General Bio

Name: Vhen
Nicknames: V, Pyre, the Flametouched, the Burning
Occupation: Surgeon/Doctor
Actual Age/Apparent Age: 31/23
Gender: Female
Sexuality: Bisexual with a strong preference for men (Hasn't really explored her sexuality much)
Race/Species: Human (Possessed or bound to an unknown being)

Appearance
Vhen is slightly smaller than the average human woman at 5'1'' and fairly slim to boot, but she makes up for her size with an air of immense intensity. Subtle muscles give off the impression of lean strength and flexibility, but there is no grace to her movement, only purpose.

Her eyes, a pale green color, cautiously regard anyone that comes close from under long dark lashes. Many of her patients swear on the Dog they have seen sparks of red burning in her dark pupils, but most believe it to be a trick of the light and her sharp gaze. She seems to wear a perpetual frown, her high cheekbones and sharp jawline only mildly softened by her small, rounded chin and full lips. Indeed, she could probably have been considered beautiful if not for the many scars, the most notable of which runs an almost perfectly vertical line from the side of her nose through the left side of her mouth and lips. Other tiny ones split her right eyebrow and mar her cheeks and ears.

Her skin seems to be a pale coloration of the usual sun-kissed color of Al-Jalasa's native inhabitants and tells of a life lived in the shadows. Hidden under wraps and clothing are spots on her arms and legs where her skin is a completely different color, as black as charcoal glittering in the night. One would have to distract her so thoroughly in bed that she forgets herself or knock her unconscious to see those, however, as she fiercely hides them from the world.

Her long, thick hair is a mess of black curls, but parts of it have been dyed to be so. Whenever she calls upon the flames within, bit by bit, her hair glows and seems to burn like a wick from the roots and down. However, instead of burning away to ash, the parts that were burned are permanently changed to the color of fire, a bright red that stands out even in the vibrant streets of Al-Jalasa.

Out on the streets, most of her upper body and arms are hidden by a rugged shawl with a hood. Baggy, patched, and layered sirwal pants start below her navel, with several belts and pouches adorning her slim hips. If you catch her in her quarters, the shawl is gone, exposing all of her midriff and revealing wrapped arms in baggy sleeves. Her top starts just below her breasts and winds up her neck, keeping her back mostly exposed. Her fingers are always free and covered in more scars than her face.

Personality

Vhen is as guarded and tense as she appears at first glance, dealing with strangers and patients alike with a brusque, no-nonsense approach. If you need to quit wine or lay still for a week to survive whatever ails you, she will damn well tell you as much and punctuate it with a twist of her hands in your wound or the prick of her needles, to remind you of the pain you might otherwise suffer. She has lived her life mostly entangled with the wrong edge of society, however, and can usually toe the line of not offending anyone to the point where weapons are drawn.

The keen-eyed and insightful will notice that it's not really her usually criminal clientele that is the problem, but a mix of self-depreciation and a need to guard her secrets that sharpens her tongue. Vhen tries so hard to keep people at bay to protect herself, and protect them from her, that it becomes painfully obvious once you figure her out. She seems to believe that she's a blight on the world and that her failings outweigh the good that she does. When she operates or treats people, there is a flicker of guilt whenever she leaves her patients with scars. Whatever she is hiding is also never far from her thoughts, and the stress of whatever it is sometimes shines through her stand-off-ish behavior.

Should one manage to earn her trust or catch her with Orphan patients, one would see a warmth that thaws the cold fury directed at herself and parts of the world. She will protect the weak at the expense of herself ten times out of ten, and children are sacred to her. She doesn't judge others nearly as harshly as she seems to judge herself, but she also hasn't had a lot of say in the matter in the last many years, as her policy of accepting any patient was forced upon her at first. Now she believes that anyone willing to endure the pain of her treatment must be so desperate they have nowhere else to go, and embraces the policy to be a safe port in an endless storm.

Abilities/Skills

・Medicinal Knowledge: Vhen knows the anatomy and biology of most humanoid creatures. This knowledge stems from a mixed bag of trial and error, studies, and innate abilities gained through her contract with The Thing.

・Surgery: Deft hands, needles, fire, and a sanitary environment will safely seal up most of the wounds brought before Vhen. She has a reputation for being able to close any wound imaginable, and this is true. She's no miracle worker, however, and can do nothing for the loss of blood or recovery rate except offer strict instructions and the occasional herbal mix. Her reputation stems from her habit of closing all wounds, even if her patients die on her table.

・Potions and Concoctions: Vhen has learned a handful of mixtures that will aid in healing. Two are for slowing blood flow to buy her time, one is to help replenish what was lost through accelerated blood cell production, one is for burn wounds, one is to induce sleep, and the last is for cleaning impurities and infection from the skin.   She has so far not managed to reliably make potions to dull pain.

・Flame Touched: With powers borrowed from the being hiding in her soul, Vhen is able to conjure flame and intense heat at her fingertips. She uses this to heat her surgery tools and sometimes to sear wounds shut, but she clearly loathes using the flames at all. The same powers also grant her some protection against heat and flames, and burns seem to heal quickly for her.

・Self-Defense: Vhen is by no means a fighter, but she works hard to stay fit and nimble. She can persuade most assailants to let go with a well-aimed jab of a needle. Her techniques mostly rely on dodging attacks or being held so close she can utilize the needles hidden in the wraps of her wrist, however. She is powerless against ranged attacks or weapons with any sort of reach. Only in absolute emergencies will she use her flame touch to burn skin or set clothing alight.

・Botany - Medicinal Herbs: Vhen tries to keep a live supply of the herbs she uses the most for concoctions and mixtures. While her small rooftop garden has been wrecked and plundered many times before certain rules seemed to get enforced,  Her space is limited and she knows nothing of plants that don't have any medicinal properties. She does seem to know whether a plant can be used to treat patients or not at a glance, and this innate knowledge also seems to stem from The Thing.

History

Vhen's life has been a mess since the day she was born, or so she is inclined to believe. She doesn't remember her early years at all, though she's fairly certain she was abandoned in an alley somewhere or that her parents died somehow. From there, though, she must have been adopted or taken care of by someone. It doesn't much matter, as all of her memories before the age of 23 are fragmented and blurred to her. She knows that she was probably raised in poverty, but not directly a part of the Orphanage as no one thus far has recognized her as a Grown.

The reason she believes she was adopted, is her earliest, clear memory. She woke up, hands ablaze and a middle-aged couple dead nearby. They had died not by her hand, but by the desert heat, she knew that much. She was wearing similar clothes to them and instinct told her they were her parents, yet she looked nothing like them. None of them had green eyes, one had light brown hair, the other blonde. Both had sun-kissed skin like her, but their faces and their body structures were so unlike hers that there was no way they could have been related.

Hazy memories of the time leading up to that point in time have now become the nightmares that keep Vhen awake at night. The unrelenting heat, the hunger and thirst, the endless sea of sand... and the burning red eyes of whatever saved her. She had struck a deal to survive and now that being... that Thing... was a passenger in her soul. Its power alone saw her stumbling into the gates of Al-Jalasa, and its shared knowledge and power are now what keep her fed. Vhen felt at home there and knew it was where she must be from.

As if they sensed her sullied soul, however, few took kindly to her return. Or maybe it was the searing touch of her hands or the way an unnatural red spark would burn deep in her eyes, or maybe it was simply her lack of coin. Scuffles were common, and it took a while for Vhen to learn how to put up enough of a fight to not be worth the trouble. She settled in a tiny corner of the slums, more than a few hand-marks burned into the arms and legs of would-be assailants. She came to be known as Pyre the Fire Demon and people gave her a wide berth.

It was in those days, struggling to find food and get by, that she found her first patient. She never quite did figure out which criminal group he belonged to, but it was clear that he was a regular participant in the adult crimes in Al-Jasala, long since crossed from Orphan to something irreversible. He was bleeding out in her alley and she hesitantly used a needle and thread she had stolen to patch her clothes to sew him shut.

He died the next day, his blood loss too heavy.

Her work with the wounds managed to catch the attention of someone in the know, however, and no more than a week passed before two thieves tracked her down, held a blade to her throat, and had her patch them up one by one, taking turns with the dagger. Once done and at a safe distance, they flicked her a coin and disappeared. This pattern repeated, and some even brought bandages, needles, and thread with them as they sought her out. As if someone had decided to invest in her, the patients and payments increased rapidly.  Threats of violence were a constant companion to the coin, however, and the payments were not enough to get her out of the slums. She wasn't stupid enough to try to outrun her hidden benefactors anyway. As if there was some kind of secret agreement to keep her afloat but tied down, she never received more than she needed for food and medical supplies.

Even her current living quarters were handed to her in the same way as her other payments; a blade at her throat and instructions on what to do. Everyone seemed to know how to find her even when she moved around anyway and the home was large and comfortable by slum standards, so Vhen never put up a fight or bolted. Thankfully, that was the last time any of her patients threatened her with weapons. She had built a report now, as a mouthy but harmless doctor who asked only what she needed to know to patch you back up. It didn't take long from that point for her clientele to increase to the Orphanage. Unspoken rules seemed to take root, and while Vhen is aware of most of them, there is probably a handful still unknown to her.

The rules she does know are:

1) The doctor will only ask questions pertaining to the injuries sustained. This may include details of any fights, to determine if there are internal injuries that are invisible to the naked eye, but will exclude information that might be used to identify patients or opponents.

2) The doctor must be paid for her services unless the patient is of the Orphanage. Payments can be made in supplies or food.

3) Poisoning or sabotaging supplies or the herb garden is not allowed. Whether this is a gentleman's agreement or meant to keep the doctor and the Orphanage safe is unknown, however.

4) The doctor will treat anyone, at any hour.

There seems to be a rule allowing groups to prevent rival groups to see her, excluding anyone of the Orphanage, but Vhen isn't entirely sure about the details. She knows that she's considered a neutral party and that no group has ever openly claimed her or her achievements as belonging to them, but she got the vertical scar on her face when she was caught between two opposing sides trying to keep each other from getting to her.

Through the last couple of years, Vhen has settled in quite comfortably as the doctor of the criminal underbelly and the poor, though she is bitter at her lack of actual healing magic and the perceived blemish on her soul.

She knows that her survival has been entirely thanks to The Thing, but she can also see the changes it brings to her body. More and more patients comment on the red in her eyes, so Vhen can only assume it's getting bigger or clearer. The amount of black skin and red hair is also increasing, and it's becoming more and more clear that she doesn't just have a youthful face, she seems to have stopped aging since she made a deal with the Thing. All of this seems to be putting her on edge, though she tries to focus on her patients.

Other Information - Relationships and Connections

・Friends and Allies:
・Suna (Trusted business partner.)
・Vhen's Orphans (Four Orphans who help Vhen. See more details below.)
・Raewyn (Patient. Occasional Lover. Doesn't know most of her names.)
・Hassan (Patient. Trusted through similar experiences.)
・Malik (Patient. Hassan's follower.)

・Acquaintances:
・Dephas (Treated for The Sacrament.)
・Isenarra/'Isa' (Met when treating Dephas.)
・Klef (Met once and shared a meal.)
・Saroya (Met when treating Dephas. Revealed more about herself than she meant to.)
・Seniya (Patient.)
・Raedan (Met twice when treating Dephas. Hasn't spoken much with him.)
・Aratiri - Ari/Bounty Hunter Form (Met once. Threats were exchanged but things ended peacefully.)
・Aratiri - Orphan/Nahla Form (Patient.)
・Aratiri - Thug Form (Patient.)
・Elara (Met once and shared a meal.)
・Solomon (Met once, shared a meal, and got intimate.)

・Known but Not Met:
・None Currently

・Enemies:
・None Currently

・Relationships and Connections - Misc Info:
・Vhen tries to steer clear of the criminal underbelly of Al-Jalasa outside of the patients that seek her out, but not many walking a straight and narrow path will seek out a healer that can't properly heal. Her entire business is also heavily tied to the gangs and organizations of the slums, so there's no out for her. She has no idea who controls the web that established her as an underground surgeon and thus avoids picking fights or catering to any groups in case it might mean the end of her protection.

・Both the Merciful Sisters and the Shadowed Sands are aware of her presence, though they view her in quite different lights. The Shadowed Sands appreciate her policy of treating anyone and not asking questions, knowing they can rely on her in a pinch. The Merciful Sisters, however, are not too fond of her treating their slaves and prolonging their journey toward "salvation." They currently tolerate her as she treats them as well, and because she inflicts quite a lot of pain during her treatments and is only sought out in emergencies. Vhen might need to make some powerful connections sooner or later to stay safe from them, however.

Other Information - Vhen and the Thing

・About Vhen and Her Flames:
・Vhen's biggest regret is that she possesses no true healing magic and that she can only treat others with more pain and suffering even though there are alternatives out there.

・Due to her adversity to her flames, Vhen has never experimented with their limits. It's possible that she could become able to chuck around small fireballs, but she has no desire to do that or even to find out if she can.

・Vhen has noticed a direct link between using her flames and the physical changes to her body. The black spots will widen, and her hair will burn red. She hasn't noticed that the black skin burns away old scars and stays smooth, however.

・About the Thing:
・She does not remember the origin of the being possessing her, or the terms of their bargain, but believes that it will devour her soul entirely the day her body is completely changed. She has decided all on her own that whatever she made a deal with is evil, but there is no actual proof of this.

Other Information - List of Orphans "Employed" by Vhen
・Grandpa
Named so because he appears far older than he is, though it's only a matter of adding 6 to 8 years to his actual age of 14 and not nearly enough to make him look like an actual old man. His shrewd mind and a keen sense for business have made Grandpa the perfect Orphan to handle purchases for Vhen and come away with extra.

・Soot Mongrel
A jackalkin with a propensity for getting himself dirty, Soot Mongrel (or just Soot) is around 13 and grew up with Grandpa. He swears up and down it's because he's always left with the heavy lifting and dirty work, but he has been caught happily rolling around dust and grime on several occasions. He is the muscle of the group, though he's more dextrous than strong, and is rarely seen without Safa at his side, despite the large age gap of the pair.

・Spoiled Safa
The team's darling, and so named because his big, blue eyes attract a lot of easy attention when begging. A mere 5 years old, Safa usually functions as the distraction, with Soot looming nearby to keep him safe. He's a natural actor and his adorable looks let him off the hook far more often than they should.

・Kregs
The only girl in the group, Kregs is a scrawny kid of around 8 or 9 who serves as the team's runner. She's fast and nimble, and her small size lets her slip through places the others would be hard-pressed to follow. Her hair is usually shaved off, so most would take her for a boy.