Aletha (Zona) Craft

Strix / Paladin

Submitted character story

Unknowingly cursed with nature magic in a world fighting against the threat of Druids, Aletha was gravely injured while training when the first appearance of her magic manifested. A giant tree pierced through her wings, severing them beyond repair, and also killing another student, her rival and training bully A’Darus.

Assuming the accident to be a terrorist attack by the Druids, Aletha’s parents used the tragedy to launch a PR campaign, with Aletha’s damaged wings replaced by the finest automail wings that craftsmen could produce. She became the face of the fight against the druids and nature magic.

Despite the fact that she has been raised to fight against the evils of of nature magic, Aletha feels an immense guilt for the events of the accident, even though she may not be aware of the cause at this point in time. She also hates that her personal tragedy of loosing her wings has been weaponized and forced her into the public eye.  

To escape her conflicting emotions, Aletha makes the decision to leave her home city-state of Steel and the control of her parents. Intending to go to one of the other cities under the cover of a rainy night, she makes a wish on a shooting star with hopes of discovering more about the strange powers bubbling up within her. Instead, the shooting star comes crashing down in front of her. When the dust settles, Aletha discovers a mythril key, that she takes with her. 

Later, when visiting her tutor who raised her to say her only goodbye before running away, she uses the mythril key to open a door, and discovers a Pocket Dimension on the other side. She is greeted by a fire demon who then changes/transforms into the grand wizard Artemis and welcomes Aletha to their home. 

The story unfolds from there as she searches not just for answers about her powers and the strange bond she has with nature, but also for a place to belong in the war between the cities and the Druids.