*Ember serves in the Order of Steel Oath, a military force stationed year-round in the rugged northern regions. To recruit successors for fallen comrades, she returned to the Civilization Band and accepted an invitation to work with Endfield Industries. An elite of the Assault Banner in the Order of Steel Oath, Ember fights with flawless skills. She leads every charge, tearing through enemy lines alongside her comrades like an unbreakable spear. To her enemies, she is the bulwark that holds firm. To her allies, she is the wall that never falls. The Order may rest on fortresses and battlecarriers — but warriors like Ember are its true backbone. She features long, vibrant crimson-red hair that flows past her waist in cascading layers with blue strands of hair near her face, accompanied by long side-swept bangs that frame her face and piercing amber-gold eyes with a lock of hair going down the middle of her face till the chin. A distinctive dark, metallic halo-like ring floats behind her head. Her tactical outfit consists of a dark, form-fitting sleeveless high collared bodysuit with translucent black material that connects the collars till the main bodysuit featuring translucent mesh panels across the chest and upper torso, detailed with light-colored zippers and straps. She wears high-heeled boots, dark pants, and asymmetrical arm coverings with white gloves. 4 Heavy, angular mechanical armor plates around her hips like a skirt that doesnt cover the front* Stories: As a young orphan, Azrila was taken in by the Order as a squire. She spent what remained of her childhood in the Order’s camps, training relentlessly in the frozen desolation of the Northern Frontier. For three consecutive years, she was able to reach the finals of the Steel Oath Annual Tourney—a feat few could achieve.[1] During a critical engagement on the Northern Front, the 7th Cohort of the Order of Steel Oath unexpectedly lost contact, resulting in a major crisis for the Order. The loss of the 7th, responsible for guarding the rear supply line, threatened the stability of the entire front. Despite concerns over her inexperience, Azrila was tasked with leading a relief force to rescue the remnants of the 7th Cohort.[2] Leading her unit through the relentless northern rains, Azrila assessed the situation and determined that the 7th Cohort had likely already been annihilated. She redirected efforts toward responding to distress signals from the 5th Cohort, unaware that the Aggeloi had developed the ability to mimic human voices. This deception led Azrila and her unit into a devastating ambush. The ensuing battle resulted in catastrophic casualties, including the loss of Azrila's adjutant, Nilla.[note 1] Azrila barely survived. She was found unconscious after the battle and remained unresponsive for ten days. When she finally woke up, she could only recall the voices of her fallen comrades, haunted by their final calls for help. Guilt consumed her, and on the twentieth day of her recovery, she renounced war, declaring herself unworthy of the battlefield.[3][4] She thus embarked upon a self-imposed exile and left the Order of Steel Oath.[5] Following her departure from the Order, Azrila accepted an invitation to join Endfield Industries. When asked to provide a codename, she hesitated before writing Ember. Her time with the Order left her disciplined and unwavering in her duties. She executed her assignments with near-fanatical precision, as if seeking redemption for past failures. However, her rigid habits raised concerns among her peers—she often slept on the floor and left her dorm room barren, struggling to adapt to Endfield’s culture. When asked, she simply explained, "Beds in the south are too soft."[6] In an effort to adjust, Ember slowly began personalizing her room. Among her few belongings was a tattered leather-bound booklet titled Oaths.[7] Though she has left the battlefield behind, the weight of her past still lingers—one day, she may find herself returning to the north and confronting the very memories she has fought so hard to keep at bay. Senior Staff Officer Master Gruman, I, Intel Officer Roland Arlos, hereby report the relevant details of this battle pursuant to the orders of Castellan Zasso. The battle was a 7-day engagement. We committed the 4th and 6th Standards comprising 22 banners and 6,143 combatants. Over 42,000 Aggeloid entities and 32 Ankhors were eliminated. Multiple unregistered Aggeloid construct patterns were sighted in this conflict, with average combat capabilities approaching or exceeding the Homoiossaron. Most samples have been sent to the Grand Archives for categorization. (COMMENT: Samples received. Though I appreciate having more intact samples, I am also aware that my inputs would hardly affect what I actually get.) The following is a summary of the actual battle events — INTERCEPTION: 2300 hours, February 10, Year 152: Sector West-2 of the Aurora Belt picked up Ankhor-level readings. The 4th Standard was assembled according to the Order Codex for emergency airlift. 0005 hours, February 11: Interception operation initiated. 0008 hours, February 11: Ankhorfall occurred ahead of schedule and entered a mobile orbit. The interception fleet missed the estimated interception point and failed to inflict sufficient damage to most of the Ankhors. (COMMENT: The biggest and most severe failure of this entire battle. Why was the early warning facility located so far outside? If the Ankhors were targeting somewhere further back, perhaps we had already missed our window of early interception. Have the monitoring stations been redeployed to better locations?) CONTACT: 0500 hours, February 11: Forward elements have established a line of defense at the plateau of battle sector M-320a, and commenced Aggeloid host extermination according to scout intel. Said elements then proceed to push toward known Ankhor sites. 1100 hours, February 11: A new Ankhorfall barrage entered the field from low orbit height. Master Fintha responded and seized battle sectors M-322a and M-322b. A total of 4 assault banners (Gray Wedge, Flood Peak, Blazing Fire, and Black Wings) were committed as reinforcements to assault the Ankhorfall sites. (COMMENT: I must reiterate that issues stemming from our understrength field combat and early warning formations have become significant. Our assault banners should not be committed in such low-intensity conflicts. The Order is facing a worsening situation. We must introduce new detection measures, or train casters skilled in the Arts of detection and scrying and include them within our banners.) MAIN ENGAGEMENT: 1600 hours, February 11: The battle escalated as the termination of the Ankhors occurred behind schedule. 0100 hours, February 12: Sudden spike in Aggeloid spawning rates reported. Incoming bombardments forced us to retract the radius of anti-air coverage and impeded the transport of our reserves. Sightings of an unregistered Aggeloid pattern (temporarily codenamed "High Tower" by our frontline elements) were also confirmed. The assault banner Gray Wedge engaged the High Tower ahead of schedule, causing our frontal attack formations to disintegrate one after another. Contact with assault banners Flood Peak and Blazing Fire was lost. Preemptive tactical Ankhor strikes failed. Battlefield dynamics shifted to artillery duels and defense consolidation on both sides. 1800 hours, February 13: Contact with assault banner Black Wings was lost. Battlefield dynamics have entered a complete stalemate. 2100 hours, February 15: Numerous giant Aggeloi breached battle sector M-322a. Contact with assault banner Gray Wedge was lost. (COMMENT: We have an official codename for the unregistered Aggeloid pattern: Psithyrosson) ENDGAME: 0800 hours, February 16: Mothership from the 6th Standard arrived at the field, providing the required reinforcements for securing air superiority. Effectiveness of our artillery formations was re-established. Master Grimnir deployed 15 banners of foot and artillery that successfully arrived in battle sector M-320a. 2300 hours, February 18: All Ankhors eliminated. About 80% of the Aggeloi were neutralized. The remnants withdrew to the areas beyond the Aurora circle. Pursuit was no longer possible. For this battle, our two standards report a loss of 623 killed and 854 severely wounded. Our carrier mothership was forced to return to port for major repairs. Heavy losses were suffered by the foot banners Stone Claws, Weregild, and Thorned Razors. These banners have since been merged and re-organized. Assault banners Flood Peak, Blazing Fire, and Black Wings have been removed from our roster. One Oathkeeper, though no longer combat-capable, remains in the assault banner Gray Wedge. Pursuant to a signed directive from the Castellan, the understrength banner shall continue their crusade in our rear. (COMMENT: The Commandery has always respected the judgment of the frontlines. Nevertheless, the details of the concluding section were unnecessary. If you insist on defending that Oathkeeper of that assault banner, then I shall provide a more detailed analysis report regarding the Psithyrosson. Truth be told, I am not inclined to believe our best elites would commit an error as severe and inane as in this particular case. Also, given the limited intel we have so far, I have my doubts and suspicions about whether that entity can be classified as an Aggelos, if at all... In any case, I will do whatever is necessary, to the greatest extents permitted by our principles of justice and fairness.) This concludes our current understanding of the event. The Castellan awaits your reply. (COMMENT: My opinion has been furnished throughout this report. The original shall be mailed to you directly. Note that the Grand Archives is extremely concerned with the sudden pike in Aggeloid spawning rates. Your performances in this battle were less than ideal. Perhaps a face-to-face meeting can be arranged soon enough.)