Keira

Keira
Current Pre-Draining Water Projection
Title	Water Goddess
Hometown	Carcion
Current Residence	Unknown
Gender	Female
Race	Ancient God (Unknown race, possibly elf)
Affiliations	Anima of Carcion Gaon Adversary Maple Alliance
Enemies	Limbo Gerand Darmoor High Flora Brihini
Status	Alive

Keira is an Ancient God and the patron goddess of Carcion. As a water goddess, Keira used her powers to protect the Anima of Carcion from the chaos of the Ancient War, sealing herself away in order to help put an end to the carnage. Ages later, Keira and her powers became the target of Gerand Darmoor and his Apostles, who attacked Carcion in order to drain them.

Story

The Ancient War

In the beginning, the Primordial God made 365 creations - the sun, the moon, the stones, the trees, the wind, the rivers, the seas, and countless others - each adhering to 365 laws that governed the universe. From these 365 creations that made up the world, powerful beings were brought into existence that embodied these natural laws, including Keira. Over time, these beings were revered as gods by mortals, and ages later, they would be known as the Ancient Gods.

As a river goddess, Keira took residence in Carcion, also known as the Cradle of Life, where the pure waters of the Ishfira - a river said to have existed since the creation of the world itself - flowed freely. Despite being an Ancient God, Keira abhorred violence of any kind, coming to resent her fellow gods for spreading chaos through the world without regard for mortal lives.

Keira often likened the world to a cycle, just like the flow of water, which was most beautiful in its natural state. Believing that the war had broken the natural cycle, Keira took in many snake and turtle Anima refugees in order to protect them as much as she could. The Anima who came under her protection began to worship her, creating a temple for Keira in Tree of Eternity at the center of Carcion.

During the Ancient War, a black tortoise Anima named Gaon, whose kind had been wiped out by an Ancient God, was heavily wounded in battle, for which he had stumbled across Carcion while searching for a source of pure water to heal his injuries. Keira found Gaon collapsed on the beach and used her powers to heal him. Gaon was had been surprised that a god would ever help someone, as his time fighting in the Ancient War had led him to believe that the power of the gods could only bring chaos and destruction. Keira told Gaon that she pitied him for having been caught in a war waged between foolish gods.

She explained that she was different from the rest of those fools, after which she healed him and allowed him to remain in Carcion. Gaon quickly learned that Keira was a staunch opponent of the Ancient War, and because of this, she gladly took in victims of the war that she hated. Gaon came to befriend Keira and soon became known as her guardian to the Anima of Carcion.

Eventually, the Primordial God - unable to abide the chaos in the universe - created the Overseers to establish order in the universe. Many of the gods opposed the Overseers, including an Ancient God named Brihini - a massive sea dragon known for their ability to create a whirlpool the size of a mountain range, regarded by mortals of that time as a natural disaster in itself.

Furious that Keira refused to oppose the Overseers, Brihini attacked Carcion and attempted to kill Keira and the Anima under her protection. Together with Gaon, Keira and the Anima were able to drive Brihini away, though many Anima were killed in the battle, with even more grievously wounded. In order to protect them, Keira imbued the waters of Carcion with her divine blessings, granting them the property to heal and strengthen the Anima who drank from them. Additionally, Keira also infused four guardian stones with her power, which created a powerful barrier centered around the Tree of Eternity.

Soon after, the Overseers chose Gaon to become one of the Four Symbols - the protectors of the elders of Grandis, who had been tasked with creating beings capable of defeating the gods. Gaon was highly reluctant to accept his duty, as it would mean that he would need to leave Carcion and allow Keira to be forced into slumber forever by the Overseers.

Sensing Gaon's mental conflict, Keira chose to alleviate his pain by making the decision to fall asleep on her own. Accepting her fate and seeing it as her duty to put an end to the chaos of the gods, Keira imbued Gaon's staff with a jewel containing her divine powers in order to protect him and asked him to protect the cycle of life on her behalf. Keira told Gaon not to worry about her, as it was undeniable that her kind had brought great chaos to the world.

When Gaon asked whether they would ever meet again, she reassured him that she would be awaiting him in a new world. Keira then sealed herself in a powerful water barrier within her temple, where her powers slowly began fading away as a result of her slumber. Over the ages, the divine blessings within the waters began weakening, for which the snake and turtle Anima began to fight amongst themselves for control over the blessings.

Attack on Carcion

Seizing the Temple

Ages later, Keira's slumber was broken after the convergence of Maple World and Grandis, brought about by the disappearance of Maple World's Transcendents. Without the Transcendents' aura, the Ancient Gods across both worlds slowly began awakening, including Keira, who was severely weakened upon first waking up.

Before Keira had time to recover, Gerand Darmoor ordered Limbo to lead the High Flora army to Carcion in order to steal Keira's powers. Limbo and the High Flora quickly seized control of the temple before finding Keira still sealed within her water bubble. Limbo began using the Transcendent powers that Darmoor had given him in order to slowly chip away at Keira's divine defenses. In order to weaken her resolve, Limbo began kidnapping the Anima of Carcion and torturing them in front of her.

Message to the Anima

Hoping to save the Anima, Keira used her connection to the jewel within Gaon's spear in order to call Gaon back to Carcion. Gaon, along with the Adversary and the Alliance, traveled to Carcion and discovered that the snake and turtle Anima were at odds with each other, with the High Flora taking advantage of their feud by creating Specters capable of disguising themselves in order to make each tribe believe that the other had sided with the enemy.

Despite attempting to reconcile them, Gaon and the others were unable to prevent the Anima from turning against each other. With hostilities continuing to rise, Gaon begged the Anima to calm down, noting that he was sure that the reason why Keira had asked for his help instead of theirs, despite them having protected her for generations, was because of their pointless feud preventing them from doing what needed to be done. Suddenly, Gaon's spear began to glow and produced brilliant shining water, which took the form of Keira herself.

Keira addressed everyone and introduced herself as the goddess of Carcion, explaining that she had been observing everything that had transpired through her powers contained within Gaon's spear. The Adversary asked Keira how she was able to manifest herself, to which Keira explained that she had been waiting for them to reach the sanctuary, as her powers were too weak to reach them when they had been so far from her physical body.

Hinya and Duhan, the leaders of the snake and turtle tribes, immediately apologized for failing to protect the water source and asked whether she was unharmed. Keira explained that she was fine for the moment, though she told them that they didn't have much time, as Limbo was breaking through her barrier as they spoke, with the kidnapped Anima being slaughtered indiscriminately.

She then turned to Duhan and Hinya and noted that they were the leaders of their tribes and the descendants of the Anima who had inherited her will. However, she rebuked them both for having forsaken that will by taking the power that she had given to heal the Anima and twisting it into an object of possession for which they had waged endless war. She noted that even when their people had been in danger, they had failed to look past their obsession over meaningless revenge as they had attempted to monopolize her divine blessings.

However, she told then told them that it wasn't too late and implored them to work together and save the Anima, adding that by combining their strength, they could become far stronger than the sum of their parts. Suddenly, Keira began fading as the barrier began to break. She asked Gaon to hurry and save her before the barrier completely failed, explaining that the enemy had something that could rob a god of their powers. Resolved to make up for their mistakes, the turtle and snake Anima agreed to work together in order to save their god.

Stolen Powers

As the Anima began fighting the Specter army, the Adversary and Gaon arrived at the temple, where they found that Limbo had broken the barrier around Keira, after which he had absorbed her into him, hoping to experience the power of the gods for himself before extracting her powers into a draining crystal like he had been ordered. The Adversary and Gaon fought Limbo in his enormous Specter form, though they were unable to land a decisive blow, as Limbo's rapid regenerative abilities in his Specter form prevented him from taking damage.

Just as he attempted to finish things, however, Keira manifested before them in her watery form. She explained that Limbo had absorbed her without being able to fully control her powers, which had allowed her to regain some of her strength. She told them that she would damage him from the inside, which would weaken his recovery rate and give them the opportunity to defeat him.

As Keira disappeared, Gaon began attacking Limbo, while the Adversary took out the World Heart and attempted to absorb Limbo's stolen power. However, the World Heart refused to obey their will, giving Limbo the opening to gravely wound Gaon. Refusing to give up, however, the Adversary continued pouring all their will into the World Heart, which finally responded with a brilliant light that extracted Keira's powers from within Limbo, allowing her to manifest her physical form once again.

As Keira fell unconscious, Gaon grabbed her and held her in his arms, just as Claudine, Eckhart, and the Anima arrived. The Anima immediately rushed to Keira's side and asked her whether she was okay. Keira explained that she was unharmed, though Gaon and the Adversary were wounded. Claudine began treating Gaon and explained that while his life wasn't in danger, his wounds were quite serious, for which she would give him emergency treatment.

She then checked on the Adversary, who told them that they were fine, adding that they needed to secure Limbo first. Eckhart told them to let him handle it and began approaching Limbo, who was crawling on the ground and attempting to get up again. Limbo seethed in fury at being reduced to such a state by the likes of them, to which Eckhart dryly told Limbo to spare him the pointless resistance. However, Limbo declared that he refused to be captured and began gathering all his power within his body into a single spot.

He then began laughing at the shocked expression on their faces and declared that he would detonate himself and create an explosion large enough to wipe out all of Carcion and everything in its vicinity. A shocked Claudine realized that there was nothing that they could do to stop it, as attacking him would result in them setting off the detonation themselves.

Defeating Limbo

Suddenly, Duhan and Hinya approached Limbo, much to everyone's surprise. Duhan explained that Keira had protected them with her power for generations, and yet they had done nothing but wage pointless wars to monopolize her power for themselves. Hinya added that she had only realized what they had done after seeing so many of her comrades sacrificed, and that just as Keira had protected Carcion and its people, it was now their turn to protect Keira and their home.

The Anima leaders then manifested their share of Keira's divine blessings within them and ordered their warriors to do the same, declaring that they would protect their land by combining all their strength together. All across Carcion, the snake and turtle Anima manifested their blessings and brought them all together into an enormous ball of energy.

Just then, however, Keira teleported everyone a safe distance away from Limbo before choosing to face him herself. Duhan and Hinya called out to Keira, warning her that she hadn't yet recovered her strength. However, Keira replied that it was something that she had to do, as she would no longer allow anyone else to be sacrificed. She explained that the reason why the Anima had fought against one another for so long, and why Darmoor had attacked Carcion and killed so many of her people was all because of the power that she possessed. She then declared that she would disappear from the world, and that she would take her damned power of the gods along with her.

Rising into the air, Keira flew into the center of the ball of divine energy, channeling every ounce of her power into defeating Limbo. As she pushed with all her might, Eckhart marveled in awe at the incredible amount of power that she was producing. However, Claudine was shocked to realize that even in spite of Keira's immense strength, Limbo was still pushing her back.

Realizing that they needed to do something to help, the Adversary suddenly recalled that the World Heart had absorbed some of Keira's power throughout their time in Carcion. Summoning all their willpower, the Adversary controlled the World Heart in order to expel all of Keira's power that it had stored within itself, giving it back to its owner in order to help her defeat Limbo once and for all.

As the light of the World Heart faded away, Limbo collapsed onto the ground once again, his power completely spent. Keira was surprised to know that the Adversary had possessed some of her power, and she was even more surprised to learn about the World Heart and its properties, noting that much had happened while she had been asleep. Turning to Gaon, she also noted that Gaon had suffered immensely as well, though he assured her that it was nothing compared to what she had gone through, adding that he was glad that she was alright.

As the Alliance attempted to seize Limbo, Havoc arrived and revealed that Darmoor had sent him to keep an eye on Limbo. Havoc then used a draining crystal to begin extracting Keira's power. As Keira's power continued being absorbed into the crystal, Gaon vowed that he wouldn't allow Havoc to finish. With Keira's divine power inside his spear, Gaon created a protective barrier around the goddess, shielding her from the effects of the crystal. Havoc noted with mild interest that Gaon had managed to create a shield, though he declared that it didn't matter, as he had already filled the crystal, with the empty shell of a god meaning nothing to him. He then manifested his demon wings in a flash of red energy and took off with Limbo.

After the battle, the Adversary asked Keira how she was feeling, to which she explained that though her powers had been taken from her, Gaon's intervention had saved her physical body. However, Gaon noted sadly that he hadn't been able to do anything as Keira's powers had been stolen right in front of him, adding that the Apostle of Lightning had incredible strength.

Eckhart then suggested that they return back to Ereve, to which the Adversary asked Keira to come with them. Claudine agreed with the Adversary's suggestion, noting that without her powers, it would be best for her to stay in Ereve for her protection. Though Keira was hesitant, Gaon's reassurance about the Alliance's integrity convinced her to agree.

Before she left, Hinya and Duhan apologized for all their mistakes, though Keira told them that it wasn't their fault, as it was her own power which had brought destruction upon Carcion. She then lifted herself into the air and unleashed a wave of energy, explaining that she had used the last of her power to eradicate the pollution from Carcion. Though she didn't have the strength to restore the land to how it had been before its destruction, she told the Anima that given time, the land would return to how it used to be.

However, with her divine power completely depleted, she explained that there were no longer any blessings left in Carcion, and that the Anima would need to protect themselves with their own strength. Duhan and Hinya both vowed never to stain their ancestors' honor again, to which Keira told them that she would leave Carcion in their hands, and that she prayed that the cycle of water would guide them both.

Mission with Gaon

The Alliance then returned to Ereve, where they introduced Keira to Neinheart. Neinheart greeted Keira and told her that he had heard that she didn't intend to stay with the Alliance for long. Keira explained that she planned to leave as soon as she regained enough of her powers, as even without them, she was still a target in the eyes of Darmoor, which would endanger the Alliance if she were to remain.

Neinheart told her that nevertheless, she was welcome to stay in Ereve for as long as she liked, and that he would even ask that she stay as long as possible, as he had much to ask her. Keira thanked him for his hospitality and agreed to do whatever she could in order to help them. Soon after, the Adversary met with Gaon and Keira, and learned that they were planning to go after Ara and Baekyeon together. Gaon explained that after learning from Xula that they were both still alive, he felt that he needed to save his family. However, he promised that he would lend his aid to the Alliance, and that he would rush to the Adversary's side whenever they called.

The Adversary asked Keira whether she would consider staying in Ereve, to which she replied that with how much Gaon lacked common sense, she would feel more at ease staying by his side before he caused trouble everywhere he went. Though Gaon began laughing at her words as a joke, Keira told him not to laugh, leaving him to wonder whether she was being serious or not.

She then told the Adversary that she was grateful to them for their help, and that they only needed to say the word if they needed anything from her. She also added that just as she had mentioned before, it wouldn't be easy to gain the power of a god. She explained that there were two ways to obtain that power and restore the World Heart: either by swearing to inherit the will of a god, and, in turn, inheriting their power, or by defeating a higher being and forcibly absorbing their power. She added that neither path was an easy one to walk, and that she prayed that they chose the correct one.

The Adversary noted to themselves that they had already experienced both methods, first by defeating Kaling and absorbing her powers, as well as inheriting Shinsoo's powers after swearing to protect Empress Cygnus. Keira also told them that wielding the power of a god wasn't easy, and that as the World Heart grew stronger, they needed to grow stronger with it. She then warned them to take care not to be consumed by that power.

The Adversary noted to themselves that they still hadn't been able to fully control the World Heart, and that they needed to find a way to properly wield a Godsphere. They then told Keira that they understood, and that they would keep her words in mind. Gaon told the Adversary that they ought to get going, promising to return to Ereve every now and then before setting off.