#Aurelia Dragonwings

[mistfallengw2]

Learning quickness builds is quick and easy, they said

[mistfallengw2]

I was writing, but then I ended up sketching how the Dragon warband looked in their early years (after they left the fahrar at ~16yo), right before the mission that led Kouran to retire from active duty in 1308 AE. After that, they decided to rename the warband to Wing, and continued their streak of successful missions (or "creative interpretation of orders").

I really want to finish this headshot lineup, but I gotta determine some design elements first (and fix those things that aren't supposed to be there yet oops). Maybe I'll even do a 12 years later pic.

Some fun facts in the meantime:

- Odhran and Obsius are non-identical twins, which is obvious given that the first is albino while the rest of their family has dark fur. What they lack in strength and bulk, they make up for in craftiness and trickery. - Ardea and Sidonia are half-sisters, with the first being almost a year younger. Their mother was a Flame Legion refugee and the only one of her family to reach safety when she was just a cub, and taught them not to be ashamed of their powerful fire magic. - Aurelia and Ardea are fahrar sweethearts. Gross and cute at the same time, I know. - Aurelia and Obsius became friends the day she arrived the fahrar. Specifically, she saw Obsius being picked on for being scrawny, decided she'd protect him, and then proceeded go to pick him up in spite of him being a few months older than her. - Kouran and Reeva were a thing for a few years in the fahrar, now they're insufferable besties. - Kouran is the designated group mom. - Lupita and Rorick were thought to be a couple, but they've always been just close friends. She was non-verbal cub and he liked hanging out with her because she didn't mock his furless face (result of a spell gone wrong) and liked his stories. - Aurelia is the tallest, Sidonia is the buffest, Obsius and Odhran are the smallest (Obsius is lither).

[mistfallengw2]

She is beauty, she is grace She is only half-awake

[mistfallengw2]

Finished that one portrait of Aurelia during/post EoD

[mistfallengw2]

Roughest draft from early May for what was supposed to be a sketchpage of a rough timeline of Aurelia's looks over the story.

Then I put this one in the "to be continued" bin since I had to decide related stuff first (face's structure and hairstyle changes, her outfit changes, etc) and got sidetracked forever welp.

[mistfallengw2]

Just completed Eureka ✨

[mistfallengw2]

Decided to make a quick Pride icon for this blog

(gonna be offering batches of these symmetry chibi icons YCH throughout June, check my Links to know where to find my art accounts)

[mistfallengw2]

Aurelia and Aurene, Champion and Dragon

Quick sketch from last year, for End of Dragons' release.

[mistfallengw2]

Headshot of my Commander, Aurelia Goredragon/Dragonwings, from early 2021

[mistfallengw2]

Bunch of Aurelia from 2021 + Aurelia with Obsius and Ardea fresh out of the fahrar (they made the centurion pretty mad indeed, but everything went so fine they weren't punished for it and making their own call became a pretty successful habit)

[mistfallengw2]

Been lowkey gravitating towards making SotO a sort of "sidetrack quest" for Aurelia, and seeing other people discuss stuff of that nature has only fanned the flames. The main reason for her to go along with all of it was the chance of learning about what happened to her in the Mists (she quite strongly doesn't want to know, but you know... she wants to understand whether that thing will remain non-issue for Tyria or not), but that's not what's happening and it is messing her up in new ways.

Lil' "reflection story" under read more because of SotO spoilers from the last chapter.

Aurelia quietly approaches the figure near the cliff's edge, trying to shake off the thrill in her fur with each step. Peitha is silent and doesn't look at her, only a twitch in her posture acknowledging her presence. Supportive words die on the charr's fangs as she studies her expression. She doesn't need to guess, she knows what her ally is going through, and she knows better than to force unwanted advice when the wound is so fresh. Maybe it's the nayosian air taking a toll on her body, but honestly, she is not sure she even has the energy to do so anyway.

Half a year before this moment, Aurelia had stuck around and helped the Wizard's Court, thinking she'd be able to learn more about what had happened to her in the Mists.

Unknown entities pulling her into different dimensions was not something new to her, nor was finding out that a secret organization was doing something important for their own hushed reasons, but that day she had felt the distant void deep into her mind tug, and that idea had taken hold of her. Not knowing what caused that horror was the constant background noise of her sleepless nights, the quiet apprehension of whether that thing was safely in her forgotten past or something that Tyria would have to face sooner or later, the creeping fear that she was wasting time not preparing for yet another world-consuming crisis. Maybe that was her chance to find her own peace with it, or a new cause for the Pact. Anything was better than that limbo.

It all felt so promising at first: the Wizards seemed to know things about the Mists that the Priory could only dream of discovering, so it wasn't weird to assume that in the whole Wizard's Tower there could be something or someone that could give her at least a lead. Granted, the matter of Fractal experiments sparked anger and disgust in every single particle of her body, but they may have caught a glimpse of whatever it was in the process, maybe even gathered useful information. It was worth a shot despite all the things she was uncomfortable with, so the sooner that kryptis mess was resolved and she gained their trust, the faster she could put that anxiety to rest... and actually rest. She just had to play along their obsession with secrecy and save Tyria once more, then they'd have to lend her their knowledge for a little while, Zojja had assured her of it.

And then there was Peitha, a literal demon, who had sensed the mark that unknown thing had left on her, and even admitted that she instinctively feared whatever it was. Aurelia was called a fool for trusting the kryptis lady so easily, but that wasn't trust, not yet at that point, just... hope. If Peitha had sensed that quiet desperation as well, she didn't say, but after what happened, Aurelia felt more kinship with her than anyone else up there in the Tyrian skies, enough to decide to help her cause.

And yet, the more time passed, the more things started to unravel.

The white lie Aurelia had told to her family weighed heavily on her, but she kept telling herself that they were better off thinking her away on relaxing alone time every few months, just a call away from having an entire army and more descending from the sky to her aid if anything went awry. Ellara immediately knew she wasn't telling the whole truth, and her words of trust and comfort nearly broke her resolve, nearly made her ignore the call to action.

Meeting Isgarren was... not what Aurelia had hoped for. She had given him the benefit of the doubt at first, thinking him too preoccupied with what was happening after barely surviving Cerus, but things didn't improve -quite the opposite-, and the cracks in her hope deepended with each conversation shared with the seer. His insensitive words always grated her somewhere deep, somehow pinching her nerves more than those of many leaders she had dealt with, and yet, despite what she could best describe as heartless objectivity, he never mentioned anything about what had happened to her, even when she vagued about it. She doubted that was just courtesy, and she started to doubt he could -or would- help her in the search, though part of her was relieved at the idea of not having to stand him for any extended periods of time.

As for Zojja... Aurelia wanted to be supportive of the path her old friend had chosen -one she hoped she truly wanted-, but it hurt nonetheless to see someone desiring the kind of terrifying void she had gone through. But she knew what that sort of emptiness felt like, and she was willing to help, be there when it happened, ready on the other side to meet her and soften the blow. And yet, without a proper goodbye, the Zojja she knew was not there anymore, not where she could reach her.

Something had shifted then, before Aurelia even set foot in Nayos. She tried not to let it take hold, she'd long gotten used to disappointment, dead ends and going down paths laid down by others, but... she's tired, drained, alone. Her heart just does not feel in it, not without those who had always been at her side.

And in this moment, as Aurelia's weary stare moves from the pale face of her ally to the beam of eerie light coming from the fortified citadel suspended in the fog, something shifts again, uncomfortable.

It's certain that the nightmare she once survived is not in the Realm of Dreams, and the hope that her new friends can help her search for it has mostly faded, but she is needed there and that's enough for her. When Peitha will call her again, she won't leave her and the Astral Ward to face the tyrant alone, she has to leave again and save Tyria like always. Fool's errand or not, Commander or Wayfinder, that's what she is good for, and she has faced worse than that, after all. It's a small flicker of determination -at this point she's not even sure it can count as hope or desperation-, but if she can't get the answers from those who are on her side, maybe Eparch could be her best shot at her original goal. With any luck, fighting him will lead to him teasing and taunting her with something, anything. Better than nothing for sure. She sighs, and it dies down again. Her emotions checked out a while ago, even the panic she should be feeling right now is muted, and she knows she has just been going through the motions of what's by now her own nature.

Save the farm.

Then kill the demon that sleeps nearby.

Hope there'll be no more loss to mourn.

[mistfallengw2]

TIME FOR MORE BARELY COHERENT RAMBLES

On the topic of Aurelia being "not a mother but weirdly motherly" towards others, I want to point out that in her mind that means making extra sure they're looking after themselves (food, sleep, being safe), that they know how to fight just in case, that they can ask her to help with anything, instinctively prioritizing their well-being during combat, and of course awkwardly hovering around them if she feels like they could need help (words are hard so that's the next best thing). That's a given with Adamas and he's the only one she's forward about it (calling him son and so on), but what makes it extra amusing to me is that she ended up with more "kids" than expected by consistently acting like that regardless of her being Commander-levels of busy. [under readmore because it got long oops]

- Aurene is as close to a daughter to her as an elder dragon can, to the point she and Adamas (and Tocchix by proxy) refer to each other as siblings. Aurelia has complex feelings about it due to external factors (mostly self-doubt and such), but surprisingly she's overall okay with it, at least in private.

- Tocchix is in the previously mentioned awkward spot of being her son's adoptive brother, and she genuinely cares for him beyond what's expected in regards to Adamas's wellbeing. On Tocchix's side, things are similar and he admires her a lot, and he quickly settled on considering her extended family, akin to Alyt (who he calls his aunt for simplicity).

- Markus was the first to help her after she tumbled out of the Mists, and he did so in spite of her being almost feral due to the trauma of it all. In turn that sparked lots of motherly and protective feelings towards that kid who has now grown up into a fine Lionguard, but it'd be weird for a charr to consider a human like a son, right? As for Markus, you could refer to Aurelia as his mother and he'd need a few long seconds to register what you said (to be fair, for a long time he did want her to stay at the farm and become his second mother).

- Taimi jokes a lot about her acting like a mother and fretting about her health because it's annoying to her, but she also likes seeing Aurelia being a softie in general. To Aurelia, that's just looking out for her like anyone should (you gotta make sure all soldiers can keep up, especially if younger or wounded), and seeing her grow up in spite of her difficulties made her particularly attached to the young prodigy. She likes listening to her ramble about stuff beyond her ability to comprehend.

- Braham is in a weird spot, because she doesn't want to be Eir's substitute, but she does feel like she has to take on the role to make amends for failing to save her. Braham obviously had a lot to unpack in the mommy issues department, and Aurelia was "okay" with letting him unleash his grievances on her (something something she feels like Adamas should have done that with her, so that feels deserved in her mind), though she did draw the line when he put himself in danger. Now that things are settled, the dynamic is healthier and he does genuinely consider her as the mother figure that is there when he needs it, and jokes about it are not uncommon (picked it up from Taimi).

- All of the above's partners get gradually included in the motherly treatment by extention. It's in the name after all, you know, children in-law. Still, it's often done to a more awkward degree, because she's more intentional with it. Maeveryl likes her so they don't mind (HoT was a rough time, but in hindsight they appreciated her being realistic about things), Deryn thinks she's awesome (and she's used to having additional parental figures anyway), Huki was a bit intimidated at first but now thinks it's a cute thing (and pushes Tocchix to be more forward with her), Fynn and Kai find it funny (mostly because they can poke fun at Markus for it), Gorrik is Gorrik (Aurelia did try to show interest in bugs one time, and now he eagerly prepares lectures in advance). - Ellara called her mommy once as a joke and she never recovered.

[mistfallengw2]

🎉🧎‍♂️🥩 for Aurelia?

@mystery-salad

Emoji ask game

🎉 The Wing warband liked to celebrate their successes (and especially their skirting of punishment), which often meant going to local bars, which often led to them being around bar brawls. They rarely had a part in starting them, but Aurelia in particular liked finishing them (being so big was surely an advantage). She and Daunte met by having each other's back during one particularly exhilarating free-for-all, then became drinking buddies, and the rest is history.

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🧎‍♂️ During the All-Legion Rally, Aurelia was still reeling from everything that had happened in S4, and returning in those places so deeply tied to memories of her late warband ended up doing a number on her (after recovering from the traumatic amnesia thing she is unable to get over mourning her loss, and one thing is remembering them when so far away from everything, another is being in the place where memories just flood back to her). Before shit goes down and she has to switch back into Commander mode, she is walking alone through the hills surrounding the Keep to let herself take a breather and reorder her thoughts, but she accidentally finds herself in an isolated place that was special to her and Ardea. She is happy to see it's still there after so long, but after kneeling down next to a tree and finding out the carving they made is still there, she has a tiiiny bit of an emotional collapse right there and there (she hadn't crashed that badly since her time in the Mists, and years of accumulated stress just pour out of her). Ellara is the one who happens to find her hours later and she approaches Aurelia thinking she has just dozed off or something. Still without realizing, she says the wrong thing (too flirty) and Aurelia snaps at her pretty badly (the bunch of complex feelings towards her didn't help), which leads to Ellara excusing herself. After regaining a bit of composure, Aurelia feels terrible about it because she knows Ellara didn't deserve any of it, but then shit goes down before she has a chance to properly talk to her (she manages a quick apology that Ellara accepts, but they were among others so she feels like that isn't enough) and they don't get to have that talk for more than half a year afterwards (Ellara visits her while she's out cold recovering in the Scrying Pool, so that's a minor relief in the meantime). [dw, Aurelia went to "magic therapy" and they get together so it's all good :v]

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🥩 Everyone in the Dragon/Wing warband had acceptable levels of cooking knowledge and they all pitched in during meal times, but the consensus was that Aurelia was the one in charge of preparing meat (Lupita would often just show up with freshly-hunted game and toss it to Aurelia without a word). She didn't do anything particular, but everyone agreed she did it better [autism be damned that girl can work a grill].

[mistfallengw2]

I talk about Aurelia like she is a traumatized, pathetic and awkard emotional mess that struggles to navigate interpersonal relationships, and in all fairness she kinda is, but I swear veeery few people see that and to most she's just a competent Commander that does 99% of the canon things as one would expect.

She is still fierce and menacing even when out of combat, she still quips and is able to have fun, she still bravely does what has to be done. She just has gone through a lot, but all and any breakdowns have to wait for shit to get done first. Big girl is just good at masking and prioritizing, I guess.

[mistfallengw2]

Anyway, Toypocalypse is Adamas's absolute favorite activity during Wintersday.

As a cub he spent a lot of time studying war strategy and tactics + his mama Ardea taught him valuable stuff from her experience, so Toypocalypse is the perfect way to use all that knowledge in a safe manner. The moment Wintersday is on, he'll puppy-eye anyone around him to convince them to join his team, and everyone in his circle has played with him at least once or twice over the years.

Mae initially wasn't that interested and played with him out of love, but after seeing how happy it made Adamas they rarely missed more than a couple games per year, and the same goes for Deryn. Now that they have cubs, Adamas has been training their own little family team, and both Iridis and Diane seem to enjoy it as much as their dad.

Bunnie doesn't need convincing and has become his go-to partner in crime for over a decade, mostly because she gets to freely smash stuff. "Crime" because the first few times they'd sneak out some of the broken toys to study and fix them (Adamas had a short obsession with their concept and went through a minute of severe heartbreak the first time he saw one get smashed), before returning them to Tixx when they failed, and they still do that as a tradition of sort.

Aurelia doesn't really "get" the game, but since her son is the one asking, she does try to play at least once every year (when not busy elsewhere with Commander stuff). She's not a good player and within a couple rounds she'll be running around smashing and chasing the toys herself, in true Commander fashion ✨

[mistfallengw2]

Further design notes on Aurelia's design (and some backstory infodump)

[previous notes on non-armor design changes here (not entirely up to date)]

(Everything under read more because it's a lot of screens and text oops)

Legions, before 1320 AE Her gear changed often during her 12 years of active service, especially since she tinkered in armorsmithing as a hobby, but this one was more or less her favored setup: simple design that protects while still allowing movement + lots of spiked parts to ram into enemies, especially the helm's horn that compliments her own.

Mists, 1320-1324 AE Long story short, Aurelia ended up in the Mists while fighting the first wave of branded that followed the creation of the Brand, specifically after smashing assorted human artifacts while trying to take down a big branded griffon. After dealing the killing blow, she then wandered the Mists for ??? (time in the Mists is weird), hoping to find a way out while injured and failing not to panic, till she stumbled upon the spirit of a certain crystalline dragon. A pitifully short fight later, Glint admitted she saw something in the charr, then offered her the powers of a dragon to do what had to be done: go back to Tyria and finish the wounded Kralkatorrik.

When Aurelia accepted, desperate to get out of there and see her family again (if they were still alive), she was given one of the dragon's facets, which bound itself to her damaged armor and magically transmuted it (golden and crimson, reflecting her own aura, with the facet itself in the center), as well as granting her a direct connection with Glint's spirits and her draconic powers.

Still, before Aurelia could go and do her task, she needed to hone her powers as fast as possible. Initially a hard deal because Aurelia had never used magic in her life, but it seemed to proceed well... until it backfired spectacularly. Glint's cryptic words whenever she inquired about her family had made her worry grow too much, far beyond making meditation hard, and when it was time for her to try and make her very first rift, it spat her out in buttmist nowhere, as her focus was elsewhere (she had unknowingly aimed for the Domain of the Lost, where most of her warband was). She tried to follow Glint's instructions, but other voices had accidentally entered her mind, and subsequent attempts to go back to where she started went progressively worse as she messed up again and again, stumbling in other places until she ended up in a forgotten corner of the Mists, where [data corrupted], something no mortal mind was ever meant to witness.

Against all odds, Aurelia managed to escape, thoroughly traumatized and wounded deeply by what she had experienced, but the facet had stopped working like before and turned dim, having taken the brunt of the corruption while shielding her. Aurelia struggled to contact the real Glint again, but she only found her echo to add to the others in her head. Still on the brink of corruption, she wandered aimlessly, fighting her way through fractal after fractal, her mind slipping away as her armor turned darker and darker, facet's powers and her memories fading as any thoughts beyond survival became drowned out by the constant whispers of echoes. It was a long time spent in that nothingness before she realized she had gotten stuck in an anomaly fractal for who knows how long.

Vigil, 1324 AE After popping out of the Mists thanks to a friend's "sacrifice", she had no memory of what happened in the Mists beyond having had it rough. Farm shenanigans happened, remembers some of what happened to her, then found out what happened to her warband and that her son was AWOL, so she pulled herself back together in hopes of finding him. Powers came and went, got a bit better after she got used to the constant voices in her head. After a brief stay in the Black Citadel to sort out some Legions' matters, she officially joined the Vigil and became a Crusader, relying on some old friends there, including Almorra. Thankfully an exception to the uniform code was allowed: Aurelia just can't separate herself from that weird enchanted chest piece with the glowy thing, mostly because she feels safer and overall better when wearing it... but especially because, even if she leaves it locked in a chest somewhere, it just reappears in her close proximity. The fact that it forms itself around her torso is just a nice added bonus.

Orr campaign, 1325 AE Very glad to find out that Adamas was alive and well in Lion's Arch and working for another Order, very much not glad that she didn't get to enjoy their reunion before a whole other dragon started wrecking stuff too close for comfort. Not too keen on the whole Pact Commander role for herself because she's not used to being in a leadership position of any sort, but trusts Trahearne and she'll do what she has to. Some memories start coming back thanks to a new friend's help, but while she's not that eager to rediscover more, it does seem to make her powers a bit more reliable, and killing a dragon helps a bit too. Swapped the pauldrons for something lighter and more flexible.

Season 1 and 2, 1326-27 AE Being constantly busy is nice, because you can't think about your own trauma when you gotta prevent or fix trauma-causing events, right? Right? All the stuff with Glint's aspects charges her armor up and makes her memory clear up more. However, visiting Glint's lair sure was a trip for her, one she could have done without, given what she remembered afterwards. At least she's convinced herself to make and wear charr armor again, which feels a bit like the "home" she'll never have again. Small progress, but having her son by her side and a growing support net does help her stabilize.

Heart of Thorns, 1328 AE When Aurelia touched Aurene's egg for the first time, her armor had reacted and... turned slightly lighter? Not that she had time to really understand what was happening, busy as she was being chased through the jungle by a murdertree. Maybe it's the contact with Exalted stuff that's inherently linked to Glint and the egg being Glint's own, but her powers did get more reliable after all that, so she's not complaining. Also, uh, when did her pauldrons become "part" of the chest piece?

Season 3, 1329 AE Swapped out damaged parts of her armor, went for matching colors to her chest piece. When Aurene hatched, Aurelia's armor reacted again... and again she didn't get the chance to figure it out right away, but it seemed just another case of it lighting up a shade. The bond with the dragon hatchling opened a clearing in her mind, and the more time she spends with her, the better she feels, the more stable her powers seem to become. Might also be all that unstable magic she's coming in contact with, but she doesn't turn crazed like other people do (seeing weird luminous things was quickly resolved and does not count), so it's fine.

Path of Fire, 1330 AE

By the time Aurelia leaves for the desert, her armor had shifted to a slightly lighter color again (she had to repair/remake her armor periodically anyway), and the facet was glowing brighter. In the fight with Balthazar where she died, his sword easily tore through the enchanted metal and shattered the facet. When she came back to life, the armor was inert and severely damaged, but to her surprise, her powers were not tied to the facet or armor, but her own and strong like before (actually stronger, as dying removed some of the corruption). She repaired it as she could before setting out to slay a god and save Aurene, but she left the hollow space where the facet used to be untouched.

Season 4, 1330-32 AE When Aurelia had drawn on Aurene's powers during the final fight with Balthazar, a small crystal had formed itself in the facet's place, and she kept it, thinking it was a shard of the original facet. After a few days, while Aurelia was repairing and upgrading her armor (it wasn't enchanted anymore, so she went all in and used orichalcum as well), the crystal started glowing blue. To humor herself and the curious voices in her head, she tried placing it in the breastplate's empty slot, and to her surprise it bound itself to it. The whole armor slowly became enchanted by the new facet, turning stronger than normal despite not being indestructible, at least until Aurene ascended. She does start wearing a shawl occasionally, be it to hide the facet's glow or to have more shielding from the weather.

IBS and onwards, 1332+ AE Turns out that Aurelia had apparently been slowly enchanting the gear she crafted/repaired (ask her skyscale how she found out that could happen). She doesn't know since when, since it was excess magic latching onto things, but she has now figured out how to willingly channel magic into her gear, so now her armor is almost as shiny as Aurene. She can also do more things with it thanks to Aurene's magic, even on the go!

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Casual Overall she gets little proper downtime so she's more often than not in armor, but she's been enjoying more "multicultural" clothes since coming back from the Mists. She particularly likes comfy shirts that leave her guns arms out or have wide sleeves, but she will wear anything as long as it doesn't feel too tight and restrictive (and still allows her to carry the facet comfortably).

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Assorted notes

- The original facet only served as a conduit for Glint's magic, as without help Aurelia (or any mortal) wouldn't have survived the sheer amount of it, especially since she wasn't magically trained at all.

- After enduring the corruption, the facet pretty much acted as a "life support" against its effects, filtering it out just enough to allow Aurelia to recover from what happened when she was corrupted. The anomaly fractal's own "nature" actually helped her survive the worst part of the process, as there was still a chance of succumbing to the corruption anyway or being killed if she stumbled in the wrong place in that state.

- Her memories faded and became blocked off entirely during her time in the Mists post-corruption (became progressively more like how in a dream you can't remember most of your real memories, then stayed like that other than random bursts of remembrance and awareness in the anomaly fractal) due to the trauma and the corruption's influence. For the first few days out of the Mists she barely knew her name (also as a result of her escape, was exhausted to the point of acting nearly feral), then they slowly came back to her as she made the effort and the corruption was cleansed. With the exclusion of what her mind couldn't process at all (mostly things that happened while she was on the brink of corruption), by EoD she remembered pretty much everything of her life, while what happened in the Mists pre-[data corrupted] is still a bit dubious even with Aurene's help due to its inherent mistfuckery and the limitations of Aurelia's own understanding at the time.

- The corruption also irreversibly messed with her powers, specifically not allowing her to create traversable portals to the Mists. She can create ones in the superficial layers of the Mists (the ones used in attacks), but anything beyond that spits her back (as if the Mists rejected her) and gives her a very unpleasant feeling close to pain (partially works on others as well, and she uses it tactically at times). She can traverse other portals just fine, although being in the Mists does give her anxiety.

- The friendly being bound to the anomaly fractal was ultimately the one who managed to send her back to Tyria. While she had gotten better in there to the point of coherency and relatively frequent awareness, her escape had taken a lot out of them both, and she only "remembers" flashes of her time in there and that she misses whoever they were.

- Rytlock is still the first revenant by technicality, as Aurelia only had Glint's powers in the Mists and then didn't have the full array of rev powers until Aurene hatched. In a way, she was a failed first attempt.

- While it was a very necessary crutch during the initial times after getting out of the Mists, later Aurelia only used the blindfold on occasions when the voices get too loud and confusionary for her to handle (echo-migraine). She also doesn't use helms anymore.

- The new facet is a mix of Aurene's magic and her own, which is why she has much more control over it compared to Glint's facet.

- While the corruption is like 99.99% gone thanks to the bond with Aurene filtering it away, it still has left a mark on Aurelia. Whether Aurene was ever aware of what it originated from or not, she only mentioned it in a vague comparison to the Dragonvoid. P****a is the first to openly notice it and be quietly unnerved by it, but she didn't mention it again.

- With the last upgrade of her armor and the link with Aurene strengthening after her ascension, she is able to summon crystalline wings fully on her own (just for gliding, requires a lot of concentration/magic). While they still show some of the lingering corruption and its damages in their opaqueness, they shine with her aura (first pic). If she had been able to do it at any point before then, they would have shown the corruption far more heavily (second pic).