Yurika Yakeru

## General Information

### ☯**Personality**

Cocky, self-assured, and definitely proud - Yurika flaunts herself like she were larger than life. Such is her confidence that she sometimes dips into carelessness and arrogance. Make no mistake about what she thinks of others, though - she may see herself as the epitome of awesome, but she also sees the potential for the same in others, and hopes to tap into that. Failing that, she looks forward to them using said potential to the fullest extent; she is particularly impressed by those who work hard to get to where they are now and continue to do so.

While weakness in itself won't provoke any adverse reaction from her, she does get annoyed when people needlessly waste resources or talents in pursuit of something. She also treats arrogant people who fail to back their pride up with scorn, hypocritical as that may sometimes be.

Her curiosity is one to be reckoned with, insatiable and eager for more. Rarely would she be satisfied with a brief answer; she tends to ask a little more than usual and demand proof when needed. Though her days of reckless experimentation are behind her, she still does perform tests whenever she deems it necessary and she finds a safe and reliable means of doing so.

Even for someone in a relatively loose society, she's still notably more flirty than the rest. Teasing people through (in)action is her specialty, and rumor has it that she may be quite... er, close to many other females within Takemura. Her clothing being easy to slip in and out of isn't just for convenience, after all. That said, she doesn't seem to take these sorts of relationships that seriously, treating them more as close friendships than full-time commitments.

Deep down, however, she is fairly worried about her eventual legacy, especially with her people's general lack of fertility and her age. She just wouldn't take anyone to be her husband, though, even if that would actually be her best bet of having a heir to her name.

An unusual habit of hers - and one that would seem at odds with their culture - is her tendency to break out the music (if any method to do so were available) and sing while doing something intense. This usually meant combat, though casual attempts while working on an invention were not unheard of. Surprisingly enough, this may be the best way to know her thoughts, as she tends to put her heart into the song. Whether it may be placebo or an actual, unconscious magical side-effect, she seems to actually perform better with a bit of music on her mind, in addition to unveiling her deeper emotions with regards to the task at hand.

Though she wields magic with expertise, she is still ultimately human. Her studies and experimentation often leave her winded, and thus she sometimes has difficulty staying awake - she tends to be a sleepyhead, in other words. Any suggestion that includes reducing the time spent studying will likely be met with derision, however; she is on a crusade in all but name to keep on learning all her life, and little would sway her from that desire.

### ☯**Appearance**

Yurika stands at 4'5'' (1.34 m), relatively short even for a native Takemuran. Her slick black hair is fairly voluminous, reaching down to the middle of her back. She is heterochromatic; her right eye is red while her left eye is blue. Feather tattoos adorn her arms and lower legs as per tradition, but these are usually hidden by her lab coat and her footwear. Her figure is somewhat lithe, and her skin tends to lean on the fair end of the scale.

Her outfit comprises of a white and
gold-trimmed vest with its tie-analogue reaching fairly high up the
collar, a white lab coat with orange line highlights, and a gray
mini-skirt. She also wears white socks and brown leather shoes designed
with a red tie-like design and a white cloth surrounding the open end.

Her gold-framed glasses are indeed adjusted to compensate for her near-sightedness.

## Backstory

Yurika was once a curious young girl born to a family of scribes. She was quite a bundle even for them, asking questions long after others would have been content with a dismissal or a simple answer. The villagers quickly learned that telling her "that's just how it is" was a quick ticket to getting even more questions thrown their way. Unsurprisingly, her reputation was polarized; some were fascinated by her desire to learn more, while others were annoyed by her sheer persistence. Her parents were of the former, seeing the potential and desire to learn in her eyes.

Eventually, any hope of leading her away from this habit fell by the wayside. The villagers metaphorically threw up their hands and simply gave her whatever they did know. Yurika, for all her faults, took these to heart and used them to curry favor in them, particularly through sheer diligence and amicability.

Still, though, there was only so much to know within the confines of their village. She tried to find out what lay outside, only to find an impenetrable barrier sealing them in. Dejected, yet even more intrigued, she turned to magic in an effort to find a way to go beyond. No, she never quite managed to create a spell strong enough to dispel the seal. What she did find, however, was a treasure trove of a different sort. Their bodies may have adapted to their current conditions, but they were starting to fall apart due to centuries of inbreeding. Her discovery of reinforcement magic helped alleviate that flaw, at least for a while.

It took at least a decade of late-night research and experimentation to get that far, however. While by day she continued to seem like her old self, at night she became more and more of a scientist in a sense. This left her feeling a little more winded than usual, leading to her notoriety as a sleepyhead. Even her age didn't stop her; while others were already thinking of their heirs, she still found herself gravitating to her work. Her conscious attempts to become more attractive to suitors at the behest of her parents were, unfortunately, marred by both her high standards and her dedication to her studies.

It was only when she was about thirty years of age that her life changed course permanently. First, the barrier that kept them sealed faded away, revealing for the first time the world outside. Yurika was eager to head out if not for the youkai that now haunted their outskirts.

Then, a person claiming to be their queen from legend made her return one day, telling her tale and offering safety to those under her command. To say that she earned Yurika's interest was an understatement; in fact, she immediately tried to converse with her and perhaps learn from her experiences. This person known as Kamei no Yuuko, however, caused a schism in the village. People doubted her credibility, and more importantly were wary - and perhaps insulted - by her demand to be reinstated as their rightful ruler. Her seemingly flimsy justification of the danger that lay outside did little to sway public opinion.

Yurika cared not for this, however; when the time came for them to choose, she followed her not out of belief, but out of a desire to learn more... and perhaps out of a budding friendship. Her parents, though reluctant to leave behind their former home, chose to support her decision and follow Yuuko as well.

To her delight, the queen entertained her presence like none other. She spoke of a thousand years, countless miles tracing down the history of the world up to the present day. Knowledge passed down through generations,technology unlike anything they had before - all this, she listened to with childlike enthusiasm. The two years that followed all but cemented their friendship. With the newfound knowledge that she now had, Yurika continued her studies with newfound fervor, adding technology to her fields of interest.

Until now, Yurika is still learning every day. As the tales tapered down and time passed, however, she recalled a piece of her curiosity still unfulfilled - what would she see if she went beyond the village?

## Relationships

### ☯**Kamei no Yuuko**

Her relationship with the legendary queen Kamei no Yuuko is that of a very close friend; perhaps one of or even the closest among all of her subjects in Takemura. This gives her a valuable ally and mentor, as well as a catalyst for her newfound interest in magic-powered technology. She still has a long way to go before getting close to her level; nonetheless she is quite satisfied (for now) with the queen humoring her presence and granting her permission to examine and learn from both her experiences and her various inventions.

Their individual personalities often contribute to quite a bit of teasing on both sides. This is so often a part of their bonding that it almost feels like tradition to her.

### **☯Aya Shameimaru**

This near-lightspeed crow tengu was once the bane of Yurika's attempts to head outside the old village. Though it has been years since she last had to face her, Yurika still holds a bit of a rivalry with her, though it seems to be more of a friendly competition than actual animosity at this point.

## Abilities

### **☯Powers**

Yurika has a slightly higher spiritual power level than usual, but otherwise she is completely human. What makes her powerful, however, is the type of magic she employs: reinforcement magic. This allows her and her allies to temporarily match the level of higher youkai, with non-combat equivalents of her spell cards being those that she is prepared to cast at a moment's notice without magic circles. That said, should she need an effect outside of what she currently has in her 'deck', she will use more traditional spell casting methods to achieve the desired effect.

### ☯**Combat Data**

Yurika fights rather unpredictably, even if on the surface it doesn't seem so. With her diverse array of spells at hand, she can be heavily focused on melee one second and a monster at range the next, though not both at the same time. She tends to use lasers and sun danmaku, and in melee prefers to use punches, grabs, and throws as opposed to kicks and fancier strikes. Her attacks tend to have a sunset orange color scheme.

## Spell Cards

### ☯**Spell Cards**

Additionally, all those affected will regain the 'will to fight', if they had lost it previously and are not affected by a field that inflicts such an effect on them.
 Purification "Anti-Magic Burst"
This does not, however, affect those that were applied before the duel began, and it fails to work on curses that are powerful enough to shake off the anti-magic, such as those from an Arcanum.
 Spacetime Sign "Faster than Light"
Should the button be pressed, the wearer will be instantly teleported in the direction that the wrist-mounted device was aimed at, up to the maximum distance set by the slider. Safeguards in the system will alter the destination if it would harm the user otherwise, preventing instances of teleporting into objects.
Additionally, lasers will start firing from the origin towards the destination, creating a laser tripwire. Up to five such tripwires may be active at any time, and the oldest of these will dissipate should the limit be exceeded.
 Barrier Sign "Energy Shield"
 Light Sign "Void Signature"
The card leaves behind an illusion of the target in the same location and pose as it had at the time when the card was used. This false image fades after three seconds.
Additionally, illusory copies of the target will start appearing at a rate of about one per second in random locations within a 15-meter radius around them. These copies are stationary, but generally take on threatening poses and may even seem to be attacking hostiles in the area. These illusions also fade after three seconds.
 Inertia Sign "Velocity Mirage"
The downside of this is that one must be very precise in motion, lest they 'slip' and careen uncontrollably into things. Additionally, every motion leaves behind mirages of themselves.
 Enchantment "Destructive Interference"
Should the target lack any weapons, the target is given a gun (specifically the Liberator) enchanted with this temporarily. By default, this is what Yurika uses when she casts this card on herself.
 Creation "Flare Orbs"
Each laser deals moderate continuous damage, and lasts for three seconds. They have about half a second's warning before they fire.
 Creation Arcanum "Danmaku Platform"
Yurika may board this construct to take advantage of its protection and attack from safety, or she may work in tandem with its onboard AI to put immense pressure on her opponents.
The construct lasts for a long time or until either it is destroyed, or Yurika is defeated. In all three cases the construct will disintegrate, ending the card.

## Trivia

* Yurika's Surname is a verb in base form, meaning, literally, 'To Burn'. This is something that is very unlike Japanese, and can be attributed to her being a virtual foreigner.
* "Yakeru" means "to burn red", and additionally may describe the setting sun - tying into her color theme.

* "Yurika" means "lily flower", and is pronounced almost like "eureka". Part of her first name, "rika", also means "science" in different kanji, and is also a (coincidental) anagram for "Yukari".
* Special thanks to Terry N. Muse, AllHearsMe, BryanRolax, and especially Ryuunotaki and CellarDoor96 for all their help!
* This is also the first Takemura-based character to be not under Ryuunotaki's control.
* Due to her personality and close association with one of Ryuunotaki's characters (namely Kamei no Yuuko), should he wish to use her in any future RPs, he is free to do so.
* Renewed Passion is chronologically her first card to be established, being the modern-day incarnation of the reinforcement magic in her background.
* Anti-Magic Burst is the second card to be established, and is based on what came out of her efforts to find a spell powerful enough to dispel the barrier.