Character 9 – Henna

Note: Characters are numbered in order of in-game appearance.

Full Name: Henna Rezala
Age: 14
Sex: Female
Height: 4′8″ (142 cm)
Weight: 100 lbs. (45.5 kg)
Hair: Light blond, braided
Eyes: Brown
Blood Type:B

Character Summary:

Henna is the final (main) playable character introduced in the game, but she joins the party before Mantis does.  She is the youngest princess of the small kingdom of Botia.  Rash and irresponsible, she is constantly getting herself into trouble and does not seem to care much.  After all, she has two older sisters who are more suitable to succeed the throne than she is.  Some in the kingdom see her as a nuisance, as she has actually sunk as low as thievery in order to garner attention.  Curiously enough, she is the only one of her three sisters to have inherited her parents’ earth magic.

As the people of Botia look up to the earth mage bloodline, Henna is shocked to hear that [Character X] is familiar with the earth mage’s son.  Therefore, when the group leaves Botia, Henna stows away on the ship and joins without giving the others a choice in the matter.  She claims that she is no longer welcome in Botia and that she wants to use her earth magic to fight for good.

In terms of character, she is rather childish and immature.  She often makes selfish decisions without considering others around her.  On the other hand, she is stubborn and is not frightened easily.  Once she warms up to them, she gets along well with others.  Aya becomes her closest friend, despite the fact that their personalities are opposites.  Henna is also cheerful and energetic, and she does not like gloomy situations.

Author’s Notes on this Character:

Henna is an interesting character to work with because she is the only one that really acts like a child, despite the fact that some of the others are not much older than her.  One of the themes throughout the story is how certain characters seem to have lost their childhoods at very early ages, but Henna stands as the sole exception to this idea.  Throughout the story, she becomes more mature and eventually abandons her childish ways.  She undergoes one of the most noticeable character developments in the story.

Character 8 – Ares

Note: Characters are numbered in order of in-game appearance.

Full Name: Ares Mitsaru
Age: 21
Sex: Male
Height: 6′2″ (188 cm)
Weight: 170 lbs. (77 kg)
Hair: Blue
Eyes: Hazel
Blood Type: O

Character Summary:

Similarly to Mantis, Ares does not join the party until a short time after he is first encountered in the game.  He sports a muscular build and favors physical power over magical strength.  He was accepted by the water phoenix at age 14 but never managed to refine his powers, as he he never had adequate instruction.  Despite this, his cousin Otessa accepts him as a fellow water apprentice and allows him to join his ruthless organization based on the principle that changing old laws leads to the destruction of a stable society.  Ares may be brainwashed by the propaganda of the organization, but his true reason for joining rests in the fact that he comes from the impoverished town of Miraga, which is still struggling to rebuild itself after a natural disaster.  He needs the money he is paid by the organization in order to help support his lower class family.

When the group is forcefully disbanded, Ares is left without a source of income but not without a plan.  He travels to Shar, where he pretends to be the water mage on a trip around the world.  He asks for donations to help with his travels, but his plan is quickly foiled by Ivan and the others, who are familiar with the true water mage.  To make matters worse, a group of dark magi had heard his claim, and they make an attempt on his life.  He is saved by the party, and joins for two reasons: to make up for claiming to be the water mage, and because he hopes to meet the famous water mage in person.  The water mage is, after all, revered in his hometown.

Ares has a positive, upbeat personality.  He has a history of being a bit of a skirt chaser, but this habit seems to disappear rather quickly for reasons unknown.  At heart, he is a fun guy with a big heart who is able to smile in the face of adversity.  He gets along with everyone fairly well, but he can be a bit dense at times.  He also has a hard time expressing himself clearly and is quick to give up on his own dreams, no matter how strongly he feels about them.

Author’s Notes on this Character:

Ares is another one of my favorite characters.  I think he kind of grew on me as I began to develop his character and background story more.  He isn’t very skilled with magic and makes stupid mistakes, but he takes it all very lightly and with a cheerful laugh.  He is also very fun to work with throughout the story – for instance, in one story arc, he falls in love with someone but keeps missing out on very important details because he is naturally dense.  I had to write out the script for this part ahead of time because Ares is just hilarious.