#oc: bryala kine

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OC fact swap:

Although Ateitis is one of the Emperor's Children and spends her formative years doing his bidding, she has no respect for the man. As far as she's concerned, he's leeching off her abilities and the Empire as a whole. It's only fair that she gets to use him in return and borrow his authority to do whatever the hell she wants. When he dies, she like that "Oh no! Anyway" meme.

OC Fact Swap

Bryala's greatest fear is becoming as obsessed and overwhelmed by power as her grandfather Vitiate/Valkorion. Because she was raised on Zakuul by Arcann and Senya, she was very aware of his influence on her aunt Vaylin while also being told how sweet Vaylin was as a child. Realizing that the Emperor could harm and twist someone as sweet as Vaylin into such a broken person, Bryala fears that her blood may one day lead her down a similar destructive path.

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OC Tag Game

Got tagged by @starknstarwars thanks very much!

Will give out some no pressure tags to @swtorpadawan, @a-master-procrastinator, @dream-of-tanalorr, @imperial-topaz2003, @voidendron and anyone else that sees this and wants to give it a go!

favorite oc - Amarra Kine

I have fallen so hard for my girl Amarra. She is a force for political change yet has no vision for the future. She is one of the most powerful individuals in the empire yet has no ambition for personal power. She loves her family more than anything and yet she is completely alone in the empire. She is the deadliest warrior in the galaxy yet she wants peace for herself and her people. She is a mess of contradictions and I love her for it.

newest oc - Lana Kine

Lana is my OC Kelsa Kine's youngest child. Lana was named after Kelsa's mother Lana Beniko.

(Lana is in the background and Kelsa is in the foreground)

oldest oc - Ryscha Kine

When I made the decision to give SWTOR another chance at the start of the pandemic, I made Ryscha. She began as a semi-self insert before I just started making my Kine Family of OCs and she became her own person. (I did have two previous SWTOR characters that I made in like 2012 but I never really developed them into actual characters)

meanest oc - Avaraxi Dagan

My mad scientist OC that will happily vivisect anyone if it gets them more usable data points. They did vivisect and ran numerous experiments on Kelsa Kine, even harvesting some of her eggs for later which is how Lana Kine and her siblings came to be.

Also diversity win! The mad scientist that's running unethical experiments on you is non-binary!

softest oc - Bryala Kine

All Bryala wants in life is to be a good person and not disappoint those closest to her. And if she can help others along the way then she'll happily do so.

most aloof/standoffish oc - Keras'eren'naru

She is a Chiss that believes in Chiss supremacy. Everyone else is beneath her and her people.

dumbest (affectionate) oc - Inara Almari

She spent her early young adult life raiding dangerous tombs and ruins on the off chance that there might be ancient knowledge she can study. She will also forget about lab safety procedures if she gets too carried away while running experiments. Because she focuses so much on her work she was captured by Zakuulan forces on three separate occasions and all three times resulted in her being rescued by Ryscha Kine who eventually took her on as an apprentice. Inara might have also accidentally infected Ryscha with the rakghoul plague while developing a vaccine. Whoops sorry Master!

smartest oc - Serra Kine

I mean she helped develop the refined Children of the Emperor procedures for Vitiate. Was trusted to develop a Children of the Emperor 2.0 generation using children actually sired by the Voice of the Emperor. While doing all this successful force experimentation, she also planed out a coup against Vitiate (which while unsuccessful in her life was more or less carried out by her daughters Amarra and Ryscha). She also discovered Nathema on her own and managed to negotiate an alliance with the spirits of Marka Ragnos, Naga Sadow, Tulak Hord and Exar Kun on Yavin IV to help her take down Vitiate.

horniest oc - Élise Kine and Braken Rist

This married couple enjoy dominating the other nobles of Alderaan in their spare time and will also happily engage in the whole sleep with a target before killing them assassination special. They usually go at it again with each other after said assassinations too.

oc you'd bang - Damar Nakash

Damar is kinky, caring and enjoys making his partners quiver. Also those sith ridges are always mmmm

oc you'd be best friends with irl - Inara Almari

I love folks that have special interests and hyper-fixations. Listening to them info dump passionately is always great and I enjoy learning new things that way. Inara fits that bill. She is also the right type of dumb ass that I would probably laugh a lot with her

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I just really like the Sith red that Bryala and the Kines bring to Zakuulan fashion

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Cheers to the most well adjusted of my three Kine kids!

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Nowhere to run

Whumptober 2022 Cornered | Caged | Confrontation

61 ATC. Vinn Atrius and his political movement, The Order of Zildrog, has launched a coup against the Zakuulan Parliament. Bryala Kine, youngest daughter of the late Alliance Commander and part of the Zakuulan royal family (through the immortal emperor’s sith form) has been targeted by the Order.

Bryala tried to keep tears from obscuring her vision as she pressed down on her side in a futile attempt to stop the bleeding.

How had this happened? She knew that the Order of Zildrog had been gaining popular support. Reports from other Knights stationed in the Old World indicated that they were finding more and more instances of violence from the Order’s supporters. But there had been nothing to indicate that their influence had spread so far into The Spire... or the Knights.

She could feel the weight of betrayal crushing down on her heart and her tears were no longer just from physical pain. People that she had trained with, served alongside, trusted and loved were now hunting her down like an animal.

Fighting down a sob, she tried to focus on her surroundings.

She had ducked down a maintenance corridor but she could still hear the sounds of her pursuers. Voices shouted out orders as the Knights continued their search for her. Fortunately, their heavy footfalls seemed to be leading away from her position.

Letting out a breath she hadn’t known she was holding, Bryala tried to tend to her wound. The bleeding was bad, her golden armor was now a mess with her blood smeared all over the plates. It was a wonder that her former brothers and sisters in arms hadn’t been able to follow her blood trail.

Probably best to leave her armor behind. She was in no condition to fight and all the armor was doing now was just slowing her down. Getting rid of it might also help her blend in to any civilian crowds or at least not be immediately spotted as the image of a bleeding Knight wasn’t exactly ideal for going unseen.

If she could just get up to the Spire’s upper levels then she might have a chance to find more loyalists that could help her. She didn’t want to think of what Atrius might have in store for her if she was captured.

Fate however, seemed uninterested in what she wanted.

“Bryala.”

Her head snapped up and her vision went blurry at the fast movement. Nearly toppling over, she just managed to steady herself against the corridor wall.

As her vision adjusted, she found herself wishing she had just passed out. That would have been preferable to looking into the sad and regretful eyes of her Knight partner. The man that had saved her from a thousand dangers. The man that she trusted to watch her back. The same man that had betrayed her and opened up the wound in her side.

“Lee,” she tried to snarl but her voice wobbled despite her efforts.

Lee’s dark brown eyes scanned over her, taking in everything from the blood stained armor and still oozing wound to the the pale and sickly quality of her skin and wide fearful eyes. It was a pitiful sight and he winced slightly as he returned his focus to her bleeding side.

That should have made her angry, the hypocrisy. He betrays her and then feels remorseful after he sees what his actions have done. But all it did was make her sad.

Could she have somehow stopped this betrayal? What signs had she missed? And if she had seen the signs, could she have gotten through to Lee and stopped him before any of this happened?

They were irrelevant questions but they wouldn’t leave her mind. Lee had been one of her closest friends and yet he had still chosen to betray her.

“Why?”

Lee remained silent but there was a deep sadness to his eyes which refused to fully meet hers.

Frustration ignited a small spark of anger and Bryala threw a piece of bloodied armor at her partner. “Damn it, Lee! Why?!”

Glancing down at the spot where Bryala’s armor had struck his breastplate, Lee saw that it had left a smear of blood just above his aching heart. Not for the first time, he wished that his life had been different. Maybe if he had died on the streets of the Old World then this wouldn’t have happened. Atrius would not have claimed him and ordered him to betray the only friend he had ever had. He would not have hurt the one person that had believed in him and made him feel like a real person and not just a weapon.

But his life was not different. This is what he was. A weapon. A tool. Not a person deserving of love and friendship.

A tear slipped from his eye as he glanced away from Bryala’s pained gaze. Why was he so weak? Hadn’t everything Atrius had done to him removed all hesitation and doubts from his mind?

No. Apparently all the excruciating procedures, experiments and training had not left him the obedient tool that Atrius wanted him to be. It would be so much easier if he was.

Maybe in the beginning he had been closer to the ideal that Atrius had wanted but now? After being partnered with Bryala for two years he found himself wanting more out of life. He found himself wanting to have a life.

But if he were to betray Atrius for Bryala...

He shuddered at the thought of the horrors and pain that he would be put through if his adoptive father learned Lee had ever considered such a thing. He already hurt all the time thanks to the incomplete exarch enhancements he had been subjected to and he didn’t want to hurt more.

He was a coward, incapable of doing what he actually wanted because he was too afraid of the consequences if he failed.

His sad and regretful eyes met Bryala’s and they both knew what he was going to do. They also knew that he hated himself for it and likely would for the rest of his days.

Still, Bryala tried a final time to reach him. “Please, Lee... You don’t have to do this. I can protect you. Whatever Atrius has on you, my family can keep you safe.”

A choked laugh that sounded more like a sob escaped from Lee’s mouth at that. “I wish that was true, Bry. I truly wish it was. But you can’t protect me. You can’t even protect yourself. Atrius has supporters everywhere, even in Parliament. If I betrayed him...” He shuddered again as his implants throbbed. “I can’t go through that. I’m so sorry Bry but I can’t go through that again.”

Silence fell between them. It was suffocating and filled with their shared despair at their predicament. Neither wanted this but fate did not care.

“I’m so sorry, Bry.”

Bryala gave her partner a final sad and exhausted smile. “So am I, Lee. So am I.”

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🖊+Bryala

Thanks so much @vihola! I love my girl Bryala so much!

Want me to gush about my OCs?

When I gave Bryala her two partners (OC Damar Nakash and OC Lee), I made them to deliberately represent the two halves of Bryala's identity. Damar represents her family's Sith heritage and Lee represents the Zakuulan environment that she was raised in with her uncle Arcann and grandmother Senya.

All three of them together were meant to show a healing and moving on from all the pain that the Emperor and his various forms had caused. Damar as a pureblooded Sith has moved on from the militarized Empire that Vitiate created and is making a home and future for himself in Zakuulan space. Lee, an orphan taken in and used by Vinn Atrius, is leaving behind the acceptance of extremist views and blind loyalty that Valkorion and his own children inspired in the Zakuulan people. And Bryala is learning to live her life without the shadow of her grandfather looming over her. Out of the three Kine children, she feared her heritage and connection to Vitiate the most. But she is learning to live life as her own person free of her grandfather's influence.

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Kelsa wondering why the galaxy always seems to say “and fuck this one person in particular”

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58 for whomever you like!

Many thanks for the ask @swtorpadawan!

Send an OC ask based on your battery percentage

Kelsa Kine

58%. Are there any hobbies your character absolutely hates and would never want to do?

Anything to do with streaming / putting your face out there on the holonet. Kelsa values personal privacy a lot and wants nothing to do with having a public personality. It frustrates her to no end when her sister and cousin (Bryala and Élise respectively) do public Zakuulan and Alderaanian royalty nonsense and insist that she also attend because "family" is important and should be supportive. However, Kelsa has been hunted for nearly her entire life because of "family" and will not sacrifice her hard fought anonymity for them. So if she attends a public family event, she does so while wearing a mask or helmet to hide her face.

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Fashion wise, I think I like Bryala the best out of the Kine kids. Zakuulan fashion just works for her.

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In another timeline, the Alliance would survive and the Kine children would lead it into the future.

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@blitzindite I was inspired to quickly put this absolute nonsense together after thinking of Zakuulan Knight buddy cop procedurals 😂

*Puts on shades* YEAAAAAAH!

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Love this tint to the Zakuulan Knight armor! Also I’m thinking that Bryala’s personal guard eventually adopt her own unique red armor coloring and become known as the Tuk’ata’s Teeth.

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The Jedi Council room lighting usually sucks so much and drowns out all color but it actually isn’t too bad with Bryala

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Just a cute triad checking out their new shared apartment

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You are ready for this

Three young adults being told the same thing by their parental figures. And three different reactions from each of them.

Some of my next gen characters, whose lives eventually all come together, just trying to make their way through life.

Bryala

“You are ready for this.”

Bryala looked back as a comforting hand rested on her shoulder.

Her uncle and grandmother were both smiling kindly at her and she could see in their eyes just how proud they were of her. It meant so much to hear that from them and that they had chosen to see her off.

“Thank you, uncle Arcann,” she said before giving him a tight hug.

Her uncle let out an exaggerated huff as if she had just knocked the air out of him before he wrapped his arms around her too. She then felt his chest rumble with light laughter. “If you fight and train half as hard as you hug then the Knights will have gained an excellent new addition.”

“And even if you find that the Knights are not for you, I am certain that you will have much to teach your fellow recruits.”

Bryala released her uncle and turned to give her grandmother a hug of her own.

Senya Tirall let out a small laugh, much like her son, at the hug but did not hesitate to return it. “You have grown into a remarkable young woman, Bryala. Your parents would be very proud of you.”

Pulling away slightly, but still holding onto her grandmother, Bryala managed a small nervous smile. “I hope so… I always wondered if they would have wanted me to study Sith or Jedi philosophy like they did but…” she trailed off as her voice caught in her throat. “But they just never fit me.”

A gentle finger beneath her chin caused Bryala to look up at her grandmother. The expression she wore was one of sympathy, regret, sorrow and more. But most of all, there was love and certainty in her grandmother’s eyes. “Your parents loved you more than anything. They fought so hard so that you could make your own choices in life. And I know that they would have been proud of you no matter what you chose to dedicate yourself to, so long as it was your choice.”

Feeling her chest tighten with emotion, Bryala pulled her grandmother into another tighter hug. “I miss them… I… sometimes I remember their faces or their voices but I… I feel like I’m forgetting them.”

“Oh child.” Senya pulled her even closer and rubbed circles into her back. “I know how difficult it has been for you but know that they will always be with you, in here.” She pulled back gently and placed a finger to Bryala’s chest just above her beating heart.

“Thank you.”

“Of course, my dear.”

Bryala took a step back and wiped away the tears that had gathered in her eyes. She was about to walk to the waiting shuttle when her uncle stopped her.

“Just a moment.” He reached into his white robes and pulled out a small pendant. He turned it about in his hands for a moment before holding it out for Bryala. “We had this made for you. Something to remember where you have come from and where you are going.”

Taking the pendant, Bryala found the tears she had wiped away returning. It was the Kine family crest, her family crest, carved in ornate Zakuulan gold with intricate patterns etched into it. She closed her eyes for a moment and held the pendant to her chest. This meant more to her than she could properly articulate.

As if he understood, Arcann merely smiled and gave her a final hug. “Go on now or you’ll miss your shuttle,” he joked. “And know that we will be here for you when you return.”

With a final grateful smile to her uncle and grandmother, Bryala boarded the shuttle.

She was ready for this. Her family knew it and she knew it. All that was left now was for her to succeed.

Damar

“You are ready for this.”

Damar paused as he stepped off the shuttle’s ramp. The words had been spoken so softly that he thought for a moment that he must have misheard or even imagined the words entirely. But as he turned around and looked into the face of Lady Allval, Darth Siktis, he realized that he had heard her words correctly.

But realizing that the words had actually been spoken only caused further confusion. Lady Dira Allval had never so much as given him the time of day, let alone offered any kind of encouragement or belief in his abilities. He did not even have the Allval name but the name of his mother’s family, Nakash.

His surprise was so great that a tuk’ata could have sunk its fangs into his leg and he would not have noticed. He just stood there, staring into the red eyes of his mother as she gave him a small sad smile.

“You are ready for this,” she repeated, still with that sad almost regretful smile on her face. “Do our name proud.”

With that, she stepped back into the shuttle and the hatch hissed closed behind her.

Damar remained rooted to the spot as the shuttle lifted off.

Do our name proud.

“Our name,” he murmured to himself as he wondered why she had said those words to him. His half siblings had always gotten their mother’s attention, not him. His place in the family had always been clear, a spare that was the product of their mother’s personal desires not her political duties.

Our name.

The Lady Allval had never openly expressed a pride in her birth family’s name, at least not in front of him. She had always used the name of her late husband. So why now of all times would she say such a thing? Was it some kind of trick? A final twist of the knife to show that she could have cared for him as much as his Allval siblings but chose not to? But what good could that possibly do her? Could it have possibly been intended to make him angry? A parting gift to stoke a burning rage that would fuel him through his time on Korriban?

He didn’t understand.

Shaking his head, Damar made his way to the academy. He could ponder his mother’s odd actions later. Assuming he survived of course.

The corner of his mouth twitched upward in a small smirk. He would survive. If his older siblings with their coddled and spoiled upbringing could survive the trials of Korriban then he certainly would. Because unlike them, he had had to fight tooth and nail for every scrap of dignity and recognition that he ever received. Unlike them, he already knew that the only person you could ever truly rely on was yourself.

He was ready for this and he would not fail.

Lee

“You are ready for this.”

Lee was relieved for an excuse to look up and away from the people that were strapping him down to the medical table. It was a process that he had undergone so many times that he had permanent marks on his arms, chest and legs from where the heavy straps had cut into his skin. Yet despite the fact that he had gone through this countless times and now rarely put up any protest, he still feared the process just like he had during his first operation. But after so much time, he no longer hoped that the operations would not happen. Now, he knew that they would always happen, regardless of how he felt about them. Now, he just hoped that the pain afterwards would not be too overwhelming.

Eager to escape the thoughts of the pain he constantly lived with, Lee looked up to the transparisteel observation window where Vinn Atrius stood. Although he knew that it was unlikely, he still had many more procedures to undergo after all, he hoped to see some sort of acknowledgement from the man who had taken him off the streets. But as he looked up, he could see that Atrius had already started speaking with one of the Project Exarch specialists.

His eyes closed upon realizing that he obviously still had to do much more if he wanted to gain Atrius’ approval. Maybe if he managed to get through this procedure without too much trouble then the old Horizon Guard might finally grant Lee some kind of acknowledgment.

It felt like years since Atrius had last given Lee some sense that he was doing what was wanted of him, that he was being good. He knew that all of the painful procedures must be necessary for the Order of Zildrog’s plans. That alone should have been enough for Lee, Atrius had told him as much on many occasions. But at times like these, when he desperately wanted an end to the pain, he could not help but wonder just what the Order needed him to be enhanced for. He hoped that it was important. If it was important then that meant all of this pain was worth it. That was what Atrius always said. The ends justify the means.

“Doctor, are you ready?”

Are they ready? Lee remembered when that question used to be directed at him. But he had been too much trouble during the early procedures, always asking for them to stop. So, the doctors and Atrius had stopped asking him.

“We are sir.”

He was not. He never was.

“Very good. Proceed.”

Please no!

“Beginning phase one injections.”

Lee wanted to sob but knew there was no point. Instead, he tried to keep from screaming once the pain started.

But as always, he was not ready for the pain and as always, he failed to keep from screaming.

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Bryala! oooh and Loyat. I KNOW she's not an OC, but I Love your version of her... -Oliver

Ayy, mom and daughter time! Thanks @blitzindite!

Gotta be honest I adore Bryala! She is a genuinely good person that just wants the best for everyone.

As she grew up on Zakuul, Bryala was much more culturally Zakuulan than Sith. However, she did get the Kine family crest tattooed on her back to honor her Sith family and heritage. Senya and Arcann also arranged for tutors to teach her both high and common Sith which she became fluent in though spoke with a slight Zakuulan accent.

As an adult, she was given a Tuk’ata pup from her Sith friend, Damar Nakash. She would name the pup Aivela, thinking that it was a fitting mix of her Zakuulan and Sith heritage as Aivela was the Zakuulan goddess of passion, something that the Sith are taught to pursue.

I’m so glad that you like my version of Loyat! I dunno why I just really latched onto her as a character that I wanted to expand on (suppose you’re in that same hell with the Exarchs now lol)

I have always felt that outside of Arho’s direct influence, Loyat is quite a level headed and capable military leader. In my canon she gets to display those skills during Zakuul’s invasion and conquest of the galaxy.

She became a trusted advisor and lieutenant of my Wrath, Amarra and was responsible for helping to lead the Imperial military against the invaders. It was her tactical insights that helped the Empire achieve several small but definitive victories against Zakuul.

Her skills meant that she was a contender for being named the head of the Sphere of Military Command but she declined as her personal priorities had shifted. She no longer desired power as a means of protecting herself in a dangerous Empire. She had found comfort in her friend and lover, Ryscha and was prepared to leave the Empire behind to try and find that comfort once more.