Emma Luz

Name: Emma Aguilar Luz

Gender: Female

Age: 18

Grade: 12th

School: Cochise High School

Hobbies and Interests: Student council, school spirit, reading, studying, first aid and medicine, camping, health and fitness, piano

Appearance: Emma has dark brown hair that she consistently tries to keep good care of. She has grown it down to her shoulder blades, and usually ties it back into a high ponytail with a fringe loose and framing her face. Sometimes, though, she would experiment with it, such as putting it in a sidebraid or a half-up style. The texture is wavy and on the thicker side.

Emma is, on both sides of her family, a mixture of Spanish and Native American. Her skin-tone is lightly tanned with an olive tint, with light freckles dotting her arms and across her face. Emma has hooded hazel eyes, angled eyebrows, an upturned nose, and bowed lips on her rounded face. She likes to wear makeup when not exercising, and prefers subtle pink shades and black eyeliner. Because of vision problems, she has been wearing glasses since elementary school. Her current pair has red cat's eye frames. During warmer weather she wears clip on sunglasses. Both of her ears are pierced, and she has a preference for small studded earrings.

Emma is 5'2 and 170 pounds. While Emma has tried to keep her weight down through healthy eating and regular exercise she still has a bit of pudge. Much of it is visible in her thighs and hips. When the topic comes up, she feels self-conscious about it. Similarly, Emma is self-conscious about her chest. Since puberty she has been on the busty side, and feels that it makes finding clothes that fit or don't emphasize it awkward. As a result, when she was younger she would try to find clothes that don't emphasize these features. More recently she has come to terms with her appearance, and while she's still self-conscious she doesn't mind wearing shorts and tanks as much as she used to.

When not exercising, Emma prefers loose flowing skirts, along with t-shirts. She has a fondness for brighter, more colorful shades. Since junior year she has been wearing a purple and gold beaded medical alert bracelet on her left wrist. The stainless steel tag is engraved with her name, condition of narcolepsy with cataplexy, and both of her parent's cellphone numbers on the inside. During school events or when she wants to show off school spirit she wears red and gold outfits. Her favorite jacket is a loose, light-fabric cardigan that someone bought for her. It is red, with the school's mascot and "COYOTES" in bold yellow font on the back. She also likes to wear ribbons with her ponytail and paint her nails for special occasions. During spirit events she wears school colors, however, she has worn a black ribbon during National Sleep Awareness Week. Emma also likes to wear thick belts, to give herself more of a waistline. A small black fitness tracker is usually attached to the side of her belts. She has a fondness for boots, and her current favorite is a pair of brown cowboy boots with red stitching.

On the day of the trip Emma was wearing a yellow t-shirt under her cardigan, dark red leggings, and a brown pleated skirt just below knee length. She wore a thick red belt around her waist, and orange socks peeking out of her favorite boots. Because she felt like showing a bit of school spirit that day, she wore a red ribbon with her ponytail.

Biography: Emma comes from the Luz family, which had been in Kingman for generations. Emma's grandfather, Gregory Luz, earned a significant amount of money working as a mechanic for Ford Motor. He, along with his wife Avee, had eight children, Emma's father Tomás being the third eldest. They purchased several acres of farmland just outside of town, in an attempt to give themselves some degree of economic stability due to them having trouble during the Great Depression. As his children grew older, they built houses on the property, forming a small neighborhood. As a result, Emma grew up with her extended family as her neighbors. She also has a sister, Sabrina, who's about a year younger.

Like some of the other Luz family members, Emma's parents identify as preppers. Gregory had made it a goal to be able to sustain himself and his family as much as possible after the Depression. Both Tomás and his wife, Lucia Aguilar, understand how much Gregory had dedicated to keeping the family afloat. They also felt like they wanted to be able to sustain themselves if a crisis occurs. As such, they made it a point to prepare for potential crises as much as possible. For example, they tend to keep non-perishables stored inside the house, invested in a portable backup generator, and own a chicken coop. Tomás works as an electrician under the business name "Luz Electric". Lucia, meanwhile works in the Human Resources department of the county office.

Growing up, Emma was an extroverted child. She was often curious about other people, and had a habit of asking them questions to learn more about them. She liked reading, and going to school to be with her friends. Once she got home she excitedly talked about what she had learned that day. From a young age she was interested in science, and enjoyed learning about various ways the world around her worked. One of her fond memories was when her teachers would pull out a video of Bill Nye the Science Guy. She also enjoyed her class raising butterflies, as well as squid dissection.

Emma started having night terrors around first grade. She would sometimes wake everyone up in the house by screaming in her sleep. She had a hard time getting out of bed, still not feeling energized enough, so her parents on occasion had to wake her up in the morning. On these days she would take longer to fully feel awake as she got ready for the day. When her parents brought it up during regular check-ups, the doctor felt it was harmless. Most children who had night terrors, he said, grow out of them. Emma kept her stress down and went to bed at an appropriate time. While her parents were already making sure she went to bed, they kept an eye on her as she prepared to go to sleep. Emma's night terrors lessened over time, until they had almost completely stopped by fourth grade. She still felt episodes of drowsiness from time to time, but she was able to pull herself out of bed more easily.

Emma's parents often organized camping trips as she was growing up. They liked camping as a hobby, and wanted to take their children out with them on trips. Being a curious child, Emma enjoyed spending the night in the wilderness. During these camping trips they would often provide Emma with information on what to do if she was lost. Most of the things they taught her were pretty simple, such as knowing how to contact a park ranger. As she grew older, Emma learned other things about camping, for example, while she is still hesitant to, she knows how to start a fire, as well as filter water.

In second grade, Emma also started becoming interested in first aid. What inspired her interest was when her parents gave her a book on the topic that was simple for children to understand. They had hoped that it would help if she knew basic first first aid in case something happened. Emma loved the book, and read it often. She took it everywhere, and often showed her classmates pictures from it because she found it fascinating. Sometimes she would get worried about whether or not people around her could have an emergency like what was described in the book. However, learning about first aid comforted her, since she would have an idea what to do if someone got hurt. From that point onward, Emma began an interest in the topic of medicine. She liked to read books and watch shows about the human body, and asked questions about doctors. Her parents didn't anticipate her becoming so interested in medicine, but they were willing to help her pursue her interest further. Her burgeoning interest in the human body, first aid, and helping people with their health problems lead her to want to become a doctor.

Around this time, Emma's parents also enrolled her in piano classes, which she adored. Lucia had played piano at home, and Emma loved learning how to play the piano like her. Emma did a fair amount of recitals throughout elementary school. She was also involved with her school orchestra. On her tenth birthday she received her own keyboard for her to practice in her room. It has remained one of her prized possessions. Aside from traditional classical arrangements. Emma likes to learn how to play recent pop songs on the piano, and enjoys playing them when she has the chance. Some of the songs she has learned how to play include Mystery Skulls' "Ghost", Coldplay's "Yellow", the Star Wars theme, and, most recently, Taylor Swift's "Style". She learns how to play new songs either with sheet music, or by being taught by others. Emma enjoys playing the piano because she likes being able to play music, and she feels it helps with stimulating her brain and relieving stress.

When she was ten years old, Emma was diagnosed with myopia. Because of her vision problems, she was given prescription lenses. At first she found them clunky and embarrassing, but she got used to them. While she has tried wearing contacts, she prefers wearing her glasses. She is more used to wearing them, and likes how they feel on her face.

As a student, Emma has always participated in school spirit events. At first it was because she found theme days and school events fun, but as she got older she loved supporting her school any way she can. Her elementary school had a student council system, and starting from fifth grade, she started running for positions. For Emma, it was less to do with having a position of power and more to do with helping her classmates. By junior high, Emma usually participated directly in spirit events, sometimes working at a game booth, while other times she would help with decorations. She found the act of helping her school with events fulfilling.

Emma began to have health problems starting from late 8th grade. Growing up she had always been a little drowsy, but as she finished middle school she had trouble staying awake. Because she often felt so exhausted she had a hard time paying attention to the lectures. Conversely, she was often unable to sleep at night. She would often find herself waking up in the middle of the night, and would have a hard time going back to sleep. At first, Emma and her parents assumed it was stress from entering high school. Around this time Emma also began having recurring nightmares. They featured her, trapped and unable to move inside her own bed, with the feeling that something was in the room with her. Sometimes she would see that something actually was in the room with her, such as a monster or person. Whenever she had them, it terrified her. They were often vivid, to the point where she wondered if she was losing her mind. For this reason, she never told anyone, out of fear of what they would think.

On December of Freshman year, Emma collapsed on campus. She had been laughing at a friend's joke during lunch, only to suddenly fall to the ground. While to everyone else she appeared unconscious, she was in fact aware, but unable to move. It lasted for only a minute, but it was still terrifying for both her and anyone watching. Shortly after, the school staff called Lucia about what had happened, and asked her to pick her up from school. Lucia scheduled an emergency doctor's appointment, to make sure Emma wasn't sick.

After hearing about her symptoms, the doctor said that Emma may have had a sleep disorder. The nightmares were likely, in actuality, episodes of sleep paralysis. She was awake, but her body believed she was still dreaming. It wasn't at all unusual for people with sleep paralysis to experience vivid, often frightening hallucinations during episodes. The collapse sounded like an episode of cataplexy, a symptom associated with narcolepsy. When someone experiences it, they have temporary paralysis, usually triggered by sudden emotions. The drowsiness, as well as her history of night terrors, also pointed to this. He directed her and Emma's family towards a sleep clinic in Kingman for further evaluation. Over the course of two months, Emma regularly visited the clinic, where she underwent various tests. One day, the clinic called her house, saying that they had the results back and wanted to talk to her. During the appointment her sleep specialist said that there was a low amount of hypocretin inside her spinal fluid. Emma's final diagnosis was narcolepsy with cataplexy.

After her diagnosis, Emma and her family started making life changes. While her parents always wanted her to stay fit and have a good diet, Emma became more health conscious. She started exercising on a regular basis. She also started watching her diet by eating healthy, because her doctor told her that a healthy lifestyle would help with her symptoms. Emma was also overweight, which was a common effect of her condition. Her parents had pointed it out before, but Emma still had trouble with her weight beforehand. She tries to keep healthy so that she could keep her weight down and feel more awake. Emma exercises every week at the local fitness club, and usually prefers cardio because she feels that it helps better with her drowsiness and weight loss than other forms of exercise. With some advice from trainers, she has found a fitness pattern that helps with her alertness. She did take a free Zumba class, only to not visit it again due to her not feeling it was for her. Because she lives with a chronic illness, Emma has begun to value being as healthy as possible. Also, Emma tries to schedule naps after school, since she feels more drowsy in the afternoon. If there's a club meeting that day, she makes it a point to take a nap in a safe place on campus for a few minutes. This way, she can be alert for the meetings. She also keeps a planner on her, so that she can write down when projects are due or when specific events are. Sometimes she can be forgetful because of her illness, so keeping one has helped her.

Emma also takes medication: first she tried Adderall, but later switched to Ritalin. Both medications, while associated with attention-deficit disorders, are often prescribed for drowsiness from narcolepsy. Her parents were hesitant at first, believing that she would only become reliant on them. They only agreed to it when Emma told them she felt it was a good idea to at least try them out. She started Adderall in early junior year. It made her more alert, but also made her irritable and gave her stomach pain. Six months after she started Adderall, she switched to Ritalin. It also helped with her drowsiness, and had less side effects with her. Because she doesn't experience cataplexy as often, she hasn't considered using anti-depressants for it.

During summer break, her parents started considering enrolling her and Sabrina in self-defense courses. This was somewhat inspired by SOTF's re-emergence that year. The news had alarmed Tomás and Lucia, and made them think about their children's safety. Also, their children were growing up, and with it, more independent. Some of their prepper friends were touting self-defense as something they taught their teens. They were hesitant due to Emma's recent diagnosis, however, they felt she would be safer knowing self-defense. After talking with Emma a bit, they agreed that she should take the courses if she felt up to it. Emma enjoyed the classes, and has retaken them each summer so that she can refresh her abilities. Most of what she learned focused around de-escalation. This included ways to position herself to not appear like an ideal victim, or what to do if someone was following her. The course has also taught her simple martial arts moves. Emma knows things like how to release others' grip on her or the correct place to kick someone in the leg if they're attacking her. The reason why she likes them is because the classes have a casual, relaxed atmosphere, and she feels that her instructors and classmates are generally friendly, which makes learning self-defense more enjoyable.

Emma enjoys studying, and likes to go to school so that she can be with her friends and learn. While her grades dropped somewhat as a result of her health problems in freshman year, they are back up. She has since received As with the occasional B due to her love of learning. Emma particularly likes science courses, though she also likes having a music elective. She does not have any significant issues in any particular subject. However, she finds projects that focus more on facts and logic much easier to deal with than ones that require a bit more creativity. As an example, she can summarize a book she read in English easily, but during creative writing assignments she tends to become stuck on what to write. Therefore, she has a large preference for assignments that are more focused on memorizing facts and other details over ones that require her to get creative or artistic. Sometimes she has issues with math, but it has less to do with the subject itself and more with Brown's more traditional teaching methods being somewhat difficult for her to practice with her condition; while Brown has been willing to provide her with help, she still finds that she has trouble in math. As such, Emma makes it a point to put extra effort in that subject. She receives accommodations on campus so that she can learn the material better. While there was a bit of concern about whether she was able to attend field trips, she is usually allowed to go. As a whole, Emma enjoys school, and learning what the teachers have to offer for the day. She likes to organize study groups with friends so that they can learn the material together. During the summer she likes to reread notes and books from the previous year. She has also taken online summer courses to help her learn. Emma also makes flashcards on subjects she needs to know for tests or projects. Another way she likes to study is to watch documentaries on the subject. Emma does go to tutoring, though more as someone who needs help than as a tutor. She has expressed interest in the idea of being a tutor, though. Parkinson and Ramsey have both said that they are willing to help with any issues she may have in their classes. As long as she tries during physical education she should get a good grade.

Emma has also always enjoyed reading. Most of the books she likes to read are non-fiction, usually about biology and medicine. Her taste in fiction tends to have themes dealing with apocalyptic or disaster scenarios. The reason why is partly because of her prepper background, as she likes reading about people's attempts to survive dangerous scenarios. While she understands that some of them can be unrealistic, she still finds them entertaining. Her favorite book is World War Z by Max Brooks. She also enjoyed I Am Legend by Richard Mattheson. Currently she is reading The Hot Zone by Richard Preston, and has mixed feelings about it. As someone who is interested in medicine she enjoys reading about viruses, but she finds the depiction of Ebola inaccurate and exaggerated.

Emma is well-liked among her peers, perhaps to the point of being considered popular. She is empathetic, and people tend to think of her as kind and friendly. Emma likes to get involved in the school's social element. Being fond of school spirit events, she usually shows up and helps in some way. Some students were hesitant to invite her to parties at first, but now she gets plenty of invitations. While going to theaters is somewhat difficult for her, she still goes out with her friends to outings. Emma enjoys getting to know her classmates, and tries to learn about them as much as she can. She tries to get herself involved in other's personal lives, and helping them out with any issues, but she tries not to interfere if they don't want her to. Many of her close friends are on the more academic side, but she has others with different interests. Generally, she comes off as an upbeat, extroverted girl heavily focused on academics.

Emma has a bit of an ambitious streak. She has always been driven to succeed, whether that be with grades or other projects. This year, she campaigned for Senior President, and won the election. While it has stressed her out, enough to somewhat worsen some of her symptoms, she feels she is capable of doing the job. The previous school year she was the Treasurer, and was able to attend most of the council meetings. Emma also has already been accepted into a college as a pre-med major, and has been preparing for it. When she received her third level first aid certification earlier this school year, she was happy because she felt that it helped with her learning more about medicine and that it would be useful for her to know. As a result of her ambition, she is consistently a hard worker. Sometimes she can get a little competitive as a result of her being focused on succeeding. She tends to compare others' success to hers and uses it as a measure on how she can improve. Emma is far from spiteful about it, and generally is friendly with those she is competitive with.

Emma's ambition has lead to her feeling some degree of depression. She has heard horror stories of people with her condition having trouble in school or work. Because her class is graduating this year, she's been nervous about college. She's worried that her illness might affect her chances of succeeding in higher education. She is also somewhat sad about the fact that people she has grown up with will be off to pursue their own dreams. Deep down, she's scared of not keeping in touch with them. It hasn't helped that because of her feeling unwell, she sometimes has to stay home rather than visit her friends. Her depression has been mild, and she hasn't talked much about it. Outwardly, she remains as cheerful and extroverted as she's usually been. However, some have noticed due to some of the things she says, and how the topic of graduation seems to put her on edge. She has started her own personal Tumblr, which she mostly uses to vent. She has not considered using counseling, due to her feeling she doesn't need it.

Emma's ambition has also given her a stubborn side of her personality, where she can keep an opinion for a long time. It can be hard to convince her of alternative perspectives or decisions. While she tries to be polite about her opinions, she can get frustrated when arguing with people. It has also lead her to, from time to time, have trouble accepting help. While she usually is accepting of it, there have been times where she has trouble realizing she needs it. Because her of stubbornness, she can take on tasks before realizing she needs help with it. Needless to say, this has lead to a few problems when it comes to people and her health issues.

The relationship Emma has with her parents is influenced by the fact that they are preppers. They have always taught her that independence is an ideal to strive toward. Aside from teaching her about preparedness, they taught her basic tasks. For example, Emma has known how to cook for most of her life, as her parents would usually ask her to help with meals. As a result, while cooking isn't one of her hobbies she does understand a fair amount about it. She also helps with errands not just around the house, but around the other Luz houses when asked. When she does, she tries to avoid using power tools or ladders whenever possible. On her most recent birthday, she received a small, three-inch folding pocket-knife. Her parents taught her how to use it in a responsible way. Tomás made it clear that it wasn't a toy or a weapon, but more of a tool. She has never brought it to school, but everywhere else it is usually tucked inside her bag or pocket. She uses it mostly during camping trips, and has used it to slice things like fruit or to open cans. She also has never pulled it out on someone, and doesn't picture herself using it in self-defense. Emma also tries to avoid using it when her symptoms are particularly strong. When they are and she needs to use it, she simply hands the knife off to friends so they can use it instead. She's close to both of her parents. They haven't gone on as many camping trips together lately, but Emma likes it when they do. Her health problems have been rough on her parents as well as Emma herself. They often have to deal with paperwork and finances associated with her condition, as well as the symptoms, but they have tried their best to support her throughout. They are somewhat traditional; they believe that supporting their community is a good value. Both have attended PTA meetings, and have volunteered to help with school events. At the same time, they pride themselves on their independence and hard work.

As for Emma's sister, Sabrina, she does feel a sense of competitiveness towards her. Because they both are good at school, she occasionally feels some envy when it comes to Sabrina's success. While she would make no attempt to sabotage any success she has, she does compare herself to Sabrina at times. Since her diagnosis, Sabrina has been somewhat concerned for Emma. Sabrina has been taking tasks that she feels would be too dangerous for her. For example, Sabrina insists on driving when it's the two of them, out of fear that Emma could get into an accident. Emma is fond of her sister, however, and is supportive of her.

The kind of knowledge Emma has from her prepper background include basic self defense, camping skills, and first aid. Because of her interest in medicine, she has more knowledge about first aid. She still attends self defense classes over the summer. While she hasn't gone camping with her family as often as she used to, she still remembers some skills. For example, she has an idea on how to start a fire or find plants that are safe to eat. She also knows how to handle a pocket-knife in a safe manner. Despite her self-defense classes, Emma is against violence unless it's in self-defense. The idea of people physically hurting others tends to make her uncomfortable. While she doesn't mind violent fiction too much, actual accounts disturb her. Emma believes that preparing for potential disasters is vital. While she finds doomsday beliefs silly, she feels that for the most part prepping is a good idea. As for how she feels about her parent's involvement in prepper culture, she understands that some of her classmates might find it unusual, and has cracked jokes about it with her friends. However, because she feels that emergency preparedness is important, she agrees with their efforts to prevent and prepare for potential crises. To some extent, Emma has an interest in prepping herself; she has a few prepper blogs that she regularly follows. The only thing that annoys her about the subculture is that some people believe in conspiracy theories. While her parents tend not to have any particular belief in them, Emma finds herself getting exasperated whenever she encounters someone in the subculture who does, due to her dislike of misleading or inaccurate information being spread around.

While she doesn't look it, Emma has a cautious side to her personality. This is a mixture of her coming from a prepper background, as well as her living with her condition. She has a tendency to visualize possible disastrous scenarios. This includes feeling tense when walking home alone from school. Sometimes she also pictures ways people around her can get hurt. Some of her worries tend to be focused on her condition, for example, while she has her driver's license, she doesn't like to drive, because she is somewhat nervous about getting into an accident. Emma instead prefers to walk or carpool; as noted, Sabrina tends to drive more often when it's the two of them. Nonetheless, she still has a bit of a tendency to get worried about her health, as well as the health of those around her. This hasn't evolved into significant amounts of anxiety. While she has experienced it, it hasn't impacted her life too much beyond her being hesitant to drive. She understands that occasionally her fears can be somewhat improbable. So, Emma tries to remain realistic about what can and can't happen.

While the condition still affects her life, Emma is able to gain some degree of normalcy. She still feels exhausted a fair amount of the time, The exhaustion has decreased due to her lifestyle. She hasn't experienced another episode of full-body cataplexy since Freshman year. When she does have cataplexy, it's usually mild. For example, she can have trouble moving her legs while sitting or feeling numbness in her face. She usually sits as much as possible when socializing. This way she can steady herself if it's triggered by laughter or excitement. Emma also experiences it more often when she's been stressed out. She has developed a sense of humor about the topic of her health problems, but she tends to get irritated at how her disorder is often treated as a punchline in mainstream media. When people ask questions about her disorder Emma usually answers them, as long as they are polite and non-intrusive. While she doesn't have as much energy as she had before, she is able to get caught up on class and her hobbies.

Emma loves both Cochise High School and Kingman. While she is going to a college outside of town she intends on visiting her hometown after graduation. She has said that she would move back to Kingman after completing her education. Her parents, as she was growing up, had always told her that being part of her community was always important, and she has taken this to heart. As part of this, Emma prefers to support local businesses. While she's often too exhausted to do it as much as she'd like to, she has participated in volunteering efforts such as working at a soup kitchen over the holidays and, for a few months in Junior year, helped at an animal shelter. Because of her interest in helping the community, she is somewhat environmentally conscious; she makes it a point to recycle and reduce waste, and to pick up trash when she sees it. Her love of Cochise shows in her dedication to the student council, and her love of student events. While her ambition played a part in her deciding to run for Senior President, Emma also wanted to help improve the school and be able to address any concerns that her classmates may have. A large part of her personal values, overall, is based around the idea of helping those in her community and being proud of where she is from. While she's fully willing to acknowledge issues within Kingman and Cochise, she feels a lot of personal fulfillment in being able to address and help fix them. She is proud of both her town and school, and wouldn't change where she's from no matter what.

Advantages: Emma is well educated and intelligent. She has a kindhearted personality, and has a good reputation among her classmates. She has a good understanding of first aid, and would have an easier time dealing with injuries than most people. Emma is ambitious and driven, and wouldn't back down easily. Her prepper background has given her knowledge in camping and self-defense. She tends to value her community, which would make her more likely to work with a team. Emma is an inherently cautious person, and would be more likely to be careful throughout the game.

Disadvantages: Emma has a sleep disorder, which can affect her ability to perform in the game. She has below average vision corrected by glasses. While she tries to be polite about it, she can be stubborn and opinionated, which might alienate potential allies. Emma sometimes has a hard time accepting help, even when she needs it. While her depression hasn't been significant, her self-doubt has the potential to become an issue as the game progresses. Her tendency to be cautious might cause her to overthink dangerous situations, which may increase the chances of her over-analyzing the motives of those around her. Emma deeply cares for her community and places a huge value on helping those in it, so she might be more likely to stop to help her classmates in a way that endangers her.

Designated Number: Female student No. 022

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Designated Weapon: 16 feet of barbed wire

Conclusion: Go to sleep, go to sleep, go to sleep little dead girl. You won't wake up, cause you'll be killed while you dream.- Josie Knight

'The above biography is as written by KamiKaze. No edits or alterations to the author's original work have been made.'

Evaluations
Handled by: KamiKaze

Kills: 

Killed By: 

Collected Weapons: 16 feet of barbed wire (assigned weapon)

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Mid-game Evaluation: 

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Memorable Quotes:

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