AHRI

THE NINE-TAILED FOX

Ahri�s origins are a mystery, even to her.

She has no clue as to the history of her vastayan tribe�or their place among the
rest�save for the twin gemstones she has worn her entire life. In fact, her
earliest memories are of running with icefoxes in the northern reaches of Shon-Xan.
Though she knew she was not one of them, they clearly saw her as something of a
kindred spirit, and came to accept her within the pack.

In that wild, predatory existence, Ahri nonetheless felt a deeper connection to the
forests around her. In time, she came to understand that this was the magic of the
vastaya that coursed through every fiber of her being, and the realm of spirits
that lay beyond. With no one to teach her, instead she learned to call upon this
power in her own ways�most often using it to quicken her reflexes in pursuit of
prey. If she was careful and close enough, she also found she might soothe a
panicked deer, so that it remained serene and calm even as she and her packmates
sank their teeth into its flesh.

The world of mortals was as distant and unsettling to Ahri as it was to the
icefoxes, but she felt drawn to it for reasons she could not explain. Humans in
particular were coarse, gruff creatures� and when a band of huntsmen camped nearby,
Ahri watched them from afar as they went about their grim business.

When one of them was wounded by a stray arrow, Ahri could feel his life seeping
away. Knowing nothing but the instincts of a predator, she savored the spirit
essence leaving his body, and through it gained brief flashes of his memories�the
lover he had lost in battle, and the children he had left behind when he came
north. Ahri subtly pushed his emotions from fear to sorrow to joy, and comforted
him with visions of a sun-soaked meadow as he died.

Afterward, she found that human words now came to her easily, like something from a
half-remembered dream, and Ahri knew the time had come to leave the pack behind.

Keeping to the fringes of society, she felt more alive than ever. Her predatory
nature remained, but she was caught up in a riot of new experiences, emotions, and
customs across Ionia. Mortals, it seemed, also became fascinated by her in
return�and she often used this to her advantage, draining their essence while
charming them with recollections of beauty, hallucinations of deep longing, and
occasionally dreams colored by raw sorrow.