Ma


 * For other uses, see Ma (disambiguation)

"I forgot a point: 'Don't trust what people say in this forest.'"

- Ma to an intruder in Evil's Forest

Ma, also known by the names of Elluka Clockworker, Kayo Sudou, the Gardener and the Mage of Time, was a powerful mage. Born in the wake of the Duel of Merrigod Plateau, Ma manipulated Kayo Sudou, Gallerian Marlon and Nemesis Sudou throughout the centuries, driving them mad in her quest to collect the vessels of sin. After Gallerian's untimely death, she took up residence in Evil's Theater, using the inhabitants for her own ambitions.

Early Life
"The three Ma candidates have become one. Happily ever after." "No, not really happy."

- Banica Conchita and Gretel

After the souls of Levia, Eve Moonlit, and Irina Clockworker were fused into one in Lukana Octo's body on January 30, EC 611, the new entity awoke in Pale Noël's tomb. Overwhelmed by the memories of three different lives, the mage realized she needed a new body and saw Germaine Avadonia's body lying unconscious nearby. After confirming the body was already rapidly aging after being freed of Irina's spell, she deemed it unfit to replace her current body and left the chamber.

Once she wandered out of the tomb into Merrigod Plateau, the new being held out her arm and attempted to conjure magic. Failing to produce any, she determined she'd also be unable to use hypnosis and eventually the Swap Technique. Estimating she could survive two or three centuries with her current body so long as she could still recall the swap technique, the woman thought to herself about why she had to survive so long and who she even was supposed to be.

As she continued pondering her true identity, she decided to use her body's name as "Elluka Clockworker" despite it not being her real name. She then recalled her goal of trying to become the Ma centuries ago, finally deciding her true name was "Ma". With her public and true identity realized, "Elluka Clockworker" continued traveling. In EC 776, Ma visited Maistia shortly before the continent declared its independence and formed the United States of Maistia.

Enbizaka Murders
In the EC 800s, Ma became a Levin missionary in the Eastern region. After traveling to Enbizaka in southern Jakoku, the missionary met the grieving Kayo Sudou. Offering to swap bodies with the woman so she could start a new life, Kayo agreed and Ma exchanged her pink-haired body for Kayo's black-haired one.

Raising a Child
Sometime after, Ma became a playwright in the Union State of Evillious and later met Gallerian Marlon, eventually entering an affair with the judge. Gallerian later told the playwright to avoid visiting his home while his family was around to keep their relationship a secret, worried about making his daughter Michelle unhappy if the affair was discovered. Later on, Ma became pregnant with his child and gave birth to a girl at the abandoned house in the Millennium Tree Forest in EC 964.

Naming the girl Nemesis, "Kayo Sudou" raised the child at the cottage she was born in. Around EC 970, Nemesis adopted a small ziz tiama and they kept the pet. She later abandoned Nemesis five years later, locking the house before leaving the child to go insane. At some point, she acquired Yukina Freezis' novel "The Daughter of Evil" and a copy of the famed writer's personal memoirs.

Sin Fragments
"I don't need the vessels of sin." "Oh... is that so?"

- Gallerian and Ma

In EC 978, Ma told Gallerian that she wanted to create a film adaptation of "The Daughter of Evil" and lent him the novel to read during his holiday while his family was away, plotting to grab his interest about the vessels of sin. On the day before his family would return, Ma visited Gallerian's mansion. Greeted by his butler, Rennert, she waited until the servant confirmed the judge's permission and directed her to his study. Once she entered the room, Ma noticed the book on Gallerian's desk beside him and asked if he had read it. He answered that had just finished doing so.

Surprised, the playwright asked for his impression of it and Gallerian described the difference between the novel and the fairy tale he was familiar with. When he questioned which account was the truth, Ma immediately pointed to the book and assured him it was the real story. When he chided that there was no way she could say for certain since she had never seen the events for herself, the mage chuckled and agreed before insisting it was indeed the story of the truth hidden in the shadows of history. The doubtful judge then dropped the subject and admitted he had enjoyed the read and learning about his ancestors.

Once Gallerian returned the book and inquired about her film adaptation, the playwright joyfully grabbed his arm, flirting that she needed a sponsor. Gallerian declined due to the cost and shook her off and Ma dropped the personable act, removing her pipe from her sleeve instead. As the judge warned her it was a non-smoking room, the playwright ignored him while lighting her pipe and starting to smoke it. pouting that the stingy man hoarded enough as it was. Meandering around the room, she noticed a photo of the judge and his family on one of the cabinets and picked it up.

While gazing at their smiling faces, Ma quietly noted that his wife was returning home the next day. When Gallerian began warning her if she was threatening to expose their relationship to his wife, Ma laughed and exclaimed that wasn't her intention before clarifying it actually wasn't her style. After putting the picture back, there was a long awkward silence before Gallerian asked if she knew anything about what happened to the characters after the story.

The playwright noted there was Yukina's memorandum and inquired if she should bring them the next time. The judge insisted he just wanted the rough idea. Once Gallerian pointed out the names of Elluka Clockworker and Gumillia had appeared a century after the era portrayed in the book and Ma picked up on his reference to the tales of Lemy the Ripper. The playwright then explained that Yukina only wrote that the mage had traveled to the East, making it impossible to connect them to Lemy's murder given Yukina died before his lifetime.

Gallerian then conversed with her about Germaine Avadonia and the absurd theories about her reincarnating as Julia Abelard or the infamous leader of Père Noël being Germaine as a magical immortal. Ma likewise described that Yukina's writings only stated she had gone traveling with Chartette Langley, leaving no other historical record afterward. When the judge wondered aloud why Abyss I.R. had been collecting the vessels of sin, Ma responded that she had heard that collecting them all granted the collector any wish.

Seeing him ponder the idea with interest, the playwright excitedly suggested they look for the artifacts together, mentioning a source she had when Gallerian interrupted. After he asked if money was necessary, the playwright admitted to it and the judge declared he didn't need the vessels. Ma smiled at his words and went over to the fireplace, dumped the ashes from her pipe, and then declared she would return soon.

As she headed for the door, the judge stopped her and began reminding her not to reveal their relationship to his wife. Ma answered she knew, recounting his desire to prevent Michelle's unhappiness. When she was about to open the door, the playwright turned to tell politely remind him to tell her if he ever changed his mind about her film and the vessels of sin. She then promptly left.

Dark Star Scandal
"Gallerian was a friend of mine. He too was possessed by a Deadly Sin. I, for one, thought to try and use that. As I expected, he collected many of the vessels."

- Ma

After Nemesis' pet ziz tiama attacked the Titanis that Gallerian's wife and daughter were sailing on and killed them that same day, Ma approached the grieving judge in EC 980. Believing the Clockworker's Doll to be Michelle and that she was permanently disabled, Ma spoke to him about the vessels of sin again; Gallerian then reconsidered Ma's offer from years prior and agreed to help collect all of the demonic vessels so he could wish for his daughter to be healed.

Once Gallerian collected the Marlon Spoon after the Spoon Corruption Case, the playwright had him forge a contract with the Demon of Greed. With her friend's avarice intensified through the demon's influence, she instructed him to keep it with him at all times, claiming it was his only means to communicate with "Michelle". The judge agreed and used his position as the USE Dark Star Bureau's supreme court director to take bribes to decide his rulings, allowing them to collect wealth and resources for their search.

Scherzer Case
"Did you know a certain incident has become the word on the street? It appears several young women have gone missing."

- Ma

After Gallerian had acquitted Scherzer of assaulting a woman, Ma heard rumors of the celebrity being involved in a recent string of women disappearances in the area and learned the media coverage of the whistleblower was being suppressed. She later visited Gallerian's mansion and joined him in his study while he worked. After beginning to smoke her pipe, the playwright related the recent rumors she had heard, lowering the instrument.

When the judge asked if the information was true, Ma raised her other arm  and noted that the women were possibly being sold as slaves. She then pointed out that it still seemed unlikely that Scherzer would commit such a crime despite being a gaudy and unlikable fop. When Gallerian stood from his desk, the surprised playwright watched his bitter reaction to the news. He then grabbed a cloak and told her he was going out before leaving her to investigate the matter.

Soldier's Sword
"Here, this is it. Was I mistaken?" "This is without a doubt the Venom Sword. Heheh, with this, four remain—whoops sorry. “Five” remain. Please continue collecting them this way."

- Gallerian and Ma

After Gallerian convicted Nyoze Octo of murder and confiscated the Venom Sword allegedly in his possession in early EC 982, Ma visited the judge's home a few days later to collect the vessel. Seeing he wasn't there, she went to Michelle's room and accompanied the Clockworker's Doll. When Gallerian finally arrived later that night, the playwright welcomed him, offering him food or bath. As she then began offering him something else, the judge coldly told her not to enter without his permission.

She then playfully responded that wasn't nice. As she began pointing out that there was no need to hesitate since his wife was already gone, the judge flatly told her that Michelle despised her. The playwright retorted that that couldn't be since she was the girl's mother and the judge angrily hurried her to leave. She then agreed she would once she retrieved what she came for and he told her to wait before leaving the room.

Once he returned with the Venom Sword, Ma examined the weapon and confirmed it was authentic. She then noted they had only four left before recalling Gallerian's delusion about the doll and correcting herself that there were actually "five". After encouraging him to continue collecting them as he was, the judge inquired if collecting the sins would really heal his daughter and Ma quickly asserted it was no different from what she said before. When he warned her that this position would be jeopardized if him removing evidence was discovered, Ma said she'd try, stating it would be best for them to have a place far from the public eye to store the vessels; the judge expressed he had similar thoughts.

She then began to leave before recalling the Marlon Spoon, turning to remind him not to lose it either if he wanted to communicate with his daughter. Once the judge confirmed he always had it with him and showed it from his pocket, the Ma expressed her satisfaction and bid him farewell. After she left the room, she lingered to overhear the judge one-sidedly converse with "Michelle" and promise to collect her "friends" to appease her boredom. The amused playwright then mentally wished Gallerian to enjoy the "doll game" and left.

Evil’s Theater
"Quite a place, eh?"

- Ma regarding Evil's Forest

After Gallerian shut down the Graveyard restaurant later that year and confiscated the Glass of Conchita and one of the Four Mirrors of Lucifenia, Ma visited the judge and confirmed the vessels' authenticity before leaving. Once Gallerian finished constructing Evil's Theater later that year, the vessels of sin they collected were moved to the theater.

After Gallerian's death during the Leviantan Civil War in EC 983, Ma inherited the judge's collection. A few days later, she disappeared into the Millennium Tree Forest and stored the vessels of sin in Evil's Theater. Taking on the name the Gardener, Ma attached the burned Clockworker's Doll to the inner workings of Heartbeat Clocktower to sustain her life, having the awakened vessel of Greed, Gear, maintain the tower. As more of the vessels began to awaken, Ma began writing about their actions; around this time, she obtained the allegiance of the Master of the Graveyard, tasking her with guarding the theater from intruders.

Around the time the Doll began to sing, Ma was wandering through the woods; with rumors of Gallerian's fortune being hidden in the theater, Ma witnessed visitors to the forest being captured and eaten by the Master of the Graveyard for their intrusion. Sometime after the forest earned the name "Evil's Forest", Ma happened upon a greedy intruder while wandering the forest. Welcoming the visitor, the Gardener questioned what greeting was best before deciding either was fine.

Once she explained her current and previous identity, the playwright offered to teach the "rules" of the forest to the intruder. Listing off some random rules, as well as to flee from both the Master of the Graveyard and her servants and stay away from the demon nest of a theater, Ma remarked about how odd the forest was. She then told the intruder not worry about remembering the rules, since they would change the next day anyhow. Noting she forgot a rule, she told the greedy visitor not to trust what people said in the forest.

After the Clockworker's Doll was revitalized and took on the name "Master of the Court", Ma promised that Gallerian’s vision of Utopia would come true if all the vessels of sin were collected, pushing the doll to continue her “father's” quest and grant his wish. Afterwards, Ma penned several screenplays regarding Evillious and the Seven Deadly Sins and had them adapted as films for the theater. After an intruder had entered the theater, the playwright had the visitor watch some films with her and explained the story behind each of them. After the fifteen films were finished, Ma offered to play a word game with the visitor before they were put on trial and sentenced to death by the Master of the Court.

Later, one of the intruders, Gammon Octo, was made into the choreman for the theater; with Gammon becoming the new Gardener, Ma took on the name of "Mage of Time". Due to the vessel of Envy failing to awaken, Ma became the replacement for the dormant pair of scissors. Becoming acquainted with Gammon, Ma used his Purple Dream ability to assist her in writing her screenplays. When Gammon submitted a "motion" to review the script regarding his vision for the Director Doll's utopia, Ma was visibly irritated by his action.

In EC 998, she along with the other awakened vessels of sin attended the "trial" meeting called by the Master of the Court. While there, she was asked by the Judicial Doll if she knew the location of the vessel of Wrath. Ma responded that, because its form and owners changed over time, she did not know its current location. She then qualified that it was probably in "her" hands.

Personality and Traits
"Point: whether the country is destroyed and the world disappears is none of your business."

- One of Ma's "rules" of Evil's Forest

Ma was a deceptive and awful woman, using others to achieve her personal goals. Being the combined soul of "Elluka Clockworker", Eve Moonlit, and Irina Clockworker, Ma shared many of the traits of each of them; this included Irina's existence as a HER, compelling her to spread malice and misfortune to others in order to destroy the gods and everything they created.

Ma was expressive and had dramatic mood swings depending on how someone answered her. When amused, she chuckled more often and was always smiling; when denied what she wanted, she became visibly sullen and sometimes argumentative. She was likewise playful, especially with her malicious intentions.

As part of this, she played around with the impending demise of intruders to Evil's Theater, even stating she looked forward to their next meeting before one visitor was put on trial by the Master of the Court. She similarly manipulated both Gallerian and his "daughter" to aid her in collecting the vessels of sin, showing no signs of remorse for lying to them. The vessels themselves were extremely important to her and she became bothered when Gallerian's plan for utopia via the vessels was put into doubt.

The playwright acted especially whimsy and flirtatious towards Gallerian Marlon. Since meeting the judge, Ma would always become angry with him over little things and get into arguments over them. In spite of this, she openly referred to him as her friend and shameless about their affair in private. Like a child, she acted visibly excited when bringing up the vessels of sin or her "Daughter of Evil" film adaptation to him, and was intent to earn his support for both endeavors.

After Gallerian lost his family, Ma supported the judge and encouraged him to collect the vessels for his daughter, albeit knowing that Michelle was dead and that he was under the delusion that the Clockworker's Doll was her. Similarly, she treated the Doll like it was alive and called herself its "mother" despite it earning Gallerian's chagrin. Ma had a smoking habit and usually kept a pipe in her sleeves for the occasion, smoking whenever she desired even when Gallerian repeatedly told her not.

She also appeared to like her work as a playwright and wrote numerous screenplays while in Evil's Theater. After Gammon Octo joined their ranks, Ma collaborated with the man to create them, using his Prophetic Dream ability to great effect. She also was dedicated to writing down what transpired with the awakened vessels and considered each of them to have a "starring role", regardless of how big or small it really was. Similarly, she seemingly showed affection for her daughter, Nemesis, and raised her by herself, although keeping her in near isolation due to being the child of an extramarital affair and eventually abandoning her.

Skills and Abilities
"For them, I keep writing the story intently."

- Ma regarding the "collectibles"

Known as the "Mage of Time", Ma was a powerful mage with strong magic, possessing the magical power of the god Levia, the most powerful witch in history Eve Moonlit, and the extremely powerful mage Irina Clockworker. Despite this, she was unable to use much of her overwhelming power and couldn't even conjure fire or lightning as she remembered. However, the mage still possessed the Swap Technique, allowing her to utilize the spell to move souls between bodies. Centuries after her creation, however, Ma was able to perform hypnosis as well as fire and wind magic.

In a similar vein, Ma maintained all the knowledge and experience of the souls comprising hers, including their immense knowledge about magic, Hereditary Evil Raiser Syndrome, the gods, the vessels of sin, and all the events surrounding them. She was also an experienced penman, adapting many historical events from the Evillious' history into features reenacted at Evil's Theater. Due to her soul being partially that of a god, Ma was also an ageless immortal. Because of the immensity of her composite soul, the mage required an especially suitable human body to act as her vessel. .

Character Connections
Gallerian Marlon: Ma's partner. Ma considered Gallerian a useful benefactor as well as a close friend, sometimes giving him aid in his court cases and even having an affair with him; despite this, she was frustrated with his stingy nature and found his corrupt court tactics distasteful. She was also, their romance notwithstanding, willing to manipulate the judge for her own aims. Ma often enjoyed teasing Gallerian and later became amused with his obsessive love for the Clockworker's Doll.

Gammon Octo: A fellow member of Evil's Theater and the Gardener after her. Ma got along with Gammon well enough to let him tend to her garden and let him help her write screenplays for the cinema, seeing his clairvoyant "Purple Dream" ability as useful. Despite this, she was disturbed by his visions predicting the world as ending when the sins are gathered.

Master of the Graveyard: A fellow member of Evil's Theater. Ma viewed the Master of the Graveyard as a useful ally when gathering the other vessels of sin, relying on her insatiable hunger to keep away potential thieves away from the theater.

Master of the Court: A fellow member of Evil's Theater. Ma saw the Master of the Court, as director of Evil's Theater, useful for fulfilling her goals. She became a primary influence on her actions as a means to control the whole theater.

Kayo Sudou: The physical body of Ma. She swapped bodies with Kayo in hopes of regaining some of the magical power from Kayo's bloodline. She saw it as a suitable body and at times made use of the tailor's identity.

Nemesis Sudou: Ma's daughter. After having Nemesis following her affair with Gallerian, Ma saw fit to raise Nemesis on her own and treated her with affection, such that the child grew to respect and love her. Due to the nature of her conception, however, she raised the child in relative isolation, although still saw fit to impart certain philosophies on the child, such as giving all criminals a second chance.

Conceptualization and Origin

 * Ma's name is derived from the title of Ma and also stands for "Mem Aleph", having similar origins as the title.
 * In-universe, Ma's name also means "madoushi" and "mother"; the former is derived from madoushi (魔導師), the Japanese word for mage.
 * Interestingly, the syllable for "Ma" is the root sound for "mother" in many romance languages.

Curiosities

 * When offering to reveal her identity in the Evils Kingdom booklet, Ma has the reader solve a puzzle to reveal the remaining letters following the "Ma" in her name; after completing the puzzle, her identity is spelled out as being a "Magician".
 * In The Muzzle of Nemesis, Ma's appearance in the PV is complemented by the text for "Mother" in the background with the "her" portion colored red instead of black like the rest of the word.
 * She shares the same birthday (January 30) with her Vocaloid.
 * In Epic of Evil: The Daughter of Evil Fanbook, Ma was voted as the nineteenth most popular character in The Daughter of Evil series by Japanese fans, along with Mariam Futapie, Aile Freezis, Prim Marlon, Arkatoir Marlon, Banica Conchita, and the Demon of Gluttony.
 * While discussing her actions after destroying the Third Period with Allen Avadonia, Nemesis claims that Ma had survived the world's destruction and was walking around the ground world.

Gallery
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