Name: Emery

Species: Greyshell

Gender: Female (She/Her)

Occupation/ Role: Highreign Knight, Colosseum combatant, Assassin and Hitwoman

Origins: Highreign

NSFW Ref: https://www.furaffinity.net/view/56738061/


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Bio: Emery is an insect who hails from a far off Kingdom, known and feared, named Highreign. She grew up in the slums with a struggling family, only to sky rocket her status and become one of the kingdoms most notable warriors and assassins.

Emery is obviously inspired by Lace. I’d consider her a similar species to Lace, whatever that may be. A black face, grey shell that covers her head (It is NOT a helmet, it is NOT removable). Her torso is black too, as well as her fingers, while her limbs are that same grey shell to her head.

She’s agile and quick, but also insanely strong for her rather small looks. Her main weapon is a giant cleaver that she claimed as her own, after defeating the great beast that once wielded it with nothing but a dagger. Emery would also become immensely skilled with a Rapier after becoming a royal warrior.

Emery is one of two Highreign assassins, the other being Ira. They have a bit of a rivalry and don’t get along the best, always trying to one up each other. Emery specifically is usually tasked with requests that take her outside Highreign and into foreign lands. To disguise herself, she wears the Decrepit Seeker armour, which essentially makes her look like a rogue bandit.

She had never failed a mission… though she came close to failing one time, it wasn't until she let one pesky Spearbug get away, and it came back to bite her. Little did she know this spearbug would change her life for the better.

Though it is unknown to Emery, her family seems to have ties to the City of Steel, a mysterious kingdom shrouded in mystery, home to the Steel Seer's.

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Personality: Emery is cocky, egotistical, a bit of a psychopath and quite the jokester. She’s also quite loud and obnoxious. When she’s set on a goal or mission however, she can completely shift her personality to be incredibly determined and focused, and only speaks when its needed.

She’s never had many friends, she always cared more for her family. If you do befriend her though she’s like the friend that doesn’t shut up and is probably about to do something stupid.

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Story Events:

🔶When Emery was just a child, she lived in the slums of Highreign. Her own was nothing but a small cobblestone house with a tattered roof. Similar cottages lined along one another like tents in soggy dirt. Her parents and several siblings all struggled to get by, forever jealous of the glorious silver buildings that overshadowed their sad existence.
Highreign guards would frequent the slums to keep order, or even execute those that broke their laws. Most times they abused their status and power.

When Emery was a teen, her father attempted to steal food for their family during a riot. Multiple guards attempted to take his life there and then, and that’s when Emery sprung into action. Whether it was luck or her blind rage, she managed to slaughter every guard and save her father. Eventually she was stopped by a knight captain who came after hearing the news.
Emery expected her life to be taken at that very moment- and yet somehow, she was spared, instead take to the castle and thrown into a cell.

Awaiting her fate, one of the four kings visited her cell, and offered her a chance at redemption after being impressed by such a young girl to have taken on so many guards. A chance it was, as she’s thrown into a Colosseum mere days later in a gladiator fashion. With nothing but a simple sword, she and many others fought to the death, along with monsters and creatures from outside the kingdoms walls. Emery came out on top, soaked in blood, even felling a giant beast wielding a Cleaver, which she now claims as her own. She owes her fighting skills to her father who taught her the basics, and her siblings for practicing with her all those years ago.

Emery became popular in the Colosseum space, earning enough money to help her parents- and others in the slums to improve their lifestyle. She kept putting her life on the line for her family’s sake. Little did she know the four kings had taken great interest in her skills.

One day they took her under their wing and trained her to become an assassin and noble knight. Emery would train with another insect, Ira. A foreigner to Highreign that also slipped into the ranks quickly, already being a hitwoman herself at a young age.
Emery and Ira didn’t get along the best, but they honed their skills together. Emery even learned how to use a Rapier from the knight captain that brought her here in the first place.

🔶 Through their training, as they neared adulthood, the two assassins would start to be assigned missions. Emery was sent outside of Highreign with a small group under her command. They were given armour to disguise themselves as bandits, hiding the Highreign connection completely.

Emery, showing no mercy, succeeding every mission, slaughtering royalties on their way to negotiate, and namely princesses who were contracted to be wed to the Highreign Prince/ one of the four kings. With each murder, the foreign kingdoms would falter, leaving Highreign to act upon this with lies, violence and war.

It got so bad, Highreign made a name for itself as the one kingdom to fear the most. No kingdom had ever come out on top, and Highreign would leave destruction in their wake, and reap whatever they could.

Then Emery was tasked to assassinate a princess named Valleda midway on her journey to Highreign. Spearbugs in a desert kingdom named Sundrea. This time they put up a fight, Emery losing most of her crew in the fight. Valleda put up a fight but was ultimately slain. Despite the main goal being a success, one of two Sundrean knights (Harrold) escaped with Valleda’s body, while the other unleashed a terrifying power than almost ended them (Arid Vessel). Emery was luckily able to subdue them, deciding to take the knight back to Highreign as a prisoner, seeing something unique in them.

🔶 Years later, Emery is tasked to assassinate a princess once again; Eralind from Nirandel. This time however, she fails. That one spearbug from years ago, Harrold, is somehow a part of the travellers. Harrold gets the jump on them, having scouted ahead. Emery loses her crew, tumbling down a mountain into the dark abyss, while Emery is able to stop herself from a devastating fall.

She returns to Highreign, having failed her first mission. Her anger is like nothing she’s felt before. The Kings scold her but see another opportunity once Eralind arrives. At this point, Irais tasked to assassinate Eralind, while Emery aims for Harrold.

During one evening though, as a massive celebration is happening for Eralinds (unwanted) arrival, Emery tries to learn about Harrold, now without her disguise, she approaches him casually. They strike a chord, Emery for the first-time hearing about the tragedy she has caused someone. It makes Emery re-think a lot of what she’s done. She can’t bring herself to carry out her mission after getting to know Harrold more. At this point, Ira notices, and tries to take charge of the situation.

During their stay in Highreign, Harrold eventually finds the Arid Vessel, locked away under the kingdom in some strange depths, which leads him to start questioning the encounters he’s had, and how everything seems to be connected. Ira attempts to kill him here as he is unarmed, but the Arid Vessel, despite being weak after years of entrapment and neglect, manages to save Harrold yet again.

Upon this realization, Harrold and Arid escape, and with little time to think, they grab Eralind in order to flee. While Arid does a lot of the heavy work, Harrold and Eralind encounter Emery one last time. Emery opens up about everything. How she’s the one who ruined Harrold’s life, that she was tasked to do it again. Emery wants to leave with them, but Harrold, finally learning the truth, explodes in fury.
They fight, and he wins. He uses Emery’s own Cleaver to slam her into the ground and pin her down, leaving Emery to bleed out. One of the four kings finds her, kicks her, swears and calls her names at Emery’s constant failures. Another of the kings injects Emery with lifeblood, able to help her recover as he still sees hope in her.

Fast forward to Nirandel, a war is about to break out. And Highreigns secret weapon will be unveiled. Little did they know… this would be the last war Highreign starts, as their lies, even to their own kingdom, all come out in this one last fight.

In a strange twist, it is Emery and Harrold that team up at the very end to bring all to fruition.

🔶 After the war, and a restructure in Highreign’s leaders, Emery chooses to leave Highreign and go her own way for a while… that is until she ends up with Harrold and Eralind again. Even with Harrold hating her guts, they slowly work things out with Eralinds help.

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Relationships:
🔶Family – Emery is very close to her family. She loves them all dearly. As she aged and became a warrior for the kingdom, she didn’t see them nearly as often during her many journeys outside the kingdom. Despite that, she would still send them money and goods, and write to them if she couldn’t find the time to visit. Before she left Highreign to be with Eralind and Harrold, she’d visit them one last time. It has been years since she’s seen them.

🔶Ira – Despite learning with her and mastering her assassins skills, they are not close, and are somewhat friendly in their rivalry. The older they got, the less aggressive they are to one another. Ira even flirts with Emery more.

🔶Harrold - Even after murdering his best friend and princess, and then trying to do it again, essentially ruining his life… they’re pretty close and have a lot in common. While Harrold may never forgive her, he’s at least happy they’re on better terms. And Eralind is always there to help the two if negative feelings start to rise up again.

🔶Eralind – Emery never really had a connection to Eralind until after the events in Highreign. Despite talking to her a little and finding Eralind cute, they only really got to know each other once she started living with them in Nirandel. Emery’s feelings and thoughts are a mess around Eralind, finding her lovely, friendly, gentle, and it saddens Emery knowing she could have killed this beautiful person. And yet… Eralind shows little to no worry about Emery now.

🔶The Four Highreign Kings – Of course her relationship to them is mostly negative now, but one was always worse, and one was always kinder. The kinder of the Kings still respects her to this day.

🔶Highreign Queen – After her return to the throne, she granted Emery her Grand Armour, making her Highreign’s most noble knight. Even if Emery didn’t stick around for long, she still has the armour with her.

🔶Hornet – She met Hornet when they travelled back to Hallownest. They see each other as rivals, and spar frequently. Hornet can’t help but think of Lace however when she looks at Emery.

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Little Facts:
🔶The smell of blood sends Emery into a frenzied state. Its almost like a drug to her, making her more lethal in combat.
🔶Despite being bisexual she does prefer girls.
🔶She’s not a picky eater and eats just for the energy.
🔶She developed a fascination in old, worn-down trinkets and weapons. The rougher the condition, the cooler it is.
🔶She’s jealous of Harrold’s strength when he’s in his 30s. Their strength used to be on par until he grew like 4ft taller. (Or cms, I like to think of Hollow Knight characters as tiny bugs most of the time and now human height)
🔶Emery is technically in a polyamorous relationship with Harrold and Eralind. They’re all very open about it and do engage with others outside the relationship too. Especially Harrold, as he is possible seeking to repopulate his Arid species.
🔶She travels to Pharloom with Harrold at some point. She loves the place, saying it feels like her true home.

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4 whole years later and Emery FINALLY has a full refsheet. I'd been putting it off for ages, but honestly the longer it was put off, the more I could develop the place she's from.

Hollow Knight (C) Team Cherry
Emery (C) Me