RWBY

Ruby Rose

On the same day that her mother died Ruby’s only sister was stolen away by a blood red portal. Those back to back tragedies left her father barely able to function in the aftermath, and thus the little Rose was forced to raise herself with only occasional help from her loving but ever distant uncle.

Though she maintained a cheerful facade her whole life was spent quietly desperate for the happy family she never had. That hunger for affection stuck with even as she sacrificed herself saving lives amidst the Fall Of Beacon, a rose who’d failed to forge any true connections.

Weiss Schnee

The Schnee manor is a cold place, and Weiss never felt a hint of warmth within it. Her elder sister fled without looking back and neither parent nor her brother offered any affection worth speaking of. Only her butler offered her any sort of kindness, and he couldn’t hope to fill the hole her family left deep inside. Is it any surprise she grew a heart of ice to shield herself?

Yet that frosty demeanor could not save her nor the butler when White Fang assassins struck. Killed by those seeking to harm a father who never cared for her.

Blake Belladonna

Even as a child Blake fought for her people with unrelenting passion. She refused to accept how others would treat them, yet never forgot that she was fighting for equality instead of vengeance.

She knew those ideals brought her into conflict with the White Fang, but she never expected them to assassinate her family in their own home. Blake died full of regret that, for all her good works, she’d failed to save the people who’d loved her most.

Yang Xiao-Long

Once Yang prided herself in being the best big sister around. That changed after an ill fated walk in the woods in search of her missing mother. A walk that ended in the death of little Ruby Rose.

Ever since that day Yang strove to be the best and most motherly friend she could, but nothing could ever smother that all consuming guilt. So deep was her pain that she didn’t hesitate to throw herself between Blake and Adam Taurus, even as the latter swung his sword with enough force to part her head from her shoulders.

Neopolitan

The daughter of a cruel criminal, Neo was trapped in an abusive home with no voice of her own. Eventually though she could no longer stand it, and with no gentleman thief she had to save herself.

Her following life of crime left her rich in Lien but with only illusions for trustworthy companionship. Such an empty existence was all she had though, and so Neo refused to throw it away following Cinder’s mad whims. An act of defiance that saw her reduced to naught but ashes.

Pyrrha Nikos

This little Nikos was born for battle, and everyone knew from the first time she picked up a weapon. Yet after an untouchable ascent in the arena even her own mother placed Pyrrha upon a distant pedestal instead of treating her as a person.

Isolated by her success but unable to abandon the thrill of a fight she sought to abandon fame as a huntress, only to be idolized by a team of mediocre trainees. By the time she was slain amidst the Fall Of Beacon Pyrrha felt there were none she could truly call family or friend.

Glynda Goodwitch

Even without the burden of Ozpin’s conspiracy, wrangling an entire school of superpowered teenagers would be more than enough to consume every waking moment of her time. Each semester brought new faces to mold, new hidden enemies to look for.

Her apartment gathered dust save for the bedroom and coffee maker. What was the purpose of a living room without guests? A kitchen when she ate all her meals at work? Behind closed doors, the exact same standards that made her an exemplary teacher left little room for… distractions.

Her dedication was all for naught. When Beacon was torn apart amidst betrayal and strife though not even her semblance could hold the disparate pieces together. As the dragon descended on Beacon, she faced it alone– just as she had faced everything else.

Cinder Fall

Mistral is a lawless place, where even heinous crimes such as selling children get a blind eye from the authorities. When she was purchased by a woman from Atlas Cinder dared to dream things might get better. Her hopes were rewarded with a shock collar and abuse beyond anything she’d experienced in the orphanage.

After years of blood, toil, and betrayal from the one man she thought she could trust, Cinder carved her way free of that living nightmare. Yet it wasn’t enough. Each betrayal, each false promise, only stroked those flames – until the inferno inside her was bright enough to earn the attention of Salem herself.

The Queen of Grimm offered everything Cinder asked for. Strength, agency, purpose. Yet even ascending to Maiden wasn’t enough to quench the thirst in Cinder’s heart. Only at the end of that damned path, sinking beneath Haven trapped within a block of ice, did she realize the utter emptiness she’d been left with by the end.

My Hero Academia

Izumi Midoriya

Parenting is a two person job, and though Inko tried her best she could never fill the hole her absent husband left in Izumi’s life. The girl’s Quirkless diagnosis made everything worse, so Izumi tried to bury the pain with passionate research on Heroes. Especially her idol, All Might.

Then a miracle struck. Lifted from the depths of society by her idol Izumi was finally able to realize her dreams of heroism! It was a painful road full of blood and broken bones, but she made it to the top with his support every step of the way.

Yet it was only when Yagi dissolved in Tomura’s hands that Izumi realized he had been the one to fill the gaping wound her father left behind. With a howl of anguish she went beyond 100%, destroying herself and the symbol of fear in a single devastating blow.

Katsuki Bakugou

Praised as a genius almost as soon as she could walk upright, Katsuki grew up admired by all around her. She pushed herself even further, maintaining strict discipline to be worthy of the praise. That, and to avoid the harsh hands of her parents whenever she failed.

By the time she’d reached high school Katsuki had become a pile of inferiority issues and ego bound together by a short fuse. One her childhood friend never failed to set off. Stupid Deku with her loving mother, heroic heart, and beaming smile...

That smile was stuck in Katsuki’s mind as she bled from the inside out, her heavy heart torn to pieces from her final blow against All For One. The explosion hero died not with a bang, but a silent whimper for the love she’d denied herself.

Momo Yaoyorozu

Few among the wealthy recognize the full extent of their privilege. Momo was one of those rare souls, and sought to use her gifts for the betterment of others as a Hero! With her sharp wit and incredible Quirk she was more than suited for the role.

Yet all that excellence left her isolated. Peers could feel the gap in both social station and ability, and so fled her approach whenever possible. Her own parents were little better. Attending every award ceremony while skipping every birthday. As though her achievements were the only thing about her worth celebrating.

When the Final War came Momo stood as a commander of men and women older than her, all of whom gave her that same painful distance. Perhaps the assassin who targeted her would’ve been stopped had anyone dared to grow close with the heiress, but she died alone instead.

Mina Ashido

Bubbly, bright, and cheery are the first three things most people think of when Mina enters the conversation. Not many have been forced to see the core of steel beneath her sunny disposition, but she never hesitated to wield it in defense of her friends.

Then the Paranormal Liberation Front attacked, and one by one those friends fell to the ground. Whether they died on their feet or were slain in an ambush, the end result was the same. All the classmates and comrades she’d considered family were gone.

In the final battle against All For One she gave her own life so Izumi would have the chance to kill that old monster. A sacrifice Mina made gladly, knowing that she’d been able to save at least one of her precious people from the nightmare their world had become.

Himiko Toga

Abused by her parents for being born with a “filthy” Quirk, Himiko suppressed her thirst for blood as long as she could. But bottled feelings don’t fade, they just build pressure until they finally burst out. In this case as a murderous madness.

Abandoning society in favor of her fellow freaks Himiko felt happy for the first time she could remember. There was no need to hide and freedom to indulge in her most forbidden desires. It was perfect, right up until Twice died in her arms.

Already unstable, Himiko came apart with her friend’s death. With his Quirk she rampaged across Japan as a tsunami of bodies. Yet when the rage burnt out there was nothing left, and the Sad Man’s Parade collapsed upon itself.

Ochako Uraraka

The daughter of construction workers learned early that dreams had price tags. Each evening she'd return to an empty apartment, her parents worked endless shifts in distant cities to fund her education and deal with debts too high for their small company. She strove to be worthy of their sacrifice, to become a Hero who could repay all they’d given her.

When a villain's attack collapsed the building her parents were working on, Ochako wasn't there to use her quirk to save them. She'd been at U.A. training to be a hero who could support her family –  a goal that died buried under tons of concrete and steel beams.

Amidst the chaos that consumed Japan, Ochako threw herself into rescue work, desperate for any distraction. She died saving a family amidst a Villain attack, her own body used to shield them from scorching flames.

Kaina Tsutsumi

Recruited young into Public Safety, the girl who would become Lady Nagant was denied anything resembling a normal childhood. The government shaped her into the finest killing machine they could, and on that front she exceeded expectations. Outdoing even Quirks in her sheer level of accuracy and lethality.

But machines break down over time. After turning on her superiors she was thrown into the depths of Tartarus, where Kaina was given plenty of time to reflect on how she’d been twisted as a person and denied any form of warmth by her handlers.

Years later, with no true cause of her own, she threw her weight behind All For One. A desperate move that saw her destroyed not long after. Kaina died alone, wishing more than anything that someone would at least hold her in the end. Yet nobody came.

Rumi Usagiyama

Ever since she threw her first kick Rumi lived for the rush of a brawl. The unmatched intensity of pitting herself against others and coming out on top no matter what. That love of battle pushed her to the top of Hero ratings even as it isolated her from those fearful or awestruck by the battle crazed bunny.

Sometimes, in the space between bouts a small voice in her head questioned if she could go on like this. Cut off from others by her overwhelming addiction to adrenaline. Yet instead of listening Mirko would always drown it out with the thrill of her next fight.

Eventually though she had a fight even her gutsy spirit couldn’t overcome. As she lay upon the ground with four severed limbs it occurred to the rabbit Hero her funeral would be an empty affair. One with no dear friends or family to mourn her. That bitter thought clung to Rumi’s mind as she sank into oblivion.

Nemuri Kayama

Before she was known as the R-rated hero, Midnight had a grand ambition. To strike against the suffocating conformity that had created a generation afraid of their own skin, especially those with mutant quirks. Alas, her small rebellion was simply crushed beneath the weight of bureaucracy.

Nemuri then sought positive change through fostering the next generation as a teacher, yet was once again met with limited success. A failure that led the woman to bury a deep bitterness beneath her salacious smile. What few colleagues grew close enough to see beneath her mask backed away when they saw the depths of her fury towards the world that constantly denied her attempts to better it.

Despite that she never stopped in her fight for a kinder world. Even when it meant executing villains in the Final War, leading children as soldiers, and ultimately sacrificing her own life in the battle against Gigantomachia.

Shoko Todoroki

Boiling water and screams are one of Shoko’s earliest memories. Certainly the one she remembers most clearly. The agonizing clarity as she saw her mother pour the kettle onto her face with ill intent, damning her to a wound that would never heal for the crime of a passing resemblance to her father.

Hate for both parents would fuel Shoko years later. Spite, not hope, would drive her to use her fiery half. All the better to surpass the man who’d beaten her as ‘training’ before she was taller than his knee. When her lost brother’s fate was revealed she briefly considered joining him against Endeavor, only changing her mind when she saw what a madman he’d become.

Yet spite alone could not overcome the gulf between her and the greatest villain to ever live. Even as hate and determination drove her to conjure infernos and ice beyond measure, All For One still crushed Shoko with raw power. Laughing as her fires slowly guttered out.

High School DxD

Rias Gremory

The crimson-haired princess lived in a gilded cage, surrounded by the famous “Gremory love.” Servants bowing at her every whim, a doting brother who moved mountains at her smile, parents who denied her nothing. Yet beneath the warmth of each embrace lay the cold steel of obligation, the weight of traditions that even the deepest love couldn't overcome.

Her peerage, meant to be her true family, remained a collection of damaged souls hiding behind careful masks and duties, their trauma-built walls too thick for even her warmth to penetrate. The Rating Game against Riser shattered even those fragile bonds, her defeat absolute. As Riser claimed his victory, she caught her brother's eye from the audience stands. Sirzechs – the Maou who could reshape hell itself – simply watched, bound by the very traditions he helped enforce. It was at that moment that she realized that even the strongest chains could be forged from love.

Looking back, Kokabiel's attack was almost a mercy, a swift end before the golden bars of her cage could close completely.

Akeno Himejima

Even among the warmth of the Gremory household, where Rias claimed her as "sister," Akeno kept parts of herself carefully locked away. The Fallen blood that stained her wings black whispered of betrayal – of a mother's cooling body, of a father's retreating form, of a clan that saw only something to be purged. Her trademark "ara ara" masked how deeply she treasured Rias' unconditional acceptance of every shadow within her soul.

When Kokabiel's holy light pierced her chest, there was bitter irony in being forced to embrace the very power she'd denied - lightning crackling with both divine and unholy energy, all for naught. Akeno's last sight was Rias reaching desperately toward her, screaming her name, just as her mother had reached for her so many years ago. The shrine maiden's final smile held no trace of her usual sadism - only a gentle regret as crimson hair mixed with black feathers in the rain.

Koneko Toujou

The young Nekomata learned to hide her true nature behind blank stares and monosyllabic responses after that blood-soaked night when her sister's powers went wild. Even after finding sanctuary with the Gremory household, Koneko refused to acknowledge her heritage – the white-haired girl moved through life like a ghost, her true name locked away with her emotions.

In quiet moments between battles, she'd find herself unconsciously seeking high places to curl up alone, just as she had in that dark period before Rias helped her. The other members of the peerage noticed how she'd pause whenever someone mentioned her sister, her small frame tensing like a bowstring pulled too tight.

The Khaos Brigade's attack on Kuoh Academy proved too much for even a Rook's durability. As consciousness faded, her last act was reaching out with trembling fingers, an unspoken plea dying with her.

Asia Argento

Abandoned at birth at the Church's doorstep, Asia grew up watching other children leave with their new families while she remained behind. Her healing gift made her the Holy Maiden, but never a daughter. When she healed a devil, the Church cast her out, yet she clutched her cross tighter, praying to a Father she'd never stopped believing in despite His silence.

Raynare's honeyed words offered what the Church never did, but the Fallen Angel's true nature revealed itself as she ripped Asia's Sacred Gear from her dying body. Her last prayer wasn't for salvation, but understanding of why she had to walk her path alone.

Serafall Leviathan

The mantle of Satan consumed everything she was. Behind the magical-girl facade and playful demeanor lay a woman who had sacrificed her very identity to maintain peace in the Underworld. Her obsession with her younger sister Sona –  the one thread connecting her to who she used to be – bordered on mania, yet even those moments of doting were tainted by duties that kept her away.

When Trihexa awakened, even Serafall's immense power proved insufficient. Fighting alongside her fellow Satans against the Beast of Apocalypse, she poured everything into one final spell and transformed an entire region into absolute zero. The resulting glacier stands eternal, a beautiful monument to a woman who spent centuries playing a role, forever reaching for something just beyond her grasp.

Grayfia Lucifuge

The Strongest Queen served her station with unwavering dedication, each perfect gesture and measured word a testament to her role as both maid and wife to a Maou. Yet beneath that steel-clad propriety lay the embers of civil war - where she had stood against her own flesh and blood, choosing duty over the devils who shared her name.

The peace she helped forge came at the cost of severing those ancient ties. And though she found purpose in service to the Gremory household, her meticulous guidance of young Rias' education seemed to cast long shadows. In the end, her marriage to Sirzechs proved to be what it was - a political match that brought stability to a fractured realm.

The perfect maid's composure never wavered, even as she fell defending the Gremory territory from a devastating assault. Her final thoughts dwelled on the irony that decades of flawless service had earned her nothing more than a solitary end.

Yasaka

Power flowed through Kyoto's ley lines like blood through veins, and Yasaka was its beating heart. Nine tails swaying, she performed the ceremonies as she had for centuries, maintaining the delicate balance between human world and supernatural realm. The other youkai whispered of her strength, her grace, her dedication. None dared mention the empty silence where a child's laughter used to ring.

Kunou had been spring incarnate – all golden fur and boundless energy, questions spilling like cherry blossoms in the wind. Teaching her about their heritage, watching her small tails grow one by one, seeing her own features reflected in that bright smile. These memories Yasaka guarded more fiercely than any shrine.

The Hero Faction had taken that spring away. Cao Cao's spear pierced through centuries of protection, divine light searing both barrier and flesh. A mother's desperate fury meant nothing against the power to kill gods. Now Yasaka's duties remained, and she performed them perfectly. Each ceremony a tribute to what her daughter died protecting.

When the ley lines began to resonate strangely, pulling at the fabric of reality itself, Yasaka recognized it wasn't an attack but a calling. As she faded from the shrine she'd guarded for centuries, her last thought was of Kunou's smile.

Ravel Phenex

Pride came naturally to House Phenex's only daughter. Ravel understood power in all its forms – her eldest brother's dominance in the Rating Games, her second brother's business empire. And being the youngest taught her to master both battlefield and boardroom.

Behind her polite smiles, Ravel built her own empire. Trade agreements became tactical maneuvers, each contract a battle plan as precise as her Rating Game strategies. While others saw only a noble's daughter playing merchant, she orchestrated both boardroom takeovers and Riser's victories with equal precision. The battlefield and business were just different boards for the same game.

Riser's peerage was a glittering cage of beautiful birds, with a special perch reserved for his dear sister. She watched him dote on his collection, his hand casual on their shoulders, his gaze never lingering on her the way it did the others. During Rating Games, she'd stand closer than necessary, letting their flames mingle until even immortal blood burned too hot, but he remained blind to anything beyond fraternal affection.

The attack came during her routine inspection of a family property. No grand proclamations or ancient artifacts. She recognized power when she felt it, but this was different. Something was fundamentally wrong in how these devils moved, how their magic felt. The last thing she saw was the strange symbol glowing on their skin, before even her immortal flame was snuffed out.

Chainsaw Man

Makima

Government agents make for poor parents, especially when they see their charge as a weapon instead of a person. Through cruel and lengthy conditioning Japan moulded a young Makima into their subservient tool. Even when she grew strong enough to slaughter her old abusers with a gesture, the wounds they left upon her psyche ensured she never did.

Under their watchful eye she became more of a monster than even Devils could scarcely imagine the breadth and depth of her depravity. Yet her greatest dream was not escaping this life, becoming a better tool, or even world domination as many assumed.

In truth the Control Devil’s deepest wish was to be loved by an equal. Instead she found only harsh superiors or those who danced upon her strings. It was this all consuming pursuit of “true” affection that ultimately led to her own demise.

Nayuta

A childlike Devil only slightly older than she appears, Nayuta was adopted almost immediately after her reincarnation as the next Control Devil. At first made foul plots much like her old self, yet the tender love of an older sibling soothed her reflexive hate. While far from a perfect child, Nayuta quickly became enamoured with simple pleasures instead of the violence Devils are known for.

It was a peaceful life, yet all of it would come burning down around her ears. Without the contracts and connections of her predecessor there was nothing she could do to defend her little family against those who sought to destroy them.

Left exposed without her protector Nayuta was torn to pieces by a frenzied mob. Control received the love she had always wanted, only to lose it alongside her life in less than a year.

Reze

Kidnapped as a girl by the USSR for inhumane experiments, Reze had the debatable fortune of surviving her fusion with the Bomb Devil. From then on she was beaten and broken into a compliant tool, her new immortality ensuring the Russians could inflict otherwise unsurvivable punishments.

Years later, after serving as a loyal weapon in countless operations, she was assigned to kill the Chainsaw hybrid. Despite having the other girl play right into her hands though she couldn’t bring herself to kill Denji. Not when she’d so earnestly offered genuine affection Reze had never felt.

Yet Makima couldn’t allow Denji any joy for her plan to succeed. So Control force fed the Bomb hybrid to Pochita piece by piece, until it was as though she’d never existed at all.

Konebi

Forced into the workforce by her parents to pay for her brother’s schooling, Kobeni had the choice of prostitution or Devil hunting. She chose the latter, quietly burying her own dreams of college and contracting with a Devil to survive the deadly occupation.

It was far worse than she could’ve ever imagined. After surviving countless slaughters including a trip to Hell and face to face confrontation with the legendary Darkness Devil, Konebi fled seeking a less lethal career. There was no escape though, and she became collateral damage to a Devil fight while working another dead-end job.

As Kobeni lay torn in two, staring at her severed half, she realized she couldn’t remember the last time she’d seen the family she was working so hard for. Was their cruelty all blood ties amounted to? Or maybe there was something more...

Asa/Yoru

To describe the initial relationship between this highschool girl and war incarnate as tense would be a heavy understatement. Both wanted the other gone, yet circumstances bound them within one body.

Over the course of this possession though they grew close. Asa told Yoru of the guilt and doubt that plagued her, while War confessed to her fears of abandonment and being forgotten. An oddly tender union interrupted by Hell itself opening in the middle of Japan.

They fought as a single soul amidst the chaos, taking better care of each other than any member of their respective species ever had. Both briefly wondered if this was what real sisterhood felt like. Supporting each other when no one else would. Then the end arrived, reducing Asa and Yoru to little more than a smear upon the earth.

Denji

Yakuza thugs owned Denji for as long as she could remember. Only her underdeveloped body and backbreaking labor kept them from selling her into prostitution. A penniless and wretched existence, it was the warmth of her devil dog Pochita that gave her the strength to continue in hope of a brighter future.

Following her fusion with Pochita things even seemed to be getting better for a brief moment. Yet each and every time she found a glimmer of happiness someone or something would tear it to pieces. Every form of love was twisted to hurt her, until eventually even Denji’s inhuman resilience found its limit.

Thus did she turn the endless maw of Pochita against herself. Hoping to end her misery beneath the ceaseless roar of his all consuming chainsaws. Even if the result was utter emptiness, that would still be better than a world where nobody cared for her.

Himeno

Death lurks around every corner for Devil Hunters. That didn’t bother Himeno too badly though. No, what ticked her off was how horrible it was for her love life. Any comrade could be a corpse tomorrow, and common folk would always be too nervous for her to take them seriously.

Even Aki, who she adored, couldn’t fill that hole inside her. With nobody else left in her life to care for her, Himeno’s sense of self worth quietly plummeted beneath her cheery facade.

So when her dear juniors came under attack and death approached? She gave all of herself away. Sacrificed every last scrap of flesh to save the only people she could. As the ghost Devil consumed her Himeno had just enough time to wish one more time that she could’ve shared her life with someone that truly cared for her.

Power

Devils have no true kin among one another. They are all spawned from the same foul Hell, yet only a handful grow close. Even fewer assign labels like “Brother” or “Sister”. For the blood Devil that was fine. As the apex of existence (if only in her own mind) what need did she have of others?

That was before she felt Meowy’s warm belly. Before Aki prepared home cooked meals in their small apartment. Before Denji stayed to help her heal from the scar Darkness left on her mind.

For the first time this Devil realized she could care about people other than herself. That there was warmth to be found in the touch of those close to her. It was a beautiful moment. One that ended with a BANG.

 General Anime

Satsuki Kiryūin

Twisted and molested by her own mother, Satsuki’s dedication to authority masked a spiteful spirit of rebellion. She desired nothing other than the woman’s total destruction. At least until she discovered her sister was alive.

Despite a hostile introduction both were united in their hate for the woman who birthed them. Thus did the sisters reist their mother’s plots at every turn, culminating in a deadly duel that saw the woman suffocate in the depths of space, albeit at the cost of their own protection.

The girls tumbled together back towards earth, utterly exposed in every way. As the fires of re-entry began to consume them Satsuki couldn’t help but smile. Death was certain, but she couldn’t think of a better way to go than being wrapped in her sister’s arms.

Ryūko Matoi

Ryūko’s peaceful life with her single father was ruined when an assassin tore the man to pieces. Taking up the remnants of his work she sought his killer at Honnōji Academy, hatred burning in her heart.

She met her sister there, and the two got along like a house on fire. The chief delinquent and student council president butting heads and boobs every other day. But there was love beneath those brawls. Enough that they stood together against their mother at the edge of earth’s orbit.

Yet the intense fighting destroyed the Life Fiber which allowed them to survive such heights. With vengeance done Ryūko embraced her sister as they fell. Wondering what life could’ve been if they’d not been separated all their lives.

Mikasa Ackerman

Imagine losing both your parents to human traffickers, only for another child your own age to save you. That event inspired Mikasa’s lifelong obsession with Eren. Even following him into the notoriously lethal Survey Corps.

It was even more hellish than she’d imagined. While gifted beyond almost any other, Mikasa was pushed to her limit against the Titans and traitors alike. Made even worse when Eren himself cast her aside to commit the greatest genocide in all of recorded history.

Her blade was the one to sever his sick mind from its body. Yet despite all he’d done she could not bear the pain of what she’d done. Mikasa tumbled from the top of the last titan, wishing the one she’d admired had returned even a fraction of the love she offered freely.

Frieren

Elves are known to struggle with emotion. Such was the case with Frieren, who had all she knew slaughtered by demons. She became a monster of magic to return that pain a thousand times over. An act that saw her become known as one of the three Great Mages.

Beneath her butchery, however, Frieren contended with an aching emptiness. Vengeance did not fill the hole in her heart. It merely distracted her from it. Yet her expertise was spellcraft, not psyche, and so she allowed those wounds to fester.

Eventually she was recruited by Himmel himself to slay the Demon King. Despite the hero’s efforts though her heart remained shut, or so it seemed. When the Demon King was about to strike Himmel down she threw herself in the way, not even understanding why she’d moved so desperately. Only as life seeped from her did she finally realize how deeply lonely she’d felt all along.

Ubel

A poor seamster’s child, the smooth glide of scissors would spark a fascination in Ubel. She grew utterly absorbed with the art of cutting, and awakening led her to try and cut everything she could. Cloth, wood, stone, flesh, all of it was carved apart beneath her mischievous smile.

Such lethal prowess already had many grow weary of the young witch, but her second magic made many outright disturbed: The ability to copy magic from anyone she intimately understood. With a rapidly expanding arsenal and little regard for the consequences of her actions, it was only a matter of time before someone set out to end the threat she posed.

One morning, while she severed the head of a mage who’d committed the sin of boring her, a simple warrior struck. Physical prowess propelling him at speeds far too quick for her to cast. As Ubel was cleaved in two, sadness overcame the wily woman. Not from dying, but that she’d perished in such a dull fashion while there were still so many interesting things to cut and magics she’d never learned.

Fern

Both parents butchered in the southern war, little Fern was adopted by the legendary priest Heiter. Though he raised her with care Heiter was terribly old, and thus was forced to pass her care onto an elven companion as his body failed him for the final time.

Great Mage she may have been, Frieren’s dimmed emotions made her a poor replacement for Heiter’s love. Fern strove to be a good apprentice even so, yet for all her efforts Fern’s magic never seemed to impress the elf. It was as though the sharp eared woman was ever lost in her own head, dreaming of the past with a fondness that left Fern bitter at her lacking present.

In desperate hunger for approval, or even just attention, from her guardian Fern delved into strange magics. Anything that could hold the elf’s attention long enough to draw some emotion from her flat faced mentor. In that at least, she succeeded. The raw terror on Frieren’s face when Fern’s experimental spell sucked herself into a portal was more emotion than Fern had ever seen from her. She wasn’t given long to bask in that minor victory though. Not before the process finished and she was whisked away from her old world. Never to return.

Ranma Saotome

Of the few constants in Ranma’s early life was martial arts. Wherever that fool of a father insisted they went the two would clash, train, and tirelessly pursue greater martial prowess. There was comfort to that, yet it could never quiet the constant unease that lurked beneath Ranma’s skin. Nothing could. Not until that fateful tumble into the cursed spring.

As a girl Ranma grew leaps and bounds as a martial artist, more at ease in her own flesh than ever before. Less and less time was spent as a man, until eventually Ranma’s nature became clear to all.  Though no matter her shape, she remained stubborn, picky, stingy, rude, aggressive and sly.

Her less than willing fiance was more than pleased, but her amazonian hunter flew into a blood rage at the revelation. Shampoo recruited her entire village to ambush Ranma, and to the shock of everyone that final murder attempt actually succeeded.

Holo the Wise Wolf

Even among immortal beast spirits Holo was always a strange creature. Ill content to languish in the wilds as they did, she abandoned her homeland to explore and discover. Driven by an insatiable curiosity.

In her travels she would make a promise to the people of a small village. That she would shelter them and provide bountiful harvests of wheat. For centuries Holo kept her word, and the people prospered. Yet amidst their newfound heights they dismissed the one who had brought them there. Leaving her shrines unattended or simply cursing her when their own efforts depleted the soil.

Eventually she grew tired of their abuse and left. Yet her path was a perilous one. Though she was more than willing to lie, cheat, steal, and even kill to return home, Holo was unprepared to face the sheer depths of depravity humans beyond her small town could unleash. She burned upon a stake, howling with fury and anguish at the injustice of the world.

C.C.

When the nun offered C.C. the power to live on, the Geass to be loved seemed a cruel joke. Finally, others looked at her with devotion instead of hunger. Finally, someone brushed her hair and taught her letters with motherly patience. But forced affection proved as hollow as purchased pleasure, and her mentor's final "gift" of immortality revealed the truth: she'd simply been groomed for a grander transaction.

Centuries passed, and C.C. learned to wear solitude like a favorite dress. She granted Geass to those whose desires amused her, watching their obsessions bloom and wither with practiced indifference. In quiet moments between contracts, unbidden memories would surface: the nun's gentle touch, a warmth long forgotten, promises that crumbled like autumn leaves.

The scientists in Clovis's laboratory had softer hands than her old masters, but their touch was no less possessive. Each careful incision, each vial of blood drawn, reminded her of transactions long past. Through waves of familiar pain, something brushed her consciousness –  an offer that tasted of possibility rather than possession. As darkness claimed her, C.C. reached for it, wondering if somewhere beyond this world, warmth might finally feel real.

Busujima Saeko

The dojo was her world, every strike of bokken against wood a meditation on violence barely contained. Other students whispered about the captain's perfect form, her graceful movements. None saw how she treasured those moments after practice, alone with her thoughts and the setting sun painting shadows across empty halls.

When the outbreak began, she found a strange peace with each unlife taken. A truth she no longer needed to hide. The others saw her as their protector, their warrior, never suspecting how right it felt, how natural. Their trust both warmed and wounded her.

When circumstances forced Saeko to choose between the group's safety and her own? The girl's quiet bloodlust made it an easy choice. She died surrounded by Them, her bokken slick with blood and a wide smile on her face.

Shinobu Kocho

The Butterfly Estate's halls echoed with ghostly laughter – of sisters lost, of students fallen. At fourteen, Shinobu inherited more than just her sister Kanae's title; she inherited broken girls who needed mending, just as she once did. And yet one by one demons stole them away too.

The gardens she tended flourished with deadly beauty, much like their caretaker who had mastered both healing and harm. Though she maintained her sister's gentle demeanor, each smile grew sharper, more venomous.  When only Kanao remained, she had poured herself into the role of Insect Hashira, training young slayers with efficiency rather than true warmth.

As her poison coursed through Douma's veins, allowing her last sister's blade to strike true, Shinobu's final thoughts drifted to the wisteria that would bloom again without her there to tend them.

Marcille Donato

Half-elves bear a heavy burden unique even among the long lived races. For their lifespans are twice that of their elven kin, stretching all the way to a thousand years or more. Marcille was given a dreadful sample of this as a girl, made to watch as her own father withered away from the ravages of time.

That experience shaped her life moving forward. Beneath her bright eyed exterior was a girl who had studied truly profane magics and broken countless laws in pursuit of life extension magic. Eventually, deep in the depths of a Dungeon, she did the unthinkable and made a pact with an impossibly powerful demon to bring about her dream.

The consequences were immediate and violent. Only through her raw genius and the quick thinking of her companions was an apocalypse averted. Despite saving the world though Marcille was not forgiven for her crimes. Her friends did all they could to save her, yet in the end Marcille was forced beneath the headsman’s ax. In her last moments Marcille wept bitter tears that she had only been able to know her dearest friends for a fraction of their lives.

Tatsumaki

A child's trust shatters quietly with the clink of coins changing hands and the slam of a car door. The facility's white halls became her world at seven, where cooperation earned cheap toys and resistance meant solitude in a cold cell. She learned to hold back, to seem worthless, hoping they'd discard their failed experiment. But even that calculated weakness couldn't save her when monsters breached the facility. Huddled in her cell, she waited for help that never came - until Blast appeared, seeing through her act with a single glance.

His words about strength and protecting her family cut deeper than any experiment, yet even they had somehow twisted over the years. Her overwhelming power became both shield and cage, keeping everyone at arm's length while she watched over them from above.

The Monster Association's defeat should have been her crowning achievement. Instead, she fell alone in the rubble, her tremendous power finally exhausted as the earth crumbled around her –  her mind going over the meaning of Blast’s message one final time.

Fubuki

Power came to her in a moment of terror, watching crimson paint the walls of her childhood home. The shadow of her sister's strength loomed over everything she did, from forming the Blizzard Group to her desperate climb up the hero rankings. Every relationship was measured, every connection calculated – a desperate attempt to build something uniquely hers in a world where raw power meant everything.

Sometimes Fubuki would catch Tatsumaki watching from afar with an unreadable expression. In those moments she learned that fear and pride made for stronger walls than any psychic barrier.

The Monster Association's assault proved her carefully constructed foundation was built on sand. Her followers scattered, her carefully maintained image shattered, and years of unspoken words died with her.

Albedo

Without any other Supreme Beings to worship, the Tomb of Nazarick existed to serve lord Ainz. Albedo herself was perfectly content with that, eager to serve her undead king and commit any number of atrocities in his name.

Yet as time passed and he continued to reject her advances, Albedo began to question why that love was so strong. What traits actually drew her to the corpse lord who claimed the place of her master? Try as she might, the succubus could think of nothing.

Then one day, perhaps on a whim, the man confessed all to her. His true nature as a human, hers as a construct brought to life, his own endless cowardice and greed, and perhaps most shocking of all...how he’d warped her mind to desire him. Not even on purpose, it was done as a private joke he’d expected to have no lasting consequences. A passing bit of humor born of little more than base lust for her body.

The truth was too much to bear. Love and hate blended together into a blinding rage! Yet for all her wroth the Overseer of Nazarick was no match for Ainz. She fell against the craven king, filled with bitterness that one she’d sworn her life to had been a liar all along.

Tanya von Degurechaff

In the midst of an experiment to create faithful souls, a simple minded God chose a tough target. A lazy, spiteful, and unrepentant psychopath. If even this creature could be reborn into a pious person, then surely the God’s method would succeed.

Alas, reality states that most experiments don’t produce desired results. “Tanya” as she became known, ascended through her new society atop a mountain of corpses. Becoming a nightmarish commander in the body of a child. Ready and eager to use murder, manipulation, and magic to seize her desires.

For all her cunning however, Tanya failed in grasping emotions. Both her own and those of others. She didn’t understand the ache of her heart when others shunned her as a monster. Nor did she account for her own soldiers deciding they’d rather be traitors than serve such a creature.

As her body collapsed from a bullet to the back of the head, God took pity on the former salaryman. Perhaps, cut off from his divine influence, Tanya would be able to blossom into a kinder creature. Thus did he cast her out into the cycle of reincarnation yet again, though this time without his interference intruding in her new life.

Hoshino Ai

Even as a child Ai lived and breathed deception, learning from the adults around her at a terrifying rate. That mastery of untruths catapulted her into stardom at the tender age of twelve. Where her sweet little lies convinced countless fans that she loved them even when she had never felt it herself.

Amidst the darkness of the entertainment industry affection was even further than it was in her old orphanage. The closest she ever came to it was the casual sex she had with an agency manager. An act that resulted in her precious children, though she was never able to tell the twins how much she loved them. After lying to her fans about ‘love’ for so long, the idea of those words turning into a lie towards her own kids was too much to bear.

Four years later, her ex claimed vengeance by leaking her location and the children’s existence to a psychotic fan. His knife pierced her lungs, and Ai died choking on her own blood. Unable to tell the twins how she truly felt in those final moments.

Esdeath

Sadistic, manipulative, cruel, and possessed of an unquenchable thirst for blood. The Empire’s greatest general was a terrifying creature. Even without her Teigu, this lethal woman wielded an undeniable charisma that inspired and annihilated those beneath her according to her whims.

From the cold north she’d been born and with frozen Teigu she’d seized her place at the top. Yet for all her frost one thing remained ever out of reach - the warmth of another. Soothing sensations of love she’d not felt since her father died in her arms.

She’d never feel that warmth. Power alone could not claim the young man she grew obsessed with, not when he was shielded by the care and sacrifices of his comrades. Esdeath died with none of the love she’d sought to seize, a fact that filled her with bitterness matched only by the black toxins that filled her veins.

Ghislaine Dedoldia

Young Ghislaine solved everything with violence. When she shattered her brother's arm during play, not understanding his screams, they knew she couldn't stay. When Gal Farion took their "wild child" away for training, her family's relief tasted bitter on her tongue.

The Fangs of the Black Wolf felt like home, if briefly. Yet in time even her party disbanded with little ceremony. Paul's apologetic shrug and Zenith's swollen belly telling a story she'd never have.

The Holy Land of the Sword made her strong, but not clever. Merchants saw past the Sword King title to her blank stares and simple speech and their contracts trapped her gold like pitfalls. Ten gold became eight became three became none. Contracts hidden behind big words and bigger smiles. Each time she'd grip her sword hilt, knowing violence wouldn't solve it, but understanding nothing else.

In the end the desert stretched endless, her waterskin long empty. The merchant's map was as false as his smile had been. As consciousness faded beneath the merciless sun, Ghislaine's keen nose caught a familiar scent but her powerful legs wouldn't move to find out.

Akame

The Empire collected children like weapons and parents sold daughters for coin. Thirty silver pieces bought two sisters who survived the forest trials together. Then came separation –  different divisions, different cages. While Kurome vanished into the Empire's depths, Akame joined the Elite Seven.

Night Raid offered something beyond the Empire's shadows. Leone's laughter filled their hideout, while Sheele's clumsy kindness made missions feel less hollow. These moments felt like pieces of something she'd never had. But each death carved away at their makeshift family until only blood and promises remained. Kurome, still chained to the Empire by their drugs, became another name on a blade that never stopped singing.

After the Empire fell, she watched Tatsumi and Mine build their life together, their happiness a glimpse of what survivors could claim. Murasame's corruption spread deeper each day, black veins threading through her chest. In her small room, she faced the end alone, blade in hand, thoughts drifting to a life beyond blood and steel. The curse claimed her quietly, like so many of her own targets.

Aqua

Gods do not have kin in the same way mortals do. For they are born from the faith of their followers. Aqua was more than happy with that herself. Family would just try and stop her from indulging in her favorite activities. Eris was already on her case about excessive drinking, partying, and all that other fun stuff.

Mortals' lives always seemed to revolve around it though. Bonds of blood ever reinforced with love and hate. She laughed at it for centuries, their short lives little more than a joke for her amusement.

Yet when Eris finally gave up on her, Aqua’s immortal existence began to grow dull. No amount of excess could fill the hole left by someone who’d cared about her despite everything that made Aqua who she was. So, taking one last swig from her bottle, the goddess decided it was better to risk a gamble in the realm of reincarnation than waste away on her lonesome for another century.

Darkness

Few could claim to lust after the sharp sting of pain like this young noblewoman. Her own parents held similar urges, yet neither had ever dreamed of the sheer level of effort their daughter invested in her extreme masochism.

Abandoning her home, dedicating her life to adventure, even forsaking all manner of offensive skills purely to become more durable. All so she could bask in exquisite agony and survive to do it again. And again, and again, until eventually there were few monsters or mortals who could not recognize her on sight. Or, more likely, by the distant sound of her ecstatic cries.

Eventually however, the unthinkable began to happen. She had suffered so many delicious agonies that the whole affair had begun to grow dull. Terrified of losing the central pillar of her life, Darkness chose to march on the Demon Lord’s castle alone. Hoping the tortures within would be her salvation. Alas, the demons held no interest in indulging her, and the unbreakable masochist was simply slaughtered instead.

Revy

One of the few lessons her alcoholic father taught her was how people closest could hurt you the most. A painful lesson she’d repaid with a bullet to his skull. Fleeing the US with his meager assets to try and eventually becoming a legendary slayer of men.

Two Hands would sound like a silly title to anyone who’d never seen Revy tear through scores of mercenaries with a gun in each hand. A frenzied smile on her lips and the cackles of laughter echoing out between bullets.

Her fellows maintained a careful distance from the lethal woman, but that was just how Revy liked it. Better to be alone than experience the pain of letting other people see exactly what kind of loser she was beneath the grins and gunsmoke.

She never got the chance to overcome those fears. In one of the countless shootouts of Roanapur a lucky bullet did what so many had failed to do. Leaving Revy as just another of the countless corpses in that wasteland city.

Seras Victoria

Can you imagine the mind of a child who watched her parents die, caught a bullet to the gut, then watched the killers violate her mother’s corpse? A fraction of that trauma has broken grown men, but not Seras. Even after the subsequent abuse of the foster system, she clung to her desire to better the world.

Alucard himself was fascinated by her unbreakable spirit. He turned her into a vampire, eager to see the limits of that bright soul. The lethal occupation of hunting that which goes bump in the night wore on Seras, as did her new condition. Even as her morals began to erode beneath the pressure she held firm. Defying all expectations of her resilience.

When the undead Nazi legions saw Alucard’s apprentice was of such exceptional quality they refused to face her alongside the old terror himself. Despite all her prowess and power as a true vampire, Seras could not stand against their endless hordes. Not without sacrificing her final fragments of humanity. A black bargain she refused despite the cost.

Bleach

Yoruichi

Goddess Of The Flash. That’s what they called this noble clan head. Both for her blinding speed and utter lack of bodily shame. Quick with a laugh or tease, most assumed the catlike woman to be utterly carefree.

Beneath that exterior though she bore the crushing weight of responsibility. Both for her clan and Seireitei’s intelligence division. Though she was ever admired by her subordinates and younger brother, none grew close enough to truly know her. Not even those she betrayed her society for were able to understand her. Such is the difference between even an affable goddess and mortals.

Yet even gods die, as she did in her final clash against the Quincy. It was only on the verge of death, while in a state which annihilated her inhibitions, that Yoruichi was able to wonder what life could have been had anyone managed to grow truly close to her.

Sui-Feng

From a family of six children, Soi Fon was the only one to survive the harrowing work of Soul Reapers. It pained her, yet she successfully buried those sensations beneath hard work. That, and an unwavering loyalty to her precious mentor and goddess, Yoruichi.

When her teacher betrayed Soul Society a dam broke in her heart. Not just for her mentor’s disloyalty, but the fact that she’d been left behind by the woman she would’ve given anything for.

More than a century later she would attain a small measure of closure. Even then though, there remained an invisible barrier between her and the woman she loved so much. Until her dying day in battle against agents of Yhwach, Soi Fon wished more than anything else to feel even a taste of the adoration she offered returned.

Rukia Kuchiki

Soul Society’s outskirts are a wretched realm. A place where poverty and starvation haunt the dead souls who wander there. Rukia was abandoned in that wasteland by her own sister, forced to survive on nothing but scraps.

Eventually she was able to claw her way through Soul Reaper Academy, even receiving an offer of adoption from the noble Kuchiki clan. Yet their home was a cold place. She never received any comfort there.

Denied warmth all her life, perhaps it’s no surprise she died freezing an enemy and herself with her own Bankai. In a bitter irony the false heat of hypothermia was the closest she’d ever felt to a tender touch.

Orihime

One would never imagine this bubbly girl came from the union of an abusive drunk and a prostitute. Because when she was only three her elder brother saved her from that horrible home. He raised her on his lonesome, and the two shared nine happy years together.

Until one day a drunk driver killed him, stealing the one person Orihime could call family. A tragedy that was amplified when he rose as a mad spirit years later and attempted to devour her.

Though she was saved, such a betrayal from the one she loved so much left a mark. Even though she was surrounded by caring friends, even upon her death against a false god, Orihime still thought about what life could’ve been if she’d been able to support her brother as he supported her.

Retsu Unohana

Squad four’s captain was not always the tender woman she eventually became. Madwoman, butcher, and far worse things were once accurate descriptions of her. A monster that cared for nothing more than the next body split upon her blade.

It was only her near death upon a child’s blade that she was finally able to pull back and realize there was so much more to life than dealing out death. In a stunning transformation she became a healer beloved by all. A state she stayed in for so long that few could remember her grim past.

Yet despite her new love for the lives of others that thirst for blood never truly faded. Goaded by the grown form of the child who’d changed her, Retsu slipped back into her old self. When he ascended to his limit and struck her down she did not seal the wound. Instead this old woman allowed herself to fall with a smile, content that she was able to nurture one last soul with her own death.

Tier Harribel

The endless sands of Hueco Mundo taught harsh lessons about power and solitude. As a Vasto Lorde, Harribel gathered three loyal followers - not servants, but sisters in all but blood. Their shared hunts beneath the eternal crescent moon, the quiet moments in their hidden den, the way they'd huddle close during the freezing nights. These small rituals meant more than any Hollow's hunger for power.

But Aizen's promises proved as hollow as his heart. When the war reached its crescendo, she watched helplessly as her chosen family was cut down. Mila Rose's roars silenced. Apacci's wild laughter stilled. Sung-Sun's quiet wisdom lost to the void.

Something broke inside Harribel then –  a dam of emotion no Hollow should possess. Her blade, meant for defense, sought Aizen's throat with a fury that surprised even her. Yet in the end she fell like the others. Discarded by the man who'd promised them all a place to belong.

Ichigo Kurasaki

First protector. Ichigo had clung to that role like a lifeline ever since she watched her mother die. She did everything she could to shelter her little sisters. Under her care they lived a truly charmed life, at least until a Hollow struck their home.

Through Rukia’s intervention Ichigo was able to avenge her sisters, but it was too late to save the girls. In the agonizing aftermath she sought to bury her pain by protecting every soul she possibly could, yet those wounds never truly healed.

All those efforts to save others eventually led her to fall against the Quincy king himself, though not without leaving him with a fatal blow in exchange. Even as she died saving all of reality, the girl never forgave herself for failing her family.

Rangiku Matsumoto

When she was barely even a girl Rangiku had a chunk of her soul torn out for a madman’s whim. He then left her to starve in the Rukongai, only for the girl to survive. She clawed her way out of the gutter and rose to the rank of lieutenant. A privileged position by any standards, yet she was never able to escape the hollow feeling in her heart.

She masked her pain well. For though she was known by all within the Seireitei none were truly close to the wily woman. However much she’d flirt and tease she never let anyone draw near, fearful of anyone harming her as her half-remembered tormentor once did.

It was only when she finally fell in the line of duty that Rangiku realized the joy she’d denied herself out of quiet terror. Perhaps in another life she’d be born with her soul made whole, and this time would find someone she could share it with.

Fate/Type Moon

Artoria Pendragon (Saber)

Raised not as a daughter but as Britain's perfect king, Artoria was denied even the most basic familial warmth. Her father Uther saw her only as an heir, while her foster father Sir Ector trained a knight rather than nurtured a child. Merlin's machinations ensured even the peace of sleep was not granted to her.

In both dreams and reality Artoria's humanity was stolen piece by piece until the girl who craved a family's love was buried beneath the weight of a crown.

When her kingdom crumbled amidst betrayal and rebellion, Artoria died as a human rather than a king — wishing for the things that had always been denied to her.

Rin Tohsaka

From the moment her father passed and her mother withdrew into madness, young Rin was forced to bear the crushing weight of the Tohsaka legacy alone. Her sister Sakura had been given away, leaving an aching void that magic couldn't fill. The cold halls of the Tohsaka mansion echoed with emptiness as she mastered her magecraft and maintained a perfect facade, all while desperately craving the bonds of family that had been stripped from her.

Her isolation only deepened when she discovered her guardian Kirei had been manipulating her life from the shadows. In her final moments during the Fifth Holy Grail War, betrayed and dying from a curse, her last thoughts weren't of magecraft or duty - but of the sister she'd abandoned and the family she never truly had.

Illyasviel von Einzbern

Created as a vessel for the Holy Grail, Illya's childhood was nothing but cruel preparation for sacrifice. After Kiritsugu failed to return, the Einzberns twisted her memories, making her believe her father had abandoned her.

Endless painful experiments filled her days as they molded her into their perfect tool. Her only comfort came from memories of her mother's warmth and father's smile — memories that grew hazier with each passing year. When her shortened lifespan finally caught up to her, she died alone in the snow, still yearning for the tender love that was stolen from her.

Sakura Matou

What is family for a mage? For Sakura it was an abusive elder and brother who saw her as their property instead of a person. It was a wretched existence, but even as worms were shoved beneath her skin the girl was able to find slivers of joy at school with her friends.

Then the Grail War came. It brought nightmare after nightmare, culminating in her brother’s final attempt to rape her. That moment convinced her to surrender to her darker impulses, going mad with the power of the Corrupted Grail.

She only returned to her senses when Rin’s blade pierced her heart. Thus did the last Matou fall, wishing she’d known the tender warmth she’d seen so many others share.

Shirou Emiya

The flames took everything. Her name, her past, her humanity. When Kiritsugu pulled her from the ashes, it sparked something in the hollow girl’s chest. She saw the joy her new father felt from saving even a single soul, and thus swore she would save everyone. Yet for a time Shirou found purpose in simply fixing things–broken appliances, broken furniture, discarded lives.

The Holy Grail War twisted those ideals like a knife. Archer’s cruel smile in a face too similar. Sakura’s darkness threatening to consume the world. She fought anyway, watching her ideals crack like her manifested swords one battle and sacrifice at a time.

As disaster loomed, Shirou knew that only a true hero could sacrifice themselves to cleanse the corrupted Grail, not a fake like her. However... there's no rule that says a fake can't surpass the original.

Medusa

There were once three sacred sisters, brought into existence by mortal wishes for perfect goddesses. Alas, Medusa herself was born flawed. Where her siblings were eternal she would slowly age. That flaw brought great power, but power could not stop the godly curse that drove her to flee to a distant island.

Both sisters followed her, uncaring of the countless mortals who came and died attempting to slay Medusa. Yet despite their support the curse continued to erode at her mind. Until eventually Medusa could no longer tell the difference between her sisters and the human irritants she butchered by the score.

Only when faced with her reflection was the Gorgon able to remember who she used to be. Memories that caused her to purposefully reduce herself into a form brave Perseus could kill. Though her sisters were beyond saving, Medusa was at the very least able to die as her true self.

Jeanne D’Arc

Once an ordinary village girl, Jeanne threw away everything to pursue the visions that touched her mind. Through zeal and strategy beyond what any expected from an uneducated peasant she liberated her nation from those who would abuse it.

Though others mocked her as a woman and commoner Jeanne did not relent. For she knew down to her very soul that her actions would leave the world a far kinder place than she found it. If that meant sacrificing the comfort of her home and kinfolk? It was a painful sacrifice, but she would make it.

Visions warned Jeanne of what would happen if she fought that last battle. She stepped forth regardless, shielding the common folk with actions with full knowledge of the pyre that awaited her. Before flames and smoke could steal her voice, the saintess spoke one final prayer, “O Lord, deliver me where You see fit.”

Jeanne Alter

A living lie born from the madness of Gilles de Rais, Jalter was filled with bitterness at the moment of her very birth. Against god, humanity, and even her original self. She sought nothing more than total destruction. To bury all she so despised beneath a tide of dragonfire.

Alas, Jalter was denied the full extent of her vengeance even within the limited confines of Orleans’ Singularity. Chaldea’s finest thwarted her at almost every turn, until eventually she was brought to her knees before the true Jeanne.

With a sad look upon her face the original asked if Jalter could even remember their home. With foul venom Jalter spat that no, she hadn’t the privilege of being created with memories of a family that Jeanne had abandoned. The alter perished from her wounds a moment later. Still consumed with bitterness that she’d been denied the warmth her original had so easily cast aside.

Mash Kyrielight

Eighteen years. From the beginning she’d known that was the absolute limit of how long her body would last. The scientists called it a ‘design limitation,’ discussing it over coffee as if she were just another faulty appliance. The sterile halls of Chaldea were her entire world, each day marked by tests, observations, and the quiet acceptance of her predetermined fate.

Then came the explosions. The frost. The end of everything she'd known. And somehow, in that catastrophe, Mash found herself truly alive for the first time–a not so secret part of her thankful for the disaster.

Each mission with her Master showed her new wonders. The taste of real food, the warmth of genuine laughter, how her Master’s hand felt when helping her up after a fall… and the exhilaration of choice.

Perhaps that’s why when Goetia prepared its all consuming attack, she moved without hesitation.

Tamamo-no-Mae

Amaterasu’s divinity given shape, Tamamo sought to live among the creatures who had so fascinated her originator. Humanity. Those bizarre and brilliant things with so much love and hate in their hearts.

Tamamo felt their love first. Treasured as a gem of the imperial court and favorite of the emperor. Few in all Japan could’ve claimed to feel more affection than the young fox. Alas, such blissful times could not last.

When the emperor’s health began to fail from mundane means she was blamed, and so became a victim of humanity’s bottomless hatred. Weeping bitter tears at their betrayal she tore those sent to kill her apart. But she remained a mere fraction of divinity, and so she was buried beneath their onslaught. Wishing desperately for a world where the love she offered freely was returned.

Mordred

Born of Morgan’s dark magic and Artoria’s essence, Mordred was made as a weapon against Camelot’s king. Despite that however she admired the woman who led such a brilliant nation. Aspiring to earn a place at the Round Table and the love of her father.

Though successful in the former, it seemed nobody could achieve the latter. A fact Morgan had counted on, twisting Mordred’s admiration into hate for her neglect. Hate that blossomed into rebellion.

War tore Camelot asunder with Mordred at the helm, until by the time of the final battle there was nothing for anyone to rule. As Excalibur pierced her Mordred looked up at the king she’d engaged in a mutual murder. Hoping to see even a hint of love or hate.

She was not granted even that. Artoria watched Mordred’s death with the same apathetic expression she always wore. Uncaring of the girl who had tried and failed to earn her acceptance so many times.

Medea

Twisted by Aphrodite to love a man she knew only by name, the witch of Colchis threw away her entire life to aid Jason and his Argonauts. Foul magics, treachery, even carving her own brother to pieces. Nothing was beyond her if it earned her Jason’s affection.

Aphrodite inflicted no such curse upon Jason, however. The man swiftly grew disgusted by the witch’s abhorrent methods even as they earned him a crown. When another king offered his daughter’s hand in marriage Jason eagerly seized the opportunity to wed a far more palatable lady, ignoring his prior engagement.

They say Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, and Medea provided a clear example of this. Her own children, apples of Jason’s eye, she murdered to spite him. All in attendance for his royal wedding were reduced to charred meat by her witchcraft save Jason. Who she left to be crushed beneath the weight of his misery.

What became of her past that none know. Only that she vanished from the pages of  history. Exhausted of endless betrayals and living as a tool of others.

Naruto

Naruko Uzumaki

Few souls ever bothered to give this orphan the time of day. The Hokage gave her a stipend and little else, leaving little Naruko to stare from the other end of the playground as happy families gathered. Though she found a semblance of belonging with Team 7, she never stopped wondering what it would’ve been like to be born with a family.

Years later, after countless battles, Naruko found herself the only able to stand against her former friend as Satsuki threatened the whole world. The two clashed as they had so many times before. Yet at the last moment Naruko hesitated to strike her final blow while Satsuki did not. The last thing she saw was the other girl’s face twisted into horror at what she had done, then everything went dark.

Satsuki Uchiha

Last of the Uchiha, Satsuki grew up filled with hate for her murderous brother. Each day was dedicated to becoming a stronger shinobi so she might one day slay the kin-killer. A goal she ultimately managed to achieve. Yet even after learning the truth of why he’d done it, she could never forgive Itachi for being such a failure of an older brother.

Following the Fourth Shinobi War she attempted to prevent any similar suffering by reshaping the very world. An act that forced Naruto, her oldest friend, to stand against her. It was only when Satsuki stood triumphant, the other girl’s broken body beneath her, that she realized no dream was worth Naruko’s life. Filled with agony that she had killed the closest thing she’d ever had to a sister Satsuki flung herself down from the Valley Of The End, praying she’d be reunited beside the blonde in another life.

Hinata Hyuuga

Though ever stoic to outsiders, behind closed doors the Hyuuga elders are cruel indeed. The nightmare of the Caged Bird Seal alone would make them monsters, and the abuse inflicted upon their heiress only added to their crimes.

Even so, Hinata clung to hope. Hope that one day she could surpass her timid nature to reform her clan into something her cousin Neji could be proud of. People who could truly trust each other. That dream was perhaps even more unrealistic than her idol Naruko’s ambition for the Hokage’s hat, but a dream she strove for nonetheless.

She would never see it realized. For upon an otherwise routine mission assassins struck to claim her precious eyes! Though she brought them low the wounds she suffered in turn were fatal, and so the heiress fell. Filled with regret that she had failed to save her family.

Tsunade Senju

Widely regarded as the greatest kunoichi to ever live, none could claim to surpass this woman’s medical brilliance. Yet not even she could not cure death. When war away stole almost everyone she knew her spirit faltered, and she abandoned the path of shinobi.

For years she wandered as a drunken gambler. Staying one step ahead of her creditors with only her loyal apprentice for company. No matter how low she sunk, Shizune refused to abandon her.

Then Orochimaru came, offering to restore her lost loves through forbidden jutsu in exchange for healing. An offer she refused. The two Sannin clashed a final time and Tsunade fell, longing for a world where she hadn’t failed everyone she’d ever loved.

Haku

Hide it, her mother whispered, moments after her father saw the water dance between her small fingers. But it was too late. The man returned with others reeking of sake and fear, armed with whatever farming instrument they could grab. It was her mother's dying scream as they cut her down that awakened something in Haku and frozen spears pierced through wood, cloth, and flesh without discrimination.

Zabuza found her days later, half-starved and wary. He saw use in her abilities, in her desperate need to belong. She became his blade, his shield, his perfect tool. If sometimes his rough hand lingered too long on her head, if his praise made her chest tight with something beyond loyalty – well, tools didn't question their masters.

The years taught her to be whatever was needed. Weapon. Servant. Daughter. The lines blurred like Kiri's endless mist. Even as she grew into a beauty that turned heads, she remained his faithful shadow. Her ice mirrors reflected everything except the truth she couldn't face: tools were meant to be discarded.

Naruto's warmth almost thawed her resolve. Almost. But in the end, she chose to be the shield one last time. Her ice shattered along with her body, protecting the only person who had ever claimed her as their own.

Anko

Orochimaru made each step feel natural. Private lessons became secret training, praise became lingering touches, until the Cursed Mark felt like the next logical gift. Anko accepted eagerly, proud to help gather other subjects for what she believed would be greatness.

The sealed chamber changed everything. Ten subjects, from seasoned shinobi to street urchins. Her pride turned to ash as the marks burned into their flesh. The shinobi's trained chakra control just meant they suffered longer. The civilians' screams cut shorter, mercifully. Each death fed the growing horror that she'd helped bring this about.

He kept her alive to watch them die before she was marked herself. Kept her aware to feel every moment. 'This pain will make you stronger,' he whispered as the last one stopped breathing. The Cursed Mark burned with promised power, but using it meant accepting her role in their deaths. The village saw only Orochimaru's cast-off, while she carried the weight of nine lives.

Years later in her Forest of Death, she recognized that familiar hunger in his eyes as he watched the Uchiha boy. She hadn’t been his first choice or his last–just another broken toy left in his wake.

Her serpents struck true, but against a Sannin, determination alone wasn't enough.

Gaara

Fear and hate. Those were the only constants of Gaara’s early life. Her own father despised her to the point of sending deniable killers after her head. Only for her to crush them in coffins of sand each time, their attacks deflected by an automatic barrier.

Then Naruko broke through her sand and psychotic urges in one fell swoop. Inadvertently reforming Gaara into a woman who strove to do better. A woman who would lead her village out of the bleak place they’d been in.

Yet despite Gaara’s efforts none could forget the monster she used to be. Even her own siblings would tremble when she raised her hand, and the sweet soul who’d changed her was always far away. Thus the queen of the desert reigned alone.

She fell in defense of those who feared her. Blown to pieces by a mad bomber who forced her to discard her defense to shield the village. Gaara knew in her heart that only one soul might mourn her, all others would merely breathe a sigh of relief at her death.

Orochimaru

Each of the Sanin were shaped by war. Yet where Tsunade despaired and Jiraiya blindly chased prophecy, Orochimaru was consumed with ambition. Lust for power, knowledge, transcendence, anything to be more than another bag of rotting meat doomed to die amidst the endless wars of shinobi.

Countless dead test subjects later she had become an inhuman creature. One with no more care for her victims than a common man cares for the bread they eat. Only it was never enough. Still there remained greater monsters who could threaten her, and so she persisted in her madness.

She got away with it all too. Cheating death so thoroughly that Indra and Asura’s inheritors never bothered trying to finish her. As a method of entertainment she began to produce partial clones of herself and sent them out into the world, expecting some minor amusement from the things before they died.

Instead the serpent found herself captivated by those clones. Long suppressed maternal instincts rising to the forefront. For the first time in decades she thought back to her slain parents, wondering what life could’ve been if she’d embraced the love her hapless children found so easily.

Kushina

Anyone who expected the final child of the Uzumaki to be a dour girl was always shocked to meet Kushina. With a temper fiery as her hair this young woman refused to be the demure wallflower so many insisted kunoichi should be.

That burning spirit dimmed when Kushina was chosen as the Kyuubi's next vessel. But she refused to show weakness to those who dismissed her as a foreigner. Only in the tender care of her last living relative, the current host, did Kushina allow herself to weep over her life sentence as warden and prisoner both.

When Kushina’s final family member died passing the fox onto her, she briefly considered releasing it upon Kohona knowing full well the devastation it would unleash. Any act to prove her destiny was her own instead of something to be decreed by those around her. Only her mentor’s last words, a flickering ember of hope, stayed her hand: “The Kyuubi’s hate can be conquered with love.”

It was a hope unmoored from reality. None could see the foreign born demon container as a person, much less someone worthy of love. Despite her best efforts Kushina would live, and die, as a tool wielded in the schemes of others.  

Konan

Three war orphans with incredible potential trained by the Toad Sage himself. One of them bearing the legendary Rinnegan. In all the world, they thought, there could surely be no other force more ready and willing to bring a semblance of peace to the Elemental Nations.

That idealism was torn apart amidst the 3rd shinobi war. People Konan had known and loved were torn apart like scraps of paper, forcing her and Nagato’s Akatsuki to descend to darker depths to combat them. Until eventually they were no better than the Hidden Villages they’d formed to oppose.

Only on the edge of genocide was she brought back to sanity by the last disciple of the Toad Sage. By then though it was too late. Nagato died to atone for his sins and she was left with nobody. When Obito came to draw the location of Nagato’s corpse from her, Konan had nothing to offer him but bombs. Bombs, and the bitter satisfaction that she’d destroyed her oldest friend’s eyes before that madman could claim them.

Slice of Life

Kitagawa Marin

Marin's life revolved around two passions: cosplay and dating sims. Not the safe, sanitized ones either. She devoured the spicier titles with the same enthusiasm she brought to everything else, defending them on forums when people called them gross. After all, she'd argue, they were about love transcending society's rules.

Living alone meant no one judged her collection growing more… specific. No one questioned why the same themes kept appearing in her favorite games. And if she started seeing Gojou-kun differently after hundreds of hours clicking through forbidden romance routes? Well, that was just life imitating art.

Their relationship evolved naturally – from strangers to friends to something more intimate. His traditional family wasn't thrilled about the gyaru corrupting their precious son, but Marin had learned from her games that sometimes the best endings required breaking a few taboos.

The truck came out of nowhere during a late-night eroge run to her favorite shop. Her brand new limited edition copy of "Sister Paradise 3" scattered across the pavement, its pages mixing with broken glass and rain.

Komi

Communication. A facet of everyday life that came so naturally to everyone. Everyone, it seemed, but Komi. The girl so terrified of talking she could barely bring herself to utter a word even when she so desperately wanted to.

Instead of risking rejection she drowned herself in fantasy. Filling her sketchbook with lurid stories and sketches of people around her. Classmates, teachers, even her own brother. Anyone she could imagine soothing the isolation she’d trapped herself in.

It was a problem. She knew that, yet without anyone eager to take the first step Komi remained paralyzed with indecision. This poor girl never realized that the rest of the world saw her frigid exterior and thought her to be an unapproachable ice queen.

The electric car struck silently – just like everything else in her life. A quiet step too close to the street, lost in thoughts she would never voice.

Yor Briar

Killing was only ever a means to an end for the Thorn Princess. She began her bloody work to provide for her precious brother, using her superhuman strength and speed to earn whatever he’d need to pull them out of poverty.

Then he moved out, and Yor continued mostly because she’d never learned another profession. It was good work. Work she excelled in. Yet despite such a successful career Yor couldn’t but feel her life was empty without someone who needed her.

She’d never find that special someone. When bombs fell on Ostania she turned her prowess towards saving lives instead of ending them. Yet in her rush to protect others, this legendary assassin had nobody to do the same for her.

Rachnera Arachnera

Life as a drider among humans is harsh indeed. Few places are built with such large bodies in mind, but far worse than that are the stares. The whispers of disgust and pointed fingers whenever she went outside.

For a time Rachnera found some comfort within a young man’s home. She forged fine bonds with the other monster-girls who lived alongside him and took great joy in teasing the boy. All of which came to an end when he chose to marry the lamia, kindly requesting the other girls find new accommodations.

Once again Rachnera was out on her own. Yet this time she held no hope of repeating such a fine experience. She was proven correct less than a month later, caught out of position by armed anti-monster-girl militants. The spider claimed a grim toll from her assailants, but ultimately died exactly as she’d always feared she would: Alone.

Ruri Gokou

While other girls gossiped about idols and crushes, Ruri perfected curry recipes for Tamaki and helped Hinata with homework. And when their parents' work kept them away for days, they would watch anime or she'd craft elaborate stories for them, turning their small home into a realm where absence meant adventure rather than abandonment. The Queen of Nightmares wasn't just her Maschera cosplay, it was armor. After tucking in her sisters, she'd lose herself in episodes of demon contracts and forbidden abilities. Meeting the Kousaka siblings changed everything. Kirino burned with a passion that matched her own and Kyousuke… he saw past both her masks. She watched their stolen glances, encouraged their hidden feelings, and dreamed of a story where three hearts could beat as one. But some roles remain uncast. That day, Ruri learned that some stories are better left in the pages of light novels. A manga store's grand opening drew crowds of fellow otaku. A limited edition Maschera volume caught her eye across the street. Later, witnesses would describe the truck driver checking his phone. As the world tilted sideways, Ruri's last coherent thought was pure contempt –  of all the ways to die, she had to get the most overused isekai cliché in the book.

Yukino Yukinoshita

The Yukinoshita estate's walls kept the world at bay, each room a carefully arranged display of perfection. Yukino found refuge in literature and flawless grades, building her own fortress within those gilded halls. Her sister's shadow stretched long across polished floors, while their mother's smile carried steel beneath silk.

Her sister's visits brought chaos to her ordered world. Haruno's casual dominance, her knowing smiles that saw too much, drove Yukino to longer hours in the Service Club room. There, between Yuigahama's clumsy affection and Hikigaya's cynicism, she discovered questions without clear answers. Problems that couldn't be solved by excellence alone. The warmth of their presence both soothed and scalded.

When the family's political alliance demanded a sacrifice, Yukino faced it with characteristic grace. Her mother's plans brooked no argument, and Haruno's path was never meant for her. The night before her engagement, she stood in the club room one last time, fingers tracing the table's edge. A truck's brakes failed on her way home, and her last thought was of afternoon sun through windows, of voices that had almost reached her heart.

Kaguya Shinomiya

Heiress of the largest business conglomerate in Japan, if lady Kaguya wanted something it was hers not long after. The finest meals, clothes, cars, servants, nothing was beyond her. Nothing, but the attention of her ever distant parents.

In contrast with the stifling cold and frigid manners of her home, the warmth her student council president shared freely was all but scalding. Yet like a moth, that heat captivated her as nothing else ever had.

Sweet Shirogane had no idea of the obsession he’d inspired. How her wealth was turned to means of surveillance so she could catalog his every living moment. By the time he finally discovered what was happening she knew him better than anyone else could ever hope to.

Yet her fixation had created a blind spot: The idea of just how horrified Shirogane would be by her observations had slipped her mind. Kaguya was left on the school rooftop alone, utterly rejected. In a fit of mania she chose to seek a more worthy partner in her next life, leaving nothing upon the rooftop but her abandoned shoes.

Sumireko Ogawa

Before her life fell apart Sumireko was an award winning writer at only 15 years old. Yet she couldn’t be a child prodigy forever, and publishers grew dismissive of her work as she aged. Sumireko became a nearly 30 year old virgin, with no assets other than big tits and a juicy ass. Small comforts to a woman who’d failed to live out her dream.

Then came the cursed book that restored her youth. It nearly killed her, but exposure to the occult gave her such thrill and inspiration that she couldn’t help but go chasing after more legends. Anything to spark her muse and fulfill the passion she’d long thought lost.

But the dangers of occult activity are endless, especially those actively seeking them. One day Sumireko didn’t check into work, and despite all searches by friends, family, and police, no trace of her was ever found.

Hitagi Senjougahara

Hitagi was a frail child in fifth grade when the doctors gave her less than ten percent chance of survival. While she fought through surgeries and treatments, her mother sought salvation in a cult's promises. Their mansion and comfortable life dissolved into a small, drafty house as the cult drained their savings, but Hitagi survived despite the odds.

The attempted assault in the cult's 'spiritual consultations' left her with a bloodied spiked shoe and questions that gnawed at her: why had her mother chosen the attacker? Should she have submitted to save what remained of their family? Her father buried himself in his company work, leaving only convenience store meals in their creaking house. The weight of her mother's betrayal, the loss of their home, the guilt. It all became too much to bear.

Then she met the crab and made her choice. Like a shell closing around tender flesh, she sealed away the weight of her trauma. But the god's price was steep and now she had to hide her almost weightless body alongside everything else. So she armed herself with box cutters and razor-sharp words, keeping everyone at a distance while maintaining perfect grades.

The second being that found her during one of her late-night vigils – watching stars from their small garden – wasn't offering trades or choices. As darkness consumed her weightless form, she wondered if somewhere in that vast sky existed a place where she wouldn't need to hide anymore, where the burden of feeling everything wouldn't crush her back down to earth.

Akashiya Moka

In the Shuzen estate, love wore strange masks. Kokoa's relentless challenges, Kahlua's misshapen gifts, Akua's secretive smiles. Young Moka treasured these imperfect moments, even as whispers of ancient blood and sleeping monsters echoed through the mansion's depths. Her mother's warm eyes turned distant the day Akua showed her what lurked below, and the rosary's weight became her new reality. A daughter's sacrifice to match a mother's own.

Each emergence felt like drowning in reverse, breaking through the seal's surface into moments of desperate clarity. Her other self made friends, laughed, lived –  a gentler shadow wearing her face. But in those brief instances of freedom, fighting became her only truth: pure, violent, real. During those in-between moments, not even the seal could quite muffle the memories of that day.

When the rosary broke in the battle with Alucard, she faced her final choice. Accept the artificial personality as part of herself, or remain true to who she really was. She chose dignity in death over life as a compromise. Her power flared one last time, not in attack, but in self-destruction.

Avatar The Last Airbender

Azula

Dismissed as a monster by her own mother, Azula chose to follow her wicked father’s footsteps instead. She strove to become his perfect daughter in every aspect, that he might one day acknowledge her as worthy of being his heir.

Yet when Ozai finally granted her that vaunted position it rang hollow. Her attendants had betrayed her, father left her behind for his conquest, and Azula was struck with the maddening realization that nobody had ever truly loved her.

Amidst that frenzy she failed to uphold even a fraction of her usual perfection. Thus did the Fire Lady burn down her own palace from the inside. Weeping and snarling with hate for the world and all who’d abandoned her.

Korra

Recognized as the Avatar when she was just a girl, Korra was raised in the suffocating confines of the White Lotus compound. Brought up by stuffy old men who could never understand why their young charge was so rebellious.

Once she finally grew old enough to set out on her own Korra was overwhelmed by the sights and sounds of Republic City. Worse, a lifetime with only monkish sorts for company left her ill prepared to socialize and forge friendships from scratch. Thus was this Avatar made into a solitary sort despite her many efforts to change that.

As such, when those who despised the position of Avatar began to hunt her Korra had only herself and her pet Naga to rely upon. Yet even an Avatar can not stand against such conspiracies alone, and thus this fiery girl’s spirit was extinguished.

Toph Beifong

Noble heiress she may have been, the blind Beifong held no interest in being coddled. Yet her parents failed to understand this even when they saw what their daughter was truly capable of first hand.

It boiled her blood to be so dismissed. So she left, seeking to prove herself to the world, her father, and herself. Toph crushed champions of fighting pits across the Earth kingdom, turned the tide of vicious battles against the Fire nation. Yet neither parents sent as much as a letter.

Eventually curiosity got the better of her, and Toph returned to see what had become of them. She was not greeted with scorn or open arms, but a city set ablaze by invaders. Despite her grudge Toph rushed forward to save her kin, yet even the greatest earthbender to ever live was no match for an army on her own.

Ty Lee

Being your own person is all but impossible with six identical sisters. So little Ty Lee fled to the circus and became someone strange, but basked in that strangers like she was born to it. At least until she was conscripted into Azula’s retinue.

She was made to turn techniques she’d developed for pleasure and self defense towards murder. Each twitching corpse caused her to question what her sisters and circus mates would think of who she’d become.

In the end Ty Lee chose to fight the one who’d made her abandon her chosen family. A choice that saw her scorched into ashes on the breeze by Azula’s brilliant blue fires.

Cyberpunk

Lucy

Raised in the old halls of an Arasaka facility, Lucy once believed she and her training partners were destined for greatness. That was before they were forced beyond the Blackwall. Before she escaped that hell where everyone else she knew did not.

Years later and an entire ocean away from her tormentors, Lucy found a crew to run with. She never forgot the first lesson they taught though: Don’t trust anyone in Night City. A cold way to live, but safe.

At least it was, until Arasaka caught up with her. Forced to choose between returning to a life of tortuous experiments or death on her own terms Lucy chose the latter. In the moments before she flatlined the girl wondered what it would’ve been like to have someone she could have relied on, then her world faded into darkness.

Rebecca

A consummate Night City native, Becca was never bothered by the horrors of her home. Yeah, death and worse fates were around every corner. So what? She had big guns, a bastard brother, and a killer crew. What more could a girl ask for?

After a few emotionally empty one night stands though, Rebecca realized she wanted more. Not just an input to her output or an asshole that happened to share her blood. Somebody who could complete her in ways advertisements always claimed they could.

She never found that person. Like so many other mercs she met her end at the barrel of a gun. It was messy, violent, and she took a damned lot of gangoons down with her, but in the end she didn't even make it to 25.

V

Nobody truly expects to die of old age in Night City. When V got her terminal case of Jackie Silverhand though she had to confront her mortality fast. In only a handful of months she rose to become the greatest merc alive and made more close friends than she’d ever had before.

Then she learned that the only cure for her condition would require an assault on Arasaka Tower itself. A suicide mission with only a chance of her own survival as the reward, she could never ask her precious people to storm the gate of hell itself alongside her.

So V marched right into the tower on her lonesome, tearing through corporate goons like a figure of myth. Adam Smasher gave as good as he got though. Night City’s latest legend bled out only meters away from her salvation, regretting she’d not been able to spend more time with the people she’d grown to cherish.

Gloria

Life in Night City is hard, and being a single mother makes it even harder. That didn’t stop Gloria though. Unlike some deadbeats in this city she cherished her boy like nothing else, and that love gave her strength.

Love gave her the bravery to steal and sell black market cyberware from corpses to fund David’s education. It gave her the energy to treat her baby boy with tender care no matter how draining her work became.

In a just world her efforts would’ve been rewarded, but Night City isn’t part of any such world. Instead she was collateral in a gang war. Left bleeding out on the concrete as she tried and failed to call her son one last time.

General Games

Zelda

Ever in love with the sciences, this bright young princess was adored by her royal parents. An idyllic life that ended with the death of her mother, and the hardening of her father’s heart in the face of calamitous prophecy.

From then on any attempt to pursue her true passion was met with harsh words from her father and demands she pray more. That she might unlock the holy power which could save them all. Despite all her pleas though he never indulged her search for alternative methods of salvation, forming a bitter rift between them.

So she worked in secret. Colluding with Sheikah loyal to her so they could continue to research and enhance ancient technology. The progress she made was great indeed. Perhaps enough to halt the Calamity, had a Yiga assassin not opened her throat.

Samus Aran

After her birth parents were slaughtered by space pirates, young Samus was taken in by the last members of the mythical Choso species. For all their advanced technology however the birdlike aliens could not truly understand their charge, leaving the girl feeling terribly out of place.

Even when she finally grew enough to strike out from the Chozo, her alien upbringing left its mark. Samus found other humans too different from herself to connect with, yet neither could she fit in among those who’d raised her.

Even so, she risked her life time after time for the sake of others. Hoping those deeds would fill the hole in her heart. One of those risks was too much, however, and this legendary bounty hunter perished alongside the mad Choso who dared to call himself her father.

Aerith

The slums of Midgar wore their grime like a crown, but Aerith answered with flowers and practiced smiles. She'd perfected the art of gentle deflection – a wink here, a teasing comment there – keeping everyone at arm's length while making them feel like they were the closest person in her world.

The church became her sanctuary, where she tended stubborn blooms between dodging Turk surveillance. Children's laughter carried through broken windows, and sometimes she'd close her eyes, imagining different choices, different paths. The planet's whispers grew louder each year, drowning out her simple dreams. Elmyra's love, though genuine, couldn't fill that growing void.

When Zack disappeared, taking with him promises of something real, she buried those wishes deeper than her flowers' roots.

In the end the blade's kiss was quick, clean. No time for final prayers or profound revelations. Just the cold bite of steel and the gentle ripple of sacred waters as her body sank into their depths.

Tifa Lockhart

In another life Tifa could’ve been a wiley small town girl. That would’ve been another life without the megacorp known as Shinra, and the nightmare they delivered to her home. A life where she’d not lost everything she ever knew to corporate greed.

Little wonder that she joined the eco-terrorist known as AVALANCHE. What surprised many was her sheer effectiveness. Tifa led her cell with terrifying prowess, bombing Shinra factories and slaughtering corporate goons in droves. Even several high level executives were broken beneath her fists.

For all her ability however, Shinra’s might stretched across the entire world. No matter what she did, the global juggernaut couldn’t be stopped. Eventually they would find and kill her like so many other failed rebels. Yet instead of allowing the company to capture her, Tifa chose to deny Shinra shareholders one last asset with the squeeze of a detonator.

Ranni

Daughter of Queen Rennala and Radagon, she was born an Empyrean, destined to replace Queen Marika as a god. Something broke in young Ranni’s heart when her father abandoned them in favor of Queen Marika. She could but watch as her mother retreated into madness, clutching that amber egg and rebirthing twisted failures.

The Night of Black Knives was meant to free her from the control of the Two Fingers, but she hadn’t expected such a steep price. Her body bound to a doll, her dearest servants Blaidd and Iji twisted by the Two Fingers’ influence and all of her siblings dead.

In the end, she waited for her executioner within her tower, having sacrificed everything – including her own flesh and family – for a plan that failed from the intervention of a single Tarnished.

Malenia

Undefeated, they whispered. The Blade of Miquella. Each victory earned through perfect strikes of her prosthetic arm echoed through the Haligtree's halls. Yet in private chambers, away from reverent eyes, it was his kind touch that brought moments of peace.

She'd carved her legend in blood and steel, but legends meant nothing when her brother whispered concerns of Radahn's wavering faith. The stars themselves bent to his will, yet he dared hesitate? Her prosthetic clicked rhythmically as she marched north, each step leaving crimson footprints in her wake. Better to bind him in death than risk everything they'd built.

The duel with Radahn stretched beneath Caelid's copper sky. Steel sang and scarlet bloomed, but it was the words she whispered in his ear that sealed their fate. Miquella awaits thee, O promised consort. The Scarlet Aeonia burst forth, her curse becoming her strength, her weakness becoming their doom.

She returned to an empty cocoon, the rot finally claiming what pride had preserved. It was in death’s clarity that she finally understood, she’d never been truly undefeated, Miquella had bested her long ago.

Mercy

Angela Zeigler lost both parents in the omnic crisis. Instead of despair, however, she dedicated herself to preventing similar tragedies. With funding from Overwatch her nanobiotics would save countless lives across the world.

Though... There were times she had to do some less than pleasant research to maintain support for her life-saving work. Some reluctant partnerships with Moira in particular left Angela sick to her stomach. Even so, when Overwatch crumbled she could not bear to watch another family fall apart.

Still she tried to aid others. Bringing critical aid to warzones and acting as a champion of peace. It was then that Talon's warmongers clipped this angel's wings with a bullet to the skull.

2B

Androids are made in the image of humanity. Sworn to serve them no matter the cost. Yet humanity has been dead for millennia, and Executioners such as herself are needed to bury that truth.

Time after time 2B, or rather, 2E, was forced to kill the only soul she loved in the name of duty. Made to see his look of betrayal over and over, until the weight finally grew too heavy even for her alloyed frame to bear.

The next time 9S realized the nature of the world 2B did not kill him. Instead she turned her blade upon herself, choosing love over duty for the first and final time

Jinx

Once, in the depths of Piltover’s undercity, there was a little girl called Powder. Innovative and artistic but nervous and plagued with self-doubt. That girl died with her family. Replaced by the loyal daughter of a ruthless drug lord.

She became a terror to all. Wielding weapons of her own invention with explosive brilliance. All while cackling in madness. Yet those highs were accompanied by pitiful lows. Ones where she was plagued by visions and voices of the precious people her actions had ended.

Eventually, after losing her loved ones a fourth and final time, Jinx decided the only way to stop hurting those she cared about was to die. She drowned any trace of her existence in fire. When that was done she pulled the pin on one of her own grenades, and hugged it as tightly as she could.

Lara Croft

Archeology and adventure had always called to Lara. Though her parents had died in that very pursuit, leaving only their butler to raise her, she still craved to know more about the old world.

That craving led her to the Dragon’s Triangle. Where she learnt of the supernatural… and her own impossible prowess in the art of murder. Countless cultists fell at her hands, yet despite soaking herself in blood she could not save her friends from the cursed island, only avenge them.

Alone and unmoored, Lara threw herself into battle against those who abused other mystic relics. A calling that led this lethal lady to averting an apocalypse at the cost of her own life. Perhaps if she’d had someone to protect Lara could have survived such calamity, but by then there were none who cared for her. Not even herself.

Ashley Graves

This evil bi-*cough* Kin is unique. Ashley Graves has the dubious honor of becoming a murderer at the tender age of 5 by convincing her brother to 'teach a lesson' to a girl who showed interest in him – and it didn't really get better from there. Psychological abuse, serial murder, cannibalism; you could write entire books about her issues and crimes.

It all came to a head when she tried to use a demon summoning ritual to escape her shitty situation. When she offered her pitch black soul to said demon, not even such a being wanted it in its possession. After it threw her soul away like the disgusting thing it was, she traveled between words until she arrived here.

Automatically gets Codependence, Unhealthy Attraction and Bad Influence (you get the points for all of them). In turn, her previous fixation with her brother has gone to you. You don't need to roll another Complication for her. God knows you already have enough on your plate.

She does get 2 extra Perks for herself as a reward for this, but if I were you I wouldn't exactly celebrate that boon either.

Ciri

Cirilla Fiona Elen Riannon. Quite a mouthful, though such a name is to be expected from an emperor’s daughter and a child of Elder Blood. Despite her parentage though Ciri had a wild upbringing that included the tutelage of legendary witcher Geralt. A man she would come to view as her true father.

Which is why it came as such a shock when she learned of his death. Killed by vampires in the duchy of Toussaint. She arrived with Yennefer at her side and a murderous vengeance on her mind. That blinding hatred that forced Yen to use herself as a shield against vampiric assassins, costing Ciri her other true parent.

Adrift and alone, the last child of Elder Blood wept. Her revenge was complete, yet it had cost her everything. With no more earthly tethers she chose to abandon the world. Hoping that somewhere in the place between dimensions she would find a salve to seal the hole in her heart.

Chun Li

For M.Bison, the day he killed Chun Li’s father was little different from any other. Yet for her? It was the day she dedicated her life to justice and delivering it to the vile man who’d stolen her father’s life.

She traveled across the world as an agent of Interpol, thrashing any opponents with her martial prowess. Beneath her thunderous kicks and unwavering heart the shape of Shadloo was revealed to the world. Yet Interpol hesitated, calling for patience. Only to find Chun Li’s had long since run out.

That was the moment her so-called allies pulled their weapons on her, and Chun Li learned the hard way Shadloo had agents everywhere. Surrounded and betrayed, she died without a single wound on her front.

Juri Han

In another life, Juri would’ve been a talented and strange but harmless girl. Her father’s murder changed that, destroying her view of the world and throwing her into an endless pursuit of power.

By the time she was a grown woman Juri was unrecognizable. A lunatic who’d replaced her own eye and basked in the agony of others. Unsurprisingly, that madness pushed all but those who would seek to take advantage of her.

Her rivalry with Chun Li was the closest thing to genuine connection that she'd felt in years. When her favorite rival was backstabbed and broken, something snapped in Juri's already fractured mind. Her rampage through Interpol’s headquarters was a spectacle worthy of legend. It was also, ultimately, fatal.

Palutena

Before hate consumed her, Medusa was the closest thing Palutena had to family. Goddesses of light and darkness ruling in harmony over almost all the world. No other divine power able to contest their united front. Not until Medusa grew to hate the mortals under their care, forcing Palutena to curse and banish her fellow goddess.

In the ages that followed Palutena ruled alone. Attended by her angels as she watched over humanity. Despite her children’s best efforts, even Pit could not fill the hole Medusa left behind. Though she masked her emptiness quite well, in her darker moments the goddess of light briefly wondered if mortal lives were worth losing her sister.

It almost came as a relief when Medusa rose from the dead a second time, even with Hades pulling her strings. In the final clash against the Underworld’s old ruler both sisters were at last united again. Alas, they would fall against his endless infernal powers.

Tae Takemi

Prodigal doctor and medical marvel, one man’s envy was all it took to shoot down Takemi’s rising star, leaving her a pariah to her peers. Called the Plague by Tokyo’s doctors and shunned for medical malpractice she’d never committed.

In a back alley clinic Takemi still strove to do good, yet the dubious nature of such establishments led only the darker sorts to her door. Amidst such an environment she found herself leaning into her reputation. Becoming the dark doctor she’d so often been accused of being in pursuit of better medicines.

Then true Yakuza approached her, their tattoos earned with blood and slavery. They demanded she cure their boss on threat of death. A man who would no doubt go on to cause untold suffering. Alas, those men failed to understand who they were dealing with.

Cut off by her family, abandoned by her peers, and surrounded by criminals, Takemi saw nothing worth holding on for. So when the boss was placed upon her table she administered enough medicine to make it poison. Followed by a lethal dose for herself as furious thugs stormed the operating room.

Fire Emblem

Robin

There’s many poor fates for a young woman waking up in the middle of a field with no memory of her past. Yet Robin had the incredible fortune of being found by Prince Chrom himself and becoming the strategist of his Shepards. A fine position for an amnesiac who’s most prized possession was a Pelgian cloak.

That same cloak would bring her no end of trouble however. No matter how many battles were won through her flawless and brutal stratagems, others would whisper of her foreign origin. Even among the Shepherds there were only a handful she could claim to be her friends.

Then she learned the truth of her past, and that only her death could finally end the threat Grima posed. Chrom made her swear that she would allow him to land the final blow instead. That she should not be made to bear this responsibility alone. Yet Robin had seen what awaited if she evaded this sacrifice in the haunted faces of the Shepherds' future children. One woman without a family was a small price to pay for peace. So with a heavy heart she swore she would obey his order. Lying to her dearest friend for the first and last time.

Byleth

Though he hated to say it, Byleth’s stunted emotions worried her father. How she could kill without blinking even as a girl. She heard others whisper that the Blade Breaker’s daughter had no heart. Whispers that were closer to the truth than they would ever know.

Feelings did lurk beneath her frozen expression though. When she was made into a teacher at Garreg Mach, Byleth was filled with pride for her students. Each a special soul that blossomed to their utmost beneath her care. Despite only being a few years older she thought of them as her own children.

Which is why it cut her so deeply when they turned on each other, drowning Fodlan in blood and strife. No matter how many times Byleth rewound time she could only ever save a handful, never all of the precious people who’d called her their Teacher. Eventually she pushed even her divine power too far in those endless attempts to find a peaceful solution, and Byleth died at the hands of her students one last time.. 

Lucina

Daughter of the Exalt, Lucina once thought she would live the life of a spoiled princess. Only for the Fell Dragon to tear her home and family asunder. She was left with nothing but a brand in her eye, the weight of her dead father’s sword, and a mission to journey across an apocalypse to venture through time itself.

She succeeded, yet the past was not as she expected. For the changes of her arrival ensured her father would never quite become the man who sired her. Their attempts to bond always ended in disaster, and so Lucina vented her frustrations in reckless charges against their enemies. Much to her father’s concern.

That concern was proved justified atop Grima’s back. There the Fell Dragon tore out her still-beating heart with its avatar’s bare hands, casting her down. Lucina died before she hit the ground, her final moments spent staring up at the beast who’d stolen everything from her and wondering if the loss of all she’d loved was worth its death.

Tharja

Where other countries shun dark magic, Pelgia embraces it. Ill suited to the blazing sun of her home, Tharja found comfort in that darkness. Comfort that drove her to master the depravity of curses to a degree that terrified even her fellow dark mages.

For some time she assumed she’d die alone with her books, only to witness a brilliant black soul amidst the Shepherds. A soul darker than any other, it ensnared her so deeply that Tharja cast aside her old loyalties in an instant just to draw a closer to that darkness.

Robin welcomed the company, yet there remained a painful distance between them. The ever overworked tactician was never able to truly see her feelings, and Tharja too terrified to unveil the full extent of her obsession with the woman.

That fear held her back until she saw Robin make the ultimate sacrifice against Grima. Without the one woman who’d understood her alive, Tharja saw little value in her own life. Others thought her fall from the dragon’s back an accident, but those who knew her suspected it all too intentional. A dark mage driven to darker places, with none who could calm her aching soul

Edelgard

Those Who Slither In The Dark. A perfect title and description of the inhuman horrors who subjected Edelgard and her kin to such tortuous experiments. Though she gained great power from their cruelty, the Flame Emperor never forgot the agony her patrons had inflicted.

Her life was dedicated to their ruin. Them, and the Crest system which had been responsible for no small portion of her suffering. Edelgard knew full well the horror her ambitions would unleash, yet still considered it a worthy sacrifice.

The people of Garreg Mach were the only ones to make her hesitate. To consider that she had no right to damn the continent to the fires of war. With everything she’d ever been committed to the effort though Edelgard refused to see another way. Eventually perishing in the grand conflict her actions would unleash.

Rhea

More than any mortal, Rhea worshipped her mother. When humans killed that divine dragon in her slumber it drove Rhea into such a rage that she considered erasing the entire species. Her fury would cool into a far calmer form of anger, granting the cold calculations to plot the demise of all even remotely involved in the murder of Sothis.

But that wasn’t enough. For centuries upon centuries she ruled over humanity as a holy figure, controlling them through faith as she sought to revive her mother. If her teachings led them to war and suffering every now and then... Well, didn’t they deserve it for what their ancestors had done?

After countless experiments and bloody failures, she very nearly succeeded in that twisted resurrection. Alas, she never imagined that Sothis would refuse the second chance at life. Rhea died as a weeping mess of a dragon, tragically refusing to hear her surviving family’s attempts to calm her.

Hoyoverse

Belle

The younger half of Phaethon, Belle was content to stay in her big brother’s shadow for the most part. While he went out with agents and handled commissions she could manage the store, do a bit of investigation work with Fairy. Low stress stuff like that.

As Wise grew closer to some of the female agents though, Belle realized she wasn’t happy just being in his shadow anymore. The idea of the big brother who’d looked out for being with another girl... just the idea of it cut deeper than it had any right to. They’d been together from the start, why shouldn’ they be together in every other way?

Yet Belle never voiced that desire. Terrified of what could happen if he didn’t feel the same. She lost any chance to confess when armed mercenaries tracked Phaethon to Random Play. The legendary Proxy was riddled with bullet holes in her own bed while waiting for Wise to come home.

Lumine

Torn apart from her precious twin by an Unknown Goddess, Lumine landed in the Abyss itself. Yet death and madness were not her fate. Instead she came to rule that realm of darkness. Her power carried her atop the Abyssal Order, where she waged war against the very gods. Partly for their crimes against Teyvat, but mostly because one of their number had separated her from her precious brother.

For centuries she warred against the heavens. Gods and their followers were torn to pieces beneath her, vengeance driving Lumine to heights of power she’d never imagined alongside her brother. Until one day, at long last, Aether arrived in Teyvat.

Only instead of the joyous reunion she’d expected her other half was disgusted by what she’d done and continued to do. When He flinched from her touch it shattered the Abyss Princess' heart. It was only when she seized Him that, by taking advantage of her restraint, her brother’s unworthy companions struck her down.

Nicole Demara

New Eridu’s streets can be a cruel place for anymore, especially children. Nicole learned that first hand, dragging herself up from the bottom to... slightly higher than the bottom. Perhaps just a hair or two over the poverty line, after accounting for the costs of her mercenary work.

Because for all her wit and brilliance, she could never help herself from using her ill-gotten gains for the city’s orphans. She’d been there before after all. Even when it left her deep in debt, the Cunning Hares leader refused to abandon the countless lost children she’d always consider family.

But raiding Hollows is deadly work no matter how cunning you are. Eventually all that risk caught up with the Cunning Hares, and poor Nicole lost her life alongside the lives of the family she’d built.

Jane Doe

Rat thiren’s are rarely treated well. Jane was certainly dismissed as a filthy rodent while she was an orphan of the streets. But she grew strong, using wit and guile to become a master of deception until she could play any role. Talents she put to use in the noble cause of Public Security.

To wear nothing but masks is exhausting even for the most learned trickster though. Forced to bury her true self over and over, Jane grew weary. She wanted nothing more than a home to return to, someone she could have dinner with and talk about her day. Yet the nature of her work always denied her such connections.

Jane’s death came as she always feared it would. An operation gone wrong, trapped in a Hollow, and all alone. Without a single soul to mourn the real woman behind her many masks.

Caesar King

Abandoned by her father in the Outer Ring, Caesar grew under the distant but tender hand of Big Daddy. Despite her hardships she rarely grew upset, bouncing back from almost anything with a smile on her face. She was full of life, laughter, and a powerful urge to defend her own.

Eventually she formed her own biker gang. Brilliant brothers and sisters in arms united under her banner. As the Tour De Inferno approached all expected this gifted gal to emerge triumphant as their new Overlord.

But disaster struck. Caesar was forced to choose between her own survival and allowing Ether corporations to exploit the Outer Ring. A choice she made without hesitation. Her only regret as she tumbled into the inferno that would sear flesh from bone... was that she hadn’t been able to spend more time with the precious people she’d brought together.

Burnice White

Many succumb to despair at the near apocalyptic state of their world, but not Burnice. Brilliant chemist, martial artist, and unrepentant pyromaniac, there was nothing in or out of the Hollows that could keep her down for long.

Wherever Burnice went a party was sure to follow. Whether that meant mixing drinks for everyone or basking in the warmth of her fires as they melted Caesar’s enemies. Ethereal or otherwise.

Even when she won a lottery so massive it could’ve propelled her to the heights of New Eridu, Brunice only cared about having fun. She spent that money putting together a month-long party that filled the Outer Ring with unspeakable joy.

But not everyone in those wild wastes shared her outlook. While she was sleeping off the celebration’s aftermath vengeful gangs set Bunice’s sleeping quarters ablaze. Caesar and Lucy eviscerated those men, but no amount of blood would bring back the brightest sun of Calydon.

Hoshimi Miyabi

When she was only a girl, Miyabi was forced to watch as her mother chose to plunge a sword through her own heart instead of succumbing to Ether corruption. The same cursed blade Miyabi would later raise in defense of New Eridu.

She became the youngest to ever bear the title of Void Hunter, but it wasn’t enough. Only the impossible task of destroying all Hollows could cleanse her guilt. Though to her credit, her battle prowess was so great that precious few souls even approached her raw lethality.

Such prowess in killing was turned against her when the cursed blade, Tailless, shattered its seal and overwhelmed her with an urge to massacre. Made to choose between the slaughter of civilians and turning that blade upon herself, the Hoshimi heir did what had to be done. Just as her mother had done before her.

Tsukishiro Yanagi

In her youth, Yanagi joined the Defence Force to protect her home from the nightmare of Hollows and Ethereals. New Eridu’s high command, however, had different ideas for their military. Ideas which led to war against Oni tribes.

Nearly blown to pieces by her own forces while saving an Oni child, Yanagi awoke in the tribe’s encampments. There she was able to forge a fragile peace. One that made her into an Oni-human hybrid, albeit at the terrible cost of the old chieftain’s life.

Desperate to prevent similar disasters, Yanagi’s ambition propelled her towards the top of New Eridu’s powers. An ever elegant figure in battle and officework alike. She accomplished so much that some even whispered her to be the true chief of section six.

Yet Yanagi herself never saw it that way. For all her ability, it was the strength of her comrades that made it all possible. Thus, it came as now surprise that, given the choice between saving them from a hacker’s trap or saving herself, the Deputy Chief made her decision without hesitation.

Ellen Joe

Like so many other children in New Eridu,  Ellen lost her parents to the disaster of the Old Capital. Unlike most though she had the talent and power to find mercenary work. Allowing the shark thiren to support herself without aid of the state.

Working at Victoria Housekeeping in addition to her schoolwork was enough to leave her exhausted, but Ellen kept at it. Even when it meant carving other Hollow Raiders into bloody chum she didn’t hesitate. Anything to earn the money she needed to stay with the friends who’d all but forced themselves on this lonely shark.

Hollow work is dangerous though, especially when working against a grand conspiracy. When Bringer made his false ascension Ellen was the one who had to clip his wings. Her scissors cut down the dark creature he’d become, but none of her precious coworkers could save her as the Sacrifice used his last breath to become a living bomb.

Raiden Shogun

When calamity shook all of Teyvat, it was Ei’s sister Makoto who bore the title “Archon of Eternity”. Yet despite all her efforts, the woman was brought low in that divine war. Passing her mantle onto Ei alongside the unbearable agony of losing her only sister.

In the aftermath Ei sought to keep her homeland exactly as it was. Leaving a puppet of herself to rule while hiding away from a world without her sister in deep meditation. For many ages this continued, until a Traveler finally shook her from that stagnation and bid her to face the puppet Shogun.

Their clash was fierce beyond reckoning, and in the end each struck a fatal blow upon the other. As her body failed Ei’s thought of how she would no longer need to live without a sister. Thus did the second Archon of Eternity come to an end.

Arlecchino

There was a time when this mysterious woman was simply another orphan in the House of Hearth, if one with a strange affinity for fire. She was also the one who slew their wicked Mother, seizing control of the House and becoming the 4th Fatui harbinger.

Under her that den of misery became a fine place. Children were still raised as spies and soldiers of the Fatui, but they now did so under the tender eye of their “Father” instead of a Mother beyond redemption.

But while she was beloved by her wards, the Knave had many enemies within and without the Tsaritsa’s court. When those foes launched a united assault against the House, Arlecchino was forced to wield the full extent of the fire in her veins. The 4th harbinger could only close her eyes as flames consumed her. Longing for the warmth of another even as her body crumbled into ash.

Shenhe

At the tender age of six, Shenhe’s own father attempted to sacrifice her to a dead god. Though she struck down the creature’s remnants, that foul energy and the sheer betrayal twisted her very soul into a thing of violent madness.

Only through the adepti’s sacred red ropes was she able to maintain her sanity. Those bindings made her appear cold and indifferent to others, as did her life among adepti. She bore the isolation and emptiness willingly though, all to restrain her unnatural bloodlust.

Eventually though she could no longer stand it. Unwilling to allow her vile spirit to taint her saviors’ home any longer she left for a distant place, then removed her bindings. What struck her down in the end she knew not, only that the madness which had quietly consumed her was finally at an end.

DC

Koriand'r

Tamaran’s princess was adored by all. A beacon of joy and laughter who made every room she entered brighter. Yet in the shadow that light her sister grew spiteful. Masking that hate so well that Starfire only realized the depths of Blackfire’s feelings when the latter started a civil war for the throne.

Starfire learned many bitter truths in the following battles, yet even when her parents perished in the fighting she clung to hope for a better future. A future she would never see. As she and Blackfire lay dying beside each other on the battlefield Starfire reached for her sister’s hand with the last of her strength. For the first time though Blackfire chose to reach back, and the sisters died as they should’ve lived. Together.

Blackfire

Ever was Blackfire envious of her sister’s position as heir to the throne and the attention their parents lavished upon the bubbly girl. Though she was never a saint, that jealousy and neglect twisted Blackfire even further. To the point that she plotted a revolt which turned half the planet against her own blood!

Yet when she finally met the rightful heir upon the field of battle Blackfire was stunned to see Starfire filled with sorrow instead of hate. Doubt surged through Blackfire’s heart. How could any throne be worth betraying someone who’d loved her so deeply? Thoughts of family and forgiveness drove her to distraction, but by then it was too late. Their duel commenced and soon both sisters bled out upon the battlefield.

Raven

Despite her stoic demeanor, Raven could never escape the cold reality that her very existence was a cosmic mistake –  a half-demon spawn prophesied to bring ruin. The monks of Azarath who raised her taught her to suppress not just her powers, but every flicker of emotion and attachment. Each meditation session was another brick in the wall between her and any chance of meaningful bonds.

When the Teen Titans extended their hand in friendship, she accepted their offer but maintained her carefully constructed barriers. Every movie night, every shared meal, every moment of camaraderie was experienced through an invisible wall of her own making. Even if her spells couldn't quite drown out Beast Boy's jokes or Starfire's songs.

When Raven's end came facing Trigon alone, having pushed away those who would have stood beside her, it wasn't Trigon's fire that hurt most. It was the realization of all she'd denied herself in the name of control.

Cassandra Cain

Bodies spoke volumes in a language Cassandra learned before words. Her father's training taught her to read shifting gazes and tensed shoulders like others read books, each lesson punctuated with bruises and broken bones. Every movement was a sentence and every strike a verdict.

The first time she killed, she understood too much. Every microexpression of terror and every tremor of pain. She ran then, leaving behind a father who'd forged her into the perfect weapon, his legacy etched into every motion.

In Gotham's shadows, she found fragments of something she hadn't known to miss. Barbara's hands painting stories in the air, Stephanie's body singing with unrestrained emotion, Bruce's careful distance even in closeness. She collected these moments like forbidden treasures, understanding every gesture but never quite grasping why normal bonds remained beyond her reach.

The bomber's stance spoke clearly: more charges, more death coming. Barbara too close, Stephanie in range. Her body moved without hesitation – not because her father's training demanded it, but because losing them wasn't an option she could survive.

Kara Zor-El

Launched away from Krypton’s explosion as an infant, Kara did not have her cousin’s fortune in caretakers. Instead she was found by the vile Brainiac and enslaved as his personal warrior.

Only through Kal-El’s efforts on earth was she finally freed from her false father’s mind control and able to turn against him. Yet even with those chains broken Kara had lived her entire life as Brainiac’s conqueror. Despite all her efforts to acclimate to peace and Kal’s attempts to assist her, this child soldier never stopped feeling alone and out of place.

When another alien invader came to earth Kara did not hesitate to risk her life for the world. There was so much more she wished to learn and do, yet if she could die as a warrior in her cousin’s place? Then she would gladly take an escape from a life she didn’t know how to live.

Diana

Born of clay and divine power, Diana was the finest champion Themyscria had ever known. More powerful than any other amazon to come before her. Power and prestige which formed a rift between her and her kindred.

When she set out beyond her island she did so for two reasons. To better the world for all and perhaps find others like her. Yet almost all the great figures she encountered in the Justice League grew most uncomfortable that she fought as a warrior. One willing to kill as any champion should when the situation demanded it.

That lethal mindset served her well when Brainiac arrived. Though he seized the minds of her comrades she evaded his grasp while diving to the heart of his ship. She carved apart countless machines and minions, including the device which bound the League. Though he descended upon her with deadly fury she did not fear. She’d known her task was a one way trip from the beginning.

Barbara Gordon

Daughter of the finest police chief Gotham had ever known and apprentice to its dark knight, Barbara was filled with hope for her city. Being crippled would change that, but not in the way many expected.

As Oracle she saw the true depths of Gotham’s sickness. Every act of greed, desperation, and cruelty that plagued her home despite all the efforts of those around her. Then came investigations into the dark web, which exposed her to evils she’d never imagined.

Perhaps the other bats or her father could’ve helped her. Yet their crusade distracted them from her worsening state. When she regained her mobility Barbara threw herself back into crime fighting with a frenzy utterly unconcerned for her own safety. A frenzy that would see her brought low, alone and cut off from those who should’ve been there for her.

Harley Quinn

Abandoned by her alcoholic father, Harleen Quinzel sought comfort in the grounding science of psychology. Yet the wounds her parents left behind never closed. A fact the Joker took great advantage of.

Seduced into becoming his personal puppet, Harley swore to do anything for Mister J. It was only after years of abuse and mistreatment beneath him that she came to her senses. By then though she was already one of the most capable criminals alive, one forcibly recruited into Amanda Waller’s latest harebrained scheme.

As part of the Suicide Squad though she met people who cared for her. Misfits and murderers, yes, but they were her band of lunatics. So when she saw the chance to free those precious people at the cost of detonating a bomb in her own skull? It wasn’t much of a choice for Harley.

M’gann

You would think racism wouldn’t work in a society of shapeshifters. You’d be wrong, because such hatred is not built upon rational thought. M’gann was raised being told that White Martians like her are hideous, wrong, and violent creatures.

Earth’s TV shows gave her an escape from those harsh words. Yet when she arrived upon the blue planet reality differed quite harshly from the smiling faces and white picket fences she’d been led to expect. Even so she attempted to fit in, only to find every telepathic connection was a reminder of what she feared she could never have. Acceptance of the true shape that lay beneath her careful disguise.

Surrounded yet alone, M’gann’s heart faltered. When the Light made their move she was among the first to fall. Brought low, her true form was revealed as her concentration failed. For all her struggle, she was at the very least able to die as herself.

Galatea

Built, not born. That was Project Galatea’s origin as a Krytonian clone. A weapon built to serve the United States in whatever manner they demanded. The closest Galatea had to family was the scientist who made her, but even he didn’t see her as a person.

She buried her agonizing insecurities beneath a thick layer of self-deception. As a kryptonian she was obviously superior to all. What did it matter if she’d never known love? There could be no warmth in the arms of her lessers.

That mask would be ripped away by her unwitting gene donor. Cutting words tore Galatea’s frail psyche apart, revealing the frightened girl underneath. The clone flew forward in a frenzied fury, only to be shocked to death by her original article wielding the Watchtower’s generator as a weapon.

Marvel

Spider-Gwen

Spider-People got it rough. Defending not just their homes, but also the stability of the whole multiverse? That kinda pressure is too much for most grown men, let alone a teenage girl struggling with schoolwork on top of everything else.

The Ghost-Spider was made of tougher stuff though. A true punk that didn’t let anything get her down. Right up until she learned part of maintaining the multiverse would mean letting her own father die in an entirely avoidable accident.

Torn between duty and love she froze. Locked in panic that kept her from the decisive action that would’ve saved George Stacy’s life. Unable to bear the responsibility of her failure the girl threw herself into the space between dimensions. Whether Gwen sought to lose herself or find a kinder world, even she couldn’t say.

Illyana Rasputina

Time flows differently in Limbo. For Illyana, childhood lasted precisely as long as it took to break a soul. The little snowflake Piotr protected didn't melt in hellfire, she evaporated, leaving something darker in the void.

Belasco's lessons carved deep. Each "gift" of power came with his lingering touch, each praise whispered like a lover's possession. His perfect apprentice learned well –  too well. The day she turned his teachings against him, his screams echoed through halls that had witnessed far worse. When she finally claimed her throne, the demon queen found Earth's sunlight foreign against her skin.

The X-Men welcomed back a stranger. Piotr's protective embrace felt like chains to one who'd learned to rule in hell. Perhaps that's why, when the Elder Gods came calling, she chose to face them alone in her throne room. They say even demons wept at what followed.

Rogue

Every touch was a theft – memories, powers, pieces of soul slipping through skin like water through cupped hands. Rogue learned young that love meant distance, family meant betrayal. Mystique's promises of control proved as false as her shifting faces.

The X-mansion offered sanctuary but glass walls still separated her from true belonging. She watched Jean and Scott's casual touches and Logan's rough affection while wearing gloves like second skin. Their acceptance was real, their care genuine, but some nights the weight of untouchable pressed harder than any absorbed power.

At first, she thought the headaches were normal, just stress from containing so many borrowed memories. But then powers started manifesting by themselves, old personalities bubbling up unbidden. The Professor theorized her abilities were evolving, breaking past their limits. But evolution meant change, and change meant danger.

The voices grew louder each day, each absorbed power fighting for control. When she felt Jean's phoenix force stirring beneath her skin, Rogue knew time had run out and took flight. The explosion that followed still reshaped the mansion's grounds, reality warping around her as her powers finally, completely, slipped their leash.

Her last sensation was burning from within as her world tore apart.

Laura Kinney

Numbers defined her existence at the Facility. Test scores. Kill counts. The milliliters of trigger scent needed to send her into a frenzy. To them she was X-23, the twenty-third attempt to recreate a weapon. Only her mother Sarah, the scientist forced to carry her to term, dared grant her more when she whispered "Laura" in stolen moments between tests.

The Xavier mansion should have been different from the Facility but chaos erupted before she could settle in. Reality warped, reformed, shattered. When the dust cleared, most mutants were powerless. Those who retained their gifts became targets, hunted by those who feared what remained. Even Logan disappeared and left her to navigate this broken world alone.

She found temporary shelter with the remaining powered mutants but old habits lingered. The others spoke of lost family, lost powers, lost futures. Laura remained silent, unable to mourn what she'd never truly had.

The Purifiers brought her worst nightmare in an aerosol can. The trigger scent hit her lungs and the world went crimson at the edges. Her body tensed, combat protocols engaging automatically –  threat assessment, optimal attack vectors, projected casualties. But for the first time, the weapon designation X-23 wasn't the loudest voice in her head. Before the red could consume her completely, Laura's claws punched through her sternum with surgical precision, shredding heart muscle and major arteries in one brutal movement. Blood loss: catastrophic. Healing factor: overwhelmed. Time to mission failure: 2.3 seconds. Target eliminated.

Loki

Lady Laufeydottir knew her place in Asgard even as a child. She was a hostage to ensure the Frost Giants never waged war against Odin ever again. Though reared alongside Thor himself she saw how other Asgardians never accepted her, especially with her passion for magic instead of “proper” pursuits.

She became a supreme sorceress, a master of countless tricks and deceptions, yet all it earned her was derision. Once she asked her brother and father if the latter intended her to wed the former to unite Asgard and Jotunheim, only to receive a look of disgust from both.

Misinterpreting their distaste and desperate for her adopted family’s affection, Loki attempted to end the threat of her kinfolk once and for all. Through trickery and guile she nearly wiped Jotunheim from existence, only to be thwarted by Thor and Odin at the last moment. When Odin denounced her actions it crushed the last bit of hope inside her. Thus did the goddess of lies allow herself to fall into the abyss, believing none would ever love her as one’s blood should.

Jennifer Walters

Gamma radiation was the best thing that ever happened to her. Ironic, considering what it did to her cousin. But for the meek little lawyer who was always uncomfortable in her own skin? Becoming a great green amazon was liberating in ways she’d only ever dreamed of!

Her confidence skyrocketed, as did the number of people interested in her. Suddenly Jen was one of the hero community’s popular girls and she loved every minute of it! Part of her noted that all the connections she was making were shallow things, focused solely on her appearance and power. That part got told to stuff it so she could focus on having a great time.

For better or worse Jen abandoned her old self in favor of She-Hulk. Living the high life of a celebrity free from the chains of anxiety that had held her down. That confidence got the better of her when she agreed to help in a fight against Doctor Doom, the sorcerous monarch forever banishing her from the world in a surge of magical might.

Natasha Romanoff

Trained in the arts of espionage since she could crawl, Natasha Romanov was the most talented agent ever produced by the Red Room. So skilled that she slipped free of their indoctrination and seized control of the organization.

Imbued with supersoldier treatments and prowess far beyond most mortals, she served as a founding member of the Avengers. Yet for all her ability, actual acceptance eluded her. A lifetime of spycraft rendering the woman all but incapable of giving or receiving trust.

That she survived such isolation for over a century while fighting the good fight was a testament to her character. Even as she committed countless dark deeds in the shadows, Natasha never forgot the purpose of ending those lives was to save others.

Alas, amidst the Timestream Entanglement no amount of expertise could aid her. Natasha left behind no mourners. Only deadman’s switches, contingencies, and the dream of motherhood she’d never been able to fulfill.

Storm

Across the cosmos few could claim to have risen from a mere street urchin into a goddess. Fewer still could claim they did so with clean hands. Ororo Monroe was one such soul. Having ascended from an orphan who watched her parents die into a divine champion of the mutant people.

Power has a way of isolating its owners however. From her lofty position Ororo struggled to remain connected to the common mutant, yet her power and prestige left her alone at the summit. Even other Omega mutants spoke of her as a mere political figure instead of a friend.

Her position weighed upon her, yet before she had time to grow truly weary of it the Sentinels struck. Faced with an army of genocidal robots and helpless mutants behind her, Ororo made her final choice. Across the globe weather went wild in that climactic clash, but by the end those soulless machines succeeded in their goal of deicide.

Worm

Taylor Hebert

Every day Taylor came home to a hollow house. Her father cracking under the strain of work, and her mother long since stolen by a car crash. School was somehow worse.

When her teenage tormentors went far enough to cause a Trigger event Taylor seized the chance to abandon her normal life for the world of capes. The path from schoolyard victim to warlord wasn't straight, but each compromise made the next easier. Even joining the Undersiders was a calculated choice, telling herself it was for the greater good.

By the time she became Khepri there was almost nothing left of the hopeful girl who’d wanted to be like Alexandria. Yet, despite the monster she’d become, Taylor managed to save the world from a golden god. Then Contessa arrived, gun in hand, and Taylor didn’t even raise a finger to defend herself. She’d lost her friends, father, and even her ideals. There was nothing left to struggle for. Not for her.

Lisa

Knowledge was Lisa's armor and weapon both. Her power whispered secrets like a devil on her shoulder, and she wielded them with a fox's grin. Parents' affairs, hidden addictions, buried shame – she could crack anyone's mask with a few choice words. It was almost fun, if you ignored how everyone eventually learned to avoid the girl who knew too much.

The Undersiders changed that. Finally, people who didn't run when she started talking! Sure, she nudged them in the right directions (Taylor needed confidence, Rachel needed patience, Brian needed to loosen up), but that's what family did, right? And if she sometimes lay awake wondering whether she was just repeating her parents' mistakes… Well, at least she genuinely cared.

Post-Gold Morning kept her busy with schemes and plots, playing guardian angel with a keyboard and too much inside information. But late at night, in her empty high-tech apartment, her power wouldn't shut up about the irony. How the girl who could see through every deception was still lying to herself about what she really wanted.

Victoria Dallon

Each patrol ended with blood on her knuckles and a smile too sharp to be heroic. Easier to focus on Empire thugs than the way her mother picked at Amy's every flaw, or how her dad's pills rattled in bottles that were never empty.

She tried so hard to be their glue, but breaking criminals was simpler than broken homes. Victoria saw the cracks spreading but couldn’t stop them, couldn’t even name them.

When the Nine carved their way through the Bay, she faced Crawler with the same fury she'd used to hold her world together. But some monsters can't be beaten into submission, and acid burns through more than just forcefield. As consciousness faded, she caught a glimpse of Amy running toward her, screaming something she couldn't quite hear.

Amelia Dallon

Her power let her see through flesh and bone, mapping every flaw in the human form. Each touch a reminder of what she could do – what she shouldn't do. The hospital walls closed in tighter each day and home offered no escape. Carol's suspicious glances. Mark's vacant stares. And Victoria… always Victoria, shining too bright to look at directly.

When the Nine came to Brockton Bay, Amy finally understood why some rules needed breaking. She crossed lines that couldn't be uncrossed. And in those final moments, as Jack's smile widened, she made sure her last violation would be one the world would thank her for.

Aisha Labron

An impish girl, Aisha was naturally mischievous even before she triggered with a power that made her unnoticeable. In the aftermath of Leviathan’s assault Heroes were far too distracted to investigate the isolated incidents where Aisha had her fun.

Once that initial excitement wore off though creeping dread began to sink in. Her powers rendered her so forgettable even her own brother could scarcely remember she existed. Brian had descended into villainy for her sake, yet even that wasn’t enough to cement her in his mind.

In her desperation Aisha began to take bigger risks in search of the next thrill to bury her rising terror. Grand theft, infiltrating gang hideouts, even masturbating in public! All while surrounded by people who still failed to notice her.

The Slaughterhouse 9 were the last risk she took. Detected by Cherish, Aisha was helpless to resist as Bonesaw’s instruments descended upon her.

Sophia Hess

Broken homes so often produce broken people. A single mother who never cared, siblings that were burdens more than anything else, and a neighborhood filled with crime of every kind. Is it any wonder Sophia grew into such a spiteful creature?

When she gained powers their alien nature only intensified her anger. Each night she’d strike against the gangs who preyed upon her home. She knew it was wrong, but a bit of blood on her hands didn’t bother Sophia. Especially when it let her vent that insatiable anger and return home without the urge to lash out at the siblings who so admired her.

All that came to an end when the Protectorate caught her red handed. Amidst the Wards her hate had no outlet, and she turned against her classmates instead.

Only when she lay upon the ground, bleeding out amidst the Golden Morning, did a semblance of clarity strike her. Sophia wept not with sadness, but bitter hate that the only moments she’d felt a semblance of control over her life had been while serving as an alien’s puppet.

Jujutsu Kaisen

Yuji Itadori

Only an idiot would eat a mummified finger for the power to defend their friends. Unfortunately for everyone, Yuji was never the sharpest girl. That was true even before her grandfather’s death filled her with a blinding sense of responsibility for those around her.

For a time though the results were positive. An execution sentence hung over her, yet she had found true friends who valued her and grown strong enough to defend others. Only for disaster after disaster to tear her down into the dirt.

By the time of her final duel with Sukuna the naive girl who swallowed his finger was gone. She saw no issue with the loss of her own life to extinguish Sukuna’s and save Megumi. Though the king of curses howled with rage she ignored his words, sentencing both of them to the void in a final flash of black sparks.

Nobara Kugisaki

Abandoned by both parents, Nobara was raised by her cantankerous grandmother. She adopted the woman’s attitude for herself, shrugging off any self-doubt or pain beneath a layer of confidence and bravado.

Her experience under Gojo proved that to be arrogance, yet she was undeterred. Whatever her current weakness it was undeniable she held the perfectly insane and amoral attitude needed to become a brilliant sorcerer.

Alas, that potential was never fully realized. In the calamity of Shibuya she was caught by a trap of the Humanity Curse. Her flesh warped into a shape utterly unrecognizable even by the precious few she could call friends.

Satori Gojo

The strongest sorcerer alive – and she never lets anyone forget it. Behind the blindfold and playful smirks lies a woman who saw how the Jujutsu world's archaic traditions destroyed those closest to her. Her best friend Geto broke under the weight of their world's cruelty, while countless talented students were sacrificed as disposable tools by their own families.

No one could truly stand beside her. Even other Special Grade sorcerers were like ants playing at being giants. Each victory, each display of overwhelming power, carved a deeper chasm between her and everyone else.

Her response? Demolish every boundary, mock every tradition, and build power beyond what any clan could hope to match. Yet for all her strength, she found herself betrayed by the very system she mocked, sealed away by ancient cursed tools wielded by elders who feared her influence.

Her last thoughts weren't of rage, but bitter amusement at how they proved every criticism she'd ever had for their backwards ways.

Maki Zenin

Sorcerer clans are hidebound traditionalists. One traditional belief is the natural inferiority of women, especially those born without Cursed Energy. Maki was never one for tradition though, and so she abandoned her clan. Striking out her own to spite them and become great despite their belief that she never could.

In that rush for independence she left her twin behind. Inadvertently forcing Mai to suffer in her place. It was only upon the other girl’s death that Maki learned the pain Zenin had inflicted while she was away. With her true power awakened Maki killed almost every other soul to bear the Zenin name, inflicting grim vengeance for her sister.

Amidst the aftermath she clung to what few connections remained for her. Even when it meant facing the King of Curses himself she didn’t hesitate. Anything was better than failing to notice the suffering of her precious people a second time. All knew her defeat to be inevitable, yet still she leapt forth with her sister’s final gift raised high.

Yuki Tsukumo

Star Plasma Vessel. Three words that should’ve doomed her to death by sixteen. Yuki was never one to lie down and submit to those who thought they could control her though, and so she struck out on her own. Fending off all who would try to drag her back as a sacrifice for Tengen’s immortality.

On the road she learned more about Cursed Energy than almost any other. It was a lonely journey, but while the solitude pained her it was better than the risk of betrayal others brought. Even non-sorcerers couldn’t be trusted to not be agents of jujutsu society in disguise.

Alas, this meant that when she faced down the old evil of Kenjaku she did so alone. She pushed the lunatic further than any other had in centuries, but her best was not enough. Yuki died with a smile on her lips though, and the thrill of seeing an old immortal panic at her suicide technique.

Kenjaku

Boredom is a real killer, at least for those made to serve as Kenjaku’s entertainment. This ancient immortal would stoop to unthinkable atrocities for a laugh, having long overcome such base concerns like, “morality”.

Though there was one weakness she never shed completely: Maternal instinct. Oh she buried it quite well. Enough to abandon any children she sired through masculine bodies. Yet when Kenjaku held Yuji, born from her own womb, she couldn’t help but wonder what it would be like to abandon her plans for motherhood.

Sadly for Japan those thoughts did not dissuade her mad ambitions, and the Culling Games brought that island nation to its knees. Even when her actions resulted in a final death, the living brain couldn’t help but smirk at the entertainment her actions had brought.

Fairy Tail

Natsumi Dragneel

Abandoned children are sadly quite common. Less common are those left behind a second time, especially by a draconic stepfather. Igneel left young Natsumi with mighty magic, yet deprived her of his warmth.

With only herself to rely on, the fiery girl set out to find her father. Signing on with the Fairy Tail guild for funds. Reckless, carefree, and painfully straightforward, there were few even in that chaotic guild who could stand young Natsumi. Not that they had a choice, Fairy Tail was a family after all.

Even after growing into adolescence though, she kept that burning desire to find her former father. An obsession one madwoman used to trap her as a battery for her draconic mech. Refusing to serve as the power for a false dragon or endanger her guild, Natsumi went beyond her limits and overcharged the machine. Blasting the metal beast into chunks along with her own body.

Lucy Heartfilia

Heartfilia manor was a cold place after its Lady passed. Lord Heartfilia scarcely paid his only daughter any mind, to the point that it took weeks for him to notice when she made her escape from that frigid home.

As a mage Lucy found not just freedom, but joy from her dear guildmates. They supported her with genuine love the noble girl was utterly unaccustomed to. How could she not fall head over heels for Fairy Tail after that?

Then Phantom Lord struck, their guild hired to drag Lucy back to her father’s manor no matter the cost. Fairy Tail fought bravely, yet taken by surprise they were no match for their rivals. In a fit of desperation Lucy unbound the full power of her Celestial spirit Aquarius, drowning Phantom lord in an impossible tsunami. Alas, her control faltered, and Lucy was swept away alongside her enemies.

Ezra Scarlet

One of countless child slaves at the Tower of Heaven, Ezra never dreamed she’d have the power of magic. Not until she awoke that mystic power in rebellion against her tormentors. With a floating swarm of swords she carved the slave masters into bloody bits of meat.

Yet she was betrayed. The other slaves, twisted by the dark magic they’d been forced to build, cast her out with force. Ezra’s bloody body washed up on the shores of Fiore, her sense of trust utterly destroyed.

After years with the Fairy Tail guild, surrounded by kindred spirits, that wound had slowly begun to heal. Then news of the rebuilt Tower of Heaven reached her ears. Unwilling to endanger her guildmates she set out alone, shouldering an impossible weight to shield the closest comrades she’d ever known.

Mirajane Strauss

Big sisters bear a lot of responsibility, especially when they’ve lost their parents and have two younger siblings to look out for. Mira excelled in her role though, becoming known as a Demon for her magic and being one of the youngest S-class mages alive.

Even demons can fail though. When her little brother was thrown into a berserk rage and tore her sister into shredded meat Mira’s soul shattered. She abandoned magic, reducing herself to a mere waitress and cutting contact with her brother.

Years later disaster struck Fairy Tail in the form of a dark guild, and Mira arose as the Demon once more. She slaughtered those villains en masse right up until they launched a lethal attack at her brother. Despite everything Mira still threw herself between her last remaining family and that deadly spell. As her eyes closed for the last time, Mira took some comfort from not failing her family a second time.

Ultear

Born with mystic power’s that harmed her health, Ultear’s mother turned her over to the government hoping they could save her. They did, but lied so that they could inflict endless experiment upon such a powerful child.

Once she managed to escape their cruelty, only to see her mother taking care of two young boys. Furious that she’d been replaced, Ultear returned to the lab. She allowed them to enhance her power as much as possible, then before leaving, reduced the entire area to a smoking ruin.

Armed with legendary time magic she sought revenge not just against her mother, now dead, but also her apprentices. She tormented them ruthlessly, right up until they revealed the truth of her “abandonment”. Struck with an overwhelming guilt Ultear attempted to offer her own life to turn back the clock on all the suffering she’d inflicted, but it was for naught. Her body withered into dust that filled a mere sixty seconds on the hourglass.

Juvia Lockser

The rain was her only constant companion, driving away anyone who might have cared. Even as a child she learned to speak of herself in third person –  easier to pretend the lonely girl in the rain was someone else.

Eventually she found some solace in the Phantom Lord guild. Her guildmates were not close, but they respected her as a powerful mage. It wasn’t much, but it was better treatment than she’d been given elsewhere.

That came to an end when her guild was washed away like grains of sand in a Celestial spirit’s attack. Though Juvia was unharmed by the sudden tsunami, the loss of what little comfort she’d found left her utterly adrift. With little else to tie her down Juvia cast herself into the ocean, allowing her body to dissolve into the endless waves.

Danmachi

Ainz Wallenstein

Record breaker, Sword Princess, Jewel of Loki Famlia. Meaningless titles in this girl’s empty eyes. She spent her whole life chasing the power to claim revenge on the black dragon that tore her family apart, and there was nothing she wouldn’t do to attain it.

There was a time when she began to slow down. Within the shelter of Loki’s Familia and the tender care of its older executives, Aiz began to doubt whether she should push herself so hard. Especially with so many souls who clearly cared for her.

Then someone broke her record for hitting Level Two, and all bets were off. Without telling a soul she vanished into the Dungeon in pursuit of power. The kind that could only be found on the edge of life and death.

Tione and Tiona

Twin sisters stick together. Whether in the blood soaked pits of Kali’s arenas or the diabolic depths of the Dungeon, these girls remained inseparable. Neither was willing to trust others with the defense of their sister. Not after the nightmare of their childhood as gladiators.

That tension did lessen with time, yet never fully faded. They were able to relax around others. Show them a fraction of the concern they offered each other, but nobody ever came close enough to the girls to be considered family.

When foul Demi-Spirits arose from the Dungeon they stood together against the otherworldly horrors, certain of their victory. Yet only two souls are not enough to overcome all obstacles. Thus the amazon sisters fell together, far from those who might’ve saved them.

Ryuu Lyon

Evilus thought killing the Familia responsible for maintaining order in Orario would make their vile work easier to accomplish. This was true. It was also the origin of their near-total annihilation.

Ryuu became a dagger in the dark. Killing anyone with even the slightest connection to those who’d slaughtered her Familia. Helpless merchants and unrepentant murderers alike fell to her wheat before the scythe.

When her grim work was done the elf was forced to recognize that no number of corpses could clog the hole in her heart. So she ventured down into the Dungeon without her weapons. Visiting the mass grave of her Familia one final time.

Freya

This goddess of love has always had a peculiar way of viewing others. You would too if almost everyone you met practically fell over themselves in awe. That she was able to see others as people instead of playthings was a miracle in and of itself.

Still, she sought a purer form of love than those of her easily swayed worshippers. A perfectly flawed gem that would inspire her to heights of passion unimaged. Her own Odr.

Yet even after descending from Heaven she never found this soul. Countless men and women attempted to fill the role, but all failed. Disappointed with her own realm she cast herself away from it. Seeking her Odr beyond any land the gods had ever known.

Hestia

Isn’t it ironic that the goddess of hearth and home was all but homeless? After a long day of mundane labor Hestia was made to rest her head in a worn down church. Even that was only granted to her by a friend’s charity.

This divine’s work paid off though, and she found a truly perfect child. A white haired boy willing to do anything for his precious goddess. Just as she was ready to do anything for her first child.

Yet for all her efforts, nothing could stop sweet Bell from delving into the deadly Dungeon at Orario’s heart. Like so many other young adventurers the little rookie lost his life amidst the upper floors.

More sorrowful than she had ever been before Hestia chose to leave the mortal world behind. Yet she was denied even the fleeting joy of seeing Bell’s soul reborn. At her lowest point, the goddess left Heaven and her sacred duties behind. In search of anything that could mend her broken heart.

Hephestus

Successful beyond measure in Orario, this forge goddess was easily one of the most wealthy women alive. But wealth could not mend what lay beneath her eyepatch. The disfigurement that saw her shunned by almost every other god.

Even mortals, used to seeing far worse faces than her own, did not look at her with the awe other divines received. Hephestus was always respected for her work. Admired for it even, but none ever stepped forward with love for her. Only what she could make for them.

When she heard Freya had chosen to abandon heaven and earth for parts unknown, Hephestus found the idea appealed to her. So she got her affairs in order, put together some necessities for wherever she found herself, and left this world behind for another. Hoping whatever she found would include those that could accept her deformity.

Literature

Hermoine

What child wouldn’t be excited over learning they had magic? That they could change the world with only some words and a wand? Hermoine was certainly over the moon at first, devouring every tome she could get her hands on to learn more of the wonderous world she’d been introduced to.

All those studies left her unprepared for how cruel wizard society could be. The pain of being ostracized, mocked for her intelligence, and the way they called her a ‘mudblood’ just because her mother and father couldn’t cast spells. Even so, she persisted. Keeping her head held high from the top of her class year after year despite the rising chaos of Voldemort’s return. Right up until her precious parents were found by Death Eaters.

Her love of reading descended into an obsession with mystic tomes of outlawed spells. To revive the dead may have been impossible, but to inflict endless agony upon those who’d stolen her family? That was well within the realm of forbidden magic. By the time Voldemort’s army caught up with the young woman who’d been wreaking havoc upon them with magic even darker than theirs Hermione was long dead. Her own life offered for a curse that tore the Death Eaters and all their kin asunder.

Harriet Potter

The Girl Who Lived. A title always spoken in reverence of how the Dark Lord’s spell had failed to kill her, yet Harriet felt her survival in the Dursley household was a feat far more worthy of praise. Such was the  nightmare of living amongst wretches who never even tried to replace the family Voldemort had stolen from her.

Bitterness filled Harriet each time she was sent back to those brutes after her year at Hogwarts. The only thing that soothed her irritation was the visible fear in their eyes, and the unspoken threat of what she’d do to her so-called “family” if they tried treating her as they once did. More than once she’d twirled her wand between her fingers while staring the Dursleys down.

No, Hogwarts was her home. Horwarts was where she found her first friends, experienced adventure beyond compare, and so much more. It was also the place where she faced Tom Riddle once and for all, ending the Dark Lord’s life in a mutually lethal duel.

Percy Jackson

Demigods always have it rough, but unlike most Percy had the benefit of a loving mother. At least until the woman was torn apart beneath a minotaur’s horns. That beast had acted on orders of the gods, yet Percy was forced to obey those divine tyrants or suffer a similar fate.

For years Percy fought for Camp Half-Blood. A seemingly invincible and unapproachable figure who could solve any problem which plagued that gathering of abandoned children. Even when that meant delivering a lethal sentence to mortal servants of chronos, she didn’t hesitate to protect her own.

Yet that grim work left Percy painfully, achingly isolated. Few dared to approach the pinnacle of demigods, and those who did never managed to understand how heavy her burden truly was.

After triumphing against impossible odds over and over she finally fell against Gaia herself, choking with bitterness that her life had been twisted by the whims of “family” that had only ever seen her as a tool.

Alex Rider

Most teenagers would say that being a teenage James Bond spy sounds like a fantastical lifestyle. But Alex? She knew the nightmare of that profession firsthand. The terror of failed deceptions, blood on her hands, agonizing injuries, and seeing the absolute worst of humanity from those who basked in their cruelty from the pinnacle of society.

Miserable work unsuited for most adults, let alone children, but Alex excelled. Where elite operatives would’ve failed she pulled through time and time again. Each success damned her to further missions for MI6 even as the strain built up more and more with each operation.

The last straw came when Jack, her oldest friend and the only adult Alex had ever been able to trust, was blown to pieces by a car bomb. Uncaring of the consequences Alex told the public everything she’d been made to do since she turned sixteen. Once every dark deed was revealed she quietly retreated to her home with a simple service pistol. Choosing a far less painful end than anything MI6 would ever offer.

Western Animation

Ben Tennyson

Bennet was a rebellious little tomboy. But while that made her different, nobody thought she was too strange. Not until she found an alien watch on a road trip with her grandfather and started turning into monsters with only a slap of her wrist.

Under grandpa Max’s guidance she used this power for heroic deeds... and whatever else she could get away with. Even a legendary man like Max couldn’t curtail her mischievous spirit and disregard for consequences. Any lessons she learned were all but certain to be forgotten not long after.

For all her wildness though she was a hero at her core. When Vilgax sought to destroy earth she was the one to stop him. That clash devastated the region, yet in the end neither emerged from the crater left in their wake.

Danielle Fenton

Plenty of teens say they’re half-dead, but only this one could truly claim that title. When ghouls poured forth from her parent’s portal Danielle transformed into a ghostly protector. Guarding her home against undead invasions as the Phantom.

She was far from perfect of course. Any teen with the power to slip through walls and turn invisible would inevitably grow naughty. Peeks into the boys’ locker room, stealing stuff she didn’t feel like paying for, those sorts of things. Her friends didn’t approve, but didn’t Danielle deserve something for all the work she put into protecting her town?

Alas, vengeful spirits are the core of many myths, as she'd soon learn after rebuffing their attempts one too many times. Even Phantom couldn’t stop a mass assault of spectres from leveling her home. Amidst the scorched remains of everyone she’d ever loved, Danielle couldn’t bear to face her failure. Opening the portal in her basement one last time, Dani threw herself into the Ghost Zone’s deepest depths. Seeking any escape from the ruins of her old life.

Mizu

Japan’s feudal period was a poor time to be a child of mixed race. Abused by all but one who saw her eyes, Mizu grew to hate herself and the white man who’d birthed her. Though she once attempted to trust her mother and a man who became her husband, even they sold her out to the authorities.

After executing both for their treachery Mizu re-dedicated her life to revenge against the man who’d dared to sire a horrible creature like her. She sought no happiness from life, only grim satisfaction.

Two of her four possible fathers perished beneath her blade, yet the onryō made manifest would burn in the great fire of Edo. A fire she inadvertently began. As flesh seared she thought not of failing in her vengeance, but of how she would die as she always expected. Alone and unloved.

Wednesday Addams

The Addams mansion breathed darkness like other homes breathed air, its halls filled with the sweet perfume of decay and old secrets. Within its walls, Wednesday crafted her little deaths – delicate poisons, exquisite traps, perfect moments of terror. Her family didn't just understand; they delighted in it. Mother's arsenic-laced pastries. Father's electric "party games." Each macabre display of affection a testament to their peculiar devotion.

Her parents' passion fascinated her most. How they danced through thunderstorms, fought duels over breakfast, died for each other in a thousand exquisite ways. Wednesday observed their rituals with clinical detachment, documenting each instance in leather-bound journals, wondering if there were depths yet unexplored.

Great-Great-Grandmother's grimoire promised answers. Its weathered pages spoke of rituals that bound souls beyond death's reach. Wednesday's own experiments with temporary death had grown… predictable and this ritual demanded precision: salamander blood, virgin soil from seven graves, a blade of cold iron. Her calculations were flawless. The inscriptions' positions exact. Yet when Wednesday drew the blade across her palm, reality shuddered. The mansion's foundations groaned as dimensions folded inward. Her last sight was Thing scuttling frantically across the floor, reaching to pull her back from the void that opened beneath her feet.

She fell smiling, wondering what delicious horrors awaited on the other side.

One Piece

Nami

Money, money, money. Two things inspired Nami’s obsession with wealth. Being raised in poverty and the impossible demand Arlong forced on her for any chance of saving her village from his tyrannical rule. Both led her to becoming far more skilled in every form or thievery than anyone ever ought to be.

Even after Luffy saved her people, that fixation for fortune had already sunk deep into her bones. As part of the Straw Hats she would lie, cheat, steal, and even kill if it meant a fat stack of cash. Though she was careful to choose victims that her crew wouldn’t care about if they discovered her dirty deeds.

Eventually though greed caught up with this peerless navigator. Marine agents lured her away from her crew with rumors of a grand score, only to ambush the cat burglar. For all her prowess in other fields, battle was never Nami’s strong suit. The Clima-Tact was shattered along with her skull, far from anyone who would’ve helped her.

Trafalgar D. Water Law

As only a girl, Law was forced to hide beneath the corpses of her own family to survive. Her nose filled with the stench of death and her own body infested with disease, she swore bloody vengeance against the world. A vow Dofflamingo promised to help her fulfill.

It was only through Corazon’s kindness and sacrifice that Law was saved from a short life as the string-lord’s puppet. Instead she arose as a savior of lives. Wielding the world’s most desired devil fruit as a tool of medicine alongside her Heart Pirates. Surrounded by comrades in her submarine, Doffy defeated, Law sucked in a deep breath of the good life she’d earned for herself.

Then Blackbeard struck. For all their passion her crew could not match the Yonko, and thus Law was made to watch her precious people die yet again. Gripping her blade with impossible force, Law swore to never fail another family, making one last lethal cut against the man who’d stolen everything from her before his men brought her down.

Boa Hancock

How ironic that the Celestial Dragons who enslaved her and her sisters would be the source of her strength. When Fisher Tiger tore the Red Line apart, the devil fruit meant to make her a more appealing slave allowed her to escape and ascend to the queenship of Amazon Lily. Though tragically her sisters were slain amidst the chaos.

Despite the hole their deaths left behind, Boa was able to find contentment as a queen. Able to strike at the World Government or any other who earned her ire while shielded by the Calm Belt and her position as Warlord. For years she reigned as an untouchable terror, releasing her hate for World Nobles upon far more convenient targets. All of that came crashing down when the mark upon her back was publicly revealed amidst an intense battle.

Yet for all her fears the Amazons did not abandon her. Perhaps it would have been better if they had. Instead Hancock was made to watch as all her efforts to save that island paradise crumbled away. The Snake Princess rendered helpless as a Buster Call reduced all she loved to naught but ash and blood.

Robin

Demon child, never should’ve been born, unworthy of life. Those words always echoed in her ears no matter where she went. Everyone she encountered would attempt to backstab her for a bounty or were such disgusting villains that trust never entered the equation.

A lifetime on the run forged her into a terrifying assassin, spy, and femme fatale. Yet personal power could not grant freedom from the endless tide of hate all others directed towards her. Cipher Pol, marine fleets, bounty hunters, not even Gol D. Roger himself could have strong-armed his way into acceptance against such forces. Not alone.

So upon her 28th birthday Robin took stock of her life, and found it wanting. She had survived everything the World Government had thrown at her, yet she had not truly lived since the day Ohara burned. Instead of continuing that isolated existence Robin chose to strike her tormentors in a  way they’d never forget.

She wrote a book on how to translate poneglyphs, spread it far and wide, and even hijacked public broadcasts to spread the knowledge further. What chaos she’d unleashed Robin would never know, as she chose a cup of poison over the non-existent mercies of Impel Down.

Taimanin

Asagi Igawa

Strongest Taimanin, they called her. Matriarch of her clan and Captain Commander of the Taimanin organization. So much power, so many titles, you’d think such a grand figure would be rather pleased with her place in the world.

Asagi found little to be pleased with. Even with all the might at her disposal, corruption both mystic and mundane still tore her home apart. For every evil she cut down two more would take its place. Each time she tried to move against the source, NOMAD, bribed officials would curtail her investigations.

Despite the sisyphean task she still struggled against the tide of darkness. Right up until her sister was captured by a demonic slave ring. When Asagi found what was left of the younger Igawa what little restraint she had snapped.

NOMAD and all who served them were hunted in the night. Families hacked apart in their own homes by the vengeful Taimanin. Alas, that rampage eventually brought her face to face with Edwin Black himself.

Ingrid

Honorable, brave, and loyal above all else. Strange traits to encounter in a demon, yet that’s exactly why the Hell Knights were made. Mighty warriors bound within a code that made them perfect servants for the nobility of Hell.

Ingrid was touted as the greatest of their number. Leader of her order and undefeated despite her centuries of service. Only Edwin Black would manage to bring her low, an act he used alongside his vampiric charisma to recruit her as his right hand.

Though she initially held some affection for him, Black’s orders pushed the limits of her love and honor both. Hell’s chivalry was far more flexible than mortal versions, yet the wickedness she committed in his name made even this demon question her choice of master.

Even so, when a murderous Taimanin assaulted Black directly honor demanded Ingrid use herself as a shield. Before she’d even finished falling her master cast her aside with annoyance. A broken tool abandoned on the cold hard ground.

Yukikaze Shiranui

A prodigal ace among Taimanin, not many would guess that the cherry and energetic girl was haunted by her mother’s disappearance and her father’s death. She could offer surface level affection easily enough, but the moment anyone tried to grow closer she couldn’t help but snap at them.

Tsundere, her friends called her. Which naturally just riled the girl up even more. Eventually though their time at Taimanin academy would end and her friends would go home. But while they rested, Yukikaze hunted for any trace of her mother long into the night.

Those investigations would lead her to the terrible truth of what her mother had become, a willing slave of the Incubus King. Knowing she stood no chance against the older Taimanin yet unwilling to retreat, Yuki cast aside her limiters and prepared to unleash the full potential of her Lightning Art.

Then something changed in Mizuki’s stance, the veteran Taimanin not making any attempt to dodge. In panic Yukikaze tried to redirect her Art, but without her limiters it was hopeless. Lost in grief over the charred remains of her mother, Yukikaze didn’t even notice the furious Incubus King before he struck.

Mizuki Shiranui

Once a proud, loving mother and veteran Taimanin, Mizuki had the grand misfortune of encountering the Incubus King. All her training was worthless against him, and beneath his cruel hands she was shaped into a perfect slave.

There was no order so wicked her new self would not follow. In particular her master took special delight in forcing Mizuki to capture other Taimanin, having her put them through the same tortures that had been inflicted upon her with a sadistic smile on her face.

Yukikaze should’ve just been another victim. Mizuki even played with her food while it called her ‘mother’. Basking in premature delight of the reward master would give her right up until Yukikaze dropped her pistols to conjure a crackling cloud of lightning.

To see her daughter struggle so terribly gave Mizuki a fleeting instant of clarity. One that cut through the twisted shape of her mind. Before her conditioning could reassert itself she threw herself into Yukikaze’s storm, casting aside any defense instead of returning to the monster that would enslave her own blood.

Hentai

Olga Discordia

Stretching back even before elven memories, Olga’s people were lusted after by humanity. Given half a chance mortals would assault and enslave dark elves. Such crimes were what drove this great sorceress cast aside her dreams of motherhood to deliver ruin upon the human nations.

More than a few of her own people balked at the idea of using monsters as shock troops. Especially the debauched races such as orcs. Yet Olga felt no guilt for inflicting their cruel tastes on her foes. Turnabout is fair play after all, and humans had proven themselves more than worthy of such suffering.

For all her power, however, Olga’s forces were depleted in their reckless assaults. This too, she had planned. For though she would perish in a grand battle against six of the seven Princess Knights, Olga knew the devastation she’d unleashed would shield her people for ages to come.

Celestine Lucross

HIgh Queen and Holy Mother, it was her responsibility to shield the continent from the depredations of those who would seek to ravage it. Alas, though regarded as a goddess made flesh, political acumen was never her greatest strength. Controlling the various agents amidst her own forces who lusted for war and slavery was all but impossible.

Aware of her weaknesses she formed the Seven Princess Knights. Noble warriors who fought corruption within and without. Fine women, every last one. Together they were almost able to prevent a war. Almost.

In the ensuing carnage countless lives were lost. Her own capital burned, Celestine forced to listen as her people screamed as monsters tore them apart. As the temple’s doors shuddered under the weight of attackers, the high priestess offered one last prayer to the goddess. Pleading forgiveness for her endless failures.

Julia Jacoby

The first gang member attacked her in a piss-stained alley. She killed him with his own gun, then kept the weapon loaded and waiting. Five more followed—drawn by pride, by vengeance, by sheer stupidity. That's when the vampires captured her.

The Wan Kuei had perfected the art of torture over centuries, and Julia perfected the art of ruining their concentration. When they peeled her nails, she asked if they’d consider a manicure after. When they broke bones, she critiqued their pacing, B-minus for suspense. Their ritual precision curdled into apoplectic rage.

And with six dead to her one life? Even adding her mother’s hypothetical death made it six to two. Still winning.

When death arrived to find her grinning, it wasn’t alone. A presence came upon her and offered her a choice: to embrace the awful power that rolled off of it like a dark fog, or reject it and pass into what awaited her beyond death’s veil.

Meru the Succubus

For over a thousand years Meru basked in the pleasures of lust. Luring countless mortals into absolute hedonism without care for the consequences. Such was typical for her kind, yet all that would change with the intervention of a mighty priest.

Though she survived the encounter Meru was crippled, left with only the power to possess others. Undeterred she quickly found a girl to serve as her host. Eager to ascend to her old heights and exact revenge against the man who’d laid her low.

Without her usual power, however, the emotions of Meru’s victim bled into her own mind. She saw the other flavors of love beyond base lust. Friendship, sisterhood, and  family. Made to live amidst such thoughts, her endless lust seemed... not pointless, but far more hollow than it had once been.

By the time Meru regained her true power vengeance was no longer her aim. Instead she shaped herself so that she might enter the cycle of rebirth. Hoping to experience the many forms of love she’d denied herself for so terribly long.

Free Choice

Do not feel restricted by this list. There’s more lonely souls out there than could ever fit within these pages. Should you know of someone not included here and desire them to join you in this journey then simply reach out, and they shall be there.