Enigma

Enigma is a Tiefling Knowledge Domain Cleric of Pallas and a member of The Chaos Crew. She is played by Percie.

Appearance
Enigma is a grey Tiefling with dark blue hair. She has freckles and eyes that are solid gold with no discernible iris or pupil. She previously had many scars all over her body, but these were removed when she drew the Healer card from the Deck of Many Things.

Personality
Enigma is amiable and knowledgeable. She is quick-witted and gets along fairly well with everyone. Having lost her parents at such a young age, she’s quick to assume responsibility. She quietly considers herself the "mother" of the group, particularly fixating on Yakov, the youngest of them. (Technically, Mali is relatively younger than Yakov, but Enigma is not aware of this.)

She keeps a journal that she uses to extensively document her day-to-day life, both as a form of worship to Pallas and a “safety net,” or a backup in case she forgets again.

Enigma grew up comfortable but without much extra spending money, on account of her parents’ bakery and the inheritance her family received from her grandparents.

Background
Born Nemeia Koval in Orden, Enigma spent all of her childhood in the same town she was born in. Enigma’s parents were originally an arranged marriage, but fell in love shortly after their wedding. They opened a bakery together shortly before having Enigma.

Enigma was the only Tiefling in her town and therefore the only Tiefling she knew. There were many rumors surrounding her birth (all the water in the town boiled instantly at her first cry, livestock died as she came to life, the sun vanished in a sudden eclipse, etc) due to her infernal nature. Her parents never conceived another child due to infertility, which was suspected to be Enigma’s fault. Despite this, Enigma’s parents loved her dearly and, with no other children to care for, doted on her near constantly.

Due to a lack of friends to play with, Enigma worked in her parents’ bakery in most of her free time. She could run the bakery by herself fairly competently by the time she turned thirteen, at which time she began to work there more often, preparing to eventually take it over.

During her childhood, Enigma’s maternal grandparents died, leaving her family a large amount of money.

One day when Enigma was fourteen, the bakery was robbed while she was away. Her parents died defending their livelihood. Enigma was the one to find and bury their bodies.

Enigma had enough money left over from her inheritance to live comfortably for many years, but the good work ethic instilled by her parents encouraged her to keep the bakery open so she never ran out of money. However, due to business slowing, she took up odd jobs as well. If it would pay and Enigma had the slightest clue how to do it, she’d give it a shot.

The ten-year anniversary of her parents’ death, the 1st of Quirinius, 5E1452, is the last day Enigma remembers of her old life. She closed the bakery early, visited her parents’ grave, then went home for the night. After a dreamless sleep, she awoke to find 500 years had passed.

The Great Blank
Enigma does not remember anything from the 500 or so years she privately refers to as The Great Blank. Her biggest fear about this time is what she could have done. She’s afraid that she didn’t just forget what she did, she’s afraid of who she might have become during this time and and what the consequences of being that person might be.

Nemeia Koval
5E 1428-6E 25

On the 2nd of Quirinius, 5E1452, Pyotr Dorovitch returned to Sungennes with the heads of the men who killed Nemeia’s parents mounted on spikes. This began a long process of courting that ended in Pyotr and Nemeia marrying. They enjoyed their lives together, but failed to bear children. At some point, Nemeia climbed the mountain and made a deal with the hag Grigwartha to allow her to bear children. The hag was not fully clear about the terms of the agreement, claiming only that Nemeia would be her “eyes and ears” and is the reason Enigma keeps losing her memories. Nemeia died on the very mountain Grigwartha resides on, killed by the hag. Her body was returned to Pyotr’s estate.

Avere Dorevytch
6E 25-6E 83

When Nemeia returned to life the next day, she had no memory of being courted by or marrying Pyotr. He told her of their years together, and sought to continue their relationship. However, news of Nemeia’s death had spread, so her miraculous return to life and reduction in age would likely not be taken well by a populace that already feared her infernal nature. Pyotr and Nemeia decided that she would take on a false identity, complete with a ring of alter self that allowed her to look like a distinctly different tiefling.

Avere and Pyotr eventually had three children together.

Discover
6E 83-6E 97

Enigma only knows that Discover came before Almalexa, and that she was a bard.

???
6E 97-6E107

The life that came immediately before her forged Almalexa's identity to gain access to the Arcaneum.

Almalexa Visoria
6E 107-6E 263

Almalexa started her life on a ship to Aureus from Ath Alu, in a body bag. In her personal cabin she found documentation of herself as an apprentice mage, a spellbook, wand, and some money. She enrolled in the Arcaneum with the hope to remember who she was.

She visited Ephesa twice. Once to learn anything she could about her past lives. The second, to leave behind a message for any version of herself to follow in her footsteps, as well as trying to find a cure for her chronic illness, and, barring that, knowledge on whether it would be passed on to her next life.

When Enigma looked into the secrets Almalexa gave in order to enter Ephesa, they were this: One, that her previous life had forged the identity she had assumed. Two, that she had helped a student of hers cover up a murder he committed. She'd since grown to regret it, as he had since begun to stray down a path of evil. This student was later revealed to be Koschey the Deathless.

She died at her villa in Sitorum.

Renaissance
6E 263-6E 281

Renaissance awoke in Almalexa's villa, and Almalexa's close friend, Anwen Moonwind explained the situation of Nemeia's "curse" to her. Renaissance soon left Sitorum in the hopes of figuring out what happened to her. At some point, she too visited Ephesa, asking about Almalexa, claiming to be a distant relation.

Renaissance was a traveler. She met the Tuminkaal in 6E281, joining them shortly after. She “died” saving the Tuminkaal from a forest fire caused by dragons fighting above the forest, and the next dawn, revived into Phoenix.

Phoenix
6E 281-6E 338

Phoenix was a Druid and a member of the Tuminkaal, as well as Wander’s apprentice. She was also fairly close, and likely romantically involved, with Mali's sister, Lowri Edris. She called herself Phoenix due to being reborn from fire. Phoenix was involved in the original defense against Skeld, and was one of the casualties. When she awoke the next dawn with no memories, she left, seeking answers.

???
6E 338-6E 348

This Nemeia returned to Sungennes to work in the bakery again. Along the way, she met a man named Odo, who stayed under the premise of being her friend for the next ten years, when Nemeia died.

Nemesis
6E 348-6E 375

Nemesis awoke in her childhood home, presuming no time had passed. When she left her room, Odo was sitting at the table. He introduced himself as a friend, and talked Nemeia into traveling to Arkhosia with him. He took her to the Vulpesh training facility, where she was captured and brainwashed into believing her old memories were false. She was trained as a specialized assassin agent, and with Koschey’s help, the Vulpesh made Nemeia into Nemesis. Nemesis was responsible for the assassination of Julius Argent in 6E 366.

In Winter 6E 374, Nemesis was sent abroad to Orden to cause instability. She passed Goron Dorevytch in the street, which shocked her out of her programming, due to his similarity to Pyotr. Nemesis returned to Arkhosia to confront her handlers, broke free of her programming, and started a riot, which she was killed in.

Paradox
6E 375-22nd Mystrum 6E 385

Paradox was aware of Nemesis being a member of the Vulpesh. She was a Gold Crest member of the Desdemonan Pathfinder Society, where she met and became close to Cassius Octavian. During her time in the Pathfinder Society, she adopted a Tiefling son who she named Mysteries. When she left to uncover more about her past, she left Mysteries in the care of the Pathfinder society. She died on Mount Celest fighting the same hags that Enigma would later come back to defeat.

Nemeia Koval
23rd Mystrum 6E 385-24th Mystrum 6E 385

This life awoke on Mount Celest and died of exposure a day later.

Nemeia Koval
25th Mystrum 6E 385-26th Mystrum 6E 385

This life awoke on Mount Celest and died of exposure a day later.

Nemeia Frostborn
6E 385-6E 448

Nemeia was found on Mount Celest by a clan of nomads who saved her and adopted her into their ranks. She was therefore “born from frost,” and took the name Frostborn. Nemeia returned to Sungennes in 6E 400 to tend to her parents’ graves and met Milovan Kosovitch, a drow who she later married. They had two children together, Selleka and Pyotr.

In the winter of 6E 448, Nemeia fell ill and died at the age of 87. Her children are still alive and run a bar together in Sungennes.

???
6E 448-6E 482

Enigma does not yet know anything about this life.

Carrion
6E 482-6E 493

Carrion awoke in a mass grave in an abandoned military camp that would later become the Witch’s Shadow outside of Sungennes. The very first person she met was Brom Stalwinter, a battlefield scavenger who befriended Nemeia and taught her about the War of Succession. He was heading to Arkhosia to escape the war and invited Nemeia to go with him, telling her that she was “a dead woman” and “might as well make the most of it”. Nemeia embraced her status as a dead woman given a second chance and took the virtue name Carrion.

Brom and Carrion found work in Ragnarai aboard a ship belonging to the Kaldekai Company. They spent eleven years working together before Brom became captain of a merchant ship and made Carrion his first mate.

Carrion was killed during a pirate raid.

Nemeia Koval-Ursinius of House Kaldekai
6E 493-6E 538

Everything Enigma knows about Ursinius she learned from her former husband. According to Caelius, Nemeia was working at a bakery to earn enough money to enroll in the Arcaneum. The two met at this bakery and very quickly fell in love. Nemeia gave up on discovering her past in favor of settling down with Caelius. She never mentioned the things she did remember.

500 Years Later
Enigma woke up in the bed of a stranger and attempted to flee, fearing the implications. She was stopped by a Dragonborn who, when she admitted she didn’t remember him, claimed to be her husband of 30 years. He had her see a medic, who cleared her. She was a total amnesiac, but otherwise healthy. Perhaps, given time, her memories would come back. Caelius Ursinius of House Kaldakai, as he re-introduced himself, was kind and patient with Enigma. Though helpful in restoring the last 30 years’ memories, he couldn’t tell her anything else - she didn’t talk about her past much. Nemeia never told Caelius what she did remember, fearing what he would think or do. Over the next three months, Enigma learned everything she could about the world, first and most notably that the tiny Kingdom of Arkhosia had evolved into a sprawling Empire, and she was living in the heart of it. The whole time, she was keeping a journal of all her experiences, so if she forgot again, she had something to go off of.

She visited libraries and museums, looking for something that could tell her what she missed, or what had happened to her. But Enigma was a ghost, and could find no mentions of herself in any history book. This was the time she took her virtue name. One day, wandering a new exhibit in a museum, she found something. A notebook, mostly burned away, but what little that could be read was distinctly her handwriting. She used the full noble power available to her, and over the next few weeks, convinced the museum to sell it to her.

After obtaining this lead, she decided to leave and travel to find more evidence of herself. She was afraid of getting Caelius’s approval, so she planned in secret. However, he stopped her at the door when she went to leave. He knew what she was doing, and she was right about him not wanting her to leave. But he relented, knowing she wasn’t going to get what she needed in their home, and the Nemeia he knew would be gone until then anyway. As a show of good faith, he offered her a family heirloom: a jet-black staff with arcane glowing constellations set into it. Both to protect her on her journey and ensure she would come back some day. As her own show of good faith, she took her wedding band, and promised to return.

The Chaos Crew
Enigma eventually made her way to Desdemona, where she joined the Pathfinder Society. As a Brass Crest, she was required to work under Silver Crest supervision. The chosen Silver Crests were the Chaos Crew. Enigma immediately mistook Gorrem Dorevytch for his forefather, Pyotr, to the confusion of the party. After some introductions and explanation, the party agreed to take Enigma with them on their next contract. She has been travelling with them ever since.

Gorrem Dorevytch
Gorrem’s resemblance to Pyotr originally made Enigma uneasy, but she has since grown to overlook that and see Gorrem as his own person. Learning he was her descendant was an earth-shaking discovery for her, as eventually she had begun to have romantic feelings for Gorrem. She wants to be his family and be there for him, but he doesn't seem to want that at the moment. She understands his trauma in a way, and feels this is not a trauma that can be healed with time. Gorrem’s trauma seems to have changed him on a fundamental level, and he will need to take action to heal himself. This is why Enigma offered to help him restore Orden, by regicide if necessary: She cares about her home country, but she also cares about him, and hopes to be there to prevent him from breaking further in his attempts to heal himself.

Mali Edris
Enigma and Mali share a similar level of wisdom, leading to a kind of mutual understanding. However, Enigma truly knows very little about Mali, and doesn't really understand why she would continue to travel with the rest of the group after finding the sister she had been searching so long for.

Steve
Enigma thinks Steve is strange. She doesn’t have the history with him that the others do, so his rapport comes off as suspiciously friendly. She likes him fine so far, barring a few situations where he overstepped boundaries to maintain control, but she considers him a valuable asset.

Viscily
Enigma’s first exposure to Viscily was watching him outright murder a demigod moments before the group planned to head directly into the home of the gods. (Enigma regards this as a stupid move.) Enigma sees Viscily as impulsive, but has come to at least tolerate his presence. She thought his trading himself for Yakov in the Astral Plane was selfless but foolish, and worries for what this plan means for the rest of the group.

Yakov
Enigma has very mixed feelings about Yakov. She understands that he can be chaotic and selfish, but she sees these as traits of immaturity, not reflections of his character. After hearing him air everything about his deal with Rath in one tsunami of a monologue, she started to see him not as the malevolent backstabber the rest of the party seems to perceive him as, but as a young boy way over his head in something he barely understands. She wants to protect him, and help him get out of the mess he’s in. Learning he was trapped in the Astral Plane terrified her, and she worries about how this experience will affect him going forward.