Anna (a.k.a. Marina)

Background: Anna was always bright and a little strange. As a child she was inquisitive and sought out strange things like haunted houses and mysterious items. But the dark things she glimpse haunted her dreams. Worse for her was her mundane life, where she was continually thwarted in social interaction. She was very bad at judging other people's feelings or communicating hers.

When she was 9 her parent died during a house fire. Though she escaped, their screams and her loss filled her nightmares for the rest of her life. She is pathologically afraid of fire and will do anything to escape.

When she was 17, she was finally putting the pieces together. The dark things began to make sense and she could sense that she was on the cusp of understanding. She began a mystery play, seeing angels in the sky and mysterious voices urging her on. Then Dante struck, breaking her concentration with a car accident.

After leaving the hospital, she was distraught. She remembered something full of meaning but had lost it. Worse she was sure someone was out to get her. Lost Anna was drawn into the the Millers' ministry, which became the Disciples of Nehjarra. Something dark and evil there drove her to murder a fellow cultist. This drove her over the edge and worse allowed a demon into her mind.

The minor demon, a figment of her imagination, tormented her with visions of what would happen. Visions of the city burning. It told of the dates when the destined would be born: 12/21/79 (herself), 10/31/84, and 4/30/89. It told her Adele was the catalyst and only she could stop it. It used her fears and weaknesses against her until she broke. Under its false tutelage, she entered a pact for power. She would kill Adele to save the city and it would help her get the tools to do so. She became the leader of a splinter sect of the cult who sought to spread the word of Nehjarra. It pushed for the initial killings as training and to release it into the world.

But she was able to the truth. She thwarted the summonings hoping to save the city and stop her own demon. But she misjudged with Adele. When the fire began, she succumbed to the demons temptations and sacrificed her own followers to release it. Gifted with supernatural abilities by the experience she sought to save the city.

Sadly she was shortly after captured by mysterious wizards, now known to include Midas, leader of the Seers of the Throne. They wanted to keep Adele safe from her madness. Her mind was altered to prevent her from harming Adele. She escaped but is psychologically a mess.

She was presumed dead by the authorities but escaped to live as a homeless woman among the ruined factories of the city. Adele then delved into her mind to free her of her compulsions. With the aid of her daimon they sealed away many of her memories and defeated a potent manifestation of her fears. They put her in the care of a local church and made sure her demonic powers are sealed away. But to help her friend Hope, Adele revisited Anna with a group of ghosts. Together they scared Anna into confessing her crimes. She went to jail awaiting a psychological review.

After the Rewrite: Anna's awakening happened later when she was 20. She doesn't recall the day she Awakened, nor the days that followed. A car hit her just as her mind touched the Supernal. She spent 3 months in a coma while unconsciously she used her magic to heal her troubled mind.

When she recovered she sought answers. For awhile she joined a group of fellow mages in the nearby city of Gary. But she soon recognized the Disciples of Nehjarra were being manipulated by a demon. She fled the cult and joined the Free Council in Chicago. There she identified the mage responsible for her coma, a twisted soul called Dante who wanted to prevent Awakenings by those he felt were unworthy. She restrained herself from inflicting vengeance and let the Councilium banish him. Still tormented by her memories she works hard to fight her inner demons.

She chose the name of a saint for her Shadow name for her protection from devils. Valkyrie hesitantly recruited Anna for the response squad though she hasn't said why.

Description: Anna is in her mid twenties but has a haunted look in her eyes that makes her look older. She keeps her dark hair short and wears long sleeves to cover the burns from her childhood. She speaks timidly.

Path: Mastigos Order: Free Council

Known Arcana: Mind 1, Prime 2, Space 3