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the customization

Character/story related
They will make the most sense after reading her character outline c:

A representation of Xerá just outside her village, her jungle is a lot more dense but yeah xD. This would be a "scene" from the very beginning of her story.	Xerá visiting a temple to pass her prayers and offerings to the spirits. I chose to add the spooky shadows to represent the spirits that wish to harm her brother.
Showing Xerá beginning her quest. The two paths represent her uncertainty, but I also chose this background because of how mysterious the runes/markings on the wall appear. They are symbolic of the ancient language of the spirits who guide her.	This is when Xerá reaches the realm of the spirits and where she later learns the fate of her father. I like the ethereal feel of it and definitely wanted to incorporate the waterfall since it was a main feature of the spirit realm.

Seasonal
These aren't related to her story, but are more "every day" looks.

Most obviously Winter, haha. I really loved the feel of this tree, especially how well it matches with the background. Used only blues and whites really, so Xerá can stand out.	A Spring look for Xerá (haha even with the autumn wreath, ok shh!) I love how the mushrooms match the dress and wreath. The background gives it a muted green undertone. This kind of reminds me of a "Mother Earth" look.
I really fell in love with this Summer customization. I used the lanterns as a base for the color pallet, and added the other items to match those (i.e, the wig, swimsuit, bag). The green was used as more of a neutral in this case :3	Though the background already had a tree, I liked the look of the Gentle Autumn Tree instead. Also love how the trinket seems to be propped up against the fence post c:

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the character

a little about Xerph

name Xerph
nickname Xe, Xerá [pronounced ser-AH] (her father's nickname for her), rarely goes by Xer
gender Female
companion Raina, Tekkal

likes learning, puzzling challenges, fighting, hunting
dislikes rabbits or other rodents (they're NOT tasty), being idle, cowardice, weaving or "womanly" chores
summary Xe lives in a land named Aztlán. She's the chief's daughter, and while she is held to a higher standard than most others in her tribe (the Tlaloc), she is still expected to participate in every-day activities and responsibilities of the village. But she yearns more in her life and often sends offerings and prayers to the spirits.
Without knowing, Xe's wishes indirectly cause a great illness to befall her father. Xe's older brother then takes over the tribe while the healers try to save her father, but Xe cannot idly sit by while others wait for the inevitable. Feeling guilty of her role in his sickness, she sets out on a journey, fueled by ancient stories and legends, and tries to find a way to save her father before his time runs out.
While on this search, she learns that many myths of her people are indeed real, and her true purpose is revealed to her. She also comes to the realization that it was not her (or the spirits) who caused her father's illness, but her brother, who has long-since been corrupted by dark spirits.
By this time, it is too late for her father, but Xe must now use her new-found knowledge and skills to vanquish the dark magic that holds her brother and fulfill her destiny.

dwellings The Tlaloc tribe is situated deep within a dense but low canopy jungle, near the bank of a slow moving river. Their village, Tolán, is not large enough to be considered a city, but the infrastructure of the buildings is quite advanced. It consists of two step pyramid temples flanking the sides of a north acropolis. To the south lies the palace and other settlement areas.
Xe resides in the palace area with her father and brother. The palace is rectangular, two stories high and made of stone that is colored a red-orange.
spirit realm This realm seems to be part of another dimension, though none know with certainty. Few know how to reach it, and fewer have returned from visiting it. Despite its bleak prospects for return, the sights of the spirit realm are surely ones to behold. Its main feature is a crystalline waterfall that rushes over a block of stone that seems to hover in the sky. The area surrounding the waterfall (and river it gushes into) is full of lush greens and an enumerable abundance of wildlife. The life in this realm appears to have a faint golden glow, as if it may be simply an illusion or product of the imagination.

physical Xe is lean and slightly muscular. Her body is covered in small, bright blue and green gems. Tribal tattoos decorate her slate-colored scales. She has black feathers along her tail that kind of fan out at the end, and she wears a single red feather tied at the end of her tail. For formal events, she is adorned with gold headpieces and tail coverings. During training or fighting she wears a breastplate and leather bracers on her forelegs.
psychological She never knew her mother, or rather, she doesn't remember her since she passed from fever when Xe was very young. All the knowledge she holds of her courageous mother comes from stories her Father or other elders of the village tell. The remainder of her family consists of her Father and her older brother. Because of this, she had no female role model to emulate while growing up and often finds herself trying to follow a semblance of her mother's legacy. She strives to be strong and live a meaningful life that her mother would be proud of.

first design click and drag to URL for larger viewing

other artwork



about her character I knew from looking at Xerph's name that I wanted to center her character around an Aztec warrior, but keeping it neo-appropriate, of course. Also seemingly fitting, there is an Aztec diety called Quetzalcoatl (which literally means "feathered serpent") that I thought would be a nice tie-in to Xe being a draik.
The inspiration for her personality and storyline actually came to me in a dream a few nights after I began to work on the application xD The most memorable part of my dream is a scene where Xe is spiritually visiting the palace healer's room, which has an opening in the roof to ventilate the smoke. As she witnesses her father's final moments, she peers up through the roof's opening into the night sky and sees the addition of her father's stars. I come to later find out that, in the Aztec religion, Camaxtli (the "spirit" of war, fire and fate) leads warriors to the Eastern sky, where they become stars.
I also incorporated the "royal" color twofold; first, and most obviously, she's of noble lineage, but since the Aztec didn't wear the kind of jewelery most picture when they hear "royalty" I decided to have gemstones imbedded in her flesh. This also very well fit the name of her tribe (Tlaloc) which translated means "of the Earth".
And now, for the first part of her story...

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the story
chapter 1
As she padded out onto the plaza, Xerá paused to let the crisp zephyr greet her. She closed her eyes and let out a sigh. If only you were still with us, Citlali, she thought to herself. A terse nod to her guards indicated she did not wish to be followed. She entered the marketplace, gazing around at the vendors' booths. Today's catches from the Nautla river were already being prepared for display. I must hurry before the sun rises, she thought as she quickened her pace, weaving her way around the growing crowd of buyers.
Finally free of the bustling market, she took a right and proceeded toward the Eastern temple. The flickering light of the torches along the path cast dancing shadows on the engraved stone of the serpent guardian as she approached. A looming mass of steep, narrow steps stood before her. With a long exhale she began her climb.
Nearing the peak of the temple, she turned around and glanced at the village that lie before her. Save for those who were in the marketplace, Tolán was relatively silent; a majority of the village still lay sound asleep within their homes. Rows of torches outlined the layout of the village, like a bright network of beads in the darkness.
Wasting no further time, she pivoted to enter the inner sanctum of the temple. The room was rather large, but open to the elements. As such, vines and other foliage were free to lay roots in the stones and crevices in the walls. A dais stood on the far end of the room, with an intricately carved altar positioned on it. The soft light from the candles at the base of the dais allowed her to make out the figures in the carvings on the altar's sides. They depicted the story of Tonatiuh, the sun deity, who overtook the previous sun and now guided the current sun across the sky. If there was any deity who could answer her prayers, Tonatiuh would be it.
She sat before the altar, patiently waiting for the first break of light in the clouds beyond the horizon. As the most auspicious of times approached, the gems in her flesh caught the sunlight and cast sparkling tendrils of green and blue along the walls. Then, she began to whisper:

mighty Tonatiuh, who holds my fierce mother in your heavens, may you hear and grant my truest of wishes. Enlighten me so that my path may be revealed; invigorate my mind, strengthen my heart, enliven my soul so that I may follow in my mother's footsteps and be reunited with her in Tollan. I am wasting away with no purpose, Tonatiuh. Am I doomed to this mundane life of mine?

As she finished her last thoughts, a cacophony of wails and moans abruptly sounded in the village far behind her. She rushed out toward the entrance of the temple, dreading the cause, to find her brother running up the last steps. Panting between breaths he managed to say, "Xerá, it's father, he.."


All artwork and coding done by umbreon133