Ishar

The Summoner Apprentice

"Let's be friends!"

Ishar is the 90th Hero in the game Arena of Valor, classified in the category of mage.

Profile

 * Date of Birth: Mon DD
 * Place of Birth:
 * Height: cm
 * Age: 11

Lore
“D…dad? Where am I?”

Ishar opened her eyes to see the familiar face of her father, which calmed her a little bit.

“You’re home, honey,” said her father. “Just lie in bed and don’t worry. You must be hungry; I’ll have the butler bring lunch over, and you can eat in bed.”

Despite the harrowing experience, Ishar could not help but feel a little excited about this. Eating in BED! Would her father have allowed her to do that if that did not happen? But she remembered that she had her loyal, furry companion with her, and it was nowhere to be seen. In a half-panic, she asked, “Furball! Where’s Furball?”

“Shh.” her father put his finger over his lip and pointed to the other side of the bed. “Look.”

Furball’s ears twitched and it awoke from its slumber. The next instant it leaped up onto the bed and into Ishar’s arms, who eagerly rubbed her cheeks in its fluffy fur. “Honey, I don’t know what happened, and now isn’t the right time to talk about it.” As Ishar’s father stood up to leave the room, he suddenly turned to look at her, and there was something in his tone that made Ishar listen carefully. “But if someone asks about anything, anything at all about what happened…Say as little as you can. Say nothing.”

His voice was gentle, but firm and Ishar nodded, holding Furball even closer to her chest. Ishar, of course, knew exactly what happened. She was kidnapped by unknown assailants on her way to school this morning. For a 13-year-old girl she responded with remarkable calm, but there was little that she could do when she was taken and quickly blindfolded by the thugs. She was safely back at home now, though, and the clock on the wall showed that she was not unconscious for long – half a day, at most. If she was at school, she would have just finished her afternoon nap, waking up to start the lessons of the afternoon.

It was all like a strange dream, and it began to fade from Ishar’s memory as she woke up, as dreams so often do. Only the little creature in her arms told her that what had happened was real and not a dream, as pink magical energy slowly flowed out of its body and into Ishar’s in the silent room. News of Ishar’s attempted kidnapping quickly spread across Kazell, for her father was Androl, one of the leading candidates for Senate. Many of her father’s acquaintances came to express their sympathy and relief, and of course to gain favor with her father, whose popularity only grew after this latest incident. She was also visited by Valhein and Violet, two Demon Hunters assigned to the case, but they could not get any useful information from Ishar, who took her father’s advice to heart.

Meanwhile, Quillen, another Senate candidate rumored to be connected to the case, visited Androl and Ishar after the commotion had died down. “May I introduce to you my new secretary, Veres.” Quillen pointed behind him to a young woman with long, bright red hair. “Say, Veres, didn’t you go to the same school as young lady Ishar? St. Sephera’s? I’m sure there are many things the two of you can talk about.”

“Nice to meet you, Ishar. I’ve got a present for you, and I hope you’ll like it,” said the young woman with a smile, as Ishar looked back at her, seemingly at a loss for words.

“Ishar, why don’t you show Miss Veres the garden?” Androl patted his daughter’s head, nudging her on. That seemed to bring Ishar back to her senses, and she curtsied as a proper young lady should, heading for the garden with Veres following. In the garden, Ishar sent her attendant maid away and turned to face Veres, holding Furball in her arms.

“Are you a bad person, Miss Veres?”

“…Why would you ask that, Ishar?” Veres’ face was impassive, but her heart skipped a beat. How did the girl know?

“I saw you, at the place where I was taken to when I was kidnapped.” There was a certainty in Ishar’s voice that told Veres she was not bluffing. Was her hearing so superhuman? But what was it that the girl said – ‘saw’? Not ‘heard’?

Veres could not remember the last time she was caught so flat-footed, least of all by a young girl like Ishar. And this was hardly a situation that could be resolved with force. It was Ishar, however, who broke the silence.

“I don’t think you’re a bad person,” she said. “I saw you fight the woman with a scar on her face. You weren’t one of them.”

Veres felt great relief, though with more than a little confusion mixed within. “Well, I’m not exactly a good person either,” she answered. “But I have no reason to harm you – not now, at least.” “I know.” Ishar knelt down to brush Furball’s fur, calming her own nerves. As young as she was, she came from a family of politicians, and she could already sense the faint inklings of conspiracy.

“Furball tells me you feel familiar, that I can trust you.”

“Oh? Does the little guy talk?” Veres looked at the pink ball of fur curiously.

“No – but I can sense its thoughts, even share them. It was through Furball’s eyes that I saw you.” Veres’ interest was fully piqued now. “Very interesting…Would you mind telling me how you got away? By the time I got out of the fight with that hag, you and everybody else was gone.”

“I’m not sure,” said Ishar, thinking back. “I remember a man who was guarding say to the others that their cover was blown, and they should just kill me and not leave any loose ends. I was scared, and then I felt the world go black. The next time I woke up I was in my bed, at home.”

“Ah. Did you tell anyone? Like your dad?”

“No. I don’t know what they would do to Furball if I did.” Ishar thought about it but decided to keep her promise to her father a secret. She felt an affinity with Veres, but not so much that she would reveal the secret she shared with her father.

“Well, then, I have an idea…” Said Veres. Ishar returned to school a few days later. She was ‘recovered’ sufficiently to ‘remember’ the details of her kidnapping, allowing the Demon Hunters to find the kidnappers’ hideout. The place was empty by the time Valhein and Violet got there, however, and there was no indication as to who the kidnappers were, what they wanted, or where they went.

Nobody noticed that Ishar’s father had begun arranging basic magic lessons for his daughter.

“No one will help me discover your secret, Furball, so I will.”

Trivia

 * DDth Month YYYY — introduction of HERO.