Mei-Lin

"The question isn't 'Can a myth change?' it's 'What changes will we make?'"

An accomplished psychic mage born on the isle of Joseon Outpost, adrift in the seas of Chronus, Mei-Lin grew up in Joseon, learning much of the world she had come to call home along with her family, and her own place within it. Trained in the arts of magic by one of the Outpost's more skilled masters of magic, Mei-Lin's expression of magic was more inherent to her will and emotions than the typical expression of arcane studies or divine prayer. After her 20th birthday, the former student turned master departed from her homeland, after being discovered as one of the fabled Sparkbearers. Wanting to do more with her life, Mei-Lin left her homeland and sailed to the shores of Etera, upon which she stumbled to the Nation of Aetveris.

Since then, Mei-Lin met with a man who leads a group of the Godhunters. Passing herself off under the anonymous disguise of "The Inheritor", she took time to integrate herself with the world, being the first of her own lineage to step foot off the island. Much to her dismay, however, it seemed that once she touched down upon the shores, a beacon of light shot into the sky, denoting her presence. Cautious but curious, she had followed the man, and was welcomed as a guest.

Now, Mei-Lin has joined the Aetveris Military as a new recruit, seeking to make a name for herself and prove her strength, but also secretly hoping to learn more about the Nation, and how it might help her people--or just how dangerous the natives of Chronus may truly be.

## History

### Early Life

Born to a family in the Joseon Outpost, Mei-Lin is the youngest of four siblings. Her mother and her father had spent long nights working to make ends meet. He was a fisher, and she herself was a shaman that communed with the local Yokai spirits. As a result, Mei-Lin and her siblings were often left to be cared for with the other village children, raising them in a more communal upbringing than individualistic. All of her siblings, and herself, were gifted with magic. Mei-Lin's older siblings were all sorcerers, but Mei-Lin's blood remained dormant. Yet, she was not without magic, but her manifestations were more of a psychic nature, tapping into the hearts and minds of the spiritual entities around her, connecting to the world and the people.

Due to this rather unique manifestation, Mei-Lin had been sent to apprentice under one of the more skilled masters of magic, a mage of psychic origin who was able to bend will and emotion into manifestations of magic. By her adolescence, her and her siblings all had lost much of their free time to their studies, attending both typical schooling but also magical training, each of them being trained to wield their powers. Mei-Lin showed promise in the spheres of Alteration, Destruction, Divination, and Nature, particularly an affinity for fire and earth magic.

Through her adolescence, Mei-Lin became a proficient master of harnessing her psychic will, and transmuting the world around her. Her ability to shift her own form to adapt to the world around her, coupled with the powers of evocation made her a rather capable mage, especially in fields of combat. She showed a proficiency in a few other fields that enhanced her capacity to understand and grasp knowledge, as well as generally connect with the Yokai to gleam insight in situations she normally might not have otherwise.

Around her twentieth birthday, the woman who had trained Mei-Lin had grown of age, her time upon the world finished. Her final task was to tell Mei-Lin of a pantheon she revered secretly, the Godclaw Pantheon. She instructed Mei-Lin to find her faith, and seek out these deities, as they would be necessary for assisting her in the years to come. She expressed to Mei-Lin that the goddess Iomadae had certainly blessed her, for within her she carried a power known by most as a Spark, and thus she herself was a Sparkbearer. Yet with such strength came fear, and there would be those who sought to twist it for malevolent purposes.

Heeding the advice of her mentor, she eventually chartered a ship to the shores of Etera, a foreign and distant land far from home. She was to travel under the guise of a foreign merchant, coming to sell wares in the market. After remaining for some days, she would slip into the crowd and bide her time until she had accrued enough knowledge to fabricate a story about a local in a wayside area. She had told her siblings and her father of her plans, and though they were sad to see her go, they understood her call to action was more important. Embracing her, they saw her off until she could not see them past the horizon.

At some point in the future, she finally arrived in a place known as Port Doom. Spending her time as a Freemate in the Port, Mei-Lin learned much about the Godclaw, and had come to find reverence in them. She had a particular affinity for Iomadae, but she also felt herself drawn to the darkness of the Strategist, Asmodeus. Tempted by both the Heavens and Hells, Mei-Lin developed a rather neutral outlook on good and evil in the world, believing honor and a code was the only way forward, so long as the price was understood and paid in kind.

After a few years of service and accruing wealth and influence, Mei-Lin had gathered what she had to expand beyond, having heard rumors about the lands of Aetveris. Here, it was said, that military and divine dogma converged, and so she felt called to seek out more about the King that served Ragathiel. In her mind were two voices, those of the Inheritor, and those of the Dark Prince. Each compelled her to walk a path of shadow or light, but she refused to bend so easily to either influence, opting instead to wield both their powers for the exertion of law above all else.

It was because of this that Mei-Lin had named herself a Godclaw Hellknight, and inscribed upon her right forearm a series of magical tattoos, written in the Infernal tongue. She then overlaid these infernal runes with Celestial sigils, a reminder that her power came not just from the Hells nor from just the Heavens, but from both.

Yet, fate was funny, and so as she had left the confines of Port Doom, and first entered the lands of Aetveris, a beacon had shot into the sky. Such things often were meant to herald those who had come to this world from another, and though it was technically true for Mei-Lin, it had foiled her plans to pass herself off as a commonfolk looking to do more for the world. Soon enough, too, she had been found by a man who belonged to the group called Godhunters.

Passing herself off under an alias of "The Inheritor", Mei-Lin had ventured forth with them into the heart of Aetveris' capital, which at the time had been battling disease. She had stayed with them for some time, allowing her to catch up on all the history the Nation had to offer. Once she had learned what she could, she had been suggested by the Godhunters that service in one of the Aetveris military campaigns would be a good way to become involved in the Nation, and also be seen as someone of notable worth to those that held more influence and power among them.

### Adventuring days

Taking such advice, Mei-Lin had been recruited to a new unit, and was now Corporal Seong, working under Sergeant Caelum, and his ragtag band of adventurers. Their duties were unknown to her still, but it seemed important enough that Aetveris was recruiting more to send into the frontiers, so for now that would be enough, and give her an opportunity to escape the potential scrutiny of her initial beacon, as well as give her the ability to further hone her skills both magical and academic alike.

## Appearance

Mei-Lin is 5'2 in height, with a slim build and only weighing 120lbs. Her hair falls to about mid-length on her back, and is often kept up in a ponytail, with bangs framing her face. She wears a variety of jewelry, particularly various rings of silver and sapphire. Her hair is brown-black, and her eyes are a mocha color, full of strength and life. Overall she is quite beautiful, and youthful in her image. With a lack of scars and blemishes, she has a comely face and a welcoming smile.

In terms of attire, Mei-Lin dresses in a variety of ways. She often prefers her traditional garments from her homeland, as she likes the comfort and colors of her upbringing. However, Mei-Lin is capable of altering her clothing and disguising it, typically done to ensure she is in uniform for her military campaign, or to blend into local cultures and customs where necessary. Overall, she will prefer to try and blend into a crowd, but often times her enjoyment of luxurious fabrics and expensive taste will separate her from the typical commonfolk and those of wealth.

## Personality

Mei-Lin's personality is often described as intellectual and socially awkward. While not intentional, Mei-Lin struggles to often be as outwardly kind as she desires to be, leaving many to feel that there might be a tinge of aggression or callousness in her behavior. Her episodes of neurotic behavior coupled with her low levels of sympathy can at times leave individuals talking to Mei-Lin as if she holds disdain or contempt for them. Unfortunate for Mei-Lin, this is far from the truth, as she has a very strong desire to connect with and know others, yet she is slow to trust and slow to emotionally connect with others.

Despite these conflicting qualities, Mei-Lin generally tries to be friendly and open to meeting other people, and often goes out of her way to make new friends and connect in new spaces. She especially seems to brighten and light up when discussing topics of interest to her, notably those of culture, history, faith, or the weather, ironically enough. She also has an enjoyment when discussing magic and philosophies, and greatly enjoys theoretical debates and exercises of thought on ethics and morality, much to the chagrin of some.

Mei-Lin has felt herself in a bit of a conundrum when it comes to allegiances and moral values. While she favors those of a good heart and well-meaning nature, she also feels a strong connection to tradition and structure. While she prefers order above all else, she understands that in nature, structured is not always possible, and sometimes it is the chaos of the fire that burns down the trees that leads to new growth and perspective. As a result, she struggles to identify which matters more to her: Doing what is right, or doing what is expected. Ultimately, this moral dilemma lands her within the realm of lawfulness, but she walks a fine line between what is good and what is right, as more than once she has been willing to work alongside evil to stop a greater evil.

## Abilities

Mei-Lin's affinity for magic from the transmutation and evocation school makes her a rather powerful sorceress compared to her peers. Capable of unleashing great destruction from her fingertips, Mei-Lin prefers to channel the scorching blaze of hellfire upon her foes. When not facing a combat situation, she has a limited amount of flexibility to commune with spiritual knowledge and tap into psychic energy in order to enhance and strengthen her own potential, pushing the limits of her capabilities.

Unique among her psychic magic is the ability of telepathy, able to speak into the minds of other individuals and project her thoughts. Though they are not able to respond in kind, this has been a rather useful skill of hers more than once. Beyond that, she has a mind far more expansive than most, capable of storing a lot of information and recalling even the most distant of memories. Other forms of psychic manifestation are limited, but in time, Mei-Lin hopes to expand those powers and gifts.