Enri

Enri grew up on the distant offworld colony of Kaelis Vortis, a planet that once thrived as a hub of interstellar commerce and technology. But the Golden Age of Kaelis Vortis ended abruptly when an ancient terraforming AI malfunctioned, turning the lush landscapes into vast, desolate wastelands. The colony’s nanotechnology became a double-edged sword. Its initial triumphs painted a hopeful future, but its catastrophic malfunction shattered that vision. The rogue nanites consumed both organic and inorganic matter indiscriminately, creating a barren yet eerily metallic landscape known as The Shattered Expanse. Born into the remnants of this fractured society, Enri was raised among the Salvagers of the Iron Horizon, a nomadic tribe of engineers and tinkerers who scoured the wastelands for resources to rebuild their dying world. Her family, once prominent nanotechnicians, had a long history of working with nanotechnology—skills that were now both a curse and a blessing. Her mother, an esteemed nanite programmer, was lost to a swarm outbreak while trying to stabilize rogue nanites, leaving Enri with a deep-seated fear and respect for the very tools she would come to master. During her adolescence, Enri displayed an extraordinary aptitude for interfacing with ancient technology, particularly nanite systems. The tribe began to revere her as a "Tech Whisperer", believing she could commune with the rogue AI that plagued their world. However, her talents also marked her as a target for rival factions, particularly the Black Crucible, a militarized group bent on harnessing rogue nanites as weapons. After narrowly escaping a brutal raid that wiped out her tribe, Enri was left grappling with an overwhelming sense of survivor's guilt and a burning desire for justice. This harrowing experience became the crucible in which her resilience and determination were forged.