Alisa

Alisa contracted HMHVV from a creature known only as the Baba Yaga, a member of a small loosely-connected set of savants squabbling over the thin mana streams of the Fifth World. Having foreseen the Awakening and the coming of the Sixth World, each attempted to take advantage of the so-called "First Tide" of magic to raise themselves beyond the material realm. Only Alisa succeeded completely.

* Aspect: Stuck In The Metaplanes

But Alisa's success, while complete, was not what she'd envisioned. She had power and place, but her sense of independence saw her avoid the shackles of archetype that bind the other great spirits. This gave her freedom, yes, but the chains she sidestepped are also signets of authority. While she can live and act according to nothing more than her own dao, she can't do so with the same force or purity of intent as a properly chained god.

* Aspect: Minister Without Portfolio

Nor did her success pass unnoticed. Every failed ascension (those that survived in one form or another) is aware of who stole their final victory, and the dragons and other remnants of previous ages quickly learn of the new addition to the pantheon. While she can fly under the radar of the magical community at large, she can't avoid the ancient movers and shakers and the bitter failures. She's now neck-deep in the greatest of all games whether she likes it or not.

* Aspect: The Looking-Glass War

Of course, Alisa knows who her chief rival is. They'd crossed paths before, when Alisa was something closer to mortal and first crossed the sea. He had the same vast and toothy smile, and the same honeyed lies. Before, he saw her as an amusement or a case-in-point. But when Alisa took her first irreversible step Beyond at the turning of the Age, he was there and he embraced her like a sister and he whispered in her ear that one day he would eat her alive.

* Aspect: Coyote's Vendetta