lysene merchant, a man as rich as he was lonely and he came to genuinely like Alysanne. Buying her, he brought her to his mansion, where Alysanne made a contract with him. She would be his, acting almost as his wife, giving him company and pleasing him in any way he liked. In return, he would teach her. The man, rich and well-read, gave Alysanne the best education possible in the following years, teaching her how to read, how to write, educating her about geography, history and, as she absolutely insisted, exotic swordplay, turning her into an even more deadly killer.

In retrospect, Alysanne would say that she was happy during these short few years. However, it shouldn't last. The man's family, envious of her status as his favourite, poisoned the merchant and framed Alysanne for it, forcing her to leave her home and the inheritance he had promised for her. She kept the skills she learned though and used them to do what she was always best at, becoming a killer for hire.

It was around the same time that she met with Clayton Teryl. Impressed by his own ruthless approach to killing, she found herself enjoying his company and he saw her for the useful weapon she was. After running a few missions together, he offered her a place among his team of killers, all of which were working for the Oldtown-based crimelord Butterfly. Alysanne accepted gladly and joined a larger group for the first time, also making first contact with the groups newest members, Raenna Minsworth and Kersea Catelins.

Over the time, Alysanne grew only more unhinged, every kill further turning her into a remorseless psychopath. She became Clayton's favourite, the best and strongest of his group and as such, it was only natural that she survived the botched mission that claimed the lives of most of her teammates, excluding Clayton, Kersea and, unbeknownst to each of them, Raenna.

Shortly before the story began, Alysanne was sent to the city of Raylansfair, together with the remnants of her group, now supported by the killer Wolfius Woodbark. Their mission was a simple one: They were to prepare Butterfly's takeover of the city, by eliminating key targets and pushing the wrong people to replace them, weakening and destabilizing the city as a whole.

## Book 1

### Broken Vows

Alysanne is first seen, though not yet named, when Richard Harking chases after Wolfius, after he had caught the killer in the act of murdering an innocent woman. Pursuing him into the warehouse Alysanne and her group had taken for their hideout, he was lured into a trap and it was Alysanne who wounded him the most, shooting him in the leg with a crossbow, before cruelly taunting him for his coming death.

### We Write History

Her first named appearence in the story comes a bit later, when Kersea is first seen the day after she spared Richard Harking's life. Alysanne, still a bit distant from Kersea yet undeniably curious about the other woman, greets her while getting ready to learn more about her day's work. She also seems to express interest in Wolfius, considering him and his outlook on life fascinating and being the first person to not be entirely disturbed by him.

Kersea decides to tell her about Richard Harking's survival, something that leaves Alysanne baffled, as she expresses disappointment in Kersea leaving him to die instead of killing him herself, though she ends up agreeing to keep this a secret from Clayton. Ultimately, Alysanne remains behind, while Kersea and Wolfius leave to kill Halla Peddle and Jenna Harking respectively. She expresses annoyance over this, considering herself to be the best of the killers, yet also the only one who had to remain behind this entire time.

### Butterfly

Once more, Alysanne is the first to greet Kersea when she returns to the hideout after the successful assassination of Halla and the failed attempt on Jenna's life. Cheerful and upbeat, she comforts Kersea after her breakdown over the failure, claiming that she considers them friends, even if she is clearly unable to properly grasp the concept, instead merely imitating how friends act. She outright asks Kersea if they are friends and is overjoyed when she receives a positive answer.

Alysanne is later present during Clayton's punishment of Kersea and while apathetic at first, she later intervenes and stops him from breaking her hand, if only due to a claim of her being useless to the cause if she would end up crippled from this. She then watches the fallout between Clayton and Wolfius, which ends with the killer leaving the trio of assassins.

### The Iron Price

Shortly afterwards, Alysanne leaves for a scouting mission, though she returns after she spots the city guard closing in on their position. Her information gives Clayton an advantage, though he ends up callously using Alysanne, for the first time to her knowledge, when he gives her a particular part in his plan. While she is going to keep the city guard busy, he will shoot a flaming arrow at the oil-filled warehous, igniting it while she is supposed to escape on her own before he shoots.

They go through with this despite Alysanne's crippling fear of fire. She expresses discomfort with this, though remains to fight against the city guard. During this fight, she single-handedly kills several guards, wounds Jarow, and holds Richard Harking, Urid Strad, Philip Loren and Darren Tallwood at bay. However, Clayton ends up shooting the arrow while she is still inside, leaving her trapped and soon, she is wounded by Philip, ending up with her existing burn wounds further hurt by fire. It is only due to intervention from Kersea that she survives at all, though she is left to recover in their new hideout, a small flat somewhere in the poorer parts of the city

While disappointed in Clayton for nearly killing her, Alysanne actually ends up understanding his point of view and she agrees to continue working with them, even if she makes it clear that a lot of trust she had for Clayton is gone after this action.

### Masquerade

Alysanne is first shown in this chapter while Kersea cleans her wounds. The burns on her shoulder had become only worse, potentially affecting her permanently, with the skin scarred and irritated. However, she and Kersea bond while her friend treats her wound and Alysanne expresses gratitude over being saved. It becomes clear that she is overwhelmed by this friendship, as it has become more than she ever thought, especially with never having had a friend before. For the first time, she also speaks against Clayton, if hesitantly.

During their talk, Alysanne shows interest in Kersea's life before she joined Clayton's team. She also confides in her about her own past, how her parents sold her into slavery. The two women bond over their shared pain, but Alysanne implores her to never tell anyone else, especially not Clayton, who would only use it to hurt her.

While Clayton and Kersea leave to kill Septon Corbin, Alysanne remains behind, her wounds too severe to properly fight. Due to this, she is the first of the trio to encounter Rayden, Clayton's old nemesis. Forced to spend time with him, she is freed from her situation by the return of a successful Clayton and Kersea. After Rayden left, all three assassins agree, for the first time, that the man has to be dealt with as soon as possible and they make a plan on how to kill him.

### Valar Morghulis

A day later, Kersea, Clayton and Alysanne all accompany Rayden and his companions to the Raylansfair lighthouse, where they are supposed to take control over the wildfire Harris Flowers has stored there. Unbeknownst to Rayden, this is also planned to be the occasion they will use to get rid of him and his men, something Alysanne looks greatly forward for.

Before they leave, Alysanne takes a stance for Kersea for the first time, protecting her from Clayton's vicious temper and giving him some pause. Nonetheless, she remains loyal to him and accompanies the two on their mission, with a plan of Alysanne's making, designed to kill Rayden's men and the guards at the lighthouse.

To Kersea's surprise, this plan works perfectly well, ending with the lighthouse guards and Rayden's companions dead, while Rayden himself is captured. Clayton intends to torture him, something Alysanne takes great delight in, as they take turns to stab him with their knives. After Kersea puts an end to this by cutting Rayden's throat, Alysanne is shown to be mildly disappointed, yet she nonetheless protects her from Clayton's following wrath.

While Clayton leaves to blow off some steam, Kersea and Alysanne are left to inspect the lighthouse. There, she comforts her friend, finally fully opening up to her. She tells her everything, about her regrets over her messed up life, how she knows Kersea cannot continue doing this and how she herself considers herself too far gone to get out of this. They share a hug and Kersea gives her a promise that one day, she would free herself and Alysanne both, with Alysanne being supportive of this course of action, implying that she intends to take Kersea's side in the increasingly inevitable fight with Clayton.

### What Is Dead May Never Die

Still affected by her injuries, Alysanne remains in the lighthouse, guarding the wildfire, while Clayton and Kersea are out in the city to find their next targets, the knights Lucas Flowers and Leonard Constantine. She remains oblivious to the failure of their mission and Kersea switching sides, after being reunited with Raenna and her sister. After Clayton is forced to flee, having to face both former members of his group, she scoffs at his accusations, claiming that Kersea would never betray her.

In a way, her statement holds truth, as Kersea indeed never intended to turn on her. However, when seeing Raenna with her, something triggers inside Alysanne and she becomes paranoid about losing her friend again. As such, she refuses to talk things out, instead attacking Raenna and severing part of her right ear. This in turn sends Raenna into a rage and the two women fight, with Kersea being prevented by Clayton to intervene. However, during this fight, Alysanne proves just how good she truly is, when she manages to dominate Raenna, while simultaneously breaking up the fight between Clayton and Kersea.

The fight ends in tragedy, when Alysanne throws Raenna off the side of the lighthouse and seemingly to her death, despite Kersea's desperate pleas. This puts their friendship at risk, as Alysanne instantly notices when Kersea, for the first time, yells at her, even slaps her in anger and quickly, she realizes just how much she messed up, now trying to apologize or justify her actions.

This is cut short when a new opponent arrives. Raylansfair's acting lord, Harris Flowers, knowing of the wildfire in the lighthouse, has come to take it, to save his city, only to be confronted with three highly trained assassins. After Clayton gleefully admits to the murders of Robert Raylan and Maester Eaton, a fight breaks out, though Kersea quickly turns on Clayton, trying to kill him instead of Harris. Noticing this, Alysanne keeps Harris busy, though at the same time, she diverts her attention to keep Clayton from overpowering her friend.

In the end, this turns out to impact her a bit too much, when Harris gains the upper hand. Using her fresh burn wounds against her, he incapacitates her, before severely wounding and crippling Clayton just moments later, by cutting off his sword arm. With Alysanne on the ground, he then turns against Kersea, stating his intention to kill her for his role in the deaths of Halla Peddle and Septon Corbin.

Alysanne, momentarily recovering from her pain, jumps up as he is about to strike Kersea down, stabbing him in the side. Harris lashes out at her, knocking her down again and then moving in to kill her. This however means he has to turn his back on Kersea, enabling her to kill him by pushing the dagger into his neck, but not before he fatally impaled Alysanne through the abdomen.

As she lies dying, Alysanne apologizes for the pain she caused through her seemingly killing Raenna. Kersea, desperate over losing the last friend she has in live, forgives her, stating she will forever remain her friend. This gives Alysanne some peace, before she ultimately passes away.

## Appearance

Alysanne is a woman in her mid-twenties. Not particularly tall, she has a lithe, toned physique and if it wouldn't be for the marks of a harsh life, she could have even been a genuinely pretty woman. By now, the only beauty left in her are her green eyes. She has dark hair, which she wears tied into a bun, as well as pale skin, the latter of which is common for the Lysene. Scarred from battle, she has a particularly notable on her cheek and a second one on her neck. The most notable scars on her body are the burn scars though, covering most of her waist and left arm. She covers them with bandages, leaving these in return uncovered and only wearing a leather vest to cover her chest, without protecting her waist or arms in any way. Of particular note is her unsettling facial expression, which usually shows her pure bloodlust and a nearly manic grin.

## Personality

Shaped by her cruel upbringing, it cannot be said how much of Alysanne's mental issues have been hers by birth and how much has been forced onto her during her childhood in the fighting pits. What can be said is that these years meant she never had a chance. Broken in spirit before even reaching her teens, she was raised into a psychopath. Never taught a proper moral code, she adopted her own, which included a severe lack of guilt for any of the things she had done. Forced to kill, she eventually came to enjoy it, enjoying the thrill of a fight, the spilling of blood and even the pain when she herself suffered an injury, as it drowned out the otherwise unbearable numbness of emotions. Sadistic and bloodthirsty, she comes across as very unsettling, cheerful even in the midst of battle and enjoying slaughter all around her. She also has a screwed perception of the world around her, leaving her seemingly oblivious or uncaring to cruelty around her.

However, as easy as it would be to mark Alysanne as just another monster, that's not all there is to her. With the emotional maturity of a pre-teen, she is actually seeking something deeper in her life, knowing that she lacks something, but not aware what exactly. This leaves her confused and as she is unable to show her emotions properly, it only adds to the unsettling aura surrounding her. Slow to trust anyone, she has always considered the concept of friendship laughable, though when getting closer to Kersea, she finally realized just what she was lacking all her life. Even then, she only came to the conclusion that she is too messed up to change, but nonetheless, her friendship with Kersea brought up the best traits in her. Loyal to a fault, fiercely protective and caring, at least to a single person, she slowly started to change. However, it also highlighted her irrational aspects and her possessive nature, as she was filled with an almost childish fear of losing her new friend.

## Relationships

### Kersea Catelins

The relationship between Kersea and Alysanne is equally complex as it is important for both. Coming from a friendless and loveless background, Alysanne had always been convinced that she needed neither. Kersea meanwhile had more pressing matters to tend to than to make friends and so, both worked together for years without interacting much. It was only after Kersea's best friend, Raenna, was presumed dead that Alysanne started to take notice of the woman. Something about her intrigued the usually cold-hearted killer and she became to wonder if she missed out on anything in her live. As such, she tried to get closer to Kersea, as clumsy as her attempts were. At first, Kersea was reluctant to reciprocate these feelings and she had a largely negative opinion on Alysanne. However, during the worst abuse she suffered from Clayton, she finally turned to Alysanne, being in the need of friendship and company. As such, they grew genuinely closer and it was Kersea's influence that caused Alysanne to doubt what she had previously thought of life in general and her own in particular. Coming to the realization that she lived a broken life, she clung to Kersea as the only light she had left, becoming fiercely protective, but also possessive of her. In return, Kersea actually came to like Alysanne as a close and genuine friend. The only time they had a severe argument was when Alysanne seemingly killed Raenna out of jealousy, leading to Kersea slapping and yelling at her in a state of shock. Even then, Alysanne's loyalty did not fade and she protected Kersea from Clayton and Harris, even fully willing to give up on her own life for the best and only friend she ever had.

### Clayton Teryl

At the beginning of the story, Alysanne is unfailingly loyal to Clayton, whom she considers not a friend, but a trusted ally. The feeling is mutual, even if Clayton's treatment of Alysanne has always been a bit neglectful. He never saw more in her than a tool, a weapon to unleash at the right moment and for the most time of their relationship, she didn't want to be anything else. However, her growing friendship with Kersea tarnished their relationship, up until Clayton's neglect even caused her great harm, when she was nearly killed by a fire he started. Eventually forced to pick sides, Alysanne chose Kersea, turning against Clayton and preventing him from killing her new friend.

### Raenna Minsworth

Alysanne never liked Raenna, even back when they were still working together, a feeling that was mutual. Always considering her unhinged and dangerous, Raenna kept her distance and neither hid their dislike for the other. However, it was Alysanne's growing friendship with Kersea that caused dislike to explode into jealousy. When Raenna turned out to be not dead, Alysanne snapped, seeing her as a threat to the only friendship she ever had and reacting in the only way she knew, through violence. After nearly killing her with a strike, Raenna stopped holding back with her dislike as well and the rivalry between the two women ended in an open fight.

### Wolfius Woodbark

Quite surprisingly, Alysanne gets along splendidly with Wolfius and the feeling is largely mutual. Being birds of a feather on a surface level, Alysanne is drawn to his reckless violence and actually almost attracted to it. While both are incapable of having genuine romantic feelings for each other, he notably remains the only person she ever even shows a bit of attraction to. In return, Wolfius seems to treat Alysanne with slightly more charme than what is usually expected of him.