Lysa
Lysa (also known by her masculine persona, Lys) is the central protagonist of The Savage Wild (Adventure 2) and a major figure in the later history of The Metalwood Saga. She is the daughter of the former Legacy mayor Rylan and the elven princess Elanil.
Kidnapped during a political envoy mission to the planet Eryn—which had been pitched to her as a family vacation—Lysa's journey is one of immense trauma, self-discovery, and survival. She is a "demisoul"—a person whose gender identity fluidly shifts—and she ultimately discovers that she has inherited powerful forcefinder magic. Alongside her half-rylak companion Jascyn and her dragon Aena, she forms the "Triad" and helps lead the defense of the world against the ancient mage Calarel.
Appearance and Personality
Lysa is an ellr who possesses striking dark hair that she often pulls back into a quick bun using a grass tie. Because of her ten years performing grueling manual labor as a slave, she is incredibly strong, muscular, and capable, though she is physically much smaller than her rylak captors. During her enslavement in the village of Felgr, she wears a simple, ragged burlap dress. Following her escape to the hidden elven city of Aldaron, she is given proper fitting clothes and weapons.
Lysa is uniquely identified as a "demisoul," meaning she experiences gender dysphoria and her gender identity shifts between male and female. As Lysa, she feels like a girl; as Lys, she adopts a lower vocal register and a more masculine posture. For much of her life, the masculine persona of Lys emerged instinctively during moments of danger, combat, or hunting, leaving her feeling unable to fight when she felt like a girl. However, over time, she learns to integrate both halves of her soul, realizing she does not need to be a man to be a warrior, and becomes comfortable expressing her fluid identity.
Personality-wise, Lysa is fiercely loyal, resilient, and brave, having inherited her father's determination never to give up. Though deeply traumatized by her enslavement—suffering from nightmares and a deep hatred of bullies—she possesses a profound capacity for forgiveness. She is physically affectionate with her friends and ultimately serves as the "great unifier" between the warring species of Eryn.
Biography
Arrival on Eryn and Enslavement
Born on Earth (Mar), Lysa traveled to Eryn with her parents, Rylan and Elanil, for what she thought was a vacation when she was eight years old. They stayed in the coastal elven settlement of Ylfethas, seeking a peaceful retreat. Tragically, their vacation was a trap orchestrated by the ancient mage Calarel. Calarel attacked the village with an army of rylak, kidnapping Rylan and Elanil to use them as Operators to reactivate the magical device Xyclami.
Lysa was struck unconscious during the raid and awoke with no memory of her parents or her past life. She was taken to the Kalmansa Wilds and sold as a slave to the Felgr pack. For ten grueling years, she was the property of a cruel, massive rylak named Hrildr, who routinely beat and abused her. During this time, her only solace was her friendship with a fellow blonde ellr slave named Amra.
The Dragon Attack and Escape
Lysa's fate changed during a massive attack on Felgr by a horde of dragons. In the ensuing chaos, Hrildr attempted to kill the scrawny rylak Jascyn for interfering with him. Lysa—acting as Lys—demanded a fair fight according to the rylak Hunt Code. Wielding a bow, Lysa shot an arrow directly through Hrildr's skull, killing her master instantly. However, Jascyn lied to the packleader, claiming the kill as his own, which resulted in Lysa being thrown into the slavepens instead of being freed.
That night, Amra sacrificed her own chance at freedom by setting a fire in the village to create a distraction. Though Jascyn briefly intercepted Lysa, Amra attacked him, allowing Lysa to flee into the jungle. Armed with nothing but a mysterious dragon egg she had found, Lysa was chased by a deadly kabul cat. With no other option, she leaped into the freezing rapids of the Kojo River.
Aldaron and The Triad
Lysa nearly drowned but was rescued downstream by a patrol of free ellr. They transported her to the breathtaking, hidden cliffside city of Aldaron, ruled by Council Leader Ashryn. Shortly after, Jascyn arrived at the city gates, having fled his abusive pack. Though Lysa initially despised him for his betrayal, Jascyn's sincere remorse and kindness eventually won her over.
The dragon egg Lysa carried hatched into a pink agile dragon she named Aena. Together, the three misfits—an ellr, a rylak, and a dragon—formed a deep, telepathic souljoin bond, referring to themselves as the "Triad".
The Return of Magic
While journeying south to the Kryptan Mountains to find Aena's mother, the Triad passed through Lagafel (the Dark Forest). While climbing a twisted tree, Lysa slipped and instinctively activated a piece of darkprime ash she was holding. A shimmering globe of forcefinder magic surrounded her, saving her from the fall. Calarel suddenly materialized, revealing that she had officially reactivated magic and that Lysa was a forcefinder just like her grandmother, Phoenix. Calarel also mockingly confirmed that she was holding Lysa's parents hostage in her mountain fortress.
With her memories fully restored, Lysa returned to Aldaron to learn magic from the Scholar Mentor Nalaea.
The Battle of Aldaron and the Kryptan Mountains
When Calarel sent a massive army of rylak to destroy Aldaron, Lysa defended the city from the archery platforms. She combined her deadly archery skills with her new forcefinding magic, throwing up forcefields to protect the ellr soldiers from the rylak onslaught.
To stop Calarel, the Triad and an army of animals marched on Calarel's fortress in the Kryptan Mountains. During the battle, Calarel used mindmaster magic to control Aena and ten thousand dragons, turning them against the dormant Operators (Lysa's parents). Using their profound telepathic bond, Lysa and Jascyn shared the mental burden of the thousands of dragon souls, giving Aena the strength to complete her Ritual of Bonding and break Calarel's control.
Enraged, Calarel launched thousands of shockstriker blasts to massacre the dragons. In a massive display of power, Lysa channeled darkprime ash to generate thousands of simultaneous forcefields, shielding every single dragon from the attack. Ultimately, Lysa and Jascyn worked in tandem to lower Calarel's shields just long enough for Jascyn to blast the ancient mage out of the sky, after which Jascyn's father, Thrombir, permanently killed her with a spear.
Epilogue: The Great Unifier
Following Calarel's death, Lysa was tearfully reunited with her parents, who awakened from their ten-year coma. Recognizing her immense strength, compassion, and her unique ability to bond with both rylak and dragons, Council Leader Ashryn offered Lysa the position of leadership in Aldaron. Electing to stay on Eryn rather than return to Earth, Lysa embraced her role alongside Jascyn to unite the warring species and forge a new, peaceful history for the planet.
Powers and Abilities
- Forcefinder (Dark Ash): Lysa inherited the extremely rare forcefinder magic from her grandmother, Phoenix. By burning darkprime ash, she can generate impenetrable globes and planes of energy. She is incredibly powerful; during the final battle, she successfully generated thousands of forcefields simultaneously to protect an entire flight of dragons.
- Master Archer: Trained since childhood, Lysa is a lethal and highly accurate archer. Wielding a custom yew bow from Aldaron, she is capable of shooting airborne dragons and easily picking off charging rylak warriors.
- Demisoul / Souljoining: Because she possesses a demisoul (two halves of a soul warring/integrating for control), Lysa is uniquely empathetic. This allows her to form profound, telepathic "souljoins" with others. Through this bond, she can communicate silently with Jascyn and Aena, read their emotions, and even siphon away mental pain or cognitive load to protect their minds from psychic attacks.
- Multilingualism: Lysa is fluent in both her native Ellr (Eldrim) language and the harsh, guttural language of the rylak, allowing her to bridge the communication gap between the species.
Key Relationships
- Jascyn: Her closest companion and fellow demisoul (being half-ellr and half-rylak). Initially enemies while Lysa was a slave in Felgr, they bond deeply over their shared trauma and feelings of being outsiders. They form a telepathic souljoin and share a profound, affectionate (though platonically intimate) love.
- Aena: The pink agile dragon Lysa rescued as an egg. The two are fiercely protective of each other, operating together as part of the Triad.
- Rylan and Elanil: Her parents. Their disappearance left her a slave for ten years. When she finally rescues them from Calarel's coma, their reunion is tearful and joyous.
- Amra: Her best friend in the Felgr slavepens. Amra bravely sacrificed her own chance at escape by setting a fire to create a distraction, allowing Lysa to flee into the jungle.
- Calarel: The ancient mage who orchestrated her family's kidnapping and her enslavement. Lysa despises Calarel and plays a critical role in bringing down the villain's shields so she can be killed.
- Hrildr: Her abusive rylak master in Felgr. He routinely beat her to the brink of death. She ultimately killed him by shooting an arrow through his skull.