On her face, Neriah Parringer is a simple excavator, a freelancer who wanders parts of Ignas in search of adventure parties to accompany on their delves into old ruins and caverns, putting her skills to work in search of answers. If only things were that simple in the private confines of her heart, where endless questions have lived since childhood. She could define herself by her job, but beyond it, Neriah seeks answers to more fundamental questions of the self - who she is, why she's here, and why the world has conspired to make her what she is. While she's quiet, withdrawn and a little salty, prone to opening up to her friends and acquaintances with a little time but keeping part of herself forever guarded, what's clear enough is that she rarely seems to find satisfaction - as if something is always just outside her grasp.
Marilyn: Neriah's trusty pistol, a glossy-looking pistol with a curious firing mechanism. Rather than a conventional hammer, there's a steam-powered firing coil buried inside, and it fires the bullets at a significantly higher penetrating power than a conventional revolver could, venting steam out the 'nostrils' behind the magazine in the process.
Trusty Shovel: It's a simple excavator's spade. With this, she can dig into the turf, or into piles of rocks, or even use it to pry open doors or smash locks. It's a big help to the team, too - when Neriah digs in, it gives the entire team a helping hand by opening up handholds or giving them something to use for leverage.
Magic: Neriah seems capable of channeling some form of dark magic. The spells may manifest as immensely powerful blasts of dark energy with an intensely unnerving spiritual aura, or as eldritch spheres with similar properties, among other manifestations. Whatever it is, the magic not only seems to manifest through her right hand, it also seems to cause her intense levels of pain, verging on the near-fatal.
NUMBER EIGHT: Neriah seems to have the ability - though it's questionable if it's voluntary on her part - to accelerate her dark magic to the extent that she physically transforms into a being of uncontrolled negative energy, completely consuming her. The entity's potency increases a thousandfold, and she displays a sigil on her hand suggesting she may be tapping the power of an elder god.
Riesenlied: "At first I thought she was really saccharine and just this big obnoxious super-pure saint, but she's actually really nice and treated me like I'm a person and not just someone's boot scrapings. She's just about the only one who treated me like she cares... and for all that, I repaid her by going nuts and becoming a danger to Wayside. I can't keep putting everything she's built at risk. Riese... she's too much of a sweetie muffin to deserve a monster like me ruining her life."
Mikaia: "...I never thought I'd have a little buddy. I'm... I'm okay with it. I want to be there to protect her... I wouldn't ever want anything bad to happen to someone so kind. But I can't be the person she needs... not until I can control myself. Until then, I have to do everything I can to make sure she grows up happy."
Millenia: "I feel really drawn to her in this strangely magnetic way, even though she's really forward and keeps suggesting she wants to eat me.... Maybe it's because we both have a curse? Or maybe it's because she feels the same way I do about fighting back when people wrong you. If she can help me, then that's all that matters. If she wants to be my best friend, then I'll be hers and we can both be cursed together."
People who deserve to not have their legs chopped off
Ambrosius: "He seems like a pretty okay guy for someone who's supposedly a crazy space alien. I wonder if his planet's made of cheese."
Asteroid the Kid: "YAY WE'RE GINNY BUDDIES but I wish you didn't have to put me in Astie Jail for that like y'know???"
Fei Fong Wong: "I feel like Fei understands me a little bit. People hate us both... maybe that means we can be friends."
Iskandra Grendorre: "She's kind of a butthead sometimes, but then, I hate most people in Filgaia too, so, whatever, let's be buttheads. At least she seems cool."
Jacqueline Barber: "Jay has always been really nice to me, even when not many other people have. She's got a good heart. I think she's afraid of me, though. That's OK. I'm afraid of me, too."
Layna Manydays: "Where's she from? She seems like she's from a time long past... but I'm glad she stood up for me. It's nice."
Lunata Croze: "She's a nice girl... she's really sensitive. She's not afraid of me like the others, I don't think. I'm... I'm kind of glad."
Malfi: "She's really nice and kind of elegant. I know people bag on the Metal Demons, but I like her a lot better than most humans, that's for sure."
Seraph Ragnell: "Oh man, so is she really the dead? That's awesome! She's my new pal, the dead! I wish I could ask the dead more questions, though. Like why she seems to see through me as easily as I can see through her."
Yarobeleedt: "Aw, Mr. Garbles... what a shy guy. I'm sorry I scared him. I always scare people. I hate it. I wish I didn't have to."
People on the fence but who might be OK
Elena: "She's one of those Granas nuns, isn't she? She always seems to be on edge around me. But then, I would be too...."
Rosaline Calice: "She seems really afraid of me... maybe it's because of her religion. As much as she doesn't like me, she's just so cute that I feel bad making her scared. Maybe I should send her some cupcakes or something, just to apologize."
People who deserve to be set on fire from the soul outward
Ethius Hesiod: "It's OK if Mr. Ethius hates me. I hate me too. I don't understand why the CaraKin hangs around him. He's a psychopath and a murderer and he'll just turn on them eventually."
Fenrir: "Oh, please. Glare away. I don't mind. Ha. Ha. Ha."
Ida Everstead-Rey: "What a hateful person. Her despair really suits her. I hope she spends a good long time wallowing in it. If I ever see her again, I'll make her pay for lecturing me like a snotty normal person."
Josephine Lovelace: "It must be easy to lecture people when you're normal. But she won't be doing much lecturing if I run across her again."
Margaret: "I'll teach you to short me on tips, even if that cigarette holder thing is awesome."
Matilda Whitehead: ""I used to really like Matilda, until she decided I deserve to be summarily executed. That hurt. She seemed like she was an OK person but she turned out to be someone awful, just like most other people in my life."
Rose: "I used to like her. She's just another one like all the rest. Another one who just takes one look at me and throws me under the cart. Go figure."
