Kaia

.:Basic Information:.

Name: Michael
Character Name: Krashara
Alias/Nickname: Kaia
Race: Fire Mephit
True Age:23
Apparent Age: N/A
Sex: Female
Height: 8”
Weight: 110lbs
Hair Color/Style: Full head of lively, fiery red, orange, and yellow hair that lies down behind her head to her shoulder blades. The ‘strands’ of living flame occasionally dip down over her brow, like any other hair, which are promptly brushed or blown back, their substance briefly diminished locally before returning into the remainder of the flames. The conflagration does not, however, hide the presence of her two horns, being a source of pride for the sprite.
Eyes:Sparkling Ruby
Marks/Scars/Tattoos: Small flame tattoo on the left shoulder.
Physical Appearance: Kaia is a lithe little thing with a well rounded body, not muscular, but shapely. Given her flaming red skin, two short black horns, and matching wings, however, some are more often than not wary of crossing the tiny sprite, fearing that appearances are not all that is related to Demon-kind. To another of her kind, she appears healthy, her body filled with the warmth of their element, denoted by Kaia’s wild, burning hair and tuft of flame at the end of her mischief tail. Those blessed with incredibly keen vision, or paying close attention, also can see the small tattoo of flame on her left shoulder—usually not obscured by her choice in attire—and two tiny fangs which aren’t made for sucking blood, but can produce a sharper pang to anyone receiving the nymph’s angry bite. The angular features of her face only accentuate the already exotic nature of the mephit. Her eyebrows are bright and slender, a narrow chin, slight nose, and slightly elevated check bones provide something of an Elven-kin’s grace to her outward self. Crimson lips are usually playfully curled upward, or frighteningly pulled back to reveal her sparkling white teeth, eager to provide far more serious pain than her pranks typically a lot any one person. While roaming about in public, Kaia does take to bright fashions of thread. A black top that covers her upper body, forgoing the arms, matched by shorts that stop just above her knees. A band of brown sports the miniature dagger at her hip, serving to stick it to someone or, more commonly, good for cutting her way out of sticky situations. Few things adorn Kaia’s body as she prefers to indulge herself in delving into all manners of fire sources, finding their essence and hearth a welcome place to unwind.
Occupation/Class: Thief, Articifer.
As a mephit, Kaia is keenly aware of the raw power in elemental fire. Spending as much time as possible in its embrace, she enjoys ‘listening’ to what the flickering spirits of the flame tell her, occasionally giggling for no apparent reason or relaying some “invaluable” quip from the inferno to those she travels with. On the other hand, due to her playful nature, Kaia is also versed in deft procurements, using slights of hand, picking locks, and invaluable skills related to acts of general mischief and mayhem. Having leapt out into the world, Kaia’s travels have found that a keen knowledge on the many artifacts that litter the landscape usually aids those she accompanies, as well as her self in finding new toys to play with. Finding strange new wonders can always bring about a good laugh when used appropriately—like that time they discovered a rod filled with Dragon’s Breath…oh, yeah, that guy’ll never forget it until his eyebrows and hair grow back! Strangely productive as a skill for someone versed in pranks, Kaia enjoys turning objects over in her hands and discovering new ways of promoting fun; it also helps to have a steady skill to prove one’s self invaluable, as well as providing dinner on the table, poaching a passing adventurer clueless about the trinket he just found. Neither specialization places the sprite in the position of aggressor, certainly not so in combat, though any who cross her always end up regretting it—many times painfully so, leaving sizable marks on the body, or a misplaced possession or two worth their weight in coin. Like the time a wizard thought of playing pranks on a prankster…the last she heard of him, leaving the tavern, was “Where’s my spell book?” Suffice it to say, after paging through its contents and finding it all rather dull, the man obviously inept or something, it made a nice bed for her flames that evening. Furthermore, acquiring new objects for playful exploration is not always, or too frequently, done by theft. Partnering up with much larger folk who wield much more concentrated powers serves to provide the sprite access to areas she’d otherwise have to spend much of her time delving by stealth—a process that takes days upon days, not going over well with someone much more interested in entertainment. Therefore, while the big folk kill things, Kaia helps as much as she can, either hiding on someone’s person or taking to somewhere concealed, before playing around with new artifacts that can be sold for a good price, or used, afterwards. Gods forbid any one try and get rid of an item before Kaia has fun with it, however.

.:Secondary Information:.

Philosophy: “I do what I want, when I want, how I want. Ya got a problem with that, speak to the flame.”
Magic Schools: Fire (emphasis), Illusion, Creation
Carried Possessions: Little is carried on her person, at most times, given her tendency to plunge into the depths of raging hot fires. Still, some clothing, a belt, a small dagger, and a pouch of gold dust are some typical items found on her person. Seeing how coins tend to be rather large for her frame, dust typically settles any accounts that she must, on her own; provided her nimble little fingers don’t snatch the desired object from its rightful owner. Some find the act annoying, holding on to a pouch of dust, but that did little to bother Kaia, just as long as what she’d asked for now resided in her possession. Seeing how small she is in comparison to a great many things, Kaia rarely finds herself attached to any one thing long enough to personalize it. In any event that such a thing would happen, however, a traveling companion usually served well enough to store the trinket for later use.
Clothing and Armor: While roaming about in public, Kaia does take to bright fashions of thread. A black top that covers her upper body, forgoing the arms, matched by shorts that stop just above her knees. A band of brown sports the miniature dagger at her hip, serving to stick it to someone or, more commonly, good for cutting her way out of sticky situations. Rarely does she wear any sort of armor, unless circumstances dictate that it would be wise to do so, finding that it is uncomfortable and restricting. Not to mention that size, flight, speed, and ingenuity are usually enough for the winged trickster to escape danger.
Weapons: Miniature short-sword procured from a light-hearted weapon smith Kaia and her companion had come across, finding the task of “forging” such a small weapon to his liking as a challenge. It isn’t every day a mephit needs a weapon, after all. In most cases, however, Kaia uses her sharp claws and teeth to rend an opponent, or a good, crisp steak, apart.

.:Personal Information:.

Likes: Fire, lots and lots of fire. Anything that has to do with fire. Charred meat, burning buildings, flowing lava, and roaring fire places all strike a warm and fuzzy spot within her. She also enjoys games, tricks, and new or unusual things. Being stationary isn’t something Kaia does well, and if things start slowing down its all cause for her to spontaneously use whatever is available to stir up trouble. The journey, as well as the end, is all pleasurable pastimes. Dancing is an activity that doesn’t involve trouble of any sort, Kaia being known to bop around when in a good, highly energetic state of mind just needing of self expression. Some good music by a harmonious bard and a good lute always did well to calm her nerves, too. She enjoys the night time more so than the day—as you can guess, because fire is intentionally used during this time and is much more vibrant in color. On the other hand, seeing a bright ball of what could only be fire in the sky during the day isn’t a poor substitute, just a rather distant one. As for people, she favors talkative, relaxed individuals over those with strict moral codes and no-nonsense philosophies.
Dislikes:Water, strict moral codes, the law, tall brutes with an IQ not above that of room temperature, and sages that just go on, and on, and on, and on about some random trivial fact they learned. I mean, come on! I’m looking to unlock the secrets to the Wand of Ultimate Power just to dress the King in a bunny suit, not learn about how the lizard folk were driven from the swamps by a plague some ten thousand years ago! Kaia also hates being left alone for long periods of time. Wandering the wilderness with no one to talk to or play with is not her idea of a good time. In fact, starting a forest fire simply to draw out elves, nymphs, and earth mephits would be at the top of her to-do list. The most dreaded thing, however, is being completely surrounded in water with no way to escape. Cold, wet, and trapped are not things a fire mephit appreciates.
Merits:Nimble in flight and on the ground, well suited for of agile dodging, navigating tight spaces, and performing tricks on the unwitting. Extraordinarily curious and inquisitive about subjects that catch her eye or ear. A sociable free-spirit into meeting people and having a good time.
Flaws: With all that burning energy is an equally raging fire of a temper. The smallest thing won’t set her off, but Kaia’s not afraid to unleash on those who rub her the wrong way by act or by word. A healthy phobia of large bodies of water haunts the spunky sprite, seeing how her worst fear involves a total absence of combustibles. As someone outside of the law, Kaia also has difficulty throwing herself into harms way for total strangers; not that she doesn’t have some measure of kindness in her heart, but she’s not the sort to just toss it around freely to whoever needs it either.
Worst Fear: Total immersion in water, unable to escape, left in the cold, dark, flameless reaches of the deep waters, forever lost and alone.
Personality: Naturally curious, there’s no end to the amount of trouble Kaia gets herself into. It was that curiosity that drove her to venture away from the comforts of home with some of the big folk. She also tends to be rather loyal, and more friendly, towards the few folk who pamper her by taking her tricks in stride or, otherwise, proving their ability to treat the mephit with respect. Those who fail in the task deserve the retribution coming to them, few things being carelessly shrugged off easily. Provided a relatively amicable relationship, however, a good earful is a frequent occurrence, even when it appears her only compatriot are flickering flames in a fireplace. The Goddess of the Flame is the only recognized deity in Kaia’s life--whether one exists in the heavens above or hells below, or simply a manifestation of her love of her element--demanding devotion to tending the living flames and warmth in the world. Honor, love, and compassion are all well and good, but given this little one’s obsession with the wild, misunderstood spirits of the flame, Kaia is more than satisfied with such a humble duty. Organized religion and sanctified gods hold little interest with the mephit, even if she is relatively well versed in such Big Folk things for her kind; that is, unless it has to do with treasure, in which case of course she believes in the Dark God of All Undead things... Given the opportunity, her talk might just steer in the direction of her ‘Goddess,’ permitting her to teach the Big Folk all about the subtlety of the tool they use in ignorance and fear. As for selflessly giving to those in need, like many of the goodly gods would ask, Kaia is not keenly interested in those endeavors. If they happen to come across her way, or if those in need stand out to the sprite, then she might spare time and energy to help them. Otherwise she doesn’t see a reason to leap into another’s life and sort out their mess. One exception to that, however, are little children whom are dreadfully forlorn, forgotten, or crushed beneath some of the dark events plaguing the countryside. Being of small stature and playful nature, themselves, Kaia finds cheering them up to be a pleasant thing, spreading mischief across the world.
History:

At a young age, Kaia was pleasantly lounging about the volcano she was born to when a small caravan of Big Folk happened to forge their way within the steep walls. Naturally the entire “village” of mephits residing there took note and immediately set to work as a group playfully amusing themselves with all the various gear and strange people milling about rather narrow trails. Upset by the swarm of elementally inclined creatures, a wizard turned and shot streams of water at the flying creatures, unmercifully striking them from the air. The assault ended a good deal of amusement garnered from the Big Folk.

Kaia had been rummaging about a sack, however, when the counterassault began. Peeking her head out from within the confines of the ration bag, her bright eyes investigated and discovered a lack of her kind buzzing about any longer. Scurrying to get away, a nearby man caught the sprite in an empty bag, miffed about all the trouble her kind had caused. About to soundly thrash the winged thing, a woman stepped in and took charge of the new found inhabitant of the mountain. Releasing Kaia, the mephit hopped up on the lady’s shoulder and set to work studying the much larger creature that was invading their home, lacking a great deal of humor.

From there they spoke about a strange device hidden away within the raging lava tubes, and how it could be used for the good of all. Confused as to what sort of ‘good’ she was talking about, Kaia offered to help find the artifact. Wisely the lady carefully drew out the mephit’s mischievous plot to lead them astray for a time, convincing the nimble sprite to limit such trickery.

After some time, the group nearly exhausted from such intense surroundings, the magical wards nearing their end, the scepter was found at last. Kaia beamed at their success before watching as the Big Folk sought to take it from the mountain. She’d never seen any one want it before, so the ensuing darkness that spread throughout the mountain shocked the mephit into hiding. All living beings within the mountain were in danger, including the mephits, by the vile presence that had been cursed upon the artifact of power. Struggling to fight back the demonic form, the lady managed to save many of Kaia’s elemental family with strange magic and aid from her companions.

Overwhelmed with such things, the tiny mephit perched upon the lady’s shoulder, and began to quickly chatter about such things never before seen. Having never ventured from her home before, it was a troubling thought to leave with the Big Folk, but her curiosity was too much, and the lack of Big Folk to play with always bothered the sly ones of the mountain. From there, they departed, quest completed, out into the large world of Big Folk, beasts, and demons.

The lady, as it turned out, was part of a group who fought demonic creatures throughout the land in secrecy, taking to finding magical artifacts of yore to aid them in defeating such ancient creatures. The amount of knowledge present in myth, legend, and fables were easily applied to the fiery mephit that took to learning all she could about the world; of course, subsequently, the knowledge also went towards more unique and creative means of pranks on those who slept nearby. Many adventures did they share together, traveling the lands to places both near and far, delving into the deep unknown reaches of the world.

One such adventure, however, turned to disaster as many of the group was slain in hunting a fierce foe. Locked in the chamber with the lady, clutching the pendant to her small chest, Kaia found herself confronted with a darker side she’d never witnessed before. With no way out, the lady cast a spell that would lift the winged Kaia up out of a long shaft that extended towards the surface. At first, the mephit refused to go, digging one claw into the lip of the shaft, struggling to hang on amidst the draft that constantly swirled about her body. Only when the doors shattered beneath the awesome might of the terrible Beast was she forced to abandon the one Big Folk she’d been taken with.

Narrowly escaping with the item in hand, she dragged the equally sized item back to their encampment. Leaving it with the leader that evening, Kaia set out silently, departing from the zealous group who no longer held a reason for her to remain. Finding new and amazing things was captivating, but not without someone to share it with. Having no other in the group so eager to find the excitement in all circumstances, nor interested in a small demonesque creature following them around, there seemed little other choice but to take to wandering alone. Along the road towards home, a vague place to be sure after their unsteady course, perhaps she would find another to venture with, living life to its fullest; otherwise, the world of the Big Folk, as exotic as it was, was too terrifying for this small nymph to enjoy, lost in a sea of faceless entities, some eager to gobble her up as a late afternoon snack.