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Ember and Marina were born twins, daughtering a father who needed someone to inherit. The politics of the question were always a struggle, and it was always his plan to marry in men for the twins and ensure the continuation of the bloodline. Still, his legacy was very important to him, and both his daughters were aggressively competent, defying convention to learn to fight as well as administrate land. When her father died, he was still daughtered, and although Ember was not the rightful heir under the law of the land, she held the land by virtue of the loyalty of her father’s men, and through political sway and fierce intensity managed to have herself declared ‘regent’ for her father’s spendthrift brother. She held the barony by the skin of her teeth, defeating two duellists on her uncle’s behalf who challenged her claim, and under her iron grip Redreef thrived. While her sister captained the first ship of the Redreef fleet with skill and verve to fight off all comers, Ember held her ground and held the land. When the law of the land changed and women were deemed eligible to inherit land under the Mourning Isles, hers was the first suit — by blood and by the choice of the Baron — in the Court of the Mourning Isles to confirm her claim. The case was settled in a publicly vaunted occasion for trial by combat, and Ember personally defeated her uncle’s chosen champion in a fight to the death, against all odds. Her uncle yielded and retired in ignominy, while Ember solidifed her rule and developed her reputation crushing revolts against her authority with an even-handed fist and the aid of her sister as her strong right arm.

Official portraits of Countess Ember Redreef show a woman with sun-bronzed skin, dark hair, and amber eyes, an athletic figure with a scar on her left cheek and a baleful glare. To see her in person, without her armor or cloak hiding her from view, one would be forgiven for thinking that this is not the same creature. Broadly shaped like a human, Ember's skin is a deep red, and her hair is as white as pristine snow. Her eyes are solid yellow in color and literally glow in the darkness. Large, long ears come to knife-tip points. Her fingers and toes end in brutal claws, and her teeth are sharpened, with visible fangs. A thick, long tail sways behind her, its top edge ridged with low nubs of bone emerging just past the surface of her hide. And from her temples sprout great, black, wickedly curved ram-like horns. Surely, this monster could not be Ember Redreef -- but the scar on her left cheek, the blunt and clipped way of speaking, the fierce sternness... there's really no one else it COULD be.

Passionate, ambitious and bold, Ember rules by dint of force of personality. She works hard, aggressive and confident, and brooks no disrespect. To be a woman that has lived the life she has lived in the Mourning Isles, strength is required. Image-breaking came naturally to her. She is crisp, acerbic, and allergic to nonsense. Yet she is not without enjoyment in life. She enjoys aggressive men, challenging games of chance, and fights that get the blood hot. Though she has a reputation that suggests merciless crushing of all who stand against her, those who speak to her directly might find that exaggerated: not reckless cruelty, but relentless competence, is her stock in trade.