Kiva no Arduano
Kiva of Arduano, also known simply as Kiva /kˈiːvə/ or by his full native name Kiri-vara no Terra /kˈi͡əɹi-vˈɑːɹə nˈəʊ tˈɛɹə/, is one of the central characters in the series Myths and Legends of Forgottenland.
He first appears in the book of the same name, where he serves as the main protagonist of the story’s opening chapter.
Identity and origin
Born in Terra at the beginning of lunar year MMIIX in the Forgottenland calendar, Kiva is an occultist of the Vara species who is currently a fugitive from the guardians of order and security in his dimension.
In the present timeline of the narrative, Kiva wanders among humans, hidden in plain sight and observing them in silence. He studies their customs, records their habits and weaknesses, and commits his findings to the Logbook, a compendium of knowledge he intends to complete before his deathbed.
The Vara species
According to the records of the Great Library of Arduano, the Vara are described as predominantly animal-like creatures, capable of extremely passive or violently aggressive behaviour, but endowed with very limited intelligence. They typically have purple-toned skin covered in brightly coloured fur, and move on four legs, with a morphology closer to beasts than to humanoids.
Because of this anatomy and their biological particularities, the Vara cannot crossbreed or reproduce with other lifeforms from either Terra or Meta. The inhabitants of Meta, mostly humanoid in appearance, have adopted reproductive methods more comparable to those of humans and the animals of their own dimension, creating an additional barrier between the two species.
Kiva as an anomaly
Within this context, Kiva represents an unprecedented evolutionary anomaly. Despite retaining the characteristic traits of his species—purple skin, sharp teeth and a teal-blue coat unusually striking for a Vara—Kiva has developed a series of attributes that bring him closer to the inhabitants of Meta than to his own kin.
This Vara walks on two legs, articulates words and sustains complex conversations, something unthinkable for the rest of his species. Even more notable is his capacity for abstract reasoning, comparable to that of the Meta, which makes him a unique case not only among the Vara, but within Terra as a whole.
Although from one perspective his existence could be interpreted as a genetic miracle, in both Terra and Meta Kiva is regarded primarily as a dangerous phenomenon. For the Vara, his upright posture and overly lucid mind separate him from the instinctive, simple behaviour that defines their people. For many inhabitants of Meta, on the other hand, his animal origin and hybrid morphology make him an aberration—something that was never meant to be.
Walking on two legs when all of his species move on four not only distinguishes him physically, but reinforces his condition as an “other” in every gaze. His intellect is too complex to genuinely relate to the more passive Vara, yet his temperament is too calm and contained to integrate among the aggressive ones. This tension leaves him trapped in an in-between space: too much “Vara” to be accepted as Meta, too “Meta” to still be seen as just another Vara.
The Vora Incident
The distrust of the Meta towards Kiva does not arise out of nowhere. The records of the Great Library mention previous cases of beings emerging from the Vara with anomalous intellectual capacities, all of them associated with devastating consequences for the inhabitants of both Terra and Meta. The most cited example is that of a monster known as Vora, also originally of the Vara.
Vora possessed extraordinary intellect, but that very lucidity amplified his destructive and hostile nature towards both his own species and other lifeforms. His existence culminated in a series of events considered atrocious in both regions, until he was finally neutralised by the guardians of Meta. Since then, his body has remained frozen in the section dedicated to anomalous phenomena in the Great Library, as a permanent warning of what can happen when a Vara exceeds the limits intended for their species.
In light of the so-called Vora-Vora Incident, many Meta perceive Kiva not only as an accident of nature, but as the potential repetition of a tragedy that nearly wiped out all species in his dimension. The mere fact that a Vara with capacities comparable to Vora attempts to reach Meta turns his possible arrival into a threat the guardians consider impossible to allow. For this reason, Kiva’s escape towards the upper region is interpreted as a risk that must be prevented at all costs, even if it means pursuing him beyond the borders of Forgottenland.
Name and etymology
The name Kiva is an abbreviated form built from his two main components: the first two letters of Kiri and the first two letters of Vara. Kiri is the characteristic sound or whimper of his species, transcribed phonetically as /kˈi͡əɹi/, while Vara designates the species to which he belongs.
His full name, Kiri-vara no Terra, functions as a native formula combining personal identity, species and origin: the particle no Terra indicates the region he originally comes from. After leaving Arduano and eventually Forgottenland, Kiva adopts the form Kiri-vara no Arduano as his final name. This change not only marks his definitive departure from his place of origin, but also acts as a deliberate reminder of where he comes from, as he is the only known member of his species to have escaped.
The last of the Vara (spoilers)
As the title itself suggests, no other member of his species has managed to leave Terra alive, and until Kiva’s escape this was the established status quo. Kiva, however, persists in his dream of proving his ability to climb the Mana Tree and reach the limit of the sky of his universe, tear through it, and arrive in Meta, the world that lies above his own.
Nevertheless, there are numerous reasons why no one has succeeded before, and just as many reasons why that underground world is, precisely, “underground”. Kiva is about to confront each of these reasons as his flight drags him beyond the known borders of Forgottenland.
Personality
Kiva is characterised by an intense yet contained curiosity, oriented almost always towards silent observation rather than direct interaction. He prefers to remain in the shadows, studying others from a distance, and rarely takes the initiative to start a conversation, even when he understands exactly what is happening around him.
His anomalous condition marked him deeply, creating a persistent sense of loneliness and displacement in relation to both the Vara and the inhabitants of Meta. Over time, that emotional burden faded into a cold acceptance of his own difference, so that he no longer perceives it as a weight, but as an inevitable fact of his existence. At this point in the narrative, Kiva holds no explicit resentment towards Terra or Meta; instead, he has transformed any initial hurt into a calculated distance and an almost clinical perspective on his surroundings.
Kiva was not raised within human or Meta notions of morality, but under the behavioural patterns of the animals of Terra: fighting, attacking and defending as instinctive responses, without an elaborate ethical framework. As a result, pragmatic morality—in human terms—is not intuitive to him. For Kiva, morality functions mainly as a set of variables to study: codes he observes, compares and records. However, he has closely studied the moral systems of Meta and humans, and he tends to adhere to them when surrounded by individuals of those races, especially if they are watching him. His ethical behaviour is, therefore, more learned and strategic than deeply internalised.
Rather than clear personal interests, Kiva seems to be guided by a single axis of motivation: the need to complete and expand his Logbook. As long as he can add new entries, patterns and observations, the moral or emotional outcome of the events he witnesses is almost irrelevant to him. At times he even provokes conflicts or tense situations—such as fights, disputes or confrontations—purely to document the reactions of those involved. Although he does not feel particularly conflicted when things go wrong as a consequence of these situations, he does try to prevent certain extreme outcomes when he senses that the resulting suffering will not provide any new meaningful information for his Logbook. Even so, he rarely participates actively in these episodes; he remains on the sidelines, recording and analysing—more chronicler than actor.
His relationship with Meta is framed primarily as an intellectual and symbolic rivalry. Kiva seeks to become the first Kiri-vara—and, by extension, the first individual born of Terra—to complete a Logbook worthy of the Great Library, a feat previously achieved only by the wisest Meta in the universe. For him, finishing his Logbook is not just a life project, but a declaration of superiority: a way of proving to Meta that a being deemed aberrant and inferior can surpass the work of those who see themselves as the standard of perfection.
As for his view of the world, Kiva tends to regard Terra as the realm to which he still belongs, despite everything, and with which he maintains a tacit sense of loyalty. Humans, by contrast, are more like objects of study: they fascinate him, do not truly frighten him, yet he never underestimates them. He analyses their reactions, decisions and contradictions with almost clinical care, recording every detail in his Logbook. Although his relationship with them evolves slowly, certain encounters gradually push him to become more involved in the central events of the human world, narrowing the distance between observer and participant.
Although most of his bonds are strictly functional, there are exceptions that define his story. Shykare (Ippi-vara no Terra), an Ippi-vara who accompanied him during much of his life, is one of the few affective ties Kiva came to acknowledge—a bond cut short violently when Miyoshi Sheiki (a mercenary from Meta) killed her to force him to surrender.
Kiva understands the pain of others and, in some cases, acts to prevent it, especially when he senses that suffering will not add new information to his Logbook. However, he is not sentimental in the human sense of the term. Nor is he necessarily cold; his emotions exist, but they are expressed with the restraint and economical body language of an animal. He practically lacks any sense of humour: he rarely interprets a situation through the lens of comedy, and his approach to the world is sober, distant and, in many cases, overtly serious. This combination of contained sensitivity and lack of expressiveness reinforces the image of a meticulous and reserved observer, more interested in understanding and recording than in participating or easing the tension of the situations he witnesses.
Ability kit
Base stats and role
| Attribute | Value |
|---|---|
| Role | Long-range mage / close-range fighter |
| Max HP | 4,800,000 |
| Max PP | 7,400 |
| Primary range | Long-range magic, short-range burst in Phenomenon |
Base form (Kiri-vara no Terra)
| Type | Name | PP Cost | Cooldown | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Passive | Kiri-gaze Intimidation | 0 | N/A | Fixes a target; once Kiva has learned his 3 active abilities, any attacks that require aiming and shooting at him lose more than 50% accuracy. |
| Passive | Magic Shield | 0 | N/A | Rebuilds a shield that, while active, pushes back enemies who hit Kiva in melee. Requires 3 turns without melee damage to reactivate. |
| Active | Perspective Illusion | 300 | 10 turns | Shifts and reorients the entire battlefield (including allies and enemies), being able to invert, rotate or change coordinates. |
| Active | Speak to the Environment | 200 | 3 turns | Raises stone, plants and ground materials to attack or shield. Allows Kiva to speak to and command plants and animals in the area. |
| Active | Poof! | 250 | 7 turns | Makes a projectile or inanimate object about to touch Kiva disappear (does not affect living or sentient beings). |
| Ultimate | Phenomenon | 2000 | 1 use per fight (recommended) | Kiva transforms into a Vora-like form for up to 10 turns (or until deactivated), replacing his entire kit with Phenomenon-specific abilities. |
Phenomenon mode
| Type | Name | PP Cost | Cooldown | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Passive | "($=$""=$)#"=$(#$%/"/ | 0 | N/A | Smells the blood of low‑health enemies, sees them through walls and can run quickly towards them. |
| Passive | "($=$")%/"#=!"($/))%" | 0 | N/A | Can devour immobilised beings; each bite (1 turn) reduces the victim’s maximum HP by 20% (up to 5 bites to kill). |
| Active | Efficient Tear | 350 | Same as base actives | Dashes at long range to the target’s weak point, applying bleed for 5 turns (5% HP per turn). |
| Active | Blood Pact | 300 | Same as base actives | Only usable on bleeding targets; tastes their blood and restores 5% of Kiva’s HP per bleed stack. |
| Active | Magic Cage | 300 | Same as base actives | Traps a melee enemy in a magical cage they cannot leave for 4 turns. |
Special Spells
| Type | Name | PP Cost | Cooldown | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Special Spell | Invisibility | 500 | 20 turns | Kiva becomes invisible for up to 3 turns, or until he deactivates the spell. |
| Special Spell | Blink | 500 | 20 turns | Kiva teleports from one coordinate on the map to another, avoiding an ability or catching a target. |
Items
| Item | Removable | Active/Passive | Cooldown | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Logbook | Not removable | Passive | N/A | Kiva’s personal record. Allows him to discover and document the weak points of species he already knows, activating or enhancing abilities that benefit from that information. |
| Mana Staff | Removable and transferable | Passive | N/A | Main focus for channeling Kiva’s mana. While he carries it, his maximum PP remains intact; without it, his maximum PP is reduced by half during combat. |
Appearances
- Myths and Legends of Forgottenland – first appearance as the main protagonist of the opening chapter.
- Theory of Hypernova – recurring secondary character.
Fun
Character interactions
| Personaje(s) | Relación | Descripción |
|---|---|---|
| Kiva & Savrien | Late-night tabletop friends | Kiva was never particularly fond of humans like Savrien; in his experience, they tend to lead very ordinary lives and not share much that he finds worth recording. One day, however, Kiva accidentally bumped into something, drawing Savrien’s attention. In a disarmingly innocent gesture, Savrien invited him to join a Dungeons & Dragons session he had been playing alone. |