@nureyev-steel-institute hell yeah you can! the ones i've been thinking about most recently are these three kiddos i've had since high school, which i recently revamped:
This guy is Karna, a changeling and exiled prince. Magic is a largely unknown, secretive world in his story, so he had no idea he wasn't fully human until his magic started to manifest when he turned 21. Karna's mother, the queen, was always afraid of him, because she knew his father, one of the Folk, was a pretty terrible person with pretty powerful magic. Because of her fear, she kept him at a distance, and so he grew up with deeply-rooted people pleaser tendencies as he spent his whole life trying to gain her approval, or the affection of literally anyone he met. When his magic manifested, it took the form of cell manipulation -- specifically growth and healing. So he would heal wounds and grow pretty flowers, all in service of getting people to like him. But as soon as the queen found out that he had magic, she had him arrested and sent to be executed, saying she should have done so from the start. Karna escaped and eventually made his way to an island largely populated by exiles and refugees. He was deeply changed by this betrayal, and so his magic changed too, turning from growth and healing to rot and decay. He basically turned from a cleric to a necromancer.
The whole story is about Karna coming into his own as a changeling, learning more about the world of the Folk, and, of course, getting revenge by taking back the throne. It's like a villain origin / corruption arc story, but framed as Karna's liberation. Basically it's like if those ex-people pleasers talking about how they're entering their "villain era" actually went on to commit atrocities, and the comment section was 100% on their side.
This is Ashe! He's a mercenary swordsman that Karna meets on the island at an underground fighting ring. Karna becomes the first person to best Ashe in a duel, and Inaya (Ashe's partner in crime) insists that he join their duo. Ashe was dead-set against this, but Inaya always gets what she wants, so he begrudgingly allows Karna into the group, although there's a strong one-sided rivalry there for the first few months. Ashe likes to think of himself as the pragmatic one, but he's die-hard loyal and kind of a softie at heart when it comes to the people he loves, a list which includes only Inaya and Karna. When Karna decides to seek revenge on the queen, Ashe is the one who insists they go with him (only because the payout for them would be huge, of course, and not that he cares or anything but Karna would get murdered within a week if left to his own devices). Ashe and Karna also eventually become lovers. He thinks it's super romantic when Karna lights a city on fire to spell out "I love you" from above (he's right). Ashe becomes Karna's advisor after they take over the kingdom; Karna really respects his counsel.
Finally, this is Inaya, Ashe's partner and the primary scheme-haver and gunslinger of the mercenary duo. She was originally a merchant’s daughter, but fled home to avoid an arranged business marriage to a much older man and to seek adventure. She met Ashe, already a mercenary thief at the time, when he tried to rob her father’s vessel. They joined forces, combining Ashe’s know-how with Inaya’s insider knowledge of the merchant world. Inaya is much more chaotic and impulsive than Ashe, she really fucking loves pyrotechnics, and she has a girlfriend in every major city. Despite being generally the most reckless of the three, Inaya is also the most pragmatic. She might choose to give in to her impulses a lot, but she tends to make her actual decisions based on reason, while both Ashe and Karna tend to act purely on emotion, and Ashe just finds logical explanations for his actions after the fact. After they usurp the throne, Inaya becomes Karna's general, being the best strategist of the three. I haven't yet figured out the exact technologies available in their world, but I really want her to have a giant over-the-shoulder firearm of some sort, like a really big bazuka or something. She deserves it <3
Happy new year, Helia!! You're a delight 💖 I hope you have a fantastic year
Happy new year Sam!! I’m so happy I got to know you this year! Wishing you many wonderful stories to read and new cursed food combinations to discover :)
Must I analyze my villains and unpack all their symbolism, allegories, themes, and motivations? Is it not enough to simply project every single thought and emotion I have ever experienced onto them in a misguided attempt at self-therapy and call it a day?
