#operator kaylessa

[spacemagictea]

Does kaylessa have any lore to her? Like a backstory aboard the zariman ten zero and such?

Yes, I’ve got some details of her backstory/lore sort of figured out.

She was born on Venus to a family of scholars. Her father was a renowned at the time botanist while her mother was a zoologist. Kaylessa has vague memories of being taken on field research trips together with her sister. She sadly doesn’t remember their names.

She had a 6 years older sister, Aurelia, an academic prodigy who planned to become a geneticist. Aurelia was a fairly ambitious person, aiming to reach as high as possible into scholarly echelons, hoping to perhaps even become and Archimedian, but at the same time she was also fiercely protective of her younger sister. And she made sure Kay isn’t pressured by their parents into doing things she might not want.

Kay was more reserved and grounded but fostered a deep curiosity about the wonders of nature which she carried ever since childhood. Reading books about plants and animals and other things has been something she’s loved doing as a kid and she loves doing now. And now she also is a green thumb in her spare time.

Other kids considered her weird, not helped by the fact she’s neurodivergent and while she was quite introverted, not having any connections with her peers did sting. They weren’t cruel to her, but she never made any friends.

When Kay was 10 years old, her parents received summons to the Zariman. During the journey to Tau, they would take care of plants and livestock and after reaching Tau they would be among the first describing the species of this alien system. Little did they know that this would never happen.

With the gathering of the colonists finished and all residents having been acclimated, 3 years later the failed jump was attempted. The result was a well-known disaster.

(Further parts under read more, warning for sibling death)

Her parents didn’t immediately turn insane. Her sister went missing in the chaos and unbeknownst to them, was unfortunately among the first to turn. As Kay went looking for Aurelia, she ended up cornered in one of the classrooms… by her sister. It was like watching a beast wearing her body and pleas fell on ears which could not process them. And as her older sister lunged forward, ready to strike, to kill, survival instincts kicked in and Kay struck her down (she doesn’t remember what she grabbed in the blur but she remembers it being very heavy), something that has haunted her ever since.

This also resulted in her being unable to kill her parents once they too have been turned. She locked them up and when she lost hope they could come to their senses, ran away. she doesn’t know whether they died or for example turned into Void Angels. And she’s not sure if she shouldn’t have given them the mercy of death, but there was no right choice, only wrong ones - and after Aurelia’s death, she just couldn’t kill them, whether due to foolish hope or the guilt eating at her too much.

Hiding with some other kids, she struck the bargain with the Man in the Wall. And there, two time pathways have diverged:

-one where Kaylessa was saved alongside the rest, becoming Operator Kaylessa, pushing away all memories of the past, fully embracing loneliness and becoming the master of stealth and helping from the backline. In current days, she wields Ivara and Wisp the most and enjoys animal conservation. She’s content to be the mentor to her older self.

-one where Kaylessa was left behind, becoming Drifter Kaylessa. She embraces her past and found a new family in the Hex. Reckless and defiant, since she got out of Duviri she’s taken a more active role between the two. She enjoys supporting others but takes a more frontline approach, preferring frames that are active and can control the battlefield. She’s very protective of others, even at the cost of herself.

Details about the time in Duviri and TNW might come sometime.

[austinplaysrpgs-blog]

Princes of the Apocalypse, Part 1: The Tomb of Moving Stones

Cast of characters:

Peter Brightwood (Me) - Human Bard - Lawful Good

Peter grew up hearing tales of the great duelist Gildas Swiftfoot, who once challenged and defeated all of the queensguard in duels, taking up the mantle of captain of the queensguard. Now Peter tells those same tales to a new generation, all the while training with the blade so that he can follow in Swiftfoot’s steps and become the greatest swordsman who ever lived.

Fud - Black Dragonborn Fighter - Chaotic Neutral

Fud was a solider in his tribe's militia, sworn to protect and serve his people. People looked down upon the chromatic dragonborn that made up his tribe and many picked fights with them. After many great battles, his people ended up either dead or enslaved to the nearby Dwarvish Clan Swordshatter. One day, Fud was able to be catch his slave master alone and kill him while making an escape. He carries his slave master's whip as a reminder of the pain and evil his tribe suffered, and the consequences of his failure to protect them.

Bolt - Human Fighter - Neutral Good

Bolt is a hermit who uses few words, preferring grunts and gestures. While living in the wilds, he found an artifact of mysterious origin and was given a vision of the horrifying power it had. He decided to guard it and make sure it did not fall into evil hands. Not long ago, he was forced out of his mountain home by a cult intent on taking the artifact. Now he looks for aid to make sure they don't use its true power.

Thokhan “Goodbook” Kristai-Anahtai - Goliath Cleric - Lawful Good

Goodbook only recently discovered his love and devotion to the god Tempus. He departed his tribe’s home and set out into the world to show them the good works and iron fist of Tempus. Often those are one and the same. Goodbook’s weapon of choice is a steel-clad tome detailing the dogma of the Lord of Battles.

We arrive in Red Larch after answering a job board listing from Kaylessa, the owner and operator of The Swinging Sword, the town’s largest inn. Kaylessa has grown very concerned by recent goings-on around town, and looked for outside help to investigate. Fud kicks open the door to the inn for no reason, starting our professional relationship with Kaylessa off on the wrong foot. Kaylessa, despite her irritation at our behavior, tasks us with cleaning up a few loose ends around town.

We take on a camp of bandits that have captured a bear. We spare the last bandit, who surrenders, to take him back to town for judgment. Fud decides to release the hungry bear, who immediately attacks him. Goodbook and Peter are big believers in 1 v 1 combat, and stand back to watch the fight unfold. Fud is felled by the beast, and after Bolt kills the bear, Fud's wounds are tended to. Goodbook, intent on converting this bandit to the grace of Tempus, suggests that the bandit fight the town's Constable in trial by combat. The bandit is killed quickly and efficiently by the Constable.

We investigate a ghost sighting out by a nearby crypt. Turns out the ghost is just goblins under bedsheets, shaking passersby down for cash. We strike them down for their misdeeds, and collect Kaylessa's bounty. She feels that we have proven ourselves as capable warriors at this point, and finally discloses the job she's been hoping we'd be able to complete.

There's been strange activity near Lance Rock, a nearby landmark. We discover that a necromancer has taken up residence inside, calling himself the Lord of Lance Rock. His undead goons are no match for us, however, and we slay him. We find disturbing symbols in one of the rooms. Bolt recognizes one of them and tells us that it's very evil. Peter finds a sword stuck in the wall up to the hilt and pulls it free. The blade disintegrates and he throws what's left into his pack.

When we return to town to collect our pay from Kaylessa, a sinkhole opens up in the middle of town. We fish the children who fell in out with rope, and go down to investigate. There's cult-y activity going on down here. We find a floating stone. Fud throws it on the ground, shattering it.

We stumble across a room of cultists. A teenage boy is pinned beneath a large stone. We kill the cultists and free the boy. He shares that he was put under the stone as punishment, and that he wasn't in danger. Goodbook recruits the kid, who is now called Boy by the group, to serve Tempus, tossing him a sword. We find an old priest named Baragustus further in. He is also given a weapon and told to serve Tempus or die. He tells us about the Tomb of Moving Stones, and how the cult has been protecting and preserving the Tomb, whose stones have given them visions of the future. Despite the priest's protests, we enter the Tomb.

Upon entering the Tomb, Boy and the old priest are immediately obliterated by a thunderous spell from the mad wizard inside. The swirling stones inside the Tomb make it difficult to spot the mage hiding out on the other end of the room, but we triangulate his position and kill him before he can escape. Goodbook bags up Boy and the priest's bodies and drags them out of the Tomb. We find a tunnel leading up into town, directly into Boy's father's place of business. Instead of opening the door out, Fud throws a clay pot full of sand at the door, shattering both. Boy's father, Rotharr, is furious that we've broken into his place of business. When we explain what happened below, and give him his son's corpse, he breaks down, sobbing.

"Baragustus should've stopped him from getting into danger", he says.

We give him the priest's corpse, too.

Due to Rotharr’s yelling and crying, this has become a scene, and curious townsfolk have gathered outside to see what's going on. Rotharr says that we are responsible for his son's death. Fud and Goodbook argue with him for quite a while before the Constable is summoned.

Fud tells the Constable that we've murdered some people below, which sets off alarm bells in the Constable's mind. Pete offers to take him below and show him the Tomb that isn't supposed to be there. He agrees, on the terms that Fud and Goodbook be cuffed until the truth of the matter can be determined. We show him what lies below, and when we return, Rotharr has vanished. We find out that he's left town in a hurry, and with the Constable's blessing, we take off in pursuit.

[spacemagictea]

Operator Kaylessa and Ivara, her preferred Warframe.

[spacemagictea]

Beacon in the Dark

First of the stories I've written about my Drifter, Kaylessa and Amir Beckett. I plan to write more and it will all include some fluff, some angst and some sap.

TW: Sibling death

Stories will include spoilers from both the quest and the chats in one way or another to a varying degree.

I've not written things in like 10 years, and I've never shared things that I've written/came up with to be honest. I hope you enjoy.

If color coding makes things harder to read, then I'll remove it. Lemme know, please. <3

Spoken dialogue in -speak-, thoughts in 'thought', just in case.

March 14th,1999

The days in Höllvania were starting to get longer as winter slowly gave way to spring. Warmer seasons presented new challenges, but also new opportunities. One exceptionally calm evening in the central mall, Kaylessa was discussing a field hospital setup with Lettie.

-Alright, we seem to have the layout worked out.- Kay straightened out in the chair, gently pushing a rough plan drawing towards the medic. -How do you feel we discuss supplies tomorrow, maybe after lunch?

-Muy bien, come tomorrow whenever you aren’t busy. Get some rest for now. Gracias, babas.- Lettie nodded with appreciation, grabbing the piece of paper to take a closer look.

-Great. See you tomorrow, then.

The Drifter got up from the chair, rolling back her shoulders. At first, she considered walking straight to the backroom before an idea sprung in her mind and she headed downstairs.

‘Perhaps I should invite him to lunch. I think he’d like that.’

Recently, she talked over the KIM with Amir about what she jokingly called a “date idea” of having a talk about her past over a big plate of pasta. She came to appreciate the jittery technician a lot over the last weeks, finding a lot in common with him. Kay directed her steps towards the arcade, where he could be found in his time off. This time, she saw Amir hunching over some machinery, doing some tinkering on some kind of circuit board. In one hand, he held a soldering iron, in the other a pair of tweezers as he seemed to be adjusting or putting on a chip on the PCB. Kaylessa hated breaking Amir’s focus when he seemed invested in doing something, even if he never got angry at her regardless of her timing. 

This time, however, things went a bit different than usual as Amir looked up from the board and spotted her walking in, even though a second ago he seemed absolutely absorbed by his work.

-Heya! You need something, Kay? - Kay could swear Amir’s grey eyes lit up with a subtle spark whenever he noticed her coming up to him and this time was no exception. While normally she’d chalk it up to him being a cheerful guy, it felt like it happened only towards her. Or perhaps that’s what she wanted to think.

-Hey, Amir. I was thinking about our recent chat and uhm…- she stuttered a little in an unusual show of shyness -How would you feel about eating lunch together tomorrow?

This time, she couldn’t deny the joy she noticed in his eyes as he responded. Did her heart skip a beat now or was it just a feint?

-Yes! I’d love that!-  his leg started bouncing like an excited Kubrow puppy. -What time?

She wasn’t sure if she expected him to decline or if her brain just crashed under happy emotions because she realized she didn’t immediately have an answer.

-Uh, like, 14… I think? The hour I usually come to eat- she blurted out, feeling the heat of her cheeks as they turned a soft shade of red. -Time’s weird in this place.

-Heh, everything is weird in this place. See you tomorrow, then? - The enthusiastic response encouraged Kay, as she gave Amir a wide smile and an equally cheerful confirmation.

-Great! I’ll go ask Arthur to prepare something for us.

She headed out towards where Arthur usually operated, feeling like her head floated in the clouds, heart pounding in her chest. The sensation was odd, but she welcomed it. Suddenly, she felt Eleanor gently slip in her mind with a voice of worry.

‘You okay there, Drifter? Your mind suddenly started racing and I got a bit concerned.’

‘Yeah.’ she nodded as if she was replying to Eleanor face to face. ‘Just a bit… overwhelmed with emotions, that’s all. But positive emotions.’

'Ah, I see.' There was a brief pause as if Eleanor took a moment to realise what’s up.  ‘He could use someone like you in his life, you know? Someone who will help him acknowledge his worth. But do not worry, I will not spill anything unless I absolutely have to.’ The last words had the most teasing tone and Kay could swear her cheeks were not unlike the most pure rubedo in this moment.

‘Absolutely have to? I mean… I can’t even figure it out… just yet. But… thanks for keeping it safe.’ Her reply stammered, but the encouragement stuck in the back of her mind. As Eleanor withdrew with the same gentle grace as she got in, Kaylessa couldn’t help but start to ponder. She did know she cared about Amir, but this was unlike anything she experienced before. She had friends, but never anything more. Not that she got any opportunities to experience that before coming here. Quincy attempted to flirt with her day 2 of knowing her and it flew over her head like a rock launched from a catapult. Granted, it didn’t help that the first impressions of him were not so positive, but it was so obvious, when she later realized it, she wasn’t sure whether to laugh or be embarrassed, or both. Amir on the other hand didn’t try anything explicit, but she couldn’t help but read his behavior as his own way of trying to capture her attention. If he didn’t have his own tasks, he’d volunteer to go on missions with her, even if they wouldn’t normally be something up his alley. He often sought her out and even if they didn’t talk, he seemed to enjoy having her around. And Kay often returned the favor, sometimes spending more of her time off sitting in the arcade than in her backroom. Sometimes they didn’t talk for hours on end, yet there was a mutual feeling of “glad you’re here”. She’d chalk it up to wanting to be friends with him, but she never had a funny feeling in her stomach and sudden outbursts of awkward shyness when talking to her friends. This was something more, even if she was hesitant to admit if, if only for fear of it not being mutual.

She didn’t even notice when she got to the monitoring room. Arthur was his usual brooding self, standing hunched over some local maps with a pencil in hand, probably planning the routes for the next missions. Kaylessa approached the squad leader.

-Hey, Arthur. Sorry to interrupt.- Despite the rocky start to their relationship, there was already an air of mutual respect between them. Arthur was very much impressed with Kaylessa’s work ethic and the Drifter with how he managed to keep everything together in spite of all the odds against the Hex.

-Drifter. What do you need?- he acknowledged her, looking up from the maps. -How’s the field hospital planning?

-Good. We got the layout sketched out and I’ll help Lettie sort out a list of supplies we will need tomorrow so you can get us some leads. I’ve got a little request.- Kay tried her best to not betray the feelings the mention of the request stirred within her. Arthur didn’t seem to show whether he figured anything out and gave her a nod to continue. -For lunch tomorrow, would you mind preparing some pasta for two?

-Yeah, but can you be more specific? There’s many types of pasta, I assume you don’t want square spaghetti.- he chuckled.

-NO.- Kay’s eyes widened on the reminder of the horrible contraption. -It was called, I believe, rigatoni? No clue how it’s normally prepared. It’s for me and… for Amir.- she felt slight heat on her cheeks again when she finished the request. Embarrassed, she scolded herself in her mind. Thankfully, Arthur didn’t bring it up, whether he noticed or not.

-Okay. Consider it done, I’ve got a recipe everyone might like even.- he seemed to be quite enthused by the request. Drifter noticed that Arthur liked cooking and she was glad he had an outlet. He absolutely needed it. Thus, the request felt like she was doing a service to him as well. 

-Thanks. Take care, then.- she turned around and began heading to the backroom.

-You too. And, Kay? Thanks for being a positive influence on Amir.- Arthur’s sudden expression of gratitude surprised her, but she gave him a quick head bow before picking up the pace of her walk, hoping that her cheeks turning crimson again wasn’t noticed.

When Kaylessa returned to the backroom, she let out a sigh of… relief? She didn’t expect her request to be accepted, and yet there she was, her heart fluttering with joy and excitement. Preparing for sleep, she hummed a happy melody that she didn’t even know where she remembered it from. And she let the joyful anticipation lull her to sleep, even if she knew her dreams probably weren’t going to be so nice.

In the meantime, Amir paced happily around the arcade. Kay’s request was a bit unexpected, but it left him overjoyed all the same. His mind raced with questions and wondering what - and how - he should ask her about things. Was it going to be a date or a friendly talk? Regardless, he was going to embrace this opportunity to spend more time alone with her. Tomorrow was going to be good, wasn’t it?

—

March 15th, 1999

The next day, Amir was waiting in the food court of the mall since 13 ticked on the clock, his excitement making him unable to stay in the arcade. Surprisingly he hasn’t seen Kaylessa out and about yet on this day, but perhaps she was busy with something. The next hour came around however and he could feel his excitement replaced by anxiety as no sign of the Drifter was showing. His legs were bouncing and even his usual best game distractions didn’t seem to work to chase off the brain goblins.

“Maybe she forgot? Maybe she got really busy with something? Ormaybeshehatesmeactuallyandsetmeup-” his mind raced as minutes passed with no indication of change to her lack of presence. “Or maybe I should ask others if they’ve seen her. Yeahthatsoundsaboutrightshe’shelpingthemallalotafterall”. 

With this resolution, he got up, the race of his heartbeat rivaling the pace of his steps. He took a deep breath to try rein himself in or he wouldn’t be able to talk to others otherwise.

First stop, Aoi’s music shop. Aoi just returned from her mission and was unpacking her gear when Amir peeked into her room, looking as if he wanted to hide out of embarrassment.

-Hey, Aoi… Have you seen Kay today? I haven’t seen her and sheaskedmetoeatwithherand… she didn’t show up yet.-

-No, but that sounds unlike her to not show up. I’ve been out all day though so maybe ask the others?- Aoi looked up at Amir, soft worry showing up on her face.

-Okaythanks- he immediately raced over to Arthur, who was cleaning up after cooking.

-Hey Arthur, have you seen Kay? - Amir stopped his movement, but his feet kept tapping as if he wanted to keep on going, as if the matter could not wait for answers.

-No.- Arthur looked at Amir surprised, but his face immediately turned slightly concerned. -I was going to ask you the same since she made a special order for you two and she also didn’t show up to pick up any bounties today. I’ve packed the portions for you two into lunch boxes though, feel free to grab them.- He pointed at the two boxes and Amir took them before heading off. The smell of a cheesy tomato sauce was unmistakable and he immediately realised what’s in the boxes. On one hand, it made him happy that she thought of this, on the other, a sense of dread settled in his mind that something was wrong.

Quincy was still out on a mission still and even then, Amir wouldn’t risk asking. No need to subject himself to ridicule.

As he ran over to Eleanor’s residing spot, he didn’t even cross the doorstep of the former furniture shop as she immediately reached out to his mind, as if she already knew what he came to her for.

“Go check on her. I don’t know what’s wrong, but I can’t seem to reach her. It’s not like Kaylessa to not be up and about already and absolutely not like her to ask for someone’s time and not show up without notice.” Eleanor’s worried tone scared Amir, but also reassured him in what he already knew he should do.

-You’re always so good at giving advice, Eleanor. Thankyouthankyouthankyou- he responded out loud, turning around and straight up leaping onto the halfway point between the floors and sprinting through the rest of the stairs and toward the backroom. 

He passed the whispering Void doors with unease. Within the room there was nothing but calm and silence. Kalymos was sleeping near the stage monitoring area and Shale, Kaylessa’s kubrow, acknowledged Amir’s presence with a quick glance and a gruff snort before going back to sleep on the lounge couch left behind by Dr. Entrati.

-Atleastthedogdoesn’twanttoeatme- he halfheartedly mumbled to himself, his anxiety rising up again as he wasn’t sure what he was going to find upstairs. Taking deep breaths in futile attempts to calm himself down, he walked up and through the door to the lounge. He couldn’t help but notice how homely she made it feel with her decorations. Planters everywhere, pictures on the wall and… plushies. There were some plushies on the couch and a hint of a whole pile near the balcony. She even brought in some furniture that seemed otherworldly in a way. Perhaps brought over from the future or from Duviri? Was Duviri also future? Such thoughts didn’t matter right now, though.

Amir set the lunchboxes on the cabinet behind a soft armchair as he looked towards the part separated by curtains and he saw her on the bed that had the same styling as other furniture she brought in. His heart skipped a beat and sank a little in familiar sadness.

She was sleeping and she didn’t seem peaceful in that sleep at all, tossing and turning about, distressed gibberish escaping her mouth and her short crimson hair an utter mess. He immediately understood what was happening. After all, he was also often plagued with anguish in his sleep. At first he thought of waking her up by shaking her out of it but that wouldn’t be the right thing to do. He wasn’t even sure what was appropriate to do, but he decided to let his feelings guide him. Unusually carefully for him, he stepped forward and sat down on the edge of the bed. His leg bounced nervously as he slightly leaned, his hand reaching towards her. In the moment she was still on her side, Amir gently gave her cheek a soft caress, afraid of the touch startling her. It didn’t but it seemed to have some effect as her expression became more peaceful. 

He let out the breath he didn’t realize he was holding. Carefully, he moved the hair that dropped on her face up, thoughtlessly enjoying the softness of the crimson strands. He sat a bit more comfortably before moving his hand to grab hers.

He wasn’t even sure why he did this, surely she couldn’t feel the same way he does, right? What if what he was doing would scare her off? And yet, why did it feel so right to give her these tender gestures? His mind raced with hundreds of thoughts per second, a different kind of anxiety settling in. But he couldn’t get himself to stop.

After what seemed like forever, Kay slowly stirred awake. She squeezed Amir’s hand without realizing it at first, before a soft “Huh?” as she noticed an additional presence. Amir withdrew, his anxiety making his heart feel like it’s going up to his throat, almost expecting a berating for being a bit too brave with his affections.

-Amir?- she raised her head and then sat up, perplexed at first. -What… oh. OH. I’m so sorry, Amir I didn’t mean to…- she immediately panicked as she figured out that she slept through their arranged meet time. -I couldn’t seem to get out of these…

-It’s okay, Kay, it’s okayit’sokayit’snotyourfault- he didn’t even know why his instincts told him to do so, but he immediately wrapped his arms around the clearly distressed Drifter. -You had nightmares, didn’t you?

“justlikeIdobutdidn’thavethegutstotellyouandnowi’mprobablyunwittinglyforcingyoutotellmeaboutyours” his thoughts continued without letting that out.

-Yeah…-Kay accepted the hug, surprised but also relieved he wasn’t angry at her. She leaned into the embrace, letting out a sigh. -They often plague me… I keep reliving the Zariman nightmare in my mind over and over and over again... and this time they wouldn’t let up. I felt as if I sank into darkness.- her emerald green eyes welled up with tears she clearly has been holding back for a long, long time.

-I…knowwhatyoumean.- Amir nodded, tightening the hug. His first assumptions felt so silly now but he was glad to be proven wrong.

-And then I felt as if something touched me and I saw a soft flickering light and as I reached towards it, the nightmares couldn’t pull me any further in. It then felt like a warm handle that let me pull myself out.- she continued, trying to hide the blush springing up on her cheeks.

He smiled. While he lacked the courage to ask about this feeling further, something about her words made him feel a warmth he never experienced before. -Thank you for checking up for me, Amir. I mean it.

-Anytimenoproblem- Amir blurted out as his cheeks turned a shade of red. -I grabbed food from Arthur so if you’re hungry, we can eat… anddontfeelforcedtospeakaboutanythingyoudon’tfeelcomfortableaboutokay?

-Talking about it is never comfortable, but you deserve to know at least part of it.- Kay gave him a soft smile and they moved to the couch opposite to the bed.

—

During the meal, Kay talked about the more mundane parts of her pre-Zariman incident life that she remembered, happily feeding Amir’s curiosity about the future. She told him about her older sister, Aurelia. Once they finished the meal, Kay settled more comfortably on the couch, but her expression seemed anything but. Amir looked a bit concerned.

-Kay, really, if you don’t feel comfortable…

-I’ve made up my mind. A lot of my nightmares involve her. My guilt about her death. Maybe… maybe this will give me some closure.- she didn’t seem sure if she believed her last sentence but it was clear she resolved to tell everything about this part of her story.

Amir shifted, his leg bounced anxiously. Carefully, he put one arm around the Drifter, hoping to offer her some extra reassurance.It seemed to be appreciated, as she leaned her head on his shoulder and let out a long sigh. He gently moved his palm, letting the soft crimson threads weave in between his fingers and leaned his head on hers.

-So. When the failed jump happened. It was all pure chaos. My sister was an adult by then. And she was… she was…- Kaylessa didn’t even know when her voice started shaking, tears that welled up before now starting to run down her cheeks. She swallowed painfully and continued. -She was among the first to turn to madness caused by the Indifference.

Amir wrapped his second arm around her, giving her a tight, reassuring squeeze.

-It was like watching an animal, a beast, a monster, wearing the body of my beloved sister. It… was… and yet… wasn’t her. My parents had not turned yet and I went looking for her and I…- she took a few deep breaths, trying to not sob - I got cornered by her in one of the classrooms. She was going to kill me. I tried to call her, tried to get to her, but there was… nothing… left…

She could not hold it in anymore, sobs wracking through her. He pulled her in closer, allowing her to cry freely. He was entirely focused on her, on comforting her, on letting her let out the pain she clearly held onto for far too long. While it felt odd to him that he was the one she decided to trust with this, he didn’t want to let her down, not when she expressed endless patience for his excessive rants and raves. She slowly regained her composure once more.

-My survival instinct kicked in. I don’t remember what I grabbed, it all happened so fast, what I do remember was kneeling at her corpse, weeping. It wasn’t her anymore when I killed the body and yet… I could not stop the guilt, you know? And that guilt made it so when my parents turned… I could not bear to do the same to them even though it would probably be a mercy.

-Oh Sol and Lua, Kay. I’m so sorry. Idon’tknowhowIcouldcomfortyoubut… you carry so much guilt you do not deserve to carry. AndIfeellike…- he paused, unsure if he should continue the thought running in his mind.

-Like I constantly put myself last as a result and neglect my own feelings and needs? Yeah. That isn’t a wrong assessment.- She sighed, seemingly a bit relieved as if she tossed a lot of weight out of her body. -Sorry for burdening you with this story, but… thank you for being here and comforting me. It… it means a lot, you know?

-Thank you for trusting me enough to share.- he gave her one last tight hug before letting go, reflecting on the fact he didn’t share his burdens with her yet. But he felt he could trust her with them, when he was ready.

-She always protected me. And at the time, I felt like I failed to protect her in return. I still do. I’ve since promised myself to not fail anyone like that ever again. To honor her.- Kaylessa straightened out, looking at Amir with pure gratitude.

-I think you’re honoring her well, even if I’ddisagreeaboutyoufailing - Amir reciprocated the smile she gave him, his thoughts finishing once more without speaking out loud “Idon’tthinkyou’refailingatanythingyouresuchawonderfulandperfectperson”

She chuckled before getting up, the funny feeling in her mind swelling up again.

-Well, I should go help Lettie with the list of supplies for the field hospital. Perhaps tomorrow, when Arthur gathers leads on them, we could run together to get as much as we can?- Kay tilted her head expectantly, deep in her heart knowing the answer already.

-YES! Gladly!- Amir almost jumped up, excited about the prospect of a joint mission. They headed out of the backroom to carry on with the day, both surprised none of the Hex called them in, even though almost two hours passed since Amir entered the backroom.

[spacemagictea]

Kaylessa the drifter, for friends just Kay.

Impulsive, passionate, often kind to a fault. At the same time socially inept and awkward.

Curiousity about the world and wanting to learn drives her desire to protect it in ways both peaceful and violent. The beauty of it and hoping to see it again was what kept at least a part of her grounded through the traumas that followed the unfortunate Zariman incident.

Her experiences in Duviri left her quite scarred and hesitant to be visibly vulnerable but she will follow the people she trusts to hell and back. No wonder she took quickly to Amir.

Following what she's learned about the Cavia and the Hex, she's got a vicious vendetta against Entrati. Even if he's on "her side", he will pay in blood and suffering for what he did, eventually.

Compared to operator Kay, she's less idealistic, especially when it concerns the odds of Tenno succeeding in protecting the common folk of the Origin system, but she doesn't want to let it stop her from doing good, quite the opposite. It's the little things that matter the most, in the end. Ever since she emerged from Duviri, she's took a more active role between the two, hoping her younger self can get some respite after all these years.

//I'd love to get the focus schools animation sets for the drifter, ngl

she is audhd yes

Also protip: there's an option to disable the gun in Captura options, it is switchable once you switch to operator/drifter in advanced options.

[spacemagictea]

Drifter Character Sheet

edit: fixed face screenshots cuz turns out I had the wrong aspect ratio the entire bloody time

Birth Name: Kaylessa

Titles: Drifter, Time Freak (‘title’ she gives herself)

Nicknames: Kay, Kayle, Marty, whatever Amir comes up with

Sex/Gender: Female

Birth World: Venus

Home World: Earth

Current Residence: Höllvania

Birthday: 30th June, year ???

Height: 170cm

Weight: middle, she’s got decent muscle

Eye Shape and Color: idk eye shapes well, visual reference above. Color emerald green

Skin Texture and Color: freckled, white, pale-skinned. Her body is littered with scars - arrows, cuts, claws, some burns, most notable however are a prominent scar in the middle of her chest from the usual method of execution by impalement she suffered in Duviri and tendrils of void scarring on her left hand and forearm caused by the severed hand of Lotus merging with her hand in Duviri.

Hair Style and Color: straight hair, usually shoulder length, kept in check with a bandana or tied in a ponytail if she lets it grow longer, crimson red color

Style/Fashion: 

casual wear: somewhat loose, comfy clothing. She loves turtlenecks and flannel. Often found wearing sunglasses and headphones plus a backpack. Pink, purple and black/grey.

battle fit: Armor that resembles Dax armor but with a closed mask with a plume at the top, black base with silver and golden parts and red cloth accents.

Age: Visually 30ish, actual age ??? (she was 13 when the Zariman Incident happened)

Personality Traits: Gentle, kind, honest, reckless, awkward, open-minded, curious, patient, protective

Likes: tea, plants, animals, floofs, books, music, good stories, tinkering with tech, AMIR.

Dislikes: pollution, Indifference, pointless cruelty, ALBRECHT ENTRATI.

Pet Peeves: hard to find whole leaf tea in Höllvania and these teabags SUCK

Habits: always keeps a tea set in places where she spends a lot of time, often fidgets with the bouncy glaives she can summon through her amp, likes to stay up late

Morals: never refuses to help others, tries to approach everyone with kindness, willing to avoid fighting if it’s not necessary, avoids dishonorable combat. She is vengeful, especially against people who hurt the innocent or things/people she cares about.

Phobias: seeing people she cares about die, having to go back to the future with no way to bring the Hex with her

Pros: good listener, will comfort you, bring you tea or any preferred beverage and tell you a story. Considers protecting others her duty. She’ll not disturb you if she doesn’t have to and you can basically chill alongside her doing your own thing.

Cons: often disregards her own well-being and/or safety. Tends to put others before her too much. A bit… touchy. She was very touch starved so if you don’t like hugs or touch, warn her beforehand because she likes to give hugs.

Personal Glories: getting Amir to date her lol 

Personal Trauma: had to kill her older sister when she turned mad because of MITW and as a result she always feels like she failed her in some way. Major survivor’s guilt.

Powers: time looping, Tenno Void powers - while she can perform anything her operator self can do, she has less control over these powers, for example, her void mode/cloak doesn’t always fully protect her or turn her invisible.

Abilities: melee combat, Kaithe riding, pistol/amp shooting. More recent abilities come from the Void powers obtained when she met with her alternate self and became empowered when they chose to have the Drifter be the more active person for the time being. Due to not being used to them yet, she might at times forget that she’s got some of these tools available - mostly concerning focus school abilities. Current main extent includes Void mode/cloak, Void sling, Transference and abilities of the Vazarin/Unairu schools of focus. Still working on the other schools and mastering what she’s currently got. Occasional void mode issues have her try to figure out if she can potentially do the partial void mode on purpose and for example only use the damage protection mode, without the invisibility.

Weapons: Sirocco, a pistol she uses in Duviri, Edun, melee spear she uses in Duviri (I know DE doesn’t let us but she also uses it outside Duviri) and an amp called Flying Blaze, which can project damaging Void energy as either homing, bouncing glaives or a pistol-like blast. When using Warframes, she’s got a variety of weapons to choose from.

Combat Affinity: Flexibility is key. Whether fighting as herself or using a Warframe, she adjusts to the role that is most necessary and controls the battlefield that way. She can switch from attacker to defender and vice versa quickly.

Warframes of choice: Protea Prime, Hildryn Prime, Nova Prime

Social Skills: She’s friendly and open but awkward. Years of isolation make her a bit hesitant at times but if approached, she won’t refuse interaction.

~Relationships~

Lover: Amir. The spark between the two ignited quickly, the common ground helping them develop a friendship that eventually bloomed into much more than that - a true love. They are truly open and vulnerable with each other like with nobody else, sharing their experiences, their nightmares, their joys and their sadness to the full extent. She loves him for all of him. And the most precious thing to her is how he sees beyond her powers and her heroics and sees her as a person. To many, she’s an admirable hero and/or a powerful asset. To Amir, she’s just Kaylessa. 

Family: 

Deceased parents, she forgot their names at this point but she remembers they were kind and loving. They were scholars.

Deceased older sister, Aurelia, who aspired to be an Archimedean and was a great inspiration to young Kay.

The Hex are kind of a found family to her. They’re both best friends and siblings to her (aside from Amir being her lover)

Friends:

Aoi: They enjoy sharing music sessions with fun beverages together. Aoi greatly encouraged Kay to take the step to confess her feelings to Amir and taught her where the most fun date spots are.

Eleanor: They share legends and stories with each other and hold challenging discussions. Eleanor teaches Kay about languages and the state of the world in 1999. She also helped her name her feelings towards Amir and encouraged to take the step further.

Lettie: finding a lot of similarities to her older sister, Kay holds the softest spot for Lettie. She loves to help her with medical duties and making sure that Lettie can earn a moment of respite. And Lettie helps keep Kay grounded.

Arthur: a relationship of great respect and true friendship, Kay helped Arthur open up and evolve as a leader. They also practice cooking together. He made Kaylessa, who used to be a lone wolf, consider how she works with a team more.

Quincy: while she does consider Quincy an asshole at times and still has a slight grudge about his early treatment of Amir, the fact that in the end he tries to do the right thing has her consider him a positive relationship. She finds how he takes care of the kids in Höllvania to be the most noble thing. She helps him find educational resources.

Others:

While she has close relationships to the folks of the present time, she still considers herself quite… separated from them, especially now that she developed deep relationships with the Hex.

The Lotus (Natah): a mother figure to the Operator, Kaylessa’s title of Champion makes her feel a bit weird but working under her guidance has been a great honor.

Teshin: her mentor and a father-like figure, she cares greatly about him and always appreciates his lessons.

Operator Kaylessa has a sibling-like relationship with Drifter Kaylessa, but the main role the Operator took was one of a mentor.

Ordis: Ordis treats both versions of Kay the same way, like a caretaker. To the Drifter, he’s kind of like an uncle.

Loid: a friendly guide, she deeply appreciates his efforts, but has a bit of a hard time telling Loid that if she saw Albrecht ever again, it’s on sight.

The Cavia: the animals are deeply precious to Kay and another big motivation for her vengeance towards Albrecht.

Dominus Thrax: she pities the child king, after all she created him and kind of made him into her personal punishment

Albrecht: enemy number two, after the Indifference

Viktor: enemy number three

Theme Song: Dead Cells - Clock Tower Dead Cells - ClockTower (Official Soundtrack)

What voice I imagine her having: Sandra Nasic from Guano Apes, especially the first three albums era

Biography: Kaylessa’s parents were biology scholars of good renown. Born in one of the first cities built on the terraformed Venus, Kay led a quiet and idyllic life, in tune with nature from birth as her parents took her and her older sister Aurelia on their research expeditions. Aurelia, being 6 years older, made sure to protect her little sister whenever she had an opportunity and show her the world to the best of her understanding.

Boundlessly curious, Kay took up to learning all about plants and animals, giving her parents great hope she’d follow in their footsteps. Her sister was an academic ace, especially excelling in genetics, with an early dream of becoming an Archimedean. The more reserved future Drifter did not think of such ambitious things yet, but she was no less knowledge hungry, often preferring to read books once she was able to read and look at the beauty of the natural world over interacting with others.

When Kaylessa was 10, her family was selected to be among the first colonists of Tau, boarding the fated ship Zariman Ten Zero, which was to be their new home… and ended up being the tomb for most of them. Three years later, she lost everything and everyone she cared about. Forced to kill her sister who turned mad then watching her parents tear each other apart when imprisoned left her with haunting nightmares and a major case of survivor’s guilt.

She ended up stranded on the Zariman when the deal she made with the Man in the Wall made it so everyone else but her was saved. Escaping into Duviri, she ended up stuck for a long, long time, until the New War’s paradox brought her salvation.

She took up a more active role between the two versions of her after emerging, hoping to give her child soldier self some respite from everything that happened. Until she had to travel in the past… and now she does not know if she’ll want to return, unless she finds a way to bring the Hex with her.

Other notes: ADHD and autism traits but do they diagnose that stuff in the far future? Probably not, up to you if because it’s considered a normal thing or because things are just ignored due to everything being gigafucked. She’s left handed so I mirror everything that defaults to right hand to left hand in my mind, like the Lotus hand. She’s demisexual. Her face scars are less prominent but even then, that’s why she got accessories on her to draw attention from the scars away.

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As you can see I gave her a small look revamp - after they fixed the kiss cut scene it had me notice a few things that I liked more before fixes and some things that pestered me too much so, I adjusted her look.

Character sheet courtesy of @ashandshy https://www.tumblr.com/ashandshy/772406073411960833/drifter-character-sheets-of-2025

[spacemagictea]

Protea Prime, one of my fave frames. She will be featured in my writing, so only fair you get to see her too c:

Kaylessa the Drifter's preferred frames are versatile fighters like Protea, Hildryn and Nova.

Kaylessa the Operator often likes a more stationary playstyle or sturdy frames: Ivara, Nezha and Wisp.

Both of them use all the frames but often fall back to these as their comfort picks.