Orly was a terminally ill orphan turned into a vampire at age 12 by Yelena Solodnikova in order to save her from her illness, and will always appear to be 12, despite now being 24 years of age. Orly makes drawings of people in black crayon that appear as only scribbles to everyone else, but in them she alone can see the histories and secrets of those she draws. Orly lives in Los Angeles but is now empress of the Romanian-based Cobǎlcescu bloodline of vampires, after she dethroned the previous all-powerful and ruthless five-thousand-year empress (imparateasa) Mirela Cobǎlcescu, and stole her power by drinking all of her blood. Orly has the ability to visit The Oblivion, a place of the mind known to few vampires where they live again as they were on the brink of their mortal deaths. For Orly, this is her hospital room where she is dying from leukemia and is frequently visited by Yelena. Orly perpetually struggles to find the romantic adult love she longs for because she is hindered by her permanent childlike appearance and physicality despite having matured mentally and emotionally to adulthood.

  Orly’s life is full of loss and grief as many close to her have died, including:

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  Yelena Solodnikova (her maker and foster mother)

  Mirela Cobǎlcescu (Yelena’s killer and later Orly’s lover)

  Berthold Leitz (her guardian)

  Mayuko Mochizuki (her best friend)

  Kristy Amare (her fledgling)

  Zacharias Underland (her friend)

  Evike (her friend)

  Ji’Indushul (fate unknown)

  Living friends include: Hisato, Corinne, Darcy, Grace, and Konomi of the Ketsuen bloodline; Rosanna Cavalcanti, her Cobǎlcescu housemate; and her fledgling Khalil Walker.

  Elder vampires who have lived more than 500 years are considered Ancients. Those who have lived more than 2,000 years are called Eternals. In the Cobǎlcescu bloodline there are only four Eternal vampires remaining: Petru, Codrina, Viorica, and Vasile.

  Shortly after Orly became empress, there was a coup within the Cobǎlcescu led by an Eternal named Trajan who allied himself with a rival bloodline, Los Angeles de Sangre (Blood Angels) and started a war among bloodlines. With the help of Konomi of the Ketsuen bloodline and Mez from the Azunu bloodline, Orly ended the war with little bloodshed. My Darling Tragedy begins shortly after that war ended, and with peace restored, Orly’s attentions have returned to other things—strengthening her relationships, learning to be empress, and finding true love.