Jaya Ballard's History
Earning her name as a not-so-humble task mage and as an acquaintance of Jodah, the pyromancer Jaya Ballard witnessed many of the momentous events on Terisiare during the Ice Age. After she became a planeswalker, her mastery of fire magic inspired the practice of many monks and mercenaries on many planes. This profile deals with only her Pre-Mending history. Anything after the Mending is covered
here.
Jaya's childhood is shrouded in mystery, but she learned to be a thief on the streets. One day, she tried to steal something from the private chambers of Archmage Eternal Jodah but was unsuccessful. Sensing magical capabilities in her, Jodah allowed Jaya to study in the School of the Unseen, but after learning a few spells she decided to set out into the world and make a living as a task mage.
During her travels, Jaya once helped Kolbjörn and received an amulet capable of summoning
Freyalise. She also was instrumental in defending a Kjeldoran village from a lhurgoyf.
Jaya later tracked Jodah to Tresserhorn after his disappearance, where he had been drugged with Fyndhorn pollen by Lim-Dûl and made to think he was a summoned creature. She rescued him, but Jodah became sick and delusional because of the pollen. Jaya summoned Freyalise, but the planeswalker wanted something in return for her aid: to use Jodah's mirror and the resources of the School of the Unseen in order to prepare for her World Spell. Although Jaya was in no position to offer her these tokens, she agreed on Jodah's behalf nonetheless.
Jaya was instrumental in Jodah's plans to prepare Kjeldor for the upcoming invasion by Lim-Dûl and the alliance between Kjeldor and Balduvia. During Lim-Dûl's final assault on Kjeldor, Jaya fought against Chaeska, Lim-Dûl's right hand. Jaya was successful in her battle, and later claimed Lim-Dûl's ring as a battle trophy. This ring would over the course of the next decade make her a slave to the will of Mairsil.
During the next twenty years, Jaya was a leader of a group of mages who tried to protect the city of Kelsinko from being flooded by the rising seas without success.
Twenty years after the casting of World Spell, Jaya suddenly appeared in the School of the Unseen to see Jodah, who she had not seen since Lim-Dûl's assault. She brought Jodah an emaciated, blackened hand of Lim-Dûl with one of its fingers removed. The finger with the ruby ring - Mairsil's ring - was missing. Jodah and Jaya set out to search for the missing ring, fearing that Jodah's ancient enemy had returned.
Their journey leads them to Tresserhorn, Kjeld, Lovisa Coldeyes's Balduvian camp, and finally to Soldev. During the journey, Jodah realized that Jaya had somewhat changed since her younger years, and she often behaved strangely. When they reached Soldev and visited the vaults of the Adnates, the truth was revealed: in the aftermath of Lim-Dûl's battle against Kjeldor and Balduvia, Jaya found the finger and the ring and decided to bring them to Jodah, hoping that they would help him.
However, she donned the ruby ring, and Mairsil the Pretender's spirit infected her mind. She cut Jodah's throat, using his blood to revive the Phyrexian war beasts. Jodah miraculously saved himself from certain death with the help of his mirror. He then battled the possessed Jaya in the debris of ruined Soldev. He managed to shatter his mirror directly into her face, triggering the "reward" from Freyalise. In the blazing inferno that followed this breakpoint Jaya's own planeswalker spark flared. With a thought, she erased Mairsil's tainted presence once and for all, then planeswalked to the School of the Unseen and destroyed the rampaging war beasts there. With Jodah's help, she cut and sealed the bottomless pit that Lim-Dûl relocated there from Tresserhorn with the agreement of Gerda Äagesdotter. Finally, she helped Gerda with finding a new location for the school.
As a parting gift, Jaya gave Jodah an amulet, allowing him to remain sane despite his age, and allowing him to live as long as he willed to. She then departed Dominaria for the wider multiverse.
Toward the end of the Ice Age, Jaya came into conflict with the brine shaman Balash Xev, who led cult in Balduvia dedicated to
Marit Lage. He would anoint members of the cult with holy seawater, causing them to mutate into the likeness of their god. These mutants were barely humanoid with lots of eyes, teeth, and tendrils, though they still had only a single brain. Jaya killed the cult leader and decided to kill their god as well.
When she found Marit Lage, the god was merely aware of Jaya as she stood atop the glacier that contained her. Jaya made herself known, and Marit Lage gave her full regard, which would have killed her had she not been a planeswalker; instead, Marit Lage's regard nearly drowned her mind. She spoke telepathically to Jaya of her failure and begged her to help free her. Elsewhere, Freyalise had just cast the World Spell, ending the ice age. Jaya realized she herself wouldn't be able to destroy Marit Lage, so she did the next best thing: She targeted a massive chunk of ice with a spell, exiling it and Marit Lage into the Blind Eternities, which she hoped would kill her.
Jaya was presumed dead by Jodah some time after her conflict with Marit Lage, although this was proven incorrect after the Mending.
