Born Chihiro Matsumoto (松本千尋), she is a former Atharim hunter defected against her will upon discovery that she is a channeler. Legally dead, she goes by the name Eidolon.

After six years travelling the Custody in exile, she and her brother, Kōta, have come to Moscow seeking asylum.

• C H A N N E L I N G •

Chihiro views the power as a curse and a taint, and this has formed an impressive block, such that she has not knowingly touched the power in the six years since her discovery of the ability. She avoids the company of other channelers when she finds them, but does not go out of her way to identify them either. It fills her with great conflict, and often ignorance is her only balm for the dishonour weighting her shoulders. The self-revulsion is so strong she does not like to be touched by others, and tends to skirt eye contact.

Occasionally she endeavours to research ways she might rid herself of the ability entirely, though she does not know if this is possible, nor believes it would absolve her abandonment of duty in the first place. She does not hunt, not wishing to touch the power by accident, for her only clear memory of its use is healing Kōta’s goshawk, Yua, following the heat of battle. Thus she avoids the circumstances that might make such a thing possible again. This is the tenuous vow that she uses to justify the continued abomination of her existence.

• S K I L L S •

• W E A P O N S •

She is formally trained in the use of naginata, kaiken, and the art of tantojutsu (knife fighting), and is a competent archer of the hankyū (small/half bow) also, but shuns these practises now; all but the kaiken, which she still carries on her person as a reminder of failed duty.

Old habits have not completely broken, though. She keeps herself physically fit, with a focus on maintaining reflexes, defence, and meditative arts.

• A N I M A L • H U S B A N D R Y •

She is particularly competent with large birds of prey, but has a general affinity with and fondness for animals. Given the nomadic lifestyle of her and her brother, they are unable to keep the birds of their youth, and neither would they be able to finance such an expensive pastime. Kōta still returns from time to time with a creature he has somehow rescued, and dabbles in the exotic animal trade — probably illegally, though Chihiro turns a blind eye to this. She nurses these poor souls without complaint, but does not allow herself to grow attached.

• E D U C A T I O N •

Chihiro’s training afforded her an extensive and rigorous education, both comprising of the supernatural teachings necessary for her work, as well as more conventional subjects. Amongst her clan, the latter was considered to be as equally important as the former. After all, much as the samurai of old taught also, the mind must be nourished as well as the body.

She is surprisingly bookish, enjoys reading, and will seek out museums, galleries, and libraries in new places. Her tastes err towards the academic, and given her unique situation, she is particularly fond of philosophical works. When she is able, she secures work in these areas, though often life with her brother is so nomadic she is forced into more transitory roles to make ends meet.

• T A T T O O •

Chihiro’s original Atharim tattoo was simple and small inside her forearm, the delicate curvature of a snake twined almost hidden amongst a plethora of sakura blossoms. The piece has since been both reworked and expanded, and no longer features the snake biting its own tail. It is intricate and larger now, featuring a snake whose skin phases in and out of its skeletal insides.

Though usually tucked hidden beneath her sleeve, it is fact the only decorative thing about her appearance. She has no other tattoos.

• S O U L •

She is possessed of a gentle soul, always desiring of peace and simplicity, which she either spends her life protecting or in search of. In each rebirth she is born with a sibling, usually a brother, and with an affinity for animals.