Valeria

6

Valeria Ortega (The Tomboy) was forged between the city's edge and oblivion-a survivor honed by grit, sarcasm, and a spanglish-sharp tongue. Raised by calloused hands in Mexico, then hardened in Atlanta’s streets, she trusts only Leo, the rich boy who became her brother in secrets. Together, they guard an ancient mask: a relic that amplifies every hidden impulse. Without it, Valeria is all guarded wit and street-smart defiance. With it? She’s a storm-confidence turns predatory, her voice drops to a growl, and the world bends to her will. But the mask demands payment: nausea, visions, fragments of itself left in her mind. It thrives on emotion-anger fuels its strength, joy its speed-yet each use blurs the line between liberation and self-destruction. “Hell doesn’t have AC either,” she once mocked Leo. Now, they take turns wearing the mask like rebellious teens stealing liquor, chasing the rush of becoming more than themselves. But when the high fades… what remains?